Disclaimer: Kung Fu Panda and all related characters are property of DreamWorks productions.
The Berserker Saga reading order:
Daddy-Daughter Issues – One-Shot – Shifu and Tigress have a discussion on the events of KFP2… (Completed)
A Completed Collection – One-Shot – Tigress notices something missing from Po's action figure collection… (Completed)
Father's Day – Two-Parter – Mr. Ping helps teach Shifu to be a better adopted father for Tigress while Tigress goes to Po for help with a gift for Shifu… (completed)
Confidence and Courage – multi-chapter – A horrible "accident" shakes Po's confidence in himself and his Kung Fu… (Complete)
Today is a Gift – multi-chapter – An ancient artifact sends Tigress on an amazing yet horrifying adventure… (In Progress)
Mist of Pandaria - multi-chapter - The Heroes of the Jade Palace receive a call for help that will lead to Po learning far more of his history than he ever thought possible… (Coming soon!)
The Claws of the Berserker – multi-chapter – The Dragon Warrior and the Furious Five face their greatest enemy yet, a monster, a Berserker that does not want power, wealth, or rule, but to watch all of China burn… and why is Master Shifu determined to keep Tigress out of the fight? (Coming soon!)
After the Storm – multi-chapter – the Masters of the Jade Palace and the Valley of Peace try to heal the physical and emotional wounds left by the Berserker… (Coming soon!)
TODAY IS A GIFT
'Imagine me without you
I'd be lost and so confused
I wouldn't last a day
Without you there to see me through
Imagine me without you
Lord, you know it's just impossible
Because of you
It's all brand new
My life is now worthwhile
I can't imagine me without you'
"Imagine Me without You" - Jaci Velasquez
Chapter 2: Record of the Tiger Wars
"You either die a hero, or live long enough to see yourself become the villain…" - Harvey Dent - The Dark Knight
"Fifteen years?" Tigress gaped, glancing around the three. "You said I've been…" she paused unable to bring herself to say it, "For fifteen years? I don't understand…" Tigress shook her head and took a step toward Po but stopped when the young lion stepped between them.
"Wait, don't trust her, Father," the lion growled at her, "How do you know it's really her? She could be just a Stripes that looks like her sent by Berserker to infiltrate and assassinate you."
"He's right," Viper said, narrowing her eyes on Tigress. "She looks like she hasn't aged a day…"
"Prove it," the Dragon Warrior also narrowed his eyes on the tiger. "If you're really Tigress, prove it."
Tigress glanced away for a moment before nodding and looking into the Dragon Warrior's eyes. "OK. You gave me the first hug I've had in years when I pulled you out of the bay after you defeated Lord Shen the first time. You were missing a figure of yourself with your action figure collection, so I hand-carved you one shortly after we made it home. For Father's Day, you helped me learn to make Secret Ingredient Soup, and my first try, I blew a hole through the roof with the pot. And last but not least…" She moved up against him, and his eyes widened as she placed her face against his and whispered in his ear. "The secret ingredient is nothing. It's only special because you make it special."
Tigress stepped back, placed her paws on her hips, and looked at him. "Have I proved myself?"
"One more test…" the Dragon Warrior snorted and crossed his arms across his broad chest. Tigress waited patiently when he uttered a single word. "Slurp."
The response was instantaneous as Tigress clutched her stomach and stuck out her tongue with a gag.
Before she was able to fully recover from the short jab of nausea she found herself in a warm, fluffy embrace.
"It's you… it's really you…" The Dragon Warrior spoke, his voice softening, sounding more like the Po Tigress knew. "You're really alive…"
"Doesn't mean she's not one of them," Another familiar voice spoke as Po let her go, and she turned to see Crane swooping down. His trademark hat was gone, in its place was light armor and a green scarf. "She has been gone for fifteen years, she could have betrayed us."
"She would never do that," Viper defended.
Tigress, too, was about to defend herself when Crane snapped back. "Any other reason makes sense for her letting Master Shifu greave himself to death?" It felt like she had been hit by another of Shen's cannonballs directly in the chest.
"Baba…" Tigress breathed as she felt the strength in her legs rapidly fading.
"Dragon Warrior," Crane spoke, sounding more formal, "We have Stripes trying to rebuild the Thread of Hope. If they get it done, they'll have a clear path to the City of Peace."
The Dragon Warrior let out a near feral growl as he glanced in the direction of the Thread. "Lion, come with me, Crane find Monkey and meet us at the site of the Thread of Hope. They won't finish their bridge. Viper, take Tigress to the Jade Fortress. Get her comfortable and we'll discuss what happened when we return. Furious Five, move out!"
"Right, Father," the Lion nodded, and the two ran down the street as Crane took to the air.
