"Come on, just a little bit further," said Sticks, leading Tails along by his hand.
Sticks guided Tails to a part of her burrow he'd never seen before, not that he knew much about her home to begin with, but to think she had a private hot spring nearby all this time and he never knew about it.
From what he could surmise, the water came from the melted snow on the ice capped mountains and flowed through the river into one of the many natural alcoves that dotted the jungle while the heat came from the lava vents beneath the caves where the frogglodites lived. This created a perfect environment for natural hot springs to form, and Sticks just so happens to have one conveniently located near her home.
"This is incredible," Tails said in awe. "How come you've never told any of us about these?"
"Because it's my one and only special bathtub and I don't want no peeping toms, government spy satellites or albino aliens spying on me from orbit when I take my biweekly bath! You hear me! I know you're out there, I'm onto you!" Sticks shouted at the sky. "Cept for you, I wouldn't mind if it were you."
"Uh, I'm flattered?" Tails replied awkwardly. "Y-you know, you should probably make bathing a habit every few days instead of biweekly."
"So you have more chances to peep on me?" Sticks smiled wryly. Tails became red at her not so subtle implication.
"I-I wouldn't do that. I'm a good guy, honest!" he stuttered out quickly. Sticks giggled in response.
"Oh, I know you are. You're the village's boy scout after all," Sticks teased. "A very handsome and deceptively robust boy scout."
"Sticks, despite how much I enjoy all this constant praise you're showering me with, you do know I'm actively trying to prevent you from buttering my whole wheat toast."
"And you know that I enjoy it when you do that. Adds a bit of spice to our chemistry. Makes it all the sweeter once the mating ritual is complete," Sticks continued unabated.
"We're here!" she announced, gesturing to the shallow pool of bubbling waters before her. Steam gently wafted off the surface of the greenish blue pool, dimly lit by bioluminescent mushrooms growing on the wall of the alcove and the silver light of the moon. Nearby was a bowl of sweet smelling potpourri and a mason jar filled with an herbal paste.
"Quite the setup you've got here," Tails noted. "Very... Sticks-ish." The sound of jingling and ruffling diverted his attention from the hot spring to Sticks where he immediately regretted locking eyes with her.
He thought for sure his heart was finally going to stop that time because Sticks was nonchalantly stripping down in front of him. She tore her clothes off like they'd caught fire, absentmindedly tossing them aside the shredded rags they were. Only her jewelry was kept intact. In the pale moonlight Tails witnessed Sticks in all her untamed glory. Life in the wilds had forged her into a stunning, if paranoid and apprehensive, specimen.
"Like what you see?" Sticks whispered huskily as she dropped her ruined top to the floor.
Tails was left speechless, or rather he was trying to speak but whatever words that left his throat came out sounding like a gas leak as he gaped at Sticks. The speed at which he turned around and covered his eyes would've made Sonic green with envy. His cheeks flared up and the ambient temperature suddenly became far too hot for his liking, though granted the heat may have been due to the hot spring.
"I-I-I didn't see anything!" Tails squeaked, causing Sticks to roll her eyes.
"Come here you," Sticks walked over and grabbed the boy, stripping him of his sparse ensemble of a pair of shoes, work harness, goggles and sports tape. He was still too embarrassed to protest her manhandling him, but by time he'd worked up the courage to speak she'd already led him over to the hot spring where she jumped in with the fox in tow. There was a splash and the two were engulfed in the soothing waters.
Tails was the first to surface, gasping for air as he did. Sticks was next, flicking her head back and letting her long hair rest along her back as she leaned against the side of the spring.
"How do you like step five so far?" asked Sticks.
" *Cough* *Cough* Step five is a bath?" Tails questioned incredulously, wringing out his tails. Sticks smiled back at him.
"Step five is the couple's cleansing, but yeah, it's pretty much just taking a bath together," replied Sticks as she moved closer to Tails. "Feels nice though, doesn't it?"
