I'm well aware its been over a year since I last updated this story. I can't leave it unfinished, but it's been a really busy past 12 months. I've gotten married, started saving for a house with my husband, and I've been really busy with my work and career. I've come to the decision that, once this fic is done, I will retire from fanfiction writing. I've been considering this for awhile, because I really don't have as much time for it anymore, and I want to start focusing on original works I can one day publish. I anticipate one more chapter to this story, and that should be the end.

Without further ado, let's get to the story that I'm sure everyone has been waiting a long time for...

Disclaimer: Kung Fu Panda belongs to Dreamworks Animation Studios. I claim no ownership to the original Dreamworks characters, but the original characters in this story belong to me, so please do not use them without my permission. Thank you.

Chapter 21: The Battle, Part 3

Monkey helped Tigress steady herself as she stumbled into the main square. "What happened to you?" he asked.

Tigress massaged her throat, still hurting from Koshchei's grip. She probably had a nasty bruise, but she didn't let it bother her. She had other things to worry about. "Don't worry about it. How are we doing?"

"The Masters Council got here at just the right time. But as it turns out..." the simian pointed, "We might not have needed them after all."

Tigress was stunned.

Farmers, merchants, people she had never expected, were fighting off the remaining outlaws, sending many of them packing. It wasn't the mere fact the villagers were fighting—it was the ferocity with which they fought. She had heard it said before that it wasn't the size of the warrior in the fight, it was the size of the fight in the warrior. She was reminded of this as soon as she saw a goose knock a huge boar onto his back and deliver several brutal-looking chops...and an eldery sow going after a group of crocs with her walking stick (Tigress had to wince to hear bones breaking as the cane made contact with each croc's body)...and much to her astonishment...

"Mr. Lu?!"

Indeed, the old goat was giving the outlaws more of a beating than any of the masters ever could. Mr. Lu didn't let up in his assault, and his speed was impressive for a man his age. Mantis noted the fox trying to sneak up on Mr. Lu before Tigress could move to help. The old goat, rather than looking grateful, snapped at Mantis, "I didn't serve my country to let some whipper-snapper steal my thunder!" And to show his fury, he swung the cane wide, laying out three opponents.

Mantis stared at him a moment, then shrugged and hopped off.

Tigress shook herself out of her shock just in time to jump back, finding an ox slamming face-first into the ground where she had been standing just seconds before. Glancing up, she grinned. Crane's entire extended family had made it, right when they were needed the most.

Crane led his cousins in an elaborate flying formation, diving into the crowd of outlaws and picking them off one by one. Crane, the strongest of his clan, swooped down and with a furious beat of his wings, laid out a group that had been charging at the villagers. The villagers saw their enemy down and, their resolve strengthened, charged the overwhelmed outlaws.

"We're beating them back!" Tigress shouted, rallying her fighters. "Advance as one! ADVANCE!"

Everyone – villager, kung fu master, and airborne fighter – moved as one single, terrifying wave upon the beleagured outlaws. When the defenders met the outlaws in the charge, there arose such a clatter of weapons that Tigress was momentarily deafened. The sound of the clash echoed off the surrounding mountains, amplifying them even further. The force of it scared off many of the outlaws, who finally gave up and made a run for it.

"Oh no you don't!" Master Ox shouted. "Masters, charge!" One by one, the members of the Masters Council took after the retreating outlaws, wisely seeing that the villagers had it under control.

And they did.

Tigress found – much to her relief – she didn't have to raise a finger to end the battle. It was effectively over already.

"We got them!" she shouted to the defenders. "Keep pushing them! We're almost through!"

That was when the explosion hit.

Everyone froze to see the blinding golden light erupting from another part of the village. Tigress realized that it was coming from the Long and Feng...and she smiled.

"What's that mean?" Monkey asked, unsure why he was whispering in the suddenly quiet square.

Tigress grinned wider to see a mingled phoenix and dragon in the smoke that rose above the village. She said loudly, "It means Koshchei's been defeated by the Dragon Warrior and Phoenix Warrior."

Immediately, the outlaws lost their nerve. They began to retreat en masse.

Mr. Lu called over to Tigress. "What's your orders, Master Tigress?"

She hesitated. What had Dalang said earlier? She remembered her harsh words: That was murder. No, that was defense, he had answered.

This decision didn't sit well with her, and she knew she would regret this to her dying day...but she would also regret it if she let them get away.

"Finish it."

"Holy crap," Po gasped. "It's a baby."

And so it was. Tangled up in the thick woolen clothes Koshchei had worn was a tiny, newborn leopard. Its fur was dark gold, with faint rosette spots. Its mouth was open wide to let out a piercing wail and its eyes were shut tight as it cried louder.

Tai Lung instinctively knelt down and wrapped the woolen tunic around the baby. The infant opened its eyes and looked up at him, and the snow leopard gasped.

"His eyes..."

Po looked closer.

The infant's eyes were honey-brown.

"Wait, what?" the panda asked. "What is this? What just happened? What just...what?!"

Tai Lung was shaking his head in amazement. "It's...unbelievable. I mean, the Phoenix Tear Technique was supposed to remove all darkness and evil in a person..." he continued thinking aloud, "and we guessed that Asmodei Koshchei was rotten to the core, and I suppose there's nothing more pure than a baby...it's a new life, after all. A new chance."

"So the gods gave him a second chance? Why?"

The snow leopard shrugged. "For the same reason they gave me a second chance."

"'Kay, which was...?"

"No stinking clue."

"So we're just going to chalk this up to some weird supernatural mumbo-jumbo we would never figure out in a thousand years?"

"Works for me."

They turned to the sound of heavy panting and froze when Duo rounded the corner. The wolf had a savage light in his eyes as he stared them down. Po wondered if he would have to prepare himself for the wolf to attack. But Duo wasn't bothering to look at them. His eyes were scanning all over, flicking from one side of the street to the other, up to the rooftops, and even behind a barrel.

Duo let out a snarl of frustration. "Where is he?"

"Who?"

"KOSHCHEI!" the wolf shouted. "Where the hell is he?!"

Instinctively, Tai Lung held out the bundle in his arms.

Duo froze, stared at the snow leopard, then at the quiet bundle, then back at the snow leopard. "Dude."

"What?" Tai Lung asked.

"Please tell me that's not what I think it is."

"What do you think it is?"

"I think it's his head and you're just fucking with me because I wanted revenge and you got it before me and are rubbing my nose in it."

The snow leopard chose his next words carefully. "Well...this is likely to mess with your head, I suppose. But first, a question: how good are you with children?"

Duo blinked, and tilted his head to the side in confusion. "What?"

Then the baby began to move. Duo jumped so high the Phoenix Warrior wondered if the wolf had sprouted wings, and much like a cat, the hair on the back of his neck had stood on end. Wide-eyed, the wolf strode forward and – remarkably gentle – drew some fabric away from the infant's face.

The baby immediately stopped crying and looked up at the wolf.

Duo gasped and dropped his spear in shock.

"Holy...no way, no way, it's..."

"Duo," Po said gently, "this is all that's left of Asmodei Koshchei."

"But it's..."

"Yeah, we know. Remember what Tai did to you back at the cabin?"

Duo mutely nodded, still staring at the baby.

"Well, Tai used the same technique on Koshchei and..." Po looked to his friend for help.

Tai Lung took over: "The Phoenix Tear technique is supposed to remove all evil and darkness from someone's soul."

"So Koshchei was rotten to the core," Duo accurately guessed, "And this baby means that he gets to start all over."

Po hesitated in his answer: "Yeah, that's about the size of it." The Dragon Warrior did not like the hard tone in the wolf's reply.

"So instead of ending it completely, we're just going to let it grow up and become a monster all over again. Is that it?"

Po was horrified. Part of it was that he hadn't considered something so horrible – were they really taking a risk in allowing this baby to live? The other part was what Duo had just suggested. And the hint of it made the panda's stomach churn.

But Tai Lung was, thankfully, better prepared. Perhaps it was also a function of having become a father (sooner rather than later), that the Phoenix Warrior stood defiantly at his full height and pushed the baby into Duo's arms.

"Then by all means, Lan Duo, if you can look into this baby's eyes and tell me he is a monster, with a straight face, then you may kill him. Go on, let's see if you are a baby killer after all."

This seemed to snap him out of his stupor and turned his rage on the feline. "I am NOT a baby killer, cat!"

"And neither are we," he calmly replied. Po was amazed – he felt ready to hit the wolf, not calmly rebuke him. But there was Tai Lung, standing tall, albeit bloodied and sore, but staring down the wolf and his murderous intentions with a fire in his eyes Po had not seen before.

"Go on," Tai Lung repeated, glaring at the wolf, "if you're that concerned, kill him."

Duo hesitated, then bent down to pick up the golden spear. Po gasped and moved forward to stop him. But Duo had stopped on his own volition. He was still staring at the baby, who was staring back at him.

"It's just..."

"Just what?" Po asked him. Then the panda realized the wolf was shaking, and had suddenly paled.

"It's just...but that's impossible," Duo said, shaking his head. "It's just not possible. I know I've seen those eyes somewhere before, I've seen that face, but...not possible, it's not possible..."

"Nothing is impossible."

Duo glanced back at Tai Lung, then at the baby, then with one last snarl, raised his spear...and stabbed it right into the snowy ground.

"DAMN IT!" he swore.

Tai Lung calmly brought the baby back against his chest and – Po could tell – let out a sigh of relief.

"So what now?" the wolf asked. "Is it over?"

A sudden roar made them all jump. Po looked over his shoulder and saw the Crane clan move dive down from on high and into what he was sure was the final advance. "Not yet it's not."

"We'd best join them," Tai Lung said.

"With the kid?" Duo challenged.

"Of course not." The snow leopard turned the baby over to the wolf and pointed to the restaurant. "Take him in there. My wife and friends should give you both shelter."

Duo dubiously looked at the front door, but only nodded, and watched as the Dragon Warrior and Phoenix Warrior set off for the village center. Then he looked down at the baby in his arms again, looked into the baby's eyes.

"I gotta be losing it," he said to the child. "You look like you have Lang's eyes..."

A sudden clatter down the street caught his attention. For a reason he couldn't explain, he felt his blood freeze in his veins to see fleeing outlaws coming straight his way. Then he saw why: he recognized these outlaws. They had been among Koshchei's most loyal...and consequently, they are also the most "batshit crazy". And when they saw him, they glared dangerously.

The baby in his arms cried.

"Oh crap," he said.

The outlaws charged at him. Duo's instincts kicked in. He took each end of the baby's bunting, twisted it tightly, then slung the baby bundle across his back and tied it in front. Then he kicked his left foot out and uprooted the Golden Spear just as the first outlaw came within stabbing distance. The wolf was like a fury, a demon amongst them. He was vastly outnumbered, and it was all he could do to not fall under their barrage. A few got close enough to hit, kick, and punch him – hard. Duo fell back a couple paces, propping himself up with the spear so he wouldn't fall. He knew if he fell, he was dead.

The baby strapped to his back shrieked, piercing his ears. "No..." he hissed. He grit his teeth and gritted out a snarl. He thrust the spear out, deflecting a sword, turned on his heel and swung the spear like a mace and hit the assailant in the head, sending him down. The smell of singed fur hit his nose, but he ignored it. Duo stabbed another, swinging the spearshaft over his head, twirling it in his hands and arms, around his front and back, a golden windmill of death for any who got too close.

One giant ox grabbed the spearshaft, and punched Duo right in the face. The wolf fell back, stopping himself just short of slamming into the wall with his foot against the bricks. The baby was still crying, and Duo felt blood streaming from his nose, but the ox's shrieks of pain were even worse. The wolf watched in horror as the ox's hand, still wrapped around the spearshaft shuddered and the bovine let out an unholy shriek as he burst into flames. Before Duo could react, the ox had become fully engulfed in fire, then turned to dust before his eyes. The Golden Spear clattered to the street, its fall cushioned by the ash where the ox had just been.

Duo blinked. "Huh. Interesting." He rushed over and grabbed the spear again, standing straight and facing off against the outlaws still standing. There were two left, but they looked like they were starting to question their loyalties. Duo decided to bluff—he had the crap beaten out of him, and the wounds he'd gotten from Koshchei still had not completely healed, and that last punch had made him a little dizzy.

"I'm giving you one warning: Get out, or I'll do to you what I did to your friend."

"That's impossible," one of them said.

Duo's ears ticked up, and he smiled devilishly, lowering himself into a stance, ready to strike, the spearpoint held out in front of him. "Nothing is impossible."

The outlaws shared a look and stared back at the wolf. Apparently they thought they could take him. They called his bluff, and he knew he was screwed.

At least until they moved forward and came to a lurched stop, twin blades sticking out of their backs, courtesy of the huge tiger who had just jumped between the outlaws and the wolf.

Dalang drew his swords out of their bodies and stepped back to avoid the dead outlaws as they fell, their blood staining the snow. He turned to look at Duo, who looked stunned.

"I had them."

Dalang took in the wolf's condition and the crying infant strapped to his back. He wanted to make a smart-ass comment, but the look on the wolf's face told him not to. "I believe you. Just thought you could use a hand. You're a hell of a warrior."

"Thanks. Uh..."

"Jiao Dalang."

Duo blinked. "So you're the guy Koshchei was after."

"Yup."

Duo paused. "Never would've believed it if I'd seen you before, but you're not a guy I wanna piss off."

"Have you met Tai Lung?"

"Yeah, actually. He and Po brought me here."

Dalang grinned. "They're back?! Thank the—"

"Yeah, uh, is there a better place to do this?" the wolf said, pointing to the many dead outlaws. "I'm not feeling so good."

"Oh yeah, right, c'mere man, I got you. What's your name?"

"Lan Duo."

Dalang gave him a dubious look. "Your name is 'lazy'?"

"My uncle hated my guts. He raised me, he named me. I didn't have much choice in the matter. Just call me Duo."

Dalang shrugged and helped him into the house, slamming and bolting the door behind them.

Tai Lung landed on a roof close to the main square, crouched down and watching for his chance to move in. Po landed next to him a few seconds later, though not as gracefully, and out of breath. "Man, I still can't keep up with you..."

"You're better than you used to be. Look!" he said, pointing at the throng, "They're retreating!"

"Not all of them," Po warned, pointing off to their left. The snow leopard followed the panda's finger and narrowed his eyes. "Hullo, what's this?"

A pack of feline outlaws had broken off from the rest of the group and were regrouping, then doubling back, weapons drawn. They were clearly looking to get even.

"Why aren't they retreating?" Po wondered.

"Because they have nothing more to lose," Tai Lung said darkly. He stood. "Time to make that prophecy come true."

"Uh...remind me again?"

Tai Lung fought the urge to roll his eyes. "When the Dragon soars and the Phoenix Dances..."

"Oh right, that prophecy. Yeah, let's do it."

"Then these may come in handy."

Both warriors whirled to find the Wu Sisters had come up behind them. Wu Tian held out a bundle wrapped in red silk, and held it reverently to Tai Lung. "Sir, it was an honor to bear these to you."

Tai Lung took the bundle and quickly unwrapped it: his mother's fans. Then he recalled, "You heard about my mother from Aunt Wu?"

Tian nodded, smiling warmly. "Your mother is my hero. She is the model I live by. I hope I can someday make her as proud as I know you've made her."

He smiled. "Thank you. Now, will you join us?"

Tian shared a smirk with her sisters and they took out wind and fire wheels they had hidden beneath their cloaks. "Captain Altai and Lieutenant Hu are on their way, but we will be happy to escort you."

Without further ado, the five of them ran along the rooftops to the village center, Po in the lead. He was the first to leap off the roof's eave and land firmly in the square. Tai Lung flipped off the roof and landed directly next to the panda, unsheathing his mother's fans with expert flicks of the wrist.

"On our right," Po said.

Tai Lung glanced over at the advancing outlaws. "I see them."

He turned sharply to face the advancing outlaws, who faltered to see the snow leopard. Without having met him before, they seemed to know him by reputation alone. "Good evening, gents," he greeted. "Shall we dance?"