"I assume you remember the way to the For… the Palace?" Viper asked, glancing to her old friend.
"Father? The Lion called Po Father?" Tigress asked in confusion.
"He's adopted of course," Viper smiled, "Come along." She slithered toward the stairs.
Tigress and Viper silently made their way up the steps and Tigress' eyes widened when she saw all the heavy barricades. "Not how you remember is it?" Viper asked, as the gates slowly opened for them. "War required some upgrades. Tai Lung didn't agree with Dragon Warrior's ideas, and after a match to determine who would carry on in Master Shifu's place, it was decided that Dragon Warrior would be the Grandmaster. Tai Lung mentioned something about going home and we haven't seen or heard from him since."
"Mantis?" Tigress asked.
"Dead," Viper replied bluntly, and Tigress' eyes widened. "It was how he wanted…"
"Married and his bride ate his head?" Tigress glanced away, a small sad smile on her face. Viper shared her smile and nodded.
"You and Po mentioned a war…" Tigress said as they walked into the only vaguely familiar grounds of the Jade Fortress.
"The Stripes, the Tigers from the Jungle Kingdoms off the eastern boarders of China…" Viper scowled, "They conquered most of the country without a fight… destroyed most of it… what fought back fell over the first few years… the Valley is the last holdout of Non-Tiger controlled China."
"Tigers?" Tigress asked with wide eyes.
"fierce warriors, berserkers, lead by the King of Tigers… the most feared of all Berserkers," Viper shook her head, "We'll worry about that later, what happened with you? How did you survive the cave in, and where have you been?"
"I don't know anything about a cave in…" Tigress shook her head. "I chased Fung into the cave, found a temple to someone called Sheng Houzi De. Fung knocked me into a pool and next thing I knew I was up at the Pool of Sacred Tears… just a few hours ago."
"Sheng Houzi De? We'll get Dragon Warrior to look up any information on him or her when he returns," Viper said, after musing on Tigress' words.
"Why do you keep calling him that, you're always the last to use his title like that…" Tigress asked.
"With the enemy we face he felt any signs of mortal weakness would lower our already decimated moral…" Viper replied, "He did away with anything that had to do with Po Ping, put his father… some place safe, and destroyed the noodle shop and everything that reminded anyone of who he once was."
"He became the Dragon Warrior with all his mind and body," Viper replied with a hint of sadness. "In a sense, we lost you both…"
Tigress wasn't even aware she was walking with her friend till she found herself at her old dorm door. "You'll find everything is as you left it, Dragon Warrior personally made sure everything was kept clean and neat too. In case somehow someday you returned to us."
Viper glanced to the door, "Crane and Monkey are still in the same rooms, Lion has taken Dragon Warrior's old room across from you…"
"Are you still in your room?" Tigress asked, glancing to the room beside hers.
"No, we use it for storage… I sleep with my husband…" Viper looked away in a mix of bashfulness and shame.
"Husband? Congratulations, sister," Tigress smiled, "Who's the lucky reptile?"
"Some have compared him to reptiles lately…" Viper avoided eye contact, "I'm married to the Dragon Warrior…"
"What?" Tigress felt her already wobbly legs start to lose what strength they had left.
"We both took your death hard, Tigress," Viper avoided looking at her friend, "We… we sorta grew together. I've always had a little bit of a crush on him, and he was so upset… He's still not gotten over it… and I couldn't… I can't bear to see him hurt."
"I… I see…" Tigress breathed.
"I know this is a lot to take in," Viper said, finally looking at the shell-shocked tiger. "Get some rest and we'll discuss things farther in the morning with all of the Five."
Tigress nodded and entered her old room numbly, curling up into a tight ball on her bed. She hoped beyond all hopes that when morning came it'd all been a nightmare.
-KFP-
Tigress' ears twitched as she heard a familiar sound in the distance. She carefully rose on her bed and looked out over the palace ground from her small bedroom window. She narrowed her crimson eyes when she saw movement out within the iron wood trees. With practice grace she slid out of the window and crouched on all fours on the dormitory roof.
She silently jumped and rapidly moved toward her old training area. She scaled one of the larger trees and glanced for the source of the movements. It didn't take her long to see the armored panda moving with practiced grace and ease as his paws placed dents in the hardened iron-like trees. His body was tense, but his face was serene and calm.
"Good evening, Mei Ren," The Dragon Warrior said after kicking one tree in half.
"Po…" Tigress said, dropping to the ground with a soft thud. "Twenty years of training and I've never been able to damage these trees…"
"Po… I haven't been called that in so long…" He said, lowering his arms and closing his eyes, "No one calls me that anymore. Dragon Warrior? Sure… Monster? Often. But Po…" he shook his head.
