How does the Dream work? (Spoliers)

[Stephen]

I finished the first playthrough but I don't fully understand how the dream works.

From what I've gathered, the idol is in reality. Whatever it sees for a month becomes an 'iteration' of the dream. If it's covered up then no iteration is created. If the idol sees you in reality, then you fall asleep and enter the dream? Are you trapped there for a month? Do you wake up once an iteration is complete? If that's the case then how is Nightingale asleep for decades? And why are there idols in the dream, what purpose do they play?

Any help understanding this is much appreciated!

[Jimmy Rustler]

My understanding is that you don't necessarily become trapped in the dream when the idol sees you, rather the idol creates an impression of whomever it sees and that occupies the dream. Sometimes the actual person may also come into the dream. I think the implication is that Nightingale is catatonic and hospitalized in the real world.

[Wyrtt]

Considering ending D "reality" might not be as real as we think. Idol is imperfect imitation. Once a month it copies everything it sees as it understand it. IT creates clones of you in its world. But those copies can transfer their memory back to you even from "future" like it happened to Blacket.

That implies that reality is just another layer of dream but unlike ending C is far move advanced or fine tuned.
After all even in our world there is a belive that universe is a dream of sleeping giant. When he wakes up everything ceases to exist.

[Fuhrer]

Teamwork.

[Jimmy Rustler]

Originally posted by Fuhrer:

Teamwork.

You didn't have to do it