The Last Hope

2. The Family Honor

Present day - somewhere in China

"I still can't believe that I'm standing here."
The panda Po looked around excitedly. He was on the top floor of an arena with his teacher, Master Shifu. From there, they had a good overview. Some of the spectators had already taken their seats and were waiting that the program started.
Calmly, Master Shifu put his palms together. "Yes, Po. This is where Master Oogway had challenged the first fighters. Since then, it has become a tradition to hold kung fu competitions in this arena, which was built later. Either the best teams or the best lone fighter. And today the best kung fu fighter will be declared the winner. Oogway had always won this fight, too."
"Really?" Po was deeply impressed and looked under himself in awe. "Wow! Then we are standing on holy kung fu ground."
"Po! Better concentrate on the fight," Shifu added quickly, fearing that the Dragon Warrior might kiss the ground.
"Oh, yes, of course." The panda rose quickly and rubbed his palms together excitedly. "I just can't believe that I'm here! I've always dreamed of taking part in competitions."
Shifu took a deep breath. "You represent our village, Po. Everything depends on you. Above all, as the Dragon Warrior, people have high expectations of you."
Po drew his eyebrows together. "All right!" And clenched his fists. "Then I'll show them in the arena how a real kung fu fight looks like."
"Fine, fine," Shifu said appreciatively. "It would be good if he didn't screw it up," he muttered quietly.
But Po was much too agitated anyway to pay attention to murmuring background noises and tried to concentrate solely on the present fight. Slowly and carefully, he let his gaze wander over the arena. It wasn't the most ostentatious, but it was big and impressive enough nonetheless. It consisted of covered bleachers. You could sit and stand there. Somehow it reminded him of home in the courtyard of the Jade Palace. In the middle of the arena lay the open sky and below the open field for the fighters.
Po's heart sank to the boots. Would he manage the first lap well? But he was the Dragon Warrior. So it couldn't be a problem.
Finally, he took a deep breath and pushed his chest out. "That's what I was born for, that's what I was sent for, that's what I was trained for, that's what I was... uh... at least it's mine... it's a great honor for me to be here."
"Oh, Po!"
In surprise, Po looked to the side, where not only his foster father, Mr. Ping, rolled up with a little cart, but also with a pig which was also pulling a cart.
"I have a souvenir for you!" Mr. Ping shouted happily and pressed something into Po's paws. The panda frowned at the black and white doll.
"What is that supposed to be?" he asked, although he already suspected what it was.
"A Dragon Warrior-winner plush figure," the gander explained.
"I thought, you just wanted to sell noodles here."
"Oh, Mr. Han and I did a double deal. I sell noodles and he sells Dragon Warrior souvenirs. Everyone who buys a noodle dish from me gets a plush figure." The gander put his wings on Po's stomach. "Oh, I'm so proud of you, Po. Who would have ever thought that you would stand here one day? My little Po."
Po smiled sheepishly and put his paws on the gander's shoulders. "It's okay, dad."
But in the next moment, Mr. Ping broke away from him. "And if you win, the plushies will go away like warm tofu dishes."
A pained smile crept over Po's mouth. "Yeah, sure, dad. That means, of course, if I win... I mean, I'm not the only kung fu professional here. So, that means..."
"But of course you win!" the gander interrupted him. "Because you are the Dragon Warrior!"
"Uh... yes, yes, that's... right... it's just... I mean, maybe I'll have a black-out, or a seizure..."
"Oh, we have to go!" Mr. Ping shouted as he looked at the spectators, who were crowding more and more into the stands. "We still want to sell something before it starts. See you on the victory podium, Po!"
With his mouth open, the panda warrior stared after the vending carts running away. For a moment, Po was completely unable to say a word because everything was rattling through his head. Would he really win? Seeking for help, he looked next to himself. "Uh, master, I...?" But to his amazement, Shifu was no longer standing next to him. The panda looked around, searching. "Uh, master? Master Shifu?! Uh, I think, I need moral support again!"