Out of the corner of his mouth, he said to Po, "I see twenty here."

"Thirty more on the roof," the panda said with a tilt of his head, indicating the wolves running along the roof tiles. Many more had circled around to surround the two warriors. Each one was armed to tooth and claw. Each wolf looked highly trained.

Panda and snow leopard shared a look...then shared a sly smile.

Too easy.

The first of the felines charged at Tai Lung; the snow leopard brought up one of the fans, keenly slicing through the spear shaft, then turned swiftly, delivering roundhouse to the other cat's chin. He didn't give the other bandits a chance to attack, and charged into them. His fans flashed in the mid-afternoon sun, gleaming red and gold with the dying sun.

Po was having an easier time with it, using Oogway's staff to take out as many as Tai Lung. Po's attacks centered on his trademark "belly bounce", and the more recently discovered upper body strength. Just as in his childhood dreams, he was finally strong enough that a single punch was enough to fell a single opponent. He swung the staff around over his head, jabbing into abdomens and foreheads, tripping others and hitting a few more squarely in the chest.

Tai Lung kicked high and knocked the sword out of an opponent's hand, and while the same opponent stabbed at him with the hidden knife in his other hand, the snow leopard leaped and turned horizontally in midair, the knife slicing nothing but air before Tai Lung's arm swept around and hit the enemy's elbow. He turned swiftly and knocked the bad guy out with a jab of his elbow to the other's face.

A sharp whistle above them warned of another attack. Clearly some members of the rebel horde were not yet beaten, and believed they at least had the chance of glory for killing the Dragon Warrior and the formidable Tai Lung.

Unfortunately for the rebels, the Wu Sisters were no longer on their side. And those wolves were nowhere near as well-trained as the snow leopardesses were.

The first rooftop wolf rushed forward, and Tian completed her pirouette, swinging the wind and fire wheels around, slashing across his front. She stepped into a lunge, low and swung at another; a three-step-turn, pas de chat, another fifth-position with right foot in front, she turned around the other way, fans slicing the air and every opponent that came her way. With a hop-skip and axle turn, pirouette, pirouette, turn, turn, turn, one right after the other along the central beam of the roof, straight towards the twenty wolves in front of her, then one last turn, and up into a perfect jete.

She landed in a crouch, waited for one wolf to get beyond her before she struck out behind her and hit him directly in the spine. Tian swung her back leg around to the front, turning her body completely around as she fell into a perfect split, arching her back, and striking with the same wind and fire wheel.

Two wolves made the mistake of standing directly on each side of her, so when Tian adjusted her body and jerked her legs around, she literally swept the wolves off their feet, only for their faces to be slashed open.

Tian continued twisting her body until she was standing again and quickly took stock of the situation. She had taken down fourteen...or thirteen? One wolf charged at her, snarling viciously; one side kick to the face, and another one to the gut, sending him back to crash into a pile of wooden crates with a shower of splinters.

That was fourteen.

Zhu, being the smallest of her siblings, focused more on her flexibility and speed, letting the angry and clumsy wolves do her work for her. When they thought they had a clear hit on her, she dodged, and the strike meant for her instead went to the wolf's brother in arms. With several quick moves, she shoved them off the roof and onto the street below.

Jiang, being the strongest, went for the jugular. Her mother may have taught her the finer points of Lotus Style...but it was clearly not Jiang's style. The green-eyed female punched and kicked, elbowed and kneed, throwing outlaws over her shoulder and into others. Her pace was fast, furious and ruthless. Yet there was a subtle grace to it...for example, the only thing she picked up from her Lotus Style training was the "Heartbeat as the drum you dance to" Wu Lien had taught her. Jiang was the only one who knew this dance, and she used this to her advantage.

Tian threw down another outlaw (number eighteen) when number nineteen was taken down by a much unexpected feline.

"Need backup?" Tigress asked.

Tian blinked. "So you're talking to me now?"

"Tai Lung filled me in."

"Ah. Yeah, I could use a hand. See those—"

"On it." Tigress took a running leap and pounced directly on top of the boar that was going straight for Po. The boar didn't even know what hit him. Tigress glanced around. Po and Tai Lung had joined the line of masters, and the other members of the Furious Five, in a final offensive to purge the outlaws from the village for good. Tigress jumped in next to Viper and Monkey. "All ready?"

"Give the order," Tai Lung called back. "We're ready!"

Tigress nodded and crouched down, waiting. The other warriors followed her lead and, tense, waited for her signal.

"NOW!"

They moved as one giant wave of kung fu, licking at the heels of the retreating outlaws. Po and Tai Lung forged ahead, running right into the horde. The bandits and outlaws ran even faster to escape. There was a bottleneck at the village gates. Desperate outlaws scaled the walls and dropped to the other side. Some were trampled by their own brethren in a final crush to avoid almost certain death at the hands of the kung fu masters and fighting villagers.

Po called a halt twenty feet from the wall. "Take cover!"

The masters and villagers obeyed without question, before the explosion hit. Tai Lung grabbed Crane and Mantis, Tigress grabbed Viper and Monkey, and ducked behind a building as debris rained from the sky.

"What was that?" Crane asked.

"My guess?" Tai Lung said, "Probably Altai."

"Who?"

"Old friend of mine."

"Must be," Viper said admiringly. "You didn't tell us you had friends in the army."

The snow leopard laughed mirthlessly, "Funny you should mention, I had no idea, either."

"Where's Po?"

Tigress's question made them all freeze. Tai Lung was the first to move, jumping up and calling Po's name.

"He's out there!" a villager shouted.

Snow leopard and Furious Five stood and looked through the now gaping holes blasted in the village walls to give the outlaws an outlet to freedom. There were no bandits, rogues, or outlaws left in the village; they were all on their way to the Thread of Hope, followed closely by a single figure bearing a peachwood staff.

"Po?" It came out as a whisper, but, coming back to his senses, he chased after him. "Po! PO!"

The panda didn't seem to hear him. Tai Lung was exhausted, but he pushed himself harder to catch up with the panda. Just as they neared the sugarloaf mountaintops, the snow leopard finally grabbed the panda's sleeve. "PO!"

He jumped back when he saw Po's eyes. They were glowing with a golden sheen. "Po?"

The panda shook his head, blinked a few times, before the familiar green came back to his irises. "Whoa, sorry. You say something, buddy?"

"What are you doing? We've got them on the run."

"I know. My job isn't done."

"What are you talking about? Po, we saved the village, all of us. Our job is done..."

"Yours may be, mine isn't. I...I can't explain it, Tai, but I need to follow them, make sure they don't come back."

They would have to be pretty thick to come back now, with several dozen kung fu masters, black ops agents, and angry locals fending them off, the snow leopard thought.

Po smirked. "Good point, but...I think the Dragon is telling me to finish it."

Tai Lung hesitated. "Do you want me to come with you?"

Po put his hand on his friend's shoulder. "Go rest, Phoenix Warrior. You have new priorities. Let me finish this. Go home and rest."

Suddenly reminded, Tai Lung paled. "Mei Xing...gods, the baby! I don't even know if they..."

"Tai, go home," Po said firmly. "Go be with your family."

"And what, pray tell, do I tell your father?"

"Tell him I'll be home in time for dinner."

"Po," he said shortly; he knew Po was lying.

"Tell him not to worry; when I come home, we can celebrate the Winter Festival like there's no tomorrow. You've done well, Phoenix Warrior, and I couldn't ask for a better friend or brother."

Tai Lung smiled, clapping his hand over the panda's. "No better brother than the Dragon Warrior."

Po smiled and nodded and, wrapping his red robes closer around him, slowly walked after the retreating army. Tai Lung waited, watching the Dragon Warrior's retreating back until the panda was out of sight. And even then, he had difficulty tearing himself away. He slowly walked back, tucking his mother's fans safely in his belt. He climbed over the rubble of the destroyed wall and joined the Five and other masters. A few were congratulating him, but he ignored them. All he saw was the devastation the battle had caused.

Tai Lung turned back to the broken wall, shaking his head over the destruction. "Did you use enough explosives, Altai?" He sighed, then closed his eyes, crossing his legs and sitting in full lotus position, right amidst all the rubble. He didn't care that he was getting strange looks; he'd received worse. He focused on his breath, and meditated:

If you're listening, I need a way to fix this wall quickly. We can't leave it this way all winter in case the horde comes back...

The Phoenix's voice echoed in his thoughts: Then fix it, Phoenix Warrior.

Tai Lung thought about it, then replied with his usual cynicism, Thanks, that was almost helpful.

Heal the wall, Phoenix Warrior, she said. It is as broken as that wolf you healed.

So what? I just lay hands on the wall and...

He opened his eyes, then smiled a little. "Well, I'll be damned..." He stood quickly, feeling a bit dizzy from the blood rushing to his head, and pressed his palms together to steady himself. Holding his hands in the namaste position in front of his heart, he followed the yogic breathing Sun Bear had taught him, and with one deep, clear breath, placed his palms upon the wall.

He had no memory of what happened after that. Others would tell him later what they saw...and many of them couldn't believe it. A golden light had begun to glow from deep within his body, growing brighter and brighter until it spread all over his body, then to his hands, and from his hands, it spread to the wall. Like a sun beam hitting a pane of glass…that was how some described it, how quickly the golden light ran the length of the village walls. And in the blink of an eye, where there had once been rubble and a gaping hole, there was now a full and complete wall.

When the light had dissipated as quickly as it had spread out, the snow leopard fell to his knees, leaning heavily against the suddenly repaired wall. He felt several pairs of hands on him, lifting him, helping him stand. He thought he saw Tigress's astonished but worried face...

"Could someone get me home?" he asked weakly, for the effort of fixing the wall had taken quite a bit out of him. "Only I'd like to see my wife before she gives birth..."

He blacked out.

It was quite some time later when the last of the horde made it to the Thread of Hope. Those that had gotten there before the others had camped there, while they figured out what to do. The stragglers still had the memories of the terrible battle fresh in their minds, while those who had been the first to retreat were planning on a return, to once and for all destroy that damn valley.

They quickly changed their mind when word reached them of just how powerful the Dragon and Phoenix Warriors were. After two days, those who had been keeping watch, just in case someone came after them to finish them off for good, someone called out that they had been followed...by one lone panda.

Word spread quickly that the Dragon Warrior, and the Dragon Warrior alone had followed them. There was no word yet of the army coming behind him, no word of back-up...but those who knew better already began crossing the bridge. Those who stayed to fight snarled and hissed and growled and howled as the Dragon Warrior made his appearance.

Po looked down over the throng, tens of thousands left...tens of thousands at a dead end, except for a terribly rickety bridge that would not support them all at one time. Something needed to be done, and, by heaven, he would do something.

The outlaws were stopped at the Thread of Hope, each wondering what to do, who to go first over the bridge.

Po was going to give them more than one option.

The Dragon Warrior grasped the peachwood staff in his hand and calmly walked his way into the proverbial lion's den. What few outlaws still had some fight left in them launched themselves at him. He repelled them with quick flicks of his wrists, twirling the staff in all directions, laying them out. He brought it down on the foot of one croc and glared until the reptile cowed and slunk away to join his brethren.

Po jabbed the staff into the frozen earth hard enough for the staff to stand up straight. He pressed his palms together and closed his eyes, focusing on his breathing. Then he focused on his surroundings.

He felt the breaths of each outlaw, each heartbeat, thundering in his head. He felt the roots of the trees reaching further down into the soil for anchor and for water, he felt the wind in the branches. He felt the rocks at his feet, the wind rustling his fur

He took one more deep breath then brought one foot up, and slammed it into the ground. The ground shook beneath him, so much that the outlaws all fell as one. Po brought up the other foot and likewise brought it down hard into the ground. He drew his palms together and pressed them up, palms facing the sky, as if the sky were caving in and he was pressing it back together.

The ground beneath him shook so violently that the fragile Thread of Hope crumbled and snapped apart. Chi radiated from the Dragon Warrior's body in an intense golden light.

Some of the outlaws would later claim that they saw the most extraordinary thing at that moment: a dragon, a great golden dragon dashing across the sky like a sunbeam, then diving right for the ground. The dragon disappeared inside the panda, they claimed, and the panda now had the dragon's strength, for how else could they explain what happened next?

The ground rumbled, shaking even more violently. Then they heard it, like a waterfall flushed with spring run-off, like a landslide...and suddenly, to their amazement, the Devil's Mouth disappeared. The ground at the bottom of the chasm was literally pushed up by the panda's raw power.

Po had, in essence, reversed the move Oogway had used to create the chasm in the first place. Though the outlaws didn't know that.

Now before them, lay the remains of previous bridges, various debris and rocks, and perhaps most morbidly, the bleached bones of people who had fallen to their deaths; the only evidence of the Devil's Mouth were the spires that still jutted out of the ground.

Then the Dragon Warrior spoke to them, only it didn't sound like him. The outlaws would later say that it sounded like all the multitude of Heaven were speaking through the panda, so when he gave them the order, they followed it.

"I have given you the way," the panda said in a disembodied voice, "You have until sundown to cross this land. If you are not at the other side by sunset, you will fall down into the chasm and be lost forever, where no god can find you. Go, and never, never return."

The more cowardly members of the horde did not need a second reminder. The vast majority immediately bolted, leaving behind their weapons and running full speed across the expanse.

The stragglers were still in awe of the panda, gazing in amazement upon this creature, this warrior, who stood above them and glared, the normal calm green gaze replaced with bright golden light. Wordlessly, they each got up and started to sprint across, leaving everything behind.

The Dragon Warrior surveyed his handiwork and acknowledged the bandits, murderers, and others as they ran for their lives. Calmly, he lowered himself to full lotus position, closed his eyes, and began to meditate until sundown.

When he came to, a pair of familiar green eyes were watching him.

"Hullo, Ming Hua," Tai Lung greeted. He felt, if possible, even more exhausted in this spectral plane than he did in the real world, but at least he could move here. Somewhere, he was dimly aware that his body was still unconscious. Ming Hua, however, was smiling.

"Tai Lung...well done."

"So it's over then?"

"Yes, it's over."

"I didn't destroy Koshchei, like you told me to."

"No, trust me, you did."

"But…"

"Tai Lung," she said sternly, and he listened. She had never gotten cross with him, and instinct told him to listen to her, and listen closely. "Koshchei is gone, dead and gone, for good, and he will never rise to lay waste to or bring terror to the world ever again. Take my word for it."

"I do, and while I do believe you…I didn't kill him. I thought that was part of the plan."

She sighed, "You can destroy someone without killing them. I would have been disappointed had you actually killed him; and, I think, on some level you would have been disappointed with yourself. I remember how you refused to be the monster while fighting that awful horse..."

"Is that why I didn't see you at all during our journey? You were here, keeping an eye on things?"

The tigress looked impressed. "Yes, actually. You're getting good at this."

"It helps that you're a bit more predictable than Oogway. By that I mean," he said quickly, sensing he had insulted her, "I know you wouldn't have abandoned my mum if she needed you..."

"And trust me, she needed me. Though in hindsight, it looks like Mei Xing had quite a few people looking out for her. And she's capable of handling herself as well. I mean, I already knew that if she and Nima had ever met that they would get along, but imagine my surprise to see your wife getting up after hours of labor to shoot off a few arrows from a crossbow..."

"She WHAT?!"

"Nothing," she said innocently. "You heard nothing. And so help you, you will say nothing."

Tai Lung thought about it, then realized the wisdom of the advice. "Bad idea to anger a new mother?"

"Bad idea to anger a mother, period. You didn't have that experience, so I'm just warning you now. Mothers who are very protective of their babies can be...well..."

"Say no more, I've seen how Tigress fights. But she's a special case, right? I mean, it's not like my mum ever did anything like that, right?" he laughed.

Ming Hua didn't laugh with him.

He stared.

She stammered, "Uh...I mean, of course she didn't. Anyway!" she said gleefully with a clap of her hands, changing the subject in a manner very much like her youngest son, "You may want to wake up now, I think someone wants to see you..."

Tai Lung's eyes shot open and he sat up quickly. He was back in his house, laid out on the couch in the living room, with Dalang sitting nearby watching over him. "Welcome back," the tiger said. He looked exhausted, worn, but relieved. "How you feelin', big guy?"

