Chapter 29

Everything was a little fuzzy at the moment.

Jian could recall Tai Lung was inches away from his face as they fought, and then Jian found himself on the floor in a world of pain. Another was Po telling him that he was going to be alright, and then he found Tigress. He could feel his muzzle morph into a smile, relieved to see her, okay, and his head wanted to say something to her- but couldn't. The next thing he knew, his world had gone black, and he was no longer in pain; the pain that flooded his body had suddenly disappeared.

There was this buzzing going around in his head, and all his bones and limbs felt weightless. Yet, he couldn't drift about the atmosphere. Instead, he remained inches off the ground, looking around suspiciously. Jian also felt cold; he wasn't used to being without his robe; it was light and flowy, and without it, he felt naked and vulnerable. Of course, the scar from his first mission was still visible, but it wasn't concealed out of shame or embarrassment, and never had been. They took some getting used to of course, but he was proud of them nonetheless.

The robe was something special; it was a gift he never wanted to be parted from, or see destroyed. So in this case, it couldn't be damaged in battle. Thinking about the fabric itself brought him back to Xiu.

Wow. He hadn't spoken to her in a long time; there was always the intention to speak or to see her again, but life got in the way...

"My lady..." he remembered his words catching on his tongue.

"Please take it," her smile was too beautiful to look away from. "My father would appreciate it greatly... as would I, and there's no need to call me that."

Jian, smiling back at her, replied smoothly. "Then can I get your name?" A little too smooth- he genuinely surprised himself.

Her smile became more enticing. "Xiu."

...

"Very fitting." Jian couldn't stop the words from leaving his mouth and could feel his cheeks burning instantly. Was it getting warm in here?

Xiu laughed. "Thank you... again." That was when she leaned forward, and kissed him- oh so gently, on the cheek. "I hope to see you again soon."

Jian could feel that kiss linger, but before he could say anything else, Xiu faded away. "Jian!" He twisted his head over his shoulder so quickly that he nearly gave himself whiplash.

He was all alone, but who was calling him? "Tigress?" He called uncertainly. She was nowhere to be found.

"What the hell are you doing here?" He heard someone shout. It took him a moment to realise whose voice that was- him.

"To make sure you don't die. You're welcome." The same voice replied sarcastically. It wasn't Tigress.

"Azure?" He asked himself. It definitely was her. A clap of thunder rocked his brain, and a roar so loud that he had to cover his ears. It didn't help; the roar was coming from inside his head.

He watched as Shifu pushed him back; Azure flew across the room like a weightless thing, before landing in the reflection pool with a heavy splash. "AZURE!" Suddenly, she lay on the ground before him; a pool of blood leaked out from the side of her head. She was soaking wet, laying on her side, arms placed delicately close to her head. She wasn't moving, she wasn't talking... she just lay there.

Jian made an attempt to swim through the air, trying to reach her. What had that monster done to you? He wanted to say... but he knew what he had done. He saw it with his own two eyes. Gravity finally pulled him down, and he landed heavily on his belly with a crash, he bit back the pain, crawling over until he collapsed beside her, desperately trying to collect her body into his arms, whispering her name almost incoherently. It was cold, but every time he tried to hold her, her body melted back onto the floor. "It's all my fault." The same voice sobbed above him, echoing the last two words as his sister's body seeming faded away like grains of dust.

"Calm yourself, young Master." Jian looked up, mouth agape.

"Master Oogway!" It was indeed him; if Jian weren't so shocked, he would've leapt up to hug him. But by reaching out to him, his paw fell through what should've been a solid connection. He was surprised at first, before remembering that Oogway had left them- so he got up to his feet. "It's really you? Am I dead?" His paw planted heavily on his chest, and he winced slightly.

"No, you're very much alive." Oogway laughed.

