AN: Thanks for the reviews and increase of favourites and followers. Much appreciated. :) Hope you guys are continuing to enjoy the story. Have fun reading the new chapter! :)

In the break of dawn, Tai Lung quietly observed the passing rhinos groan in pain and carefully press a bag of ice over their blue and purple bruises. He kept his furry head low to hide his large grin from the rhinos who were suffering from physical pain. Their bruises and every groan which they muttered were melodic proofs that he didn't dream about Tigress visiting him in this hellhole.

The snow leopard smiled as he loved remembering how his girlfriend could easily beat the vulgar guards who dared to try and touch her inappropriately. She has evolved into a fine, respectable kung fu master over the past years rapidly.

He gingerly opened his paws and found the wooden piece- the last evident that Tigress visited last night. Tai Lung's golden eyes carefully inspected the rhinoceros's movements; they were far too busy taking care of their injuries to bother and provoke him throughout the day. Today, he could attempt to find some inner peace and remember the past as Tigress suggested.

Tai Lung attempted to bend his knees in a better position and hissed in pain as the minor movement caused the sharp needles to dig in deeper into his tired flesh. He patiently waited for the pain to disappear before focusing his mind on the chipped domino piece.

Quietly, he inhaled and exhaled repetitively until he could numb out the noise. The tense, sore muscles throughout his sinewy body slowly began to relax with each breath. The frown on his handsome visage disappeared as he continued to feel more at ease.

His mind slowly flipped through his memories as he attempted to return to the past. It took him several minutes until he finally reached the page, a memory of the days after he met Tigress for the first time. He immersed himself into his past and allowed the memories to control his mental body and its actions.

Tai Lung looked around to find his younger self standing on top of the staircase of the Jade Palace. He looked at the familiar leopard cub and noticed how much shorter and less muscular he was as a young child. The young boy smiled so happily on the highest steps and Tai Lung approached himself.

The smile the cub had was genuine and hope still sparkled so brightly in his golden eyes while the hot wind tugged his fur for summer adventure. However, the stop stood still and patiently waited in the scorching heat. Tai Lung sat next to the boy and tried to remember what he was waiting for that day. Then another question flashed in his mind.

When was the last time I smiled this gleefully? When was the last time I had hope or felt exhilarated or thirst for new adventures?

Momentarily, an old tortoise and a red panda climb up the stairs. As he felt a thunderous range rumble throughout his core, the cub eagerly ran up to the kung fu masters and bowed his head. Watching his younger self's reaction, his anger changed to confusion.

Master Oogway chuckled lightly, evidently content to receive a fierce hug from Tai Lung. His father, Shifu, ruffled his fur as he asked, "Did you succeed your first mission?"

I don't ever remember Oogway liking my presence or did I forget that over the ages?

The younger version of himself clasped his paws together and bowed his head. "Of course pops. I would never fail you."

Then the red panda smiled proudly and said, "I know that you'd never fail me. I'm very proud of you. Maybe we can celebrate your first mission with a hotpot for dinner tonight."

Bitterness swirled violently within the older Tai Lung as his father's compliment echoed in his ears. He screamed to the deaf ears, "Yes, that's right. I never failed you. I never allowed myself to fail you because I always wanted you to be proud of me. I only tired to fulfill the destiny you gave me. I tried making you happy by becoming the Dragon Warrior! SO WHY DID YOU FAIL ME?! WHY DID YOU STEAL MY DESTINY AFTER FEEDING ME WITH DREAMS AND HOPES?! WHY DID YOU BLOCK MY PATH TO KEEP MY PROMISE TO TIGRESS?!"

Despite of his angry screams, the innocent, young snow leopard's tail wiggled happily at the suggestion. Master Shifu asked, "Master Oogway, would you like to join us for dinner this evening?"

Master Oogway replied, "I would be delighted to enjoy a good hotpot with your family anytime."

Hot angry tears cascaded down his grey cheeks and his bright, golden eyes stung as he watched his happy family venture back into the cool shades of the Jade Palace. The fully grown snow leopard desperately tried to calm himself down and to stop the oncoming tears. Once his bubbling rage cooled down, he also entered his former home.

When he entered the Jade Palace, he watched Master Oogway going to meditate in the garden. Tai Lung controlled his temper while he searched for his father and his younger self. As he expected, he didn't find them sitting at the dinner table with Zeng serving the promised hotpot. Instead he found them in the training hall.

