Disclaimer: I do not own any part of Kung Fu Panda, it belongs entirely to Dreamworks.
A/N: WARNING: This story DOES contain gore and sexual implications which is why I rated it M. The first few chapters are the roughest but it will level out. If you don't like details, this story is NOT for you. If you still want to read this, enjoy!
A new day dawned over Kia in Turin Valley where Saria and her family lived. The sun shined through the red panda's window even though she wanted more sleep. Her big round red ears twitched in agitation and she opened her emerald green eyes to glare at the rays of light. Her face was white except for two big red circles surrounding her eyes that reached up to her dark eyebrows and ended on either side of her small nose, making her look like a bandit. She groaned and rolled over, pulling the blanket over her head in defiance. Her long fluffy white tail peeked out, the three red rings near the base lending to the bandit look. Even so the light seemed to penetrate the layers of her blanket, intent on disturbing her. She reluctantly gave in, sighing as she tossed her blanket aside sat up.
The fur on the rest of her body was a darker red color than the markings on her head and tail except for a small white crescent on her stomach near her right hip at about an inch long. Saria slid off the side of the bed, landing lightly on the balls of her feet and walked to her mirror across the small room. She was small for a red panda, but had a shapely body with full hips and a small waist. Muscles rippled beneath her fur when she moved as proof of her athletic skill. She picked up a comb and began running it through her fur, closing her eyes to savor the sensation. She started with her head and ended at her feet, making sure her fur was going to cooperate before she put on her clothes. She picked simple black pants that hugged her hips and a dark blue shirt she tucked in so it wouldn't get in the way. Before she put on her shirt she grabbed a long white sash and wound it around her chest, pinning her breasts in place so they wouldn't get in the way. She then brushed her rustic red hair that reached to her waist and put it in a long braid like she always did before slipping on some sandals and going to her door.
Hearing the patter of little feet running down the hall towards her room made her smile. She timed herself so when the running stopped in front of her door she opened it.
"Boo!" She yelled as she jumped into the hall. Her younger brother stumbled back in surprise, falling on his butt. Saria laughed at his shocked expression before he could collect himself. His eyebrows drew down in a scowl and his dark blue eyes glared at her.
"That was not funny, Sar!" he complained in a whiney tone, but Saria just laughed and helped him to his feet. The top of his head reached her chin, but he was still a baby and she was fully grown. He would grow for years to come and she had no doubt he would be taller than her some day.
"I know you, Yoshu, and you were going to scare me, I merely beat you to the punch," she said as she ruffled his short red hair affectionately. He grinned up at her, his eyes sparkling with mischief before he darted back down the hall into the kitchen. Saria inhaled deeply, taking in the aroma of sweet oatmeal. Her mother often put chunks of apple from the apple tree outside in the oatmeal as well as cinnamon, giving it a deliciously sweet taste people couldn't resist. As Saria entered the kitchen, Pari glanced behind her at her daughter, her green eyes alight with love and adoration and her mouth curved in a smile. Her eyes were a deeper shade than Saria's but beautiful nonetheless. She was a small panda like her daughter, except laugh lines were etched on her face as a testament to the many years of happiness she had lived. Her dark red hair was tied in a bun like it always was, grey streaks beginning to appear throughout the red.
"Good morning!" a deep voice boomed throughout the room, heralding the entrance of her father. He walked in the front door holding a basket of eggs he had just collected from the hen house. Saria knew he would go into town later to sell the eggs like he did every day. They lived on the small amount of money their farm brought in, a meager but sustainable way of life.
"Morning Yuan," her mother greeted as she kissed her husband on the cheek. Yuan's voice fit his body. He was large for a red panda, especially in the middle as he loved his food. He had a large round face and even larger sapphire blue eyes that twinkled when he smiled. Saria gave him a hug as he went to the counter before she sat down. Pari set four bowls of oatmeal on the table, one in front of Saria. She grabbed her spoon and dug in, savoring the sweet taste of the apple mixed with the spice of the cinnamon as everyone else sat at the small table. Yoshu nearly bounced out of his chair in excitement as he talked about going to his friend Ping's house later in the day to play with their swords. His sword was by the door, which was merely a short stick that Yuan had whittled to look like a sword. A white strip of cloth was wrapped around the base where the hilt was supposed to be. Yoshu's name was carved just above the hilt in his untidy writing, marking it as his. He loved to fight, almost as much as Saria, however their parents didn't know kung fu and they didn't know anyone in town who did.
