A/N: So, how was the battle scene? Did you cry when Kun and Sun died? Were you at all surprised? If you were, that's great. If not...I need to work on my twists. And don't call me a bastard for killing them! I didn't kill them after all...Canku and Xisong did! Alright, so this is heading toward the end. I have one more chapter left for you guys. Enjoy.

The steps that led the Jade Palace seemed miles long as Tai climbed them. He remembered Tigress's presence next to him, helping him along. The wounds he had received when he had gone crazed were starting to take a toll on him. His heart was heavy. Each step he took up seemed to drain his energy more than ever. So many lives had been lost today, yet two were the hardest to accept. Tai still felt sorrow for the Li-Chow who's life they had laid down to protect the Valley, Tai even felt sorry for the misguided Army in Black. But he truly cared about his parents – gone.

The sky was still crying. The thunder still sounded as a Dragon in grief. Raindrops pelted them, their cold, icy touch mingling with the salty, warm teardrops from Tai and even Tigress. The memories of everything were now permanently embedded in there minds. Something scared Tigress more than anything else though. Even more than the unrelenting power that Tai was forced to cope with every day, more than the deaths of the Li-Chow, even more than the fact that the wolves' had escaped. It was the eyes of the misty being that had risen up from the fissures in the ground. It had the same red eyes as the ones who had been haunting her in dreams. Or, had been. Finally, the connection had been made. It was a curious discovery for her. The simple presence of Tai seemed to frighten off the horrid dreams. The Dragon's – mostly Senlin-Mu – comforting distance also seemed to keep the red eyes at bay. Usually, she would have been annoyed at this. But now, she didn't mind. She just accepted it. Besides, it would go away. The red eyes wouldn't haunt her forever. Nothing could. Just as the death of Shifu had been accepted – and loathed – her old master had told her to let things in the past be things in the past. So, she would do the same with this. It would be tough, but she could do it.

"I'm sure you can do it, Tigress."

Tigress looked at her side, still lending Tai her strength to get up the steps. At her side was Master Shifu, limping along. His flute was still resting in his bony hands. But, she knew it wasn't a live Master Shifu. Real as he appeared, he was just a specter.

"I am alive as you think me, Tigress," said Shifu out of nowhere, reading her thoughts. "You didn't think I would forget my students, did you?"

"No Master," said Tigress, bowing her head, not wanting to drop Tai. "What can I do for you?" she added at the end.

"Nothing really. I'm here to talk to my daughter. That is all you can do for me right now."

"Then I would be happy to do so, Master."

Tigress looked at Master Shifu. His body was whole, nothing was broken. If she hadn't known better, it would have seemed the red panda was completely fine; that he hadn't been in the violent explosion. Instead, he was smiling and calm. He didn't seem to mind as well. Tigress thought, with some slight grim humor, that he looked better than he had in years.

"Its ironic," said Tigress, "that the wolves' killed your killer."

Shifu chuckled, "It is. Still thinking of avenging me now?"

"No, Master."

"Good."

There was a moment of silence. Tai was also silent. No more tears fell from his eyes – normally brilliant and intelligent, they were dull and soulless. They were in stark contrast to Tigress's. Hers were bright now. Talking with her old master always did that. Even if he was beyond her true reach, she was within his. Whatever Shifu said, she would treasure every word. Would Tai get the same privilege with his parents? Maybe they would come back to talk to him. It was possible, though, she didn't really know how that worked out. She got a pressure on her chest. She could find out for him. And Tai didn't seem to hear them talking at all anyways. Right now, that would be good news to him. Like how Oogway would visit Shifu sometimes. Talking with those who's time has past always comforted one.

"Master Shifu, can I ask you a question?"

"You just did. I don't see why you can't ask another one though," replied Shifu with a straight face.

Tigress started to reply, but paused, her mouth half open. "Ahahahaha," she muttered. Shifu certainly had acquired a sense of humor, or maybe it was that he took things the way Oogway would have. Either way, it would take some time to get used to. Shaking her head, she forged on. "Will Tai be able to talk to his parents again?"

Shifu looked at Tigress, that old twinkle jumping back into his eye. "In a sense, yes. But physically, not for some time to come. It takes time before that connection can be made."

"Then why can you just do it. You just started chatting with us basically right after you, uh, yeah."

Shifu nodded, accepting Tigress's argument. "Things are a bit complicated to explain right now. Would it satisfy you to say that Kun and Sun are under different circumstances than I was?"

Tigress nodded, knowing that she would be unable to get anything more out of the red panda. "So, what does that mean?"

"Let me put it this way, he will be able to see them, feel their presence, but won't be able to communicate with them. Just recently I learned that Li, the first ancestor of Tai that was cursed with the Gu-Yi, along with two others guided Tai along his journey here. Li was the only one that was able to truly communicate with him. Yes the others might have 'said' something to him, but they really didn't. That was an illusion of speech. Memories, emotions, and feelings were all that were shared. Li was the only one that spoke."

