They found themselves in a vast, green meadow, surrounded by trees and mountains. In the middle of it, a skeleton of massive animal stuck out of the ground. Down the middle of it, a woman with one of the Dreams were walking and talking.

"So, what is a dream vortex?" Rose asked, as they watched Barbara's dream. "What is it for? What does it do?"

"I confess, there are some questions to which even I do not have an answer," Dream admitted. "But I can tell you that a vortex had the power to dream entire worlds or destroy them.

In the next dream they visited, there was a small girl jumping and humming to herself on the cemetery.

"Is that..." Rose trailed off.

"Zelda," Atia nodded. "When she was your brother's age."

"Mommy and Daddy told me to go away," the small girl said. "So, here I am in the old bone orchards. Nobody understands me. Nobody cares. Nobody understands but Chantal. Chantal comes along, shows me she's my soul sister."

Then, she ran towards the tomb in the middle. She stopped by a grave next to it and grabbed a bunch of flowers off of it.

"Me and her are gothic heroines, secret brides to the faceless slaves of the nameless night of the castle of dread desire," as she finished, she looked around.

"Is she lost?" Rose wondered.

"She's at home here," Atia smiled softly. "That is what most people seek when they dream."

"Home?" the girl echoed.

"Do you know where that is for Jed?" Dream asked.

The girl thought for a moment. Then, they followed Zelda towards the tomb. On its doors, there was one of the posters Rose used to search for her brother. Looking at it, she pushed the doors open and they walked inside.

On the other side of the doors, there was a house.

"Do you know this place?" Morpheus asked Rose, as she stopped and simply starred at the building.

She bit her lip, as she showed them the photo on the poster. This was the exact same building.

"That was our house growing up. Look," she smiled.

"You've done it," the Endless smiled gently. "You've found your brother's dream."

Then, he looked towards Atia.

"Now, we find Gault," she said.

They stared walking around, looking for the place Jed could possibly be.

"What's our next move?" Rose asked. "How do we find him?"

Before they could answer, a whirlpool of sand appeared in front of them. Atia frowned, as she glanced towards her husband. It was the exact same sight as she watched each time he departed somewhere.

A boy dressed in yellow and red suit appeared out of it. He had an hourglass on his chest and even had a ruby holding his cloak together at his neck.

"Halt, Rulers of Nightmares, or I'll send you three to Dreamland," he declared.

"Jed?" Rose frowned, as she watched the boy closely.

"I am the Guardian of Sleepers," the boy stood up straighter. "I am Lord of the Dream Domain. I am the Sandman."

With each title Dream and Atia's amusement grew. This boy was cute.

"My, my," the white-haired woman hummed.

"You are the Sandman?" Morpheus asked. "Is that what she told you?"

The boy didn't shy away from them, instead reaching towards his own pouch of sand he had on his belt.

"Where is she? Your master," Dream asked.

"Stay back," Jed warned.

"Jed, we're not here to hurt you," Rose finally spoke up.

Then, a woman appeared next to him. She put a gentle hand on his shoulder and the boy looked up at her. She gave him a pained look, before facing the couple.

"It's me you want," she said. "Not him."

"Oh, my God," Rose breathed out. "Mom?"

She went to step forward, but Atia caught her wrist before she could.

"That is not your mother, Rose," Morpheus said.

"Rose?" Jed asked, taking off his mask. "Is that you?"

The siblings smiled at each other. Then, the boy threw himself at his sister in a hug.

Atia smiled at the sight. Oh, how she wished sometimes she could still do that with her older sister. To feel this bond once again.

"I've been looking for you everywhere," Rose fussed, pulling away.

"Mom, it's Rose," Jed breathed out, turning around to face the image of his mother. "She's all grown up."

Gault smiled sadly, as did her Queen. Dream raised his arm.

"I'm sorry, Jed," he said, waving it.

Before anyone could say anything else, the Nightmare returned back to her original form.

"Mom!" Jed whirled around to face Morpheus. "What did you do to her?"

"Jed!" Rose stopped him. "Jed, look at me. She is not our mom. Our mom is not here, but I am, and I need you to tell me where you are."

"I'm right here," the boy said confused.

"No, Jeddy, this is a dream. When you wake up, where will you be?" Rose looked down on the poster. "Look. Did you write this?"

"Uncle Barnaby said he's gonna break every bone in my body," Jed shivered.

"Who's Barnaby?"

"Aunt Clarice won't be able to stop him."

Gault closed her eyes, her expression pained, and she looked as if she was holding herself back from crying. Aita's gaze softened as she looked at the boy, then at the Nightmare. She could see that Gault grew to care about the boy. Dream also seemed to notice this, but he remained stoic as always.

"Where are Aunt Clarice and Uncle Barnaby?" Rose pushed.

"They're home. They're in Homeland," Jed said.

"There is that? Where is Homeland, Jed?"

"Come, Gault," Dream suddenly spoke up, making both his Nightmare and his wife look up at him. "We must go."

Rose looked up at him, with a face that clearly stated her protests. Atia also looked up at him with a slight glare.

