Big or Little Ears?
By corset-rebellion-follower
Disclaimer: I don't own Kung Fu Panda
--
Chapter 11- Student and Master
Tigress slowly opened her eyes. She felt as if she had gotten hit with a brick in the head and the stomach, and as if a knife had gone through her heart. "Wha… what's going on?" she whispered quietly.
"Good, you're up." Her eyes flew open at those words. They were the exact words that Tai Lung had said right before he had revealed himself to her. Master Shifu would not leave him alone in here with me! She sat up and looked to the voice. It was Shifu. He looked more worried than ever and not at all pleased that she was awake.
"You fainted. I suppose I shouldn't have just brought Tai Lung without warning. But I thought that it would be easier for everyone to accept that he was still alive," Shifu explained.
"Tai Lung… he hasn't hurt anybody has he?" Tigress asked fretfully.
"No, of course not. I'm keeping him isolated from everyone until they all calm down," he said, handing her a cup of water. Tigress drank it all, but it burned her throat like poison. She put it down on her dresser.
"Master… I am sorry if I have dishonored you. I had no intention of doing so when I left," she said regretfully.
"You didn't think you'd be coming back did you?" he asked.
She shook her head. "No, no I didn't." Shifu sighed.
"Tigress, I know what it feels like right before you run away. It feels like there's no way out, like this is the only answer that will cause the least pain. But that's later replaced by feelings of regret and loneliness. Am I right?" he asked quietly.
"Yes. I was… I was just so embarrassed. I didn't know what I was thinking." She paused. "How would you know what it feels like?" she asked.
He chuckled a little. "I know because I ran away, too. When I was fifteen years old. My mother and father were struggling to keep the family together. I figured if I left, then there would be one less mouth to feed and one less child for them to worry about. But about a month or two into my journey, I worried that maybe it left more pressure on them than before," he explained.
"Did you ever go back?" Tigress asked. He shook his head.
"I never saw any of them again. And I wasn't doing so well on my own. I came to the Valley of Peace to try and find work and a place to live. That's where I met Oogway. If it weren't for him, I would most likely be dead."
Tigress rubbed her arm nervously. "I'm… I'm so sorry," she whispered. He turned to look at her and smiled a bit.
"You don't have to apologize to me. I'm just glad you're safe." There was a very awkward silence.
Tigress sighed. "Master Shifu, I don't know how much you heard when I was talking with Viper that night, but just so you know, I had that crush when I was twelve. It's not like it's tearing me up inside right now or anything," she said reassuringly. He glanced at her again.
"Are you sure it's not? Because when you were a teenager, I never saw you glance at one male. It was a lot easier than when Viper was going through that stage, but…" Tigress giggled. "What's so funny?" he asked.
She covered her mouth and tried to hold in more giggles. "Forgive me, Master, but… that was possibly the closest thing to a joke I've ever heard from you!" she said, removing her hands and letting her eager laughter out. Shifu started laughing too, even though he hadn't meant it to be a joke.
It's good to hear her laugh. And her laugh is very beautiful. His stomach lurched when he thought that, feeling a little confused as his weak laughter died out. Tigress eventually calmed down. "Well, it is appropriate for children that age to begin to have… romantic feelings," Shifu said uneasily.
Once again the conversation turned awkward. After about five full minutes of silence, Tigress asked, "Is dinner ready yet?"
"Oh, yes, Po is cooking it right now. I suppose you should eat, you need your strength," Shifu said. Tigress nodded and bowed to her master before leaving for the kitchen. Well that went well, she thought disappointedly.
There were so many other things I wanted to talk to him about. But I suppose that I should be happy he's even talking to me.
She entered the kitchen. Crane, Monkey, and Po were already in there.
"Tigress! You're up!" Po said happily, chopping up a leek.
"Yeah. How obnoxious did I look when I fainted?" she asked.
"Well… I wouldn't say you looked obnoxious. You were just shocked. Don't worry, we all were shocked," Crane said.
"It was a very graceful faint," Monkey added. She smiled. Her friends still cared.
"I'm sorry for all the trouble I've caused you all. I didn't mean to, I swear! I just… felt lost," she said weakly, sitting down.
"We understand. And it's ok. We all know how it is for you, always striving to be the best all the time. Maybe you should just rest for a while. Lay off the training for a week or two," Po suggested.
