Raccoon belched contently and gave his protruding belly a satisfied pat. Three very unhappy squirrels wriggled beneath his pelt, the rebellious Sully, too-trusting Andie, and Greyson, whose fearlessness bordering on lunacy had finally given way to terror as Raccoon had swallowed him whole.

The grey squirrel had gone first, bound fast by strong twine around his muzzle shut and with more of it trapping his forelegs to his sides. Another loop of twine held his hindpaws together, and he could only stare in puzzlement as Raccoon hoisted him close to his jaws.

"You wouldn't!", Andie had cried, then gasped in horror as Raccoon engulfed Greyson to the waist with a simple yawn. She could only whimper in dismay as Raccoon pushed the gray squirrel almost out of sight with his forepaw, then tilted his head back and swallowed.

She and Surly watched in fascinated horror as a great bulge made its way down Raccoon's neck, and as Greyson's hindpaws disappeared past rubbery black raccoon lips. Bit by bit the gray fuzzy tail was sucked in after, the squirrel on its way to a raccoon stomach taking this last bit of itself along for a trip through the predator's digestive system.

"No," Andie said again, for only now did she realize why the twine ran from Greyson's hindpaws to the string around her body. As the bulge of gray squirrel made its way down Raccoon's throat the string grew taut, and despite her terrified efforts to pull herself free her own forepaws were drawn toward the raccoon maw.

"It's nothing personal, dear," Raccoon said, mumbling around the tip of Greyson's tail. "But the show must go on." With that his opened his muzzle, and the taut string pulled her past the fangs and into the fleshy darkness of his gullet.

It was Surly's turn to watch as the terrified female became in her turn a bulge in the raccoon's cheeks, and then his neckfur. There was nothing he could do to save her, or himself; he was bound as thoroughly as the other two squirrels, even his muzzle tied shut by a winding of twine. Given time he could probably free himself, but he was not given time.

Raccoon got his jaws around Andie's rump, closed his eyes and swallowed. The pink pads of her hindpaws peeked out one last time from the corners of his mouth before disappearing forever, and as her tail slipped past his lips to follow her down a raccoon gullet it was the turn of the twine connecting him and Andie to grow taut.

Grayson, confused and uncertain, had fought very little; Andie had been too terrified by the sudden betrayal to put up much resistance. Surly had no such weakness and though bound he put up a very credible fight. It slowed Raccoon, but did not stop him; on the third try he got his jaws around Surly's upper body. The purple squirrel tried to wriggle free, but Raccoon was as determined as he was and a strong shove of the raccoon's tongue forced Surly's head past the back teeth and into his throat.

Surly kicked and squirmed, but it was too late now to save himself. It had been too late since the moment he woke tied to Andie, he realized now. A great contraction of the raccoon's swallowing muscles gripped his upper body, sucking him inches deeper, and with his haunches kicking on either side of Raccoon's lower jaw only an act of mercy on the part of the predator would spare him.

Mercy was not forthcoming. Raccoon tilted his muzzle up and swallowed again, and with a cry of anger and despair Surly followed the other squirrels down a slimy chute of gullet into the raccoon's stomach. He had long disliked Raccoon, but he hadn't though the procyonid would eat one of his fellow park dwellers, much less three of them!

Three wet, terrified squirrels squirmed in the stomach, gasping out their last protests. Their cries were drowned out as Raccoon uttered a long, satisfied belch.

This was, of course, why Raccoon kept the squirrels, and moes and other animals around. Not to be their friend or leader, but because they gathered food for him and themselves represented an emergency food supply. When one vanished, as some inevitably did, it was simple to blame the hawks. Most were small enough that he didn't even have an incriminating bulge to conceal.

This time was different. Raccoon gave the still twitching bulge a happy pat and lay back to digest his meal. It was the fullest he'd been since a certain fat groundhog had begun to question him and "had been hit by a car", and he'd have to stay out of sight for at least a day. It was worth it to rid himself of three troublemakers, though. The meal was just a bonus.

Because I can't watch a movie with a raccoon and several squirrels without imagining the raccoon eating them. And to be fair, given his role in the film I wouldn't put it past him.

I read somewhere that in an early draft of the movie Raccoon and Andie the female squirrel were romantically involved. Large male on small female is one of my things too, so I could see drawing them getting it on. 83