Creature Feature Deki Café

enchanté

Sakura stood outside the odd looking shop with an ailing look on her face. She really did not want to be here right now, in fact, she'd rather be running into oncoming traffic - that was how much she didn't want to go in. It wasn't that the little shop, of which she was slightly glaring at, was bad or anything, it was the nickname people gave it. Oh, she'd heard this name plenty of times before, especially in the hospital, it was usually the males who discussed about this particular topic.

The little shop of horrors.

How could this cute looking shop, which was also a café, be considered a little shop of horrors? Well for one, the owners of the place weren't exactly normal … or human for that matter. Rumor was that the couple, who created this joint, were actually aliens that crashed landed on Earth fifty years ago, though they both look barely out of their teens. Another were the workers. Deki is what they are called. No one knew what the word meant or where it came from, but that is what the employees at this café were called. Speaking of employees, did anyone happen to mention that they were all females? Yep, all women. Women who were cute, Lolita outfits ranging from maids to stewardesses. Occasionally there was a male employee here and there, but they were greatly out-shined by their female counterparts. Oh, and the café was animal themed. Which meant that they had ears on their heads and a tail jutting out from under their skirts. Every male's wet dream come true.

Not exactly the kind of place a modest and brainy pink haired girl would work at, but she needed the money. Medical school wasn't going to pay for itself, and she certainly wasn't going to run back to mommy and daddy for help. Despite how much they wanted to she was a big girl now, fresh out of high school and with a scholarship to Tokyo Medical University. Too bad for her, the scholarship would only last her for two semesters, in which case, she desperately needed some extra cash to stay at school.

Clutching the appointment card to her chest, she took one last look at the outside world and prayed to whatever deity that was listening to have mercy on her pitiful soul. With a gulp of air, she walked through the automatic sliding doors and into the shop. Immediately her senses were assaulted by the disarrayed, dismembered and discolored joints of the café, she had an eyeful. If she thought the outside looked weird, the inside was even more bizarre looking.

Aside from the classical Victorian Goth and classic French Versailles themes, the café really had no organization or set theme. It was a mixture and combination of everything from steampunk to sci-fi to fantasy. Further in, black and crystal chandeliers hung from the ceiling, along with origami and paper mache cut ours of animals. Classical styled paintings adorned the wall, an array from landscapes to people and…murder scenes? Sakura leaned in closer to one painting in particular and her eyes widened. A man and a woman, holding hands, stood before two slaughtered bodies and was smiling down at them. Very strange indeed.

She kept looking at other pictures, unaware of a body walking right up to her.

"May I help you?"

"Eek!" She jumped and spun around, coming face to face with a smiling woman.

"I'm sorry; I did not mean to startle you."

Sakura laughed nervously and tried to wave it off, "Ah, n-no, it's fine. I'm just a little jumpy that's all."

The sandy blonde woman smiled brightly, almost glowing underneath the fluorescent light, "My name is Bou, the head Deki-Maid, how may I be of service for you today?"

"I have an appointment with," She turned the card around and read the name carefully, "Phantom? Yeah, I have an appointment with her at three o'clock this afternoon."

"Oh, Lady Phantom? She hasn't arrived yet, but I will escort you to her office and you may wait for her there."

She nodded and proceeded to follow the maid.

As they walked further down the shop, she noticed how each wall on both the downstairs and up stairs floor was entirely different from the other. Each and every one of a them was a one of a kind design. Oddly enough, they all seemed to match in their own unique way. Her favorite probably had to be the pink walls with the black and green dancing figures.

"This place certainly is…incomparable to the other cafés in this district."

Bou looked over her shoulder and smiled, "Yes, the masters wanted it to be entirely different from everything else. They wanted this shop to stand out amongst the others."

Well, they certainly had the standing out part down. But Sakura couldn't help quirking an eyebrow. Masters? That's a bit too much to be calling your boss.

They walked all the way to the end of the hallway and turned a right corner where a mini elevator shaft sat open as they stepped in. For some reason, she felt like they were both in some time machine. The golden clock that hung above the elevator and four hands and they were each moving in different directions. Bou pulled a silver lever and the gates closed, then there was a buzzing noise before the elevator started to descend slowly. Sakura sneaked a quick peek at the tall blonde and examined her features. Blonde, blue eyes, big chest, curves to die for, and tall as a supermodel; her beauty was impeccable. On a closer survey, she also noticed a pair of white lamb like ears on top of her pig tailed head and a tail behind her. Not to mention the fact that her hands were oddly shaped like tiny, little hoofs. How peculiar.

Little Bou peep. How original. Men actually like this stuff?

"Is there something wrong miss?"

Said maid turned to the staring pink haired woman and politely smiled.

She blushed and turned away, "Nope, nothing's wrong."

