Po did something he rarely did often. He woke up early from a nap. He needed another power nap in order to be able to get through what he was intending to do tonight. He was doing something rather risky, but he was sure that everything would be fine. After all, Su said that she wasn't among the dirtiest of thieves. At least, not anymore she wasn't. This was yet to be see, but this was definitely one of those things that causes his friends to lament his naivety.
Tigress was especially frustrated by this newest decision of his. But knowing that's just the kind of person he was, she accepted it like the mature woman that she was. Though that didn't mean that she had to like it. She trusted Po, and he could take care of himself. Still, she was worried about the kind of trouble Po could get into with the likes of Su Wu...then remembered that he tended to get in trouble on his own regardless. She just left it as it is and slept off her frustration in silence.
The panda tied his scarf around his neck and placed his hat firmly on his head, and decided to meet up with Su Wu right away so they could begin their night patrol that they both decided to follow through on. He smiled as he pumped his fist. "Night patrol. Awesome!"
"Zzzzz..." Mr. Ping was nearby in a hammock, soundly asleep. "Zzzzz...ah...Po...my precious little baby...ah with your cute little paws and your jiggly belly..." He rolled over a bit, laughing softly. "Nah...I'm fine, son...I'll handle the kitchen for today...you just rest in bed and leave the work to Daddy..." He then laid on his back, looking quite peaceful. "It's okay, Po...Daddy will go anywhere you go...he'll never abandon you for anything..."
"Ah, Dad. You're mumbling in your sleep..." Po chuckled. He tiptoed over to him and lightly kissed his forehead. "I'll be back soon, Dad."
Po soon left his father to his own devices, and swiftly went to the recon area that Su has decided for them to meet up. It was a bit strange that they were meeting up just a few yards away from where the actual treasures were being stored, but he supposed that as the more experienced rogue, she knew what she was doing. After all, everything she said wasn't a lie so far. She seemed to be a pretty decent person, despite her incredibly questionable methods of doing things. After pondering about Su for a few moments, he eventually found the inn that the Wu Sisters were staying in. Being polite, he cleared his thoughts and knocked on the door.
A few minutes passed without any kind of indication that any of the sisters were awake. He placed his paws behind his back and rocked back and forth for a little bit, curiously gazing at the sky. He tilted his head and yawned a bit. He shook his head and tapped his cheeks. "No Po, You gotta stay awake! You've a duty to fulfill and you need to see it through! No falling asleep on the job!" His belly gave off a bit of a grumble. He paused and gently rubbed it, before sighing. "Aw man..." Soon afterwards, the door to the different inn eventually opens, and Su was revealed to be behind it, smiling slyly towards him. "Oh, hi Su! I met you here just like you said that we would!" He blinked softly, then pouted and folded his arms. "Heeeyyy...you didn't do anything sneaky or anything before I got here, did you?"
"What? Nooooo! Of course not! I didn't cause any trouble!" Su mock gasped, placing a paw on her ample chest. Po remembered that Lien wasn't one who wore wraps often...he might have an idea on who influenced her on that habit of hers. She smiled as she lifted a bag behind her back, and handing it to Po. Po tilted his head and was about to question her...until he got a few whiffs of what was inside.
"Bean Buns?"
"Bean Buns. I had a feeling you'd be hungry when you got here." Su said sweetly as she walked past him and grabbed his paw. "Come come, we've got a bit of recon to do!~"
"Okay!" Po nodded as he already takes a bean bun and begins and eats it hurriedly. "So, um...what are we doing...on this recon? We're just gonna make sure that no one tries to steal the treasures right?"
"That's right! The best part is that you don't have to do much! You and I are just making sure that no one suspicious comes in or out!" Su was quickly deducing how Po thinks and how he acts. It's best that she keeps things simple and in easily understandable terms. Po was definitely in adult in body in mind. But his heart is that of a child, which trumps either of those things. A highly spirited and determined child, but a child nonetheless. And she has more experience with children than she has the pride to admit aloud.
