As the delicate blossoms danced together to the faded red planks of the bridge, a young girl's tears dived gracefully to the peaceful yet expensive pond below. Her tears encouraged ripples to deform the face peering liquidly out from among the koi carp.
  "Who is that girl i see?", asked Malen to no-one in particular. Taking a quick glance around her serence surroundings, Malen clutched dramatically at her breast and decided that now was an opportune moment to sing stirringly to the deaf and senile koi below.
  "whooooooo is that beautiful-young-woman-who-supports-her-right-for-independance-yet-is-desperate-for-love i seeeee - "...
  The caterwauling came to an abrupt hault as a pebble, chosen for its serene colours and karmic balance, broke in half as it collided with a dozen hair ornaments and decorative chopsticks.
  "I realise boots are the traditional trajectory, but hey, i'm a dragon, and i can't earn nearly enough for a pair of doc martins."
  The dragon sauntered into view, picked up one half of the afore said pebble and chewed on it reflectively, "You realise that's you in the pond, right?"
  Malen attempted dignity as she stood up from her previously sprawled position on the bridge. Sighing theatrically she picked up Meeshu by his tail and perched him on the handrail.
  "Yes, Meeshu, I am fully aware that is me. I was being poetic." Repositioning a jade ornament (which was shaped like a flock of cranes flying across the setting sun behind two mountains - you can imagine how cumbersome this useless heap of crap was), the "spiritually un-balanced" young maiden attempted to recreate her state of reflective self-absorption.
  "Do you know how old I am Meeshu?"
  "Yeah, you're twenty and you still live with your parents. what's that got to do with not knowing what a reflection is?"
  Malen chose to ignore the comments made by the miniature dragon, looked away from the ancient fish attempting a karma sutra orgy, and stated decisively,
  "I'm going to join the Imperial Army. I shall dress in my father's armour; ride out in the middle of the night in a dramatic thunderstorm; make lots of friends after an uneasy start; save my country; fall in love with my General; and return home having restored honour to my family name and discovered why it is Western cultures abhor the taste of cat an believe sushi not to be a joke."
  Meeshu looked up at Malen, looked around, then raised an eyebrow at the girl staring into the distance,
  "You realise you can do all that by smoking the incense from the shrine, right?"