"...Ooookay...this is weird..." Mantis said quietly. "Okay...it's more awkward than weird, actually. Because no one has said anything for three minutes..."

"It's actually been two minutes and forty-seven seconds." Shifu said without turning to him.

Mantis rolled his eyes. "I was close enough."

"It still doesn't describe the situation we now have before us. Luckily Po and Tigress are more than willing to give us information on this matter. Isn't that right?" Shifu was still facing Po and Tigress, his face completely blank.

Their current predicament was unexpected at best and unfortunate at worst. Po and Mr. Ping were planning to sneak off to meet Qilin and not keave any traces behind. But Tigresd caught onto Po and followed the both of them to the benevolent creature's cave. After his alarmingly warm hospitality, it was pretty clear that he was not an enemy in the slightest. And after hearing that he has met Po and Mr. Ping at some point in the last, she wanted to hear more about it. However, a Lin Kuei managed to catch on and spot his hideout by turning invisible with the artifact on his head. Tigress apprehended him before he could harm Po, which brought the attention of Shifu and the others to their location.

Which now leads to this current predicament, as said before. One conversation passed after another, before Qilin finally decided to show himself so that Po and Tigress aren't seen as the guilty ones. Since Mr. Ping was still in the cave and only he could let him out, it was down to the three of them to persuade Po and Tigress's allies to not attack him.

...Fun times.

"Okay...guys...don't freak out." Po pleaded, his paws waving downward in a 'calm down' gesture, and it matched his concerned face. "This guy here...is a friend of mine me and Dad met during my training journey. He's not a danger to us, he's a really nice guy."

"He speaks the truth, I've spent a couple moments with him when I followed Po." Tigress added. "He's just lonely. Despite the surprise and him being unprepared, he really appreciated my company. Contrary to popular beliefs, the Qilin is definitely not a malevolent creature. He wasn't even given a chance, and therefore he's been cast out, and treated like an outsider. A good handful of us knows what that feels like."

Everyone seemed to relax, and others were pondering what Tigress had just said to them. It was then that they noticed Fenghuang was the only one who remained unsurprised. Which prompted suspicion from Shifu...not very surprising.

"Fenghuang...do you know anything about this?" He asked, raising a questioning eyebrow.

The owl blinked innocently as she raised her wing to her beak, halfway covering her face and snickering. "Midget. I assure you that I have no idea what you coulr mean by that, nor would I know anything about it."

"...Do you truly wish for me to believe that?"

"Nah, not really." She shrugged, dropping her charade. "I'm gonna be honest."

"That's surprising..."

"As I was saying." Fenghuang rolled her eyes. "Honestly, I've already known about the Qilin guy for a long time. I've seen him for myself, from a distance. I've never actually made contact with him until today, really."

"What?! Wait, hold on...what?!" Po jawdropped. "Master Fenghuang...you knew about Qilin this entire time? But how?!"

"You and your Dad tend to wonder off without telling because you both tend to be big dummies." The owl said as she began gently caressing Po's cheek with her wing, much to the surprise of Shifu and Taotie. "So naturally I have to keep an eye on you two and keep you out of trouble. Well...your kind of trouble. My kind of troubles I was able to deal with on my own. I saw that Mr. Qilin here wasn't doing either of you harm, so I chose to let you two mind your own business." She stopped caressing Po's cheek and tucked her wings back in. "You really worried me during that time, but I chose not to say anything."

"You were worried about Po and Mr. Ping being alone with the Qilin?" Shifu asked.

The owl shook her head. "No. What concerned me was what extremes the panda would go to to keep this secret safe." She sighed as she recalled the events that made her extremely concerned for Po. "For a couple moments, I thought I was going to have to step in and keep the situation from getting worse."

Tigress grew worried...Fenghuang was saying this as if Po has been in terrible danger again. Of course she knew that being on a journey with a Kung Fu Master like Fenghuang was bound to have dangers...she didn't think it'd be so dangerous that Fenhuang would actually have to interfere at some point. Just what was Po facing during that journey of his...? Po was not saying anything to deny any of this, so she had to take it as a form of truth.

"Now I had no idea that this owl lady knew about me for so long, but she seems pretty trustworthy if she's kept my existence a secret for so long." Qilin said, rubbing his neck. "But it's actually true that Po had to suffer a little in order to keep his promise to me. He went farther than that...he wanted to protect me. Though I didn't think he would go to such extremes to do so..."