"Not perfectly okay though..." the pain echoed into his shoulder, and he was afraid to move his upper body anymore. His mind brought him back to the Hall of Heroes, fighting Tai Lung. Trying to avoid the clawing, the punches and kicks while he delivered the exact same in retaliation. "I remember some things..." Fighting to protect his home, Shifu, Tigress, his Mom, his sister- Azure!

"Your sister is fine," Oogway must have been reading his mind. "She's also injured, but she will make a good recovery. It... may just take longer for her to come around." Jian asked how come, and he smiled. "She has a job to do. You're welcome to join her if you feel up for it."

Jian felt an uneasy weight on his chest and stepped back slightly. "What is she going to do?" Why was he dreading the answer?

...

By the time Po returned after dropping off the empty bowls of noodles, something had changed; Azure was still motionless, and Shifu had suddenly materialised into the room, standing on the farthest side of the bed, ears pinned to the back of his head. Tigress was leaning over Jian from the side of the bed where they conversed not even an hour ago, with Mantis sitting on her shoulder. Po wasn't sure what to say to them, apart from 'is everything okay?'

"Jian just spoke," Shifu replied quietly. "Properly this time."

"Wait what?! He did?!" Po ran to the bottom of the bed; he didn't look any different. "What... did he say?" Was it even coherent?

Tigress twisted her head to look at the panda. "He said 'no'."

"No?" A paw levelled with his head and scratched it in confusion. "What did he mean by that?"

"Not sure, we hope he wakes up soon to tell us himself-" Mantis began, before he looked back at Jian, leaning in slightly. Shifu, Tigress and Po did the same; Jian had started twitching and muttered something else- something new, but it was broken but mumbled so low, no one could register. "Jian?" Mantis' pincer tucked under his chin, looking rather muddled as Po joined Shifu's side. "There he goes again, saying 'no'..." What was he talking about?

"Wake up bud..." Po spoke encouragingly. "You're safe now. I promise."

In that instant, Jian's eyes opened, and he shot up so fast he nearly knocked Po over. Tigress jumped back in time, only to move around to hold his uninjured shoulder still. Despite the pain that echoed within his bones, Jian was shivering violently and stared deep into Shifu's soul.

"I'm not ready to forgive him." He sobbed.


It took some time for Jian to calm down, and even by then, he wasn't very willing to elaborate. Instead, he grew dangerously quiet, but Mantis put it down to the shoulder injury, although they had some idea what it was about, they all agreed that Jian would tell them when he felt ready.

Shifu had just sat down beside him, back straight in the chair, watching Jian as he stared at the empty cot beside him; he had been like that for most of the day. His arm now was bandaged up and in a sling; it wasn't a dislocation like they had originally thought. The impact broke his shoulder- he had a long recovery to go. But the boy wasn't going to be thinking about that, at least not yet. Azure had been transferred to a separate room; Shifu was concerned that seeing her may distress Jian even more. But of course, once he came around properly, he wanted to see her. Mantis begged him to rest for now, and Jian agreed, on the promise that he could see Azure later that night.

He hadn't eaten much either, and even though Po made something, especially for him, he couldn't bring himself to do more than inhale the spices and herbs of the delicious food beneath his nose. Po couldn't hide his disappointment, no matter how hard he tried. Still, Jian finally admitted that food just made him feel nauseous. "I'm sorry," he said, to which Po managed to laugh and said it was no biggie; Monkey volunteered to give the food a good home, once Jian gave him the okay. He was happy enough to stomach some tofu cubes, which definitely wasn't like him, but they couldn't force him to eat anymore. One thing that did bring a smile to his face was when Monkey gave him back his robe; thankfully the most that happened to it was a light caking of dust.

By now it was nighttime, and it was just the two of them alone in the medical wing. Mantis went to get something to eat, while Po and Tigress had finally retired to bed, much to Shifu's relief. Po had been in and out of the room, but he had been on his feet the whole day, checking in to make sure Jian had enough to drink, or glance at the bowl on the bedside table, in hopes he attempted to eat some. Tigress, on the other hand, hadn't left the room all day, and if it wasn't for Po telling him that she had eaten with him in the infirmary, he would've thought otherwise. She sat with Jian, talked to him, and listened to him when he tried and make sense of everything that had happened; like she always did.

