The Countdown: In Between the Lines

Second Chances

Po woke up the next morning to the sound of Tigress pacing the floor in her room. A bit curious, he got up from his bed and did his best to quietly walk across the hallway to see what was going on. Tigress didn't seem to hear him as she continued to absentmindedly pace the floor, her hands folded tightly behind her back and her eyes trained stiffly on the ceiling. Po watched her for a moment before clearing his throat to get her attention. Startled, Tigress jumped and turned towards the door where she spotted her friend watching her.

"Sorry," Po apologized. "Didn't mean to scare you."

"Why are you spying on me?" Tigress demanded quietly.

"I'm not, I swear!" Po promised. "I heard you pacing and I wanted to make sure you were okay."

"I'm fine," Tigress promised. "I'm just...not sure how well I'll do talking to Dai. I'm not exactly the greatest in terms of comforting people."

Po smiled at her. "You'll be fine," he promised. "Just be yourself and...be nice to him."

Tigress rolled her eyes. "Thanks," she said, moving back into her pacing mode.

Po eyed her. "Is something else bothering you?" he asked. "You're still pacing and now you look like you're about ready to slap me in the face again." 

The master rolled her eyes again. "I'm not going to slap you, I promise," she said. "And it's nothing. Just nerves. I..."

The master was interrupted with a sharp look from Po that meant, you're lying to me. She sighed. "Alright, fine," she grumbled. She gave up pacing and leaned against the wall. "It isn't just about talking to Dai. It's...it's just the idea of going back to Bao Gu. Again. I mean...I know it was okay when we went there yesterday, but I didn't plan on going back again and again just because I feel sorry for a kid who reminds me of myself."

Po gave her a sympathetic look and walked over to her. "If you did good yesterday, you'll be alright going again today," he assured her.

"I'm just not sure if I want to keep dealing with Mr. Ren, that's all."

Po gently squeezed her shoulder. "You'll be alright," he promised. "Mr. Ren may not be the nicest guy, but Mrs. Ire will be there, and you have someone else that you can talk to. Though if Mr. Ren starts making you feel bad, he'll have to answer to me."

Tigress looked at him, a slight smile creeping across her face. "That's...very sweet, Po," she said.

"Hey, no one should be making fun of anyone. Especially you."

Tigress felt a blush form on her face and she opened her mouth to speak, only to be interrupted by a series of shushes and snickers from outside of her room. The two masters groaned audibly, and Po called out, "Monkey!"

Monkey snickered again, this time a bit louder, and Mantis' chuckling could be heard as well. They weren't visible, so it was more than likely that they were hiding behind the door frame.

"You know, Master Shifu isn't the only one who can beat you two over the head with a staff," Tigress threatened, getting up from her bed and walking over to the door.

The footsteps from the two masters could then be heard scampering down the hallway, allowing Tigress to stop. "Well, they're gone now," she said, letting out a sigh.

"Should we tell Shifu?" Po asked, getting up as well.

"No. That should be warning enough," Tigress promised him.

Po walked over to her. "Well, since we're up," he said, a grin forming. "Why don't we go make breakfast?"

Tigress cast him a look. "We?" she repeated.