"Ooh, wearing the pink dress? I was wondering if you were ever going to wear it!"
Zhu felt her cheeks grow warm as Mei grinned triumphantly at her. "Oddly enough, it was the only piece of clothing I could find, aside from what I had been wearing," she retorted, a brow rising.
"It wasn't me," she said, truthfully. "You can blame that on Su."
Across the room, Su made no effort to defend herself. Instead, she wore a large, cheeky grin as she pulled on her shoes.
Shaking her head, Zhu sat down and started to comb through her hair. "You will not be wearing that grin when you find all of your cooking utensils dangling from the ceiling."
"I'll just have Chien-Po get them for me," Su chirped.
Rolling her eyes, Zhu couldn't resist smiling.
"What will you be doing with your hair?" Mei asked, coming over and taking the comb from her hands. "Would you like it up? I think you would look adorable with double buns—"
"No, no! Give her looped braids," Ting-Ting told her. "The ones where you cannot tell where one begins and the other ends!"
"No!" Su joined in. "She needs to have a combination of the two, otherwise she'd look too top heavy."
Taking the comb back, Zhu shook her head. "For the most part, my hair is remaining loose," she told them, a bit of firmness to her voice. She didn't like it when they tried to get her to look like them. "I need something to hide my back, since this shawl doesn't do it."
Mei pouted. "Oh, Zhu, no one's going to pay any attention to your back!" she told her. "The blue of the shawl and its little embroidered flowers obscure the scars enough that they're not noticeable unless someone is trying to see them."
"That may be true, but I still feel more comfortable with my hair further hiding it." Using the comb, she did her best to evenly section out two locks of hair from the front part of her head. She made sure they were free of tangles before beginning to braid them.
Su snapped her fingers. "One of these days, we'll get you to wear your hair up."
"Find me an overcoat that is not sheer and perhaps I will."
Her hands on her hips, Mei wore a determined look. "Alright then. I'll whip you up a couple this week. Would you prefer long or short?"
"Either works, though I can hide more weapons in a longer coat." She grinned and looked over her shoulder. "If you make a long one, could you sew a quiver into it, perhaps?"
"Ha, ha," Mei grumbled, sitting down in front of her vanity. Reaching over, she grabbed a small, clay pot. "After sewing sheaths throughout your guard uniform, I know better than to try to sew any other sort of weapon holder into your clothes." She rubbed her middle finger in the contents of the pot—a waxy, red substance. "Do you know how hard it is to sew leather into cotton or velvet without making it horribly obvious? The needles needed for leather are much thicker than the ones needed for cloth, so they have this nasty little tendency to leave gaping holes in the fabric." She finally dabbed the rouge onto her lips, staining them pink.
Ting-Ting chuckled, taking the pot from her sister. "Anyway, the shorter overcoats are easier to move around in," she said. She, too, used the rouge to color her lips. She also used it to add some color to the apples of her cheeks. "Our dresses already have an excess of fabric; why add more with a long, flowing coat?"
"Says the one who's wearing pants tonight," Su reminded her, a brow lifted.
She shrugged. "They were a gift from Aunt Chuntao that I haven't worn in quite a while."
Zhu cocked a brow. "We have an aunt named Chuntao?" With her braids now finished, she used a small clip to pin them together behind her back.
"We do," Mei answered. "She's related to our father."
"Sadly, the only relative we have through mother is Uncle Chi-Fu," Su frowned.
It took a great deal of willpower for Zhu to stop herself from saying something rather nasty about their uncle. According to her sisters, their uncle apparently had a nicer side to him, though it was rarely shown. Having never seen it herself, she refused to believe them.
"Zhu, are you going to wear any rouge?" Ting-Ting asked, applying the stuff to Su's cheeks. She used it quite sparingly on their littlest sister, as her cheeks had a bit of a natural pinkness to them already.
She shook her head. "No, thank you." Standing up, she straightened out her skirts. "I will wait for you three outside, alright?"
They nodded and waved her off as Mei brought out another container of makeup.
Once outside, she let out a small sigh and leaned against the wall of the house. 'I hope tonight goes alright,' she thought, closing her eyes. 'I'm going to try to have fun, but I don't think I will. After all, it's a festival for lovers.' The closest thing I'll ever have to a lover is Mundzuc…' A shudder ran down her spine.
"Are you cold?"
Her eyes shot open and she found her mother walking towards her. How hadn't she heard her leave the house? "N-No," she replied.
Zhi frowned, concern on her face. "Then why the shiver? Are you feeling feverish?" She came over and pressed the back of her hand against Zhu's forehead. "You feel fine…"
"I am fine," she sighed. "I was just thinking about the possibility of being in town when the fireworks go off." It was a lie, but it flowed from her lips as if it were the truth.
Zhi nodded slowly, thought she still looked a bit worried. "I am sure your sisters and Mulan will be able to help you should that happen." Reaching over, she tried to push some stray hairs out of her daughter's face, but they were stubborn and fell back into place on her forehead. "Why must all of you girls have these defiant hairs?" she chuckled.
"As we all share them, it must come from you," Zhu smiled. "Which makes sense, as you are a rather defiant woman."
She cocked her brow, amused. "I'm not sure whether I should take that as a compliment or an insult."
"A compliment, of course." She flicked a spider off her sleeve. "You do not happen to know where Su hid the rest of my clothing, do you?"
"…Su hid your clothing? Why in the world would she do such a thing!?"
