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Tai Lung's Return-Chp 8

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Chapter Eight-Dragon Scroll

Mai stole around the night, tiptoeing to the main chamber in the Jade Palace. Master Oogway was asleep, Master Shifu was nowhere to be seen and the Furious Five, along with Po, were upstairs doing their own thing.

Mai looked up at the scroll in the golden dragon’s mouth so high above the pool. She looked and saw that the walls were great for climbing, and she had long claws. She sighed and whispered, “Only for you Tai Lung. Otherwise I’d be blissfully asleep.”

The snow leopardess cleared her mind closed her eyes, breathing in and out slowly. When she opened her eyes, her green irises were smaller, showing the bright yellow of her eyes.  Her instinct was slowly prevailing over her senses.

Mai flexed her claws and then jumped up to catch the first deep groove. She scaled the walls and instinctively jumped to the next one so that the strain of going straight up wouldn’t make her lose her grip. Jumping again, she crawled a few more feet and then jumped one last time, clinging to the pillar.

She gripped the smooth ceiling and cursed softly. She was going to have to make the jump all the way to the scroll and then what? Fall into the pool? Or try another jump and miss it, hitting the tile floors. She sighed. ‘Should’ve thought this out before I get to that part,’ she thought, and jumped for the scroll.  

Clearing her mind, she closed her eyes again and when she opened them, her green irises shrank much more than before, showing more yellow of a cat’s eye. She was acting almost completely on instinct.

She reached and gripped the golden sculpture. Unthinkingly, she took it swung herself, flipping in midair back to the wall. She dug her claws in and started down the way she came, unthinking and flipped across the pool, landing on her feet.

She took the scroll out her mouth and heard a clap from behind. Her green irises widened, hiding any trace of yellow and she looked back, frightened.

Master Oogway stood holding his staff and smiling.

“Curious little Mai?” he asked, and bit her lower lip, casting her eyes down.

“I didn’t mean to. I only wondered why this was regarded with so much importance. I didn’t peek—I’ll put it back right away Master,” she answered, and started for the wall. He shook his head.

“Well, if you’ve already got it, why don’t you look? It’s a shame to waste all your energy, isn’t it?” he asked.

“I guess,” she whispered, and opened it. The jade piece popped off easily and she opened it. The moon shining in illuminated the beautiful gold-leafed bamboo sheet. She searched for writing.

There was none.

“A blank sheet?” she asked, “Tai Lung threw a fit for a blank sheet?” Mai looked to Master Oogway.

She risked her job and good health, wasted sleep and energy for a freakin’ blank scroll?!!?!?!?

“Everyone wants the Dragon Scroll,” Master Oogway whispered, walking over to her, “But not all will understand it when they get it.”

She looked back at the sheet again and thought why it was special. No one knew what was on here, but Oogway did, which meant that it had to be special even if nothing was on it so…

“The only reason why something’s special is because someone believes it to be special,” she remembered her telling Tai Lung all those years ago.

‘A ten-year-old Tai Lung sat with a nine-year-old Mai Song in the noodle restaurant. She had ordered the special noodle soup and he the regular. He looked in scrutiny at the two bowls.

“Both of them are the same Mai,” he said, “Why’d you order the Special?”

Mai smiled. “Cuz I wanted to.” She slurped some noodles up. He reached and took some of hers, tasting it.

“It’s the same soup!” Tai Lung insisted, and she shrugged.

“The only thing that makes something special is that you believe it’s special Tai Lung. Stop making so much noise,” she said, and he rolled his eyes, and then dug into his soup.

“I guess if it makes you happy,” he mumbled to himself and she ate her noodle soup.

“You’ll get it eventually,” she said, and he downed the rest of his soup.

“Yeah, like you’ll get why I’ll be Dragon Warrior some day.”

“You may think it’s special and that makes it special. For me, it’s only special because it’s special to you.” She finished hers and left some coins that he’d already slapped down on the table.

“I’ll learn the secret and be the greatest Dragon Warrior ever! Come on, let’s go to the lake—last one there’s a rotten egg!” he said, and she ran after him, not going to be left behind. Their laughter and footsteps rang long after they’d left the shop, fading as they ran to the lake across the valley.’


Master Oogway smiled and laughed to himself and said, “You’ve got it! Nothing can prevent you from reaching your dreams child!” He clapped her on the back and she smiled in spite of her frustration. But she wasn’t smiling because of the scroll, but of the memory.

“Just don’t tell anyone—they’ve got to get it themselves,” he said, and she nodded, giving it to him.

“If only Shifu would’ve taken on another student, you would’ve been his shining star Mai,” he whispered in her ear and she nodded, back in the real world, no longer in her own world.

“But no one can replace his first little star,” she answered, thinking of Tai Lung practicing in the courtyard while she watched him show off.

She dropped the scroll and knob into his hands and she left, turning to bow and wish him good night and then disappearing into the shadows to go to sleep. Or think was more like it. Sleep just wouldn’t come that night.

Not that insomnia wasn’t something new to her.
Chapter 8! Mai on almost complete instinct here! (This is why cats are regarded as so damn dangerous-their ablility to tap into millenia old instinct is too good for words)

Please, do what you gotta do (R&C)

:+fav:s are appreciated.

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UnrealFox's avatar
*Chuckles* So Mai has discovered the Dragon Scrolls secret *laughs* I wonder how she would have reacted if it would have ACTUALLY been some cryptic kung fu technique. Because Master Oogway is a sea turtle... He's probably over 1000 years old, and whatever language he would have decided to write on that thing would have, more than likely, been illegible or such a dated language she couldn't have read it on the spot.

Oh well lol, good luck sleeping tonight knowing, Mai. Now that she knows that Tai-Lung's life was a lie, I don't see how she'd be able to hold any respect for the Jade Palace, Master Shifu or even Kung Fu anymore lol, but I'll see what happens.

Great chapter :3