"I've been better. How's Mei?"

"Why don't you go ask her yourself?"

"She's alright?"

"Both she and the baby survived the birth," the tiger chef assured him. "They're both healthy. Your dad on the other hand..."

The snow leopard felt a weight sinking in his stomach. "My dad...?"

"Fainted."

He wasn't sure he had heard that right. "My dad...Sonam...fainted?"

"When Mei gave birth, yup. Always the ones you least expect, right?"

Shakily, the snow leopard stood with Dalang's assistance and plodded over to the door. Feeling a sudden burst of energy, he knocked and Dalang stood back to give him privacy. The bedroom door opened, and there stood Shifu, looking surprisingly fresh, and even more astoundingly, smiling.

Tai Lung stood at the door, bloodied, battered, and utterly exhausted. Shifu took one look at him, looked over his shoulder back into the birthing room, then back at him. "You know, I'm having a hard time figuring out which one of you actually had a baby."

"Not funny, old man."

The red panda master laughed and threw the door open. "Get in there; your wife and baby are waiting for you."

He stepped into the room and looked right over to the bed, where Mei Xing lay back, propped up by many pillows. She was holding a squirming bundle, wrapped in a soft knitted blanket. Her fur was askew, matted with sweat and tears, and she looked drawn, exhausted, and…nervous? "Mei Xing?"

She looked up at him, grateful to see him, but still looked apprehensive. "Thank Heaven you survived," she said. "I was so worried…"

"So was I," he said, crossing the room, taking her into his arms, and giving her by far the deepest kiss he had ever given her. After two months of separation, and untold stress on both sides, both of them needed this kiss, this desperate embrace, more than they had ever needed anything else. When Tai Lung finally pulled away, he still hugged her close to his chest, fighting down the relieved tears that had sprung to his eyes. "Praise the gods, you're safe…I never would have forgiven myself if something happened to you," he whispered.

"I'm fine now," she assured him. "But…"

He looked down at their child, then immediately back at her with worry. "Is he healthy? Are you—?"

Mei Xing bit her lip, and for a moment, Tai Lung saw the all-too familiar fear that she had disappointed him…it was faint, now, but still there. "It's a girl," she said, her voice wavering a little.

Tai Lung looked down at the child—a daughter, his daughter—and took only a moment to think about it.

"Mei Xing," he said. "I don't care." He smiled at her stunned expression. "I don't care. I just spent a month at the mercy of a psychotic kung fu master, I spent another month being hunted down by a sadistic army officer, and I just survived a battle with the single most dangerous foe I've ever faced. All that considered, and I come home to find that not only is the love of my life alive and well, but that we now have a healthy child…boy or girl, damn it, Mei, I couldn't be happier!"

She finally smiled, her face breaking with relief as fresh tears fell. She was hardly alone; he was crying just as much as she was. He didn't care anymore. He didn't give a damn what people would think if they saw him now. As far as he was concerned, they could shove their opinions where the sun didn't shine. He was alive, as was his beloved wife, and their healthy baby girl.

The little cub made a noise, and he looked down to get a good first look at his daughter. She looked just like her mother, he noticed, like a miniature Mei Xing. The most striking thing about this child was her eyes; though they would not open for a couple weeks, the shape of the cub's eyes most definitely resembled her father's.

Mei Xing smiled and whispered, "She's got Daddy's eyes, doesn't she?"

"Yes, but she's got her Mummy's nose, and little cheeks," he grinned. The baby made a noise that he liked to pretend was a laugh. "Gods," he said breathlessly. "She's beautiful."

"Would you like to hold her?" his wife asked.

He balked. "Are you mad? When I'm covered in mud, blood, and gods only know what else?! I'm not touching my little girl until I'm disinfected!"

"But you were okay hugging your dad right after defeating Jiao Shen."

"That's different—it was my dad."

"He passed out, you know, during the birth."

"I know, Dalang just told me."

"Is it bad that I actually laughed when he passed out?"

"I figured you would, you saucy little thing," he said proudly.

She grinned and gently caressed the downy white fur on her daughter's head. "We'll need to think of names, now. I don't want to wait the hundred days until the naming ceremony, you know?"

"Damn, that's right," he groaned. "No reason we can't start throwing ideas around… She'll have to have 'mei' somewhere in there…"

"Why 'mei'?"

"Because she's gorgeous, just like her mum, of course," he said with a chuckle, lovingly caressing his wife's cheek. "But what do you think about…Mei Jun? Mei Yue? What about Mei Jia, or Mei Ling?"

"Honey," Mei Xing said quickly. "Let's not worry about it right now. I don't want to tempt fate or anything…"

"Fine, fine…" he sighed, sitting on the edge of the bed. "I don't think I'm in the right frame of mind to make a final decision anyway."

"Which reminds me," his wife said. "What happened to that guy you and Po were supposed to take down?"

Her husband's uncomfortable silence didn't sit well with her.

"Tai Lung, is Koshchei dead?"

Tai Lung took a deep breath as he prepared to tell the entirely of his two-month long journey…and also what had just occurred in the village square. Rubbing the back of his neck uncomfortably, he gnawed on his bloodied lip and began, "Well…yes and no…"

"That's not him. There's no way."

"Well, the eyes are a little different, but apparently—technically—it's him."

"Well damn, now I've seen everything."

The Wu Sisters were settled in the nursery, the only place where they wouldn't be in the way, looking over the baby Amur leopard…with mixed feelings.

"At least he's a lot cuter than the old guy…" Wu Zhu said, always trying to be cheerful.

"But technically," her sister Jiang said, making a face when Zhu started playing peek-a-boo with the baby, "It is him."

"But he's just so…aw hell, he's just so damn cute!"

"Zhu," her older sister Tian scolded. "You are talking about Asmodei Koshchei, here."

"Aw, but look!" the blue-eyed snow leopardess said, holding the newborn up. "See? His eyes aren't even blue—they're a pretty honey-color."

"Looks more like amber in this light," Jiang said.

"Maybe they're hazel?" Zhu wondered.

"It doesn't matter what damn color his eyes are!" Tian snapped. "We are talking about a completely mentally unstable despot that somehow got shrunk down into a peeing, pooping, puking gremlin…or, in layman's terms, a baby."

"And people wonder why you never got married," said Jiang.

"Say what you want," Zhu sniffed. "I think he's adorable. 'Inn't that right?" she asked the baby, and began making faces and using baby talk to him. The baby leopard just stared back at her with an expression that bore resemblance to the shocked and somewhat disturbed looks her sisters were giving her. "Whooza cutest wittle bay-bee?" Zhu cooed as she tickled under his chin. "Whooza cutest? You are, yes you are, yes you—OW!" She looked over her shoulder in the direction whence the toy block had been thrown at her head. Baby Shang looked back at her with a perfectly reasonable, innocent face as he sucked on his thumb…amidst a pile of wooden blocks.

Zhu glared. "I'm watching you, kid."

"Zhu, he's less than a year old," Jiang pointed out. "What damage could he possibly—"

Zhu interrupted, "He is the son of Master Tigress and Jiao Dalang. He's Tigress's kid, remember?"

"Point taken."

"Uh…hey, relevant question?"

The sisters looked up and over to the corner of the room where Lan Duo sat slumped against the wall. The wolf looked between them and the two infants and asked, "Isn't anyone else concerned that they just left us in here with their kids?"

"The only one that's theirs is the tiger…and for some weird reason, I don't think his parents are the ones who should be worried," Tian said with an uncertain look sent in Shang's direction. "Because if this cub here is Koshchei, we've got quite a problem."

"What's the problem?" Zhu asked. "He's a baby now."

"And risks growing into a monster all over again," Tian pointed out. "That's probably what they're talking about down there, the other masters," she said, pointing down to the first floor. "They're deciding what to do with this baby. And given what horrible things he did," Tian said coldly, sending an equally frigid look towards the leopard cub, "It would be the best if we just left him on the side of a mountain—"

"WHAT?" Zhu snapped, holding the baby against her chest. "How can you say that?! Tian, he's an innocent little baby! He's never hurt anyone—"

"Who would give him a chance to, knowing what he's been?" Tian demanded. "I told you we should've killed Koshchei when we had the chance, and this is our chance. We can rid the world of him for good."

"Could you live with yourself?"

Tian whirled on Duo, returning his glare. "Excuse me?"

The wolf repeated himself: "Could you live with yourself? If you killed him, as he is, right now…could you be able to live with that? Could you sleep at night knowing you turned your back on your own morals by killing a baby?"

"That thing is not a baby," Tian hissed. "You saw the things he did, you even helped him along the way! Jiao Dalang would agree with me, and I know it—for the good of China, that leopard needs to die."

"No," said Duo, stepping between her and the leopard cub. The other two sisters had gone rigidly still, and baby Shang had stopped playing to watch the adults very carefully.

"Move aside, wolf," Tian hissed, drawing out her claws. "This is for the greater good."

"I won't let you."

"Don't do this, Duo," she warned. "Because we both know I'll take you down with him."

"Then go ahead." And now Duo did something that shocked every feline in the room. He bent down and carefully took the baby leopard from Zhu's arms. He held the child against his chest, gently rocking him when the cub began to cry. When the wolf glared back at Tian, he growled, "Go ahead and kill us both. According to your logic, it's what we deserve. I know it's what I deserve."

"But..."

"And don't you even dare try to justify my actions. I did wrong, and I deserve to pay for it." He looked down into the baby's round face, frowning when he started to cry louder. "Tai Lung defeated Koshchei with something he called the Phoenix Tear technique. He said the technique erases all the darkness left in a person, and once that darkness is gone, it leaves only what is left over…and what was 'left over' is this little guy," he said, indicating the baby. "And if the gods can find a way to give someone like Koshchei a second chance…"

He choked on his own words, eyes tearing up a bit. The baby leopard had stopped crying long enough to look up at the canine holding him with an inquisitive, trusting gaze. Duo gained control of himself, and finished, "If the gods can give him a second chance…then maybe there's hope for me, too."

The sisters were visibly affected, even though Zhu was the only one who started to cry. Jiang reached out and laid her hand on Duo's shoulder, but was speechless.

"Well, isn't this a ray of sunshine?" Auntie Wu said. She was cleaning up from the birth, depositing bloodied rags in a basket for washing. "You'd be surprised, dear," she said to Duo, "The gods are mighty forgiving of a lot of things."

"Just the gods?" Tian dared to ask.

Wu Lien looked up at her eldest, fixing her with her shrewd stare. "Among others...given the right circumstances." She picked up the basket and left the younger warriors alone, taking the washing downstairs. This was where she found both Mr. Ping and Shifu frantically trying to revive a near comatose Sonam.

"Try the smelling salts," the goose suggested.

"We already did that, he's out," said the red panda.

"Well try it again! Maybe it'll work."

"Just give him some wine," Wu said, "Or some of that awful 'vodka' stuff Dalang likes; that should fix him right up."

Shifu looked at his wife. "You don't seem worried about him."

"It's because I'm not. This isn't the first time he's passed out. Nima was the one who gave birth, and who do you think needed more medical care when it was over? Not the mother or the baby, I'll tell you that!"

Sonam finally groaned and tried opening his eyes. "Please don't tell that bloody story again..."

Wu grinned wickedly. "Well, it's funny you mention blood..."

"Oh stop, have some mercy on the poor man," Mr. Ping pleaded. "Having him laying out like this on my nice clean floor gets in the way of noodle-making!"

"Thanks, Ping," Sonam said, "Your concern makes me feel much better."

"What about you?" Wu said, handing Shifu the bottle of plum wine. "Fancy a nip, handsome? You were looking a little pale back there yourself. I thought I was going to have two old men faint on me."

Shifu coughed, but accepted the bottle and poured two glasses: one for Sonam, and one for himself. "I'm better than I was...I was surprised by all the...ahem, blood."

"Yes, it's a main reason why I usually never allow men in the birthing room. Mei Xing held her own, though, and I'm proud of her."

"Certainly helped having Dalang and that wolf to help keep her calm...though I think Su Lin may have to look at the wolf's hand; Mei Xing may have broken it during the contractions."

"Oh he's fine, there's no bruising. I rather give him credit: he seemed to know enough about childbirth to be a decent assistant for me." She was surprised that Shifu only took two sips and handed the rest of the wine to her. Unlike her husband, however, she took the whole glass and downed it in a matter of seconds.

Wu Lien allowed Shifu to pull her into a hug, both red pandas delighted and relieved, but certainly not as delighted or relieved as the new parents celebrating in the room above their heads. They stood there, watching Mr. Ping working around Sonam, who was slowly regaining color in his face, and Shifu suddenly asked, "Weren't we fighting about something?"

Wu turned to him, a thoughtful look on her face. "We were...but what was it about?"

"We didn't speak for a full week, so it had to be something..." Shifu was cut off when they heard the baby made a cooing sound upstairs.

Wu answered for the both of them: "Oh, who cares?"

Shifu smiled, silently agreeing, and hugged her tighter. Then he asked, "Will we ever tell Tai Lung about Mei taking up the crossbow to fend off an attack right after having the girl?"

"Of course not. Mama didn't raise a fool."

Sunset came quickly at the Thread of Hope. Wind swept across the barren landscape in front of the sitting panda, but the Dragon Warrior showed no reaction to the frigid wind and rapidly falling temperature. The sun sank deeper and deeper on the horizon. Without opening his eyes, the Dragon Warrior stood with a fluidity that he had never shown before. Silently, he waited for the last blazing red of the sun's disk to dip below the horizon before he took a deep breath. Whatever happened, he would not hold any guilt. He had given them the chance to make it across. Their fates were in Heaven's hands now.

He let out the breath he had taken in. Pausing, pressing his palms together, he took in another deep breath, and stamped one foot down, then the other, and pushing both hands, palms down to the earth. The earth trembled again, shuddered violently. Pine needles from the trees around him shook and dropped needles in a shower blanketing the snow in green.

Then before him, the ground gave out, falling out like a roof giving way. Rocks and debris went into free fall and tumbled deep into the freshly formed Devil's Mouth.

As suddenly as it began, the earth ceased trembling, and the golden light that had entered the panda in the morning shot out of him in a beam of light straight across the chasm, chasing the sun behind the distant mountains.

Po felt his legs weaken, and he collapsed on all fours, panting, breath turning to fog in front of his face. The panda's vision blurred. He blinked several times, shook his head to clear the fog that had suddenly descended on him. But it did little good.

He was too weak to move, he realized. He needed to rest, but he knew if he did, he would surely freeze. He struggled to stand, plodded through the snow and grabbed as many fallen branches as he could to make a fire. Once he was safely out of the wind, kindling by his side, he leaned his back against a pine tree, sighed, and gave into his fatigue.

Oogway was by his side almost as soon as he lost consciousness.

"Can you deliver a message for me?" Po asked him.

"Of course."

"Can you tell Tai that I need his help? I don't think I can make it back alone."

Oogway only smiled. "I would be happy to. Rest, Dragon Warrior, you've earned it."

"What about the cold?"

"Don't you remember? You have friends on this side looking out for you."

Po smiled. "That's right. Thanks."

"Thank you. I will be back to keep an eye on you soon enough. Just give me a few minutes..."

Mei Xing was finally asleep, as was the baby. Tai Lung, however, couldn't sleep. He was exhausted, mentally, physically, emotionally, had little to no time to come to terms with everything that had happened in the last two months. But perhaps that was why he couldn't sleep now. His mind was racing, images flashing by, glimpses of things he had seen and things he had imagined, like he was unable to focus on just one dream. There was so much to think about, so much to go over. Sun Bear, the battle, his new status as a legendary warrior, and even newer status as a father...

He gave up on sleep and crept over to the cradle, kneeling down next to it. He gently pulled the blanket down from around his daughter's—his daughter!—slumbering face. She was so tiny, so fragile, and she was his. His future, his responsibility, his...he didn't want to think of it right now. Here she was, though, finally, his little girl, this little stranger in their lives. He had a family now. A good and proper family.

