§§§¨§¨§¨¨¨ §§¨§§§§¨¨¨
§¨¨§§§§§¨¨ §¨§§¨¨¨§¨¨
§§¨§¨¨¨¨§¨ ¨§§¨§¨¨§§¨
§¨§§§¨¨¨§§ §§¨§§§¨§¨§
¨§§¨¨§¨¨§¨ ¨¨§§¨¨§§§§
§§¨§¨§§¨§§ ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ §¨§¨§¨§¨¨¨
§¨§§§§¨§§¨ ¨§§§§§§§¨¨
§§§¨¨¨§§¨§ 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) §§§§§§§§§¨
¨§§§§§§§§¨ ¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨§
§§¨¨¨¨¨¨¨§ ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ §¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨§
¨¨§¨¨¨¨¨¨§ §§¨¨¨¨¨¨¨§
§¨§§¨¨¨¨¨§ §¨§¨¨¨¨¨¨§
¨§§¨§¨¨¨¨§ §§§§¨¨¨¨¨§
§§¨§§§¨¨¨§ §¨¨¨§¨¨¨¨§
¨¨§§¨¨§¨¨§ §§¨¨§§¨¨¨§