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)