A/N: In honor of Mulan being on Netflix. Takes place after the events at the Qui Gong territory after Mushu breaks up the wedding in Mulan II. I didn't actually go back and re-watch Mulan II before I wrote this so if there are any discrepancies I apologize.

They had just left the kingdom of Qui Gong and were heading back to the imperial city, all eight of them. Mulan wanted to smile at how everything had worked out but found she couldn't quite manage it.

She had almost lost him – the love of her life. She could still feel his hand on her wrist where he had held onto her. Holding so tightly one minute, then vanishing the next. A deep shudder ripped though her core as she felt the emptiness fill her chest. She felt Shang tighten his arms around her.

Mulan had opted to double up on one horse, riding with Shang as they left the territory letting her own horse be tethered to Shang's mare. The others, her dearest friends, understood and didn't mention her strange choice knowing it was what she needed right now. Shang didn't say anything either, letting her climb up on his horse with him. He relished in the closeness, taking in the sweet sent of her hair and the warmth of her body pressed against his.

In the face of tragedy her battle instincts took over, Mulan had seen so many of her comrades fall during the war and she didn't have the time to grieve them. Now wouldn't be any different. Shang fell to his death and Mulan pressed forward to finish the mission, after all that was what he had taught her.

She offered herself up as a bride to the viscount's eldest son so that way at least her friends could have happy endings, even if she could not. When Shang had shown up at the wedding she had almost fainted and when he collected her in his arms she swore she did. But still, his 'death' stuck in her mind like a barb. Her subconscious flooded her thoughts with doubt, whispering the most heinous of things in her ear.

There is no way he could have survived that fall –

You didn't even grieve him; the man you claimed was your love.

Mulan growled, shaking the malicious thoughts from her head. She placed her hands on top of Shang's interlacing their fingertips as he held onto the reigns. She reminded herself that she didn't need to grieve now, that Shang was here with her. His taught abdominal muscles were pressed up against her back, his strong arms enclosed around her holding the reigns of the horse. He was here, he was alive.

They stopped to set up camp for the night, Mulan helping the ladies set up their tent first before setting up her own. She was busying herself with hammering the posts into the ground when she felt a heavy hand touch her shoulder, then rub the length of her arm easing the mallet out of her hand. She let the mallet slip from her fingers and looked over her shoulder at her fiancé, or now husband, she supposed. Though she wasn't sure if the great guardian Mushu held the authority to legally wed two people.

His eyes were kind and understanding, this whole trip had been something of a disaster, but him almost falling to his death had been the cherry on top of this misery sundae.

"Why don't you go sit by the fire and warm up, I'll finish this for you." Shang said gesturing towards the fire and the six people cuddled around it.

She desperately wanted to tell him she was grateful, that she loved him, to say anything to him at all but the words caught in her throat. He is here with me, he is alive, she repeated the mantra over in her mind but even repeating it, a small part of her refused to believe it. It was too good to be true, that he had returned to her, that she was going to get her happy ever after. A sob bubbled up in her chest but like she had done so many times in this past week she swallowed it down. He is here with me. Mulan nodded her appreciation at his gesture and went to go sit around the fire with her friends.

As the night wore on the flames flickered in the wind, the once smoldering fire dying down to something quiet. Chien-Po had offered to take first watch and the others retired to their respective tents to rest.

Mulan was exhausted, but sleep eluded her. Every time she closed her eyes she was back on the bridge holding onto that rope so tightly but in the end Shang slipped through her fingers.

"He is here, he is alive!" She said fervently, but the words refused to sink in, they never held any real weight. She needed to see him, but she couldn't move. Fear racked her entire body, what if she sought him out and he wasn't there. What if this was all just some dream conjured to life by her anguished heart?

"Shang –" she said out loud, his tent was right next to hers, if he was here and he was real then he'd hear. He'd hear her and come running.

"Shang –" she pleaded, her voice broke a barely audible whisper, "Please no -"

Hot stinging tears pricked her eyes, and with no one around to hear her she allowed her self to succumb to her grief. She pulled her knees to her chest and wrapped her arms around her legs. Deep sobs shook her entire body as she mourned her love. Mulan was so tormented by misery that she didn't even notice the flap of the tent opening or the person crawling towards her, until familiar arms wrapped around her and pulled her onto their lap.

"Sh-shang," Mulan sobbed out, feverishly clutching the thin cotton shirt feeling the rock hard muscle beneath. Shang put one hand on Mulan's back, the other on the nape of her neck pressing her to his shoulder, pulling her in close.

There was no calming her down so he opted to just ride it out with her, kissing her cheek and rubbing circles on her back. He could feel the tension in her back muscles, the stress of the last few days causing physical strain on top of mental suffering.

"Pah-please tell me this isn't a nightmare, please tell me you're really here with me," She sobbed out. Her senses working against her telling her that it wasn't Shang's arms she was feeling, it wasn't his smell, it wasn't him.

"Yes, I'm here, it's really me. I came back to you," Shang responded. The hand on Mulan's back had begun to knead her back with his knuckles slowly working out the knots. After a few minutes he felt some of the tension leave her as she relaxed into him. Then after a few more minutes her sobs had quieted down enough for her to speak.

"When you fell, I thought for sure I lost you forever." Mulan started, talking more to Shang's shoulder than to Shang. "And when you showed up in Qui Gong it felt like a dream.

"The thought of losing you…" Mulan trailed off as she begun trembling again, more sobs threatening to escape.

"Hush," Shane said tucking his hand under her chin and pulling her face up to meet his, "you didn't lose me, I'm right here, and I won't leave you."

He cupped her face with his hands, wiping the tears away with his thumbs. He pressed his forehead to hers and placed a kiss on her lips. It started out gentle, but then turned frantic as Mulan laced her fingers around the back of his neck pulling him into her. She pressed as much of her body against him, desperate to get closer. She wanted to feel him against her, to feel that he was real.

Shang could taste the salt on Mulan's lips as he explored her mouth with his tongue. Mulan bit down hard on Shang's bottom lip, relishing the metallic taste as she glided her tongue over the fresh teeth marks. Shang moved a hand underneath her bottom, picking her up and setting her fully on his lap.

Mulan ran the tip of her tongue over his slightly parted lips before she closed her mouth around his again. Shang pulled her bottom lip into his mouth drawing out a long a slow kiss. They finally pulled apart and pressed their foreheads together, relishing in the solace they found in one another.

Mulan took a deep breath, this was Shang's hair coiled between her fingers, it was his chest pressed into her, his hands gripping her face, his soft breath tickling her nose. Her Shang was right here, he was alive and he wasn't going anywhere.