Another collaboration between Steelcode, Redbat132, and myself. Here you go, Amigos! Enjoy! :)
Macy, Tommy, Andy, Hank, and Jack Bishop belong to Redbat132. Sage belongs to Steelcode. Ben 10 belongs to Cartoon Network and Man of Action. I only own Rachel and Sasha.
Giant Frogs And Burning Pasts
Sage ran around in his wolf form, proud of himself for snagging one of Macy's sais just to get her attention, while outside the Grant Mansion. Macy, who wasn't mad but in a playful mood, chased after him.
"Come on, Sage! Give that back!" She said, laughing a bit.
Still running around, Sage accidentally rammed into Tommy when he wasn't looking and both boys fell to the ground. Macy, after getting her sai, was trying to hold back her laughter at the funny scene. "You guys okay?" She asked.
Sage barked to say he was good and Tommy jumped up, excitement filling him. "I'm fine," he said. "And I was just looking for you, sis! I met a cool new alien friend and I want you to meet him!"
"Really? That's great," she said.
Sage raised his head, cocking it a little, wondering if this new friend was someone he had met before or if it was an unknown relative of his. Getting to his paws, he gently grasped Tommy's shirt sleeve to help him to his feet.
"Thanks, buddy," Tommy told Sage. Once up, he faced Macy and said, "And you two are gonna 'leap' when meeting him. He's a toad-tastic guy."
Sage cocked his head while raising one of his eye ridges like an eyebrow. "What's with the frog or toad puns?" He asked to himself, though his gestures were obvious as he looked at Macy.
"Okay, are you gonna tell us who the name of this alien friend of yours is or just keep us entertained with these jokes?" Macy said, getting slightly impatient while folding her arms.
Sage gave a growl bark of agreement, gently pushing Tommy in the back to get him into motion.
"Fine," Tommy said without heat and put his index and thumb in his mouth to create a loud whistle sound, as if signaling someone.
The wolf looked around for a moment before spotting a tall frog looking alien with a pair of retro sunglasses. Stiffening slightly, he watched as the alien smiled at Tommy.
"You called?" Asked Bullfrag.
"Sure did," Tommy replied while fist bumping him, then turned to his friends. "Macy, Sage, I like you to meet Bullfrag. We met around the swamp while I was exploring the forest behind the Grant Mansion. He can really jump super high and use his tongue like a whip. Isn't that awesome?!"
"I take it that you must be my new nephew my stepsister, Rachel, has been talking about?" Bullfrag asked while going down on one knee to be leveled with Sage.
The wolf sniffed Bullfrag from a distance first. Smelling nothing but fresh air and water coming from him, he gave a nod and barked, before offering his paw in greeting and allowed Bullfrag to shake it and also rub his head.
"See, I told ya he was cool. Right, Macy?" Tommy said. When he finally faced Macy, he saw a stunned look on her face. It was like Macy was staring off into space. "Macy?" He asked, getting slightly worried.
Sage turned his attention to Macy, noticing her muscles stiffen and her fists clench. Giving a small whine, he pressed into Macy's side to get her attention.
Noticing the shocked Macy, Bullfrag stood up and said, while grinning and lending his hand to her, "And you must Tommy's older stepsister, Macy. Also goes by Black Rebel. He's mentioned a lot about-".
He got interrupted when Macy punched him hard in the face, followed by a side-thrust kick that caused him to fly back from a distance and fall down.
"Get away from my little brother, you filthy Incursean!" She yelled, now looking very angry.
Sage jumped back in surprise at Macy's sudden reaction, utterly shocked, as was Tommy.
"Whoa, hey. I'm not gonna hurt you or anyone. There's no reason to be afraid." Bullfrag said, raising his hands while being reasonable, sensing that the girl had attacked out of fear.
"No reason? NO REASON!? You think I believe a low-life alien like you, after what your disgusting kind did to me!? To my city?! To my planet!?" She continued yelling, clenching both her teeth and fists as she slowly walked towards Bullfrag.
Growing concerned, Sage moved in between Macy and Bullfrag, giving a loud whine.
"Macy, stop! What are you doing?! I told you Bullfrag was on our side! He's a friend!" Tommy shouted, quickly facing his sister while keeping Bullfrag behind him to defend him, even holding his arms wide open in defense.
"Have you lost your mind?! He's no friend! He's just a spy who probably came here to study us! Try to find our weaknesses and report back to his frog-faced species so he can wipe us all out, like last time!" Macy said, twirling her sai and gripping it super hard.
