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)