@@@#%%=~~¨ ¨~~=%%#@@@
@@%%~¨¨¨¨¨ ¨¨¨¨¨~%%@@
@###%%=~~¨ ¨~~=%%###@
@@#%=~¨¨¨¨ ¨¨¨¨~=%#@@
@#%=~¨¨¨¨¨ ¨¨¨¨¨~=%#@
##%%=~¨¨¨¨ ======================================== ¨¨¨¨~=%%##
#@@#%%=~~¨ ¨~~=%%#@@#
##@@%%=~~¨ 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) ¨¨¨~~=%%#@
@@%=~¨¨¨¨¨ ¨¨¨¨¨~=%@@
@###%%=~~¨ ======================================== ¨~~=%%###@
##@@%%=~~¨ ¨~~=%%@@##
@@@#%%=~~¨ ¨~~=%%#@@@
@@%%===~~¨ ¨~~===%%@@
#%%~~~¨¨¨¨ ¨¨¨¨~~~%%#
#@@#%%=~~¨ ¨~~=%%#@@#