Hate To Love

Don't Own KFP

I should have started this a while ago but I thought the other Oneshots deserved separate titles.

The sun was over the land of the Valley of Peace. The morning mist rolled out of the town and burned away from the sun's rays. Slowly and surely, the sleeping people of the valley awoke and the small streets of the Jade Palace came alive. Up high on the mountain of the Jade Palace floated the clouds of the skies. The wind sometimes would curl. It would drop and rise and drop again. The hollow empty courtyard of the Jade Palace was littered with exercise equipment. A spiky ball there, a staff and sword there, and a punching dummy the only standing thing in the court. The Furious Five had been out for a while on a mission. Master Shifu was in the Hall of Heroes. The tall towering structure of the hall was still impressive to this day. Master Shifu had his eyes closed, sitting in front of the sacred pool. Off on a cliff higher in the mountain region was a strong new tree. It sat on this cliff starting to bear the peach fruit it was destined to bear. A hand grabbed the peach and bit a piece off from it. Po was relaxing by the nearly fully grown tree. His battle with the great and powerful Kai was exhausting and eye-opening at the very least.

Po sighed. It was a very peaceful morning. Quiet, serene, everything was almost tranquil. Po's feet dangled off the side of the cliff. He looked down at the village below. Simple and plain. He could see the small commotion that ebbed away into uniform oneness. Probably the Furious Five finishing off some bandits. On closer inspection with his eye scope, Po could see the Furious Five taking down a warthog bandit. Po smirked a bit. He remembered when it was just the Furious Five doing all the saving. Now everyone looked at him, and the Furious Five thankfully. He didn't want all the credit about his awesomeness. Po sighed again. "Another day, " He started, "Another day to realize that I'm the Dragon Warrior." Po laughed a bit at the whole thing.

"Aren't you bragging a bit too much," a voice behind him asked. Po jumped as he turned around. Po relaxed to see Tigress.

"Oh, it's just you," Po calmed down. Tigress still looked at him with a stern look. "What? What did I do wrong this time?"

"Why are you contemplating about how you're so 'awesome'," Tigress asked a little annoyed.

"It's not that," Po replied. "I just can't believe I'm the Dragon Warrior."

"Why? I thought you were over the shock by now," Tigress questioned. Her stern attitude had changed to a confused and curious one.

"I know I should be, but I just can't get over the fact. I know you can't too," Po muttered.

"That's not...entirely true," Tigress protested. "I've come to accept the way things are."

"Then why are you so hard on me," Po asked. Tigress could tell he was sincere. Tigress crossed her arms.

"Well, there's the fact that you do have a tendency to get yourself into trouble," Tigress answered.

"That's not what I meant. I meant before all that," Po questioned. Tigress became quiet for a while.

"Po, there's... I mean... I'm not really..."

"You can't answer it, can you?" Po said a little angry.

"I can," Tigress hastily answered, "I'm just... trying to phrase it right." Po stood up and looked her dead in the eye.

"Then just say it," Po said.

"No," Tigress remarked.

"Why won't you?"

"Because... I can't."

"Yes, you can."

"No!"

"Say it!"

"No," Tigress shouted back.

"Why do you hate me?"

"Because I hate myself!" Tigress shouted back. She panted trying to calm herself down. Po was surprised by that. Tigress's eyes widened. She realized she let herself go. Tigress crossed her arms again and looked away from Po.

"Why?"

"Po, I don't know why I'm so hard on you. I just-"

"No, why do you hate yourself," Po interrupted.

"What?"

"I'm not interested in why you're hard to me anymore. Now, I'm just wondering why you would hate yourself," Po said. Tigress sat off the edge of the cliff and stared over the abyss. Po quietly sat next to her. "And then I want to know what it has to do with you liking to bash my brains in." Tigress offered the smallest smile Po ever saw. Po looked at her. This wasn't Tigress. Sure, sometimes she was tough on him, but he never liked it when she seemed to doubt herself. Po never told anyone this, but Tigress was kind of the strong tower in the Jade Palace for him. If she was hurt by something, Po personally took it upon himself to help her fix it. It was when Po was considering all of this that Tigress spoke.

"It's... difficult," Tigress slowly said.

"To say or to do," Po asked. Tigress sighed.

"Why do you care so much about it," Tigress asked.

"Because I care about you," Po said plainly. Tigress looked at him with widened eyes. "Umm...well ah... Anyways, why is it difficult?" Tigress noted that he was defensive about it, but she let it go.

