Meanwhile, Mike and the others with her soon fell asleep, and the boat soon stopped, hitting some ground, making them fall out of the boat.
"Ugh..." Courtney groaned before sitting on her knees and stretching her back before rubbing her eyes, looking around. "Huh? Where are we now?"
The others yawned, rubbing their eyes and looked around.
"Where are we?" Ashlyn wondered.
"That's what I'd like to know." Courtney replied.
"Is it an island?" Jayna asked Mike.
"No... It's... It's like a jungle..." Mike said as she took a look.
"Hmm... Interesting..." Ellody remarked.
Everyone soon stood up and came to explore the jungle they ended up in, looking around.
"It feels like there's no one here," Cindy said. "You don't think it's uninhabited, do you?"
"There's gotta be someone down here..." Mike said as she took the lead.
Soon enough, the girls explored the jungle, not knowing that a snake was watching them. Cindy blinked, looking around before shrugging as she continued to follow the others.
"Ah, yes... There's animals here," Mike told the others. "I can tell."
"Luckily we have an animal expert here with us." Ashlyn smirked over to the female Wonder Twin.
"Very funny." Jayna smirked back.
The snake slithered along, taking a look at the incoming group, hissing a bit while hiding out.
"Well, I definitely don't recognize this jungle." Mike said.
"This reminds me of some old stories that my father used to tell me when I was very young." Courtney said.
"Erm... Guys?" Cindy spoke up. "Do you ever have a feeling that someone is following us?"
"We're in a jungle, so it's likely, but I'm right here." Mike reminded her.
The girls continued to explore the jungle with the snake quietly following them.
"So, you heard stories about this place?" Jayna asked Courtney.
"Oh, it can't be the same one, but my dad used to tell me stories when I was a little girl," Courtney said from memory. "Many strange legends are told of these jungles of India, but none so strange as the story of a small boy named Mowgli."
"Who's that?" Mike asked.
"A boy who was raised by wolves." Courtney informed.
"Somehow, I think I can relate." Mike replied.
"So your parents were wolves?" Courtney asked.
"That depends, are you gonna make fun of me and call me an orphan since my parents are gone now?" Mike rolled her eyes.
The others girls looked at Courtney.
"You know, you bullies can be so sick when you make fun of someone for something that's beyond their control," Mike told Courtney. "Like my parents being killed when I was barely even five-years-old and separated from my brother and sister."
"No, I wasn't going to do that, honest." Courtney promised.
Mike gave her a look.
"So... Uh... What were they like?" Courtney asked. "Are your parents wolves too?"
"Actually, my father was a mortal man and my mother were a Lycan, also known as a werewolf." Mike explained.
"Oh, I see," Courtney replied. "I'm sorry."
"Sure, everyone's sorry, but what can you do?" Mike sighed with a shrug.
"My mother was pretty tore up when my father was taken out of the picture." Courtney said to her softly.
"Did he die?" Cindy asked the CIT.
"No," Courtney shook her head. "He just decided that he didn't love my mom anymore."
"That can happen sometimes," Mike said to her. "I'm sorry about that though."
"Me too," Courtney nodded softly about her father. "And I'm sorry for treating you guys like crap."
"Wait... I smell wolves... They should be really close by... I can talk to them." Mike told the others.
"That's a good idea," Cindy said. "What have we got to lose?"
Mike soon walked ahead with the others following behind her.
"You wanna tell us more of that story, Courtney?" Jayna asked.
"Well, it all began when the silence of the jungle was broken by an unfamiliar sound," Courtney explained from what she knew from the story. "It was a sound like one never heard before in this part of the jungle. They called Mowgli a man-cub since he was a human child."
"Who found him?" Ashlyn asked.
"A panther named Bagheera." Courtney said.
"You don't think that story might be true, do you?" Ellody asked.
"Oh, come on, it was just a fairy tale," Courtney replied. "I think if there were a kid in the jungle, it would be on the news or something."
Mike kept looking around for a while until she got pinned down by a wolf who snarled at her.
The others looked and felt nervous for Mike at first as the wolf snarled at the tomboy.
"Easy, buddy, I ain't a hunter or anything like that," Mike said. "I'm just passing through with my friends."
"Is that right?" The wolf growled. "What's your name?"
"Mike Mazinsky." Mike shrugged.
"Wait... Mazinsky... I think I've heard that name somewhere before..." The wolf soon said, calming down a little.
"You might've known my mother, Miranda." Mike replied.