"Hold on...what kind of extremes did Po have to go through?" Tigress said cautiously.

"Well...it's best that we start from the beginning, with how we met. Everything else will make sense that way." Qilin nodded. "We should get into my cave and reassure Po's father that our meeting went well." He clasped his paws. "You all can have some of my home-made Hazelnut Wafers!"

"No...freaking...way...you're still making them?!" Po shouted anxiously.

"Course I do, Po. I'm guessing you want some?"

"No way! Don't let him eat any first! If he eats first there won't be any there for the rest of us!" Monkey protested. "Come to think of it, the same goes for Mantis!"

"Hey!"

"Alright boys, settle down, you'll each get some treats that'll be...well...my treat." Qilin smiled widely. "Dingaloo dingladee! I just can't contain myself any longer! I've never had so many visitors before, and all of you are friendly! Please, do follow me to my home. Oh, and ya might wanna make sure this guy here is tied up good." He gestured to the unconscious Lin Kuei spy on the ground.

Fenghuang gave a raised eyebrow towards him. "Oh. That guy. Well tie him up and leave him here. Someone will come for him. Eventually. Maybe. Probably...I dunno."

"If you say so, Master." Po shrugged. "Now about those Hazelnut Wafers..."

"Focus Po! We wanna know what you and your Dad's history is with Qilin!" Mei Ling said with anticipation.

Po blinked. "...Can I have Hazelnut Wafers while we're telling the story?"

"Of course."

"SWEET!"

"Not until each of us gets one first!" Fung shouted. "There is no way we're leaving you alone with snacks again!"

"Oh come on, Fung! I can control myself!"

"We both know that we can't trust that!"

"Both of you calm down. I have plenty." Qilin placed a paw on both of their shoulders. "Now as I said before, come into my cave. I have enough room, and plenty to eat, with the assistance of Mr. Ping. I think we'll be alright."

Fung sighed, rubbing his snout. "I think we can deal with that."

With the present subject of their conversation now finished, Qilin took each of them and slowly phased him through his boulder camouflage in order to gain entrance to his cave. It was weird because they didn't have a lot of experience when it came to the magical arts. When they got inside though, they could easily see that Qilin really was just trying to live a casual life. He wasn't asking for anything special, just to be left alone. It was becoming clear that h was currently losing that mindset, and really wanted some company that wouldn't try to harm him for being different.

Monkey snickered at something, gaining Po's attention. "I can't believe your butt got stuck in the entrance. A magic entrance. Thats ridiculously funny." The panda groaned.

"Don't start."

Crane got to see the painting of Qilin, Mr. Ping, and Po that was mentioned earlier. He takes the painting and looked over it. "This is pretty unexpected. How old are you in this portrait, Po?" Po had Hazelnut Wafers in his mouth, so he couldn't immediately respond to him. Crane sighed. "And of course, he's already stuffing his face with snacks..."

"Po was around 12 years old at the time. Five years of Kung Fu Training from Fenghuang, he was still having a bit of a hard time keeping up. Then again, who wouldn't? He isn't much of a prodigy like Tigress and Mei Ling are. Also, we did a lot of traveling, but not too much of it. Fenghuang still isn't a face that people tend to trust. And I was still having a bit of a hard time earning some money. I didn't have a noodle cart at the time, so it was a bit harder to cook for both Fenghuang and Po. Because the both of them always manage to come hungry."

"Yeah, that's really great." Mantis said as he turned towards Po and Mr. Ping. "Now tell us the story!" He was immediately slapped upside the head by Viper's tail, making him recoil from the pain.

"Don't rush them!" Viper hissed.

"It's alright, Viper. This isn't exactly something I was against keeping secret, but I promised that I wouldn't. Since you all have met Qilin now, I guess I can speak without feeling guilty." Po finished eating his Hazelnut Wafers, and wiped his mouth. "Alright. So here's what happened. Me and my Dad were just passing by this place to a nearby village. We camped here in the forest while Fenghuang was taking a week off from training me..."

