Disclaimer: Dun own it. Own the OCs and blah blah blah…

I must be out of my mind posting this so soon after surgery. Granted, it was routine (four wisdom teeth simultaneously), I don't remember it happening, and no, I didn't keep the teeth (ew), but one would think I should rest after surgery, right? Wrong. This chapter is not as action-packed or heartfelt as previous chapters, but cut me a break, I was on codeine and 800 mg of ibuprofen for the majority of this past week. So before I go off to enjoy my watery oatmeal and cherry Jell-O, the meal of champions, I should send a warning of a strong T rating this chapter for language!

As for the people I am beta-reading for: I'm working on it, honest to God, I am!

Memoirs of a Master

Chapter 7

They took a break for a short lunch, Viper brewing a special medicinal tea for the very sick tiger, Po giving her an endless supply of noodle soup.

"You give me one more bowl of noodle soup and I'm going to be sick," Tigress warned.

"It's going to make you feel better," he said tensely, trying to force a smile.

"Not if my stomach's churning so much from eating the same thing over and over again."

"Quit complaining," Mantis said. "The soup's good, and he's taking good care of you."

"He doesn't need to wait on me hand and foot," she growled, then sneezed into the handkerchief Viper had given her. "I'm perfectly capable of taking care of myself…"

"Yuh-huh, which explains over-extending yourself last night," Po muttered. She heard him.

"At least I have enough discipline to actually continue to train!"

"You sayin' I'm not disciplined?" Po looked over at her.

"What do you think I'm saying, panda?" she glared.

"Okay, just what is your deal?!" he asked, suddenly losing his temper. "You were nasty to me from day one, and once I think you're starting to actually be nice to me, you pull something like this! I thought you at least respected me!"

"I respect you, but that doesn't mean I have to like you!"

"Look, I didn't even want the Dragon Scroll, okay?!" the panda said, standing and pointing at her. "But I got it anyway and you need to accept that!"

"This isn't about that damned scroll!" she yelled, standing and getting in his face. "This is about you treating everything like a damn joke!"

"At least I can joke," he shot back. "I can count the number of times I've seen you smile on one hand!"

"I don't need you giving me a lecture! You may be the Dragon Warrior, but that does not give you the right to—"

"Will you two shut up?!" Viper suddenly snapped, shocking both out of their shouting match.

"Honestly," Crane rolled his eyes, "You two fight like an old married couple."

"We do not!" Po and Tigress snapped at the same time. They sent a glare to each other, then skulked off to opposite ends of the room, Po grumbling about "just trying to help" and Tigress griping "stupid, holier-than-thou…"

"Are you done?" Viper asked as Tigress sat in the corner near the fireplace. She sniffled and crossed her arms, still looking angry. Po was sitting next to Mantis and Crane, taking deep breaths to calm himself down.

Monkey sighed, shaking his head and picking up the next scroll.

I awoke the next morning, sore and feeling like I had been hit with a boulder. Then I remembered the match I had won, and realized this wasn't far from the truth. My family all crowded around me, congratulating me on my win. My friends came by after I had awoken, giving me similar compliments. I noticed Li seemed to be in better spirits, which made me glad.

"You okay?" I asked.

"I think I'm supposed to be asking you that," he joked.

I winced as I tried to sit up a little more, "I've had worse, I gotta say."

"That's because you don't know when to quit," Song said tartly, arms crossed over her chest. "You just keep going until you're exhausted, and if you don't change your ways you're going to put yourself in real danger…"

"Thanks, Mom," I muttered. She heard me and gave me a well-earned smack. Ochir just laughed.

"Come on, small fry, time to get to the festival," he said, moving to pick me up…bridal style. Naturally, I opposed him.

"Hold it!" I said. "Come on, there has to be a more dignified way to move me around…"

"Are you saying you want to be carried in a palanquin?"

"Excuse me?" I made a face; carried around like some rich person who couldn't be bothered to walk? Was he serious? I shook my head. "I can walk."

"You'll be crying in pain in five minutes," the rhino said.

"Don't care, I'm tough, I can handle it." I stood up, made it five steps to the door before Song made her point by poking me in my injured side. Well, I didn't think I could let out an agonized cry that loud, and it took every effort to keep from letting loose a string of four-letter words.

"So you're tough, huh?" she eyed me.

I whimpered—yes, whimpered—and looked back at Ochir. "Fine, carry me."

"There's no shame in riding in a palanquin," Song said.

"And be treated like I'm better than everyone else? No way, I'd rather be walking with you guys."