"She did it as a way to force me into my least favorite dress."
Zhi opened her mouth to speak, but the door opened and her other daughters came out of the house. "I was wondering if you three would ever finish getting ready," she gently teased.
"We had to put on some makeup," Su told her. "Ting-Ting and I were going to go with just a bit of rouge, but Mei insisted we paint our eyes and lashes, too."
"Having just the rouge on looked strange!" Mei retorted. "At least, it did to me."
Zhi shook her head, amusement on her lips. "You three…" With a sigh, she took a step back so she could look over all four of her children. "All four of you look quite lovely."
"Thank you, mother," Ting-Ting said.
"I hope you girls have fun tonight." She walked along the line of them, kissing their foreheads. "I will be at the Fa household most of the night, playing mahjong and checkers, so don't be alarmed if you come back early and don't find me here."
They nodded in understanding. "We'll try not to stay out too late," Mei told her.
"Or come back drunk!" Su giggled.
Zhi cocked her brow once more. "I certainly hope not," she smiled. "The last thing we need is for one of you to follow in your Uncle Chi-Fu's footsteps."
As her sisters cracked up, Zhu somewhat frowned. She didn't question it, however. The other three started to walk towards the gate and she made to follow, but Zhi stopped her.
She said, voice quiet, "I know you're going to let your sister run loose tonight so they can be with the lieutenants. And as much as we may disagree about letting them court, Zhu, please promise me you'll at least try to check on them every now and again."
"Mother, they are adults. They no longer need a nanny to watch over them."
"I know that all too well, Zhu." She let out a heavy sigh. "It's just…I do not want any of them to follow in my footsteps."
Zhu frowned. "What do you mean…?" She had a feeling she knew what her mother meant but wanted to be sure she wasn't interpreting her wrongly.
She shook her head, sighing. "Never you mind. Just, please…check in on them once in a while. That is all I ask."
"…I will try," she replied, "but I can make no promises. Tianshui is rather large and with a festival taking place, it will be easy for them to get lost in the crowds."
At that, Zhi smiled. "Yes, but I know if anyone could find your sisters in a crowd, it would be you, my little one." She then gently turned her around and gave her a gentle push. "Now go, have fun tonight. I will see you in the morning."
Zhu nodded and headed off to catch up with the others. She found her sisters only a few yards outside the gate. They wore matching looks of concern as she came towards them.
"What did mother want?" Mei questioned.
"She asked me to make sure that none of you get into trouble," she replied. "She…knows that you three are going to be with the lieutenants all night."
Ting-Ting raised her hand to her mouth, worriedly nibbling on her finger. "She does? Is she going to scold us tomorrow…?"
"No, nothing of the sort," she promised, beginning to walk towards town. "I think she has given up on trying to forbid you from courting. She just—she just wants you to be careful is all."
"Careful?" Su snorted. "Careful about what? Getting too tight a hug from Chien-Po?"
"Or getting too many compliments from Yao?" Mei added with a giggle.
"Or laughing too hard with Ling at our jokes?" Ting-Ting grinned.
Zhu smiled, but said nothing. As her sisters continued to converse about their no-longer-secret relationships with the lieutenants, she let herself fall a few paces behind. She did her best to not listen to them. Inside her body, her stomach was in a free fall and a feeling of worthlessness had come over her. Unlike the other strange emotions she had been feeling lately, this one she knew well.
'You shouldn't be jealous of them,' she scolded herself. 'This could be the only chance my sisters get to have actual, loving relationships before they're married off to some old, wrinkled nobleman in another part of the country. They deserve this. And…who knows…? Maybe I'll go to one of those fortune tellers and find out that I'm destined for a happy marriage.'
A voice suddenly echoed through her mind. '…No self-respecting Chinese man or woman would ever fall for a Hun, let alone their queen.'
Her eyes closed and she clenched her jaw, mentally cursing Mundzuc for how right he was.
When they reached town, the women were greeted by the sight of the three lieutenants waiting for them. Seeing the princesses coming towards them, the men grinned broadly and hurried forward to meet them halfway.
"There's our lovely ladies," Yao grinned, having to stand on tiptoe to kiss Mei's cheek. She giggled before leaning over and kissing him on the lips.
"Lovely?" Ling repeated, a brow raised. "I think you mean gorgeous." He would have said more, but Ting-Ting pulled him to her and silenced him with a kiss.
Zhu felt her chest tighten and her stomach lurch. But…why?
"Sorry I wasn't there to help with dinner," Chien-Po said, leaning over and giving Su a hug. "I thought we would have been done with our volunteer work by then."
"It's fine, you big silly," Su giggled, nuzzling his cheek. "I hope you didn't fill up on street food yet, because I haven't had dessert!" Taking his hand, she started to lead him off.
"Oh, you really need to try the grilled dumplings," he told her, allowing himself to be led away. "They are filled with fruit and a sweet custard and…" His voice faded away as they disappeared into the crowd.
"I found a pair o' ladies sellin' some exquisite hand-crafted beads," Yao told Mei, wrapping his arm around her waist. "They're all made o' glass an' look perfect for your beadin' work." He, too, started to lead her off.
"Ooh, really?" Mei grinned, her eyes widening in delight. "I can't wait to see them! And…maybe we could try some of those grilled dumplings, too? They sounded quite tasty."
He nodded heartily. "O' course we can! Anythin' ya want to do, we can do it."
