Chapter 2 What's happening?

About two hours had passed and Ivery woke up and sat up on her bed, rubbing the sleep out of her eyes. She looked around her room and to her shock Alora was still in the room with a notebook, pencil, and Ivery's laptop out on her lat. Alora looked up and saw that Ivery was now awake and she smiled at this, as she had done some research and found some jobs that she knew would suit Ivery.

"Hey Ivery! I did some research and I found some jobs for you!" Alora explained happily and proud of herself.

"UM... why are you still here?! Shouldn't you have disappeared by now?!" Ivery asked, confused and surprised to see Alora still in her room.

"Why would I leave? You're so lonely and suffering! I don't want to leave my creator and best friend alone! So I'm gonna give you company and help you get a better job! I also want you to get better and use your imagination so I'm also helping you get a better job!" Alora explained.

Ivery just sat there not sure on what to say or even do, she had no clue on what was going on or why her imaginary friend from childhood was here. Alora then handed the notebook to Ivery and gently put it in her hands, she then turned off the laptop, put it back and looked at Ivery. Ivery looked at the note book and saw most of the jobs were freelance writers with numbers of publishers. Others were suggestions for an editing job at a local publishing firm. Ivery remained quiet for several minutes, till she heard the door open up and her brother's voice.

"Hey Ivery! Dinner's ready! Come down stairs and let's enjoy some sibling time!" Ivery heard her brother Mortant say.

She looked and saw Mortant standing in her doorway, she wondered if Alora was visible to him for a second as she wasn't sure if Alora was in her head or was somehow here.

"You alright sis? You look like you've seen a ghost?" Morton asked as he saw that Ivery looked spooked.

'He can't see her?!' Ivery asked herself in her head as she realized that Alora wasn't visible to Mortant.

"Um... yeah I'm fine, just thought I saw a spider." Alora explained.

Mortant gave his little sister a confused look for a second before shrugging it off and leaving the room. Ivery then sat the notebook aside and got up to head to the kitchen and have some dinner.

After a while all five of the siblings were sitting at the kitchen table eating their food. Tonight's dinner was chicken alfredo made by Erica who did an amazing job with the food.

"Mmh this is delicious! Thanks Erica for dinner, it's delicious!" Cathay exclaimed happily as she enjoyed her food.

"Thanks sis, I added in a secret ingredient, which was some homemade noodles! I feel like those are better than using store bots." Erica explained.

"Well you did great, thanks for the food." Simon complemented with a smile on his face.

Erica smiled at her big brother, happy that her siblings enjoyed her food. She then looked to her youngest sister Ivery and saw that she had not eaten much and was just picking at the food.

"Hey Ivery you alright? You've barely eaten your food." Erica asked, feeling that something was wrong.

"Huh? Oh yeah I'm fine, my mind is on other stuff right now." Ivery explained.

"You thinking about mom and dad?" Mortant asked.

"No, it... it's just some other things outside of mom and dad." Ivery explained.

The other siblings couldn't see, but Alora was also at the table watching as they all ate while smiling. Ivery didn't understand why she was still here as she thought Alora would've left by now. This made her pretty confused as she didn't understand why Alora was still here, she was just in her head and not real. Ivery was too old to be imagining her again after all this time so it just didn't make any sense to her why she was here.

"Hey if you can't eat now you can take your portion of food to work as your lunch." Erica explained, as she didnt want to make her siblings eat if they weren't feeling good.

"... Yeah I don't have much of an appetite right now. I'm gonna head to my room and try to relax." Ivery said and got up from the table.

She went back upstairs and Alora followed suit with a skip in every step she took. Ivery looked back at Alora and wondered how long she was gonna be here for. She just hoped it would only be for a few days as she believed it was all still in her head and Alora wasn't here.

Unfortunately that wasn't the case at all, days passed and Alora was still here with Ivery at all times. Ivery was growing confused and scared as she didn't understand what was going on. She assumed that Alora would just disappear in a matter of time, but nope. Alora was always with her at all times, at work, home, therapy, the bathroom, and her room. She was even with Ivery now, in a local coffee shop she visited everyday after work to get some fuel after a tiring day at work. Today was a day Ivery had some free time after work, as she didn't have therapy today so she was free to either go home or somewhere else. So she decided to visit this shop for some coffee and pastries.

"Hello, welcome to Cakes and Caffeine, what can I get you?" The barista at the counter asked.

"Hey I like a chocolate caramel latte as my coffee. WIth that I like to have a chocolate eclair, strawberry filled donut, and a cinnamon bun." Ivery ordered.

"Alright coming up, can I get your name please?" The Barista asked as she grabbed a cup and pen to write with.

"Oh yes, my name is Ivery." Ivery answered.

"Alright Ivery, I'll have that out for you in a moment." The Barista said and left to go make Ivery's drink and get her pastries.

Ivery smiled, then turned to her side to see Alora standing next to her with a bright smile on her face. No one seemed to notice her except for Ivery, so when Alora would talk to her when others were around Ivery would try her best not to respond. Ivery then went to a nearby table and sat down at it, Alora followed her and sat down next to her.

