A/N: I do not own KUNG FU PANDA or any of its characters, locations, etc. I only own my OC's.
First: I would like to thank you reviewers for your insightful feedback, I want to let you know that I really appreciate it, and even though I don't respond to all of them, I read EACH and EVERY ONE of them. Your feedback is very important to me, and it lets me know if I'm doing a good job with this fic or not.
Second: Yes, for the longest time I was seriously debating on how far Shifu's relationship with Jia would go, and I thought that it would really pull at the heart strings a bit more towards the fact that they had actually been married. The thought of Jia just being Shifu's girlfriend or fiancé seemed too cliché to me. I've read pleanty of stories here on Fanfiction that have paired him off with and OC or another KFP character *Shudders* but I have come across only a few Fanfictions that he actually has a wife. Those fics really stuck out to me; they were extremely well written and I must say that they made his character much more believable and more realtable to me; hence the revelation in the last chapter. More about Jia will be revealied here in this chapter and also in my Drabbles/Deleted Scenes once I post it.
Third: There are several new characters in this chapter, but I can't take credit for all of them.
~Master Flying Rhino-Father of Master Thundering Rhino. He was mentioned in the two films and he made a cameo appearance in "Secrets of the Masters"
~Master Eagle-Mentioned only by Po in "Secrets of the Masters"
~Master Iron Cock-Although not an official KFP character in the films or shorts, he was a scrapped character from the first film. He makes an appearance in a deleted scene from the first film as well as being mentioned by Master Oogway in another deleted scene. (He has NOTHING to do with the TV series in any way, shape or form since I do not consider the TV series as official KFP canon!)
~Great Master Viper-Father of Viper. He made his first and only appearance in "Secrets of the Furious Five"
~Master Ting-Another of my OC's (More on her coming up)
*Phew!* That's a lot of people to corrdinate with!
Forth: The format of this chapter is identical to "True Colors." The italicized sections involve Shifu talking with Tigress in the present while everything else is flashback.
**WARNING! This chapter contains blood, violence, life/death situations, and character deaths! Read at your own risk!**
Blade to the Heart
"Your…wife?" Tigress was completely stunned. She had never known that Shifu had been married. No one had ever spoken of it, not even Oogway had breathed a word of it to her. She gazed towards the elderly red panda before her as tears continued to build in his steel blue eyes. "Why did you never tell me about her?"
Shifu shook his head in response, "I know I should have, but whenever I ever came close to telling you or any of the others about her…I just couldn't. The memory of her was just too painful to speak of."
Tigress's eyes never left Shifu as he continued to stare towards the ground in front of him; his head bowed in grief. Tigress wanted to ask him so many questions, but she realized that they would probably bring up old memories that had been buried for years. She would hate to bring him more pain by digging them up. But one question was nagging at the back of Tigress's mind; if Shifu had been married, what happened to Jia?
"Something happened to her." Tigress almost hated herself for making such a statement, but her curiosity had gotten the best of her.
Shifu gave a small nod of his head. "There's another reason why the day of the raid on the Valley of Peace was the worst day of my life. It was the day I lost her…"
Shifu gave his shoulder rub as a result of the heavy training he had done all afternoon. His earlier sparring session with Rui had definitely been quite the workout, and the extra run around the training hall only added to the strain on his sore muscles. It had been a long day with the young students he had been instructing; as it was his responsibility to make sure that things around the Jade Palace continued to run smoothly until Oogway returned from a mission over a border dispute between two warring clans near the northern provinces of China.
The red panda continued his way down the corridor, passing the multiple empty bedrooms of the students, and his rather large ears perked towards the pitter patter of tiny footsteps coming his way. He looked forward to see a tiny field mouse running on all fours across the wooden floorboards towards him.
"How was your training for the day Ting?" Shifu asked as the field mouse came to a stop in front of him. She hardly made it past his knee, even when standing on her hind legs.
"Very stimulating." She answered in a small voice, "I see you got some extra practice in?"
"You know me too well my friend." Shifu answered with a smile. He had known Ting for as long as he had been at the Jade Palace. She was only a few years older than him. "Are you heading home?"
"Yes, indeed." Ting answered as she fixed a wrinkle in her purple tunic. "My little ones need to be fed after all."
