Raccoon-(mxm) (Rever series 6)

Raccoon Three

Where...? 

He soon realized that he was still in the bathtub, and the water had gone quite cold. Sitting up, he looked around as his vision cleared, only to notice that something had been dropped into the tub at some point. 

Reaching over, he picked a very wet Otterbahn up out of the water, then looked at the raccoon standing on its back legs near the open bathroom door, clearly observing the situation. 

"Thank you for waking me up," he said honestly as he set the stuffed animal on the ledge of the tub, then carefully got himself out after flicking the drain back to open. 

Baron flicked his ears and continued to observe him, seemingly a little more relaxed with his slower movements. Not wanting to stress him out, though, King continued his cautious pace, both for himself, and for the raccoon. 

By the time he'd managed to tug on a pair of pajama pants he was well and truly exhausted... but he had something he needed to do first. 

Turning back around, he carefully leaned down and picked up his stuffed otter. When he turned back to face the hall, Baron was a few steps closer, clearly nervous about the stuffed animal's future. 

"I'm just going to toss him on a light cycle in the dryer with my towel so that his fur doesn't get ruined by the water," he said, earning a confused head-tilt from Baron before he slowly trudged out of the bathroom and toward the little laundry area. 

The raccoon followed him the entire way, making sure that his stuffed friend was still okay. 

When King finally got to the little room he quickly tossed the towel and stuffed animal inside the dryer, then set it for the quickest, and coolest cycle it had. 

"Alright, it will be done in a bit, but I think it's finally bed time. We'll get him tomorrow morning," he said as he turned off the light and slowly wandered back through the apartment. He did grab the trash bag and return it to the can, too, as well as pick up the little bit of trash that had been spilled out, but that was all he had the energy for.  

He could hear Baron following him again as he returned to his room, but he hesitated at the doorway, then looked back toward the laundry room. 

"He'll be fine, I promise. We'll get him out tomorrow," King said before dropping down onto his bed with an exhausted sigh. 

He was ready to pass out just sitting there, but when he heard a little squeaky, crying sound, he forced his head to lift and his tired eyes to focus. 

Baron was finishing turning in a circle as he let out another whimper and stared back down the hall. 

So tired...

Forcing himself to stand, King felt his left leg nearly give out, its weakness warning him not to take another step or risk falling. 

Dammit. 

Grudgingly, he listened to his body and sat back down, then reached forward with a shaky hand. 

"Baron, come here." 

The raccoon immediately turned its attention to him, then hunkered down by the door and put its head on its paws.  

That's cute, but I'm beginning to understand your body language, and I can tell that you're not just going to leave this alone. 

He was going to feel bad for it, but there was nothing he could do. He had to get some rest. So, leaning forward a little after tugging on a soft sleep shirt, King made a come here gesture with his hand, while at the same time saying "Baron, you need to come here, please."

The raccoon was full-on shaking now as it inched closer, dragging its belly along the carpeted floor as if it were training in boot camp. He knew that forcing him to come closer wasn't very nice, but there wasn't much else he could think to do. 

Once he got within reach, he slowly leaned over a little more and picked him up. 

Uh... you're a lot skinnier than I thought you'd be. 

The fur made him look quite fluffy, so he'd thought he was in good health. 

I'll make sure to make you extra food tomorrow. 

Once he had him settled in his arms, he waited a few minutes to allow Baron to calm down. 

"See? It's not so bad, right? BahnBahn will be back tomorrow, but for tonight, how about just holding onto me?" he said as he gently pet the little raccoon's back. 

When those nervous, dark brownish-black eyes finally looked up at him, he gave a small smile in return, then carefully scooted into his bed. Baron adjusted his little paws several times in response, making him glad that he'd tugged on a shirt before picking him up. 

Once they were in the center, he slowly laid back until his head hit the pillow. His mind immediately began to drift off at that exact moment, giving him only a few seconds to reach down with his free hand and tug the blanket up enough to partially cover himself and Baron. 

His fuzzy friend seemed quite a bit more restless than himself, but there was nothing more he could do. He honestly half expected him to just climb out of bed and walk out the door to go watch Otterbahn spin in the dryer, since he'd left it open, but when he felt Baron move a bit here and there, then wiggle beneath the blanket a little more before he stopped moving completely, he grinned. 

"...you're a good boy," he whispered into the darkness. 

He heard a quiet little squeak a few moments later, supposedly affirming that he was, in fact, a good boy, but before he could even really process the sound, he was fast asleep.