Disclaimer: Sadly I don't own it but its fun to pretend
Chapter 1 Meetings
Mulan was walking through the village buying various items for dinner and
watching the newly dressed up girls make their way towards the matchmaker.
One of the girls tripped and looked rather lost reminding Mulan of her own
in counter.
It had been five months now since Mulan had seen battle. She had acquired an officer rank after many battles with the surviving Huns. One month after she had come home from the war, she had been sent to see the matchmaker again.
*******************************Flashback******************************* Mulan was dressed in the finest silks and her face was painted once again. This time she had no notes and Cri-Kee was absent from her hip. She walked with a bit more grace and balance than before having learned the latter in Shang's intensive training.
The matchmaker seemed astonished that Mulan had changed so much but Mulan was as defiant as ever. Where a woman was to bow her head in shame or fear Mulan kept her chin up, where she was told how a proper lady should remain silent at all times unless permitted to speak Mulan finally spoke up.
"A woman should not hold her tongue just because a man is near! Especially when the matter concerns her." Mulan quickly put in.
"Just as I thought you still dishonor your family. Your father should be ashamed at having such a daughter." the matchmaker sneered at Mulan.
"Tell that to the Emperor and General Li Shang and the other soldiers that fought with me in the war." Mulan was getting angry.
"You should be ashamed of going and you should be thankful that you were not executed for your crimes."
"I am thankful but I would have died with honor at having saved so many lives including my father's. Do you not know the story?" Mulan finally realized that the matchmaker did not know what had transpired with the Emperor.
Eventually the matchmaker kicked her out telling her to never come back and that no man would ever marry such an insubordinate woman. Mulan just smiled at the matchmaker.
*****************************End Flashback***************************** Now as Mulan watched the girl catch up to the others she knew that the girl would do fine. Mulan's smile faded at the sound of drums. All the villagers came out to see what was happening even the aforementioned matchmaker.
Mulan watched shocked as General Li Shang rode up on his horse and looked around. Mulan stepped forward as if to listen more closely when he spotted her.
"Mulan!" he shouted as he dismounted his horse. He called the whole village to attention. "China has been invaded once again. One able-bodied man from every family is to give service to the Emperor as he has ordered." he turned to Mulan, "The Emperor has requested that you come as well Lieutenant. You and I shall leave at dawn or as soon as you are ready the rest of you are due at the Wu Zhou camp in two days."
The matchmaker looked at the young general. "Surely you jest the Emperor asked for a woman. Then you say she is a Lieutenant! This is outrageous! She could not even pass a simple test."
Mulan for once remained silent. Shang was angry. "Mulan get your stuff so we can leave soon. I will come by later." Mulan stood still for a moment until Shang turned to look at her and she ran off toward her home. Shang turned back to the matchmaker. "I do not jest. The Emperor asked for her and I did as I was told. She is the hero of all of China after all. The Emperor bowed to her the day she defeated Shan-Yu for good. She has earned his respect and trust as well as the title she has. I would expect you to respect the soldier who saved China more than you do."
The matchmaker looked stunned. "But she can't have even finished the training. She could not even pass the simple test for marriage. How on earth could she do all that you claim?"
Shang finally gave up and headed towards his horse and directed it to the Fa family dwelling to find Mulan feeding Khan. "Mulan. I'm sorry I haven't been by since that last dinner but..."
*********************************Flashback***************************** "Captain Li would you like some more tea?" Fa Li asked quietly.
"No thank you ma'am." Shang replied to the woman.
Grandmother Fa seemed to be interested in Mulan's fairing in training and Fa Zhou seemed awfully quite.
"I think he wants time with the strangely quite Mulan." Grandmother put in.
Shang turned red. Mulan followed suit as her parents and grandmother left the room and they went for a walk outside. Mulan pointed to a post near the wall.
"That is where I stood the day my life changed. When the drums sounded Baba would not let me go out the gates with him and Mama. Grandmother pointed it out to me and that is where I stood when they announced that every family needed one man to go to war. That night I stormed out in the rain and thought until I decided I would go in his place." Mulan stopped unsure why she had brought that up.
"Mulan the uh... the uh reason ...I uh... came here was that..." Shang rubbed the back of his neck.
Mulan smiled thinking here was the brave captain that she spent weeks with and he was stuttering because she was in a dress.
"I uh.. I love you Mulan. I wanted to ask your dad for your hand in marriage so uh..."Shang fell silent.
"Yes Shang I will marry you." Mulan replied smiling.
Shang kissed her the next day he was forced to leave due to duties the next time she had seen him was on the battle field. *****************************End Flashback***************************** "Mulan do you still want to marry me?" Shang asked startling her out of her thoughts.
"Yes. I never stopped wanting to. I was afraid something had happened to you-," she was cut off by him kissing her.
"Do you think we could get married after we return?" he asked when they broke the kiss.
"Sure. If we are gonna do this we better finish getting everything ready." she smiled. "I have to go ask the ancestors something. Go inside and Father will give you a room to rest in. See you at dinner." Mulan grabbed her skirt and ran off.
She entered the family temple and lit the incense. "Ancestors please send Mushu and Cri-Kee to watch over us during the time I will be gone. Please."
She prayed quickly then finished packing her equipment. The next day she awoke before dawn finishing her chores and donning on her armor. She looked in the mirror. This armor was hers not her fathers. It was different from her fathers as she was an officer and therefore it was styled different (including having added the red cape.)
