Author's note: Hi everybody! Thank you so much to those of you who have reviewed, I really appreciate your feedback. Here is the next chapter: It's a bit short, but very dramatic, as we begin to lead up to the finale, and yes, the Five and Po finally learn that Li is Tigress' brother... But it may not be in the way you'd expect!

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"So, what were you saying before?" Tigress asked her brother as they left the barracks, having just put Li's children to bed, only after promising them a session in the training hall the next day. Li had been adamant, however, that they were only to use the wooden soldiers and the Jade tortoise.

"About what?"

"About the story that…our father… used to tell."

"Well," Li began. "It's called 'the Legend of Long," he glanced at the Kung Fu Master inquiringly. "Have you heard of it?"

Tigress shook her head.

"No."

"Ah," Li nodded in understanding. "Well, I think dad just used it to ensure my good behaviour- not that it really worked, of course," he grinned. "But, according to him, every tiger should know the story, so I probably should tell you."

"I'm listening," Tigress told him.

"Well," Li began slowly, "Long was a great dragon, a sorcerer, who had the power to control the elements. But his greatest power, and the one that most people feared, was his ability to control people's minds."

Tigress raised her eyebrows. This certainly sounded like a good story.

"Now, even with all this power," Li continued, "Long still had an army under his command. And Tigers were his prime choice for his soldiers, as they were considered to be the most powerful warriors of all China."

Tigress smiled slightly, now she could see why a tiger would tell this story to their children.

"Now, one day, a new warrior appeared in Long's Kingdom," Li continued. "And he had developed this new method of fighting. Intrigued, Long asked to learn, and when he had learned everything he could from his teacher, he turned on him. But his teacher hadn't taught him everything, and was eventually able to defeat Long, and imprison him. The tigers who were Long's soldiers were made outcasts, as people still saw them as a symbol of Long's tyranny." He smirked, remembering. "My dad used to say that Long only took first-borns into his army, as they were the strongest. So, if I didn't do what I was told, they would find Long and give me to him."

Tigress leaned forward. "Who was the warrior who defeated Long?"

Li shrugged. "I can't remember his name."

Tigress frowned, "and how did he defeat Long?"

Li shook his head. "The Legend has never mentioned it, as far as I can remember," Li answered thoughtfully.

"And," Tigress continued. "Why do the events lately remind you of the story?"

"Well," Li replied. "Long was able to manipulate the elements. He would use fire to burn a village down, or flood a valley in order to take it over." Li frowned slightly before shrugging. "I guess all the natural disasters just reminded me of the story, is all."

Tigress lowered her eyes thoughtfully. The events did sound unusual. Never had there been so many disasters in such a short space of time.

However, they couldn't defend against nature. Only prepare, and then offer support to those in need afterward.

"Come on," Tigress gestured for her brother to follow her. "Let me show you my favourite place here."

"Is it the training hall?" Li asked, only half joking.

"No," Tigress answered seriously. "Follow me".

Li followed his sister as she ran straight at a wall, only to jump and begin climbing.

Curious, Li followed, shadowing her as she jumped, ran and climbed her way up until they reached the roof of the Jade Palace.

"Here?"Li queried, as they came to a stop.

"Yes," Tigress walked forward to view the Valley at it stretched out far beneath them.

"I used to come up here as a child," Tigress explained, "when I wanted to be alone, so that Shifu couldn't find me." She sighed. "I'd often be thinking of how much of a failure I was."

Li approached his sister.

"Why did you think you were a failure?" Li asked. "Was it in your training?"

Tigress shook her head. "That's why I didn't want Shifu to find me," she stated. "I wasn't thinking how I was failing as a student, but how I was failing as a daughter." Tigress gazed out over the Valley, her eyes far away. "I would come here and wonder: why doesn't he love me?"

"Lin," Li whispered.

"After being up here a while, I'd tell myself to harden up, and stop feeling sorry for myself," Tigress continued. "I just tell myself that all I needed to do was train harder. Then I'd climb back down, enter the training hall, and begin practicing once more."

Li approached his sister to place a hand on her shoulder.

"I'm sorry," Tigress said, breathing deeply. "I actually have no idea why I told you that."

"Because you needed to tell me," Li answered gently. "And thank you."

Tigress smiled slightly as she turned to look at her brother, before spotting something else in the distance.

"What's that?"

Li turned, following his sister's gaze.

From their vantage point on the roof, they could not only see the Valley of Peace, but beyond its borders. And located outside the Valley, in the same direction they had travelled from earlier that day, a series of what appeared to be campfires could be seen, like bright, twinkling stars.

"More refugees?" Li suggested.

