I've always had a vague idea for a story about Mulan and how she met up again with Ling, Yao, and Chien-Po. Here is the result. Please enjoy and let me know what you think.

Mulan's return from the war had been quiet, despite the honors she'd won. Falling back into her routine was actually a relief after the stress of training and her battle with Shan Yu. But of course, people talked about why she'd been away. There were theories that she'd been hiding a secret, but nobody dared to accuse her to her face because of her family's status. Mulan had been gossiped about her entire life, and she was quite used to it. Still, she wished to tell of her going off to war. In their quaint little village, news of her achievements hadn't yet reached them, and her father was in no hurry to break apart their peaceful lives with even more scrutiny and gossip. Mulan had done enough damage to the Fa family name, and she was content to fall back into her old life… mostly. She did miss the freedom of being able to speak her mind. But it was no less than she was used to.

"Mulan, what are you doing?" her mother, Li, asked as she came into her room.

"Nothing," Mulan said quickly, tucking away her scrolls. "I was just about to do my chores."

Mulan stood up and brushed her lengthening hair over her shoulder to put it into a loose binding. Li stared at her daughter, noticing again the hard muscles of her once soft form. She was still so beautiful, but coming home from war had changed her. She no longer spoke back, but her eyes could bore through the toughest man in the village now. She kept her gaze down most of the time, as was proper, but she no longer hid her disdain for the stupidity of some of her acquaintances.

No suitor had been matched with her either. Li was starting to think that no man could match Mulan. There was that nice Captain Shang that had come by right after Mulan had returned home, but he was out cutting down the rest of the Huns. Shan Yu had separated several smaller bands of Huns from his main army, and they were wreaking havoc in some small villages. Mulan was first to the criers that came proclaiming the news of attacks on nearby settlements, and though she never spoke, she absorbed every word. It was starting to worry Li, but she didn't know how to bring it up. Besides Grandma, nobody in the house brought up Mulan's absence and what she'd been up to.

Mulan avoided her mother's gaze as she got ready for her chores. She grabbed the bag of feed grain and called for Little Brother then padded out to feed the chickens. She liked doing her chores early so she could head out into the fields and train. While she was at home or in the public eye, she acted the obedient daughter, but she knew the Huns were trouble. The young men in the village were still away in the army, and those who were left would make rather easy prey for the marauding Huns. She wanted to be ready if they reached their village.

After tying the bag to the dog's back, she tempted him with a bone on a string then went to the ancestor shrine. Mushu, lying on his beloved pedestal, peered down at her.

"Hey, girl, what you doing here?"

"I thought I would pray," Mulan said. "I'm uneasy about the news. They're getting closer."

"Ain't nothing we can't handle," Mushu said dismissively.

"Mushu," Mulan said quietly. "It's not me I'm worried about."

Mushu grew more somber and skittered down the shrine to settle across Mulan's shoulders. "You got a good heart, Mulan. Don't ever change that."

Mulan grabbed a stick of incense and Mushu blew a gentle breath out to catch the end on fire. After letting it burn for a moment, Mulan blew out the tiny flame and set it in the tray. Mushu climbed down and watched as she bowed before the ancestors and began to pray.

It was the call that there were men approaching on horseback that roused Mulan from her prayers. She stood and let Mushu slither down into the nape of her dress to hide before she turned and walked back into the house. Her father was just leaving, and Mulan passed him without a word. He took her wrist.

"Mulan?"

"Yes, Bàba?"

"Stay."

Mulan didn't move for several moments as Li and Grandma stared at her. Then she pulled her wrist out of her father's gentle grasp and said one word. "No."

Zhou stiffened as Mulan went out into the streets, but she didn't dare to look at him. She made her way to the square then stood passively by a tree as the horses approached. Her father came limping out with Li and Grandma, but he didn't approach her. Mulan waited for the horses to come trotting into town, desperate for news. What she didn't expect was just who was riding the horses.

There were three men, but only two were on horseback. The third was far too big to ride most mounts, so he was driving a wagon. Mulan's breath caught in her throat as Yao, Ling, and Chien-Po dismounted. They had an official notice, which they gave to the town crier before they returned to their own business. Mulan watched them as the crier opened the notice and began to read it for the town. It was nothing new. More Hun attacks in smaller villages, moving closer to this one. Be careful, women should be escorted, and on and on. Once the news was read, Mulan hung back and watched the three men as the townsfolk began to talk.

It was Ling who noticed her first, feeling her gaze on his back. He turned to look at her, and she met his gaze without flinching. He frowned then scanned her up and down. Looking around warily for a moment, he stood up and approached her.

"Ping?" Ling asked, a small smile on his lips.

"It's Mulan here, Ling," Mulan said. "It's good to see you again. How's military life treating you?"

"Lots of riding and marching," Ling said, waving a hand. "It'll be better once we flush out the rest of the Huns. But what about you? We haven't heard anything other than you made it home safe."

"What can I say?" Mulan asked. "It's different than military life, that's for sure."

Yao called over to Ling. "I ain't doing all this by myself!"

Mulan grinned and walked with Ling over to the other men. "But you're so good at it, Yao," she teased. "And don't you want it done right?"

Yao and Chien-Po stopped and spun to her.

"Ping!" Yao gasped.

"Mulan," she corrected.