"And I found some really fun-looking games," Ling told Ting-Ting, his hand taking hers. "Some of them have ridiculous prizes, but who wouldn't want a giant stuffed sheep?" Laughing, he then looked at Zhu, taking her by surprise; the others had wholly ignored her. "There are a few contests you'd like happening soon, Zhu," he said. "One of them is seeing how sharp you can get a dull knife in a certain period of time and another is an archery contest!"
Ting-Ting perked. "Those sound right up your alley, Zhu!" she grinned. "I'm sure you'd take home the grand prize in the archery contest!"
Zhu half-heartedly smiled. "I will be sure to check them out," she said, voice a bit quieter than usual. "Have you seen Mulan yet tonight, Ling?"
"I think I may have seen her near the center of town? I'm not sure. I haven't actually seen her all day, to be honest." He gave her an apologetic smile. "If we see her, though, we'll be sure to tell her to go find you."
She nodded. "Thank you. I will probably be wandering around, but I'll try to stay nearer to the center of town."
"Gotcha," he chuckled. "Well, I hope you have fun tonight even if you don't end up running into her."
Ting-Ting nodded in agreement. "And participate in at least one contest, alright? Win yourself a prize!"
"We'll see." She gave them a small wave as they started to walk off.
Before the pair could get more than three yards away, though, Ling stopped them and turned around. "By the way, you look really pretty tonight, Zhu. I've never seen you in pink before—it really suits you."
She felt her cheeks grow dark. "Th-Thank you," she said, rubbing the back of her neck. No one had ever called her 'pretty' before.
Ting-Ting giggled. "We've been telling her for years to wear more pink." She gave her sister another wave and walked off with Ling.
Zhu stood there for a moment, not entirely sure what to do. Now that she had seen her sisters safely to town, she wanted to go back home. The lieutenants were perfectly capable of watching over them, after all—if they weren't too distracted by the goings-on of the festival, that is.
But she also knew that there was a chance that Mulan was somewhere in that crowd. Mulan was the main reason she was here, after all. With a heavy sigh, she finally headed into the town proper.
Despite a festival taking place, the streets weren't as crowded as she had expected them to be. They were still filled with people, but with no children and very few elders wandering about, there was plenty of room to move freely and not worry about bumping into someone by accident. Most of the people in attendance, she saw, were walking in pairs, either holding hands or having their arms wrapped around one another. This didn't surprise her in the least, but it brought back the feeling of jealousy.
Zhu did her best to force the feelings from her mind and tried to focus on what was happening around her. Down the side streets, she could see that temporary vendors had set up stalls for games and for selling little trinkets that would bring a person luck in love. Somewhere near the center of town, music was being played. But nowhere did it look like an archery contest was being held.
Unable to find it herself, she decided to ask around in hopes of learning its location. It took her a few tries to find a person who had an answer, but she eventually came to learn that it was being held on the western edge of the city—in the tavern and brothel district. This surprised her; no doubt there would be drunkards trying to enter the contest.
'I hope no one gets hurt,' she thought as she started to make her way there. 'If they're smart, whoever is organizing the contest won't allow any drunk people to enter and will have set up barriers to keep them from stumbling into the area…'
"Zhu!"
Her brow rising, she stopped and looked around. Hearing her name get called out again, she turned around only to find Mulan hurrying towards her. As she got closer, Zhu saw that she was wearing a rather familiar outfit: It was the dress she had worn when she defeated Shan Yu. The white underdress, however, had been replaced by a deep, crimson one that matched the accents of the overdress.
The combination of indigo and crimson, Zhu thought, looked especially nice on her.
"I'm glad you decided to come tonight!" Mulan grinned, finally reaching Zhu.
She shrugged. "I thought it would be nice to see what all the excitement was about," she lied. She gave Mulan a smile. "That is a familiar dress."
Blinking, she looked down at herself. "Hm…? Oh, yes. This old thing…" Her cheeks turned pink and she smiled a bit awkwardly. "Truthfully, it was the only clean thing I had left after Little Brother decided to get covered in mud and roll around in my room."
"Funny. This dress was the only piece of clothing I had left after Su hid the rest of my clothes."
Her brow rose. "…Why did Su hide your clothes?" As Zhu began walking, she fell into step beside her.
"To force me into this dress." She scrunched her nose up. "The dress itself is fine, but I have no other coat that goes with it other than this sheer one…"
Mulan cocked her head. "What's so bad about that?" she asked. "It's a warm night; I would think you'd appreciate the sheerness."
Zhu rubbed the back of her neck, glancing away. "My back is scarred," she said, voice a bit quiet, "from the fireworks. I don't like it to be seen."
She nodded in understanding. "I see…Well, maybe Mei can make you a different coat to go with it? The dress itself is lovely on you, though. I wouldn't have thought that you would suit pink so well."
"…Ling said something similar," she smiled, her cheeks darkening. "I think I still prefer to wear more neutral colors, though."
Mulan laughed. "That's because neutral colors help you blend into a crowd. I know how much you hate standing out." Her eyes then widened slightly when she saw something in the distance. She grinned. "Have you ever had your fortune read?"
Her brow rising at the sudden topic change, Zhu shook her head. "Not that I know of, no. Why do you ask?"
"There's a really good fortune teller just a few blocks away," she explained. "She's good friends with Grandma and her predictions are almost always correct." She took Zhu by the arm, starting to pull her in the direction of the fortune teller. "Let's go see what she has to say about our futures!"
