The Fox Goddess



" Mommy, you're finally back!" Aika who was eating immediately stopped as she jumped out of her bed and jumped towards Yuki without any hesitation, and seeing this, Yuki chuckled and caught Aika in her arms happily.

"Have you finished your business now, Yuki? You shocked us yesterday when you suddenly ask for us to have a drop of our blood, you said that it was for research purposes, but I'm assuming it was not?" Anna asked as she walked towards Yuki with a smile on her face as she can already see through Yuki, she knows that she used that blood for other reasons such as using it with the Skill that allows her to create a clone that will look and feels exactly like the original.

"Well, you're right. Though, I didn't really mean to hide it from any of you, I just didn't want you to be stuck in something that might hurt all of you, so I used your Blood to create Clones to act as you so that I can take care of the bug that was pestering someone." Yuki admits that she used the Blood for other reasons, she didn't mind that Anna had already seen through her plan since it was actually a good thing since she was slowly becoming good at discerning things which made her feel at ease. Being better at discerning the truth and lies would definitely help her in the future so that she wouldn't be tricked as easily and this is what worries her, all of them are almost gullible and kind, they would trust anyone easily.

And that can be hard in the future in this kind of world. You will never know whe you are getting tricked and being used as a tool for their gain. You always need to be careful, that is exactly why Yuki is not kind to anyone, it was better to be vigilant and aloof than just being used by someone that could potentially lead to your death.

"Ahahaha, just as I expected. But I wonder who was that bug that you are talking about? There is almost no one in this Heaven that can match up to you, whether it is in terms of power, background, wealth, or any other things that a person can be proud of. You are the pinnacle of the top in this Heaven." Anna chuckled as if she was curious to know who the unlucky fellow who has an enmity with Yuki was, though, from her tone, everyone could tell that she was not really curious about who it was. She only cared about Yuki and all of them of course felt the same.

"Well… I don't know about that. Pinnacle of the Mystic Dragon Heaven? Maybe, but there are still those old monsters that like to hide themselves, such as the Gods who are here. They can kill me with a single sneeze, so I don't think I'm really the most powerful." Yuki laughed at Anna's remarks, though she was happy inside and felt proud nonetheless, she was a proud and arrogant person. Of course, she would find those compliments pleasant to the ear, especially when they come from her beloved wife.

"Let's not talk about useless things, I came today because I want to announce something to all of you. But before I announce something, I want all of you to meet someone I recently met." Yuki chuckled as she brushed off the talk about her being the pinnacle of Mystic Dragon and decided to finally tell them her plans to go to Nightingale, but before she does that she wanted them to meet the little phoenix.

They were confused at first, they even thought that Yuki had found another woman she likes but considering her real personality all of them threw that idea in the trash as such things were just impossible. But their confusion was soon answered when they saw a little bird that was even smaller than Aika's fist, but nonetheless, because of how small it was all of them had the same thought in their head about the little bird.

'SO CUTE!'

"Fufufu, I know that this little thing is so cute, but can you at least hide your true intentions? You're scaring him." Yuki chuckled after seeing their faces that have the same looks, a face of anticipation. She then pacified the scared phoenix who was trembling under Yuki's arms and was desperately trying to hide itself to not be seen by the people in front of him, because it felt like if he didn't hide, he was going to get devoured by all of them.

"Don't be scared, they're not going to hurt you. This is my family, all of them are good people, I can assure you that." Yuki said as she patted the phoenix's little head with her fingers and soon after it gradually calmed down and showed itself to all of them. At first, he was still scared, but now looking at all of them who has gentle and kind-looking faces made him even more at ease. He then takes a look at her Master for a second to ask for her opinion and when he saw her smiling and nodding, he took a deep breath before he flew away dropping in the head of Yumie who he found was the most kind out of all of them. At least, that was his perception.

"Ahhh, it's unfair! Why did the cute little birdie go to big sister Yumie's head!" Katsumi complained, but no one really believed what she said because she has a big smile on her face as she begins to interact with the phoenix who was now in Yumie's arms.

"Heh, you are so cute~ Does it have a name, Mother?" Yumie ignored Katsumi and Aika who were already fighting over to win the heart of the phoenix as both of them released their own treasures and food to bribe him to go to their side, but their actions made him shiver once again, and when Yumie felt it she cannot help but scold her two younger sisters.

"Hey! The both of you are older than him, can't you see that you are scaring him with your actions!? Let him adapt to this situation first." Yumie said in an annoyed tone as she quickly held the phoenix closer to her to protect him from the bickering between the two, she doesn't want him to get caught in their crossfire. And her actions made the phoenix calm down and his views on Yumie quickly soar as he begins to see her as an older sister already, but her actions also caught the attention of three people inside which made them inevitably chuckle in response.

"You're really becoming a big sister now. I'm really proud of you, Aika." Yuki patted Aika's head much to her surprise, but she soon showed a happy and proud face as if she had just made one of the greatest achievements she could make, and soon after, Anna and Fumiko also followed and praised Yumie.

"Yeah, in the past you were very tolerant of them. I can see that you wouldn't raise your tone at them, but this time was different. I can see that you are finally learning how to act like a true big sister." Fumiko said in a happy and proud tone as she also patted her head.

"I agree, you have grown. In the past, I can see that you are really trying to follow Yuki's steps to the point where you even started to act like her, which resulted in you becoming cold, indifferent, and aloof. But you don't have to be, just act like yourself, and I can see that how you acted today is how you really are. Don't be pressured by the people who are saying that you must become like Yuki in the future because honestly, it's just pure stupidity. You are you, and Yuki is Yuki. It's that simple, both of you are different." Anna said a few words that she felt were right, she always see that Yumie was somehow pressured by those people who are around her which actually halted her growth, growth to become a proper living being who has their own freedom.

"We're you pressured by something like that? Fufufu… you don't need to, just like what your Mother explained you to. It's simply idiotic, I don't wish you to become like me, in fact… I hate the idea of it. But I know you… your real self, you're quite shy, and you like to hide yourself from the real world. And that's the reason why you became like this and I'm not against it, but I hope you will show your true self when you are around the people who love you. Putting on a mask is normal, but there are times when you have to remove it." Yuki smiled as she placed Yumie's head on her chest as she hugged her tightly.

"Mother… yeah, I'll follow Mother's words."