art by Jonathan Westbrook
I Heard You Got a Cat, I Heard You Named Him Charles
I heard you got a cat. I heard you named him Charles. I guess you didn't know that I do cats too?
I played all those games you wanted, all those black-blond-red-brown-bald-headed strangers. But you never said you wanted a cat. I could have done that too.
I told you that you'd never have to replace me, and I meant exactly what I said. I told you I could be anything you wanted--or even what you didn't know you wanted. In how many bars did I buy you drinks, wearing how many different skins? Through how many eyes and mouths did I pick you up? With how many hands did I touch you?
All those different men--all me. That hint of danger and thrill of confusion you always wanted, that only I could give you.
I heard you don't go to bars anymore. I heard you're afraid I still do. But that was never what I wanted. That was always just for you.
I was a fox once, before I met you. For three whole months, I was--except, now and then, when I was half of one instead. That wasn't what I wanted either, but I did it because I could. I was the only one who could.
And I can do cats too.
Enjoying this story? Don't miss the next one!
SUBSCRIBE TO DSF
I wouldn't even need a litter box. I could feed and water myself. I'd never scratch your furniture either--at least not without a cause.
During the day, when you're out and gone, I could change back to a man. I could wash your breakfast dishes, make your morning bed, dust and tidy up your rooms. I could leave chocolate and flowers on your fluffed-up pillows, and I could still be a cat when you returned.
At night, I'd watch you drink your tea and read your books. I'd curl up on your lap. I'd never let you be alone.
I could change at night too, of course, if you ever wanted that.
Or I could stay a cat instead. If that's really all you want, I'd stay a cat for you. Or several cats, perhaps? A different cat every day--tabby, calico, Maltese, Kashmir, tortoiseshell. Whatever you want me to be, I'm not going to beg or threaten you, but I'll take what I can get.
I told you that you'd never have to replace me, but I heard you got a cat. And even though you named him Charles, it's not too late to give him back.
The End
This story was first published on Wednesday, February 20th, 2013
We hope you enjoyed
I Heard You Got a Cat, I Heard You Named Him Charles by
M. Bennardo.
Please support Daily Science Fiction by becoming a member.
Daily Science Fiction does not have a paywall, but we do have expenses—more than 95% of which are direct payments to authors for their stories. With your $15 membership, less than 6 cents per story, we can continue to provide genre fiction every weekday by email and on the website to thousands of readers for many years to come.
Support Daily Science Fiction
Please click to rate this story from 1 (ho-hum) to 7 (excellent!):
Please don't read too much into these ratings. For many reasons, a superior story may not get a superior score.
4.9 Rocket Dragons Average
Please join our mailing list and
receive free daily sci-fi (your email address will be kept
100% private):