"Miranda... Yes... I know her and her mate, John..." The wolf said.
"What a small world," Cindy smiled. "I've always wanted to hear about Mike's parents."
"They with you?" The wolf asked Mike, referring to her group.
"Yeah." Mike nodded.
"Very well..." The wolf said. "I apologize, child of John and Miranda. My name is Nisha."
"Nice to meet you," Mike replied. "These are my friends: Ashlyn Pitstop, Cindy Butler, Joanna Bell, Ellody Garcia, and her step-sister, Courtney Garcia."
"Are you all from the Man-Village?" Nisha asked them.
"Uh, no? We're from a place called Cartoon Network City." Ashlyn said.
"Not to mention that we are lost." Courtney added in.
"I have never heard of this Cartoon Network City, but I suppose you could follow me to see my sister and her mate." Nisha told them as she walked off.
Mike soon followed after the female wolf and the others then followed behind her to meet the wolf pack. Courtney tried to get a signal from her PDA so she could get help, but it was no good.
"No good?" Ellody asked Courtney.
"No," Courtney shook her head. "Do you guys have those communicators?"
Jayna winced slightly, rubbing her arm. "We thought we shouldn't bring them since we would all be on vacation."
"Wait... How did you know about our communicators?" Mike suspiciously asked Courtney.
"Well, I, um, accidentally hacked into the League's system." Courtney explained nervously.
"CourtNEY!" Cindy glared firmly.
"I'm sorry, I won't do it again!" Courtney promised. "I didn't even mean to do it at that time!"
"Hmm... You better not." Cindy replied.
"When did THIS kid grow a spine?" Courtney asked.
"She's had special training from us and her grandmother lately," Mike explained. "Sure, she still gets scared at SOME things, but it's not as bad as she used to, so I think this jungle adventure won't be too rough on her."
"I punched Sarah in the face, and I don't care what happens to me from it," Cindy glared. "If she wants to tell her mom, then fine! Let's see if her mother's status on the PTA gets her anywhere in the real world just because it matters now that we're all in school. I don't think so!"
"Good luck with that." Courtney sighed.
"What do you mean by that?" Cindy asked.
"Because she's also part of the town council and so are Kevin's parents," Courtney explained. "If Mrs. Hill found out punched Sarah, your family would lose their jobs and house. They did that to Mindy McFarlane which is why she lives with Nazz now."
"And how do you know that?" Cindy asked.
"From my mom." Courtney said.
"So what am I supposed to do about that?" Cindy asked.
"You shouldn't have punched Sarah." Courtney said.
"Gee... Thanks..." Cindy crossed her arms. "And I was gonna spend the winter semester at that Avalanche Arts Academy with Zoey's cousin."
"But... I think I can help you with that," Courtney then said. "Since my mom is part of the council."
"Really? Thank you." Cindy replied.
"However... That punch was awesome..." Courtney said bashfully.
"I'm getting tired of others pushing me around all the time, so I've been hanging out with my grandmother a lot lately." Cindy said.
Soon enough, they arrived at the wolf cave.
"Excuse me, I shall talk with my sister Leah and her mate, Akela, I ask that you wait out here for me." Nisha told Mike and the others.
"We will." Mike nodded.
Nisha nodded back and went inside of the cave where the adult wolves were while the pups had gone out to play for the day before they would start hunting. The others then waited until Nisha would come back.
"Akela... Leah..." Nisha said, coming to her family.
"Nisha, what is it?" Leah asked her sister.
"We have visitors... They appear to be human, but I know one of them is not." Nisha replied.
"Is it hunters?" Akela asked.
"No, they say they are lost and came here by accident," Nisha explained. "One of them is the child of John and Miranda, the people who visited here once 13 years ago."
"Very well," Akela replied. "Bring them to us."
"Yes, Akela." Nisha nodded.
Mike and the others were still waiting.
"So, do all wolves know each other or...?" Courtney asked Mike.
"Yes and no..." Mike said. "I guess my parents came to this jungle once for vacation or something."
"Ah, okay." Courtney said, now understanding.
Soon enough, Nisha came back to the others. "Akela wishes to see you all." she then told them.
"Thank you, Nisha." Mike said.
"I hope this Akela is friendly." Courtney said to herself.
They all soon came inside to meet the leader of the pack who was Akela and he looked to them as they came inside.
"Ah, you must be the daughter of John and Miranda Mazinsky." Akela said to the tomboy.
"Yes, sir, Mike Mazinsky." Mike replied.
