A  short story.

The Raccoon family is a story about a couple and four babies. Like most mothers in nature, the raccoon, protects her young and provides the comfort they need. To the human family, a raccoon is a pest, a nuisance, but seeing a raccoon in action as a provider is something to admire. Raccoons have a great personality and possess great skill in gathering food by moving the tail rapidly. The beautiful white markings make this animal desirable for fur.

The story has three parts:

  Part one:  The family and the celebration of their young ones. The mother concerned about her environment found a new home next to a loving retired couple.

Part two:  The meeting of  two evil men who are fur predators.  The fate of doom for Pappa is near. The attempt to kill and skin him for his coat. This part is disturbing. Over forty million animals are skinned to feed primitive illusions.

Part three: Sissy and her young ones are safe at home. Years later at a party the family found Pappa in a form of a Raccoon jacket and a belt. The belt is his thick tail with six brown rings. Sissy and her teenagers smell the odor of Pappa and returned him home. The  family re-united and left  to the  deep forest. The world seems not to care  for the fur bearing animals.

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                                    The Raccoon Family

                                                 by

                                             Deanna

   Chapter 1

                                     Our new home.

     " I found a new home love," Sissy bubbled with joy.

     "Look. Tall trees and one in the middle are perfect for us. Yes, the middle tree is hollow and lots of burrows," Sissy looks lovingly at her love.
     A retired couple nestled comfortably in their log home among tall trees and luscious green landscape near the outskirts of Ashland, Oregon.

     "Love, this is our best home for our new family. The couple of the log home are friends of us. Yes, I watch our neighbors closely before carving out our new home. Every morning she walks to the patio and sets the paper on the table. She reads every page and glances over the paper winking an eye or two. Then she smiles showing her white ivory. We are not pest but  friends to her. We should feel safe here," Sissy smiled and puckered her lips for a kiss.

 Her lover responded and both embraced and danced in the hollow tree.

At dawn Sissy carefully gathered the ground for burrows. "My young ones must be comfortable," Sissy yawned and stretched her body while looking at her young ones.

 "One, two, three, four," she counts her babies.

 The babies rested on top of lots of burrows, which made it soft and comfortable. Sissy took her hair brush and brushed her reddish brown hair.

"Oh, my hair is so thick," Sissy brushed her bushy hair.

"Now, my makeup and I’ll be ready to go," Sissy eyed her babies.

 Sissy took her make up and outlined her face striking white. "My love, how do I look?" Sissy smiled at her lover.

 Her lover smiled and napped on the thick burrows,  "You, are beautiful," her lover replied.

     The young babies are almost old enough to be with her in the forest. Sissy carried her young ones from birth by the nape of the neck, like a cat. Her babies were born in late April, and Sissy being a good mother should have her babies weaned by late summer.

     Sissy happy with her new home for her young ones because soon her babies are weaned and ready to explore.

    "Love, I am leaving and I should return soon. Look after the babies. I love you," Sissy waved good bye.

     Sissy left her home and looked at her gorgeous five toes. She walked elegantly having one rear foot beside one front one. The lady of the log home gathered flowers and greeted Sissy with a wink and a smile.

     "I feel so safe," Sissy viewed the burrows and grubs for the day.

     She is happy of her achievement in finding  a new home. 

     "I hope this will be my last move. I am tired of moving. We are among people who love us, and they do not consider us pest," Sissy sighed of relief.

     Every day she would gather nuts, grapes, and grubs for her family. She wetted her five toes and felt the touch of the stream, and after she checked the stream, she would wash her food feeling for unusable matter.

     "I am happy the food is clean. My family should have the best," Sissy proud of her sense of feel.

     The babies were weaned and it is time for them to explore the stream edge and the forest surrounding the tall trees. It was late summer and the babies wandered about sniffing, looking, and followed mother everywhere.

     One morning Sissy left as usual to gather food. The babies followed her and imitated every move placing the rear foot beside the front foot. Suddenly, Sissy heard rustling of two feet among the bushes close by the stream edge. It was two men with some metal gadget.

    "What is that metal the man has in his hands?"Sissy whispered.

     "I do not know," the youngster smiled.

     "Shush, be still, they are talking. I am trying to listen to what they have to say?" Sissy placed her finger on her lips.

     The short man placed a metal gadget of some sort on the ground. "Damn, these fur bearings are difficult to catch. I hope these traps will catch one of them. The company needs more business and without a fur bearer today we will not make our quota," the short man screeched.

     "Yes, we  place enough trappings to catch a few. Be careful,  you do not step in one of them," the tall man laughed placing his right  hand on his  right hip.