Looking back, I realized why they looked so touched. They had all made it to the top ten, and surely thought their victory and the title was as good as theirs. I expected jealousy, but that was the best answer I could have given. It meant that title or no title, I was still the same Fu.

Ochir smirked and bent down to pick me up. "Alright, warrior, if you insist."

The third day of the tournament was usually supposed to be a fight between the "Grand Master" and "Junior Master". But because I was too injured to even walk unaided, Oogway had instead called for a festival in honor of the tournament's return. I was thankful for that; I didn't think I could handle facing a master after what I'd been through.

Ochir led us down the steps, me balancing on his broad shoulders while Li and Song followed behind us. Those two were embroiled in a whispered discussion, which sounded more like Song berating him for something. I could tell what it was about: it had to be about Ren. I overheard something about "Oogway" and "the truth" and Li's instantaneous objection. Ochir, however, heard the whisperings and called back, "Hey guys, be cool. We're supposed to be celebrating today, alright?"

And celebrate we did. We donned the red clothes we wore for New Year and other such festivals and entered the village to find it awash in red and gold, firecrackers popping in alleys and children running around and playing. It was like New Year, Market Day, and ten other festivals combined into one. The entire village was teeming with locals and warriors alike. To my amazement, bitter rivals from the two previous days were walking side-by-side as friends, or sitting enjoying tea, wine, or bowls of noodles.

Ochir spotted an opponent from the day before and waved, the ox, Yao, sending a smile and waving back. Song greeted the female antelope she had defeated in the first round, and before long both girls were giggling and gossiping like old friends.

Ochir set me down on a bench and Li sat next to me to give me company. "You hungry?"

"Not yet," I said, wincing as I felt my side. The injured shoulder was bare, my arm still in a sling, but I still wore my red robe. I didn't mind too much. A number of people stopped by to congratulate me on my impressive win, many were masters who had once trained under Oogway, exclaiming they had never seen such a battle before.

"Never would've believed it if I hadn't seen it with my own eyes…" said one.

"Amazing, simply amazing!" a frog master said.

A dog at the next table offered to buy me a drink, which I declined, saying I was too young.

An elephant gently slapped a wide hoof to my uninjured shoulder, "I never expected such a spectacle from one so young, and so small!"

"That's our Fu," Li said proudly. "Of the four of us, I think he'll be the greatest master in all China someday…"

"I'd believe it." Li and I froze; we recognized that voice. We turned to our left and saw Zigsa walking into the courtyard of the inn, his white staff tapping on the ground in front of him. The crowd moved aside for him, a lion helping him to a seat. "Thank you. So, Fu, was it? Very impressive yesterday. Someone had to describe to me what you did to that gorilla—small like a firecracker indeed."

I tried not to be too uncomfortable. Despite how nice he had been to me and my friends, I still remembered the stories about the Snow Cat Gods of Death. Not to mention, his temper was one unmatched. My mind flashed back to his bloodied claws the day before. He held out a large hand and felt my face and Li's.

"Ah-hah, I thought that might be your fox friend."

"Is there something we can help you with?" Li said levelly. He appeared to distrust him as much as I did. Zigsa picked up on that immediately.

"Easy, fox. I'm a lover not a fighter."

"Could've fooled me," my friend said. The snow leopard shook his head, "You mean yesterday? That was all in the name of justice."

"You got your justice," Li said, narrowing his eyes. "He was disqualified."

"But did he learn his lesson? Being disqualified doesn't mean anything if you don't care about why you were disqualified."

"So he took advantage of you being blind," my vulpine friend said. "That gives you no right to send him to a hospital."

Zigsa sighed, his face turned towards Li's. "If you knew the things I experienced, the things I've been through, this would make sense. Was I right to strike him down like that, probably not. Did he deserve it, absolutely." He paused, then offered his hand out to me, "I believe I promised you dinner."

"You promised nothing," I said. "You offered, but we never accepted."

Zigsa chuckled, "So you didn't. Then may I offer to pay for your lunch? You must be hungry."

"Not really."

He was not deterred, "Please, I insist."

"And we insist—" Li said. Zigsa cut him off, grasping his wrist and hissing, "Give me the benefit of a doubt."

"We have no reason to."

"I am not going to hurt you," he said. "I just want to talk. Is that so much to ask?"

I put my hand on Li's shoulder. "Fine, we accept. But this is on our terms."

The snow leopard nodded. "As you wish."