"Ooooh! I can do that!" Po grinned. Su lets go of his paw for a moment and jumps high onto a roof around the Emperor's Palace. He follows her onto the roof and follows her to the edge of said roof. She relaxes herself and sits down right on the edge. Following her example, Po simply plops on his rear and continues eating the bean buns he was given. Su smiles as she turns to the large palace, her tail swishing side to side while her peripheral vision kept Po within her sights. Though she soon turns towards him, her eyes glowing slightly because of the dark.
"Po...do you mind if I ask you an honest question?" Su asked.
"Mhm!" Po nodded, his cheeks swelled with bean buns, which caused her to laugh at how ridiculous he looked for a bit.
She nodded as she lowered her eyes. "What is your view on women, Po? What do you think of us?~"
Po swallowed the bean buns in his mouth, and scratched his neck with his expression taking a turn for the confused. "What do I think of women...? That's a bit of a strange question to ask. Is there a reason why you're asking me that?"
"Call it Cat's Curiosity. I'm one of the tougher cats, so I can take it.~"
"Um...okay. I don't know exactly what you're asking me, but I can try to give you answer." Po shrugged while turning towards the sky and rubbing his neck. "I can't really say for every woman in the world because I don't know too much about it...but if I had to give an answer...I'd say that women can be really, really strong."
"Is that so...?"
"Yeah!" Po nodded strongly. "I don't really understand some of those jerks that try to say that women can't be as powerful as men, and should just stick to where their status places them. There are plenty of women that I know that can kick some serious butt!"
"Oh really?"
"Are you kidding? Do I have to list off examples?" Po said as he placed a paw on his chin with smile. "There's plenty! I mean, you already know that my teacher is Fenghuang! The one who mastered all Seven Impossible Moves...and created five more herself! It was from there that I learned the importance of creativity with Kung Fu. Creativity can also mean unpredictable, in the right paws, wings, anything really. Then there's my friends. Mei Ling's really good with a staff, and stood alongside Crane as one of the best students at Lee Da Academy. Then there's Viper, who totally wiped the floor with me and some of my other friends when we first met, but she was doing so while under a bad influence. Then there's Song, a skilled thief, really good at stealing like the Ladies of the Shade. And then there's Lien, who's rough and tough and really takes care of Peng and Bian Zao. And then there's the other Mei Ling, who's an even better thief than Song and just as skilled at Kung Fu as Master Shifu. And then there's Master Mugan...even though she was totally evil and stuff." Po shrugged. "And there are plenty of other women that prove that they can be just as powerful as us guys...sometimes even stronger. Heck, you Wu Sisters are another example! You butted heads with the Kung Fu Council and almost beat them!"
"I'm sure your crocodile friend filled in a few ore details about that, since he was trained by Master Croc."
"Yup...I don't think Fung likes you very much." Po noted.
Su smiled as she scooted closer to him, placing a paw on his. "And what of your friend Tigress? What do you think of her?"
Po blinked as he rubbed his chin with one paw while taking a few bean buns with his other paw. "Tigress...out of all of them, she's absolutely amazing at what she does. She's really strong, stronger than me. At least when it comes to the purely physical side of Kung Fu. Chi attacks have her stumped." Po quickly eats the bean buns in his grasp and patted his belly. "Yeah. Compared to me, I don't always hold a candle to her when it comes to her skills. She's much better at purely physical Kung Fu, she's a lot faster, smarter, and much stronger. Really, I didn't think I'd be able to close the gap between us. She's awesome on so many levels. So..."
"So...?"
"That's why Tigress is someone I can really depend on when I need her. That's why we take charge together instead of one or the other. I don't always know what to do at times, so she's the one who takes charge when she knows she can help. When I get myself in a jam, she's the first person who does her best to break me out of it. And when I'm kinda feeling down, she again does her best to cheer me up...even though she doesn't always know how to do so. She tries her best in everything she does, really. It makes it hard for her to relax sometimes. I think she gets it from Shifu, who also doesn't always know how to relax. That's where I come in and help her cheer her up and help her smile and laugh. She's the better fighter, but making friends is still well out of her reach. She's getting better, but she knows that she can leave that stuff to me."
