Author's Note: I must apologize. I kept my readers waiting WAAYY too long on this, so I lost some readers:( I should have done my other story after this. So I apologize for spending more time on that story than this. R&R! But I promise you I won't keep you waiting any longer.

Special Thanks: But I must show my thanks to my readers who have stayed with me this whole time! Thank you so much!

chelle93 - I'll admit, it is quite sad. But it's the life of an army soldier :(

newgirl5 - haha again I'm sorry for the slow updates.

Rachel - Thank you! I love that you check everyday! It's readers like you that make love to write:) Maybe you should sign up for an account so you can just get email updates :)

Ivy - :) I apologize. But thank you for reading my stories! I'm sorry it took me so long.

Tishica -I love Shang too. And maybe Mulan does too.

Leila Wong - haha maybe you should run through the chapters again and maybe even the last story. It's pretty obvious when Mulan gets pregnant. And if Mulan has a son with Shang, he'll certainly be beautiful:) And I'm sorry for the late updating!

Trakrat - haha you've been like my most devoted reader. I really appreciate that! I think you'd really like this chapter too.

It wasn't the same. Nothing was the same. And as Mulan lay out on the grass with the pouring rain falling down her face, she knew that it was true. It was inevitable. She no longer cared about anything. And she knew that it wasn't just rain falling down her face, they were tears. Tears for her shame: the Huns believed she was pregnant; Mulan was not sure at all if she was pregnant, but if she was then she would be with child and with shame. Having a baby, but with no husband would surely be the death of her family honor. She had tears of fear: there was nothing she could now do to prevent the Huns from attacking her home and killing her family. And lastly, tears of sadness and mourning: Mulan lost the only thing she probably ever cared enough about. Shang was one of the only men who actually accepted her as a woman but with the same respect as a man. Now with the possibility of being pregnant with the General's son, no one in their right mind would marry a "tainted" woman.

And as the rain continued to pour harder and harder, Mulan sat down by the pond staring at herself. She no longer wanted to sit under the cherry blossom tree or near the magnolia tree that was a sign of their blooming love. It honestly hurt too much to look at it, so instead she looked at herself. Just a few months ago, Mulan could have stared at her reflection and smiled. Because then, everything was perfect. Before Mulan looked at herself as a sign of weakness, but now she looked to herself to be strong. And right now, in this sad moment, she had to.

Mulan luckily had her moment of peace and serenity. Since it was raining outside, it kept everyone else inside. The two prissy girls, who allowed Mulan to stay the extra day at home before joining the Emperor, would never want to mess up their make-up with this rain. Her father and grandmother knew her oh so well, so they knew when to leave her alone. And Mulan's mother understood perfectly well that even if she did go out there, Mulan would just run away and want to be left alone. So even her mother knew it was to no avail. But even though Mulan was left alone, she could feel as if the eyes of the world were upon her, wondering exactly what she was going to do.

"Shang," Mulan whispered as if she was crying out, "Where are you? Why have you left me?" She sobbed and her shoulders sagged deeply. It was like her father said, "you never know what you have, until you lose it." But she could not help but wonder, if Shang escaped the thieves, where was he? And if he was still alive, why did he leave her? Why didn't he come back and save her? But more importantly, why was he not here with her?

There was nothing more she could say, nothing more she could do. She would marry before any one could discover that she was pregnant, but it certainly would not be for love. She would definitely cherish her special child, but she was not sure if she would be able to live the rest of her life unhappily. Maybe she would grow to love him. But there was no one else to love but Shang, no one but…

"Shan?" she breathed heavily and released it so quickly. When was the last time she had said that name? Last time she did, she was crying, but for what reason? Was it true? Was Shan her true husband? Even if he was, she knew that she would not be as happy. And as she knew her inevitable fate, Mulan found it hard to breathe, with her chest feeling like collapsing.

"Now why in the world are you so sad?" a familiar voice asked.

