Reflection (Disney Twisted Tales) - Elizabeth Lim Page 0,65
changed me, no doubt. Yet I still remember who I was once before. Regardless of my past, I sensed you carried a secret the moment I saw you. Even King Yama and your ancestors did not. I understand you better than you know.”
“That’s what the fox—you said earlier. You were trying to trick me.”
“Too many doubts cloud your mind,” said Meng Po, ignoring the accusation. Her voice soothed Mulan, even as she tried to fight it. “Too much fear and restlessness. You will never complete your journey if you continue like this. Drink to clear your doubts. Drink so you will have the strength to go home.”
Mulan’s hands trembled as she took the cup of tea. She meant to throw it into the pond, but its weight was surprisingly heavy on her palm. The tea leaves churned inside the porcelain lips, spinning and spinning. Mulan held the cup far from her face, but she couldn’t resist looking at it.
Her vision blurred. When she looked up, she was no longer in the garden. She was home again, except this time she wasn’t alone.
“Mulan?” called her father’s voice.
Her head reeled. What just happened?
“Mulan?” her father called again. He sounded nearby, but that was impossible. “Are you listening to me?”
Mulan blinked, and everything cleared. She was sitting at the dining table with her parents. Little Brother yapped at her side, eager for a bone.
“Little Brother,” Mulan said, laughing as her dog jumped to lick her face.
Her father cleared his throat, and Mulan held her breath when she saw him.
Fa Zhou looked the same as when she’d last seen him. A smile perched on his narrow face, even though he was pretending to look displeased with her for not listening. “Ahem.”
I know this isn’t real, Mulan thought, staring at her father. No disappointment or anger lurked in his expression. Would it be so terrible if I pretended just for a moment it was?
Just seeing Fa Zhou helped banish some of her sadness…at least temporarily. I’m not going to think about Shang or ShiShi or what life will really be like when I go home. Let me just enjoy this.
“Mama, Baba,” Mulan breathed. “I’m…home.”
Fa Li put her hands on her hips. Jade earrings dangled by her cheeks as she said, “And not a second too soon. I’m glad you decided not to be late to dinner for once.”
Mulan turned to her father, who was quiet as usual but wore a proud smile. She loved that expression on his face. The corners of his eyes wrinkled, lifting his face with a touch of humor. “Your mother has some news for you.”
“News?”
Fa Li knelt, taking her place at the table. Normally, she didn’t let Little Brother sit beside Mulan at the dining table, but she didn’t say anything about it today. “Eat, first. Eat, eat, before the food gets cold.”
Mulan picked up her chopsticks and dipped them into the soup. The noodles inside were yellow as wheat, with chunks of beef and pork and crunchy stalks of green spinach. Her stomach growled, but she picked up one of the chunks and gave it to Little Brother instead. She was too curious to eat.
She folded her hands on her lap. Her armor was gone, she noted absentmindedly. Her hair was long again, brushing against her back. And she wore a crisp silk robe, tied at the waist by a red satin sash. “What’s going on?”
Fa Li beamed. “We heard back from the Matchmaker this morning. She was very impressed with your examination yesterday.”
“We are very proud,” Fa Zhou said. “She’s made a good match for you, Mulan.”
“What?” Mulan was glad she hadn’t eaten any noodles, because she likely would have choked. “I thought I failed the exam.”
“Failed?” Fa Li sipped her tea. “After so many weeks of studying and preparing? And after Baba prayed so hard to the ancestors? No daughter of ours would fail. The Matchmaker said she had a difficult time deciding on a husband for you because there were so many young men who’d make a fine match.”
“What about the war?” Mulan blurted.
Fa Zhou placed his chopsticks to the side of his bowl. “What about it?”
“Baba, you were conscripted to go to war. The Emperor’s counsel called your name in front of everyone in the village. Don’t you remember?”
Fa Zhou chewed on his noodles, then patted his mouth dry with his sleeve. “The war is over. We won.”
Worry creased Fa Li’s forehead. “Are you not feeling all right, Mulan?”