"Sheesh..." Crane sighed as he was staring out on the roof into the night sky, having been thinking over the events of the last few days. "Things are actually going rather well...more than expected, really. I mean...nothing seriously bad happened...yet my hopes aren't so high that I don't expect anything to go wrong."

"Oh relax, Crane! We're all having a good time so far, aren't we? Let's focus on that, for now!" Mei Ling beamed while sitting next to him, kicking her feet out. "There's no need to be so tense, Crane. You realize that's only going to impede you when the time eventually comes for us to fight as well. You don't see Po worrying too much, do you?"

"No. But he's just too laid-back to be more cautious than he already is." Crane sighed while rubbing his head. "But then again, it does go to show that we follow behind him and Tigress for good reason, no matter how crazy they are."

"Really? Compared to Po, Tigress seems pretty well adjusted. Guess we can chalk this up to being taught by someone chaotic and someone disciplined respectively."

"And that's why everyone else tends to see us as one huge dysfunction of a group. Though I guess it beats the alternative. We at least confirmed to them that we're not the bad guys. Though we also said that we're not the good guys either. I guess I can understand why they'd be irritated by that. As well as confused. We don't really understand ourselves either."

"Well it isn't always fun if we understand every single thing. Even if it's about ourselves." Mei Ling shrugged. "Discoveries tend to be fun. Just like how you discovered your hidden potential. Hm?~"

Crane laughed awkwardly, rubbing his long neck and shaking his head. "Haha...nah. That...that was just luck. Pure luck on my part..."

"Luck had nothing to do with it. You worked your way up to being tough as you are now. Besides, even if it did have something to do with it, who says that one can't be lucky and work hard? It's just like how I was 'naturally gifted' and yet I still worked hard for my skills. Same goes for Peng. In fact...most of us fits that just fine, in one sense or another. We all just have different approaches, that's all."

"I guess. Still...it's really getting chaotic around us again. And yet, while I'm definitely anxious...I'm not really as irritated as I thought I would be. Am I getting used to how things turn out?"

"Maybe~" Mei Ling shrugged again as she sits closer to Crane. She rested her paw around Crane's wing without really thinking about it. Crane's eyes widened and he blushed slightly from the contact. "Hey...do you think your Mom's doing okay without her baby bird to keep her company?"

"I'm sure she's fine. I miss her just as much as she misses me...but this is the path that I've chosen. The path I wanted to take for a pretty long time." Crane sighed as he turned towards her. "I already knew it was going to be rough. But only now am I begging to understand that I didn't really know how it was going to get rough. Especially with the kind of friends I'm hanging out with that I didn't expect to make."

"Nice to know what you think of my company..." Mei Ling pouted playfully.

"Y-You don't count! You're a childhood friend, so I'm used to how you act by now!" Crane blushed again.

"Are you really?" She smirked, hugging his wing slightly. "You still get quite flustered when I offer to bathe with you...I don't see why. It's how we used to relax together."

"You're still up for mixed bathing?!"

"I don't see why not."

"Mei Ling, you can't just..." Crane paused. Mei Ling nodded with a solemn expression. He then turned around with a mild sigh. "Shen...is there something you want?"

The peacock was standing right behind them, with his sleeves hiding his wings. While Fenghuang's wings were tucked in and observing the scene before her. She shrugged.

"I don't know about Shen, but I'm just here to hear this fascinating story." Fenghuang smirked. "Mixed bathing. I remember how casual she was about that when she first mentioned it. What's wrong, Crane? It was somewhat fine when you were both young children. But now that she's a full grown woman-"

"That's exactly why we can't be doing things like that anymore! It's incredibly awkward!"

"Long-Legs. Trust me. Out of everyone in our little posse, it's you who's the most awkward."

"But...but...!"

Mei Ling pouted, folding her arms. "While I don't entirely disagree, what really makes him is that he doesn't allow that to stop him from doing what he needs to do, does it?"

