A/N: It's finally here! After months and months of planning, writing, re-writing, and editing I finally have a good start to my third chapter fic. Now, it's been a looooonng time since I've updated, and knowing my hectic life updates won't be very routine, but I'm proud to finally have written something worth reading. As for my other stories, they are on a hiatus until further notice. I have little to no inspiration for anything- prompts, chapters...so instead of forcing something awful, I've decided to just pause things for a while.

But, you don't care about my other stories, you want to hear about this one! As strange as it may seem, there is a method to my madness, so just hang in there! The first chapter is always rough but I think it's going to be worth it...

Chapter 1: Hold On (To What You Believe In)

Dear Liao Shifu,

I realize that it has been nearly nine months since you last heard from me, and I just wanted to tell you that I'm sincerely and utterly sorry. I definitely didn't want it to be so long, but the battle we've waged with Musibata Khan is a bit deeper then we originally thought—Rong and Lian have wanted to give up a grand total of forty-seven times—and I need almost all my time to put towards finding us a way out of this godsforsaken country alive. I feel as if I've actually strained a brain muscle or something of the sort from planning and plotting all the time.

If only I had you around; your ideas were so stupid, they often worked.

However, I know you have kids to tend to and a life to live, so I won't request your help. In fact, I don't think I'll need it. Five years has really paid off—Musibata is getting old(er) and not at all sharper. He's losing his touch. I may…well, we may have beaten him. Which serves the old fart right. I've saved a country before with friends as my only weapons and I'm not afraid to do it again! Those who choose to cross paths with me are simply asking to me defeated in the most painful way possible!

I'm going to go ahead and take a guess that you just kissed this parchment. I wouldn't blame you, my words tend to have that effect on people—men especially. I'm a real man-killer in this country, actually. Apparently women who can break every bone in their body screams 'attractive' to them, the poor shmucks.

But I digress.

The point of this later was to tell you good news, not about the loveless Indian men. Guan Yu sent word that part of Musibata's army was captured within the walls. They've been interrogated and detained, in case you haven't heard, and Guan Yu was able to find so very helpful information from them. He told me everything he could, and Lian has a rather brilliant plan that ought to bring the old man's army to its knees. We should be returning to China within the year; if things go well, by the start of autumn. It will always amaze me how an ugly lion like him could ever be at the top of the Indian food-chain, but alas, this mission isn't for me to understand the (wrongness of the) caste system. I just need to end the fight and make sure Lian gets out alive—the Emperor's sister is pretty important, don't you know.

Speaking of, both she and Rong give their best regards, to the kids and Master Oogway as well. Rong has high hopes of meeting your beautiful wife when we return, and I made sure he knew your standards are too high for every woman in the country—and your father's are even higher. He made a point of not listening to me.

The kind girl whose family has been hiding us sends her regards too. I hope you'll meet Aayushi one day, I just know you'd love her like your own sister. She's only twenty-eight, a pretty little blossom, and is by far the most down to earth person I've ever had the pleasure of meeting (you excluded).

Please tell Master Oogway that his (favorite) pupil cannot wait to see him again. I've truly missed him-and you as well.

Stay strong, my friend. Best wishes,

Phan Meng

The letter came in the dead of night.

According to Zeng, the messenger goose, it was of the utmost importance that Shifu read it at three in the morning. A word from Phan, of all people, meant more than his sleep, as it were.

Not that he minded. Hearing from Phan was like seeing a blue moon—rare and somewhat unbelievable. Her letters, while incredibly immature, gave him a sense of hope that he'd be reunited with his friends again one day. And if the most recent letter was accurate, then one day soon.

Shifu lay awake for a long while after re-reading the letter for the fifth time. He was excited, yet worried; what if things didn't go according to plan, and this was simply a false cry? He wouldn't see Phan, or Rong, or Lian—Her Highness, technically—for another half decade…and he wasn't sure if he could handle that.

Then of course he had to think of Phan's ignorance. If she were to visit him again he'd have to explain where his so—Tai Lung was. Shifu's stomach clenched at the mere thought. At that moment, there was nothing he wanted more then to discuss the issue with his master, but Master Oogway had left for a journey two nights ago.

