17 Special New Year Chapter/ A Children's Bond

A quick explanation of something important I forgot to mention. As stated in the chapter 15, Tiamat no longer has access to the Tensura skill system, nor does she have access to the skills that Veldanava gave her, as she is in another universe where the rules are different. But that doesn't mean she doesn't have new abilities. As she is in the world of Fairy Tail as a Dragon Goddess in addition to her original deities, she can use all existing elements that dragons use, for example.

Unfortunately, I was unable to do my promise of a 3500-4000 chapter as unforeseen circumstances arose. This chapter is exactly 3000 words. Since I couldn't do what I promised, the next one will be between 2000-2500 words.

***

In the middle of the ocean, on Tenrou Island, Tiamat continued her lessons with Mavis for a month. While Tiamat taught her the ways of magic, Mavis helped with Tiamat's vocal training.

"A~E~I~O~U" Warming her throat, Tiamat's supernaturally beautiful voice resounded around the lake.

"Hm! Good! Now that you've warmed up let's start!" Mavis exclaimed livelily.

Tiamat sighed lightly with a smile as she saw Mavis acting like a teacher. She was sitting elegantly on a rock near the lake, while Mavis was facing her while drawing letters in the air with magic.

"Since you've just warmed up your throat, try a simple sentence, such as...," with her finger glowing faintly golden in color, Mavis wrote in the air. "This!"

In the air, the phrase 'Hello, I'm Tiamat, nice to meet you,' appeared.

Tiamat nodded and prepared to speak.

"Hello, I'm...Tiamat, nice to meet...you."

Mavis placed her hand on her chin and pondered, "You've improved a lot, Tiamat-san, but you're still not there."

Tiamat dropped her shoulders with a rather depressed expression. During the month, Tiamat trained her throat and vocal cords almost every day with Mavis. Now she could speak in long sentences, but her tongue still froze a little in the middle of sentences.

It should be remembered that Tiamat always used telepathy to converse, and only a few times she used her voice to communicate. Not to mention that her body in its simplest form - Femme Fatale - was not an exact copy of a human, but a hybrid of dragon and human; her throat was not designed to speak, however much she can train herself to do it.

It was a little strange that she had to train so hard to be able to speak properly while even her brother, Veldanava, was able to speak perfectly when he took a human form for the first time. What she didn't know is that this flawed characteristic of hers comes from the Original Tiamat herself, but since she rarely needed to use her voice to speak, she never gave importance to it.

(A / N: Real reason -> It's Moe)

Seeing Tiamat depressed, Mavis immediately panicked.

"E-Eh?! D-Don't worry! Y-You've improved a lot! In no time you will be able to speak normally! You just need practice! I guarantee!"

Tiamat, seeing Mavis panic, giggled and looked at her tenderly. It was cute to see Mavis, a six-year-old child, worried about her as an adult would. But at the same time, it was sad.

Mavis's maturity has developed beyond her age not only because of her high intelligence but also because of the hostile environment she lives in that forced her to mature.

As cute as it is, a child should behave like a child, not an adult. Perhaps that is the reason why adult Mavis was so childish in the anime, as she never really had a childhood.

What worried Tiamat the most was that Mavis still hadn't opened up to her. She could see that Mavis liked her, but it never went beyond a simple friendly exchange. Proof of this is that Mavis never got very close to Tiamat. Mavis always kept a distance of at least one meter from Tiamat and didn't dare cross that line.

Mavis always does that unconsciously, without even realizing her own cautious nature.

Mavis, seeing Tiamat laughing at her, pouted. "Mou! Don't laugh at me!"

As the two played, nearby bushes moved. Mavis caught sight of the movement and immediately she walked away from the bush and stood by Tiamat. "W-Who's there?!"

Tiamat's eyes widened and a sense of happiness flooded her being. As much as it was out of fear, Mavis approached her! Close enough to touch!

It looked like Mavis wanted to cling to her as her little hand kept trying to hold Tiamat's hand, but she probably was too afraid and hesitant to do so.

Realizing that, a huge smile grew on Tiamat's face.

As mature as Mavis is, a child is still a child. A frightened child will always try to look for something that makes them feel safe, and Mavis immediately rushed to Tiamat's side as she got scared.

That was a big progress! Her effort has finally paid off!

Seeing that as an opportunity, Tiamat held Mavis's hand lightly before Mavis could pull it back again. Mavis immediately shivered at the contact, but she didn't seem to want to let go of Tiamat's hand.

"It's okay...It's just a curious little guest...Like you." Tiamat said reassuringly.

Listening to Tiamat as she held her hand, Mavis visibly calmed down. "A curious guest...like me?" Mavis tilted her head.

Tiamat nodded with a smile. She then turned to the bushes that had moved, and with a slight movement of her finger, a childish scream was heard.