"So, you knew Mike's parents?" Ashlyn asked.
"They came here on vacation a very long time ago..." Akela said. "I remember it well..."
"Are you going to have a flashback?" Cindy asked.
"Yes." Akela told her.
"Go ahead, I'm not going anywhere." Cindy said.
"...Very well then..." Akela said as he began to think back. "It was a very long time ago..."
Flashback
We are shown a young John and Miranda on a boat ride going through the jungle, leaving the city, and Miranda appeared to be pregnant.
"Ah, my darling John... I hope Jennifer and James will be okay back home." Miranda smiled as she fanned herself, holding her stomach a bit.
"I'm sure that they will be all right," John smiled back. "They're strong kids."
Miranda fanned herself as she looked around the jungle they had come to visit for a little couple's vacation.
After a while, the boat docked and John took his wife's hand as they soon came to dry land, looking to the village within the jungle.
"This jungle... It almost makes me think of the old days with Ookami..." Miranda smiled to the jungle.
John pulled out his camera to take pictures of the wildlife.
"Should we go in and say hello?" Miranda smiled to her husband.
"Hmm... Yes..." John smiled back. "I've always wanted to go to a village in a jungle. Their leader must be strong and protective though in case any animals wander into the village."
"I bet you would be a strong and protective village leader too~" Miranda smiled as she hugged her husband's arm, looking into his blue eyes, dreamily.
John just chuckled and kissed his wife's lips as they went into the village. Miranda held her stomach, breathing calmly.
"Now, now, Miranda, it'll be okay," John smiled. "The baby's not due for a long time now."
"I know, but it sometimes feels like they're going to come early, we haven't even thought about names or know if it'll be a boy or a girl." Miranda smiled back.
"Well, what ever they may be, we will love the baby just like James and Jennifer." John replied.
Miranda smiled and nodded as they arrived at the village. Many women were at home together while the men were talking or some had gone hunting in the forest to gather food for their families. Many people had surrounded one big and strong man who soon looked over.
"Greetings." John waved to the people.
The people looked to John and Miranda, not knowing them just yet.
"Are you... Mazinsky...?" The man asked.
"Yes..." John nodded. "My name is John and this is my wife, Miranda. We've come to stay here for a week."
"Ah... Yes... Welcome," The man said to him. "My name is Sanjay. This is my wife, Meshua."
"Hello." The woman waved to the couple.
"It's nice to meet you." Miranda said to them.
"Come," Sanjay said. "I will show you where you will be staying."
John and Miranda followed the village leader and his wife. A toddler boy was shown to be with them.
"This is my son, Nathoo." Sanjay told them.
"Hello there, son," John smiled to the toddler. "Good to meet'cha."
Nathoo smiled and waved to John and Miranda.
"He looks just like you." John said to Sanjay.
"Yes, and I hope that he becomes a great leader someday when he's all grown up." Sanjay smiled.
Miranda looked out the window as Meshua showed her around as she hugged her stomach.
"Miranda, is something wrong?" Meshua asked her guest.
"Huh? Oh, nothing, I'm fine." Miranda replied.
"You seem distracted." Meshua said.
"It's just that I love animals so much..." Miranda said to her. "They ever come near the village?"
"Sometimes, but not very often." Meshua explained.
"You think that I could go over and see them?" Miranda asked hopefully.
"If that is what you want, then you are allowed to." Meshua allowed.
"Oh, thank you," Miranda smiled, hugging the woman. "Oh, your village is so beautiful too."
Meshua smiled back, hugging the pregnant woman back.
Miranda soon wandered into the jungle as John and Sanjay talked together, rubbing her stomach a little as she left the village and walked through the jungle, quietly and calmly as it reminded her of where she grew up in before she met John. She smiled as she saw the animals came out to greet her. She smiled and waved to them. It was almost as if she had a magic, natural touch when it came to the animals, but we all know that there's a very good reason for that.
"You must be the Jungle Cubs." Miranda chuckled as she saw a bear cub, a panther cub, and a young orangutan.
"Smart human." The bear cub smiled to his friends.
There was a wolf pup came out of the cave and looked curiously at Miranda.
"Oh! Hello, there." Miranda smiled, looking down at the wolf pup.
The wolf pup came around Miranda, sniffing her almost like a dog which made her giggle a bit.
"So, who are you all?" Miranda smiled to the group of friends.
"I'm Baloo," The bear cub smiled back. "This here's Baggy-"
"Bagheera!" The panther cub glared.