As much as Zigsa insisted on dining at the inn he was staying in, Li and I made the executive decision to eat at the noodle shop run by the kindly goose. It had quickly become a treat to go there; the goose's son was much younger than us (and oddly felt that noodles weren't his thing—he wanted to run away to make tofu, of all things), but nonetheless he was a real chatterbox. His father had to banish him indoors in order to serve us. The poor bird was happy to see us, but rather nervous to see the huge snow leopard in his establishment. As soon as we were served, he disappeared behind his counter.

"So, you wanted to talk," I said, sipping broth, "Let's talk."

"Alright," Zigsa said, picking up noodles effortlessly in his chopsticks. He slurped them, chewed, then began, "I've heard the legends about my kind—let me assure you there's nothing otherworldly about us. We just like living on the mountain. Its quiet, a laid-back lifestyle, just the way we like it. No one bothers us, except for the odd traveler who strayed too far from the beaten path…" he looked apologetic. "They don't last long."

"No kidding," Li said under his breath. If the snow leopard heard him, he ignored him.

"Usually we don't get sick—it's too cold up there for disease to reach us. Supposedly when I was younger, a traveler made it up to our village, and he infected all of us. My entire family died; I barely survived the plague, and while I did, it made me blind. I was six years old."

I'd heard about that plague. That was another reason why outsiders were so feared in my natal village. You had no idea where they had been, and what they could have been bringing with them. I felt pity for him; he hadn't deserved such a fate, and so young at that.

"I was the only one in my family to survive. Both grandparents, my father, my mother, and three older siblings were gone within a week. I thought my life was over; the villagers cast me out because they feared an evil spirit had taken over me. Word traveled pretty fast, and soon, no one would take me in; they thought I was cursed. I wandered down that mountain until I literally ran into Master Red Claw…"

Our ears perked up. Master Red Claw? He had been trained by the Master Red Claw?! Now we knew how he became so powerful! Red Claw had been a student of Master Oogway, and once becoming a master, had heard of the plight of peasants living along the northern border. They faced daily attacks by Huns and Manchu rebels. Ever the bleeding heart, the tiger (a Manchurian tiger, ironically enough) set out for the northern borders, many believing it was a suicide mission.

Red Claw quickly became infamous for, you guessed it, his blood-red claws. Harsh? Undoubtedly, but one couldn't deny his methods were ineffective. While he was still in his prime, not a single Hun or Manchu dared enter Chinese territory. Their fear of a kung fu master defeating and slaughtering them all was unmatched until Master Jian Qiang took over the post twenty years prior, after Red Claw retired.

Apparently, he took on students in his retirement.

Zigsa smiled fondly. "He took mercy on me, I think; I expected to be nothing more than a servant to him and his students. As you can see, that didn't happen. He told me that though I was blind, my life was not over. 'Focus your energy on becoming stronger,' he said. 'You may not be able to see with your eyes, but you have four other senses, don't you?'

"As I grew up, I noticed my hearing improved so much that I could hear someone's footsteps from a half-mile away, and a bird flapping its wings in a forest. My sense of touch improved, and so did my sense of smell, and taste too…though I'd lost one of the five senses, the others strengthened." The snow leopard sighed, "I owe him everything."

"So he taught by Master Oogway's methods?" Li asked. "Then why were you so…"

"What, savage? Because Master Red Claw may have taught me the basics as he learned from Master Oogway, but the rest of my training revolved around helping those who couldn't help themselves. His style was meant for defending the soft and weak from the hard and strong, and suited to fighting barbarians. Apparently I was a fast learner. Five years ago, he turned me loose on a rouge band of Huns…well, none ever returned."

We stayed silent for a moment, and Li clearly doubted his methods. "What good is killing going to do? Killing is not justice, and violence never solved anything. Diplomacy is what saves lives, war takes them away."

"You don't understand," he argued, "Huns and rogues do not reason with anyone. All they understand is violence, and if that's how it must be, what else can be done but respond in kind?"

I shook my head, "Master Oogway would never allow that kind of thinking…"

"You two are, what, fourteen, fifteen?"

"Fourteen, both of us," I answered. He nodded, "You're young, yet, too young to understand. Kung fu is not perfect—people will die from it. There's nothing that can be done about it. My hope is that you will face off against enemies that are afraid to die. I have no problem with killing Huns, because they are not afraid to die. If they want it so bad, who am I to stand in their way?"

"That sounds like something a Hun would say," Li challenged.

Zigsa's face hardened, but he took a deep breath, "If and when you have to fight Huns yourself," he warned, "You will see what I mean."

"If you have no problem with killing, then why did you freak out when you struck Master Qiang?" I asked.

