Prank War

It had been a beautiful day at Piston Peak Air Attack, complete with twittering birds and a clear blue sky and warm summer air. Best of all, a fire hadn't broken out in a few days. Everyone went about their business, as content as could be…

…and then jumped out of their paintjobs when Sky's piercing scream rang out across the base.

Those who knew Sky well could identify this scream as one of genuine surprise and a hint of anger, meaning she was most likely in danger. Naturally, since they loved her the most out of everyone on the base, Blade and Dusty were the first ones to drop what they were doing and rush over to the source of the outburst. Nick, who was napping peacefully in Blade's hanger, woke with a start and followed (staying invisible, of course). The firefighters remembered something about Sky mentioning she wanted to take a shower, and Dusty's mind instantly jumped to the worst-case scenarios like rattlesnake bites and viciously mauled by a bear.

"Raven?" Blade called as he, Dusty, and Nick rounded the corner to the entrance of the showers.

"Sky!" Dusty called. "Sky are you…" He, Blade, and Nick screeched to a halt. "…..oh…..kay….."

"Damn it, Maru!" Sky screeched, smacking the mechanic with one of her orange flip-flops. "You perverted little tug!"

"I am so sorry!" Maru yelped, trying to shield his roof with his tines.

Blade, Nick, and Dusty weren't sure if they were supposed to laugh, avert their eyes, stop the fight, ask what happened, or any mix of the options. Maru cowered under Sky's attacks, keeping his eyes down. Sky was wrapped in a towel, covering her breasts and down to her thighs. The sunlight glistened off her wet and soapy skin, and conditioner dripped from her hair. But Sky's natural beauty was rather overshadowed by the murderous glare she locked onto Maru as she continued to smack him.

"What is your deal, Maru?" Sky growled.

"Hey, it was an honest mistake!" Maru protested, happy that Sky finally paused in her assault. "I didn't even know you were in there!"

"Ever heard of knocking?" Sky snapped.

"Well most people sing or hum or talk in the shower!" Maru countered.

"That's your excuse?" Sky scoffed. "Do you have any idea how embarrassing this is?"

"Oh relax!" Maru scoffed. "It ain't nothing I haven't seen before."

"Maybe in a medical book, but not on me." Sky sassed.

"I've seen you without clothes on. You've come into my shop needing medical attention before." Maru shrugged his tines.

Sky glared harder, if it were possible at that moment. "You saw me without a shirt on, but at least I was still wearing my jeans and this—" She gestured to her chest. "—was covered!"

"What's the difference?" Maru demanded.

Sky gave a furious growl, looking ready to squash Maru like a bug. Maru shrunk back, actually getting scared. Sky huffed, turned on her heel, and marched back into the shower house while slamming the door shut after her.

Maru sighed. "Okay, I'm sorry! That was a stupid thing to say!" Sky didn't answer, and Maru let out a breath as he tried to quell his anxiety. Then he turned and suddenly realized Blade and Dusty still standing there. "Uh…"

"Do we want to know what happened?" Blade asked.

"Hey, it ain't completely my fault!" Maru said quickly. "I thought someone left the water running in there. I mean, I saw everyone else around and Sky was reading last time I checked. So I, you know, went in there to turn off the water and Sky was…..in there…and she was…..uh…"

Dusty got a sly smirk on his lips. "Maru…..did you see Sky—"

"NO!" Maru growled. "I didn't see nothing! It was so steamy in there I didn't see a thing!" He drove off, grumbling to himself.

"'Steamy' he says." Nick snickered quietly. Blade shot him a warning look, the only thing he could do with Dusty still there.

Dusty chuckled in a mix of amusement and pity. He waited until the base mechanic was out of earshot. "So, you think Maru actually saw anything?"

"Nah." Blade said. "It's Maru. You would know if he saw anything."

Dusty laughed again, and he moved over to the door and knocked on it. "Hey Sky!"

"Don't come in here, Dusty!" Sky shouted from inside.

"I won't!" Dusty laughed. "I just wanted to make sure you're okay."

"I'm fine." Sky said in a crisp tone. "Thank you!"

"You're welcome!" Dusty replied in a tone that mimicked Sky's. He laughed again, and Blade chuckled and rolled his eyes. They left Sky to her shower, assuring the rest of the worried base team that Sky was fine.

