&&&$^--... ...--^$&&&
##@&$*^-.. ..-^*$&@##
&*^---.... ....---^*&
&$^-...... ......-^$&
&$****^-.. ..-^****$&
##@&$*^-.. ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ ..-^*$&@##
###@&$^-.. ..-^$&@###
##@&$*^-.. MOUSE GIRL LIKES SHOES ..-^*$&@##
@&&$$*^-.. ..-^*$$&&@
#&$$*-.... ^ ^ ^ ^ ....-*$$&#
&&*^---... ...---^*&&
@&**--.... 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 .....--*&&
##@&$*^-.. SAID - ..-^*$&@##
&&$^...... ......^$&&
#@&*-..... ^ ^ ^ ^ .....-*&@#
@$$^-..... .....-^$$@
###@$*^-.. (HERE I AM AWAKENED BY THE MORNING CREW) ..-^*$@###
&$*^...... ......^*$&
###@$*^-.. ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ ..-^*$@###
##@&$*^-.. ..-^*$&@##
@&&$**^-.. ..-^**$&&@
##@&$*^-.. ..-^*$&@##
@$$$$*^-.. ..-^*$$$$@
##@&$*^-.. ..-^*$&@##