Jeanette's POV
Mulan and the boys led us to a familiar house – the Fa family house – and as we walked on, Trysha and I got to know the little boys as Mulan's three younger brothers. The oldest boy was named Fa Jun, the middle one was called Fa Qin, and the youngest was Fa Cho.
"I didn't know Mulan had brothers," Trysha whispered to me.
"Me neither," I said before admitting, "But I gotta admit that I've had this idea for a while of giving her brothers that were similar to Merida's brothers from Brave, or Tzipporah's sisters from The Prince of Egypt."
When we arrived at the house, Mulan told me and Trysha to wait outside while she and her brothers went inside to do something. "I wonder what's gonna happen," Trysha whispered to me with a little worry in her voice, "These people around here are really picky about this 'honor' stuff."
I tried not to sound worried as I said to Trysha, "The worst that could happen is Mulan's family sending a message to a certain Chinese Judge Claude Frollo and the Emperor about what's going on, and we could get put…"
My sentence was cut off when I heard the sound of the boys giggling, and an old male voice saying from inside, "Let me through! I want to see them!" Coming out of the house from the front door was a crippled old man dressed in blue as he hobbled along with a crutch. The man smiled as he carefully but quickly made his way towards us to give me and Trysha each a pat on the back. "You are most welcome!" he said.
Then, following him from the inside of the house was Mulan, her brothers, and two older women. I immediately recognized these people as Mulan's other family members. The man grinned at me and Trysha and told us, "You should not be strangers in this land, for you have been sent as blessings to our sons. And tonight, you will be my honored guests!"
Trysha and I exchanged confused looks as Mulan approached us with a smile and a chuckle. "My father, Fa Zhou," she said, referring to the crippled old man.
Trysha whispered to me, "Isn't he a former soldier, Jeanette?"
I nodded at her and assured, "This is a good family, here, Trysha. Everything will be fine!"
Third Person POV
That evening, Jeanette and Trysha were inside the Fa family house, ready to eat dinner with Mulan's family. As the girls approached the table, Fa Qin tugged at Jeanette's dress and said, "Psst! Sit with me!"
Jeanette looked down at Fa Qin's smile, which was missing a few front teeth. The redhead cleared her throat and shrugged, "Alright."
Jeanette and Trysha sat down by the table, and Trysha tried reaching for a bowl of rice. "Psst! Not yet!" Grandmother Fa corrected her.
"Oh, sorry," Trysha whispered.
Fa Zhou put his hand up and said, "My family! Let us give thanks for the bountiful food, as well as the honor these two young women have brought us, for we honor them in return!"
All the family members and Trysha smiled. Jeanetta just leaned over to Mulan's father and whispered to him with a disappointed look, "Please, sir, I wish you wouldn't. I doubt that Trysha and I have done hardly anything in our lives worth honoring."
Trysha looked at Jeanette with confusion, and then Fa Zhou looked at Jeanette with a smile. "Mulan tells me you used your wits to defend my three sons from brigands," he told her as Fa Qin and Fa Cho giggled, "You think that is nothing? It seems you do not know what is worthy of honor." The old man then touched a hanging red tapestry to show the girls as he sang:
A single thread in a tapestry
Thought its color brightly shine
Can never see its purpose
In the pattern of the grand design
Mulan's father showed Jeanette and Trysha the yellow tapestry next to the red one, and then motioned for the girls to look out a window, where there were some mountains off in the distance – just like in the tapestries.
Fa Zhou: And the stone that sits on the very top
Of the mountain's mighty face
Do you think it's more important
Than the stones that form the base?
So how can you see what your life is worth?
Or where your value lies?
You can never see through the eyes of man
You must look at your life
Look at your life through ancestral eyes!
The scene shifted to after dinner, where the family, Jeanette, and Trysha were gathered in a room; Mulan, Fa Li, and Grandmother were each playing a different instrument, while the little boys were all dancing along with the music. Jeanette was still curious as to what Fa Zhou had taught her and Trysha.
"Look through ancestral eyes?" Jeanette questioned to her friend with confusion, "I don't understand."
"Maybe it's some kind of riddle?" Trysha guessed.
Just then, Fa Qin danced to Jeanette with a big grin and said, "Dance with me!"
"Uh, no thank you," Jeanette said with a nervous smile.
Mulan put her little flute down, and then danced with Fa Qin, while Jeanette, Trysha, and the others all watched.
Days passed, and the Fa family was teaching Jeanette and Trysha the basics of being a proper Chinese woman – working at home and doing simple chores like laundry at the river, feeding the livestock, and tending to Mulan's beloved black horse, Khan. Jeanette and Trysha seemed to be enjoying their time with the family; while washing clothes one day, Jeanette smiled at Fa Cho, and then dumped a pail of water over her head, making the little boy laugh.
Trysha and Jeanette also worked at tending to some sheep in a field, almost like shepherdesses. "I feel like we're in The Prince of Egypt, or Joseph: King of Dreams!" said Trysha – except that we're in China!
Jeanette giggled and said, "I know, right?"
One morning, Trysha was gathering some eggs from the chickens in the little coop, when she felt something fluffy underneath one of the hens! When she brought her hand out, the brown-haired girl pulled out a little chick, who peeped out loud!
Fa Zhou: A lake of gold in the Gobi's sand
Is less than a cool, fresh spring
And to one lost sheep
A shepherd or two is greater than the richest king
If one loses everything he owns
Has he truly lost his worth?
