Chapter 13

Acquaintances

As Po told the Emperor the details of Mariko's dream, Cishan grew more and more weary. When his Soothsayer had foreseen an imminent attack from the tribes of the north, he had thought it folly, but now he was coming to realize that perhaps it was no accident that these events were lining up.

The Leopard sat down on his throne and placed his paw on his forehead as he was having a tough time taking everything in. "So what you're saying is that the threat of invasion is closer than it seems?" He asked Po who stood facing him.

Po nodded, "Yes Emperor Cishan, my Daughter's dreams are foreshadowing this threat, I must be certain."

"Curses! That crazy elder Goat was right after all…" Cishan said as he slammed his fist into the arm of his throne out of his anger at himself. Though not hard enough to damage the golden chair it was still hard enough to be heard by Po and Mariko.

"How long do you think we have before this invasion?" The Emperor asked as he stood up from his throne and looked out the window of his room and out on the expansive city which surrounded it.

"I fear it will be quite soon my Emperor. I give us at most two to three weeks before the Mongols reach the northern border." Po answered knowing that this would not please the Leopard's already unhappy mood.

"You can't be serious!? Two weeks!?" The Emperor asked in disbelief, or rather denial. Such an enigma was exactly what he didn't need at such a hectic time.

Po nodded and replied, "You must send as many troops to the northern border as you can Cishan, we cannot ignore this threat."

"You think I don't want to send the army out to guard the northern border? If this were so simple I would do that right now! I can't send the army out there because we have a crisis with the Manchu's and even the Tibets! If I were to withdraw the troops from the west and the northeast the country would sooner fall into chaos internally! Not that we aren't already in chaos..." The Emperor ranted as he walked up to the balcony which overlooked the entire city.

All the while, Mariko had listened to the entire conversation felt uncomfortable with the negative atmosphere of the topic. Since she had already served her purpose in the conversation, she went on her way to the door.

"Mariko? Where are you going?" Her father asked, noticing her reaching for the door handle.

"I would like to go outside to train for a bit, I really could use some fresh air anyway. I think I'll head over to the Palace gardens." She answered as she continued on her way.

"Okay sweetheart, but please be careful-" Po stated before Mariko interrupted him, "Daddy, it's me we're talking about. I'll be fine." And with that, she left and descended the long stairway down.

Po sighed and returned his attention to Cishan who was pacing back and forth nervously, no doubt over the impossible situation that faced him and his country. "I understand that this situation is difficult Cishan, I wish it could be simpler, but you must spare what soldiers you can or else we will all die."

"Even with what few soldiers I can spare, it will not be enough to protect the country Dragon Warrior… We need more support-" Cishan ranted as he continued to pace around his balcony before Po interrupted him. "I can enlist the rest of the Masters from the Kung Fu Council and all of the other trained Kung Fu Masters to aid in this struggle, but we will still need the help of two others."

Cishan was much relieved to hear this, but was still curious, "Whom are these two others of which you speak?" He asked as he stopped his nervous pacing and faced the Dragon Warrior.

"Do you remember the time I asked that you pardon Tai Lung? Well, shortly after this, he went in search of his nephew Peng, who also happens to be a prodigy in the art of Kung Fu. Well I've heard recently that the two have acquainted and teach Kung Fu lessons around the country. I will attempt to get them to join the effort." Po answered.

"Well this is excellent news Dragon Warrior, it seems we will stand a chance against the Mongols after all!" Cishan replied with much more optimism than before.

"Let's hope so." Po answered quietly to himself.

Meanwhile at the bottom of the massive structure, Mariko was relieved to have left that negative atmosphere of the throne room. She was presently practicing an advanced Kung Fu technique of which her father had recently taught her, it helped that she was practicing the Royal Palace Gardens where the area brimmed with life. Not that there weren't plenty of people in this busy city anyway, but this form of life was much more peaceful for say. There were flowers of just about every kind in this beautiful area, and each one had a distinctive fragrance and aroma to it. It was the ideal spot to practice control of her Chi.