Of course, word got around about what happened, and at one point during the day Blade found Maru chasing the male Smokejumpers around. He waved a hefty wrench and shouted death threats, and Blade could tell from the Jumpers' amused grins that they were totally ribbing Maru for what happened.

That night, at the bonfire, Sky gave Maru the silent treatment and only acknowledged him long enough to shoot him an irritated glare.

"Look, I'm sorry about what happened." Maru droned. "Honest mistake."

"It was an honest mistake that you decided to become a Peeping Tom?" Sky droned back. The male Smokejumpers snickered quietly, trying to keep it down before Maru could throw one of his tools at them.

"I ain't a Peepin' Tom." Maru huffed.

"Yeah, sure." Drip sniggered.

"PERVERT!" Avalanche bellowed.

Maru growled dangerously. Luckily for him, Sky also became irritated and threw a pebble at them. "Hey, come on." Drip shrugged his claw scoop. "At least Maru got something nice to look at." He and Avalanche laughed and tapped their scoop blades together in a high-five.

"I did not!" Maru snapped. He suddenly realized what he said and he caught sight of Sky's glare. "I mean, yes. No. That's not what I meant! I just, uh…." He groaned in frustration. "I'll be in my shop!" He turned and drove off, grumbling.

The male Smokejumpers cracked up laughing, but they quickly quieted when Blade locked his Glare of Doom onto them. The boys gulped and shrunk down under their chief's gaze. "Despite the amusement you all get from today's little incident, I expect my team members to treat one another with respect. I don't expect you to be gentlemen, but the least you can do is avoid being crude."

"Sorry Chief." Blackout and Drip said, Avalanche nodding.

"SORRY RAVEN!" Avalanche shouted.

Sky rolled her eyes and shook her head. Boys.

As everyone dispersed to bed, Nick decided to approach Sky. "So you sure you're okay, Cuervo?"

"I'm fine, Nick." Sky assured, climbing up to her hammock. "Maru just startled me, that's all."

Nick smiled, and he suddenly got a crafty look in his eyes. "You know, if you ever wanted to get back at him—"

"Nick Enrique Lopez." Blade droned from his spot on his bed. "Don't even think about it."

"Aw, come on!" Nick whined.

"Raven is already evil enough without your help." Blade said, closing his eyes and settling down to sleep.

Nick huffed. "You're no fun."

Sky laughed. "That's okay, Nick. Thanks, anyway." She and the ghost settled down to rest, and Sky snuggled into her blanket. She grinned to herself. Besides, I already have a plan.

Maru tended to wake up at the crack of dawn to get to work. He knew that, once daylight emerged from the horizon, the firefighters were on-duty and could be needed at any moment. That being said, Maru never fully woke up until he's had some coffee in his system. So as he pushed himself out of his bed, he could only think about a nice big cup of coffee that he often compared to the Elixir of Life. Without the morning drink, Maru would be about as lively as a zombie.

But when he looked in the mirror after splashing some water on his windshield, he instantly became wide-awake.

"SKYLAR AMELIA RILEY!"

Blade, Sky, Nick, Windlifter, and Cabbie were often the only ones who also woke early in the morning, so they easily heard Maru's outburst and hurried over to see what the problem was. Blade noticed Sky had a cheeky smirk on her lips, and he got a sinking feeling in his stomach. When they finally arrived at the garage, they came to an abrupt halt at the sight of Maru. Nick struggled to hold back his laughter while Sky had an innocent look on her face. Cabbie smirked and even Blade had trouble keeping his snickers at bay. Windlifter remained stoic as ever, even when he was amused.

Maru stood there, fuming, with a mustache above his lips and sideburns next to his eyes and the words "I'm with stupid" under an arrow that pointed right at him printed on his side, all of it drawn in what was hopefully just a marker.

"Hey Maru." Sky piped up, crossing her arms with that cheeky grin still on her lips. "You got a little somethin' right here." She tapped her lip for emphasis.

Maru glared furiously, but it only made him look sillier. "This had better not be Sharpie, kid."

Sky shrugged. "I guess you'll find out when you wash up. Better hope there aren't any Peeping Toms around." She turned and walked off, Nick following her as the two of them laughed quietly.