Sage was starting to have enough of Macy's not-listening attitude. He moved in front of Tommy and Bullfrag, giving Macy a warning growl. "Macy, I'm your friend. I don't know what's happened in the past, but right now you need to call down and lower your weapon," he thought, holding her gaze as his muscles grew stiff and he gave another low growl.
Macy lightly growled, not loosening the grip of her sai. She stared her dark and fiery eyes at her shape-shifting pal's. After what seemed like a long staring contest, Macy finally backed off, seeing the two were siding with the frog alien.
"Fine!" She said, throwing her weapon down on the grass and just ran deep into the forest.
"Macy!" Tommy called, only to see her gone.
"Was it something I said?" Bullfrag asked, kind of confused.
"I don't think so. I'm so sorry, Bullfrag. I have no idea why Macy would act like this. She usually doesn't go all attack unless it's someone bugging her or doing harm," spoke Tommy.
Sage growled a confirmation, looking at the sai in the grass. Stepping forward, he took the sai in his teeth, pulling it from the ground before looking at Tommy. "I'm going after her. You should wait here." Sage thought to himself as he looked at Tommy.
"Not sure what you're thinking, but I'm guessing it involves looking for Macy. And if you're going, then so am I," Tommy told him.
Sage growled, shaking his head then gently pushed Tommy towards Bullfrag. "No stay here with Bullfrag. I need to talk to her calmly," he thought looking again into Tommy's eyes.
"Sage, she's my sister. Sure, stepsister, but she's still my family. Besides, you need all the help in finding her," the boy reasoned. "Bullfrag knows the forest more than anyone. He can tell you where to look when someone is trying to hide there."
"The kid's right. I may not know why your friend is mad at me, but I do know how to help track her," Bullfrag said, walking over and taking a knee to be eye-leveled with Sage. "At least have your Uncle Bullfrag give you some quick shortcut routes so you can get to her faster," he said, giving a smirk.
Sage growled for a minute before putting the sai on the ground and shifting to human form. "Alright, you two can come but the second we find her you hang back and I talk to her. She opens up better to me," he stated. "Otherwise you two can stay here while I track her."
"Good enough," replied Bullfrag.
"Don't worry. We'll keep a safe distance. Oh! And I know how we can stay in touch!" Tommy grabbed something from his front pocket and revealed what looked like advanced ear bud pieces. "It's an ear piece communicator my buddy, Andy, made for the Mystery Crusaders to contact each other when we separate and look for things. You'll need it in case any of us find Macy," he explained while taking one and putting it in his ear. "Bullfrag and I will take one side of the forest while you search in the other direction."
Sage nodded while grabbing the ear piece and placing it in his ear. "Tommy, hold out Macy's sai, please. I need to recognize her scent." He shifted back into wolf form shaking his fur when he finished speaking.
Nodding, Tommy held the sai so Sage could track Macy. "Don't worry, sis. We'll get to the bottom of this mystery and help you." he said softly.
They were soon in the forest looking for Macy. Sage searched the ground while Tommy, riding on Bullfrag's back, was on top of a tree to get a higher view. So far, those two found nothing so far. Sage was nearly at a dead end when he couldn't sniff out her scent anywhere because it all stopped in one spot.
Just when he thought he would give up, Tommy spoke up. "Sage. I think Macy is on higher ground. Bullfrag and I saw movement on a huge tree that should be around your area. Better check it out."
Sage gave a growl as a affirmative before taking a deep breath and leaping up onto the lowest branch. "Cats, eat your hearts out." Sage thought as he leaped into the branches sniffing around before hearing a sob come from across from him. Instantly, he spotted Macy with her legs tucked to her chest and her head down. Giving a strong leap, Sage dug his claws into the bark of the tree and walked over to her, gently nudging her hand with his cold nose. Feeling something wet on her hand, Macy lifted her head and became surprised to see the shape-shifter.
"S-Sage?!" Macy said in surprise, quickly drying her own tears while sniffling. If she wasn't so upset, she'd be blushing red with embarrassment about Sage seeing her like a total mess. "How did you find me? Why are you here?"
He gave her look that said "Really?" before shifting into human form. "Mind explaining what all that was back there?" Sage asked bluntly as he straddled the branch in front of her.
"You wouldn't understand," she said, now looking away from him in an upset/depressed way.
Sage sighed. "Macy, before Whampire and Sasha adopted me and before I came to live in Staybrook, my life was utterly different," he said gently.