A small figure then levitated out of the bushes as it struggled to free itself from Tiamat's telekinesis.

The small figure in question was a little girl Mavis's age. Wearing a red school uniform, she has brown hair that she keeps tied up in twin tails and olive green eyes.

"Let me go, you monster!"

Tiamat knew who the little girl was, but it was her first time seeing her. On the other hand, Mavis couldn't be more familiar with her.

"Zera?!" Mavis exclaimed in surprise.

The little girl who was spying on them was none other than Zera, the daughter of the Master of the Red Lizards Guild - the Guild that Mavis was also part of.

"I said let go of me, monster! Don't you know who my father is? He'll tear you to pieces if you hurt me!" Zera screamed as she looked at Tiamat.

Tiamat huffed lightly. The little girl, Zera, looked like a rabid dog as she screamed, but Tiamat could see that she was shaking with fear as she forced herself to be brave. Her face was slightly deformed as if she was about to cry.

With her telekinesis, Tiamat carefully placed Zera on the ground in front of her and Mavis.

Thinking that her threat had taken effect, Zera tried to get up, but her legs seemed to have no strength. Beneath her cocky facade, she was genuinely terrified.

Mavis immediately leaves Tiamat's side and runs to try and help Zera to her feet. "Zera, what are you doing here? Does Master Zeeself know you're here?"

Before Mavis can touch her, however, Zera smacks Mavis's hand away and glares at her with anger. "Don't touch me, you germ! I don't want you to contaminate me!"

Mavis drew back with a sad look and an aching hand.

"And isn't it obvious why I'm here? With you sneaking out every day towards the forest, it was clear that something was suspicious! And what did I discover after following you? You playing with a monster! In addition to being a useless germ, it seems that you are also an evil witch!" Zera said accusingly.

"Just wait until I tell my dad! He will-"

"Tiamat is not a monster!!" Mavis screamed, taking Zera by surprise.

Zera looked stunned by Mavis's interruption. Even Tiamat was surprised. Mavis's current expression was one neither Tiamat nor Zera had seen.

Mavis was angry.

Zera couldn't help but shudder since Mavis never spoke back to her or her father.

"W-What-W-Who do y-you-" Zera tried to speak but could only stutter. This had never happened before to her, so she didn't know what to do.

Mavis then spoke over her again, " Tiamat is not a monster! She is...," she paused for a moment, trying to formulate a response. "Tiamat is...a good goat person!"

Tiamat nearly fell back at Mavis's response. It was only natural that Mavis didn't know what she was, since she never really said, and Mavis never asked.

Hearing Mavis's absurd response, Zera was dumbfounded. All her fear and confusion were turned into indignation. Zera pointed the finger at Mavis and shouted, "Haah?! Do you think I'm an idiot? How the hell is she not a monster with those huge horns and scales? And a goat person? That doesn't even exist!"

"How can you be sure that a goat person doesn't exist? Just because you've never seen one before? Also, I don't care if you curse or hit me! But I won't let you talk badly about her!" Mavis answered back without backing off.

"Since when is saying a monster is a monster offensive?! It's the same thing as saying you're a germ, you germ! Stupid!"

The two continued their argument with Mavis defending Tiamat, and Zera angrily hurling curses at Tiamat and Mavis.

Tiamat just stood there watching the two while feeling rather left out. Zera, who a moment ago was shaking in fear, was now cursing and angrily screaming about how she was a monster as if she wasn't even there.

She didn't care much about the situation in front of her, since it was just a childish fight. But isn't it too much to forget that she was also there?

Tiamat sighed, but she didn't stop the small dispute and let the two face each other. This little fight was very beneficial for Mavis and Zera.

As much as she hid it, Mavis was a well of insecurities and trauma. Now, she was facing one of the roots of said traumas and insecurities - which in this case is Zera. On the other hand, Zera has always been spoiled and treated like a princess. For the first time someone was talking back to her, and it was none other than the person she looked down on the most. This would help Zera get off the high horse and be more humble.

After a good few minutes, the two finally stopped yelling and they just kept staring at each other while breathing heavily.

Zera looked like she wanted to continue, but before she could, Tiamat's stern voice was heard. "Enough."

She finally seemed to remember Tiamat's presence, as immediately upon hearing her voice, Zera froze in place.

'O-Oh no! In my rage, I completely forgot she was here! She listened to everything! Wh-What do I do now?!' Zera thought, fearful of what Tiamat would do to her.

Mavis, on the other hand, seemed to finally realize what she'd just done.

'O-Oh no, what did I do?! If Zera tells Master Zeeself that I answered her, I will be severely punished!' Mavis thought apprehensively.

Tiamat looked at the two of them and sighed. It was quite obvious to her what was going through the minds of the two children. They were so alike but at the same time so different.

"Zera...That's your name...Right?" Tiamat started with Zera, who immediately looked down as she trembled.

