A Thing for Felines


"What's the difference?" He asked the feline. Mei-Ling looked up, pondering the question. She never thought she'd have to explain this to someone, but she guessed the panda never really ventured past the Valley of Peace.

"An Asian Mountain cat," Mei-Ling explained as she set her cup down. "Is much smaller than an Asian lion."

"Oh, so there's no Asian Mountain Lion or something like that?" Po asked.

"Not to my knowledge, no," Mei-Ling pondered out loud, ignoring the busy lunch traffic in Mr. Ping's shop. "The point is just because it has Asian in the name doesn't mean that it's the same thing. You don't make the mistake when you're talking about tigers," Mei-Ling pointed out.

Po rubbed the back of his head with a cheesy grin. "Yeaaahh but that's because if I don't get it right, Tigress will claw me."

Mei-Ling smiled, "I'm sure she wouldn't do that."

"I don't want to test it," Po muttered. "But I guess I see your point. Have you ever been around Asian lions before? Are they any different than African lions?"

Mei-Ling paused, shrugging, "African lions are more well-known. They're technically bigger with larger manes. Asian Lions are just smaller, but they are just as ferocious. Just hope that you don't meet one on a bad day."

"Hehe, with my luck I probably will," Po laughed, though he noticed the Mountain Cat wasn't. "Are they dangerous?"

"...no. Not usually. It's just... I know that African lions tend to be territorial."

"Isn't that every feline?" Po added. Mei-Ling's eyebrows furrowed sharply. "Hey! I'm just saying. I tried saying hi to a snow leopard and her boyfriend was on me faster than lightning. Come to think of it, Tigress does the same thing whenever I'm around girls. I wonder why?"

The feline rose her eyebrow. "Are you being serious or are you joking?"

Po cocked his head to the side. "Joking about what?"

Mei-Ling blinked once and shook her head. Telling him probably wasn't a good idea, and if Tigress was like that to the girls he was around, it was best to keep a distance. "Never mind," She finally said. "And yes, while felines tend to be territorial with their family or people, lions tend to be territorial with their land, people, objects, ideas, food, clothing, and even fur."

"Geez."

"And they're pretty much willing to defend it to the bone," Mei-Ling replied. "Or so I'm told."

"You're told?"

"I've never seen any lion before. I only know because of the traveling merchants."

"But you said-"

"I just told you what I know," Mei-Ling repeated as she stood up. "Either way, it was nice to talk to you, Master Po."

"Please, just Po," The panda chuckled. "Master Po is probably someone a little more put together than I am." The feline charmingly smiled and walked out of the shop. Po leaned his elbow on the wooden table, tapping his stubby finger on his chin. "Huh, Asian lions. Maybe there are some records about them in Jade Palace or something. Oh well, I guess I should-"

"Po! Po!"

"I'm over here dad," Po grumbled under his breath. So much for napping.

"Po! I need your help. My shipment of onions got delayed!"

Po blinked. He shook his head with a sigh. "And why do you need my help? Wait, how can I even help?"

"Because the delivery boy came in and said that they were attacked!"

Po's eyes narrowed. "For onions? Why?"

"I don't know. But go check with the delivery boy. He's at the healer," Mr. Ping said. Po shot up from his chair and ran to the healers' shop just in the middle of the village next to the mountain; its back wall pressed up against the mountain, right next to the Jade Palace steps. Po burst through the door.

"Po! Please be quiet," hissed the lady serpent tending to a couple of ducks' wounds.

"Sorry Mrs. Yun." On a row of mats laid six wounded people. They weren't severely hurt, but each clutched their stomachs, head, or arm, rolling in pain. Po walked up to the bronze-colored serpent as her tail deftly bandaged the wounds up. "They don't look like they're in that much pain. I mean, they're not bleeding or anything."

"Mostly bumps and bruises. Blunt force really," Mrs. Yun replied. "But I've never seen this happen to food carriers before. What happened?"

The duck groaned as he sat up. "We were taking a different route around Long Shang Mountain, on the west side through that creepy forest."

