The Lion and the Leopard

Prodigal's Son

Tai Lung stalked up to the Jade Palace. In his eyes was a hungry gleam for revenge. In his hands, the limp body of his brother. His hardened paws stepped lightly on the stairs. Beside him, Tigress the tiger cub walked beside him. Tai Lung was not ignorant to her presence, but he did not speak to her. Both the cats were silent as they climbed the stairs, the younger sometimes stealing glances at the body of the lion that the muscular snow leopard carried.

On top of the stairs, Shifu stood. The red panda's eyes were wide with fear at the sight unraveling before him. He wanted to run. But his mind, trained in the ways of Kung Fu, kept him stationary. His tail bushed as he saw his former students climb the stairs to him. Shifu did not need the eyes of an eagle to see the limp body of the lion in Tai Lung's arms.

Horror crept up the Kung Fu master's spine as Tai Lung and Tigress stood before him. Tai Lung's huge frame dwarfing the tiger cub. But it didn't even take a baby goose to see the hate gleaming both of the feline's eyes. The large snow leopard tossed Leo Lung's body to the ground, carelessly, as if it were a filthy dish rag. Shifu inhaled sharply, recoiling from the horrifying sight of his two students standing over the lion's body.

Tai Lung, seeing his master in such a vulnerable state, chuckled quietly,

"What's wrong, Master? Did I frighten you?" The snow leopard asked, faux sweetness lacing his voice. Tai Lung's lips curled into a menacing grin to reveal his gleaming teeth.

Shifu seemed to be frozen. He could not seem to find an answer. All he could seem to do was stare in horror at Tai Lung, Tigress, and Leo Lung's broken body. Tai Lung, realizing that his question was going to remain unanswered, let out a loud roar. He lunged at his master, and sunk his teeth into his throat.

Thunder boomed outside as Shifu let out a cry of anguish and surprise as he bolted upright. His cover flew off of him. He had had a nightmare. The red panda shook his head.

Shifu glanced around. It was dark outside, and a storm brewed overhead. The red panda turned and planted his small feet on the floor. He rubbed his head with one of his paws, and turned on his lantern with his other paw. He took the lantern off of his small bedside table and walked over to his window.

As Shifu looked outside, his thoughts once again wondered to his son, Leo Lung. He had gone missing about one year ago. Shifu had started training Tigress three months ago. Shifu, in an effort to not relive the past, grew distant from Tigress. Shifu had overheard some of the staff speaking that Tigress cried herself to sleep one night after a rough day of training.

The red panda had quickly dismissed the conversation. If Tigress could not handle the tough training of Kung Fu then maybe she didn't... Shifu could tell that Tigress was meant to be the Dragon Warrior. The power behind everyone of her moves and the fierce look in her eyes had convinced Shifu. But as he thought about it, he didn't want to drive Tigress away. Shifu remembered the one thought that had convinced him to adopt the tiger cub: he had seen both of his sons in her. The red panda sighed and shook his head just as thunder boomed outside.

The Kung Fu master moved back to his bed and crawled under the one cover that he had, replacing the lantern on the table and blowing out the candle. Shifu turned over in his bed and closed his eyes, wishing for sleep.

Two months later, in the mountains

Leo Lung's eyes flew open. He was on his knees on a mat in a cave. The lion looked around wildly. Where was Shifu? Leo stood up and took in his surroundings.

His moment of blissful unknowing ended quickly. A dusty pack lay near his mat, and the sun outside was shining. Leo ran a paw through his mane. Even if it hadn't been combed in a year, it didn't have too many tangles in it.

The lion walked to the outside of the cave. The bright sun made him hiss and back up. {I have seen sunlight in a year.} Leo's eyes narrowed as he took another tentative step back into the sunight. His tail quivered in a combination of nervousness and excitement as he felt the almost unfamiliar warmth of the sunlight being soaked in his fur.

A cry from an overhead hawk made the lion look up. There, in the distance, Leo saw a building glint in the sunlight. That building was a building he never thought he would see again. The Jade Palace.

Leo let out a sigh of both awe and relief. The prospect of going home seemed tempting now. Leo glanced back at his dusty bag and walked over to it. With a powerful breath, the lion blew the dust off of it, coughing when some of the dust blew back into his face.

After Leo had gathered his things and stretched his stiff limbs, Leo embarked on the journey home.

The journey home was longer than Leo anticipated. But Leo didn't think much of it. He had been meditating for a year and two months. He figured it would be ok if he underestimated the distance back home.

When Leo arrived in the Valley of Peace, he certainly wasn't prepared for the welcome that he received from the villagers. It started when a baby rabbit pointed him out, claiming 'The Lion has returned! Leo Lung is back from the dead!'

That was when villagers started cheering and presenting him with food and many other varieties of gifts. Leo politely denied the gifts. He didn't want these innocent villagers to give away their possessions to a lion who has been in a mountain meditating for the last year.

But when one of the villagers mentioned Shifu, Leo's ears perked up. Leo pushed his way through the crowd and began to make his way towards the stairs that led to the Jade Palace.

Leo fell onto all fours and began accelerating towards the palace. The crowd cheered behind him, and the lion pictured Shifu in his head. How happy would Shifu be when he was reunited with his long lost son? Leo beamed at the thought.

Eventually the master reached the base of the stairs that lead to the palace. Leo ran up the stairs, two or three steps at a time.

Shifu was watching Tigress train in the Training Hall when one of the staff burst into the room in a blind hurry. Shifu turned to glare at the goose. Did he not give them instructions to not interrupt when he was training? It must be an emergency.

"Master Shifu.." The goose wheezed, "He has returned..!" The bird leaned on one of the columns to try and catch his breath.

Shifu's paranoia caught up to him. Tai Lung was coming back? He remembered the dream he had a few months ago. He ordered Tigress to stop training and to come with him. Shifu rushed outside to see Oogway was approaching him. Shifu then ran to the stairs.

Tigress came up beside Shifu and Oogway. For a few seconds, Shifu was concerned that Tai Lung would kill Tigress. She only had about a year of training, compared to Tai Lung, who had been training his whole life.

But the animal who crest the stairs was not Tai Lung. It was a cat Shifu never thought he would see again. His eyes widened and he could feel a tear streak down his cheek.

"L-Leo Lung!"