With the whirlpool of thoughts somewhat tamed, Shifu lay on his cot and stared at the ceiling until he fell into sweet unconsciousness.

When the sun kissed the skies for the first time the next morning, a striped feline was already awake. Her sharp ears had heard the distinct flapping of the messenger late in the night, and she'd stayed awake for nearly an hour wondering why he had come. Well, to deliver a message of course, but the content of the message was what piqued her curiosity.

At some point, she remembered the wise (but kind of creepy) advice Master Oogway always gave her: "Curiosity kills the cat." Being a cat herself, she heeded those words carefully and pushed the thoughts down deep in her mind so she could sleep. They resurfaced only a few hours later and stirred her awake again; she had been lying awake ever since. Despite knowing sleep was important, she couldn't put the thoughts off long enough to stay asleep.

To make a long story short, Tigress found herself in a bit of a dilemma.

She was the first student in the Jade Palace awake; the first to salute Master Shifu good morning, and consequentially, told to make breakfast for everyone.

Not that Tigress hated making breakfast…but…actually, she did hate making breakfast.

Alas, she was a very good student, and wished to hold the record more then she wished to go back to sleep. She bowed in respect to Master Shifu (who seemed somewhat pleasant this morning, though she couldn't tell why) and said, "I will make breakfast," like a good little kung fu pupil who skipped rather then trudged to the kitchen.

Ten minutes later, the young tiger had a slightly lumpy batch of congee ready to be eaten. As her peers shuffled sleepily from their rooms to the kitchen, she greeted them with a curt nod and a bowl of the porridge thrust into their hands (except for Viper, whose bowl already rested on the table).

They all sat to eat in silence. Tigress had observed that breakfast was their quietest meal of the day, though she hadn't decided on why. Either because they were all still rubbing sleep from their eyes, or because it was simply more enjoyable when it was quiet was up for debate with her. The irritating thing though was that she couldn't simply ask for another opinion. There were certain things Tigress talked about with the other students—and subjects like their quietest meal would just earn her raised eyebrows and quirky looks. She received them often from her peers and didn't want to do anything to receive even more then normal.

Tigress wasn't aware how deeply lost in thought she'd been until she was blinking into her congee.

Spurting and stuttering, she quickly pulled out of the warm meal and frantically wiped at her face, trying not to spray the porridge around her. Viper offered her a napkin that she gladly accepted while Monkey snickered behind his hand and Mantis looked as if he were about to fall inside his meal as well.

"Are you okay?" Viper asked in a motherly manner as Tigress sopped up the last bits of congee from her eyebrows. Even though she was only a year older then Tigress, Viper acted as if she was her mother. Or, Tigress assumed that was how mothers acted; she'd never had one to compare.

"Yes, yes I'm fine," Tigress said distractedly. "I'll take your bowl to the sink, if you're done eating?"

Viper nodded her consent and Tigress balanced the two bowls in her thick paws on her way to the sink. While she rinsed them out, she had the vague suspicion that the other three were talking about her, and that made her feel more embarrassed then anything else.

Knowing the boys, Monkey was probably making fun of her and Mantis was laughing along. Even though he was the oldest, Mantis acted like he didn't have eighteen years of experience in life. At heart he was still five, and showed it whenever he got the chance. Monkey wasn't any better at sixteen; he made awful jokes, pulled irresponsible pranks, and generally pestered Tigress to the point where she wanted to pop.

On more then one occasion, she'd expressed herself to Master Oogway. He had said, "Boys will be boys," and she couldn't agree more. She felt a small pang in her heart; she already missed the elderly master's wise words, and he had only departed for his journey to the Forbidden City two days ago.

"Hey Tigress," the feline heard, pulling her once again into reality, "do you know what today's schedule is?"

Tigress turned the bowls over to dry and shrugged. "Nope. We may have a follow up of yesterday's lesson…"

Monkey snorted, and Tigress felt her fist clench. "Another lesson on breathing? I'm not sure if Master Shifu realized that we've been breathing since we were born."