She calmed her mind, eliminating all distractions such as the loud merchants and citizens on the other side of the thick stone walls surrounding the garden. The noises made by the wind rustling through and disturbing the wooden shutters on the sides of the Palace as it blew leaves and small debris throughout the city.

Once her mind cleared, she focused all her energy and directed her attention to a wilting flower amongst all the vibrant ones. Using all the energy she could muster, she infused it into the wilting flower which had the effect of making the plant rise from it's unfortunate state. Mariko opened her eyes and smiled as she saw the effect the technique had had on the flower, it stood upright now, brimming with life like all the others. But her happy spirits were quickly diminished as she saw the flower shortly succumb to the same wilting form it had earlier.

She frowned and sighed in disappointment. Yes, she had not yet mastered the technique, nor had she really even practiced it much, but her father had told her it was one of the most difficult techniques there was, and that it would take a great deal of practice. What didn't help her though, was knowing that her father and all of the other Pandas had seemingly managed to learn it in a single day without any practice. She sat down and took a moment to rest. This technique was quite physically taxing, especially considering she had not yet mastered it yet.

After taking a moment to recover, she stood back up and prepared to perform the technique again. This time she was determined to succeed, so she began to gather her energy once more in an attempt to infuse some of her life force into the dying flower. But just as she put her paw forward, she noticed another person taking a walk in the garden nearby in her peripheral vision. She turned her head and noticed that it was a male Amur Leopard who looked of similar age. He did not necessarily look the strongest, but his elegant uniform he wore gave the impression that he was of fairly high class. She wondered if this was the same Leopard whom she had longed to see for the past nearly 2 decades.

Upon getting a closer look, she noticed something that explained everything, it was the other Opal earring which matched the one she wore. "Haokan!?" She asked in surprise.

The Leopard responded by turning and looking her directly in the eyes. His expression was similar to Mariko's, in that he was surprised. His jaw now agape as he looked over at the female Tiger who was uncannily the same one he had met nearly 20 years ago at this same Palace.

After what felt like the longest minute of silence in history, the Leopard remarked, "So it was you who I saw earlier with that Panda!"

Mariko, instead of replying back, smiled out of pure glee as she walked up to Haokan and hugged him. He felt awkward by this gesture and didn't know what to do or say in response, he only heard her say, "I missed you so much!"

After a moment, she let him go and noticed his expression which looked of surprise but in a nervous way. She could tell he was uncomfortable in this situation and so she backed off a bit and an awkward silence took over for a moment as neither of the two maintained eye contact.

Mariko broke the silence, asking, "So how are you doing these days? It's been so long since we've spoken."

Haokan composed himself enough to reply, "Well, I mean, I'm doing okay, but I'm just so surprised to see you! It's been, what, 18 years? Give or take?"

She nodded, "Yes, and look at how much you've grown over all this time, you're taller than me now!" Of course Haokan was taller, but not as much as her tone would make one believe, in fact he was only really a full inch taller if even that.

He scratched the back of his head and replied, "Well, I'm only a little bit taller than you. And plus you've changed a lot too! You look so much stronger than me. I assume it's because of all the training you've been doing as a Kung Fu Master?"

She smiled and answered, "You could say that, but it also helps to have some pretty good genes as well."

They both laughed at this but soon the atmosphere became awkward again. That was until Haokan asked, "So, about you being a Kung Fu Master, do you actually end up fight off bandits and other criminals?"

"That's kind of my job being a student at the Jade Palace, the Valley occasionally gets invaded by groups of Bandits so it's up to myself and my parents to ward them off or capture them." She answered with a small but evident amount of pride.

"But isn't that...Well...Dangerous?" He asked skeptically.

She answered assuredly, "Sure it is, but I've trained my whole life and can fight my way out of almost anything! In fact before I spotted you I was in the middle of practicing one of the newest techniques my Dad taught me. Wanna see it?"

