Chapter 10
Li had kept his distance, in hopes to be out of the crossfire, but when nothing had occurred, he tried to befriend Jian. Simple gestures when he came to the house were pushed away with of a paw, or head turn.
"It'll take a while to get to him," she spoke sympathetically, before glaring at Jian, who stood by the window. "At least you're trying."
Jian rolled his eyes as he turned to them, hanging out of the window sill. With a firm grip on the ledge, he let his upper body hover, swaying a little. "You're remarks aren't helping the situation Sying."
That stopped her talking. He never called her anything else but Mom for the longest time, apart from Mama when he was really, really, little... and he knew it annoyed her. Calling her by her name was disrespectful to any parent, and he was sure to have been punished, but he couldn't care less. He smirked at her almost wickedly, and announced to no one in particular, that he was going to a stroll. He moved out the door, and shut it behind him with a heavy thud, but didn't move. This high feeling of rebellion was new to him, and it was delicious. He could try to grab it again, if only he didn't hear muffled sobs behind the door. Jian felt his ears flatten stiffly across his head, before he crept to the window and peeked in. Sying, in tears, was being held by Li, who didn't speak for a few moments. "He's a teenager," he reassured her. "He's rebelling; it's normal."
Damn right it was... but why did seeing her cry make his heart hang with guilt?
He was a lot more calmer during the rest of his visit after that, but he never apologized for what he had ever said to his mother or sister. He wasn't proud being so cold... but they didn't get that they were the reason he felt this way. If everything was the way it was before; them being together, back home in the Valley, he would be a lot happier.
Giving credit where it was due, he wasn't as bad when Azure was around. Without verbally saying it, Azure sensed some sort of remorse within him, but never brought it up to him. Their mother tried to curve his behavior, but there was a response ready for her, he didn't hold himself back, and made sure Azure wasn't around to hear him, because if she did... he couldn't be able to sit for the next week. He always knew it was wrong to respect those who cared for him... but someone needed to see how he truly felt, and possibly make an attempt to fix it. After all, she was his mother; she brought him into the world, so she should know what to do.
He wasn't having any involvement in the little family she and Li had created, but the winter festival went along as merrily as it could, and the wedding wasn't long after; he forced himself to behave then, and seeing their grandparents was a strange one for them. There was a mission that kept Tigress and the others away, so they had to send back their invitations. Jian was a little vexed that Tigress wasn't coming, but could he blame her?
Sying's mother welcomed them, trying to act like a loving grandmother, but she seemed... awkward about it with the stiffened hugs that were delivered. As for her father, he stared Jian down like he was something disgusting, like he was some parasite, and Jian just stared back, trying not to look like he was the exact same. Tigress wasn't there to protect him... so he was on his own, and he had to thread carefully.
"Its about time we were face to face," his grandfather spoke coldly. He was downed well in black and gold, and his wife closely matched if her dress wasn't dark purple. Jian tried not to think about the formal piece Sying managed to scrape together for the wedding.
The after party was held in a grand restaurant with a large outer dining area, which they rented out. People Jian had never met before loitered around, laughing, eating, and wishing his Mother and... well, her husband, a happy marriage. The area had flowers on almost every surface, and lanterns twinkled like dimlit stars above them. Mama and Papa helped pay for the whole affair; how did Li manage to get them to do so after several short encounters? No that it truly mattered, but Jian was never aware of his mother's... wealthy background.
Without missing a heartbeat, Jian bowed respectfully, to which the man raised a brow. "You're the man I was named after, correct?"
"Yes..." Jian Sr tried to remain poised, but it was clear he was caught off guard by his spotless behavior. "A wise choice of your mother." Jian agreed with him, but he felt his fists clench. He was pinning lines between him and...
"Indeed," his grandmother added, before fixing her sentence quickly. "It suited you more then the other choices she could've used."
Azure looked down at Jian's paws as they proceeded to shake. "So what do we call you? Grandpa? Grandma?"
Jian Snr stiffened painfully, but tried to play it off like he heard someone behind him, even turning around acting confused, before clearing his throat. "Jian Senior is fine..." Their grandmother was about to answer, but seeing her husband's reaction, she kept quiet.