Shifu gave a chuckle. He still couldn't imagine raising seven children at once, he had only met Ting's children on a few occasions, and he was astounded in her abilities to keep them under control.
"Oh, and by the way," Ting said while gesturing with a tiny finger in the direction of the kitchen. "Rui is having another one of his nervous breakdowns; you might want to help Jia calm him down."
"Right." Shifu had to resist the urge to laugh out loud.
"Well, I'm off!" Ting said as she scampered down the hallway, "See you tomorrow Shifu."
The red panda gave a wave towards the tiny field mouse and continued his way towards the kitchen. He was almost there when his sensitive hearing began to kick in.
"Oh, come on Rui; it'll be fine." A feminine voice sounded from the kitchen.
Shifu silently chuckled to himself, knowing exactly what was transpiring inside. He took the last few steps down the hallway and stopped just outside the opened kitchen door.
Jia was perched on a stool; cutting up vegetables on the tall counter in order to prepare dinner for the students once they had all finished cleaning themselves in the bathhouse. She wore an apron over her training attire, and her sleeves were rolled up past her elbows. "I honestly don't know why you're upsetting yourself over this." She said towards the raccoon who sat at the table.
He sat slightly hunched over with his small black hands combing through the grey fur atop his head in obvious distress. His brown eyes were wide with worry." I'm not upset," he answered, "I'm just…nervous. What if her father doesn't approve? What if she doesn't feel the same way? What if—"
"Is this about Mei again?" Shifu finally spoke up as he made his way into the kitchen.
Jia gave a nod of her head in response. "He's terrified about the whole thing."
"I am not!" Rui countered; but it was quite plain by the look on his face that he was.
Shifu gave a slight chuckle and patted his friend on the shoulder, "Rui, you need to calm down and just ask her father already." He said before making his way to the sink to wash his hands clean of any dirt from the day's training.
"Yes Rui, it really isn't that bad." Jia added as she started chopping carrots expertly with the cutting knife in her grasp.
Rui gave a slight scowl towards the pair of them. "Well that's easy for you two to say, you're already married!"
Both Jia and Shifu exchanged smirks of satisfaction, "Well now you know what Shifu was going through when he had to ask my father permission to marry me." Jia said.
Shifu smiled as he dried his hands with a small towel, "And frankly it was the best decision I ever made." He then hopped onto the stool his wife stood on, and he gave her a kiss on the cheek.
"Ugh..!" Rui leaned forward in his chair and smacked his head against the table, "This is torture!"
"Then man up and marry her already!" Jia exclaimed. "Nothing's standing in your way."
"Nothing except her father." Rui answered grudgingly as he rubbed at his sore forehead.
The two red pandas gave off small chuckles of amusement before Jia turned towards her husband, "Would you get the fire started darling?"
Shifu nodded and hopped from the stool. He grabbed the flint and steel from a drawer before heading to the small fire pit that was enclosed by a brick stove. He could already see that the pot of water was sitting on top and he knelt down where the kindling sat inside the small pit. However, before he was even able to start a spark, his large ears perked towards the sounds of rushing footsteps coming directly for the kitchen.
Both he and Jia turned simultaneously towards the door even before the goose had come to a skidding halt inside, causing Rui to look up towards him as well. "Masters!" He looked to be in a panic, and he had obviously rushed here as fast as he could because he was out of breath.
"What is it Tso?" Shifu asked the palace messenger.
The frazzled goose paused for a moment to catch his breath, "Bandits—in the Valley! Dozens and dozens of them!"
Shifu's eyes widened and he dropped the flint and steel. "Quickly! Alert the other Masters and have them meet us in the Valley! We'll go on ahead and help where we can!"
Tso nodded and waddled down the hallway as fast as his webbed feet could carry him.
Shifu, Jia, and Rui rushed out of the kitchen and headed in the opposite direction towards the training hall. The three of them ran across the courtyard and up the flight of stairs before opening the large double doors to find the building to be completely deserted.
Rui ran to the weapons rack and snatched his personal Dao sword he had used in the war, and he quickly strapped it to his belt.
Jia picked up a pair of bladed fans. With a flick of her wrists, they opened with a ringing sound of metal. The nearby light of an overhanging lantern reflected off of their mirror-like surfaces, before Jia promptly folded them and tucked them beneath the golden sash around her waist.
