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###&$^^~~¨ THEY TELL ME: "WE ARE GOING TO SHRINK ¨~~^^$&###
###&$^^~~¨ YOU." I DON'T QUITE LIKE THE TONE IN ¨~~^^$&###
#$^~~¨¨¨¨¨ THEIR VOICES, LIKE THEY ARE RESTRAINING ¨¨¨¨¨~~^$#
#&^^~~¨¨¨¨ THEMSELVES. THERE IS A HUNGER IN THEM ¨¨¨¨~~^^&#
&^~¨¨¨¨¨¨¨ AND IT WANTS ME TO SHRINK. AND WHAT ¨¨¨¨¨¨¨~^&
#&$^~~¨¨¨¨ REALLY IRKS ME IS THAT SO DO I. ¨¨¨¨~~^$&#
###&$^^~~¨ ¨~~^^$&###
#$$^~~¨¨¨¨ THEY GIVE ME WRISTBANDS AND ANKLETS, ¨¨¨¨~~^$$#
#$^~~¨¨¨¨¨ MADE OF SOME STRANGE STONE. THEIR ¨¨¨¨¨~~^$#
#$$^~¨¨¨¨¨ SURFACE IS SWIRLING, LIKE DARK ¨¨¨¨¨~^$$#
###&$^^~~¨ THUNDERSTORMS TRAPPED IN GLASS, LIKE ¨~~^^$&###
###&$^^~~¨ WINDOWS INTO A SMALLER WORLD, CLOSE TO ¨~~^^$&###
###&$^^~~¨ MY BODY SO THAT IT CAN SEE CLEARLY ¨~~^^$&###
###&$^^~~¨ WHATS IN STORE. ¨~~^^$&###
###&$^^~~¨ ¨~~^^$&###
###&$^^~~¨ THEY GIVE ME FOOD: PRAWN-LIKE BUGS THAT ¨~~^^$&###
###&$^^~~¨ MAKE MY TONGUE CURL WITH SATISFACTION. ¨~~^^$&###
&$$^^^~~~¨ "OUT OF THIS WORLD", I THINK, HAVING NO ¨~~~^^^$$&
#&$^~~~~~¨ FRAME OF REFERENCE. I EAT ONLY TWO, BUT ¨~~~~~^$&#
###&$^^~~¨ THE BUGS LEAVE ME SUSPICIOUSLY ¨~~^^$&###
&$^~¨¨¨¨¨¨ SATISFIED. ¨¨¨¨¨¨~^$&
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###&$^^~~¨ THEY MEASURE MY CLOTHES. "YOU ARE GOING ¨~~^^$&###
###&$^^~~¨ TO BECOME ABOUT HALF AS BIG", THEY TELL ¨~~^^$&###
###&$^^~~¨ ME, BARELY CONTROLLING THEMSELVES WITH ¨~~^^$&###
&$^~¨¨¨¨¨¨ ANTICIPATION. ¨¨¨¨¨¨~^$&
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