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)