Under a Dark Moon [Oneus AU]

Spoiled Fruits

It was a little more painful than she expected it to be, watching Nellie leave the manor with an armful of bags and other belongings. For as long as she could remember, Nellie had been there, waking her up in the morning and tucking her in bed in the evening.

Even when Luella got older and reached twenty years of age, Nellie would stop by her room each night to tell her goodnight and to have blessed dreams. Nellie was always like that. She believed good would come just from speaking it into the universe. Luella admired her optimism.

Watching the staff leave, along with Nellie, made her feel more alienated and lonely than ever before. Nellie protested of course. She couldn't ever imagine leaving Luella alone with strange men, especially with her father having gone missing, so Luella lied and told her that they would be leaving immediately after.

Luella couldn't tell her the truth, only that the authorities would be coming in to investigate her father's disappearance and they requested that all staff and guests vacate the manor during the investigation to avoid any interference. It was Youngjo's lie, so it was better than anything she might have concocted on the fly.

After their sorrowful goodbye, Nellie climbed into the carriage outside and rode off into the horizon. Luella stood outside for a long time, watching as the horses carried away the only mother figure she had in her life, now perhaps the only parental figure she had at all. She didn't know what would become of her father just yet, which frightened her even more.

Everything had grown so twisted, like the mounds of roots spreading out under the large trees that stood like towers deep in the forest. Luella felt trapped by her circumstances, struggling futilely like a fly caught in a spider's web.

Eventually, Nellie's carriage disappeared from sight, and Luella headed back inside. It was morning, and at least in the sunlight she felt somewhat safe. The forest and all things that inhabited it were less menacing under the light of the blooming dawn.

Even though her brain was practically spinning with fears and worries, Luella felt her stomach start to growl. She realized that she never finished her dinner the night before, and that her stomach was still relatively empty.

Unfortunately, the house cook and Nellie were both gone. Luella had yet to learn how to cook a proper meal, since Nellie was determined to do it all for her. She was a bit spoiled and not ashamed to admit it, but her lifelong social advantage had suddenly become a huge disadvantage.

After heading to the now empty and lifeless kitchen, Luella stood in the center of it and looked around at the cabinets. She had a vague idea of where everything was, so she began mapping out the dishware, cutlery, and pans and corresponding cabinets in her head.

"Just prepare a simple meal," she told herself in a breathy whisper. "A simple meal."

Luella reached up to gather her long, chocolate waves in her hands, then twisted them into a messy bun that she tied into place with a little pink ribbon she kept attached to her dress on the busiest days. Nellie gifted it to her when she was young and hated having her hair in her face.

She fished out a big silver pot from bottom cabinet, then carried it over to set it on the burner. Then, she knelt down to open the little door beneath it. The cook kept the matches next to the stove, of that she was sure. Luella almost burnt the house down once with those matches.

Luella slid open the box and pulled a match loose with shaky hands. She struck it once, twice, three times with no success. How could she manage such a thing when she was a young girl, but not as a grown woman?

Everything compounded upon her in that moment, as she was struggling, failing to light a match so she could cook herself a simple meal. Tears started to fall again, born of frustration, sorrow, and a fear of losing everything.

The match snapped between her little fingers, and she threw the box down. She was just about to break down completely when she felt a hand on her shoulder.

"Luella?" Keonhee spoke softly. "Let me."

His hand left her shoulder to extend out to her. After sniffing back her tears as best as she could, Luella laid her hand in his and used his help to pull herself up to her feet.

"I just wanted to make a simple meal," she sniffed again, wiping at her eyes with the back of her hands. "I can't even do that, it seems."

"Let me," he said again, smiling in a way that made her feel a little less alone.

She nodded her head, then stepped aside to give him access to the stove. He removed the pot first, setting it on the dining table for a moment before kneeling down in front of the stove.

"Water?" He requested, motioning towards the pot. "Will you get?"

"Right," she cleared her throat, ashamed that she didn't fill the pot before trying to heat it up. Of course she needed water. "I'll go fetch some now."

She scurried off to the well just outside the back door with the pot in hand. Luella worked quickly to pump some fresh well water into the pot, filling it halfway, then rushed back into the house with it.

Keonhee was chopping up some vegetables on the countertop when she returned. The stove was lit and secured, heating up the burner above it. Luella set the pot on top of it to let the water start boiling.

"Sit," Keonhee encouraged her, knowing things were difficult for her at the moment. She needed to rest, to relax, so she didn't send herself into a panic as she had almost done over the matches.

Luella plopped down at the dining table and laid her head on her arms. She watched him as he chopped the vegetables and prepared them to be made into stew.

"I'm sorry," she said with a pout. "You have to protect me and cook for me. I'm sorry."

"It's okay," he shook his head at her. "Not bad. I want to… help, Luella."

"Isn't it strange?" She mused to herself a little, tilting her head as she watched him prepare the stew over the stove fire.

"Strange?" He repeated with a question.

"Isn't it strange that I trust all of you? I haven't known you for long, yet I feel safest with you near. Father would call me naive," she almost hummed her words.

Keonhee wondered if the near musical quality in her voice was a result of her lack of proper sleep. She seemed tired, out of it, and distracted. He hoped they could make things better for her soon. In the meantime, he wanted to do all he could to make sure she was alright.

In the time that it took Keonhee to complete the preparation of the stew and cover it to boil, Luella fell asleep with her head in her arms on the table. It couldn't be comfortable, but Keonhee didn't dare wake her. Who knew if she would be able to fall asleep so easily again?

"Are you cooking something for yourself?" Dongju asked as he came into the room. It didn't take long for him to realize Luella was there, at the table, snoring softly.

"No, it was supposed to be for Luella," Keonhee chuckled, "but I suppose she is a bit worn after everything. I'll leave it to simmer until she wakes up again."

"The others are out in the forest right now trying to track Mr. Shaw's scent," Dongju informed his hyung. "Hopefully they'll have some luck."

"She must feel so lost," Keonhee muttered to himself. "All her life, she's been sheltered and pampered like a child, even as a young woman. Without her father and the maid, she must feel so lost and alone."

"We'll find her father," Dongju said encouragingly. "Then they can move somewhere far, far away together, and we can go home to Bahlee."

He hoped that was what would become of the situation, at least. Deep down, he knew there was no real guarantee that her father was even alive. Anisa had a history of violence for violence sake.

"In the meantime," he added, "all we have to do is keep her safe."

"I just hope that's as easy as it sounds," Keonhee sighed.

Anisa wouldn't like them returning suddenly just to poke around in her dealings with the Shaw family. She had an ancient mission to preserve the land for the tribe, and she never took too kindly to anyone getting in the way of that.

Even someone as innocent and helpless as Luella.