"Okay," said Tigress slowly, "but that doesn't really answer my question."

Shifu sighed and rubbed his temples. "No. Tai will not be able to talk to them, but he will be able to see them and be guided by them without words. Is that what you need?"

"A simple answer is all I truly wanted."

"Ahhh...and most of the times that is not always what you get, is it?"

"Sadly, no."

Shifu suddenly started laugh. It was a long, genuine laugh. The red panda stopped walking and just stood there, laughing. Tigress felt slightly hurt at this. Shouldn't he be feeling concern for her? Instead he seemed to find mirth in her suffering. She began to protest, but Shifu cut her off.

"No, Tigress. I do not laugh at you. I laugh at the lard butt that is trying to climb the stairs."

"Huh?"

"Simply put, Tigress, look at Po."

Tigress shifted her eyes to were she saw Po trying to climb the stairs back up to the Jade Palace. True to his nature, the panda was struggling with the stairs though the rest of them had passed him and were heading straight toward the three of them. Po waved a hand up desperately in the air. A tiger was at his side. Tigress looked around for Tai at her side. He had been able to get down to Po without her noticing! Tigress let her eyes narrow slightly. She would have to learn how he did that. So far, besides him, she had was able to detect almost any movement. Shang was looking back at Tai as he helped Po up the stairs.

"Almost touching," commented Shifu. "Warriors still fall and warriors still tire, yet a friend will always be at your side. Isn't that right, Tigress?"

"Very...Master."

Shifu sighed contentedly. "My time is up. Don't worry Tigress, I'll see you sooner than you think."

With that, the red panda faded from view. The sound of his flute began to play in Tigress's ears and it gradually faded away. Viper was at Tigress's side just as the last note faded.

"How is he doing, Tigress?" asked the snake.

"Who? Tai?"

Viper nodded.

"He's doing better."

Viper looked angrily at the hills and hissed. "I wish we could have caught them. Somehow they escaped." Her voice softened, "It isn't fair what happened to Tai. He is so nice. Did you catch anything that went between Tai and his parents?"

Tigress flattened her ears. She had actually heard a good amount. "Nothing that I care to repeat."

Viper looked at Tigress with concern on her innocent eyes. "What do you mean?"

"It's private. I don't think I should have heard it myself. If you want to know, ask Tai."

"Mmmkay. What do you think is going to happen next?"

"We are going to have to rebuild this all."

"Hey! What about the villagers! We need to get them back home!"

"First thing that is going to happen as soon as Crane feels like it."

Viper nodded and headed up the stairs with Tigress following. They had a lot to do.

Shang was almost surprised as Mei leapt up on him when he reached the top stairs of the Jade Palace. The clouded leopard kissed Shang deeply and he let himself go with it. He was happy that Mei was going to be okay. Tai's quick work had actually done a lot of good; more good than Tai would give himself credit for. Mei broke away, yet Shang held her close. Mei buried her face into Shang's fuzzy chest and they stood there in each other's arms, letting themselves escape from reality for just a moment. The moment passed faster than Shang would have liked, but he let go. Mei stood there, almost as if she hadn't been wounded, yet her paw immediately moved to her side. She sensed the Golden cat's concern.

"Nothing too major," she said, trying to ease Shang's apprehension. "Besides, I've got the best medicine the in the world."

"What's that?" asked Shang earnestly.

"Love!"

The couple heard a few groans and they laughed.

"Shuttup Mantis. You too Monkey!" Shang called out.

"Why can't you?" muttered Monkey as he walked past with his odd gait.

"It is physically impossible," replied Shang.

Again, groans were heard. Monkey covered his ears and moved quickly out of the room before any more was said. Mantis followed, riding on Monkey's back. Mei giggled and she started moving toward the kitchen. The clouded leopard grabbed Shang's paw. Shang allowed himself to be lead there, sometimes having to support Mei when her wound pained her.

Battle and war hurt all, Shang thought. No doubt there.

Mei sat herself and Shang down at the table. Nobody else was in the kitchen. Shang looked around, trying to figure out what exactly Mei was up to. As far as he could see, there was nothing out of place that betrayed a surprise. He checked under the table and around his chair. Mei rose an eyebrow. That was the trouble with soldiers, they always needed to inspect everything and try to figure out what was going to happen before it did. Then again, it was their job to that...and then prevent it. Shang continued searching for a full five minutes. All the while, Mei waited patiently. She was used to this. She let her tail twist into funny shapes. Once she tied a knot in her own tail and then untied it without using her paws. Shang still couldn't figure out what she was hiding. Just as Shang was about to give up, he spotted something. A slight bulge on Mei's tunic – well, and out of place bulge.

