-let's make a toast like a thunder, fill in everything, as much as it overflows-

(I have the biggest crush on Answer San too. San in general but this hits different.)

.................

Eun Byeol stood on a road, lined with pillars, that led to a huge door with a compass engraved on it. The sun peeked from behind it. It looked like sunrise was upon them, illuminating the giant mountains in the distance.

"That... is a huge door," Yeosang, who was at her left managed to be the first one to say something.

"What does Dark Ateez even need it for? I mean, they're our height," Hongjoong muttered.

"They're dramatic, I'll give you that," Eun Byeol put a hand in her pocket. "Okay everyone, listen to me carefully. When you go through that gate, we're gonna get separated again. We're going into a new dimension. The journey isn't gonna be like you're teleporting. You'll each feel like you're in a setup, but actually your consciousness will be on the move."

Eun Byeol looked at all of them once, "Do not forget your purpose. Stay focused. There is a chance two of you might eventually meet, or maybe more. But that might not happen. See you in the other dimension."

Hongjoong nodded at her, and Eun Byeol took the key from Yeosang and went to the pillar on their right. When Eun Byeol had travelled to Dark Ateez's dimension in the previous timeline, she had come here first. Wonderland, they called it. A utopia for some, a dystopia for others.

Eun Byeol sighed, hesitating. She was having déjà vu now. Mingi, who was near her, patted her shoulder and she smiled at him before finally putting the key in and turning it.

The gate to the other dimension opened, bright light spilling from it, spreading as the doors widened. Hongjoong motioned them to start moving, and at some point, they all joined hands, scared of what the future held for them.

"To the beginning where the end awaits," Eun Byeol said, and they entered the gate.

----------------

Mingi found himself on a boat. 

Fog clouded his vision, but as he focused, he thought he saw stars. He looked up. It looked like the galaxy was brought down for him, it felt like he was in space. He peeked outside the boat, touching the water hesitantly, then creating ripples.

It was a beautiful sight. The water was so clear that he could see the stars twinkling too, apart from his reflection. It reminded him of the time when he had asked Eun Byeol if he could see a beautiful night sky in his dream, and she had created one from her imagination and shared it with him. 

He smiled at the memory. She had created an ice skating rink with a magnificent view of mountains, the stars illuminating the night sky. Eun Byeol had warned him they shouldn't enjoy their dreams too much, but it was okay to do it once in a while.

That's right, Mingi thought. We're so close to home. To the beginning, where the end awaits.

Mingi relaxed a bit, looking up at the stars. 

Everything will be alright soon.

--------------

Hongjoong immediately recognized where he was.

It was one of the first designs he had created, in the dream world. A structure that looked like a clock when viewed from above, to remind him that time was ticking not only here but in the real world too.

It was his idea of a hall, shaped round, the levels lined with four sleek silver benches each. Silver cloth covered some steps randomly. Hongjoong looked around to see any sign of life, but it looked like he was there alone. The only thing in motion was the various lights flickering at him.

He wondered where the rest of them would end up, and what they would be seeing. 

Focus. I have to focus.

So Hongjoong shut his eyes, his heart beating fast. He wanted to believe he was satisfied, but he couldn't help but feel that something about all of this was a bit ominous too. He prayed it was just his mind playing with him, just the nervousness because he was so close to the end.

-----------------

Seonghwa and Jongho found themselves on the opposite sides of what looked like a tunnel, separated by an exhaust fan in the middle of a wall. Bright cloth covered the entirety of the tunnel walls.

"I've had enough of tunnels," Seonghwa muttered.

"This is really weird though," Jongho said, "Have we reached or is this the place Eun Byeol mentioned?"

"Probably the latter," Seonghwa peeked through the fan to get a better look at Jongho.

"Since we can't get to each other, should we move to the end of the tunnel?" Jongho suggested.

"I think so, yes. Stay focused, Jongho. Don't lose your sight."

