A/N: Hi everyone! I know what you're thinking. Why did I make a new one-shot when I have The Creative Casanova going on? Well, it's actually a long story…
The Trouble With Creativity is still going on. I did not abandon it or anything. The last few weeks of my life have been extremely bad.
I dropped my Spanish class at my college. (Actually, I'm not too sad about that…)
Then my worst nightmare came alive. Something happened at my taekwondo school and my parents, my brother, and I decided to quit karate. I have been just so angry at the instructors. Karate was a part of my life and now it feels strange to walk around the house doing my forms. It feels wrong.
The night I quit karate, nobody seemed to care that I was leaving, not even the head teacher. I cried for two hours that night. I have been told by everyone (including my ex-taekwondo teacher) that I am very good at writing. So I thought that I should incorporate my feelings and emotions into a KFP story. This may not be my best work, but I just needed to write something down….
Tigress may seem out of character, but come on; she just left something she loved. The summary also says TiPo. You all know that I just like to hint around with it. But in this one-shot, I think that Po is in love with Tigress and is willing to do anything for her. So yes, this is TiPo.
Enjoy and please leave a review, it would be nice to know what you all think about my taekwondo situation…
Disclaimer: I do not own Kung Fu Panda….
Leaving
"It was a life I didn't want to leave behind. It was a life I didn't want to forget."
~Maggie Stiefvater~
"Have you heard any word yet?" Po whispered softly. The panda leaned against the wooden table, causing the object to creak.
His friend that was sitting across from him shook her head in frustration. "No, Po. The masters haven't spoken to me in two days." The tiger replied. She raised a paw and pressed it on her patterned head. She had to get some sleep soon. It was almost midnight.
The Dragon Warrior smiled bitter-sweetly as he looked into Tigress' amber eyes. "Well, that's a good thing. Maybe nothing will change."
Master Tigress took a breath and turned her gaze back to the table. "I hope you are correct…"
He sighed and touched his companion's paw. "Listen, it'll be fine. They can't really do that." Po stood up from his chair suddenly with enthusiasm. "You're Master Tigress, the best master of Tiger Kung Fu there ever was! Anyone who thinks that you're not suitable to be around the Jade Palace is a complete fool." He picked up their remaining dinner plates and carried them back to the stovetop. "Don't stress, Tigress. It'll only make it worse."
Tigress wore a shadow of a smile on her lips. She had to admit that Po always put effort into trying to cheer her up. The feeling of anxiety was still within her, but she appreciated her friend reassuring her about the present situation.
Po returned to his seat with two beautiful china cups filled with honey tea. She studied the delicate glass in her paw and noticed that it was her favorite cup. Po must have remembered that she fancied the elaborate design of swirling pink blossom petals.
She looked back up at Po and met his eyes. She stammered. "I may be a Kung Fu Master, but-"
"But what?" he questioned. "You've accomplished so many things. Tigress, you've done nothing wrong." He shook his head, "You are way too hard on yourself…" the panda paused as he noticed that there was apparent sadness in her sunset eyes.
"I'm frightened." She replied quietly.
Po's dark eyebrows bounced into the air with surprise. He lowered his voice. "Why?" he asked. Never in his lifetime had he expected the Master Tigress to admit that she was scared.
Tigress took note of the rapid concern in her friend's jade green eyes. She could feel the obvious emotion in his voice. The tiger felt as if his eyes were pouring into her and searching for something hidden inside. She blinked. When he looked at her like that, it made her feel as if he truly cared about her.
She rubbed her striped arm as if she was uncomfortable. She was, in fact, completely fine with expressing her feelings to Po as she had for the past seven years, but what she had just said was something that she thought wasn't even like herself. She had been surprised with her answer. She had never thought that she was afraid of anything. Apparently, she was now.
Tigress swallowed. "I have dedicated my entire lifetime to Kung Fu. I have learned all the fighting styles, I have taught children Kung Fu, and I have fought for my valley for decades." She swore she felt her throat tighten up, "Now, the masters are considering taking that away. I feel that if they do, there will be nothing left of me. Kung Fu is my life, my passion." She confessed.
The panda continued to stare at her with such care. Finally, after a moment of solitude and letting her words sink into his mind, he placed a black and white paw on the shoulder of her fire red vest. "Things happen in life, good things and bad things. This is just a bad thing that is happening, Tigress. Just remember that everything will eventually come to an end. This too will pass and be over with as soon as you know it."
She nodded back. The two of them were close now. Their noses were inches away from touching. "What if I have to leave?" she asked softly.
Po stood up and walked to the doorway. He looked back at her before he left. "Don't worry…" he whispered tenderly.
Tigress sat in a meditating position in the privacy of her own bedroom. She had tried to rest her mind and fall asleep, but she had been overthinking too much and just had to do something to calm herself.
