"Xian's going to kill you when he sees you again, you know that right?" Crane said.
"It was for his own good." Shifu barked. "He has behaved recklessly in the past before."
"But back then he wasn't the emperor of China!" Mantis exclaimed. "Seriously, Master. You are pretty much screwed."
Ten minutes earlier, Mantis had had to stand at the very top of a five hundred foot tall building with nothing but a literal ball and chain to keep himself from being blown away, and explain himself to a puzzled Crane and a furious Xian. Mantis had been sent up by Shifu to make sure that Xian made it back down, after only five minutes of anxious waiting. While Crane had carried both the bug and the tiger down to the library balcony, as the ladder had broken, Xian spent the entire trip swearing under his breath. It had been Crane's idea to have him stay in the library while he and Mantis returned to Shifu to tell him what they had learned.
"Right now, I couldn't care less what Xian plans to do to me!" Shifu snapped. "What matters now is that the storm is about to hit and you're both standing in front of me babbling about an angry tiger!"
"So you wanted us to go warn Po and the others now?" Mantis asked.
"No, tomorrow, you idiot NOW! Get going!" Shifu shouted.
"Okay, okay!" Crane and Mantis took off down the corridor.
"Now?" Shifu whispered to himself.
Then again, it wasn't entirely their fault. Shifu had practically trained them to not do anything without permission from himself, back when they had first arrived at the Jade Palace one by one. More than once he had wondered if that had been wise, but then Po had come along, and as he gradually but indirectly helped the Five learn to think and do things for themselves again, Shifu's worried had faded like night fading into day.
Po… please don't do anything stupid while you're out there. Tigress, if he does, I want you to use your imagination. Viper, you better have wrapped warmly. Monkey, when we find you I swear I will make you wash Po's clothes for a month!
And then his final thought, the one that made him smile to himself as he started walking down the corridor towards the stairs that led back to the lower levels of the building.
When this is over, I think I'll give them the week off. God knows they deserve a break.
Tigress, you're the best student I have ever had. You'll get the others through this in one piece. Won't you?
Before he knew it, he had found himself in the kitchen. There was an itch in the back of his throat that made him realize he needed a drink. Di Tan was standing at the stove, evidently in the process of making tea. Seated at the table was Su with a cup of what looked like juice.
"Oh hey, Master Shifu!" Su said brightly. "How did it go with the spyglass?"
"You were right." He replied. He felt a warm feeling in his chest which he quickly realized was pride. "You were right about everything."
"Oh great!" Su said happily. "I was a little worried that the tower may have been a red herring, but great!"
"What are you two talking about?" Di Tan asked.
When Shifu explained, Di Tan dropped his spoon.
The red panda didn't bother waiting to see the rest of his reaction, instead moving to sit opposite Su.
"Where's Mr. Xian?" Su asked.
"He's in the library letting off some steam." Shifu replied.
"What did you do?"
"Xian went with Crane to the top of the tower, and I decided to send Mantis to make sure he got back down in one piece. According to him, Xian was not happy."
"Can you blame him?" Su asked. "He's in his early fifties and you keep treating him like a cub who never does what he's told."
"Well can you blame me?!" Shifu retorted. "When he was a boy, he was always the first to jump into a situation without thinking of the consequences-"
"Mr. Xian isn't a boy anymore." Su said.
"These days he has a very funny way of showing it."
Di Tan spun around. He was clutching the small wooden spoon like a club.
"That's not fair, Master Shifu." He said sternly.
Shifu merely sighed.
"You're right." He said. "I shouldn't have said that."
"Mr. Di Tan, could you pour Master Shifu a cup?" Su asked sweetly. "He looks tense."
"Alright." Di Tan was still glaring at the red panda as he served him and poured another cup. "I'm going to take this to Xian. Goodness knows he can do with a refreshment."
"See you later!" Su called as the goose left the kitchen.
Shifu put one elbow on the table, rested his head on his hand. Through the steam rising from the tea cup in front of him, he watched Su smile gently as she waved the goose goodbye.
After all she has experienced, she's still innocent… so full of love… just like Tigress before I froze her heart… just like Po…
In the middle of the ironwood forest that stood near the Jade Palace, Master Shifu followed the natural trail through the hardened trees. His ear twitched at the soft rustle of a dry leaf falling from its branch. His eyes blinked in the rays of sun that poured through the gaps in the tree tops. His legs stopped walking as he head the sound of huffing and panting behind him.
"He can't have exhausted himself already." The red panda muttered as he turned around.
