Jumping down from a tree, Shan Yu threw a doll at the feet of his soldiers. "What do you see?" he asked casually.

One picked it up and looked it over, two others, Lueren, Bai, and Zhencha, looking, as well.

"Black pine...from the high mountains!"

"White horse hair...imperial stallions."

"This doll came from the village in the Tung Show Pass," he continued, retrieving the doll. "Where the Imperial Army is waiting for us."

"We can avoid them easily," another, Sheshou, suggested.

"No. The quickest way to the emperor is through that pass. Besides...the little girl will be missing her doll. We should return it to her.

-

"Hey, this is not a good idea," Mushu warned as Y/m got into the lake, her chest now exposed.

"Just because I look like a man, doesn't mean I have to smell like one," she replied, sticking her tongue out at him.

Mushu rolled his eyes. "So a couple of guys don't rinse their socks. Picky, picky, picky. Myself, I kinda like that corn chip smell."

Y/n went under the water, then came back up. "Ah..."

"Okay, alright, alright, that's enough. Now come on. Get out before you get all pruney and stuff," he insisted, but Y/n stayed in.

"Mushu, if you're so worried, go stand watch."

He huffed at her and began to walk off, his ears over his eyes. "Yeah, yeah. Stand watch, Mushu, while I blow our secrete with my stupid girly habits. Hygiene..."

Four men ran by him, completely naked.

"We're doomed! There'er a couple of things they're bound to notice!" Men were only interested in one thing and that would be Y/n's body, either in a perverted or tattletale way.

Seeing them, Y/n hid behind a lily pad as they jumped in, creating a huge wave. She slowly backed up, but heard Ling call out, "Hey, Jun!"

She forced a smile at him, a lilypad covering her chest, which was underwater, anyway. "Oh, hi, guys. I didn't know you were here. I was just washing, so now I'm clean and I'm gonna go. Bye-bye."

"Come back here!" He backstroked around her before she could leave. "I know we were jerks to you before, so let's start over. Hi, I'm Ling." He held out her hand, which she hesitantly shook. "And you've met Mu."

Mu waved. Of course they would not have to start over. Mu was the only nice one to her.

"And I'm Chien Po," the heavier one said from behind her.

"Hello, Chien Po."

"And I am Yao...KING OF THE ROCK."

Yao was standing on the rock, his private area out for the world to see, making Y/n cover her eyes.

"And there's nothin' you girls can do about it."

"Oh yeah? I think Jun and I can take you!" Ling replied, throwing up his fists, but Y/n shrank back.

"I really don't wanna take him anywhere."

"But, Jun! We have to fight!" he argued.

"No, we don't. We could just...close our eyes and...swim around." She tried backing away, desperate.

He reached out to her, his hands awfully close to her chest... "Come on, don't be such a girl - ow! Something bit me!" He saw Mushu in the water near his rear. "SNAKE!"

He, Chien Po, and Yao all got out, running away, shrieking. Only Mu stayed behind.

"Aren't you going to...?"

"I'm not afraid of snakes," he explained, then swam closer to her. "Jun...are you hiding something from us?"

"What? N - no, why would you think that?" She tried to back up, but he just kept coming closer.

"Well, hey, if you are, tell me. Can we be friends?" he asked with a big smile.

Y/n looked down at the water and said as sternly as she could, "We are not friends."

Mu backed up a little, hurt, but nodded. "Very well. But you are my equal. We fight together against the same enemy. I will do all I can to protect the others. You can turn your back on me...but when the time comes..." He looked at her hard, making her squirm under his gaze. "Do not turn your back on them."

He got up and out, tying his hair back up as he went. Wow, was he attractive...

Once he was out, Y/n got H/n, Mushu, and Cri-Kee and left. "That was close," she said.

"No. That was vile," Mushu argued, brushing his teeth thoroughly. "You owe me big!"

"I never want to see another naked man again," she decided, wrapping herself up in a towel, just as a group of naked men ran past her. Her eyes widened and she looked down at the dragon.

"Don't look at me. I ain't bitin' no more butts."

-

On Y/n's way back to the tent, she saw Mu sitting there silently, looking out into the lake. She began to approach, but, changing her mind, quickly hid behind a tree, watching him.

Mu got up, pushing his hair out of his face, sighing.

Fa Mu:
Look at me
I will never pass for a perfect man
Or a perfect warrior
Can it be
I'm not meant to play this part?

He got up and walked away, Y/n diving behind a bush, but got back out once he was far off enough. Staying more than a few feet behind him, are followed, curious.

Fa Mu:
Now I see
That if I were truly to be myself,
I would break my family's heart

He leaned against a tree, praying that nobody could hear him, not realizing that somebody could.

Fa Mu:
Who is that boy I see
Staring straight back at me?
Why is my reflection someone I don't know?

He kept on going, then stopped by Khan, untying him and walking him down. Y/n untied Y/n, got on him right away, and followed.

Fa Mu:
Where is my perfect bride?
She won't want me...
Though I've tried
When will my reflection show who I am inside?

With his sleeves, he wiped one side of his face, then the other. Getting on Khan, he let his hair come lose of its usual bun, Y/n having a mild attractiveness-panic attack.

He started Khan at walk, Y/n right behind him.

Fa Mu:
How I pray
The time will come I can free myself
From their expectations

He had his horse speed up to a gallop.

"Ah! Damnit, Mu..." Y/n kicked at the sides of her own horse, speeding up, as well.

Fa Mu:
On that day,
I'll discover some way to be myself
And to make my family proud

He stopped on a hill, looking out at the camp. Even from afar, he could see Ling and Yao messing around with Chien Po silently watching. But...where was Jun?