"Why?" Came a low commanding voice from the other corner of the room. Po jumped and spun around, only to see a familiar striped warrior.

"Tigress," The panda gripped his heart. "Don't scare me like that. How long have you been lurking in the shadows?"

"Since you came in," she replied, hardening her glare. "And I wasn't lurking. I was just waiting for you. I figured Mr. Ping would tell you sooner or later." She stepped towards the duck, setting her spine-chilling glare onto him. "Why did you go through the west route? That route is said to be populated with bandits."

"We thought," the duck groaned, "We thought they wouldn't attack us for onions."

"Never underestimate what a bandit will do," Tigress said firmly, though Po could tell she was a little worried.

The duck seemed to pick up on that as well since he wasn't shivering in his webbed feet. "It wasn't bandits," the duck grunted. "It was just one... thing. I've never seen a feline like it."

"A feline?" Tigress echoed. "You know it was a feline? What kind?"

"It... it was too fast, but that part of the forest was browning where we were attacked. She blended into the background."

"She?" Po and Tigress said. The duck nodded.

"We could tell by her shouts."

"But why would an Asian lion attack you?" Po asked. Tigress, Mrs. Yun, and the duck stared at him. "What?"

"How do you know what kind of feline it is? It could've been an Asian Mountain cat," Tigress pointed out.

"Oh no," The duck rebutted, "This definitely wasn't one of those. It was way too tall and big."

"And that's how I know," Po replied. "Master Mei-Ling and I were just talking about them. You probably stumbled into her territory."

"We'll investigate it further," Tigress said. "Something like this might cause problems for other traders."

"Plus, we've got to get those onions back," Po added. The tiger rose her eyebrow with an unimpressed gaze. "You know... for my uh... dad."

"Of course," Tigress muttered. Without another word, they raced out of the sick ward and towards Long Shang Mountain. Po ran at top speed with a wide grin on his face as he jumped over branches and ditches. "Why are you so excited?" Tigress asked.

"Because! This is the first time we're going to see an Asian Lion! Can you believe it!"

"Are they rare?"

"They're rarely seen."

"You do know that most of them are beyond the western border of China, right?" Tigress pointed out. Po stopped cold in his tracks as they stood at the foot of Long Shang Mountain.

"How do you know that?" He asked.

"I studied a lot about different species. They mentioned Asian Lions as well."

"Huh," was all Po could say. Ironically, what Tigress knew and what she didn't know always surprised him. Shaking his head again, Po looked towards the west side of the mountain near the browning patch of forest the delivery boys mentioned. Fall was coming, but the ruby and orange leaves started falling in a circular patch of dense clustered forest. Or at least that's what it looked like from the pathway. Just behind the wall of thick trees, wide-open space fanned out. It wasn't a bamboo forest, which tends to be clustered together. The trees and plants had enough room to grow and cover the sky with their leaves.

The two warriors stepped passed the wall of trees into that clear space. Crunchy leaves decorated the ground. With the mountain's rocky wall to their left, they circled the mountain, silently listening to the disturbing quiet. "It's quiet... too quiet. Hehe, I've always wanted to say that," Po chuckled.

Tigress rolled her eyes with a small hidden smirk.

Suddenly, something flung out of the trees and tackled the panda. "Po!" Tigress immediately jumped onto the attacker, throwing them off of him. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah, yeah, she just caught me off guard."

"Like normal?"

"Hey!"

"Grrrr." The growl alerted both of them. Before them stood a dark tan lion with straps of burlap clothes stretched across her body. Mismatched patches made the burlap look a lot like Po's pants. She held a bamboo stick, and by the way Po was holding his bruised head, she wasn't afraid to use it. Tigress helped Po up to his feet and blocked a swing from the lioness. Tigress quickly pushed the feline back. The lioness stumbled back and jumped back into the trees.

"Dang it, now where is she?" Po grumbled. "She's not gonna get me agaahhhhh! WHY ME!" Po got tackled again, but this time, he caught her bamboo stick and kicked her off of him. The lion's eyes widened. She was defenseless now, and Po held the bamboo stick behind his back. "HA! Now you have to face us hand to hand."