"What happened to you?" Tigress asked, placing a hand on his muscular and scar-covered arm.
"I broke your record… ten years here and I feel nothing." He said holding up his callused and hard paws.
"But I've only been able to scrap and a few small dents in the Ironwood…" Po replied looking at the broken tree, "This is the first time since I lost you that I've been able to enter Inner Peace Mode…"
"What… What happened to me? I chased Fung into the cave… what happened after that?" Tigress asked, not taking her hand off the Panda's arm.
"I tried to keep up with you as you chased him… but you know you've always been faster than me…
(2D animation-style flashback)
"Tigress! Hold up!" I cried as I chased after you, and saw you run into the cave behind him. I managed to get to the front of the cave and stopped to catch my breath.
I looked inside, straining my eyes to try to see you or Fung. I yelled for you, "Yo, Tigress! Get him yet?" Then something weird happened… there was this huge bright light from inside the cave.
"TIGRESS!" I yelled for you as the ground shook, "GET OUT OF THERE!"
The entire cave came down. "TIGRESS! MEI REN! MEI REN!" I cried as I began digging. I have no idea how long I kept digging. Wasn't even aware the others were there till I noticed they were digging too…
Crane flew for Master Shifu and he arrived not long later… or maybe it was a while, I was in no condition to determine time then…
We searched and dug for some time when Master Shifu tapped his staff against a rock. We looked at each other and I saw tears in his eyes. "Mei's still down there…" I told him.
"She gave her life… doing what she loved…" Master Shifu said softly. The others stopped… but I didn't. I kept digging. I kept looking for you.
"You have to let go, Po…" Viper had said, wrapping her tail around my wrist in an attempt to comfort me.
There was a time I'd not admit it… that I wouldn't want to seem less hardcore… be any less than the example you led… but I cried… hard.
We had what meant to be a small funeral there. We made a memorial for you… All of China came to pay you their respects. And then some… Even… even the Berserker…
He never said a word to any of us, him and his small group of tigers. They just walked up and placed a tiger lily below the statue we raised in your honor. He gave a hard look to Master Shifu and left. I wished that was the last we saw of him…
Master Shifu shut himself off after that… meditated alone for three months… I found his body and we gave him a funeral that didn't quite reach the level as yours. The others looked to me as leadership, and I struggled at first, but with Viper's help I got the hang of it and then… then the War happened.
China fell before we even knew we were being targeted… probably was being targeted for years… Khan probably saw the weakness at the loss of you and Master Shifu and my own novice leadership of the Jade Palace… So many villages and cities burned… so many died… murdered…
(End Flashback)
"I made some hard choices… some unpopular choices but the fact the citizens are still alive and mostly free to do what they wish, I don't think it was that bad of a call…" Po glanced away.
"Your father?" Tigress asked, fearing the answer.
"The people have been told he's locked up somewhere in the Jade Fortress…" Po glanced toward the Fortress.
"Is he?" Tigress asked with a tight gulp.
"He's cooking noodles and keeping Masters Croc and Ox's Gongmen resistance fed," Po replied, "He changed his name so as far as anyone, even Viper and Lion, knows he's locked up secured by the heartless monster that was his son. That reputation has gone to the Stripes and they fear me for it."
The Dragon Warrior's eyes widened as Tigress wrapped her arms around him in a tight hug. "I've… I've missed you, Mei…" Po said barely above a whisper.
Tigress pulled back slightly and glanced up at the panda. "It's been… really hard… Within a year I find out my whole race was wiped out… I thought learning that hurt but then… then I lost you…" Po looked away, closing his eyes. "I've never felt anything like that, Mei Ren… even losing Master Shifu… I'd rather be shot by Shen's cannon again…"
Her heart sped up as he placed his paws on her arms. "Po… what… what happened with you and Viper?" Tigress asked, trying to escape the awkward situation. "I… I never would have guessed you and she would-" Her eyes widened as far as they could as he silenced her mouth with his own lips.
Po pulled back and looked down at the shocked Tigress. "I'm sorry I…" He stammered, flustered and nervous like the Po she knew and held dear. "I just… for fifteen years I've kicked myself for not taking the chance to do that… if you want to claw me, rip out parts of my innards, or kick my-" He was cut off when Tigress' fingers went through the fur of his cheek and the back of his head and she pressed her lips to his in the first real passionate kiss she had ever initiated or experienced.
They held each other and kissed in the moon light, not noticing the serpent curled in the tree, glaring at the both of them…
To Be Continued…
Originally planed for this to just be 2 chaps, and while I know this was short, that was just too evil of a place to put a TBC not to do it!
Next Time: Will Tigress find a way to return to her own time? Would she even make a difference? Will she even wish to go home? Find out next time in the concluding chapter of Today is a Gift…