Zigsa closed his eyes, "I don't mind killing those who deserve it. I disliked his methods in his defeat of Miao Li, and I thought if I only defeated him just as he defeated her, he'd feel sorry about it. I meant to hit his side, the middle of the rib cage, but I miscalculated. I never meant to hurt him; I was weak and made a terrible mistake."

Li didn't appear to buy that answer, and as much as I knew I shouldn't, I trusted the snow leopard. I thought he was being honest. I didn't know that there was more to it than he was willing to say.

"But you left, going around the Empire seeking to right all wrongs, and bring justice where there was injustice," I said, quickly turning the conversation from the choppy waters we were entering.

Zigsa half-smiled, "So you heard of that, eh? I'm afraid it's not as romantic as it sounds. I show up at a village—any village—and someone tells me of something I feel is morally wrong, like a magistrate overtaxing his people, or a general abusing his power, and I fight it. Sometimes it's little more than a misunderstanding and is easily resolved…other times…"

"Don't say it, we got it," I said quickly. I was feeling more and more uncomfortable with this conversation.

Luckily, it was cut short from the yelling we heard outside. "What in the seven hells is that?" Zigsa swore.

Li hopped up and rushed to the gateway, his eyes wide. "It's Ochir and his dad!"

"Oh no…" I murmured. Zigsa and I swiveled our ears to hear better, and we instantly regretted it. Terbish was merciless, blaming his son for losing the title to a 'weak little pipsqueak' and 'sorry excuse for a warrior'. While that cut deeply, I heard Ochir snap back,

"Fu is not weak, and I don't care if you are my old man, if you ever insult him again I'll take you out!"

"How dare you talk back to me like that! After all I did for you, this is how you thank me, you worthless little…"

"Worthless?! I'm your only son, so you disown me, then where are you? You take back everything you said, right now!"

"Over my dead body!" Terbish snorted. "First you shy away from battle, then you hold back in a fight, and now you think you have the gall to lecture me?! I should've known you were a weak little pansy, just like your moth—"

Ochir didn't let him finish. Though we couldn't see it, Li, Zigsa and I winced when we heard the younger rhino give one of the hardest punches we'd ever heard him throw. The sound of cracking wood and crumbling brick told us what happened to Terbish. Then Ochir's voice rang over the crowd,

"I deliberate before I attack; that's not weakness, that's using my head. I hold back, I know; I just K.O.'d you, so what do you think I'd do to someone smaller than me? You think I'm stupid, that I haven't learned a damn thing—you're wrong. I learned things you obviously forgot." Then he hissed, "And if you ever badmouth Momma again, I'm gonna give ya much worse than a fuckin' black eye!"

We heard him storm off; Li and I shared a look, wondering what the hell had happened. Zigsa seemed to speak for us, retorting, "Didn't see that coming."

It took us a minute to get his tone before we all sputtered out laughing at the ironic self-deprecating joke.

We ran into Song on the way back to the Jade Palace. We'd lost our families in the crowd, but figured they'd be on their way back sooner or later. We told her what had happened between Ochir and his father, and also what Zigsa had told us. At the latter, she, like Li, had her doubts. But like the both of us, she was horrified to hear what Ochir had done.

"He is in deep trouble," she gasped.

"Granted, his dad did say some pretty nasty things to him," I said. "He even called him a 'pansy'…"

Li had gone stony-faced at this comment. Ochir had since disappeared, probably to be alone, or perhaps go back to the Jade Palace to take his anger out on something. Song and I shared a look, then Song sighed, "No use hiding it now, Li."

"B'Wha?" he looked shocked.

Song cast her blue-eyed gaze in his direction. "Yeah, I know. Fu knows; I know…I don't think Ochir knows."

"Yet," he said dismally. "Did you see how he reacted when his dad suggested he was a homosexual? Like it was something so disgusting…"

"I think it was more of the public humiliation than the actual insult," she pointed out. "At least this proved he's nothing like his old man…"

"Old is right," I snorted. "And I thought my parents were old-fashioned. Ochir's dad is hard-core."

"No, I think he's military…that's just how they are, I guess," Li said with uncertainty.

Song huffed, arms akimbo, "But Terbish didn't raise him, Master Oogway did."

"I don't mind you guys talkin' about me," Ochir suddenly said, scaring the living daylights out of us as he appeared seemingly out of nowhere, "but I'd like it better if you talked about something else…"

Song bit her lip, "Sorry…"

He shrugged, "Its cool."

"You feeling okay?" I asked.

"I'm better. By the way, if anyone asks, that pine forest was hit by lightning."

