A Kind Of Bravery: A Mulan Retelling [1st Draft]

5. The Beginning of the Adventure

Chapter Five:

The Beginning of the Adventure

(Note: if you have not read Glass Slippers, expect to be a little bit confused. I tried to make it understandable for everyone but I'm not sure if I succeeded.)

-------

"Trousers, check. Shirts, check. Chest wraps, check. Socks, check, Boots, check. Sentimental belongings I probably shouldn't be bringing... Check." Harriet ignored the thought of how they could get her in trouble, instead moving on to the next item on her list. She couldn't help bringing some things along. What if she never saw her family again? She needed them.

"Undergarments... not check," Harriet said, muttering to herself as she packed a bag for her trip. It hadn't even been a day since she and Mark had started to formulate a plan but with the military draft already underway, Harriet knew she had to get moving on lots of different things. Like packing, and debating whether or not to bring her own sword.

She knew that she couldn't wear her own armor, as it was feminine and so made room for certain feminine aspects making it obvious it was a female's armor, but she did have to think about bringing her own sword.

On the one hand, it would be nice to have something as familiar as her sword with her. Over the years it had become like an extension of herself and she loved it more than anything else she owned. However, on the other hand, any person who knew Harriet would recognize her sword. She was given it when she was thirteen and had used it for over six years. Basically, if someone knew Harriet, they would most definitely be able to recognize her sword.

Yet, as hard as it was to even contemplate leaving her trusted sword behind, she knew that she had things much more difficult to wrap her mind around. For instance how on earth she was going to disguise herself as a man. Cutting her hair was a no brainer, wearing men's clothes was easy, acting like a man was no problem, it was actually appearing like a man that was the problem.

Harriet wore men's clothes and acted like a male all of the time, so really she wouldn't seem that different. However, even with all of that, she still would look and seem very feminine. While Leopold hadn't seen Harriet up close for over seven months, Harriet knew how good his memory was. The chances that he wouldn't recognize her would be very slim. She'd just have to avoid him if she ever came across him.

Harriet flopped onto her bed, heaving out a sigh as she watched one of the curly tendrils of hair that had fallen over her face float in the air with the force of her breath. She was still having second thoughts about whether she should go at all, let alone try to trick everyone into believing she was a man.

She was undoubtedly not prepared to take a life, she was not prepared to face the horrors of the war that would no doubt come. Yet, even though she knew logically that she didn't have to be part of the war for the war to happen, she couldn't seem to come to terms with the fact that she couldn't or shouldn't go.

War, according to everyone she had ever talked to and every book she'd ever read on the subject, was not full of dignity, or honor. War was brutal, dirty, and demeaning. It was the kind of thing one would have nightmares about, but despite all of that, Harriet couldn't ignore the feeling that told her she needed to go.

Watching the messenger die at her feet his only comfort being that the message got there in time, had opened her eyes rather forcefully. She had seen the grief of his family, had realized the implications of his death for his country, but all the same, she knew that even knowing her chances of survival, she had to go to war anyway.

Harriet could remember word for word Leopold's words on bravery years ago, and while she was positive he wouldn't approve of the way she was applying his words of wisdom, they were nonetheless, right.