Inside Zarya’s home, children were cooking dinner. Pushki sat at the table shelling boiled eggs, Isidor was mashing potatoes, and Ruslan had been banished to onion-slicing duty.
Two children stood by the stove, minding large pots filled with still more cooking potatoes, corn, peas, and greens. One was slicing hot bread, another was preparing some sort of sauce, three were hurridly chopping vegetables, and the rest were taking turns at a butter churn.
“Tovleniskya Alianni favorite recipe, potatoes.” Zarya said, gesturing to where Isidor was crushing the potatos up as best he could into a bowl half-full of milk, goat butter, and corn. The woman bustled to the back bedroom where Matvei was resting, carrying a bowl of leftover tomato soup mixed with just-cooked corn.
“The fish is here!” Legba called out as he, Pasha, and Eva came in the front door.
“Cook the fish right first time, Tovlenisky Legba! You get Tovlenisky Catalan help you, he make best fish right every time!” Zarya shouted.
Eva and Pasha stood in the doorway and watched the kitchen frenzy for a few moments before stepping back outside. The stepped onto the porch and without a word between the two took out their dice.
Eva was down to her trousers and knickers by the time that Zarya made the call for dinner.
“Tovleniskya Evpraksiya come for dinner or she not eat Tovlenisk clan hot cooking tonight! Call Tovleniskya Zarya’s wander-children!” She yelled.
Eva dropped her dice.
“You owe me your trousers.” Pasha said gleefully, counting Eva’s numbers. Eva turned him into a pineapple to silence him.
“IgorVitalyLilaViktorOtchOxanaNikitaDenisPeterYagaOlafOlgaBabaPetra!” She shouted.
Pasha the Pineapple rocked gently back and forth on the boards as dots of light began swooping down towards the porch, where they materialized as tall Tovlenisks, chattering and hungry.
“Eva!” Vitaly cried, gathering his second cousin up in a hug.
“Taly! You’re more flamboyant every time I see you.” Eva said.
“Thank you, Eva love.” Vitaly purred happily, passing Eva off to the next waiting cousins. Twins Otch and Oxana, soaked up to their chests in cold water, squeezed Eva affectionately. The whole gaggle of cousins began babbling at once, save for Igor, who never said much of anything.
“Lila… looking wonderfully whorish… Viktor, you finally had your haircut!… Yaga, you switched with Baba? Yellow does look better on her…” Eva made cheerful small talk with her extended family while Pasha the Pineapple continued rocking. Olaf’s boot finally tipped the tropical fruit over.
“Ooo… watch out for the pineapple. He’s a friend of mine.” Eva warned.
“Eva, you little cad.” Denis scooped up Pasha the Pineapple and tucked him under one arm.
“TOVLENISK CHILDRENS COME EAT!” Zarya bellowed from inside the house. Eva and her second cousins made their way into the crowded house with Pasha still a pineapple.
“Sit, eat. Afterwards we talk payment.” Zarya gestured at the chairs clustered tightly around the large dining table.
“Payment?” Ruslan asked.
“Tovleniskya Zarya love Tovleniskya Madioxi like daughter, love Foloki Matveisliki like own son. Feel very bad for him. Tovleniskya Zarya have twenty-five mouths to feed and guests and not always can heal for free these days. And, girls, Tovleniskya Evpraksiya eat at Tovlenisk table, Tovleniskya Evpraksiya wear clothes.” Zarya reasoned, serving up fish to all the plates within her reach.
Igor took off his shirt and handed it to Eva without a word.
“Who bring home pineapple?” Zarya asked, pointing her fork at the pineapple on the table in between Denis and Petra.
Pasha the Pineapple quaked with fear.