Author's note: Hello everybody! I'm back! I am so sorry it has taken so long- a combination of intense writer's block, other stories and life getting in the way- but here it is: My final chapter to this story, can you believe it?

Thank you all so much for your reviews, favourites and follows, and above all, your patience!

I hope you enjoy it.

~..~..~..~..

The sky was beginning to pale as dawn approached, and the now relatively empty valley seemed quieter than usual.

In the Hall of Warriors, servants were cleaning up as Po and the Five left the room, having finally finished consulting with Shifu, Master Bunny and her students while Xi-Wong and Yue-Yan were positioning the pandas who had agreed to help fight throughout the valley.

"Okay guys," Po told his friends. "We now have a plan."

"We know, Po." Mantis stated wearily. "We've been discussing all night."

"But let's not forget," Po added a little smugly. "That it was me who came up with the idea on how to imprison Long."

"Actually, that was me, Po," Tigress reminded her friend calmly. "You were simply the… catalyst for the idea."

"Tigress, you flatter me," Po answered with false modesty and Tigress simply rolled her eyes before taking her leave. She had to get herself ready for the coming battle.

"Actually, I don't think she is," Crane supplied bluntly.

"On the bright side: your clumsiness came in handy for a change," Monkey added as the group made their way down the Jade palace stairs.

Shifu followed his students pensively, holding back a yawn. It had been a long night. For while Tigress' theory seemed plausible when it came to defeating the army, there had still been the issue of Long himself. Not to mention the fact that he needed to be freed from his host before they could entrap his spirit once again. They had planned, argued and debated for hours, and it was as Shifu was telling everyone to get some sleep in preparation for the next morning that Po, already beginning to doze off, inadvertently gave them the key thing they needed: a way to imprison Long's parasitic spirit once again.

Shifu sighed. The plan they had come up with was theoretical, at best. And there was still no guarantee that Li could be freed safely. But still, once Po had given them their best plan to capture Long's spirit, albeit unintentionally…Tigress had become filled once more with the fiery determination that he admired so much in her.

Shifu cast one last look over the Jade Palace grounds, his eyes coming to rest on Oogway's peach tree.

'We will defend the Valley, Master Oogway,' Shifu thought, speaking to his friend and mentor in his mind. 'You have taught us all well, and your legacy continues through your teachings.' Shifu couldn't help but let out a sigh. The power of yin and yang…

'I just hope we've understood your lesson.'

~..~..~..~..

Long stood before his tiger army, facing the valley and relishing in the thought that it would soon belong to him once more. But the valley was only the start…

"Oogway's legacy ends today," he whispered.

~..~..~..~..

Long and his army entered the Valley as the sun rose over the horizon, observing the quiet streets and empty homes, yet knowing that not all was not as it seemed.

'Oogway's students wouldn't just empty the village,' he thought as he cast his eyes around the area. 'Somewhere, they are lying in wait.'

"Spread out,' Long ordered his tiger soldiers. "Find me the students of Oogway."

As the tigers moved off silently, Po, Tigress, and Da-Xia observed from the rooftops.

"Remember," Tigress told Da-Xia out of the corner of her mouth, "stay by me."

"Don't worry aunty Lin," Da-Xia kept her gaze on her kidnapped father, "I've got your back."

Po turned as his birth father crept up beside them.

"Long's new prison is ready, son," Xi-Wong reported. It had taken the whole night to make it, and hopefully, their idea worked.

Po smiled in gratitude. "We'll free your brother, Tigress," Po assured his friend before turning to his birth father. "Time for the signal."

~..~..~..~..

Tiger soldiers were racing in groups along abandoned streets, searching houses and shops to find their quarry.

"Ahh!"

A tiger turned at the yell to see his fellow soldier fly out of a shop door to land in the street.

Automatically, the fallen tiger regained his feet, and soon was joined by his comrades.