     Sissy saw the man placing the metal traps. Her eyes fearful, heart pounding, and  realized her  babies are in danger.

     "Children, listen. These men are evil and they put trappings all over the place. I do not know where. Follow me and let us go the other way. It will take some time to go around the stream edge to our home," Sissy whispered to her young ones.

     The  babies followed their mother around the stream edge opposite from where the traps were set.  Carefully they  walked through the forest and the stream edge.

     "Be careful, because the evil men can find us by our claw marks. Yes, young ones your hind foot makes a print because your toes and heel pad are joined. So, walk softly if you can," Sissy instructed.

     Pappa waited for Sissy and her loved ones.

     "It is late; where is my love and my young ones?" Pappa looked out the hollow tree.

     "Where is my love and my babies?" Pappa cried.

      "I feel so sad and worry  for my family. I must go out and look," Pappa walked.

 Chapter 2

                                         Skinning

  "The ultimate nature of pleasure is to hear the fur animal moan and cry. To see the fear in his eyes.  The senses of the predator are bound into a rush as the predator hears and sees his victim, a helpless fur animal, fight to save his coat. The predator climax as he skins and lifts his coat in triumph achieving a sensation of his pleasure.  The rush is over until another fur bearing animal moans, cries, and fearfully looks at his tormentor, mankind who is part of him." Deanna

     Pappa left the hollow tree and went around the stream edge and looked for his love and young ones. Pappa’s heart beat fast as he followed the tracks of his love and young ones. A few miles of travelling Pappa noticed the tracks and stops. "Where is my love?" Pappa asked.

Pappa rest and moved his rear foot beside his front foot. Bang, Bang the trap went off. Pappa in pain moved from one side to another. "Oh, I am hurt. I am in so much pain. Please help me, Pappa sobbed wetting his coat.

The short man heard the snap and shook his friend on his shoulder. "Hey, we got one. I hope it is a good one. Let see what we have," the short man boasted. Both men walked to the trap and saw Pappa defenselessly and  helplessly  laying on a bush. Pappa could not get out of the trap. The short man walked to Pappa and laughed loud, " Well, well, what do we have here?"

"Please, save me. I have a family to go to. Please help me from this trap." Pappa begged.

"What! help you. We set the trap to get you," the short man replied. "Why do you want to hurt me," Pappa asked. Both men laughed and boasted. "Fellow, I want your rough coat. You have a reddish brown fur coat and a bushy tail with six brown rings. Look at your face, a black mask outlined in white. Friend, you bear a rough coat.  You will make us money. Your reddish brown coat is what we need," the short man stood over Pappa. 

Pappa in distress begged the men for compassion. "Please sir, have mercy on me. Without my coat, Sir, I will die. I need my coat. Please let me live," Pappa begged for his coat.

 The men placed Pappa in a large portable iron cage shackled and Pappa's mouth was clamped shut with a metal device. Pappa was a prisoner and his fate in the hands of those two men.

"Thank God, his mouth is clamped. I do not want to hear him anymore. Did you see his eyes. How fearful? This raccoon is in total fear and really scared about his coat. Man, this animal's heart must be pounding. I am so happy that we have the catch. This is a good day for us. Let us take the raccoon to the cabin and skin him. He sure has a  good rough coat. Some lady will be happy wearing such racoon fur. This is the most rugged reddish brown fur I have ever seen," the short man laughed.

Five minutes  later the two men arrived at their substandard log cabin. The log cabin was nestled among tall trees and nearby was a  stream filled with timber. The men prirated electricity  from neighbors nearby. Inside the cabin the place was furnished sparsely with an oak kitchen table, two chairs. two mattresses, and an worn out comforter. The  odor in the cabin smelled like a beer tavern. Along the side of the mattresses was table about six feet in length and three feet in width. The table was stained with blood of other fur bearings, and on the table laid two types instruments.  The instruments were for slicing so that the fur remains flawless. 

"Okay, let us have a drink before we tackle the job," the short man sits next to Jack.. The short man looked rough with his thick reddish beard.

The short man took two bottles of whiskey. "John, have a whiskey," said the short man.

"Thank you Jack," replied John.

"We need to drink  before we kill him," said Jack handing John the whiskey.

Pappa was  shackled and muzzled and could not move in his cage. Pappa’s heart pounded and his body trembled. Pappa was trapped laying on his stomach with his two front feet shackled. His little shoulders was titled forward and his gorgeous black face with the white marking laid helpless on the bottom of the metal cage with his thick tail tucked to his side. Pappa cramped in his cage agonized over his family.

