#$$=.¨¨¨¨¨ ¨¨¨¨¨.=$$#
#$;==¨¨¨¨¨ ¨¨¨¨¨==;$#
@¤$$;=¨¨¨¨ ¨¨¨¨=;$$¤@
#@#¤$$;=.¨ ¨.=;$$¤#@#
#@#¤$$;=.¨ ¨.=;$$¤#@#
@#¤$$$;=.¨ ;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;; ¨.=;$$$¤#@
#$$;;;==.¨ ¨.==;;;$$#
##@#¤$;=.¨ MOUSE GIRL LIKES SHOES ¨.=;$¤#@##
#$;.¨¨¨¨¨¨ ¨¨¨¨¨¨.;$#
##@#¤$$=.¨ ; ; ; ; ¨.=$$¤#@##
¤¤¤$$$;=.¨ ¨.=;$$$¤¤¤
##@¤$$;=.¨ IN THIS DREAM I WAS A GIRL OF MAYBE ¨.=;$$¤@##
@¤$==¨¨¨¨¨ SIXTEEN YEARS, TOGETHER WITH MY DAD IN ¨¨¨¨¨==$¤@
#@#¤$$;=.¨ A HUGE BATH HOUSE / SPA / HOTEL / ¨.=;$$¤#@#
###¤$$;=.¨ SHOPPING CENTRE. DAD WAS CONSTATLY ¨.=;$$¤###
#@#¤$$;=.¨ POINTING OUT HOT GIRLS TO ME. "YOU SEE ¨.=;$$¤#@#
##$$$;;=.¨ THAT BLACK-HAIRED THING DISSAPEARING ¨.=;;$$$##
@¤$$$;..¨¨ BEHIND THE CLOTHES RACK? OOF!" HE'D ¨¨..;$$$¤@
#@#¤$$;=.¨ SAY. HE WAS ALWAYS VERY CREEPY ABOUT ¨.=;$$¤#@#
##$$;.¨¨¨¨ THIS, GOING FOR GIRLS MY AGE. ¨¨¨¨.;$$##
¤$$=....¨¨ ¨¨....=$$¤
¤$$$=¨¨¨¨¨ THIS NIGHT HE HAD JUST TRIED TO WOO A ¨¨¨¨¨=$$$¤
#@#¤$$;=.¨ GIRL HE CALLED A "MOUSE" BY BUYING HER ¨.=;$$¤#@#
#@#¤$$;=.¨ SHOES, BUT SHE HAD ACCEPTED THEM ONLY ¨.=;$$¤#@#
@#¤$====.¨ TO RUN AWAY IMMEDIATELY AFTERWARD. DAD ¨.====$¤#@
¤¤$$$$;=.¨ WAS A BIT BUMMED BUT DROPPED IT ¨.=;$$$$¤¤
#$$=¨¨¨¨¨¨ QUICKLY. I SAID GOODNIGHT TO HIM AND ¨¨¨¨¨¨=$$#
#¤¤$$$;=.¨ WENT LOOKING FOR THE MOUSE. ¨.=;$$$¤¤#
¤$=¨¨¨¨¨¨¨ ¨¨¨¨¨¨¨=$¤
@#$$$;=.¨¨ THE BUILDING WAS ENORMOUS AND MAZELIKE. ¨¨.=;$$$#@
¤¤¤¤$$;=.¨ WALLS, FLOORS AND PILLARS WERE SET IN ¨.=;$$¤¤¤¤
#@#¤$$;=.¨ GREEN MARBLE. THROUGHOUT THE HOUSE RAN ¨.=;$$¤#@#
@@#¤$$;=.¨ A MAIN BOULEVARD, WIDE AS A STREET, ¨.=;$$¤#@@
##@¤$$;=.¨ FRAMED WITH CLAY VASES DARK AS OBSIDIAN ¨.=;$$¤@##
#@#¤$$;=.¨ AND TALLER THAN A PERSON. IN EACH VASE ¨.=;$$¤#@#
#@#¤$$;=.¨ WAS PLACED UPRIGHT A LEAF FROM A PALM ¨.=;$$¤#@#
#@#¤$$;=.¨ TREE OR GIANT FERN. THE BOULEVARD WAS ¨.=;$$¤#@#
##@#¤$;=.¨ DIMLY LIT, WHICH ALLOWED THE POOLS THAT ¨.=;$¤#@##
##@#$$;=.¨ WERE GENEROUSLY SPRINKLED THROUGHOUT ¨.=;$$#@##
#$$;====.¨ EACH FLOOR WOULD REFLECT SUGGESTIVE ¨.====;$$#
@@#¤$$;=.¨ PATTERNS ON THE MARBLE. ¨.=;$$¤#@@
#$;;;.¨¨¨¨ ¨¨¨¨.;;;$#
#$;.¨¨¨¨¨¨ ; ; ; ; ¨¨¨¨¨¨.;$#
###¤$$;=.¨ ¨.=;$$¤###
