Here's another fic! It's a one-shot this time. This is my entry for 3431jess's competition! I hope it meets all of your expectations when you read the summary, and without further ado... enjoy! :D
"A tiger doesn't shout its tigritude, it acts." -Wole Soyinka
A few months have passed since the defeat of Kai, with none other than the Dragon Warrior to be the one to end his temporary reign of terror. The Jade Palace was once again returned back to its former glory after local engineers, architects, and construction workers collaborated together in order to repair it. It was well around noon, and the residents of the Valley of Peace were milling about the streets, minding their own business. That is, all except one.
Tigress took to the roofs of the various buildings, expertly avoiding detection from the citizens below. The feline was back in her usual red qipao, as her golden tunic was (in her opinion), only to be worn for formal occasions. Her narrowed pupils were focused on the two figures she spied upon, whom were still oblivious of their extra listener.
The Dragon Warrior, better known as Po, was currently speaking to a female snow leopard. Obviously, being the claimed "greatest warrior in all of China" had its perks, and with his most recent triumph, his reputation had exploded across the country, attracting people such as the two felines that were ogling him, one more discreetly than the other.
The Dragon Warrior grew anxious as both he and the snow leopard were in an isolated alleyway, away from the prying eyes of any passerby. The unknown feline did not seem too bothered by the lack of ambiance in her surroundings. Her attention was instead focused primarily on every single feature the Dragon Warrior possessed on his body, from his stubby toes to his rounded ears. The hungry, needy look in her eyes was enough to send shivers down his spine.
Po, trying to push away his growing sense of unease to the side, loudly cleared his throat to repeat what he said as what he had articulated before was incoherently mumbled and meek in volume.
"S-So... Is there a reason for bringing me here? Or did you just want to talk uninterrupted? By the way, that's totally fine, but can we do this a little later? I'm supposed to be helping my dad with cooking as it's the lunch rush right now and you can guess how a chef acts when time is eating away at his potential profits..."
"Oh no need to be so hasty, Dragon Warrior," purred the feline seductively. "You see, I've come quite a long way from where the Ladies of the Shade are currently located, and I want every single second that I spend with you to be well worth it."
"Wow... You traveled such a long distance just to see me?" The Dragon Warrior was twiddling his thumbs and thinking of a polite way to excuse himself. During this, the snow leopard started to walk closer to him, all the while swaying her hips suggestively and flashing a mischievous smile. The panda couldn't come up with anything useful unfortunately, so he decided to go for the direct route. "I mean I'm flattered and all, and I mean no disrespect, but I really need to get back to the shop and- Oomph!"
At this, Po cleared the stars from his vision before seeing the leopard on top of him, straddling him while brandishing her parasol that was once strapped at her side and now a small distance away from his throat. The distance was closed however, when an audible click was heard and a double-edged blade poked out of the tip of the parasol, much to the panda's discomfort. He gulped, and the cold, emotionless steel grazed against his fur.
The Dragon Warrior was effortlessly and effectively pinned to the ground and in a very much compromising position. The snow leopard grinned playfully as she felt the tenderness of Po's restrained pads underneath her knees.
"I'm sorry. Where are my manners today? I'm Mei Bing. You may remember seeing me along with my twin sister, Shuang, when we tried to steal the Dragon Chalice from you a while back." Mei Bing retracted the blade from her inconspicuously unorthodox weapon, but still continued to hold it at the panda's neck threateningly. "Anyways, I came back so that I could truly 'apologize' to you and 'express my remorse' as best as possible if you know what I mean..."
Po felt a drop of sweat roll down his spine. The close proximity of his assaulter had finally fried his brain, causing him to do nothing but slightly cringe under the intensity of Mei Bing's unblinking stare. The panda had to act fast, or he would end up as a 'scratching post'... again.
Yes. The Dragon Warrior had been confronted like this more than a couple times. In fact, being seduced by females happened so often to him these days that it had almost turned to a point where it was a comic-relief. Emphasis on almost. Unfortunately though, none of the predicaments he encountered were this drastic, and it seemed that leopard on top of him would not go down without a- erm... 'fight' for lack of a cleaner word.
"Okaaaay... I'm glad you feel that way, but the problem is now I have to arrest you for past discrepancies of the law even though the Ladies have officially gone straight. However, since I don't think that jail time is a really great motivator for not breaking the rules again, I'll let you off this time if you just get off me. Sound like a deal?"