(Flashback)

Mr. Ping and Po had set up a small fire in the middle of Xin Xao Forest, where they decided to camp for the day. Fenghuang and Po took a break from training, the former taking a little fly around to relax. Fenghuang just soaring through the sky, that was her way to relax while at the same time having a bit of excitement. It was a strange yet effective balance for her. Mr. Ping just took this time to spend more time with Po.

The poor panda was totally exhausted.

"Uuuuuuggggghhhh...I'm so tired...and even more hungry..." Po sighed as he fell onto his back. Being twelve-years old at this point, he was now beginning to outgrow his father by a large margin. It was expected, of course. "Master Fenghuang is really working me over with all of that training..."

"At least she means well...even if her methods are sometimes questionable. But as long as you're safe in the end, I'm sure it'll be alright." Mr. Ping said calmly, as he handed a bowl of dumplings to Po. Eager as usual, the panda grabs the bowl and began plucking dumplings into his mouth. "She did notice that she was being a bit tough on you, which is why she's giving you the week off."

"It's a lucky break alright. I wonder if this is how Tigress feels when she trains with Master Shifu..." Po sighed as he took his hat off and gazed at it slightly. "I miss Tigress. Fung too. I only spent a week with them and they've already become my best friends. We won't be seeing each other for another ten years..."

"There's no need to be sad, Po. You'll see them again soon enough. You and Fung will see one another again, but you'll be strong young men. And Tigress will grow to be a beautiful and powerful warrior. It will be quite interesting to see how much she will grow. And when I'm sure enough that you three can take care of yourselves, I'll be very much content and I'll be able to worry less. We'll still be very much able to spend quality father-son time together, though. And in my spare time...I might just try my luck at dating again. At least feel a bit young again."

Po wondered about the last statements. "Dad...you said you used to date a lot when you were younger?"

"Indeed I did, son. Unfortunately it was filled with much embarrassment on my part. I was young, I was stupid, and I was crazy. As a result, my attention wasn't on noodles at the time, it was-" Mr. Ping stopped himself before he got too deep into that. "Er...anyway, why do you ask?"

"Because Master Fenghuang said there was a word for someone who does stuff like that."

"...What did she say...?" Mr. Ping asked cautiously.

Po blinked as he placed a paw on his chin. "Uhhhh..." He then beamed when he remembered. "Oh! A pervert! She called you a pervert!"

WHAM!

Mr. Ping fell over in a state of shock. His eyes were completely white and comically bugged out as his legs and tongue twitched slightly. The innocent panda in front of him blinked again wondering if he had said something wrong. When he got over the shock, the goose managed to sit up and dust himself off.

"Alright...I'm pretty sure that she told you that specific word just to mess with me and know my reaction to it later. Just put it out of your mind, son. It's better that way."

"Uuuummmm...okay Dad." Po nodded, which allowed Mr. Ping to relax a little. He already knew that Fenghuang was the mischievous type when she wanted to be, and he had no problems with that. However, what just happened was a little too close for comfort. He would have hidden himself in a giant dumpling out of embarrassment.

...There was a loud growl that sounded out in the area around them, and it caused Mr. Ping to shoot up. "Po...was that your stomach?"

Po shook his head. "Not this time."

The growl sounded out again, and they began looking around in confusion. "If it wasn't you...and it wasn't me...then what's making that noise?"

Po listened carefully in order to find out what was spying on him. He closed his eyes and tried to focus on the noise as best as he could. He heard the growl yet again, and his head shifted quickly to the left. "It's coming from over there." It seemed that whatever was watching them realized it was now close to being discovered, and quickly began to hide. "Hey! Mr. or Mrs. Whoever you are! Please don't run away, we're nice people!"

"Indeed, we are friendly! So please show yourself!" Mr. Ping also encouraged. The both of them being very naive in their own right, they didn't even think that the mystery person could possibly be a bandit or a thug. Nope, they just wanted to know who this person was without any sense of real caution. And...it seemed to be working. They could see green eyes peering at them from the darkness. Also, they could make out just a silhouette of this creature. "We can see your eyes, now can we see all of you? Or are you one of the shy ones?" They heard the growl again, thinking it was one of hostility. Then they could see the silhouette bring paws to it's belly, and now immediately understood. "Oh my goodness, you're hungry!"

"Hungry?! We can fix that in a jiff! Its a good thing we cooked beforehand!" Po exclaimed.

