Kitty Burger Life

Maxine has more duties than just washing dishes. Come to find out, she's not the only one with duty in the Kitty Burger.

Over the next few days, agood rhythm formed in the back area. 3R1N had formulated a system by which dishes could continual funnel in and out of the kitchen. Two sets of metal racks atop mini-fridges held the clean dishes for 3R1N to use in cooking, while another metal rack about the size and shape of a refrigerator held all the pans and utensils dirty from cooking. Maxine could put away all the things on the clean shelves to replace what was used. Maxine never felt like she was going fast enough for 3R1N, especially when she had to wash the rags used for wiping the tables.

Fortunately for Maxine, it was a slow enough day for her to keep up the pace. After all, it wasn't as if she could match a many-armed robot in speed for doing anything. Especially if she wanted the dishes to actually be clean. She had never faced the wrath of 3R1N over a dirty dish, and she never wanted to.

And so it was that Maxine's life settled into a routine. Sure, the cook was a robot, the waitresses anime girls, and her boss was....something else, but other than that the place felt like other foodservice jobs she'd worked at. The job was defined, like always, but the constant stream of dirty to clean that Maxine went through. The meditative nature of washing dishes allowed Maxine's mind to wander, and she thought of all sorts of odd things that were both entertaining and escapist.

Of course, she had to come out of her trance at some point. Every so often she would have to alert herself and go out to collect the dishes off the tables. Maxine grabbed a black plastic bin, set it on top of a cart, and sauntered off to the dining area.

There were only a couple of dirty tables. Maxine packed away the dishes of the first one, then pulled a little bottle and a rag from the lower section of a cart. As she wiped at the table, she glanced over at the next table to be cleaned. She hadn't intended to stare at any of the customers, but at that angle she couldn't help seeing the next booth over past the dirty one. There sat a woman, somewhat overweight but well dressed and made up. Her hair rolled down her shoulders in a rather admirable black cascade of waves.

Oh yeah...isn't that the same woman that was here a couple of hours ago? I think she was here yesterday, too.

Maxine ate the food pretty much every day too, so she wasn't one to judge. Only it seemed that the stranger had a different reason for being here. She stared dreamily off somewhere behind Maxine. Without making it too obvious, Maxine spied backwards. Behind Maxine were three different tables worth of customers, all four Burg-girls, and Pocki with Mitzy at the register. To be an effective spy, the busboy would have to get closer. Of course, closer was where the stranger would see her, but that was the risk.

Maxine pushed her cart towards the second table. There was no mistaking it now. The raven-haired customer sighed dreamily towards the far side of the room. Either that stranger was pining greatly for the older, Santa Claus-looking man at the register talking to Pocki, or she was imagining herself into the arms of the Kitty Burger's general manager. Maxine soured on the inside, wondering which of those options was weirder. She couldn't help but feel that it was Pocki. A rolling knot of awkwardness rumbled in her stomach. While having daddy issues or a Santa Claus obsession might explain the customer, nothing really seemed to explain an attraction to Pocki.

I mean, sure, the guy is pretty trim and well dressed. And he smiles a lot. But... Maxine resisted looking at her boss and kept on shoving away the dirty dishes into her bin. There's just something...off about dating the guy. He's so...exhuberant. Not to mention obsessed with his cat.

She had to cut off her thoughts there, because if she didn't, then she would start wondering if Pocki was a furry. To her, Pocki was like a monolith, an ancient statue, or one of those wacky inflatable arm things. The thought of anyone dating him was equally weird as dating one of those.

Then again, I don't have the only opinion in the universe. Maxine allowed herself one last gaze at the stranger. I guess there's all kinds of tastes in the world.

Maxine kept her eyes away from the woman at that point. She wasn't hired to stare at customers. Besides, the sooner she cleaned up the tables, the sooner she could be back in the dish washing area and far away from any form of social interaction. Maxine couldn't wear her earphones out in front of the customers, so she ran the soothing sounds of Dang Spot through her head to keep her head clear for the few remaining seconds before freedom.

Then she saw him. Sitting there at one of the booths. It was the blond guy from opening day, the skinny weirdo with the armored shoulders. He too stared at Pocki, but with narrow, sinister eyes that forbode great danger -- or would, if the guy weren't in fact even skinnier than Pocki, and far less suave. On top of that, the weirdo seemed to think that wearing a baseball cap would make him unrecognizable.

Unfortunately, it was too late to escape his gaze. She had turned past his booth while attempting to return to her safe haven at the back of the store, and his eyes caught hers. Maxine bit her lip. Was she supposed to do something about this guy?

