"The Racoon Thief"

Hi! This is Avery, and I've got a story for you! My friend, writer Tahleen Ovian, wrote this totally coolio fable about one of my fave animals... the raccoon!

The Raccoon Thief
by Tahleen Ovian

Long ago, before there were people like you and me, not all things were as they are now. Back in the beginning, there was a creature whose beautiful, thick, shiny coat was made of pure gold. This creature’s name was Raccoon.

You see, the Mother of the Earth was feeling extravagant one day, and when she created Raccoon, she molded each of his hairs individually out of liquid gold. But because of his beauty, Raccoon was very vain. In fact, Raccoon believed himself to be the most beautiful of creatures in all the world. He often bragged about his golden fur to the other animals, showing off how it shone and glinted in the sunlight. However, they did not care for his snobbery. They often ignored him, and thought him too proud for his own good. One day, they said to themselves, he would regret his awful vanity.

Quite frequently Raccoon would often see a fellow animal with a certain something that he would like to have for himself, and often thought he deserved whatever it was that had caught his eye. He was the most beautiful of creatures, after all; why shouldn’t he have the most beautiful of things? And so at night, after all the creatures of the forest had fallen asleep, he would sneak out of his burrow and prowl, stealing possessions from his neighbors and taking them back to his home under the ground. And though he snuck around at night, he went about his business during the day without any of the other animals being the wiser. Unfortunately, he had one very big problem: his golden fur made him very easy to spot on the forest floor.

But the greedy Raccoon had a solution to this problem of his. Ever the cunning fellow, he made a hooded cloak that was the same dull brown as the forest floor, securing it around his tail with black bands to hold it in place. He also made a little black mask to wear over his eyes so he could hide his bright face from any who might see him. And every night, he would search every home in his forest for the best and most beautiful things.

He stole sweet honeycombs from the Bees, and silk from Spider. He stole the largest acorns from Squirrel. He even stole the eggs from Robin’s nest, since they made the most delicious breakfasts.

Naturally, the animals of the forest were quite confused and upset by these thefts. “Who could be the one to take our precious things?” they wondered. They could not figure it out. At least, not on their own. They decided to ask the Mother of the Earth for help.
When she heard of the animals’ troubles, the Mother decided it would be best to pay the forest a visit. When the day came on which she was to enter their forest, the animals bustled about, preparing a large feast for the occasion. All, that is, except Raccoon. Raccoon was plotting.

For the Mother of the Earth always wore an amulet around her neck with a large, sparkling stone set in the center that was the color of new leaves. Raccoon had always admired this amulet, and thought it would go with his golden fur quite nicely. Though it belonged to the Mother of the Earth, he thought he was such a good thief that he was sure he’d be able to take the pretty jewel without getting caught.

After the large and wonderful feast, the Mother of the Earth became tired. She lay down in the large, elegant, comfortable nest, lined with the softest leaves and flowers, that the birds had woven for her. She placed the amulet on a stone next to her head, and fell asleep.

Raccoon waited until the chattering and chirping died away, until he could hear nothing but silence. “Everyone is asleep,” he thought. “I can finally steal that lovely stone.” He threw his cloak over his golden fur and placed the mask over his shining face. Slowly he slunk toward the Mother’s nest, creeping as quietly as he could around rocks and roots, holes and bushes. He knew he was almost invisible. Finally he reached the stone where the Mother of the Earth had laid her amulet. He gazed as it shone green in the moonlight, imagining how wonderful it would be to finally wear it around his own neck. He quickly glanced at the Mother of the Earth sleeping soundly by the stone, tucked into her nest, to make sure she did not stir. All was well, it seemed. Carefully, he reached out his paw, ready to lift the amulet off its rocky pedestal. But just as his finger touched the chain, he heard a voice: “I am disappointed in you, Raccoon. Did you not think I would know your plans?”

The Mother of the Earth had awakened! Raccoon had finally been caught. “What will you do, Mother?” Raccoon asked in a frightened voice.

“Your vanity and greediness have led you to become a thief, Raccoon. Now, instead of hiding behind your cloak and mask, they will become a part of you. From this day forth, your appearance shall show your true self.” She waved her graceful hand over his head. And to his horror, his cloak began to blend into his fur, replacing the glorious sheen of the beautiful gold, and the bands around his tail merged with the dull brown. His mask soon did the same, blackening the fur around his eyes and becoming a permanent part of his face.

Raccoon ran all the way home. Now one of the dullest of creatures and branded by the bandit’s mask, he hid in his burrow whenever the sun was in the sky. Ashamed of his new appearance and what it symbolized, he never ventured out in daylight again, but instead became an animal of the night.