Haokan nodded, and so Mariko led the Leopard back over to where the wilting flower still sat drooping over as it's life slowly faded away. She heard him ask, "So what exactly is this technique?"

Mariko did not answer and instead began to concentrate on building up and gathering her life force energy again. She again directed her paw and prepared to exert all the energy and infuse it into the dying flower. As she did this, Haokan noticed a faint golden glow coming from the center of Mariko's left paw.

"Uhhh Mariko? Your paw is glowing! Hey? Mariko?" Haokan asked as he waved his paw in front of her shut eyes.

But as she ignored him, Haokan began to notice a change in the flower. It seemed like it was recovering from its grim state. He marveled as he watched the spectacle with his jaw open in disbelief. "Incredible…" He muttered to himself.

Mariko finished the technique with the flower now fully upright and in much better condition, the lush green stems and leaves brimming with life. Though the technique had again taken a tole on her body, and she began to collapse before Haokan managed to catch her and break her fall.

He was never praised for his strength, and he didn't want to admit it to himself, but he was having a difficult time keeping the young Tigress' body from hitting the floor. "Goodness you're heavy!" He said through breaths as he set her down on the ground gently.

She opened her eyes wearily and attempted to rise but was unable to out of muscle fatigue. Haokan placed a paw on her back and helped her up into a sitting position. "What even is that technique? It's the coolest thing I've ever seen!" He stated with enthusiasm.

As she recovered her breath, Mariko answered, "It is called Chi… And as you can see, I still haven't mastered it yet…" By this she was referring to the fact that she was completely exhausted from the exertion.

And worse yet, her efforts had again only temporarily worked, as the flower once again succumbed to it's deteriorating state. She sighed and looked down in disappointment with her failure but was reassured by Haokan, "Hey, even though you didn't succeed I thought it was a great technique! Keep practicing and I'm sure you'll master it with time!"

"You think so?" She asked as she stood up after having recovered enough of her strength back. To which he nodded in confirmation with a knowing smile on his face.

It then dawned on her that the day was getting old, and her father would probably come looking for her soon. Po hadn't planned on staying in Beijing for long, only to get the message to the emperor. So she figured she would have to make the most of the last few moments she would have with her friend before they would be separated again.

"Hey, I know we just meet each other again after so long Haokan, but my father will probably come looking for me any minute now." She told him with a slight frown.

To which he replied in shock, "Wait, are you serious? But you only just got here!"

"Yeah, my dad only brought us here to send the message to your father about an impending attack on China." She answered while still feeling down.

"An attack!? Is this real? When is it? And from where?" Haokan asked as he barraged her with questions to satisfy his confused mind.

"My dad thinks so, and he claims it will be from the Mongolians up north. To be honest I was fed up with that whole conversation so I left and came down here to train, but then I saw you…" She trailed off and stared into his eyes.

Haokan, being clueless to her thoughts looked behind him and asked, "What are you looking at?"

Which quickly snapped her out of her trance and back to reality, she stammered, "Uh, nothing!"

He looked unconvinced with this, so she changed the subject, "Hey, why don't we go for a walk together around the rest of the gardens? Just you and me?"

He seemed skeptical, "Are you sure? A minute ago you could barely stand-" He tried to reason before she cut him off, "I'm fine Haokan, the technique only tires me temporarily. Plus, I'm not that weak of a girl am I?"

At this he couldn't really come up with a refute to argue with this. So he nodded, extended a paw and asked, "Shall we? My lady?" To which she smiled and took his paw and the two proceeded to take a stroll around the gardens.

All the while at the Jade Palace training grounds…

"Your technique is sloppy and undisciplined! Do you not remember any of my teachings?" A stern and cold voice asked almost as a command or order.

"Mom, I told you, martial arts isn't my thing-" Pleaded a defeated White Tiger from the floor of the training grounds before being interrupted mid-sentence.