"Let's go have a look," Tigress suggested. With practiced ease, Tigress positioned herself on the tallest peak on the rooftop, before leaping down into the Valley below.

Controlling her momentum as she fell, Tigress scanned the rooftops of the village houses beneath and, with perfect timing, slowed her decent and landed, poised on a village roof with all the natural grace of a tiger.

Turning, Tigress looked up to the Jade palace on the mountain, where she had leapt from. She couldn't see Li anywhere, although, she granted, he's probably never done a leap like that before…

Thump!

Tigress whirled around to spot her brother perched on a second rooftop nearby.

"Wow!" he laughed. "That was such a rush!"

Tigress gaped. "Was that your first time doing a leap like that?"

"Yeah," Li nodded, shaking his arms and legs out. "I think I did alright, too."

"You did…very well," Tigress admitted. It had taken her years to develop the skill and confidence to do that leap…and he'd done it first try!

"Thanks," Li grinned. "But I just followed you. Anything physical comes easily to a first born tiger."

Tigress frowned slightly. Tigers seemed to place a lot of emphasis on the order of birth, but still…if all first-borns were as naturally gifted as Li apparently was, she could understand why someone would consider them the perfect soldier.

"Now," Li grinned. "Are we just going to stay here all night?"

Snapping herself out of her reverie, Tigress began running across the rooftops of the village as easily as if she were on a forest path, using every trick she knew to ensure speed and efficiency.

Li kept pace with her, mirroring her movements.

"You run well," Tigress told her brother.

"Who do you think taught Da-Xia and my other kids how to run through the mountains?" Li shot back.

Grinning, Tigress kicked into high gear, racing with her brother as they ran.

Po was just leaving Mr Ping's noodle shop, having just finished saying goodnight to his father. Munching on a dumpling, Po noticed movement out of the corner of his eye. Turning, he spotted two shadows, running across the rooftops. As the figures passed above a lantern in the street, Po cold see in the faint light that the figures were Tigress and Li.

'Now, where are they going?' Po wondered. Curiosity getting the better of him, he decided to follow on the ground.

Although, he admitted to himself, that was easier said than done.

'Maybe you shouldn't be doing this, Po," he told himself as he had to run down side streets, trying to avoid boxes and carts stacked outside people's homes, all the while looking up to keep track of the two tigers, who simply had to jump from roof to roof, with no care for the streets.

'I mean," he continued to himself, 'you were not invited on this trip, and if it were something important, don't you think that the rest of the Five would have been told about it?'

Panting, he realized they were reaching the edges of the village. As the two tigers landed, Po hid in the shadows of the last building at the edge of town.

"Alright," Li put forward. "You go to the left. I'll head around to the right, see what I can find," the tiger pointed in the suggested direction, and it was then Po spotted lights in the distance.

Campfires.

Po sighed with relief. So it was official business after all.

Po caught himself, frowning. Why was he so relieved?

As Li ran off, Tigress took a moment to assess the safest way to approach the group from her side.

"Tigress!"

"Po?"

Turning, she was surprised to see the Dragon Warrior come forward.

"What are you doing out here?" She asked.

"Well," Po began hesitantly, "I saw you guys running over the Valley, and it looked pretty urgent, so I thought I could help…" he trailed off as the hard core master of the Tiger Style continued to stare him down.

"Unless I'm actually interrupting something?" Po queried. He'd thought it was official business, but he could be wrong…

Tigress frowned in confusion.

"What?" She asked, before shaking her head as Po began stammering. "Never mind, you can come."

"Great!" Po exclaimed before being shushed.

Tigress made her way out beyond the Valley boundary, circling to approach the campsite from the left. Li had already been gone for some time, and while these people may be refugees, there was no guarantee that they were friendly.

And as one of the Protectors of the Valley, it was Tigress' duty to ensure the village's safety.

"So, who are these guys?" Po asked conversationally as they ran, keeping low to the ground, using the scattered rocks and bush as cover.

"That's what we're trying to find out, Po," Tigress told her friend patiently.

Cautiously, the pair crept closer, until they could feel the heat of the closest campfire. Peeking over the edge of a rock formation, Po and Tigress were surprised at what they saw.

"Tigers," Po whispered.

Every campfire was surrounded by tigers sitting calmly on the ground, and while it was a shock to see so many, Tigress counted at least forty, it took a moment for her to pinpoint the reason why she felt a chill running up her spine.

No one was moving.

Every single tiger in the camp sat as still as a statue, and the only sound heard was the crackle of the flames, for no one spoke.

"Okay," Po whispered. "I'm seriously creeped out here."

"It's like they're frozen," Tigress added. Something wasn't right.

Suddenly, as one, the tigers leapt to their feet, running toward the far side of the camp.