She frowned somewhat but continued to let Mulan drag her; she wasn't sure if it was such a good idea, learning her future. 'What if there's only more pain in my future?' she thought. 'I guess this could be a way to try and prevent that pain from happening…'
As they approached the stall, the elderly woman looked up at them and smiled, her eyes nearly disappearing under all her wrinkles. "Ah, Mulan! It's good to see you again, my child!" she said, clapping her hands together. "And I see you've brought a friend! Come to get your fortunes read, have you?"
Both women bowed to her. "Yes, we have, Dandan," Mulan replied with a smile. "It's been a few years since I've had mine read and Zhu has never had hers read."
Dandan's eyes widened in shock. "You've never had your fortune read, dear?" she gawked.
Zhu's face, which had only just recovered from her last blush, turned pink once again. "No, I have not," she answered, rubbing the back of her neck. "I…moved around too much as a child to really ever see one."
She nodded slowly, though she didn't seem entirely convinced. Regardless, she reached a hand out towards Mulan. "Then I will read Mulan's palms first, as I have read them in the past." She took Mulan's hands in her own, carefully looking over the lines and creases of her palms. "Though hands don't change much once you become an adult, even the subtlest changes can denote great events to come."
Standing off to the side, Zhu watched as the old woman ran her finger along Mulan's palm, tracing faint lines or feeling the bumps along the base of her fingers. She wondered how in the world a person's future could be predicted by using their hands—it would be more understandable to read a person's past from them.
At last, Dandan spoke, though she kept her eyes on Mulan's palms. "Interesting…" she murmured. "Very interesting…it seems you have another adventure coming up."
"Really?" Mulan asked, surprised by this news.
"Mhm. And…it looks like you're going to have some difficulties in love," she continued, pointing to a line on Mulan's palm, "but in the end, all will work out and you will have much happiness."
"That's good to hear," she chuckled, taking her hands back. "I wonder what the adventure is going to be?"
"Having to deal with three drunken goofballs is my guess," Zhu joked. She stepped forward as Dandan beckoned to her and hesitantly held out her hands.
"Oh, no—your sisters are going to have to deal with them!" Mulan laughed. She stood beside Zhu, somewhat resting her cheek against her arm as she watched Dandan look over Zhu's palms.
To Zhu's dismay, Dandan began to frown almost instantly. "Oh my," she murmured under her breath. A shiver ran down Zhu's spine when the old woman ran her fingers along her palm; it somewhat tickled. "Interesting…"
"Is something wrong?" Zhu asked, brows furrowed.
"I'm afraid you've a number of hardships fast approaching," she told her. "Many of them in your love life."
She sighed and murmured, "That I already knew."
"But after they've come to pass," she continued, bringing Zhu's hands just a bit closer to her face, "you're in store for a great deal of happiness. When the hardships come to past, I see very little in the way of suffering in your future."
Zhu cocked a brow; she wasn't very sure she believed Dandan. It was nice, however, to think that there would be a time when she got to be happy. "And you saw all that just in the lines of my palm?"
"A person's hands are an extension of themselves. No two are alike, even our own," Dandan told her, letting go of her hands. "Every day, we use our hands to go about our lives and every day, our hands help to shape our future."
She looked at her hands, her brow still raised. "Interesting," she murmured.
Mulan smiled as she set some coins down on the wooden counter. "Thank you, Dandan. It was nice to hear that we both have some happiness to look forward to."
The old woman nodded as she pocketed the coins. "Just remember to take care whenever the trouble arises," she gently warned, "and that there will be calm waters after the storm strikes."
The two thanked her again before wandering off towards another stand. This one was selling some sort of drink.
"I'm sorry you've got more trouble coming for you," Mulan quietly told Zhu. She held up two fingers to the stall's owner, who started to fill two large, wooden cups with a dark liquid. "But, from the sound of it, it's going to be worth it? You've got a lot of happiness coming for you."
She nodded, handing the man some coins before Mulan could get into her coin purse. "That is true," she sighed, taking one of the cups. "But, it is also to be expected. With how my life has been, I was not really expecting anything terribly good." As they walked away, she took a drink of the stuff. It was both fruity and spicy and, as it hit her stomach, sent a pleasant warmth through her body. "What is this?"
"Plum wine," Mulan answered before taking a drink herself. "Do you like it?"
"It's delicious," she admitted. "Are you positive it is wine?"
She giggled. "Yes, I'm positive," she said. "Not all alcohol tastes bad, you know. There are a few that taste pleasant."
"Evidently." She took another, longer drink.
"Do you want to go play some games?" she asked, looking up at her. "I know there's an archery contest happening, but that's not going to happen for at least another hour."
"Why so long?"
She giggled. "Because the festival only just started, silly," she told her. "When the sun is fully set is when things begin to liven up."
Zhu cocked a brow. "Strange. It looks rather alive right now." She chuckled, looking around. Her insides were quite warm by now and she was thankful that she had made sure to have a bit of food before coming. "But…I suppose games sound fun."
Mulan wore a triumphant grin as she turned them around. She took them to the eastern side of the village, where they found all sorts of strange games. There were games where the player had to get a ring around the neck of certain bottles; games where the player had to roll a ball up a ramp and try to get it in one of four target holes; games involving the throwing of darts at a spinning board; and, of course, there were games of Liar's Dice.
It was the ring-toss game that Mulan excelled at. Zhu was more than a little surprised when she was able to continuously land the ring around the neck of the largest bottles. Since they were worth the most points, as they were the hardest to get the ring around, Mulan was able to quickly rack up a high score that won her a rather pretty mutton-fat jade necklace.
