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It took them three days to get Po to calm down, which means the whole Jade Palace was fasting. Finally, Tigress got through to him in a letter.
Are we not called to forgive so that we may also be forgiven?
Truth hurts because it calls us to let go of something we grudgingly hold, and for Po that was his anger of the situation. He sighed when he read the letter. She was right. That seemed to become a perpetual thing. About two days after Tigress sent that letter, she and the group came back to the Jade Palace. Po smiled, running up to her and hugging her tightly. Tigress was nearly knocked off balanced but hugged back as well. "I missed you," Po whispered.
"I missed you, too," Tigress replied.
"Ahem?" Coughed Monkey. Po released Tigress and chuckled.
"And you guys as well," Po said. Then he spotted Tiaopi. "And this must be Tiaopi. It's good to finally meet you. I hope you'll keep Rem in place."
"I'll try," Tiaopi smirked.
"I'm right here, you know," Rem replied.
"The others are down at the noodle shop. Let's go down there," Po suggested.
"Actually, I need to talk to you, Po. In private," Tigress explained. Po's eyes narrowed at her in confusion but shrugged as she followed her to the room.
"Okay, why don't you guys go on without us," Po suggested. As they left, Po followed Tigress up to the Jade Palace. "Didn't you say you were going to bring your parents?"
"I did. They're at the shop as well," Tigress replied as they went to Po's room. "Is anyone else in the Jade Palace?" Po gave Tigress a weird look.
"No," He slowly said. She grinned mischievously.
"Good," she said as she surprised Po with a kiss. "Because we have a lot of catching up to do."
"You planned all of this, didn't you?" Po smirked.
"Maybe," She replied, not fully answering the question. Po chuckled as they both sat down on the mat. "I missed you."
"I missed you, too," Po said, oblivious to the tone she was using. Tigress lightly pushed Po down on his back.
"I mean I missed you a lot," She said seductively. Po finally got the message.
"Oh! Yeah, I missed you that way too," Po tried to recover. Tigress chuckled a bit as she kissed him again.
"We never had the 'honeymoon', you know," Tigress mentioned. Po chuckled.
"You want to make up for lost time?" Po teased. Tigress just playfully growled as they continued to kiss each other.
Then there was a knock on the door. "Who is it?" Po asked, not ceasing to kiss Tigress.
"It's Ulaghai, Dragon Warrior. He's in need of your assistance," Zeng announced on the other side of the door.
"Tell him the Dragon Warrior has a meeting with Tigress," Tigress answered.
"He says it's... 'Master' related," Zeng said. Po and Tigress stopped kissing and sighed.
"Of course it is," Po muttered under his breath. Tigress got off of Po and helped him up.
"It's probably just a small matter," Tigress said optimistically. Po rolled his eyes.
"It's never just a 'small matter' with the Master," Po replied. The two went outside to see Ulaghai with a hooded figure. "Hello Ulaghai, what's the matter," Po sighed.
"Po, this man has been traveling across China to see you," Ulaghai explained. Po's eyes widened a bit as he looked at the hooded figure. He couldn't see his face, but his back was hunched over a lot.
"Oh, what is it that you needed, sir?" Po asked.
"Your forgiveness," The man whispered. Po and Tigress had heard that voice before. "I've been wandering China trying to find a way to exact revenge on my enemies, but when I found a servant of the Master at the edge of Western China, I realized my faults. I am the master of evil. No amount of work I do can fix the evils I've done. But one time, I heard your message about forgiving people. It gave me hope and after that, I had to meet and ask you for forgiveness. I understand if you don't feel it fit to forgive me, but if there's anything I can do to attempt to redeem myself, any torture I can go through to make the amends, please tell me so I can do it." the man clutched his chest, fell down on his knees, and bowed on his face before Po. It was then that his hood came off and his cloak undone. No one could mistake those white and red spotted feathers. His left leg had been replaced with a prosthetic leg. His beak was scarred in several places. His wings seem burnt, but Po guessed that was a permanent reminder from the cannon. His back was covered in bandages, and from the looks of it the bandages covered up deep wounds and scars that had yet to heal. The man cried out in a loud voice, sobbing, "The guilt of my past has haunted me for the last ten years. I know that I deserve nothing but your condemnation. So if that's your choice then go ahead." Po looked at Tigress, who seemed as speechless as he was. Po sighed, looked up at the sky, and then looked down at Shen. He bent down, lifted his face from the ground, and smiled.
"I forgive you," Po said. Shen was so shocked, he didn't believe the words that he had heard.
"What?"
"I forgive you," Po repeated.
"How? How can you forgive someone who has taken so much from you," Shen asked in tears. Po smiled widely and hugged the peacock.
"Just like the Master has forgiven us, we are to forgive each other," Po replied. Shen just stood there frozen and then cried again.
"I'm so sorry," He sobbed.
"It's okay, I forgive you," Po replied. He released Shen, helped him up, and looked at Ulaghai. "Have the others seen him?"
"Yes, it was nearly impossible for me to get everyone to calm down, especially Li Shan. Tai-Lung, Jia, Shifu, Viper, and Crane were the only ones who were helping me to calm the room down," Ulaghai sighed. Po sighed as well.
"It's going to be hard for you to earn everyone's trust," Tigress said, finally coming into the conversation. "But it's not impossible. If Tai-Lung can do it, you can too. But you'll have to understand their mistrust."
"I know," Shen said shamefully. "Even if I do ask for forgiveness from each of them, it doesn't mean that they'll trust me. Which is why I'm only here to ask for forgiveness and going back. I'm not going to be welcomed here." Po put his hand on Shen's shoulder.
"Stay. The others will learn how to forgive. Just like I have," Po replied.
"Now, you should go back down to the village and get your wounds properly treated," Tigress suggested.
"What about you two? Aren't you coming?" Ulaghai asked. Tigress held Po's arm.
"The Dragon Warrior and I have some...private matters to discuss," Tigress said, hoping the two would get the point. Ulaghai and Shen's eyes widened. Both of them put their hands and wings up in submission.
"Okay, sorry to intrude. We'll be leaving now," Ulaghai said, rushing down the mountain with Shen hobbling along with him. Po sighed.
"This is going to create a lot of mess," Po muttered.
"That can wait," Tigress said from behind him. Po turned around to see Tigress with a mischievous smile. "You and I need to continue where we left off." She motioned Po to follow her with her tail. Po's eyes widened.
"I love my job as a servant," He proclaimed, "The benefits are soo soo worth it." With that, Po rushed after Tigress.
Po and Tigress did indeed have a happy life together. Shen was eventually accepted into the village, even by Li Shan. Po is now an uncle to Tai-Lung's daughter Lula and her three kids. Jia and Crane had one child together. Rem and Tiaopi finally got married and became servants of the Master, living in Southern China to help the people there. Ulaghai's lions ventured back to their homeland to finish the work that Ulaghai started. Ulaghai continued to live in the Valley of Peace. Gun-Ho stayed there as well, helping Mr. Ping with the noodle shop. The Master fulfilled his promise to Po, and Tigress gave birth to two healthy children, both just like their father and mother. Po was happy with the life the Master gave him, even though he and Tigress still chose to do the will of the Master, even in their old age. But Po did say something about the Master in whole. He tells it to his children every time they ask him what the Master is like. He simply says, "The Master is love."
The End