Seeing the girl so terrified, Tiamat spoke softly to appease the child's mind, "As Mavis said...I am not a monster and...I have no intention of harming you."

Tiamat's natural voice was, in a way, magical, as her voice conveyed not only words but intentions and feelings as well.

Feeling strangely safer, as if she was sure Tiamat wouldn't hurt her, Zera plucked up the courage to face her up. "I-If you're not a monster...T-Then what are you...?", she asked hesitantly.

Zera understood that Tiamat would not harm her, but she was still on her guard against Tiamat and was not afraid to face her. It was like a small squirrel facing off against a huge dragon. Tiamat had to hold back her laugh as she watched Zera play brave while her body was still shaking nervously.

Putting the slightly comical situation aside, Tiamat was also surprised as it was impressive that a six-year-old girl had so much innate courage.

"I-I want to know too!" Mavis exclaimed with obvious curiosity. She always wondered what Tiamat was, but she never had the heart to ask.

Seeing the two so curious about what she was, Tiamat decided to answer both of them, as it wasn't exactly a secret.

"I can tell you, children...But first, I want you two...To shake hands and...Make up." Tiamat demanded.

Mavis didn't seem bothered by the idea and immediately nodded her head excitedly. Zero, on the other hand...

"Y-You want me to touch this germ?! No way!"

Tiamat sighed at Zera's behavior. Then with a snap of her fingers, a white light envelops Mavis and in the next second, her body seems to glow from how clean she was.

"Now that she's clean...There shouldn't be any problems...Right?" Tiamat replied with a smile that said that her demand was not up for debate.

Zera was stunned. She had never seen such convenient magic. "H-How did you do that?!"

Tiamat giggled at her dumbfounded face. "Since last month...Mavis has never been really dirty as I helped her...Wash in the lake. As for why she looked dirty...When she was not... If you want to know...Then you know what to do."

"Wow, Tiamat-san! That was the biggest sentence you've said so far!" Mavis clapped her hands in glee.

Tiamat smiled slightly, her cheeks a little flushed. She felt proud of her achievement but also felt a little embarrassed by Mavis's praise.

While Mavis continued to praise an embarrassed Tiamat, Zera was in an internal quandary. She didn't want to touch Mavis, but she also wanted to know not only what Tiamat was, but also the strange magic she used.

The thing is, Zera didn't call Mavis a germ because Mavis was dirty, but because she didn't even see Mavis as a human being in the first place. Her father and Guild members always told her that if she touched a germ as low as Mavis, she might get sick or become stupid.

As Tiamat has already seen the series, of course, she knew this was the case. Zera grew up surrounded by people who let her behave however she wanted, and even taught and encouraged her to mistreat Mavis. But deep down, Zera knew what she was doing was wrong; she just convinced herself that what she was doing was right, as she was afraid of becoming an outcast like Mavis.

Tiamat's goal was simple - to shatter the twisted beliefs that Zera's father and Guild members have nurtured in Zera's head. She was a bright little girl full of courage and talent like Mavis, but she was slowly being corrupted by the filth scum she called family.

As Tiamat expected, the child's curiosity was stronger than the distorted beliefs in her head as Zera, after a few moments of hesitation, said in frustration, "Urgh! Okay! I'll do as you say!"

Tiamat innocently smiled on the outside at Zera's decision. Internally, however, a Tiamat with a glowy pair of glasses smiled smugly.

'Fufufu~ just as planned.'

With a 'tch', Zera turned her face away with a displeased expression - but offered Mavis a handshake. Mavis, feeling hesitant about taking Zera's hands, looked to Tiamat, who gives her a nod with a reassuring smile.

Unfortunately, even with Tiamat's encouragement, she was still hesitant. Looking at Zera's hand, an incomprehensible fear got over her.

"Oi! You germ! Don't make me wait! My arm is starting to hurt!"

"!"

'She's right, I can't let fear overcome me! I...I can do this!' Mavis thought with determination.

Mavis then did something that astounded both Zera and Tiamat. She slapped her own cheeks with all her might! Her cheeks quickly turned bright red as she held her tears.

Seeing that, Zera felt that the girl in front of her was really stupid. "O-Oi, why the hell did you do that? Or rather, are you okay?!"

Mavis nodded. She was fine. Stepping forward with newfound determination, Mavis takes Zera's hand with a smile.

"I am fine, thanks for worrying! I knew you were kind, Zera! Hehe!"

Seeing Mavis's sincere smile, Zera felt strangely embarrassed, but she didn't think that feeling was bad. "W-Whatever! I'm only doing this because the goat woman demanded it!"

While the two seemed to have created a bond between them, Tiamat watched the two make up while wiping her tears with a handkerchief. 'This scene is so cute and heartwarming! I wish I had a camera with me right now!'