"A week or two? I've had a whole month's vacation! I have so much to make up. And the Seven Swinging Clubs of Instant Oblivion have been calling my name!" she cried dramatically. They all laughed. Tigress really felt at home as she ate dinner.
Viper and Mantis came in late, saying that they were getting in extra training before dinner. Crane rolled his eyes, Monkey smiled knowingly into his soup, and Po smirked and said, "Uh huh." Tigress could tell that they were hiding something, but she decided not to say anything about it until after dinner. After all of Po's soup was eaten and gone, Viper surprised them all by taking out a huge container of her sweet dumplings.
"To celebrate the reconciliation of our big family," she said, looking at Tigress. Tigress felt tears rise up in her eyes as she chewed on a dumpling. This is my family.
"So did Shifu yell at you?" Po asked, starting on his seventh dumpling. She shook her head.
"He was very calm and rational about it. And I knew he would be," she said loyally. She considered asking them if they knew about Shifu running away, but she didn't say anything. Shifu told me that in confidence. I can't betray him. Not after all he's done for me.
They plowed through Viper's sweet dumplings in no time. Po was licking his fingers clean. "Seriously Viper, you should cook more often. I could use a break," he said hopefully.
Viper laughed. "Thanks, but that's all I know how to cook."
"I could live off your sweet dumplings," Mantis said happily.
Viper smiled appreciatively. "Well, I think I'm going to do some extra training before bed. Good night." They all called good night to her as she slithered out.
"You know… I think I'll go with her. I could use a little pre-sleep exercise," Mantis said, hopping out of his seat and quickly following Viper.
As soon as he was gone, Tigress asked, "Okay, what was up with that?"
"A lot has changed in the month you were gone. Mantis consoled Viper after you left. She burst out in a huge crying fit. And I don't know what happened in there, but after that, they were very close. They didn't talk to each other or anything, but you could tell," Po said.
"Mantis and Viper? Seriously?" Tigress asked.
Crane snickered and nodded. "It's pretty funny to watch him try to catch her attention. Once he balanced on top of a stack of mahjong tiles to show off." Tigress smiled. She knew that Crane had like Viper, and was glad that he was handling this well.
"How low some go for love." They all turned to the door. Tai Lung was leaning against the door frame. They all went silent and started scowling. "What? No hello?" he asked.
Shifu came in. "Tai Lung. I thought I told you to wait in the Hall of Warriors for me," he said crossly.
"Forgive me, Master Shifu. I thought I would check up on my former cave-mate before I went there," he said, smirking at Tigress. Tigress clenched her fists and gritted her teeth.
"Well she's just fine, so you can just go," Po said angrily.
Tai Lung chuckled. "Well, I guess I really am not welcome here." He left the kitchen and walked down the hallway.
Shifu followed and walked beside him. "I think it would be best if you left, Tai Lung. I said I would bring you here so that you could apologize to Tigress for any trouble you caused her, and as soon as you do that I want you gone," he said darkly.
"Yes, I was thinking about that deal. And I'd like to make an addition to it," Tai Lung said coolly.
"The deal stays as it is. You apologize, and then you leave," Shifu said.
"Really? Well, there's a whole village of unsuspecting people down there. It would truly be terrible if the village were to burn to the ground," Tai Lung said threateningly. Shifu stopped, and Tai Lung followed suit.
"I'll listen to your addition, and I'll possibly considering to agreeing to it," Shifu said.
"I knew you would see it my way. After I apologize to Tigress, I leave forever and never come back…"
Shifu raised an eyebrow. Tai Lung wouldn't add that on unless…
"… but lovely Master Tigress comes with me," Tai Lung finished.
… There was a catch. "No! Absolutely not! Tigress stays here! This is where she belongs!" Shifu said, outraged.
"Really? Are you sure? Because I would hate for the Valley of Peace to turn into a pile of ash," Tai Lung said.
"Tigress stays here," Shifu said forcefully.
"Or how about this? I'll fight you for her," Tai Lung offered.
A/N: Ha, I bet you didn't see that coming! I really thought this was going to be Viper/Crane, but I couldn't get it to work right in the story, so I decided to make it Viper/Mantis. Only one more chapter, I think! And I will have this done almost certainly before I go to England! Please read and review, and I'll update as soon as I can! Holla!