"Yep. When it comes to food, we prepare as much as possible!" Mr. Ping grinned.

Po smiled and walked a couple paces back to grab a bowl of bean buns from their satchel. He walked back to the silhouette and held out the bowl. "Here ya go! Eat up!" The smell of the food managed to reach the creature's nose, and they could tell how eager it was. But it did not budge. "What is it, you don't trust us? Weeellll...okay, how about this?" Po set the bean buns down and stepped back with his arms raised. "We won't do anything. Just go ahead and eat." Mr. Ping also raised his wings up in support of his actions.

The green eyes stared at them for a couple moments longer. When they finally gazed back at the bowl of dumplings, the creature slowly came out of the shadows. Mr. Ping gasped in excitement as said creature picks up the bowl and began eating the bean buns. 'Oh my gosh...it's the Qilin! He's real, he's really real! AND he's eating my food! Oh this is a very good day!' He thought in his head. He didn't want to cause a panic by doing a major outburst. When the Qilin finished his food, he sets the bowl back down and stayed in his spot. Po could see that he had gained some of his trust.

"Alright...now can you tell us who you are?" Po asked.

The Qilin sits down with a tired sigh. "I can tell in your father's eyes that he knows that I'm the Qilin, so that part of me I don't think I should repeat."

"Oh...well okay Mr. Qilin, did you like the bean buns?"

"Oh, I enjoyed them very much, thank you!" Qilin nodded with a smile. "You see, I've lacked the proper magic to get back inside my cave because I was so hungry and my Chi was drained. It was very generous of you both to offer me some of your food."

"Why of course! It's our pleasure!" Mr. Ping clasped his wings with a wide smile. "I'm just so unbelievably happy about this...you actually exist. People have been calling me a wacky old goose for believing in you, but I knew I was right all along!"

Qilin laughed softly. "Yes...I am indeed real." He then stared a bit strongly. "However...you can't ever let anyone else know that."

"Of course not! Never!" The immediate cooperation surprised Qilin enough for him to step back. "I don't care that people don't believe me. I now know for myself that you're real, and that is really all that I need. As a bonus, now my son knows about you too!"

"And I don't plan on telling anyone about you, Mr. Qilin! No sir!" Po shook his head, holding his straw hat in place.

Qilin was amused and warmed by Po's brave declaration, as he turned to Mr. Ping. "Your boy seems sincere. Can I truly trust you both to keep my existence a secret?"

""You can count on us! In fact...I want to make something for you to prove that I'm sincere about keeping this promise. All I need is a couple days. And...uh..." Po bent down and picked up a chunk of wood. "This small chunk of wood! And some paint! And more food! That's all I'll need!"

Qilin raised an eyebrow. "Hm? How will that prove anything?"

Po put on a confident smile. "You'll see it when I'm done. Meet me at this exact spot a couple days from now. I'll have something that will prove that you can trust me. And you'll be glad to have me as your friend!" Po marched off in a determined pace. Mr. Ping packed all of their things and began to leave..Qilin sees the panda off, wondering if he was really going through with what he was saying. He definitely did not seem to be very skilled at lying...

(Four Days Later...)

"Hehehehehehe! I'm totally done!" Po laughed with glee somewhat satisfied with his work.

What he was workng on was a carving. A wooden carving that looked a lot like the Qilin. There were wooden shavings on the floor, he had paint all over his paws, and he looked like he had been working for quite a while. Then one would look closely at the carving. The detail applied to it was astounding. Everything was very well done, down to the scales of his skin and the flowers on his apron. Even the gentleness of the eyes was somehow applied to it.

"I managed to finish with enough time to go out there and see Qilin." Po said with a grin. "Though...I might have to bring a lantern. Not me and my Dad's lantern, of course. Just a regular lantern will do. It's getting dark out." He placed a finger on his chin. "Dad might get worried if I'm gone for too long, so I'd better make this fast."

Po grabbed his own bag and hoisted it over his arm before heading out with a lantern in tow. He headed into the darkness of Xin Xao Forest, the lantern in his paw lighting the way. He figured that he wouldn't be treading away far enough that he had a chance of actually being attacked.

He was unfortunately wrong...

