,,~\%%#£## ##£#%%\~,,
,,,~\\%%## ##%%\\~,,,
,,,,,,~%%# #%%~,,,,,,
,,~\%#£### ###£#%\~,,
,,~\\\\%%# #%%\\\\~,,
,,~\%%#£££ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ £££#%%\~,,
,,~\%%#£## ##£#%%\~,,
,,~\%%#£## 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) ##£#%%\~,,
,,~\%%#£## ##£#%%\~,,
,,,,,,,\%£ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ £%\,,,,,,,
,,,,,,~%#£ £#%~,,,,,,
,,~\%%#£## ##£#%%\~,,
,,,,,,\%## ##%\,,,,,,
,,~\%%#£## ##£#%%\~,,
,,,,,~\%%£ £%%\~,,,,,