A Bad Idea


"Absolutely not!" Shifu declared.

"It would get us down the mountain in twice the time!" Po explained.

"No, no it would not," Shifu replied. "It's costly and it's unnecessary."

Po huffed as he stuffed a bean bun into his mouth and swallowed it whole. "Just think for a second-"

"Second up."

"Master Shifu."

The red panda rubbed his head as he stood up from the kitchen table. "Po, nothing you will say can convince me otherwise. Besides, do you understand how hard it would be to accomplish what you're asking of us?"

Po blinked and narrowed his eyes a bit in disbelief. "But asking us to move mountains, breathe water, and fly is all perfectly fine?"

"Those were exaggerations and hyperboles. You know it."

"Po, Master Shifu," Crane finally spoke up. "Don't you think this is a little... childish?"

"It is highly childish," Shifu rebuked.

"No, I mean... why are you upset about it?" Crane asked. Shifu glanced at his tall student with a raised eyebrow. Crane cleared his long skinny neck, "What I mean to say is to do what Po is suggesting is highly unethical and impossible."

"What? Why?!" Po exclaimed.

"It would require a large labor force and it could be dangerous for the valley. It could cause a lot of damage."

"How?"

"You're basically talking about a massive increase in property damage," Crane said.

Po rolled his eyes. "How? It wouldn't be any different during the wet season."

"Not only that," Crane mentioned, "But we don't even really use them."

"YOU don't use them," Po retorted. Crane squinted and rolled his eyes.

"My decision is final. We're not doing this," Shifu firmly said. The panda pouted and grumbled out of the room. "Now, what is this about ME being childish, Crane?"

"Why are you so upset about it, Master Shifu?"

"It's a ridiculous idea!"

"What's new?"

The red panda was speechless. Sure, Po's impish ideas would have most of them rolling their eyes or rubbing their heads, but that was who Po was. Besides, some... a few...

Shifu quickly noticed that most of the good ideas that Po came up with revolved around fighting or solving a life lesson so they were few and far between.

"I know Po's ideas are... out there," Crane replied. "But why is this so unusual?"

Shifu sighed, "You're right. I should be more patient with Po."

"I didn't say that," Crane chuckled, "I admit his idea is crazy. I'm just worried that you took it too personally."

Shifu smiled a bit.

Meanwhile, Po grumbled his way to the Training Hall where Tigress furiously rammed her fist through the forest of spinning wooden dummies. She backflipped out of the spinning death-trap and charged forward, smashing one of the breakable training equipment to pieces. A large piece hurled through the air and smacked Po right in the face. "OWW! Tigress!"

"I'm sorry, Po," Tigress bowed.

"Hmm, it's fine," The panda muttered, rubbing his sore head. Tigress stepped out of the Training Hall pit and walked near the door.

"What's the matter, Po? You seem upset."

"That's the understatement of the decade."

"Is something wrong?"

"Nothing, it's just... Master Shifu shot down a great idea I had for the Jade Palace that would make things move a lot faster around here." He told it to Tigress.

The tiger's peaceful sympathetic eyes changed to a deep dead unimpressed glare that got hidden with her hand when she went to rub the bridge of her nose.

"Po... just... why?" She asked.

"It would make things go a lot faster."

"No, it wouldn't. We can just jump."

"Hey, I don't want to develop pain in my knees because I jumped," Po argued.

Tigress shook her head. "And I'm imagining Master Shifu said no."

"He said it was a ridiculous idea! I mean, sure it's a little unusual."

"Actually, it's weird for you."

Po tilted his head sideways. "What do you mean?"

"Your problem is usually going up not down. I'm surprised you didn't want to make a massive lift."

"Uuuuuhhhhh," Po blinked. "Uhhhhhh."

"You haven't thought about that, have you?"

"It... didn't cross my mind?" Po said with a cheesy grin. Tigress crossed her arms and rolled her eyes. "But that doesn't mean my original idea was bad."

Tigress paused for a moment. She always had to when it came to Po's ideas. Otherwise, she would make the same angry impulse that her foster father had just made. Taking a breath, she looked at Po with a small smile. "It might help with sending cargo, but I don't think it would be... ideal for people."

"Why not?"

"Po, during the wet season, it would concentrate all the bad weather or any rocks that might come loose fall right down through the valley. The villagers, and your dad, would be snowed in if it were an avalanche."

"Wait, that never happens!" Po exclaimed.

"But it could happen with your idea. Think about it; there are no trees or any rocks in the way to block the snow. It could become dangerous," Tigress smirked a bit as she finished with, "Besides, how would you stop yourself once you were on it? Could you imagine if it were there when you were first chosen as Dragon Warrior?"

Po blinked again. The tiger could see the slow awakening of realization coming into his head like a dove settling onto a person's shoulder. "Yeaahhh, that would actually hurt. I'd just roll right through the village at top speed instead of stopping at the bottom."

Po gave a great sigh, sagging his shoulders to the bottom. "Yeah, okay, I guess my idea wasn't the best."

"Even so," said a voice behind them near the entrance of the door, "I shouldn't simply rebuke your ideas as harshly as I did. And for that, I apologize."

Po smiled at the red panda at the door and bowed along with Master Tigress. "Okay, okay, I get it. It is a bad idea."

"I'm glad that you came to that realization."

"Buuuuuttt," Po smiled widely as he threw his arm around Tigress's shoulders. "Tigress did mention that it might be good for cargo and sending boxes down."

"That was... I didn't-" Tigress spluttered.

Shifu sighed loudly, "Po, for the last time, we're not installing a slide down the Jade Palace steps."

"Okay, okay, fine," Po said, "But Tigress did come up with the idea of a catapult for uh... people with panda asthma."

Tigress glared, throwing off the panda's arm. "I said a lift. A lift!"

"Come on! Back me up here!"

"No!"

"Oh boy," Shifu groaned but smiled as he watched the two warriors bicker.

The End

A/N: It was an idea I had. Cute and a little funny to me. The idea was actually interesting, but you know.