When he passed by one of the clearer paths, he could see that there a couple of rhinos along the paths. They surely looked like thugs. Po did as best he could to cover his face as he tried to pass by them without incident. But those hopes we're dashed as he felt one of them grip his shoulder. Once again, he's been put in a rather unfortunate situation.

"What do we have here? A little kid who's just passing by himself?" One of the rhinos said smugly. Po didn't answer him, as he tried to keep on moving. "What do you have in that bag of yours? Is it something good?"

"It doesn't matter if it's good or not. It isn't for you." Po said blankly.

Another rhino grinned. "Is that right...?"

"AGH!"

With no hesitation, the rhino kicked the panda in the back, laughing as Po rolled on his side, clutching his side in pain. "That's no way to speak to an adult. You should know better." Po tried his best to stand as he glared at the hostile rhinos. "You honestly expect us to be easy on you because you're a panda? Don't be ridiculous. Now tell us what you're really doing here."

Po shook his head. He was not going to betray a friend he just met. "I'm just going for a walk..."

"Quit lying!" Po was kicked again, this time he crashed against a tree. "No children in their right minds would just wonder into a forest like this by themselves just to go for walks! You're here for some other reason...you're going to tell us what it is."

"I told you I was just going for a walk! You guys are crazy!" Po shouted in frustration. Sometime's these kinds of guys were far too persistent. He was having much of his valuable time wasted bcause of some stupid thugs who just find it funny to mess with him on such a bad time.

The Qilin was nearby, walking out of his cave and sighing. He was wondering if the panda child he saw a couple days ago was ever going to show up...or maybe he's already begun to tell people about his existence. But that couldn't be. He didn't seem to be the kind of person to do something like that.

He was snapped out of his thoughts when he caught wind of a scuffle going on nearby. He pushed through bushes and trees as he kept listening for what was causing all of the ruckus. And when he finally found a decent spot to see, he was shocked at the display.

Po was being held against a tree by the throat, and now his right eye was swollen while his left one was still beaming with pure utter defiance. The sight was incredibly difficult to look at. Why was this even happening?

"I was just passing by. I have no other reason to be here. Can you jerks just leave me alone?" Po repeated. Qilin's eyes widened. Po knew full why he was here and who he came to see, but he would rather suffer physical abuse than give away anything that even mentions Qilin. He could see it in his eyes that Po was going to sit there and take this until they got tired and went away. But he didn't know how long that would be. Rhinos(except Thundering Rhino) tend to be very difficult to deal with, be it violence or just a regular conversation. Nevertheless, he had to do something.

So with no hesitation, he got on all fours and ran towards all of the rhinos. His superior strength heavily outclassing theirs, he knocked them all aside with nothing but his head. He then stood protectively in front of Po, and growled viciously at the rhinos.

"Do you all feel strong picking on someone who can't fight back?" He snarled. They fortunately had no idea what was even before them, so he didn't even have to reveal his name. "Leave here, never return. Or I'll chew your head off." With another snarl and series of growls, the rhinos lost whether nerve that they had left, and fled the forest in a fit of panic.

Po dusted himself off with a relieved sigh. "You totally scared the pants out of him with that bluff of yours. Nice!" Of course Qilin was bluffing about the chewing heads off thing. That was just a legend used to get resistant children to finish their dinner. It works, AND gives them nightmares.

"How are you complimenting me when you're the one who's hurt?!" Qilin said in concern. "I know I said to keep my existence a secret, but you didn't have to let yourseof get pummeled just to prve yourself! That's not what I meant at all! And now you're...blah!" He covered his face. "Dagnabbit! I went and flubbergated again! Bad things happen when I flubbergate..."

"...What's flubbergating?" Po asked in confusion.

'Flubbergating means what it means. Flubbergate." Qilin said this as if were a simple concept. Po was still confused. "Look, we gotta get that eye of yours patched up." He placed his laws on his hips. "Did you go and run off to meet me without tellin' your Daddy! He might be worried sick about you!"

"Which is why I'll be back there before he even wakes up. But first, I have to give you this." Po dug into his bag and pulled out the Qilin figurine. "I made this for you to prove that you can trust me to keep your secret. It only took me FOUR days to finish! Pretty cool, huh?"

"...Po..." the panda smiles as the mythical being before him takes the figurine into his paws, looking it over. "This...this is amazing. How can you do this in only four days?"