Everything was still fresh in their minds, which granted them something beneficial. With the others not being in the room, Shifu had some space; Tigress was exhausted, he could see that, but she was too proud to admit it... and Shifu wasn't sure how much he could take of Po's rambling. Nothing against him, but there was only so much Shifu could take in a short span of time, especially after today.

"Is my mother on the way?" Jian finally asked him.

"We sent word out this morning. So she should be here in the next few days."

Shifu wasn't even sure if he was paying attention, because his eyes never moved from the spot; the bed where Azure had occupied, that is. Shifu moved towards the cot, investigating whatever he was focused on. He found a little spot of red on the pillow where his sister's head had been. Shifu nodded, pulling the sheet up further to cover it. "Can I see her?" This was the third- no, maybe the fourth time he asked. "Please..." He had to make sure she was okay.

Shifu had no choice but to give in; he didn't break his promise to Mantis after all. They wandered down the hallway in the dark, and it didn't take long for them to find the room. Jian knocked lightly, something he always did out of habit, even though he wasn't expecting anyone to reply. Opening the door, his eyes immediately fell to the bed, mouth slightly agape.

Viper was by the bed, putting away bandages into a box on the bedside table. Hearing the knock, she had her head turned to face the door, greeting them with a smile. "Hey sweetie," her voice was soft and honey-like, and Jian couldn't help but smile."How are you feeling?"

"Better... well rested, that's for sure." His voice withered at some parts.

Viper winced slightly, giggling. "You got a lot more resting to do.." She added on a 'sorry', but she knew Jian wasn't paying attention. Instead, he gently floated until he was beside the serpent, and the two looked down at Azure, while Shifu remained by the door; she was lying on her back now, with her arms by her side. Her fingers twitched here and there, as did her ears, but she was calm... it was just weird seeing her head wrapped up in the bandages. He stood tall beside her, before inclining his upper body until his head was hanging above hers. "She's breathing," he said shakily. "That's good..."

Shifu nodded stiffly, not really sure what to say. He remained fixed on Jian as he slowly sank into the chair. He reached out with his good paw, which hovered over Azure's, but he pulled it back just as quickly. "Tigress had been to see her before she went to bed. She'll take over from me at sunrise." Leaning in slightly, she whispered suggestively. "You can hold her paw, it might comfort her." Viper suggested.

"Is she in pain?" Jian didn't look away. Viper tried to rephrase her sentence, scrambling words together as Shifu walked further inside the room, joining them at the bed, but he went to the other side.

"She's peaceful." Shidu finally said. "The medicine is helping with the pain," Jian nodded, before bowing his head shamefully.

"It's my fault." He said. "No one else was supposed to be there, I thought she had left with..."

The red panda tilted his head slightly as Jian's words trailed off. "What about Po?" He prompted. "Was he not supposed to be there?" The news of Po's victory wasn't hidden longer than it needed to be. Jian was relieved to hear about the defeat and apologised to Po for missing it. It was a joke of course, which got a laugh out of Po and Mantis, but Tigress didn't see the humour in it.

Now Jian could only scoff amusingly, looking up at him. "He really is something, isn't he? I had faith in him... but it still surprised me somehow, if that makes any sense?"

"It does." Shifu chuckled but stopped short as they all look back down at Azure. Clearing his throat, "what happened isn't your fault." Jian kept his eyes on her, fingers slowly opening and closing into a soft fist. "She'll be okay," he assured him. "She's in good paws."

"...Pincers. And tails." There was a brief silence before they all chuckled. "And I know she will be. Oogway said so," he sighed heavily. Shifu stood to attention, ears stiff with alertness. "but I just needed to see her." He finally took hold of her paw. It was warm and limp.

