" MIÀAAAAAA!" Kai yelled, storming into his three year old sister's room.

Mia was peacefully reading a book. She looked up, and smiled innocently. " Hello, Kai."

Kai groaned. " Mia! Why is there fish in my bed?!"

Mia looked up from her book, her big innocent eyes wide as she blinked at Kai. "Fish?" she asked sweetly, as if she had no idea what he was talking about.

Kai stormed further into the room, holding up his blanket, which was now damp and smelled like...well, fish. "Yes, fish, Mia! Why is there fish in my bed?"

Mia tilted her head and gave him her most angelic smile. "Because fish was hungwy! I gave him a bed."

Kai stared at her, utterly baffled. "You gave... a fish a bed. In my bed."

Mia nodded seriously, as though her reasoning made perfect sense. "Fishy needs comfy! You always say sleep is 'portant."

Kai groaned, pressing his palm to his forehead. "Mia, fish live in water! Not in my blankets!"

Mia shrugged, her small hands gesturing like it was no big deal. "Fishy wan' try somethin' new."

Kai was torn between laughing and pulling his hair out. "Mia, you can't just put fish in people's beds!"

Mia looked thoughtful for a moment before she grinned again. "Maybe next time I put them in Cole's bed!"

Kai's eyes widened in horror. "No! No next time! No fish in anyone's bed!"

Mia pouted, her little lips sticking out. "But fishy was so happy..."

Kai shook his head, exasperated. "Mia, you're gonna drive me crazy!"

Mia giggled and returned to her book, clearly unconcerned by the chaos she'd caused. "I love you, Kai."

Kai sighed, his frustration melting a little. "I love you too, Mia," he muttered, already plotting how to clean his bed-and keep Mia away from fish for the foreseeable future.

Kai sighed happily. " This is the best." He muttered, snuggling under the blanket as he glanced at the clock. Two in the morning.

Suddenly, something slimy dropped on him. He peeked open an eye, and saw green things.

Four legs.

Croaking.

And a net.

Frogs

" MIÀAAAAAA AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!"

Kai jumped out of bed, trying to shake off the slimy feeling and stormed down the hall to his sister's room. The door was slightly ajar, and inside, Mia sat innocently on the floor, playing with a stuffed bear. She looked up with a beaming smile as Kai barged in.

"Hello, Kai!" she said sweetly, as though she hadn't just released a dozen frogs into his room in the middle of the night.

Kai stood in the doorway, eyes wide and completely baffled. "Mia... why are there frogs in my bed?!"

Mia blinked, tilting her head as though she didn't understand his problem. "Frogs need sleepy time too!" she said in her little voice. "You always say everyone needs their rest!"

Kai threw his hands up in frustration. "Frogs don't sleep in beds, Mia! They sleep in ponds, outside!"

Mia's expression was one of complete innocence. "But Kai, I thought they would like your comfy bed... They're my fwiends. I even gived them names!" She started listing off names like "Hoppy" and "Blinky," as if that made everything okay.

Kai groaned, running a hand through his hair. "Mia, why do you always do this?"

Mia shrugged. "I just wanted them to be happy." She paused, then looked at him with wide eyes. "Didn't you like them?"

Kai gave her an exasperated look. "No, Mia, I did not like having frogs dropped on me at two in the morning!"

Mia pouted, hugging her bear tightly. "Sorry, Kai. Next time, maybe I give them to Cole?"

Kai's face paled. "No! No next time, Mia! No frogs! No fish! No animals in my bed, or *anyone's* bed!"

Mia sighed dramatically, still clearly not understanding why this was such a big deal. "Okay... but they were really comfy..."

Kai shook his head, defeated. "You're going to drive me crazy, you know that?"

Mia giggled. "But you love me anyway."

Kai couldn't help but crack a smile, despite the situation. "Yeah, I do," he muttered, turning to leave. "Now let's go put those frogs back where they belong before I find one in my shoe tomorrow."

Mia jumped up to follow him, a mischievous smile already forming on her lips. Kai sighed, knowing this wasn't the last time his little sister would pull something like this.

At exactly six o'clock, Kai stretched in bed, trying to shake off the last remnants of sleep. Just as he shifted under his blanket, something cold and slithery brushed against his leg.

His eyes shot open.

He slowly lifted the corner of the blanket, hoping, praying, it wasn't what he thought it was.

But it was.