"I have plenty of free time before I get back to training. So...I did this for you!"

"Why Po...this is...this is a very nice thing you did. I don't think I would be the one receiving gifts from someone."

"Then maybe you should get gifts more often." Po shrugged. He walked over to his hat and dusted it off before placing it back on his head. "Anyway, I did what I have to do. Now I'm hungry. So I guess I'll see you later!" Po waved before turning talk and running off.

Qilin could only stare after him with a prolonged silence, before gazing at the figurine of himself with a smile...

(Flashback End)

"...There you have it. We're pretty tight now, as you can see." Po smiled, gesturing to the smiling Qilin.

"I still have that figurine, you know. It was the first present I've ever received in a long while."

"And as I said before, you should receive gifts more often.

Monkey scratched the top of his head. "Good grief, Po. You and Crane may be the only ones here who can take a beating from a couple of jerks in your younger days and not act hostile towards them."

Po nodded. "Yeah...though it's irritating when they try to irk you by messing with friends..."

"Because THAT'S when Mr. Nice Guy truly vanishes." Crane finishes.

Qilin smiled. "Well, it was good of you to visit me, Po. I trust that soon you'll have to keep moving onward?"

"Yeah...somewhat." Po's arms folded and his eyes squinted, as his head tilts to the side. His eyes then reopened. "Qilin, I really think that you need to go out and leave this cave. And this forest."

"W-What?!" Qilin gasped. "Po, I appreciate the kind thought...but I don't belong out there with the rest of you."

"Says who?" Po replied coolly. This caused his friend to eye him in confusion. "Who says you can't go out there and prove them wrong? There isn't anything keeping you here but yourself. And I know that living here alone is not very enjoyable. You can do so much good for others, Qilin. I just want you to know that you don't have to stay here."

"I share his feelings." Tigress stated. "If you feel alone out here by yourself, then leave this place. Take all of your valuables and go somewhere. If there is anywhere you wish to go, then go there. It's what you want to do, so do it." She stared calmly at Qilin. "Don't allow negative influence to keep you in one place forever. That almost happened to Master Fenghuang, and she admitted that would have been one of her biggest regrets if she and Po never crossed paths."

Qilin gazed in surprise at the both of them. Then he eyes slowly closed as he lets out a deep calm breath. The world really needs more people like these two. He then reopened his eyes, and nodded. "Okay. The two of you are definitely right. Staying here won't make my problems go away. I have to go out and change my situation voluntarily. I can't wait for things to get better." Qilin smiled. "I do wish you the best when you do leave. I wish I could come with you so I can observe your growth for myself. But that's for a later time. I can join up with you when I have a better grip on other things."

Po's grin grew. "Of course! That'll be so cool!"

"We're a large group as it is, Po..." Zeng sighed, shaking his head in exhaustion at Po's hopes. "Anyhow...our next destination is obviously the closest village from here while we're still making our way towards Kung Fu Express Headquarters. I wonder what that one will be like. Hopefully there isn't as much trouble there..."

"Doubt it." Mantis said with a blank face.

"You don't have to be so casual about it. That kinda depressed me a bit..."

"Sorry man, I'm just callin' it how I see it. Not trying to kill your hopes."

While Zeng was trying to pick up his somewhat shattered hopes, Qilin was able to let everyone out of the cave and told them he would meet them all again. Tigress looked out towards the distance. She had no idea why, but she felt as if looking out there would bring her an answer to an unknown question. Po gazed at her. "Hey Tigress...you good?"

"I'm fine, Po." Tigress sighed. "I just felt...something strange..."

(Valley Of Peace-Ruins)

The person had just given a very saddened and exhausted sigh. He then set down a flower in front of the graves that were made by the others that used to be there. The cloaked person turned around and began walking away.

Tai Lung couldn't believe that this happened. He left his home and family a decade ago. He was just passing by, and he discovers that neither is even here anymore.

So this is how the universe chooses to play, huh...? He closed his eyes and reopened them, as they represented a new question. Tigress...little sister. I know under Shifu's tutelage that you're able to take care of yourself. I don't even care where you are. I desperately need to know. He thought as he did a mighty jump into the air, so far that it might be mistaken as flying.

Are you safe...?