Raccoon-(mxm) (Rever series 6)

Raccoon Three

He couldn't sleep. 

The entire left side of his body was pulsing in pain. He'd overdone it on his run, but likely made it even worse by lugging the raccoon and its suitcase up a flight of stairs. 

Groaning as he turned onto his back, King finally opened his eyes and stared up at the hazy dark ceiling of his new room. A quick glance at the clock hanging on the wall near his door told him that it was close to two in the morning. 

Mom would just now be going to bed after watching her crime shows...

It was odd not to hear the television going, and he knew that she wouldn't check in on him and see if his injuries were bothering him or not, either, because she wasn't there anymore. 

Rolling to the right, he slowly pushed himself up with his good arm, then carefully rotated his body until he was able to sit with his legs over the edge of his bed. He'd already taken his strongest pain killer before he went to sleep, since he knew that it would be bad, but it just wasn't doing enough. 

Maybe a bath will help. 

Standing up, he made sure to make at least a little noise in order to not startle his guest, then slowly made his way to the bathroom, limping the entire way. Said room was larger than most of the other units, as the apartment had several made specifically for handicap individuals who needed holding bars or space for wheelchairs.

He qualified because he was legally handicap, and he even had a wheelchair for when his leg refused to hold his weight, but he was stubborn and refused to even take it out of his closet unless he absolutely had to. 

By the time he got inside he was panting quietly, struggling with the radiating pain. 

You can't take another pill. Just soak for a while. 

Carefully sitting down on the toilet with the help of one of the metal bars fastened to the wall, he relaxed there for a few moments, then reached over with a shaky hand and switched the plug for the drain to closed, then started the water. 

As he waited for the tub to fill up, movement caught his eye and drew his attention towards the hallway door. 

Barron was sitting there, leaning on his back legs, his little stuffed otter hugged in his arms. 

"Hey there, little guy. Sorry I probably woke you up. I'm not feeling that great tonight," he said just loudly enough to be heard over the running water. 

The raccoon tilted its head, then took a little step closer before lifting the stuffed otter a smidgen. The gesture brought a smile to King's face. 

"You like him? His name is Otterbahn, like the road in Germany that doesn't have a speed limit for some of its length," he said, earning another head tilt in response. 

He was beginning to think that the human Baron really was no longer there. Well, he literally wasn't, but he also wasn't sure if his human mind was even present in his raccoon form at the moment, too. 

Hmm...

"Hey Baron, can you come here?" 

The racoon flicked an ear, then nervously took a step closer. 

Does it understand, or is it actually him? 

"Come here, buddy," he tried again, wanting to see if it would come any closer. 

To his surprise, the little guy did walk a few paces more, but when it slowed to a stop about three feet away, it began to cower and shake a little. It even tucked its head and looked away, showing clear signs of stress and submission.