"It's difficult because even though I've accepted you being the Dragon Warrior, I'm still in search of what I should do. What's my purpose," Tigress asked. Po couldn't answer that. She knew he couldn't. "You, on the other hand, were chosen for this whole thing. You know what you're destiny is. I'm still trying to figure out mine. It's all just... so frustrating." She crinkled her fingers a bit in irritation. She looked at Po for a reaction. All she could see was an understanding face. Why? "Do you understand what I mean?"

"Completely," Po said without hesitation.

"How?"

"Often times, before I was chosen, I thought I wouldn't have any kind of great destiny. I thought I would go down in history as the weird old lonely panda guy that made noodles. I mean, I never really wanted to be as great as the Dragon Warrior, but still I had dreams." That really shocked Tigress. She wouldn't have taken him to be that honest and that plain. "But that doesn't explain why you hate yourself." Tigress was quiet again. She really didn't want to tell him, nor anyone, but Po had already been open for her. It was the least she could do.

"I hate myself because I don't think I'll ever amount to anything," Tigress said sadly.

"What do you mean," Po asked. Tigress looked at Po's reaction. He looked like she had said a curse word and insulted Po. This confused and angered face slightly scared Tigress. She never saw Po this angry. Frustrated, yes, but not really mad.

"I mean," She continued, "the Dragon Warrior title is the greatest title that there is. It's the top. You can't beat it. I thought for years that I was training for it. But-"

"But I came out the air like an idiot and took it away from you," Po sighed. Tigress could hear the guilt in Po's tone.

"It's not your fault, Po. I could have never unlocked the secret of the Dragon Scroll. You were able to do it. How? We still don't know," Tigress said comfortingly. Po smiled sheepishly, rubbing the back of his head. He never told them that he understood the secret by learning his father's noodle recipe. That wouldn't make a good story.

"Do you ever think that Master Oogway made a mistake," Po asked. Tigress shook her head with a small smile. It was odd sometimes with Po. He would ask questions that he already knew.

"Po, you already know that answer. I think he made the right choice," Tigress replied.

"Right," Po said in a low unenthusiastic tone. Tigress noticed this.

"Do YOU think he made a mistake?"

"I know I can do some magically awesome Kung Fu stuff but I... often think I'm here by mistake," Po replied quite sadly. This made Tigress a bit worried. She admittedly never liked seeing Po sad. That's why she often helps him when he won't talk to the others. Sure she sometimes beats it out of him, but it's meant for the better good. Or so she says.

"If it was," Tigress said, resting her hand on his shoulder, "It was a great mistake." Po smiled brightly.

"But I think you're worth a lot Tigress," Po encouraged, "I believe you're worth so much more than the Dragon Warrior Title." Tigress looked away.

"You're just saying that," Tigress said, trying to hide a burning feeling in her cheeks.

"No, I'm not. I..." Po was silent for a while, "When I was thinking of giving up, I was going to ask Master Oogway to make you the Dragon Warrior." Tigress was speechless. Was he really going to give her the Dragon Warrior title? Her, who gave him the hardest time among the others?

"You...were," Tigress whispered. Po nodded. "I... I don't know what to say, Po."

"You can say one thing," Po suggested. "Tell me the reason why you hate yourself."

"But I did."

"That can't be the only reason." Tigress sighed.

"I hate myself because... it seems I'll never make Master Shifu proud," Tigress whispered. Now Po understood. Master Shifu was very hard to his students when Tai-Lung was captured. Tigress had said Shifu was like a father to her. If she couldn't make him proud, what worth did she have? Po mockingly laughed, which alarmed Tigress to no end.

"You really don't know anything, do you?" Po smirked. Tigress looked at him confusingly. "I'm sorry for laughing. I just find it all funny."

"Why? Since when did you start mocking people's pain," Tigress growled out with a slightly hurt tone.

"Because do you know how many times Master Shifu tells me to be like you?" Tigress seemed surprised. "Almost every time I do something wrong, he says, 'No, why can't you do it like Master Tigress?' He uses you as an example for everything whether it's meditation, listening, or a lot of concentration. You're his star pupil. It makes me jealous sometimes," Po confessed, not able to look at her. "And I just find it funny that you don't think he's proud of you. To tell you the truth, he's prouder of you than he was of Tai-Lung." It was like sweet chain releasing music to Tigress.

"He... he does," Tigress stuttered.

"Oh man, he won't stop," Po muttered. "And that's why you hate yourself? Because you don't think you can make your foster parent proud. The very fact that he took care of you is a sign that he's proud. So stop hating yourself." Po was a little blunt but he knew that's what Tigress needed. Tigress shocked Po with a hug. She was on her knees, hugging him around the neck. He sat stiff as a board. When she released, she saw his shocked amazed face.