"What's that?" he asked. His paw pointed in the direction of the object.

Mei smiled and pulled out a chain. It was a thin chain. The finish was done rather well and the steel was brightly polished. The ends were loose, with clasps at the end for something with a bigger diameter to be attached at the end.

"A chain?"

"Yes, what else would it be?"

Shang lifted the chain up to study it. "I'm just saying..."

"Oh. Are you gonna ask me what's it for?"

"I am. What are you going to use it for?"

Mei motioned for Shang to lean in. The clouded leopard looked around, making sure no one else was around to hear her. It was like she had a terrible secret that she didn't want anyone else to hear. Shang obliged and listened intently. Mei usually had good ideas and he didn't want to miss out on this one. But what would she want with a chain?

"It's going to be a present for Tai."

"But a chain? What's that supposed to mean? I think Tai might take it the wrong way."

"No, listen, its going to be what we're going to do the chain that will make it special."

Shang nodded and looked back down at the chain. He moved it from paw to paw. It glittered against the candle light. Rain poured off against the rooftops. Thunder boomed high in the sky above them. The crackle of lighting could be heard once and a while. All of it reminded them of what had happened. Gloom had settled, yet that didn't mean it would stay. Mei started back up.

"I'm going to go out there and take the two rings and chain that had tied their paws together. I was going try to loop the rings together and thread the chain through them. Then attach it to this chain. It would be like a necklace."

Shang started to nod, but shook his head instead. A frown formed. "Are you sure? This might remind Tai of them too well and what they went through."

Mei took Shang's paw and squeezed it. "I'm sure of this. Let's go before anyone notices. We can ask a smith later to do it."

Shang glanced at the ceiling, contemplating on whether they should do it or not. He wasn't so sure about it. A voice from his deepest conscious seemed to whisper to him, encouraging him to do the right thing. But what was the right thing? Reminding Tai of this? Or having something to remind Tai of what had happened, yet keep them close.

Yet we should honor our heroes that have fallen, he finally concluded. "Let's go."

Mei's cheery face went serious. She looked at the chain. "Do you really think this is such a good idea?"

Shang, expecting her to have already been out the door, eased himself back into his seat. He studied her, trying to pick out any information hidden in her body language. Normally, Mei didn't second guess herself, what had all of a sudden changed her mind? He even had said that they should do it. This wasn't the Mei he knew.

"Everything alright?"

Mei leaned back in her chair. She hugged the chain close to her body. Shang got up and took a seat on the chair next to her. He wrapped his strong arms around her. The clouded leopard rested her head on his shoulders. Shang could wait till Mei decided to speak. He wouldn't rush her. Suddenly, Mei started to sniffle. She wiped her nose with her paw. Shang felt some damp spots on his shoulder. Mei was crying? It was a what the hell moment for him.

"Hey, could you mind leaking a bit less," he said jokingly, trying to lighten the atmosphere. "I don't want to drown."

"Well, take a deep breath," she said between tears, "you might have to."

Shang furrowed his brow. Something was bothering her...a lot. Yet this was familiar in a way. Where had he seen something like this? His mind started to wonder when it hit him. Mei had just fought in her first battle. The shock usually alone usually instigates some sort of reaction – like crying or just silence and isolation – to most animals.

"Is it about the battle?" he said gently.

Mei looked at the Golden cat. "A little," she admitted. "It's more than that though."

Shang looked at Mei's paws. She was toying with the chain, tying it in knots like she had been doing with her tail. Redundant. Shang let Mei be for a little bit. He felt her body press up against his. He had never seen Mei like this. Ever. Something must have finally hit her and if it wasn't a reaction to the battle... He took her paw into his and rubbed the back with his thumb.

"Can I ask what it is?"

"It's everything that happened, really," she replied shakily, fighting the tears. Suddenly, she started to get angry. Shang bit his lip as her claws dug into his skin. He cringed when he saw blood being drawn, but didn't say anything. "All the lives lost at Mengyou City. They were good animals and they were just slaughtered. Then, we traveled and we went through almost everything imaginable! Tai found out something terrible and all the hurt that it caused him is almost unforgivable. The trail of destruction caused by the wolves now spans throughout much of China. Most of all though, Tai's parents are killed when he rescues them."

Shang nodded in agreement and started to answer, but he was cut off by a fresh wave of sobs from Mei. She had forgotten two very important animals and had remembered.

"What hurts most though, are my parents. I lost them because of those damn wolves. Never again will I hear their voices. I won't see them again. Neither will Tai. We have lost them. We can't turn to them for guidance and we can't go to them when we need help or just to talk to."

