Chapter 20.1: Truth always hurts

"Mother! You must let me take my children home. They are mine!" A familiar voice was heard but Ivy couldn't tell whose voice it was.

"Petunia, I will never let you harm my grandchildren! You will have to step over my dead body first!" Grandma's voice was heard.

"Petunia, who is this?" Ivy asked out loud.

"It's mother." Phoenix's echoed was heard.

"Phoenix!" Ivy gasped at the sight of him next to her in a white surrounding and she recalled she was in a similar place before this.

"What… why are we in grandma's prism?! What's going on?" Ivy gasped as she ran around to find a crack but this time there wasn't any to be found.

"Grandma must have recovered and protected us from falling off the cliff." Phoenix echoed.

"Cliff?" Ivy recalled the last time she was in her paracosm she woke to a shrilling yell of herself calling out to her mother desperately for help while flying down from a high area.

"Why are we in here? What does mother want?" Ivy pestered Phoenix for answer as he began to get restless as well. "Mother found us, and we were pushed off the cliff when I fought her…" Phoenix explained.

"Ai Yee…" Grandma gently called out.

"Grandma!" Ivy called out as she burst out in tears.

"Grandma! Where are you? Are you alright?" Ivy asked as she fell to the ground with Phoenix next to her trying to comfort her.

"Ai Yee, my dear. Stay strong. I wouldn't let your mother harm you or your brother. Phoenix will always be by your side to protect you." Grandma comforted.

"Brother?" Ivy asked in the midst of her sobs. "Ai Yee, Phoenix is your twin brother. Your father is afraid that with both of you forming alliance, your forces would be stronger than his and with you always going against his will, they wanted to assa…" Grandma's voice cracked as she couldn't continue to tell Ivy the brutal truth.

"Grandma… I promise I will take care of Ivy… Grandma, would you please promise you would stay safe for us?" Phoenix echoed.

"Don't worry about me my child… They are my children, I know what to do with them…" Grandma's voice was fading as Ivy called out to her desperately to not leave.

"Grandmaaaa…. Don't leave…. Grandmaaaa…" Ivy sobbed in Phoenix's arm as he comforted her.

While Ivy was sobbing in her dreams, her call-outs to grandma was worrying Lucky that Lucky woke up and climbed out of bed to find Jason in his room. Lucky was whining to wake Jason as he groggily woke up from sleep and knew Ivy must have her sleep disorders again as he quickly went to check on her.

"Ivy… I'm sorry I hid the truth that my memory has recovered." Phoenix echoed as Ivy recalled he mentioned the last ingredient was her blood.

"The last ingredient to the portion was my blood?" She asked to double confirm as Phoenix nodded.

"How is it that I'm the princess of the seven swords in human form but you're a Phoenix the mythical bird but my twin?" She questioned further.

"It is mother's doing… Because father wanted to split us hence, mother put a curse on you to stay human but grandma brought you here. My memory were wiped out and was sent on a journey to assassinate all of you but grandma placed a spell on the horizon causing all of the present memories wiped off… Only with your portion which was mixed with your blood could it save us…" Phoenix explained as Ivy was reminded of her own shrilling voice was getting louder and clearer as fear gripped upon her while she fight her pounding head.

She woke to find herself in a dark room alone as she wrapped herself and sobbed quietly. Jason came in nick of time finding her sobbing and noticed her night lamp was not working as he quickly ran towards her in bed.

"Ivy…" he called out gently as she finally had the courage to look up from her hiding her face on her knees. Jason carried her sobbing self to his room instead and switched on his table lamp as he laid her on bed with Lucky next to her.

Ivy calmed down a little from the brightness as Jason sat next to her and patted her head gently. "You're alright? You want to talk about it?" Jason asked softly as she tried to slowly convince herself to tell him.

"This time did you woke up to see something?" He asked as she shook her head.

"Good… were you able to move?" He prompted as she nodded.

"Good… who did you dream of? Your grandma?" He tried pushing further as she nodded and break into tears.

He pulled her in for a hug while she sobbed. "You must have missed her a lot, don't you? It's alright… I'm sorry the nightlight bulb went off in your room. I will fix it tomorrow alright?" He comforted.

"I saw myself falling off from a high area calling out desperately for my mother… but the person I saw up in the air just seem to ignore me …" She couldn't continue as she broke into tears again in his embrace as he comforted her.

"It's alright Ivy… It's over now…" Jason said as he pondered should he suggest for her to visit the psychologist.

"Ivy… would you like to try an appointment with the psychologist? Just once?" Ivy looked at him and wondered if it was the same psychologist who treated Nancy.

"Would you want to? I know her well as she had been treating Nancy… Perhaps, just to figure out all the mess in your dream? You don't have to oblige to medication but just one therapy and see how it goes?" Jason persuaded as Ivy thought it wasn't a bad idea and nodded.

"Alright… tonight you sleep here… I will make the arrangement tomorrow and I will go with you alright?" He explained as she nodded but the moment he withdrew his hand from hers, she stopped him and held on tighter.

"Could you stay with me tonight?" She pleaded as he nodded and sat back next to her while they both fell asleep with Lucky cuddling in between them.

The next morning, Jason quickly fixed a short appointment with Nancy's psychologist. Ivy hesitated a few times but eventually convinced herself to have a talk about all her questions.

"Miss Ophal, shall we start?" The psychologist asked as Ivy nodded.

"I'm Phyllis, your psychologist for today's therapy session. Could you start by telling me about your happy moments during your childhood?" Phyllis asked as Ivy's mind flashed back to her childhood memories.

