Chapter 58: Therapy with mom

They sat down and had a talk. Ciaran told his mom about his Summer vacation. He told her almost everything, from his victories to his crushing losses. The only thing he didn't bother mentioning is the degree of cruelty he liked to employ when dealing with things.

The boy knew himself best, and he knew that he was starting to like it. At first, it was just a way to vent stress, to punish those who had hurt him, but now, now it was different and it scared him. He couldn't tell his mom, or his mentors about it. He didn't want anyone to think less of him. The only one who would share in his sinful pleasure would be his familiar.

Ciaran was endlessly grateful to have her in his life. That little voice in the back of his head that only he could hear. She was the only one who he could never lie to, not by choice of course, but still, to him it counted.

When Camille heard him out, she sighed. It was… a lot, but she was ready for it. She already knew most of it anyway, it just felt more personal to hear it from her son.

"First, congratulations on becoming Novices. It's hard enough for people to step onto the magic path, let alone for them and their familiar to do so as well on top of that. Your timing was also similar, so at least you can relate to each other on your journey." She said and didn't miss the speck of confusion on their face.

"Ari is asking isn't it normal. When I broke through, she could feel my connection with the Wind. She didn't have a reference for fire, but she knew, more or less, what was required of her." Ciaran translated.

Camille was starting to understand the Archmage's pain when she hear his question.

"No. A connection with a familiar is supposed to be one, of very close friends. What you two have is unique. As far as I know, it is actually one of a kind."

"But you can talk about magic with your mentors. I came here, because Verdania told me you were experiencing a relapse, and would benefit from my presence." She said and smiled. What she got was a disgusted look from Ciaran and what she thought was a similar look from the spider.

"I came because I missed my son, and the stuck-up bitch of a Dryad finally let me in. Is what she wanted to say, Ari. Mom has this weird thing where whenever she gets serious she needs to switch to this polite talk." The boy turned and explained to his companion. Then added "Please drop it" when he turned back to his mom.

Camille was honestly shocked to see the boy so honest. Before he would either mimic her or his dad, choosing between the persona of either the Diplomat or the Clown. If nothing else he at least had become more direct with family.

'That's actually not a bad thing.' Thought Camille, then her smile broadened a little. It was still elegant, but it was a lot less polite.

"Better, but I can still see through you Mom. You are generally pleased, but the mask is still on, just a little bit shifted."

His mother was in turmoil. She was at a crossroads whether to be happy that her son was sharper than ever or to pull his ears red until he relearns his manners.

'Feral they called him. It was right on the mark I see.'

She was tasked with helping him adjust to human society again. After what he experienced, it would be a surprise to no one if he just lost his temper with someone and just socked them straight in the face. Now, a fight between kids would be nothing serious, but they doubted he would stop before he saw some blood.

Nighter his mother nor his mentors wanted this so Camille was tasked with his education for the remainder of the holidays. And she decided to be completely honest with her boy about it.

To her surprise, he just nodded and admitted he was in need of help with that. He also expressed his wish for Ariadne to stay physically so she would be able to follow him in his control.

It would be an unusual practice, but Camille agreed.

"First we start with Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing. It is a type of therapy that involves using eye movements or other forms of bilateral stimulation to help individuals process traumatic memories and reduce their emotional intensity."

"Now, bilateral stimulation is stimuli, visual, auditory or tactile, which occur in a rhythmic left-right pattern. For example, visual bilateral stimulation could involve watching a hand or moving light alternating from left to right and back again."

"We will practice that for about an hour and a half each day until I judge you two are alright. And don't you roll your eyes at me you two, it's for your own good. And that particular movement messes with the test results."

After two hours of bilateral stimulation exercises, Camille gave them a fifteen-minute break. She thought the two would go and talk to their mentors or maybe even play with the pup, but they just stayed there.

The next thing she saw was Ariadne make little balls of fire with her feet, and then she passed them to Ciaran. He then juggled them using his wind magic without even moving his hands, he just followed them with his eyes.

The woman was visibly shocked at how proficient they were for people who were yet to be in the Rank for even a month.

The spider didn't stop producing balls, but when she got the forty-two, some of the ones that were already being juggled dissipated.

Ciaran on the other hand had no problems with this much. By the end, he even started playing with a few rocks on the side. The flames were spinning vertically and the rocks horizontally.

Even after all that he still seemed to barely be scratching the surface of what he could do.

"Ciaran is what you're doing right now hard?" His mom asked.

In answer, he made a sphere of constantly moving flames and rocks. Each component moved in a different pattern, and not of them collided, for about five seconds, then it all came crashing down.

"Yeah, but I learned to make it look easy." He said and flashed her a smile.

It took a while but he had warmed up to her again, even if just a little.

She smiled at him, this time with true sincerity, and gestured for them to get closer.

"This will be the final exercise for the night and I will have to go. Rayon will be worried if I go back home too late. And for now, we will keep my new privileges a secret."

Ciaran wanted information, but she informed him it was an order from Eleftherios. The boy knew his Big Bro meant well, and the ass-whooping he got was still fresh on his mind, so he decided to let it slide.

"The next exercise is Mindfulness meditation. Mindfulness meditation involves paying attention to your thoughts and feelings without judgment. This practice can help you observe your emotions without becoming overwhelmed by them."

"Sit comfortably with your back straight, feet flat on the floor, and hands in your lap. Breathing through your nose, focus on your breath moving in and out of your body. If physical sensations or thoughts interrupt your meditation, note the experience and then return your focus to your breath."

"I know you don't think it's anything hard, but it will be, especially for you two. I want you to focus on yourselves individually. Do not make mind contact, separate your consciousness from one another. It's great how deep your connection is, but you need to learn to distinguish the 'I' thoughts, from the 'we' thoughts."

"After that, every source of discomfort you have I want you to right down. Ciaran, you help Ari out with that. We will discuss everything you write there when you feel like sharing it with me. But please, when you can, discuss with each other, and with your mentors. I have seen Warriors trice your age break from less than what you have experienced. Do NOT hold it in."

She let her words sink in and asked them to escort her out.

On the way out she held her son's hand. It was rough and his grip was firm. He was getting stronger, and the physical control of his body was perfect. Ari had shrunk and was sitting on his shoulder; her eyes were on Camille the entire time.

The spider knew the boy loved his mom, he was never above playing favorites in his family, and she was it. She also knew that the feelings were mutual, as she could feel Camille's love for the boy, and Eleftherios trusted her. But she still kept secrets from them, and the boy disliked it when he was the one kept in the dark. Ariadne had taken this trait of his and made it her own.