"I'm sorry, I just... Thank you," Tigress finally managed to say. Po blinked a few times before his brain came back to normal.

"It's fine," Po replied.

"I guess you're also wondering why I'm always pestering you on your weaknesses," Tigress guessed. Po shrugged but nodded as well. Tigress sat back down and sighed. "I... have...trouble feeling... the normal things you do. So, because I have a lot of built up frustration and anger-"

"You unleash it on me," Po finished. Tigress exhaled ashamed.

"I'm sorry for all my... 'hardcore' afflictions."

"I've come to get used to it. Now that I know why you do it, I'll try to help you release some of that anger without me being the target," Po suggested. Tigress smirked.

"Oh, I think punching you will be satisfying enough."

"No, no," Po replied narrowing his eyes are her amused face. "I'm not letting you do that." Tigress chuckled a bit.

"But thank you. I really am sorry for doing all of that to you," Tigress replied.

"It's okay, I've...kinda come to like it," Po whispered, but Tigress heard.

"Why would you like me knocking your day lamps out," Tigress asked. Po fidgeted nervously.

"Well, I know it's hard for you to show feeling so I always thought it was a sign of... liking," Po blushed. "I mean, I know that you don't show emotions or anything but I always thought you were...trying to get something across." Po looked at Tigress's shocked and open-mouthed face. "Or was I just mistaken?" He asked looking away.

"How... how did you figure that out?" Tigress shyly asked.

"I know you, Tigress. I know that while you try to be strong for the rest of us, you're just like us. I know you don't want to seem weak or emotional so I look for what I can get," Po replied with a sad smile. "But I know that I read too much into it. I'm sorry."

"Don't be," Tigress blurted out. "I... You were right. I... I was hard on you because I like you. I was frustrated at the fact that I couldn't tell you so I took my frustration out on you, which was another reason why I'm so hard on you." Tigress looked at the village below. Then she felt Po wrap his left arm on her right side, pulling her closer to Po. "P PPO?" She stumbled. She tried to stay calm, or, at least, angry. Yes, anger could make him back off, but she couldn't control her nervousness. Her stomach was flipping all over the place. Her heart was pumping louder and louder. Tigress looked at Po's face, which had a great big smile on it. She relaxed just a tad when she saw that smile, but she was still immensely nervous and she knew she was blushing.

"I like you, too," Po whispered to her, grabbing her chin gingerly. He gently kissed her on the lips. All the while, Tigress's eyes stayed in their wide setting. When Po pulled away, something in Tigress broke away, broke out, broke free from all the restraints she had placed over the years. She rushed to Po's parting lips and kissed him this time. Her eyes closed. Po was surprised but instinctively followed along. Tigress had grabbed his face in the rush and started caressing his soft cheeks. Po's arms wrapped around her slim waist and brought her closer to him. Tigress pushed Po onto his back while kissing him. Po felt Tigress's tail lovingly wrap around his leg. Po gently rubbed her back, making her purr into the kiss. This caused Tigress to involuntarily part her lips open a bit, letting Po's tongue invade her mouth. Tigress could feel her eyes rolling back. She had never experienced something this... wonderful, magical, marvelous, amazing. Words couldn't describe it. Her dominant side started to kick in. Po could tell because she started fighting Po's probing tongue. While they were fighting for dominance, the need for air finally called to them. They parted, panting greatly. "Well," Po said out of breath, "That was new."

"Yeah," Tigress swallowed. She returned to kissing him and Po kissed right along back. Tigress continued to purr through the kiss. This time, when the air was needed, they slowly parted. Po's smile was contagious and Tigress smiled back. "I love you," She whispered to him. "But I hate you sometimes." Po laughed.

"I love you, too," Po replied. They laid in each other's arms, snuggling in the warmth between them.

So imagine you're Master Shifu. You walk up these many stairs trying to find your star pupil... and the Dragon Warrior. Plus, it's night time. The rest of the Furious Five had already said she was the first to come back. You don't pay it any mind but then you notice as the day waxes on, Po and Tigress aren't there. Lunch, no panda, Supper, no panda. You begin to worry not only for Po but also for Master Tigress. So Master Shifu went up to the Peach Tree and saw Tigress and Po in an interesting position. Tigress is on Po's belly, curled up like a kitten on top of Po's rising and falling belly. Po is on the bottom with his arms still firmly around Tigress. Master Shifu IMMEDIATELY turns back around and doesn't mention anything to anyone. He does, however, smile. "Now, I have to baby-proof everything," He muttered.

The End