There's a baby, swaddled in cloths, held close to their chest. They're a boy, not much older than a few minutes, fresh from the womb and so very vulnerable, blissfully unaware of the horrid fate awaiting them. She holds them close, a feeble attempt at shielding them from their father's will, but she still holds them close, spending every second with them as if it is their last, no, was their last. He's so small, she observes. How could anyone be so cruel to such a small being?

"Rhea." There's no need to look up from her son, fourth of children she bore so far. She already knows what is going to happen next, dread and despair taking their familiar root in her heart.  He stands over her, looking down at the child in his wife's arms with clear disapproval. No joy, no love, nothing a baby needs.

Rhea's hand moves to cup the baby's cheek with one hand, a gentle kiss planted atop his forehead. "I love you Hades. I'm sorry," is what she wants to say to her son, but only tears spill forth as she hands Hades to her husband, head hanging low to hide her face. Another child, another piece of her ripped forcefully from her heart.

She chances one last look at her son before he disappears into the depths of her husband's stomach.

The dream never fails to leave Jeongin restless, aching, longing for something he doesn't know. He can never seem to forget the dream either, recalling each and every detail clearly without fail. Whether it is the emotional impact it had on him or the timing of the dream in his life, he's unsure. The dream is important though. Jeongin feels it.

It didn't help that the dream first appeared not too long after the unfortunate death of his parents, leaving 16 year old him alone with his older sister Hyejeong who was two years into her college education at the time. Unexpected, devastating, and difficult on the two surviving siblings, it wasn't easy on the two of them, and they soon had to adjust to a life where they only had each other.

Was it cruel for him to feel more sorrow over the dream than the death of his own parents though?

As time passed, Jeongin learned to live without his parents's in his life, as well as his older sister did, taking on the role of the parental figure between the two of them. Even as that happened, the dream never left him, repeating itself at the very least twice a week if he was lucky. The tears that flowed freely before lessened but the aching feeling of loneliness never let him know peace, cheery disposition exchanged for a silent, weary eyed boy who looked about a second away from falling asleep at any point.

Emotionally and physically drained, people started to worry about him, most especially Hyejeong. His older sister cared for him whenever she could between her classes and trying to provide for them and his own busy schedule of high school and work. It took one particular night where they both had a free day for Jeongin to tell her what's been bothering him, what has been leaving him like a zombie trudging through the day. She didn't understand, would never understand truthfully, but she was there for him and would continue to do so for as long as they were alive.

Fast forward to the 18th summer of his life, he's a newly graduated high school student looking to tackle college next. The dream continues to haunt him, but he has gotten better at dealing with the empty feeling in his chest [read: coffee helped quite a bit]. There's been a few bumps in the road for him and Hyejeong, but they're still here. They still have each other backs.

Oh how quick that was to change.

Something about Hyejeong... changed to say the least. She appeared silent, less inclined to tell her younger brother how things have been going on for her. He thought it mostly had to do with him preparing for the next big step in his life, her wishing to keep as many burdens off of his shoulders even though she had her own graduation to worry about, but even after that hurdle was crossed, something was still wrong.

Previous attempts to divulge something, anything, from his sister were met with failure, the only response a simple "I'm fine, just tired". It wasn't wrong. She always looked tired coming home from work, but there was more to her statement than that, as if she could not trust her brother with whatever words might come out of .

The world came crashing down on him one day upon witnessing Hyejeong at home earlier than usual, looking even more tired and hopeless than usual, if that were even possible. Her breaking point. Through a little coaxing and tears, she finally relented, the pieces of the wall she built between them falling apart. Her lost job, the tanked final semester of her college education, how she's been barely holding on

[TW AHEAD: cult, betrayal, physical harm caused by someone trusted]

A friend had been helping Hyejeong through this setback in her life, someone that Jeongin knew well enough at least, got to know even if they mostly regarded him as if he were a wild animal. Jeongin thought they were just really bad with younger people, but he was wrong.

Very wrong.

Hyejeong had been roped into a cult, courtesy of the "friend".

And there was nothing he could do about it.

She began spouting nonsense, calling Jeongin "bad luck", relating it back to the dream that he had, how unnatural it was, the vividness of it, how no one else seems to have experienced the same. There's no "Rhea" or "Hades" anywhere in history, certainly no account of a parent eating their child.