Mike, Phil, and Lil were soon getting themselves ready for their new and unexpected trip away from Nicktropolis.
"So, you think Tommy and the others will get involved?" Lil asked Mike.
"I don't think so," Mike replied. "This is kinda mostly about me. And I guess us too since what your mom said about your Aunt Giselle."
"Yeah..." Lil nodded. "I wonder if we'll even see her? How do you react to a long-lost aunt anyway?"
"It's pretty interesting, I can tell you that much, like when I met and found out that Penelope Spectra was my aunt on my dad's side of the family." Mike then said.
"How crazy is it that she has shadow powers like your mom's powers besides the wolf powers?" Lil commented with a small giggle.
"Pretty wild, though I've seen crazier, especially back on The Albonquetine Island," Mike remarked. "I'm a bit excited and nervous to see Simba and Nala again though."
"And Timon, Pumbaa, Jana, and Jungle Boy?" Lil then said.
"Yes, them too," Mike said with a small smirk. "Let's just hope this is a good visit and maybe you can be friends with them too."
"Anything I should watch out for?" Lil asked. "I know that they're lions and everything, but is there anything I should know?"
"Well, definitely don't mention hyenas for one thing, though I feel like they would have something interesting to say if I remembered Lippy the Lion and Hardy Har Har the Hyena," Mike began to advise. "Those guys usually hang around people like Wally Gator and Touché Turtle and Dum Dum. Lippy used a lot of get-rich-quick schemes."
"Kinda like Hokey and Ding-A-Ling Wolf that you told me about?" Lil then asked.
"Something like that, yeah, though Hokey Wolf is sometimes more like Top Cat if you ask me," Mike nodded. "Also, probably not mention a lion named Scar."
"That was Mufasa's brother, right?" Lil then asked.
"Yep... His evil brother... I could tell there was something wrong with him from the moment I met him, but I tried not to be rude around Mufasa and Sarabi," Mike then said to her girlfriend. "And probably, above all else, do not mention Jungle Emperor Leo."
"Jungle Emperor Leo?" Lil asked curiously.
"Don't ask... It's a long story..." Mike said before rolling her eyes. "Let's just say there's a war going on between two other lion breeds. I heard they were white lions though like in some Las Vegas shows with white tigers."
"Should I mention that movie The Tiger Prince then?" Lil asked.
Mike glanced at Lil then.
"The Tiger Prince... You can't tell me you've never heard of The Tiger Prince," Lil repeated before she shrugged. "I'll have to tell you about it some other time probably."
"Well... Okay," Mike said. "I just hope it's nothing like that dumpster fire that's The Cockroach King starring Howard Stern."
"Hopefully not..." Lil replied before crossing her arms. "So a trip out to The Pridelands... This should be very interesting."
"Yeah, I think you'll enjoy it too." Mike said.
"This is just so unfair!" Phil's voice complained.
Mike and Lil glanced over to the door before groaning.
"Are you in my room without asking again, Phillip?" Lil complained.
"That's not the hot issue right now, is it, Lillian?" Phil retorted.
"This again..." Mike groaned and shook her head. "I wonder what growing up with you guys from rugrats would be like?" she then looked at the brown-haired boy. "Okay, Phil, what do you want now?"
"Well, this isn't fair, ya know." Phil glared.
"Uh... What?" Lil blinked. "You want to go to school or something when we could be having an adventurous new vacation with Mike?"
"Ugh... No way! I'm not going to school when I could be having a new adventure, but this is about Mike!" Phil explained.
"What did I do to you now?" Mike glared at him.
"It's just not fair that you get to come along on this trip and be with Lil while I can't bring Courtney!" Phil glared back. "That's not cool and it's unfair!"
"Well, this trip is about me, remember?" Mike spoke up.
"Yeah, it's always about you," Phil rolled his eyes. "I don't see why I can't invite Courtney to come along."
