In the living room, the Umbrellas and Sparrows grabbed glasses and all the bottles of champagne they could find in cabinets, popping the corks before pouring some for everyone. There was music blasting, all the nostalgic songs they listened to growing up. From Queen's Another Bites the Dust to WHAM's Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go, everyone was having a blast! After a while, some of the Sparrows and Umbrellas even split off into their own conversations, but Dahlia just sat by her lonesome.

To the Icy Sparrow, joining in on the partying was awkward for her. And it wasn't because of the accident or an embarrassing encounter that stopped her. It was something far different... she didn't know how to dance. Even as a kid, she was always clumsy on her feet. And while Fei and Sloane could dance like graceful swans, Jayme and Dahlia were more like the ugly ducklings and avoided it.

If it ever came to attending an event, she acted like she was grooving to the beat on the outside, but on the inside, she was scared out of her mind people would find out her dirty little secret. Eventually, she stood up and walked out of the room, hoping that other people wouldn't notice her disappearance. She retreated up the stairs to the balcony, watching as the party continued below. She caught glimpse of Luther and Sloane spinning one another around and giggling, the heartfelt conversation between Dusk and Viktor, and the rest continuing to socialize.

Suddenly, Dahlia felt a vibration in her pocket, the translator speaking in a muffled tone. "What are you doing?" it spoke. The blonde turned around to see Christopher floating a few feet away. "Oh, nothing," Dahlia responded, looking down at her half-empty glass. The cube chattered a negative response, telling her he could tell she was lying. "You should be celebrating down there," the translator spoke.

"I know I should, but I just don't know how to fit in," She confided. Christopher floated a little closer, and speaking in one of the softest chatters he could muster. He told her she didn't have to be alone, that he would be there for her to hang out with. Dahlia slowly looked up, and without meaning to, the corners of her lips tilted upward in a genuine smile. A smile she hadn't shown in a long time.

"You'd really stay with me?" She questioned. "Of course." The translator spoke one last time, and with that, they walked back to join the rest of the party, the cube staying true to his word. Hours had passed, and after downing a few more glasses of champagne, Dahlia felt drunk, not enough to be stumbling and falling, but definitely enough to be buzzed. The Umbrellas had retired to the guest rooms for the night after Fei told them they could stay as a reward for saving the world.

But after hearing the last bedroom door shut, Ben gestured for the remaining Sparrows to join him near the fireplace. Fei and Dahlia sat in two of the three leather chairs, while Christopher floated at Ben's side. The Squid Boy ripped off the gold foil from a new bottle and offered another drink to the women. Dahlia shook her head, holding up her half-empty bottle of water before taking a sip, but Fei gladly accepted.

"I'm glad we made peace. It all worked out," Ben broke the silence. "Yeah. But we're definitely killing them in the morning, right?" Fei questioned. Dahlia looked at the sun-glassed girl, wondering what was going on in that mind of hers. It didn't make any sense, and Dahlia hoped that it was just her drunkenness making her hear the strange things.

Christopher chattered somewhat menacingly, claiming that he called dibs on Diego. But Ben shook his head, "No one is killing anyone," he answered. "Why not? We followed your plan, merged the families, and saved the world. We don't need them anymore," Fei scoffed. Ben glanced at the rim of his glass, explaining that he wasn't done yet. When Fei wondered what he meant by that, the Sparrow explained that was between him and dad.

What's going on? What else does he have planned for them? Dahlia lurched forward in her seat. "You made a deal with dad?" she squinted. "Maybe," Ben replied. Fei then stood up from her seat, claiming that she was done. "We don't recognize your authority anymore," She stated when Ben told her to sit back down. "You're a terrible leader with no loyalty to anyone but yourself,"

"You don't speak for Dahlia and Christopher," Ben snarled, looking toward the other two. Christopher chattered in agreement with Fei, before turning a bright red. "Really, dude?" Ben rolled his eyes. Fei and Ben then looked over at the Icy Sparrow to see whose side she was on in this argument. "I'm too drunk and too tired for this shit, so don't drag me into your drama," the blonde rubbed her left temple.

Though Fei didn't have two people on her side, she still snickered as Ben's rage spread across his face. "I'm Number One, you'll do as I say when I say it!" "Not anymore. Here's to a new life without this dickhead," Fei smiled, tapping her glass with Christopher. But the moment Fei finished her drink, Christopher started spinning around, parts of the cube were struggling to stay together.

Dahlia jumped to her feet when she heard the chatters of struggle, and with wide eyes, she asked Christopher was wrong. But Chris didn't respond, and neither did the translator. Ben and Fei began slowly walking towards him, while Dahlia slowly backed towards one of the pillars, feeling something terrible was about to happen. It seemed Ben had the same feeling as well, as he warned Fei to stop.