"Hmmm. Let me think about it..." Mei Bing finally put away her parasol and brought a paw up to her chin in a dramatic display of pondering. Of course, the snow leopard already had an answer before the panda fully finished his lenient offer. Mei Bing winked slyly at him before replying.
"No deal- Woah!".
While the spotted feline let her guard down, Po lunged his body weight upwards as much as the panda possibly could with the hopes that he would throw her off. It was actually rather adorable as the panda huffed tiredly while doing so, but he nevertheless accomplished his overall goal. The Dragon Warrior was finally up off the ground and a fair distance away from his "attacker".
It did not last long though when Mei Bing quickly recovered and brought the panda's arm behind his back while he was standing victoriously and aggressively shoved his front torso to the nearest wall, eliciting a startled grunt from him.
Darn. He was stuck again. The panda thought that after this, he would definitely commit the saying of 'always expect the unexpected' to his memory for the rest of his life. The snow leopard that was behind him had one paw restricting the movement of his right arm and started to giggle sweetly, as if he had said a humorous joke. Po tried to bring his non-held arm to push the spotted feline away, but another painful twist of the burdened arm convinced him to stay still, lest it be broken.
"Is that all you've got panda? To think that I, Mei Bing, have done what no others have done to the Dragon Warrior with only the simple pretense of me being an innocent civilian."
"Heheh, you'd be surprised... Can we talk about this? In a neutral and friendly setting? Pretty please?"
The snow leopard brought her muzzle against the helpless victim's neck and exhaled slowly on it, causing Po to shiver uncontrollably before continuing.
"No... But I'm sure you'd have assumed that eventually. Playtime is over Dragon Warrior, and you of all people should know not to keep a lady waiting. Now, what to do to you first? The possibilities are endless, now that I have all the time in the world and there is nobody around to rescue you-"
"I wouldn't count on that."
Mei Bing's eyes widened in shock before a single pressure point was struck on the side of her neck, causing the snow leopard to crumble to the ground into an ungraceful heap. Standing above her was none other than Tigress, who had witnessed the entire exchange between Mei Bing and Po and was inwardly fuming as the mentioned panda rolled his once-restrained arm around his shoulder, trying to bring back the circulation in it.
"The nerve of that cat! She tries to steal a priceless artifact from the Jade Palace, fails miserably, and then shows up once more to try to steal MY panda away from me. Like I'll just let that happen. To think she even had the audacity to flirt with my male while I'm still in the same COUNTRY as him!"
Tigress crossed her arms casually, but anyone could tell it was only a forced front. A storm was clearly brewing in her mind as her posture was stiffer than usual and her tail was twitching unpredictably in myriad directions. Po, having noticed this, stopped the ministrations of his arm and walked up to the tiger, flashing her a wide and grateful smile. Tigress relaxed slightly as this, but was still very much peeved by the overly assertive leopard.
"Thanks for getting me out of that sticky situation Tigress. I don't know what she would have done next if you hadn't come along. Actually, scratch that. I think I can actually get a pretty good idea of where things were about to go and- Owie-Ow! Ack! Ouch! Hey! I need that to be able to hear you know! Oof! Okay! I'm sorry for whatever I did!"
The striped feline brought her muscular paw forward to grab at the panda's ear, and proceeded to drag him towards the Jade Palace. They were back on the main streets, and some citizens had questionable expressions on their faces as the tiger master "escorted" the Dragon Warrior via the sensitive stub on the top of his head, and with the said panda still complaining loudly to anyone that was wiling to hear his anguished cries for help.
"Ooh, that hurts a lot. I think I-ARGH! was better off with Mei Bing- OUCH!. Speaking of which..."
Po timidly brought his voice up as the pair reached the foot of the stairs leading to the Jade Palace. The feline keeping his ear hostage was merciless in her assault, offering no sympathy as she took the steps two at a time, forcing the poor Dragon Warrior to keep up with her quickened pace.
"Uhhh Tigress?"
"What?" The striped feline somehow managed to make that question sound like a statement, but Po persevered.
"Are we going to do anything about the snow leopard?"
"I have already informed the rhino guards about her. With a little luck, she'll be in a cozy, inescapable cell by sunset."
The Dragon Warrior was skeptical. "Don't you think that we should guard her though? Just in case if she escapes before being captured? And to make sure that we inform the rhinos of why exactly we placed a member of the Ladies of the Shade in prison? By the way, can we buy some snacks?"
Tigress voiced her displeasure at the panda's endless questions by tugging firmly on his ear, making him yelp and apologize profusely.
