Without the Dragon Warrior, the Valley of Peace and Gongmen City were able to complete the monument of the fallen and Master Rhino.
Yes, Po was able to heal from some of his broken rib that had knocked him out, but now that Shifu was aware of his predicament, he had made it clear to the panda that he wasn't to go anywhere alone until it was certain that his rib was completely healed. It was still cracked, but with Po, Shifu really didn't want to take any chances, like last time.
It surprised everyone, even Po, that it was Tigress who immediately took it upon herself to be his chaperon.
Many who witnessed it thought it had to do something with the hug Po had given her sometime back. Then again, if your friend was practically shot by a canon and partially awake sometime later before the final fight, why wouldn't you hug them when you knew they were alright? Sure, it surprised Tigress, but Po meant that hug - he was too darn happy to see that Tigress was okay to put it into words.
Maybe Tigress felt the same way.
Although it wasn't easy, Po was able to convince Master Shifu that as long as he was with Tigress, he could attend the funeral. He cared about the fallen master and those involved, but he had taken Tigress' advice about caring about the hearts of others, or he wouldn't have strongly depended on Tigress that day. In a sense, he was considerate of everyone's feelings and his current physical condition, but he also wanted to be there for the people who had lost loves ones to Lord Shen.
Now that he had his memory back, he understood the feeling, except he was alone in his thoughts about the matter, and couldn't bear to see anyone else go through the same thing the same way if he was there to prevent it. Po didn't have anyone to comfort him when he lost his mother except the presence for forgetting her. Now that he remembered, it just wasn't the same.
Everyone was grateful that he had these feelings, but they were just as grateful being careful. In fact, it was because he had attended is how some people were able to cope with their lost loved ones - that someone with such high honor as the Dragon Warrior cared about them so much.
It was as if you didn't need to know the person to understand what they were going through.
Then again, when it came to Tigress, it was a relief that Po knew her, or he would have been more worried about her than he was now.
Ever since his little incident in the building of the memorial, Tigress seemed more careful about Po, as if something about that moment woke up something in Tigress, and it bugged him. If he had the guts to ask her directly about it, maybe he wouldn't be left in his current state of puzzlement.
Then again, the funeral woke something up inside of him to - the harsh realities of what the fallen loved ones were getting that Po knew his mother never got, and that was a proper funeral.
Heck, now that he thought about it - he realized that he didn't know her. In fact, he would probably never get to know her, such as the nit-picky things a son wanted to know about his mother, such as what she was like, what kind of interests he got from her, and, more importantly, what she looked like. Yes, Po got a vision of her while he was obtaining inner peace, but it wasn't the same thing,
He was okay with himself, but he wasn't okay with what happened to the people that brought him to this point.
Po never got to cry over his mother - now that he had a face to the name, it only made it seem more real.
Thus, whenever he was away from everyone, even Tigress, he would silently lay in his bed and cry. Food wouldn't do it anymore - he tried that already. The feeling of a belly full of noodles couldn't satisfy the need to mourn over a dead mother, much less knowing that he will never be able to know what it feels like to have a mother's touch.
While they were in the brackets, when everyone was asleep, his jade eyes would be wide open, biting his paw to stifle his sniffling as the tears kept pouring from his eyes.
There were other things he sobbed over because of the past predicament, but the loss of his mother was a prime factor.
He thought that with the time off he had from training (given to him by Master Shifu so he will have a bit more time to rest before being checked over by Mei Ling to confirm that he would be ready to train again) he could let all of the pain out and be ready by then. However, the harder and longer he cried, the worse it felt, and he wished that the pain would leave, but it didn't. Po was pretty good at being able to hide it from his friends when he cooked, but didn't hide any bit of it from himself when it came to the silent moments he had in his room.
Po didn't want to admit it (after all, he was the Dragon Warrior), but he later came to realize what was missing during his mourning, something that he had when he was mourning over Master Rhino and the unknown fallen, and that was someone's touch.
