Kiss-Kiss

The next day, Po told everyone all about the tiger. "She was strong and very good at Kung Fu. I couldn't tell what she was going to do... or say next. But she's super strong! I think she's even stronger than Tigress," Po said.

"That's... not an easy feat," Shifu muttered to himself.

"But Tigress has gotten stronger over time," Viper pointed out.

"Yeah, but I've sparred with her," Po replied, "I can handle her strength... barely, but that tiger has a lot to spare. Plus... she's... kinda confusing."

"How is she-"

"We can talk about that later," Shifu interrupted Tigress's question. "I'm very worried about this feline being a tiger. The villagers might mistake her for Master Tigress."

"HA!" Po laughed, "Nuh-uh. Nooo way. There's no way on earth that the villagers could possibly think that this tiger is Tigress."

"How do you know?" asked Shifu.

"Well, Tigress is taller, slimmer. She doesn't wear beads down her back. She doesn't have tattoos on her arms. And most importantly, she doesn't smile like a sexy deranged cat trying to flirt with me."

The hall went quiet. Tigress slowly rose her eyebrow as she voiced the question that everyone was thinking. "And... this... tiger you fought does? What makes you think she's flirting with you?"

"I... uhh... just... she's very... uh... what's the word?"

"Flirtatious?" Crane guessed.

"Yes, yes! That's her!" Po exclaimed.

"Whatever the case," Shifu said, "We must be careful when this tiger comes next. What is her name?"

"I... don't know... she... wouldn't tell me."

"Were you distracted by her?" Tigress guessed.

"I said she wouldn't tell me, alright," Po snapped, crossing his arms. "I wasn't distracted," He muttered under his breath.

"We have to figure out more about this tiger. But be on high alert," Shifu said. "We don't know the intentions of this woman. She might be either a vigilante or a villain. The sooner we find out, the faster we'll know what to do with her."

"Yes, Master Shifu."

"Po," The red panda called as the others left the Hall of Heroes. "A moment of your time?"

"What is it, Master Shifu?"

Shifu stared into the jade marble floor, folding his hands behind his back as he paced back and forth for a moment. "I just... have some questions about this tiger. Why was she there at that particular tavern?"

"I don't know."

"Where did she head afterward?"

"I don't know."

"What kind of style did she fight with?"

"I don't know."

"Were there any clues in what she said?"

"I don't know!" Po exclaimed. "Master Shifu, all I know is that she's strong, what she looks like, and that she fought me. That's it!"

"Then you were-"

"I wasn't... distracted!" Po shot back. He took a deep breath. "She just wouldn't tell me."

"Hmm, this is very concerning," Shifu stroked his beard. He looked at the giant panda and braced on a masking smile. "Thank you, Dragon Warrior. That will be all."

Po gave a short bow and left. "This is weird," he muttered to himself. "A tiger that strong should have a record somewhere. She can't have just appeared out of thin air. Right? Ugh, she definitely hits like Tigress though," Po grumbled, rubbing his forearms. "Maybe even harder." Walking over to the barracks, he glided past the empty bedrooms as the old wood creaked under his feet. The others were probably doing something to figure out this new tiger's whereabouts.

All except one.

"Tigress?" Po found the tiger warrior in her room with scrolls littered over the floor. Po raised an eyebrow. The tiger's normally minimalist clean floor had scroll upon scroll clustered around her bed. "What are you doing? What is all of this?"

"These are Kung Fu scrolls. I'm learning new techniques."

"Why?"

"Improvement," Tigress answered. "If this tiger you fought is as strong as you say, then I have to make sure that I can meet the challenge."

"Hmm, I don't know if she's really that... bad."

"Are you saying that because of your instincts or your infatuation with her?"

"Ugh! I do not have a crush on her!" Po shouted. Tigress held her emotionless stare. "She's just... Besides, I'm not usually distracted by pretty women. She was just... very forward. Like you but just twice that."

Tigress raised her eyebrow. "That is different."

"Yeah, exactly! So I wasn't just... distracted by her looks."

"But you do find her beautiful?"

"I mean... yeah, but I find a lot of people pretty."

"Like me?"

"Yes like... I mean, no! I mean like friends yes, but I..." Po's face reddened like a cherry tomato as he stiffened up. "I'm gonna go eat!" The panda shot down the hall and out of the tiger's sight. Tigress blinked and stared silently at the door. She just smiled. Another one of Po's strange mannerisms. She shook her head as she continued reading the scrolls.