As he watched his daughter sleep, he finally realized what was bothering him so much.

He got up and tiptoed out of the room, gently closing the door behind him.

He wasn't the only one up at that late hour.

"Tigress? What are you doing up?"

Master Tigress looked over at him, tearing her eyes away from the candle she had been staring at. She sat in the lotus position on the floor, as if she was trying to meditate, but her posture was all wrong. It didn't take a philosopher to know something was bothering her. "I...I couldn't sleep," she said. "I don't know why; I just couldn't get my mind to shut off."

"Po's not back yet," he said.

She straightened at this. Her eyes were wide. "You think something's wrong."

He nodded. "He shouldn't have taken this long. I'm going after him."

"I'm coming too."

"I thought you might."

"What's that supposed to mean?" she asked as she stood, suddenly defensive.

Tai Lung stared at her. "It just means you care about him, as much as I do. You're worried and I'm worried."

She thought about this, then said, "I'm going to bring the others. Crane, Viper, Monkey and Mantis are all here."

"Still?"

"They were too tired to make it back up to the palace tonight; looks like they'll have to wait another night..."

"Good; the more the merrier, we may need all the help we can get."

Tigress quickly roused them (they had taken up room in the as-yet unused nursery) and, unanimously worried, wakened fully, bundled up, and headed out into the wintry darkness after the Dragon Warrior.

Everything hurt. Every inch of him. He had felt cold at first, then numb, then nothing at all. Only blackness. He wondered if this was what dying was like, if perhaps what everyone thought awaited them after death was actually no heaven, no hell, just nothingness. If that were the case, he would have preferred hell to the nothingness.

But now he was in total agony. His body and skin burned from the bones to the tips of every hair on his body.

With a great gasp he opened his eyes and sat up, coming awake. He was in his old bed, in his father's house, and – to his great relief – very much alive.

Po let out a sigh and laid back against the pillows, taking everything in. Su Lin had made some changes to the décor, but he found it sweet she left his drawings on the walls. But overall, he liked the changes. They took his mind off the pain he was in.

"Lemme help ya with that, big guy."

Po felt a tiny pinch in his arm, then relief flooded through his body. He sighed again and turned his head. "Thanks, Mantis. What'd you give me?"

"Just a little painkiller, enough so you're not screaming again."

"What d'ya mean, Again?"

Mantis hopped down off the bed and onto the bedpost so Po could see him. "Yeah, when we found you, you were sitting in lotus position by the Thread of Hope or, uh, what was the Thread of hope...and then...well, see..."

"I raised the earth to meet the sky," Po said, though he had no idea where the words came from, "And then once the heavens met the earth, the earth fell back again."

Mantis likewise had no idea where this had come from. Rather than question it, he simply asked, "We got a whole house full of people wanting to see if you're okay. You up for some company?"

Po raised himself up on his elbows with some difficulty. "Yeah, definitely."

The first in the room was Mr. Ping, who wrapped his wings as far around his son as he could manage. He was followed closely by the Furious Five, Tai Lung, and Shifu. Any more people would have crowded the already tiny room, but rather than claustrophobic, Po felt glad for their company.

"How are you feeling?" Viper asked.

"Been better," he admitted. "How did the rest of the battle go?"

"Most of the stragglers were taken into custody," Tigress said. "Others we killed outright." She softened up to see the panda's expression. "They didn't give us much choice."

"There's always a choice," the Dragon Warrior said.

"No," Monkey said, "She means the villagers. A few of them kind of...well..." the simian left it at that.

"They performed magnificently," Shifu admitted, "Greater valor than I ever expected. They all should be proud. You all should be proud. The Valley of Peace is safe once again..."

"Though we really ought to consider giving it a new name at this rate," Tai Lung quipped.

A few of the warriors chuckled at the long-running joke. Po laughed more than he should have, then fell exhausted back into the pillows. Tai Lung came forward and helped Mr. Ping put another couple pillows behind the Dragon Warrior's back. "What happened to me?" Po asked him.

"My guess?" the snow leopard asked. "Probably the same thing that happened to me: whatever you did at the Thread of Hope must have used up a lot of your chi. You were near death when we found you."

"We?"

"All of us," Crane explained, his bandaged wing in a sling. "We all came looking for you when you didn't come home right away. I mean, with the snowstorm and everything..."

"How did you manage on your broken wing?" Po asked.

Crane sheepishly replied, "Well, I almost didn't go. Mother demanded I stay."

"So you defied her? Awesome."

"Um, no...Viper did."

Viper blushed, but said nothing.

"You shouldn't be embarrassed," Tigress said with a smirk, "If she were my mother-in-law, I would've said worse."

"Wow," Po said. "What did you actually say to her?"

"Nothing I should repeat..." the serpent said guiltily.

"Are you hungry, son?" Mr. Ping asked. "I can send up some noodles, or Dalang can whip something up..."

"Where's Su Lin?" he asked.

"At the hospital. She's fine!" the goose said, placating his son's sudden alarm. "She's on call, helping the injured."

"She was something else, I gotta say," Mantis said. "Running headlong into battle like that, dodging arrows, throwing back as many punches as she got, all to get the wounded out of the way..."

Po gaped. "Su Lin did this?"

Tigress smiled proudly. "She's got a lot more moxie than I gave her credit for. You're a lucky man."

Po eased back into the pillows some more. "This is a lot to take in..."

Mr. Ping patted his arm. "I'll send some food up. For now, you should get some rest. Everyone, let's give him some space."

"I'll be right down," Shifu said, "There's something I wish to discuss with Po and Tai Lung."

The others excused themselves, giving their well wishes to the Dragon Warrior before Shifu closed the door behind them. "Now," the red panda said, "I want to be sure I understand everything that happened. Asmodei Koshchei?"

"Defeated," Tai Lung answered.

"You're sure."

"Positive."

"Good." Shifu let out a relieved sigh and turned to Po. "The Thread of Hope..."

"Yeah, long story short," Po said, "Master Sun Bear, at the Phoenix Temple, told us that Oogway used a forgotten kung fu move to create the chasm; I used the reverse to raise the earth to the same level so the outlaws could get away...then I set it right again."

The red panda was silent for a moment, then shook his head. "I knew Master Oogway was powerful, but I had no idea..."

"He was the original Dragon Warrior."

Shifu stared at the panda, aghast; his shock intensified when Tai Lung added, "Sun Bear was the original Phoenix Warrior. He bestowed the Phoenix Scroll to me before we left. He passed away not long before we made the return journey. I learned the secret of the Phoenix Scroll, and used it to defeat Koshchei."

"There was a horse..."

"Zang Deshi, yes, we met him. Friends of ours took care of him..."

"You know," Po said, holding up his hands. "Maybe we should start from the beginning. From when we got to the Phoenix Temple to here. Just so we don't confuse each other."

"Good plan," Shifu said. "But before we continue, I just have to ask..." he turned to Tai Lung. "Just what is the secret of the Phoenix Scroll? What secret could be so powerful as to defeat such evil?"

Tai Lung just smiled, and produced the Phoenix Scroll from within his robes. He unrolled it, and showed it to both pandas. It was very similar to the Dragon Scroll, except that it wasn't blank. Instead, smack dab in the middle of the parchment, was a single character:

Forgive.

"...Where's the rest of it?" Po was the first to ask.

"That's it," the snow leopard said.

"How could that be it?" Shifu asked.

"Second chances," Tai Lung answered. "That was the whole point of the Phoenix Temple, to give people a second chance, to rise from the ashes of their own destruction and become a new person. It's not easy to forgive someone who hurt you, or who did great wrong to you, but it's even harder to forgive yourself. That's what the scroll means. I wanted to make a complete turnaround, but I couldn't, as long as I held on to the past. So I let it go. I forgave the people who hurt me, and I forgave myself for the terrible things I did."

"How's that feel?" Po asked.

"Brilliant. It feels ruddy brilliant," the snow leopard said with a grin.

Shifu also smiled, resting a paternal hand on Tai Lung's arm. "Well, I for one am happy you have finally found inner peace. Now..." he turned to Po, "About Oogway and Sun Bear being the original warriors..."

Po and Tai Lung shared a look before both began explaining the whole story: the journey there, the hierarchy at the temple, the revelations from the late master of the temple, especially the story of the magical spring, and ultimately Sun Bear's sacrifice. Shifu noted how quiet Tai Lung got at this point; he relied on Po to tell this part of the tale.

Then they got into explaining about Altai, visiting Mei Xing's family, Little Brother's origins, and the sudden appearance of Lan Duo into their group.

"Ah, yes, I had wondered about him. He doesn't seem the type to..."

"Yes, well," Tai Lung said, "Neither was I. Call me crazy, but I saw part of myself in him. And, by the by, he was able to wield the Golden Spear."

The red panda froze, slowly turned to look at his foster son. "The Golden Spear? The spear that is supposed to turn the unworthy to ashes when they touch it?"

"Yup," Po said with a smile. "Guess if the spear thinks he's worthy...he probably is."

"So I shouldn't be worried that he's been protecting that child? Where did that baby leopard come from anyway?"

Dragon Warrior and Phoenix Warrior shared a look before Po asked, "You wanna tell him, or shall I?"

"You do it; just give me time to leave the room. He won't try and hurt you, as you're already hurt."

"I thought you said Koshchei was dead?" Shifu asked, unable to mask the accusation.

Po pursed his lips and hemmed and hawed as Tai Lung high-tailed it out of the room. "Well...yes and no."

The last thing he remembered was the snow leopard slamming a palm on his chest, and the other on his forehead. The next thing he knew, he was in this place of darkness and mist. Fog so thick he could barely see his own whiskers in front of his face, he stumbled along blindly, tripping on unseen rocks and roots.

He tripped again, and fell flat on his face. This time, however, the ground shuddered beneath him and to his horror, the fog lifted enough to show two skeletal hands shooting up out of the ground and wrapping around his wrists. He panicked, jerking his arms and frantically kicking his feet until he felt two more hands wrap around his ankles. He was pulled upright to his knees, arms held down. The skeletal hands gripping his wrists moved through the earth in an arch, bringing his arms behind him and binding him to the ground. The harder he struggled, the tighter the hands gripped him.

Out of the mist came four walls that surrounded him, a cage of bones that materialized from out of nowhere, and before him, a raised platform where five individuals sat. The one in the middle he knew only from pilfered temple art he had desecrated once.

That's how Asmodei Koshchei knew he was in Hell.

The Lord of the Dead, whom the Buddhists called King Yama, but called Yanluo Wang by the Chinese, sat on a cushion with the other judges, neither of them looked happy to see the Amur leopard. Directly to Yanluo Wang's left sat a raven; to his direct right, a grizzled wolf. On either end of the platform sat an aged tortoise and similarly elderly bear. Yanluo Wang held up a scroll in one hand which he handed to the lupine judge on his right. In the king's other hand was a skull of indeterminate species, which he banged down on a low table in front of him as a gavel.

"This court is now in session. Aleksei Kasparov, alias Asmodei Koshchei, you stand in judgment before this tribunal. Your life has been recorded," the Lord of the Dead said, indicating the scroll in the right-hand judge's skeletal claws, "We have seen souls that have committed truly despicable acts over the centuries, but your crimes and sins are particularly abhorrent. Before we pass judgment, have you anything to say in your defense?"

It took a moment for Koshchei to find his voice, and when he did, he was amazed that it had no trace of his northern accent, and he was perfectly capable of understanding and responding to this king.

"In my defense? How can you judge me, seeing how I was treated?!" he shouted. "Those people deserved everything they got, and I could have done worse to them. I should have done worse to them!"

"So you show no remorse whatsoever?" the raven judge asked.

Koshchei spit on the ground. "None! This court isn't even real. This is a hallucination. That snow leopard didn't kill me, he doesn't have the nerve!"

"You're right," said the bear to his far left. A bear wrapped in saffron yellow robes, who seemed oddly familiar, but where the leopard had previously met him, he couldn't say. The bear continued, fixing his steely-eyed glare on the leopard. "He banished you. He sent you here. You're also not truly dead. Not yet, at any rate."

"So you don't have any jurisdiction over me!" the leopard countered. "I've been in enough courts, I know how this works…"

"How mortal courts work, yes, but you see, the trouble with courts of the gods," Yanluo Wang said with a smoldering glare, "Is that we have already passed judgment. The only choice to be made is what punishment you face."

Now Koshchei felt another chill, but this had nothing to do with the Lord of the Dead's words. He felt a presence next to him, then another, and another, and then he was surrounded. He chanced a look over and felt dread fill his body. Jiao Shen stood to one side of him, and the tiger looked much stronger than the last time the leopard had seen him, haunting his nightmares. Then, to his immense shock, Ming Hua materialized in front of him. She did not look happy to see him, either.

"You are the only witnesses?" Yanluo asked.

"I am the only witness for the defense, Lord Yama," Ming Hua answered. "The others are the prosecution."

"Others?" Koshchei asked before he followed Shen's gaze and looked over his shoulder. His heart and any hope he had sank into the dust. The witnesses for the prosecution were all the people he had ever killed, all the people he had ever tortured. He had, as a rule, never kept count of the numbers, but now truly wondered how many hundreds he had destroyed, for there were at least that many.

Yanluo Wang did not look impressed with the multitude of victims, and he fixed his gaze on the tigress in front of him. "You speak in defense of this man? This man, here?"

"No. I speak on behalf of his mortal body," Ming Hua said. "As was discussed, no harm must come to it. We made a deal, and it is imperative both of us keep our word."

"You don't need to remind me about a god's word. A god's word is sacred, and must not be broken," the king said shortly. Ming Hua didn't flinch. Koshchei could see Shen twitch and make movements as if he intended to come to his former wife's defense, but kept his composure.

"You used to be so strong," Koshchei hissed at him, "What happened to you?"

Shen's expression hardened, but he didn't answer.

"The evidence against you is great," the king said to the leopard. "And given the enormity and savagery of your sins, and the lack of remorse, we sentence you to death."

Koshchei laughed. "Aren't I already dead?"

"Explain it to him," the Lord of the Dead ordered Shen.

Jiao Shen nodded once and turned to his former friend and confidante, his dark eyes blazing. "Your body and soul have been torn asunder. Your body has been destroyed and remade into another form, and another soul now resides in it, a soul that this court determined deserved a second chance. You are out of chances.

"You are worse off than a ghost with a corpse in a grave. The only chance you had, if you repented, was reincarnation into another body; owing to the bad karma you acquired in your life, your new life would have been miserable, horrible, and, if you were lucky, short. But you didn't repent, you didn't show remorse, and there is only one punishment in Hell that is reserved for someone like you…"

Shen paused and spoke the next words so calmly, so coldly, it made Koshchei shiver to his core:

"Total and complete annihilation. Your body ceases to exist, you soul ceases to exist, you cease to exist, and nothing will ever bring you back. Only the most evil of souls are annihilated, so as to ensure they never walk Earth again. And once you're gone, you're gone forever. Done. No heaven, no hell, no eternal peace nor eternal agony. Just…nothing."

To Koshchei, it didn't sound that bad, as it sure beat being burned alive for eternity. No pain, no agony, who wouldn't want that? But there was more to it than that.

"Bring them in," Yanluo Wang said. Suddenly Koshchei was aware that the spirits of his victims had huddled around him. He recognized them all. His family, Sonya, Shen's other sons (who all looked remarkably healthy, despite being where they were), and all the magistrates and nobles and nameless peasants and countless soldiers the leopard had killed and tortured over the years. He even saw the man he had buried alive in that chest – his fingers were worn down to the first knuckle from trying to claw his way out before he died. They all glared at him with dead, dark eyes.

Koshchei felt the skeletal hands holding him down loosen their grip and sink back into the ground. Though he was free, he couldn't move. He knew what was coming, but he was hoping he was wrong.

He wasn't.

"Are the executioners ready?" asked the Lord of the Dead.

As a group, all of Koshchei's victims nodded silently.

Yanluo Wang raised his skull gavel and brought it down hard against the table. "Proceed."

Sonya was the first to step forward, the slash at her neck still gushing blood. "I've been waiting for this for years…" she said in Russian.

