..Continued

Chapter seven.

Shang stared at her pale frame lying on her bed. She was resting. The doctor said she was going to be okay, but Shang just didn’t feel too reassured. He wanted to go home, away from the Fa household, but he had to wait until Mulan awoke- he had to tell her..

She stirred in her bed. Shang moved to the edge of his seat, watching her with such intent as if he were trying to awaken her with his will. She did not wake; rather, she turned on her side to face the wall. Shang shook his head slowly, placing his face in his hands. He finally pulled himself together, stood up, and informed her parents that he was going into the garden, and to notify him if Mulan awoke.

He strode around the lake, and finally stopped at a bench underneath a cherry blossom tree. He sat, but immediately stood back up, his inner turmoil preventing him from any kind of relaxation. All he could think of was the stable fight-and Mulan. Somehow he had to tell her what he had done- and then, he must never see her again. He stopped pacing dead in his tracks, staring forward as if he were in a trance.

He was back in the stable. Shan-Yu was slowly approaching Mulan. Shang, as planned, had his dagger drawn, and was ready to throw it at Shan-Yu. He knew he couldn’t nail him this time.. there would have to be two shots. He was advancing closer on Mulan, and Shang couldn’t stand it. He threw his dagger. Once the knife left his hand, he realized that his shot had not been sure. He bearly grazed Shan-Yu's face. This wasn’t too far off the target, but it was not up to par with Shang's perception of how that throw should have been.

He slid around the side of the stable, and past Shan-Yu. Locating his dagger, which was lodged in the door post, Shang darted behind Shan-Yu and quickly pulled it out. He slowly edged closer to Shan-Yu, and then hid behind the wooden wall of one of the stalls. He made not a movement until he heard himself being summoned.

"Captain Shang" Shan-Yu seemed to sing.

"Here I am," Shang said nobly.

"Ah yes, you are a man with a sense of honor." The barn doors swung open, surprising Shang, but he did not move. He was remembering his dream. "But I, am not" Shang's mind was not clear, but he threw his dagger at Shan-Yu anyways. He charged Shan-Yu, who was swiftly moving his knife closer to Mulan's throat. He knew that he was going to die, and he wanted to take her with him. Shang pulled strength from his every fiber, and pounced on Shan-Yu with all his might.

Shang realized how easy it was to knock Shan-Yu down. Not nearly as hard as it had been at the Imperial Palace. He made sure Shan-Yu was not going to jump at him, and then crawled to his body, kneeling by his side. The lightning flashed just long enough for Shang to find the destination of his dagger. But that wasn’t all he saw. A piece of cloth from the collar of Mulan's dress was pinned between the dagger and Shan-Yu's breathless neck. He looked up to see Mulan, bleeding from her neck.. just where the cloth had been torn-

"Hi." Shang jumped at the feel of Mulan's hand on his shoulder. Mulan looked at him, very concerned. She had never seen him get startled. "A-- are you okay, Shang?" Shang looked at her. She looked beautiful-She was wearing a pink dress, which brought out the hue of her lovely face, which was seemingly framed by her raven hair. He quickly looked away. How could he associate with her? He already hurt her once.. what if he did it again?

"Mulan--" he said, sitting down on the bench. He was still staring at the ground. "there is something very serious that I think you should know…"

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