Always ready to defend her master, Tigress countered, "He wasn't teaching us to just breathe. It's a special technique that helps us save our breath so we can use our energy for more important things."

"Sounds like a breathing lesson to me." Monkey rolled his eyes. He stood and stretched; apparently sleep still clung tightly to him. "Maybe we'll do something fun today."

"If we're lucky," Mantis mumbled.

"Which we're not," Viper added.

"I thought it was a good lesson," Tigress opined defensively. She glanced at Monkey, already expecting him to argue.

The simian yawned widely. "Yeah, well," he shrugged, "you'd think tofu was interesting if Master Shifu taught us about it."

"Instead of aggravating me, why don't you go wash your bowl?" Tigress replied, glaring at Monkey as he walked away from his dirty dish. He waved her off.

"I'll do that later. Let's get to the Training Hall!" His tone was as excited as ever. That was Monkey, always willing to let someone else to his dirty work while he ran off and enjoyed himself.

"You're not going anywhere until that bowl gets washed," Tigress snapped. "Viper and I are going to start stretching while we wait for you two."

Tigress ignored any argument as she led Viper out of the kitchen and towards the Training Hall. "Ugh," the snake groaned, "I hope Master Shifu doesn't have me working with the Fiery Fields of Death again. I've smelled like smoke for the past week."

"He only has good intentions," Tigress said automatically. She'd picked up the quote after hearing Master Oogway say it a thousand times.

Viper sighed, looking a bit weary of the Training Hall as they neared it. "I'm aware," she admitted, "but that doesn't I'm going to start liking smelling like a chimney all the time."

"Maybe if you looked at things from a different angle…" Tigress offered weakly.

"Okay, in that case I smell like charcoal, which is hardly better."

Glancing at her serpentine friend exasperatedly, Tigress sighed under her breath and started the descent down the stairs towards their destination. "Well, at least you still get a better bargain then Monkey. Master Shifu has made him skip dinner twice because he can't perfect his forms."

Viper made a small sound in the back of her throat. "That's awful no matter how you look at it," she whispered, not wanting to be heard. "I know Master is really thinking about the greater good, but how is forcing someone to sleep without a meal going to help anything?"

"It's a punishment," Tigress explained coolly. "And Monkey deserves it. He's nothing but disrespectful and irresponsible—only cold, hard discipline can tame that." Everything in her demeanor said she believed it whole-heartedly.

Although she wasn't sure, Tigress thought she heard Viper say something about "being just like him" under her breath. Not wanting to dwell on it, she flung open the doors of the Training Hall and strode inside.

The area was large and wooden with various contraptions and machines strewn about to help them excel in kung fu. When Tigress had first come to the Palace, she had nearly broken her neck trying to look at everything—from the ropes that swung from the ceiling to the large tortoise shell she often used to achieve maximum balance. As time went on the tiger grew used to the equipment and had even begun to loathe it.

Far towards the right of the room were benches that she and Viper headed towards; they wanted to get stretching out of the way as soon as possible. Tigress sat heavily on the bench, brow furrowed, and stayed in the silence long enough for it to become uncomfortable. With a raised eyebrow Viper broke the stillness by asking if anything was wrong.

Tigress brightened instantly, if it was a forced reaction. "Nothing!" she blurted, rubbing her elbow distractedly, "I'm just thinking about something, but it doesn't really matter so please don't worry about me." Face devoid of emotion, she clapped her hands together. "We should, uh, get started on stretching. Or meditate; whichever you'd rather do."

Viper frowned. "Tigress, are you sure everything's okay – "

"Fine." Tigress cleared her throat. "I mean, everything is fine. I'm going to meditate. Feel free to join me if you wish." With that, she promptly sat on the ground and cross her legs in the lotus position. Her fingers curled around her kneecaps; her eyes shut tightly. She heard Viper sigh then slowly curl up beside her.