¤$;=....¨¨ FOLLOWING THE BOULEVARD, TWO FLOORS UP ¨¨....=;$¤
##@¤$$;=.¨ I FOUND HER CRYING BEHIND TWO FERN ¨.=;$$¤@##
@¤$;.¨¨¨¨¨ VASES. SHE WAS BEAUTIFUL, AND AS I ¨¨¨¨¨.;$¤@
¤$;.¨¨¨¨¨¨ APPROACHED, SHE LOOKED UP AND SNIVELED. ¨¨¨¨¨¨.;$¤
@@#¤$$;=.¨ IN THE NEAREST VASE SHE HAD STUFFED ¨.=;$$¤#@@
###¤$$;=.¨ BOTH THE SHOES. ¨.=;$$¤###
###¤$$;=.¨ ¨.=;$$¤###
#@#¤$$;=.¨ I TOLD HER TO FOLLOW, BUT SHE DIDN'T ¨.=;$$¤#@#
###¤$$;=.¨ MOVE OR SPEAK. SO INSTEAD I SAID TO ¨.=;$$¤###
##@¤$$;=.¨ STAY THERE, AND RAN TO GET HER A BETTER ¨.=;$$¤@##
¤$$$;=.¨¨¨ PAIR OF SHOES THAT SHE WOULD ACTUALLY ¨¨¨.=;$$$¤
###¤$$;=.¨ LIKE. WHEN I RETURNED, HAVING SPENT ¨.=;$$¤###
#@#¤$$;=.¨ MORE THAN I COULD REALLY AFFORD, SHE ¨.=;$$¤#@#
#¤$$$$;=.¨ WAS VISIBLY IMPRESSED. I TRIED TO SOUND ¨.=;$$$$¤#
#@#¤$$;=.¨ COOL, SAYING SOMETHING LIKE "WHAT DO ¨.=;$$¤#@#
@@#¤$$;=.¨ YOU THINK, JUST BECAUSE A GIRL HAS A ¨.=;$$¤#@@
¤¤¤$$$;=.¨ FREAKY DAD, SHE DOESN'T HAVE TASTE?" ¨.=;$$$¤¤¤
#@#¤$$;=.¨ BUT MOUSE GIRL JUST LAUGHED AT ME. ¨.=;$$¤#@#
@@#¤$$;=.¨ ¨.=;$$¤#@@
¤$$===¨¨¨¨ SHE THEN TOOK ME BY THE HAND AND LED ME ¨¨¨¨===$$¤
##@¤$$;=.¨ OUT A SIDE ROUTE TO A CLOSED-OFF ¨.=;$$¤@##
###¤$$;=.¨ ROOFTOP WALKING GARDEN, FULL OF JUNIPER ¨.=;$$¤###
@¤¤$$;;=.¨ AND THUJA. IT WAS A LATE EVENING, AND ¨.=;;$$¤¤@
#$$$$;=.¨¨ THE STARS WERE GLITTERING. BEING ¨¨.=;$$$$#
##@#$$;=.¨ CLOSED, THE GARDEN HAD ITS LIGHT TURNED ¨.=;$$#@##
##$$===¨¨¨ OFF, BUT WE COULD STILL SEE OUR WAY ¨¨¨===$$##
@##¤$$;=.¨ AROUND BY THE LIGHT SHINING DOWN FROM ¨.=;$$¤##@
#@#¤$$;=.¨ THE WINDOWS OF THE HIGHER FLOORS. ¨.=;$$¤#@#
##¤$$$;=.¨ ¨.=;$$$¤##
##@¤$$;=.¨ SHE LAY DOWN IN A PATCH OF GRASS. I SAT ¨.=;$$¤@##
¤¤$$;=.¨¨¨ DOWN ON MY KNEES, AND THEN CRAWLED ¨¨¨.=;$$¤¤
#@#¤$$;=.¨ CLOSER. SHE LAUGHED AT ME AGAIN, AND ¨.=;$$¤#@#
#$;==....¨ SAID - ¨....==;$#
###¤$$;=.¨ ¨.=;$$¤###
@#$$$$;=.¨ ; ; ; ; ¨.=;$$$$#@
#@#¤$$;=.¨ ¨.=;$$¤#@#
#@#¤$$;=.¨ (HERE I AM AWAKENED BY THE MORNING CREW) ¨.=;$$¤#@#
¤$$$=.¨¨¨¨ ¨¨¨¨.=$$$¤
¤¤$$$=¨¨¨¨ ;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;; ¨¨¨¨=$$$¤¤
#$$$$===.¨ ¨.===$$$$#
¤$$;..¨¨¨¨ ¨¨¨¨..;$$¤
#@#¤$$;=.¨ ¨.=;$$¤#@#
#@#¤$$;=.¨ ¨.=;$$¤#@#
#@#¤$$;=.¨ ¨.=;$$¤#@#