"Enough with the excuses Hao! We've been at this all afternoon and you've still yet to land a hit on me. How do you plan to help others when you can't even help yourself. Now get back up on your feet!" Tigress ordered her oldest son with authority and without sympathy, either not noticing his state of fatigue or simply not caring.

Hao tried to stand but was having difficulty with all the muscle fatigue he was experiencing. Having not trained in months, his body was not used to this amount of strain. "Mom, I'm sorry, but I can't do this… You ask too much of me. I'm only meant to be a noodle chef…"

Tigress was about to scold her son further, but refrained from doing this as she noticed how impatient she was getting. She knelt down to be at eye level, "Hao, I know I already told you this at the shop, but I believe in you. When you were younger, you dreamt of becoming the worlds greatest chef and a respected Kung Fu Master. You have become one of the worlds best chefs, I couldn't be prouder of you for it. But I also want to see the same passion for martial arts which my son held not too long ago!"

Hao was hesitant, but nodded to this and forced himself to his feet. His Mother's words almost always gave him confidence, and now was no exception. He would do this for the sake of his friends, his family, and for everyone.

Tigress smiled at her Son's perseverance. She then prepared herself and said, "Remember your training Hao, it will help to save your life and the lives of others around you."

He nodded to this and prepared himself in a stance which his mother had taught him. Calming his mind and allowing his body to be loose and ready for anything. He took a deep breath and replied, "I'm ready."

Tigress began the spar by throwing out a series of easily countered blows. Every time Hao would properly defend himself she would ramp up her offense to take it up to the next level. After a couple of light sequences, Tigress began to challenge him much more intensely, hitting harder and faster than before. But this time Hao was ready, his mental state allowed him to react quicker and even throw a couple punches of his own.

And so the training continued, with Hao making progress for the better and reattaining his former martial arts prowess. But the question was, would it be enough?

After having done a full circle of the Palace Gardens, Mariko looked to the Leopard beside her, "Thank you for spending time with me today Haokan. I know you probably have a lot of other things to attend to being the Emperor's son and all."

He shrugged and replied, "You could say that, though I don't actually have as many responsibilities as you would think. I mostly just show up to public appearances and wave at people while making a fake smile, never anything that exciting. Otherwise my father still does the more important matters of running the country, I have a feeling he does it because he doesn't want me to…"

She raised a brow, "Hmm? And why's that?" She asked as she noticed his expression change to that of disappointment.

He seemed hesitant to answer at all, his father's personal matters were none of her business, but he knew Mariko was trustworthy enough to confide in, "Because my Father doesn't want me to inherit the position of Emperor. He never says it to my face but I've heard him say it to his advisers when he thinks I'm not listening. I knew it would come to this since he still blames me for Mother's death."

Mariko looked at the Leopard with pity, for she could scarcely imagine a father resenting his own son like this. She remembered Haokan having told her about his father disliking him when they were younger, but it seemed the relationship had not been mended over the course of two decades.

"This must bother you a lot Haokan, do you think he'll ever pass on the title of Emperor?" She asked, though she already had a good idea what his answer would be.

"No, I don't think he ever will." Haokan answered simply, feeling no need to explain anything more.

Mariko didn't know how to continue the conversation, so she staid silent, taking in the last few moments that she would have with Haokan for quite a while. These moments felt precious to her, she had longed to spend time with him and now that it was a reality she was disappointed that she would have to leave in a matter of minutes.

"Haokan, can I ask you something?" She asked, changing the topic as they walked along whilst still holding paws.

"Yes? Ask away." He answered simply as he turned his head to face her.

"With all of this talk about an upcoming war, are you scared at all?" She asked as she looked on towards the sunset.

"Yes." He answered very simply but assuredly, then continued, "I am scared of what is to come. I've never imagined the country going to war with another, I just pray that we will triumph and that we will still have a country after everything passes. What about you?"

"I'm also scared. I've trained my entire life to be able to protect others and to protect myself. But this time I feel like none of it will be enough. If this army is as big as Dad says then I fear nothing will be enough." She replied while definitely looking nervous.