"Wait, what?"

"Up you go!" he said quickly, hoisting me up on his shoulder. "There's someone Master wants you to meet up at the Palace."

I nudged him as we set off up the stairs, "You're sure you're okay."

He sighed, "Meet me at the Peach Tree when you're done, 'kay?"

"Why me? Why not Song or Li?"

He shrugged, almost toppling off his shoulder, "You're easier to talk to."

Me? Easier to talk to? Well, Tai Lung, the Furious Five, and the Dragon Warrior would all laugh in derision at that opinion. "Maybe you should try talking to Master Oogway instead?"

He shook his head, "I've done that, and I get the same answers…he's gonna be disappointed that I reacted in anger."

"Who could blame you, with the things he was saying?"

He smiled, "That's what I like about you, Fu."

I sighed, "Fine, I'll meet you when I'm done."

Zhou helped me along to the Sacred Hall of Warriors, where I was to meet my master and his guest. My bandages had to be changed, and as much as it hurt, I did it myself, though it looked terrible. Elder Brother had given me a special tea to ease my pain (I suspected it contained opium), and I only drank it when my mother told me to.

Now I was inside as the sun was setting, illuminating the Moon Pool before me. I sighed and looked forward, smiling at my master. Standing next to Master Oogway was a white rabbit, just a small as I was, with long whiskers, beady eyes magnified by the spectacles perched on his nose, and a peaceful smile on his face.

Once Zhou got me to the dais leading to the Moon Pool, I bowed as deeply as I could. A squeak escaped my throat as my side flared with pain. Oogway helped me stand straight again, telling me to take some deep breaths. Once the pain had subsided, I pressed my fist into my open palm in greeting, "Master, you wished to see me?"

"I did, Small One," he smiled. "But first, did you enjoy your time at the festival?"

"Very much, Master," I smiled. "Thank you."

"You would have enjoyed it too, Oogway," the rabbit said, a cheeky smile on his wrinkled face. I smiled at him; somehow, I knew I liked him, whoever he was. "You used to go to these things all the time!"

Oogway waved it off, chuckling, "Oh, when I was much younger, old friend, I'm afraid these days, the festival would be over by the time I made it down those stairs!" he winked at me, and I struggled not to smile, thinking it would be rude in front of the guest.

Oogway presented me to the rabbit, "Snow Hare, this is my student, Fu, whom I call 'Small One'. Small One, this is…"

I knew who he was. I grinned hugely. Master Snow Hare was one of the oldest living masters, at 106! I bowed again, careful not to hurt myself, "Master, it is an honor!"

The rabbit chuckled, his voice high and weedy with age. "Honor, nothing, sonny! I'm just glad I didn't have to fight you today!"

"Huh? Fight?"

"Yes," Oogway explained. "Master Snow Hare here won the 'Grand Master' title two days ago."

Now I remembered. I had seen this rabbit sitting at the judges table with Oogway and a few other masters just the day before.

He just smiled at me and patted my shoulder, "Well done, sonny-boy! Even when I was younger, I wouldn't have been able to do what you did yesterday. Imagine, fending off a mace-wielding gorilla with a bamboo staff, ha!" He winked conspiringly, "You whooped him good!"

I grinned, "Thank you, Master."

"I had the honor of meeting your parents too," the centenarian rabbit continued. "You should've seen them, they are so proud of you."

I averted my eyes, smiling and feeling the blood rush to my face. Fine, so I had a hard time taking compliments…fine, I still do. I credit that to my training and upbringing at the Jade Palace.

Master Snow Hare continued, "And I thought Red Claw's student was impressive. Still, Zigsa did keep us from being attacked on the way here. He'll make a nice addition…"

"Huh?" I winced for speaking out of turn, but I was absolutely perplexed. Oogway just smiled, "Ah, Small One, I know you must have run into him at the festival, yes? You know his story."

"Yes, Master," I answered. "But…I don't understand. Nice addition to what?"

"Why, to my roster of students," he said, as if I should have picked up on that sooner.

I was too young to be having heart palpitations like that, and yet there they were. My eye twitched once, but I fought it down. "Um, Master? Not to be rude, but, um…why?"

Oogway chuckled, allowing Master Snow Hare to answer for him, "I knew Zigsa from his boyhood. Master Red Claw and I go way back, and it was he who recommended me to escort Zigsa here. Spending time here in the Valley of Peace may very well bring him peace…"

Not so easy, I later discovered. It figures that cats are so stubborn. There is a reason why people use the saying "as impossible as herding cats". Cats in general hate taking orders, and I do believe they think they were put on the earth to be served, not serve others. Tai Lung was like that, especially as a teenager (at least until I redesigned the Training Hall and forced him to complete it flawlessly fifty times, it took him two months to do that); and during her teenage years, so was Master Tigress (she completed the Fifty Flawless Run-Throughs in just two days, something I hope she'll always be proud of).