"Nope. And I gotta say, that's a quality I can really get behind. A lot of people find themselves lacking in action due to feeling incredibly unpleasant or embarrassed." Fenghuang lowered her eyes. "You're a good bird, Long-Legs. Good boy. Just how Mommy raised you, hm?"

"...More or less. Losing a dad tends to do that to the widow when it comes to their children. Not all the time, though."

"This all sounds rather fascinating...but I have accompanied Fenghuang due to a slightly growing issue that I've taken note of." Shen said while shaking his head in aggravation. "Due to this tournament gathering many other martial artists around China, it's gotten rather difficult to tell which ones are trustworthy and which ones aren't. And it further becomes complicated when we take note of the fact that some of these Masters have personal grudges with some of us. And the most likely targets are myself, Fenghuang, Shifu, Tai Lung, and Po. We're high on that specific list."

"Tch. Big deal." Fenghuang yawned while casually preening her feathers. "Those guys have something to say to us, we'll be waiting for them. It's not like it's going to change our way of life. A few complaints is not going to deter us from our path, not by a long shot."

Shen folded his wings. "You seem fairly confident in your words. So why is it that you've chosen to hide away in the Northern Mountains for so long? What convinced you to return to the Valley of Peace even though Oogway was still there and alive?" He then narrowed his eyes suspiciously. "...Don't tell me it was the panda."

"Will you be upset if I said yes?"

"A little bit."

"Then yes."

"...Saw that one comin'." Crane mumbled, in which Mei Ling giggled as they both continued to watch the exchange between the two avians.

"I've heard stories of you, Fenghuang. A past member of the Furious Five who was capable of matching up with the likes of Master Oogway. You did not defeat him, but it was a close battle. You were ruthless, cunning, conniving, and evil in many senses of the word." Shen began, slowly walking around her. The owl simply watches him with a nonchalant stare, and it wasn't that hard to keep track since she can twist her head ninety degrees in either direction. "So...how is it that you were easily swayed from years of solitude by the likes of a panda...?"

Fenghuang sighed as she gently rubbed her beak. "Okay. This isn't gonna be easy for me to admit. But in all honesty...I was a lonely owl."

"Loneliness? That's what you based your change on?"

"Let me finish, dammit!" Fenghuang glared before stepping back slightly. "I was lonely, and I was very stubborn about acknowledging it. I wanted company but refused seek it out. I wanted to make contact with someone but my pride will only chase them away. I'm not gonna make any excuses, I brought that solitude on myself. How ironic that a free bird like me constructed her own frozen cage because she thought she could take on the creator of Kung Fu and win. And then I was too afraid to leave that cage in fear of him coming to finish the job. Only do I realize that he wouldn't do such a thing. Not if I still had a chance of rehabilitation."

Fenghuang paused a bit, and Shen waiting with quiet anticipation for her to continue. He didn't want to admit that he was intrigued by this tale, but he was. Crane and Mei Ling eventually relaxed as well, as Fenghuang closed her wings.

"By pure chance, dumb poachers hired by someone after rare pandas passed by. The panda cub within didn't like his cage. He hated it. So with all of his strength, he busted himself out, but fell into the ice and snow as well. It was then that I chased off his kidnappers and rescued him."

"That peril was not your own to deal with. Why would you help him?"

"Because that's what I wanted to do. There was no ulterior motive, no thoughtful morality behind he decision. I did it because I wanted to. There's no other reason...okay, I wasn't so evil as to leave a defenseless cub outside to freeze in the snow." Fenghuang admitted with a pout. "He wakes up, and sees me...he has no idea who I am. Loves Kung Fu yet hasn't heard of me. Though to be fair, his father didn't really know me either."

"Big surprise..." Shen rolled his eyes.

