Moon Pooch
#1 of One Shots
Moon Pooch
Thursday Prompt~ Survivor
3-11-2010
Renee Hupp
"That's my little girl in there," the tall raccoon spoke lowly to his wife, "and she is a survivor."
"Of course she is love," the slightly shorter wolf lady said, putting a paw on his shoulder.
They stood on the other side of a piece of glass looking in at their eight year old daughter. She had been complaining of pains all over her body for a few weeks, and they brushed if off thinking it was just the little girl starting to grow. When she finally came down with a high fever and had trouble seeing they took her to the doctor. The couldn't find anything and order some extensive blood work to be done.
After about a week, the blood work had come back a shown that she had a serious infection that was not common. Since then, what was really only two days ago, they waited for what seemed like eternity in this overly white and sterile place. They would go in and sit with her when she was awake, but while she was asleep they always stepped out and just watched.
The raccoon watched as his precious daughter, who seemed to take more after her mother's genes, laid there at the mercy of medicine. He felt so bad that she was going through this. The little red and grey wolf child was hooked up to monitors and had so many tubes it was sad. What was even worse that all the get well wishes couldn't be brought into the room, all the flowers and balloon that had been sent. There was a small pile of stuffed animals on a table in the corner, but that was it for the color. Other than that it was just blinding white.
His wife sighed and left his side, going to sit and rest. It had been days since either of them got any rest. He didn't turn his head to watch her walk away as he normally did, which worried her even more. She sat in one of the uncomfortable chairs and closed her eyes.
The raccoon finally turned his head and watched his wife for a moment, smiling that she would finally get some sleep. She was the strong one out of the two, putting on a straight face and battling doctors and insurance to get their daughter the best care. Taking all the pain this was causing her and not letting anyone see it. She would even sit in the cafeteria on her laptop, doing what work she could and having two or three cell phones going off around her. The lady wolf had run herself down and she deserved a rest, he thought.
As he turned his head back, the raccoon saw the child stirring slightly. He opened the door and walked over to the child's side. He put a paw on her arm gently, partially out of fear of breaking her. He had never realized how fragile life was until recently.
As she blinked her green eyes slowly open, one of the few traits she had received from him, she smiled. He smiled back at her. What would he do if that smile disappeared? What would he have left?
"Hi Daddy," she said, her tiny paws grabbing his. "I saw the moon pooch!"
He laughed at that. His wife had made up this strange story of a moon pooch so long ago and told it to the child that it was like air for the little one. It started that the moon pooch watched over all the little pups from the time they were born until they had a pup to pass the story off too. The moon pooch would visit in dreams and tell the pups how to be good for their parents and give them hope when they were sad.
"Really? What did he have to say?" he asked, kneeling down to look her in the eye.
"I don't remember. He just kinda looked at me and smiled."
"Well, I would take that as a good sign then," he said. "If the moon pooch thinks you will be okay, you must be getting a little better, right?"
"I hope so," the little wolf said trailing off.
"None of that little lady," he said in a stern, but joking tone. "You have to get better."
"Why?" she asked.
"Because I need you here," he said, eyes a little misty, "and your mother needs to so she has a reason not to ever give up. Plus, you have to pass the moon pooch on eventually."
The little wolf giggled. He scratched her ears and smiled at her. She was the light of his life any more. He didn't want that light to disappear.
The two sat and talked for a while, eventually just falling asleep together, the little paws of child still holding tightly on to her fathers. He would wake up in horrible pain since the only part of him really laying down was his head resting on the bed.
In his dreams, the moon pooch visited him, which he found strange since he wasn't a canine The black and grey dog quietly reassured him that all would be okay. It was not his little girls time to go yet. The raccoon smiled and thanked the moon pooch for all of his help, all the while feeling a bit silly.
Moments later, his wife walked in, cane in hand, with a doctor. The little pups most recent blood test had come back. All was normal. They fixed it all and caught it in time. The raccoon embraced his wife tightly, kissing her on the cheek.
"He was right, oh thank-you, he was right," he said, resting on his wife's shoulder.
"Who was right hunny?" she said, stroking his neck.
"The moon pooch mommy! He's always right!" the little girl piped in smiling widely as the tubes and monitors started to be disconnected.