[Frosted Kitten Delights] Not Your Average Cupcakes

@Kait

Oliver was lying on his belly elegantly as he looked at the costumers of his bakery eating on their tables, as well as the occasional waitress that walked towards them. It was quite an usual day, but a routine that for many could be tedious was the closest thing to a dream come true for the sentient cat. With a happy purr he checked if the light blue bow placed around his neck was in perfect conditions and placement for what was like the third time in that hour. He was just a bit too perfectionist and wanted to look, in his own words, as perfect as his shop.

There wasn’t a single day that didn’t pass without him waking up on his best mood and smiling at the idea of tending to his shop. He didn’t even care having to deal with the occasional hard or rude costumer…or…well, most of the time. There were just some that he had learned to hate with passion, but…well, let’s say he couldn’t help but smile as a small swirl on his eyes appeared when the lost person reports with their face appeared on the news every now and then. This was definitely a dream came true and he couldn’t regret his decision of placing his shop in Manta Carlos after his arrival.

That reminded him…the new batch of human cupcakes should be going out of the oven right now. Hmmm, hopefully one of the older employees would handle them. He had nothing against the newer baker, but he seemed to be a bit sick when the fresh meat was delivered by him that same morning and he didn’t want to ruin his first week with something he didn’t feel like baking just yet. Well, at least he wasn’t of the kind that asked too many questions, he hated to lie to those working for him, but he obviously wasn’t going to reveal his little secret.

Once more, he found himself fixing his bow as he returned from his train of thought to the real world. This was starting to become an habit, he probably will need to find something else to keep his mind occupied, but he didn’t dare to try and go inside the kitchen to bake anything when there could be potential clients needing anything.

Oliver’s ears raised immediately and his head went from the corner table, which he was watching carefully as the cup of the of the gentleman eating his pastry over there was dangerously low on the warm liquid, to the door as soon as the small bell rang, a clear signal of someone arriving. He just hoped his employees could handle the man as soon as he finished his tea and see if he wanted more or take away the dirty cup if otherwise.

A big smile quickly made its way to his muzzle as he got from his relaxed position to a more formal and elegant sitting one with his bushy tail carefully wrapped around his front paws. It has been a while since the demon girl had visited his shop for the last time even if he had spotted her a couple times passing by before or looking through the glass “Greetings, Chloe, it’s good to see you around once more” He lowered his head as he greeted the young lady with his usual gentlemanly tone and strong british accent “Business is going good, a bit slow during the past couple days though. A problem with a costumer that was either drunk or simply plain rude and aggressive. Don’t worry though, it wasn’t something we couldn’t handle” He closed his eyes as he spoke, moving his paw from side to side as he said the last words as a way to emphasize his words even if just slightly. He simply knew that the rude guy wouldn’t bother them ever again, it was a good thing that he had his eyes closed, or Chloe would’ve seen the pink swirl in them that appeared for a second or two.

With a cute smile he opened his eyes again and tilted his head slightly, making him look cute even if that wasn’t his original intention “Is there anything in specific that you may want? Or maybe you want to try something new?” While there wasn’t an usual cupcake that Chloe liked to ask for, he could still remember the kind of things she liked, but it wasn’t unusual for costumers to try new things every once in a while “Most of our batches came out from the ovens only some minutes ago, so you arrived at a magnificent time”.

Oliver smiled and got up, ready to go get her the double chocolate cupcake that she asked for, however, her question made him stop and rub his chin with a thoughtful gaze. While her question was good news, as he would get another costumer for the cupcakes he used to make for man-eating creatures he knew he had to be careful if he didn’t want this to be turned into a double edged sword. After all, while he was aware that the use of human meat wasn’t banned in these islands thanks to its inhabitants he had to be extremely careful so nothing could lead the occasional disappearances of those that crossed the line with him to him nor his bakery.

“Hmmm…yes, yes, I actually do” He said on a lower voice than usual “Sometimes I get costumers with very specific eating habits or needs, so I always have what I like to call Scarlet Cupcakes available. However, I usually don’t put these on display though, as non-man-eaters tend to either get scared or lose their appetite by such cupcakes. Do you want one?” He would need to check if the cupcakes were ready, he really hoped they were, as if there was something he really hated was to make his costumers wait for anything. He just really hoped that Chloe wouldn’t ask where he got the ingredients for his human cupcakes.

