KUNG FU PANDA: Kung Fu White Tiger.

Chapter Six: There's No Secret Ingredient

Jade Palace

"You've done well, Lotus." Shifu told the new Dragon Style Master as they finally reached the Training Hall of the Jade Palace, their supplies on Lotus's back. Lotus looked down at the master, a bit bewildered. She still couldn't believe that all of that had happened.

She had learned flippin' Kung Fu! Something that she thought that she would never be able to do.

"'Done well'? 'Done well'? No offense, Master Shifu, but I think I did pretty amazing." she said, hopping on her feet as she did, but nearly fell down due to the weight of her sack. Shifu smiled, but covered it up quickly. "The mark of a true hero is humility." Shifu told her, tempting her to settle down a little.

Then he smirked. "But yes, you did do 'amazing'." Lotus giggled, pointing a finger at Shifu playfully. Shifu did the same, daring her to just try it and see what would happen. In all her life of living in the Jade Palace as the physician, she never thought that she would have this kind of relationship with him after Tai Lung. But here they were now, Lotus now on the road to being an experienced warrior and almost having that kind of relationship when a student looks up to the teacher. Which it kinda was. And playfully taunting each other? Lotus never would have considered the idea.

Lotus was just thinking about how to do a sneak attack with a large sack on her back, when she heard the sound of wings. The two frowned, before looking towards the sky, expecting to see Crane, Ping, or even Zeng. They never expected what landed before them.

Crane dropped the rest of the five with harsh thuds, but no sounds were made other then Crane's exhausted panting. In fact, no-one was moving at all. They all were in different positions and poses, as though they have been frozen in time and space. Their physical conditions didn't look ideal either. Crane's feathers were all ruffled and looked oily, he was raising his right leg gingerly off the floor and his neck looked bent. Lotus was just happy it wasn't snapped. There were several vicious looking claw marks on Viper's body from her underbelly to her spine. Monkey's fur was all over the place and it looked like his eye was bruised. Mantis thankfully didn't look like much damage had been done to him, over then being covered in large purple spots.

But Tiger...

Lotus almost had a heart attack.

His lip was split, and he was supporting a black eye. His tunic was ripped open, showing some deep wounds that were previously bleeding, Lotus had no doubt that he probably had some broken ribs.

Immediately growing panicked and frantic, Lotus ran over, checking everyone quickly while turning to the only conscious one.

"Crane?! What on Earth happened?! Are they OK?!" she asked wildly as she studied their bodies and let out a sigh of relief when she figured out the reason for their frozen state.

"We were no match... for his nerve attack." Crane told Shifu slowly, still out of breathe, both from his wounds and from carrying the whole group here in such a state. He slowly got up with Lotus's help as Shifu went over to Mantis.

"He has gotten stronger." he said in a grave tone as he unparalyzed him and moved on to Monkey.

"Who?" Lotus looked at Crane for an answer, but he avoided her look. He knew it would only upset her if she found out they went after Tai Lung, and for Lotus. It would break her. But Lotus guessed the right answer anyway.

"Tai Lung? You guys went after him?! Are you insane?!" she yelled at the bird and the bug. They bowed their heads as Shifu freed Monkey from his paralyzed and moved on to Tiger. Monkey nearly punched Shifu in the face as he sprung into action out of fear and reflex.

"HE'S TOO FAST!" he shouted, before looking over to Lotus with sad eyes. "Sorry Lo." the white tiger sighed. She didn't know what to think of this. She can guess why they went out there, but she hoped that she was wrong. Tiger gasped in pain as Shifu released him from Tai Lung's Nerve Attack, but stayed on the ground, looking disheartened and defeated.

"I-I thought that we could stop him." he was so sure that he could at least slow him down, and when the rest of the Five followed him, he was sure they could possibly beat him. But... he failed. He failed Shifu. He failed Oogway. He failed the Valley of Peace.

Tiger let his eyes wander to the pretty tigress not top far away, but quickly turned away out of shame.

He failed her.

"He could have killed you." Shifu told him. Mantis looked up to their master and took a deep breathe before continuing. "Why didn't he?"

"So you could come back here and strike fear into our hearts. But it won't work." Shifu told them confidently, staring at Lotus as he finished liberating Viper.

"Oh, it's defiantly working. Just not on you." Lotus told him, eyes wide.

"You can defeat him Lotus." Shifu told her, determent. Lotus let out a hollow chuckle.

"You're serious? If they can't, what makes you think I can?!" she asked, gesturing to the beaten Five as she did, who lowered their heads in shame. "They're five masters of Kung Fu! I'm just one me!"

"But you will have the one thing that no one else does."

Lotus looked at him, calculating, before they widened in awe. Did he mean...?

Jade Palace: Moon Pool

The Dragon Scroll.

They looked up at the red and golden scroll in it's sacred place of rest. The white tigress looked at the scroll with unbelieving eyes, before turning to the red panda, who didn't look away from the ancient parchment. "Do you really believe I'm ready for this?" she asked, a little scared. No one knows what would really happen if one opens the scroll. Some warriors who came far and wide to take it by force feared opening it, out of fear that the power would be too much for them.

