This has came in pretty quickly and wanted to tap in on Max's other fear on him getting lost.
Shelter from the Rain
It was a stormy afternoon in the Valley of Peace and Max was standing around, waiting for Master Tigress to take him over to the Jade Palace to stay there until his father and siblings come back with a new adopted kid. 45 minutes went by and the storm was getting worse and still...she wasn't there.
He felt like he had no choice, but he took it upon himself to go to the Jade Palace on his own and as he walks by, he tries to remember which parts he's gonna go. Knowing that he's only too young to go walking alone by himself in a storm like this, he had no other choice.
The thunder and lightning completely stood in his way because he was scared to death with the sounds of it surrounding him and what's worse...he didn't know where he was going.
Max tried to find someone to show him where the Jade Palace is, but no one could hear him or even take time to help him out because they were all too busy. He was starting to get really, really terrified.
"Where is it?" asked Max, in a scared tone.
Max's fur was soaked up in rain and so were his clothes as he continued on walking and he was starting to get really afraid and worries that he'll never find the Jade Palace in this condition. The rain started pounding heavily on the little cub and the wind blew very heavier and heavier and he felt like he couldn't go any further.
"I'm lost." Max said.
He felt scared, alone and helpless...a little tiger cub all alone in a big storm with no one around to take him to where he was going.
He felt like he was gonna give up until he saw the view of the palace from there and he was still hoping that he would make it there by himself, even on a storm like this.
Minutes later...
Arizona, Musaki, Kiba, and Faith were cleaning up parts of the Hall of Heroes and as they were cleaning, Arizona hears the thunderclaps outside and he started to get really worried about Max a little bit and it definitely showed. Faith notices Arizona's ears drooping a little lower and she could tell something was wrong with him and she asked, "Are you okay, Arizona?"
Arizona looks over at Faith and he lets out a small nod and Faith asked him, "You sure?"
"What's taking Tigress and Max so long? They should've been here by now." Arizona said, in a worried tone.
"Maybe they don't want their furs to be soaking wet." Kiba said, to lighten the mood up a little.
Faith glared at Kiba super-annoyed-like and she asked, "Really?"
Kiba noticed that look from her and said, "Just trying to lighten up here."
"Cut out the jokes, Kiba. I'm really serious." Arizona said, with the same annoyed look.
Musaki looks up at Arizona and he told him, "If I know them, they might be taking in shelter from the storm until it like lets up. I'm sure they both of them are gonna walk through this door any minute now."
Arizona was hoping that Musaki's right on that one, but on the inside...his worries are still there and he knows how scared Max is when it comes to thunderstorms. Just then, the door opens and they saw Ryo coming in, his clothes and fur all soaked up with rain and Faith told him, "Ryo, we just cleaned up here."
"Sorry. Man, this storm is no joke." Ryo said.
"Heavy rain, huh?" asked Musaki.
Ryo nodded his head and said, "Heavier than Skyler kicking me in places I don't wanna be kicked in when she is mad. I mean, winds blowing, rain pounding so hard...any doofus would even think about coming here on their own in this storm."
"You should dry your fur off, Ryo. It looks like you're a wet dog except you don't really stink." Arizona added.
Ryo laughed sarcastically at Arizona's remark on that one and said, "I'd like to shake off my wetness all over your fur."
"Do that and Master Shifu will have your tail to no end." Faith said, sternly.
Ryo walks off from this and the others were still cleaning and not long after, the door opens and they were unaware that Max was standing there, his clothes and fur all drenched with rainwater and they were dripping on the floor and he said, "Hello."
The first person to notify Max was Arizona and when he turns around and saw him dripping wet, he was completely shocked and remotely mortified to see this and he said, "Max!"
The others took notice on Max all soaking wet and Musaki came up to him and said, "Dude, you're all wet."
"I know." Max replied.
Arizona came up to him and said, "What are you doing here in a storm like this? Where's Tigress?"
Max didn't say anything about it because he knew what the reaction would be for everyone if he said she didn't show up, but just by the look in Max's eyes, Arizona already figured it out and asked, "She didn't pick you up, didn't she?"
"No. She never came." Max replied.
"So you walked to the Jade Palace all by yourself?" asked Kiba.
"Mm-hmm."
Faith then adds, "In this storm?"
"Mm-hmm."
"Were you scared?" asked Ryo.
"Mm-hmm."
Arizona lets out a deep sigh of regret over this and he said, "I knew I should've went out and picked him up before the storm. I just knew it."
"I'm sorry, Arizona." Max said.
Arizona looks up at him and said, "It's not your fault. It's mine."
Kiba clears his throat in response and said, "Shouldn't it be Tigress' fault? Because she was supposed to pick him up."