"You look pretty good with a mustache." Cabbie commented.

"Shut up." Maru growled, grumbling to himself as he made his way to the showers. So that's how you want to play, Riley? All right.

"And that is why you should never underestimate the power of a Navy brat." Sky said, twirling a black marker in her hand skillfully. The Smokejumpers, Dusty, and Dipper looked amazed, having sat completely entranced at Sky's story of revenge against Maru.

"I can't believe you did that!" Dipper breathed.

Dusty laughed. "I can."

"GO RAVEN!" Avalanche cheered.

"It was definitely fun." Sky admitted. "You should see the prank wars we have in Propwash Junction every April. Sure is a lot of fun, but after a while you gotta get creative."

"You better be careful, though." Drip warned. "Maru will strike back with a vengeance."

Sky scoffed. "Please. I am not afraid of Maru."

"Okay." Drip shrugged. "I tried to warn you."

"We'll say something nice at your funeral." Blackout added. They all laughed, and Sky rolled her eyes.

"Hey Raven!" Cabbie called as he passed. "Chief is requesting your presence in the kitchen."

"Hm. Wonder what's up." Sky murmured as she jogged off, waving to the others. Her first theory was that Blade was trying to cook again and might need her help, otherwise he would've come to get her himself.

Sky got to the door and opened it. "Hey Blade! What do you—whoa!" Sky suddenly felt her feet slipping across the wet stripe of tile on the floor, and she began slipping and sliding as she tried to regain the traction in her sneakers. She yelped as she began falling, and she quickly grabbed the closest thing to her to steady herself. This turned out to be a seemingly random rope, and when Sky pulled on it she found her vision clouded with white.

Maru smirked from his vantage point at the door, and he quickly snapped a picture of his handiwork. He caught Sky glaring at him. "Boo!" Maru laughed, slamming the door shut and driving off.

"Get back here you little insect!" Sky shouted, slipping a little more on the wet tile.

Maru hurried over to the Smokejumpers, Dusty, and Dipper. "Hey guys! You wanna see a ghost caught on camera?"

Everyone was confused, and when Blade heard this he felt a wave of panic at the thought of Maru possibly discovering Nick. But he calmed down when he saw what Maru meant: his picture was of Sky, covered head to toe in flour. Soon, Sky marched out to them while growling in irritation, still covered in flour and leaving dusty white footprints behind her. Maru sniggered in amusement.

Sky looked quite the opposite of amused. "You think this is funny? You mess with the bull, you get the horns, buddy."

"Yeah?" Maru goaded. "Bring it on, girlie! I ain't afraid of you!"

"Oh yeah?" Sky scoffed with a smirk. "You want me to bring it on? Fine! This means war!"

Maru laughed. "Do your worst, kid."

Everyone else just watched the challenge and tried their best not to laugh. Blade rolled his eyes. "Oh boy. Here we go."

The ensuing Prank War lasted for about a week as Maru and Sky exchanged blows. Of course, they had enough sense to avoid things that would impede on the team's ability to fight fires, but that didn't stop the creativity from both sides. Everyone else offered little to no assistance besides the occasional lure. Blade even forbade Nick from helping Sky, his excuse being that Nick was an unfair advantage due to his experience with practical jokes.

The antics ensued marvelously. One day Sky would be setting a paint trap that turned Maru into a rainbow of colors, the next day Maru would be putting fake spiders in Sky's hammock while she slept. Sky hid Maru's coffee and switched it out for a black tea which Maru instantly spat out once it hit his tongue. Maru then got revenge by somehow managing to get Sky onto an air mattress in the middle of the night and cast her off on the lake. Because she didn't have her radio, she ended up swimming back to shore. But it in no way ended there.

"I gotta admit, she's good." Maru said as he gave Dusty's gearbox a checkup.

Dusty chuckled, trying to stay still. "She's had some good practice. She, Chug, Dottie, and I started doing an annual prank war every April Fool's Day. Plus, she's a Jolly Wrench. Lots of Navy training comes in handy for stuff like this."

"Yeah, well she's still gotta deal with me." Maru reminded him. "I have a lot of practice from dealing with the Smokejumpers for so long."

"I don't think I've ever seen Sky so determined to win." Dusty said. "She always did pull the best pranks, but for you she seems to be pulling out all the stops."