Tigress, unlike the other, more restless students, found meditation to be relaxing. Sure it was hard to stay focused, but if she managed that then she could get lost in the realms of her own mind. She had reached many important conclusions while meditating. Now, as hard as she tried to shy away from the subject, her mind was concentrating on the other students – Monkey in particular.

As "fun" as Monkey was to have around, and she used the word lightly, he was really beginning to bother her. Whether it was whining about Shifu, or grumbling about training—he always had something awful to say or do. Tigress wasn't sure if calling him out on this would be the best solution or not, so she gave feeble attempts at stopping him. They never worked. Maybe it was time to try something more forceful…

No. Stop. Forceful is bad; forceful scares people away, Tigress thought before she could stop herself. Vivid memories of a very awful place she had lived once popped up in her mind. She tried to ignore them, but it was very hard; the memories took over her mind. Forceful breaks things. Everything. Her concentration was slipping, she could feel it…

"Tigress?"

With a loud gasp for air, the tiger was pulled from her thoughts. She hadn't even realized she was holding her breath until she was left grasping for oxygen like a fish out of water. Viper's concerned eyes were staring right at her, through her almost. Still grasping for air, Tigress broke the gaze and waved away her worry. "Sorry. I was in deep thought…"

"I could tell," Mantis said from atop Viper's head; Tigress hadn't even noticed when he showed up. "We've been calling your name for five minutes straight."

Forceful breaks people.

"Sorry," Tigress repeated, voice strained as she tried to force her thoughts aside. "I will do my best to pay closer attention to all of you." She stood and bowed respectfully to each one of them.

Monkey looked a bit put off by her formality. "You don't have to bow to us. S'not like we're masters or anything."

"I'm aware," Tigress noted, "I simply wish to show you the full extent of my apology."

She received perplexed stares. Before anyone could utter a word, a loud tapping caught their attention. Master Shifu stood at the front of the room, tapping his cane repeatedly on the ground. "Students," he beckoned, and Tigress mentally thanked him for the distraction.

She was the first one to reach him, already stooped low in a bow. "Yes, master?" she asked in unison with the others.

He looked at her briefly; Tigress' stomach twisted in knots. What was he thinking? Knowing him, it would probably be condescending, like new ways to humiliate her in front of the others. As ridiculous as it sounded, Tigress was sure that was a favorite pass time of his. "Before we continue training today, we will cover your studies. I assume you've finished your readings on the masters?"

Tigress nodded eagerly, and observed as her peers shuffled anxiously. "We are…not entirely done yet," Viper admitted sheepishly.

Master Shifu scowled. "I said you must have them read by today," he said harshly. The grip he had on his cane tightened slightly. "Since it seems only Tigress paid my request any mind, she will have to explain things to you. Tigress." He looked at her; a chill went down her spine. "Tell me, who founded the Lee Da Academy?"

"Master Qin Rong," she answered immediately. The information found its way to her tongue without her even thinking about it.

"Good. Now name all the masters who have ever wielded the Sword of Heroes in battle."

"There are three; Master Oogway was the first, Master Chong Gun the second, and," she faltered for a moment, "and Master Tai Lung the third."

Tigress expected to be punished for saying the name aloud, but Master Shifu nodded his approval. "Good." He was in a really pleasant mood today; whatever Zeng had told him in the night must've been excellent news. "But you are missing one."

Tigress' breath caught in her throat. "I…I was not aware, Master. The scrolls never mentioned a fourth…"

"Unsurprisingly," Master Shifu dismissed. "I was the fourth, and since the scrolls have failed to teach you, the job is passed on to me. I used to the Sword in the Battle of Gongmen City. Do you know who fought alongside me?"

Tigress closed her eyes. "Master Wan Rong lead the battle, while Master Qin Ruon Li, Phan Meng, and – "

"Good, child. What do you know of Master Phan Meng?"

"Um. I…she was a pupil of Master Oogway who trained in the ancient style of Clever Fox, and liberated China from the rule of Lord Shing Wong…"

"And?"

There it was, in his voice. That expecting tone- waiting for her to do something to make him proud. Tigress definitely wanted to make him proud; wanted it more then anything.

