Love in War

Love in War - Chapter 12: Truths Unearthed

Mulan woke up early the next morning, a sense of determination on her mind; she was going to make things right with Shang. Her morning routine went by rather quickly. She strolled the grounds with Little Brother and fed the family's animals before joining her parents and grandmother for breakfast where they all discussed their excitement for the upcoming ceremonies. The three of them threw around numerous suggestions and ideas, Fa Li shooting down many of Grandma Fa's "ambitious" additions. After some time, Mulan informed them that she had prior arrangements, and in light of current affairs, they were more than happy to let her leave early to meet up with Shang.

She returned to her room to dress, and the mess on her vanity immediately caught her eye. An assortment of small makeup palettes from the day prior; a reminder of the secret disaster of yesterday. She was not going to go through that again... any of that. She removed the vessels from her sight before approaching her closet. She started flipping through her various outfits to find one suitable for today.

No... no... no... no...

Perfect.

Before she knew it she had on a plain work shirt and pants. The kind of work clothes she would wear when she went out to do her chores in the field. Nothing fancy. And that was the point. In an effort to impress Shang's mother she'd gone all out to make herself into something she wasn't. Today was about Shang; about honesty. And that started with herself. It was in these faded robes, that smelled of the grass and fields she worked in them, that she felt like her best and truest self.

She exited her front door and started out of her estate when she became aware of the small, serpent-like presence on her neck.

"You're going out like that?" a judgmental Mushu asked her.

"Yes, I am... and actually-" she began to say before noticing a familiar figure timidly waiting at her home's gates.

It was Shang.

While she wanted to take a moment to ponder the motives behind his presence, she ruled it better to approach him than to speculate.

"Hi," she greeted him sweetly, a sense of guilt washing over her for how she'd treated him last night.

"Mulan!" Shang returned, just realizing she was there, "I wanted to talk to you about yesterday..."

"I wanted to talk to you too," she said softly, running a hand up her arm.

Shang opened his arms and gestured that they go inside, but Mulan declined.

"I think it would be better if we went out into the town. A change of scenery would be good for us," she suggested.

"Uh... sure, let's go!" Shang agreed.

"Just give me one second," Mulan requested, feeling her guardian's claws grace her back as he hid in her shirt.