The Nightmare started walking forward. However, instead of approaching her Rulers, she stopped by the boy first, kneeling down before him.

"I'm sorry, Sandman," she said.

"It's time to wake up, Jed," Morpheus declared.

"Dream..." his wife warned.

They promised the girl to help her find her brother and while she might have done it in the dreams, she still didn't have the answer she wanted.

"Wait, no!" Rose protested.

"Goodbye, Rose Walker," Dream said.

"Stop! Not yet," she quickly turned back to her brother. "Jed, tell me where you are."

Slowly, everything started going black around them. The last thing they heard before being pulled out of there was Jed calling out for his sister.

*****

"Do you have any idea what his life is like in the waking world?" Gauld asked.

They were back in the throne room. Lucienne stood slightly to the side, simply listening. Dream stood on the stairs leading to his throne, while Atia stood to the side, glaring at him.

She knew it was time, but she hated the way he ended the dream. He could at least let the siblings say their goodbyes.

"Humans cannot live in dreams," he stated firmly, glancing at the Nightmare over his shoulder. "As long as he stayed there, the child had no life nor a chance for one."

"The boy is being abused," Gault declared. "He's suffering."

Atia's heart clenched, as did her fists. While she understood why the Nightmare did what she did, this couldn't be. Even if Atia agreed with her intentions, this wasn't a solution.

"You abused that suffering to build a Dreaming you could rule," Dream spat.

"I had no wish to rule. I merely wish to be a Dream and not a Nightmare. To inspire rather than to frighten."

"The choice is not yours to make. We do not choose to be created. Nor do we choose how we are made."

"That is true," Gault agreed. "But we can change."

"No," Morpheus shook his head.

"Was it not what happened to Lady Atia?" the Nightmare looked towards the Queen. "She was born mortal, after all. And you made her a Dream, when she died."

"Don't bring her into this," Morpheus glared at Gault. "What happened to her was much more complicated than you can possibly think."

"Why? What could possibly be the case she gets the special treatment? Is it because you wanted her? Loved her? Or just simply liked the way you felt around her?"

The King of Dream's figure straightened, and his glare grew even colder. Power flared in his silver eyes, as they flashed dangerously.

"Don't you dare speak about her like this," he sneered. "We are, each of us, born with responsibilities. Even I am not free to choose to be other than I am. Nor is anyone."

"If that were true, why did all the other Dreams and Nightmares choose to leave this place when you had gone away?"

"Not all of us chose to leave and nearly all have returned," Lucienne cut in.

"Do you think they came back out of love?" the Nightmare scoffed, turning back to look at her King. "Or because they were afraid of what you would do to them if they did not? Because I'm not afraid."

Atia admired Gault's bravery, but she knew it wouldn't help her, but bring her doom. Still, she was surprised by the outcome, as she had not expected something so severe.

Dream turned around to fully face the Nightmare.

"You should be. A Nightmare's purpose is to reveal a dreamer's fears, that they may face them. Perhaps a few thousand years in the darkness will reveal your fears."

They all watched as his shadow slithered down the stairs, towards Gault. As it touched her, she started to turn into dust, that fell apart before it could even touch the ground. Still, she held no fear in her eyes, as she raised her chin high and looked her King straight in the eyes.

"Better that than to make others afraid. Even a Nightmare can dream, my Lord," she declared, just before she disappeared completely.

A moment of silence followed after this.

"You feel her punishment was unjust," Dream stated, looking first at Lucienne, then at Atia.

"Yes," his wife nodded, looking up at him. "She's right. I was a human, before I died. But then, you made me a Dream. I don't see how is that much different from her situation."

He looked at her for a second longer, before his gaze moved back to the librarian, who seemed to look for the right words.

"I used to be something else," she finally said. "Before you made me your librarian. We all change, sir. Even you, perhaps. One day."

"I realize that in my absence, you were compelled to made decisions in my stead and I am grateful to you. And you, Lucienne, helped her and I am grateful to you too," he said. "But I am back now. You may return to the library, Lucienne."

Atia's eyes widened, as she glanced towards her friend. The dark-skinned woman's face fell, before she hung her head and retreated from the room. As the white-haired woman whirled back around to face her husband, she found him already looking at her.

"And you no longer have to be in charge," he told her. "You too can go back to your role."

At that, she physically flinched and didn't even try to hold it back. It was as if he was taking away her title as a Queen, speaking as if she was one of his subjects.

"My role?" she repeated, her voice slightly shaky.

"Yes. I understand that you were leading our realm in my stead, for the last hundred years, when I was captured, but there is no longer need for this," he said, his face and voice unusually hollow.

She didn't know what to think. For as long as she's been married to him, her role, before all else, was to rule by his side. Everything else came after. And now, he was telling her there was no need for that.

Did he not want her anymore? Was he tired of her? Wanted her gone?

Endless questions, none she had answer for, started appearing and echoing in her mind. Still, she had to say something.

Aita slowly nodded and wiped her eyes, before taking a shaky breath. Then, she straightened and looked him into eyes.

"Of course, my Lord," she said, then bowed and left the room.

She didn't turn around to see him pained and tearful gaze follow her, before she disappeared from his sight.