"Here," she said, standing on tiptoe. She started to fasten the necklace around Zhu's neck. "I've got enough necklaces."
Feeling her cheeks grow warm, Zhu smiled shyly. "Thank you," she said, looking the necklace over. It was a rope of creamy white jade beads with a flower-shaped bronze ornament in the very center. "Oh, speaking of necklaces: Is the one you're wearing the one you got from Shang?"
It was Mulan's turn to blush. Looking down, she picked up her own necklace. It had alternating beads of jade and beads of bronze resting on either side of a bronze coin. "Yes, it is," she smiled, letting her thumb run over the engravings on the coin. There was a bit of sadness in her expression and she sighed, letting it fall back against her chest.
"You do not seem very happy about it."
"Oh, I am happy with it!" she assured her. "It's just…" Sighing once more, she turned her gaze towards the ground. "I just wish he had been here to give it to me instead of having it brought to me by a messenger."
"I am sure he wished he could have given it to you in person as well." She set her hand on Mulan's shoulder, giving it a gentle squeeze. She did her best to hide the sudden bout of sadness that she had begun feeling. "And I'm sure he wishes he could be at this festival with you instead of having to do boring military things."
Mulan smiled up at her. "Thanks, Zhu."
Giving her shoulder one more, small squeeze, Zhu looked down the street. "Let's go play some more games. That one with the darts looks interesting."
"Oh, I'm sure you'll easily have that one beat."
She grinned. "Is there a chance we could get some more plum wine afterwards?" Her grin turned into a sheepish smile.
Mulan giggled. "Only if you beat the game," she teased.
Her brow rising, Zhu grinned. The two of them headed down the street to the dart game. The premise was simple enough: Throw three darts at the spinning wheel and hit the correct marker. But when she was handed the darts and the wheel started to spin, she came to realize that this would be a harder game than she thought.
It took her three attempts, but she eventually won a prize—it wasn't the grand prize, but it was still a prize. It was a length of a candy called 'dragon's beard'—a lot less elegant than the necklace Mulan had won. But once she tasted a bit of the candy, she found herself rather satisfied.
"This is good," she said, sharing it with Mulan. "Normally, I prefer fruit flavors to sweet, but this is not overwhelmingly sweet."
"That's one of the reasons why I love dragon's beard candy," Mulan smiled. She carefully twisted a bit of the candy into a small ball. "And it's only made during festivals!" She popped it into her mouth, making a pleased sound.
She cocked her brow. "Why is that?" she asked. Spotting a wine vendor, she headed in that direction.
"It's hard to make," she answered, having tucked the candy into her cheek. "It involves pulling hot sugar over and over again until it makes all these teeny, tiny ropes."
"Interesting…I wonder if Su knows how to make it?" She held out her empty cup to the wine vendor, watching as he filled it. He then filled Mulan's, which was only half empty, before taking the coins Zhu handed him.
"She may." She took a sip of the wine before trying to sneak some more of the candy from Zhu.
"You do not have to sneak, you know," Zhu chuckled. "Feel free to take as much as you want."
"Don't tell me that or else I'll grab the whole thing!" She laughed and made to take another sip of wine, though she very nearly spilled it all over her as she tripped over an unseen rock. Thanks to a mixture of Zhu catching her and her own reflexes, she was able to keep her dress wine-free and her cup mostly full.
"Perhaps we should find somewhere to sit?" Zhu suggested, her brow raised in amusement. "Or somewhere to stand still?"
"That sounds like a plan," she said, smiling bashfully.
Forgoing the rest of the games, the two made their way to the center square, which was still rather crowded. This being where the musicians were, dozens of couples formed a circle around them, dancing in time to the music they played.
"It's so colorful," Zhu murmured, her head tilted somewhat as she took a long drink of her wine. Across the square, she spotted Chien-Po with Su on his shoulders. They weren't dancing, however; they seemed to be heading for the game vendors.
"It is, isn't it?" Mulan smiled, sipping her own wine before taking a bit more dragon's beard candy. "Usually, people are dressed in their everyday clothing…but I guess this year, they decided to wear somewhat nicer clothes."
Zhu took a bit of candy as well. "You know…I once heard someone say that the more colors that are found in a town or city, the happier the people are."
She glanced up at her. "Really?"
"Mhm. I guess that means the people of Tianshui are incredibly happy." She smiled, though it was a half-hearted one. "And why shouldn't they be? Look how many of its citizens get to attend a festival with their lovers and celebrate their love tonight."
Mulan bit her lower lip and lowered her gaze, staring into her wine. "Is…that why you don't wear many colors?" she asked, her voice quiet enough that Zhu just barely heard her. "Because you're not happy?"
Her brows furrowing, Zhu looked down at her. "I'm happy. I just…feel more comfortable in less colors." She shrugged. "I grew up wearing greys and blacks. Suddenly having all these colorful clothes is just a bit—a bit overwhelming."
She nodded in understanding. "So long as you're happy," she said before sipping some of her wine.
"Why are you so concerned about my happiness?" Zhu chuckled. She took a long drink from her own cup.
Mulan didn't look at her once again. "It's just…lately, it seems like you're only pretending to be happy. I could just be reading you wrong, but your smiles don't always seem to reach your eyes."