Something else I learned about cats from my time with Song, was they hated to be told they were wrong. Absolutely loathed it. That was my fear at that moment that Zigsa would be told he was wrong in his theories and philosophies, and that would trigger something. I didn't want to think about what that 'something' could be. And what was this about bringing the snow leopard some peace? Terrible images flashed through my mind, of atrocities he either went through, or committed himself.

And he was to stay here, and train, with us.

Beautiful.

"So sorry, but my Give-A-Damn appears to be broken," Song said later.

"I thought you liked him?" Li asked. Song shook her head, "I admired his prowess as a warrior, but Ochir's right—he's got something loose…" she twirled a finger around the side of her head to indicate the snow leopard was mentally unstable.

I cursed, jumping up as I remembered, "Crap! I'm supposed to meet Ochir!"

Li nodded; we were all sitting in his room, seeing as Master Jian Qiang and Ren were still down at the festival. "Go ahead, we'll still be here."

I helped myself up with a shorter bamboo staff, and took my time walking up to the Peach Tree, using the staff as a crutch. Sure enough, the rhino was sitting there, looking over the valley from his vantage point. He heard me coming, his ear swiveling back in my direction, "Fireworks'll start soon," he said.

"Sorry I'm late," I panted. He moved over to give me a place to sit. He handed me a canteen of water which I accepted gratefully.

"So the kitty's stayin', is he?" he asked offhandedly.

"If it helps," I said, wiping my lips with my wrist, "Song and Li aren't too excited either."

"What about you?"

"I'm living the dream, how's that?" I said sardonically.

He chuckled mirthlessly, crossing his arms. We fell into silence. As much as I wanted to talk more about Zigsa, I knew there was a lot on the rhino's mind right now. After a long moment, he sighed and finally spoke,

"Dad left right after we fought. I don't think he's coming back."

I looked at him; he didn't appear to be regretful at all. "And you're okay with that?"

He shrugged, "He insulted Momma—no one insults Momma. One day, when I've got students of my own…" he paused and sighed, "I'm gonna teach them that they can respect me and obey me all they want, but under no circumstances are you gonna disrespect your momma. Ever."

"What happened to her?" I asked, sensing something wasn't right.

"She died giving birth to me," he said softly.

I was speechless. In all the years we'd known each other he had never so much as mentioned his mother, and now I knew why. "Ochir…"

"Stop," he said. "Fu, you didn't have to say anything."

"But what am I supposed to do?" I asked. "I'm trying to make you feel better…"

"You're listening to me, and that's doing more than you'll ever know."

Silence resumed between us until he cleared his throat, "Dad thought she was weak for not living through something thousands of women survive every day. In his mind, it wasn't that dangerous."

"If he'd said that to Song, I'm sure she'd show him how it would feel…" I remarked dryly. She'd griped about cramps so many times, we figured childbirth had to be much worse, especially after she described being woken up late at night "feeling like someone was stabbing a rusty knife into my lower stomach over and over again".

Was I glad I wasn't born a woman.

Ochir smiled thinly. "I wouldn't put it past her. But I feel better knowing he's walking away with a black eye and a few splinters."

"What'd he hit?"

"A fruit vendor's stall and a brick wall. I sent him back about twenty feet," he said offhandedly, like it happened every day. Ochir may not have been as tall or as bulky as Terbish, but he was not yet done growing. Within four more years, I figured he'd be so colossal, that no enemy in their right mind would mess with him. "I think him calling me a pansy was the spark that lit the fuse, and that comment about Momma was when the fuse ran out…"

"I don't blame you," I said. "But…why the part about being a pansy? I heard him say a bunch of other nasty things…"

"He thought I was gay, Fu, and if I was gay, to him, I'm automatically a failure as a son and something to be reviled. I mean, Li's gay, and he's not revolting at all!"

I squeaked, literally squeaked, and my jaw dropped.

Oh, shit, he KNEW!

Ochir looked down at me and my shaken expression. "Yes?"

"I…" I stuttered. "I…how? How did you know?"

"Took me awhile," he said calmly. "I don't think it hit me until we were in the bathhouse the other day. The way he reacted with Ren being there, and some of the things Ren said about him…" he chuckled. "For a while, I thought you were too, until Song told me about how you 'confirmed your heterosexuality'."