In confusion, the panda left his vantage point and ran behind the stands. Where could the little master be? Po could only guess that he had already gone to the changing rooms, where all the participants gathered. Po quickened his pace. As soon as he had the many stairs behind him, he raced in the direction of a house, from which it also went directly into the courtyard of the arena. But no sooner had Po run around the corner of the house than someone hit his stomach with full force. The panda made big eyes and stared at the person on the ground who had slammed so hard against its rock-solid body. "Sheng?"
"Dragon Warrior?"
The blue-green-and-white piebald stood up quickly and bowed respectfully. But Po was so overwhelmed by this unexpected reunion that he wrapped his arms around the peacock. "Sheng, old buddy! How long have we not seen each other?"
"Two years, I guess," Sheng gasped laboriously in Po's grip.
"Two years? Gosh, how time flies. It seems to me as if it was only yesterday when we came back from Mendong City to Gongmen City and said goodbye..." He let go of Sheng. "Oh! How is the family? Are they here, too?!"
Po looked around excitedly.
"Well, to be honest," the peacock began in a low voice, "I came here alone."
Po looked at him in surprise. "Oh, do you want to watch the fights, too?"
Sheng rubbed his wings nervously together. "Well, I've... I've signed up, too."
The panda's jaw dropped. "WHAT?! For real?! Awesome! Are we fighting in the same arena? Cool! Are your wings already ruled weapons? But I'm really surprised that your father did not come with you. He should want to see what you're capable of. Although, he's not a fan of kung fu."
Hesitantly, Sheng leaned over to the panda and whispered something to him as softly as if he were afraid, somebody would hear him. "My father doesn't know that I'm here."
That hurled the panda into a deep hole again and stared at the piebald peacock in horror. "WHAT?! But what will he say when he finds out that you are here...?"
"I already know it."
Both turned around, startled. The panda and peacock turned pale at the sight of the white ruler in front of them, who looked at them gloomily.
Po tried it the cheerful way. "Oh Shen! Hi! How are you? Long time no see. Gosh, how long has that been? One year, two years?"
The white peacock stood there with crossed wings and looked anything but relaxed, so that Po had trouble keeping his smile on his mouth, but he still tried to start again.
"Hey, have you changed your appearance?" The panda examined the robes of his former rival. He wore his silver robe as always, only the edges of the sleeves were not gray, but fire red and in the form of small flames and the closure of his robe was red throughout. There wasn't the usual silver mark on his back either, but this time in the shape of a red peacock.
"Looks nice," Po said approvingly and raised his thumb. "It also fits to your red polka dots."
Shen narrowed his eyes to dangerous slits and Po had to give up trying to amuse. He put his forefingers together somewhat meekly. "I just mean."
But Shen's focus was not on the panda, but on his son. "Sheng! I forbade you...!"
"I'm sorry," the piebald peacock cut him off. "But I couldn't help it. I had to come. I would really like to stand in the arena."
The white peacock narrowed his eyes even more. "You know exactly how I think about it...!"
"What am I training for?!" Sheng shouted angrily.
Shen let out an angry snort. "So that you can defend yourself, not to make yourself the mockery of the whole country!"
Po looked at him with a frown. "To the mockery of the country? So now wait a minute, the competition is the highest honor that a kung fu warrior can get here."
"That's the problem."
"How so?"
Sheng sighed and leaned over to the panda. "He doesn't want that I lose," he whispered to him, which was rather incomprehensible to Po.
"It's not necessarily about winning," the panda emphasized. "It's about having the privilege of taking part in these fights."
Shen gave him a glare. "And how would it be if you lose?" he asked venomously.
Po's heart sank again. Everyone expected that he wins, but what if not? For a moment, Po stood in the balance, completely shocked, and imagined how the Dragon Warrior victory dolls would be thrown at him. But even before he had the idea that Shifu could throw him out of the Jade Palace, his train of thought was interrupted by a happy girl's voice.
"Panda Po, panda, panda!"
The panda's jaw dropped again when he saw a small white figure running towards him. "Shenmi?"
In the next moment, the white peacock girl threw herself at the panda. Po lifted her up and examined her closely. "Wow, hey! Am I just imagining it, or have you grown a little?"