Fa Mu:
They want a real strong man
No one knows who I am
Must there be a secret me I'm forced to hide?

He went back on his little horsey ride, the wind blowing his hair back.

Fa Mu:
Must I pretend that I'm
Someone else for all time?
When will my reflection show who I am inside?

They stopped back at the lake, Mu looking in.

Fa Mu:
When will my reflection show
Who I am...inside?

A tear fell into the lake before a moment of silence. Finally, Y/n heard a broken voice say, "Come on, Khan...let's go back."

-

Chi Fu and Shang met up in the former's tent, arguing over the men. They were so loud, in fact, Mushu overheard them and went closer to hear better.

"You think your troops are ready to fight?" Chi Fu asked with a sneer. "Ha! They wouldn't last a minute against the Huns!"

"They completed they're training," Shang argued.

"Those boys are no more fit to be soldiers than you are to be captain. Once the general reads my report, your troops will never see battle."

"Oh, no, you don't!" Mushu said from outside. "I've worked too hard to get Y/n into this war!"

The argument continued.

"We're not finished!"

"Be careful, Captain. The general may be your father, but I'm the Emperor's Council. And, oh, by the way, I got that job on my own. You're dismissed."

Angrily, Shang flung the tent open, nearly walking into Y/n.

"Hey, I'll hold him down and you punch," she joked, but he ignored her and kept striding away. "Or not..." She looked up and yelled in his direction, "For what it's worth, I think you're a great captain!"

He stopped for a second, barely glanced at her, then kept walking away.

"Ugh...men are so hard."

"Don't take it personally."

She nearly screamed when she heard a voice behind her, then turned, funding Mu. "Oh...did you forget to tell me something?" she asked, making sure her voice was deep enough.

"No, I just...saw you and..." He seemed to be struggling to find the right words. "I was making sure you got back to your tent okay."

"So you were stalking me."

"No! No! ...a little," Mu admitted. "I'm sorry...but anyway, don't take Shang's attitude too personally. He's under a lot of stress right now. Well...see you."

He went to walk away, but Y/n called out, "Fa Mu!"

Startled, he looked back. As his dark eyes looked into Y/n's e/ced ones, she felt her cheeks heat up. She silently thanked the ancestors that it was too dark to notice.

"I...I'm sorry. To be honest, I've never really had many friends. So when you offered to be mine...I didn't really know what to make of it. But...I would be honored to be your friend, if the offer is still on the table."

He smiled back at her, not really the kind of smile that most men give off, but more of a cute, innocent one. "Good! Good, I mean...you know, great. Well..." He held out his hand, which Y/n took, knowing of this custom between men. "Uh...see you tomorrow...g'night!" The way he ran back to his tent was almost fluttery, he seemed to be walking on air.

Y/n waved, still smiling.

"I saw that."

She looked down at her feet, where Mushu was. "What?" she asked, confused.

"You like him, don't you?"

"No! I..." Now it was her turn to struggle. She felt...respect for Mu. A mutual respect as two soldiers, getting ready to fight against the same enemy, side-by-side. That was it.

"Yeah, right, sure. Go to your tent!" he demanded like an angry parent, pointing.

With one last smile in Mu's direction, Y/n went back to her tent to sleep for the rest of the night. Once she was gone, Mushu bent down to Cri-Kee, who had hopped next to him, and said, "I think it's time we took this war into our own hands."

-

Once Chi Fu had gone to bathe in the lake, Mushu and Cri-Kee snuck into his tent, Cri-Kee banging against the paper with his legs full of ink, trying to forge a letter.

"Lemme see what you got." Mushu took it away and began reading, Cri-Kee wiping his legs clean. " 'Dear son, We're waiting for the Huns at the pass. It would mean a lot if you'd come and back us up.' Hmm. That's great. Except that you forgot, 'And since we're out of popourri, perhaps you wouldn't mind bringing me some?' Hello?! This is the army! Make it sound a little more urgent, please. You know what I'm talkin' about?" He crumpled up the paper, tossing it to the side.

Cri-Kee saluted and typed up another letter, Mushu looking over his shoulder.

"That's better, much better! Let's go!" Mushu grabbed the paper, cricket, and was off. His ride would, of course, be H/n.

"H/n/n, baby. We need a ride."

H/n looked up from the water he was drinking and spat it out at the dragon, Cri-Kee slowly backing away.

-

Slippers were missing from Chi Fu's feet when he exited the lake. "Insubordinate ruffians..." he grumbled under his breath. "You mean owe me a new pair of slippers!" Laughter rang out from the other end. "And I do not squeal like a girl...EEEEEEKKK!!!!!!" In front of him was a panda bear with a figure on it.

"Urgent news from the general." It was Mushu in a deep voice. Chi Fu looked at him suspiciously without taking the scroll that was held out to him. "What's the matter? You've never seen a black and white panda before?"

"Who are you?" he asked suspiciously.

"Excuse me?! I think the question should be who are you?! We're in a war, man!" He got far too close to Chi Fu's face. "There's no time for stupid questions! I should have your hat for that!" The upper half of his body broke off and turned whole Chi Fu's back was turned. "Snatch it right off your head! I'm feelin' gracious today, so...carry on before I report you."

Chi Fu turned and opened the scroll after taking it, reading it over. Shocked, he turned around, but the figure was gone, although he did not know they just climbed up a tree. He ran back to Shang's tent in a panic. "Captain! Urgent news from the general! We're needed at the front!"

Mushu smirked from the tree. "Pack your bags, Cri-Kee. We're moving out!"