"The water does feel nice..." said Tails, resting up against the spring. He averted his gaze from Sticks, doing his best to remain a courteous gentleman. Nevermind the fact that he was currently naked in a hot spring with Sticks.
"...Tails, look at me," Sticks pouted, sounding annoyed. She wrapped her arms around his shoulders and pressed herself against him, earning a high pitched yelp in response.
"I-I think I'm good," Tails mumbled beneath the waters.
"Tails, don't make me say it," Sticks pressed. When she didn't receive a response she let out a long sigh, her lips curling into a mischievous smile. She leaned forward and whispered hotly into his ear, "...You're a hypocrite, you know that?"
"A-am not!" Tails weakly retorted, turning to meet Sticks eye to eye. "Wait, what am I a hypocrite of?" Sticks pulled off him and floated back, keeping her mischievous gaze upon him, a low giggle escaping her lips.
"You're smart. You'll figure it out," she responded vaguely. "Well, how about that? You're looking at me."
The realization hit Tails like a ton of bricks. He attempted to turn away again, only for Sticks to stop him dead in his tracks. She brought them close together once more, reveling in the cute face he made as he looked on in shock.
"Gotcha now," Sticks gave him a toothy grin. "Now, close your eyes..."
Tails complied with her and shut his eyes. His lips quivered in anticipation. Sticks wasn't going to try anything with him, was she? The mating ritual wasn't complete yet. His mind raced, sifting through every possible scenario that was waiting for him beyond the darkness of his vision. What he didn't expect was to feel something wet and viscous to be slapped over his head. It felt as if she'd dumped pancake batter on him.
"Keep those eyes closed, Tails. This paste stings something fierce if it gets in your eyes," said Sticks as she worked her hands all over his fur, lathering up a soapy maelstrom around the two of them. "Okay, now. Deep breathe."
"Whua-!?" Tails barely got a word out before he was dunked beneath the waters, cleansing him of all the soap that clung to his fur. When Sticks pulled him back up his pelt shone beneath the moonlight like a fancy set of fine china. "Blegh! Pft, pft! Ugh, it tastes like Amy's candles!"
"Whoopsie. Must've gotten some soap in your mouth," said Sticks, leaning in and sniffing the clean fox. "But you smell like a bundle of fresh picked flowers." She handed him a small clump of her homemade soap paste. "Now, do me."
"Uh..." Tails looked at the soap paste in his hand, then back to Sticks.
"It's part of step five, Tails. The couple must cleanse each other. That's what it's called the couple's cleansing. It's pretty self explanatory. Sheesh, for someone who can build mumbo jumbo robot gizmos out of kitchen appliances context clues elude you apparently."
"Er, okay then. Here I go." Tails had never done anything like this before, well not on anyone other than himself that is.
He did what came to him naturally and began lathering up Sticks's hair. He treated it with the utmost care, noting the coarseness of the texture. There was a lot of hair to work with, most of it sun damaged and split from irregular care. Bits of twig, small pebbles, insect bits and dirt clumps slid off into the water as he ran his fingers along the length of her hair, returning its natural shine and bright earthy coloration.
In the quiet of the night, where the only sound he could hear was the churning of the water and the chirping of the crickets, Tails found himself lost in the moment. In spite of his predicament he couldn't deny that there was a sense of peacefulness when he was with Sticks, strange as it were. Even if she still had plans to paint his blank canvas the time they've spent together, while hectic and utterly nonsensical, wasn't entirely unpleasant.
"Sonic, Amy, Knuckles. I hope you know what you're doing," Tails muttered beneath his breath.
"What was that?" Sticks asked.
"I-I said, it's time for the rinse!" uttered Tails quickly. "Deep breathe." Sticks took in a lungful of air as Tails dunked her under the water. He pulled her back up a few seconds later and was shocked at how different Sticks looked like when she was clean.
He stared slack-jawed as she rose from the waters like the sirens of myth, illuminated by glimmering moonlight as her hair settled across her shoulder. For the briefest of moments she looked so innocent, so pure, so sumptuous. She was the very essence of woman lifted straight from the high class world of renaissance art.
