..^^~$$$%¤ ¤%$$$~^^..
...^;;;%¤@ @¤%;;;^...
.....~;%¤# #¤%;~.....
.^~;$%¤@## ##@¤%$;~^.
.^~;$%¤@## ##@¤%$;~^.
.^~;;;;%@# ;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;; #@%;;;;~^.
.^~;$%¤@## ##@¤%$;~^.
.^~;$%¤@## MOUSE GIRL LIKES SHOES ##@¤%$;~^.
.^~;$$%¤@@ @@¤%$$;~^.
.^~;$%¤@## ; ; ; ; ##@¤%$;~^.
.^~;$%¤@## ##@¤%$;~^.
...~~~;%¤@ 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 @¤%;~^....
......^;$¤ THE WINDOWS OF THE HIGHER FLOORS. ¤$;^......
.^~;$%¤¤@@ @@¤¤%$;~^.
.^~;$%¤@## SHE LAY DOWN IN A PATCH OF GRASS. I SAT ##@¤%$;~^.
.^~;$%¤@## DOWN ON MY KNEES, AND THEN CRAWLED ##@¤%$;~^.
......~$%@ CLOSER. SHE LAUGHED AT ME AGAIN, AND @%$~......
.^~;$%¤@## SAID - ##@¤%$;~^.
.^~;$%¤@## ##@¤%$;~^.
.....~$¤@# ; ; ; ; #@¤$~.....
..^^~;;%@# #@%;;~^^..
.....~$¤¤¤ (HERE I AM AWAKENED BY THE MORNING CREW) ¤¤¤$~.....
.^~;$%¤@## ##@¤%$;~^.
.....~~$%¤ ;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;; ¤%$~~.....
.^~;$%¤@## ##@¤%$;~^.
.....^~$%@ @%$~^.....
...~~;;%¤¤ ¤¤%;;~~...
.^~;$%¤@## ##@¤%$;~^.
.^~;$%¤@@@ @@@¤%$;~^.