Snakes.

A whole bunch of snakes, curled up and writhing beneath his sheets.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAH! MIÀAAAAAAAAA!!" Kai screamed at the top of his lungs, leaping out of bed so fast that he practically flew across the room.

The commotion must have been loud because within seconds, Cole and Lloyd came bursting into the room, both wide-eyed and panicked.

"What's going on?!" Lloyd shouted, scanning the room for danger.

Then they saw the snakes.

Cole's face went pale. "What the-?"

Before he could finish, Lloyd let out a scream that rivaled Kai's. "Snakes?! Why are there snakes in your bed?!"

Cole backed up, pointing at the bed. "Kai, man, that's-why-how-"

Kai was panting, his face a mix of fear and frustration. "Mia...," he muttered, eyes twitching.

Lloyd looked around frantically. "Where is she? We need to-"

"She's probably hiding," Kai growled, pacing back and forth as he ran a hand through his hair. "She knows exactly what she's done."

Cole shook his head in disbelief, staring at the bed full of slithering snakes. "Dude... this is bad. How are we supposed to get them out of here?!"

"I DON'T KNOW!" Kai yelled, still too flustered to think straight. "And where is Mia?! Why isn't she coming to see what's going on?!"

As if on cue, they heard a soft giggle from somewhere down the hall.

Lloyd sighed. "She's probably watching from a safe distance. She knew this was coming."

Kai stormed toward the door. "When I find her-"

But before he could finish his sentence, a snake dropped off the bed and slithered toward them. Lloyd and Cole screamed again, jumping back.

"Okay, okay! Let's just get these things out of here first," Cole said, eyeing the snake with pure terror.

Kai clenched his fists, his patience already worn thin. "Fine. But after this, I'm having a long talk with Mia about why reptiles do NOT belong in people's beds!"

As they tried to figure out how to safely remove the snakes, they could still hear that faint giggle echoing through the hall, a clear sign that Mia was, indeed, watching... and clearly enjoying the chaos she had caused.

After an exhausting hour of wrangling snakes out of his bed with Cole and Lloyd's help, Kai finally stepped out of his room, feeling like he could finally breathe again. His hair was disheveled, and his patience was hanging by a thread.

"Okay," Kai muttered to himself, running a hand through his hair. "No more surprises. Just... peace."

But as soon as he stepped into the hallway, his foot barely touched the ground when he froze mid-step. There, scuttling across the floor in front of him, were... scorpions.

Kai blinked. "No... no, no, no, no."

His eyes widened in horror as he looked around and realized the hallway wasn't just occupied by a few scorpions. No, there were dozens of them. They scuttled across the floor, their tails raised ominously.

"Oh, come on!" Kai shouted in disbelief, throwing his hands in the air.

Hearing his outburst, Cole and Lloyd cautiously poked their heads out from Kai's room. "What now?" Cole asked, looking equally as tired as Kai.

Kai pointed silently to the floor. Lloyd's eyes followed his gesture and immediately, his face turned pale. "Scorpions?! What is this, a zoo?"

Cole sighed, already defeated. "First snakes... now this? Mia's really outdone herself this time."

Kai was already pacing, clearly at his wit's end. "Where does she even get these things?! And why does she think putting them everywhere is a good idea?!"

Lloyd shook his head, tiptoeing around the creatures. "She probably thinks it's funny. To her, this is just another prank."

Kai sighed heavily. "Well, it's not funny."

Cole squatted down, trying to get a better look at the scorpions. "These things look like they came straight out of a desert. I'm starting to wonder if Mia secretly has an exotic pet store hidden somewhere."

Kai looked at Cole with a mixture of amusement and exasperation. "At this point, I wouldn't be surprised if she did."

Just then, another soft giggle echoed from down the hall.

Kai gritted his teeth. "Mia..."

The giggling grew louder, and finally, from around the corner, little Mia appeared, holding a net in one hand and a large jar in the other. She had the most innocent smile on her face.

"Kai, wike scorpions?" she asked sweetly, blinking her big eyes at him.

Kai stared at her in disbelief, trying to keep his voice calm. "Mia, why-how-did you get scorpions in the hallway?!"

Mia just giggled again. "Foun' dem!" she said cheerfully. "Wanna see more?"

Kai's face fell. "More? There's more?!"

Mia nodded enthusiastically, as if this whole thing was a game. "Wots more! Dey fun, Kai!"