"It's so much fun!" her little brother exclaimed as he bounced in his seat. "Maybe someday when I'm all grown up I can go to the Jade Palace and become a true master!"
"Maybe someday," his mother said as she patted his arm affectionately. She didn't want to shatter his dreams, but they could never afford to send him to the Jade Palace to train. It was a good ten day's travel across the valley by cart not to mention traveling with all of your belongings. The cost of moving would be too much, so they could only hope he would grow out of it. Saria said nothing and continued eating. Growing up with stories of the legendary kung fu masters, they both dreamed of becoming kung fu warriors but their family's limited means of income prevented their dreams from coming true. But it didn't stop Saria from dreaming.
She didn't know what the masters looked like or even what species they were but in her mind they were strong and noble heroes. Often when she was finished with her chores for the day she would go into the forest behind the house to practice when her parents believed she went to merely relax. Even though she didn't know how to fight properly she still liked to punch and kick at the air. She could jump high and climb trees with ease and felt at home when she practiced. She hoped she'd be able to get some practice in before the sun set.
Her father pushed away from the table and stood, grabbing the basket of eggs off the counter on his way to the door.
"I'm going to go into town, I'll be back later this afternoon," he said with a smile. Everyone said goodbye before he walked out the door and made his way to town. Saria stretched, and yawning picked up her bowl as well as her father's empty one and carried them to the sink to wash them. Yoshu was still babbling about kung fu when she finished and went outside to get started on her chores.
She grabbed the pail by the door and headed out back. The sun had barely risen and it was already warm, the dew on the grass evaporating quickly. Saria could tell it was going to be a very hot day. She made her way to the well behind the house and tied the rope to the pail. She lowered it into the dark well and drew out water and carried it to the trough where the chickens were pecking in the yard and dumped the water in. Repeating it several times until the trough was full before putting the pail back, she then went into the garden behind the well to pull weeds. The vegetables they grew were more than the family needed, so they sold the excess in Kia. Saria took well care of the plants, ensuring they thrived. As she worked she heard weird high pitched noises that sounded like bird calls coming from the surrounding woods, and tried to figure out what species they were.
She had begun to sweat when she heard someone approaching the house. By the large amount of noise they were making she knew they were running. Saria's uneasiness grew as she hurried to the front to see who was coming. People didn't come running to the house unless something was wrong. She turned the corner and was almost at the front door when she looked at the road and stopped dead. It was her father coming down the road, yelling imperceptibly as he waved his arms. By the frantic look on his face, she knew it was urgent. Looking behind him she saw what he was yelling about. Smoke billowed into the sky in the direction of Kia and she realized the sounds she'd heard weren't birds but was coming from the people in the town. They were under attack.
Saria's heart began to pound as she ran to get her mother but Pari was already at the door, having seen her husband coming down the road from the window. Saria could see her mother was scared by the way she wrung her hands but she remained where she was. Yoshu peeked out from behind his mom, his face anxious and confused as he had no idea what was going on. Yuan stopped when he reached the house and bent over to catch his breath as his family anxiously waited to find out what was going on.
"Rhinos…" he gasped. "Rhinos… attacking… the town… attacking pandas… we have to go… now!" He managed to get the words out as he fought to catch his breath, and it was enough to spur the family into action. Pari disappeared into the house and clanging could be heard as she hastily shoved things into bags, knowing they couldn't run without supplies to sustain them. Saria ran into the house to help, followed by her father who was still panting from running. They grabbed dried fruits and vegetables that had been preserved as well as a few pots and pans and eating utensils. Saria ran into her room and grabbed her blanket knowing it would be enough to keep her warm.
