Strong

Finding Demons

Tigress watched over the wolf sighing in his cell. Though he ate more, he still seemed... was depressed. The wind blew through the barred window, bristling his fur. He didn't wear the blanket anymore. He rejected all kinds of comfort. Viper had even given the wolf a bath, but though his black coat of fur smelled nice and slowly displayed its sheen over time, he still wallowed on the floor with his tattered pants.

Tigress growled, "This is getting ridiculous." Wolf perked up his ear. "You have to move on."

"Hrm," The wolf grunted back.

"Maybe I should ask Viper to give you another bath?" The wolf glared at her small smirk. He didn't mind bathing but getting cleaned by a snake was...Wolf shivered at the memory. "I know your pain but dwelling on it is not the right way to deal with this." The wolf said nothing. Tigress sighed. "How does Po do this?" Wolf rose an eyebrow, side-glancing the tiger. "Po's... better at comforting people than I am. And..." The tiger shook her head from the thought, but Wolf lifted his head from the ground, tilting it slightly. "Nothing, it's...it's nothing."

"Hmmm."

"If you can write," Tigress said after a long pause, "Why don't you just write what you want?" Wolf shrugged, plopping his head back to the ground. Tigress gave a sharp sigh, "Look, you've got to get over this."

"Hmph," The wolf grunted.

"I know they were close to you, but they wouldn't want you moping like this," Wolf said nothing, but he gave Tigress a questioning glare. Or maybe it was sarcastic. She couldn't tell. "This would be easier with Po around. I could strap him to some fireworks and-"

"Hrm!" Wolf lifted his head both confused and concerned that the tiger would say something like that.

"What? He's done it before... twice," Tigress casually said. "When he was chosen, he strapped himself to fireworks just to get over the gate, thus fulfilling the Dragon Warrior's coming as a ball of fire."

The wolf sniggered. Then an idea flew into Tigress's mind. If she couldn't cheer up the wolf herself, she could use Po's antics.

Why the wolf's happiness mattered to her was still a mystery, but after losing the guards, happiness was the least she could try to give him. "He also forgot his clothes and had to go down the entire mountain dressed in Master Flying Rhino's armor one time."

"HEHehehehehehehe." The wolf laughed. Tigress smiled. There was something comforting about his laugh.

"Then there was the time he tried to make noodles by mixing them raw with boiling water into his mouth," Tigress sighed fondly.

"HAHAHAHAHA *Snort* HAHAHAHAHA *Snort*" Laughter rang out from Wolf's cell as he laid on his back, kicking his feet in the air. His snort was uncontrollable but the dog didn't care. It seemed like he hadn't laughed like this in a while.

"AAAHHH!" Suddenly, Tigress gripped her head. Lights flashed around her even though she shut her eyes. The wolf's laughing still rang in her ears, but it sounded younger, closer to the crib. Wolf immediately stopped laughing and bolted up from the floor, latching onto the cell bars as close as he could; the waist shackle was still around him. "I'm... I'm fine. I just... have a headache... I think. What was that?" She didn't know, but somehow someway, the wolf's laugh had triggered some kind of vision, but it was too brief to figure out.

Just then, Wolf's ears perked up, and he growled. "I hear it too," Tigress said. Footsteps clambered down the stairway, and Monkey slid into the dungeon.

"Bandits! Bandits are attacking the Jade Palace! There's got to be a thousand of them!"

"I'll be right there!" Tigress shouted. Wolf thrashed against the cell door. "What are you- You want out?" Wolf nodded. The tiger frowned. "Was this your doing? Is this your break-out scheme?" Wolf's eyes widened. He shook his head profusely.