"Aw, I'm flattered." Maru laughed. "Can't wait to see her give up."

Dusty scoffed. "Give up? Sky won't ever throw in the towel. She's too stubborn. You're the one who ought to be careful. You never know when she'll strike."

"Oh please." Maru rolled his eyes. "She may have gotten me a few times, but I've learned her tricks. No way is she gonna catch me off-guard again." He rolled over to his workbench and picked up a small wrench. But he felt a tug and noticed a string attached to the tool. His jerk on the wrench activated a pulley system that unzipped a bag above Maru's head. Before he could fully register what happened in time to duck away, Maru became coated in the retardant that fell from the bag. Dusty burst out laughing at the sight.

"What was that you were saying about learning Sky's tricks?" Dusty stuttered out between his laughs.

Maru grumbled. "Yeah, whatever."

"What about my tricks?" Sky asked as she appeared at the entrance of the garage. She smirked at Maru. "Hey, that's a nice color on you."

"Yeah, yeah, laugh while you can." Maru taunted. "My vengeance will be swift and decisive!"

"Can't wait to see how you'll top that one." Sky goaded, laughing as she walked off.

Maru huffed, sneezing a few times, but resumed his checkup on Dusty. Still, Sky had a point. How would he top this one? It would have to be something clever. Something sneaky. Something dubious. Something that would catch Sky completely off-guard.

Just wait for your opportunity. Maru decided.

Opportunity came the next day.

A call came to the base after dinner. Jammer needed some air support in a search-and-rescue mission of a young boy who became separated from his group while hiking. Blade, Sky, and Windlifter went out to help with the search. Nick followed, helping to cover more ground. It took most of the night, but they finally found the kid (thankfully unharmed). All three of them returned to base dead tired while Nick seemed hyperactive as ever. Sky even fell asleep riding in Blade's hoist hatch, and Blade didn't have the heart to wake her up; nor did he really have the proper brain function to bother with it. So he settled down on his bed and simply kept his hatch door open so Sky could breathe. He soon fell asleep, out cold in mere seconds.

Later that night, Maru managed to sneak into Blade's hanger with his supplies. He knew if he was caught, Blade would probably kill him. But if he could do this, it might tip the scales of this prank war in his favor. So he bit his lip to keep his chuckles at bay as he quietly drove over towards Blade's hoist hatch. Sky slept soundly, her head next to the opening of the hatch. Maru fought the urge to laugh deviously.

This is gonna be good.

The next morning, Blade slept an hour past his alarm to ensure he would be alert and awake for the rest of the day. As the sunlight hit his eyes, he began blinking them open and yawning.

"Come on, Raven." Blade said. "Up and at 'em."

Sky moaned tiredly. "Oh all right."

Blade chuckled as Sky shifted around and tried to get up without falling over from her sleepiness. "You can go to bed early tonight to catch up on your sleep, all right?"

"No, no, that's okay." Sky yawned and stretched. "What if a lightning storm comes through?"

"Then I'll alert the team at dawn." Blade assured. "A sleepy firefighter isn't a very effective one."

Sky couldn't argue with that. Maybe because of her sheer exhaustion. "Fine."

"Hey guys!" Nick called excitedly as he popped up in front of them. The two firefighters jumped, groaning tiredly. "Come on!" Nick laughed. "What's up with you two?"

"We were up most of the night for a search and rescue." Blade grumbled.

"Yeah, why aren't you as tired as us?" Sky complained. She had yet to slide out of the hoist hatch as she rubbed her eyes.

"I'm a ghost, kid." Nick chuckled, moving around Blade towards Sky. "I don't always need to sleep, ergo—" Nick froze, staring at Sky with wide eyes. "Uh…"

"What?" Sky asked. "What is it?"

Nick blinked a few times to make sure he wasn't seeing things. "Say Sky? You wanna come over here so Blade can look at ya?"

Sky raised an eyebrow, but followed Nick to stand in Blade's field of vision. Blade looked to Nick questioningly, but when he saw Sky his eyes widened.

"Oh you've got to be kidding." Blade groaned.

"What?" Sky asked again, curious and starting to feel anxious. It suddenly clicked. "Maru did something to me, didn't he?"