"That's great, looks like we're here."

They got off at the fourth floor and Bou stepped out first and lead the way down the purple colored hallway. They turned two left corners before standing in front of a golden door with strange red markings on it. They looked very foreign, a language Sakura had never seen before. But thank fully for her, there was one thing that she could actually read clearly. The character for Phantom was written neatly in the middle of the door.

"As I have mentioned before, our Lady is not in at the moment, but if you would be so kindly as to wait in her office, I will contact her immediately to let her know she has a client waiting."

Bou unlocked the door and stepped aside.

"Uh, thanks, Bou."

Sakura stepped into the equally unusual office and sat in a red cushioned chair. The door quietly closed behind her and she was left alone. One sweep around the room and she already knew her future boss might just be a lunatic. It seemed this person had a morbid fascination with death and all things gloomy. While priceless daggers and knives sat in glass cases for decorations, pictures and art work deciphering mass killings, psychopaths, and insane asylums covered the walls. Skelanimal and Emily the Strange plushies and dolls covered the shelves and desks, almost giving off a child like aura.

What have I gotten myself into?

Suddenly there was a loud bang and the building shook, she dropped her bag and fell to the floor clutching her head in case it was an earthquake. As the building settled back into place, Sakura peeked through her fingers and cautiously tried to stand up - until another there was another loud bang and the room shook once again. This time a rather long and vicious string of colorful vocabulary followed. This person's mouth was so dirty it could but a sailor to shame.

"Bloody hell! That was amazing!"

Footsteps could be heard racing down the hall towards the occupied room. Sakura had only a minute to stand up before the door was kicked open, hitting her right in the face.

"Hey Phantom!"

A platinum blonde…girl? Or was it a boy? Stood in the middle of the doorway with a confused expression on his/her face, head tilted to the side as he/she looked at Sakura curiously, who was groaning and rubbing her aching head. There was a huge, bright red imprint of a star right in the middle of her forehead, courtesy of the door.

"You aren't Phantom, who the hell are you?"

"My name is Haruno Sakura." She all but growled.

"And just what the dingy are you doing in here?"

With a hand rubbing her nose, she handed the woman? Or was it a man? Her crumbled up appointment card and flopped down onto the seat. Dark purple eyes scanned the card quickly and flipped it over before handing it back to Sakura.

"Sorry 'bout your face."

An exasperated sigh escaped her rosy lips, "It's fine, are you Phantom?"

"No, I'm Daemon. Her husband."

Well that was a surprise, this androgynous looking boy, with a thick Okinawan accent, looked like he just barley hit puberty. Sakura had to restrain herself from laughing and coughed, "Oh, well, um, it's nice to meet you. I spoke with your wife on the phone a couple days ago about a job and she told me to come meet her here for an interview."

"A job interview? I didn't know we were hiring." Daemon gripped his chin in a thinking manner, which made him look positively cute, "Must have been Ghost's idea." He mumbled. Looking back up, his eyes roamed her body before landing back on her face, analyzing her features, "Well you're cute and pretty enough, so that's a plus. Not exactly the same level as some of the other girls here, but I'm sure you'll fit in just fine. Anyways, I should get back to my work. Pleasure to meet you."

"Likewise."

He bowed politely before leaving.

He was charming and not to mention drop dead gorgeous, despite the fact that he looked gender confusing, a tad bit shorter than her, which was insane since she herself was pretty short to begin with, and already married. Perhaps it wouldn't be so bad to work here after all. The pay was good enough for her to pay for school and have a little change left to buy whatever she wanted. She read the excellent reviews about this place, people loved it here and costumers poured in by the hundreds every week. Maybe she'll even get to wear some of the cute outfits she'd seen on the way to this office.

Another loud boom echoed through the building.

"Holy fucking shit! Look at the size of that whammer!"

And the strange just keep on getting stranger.

A crimson haired woman strolled into the café wearing black Gucci glasses, tight blue shorts, and a polka dotted white sweater with elbow length sleeves. Everything seemed fine and normal, except for the fact that she was wearing lime green rain boots and mix matched knee length socks. While one was purple with orange triangles, the other was black with bright pink kittens. She smiled brightly as a Deki-Maid bowed and greeted her.

"Lady Phantom."

"Afternoon Bou, where's everyone else?"

"They are recharging in the back, it will be another fifteen minutes before they are fully reenergized and we can open the shop again."

"Okay," She started walking again, followed by her loyal maid, "So the girl's still waiting in my office?"

"Yes master."

"Excellent, get me and the girl a cup of warm milk tea please."

"Of course," Bou bowed again before leaving and headed off into the kitchen.

