Night passed quickly, and it seemed like no sooner than when the couple fell asleep they were awoken again. Luckily, the to-do list for today would prove much less hectic and stressful than the day prior. A celebratory reception was to be held at the Fa house, as a sort of final farewell and send off to their daughter. In all honesty, Mulan couldn't wait for it.
It wasn't that there was anything wrong with the Li house; the building itself was gorgeous, and the grounds, while lacking in animals and livestock that she was accustomed to, were lovely, and she would likely spend hours strolling them if given the opportunity. It was just something didn't feel quite right. She'd had an easier time acquainting herself with the raggedy tent she'd made her months long home at the Wu Zhong training camp, than she did in this house. Oddly enough, she felt even more out of place here; like she didn't belong. She'd spent last night tossing and turning, waiting for sleep to take her, but for the longest time it refused. All she could do was hope things would get less complicated in time.
"Did you sleep alright?" Shang dared to ask as Mulan woke up.
"Yeah, great," she lied.
It wasn't like there was anything he could do. Why drag him into her problems?
The two rose and went about their morning routine, much of which involved Shang helping Mulan to navigate the house. She hated having to be so dependent, but she let it go. She'd get it soon enough. Unfortunately for her, an average routine in this household would also involve breakfast with the oh so renowned Tàitài Shu.
The trio sat down and had bowls and tea cups handed to them by a servant; very different from Mulan's home on an average day. They spent a moment in an awkward silence before beginning their meal. The silence lingered on as Shu stared at Mulan indifferently, Shang's glances shifted between the two of them, and Mulan just stared down at her food, unsure of what to do. While in the privacy of her mind, she had many a times fantasized about asserting herself in front of her and having Shang's mother simply accept her as she was, she could never bring herself to do such a thing. Rude and pompous and arrogant and ... and as downright annoying as Shu was, she was still Shang's mother, and disrespect toward her would be disrespect toward him.
"So, Tàitài... I mean Ma... uh," Mulan started in an effort to break the silence, only to find herself in a predicament, "I'm sorry, do I... or rather, may I call you 'Mother'?"
Her own Mother referred to her grandmother in that manner, so was that to be the norm from now on? She honestly didn't know.
Shu sipped from her cup, holding her chin high in a cold dismissal of her question before bringing herself to answer, "No, you may not."
Mulan and Shang looked to each other at a loss before Shang replied, "Then what would you prefer?"
Shu put her cup and saucer down with a harsh clank, "Madam or Ma'am will do."
Mulan's face read a hint of disappointment as she lowered her head, "Of course, Ma'am... will you be joining us for the reception at my parent's house?"
"I suppose," she responded and then continued to eat her meal.
Mulan looked at her for several moments following, thinking she'd say something, anything else, but there was nothing. The conversation had been cut off and the three remained in silence until breakfast's end. Shu was the first to leave the table, but it wasn't long before Shang and Mulan followed her lead.
"Shang, I think your mom hates me," Mulan confessed to him as the two made their way down the hall.
"My mom hates everyone," Shang tried to clarify, "she's never been much of a... honestly, she's not really the nurturing motherly type."
"It's not just that, though. It's like... You know what it's like! It's like Chi Fu!"
Shang turned to her as they walked, urging her to elaborate.
"I mean, sure, he was a jerk to everyone, but you could tell that he hated you and me in particular!"
Shang stroked his chin in contemplation of her statement; he could definitely see where she was coming from.
"She's clearly still mad at... this," she said as she gestured to the two of them, "she never wanted us to be together, and now look at us! Shang, what's gonna happen?"
Shang stopped, examining the scared and melancholy look on Mulan's face before taking her hand, "She's just going to have to get used to us, because we're here, we're together, and now we're married; there's nothing that she can do to change that."
At this point, he'd pulled Mulan into a hug, which she reciprocated without hesitation. Seeing his firm stance on the matter helped to calm her down; not that she ever worried he thought otherwise, just knowing how much their relationship meant to him. And he was right! Things would no doubt get better for them, she just had to wait.
The two then proceeded to prepare for the day. While Shang stepped outside to take care of a separate matter, Mulan arranged her clothes on the bed, ready to dawn the reception dress. As she got herself into her outfit and prepared for the day, she was able to snap a look in the mirror and examine herself to make a judgment. She took a moment to examine the gown. It seemed her mom and her grandmother had reached a compromise; the dress' top was pink while a purple trim wrapped down its dark red skirt. It wasn't the most traditional thing, but then again, neither was she . She saw a bit of herself in the garment, and she liked it. She contemplated any possible additions to it. What would be best for her? After some thought, Mulan decided to leave her hair down; she was more comfortable that way, and she wanted the entirety of the day's memory to be joyous. Once that was resolved, it wasn't long before she was ready to go along with Shang, who had returned shortly after he left.
