@¤¤^«¨¨¨¨¨ ¨¨¨¨¨«^¤¤@
#@@&¤^^«,¨ ¨,«^^¤&@@#
@&^^,¨¨¨¨¨ ¨¨¨¨¨,^^&@
&&&^^«,,¨¨ ¨¨,,«^^&&&
###@&^^«,¨ ¨,«^^&@###
##@&¤^^«,¨ ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ ¨,«^^¤&@##
##@&¤^^«,¨ ¨,«^^¤&@##
&^«¨¨¨¨¨¨¨ 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) ¨,«^^¤¤&@#
##@&¤^^«,¨ ¨,«^^¤&@##
#&¤^^^^«,¨ ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ ¨,«^^^^¤&#
##@&¤^^«,¨ ¨,«^^¤&@##
#&^^^«¨¨¨¨ ¨¨¨¨«^^^&#
#&^^^«««,¨ ¨,«««^^^&#
##@&¤^^«,¨ ¨,«^^¤&@##
##@&¤^^«,¨ ¨,«^^¤&@##