"Come on, hyung, I won't. We've been through so much, I don't think I'd lose my focus here."

Seonghwa smiled, "The burning sun and the crashing waves were nothing for us, but sometimes the simplest of things can make us lose sight of what we hold important."

"True," Jongho said, "Anyways, see you on the other side?"

"I hope so," Seonghwa smiled painfully.

"Ah, stop being so dramatic. I'm going, bye!" Jongho said, turning his back at him and walking along the tunnel.

Seonghwa watched him go until he disappeared out of sight, and did the same.

---------------

"Ah, we're back at it again," Yunho said as he looked at his reflection in the mirror. He was, again, in a room full of mirrors. He shook his head, sighing.

As if Utopia wasn't enough.

It felt like his reflection was mocking him. And he couldn't look anywhere else, because all he saw was himself. Self-reflection, he thought. 

In Utopia, he had dreamt of home, like everyone else, he supposed. It was kind of fitting how the mirrors were here again to remind him he was going back home. Kind of ironic as well.

He was always a little afraid after Dark Ateez had stolen their dream totems, if he would ever be able to wake up again. Always a little afraid if Dark Ateez would end up winning.

Yet here he was, invited by them, something no one could have thought was possible. 

We're not afraid anymore.

No one can touch us now.

-------------

Yeosang was in the middle of a desert, again.

For a second he thought he was back to Morocco, back in Eun Byeol's setup, but something about this desert was very dream-like. It didn't really feel real. 

The sky was a pale pink, and as Yeosang walked across the sand, he noticed that there were also no high dunes or rocks here unlike that time. The rocks were smaller, and there were red-brown bushes across the dunes instead of green.

Yeosang saw something shine a few feet away from him. He walked towards it, realizing it was a broken piece of mirror. He picked it up, seeing his reflection in it.

Mirrors, he thought, we have been seeing a lot of mirrors recently.

He stood up, throwing the shard on the ground before continuing to move forward.

----------------

Wooyoung was not sure if the thing falling on him and covering the floor like a blanket was actual snow or not. He realized he was standing on a round platform, looking up to see it's twin on the ceiling right above it too.

He put a hand in the air, catching some of the white stuff. He noticed that some of it felt cold, while the rest felt powdery.

It was ash. There was ash and snow falling on him.

Wooyoung smiled, twirling in the snow. It felt nice. His smile didn't last long though. He mentally slapped himself.

He was here for a reason. He shouldn't forget that.

He stepped out of the platform, walking a bit until he saw someone wearing a red and white sweater walking towards him. 

"San?" Wooyoung asked. San rushed towards hi, tackling him in a hug. 

"WooSan sticks together always, huh?" San smiled at him, making Wooyoung laugh. "You have purple hair again."

"Oh really? Ahh. You have white in your hair."

"What do you mean?" San touched his head.

"This part," Wooyoung sketched on his head, "is white. The rest of it is dark."

"Cool..." San grinned. He looked around. "What is this place?"

"I don't know, but it's snowing ash there," Wooyoung pointed.

Before the duo could walk, they heard footsteps join them.  

"Ah, it's you two..." Yeosang waved at them.

"Wow. Didn't Eun Byeol say it was unlikely that two of us could meet?" Wooyoung rubbed his chin.

"I wasn't here before, I was in a desert," Yeosang said, "What about you?"

"I was here all along," Wooyoung said, and San nodded as well.

"Interesting..." Yeosang felt a smile form on his face. "What do we do now?"

"I was just telling San how it was snowing ash there," Wooyoung pointed to the round platform again, and the three of them walked towards it.

"Doesn't this look like it could be an hourglass?" Yeosang wondered out loud. San clapped his back.

"Wow. Yeosang really does have a brain." Yeosang smirked at San, accepting the compliment.

"So do we step in here?" Wooyoung asked. "Is it gonna transport us?"

