I actually had finished chapter 3 before I even posted this fic, but recently, while on a vacation, I realized there was a gaping plot hole the size of a cannonball wound. So instead of having a nice buffer, I ended up having to completely revise Po and the OC's part of the plot, and rewrite the entire Po section of this chapter. This is why I don't like posting as I write. There's always something stupid that I left out or didn't think of. Hopefully, I can keep things relatively coherent as the story progresses.

Let me know if you see any typos that I might have missed or if you notice any other plot holes (though I may have to handwave them if fixing it becomes too frustrating.)

Summary: The paths Shen took in the past seem only to lead deeper into darkness. But through the eyes of those who have woven themselves into his life, a new story unfolds-one leading away from old misery and guilt-that may yet bring him redemption. Slight AU. Chapter 2-Shen returns to a crowd of cheering people, having accidentally made himself a hero of China. Meanwhile, Po discovers the Valley of Peace has been in turmoil.

Chapter 2.

Shen.

Shen freely admitted to himself that the last thing he expected to hear upon returning to Gongmen City was the sound of applause. But there it was, roaring in his ears. There were crowds of people in the streets, all cheering, and they were directing their celebrations at him! He glanced at the Wolf Boss who raised an eyebrow and shrugged before grinning toothily and waving at their new admirers. People were shouting at him all at once, and Shen could barely make out snippets of what they were saying.

"—You saved China!"

"—I guess those guns aren't all bad after all…"

"—Those horrible barbarians would have destroyed everything."

Oh. Was that what this was about? Word of his victory must have traveled fast he mused. Today was another day for "firsts" in Shen's book. No one had ever cheered at him, and so he amused himself by following in the Wolf Boss's stead and waving.

Not that he thought himself a hero. Not that he did any of this for them. That hoard had been a threat to his empire, and he crushed them the same way he would crush anyone else who dared oppose him. Shen and his entourage entered the mansion that had been his temporary home while the Tower of Sacred Flame was rebuilt.

"Heheh, that was pretty great, dontcha think, Lord Shen?" the Wolf Boss asked, still smiling smugly.

"Yes, I suppose you aren't used to many people applauding the sight of your mangy hide," Shen smirked.

"I don't think any of us are used to it…" But the Wolf Boss stopped when Shen glowered at him. "I-I mean, I'm sure you've heard a lot of it, sir."

"I have no need of you now. Go make sure those gorillas are taking proper care when they stash my precious cannons," Shen said, waving his wing dismissively. He shut himself in his chambers, changed into his sleeping robes and nestled into his bed, letting his aching body relax at last.

Something puzzled him though. At long last, he had found admiration in the eyes of the people around him, but why so suddenly? They hated him before. He hated to admit it, but the Wolf Boss was right. No one applauded any of them, ever. They hated his color; they hated his experiments; they hated his creations; they hated him…until there had been a convenient common enemy and one who didn't care about what color or species it destroyed. Then suddenly, he was "the hero of China?" What did these people want from him?

Shen remembered long ago when he had tried to open up to his future citizens, but they had shied away in fear of his ghostly complexion. He was an anomaly, and people feared anomalies, and people hated what they feared. Now, they had simply found something they feared—and thus hated—even more. How comforting.

Age-old bitterness crept up on him once more as he realized that despite successfully conquering half of China, despite earning the admiration of his citizens, Shen did not feel happy.

When he woke up the next morning, it took him a while to decide whether or not the previous day had been a dream. Certainly, it had felt real enough but the circumstances seemed too good to be true. He wandered to his war room, taking comfort at the sight of the battle plans that lay strewn across the long table. Here was where he felt at home.

Shen seated himself and spread out his maps and war reports. During his campaign, he had swept to the north, taking all of the eastern coast. He had been making his way inland when he caught word of the barbarian hoard migrating across the northern border.

Perhaps that was what had been making him unhappy. He hadn't finished conquering China. Yes, that had to be it. He couldn't be truly satisfied until he had accomplished his goal in its entirety. Unfortunately, after the intense battle, his forces had suffered many losses. Shen was no idiot; better to tie up loose ends and secure the fort before heading out again.

The Wolf Boss stalked into the room. "Mornin', Lord Shen. The cannons are all safely locked away. We lost quite a lot of them." He lowered his eyes. "We lost a lot of wolves too," he added quietly.

Shen nodded thoughtfully. "Yes, I was thinking we would take some time to rebuild here before continuing the campaign. I still have my sights on the remaining provinces…possibly the rest of the continent too."

"We won't be leaving any time soon will we? My men have been away from their families for a while. They need to rest. They're not like cannons, sir. I can't just pull more of them out of a molten pot when we start to run out," the Wolf Boss said carefully. As of late, he was growing increasingly tired of his lord's utter lack of concern for the safety of his pack. He'd take the heat for not bothering to tip-toe on eggshells around his master if it meant his men could take some well-deserved time off.