She opened her mouth to counter Mulan but ended up saying nothing. Closing it again, she shut her eyes and quietly cursed. Mulan wasn't reading her wrong; had she done a bad job of hiding her emotions? No, that couldn't be it. Otherwise, her mother and sisters would be fretting over her. So how could Mulan tell…? Was it because she was her best friend?
"I am happy," she finally said, "most of the time. But sometimes—sometimes, I start feeling strange. It's not anger or jealousy or sadness, but—but it kind of feels like a weird mix of all three with some added anxiety?" She shook her head. "I don't really know how to explain it. But, I promise you: I am happy." A reassuring smile came to her lips before being hidden behind her cup.
The plum wine was good.
"Good…good." She rested her head against Zhu's arm, closing her eyes. "I know you have a lot of responsibilities right now between watching over your mother and sisters; caring for all the horses and oxen; and having to be the Emperor's errand girl…" She shook her head against Zhu's arm. "And to top it all off, you're learning new emotions that you never really felt before. I wouldn't be at all surprised if what you're feeling is stress."
"I have felt stress before, though. It never felt like this."
"Stress comes in all sorts of different forms." Opening an eye, she looked up at her. "The stresses of being a warrior have different effects on a person than the stresses of being a caring big sister."
"That is true." Part of her wanted to wrap an arm around Mulan's shoulders and hold her a bit closer. But why? She had never wanted to do such a thing before…Trying to force the thought from her mind, she finished off her wine. "What should we do next?"
Mulan thought for a moment. "We've already been to the fortune teller and we've already played some games…Maybe we should head over to the archery contest?"
She nodded in agreement. "Alright then. I wonder what the prize is for it?" Upon standing, she wobbled for a few seconds as her vision seemed to swim. It quickly returned to normal. 'Uh oh,' she thought. 'I'm starting to get drunk…Oh well. This should make the contest interesting…'
Mulan, too, wobbled when she stood. As Zhu looked down at her, she found her cheeks flushed and half her cup empty. Her brow rose; so Mulan was a lightweight when it came to alcohol…
The two of them made their way through town, Mulan pointing the temporary shrines set up to Niulang and Zhinü. She also explained who the two lovers were and why the festival was celebrated in their honor. Zhu found it an interesting tale; the bit about the magpies forming a bridge, especially, intrigued her. Then again, any myth involving animals intrigued her because they almost always had human-level intelligence.
Reaching the western side of town, the two found for different targets set up at the end of the street. Long, red ribbons sectioned the areas off from passersby. Zhu was surprised by the number of people here; it was almost as many as in the center square.
Mulan took her over to a podium where a pair of men were standing. Each had a sheet of paper that they were writing things down on—the names of the competitors, probably.
"Hello, Mulan!" one of the men said as he saw them approach. "Come to watch the contest, have you?"
"I've come to watch, but my friend here would like to enter," she replied with a smile.
The man's smile faded as he looked at Zhu. "Ah, sorry, but only men are allowed to enter the archery contest."
Zhu frowned. "Why is that?"
"Well, it's so the men can show off to the women that they're capable hunters and can provide for their families," he explained. He then chuckled, rubbing the side of his neck. "As far as I've seen, women aren't too good with a bow anyway."
"And what if I wished to show off to the women and men that I can provide for my future family?" she retorted, brow furrowed.
Mulan bit her lower lip as she glanced up at Zhu. "I assure you, Zhu is excellent with a bow," she told the man, somewhat stepping in front of her friend. "She can put even the Emperor's best archers to shame."
A mix of pity and amusement came to the man's face. "I'd like to believe you, Mulan, I really would, but the rules are still rules. She'll have to enter one of the women's contests."
Nodding, she quickly pulled Zhu away from the podium before her anger could get the best of her. "Ignore him, Zhu," she told her. "If he knew just how good you were, he'd let you join the contest."
"Being able to use a bow doesn't automatically make a person a good hunter," she grumbled. "You have to be able to track the animals while also taking care to not alert them of your presence! You have to know where on the animal to hit so that their death is as quick and painless as possible!"
"I know, I know. But they're men. On a night like tonight, their only thoughts are about showing off and potentially bedding someone." She patted her on the shoulder and offered her the last of her wine; with Zhu beginning to grow tipsy, she knew one of them had to stay somewhat sober.
Zhu grumbled, taking the wine. "I'm tempted to steal one of the bows and some of the arrows so I can hide on some roof and hit the targets…" She took a drink.
Mulan couldn't help but giggle. "We can, if you'd like," she said. "The bows are just over there." She nodded towards a bucket resting near the start of the ribbon. "You'd definitely put them in their place!"
A small laugh left her mouth; her head suddenly felt quite light. "As much as I would love that, I don't think it is such a good idea right now. If I were sober, perhaps." Tilting her head back, she drained the rest of the wine. As she lowered her head, the world swam before her and she stumbled.
"Careful there," Mulan giggled, helping Zhu to steady herself. "I think you've had enough wine for tonight."
"I think so, too," she giggled. "It—it really hit me hard all of a sudden."
Mulan's brow rose; she had never heard Zhu giggle. Nor had she ever seen Zhu drunk. She found it rather adorable. "Let's go get you some food," she chuckled. "It may help offset your drunkenness."
Zhu grinned at her. "That's—that's a really good idea!" she laughed. "Oh, can we get some of those…some of those fruity dumplings Chien-Po was talkin' about? He said they were filled with fruit an' custard an' they sounded real good."
Unable to stop herself, Mulan started to laugh. "We can get you any kind of food you want, Zhu," she smiled. "So long as you don't eat yourself sick."