Su folded her arms and tilted her head. "Obviously you two depend on each other greatly. Except that she's much more embarrassed to admit how much."
"Yeah. She's not really great at sharing her most private feelings. Though I can appreciate that she continues to at least try." Po smiled. "So yeah! I think many females can be super strong when they put their minds to it! That's one of the reasons why Dad told me to be nice to them. They can be nice back, and they can have your back when you need them and give them the respect they deserve."
"And you have no qualms with attacking women?"
"Fenghuang says that holding back against a genuinely competent female fighter is not only disrespectful, but it's a very fast way to get yourself killed. Which is why she's a bit annoyed by Shifu's heavy reluctance to attack Mei Ling."
"Yeah, I can see her getting pissed by that. Also, your Father is a smart man." Su rolled her eyes. "So you're surrounded by many powerful women, not giving you a chance for a possible false implication that we may be weak. Glad so see that you avoided that mindset entirely...unlike some assholes I'd rather not mention."
Po nodded. "Yeah. Well...just because a woman is tough, doesn't mean that she won't ever need help. When they need it, I'll be there for them just the same as I would anyone else. Whether they need help with fighting...or just need a friend." Po adjusted his scarf slightly as he nodded. "Come to think of it, most girls I tend to help out give me a smile. I know that's to be expected, but it's a bit nicer to receive smiles from them. I don't really know why." Po smiled softly. "I still remember..."
Su blinked and leaned in, curious. "Remember what?"
"The day that I declared myself as Tigress's friend. I feel that her smile back then was very pretty. In fact...I think Tigress tops the other girls for having the prettiest smile ever. So...I've been doing my best to make sure she has many more reasons to smile. It...really makes me happy to know she's happy. I know how much she needs it." He rubbed her neck. "Not that I don't want the other girls to be happy and to smile a lot! I just...it's not even just about women at that point. I want to protect my friends from anything that might mean them harm."
Su tilted her head. "Even if the ones that wish them harm would be the entirety of China...or even the world? That's pretty insane of you, jsut like you having your tendency to help whoever you come across. I'm sure some people have already told you this."
"I don't let reason dictate who I protect or not. I don't need a reason to protect or save someone." Po said strongly.
"Really? So if I happen to be a person in trouble, and you know full well how bad I was in the past because you've been told about me and my sisters...would you still try to protect me? Protect us?"
"Yes." The lack of hesitation in Po's voice made Su's eyes widen. Po turned to her. "Sure, the choices I make might have future consequences later on, but those thoughts stay in the back of my head. Because to me, pondering about what happened in the past and worrying about what might happen in the future are NOT excuses for inaction in the present. So when there's someone in trouble that I need to save, I WILL save them, regardless of the consequences that might come afterwards. This may result in me making stupid decisions, but that's another reason why I appreciate my friends. They get me out of jams I willingly place myself into. And none of us will hesitate to do the same for one another, no matter how irritated we might be with one another. Regardless of what comes ur way, we stand up for each others. Because that's what true friends do. In fact...that's what true family does. We want to see each other happy, and we'll do whatever it takes to protect one another."
Su's mouth was agape, further shocked by the fierce and yet simultaneously gentle passion Po exhibited while he told her this. "You...you really think that way?"
Po nodded. "I kind of get that from my Dad, too. He knew raising me might be tough because he was already poor as he is. And it was going to be even harder because the villagers didn't like me either. But he did it anyway. Because that was his choice to make. And to him, that was the right thing to do, and he did it without hesitation."
"And...you still believe that those aren't the words of a hero?"
Po smiled. "Our lives don't revolve entirely around these things, of course. We're more than happy to kick back and relax once in a while. But when it comes down to it...this is our way to live. Would you really regard something as simple as that to be heroism?"