"ACK! I'm sorry Master Tigress! Please forgive my irrelevant nature! I am a mere peasant and should not be questioning your infinite wisdom! Allow me to-"
*yank*
"OUCH! That's gonna be sore for a while..."
*stronger yank*
"Oooowie! Okay, closing my mouth now."
"Good, Dragon Warrior. You're learning very quickly..."
"Was that sarcasm?"
*even stronger yank*
"OKAY OKAY! Definitely shutting up now."
The duo eventually reached the top of the stairs. The feline was impassive in her expression while the panda heaved tiredly and was hunched forward as much as he could without stretching his captive appendage any farther than it already was. Tigress merely glanced once at the near-fainting panda before pulling him along again, much to his awkwardness. The Dragon Warrior could now proudly claim that the rumors of the striped feline being relentless in her retributions and firm in her punishments were in fact, one hundred percent true.
The female master continued dragging the panda by his ear and went straight towards the student barracks. The Furious Five and Master Shifu were out of town on a mission, so no one but a confused-looking Zeng, the palace messenger goose, greeted the both of them as they walked in. They walked past the kitchen, and Po tried to stealthily snag a stray dumpling on the floor before stopping and pouting disappointingly as a warning growl came from the stern tiger.
Tigress did not let go of Po until they had both reached her room in the barracks. The tiger master opened her paper door and roughly shoved the reluctant panda inside before stepping in herself and locking the door. Her back was towards the panda as she did this, making the panda feel like he had done something he shouldn't have.
The Dragon Warrior gulped nervously as the feline slowly turned to acknowledge him. His heart was racing, but he tried to play it off as nonchalantly as possible.
"Soo... Did I do something wrong again Tigress? Whatever I did to upset you like this, I'm really sorry..."
"It's not what you did Po. It's that undeserving snow leopard, Mei Bing." The feline master's voice was lowered to sound uncharacteristically attractive and husky.
"Wait a second. What do you mean by 'undeserving'?"
The panda looked at Tigress to find the same hungry look on her face as the spotted feline from before. He then backed away slowly to get away from the case of Deja-Vu, as if a false move would end up with his premature death. Perhaps if Po was a far enough distance away, he would have a decent window of opportunity to be able to make a break for the door. It didn't work, as the feline swiftly caught on to his antics and boldly took two steps forward for every single backwards step the panda himself took.
The Dragon Warrior was eventually forced to retreat into a corner and panicked when he found the feline in front of him smirking devilishly. Tigress got so close that she simply put both her paws on either side of the walls the panda was trapped between and sealed his hopes of ever leaving.
Po, extremely flustered at this point, could only stutter incoherently as the tiger master looked on with a cocked eyebrow and an amused expression.
"You know, I'm surprised Mei Bing didn't mention that you are extremely irresistible and handsome whenever you're cornered like this."
The panda's face grew a slight tinge of red, as he could do nothing but scramble a bunch of words together and hope that they at least formed a coherent sentence. Apparently, it didn't as the striped feline chuckled lowly and rubbed noses with him all the while saying, "See what I mean? It's so perfect for you..."
Po was almost about to burst a blood vessel. Was THE Master Tigress, hardcore and emotionless leader of the Furious Five, actually flirting? And with HIM of all people? The disoriented panda was brought to reality when the soft and caring crimson red eyes suddenly hardened into one of flint and cold calculation, as if he were prey and she was a predator who had just scored a free meal, which to a certain extent was true.
Tigress then took a firm grip on Po's shoulders, firmly locking him in place to make sure he didn't try any last second bail-outs.
"Now... The reason why you are here..."
Tigress held a brief staring contest with the panda before flipping him over her shoulder and onto her futon, all the while accompanied by the panda's shrieks of terror as he tried to anticipate what would occur next. Would she punch him? Maim him? Maybe even kill him? What the feline actually did would never have crossed his mind in a million years.
With the air being forced out of his lungs due to the precision of the non-consensual launch, the Dragon Warrior had no time to react when the striped tiger pounced upon his vulnerable form and lay there on top of him, with her arms lifting and restraining his above his head.
Po chuckled nervously. Okay. He was no doubt and with no arguments much better off with Mei Bing instead of the orange-furred master, who stared at him like he was a especially tasty slab of meat for sale. He tried to struggle briefly out of her vice-like grip, only for her to emit a loud growl and unsheathe her claws over his pads as a warning, causing him to lay there on the comfortable surface limply with no more resistance.