The young cub stretched his growing muscles before focusing his attention onto the invisible opponent before him. The young Tai Lung moved with ease and his movements were fluid. He strode across the wooden floor with great agility, but he remained well balanced and graceful with each step. The leopard's punches flashed through the air with great power and ferocity, but his attacked were accurate and controlled. His kicks sliced through the air like a hummingbird's wings cutting through the air. His body flexed beautifully as he quickly leapt through the air and maintained a perfect split. As he was pulled back down by gravity, he flipped backwards and landed on the exact spot where he started his impressive routine.

Master Shifu clapped in front of him and Tai Lung smiled proudly. His father remarked, "That was a remarkable performance, but it should be extremely easy for you by now. And let me add this, you should try to maintain the split longer."

The young boy humbly accepted his kung fu master's words and said, "Yes, Master."

The red panda continued, "As the future Dragon Warrior, you should be able to easily master the new training mechanism."

Tai Lung cocked his sweaty head with great curiosity as his father revealed a collection of rotating, steel-studded wooden posts. His golden eyes shone brightly with excitement and he clenched his fists eagerly. Master Shifu rested his small, black hands over the wooden shaft and explained, "This training tool has been inspired by the legendary fighters of the Ngoh Wan Crocodile Clan. Their famous armoured hides can withstand the iron arrows of the Shaanxi Spirit Archers and the black stone clubs of the mountain giants from Hengshan. This gauntlet of steel-studded wooden warriors is a formidable test for any kung fu master. You need the speed of a striking cobra, the reflexes of a hunting panther, and the courage of a dragon warlord to run the gauntlet and emerge unscathed."

Tai Lung's jaws dropped slightly as he stood amazed by the rich history behind the tool. It would be an honour to use such mechanism for his training to become the great Dragon Warrior. Master Shifu brought Tai Lung closer to the intimidating Gauntlet of Wooden Warriors and encouraged, "Have a go."

The older Tai Lung stood next to the younger Tai Lung and remembered how excited and equally terrified he was when he stood in front of the wooden gauntlet that was much taller than him. The fully grown leopard stood next to the young lad and his expression softened as he slowly relieved the past. Together, they swiped their paws against the wooden board and leaned back to quickly dodge the rotating spiked boards. They shielded their face with their forearms before taking another jab against the weapon. Steadily, they increased the speed and moved in deeper amongst the spinning gauntlets. They utilised their feet to stop a rotation and their powerful upper strength to push through.

The larger snow leopard continued the exercise easily until the gauntlet smacked the younger Tai Lung across the face. His older self attempted to protect the cub, but the weapons continued to swipe at the boy's face. A deep gash ran across the boy's cheeks and hot blood spilled down from the fresh wound. Momentarily Shifu allowed his son to taste the pain until he decided there was enough pain to teach his son a lesson.

Master Shifu asked, "Should we stop?"

The boy smeared the blood tracks across his face and angrily glared at the wooden mechanic. He spat, "No, Master. How can I dare to dream to be a Dragon Warrior if I allow this to injure me? I refuse to stop."

A proud smile ran through the red panda's face and said, "Very good. Practice until Zeng fetches you for dinner."

Tai Lung bowed his head as his father left to meditate with Master Oogway in the garden. Two hours past as Tai Lung suffered more shallow cuts and bruises during his relentless training. Beads of sweat dripped down his furry, white chin and fatigue slowly accumulated in his aching body. However, he refused to stop his furious attack until a young goose waddled into the training hall.

Zeng cleared his throat and his raspy voice called, "Master Oogway and Master Shifu are waiting for you at the dinner table."

Both leopards turned around and wiped their forehead with their brown sash. The considerate boy refused to keep the masters waiting and dashed to the dinner table. Throughout the dinner, they remained respectively silent and enjoyed their meal in peace.

Then the ancient tortoise asked, "What happened to your face, Tai Lung?"

Tai Lung replied honestly, "I received these cuts during practice. It's nothing too bad."

Master Oogway sadly noticed Tai Lung pushing himself beyond his limits and reprimanded, "Shifu, it's not good or healthy to push your son too much. He is only thirteen years old. Tai Lung is more than talented with the arts of kung fu. Allow time to evolve him than using force to change him."

Tai Lung defended his father's actions, "I chose to take this path Master Oogway. I want to make my pops proud, but I also want to master kung fu. Please do not rebuke my old man."

Master Oogway blinked his eyes slowly and observed Tai Lung and Shifu for a while until he continued to dine on his hot meal.