She stepped into the elevator and pulled the lever, waiting patiently for it to stop. The minute she got out of the compartment, there was a loud explosion and a chorus of cusses following it. Phantom rolled her hazel colored eyes and walked towards the ruckus. Standing outside a silver door with purple markings carved into it, she banged it loudly with her tiny fist. Of course, it went unheard.

"Daemon, open up!"

The door swung open and a head popped out. Said boy's face instantly lit up and he planted a kiss on his wife's cherry pink lips.

"Hello my dear."

"What are you doing?"

"I'm experimenting."

"Experimenting what?"

"My latest creation, a potion that will easily keep our Dekis energized and fully active all day."

Phantom cocked her head to the side, "But why are there explosions?"

"I'm working with deadly chemicals; you can't really expect something to not go wrong do you?"

She crossed her arms, "Does Ghost know?"

He grinned nervously, "No, but it's not like she won't appreciate the help."

"You know she doesn't like it when you mess with the Dekis."

He sighed, "I know…please don't tell her."

"You know I won't, but you better not let her find out when she comes back."

"Promise." He kissed her again before slamming the door shut.

The red head turned around and began walking to her office, "Sometimes I wonder by I married him." She mumbled. When she opened the door, the smell of apple cinnamon greeted her senses and her eyes landed on the pink haired woman sitting in front of her ornate desk.

"Greetings!" Her voice was loud and squeaky, causing said woman to jolt in her seat, "I am Lady Phantom, owner and ruler of all that is Creature Feature Deki Café!"

Sakura spun around in the chair to face the grinning pixie like girl standing in the doorway. Her eyes instantly dropped down to her footwear and inwardly grimaced. They say first impressions last a life time, and she definitely knew this was going to last her a while. She was expecting some crazy looking woman with black hair and a ghastly pale complexion with blood running down her mouth. Instead, she was greeted by a crimson haired girl with lime green boots and very expensive glasses sitting on her head.

She got up and bowed as formally as she could, "Hello, Phantom-sama, it's nice to meet you. My name is Haruno Sakura."

"-sama? You can just call me Phantom. It's nice to meet you too. Let's get this interview started shall we?"

"Um, sure?"

"Confidence, I like that!" Phantom kicked the door close and skipped to her seat behind the desk. Dropping her bag on the floor carelessly, she turned on her laptop and opened up a notepad like document to take notes, "Alright, so do you have your resume?"

"Yes," Sakura took out a piece of paper and handed it over.

Silver eyes quickly scanned it without missing a beat before returning to the Sakura.

"What are you wearing?"

The question slightly took her aback, "Pardon?"

"Your attire, what does it consist of?"

"Well, I'm wearing jeans, a shirt and a cardigan."

She gave the girl a deadpanned look and Sakura almost flinched, "No you aren't."

"I don't…"

"You are wearing blue Abercrombie jeans, a white shirt, and a green cardigan."

What do my clothes have to do with this interview?

"I'm sorry I don't understand."

Phantom typed something down quickly and turned back to her, "You see, this business and job is entirely different from working at the hospital. I understand in that area one must be serious, assertive, intellectual, compassionate, and sedate. Human life is not something to be fooled around with, so I have much respect for those who work in the medical field. However, we aren't in the world of medicine and scrubs. Unlike our more pokerfaced counter parts, we are happy, funny, colorful, and bouncy. We let our emotions take control, whereas in your field, you are rather more reclusive. We strive to make our guests and costumers happy, we want them to have a good time. We entertain, and to entertain, one must have an open mind and an open heart. When I asked you what you are wearing, you told me blandly jeans, shirt, and a cardigan."

Suddenly, she felt like a child being scolded at for being so utterly stupid. And she just met the woman only five minutes ago. She wanted to chime in and say something, but the hard look in those silver eyes stopped her.

"We can be serious too, my husband and I are business people, but with all that aside we're still entertainers. We only take in girls who can keep our customers satisfied. Our ladies are very charming and they know that, they use whatever they have to make sure our guests never leave with a frown on their face. Now Sakura, can you keep a person interested for more than five minutes? Are you the alluring type? Can you flirt without coming off too strong? Are you an out-going type of person?"

Sakura coughed into her elbow and pulled the collar of her shirt.

"I-I'm sorry, what was the first question again?"

A flashy smiled split Phantom's face again, "You're cute; at least you have that down. You could probably make a hard man blush, but that mightnot be enough. You need to be a charmer! You need pizzazz! Can you bring that?"

This was all way too much for her to handle, she just wanted a simple side job while going to school! Who knew trying to land a job as a café maid would be so difficult. So many questions, so many requirements; it was almost like getting into medical school all over again. Memories of intense scrutiny and interrogation by the board of directors came rushing back into her head. Such unpleasant times.

Phantom looked over the resume again and started typing into her laptop,"So you work at the hospital?"