The two men grinned at her. "Didn't know this was your village," Yao said.

"Surprise," she said. "What are you three doing here?"

"Captain Shang sent us to be stationed here until the Hun threat is gone," Chien-Po said.

"He's sending out more soldiers to other villages," Yao said.

"Only three of you?" Mulan asked.

The three men looked at each other. "Captain Shang didn't seem to think this village would be attacked," Chien-Po replied.

"Not important enough," Yao added.

"Oh, that's not true," Mulan said. "This village contains the primary road through the bog lands to the south. It would be a very strategic place to attack."

Ling, Yao, and Chien-Po looked startled at the news but before they could say anything about it, a strong hand gripped Mulan's wrist.

"How dare you talk to my daughter!" Zhou said angrily.

"Bàba!" Mulan gasped.

Before she could do anything, her father yanked her around and pulled her toward the house. Mulan looked back over her shoulder and gave a small, sad smile before shrugging. The three men looked shocked as she was dragged away.

When Zhou swung her into the house and shut the doors behind him, he gazed at his daughter with a stern face. "Were they accosting you? Did they hurt you?"

"No, Baba," Mulan said. She grabbed a broom and began to sweep the courtyard. "Ling, Yao, and Chien-Po are good men. They wouldn't hurt me."

Li and Grandma looked surprised, and Zhou gazed at her thoughtfully. "You know them?"

"I'd say so, considering they helped me save the emperor. They were in my regiment. They helped saved my life during the avalanche, too."

"Avalanche?" Li asked, placing a hand over her heart. "You never said there was an avalanche."

And this was why Mulan didn't talk about her time in the military. Her father's face grew pale and he leaned heavily on his cane as he stared at his daughter. Grandma was the only one who looked more curious than concerned and horrified. Mulan continued to sweep.

"Yes. That was when most of the Hun army was killed," she said. She didn't mention that she'd caused the avalanche. Less to worry about.

Silence. Then Mulan spoke. "They're being stationed here, Bàba. Could we host them?"

Zhou gazed solemnly at his daughter then looked to his wife. Li clasped her hands in front of her skirt then nodded. Grandma nodded too, and Zhou turned to leave.

"I'll make the arrangements. Mulan, please prepare the extra room."

"Yes, Bàba. And thank you," she said, bowing a little.

Mulan, Li, and Grandma quickly prepared the room, then Mulan went to make tea. She heard the door open and Ling's pleased voice.

"It's quite the honor to stay with you, Fa Zhou. We've heard of your bravery. Not to mention we've seen your daughter's!"

Her father limped in, his face impassive. Mulan came out to greet them.

"Welcome to our home," she said, bowing respectfully.

"It's a lovely home," Chien-Po said.

"Your quarters are this way," Mulan said. She pointed them out then returned to get the tea. They came out without their bags, looking around with interest.

"Would you like some tea?" Mulan asked.

"Oh, yes please," Chien-Po said, easing himself gently down to sit by the table.

Mulan gracefully poured the tea, feeling their eyes take in her every move. They accepted the cups and gazed at her openly.

"Is it really that hard to pour tea right?" Yao finally asked.

Mulan snorted then laughed, much to her family's surprise. "It depends on what you mean."

"My sister always complained when she was learning," Yao said with a shrug. "I don't see the problem."

Mulan tossed back her entire cup of tea then set it in front of Yao. She pushed the teapot over to him.

"Try to pour. I'll correct you. Then you'll see how easy it is and can go brag to your sister that she's complaining about nothing."

It was the challenge of it that Yao liked, and he reached out to grab the pot. Mulan swatted his hand. "Don't just reach like that. You're too eager and you might knock it over and shame yourself."

"Ashamed over spilling tea?" Ling asked with a laugh.

"Would your mother laugh?" she asked.

Ling stopped as if he'd been punched in the gut. "What?"

Mulan's gaze bored into him. "If your father had friends over and she knocked over the teapot and spilled the tea in front of guests, wouldn't she feel shame? Would she be allowed to laugh and say it doesn't matter? Absolutely not. And I'm pretty sure your father wouldn't be laughing either if half of what you've told me is true."

Ling, Yao, and Chien-Po stared at Mulan then looked down at the teapot. Yao settled back and picked up his cup again. They looked thoughtful and solemn as Mulan gracefully poured herself another cup of tea. Nobody said anything, but it wasn't an uncomfortable silence.

Zhou, Li, and Grandma had watched this conversation with fascination. Li and Grandma were well aware of everything Mulan had said about the art of pouring tea, and that was honestly just the beginning of proper etiquette. There were a thousand things like that they were aware of in a single day, the unspoken rules and rituals of womanhood. They were focused on how brazen Mulan seemed to be at talking to these men. But Zhou was struck by Mulan's words and reminded of her early attempts to learn. Many tears had been shed over learning to pour tea, and yet he had never considered the shame of her failures. Not in the way he was now.

"Mulan," Zhou said.

"Yes, Bàba?" Mulan asked, setting her cup down and turning to face him.

Staring into her warm brown eyes, he couldn't find the words. So he shook his head and turned away. "You must go to the market and get what your mother needs to make dinner for three more."

"Yes, Bàba," Mulan said. She picked up her cup of tea and sipped it as he clumped away with his cane, neither of them able to say what they wanted to.