She was petting Khan when Shang came out. He tossed her a bundle. "Food for the trip. Let's get moving." He mounted his own horse and rode off Mulan not far behind.
It had been five months now since Mulan had seen battle. She had acquired an officer rank after many battles with the surviving Huns. One month after she had come home from the war, she had been sent to see the matchmaker again.
*******************************Flashback******************************* Mulan was dressed in the finest silks and her face was painted once again. This time she had no notes and Cri-Kee was absent from her hip. She walked with a bit more grace and balance than before having learned the latter in Shang's intensive training.
The matchmaker seemed astonished that Mulan had changed so much but Mulan was as defiant as ever. Where a woman was to bow her head in shame or fear Mulan kept her chin up, where she was told how a proper lady should remain silent at all times unless permitted to speak Mulan finally spoke up.
"A woman should not hold her tongue just because a man is near! Especially when the matter concerns her." Mulan quickly put in.
"Just as I thought you still dishonor your family. Your father should be ashamed at having such a daughter." the matchmaker sneered at Mulan.
"Tell that to the Emperor and General Li Shang and the other soldiers that fought with me in the war." Mulan was getting angry.
"You should be ashamed of going and you should be thankful that you were not executed for your crimes."
"I am thankful but I would have died with honor at having saved so many lives including my father's. Do you not know the story?" Mulan finally realized that the matchmaker did not know what had transpired with the Emperor.
Eventually the matchmaker kicked her out telling her to never come back and that no man would ever marry such an insubordinate woman. Mulan just smiled at the matchmaker.
*****************************End Flashback***************************** Now as Mulan watched the girl catch up to the others she knew that the girl would do fine. Mulan's smile faded at the sound of drums. All the villagers came out to see what was happening even the aforementioned matchmaker.
Mulan watched shocked as General Li Shang rode up on his horse and looked around. Mulan stepped forward as if to listen more closely when he spotted her.
"Mulan!" he shouted as he dismounted his horse. He called the whole village to attention. "China has been invaded once again. One able-bodied man from every family is to give service to the Emperor as he has ordered." he turned to Mulan, "The Emperor has requested that you come as well Lieutenant. You and I shall leave at dawn or as soon as you are ready the rest of you are due at the Wu Zhou camp in two days."
The matchmaker looked at the young general. "Surely you jest the Emperor asked for a woman. Then you say she is a Lieutenant! This is outrageous! She could not even pass a simple test."
Mulan for once remained silent. Shang was angry. "Mulan get your stuff so we can leave soon. I will come by later." Mulan stood still for a moment until Shang turned to look at her and she ran off toward her home. Shang turned back to the matchmaker. "I do not jest. The Emperor asked for her and I did as I was told. She is the hero of all of China after all. The Emperor bowed to her the day she defeated Shan-Yu for good. She has earned his respect and trust as well as the title she has. I would expect you to respect the soldier who saved China more than you do."
The matchmaker looked stunned. "But she can't have even finished the training. She could not even pass the simple test for marriage. How on earth could she do all that you claim?"
Shang finally gave up and headed towards his horse and directed it to the Fa family dwelling to find Mulan feeding Khan. "Mulan. I'm sorry I haven't been by since that last dinner but..."
*********************************Flashback***************************** "Captain Li would you like some more tea?" Fa Li asked quietly.
"No thank you ma'am." Shang replied to the woman.
Grandmother Fa seemed to be interested in Mulan's fairing in training and Fa Zhou seemed awfully quite.
"I think he wants time with the strangely quite Mulan." Grandmother put in.
Shang turned red. Mulan followed suit as her parents and grandmother left the room and they went for a walk outside. Mulan pointed to a post near the wall.
"That is where I stood the day my life changed. When the drums sounded Baba would not let me go out the gates with him and Mama. Grandmother pointed it out to me and that is where I stood when they announced that every family needed one man to go to war. That night I stormed out in the rain and thought until I decided I would go in his place." Mulan stopped unsure why she had brought that up.
"Mulan the uh... the uh reason ...I uh... came here was that..." Shang rubbed the back of his neck.
Mulan smiled thinking here was the brave captain that she spent weeks with and he was stuttering because she was in a dress.
"I uh.. I love you Mulan. I wanted to ask your dad for your hand in marriage so uh..."Shang fell silent.
"Yes Shang I will marry you." Mulan replied smiling.
Shang kissed her the next day he was forced to leave due to duties the next time she had seen him was on the battle field. *****************************End Flashback***************************** "Mulan do you still want to marry me?" Shang asked startling her out of her thoughts.
"Yes. I never stopped wanting to. I was afraid something had happened to you-," she was cut off by him kissing her.
"Do you think we could get married after we return?" he asked when they broke the kiss.
"Sure. If we are gonna do this we better finish getting everything ready." she smiled. "I have to go ask the ancestors something. Go inside and Father will give you a room to rest in. See you at dinner." Mulan grabbed her skirt and ran off.
She entered the family temple and lit the incense. "Ancestors please send Mushu and Cri-Kee to watch over us during the time I will be gone. Please."
She prayed quickly then finished packing her equipment. The next day she awoke before dawn finishing her chores and donning on her armor. She looked in the mirror. This armor was hers not her fathers. It was different from her fathers as she was an officer and therefore it was styled different (including having added the red cape.)
She was petting Khan when Shang came out. He tossed her a bundle. "Food for the trip. Let's get moving." He mounted his own horse and rode off Mulan not far behind.