"Well, it might be too much for her," Lil shrugged. "She's not like us."
"Oh, so you're against mortals now?" Phil scoffed. "Who put you in charge of The Supernatural Council anyway?"
"Phil, that's not what she meant and you know it." Mike retorted.
"So you're my boss now?" Phil huffed. "Miss Boss of The Howling Wolves? Who died and put you in charge anyway?"
"Phil, stop being a pain," Mike replied. "Otherwise you can just stay here in Nicktropolis and go to school and do homework when your mom promised a vacation adventure for all of us. Yes, this might be about me, but you guys can come along too, so you should be grateful about that."
"She's right." Lil added.
"Ugh... Fine... I'll put up with it," Phil groaned and crossed his arms. "But I won't like it. Especially if you guys are gonna act like The Kissy Kissy Goo Goo Romance Hour or that Spanish soap opera that Dil likes or even... God... Could it be worse than that one show that Ginger, Macie, and Dodo Dodie used to watch?"
"We won't be sickening sweethearts if that's what you're worried about, Phil," Mike replied. "I tend to step away from PDA as much as I can when I'm in a relationship, no matter what Eddy and Otto might've wanted differently before I decided I was interested in something else."
"You better not be or else I'll totally throw up and don't think I won't." Phil retorted.
Mike and Lil just rolled their eyes at that.
Some time had passed and soon, Betty came back home and she began to get some snacks ready as there was a long journey coming up. Howard was also home and he began to talk to his wife and she began to tell him how he was going to stay in Nicktropolis for his own safety and protection.
"What?! You're just gonna go to a whole different country with the kids without me?" Howard cried out.
"Relax, Howie. It's for your own safety," Betty told him. "It's for the best. Trust me."
"No, no, I can't let you do that, Betty." Howard retorted.
"And why not?" Betty asked with a bit of a glare.
"Well... Because... Uh... Um... It's not safe..." Howard then told her as bravely as he could even if he was kind of the "weaker one" in this relationship. "You might... Need some help or company. Besides, we went to Paris together."
"We'll be fine and besides, if we need company or any kind of security that you're worried about, we wouldn't even think to call you." Betty then said.
"Betty, that hurts." Howard frowned as he winced slightly.
"Augh, jeez... That's not what I meant," Betty shook her head at him. "Howard, if anything happens, my brother is coming with us."
"...I dunno, Betty..." Howard frowned. "What about The Java Lava?"
"Well, obviously, Chaz will be there," Betty reminded. "Plus you know that Kimi and Chuckie will be there after school if they don't have any activities... Hopefully Chuckie's done with that obsession with that Yu-Gi-Oh card game rip-off."
"But Betty!" Howard cried out.
"Relax!" Betty replied as she put her arm around him. "Come on, surely there's something you can do. Why don't you go on another trip with your 'male bonding group'?"
"Erm... Well... I guess I could do that..." Howard shrugged. "I just worry about you, Betty. You were always a reckless one when we were kids. Heck, you'd probably fit in with those Rocket Power kids if you were born later."
"I'll take that as a compliment," Betty smirked before she punched his arm playfully (playful to her, but painful to him) with a small laugh. "You'll be fine and if anything goes wrong, we have Freddie with us and he's my big brother. You know he wouldn't let anything happen to us, right?"
"Well... Uh... Okay, I guess so..." Howard said before sighing and shrugging. "I guess I am a bit of a worrywart."
"In your case, it would probably be more like 'worrywarthog'." Betty retorted before laughing.
"Heh... Hm... Yes, very funny..." Howard said, sounding almost sheepish at her sense of humor.
"Good boy..." Betty then said. "I gotta make snacks for the pups and our trip. You know how fast food goes around here, especially after the twins opened their Wolfblood heritage."
"Jeez, don't remind me," Howard grumbled. "And I thought they were already a handful after they were born."
"Heh... How do ya think I felt about that whole ordeal?" Betty scoffed before smirking a bit.
