.^====†%##                                          ##%†====^.
.....^=%##                                          ##%=^.....
...^==%%%#                                          #%%%==^...
.^=†%*####                                          ####*%†=^.
.^=†%*#¶##                                          ##¶#*%†=^.
.^=†%*#¶## †††††††††††††††††††††††††††††††††††††††† ##¶#*%†=^.
.^=†%*#¶##                                          ##¶#*%†=^.
....=%%%#¶          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) ##*%=.....
.^=†%*#¶¶¶                                          ¶¶¶#*%†=^.
.^=†%***## †††††††††††††††††††††††††††††††††††††††† ##***%†=^.
.^=†%*#¶##                                          ##¶#*%†=^.
..^^†%%%##                                          ##%%%†^^..
.^=†%*#¶¶#                                          #¶¶#*%†=^.
.^=†%*#¶##                                          ##¶#*%†=^.
.^=†%*####                                          ####*%†=^.