Reaper's Touch

Gus: Travelling

"All changes, even the most longed for, have their melancholy; for what we leave behind us is a part of ourselves."
-Anatole France

Gus was sitting on the front porch of the ranch house, waiting for Jeff to come around with the black SUV that would take them both to
the airport. He was clutching Moon and trying not to cry while he said his goodbyes to her. Oblivious, she purred away in his arms. Moon had grown up to be a little smaller than a regular cat, but she still curled up against Gus's
neck at night like she was the same tiny kitten. He would miss Gina and Moon the most out of everyone at the ranch. Both of them had become family to him.

Gina opened the front door and sat down next to him in another rocking chair. She had a small brown bag on her lap.

"I got you a little something," she said.

"What?" Gus asked curiously.

Gina handed him the bag. He expected clothing, shoes, socks or something equally boring, but what he pulled out was a plush black cat stuffed with beans. It had blue marble eyes and a pink button nose, and its fur was made of fuzzy knitted yarn.

"I made it," Gina said.

"You made this?" Gus asked, surprised. As simple as it was, it could have passed as something from a toy store.

"It's Moon. A copy of Moon anyway," she said.

"Oh." Gus's heart sank at the reminder that in a few minutes, he would have to let go of the real Moon forever.

"It's not just for you. It's also for Moon," Gina said quietly. "Something both of you can remember me by, because Moon is staying with you."

"What?" Gus whispered, not sure he'd heard her right.

"I think you'd both be brokenhearted if you were separated, and I can't have that on my conscience," Gina said with a smile.

Just then the black SUV pulled up in front of the porch. Gus stood, still holding both Moon and the stuffed cat and walked into Gina's open arms since he couldn't hug her first.

"Thank you," he mumbled against her shoulder. The comforting scent of her peach hand lotion enveloped him. For the rest of his life, he would associate that smell with being safe.

"I'll miss you very much, but I know you're in good hands with Jeff," Gina said.

"Maybe I can come back with Jeff sometimes and just visit," Gus said.

"I'd like that."

"Thank you... thank you for everything," Gus said, pulling away from her. He wanted to say more, but his limited education made it all but impossible for him to articulate what she'd meant to him and how much she had helped him on all those dark nights. He wouldn't have made it through some of those EMDR sessions without her.

The words he couldn't say became tears. Gina reached out and wiped them off his cheeks with her thumbs, but she was crying too.

"Oh, let me get a crate for Moon," she said, trying to compose herself.

Gina disappeared back into the house and came out with a small animal crate and an envelope. She put the crate on the ground and handed Gus the envelope.

"What's this?" he asked.

"Moon is now a certified emotional companion. Thank Dr. Paul for that one. She's helped with your PTSD episodes so much he decided to sign off on the paper work."

"What does that mean?" Gus asked.

"It means she can be with you on the plane instead of down below with the luggage, where she'd be scared to death. It also means you can
take her with you to most public places as long as you have a leash for her and the paperwork."