"...Well, all right, dear," Howard then said before sighing. "I guess you can go out on this trip... Just don't do anything dangerous."
"You've got nothing to worry about," Betty sighed and shook her head. "But if it really bothers ya... Sure, I'll be more careful. Just remember that this is more my speed where you'd probably fall apart."
Howard then pouted as he looked at her. "I guess I'm just a little left out in this family," he then said. "You and the twins are the wolves and I'm just the puny mortal father."
"Howard, don't say that..." Betty said, trying to calm him down.
"What did you even see in me anyway?" Howard asked as he pouted a little.
"I saw a special and great guy and plus, ya know what they say," Betty smirked and chuckled. "'The best way through a woman's heart is through her stomach'."
"That's usually the guy though in that metaphor." Howard replied.
"Yeah, but we had to be us instead of different like The Cleavers," Betty chuckled. "You're great, Howard. Don't let anyone tell you otherwise."
Howard smiled softly before hugging Betty. Betty felt a bit surprised, but she welcomed the hug and patted her husband on the back.
"Eww... Mom... Dad... Save that for your bedroom!" Phil complained as he, Lil, and Mike stepped into the kitchen to see the DeVille couple.
Betty and Howard then broke out of the hug and looked down.
"Yeah... No one wants to see that bedroom stuff!" Lil added with a groan.
"Oh... What do you know about bedroom stuff anyway, Lil?" Howard retorted like a typical father would in that situation with a 13-year-old daughter.
"Ugh..." Lil just groaned and face-palmed in response.
"Betty, are you about ready to go?" Mike then spoke up to the brunette woman. "Because we're all settled."
"All right, I'll be right there in a minute," Betty told them. "Now, you remembered not to tell anyone about what's going on, right?"
"I haven't." Mike said.
"Me neither." Lil added.
Phil simply shook his head in silence.
"Okay, good... I just don't want anyone else around here to get hurt because of something that isn't their fault." Betty then told them.
"That sounds like a great comic book superhero." Mike smiled.
"Aw... Thanks," Betty chuckled. "I guess I've picked up a few things, especially when I was with The Buffalo Gals when I was younger."
"Oh, I've heard about them," Mike then said. "My Fridays friend Cow tried to join them and then her brother Chicken had to get her away from there."
"Plus there were The Wild Ones," Betty chuckled. "Those guys were such idiots, but they were good company."
"Heh... Good to know, Mom," Lil replied with a sheepish chuckle. "So, uh, can we go now? Please?" she then asked.
"We'll get going as soon as Freddie comes over," Betty reassured them. "He should be here any minute, but he said something about bringing a big surprise."
"Maybe we should wait by the front door?" Mike suggested to Phil and Lil with a shrug. "That way you guys can point him out when he comes."
"I suppose we could do that." Lil replied.
"Good idea for once, Mike." Phil added.
"PHILLIP!" Lil snapped and glared.
Phil just chuckled with a grin.
"It's okay, Lil," Mike told her girlfriend. "Come on then."
Phil and Lil then walked off with Mike to get to the front door and wait outside for Uncle Freddie.
"So, your brother has a surprise for the kids?" Howard asked Betty once the front door opened and closed. "I wonder what it could be?"
"I dunno myself, but I might have a few good ideas." Betty said with a small smirk.
"Oh? And what would that be?" Howard asked curiously.
"Sorry, Howie... Ancient family secret," Betty smirked. "Now, why don't you call your friends to see what they're up to and maybe ya boys can have a slumber party."
"Ha, ha, ha." Howard rolled his eyes before he decided to do what she suggested for him.
Betty chuckled to herself as she continued to get the snacks ready.
Mike, Phil, and Lil soon sat in the front yard together by the fence, holding cans of soda.
"Yep." Mike said.
"Yep!" Phil added.
"Mm-hmm." Lil concluded.
