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)