Eying the door suspiciously, the tigers could only see the darkness within the shop, until suddenly, a large blur of black and white bolted from the dark doorway, scattering the tigers like bowling pins.

"Now!" Po yelled.

Pandas suddenly appeared out of every street and doorway. The tiger soldiers attacked immediately, however, the pandas plushy bodies, along with their tai chi skills, ensured that practically every attack was harmlessly deflected, so that the soldiers' attacks often ended up hurting their comrades rather than their intended victims.

"No more hiding!" Xi-Wong cheered his village on as he sent a tiger flying over his head.

~..~..

"Po!" Tigress fought her way through the throng as he joined the other kung fu masters defending the steps to the Jade Palace. "Where's Long?"

Po ducked a tiger soldier's kick before sending him into Viper's vice-lick grip. Casting his eyes over the crowd of Tigers, Pandas and Kung Fu masters, Po caught a glimpse of a large Tiger, standing motionless in the chaos around him, staring towards the Jade Palace stairs.

"There," Po pointed. Sharing a look with Tigress, she nodded to indicate she was ready. Turning, Tigress caught her niece's gaze.

"I've got your back," Da-xia stated determinedly, blocking a punch from an attacking tiger soldier, sending him towards her aunt, who dealt him a fierce round kick to the head, knocking him unconscious.

"He must be a third born," Da-xia mumbled to herself thoughtfully.

"Do you really think plushy teddy bears are enough to defeat me?" Long asked, his voice reverberating throughout the Valley via the voices of all of his soldiers.

"It's time," Tigress whispered to her friends. "Let's go!"

"I am the sorcerer, Long!" The dragon spirit yelled, raising Li's arms in defiance as the ground beneath their feet exploded, trapping the pandas' legs in earth.

The kung Fu masters used every maneuver in their repertoire to dodge the flying rocks and soil.

~..~..~..~

Yue-Yan was with Nuan and Jia, trying to free her students without becoming entrapped herself.

"Yue-Yan, just run," Nuan insisted. "We're not hurt."

"I'm not leaving," Yue-Yan shot back, once again redirecting a rock flying towards her head towards the rock imprisoning her students, hoping one would cause it to crack.

"Behind you!"

Turning, Yue-Yan barely had time to glimpse a large boulder flying straight towards her before it suddenly split in half, narrowly missing her head. She felt the jagged edges brushing her ears before they broke apart on the rock encasing Jia's legs.

"Are you alright, Yue-Yan?"

The herbalist looked up to see Shifu standing before her, frowning in concern, his hand still poised from where he had broken the boulder.

"Yes," Yue-Yan answered slowly, feeling a strange sense of Déjà vu. "Thank you, Shifu."

"Uh, can you use that rock smashing ability to free us, Master Shifu?" Jia asked hopefully.

~..~..

"Long!" Tigress roared, as she raced towards the sorcerer who wore her brother's face.

Long smiled.

"Hello Lin," he said casually, finally succeeding in trapping her legs in rock.

"Let her go!" Da-Xia roared, aiming a kick at Long's head, hoping her father would forgive her. However, the soil beneath her feet erupted and soon she found herself half buried.

"Such a waste of talent, Da-Xia," Long told the young tigress in a patronizing tone. In moments, they were surrounded by a group of tiger soldiers. "You should reconsider my offer to join my army.

"Bite me," Da-Xia snarled.

"The rock won't be able to hold us forever," Tigress tried to keep him distracted as much as she could.

"Oh, I'm sure your precious Kung Fu masters will break them free in due time," Long admitted, having spotted several using their skills to break apart the rock to save their friends and fighters. "And by that time, their efforts will have exhausted them. How many fighters do you have to free?" He asked, laughter entering his tone. "You're practically handing the Valley to me, and I barely need to do a thing."

"So that's why you do your magic tricks," Tigress smirked. "You can't face someone off in a real fight."

