¨¨¨§¨¨¨§§§ §§§§§§¨¨¨§
¨¨§§¨¨§¨¨¨ ¨¨¨¨¨§¨¨§§
¨§¨§¨§§¨¨¨ ¨¨¨¨§§¨§¨§
§§§§§¨§¨¨¨ ¨¨¨§¨§§§§§
¨¨¨¨§§§¨¨¨ ¨¨§§§¨¨¨¨¨
¨¨¨§¨¨§¨¨§ †††††††††††††††††††††††††††††††††††††††† ¨§¨¨§¨¨¨¨¨
¨¨§§¨§§¨§§ §§¨§§¨¨¨¨¨
¨§¨§§¨§§¨¨ 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) §¨¨¨§§§¨§§
¨¨§¨¨¨§§§§ §¨¨§¨¨§§¨¨
¨§§¨¨§¨¨¨¨ †††††††††††††††††††††††††††††††††††††††† §¨§§¨§¨§¨¨
§¨§¨§§¨¨¨§ §§¨§§§§§¨¨
§§§§¨§¨¨§¨ ¨§§¨¨¨¨§¨§
¨¨¨§§§¨§§§ §¨§¨¨¨§§§¨
¨¨§¨¨§§¨¨¨ §§§¨¨§¨¨§¨
¨§§¨§¨§¨¨§ ¨¨§¨§§¨§§¨