With Chloe’s last question, Oliver faked an insulted expression that could’ve easily passed as genuine if it wasn’t for his playful eyes, which allowed anyone to immediately know he was joking “My lady! You speak as if you never had set a foot inside my bakery before! You know we specialize on fresh and genuine ingredients for our cupcakes, I would never put cloned second-hand ingredients in any of my cupcakes” He smiled at her after speaking jumping off the counter with elegance before taking a cute cat-sized dessert cat with a small mechanism under the flat top.

He pushed the cart with his front paws and walked with his hind paws, as if he was a furry small person, soon reaching the spot where the double-chocolate cupcakes were. He activated the mechanism using a small handle that somewhat resembled that of a claw machine, lifting the flat part of the cart so he could guide it to the cupcake and slide it under it to grab it “Do you like it? It took me a while to gather the money to get it built, but it allows me to grab anything in my store without having to ask for help from my employees if it’s too high nor carry it around in a plate with my mouth, as I can’t walk on my hind legs only without any support like you humans do” As he spoke he quickly returned to the counter and placed the cupcake on it using the same mechanism. It was obvious this wasn’t the first time he did it given how quickly he moved around and his ability at handling the machine.

“Anyways, returning to my scarlet cupcakes…” He hoped on top of the counter so Chloe wouldn’t need to look down all the time “I know that genuine human meat is harder to come by and more expensive, especially if you want it as fresh as my quality standards are, but I made a promise when I started this bakery and I’m not going to break it just to save a couple dollars. I actually took upon myself the search and delivery of the meat to make sure it is top quality, and I can assure you, it was as fresh at it could possibly be” He had to stop himself right there to not give out any information he could come to regret later on, as he was about to say that had just gotten it from a live human that same morning…but that would be awful for business as it could easily spark many questions from her.

A quick idea flashed inside his mind. Not only because it could easily snag Chloe as one of his loyal customers for that kind of cupcakes , but also because he could easily tell by the way she was acting and the fact that unlike previous times she was only asking for one cupcake instead of many that she was short on money for reasons unknown to him “Tell you what, since I consider you a valuable customer of mine’s, as well as a friend, and because this is your first time around in a long time, I’ll give you five scarlet cupcakes for free. What do you say?” Oliver wasn’t just a danger for those that had wronged him in the past, but was also known for being kind to those that had been kind to him on turn.

Oliver chuckled softly with Chloe’s words. Freebies were always a good way to snag customers regardless of the species and this wasn’t the exception by the looks of it. Most people that also had business like his would probably think it was a huge waste to give away more than one or two cupcakes for free, especially if the ingredients used to make them were so rare, but he couldn’t care less. Plus, with the quality standards he had and how quickly anything made with authentic flesh of any kind could go “bad” in his eyes he would rather give them away than see them be thrown away.

He pressed a small paw-shaped button near to where he was standing. Not long after the kitchen door was pushed slightly by an employee holding a tray with what appeared to be some unfinished cupcakes, who by the way he was dressed and the occasional white patch on his clothes made by flour it was easy to tell that he was one of the bakers “Hey, Al. Would you mind bringing me five scarlet cupcakes? You know where to find them” The employee just nodded before closing the door and walking away from the door.

Oliver knew it would take him a bit to get the cupcakes, so he decided to try and not let Chloe get bored as she waited for them. Her promise to share the cupcakes with other man-eating creatures was music to his ears and if any came to like them it would be amazing for business “That would be amazing, while I like to have these cupcakes ready all the time in case someone wants one, the demand is fairly low as many believe that I use the fake stuff instead as most bakeries and restaurants in the area seem to do that exact thing, and it’s quite a shame when I have to throw some away because nobody bought them” As he spoke he shuffled his paws a bit. It was tempting to go into a more comfortable position, but he didn’t want to look unprofessional.

“How is everything going though? I can only hope your life is as great as it was last time we saw each other” The small question was quite standard for those wanting to start a conversation, but hiding behind it was the curiosity about Chloe’s new financial situation. It wasn’t exactly common for a costumer that used to buy cupcakes by dozens without a care to come back and cautiously ask for one because they are short on money.