"When I was young, my grandma took care of me. We had a glass house to tend to her mini garden and she would let me play by her side while she did gardening. She had her little shop selling spicy noodles which were really famous and now she left two branches to my neighbour, Auntie Soh to handle. I'm really glad Auntie Soh held on till now." Ivy smiled watching Phyllis examined her.

"That's a good start Ivy… With so much happiness, could you tell me when did you started to find you had issues?" Phyllis asked and noticed Ivy gave a sad smile as she looked on the ground.

"I always had nightmares when I was a child and woke up crying next to my grandma. Later I learned my cries in the middle of the night would worry her so during my teen years, I slept alone and endured the nightmares myself. Only when I am very stress, I would wake up in yells which grandma would start to worry again. When she passed away recently, I started to have sleep paralysis and even injuring myself…" Ivy's voice started to crack as Phyllis held out a hand to pat her on her shoulder and offered her glass of water. Ivy took a sip as she put the glass of water by the side table.

"Ivy, could you tell me, what do you see in your nightmares?" Phyllis asked as Ivy knew this was the moment she dreaded but came to seek the truth.

"When I was young, there were serpents… lots of them. At times, I will see an aurora litted sky with my parents and a faceless guy. At times, both scenes would merge and I would see swirls of portal with serpents head protruding out. Lately after she passed away, I see my grandma in a cottage by plains of irises with a kingdom of dogs and there was a guest name Phoenix. There were also mixture of scenes from the aurora and serpents and a shrilling voice of myself calling out to my mother desperately for help but all I could see was a faceless woman figure watching me fall of from a high area… Each time I woke up from such dream I see the faceless woman hovering over me during my sleep paralysis… I just… I…" Ivy paused as the entire event caught up with her and it was overwhelming as Phyllis comforted her by teaching her a breathing technique.

"Ivy whenever you feel overwhelmed, do these breathing techniques to calm yourself down…" Phyllis advice as Ivy followed and nodded.

"Now that you're settled, tell me have you been to the places you saw in your nightmares?" Phyllis checked. "I have been to the aurora place with my parents when I was young but not that I could recognise any for the rest…" Ivy explained.

"Have you had pets or you have any now?" Phyllis prompted. "Yes, quite a few when I grew up and they were dogs which I could see them in my nightmares with my grandma…" Ivy smiled as Phyllis nodded and seemed assured of her assumptions.

"Ivy, have you heard of paracosm?" Phyllis asked as Ivy raised both eyebrows.

"Yes, I have friends who were interested with psychology mentioned to me before this. It's a vivid imaginary world." Ivy explained her understanding as she took a sip of water.

"Yes, Ivy. That's right and I think you have one. Usually a person's paracosm are controlled by themselves and commonly has those loved ones who has passed on. For your case, it's your dogs and your grandmother… However, for those faceless individuals, those if you would like find out, I could recommend a hypnosis session… With this session, you would slowly get to see what your mind missed or feared but it wouldn't work 100% provided you're willing to see, your mind would let you." Ivy gave it a thought and nodded in agreement.

As she followed the instructions of Phyllis to let herself at ease as she entered the fields of irises, she stepped into a pebbles path which led to a different portal and found herself by a high rise building. Fear and anxiety were gripping on her as she bravely walked forward and saw a long hair lady whom she approached slowly. Before she could turn the lady around to see her face, she turned and gave a sinister smile before pulling her to the edge of the building and push her off as she vividly remembered those thin eyebrows and sharp nose lady as she heard her shrilling voice calling out to the lady as her mother for help but she only watched her falling off the building with smirk. Ivy woke from the hypnosis with a startled as she yelled. She didn't recognise the face of the lady and it wasn't her mother. Phyllis was calming her down while she caught her breath and her bracelet was shimmering.

Jason who was waiting impatiently outside the consultation room could hear Ivy scream as he barged in to check on them only to find a breathless Ivy with a faint shimmering bracelet as he quickly went to hold her hand. She instantly felt the warmness of his hand calming her raging chaotic emotion.

"Ivy… You're alright?" Jason asked as Ivy finally noticed she was holding tightly to his hand. "When did you came in?" Ivy asked in between catching her breathe as she swallowed her saliva.

"Ivy… are you alright?" Phyllis asked as she gave her a glass of water. Ivy nodded as she still held on to Jason's hand. Phyllis noticed her gesture and knew Ivy had a place she seek refuge from. "Ivy, would you be alright if we continue a bit more with Jason around?" Phyllis asked as Ivy nodded without hesitation.

"What did you see?" Phyllis asked as Ivy sighed anticipated her question. "A face of the lady whom pushed me down the building whom I couldn't recognise. I was calling out to her as my mother but that's not her. I …." Jason held her hand tighter as she calmed down from her memories.

"Ivy… Sometimes memories can be distorted and there are reasons for it. A part of your paracosm is healthy but there are some energy which appear to be unhealthy. You should redirect this paracosm you build more towards the positive energy." Phyllis explained as Ivy nodded and waited for her next course of action.

"I guess that's it for today… You could perhaps ask those family members who knew you from young… Perhaps it could help you by a bit." Phyllis smiled as Ivy nodded. "Do you want to book for a next session or… ?" Phyllis left the question open ended as Jason took the liberty to answer instead.

"It's fine… We will let you know again…" Jason said as he stood to thank her while he shook hands with Phyllis on his right, he was still holding on to Ivy on his left

"Thanks, Phyllis…" Jason said while Phyllis walked them out. "No worries. Ivy, here's my contact." She handed Ivy her name card. "Thank you…" She took it and smiled.

"Alright, see you next time!" Phyllis waved as they both entered the lift. Jason held on to her hand without letting go as Ivy pondered if she was to question about her past, the only way was to find her birth father which was really a far-fetched idea as she wouldn't want to bother Auntie Soh and worry her about her condition.