"You are... Lotus." he sounded so sure. So full of hope. He truly believed that she can do this. Her, a simple Physician, be able to wield the power of the Dragon Warrior. If he had faith, then so should she.

She smiled, before is faded as the master approached Oogway's memorial, picked up Oogway's staff and approached the pool. He then started to do some exercised with the staff when he stood a hair away from the pool. Those simple movements had the flower petals move in the water, before Shifu continued and they were swept from the water and into the air, swirling closer and closer towards the golden dragon and the Dragon Scroll. Lotus and the Five watched in awe as Tiger came to stand beside her. Lotus didn't really care right now. Her eyes were fixed of the flying petals.

Until finally, one petal landed on one end of the scroll. It tipped, the new weight sending it down. Shifu thrusted the staff over and the scroll landed upright, the weight making the staff tip and touch the water, creating a single ripple.

Shifu took a deep breathe as he retrieved the scroll from the staff. Lotus took a breathe as well and stepped forward. This was it. Shifu turned to her, a proud smile on his face as he presented the scroll to her.

"Behold, the Dragon Scroll." he said, his tone saying that he was just as awed as he was. "It is yours." Lotus went out to take it, but stopped herself, remembering all those warriors before who feared it. "Wait. What happens when I read it?"

"No-one knows. But legend says you'll be able to hear a butterfly's wing beat and see light in the deepest cave. You will feel the universe in motion around you." Lotus started to look a little excited, but stayed focused. "Read it, Lotus, and fulfill your destiny. Read it and become... the Dragon Warrior." he passed it to her and she held it tightly.

And taking a deep breathe as she gripped the lip, she opened it with a loud pop! Everyone jumped at the sound, a little on edge.

"OK. Here it goes." She warned them, before slowly opening the scroll as everyone else looked on anxiously. Lotus looked upon the scroll, a golden glow admitting from the parchment and lighting up her face.

A few seconds later.

Lotus narrowed her eyes and looked closer, before turning to Shifu, confused and a little freaked out.

"It's blank."

Shifu stumbled. "What?"

"Look." she tried to show it to him, but he edged away. "No! I'm forbidden to look upon..." he couldn't finish that sentence as he snatched the scroll and looked at it himself. What she said was true. It was blank. It only casted his reflection in gold. He closed and opened it again, but nothing changed. He did it again and again and changed the angles, hoping to find whatever was amiss.

But nothing.

"'Blank'? I don't... I don't understand." he turned to them, disheartened as them at the news, but didn't loose hope and continued looking at the scroll. Maybe it was a riddle, or maybe a clue. But Lotus was frustrated. Was it all for nothing then? Tai Lung's training, the Five's training, her training? For a blank piece of paper?!

In her anger, she turns to Shifu, "So, what? Was Grandfather just crazy the entire time?" "No. Oogway was wiser then us all." Lotus snaps.

"Oh, come on!" she spits, "Face it. He picked me by accident. It was always an accident! Of course I'm not the Dragon Warrior." she slumped onto her hindquarters with a frown. "Who was kidding?" Tiger wanted so badly to comfort her, but he shouldn't strain himself, and she would probably just shove him away.

So instead, he asked "But who would stop Tai Lung?" Crane answered him, as Shifu was too busy looking into the pool, saying that he'll destroy everything and everyone. Shifu glared at the pool below him, his resolve clear.

No.

He won't allow that to happen.

"No." he sealed the scroll back into it's case and gave it back to the discouraged tigress. She glared at it hatefully. It was useless in her eyes. All those years of praying for a worthy Warrior to come and gain it's power, only to know that it was just a worthless piece of golden paper.

It was as useless as her now.

"Evacuate the valley. You must protect the villagers from Tai Lung's rage." Tiger frowned.

"What about you, Master?" Shifu shocked them all with what he said next.

"I will fight him."

"What?" Lotus said, not believing what she was hearing.

"I can hold him off long enough for everyone to escape." Lotus spoke up, hoping to reason with him. "Shifu, he'll kill you." Shifu turned to her and smiled sadly. "Then I will finally have paid for my mistake." Lotus and Tiger started to grow sad, as well as the rest of the Five as he turned to face them all.

"Listen to me, all of you. It is time for you to continue your journey without me. I am very proud to have been your Master." he told him, his words true as he bowed to them in respect. The Five and Lotus did the same, before Shifu turned away and stood by the pool to await Tai Lung's inevitable entrance.

Lotus watched him for a while longer. She couldn't believe that he was really doing this. He was going to die, and was content with it just as long as she and the Five get the villagers out safely. Crane pulled and turned her away, before they all crawled, limped and walked away from their Master.

Their Friend.

The Stairwell of the Jade Palace

The Five came down and watched as the entire village raced to gather all their belongings and get out of their homes. Tiger grew persistent. If he couldn't stop Tai Lung, then he will prevent him from hurting everyone else. Especially Lotus.

"We've got to get them out safely." he told them, before winching at his wounds. Monkey approached a little piglet with a friendly smile, before lifting him up into his arms and cradled her. "Come little one. Let's find your mama." he booped her nose before heading off to find her parents. Tiger turned to Viper and Mantis.

