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)