#£†††=^... ...^=†††£#
##£@::==^. .^==::@£##
£@@@::=^.. ..^=::@@@£
###£@†:=^. .^=:†@£###
###£@†:=^. .^=:†@£###
££†==..... :::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: .....==†££
£†:=...... ......=:†£
#£††::^... 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) .^^===††@£
#£@†=..... .....=†@£#
###£@†:=^. :::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: .^=:†@£###
#£@@††:=^. .^=:††@@£#
##@:==^... ...^==:@##
###£@†:=^. .^=:†@£###
£†::^..... .....^::†£
##@†=..... .....=†@##