Seeing her brother's borrowed expression become stony gave Tigress hope. They had devised a way in containing Long's spirit, however the fatal flaw had been in trying to find a way to separate his spirit from Li's body. For master Shifu had been right: As long as the Dragon sorcerer remained in possession of Li's body and mind, there was no way to save him.

But perhaps, if Long could be goaded into a fight himself, they might be able to find a way to separate him from his host body.

"I don't need magic to defeat you," Long hissed. "You are nothing. A mortal. Whereas I," Long smiled, " am undefeatable. I have no body of my own for you to kill."

"Not buying it," Tigress goaded. "I challenge you to a battle myself."

~..~..~..~

Shifu looked up, having just freed another victim of Long's rock imprisonment, his sharp ears picking up Tigress' voice over the shouts of battle.

Tigress was going to fight Long?

Tigers were Long's favourite choice for soldiers, for they were the most ferocious in battle…

"No," Shifu whispered.

~..~..~..~..

Po turned as he sent yet another tiger soldier flying up to where Crane glided over the scene.

'Tigress can't fight Long!' He thought frantically, having caught Tigress' challenge. 'She'd be fighting her own brother. Not to mention an equally bodacious Tiger warrior: It won't work!'

~..~..~..~..

Long raised an eyebrow skeptically.

"You would risk ending your brother's life?" He asked skeptically.

"I'm going to at least free my brother's spirit from your control," Tigress hissed, a snarl entering her voice.

Long laughed.

"Well, this should be entertaining, at least." The sorcerer stated before freeing Tigress with a gesture.

Without waiting for formalities, Long launched himself at Tigress with all the strength and ferocity of a tiger.

However, what felt like a large fluffy pillow knocked him aside and it was only due to the quick reflexes of his host, that Long landed on his feet.

Turning to face his assailant, Long was surprised to see a panda standing between him and his opponent.

"You're not hurting anyone else, Long," the panda spoke up. "We will defeat you just as Master Oogway did."

"Po?" Tigress demanded. "What are you doing? I have to save my brother!"

"I'm not saying you couldn't kick his butt, Tigress, believe me," Po assured his friend. "But you heard the Legend: only the power of Yin and Yang can defeat Long."

"You think you can defeat me?" Long scoffed. "A panda?"

"Hey, a tortoise beat you last time," Po countered confidently. "Look around you: your tiger warriors are being tossed around like dolls by the panda village. All your tiger-y strength and bodacity is no match for the pure awesomeness that is the panda warrior."

Long turned his eyes onto the battle that still continued around him, to find that the panda did indeed have a point. Long's tigers were fighting ferociously, yet their attacks appeared to simply bounce off the soft, cuddly bodies of the pandas. Strikes that would knock a warrior unconscious were simply shaken off, when used on a panda.

Long had never seen such a thing.

"How do you do this?" He wondered. For, much like what drew him to Oogway, if there was one thing Long loved more than power, it was knowledge. For knowledge was power.

"We're pandas," Po shrugged nonchalantly. "We're naturals."

"This is my fight, Dragon Warrior," Tigress stepped forward, determined. "I made the challenge."

"But I never accepted," Long reminded her, his eyes shifting from his host's sister to the large panda before him. "Who are you?"

"I am Po," the panda stood proudly. "The Dragon Warrior: keeper of the peace and the bringer of justice through pure kung fu awesomeness!"

"Dragon Warrior?" Long repeated, raising an eyebrow. "How fitting."

"Po," Tigress whispered in warning, not liking the tone of Long's voice.

"Trust me, Tigress," her friend assured her. "I'm pretty sure I've got this. I hope." He mumbled to himself fearfully, before squaring his shoulders.

"And I challenge you, Legendary Dragon Sorcerer, Long," Po turned his attention back to his opponent, trying to sound as intimidating as possible, "to a martial challenge."

Long smiled, showing Li's sharp teeth.

"I accept," he hissed.