"Viper, gather the southern farmers. Mantis, the north." The two nodded and rushed off, Tiger then turned to Crane. "Crane, light the way." he told him, lifting the lantern for him to take. Crane complied and took off. Tiger hummed in confidence, before helping a mother rabbit carry her wheelbarrow, with her things and children inside. He heard a small clatter and looked up to the stares to see Lotus helping Ping get his cart down the stairs. Lotus turned to him, feeling his eyes on her. They stared at each other for a bit, before she nodded at him. He nodded back and pulled the wheelbarrow forward. Lotus turned back to Ping, dusting him off with a small smile, before lifting the cart and pulling until she was beside Tiger.

The two cats exchanged small smiles, before Lotus spoke.

"You went after Tai Lung because of me, didn't you?" Tiger let out a hollow chuckle.

"You were always the smart one Lotus." Lotus frowned. She didn't find any of this funny. Tiger noticed that she didn't look amused and sighed.

"I couldn't let him hurt you Lotus. You were untrained and inexperienced and were doomed to face a monster. I couldn't just stand idly by." Lotus remained silent, before she shook her head and looked at him dead in the eyes.

"Just promise me that you won't put your life, or the life of our friends in the line again." Tiger stared at her. Surely she knows that there is no way he can keep that promise, especially if it concerned her. "Promise me."

Tiger looked into her beautiful blue eyes, before deciding to ease her.

"I promise."

Lotus nodded, accepting it. Not knowing that Tiger was lying through his teeth.

But, he felt a little lighter. Maybe there was a chance of them at least being friends again after all.

Some time after Lotus's and Tiger's conversation, they were miles away from the Valley by now and scaling a hill, when Tiger went ahead to help a pig, whose wheelbarrow broke and needed some help getting it back on it's feet. Meanwhile, her burning depression was eating away at her soul. She felt like such a failure, not only to Shifu, the Five and the Valley of Peace, but to Oogway's memory as well. He had so much hope that she could be the Dragon Warrior. But they were both wrong, and Oogway wasn't even here to tell him that she was sorry for letting him down.

"Look. It's the Dragon Warrior." she barely lifted her head to see that the speaker of those mocking words was a peasant pig, who did a sassy movement with his head as he spoke the underlined words, before placing a hand on his hip and shaking his head, as though scolding her for ever thinking she could possibly be the Dragon Warrior. Ping, who was sitting on the cart pulled by Lotus, frowned at the pig, lifting a ladle and got out of the cart and threatening to beat him when Lotus dishearteningly caught the ladle and put it back in a small tin bucket filled with different size ladles. Ping noticed her glum look and patted her back.

"Don't listen to them, Lotus. And don't threat. I already have a new restaurant planned out when we make a permanent stop. Let's face facts, the future of noodles is dice-cut vegetables, no longer slices. And I was thinking, maybe you can get a job there, maybe as a server or something. You like that?" he turned back to her, hoping to see that sweet smile he loved ever since she was a cub, but only saw her down-cast expression.

Ping internally sighed in sadness and approached her slowly. "Lotus, I'm sorry things didn't go the way you thought. Sometimes, there are things that just aren't meant to be." he said in an attempt to console her, but she only turned away and lent against the cart in disappointment. She really thought that she could fight Tai Lung, but maybe Ping was right. There are just some things that aren't meant to be. But that didn't mean it cheered her up, knowing that.

"Lotus, I know that it hurts. But if I know Oogway, and I do, he wouldn't want his little flower to have this kind of behavior. You are his granddaughter. You have destiny running through your veins. It may not be as the Dragon Warrior, but you'll find it somewhere!" he continued, but Lotus didn't look encouraged.

"I don't know, Ping." she said, still not meeting his gaze. "Sometimes, I can't believe Oogway took me in as his granddaughter." Ping gasped, shocked by her words. He never imagined a single day where Lotus wasn't in there lives. If anything, ever since she came to them in that little crate of radishes, the Jade Palace had been so much brighter, even after Tai Lung's corruption. Then he sighed, only thinking of one last thing that could make her feel better.

"Lotus... I think it's time I told you something I should have told you a long time ago."

Lotus looked at him in confusion, before guessing that maybe he was going to tell her where she came from and how she came to the Jade Palace in the first place. "OK?" she leaned in to pay attention.

"It's the secret ingredient of my Secret Ingredient Soup." he told her after looking around, even though the party was long ahead of them now. "Oh." Lotus could only utter, a little disappoint but stayed in hearing distance all the same. Might as well hear him out. Who knows? Maybe she could make some big buck selling the special soup to people to start making a life of her own.

Ping leaned in closer and lowered his voice to a whisper, and still looking around carefully. "The secret ingredient is... nothing."

Lotus blinked. Then looked ahead of her in confusion. "Huh?" was the only thing she could say. Nothing? Was Ping pulling her leg? How can a soup with a secret ingredient have no secret ingredient? She always tasted an whole assortment of flavors whenever she had a bowl of the famous soup and made many attempts to guess the special ingredient when she was little. But nothing? That was it?

"You heard me! Nothing! There is no secret ingredient!" Ping told her excitingly, just happy that all the sadness was gone, even though it was replaced with confusion and bewilderment.