"Yeah, sure, Bagheera, and this is Louis," The bear cub then smiled. "We're the Jungle Cubs. I didn't know people could talk to animals."
"Well, I'm actually not a human; I'm a wolf." Miranda clarified.
"You sure don't look like a wolf." Louis said to her.
"I become a wolf later on at night," Miranda told them. "I might show you later, but I don't know if you should. I'm going to have a baby."
"You have a baby?" Bagheera asked. "Where is it?"
"Right here." Miranda smiled, pointing to her stomach.
"You ATE your baby?!" Louis asked.
"No, no," Miranda laughed a little. "I'm a mammal, so I carry my baby in my tummy until it's ready to be born. He or she is supposed to be born in a few months, but I feel like they're going to come early."
"Ooh... I see..." Bagheera replied.
"And this is going to be my third child." Miranda smiled proudly.
Baloo put his paw up to Miranda's stomach and flinched as he felt something. "It moved!"
"Baby's probably kicking," Miranda smiled. "That happens sometimes."
"What do you think it's gonna be?" Baloo asked.
"I'm hoping that this one will be a girl." Miranda replied.
"What're you gonna call it?" Louis asked.
"I don't know, but I've always loved my grandmother's name, Michelene," Miranda smiled. "Where I come from, that means brave and strong fighter."
"Yeah, that's right." The wolf pup nodded.
"Oh, I never got your name, sweetie?" Miranda said to him.
"Akela," The wolf pup replied. "I'm gonna be an alpha one day just like my dad."
"That sounds like fun," Miranda smiled to him. "It's nice to meet you, Akela."
"We became fast friends." Akela's voice narrated as his pup self smiled back up to Miranda.
"I can see why." Mike's voice chuckled.
After the week was over, it was time for John and Miranda to go back home.
"Do you have to go back?" Akela whimpered.
"Yes, I'm sorry, but I promise that I will come back as soon as I can." Miranda replied.
However before anything else could happen, Miranda let out a shriek.
"Miranda! What is it? Are you okay?!" John yelped as he came to his wife.
"The baby! I-I think it's coming!" Miranda told her husband.
"NOW?! But it's too early!" John said.
"Well, tell that to the baby!" Miranda told her husband.
"I'm sorry, but you can't go home now, we have to take care of this right away." Sanjay told his new friends.
"Please, let me help," Meshua said to them. "I think I know what to do."
John and Miranda soon came into the jungle with Meshua and Sanjay, taking the expecting couple over to an ancient temple which seemed to be abandoned, as Miranda breathed quickly and intensely due to being in labor.
"I can't believe it, the baby is coming this early!" John cried out. "That's impossible! ...Well, it IS possible, but I hope it'll be healthy!"
"Sometimes babies can be impatient, it's only the law of nature." Sanjay told John.
Eventually, Sanjay and Meshua had Miranda lying down and helped her as she was giving birth to another baby.
"No more after this one, John." Miranda begged as she held her husband's hand.
"You got yourself a deal, honey," John promised. "Three kids are enough for us."
Miranda squeezed his hand, making John wince slightly as she was of course stronger than most women due to her wolf DNA. The animals of the jungle seemed to watch through the windows as Miranda pushed the best that she could, until finally...
"Congratulations," Sanjay told the couple, taking out the newborn baby who had a tuft of red hair. "It's a girl."
Miranda had tears in her eyes as she was holding her newborn daughter. The jungle animals looked to each other and smiled from that.
End of Flashback
"And that's how I know your parents, even if they weren't originally from the Man-Village," Akela told Mike who wiped her eyes a bit to hear stories about her parents. "I should've recognized you. You look so much like your father, but you have your mother's eyes."
"That's what most people say." Mike replied.
"That was a beautiful story." Courtney said.
"I don't know how much we can help you survive out here since you're far from the Man-Village, but I suppose you could stick around," Akela said. "I've been making a decision though that I'm going to tell The Wolf Council later tonight."
"Why?" Mike asked. "What's going on?"
"Mowgli has to leave the pack so that Shere Khan doesn't go after him." Akela informed.
"Mowgli...?" Courtney asked. "No way... The story must be true then!"
"We called him Mowgli because he's like a frog," Akela informed. "He has no fur and he can never sit still."
"Uh, who's Shere Khan?" Ashlyn asked the alpha wolf.
"A tiger who hates humans and eats them," Akela explained. "The other animals are scared to go attack him."
"So I see..." Ashlyn said.
