This is the last chapter. And I still don't own Kung Fu Panda, though that's probably a good thing, considering how psychotic I'd probably make it. Actually, Monkey would be interesting as an axe murderer, and if I brought Kahn back… Oh, yeah, sorry! On with the show! Story… Thing… Oh just read it already.

….

There was a strange, still blackness and he slowly became aware of more than just the ache in his limbs and head. His eyes slid open heavily and he rolled his gaze to the side. She was kneeling there, her head on the bed, asleep from sheer exhaustion. Her hand was loosely gripping his still, and he squeezed in an attempt to wake her. Immediately her head shot up and she looked around wildly. When she saw him awake a huge smile broke from her lips, and she held his hand to her face.

He smiled sleepily and was now aware that something was breathing on his other hand. He rolled his head to look where the tiger master had fallen asleep as well, her head on the bed. He lifted his hand and rested it on her forehead, gently stroke her head with his thumb. Just as quickly as the other female had, she sat up to see him awake. Happiness tugged at the corners of her mouth. Then the red panda lady decided to spread the same happiness.

"HE'S ALIVE!"

Instantly the door broke down and a black and white blur came in and scooped up the now fully awake master.

"OH MY GOSH WE WERE SO WORRIED, BUT NOW YOU'RE OKAY AND THE BAD GUYS ARE GONE AND-

Po noticed that where a few seconds ago he had been squeezing his mentor, he was now squeezing his own self. Mantis, who had rushed in behind his much larger friend, stopped running around the room in frantic circles.

"Please panda… I'm still tired…"

He pressed his head back into the soft pillow and closed his eyes.

"YAAAAYYYY!"

Another blur came in, this one pale white, and it proceeded to leap on the bed and jump up and down.

"Hope, get down."

The jumping came to a gradual stop, but instead of crawling down the way she had been ordered to, she instead flopped onto the bed and cuddled the master's arm. She then sat up and spread a ragged piece of cloth over him before returning to the aforementioned cuddling.

"She must really like you," her mother whispered to him. "That's the first time I've ever seen her share her blanket."

A rabbit came in, passing by the panda who was still bouncing up and down a little with happiness.

"Hey," Li said, quietly, standing close to her mom.

"Where's your brother," Taia inquired.

"I'm here…"

Shifu sat up enough to where he could see the young boy standing in the doorway with bandages wrapped round his head. He slowly made his way over towards the bed, and Taia planted a kiss atop his bandages.

"Now see here, why is everyone gathering around me like this?"

"Because we were worried about you, you big dummy."

"Shifu, it was so weird," the panda broke in. "It was like the Dragon Stone was alive! It just rolled over to you and, well, glowed and stuff!"

"Also, it turns out that once the stone heals you, you're free to carry it. And according to the rabbit fellow, the reason the rest of us were unable to hold it was because there was no injury upon us for it to heal."

"Basically it was the rock's way of whacking us with a staff to get us to put it down, the way you do sometimes when you want personal space," Mantis added to Tigress's statement.

"What a stubborn little stone."

"I know, and isn't it unbelievably convenient that it was there to heal you," Taia said.

"Not to mention how convenient it was that you happened to know someone who had the real map," he replied.

"And how about how ridiculously convenient that you two met up again," Mantis pointed out.

"I think Po is to blame for that one," said Tigress, with the slightest of eye rolls.

"Well, uncanny convenience or not, we're just glad you're alive."

"Very," everyone else agreed.

It wasn't long before Shifu was up and about once more. He confessed to the Emperor that he lacked the ability to read what was on the map for a rather confusing and ridiculously contrived reason, but the monarch was too distracted by joy to notice him. He and his wife had been acting like a pair of school children as of late. The festivities hadn't stopped, with fireworks even grander then the New Years', or the ones seen after the defeat of Lord Shen, or so Mantis insisted, though Po wasn't as easily swayed. As the two argued, Tigress made her way through the crowd to where Deng was. The young snake had been in a shocked state since what happened.

"Hey… It's going to be okay you know…"

"Yeah… People keep telling me that… It's just that, well, I snapped. I told myself I never would and I did, and I killed him, and I shouldn't have and-

She stopped him by resting a paw in the area where she guessed was his back. He released a shuddering sigh before falling silent.

"The mark of a warrior is not their will to kill those around them, but the will to protect others faithfully. You may not look it, but it is the heart of a warrior that pulses within you."

He slowly lifted his head to look into the understanding eyes. He lowered his head once more and released a tentative sigh. His muscles relaxed a bit, and Tigress stood up straight, confident that with time he would understand.

