The Countdown

There's just ONE little problem....

89 days and counting.....

Po and Li journeyed to the panda village for about five days. (It took a day longer than expected since Li liked to frequently stop for food. Not that Po minded much). Along the way, the two were able to talk and discuss various things, such as favorite foods, favorite colors, what Po's life was like growing up in a noodle shop, how the other pandas managed to escape and find a safe spot to hide, and what their hobbies were. The two traveled across miles of fields, bridges, and rugged mountains before finally reaching the top of a mountain where a barely noticeable arch was seen off in the far distance. 

"Is that it?" Po asked, squinting to see better.

"That's it, Le-Po," Li told him with a smile. "That's where we've been all these years."

Po glanced around at the multiple mountaintops that were together, some grass overlaying the rocks and trickling into an unseen valley while snow covered the tips. "You sure picked a good spot," he noted. "I don't think anyone would find you all the way up here."

"That's why we made our new home in this area," Li told him with a smile. "We haven't had any problems since we've arrived and it'll continue to stay like that for probably a whole other millennium."

He continued to walk forward, Po right behind him, getting closer and closer to the archway that lay ahead. After a long hour of hiking, the two finally reached it where Li slipped onto the ground to take a quick breath.

"Are you okay, dad?" Po asked worriedly.

"Ah, don't worry about me; I'm perfectly fine. I just haven't walked uphill on this mountain for almost thirty years."

Li finished taking a breath and stood up to continue. He led Po through the archway and gestured down to the valley within the mountainous region. "Welcome home, son," he announced.

Po stepped through the archway with him, letting his bag slip down to the ground in utter shock and amazement. Before him was a massive valley that was green, mystical, and had many different lakes that surrounded it. Bridges crossed across the waters and bamboo houses stood slightly scattered around the area while many pandas could be seen running around performing various activities. Some were flying kites, others were swimming in the lakes, some farmed a bit of the land, and a few pandas could be seen just laying on the grass soaking up the sun. Li glanced over at Po, seeing his amazed expression, and let out a light chuckle.

"What do you think?" he asked his son.

Po stood still with his mouth agape for a brief moment before finally saying, "Whoa."

Li grinned and gave him a pat on the back. "Just wait until you explore and meet everyone," he told him. The panda then proceeded to usher Po inside, pausing to let him grab his bag real quick before they went on. The two walked into the village where Po watched the other pandas in awe, hardly able to believe that there had been an entire village of his own species hidden the entire time. While approaching one of the bridges, the Dragon Warrior heard, "Li Shan! You're back!"

Several pandas came running up to Li, embracing him and talking to him excitedly about how his journey was and if he had any luck finding his son.

"I had a wonderful journey," Li informed them. "And I am so glad to be back." He glanced over at Po and pulled him over to the group of pandas gathered about. "Everyone, I want you to meet Lei-Feng! Um...I mean Po."

The pandas ignored the correction and went over to greet the Dragon Warrior.

"Um, hi," Po said with a small smile. "Nice to meet you too."