Kai pinched the bridge of his nose, sighing deeply. "I'm going to lose my mind..."

Cole, barely suppressing a laugh, clapped a hand on Kai's shoulder. "Good luck, man."

Lloyd, shaking his head in sympathy, added, "You're gonna need it."

Kai took a deep breath, steeling himself. "Mia, we need to talk about boundaries. And about not filling the house with scorpions!"

Mia just giggled, completely unbothered, and skipped away down the hall, leaving Kai to face yet another round of critter chaos.

After what felt like an eternity, Kai, Cole, and Lloyd finally managed to wrangle the scorpions and clear the hallway. Exhausted, they collapsed on the couch, letting out a collective sigh of relief.

"Finally," Cole muttered, closing his eyes. "Peace and quiet."

Lloyd nodded, resting his head back against the cushions. "Yeah, way too quiet, though."

Kai frowned, his instincts kicking in. "Wait... too quiet?"

The three of them exchanged wary glances, all feeling the same unsettling vibe.

"That's never a good sign," Kai muttered, sitting up straight.

Just as those words left his mouth, a soft scuttling sound reached their ears. It was faint at first, almost imperceptible, but then it grew louder. Like tiny legs... hundreds of them.

Kai's eyes widened. "No way..."

Lloyd sat up, looking around cautiously. "Please, tell me it's not what I think it is."

Cole, already resigned to the chaos, slowly stood up. "We should check it out."

As the three cautiously made their way toward the noise, they reached the corner of the living room and froze.

There, crawling across the walls, floors, and even the ceiling, were dozens-no, hundreds-of spiders. Not just any spiders, but big, black, poisonous ones. Their long legs moved eerily fast, and their shiny bodies reflected the dim light of the room.

"Oh. My. Gosh," Lloyd whispered, his voice full of dread. "Mia."

Kai's face drained of all color. "Miaaaa!" he groaned in disbelief.

Cole, standing a good distance back, gave a low whistle. "That's it, we're doomed. This is the end."

Lloyd was practically glued to the spot, his eyes wide. "These are poisonous! This is way beyond a prank now!"

Kai snapped out of his stunned silence, already marching down the hallway. "Where is she?"

They found Mia sitting in her room, once again, completely unbothered. She was playing with a stuffed animal, humming quietly to herself. When she saw Kai, she smiled brightly.

"Kai! You wan' pway wif spideys?"

Kai couldn't believe what he was hearing. "Mia, why are there poisonous spiders in the house?!"

Mia tilted her head innocently. "Dey look cool. Wike my toys."

Kai ran a hand down his face. "Mia, you can't just bring poisonous spiders inside! This is dangerous!"

Mia's lower lip quivered, and her eyes started to water. "I sowwy... dey looked fun..."

Kai's heart softened for a moment as he sighed deeply. He knelt down beside her. "Mia, I know you like playing with animals, but you can't bring dangerous ones into the house, okay? It's not safe."

Mia nodded, her big eyes glistening with tears. "Okay... no more spideys."

Kai stood up, feeling both exhausted and relieved. "Good. Now, let's get rid of these."

Back in the living room, Lloyd and Cole were still standing a safe distance away, both looking completely horrified at the sight of the spiders taking over.

"Well, I guess it's spider wrangling time," Cole muttered, grabbing a broom.

Lloyd groaned. "Why is it always us?"

Kai, sighing heavily, grabbed another broom. "Let's just get this over with before Mia finds anything worse."

After what seemed like hours of battling scorpions, spiders, and everything in between, the boys finally cleared the house of the poisonous spiders. Kai, Cole, and Lloyd were exhausted, sweating, and more than ready to collapse after the day's chaos.

Kai leaned heavily against the wall, wiping his forehead. "We're finally done... I think."

Lloyd let out a long sigh, dropping his broom to the ground. "I really hope so."

Cole slumped into the couch, shaking his head. "If I never see another spider again, it'll be too soon."

For a moment, peace settled over the house. The only sound was their heavy breathing. They all started to relax, relieved that the worst was over.

But then, out of nowhere, they heard it: a faint rustling sound, followed by the soft, unmistakable scurrying of little feet.

Lloyd's eyes shot open. "What... what now?"

Kai froze, feeling a cold shiver run down his spine. "No. No way."