Rushing forward, Long dealt a swift blow to Po's abdomen, sending the panda flying back into the nearest wall with a surprised yell.

Long laughed as dust and debris flew from the impact of the large body, yet the laughter soon died in his throat as Po quickly reappeared.

"You didn't think it would be that easy, did you?" He asked rhetorically before taking a battle stance.

"Get ready to feel the thunder!" He cheered, before launching his own attack on Long.

Long blocked quickly, though the sorcerer's counter was merely absorbed by Po's plushy body, Long was sent ricocheting backward, and though he regained his feet there was not enough time to slow his momentum as he went skidding through the nearest wall in a shower of debris.

Po winced, for that had been the front entrance of Mr Ping's Noodle shop.

"Sorry dad," he whimpered. He knew he was going to pay for that, later.

Snarling, Long attacked Po again and again, but every time, the panda simply shook off the effect.

The Dragon Sorcerer was shocked, experiencing a sense of Déjà vu. Oogway had been seemingly too slow and gentle to warrant being so proficient in battle. Yet here was another warrior, seemingly unsuited for the task, who appeared to have such a degree of resilience that most attacks seemed worthless, like wasted energy.

"I must admit," Long spoke up as he regained his breath. "You're a better fighter than I thought you would be."

"You're not the first to find that out," Po told him. Glancing to the side, he saw Xi-Wong give a 'thumbs up' from behind an upturned cart. Everything was in place.

"You're ability to resist the effects of an attack is very impressive," Long continued, stepping closer with a smile. "And I want it."

'Here we go,' Po thought, bracing himself.

With a gesture, Long once again lifted the earth beneath their feet, this time trapping Po's arms and legs before leaping forward.

"You'll be my new host!"

Landing on the rock encasing his panda prisoner, Long opened Li's mouth as energy began to rise up from within.

"Now!" Po yelled.

As energy began to stream out of Li's mouth, ears and eyes, Xi-Wong tossed a clay urn towards Tigress, who leapt onto the rock that entrapped Po, quickly placing it between him and Long.

Unable to stop the transfer, Long's spirit poured into the urn, and when the last remnants of light were drawn into the clay pot, Tigress quickly put the lid in place, sealing Long's spirit inside.

"Welcome to your new clay prison, Long," Tigress smiled.

Li fell to the ground at Po's feet, unconscious. The Dragon Warrior held his breath, his eyes shut tightly.

"Did it work?" Po asked, sounding slightly faint. "I'm not possessed am I? Please tell me it worked."

As if in answer, the rock that held his arms and legs fell away, and he flexed his arms with a smile before turning to Tigress.

"We did it," he whispered.

Hearing a moan, Tigress turned quickly to see her brother slowly getting to his feet. As he met his sister's gaze, a slow smile spread across Li's face.

"What do you know?" he smiled in relief as he flexed his arms and legs. "Dad's stories were true."

"Li!" Tigress cried out in delight before carefully placing the urn on the ground and racing to hug her brother. "You're back."

"Whether you like it or not, sis," Li smiled as he wrapped his arms around his sister gratefully.

"Dad!" Freed of her rock prison, Da-Xia launched herself at her father, wrapping him and Tigress tightly in a hug.

"Oh, Da-Xia!" Li greeted his daughter with a mixture of relief and admonishment. "Don't ever do anything so foolish as risking your life for mine again!"

"I won't if you don't give me reason to," his first born countered unapologetically.

All around them, Long's spells were wearing off, freeing those who had been trapped in rock.

The tigers that made up Long's army were also regaining control of their faculties, many were looking around in confusion, wondering what to do now.

The Dragon Warrior stood calmly off to one side, the urn at his feet, smiling in relief.

"It appears the plan succeed, Dragon Warrior," a voice commented, and Po turned to see Master Shifu and the rest of the Furious Five approach.

"Yep," Po patted the lid of the urn triumphantly. "Long can't control clay, so he can't get out of here."