"Wait. Wait a minute. It's just plain old noodle soup?" At Ping's nod, she continued. "You don't some kind of special sauce or something?" Ping shook his head, a teary smile on his face.

"Don't have to." he told her, before getting to explain. "To make something special, you just have to believe it's special. And Oogway believed you were special for the very beginning, now that I think about it." he muttered as an afterthought, but Lotus wasn't paying much attention anymore. She dug back into the cart until that found the scroll, opened it and just stared at herself in the reflection of herself.

Lotus stared at the golden version of herself for a little while longer, before looking up in awe as she realized something.

"There's no secret ingredient..." she spoke softly. She smiled, looking at Ping and lifting him up into her arms and hugging him. Ping laughed, beyond happy that the Lotus he knew and loved was finally back. Though he had no idea what brought this out, he didn't care.

"That's what the scroll was trying to say. Ping! Thank you so much!" Ping laughed awkwardly.

"Your welcome, my dear, but what on earth for?" he asked, and she went to explain, when lighting struck behind the Jade Palace and she looked back at the Valley.

And she knew what to do.

"I have to help Master Shifu."

"What?!" Lotus looked down at the Jade Palace Chef.

"If Tiger asks where I am, I've gone back to the Palace to fight Tai Lung."

"WHAT?!" Ping yelled in horror. That was not what he intended at all. "I have to, Ping. It's..." She paused, before giving a one-shoulder shrug, "It's my destiny." She put the Goose down, got down on her four legs and rushed back down the hill.

"Lotus! Come back!" "I will!"

"LOTUS!"

She was too lost in her new found hope and confidence to pay attention to the Goose's cries, but was pulled out of both when a certain orange and black cat ended up in front of her, his expression saying full on 'no'. But Lotus wasn't going to turn back now.

"Tiger. Don't try to stop me."

Tiger stared back at her, his expression not even flinching, before it weakened and Tiger took a step forward and hugged her tightly to his chest. Lotus was surprised, but then she smiled and wrapped her arms around the tiger master in kind.

"Just please come back. I lost you once, I can't loose you a second time." Tiger begged as they lent back and looked at each other. Lotus smiled.

"You never lost me to begin with. That I promise." giving him a peck on the cheek, she nodded in promise, before continuing down the hill.

It was time to fill in the blank space.

For it had her name written all over it.

Lotus had just reached the middle of town, not stopping for one second, though the distance she ran really did a number on her energy reserves. But remembering her breathing exercises, she reached the stairs and made her trek up.

When she finally reached the top, she immediately noticed the large crater in the top of the stairs and the blown out doors, but ignored it and leaped over the whole and skidded inside. The Jade Palace was a mess. A set of rhino armor was knocked over, an assortment of sharp objects were either scattered across the floor or embedded in it or even the pillars of the Palace. Rumble of all sorts littered the floor to, from pillar fragments to pieces of roof tiles, and a knocked over lantern, with the blue fire just dying out.

Not too far from Oogway's memorial, the respected tortoise's staff laid broken in two.

But most horrifying, was Shifu, pinned down by the throat on a step to the Moon Pool, gasping for breathe by Tai Lung's grip as the Snow Leopard raised his other hand high, claws unsheathed for the final blow. The killing blow.

"STOP!"

Tai Lung whipped around to the white tiger in rage, before pausing to take her in. She seemed familiar, even with her harsh glare, heavy breathing and air of confidence he had never seen before in a long time. "Let. Him. Go." her voice was deepened in her growl but there was no denying who she was now. Being honest, he berated himself for not figuring it out sooner. He only knew one white tiger, and the fact that this one was female and had those same, iridescent blue eyes made it clear as day for the Dragon master.

"Lotus?" then he chuckled, evilly. Even with the determent stance and the fire in her eyes, he can basically smell the fear she had for him when she was a cub. He relished in it. "My, how you have grown. No wonder little brother put up such a fight." he stood straight and threw Shifu to the ground as he spoke. "Quite a beauty now, aren't you?" Lotus expression stayed the same. "What are you here for?" he laughed to himself, "Here to heal the old man's wounds?" Lotus glared even harder.

"It's 'Dragon Warrior' to you, Tai Lung." she said with a sure tone, fists clenched as she discreetly did a look over at Shifu. His fur was mattered and he looked severely injured. But other then that, he looked fine.

Tai Lung stared, before dissolving into a mocking laughter. "What? 'Little Lotus'? Oh, my Shifu." he looked down at the red panda at his feet, smirking cruelly, "You and Oogway must have been desperate. What exactly do you think you will do to me, pretty one? Scratch me?" he chuckled at the end.

"Don't tempt me. But you have a point. Me making a mark on you is a bit of a stretch. But it might be possible with... this little thingamabob right here." she said in a teasing manner as she revealed the scroll from behind her back.

Tai Lung looked in shock and awe. The Dragon Scroll! Finally! He stood straighter to demand it, when Lotus spun around and threw it as hard and high as possible, where it spun in the air, closer to the steps and closer to the village down below. She looked at him mockingly.

"Fetch!"