Her claws retracted and Shang breathed a sigh of relief. Mei's body was wracked with sobs by the time he had inspected his paw – the cuts would heal without a problem. She kneaded his fur, as if he was her only connection to the real world. Shang kissed her on the top of the head. He felt moved. Looking back, it was heart wrenching the grief the wolves had caused. They had escaped though and were, without a doubt, going to come back to cause even more grief and death. Shang tried to think of something to tell Mei, but nothing came to his mind all the way. Shang suddenly felt something tickle his whiskers. He slapped at it and felt something scaly.

"Viper...oh Heavens."

In the place of where Shang thought Viper was, there was Senlin-Mu. The Dragon, usually massive, had shrunk down to fit into the small space. The old, aged eyes stared at Shang with mischievousness. They twinkled with unbound wisdom and knowledge. The Dragon's warm voice filled Shang's mind.

"Greetings Shang, I am Senlin-Mu. I am a Dragon, yes, so don't ask that question. Now, take this flower and give it to Mei. It will never wither and it will always smell like it does now. A present from me to you to her."

Senlin-Mu winked and disappeared before Shang could say anything. With the only sound being the tears that fell from Mei – and the sky – Shang noticed a beautiful flower lying pristinely on the wooden table. The stalk felt smooth as he picked it up. His nose was filled with a fragrance that was mellow and pleasing. The actual petals were a pure white with slight patches of periwinkle splayed out. The petals were strong and fibrous, yet pleasing to the touch. He brought the flower and let it fall near Mei's nose. She lifted her head up. Her eyes fell on the flower immediately.

"For you," Shang said.

She sat up, taking the flower in both paws, dropping the chain onto her lap. Her tail stopped making patterns and just rocked back and forth. The clouded leopard started to hum something, words forming on her lips but no sound coming out. She caressed the flower.

"Oh Shang," she breathed. Tears stopped flowing because of sadness. They were replaced with joy. "I don't know how you knew, but this is perfect. My parents always said they would find a flower like this. They never did, but you did. This is what I needed. And that is what Tai needs as well. I don't know how you do it, Shang, but you do."

Shang was flustered and tried to explain that it was from Senlin-Mu, but he wasn't able to say the words. His tongue couldn't say the words. He tried again and failed. Forgetting it, he sent a quick "thank you"to the Dragon.

You're welcome.

Shang froze when he heard the Dragon's voice in his mind, but let it pass. Mei had already got a simple glass, filled it with water, and placed the flower in it. Shang got up as Mei left the kitchen and went to their room. She placed the flower on the chest and went back to the get the chain.

"Let's go get those rings," she said confidently.

Shang led Mei to the front door and pulled out an umbrella that had been left there by a soldier. He would have to return it to her, but for now it would be theirs. Guarded from the rain, they walked down the slippery steps. They were cautious, but made good progress. As they reached the bottom, bodies still were in the streets, but the soldiers had piled them up. They would bury them later. The street where Kun and Sun had died was fresh in their memories, but they worried that the soldiers had moved the bodies. A sentry was hailed, but the sentry knew nothing of the bodies.

"Rumor 'as it," he said, "t'ose bodies couldn't e'en be found!"

Mei thanked him and they hurried off to the street where they knew the bodies had lay. They reached the long street, it was dark in the sunless sky. The pavement was slick with rain. The body piles were pushed against the side of buildings and they tried to see if they could make out the tiger couples bodies. They couldn't find any sign of the black and orange stripes that were telltale to the tigers. Finally, they reached the exact spot where Kun and Sun. Both of them were speechless.

There, instead of two bodies, were an assortment of tiger lily petals. In the middle of them were the rings, intertwined. Mei stared at it for the longest time before bending down and picking up the rings. Etched along the outside of the rings were the characters for Kun and Sun. The chain had already been threaded through it. Mei was astounded by the craftsmanship that was displayed. No seams where the rings would have been melded back together was seen. There were no hairline cracks and the polish, though dull, gave it a slight luster that was pleasing to the eye. The penmanship of the calligraphy was nothing short of the rest of the rings. Mei noticed that the shape of the rings had not been changed though. They were still crudely made. Yet whatever had been done to them made them look something to treasure. Shang nudged Mei with his elbow.

"Look up," he whispered harshly.

Mei looked at Shang. The Golden cat pointed in front of him. The specters of Kun and Sun, their backs facing them, began climbing upward on some invisible staircase. Beside them, were Mi and Fei, Mei's parents. The two clouded leopards turned slightly, their eyes closed, and waved at their daughter. Mi blew Mei a kiss before they all turned away from them and disappeared.

"Maybe they are still here," Mei said, thinking aloud.

"Never thought I would agree to that," commented Shang. "But I guess you're right."

"Why wouldn't I be? I'm always right!"

"Whatever you say."

Mei nodded. "Exactly."

They climbed back up the stairs and finished connecting the chains. Now all they needed to do was to give this to Tai. And the timing had to be perfect.