"Dragon Warrior," Li spoke up, gaining Po's attention. "I believe I speak for us all when I say: Thank you for saving us," he said graciously, stepping forward and bowing. "However, I feel I also speak for us when I ask: how the heck did you do it?"

"The tricky part was figuring out how to separate Long from your body," Tigress supplied. "Then I remembered when he possessed the crocodile, and how still he had to be to transfer his spirit into you. I thought: if we could tempt Long into acquiring a new host, then we could use that transition time to trap him."

"And you thought you could do it yourself?" Li turned to her, his voice the same tone as that he used on Da-Xia..

"It wouldn't have worked," Po interjected. "Only a warrior with the opposite battle technique to a tiger would have been able to defeat Long. Or at least," he qualified, picking up the urn in question "give us the chance we needed to trap him again."

"With an urn?" Li wondered.

"Well," Po explained, "the original Legend said that Long was placed in a clay prison, as he can't control clay- it's not a pure element. And as he now a spirit, with no body, his clay prison wouldn't need to be very big," he held up the vessel in his hands. "An urn would work."

"Just like the urn of Whispering Warriors," Tigress added before giving Po a look. "Just make sure you don't break this one."

"Yeah," Monkey added as he approached. "This morning was what: the tenth time?"

"Hey, I know how important this is," Po said defensively, lightly tossing the urn in question. "There's no way I'm gonna- " with a yelp, Po fumbled the urn. As he juggled the clay vessel, it was only Shifu's quick movements that saved it from crashing to the ground.

"I think I should put this someplace safe," he stated calmly.

~..~..~..~..

And so it was, that the Furious Five and the Dragon Warrior defeated the Great Dragon Sorcerer Long. And in the weeks that followed, everyone worked together to return our Valley to its former state.

The Tigers who had once been under Long's control were allowed to continue to live the Valley of Peace, along with the other refugees of Long's assault, and while many left to return to their lives, others decided to stay.

The urn containing the Spirit of the Legendary Dragon Sorcerer Long, was placed in a vault especially designed to hold him, with the vault's location known only to a few.

And there, Long's spirit will stay, for the rest of time, hidden from the world, and unable to be destroyed.

I was asked by Master Shifu to add this story to our archives, so that future generations will know that the Legendary Sorcerer Long is no Legend, but a real threat. Hopefully, by hiding his location, he will never be found, but in writing this scroll, we can arm future generations with the knowledge of how to defeat him, if he is ever again freed from his prison.

As written by Zang, scribe and honoured servant of the Jade Palace.

Nodding in satisfaction as he finished reading, Shifu rolled up the scroll once more and passed it to the goose.

"Well written, Zang," Shifu nodded. "You may place it in the archives."

"Thank you Master Shifu!" The goose bowed and made his way out of the hall of Warriors, towards the archive room.

Shifu moved into the training hall, where he proudly watched his students continue their training. Tigress was watching over the newest students, and Da-Xia was proving herself quite proficient at the wooden soldiers, though several times Li had to prevent Cheng from venturing towards the fire pit.

Though as he watched Master Tigress sparring Li, as Wei, Lian and Viper watched, Shifu couldn't help but notice that, even though Tigress still fought with her usual determination and focus, there was a lightness in her eyes that he hadn't seen in many years…

~..~..~..~

Once the Valley of Peace had been repaired, and many new shops having been built, including Li's new forge and workshop, a great festival had been organized, with the help of Xi-Wong, Jia, Yue-Yan and Mr Ping, to celebrate the defeat of the Dragon Long, and to express the gratitude of the Valley to the Kung Fu Warriors who had helped them.

Strings of lanterns were hung across the streets, lighting up the pathways as people made their way to the Jade Palace. Stalls were set up selling noodles and dumplings, and every now and again, the sky would light up like the day as fireworks were sent shrieking into the sky to rain down light among the revelers below.