Shifu snatched his bamboo staff, giving it a twirl before the three of them rushed out into the training courtyard. They had only barely managed to start their way down the long flight of stairs when a high pitched screech met their ears. A large shadow passed over them, followed by a powerful gust of wind as an enormous golden eagle landed in front of them. His golden-brown plumage glowed red in the light of the setting sun, and his yellow eyes gazed fiercely towards them.
"Hop on!" His voice was deep and possessed the heavy accent of the Northern provinces.
Shifu, Jia, and Rui immediately ran towards the enormous bird and jumped onto his back. They had to hold on tightly as the eagle flapped his wings and soared high into the air. "Tso told me what was going on, I came as fast as I could!" He said.
"Well I must say that it was perfect timing on your part Master Eagle!" Rui exclaimed.
The bird gave a nod of his head in response and he flew fast and swift with the currents of air. The two red pandas and the raccoon gazed over his shoulder with narrowed eyes towards the valley below. Already they could see multiple fires along the bordering houses that were quickly spreading towards the inner parts of the village. Countless citizens were running about in terror and the black clothed assailants were pillaging everything in sight.
Shifu turned towards Rui, "You and I will hold the line here!" He then turned to Eagle, "You and Jia start evacuating the citizens up to the Jade Palace; they'll be better protected there."
"Understood Shifu." Eagle answered, as he hovered low over the tops of the buildings.
Jia gave Shifu a tight hug, "Be safe." She whispered in his ear.
"You too." He kissed her on the forehead before jumping off of the enormous bird with Rui falling close behind.
"It did not take long for the other masters to arrive. Ting joined up fairly soon in the conflict, as did Flying Rhino, Iron Cock, and even Great Master Viper was fighting alongside us as well."
"Viper's father?" Tigress asked.
"Yes, but he was in his younger years, only in his early twenties when the raid occurred." Shifu answered.
"What about Master Thundering Rhino, Master Storming Ox, and Master Croc? Weren't they involved?"
"No. During the time of the raid they would have only been young boys; many years before the three of them had met in Jinzhou." Shifu took a moment to center his thoughts before continuing. "We all came to realize that those bandits were more than just thugs. They were trained killers, and I must admit that we were quite surprised to find that they were Shadow Dragons, and we knew that we would be in for the fight of our lives…"
"Rui! Get down!" Shifu rushed towards the black clothed lynx that was ready to strike a killing blow towards the unsuspecting raccoon.
Rui ducked down just in time as Shifu jumped over him and smacked the lynx with a powerful blow from his bamboo staff. He flipped through the air and delivered a volley of swift kicks towards the feline's chest before striking a nerve in the assailant's neck, knocking him unconscious. Once the lynx had fallen to the ground in a heap, Shifu offered his hand to Rui to help him back up to his feet.
"Thanks Fu." Rui said, somewhat out of breath.
"Don't mention it."
"COMING THROUGH!" A large bellowing voice sounded as the ground beneath Shifu and Rui began to shake. The pair of them quickly stepped aside as Flying Rhino charged forward; hitting away a group of nine Shadow Dragons with his enormous horn, practically catapulting them over the rooftops of the surrounding houses. The remaining assassins scrambled in all directions so as to avoid the rhino's powerful attack. He gave an angry huff through his nose as the assassins backed away. He wasn't called Flying Rhino for nothing anyway.
The Warriors paused a moment to catch their breath. "How many more—do you think there are?" A rooster with bladed wings asked towards his fellow comrades as he readied himself into a fighting stance.
"Not including the fifty we already took out? I'd say seventy—maybe even eighty." Master Viper answered, somewhat out of breath.
"That's not the worst of it!" A deep voice sounded from above.
They all looked up to see Master Eagle coming in for a landing.
"Then what is?" Ting asked as the tiny mouse perched on Flying Rhino's shoulder.
The look on Eagle's face did not bode well, as deep concern was etched on practically every feather that covered his face. "There're more coming, I saw them."
"How many are we talking about?" Shifu asked, almost dreading the answer that Eagle was going to give him.
Eagle gave a shake of his feathers, "At least a hundred more coming through the south pass."