He remembered every once in a while how Tigress would give him a comforting touch on his shoulder, or even a light hug during the funeral. When Po really let it all out, everyone had even encircled around the panda in a large group hug. Heck, even Master Shifu was able to put his pride aside to join in, which groups of families did the same thing to each other to comfort those close to the loss. Even Master Croc and Ox joined in their large group hug. Heck, they were the second and third to hug Po, even though Tigress beat them to being the first. It was incredible that one who wasn't even close to Rhino was sobbing more than they were, but Croc and Ox laid their pride aside and showered the ground with their tears from the loss of their friend.
The panda did get the hiccups later from crying so hard, but all of this wasn't enough. He didn't want to admit it at the time, and that had not changed since then, but Po had scars that had not healed yet. Po really wanted to consult someone, anyone who might be willing to give their shoulder and help him through this time of mourning. He was surprised that he even had any tears left from Rhino's funeral, but no, he had more tears than what he could swallow back.
It took him a while to admit it, and even longer for him to accept what he needed, but he still couldn't place a face to who might be able to pull him through this until one fateful night.
As the image of Tigress passed through his mind, he realized that what he needed was the very thing that Tigress had been doing all along since the defeat of Tai-Lung. Talking to him and training when they were on the boat to Gongmen City the first time, practically kicking his chubby tail down when she ordered him to stay in Gongmen Jail, and even pushing Po out of the way of the canon a second time when she couldn't stop the first.
In a twisted sense, Po realized he needed Tigress.
Getting up from his bed and groaning on the account of his headache (obviously dehydrated), he made his way in the hall of the brackets, which had been refurbished and reinforced so that it not only looked new (which it technically was), but so that it could handle Po's weight and not squeak in the process. This made Po's steps far more quiet than before, which was a relief to the others since Po was known to stay up late to clean the dishes and get up early to make them dirty again by making breakfast for everyone.
At first, he thought that what he was doing was really selfish, but with every step he took in doubt, he took another in faith because of the words Tigress said to him not too long ago.
"You already scared me once when you refused to stay put in Gongmen Jail - please don't do it again."
When that didn't work, he began to think of something else that Tigress had also said.
"I know you want to follow your heart, Po, but try to think about the hearts of others this time, okay?"
He was only following his heart because he knew that eventually Tigress was going to catch on, so hiding it, especially from her, was eventually going to be a waste of time.
Besides, he needed this - he needed her.
It was strange being in front of someone's door in the middle of the night, but Po knew that he had to do this. He breathed in deeply, sighing before tapping on the paper door that belonged to Tigress.
"Ti-"
The thing that immediately got his attention was that the door opened. Normally, her door was locked, so either she was expecting him or she wasn't there. Holding his breath, he did something he thought he wouldn't do, and that was peak into her room.
However, one look was an indication that he wasn't even in her room.
Keeping a hold on his breath, he made his way down the brackets and out of the building, checking each possible room before doing so. The more rooms that didn't contain Tigress, the more worried he became.
All of his sorrow was on the back burner now - he had to find Tigress.
As he made his way outside, his head snapped up to the peach tree, specifically The Peach Tree of Heavenly Wisdom. He wasn't so sure about why he did it, but he was glad that he did, because relief washed over him when he saw Tigress.
She was sitting, and he couldn't see much of her head since it was resting on her knees, but there she was.
Without a second thought, Po began making his way to the peach tree, deciding that using awesome flips and soaring through the sky wasn't a good idea. If he landed wrong (again), he would increase the likelihood of breaking his rib all over again, and maybe even more.
Tigress would likely even give him more injuries if she found out that he pulled that stunt - even if it was to look for her.
However, any physical injury was more bearable than what Po saw when he finally reached Tigress.
She was probably lost in her own sadness when he approached her, because he figured that she would have been able to detect him from a mile away. However, she hadn't even so much as perk up her ears, for they were flat against her head as his own ears picked up a sniffle that wasn't his own.
Tigress had been crying, and he was blind to it until now.
It broke his heart more ways than one to see her like that.
He wasn't even sure if he should have said what he had said, but one thing was clear: he was wrong about Tigress not being able to feel anything. True, she couldn't feel anything in her paws, but one look right then and there told him that she was just as prone as wounds to the heart as he was.