The couple made their way through the house, and waited by the stable for Shu so they could leave. Mulan couldn't help but notice Shang carrying a wooden chest. Perhaps he was bringing a gift for her parents. There was no need to inquire, Shang always knew what he was doing.
After a few minutes passed, the sound of slamming doors and screens could be heard from inside the house. Angry footsteps approached the two of them until a furious Shu emerged from the home.
"You!" she yelled with a trembling finger pointed directly at Mulan, "who gave you the right!?"
Mulan flinched in a mixture of total fear and confusion. What had she done now? What on Earth had she done???
Shang stepped in front of her, shielding Mulan from most of his mother's view, "She didn't do anything wrong."
"No!? I was just going out to pray at the shrine for the fate of our family, in light of recent events," she said as she glared at the little bit of Mulan she could still see, "and I found our temples had been combined with that of THE FA FAMILY! Who else do you think would've done such a thing!?"
"Mother, that was me, not Mulan!" Shang declared.
All of Shu's movements stilled and her eyes widened, "You...? Why... why in the world would you..?"
"Come on, we can't be late to the reception," Shang interrupted as he mounted his horse.
Shu stood in shock at the situation, turning to Mulan who timidly made her way towards Khan and rode off in Shang's direction. She wasn't quite sure what was going on, or even what 'combining the temples' meant, but she wasn't about to make this situation any worse.
The woman gained control of herself once again with an aggravated "hmph" before following the two children. What was her son possibly thinking?! This was unacceptable!
The three arrived at the Fa manor around noon. A friendly crowd had gathered and the family had already begun serving the guests, as Grandmother Fa and Li were already working small horderves around the crowd and Fa Zhou made sure all the guests were welcomed. Upon noticing that the couple had arrived, they all abandoned their posts to greet them.
They pressed questions about how the young couple was handling the change, and if there was any way they could help, to which Mulan and Shang respectfully declined. They were okay. Mulan's parents then reassured the two that everything here was for them, and they should feel free to have fun and enjoy themselves.
"Thank you so much, sir," Shang told Fa Zhou with a respectful bow.
"Yes! Thank you! For everything!" Mulan joined in, pulling her parents and grandmother into a large, loving hug.
Shu simply lingered in the background, not saying a word. She waited for the pleasantries to be over before simply walking away and disappearing into the crowd.
"Should we follow her? Make sure she doesn't cause any trouble?" Mulan suggested.
"Nah, it wouldn't help," Shang dismissed, "if she wants to start anything she'll do it whether we're there or not. She's probably just going to lean against a wall and complain to whoever passes by. We're better off just enjoying the day."
Mulan couldn't help but giggle at the image of Shu crankily lurking at the party grumbling to everyone who crossed her path; it was so her, "I guess you're right. Let's go!"
It was mere minutes after the two started about the party that they ran into Ling and Chien Po. The two once again gave the couple their congratulations, but they seemed to be in a bigger rush to tease Shang than to swap pleasantries with Mulan. That was fine.
As the two men dragged poor Shang away, Mulan walked a bit further into the crowd, greeting guests as she passed them, and accepting their good wishes. Soon she ran into a flurry of familiar faces; it was Sha-Ron and all the girls she had trained!
"Mulan Jiějiě is here!" one of them screamed.
"Yes, I'm..." Mulan started happily before being cut off.
"Of course she is! It's her wedding, doofus!" another girl responded.
"Now that's not very..." Mulan tried again.
"But she wasn't here!" another girl pointed out.
"You don't KNOW that!"
One statement brought on another, eventually leading to a sea of little arguing voices.
Mulan looked back and forth at the small bickering faces before acting, "Attention!" she asserted, a foot stomping the ground.
The girls immediately silenced themselves and stared at her for further guidance.
"Look, in this case, you're all right," she explained, crouching down to be more at their level, "it is Shang and my wedding, so we should've been here earlier. We were just running a little bit late. There's no need for name calling though."
The girls all nodded at her in understanding and spent a few moments looking down in shame for their actions before resuming business as usual.
Sha-Ron walked out past the group of girls towards Mulan with a small bundle in her hand, "This is from all of us. It's a present! We made it ourselves!" she said proudly.
Mulan gratefully picked it up, all the girls smiling at her as she unraveled it. It was a pink flower crown.
Mulan placed it on her head and smiled, "Aww, you guys! I love it!!!" she proclaimed, drawing as many of the girls as she could into a hug, "thank you!"
When they finally drew away from the hug, Mulan promised them all that she'd get back to their training very soon. With that, they all thanked her and skipped merrily away.
Mulan seized this opportunity to finally step away from the crowd. It wasn't that she wasn't enjoying herself and all the company that had shown up; she was! She just cherished a few moments with her thoughts every now and again. She made her way back into her family's garden. Closing in on the small creek that flowed through the area, she was able to catch her reflection. It was true. She did quite like the flower crown... in fact she liked everything. The dress, her hair, even the smile that she wore at the mere thought. She was honestly happy with everything her reflection was showing her; she was happy with herself.