Everyone froze towards the bird's statement, even Master Iron Cock molted a few of his metal feathers in obvious distress. There was silence amongst the seven of them for several moments before six pairs of eyes simultaneously turned towards the small red panda amongst them.
Shifu could feel their gaze upon him as he stared towards the stone ground beneath his feet. He tightened his grip on his bamboo staff before turning to Rui, "What was that old saying you use to have in the war?"
Rui gave a smirk, "If you want to stop an army, you remove its head."
"Xiōng měng." Flying rhino confirmed, "Do you think he's here?"
"I have no doubt that he could be." Shifu answered, "If we find him and capture him, perhaps we can convince him to order his forces into a retreat."
"I like that plan!" Ting said in a tiny voice, "But how do we find him? There are dozens of wolves around here; he could be any one of them."
Rui sheathed his sword, "I fought alongside him during the war before he went rogue; I should be able to find him."
"Good. In that case, you go with Master Eagle and see if you can spot Xiōng měng from the air. We'll wait for your signal." Shifu said.
The raccoon nodded and rushed for Eagle, who took to the skies as Rui hopped onto his back. Once they had gone, Shifu turned to the others.
"In the meantime, we'll have to keep fighting and protect the villagers at all costs."
The others nodded in response and the five warriors rushed back into the fray.
"Where was Jia throughout all of this?" Tigress asked.
"She was helping with evacuations while we held the line. She saved dozens and dozens of lives, including that of Mr. Ping and his family if I remember correctly."
"Did you find Xiōng měng?"
Shifu almost visibly shuddered as the nightmarish memory manifested itself within his mind's eye. "No. He found us…"
A terrible screech met Shifu's ears, and his head snapped upwards to see Eagle caught in an enormous net. His golden-brown wings were pinned to his sides, and he plummeted towards the earth with Rui trapped beneath the net as well. Shifu rushed towards them as fast as he could but he lost sight of the pair of them when they had fallen behind a building followed by a sickening thud as Eagle struck the earth.
Shifu sprinted around the corner of the building to find the enormous bird lying in a tangled, unconscious heap on the pavement with Rui struggling to grab a hold of his sword to cut them both free of the thick ropes.
Shifu started running towards them when his eyes caught sight of a dark clothed figure atop a far off building, aiming a pair of arrows towards the trapped warriors. The red panda's eyes widened with horror upon realizing that he wasn't going to make it in time to save them. "No!"
The arrows were released, flying straight for the eagle and raccoon when a blur passed in front of them, and a pair of bladed fans deflected the arrows.
"Beautiful timing Jia!" Rui exclaimed.
Shifu gave a sigh of relief, grateful that Jia had intervened. But the assassin was continuing his relentless release of arrows towards the female red panda.
Jia stole a glance towards her husband, "A little help here would be nice!" She said as she continued to deflect the oncoming black tipped arrows.
Shifu nodded and narrowed his eyes towards the assassin before rushing for the building he stood atop. The Kung Fu Master put on an extra burst of speed and ran straight up the vertical wall of the brick building, not slowing his stride even for an instant. The assassin didn't even see him coming as the red panda sprang up right in front of him from out of nowhere, and delivered a flying kick to his bow; snapping it clean in half before the assassin could release another arrow. Shifu then followed up with a pair of spinning kicks to the Shadow Dragon's skull before the assassin promptly fell backwards and landed unconscious on the roof.
Shifu straightened his posture and turned his head towards Rui and Jia, who was using her bladed fans to cut the raccoon and eagle free from their bonds.
Rui gave Shifu a thumb's up in an 'everything's okay' gesture and Shifu responded with a wave of his hand.
Jia gave a smile towards her husband when her brown eyes suddenly widened with shock. "Shifu! Behind you!"
A ghost of a sound caused Shifu's sensitive hearing to kick in in addition to Jia's warning, and he immediately ducked low on the roof just as a sword swiped the air above his head. He could feel the rush of air as the blade passed over him, almost making contact with the hairs at the tips of his large ears. Shifu rolled out of the way of the second attack before aiming his bamboo staff towards the Shadow Dragon's legs. But the assassin was fast, and quickly dodged Shifu's attack.
