Page 70 of Earth Girls are Easy… To Dominate
“Emil and I found it in the market. I bought a few and had to try making them myself.” Eun-Ji said, “I can’t remember whatthey called them, but they are delicious. I think there’s one left in the cabinet, if you want one.”
“I’m good,” Olivia shook her head. An idea popped into her mind as she watched Eun-Ji work on a new braid. “Maybe I should make beignets.”
“That’s a great idea!” Eun-Ji exclaimed. “Food is a universal language. If you share food, you share something about yourself. It’s why my mother always loved being in the kitchen.”
Olivia nodded, remembering times when she would go to Pops and Mama’s house. There was always something cooking on the stove or on the grill. No one went hungry in their house.
“I’m going to do that,” she decided. Olivia moved around the kitchen, grabbing the ingredients she needed to make the fried dough.
She worked quietly next to Eun-Ji, making the popular dessert from her home. As she cooked, she thought about Kaias. Would the food help open him up, and could they work together on whatever was on his mind?
Olivia sifted the powdered sugar on the beignets and took a step back. Finished with her own pastries, Eun-Ji handed one to Olivia. It was a braided flower with custard and fruit compote.
“I used the fruit they use here,” Eun-Ji explained. “Here, take one.”
Olivia took a bite. The pastry was good. She could see it in a bakery in Europe, displayed and ready for patrons.
“I like it.”
“It’s good.” Eun-Ji nodded. She grabbed a beignet and began eating. “Oh, he’ll like this, and if he doesn’t, he’s not human.”
Olivia laughed. “He isn’t.”
“Eh,” Eun-Ji shrugged, “he’s more human than most.”
Olivia laughed. She placed a bundle of the beignets into a basket and shook her head.
“It’s getting time to head back,” she sighed.
Eun-Ji rolled her eyes. “Oh, of course, feel homesick about the awful air conditioner and lumpy cot. Never mind the fact you probably slept in something plush and soft last night.”
“Maybe,” Olivia smirked, “but I miss my roommate.”
“Oh, stop,” Eun-Ji waved her hand away, “he’s better looking and you know it.”
“What are you talking about? You’re drop-dead gorgeous.” Olivia bumped Eun-Ji.
Eun-Ji laughed. She shook her head and began cleaning the kitchen. “He’s more your type. Now, go on, and I’ll see you tomorrow. Maybe you can find out what he’s hiding from you.”
Olivia nodded, hoping she was right. She walked out of the pods and into the temple, and the two guards followed her. One coughed, and she turned to look at them.
“You two haven’t eaten,”she observed. A pang of guilt hit her. She wondered how many hours these men kept themselves without food. Slowly, she reached into the basket and pulled out two beignets. “Here. Eat one. If you like them, I can teach your family how to make them. Or I could make more.”
The guards looked at each other, silently speaking to one another. One shrugged and reached for a beignet. He hesitantly took a bite. His eyes widened, and a grin grew on his face. He looked to his partner and nodded. The other guard slowly followed.
“You can talk to me,”Olivia said.
They looked at each other. Powdered sugar speckled their chins as their mouths worked the food. Olivia smiled, waiting for one of them to swallow. Slowly, a throat bobbed up and down before he bowed his head low.
“Forgive us, Lady,”he stammered, “Lord Kaias has not informed us how to address you. We were unsure how well you knew our language.”
“Well,”Olivia nodded slowly, “I do know more than the others, but I’m still learning. If you’d like, I could teach you my language as well.”
They looked at one another and quickly shook their heads. “If Lord Kaias commands it, we will.”
“I’ll talk to him about it,”Olivia promised.
The two guards glanced at each other but didn't say anything. Olivia sighed. She wondered if they were afraid of her or just cautious about what Kaias would do to them when talking to her. She imagined what his childhood must have been like. He must've been treated like this, with a mixture of fear and hesitance. It was a wonder that the High Sister was able to have as much of an influence as she did.