"Good boy...Don't worry, I won't hurt you this time. Now, I'm going to say this once and only once, so if you don't listen, I won't feel any kind of guilt when I drop your dead carcass into the nearest river. Got it?"
At this, the impotent Dragon Warrior nodded rapidly and the striped master growled again, but this time it was one of approval.
"Alright. I've seen you around with countless of harlot- erm I mean, 'assertive females', and I very much don't like that at all. At first, I would back off and you would handle the situation, but as times progressed, I could tell the 'visitors' you were getting were starting to become more and more demanding in their needs. Still, you were able to shrug them off which by the way, I respect you greatly for that, but now things have started to go way out of your control."
"Yea... That's a nice and subtle way of putting things-."
"Be quiet. Let me finish. It has gotten to a point where even I am starting to worry for your safety. For example, had I not been around when I was today, who knows what Mei Bing would have done to you. Not just mentally, but physically as well. Which brings me to my point. I can't bear to see anyone else but me to love you like the way that snow leopard was obviously planning to do."
"Gee, Tigress... I would never have thought that you felt this way towards me-"
Po's muzzle was clamped down shut as Tigress's fiery orange paw closed it. She growled menacingly, fully intimidating the panda into silence if her paw didn't.
"I have planned to tell you about my feelings towards you for quite some time now, but recent events have expedited my confession, as you can tell. However, I'm still not ready to do a thing that holds such a massive impact. The only problem is, those other females are probably more than ready to relay their emotions towards you, so I'll say this right now before you get any ideas. Are you listening, Dragon Warrior?" Tigress removed her paw to allow Po to speak once more.
"Y-yes mam..." Tigress purred in delight at his compliance.
"Wonderful. Now, let me make this clear to you. You are MINE, Po Ping. Not Lu-Shi's, not Song's, not the rest the females that want you, and most certainly, not Mei Bing's. I love you and you only, and I hope that someday you'll be able to say those same exact words to me and not some other woman that merely wants to use you for your title and influence. I love you for who you are, from the day you fell from the sky, to where our friendship is right now. If I ever see you returning another lady's affections, even I don't know how I'll react or what I will do next. Do you understand?"
The Dragon Warrior only nodded numbly once more, and Tigress's purr grew stronger.
"Good. Now that I've said all that I wanted to say, here is a little something to ensure that you stay as mine for the time being..."
"Umm, can I have the benefit of doubt and just have us both pretend that nothing out of the ordinary happened in this room- Mmmph?!"
The orange feline captured the unsuspecting Dragon Warrior's lips into a deep and passionate kiss. Po, having no idea how his luck ran this far, stopped trying to resist the tiger master's demands and gave in to the sudden expression of love. Tigress released his paws and he eagerly wrapped his massive arms around her back and traced a dull claw down her spine, eliciting a pleased chuff from her.
The two warriors stayed together in that intimate embrace for a seemingly infinite amount of time. It wasn't until the pair simultaneously separated to fill their lungs with much need air was the kiss finally broken. The feline got off the dazed panda with a smirk and offered a paw to help him up, which he accepted happily. The two masters became entranced with each other, jade-green eyes locked on to crimson-red ones as they both smiled at each other.
Po was inwardly stunned. He never noticed just how much depth Tigress possessed in her pupils. It was enrapturing, and the orange feline seemed to be in a similar mindset to her male counterpart.
"Now. Are you going to court anyone besides me from now on?"
"Never..."
"I'm glad. Now that I've claimed you with my first kiss, I'd be offended if you just moved on without me."
"Wait, that was your FIRST one?"
Tigress then looked away from the panda and blushed, a light shade of red layering over her orange fur. "Y-yes. As much as I hate to admit it."
"Woohoo! Not only did the great Master Tigress kiss me, but I was also the very first one to receive one from her! YEAH!"
The feline looked up at the panda surprisingly. She thought that he would have been disgusted with her earlier forcefulness but instead, Po welcomed it. Realizing this, the striped tiger let out a small relieved sigh and laughed contentedly at the Dragon Warrior's acceptance.
"So does this mean that we're a couple now and I get a portion of your meals from now on?"
Tigress lightly giggled before continuing.
"Now hold on a second mister. Did you literally just forget everything that I just said? Including what would happen after?"
"Err, I still remember the death threat... Does that count for anything? Eeeh! Alright, alright! I'm sorry for like the millionth time today!"