Mulan walked around the garden, sliding a hand over the bridge and taking in the landscape she had seen oh so many times. As happy as she was to move on, to be with Shang, she would miss this place. It was her home, where she lived and played, and made some of her greatest friends. Like Little Brother ... and Mushu. Mushu! Her mind was now overcome with urgency; this would be her last chance to say goodbye to him! She couldn't let it slip by!
She rushed towards the Fa shrine when she became aware of a fireworks show going on in the main square. Entertaining the guests. While her and Shang should technically be there to enjoy it as well, this presented the perfect distraction that would allow her to get a moment to bid farewell to her friend. Right as she started up the hill leading to the structure, she heard a voice calling out to her.
"Mulan!"
She turned and saw Shang racing to catch up with her, the chest from earlier still tight in his hand.
"Shang, I really don't have time. This is my last chance to..."
"I know," he said with a smile as he caught up to her, "and I'm here to help," he explained, raising the chest in his hand as if the two things were related.
Mulan looked at him in confusion; she didn't quite know what he was up to, but she wouldn't refuse his company.
The two walked up to the Fa family shrine, Shang clutching the chest he had brought with him in his arms. Once inside, Shang kneeled down and placed the chest on the floor.
"Shang, what are you doing?" Mulan asked him as she leaned over to get a better look.
"Watch and see," Shang instructed as he pulled a small tablet out of the container and leaned it against the surrounding shrines.
As he did so, the couple became aware of a sound coming from the ceiling of the structure. As they looked up to observe, a little red dragon jumped down to the floor in celebration.
"Oh, yeah! I'm back, baby! I'm back!" the small serpent yelled before becoming aware that he was no longer hidden among the ancestors and the fellow guardians' statue forms, "oops."
Shang looked down at the small creature skeptically, "So this is the famous Mushu?"
"Mm-hmm," Mulan assured him, shooting a mischievous look Mushu's way, but still eternally grateful to see him again.
"Somehow I pictured you... bigger," Shang explained, framing the dragon with his hands.
"Say what!?" Mushu exclaimed at Shang's sentiment before turning towards Mulan, "You told him about me? About us!?"
Mulan laughed and placed a hand on Shang's chest, "I have no secrets from my husband, Mushu. I told him everything."
Mushu gulped nervously, "Everything, everything?"
"That's right, 'Great Golden Dragon of Unity'," Shang said mockingly with a bow.
Mulan joined in the fun, exchanging laughter before getting back to the issue at hand. He was joining the temples, right? What his mother had been furious at him for doing earlier... but why? What did it mean?
"I still don't get it. What does joining our temples do?"
"It gives me back my pedestal!" Mushu proclaimed in pure glee and excitement.
"Oh..." Mulan began to contemplate before turning to Shang, "but can you do this? Aren't there rules?"
Shang smiled at her and cupped her hands, "Of course, right next to the rules about dressing up like a man and joining the army," he replied in a mockingly loving tone.
The two laughed a bit and drew closer together when Mushu jumped onto Shang's hat and started playing with its flaps, "Well, whaddya know; this thing might work out after all!"
As Mulan and Shang rejoiced, the events led to a flurry of statements from Mushu towards the ancestors that the couple dismissed as they made their way back towards the festivities. Children chased each other across the square, while many of the other guests were either seated with their meals, or mingling with the crowd. The occasional party would stop by to congratulate Mulan and Shang, many complementing Mulan's dress or patting Shang on the back for a job well done. Such gestures seemed to embarrass the General, but Mulan found it adorable.
At this point, even Little Brother had been released from his holding pen and excitedly proceeded to greet the crowd and beg for food. Everyone just seemed happy. Chien Po and Ling found them as well, and the four of them enjoyed a quite enjoyable little chat. In the corner of her eye, Mulan even caught Shu in a corner conversing with some of the guests; she was too far away to say for sure, but it was quite likely that there was a smile on her face as she did so! Mulan was happy, aside from the teasing, Shang was happy, her family was thrilled, her friends rejoiced for them, she wouldn't have to say goodbye to Mushu after all, and even Shang's mother seemed to be loosening up! Everything today was just perfect!
As the sentiment crossed her mind, the sound of a horse drawn carriage caught her ear; she speculated that she may just be hearing things amongst the crowd, but it wasn't just her. Shang, Ling, and Chien Po all turned to each other as well to see if they all shared the same alarm. The four of them made their way to the gates, where an elegant driver had stalled an Imperial white stallion outside. The elaborate doors to the carriage it drew opened slowly, and from them a familiar figure emerged.
It was Princess Ting Ting.
As she walked down the carriage's steps, she held a fan to her face and looked at them solemnly. Once on the ground, she closed the fan and looked directly at Ling.
"I've come to say goodbye."