I Called You Darlie

You should have been called Bastet,
All regal and proud, perched atop the highest aircon compressor.
You should have been called Silhouette,
Keeping to the shadows and trailing me to the pantry.
You should have been called Nightmare,
Stalking me at night and attacking my slippers for play.
You should have been called Puma,
Leaving mice, bats, lizards, birds at my door for my breakfast?
You should have been called Soot,
Dirty paws soiling my bed each time you practiced cat yoga.
You should have been called Demon,
Always looking for things to shred with your unmerciful claws.

I called you Darlie, for your black fur.
I called you Darling, for all the love I bear for you.

You were never really mine,
As I was never really yours.
Yet you sought solace under my table,
seek naps on my bed,
and purred straight into my heart.

You saw me on my first day in hall.
You saw me almost daily after that.
You came to find me when I returned from exchange.
I thought you were going to see me graduate.
I thought I might be able to get my own place soon enough to adopt you.

My silly goofball, cross rainbow bridge and wait for me.
There, you'll never be drenched by rain and frightened by thunder and lightning ever again.

Wait for me, I'll be looking forward to hearing your half meow and half purr greeting when I see you again.