I blushed slightly, "But…you're not mad?"

"Mad? Why should I be?"

I was stunned. The whole valley could have exploded and the Jade Palace gone up in flames and I would not have been able to react.

He continued, "If I have any reason to be mad, it's that you guys didn't trust me enough to tell me."

"W-wait, wait…you're not mad? You're not disgusted? You don't want to…to do anything to him? Don't you hate him?"

"Fu, for the love of Guan Yin!" he groaned, rolling his eyes, "I grew up with you guys! I trained with you guys! You're my best friends and the only friends I've got. Why in the hell would I push any of you away? So Li's gay, big deal!" he threw his hands up in contempt. He emphasized, "I don't give a damn what anyone thinks. Li's a good person, he has a lot of heart, and when it comes to kung fu, he kicks a whole hell of a lotta ass. Ren got lucky yesterday in that match."

I was still staring at him, "How are you so cool with this?"

"I might look like him, but I ain't my pop," he snorted. "Besides, remember when Song's mother tried to take her away? I took to heart what Oogway said, about adopting us and raising us. Master Oogway never pressed too hard, he never forced me to do something I wasn't comfortable doing. He was patient, he was kind, he never boasted about us. He wasn't selfish or irritable with us, and never kept a record of the things we did wrong. He never gave up on us…that's the definition of Love, I think. He raised me to love everything, to respect everything," he said. "And I love and respect my friends."

I thought about it. Love is patient, love is kind…Love is Love.

"I think you might have something there," I smiled.

He half-smiled, "Maybe, I dunno if it'll catch on. But as far as we're concerned, Li's safe."

"You're totally cool with it?" I asked.

"I'm cool."

"You're sure?"

"You ask me one more time and I'm beating the shit out of you."

We chuckled and settled back into silence as the stars rose above our heads and lights shone down on the valley floor.

"Oh, one more thing," Ochir said.

"Yeah?"

"I think Ren's totally crushing."

"You think?" I asked. I couldn't believe we were gossiping like this, but I wanted to learn more about how Ochir felt about this new information.

"Yeah. He told me he was gay. I think he was comfortable telling me because he thought he could take me on if I got angry."

"Did you?"

He sent me a look, answering flatly, "Fu, do you have any idea how awkward it is to be sitting in the buff next to a gay guy you think is coming on to you?"

"Sorta. I know how awkward it is to get kissed by one. Don't ask."

"Wasn't gonna. But he was asking me 'hypothetical' questions about this 'girl' he wanted to ask out. He slipped up too many times by calling 'she' a 'he' before I figured it out. I don't think his dad knows."

"I'm worried what'll happen when he does find out—he's bound to sooner or later."

"And if or when he does, Ren's got a place here. I told him that. I mean, like Oogway's gonna turn someone away? And besides, he makes Li happy, and whatever makes my friends happy makes me happy, right?"

"Since when have you been so philosophical?"

He shrugged, "I ain't no Lao Tzu, but I actually think during meditation."

"And here I thought you were sleeping this whole time…"

"No, that would be you."

"Shut up," I shoved him, and he grinned.

"Firecracker," he chuckled.

"Damn right I am!"

"Pseudo-erudite cretin," he laughed when I scowled. Soon I started laughing too. When our laughter subsided, I asked, "So are you gonna talk to Li?"

"Nah, he'll tell me when he's ready. I guess I just need to send the message that I'm cool with things like that."

"The concept of him actually doing certain…things, with other men doesn't bother you?"

"Slightly. I don't want to think of the mechanics of it. To tell ya the truth, I have a hard time seeing him as…"

"A sexual creature?"

"Yeah," he admitted.

"Yeah, me too."

Another pause, then he patted my shoulder, "C'mon Junior Master Fu, we got dinner soon, and I wanna destroy something before we go."

"Didn't you already take out a whole pine forest?"

"I told you," he winked, "It was lightning."

Our families stayed the rest of the week before they needed to return home. Ochir was happy to have avoided that ritual with his own father, but was sorry to see my family go; they had been especially kind to him after hearing what had happened in the village. For the rest of our lives, he had a place by my natal family's hearth. In fact, my parents told all three of my friends they were welcome to stay any time.

Song and her mother merely bowed to one another before parting; we all knew that Song would never quite forgive her parents for what they tried to do, but it seemed time and distance had mended some open wounds.