Arizona picks Max up and he said, "Come on, little guy. I gotta dry you off."
As Arizona takes Max to the barracks, Shifu walks in and sees mostly everyone standing up and then, he noticed a puddle of water in front of the door and he asked, "Who came by in this weather?"
"Max." Kiba quickly replied.
Shifu's eyes widened in shock by this and he asked, "Wasn't Tigress supposed to bring him here?"
All of them didn't want to say that Tigress failed to pick Max up due to the storm because of how Shifu would react, but by the looks on their faces...it was enough for Shifu to gain his answer. He was livid and asked, "Where is she?"
"Might still be in the training hall." Ryo answered.
At the barracks
Arizona walked to the bathroom door to check on Max and as he knocked on the door, he asked, "Hey, Max...you dry yourself off yet?"
"Uh-huh." Max replied.
"Got the clothes I put out for you?"
"Yeah."
"All right."
Arizona waited for Max to come out and when Max opened the door, he saw that he was wearing Arizona's old shorts and that made him laugh a little bit and said, "I don't know who's shorts are those...but they fit you fine."
"They look a little...big." Max added.
Arizona rubs Max's head and he lets out a chuckle and said, "They'll grow on ya. When you get older, you can have them. I wore out of those when I was...9 or 10."
Max giggled a little bit in response and then Arizona said, "Viper's gonna dry your clothes for you, so it'll take a while before you wear them again."
"Okay."
Arizona got down to Max's level and he asked, "How did you even find your way here by yourself?"
"I don't know. At first...I was lost and I didn't know where it was and I was afraid that I would never make it. I was really scared and the storm was even scarier. But I finally looked up and there it was...but it was so far away. I was trying my best to be brave like you, but I got scared the whole way...and wet." Max explained.
Arizona blinked his eyes in response and he lets out a big sigh and said, "Max...you don't have to be brave to prove you're not scared."
"I don't?" asked Max.
"Of course not. Sometimes...it's okay to be a little scared now and then, but being brave doesn't mean you can't be afraid of anything. It's just doing what you're afraid to do and when you face them, you'll have the courage to beat those fears. Even the best kung-fu warriors are scared at times too, but it's the same feeling that made them do what they do. Okay?" Arizona said.
"I guess I do." Max added.
Arizona nodded and he said, "I gotta admit, I was scared too. I was worried that you might get lost in this weather. I guess...if I was a better brother, it would've been easier, huh?"
Max placed his hand around Arizona's shoulder and said, "It's not your fault. Big brothers make mistakes too."
"I know. But I should've been more responsible."
Max hugged Arizona and he lets out a small purr and told him, "It's okay to say you made a mistake. But that doesn't mean that you'll stop being my brother."
That made Arizona smile just a little bit and he said, "Right you are, little buddy."
He then hugs him back and Arizona then asked, "So...what's your dad doing again?"
"He's going to South China to find an orphaned wolfdog who's got like anger problems or something. He said he'll be back in like a week or so." Max replied.
"How many more kids is your dad gonna take in?" asked Arizona.
"Beats me."
Just then, Viper slithers her way to the hallway and she went up to Max and said, "I'm gonna find some more clothes for you."
"Thank you, Miss Viper." Max said.
Viper smiled at that and she said, "You're so sweet, Max."
Arizona chuckled at that and he said, "Viper's got a little crush on you."
Both of them made their way to Arizona's room, but before they went in, Shifu came through the hallway with Tigress behind him and when they came towards the tiger cub, Shifu looked up at him and said, "I believe we owe you an apology, Max. Musaki and the others told me that you arrived here soaking wet in the rain and when Kiba told me that you came here by yourself in this storm, I figured that Tigress has failed to do that simple task."
Arizona blinked his eyes in response and Max said to Shifu, "I had no other choice."
"I do not hold blame on someone like you." Shifu said.
He then turned to Tigress and then asked, "I believe you have something to say to Max, Master Tigress?"
Tigress then went up towards Max's level and said, "Sorry, Max. I was too caught up in training that I didn't think about it."
"It's okay. Accidents happen." Max stated.
"Well, this is one 'accident' that's gotten her in trouble. She will be on punishment for an entire month." Shifu stated.
That certainly didn't take Tigress well and she asked, "What?! Over not picking Max up?! This is ridiculous!"
"What's ridiculous is that you didn't even follow that simple order!" Shifu shot back.
Both of them continued to argue about this and that left Max and Arizona looking at each other at this and Max asked, "Are they always like this?"
"I ask myself the same question...though I'm pretty sure Tigress isn't as mature as we thought." Arizona answered.
That was cool, right? Hazards, weigh in on this and stay tuned for more!