"For now," Sying drew herself in. Her wedding dress was traditionally red; gold and green vines scaled her sleeves, waist and skirt, and blended perfectly with her light makeup, she was beautiful... "Once you all get to properly know each other, of course." Jian Snr rolled his eyes in disinterest, while Jian pressed his lips together to stop his mouth from speaking.
"Sure... so," dusting the imaginary dust off of his forearms, he continued to talk while focusing elsewhere. "Where have you been hiding young man? I haven't seen you around whenever we came to the city."
Azure told him beforehand that she had met them once before; due to her schedule in the Palace, time wouldn't allow her to see her mother for days at a time, therefore hindering her chances of seeing her maternal grandparents more often. Not like she was missing much; their meetings were often mute, lacking any sound about from their short intakes of air, and the bubbling of the tea that sat between them on the table.
"I'm back home, in the Valley." Sying's father looked to her for the truth, and she nodded along with her son's words. "I'm training under Master Shifu-"
"Bit young to be left behind... how so?"
Jian raised his chin and grinned proudly. "Master Tigress adopted me."
This shocked them to say the least. "Sying... is this true?"
"Well," Sying thought about it, and reorganized his words for him. "Not adopted- he's under Master Shifu's teachings, and has been since he was small. Master Tigress has over taken my duties until he turns twenty; then, he will come stay here with Li and I."
"Huh," this was the first time Jian Snr smiled down at him, but before he could neutralize his facial expression, the words followed the chuckle. "That's one way to get rid of them both."
Azure and Jian looked at one another, just as surprised as the other while their grandparents moved towards friends of theirs who had called them over, and once they were out of an earshot, Jian glared at Sying. "I don't want him anywhere near me." He stated calmly.
"Jian please-"
"Feeling's are mutual on both sides Mom," Azure crossed her arms, tail flickering. "He wants nothing to do with us." There was no arguing; but she tried to appease them.
"They just haven't seen you in so long-"
"Then explain why Master Shifu is the exact same with me, and I live with him?" That caught her off guard; then came the stutters, and the failed attempts of her trying to make up an excuse for them. Neither of them stuck around to hear her; they both left it at that, and walked away from her.
"Family reunions will not be easy after this." Azure shook her head, turning to see Jian's eyes watching his feet move ahead of the other.
"The reason for that is simple." Her brother replied, a smile plastered on his face so roughly that she thought his face was going to crumble. "We're not part of a family. Of any family."
"What do you mean by that?" They stopped to sit far from the others. Looking back up, their mother was back to talking to Li and his friends, laughing about something one of them had said.
"It was you, me and mom before. Now its just Li and Mom; we're not part of that, and we sure as hell were never part of Jian Senior's. Shifu never wanted anything to do with us. Tigress? She just had to grow up with us, and the others had to get used to us... we're outsiders."
Monkey and Mantis watched from the docks as Jian's boat closed in on its destination. Monkey couldn't see the boy until his head popped out of view behind the sail, and only then he waved at him. They saw him waving back, and moved into the water to stir the boat towards the loading bay, and caught the rope to tie the vessel to its post.
"How was the city Jian?" Monkey asked as the boy stepped off the boat cautiously.
"Great." The boy said simply, reaching back over the boat to retrieve his bag.
"Your mother and-"
"her husband, and their good." He replied, slinging the bag over his shoulder.
"And how's Azure doing?"
"Amazing." He tried to sound lively, but Mantis raised an eyebrow at the obvious bluntness. To avoid questions, Jian started walking ahead of them. "What are we waiting for? Lets get home."
"What's the rush?" Monkey inquired.
"I... just want to go home." Maybe its just the fact it was another few hours before he could finally get back to his own bed... or the thought they had to move through the Mountains, and Jian knew fully well that somewhere in those mountains was...
They didn't say anything else, and just eyed each other and nodded in unison. They were going to have a word with Tigress when they got home.