"Sí." Nick gulped. And I clearly chose the wrong night to take a stroll through the woods.

Sky groaned. "What'd he do? Marker on the face? Glitter?"

"A little bit more serious than that." Blade admitted. "But listen: first I'm going to throttle him for sneaking into my hanger. Nick and I are going to leave. You wait about five minutes and then check out the damage. All right?"

Sky sighed. "Fine."

Blade and Nick left, trying to not look like they were hurrying. But once Blade closed the door, he darted off and towards the garage. Maru wasn't there, but he was with the rest of the team having breakfast around the fire pit.

"Mornin' Chief!" Maru greeted. "Sleep well?"

"Apparently given you were able to sneak into my hanger in the middle of the night." Blade growled.

"You snuck into Blade's hanger?" Dynamite asked, perplexed.

"Hey, my original target was sleeping in there, so I had to get in." Maru shrugged, going back to his coffee.

"I noticed." Blade huffed. "And I hope you realize she's going to kill you when she finds out in a few minutes."

"What'd you do?" Drip asked Maru.

"She thinks retardant red looks good on me? Well I think the color I put on her looks even better." Maru said.

"What color was that?" Dipper asked.

"It wasn't pink, right?" Dusty asked, sounding a little worried.

"What's wrong with pink?" Patch asked.

"It's the one color Sky hates the most." Dusty explained. "I'm still not completely sure why. Something about a school bully who always wore pink. She's hated it ever since."

"So, if any of it got on her…?" Blackout said questioningly.

"If Sky can avoid wearing pink, she will." Dusty assured.

"Maybe not this time." Maru said in a sing-song tone.

Dusty's eyes widened. "Maru, if you're next prank involved pink, you'd be taking your life in your tines."

"How so?" Blade asked, suddenly a little nervous.

"Chug and I once made a mistake of dousing Sky in pink paint for a prank." Dusty said. "And when she found out—" Dusty stopped talking, his eyes going wide. The rest of the firefighters followed his gaze and their eyes also widened.

Maru took another sip of his coffee. "Let me guess: she's right behind me."

The firefighters nodded.

Maru rolled his eyes and turned to see Sky's reaction to his masterpiece. He didn't quite expect her level of fury: fists clenched until her knuckles turned white, eyebrows low and furrowed, and her nostrils flaring. The only thing that made it remotely funny was the fact that Sky's previously raven black hair was now a bright shade of pink.

Sky kept her glare locked on Maru, like the targeting system for a missile launcher. She marched up and put her face close to Maru's windshield. The smirk on Maru's lips dwindled down, and he gulped a little.

"You are so dead." Sky finally said. That's all she said. She turned on her heel and marched off, leaving a stunned silence behind her.

Maru blinked. He blinked again. "Uh, say Dusty? Not that I'm scared or anything, but how dead do you think I am?"

Dusty sighed. "Maru, you have killed two birds with one stone by messing with Sky's top two pet peeves. One, her hatred for the color pink. Two, her absolute loathing at anyone who dares to mess with her hair. How dead are you?" He chuckled. "You might as well start digging your own grave."

Luckily, Maru had enough brains to simply use a paint-like hair dye. The pink color came out of Sky's hair with a hose down and a quick shower. But everyone knew, based on her reaction, that Sky's revenge was nigh. It would only be a matter of time before she struck.

A few days passed. Then a week. Then two weeks. All the while, the firefighters of the base waited patiently for Sky's moment of attack. Maru could feel paranoia setting in, and he even started going to bed with a wrench for protection. Blade and Nick didn't bother Sky about her plans, mostly because they were afraid to find out, but they could tell she thought real hard about this one. Sky knew that biding her time would make her final prank worthwhile, but she also had trouble figuring out what her greatest prank would be. How would she get Maru so badly that he finally raised the white flag? She was a Jolly Wrench, after all. Skipper gave her informal training to be a Navy soldier. Sky would either win this war or go down fighting.

Now how to do it?

"It's gotta be clever." Sky said during her hike with Nick. "Something mind-blowing. Something that'll put an end to this."

"Hmm, tough decision." Nick mused. "Blade and I tended to prank each other now and then, but we didn't necessarily end up in a full-on war."