Po and Tigress followed, doing their best to stay hidden.

They found all the tigers attacking a lone warrior, who sent them flying with a few movements, only to be attacked once more.

In the midst of the battle, Tigress got a glimpse of their quarry.

"Li!" She gasped. Her brother had been discovered. "Come on!" She told Po, preparing to attack. "We have to help him!"

Before they could move, however, the campfires suddenly seemed to come to life, spreading and scorching the earth around the battle field.

The tigers attacking Li backed off instantly, and tall flames encircled the lone tiger, preventing his escape.

Li stood, tense, waiting for the next round.

"Impressive," a voice commented, and Tigress was surprised as a large crocodile came forward from the crowd. "I've never known a warrior to fight so many all at once."

"So what now?" Li demanded, his voice strong. "I fight you?"

"Oh no," The crocodile answered, stepping calmly through the flames without getting burned. "I'd like to offer you a place in my army."

Li growled.

"No thanks."

Pouncing, Li dealt a swift blow to the crocodile's head, only to have a tiger from the sidelines intercept it so that he took the blow for his master. The tiger went flying through the air to land heavily on the ground, unmoving.

"Such power," the crocodile observed, gazing at Li with a calculating look in his eyes.

Li simply went into a defensive crouch, ready for an attack.

"Now's our chance," Tigress whispered, eying the tigers closest to her. If she could take them out, she and Po can clear a path to allow Li to escape.

The crocodile raised a claw, and Tigress' eyes widened with shock as the very earth beneath Li's feet rose up to trap his legs and arms.

"Tigress," Po told his friend slowly, "I don't think our Kung Fu is going to work on this guy."

Encased in rock, Li struggled to free himself.

"Who are you?" he demanded.

The crocodile came closer to his victim.

"I am the Dragon, Long," the crocodile announced.

Li froze, and Tigress shook her head slightly. Had she really heard that correctly?

"The Sorcerer?" Li asked skeptically.

"Ah, you've heard of me," the crocodile smiled. "Good."

"You can't be serious," Li shook his head in shock. It was too much of a coincidence.

"Well, you're the one trapped in rock," the Crocodile smiled, "you tell me."

Roaring, Li actually managed to punch and kick his way out of the rock that encased him.

"You will not control me," he hissed, panting.

Long stepped closer, studying the tiger before him intently.

"Such power," he whispered.

Tigress made to attack, but was quickly halted by Po's strong grip.

"Are you crazy?" Po demanded. "What are you going to do if that guy traps you in rock?"

"I have to help Li!" Tigress hissed.

"You can help by not getting yourself killed," Po told her firmly.

"You know," Long said, smiling as he encased Li in rock once more. "I won't have you join my army. You're much too powerful to be a common soldier."

"I'm flattered," Li hissed, struggling to free himself as Long stepped closer, now within arm's reach.

"This crocodile's body is strong, yes, but his mind is so feeble," Long hissed. "Hardly worthy of one such as myself. But you…" Long used a crocodile claw to raise Li's eyes to meet his own, "I can see that you are much more worthy."

Tigress felt as if an icy hand was clutching at her heart.

'What does that mean?' She wondered.

Long gripped Li around his throat, bringing his face forward until they were nose to nose.

"I want you for myself."

The crocodile's mouth opened wide as a swirling mass of energy and light shot out of the crocodile and into Li, entering through his mouth, nose and even his ears and eyes.

As the last of the swirling light entered Li's body, the crocodile collapsed onto the ground, moaning.

Tigress and Po watched in horror as Li's eyes opened once more, the irises turning from golden to ebony.

"Yes," Long's voice whispered with Li's mouth as the rock fell away, freeing his limbs. "This is more like it."

The crocodile at his feet moaned as his eyes opened slowly.

"Wha-what happened?" He wondered, before looking up to see Li looking down at him with Long's eyes.

"Oh no," the big croc backed away quickly. "It's you! You were in my head! Stay away from me!"

Turning, he tried to flee, but was quickly held down by Long's tiger soldiers.

Calmly, Long reached out with his new tiger arm, drawing flames to his hand in a great fire ball.

"You are no longer any use to me," Long whispered, before sending the fireball flying towards his target.

Po had to look away as the crocodile screamed.

"Oh, that's disgusting," he whispered. "Okay, Po," he panted, trying to keep his dumplings in his stomach, "head between the knees, deep breaths, and think happy thoughts."

Tigress sat still, eyes on the tiger that had been her brother only moments ago.

"Li," she whispered. "No."

Long stood in the clearing, flexing his arms, and getting used to his new body.

