Disclaimer- I do not own Kung Fu Panda or Dreamworks. *walks off in tears*
"Tigress?!" Viper forgot her anger and was suddenly washed in worry for her teammate. "Where have you been?"
"Somewhere where she wasn't supposed to be." Crane said coldly. "So you left us, and end up red-handed. Give the statue back."
"I don't have it." Tigress growled, and narrowed her eyes at Crane.
"You don't have it?" Po laughed. "Nice one, Tigress."
"I'm not joking. I don't have the jade lion." She replied flatly. She almost sounded disappointed.
"Yet you knew what was stolen. You stole it, didn't you?" Crane accused almost rudely.
There was a moment of silence until Tigress sighed. "Yes, I did."
"Great. Now let's just apologize to Yu and say we don't have it because you lost it." Crane said caustically.
"Crane." Viper warned, but the white bird was on a roll, or so it was to him, and he didn't listen to her.
"I wasn't finished. I stole it to trade for information." Tigress' eyes shot daggers at Crane's. "About our mystery criminal. While you have been dawdling about, I went and did us something useful."
"Like stealing would totally improve our lives," Crane hissed. "You shouldn't have stolen it. There are other ways to solve things; you should know this Tigress."
A few passing citizens cast some curious glances their way. The sun was starting to set; the clouds all sorts of colors. The shops were beginning to close and the sound of shutting doors and windows could be heard all across the Valley.
Tigress was about to say something, but stopped. "Not here. We'll discuss matters at the Jade Palace." She clearly meant to discuss a few things with Crane. She took off her mask, folded it neatly, and placed it in her plain brown satchel. They started heading toward the main roads of the Valley; trying to stay out of the worse parts of the city. Crane and Tigress put as much distance as they could between one another. It got so bad that the civilians started to stare at this bizarre sight.
It took them a few minutes to reach the seemingly endless stairs up to the Jade Palace. Crane took to the air, as always, while Tigress sped underneath him. Soon the pair, disappeared in the fog that collected around their home. It was almost an undeclared race; the opponents Crane and Tigress. When the clashing two were gone, Viper sighed and looked downwards.
"What is it?" Po asked. He wasn't one for tragic conversations, unless it was with his dad, but he cared about Viper enough to ask.
"It's happening." she replied cryptically.
"What exactly is happening?" Po remarked.
"We're never going to make it. Our team is breaking; our bond, friendship, dissolving. The murders have not just shattered the peace, but our hearts and kindness as well. Tigress was the first to go, I can see why. And Crane has never been the one to be helpful. Which of us will fall now?" she asked with a tinge of melancholy in her trembling voice.
"Look," Po really didn't know what to say. "We're not perfect. We'll fight and we'll do things we'll later regret. But what is most important is if we fix the problems we have caused. Forgiveness and remorse don't come easily, Viper, but they do come eventually."
Viper didn't reply, but Po knew she was seeing where he was going with this. "Tigress and Crane are no exception," he added. "They are determined warriors who battle in the greatest fights all across China; don't you think they will win the most dangerous wars in their own hearts?"
"My father once told me a story." Viper sniffed and hesitated before continuing. "In every heart, there are two dragons. A white one and a black one. The white one represents your good side: courage, compassion, kindness, remorse, forgiveness. The black dragon is your other side: hatred, malice, anger, grudges, cruelty. They are constantly at battle in your heart, but you are the one to decide the winner. You can feed the white dragon with acts of kindness and pity, as well as supporting the black one with envy and revenge. And one day, whether you like it or not, one dragon will be the victor and live forever in you. But the thing is, which dragon is it? The white dragon or the black dragon?"
Po opened his mouth to speak, but they had arrived at the Jade Palace. Time had passed so quickly. Tigress and Crane stood there, waiting for them. Crane looked smug, while Tigress had a look of annoyance on her face.
"We've been waiting. What took you so long?" Tigress asked, irritated.
"Oh, I'm-" Viper began, but was soon cut off by Crane.
"Well, I might ask, Tigress, what took you so long?" Crane sneered coldly.
"It wasn't a race, Crane. Merely a run to stretch my legs." Tigress replied coolly. She wasn't going to take any lip from Crane. Well, not anymore.
"But with every second we waste, we delay finding the criminal." Crane said with a false layer of innocence.
"Like you are delaying time now, by trying to rub it in my face." Tigress shot back.
"What was that I heard? Admitting that you lost?" Crane taunted.
"You better shut up if you know what's good for you." Tigress said thinly. "For all I know, cats eat birds."
"Crane? Tigress?" Po ventured.
"What?" they both snapped at once.
"We better get inside before it gets dark instead of bickering like children." Po said curtly and headed inside with Viper.
"She's a sore loser," Crane remarked loudly.
"Then you know not to provoke me." Tigress snarled angrily. Crane had nothing else to say, and Po and Viper enjoyed the silence that they sorely wanted. Viper started lighting the candle and lamps for light and Po dusted the various articles on display at the Jade Palace. Tigress and Crane continued to quarrel over minor details, like who helped more often in the palace or who left a candle burning and nearly burned down the whole place.
A dark figure sat upon the tiled roof of the Jade Palace. He had been tracking their movements for days now, plotting the exact time to make his move. He had to admit,grudgingly, that going to the underground market and bartering for information was pretty clever. Though not as clever as his plan. Sure, it was not the nicest of things to experience, his plan, but life isn't easy. To him, life was a chess game. Each move had its own rewards and consequences. All you needed to do was make the correct moves and voila! you're where you want to be.
His head turned at the first murmur of sound. He could hear footsteps and the steady flapping of wings. Crane appeared on scene, and he was tempted to pick up his crossbow and shoot the sitting duck, but Tigress burst out a few moments later, clearly unhappy. They launched into a heated vocal battle of insults and past events. He remained motionless, quite amused at their conflicts.
"I won, you lost. Fair and square." Crane was saying.
"Cheater!" Tigress accused. "You took advantage of the fog!"
"And how would I use it to my advantage? Admit it Tigress, you lost." Crane said calmly.
"You-you, um, uh-" for once, Tigress was for a loss of words.
"Exactly. You have no proof and therefore your argument is invalid." Crane concluded.
"You cheated! With the fog, you vanish from sight and you could have done anything! I have my eye on you. One step out of line and you're as good as dead."
It went on for a while; their voices soon transforming into white noise. It was when the other two arrived that he heeded some attention. It was all more fighting and was a bore. He started to wonder why he brought his fine-tuned and expensive weapons in the first place, but remembered his mission and stayed longer. It if wasn't for the pay, he would have been long gone. This wasn't exciting, though the outcome was sure to be. He could still hear Tigress and Crane quarreling from inside.
It was happening. The team was breaking, slowly, but they were soon to be shattered, surely after he delivered the destructive blow. He smiled to himself and hopped off the roof. The silhouette vanished into the heavy fog. The team was breaking.
Mission Accomplished.