And suddenly they were upon him, all of them, claws digging into his side, ripping at his clothes, fur, and flesh. Pain he had never felt and never thought possible burned across his body and he could feel them tugging at his limbs, at his tail, his whiskers, his nose and ears. He could feel his organs being stretched thin, slowly tearing like a cotton sheet, thread by agonizing thread until ripped apart. His whole body stretched in hundreds of different directions and he knew it was coming, but before it was over, he let out one last, long, piercing agonized scream.

Like vultures swarming over a carcass, Koshchei's victims descended on him until the scream slowly faded, piling on top of him, one after the other, clawing and grabbing until Yanluo Wang slammed his skull gavel down once more. One by one, the vengeful ghosts climbed off each other, stepped away from the circle of death. Where once Asmodei Koshchei knelt, all that remained was a pile of ash and dust, which was picked up by the wind and scattered throughout all eighteen levels of Hell.

Thus ended the reign of terror that was Asmodei Koshchei.

Ming Hua had turned away from the carnage, closing her eyes and covering her ears against it. When she looked back, the ghosts of Koshchei's victims one by one disappeared until only her sons' spirits and her husband's remained. Across the court, her eyes locked with her husband's; to her surprise, he gave her a thin, yet hopeful smile. It was the same smile he'd always had: like it hurt to curl his lips upward. Over time, Ming Hua came to appreciate that at least he tried smiling.

"I believe we have one last piece of business," said the tortoise on the far left of Yanluo Wang. The Lord of the Death, surprisingly, smiled.

"Yes, old friend, I dare say we do. Jiao Family, step forward, and accept your judgment and subsequent fates."

"That's not what he meant," the bear at the end of the platform growled, even as a few of the Jiao moved a step forward. "He means the leopard's renewed body, and what will become of it. I believe my friend and I both had a hand in the child's fate."

"So you did," the Lord of the Dead agreed, clearly unhappy that his duties were interrupted. "But you still haven't answered the question of how the child will be raised."

"I have thought of that," the tortoise said and stood. The bear likewise stood and followed his friend.

Ming Hua stepped aside for Master Oogway and Master Sun Bear, who, together, drew a circle in the dust with their claws. When the circle was complete, a bright light emitted from it, and swirled like water in a pool. Before the judges and witnesses, they opened upon an unexpected scene…

"Annnndd…go!"

In the pool, they saw Lan Duo frantically pull together a diaper, wipes, and powder, and quickly change the baby leopard's diaper. Wu Jiang kept time and called it as soon as the wolf fastened the diaper on the infant. "Time!" he said.

"New record," she smiled.

The wolf pumped his fists in the air. "Yes! You and I, we got something going here," he said to the baby, who just stared back at him. The baby leopard blinked once. "Yeah, exactly. You think I've completely lost my mind," Duo said.

"Look on the bright side," Jiang said, "you're better at changing diapers than any man I've ever met."

"That's…not very encouraging."

"Aww, what's the matter, is that a blow to your masculinity?"

"Kinda, yeah."

"Oh man up, single dads are sexy."

He arched a brow at her. "Really now?"

Yanluo Wang bellowed at the two deceased kung fu masters. "You're kidding. Him?!"

"Him," Oogway said simply, with a knowing smile. Sun Bear seemed to share his amusement, but on his craggy features, his smile looked more like a smirk. "You'll see. There is a very good reason we chose Lan Duo to raise that child."

Sun Bear swirled the water in the pool and when the water settled again, it came upon a scene in the courtyard of the restaurant, where the masters Ox and Croc, Furious Five, and residents of the Long and Feng sat in debate.

"…really intense battle," finished Master Ox. "We could just say the baby was an orphan that was abandoned."

"And leave it at the orphanage?" Master Tigress countered. "Unacceptable. I know how hard it is for an apex predator to be adopted by peace-loving farmers. And something tells me none of you masters wants to adopt him and raise him with kung fu."

The courtyard fell silent.

"Look," Master Croc sighed. "Should we really be discussing this now? There are more pressing matters. Such as rebuilding the village."

"No kidding," Mantis said. "Half the Eastern Quarter is burned to the ground."

"All those people without a place to stay," Viper said. "And winter's here."

"I have already taken care of that," Shifu announced. "All displaced villagers are free to live at the Jade Palace until their homes are rebuilt. The Jade Palace's dormitories have enough space. My wife Lotus has offered her dormitories as well. Now, speaking of burned out…" Shifu said, looking at Po and Tai Lung, "What exactly happened back there? If what you told me earlier is true, is that baby really Asmodei Koshchei?"

Po and Tai Lung shared a look, then shrugged at each other. "How's this," Po offered. "We just say 'yes and no', and leave it at that?"

"Not good enough," Dalang suddenly growled. "If that thing is Koshchei, I want it gone."

"That thing?" Tai Lung asked, frowning. "That thing is a baby, Dalang."

"You didn't answer my question, Tai Lung," the tiger growled. "Is that Koshchei?"

"He was Koshchei."

"So the answer is yes."

"The answer is 'yes, but not anymore'."

Po, thinking quickly, got in between them before their respective tempers got the better of them. "Guys, settle down. Let's think about this a second. Take this apple, for example," he said, plucking a shiny red apple from the fruit bowl on the counter. "See, it's got bruises and it's a little mushy in places, and you definitely don't want to eat it…"

"So I throw it out, I get it," Dalang said impatiently.

"No, you don't. Now shut up and pay attention." Po tossed the apple in the air, gave a quick chop of his hand, and sliced the apple in half. Deftly catching both halves, he showed one the half to the tiger, and he pointed, "These are the apple seeds. Now, you take the seeds out of a bad apple, does that mean the seeds will make more bad apples?"

"No," Shifu said, smiling proudly, thinking of a similar conversation he'd had just a few years before with a certain tortoise… "The apple may not fall far from the tree, but the seeds can go anywhere, be planted anywhere, and as long as they are nurtured and cared for, those seeds will become healthy apple trees."

Po grinned and nodded. "Yeah! See, Shifu's got it!" He dug a single apple seed out of the slice and placed it in Dalang's hand. "Your dad was a bad apple. You are a good apple. And as long as you are his daddy, Shang is a good apple. An apple seed is hard, which means that no matter how bad the apple was, its badness doesn't hurt the seed. See what I'm saying?"

For a moment, a look of recognition crossed the tiger's face, but he quickly suppressed whatever he had been thinking about and let the seed fall from his hand. "We're not talking about a seed, Po, we're talking about…how did Tian put it?"

"A maniacal, completely mentally unstable despot that somehow got shrunk down into a peeing, pooping, puking gremlin," Wu Lien affirmed.

"Yeah, that."

Tai Lung gave him a flat look. "Father of the year, you are."

"And you're also completely missing my point," Po said with a deep frown. "When Shang was born, did you think about all the bad stuff his soul might've done in a past life?"

"Of course not," the tiger said. "But—"

Po cut him off. "You thought about all the good things he was now capable of," he paused. "You thought of all the opportunities he had. You dreamed of what he would accomplish, and that he'd grow to be a man you could be proud to call your son. When a baby is born, no one thinks about what he or she did or said in a past life, they think about this life, the life in front of them. A new birth is a new beginning; a new birth means a new life, and a completely different person. So, to answer your question, no, that baby is not Asmodei Koshchei…he is Aleksei Kasparov. This is Aleksei's second chance to get the life he deserved from the day he was born…and he was born the day Koshchei died."

Dalang hesitated, looking concerned…and hurt. "His name was Aleksei? He never told me that."

Tai Lung cleared his throat and explained, "By the time he met you, Aleksei had been dead a long time. Koshchei had killed that part of himself after he killed his family. That's how the Phoenix Tear technique works—to dissolve the threat, it erases all the evil inside it. I thought there was at least a little good left in the man…but it looks like he really was rotten to the core."

"And what's in a core…?" Po hinted, pointing at the apple half.

Dalang paused before answering, "The…seeds?"

"Praise the gods, he can be taught!" Po whooped.

"But it's impossible," Dalang argued. "That baby was not 'born'; it came from a destroyed man. People can only be 'born' by a mother giving birth to them—and for the last time, a baby and a seed are not the same—"

Shifu, having finally lost his patience, snapped at him, "It's a parable, you idiot, it's not supposed to be literal!"

Viewing from above, Yanluo Wang gave Oogway a rare compliment: "I admit, you made an excellent choice in successor."

"Why thank you," the tortoise said, "I like to think so as well."

"But you still haven't proved why this Lan Duo should raise the leopard."

"We're getting to that," Sun Bear growled. "Be patient."

Oogway cast a glance at his friend and asked, "You're not going to control him, are you?"

Sun Bear looked hurt by the accusation as he looked at Tai Lung's image. "Control? Oh no, never. He just needs…a little hint, a little push in the right direction…"

"Look, I don't care what anyone says," Dalang snarled. "I don't want that thing growing up under my roof."

"For the last time—" Tai Lung rose to fight back, but Po put a calming hand on the snow leopard's shoulder. Then the snow leopard had a sudden urge…and blurted out, "All right. Fine. You don't want it here, then throw it out on the street. Right now."

The rest of the courtyard sat in stunned silence, staring in horror at the snow leopard, who suddenly wondered where in the hell that came from. "Come on, then," he said as he stood, wondering why he was even standing, and what the hell he was doing. "Let's all go and throw the child out in the cold. Come along, everyone."

Horrified, Shifu, Dalang, Po and Masters Ox and Croc followed the snow leopard up the steps to the nursery, where they found Lan Duo with Jiang and the baby.

He found Lan Duo walking back and forth across the floor, trying to shush the baby leopard in his arms.

"Shh...oh c'mon, go to sleep...kid, please. I changed you, fed you, burped you...what do you want?"

Dalang, standing behind Tai Lung, couldn't stop himself: "He wants to be held."

Duo turned around and stared at the massive tiger and the masters crowding the doorway. The wolf held the infant closer to his chest, gently rocking him in his arms. "I tried not to make too much noise."

Tai Lung roughly shoved the tiger chef into the room, forcing him to confront the wolf. "It's fine," Dalang said.

"You're a really bad liar," the wolf shot back.

"And you're a lousy tipper, so let's call it even."

Duo rolled his eyes and sighed dramatically. "Leave one bad tip, and no one lets you forget it!"

Wolf and tiger stood there a moment longer, just staring at each other. The masters waited with bated breath, wondering what they were looking at, and what they were waiting for. The baby had quieted down, but Duo didn't like the silence any more than Dalang did.

"What're you going to do with it—him," Dalang quickly corrected himself.

"I think I'll take him—no one else seems to want him," the wolf said.

"So why do you want him?"

"Honestly, no fuckin' clue."

"Did you even think about this before you decided?"

"Did you plan to be a father before it happened?"

"Yeah, actually."

Duo paused, then shrugged. "I dunno, I guess seeing what a monster Koshchei was...maybe I can keep history from repeating itself. Knowing what I know now about the guy, maybe he would've had a chance if he'd had a better upbringing."

"What kind of upbringing can a bandit and assassin give him?"

"The kind that says screw you...ass."

"You might wanna work on the language if you intend to be a father."

Duo scoffed. "What're you gonna do, install a swear jar?"

"'Might, never know."

"Sure."

They stood in silence for another long, tense moment. Duo looked down at the bundled baby in his arms, then leaned back against the wall, adjusting his hold so that the leopard cub was more comfortable. Glancing at the other masters, he felt compelled to explain, "I had a rough childhood. I figure, I coulda turned out worse, considering. I wanna turn my life around, not sure how to do that, though."

"What makes you think you can?" Master Ox asked.

"Tai Lung did," came the wolf's simplistic answer.

Everyone turned to stare at the snow leopard. Po shrugged, "Hey, guy's gotta point."

Dalang snapped, "He was a special case."

Duo fired back, "And you? Are you a special little snowflake, too?"

The tiger couldn't hold back; the fact this baby was still under his roof was bothering him more and more with each passing minute. He wanted it gone, and if that meant getting rid of the wolf, so be it. "I'm starting to see why Lang was such a bastard, having a teacher like you."

"Again, fuck you, Stripes." Duo then growled as Dalang took a step forward. His hackles rose and he bared his teeth, making the tiger chef stop short, and the other masters hold their breath. "I know what you're thinking," Duo hissed, "And if you take one step closer, I swear I'm gonna rip you apart."

"On what grounds?" the tiger growled.

It was what Duo said next that told everyone what kind of father the wolf would turn out to be:

"You touch one hair on this kid's head, and I'll end you. And I don't care if I die trying. No one hurts this baby on my watch. Got it?!" By now his ears were flat against his head, lips pulled back into a vicious snarl. He meant it. He meant every word. "And so help me, if any of you," he said with a glare towards the masters, from Ox to Croc to Shifu himself, "ever make a move to hurt this baby, I will rip out your eyes and shove them so far down your throat you'll be able to watch me eviscerate you!"

"We're supposed to be afraid of you because you make such insolent threats against us?" Master Ox challenged.

"No," Duo said, looking very close to following through on every single threat if the bovine so much as coughed in his direction. "You're supposed to be afraid because if you hurt my kid, you're not the one who's going to jail. I'm the one who's going to jail. If you think I won't kill, or swing from a gallows, or lose my head for this kid, you got another thing coming!"

It was safe to say that everyone in that doorway knew from experience not to mess with a pissed-off wolf...and knew even better never to mess with an overprotective parent.

Po started to slowly ease everyone away from Duo. "Yeah...yeah, we got it. Loud and clear, right guys?"

Duo relaxed, though only a little. He still looked distrustfully at the tiger, but made his way towards a spare cradle. "The baby needs his sleep. If you wake him up, so help me..."

"Rage, death, evisceration, got it," the tiger quickly finished. "'Night!" And he closed the nursery door behind him. In the main room of the living quarters, Po, Tai Lung, Ox, Croc, Shifu and Dalang all stared at each other in amazement. The Furious Five, who had been unable to look into the nursery, but had heard every word, looked between each other, then around the room in absolute shock. After a long silence, Tai Lung spoke for all of them: "Well, I think that settles that."

What went unspoken, but was unanimously agreed upon, was that the baby leopard had a chance after all.

Yanluo Wang seemed to believe so as well. "Impressive. I should have had more faith in you, Oogway and Sun Bear. Lan Duo will be an excellent parent."

"Agreed," Ming Hua said. "And quite appropriate, given whose soul now inhabits the leopard's body."

"Indeed!" said Oogway. "I rather liked his idea of a family of omegas."

"And as agreed," Sun Bear said to the Lord of the Dead, "I will be Lan Duo's personal guardian."

"So noted," said Yanluo Wang, nodding to the grizzled wolf at his side, who wrote down the court proceedings for him, and the final decision. "Now then, shall we continue to the Jiao reassignments?"

"I have no objections," Oogway said, slowly returning to his seat.

"Neither have I," Sun Bear agreed. "Let's get this over with." He offered his seat to Ming Hua, who gently shook her head, looking between her husband and sons with a worried look.

The Lord of the Dead beckoned them forward. Each tiger stepped forward like men walking to their execution. Shen was the first to stop, drop to his knees and kowtow to the King. Surprised, his sons quickly followed suit.

Yanluo Wang opened a scroll and read out the names. "Chang and Ang, though you performed terrible things in your lifetimes, they paled in comparison to the deeds of your brothers. However, your karma weighed heavily. But in the interest of extenuating circumstances," the Lord of the Dead said with a glance towards Ming Hua, "This court has decided to reincarnate you as the daughters of a laborer. This way you will begin your new lives as you began your previous ones: together."

The twins breathed sighs of relief and smiled at each other. "Thank you, your Lordship," they chorused and bowed deeply again.

"Jiao Huang…given the amount of damage you did in your life, this court determined that you are to be reincarnated as an ant."

Huang's face fell immediately while his brothers winced around him.

Yanluo Wang glared at him. "Perhaps being on the receiving end of the same treatment you gave others might teach you some humility and compassion."

Huang's brothers all avoided looking at him, and Xiang especially looked like he was holding back something. The only reaction Shen gave was to close his eyes and sigh heavily.