"Really? That surprises me because I thought all you Kung Fu Masters are fearless and hardcore." He answered having not expected this response.

She giggled a bit, "You know my Dad used to use that expression? He would always call Mom the most hardcore Master in all of China, which to be fair she was and kind of still is. But even though we seem brave all the time, everyone fears something deep down."

He chuckled a bit, "You sound like those crabby old nobles who Father always complains about. Just like you, they seem to have all sorts of wise knowledge to share with others."

She raised a brow with a smile, "I sound like an old noble?" She asked, exposing Haokan's poor choice of words and making his face turn bright red in embarrassment.

"Ah! That's not at all what I meant! What I meant to say was-" He tried to explain in his own defense as he stumbled across his words.

"I'm messing with you Haokan, I know what you meant by that, but the way you worded it isn't very flattering to say the least." She interrupted him with a giggle at his mistake.

He looked at her with a flabbergasted expression, 'Gosh, women can be weird sometimes…' He thought to himself as he settled down and continued walking with his companion.

The two continued to walk in a peaceful silence as they each took in the evening atmosphere which was slowly casting a shadow over the now much more silent city. One would say this was a very romantic moment for the two felines, and they would absolutely be correct, only neither of the felines truly thought that. They were simply happy to be able to share what little time they had left.

As they neared the end of the pathway through the gardens, Haokan asked, "Mariko?"

To which she looked to her side and replied, "Yes Haokan?"

"Stay here in Beijing with me. That way you wouldn't have to go to war." He answered as he stopped walking and looked her in her Jade Green eyes.

She looked down and contemplated this, after a good moment of thought she answered, "I'm sorry Haokan, but I can't. I have to do this, for all of China. I have a duty to help in any way I can, I owe it to everyone to try."

He was disappointed with this answer, and he attempted to persuade her differently, "You don't owe anyone anything Mariko! You've helped save so many people and have risked your life for their harmony. Can't you see that I just want to you to stay safe?"

She shook her head, "You're wrong Haokan, I do owe it to everyone to fight this battle. I don't think I told you, I am likely one of the reasons that our country faces war with Mongolia in the first place."

"What do you mean? How could you possibly be responsible for this Mariko?" He asked, clearly not buying her reasoning.

She sighed, "Haokan, I haven't told you before, but I once had a twin brother named Genji. I won't go into the specifics about how he was corrupted, only that I had a lot to do with it. When one day he lashed out at me out of jealousy and hatred, he nearly killed me and likely would have had my Dad not stepped in and saved my life. After this, Dad banished Genji from China where he then fled to Mongolia. In my dreams of this upcoming battle, it is him who I see leading legions of soldiers into battle against our country."

Haokan questioned whether or not Mariko was telling the most absurd lie he had ever heard. 'Who has a Brother who tries to kill them? And her father banished her brother to Mongolia!? This whole story sounds like a tragedy tale…' He thought to himself while inspecting Mariko's expression to see if she was really telling the truth. But he could find no such signs that she was lying, which amazed him. "Wait a second, so you're saying that your brother tried to kill you once and now he's the one leading the Mongols? This is the craziest thing I have ever heard!"

"It's true Haokan, my brother has always had a deep hatred and jealousy for me. And it is all my fault." She replied while shedding a tear as she relived the awful memory.

He placed a paw on her shoulder and guided her to sit down on a bench in the gardens. "Mariko, how could you possibly be at fault for that? From what your saying, your brother's hatred of you was completely unfounded!" He argued.