"Yes, I'm a paid intern as well as a student."

"If you already have a job there, why do you want to work here?"

"Well…actually, I do need the money. Despite how much I'm being paid as an intern, it isn't enough to keep be stable for long."

The corners of her lips curled, "So then how did you come across us?"

"It was an accident really."

Her thin eyebrow lifted curiously, "Then I am to assume that you have never heard of this place before."

Sakura looked away sheepishly, "I only know what I hear from the male nurses and doctors."

A small smile formed on Phantom's face, "Well I'm not surprised. So, how did you hear word of a job opening in our little Deki shop?"

"I was doing my round checks with my assigned doctor when we went one of our last patient's rooms. While the doctor was in the back, getting ready the shots and medication, I was alone with the patient. It was actually a little uncomfortable because she kept staring at me. Anyways, I went back to help my doctor when I accidentally hit something and all my papers fell from my folder, including the job section of the news paper."

Phantom's eyes became animated and leaned in closer, "Go on."

"The patient happened to see it and all the markings I wrote on it. Then she proceeded to tell me about this place and said there was a job opening. Plus, she said the pay was good too. Combined with my intern money, it's enough to pay for the next four years; if I can get and keep this job that is."

"Hm," Phantom tapped her chin thoughtfully, "Very touching story. Let me guess, this woman in the hospital, did she land herself in there from a motorcycle accident?"

Sakura looked surprised, "Yeah, two fractured ribs and a leg broken in three places."

"Ah, Ghost was always the reckless type."

"W-wait, you know her?"

"Duh, she's our mistress! She's the one who created Creature Feature Deki Café, with our help of course."

Her mouth dropped, "What?"

She burst out laughing, "I like you, no wonder Ghost asked you to come. You're funny and I can see you are a dedicated type. Let me ask you something Sakura, if I do hire you, are you willing to learn?"

Sakura instantly lit up, "Yes! I'm willing to do learn! I'll do anything!"

"How badly do you want-no, need this job?"

"Very much so, I'm begging on my hands and knees, from what the owner told me, I really need this. I'm willing to adapt and change to fit in with everyone. I'll wear those maid outfits, I'll wear those…animal ears and tails, and I'll even flirt around with the costumers. I. Will. Do. Anything."

She was pretty much clutching her hands together and bringing them to her face quiet pathetic really. It was embarrassing to say the least, but she meant every word. She would do anything to land a job that pays its employees like celebrities. Even if she had to crawl her way through broken glass and razors, she'll get this job and pay for school without anyone's help.

Phantom looked at her for a long time before busting out laughing, grabbing onto her stomach, and falling back into her chair. Her legs waved wildly in the air, mix-matched boots flashing everywhere. Sakura slightly leaned back, a bit frightened by the scene and waited for the girl to stop. After about five minutes, she settled down and carefully wiped the tears from her eyes, making sure not to smear her makeup. Silver eyes turned to Sakura, all traces of her former serious and somber self gone.

"I really like you Sakura, you remind me of a…of a puppy! A determined, loyal, and cute little puppy!" She opened her drawers, searching for something, tossing things aside and mumbling incoherent words to herself, "Aha! Found them!"

In a quick flash, Sakura suddenly had a pair of small, floppy golden dog ears on her head and a tail attached to her behind.

"I also have a pair of gloves and booties that go with them. Wanna try those on too?"

"Wait, I don't get it, what's going on?" She flicked one of the ears and was surprised at how real it felt.

"Hello, you got the job!"

She gasped,"Oh my god, really?"

"Yep, you'll start working tomorrow! And you'll be puppy themed!"

"P-puppy?"

"Yeah, I can just imagine it now, you in an adorable and frilly maid outfit, with puppy ears and a little wagging tail. God! People will love you! Especially the men, do you have a boyfriend?" Phantom looked quite smug with herself at that moment.

She quickly shook her head.

"Perfect! Because with this job you certainly won't need one. Girls here get hit on all the time. Even me, but I'm one-man-woman type. I've already found my soul mate."

It would have sounded romantic if not for the creepy gleam in Phantom's eyes.

"Anyways, report back tomorrow at 0700 hours, got that!"

Her head nodded just as fast.

"Great!" She picked Sakura up by the arm and lead her to the door, I'll see you then alright? Bye!" She pushed Sakura out and slammed the door shut.

"Well...that was weird."

At Creature Feature Deki Café

a.k.a

The little shop of horrors

Fin

I don't know if Deki actually means anything, but it's a word my friend and I made up as a code word for when we see either a hot guy or girl. HAHA. Anyways, it'll get better and make some more sense when the story progresses.

Little shop of horrors, BTW is one of my favorite movies, BWAHAHA

R & R thanks!