A/N: I do not own KUNG FU PANDA or any of it's characters, locations, etc. I only own my OC's.

Speaking of OC's, I've posted pictures of Cong and Rui on my Deviantart page! Head to my profile for the link if you want to check it out!

And now...the confrontation scene! DUN DUN DUUUNN!


Painful Truth

Tigress's ears perked towards movement beyond the locked chamber door, and her eyes followed the sounds as three Shadow Dragons entered the dark room. The torchlight from the corridor beyond followed them in, and she glared at them as they filed into the room. Her eyes suddenly widened with shock upon seeing the tiny figure that was being carried beneath the arm of the middle assassin.

She didn't need to see past the bag over his head to know that it was Shifu. Thick ropes tied tightly around his arms and wrists so he wouldn't be able to move them, and his body was limp like a sack of potatoes as he was carried to the wall opposite her.

"WHAT DID YOU DO TO HIM?" Tigress roared in fury towards the assassins; wishing nothing more than to rip their throats out.

"Nothing to worry about little missy!" A grey wolf sneered towards her as the other two assassins locked a long chain onto Shifu's leg. "Just had a little bump on the head; he'll come round soon enough!" He laughed and the others joined in his amusement before they started their way for the door.

The Shadow Dragons' laughter continued as they exited the chamber, shutting the door behind them with a loud BANG!

Shifu gave a sudden jolt as the noise of the slamming door echoed painfully against his sensitive ears; and Tigress looked on worriedly towards him as he began to show signs of consciousness. "Master Shifu!"

"Mmmm…" Shifu gave off a small groan as he started to wake up.

"Are you alright?"

"Tigress?" Shifu said, suddenly seeming alert. Even with the bag still on his head, Tigress could tell that his large ears were swiveling in all directions in an attempt to locate her. "Where are you? Are you alright?"

"I'm fine." Tigress answered, "What happened?"

Shifu gave a small shake of his head in an attempt to rid himself of his dizziness, "I…received a message demanding that I turn myself over into Shadow Dragon custody in exchange for your release."

"You shouldn't have done that!" Tigress exclaimed.

"And why not? Give me one good reason why I shouldn't have!"

"You'd be putting your life in danger!"

"That's not new." Shifu answered with a hint of sarcasm. Tigress could almost imagine him rolling his eyes.

"You knew that it was an obvious trap, and they could very well go against their promise!" Tigress exclaimed.

"That did cross my mind, but don't think that I wasn't going to try to get you out of here anyway."

"I'm not worth it!"

"Yes you are!" Shifu retaliated, "And don't even think for one moment that you don't matter to me!"

Tigress was about to argue, but she found that she could not.

"Besides," Shifu continued, "I would never be able to forgive myself if I hadn't tried to secure your freedom. And not only you, but Xue and his men as well. If I hadn't come, I would have disregarded everything that I had ever been taught to protect others. I would be unworthy to be the Grand Master."

Tigress gave a small nod of her head, apparently forgetting that Shifu couldn't see her with the bag still on his head. "Forgive me Master…I was just concerned for your safety."

"Well, we're both guilty on that account." Shifu answered, "And since the Shadow Dragons aren't going to be true to their word in releasing you, we need to figure a way out of here. Are Xue and his men close by?"

Tigress could feel her gut twist uncomfortably, and she closed her eyes in sorrow. "No, they're not here."

"Where are they then? Are they in another holding cell?"

Tigress took a deep breath before answering Shifu's question, "They were taken to…to the Shrouded Abyss."

The elderly red panda went silent for several long minutes before asking, "When did this happen?" His voice was grim to the tone.

"A little more than an hour ago." Tigress answered, "Right before the Shadow Dragons spotted you coming up the mountain."

Shifu's ears lowered beneath the bag and he shook his head in obvious shame, "Mei and Anmíng are going to be heartbroken."

"Who delivered the message to you that we would be released upon your surrender?"

"Po found it in the cart he had been riding in."

"Po! He's alright?" Tigress exclaimed, "He wasn't hurt was he?"

"He received quite the goose egg on his head, but he'll be fine." Shifu answered.