Po's excitement was diverted when a few more peafowls came up to him. Amazed, he lifted the girl in his arms and looked at the others with wide eyes. "Yin-Yu, Xia, Zedong, Fantao, Jian? Did you all come? Wow, do you want to see the competitions, too? - Ouch!" Po rubbed his stomach into which the peacock cub Zedong had boxed him for fun. "Let me guess, you have trained, too, haven't you?"
Zedong raised his head proudly, his wings akimbo. "I'm almost as good as Sheng." He puckered his beak, insulted. "But children are not allowed to participate."
"Well, I would win the painting competition anytime," Fantao said with amusement and waved his brush in front of Zedong's face. His brother didn't like it at all and pushed him away.
"Well, well, well," Yin-Yu interfered and pushed the two apart before she turned to the panda. "Greetings, Dragon Warriors," the older peahen greeted and bowed briefly before explaining the reason for her appearance. "Otherwise, I would not have stood it any longer at home."
Po raised his eyebrows. "Because of Sheng?"
"No, because of..." She nodded at Shen. Gradually, Po understood that she feared that the whole thing could end in a tough father-son argument. And it really looked like Shen might lose his temper.
Xia shared her concern after bowing to the Dragon Warrior, albeit in a more companionable way. "Hello, Po. Father is really hard to speak at the moment."
With worried eyes, Po looked back at Shen and Sheng. Shen had meanwhile grabbed his son by the wing and looked at him menacingly. "You go in there now, sign off and come back to me!"
But Sheng tore himself away. "No, father! I also want to do something what I want."
"Who wants to deregister here?"
Everyone looked up. In front of them stood the two well-known figures of an ox and a crocodile, closely followed by a little red panda.
„Oh! Master Ox! Master Croc!" Po shouted, partly enthusiastically, partly contrite. "And Master Shifu! I was looking for you all the time."
Shenmi waved cheerfully to the ox. Master Ox returned the girl's greeting with a cheerful expression. But as soon as his gaze fell on Shen, his smile instantly froze again. "You really have nerves to show yourself here."
The white peacock let out an annoyed growl. "It was never my wish to come here. But since you're already here, you can cancel a name from the list of participants and we'll go again."
Zedong jumped up. "Oh! But I also wanted to see the fights!"
"Keep quiet!" Shen ordered, pulling his son away by the sleeve, pretty sure that Sheng would comply, including the rest of the family. But no sooner had the white ruler taken a few steps, Master Ox crossed his arms with a snort. "Are you so scared that he will lose?"
Shen stopped; he was thunderstruck. Then he turned slowly to the ox and looked at him angrily. "You know exactly what I think of your battle theater. It's extremely childish to waste one's energy on something like that."
Po didn't find this insult at all nice, but kept his mouth shut so as not to pour more oil into the fire, but Master Ox seemed to want to upset his arch-rival and former future ruler. "Tz, he has no chance against the Dragon Warrior anyway."
Yin-Yu's face took on a worried expression as she noticed Shen's wings clenched. "Did I say that?!" Shen hissed.
At that moment, Sheng stepped forward again. "Well, actually I just wanted to take part..."
"You see," the ox said gleefully, visibly satisfied that someone else besides him stood up to the white peacock. "Unless you force him to cowardly withdraw."
Po looked at the master in shock. He hadn't intended to get into the ring on this principle. "Well, I thought, to be present is everything..."
But the ox ignored his comment. "Do you still want to back down now?"
Shen brandished his robe. "I never said anything about withdrawing!"
Po threw Shifu a look for help. "Master, say something now."
"So, then will he take part?" Master Ox dug deeper unhindered.
"No!" Shen refused.
"Hey!" Sheng shouted indignantly. "Does someone ask me what I want?! I just want to be there once!"
The piebald peacock ducked his head a little when his father looked at him threateningly. Only Zedong had no hesitation in expressing his opinion in the background. "Well, I think, it's cool that he's going in there."
"You stay out of this!" his father rebuked him.
Sheng tried again to remain calm and took a deep breath. "Father, let me try this. It doesn't matter whether I win..."
