Return of the Masters

Strike one?

Tigress woke up nearly an hour before the gong went off the next morning. She had some trouble sleeping, though this was mostly due to her conscience bothering her about the plan she had gotten herself into. She honestly wanted to turn Tai Lung in right that second; especially now since she knew exactly where he was living. But she couldn't say no to Ming-Lei's pleading eyes. Tigress wasn't sure if Ming-Lei did that to anyone else, but she did know that she fell for those eyes every single time without fail. (Even under bad circumstances, like allowing Ming-Lei to have a cookie even though she was grounded from dessert). She laid in bed for a while and stared at the ceiling, contemplating how she was going to make it through the next three nights. She wasn't quite sure what Ming-Lei was expecting to happen that would make her change her mind, but she already knew ahead of time that wasn't going to happen.

I don't know how I'm going to tell Shifu that I stalled for a few days just because Ming-Lei flashed me her cute eyes, she thought to herself. Though here's hoping that I get off easier than Viper did.

Viper was still being punished for allowing Tai Lung to escape. Tigress wasn't sure what had provoked her friend into releasing the snow leopard, but she was pretty sure that she regretted it now since Shifu made the serpent master spend every day scrubbing the entire training hall, do extra laps and sparring matches, and even made her do everyone's errands and chores. She knew she wasn't in the mood to spend her day being the Jade Palace servant.

Tigress laid in bed for a few more minutes before she finally got up and quietly left her room. Some early morning training would put her in a better mood not to mention enhance her skills just in case. The master walked down the hallway and exited the barracks upon which she made her way over to the training hall. When she arrived there, she quietly entered the building and began to work on the Seven Swinging Clubs of Oblivion. She kept her balance and expertly struck the clubs, shattering a few of them as she flipped about and dodged the blows. She then leaped off and headed over to the seven taloned rings where she began to flip about in the air, quickly leap through each ring, and speedily move around without so much as a brief pause. As she began to reach out and grab the last ring, she heard, "Tigress?"

Startled, Tigress missed the last ring and tumbled to the ground, though she managed to twist herself around and land on her hands and feet.

"You need to stay focused," Shifu told her sternly. "Be more careful next time."

"Yes, master," Tigress promised, standing up and stretching her arms out.

"Why are you in here so early?"

"I...I thought I'd get some practice in early. I want to raise my strength up a bit."

"Any luck finding Tai Lung's hiding spot?"

Tigress felt another mental kick to her head. "No," she replied flatly. "Though when I do, I'd like to be ready."

Shifu nodded. "That's a good idea," he told her. "You'll want to be ready in case he pulls anything."

"Of course."

"Well, the gong will go off in a few minutes, so meet us in the kitchen for breakfast when that happens."

"Yes, sir."

Master Shifu closed the door, allowing Tigress to let out a sigh of annoyance.

I want to really hit myself, she thought. I really...REALLY...do. Ugh! Why does Ming-Lei have to act so cute???!!!!

The master groaned and placed a head in her hand, taking a brief moment to compose herself. When she finished, she steadily walked out of the training hall and headed over to the kitchen just as the gong went off and her friends began to rise from their chambers.