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)