"I won't, I pro—" She suddenly yelped and clung onto Mulan as a firework exploded in the sky above them.
"Oh, gods, they're starting early," Mulan groaned as a second one went off. She could feel Zhu shaking as she hung onto her and, when she managed to get a look at her face, she found her skin pale and tears starting to stream down her cheeks. "Oh, gods…and I forgot to bring the cotton! Come on, let's get you out of here."
"Please," Zhu whimpered. "Please. I'm scared."
Biting her lower lip, Mulan reached over and covered Zhu's ears with her hands. Their height difference meant that the taller woman had to lean down in an uncomfortable fashion. Her panic over the fireworks far outweighed her pain, though.
Thanks to having grown up in Tianshui, Mulan thankfully knew all the city's shortcuts. And, with many of the smaller side streets empty, they were able to leave rather quickly. But the firework's explosive sounds didn't start to fade away until they were nearly a half mile from town.
When the fireworks were just a small 'boom' in the distance, Mulan finally uncovered Zhu's ears. "There," she said with a sigh, "we're away from the noise."
"Thank you," Zhu mumbled, still holding onto Mulan. "You got me out of there fast…"
"Of course." She smiled, patting Zhu's arm. "I'm just sorry I forgot the waxed cotton. I really should have remembered! I even set it on my bedside table so I wouldn't forget." Her brow rose and her cheeks darkened a bit as Zhu nuzzled her cheek.
"It happens," she mumbled. "Sometimes…sometimes our memory likes to be stupid."
Giggling, Mulan lightly shook her head. "Zhu, do you have any idea how adorable you are when you're drunk?" she gently teased.
"No. But I know that I'm veeeery clingy!" A cheeky grin came to her lips, making Mulan laugh harder. "An'—an' I know you have an adorable laugh."
"Is that so?" Her brow rose in amusement once again.
"Mhm." Yet again, she nuzzled Mulan's cheek. "You're just…just an adorable person," she continued. "Except when you're mad. Then you're kind of a little scary. I think. Have I ever seen you mad?" She frowned as she tried to remember if she had ever seen Mulan angry. "I don't think so…but you'd still be kind of a little scary if you were."
Rolling her eyes, she shifted Zhu a little bit so that her chin wasn't digging into her shoulder. "I've seen you mad," she told her. "Now that is frightening."
"It's because of my dumb eyebrows. They're all…weird an' stuff. An' my sharp teeth. Well, they used to be sharp. I had to file them down a bit. Emperor's orders. Said I had to try an' look more Chinese and less Hunnic." She blew a raspberry. "The Emperor is an asshole."
"It would certainly seem he's not quite the grandfatherly figure I once thought him to be."
Zhu shook her head, sighing. "He's nice to everyone else, but to me, he's just an—an asshole. An' he's starting to be one to Ting-Ting, which isn't fair at all. An' it's all because we've got his wife for our mother an' a Hun for a father. As if we could do anythin' about bein' born."
Mulan wasn't sure if she felt thankful or sad that she could see their houses in the distance. "Very true. He should give you two the same respect he gives everyone else—Ting-Ting, especially, since he raised her!"
"I know!" she gasped. "Blood or not, he's her father. He raised her an' he taught her things an' he had so much pride in her! But then she went an' showed off her strength somehow an' suddenly, she's not his favorite eldest anymore." She blew another raspberry.
"…At least she seems to be quite happy out here?" she offered. "Gods know she's getting enough freedom."
Chuckling, she nodded and closed her eyes; she didn't need to worry about where to walk since she still held Mulan. "She's very happy out here. So are Mei 'n Su. They're thrivin' out here. No nursemaids…no tutors…no snobby, stuck up princes tryin' to get their dowries."
"Just three goofball lieutenants who want to give them the world."
"…Yeah. They do really want t' give them the world, don't they?" Her voice had suddenly grown quiet and sullen. "Since they first saw my sisters, they've been head-over-heels for 'em. An' my sisters have been head-over-heels for them, too. 'Cept Su. She don't feel romantic or sexual things. But Chien-Po's her best friend. Like you're my best friend! But he's a different sort of best friend."
"Well, it makes sense, doesn't it?" she asked with a small smile. "If you're best friends with someone, you know them as well as you know yourself. And that's a good thing to have if you're married to someone."
Zhu glanced over at her. "Yeah, it does…" she murmured. "Mulan, do you think there's a way for my sisters to marry the goofballs?"
"If I recall correctly, you told me that love always finds a way. And they're certainly in love."
Again, she nodded. "Wish I knew what love felt like," she sighed. "Sounds like it'd be somethin' nice to feel."
"It can be," she chuckled. "It can make you feel all warm and fuzzy inside and make you feel happier than you ever thought possible. But it can also make you feel sad and angry, leaving your insides feeling like they're in a constant free fall while the rest of you just feels unhopeful. Even worse is when love makes you feel jealous and hurt. That's when it gets hard to breathe—because your chest feels tight and there's a lump in your throat that just won't go away."
"Do you feel all of that when you think about Shang?" she mumbled.
"Sometimes," Mulan admitted. "I've felt the happier parts more often than the others…but…"
"But…?" She tilted her head, trying to look at Mulan's face.
"But…lately, I've been feeling more and more unhopeful," she sighed. "I love him, Zhu. I really do! But it's so hard. He hasn't told me how he feels yet and he's always so far away…" She bit her lower lip. "I know I should be more optimistic because I know he loves me. But with my parents wanting me to be married sooner rather than later and the distance between us…"
"It's hard to—hard to think that anythin' can come of it?"