"Uh..." she approached him cautiously. "I, uh, kinda thought that after your little incident on opening day that you wouldn't come back to our restaurant. And uh, if you're going to hang out here, shouldn't you order something?"

For a moment, the man said nothing. He stared at Maxine, then stroked his narrow chin with a nod. Then he leaned forward to whisper.

"I have seen into your very soul," he said, his dorky voice eliminating the omininousness his words might have held. "You....are not evil. Nay, I cannot give my money to such a foul establishment. I am here to protect people like you from being caught on the spell of...the Purple One."

Here he turned to send a forceful scowl to Pocki. The latter was still engaged in his clearly cheerful conversation with Mr. Claus Imposter, so nothing came of the ugly face.

"I cannot reveal my true name in this place," he continued. "This...this filthy, this disguised web of darkness and shadow obscurred by delicious meats and adorable fur-creatures is the first step of a sinister power into your world. I dare not speak any holy truth in it. But I am a knight, and though you are caught too far in the deceit for me to promise absolute protection of your person, I shall endeavor to protect you by any means I can, and avenge you if I can do nothing else."

"Uh...great, thanks. I...gotta go wash dishes now."

A shadow appeared over Maxine's shoulder, and she looked back to see Marlene, her lips pulled tightly into a line. The Burg-girl pulled her axe off of her shoulder and slapped the back of it into her other palm. The "knight" stiffened, but otherwise met Marlene's sinister gaze without fear. His narrow eyes stared into hers, and Maxine stepped out of the line of emotional electricity.

"Tell me, Paul, are we gonna do this the easy way," Marlene ran a fingernail down her axe handle. "Or the hard way?"

Paul's eyes widened in horror. "How...how do you know my name?"

Marlene rolled her eyes. "You work at the donut shop two streets over. I saw your nametag."

"Curses!" Paul banged a fist into the table. "I knew I should have given him a false name, but lies would compromise my integrity!"

The guy glanced back at Marlene, who was still fingering her weapon with intent malice. Air escaped his nose in a sigh, and he exited the booth.

"I shall leave," he said. "Not because I fear you, but because I fear what false impression these civilians may get should they find me in combat with that which bears feminine guise. Beware, temptress, that I see through your visage and know that it is a dark and gruesome soul within!"

"Sure, whatever, but you better leave before you become dark and gruesome!"

Paul did not regard this taunt, but went slowly for the exit door, always taking care to make sure to make sure his back was not turned towards any of the Burg-girls. He stepped backwards carefully, feeling his way along the booths. He passed the dark-haired customer, and she snarled at him.

"Don't just stand there!" she snapped. "You're blocking my vision!"

Paul immediately jumped away, then fell into a bow. "I am sorry, dear lady. Farewell!"

He stumbled out the door. Marlene shrugged, then turned back towards Maxine.

"Y'know, you've been standing there a pretty long time for a busboy."

"Right, um, yeah, whatever."

It wasn't until Maxine got back inside the receiving area that she realized she'd let Marlene boss her around. She grimaced. The Burg-girls were her co-workers, not her bosses. She had to listen to Pocki, she dared not disobey 3R1N, and somehow it seemed implausible not to listen to the concerns of Mitzy.

But I'll be darned if I have to listen to the whims of the anime girls. Maxine angrily shoved the dirty dishes in the soap water and began to scrub. I'm sure Pocki will back me up on that one. Granted, he'll probably also do a lecture on how teamwork is magical or some crap, so I'll try not to bug him with it.

Doing dishes is meditative work, and Maxine found all her irritation melting away. Somehow the act of removing grime from dishes refreshed her. She loaded the silverware into the lever-drop washer, because doing all those by hand would take forever. Cheese always seemed to stick to the plates, so scrubbing by hand was better, in her opinion. Her head instantly whirled with methods for washing dishes faster or more efficiently. She chuckled to herself.

Wow, I must be a pretty boring person if I think dishes are all that fun. Maxine hummed a cheery tune. But whatever. I like who I am, and I am going to be cheerful, because at the very least I have a job and access to free food. Things are looking up!

Suddenly she felt something tap her shoulder. She jumped very nearly out of her skin.

"Holy jeepers creepers!"

Maxine jumped around. There, with eyes wide and a halberd in his hands, was Paul. The blade of the halberd was aimed towards the crack of the door of Pocki's office, and apparently it was in his attempt to break into the office that he'd poked Maxine in the back. He stared guiltily.