"Oogway?" Viper voiced his thoughts.

"Yeah... it sounds nuts but..." Jian straightened his back. "While I was unconscious, I feel like I had... a vision? A dream? Whatever it is, he was there, and he told me she had a job to do, which means for us that she is going to take her time coming back around."

"Ah," Shifu replied knowingly. "Could that explain what you said earlier? Or had something to do with it?" Jian's gaze remained on his sister, but Shifu saw his eyelids lifting slightly, as his brain registered what he said. "Are you ready to explain what it meant?" He was too upset to talk earlier.

"Yeah..." He sighed defeatedly. "Oogway asked me if I was ready to forgive Tai Lung, for everything..." Viper let out a surprised 'oh?' While Shifu listened intently. "I told him out straight, that no I wasn't. He could've killed us all if Po wasn't there. He was a monster..." he pulled Azure's paw closer to his chest. "I hope Oogway can see, wherever he is, the way he left my sister. What he did to you, me and the five... but she's ready to forgive him, apparently. For the torment that his image put us through our whole lives. For what he did just today. That's why she hasn't woken up yet." Viper glanced at Shifu, waiting for him to respond, to react... something, anything. "Maybe I just sound crazy, but that's what I've been thinking of this whole time. Oogway thinks I will forgive him, but that's the one thing I can say he's wrong about. I will never be ready."

"And that explains what you said today." Shifu finally spoke, but it came out quiet. The young leopard nodded only once, before swallowing. It was slow, and his jaw felt stiff when he did it, but he needed to move a part of his body without removing his paw from Azure. Viper sniffed tearfully before leaning in to hug him, to which he shook his head, barely smiling. "Aw Vi..."

"You don't have to ever be ready," they both looked up at Shifu; his paw sat lightly on top of Azure's other paw, "no one can make you. You can say you forgive him, but you'll only be lying to no one else but yourself. If you truly feel this way, with your whole heart, no one can persuade you." Addressing Viper, the red panda dismissed her with the gesture of a paw. "We'll stay with her." She was a little hesitant, but Jian assured her that they'd be fine so she left, closing the door softly behind her. "You will stay as long as you like."

Jian shook his head. "Master, it's fine. You go get some sleep-"

"No." The leopard was a little taken aback by his sternness but noticed him patting his sister's paw, before closing his fingers over it. "Besides, if she's ready to forgive him, I think the least we can do is let her know that we stand by her decision."


"How much further?" Out of nowhere, this yellow glow materialised around them. So sudden, in fact, Azure could've been blinded indefinitely.

Hissing, she shielded her eyes with her paw, as she averted her gaze elsewhere. Oogway stopped in front of her; it was only a few feet ahead, but he had stopped speaking for a while; now he was humming softly to himself. A song that felt familiar, that felt like home, but she couldn't put the finger on it. "How much further?" She asked again, this time shielding her eyes before looking at him.

"We are here, you can look little one." Mind turning down the brightness? She thought. The glow softened, almost like he read her mind. Observing their surroundings, she still couldn't figure out where they were... it was just the two of them.

"Well?" Azure looked at the old turtle, confused. "Where is he?" Oogway smiled, and nodded behind her; her whole body rotated. And there he was; all of a sudden, it felt like the world around her suddenly grew dark again. His eyes glowed menacingly, he stood tall, head high, claws concealed in agitated fists planted firmly by his sides.

"You." He hissed.

He was storming towards her, but she wasn't going to run away. Azure raised her fists, growling as she clenched them tightly. "Stay where you are," She warned him, but it fell on deaf ears. He loomed closer and closer while she raised her fists a little higher to shield her face, before running for him too.

SWOOSH!