Shifu quietly smiled and approvingly nodded his head. The red panda reaffirmed and truly believed that his son could reach the prophesized title of Dragon Warrior if Tai Lung patiently continued his diligent life style. Otherwise why else would he have named his son, Tai Lung? The Great Dragon? However, he noticed the young snow leopard's mood turn gloomy and suggested, "Would you like to go to the Bao Gu Orphanage?"

Tai Lung nearly spat out his stew by smiling at the thought of Tigress. His father's brows raised at his reaction and the snow leopard smiled timidly. He said, "Yeah, I'd like to go, but why are we going tonight?"

Master Shifu offered a short explanation, "Tonight several families will be visiting the orphanage to adopt their new family member. I am hoping to see Tigress get adopted tonight."

The idea of not seeing Tigress once more sunk in his mind like the Titanic. Tai Lung nervously scratched his head with his claws and repeated, "Tigress may get adopted tonight?"

The red panda said, "Yes, that's what I am hoping to see. I've heard that you and Tigress managed to play with the other children. The other children are accepting her slowly, but it's still a wonderful progress. There's a chance that she will be adopted."

Tai Lung wiped his mouth with a white cloth and frowned at the thought of losing his first friend so soon. Still if she was to be adopted, he wanted to bid her goodbye as a friend.

After their delicious dinner, they descended down the thousand steps and lightly ran to the orphanage. Prospectively, the older Tai Lung rushed to the orphanage without waiting for his younger self and his father. He swept through the night like the wind until he skid to a stop in front of the Bao Gu Orphanage. It took another few minutes until the two also reached the orphanage. They saw different families of pigs, geese, rabbits, and owls checking the children.

Then both Tai Lungs found Tigress within the crowd of children, shyly glancing at her possible, future parents. When the tiger flashed her pearly, sharp teeth as she smiled, most families ventured away and sadness loomed over the young girl. The older leopard knelt before the young, innocent tiger and whispered, "You don't need to be sad. You'll end up in Jade Palace, become a legendary, honourable kung fu master, and...we will fall in love someday. So please don't look so sad."

Unfortunately the girl continued to wear a sad face as she couldn't hear his words. Then her face brightened as her eyes set on Master Shifu and Tai Lung.

Master Shifu formally asked, "How are you?"

Tigress beamed a smile and answered, "I'm doing fine, thank you. Master Shifu, Tai Lung and I conquered the dominos!"

Then the older Tai Lung froze as his younger self clearly said, "Gentleness is key to kung fu and you're mastering the first steps to being one."

Tigress grinned and said, "Yeah, you're the gentlest guy ever, Tai Lung."

The young boy scratched his head awkwardly as he didn't know how to reply or react to her flattering compliment. Then his father chuckled and winked, "Tai Lung is a rowdy boy. I'm surprised that you know him so well."

As Tigress and Master Shifu conversed happily, Tai Lung simply kicked aside a small pebble. Quietly, but surely, he noticed how the numbers of the visiting families steadily decreasing while the numbers of orphans also dropped. Over a short period of time, there were only handful of children and Tigress lowered her head. She couldn't possibly look into Master Shifu or Tai Lung's eyes.

Surprisingly, the younger Tai Lung suggested, "Pops, why don't we have Tigress join us the Jade Palace?"

Shifu frowned slightly at his erupt proposal and the leopard continued, "We have more than enough room for Tigress and she has talent for kung fu. I'm certain that she'll become a great kung fu master while I become a Dragon Warrior!"

Tigress stared hopefully at Master Shifu and the red panda stood baffled by the situation. Tai Lung pleaded, "Just as a student. Let her come and live with us at the Jade Palace. I'm sure Master Oogway will approve. Please. I'll even teach her about being gentle and kung fu! Yeah! She'll become my pupil."

His father snorted at the ridiculous, but humorous offer. Master Shifu said, "You have a long way to go before you can teach other students kung fu. But if she does come, she'll become a student just like you."

Master Shifu smiled as he saw generosity brimming in his son's large heart. Then he turned to Tigress, "The path of kung fu is a difficult path for anyone to choose. You will need to dedicate your life to mastering the martial arts. Will you be willing to do that?"

The orange tail wiggled excitedly and Tigress excitedly said, "Yes, Master Shifu!"

Master Shifu folded his arms and said, "Then I will be your Master! Be prepared to train hard, Tigress."

The happy leopard bumped his body against hers and grinned from ear to ear. Tigress returned a gleeful smile and rushed indoor to pack her belongings while Master Shifu talked with the staff. That night, Tigress walked beside him as they returned home.

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