"You're not going to join this circus!" Shen ordered firmly. "Your "to be present there" will not only affect you, but also the whole family!"
Sheng narrowed his eyes. "Just for the family or your pride?"
That silenced the white peacock for a short time, but he felt extremely offended.
Sheng sighed bitterly. "You can't expect me to align myself with whatever suits you for the rest of my life. I'm not doing anything illegal here."
Master Ox wrinkled his nose. "That would have surprised me less next..."
Shen spun around. "YOU...!"
"Shen, please, calm down!" Suddenly, Soothsayer appeared out of nowhere and stopped the angry peacock with her walking stick.
Po looked at her in amazement. "You here, too? Who comes next?"
"Can't you see it?" the old goat tried to appease Shen. "He cannot be changed. And he won't do that either."
Shen's peacock head feathers began to shake. "Where do you get that from?"
"I just have to look at you and I know it."
Po had to giggle. "You're saying they both have the same blockhead, aren't you?" When Shen's evil look met him, he ducked his head. "It was meant as a compliment."
"And in terms of you," the old goat said to the masters, "you should concentrate better on your work and not spoil the joy of others. After all, you head the jury, don't you?"
Master Ox grinned. "Of course we head the jury, as always." He rubbed his hooves. It would only give him pleasure that Shen would be angry with his son. But a warning look from the goat caused him not to express this thought.
At that moment, the green peacock boy Jian stroked his musical instrument, a small Chinese pipa, and hummed something to himself. "Why battering the heads?" he muttered quietly. "That's what the battlefield is for."
Everyone looked at him questioningly.
Zedong poked the panda in the side. "Sometimes he talks stuff that he calls poetry. I think, the music still makes him very confused."
"What Jian is trying to say is," Xia intervened, "that there is already enough fighting in the arena. In our private life, we don't have to do that, too." Her gaze wandered to her father. "Especially not in the family."
Shen crossed her wings. "So you are all against me!"
"Looks that way..." Quickly, Po covered his mouth.
"Master Ox! Master Croc! Master Shifu!" Suddenly, a gander called over to them, who probably belonged to the arena supervisor. "It's pretty late already! We have to start now!"
"We're coming!" Master Ox called back and turned to Sheng again. "So, join in or leave it."
With that, he disappeared in the house of the participants. Master Shifu also waved Po over to him. "Po, you better come with me now."
For once, the panda was grateful for this request and went into reverse gear because Shen was still glaring at him.
"I... uh... I'll quickly go to the changing rooms. I mean, I don't have anything to change or to put on... but I still want to prepare myself... mentally... mentally and physically... in body and mind... maybe also eat something... so see you!"
Quickly, the panda disappeared through the door into the house. Sheng remained standing for a while and looked at his father with a petulant, pleading face. The others looked from one to the other with concern. Finally, Shen tore his robe around and turned his back to his son. "Do what you want! Apparently, my influence on you is no longer strong enough!"
With that, he turned away and walked away angrily. Sheng looked after him a little sadly, but then he felt his mother's wings settle on his shoulder. "Sheng, whatever it is," she said warmly. "I will always be proud of you."
The piebald peacock smiled at his mother. "Thank you, mother."
"Go on now," Yin-Yu said, pushing him towards the house. "You will come too late."
The peacock ran away quickly. Zedong shouted "Hit them all!" Before he was taken back by the old goat.
"Zedong, my boy," the soothsayer said. "Winning is not everything."
"But that's more fun," the little piebald peacock insisted.
The goat stroked his little head. "You will learn what it means that there is more than just to win."
She caught Yin-Yu's concerned look and shook her head wistfully. "The two are really similar. Nobody wants to be persuaded."
The older peahen nodded sadly. "That's exactly what worries me about the future."
Po, who had been listening in a hidden corner, withdrew depressed. Actually, he had been really looking forward to the competition and now something like this had to happen. With hunched shoulders, he went into the house to the changing rooms. And besides his partially empty stomach, all he knew was that he felt worse than before.

The picture isn't mine, I just posted it to show you, how Shen's new design looks now.