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)