They got home without a problem, and Jian was swift to avoid them all. Shifu was there to greet him with Tigress when they climbed up the steps, and they both noticed his discomfort, but he passed it off the same way he did with Monkey and Mantis. Anytime they, or anyone else tried to speak, he would knock them off with an excuse that he had training, or he was too tired, or had something to do.
Presently, he was in his room, trying to read. It was late at night, and his dorm, and someone else's further up the hall, were still awake, it was usually Monkey meditating, or Crane working on his calligraphy...
A soft knock.
"Come in." he door slid open to reveal Tigress. Great.
"You're up for night patrol. It's starting to rain, so I'd bring a cloak." He was up immediately, swiping the black heap of fabric off the dresser on the way out, and followed her down the hall. Neither of them spoke until Jian was stirred towards the kitchen, clasping the cloak around his neck as she motioned him towards the table with an open palm, much to his confusion.
"What about-"
"It can wait." He raised a brow at her, and she did it right back to him. "Sit."
"Yes mam," the boy spoke almost sarcastically, but was quick to sit down before she could swipe at him, grinning. He turned to watch her shaking her head while she moved to the empty beside him, her lips at neutral line scratched across her face, and his fell to the same level when she showed him a scroll. "That's from my mom..." dread was sown onto his tongue, as her head dipped into a brief nod once it was unraveled.
He recognized the handwriting. "Correct, its about your behavior during your visit for the festival." Placing the parchment roll on the table, her paws collected over one another, while her gaze hardened on him.
"Geez, you look just like Shifu doing that-"
"Jian."
"Okay I'll shut up-"
"Actually you can do the exact opposite, and explain to me what happened."
"I'll save my breath," he looked up at the lantern that shed some light over them. Not that it was anything interesting; as long as he couldn't see Master Tigress staring him down, he could ease some anxiety. The rain lightly tapped the shutters outside, and normally the sound of the rain was comforting, but knowing she was watching him didn't help. "I'm sure she went into lots of detail."
"You have no rejection then?" Her tone was very calm, and he wasn't sure how long it was going to last.
"Nope, and this is me throwing in the towel," he pushed it back towards her, and her eyes remained on him, like a woman of authority in an interrogation room, "she deserved it."
Jian looked back down and watched as Tigress closed her eyes, and placed a large paw on the scroll, resealing it before pressing it as far away from them as possible, and they made eye contact when she reopened them. "How can you say that? The respect you showed her was uncalled for. She- your mother, didn't raise you like that."
"Well she hasn't been around to make sure those behaviors stayed."
"It's only been a few months."
"So? She shouldn't have left." He crossed his arms, not caving in.
"In her absence, it's my duty to-"
"Stop talking like she's going to come back for me!" Jian snapped, raising from his seat. His chair tipped over and hit the ground with a thud as Master Oogway appeared in the doorway. "Nothing is changing my mind about this whole mess; Sying's left and married herself off to another house, Azure's left to make her own name, and I'm stuck here."
"Jian." Tigress spoke through gritted teeth, noticing Oogway's presence quickly, and kept her temper in check. Oogway just nodded at her encouragingly, and waited. The boy didn't notice him, and just waited for Tigress to take a breath, and rise from her seat too. "I... understand you're upset. Monkey has asked me if you're alright. You seemed very upset coming back from your trip..." She took a moment to let the silence fill the room. "You don't approve of this marriage, do you?" She asked finally.
"Maybe..." He sighed in defeat, before glaring at the table.
"Even so, you don't call your mother by her first name."
Jian just scoffed and folded his arms again. "I can do what I want; she's not around to tell me otherwise."
"That's what I'm here for."
"You're not my mom, so why should you care?" He pointed a finger; his eyes narrowed into slits, ears flat across his head. "I'm just a task you need to make sure is fed. A chore, a pet that you have to keep alive. What's the point? Just in case my Mother comes back to claim her prize. I'll just turn out like my dad anyway, and Shifu will just say 'I told you so', to all of you." And he turned to leave, to see Oogway standing there, a look of sadness upon him. Jian felt his chest tighten a little, before he turned his head to see Tigress, arms folded, mirroring his expression. "I... excuse me."
