"Wanna see a really cool place?"

Po had decided to take Chao to his secret spot that was originally meant for him and Tigress. Even after a few weeks, his son was still recovering from all that he'd been through, and he needed quiet time. What better place for quiet time than a secret spot? Tigress didn't mind, so she stayed with Lotus at the Jade Palace.

It was clear that while Chao was happy to be away from the volcano, he was still getting used to a non-tortuous life without any cuffs, cages or arenas. He was terrified of the dark, so his mother and father had to light a candle or two at bedtime.

He was terrified of being alone, so one or both of them had to stay with him at all times. If they couldn't be there for some odd reason, then one of the Furious Five, Shifu, Li and Mr. Ping, the other pandas or even Bao and Lei Lei stuck with him, helping to keep his mind off of bad times and focusing more on the good.

They never left his side for anything.

"Wow," Chao said in awe as Po let him down from his shoulders. The cub's eyes widened at the sight of the grassy hill that his father knew so well, and Po smiled as his son felt the soft and cool grass beneath his feet.

The panda led him to the hill's edge so they could sit. Chao shivered, still not used to the cool air around him after being trapped inside of a heated mountain for so long.

"You okay?" Po asked gently, positioning himself so he was sitting just inches away. Chao gave a small nod, but Po knew that something was bothering him. What exactly that something was, Po didn't know...it could be a lot of things.

Wind blew by and he shivered for a second time.

"I heard you, daddy," he said out of the blue.

Po was confused, and Chao could tell. He explained without even needing to be asked.

"When you helped me change back...I heard you."

Po's heart throbbed.

Then the tears came again.

xxxx

The dragons were restless.

Po had no clue what had gotten into the two of them, but they were practically bouncing off the walls (metaphorically, since they were too big to fit inside anywhere.) Guiren and Flame—as Lotus had affectionately named the red dragon—were the only two left after Flame himself had managed to take down Longwei's black dragon. Po was sad that the black dragon had been too far gone into the ways of Longwei, but it had to be done.

"Someone's excited to see you," he laughed as he walked outside with Chao holding his paw. The panger cub was greeted joyfully by Guiren, who rumbled loudly and jumped from side to side. "Easy, easy."

The dragons were welcome to stay near the palace. They had resided in the forest until Chao was well enough to start walking, just so long as they did not harm any of the villagers. They still had to hunt, and they needed a large amount of food to quench their hunger; it appeared that they were not used to eating in such quantities with Longwei always withholding food from them. They were uncertain at first of their newfound freedom, but it didn't take long for the two to begin to soar endlessly around the Valley of Peace—much to the villagers' unease.

But to Po and Tigress's relief, the dragons left their people alone. Longwei was gone—the volcano was gone, and since Flame and Guiren were hovering about the Valley along with the famous Dragon Warrior, crime rates had dropped drastically. There was nothing to worry about for the time being—they could focus at last on what was really important: Chao's recovery.

Tigress made her way outside with her husband and son, keeping a close eye on a certain little Lotus. So as not to risk hurting the Jade Palace with the dragons' massive sizes, they had decided to take Chao and his sister down to the clearing to meet them.

Chao released himself from Po's hold and ran to Guiren without any hesitation; the size difference amazed Po and how his son showed absolutely no fear towards the gray dragon who was three times bigger than him while he was in his cub form. Chao hadn't tried to change back into a dragon since his return, but Po could tell that he was uncomfortable as a cub which was perfectly understandable; it was going to take time to get used to his original form again.

Guiren let out a happy purr, nuzzling Chao gently on his cheek.

"Hi...Guiren," Chao said, the name awkwardly rolling off of his tongue. During their time with Longwei, dragons had never had any names. They simply went by each other's scents. Chao liked names better; they were a lot easier to go by. "Where's Flame?"

Guiren let out another rumble, pointing his nose towards the sky.

"I'm sure he'll be back soon," Po assured the cub. Flame was most likely out hunting again; the dragon had been gone for a few days now, and he could tell that Chao was starting to get worried.

Guiren turned his attention back to Chao. His dark eyes were bright, and his wings looked almost transparent in the shining sun. The dragon was communicating something to Chao, who gladly translated his rumbles and growls into actual words so his parents could understand. Since Po had called upon his Dragon Warrior spirit, he now had a better understanding of their language, but it was still hard to piece together.

"He says he's sorry for taking me..." Chao said slowly, trying to read his parents' expressions. They stood still, listening quietly to every word. "Mast—Longwei made him do it...he never wanted to take me..."

Tigress stiffened slightly. Back in the arena, she had felt Guiren's emotions and had seen his thoughts in a way that she never expected to see them. Yet the dragon still wanted to personally apologize? She was touched.

"We understand," Tigress responded, her tone gentle. Guiren looked to her, relief crossing his features. "You didn't want to do it, but you had to..." Previously, she had been unsure whether or not that she would ever forgive the dragon who had stolen her son from her.

Now she was sure.

A roar from overhead sounded, and the large shape of Flame finally made himself known. He pounded the ground in a landing besides Guiren, and Po and Tigress had to stop themselves from running to Chao just in case he was squashed. Flame was always precise with his landings, however, and Chao was completely safe with the two dragons.

Flame snorted and pawed the ground, a gesture that Po had come to understand that meant something bad or exciting was happening—since their current threats were eliminated, Po guessed that Flame was excited about something and he was trying to tell them.

Chao was more than happy to translate, but the cub's eyes soon grew wide and his lower lip suddenly trembled.

Tigress ran straight to him, Po staying behind with Lotus.

"What is it?" She asked in a rush. Chao shook his head, trying not to cry.

"They're leaving," he said in a quiet whisper.

His parents glanced at each other.

"As in...not staying?" Po questioned. Well, Flame was sure in a hurry. The large reptile obviously hadn't thought about how it would affect their friend—no, a part of their family.

"He says that he might have found other dragons," Chao explained, his eyes shining as tears threatened to break loose. Po couldn't tell whether they were actually sad or happy tears. Sad because his dragon family was leaving, or happy that they had possibly found others of their kind. As Shifu had once told him, dragons were extremely rare and hadn't been seen for thousands of years until they'd—ironically—met the Dragon Slayer.

He definitely wasn't expecting Chao's next words, and his heart skipped a beat in shock.

"...They want me to go with them."