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)