"Ugh, come on Po. What are you an idiot?!" The panda hissed to himself as he went into the kitchen. His feet stopped when he saw Crane moping on a chair, staring into a small bowl of soup. "Huh? Crane?"

"Oh! Hey, Po."

"What's up?"

"Nothing much," Crane sighed as the panda sat across from him. "Just... feeling a little lonely recently."

"Oh well, if you wanted to do some sparring or hang out at my dad's shop-"

"No, no, Po. I'm... lonely in a different way."

"Oh... OOooooohhh. I'm sorry, Crane," Po said. The crane sighed and sulkily stirred the soup. "What brought this on?"

"Nothing, I just... I kept thinking about what you said to me the other day. About my lady problem."

"Crane, I'm sorry. I-"

"No, no, you're right. I'm a mess with women. I just... I don't know how to get better at it," Crane sighed.

"Why don't you just talk with them? You can only get better if you practice."

"Yeah, and say what? 'Wonderful weather we're having'?"

"I mean it is a nice day."

"Po."

"Hey, you'd be surprised how much small talk can get you by. If you practice, you'll gain the confidence you need. Or just try your hand."

"Try my hand?" Crane quirked his eyebrow up. "What do you mean?"

"You know, just ask the girl you like out? I'm sure that a lot of people would love to date Master Crane."

The bird's head lowered. "But would they want to date just plain old Crane?"

"I'm sure you'll find someone, Crane. You can't give up."

Crane smiled though it didn't hold much hope. "Thanks Po."

A week went by and the tiger was nowhere to be seen. Viper, Crane, Mantis, Monkey, and Tigress couldn't find her in their groupings. And as Master Shifu and Po walked down the night streets for their patrol one night, Po started to wonder if she would ever come back. "Maybe we scared her off."

"I highly doubt that," Shifu replied grimly.

"Why? Maybe she got scared of the Dragon Warrior coming to put her in her place," Po smirked, flexing his muscles.

Shifu chuckled softly, "Didn't she quite literally back you into a wall?"

"Ahhhhh... no?"

"Why are you so worried about her?" Shifu asked.

"It's just... you know."

"I don't."

"What if we did scare her off?"

Shifu smirked, "You seem to have deep attachments for this tiger already."

"I do not. Have. A crush on her," Po said firmly and slowly.

"I didn't say that."

"You implied it."

"She did beat you with ease. I wonder if that's because you're not in the right frame of mind when you see her."

"Everyone beats me with ease!"

"That's...true," Shifu commented slowly, "Though not always."

"Look, I don't have a crush on her. She's just-"

"Help!"

Suddenly, a cry came from a street corner. Shifu and Po rushed to the scene through the midnight air. Two wolves held a goat by the collar with swords pointed at his midsection. The wolves turned around and immediately dropped the goat. Their faces turned to horror. "Please, don't hurt us!" They pled as the goat scurried away.

"Heh, giving up at the might of the Dragon Warrior?"

"What? No, not you," said the wolf. "I'm talking to her!" Po and Shifu turned back. A figure from the roof jumped into the air and slammed her bare feet straight into the wolves' chests. The wind from their lungs left them, and they lay in a crater of their defeat. The tiger stood on their chests, growling with her powerful back towards the two pandas.

"It's her!" Po exclaimed. The tiger took one nasty look over her shoulder and bolted down the street. "Stop!"

"Catch her, Po!" Po and Shifu ran after the tiger. She darted around a corner and down an alley before taking to the rooftops. Po rushed after her on the streets while Shifu went for the rooftops. The tiger shot over the roofs, jumping through the thick black smoke of chimneys just to confuse Master Shifu for a half-second before he saw her running down a backstreet. Po rolled out of one street corner, blocking her way out. Growling, the tiger turned back but saw Shifu at the rear. The two pandas managed to cut her off in the main street. The tiger growled at the red panda.

"Heeyy, remember me?" Po said with a goofy smile. The tiger glared at him. "I guess so."

"What do you want?"

"We-"

"I'm talking to the giant panda! Not you!" The tiger bellowed at Shifu with enough anger to raise the dead. "Now leave me alone!"