His shoulders slumped in bemusement at the sight of the giant panda literally dancing on the spot. He was shaking his arms, rolling his shoulders, jumping on the ground like he was standing on coals.
"What are you doing?" Shifu asked.
"Warming up!" Po panted as he continued to dance. "You told me to do this every day since I pulled that hamstring while fighting that wooden warrior!"
"I said to stretch your limbs, not jump around like a moron!" Shifu retorted. "Stop what you're doing and let me show you how to warm up properly."
Po let his arms fall back to his sides. Shifu moved until he was standing right beside him.
"We'll start with an alternating split deadlift." Shifu said. "Do exactly as I do. Stand with your arms by your sides, a d then step forward with your left leg." He did what he said, and Po quickly but nervously followed suit. "Keep a slight bend between your knees… now lean over your forward leg and extend your arms down as far as you can while leaning from your hips and keeping your spine straight. Return to start and-"
When Shifu looked up, he saw that Po had barely put his left foot out in front of him, and was straining to reach around his belly towards his knee.
"Po, aren't you going to stretch?"
"I am." Po grunted. "But I can barely see my toes, let alone touch them."
Shifu sighed and straightened.
"Let's just march on the spot, then." He said.
"You mean march like a soldier but not actually march anywhere?" Po asked.
"Precisely. Do it for two minutes."
When Po finished marching two minutes later, Shifu noticed that he didn't start panting as he usually did.
"Hey, that actually wasn't bad!" Po said cheerfully. "Not as awesome as kung fu, but not bad! What else, Master Shifu?"
"That's enough warming up, we have other training to do."
"You mean my hero's chi, right?"
"Yes. We are going to have you do something other than reviving small fires, today."
"Awesome! What?"
In answer, Shifu took out a small knife and jammed it into the tree.
"Hey!" Po exclaimed. "What did the tree ever do to you?!"
Shifu ignored him, and pulled the knife out again. Almost at once sap began seeping from the wound.
"Heal the tree."
"What?"
"Imagine this tree is Tigress, or Monkey." Shifu said. "They have just been slashed in the torso by a bandit's sword, and there is no doctor to be found. What do you do in this situation?"
"I treat the wound myself, of course." Po replied. "That or get Viper to do it. She's better at that sort of stuff."
"Very good. Now use your hero's chi to heal this tree. Try to stop the bleeding at the very least."
"Er, how exactly do I do that, Master?" Po wrung his paws as he waited for Shifu's answer.
"I'm afraid I can't tell you that, Po." He said. "I myself do not have the power to heal, so I can't tell you how it's done. The best you can do it figure it out for yourself, just like you did with the fire."
"This is gonna take a while, isn't it?"
"Yes, but your inner peace should help you during your training."
"Cool." Po walked up to the tree. At first, he merely stared at the tree, uncertain as to what to do next.
"Why don't you put your paws on the wound?" Shifu suggested. "It may work better if you use physical contact."
"Okay." Po still looked unconfident as he placed his paws on the tree's cut and closed his eyes as he started concentrating.
"I'll sit and wait while you focus." Shifu said. "Inform me if there is any change."
Po didn't answer, his attention focused fully on the tree. Shifu sat down on the ground and began to meditate.
Half an hour later he heard Po groan in frustration and step away from the tree.
"Dang it!"
"What's wrong?"
"I can't do it! I try to summon the hero's chi but I can't!"
"Well you have very little left after you used up the chi the peach tree sapling gave you." Shifu replied. "It is possible that you would need to replenish your chi in larger quantities before you can achieve this kind of power."
"Hey, how come you know so much about how hero's chi works?" Po questioned.
"Because Oogway told me." Shifu replied. "He possessed the hero's chi himself, remember? He taught me all he knew about hero's chi in the event that I ended up having the keeper of the chi as my student."
"Hey, that's pretty awesome!"
"You say that about everything." Shifu said with a roll of his eyes. "We still have a couple of hours of sun left. Put your paws back on the tree and try again."
"Yes, Master."
The panda put his paws back on the tree with a clunk that seemed out of place in Shifu's memory. He returned to the present, where Su took another sip of her drink and then put the cup down on the table with another clunk. She looked at Shifu and then tilted her head.
"What are you thinking about?" She asked.
"A panda."
"A kung fu panda?"
"Yes." Shifu smiled softly at the girl's choice of words. "These past few months I've been training him to combine his chi with his inner peace to master techniques that normal kung fu wouldn't help him with."
"Cool. How's that going?"