"Tigress?"
One word and the feline had snapped her head to the Dragon Warrior, getting up immediately and wiping away any tears that were left on her face.
"P-Po," she stammered, trying to regain as much of her usual composure as possible, "W-What are you doing out here?"
She was trying to turn this on him, but it wasn't going to work - Po had seen enough to confirm to him that Tigress was in pain, and the sadness that was once dominant in his body was replaced with a whole new emotion altogether.
Tigress noticed this, and the worry of being caught (rubbing her arm while she was doing so) changed to concern for the panda before her, her ears perking up as she realized that he was sniffling a little, his eyes welling up with tears and something like guilt taking the dominant emotion in his eyes.
"Po...?" she asked, her paw leaving her arm as she took a step closer to him, "What's wrong...?"
What he said next threw her off guard even more, for what little guard she had up in the first place.
"I... I've been so selfish..."
"Selfish?" Tigress repeated, wondering where in the world Po was getting such an idea from.
She started to panic a little and made less space between them as Po covered his face with his paws, but his voice pretty clear as he poured out his emotions.
"Y-Yeah... selfish," Po repeated, saying the final word as if it was curse on his lips, "I... I had been so selfish and stupid and preoccupied with my feelings and how I was feeling that I didn't even consider the thought that you might be suffering...
M-man... T-Tigress... I-I'm sorry... I'm so sorry."
Any excessive space between them was gone now, Po so shaken up that he had to sit down, and Tigress going over to him to place her paws on his shoulders.
Tigress' eyes began to form tears again, mixed with reasons of the past and now, but her focus was on Po.
"Sorry for what?" Tigress stressed, trying to pry at her friend's mind, since more than half of the junk he was saying made no sense.
"That I didn't see how much pain you were going through," Po repeated, "And yet you've always been there for me when I needed help. Why can't I do the same for you?"
Well, it wasn't always, but Tigress knew what Po meant. In fact, she didn't expect anything from Po except to do his best at what he loved the most. If she knew that Po wanted her to rely on him as much as he relied on her, then she would have probably put enough of her pride aside to ask for his shoulder. Then again, she didn't have a shoulder - that's why she was here.
At least she thought she didn't have a shoulder, and that shoulder was pretty distraught right now.
Sitting down to get as close to eye-level with him as possible, she looked him over before choosing her words - carefully.
"Po," she said, "I know you're worried about me, and yes, I am troubled about something, but I don't have the heart to think about it right now since you're in pain too."
"That's just it," Po said, "I was hoping to come to you, asking if you could just hear me out and have a shoulder to cry on, blindly not considering how you might have been in pain too... I-"
"'I' what?" Tigress asked, cupping her friend's face so he would look up at her, her tears still fresh, "Po, neither of us were aware of the other's pain, and I'm sorry that you feel bad that our relationship is one-sided because of that... but we have right now."
Her face softened as his eyes grew wide.
"Now tell me... what's wrong?"
He looked away - he wanted this, but felt uncomfortable, given the circumstances. Then again, he couldn't hide it now - no hiding from Tigress.
"Ever since the funeral of Master Rhino and the victims of Shen," Po softly explained, slowly turning his gaze back to the tear-stained Tigress, "I've been thinking... about things I know I'll never have..."
Tigress looked confused, but Po continued to explain himself.
"Remember what I said before I passed out during the construction of the memorial?
How I'll never know my mother...
And how I have peace with me, but not with what made it possible?"
Her eyes lit up in realization, but saw that his eyes were forming more tears.
"I never even knew them, Tigress... I... I..."
Now it all made sense, and no words were needed after that. Without hesitation, Tigress gave Po what he came for and hugged him, Po thoughtlessly hugging her back, with his paws around her waist and Tigress embracing him around his neck, allowing him to use her shoulders to cry on as she let her own tears leave her face.
It took a minute, but Tigress was able to breath in deeply before coming to the decision of telling Po why she had been crying in the first place. After all, he did feel bad not being there for her.
