It was a peaceful day in Downtown City, and everyone was doing their own thing. It was Friday, so Blythe decided to spend some time with her friends at the park after school, so she wouldn't be back for a few hours, and Mrs. Twombly had taken the pets out for a walk.
However, Pepper the peckish skunk and Sunil the skittish mongoose were dropped off at the pet shop later than usual, so they missed their ticket to a relaxing walk.
Pepper noticed something different about her magical friend. She tilted her head as she watched him skitter around nervously, as if expecting something disastrous to happen. Every time his paw touched something, whether it be a squeaky toy or a dog dish, he would leap about two feet into the air, fur fluffed up.
What in the world has gotten into him...? Pepper wondered, starting to get rather irritated with Sunil's unnecessary jumpiness. She took a deep breath to cool down the irritation building up and walked over to her friend, reaching out a forepaw once she was behind him and tapping his shoulder, only resulting in a scream from the mongoose.
He whipped around, creating a temporary blue blur of himself, and sighed loudly. "Please, Pepper, I ask that you do not scare me like that," he said in his thick Indian accent.
"Sorry 'bout that," the skunk replied apologetically. She decided to jump right to the point. "What are you so jumpy for?"
"I don't know..." Sunil looked around nervously as he spoke to his comedian friend. "There is just something that is bugging me..."
"Looks more like a scare than a bug."
"I foresaw something."
Pepper blinked, gazing into Sunil's bright amber eyes, obviously unimpressed. "Seriously?"
"In case you have forgotten, I possess psychic abilities and can preform The Ol' Switcharoo. How could I not have the capability of foreseeing future events?" he retorted, standing up straight and placing a paw on his chest proudly as the other rested behind his back. His body fell back into the nervous trademark pose. "However, I am not happy with what I saw..."
"Okay, then. Enlighten me," Pepper said in mocking awe.
The mongoose raised an eyebrow at the skunk, then continued, tapping his forepaws together. "Well... I don't exactly know what it was I saw..."
"Then why worry about-"
"U-bu-bu-bu!" Sunil quickly silenced Pepper and continued. "All I know is that this event will be torturous, but worthwhile afterwards..."
"Uh-huh." The skunk rolled her eyes, but blinked when she realized that what her friend had foretold was actually something Pepper was planning for him. He really is a good magician after all!
Pepper smiled deviously and walked slowly around the anxious mongoose. "I guess I underestimated you, Sunil," she said teasingly. Sunil raised a paw and opened his mouth to speak, but she kept going. "You really can foresee things."
"I can?" Sunil raised an eyebrow.
"You said it yourself. But you know something?" She finally stopped circling him and sat down, still wearing that devious grin. "I know what you foresaw as well."
"You do?"
Pepper nodded slowly. "Because I'm the one who's to cause that event you foresaw."
Before her mongoose friend could speak, Pepper reared up on her hind legs and placed her fore paws into his chest, then shifted her weight forward, pushing him down.
"Wh-What are you doing?!" Sunil cried out, his cheeks slightly turning pink.
"I'm making your foresight a reality," she replied.
Without a moment's hesitation, Pepper slid her forepaws down the sides of his ribs, causing uncontrollable snickers and giggles to bubble out of her victim.
"Hehehehehehehehe! Pepper!" he giggled, twitching uncomfortably. "Stop it! This isn't funny! Hehehehehehehe!"
"Of course it is," Pepper teased as her paws slid down Sunil's sides faster, which also increased his twitching and giggling.
"Hehehehehehehe! Cut it out, Pepper! Ehehehehehehe!"
The skunk pushed even more giggles out when she began to nuzzle his chest, smiling when she heard a squeak or two. She placed her paws on his ribs and rubbed them furiously.
"Hehehahahahahaha! Pepper, stop!" Sunil cried, his giggles gradually turning into laughter. "I don't like this! Hahahahahahahahahahaha!"
Pepper continued rubbing Sunil's ribs, occasionally rubbing her muzzle back into his chest, causing a few more squeaks to escape. She then went down to his belly and scratched it lightly yet quickly with her tiny fingers.
"Stahahahahahahahahahap! Hahahahahahahahahahaha!" the mongoose laughed as he struggled and thrashed around, cheeks turning bright red. "No more! No more!Hahahahahahahahahaha!"
Pepper continued tickling his belly, then bent down and blew a raspberry in it, causing a squeal, followed by more uncontrollable laughter. She quickly moved back to his ribs and sides.
"Stahahahahap it! Hahahahahahahahahahaha!" Sunil begged, struggling to escape. "Y-You're not being nice! Hahahahahahaha!"
"I was never nice," Pepper replied deviously before picking up a feather and wiggling it in his large ear, causing more yelps and squeals. She then waved it on his chest and sides, causing the mongoose to trash around, furiously waving his paws helplessly.