"Jiao Xiang."

Xiang straightened up immediately.

"You are to be reincarnated as the second son of a country doctor. You could not be healed in your lifetime, but perhaps taking on your new father's profession will help save lives rather than destroy them."

It was clear the tiger couldn't believe his luck. "How? Why? After the things I did…"

"Then I suggest you become a damn good doctor to make up for it," the Lord of the Dead growled.

Xiang swallowed any other complaints and questions and bowed respectfully.

"Jiao Feng."

Feng gulped nervously. He felt even more nervous when he saw the god smile at him.

"In your life, you were jealous of your youngest brother. You even sought to remove him completely. However in death, you have made certain discoveries about your brother, such as that he always looked up to you, that he himself was jealous of your skill with a bow and arrow. You even came to his aide in a time of crisis. And, I believe, the reason you look so healthy now is due in part to your brother's gratitude for that aide. But tell me: was that shumai any good?"

Feng, confused, glanced down the line of his family members, then back at his mother. She was beaming back at him. Clearly bemused, the tiger replied, "Um…it was the best I ever had, your Lordship."

"Excellent. Given the guardianship role you have taken upon yourself for your brother and nephew, this court has determined you are to be reincarnated as the second son of Jiao Dalang…so you can have the relationship you were always meant to have with him."

"Not to mention," Oogway added, "more opportunities for shumai."

Feng was so shocked, his father had to close his dropped jaw for him. "Show some dignity," Shen hissed at him. "You're in the presence of a god."

"And speaking of," Yanluo Wang said, "We come to you, Shen."

The patriarch sat ramrod straight and held himself with dignity as he awaited his sentence. He wasn't expecting much…perhaps he could tolerate being reborn as a rabbit. Maybe. He hoped he wouldn't get Huang's fate. An ant? That was…rather harsh, even by Shen's standards. But he, like Feng, was pleasantly surprised when the Lord of the Dead said:

"There is a family of lions with three daughters who are desperate for a son. You will be that firstborn son. They are farmers, so you will learn humility in your life, and the value of hard work. And make no mistake, the work will be hard, it will be backbreaking, but it is up to you to decide your own fate. We will not carve it into stone for you. We have given you a great chance to decide your own destiny: don't squander it."

Though Shen was by far the most dignified of the Jiao, even he, like his son Xiang, couldn't help but ask, "Why? No, I will not be cowed. We, all of us, with the exception of my lovely wife, have done horrible things in our past lives. Unforgiveable things. So why in Heaven's name is your Lordship being so lenient? Why are we not being punished with all the tortures Hell has to offer?"

"Mind you," Chang spoke up, "We're not exactly complaining."

"We rather like not being tortured," Ang added.

"Silence!" Yanluo Wang snapped, and the tigers all cringed. "The reason for this court's leniency, despite the fact you all deserve harsher punishments, is that someone has spoken for you, and continues to speak for you."

The males all looked right at Ming Hua, who shook her head. She stepped over to the swirling pool and stirred the waters with her hand. When the water settled, it opened on a scene: Dalang at the family altar, laying out fresh food and lighting incense before the ancestor tablets of his brothers and father. Right now he was lighting incense. Behind him, Master Tigress came into the room bearing a plate of rice cakes and set them before the altar. She too lit incense and placed one smoking stick before each tablet. The husband and wife smiled at each other, pressed their hands together in prayer and began reciting sutras.

Xiang grinned. "Well, I'll be damned..."

Feng smirked. "Not anymore, anyway."

Ming Hua sighed happily and bowed in respect to the Lord of the Dead one last time. "I must return."

"Of course. Say your good byes."

She went to each of her sons and wished them well in their next lives. When she came to her husband, the tigress pressed her palm to his cheek. "There was so little I knew about you in life. In death, so many things I thought I knew turned out to be wrong. I wished we had a second chance..."

"I wish I had a second chance," Shen said, holding her petite hand in his large one.

She smiled. "Now you do. We'll be seeing each other soon. Goodbye, Shen. Until we meet again..."

Mei Xing and Lan Duo made an odd pair, but her help was just what the wolf needed. She had just taught him how to change a diaper, how to properly hold a baby, and feed it.

"I see a problem with this," he said about the latter. "I seem to lack certain things..."

"Then give him to me."

He stared at her.

"What?" she asked.

"You seriously know what you're asking? I mean...you know about how this kid..."

"I'm pretty aware of where babies come from, and I got the stretch marks to prove it." She laughed at his scowl. "I know what you mean, my husband explained it."

"And you're okay with it, even knowing about...?"

"Duo, let me nurse the baby before I break your legs."

"Yes'm." After a pause, he asked, "Won't the others try and, y'know, take the kid away?"

"They already tried, and you threatened to end them. They're not going to try again if they're smart."

"Still, there's no way they can think I'd be a good father, and if they saw what you were doing right now…"

"They might not happy about it, but they won't do anything about it," she said with finality.

"How do you know?"

"Let any of them try and take the kid away from me. Go on, let's see them try."

"Nuh-uh. I remember how you nearly broke my hand. I gotta say, though," he said with an admiring glance. "You are one of the most bad-ass ladies I've ever met. I mean, giving birth and immediately picking up a crossbow to take out some goons in the courtyard..."

She shushed him, "And not a word to my husband. If he knew, he'd never let me have any fun ever again," she said with a wicked grin.

Duo sat back, watching the baby in her arms. "So what now?"

"What do you mean?"

"I can't raise a baby by myself."

"Why not? Single dads are hot."

He raised his brows. "You're the second woman who's said that to me. It's kinda unsettling."

"What? It's a major turn-on: nothing better than a man who's great with kids."

The wolf wisely kept his mouth shut about the subject. "They won't let me keep him."

"Bull. I was watching you fight from the window. I'm the one who sent Dalang down to help you. You wouldn't have fought like that if you didn't feel protective of this baby. I can't think of a better candidate for fatherhood."

"You're the only one who thinks that way. I mean, look at me: I'd be a terrible father. I swear like a sailor, I drink like a fish, and I've got a rap sheet longer than the Great Wall. No one in their right mind would give me a kid."

"Yeah, well, sucks for you that I have Mommy Brain. Here," she said, giving him back the leopard cub. "Now burp him. Use the cloth over your shoulder."

"Why?" he asked as he did as instructed. He was rewarded with a small burp from the baby...as well as some spit up. "Oh."

"Yeah, they'll do that."

"Hence the cloth?"

"Hence the cloth," she nodded sagely.

After a long silence, wherein the leopard baby fell asleep in Duo's arms, she finally asked, "So what'll you do now? Give up crime for good?"

"I'd thought about it before, but I guess I'll have to now. What kinda life can I give a kid if I'm a thief and a murderer?"

"Do you have a marketable skill?"

"Like...?"

"Carpentry, farming, artisan crafts, cooking, anything like that?"

"I don't suppose you call twenty-plus years of kung fu experience a 'marketable skill'?"

"Depends on the career."

"Army's out, what with my record."

"Maybe. And takes you away from home for a long time...hey!" she perked up, "What about teaching kung fu?"

A dark look crossed his face and he shook his head. "No. Never again."

Mei Xing hesitated, then quietly asked, "Who was it?"

"What?"

"The one you lost, who was it?"

"Why do you care?"

"Humor me."

He sighed heavily, adjusting the swaddled baby leopard in his arms. The wolf glanced at Mei Xing then sighed again, "His name was Lang, he was my first student, and he died in my arms, a few days ago. I saw to his burial yesterday. I trained him, taught him to fight, and in the end, he took a sword for me."

"Sounds like you taught him well."

"He's dead, how do you call that being trained well?"

"Well, if you'd done a bad job, he would've just let you die. You did a good enough job that he cared about you, that he respected you."

"I don't think that's it. I think he knew he had fallen into such a dark place, that there was no way out for him. A dark place that I should have seen him falling into. I could've caught him, you know. I knew the warning signs, hell, I encouraged them! And now he's dead, and it's my fault."

Mei Xing held back on saying the first thing that popped into her head: he had just sounded an awful lot like Shifu right there. Instead, she said: "He died saving you, and you're blaming yourself for that? You had no control over him..."

"So I guess this is that 'Survivor's Guilt' people talk about?"

"That'd be my guess." They fell into silence again. Mei Xing leaned back in her chair and sighed tiredly, closing her eyes. It wasn't long before she was asleep. Duo didn't bother waking her.

"She's something, isn't she?" Wu asked.

He jumped. "Jeez, lady, don't do that!"

The elderly red panda looked up at him and smiled a little. "She's right, you know, you could be a good teacher."

"But..."

"And take it from someone who watched her own students die before her eyes: that does not make you a failure. It took me forty years to see that. Forty years of blaming myself, when it happens to all the best kung fu teachers...even Shifu."

Duo glanced down at her. "Even him?"

"He's suffered far worse than either of us can imagine. Mei Xing is right though: the military wouldn't suit you, and I honestly can't see you as a goon for hire. You're too smart for that."

He snorted.

"I did want to ask: where did you learn so much about childbirth?" she asked.

"My cousin. When he married in, his wife was pretty awesome. She was the only family member who really seemed to care. My uncle called me Lazy, my cousin called me a dumbass, but she was patient as Buddha and twice as good. She nearly died giving birth the first time, eventually she had a whole litter of kids. I dunno, I guess I felt some kind of loyalty to her."

"Because she treated you well."

"Yeah, I guess so." He paused. "She died not too long ago. My cousin actually bothered to tell me. I sent flowers, I couldn't make it back in time for the funeral. I guess it shows something. I didn't bother going home when my uncle died, because it didn't feel like home to me. Never did." The wolf looked down at the baby, who was now sleeping soundly. "What kind of life can this kid have with a guy who doesn't have a clue?"

Wu had at least one answer for him: "Again, ask Shifu. He knows a thing or two about being a single adoptive father..."

Shifu found Tigress in the last place he expected. Su Lin and several masters had helped set up a temporary hospital in an empty warehouse as close to the village center as possible. Further away, near the village wall, was the makeshift morgue. This was where Tigress had come. She was barely bundled up in a long-sleeved green tunic and black pants, a scarf loosely draped around her neck. Despite the shrill wind and arctic temperatures coming down off the mountains, she didn't shiver. She just stared at the rows of covered bodies, many of them shrouded and ready for burial, but many more simply left on the floor, faces covered. The warehouse was quiet except for the few volunteers going around leaving labels on top of identified bodies, others escorting fearful relatives in identifying their loved ones.

One horrible cry rose up from the furthest corner of the makeshift morgue. A woman just discovered she had been made a widow. Shifu's heart ached; that woman had only recently been married, they had a small child, and another on the way.

He made his way to Tigress's side and asked, "How many?"

"Nearly two hundred villagers," she answered quietly. "We're still counting the enemy dead. Though I frankly don't care."

"I know, but the enemies we fought likely had records, and I felt it best that we say once and for all that they won't affect the empire again."

"I know the reasons why," she said sharply. "I just want this all done and finished. I want to move on."

Shifu stared at her. This wasn't like her, these clipped responses...at least not anymore. "Tigress, what's wrong?"

"It's nothing."

"I've been married long enough to know it's never 'nothing'. What's wrong?"

Tigress sighed. "Not here. Outside."

Shifu acquiesced, followed her outside and shivered against the biting wind.

"This is my fault," she said.

The red panda paused and asked, not so subtly, "Are you out of your senses? Where did you get such an idea?"

"Fighting. Teaching the villagers to fight, the whole plan I created...this is my fault. If I had planned this better, if they had been trained better, this would never have happened. Those two hundred people would still be alive, and there would be no widows, no orphans, no grieving parents...It's all so senseless, why did they have to die? They didn't deserve it..."

"Tigress, this was war," he said. "War is always senseless. And no one ever deserves to die, not even people who do awful things."

She rounded on him. "Oh no? What about the monsters that killed those people? Don't they deserve to die?"

"If they do, that's not my call to make, nor yours, for that matter. It is up to the Emperor to deal out justice."

"What justice? Those people are still dead."

"Yes, and now you see how senseless it all is. You want revenge, not justice, and I want you to know that it is a dark path to follow. Executing the ones that did this won't bring back the victims. They must be punished, yes, but there are much worse things than death."

"That could be me in there," she said suddenly, as the widow's sobs grew louder. "I could have been a widow because of this battle. I could have died, and left Dalang a widower. I could have lost Shang...I could have lost everyone, and everything."

"But you didn't. Tigress, I know this is hard, but you have come out of much worse and risen to the occasion. You are stronger than this, and I think we both know it."

She opened her mouth to speak, hesitated, thought better of it, then struck up the nerve to say, "I don't feel it. I was so sure of everything, Master, and now I have no idea what I'm doing. I don't know what to do next. I had planned this far, but I never expected this. I never thought of a plan for rebuilding..."

He touched her hand. "Then let us help. Remember what Sonam likes to say: when you can't walk, you crawl; when you can't crawl, find someone to carry you. You have done more than your fair share, and now it is time to rest. You are not immortal: go home, get some rest."

"I can't rest, not with so much work to do..."

"Tigress, let me worry about that. Trust me, after being stuck in a room with a laboring snow leopardess, I could use the exercise and fresh air. Go home, have a hot meal, and get some sleep. Be with your son, with your husband, and don't come back out until you're ready. Can you promise me this?"

She was silent, and wouldn't meet his gaze. "Alright, I'll go home."

"Good. Listen," he said, tugging on her sleeve. "I say this only because I'm worried. I've never seen you like this."

"I know."

"And Tigress?"

She finally looked him in the eye. "Yes, Master?"

She was surprised to see the mournful look on his face, and how it aged him. "Don't isolate yourself. Don't do the same thing I did. Surround yourself with people, even when the thought of a crowd exhausts you. Don't let yourself be alone."

She didn't nod. She didn't say anything to acknowledge what he said. Instead, she sighed and headed home.

The next day dawned dreary, bearing a sky that threatened yet more snow. The work of cleaning up after the battle had begun. The one hospital the village had was not big enough to accommodate all the wounded, so a special field hospital had to be set up in an empty warehouse. The kung fu masters all chipped in, bringing firewood, collecting bandages, medicines, some from their own personal effects.

And Su Lin was there, organizing the whole thing. She didn't stop to talk, stopping only long enough to check on patients and on women and men whom she had recruited to help nurse the wounded back to health.

The worst part of her job, however, was identifying who was to be sent to the makeshift morgue, a few blocks away. The air was bitterly cold, and there were only so many blankets to go around. The hospital she had set up was as organized as it could possibly be, but it wasn't enough. So the female panda was astonished and relieved when mid-morning, a cloaked figure walked into the hospital and asked for her. Su Lin approached the person. "Can I help you?"

"I'm looking for the Wu sisters."

"I'm sorry, they're not here. I haven't seen them since the battle. Did you..." she hated having to ask this question several times already; she hated seeing the looks on people's faces, who had held out hope their loved ones were alive.

"The morgue?" the cloaked one asked. "Yes, been there first, no sign of them. Thank you for confirming that they're neither dead nor injured. Do you know where I can find them? They report to me."

"Have you tried the Long and Feng Café?"

"The what?"

"Used to be called 'Ping's Noodles'. I know the proprietors. And they've met the sisters. They should know. And hey, do me a favor?"

"Sure."

"Bring back a bowl of noodles for me? I've had nothing but some onion broth and a rice ball since yesterday..."

The figure held up a gloved hand. "Say no more. Give me a few minutes, you'll get your noodles. Thanks for the tip."

By the time the cloaked one got to the restaurant, the Wu Sisters and Wu Lien were sitting outside at a single table, sharing a pot of tea. The Sword of Heroes could not have cut the tension at that table. Master Crane and Master Viper stood by to mediate in case things got hairy. The serpent calmly sipped her tea, while Crane glanced between the furry faces and looked uncomfortable. The time for an entrance was now.

Zhu saw the figure first. She waved, "Hey, Boss."

Tian and Jiang perked up immediately, the former jumping up and giving the proper salute. "Sir!"

"At ease, I came for some food for the panda at the hospital...and a status report. Food first."