Meanwhile, Shifu let out a sigh of his own as he shut the door behind him and walked out into the palace garden. It was very large, owing to the royal family's green thumbs. He made his way along a dirt path lined with stones. He finally reached a small hill where there grew a tiny apple tree with tiny apples. He rested himself and crossed his legs, fully intent on clearing his mind before the long trip home.

"Inner peace… Inner peace…"

"Um, sorry, but can we talk?"

He ceased his breathy chanting to look over where Taia was standing, scuffing her toes in the dirt. "Fine," he said a bit sharply, due to his never ceasing annoyance at being interrupted. She tentatively sat down, crossed her legs and looked him in the eyes.

"So," she coughed, clearing her throat. "About, uh… About before you, well, got bitten and everything, uh, well, I was just sort of wondering what exactly was going through your head. Not that anything weird happened! Just, uh… A little out of the ordinary, don't you think..?"

She looked up once more to see him smiling. "Yes, I'll admit that was a bit different I suppose."

She smiled a bit relieved to hear him speak so freely about the situation.

"After all, how often is it that one of us is willing to apologize to the other," he chuckled.

Her eyes squinted in confusion. "What… I-

"Once again I'm very sorry for the whole incident, and I am quite glad that you were willing to forgive my shortcomings as a friend."

"Oh, um, okay… Thank you..?"

"No trouble at all."

And with that he rose to his feet and walked away. Taia remained sitting there with a dazed expression. She was still wearing that expression when her friend showed up.

"Hey, you might want to get inside, the kids have had a lot of sugar and- Hey I'm talking to you!"

Taia shook her head slightly and looked at her friend. Ming had been a little different lately. Cranky as ever, but just the same she seemed to be less depressed.

"Have you ever felt like your heart has gotten stomped on?"

"Hoo boy… Master of the Mustache giving you trouble?"

"Sort of… It's just I thought he felt, well, I don't know, maybe the same way I do."

"Well at least you're finally owning up to it," the rabbit pointed out as she plopped down next to her friend. "And hey, I've seen you in this rut before, after Kara died. You got out of it, remember? In case you don't I'll be glad to tell you that I'm finally out of my own rut."

Taia's eyes widened. "You mean-!"

"Yes, yes, I've decided to move on. I mean, you met the guy once or twice, right? Do you think my husband would've honestly wanted me to stay the way I was; alone, bitter, never willing to do anything about it."

"No," she grinned. "I don't think he would have."

Taia reached over and slugged Ming in the arm.

"Hey! What was that for?"

"For being my bestest friend ever!"

And with that the red panda lady gripped her friend in a hug that the other found impossible to get out of, no matter how hard she struggled. Finally the rabbit lady just sighed, gave the tiniest of grins, and patted her companion on the back.

…

"Going home! Going going going home! GO-ING HooooooOOOO-MUH!"

"If you sing like that the rest of the way, I WILL kill you in your sleep."

"Understood…"

Hope giggled as she listened to the tiger and panda. She of course wasn't fully understanding, but she usually found grown-up speak to be funny.

Everyone was just outside the city now, having already bid the Emperor and Empress farewell. Now they just had to say goodbye to each other.

"See you kid," Taia said, squeezing her young cobra friend. "You'll never understand how important what you've done is."

"Actually, I think I might already know," he said, smiling for the first time in a while. Taia could see easily how much he had matured since their last encounter, and she was very proud that he was able to do it on his own. After teasing Ming a bit, and squeezing the kids a couple times, the ebony creature slithered off to parts unknown. After everything that had happened, he'd decided to travel a bit, see new things, and try to find a new peace of mind.

"You're sure you don't want to come with us," Taia inquired, sad, already knowing the answer.

"I'm sure. I need to meet new people, try new things. I've been doing the same thing day in and day out for so long that I need to find myself again. I mean, it's not like my life ended when his did; I've still got a lot of living to do!"

Her friend nodded, not even trying to hide her disappointment. Perhaps it was selfish, but she didn't care. She hugged her friend tightly.

"Hey," Ming whispered in her ear. "Whatever happens, don't become a slave to your emotions. Trust me, it's not fun, and it's not easy to quit."

Ming then turned to where Shifu was. She stuck her paw out and he shook it.

"If he ever gives you any trouble, just tell me," Ming whispered, not so quietly this time. "I'll be sure to come over with my frying pan at the ready."

The two shared a laugh and the children hugged their Aunt Ming goodbye before she too left to find a new place of being. With them gone, Taia turned to the masters.

"So, I guess this is goodbye?"

"Aw, but I want to go with them," Li whined, sinking into brat mode.

"Yeah, they're cool," Benji agreed.

