&&.&..&... &&.&&..&&.
&.&&&.&&.. &.&&.&.&.&
.&&..&&.&. .&&.&&&&&&
&&.&.&.&&& &&.&&.....
&.&&&&&&.. ..&&.&....
&&&.....&. †††††††††††††††††††††††††††††††††††††††† ..&.&&&...
&..&....&& ..&&&..&..
&&.&&...&. 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) .&&&&...&&
&.&.&.&.&. &&...&..&.
&&&&&&&&&& †††††††††††††††††††††††††††††††††††††††† ..&..&&.&&
.......... ..&&.&.&&.
.......... ..&.&&&&.&
&......... ..&&&...&&
.&........ &.&..&..&.
.&&....... .&&&.&&.&&