"Where the heck is he?" Phil groaned as Mike decided to sip her soda. "I'm totally dying of boredom here! I wanna get out of this place and have an adventure with some lions already! Feels like we've been waiting forever!"
"These things take time, Phil," Mike replied. "Impatience isn't a virtue, you know."
"Whatever," Phil groaned as he scoffed at her. "You just better not make me uncool in front of the lions."
"How and why would a lion ever think you were uncool?" Lil asked Phil. "That makes no sense."
"So you admit that I'm cool." Phil smirked.
"I didn't even say that!" Lil glared then.
"You pretty much said it," Phil smirked. "You were concerned about a lion thinking me as uncool, so you think that I'm cool, Lillian."
"Guys, we do not have time for this," Mike said before yet another DeVille sibling argument could come into motion. "Now, I hope you can stop fighting like that when you get to Pride Rock. You only get one chance to make a good first impression."
Phil and Lil turned away from each other and folded their arms. Lil went so far as to stick out her tongue at Phil while he just looked away.
"Promise me?" Mike demanded.
"Well... All right..." Phil and Lil then muttered in defeat.
"So... What? You don't get in fights with your brother and sister?" Phil then asked Mike.
"Not often... All we have are each other and we might tease each other at times, but most times we have to survive just the three of us," Mike replied. "Jamie had to drop out of college just to take care of us and he's still with us today, but now he has adventures with Megas, Kiva, and Coop."
"All right, all right, don't guilt-trip me," Phil said with a groan. "Man, you're brutal about it just being you and your brother and sister with no parents being around."
Lil cleared her throat firmly and nudged Phil as that seemed a bit rude.
"It's okay, Lil," Mike said softly with a small smile. "I just try to tell the truth about how I might feel about something."
Phil and Lil then looked at each other before someone was soon seen coming to the house. This someone had short light brown hair, a cream-yellow short-sleeved shirt, blue jeans, and pink and white sneakers who looked around as she slowly came up to the house and appeared to be at least in her 20's.
"Uh... Can we help you?" Mike asked.
"Yeah," The stranger replied. "Is this the DeVille place? As in Betty and Howard DeVille, not Cruella de Vil?"
"Uh... Yeah?" Mike, Phil, and Lil answered curiously.
"They're here! Get 'em!" The stranger then called out as she turned around to the side.
"What?" Mike glared suspiciously before someone swooped over suddenly and tackled the twins. "Hey! What are you tryin' to pull?" she then demanded at the brunette.
"What? Nuthin'." The stranger replied.
"A likely story!" Mike snarled as she narrowed her eyes. "Maybe you'd like to be next before I tear off that dude's-"
"Mike! Relax!" Lil called out before laughing.
"Huh?" Mike asked as she straightened herself out before looking over as Phil and Lil were laughing while they were being headlocked together and being given noogies by the person who had tackled them. "Wait... What's... What's going on?" she then asked out of confusion.
"Yeah, no harm done!" Phil told her while laughing. "It's just Uncle Freddie!"
"Uncle Freddie?" Mike blinked as she looked to the man, then saw the great resemblance and soon smiled. "Oh... Oh, cool!"
Freddie then let go of the twins before smirking at them as he put his hands on his hips. "Hey, guys! How the heck are ya? My favorite niece and nephew?" he then asked them. "Surely you didn't forget all about Uncle Freddie."
"Never!" Phil and Lil reassured with smiles.
Freddie laughed before looking over at the redhead. "Ah... You must be the very famous and popular Mike Mazinsky." he then noted.
"I dunno about very famous and popular, but yeah, that's me," Mike said with a small smile and shrug. "Mike Mazinsky at your service."
"Good to meet ya," Freddie said before he took Mike's hand and shook it, practically shaking her whole body as well in the process. "So, I'm Betty's big brother, Freddie."
"I can totally see the resemblance," Mike nodded as she jittered slightly after he shook hands with her. "That's quite a grip ya got there."
