A/N: Hello, guys! here I am with my second story! This first chapter is kind of a prologue, so it's kind of short. But future chapters will be longer. :) NOTE that this takes place in an alternate timeline of Kung Fu Panda; one where a happy ending takes a... different turn.
Either way, i hope you like this. :3

"It is as Oogway foretold," Shifu said in a somewhat weak voice as he lay there in Po's arms, looking up at the panda. "You have brought peace… to this valley… and… and me… Thank you… Thank you… Po. Thank you."

The last 'thank you' that came after this faded into a whisper as Shifu closed his eyes. As the red panda's entire body relaxed, he just lay there lifelessly.

"No… Master! No, no, no, don't die!" Po pleaded. The great panda felt how the tears were trying to escape, but he still tried his best to hold them in. "Shifu, please!"

But the old Master didn't open his eyes again. Po felt heartbroken. Granted, he had only known the Master for a few days and out of these, he had only been nice to Po for a few of these. But to see the old panda die… no, it was all too much.

He was the great Master Shifu! How could he die now? He had seemed to have survived the battle with Tai Lung, but it had still been too much for the old Master.

"It is all… my fault!" Po nearly shouted, slamming his fist against the palace floor. If I had just figured it out – if he had just figured out the secret of the scroll earlier… If he had, Shifu wouldn't have had to die!

"Shifu…" Po said, having no strength left to hold in his tears. The first tear fell from his eye, falling onto Shifu's lifeless being. It was almost as if he could see it as it fell; he even felt as if he could hear it as it softly hit the red panda's forehead.

"Master!" Just then Po was shoved aside by a powerful paw. Po almost fell, but regained balance. Just then he saw Tigress, taking Shifu into her arms.

Po was stunned; had never seen the tough Master act this way. The closest he had ever gotten was seeing the sadness in her face when she told him about Tai Lung that one night.

Po stepped aside, allowing the other Masters to get to the dead master. Seeing the sadness and misery in their faces was almost worse than the one he felt himself. And Po knew that they had more reason to be sad than he had; after all, they had trained with Master Shifu for years and he had been training for days only.

Po and the others watched Tigress as she held the Master in her arms, hugging him closely. She had just lost something precious in her life and she looked just like one that had. Suddenly Po saw something that he had never expected; tears.

They slowly made their way down her cheeks and landed on Shifu. Po carefully brought up a hand and tried to wipe his own away. Tigress looked up and suddenly realized that Po had seen her cry.

In response to this, Tigress got to her feet and as more tears kept falling, she suddenly started running towards the exit of the palace.

"Tigress!" Viper called, but her sobbing made her voice sound strange and nearly unrecognizable. But the feline didn't respond; she just kept running, not looking back.

"G-guys," Po said, snorting in, wiping more tears away. "What do we do now?... guys?"

"I don't know, Po," Viper said, still crying. "I'm sorry, but I really don't know."

Po looked down. He guessed that the task of thinking about a solid solution to a future was too hard of a task at this moment. Po sighed and looked down. There were no more tears now. No, now there was only a void that needed to be filled – a void inside his heart as well as the others'.