"Oh, his mind," the sorcerer smiled. "So much richer than the crocodile's. And his memories…" Pausing, his black eyes flickered, before a grin passed over Li's features.

"Lin," he called out. "Where are you?"

"What?" Po was confused. "Who's Lin?"

But Tigress didn't even hear him. She could feel the snarl building at the back of her throat.

Crouching, she prepared to attack the soldiers closest to her, ready to fight her way to the monster in the centre who thought he could take her brother away.

Just as she was about to pounce, however, Tigress felt Po's arms restraining her.

"Are you crazy?" Po hissed. "You wanna get fried like that crocodile?"

"We have to help Li!" Tigress struggled, her grief making her movements weaker than usual.

"Tigress, I know you care about Li," Po said firmly, "I think that's pretty obvious," he added. "But there's nothing you can do now, and if you go out there, you'll end up just like the other tigers, or like that crocodile. We have to tell the others."

Slowly, Tigress calmed down long enough to see that the sorcerer was staring in their general direction, trying to pinpoint where they were.

"You need to focus, Tigress." Po told his friend. "We need to tell Shifu and the others. We'll figure out a way to save Li."

Reluctantly, Tigress nodded, and Po led his friend back to the Jade Palace.

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Evading Long's detection, the pair raced back as quickly as they could to the Jade Palace, calling for their friends and leaders to an emergency meeting in the Hall of Warriors.

Trying her best to keep her composure, Tigress explained everything to her master, the rest of the five, as well as Yue-Yan, Xi-Wong and Wen, the other leaders.

A great silence filled the room once she had finished.

"The Dragon, Long," Shifu whispered in horror.

"I know I've heard of him somewhere before," Po spoke up, scanning his kung fu memory banks.

Tigress cleared her throat.

"Li told me that he featured in a legend." She said slowly, trying to focus on breathing calmly. "A warrior defeated him and imprisoned him."

"Yes," Shifu nodded. "That warrior was Master Oogway."

"That's it!" Po cheered. "'The Legend of Long'. I knew I'd heard of it before!"

"So how did Master Oogway defeat him?" Tigress demanded.

"I…don't know." Po admitted apologetically. "The Legend never said."

"Most likely to keep the knowledge secret," Shifu mused aloud. "Thankfully," he added quickly "The original Legend is in our archives."

"Great," Tigress said turning to leave the room. "Let's go find it."

Shifu took a deep breath.

"You do realize, Tigress," he began gently, "that, as Long is a spirit, the only way to truly defeat him may be to also defeat the one he inhabits."

Tigress froze for a moment before slowly turning back to view her master.

"No," she growled.

"Tigress, this is regrettable, I know," Shifu granted quickly, "and I hope there is a way to save Li-"

"And we'll find a way," Tigress insisted.

"But you have to realize that we may not be able to," Shifu finished firmly.

Tigress stepped forward in defiance.

"I will save him," she insisted.

Shifu took a breath. He wished that he didn't have to do this, but Tigress needed to accept the fact that, perhaps, they couldn't defeat one without defeating the other.

"Now, Master Tigress…" Shifu began slowly. But Tigress snapped.

"You took him from me!" Tigress roared angrily.

Po and the Five looked at each other in confusion, completely lost.

"I was a child! And you took him from me! I needed him!" Tigress didn't even know what she was saying now, her grief and her anger felt like a fire, eating her up from the inside. "And now that I've finally found my brother again, you expect me to allow him to be killed, before I've truly begun to know him?"

Crane's mouth dropped open as the other masters stared in shock.

"Brother?" Viper whispered.

"Tigress has a brother?" Monkey mumbled.

"Tigress, that's…" Po whispered. "Amazing! This is great! You finally found your family!"

Tigress continued to stare at Shifu as a growl escaped angrily at her friend's words.

"And…" Po continued awkwardly, "he's just been possessed by the evil spirit of a Dragon Sorcerer...Right…Sorry."

"The circumstances are regrettable, it's true," Shifu granted. "And while we will do all we can to save your brother, Tigress, sometimes sacrifices must be made to uphold the greater good."

Tigress's fists clenched.

"Then you can be the one to tell Li's children," she snarled before storming out of the room.

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Author's note: Okay, okay, calm down! Seriously, do you think I would finally let Tigress find her family only to take her brother away from her permanently? I was going to continue on with this chapter, showing them finding the original legend and such, but I thought there was enough drama in this chapter that we could leave it here.

So, next chapter, they find the original legend, and we work up to the finale as Long begins his attack on the Valley of Peace.

Yes, I do have a plan for how Long will be defeated, and no I will not be making it obvious- where's the fun or suspense in that?

I am interested to hear your theories though- I wonder if anyone will get it right?

Please review!