Kung Fu Panda 4 (rewritten)

The Next Step.

Tigress and Daiyu carefully sat Tai Lung down as they all recovered. After escaping, Daiyu had found a small, decrepit tower that used to be part of another structure before The Chameleon's fortress. Daiyu used her chi hands to heal the wound on her leg while Tigress was trying to think of a plan.

There were only four of them, with Tai Lung practically being out of the game and rather serving as a hindrance. That and an army of living statues.

"Where's Po?" Tigress asked as both Daiyu and Tai Lung's ears perked up

"Well, he isn't far." Daiyu replied.

"What?" Tigress asked

"Just listen." Tai Lung told her.

As they stayed silent and listened, they soon heard Po's yelling and grunting from far away. Looking up at the cliff wall, they saw Po dangling from above, holding onto a branch that could snap at any moment.

"Po!" Tigress shouted.

"Guys?" Po looked down. "Guys! You're okay!"

"Some of us are!" Daiyu shouted back.

"Just hang on for a little bit, I'm coming to get you!" Tigress assured him as she hurried and climbed up the cliff wall to Po.

Daiyu stayed behind to keep an eye on Tai Lung, despite wanting to rather ditch him somewhere, she knew she couldn't do that. She knew that he was weak and vulnerable without his kung fu and he wouldn't last long on his own. And so, she left her cane lying next to him and stayed with him, but at a distance.

She stepped away and sat down outside the decrepit tower, her leg hanging over the edge as her back faced her father.

"Shouldn't you go with her?" Tai Lung asked randomly, his voice hoarse.

"She's not incapable." Daiyu answered snappy.

Tai Lung opened his mouth to say something, but he didn't know what to say, so he kept quiet and looked away from his daughter, holding his side. After what seemed like an eternity of painful silence, he finally said something.

"Daiyu, I... I need you to know that I never meant for this to happen, I promise. It probably doesn't mean much to you, but-..."

"Save it. You just wanted to keep what you knew to yourself, until you could go back to the Spirit Realm and, as always, have others deal with the consequences of your actions. And ditch me again. You know my mother, about your lives together and whatever it was that led to this entire outcome and you still don't want to tell me anything, knowing that's the only thing I'm asking of you." Daiyu slowly wrapped her arms around herself, her head hanging low as her voice quivered. "Is that how little I mean to you? How much you loathe me?"

Tai Lung didn't fight it and listened to everything she said, allowing it to sink into his mind. He shifted his gaze back to Daiyu when he heard muffled sniffling and deep breaths coming from her. He suddenly felt as if there was a brick in his throat and stomach, gnawing at him and making him feel even worse and weaker than he already was. It was immense guilt.

He glanced down at the black jade in his palm, then over at the cane right next to him and took it, leaning on it as he tried to get up and used it to carefully make his way to Daiyu and sit next to her at the edge, at least a couple of inches away from her. Once settled, he placed down the cane and stared at the dark, rumbling sky ahead of him, his mind numb as he tried to find a way to put his thoughts into words. After a minute, which seemed like an hour, he finally said.

"I had planned to keep it to myself, but... I couldn't." Tai Lung started. "Not after Han told me what happened to your mother."

He hesitated, tilting his head to look at Daiyu's watery eyes and tear-stained cheeks, before he then said.