They all slowly turned their heads to the hallway, and to their absolute horror, they saw them-lizards. Dozens of them, crawling along the floor and up the walls, scattering in all directions. Green, brown, and even some brightly colored ones darted around like they owned the place.

Cole shot up from the couch, eyes wide. "Are you kidding me?! Lizards now?"

Lloyd groaned, staring at the scene in disbelief. "I swear, if I ever have kids, I'm locking them in a bubble."

Kai, on the verge of losing it, looked around the room frantically. "Where is Mia? Where is Mia?"

But this time, there was no giggling, no mischievous smile, and no little voice calling his name. Mia was nowhere to be seen.

Kai turned to the others. "We need to find her now."

Lloyd, still staring at the lizards in shock, slowly nodded. "Yeah... before she releases something else into the house."

Cole grabbed his broom again with a resigned sigh. "Great, here we go again. Let's catch these things first."

As they prepared to deal with the lizard invasion, Kai couldn't help but shake his head in disbelief. "How does she keep finding these animals?"

Lloyd, sweeping a particularly large lizard off the wall, shrugged. "Honestly, at this point, I wouldn't be surprised if we found a tiger in her room next."

Kai shuddered at the thought. "Don't even joke about that."

As they worked on rounding up the lizards, Kai kept one ear open, waiting for any sign of Mia. Wherever she was, she was probably cooking up another "surprise." And Kai wasn't sure how much more he could take.

As the boys worked their way through capturing the lizards, a loud *growl* echoed through the house. They all froze, eyes widening in unison. Slowly, they turned toward the doorway, where the source of the sound emerged.

Standing there, larger than life, was a tiger.

The massive feline prowled into the room, its amber eyes fixated on Lloyd.

Lloyd's face went pale. "You've got to be kidding me..." he muttered under his breath, backing up slowly.

Kai cringed. "I told you not to joke about tigers!" he whispered, his voice high with panic.

The tiger, for some reason, seemed particularly interested in Lloyd. It let out a low rumble and started moving toward him, each step slow and deliberate.

Lloyd glanced between Kai and Cole in desperation. "Guys, what do I do? What do I do?!"

Kai shook his head, cringing as the tiger drew closer. "Uh... don't move? Maybe it'll lose interest?"

Cole, not nearly as calm as he sounded, whispered, "Lloyd, I think it... likes you. Or... it thinks you look like dinner."

Lloyd let out a nervous laugh. "Well, that's comforting."

The tiger was now mere inches from Lloyd, sniffing him with its massive nose. Lloyd stood frozen in place, his eyes wide with terror. "Guys..." he whispered. "I'm not dinner, right?"

The tiger's whiskers brushed against Lloyd's leg as it inspected him, seemingly trying to figure out if he was worth eating. Lloyd stiffened even more, sweat dripping down his forehead.

Kai, still cringing at the scene, whispered, "Just... stay calm, Lloyd. Maybe it's friendly."

The tiger then licked Lloyd's leg.

Lloyd gulped. "I don't think it's that friendly, Kai..."

Kai put his hand to his forehead in frustration. "Oh, for the love of-how is this even happening?"

Cole looked between the tiger and Lloyd, then quickly whispered, "I think it's trying to decide if it wants you for dinner, man. You might want to, uh... move."

Lloyd, clearly horrified, said, "Move? And get eaten faster?!"

The tiger let out another low growl, its eyes narrowing slightly as it circled Lloyd.

"Okay, okay! Slowly move," Cole corrected. "And don't look like a snack."

Lloyd, inching backward with tiny, careful steps, nodded rapidly. "Noted! I'm not a snack. I'm not food. Not food!"

Kai, still cringing, called out in a shaky voice, "Mia! Wherever you are, this is not funny anymore! Come and get your... tiger!"

But Mia was still nowhere to be seen.

The tiger, still too interested in Lloyd for anyone's liking, continued to prowl around him, its tail flicking back and forth.

Kai cringed harder. "I think we might need animal control this time..."

After animal control finally managed to take the tiger away, the boys collapsed in the living room, exhausted. Kai wiped his brow and groaned, "Where. Is. My. Sister?!"

Cole, equally as drained, muttered, "I swear, if Mia set that tiger loose on purpose, we're gonna have words..."

Before Kai could respond, a deep, low growl filled the air again.

All three of them froze in place, exchanging terrified looks.

"Oh no..." Kai whispered, his heart sinking.