But the lioness looked more worried that Po was twirling the bamboo staff around like a play toy. "You know this thing is actually pretty OWW!" He shouted, whacking himself in the head. "Geez, really?"

"Don't break that!" Said the lioness. Po and Tigress looked at each other and then back at her. "That... that's a gift from my parents. Now give it back."

"Ah, ah," Po said, hiding the stick behind him. "First you've got to answer some questions."

"Po," The tiger muttered a warning.

"If we don't have to fight, why should we?" Po rallied back. "Besides, it looks like she's just trying to survive out here." Tigress stared at Po, gauging whether or not the advice was sound. It wasn't, but she slowly lowered her defenses. "Now, first of all, what is your name?"

"Sou, now give me my staff back."

"Hey, hey, I still have some questions first."

"I'm not in the mood for questions."

"Then you're not in the mood to get your staff back," Po grinned.

"Po, don't milk it," Tigress warned.

The lioness crossed her arms, growling softly, "Fine. What do you want?"

"I want to know why you attacked some guys delivering onions," Po said. Sou kept her glare on the panda as they began walking in a circle opposite each other.

"I was hungry. There's not much food here."

"Why not go into town to get food?" Po asked.

"No money."

"But you're not willing to steal from travelers?"

"I don't get along with people."

"Sounds like someone I know," Po mumbled under his breath. A growl from Tigress told him he had better watch it. "But that doesn't make sense. Where are your parents, your family, your-"

"I'm alone here!" Sou shouted. "My parents... are gone." Po scanned her again. She looked young, probably a year or two younger than Po. As they talked, her raging glare had become more of a defiant scowl. "Now, give me my staff."

"First, I need you to do something for me."

"ARGH! I don't have time for this!" She was about to lunge forward when Po held out her staff over his knee. "Don't! Please, that's the only thing I have left of my family." The defensive snarl all but left her voice. "Please don't break it."

"With the way you attacked those guys delivering the onions, I don't think this staff will last for long," Po said.

Groooowwwwllll

Tigress glanced at Po. "That wasn't me... for once." They looked at the Asian Lion who was blushing brighter than a tomato. "Well, you're definitely hungry, that much is sure."

"Yes, and I'd like to get back to my lunch."

"Of onions?"

"That's all I have. Not that you town folk would understand," Sou grunted.

Po grimaced and sighed. "No," Tigress quickly said to him.

"What?" The panda blurted out. "You didn't even know what I was going to say."

"You were going to suggest that we bring her back to let her have your dad's soup."

"Well... yeah."

"No," Tigress repeated.

"We have to get the onions back one way or another," Po replied.

"You're not taking my onions," Sou growled. The panda rolled his eyes.

"Geez, Mei-Ling wasn't kidding. You guys are territorial."

"Yes, and we don't like it when people touch our stuff, so if you could-" Po suddenly tossed the staff back to her, and she caught it in her hands. "Um... thanks."

"What about the onions?" Tigress asked.

Po sighed, "We'll just have to get the orphans something else. The batch will be delayed but-"

"Wait, what?" Sou spoke up.

"Oh you're still here? I thought you wanted to get back to your onions?" Po smirked.

"You...You said something about orphans."

"Yeah, the onions were going to be a part of my dad's noodle soup that he gives to the orphanage next to us, but since we can't use the onions...Oh! I'm sorry, your onions, we'll have to make the batch another time," Po sighed. "Anyway, goodbye Sou." The panda turned his back and started going back.

Even Tigress stood still, waiting for Po to tell her he was joking or something. But he kept walking on. Sou finally said, "Wait!" Slowly, Po turned around. Sou gradually approached. "I'm... I can give the onions back."

"I wouldn't want you to starve."

"I'll manage," Sou sighed. She jumped into the trees, disappearing into the leaves before returning three large crates of onions. "Here. Just... make sure the orphans get it."

"I will, but I won't take this."

"What?" Sou and Tigress exclaimed.