Tigress gave a sigh of relief, grateful that Po had made it. Her attention was then drawn to the door as it swung open; revealing a tiny black clothed figure whose silhouette was framed by the torchlight that invaded the room. He stood there in silence as his piercing steel blue eyes scanned the room.

Tigress roared with a fury that she had never known she was capable of. It echoed off of the stone walls as she bared her teeth threateningly towards the red panda before her. She pulled hard on her chains; not caring that the cuffs around her wrists were tightening. "TRAITOR!" Tigress snarled.

"What is it Tigress? Who is it?" Shifu's ears were working overtime as he was incapable of using his eyes at the moment.

Tigress continued to struggle against her bonds, trying to get at the elderly red panda as he started making his way towards Shifu. "STAY AWAY FROM HIM!"

"Tigress! What is it?"

"IT'S QIANG!"

"Qiang?" Shifu said in a shocked tone as his head snapped from right to left. "Qiang is here? He's been pulled into this too?"

"Oh, I wouldn't say that." Qiang answered in a cold tone.

Shifu froze.

"I couldn't have been pulled into this because I'm the one who has been pulling the strings." The elder of the two brothers grabbed a hold of the bag atop Shifu's head and yanked it off.

Shifu blinked a few times to take in his surroundings before lifting his head and making eye contact with the red panda who stood above him.

"Hello little brother." Qiang said in a chilling voice that caused the hairs on the back of Shifu's neck to stand on end.

Gone was the gruff, lighthearted voice of his brother. Gone was his enthusiastic smile and easygoing nature. Instead his eyes were narrowed towards him in an unyielding glare. His posture, straight and unmoving; and the only smile upon Qiang's face was that of an unforgiving sneer of satisfaction.

Shifu could only stare towards him in disbelief.

Qiang chuckled, "Judging by the look of utter bewilderment on your face, you weren't expecting me to be here."

Tigress growled and watched with wide eyes towards the two brothers as Shifu seemed to be incapable of speaking.

"The stunned silence is very reassuring," Qiang smirked before placing his hands behind his back. "Really Shifu, you have nothing to say?"

In that moment a candle flickered to life at the back of Shifu's mind. He could literally see the puzzle coming together and the final piece was Qiang. He gazed up towards his brother as his heart rate continued to rise. "All this time Qiang? You're a—Shadow Dragon?"

"Someone give this man a prize! He finally figured it out!" Qiang gave a hard punch to Shifu's shoulder.

Shifu continued to look stunned.

"I can't believe you two fell for it!" Qiang chuckled amusingly. "You especially Shifu. I thought you knew me better."

"So did I…" Shifu's ears lowered flat against his skull. "Why Qiang? Why?"

"I have my reasons." Qiang stated, "And I must admit that it has been quite enjoyable these last couple of weeks. And to think that I was going to kill you when you first arrived to the city." Qiang chuckled, "Ah, well. This was a much more satisfying turnout."

"This has all been a game for you? An act? Even when you rescued me from the Academy Tower?"

"Oh believe me Shifu, I was very tempted to leave you there. No one would have found out about it; or I could have allowed Shì xiě to finish you off, but then I would have been robbed of the opportunity to kill you myself." Qiang smirked.

Shifu scowled towards his brother, "You've been planning this since you sent that letter to me?"

"Far longer than that Shifu." Qiang answered, "Far longer than you could possibly imagine."

"Then why the long wait? Why now?"

Qiang folded his arms, "To be completely honest, I didn't think I was ever going to get the chance. I knew I couldn't get to you as long as Oogway still was around, and there was no telling how much longer he was going to live. You can only imagine my delight upon hearing about his passing."

"How dare you!" Shifu scolded, "Master Oogway practically raised us Qiang; he treated you as if you were a son to him!"

"Wrong!" Qiang pointed an accusing finger towards Shifu, "He treated you as a son; he could have cared less about me since you were the greatest Kung Fu prodigy he had ever taught!"

"That's not true!" Shifu snapped, "Oogway treated everyone with equal kindness and gave them the respect that they deserved and more! You were just too blind to see it!"

Qiang scowled and backhanded Shifu across the face, causing him to fall back against the wall. "It was you who was blind towards what I was forced to live with! I couldn't go anywhere without someone praising you and your accomplishments! It was always 'Shifu this' or 'Shifu that!' And even our own father compared me to you, telling me that you wouldn't have made such rash decisions, and that he would have preferred that you should have been fighting alongside him during the war instead of me!"