She shook her head, "No Haokan, it really is my fault. Ever since we were cubs Genji was extremely competitive. He and I sparred all the time together, but each time, I would defeat him, even despite the fact that he trained twice as hard as me and was stronger and faster. Dad would always give me more attention than Genji, and when Dad would scold him for his resentful ways he would only grow more jealous of me. Eventually, one day about a year ago this time of year, he came back from after our spar and nearly beat me to death like it was nothing. Mom says that my back was cracked in half, the front of my skull had been shattered, and I had many lacerations all over my body. Dad later told me that Genji had been possessed by some demon that increased his power and brought out his darkest emotions…"

Haokan seemed unsettled as he listened to Mariko's story, but had many questions he wanted to ask. "Wait up a second. Did you say that your brother cracked your back in half? How are you able to walk!?"

"Remember that technique I was showing you earlier?" He nodded and then she proceeded, "Well, Chi can be used to heal other things besides just flowers. My dad knows the technique so well that he was able to heal my most serious injuries before anything really bad could happen." She answered.

"Wow, that is really cool! So now you say that your brother is possessed by a demon and is leading the Mongol army?" He asked his last question.

She nodded, "Yes, I saw it in my nightmares. They were so realistic and horrible each time. I just pray they don't come to fruition."

Haokan was careful about what to say next. He didn't want to add another negative comment or make the moment any more unpleasant. "Hey, Mariko. Whatever happens, I know you will do your best to make things right. I believe that if there is anyone who could redeem him again, it would be you."

She raised a brow and asked, "You really think that?"

"Yes, you seemed to not entirely blame him for lashing out at you, and you also seem to feel guilt and remorseful for him being banished. I can tell that deep down you still consider him your brother." Haokan answered sounding more philosophical than Mariko had ever heard him before.

"Also, on a side note, can you please promise me something Mariko?" He added.

She nodded, which made him continue, "Please promise me that you won't do anything rash or bold. I care deeply about you Mariko, and I don't think life would be the same for me knowing that the one I love is gone."

This was not what Mariko had expected the Leopard to say. She blushed a bit at hearing him refer to her as 'the one I love'. She answered awkwardly, "W-well, that will be a tough promise to keep when I'm out fighting in a war."

He chuckled, "I guess it was a long shot. But please just don't do anything stupid out there Mariko. You were the first person who I came to appreciate in this world. And I know we only recently reacquainted, but I'd like you to know just how much you changed my life all those years ago."

Mariko was flattered knowing Haokan cared this much for her like she did for him. She really didn't know how to reply to this, and so instead she responded by hugging him tightly. So tight in fact that she didn't realize him gasping due to being squeezed too much in her embrace.

She let him go to allow him to breathe and apologized, "Sorry, I got carried away."

He shook his head and did something she did not expect, that was hug her back. "I never said to let go Mariko." He answered calmly.

This confused her, but instead of questioning his actions, she leaned into the embrace and chose to enjoy it while it would last. For she knew that any moment now her Father would come looking for her. And sure enough, the two were interrupted when they heard someone clear their throat from nearby.

They released one another and Mariko glanced over at her father who looked like he had been here for a short while. His arms were folded and he had a raised brow with skeptical smile about him, no doubt because he was questioning how he felt about what he had just witnessed.

Mariko looked back to the Leopard, "I'm sorry Haokan, I have to go now." She told him with a disappointed tone of voice.

"I know, just remember to take good care of yourself Mariko." He replied as he waved her goodbye.

She then had a compulsive urge and kissed the Leopard on his cheek before backing up and meeting back up with her Father who was waiting for her. Haokan rubbed the spot on his cheek, and looked back at her with a knowing smile.

She mouthed the words 'I love you', to which he nodded and waved at her one last time.

Po was still looking skeptical as his daughter arrived at his side. "Ready to go?" He asked her as he noticed her looking back at the Emperor's son.

"Yes. Let's go."

A/N: I wasn't expecting this chapter to be quite this long, but I guess I got carried away. Hope everyone likes it! If you're enjoying this story so far, be sure to favorite and follow to stay updated on future chapters/updates. Be sure to leave a review as well, any feedback at all I can get from the viewers helps me to know what you guys like and don't like about the fic. Anyway, the next chapter will be released soon so stay tuned yall!

-Ace_Risk