He bent down and started to bound towards the stairs, rushing past Lotus, not even caring for that mischievous smirk when he leaped into the air to grab it, when he felt a yank on his tail, stopping him midair and making him fall with a thud on the first steps and forced to watch as the scroll's casing clattered on the steps and started bouncing down the stairs easily.

Lotus stepped on the snow leopard's head and made to run downstairs on her fours, when Tai Lung did the same thing as she did and grabbed her tail, only his result was to tumble down the stairs in a ball of grey, white and black fur. Throwing punches and headbutting each other as they went, Tai Lung yelled in anger.

"That scroll is mine!"

"Prove it, jackass!" Lotus shouted back as she banged her forehead against his own, stunning him and admittingly herself as well as they fell and bounced continuously. They eventually came to a stop when they crashed through the gateway arch at the foot of the miles of stairs and separated. Lotus landed in a cart, and ended up covered in ribbons, getting an idea as she remembered her times ribbon dancing with Viper.

Tai Lung landed not to far away and struggled to get on top of the roof so he could reach the scroll, which was on the roof as he was. He roof jumped and went to snatch it from the air when a silk red ribbon snatched it first and whipped towards the tigress. Unfortunately, she didn't take account to the speed it would be coming at her and it ricochet of her head and into the air once more. She stared up after it and Tai Lung came up beside her and made a leap. Finding this familiar when trying to get the dumpling from Shifu, she grabbed his feet and pulled him down, doing a titter-totter action to a wheelbarrow she had landed on in her jump to catch him and ended up catapulted into the air.

Tai Lung could only stare at her flying form in bewilderment as she laughed. What on earth was with this woman? The Scroll landed in a hanging lantern while she landed at the very entrance to the bamboo forest and tumbled out pretty quickly.

The scroll fell out of the lantern and into the street. Tai Lung landing right near it.

Lotus gasped, before noticing the pots she had knocked over.

Tai Lung's smile was wide as he reached for the scroll, only for a iron pan to hit him square in the face, blinding him, and making an etch in the pan. By the time he threw the pan off, there were now a dozen of them on the ground, all identical and under one of them, the scroll hide under.

Lotus got over there, and with amazing speed that Tai Lung's eye found impossible, starting shuffling the pots on the floor. Lotus laughed at Tai Lung's distressed look as his sickening yellow eyes flickered to each blur on the floor, before he decided enough was enough and with one leg sweep, cleared the floor and revealed the Dragon Scroll.

Lotus growled in frustration as the two started a small brawl, before Tai Lung scratched her cheek, leaving her open, but Tai Lung used that time to pick up the scroll, but only for a split second. With a growl of anger, she roar and uppercut him. Causing him to temporarily drop the scroll, and before it could hit the ground once more, Lotus did an aerial roundhouse kick, sending the scroll flying down the street.

Tai Lung roared in fury at her interference, and did a spin and kneed her in the stomach so hard, she was sent flying as well into a cart of fireworks. The Snow Leopard had already started running towards scroll, when he heard a deranged cry of joy coming closer and closer, looking behind him to see Lotus had somehow gotten all the fireworks to go and, like a rocket, was shooting faster then him and went right underneath him, knocking him into the air as Lotus leaned over and off the cart and swiped the scroll from the ground.

She laughed out of pure achievement, but then her cart hit a rock by the bridge, sending her shooting towards a house and hitting the rock hard wall. Lotus groaned, before realizing the scroll wasn't in her hand anymore and was sitting neatly in the mouth of a stone Chinese dragon head, much like it was the afternoon before.

She let a worried sound, turning her head toward the Leopard, who had just skidded to a stop on the floor. Tai Lung saw the Scroll in the stone dragon mouth and made a beeline towards the tigress and the scroll.

Tai Lung watched in awe as Lotus effortlessly scaled the walls of the stone hut to reach the scroll. Never in his life of knowing the little tigress had her claws had been sharp enough to rip fabric, never mind scale stone. His eyes flickered to the scroll and immediately assumed an explanation as to why this could be.

"The scroll has given her power!" he shouted in horror. Was that even a thing? Does the scroll choose whoever it believed worthy of it's power. If that is so, then he must put an end to this.

Right. NOW!

"NO!" he leaped over the bridge water, reaching the house in a millisecond, and his foot slammed so hard against the wall, the whole house started to crumble, as cracks started to spread like spiderwebs. The pressure must have been too much for the stone head, for it snapped, sending the scroll into the air once more. Lotus watched it, before looking down at the brimstone dust.

Tai Lung's snarling face appeared, threatening and promising to kill.

Lotus gasped in fear, the adrenaline propelling her to keep going, kicking roof tiles into the leopard's face as she hopped once... twice... thrice...

She snatched it out of the air. She laughed, not noticing the furious Dragon Style Master leaping into the air, sending a downward kick onto her back, sending her pummeling to the ground. Using the momentum he got from that kick, he let out a battle cry as he spiraled downward, fists raised forward and struck home.

A ripple effect of dust shot across the entire valley, before clearing to show the leopard carefully getting to his feet, and staggering back away from the white tigress. He let out a small laugh, before dissolving into a series of evil chuckles as he looked upon the battered cat.