"I told him who I was...and he didn't seem to mind. No. As in, he didn't mind at all. He knew that I was proficient at Kung Fu only after I told him that I was a Master. And even then, he didn't know me specifically. And even after that, he spoke to me as if nothing was wrong. He was more interested in Kung Fu and even the cave I was in than actually the kind of person I was in the past. Then after he told me about seeing Tigress for the first time, as well as his belly rumbling from hunger, I took him back to Mr. Ping. Who immediately showers him with affection from sheer worry of his absence. Gotta be honest, such affection from a Father and Son duo is extremely rare to see."

Shen raised an eyebrow slightly while Crane and Mei Ling calmly listened. They must have heard this recollection many times.

"It was from there that I learned that the panda has a very different way of thinking and acting. He befriends Tigress and Fung because none of them had any of their own. And then when the Kung Fu Council spotted me during the Winter Feast, he stood up to them without flinching...and they backed off." Fenghuang chuckled, still somewhat amused by how those events folded, and grateful that it resulted in keeping her freedom. "And years later, you'll see that he hasn't changed much aside from putting on some pounds. Not that it's slowed him down much, mind you."

"He's pretty cute alright." Mei Ling chuckled, and Crane pouted just slightly at how pleased she sounded by the statement.

Shen shook his head and rubbed his temples, taking deep breaths. "Okay, so you and his father have been a big influence on him, but he's also mostly still himself, a person who challenges people that are his superior by title, many times. And then he gives mercy to someone like me, even though I surely do not deserve it...I just can't understand that panda no matter how hard I try. And the same goes for you and everyone else here. You all insist that you're not heroes, yet the things that you do, while not always approved of by others, are clearly heroic. So why continue to act in such a manner?"

Fenghuang passed, taking a moment to ponder his question. She turned away from him to gaze at the moon, and a gentle breeze passes by all of them. She then whispered, and Crane was briefly taken aback by how peaceful she sounded. "Shen...why do you think birds fly?'

Shen was taken aback, beak agape. "What...? What kind of question is that?!"

"Do you not have an answer?"

Shen narrowed his eyes as he tried to understand the meaning behind such a question. Though once he came up empty, he figured he might as well answer her. "We avians...we fly because that is what we must do. Why else do we have our wings if not to fly? Thus we fly because that is what we are meant to do, it is our purpose."

"...Just like how you thought you knew what your purpose was?"

"What do you mean by that?"

Fenghuang turned towards Shen with a despondent frown. "Shen. No matter how you slice it, nothing you have done in the past will ever be justified. You were terrible. I was pretty bad, but you were so much worse."

"How do you figure...?"

"What kind of person believes that genocide is the better option to simply stepping away from the dark path you were on? You honestly believed that a oath of death was better than admitting that you were wrong about your ambitions. Of course no one was going to be on your side after that. Or maybe...that's exactly why." Fenghuang said slowly. "The only way you could keep going as you were back then was to constantly tell yourself that what you're doing wasn't wrong, even though you knew that it was deep down. Only when people you did and didn't know approached you and told you outright that your actions were evil, did you begin to crumble. Especially since one of those people was Po and Tai Lung. You allowed your ambition to cage you. It turned you into something darker than you could have become." Fenghuang slowly moved to the side. "Speaking of which, Tai Lung had the same issue."

"Issue...?"

"Everything he did in his life back then...which meant that he was living purely for Shifu's approval and not truly for himself. Living purely for his father's approval only for him to be denied that approval from a higher authority is what caused him to snap. Granted, Shifu was responsible as well for not helping him overcome that pride, which allowed darkness to fester within him as well. To be completely blunt, the two of you did what you did purely to please the ones you loved. You didn't take what felt to you was rejection-when they dearly loved you instead-very well. Living purely for someone else's sake and not for yourself as well, is a very fast way to fall into darkness once that connection is damaged, or severed completely."

Crane sighed slightly as he turned towards Mei Ling. "Is there a reason why she's doing this? She should know that Shen isn't really one for patience when it comes to these things. Does she really know what she's doing?"