The red panda rolled back onto his feet and the two of them froze for a few moments in a silent standoff. Shifu could see the dark, greyish fur that brimmed the edges of the wolf's black mask; his eyes were a cold grey color, almost bordering on a pale blue. He was one of the largest wolves Shifu had ever seen, and the canine glared towards him, baring his sharp teeth in an evil sneer as he brandished his Dao sword towards him.
The wolf snarled and charged towards Shifu with his blade raised; Shifu was ready for him and he easily dodged and blocked the oncoming attacks. The two combatants fought with matched fury as their battle continued across the rooftops of the houses that had not yet been consumed by fire.
"The battle was long and strenuous, and I honestly can't remember how long the two of us fought. It could have been only a few minutes or maybe even hours, but it seemed like an eternity. He wasn't letting up as fast as the other Shadow Dragons I had already defeated, and it didn't take me long to figure out who he really was."
"Xiōng měng." Tigress answered.
Shifu nodded his head, "Yes…"
Shifu leaned heavily against the brick wall of a nearby building, trying to catch his breath. His body stung with the multiple bruises and cuts he had sustained from Xiōng měn's blade, but thankfully they were only shallow cuts; nothing life threatening. His ears perked towards the sounds of the wolf's fast approaching footsteps, and he waited in silence as the canine came hurtling around the corner.
Shifu thrust his bamboo staff towards the wolf, hoping to catch him off balance by tripping him, but Xiōng měng was ready, instantly jumping high into the air to avoid Shifu's attack before aiming a solid kick to the red panda's chest. Shifu was flung backwards and only barely managed to regain his balance by jumping off of the wall that he would have slammed into. He flipped through the air with his bamboo staff raised above his head, aiming an attack for the wolf.
Xiōng měng side-stepped Shifu's attack, and the two of them immediately began another onslaught of attacks with their weapons, kicks, and punches.
Shifu had already been fighting off numerous assassins, but Xiōng měng was fresh for battle, and he wasn't tiring as fast as Shifu already was. In fact, the red panda was exhausted, relying on his last reserves of energy and chi to get him through this battle. He realized quickly that Xiōng měng couldn't be brought down by brute force, no, he had to be smart about this and use his wits. And if there was one thing that all power-hungry mongers had in common, it was their big egos and short tempers. If Shifu could get the wolf really angry, then he would no doubt be able to use his own anger against him. Too bad Rui isn't here, he'd love this. Rui was always the type to rub the dirt in his enemies' noses.
Xiōng měng aimed a punch at Shifu, causing the red panda to skid across the cobblestone street. Shifu came to a halt and made eye contact with the wolf, "Is that all you got?" He taunted, "I would have expected the leader of the Shadow Dragons to be able to defeat elephants larger than me!"
The wolf growled in response, "You'll be easy enough to kill."
"Then what's taking you so long?" Shifu smirked. "Am I too much of a challenge for you?"
Xiōng měng bared his teeth threateningly before he charged towards the red panda.
Shifu waited until the wolf was nearly upon him before he jumped into the air as the canine passed right beneath him. He then quickly aimed a couple of swing kicks to Xiōng měng's back, causing the wolf to fall flat on his belly, and lose a hold on his sword which skidded across the cobblestone ground.
Xiōng měng took several deep breaths, and already looked as if he were tired as he struggled to get back up to his feet. He shook his head several times as if he were trying to clear his head.
Shifu took a solid stance before he rushed at the wolf from behind; his staff was raised above his head, ready to strike the Shadow Dragon with the knockout blow. He was nearly upon the wolf when the canine suddenly lashed out towards him with incredible speed. Shifu's eyes widened as the wolf aimed his sharp claws towards the red panda, and he quickly brandished his bamboo staff to block the attack. But the blow from the wolf's paw was stronger than Shifu had anticipated and his claws cut clean through the staff, practically shattering it into two splintered pieces.
Shifu gave a sharp cry of pain as Xiōng měng's claws made contact with his flesh and he was swatted from the air, slamming hard into the brick wall of a nearby building. The red panda slumped to the ground and he fell to his hands and knees upon having the wind literally knocked out of him from the wolf's powerful blow. Shifu took several heaving breaths to refresh his lungs and he could feel an intense pain on his left side where Xiōng měng had struck him.