"I was thinking about how I nearly lost one of the only people I call a friend," Tigress said gently, Po knowing all too well what she was referring to, "I told you to stay behind because I knew your head wouldn't be in trying to stop Shen, but looking for your past. When you were shot by that canon, I thought you were dead... and... I thought that the feeling of despair would leave when I saw you again...
But I suppose I didn't even feel half the trauma.
Please, don't misunderstand, I'm incredibly happy that you're alive, and I wouldn't have it any other way, even to put myself in the way if it meant that you were going to be alright, but I didn't think that I accepted the reality of what might have been until I was alone, since I'm not even sure how I would take the idea of you being dead. I was going to let out the feeling of the trauma alone, but I don't think you're going to let me."
Exactly why she felt warmth in her chest from that, she wasn't sure, but she continued.
"Po... I have... a proposition," she said, lifting his head and lowering her own so their foreheads would touch, "Since we're both aware of the other's pain, how about we stop trying to find comfort in ourselves?"
"What do you mean?" Po asked, his voice much weaker than before, which worried Tigress, but she continued.
"I mean that instead of crying alone, whenever we need a shoulder to cry on, we go to each other," Tigress explained, "No matter what time of day and no matter the circumstances - our shoulders belong to each other whenever we need them."
She didn't need to have Po look at her. As she was making the proposition, Po had lifted his head off her shoulder to look at her to see if she really meant what she said, and to make sure he was hearing her correctly.
None of it was a joke - she did mean it.
If it wasn't for the fur, his blush would have been painfully obvious, but it wasn't, but the surprise in his tired eyes were.
He looked down at Tigress' paw, which was extending its pinkie finger to him. Po remembered how he told Tigress about pinkie promises and why people did such a gesture because she saw him do the exact same thing with his dad sometime back. He also stressed to her the importance of it, even though it was silly in her eyes to confirm a promise that way, since a handshake or putting your word on it was enough. Maybe she was trying to make him fell better with a gesture she thought was silly, yet at the same time not joking about what had just left her lips just a few seconds ago.
"Promise?"
Her eyes were tired too, since she had been crying as well, but she still tried to smile, hopefully to make him feel better. A shrivel of happiness went through her as Po smiled and extended his own pinkie from the opposite hand that Tigress was sticking out, interlocking their pinkies to agree and confirm her proposition.
"Promise."
For a while, they stayed like that, both pinkies refusing to loosen their grip on the other, and two foreheads connecting once again, sinking in the covenant they just made with one another, and the peace that soon followed. However, the pain they promised to express to one another soon came after a gentle breeze went through the valley, Po being the first to express it through another sniffle. This time, however, Tigress released the pinkie hold and wrapped her arms around him, careful to not do any more damage than what had already been done, except it was around his waist this time. Po, on the other hand, wrapped his much bigger, fluffier arms over her shoulders and around her neck, letting the first tears fall from his face as the sky began to sob as well.
As they held one another, the sky that was once peaceful and occasionally let a few drops fall let out a downpour. Because the wind wasn't picking up, the raindrops didn't fall in a harsh manner - there was just a lot of them.
Then again, it wasn't like Po and Tigress cared about the weather.
They had each other, and that's all that mattered.
From now on, they would always have each other.
And that was a promise.
Artist's Comments
So... about damn time, right?
I sure hope you had enough tissues for that, because that was a lot of hardcore feels... or at least I tried for this particular event.
There are also some confessions I wish to make.
#1. The little scene where Tigress is crying - that was inspired by another piece altogether: called Tears of the Sky by suzamuri. I know that they really don't have much in common with one another, except the fact that Tigress is crying and Po is there, but with feels like that - I just couldn't pass that up, so thanks suzamuri for what you do.
#2. After I had written the scene, I had a song come to me that I now make a personal connection to this song with, especially with the scene after Tigress and Po make that pinkie-promise and cry in each others arms. The name of the song is I Promise, by Stacie Orrico. I strongly recommend that you look the song up, but if you want to save the hassle of accidentally running into the wrong song, go to my Tumblr page (Moonspirit10 DeviantART). Look under Fanfiction Archive, and the name of the song should be right next to the title of the fiction.