"Maybe. But this is a whole new kind of situation that is complicated to explain," she said.
"I got treated like a mutt and made to fight for my life for the pleasure of my father, instead of love," he stated firmly looking her directly in the eye. "The person who tells the story is the one that makes it too hard or too complicated to understand, instead of doing the basic facts."
Sighing in defeat, Macy looked at Sage and said, "You really wanna know what happened between me and those Incursean Scumbags?"
Sage nodded. "Macy, I want to understand your side and Bullfrag's. I can only do that if you tell me."
"...Okay. It was the month when the Incurseans invaded Earth. Way before I had Tommy as part of the family. They were everywhere. Many people in New York became prisoners. Some were young kids that were separated from their families. Others were just adults who were part of the police department. Including my dad." She rubbed her arm to calm down. "I was still getting used to being a crime-fighting vigilante back then. I faced many street thugs before, but nothing like alien frogs..."
Flashback start...
She stayed in the shadows as Black Rebel while following two frogs that were taking another cop to where the others were held for not following their new Incursean leader. A cop that Macy knew: Jack Bishop. He was her father's best friend plus partner in the NYPD. And was like a close uncle to her.
Long story short, Macy managed to knock out the guards, opened the cages of where the prisoners were, and managed to lead them to the nearest manhole for them to hide below in the sewers. One thing Macy learned from these creatures is that they were very sensitive to smells like burning rubber, compost, and other bad smells they can't handle. No Incursean can find them there.
Once that was taken care of, she realized that none of the police officers were in that same Detention Center. And, as it turned out, Bishop was only dressed as a civilian in hopes of looking for his police pals, too. But it seemed that the Incurseans had the NYPD in a different Holding Facility. So, Macy and Bishop (who claimed he has no idea who she is, with the disguise) decided to work together and find them.
Although they had just met, Bishop can tell that Black Rebel was a good person trying to protect the city. Long story short, they found them. The major problem; it was crawling with many Incurseans. There were more guarding the police than the ones guarding civilians. So, as usual, Macy created a diversion by getting all of the Incurseans to chase her. While they were doing that, Bishop went to the controls and unlocked all the cells. Hank was surprised in seeing Bishop. Before he could answer any of his friend's numerous questions, Bishop directed Hank and the rest of the NYPD to safety by getting them to take the sewer tunnels.
Meanwhile, Macy managed to fight off as many Incurseans she could take on. It wasn't long before one Incursean was about to blast her. Just when the trigger was pulled, Bishop saved her in the last second by jumping in and taking the laser hit.
"BISHOP!" she screamed, while throwing a shuriken at the Incursean's blaster and knocking him out with a hard kick. That laser got Bishop right in the heart. "I-i-it's okay! It's okay!" She said with a trembling voice, getting one knee on the ground next to him. "I'll get you to a medic! Let me-!"
"There's no time. It's the end of the line for me," Bishop interrupted her.
"Don't say that! You can make it! You have to!" She refused to lose him.
"There's nothing you can do."
"Yes, there is! I can help you!"
"Macy!"
That got the Brunette to stop, her eyes wide in shock. "W-wh-what did you call me?"
"Macy…I knew it was you the whole time. And no, I haven't told anyone. Not even your father," Bishop grunted in pain, trying to stay with her.
"But…why?" She said, her voice nearly trembling.
"I didn't want to blow your cover and make you stop. I've seen how you help others. You have a lot heart. A stubborn one, but good." He struggled to continue, breathing constantly.
"Uncle Bishop, please! I don't want to lose you! I…I just can't…" Macy choked, nearly close to crying while dropping her head down. She then felt a caring hand on her face that made her look up.
"Listen carefully. No matter what happens…I just want you…to continue being a hero...And promise me…that you'll look after the people who care for you…," he requested, giving her a sad smile.
"…I'm scared," she muttered.
"It's okay to be scared…So long as it doesn't change who you are…,"
And, with those last words, Bishop closed his eyes and passed out…permanently. When he did, Macy couldn't stop crying and just hugged her deceased uncle.
Suddenly, she heard voices coming her way. It was Macy's dad and a few police officers! Knowing she can't stay here, Macy quickly moved and hide. Her mind and heart still racing from such a painful, unforgettable moment that would scar her for life.
Flashback end...
The girl teared up again. "When I ran, my dad found Bishop and assumed that he struggled in fighting the Incurseans, only to lose terribly. He had no clue I was involved or even there." She rubbed her nose to make it stop itching. "It's funny. To think, the only person close to my family, besides, Tommy, who knew my heroine secret had to be the one who got destroyed by an alien frog," she said, crying even more. "How could I be so blind?"
