@#%\,¨¨¨¨¨ ¨¨¨¨¨,\%#@
##@#&%\«,¨ ¨,«\%&#@##
#@@#&%\«,¨ ¨,«\%&#@@#
###@#&%«,¨ ¨,«%&#@###
##@#&%\«,¨ ¨,«\%&#@##
###@#%\«,¨ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ ¨,«\%#@###
@&%««¨¨¨¨¨ ¨¨¨¨¨««%&@
@@#&&%\«,¨ 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) ¨¨¨¨¨«%%&@
@&\«¨¨¨¨¨¨ ¨¨¨¨¨¨«\&@
##%\\\,¨¨¨ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ ¨¨¨,\\\%##
#&&\,¨¨¨¨¨ ¨¨¨¨¨,\&&#
##&&&%\«,¨ ¨,«\%&&&##
##@#&%\«,¨ ¨,«\%&#@##
#&&&&%\«,¨ ¨,«\%&&&&#
##@#&%\«,¨ ¨,«\%&#@##