"Very slowly. Not that Po's not doing well. This kind of training is very hard work, because there are no scrolls that can tell you how it's done. Most of the time Po has to try and figure it out for himself."
It was odd. Normally Shifu had trouble talking about these sorts of things to other people, but with Su it was no trouble at all.
"Oh well." Su sipped her juice. "At least Po's doing his best."
"Indeed." Shifu looked down at his tea, which had stopped steaming. He didn't sip.
"How are Crane and Mantis doing?" Su asked. Shifu knew she was referring to the minor injuries they had sustained in the Yeti's attack.
"They're fine." Shifu assured her. "In fact, they've just left to warn Tigress and the others about the storm."
"Oh good. Do you think they'll make it back before the storm hits?"
"No. They've been advised to seek shelter along with the others and make the return journey once the storm passes."
"And you've been acting mean because all you can do is wait and hope they're still okay by then?"
"Yes."
"Oh." Su emptied her cup and then got off the table to get the jug sitting on the bench. When she sat at the table again, she said; "You know, I've just realized something. You haven't given me a report on how I'm doing with my training."
"Oh." Shifu's eyes widened slightly. "I usually don't get asked for a report, but alright…" He pushed the teacup aside and crossed his arms on the table. "On the plus side, you always do exactly as you are told, and you take criticism well. You also have significant upper body strength and unusually fast reflexes. On the downside, you have yet to apply said reflexes in actual combat, though that won't be necessary for a few months yet. Also, you lack confidence, which can limit you severely when attempting new techniques. You also need to improve on using your lower body in combat. I would suggest studying the scrolls concerning flexibility."
"You're right, I need to work on my kicks." Su replied. "What else."
"That's it." He replied simply. "Other than that, you're a model student."
"Oh, thank you." Su blushed slightly at the praise. "Is it alright if I give you some advice?"
This Shifu did not expect.
"Alright…" He said hesitantly.
"Could you not be so hard on Mr. Xian all the time? I know he's the emperor, and you're worried that he'll get killed, but Mr. Xian's already really hurt."
"What do you mean?"
"When I was hiding in the cart, I overheard Po talk about what happened to Mr. Xian's family. That and what happened to all those soldiers must really be hurting him at the moment, and I don't think you treating him like a kid is really helping."
"I'm not treating him like a kid." Shifu replied sternly, though he couldn't help but think that Su had a point. "Xian's recklessness has cost him so much already and the last thing we need is for him to-"
"Eep!" Su suddenly squeaked, her eyes wide as dinner plates. She was staring at something over the red panda's shoulder.
Shifu turned round in his chair. His heart sank when he saw Xian standing in the doorway with a face like thunder. Di Tan stood at his side with a nervous expression.
"Xian." Shifu said. "Xian I didn't mean-"
"Bite me!" Xian turned round and left.
Di Tan's expression turned steely, and he lifted his spoon again.
"If you don't go after him and apologize, so help me I'll make you apologize in a much higher voice!"
He needn't have bothered, for Shifu had already got off the chair and was making his way out the kitchen.
"Xian!"
Shifu caught Xian as he was entering the master bedroom.
"Xian, I didn't-"
"No, I don't want to hear it!" Xian snapped. "You've made it quite clear that you think I'm just a foolish child who can't make the right decisions about a dozen times already!"
"Xian, I'm sorry!" Shifu said. "I was wrong to say that this was all your fault, it came out all wrong!"
"In case you've forgotten, you've made your share of bad decisions yourself!" Xian retorted. "And how many times has it come back to bite you in the ass, huh?!"
Shifu didn't answer. Both men glared at each other in silence for some time before either of them spoke again.
"Did you really think I would just send all those men out to the most isolated, most dangerous place in Asia without considering the possible consequences?" Xian growled. "Believe it or not, I was actually scared. I was terrified that I might end up sending those men, loyal soldiers who had families, to their deaths. But everyone, Tujiu, my advisors, kept going on and on about how great an opportunity this was, how if I didn't act now another country would beat us to it, and a lot of other self-centered crap! They even brought up my family's death to try and get me to agree to it!"
Shifu's ears flattened against his head. He had known that Xian had had reservations about sending men to the Himalayas, but he had never imagined that he had actually been pressured into it.
"Why didn't you just say no?" He asked quietly.