...Su didn't know what to say at that moment. So she chose not to say anything. Instead, she gently pushed the hat off of Po's head and cupped his cheeks, causing him to blink in confusion. The childish curiosity in his eyes, that which also held untapped wisdom, drew her in. She then pulled his face closer to hers, closing the distance as her eyes closed...and her lips gently touched the top of his forehead. Po seemed more surprised by this than anything else, wondering why this was her reaction. Su then wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled his head into her bosom. The poor panda was completely lost as he feels the fierce beating of her heart. Su reopened her eyes and gently petted the top of his head, lightly playing with the tuft of fur that stuck out just a bit. After the silence passed between them, Su spoke at last.
"I don't know if you're simply faking your innocence or if you're just that incredibly gifted. Either way, how you answered me so far was not what I expected of you at all. And...I'm almost glad for that. You're a kind of person that this dark world needs more of. But you didn't hear this from me, got it? I don't want to lose my standing with my sisters." Su says as she allowed him to lift his head a little to his eyes could meet hers. "Po...you have been rather effective at getting my interest. I am even more interested in what you'll be doing next."
"Cool, I guess!" Po exclaimed, his voice slightly muffled. With a sigh, Su reluctantly released him, allowing him to breathe a bit easier and reclaim his Bean Buns. Su sighed as she folded her arms under her chest. "So, are we gonna keep this recon up?"
"...Actually...you can go back to sleep. I can handle this on my own." Su said while waving. "Sorry to have disturbed you. You can keep the bean buns."
"Sweet! Thanks!" Po beamed as he began climbiing back down the building. "Are...are you sure you'll be alright here by yourself?"
"I lead the Wu Sisters, Po. I'm highly confident that I can handle myself." Conceding to her point, Po nodded and left her on her own. After she was sure he was gone, she released a pent-up breath as she placed a paw on her chest. Her self-control was astounding during those moments.
Good grief, Su! Is this how things are now?! You've been nothing but a stone cold killer for years with your sisters! But then you meet Lien and you've gone a bit soft! Then you meet this panda and now you feel like your heart is melting from a few passionate declarations! Most of what he said should be considered nonsense...but I felt no lies leave his tongue... Su blushed as she planted her face in her paws. Still, did that really warrant you kissing him on his head and hugging him to your breasts?! Were you even thinking?! How in the world an ANYONE be so obliviously charismatic?! She sighed as she attempted to calm herself down a bit. Well, I was at least able to confirm something. Tigress has nothing to worry about. Whether he is conscious of it or not, he is drawn to her. How...unfortunately fortune... She gasped as she cupped her cheeks, her tail freezing while sticking upwards. Did I just think that?! No. No way. Her heart has been colder than ice for years, and warmed for no one but her sisters. What in the world can turn that on it's head so quickly?!
How about the part when he confirmed he would protect you and save you if you were in trouble, regardless of your background...?
Su paused for a moment. Then her entire face turned red as she buried her face into her paws and tried, with immense difficultly, not to groan in embarrassment.
Only in the dark will this legendary assassin allow herself to look adorably embarrassed out in the open.
A lot of things can happen in the dark, readers. Most of them diffeent places, We've gotten Po and Su out of the way. The next chapter will shift the focus to some other characters in different segments, and the chapter after that will do the same, then we get back to the tournamnent. Like I said, other characters will be getting some focus, and special things can happen. Some deep, some moving, some might even be sad. And others...might be hilarious. Just a bit.
I guess you can refer to them as character episodes if it makes things easier. It isn't necessary to see it that way though. Just a method to take the spotlight off of Po and Tigress for a bit to explore the others, as they do a bit of exploring themselves. The tournament will be back when this night ends, obviously.
Another thing to note, some of these events happen simultaneously. So while Po and Su were off talking here, others might be talking elsehwere, and someone else...might be fighting someone else. Just a heads up for that as well.
See ya!