As the sun set, Xi-Wong stood on the top most palace steps, overlooking the courtyard.

"Excuse me everyone!" He called, raising his arms to get attention. Seeing the panda was in a dilemma, Shifu gave a signal, and instantly, a loud gong sounded, reverberating through the night air, and leaving silence in its wake.

"Thank you, Master Shifu," Xi-Wong said aside to the small master before turning back to the villagers.

"Good evening everyone!" He greeted. "As you all know, we are here to celebrate the reconstruction of the Valley-" here, a mighty cheer went up.

"And the defeat of the Sorcerer Long-" another cheer, this time louder.

"And finally: to celebrate China's greatest Warriors, who call this Valley their home."

The resounding applause that filled the courtyard as the Furious Five and the Dragon Warrior appeared to stand beside Xi-Wong lasted so long that Shifu had to signal for the gong yet again.

"Yes, we owe the Masters of the Jade Palace our gratitude," Xi-Wong nodded. "But they did not do it alone. Every person who helped in the final battle deserves to be recognized for their contribution."

"But there wasn't enough room on these stairs for everyone, so that's what this party's for," Po interjected, and a ripple of laughter echoed through the courtyard.

Xi-Wong chuckled, nodding, before turning back to his audience.

"So please friends, join with us in celebration. Whether you have found your new home or rebuilt you old one, celebrate with us! Enjoy your night, enjoy your home, enjoy your life. One Village: One family!"

"One Village: One family!" Everyone echoed back and soon, the musicians began to play, Jia amongst them, and the party began in full force.

"Come on guys, let's party!" Po cheered on his friends as they all walked down the steps to the courtyard. "Dad's pulled out all the stops on this thing: Xi-Wong even gave him some new recipes!"

At the base of the steps, Tigress watched her friends disappear into the crowd. Parties had never been her thing, but she could tell why others enjoyed them.

"Tigress?"

Turning, Tigress saw Shifu standing beside her and she bowed respectfully.

"Master Shifu," she greeted.

Shifu appeared to want to say something but thought better of it. Folding his arms serenely, he joined her, gazing out into the crowd.

"You're nieces and nephews are proving to be capable students," Shifu began cautiously. "You must be proud."

"My brother taught them well," Tigress granted with a nod.

Shifu suddenly appeared to sag, his ears drooping slightly.

"Oh, Tigress," he said somberly. "I've known you since you were a little girl, and yet I still don't have the courage to tell you what I must."

Tigress frowned. Shifu had never struggled to tell her something he felt she needed to know about her training.

"What is it Master?" She asked with a bow. "You know I will always accept any criticism you give me, as needed."

"It's not criticism, Tigress," Shifu told her, realizing just how far his mistakes had reached if this was her first assumption. Turning to the proud warrior beside him, Shifu took a moment to remember the young cub he'd first met at the Bao Gu orphanage.

"I'm proud of you, Tigress," Shifu told her before he lost his nerve. "And not just as your teacher," he added quickly, seeing the programmed response of 'thank you Master' forming before she even opened her mouth. "I'm proud of you. I have always admired your strong heart, your loyalty, as well as your determination to do your duty. I adopted you," Shifu continued, his voice filled with melancholy, "though I never treated you as a daughter, because of my own fears that you would turn into Tai Lung, and I would have to relive that pain, all over again. It is possibly my single biggest regret, and I am so sorry, Tigress."

Finally, he looked up at his adoptive daughter, whose expression was that of pure shock.

"And I'm glad," Shifu added awkwardly, "that you found your brother again. You and Li were both right: I should have never have sent him away."

It was like something finally clunked into place in Tigress' mind, and she threw her arms around her adoptive father, hugging him for the first time in years.

"I forgive you," she whispered. Hearing that Shifu was proud of her was all she had ever wanted.

Suddenly remembering herself, she quickly released Shifu, placing herself at a more respectful distance.