"We can't do that." Shifu darted towards her. Po expected it to be a long fight, but the tiger simply caught Shifu by the torso and slammed him into the ground hard enough that Po thought he heard bones cracking. "ARGH!"

"Ooohhh shoot! Shifu!" Po exclaimed.

"I'm! Sorry for that!" The tiger roared at the injured red panda. "You were in my way." She stepped over his body and started walking away.

"Master Shifu!" Po rushed to his side. He seemed okay. Just had the wind knocked out of him and a few bruises around his shoulder. Po's glare snapped to the tiger. "Why did you do that?!"

She slowly turned her head back. Her eyes glanced at the red panda. For a moment, Po could've sworn her red eyes looked panicked as she panted heavily. Slowly regaining her breath, she shrugged and snarled out of her lips. "I felt like it," she said. "And I have... daddy issues." The tiger ran down the street.

"Don't worry, Master Shifu. I'll come back and make sure you're okay," Po promised and raced after the tiger. "Stop!" The tiger jumped onto the rooftops with ease, but the panda quickly climbed over and followed. The two flew across the rooftops, with the panda's heavy feet slamming the tiled tops, slipping and recovering. The tiger jumped onto a narrow rooftop and rose her eyebrow as she glanced back.

"Your asthma seems to be gone," the tiger commented, leaping over a wide main street.

"Stop! Please!" Po gasped. He jumped to the ground and rolled to his knee. "I just want to talk!"

"Hmm," the tiger grumbled and stopped, looking back from her perch on the rooftop. She jumped down into a small pathway between the houses out of the line of the moon's light. Po ran in after her. He groped through the dark alleyway, but her red piercing eyes brightly shone in the dim light. She leaned on a wall with her arms crossed, slanting on one leg. "So... talk."

"Why did you hurt Shifu?" Po asked firmly. "He's done nothing to you."

"Not in this life," the tiger growled.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"You're the all powerful Dragon Warrior. Figure. It. Out," The tiger snarled. Gulping, Po stayed silent. The low panting and snarling of the tiger trickled around the dark alley.

He took a brave step forward. "Please, I... I don't know who you are or what you're trying to do, but... I don't think you're a bad person."

"Ha! Ha! Ha!" The tiger laughed mockingly, "You've only met me for two nights and you think you already know who I am? Please," She snarled. "You don't know anything about me or what I'm trying to do."

"I know, but... lashing out at your problems isn't gonna help you."

"Hmm," the tiger slowly walked up to the panda. She placed a hand on his chest, right over his heart. Po flinched but relaxed when her glistening smile showed through. It was warm. Much warmer than he thought it would be. "You've got a good heart. Too good for your own sake."

"It's gotten me this far."

"Hmm," She turned to leave, but Po quickly grabbed her hand.

"Wait, I never got your name."

The tiger grinned wide. "You can call me... Momoda."

"Momoda? Isn't that slang for kiss-kiss?"

The tiger suddenly grabbed Po's cheeks and kissed his lips. The panda's eyes shot open as wide as Dragon Warrior-sized dumplings. His eyes slowly fluttered shut as the tiger's possessive mouth roam his. Her sharp teeth threatened to bite him, but her whimpers caused her to giggle from the inside. Her alluring lips commanded the experience, and Po quickly succumb to the seduction. It was like a furnace and he melted very easily. She pulled away, grinning from ear to ear at Po's slack-jawed daze. "Yes, it does," She smiled, jumping to the rooftop. "Tell the red panda I am really sorry. I've been... dealing with a few... past pent-up aggressions," She growled slightly. "It's been a rough night."

"I... I will."

"And pull up your pants, Po. It's almost morning," Momoda winked and disappeared into the night. Po looked down. Somehow, the tiger had managed to pull off the string holding his pants up, freeing them from his waist.

"Dang it!" Po struggled with getting his pants back up as he walked out into the open street where he saw Master Shifu hobbling over to him. "Master Shifu! Are you okay?"

"I'm fine," The red panda grunted, rubbing his shoulder and arm. "I'm guessing she got away."

"Yeah," Po sighed, "But we do have a name. Momoda."

"Momoda?" Shifu repeated, staring for what seemed an hour. "Interesting." Then the red panda looked at Po. "Is there a reason why you're struggling with your pants?"

"No!"

Continued...