Shifu's ears lowered against his head, "I don't believe that he would say such things."

"Believe what you will, but he's not exactly here to prove me wrong now is he?"

Shifu narrowed his eyes in response, "For once I'm glad that he never lived to see you stoop down so low."

Qiang smirked, "On the contrary Shifu, that's precisely the last thing he saw me do when I shot him dead in the midst of battle."

Shifu's heart seized up inside his tiny chest and he suddenly forgot how to breathe. He closed his eyes as if to shield his inner torment from Qiang's murderous glare.

"You monster!" Tigress growled menacingly towards Qiang who didn't seem the least bit phased by her retort.

"Oh, you're one to talk." Qiang countered with a smirk.

Tigress bared her teeth threateningly towards him.

"I remember it well." Qiang gazed off towards nothing in particular with a look as if he were recalling a pleasant memory, "In that one second before the arrow hit, I could see the look of complete shock and horror on his face as he realized that it had been my arrow. It was a sight I have never forgotten, and it felt so good to finally be rid of him."

Shifu's eyes snapped open and he sprang towards Qiang, delivering a swinging kick at his legs and causing the elder of the two red pandas to fall flat on his back. Shifu jumped into the air to aim a kick at his skull, but Qiang rolled out of the way before Shifu could do so.

Qiang acted fast and grasped the chain attached to Shifu's ankle, giving it a swift yank, and throwing Shifu off balance. He then jabbed his elbow down hard on Shifu's injured leg, causing him to cringe in pain and lose his focus long enough for Qiang to slam him hard into the opposite wall with a black blade pressed against the Grand Master's throat.

"You no good, murderous little—!"

"Ah, ah, ah; watch your language Shifu." Qiang smirked, "I thought you were raised better than that."

Tigress roared towards Qiang, "Get away from him!"

"Quiet little girl, the adults are talking." Qiang said through clenched teeth as he pressed the knife harder against Shifu's exposed neck; cutting him slightly and causing a small trickle of blood to run along the edge of the blade. "It would be so easy just to kill you right now."

"Then what's stopping you?" Shifu almost choked in response.

Qiang gave off an evil sneer, "Your time to die will come, but not before hers." Qiang pointed the knife towards Tigress who was glaring in his direction.

Shifu's eyes narrowed towards his brother, "She has nothing to do with this Qiang! Release her! Your quarrel is with me!"

"That's not entirely true Shifu." Qiang answered, "You see I hate it when I leave a job unfinished, and my original plan was to wipe out Feng's entire family after he had discovered my involvement in Zhuang's death." He pushed Shifu to the ground before making his way towards where Tigress was chained. "Until you informed me of Jìn's survival Shifu, I never would have known that she had escaped me all those years ago." He pointed the knife towards her face and glided the tip lightly against the fur on her cheek. "How does it feel my dear to know that had it not been for a certain disloyal servant of mine, I would have run you through with this very blade without a second thought?"

Tigress growled towards him.

"You would dare try to kill a helpless infant?" Shifu shouted.

"Why not? I played a hand in the murder of her entire family, and her death would have been quick and painless, just like that of her mother." Qiang gave a small flick of his wrist and the tip of the blade made a small cut across Tigress's cheek.

Tigress gave a hiss in response to the prick while Shifu struggled against his bonds to get at Qiang.

"You look so much like her." Qiang added, "A spitting image I should say."

"How dare you speak of Hua in front of her!" Shifu's angered voice sounded from behind.

"I do as I please little brother. And frankly, you're in no position to give orders around here. That's my job." Qiang took a few steps away from the growling feline before returning the knife to its holding spot beneath his belt.

Anger rose inside of Shifu, like he had never felt before, and he glared towards Qiang with an icy stare, "I swear Qiang, you will be brought to justice for your crimes! If it's the last thing I do, I will see to it that all of China will know you for what you really are!"

Qiang gave a slight chuckle, "Funny; I remember Rui saying almost those exact same words to me. And yet I'm still here, and he's not."

