The Unbaked Outsider Chapter 4: Settling In
Adapting to life within the Hollyberry Palace was challenging to say the least.
After getting, albeit a somewhat awkward, tour from Wildberry Cookie, he insisted on going to the royal palace’s personal tailor to help you get more suitable clothes for yourself, which was a long alteration. When you arrived at the designated area, the tailor immediately began asking questions, as they seemed curious not only about your height but also about your clothes. They stated that they had never seen “clothes like yours before,” and made comments about how “big” your stature was compared to them. It’s not like their assertions weren't true, far from it! Your clothes paled in comparison to the elaborate ball gowns and mantled robes typically worn by the resident cookies here, and probably other cookies in this world altogether, but you weren’t bothered by the tailors probing; their interest was nothing malicious, and you were happy to answer any questions they had.
You suppose this is just a glimpse at what your life was going to be like living here; it wouldn't do you any harm to get used to it.
While the tailor excused themselves to grab a ladder, you asked Wildberry Cookie about the cost of all of this. You couldn't imagine all this effort to get you some clothes that were cheap.
“The king and queen have already approved all possible expenses for your necessities while you’ll be staying here.” He informed you, his eyes watching every movement the tailor made. He too was watching the lengths the tailor had to go through just to measure your body.
“I don’t want to know how much this all costs.” You joked, while holding up one of your arms since the tailor signaled you to.
Wildberry Cookie crossed his arms. “Considering the circumstances of your new situation, the king and queen consider the matter of your clothes a worthwhile investment.”
You snorted at his comment. He completely missed the joke as expected.
Although you were surprised when he began to open his mouth again.
“You can consider these accommodations an investment rather than charity since these clothes are contributing to your work within the palace.” He assured, walking over to assist the tailor with the ladder they brought into the room
“Right, that’s a good way of looking at it,” you retorted, watching the tailor climb up the ladder to finish up their measurements on you.
After the measurements were finished, Wildberry Cookie informed you that the other housekeepers had been briefed on the circumstances surrounding—well—you. The king and queen believed it would be beneficial for you to personally introduce yourself to what were essentially your coworkers. From what you understood, they were arranging some sort of welcome party for you.
Honestly, after hearing that, you at first, had some reservations. The more cookies who knew about your identity, the more risky the situation felt for you.You should probably come up with some sort of explanation soon. The situation with the tailor had made it painfully clear that you needed some type of alibi, before someone started a witch hunt.
Although you had your doubts, if the king and queen thought you getting acquainted with the other cookies of the palace was beneficial for you, then who were you to critique? They probably had a good reason to have you get introduced to them. Thus, you agreed to let Wildberry Cookie escort you again to another room to get acquainted with them.
Luckily, your prejudices about meeting the staff were quickly disproven. One thing about the Hollyberry Kingdom citizens: they were, like Hollyberry Cookie herself, passionate about everything. From their personality and, in this case, their hospitality. Following Wildberry Cookie into the castle’s housekeeper's quarters, you are greeted warmly by a group of housekeepers, some who are young and others on the older side, who all walk up to you to introduce themselves to you, eagerly waiting for you to do the same, while Wildberry stepped to the side, watching the interaction play out.
You couldn’t help but be thankful that out of all the kingdoms you could have ended up in, you really lucked out landing in Hollyberry’s Kingdom. Not that you thought one kingdom was better than another, but you couldn’t imagine adjusting to this situation if you had ended up in, say, the Dark Cacao Kingdom or the Golden Cheese Kingdom.
The Dark Cacao Kingdom, based on what you had seen in the games, seems to live a harsher life. Its citizens survive rather than live in the extreme winter environment. You probably would have gotten hypothermia within hours.
As for the Golden Cheese Kingdom, you couldn’t even properly reach it, since it existed within a virtual domain. Even if you could, passing Burnt Cheese Cookie’s trials would likely have been an issue. You would probably have been seen as a potential threat to Golden Cheese Cookie’s residents, and you knew the last thing she would want was a dangerous unknown outsider entering her kingdom.
There’s also the fact that where she lived was in a massive desert. You were fairly certain you would have succumbed to heatstroke before even finding the entrance to the virtual realm.
During your conversation with the housekeeper, they offered you an assortment of goods, which you eagerly accepted. After all, you hadn’t eaten anything since you woke up—you were hungry, and the idea of enjoying these delicious items didn’t seem like a bad idea after everything you had been through. You wanted to treat yourself!
You noticed a platter of crackers served with a honeyed cheese wheel, along with baked goods such as rye bread and ginkgo focaccia, all of which you recognized from the bakery. Refreshments were being served as well: Red and Sweetberry juice, which you had prepared multiple times at the Latte Cafe, were poured into pre-filled cups. You shouldn’t have been surprised that the kingdom’s infamous berry juices made an appearance at the gathering, although you suspected it might have been intentional. It would explain the liveliness of the housekeepers, but hey—if it made the cookies more amenable and helped avoid a few sour interactions, you weren’t complaining.
You, of course, dominated the conversation with your presence alone. As you chatted with them, you sipped the red juice you had grabbed earlier. You had been a little hesitant to drink it at first, knowing it was the Cookie equivalent of alcohol, but honestly, it tasted more like a blend of red fruit juices from your world—at least according to your taste buds, so you weren't worried about getting tipsy yourself.