"Wow Ivery, you've really let yourself go, and that Stella girl was such a meanie!" Alora comments as earlier that day Stella had bullied Ivery at work again.

"Alora, you can't talk to me in public, people will think I'm crazy if they see me talking to myself." Ivery explained.

"Okay, I'm sorry." Alora apologized, sounding disappointed and disheartened that she couldn't talk to her best friend.

As the two sat there a man suddenly came up to their table and asked Ivery something. "Hey are you Ivery Waver?" The man asked.

Ivery looked up and saw the man had short black hair, deep blue eyes and a suit on. "Um... yes that's me, why?" Ivery was confused about why this man asked her about her name.

"I'm Eathan and my little sister Stella works for you right?" Eathan asked.

When Ivery heard him say that she got a bad feeling right away. She didn't know if this guy was looking out for her best intention or if he was the same as Stella.

"Yes, and what do you want? To tell me I should be put back into that dam facility I was in when I was a traumatized kid after I just lost my parents in a fire!?" Ivery asked angrily as she didnt like how Stella made fun of her for something that wasn't even her business to know.

"No, I just wanted to say sorry for my stupid sister!" Eathan blurted out, trying to calm Ivery down. The words did indeed calm her down and she wondered what Ethan meant by what he was saying.

"What do you mean by that?" Ivery asked.

"I wanted to say I'm sorry, Stella has always been an idiot ever since we were kids. And even now as an adult she continues to be nothing but a bully. I had hoped that when she grew up she would become a little more mature, but I was wrong. Recently I overheard her conversation with her friend regarding you and she said some rather nasty things about you. I asked around and learned more about you as I wanted to know why she was saying such things. That's how I learned she was bullying you so I came here to apologize to you for my sister's behavior." Eathan explained.

After hearing the explanation Ivery felt a little more calm and smiled after realizing that Eathan wasn't anything like Stella. "Well she should've been the one to apologize, but thanks anyway for coming here and saying sorry to me." Ivery said, accepting the apology. Eathan's face became happy to hear that and he asked if it was alright to sit with her for a bit. Ivery accepted and Eathan sat down across from her. The two went into a deep conversation about their work lives and interests. Alora just sat and watched with an ear to ear smile on her face as she was happy that Ivery seemed to have made another friend. However she didn't like how Stella's brother had come to apologize instead of Stella herself. She also didn't like how Stella was giving Ivery such a hard time putting an even heavier strain on her mental health.

"Hey! I have a latte for an Ivery Waver!" The barista called out.

"Oh, look, my coffee and pastries are done, I'll be heading out now. Thanks for coming to talk to me Ethan." Ivery said grateful to see that at least Stella's brother was a decent person.

"Hey anytime, If my sister goes any further with ehr bullying then just let me know, I'll deal with ehr and make sure she doesn't bother you again." Eathan said reassuring Ivery that he's got her back.

Ivery thanked him, and then got up to grab her coffee and food so she could have them at home. After collecting her things Ivery left the cafe and went back home, which was within walking distance so she didn't need to take the bus. IVery didn't really have a driver's license as she had a fear of cars due to the accidents that happened almost everyday involving cars. That and her parents' old car was part of the cause of the fire that destroyed her childhood home and them.

"That guy was nice wasn't he?" Alora asked as she walked next to Ivery.

"Um... yeah he was." Ivery said awkwardly, not sure how to make much of a conversation.

Alora didn't say anything else and just decided to continue talking when they got back to the house. After a five minute walk they arrived at the house and Ivery unlocked the door with her spare key, then went inside. Once inside she saw that the house only contained herself as her other siblings got off work later then her. So for now it was just her and Alora alone in the house till one of her sisters or brothers got off work.

"Hey wanna watch a movie? Or play some video games?" Alora asked.

"No thanks I just wanna relax for a bit while I'm eating my pastries. Work tired me out and Stella's bullying didn't help so I just need to rest and put my mind at ease." Ivery explained as she rubbed her head.

She then went into the living room, with Alora still hot on her tail, and collapsed on the couch from exhaustion. Once sat down on the couch Ivery sat her coffee and bag of pastries on the coffee table next to the couch. She then reached down to her feet and took off her work shoes to allow her feet to finally breathe after being stuffed inside the shoes for so long.

"Ahh! That feels so much better." Ivery said as her feet cooled down as they were pretty hot in there.

"I bet, I don't get how you can walk in those all day." Alora said as she sat down next to Ivery.

"You get used to it if you've been working this job as long as I have." Ivery explained.

She then grabbed her coffee and pastries, then began digging into them. As she ate Alora just sat there not saying a word and just watched. Ivery started feeling uncomfortable with this as before Alora was trying to talk to her all day. So she decided to break the ice and confront Alora about the elephant in the room right here and now.

"Hey Alora I wanna ask you something." Ivery said.