"I-I mean," she stammered, "thank you, for that…Sir."

Shifu smiled before placing a hand on Tigress' arm, only speaking when his adopted daughter looked at him.

"Thank you … Lin."

Tigress swallowed. 'You are a hard core Kung Fu Master', she told herself. 'You will not cry.'

"Lin," a voice called, and Tigress and Shifu looked up to see Li and his children approaching, the cubs practically bouncing with anticipation. Actually, Tigress noted, Cheng really was bouncing.

"Li," Tigress greeted, pulling herself together.

"Master Shifu," Li greeted with a bow, having warmed up to the old Master now that he and his children were permitted to train at the Jade Palace with his sister.

"Li," Shifu greeted. "I hope you and your family are enjoying the party?"

"We'll get to the party," Li smiled, "we just have something we wanted to do before we join in the fun. He held up an object wrapped in cloth. "I wanted to show you this," he explained to Tigress. "You remember the sword I was working on back in the Panda village?"

Tigress cast her mind back to when she first met Li in his forge, before she found out he was her brother.

"Yes," she admitted slowly. "You said it was a gift?"

"I did," Li nodded proudly. "And with my new shop open, I've finally finished it."

Unwrapping the cloth, a long butterfly sword was revealed, its sharp blade wider at the tip, narrowing until it met the hilt.

"What do you think?"

Tigress carefully lifted the blade before testing it, whirling it around as she practiced her sword from, she had to conclude that it was a perfect blade.

"A beautiful weapon," she granted, returning it to its maker. "I envy the one who'll receive it."

"You shouldn't," Li grinned as he pushed it back into her hands, "because it's yours."

"Mine?"

Li chuckled at the surprised look on his sister's face. "Let's say it's to make up for all the birthdays I missed. And a 'welcome back to the family' present." He added gently.

"And here's ours!" The tiger cubs spoke up quickly as, together they brought forth a rolled up canvas.

"Wei painted it. We just had input," Da-Xia explained as they unfurled the canvas to reveal a painting of all of them: Li, Tigress, Da-Xia, Wei, Maylin, Lian and Cheng training together in the courtyard of the Jade palace. Even Po, Shifu and the Furious Five could be seen in the background.

Maylin studied their aunt's face. She looked frozen to the spot.

"Do you like it?" She asked hopefully.

Wei swallowed nervously. He'd spent weeks trying to get everything in his painting perfect. Maybe his aunt didn't like the way he'd portrayed her? Did she think she didn't appear strong enough, or-

"I love it," Tigress whispered, and Wei breathed a sigh of relief.

Tigress' eyes fell on the sword in her hands, moving to the painting in front of her, before travelling around, taking in the faces of her family.

Her family.

"Thank you," she told them all, though those two small words seemed woefully inadequate. Placing the sword to one side, she wrapped as many of her nieces and nephews as she could into one hug.

"Thank you so much."

"You're most welcome, little sister," Li smiled as he pulled her in for his own hug.

'Okay,' Tigress admitted to herself as she tried to surreptitiously wipe her eyes. 'I'm a hard core Kung Fu Master. But even the greatest warriors can't be tough all the time, right?'

"Are you crying, aunty Lin?" Cheng asked curiously.

"No!" Tigress answered adamantly.

"Okay kids," Li shooed his children away. "We've given Lin her presents, now go join the party."

Laughing the cubs gladly raced off to join the festivities. Da-Xia remained however, giving her aunt on last hug.

"Love you Aunty Lin," she whispered before quickly retreating and running into the crowd to where some of the other Tigers, formerly of Long's army were gathered.

Li chuckled at the shocked look on his sister's face. She'd have to get used to hearing that, though it was clearly not what she was used to.

"You still doing what's expected of you?" Li challenged, remembering the last party they'd attended.