"I tried, but in the end, those sleazy idiots wouldn't take no for an answer!" Xian replied angrily. "And ever since then, I've been stuck between wanting to set things right and trying to avoid making things worse! But when I try to act on behalf of my people, you immediately push me to the side and let everyone else do the dirty work! I'm okay with you blaming me for this, I know damn well that all this would never have happened if I hadn't authorized the expedition in the first place, but I do take issue with you refusing to trust me to make the right decisions!" By now Xian was shouting. "AND TO TOP IT ALL OFF THE BIRD WHO LET MY FAMILY DIE AND TRIED TO PUT IT ON ME HAS PROBABLY ESCAPED PUNISHMENT AGAIN AND THERE'S NOT A FRICKING DAMN THING I CAN DO ABOUT IT!"
The bedroom fell silent upon Xian's last outburst. The tiger seemed to freeze, as if he couldn't believe what he had just revealed, before he collapsed into a chair.
It was a while before the utterly stunned Master Shifu could speak again.
"Xian…" He spoke softly. "What are you talking about?"
"You really don't know?" Xian asked after a few moments. "Wait, of course you wouldn't. You were on the other side of the country when it happened."
"You don't need to tell me if you don't feel you can." Shifu said.
"No, I need to get it off my chest." Xian said. He wasn't looking at Shifu, instead staring down at the locket he had just pulled out from under his vest. "You already know about the fire. The attempted coup that went bad. How my father, my wife and my son all died while I lived."
Shifu nodded.
"Well, at the time, Tujiu had also been present in the palace. There had been rumors of a plot against my family for some time, and it was his job to protect us."
"And you blame him for their deaths?"
"Partly. But that's not it. You see, Tujiu had left a small gap in the defenses. A very small gap, but it was enough for the enemy to infiltrate the palace and start the battle that caused the fire that nearly consumed the imperial city." Xian closed his eyes, clearly reliving the memory of that terrible night. "My father had been killed in the first attack. My wife, Yujin, died in the fire, along with my kid."
"When you first arrived at the palace…" Shifu paused. "You said that Tigress resembled someone. I'm guessing that you meant-"
"Yujin. But of course, males and females of the same species tend to all look the same. If you had looked at the pigs and geese of the Valley of Peace you'd know that I'm right. But after the death of my family I hadn't encountered another female tiger in some years, so when I saw your student I was a little taken aback. And let's just say it brought back some bad memories."
"I see." Shifu said. "You know Tigress never intended to reopen your old wounds."
"I know that." Xian replied a little irritably. "It's just…" He looked like he was about to start crying.
"Why don't you go back to talking about Tujiu?" Shifu urged.
"Tujiu…" Xian snarled suddenly. "That coward knew he was in big trouble the moment my father's body was pulled from what was left of the palace. He had been put in charge of protecting the royal family, and he had screwed up. Everyone was starting to blame him for the tragedy. So that slimeball tried to put the blame on someone else."
Shifu stiffened.
"You mean he-"
"He accused me of organizing the coup to take my own father's throne!"
Shifu swore under his breath.
"There was a massive investigation for the next few weeks, kept secret from the public to protect my reputation. Instead of grieving for my family like I should have been doing, I spent every waking day professing my innocence. The investigation even forced us to cancel my family's funeral!" Xian's paws were now fists. "In the end I was proven innocent of the accusation, and there was nothing else Tujiu could do but shut the hell up."
"If he screwed up and then tried to blame you for it, why didn't you strip him of his rank?" Shifu replied. "That would have been a fitting punishment."
"Because that would probably make me look bad in the eyes of some people." Xian replied. "I had just been accused of betraying my own father, remember? Someone might think I was trying to get rid of him to cover myself. So I let him keep his position, though with a little less honor than he had four weeks ago. But I never forgot." Xian stood up from his chair and tucked the locket back under his vest. "And I will never forgive."
"Well he's not going to sleaze his way out of this mess." Shifu replied coldly, feeling the stirrings of true hatred in his gut. "Too many people have died for us to let him get off. When we find him-"
"I'm going to kill him." Xian snarled.
"I was going to say lock him up and throw away the key, but you're technically the boss." Shifu said. Xian actually smirked. "What about you and me? Am I forgiven?"
"Sure." Xian replied sincerely. "You know, I heard Su stick up for me earlier. I wonder why she's so nice to me? Kids her age are usually more self centered."
'Like you when you were seven years old?" Shifu replied with a smirk of his own. "Anyway, she's nice to everyone. In your case, maybe it's because she likes you."
"Likes me?" Xian raised an eyebrow. "Isn't she a bit young for-"
"I meant as a person!" Shifu exclaimed, his face reddened with both anger and embarrassment. "God, what is wrong with you…"