"Yeah... Maybe we could try it out together sometime?" Freddie suggested with a smirk. "A little bit of an arm-wrestling match, you and me?"
"Heh... Maybe later, sir..." Mike grinned nervously.
"Ah, yeah, that's right," Freddie said as he nodded. "You got some lions to meet in this place called Pride Rock."
"Yes, sir," Mike replied. "This is very important to me and plus I'm having my own trouble back home. I just need to get away for a while."
"I understand," Freddie smirked. "Well, let's get going and hit the road."
"Ahem!" The stranger then cleared her throat with a small smile.
"Oh... Right..." Freddie said bashfully before he walked over and put his arm around the stranger. "Mike Mazinsky-"
"You can just call me Mike, sir." Mike replied.
"It's nothing really," Freddie said as he then continued. "Anyway... This is Gabriella, my daughter, but you can call her-"
"Gabi!" Phil and Lil cheered before rushing over to the stranger and hugging them.
"Hey, Phil. Hi, Lil... Long time no see," Gabi laughed as she hugged the twins by her sides. "I haven't seen you guys in so long. What's it been... Like... Your Kindergarten graduation?"
"Or when Taffy graduated?" Phil replied.
The three all soon laughed together.
"...Taffy?" Mike muttered to herself. "Only Taffy I know is Taffy Dare."
"So, Gabi, this is Mike," Phil smirked. "Lil's main squeeze."
"I'm trying very hard not to elevate my foot up your butt right now." Lil mumbled with a glare towards her twin brother.
"Hola, Mike... It's nice to meet you." Gabi smiled as she shook hands with Mike.
"Nice to meet you too, Gabi," Mike replied. "Funny, I don't think Phil and Lil have mentioned you before."
"Well, my dad and I live far away, but when I was about your age, I used to babysit them and their friends sometimes whenever I came to visit until their parents found out about Taffy," Gabi smiled. "I'm really looking forward to this trip to this place you call Pride Rock. How about you?"
"I'm very psyched," Mike replied eagerly. "I can't wait until we get going."
"Me neither! The suspense of going to Pride Rock is killing me!" Phil groaned. "Feels like we've waited months or years for this!"
"Oh, brother." Mike and Lil then rolled their eyes together.
"All right, no problem, I can get us there in no time," Freddie then said as he took out his car keys and the lights of a van lit up after clicking. "That is, if Betty's fast enough to move her fat behind." he then added with a joking smirk.
"I heard that, Frederick!" Betty smirked back as she came out of the house while the kids looked over.
"Tia Betty." Gabi smiled.
"Gabi, hello there!" Betty beamed at her niece. "Long time no see."
"You're telling me..." Gabi nodded in agreement. "Thanks for letting me come along on your trip with you."
"Of course, Gabi," Betty smiled. "It's the least we could do. I even packed some snacks for all of us and believe me, these pups get really hungry really easily."
"I can only imagine." Gabi chuckled warmly.
"All right, everybody load on up then!" Freddie called out. "Last call for the adventure into Pride Rock!"
"Finally!" Phil replied.
Soon, everyone came into the house one last time and soon met back out to the van with some supplies for their trip away from Nicktropolis. It was now time for the moment we were all waiting for.
"Before we go, does anybody need to go to the bathroom?" Mike then asked.
"No." Lil said.
"No." Phil added.
Gabi shook her head.
"Already went." Betty said.
"I'm good." Freddie added.
"All right, then let's go!" Mike then said as it looked like it was finally time for the trip to Pride Rock.
"WAIT!" Phil suddenly cried out. "I totally forgot something! Something very important and beneficial to this mission!" he then looked over at the others. "I think I actually do have to go to the bathroom."
Then suddenly, a tire popped off from the van randomly.
"...I don't have to go to the bathroom anymore." Phil then smiled sheepishly which then made everybody just glare at him for delaying the trip even more even though he was the one most eager to go and leave Nicktropolis already.