He bounced back, landing on all fours after tumbling back. She hit the ground, her back embedding into the ground, groaning on impact. Whatever sent them back caused a vibration to spread throughout her body, with every muscle moving with it as she hauled herself up into a sitting position. Azure turned to Oogway, mouth agape, while Tai Lung did the same, looking a little dazed. There he stood, his staff raised high above his head. A lot like the one he had back at home... but here, wherever they were if it was dipped in gold, with the Yin and Yang symbol on the top. There was a faint golden wave wrapped around it like a see-through lasso, only to vanish just as it appeared in her line of vision.

"That is not what we're here to do." He spoke sternly, which wasn't like him at all. "You should know better than to attack."

Master Oogway was always a man beyond life itself; any naive animal nowadays would play him off as an old turtle, but Azure always knew that he was something special. The children of the Valley knew to respect him; their parents leading that example, but there was no knowing if someone bothered to tell them why Oogway was so important to them. Maybe they all grew up to respect him because they didn't know anything else about him, other than what their parents told them he was someone they had to respect. He created Kung Fu, sure, but he was brave enough to tell Tai Lung to his face that he wasn't destined for the scroll, for the title of the Dragon Warrior... probably knowing the wrath and devastation that was to follow. Azure was one of those kids growing up; she had to respect Oogway and Shifu. There was no problem respecting Oogway, he had all the time in the world for her and Jian, but Shifu? She could never understand... until now.

"Take your time, my dear." He said, moving the staff about. "He can't harm you."

Azure nodded, before reaching forward, only to physically meet an invisible wall. "That explains the barrier." She said.

Oogway shrugged. "That's just for good measure."

"But if he's gone, then I can't touch him."

Oogway shook his head. "I told him he had to wait."

"So he's still alive?" Barely, was the response she got after that. She nodded slowly; she couldn't contain her anger, and maybe Oogway saw that... maybe the barrier was for Tai Lung's safety too. Motioning towards the male leopard, who now stood inches away from her when she turned back to look at him, she forgot all about Oogway's protection and punched it- or him, anyway. The vibration moved through her paw, but it wasn't painful. Why did she even bother to come in the first place?

"This is all your fault." Tai Lung finally said.

Azure pulled a face, one of offence as if he just accused her of a heinous crime. "Excuse me?" That was all she managed to get out.

Tai Lung scoffed, "save your breath. You'll only waste more of my time."

Azure raised a brow, before crossing her arms snugly against her chest. "How? Are you in a rush? Do you have somewhere you need to be right this second?" It was sarcastic, and he knew it, but it still angered him. He punched the shield, harder than she did, and it almost knocked her back. "I didn't have to come here." She managed to remain standing.

"Then why are you even here?" He snapped.

"Because I wanted to forgive you. I shouldn't have to. After all, you just tried to kill me and my brother. You put those most important to me in harm's way, for all that you've done, and put us all through..."

Tai Lung rolled his eyes. "Is this your attempt to scold me? Save your sob stories." He turned to walk away, but before he made another step, he kept talking. Through most of it, Azure wasn't paying attention; she focused on his shoulders, which moved with every syllable and breath. "If you're as gifted as you make yourself out to be, tell me the truth." He was just like Jian. He was egging her on, waiting for her to break.

"What truth? I've told you everything I know-"

"Liar. Do you think I wasn't going to find out about your mother's infidelity?"

"What infidelity?" Azure was gobsmacked. "What on earth are you talking about?" She started laughing. "You think my mother being married is infidelity? Forgive me, I didn't know you were married to her?!" Que a pause. "Oh wait! You were never married to her! There is nothing to say that she could not find someone else if you were left to rot in jail for something you did." During her whole spiel, he watched and listened over his shoulder. "You brought this all onto yourself, and-" somewhere through her rage, her words started getting caught up in her throat, and he narrowed his eyes as he looked back at her.

"And what?" He turned to face her properly. "Come on then girl, I know there's more you want to say."

...

"But it's not your fault."

Tai Lung's glare softened a little, if not slightly. "What?" He managed to muster. Oogway took a step back and kept quiet.