"One way to find out," San said, and the three of them stepped into the hourglass like platform.

--------------

Eun Byeol was in the warehouse of all places.

The one place she wished to go the most, and it had to be like this. Her heart hurt as she looked around the lifeless place. Everything was at the place they last left it, like she last remembered. Only, there was no one there.

Eun Byeol walked towards the piano, running her hands over the keys, making sound. She then went to the sitting area, smiling as she passed the basket on the ceiling.

She wanted to live in this moment a little more, memorize everything about it. Her eyes wildly scanned everything, as if she could snap a picture and save it in her memory like it is. She went towards the mirrors, where they used to practice dancing.

She looked at her reflection, her mouth opening in surprise. Ironically, she looked like what she had before they had started dreaming. Her hair was back to it's natural black colour, falling to her chest in slight waves. She was dressed in a brown T shirt with black leather jacket and jeans, ankle boots on her feet. 

It's still not real, she reminded herself, walking towards the door of the warehouse. She needed to reach their final destination.

She took a deep breath. She was going to Dark Ateez's dimension again. And this time, things were going to be very different.

She felt fear, genuine fear for the first time since she was here, and she swallowed it up, trying to control her breaths, leaning against the wall for support. 

I'll do it. I'll move forward. For my friends.

I'll make sure they wake up.

With that thought, Eun Byeol opened the door of the warehouse, stepping out.

--------------

Eun Byeol was finally in Dark Ateez's dimension. And this time, it was not the dark building she had been in. It was entirely the opposite.

The place felt... very normal yet grand. The brown tones almost made the place seem warm. It looked like she was in a grand house. The ceiling was designed with intricate patters, a crystal chandelier hanging from the middle. Dark green curtains covered the many windows and the arched openings to what she supposed would be the corridor. Sofas sat in the corner.

Eun Byeol walked slowly, taking in every detail. There were various lamps lining the wall, along with some décor. She noticed a statue of Artemis/Diana, which brought back memories.

Eun Byeol walked to a window with a console in front of it, on which candles stood on their holders. She pushed the curtain aside, looking outside to see that it was a bright sunny day. She shut her eyes for a bit, feeling warm rays hit her face. She didn't know when she would be able to feel it again.

She heard faint voices, turning towards where they were coming from. It was the boys. She bit her lip, taking a deep breath and putting on a smile before walking towards the source. 

She crossed the hallway, and spotted a grand dining room from afar. The doors were wide open, and she could see the boys in the room. She slowly walked, almost reaching the door before she heard someone whisper her name from her left.

It was Dark Wooyoung and Seonghwa. They motioned her to come to them, and Eun Byeol looked at the boys once, making sure no one had spotted her, before following the two.

They took her to a room at the end of the hall, where the rest of Dark Ateez was lounging. Eun Byeol folded her arms as she raised her eyebrow at them.

"Congratulations, you made it," Dark Hongjoong smiled at her.

"I wouldn't be congratulating me if I were you," Eun Byeol muttered. 

"Ah, don't whine. We have a good deal, don't we? Your friends wake up. What's wrong with that?"

Eun Byeol sighed. She met eyes with Dark Yeosang, who nodded subtly at her.

"Nothing, but I really don't feel like thanking you either, so."

Hongjoong laughed, throwing his head back. "I have all your dream totems here-" he motioned behind him, to a table where indeed everyone's totems lay. 

Except hers.

"And where's mine?" Eun Byeol asked.

"Not somewhere you'll find," Hongjoong sighed, "We made a deal, remember? We either keep  on playing with all of you for as long as we like, which may end up destroying us, or you, and that's half the fun of it-"

Eun Byeol rolled her eyes. Dark Hongjoong continued, "-or when we feel weak, we allow the boys to wake up. But you, my dear," Hongjoong came closer, touching her hair that sat on her shoulder, making her hiss at him as he grinned, "You're staying here. You're not waking up with them."