"We'll go east through the forest," her father was saying. "They won't be able to follow us for long and we'll make for the Jade Palace." Saria froze. The Jade Palace? Had she heard that correctly? Her heart soared at the thought of going to the Jade Palace. She could fulfill her dream and… Wait. They weren't going there to train they were going there for help. If her father believed they needed to call upon the kung fu masters, she knew it was far more serious than she'd thought. But to travel that far with few supplies, would they make it? It would be a long and rough trek because the Turin Valley was made up mostly of thick forest, with towns few and far between. Getting through the pass would be the hardest with the high mountain range they'd have to cross. But her mother just nodded and put the pots in one bag and the food in the other.
They ran outside to find rhinos marching onto their land. They were covered with blood and gore, not even bothering to wipe it off and seeming to display it with pride. Saria's stomach lurched at the sight and bile rose in her throat but she pushed it down. Yoshu screamed and his mother scooped him up in her arms protectively.
"Run!" her father screamed and they all dashed for the security of the forest. Saria was the fastest and got well ahead of them. She reached the edge of the forest and dodged the trees with ease after so much practice. As she ran she noticed she couldn't hear the crashing of feet behind her. She couldn't hear anything so she stopped and turned around. Her family wasn't behind her. Heart pounding against her chest, Saria ran as fast as her legs could carry her back the way she'd come. When she reached the edge of the forest, what she saw shocked her. There were rhinos everywhere, all of them carrying various weapons and heavily armored. They were ransacking the house and killing the chickens, and some were grabbing vegetables from the garden, stomping the plants as they went. Saria's heart stopped when she spotted her family being dragged to the middle of the yard.
"NO!" she screamed and she dashed as fast as she could towards her family, not knowing what she was going to do but felt she had to try to save them anyways. Her parents saw her as she ran towards them, fear for her stark in their faces.
"Don't!" her father yelled. "Run! Go to the Jade Palace and get the kung fu masters!" Saria stopped, staring in disbelief. How could he expect her to leave them? Before she could take another step towards them, a rhino stepped in her path, brandishing a wicked looking spear.
"Well, well, well," the rhino grinned. "Looks like we got a young one here, she could be some fun!" Some of the other rhinos laughed and cheered him on.
"You're right Li; she'd be a good catch!" One of them shouted. They began to circle around Saria to box her in. She backed up and he pointed his spear so close to her face that Saria could see it was caked with blood and chunks of meat.
"You're not going anywhere pretty thing," he sneered. Saria knocked the spear away and kicked him in the shin, but backpedaled right into another rhino. "Grab her!" Li roared as he rubbed his shin, and the rhino did, grabbing her by the waist and picking her up. Saria squirmed and fought but stopped when the spear was in her face again. "Enough, this ends now," he said with a sadistic smile and pulled back the spear to stab her. Somehow her father broke free of the group and rammed himself into the massive rhino as he stabbed at Saria. Her father pushed Li just enough to throw off his aim and Saria jerked to the right. Instead of stabbing her in the middle, the spear sliced into her left hip at the joint and the rhino's momentum caused the spear to glance off Saria's hip bone and rammed into his companion. Both Saria and the rhino screamed and he dropped Saria. She scrambled to make a break for the forest, grasping her hip to stop the blood.
"Run!" Yuan shouted with all his might as Li turned on him. Saria stopped at the edge and looked back, still hating the thought of leaving her family. Her father was on his knees, glaring defiantly up at Li, his eyes that once twinkled with joy now full of rage and loathing. Her mother held Yoshu as they both sobbed, scared for Yuan and themselves. Even so, Pari looked at her daughter and nodded. Go, she mouthed the word as a group of rhinos descended upon them. Several rhinos broke off from the group and began to chase Saria but she disappeared into the forest, glancing back at her family one more time, praying it wasn't the last time she'd ever see them.
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A/N: This is my first published story on a public site so bear with me! I'm excited about sharing my work and look forward to both the good and bad reviews so I can learn from them. Yes it will be rough at times, but things always get better!