"You fought well. Defiantly an improvement from when you were a cub." he commented as he looked upon the tigress. He slowly kneeled down, moving her head towards him, just as Lotus slowly opened her eyes and looked up at him, not moving a inch of her body, for everything was hurting right now, but that didn't stop the fire of hate from reaching her eyes as vision cleared to see the master a little too close for comfort.

"Oh, good. Still alive. For after I kill Shifu and remodel this Valley into my own kingdom, I have very 'special ideas' on what your role could be in my empire." at this, Lotus growled lowly, only serving at making the leopard chuckle as he stood up and walked towards the scroll. Lotus made a fruitless effort to reach for it, as Tai Lung picked it up and sighed in desirable relief.

"Finally. Oh, yes." he chuckled, pride and joy in his evil eyes as he clutched to the scroll like it was the most precious jewel you could ever hold. He ripped the top open and emptied the capsule, letting the scroll slide into his open palm. "The power of the Dragon Scroll is... MINE!"

He opened it, only to reveal the dark truth, it's blank, golden surface only showing his reflection. The smile was still on his face, as though expecting words to just materialize before him, but nothing happened. His smile faltered, and he closed the scroll, much like Shifu did previously, but nothing had changed.

His voice sounded so confused and despaired that Lotus almost felt sorry for him as she slowly stood up. Almost. Tai Lung looked to her, immediately thinking that she was responsible for this, before she looked to him, now in a kneeling position as she coughed the dust and droplets of blood out of her lung.

"Settle down, I didn't get it first time either." she coughed a little more, as Tai Lung looked at it, before turning back to her. Didn't get it at first? What the hell did that mean?!

"What?" Lotus flinched as she rose to her full height. "Ultimate power doesn't come from a piece of paper, Tai Lung. There's no secret ingredient." distressed, confused and a little frustrated, Tai Lung tossed the scroll to the floor, letting it roll open and show Lotus's reflection.

"It's just you." she told him, looking at the Scroll with a smile.

She believed.

The moment she looked upon the gold surface of the scroll after Ping told her the 'big secret', everything just clicked into place. Many masters have founded their own way of Kung Fu, creating their own styles based on their species. And one thing they all had in common was that they believed in themselves. And that's what made them great. That's what made Tai Lung great. He always believed he was the true Dragon Warrior, therefore, had the power of the Scroll all along. He just didn't know it.

But she does. She figured it out. And she was glad she did.

Tai Lung still looked stunned and confused, before he started to look angry, before angry went to furious. All his training... all this way... all his pain and betrayal... for nothing! He turned his rage to the only one he felt responsible for this. The white tigress in front of her.

With a roar-like scream, he lunged forward with a nerve attack, and hit Lotus square in the chest above her v-neck vest. But rather then having the desired result, she felt as though she was pushed if anything. It felt like she was merely tickled by the chi-based attack.

They stood there, stunned, before Tai Lung did it again twice. When it didn't work, only making her giggle, as though he hit a funny bone, he tried the other hand, but she only giggled some more. Again and again, but it didn't hurt her. It was like she was immune for some reason.

Letting out another yell of anger, he resorted to just punching her with both fists in unison. That one knocked the breath out of her. And so, eyes glowing gold for a second, she retaliated, and did the same move, only she knocked him much farther back then he did, right into the arch of a doorway into a restaurant. Lotus stared at the now crumbled arch, then at her hands. She smiled as she flexed them.

A growl returned her focus to the leopard, as he leaped from to dust to the crater in the ground and thrusted a punch toward her, only she diverted it away with a sweep of her hand, using the same appendage to to block another punch. She then leaned her head back as Tai Lung tried to hit her with an aerial kick. He preformed a high kick towards her head, but she blocked it and then stepped on it when it hit the floor. Tai Lung grunted as he held the harmed limb, hopping a little as Lotus laughed.

The Dragon Style master threw to more punches as Lotus followed him up and out of the crater, catching both punches, and then blocking a kick to the side of her head. Tai Lung looked to the ground, distressed and looking for an opening, only leaving himself open and Lotus limply but forcefully slapped him upside the chin. Tai Lung threw another aerial, but the tigress caught it, and smirked at him, making him uneasy, before she slammed him behind her, jumping on his head, and then grabbed his tail. She forced him up and into the air, and headbutted him sending him back, only to pull him back towards her and the fight. She flung him around, and in an attempt to free himself, made to throw a kick.

Lotus stepped away and wrapped his own tail around his limb and threw him around her once more. Tai Lung sent a kick, but Lotus blocked it with his tail, making a rubber bang TWANG! sound, as Tai Lung threw two more punches. Lotus dodged the first, and blocked the other with the tail, before putting it out in front of her as a shield as Tai Lung made a go for her neck with his teeth, though they only came into contact with his tail.

He let out a squeak, before yelling in pain, as Lotus once more pulled him towards her, doing an aerial kick of her own and hitting him twice in the head. Tugging him back, she gave a mighty kick that sent him tumbling and into another house.

Lotus winched, though a smug smile was on her face. That had to hurt.

