.:~^†£&¶##                                          ##¶&£†^~:.
..::^^^†&&                                          &&†^^^::..
.:~^†£&¶##                                          ##¶&£†^~:.
....:~†&&&                                          &&&†~:....
.:~†£&¶###                                          ###¶&£†~:.
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.:~^†£&¶##                                          ##¶&£†^~:.
.:~^†£&¶##          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) ###¶£†^~:.
.:~^†£&¶##                                          ##¶&£†^~:.
.:~^†£&¶## ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ ##¶&£†^~:.
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....::^££&                                          &££^::....
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