Hey! New story for a new year! Hope you had a happy new year! This is a one-shot! Please read! Thanks! And that speech about success and failure...written by me! Ok, read on...

Success and Failure

"Success and Failure. These two words may seem like complete opposites. Success would be when you achieve something that you attempt; that you plan. When you attain what you had been hoping to gain; to receive, to earn. But failure…that is a different story. You don't achieve what you want. You fall short of what you expected to be a success. You might also know someone who has been called a failure. Someone who is unsuccessful might be a failure, having a lack of success in most things that they do. Failure is a breakdown that most people hate to meet up with.

But what most people don't realize is that, Failure and Success aren't truly at all that different. Sure success is exceeding and failure is a decline, but these two things are something we need in all our lives. There can be no success without failure and no failure without success. These two are not burdens. They are not a ghost that haunts you for your past mistakes. They are your helpers. Success is that drive that gives you confidence. Failure is that urge that makes you want to do better. So, take these two not much as a hindrance, but as a reminder of the bond these two share. For they are a package, an item; the leading light and the assistant. "

Po watched as Tigress demonstrated how to break a spear with your neck. She performed a number of hand movements, channeling all her energy into her throat, making it strong and resistant. She then placed the metal spear point onto her throat. As she applied pressure to the spear and moved downward, she heard Po call her name, but ignored him. She continued to move down and the spear began to bend, and bend, until…

Crack! The wood then broke in half and fell to the ground. Tigress stepped back and looked at Po. "Are you ready?"

"No." he looked at the broken spear that lay on the floor. "How did you do that? I mean, doesn't it hurt you?"

She shook her head. "Over ten years of training can do that to a person."

"I don't know if I can do this…" he admitted. He, as the lovable and great warrior he was now known as, didn't like to admit that he couldn't do something. Ever since he became Dragon Warrior, he worked hard against the word can't. He defied all odds in doings so. But, something about breaking a spear with his neck just freaked him out a bit.

"Yes you can." She tried to convince him.

"No I can't. Face it; I won't be able to break that, with this." He touched his flabbyish throat. Tigress smiled, that something she doesn't do often. He looked at her as she did and Po couldn't help but smile back. She just had that effect on him.

"Maybe you can't, but we can…" she grabbed an extra spear she was holding for Po, and extended her hand towards him. "You don't have to do it alone."

He took her hand and she led him in front of her. She gave him the spear and he took. "Close your eyes, Po." She said, and explained what he had to do. "Incorporate all your energy onto your throat, make it strong. Let my hands guide you…" She then stood in front of him, her back to his belly. She took both of his hands, and helped him do the hand movements she did. Po breathed deeply as he tried to gather his chi and focus it on his throat. She could sense the frustration. "Relax, Po. No pressure." She did the last movements and backed away from him. He opened his eyes and breathed again.

He was ready. He took the spear, and put it to his throat. "Try a bit lower, Po." She instructed.

He lowered it. "Like this?"

"Perfect." He concentrated on breaking the spear. He began to move forward and as he did, he realized that his body was too much pressure for it. In just a few seconds the spear broke. It snapped broken when he moved only a few inches forward. When Tigress saw this, she applauded his victory.

"We did it!" Po cheered as he hugged his teacher.

"No, Po…you did it…You practiced this for weeks and you finally did it." They let go. Po looked at Tigress.

"I couldn't have done it without a great teacher." Tigress smiled at those few words. "I have to admit though; I never thought I would be able to do that…"

"Why?"

"Because, I failed so many times…" his voice trailed off as Tigress shook her head.

"Po, just because you fail a few times, doesn't mean you'll never succeed. It's the failures that make a person want to succeed."

"How many failures have you had in your training?"

Tigress looked away. "I've had my moments…sometimes I still do…" she then looked at him and grinned, "But if there's one thing I've learned, is that there's no success without failure, and no failure without success."

"Tigress?"

"Yes, Po?"

"You really know how to cheer up a person…"

"Thanks for trying…" she said content as she walked away.

"Oh, and Tigress…" she turned around and met with his face, their lips only a 2 inches apart. "You're really looking good…"

She smiled and stepped back. "Thanks for trying…"

Viper slithered close to her feline friend as they talked about Po's recent training in Shaolin Kung Fu.

"Tigress, why did you do those hand movements? You don't have to do that just to transfer your chi to your neck." Tigress just smiled a knowing smile. "I know that look…"

She looked at her innocently. "I don't know what you're talking about…"

"So that's why you did those hand movements, you were trying to…" Her voice trailed off as she saw Tigress move ahead. Viper caught up with her and they suddenly stopped. Tigress looked at her friend and a grin graced her face.

"It's the small things in life that make you happy…"

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