He looked down with shock to see four long claw marks that ran across his middle. Blood was already pouring out at an alarming rate, drenching his fur and clothing, and even forming a puddle on the ground beneath him. Shifu could feel himself becoming lightheaded as he tried to stand up, but his legs refused to work and he stumbled backwards against the wall of the building before sinking to the ground; overcome with pain and exhaustion.
"Like I said: too easy." Xiōng měng taunted as he retrieved his fallen sword. "You were foolish to think that a puny rat like you could stand a chance against me."
Shifu didn't answer; already his vision was beginning to blur, and he cringed in pain towards his injury. He knew that if he continued to bleed out like this, then he would most assuredly perish. His brown-tipped ears perked towards the snarling howl of Xiōng měng as the wolf brandished his sword and charged towards Shifu, ready to make the killing blow.
Shifu narrowed his eyes towards the approaching assassin, before he caught a glimpse of the splintered end of his broken staff that lay right next to him. With survival instincts taking over, Shifu grasped the blunt end of the staff, and with some difficulty, raised the jagged end towards the wolf as he closed in on him.
Shifu paused a moment in the retelling of his tale, suddenly finding himself unable to finish his statement.
Tigress didn't need him to finish, it was quite obvious how the fight had ended; and she gave an involuntary shudder at the image of the wolf being impaled by the sharp end of Shifu's broken staff.
"Well…you get the picture." Shifu said with a sigh. "It wasn't pretty."
Shifu leaned heavily against the wall of the building for support as he slowly made his way down the deserted street. He didn't even give the dead wolf behind him any second thought as he was too focused on trying to stay conscious. His feet shoveled against the ground and it felt like he was carrying weights on his arms as his exhaustion continued to plague him. The red panda stumbled slightly before falling to the ground in a heap.
He took several shallow breaths as he tried to stay awake, but his vision was continuing to blur; distorting the world around him so that all he could see were shadows and bursts of color. Shifu struggled to push himself into a sitting position against the wall, and he blinked his eyes several times to try to regain his focus, only managing to see clearly for a brief moment.
"Shifu!"
His ears perked towards the terrified voice of his wife, and he turned his head ever so slightly to see her running at top speed towards him. Her eyes were wide with worry and she looked to be on the verge of panic upon seeing him in covered in his own blood. More movement from the corner of Shifu's eye caught his attention, but the dark figure was too far down the alley facing him that he could not tell who or what it was. There was a glint of light, and a tiny black thing with a flowing red tail came shooting towards him.
Time seemed to be slowing down, and as the tiny object closed in on him, he realized that it was a flying knife that was ready to strike him directly in the chest. His head was in such a blur, that he hardly could summon enough concentration to deflect the flying projectile. A burst of panic shot through him as Jia came closer, realizing that she probably hadn't noticed the knife.
"Jia—no!" He tried to warn her.
Jia got to Shifu before the knife did, and the sickening sound of a blade penetrating flesh resonated against Shifu's ears as Jia stumbled to her knees and fell forward on top of him. She gave off a small gasp of pain and held on tightly to her husband while Shifu wrapped his arms around her, pulling her into a tight hug. He gazed with wide eyes over her shoulder to find that the knife had embedded itself deep into her back.
No! Shifu angrily looked in the direction where the knife had come from, but the dark shape that had been there only a moment before had vanished completely like smoke in a strong wind.
"Shifu…" Jia said in a weakened voice, her body was shaking with each shallow breath she took.
Hot tears were welling up in Shifu's eyes; this couldn't be happening, this had to be a horrible nightmare, "Stay with me Jia—don't go to sleep!" Shifu desperately pleaded.
Jia gave him a small smile as he cradled her in his arms. "It will be alright my darling..." She said upon resting her hand against Shifu's cheek.
Shifu placed his hand over her own, "That knife was meant for me—not you…not you..!"
Jia didn't answer immediately; instead she placed a small kiss on his cheek and rested her head against his shoulder; her eyes slowly closing as she accepted her fate. "…I love you…"
Tears ran down Shifu's cheeks, as he held her close, not willing to let her go. "I love you too."
A/N: *Breaks down into a full blown sob. Unable to comment.*
