Chapter 18

"Mei Hu, you have to get some rest…" Lie Bao said, idly stroking a sleeping Xue Hu's ear as he slept.

"You don't understand, Lie Bao. As long as Shifu remains alive, I can't rest. I won't forgive him for killing Lang…I'll keep going until I get my revenge." Mei Hu hissed, giving the tree she'd been attacking another kick followed by a series of punches.

"If you kill yourself from exhaustion then what revenge can you get?"

Mei Hu growled and stood up straight from her crouched stance. "I'm going to take a bath…" And without waiting for an answer, Mei Hu walked off.

When Mei Hu had disappeared, Xue Hu opened his eyes. "She's not going to stop…even if you say so."

"I know…but if she doesn't stop, she'll wear herself out…making her useless to us…" Lie Bao said, continuing to stroke Xue Hu's ear.

Xue Hu gave a soft purr and moved into Lie Bao's stroking. "Us…? Since when is there a concern for an "us" when I'm simply using you two?"

Lie Bao frowned. "You're joking right…? If it weren't for me you'd be a lonely, sulky kitten who's bent on revenge."

"And I'm still a lonely, sulky kitten who's bent on revenge." Xue Hu said, smirking.

"Fine, how about I leave you and see how far you get…" Lie Bao huffed, crossing her arms.

Xue Hu chuckled and reached up to stroke Lie Bao's cheek. "Don't start acting cheeky on me. You wouldn't leave even if you could."

"I could surprise you." Lie Bao pushed Xue Hu's hand away.

"I doubt that." Xue Hu pushed himself up and laid back into Lie Bao's arms. "Just leave Mei Hu alone…I'm sure she'll be fine. She knows her limits."

Lie Bao sighed. "I hope you're right…"

Mei Hu walked to the nearby riverbed and started to undress, before walking into the rather warm water. Slowly Mei Hu started to wash the sweat and dirt off of herself, rubbing the water into her sore muscles. She sat herself down in the water, sighing to herself, and started to think. She had never let Lang get too close to her, especially after they had gotten into trouble when Lang killed the law enforcer to save her. He had always gone out of the way to help her out, and slowly, Mei Hu had grown to love him, more than just a brother too. But Lang cared too much to know when to leave things alone. If Mei Hu hadn't started giving him a hard time, not only would she get hurt by it in the end, but ultimately so would he. And that's exactly what happened. Lang sacrificed himself so that Mei Hu could be safe, and nothing made Mei Hu hate the thought more than that did.

Mei Hu pounded the water in frustration. She couldn't help but blame herself for what happened to Lang. He had tried to save her from being caught again and after that… Mei Hu started to cry. She had never been separated from Lang like this before, and now that she had, she couldn't stand it. Lang meant everything to her, even if she didn't show it before. He learned Kung Fu from watching one of the local temples and she had learned from him. Even though her own style was more refined and altered to suit her body better, it in itself was a deviation to Lang's self-made form. Everything she did, everything she had, was his, and even now, she had no intention of changing. But right now it hurt, it truly hurt, to be alone.

Felix and Tigress were walking back from the training hall after some light training, Tigress still recovering from her broken ankle. As they headed to the bunk house, they saw Lang, sitting on the roof of the bunk house, starring off into the distance.

Tigress gave Lang a glance before turning Felix. "You go on ahead. I'm going to…" She jerked her head in Lang's direction.

Felix looked at where Tigress was indicated and smiled, nodding. "I'll wait for you then." He gave Tigress a kiss on the cheek and went into the bunk house first.

Tigress leapt lightly onto the bunk house roof and walked over to where Lang was sitting.

"How's your foot?" Lang asked, without turning around.

"Better…thanks to you." Tigress said, smiling at Lang.

"I don't know what you're talking about…" Lang smirked, feigning innocence.

"May I?" Tigress pointed at the space next to Lang and sat down when he nodded. "I just got one question. Why did you help me? And more to the point how, you don't seem to be the medical type."

Lang laughed. "Everyone says that. But with my sister…you never know when she'd accidentally do something stupid."

"And I thought you were the impulsive one." Tigress grinned.

"Hey…" Lang frowned in mock indignation. "My sister…as soon as she sets her mind to something she won't stop until she gets it done. And during those times, she might not be acting her smartest."

"You care for her a lot, don't you."

"Of course." Lang said, proudly. "I'd do anything for her."

"Then answer my first question…why did you help me? I thought you were working for Xue Hu."

Lang crossed his arms. "It was only to return a favor. He broke us out of Chor Ghom prison so we aim to repay him."

"By trying to kill me?" Tigress raised an eyebrow.

"Never…We wouldn't dream of it. Our job is to make sure no one gets in the way of his 'revenge'…"

Tigress glanced at Lang in question. "You sound doubtful…"

"I don't care how strong he is…he won't beat you…" Lang sighed.

"What are you talking about, you just said he broke you out of Chor Ghom prison, he beat Mantis, Monkey, Crane, and Viper single handedly."

Lang shook his head. "You misunderstand me. Xue Hu is just a kid. His anger towards you is just simply a 16 year long tantrum. Plus…you're his mother…he won't be able to kill the last thing he has to a family. If he does kill you…then his anger towards your 'neglect' would be rather pointless."

"You're not just some fight-crazy maniac after all are you?"

"I'm only "fight-crazy" because I need to be…"

"You're still a maniac."

Lang opened his mouth to retaliate, but then paused, thought about it, and then closed his mouth, making Tigress grin in triumph.

Another transition chapter, so unfortunately, it's not all that long. But there's some minor fluff, angst, and understanding, so I think that's sufficent. Read and review please!