Surprisingly, Shen delivered no reprimand. "Yes, yes, whatever you like," he muttered distractedly. The Wolf Boss blinked dumbly, then padded away. Had Shen even listened to a word he said? Well, at least he had something he could hold the peacock to if he caught hell later on.

Shen had, in fact, been listening. That's right. I almost forgot. They have their own lives too, he thought vaguely. He wasn't sure why he was suddenly pondering such things when he had never given them a second thought in the past. Don't forget about those pandas either, a nasty little voice in the back of his head reminded him. That voice had whispered everything he never wanted to hear throughout his entire life. It liked to remind him that he was a coward, a failure, and always, always alone. And now it was trying to make him feel guilty about those pandas when he really shouldn't be. What he hated most about that voice was its tone of smugness, how it always sounded like it was right.

Po.

Po was beginning to get sick of being around water. He had left Gongmen City four days ago. The Soothsayer had set him up with a kind fisherman who had been willing to take his boat up the winding river into the Valley of Peace. It was a roundabout way to get there and their destination was still several days away. The Soothsayer insisted that Po go by boat. He would be less conspicuous, and she had dropped several hints about his poor endurance. The fisherman was a droopy-eyed goose who nodded vacantly at every one of Po's awkward attempts at making conversation. Soon, even the perseverant Po had to give up, and contented himself with listening to the sloshing of water that lapped at the side of the boat.

Maybe the Soothsayer is in on some plot to kill me by BOREDOM, Po's thoughts screamed. Steamed fish was great for the first few days, but at the moment, Po would have killed for his dad's noodles. His shoulders drooped as he thought of his dad and how happy he would be to see him…and how heartbroken when he realized Po would be going right back into the heart of danger again.

Occasionally, Po could see the silhouette of another boat heading downriver, materializing out of the mist. When they had been closer to Gongmen City, Po kept out of sight, staying in the cabin of the boat. He was glad to stretch his legs now that he was closer to home and amongst friends. Two days away from Dad's cooking, he thought with a smile.

They had just passed a shoddy canoe when Po heard a noise. It was soft and could have been a whisper from a passing wave, but something told him it was different. He sat up and looked around the boat, but nothing seemed out of the ordinary. Shrugging, he turned back around, and right before him stood Master Shifu.

"AHAAARRGGHHH!" Po flailed his arms and fell backward with a thud, rocking the boat. The goose hurried to investigate, but Shifu waved him away.

"Do not trouble yourself, sir," Po's master said quietly, his eyes never leaving the great black and white figure before him.

"Master Shifu? What are you doing here? You…you nearly scared the pants off me!" Po said, breathing heavily. "I mean, was that teleporting thing really necessary?"

"Po, it's really you. I-I wasn't sure if I was being deceived or not, but I'm quite certain now," Shifu said with a pained smile. "They said you were dead by Shen's hand."

"It'll take more than that to stop me," said Po with a grin, but his master didn't seem to appreciate it.

"It's a good thing we met," his master said gravely. "I have a guess as to why you've come back to the Valley, but you're in just as great danger here as you were back in the city. While you were away, Lord Shen sent a regiment of wolves and some sellswords to occupy the city. Obviously, he didn't feel safe enough leaving Gongmen unattended with the Five imprisoned there. The citizens of the Valley are under constant vigilance and oppression. They tried to apprehend me as well, but that's no easy feat."

"You mean…the Valley is-"

"Taken over," Shifu finished. "I've hidden away in the mountains in a place where the wolves would not think to look. I've gathered a small group of rebels but our numbers and resources are so limited that the best we can do is make hit-and-run assaults to give the villagers a bit of reprieve from those marauders."

"What about my dad?" Po asked quietly.

"He's in the Valley still, but my informers have said that he's faring as well as anyone." Master Shifu had pity in his eyes. "I'm sorry, Po. We have to be careful. Any misstep, and those wolves will starting hurting innocents. The entire Valley is held hostage. That was Shen's intent."

"Well he obviously didn't intend on me," Po said, slamming a fist into his hand. At that point, Po noticed that the covered canoe had come up alongside the boat, its oars fighting the current. The cover lifted and a somber rabbit appeared, glancing at Shifu.

"Grand Master, are we changing course?" he asked.

"Yes. I'll ask the good fisherman if he would let us hitch a ride. An engine would be most helpful to you, I think."

The old goose consented eagerly, and Po realized his silences must have come from an overwhelming exhaustion after dealing with wolves and gods knew what else for so long. The pace was even slower now that there was a second boat in tow, but Po found his spirits lifted by the company. Master Shifu helped guide the fisherman up the river and when they came to a fork, took one that led away from the docks in the Valley. Their path took them through thick underbrush, and they eventually had to stop and tie up the boats when the water became too shallow for the larger fishing boat to traverse.

"The way to the hideout isn't too far from here. Po, I have to warn you, there is a bit a climbing involved," Shifu said with a wry smile, though it faded quickly enough.