"And they live in a Green House!"

"It's actually a Jade Palace," Shifu corrected the little one. "And it happens to have several empty rooms. There are even rooms in the barracks where the Five and Po sleep."

Three pairs of eyes widened at the thought of living so close to these heroes that stood there before them, not to mention the reptile, avian, and primate whom they were all yet to meet. They slowly turned to their mother who looked Shifu in the eye.

"Are you asking us to move in?"

"Yes, well… At least until you find your own place of course. I thought you might want to return to our ways again…. Master Taia."

Her eyes widened and she was taken back to the time when she had first been given that title of Master… Oh to be back amongst those who were up with the sun and asleep with the stars… To have a simple yet comfortable room… Clothes that fit better and displayed your rank. And above all, to be back in the place where she had grown and changed and been taught into what she was now. It seemed too good to be true. Even if she couldn't stay at the Palace forever, the thought of just being in the place where her own mentor, Oogway, had spoken his confusing words of wisdom excited her to no end. Yet there was fear as well. She could tell Shifu felt it too. What if history repeated itself once more?

She breathed deeply through the nose to get oxygen to her brain and clear her mind. Slowly she released the breath through her mouth and saw the eager faces of the children (and Po). Tigress and Mantis looked accepting. Shifu was just waiting.

"Alright."

This was met with a great deal of cheering, as the kids plus Po jumped up and down and hugged each other. They then decided to race to their now shared home, and ran forward down the path, with Taia calling after them to be careful.

"They're going to get tired pretty soon," Tigress commented.

"Yep," Mantis agreed. "How much you want to bet that Po's the first one to stop?"

"Hm, let me think on that one," said she with a friendly enough grin as the little green guy hopped on her shoulder for a ride. They walked ahead in a weak attempt to catch up with the others. This left the two senior Masters alone. The green eyed lady looked to her friend.

"Thank you," she said in a voice barely above a whisper.

He shook his head. "No thanks needed."

She nodded a little, still wearing a tiny smile. She stuck her hand out in his direction and he looked at it for a brief moment before grasping it in his own.

"We're still friends right?"

"Always."

They walked forward, not speaking. They didn't have to.

….

There we go. I NEVER intended for it to take this long to finish and I am SINCERELY sorry for that. Actually I'm here to apologize for a few different things; elements of this story that I look back on and wince. Here's a short list.

Hope's little dance way back around chapter 8? If you haven't already, please forget I wrote that.

The pointless shout outs that I pointlessly pointed out to people.

The Russian thing…. I'll admit I sort of came up with that on the spot. Please forgive me if I offended any Russians.

The way She Du poisoned the Empress. I know snake venom doesn't work that way, though I could justify it by saying that She Du does seem the type that would come up with a different kind of poison which he could inject someone with.

How horribly some of the chapters dragged in mindlessness and just made the whole thing longer.

The lack of humor. I'm not good at being funny, though I try.

The author notes like this one. I read a few over again and they seem to scream 'PITY ME!' Believe me, I'm sorry.

This list.

Well, there you go. I'm sure there are a few other things, but then I have to stop and realize that this is FANfiction. Not everything is going to be perfect and of course there's always room for error. Besides why should I sit and complain when I could be SO happy about the fact that I have OVER 100 REVIEWS?! YOU GUYS ARE AWESOME! A few special mentions go to:

Babycakes22: Who's been here since the beginning.

mad eye's love: My PM buddy and fellow Shifu/OC shipper.

Anonymouse78: My real life supporter.

D: The Deng lover.

Duskfire 1954 and shadow-dog18: The nice ones.

And

SHIFUFANGIRL1: What can I say? She (or he, though the GIRL part sounds suspiciously feminine) deemed me one of the best writers on the site. *sniff*

If I have failed to mention you, feel perfectly free to let me know.

Well I'm sure that those of you who are still reading this might be asking questions like 'Did Taia and Shifu officially get together?', 'What's going to happen with the kids being at the Palace', and 'Why in the heck was there so little of Viper, Crane, and Monkey?'

Well: I DON'T KNOW!

I'm thinking about writing a sequel, but it's really not the most important thing right now, because I have homework, GAG! So I guess if you want me to I can continue, but it's really out of my hands at the moment.

Oh, one more special mention: To my mom, who has proof read every single chapter before I sent it out, even when she was exhausted. Also for putting up with my moody crap whenever I had writer's block. Thank you!

You know the drill ladies and gentleman. And the reason I ask for reviews isn't for popularity purposes; it's because I CRAVE to know what other's think about this stuff. So go ahead, leave a review, and tell me what you think! IAT, out.