...Then the moment was completely ruined as she let out a rude belch, forming a series of bubbles that floated lazily in front of the couple before popping unceremoniously.
"Heh heh. I, uh, swallowed some of the water on the way up," Sticks grinned sheepishly.
"..." Tails gawked at Sticks like she'd grown two heads. How someone could be so mercurial he hadn't the foggiest idea.
Then something unprecedented happened.
"Pfft, pfft."
He began to laugh.
It started out as a snort, then it became a chortle.
Before long he broke out into full blown hysterics, whooping and guffawing into the night right in front of her face.
"Bwa-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha! Bwa-ha-ha-ha-ha!"
Sticks followed suit with Tails's sudden joviality. She broke out into laughter alongside him, chuckling and hollering uncontrollably in good cheer until they ran out of breath.
"I... I think it's time to get out of the hot spring," said Tails, turning away. Even though he and Sticks had shared a poignant moment in their relationship (however far that may go) he was still shy about nudity. Ironic. "You go first, I'll dry off after."
"Oh, no. That won't do," said Sticks, casually dragging Tails out of the water and onto the alcove. "Better to do this together quickly, before either of us catch a cold, and we wouldn't want that. Big pharma will bleed you dry of your hard earned money for over the counter cold medication." She stood in front of him, fur matted and dripping wet.
"Observe." She dropped on all fours and shook wildly, drying herself like how a dog would. Water practically slipped off her pelt at the sheer speed of her undulation, spraying the air with a fine mist that dissipated into the night air. In no time flat she was dry as a bone, her fur fluffing out slightly as a result of her shaking. "There we go. Nothing to it. Now, you try."
"Heh heh, you know. I think it would be best if I had a towel or maybe a hair dryer because I don't think I can undulate that fast. I might get whiplash if I try," said Tails, subconsciously averting his eyes from Sticks.
"Well, it's no problem then. I'll help you out," said Sticks, pulling a vine off from a nearby tree.
"Why, thank you, Sticks. Although I don't see how a vine is going to help dry my fu- Hey, what are you doing?" Tails watched in bemusement Sticks began wrapping the vine around his body, coiling it from the bottom of his shins up to his shoulders.
"You know, it's a good thing I didn't serve you dinner yet. That's step six," Sticks grinned right as she tugged vigorously against the vine, pulling it like a ripcord.
With savage strength Sticks turned Tails into a foxy top, spinning him dry as the world around him faded into an inky blur of shining starlight. When he finally slowed to a stop he collapsed backwards onto Sticks, who caught him as he struggled to keep his eyes from spinning around in their sockets. He could feel his lunch threaten to evacuate his stomach but thankfully he had enough willpower and physical fortitude to keep it down.
"Ugh, is step five done yet?" He mumbled as he righted himself.
"Just about," replied Sticks. "Ah, nothing like a bath before dinner, wouldn't you agree?"
"I'll admit I am peckish," said Tails as his stomach growled shortly after. "I never did get to go to Meh Burger with the others since I crashed here and became entangled in your neurologically induced madness."
"Funny how life works out, eh?" Sticks smirked as she began putting her jewelry back on. She handed Tails his gear, which he immediately began dressing himself with behind the privacy of a nearby bush. He came out looking fresh as a daisy, much to Sticks's captivation. "Wow, you clean up nice."
"Heh heh, so I'm told," Tails blushed, scratching the back of his neck. "So, um, are you going back to your burrow dressed in only, er, that?"
"What's wrong with that?" Sticks tilted her head to the side.
"N-nothing..." Tails turned around and started making his way back to her abode. "I'll go on ahead." He kept a good ten paces in front of her, making sure to keep his vision directly forward at all times.
"Taking charge, Tails?" Sticks said from behind. "A fox after my own heart."
"Just keep walking Tails," he muttered to himself, his cheeks burning. "One foot in front of the other. Left, right, left, right..."