As you had suspected from your earlier interaction with the tailor, much of the conversation revolved around questions and comments about your appearance.
It was interesting to see which parts of your body they seemed most curious about. The feature that drew the most attention was your skin. They marveled at how much sturdier your “dough” was compared to theirs, and how dense it felt under their light poking and prodding.
They were also fascinated by your hair, noting how much stronger it was compared to their icing, and how unique its texture felt as they examined how it differed from their own. Interestingly, you noticed that they seemed most apprehensive about your teeth, widening their eyes or even flinching slightly whenever you took a bite of your food or smiled.
Despite that, the gathering itself was quite pleasant, lasting for a couple of hours before you eventually said your goodbyes to the new staff and allowed Wildberry Cookie to escort you to your new room. It was located in the housekeeper quarters, but it was a single room—thank goodness—complete with a private bathroom as well.
A kingdom inspired by Rococo and Baroque aesthetics, yet filled with Cookies who wielded magic and benefited from modern advancements like plumbing and phones. The Cookie Run Kingdom world was truly a marvel.
Despite the oddities of this world, it unfortunately kept spinning, too. After a couple of weeks, you were able to start assimilating yourself with your new routine and lifestyle. Work consisted of the basics: dusting, vacuuming, mopping floors, and wiping surfaces in the common areas. The housekeepers begged you to stick with mostly the dusting, as you were the only person who could reach the higher-level surfaces without getting a ladder. You occasionally also helped with some heavy lifting too, often being paired with Wildberry Cookie for the task since he too was strong. The maids at the palace told you he’s been doing more side jobs since his duties have shrunken, with Hollyberry Cookie still being absent.
Work, as mundane as it could be, always had something new each day. Wherever it was, discovering something new culturally about the Hollyberry kingdom, or the interactions with the people there. The day after you got here, you actually met two cookies you knew from the game. Running into Knight Cookie and Princess Cookie shortly after you began working.
You had been in the middle of dusting one of the palace's countless decorative shelves when a familiar voice echoed through the hallway.
"Oh my goodness!" Princess Cookie squealed, running up to you with Knight Cookie following close behind. You nearly jumped when you heard her voice, almost knocking over one of the many antiques you were dusting off the shelf.
Turning around, you found yourself face-to-face with none other than the two cookies who rescued you from the jungle. You figured you were going to run into them sooner or later; after all, you still needed to thank them for rescuing you from the jungle!
“I’m so glad we ran into you!” Princess Cookie exclaimed, practically bouncing on her heels. “I’ve been wanting to meet you ever since we rescued you!”
“Do not forget to introduce yourself, Your Highness,” Knight Cookie gently reminded her.
Princess Cookie gasped softly.
“Oh, how unbecoming of me! Pardon my manners.” She gathered the sides of her skirt and performed a graceful curtsey. “I am Princess Cookie, and this”—she gestured toward the armored Cookie beside her—“Is my royal knight, Knight Cookie.”
Knight Cookie placed a hand over his chest and offered a respectful bow.
“It is a pleasure to see that you have recovered.”
You quickly set aside what you had been cleaning to have your full attention on them.
“The pleasure's mine,” you replied. “And thank you both. For rescuing me, I mean.” As you extended your hand toward them.
Princess Cookie tilted her head curiously at the gesture.
“Oh! Is this how you greet people?”
“From where I’m from, this is just one of the many ways humans greet each other,” you said with a smile.
Knight Cookie nodded, understanding the gesture. Stepping forward, he carefully grasped your hand and gave it a firm shake.
“Interesting,” he remarked. “A gesture of peace?”
“You could call it that.”
Princess Cookie's eyes lit up from the interaction, declaring she wanted to go next, eagerly reaching out and shaking your hand as well, though with her cookie hand it was much smaller, your hand swallowing hers.
“Wow,” she giggled, looking down at your intertwined hands. “Your hands are huge! And what are these long things on them?”
“These are my fingers,” you explained, wiggling them to demonstrate. “They help me grasp and hold certain objects.”
“I don't think I'll ever get tired of learning about humans,” Princess Cookie said excitedly. “Everything about you is different from cookies, and that just makes you even more interesting!”
Knight Cookie chuckled softly. “Your Highness has been speaking about little else since we found you. I believe she has many questions. Would you be willing to answer a few questions?”
You, Princess Cookie, and Knight Cookie ended up chatting for quite some time. The pair mostly led the conversation, asking about your recovery, how you were adjusting to life in the Hollyberry Palace, and what it was like working as a housekeeper. They were clearly curious about you as well, occasionally asking questions about your life and background. However, they kept those inquiries relatively modest, seemingly out of respect since this was the first proper conversation you had all shared together. The conversation soon ended as Knight Cookie didn’t want Princess Cookie to interrupt your duties, as they also had things to attend to. Waving each other goodbye, with Princess Cookie stating how she hoped that the two of you would run into each other again. As you resumed your work, the familiar rhythm of dusting, organizing, and cleaning quickly settled in.
You didn't mind the work. It kept you busy and prevented your mind from dwelling too much on memories of your previous life on Earth
It was probably for the better. You mentally noted. The more your thoughts drifted, the sadder you became. You actually got kind of teary-eyed one night because you reflected too much. You knew it would get better, though; it would just take some time.
For now, that was enough. All you had to do was take it one day at a time.
And everything will be alright.
