Origins of Rascal Raccoon

THE ORIGINS OF RASCAL RACCOON

In response to earlier requests on the origins of Lemy & Rascal, we begin a short series on our two stripy tailed critters, plus some early sketches which we've now done up again in colour.

So, here we have it...THE ORIGINS OF RASCAL RACCOON

Rascal Raccoon was born in a tiny little shed beside an old and not so busy train station just outside London. His family and relatives lived under the tree stumps that were in the woods and just behind the station.

Apart from Rascal, there were several other young raccoons and they all lived happily - playing all sorts of games and having little parties and even picnics in the forest. Rascal was the friendliest raccoon around and although his parents warned him against being so friendly all the time, they could not prevent him from being so trusting all the time.

Rascal as a newborn raccoon

Grandpa Raccoon

At a very young age, it was clear that Rascal was different from the others. For one thing,Rascal could stand easily on 2 feet and not walk around on 4 feet like the rest of the family.

He could walk around like that for hours before going back to walking on all four feet. So while all the other raccoons would scurry about on all four feet, Rascal would sort of "run about" on two feet. And, Rascal was obviously cleverer than the rest.

This wasn't totally unusual for this raccoon family though because Rascal's great grandfather was able to do the very same thing some years back. So Rascal, it would seem, was merely following a family tradition.

Rascal playing with trains

Unlike the other raccoons, Rascal was also very curious about what was going on in the train station near their house. He would often go visit the driver of engine No. 5 to see what was happening. Soon, the trainshed which housed engine No. 5, became Rascal's playground. Sometimes, when he was finished playing with the other raccoons, Rascal would go over to engine No. 5 to see the driver Mr Brown.

Now Mr Brown was a kindly old man who had a particular fondness for Rascal. He would always boil some tea and then share his boiled eggs with Rascal. Mr Brown would also speak to Rascal, just for fun - teaching him how to say things and explaining about how a train engine worked. All this time, Mr Brown treated Rascal was if he was a little boy and not a raccoon at all.

Then one day, when Rascal was a little older, Mr Brown had the shock of his life when Rascal actually stood up on two legs and began speaking in a squeaky little voice.

"Mr Brown," said Rascal. "Thanks for teaching me so much. I'm so glad I can understand you."

Mr Brown the train driver.

Enjoying tea with Mr Brown

Mr Brown was speechless as he looked at his raccoon friend. But in a very short time, he accepted that Rascal was unique and continued to speak and teach the little raccoon. And so began Rascal's training which would last another full year. During this time, Rascal still got along fine with the other raccoons although he spent a lot more time with Mr Brown.

With his human companion, Rascal learnt about engines, the railways and about the world in general. The other raccoons however, stayed away from the main engine sheds because they were still afraid of the humans. 2 years later the little raccoons set off to find and build their own homes away from the train station. Rascal led the raccoons as their new leader.

So, that's the background on Rascal and it also explains why our favourite raccoon can speak, likes eggs etc

AND THAT IS THE END OF
THE ORIGINS OF RASCAL RACCOON.

Click here for the origins of Lemy Lemur

Email us directly - lemy_rascal@yahoo.com with your comments or ideas.

Copyright notice: Lemy & Rascal are part of the SuperTrain collection of stories, and the property of Alexander Choong & Aloysius Choong. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part in any form or medium without express written permission from the authors is prohibited. Email:lemy_rascal for further information. Origins - copyright Jan 2000