The tiger breathed in and out deeply through closed eyes. Everything was falling into pieces. For the past several weeks, there had been talk from the Master's Council that she would have to stop protecting the Valley of Peace and practicing Kung Fu forever. The Council had not explained why they were threatening to take away her way of living or if it was a matter of something that she had done to make the Council upset. There was no reason for the unfair punishment.
Tigress didn't understand. Why was this happening? She had been loyal to the Master's Council for as long as she had been doing Kung Fu. So many things were going through the feline's mind that she couldn't keep up with them. All she knew was that she didn't want to leave her home, family, and life. Where would she go?
Master Shifu had been trying to talk to the masters and persuade them to think about their decisions. He just had to convince them that they were making a mistake.
After what seemed like hours, Tigress began to feel her eyelids close and she fell into a deep and troubling sleep.
The dreaded day came the next morning. As always, Tigress awoke at six o'clock in the morning to greet Master Shifu. The feline stood like a statue alongside her comrades as the aging red panda walked down the hallway.
The Grandmaster of the Jade Palace stopped right in front of her. He looked very distraught and his eyes were full of tears. Tigress felt her stomach twist into deadly knots.
The red panda faced his back towards the tiger. "Students, go eat breakfast." Shifu commanded. "Please stay, Master Tigress. I would like to have a word with you…"
Viper, Crane, Monkey, Mantis, and Po bowed their heads and made their way towards the kitchen. Po stood concerned in the doorway for a few seconds with a worried expression on his face.
Master Shifu noticed the panda's presence and raised a paw. "Go on, Po." He frowned.
Po nodded and left the hallway very slowly.
Tigress swallowed hard. "What is it, Master?" she tried to keep her voice light and curious.
Her foster father gestured down the end of the hall. "Come walk with me outside, Tigress." He said as he made his way out of the student barracks.
Tigress obediently followed. She didn't say anything, but the tension was slowly killing her.
Shifu stopped his pace by a beautiful bonsai tree. It was spring and nature was in full bloom. Tigress hardly noticed the lovely weather; she was directing her attention to the small tear-stained scroll in the red panda's paw.
"My daughter…" Shifu croaked. He was obviously having a hard time bringing himself to speak. "I am very sorry." He slowly placed the message in her rough paw. "It arrived here this morning."
Tigress broke the eye contact between her and her master and stared at the scroll. Heart pounding, she carefully opened it and read the note from the Master's Council.
Dear Master Tigress,
It is hereby announced that you are relieved of duty as High Rank Master of the Jade Palace, Leader of the Furious Five, and teaching young children the art of Kung Fu. Please notify us when you have left the Jade Palace. Thank you for being a part of Kung Fu. You will be missed.
Sincerely,
The Master's Council
Her heart stopped. She couldn't believe it, she had been ordered to leave the Jade Palace. She disciplined herself to blink back tears. This was a nightmare.
Shifu cleared his throat. "You may stay here for a few days if you like." The red panda hoped that she would say yes.
The feline took a deep and shaky breath. "No, Master Shifu. It seems that I am not wanted here. I will depart in a few minutes." She spoke quietly, if she talked any louder, she knew that she would burst into tears.
"Tigress, please…" Shifu pleaded. "Do not leave yet. Stay for a while and eat a meal."
The feline shook her head. She wanted to get away from the palace. It felt wrong standing in the gardens. "No. I must go…"
A single tear slid down the red panda's cheek. "Where will you go, Tigress?" he asked.
She sighed with sadness. "I will find a place for the night."
"Tigress," Shifu spoke. "I want you to know that I am very proud of you and that I tried everything in my power to convince the council for you to stay."
The ex-Kung Fu master smiled bitter-sweetly. "I understand. Thank you, father… for everything."
After packing some food, supplies, and money, Tigress stood with her master outside the entrance to the Jade Palace. The feline got on her knees and embraced Shifu with a hug for the last time.
"I love you, my daughter." She heard him whisper softly in her ear.
She sniffled. "I love you too." The words felt foreign on her lips, but she meant them with all her heart.
Then the tiger got to her feet and left the Jade Palace forever, never once looking back at the place she used to call home.
CREAK!
Tigress opened the door to the little cabin she had rented just outside of the Valley of Peace. The journey out of her hometown had taken four hours. "Home, sweet, home…" she mumbled to herself as she sat her things on the little worn down cot.
She walked in the confined space towards the tiny window and opened it, letting the cool breeze fill the room. She stared at the moon longingly, as if it had a solution to her problem. It was getting late very rapidly, it was almost ten o'clock.
Suddenly, anger filled inside of her and she slammed the window shut. She walked over to the little round table-for-two and sat furiously in one of the chairs.
The Master's Council kicked her out of the Jade Palace with the snap of a finger. She couldn't believe it, what had she done? Nothing. She had done nothing.
Yet, she had done everything. From the moment she was old enough to even practice Kung Fu; Master Shifu had enrolled her in the leadership program through the Master's Council. She had loved leading the children through forms and sparring techniques. She always wanted to help and lead. Her favorite part of teaching was when she and her young students would sit around in a circle and talk about life-skills. They would laugh, make goals, and really communicate with each other.
