Well...it's here! The end is finally here! I wanted to make sure that this chapter was the longest out of all 20 (not counting this author's note, of course) because hey...it's the end! This story was truly a joy to write, even though some parts might not have been the most joyous, if you know what I mean. It was great writing for one of my favorite films ever; Kung Fu Panda will always have a special place in my heart. As for this story's 'future,' I will say that I do have an idea or two for a possible sequel in mind...but I'm pretty happy with how this ended, so we'll have to wait and see ;)

Thank you once again to everyone who followed, faved, or simply read this story! Never forget how amazing you are ;D Oh! And if this story's title sounded familiar to anyone, that's because it's named after one of my favorite songs by Audio Machine titled "Eternal Flame"—but it also fit this story in more than one way which is why I picked it, hah xD

"You're alive!" Tigress nearly screamed, throwing herself over Po and wrapping him in the tightest hug that she could muster, almost knocking Bao off of his belly in the process. But it didn't last long.

"Ow, ow, ow!" Po cried, hugging his knees to his chest. Bao slid to the ground, not wanting to hurt his friend any further.

Tigress immediately backed away, mentally slapping herself for hurting Po; it was obvious that he was still recovering from his injuries that he had sustained as a dragon. There was no physical evidence to suggest that he had ever been shot by an arrow, but judging from his reaction to being hugged so tightly, he was still sore. He also seemed to be favoring his left side quite a bit; Tigress didn't know what had happened between him and Kai in the Spirit Realm, but it was obvious that the evil warrior had gotten the upper hand at some point.

"Sorry!" she apologized quickly. "I mean...it's good to see...you again." The tiger coughed awkwardly, hugging Lei Lei closer so as not to drop her and trying to suppress her enthusiasm that Po was back. The little panda babbled in excitement that Po had finally woken, trying to escape from Tigress's hold but with no success.

Po glanced down at his original body, letting out a sigh of relief when he found that yes, he was back to normal. He was afraid for a second that Master Oogway was going to make him stay as a dragon.

"Yeah...it's great to be back." He glanced at his fathers and they stared back with unbelieving gazes as if they were looking at a ghost. "Dad! Dad...I'm okay, really," Po said reassuringly. "I got my Chi back."

They didn't react at first, merely blinking and trying to process the fact that their son had survived. He was okay, alive and well. He was sitting up in bed on his own without any support from Tigress, trying to tell them that yes, he was indeed alright. But it was hard to believe that after so much worrying and fretting, it was all over at last. They could finally breathe with ease knowing that their son was going to be okay after far too many close calls.

At the same time, they both threw themselves over the panda, nearly causing Po to fall back over onto his bed. Their hug was absolutely suffocating and his injuries—though they were not that noticeable—flared at the sudden contact, but Po didn't mind. Not one bit as he hugged them tightly in return.

Still...

Ow.

Even so, he invited a certain little panda cub to join in on the group hug, waving him over with a small nod of his head. Bao inched towards the three, leaping towards Po and enveloping his friend, trying to be as gentle as he could.

"Kai's gone for good, right? He didn't get your Chi again?" Mr. Ping asked cautiously a second time just to make sure, never wanting the moment to end.

"Nope," Po said brightly in response. "He's gone for good, dad. It was hard, but...I made sure that he can't come back. Shifu actually gave me the idea," he said as he remembered his master throwing Kai backwards after getting hit with the arrow, creating a shield around the Master of Pain so that he wouldn't be able to get out.

"I knew you could do it," Li said proudly, giving Po one final squeeze before letting go at last so his son could breathe. He held out the staff for him to take. "I think this belongs to you."

Po took the staff gently in his hands, hugging it close. He wondered if it would always have the power to take him to the Spirit Realm; he hoped that he would never have to find out again anytime soon. He would also make sure to take extra care not to snap it in half like he had the first time.

Master Shifu himself stood by, observing with a small smile. "It's good to see that you are finally awake, Dragon Warrior."

Po chuckled. "I'm happy I'm awake...hey, where's everyone else?" he asked, searching his room for the rest of the Five and pandas.

"All outside the shop!" Mr. Ping answered, releasing Po from his grip at last and heading to the stairs. "They were waiting for you to wake up."

"Let's go and say hi," Bao said excitedly, grabbing Shifu by a paw and nearly dragging the red panda towards the stairs. The older master stiffened slightly, but allowed himself to be pulled away by the small cub. Lei Lei had finally managed to escape Tigress's hold and began to run after the two, the 'stripey baby' following close behind so as not to lose sight of her.

Po laughed under his breath, smiling warmly at the thought that he had friends waiting for him outside. But then a thought resurfaced at the mention of the word 'hi.' A memory of the Spirit Realm just before Master Oogway had taken out his staff, and before everything went black and he had returned to the Mortal Realm as a dragon.

"Oh, right! Mom says hi," Po said softly once he and Li were alone in the room and everyone had gone. He was glad that he had remembered now and not as a dragon when he wouldn't have been able to speak.

"...What?" Li asked slowly, his voice a quiet whisper as he turned to face his son before following the group outside to the tables.