"You should probably go to the man village with Mowgli after tonight too." Akela told them.
"Well, we're not afraid of a little old tiger as long as we have Mike," Courtney said. "Right, Mike?"
"We'll see..." Mike said before holding her stomach. "Man, I'm hungry. I haven't eaten since breakfast before we all met up at the summer resort docks for the cruise."
"Well, you're welcome to join us for dinner." Akela invited.
"Thank you." Mike replied.
"You have other stuff besides meat, right?" Cindy asked. "I mean, not all of us can eat raw meat like Mike can."
"There are some fruits and vegetables too." Akela told her.
"Hmm... I guess that helps," Cindy said. "Just no offense, but we're not ALL part wolf like Mike is, and I promise that we won't hunt or poach you."
Mike gave a small smile as this seemed to be going well so far even if they didn't find any people. At least, not yet.
"I just hope that everyone else is okay." Jayna hoped.
"I'm sure that they are fine." Courtney replied.
"Well, Courtney, it's good to see this side of you," Jayna said. "Also, I'm sorry, but WHAT were you doing out in the rain before the storm hit? That was kind of stupid. I mean, you could've gotten hurt or sick."
"I'm sorry, but I was having too much fun and I didn't want anything to ruin it for me." Courtney replied.
"I guess, but the rain really would've, especially with reading your magazine." Ashlyn mumbled.
"I'm just glad that you learned a lesson in humility." Cindy said.
"Thank you." Courtney replied.
Later on, Akela told the other wolves that they had guests and told them to behave around them and not to bother them until they could get a way back home. Mike ate more than everyone else since it had been a while since she last had meat and she was soon full.
"So, uh, Mike, you think we should see the announcement that Akela has to make for the other wolves?" Ellody asked.
"Possibly," Mike shrugged. "He did say we would be allowed to if we wanted."
"You gonna go?" Courtney asked.
"Yeah," Mike nodded. "Might as well see how it goes. It might be tough on Rama and Raksha though since they adopted and raised Mowgli."
Soon enough, the others looked at each other, shrugging, before following Mike to see the Wolf Council. Mike sat down with the wolves and her friends sat down with her as it was night time now.
"Now, are we all in agreement as to what must be done?" Akela told his fellow wolves. "Now it is my unpleasant duty to tell the boy's father."
The other wolves looked to each other in concern.
"Rama! Come over here, please." Akela called to the wolf who adopted and raised Mowgli as his own son.
Rama soon walked over to the alpha. "Yes, Akela?"
"The council has reached its decision," Akela replied. "The Man Cub can no longer stay with the pack. He must leave at once."
"Leave?" Rama gasped.
"Ooh..." Mike winced slightly as she knew that had to be rough on Rama.
"I am sorry, Rama," Akela told him. "There is no other way."
"B-But the Man-Cub i-is like my own son," Rama frowned. "Surely he's entitled to the protection of the pack."
"But, Rama, even the strength of the pack is no match of the tiger." Akela told the other wolf.
"But the boy cannot survive alone in the jungle." Rama frowned.
"Akela?" A panther spoke up as he was shown to be in a tree, listening to the wolf pack. "Perhaps I can be of help?"
"You, Bagheera?" Akela asked the panther. "How?"
"I know of a man-village where he'll be safe," Bagheera told the alpha wolf. "Mowgli and I have taken many walks into the jungle together. I'm sure he'll go with me."
Akela thought it over and soon agree with the panther. "So be it. Now there's no time to lose. Good luck."
"Maybe our friends are over at the village." Jayna said.
"Maybe." Mike shrugged.
"Mike... Would your friends like to join Bagheera?" Akela asked.
"Well, I'll go anyway," Mike said. "Thank you, Akela."
"We'll go with her too," Cindy told the wolf. "Thank you so much for your hospitality."
"You're welcome." Akela replied.
And so, they left the wolf pack and soon found a boy with a mop of black hair in a red loincloth.
"Mowgli..." Courtney whispered to herself.
"So, do you know what happened to his real parents?" Mike asked her.
"My dad told me in his story that they died in a canoe accident from a crocodile named Jacala." Courtney replied.
"And that's when Bagheera found him and took him to the wolf pack?" Ellody guessed.
"Yes, that's right." Courtney nodded.
"I guess your dad knew a lot more than he was saying." Ashlyn said.
"Luckily Mowgli is nice... At least from the story I grew up with." Courtney told them.
The girls then followed the panther and the boy who was on his back.