"Oh? What's that?" Alora was curious by what Ivery wanted to ask her.

"Well how long are you going to stay here? I keep on telling myself you're just in my head, but with the way you've been acting, i-it's starting to feel like something else is going on. I'm I going insane? Do I need to go back to the facility or something?" Ivery asked worried that she was losing her mind.

"Oh no! That's not it! I am real! I'm just not visible to anyone else as we dont want others to know of your abilities!" Alora explained reassuring Ivery.

"What? Apilaties? What do you mean by abilities?" Ivery asked confused.

"Huh? Did you really forget? Well I guess they were right about what happens when kids grow up and forget their imaginary world! I guess I'll have to take you back to our old play place and have you reunite with everyone!" Alora exclaimed happily as she grabbed onto Ivery's arm.

"W-What? What are you talking about?!" Ivery asked, taken aback by what Alora was saying.

"You'll see! Oh and I remembered that Zave is putting on a show in his circus! So we should see it! You'll love it! I just know you will!" Alora exclaimed.

Before Ivery could say another word to Alroa she briefly heard the door unlock before she suddenly felt she was lifted off the ground. Next thing she knew she saw a bright light and instantly Alora and Ivery disappeared from the living room.

Simon then walked into the living room with his two dogs in tow as he picked them up from their grooming. He looked around believing that Ivery was home but he didn't see his youngest sister anywhere.

"Huh? Strange, I thought Ivery would be home by now. Eh she must be out for a walk or somewhere to relax, knowing she'll be home soon." Simon said before letting his dogs off their leashes, allowing them to wander freely around the house.

He then went up to his own room to lay down and rest as he was beaten after a long day at work. Meanwhile Ivery's vision cleared up and to her shock she saw her and Alora where floating through some kind of tunnel filled with all kinds of bright colors.

"W-What the hell?!" Ivery screams, surprised and scared by what she was seeing.

"Just you wait! The best part is coming up!" Alora exclaimed excitedly as the two continued to float in the tunnel.

Next thing Ivery knew she saw a blinding white light and she closed her eyes to prepare for what was to come. She suddenly felt like she was sliding on something, when she opened her eyes she saw that both her and Alora were on a slide. Ivery didn't know what to even think however she didn't have much time to as the slide suddenly stopped plunging Ivery and Alora into the clouds below. Alora just smiled and shouted weee! While Ivery screamed in fear and closed her eyes as the two girls plummeted down.

Meanwhile on the ground of this new world a group of a unique cast of characters were having a tea party.

"Ah the honey bee's have done it again! This honey glazed tea is amazing!" A fairy girl with pink hair tied up in pigtails with white ribbons said as she sipped her tea.

"What do you expect? They do what they were created to do, and making tasty honey is just that." A man in a ringmaster outfit stated.

"I do wish that Ivery could be here to enjoy it." A girl with a watery like design said sadly.

"Eh, she just grew up, now she doesnt come here any more... Anyway, where's Alora? She should've been-" An elf guy was saying before being interrupted by Alora and Ivery crashing right into the middle of the table.

Everyone at the table looked at the two in shock when they saw this happening. Alora got up and brushed her dress off before smiling at everyone.

"Hey guys! I'm back! And look who I brought!" Alroa said happily and gestured to Ivery.

Everyone looked at her and they were shocked to see that she was back in this world again after so long. However to them she looked so different and was now a grownup. This wasn't what they were used to as she was just a kid last time she was here so they don't know how to feel about her being back as an adult.

Ivery looked up and was shocked to see where she was now and everyone around her. She looked at her surroundings and saw that she was in a once familiar location of her childhood. That being the old honey fairy woods, a place she made to have picnics, tea parties, and other activities. The honey and food would be provided by the creatures that lived here so there was no need to bring anything but yourself and a friend.

"W-What the?! H-How am I here?!" Ivery asked, confused beyond belief.

"IVERY!! YOUR BACK!" A voice screamed.

Ivery looked and properly saw the water girl, who she had called Aquafina. Aquafina jumped on the table and soaked Ivery in a big hug as her hair and clothes where all made of water. Her sink itself was a cyan blue but it wasn't water so it was the only part of her that wasn't water.

"Alora, is this where you've been? The real world?" The elf guy asked when he saw Ivery.

"Yup! Are you happy to see her Elfien?" Alora asked.

"Yes? No? I don't know? I just thought she'd never be back as she had become an adult so it's natural that she wouldn't come back to this place. After all she's not a kid anymore so it makes sense she wouldn't come here as did not believe we were real anymore. Everyone had thought that Alora so we didn't expect you'd bring her here with you when you'd come back!" Elfien explained.

"Well I just wanted to remind her of this place and all the fun we had here! And It seems like she doesn't know about her ability so I thought this would help her realize it. What do you say Ivery?" Alora asked while turning to Ivery.

Ivery sat there with Aquafina still hugging her, her face and mind both totally shocked by what she was seeing. She then said "What the F**K just happened to me and my life?"

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