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)