Tigress frowned slightly, remembering the panda village. It seemed so long ago, now. That Tigress had been alone, and afraid to let anyone get close. Now, she had a brother, five nieces and nephews, had heard the words she had craved to hear from Shifu her entire life, and had fought tears twice in the space of ten minutes.

Li nodded towards the musicians, a smile tugging at his mouth.

"Dance with me?"

Tigress eyed her brother before slowly raising her chin proudly, as always.

"Why not?"

Shifu raised his eyebrows in surprise as he watched Tigress move away with her brother. She had certainly opened herself up more since Long's defeat. Although, he admitted, eying the painting and sword that lay carefully out of harm's way near the Jade Palace steps, Tigress now had a family who wanted to let her in.

"Zang," he called the goose over, "please have these items taken to Master Tigress' room," he ordered and the goose hurried to follow the instruction.

Turning back to the party, Shifu suddenly spotted Yue-Yan finishing a dance with Xi-Wong.

'Well,' Shifu thought to himself, 'I've already tested my courage once tonight and succeeded.'

Taking a breath, Shifu made his way over to Yue-Yan.

"Shifu!" the herbalist spotted him and met him half way. "I must say, you do know how to throw a party."

"Thank Mr Ping for that," Shifu assured the woman, "for I had little hand in it myself."

"That may be," Yue-Yan granted, "but you had a big hand in the reason for this celebration."

"Want to dance?" The words tumbled out of Shifu's mouth in a rush and Shifu hurried to recover. "I mean, ahem," he swallowed his nerves, "would you care to dance, Yue-Yan?"

'Why didn't you say it like that the first time?' he berated himself.

Yue-Yan smiled.

"Yes, to both questions," she answered, accepting his hand. "I thought you'd never ask, Shifu."

~..~..~..~..

The Peach Tree of Heavenly Wisdom stood calmly on its outcrop on the hill, and from its vantage point, the party in the courtyard could be seen.

Master Oogway's spirit watched over the scene, a proud smile on his lips. He raised one hand, causing a gust of wind to carry some of the peach blossoms over the heads of the revelers, joining in the fun as they danced on the breeze.

"Well done, my students," he told them. "Most well done."

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Author's note: What do you think?

First of all, I want to say a huge thank you to all of you for your patience with me in waiting for this story to be written. It has taken a long time, but I have finally finished this story, and it is thanks to your favourites, follows and reviews that have motivated me to push through my writers block and make time to finish this story.

Thank you so much!

I know some of you thought Po would defeat Long with his Hero's Chi, however, when I thought of Long's original clay prison, the limitations of his elemental powers and the urn of Whispering Warriors (which Po is continually knocking over), it gave me the inspiration of simply using an urn to trap Long's spirit.

I figured the simplest solutions are often the most effective. Besides, it was getting Long's spirit out of Li's body that was the hardest part, and for the longest time I could not figure out the best way to write it- it was my main writer's block point. As soon as I got that part done, the rest of the chapter flowed out of my brain reasonably easily.

I hope I didn't make the ending anticlimactic, however I really wanted to focus more on the family connections at the end of the chapter, as my story is predominantly about family.

I wanted to show how Xi-Wong and Mr Ping are working together, and I wanted to show how Tigress and Shifu had grown over the course of the story. However I gave the emphasis to Tigress, as I felt she had made the most growth over the course of the story, and wanted to show that.

I was originally going to end the story simply with Yue-Yan accepting Shifu's offer of a dance, but when I read over it, it felt lacking, somehow. I then thought of all the times someone had referred to Oogway, and the Peach Tree, so felt that Oogway's spirit should really be how the story finishes: with him watching over his beloved Valley, seeing that his students have understood what he had been trying to teach them, and that his students have all grown as individuals.

So, that is my story, I do hope you have enjoyed reading it. Please leave a review at the bottom of the page, as I would really appreciate the feedback.

Once again, thank you all for your reviews, favourites, follows and most of all, your patience while writing this story.

Celino

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