@@¤%«¨¨¨¨¨ ¨¨¨¨¨«%¤@@
@¤¤$\«««.¨ ¨.«««\$¤¤@
@@@¤$%\«.¨ ¨.«\%$¤@@@
¤¤¤$\\.¨¨¨ ¨¨¨.\\$¤¤¤
@¤%\\\...¨ ¨...\\\%¤@
#@@¤$%\«.¨ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ ¨.«\%$¤@@#
@@@¤$%\«.¨ ¨.«\%$¤@@@
#@@¤$%\«.¨ MOUSE GIRL LIKES SHOES ¨.«\%$¤@@#
@@¤¤$%\«.¨ ¨.«\%$¤¤@@
@@@¤$%\«.¨ \ \ \ \ ¨.«\%$¤@@@
##@¤$%\«.¨ ¨.«\%$¤@##
@$%\«¨¨¨¨¨ IN THIS DREAM I WAS A GIRL OF MAYBE ¨¨¨¨¨«\%$@
¤%\««.¨¨¨¨ 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 ¨¨....\$¤@
##@¤$%\«.¨ SAID - ¨.«\%$¤@##
#@@¤$%\«.¨ ¨.«\%$¤@@#
@@¤$%\\«.¨ \ \ \ \ ¨.«\\%$¤@@
#@@¤$%\«.¨ ¨.«\%$¤@@#
@@$\«¨¨¨¨¨ (HERE I AM AWAKENED BY THE MORNING CREW) ¨¨¨¨¨«\$@@
##@¤$%\«.¨ ¨.«\%$¤@##
#@@¤$%\«.¨ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ ¨.«\%$¤@@#
@@¤¤$%\«.¨ ¨.«\%$¤¤@@
¤%«.¨¨¨¨¨¨ ¨¨¨¨¨¨.«%¤
¤%\\.¨¨¨¨¨ ¨¨¨¨¨.\\%¤
@@@¤$%\«.¨ ¨.«\%$¤@@@
@@¤$%%\«.¨ ¨.«\%%$¤@@