One Tail at a Time

No Pain, No Gain - 4

Finally! The big day has arrived and we are all in the dining hall taking breakfast as quickly as 36 chews per mouthful will allow. I still don't know why we have to chew so many times, and the one time I actually asked, Shifu took three hours to explain which ended with me falling asleep, I just never bothered to ask again, though it has something to do with breaking down the particles in food which puts less stress on the esophogus which also helps the stomach metabolize the food. And we also produce more saliva which contains digestive enzymes making it easier on the body to split the nutrients from the waste. Actually that is pretty much the sum of it all, which took me a mere few seconds to explain, so why it took him three hours I have no idea, and right now I don't care, because we are finally going to unveil the ships!

And not only that, But Shifu has prepared us well for our entrance. For a monk who doesn't like pomp and pageantry, he sure is going out of his way to make himself the center of attention, which is only making me more nervous the closer it gets to leaving. Only I cant help but laugh when Fu Yu finally arrives for breakfast dressed all in black and with a pirates hat on his head that Die Feng had commissioned for him. And the way he is snarling and goggling out of the one eye, makes us all laugh. He's a funny sprite like that. It doesn't matter how nervous and fearful I am, I can always count on him to make me laugh and forget my worries for a little while at least.

Waiting for silence, Shifus eyes flick towards the end of the table which has Fu Yu bowing most extravagantly before quickly taking his place amid more laughter until eventually we all fall silent. Shifu has finished chewing his way through his porridge and now comes the time for any last minute instructions before we have to leave.

"You will travel to the Convention under secrecy, I don't want your arrival noticed until I give the order, and that means absolute silence." he says which we all nod at. "And that means, that you Seventeen will need to enter the Convention ahead of them, though I will enter with you to give the competition a little scare." he laughs which we all laugh at only because he is, its actually not funny because to the rest of the world, he really is kind of scary, especially to young men who hold him in high regard. "Once you are in the hall and safe, I will leave you there to make my way to the ships where I expect the rest of you to be ready to drop our invisibility sheild the moment she is called forward to present her invention." he reminds them.

"Shifu we already know the agenda, can we just go now?" I ask rolling my eyes.

"Do you have your speech ready?" he suddenly asks glaring down at me, seeing as I have been asked this question several times over the past few weeks, and the look I give him pretty much gives away the answer.

"Seventeen! You have had two months to prepare yourself and you are telling me with those dopey eyes that you haven't written it yet?" he asks stunned and a little mad.

"But Shifu, you said I do better under pressure, I'll just let the words flow when I get there." I tell him to a round of heavy sighs from my brothers who are also looking unimpressed with me.

"Seventeen, how many times have I told you that the price of unpreparedness is failure!" he says glaring down at the thinned lips that are ready to argue the moment his mouth stops moving.

"But Shifu, no one can prepare for success, not when the finale has yet to be determined. And besides, failure is not fatal, it is merely one route I should avoid next time and if a lack of a speech means I fail over what is essentially the finale, then the failure won't be mine." I reply winking at him and making him sigh louder and deeper than the rest.

"Seventeen....." he sighs hopelessly down at me and this time making my brothers laugh at the both of us, because it's obvious he has no come back.