Sage looked sadly at Macy for a moment before looking at the sky.
"Was he one to judge or hold a grudge? Your uncle I mean?" He asked continuing to look up into the canopy.
"No...But that's not why I was upset. This was all on me. I was the one who put him on that deadly spot. Instead of staying, I just ran away like a coward! It was so unlike me!" She looked at Sage, choking on her tears, "Why do you think I prefer doing things by myself? I didn't want to lose someone close to me like that again! It hurt me so much! And I'm supposed to be tough! Show no weakness!" She then, plopped her face down on her knees again. "Just seeing Bullfrag brought so many horrible memories of that stupid invasion. Mostly of how Uncle Bishop perished."
"Macy, like you said, you were still new to this hero thing. Besides, I doubt that it was your choice on whether your uncle went with you or not," he said calmly. "Also, there isn't such a thing as someone not having a weakness."
"Even if that were true, I still couldn't forgive myself for what happened. Or what the Incurseans did. Taking over our planet was one thing, but blasting one of the people I cared for? That's just a different story."
"Macy, your uncle did what he wanted to do. Jumping in front of the one he cared about. That wasn't your choice or your fault. That was your uncle's choice, and he more than anything doesn't regret it in the least," Sage said. "Wars and fights are ugly things. People are lost in body but never in soul. We always see them again in time. However, they never leave us. They watch over us forever."
Thinking it over, Macy elaborated. "So you're saying that instead of filling my heart with grief, I should fill it with something else? And if I still remember all the good memories of my uncle, it would make me feel that he's close by me most times?"
"More like every and all the time. Blaming yourself won't change the past. All you can do is keep moving forward and being a better person for it," he said, standing up. "However, once again, that's just my suggestion. Whether you choose to take my advice is up to you."
Macy pondered on what Sage said, looking down on the ground.
Moments later, Tommy and Bullfrag waiting outside the Grant Mansion for Sage and Macy. It wasn't long before they saw Sage carrying Macy on his back in his wolf form.
"Macy!" An overjoyed Tommy said, running to her, and gave his sister along with Sage a big hug! "You're back!"
Sage looked at Tommy a smirk on his wolf face. "Did you expect any less?"
"Thank you, Sage! Thank you so much!" The boy said, giving the shape-shifter a tight hug, too.
"Yeah, it's good to be back, little brother," Macy said, smiling and getting off her wolf pal.
Sage soon noticed Bullfrag waiting. Giving a bark, he rushed over, getting up on his hind legs instantly for his alien Uncle to give him scratches and pats, something the made the alien smile and comply, rubbing the boy's ears gently. The wolf then turned to Macy, he gave a wolf smile.
"You can trust him. He's different," he seemed to say through his warm golden eyes.
Although reluctant, Macy nodded her head and walked over to Bullfrag. "Hey…I wanted to say sorry for...you know, being rough on you," she started, rubbing her arm timidly, "I just had some bad past experience with the Incurseans that really...hurt me. I was afraid that you were like the others, trying to wipe the people I care for. But, after talking to Sage, I realized that you were different. You're not an evil scumbag, you're another good family member of the Grant Mansion. And I hope, one day, you'll forgive me."
Sage gave a bark, jumping down from his spot and walking behind Macy, giving her a push towards Bullfrag. That got the Brunette to bump into the alien frog close to his chest. Then, Bullfrag snared her with his arms and said with his signature smirk.
"Apology accepted," he said warmly.
Sage barked happily, jumping up and down, before noticing Macy's sai was still in Tommy's hand. Smirking, he snatched it from the boy and leapt away.
"Uh, Sis? I think Sage stole your sai again!" Tommy spoke up.
"What?!" Macy blurted out, trying to get out of Bullfrag's arms to chase after him but appeared to be trapped. "Bullfrag, let me go!"
"Oh, no. I'm not done with you yet. It's time we get better acquainted," he said, getting a playful look in his eyes. It was a look Macy recognized easily, causing her to gulp.
"Oh, for the love of Staybrook, please don't!" Macy begged, refusing to be tickle tortured again.
"If you let me tickle you, I'll help you catch Sage," Bullfrag said smiling.
Sage barked at the challenge, going into a play bow, his tail wagging furiously.
Although not a fan of getting tickled, Macy did want to catch Sage and get her sai back. "...Oh, fine. Let's just get this over with," she sighed in defeat, unable to see any other way out.
