A/N: For all of you who have decided to further read my fic. Thank you! I really appreciate it. Word of warning; the first few chapters of this fic will probably be slow, (I'm thinking maybe the first five chapters) so hang in there!

Chapter 2

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Four years had passed since Mulan last saw Phillip. When she had heard from her father that he would be coming back for the summer, she was ecstatic. She was also curious as to what Phillip had done over that course of time, and so a day after Phillip had come to Nanjie, she decided to meet him and ask him about all of his adventures.

It was a warm, summer afternoon when Mulan apprehensively approached the front gates of King Alexander's mansion. One of the guards looked down on her from his lofty height quizzically, as if wondering what child would be brave enough to approach the gates. Sensing that she would have to have the first word, Mulan confidently spoke,"I request an audience with Prince Phillip." "Prince Phillip is unavailable at the moment," the guard replied stiffly. Disappointed, Mulan was about to turn away when she heard the clang of metal against metal. "He must be having some weapons training," she deduced.

Steeling her nerves for another confrontation, Mulan turned to ask the guard a second question. "Would you please tell me the earliest available time when I could meet him?" "I do not know," the guard replied, "but the Prince's lessons usually last for two hours." Mulan decided to wait for about thirty minutes before she would head back home. The time had agonizingly passed away, and she was just about to go home when Phillip came running out of the front gate to meet her.

Phillip's smile from finally finishing his lessons widened when he saw his old friend. "Mulan, it's so great to see you!" he called to her, and the two children embraced warmly. "Where have you been this whole time?" he teased. "Funny, I should be asking you that question," Mulan replied,"I've been right here in Nanjie this whole time!".

The two walked off together and headed to a private alleyway. It was only there when Mulan noticed a short sword hanging by Phillip's side. "I didn't know you were taking weapons lessons," she remarked. Phillip's ego grew; he was glad that she had noticed. "Started only a year ago actually," he said with a smug grin on his face.

Mulan suddenly felt a twinge of jealousy. She had often secretly watched her father practice with his sword, and she admired the grace and skill that he had when he handled the deadly weapon. She wanted to learn how to handle a fine weapon like that as well, but her father had forbidden her from doing so.

"Will you teach me?" The question had slipped out of her mouth before she had a chance to realize what she just said. Phillip did a double take. "What did you say?" he asked her. Slowing down Mulan repeated, "Will you teach me how to fight with a sword?" Phillip was perplexed. None of the girls in his kingdom were allowed to know how to defend themselves with weapons, or even how to properly use their fists. It was common knowledge that the men were supposed to defend the women, not the other way around. Phillip decided to think about her request.

After mulling it over for a few minutes while Mulan impatiently awaited his decision, Phillip found his answer. "I have decided," he said slowly and deliberately, his tone of voice oozing royalty,"that I will teach you the art of sword fighting." "Oh, thank you, thank you Phillip!" Mulan shrieked as she tackled him with a bear hug. "Mulan, can't breathe," Phillip puffed between gasps. Mulan immediately let go, slightly embarrassed that she had hurt her friend. "So, when do we start?" she asked. "How about today?" Phillip replied. "That would be nice."

"We'll have to use tree branches. I don't want you or me to get hurt severely," Phillip warned as they set off to find two suitable branches to fight with. Once they had found these branches, Phillip set about showing Mulan the nine proper stances of sword fighting. He smiled as he saw the determination in her face to perfect the deadly art.

He hoped that he had made a good choice. He thought that it would help him improve his own sword training, and helping his friend learn how to protect herself properly was an added bonus. At the end of the lesson, the two were careful to hide the branches under a piece of spare cloth. "We'll meet here again tomorrow for your next lesson, okay?" Phillip called out to his friend. "I'll see you then!" she replied, clearly excited at the prospect of another lesson. "And Mulan, one more thing," Phillip called,"we cannot tell anyone about these lessons." Phillip looked grave as he said this, for he knew that there was a high chance that Mulan could be punished for attempting to learn the art of the sword. Mulan nodded solemnly before she went off go home.

As Phillip left to go home, he had not realized that he had planted the seeds for who would become one of China's most legendary warriors, named "The Sheild Maiden of China". Her name was Mulan.

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A/N: Please read and review! New chapter will come out every week.