The leopard got up, swaying a little as he turned to her, his fur starting to become mattered and unkempt as he made to charge right at her. Lotus smirked, taking a step back and clenching her fist. She waited, until Tai Lung was at close enough range and then did a backflip in the air, kicking him up the face and sending him up into the sky, up to the point where Lotus couldn't even see his speck.

She smiled as she watched the golden colored clouds and waited for the leopard to make a reappearance. Though he was certainly taking his time. She frowned in confusion and pondered. Did she kick him out into the atmosphere?

She was pulled out of her pondering when she could hear Tai Lung's scream, rapidly getting closer and closer, threatening to crush her under his force. She took about three steps back, just as Tai Lung went through the street, creating a geyser of dirt and dust, making her lean away and shut her eyes to prevent said dust from getting into them.

When the dust geyser stopped, she looked down at the snow leopard shaped hole in the ground, that must be several feet deep. There was even a tail mark in said hole. Tai Lung's sluggish yet determent voice echoed out of the hole.

"You... can't defeat me." Lotus took a step back as the cat clambered out of the hole, swaying brutally on his feet, as he turned to the tigress. "You..." he paused, falling on his fours to catch his breath, before hoisting himself back up. Lotus took a look at him. His fur was all over the place, his right eye was almost shut closed. His whiskers were no longer kept in a mustache formation, broken and in zigzag patterns on his face.

But other then that, he was generally OK.

"You're just a frail... weak... tiger!" he made for a sloppy hit, though Lotus caught it with just her thumb and index finger. Lotus looked at the heavily breath leopard calmly and strictly.

"I thought we went over this, Tai." she said, calling by the nickname that she used when she was a cub and before Tai Lung was completely corrupt. "I'm the Dragon Warrior."

And then, she lifted her pinkie, making Tai Lung's eyes widen in fear. He pointed to it fearfully. "The Wuxi Finger Hold!" Lotus smirked, "Oh, you know this hold? Then you also know that the hardest thing about this hold it cleaning up afterwards."

"You're bluffing. You're bluffing! Shifu didn't teach you that!" Tai Lung called out, fear dancing in his eyes and voice as he tried to call her bluff. Lotus shrugged. "Nope." Tai Lung smiled hopefully, before Lotus dashed it with what she said next.

"Oogway did. Could never understand why he did though. I guess he wanted me to be prepared for whenever I had to use it." she smirked once more, "And what do ya know?" she said cheerfully, before her eyes glowed gold as she did the final move.

She flexed her pinkie.

"Boom."

A wave of gold shot from the center of the valley and raced as far as it can go, including the leaving villagers, before they turned to the noise and shielded themselves as a gust of wind went past them and continued to wherever it was going.

After the ripple of gold vanished from their sight, Tiger stood up straight with the bunny child in his arms, before he realized something. His side wasn't in pain anymore. When he took a look at the others, he saw that they looked just as bewildered, probably thinking the same thing.

Crane's neck and wing was all better, and apart from losing his hat, looked brand new. Viper's bones were fixed and straightened out and the claw marks on her slender body were gone. Mantis looked much better and so did Monkey.

It was as if whatever that wave was filled with cured them of their wounds.

And Tiger knew why.

"Lotus."

After Tiger announced they were going back to the village, everyone was both happy and scared. What if that ripple was a ploy by Tai Lung to lure them back so he can enslave them all? But Tiger was confident. He knew that was Lotus. When the wave hit him, he immediately recognized it's warmth. It's light.

The villagers and the Five looked around at all the mess that was created from the battle from merely an hour ago. Many children coughed, for the dust from the wave still lingered, and many kids also laughed as they hopped onto the rumble, not understanding the depth of the situation.

Tiger was glad to see that only a majority of the buildings were damaged in the obvious fight that took place and that they were able to get the villagers out of town before said fight. But where was Lotus? Was she okay? Was she hurt?! Or worse...?

"Look!" Tiger and the other villagers looked up at the pig's call, to see a cat shaped figure walking calmly towards them. Everyone stood on edge, ready to run while the rest of the Five prepared to fight just in case. But Tiger stood calm and on his ground.

It had to be...

And from the dust, Tiger looked into the bright blue eyes that he loved so much.

There stood Lotus, safe, unharmed, victorious and most of all, smiling. At him.

The villagers around them cheered, as many ran forward to congratulate her up close. Some pigs even lifted them up on their shoulders for a brief moment, before setting her back down, just as a certain goose pushed past the Tiger Master, though right now, Tiger didn't mind. He was too wrapped up in his joy to care that he had just been shoved. And by the noodle loving goose no less. All that mattered right now was that the Valley was safe. His dreaded brother was gone. And Lotus was safe and sound.

"That's my girl! I raised this amazing, lovely Kung Fu warrior!" Lotus smiled warmly at the goose, before they came forward to each other and embraced.

"Thank you so much, Ping." they pulled back, and Ping wiped a tear away from his eye as he looked at her with joy. "Oogway would be really proud of his Flower. Just as I am." Lotus smiled, a single tear running down her cheek, that the goose wiped away, making her laugh.

Then she saw Tiger, and the rest of the Five and stood up as looked at her, faces of happiness and praise.