"Rui!" Shifu exclaimed before his eyes narrowed in anger, "So you killed him too?"

"I may as well have," Qiang answered, "He was after all in that cell for so long, and the last reports I received on his condition weren't exactly in his favor."

"Where is he?" Shifu demanded.

"With any luck he's already dead." Qiang smirked. "He was practically on death's door when he was whisked away from the prison last week, and it'll be a miracle if he pulled through. But even if he did, there's nothing he can do to stop me now."

Shifu could feel his heart sink. Last week? Rui's been alive this whole time? He clenched his hands into tiny fists behind his back, and his jaw tightened as he glared towards his brother.

There was a sudden rap on the door and a cloaked fox came into view, "Master!"

"Can't you see that I'm busy?" Qiang turned a threatening eye towards the fox who shrank from his piercing gaze.

"But M—Master, the entrance at the falls has been destroyed! The explosives were set off!"

"Then look into it!" Qiang snapped.

"Y—yes sir…but—"

"But what?" Qiang seemed to be losing his patience.

"The group that was sent to execute the prisoners hasn't returned yet. Our scouts have seen no sign of them. What should we do?"

Qiang's ears lowered slightly, "I will look into it myself. You are dismissed."

The fox tentatively bowed and closed the door behind him as he departed.

Qiang returned his gaze towards his younger brother, "Just look at you now Shifu, on your knees and at my mercy."

"When I get out of this Qiang, I'm going to kill you." Shifu said in a deadly tone.

The elder of the two brothers suddenly burst into a maniacal laughter that echoed throughout the chamber, "You? Kill me? Oh, that is rich!" Qiang exclaimed, "Your little encounter with Xiōng měng was just a fluke. You couldn't kill me even if you had the chance. You're too soft for that; too weak."

"That's not true!" Tigress retaliated, "He is stronger than you could ever hope to be! Or ever will be! He has lived with honor and nobility his entire life, and he has stayed true to his Master and his pupils! Unlike you who will resort to murder and manipulation to get what you desire! It is you who is the weak one!"

Qiang made a grab for his knife, but stopped himself. Instead he gave a sly smirk towards the feline. "He is weak because he doesn't have the nerve to do what is necessary to protect those he holds dear."

"What are you talking about?" Tigress said threateningly.

Qiang smirked, "He can't protect you from your fate, nor can he stop me from killing your friends and all of the other citizens of the Valley of Peace once I'm finished with the two of you."

"You wouldn't!" Shifu exclaimed.

"I would." Qiang answered as he turned his attention to Shifu, "The Shadow Dragons will return to the Valley of Peace, and all that will remain will be a dark smear on the map. You will die with the knowledge that you can no longer protect the citizens, your students, or your daughter; just as you failed to protect Jia."

Tigress's ears perked towards the mention of the name that she remembered Mei mentioning.

Shifu gave off a pained expression, and he lowered his gaze from Qiang as the elderly red panda gave off a small chuckle and started his way for the door. "Once I've gotten rid of you Shifu, there'll be none left who can oppose me. Not even your Dragon Warrior or those other pathetic students of yours will be able to defend themselves against my wrath!" The door closed with an echoing BANG, leaving Tigress and Shifu alone in the darkness. Silence came between the two of them for quite some time before Tigress turned her gaze towards Shifu.

"Master…what did he mean? Who—who is Jia?" She remembered that Mei had warned her against asking Shifu about the subject, but she had to know.

Shifu took a long shaky breath, and even in the semi-darkness, Tigress could see the small buildup of tears in the elderly red panda's eyes. "She…was my wife."


A/N: Okay, there are three points I'd like to address:

-First, I hate Qiang!

-Second, I hate Qiang! (But his dialogue is the most fun to figure out!)

-Third, OH-MY-GOSH! SHIFU WAS MARRIED?

I know that any pairings with Shifu are questionable (Believe me, I was seriously considering that he wouldn't have one at all in this story) and I really hope I didn't just lose a whole bunch of my readers for giving Shifu a love interest, but I've hinted on it SEVERAL times throughout this fic and that's the way this story is going.

BTW-The reviews are somewhat lacking again...Could you reviewers PLEASE leave thorough reviews? Pretty please with sugar on top?