Soft petals and Hard nights

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“ORDER UP!”

Then a loud bell rang out from behind Rose. She sighed as she set down a coffee and rushed to her boss, arms still full with plates and glasses. The sweet stench of syrup filled the air nauseating her. As was she already was tired but coming to work in this? It made it difficult to keep up the sweet facade she was aiming for. But she swallowed down the frustration and kept the sweets coming. The black coffee she chugged before her shift made it easier on her, but this was her only job after all.
Once all the acidic frustration was swallowed, she had finally arrived for her red-headed boss, Ash. Ash of which was, watching her as she came to the window. She stared blankly at the trays that covered the girl’s arms. She gently set a plate of hotcakes atop her head. “This is for table thirty-seven sweetheart” She stopped, noticing the girl struggling to balance the cakes. Ash chuckled lightly. “Here…” Ash gently took her fingertips and touched the plate on her head. The pancakes now encased with a warm red glow, straightening themselves on the plate. Rose let out a small puff of air, carefully straightening herself so the plate could balance easier. But the plate remained perfectly still.
She sighed with a smile as she turned before Ash spoke again: “That should hold them until you get to the table sweetie. Now get a move on hun.” She glanced back to see Ash offer her a wink. She smiled to her boss and advanced forwards, she felt like she was headed to war. If you could consider cleaning spilled food and treading on the floors coated in sticky sugary liquid --not to forget the crayons. Those were such a safety hazard! To both the humans and the monsters! Now being honest she never knew with all the magic… and well she didn’t feel like saying monsters as it sounded a little racist to her, but Ash had assured her it was all alright… as long as she used it in a kind enough tone. But she had never known any of this existed, or at least until a few weeks ago until a job appeared that she needed desperately until the news and word on the streets were all but fact that the monsters had erupted from a hole out on the side of a mountain, as though they were there all along.
It was sad enough for her to think, they were pleasant enough for her to think they were all equals despite the popular opinion which wanted to shove them into the hole, cover it up, and never speak to those ‘dangerous natives’ again. As she gazed around upon the faces of them, she could tell just by the comfortable smiles and easy laughter, they had found their true home. And her job made it worthwhile. “Order up!” Ash’s loud commanding voice along with the annoying ring of that damned bell, quickly broke her from her thoughts, turning her head in attention to the pass. She quickly bowed her head, setting the hotcakes on the table, their red glow disappearing as they touched the table. She didn’t have time to marvel at how Ash was ringing the bell to ‘the funeral march’ in boredom.
The monsters gratefully thanked the girl, pulling her out of her trance. “You’re very welcome” tumbling out instinctively along with a small, charming grin before scurrying off, preparing to have her arms loaded with trays and plates, but she only got a diminutive plate. Ash’s vibrant green eyes turned a dark shade of yellow, as if to be serious. “This one’s for the lass on the stool, don't say anything to her, just give her the plate, her privacy, and come right back. You can do this doll..” Ash gave her a weak smile, before disappearing into the small area that was the kitchen.
She stood there in that empty pass stunned for a moment, before turning to scope out the dining area of lively monsters, engaging in their own trifle conversations. Curiously she glanced down at the tray that was dinged up: a medium-size hot black coffee and a large stack of pancakes, drenched in honey-colored… she sniffed, nose wrinkling in disgust. “Honey mustard?!” she exclaimed under her breath, now trying to hold her breath as she desperately scanned to see a petite hunched over the figure, clad in dark shades of purple almost blue. She quickened her pace, striding over as quickly as she possibly could before she found herself at the stranger’s side.
Rose inhaled anxiously as she set the food items delicately on the bench before the stranger before giving her a slight bow, turning her back to her- “Thank you…” Rasped a low feminine voice which sent shivers down Rose’s spine, at this very moment everything stopped. The instinct chatter and the comfortable banter, all movement stopped. The diner had gone dead silent with the words from this woman.
The waitress turned stiffly, not desiring to be rude, although she was curious why the quaint restaurant had stopped breathing. She didn’t quite meet the gaze of the stranger entirely before stammering out, in a soft voice. “Y-you’re very wel-welcome ma’am..” Although when Rose managed to meet her gaze, it was almost as if a knife had pierced her through the stomach. The figure straightened into an inhumanly tall demon with a lethal gold glint behind magnificent glasses.
Her entire being was melting, black liquid dripped from her right eye while her left remained shut. A wide precarious, a stretched grin which didn't suit the vibe Rose was receiving was settled on the woman’s face, pleasant looking, but chilling all the same. Dressed in a turtleneck with a creamy offset white color and a cloak of deep rich violet. She looked almost like a scientist of sorts, sorts she didn’t want to know.
She noticed the girl’s gasped and chuckled the whispering sound, reverberating off the walls of the diner. “I see, she speaks. And who may you be my dear?” she asked, amused. Rose’s legs trembled a little as she swallowed down the cold fear she felt, struggling to find her words, her name, her sense of self, before watching the lady laugh again. One of her curious holed but melting hands reaching towards her. Rose tightly shut her eyes, expecting the worse, until she felt a light tug on her shirt. Opening one eye hesitantly only to see her studying her nametag with curiosity and care. “Rose…” She rumbled in a tone almost as if she liked the sound of it, her sudden closeness became almost disconcerting.
“Ya know Miss Rose, you are the first person I have spoken to in years besides my two younger idiots of course…” She began, as Rose gave an awkwardly hesitant chuckle, as she straightened to her relief but her grip on the nametag still remained. A perplexed, almost apologetic expression crossed her eyes. “Oh my.. It has been that long that I have forgotten my manners!” The woman smiled a little. “My name is Dr. Kar-”
She was cut off mid-sentence by the merry chime of the doorbell, immediate relief washed upon Rose as the woman had finally released her name tag. Oh, what a marvelous sound it was! A real blessing. Her rugged, prince charming, her true savior has finally arrived. She allowed a grateful smile don her features, turning her head towards the door or moreover her salvator-- that came in the form of a second hulking demon, that looked nothing like the first but she had an uncanny feeling that this demon was a sibling to the one who sat in the stool next to her.