"Hey guys." Tiger stood forward, before stopping and then bowing respectfully to her.

"Master Lotus." the Five copied his action, "Master." pretty soon the entire village bowed with respect.

Lotus smiled, before her eyes widened as she realized.

"Master Shifu!" turning to the steps of Jade Palace, she ran on her fours to the palace. She had to make sure he was alright.

It took a while, but she eventually reached the palace and entered, stopping halfway through the hall as she looked at the unconscious form of the red panda. But just as the Five had healed from the blast, so had Shifu. His fur was smooth, his scars, bruises and broken bones were no more. But still, the unconscious form of the Master still struck fear into her heart.

"Master! Shifu! Shifu, are you OK?!" she ran to him and cradled his head in her hand as she gently turn him to his side. He woke up as though he had been in a short coma, and not because he received a brutal beating from a deranged leopard. He looked up at her and smiled in awe and that made her feel more at ease.

"Lotus. You're alive... Or we're both dead." he finished as an afterthought, making Lotus chuckle.

"No, Master. We're both very much alive. Tai Lung is gone. I defeated him."

"You did?" Lotus nodded, and Shifu let out a sigh of wonder. "Wow. It is as Oogway foretold." he said, before looking into her eyes. "You are the Dragon Warrior." that soft smile brightened as he said that. "You have brought peace to this Valley. And..." he paused. "And to me. Thank you. Thank you, Lotus." he said, before closing his eyes.

Lotus frowned. He was still breathing. So what was going on? "Master?" she said after a few seconds.

"Fret not, Dragon Warrior. I'm simply at peace. Finally." he spoke, keeping his eyes closed as he straightened himself on the floor and placed his hands on his stomach. He really did look peaceful. Lotus sighed, and chuckled, relieved.

"Then I suppose I should stop talking?" she said in a joking tone. Shifu's smirked was barely noticeable, but it was there. Lotus chuckled and just sat there in a relaxed position with a relaxed expression. Before she frowned. Something was boggling her, and she felt like something was amiss.

"Master?" Shifu sighed, a little bothered, but not too much. "Yes?" "Are you experiencing any pain?" there was a moment of silence, before he replied. "I feel exhausted, but other then that, but other then that, I'm fine. Why do you ask?"

"I think it has something to do with the move I used to defeat Tai Lung." Shifu opened his eyes and looked at her confused. "What do you mean? What move?"

"The Wuxi Finger Hold." Shifu's eyes widened in wonder. "You used a Chi-based move?" at Lotus's nod, he looked thoughtful. "Strange. It took me years to master that move perfectly, and you used it once and no negative side effects." Lotus nodded once more, and he looked to her, "Where did you learn it?"

"Oogway taught it too me some time after Monkey first came to the Jade Palace. He said one day, I might need it. I thought he was just talking in case I get mugged, but after some recent study, I was in the dark for why he would teach me it. Then I thought about my 'power surges'." Shifu watched her, his own expression thoughtful as she continued. "What if that has something to do with it?"

They were silent for a moment, before Lotus chuckled. "What are we doing?" at Shifu's confused looked, she continued. "Here we are, talking about serious matters when we should be celebrating and talking about fixing the damages to the Valley and the Palace." Shifu chuckled, realizing her point. But he'll have to remember to look into what Lotus said sometime. It might be important.

"Can you stand?" after a minute of merely lifting his head, he uttered no. So carefully, Lotus picked him up. "How about I take you to your room so you can rest up, while Ping makes you some Secret Ingredient Soup." Shifu smiled.

"That sounds like a splendid idea, Lotus."

After Lotus and Mantis gave Shifu a proper checkup and a day of calming down and relaxing from the ordeal, Lotus went to the village with most of the Five, helping rebuild the damages made by her and Tai Lung's fight, while the rest of the Five assisted with repairing the Jade Palace. Crane, Monkey and Viper handled the Palace, while Lotus, Tiger and Mantis manned the village. It took two more days to completely repair everything, but they managed to fix it.

Pretty soon the village and the Palace was repaired and everyone was back to their everyday lives. The Five did their usual relaxation hobbies and Shifu took over as Headmaster of the Jade Palace. And as well as relaxing, Shifu fixed Oogway's staff and had a statue of him made in the Master's Garden.

And while that was taken place, Lotus and Tiger took some time to really talk and as fate would have it, they reconciled and rekindled the friendship they had. Though Tiger still hopes for something more one day.

But Lotus still wasn't at peace.

As she sat on the floor in the ancient library, skimming through the fifteenth scroll for something, anything, her mind wandered to when she told Shifu about using the Wuxi Finger Hold to defeat Tai Lung. The way Shifu looked so amazed and confused when she mentioned using a Chi-based move, it had her mind ticking with all sorts of unanswered questions. Where did she come from? How did she get here? Where is her birth family? How could she used a Chi-based move when Shifu told her it took him years to preform it perfectly?

And more importantly.

"Who am I?"

She hopes that the answers come soon. And if she'll have to wait twenty years, then so be it.

And there we go! The end of Kung Fu White Tiger part 1 of the trilogy. I hope to see you soon when part 2 comes out.