"I'll take it only under one condition." Then the panda's signature smile shone through. "You have to come with me and eat some of my dad's soup."

"What?! No! I don't like being around people!"

"Then I won't take it."

"I'm sure your girlfriend will," Sou said, pointing to Tigress.

"Ahh!" Po stammered. "She's not my girlfriend."

"Really?" Sou looked at him before looking at Tigress. Her head cocked to the side as she sniffed the air and then looked back at the panda with a befuddled face. "But why is her scent all over you."

"Huh?"

"The point is," Tigress hastily spoke up, "that Po and I will not accept the food unless you come with us. Besides, you owe an apology to the delivery people."

"They shouldn't have come into my territory," growled the lion.

"Still, it's not right to attack people over onions. You could've seriously hurt someone," Tigress said sternly. "And I'm sure your parents would have-"

"You don't get to talk about my parents to me!" Sou shouted, swinging the tip of her staff in front of Tigress's face. "You don't know what it is like to be me without your parents!"

"Hey, hey, easy," Po hushed, "We're all orphans here in one way or another. I'm sure Tigress didn't mean to-"

"Wait, Tigress? As in Master Tigress of the Jade Palace?" Sou asked. She dropped her staff and fell to the ground, kneeling. "I'm so so sorry for what I did. I didn't know you were Kung fu masters! I was just trying to find something to eat and-"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, it's okay," Po smiled, helping her up to her feet; he gave her the staff back from the ground. "Look, I'm Po, the Dragon Warrior, and this is Master Tigress." Sou was about to open her mouth, but the panda quickly stopped her. "Now before you start saying sorry, you can say sorry by helping us get these crates back and getting some soup, okay?"

"But... But I..." Her ears drooped. Besides being the same height as Tigress, she was admittedly bulkier than Tigress, though Po didn't know if she matched Tigress in strength. "I...don't like people."

"Why?" Tigress asked.

"Because... Everyone treated me like a monster after my parents died." Tigress's stern face quickly slipped away as the lioness lowered her gaze. Tigress looked over to Po, who could only offer a small smile. Tigress sighed and lifted the lioness's head up, smiling.

"Then you and I are more alike than you think." She looked at Po's widening grin and rolled her eyes. "Fine, we'll take her back to your father's shop."

"YES!"

"But you're in charge of her. I don't want her making a bigger mess of the village than you do."

"Hey!" Po exclaimed. Tigress smirked as Sou sniggered in secret.

The trek back was lively and joyful, mostly because Po supplied it. Sou didn't take long to explain her story. Her parents, being part of the military, were struck down in a battle, and when that battle happened to be right at their home, Sou grabbed the one thing that she had, the staff, and ran for it. Ever since, she's made Long Shang Mountain her home, rummaging trashes for food and clothes. Once they got back, Po had to admit that the order for the orphans' dish wasn't today, but a couple of weeks from now, which upset and angered Sou.

But it wasn't long until Mr. Ping gave her some water, food, clothes, and a job all on the same day once he knew she was an orphan, which Po was banking on.

It was a major adjustment, and Po and Tigress were with her the whole way as she made the switch from survival to civilian life. "I don't know if I can do this," Sou said plenty of times before.

"You can," Po smiled. "You've just got to believe you can. You'd be surprised what your mind can do. I mean, you managed to live in the forest for your life. Why not now?"

Her size and bulk did make it a challenge with clothing, but some help from Viper proved effective. And Tigress was more than willing to take her under her wing as her Kung Fu student. "I think you're spoiling her," Po mentioned one time as they sat at Mr. Ping's shop, watching happily Sou greet and welcome customers.

Tigress huffed, "I have no idea what you're talking about, Po."

"Rrrriiiiggght," Po smirked. He popped another dumpling into his mouth and rested back in his chair.

"Po? How do you do it?"

"Hm?"

"How do you do it? How do you have the ability to turn people around like this?" Tigress asked. Po thought for a moment with a mouth full of dumpling mush before swallowing and finally shrugging his shoulders.

"I just have a way with felines I guess," He said. Tigress graced a small smile.

"I have no doubt about that."

The end