The tiger master brought a claw towards the panda's face as he panicked. It was obviously just for fun, but she still enjoyed seeing the legendary Dragon Warrior lose his composure every now and then. She brought her paw to Po's chin and made him look at her, before letting go to continue.
"Apology accepted. Anyways, I said that I'm not ready yet."
"What?!"
"You heard me."
Po was... extremely puzzled, to say the very least. Tigress had just practically said that she loved him, and now she's pushing him away.
"But. Why?"
The feline's eyes softened, and her voice went to one that was full of affection and care as she placed a paw on his slightly distraught shoulder.
"Don't misunderstand. I'd love nothing more than to be with you, but I can't deal with all the after-effects right now. I mean, like publicly announcing it. For now, we'll have to do these kinds of things in private, and that's already pushing things a little too far than I expected it it to be. As I said before, I DID plan on telling you of my fondness towards you, but the recent females you've met have made me go about things faster than I would prefer."
Tigress stroked his cheek lovingly and continued.
"This is the one favor that I'll ever ask you to do for me that you won't like. I want you to wait for me until I'm ready to take things to the next step. As well as refraining from letting another woman capture your heart. Please?"
"I- *sigh* I understand..."
The feline master went forwards and tenderly hugged the sullen Dragon Warrior, uplifting him from his depressed mood. "Thank you so much for this Po. I promise you won't regret it when the time comes. For now though, let's head to the training hall. Just because I love you does not mean I'll go easy on you during sparring."
"I wouldn't have it any other way... Kitten."
"Ooh. Pet names now? Two can play at that game, my yin-yang cub."
Both of them shared a moment as they chuckled at each other's embarrassing nicknames for one another. Of course, this was probably going to be a one-time thing. Anywhere else and Po would probably be sent flying down the Jade Palace steps without hesitation. The tiger master finally let go of the panda and went down to the end of the hallway, but not before giving the Dragon Warrior a light peck on the cheek and saying seductively, "That's one for the road to keep you motivated. Remember, don't forget about me, my sweet panda."
Po was stunned again as he stood there at the doorway of Tigress's room. The striped feline was long gone and already waiting in the training hall by the time the panda was even able to react. He placed a paw, caressing the area on his cheek where she kissed it, and did the same on his lips, savoring the light jasmine tea he tasted from the remains of the tiger's love.
The Dragon Warrior grinned as he finally recovered from his "trauma". He then hurriedly ran towards where Tigress was located, who was currently maneuvering between and attacking the Seven Swinging Clubs of Oblivion. She stopped when she saw him at the corner of her vision.
Once the panda reached the training hall, he went to an empty space large enough for the two warriors to spar.
Tigress gracefully jumped off one of the clubs she was swinging from and landed in front of the panda with an attack stance.
"Are you ready to lose again, Dragon Warrior?"
"As ready as I'll ever be..." Po himself took a defensive stance, preparing for his daily beat down.
"Maybe I'll ease off just for now," thought the striped feline, "after all, he did go through a lot today due to me and Mei Bing. I also wouldn't want to hurt the Dragon Warrior so soon after I told him how much I loved him... Nah, I'll always enjoy sparring with him with all my strength."
After all, he was HER panda now, and the possessive tiger was more than happy with the way things worked out in her favor. Though the Dragon Warrior will never admit this when confronted about it, he secretly liked the fiery feline's dominant personality. Even though she was still hesitant towards forming their relationship, the panda promised himself that he would wait for her no matter how long it took.
Po looked at his opponent and noticed a hint of playfulness along with her usual mask of stern concentration. Tigress even managed to wink at him flirtatiously before lunging towards him.
The match was well-fought, but it still ended the same way as the rest of them much to the panda's unfortunate luck. The feline had him pinned to the ground similar to when they were in her bedroom, but this time she refused to get up.
"Mmmmm, so fluffy and comfortable. I could lay here all day..."
Po had already given up a long time ago, so he merely chuckled before wrapping the drowsy tiger master in his arms, enjoying the feeling of warmth on the exterior and interior of his stomach. He glanced once more at the now sleeping feline before falling asleep as well and thinking,
"Perhaps I won't have to wait too long after all..."
Author's Note: And it's done! What do ya think? BTW "Mei Bing" means "Beautiful Ice" and "Shuang" means "Frost". That was just for anyone who was curious. Lu-Shi, Song, and the two twins are all from KFP: LOA. I just gave both of the twins their OC names as they didn't have any in the episode they were featured in. Anyways, I got nothing else to say, so peace! :D