"Come on, Nick." Sky practically pleaded, climbing over large rocks next to the river. "Can't you think of any good ones you pulled on Blade?"

"Blade said I'm not even supposed to be helping you." Nick reminded her.

"Yeah, but you owe me one for not waking me up when Maru dyed my hair." Sky countered.

Nick sighed. "Fine. I'll help you with the manual labor. But the creativity is all on you."

"I can deal with that." Sky nodded, leaping from one rock to another and stopping to look over the landscape. "I just have to think for a moment."

"Didn't you used to pull some good revenge stunts as a kid?" Nick asked.

"Yeah, but those were pretty malicious acts of vengeance." Sky shrugged. "If I go that route, I'm going to have to tone it down a little."

"How so?" Nick asked.

Sky thought about it. She glanced towards the river next to her and caught sight of a small drop that created a sort of waterfall within the river's flow. Sky stared at this drop for a long while, and a mischievous grin appeared on her lips.

"I think I got an idea."

Maru wasn't exactly a light sleeper, but he wasn't a heavy one either. So Sky had Nick slip some sleep aids into Maru's drink during dinner. A couple hours after Maru fell asleep, Sky and Nick snuck into his room to execute her revenge. Nick helped Sky gently push Maru out of his bed and onto an air mattress that had a couple ropes tied to it. Nick and Sky each took a rope and began quietly dragging Maru out of the garage.

"I dunno amout isth." Nick whispered, his mouth still full of rope.

"Shh!" Sky hissed. They froze when Maru stirred, but he only muttered something incoherent and went back to sleeping. Sky and Nick relaxed, and they resumed their work until they came to the right place.

"You know, Maru might kill you for this." Nick whispered.

"Hey, I said I was gonna kill him for the pink hair." Sky whispered back. "This is me having mercy on him."

Nick sighed quietly. "If you're so sure."

Sky nodded. Now this is going to be fun.

Maru yawned, slowly blinking open his eyes. I haven't slept that well in ages. Don't know about this sun, though. Really need to remember to shut the blinds.

Maru paused. He woke up at dawn, and no sunlight could make it through his window at that time. He opened his eyes fully.

A wall of water rushed past his eyes.

Maru shouted in surprise, suddenly taking in his surroundings at once. For one thing, he was most definitely not in his bed back in the garage. Ropes wrapped around most his body like a net, keeping him suspended in the air and less than a foot away from a waterfall right in front of him. He couldn't move anything except his tines and his eyes. When he looked down, he couldn't even see the bottom of the falls. Only rushing water.

"What in the…?" Maru gulped. "How did…..when did….?"

"Well good morning, Maru!"

Maru looked up to see he was actually close to the top of the falls, and none other than Skylar Amelia Riley herself sat on a large rock just next to the water. Maru glared. "Skylar! You little twerp!"

"That looks like an awfully comfortable position." Sky said teasingly. "But you really should be careful. You could fall."

"Shut up, kid!" Maru snapped. "How in the heck did you even get me up here?"

"That's for me to know and you to never find out." Sky sassed.

Maru groaned, then laughed mockingly. "Okay, that's a good one. Real funny, Navy Brat. Now get me down!"

"Nope." Sky shrugged.

"Yes." Maru snapped.

"Nope."

"Now!"

"Nope."

"Skylar!"

"Yeah?"

Maru took in a deep breath and let it out slowly. He couldn't exactly do anything at the moment. He was completely at the mercy of a deranged daughter of a Jolly Wrench. "Twerp."

Sky laughed. "This really is an ingenious knot system. Dad and Sparky taught it to me. It's all kept together with this single line." She pointed to a length of rope that stretched right in front of the rock she sat on. Then, to Maru's horror, Sky pulled out her pocketknife and unfolded the blade. "One snip and it all goes down."

Maru laughed nervously. "Okay, take it easy, kid. I see now that I might've crossed a line with the whole pink hair thing. Let's talk about this."

Sky pretended to think about it, tapping her pocketknife blade against the rope. It didn't break, but it still made Maru antsy. "Tell you what, Maru. I'll make you a deal. You openly admit defeat and declare me the winner of this prank war, and I'll let you down nicely."

"And if I don't?" Maru asked. Sky started sawing at the rope before her. Maru yelped. "Okay okay okay!"