"Chris, it's going to be okay. I'm going to help you, just-" Suddenly, an explosion erupted through the room, and Christopher broke apart, releasing the kugelblitz and sucking Fei into it. And as another kugelwave blew through the Academy, Dahlia and Ben were flung across the room, immediately falling into unconsciousness.

~~~~~~~~~

Oh, my head... what's going on? The sounds of muffled voices filled Dahlia's ears, and as her eyes slowly fluttered open, she could see Sloane, Dusk, and Five standing above her. And as she sat up, biting her lip to suppress the pain, the gravity girl stooped down to her level. "D, Benny, you're in the Hotel Obsidian, we're safe," Sloane ran a hand through Dahlia's hair before hugging her.

When Dahlia looked to her left, she saw that Ben had also woken up, but as she realized that Fei and Christopher weren't there, panic filled her eyes. "Wha-where is Fei and Chris?" She hyperventilated, hoping they were still alive. Sloane's look of relief faded into one of sorrow, as she explained they didn't make it.

Dahlia eye's blinked furiously, trying to blink away the tears that were forming. She didn't want to embarrass herself or give everyone a reason to think she was weak, so she attempted to hide her feelings with disbelief. "What is happening to the world?" she muttered. "Clearly ending!" The redhead scoffed as she walked past her. "I wasn't talking to you, whatever your name is," Dahlia placed her head in her hands, scooting up against the wall.

First Marcus, then Jayme and Alphonso, and now Fei and Christopher. There were only three Sparrows left, and all Dahlia could do was pray it would stay that way. The tears began to slip down her cheeks, and they began to sting her. It almost felt like her tears were acidic and burning her skin, but no matter how much she tried to make them stop, they just kept flowing.

"So, how is it that we're still here, but the whole universe is going down the cosmic shitter?" Allison asked. That's what I'd like to know! "Maybe we're the last to get flushed?" Viktor suggested. The Umbrellas spoke in concern for the welfare of Reginald and Klaus, after realizing that neither of them were in the lobby, and probably not in the hotel either. "They'll be here," Diego assured. 

Ben scoffed at the Kraken's response, "Really, did they... hit traffic? Look people, we're alive because we're special. We're the only ones who can save this universe," he spoke. "Didn't we just try that and fail miserably?" Dusk crossed her arms. "Yeah, because his plan was stupid," The Kraken piped up. Dahlia looked as she watched Ben and Diego about to go head-to-head, and deep inside, she was trying to hold back her anger toward the Squid Boy.

"How about we go with the large hard-on particle accelerator. You guys do some science, and... we launch the kugelblitz into outer space," Diego suggested. Ben squinted at the mispronunciation and insulted the Kraken for it. "At least he's trying, you little shit. What have you contributed?" Lila bit back. "Actually, this little shit blew up half his family!" Diego pointed out.

The more the Umbrellas spoke the truth, the more Dahlia felt her blood run cold. "For once, someone speaks the truth," She spoke up. Everyone turned their attention to her, including Diego and Ben, who asked her to repeat herself. "I said, he's right! Ben, all you've ever done is mess things up with your shitty plans! Look what happened to our family!" Dahlia repeated with anger and hurt.

"My plans are not shitty! They're way better than yours!" Ben protested. "Oh really? If your plans are sooooo good, then how did things turn out with me and Chris all those years ago, huh?" Ben went completely silent, his eyes widened at the mention of that event. Everyone around them wondered what she was talking about. But she didn't care about them, she only cared about the man standing before her, struggling to speak.

"You're gonna bring this up now, in front of everyone?" Ben hissed. "Why should you care if they know the story? Fei was right, you only care about yourself!" As things looked like it would turn into another fight, Five whistled loud enough to catch their attention. "You guys done? I don't care to know the tensions between you two right now. The universe is disappearing outside. So, you can keep bickering and rearranging the deck chairs of the Titanic if it makes you feel better. But the fact remains that we are too late," the time traveler said, walking away from the railing.

Five's siblings looked at him in shock, and as they tried to come up with another solution, Dahlia shot Ben a cold glare before sitting against one of the glowing blue pillars.  "We have to figure this out," Dusk pleaded. "How about we all take a step back and look at the big picture? Most of us have spent the last 28 days trying to stop the world from ending. What exactly have we accomplished?" Five questioned.

Almost everybody knew what the answer was, but nobody wanted to admit the time traveler made his point. "You know what we've done? Nothing! We've made things worse every single time!" Five snapped but took in a breath so the temptation to blow up again was less severe. "When I went to the Commission, I had a conversation with my 100-year-old self. And my last words were, don't save the world," What kind of last words are those? 

Slowly, it all began to click with her. During all those missions when Dahlia and the Sparrows put a stop to crime. They patted themselves on the back and then the next day, things went back to the way they were. Maybe there was nothing they could do that would save the world this time. Maybe it was time to say goodbye. 

"So, you're saying our next plan is nothing? We accept whatever happens?" the phoenix asked. "Exactly! Maybe this is just what the universe needs. I say we embrace the apocalypse, and see what's on the other side," Five nodded. "But what if there's nothing?" Sloane questioned. Five glanced down at the ground before looking at each of them, when he looked at the Icy Sparrow, she just shook her head at the madness they were trapped in.

"Then, it's been nice knowing you all. Whatever's on your bucket list, I recommend you do it now," he answered.