"I saw her, dad. She was there when...when I...you know. She was everything you said and more..."

Li's eyes were brimming with tears by the second word Po had said.

"She's okay, dad," Po reassured softly as his own eyes glistened. "She's with Master Oogway. He's taking good care of her."

Li attempted to choke back the tears that were beginning to roll down his cheeks, but he couldn't help it. Po wrapped his arms around his father in yet another tight embrace.

"Master Shifu needs to speak with you," Tigress said as she approached the Dragon Warrior with little Lei Lei once again clinging to her back.

"Am I in trouble?" Po asked, smiling as he noticed that she was not being as resistant to the cub as she was back in the Panda Village before everything had happened.

"Perhaps," she answered with a little smirk. Po made his way towards a table where Shifu was sitting with Li and Mr. Ping. Out of the corner of his eye, he spotted Crane and Mantis sitting with Viper and Monkey. He had heard what happened to the two of them and what Kai had done...it left him feeling very unsettled to know that it had been because of his powers. But he was glad that they were okay.

Shifu nodded at the Dragon Warrior as he chose his next words; he knew that he would have to tell Po now before he changed his mind. "Yes."

"What?" Po asked, confused at what Shifu meant by 'yes.'

"Yes. They may stay if they choose." Shifu turned his gaze towards the pandas enjoying their soup that Mr. Ping had brought out. Li still couldn't believe that the secret ingredient was actually nothing. But he had finally gotten the hang of creating his own that Po would have to try later.

"You mean like...officially stay?" Po asked, eyes wide with excitement as he finally realized what the red panda meant. "They don't have to go back to the village?"

"Even now, I believe it would be cruel to make them go all the way back, especially after staying here for so long," Shifu explained with a small grin.

Po looked from Shifu to Li, and his dad nodded his approval. "The Valley of Peace might be dangerous...but I think we can handle it, don't you?" he asked with a wink.

Po soon found himself grinning from ear to ear. Bao was going to be so happy when he heard the news!

"Hey...how'd you know it was me when you got to the palace?" Po couldn't help but ask Tigress once the noodle shop had been cleared.

"There was a dragon, and you are the Dragon Warrior. It wasn't that hard to figure out, Po," she replied as she helped clear tables, wiping them down with a cloth.

"...Right," Po laughed sheepishly. "I told you I shot a super awesome dragon at him." He turned his gaze towards the brightening sky. He would never forget that moment when he'd tossed himself off of the Jade Palace steps and flew. Really flew with no assistance whatsoever. It was a sensation that he would remember for as long as he lived. He'd never look at the sky the same way again. But it also reminded him that he was capable of more than just soaring through the air.

"What is it?" Tigress asked gently as she watched him staring upwards. Something was bothering him and she knew it.

"It's just...after...seeing what Kai could do with my Chi...what I could and...can do..." The full realization that he could manipulate people into doing things against their will by just a simple thought finally hit him full-force; he never even knew that he'd had such a power before Kai had gained his Chi.

"When I went to the Spirit Realm and saw Master Oogway again," Po continued, shuffling a bit as he stood in place. "He told me that one of life's greatest challenges is to face one's self. I think I finally know what he meant by that..."

He felt a paw rest on his shoulder.

"You're not Kai."

She said it with such certainty, it almost made him want to believe it himself. Kai had done things that Po would never even think of doing in his lifetime. He hadn't even realized that his powers could go that far, that they could hurt innocent people the way they had. Crane and Mantis were nearly killed because of his powers. He was almost afraid to just be standing next to Tigress.

"Po...you would never hurt me. You would never hurt anyone," she said firmly, her grip on his shoulder tightening. "I trust you. We all trust you."

Her statement brought him comfort, his doubt slowly but surely fading away. He finally smiled.

"Thanks, Tigress."

Po couldn't believe it. After all these years of simply dreaming about becoming a Kung Fu master, that dream was finally a reality.

Weird; it felt like only yesterday when he'd first climbed up the dreaded stairs of the Jade Palace and lit up the fireworks that sent him over the stone walls, and then named the legendary Dragon Warrior.

Now he was a teacher, teaching anyone who wanted to know the art of Kung Fu and now Chi as well, knowing how to use it and when, and the dangers of using too much. He couldn't believe that either, remembering how freaked out he'd been when Shifu first wanted him to start teaching.

But life was good. He had his friends and family who were always there for him no matter what, who had saved him from his ultimate demise in the Spirit Realm. It was then he realized that, in a way, they had taught themselves how to use the power of their Chi; he had simply taught them to always be yourself, no matter how great of a challenge it was.

Kai was defeated once again and everything was back to normal. But if any more supernatural villains or regular bandits came along that Po was already used to fighting in the Valley of Peace, he and the Furious Five—along with new Panda Warriors—would be ready.

Now he was also the Dragon Warrior both metaphorically and literally.

The Dragon would always be there watching over the Valley of Peace and the ones he loved, the ones who loved him in return.

He wasn't going anywhere.

Yeah, life was good.

Back in the empty Panda Village, the shriveled flower that Po had brought back to life bloomed once more and shimmered gold in the brilliant light.