 "Oh, I wonder how my love is, "I love my family, so much. Never to see them again is un imaginable," Pappa thought.

 "Let us finish the job so that we can go home," John smiled.

The two approached the table and lifted the cage on the table. John grabbed and jolted the cage with his right hand, and with great force slammed the cage on the table. Pappa was so scared from the throw that he could hear his own heart throb.

Jack took Pappa out of the cage and placesd him on the table.  Pappa ‘s face was muzzled and his front feet was shackled, as he laid helplessly and  as he looked at his tormentors he begged for mercy.

 "John, plug in the cord while I shove this end in his ass," taking the front of the instrument and placed it in Pappa’s ass.

"Hold still, you idiot, how can I shove this in your ass when you move?" Jack shouted at Pappa and smacked him on his face.

  Pappa resisted and Jack hit him with his fits to stop him from moving. Pappa dropped his head, and Jack checked the position of the instrument. John moved the muzzle from Pappa and placed a part of some sort in his mouth and plugged the cord in the wall. The electricity from the cord sizzled and fried Pappa’s inside out.

"Watch this guy fry shaking up and down. Hold on until he is completely fried,"John laughed.

 "Did you hear his insides pop and crackle. Man, his organs popped and  did you hear his blood sizzle?" Jack joined John in a good laugh.

Pappa is dead and Jack took the instrument from Pappa’s mouth and ass. John took Pappa and threw him on a matt. "See, the fur is not disturbed. "Smack, crackle, and pop. Yes, this raccoon will bring us good money. Take a look at his reddish fur and his thick tail," Jack unplugged the cord and opened  two small bottles of whiskey. Both men sat at the table and toast  with a loud click of  whiskey bottles. The two men celebrated drinking whiskey and boast of the bang of the trapp and Pappa being fried inside  out.

"The only good raccoon is a dead raccoon," John's last words as both men drunk  themselves to  sleep.

The following day at dawn John and Jack, after a few cups of strong coffee, took Pappa and laid him on his back. Pappa looked so peaceful with his white markings and brown rings around his thick tail.

  "John, let us skin this beast and take our prize to the broker," Jack sipped his coffee. "Good idea," John replied. Jack took an instrument and skinned Pappa perfectly not disturbing any marking of his coat. Blood drained and organs removed. The last was Pappa’s skeleton. Jack dumped Pappa’s remains in a sack and tied it firmly. Than Jack dug a hole in the back of the cabin, dropped the remains, and covered  it up with sand.

 "John, bring the ice chest here," Jack lifted Pappa with his right  arm.

 "Okay," John replied. John took Pappa’s coat and his thick tail and placed him in the ice chest.

"We should be proud of  our job. Skinned the raccoon. Let us go, and tomorrow we’ll look for another. Hopefully, we will have another catch. We did well setting those traps," Jack took the ice chest . The men laughed and left the cabin with Pappa's fur coat.

Chapter 3

                               Pappa at the party

Sissy took her babies safely home to the hollow tree. She looked around for  Pappa. She left the hollow tree and circled around chasing her thick tale.

 "Sweetheart, my love, the babies are safe. Sorry, we are late but men with evil intent set traps all over the place."  She said and nestled her body close to her babies.

 Mother placed her babies on the burrows and gave them food after she took the matter out. She fed the babies and she snuggled close wrapping her thick reddish brown tail around her babies tails. The babies slept with one eye open.

Two years passed and Sissy grieved the loss of her love.  The world is a dangerous place. The two long legged captured Pappa. "What did the men do with Pappa" Sissy asked her daughter who grew into a fine teenager.

Two and one half years from Pappa’s disappearance Sissy saw the woman of the log home talk to a young decorator. The decorator brought a huge colonnade and fine linen to wrap around the large ornate arch.

"Thank you for coming. It is our  anniversary  and a few friends are invited. The setting is for fifty people. The linen must complement the lavender table runners and chair sashes," the lady of the house instructed the decorator.

 Fresh flowers on the table of various kind and lots of baby breath. I want the gazebo’s graced with ferns and the adornment of baby breath on top. Also, long elegant six feet garland of lavender, sage, and pink all around the gazebo and pillars," the lady hands her instruction.

 "Do not forget to rent a dance floor and place the floor in the middle of the grass lawn patio.. The patio is 1500 square feet. So, rent a dance floor of about 250 square feet.  The stream is a good back drop for our event. The sound of nature and the flowing of the stream will relax the guest," the lady smiled.

The following day the decoratord came to put the plan together for the party. It took a whole day to set things up and the decorator finished the final touches.

