CHAPTER TWO

Belonging

"What was Oogway thinking? The poor guy's just gonna get himself killed!"

Tigress marched behind her comrades, her head bowed. What an unbelievable day it had been. It had started like any other day at the Jade Palace – a routine wake-up call followed by intense training. Then, after hundreds upon hundreds of years of waiting, with no warning or explanation, Oogway suddenly was ready to choose the Dragon Warrior. And just as suddenly, she was faced with the greatest opportunity of not only her life, but of many lifetimes of many valiant warriors. The greatest honor of the Dragon Scroll was practically within her reach. Oogway had been standing in front of her - but a giant panda who had never studied kung-fu a day in his life literally launched himself into the sky, and got to claim the renowned title.

At first all Tigress had felt was a deep embarrassment, and utter shame. She had failed her master. A panda from the valley had been chosen over her… even though he was clearly unfit for the title, in every sense of the word. You could tell just by looking at him. But after seeing him fail abysmally in the training hall, it all just seemed ridiculous; it should have been laughable, only she didn't feel like laughing. Instead, seeing this panda traipse around the hallowed palace grounds, do mock impressions of them in front of a punching-bag dummy, and wreak havoc in their training arena filled her with a white hot rage that, truthfully, frightened her a little.

"He is so mighty," Crane said, extending a wing as if he was about to proclaim a great legend of old, "he fell out of the sky… on a ball of fire!"

But Oogway was wise. He believed in fate and destiny. Who was she to question his choice? But still… the flabby panda as the Dragon Warrior was such an outlandish idea that even Shifu questioned his master on this one. Unlike the contents of the coveted Dragon Scroll, the fact that Oogway was pretty high up there in years was no secret – nor was the fact that his great age gave him not only wisdom, but also a kind of… eccentricity. And, truthfully, when all was said and done, Tigress had pledged her loyalty to Master Shifu. What he fought for, she fought for. What he believed in, she believed in. And, what he didn't…

"When he walks, the very ground shakes!" Mantis continued, and the others chuckled.

Tigress scrunched her nose. What an apt image. What a cruel joke it all was. "One would think," she said, moving past them, "that Master Oogway would choose someone who actually knew kung-fu."

"Yeah, or could at least touch his toes." Crane's sardonic tones followed her as she continued up the mountain.

"Or even see his toes," Monkey muttered next.

She sighed. She knew she wasn't the only one bitterly disappointed by the bizarre events of today. Truthfully, she would have been content if one of the other Five had been chosen – not just out of pride from being the one who had found them, but from the knowledge that her fellow masters would indeed be worthy of such a title, if Oogway saw it fit. But the panda…? The fact that he even thought he had a right to just walk in, claim their desired title of Dragon Warrior, and carry on among them - completely ignorant and untrained in any of the martial and meditative Art to which they had dedicated their lives - was downright insulting.

Tigress was so busy fuming, she hardly noticed the others bidding her and each other goodnight; albeit with noticeable despondence. She marched to her room and shut the doors, not bothering to light a candle. The sooner she got to sleep, the sooner she could put this awful day – and this awful rage – behind her.

No. She couldn't just go to sleep like this. She paced by her bed, her tail flicking behind her. Harboring ill feelings would not make for a restful night… and if she wasn't careful, she could let her sense of injustice go to her head, and… well. She was not like Tai Lung. She would not act out in violence. But even the most honorable sense of injustice could turn to resentment. The panda did not deserve the Dragon Scroll, but neither would she if she didn't learn to let go.

She silently crouched on floor, weight on her haunches, then sat up straight in her meditative posture. She closed her eyes. She returned to her steady breathing, and let go of each thought as it came. Master Oogway descending the stairs… exhale. Inhale… Master Oogway raising the panda's paw… exhale. Master Shifu's devastated face… Inhale… Exhale. She would find a way to let it go. Inhale… exhale. Inhale. Exhale.

"OOmf!"

Tigress's eyes shot open. Something massive had broken through the floorboards in the hall outside. She took a sharp inhale.

The panda. Massive indeed.

She closed her eyes again and exhaled as he clattered over the broken floorboards, then creaked like an overgrown elephant parading on its tiptoes down the hall. It took everything in her to stifle a groan as he shoved open his bedroom door –

"Oh! Uh, hi, you're up!"

"Am now," she heard Crane respond. Good Masters above, the panda had just waltzed into Crane's room. Couldn't he even pretend to have some respect?

She heard the panda's voice bound up and down in animated chatter. His tone was muffled by the distance of several screens, but not enough to keep her from hearing every word; or to keep her temper from rising.

"That kung-fu stuff is hard work, right? Are your biceps sore?"

Tigress gave a forceful exhale. Who did he think he was? Someone ought to tell him –

No. She inhaled. It was not her place. And Master Shifu would make sure the panda knew his. She wouldn't waste her energy interfering with someone who would never take her, her Master, or kung-fu seriously.

"Hiya!" The panda yelled. Her eyes shot open again at the sharp sound of parchment ripping. He definitely had just punched a hole in Crane's room.

"Oh! Sorry about that," she heard the panda say.

"Look, you don't belong here," Crane said. Tigress's heartbeat slowed. Good. He was speaking up. She knew the people-pleaser in Master Crane could at times keep him from saying what he really thought. But if there was any time more appropriate to say it…

The panda's voice got quieter for a moment. "I know, I know…" He sounded so deflated it had to be sarcastic. As if Master Crane could tell him nothing new… She twitched an ear as he started to mumble.

"No no no, I meant, you don't belong here, I mean in this room," Crane interjected, more loudly. "This is my room. Property of Crane! Heh heh…"

"Ooh," the panda said.

Oh, Crane…

Her tail swung to the side. Her heartbeat was all out of rhythm. Meditating was not going well.

Tigress fixed her eyes on the big round shadow as it hovered by Crane's door. Their entire world had been disrupted because of this one idiotic panda. Crane should not have put up with that. None of them should have to put up with him – least of all, Master Shifu.

Her tail swung around again as the panda resumed his orchestra of creaks down the hall. She stood up. She would interfere. For everyone's peace of mind. She closed her eyes, inhaled, and pulled her doors open.

"Master Tigress!" the panda flinched back. "Didn't mean to wake you, just uh…"

"You don't belong here," she said.

"Uh, yeah, yeah." He held up his fat paws with an air of cockiness. "Of course. This is your room," he said, his big eyes darting over her shoulder.

"I mean," she cut him off, leaning in front of him to block his shameless ogling, "you don't belong in the Jade Palace. You're a disgrace to kung-fu and if you have any respect for who we are, and what we do…" she stood above him, her face inches from his, "you will be gone by morning." And before he could even think to respond, she closed the door in his face.

She walked over to her bed in silence. She let out a slow, tense breath. And then –

"Big fan," the panda said loudly. And with heavy irony.

Her ears flattened and she narrowed her eyes. If he dared burst into her room next, she would not hesitate to remove him herself.

But he didn't. He didn't even creak away on his giant tiptoes, he just walked away… without a sound.

She had done it. She sighed, then shivered. It was a cool night. Autumn must be on its way, and summer almost gone.

And now, so was the panda.

She laid back on her bed and pulled up a blanket. She ignored a growing unease curling its way through her stomach. With him gone, everything would return to normal, and she would be able to rest with the knowledge that the Dragon Warrior title would belong to someone worthy. Soon, she would belong here not just as a master, but as the one worthy of Master Shifu's utmost pride… maybe even joy.