2. Robbery in the Snow
"Oh, Po!"
Po crashed with his head against the wooden beam when he was going to stand up. "Yes, dad?"
"How many times do I have to say, you don't need to help me. You should protect the village and China."
"But dad," the panda protested and stood up on his feet. He put the towel away with that he had cleaned the floor and wiped over his pants. "You can't stay alone with that leg."
The panda pointed at Mr. Ping's bandaged leg.
"But Po, I slipped on the ice only, it isn't a broken leg. It's just sprained."
"Anyway. I will take care for you until the household help comes, which you ordered."
"In this weather?" Mr. Ping waved his wings. "It's more ice outside than hair on the bear fur. It snows since many days. I don't think that someone will find a way to our village the next few days. Or weeks. Or until the wintertime is over."
Po rubbed his head. "Maybe. But you can't work with a sprained leg."
"But Po, the neighbor is helping me out."
Po narrowed his eyes in a bored way. "Yes, and he needs more time to find the way to a table with his bad eyes."
"His glasses are broken."
Mr. Ping bent down and looked into a corner. "Oh."
"What it is, dad?"
"The wood is empty. I have to collect some new."
"No, dad!" Po grabbed the gander and put him firmly on a chair. "I will do!"
"But Po…"
"No way! I will bring you the wood for the fire."
With that, Po took a basket and walked with it in the snow.
Mr. Ping watched him while his son disappeared. "He is a good boy."
"Oh, that's a big one."
Po picked up a branch, but it stuck.
"Oh, co-me on!"
He pulled and pulled and fell back.
"Oh, damn snow! Hey, I still need my bones!"
He jumped up and glared at the branch angrily.
"Hey! Do you want to keep back your fire heat for my dad? Oh, come on! Let's get over! Heah!"
He formed a snowball with his paws and threw it on the branch.
Suddenly, he had an idea.
"Okay, perfect!"
He went a few steps back and inspect his artwork.
The snow figure, a little bigger than him, and with stones and branches made face, Po postured in front of the snow figure and made a lazy bored face. In his childhood, he had played it very often.
"Uhm, did you say something? Do you want something from me? You want to annoy me? Really? Bad mistake. You have no chance against the dangerous fists of dragons… Whaha! Whahhahai!"
He hit and kicked against the snow man until it was just tramped snow.
"Yeha! Nothing stands against…!"
Suddenly, a loud female voice echoed through the snowed forest.
The panda pricked up his ears. "What?"
The screaming sound echoed again.
"Danger in delay!"
He looked around and lifted his head. "I'm coming! Hang in there!"
Po ran in the direction where he had heard the voice.
"Stay away from me!" the female cried more.
"Oh, little lady wants to play," another man's voice sounded mockingly.
Po breathed heavily after he reached the place and hold his breath for a moment. On a snow-covered forest glade stood four wild cats with no friendly faces. Two of them had surrounded a figure in a long robe and a straw hat on his head. The two other cats were busy to empty the bag and looked for something valuable.
"Nothing inside," one of them said.
"Maybe she hides it under her clothes."
The figure stepped back; the cane lifted in front of her. "Don't dare! I have nothing more with me."
"We'll see about it. Take her!"
The female hit with the cane around, she hits several times their paws, but she wasn't fast enough. One of them jumped forward like a lightning and kicked her down. She fell back and landed in the snow.
Po couldn't watch it any longer. "That's enough!"
He made a run-up and stared an attack. "Hey! YouAhhhahaaahh…"
Po slipped. He tumbled several times, covered his body with snow, which grew more and more until he was wrapped in a snowball and rolled down the hill. The wild cats didn't know what to say and stared at the gigantic rolling snowball. But before it hit them, they jumped aside. The snowball panda crashed against a tree. Snow flew around. Po landed with a "Bang" backwards in a snow field.
"Oh, awesome," he muttered.
But then he remembered and was on his feet again.
"Hey, fatty!" one of the wild cats scolded. "How dare you!"
Po tensed his arms. "No, it calls more, how dare you! Either you leave or this."
He lifted his clenched paws.
The cats snarled. "Invitation for the last meal."
Po hesitated. Maybe they didn't come from here. "A fight? Right. My fists are hungry for a fight. Whahai!"
All went so fast, that nobody could see details. The four cats jumped at the panda, but Po knew how to escape and to fight back. The most troubles he made his attackers was his thick skin. Everyone who kicked into his belly or back, this one fell back.
The panda swung his arms. "And now, final meal."
Po gave everything. These bullies should never dare to attack a helpless woman again. The cats were fast, but after several punches in their faces, there were tired to fight for nothing important.
"Let's see for another prey!"
With that, they left and disappeared in the forest.
Po wiped over his head. "Phew. I'm out of training. My joints rust in winter break."
But in the next second, he remembered why he had a fight. He turned around. The figure still lay in the snow. Slowly and worried, Po came closer. "Hey, are you okay?"
He bent down and lifted the hat. Weak silver eyes of a bird looked at him. Finger feathers were visible under the dark brown robe. Her face was light brown and her wings light purple.
"It's okay," the female bird said. "I'm feeling just a little cold."
Po touched her wing. "A little? You are almost undercooled. You need something warm."
"No, I have to go on…"
She wanted to stand up, but suddenly…
Po became frightened and leaned forward before she fell back to the snow.
"Hey, can you hear me? Hello? Hello?!"
But the girl said no word anymore. Her eyes were almost closed. No, she couldn't go one step anymore.
"Don't worry. I will bring you to a warm place."
Carefully, he picked her up and carried her through the snow landscape.
While the way, he realized two things: First, she wasn't heavy. And second, she was a peahen.