"I'd like to believe that she is. They haven't started fighting yet, so that's gotta be good news!" Mei Ling offered with a smile, while Crane simply sighed.

Shen shook his head, slightly groaning to further illustrate his frustration. "So what do you suggest I do?"

"You need to let it go."

"What?" Shen said in such a dull tone that it surprised him. He was just surprised that Fenghuang just outright told him to move on from his past as if nothing mattered. He was even more surprised that she was completely serious.

"You're heading for a path of self-destruction once again if no one intervenes and sets you straight. I'm being straight and serious with you Shen, because you give me the impression that you won't listen to anything else." Fenghuang stated with narrowed eyes. "You need to let it go."

"...Are you serious?"

"Does it look like I'm joking?"

"You expect me to just forget everything that's happened to me? Everything I've been through?! You believe it's so easy to just sweep everything aside and just continue on without looking back?" Shen glared. "You're crazy!"

"Of course I'm crazy. Did I ever give the impression that I'm sane?" Fenghuang casually remarked.

"This is-OOF!" Shen grunter as he was swiftly kicked in the chest, tumbling into the ground. Crane and Mei Ling gasped in response as he coughed from the force of the blow, and the owl approached him with a serious glint in her eyes. "Wh-What was that for?!"

"Get it through your head, albino. No one here gives a damn that you're nobility. That's just another detail in your life. Other than that, they treat you exactly how they treat each other. They only get hostile with you because you're hostile with them. Nothing will change if you never get off your imaginary high-horse." Fenghuang glared. "Never did I say that you should forget about your past. You did terrible things that you can't ever take back. You've lost those you held dear, who you also cannot get back. But wallowing in self-pity and lashing out at everyone is not productive. Your constant obsession with your past has become your cage. And in order to free yourself, you need to let it go and continue living your life. That's what Soothsayer wanted for you."

Shen felt powerless under her gaze, it bore down him like weights placed on his mind. He lowered his head and stared at his wings, imagining them covered with blood. The blood of pandas,and the blood of anyone else that crossed him. Only now is he fully realizing the implications of how far his obsession took him. It almost claimed his life. Ironically, the one that was supposed to end his life ends up saving him instead. It made no sense. "...How can I-"

"Stop making excuses." Fenghuang cut him off. "The only things holding you back is your hesitation and your arrogance. Put those things aside for a moment and think about what you can do right now instead of what you could have done. You feel guilty. Don't waste time wallowing in the past. Do something about it."

"...Is that what he did...?"

"He was satisfied with knowing the truth, however painful it may be. It has not stopped him from continuing to live his life, nor will he ever allow it to. He will not allow the past to cage him. There is no going backwards, no matter how much you think about it. The only direction you can go is forward. So the panda goes forward not because that's the only path he has, but because that's what he wants for himself."

"...Fenghuang. Why do you think birds fly...?"

Fenghuang paused for a moment. Then she straightened herself out and stood tall. "Why do birds fly, you ask? You wish for my input to gain understanding. That is fair. Birds fly...because that is what they want to do."

"What...?"

"Birds don't need a reason to fly, Shen. Even of their wings are weak and they might fall, they will push on. They don't allow something like this to restrain them. They don't do it for anyone else's benefit, nor do they feel like they should do so out of some false sense of obligation. We don't pet something like past grudges or rules that wish to keep us grounded." She says while she swipes her wing aside. "We fly because we want to fly, and for no other reason!"

Crane dropped his beak while thinking over her words, and what they mean to him personally. He remembered how his father sacrificed himself for his loved ones. No matter how fragile and weak he was, he still insisted on flying. That was what he wished, and it granted it by his own power. In the meantime, Shen pondered over the words the owl said to him, and how passionate she was about them.

"...Do you truly think that birds fly because that is their wish?"