She nodded, tilting her head to rest it against Zhu's. "Yeah…"
Zhu gave her a gentle squeeze. "Mulan, a woman like you only—like you only comes around every few dynasties. Shang knows that! An' he's going to try his damnedest to make sure he doesn't have to wait another six dynasties for another chance."
Mulan couldn't help but laugh. "I don't think he'd live another six dynasties, Zhu."
"If he loves you enough, he would. Fuck, I'd live another six dynasties if it meant gettin' to see you again." She frowned somewhat. "…How long are dynasties, by the way? I don't really know…I don't even really know what a dynasty is."
She laughed again and shook her head. "Oh, Zhu…you are so drunk."
"At least I can still walk!"
"Just barely. You have to hold onto me to walk."
"Nuh-uh. I'm just very—just very clingy."
"Then it's a good thing we've reached your home, isn't it?" she chuckled. Pushing open the gate, she helped Zhu through the courtyard and into the servants' house. Once inside, she kept Zhu upright as she kicked off her shoes.
It was as they were walking down the hall towards her room that the two noticed something wasn't quite right. Mulan pressed a finger to her lips as they stopped outside her door. There were strange noises coming from behind them, in Ling's room.
Her brows furrowing, Zhu finally let go of Mulan and, gathering what bit of sobriety she had left, crept across the hall. Very slowly so as to make as little noise as possible, she slid open the door to Ling's bedroom just a fraction of an inch—enough to let her peer inside.
She suddenly wished she hadn't.
Through what little light there was, she could see the silhouettes of Ling and Ting-Ting on his bed. Just as slowly as she opened it, she closed the door. The second it was shut, tears started to pour from her eyes—but why? Why was she starting to cry, damn it?! It was all too obvious that Ling was making Ting-Ting very happy and she wanted her sister to be happy. Not to mention, Ting-Ting and Ling were adorable together!
In fact, they were almost as adorable as Shang and Mulan.
Her chest grew even tighter and a lump began to form in her throat.
"What is it?" she heard Mulan whisper. "Please tell me it's not—"
"It is," she whispered back, her voice a bit hoarse. Thankful for the darkness that surrounded them, she held onto the wall as she crossed the hall and slid open her bedroom door. Once it was open, she stumbled into her room. She used her sleeves to wipe her face; she couldn't let Mulan know she was crying. When she tripped over the hem of her dress, Mulan darted forward and caught her.
"Careful," she whispered, helping her to sit down on the edge of her bed. "We don't need you getting hurt."
"Dumb dress did it," Zhu mumbled. She leaned over as Mulan also sat down, resting her head on her shoulder.
Mulan lightly patted her knee. "It's a pretty dress, but evidently a deadly one," she quietly teased.
She managed a small smile, though she knew she couldn't see it. "Assassin dress…makes all its kills look like tragic accidents."
Snorting, Mulan clapped a hand over her mouth. "Is that the sort of dress you wish Mei would make you?"
"Don't need to wish. She made it already. I'm wearin' it an' it wants me dead…or wants me t' go around naked. Not really sure." She wiped her face again, but the tears were still coming.
Thank spirits for the darkness.
Mulan continued to keep her mouth covered as she giggled. "I am going to remind you of everything you said tomorrow, I'll have you know."
"Spirits help me," she mumbled. "…Mulan…?"
Wiping away a tear of mirth, Mulan cocked a brow. "Yes?"
"Can…can you stay here? With me, I mean? Just for tonight?"
A look of concern came over her features, though Zhu couldn't see it. "Are you feeling alright?"
"Starting to get a headache," she half lied. "But…I just don't wanna be alone. Not when I'm drunk. Don't know why." She closed her eyes and leaned into the embrace as Mulan hugged her.
"Of course I'll stay," she said, giving her a soft squeeze.
"Thank you."
Trying to be as quiet as possible, the two women changed into their sleeping clothes. For Zhu, that meant an actual nightgown. For Mulan, it meant sleeping in her crimson under dress. Once in a while, the two could hear certain sounds emanating from Ling's bedroom, but they did their best to ignore them.
Upon crawling into Zhu's bed, Mulan found herself surprised to discover that it smelled of jasmine—a scent she would have never associated with Zhu. But it was pleasant and made her start to feel drowsy. Without even realizing it, she wrapped her arms around Zhu when she curled up beside her, holding her protectively.
"Good night, Zhu," she yawned. "I hope you don't wake up too sore in the morning."
"I hope so, too," Zhu murmured. "Sleep well, Mulan. Have nice dreams."
She chuckled. "You, too, you silly."
Zhu let out a nearly-silent sigh. Her mind was filled with too many thoughts for her to fall asleep. Why did she have such an adverse reaction to catching Ling and Ting-Ting being intimate? And why did thinking about Shang and Mulan as a couple make her feel so…so jealous? To add to the thoughts, she also remembered feeling almost shy when Ling and Mulan had complimented her dress that evening.
But then she started to remember how Mulan described the various ways love could feel. How it could make a person happy or make them angry or sad or jealous. How she had felt all those things—at different times, of course—whenever she was around Mulan and Ling.
Her eyes suddenly shot open.
'Spirits help me,' she thought, staring at the sleeping form that was Mulan. Only a few inches separated their faces on the pillow. 'I'm in love with them…'