They arrived at the foot of the mountain, and Po felt his mouth open a little as he watched his master and the rabbit hop nimbly up the rocky path. He glanced at the goose who stared back balefully, then started to flutter clumsily after them. A bit of climbing? Knowing Master Shifu, the hideout is probably at the very top of the whole dang mountain! He coulda picked a nice cave or something. Why's it always climbing? Grudgingly, he began to pull himself up after them, glad of his kung fu training.

After several breaks and many complaints, they finally reached their destination. In the side of the mountain was a deep chasm, pooled with cold water that dripped from the ceiling. Moisture hung in the air, and Po could hear the thundering of a nearby waterfall.

"If it weren't for the waterfall, I'm sure the entire Valley would have been alerted to your presence," Shifu said, half in jest and half in reproach. "Perhaps even Lord Shen himself could hear your professed loathing of climbing all the way in Gongmen City."

The cave ran deep, and they all would have been blind, but for the oil lamps that had been placed along the walls. At the end of the descent was a giant cavern, fanged with stalactites and dotted with pools of water. Makeshift tents had been pitched throughout and fires flickered in front of them, filling the cavern with a pleasant warmth that warded away the dampness. Heads poked from the tents and soon the cave began to echo with cries of surprise, joy, and relief.

"The Dragon Warrior!" the walls seemed to shout, so great were the shouts of excitement. "He's back!"

Po smiled and greeted the people, glad that he could inspire such hope in eyes that, not a few moments earlier, seemed so dim with dejection. Master Shifu had to clear his throat and beckon him away from the throng to a large tent in the center of the cavern.

"I'm not sure if you know this," Shifu began as soon as they were in the privacy of the tent, "but Shen has returned from his campaign. To be honest, I expected him to be away for quite a bit longer than he has. It can't be that he conquered all of China in such a short time. Something must have happened that forced him back.

"This is problematic for my plans," he continued. "Using that river, we've been sending scouts to Gongmen City ever since I have been able to organize a cohesive resistance group. I had been hoping to gather enough information to free the Furious Five so they could first of all oust the occupation of the Valley and second, remove Shen from Gongmen City. His return complicates everything. It would have been far easier to do it while only his lackeys remained in control of the city. But now…" Master Shifu frowned in frustration. "If only I knew why he returned so soon."

"Well, the Soothsayer sent me here to find help, and I did what she said, even though I wanted to just go in and break my friends out right there and then. She said it was too dangerous though," Po said.

"Who is the Soothsayer?" Master Shifu asked, raising an eyebrow.

"She was a prisoner of Shen's, I think. It was kind of confusing because she was always in his presence instead of a dungeon, acting sort of like an advisor, but she saved my life when I was shot. She said something about fulfilling my destiny," Po said.

"Whoever she is, she's right about it being too dangerous to go barging into the city. Shen made his threats very clear when he captured them and took over the Valley. He wants me out of the picture," said Shifu. "If we are to rescue the Five though, we have to act soon. I think I'll send out another scouting group-"

Po stood up abruptly. "Enough scouting! My friends are in trouble, and…it's my fault they're there. I did what the Soothsayer said. I came for help. Now that I've found it, I'm going back."

Without a word, Master Shifu whipped out his staff with lightning speed and struck Po in the belly. The blow was not forceful, but pain rocketed through his body all the same, and he dropped to his knees, clutching his stomach.

"Arghh! What. Was. That for?" Po gasped.

"To make a point," Shifu said severely.

"What point?" Po shouted. He could feel his eyes glazing from the spasms of pain that were only slowly fading away.

"You're not ready to face Shen! The fact is, none of us are. We have to be fast, and above all things, careful. A good master knows his students, but it doesn't take a genius to know that despite your being the Dragon Warrior, you are profoundly lacking in patience. I don't know what you did that makes you convinced the Five's capture is your fault, but if you rush into a situation without thinking, you could put their lives in danger as well as anyone else involved in their rescue. You need more time to heal. I want you to stay put. Your place is in the Valley."

"No," Po said through clenched teeth. "I made this mess. I have to be the one to fix it. How will I know that these people aren't going to be any worse at keeping their heads? They haven't fought with Shen, talked to Shen. They haven't seen what his cannons can do-"

"They are more informed than you think. You have responsibilities as the Dragon Warrior and one of them is letting go of glory and putting trust in others!" Shifu argued, his voice rising slightly.

"This isn't about glory! You really think that's what it's about?" Po demanded. "It's about a deranged evil peacock who's got his claws on my friends. You're right. Their lives are in danger, and I need to put an end to it. I've got to finish what I started." He lowered his voice. "I always have. I don't think I could live it down if I didn't. Especially not this time."

Shifu's gaze softened as well. "Po, I understand how difficult this is for you, but imagine how I am feeling too. I thought I had lost you. I honestly did. Now you're back, and you're safe. Do you think I'd really want to send you off into the crosshairs of Shen's cannons again when you almost died because of it? If it makes you feel better, when we've organized the rescue plan, I will see it through myself. Just give me one more scouting run, and I promise you, I will bring them all back. But for once, just this once, Po, don't try to be a hero."

Po met his master's eyes and finally, with a heaving sigh, answered, "Just this once."