"It's not your fault for believing in what Shifu told you. How were you to know the truth? It was something you were told your whole life, so you never imagined life going any other way..." She turned to Oogway. "You hid it from him." The tortoise's face fell a little. Tai Lung's eyes switched to him, narrowing slightly.

Oogway bowed his head, and it was the first time Azure had seen him look ashamed of something. "There was never a right time, and I only wish that there was another way..."

"That's right..." Azure nodded, before looking back at Tai Lung, "and if you let me..." Azure's paw rose and settled against the barrier. This time, it didn't react to her touch. It was still, but warm, like someone, was holding her paw. "I will bring you some peace."

Tai Lung seemed sceptical, but his paw slowly moved up towards her. Azure had no idea what was going on in his head, but as soon as his paw hovered over hers, the shield melted away in a glittery waterfall, through the water-like feature, her other paw had that warm feeling like someone was holding it, or their paw was settling on top of it...


His eyes opened to find himself standing in front of the stars.

At first, it was only the stars that he could see, until he looked down. There was a familiar glow, that was soft on the eyes. The lights far below remained still most of the time, but some moved this way and that...

"I'll leave."

His ears picked up a soft feminine voice before he turned to see her walking away. Sying.

He turned his full body now, reaching out. "Wait." Her feet stopped after two more steps, and she twisted her upper body back towards him; her eyes were slightly narrowed, but she didn't look annoyed. In fact, they softened into a heartbroken frown. It dawned on him; he was here, back home, twenty years ago. Back up in the peach tree, the night he was denied his destiny-

The night I attacked the Valley. A voice in his head whispered in a form of gasping as if they were held underwater and struggling for air. The thought of her walking away, the thought of her having to raise their children on her own, her leaving them, getting married to someone else... he couldn't bare to think about it without suffocating himself...

Or did any of this even happen? Him going to jail, escaping, attacking Tigress and her team? He couldn't ever imagine doing that. Nearly killing Shifu and his own son? And Azure... did she really exist? Did Jian exist? Was all the hatred and pain really caused by him? Neither of them was visible now, all he saw was Sying. Her feelings were hurt, and he couldn't remember for the life of him why. Did he say something to her? He was powerful, that's for sure, but he was no hero.

He was a Monster.

"Do you want me to stay?" She was talking again, a little bit softer than before. "I don't want to invade. But I got worried about you. You haven't spoken for a long time."

Yes, he wanted her to stay; yes he wanted her to remain here with him, and yes; he hadn't spoken for a long time. "I'm just trying to gather my thoughts."

"Oh Tai..." She ran to him and buried her face into his chest. "I'm so sorry..." He welcomed her into a hug, patting her back before he looked back out towards the stars. They glittered gently above him, far beyond his reach. He then looked back down at the Valley; it didn't change. "What's going on inside your head?"

The wind blew gently, lapping around his ears, soft enough for them to flicker before he started talking.

He trained his whole life for this... and everything was taken away from him in a moment. He wasn't destined to be the Dragon Warrior... he felt like... a failure. Not to himself alone, but to let Shifu down... he let Sying down too. Sying didn't speak or move from their embrace; she listened intently, her head lying against his chest. The only movement she made was her eyes, which looked up at him, and then the ground, the stars, and finally at the Valley of Peace. She only pulled away from him when he asked something. "Will you still have me?"

"What?" Her brows knitted closely together before it hit her.

"In fact, once I become Dragon Warrior, you will live here with me..." raising his head, Sying could feel her breath catch in her throat, "and we will marry... and that's a promise... if that's what you want?"

"I couldn't have it any other way..."

His paws were soon encased in hers. "Of course, I would still have you." They allowed their foreheads to touch before she whispered. "Forever and always..."


And here is chapter 29 at long last!

Hope you guys liked it! Azure has made peace with Tai Lung, and is helping him 'restart'...

Please leave a review!