"I…" Tigress hung her head, ashamed. "I do not know, Master."

"Oh." There was slight disappointment in his voice. She had failed him. Again. "That's quite alright, Tigress." He patted her head somewhat affectionately. "Keep your chin up. You've done well."

Tigress raised her head, befuddled. "O-okay…" After sneaking a quick glance to her friends, she noticed they were as confused as she was. The young feline hastily shoved a fist into her open palm. "I mean, yes Master."

"Since I've overestimated the knowledge in the scrolls, I suppose we'll have a small history lesson before we begin." Master Shifu cleared his throat and began, "As Tigress said, Master Phan Meng was one of many to help liberate China from Lord Shing Wong. What the scrolls do not say is that she also was requested to solve an issue involving Musibata Khan and his cruel wrongdoings." He glanced briefly at their blank stares, sighed, and explained, "Musibata Khan is a corrupt military leader that has turned his army on the innocent if they don't do as he says. He has a particular hatred for Shudras and Untouchables. He's killed a large portion of the Indian population, and now that people see how awful he truly is, it is too late for them to bring him out of power. Some scholars requested China's best strategists and warriors to help bring Musibata Khan down."

Monkey blinked dumbly; Mantis bit his lip in deep thought; Viper furrowed her brow, and it seemed only Tigress knew what Master Shifu was talking about.

Their master ignored this and plowed on. "Phan Meng has been in India, along with Qin Rong and Xian Lian for a total of five years." He took a deep breath and smiled lightly. "And it seems that she should be returning soon."

"So that means she beat Musibata Khan?" Viper guessed.

"Not yet, but she is very close to doing so. The reason I've told you all this is because I've recently received a letter from her; if she is to be victorious over the khan, she will bring a very good name to China, while adding to history in the process," their master told them with a strangely proud twinkle in his eye. "And, if you were not aware, Masters Phan Meng and Qin Rong used to protect the village, much like you all will one day."

At his words, Tigress felt her stomach twist itself into knots. She knew that one day all them—Viper, Mantis, Monkey, and herself—would be part of an elite kung fu group known as 'The Furious Five'; their job would be to protect the Valley of Peace from dangers of all kinds. The very thought was exhilarating—one day she would be a master of the Tiger Style. Master Shifu wouldn't need to correct her stance ever again. In fact, if she was really lucky, she would even have students of her own to teach!

However, Tigress quickly pulled away from her thoughts, before Master realized she wasn't paying attention to him and punished her for it. As it were, he seemed far too happy with himself to notice she had drifted off. "Ah, well, I suppose that is enough for today," Master Shifu said lightly with a small wave of his hand. "As long as you three-" he pointed at Viper, Mantis, and Monkey- "make sure to have your scrolls read by the end of the week, there will be know harm done." Then, really shocking the kids, he smiled at them.

Tigress tried to describe the varying levels of shock on a scale of one to ten. Viper looked only mildly surprised, which placed her at about four. Monkey and Mantis on the other hand had mirroring expressions of terror that blew the roof off of Tigress' scale.

Despite the obvious display of emotions, Master Shifu said nothing. "We shall began with our schedule for today. Firstly, we have Tai Chi," he said, hands behind his back as he awaited the students to line themselves up. "Assume the starting position. Make sure you stay together."

Twenty minutes later, the students were warm enough to start the actual training. This was the part that Tigress was normally apprehensive about. If at any point during the lesson she were to mess up, even if it was slight, Master Shifu nearly pounced at the chance to exploit her flaws and took it upon himself to humble her, even if that meant a sharp smack from his cane (which it usually did). Today though, Tigress was nearly glowing with eagerness. She bounced happily on the balls of her feet as she hung on to every word Master Shifu said.

Though she didn't think it explicitly, Tigress clung to the small hope that maybe, just maybe, if she were to drink in knowledge as fast as possible, she could gain approval from Master Shifu. As childish a dream as it sounded, it was really all she had to hold on to, so hold onto it she would.