Wu Lien snapped, "And just who the hell are you? You think a complete stranger can just walk right in here after the melee yesterday and I'm just supposed to accept..."

The figure sighed and took the hood off.

Wu stopped talking.

Viper did a spit take. Master Crane took several moments to get his voice to work before he croaked out his astonishment:

"Mei Ling?!"

The mountain cat, Mei Ling, proud graduate of the Li Da Kung Fu Academy, smiled back at him as warmly as if they were still students together. "Hey, Crane, how's tricks?"

Wu whirled on the avian. "You know her?!"

"Know her? She's one of the best – actually the best – alumni of the Li Da Academy."

"Not to mention the best wedding guest in China," Viper said.

"Oh stop," Mei Ling teased, "You're making me blush. I hate to ask a favor when I've seen you for the first time since your wedding, but that panda girl, who's working at that hospital? She desperately needs some food. I'll pay, if you can get it to her."

"Is Su Lin okay?" Viper asked worriedly.

"She looks ready to drop."

"Laborer's Special," Wu Lien nodded, and Viper slithered off to fill the order. "Ask Ping and Dalang to whip it up. High-protein and carbs," she explained to the female felines. "Perfect thing for someone who's working hard all the time. Now, you still haven't said who you are."

The mountain cat bowed low in respect to the elder. "I am Mei Ling, Commander Mei Ling, of the Imperial Army, at your service," she said with a respectful smile. "You must be the famous Wu Lien I've heard so much about. Ma'am, it's an honor."

Flattered, Wu could only nod. "I am...not sure where this is going."

Mei Ling looked to the Wu Sisters. "None of you told her yet?"

"We were going to," Zhu said haltingly. "Just...didn't seem like the right time, or the right words..."

"Certain words were exchanged last time we saw each other," Jiang explained.

"So..." Mei Ling said, "You'd rather I explain?"

Aunt Wu finally snapped, "As long as someone explains, I don't really care who!"

"Should I stick around?" Crane asked.

A glare from Wu Lien silenced him, and a sympathetic look from Mei Ling gave him his answer. "You're right, I should just fly Su Lin's food over to her once its ready. Uh...you ladies have fun!" and he bolted away.

Mei Ling simply offered a smile to the Wu family, and especially to Wu Lien. "So...would you like the long version, or short and sweet?"

"Just give it to me straight, honey."

"Okay. Your daughters were never outlaws."

Wu paused, stunned. "What?"

"They were never outlaws," Mei Ling repeated. "They've been working for me these last ten years. Your training gave them unique skills that I needed. I am the head of the Imperial Special Forces, and your daughters were – and are – my best undercover agents."

"Wait, wait..." the red panda interrupted. She looked up at her eldest, viewing her in a new light. "You're Black Ops? This whole time, you've been..."

"Legit?" Tian finished. "Yes, Mother, we've been working for the government this whole time. I'm sorry we never told you..."

"We couldn't," Jiang said. "Given the nature of our work, we thought it would be best to keep you in the dark."

"You would've just worried about us," Zhu explained.

Mei Ling cut in: "Your safety was also of high concern."

"My safety?" Wu asked. Then she thought about it, the years spent on the run, the numerous enemies her daughters had likely acquired over the years... "Okay, fair enough. But all these years...those people, their victims, your victims?" she asked her daughters.

"Enemies of the state," Jiang said.

"And that man who died right before you went on the run..."

Mei Ling summarized: "Long story short: they've been sleeper agents for the black ops forces, trained to take out anyone who means to hurt the empire."

"Which explains why they only killed men and not women and children."

Zhu spoke up, "To be fair, some women really deserved it, but those were our orders."

"So why Koshchei?"

Mei Ling sighed and rubbed the corners of her eyes. After sending an apologetic look to the female snow leopards, she said, "We did some digging...their mother was the widow of a man Koshchei killed; we're not sure why he was assassinated. Anyway, the widow took her daughters to a safe house and left them there, trying to shake Koshchei off her trail. He caught up with her instead."

Wu's body suddenly felt very heavy. So that was what happened...that poor woman. Her daughters didn't seem as surprised; perhaps they had already known. "But why didn't he come back for the girls?"

The mountain cat said, "My guess? He probably figured they were too young to know anything, or too young to remember his face. But Tian remembered. Children remember a lot more than you think, even when young." The Mountain cat paused and looked at Wu. "This would also be a good time to tell you that the magistrate's son that died suddenly ten years ago..."

"Don't tell me: Koshchei too?"

Mei Ling tapped her nose with her finger. "He framed your daughters, so Tian had reason to go after him. She had several reasons, but I ordered her to stand down; she had a personal reason for going after him, even if her sisters didn't know the whole story. I thought she was too close and would slip up, get herself and her sisters killed."

"She never was one to follow orders," Wu said, shaking her head, but smiled at her eldest anyway.

"No...no she wasn't. And in hindsight, I'm glad she didn't listen to me," Mei Ling agreed, with a grateful smile sent in Tian's direction. "We had more than enough intelligence to take him out than we would have if she obeyed me."

"So what you're saying is..." Jiang hinted.

"I'm saying it's easier to beg for mercy than ask for permission, yes."

"So we're off the hook?" Zhu asked.

"For now," the mountain cat warned.

Zhu grinned. "Sweet."

Wu Lien was silent, but after a while, she dared to look up at her daughters. "We lost so much time."

"We have a lot to catch up on," Tian said.

Mei Ling excused herself. "And I'll let you get to it. I got to find Altai and Hu Quon. Ladies, take all the time you need."

Altai was writing up his report for the emperor when he got a visitor. The rhino had been expecting this ever since the battle ended several days ago, but had rather hoped it could have waited until after the paperwork had been filed. He looked up from his desk as Tai Lung entered the room.

"Mornin'."

"It's evening," the snow leopard corrected.

"Is it? Man, I've been working on this for too long," he said as he rubbed his eyes. The rhino got up to open the window; some cold air would wake him up, make him more alert. Though he should have just waited for Tai Lung to cut to the chase:

"You lied to me."

Altai sighed and closed the shutters. When he turned back to face Tai Lung, the rhino made a face. "Please don't look at me like that."

"You lied to me," he repeated, arms crossed over his chest. "You told me I could trust you."

"And you can."

"You said you were dishonorably discharged."

"Yeah, that part was a lie. Everything else was the truth. I did go to the capital to lodge a complaint. I didn't get to, because when I got there...well, I got a letter from Oogway. He seemed to suspect something was going on in Chorh-Gom...he didn't know what it was exactly, but he assured me you needed to stay put."

"Why?"

"He didn't think you had learned your lesson. I protested, sent a letter back, telling him you were in real danger there, but I didn't get anything in return. All these years I thought he had ignored my request to at least transfer you to a new facility, find someone else to handle your incarceration; I realize now that he had very good reasons for keeping you there. It was all a part of this prophecy thing I keep hearing about, wasn't it? Are you really the Phoenix Warrior?"

Tai Lung paused, sighed through his nose, then nodded.

Altai snorted. "Looks like I wasn't the only one keeping secrets."

"I couldn't tell you."

"Why not?"

"I—" he stopped himself, then said guiltily, "I wasn't sure I could trust you. But I also thought...well, I didn't quite believe it myself."

"Seeing is believing, then, isn't it?"

"No lie." He paused again. "So you weren't discharged...what happened?"

"I got recruited to Black Ops. The Emperor himself requested I go, join Commander Mei Ling's unit. He was concerned with intelligence reports of defectors and traitors. He also tasked me with finding more operatives. I recruited Quon myself when I saw what he was capable of in the Academy. The Wu Sisters, of course, were already in the system, as it were.

"Then you escaped from prison. I knew it was a matter of time, and so when you did, I was probably the only one in the empire who wasn't surprised...except for Oogway, maybe. Then you survived the Wuxi finger-hold. News about that traveled pretty damn far. Word got out that you were invincible, and almost as soon as that got out, outlaws started putting a bounty out for anyone that could kill you. That's when I got involved. I went undercover, to try and weed them out. See, I couldn't tell you the whole truth, as much as I wanted to. I couldn't blow my cover."

"Were you really widowed?"

"Yes. After my cover got blown."

"Oh."

"Yeah, 'oh'." Altai fell into a despondent silence, and Tai Lung allowed him a moment to reflect.

"How's your wife?" Altai asked suddenly, desperate to change the subject.

"She's fine, resting. It's a girl."

"Are you happy about that?"

"Why wouldn't I be?"

Altai allowed himself a smile. "She's only a few days old and already got you wrapped around her finger."

"We'll see about that," the snow leopard said, "Though to be honest...I wouldn't mind if that did happen." He allowed himself a smile, but then cut to another topic: "What do you know about Zang Deshi? Aside from what you've already told me?"

"Zang, right. He's been on our notice for months, now. The emperor started looking at him because he got too greedy. Suddenly the pay he got from being an officer was not enough for his lifestyle. We discovered after a lot of snooping that he had a lot of debts, and he was getting desperate. We knew it was only a matter of time before he started selling secrets to our enemies so that he could pay his bills; this was what the emperor was really worried about, what with the continuing war against the Mongols. Vachir was one of the people he owed money to; his death was actually more of a relief for him than anything else. After you broke out, we discovered that, even after you'd been presumed dead for a year, there was still a warrant out for your arrest, and a hefty reward for you or any information leading to your capture. When this whole thing started, we had no idea you were still alive...so we thought, what harm could come from showing him your wanted poster? So..." the rhino said guiltily, "It turns out you were not dead, so then we had an ethical problem on our hands: warn you and thus tip off Zang that we were on to him, or keep it silent and just have a few personnel keep an eye on you from afar to keep you safe until we could nab Zang."

"So, let me ask you this," Tai Lung said. "Was I in any real danger?"

"Only the danger you got yourself into," Altai said, making a face. "Let's face it: I'm good at my job, but even I can't work miracles. You're so stubborn, it got irritating more than a few times."

"So who was it? Who was keeping an eye on me?"

"Well, there were the guys you identified as the undercover Buddha's Witnesses, Crane's mom, then Mr. Lu..."

"Mr. Lu?!"

"Yeah, he's retired from the Intelligence Corps. We offered a pension, but he turned it down in favor of keeping an eye on you for free. He said something about being grateful you saved his home, or something, and that it's the least he could do..."

"Next time he comes in, he's getting a full course meal on the house."

"Don't bother, he won't accept it."

"What's going to happen to Zang now?"

Altai suddenly looked very tired. "Death, most likely. I doubt the Emperor will show pity on someone so willing to kill, no matter how good a soldier he is. Was. One way or another, he won't leave this valley alive."

For some reason, this made the snow leopard feel sick. Tai Lung had no love for the horse, of course, but the thought of him being in any way responsible for yet one more death...

"I know what you're thinking," Altai said, "And stop it. It's not your fault. He made his bed. But don't think about him anymore, alright? You got a family now, you got a job, a home, a life that anyone would want. Focus on that. Leave the unpleasant stuff to me."

"Hardly seems fair," the snow leopard said, "You doing all the work."

"Are your crab wontons as good as people say?"

"Depends. What do they say about them?"

The rhino smirked at the feline's compliment fishing. "If you feel bad enough about it, just keep me supplied with some good food, and that's payment enough for me."

A knock came to the door and Mei Ling entered the room. Altai stood to attention, despite the mountain cat's order for him to be at ease. Tai Lung was shocked. "Aren't you...?"

"Yeah, Commander Mei Ling, Special Forces," she said tiredly. "I was at Crane and Viper's wedding, remember? I've been reintroducing myself all day, and I need to borrow the Captain for a while. Captain? Grab the Lieutenant, we have some business to take care of."

"Yes, ma'am." The rhino gave Tai Lung a look that said "don't wait up" and followed his commanding officer out of the room.

"Business that can't wait, ma'am?"

"Business that's overdue," she said, handing him a scroll. "I got my orders before I left the capital. Where's Zang Deshi?"

Altai felt a tightening in his throat. He knew what was coming. "He's in a holding cell, the same one Tai Lung was held in before going to prison, in fact."

Mei Ling only nodded. "Alright. The fewer witnesses, the better. I don't want this getting out."

"Ma'am, we have orders; no one can fault us for following them."

"And if we're lucky, we may not have to follow them at all."

Hu Quon met them out in the hall and they continued their way down into the depths of the mountain. Down and down they went, the corridor seeming to grow longer the further they walked. "I thought I should mention," Mei Ling said, reaching into her pocket and handing something to each of them. "You've both been promoted. Congratulations Commander Altai and Captain Hu."

No one was more surprised than Altai, and a quick glance towards Quon told him the tiger was just as flabbergasted, but didn't question it. Altai bit back on his concerns and pinned the new badge to his uniform.

Finally, they came to the holding cell. "It's best if he doesn't see me," Mei Ling said. "These are our orders. Review them, and carry them out."

"Why shouldn't he see you, ma'am, if you don't mind my asking?" Quon asked.

"You know how he is about women in positions of authority," she reminded with a firm look.

Cowed, the young tiger only nodded in grim affirmation. "Yes, ma'am, I know only too well." He scanned the same scroll with his rhino commander, and his expression darkened. Altai's countenance was just as grim.

"So, these are our orders?"

"They are," the mountain cat said. All mirth had left her; she was now strictly business. "I don't expect you to take any pleasure in this. I wouldn't."

"I know you wouldn't," the rhino said. "You're too good for that."

She allowed him a small smile, but it quickly vanished. "Give him the options, hopefully he'll take one of them, and save us a lot of trouble."

Altai stared at the door and sighed heavily. The rhino looked down at the new patch on his uniform and took in another deep breath. Quon cleared his throat and nodded once at the closed door. "We can't put this off any longer, Commander."

Gods, it was hard to hear that. As bad as their falling-out had been, Altai still considered Vachir a good friend and ally. To suddenly occupy the very rank of his fallen comrade seemed almost sacrilegious, at the very least like Altai was taking his place. True, the Anvil of Heaven no longer existed as an entity, as a unified group, but there would be nothing to shake the association with the fallen warden of Chorh-Gom prison. Altai's misgivings, of course, weren't helped knowing that he now stood at a cell door to dole out a punishment he was sure Vachir would have condoned.

"I don't want to do this, Captain," he whispered to Quon. "But I know orders are orders."

"If I may speak plainly, sir, you were not there. You didn't see the things he did."

"I believe you. I just wish my first duty as a Commander wasn't…"

Quon nodded and gave him a half-hearted smile. "I understand. No one ever wants to be responsible for something like this…"

The rhino nodded. "But it's gotta be done." Fixing the collar of his cloak, he nodded once at Mei Ling, who silently handed him a sealed scroll and a set of keys. Altai stepped forward and unlocked the cell door, admitting a thin shaft of light into the tiny cell. There was only room enough for himself, and for the prisoner sitting against the wall.

Zang Deshi impassively looked up at the rhino and tiger, the horse no longer the picture of precision. His coat, mane, and tail were dirty and hung in tangled tendrils, and though his dark eyes still shone with intense tenacity, a sudden dullness entered them, as if he knew exactly what was coming. His eyes almost immediately fell on the scroll in Altai's hands. "Is that what I think it is?" he asked carefully.

Grim-faced, the rhino tore off the imperial seal and opened the scroll to read the orders: "'Captain Zang Deshi, by order of his Imperial Majesty, you are hereby stripped of all rank and privileges thereof, for gross conduct unbecoming of an officer of the Crown, and for high treason against the Emperor. You are hereby ordered to commit suicide, by whichever method or methods are immediately available. Refusal or failure to do so will result in immediate beheading and innumerable shame upon your family for generations…'" Altai rolled up the scroll. "I'll spare you the rest. It goes on like that for a while. Besides, you know what you did."

Zang nodded. "I do." He paused. "What are my immediate options?"

"You mean aside from ritual suicide?" Quon ironically asked. Much to the tiger's surprise, Zang smirked back.

"I should have foreseen this," the fallen warrior confessed. "This is for the best. I can't live in a world where a criminal is a hero and a hero is executed for doing what is right—"

"No, Deshi," Quon growled. "What you did is not right. You endangered innocent lives, put the entire empire at the mercy of a psychopathic madman, and nearly started a civil war, and all for vengeance."

