Having concluded an early morning run, Sonic the Hedgehog was now spending his time sitting on a log on the shore of Azure Lake Zone. Every now and then, he enjoyed spending time just sitting among nature, just taking in the sensastions around him: the water gently lapping against the shore from the slight breeze, the birds chirping in the trees, the occasional sound of crickets chirping and cicadas sputtering, and the sun's reflection glinting off the surface of the lake, among others. Though he didn't mind having a roof over his head every night, he much preferred having said roof situated out here in the countryside, where he could relax. Overall, this was pretty much paradise for him. The only thing that could disturb him was his Hedgehog Sense tingling, which alerted him to danger or phenomena that would otherwise be of interest to him. Fortunately, it was merely the latter this time:

"Enjoying the view, Big Blue?"

Sonic turned to see who had alighted upon the log next to him: Rouge the Bat. He shot a cocky little grin when he saw her.

"Well, I'm enjoyin' it that much more now, Mama!" said Sonic.

Rouge giggled. "I see you haven't changed one bit!"

Sonic shrugged. "Why bother? If people like me for who I am, then that's groovy enough for me!"

"Nicely said!"

Sonic put his index finger on his cheek. "Say, what brings ya here, anyhow?"

Rouge clasped her hands together and rested them on her lap. "No special reason! I just wanted to see how you were doing!"

Sonic's Hedgehog Sense tingled again. While he could tell that Rouge did indeed want to see how he was doing, he could also tell she was hiding something. Nevertheless, he kept up his confident little facade.

"I'm doin' all right!" said Sonic. "How 'bout you?"

"Oh, not too bad, especially considering…"

Sonic raised an eyebrow. "Considerin' what?"

"Considering THIS!"

"Rouge…AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"

"I knew the great Sonic the Hedgehog was ticklish!"

"AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! STAHP!"

"No! I'm only getting started!"

"AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! DON'T DO THIS!"

"But you're a cute boy, and cute boys have to be tickled!"

"WHY!? AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"

Sonic laughed so hard that he fell off the log, and Rouge straddled him as she continued to tickle him.

"Ooh, I got you now!" said Rouge.

"NO NO! AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"

"Say 'no' all you want! That makes it even more fun!"

"AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! THIS AIN'T FUN!"

"Don't deny it! You and I both know you love this!"

"NO I DON'T! AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"

"In fact, I think you love it so much that I'm going to give you the special!"

"Oh crap!"

Rouge took off Sonic's shoes and socks with little effort.

"Rouge, don't tickle…AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"

"Don't tickle what?"

"MY FEET! AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"

"But you have such cute little hedgie feet!"

"AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! NO MORE!"

"My, who knew you were The Most Ticklish Thing Alive?"

"AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! PLEASE STAHP!"

"I think we should call you 'Sonic the Ticklehog' now!"

"THAT'S SILLY! AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"

"You're silly!"

"AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! I'M DYIN' OVER HERE!"

"Awww, don't die on me now! You wouldn't be any fun, then!"

"AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! I GIVE UP!"

"OK, I'll stop tickling you, but you have to do one thing for me…"

"What?"

"Tell me 'I love when I submit to my tickle mistress'!"

Sonic snickered. "Yeah, like that'll happen!"

"OK, I see how it is!"

"AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! OK! OK! I LOVE WHEN I SUBMIT TO MY TICKLE MISTRESS!"

"Yes! Good boy!"

Rouge got off of Sonic and left him huffing and puffing. After trying to catch his breath for a few seconds, he sat up and put his footwear back on.

"Rouge, I gotta be honest: that actually kinda felt good."

"Really?"

Sonic got to his feet. "I mean, I felt like I was gonna die laughin', but I also feel good when I laugh, ya know?"

"I know! Nothing like good, hearty laughter to make you forget your troubles!"

"And there's nothin' like sharin' a good laugh with the hottest mama ever!"

"Come here, you!"

Rouge pulled Sonic in and gave him a kiss. Despite being surprised by the move, he eagerly returned her embrace. Initially, he hadn't seen her as one of his best friends, but as time went on, he saw so much of himself in her that he found her to be drop-dead irresistible. Now that she was giving herself to him, he couldn't have been more delighted. Similarly, Rouge enjoyed Sonic's touch, especially considering how strikingly handsome she'd found him when she first saw him. What really made this good for her was that his quills were so soft and silky when he wasn't feeling threatened. That, and being with him appealed to her dominant nature. Eventually, she broke away from the kiss.

"Hey Rouge, if ya wanna do anything else with me, I'm free for the rest of the day!"

"Right now, I just wanna sit down and cozy up with my favorite blue hedgie!"

"Fair enough!"

Despite being overwhelmed by her tickles earlier, Sonic gladly sat down on the log with Rouge, who wrapped an arm around him and rested her head against him. In that moment, he was grateful to share in the wonder of nature with her.


Criticism is gold. Negativity and nitpicking are pyrite.