The rain grew heavier has he walked down the grand steps. Tigress was meant to go with him, but there was no sign of her. Viper and Mantis almost caught him at the door of the bunk house when they came back, but he hid behind the door as they passed, and slipped out before they could notice. It's what he wanted, no one needed to come near him right now, it would only vex him more. The damage had already been done, he might as well pack his bags...
But where can I go? He couldn't go back to Gongmen, there was no room with Sying and Li, not like he wanted to go anyway. Rhino told him he had no place in the city, which he wasn't wrong...
He stopped walking once his footsteps started becoming clumpy with the mud, and to look up and see the house. It had been vacant for the past few months, and he hadn't slept in it for years longer. He placed a hand against it, peeking into the window shutters. It was just as dark as as miserable inside; his eyes took a few moments to focus, but he saw their family photos still on the wall, their contents he couldn't recall...
His paw curled into a fist against the wet wall, and kept himself moving, in case Tigress was on his trail.
"We will always have each other Jian." Azure's voice echoed in his head as he stomped along.
"That's another thing sister," tears started puddling around the corner of his eyes. "You have your life here. We're not together in this anymore. I'm on my own." He wiped his tears viciously, growling, before slowing down, looking ahead of himself to distract himself. Jian had initially thought that it would be too early for any of the villagers to be up and preparing for the day. That was true... for stall owners. No one was about getting their treasures ready, but there was a light coming from a restaurant close by. Upon closer inspection, he saw a goose pushing baskets through the door. Jin glanced up at the entrance's logo;
Ping's Noodle Hut.
"Po!" He called in annoyance. "I need help bring the deliveries in from the rain! The delivery dock is out of order from your doing, remember?!"
"I'm coming dad!" Another male voice called from the upper floor, sounding groggy as the bed creaked... then there was a thud. "Ow!"
"That boy," the bird muttered, turning to get the next box moving, before freezing when he noticed Jian standing in the rain. "Can I help you? Although we're not open-"
"I'm fine." Jian said with a smile. "I'm... wondering if you need help?"
The goose shook his head, but not to deny the boy's offer, but to shake the water from his head and hat. "That's very nice of you boy, but shouldn't you be going home? Bit early to be outside."
"I'm on night patrol."
The goose's eyes widened. "Oh, you're with the Masters?"
"Yes sir. I'm at your service."
"Well thank you kindly!" The goose praised, before cradling a basket in his arms, and waddling sideways through the door. Jian turned back to check if anyone was after him, and once the coast was clear, he walked into the restaurant. "Please excuse my son's lack of assistance." Mr. Ping tutted, once Jian was inside from the rain. "He's not a morning person."
"Not everyone is." Jian said, looking around to place the basket somewhere, only to place it under the counter once the goose had ordered him. "Took me some time to get up early."
"I suppose that's true..." Mr. Ping remained smiling as he moved to the stairs. "PO!" The whole kitchen shook, and Jian remained kneeling by the counter to save himself from falling. "Now!" It was a small kitchen, but he was tall enough for him to stand in, but if he got any taller, and he still had some years left, it would've been a crawling deal.
"I'm coming dad..." a heavy weight moved along the stairs, and Jian was more then surprised to see a large round panda come to the bottom of the steps, instead of a goose. When the guy looked at him sleepily, Jian just smiled timidly.
"Hi." He tried to be polite, but his seemingly simple greeting seemed to have awoken the panda, who leapt off the final step, wide eyed, almost jumping around him as Mr. Ping waddled out of the door.
"You're Master Jian! Omygoshomygoshomygosh-"
"Not- offically..." Jian said awkwardly, but the panda- or Po, he thought the goose had said, continued.
"Why do you say that? Your sister said the same thing-"
This caught Jian off guard. "Wait." Raising his arms in case the guy jumped him, he took a step back. "You know my sister?"
"Azure? Yeah! Well, we're not friends, but she popped in before she left for the city." Po grinned excitedly, "she had said that we would meet eventually."
Ayyyy, Jian finally met Po!
Let me know what you think in the reviews! Chapter 12 is coming soon!