She was expected to help with classes. She came every time the Master's Council needed her to assist. She was also pushed to go to the leadership camp to achieve her Certification Stripes. Tigress went every year and became a Certified Instructor.
Did other apprentices on leadership ever come and help when the Master's Council asked? Were they really loyal to the Master's Council? Did they ever come to leadership class and learn to be leaders? She was just wondering because all the other demonstration students got recognition at testings and important events.
All she wanted to ask the Council was that the real leadership students got recognition. That was all she ever wanted. She wanted to be praised and admired for all the hard work she did.
She would have been so happy if she had gotten anything, even her name announced in front of all the children at a simple ceremony. She thought about her friends, Po and the Furious Five, they were still loyal and came to help the Master's Council with special events.
The feline's feet began to hurt from standing on the dirt floor and she sat on her sky blue bed in a heap. She groaned in anger and pressed her paws to her face.
She was always there for the masters no matter what. And in the end this is what she got: "You will be missed."
That's all? After all she did? After participating in tournaments, testings, helping out for hours on end, that was all she got? She bet that that was what the masters said to everyone who left Kung Fu. Were the masters really going to miss her?No. If they really did, they would have told her personally, not in a letter. She never was important to them.
She had been ordered to leave and she didn't even get to say goodbye to her friends.
Come to think about it, her friends, the people she had lived with for most of her life, didn't seem to care about what was happening to her. When she had explained to Viper, the snake that was the closest thing she had to a sister, she simply replied sweetly that she didn't know what was going to happen with the masters. Viper didn't seem to care.
None of the others seemed to care either. They (except for Po, Crane, and Shifu) made jokes that she did something wrong and scared the masters off.
Crane was quiet and never spoke up about it. Master Shifu was highly concerned and did, in fact, try everything he could to stop it.
But out of all of her friends, Po seemed to care the most. She could always see that he was very appalled by the Master's Council's idea of her leaving. Po too, had even tried to reason with the masters. But apparently, it did not do any good. She was in this little hut and the masters were in their grand palace.
She felt used by everyone.
Her comrades at the Jade Palace would eventually be asked to leave their home just like she did hours ago. And of course, by then, the masters would have new helpers to use.
Tigress kept wondering if anyone would remember her. The answer was no. No one was going to miss her or remember her. The Master's Council didn't even come see her to explain what was going on. Gongmen City wasn't that far away! In fact, she had raced to the city numerous times because they had needed her help.
The only things that were left of her were those pictures in the Hall of Heroes of her posing with the rest of the Five and Po.
In the future, other students would point and wonder who that tiger was. She wondered now, did she make a difference in anyone's life at the Jade Palace?
No, she thought. Because they didn't care if I had to leave, about what I thought about the situation, or what I even did for them.
Po may have cared about what was going on, but was he seriously going to miss her so much that he would track her down to find her? There was absolutely no way he was going to do that. Tigress decided that whoever had the drive to try to find her was the one who really cared about what happened to her.
Then it hit her, no one cared about her.
She suddenly felt choked up and noticed that tears were threatening to come out. She fought the urge to wail out of self-pity, peeled herself off of the bed, and tried to focus on making some kind of dinner. She had disciplined herself not to cry for over twenty years, and she wasn't about to start crying now.
KNOCK KNOCK!
She turned around sharply. Who could that be at this hour? The knocking continued to be persistent. The tiger tip-toed surreptitiously towards the wooden door and scowled as she realized that she was doing her sly Kung Fu walk. It felt wrong to be performing anything that had to do with Kung Fu.
Tigress approached the door and slowly turned the knob. "Who is it?" she asked as she swung the door open.
Standing there, in her doorway, was Po the panda.
Tigress was lost for words. "Po?!" she exclaimed. She could feel the biggest smile spreading across her face. "What are you doing here?! I-"
Po didn't answer her question. Instead he asked, "Are you okay?"
The feline stopped mid-sentence as she realized that she actually wasn't fine. The tears that had threatened to overtake her from the moment she left the Jade Palace pricked at her fiery eyes once again.
"I…" she struggled to speak as she began to cry.
She couldn't take the pain anymore more. The emotions of sadness, anger, and surprise overwhelmed her and she ran into the panda's soft and furry arms without hesitation.
"Shh…" Po soothed as he held her tightly. "You're going to make it… It's okay to let it out…"
Tigress pulled away from Po's strong embrace and wiped her wet fur. "I don't understand…" she said between sobs. "Why are you even here?"
Po gave a genuine smile. "Because I missed you…"
The End
A/N: So yeah… that is pretty much it. Thank you all for even clicking on this story and supporting me.
Please leave a review and tell me what you think!
I hope to have more chapters for The Creative Casanova soon!
Catch you later!