 "The party is tomorrow," Sissy said to her teenagers. "We must be very quiet and not be seen," she whispered.

The party is on. Beautifully decorated. White flowing table cloths with lavender runners and chair sashes to match. The ribbon of each sash flows almost to the floor. Small lights, lost of tulle wrapped around the colonnades. The lady and man of the house used the colonnades as a back drop. The head table eloquently decorated. Soft music by the D.J. A selection of romantic ballads and classical music of various artist such as Beethoven, Chopin, Mozart, and List. Sissy watched from the hollow tree.

One by one the guest are seated.

"Do you see that?" Sissy whispered. "Look at the coats of those people," Sissy was worried.

 "Yes, mother," the female replied.

 "Fox and minks," Sissy said quietly. 

 "But, look at that blond. What coat is she wearing?" Sissy asked and panicked.

"A raccoon jacket wrapped with a belt. Do you think that is Pappa?" mother asked.

The teenagers depressed having no father and not knowing what to do got very excited. "Pappa is home?" the daughter cried.

 I do not know but the blond is wearing a raccoon jacket with a belt "Sissy respond.

"Look, the young man is taking all the coats and hats from the guest," Sissy’s said softly.

 Sissy and her teens circled in panic and the youngest ran into the crowd. Her brothers and sisters followed. Sissy immediately followed her children. "Children, stop," Sissy yelled. "Stop," she screamed.  The teenagers ran wild to the place where the coats were kept and took the raccoon jacket with the belt.

 One of the guest yelled, "Raccoons."

 The lady remained calm  and said in soft voice: "Yes, raccoons live here and we share the forest and the stream edge with them."

A fat man with a cane ran after Sissy hoping to beat her with a stick. "The only good raccoon is a dead raccoon," the man said in a deep voice.

 Sissy and her young leaped in between tables and chairs. One guest stood on a chair and yelled. "Get these ugly beast out of here."

Food and drinks spilled on the table and all the decorations on the table were scattered and glass broken in thousand pieces. 

"Pappa, Pappa, we have you", the teenager squealed.

 "I smell you Pappa. I  know your smell and the marking on  your coat and tail," she cried.

The female has the jacket and belt in her mouth, like a cat, and weaved in and out around the tables and underneath the chairs. Her brothers paved the way for her to take Pappa safe to the hollow tree.

"Finally, we have Pappa", she sobbed.

The lady of the house asled the guest to remain calm and ordered the maintenance to straighten things out. The party ended shortly and the cleaning crew cleaned the mess throughly. After three hours the place was clean and back to normal.

 Sissy and her teens were so scared of the fat man with the cane.  "Did you see that man with the cane? He would have killed us,"Sissy holds her teen tight.

"Let us sleep and put that experience behind us," Sissy embraced the raccoon jacket and belt.  She held  the raccoon jacket close and said, "Oh, Pappa what did they do to you, my love. I smell you, my love. 

Two weeks later while Sissy was searching for  burrows  she saw a man setting traps all throughout the stream edge. Not knowing how many he set Sissy decided to move her teens somewhere else. All of a sudden Sissy heard the trap go off. It is her daughter. She was caught in the trap and was not able to move fought with her tail. The man was nowhere in sight and Sissy ran to the lady of the house. The young mother circled around until the lady saw her in distress.

 "What is it dear?" the lady asked. Sissy whirled around and ran to the trap. The lady followed and found her daughter in the trap. The lady slowly removed the trap until the man stopped her.

 " Laura, I set the traps to help you get rid of the pest. I have a new career as a raccoon catcher" the man laughed.

 "What, you are helping me?" Laura raised her voice. 

 "Yes, that evening  those pest destroyed your party. Let me help you catch them. They make good fur coats," the  man boast.

"Are you out of your mind. Killing helpless animals. Raccoons are my friends. To use a animal for selfish purpose is immoral." Laura responded. "

 The fur broker does not think so. This raccoon is profitable. I can get three fur trims from this raccoon, " the man said.

 "Get out, you evil person. Get off  my property. Never come here again, "the lady yelled. The man left with his cane.

"My dear friend. Move quickly into the deep forest with your young," Laura said tearfully. Sissy took her teens and departed deep into the forest. She carried Pappa in her mouth, like a cat.

"This is a dangerous world. The lady saved your sister. Let us leave quickly and go the other way. The  world does not care about us. What is important we are once more a family," Sissy  whispered. The  family were reunited and Sissy carried the coat in her mouth, like a cat. Sissy asked each of her children to hold on to Pappa's tail, a long belt, until they safely reached their destination

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