"You didn't know Vachir—"

Altai interrupted, "No, but I did. If he knew what you had done, and what you almost did, he'd be as ashamed of you as I am."

Zang fell silent, for the first time realizing that debate was futile. He leaned back against the wall and quietly asked again, "What are my options?"

Quon opened up the sack he had brought with him. "You have three choices: cyanide, a white scarf, or your sword."

"So can I take the coward's way out," he analyzed, "by consuming poison; I can hang myself; or I fall on my own sword. Such decisions…"

"Make it quick," Altai ordered. "I don't want to start my promotion with an execution. And I know you don't want to shame your ancestors by showing up to the afterlife with your head under your arm."

Zang had gone completely silent, staring into space as he considered his choices. For instance, he considered his choice to go after Tai Lung in the first place. He considered his reaction to being told there was nothing he could do, that the snow leopard was blameless. He considered how he had completely disregarded the laws of the country he loved more than gods and heaven to find peace and justice for a slaughtered friend. And now he considered all the decisions he had made in the past two months. Swallowing down the lump in his throat—which he wasn't sure if it was fear or some other equally strong emotion—he finally looked up at Quon.

"The sword."

The immediate fate of Zang Deshi was completely unknown to Jiao Dalang who, for the first time in weeks, was able to make the trek from the village to the Pool of Sacred Tears on Wudan Mountain. He brought with him a small box of dumplings, but they were not, of course, meant for him. When he arrived, he saw another figure standing over the grave of Jiao Shang the Elder, peering at the tombstone with a specific sort of gravity he knew all too well. Dalang quietly stepped over to the other tiger, whose hand rested on his sword hilt, the young tiger's green eyes studying the grave. Dalang knelt and rested his offering in front of the tombstone, noting the similar offering of food…remarkably, one of Shang's favorites.

"I wish I'd known him," Quon said softly.

Dalang looked back at him, then straightened, brushing dead grass off his knees. "Shang was a mystery to a lot of people," Dalang said. "I'm not sure I knew everything, and he was my brother."

"You two were close?"

"As close as time and distance allowed, yeah."

They fell into silence again, and Dalang stared at the other offering. They were lotus seed buns...lotus seed buns with a blackcurrant preserve filling; it was Shang's favorite dessert. He was the only one in the family who could eat them, though; every other Jiao brother was allergic to blackcurrants. But how would Hu Quon have known that?

Quon sighed. "All I knew about him were rumors, tall tales, perhaps. I heard that he suffered from Dragon Rage, an affliction that every combatant fears he will suffer. I heard that, though he was dangerous with a sword and never lost a fight, he was still honorable and just. He never killed for the sake of it."

"That's all true," Dalang said. "But he was also very caring, and very protective of those he cared for. When I was little, he used to shadow me to make sure I didn't get hurt. He shadowed all of us, until we got old enough to look after ourselves. He was more of a father to me than Shen ever was."

"Do you think, if he'd had any children, he would have been a good father to them?"

Dalang hesitated, then turned to look into the youth's face, and finally put the last piece into the puzzle. He frowned, and bluntly answered, "Cut the crap, kid, I know who you are. And yes, he would have loved you as much as he would've loved any and all of his kids. Believe me, if my brother had stuck around with your mom, I bet he would have made an awesome dad." He paused. "How did you know he was…?"

"Mom told me," Quon said sadly. "He was the only man she'd ever…well, ever known, if you catch my drift. She met him, fell in love with him, then he had to leave, and I was born a few months later. She did love him, and I think he maybe loved her too. Now that I know about the Dragon Rage, I think I know why he kept everyone at arm's length."

"Yeah…he didn't want anyone getting close to him," Dalang reflected. "He didn't want them to suffer when he finally…well, Dragon Rage takes its victims young; most of the afflicted never live to see forty. No matter how hard he tried, though, he just couldn't keep people from loving him."

"He was a good man."

"Yeah, he was a very good man."

Dalang paused, and asked, "How did you know he liked blackcurrants?"

Quon shrugged. "I didn't. I guess I thought that if I liked something, he might've liked it too; Mom always told me how much I was like him. But you know what the weird thing is? I'm the only one in my family not allergic to them."

Dalang chuckled, "You are your father's son, alright."

They stood in silence a while longer before Dalang cleared his throat and once again turned to face the youth. "You can stay here, you know, in the Valley. I might not be much older than you, but I think I could be a pretty kick-ass uncle."

Quon smiled, chuckling a little. "I appreciate it, but I think its best we kept this between us. There are still people out there who would eradicate any Jiao, regardless, and if they knew…" he shook his head. "No, this is for your safety as much as mine."

"But you'll visit?"

"Sometimes, as often as I can." He turned back to the tombstone. "I need to at least make it out here for Ghost Festival and New Year's. I think he'd appreciate the visits, even if he never met me."

"He'd also appreciate you coming to know his nephew. Your cousin would look up to you…"

"We both know having anything but a purely professional relationship is a bad idea, Mr. Jiao," Quon replied, with the small, sad smile that Jiao Shang had been known for. "You have your family, and someday, I'll have one of my own. I may not carry on my father's name, but I can continue my mother's family line, and that's good enough for me." Quon glanced back at him with a wry smile that Dalang remembered gracing his brother's face on more than one occasion. "Besides, your 'family' is complicated enough without me."

Dalang rolled his eyes. "Ain't that the truth..."

"No, really…your aunt is also your mother-in-law, and your in-laws are both red pandas, one of whom is the father to your wife, who is a tigress. Your wife is the breadwinner in your family while you're the stay-at-home parent who spends his days cooking, cleaning, and watching your son; your brother and sister-in-law are snow leopards; you call your business partners your brothers; and Tai Lung's daughter and your son are 'first cousins' without actually being biologically related."

"And that's just the immediate family," Dalang joked.

Quon laughed, but sobered when he looked back at his father's gravestone. The younger tiger sighed and rested his palm on the stone. "Now that the mission's completed, I've asked for a leave of absence. Commander Mei Ling has authorized me to undertake a more…personal mission."

"What would that be?"

"I want to know how many others there are."

"Others…wait—you think Shang had other—"

Quon gave him a flat look.

"—Okay, I see your point."

The young lieutenant coughed, and continued, "Rumors of his, um, prowess are, ah, legendary amongst the women who knew him…"

"And the men; can't forget them."

Quon stared at him.

"I'm kidding."

"Okay, sure. Well, long and short of it is that I want to see how many half-siblings I have…and, consequently, how many nieces and nephews you have."

"So you think there are scores of little Shangs running around the empire, each one cuter than the last?"

"That's my theory, anyway," Quon said with a slight ironic tone. "It will require a lot of research, finding which places the horde traveled, where they stayed for extended periods, and try to track how many women—and men—"

"I said I was kidding about that, didn't I?"

"—I like to be thorough."

"Well, either way you slice it, you've got your work cut out for you."

"You think so?"

Dalang thought back to the clearest memories he had of his brother and his life amongst the Jiao…and the chef's cheeks flushed. "Trust me, I know. You are in way over your head."

Quon only smiled. "We'll see about that."

It would not be until the fifth birthday of Dalang and Tigress's son Shang, that Captain Hu Quon would admit defeat. He had kept his promise to send his Uncle Dalang a letter every time he found one of Shang Senior's children…and Dalang would have a drawer full of some twenty-odd letters in his kitchen after only two years of searching.

Back at the Long and Feng, two weeks after the battle that was starting to be called the Dong Zhi War, Tai Lung woke up with a start when the baby started crying. It was still early. Mei Xing grumbled as she sat up again and began to nurse her child, and Tai Lung, similarly, was having a sleepless night. The baby waking up every two hours to feed, have her diaper changed, and simply be held, was already taking its toll on him. And it would take months for her to finally sleep through the night.

Gods help us both. Finally, with a groan, he sat up, his body feeling stiff from overexertion and fatigue. "I'm going to get something from the kitchen. Anything I can get you?" he asked his wife.

"A full night's sleep would be fantastic," she retorted.

"I think we're right out of that. Anything else?"

"Nah, I think I've got it."

He stood and dressed in a house robe and, tying the belt around his waist, leaned over to give his wife a kiss and go downstairs. At the table in the middle of the room, however, he found Tigress sitting, her head laid in her crossed arms on the table. She had been asleep for a while, and, Tai Lung noticed with consternation, that bottle of wine by her hand had been full the night before. Now he had yet one more person to worry about.

He strode over, snatched the half-empty bottle away and jumped when Tigress stirred. She looked up at him blearily, then, without seeming to care, lowered her head back down.

Bugger, he knew what this was. He had felt it in Chorh-Gom. He had bouts of it still, years later. He knew how debilitating it was, and he would be damned if it happened to someone else, someone he – dare he say it? - cared about.

"Tigress, aren't you going to bed?"

"I don't want to move."

"That's not the most comfortable place to be, you know."

"Please, Tai Lung...just leave me alone."

He paused. "Did you drink all this wine yourself?"

"Yes. Is that such a damn problem?"

"It can be, and I'm not going to let it be a problem." He pulled up a stool and sat adjacent to her. "Talk to me. What's wrong?"

"Why do you care?"

"Humor me."

Tigress sighed, then, groggily, raised her head out of her arms and looked at him. She wasn't still drunk, but she was certainly hung over. "Did you know nearly two hundred villagers died in that battle? Two hundred. And it's my fault."

He frowned, and stared at her like she had lost her mind. "What? Where did you get such an idea? Who told you that?"

"No one, but I know. I know it's my fault. If they had just evacuated, they'd all still be alive..."

"You don't know that."

"Yes I do!" she snapped. There were tears in her eyes. "I'm responsible."

"They were responsible," Tai Lung urged. "They knew what they were getting into. Shifu told me, Auntie told me, even the villagers themselves told me – they knew what they were doing, they knew what was at stake. Tell me this: do you go into every battle expecting to die?"

"Not always."

"But you know it is a distinct possibility, don't you?"

"Of course."

"So did they, Tigress. They knew that, too. And they fought anyway. Didn't they have a choice to run?"

"Yes, they did."

"Did they run?"

She didn't answer.

"Tigress, did they run?"

She hesitated, then said quietly, "No."

"They could have, but they didn't, right?"

"Right," she said, also quietly. She sniffed and said, "But it was my plan. I told Shifu, the villagers, the magistrate, hell, I told the army that I took responsibility for whatever happened to the valley...and now nearly two hundred people are dead, because of my stupid plan!"

He reached out and grabbed her hand. "It was not stupid, it was brave. And despite what you think, you didn't kill those villagers. The outlaws did. And you can't control them."

She was shaking her head. "Everyone's saying that those men, women, children – children! - all died as heroes...heroes," she spat out the last word. "As if it makes it better! Calling them heroes doesn't bring them back!"

"Neither does drowning your sorrows in drink."

Tears were now flowing freely down her cheeks. He sighed, and reached out to cup her chin and turn her head towards him. "Tigress, don't do this to yourself. Don't give in to despair. Take it from someone who's been there, who gave into that obsession and dwelt on it for years: It's not worth it. I know you're hurting, and I know how that feels, but you can't let this consume you."

"Why not?"

"Because you'll turn out like me."

She sniffed, turning her head away. "You didn't turn out so bad."

"Oh, didn't I? The rampage, the prison, the prison break that killed over nine hundred men? Yes, I'm a real saint."

"You turned yourself around."

"And so can you. I don't want you making the same mistakes I made, and this," he said, holding up the wine bottle, "is not a good road either."

Tigress stared down at the wood grain and picked at it with her claw. Tai Lung sighed again, then got up to stoke up the oven and put the kettle on for tea. It seemed like the right thing to do. Then something else came to him. Putting the kettle on a separate burner, he turned back to Tigress and grabbed her hand. "C'mon, there's something I want to show you."

It probably said something about how depressed she was, because Tigress let him lead her to the altar room at the center of the house. He had grabbed two rugs and laid them out on the floor, facing the altar. He placed her at the top of one rug while he took his place at the top of the other. "Do as I do, follow my lead. I want to teach you something I learned at the Phoenix Temple. First, we'll learn to breathe."

She snorted, "I can already breathe just fine."

"Trust me. First, breathe in through the nose, making a hollow sound in the back of your throat. And then exhale through your nose. Listen to my breathing; it should be easier to pick it up if you can hear it."

Once he was sure she got it, he ran through the first of the sun salutations, showing her how it worked, then encouraging her to do it herself. "Moving from one pose to the other is what Sun Bear called 'vinyasa', or 'flow'. They key is to flow from one pose to the next as fluidly and gracefully as possible. We'll start with mountain pose. Inhale, raise your arms up over your head, exhale, bend forward with a straight spine..."

Tigress, with a quizzical look on her face, followed his example. From mountain pose, to back leg stretch, down to the lunge, then upward facing dog, downward facing dog, all through the flow of poses and back to mountain pose, with palms pressed together in front of their hearts.

"Excellent," he said with a smile. In spite of her depression, she smiled a little too. "Now, let's try it again..."

Both felines lost track of how long and how many sun salutations they did, but they did it in relative silence, except for the breathing, their only witnesses the ancestor portraits and tablets on the altar. At the end of the exercise, Tigress brought her hands back over her heart and let out a long exhale.

"How do you feel?"

"A...a little better," she admitted. "What did we just do?"

"Yoga. It's a kind of spiritual exercise Sun Bear taught Po and I. Really good for flexibility, and, I've found, good for the soul, too."

"Did you master it?"

"That's the beauty of it: you can't master yoga. Sun Bear practiced it for centuries and never mastered it. You can only practice it."

"Wait, wait..." she stopped him. "Sun Bear lived how long?"

"Oh, right, I didn't tell you the full story. Um, long story short: spring of eternal youth, both he and Oogway drank from it, extended their lifetimes, they were old friends, then they both died. The end."

"I'm missing more of the story, aren't I?"

"Oh, loads. But, we'll talk about it over some tea. How's that sound?"

Tigress looked up at the altar, lowered her arms to her sides and nodded. "Yeah, tea sounds good." After a pause, she turned to him. "Tai Lung?"

"Yes?"

"...Thanks."

He smiled. "You're welcome."

He made it to the door before she asked, somewhat timidly. "Do you...mind training me in this...'yoga'? Like, every morning, like what we just did?"

"Would you like that?"

"I think I would."

"Then we shall. Minus the drinking."

"Yes, ow..." she said, holding her pounding head. "Definitely minus the drinking."

He offered his hand to her and she gratefully accepted it...and his praise: "Atta girl."

It became a ritual for them. Their spouses never quite understood it, but they never questioned it either. Every morning before dawn, Tigress and Tai Lung would meet in the altar room, or wherever there was sufficient space to practice, lay out their mats, and practice yoga. Over time, Tigress got better at it, and overall, much calmer. And much to Tai Lung's relief, she never touched a drop of alcohol again.

I thought Nievelion would appreciate that I made Duo a literal Papa Wolf (Thank you, TV tropes!). The scene of Koshchei's final destruction was, I admit, not as faithful to actual Chinese belief in what Hell and the Afterlife is supposed to be, but, being a rather non-religious person myself, I figure that there is a worse fate than the Hell of the Judeo-Christian tradition...and that would be the complete elimination of the soul. I personally can't see anything worse than that, so that was why I chose it as Koshchei's fate.

I added a scene about the Jiao family's ultimate fates because I wanted to tie in with the Shuffles I did way back, and also because I'm sure there are many Jiao Family fans who would be very unhappy with me if I left their fates unknown or open to conjecture.

Yes, just to clarify, the wolf Lang was reincarnated into the baby leopard. As far as he had fallen, I felt that as a person, rather than a character, Lang could have turned out much differently if he'd had a different upbringing. I'm a firm believer in the power of nurture over nature, and that strong families (of every shape and size, as long as they are loving and supporting) make for strong individuals.

As for the last scene, I wanted to poke fun at my own fic "That's Why They Call it the Present", and teach Tigress once and for all that drinking is generally not an advisable idea...at least for her, anyway.

Please read and review; I've been away too long and I want to know if I still got it.