Bullfrag smiled. "Okay. A tickle then a tackle," he said as he gently eased Macy down to the soft grass before his fingers went for her ribs. She let out a squeal, but kept her mouth closed and eyes shut tight, refusing to show her soft side. Although not laughing, she was slightly shivering from all the poking and touching on her body. Sage barked again, smirking as he shook the sai in his mouth.
"Better start laughing or you may end up with a slobbery chew toy," Bullfrag suggested with a laugh, still tickling her ribs and stomach. Macy sputtered a few giggles but kept her laughter in. "Come on, you can do better than that," he said knowingly.
"I think you need to keep searching. Her stomach and ribs might be a few of her tickle spots, but there's got to be one that will break her," Tommy suggested.
"Hmmm. Maybe, like my nieces, her weak spots are her underarms and shoulder blades," the alien frog said thoughtfully, stopping his tickle attack for the moment.
Hearing that, Macy opened her eyes wide in shock and try to get out of Bullfrag's hold. "On second thought, I change I mind! Sage can keep my sai. I can work with just one. I don't need it that badly. Just let me go," she said, lightly panicking.
Sage, not fooled by her words, barked happily, mock-chewing on his new prize before looking up and giving a look that asked, "You sure you don't want this back?"
She growled, becoming so annoyed and frustrated with Sage taunting her in his mind. And in her distraction. Tommy got a hold of her jacket and pulled it off faster than XLR8. "Wha-Hey! Tommy! You give me back that jacket right now!" She shouted.
He just chuckled and said, "Sorry, Macy, but this is for your own good. Sage barked agreeingly.
"Cootchie, cootchie, coo, Little Rebel." Bullfrag said, tickling her shoulder blades and under her arms. Once he did that, Macy immediately started laughing hysterically hard and loud.
"AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! STAHAHAHAHAHAP! THIHIHIHIHIHIHIIHIS IS TORTURE!"
"No. This is family time," he said, chuckling as he continued the torture.
"Hey, Sage! I think we should help Bullfrag out." Tommy called out, moving towards Macy's legs. He kept one arm wrapped around them around ankle level and used the other to take off her shoes and socks. "Care to give my sister's feet a little dusting with that bushy tail of yours?" He offered.
Sage barked a couple times before trotting over and wagging his tail over Macy's toes and feet.
"EEEEEEEEEEEEEAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! GUYS, NO! GAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!" Macy shrieked, now her laughter tripled and her feet plus toes wiggling like crazy. Tommy made it worse as he moved towards her stomach and went all tickle-attack on it.
Sage barked, keeping his tail tickling her feet while he gently licked behind her knees and nuzzling in between them with his cold black nose. That make Macy jump a little, still lost in her own laughs. "NOHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! TOO COHOHOHOHOHOHOLD ON MY BACK KNEHEHEHEHEHEHEHEHES!" She laughed helplessly, her cheeks turning red and tears coming down.
Bullfrag chuckled, seeing she was at her limit. "Okay, time to stop," he said, letting her up.
Sage barked, leaping away and snatching up his prize again and shaking it around.
Once it was finally over, Macy laid down completely limp on the grass. She lightly tittered, still feeling the tickle sensation inside her for a few seconds before taking deep breathes while placing a hand on her stomach. "Not...cool," Macy spoke, continuing to inhale and exhale.
"But you enjoyed it," Bullfrag said with a knowing smile. "And now I will help you get your sai back from Sage."
Sage growled, doing a play bow before taking off across the lawn.
Macy tried to get up but was a bit off balanced, since that tickle torture really did a number on her. Sage noticed and dropped the sai, racing over and catching her on his side.
"Thanks, Sage...I don't think...I have any energy left...to move..." she said tiredly, before letting out a small yawn while snuggling more to the shape-shifter's side. Her eyes were halfway opened but were getting very heavy.
The wolf barked, ducking under Macy's legs and pulling her up so she was laying on his back, feeling her nestle into his fur. "Rest, my sweet one. I'll be here when you wake," he thought to himself, as he walked over to Bullfrag and Tommy.
"Think we over did it with Macy?" Tommy asked, placing the jacket around his sister as if it were a blanket.
Sage shook his head, being careful not to jostle his precious cargo. Nudging Tommy into the house, he felt a hand gently rub his head, then move to Macy's head. Looking up, the wolf found Bullfrag smiling down on them and he smiled back before they headed inside.
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