Sky stopped, smirking at Maru. "Come on, say it."

Maru glared and growled. "You are pure evil."

"Aw, thanks." Sky giggled. "But flattery won't get you down."

Maru groaned exasperatedly. He weighed his options for a moment, but soon decided Sky would most likely leave him there if he didn't do what she said. "Fine. You win."

"What's that?" Sky asked, putting a hand to her ear.

"I said you win. I surrender." Maru spoke up.

"Hmm?" Sky had that snarky smirk on her lips again.

Maru fumed a little, and he raised his voice. "You win! All right? I admit my defeat! You are the Queen of Practical Jokes and the Master of Pulling Pranks! All hail the great and powerful Skylar Amelia Riley for she is the most amazing prankster that ever lived!"

"All right, all right." Sky laughed. "Don't milk it. Do you truly surrender?"

"Yes." Maru droned.

"And you're gonna tell everyone at the base that I won?"

"Fine."

"And you're never going to mess with my hair like that again."

"Deal. Now get me down!"

Sky smirked. "Okay!" She grabbed the rope and sliced right through it.

"NO! Don't!" Maru shouted in surprise as he fell…..

…and then yelped in pain when he landed in the rocky riverbed just a few feet down.

Maru sputtered and coughed as he pulled himself out of the water. He looked back and discovered the waterfall to be actually quite short, maybe a little taller than twice his height, dumping Maru into a calm section of river. He glared as he looked up to Sky. She was nearly in hysterics, clutching her stomach as she howled with laughter. She even rolled around on the rock she sat on.

"Oh, man!" Sky wiped her eyes free of tears. "You should've seen the look on your face!"

Maru was so mad that steam would've trailed out of his ears (if he had ears and if it were possible, that is). "How did you know I wouldn't call your bluff?"

"I didn't." Sky shrugged. "That was just a risk I took. And it paid off. Now you have to confess to everyone back at base that I won."

"Oh, gladly." Maru growled. "I'll be sure to include it in my eulogy at your funeral!"

Seeing Maru begin to come after her, Sky scrambled to her feet and jumped off the rock. "Gotta catch me first!" She taunted, sprinting away.

"GET BACK HERE YA LITTLE WEASEL!" Maru shouted, chasing Sky all the way back to base.

When the rest of the team caught sight of the chase, they knew Sky's latest prank must've gone well. They quickly ducked out of the way as Maru continued to chase Sky around the base. While Maru managed to get close to Sky now and then, what she lacked in speed she made up for in nimbleness and agility. She managed to dart around sharp corners and leap over objects that forced Maru to slow down or swerve to one side. Most of the other firefighters couldn't stop laughing, especially the Smokejumpers. Several of them laughed themselves to tears.

Sky finally found her savior when Blade came out to see what all the commotion was about. "Blade! Save me!"

"What?" Blade jumped when Sky darted around him, Maru close behind her. "Hey, hey! What's goin' on with you two?"

"I'm gonna kill her!" Maru growled.

Sky jumped up and grabbed the black fin-like bars on Blade's tail, pulling herself up and climbing up to Blade's roof. "Ha!" She gloated from her safe vantage point. But she yelped when Blade gave his rotors a spin and knocked her off. She managed to grab one of his rotors and hung on. Blade swung her around until they were eye-to-eye, and Blade gave her a very unamused, very deadpan stare. Sky chuckled nervously. "Sorry."

"Just get down." Blade ordered. Sky obeyed, and she and Maru straightened up in front of their chief. Blade looked back and forth between the two. "Am I to assume Raven's latest joke ended well for her?"

Maru sighed. "Yes. She won."

Blade nodded. "All right. You two had your go at each other and Raven won fair and square. Now be good friends and make up."

Maru and Sky exchanged looks. Sky sighed and held out a hand. Maru mimicked her with his tine, and they shook on it. Sky grinned. "Not bad, punk."

Maru smirked. "Not bad yourself, kid." He pulled Sky into a gentle headlock and lightly ruffled her hair. The two of them laughed, and Blade nodded in satisfaction before leaving.

"You did well." Sky admitted, smoothing out her hair. "Can't wait to do battle with you again."

"Oh, just you wait." Maru snickered. "I know all your tricks now."

Sky laughed. "We'll see."