Mulan gasped and looked around for a moment. That rich deep voice was so familiar to her. A figure stood in the branches of a tree, hiding his face from her. For a moment Mulan smiled, thinking she knew exactly who it was. But when the figure did not move from the branches, she frowned.

"Is there a reason you're staying in the rain? You could get sick you know?" he said again.

Mulan smiled. "Come out here so I can see you."

"Do you not know who I am?" he asked again. And for some reason Mulan felt his smile as he said that statement.

Mulan laughed. She walked closer to the tree. Every step she took, every breath she breathed, seemed so heavy, so long. But the closer and closer she got, she hoped she found what she was looking for. Mulan hoped and prayed it would not be Shan. And as she neared the tree, she decided to stop. Mulan took a defensive stance, just in case. Warriors always were ready just in case.

He laughed. "There's no reason to get defensive around me. I would never hurt you." The figure in the branches moved a little. His foot protruded from the leaves and showed a foot, not with any boots, but just regular shoes. When Mulan saw this, she stiffened a bit and showed her disappointment on her face. "What? Did I disappoint you?"

Mulan faked smiled and shook her head. "No, it's just…" she paused for a moment, trying to hold back her tears. "I just thought you were someone else." She changed back to her expressionless face, which soon turned in a whimper. Mulan immediately turned away and walked back to the pond.

From behind her Mulan could hear the person jump down and onto the bench. She wanted to scream, "Why can't you just leave me alone?" But she didn't want to. Right now all she wanted to do was run away.

"Why do you keep running away from me Mulan?" he asked. "Why can't you look me in the face right now?" He moved closer to her and placed his hand on her shoulder. "What is it that you don't want to see?" He turned her around to face her. "Is it me?"

Mulan gasped. She honestly thought it was Shan. Mulan looked at Shang as he looked deep into her eyes, wondering what went wrong. "Shang," she said breathlessly and gently caressed his face with her hands. And as she smoothed out his cheeks, Shang's worry turned into a grimace.

"Is it me that you love or Shan?" Shang asked. "You were disappointed to see my leg, how much more were you disappointed to see my face? I don't understand where I went wrong with you. I love you Mulan, but if it's me that you don't love, I'll understand. I love you enough to let you go. I'll definitely fight for you, but if you don't love me, then there's nothing I can do about it." He took her hands from his face and held them in his own.

Mulan smiled. "Shang, I didn't think it was you. In fact, I started crying because I didn't think it was you."

"What made you so unsure?"

"You're going to think I'm crazy," Mulan grinned, "but it was the shoes that threw me off. I always thought you wore boots. Since when did you wear those shoes?"

"I had to," Shang replied. "Those stupid thieves took away my boots and gave me their stupid shoes instead." Shang sighed. "You don't know how painful it was to walk in these shoes and not in boots."

Mulan laughed. "Welcome to my world. I have to wear those all the time." They both sighed and looked each other in the eyes. It was an awkward moment at first, but they were just both glad to be in each other's company. Mulan couldn't help it. All she really wanted to do was stare into his eyes, because for so long, she hadn't been able to do so. "Why did you leave me?" Mulan asked after a while.

Shang groaned. He had wanted to kiss her, but she ruined the moment. "I never left you. In fact, those thieves carried me along to follow you and watch you the whole time. It wasn't until Shan caught up with you, that I decided to leave."

"You saw that?" Mulan asked in horror.

Shang nodded. There was still a moment of awkward silence. Mulan did not know exactly what to say and Shang wondered what to respond to that. But he had to ask, "Would you rather marry me and Shan?"

Mulan smiled. She pulled him in by the collar and kissed him gently on the lips, while the rain continued to pour. But the kiss got deeper and deeper as Mulan was lifted by Shang. She put her legs around him, while his arms held her up by the waist. When they finally broke apart Mulan breathlessly whispered in his ear, "Shang you were always my first choice. And if there is anyone I wish to marry, it's you." She briefly kissed him one last time, "And if there's anyone who makes my dreams come true, it's you."