www.wenyun.mewww.zuiliu.meMulan sat behind Xiu, absent-ndedly brushing her sister’s long black hair. In front of her, the younger girl was quiet, lost in her thoughts. Mulan didn’t nd the silence. Her own brain was loud and busy enough. All she could see was her father’s look of disappointnt. It haunted her like a nightre she couldn’t wake fro king her feel shaky and unfortable. The last thing she would ever want to do was hurt her father. But she hadn’t had a choice. Or at least, that was what she kept telling herself. There was no way her father could have given chase, not with his weak leg. While her father y have been a hero in the war, his injury kept hinbsp; fronbsp; working as hard as he would like to in the village. Mulan had sily wanted to help.
And sohow, she seed to have done just the opposite.
“Mulan?”
Xiu’s quiet voice interrupted Mulan’s dark thoughts. Her hand stopped, the brush hovering over Xiu’s hair as she waited to hear what her sister wanted to say.
“What happened when you fell off the roof?” Xiu asked.
Mulan didn’t need to question what Xiu ant. She had felt sothing??.??.??. odd??.??.??. as she fell through the air. Like sohow her nd had seen a step ahead and her body had known the ves it needed to ke before she was even aware herself. But she wasn’t about to adt her thoughts out loud—especially to her younger sister. “I was chasing that naughty chicken,” she said instead as she resud bing Xiu’s hair.
Beneath the b, Xiu shook her head. “No,” she pressed. “When you slipped. For a nt it was like you were a bird??.??.??.” The younger girl’s voice trailed off.
Mulan frowned, surprised by her sister’s astute observation. Xiu was right. She had felt like a bird. As she had swooped and swung around that bea she hadn’t felt scared. She had felt alive. More alive than she had ever felt before. She had been like a bird soaring through the sky, playing on the wind. Not a cluy chicken but a graceful bird of prey.
But how was that even possible? She hadn’t dared think about it until this very nt, but she knew that she had narrowly escaped getting hurt—or worse. Sohow, whatever that feeling inside her was, it had naged to save her. Which sounded strange. Which ant there was no way she was going to say it aloud to her sister, because Xiu would definitely think it was strange. So instead, Mulan changed the subject.
“Xiu,” she said, her hand growing still. “Don’t panic. But there’s a spider crawling in your hair.”
Xiu’s shoulders
And sohow, she seed to have done just the opposite.
“Mulan?”
Xiu’s quiet voice interrupted Mulan’s dark thoughts. Her hand stopped, the brush hovering over Xiu’s hair as she waited to hear what her sister wanted to say.
“What happened when you fell off the roof?” Xiu asked.
Mulan didn’t need to question what Xiu ant. She had felt sothing??.??.??. odd??.??.??. as she fell through the air. Like sohow her nd had seen a step ahead and her body had known the ves it needed to ke before she was even aware herself. But she wasn’t about to adt her thoughts out loud—especially to her younger sister. “I was chasing that naughty chicken,” she said instead as she resud bing Xiu’s hair.
Beneath the b, Xiu shook her head. “No,” she pressed. “When you slipped. For a nt it was like you were a bird??.??.??.” The younger girl’s voice trailed off.
Mulan frowned, surprised by her sister’s astute observation. Xiu was right. She had felt like a bird. As she had swooped and swung around that bea she hadn’t felt scared. She had felt alive. More alive than she had ever felt before. She had been like a bird soaring through the sky, playing on the wind. Not a cluy chicken but a graceful bird of prey.
But how was that even possible? She hadn’t dared think about it until this very nt, but she knew that she had narrowly escaped getting hurt—or worse. Sohow, whatever that feeling inside her was, it had naged to save her. Which sounded strange. Which ant there was no way she was going to say it aloud to her sister, because Xiu would definitely think it was strange. So instead, Mulan changed the subject.
“Xiu,” she said, her hand growing still. “Don’t panic. But there’s a spider crawling in your hair.”
Xiu’s shoulders