The growl grew louder, and they slowly turned around, only to see something far worse than the tiger.

A lion.

A massive, hungry-looking lion.

Its golden eyes were locked on them, and this time, it wasn't just curious. The lion licked its lips, its enormous paws padding forward.

Cole's voice wavered as he backed up, his hands raised defensively. "N-nice lion... good lion... we don't taste good. Promise!"

Lloyd, who had already experienced enough predator encounters for one day, screamed, "RUUUUUN!"

The boys didn't need any more convincing. They turned and bolted down the hallway, the lion roaring behind them.

"Why does this keep happening?!" Kai yelled as they sprinted, his voice a mix of frustration and panic.

"I don't know, but I'm starting to think Mia might be secretly running a zoo!" Lloyd shouted, his voice full of fear as the lion's growls echoed closer.

Cole, running as fast as his legs could carry him, muttered under his breath, "If we survive this, I'm going to personally lock every single door and window in this house."

They rounded a corner, frantically searching for a place to hide. The lion's heavy footsteps thundered behind them.

"Upstairs! We can lock the door!" Kai shouted, pointing toward the stairs.

The boys dashed up the stairs, slamming the door to one of the rooms behind them. They all leaned against it, breathing heavily, as the lion scratched at the wood outside.

"Nice lion," Cole repeated, shaking his head. "Yeah, that didn't work."

Lloyd, still trying to catch his breath, groaned. "How... does Mia... get her hands... on these things?!"

Kai, still out of breath, glared at the door. "When we find her... I'm never letting her bake anything again. Or... whatever it is she's been doing!"

Suddenly, the scratching stopped, and silence filled the room.

The boys exchanged wary glances, still holding their breath.

"Is it gone?" Lloyd whispered, his voice trembling.

Kai cautiously opened the door just a crack and peeked out. No sign of the lion.

He closed the door again, breathing a sigh of relief. "I think... I think we're safe."

Just then, they heard giggling.

All three of them froze again.

"Mia," Kai groaned, his eyes narrowing in suspicion.

"Where is she this time?" Cole asked, rubbing his temples.

The boys slowly stepped out of the room, only to find Mia sitting calmly on the floor, playing with her stuffed animals as if nothing had happened.

"Mia!" Kai yelled. "Where have you been?!"

Mia looked up innocently, her big eyes blinking at her brother. "Hi, Kai! I was playin' with my fwends."

Kai, Cole, and Lloyd all exchanged tired, exasperated looks.

Cole pointed back toward the hallway. "Do your friends include a lion?!"

Mia tilted her head, completely unbothered. "Maybe... but he just wanted to play too!"

Kai slumped to the floor, rubbing his forehead. "I'm never leaving her unsupervised again..."

Just as the boys were about to let out a sigh of relief, they heard the unmistakable deep growl behind them.

Kai, Cole, and Lloyd turned slowly, dread filling their stomachs.

The lion was back, standing right in the doorway, its eyes locked onto them once again.

Before anyone could react, Mia giggled. "Gotta go, byeeee!" she said cheerfully, waving her hand as she bolted down the hallway, disappearing around the corner in a flash.

Kai's jaw dropped. "MIA! GET BACK HERE!" he yelled, panic rising in his voice.

The lion, seemingly unbothered by Mia's escape, took a step closer to the boys, its massive paws thudding on the floor.

Lloyd's face paled. "We're doomed," he muttered.

Cole swallowed hard, holding up his hands in a desperate attempt to calm the beast. "Uh, nice lion... we're just leaving. No need to-"

But the lion growled again, louder this time.

Lloyd didn't wait for any more signs. "RUN!" he shouted, sprinting toward the nearest window.

Kai and Cole followed without hesitation, racing after Lloyd as fast as they could.

As they made a mad dash to escape, the lion bounded after them, roaring in pursuit.

"I swear, the next time I see Mia..." Kai muttered between gasps for breath.

"We're putting a lock on every door!" Cole shouted, his voice full of desperation.

They ran through the house, weaving between furniture and jumping over anything in their path, trying to outrun the lion.

As they reached the back door, Lloyd threw it open. "OUTSIDE!" he yelled, waving them through.

They all dove out, slamming the door shut behind them, panting and collapsing on the grass.

Kai, out of breath, looked up at the sky. "I don't care if Mia's my sister... she's grounded for life."