As for Li, I felt most sorry for him. His feelings were especially conflicted, I knew, for he was both sad and relieved to see the two wolves leave. Sad, of course, because they were the only family he had, and because Ren was easily the object of his affections. Yet the fox was relieved, obviously, because it meant that Master Jian Qiang would have a harder time figuring out his orientation if he weren't living with us.

Zigsa stood to the side, bowing reverently to Master Snow Hare, the centenarian rabbit chuckling benignly before patting the snow leopard's hand and walking down the steps with the others. Standing behind Oogway, we five felt that things would take some time to get back to normal. Certainly having the blind feline with a mercurial temper would be an adjustment. But as much as we as teenagers were loathe to admit, we already missed our families.

"You will see them again," Oogway told us. "Now that we have established firm links between your natal homes and the Jade Palace, it shall be easier for your families to keep in touch."

I saw Ochir clenching his jaw, biting back on a snort of derision. He couldn't care less. Glancing to my other side, Zigsa was also silent and still as statue. Though we all had mixed feelings, I felt sympathetic to the both of them. They were as different as sun and moon, but still shared the lack of parental figures in their lives. Ochir was metal, and Zigsa we quickly learned was nothing but fire; lots of fire. They would have many clashes, certainly; if I had any inkling of foreshadowing, I would have known that it wouldn't be the last time in my life that a rhino and a snow leopard I knew would butt heads.

Elements aside, we all came to understand each other in the next year, albeit slowly. Much to our surprise, Zigsa did not become a master that year; he was clearly not happy about that, and who could blame him? Oogway felt he had much more to learn, but try telling that to a fire personality. His attitude about combat, we learned, was quite skewed. Oogway had confided in me that he was worried about Zigsa's soul.

"It is damaged," he said. "He has seen too much death for one so young. Too much death, too much violence, too little kindness. There is darkness in him…"

Again, Foreshadowing and I aren't exactly bosom buddies.

"Did fighting Huns and Mongols do that to him, Master?" I asked one day as we sat under the Sacred Peach Tree of Heavenly Wisdom. We looked out over the valley, enjoying the scenic change of leaves into autumnal reds and golds. Oogway shook his head wearily.

"I question Red Claw's methods, surely. Zigsa was sent into battle much too young. His thinking has been warped, I believe, by the lack of peace in his life. Peace in the outer realm brings peace to the inner realm."

"Do you think he'll ever recover?" I asked.

Oogway sighed, "It is difficult to say. For some, the ability to see outward leaves them lacking in insight. In Zigsa's case, he is truly blind."

"Doesn't help that he's stubborn too," I muttered.

"No, it does not. But all five of you are very determined. He is set in the ways of Red Claw, which is unfortunate. Red Claw was much the same. We will just need to figure out another way to save his humanity…"

"Hmm, a dangerous snow leopard with darkness in his heart, and a lack of respect for life…where have I heard this story before?" Tigress rolled her eyes.

"Yeah, I'm sensing a trend here," Mantis nodded.

"Guys, come on, it's not like this Zigsa guy is Tai Lung's dad or anything," Po said.

"I'm not saying that," Mantis said, "but it is a little weird that he and Zigsa have so much in common…"

"That's just specist," Crane shook his head, "Not all snow leopards are like that…"

"Males probably are," the insect theorized.

Crane just rolled his eyes and shook his head, knowing it would be futile to convince him otherwise. Monkey just put the scroll down after rolling it back up the way they had found it. "There are still plenty of scrolls left," he said sagely. "Who knows what we'll find?"

He was interrupted when Tigress sneezed loudly. Viper inched away from her friend, who groaned, "Ugh, I hate colds…"

Monkey shrugged, "Alright, we'll get you to bed and continue in the morning."

Tigress snapped when Po stood, "If you even think of carrying me there…"

He cut her off angrily, "For your information, I wasn't, Your Highness."

Tigress growled dangerously, and the other Five expected to see blood. Instead, she sneezed violently, the feline burying her maw in the folds of her blanket. Po took pity on her and handed her a fresh handkerchief. She gave him a dark look, but took the cloth with a muffled "thank you".

After they had left the room, the four remaining warriors let out the collective breath they'd been holding.

"Speaking of having so much in common," Mantis started.

"What do you mean?" Viper asked.

Crane rolled his eyes, "You'll see."

Just in case people didn't catch the reference, what Ochir was saying about Love was taken purely from the famous lines in 1 Corinthians 13:4-7 ("Love is patient, love is kind..."); while I'm not a hard-core Christian, I do take that passage to heart, as a reminder to always treat people with respect. I don't intend to preach to anybody, I just thought it would be something sweet to add.

As always, please read and review!