"I feel free when I fly. So, I shall continue to fly, because that is when I feel most free. Nothing to weigh me down, no one can tell me what to do, and the past cannot force me to land when I do not want to. I follow this path because I wish to. Not because I have to. That is my way to live." Fenghuang turned around and spreads her wings. "Though just because we choose to live this way, doesn't mean we wish to be alone, either. Sometimes it's much more fulfilling to fly in a flock. It's not too late to join the flock, Shen. Po is more than happy to be your friend."

"But the others...they don't trust me as much as he does."

"That's because they're much smarter. But that doesn't mean he's wrong. And besides, this is a necessary obstacle. Their trust is something you have to earn. Succeed in that, you'll gain loyalty out of love instead of fear. It carries much more meaning."

"How can you be so sure...?"

"Because the panda saved your life. He is without a doubt a supreme idiot, but his heart has never failed him before in judgements like these. It has not pet us down before, and I doubt it'll start now. You still have your life, Shen. Instead of constantly wallowing in self-pity, waiting for someone to cut you a break...do something about it. Make Po's judgement a correct one. Because if you stay in the past...nothing will change." With this, Fenghuang flapped her wings, and soared into the night.

Crane sighed as he rubbed his beak nervously. "Sheesh...for a second I thought they were going to fight. Glad that isn't the case, but still. That's how she truly views flying, huh..."

Mei Ling smiled. "Honestly, you didn't act too different from that when you were younger. No matter how fragile and clumsy you looked, and no matter how much your mother tried to keep you grounded out of worry, you still wished to fly. You were quiet about it, but you were definitely passionate about flying free through the skies and proving the others wrong."

"I know...but I was only able to do so because you were the only on who fully believed in me."

"And that's why she said it's more fulfilling to fly in a flock. There's always going to be someone waiting to back you up." Mei Ling then kisses Crane on the cheek, greatly surprising him as he lets out a startled caw. She chuckled as she stands up and stretched. "Welp, the wise owl said her piece. Time for bed. Got a lot of work ahead of us."

"Y-Yeah. Okay..." Crane nodded nervously as he followed Mei Ling back to the inn rooms. They left Shen to ponder, as he looks after the shadow of Fenghuang flying into the night, without a care in the world. She seemed like a free spirit to him at the moment, and it was obvious that her words struck true in some ways. He shook his head, fighting the blush growing on his face.

She flies because she wants to fly...can she be any more preposterous?

Shen found that mindset to be too simple for such a complex question...and yet it worked for her. Perhaps...that 'flying' to her meant 'living' for everyone else? Shen frowned a bit as he realized that his arrogance might have blinded him more than he thought. He thought he could order them around if he was harsh enough, but they only dismissed that as a spoiled prince throwing a tantrum because he didn't get rewarded for something he did that was wrong.

They don't need nor want permission from authority figures on how to live their lives. Nor do they seek to impress anyone. If people are impressed, that's their decision. But it's clearly not what they're going for. He had no idea that something as simple a 'free will' could be so infectious and valuable.

It was on that night, that Shen's curiosity for Fenghuang grew. But through this conversation, he also learned that something needs to be done if he wants to break out of the psychological cage he placed around himself. He needed to take action.

And the first thing he would do while on some breaks through the tournament, is speak with the Emperor's grandson Lu Kang, personally.

"If you stay in the past, nothing will change."

Shen sighed. What he would do tomorrow would be outright ridiculous on the risk scale...but this was a risk he was pumping himself up to take.

Fine. I concede to your so called 'Way of Life' for now, Owl and Panda. Tomorrow, I'll take a chance of doing things your way.

Shen's finally deciding to take a chance to stop imprisoning himself in the past so he act in the present, and have an impact on the future. All he needed was an owl to set him straight and tell him outright to stop making excuses, and just act.

Crane has always wanted to live the way Fenghuang lived. He just needed the confidence to follow through with it by his own terms. Now he has friends he'll never trade for anything.

Tournament starts back up next chapter!