"Oh, my Goodness, stahahahahahahahahahap!" he laughed. "Hahahahahahahahahahahahahaha!"
Pepper turned the feather upside down and began scribbling his belly with the tip. She saw Sunil's cheeks were as red as a red delicious apple and thought about stopping.
"Stahahahahahahahap! Please!" he cried out. "I must breheheheheheheathe! Hahahahahahahahahahaha!"
The problem with boys... Pepper thought as she sighed. No stamina... Always have to end the fun early...
After a few more seconds of tickling, Pepper finally withdrew the feather and watched as her friend inhaled deeply, swallowing all possible air he could until his breathing slowed down to a normal state and the redness in his cheeks began to vanish.
"Was that what you foresaw?" Pepper asked cheekily, knowing the answer.
"Now I see it... and it was..." he replied. He tried to get back up, but Pepper placed her forepaws on his chest and pushed him back down. "I thought you were done!"
"I never said that," the skunk replied. She picked up the feather again, this time with her large tail.
"How can you do that?" Sunil questioned, slightly amazed.
"In case you have forgotten, I can pick up glasses and attack with my tail. How could I not have the capability of holding small feathers with my tail-tip?" Pepper teased. She then began to ever so lightly twitch the feather's tip on his hind paws.
"Hehehehe! N-No, Pepper, not there!" the mongoose begged, struggling to escape.
Pepper's responded with a teasing wink as she began gliding the feather down his paws, which caused Sunil to jump right into laughter.
"Hahahahahahahahahahahahaha! Pepper, stop it!" he laughed. "This is not funny anymore! Hahahahahahahahahahaha!"
"I still think it is," the skunk chuckled, picking up the feather's pace. She then began to once again scribble her fingers on his ribs and listened as her friend's laughter grew louder.
"Ahahahahahahahahahahaha! P-Pehehe-Pepper, please, no!" he cried.
"I'm sorry, what was that?" Pepper taunted, picking up her tickling pace.
"St-Stahahahahahahahahap! Pehehehehepper!" Sunil found it very difficult to get any words out without them being dissolved into laughter.
"I can't understand you, sorry," the skunk laughed. She then slid her paws to his sides again and started wiggling the feather on his toes, throwing the mongoose into hysterics.
"AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! NOHOHOHOHOHOHOHOHO!" Sunil squealed, struggling and thrashing so hard he almost knocked Pepper over, but she kept her balance and continued her tickly assult.
The skunk then began to playfully nuzzle his chest again as the feather scribbled his paws with the other end. He tried kicking his legs out to cut off her aim, but she only pinned them down in place with her tail, leaving him no way to escape.
"AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! PEPPEHEHEHEHEHEHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!" Sunil tried to beg, but laughter was overtaking anything he wanted to say. Even his struggling became limited once Pepper pinned his arms down and continued nuzzling into his chest and belly.
"What will The Great and Powerful Mongoose Magician do now?" Sunil's tormentor chuckled, blowing a few more raspberries into his belly before going back into nuzzling.
"HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! STAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!" Sunil laughed, desperately trying to beg for mercy, but laughter was still overtaking him. He tried to struggle, but Pepper's grip was too strong, so all he could do was focus on choking back cries of hysteria, in which he failed miserably.
After ten minutes of nonstop tickling, feeling like hours for Sunil, Pepper finally drew her assult to a permanent close. She gracefully leaped off the mongoose as he panted hard, still giggling a little between breaths.
"Now I'm done," Pepper concluded after Sunil fully caught his breath.
"Thank Goodness..." he moaned. He climbed to his feet and shook out his messied fur, trying to get rid of the last of the tickly sensations lingering. He glared at Pepper. "That was not very nice..."
"Yeah... I know... But I couldn't help myself..." Pepper looked down, a flash of guilt overtaking her. She looked up and tried to force the uncomfortable emotion away with a smile. "But at least you don't need to worry about the foreshadow anymore."
She walked over and stood up on her hind paws to match Sunil's height, then hugged him. "I never told you this, but I should have a long time ago."
"T-Told me what?" Sunil asked, the redness returning to his cheeks as he blushed.
"I... I love you..."
The mongoose's tail shot straight up in surprise and he looked at his peckish friend through surprised eyes. He smiled gently as Pepper retreated her hug and held her paws in his, looking into her rose-colored eyes.
"I'm glad I foresaw that event," he spoke softly. "And I'm glad that it came true, because I've been hiding the same secret, and I was too nervous to admit it. And I can find no better time than this to finally speak my feelings." He held up one of Pepper's paws and groomed it, as how a human man would gently kiss the hand of a woman. "I love you, too."
Pepper shook her head and shut her eyes tightly, trying to prevent tears of joy from building in the corners of her eyes. She felt Sunil nuzzle her tiny black nose with his tiny pink one. She opened them again, tears falling down her cheeks, and nuzzled him back.