4. Relocation

Neither of them had had a good night. Po slept a little restlessly, because he constantly saw pictures of Shen or Tigress. Shayan, on the other hand, woke up every time his wing ached. So it happened that in the next morning, he stood up very early and put his wing in a sling. Then he went down the stairs into the sales room. He sighed at the sight of the mess there. He only perked up when he heard a snore in a corner.

He was surprised to see the panda on a pile of pillows.

Shayan cleared his throat. When that didn't wake the panda, he nudged him with his foot.

Startled, Po lifted his head with tired eyes.

"Did they come back again?" he mumbled sleepily.

When he saw the peacock, he shook his head violently. "Oh, good morning."

Shayan twisted his beak suspiciously. "Did you have to settle here of all places?"

"Oh, am I sitting on something?" Po asked and looked under the pillows.

The peacock shook his head. "No, how you could only settle in my house, that's what I meant."

"Oh." Po rubbed the back of his neck. "Last night it was too late to look for a free hotel room."

He looked at Shayan in embarrassment. "And besides, someone had to make sure that no one breaks in here again."

He smiled, but Shayan didn't reply his gesture. Instead, he turned away and straightened a few things.

Po had got up in the meantime and was rubbing his back, yawning. But before he could say anything, the peacock started first.

"It's best you go now," he said slowly. "Two visits from you are enough for me."

The panda contracted his brows. "Even if I go now, it won't help you. They'll definitely try again."

Shayan was quiet, and he silently he set up a few figures. Because of he was right-handed, it was not so easy for him to work with his left wing.

Po cleared his throat. "Say, have you ever done anything like... kung fu?"

"No," the peacock quickly replied, turning to him with an annoyed look and crossing his wings. "I've never practiced martial arts. I'm a peaceful citizen."

It was a surprise for Po standing face to face with a peacock who did not know any martial arts. He shook his head. He still had the image of Shen far too much in mind.

Just as the peacock was about to turn back to sort some wares, Po got an idea.

"Hey, it's very peaceful in my village. Maybe you could keep your store in business there."

Shayan stopped what he was doing. "In the Valley of Peace?"

He thought about it, but then he shook his head violently. "No, I don't think that's a good idea."

He had turned his back to the panda, but Po noticed that he would like to do it, but he didn't dare.

The panda smiled. "Is there a law that forbids a panda and a peacock from living together in a village?"

A period of silence followed. Then, Po simply patted the peacock on the shoulder.

"Come on, I'll help you pack your things."

With these words, Po began to pick up a pillow and a towel from the floor here and there. Shayan watched him with a silent look. "Tell me, why are you helping me?"

Po paused. Both looked at each other. Then the panda grinned.

"Why not?"

It took a few hours until Po had helped the peacock to load almost everything onto a cart. At least the essentials from the store and personal items. Since Po feared that the people would not rest until Shayan had left the area, he offered to deliver the larger furniture later. And it was almost noon when they left the big village and walked along the country road, always followed by astonished looks from the people. Since Shayan found it extremely uncomfortable, they turned into hidden side streets and they needed a little longer until they finally had the town behind them.

Po didn't care to pull out of the big cart alone so that the peacock could spare his wing.

After a good distance, Po couldn't help but ask a question.

"How come someone like you moves from India to China?"

Shayan briefly glanced over at him before answering. "My father was Indian, my mother was Chinese. So I immediately grew up with two cultures at the same time. In India, Chinese culture was pretty exciting when you don't have it right on your doorstep. My wife shared the same passion."

Po looked at him in surprise. "You're married?"

The peacock sighed. "I was married."

"Oh, is she…"

Shayan kept silent, but Po knew what he meant.

"Oh, I'm sorry."

There was a short pause before Shayan continued the conversation. "We had planned to spend our retirement in China. However, since she died too early, I decided to travel to China, alone, in order to live her dream."

Po looked at him in silence. Reluctantly, he dared to say something again.

"That was... I think... it wasn't easy to leave it all behind, was it? Don't you sometimes miss your home?"

The peacock looked longingly at the sky. "Sometimes, yes. My family was reluctant to let me go. We always got along very well. And then the festivals that we had together. I always enjoyed celebrating the Festival of Colors, which is why I also like to deal with fireworks..."

He broke off and avoided the panda's glance.

At first nobody spoke a word until Po forced a smile.

"Oh, nice," he said exaggerated appreciatively. "You know about fireworks, that's great! I mean, everyone needs a nice job. Fireworks are nice. Or not? You have to be an expert in this field, right?..."

Po interrupted his played enthusiasm when Shayan looked at him in annoyance. He didn't want to talk about how Shen had been fascinated by the fireworks just as much, albeit in an evil way.

Po swallowed hard and tried to save his explanation. "I mean, it's natural that brightly colored birds like brightly colored colors..."

When Shayan gave him a warning look, Po lowered his eyes.

"I'm already quiet. I didn't say anything…"

The peacock sighed. "It's okay."

They were silent for a while. They walked along the country road quietly, passed a last village, until Po craned his neck and pointed forward.

"Well, look, here we are! This is the Valley of Peace. With a looooot of peace."

Shayan suppressed a smile as the panda tried to cheer him up.

In the next moment, Po urged to hurry. "We have to hurry, otherwise we'll be late for the festival."

"You are having a festival?" Shayan ducked his head. "I didn't know anything about that."

"It's no biggie," Po said calmly. "It's just the festival of the Dragon Warrior..."

Now, it was Po who paused. "Oh, the gift! I totally forgot…"

The panda looked down in defeat. "Well, maybe next year…"

He looked at Shayan, who looked at him in surprise.

"Uh... We'd better get going now," Po said hastily and started at a faster pace with the cart, which Shayan didn't follow immediately. Instead, he stopped and seemed to be unsure.

When Po noticed that Shayan was staying behind, he waved him over.

"Come on. It's not dangerous."

The peacock sighed. "That's exactly what I'm afraid of."

This chapter was translated from German into English by me and was corrected by Starless echoes.