Or is it the beginning
Of a new and brighter birth?
One afternoon, Jeanette and Trysha had just finished giving Khan a little bath. As Jeanette dried the horse off with a towel, Mulan, her parents, and Grandmother all walked over to the girls, holding the reins to two new horses. One was a golden yellow stallion, and the other was a white mare. Jeanette and Trysha smiled as they looked at the horses, and the new animals each nuzzled the girls affectionately. "Gratitude for defending my brothers," Mulan explained to the girls with a smile, "And besides, I thought Khan should have a friend or two."
Khan, meanwhile, shook his head with confusion and surprise at seeing the new horses.
Jeanette and Trysha spent the rest of the day with their new horses; Jeanette took the yellow horse and named him Helios, while Trysha took the white horse and named her Luna. The girls rode on the backs of their respective horses, but they didn't forget to give Khan some extra love, too; that way, the black horse wouldn't feel so jealous.
Fa Zhou: So how do you measure the worth of someone
In wealth, or pose, or size?
Or how much they give, or how much they gain?
The answer will come
The answer will come to those who try
To look at their lives through ancestral eyes!
Two weeks had passed, and Jeanette and Trysha were growing very accustomed to Ancient Chinese culture. One day, Trysha held a big bowl over her head, and Fa Jun tried to reach something out of the bowl. The brown-haired girl laughed as she lowered the bowl; as Fa Jun looked in the bowl, he gave a look of disappointment to find nothing inside. But then, Trysha put her hands into her sleeves, and then brought out several fortune cookies! The young boy laughed as he snatched a cookie from Trysha's hands.
Fa Zhou: And that's why we share all we have with you
Though there's little to be found
When all you've got is nothing
There's a lot to go around!
One night, Jeanette, Trysha, and the Fa family were all gathered in the main room again; all the women were once again playing different instruments, while the boys danced around to the music, and Jeanette and Trysha watched with delight.
Fa Zhou: No life can escape being blown about
By the winds of change and chance
And though you never know all the steps
You must learn to join the dance! (2x)
Fa Jun came up to the girls and said, "Dance with us!"
Jeanette smugly grinned and said, "Oh, no. You guys…"
"Come on, Jeanette!" Mulan coaxed the redhead.
Trysha stood up, and then she took Jeanette's hand, and made her dance along with Mulan's three younger brothers.
A couple of days later, the boys were outside as they wandered over to a window at the family house, and got glimpse of the silhouettes of Mulan, her mother, Grandmother, Jeanette, and Trysha. All the women were conversing over something, but none of the boys could make out what was going on, so they all snickered to each other, hoping that there would be a surprise for them.
That night, a big feast was held, for it was Mulan's birthday, and she was now at the age where she would be married off soon. "Tomorrow, you will see the matchmaker, Mulan," Fa Li told her daughter with a smile.
Mulan just smiled nervously, for she wasn't quite sure if she was ready to married off yet; still, she wanted to do her best at bringing high honor to her family.
"But tonight, we celebrate your birthday!" Grandmother Fa cheered as Jeanette and Trysha both clapped their hands.
Fa Zhou: So how do you judge what someone is worth?
By what they build or buy?
You can never see with your eyes on earth
Look through ancestral eyes
Look at your life (2x)
Look at your life through ancestral eyes!
When the song ended, Jeanette decided to ask Mulan's father a question. "Excuse me, sir," she said to him, "I've been wondering about this for quite a while, and now I'd like to ask – what do you mean by 'looking through ancestral eyes'?"
Fa Zhou turned to his daughter and asked, "Mulan, suppose you show Jeanette and Trysha?"
Mulan bowed to him with a smile, and then motioned for Jeanette and Trysha to follow her outside.
Trysha's POV
Mulan led me and Jeanette outside the house, across a little bridge over a pond, and then up a hill where a small temple was. "Here in China," the dark-haired girl explained, "We believe that our ancestors are still with us inside our hearts, and we pray to them for protection and wisdom."
"You do?" I asked with amazement.
"Yes," Mulan nodded, "My father says that all our ancestors have passed down these traditions of learning from mistakes and bringing honor like the ones who lived before us. We also have guardian animals who protect us from danger."
"Like what?" Jeanette asked with curiosity.
Mulan led us into the temple, and then lit a light. She pointed us to different small statues of animals up above; and explained that they each had different special quality for in case something bad happened. Then, she turned towards the atmosphere outside, and pointed out a giant, stone statue of a dragon. "The Great Stone Dragon is the most powerful of all our guardians," she said to us, "Father says he is the highest protector for our family. If there's ever a war, or maybe someone in our family has been harmed, it is said that the Great Stone Dragon comes to life, and then sets out to protect and fight for our lives. The ultimate sacrifice."
"Wow!" Jeanette gasped with an amazed smile.
"That's pretty cool!" I added.
Mulan yawned a bit and said, "Oh my goodness! It's getting late, girls. We should get back to the house. I have to see the matchmaker tomorrow, and I promised my mother I wouldn't be late."
"Good point," I said with a nod. As we walked back to the house, I turned to Jeanette and whispered softly in her ear, "I think I know where this is going now."
Jeanette just smiled and winked at me.
Author's Note: The song "Through Heaven's Eyes" is from The Prince of Egypt ((c) Dreamworks)