Portion Control

Tigress took the final small bite of her stir-fried soy cubes. Po, quietly sitting next to her in the barracks' kitchen, watched as he popped another piece of food into his mouth. "Tigress, I want to ask you something."

"Is it another attempt to figure out my favorite color?" Tigress asked, opening one of her eyes to the side. Po waved his hands dismissively.

"Nah, I've given up on that... today."

"Hm."

"It's about your food intake."

"What about it?" Tigress had an edge in her voice that Po didn't pick up on.

"Why do you eat so little?"

"I'm not that hungry most of the time. Besides, most people don't have quite the appetite that you have."

Po rolled his eyes. "Duh, I know that. But I just don't get it. Why is it that other tigers eat a lot but you don't."

Tigress frowned as she set her empty plate down. "You're talking about the visiting warrior from last week, Bao Song?"

"Well, yeah," Po said. "I mean, I always thought that tigers didn't eat that much until he came. Then he started out eating me. I know all tigers are different but-"

"Actually, that's a common trait among tigers," Tigress interrupted. Po paused as the feline master stared solemnly at her plate. The kitchen only had two of them, but Po could suddenly feel a distance between them that wasn't there before he mentioned it.

"Tigress," Po sighed, rubbing the back of his head. "I didn't mean to-"

"It's okay, Po. It's just... there's a reason why I eat so little," She said. The silence lingered for a moment. She didn't say anything else, but the panda gently rested his hand on her shoulder.

"Is it okay if you tell me?" He warmly smiled. Tigress closed her eyes for a moment and mirrored the panda's smile.

"Tigers actually do have a large appetite, but we also are very good at surviving. We tend to be solitary people, so a village of tigers is actually quite rare. Unlike a village of pandas."

"Okay, so how does that relate to food?"

"A tiger will eat enough to outpace most pandas, but they're filling up for a possible upcoming fight. Outside of the Valley of Peace, it's actually quite common for people to make jokes about tigers eating them out of house and home."

The dots slowly joined in Po's mind. "So... are you saying that you don't eat that much because you don't want people to think you... eat too much?"

"I don't want another stereotype about me or my kind to define who I am," Tigress replied. "When I was little, Master Shifu mentioned that the Dragon Warrior could-"

"Yeah, yeah eat the dew off of a leaf or something, you told me about that," Po said. "So because you believed that, you actually tried doing it?"

Tigress sighed, "Yes, and the stereotype about tigers only made me want it more."

"Whoa. I mean, Wow. I just... I can't imagine stopping something so natural and necessary just because of how others see it."

Tigress smiled, "Some natural things need restraint, even without people's judgment. It's natural and sometimes necessary to be upset and angry, but definitely not like Tai Lung."

"Okay, I see what you mean. Can't have dessert without dinner," Po chuckled. Tigress smiled for a brief second. "But... doesn't it hurt you? I mean, you're basically starving yourself almost all the time."

"Not... all the time," Tigress smiled a hint. "And it's definitely changed with you around."

"What do you mean?"

"Who else wants me to taste test their concoctions?"

"You have the simplest and most sensitive palate I know!" Po said defensively. "And besides, you have more energy and work out longer because of it."

"That's true," Tigress grinned a bit. She sighed, "It doesn't mean that old habits aren't hard to get rid of."

"Yeah," Po sighed, lifting his belly and letting it jiggle. "Yeah, I know what that's like."

Tigress tilted her head. "What do you mean?"

"Huh?"

"You know what it's like. That's what you said."

"Yeah."

"What do you mean by that?"

"Ah, well. Umm," Po huffed and gave up. "When I first came to the Jade Palace, I wanted to be someone else. I thought that, even though Master Shifu didn't believe I was the Dragon Warrior, he could make me into someone else. Someone who wasn't me. Someone who could... you know. See his toes."

Tigress quietly gasped. "Po... I... we... I'm so sorry."

"I know, I know. I don't hold it against you," Po smiled sadly. "But it wasn't anything that I wasn't already telling myself. I figured that I could at least cut down on eating once I got to the Jade Palace. You know? Go on a diet."

"That backfired."

"Yep," Po laughed along with Tigress. "But I know the stereotype of pandas. They eat a lot and it's true. I've yet to see a panda that doesn't eat a lot."

"But that's not bad. That's just a part of who they are. A part of who you are," Tigress said. Po looked up from the table and smiled at her. "Thank you, Po."

"For what?"

"For talking about this. I've never talked about the false shame I felt about eating to anyone else."

"Yeah, I think we both have that in mind," Po sighed with a smile.

Then an idea came into Tigress's head. "Po? Have you ever overeaten?"

"Plenty of times."

"What usually happens?"

"Depends on what I eat. If it's starchy stuff like cake, noodles, or bread, I get sleepy."

"And if it's bean buns, soup, tofu, and soy cubes?" Tigress asked.

Po grimaced a bit as he scratched the back of his head. "Well, let's just say you don't want to be locked in the same room with me."

"Why?"

"The air gets a... little strong around me."

"You become flatulent?"

"I... yes," Po grumbled, embarrassed.

"Ahh, so that's the smell I'm smelling."

"Tigress!"

Tigress smiled as the panda's pout formed with his crossed arms. "If it makes you feel better, I don't mind the smell. It's much better than some others I've dealt with."

"Like who?"

"Never be around Monkey when he's eating his almond cookies," Tigress said strictly.

"Will do," Po smiled. He got up from his seat and walked over to the cupboard to get more food. He stopped for a moment and looked at the tiger. "Hey, Tigress? Would you like some more food?"

Tigress stared at Po. She didn't smile or frown for a while. Her face looked pensive and thoughtful.

She slowly smiled and said, "I would love some more, Po."

"Awesome!" Po exclaimed as the two ate some more.

The End

A/N: So question and poll. I've been wondering if the dialogue in my stories has either gotten too long, repetitive, or flat. Compared to my old stories, what do you think? Just wondering for future stories.