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)