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)