"Now, don't be afraid, Madam..." he said. "I come merely on an expedition of peace, for I must research the ways of Pocki that I might determine his evil-"

Before he could say anything more, a tentacle reached into the back and snagged Paul by the collar. The halberd dropped out of his hands and clattered onto the floor, where Maxine picked up. She grinned. She'd never actually seen a halberd before. She'd only read about them in The Napoleon of Notting Hill. She swirled it around a little bit and pretended to be fighting the armies of North Kensington.

"Unhand me, you machinery of sin!" Paul snapped.

"Do you know how unsanitary it is to have cosplaying freaks in my cooking area? I'm trying to work here, and I can't concentrate when my plain dishwasher is squeaking like a rat! Now you can either get dismembered here and now -- which I really rather not have to do as that's even more unsanitary -- or you can walk out the door intact and stay out of the back of the Kitty Burger!"

"I have come to see the error of direct investigation," Paul said as he struggled against 3R1N's ever tightening metal constriction. "And I shall gladly depart if the metal lady would at least grant me the use of my lungs!"

3R1N pretty much squeezed the last few words out of him, but she did drop him a couple of seconds after. Wheezing heavily on the floor, he scrambled through the pain to get to his feet. With a wobbly bow and a wheezed "Madam", he took back the halberd and ran out through the back door. It was the regular door; the large loading doors weren't open. For good measure, Maxine went back and shut this door, taking care to make sure it was locked.

"Plain One!" 3R1N called from the kitchen. "This is my good tentacle! I'm down 10% cooking capacity without it! Hurry and get the sanitizer!"

"On it!"

For a panicked moment, Maxine wasn't sure what she should do, but with 3R1N's tentacle waving frantically, she rushed into action. Figuring that it was a foodservice tentacle, Maxine grabbed some of her dishwashing components. She rubbed the tentacle with a soapy rag, dipped it in water to rinse it off, then wiped it off with the food grade sanitizer liquid.

"Thanks!" 3R1N called.

"Sure thing!"

After that it was back to work. For over an hour the work went back to normal. Wash, rinse, sanitize. Put the clean dishes where 3R1N could reach them. Clean the tables. Repeat. Maxine relished in the repetitiveness and calmed down into soothing routine, all while dreaming up odd things in her happy trance. She felt enraptured in the work, and time passed pleasantly.

That is, it did until Mitzy meowed from somewhere behind her. Maxine winced. Technically speaking the "miaou" was far more pleasant from getting suddenly grabbed by a metal tentacle, but Maxine hated getting interrupted by anyone. But given that the cat was at least the pet of her boss if not her boss directly, Maxine put down her dishrag and rinsed the soap off her hands.

Behind her, Mitzy was actually meowing into the kitchen. Noticing the busboy, Mitzy turned and meowed once in her direction before continuing to "converse" with 3R1N.

Oh great, so the cat thinks it's okay to interrupt me and then ignore me. Maxine gazed longingingly at the dishes waiting for her in the rinsing sink. Maybe I can get back to work and Mitzy will just leave me alone.

At this point it occured to Maxine that she had assumed that Mitzy had called her, rather than assuming that Mitzy was in fact just speaking with the robot cook. After all, Maxine didn't speak cat. For all she knew Mitzy was telling her to stop listening in. So Maxine puzzled over her reasoning with equal fervor as she did her human conversations until Mitzy finally put an end to all the doubt by meowing rather loudly in her direction. With a certain finality, a metal tentacle holding a plate neared the busboy, bearing a bit of beef, both sliced and ground (and arranged on the plate rather nicely, too).

"Plain one," the android said. "The cat says to take this to the kitty area. Something about calming down a newcomer or whatever."

"Uh, okay."

Maxine took the plate of beef and paused before Mitzy. She almost expected to be led out there, but Mitzy hopped up on her little alcove next to Pocki's office and licked her paws delicately. Maxine shrugged and went out. The kitty area wasn't very full at the moment, and the only kitty sport scheduled was tightrope walking. Narnia was walking a carefully placed rope about three feet off the floor. Two little girls and their mother were all enraptured by this, and applauded as Narnia made it to the other side and bowed her silky head.

The other cats were drapped around the room. Princess Trixie Puff sat in her cave per usual, while two teenaged boys in punkwear contentedly brushed her fur and led a civilized discussion of the merits of Led Zepplin versus Nine Inch Nails. A bald man with a guitar was playing a gentle yet melodramatic song about qn ancient Roman war hero to Oscar and Pickles as the two cats snuggled on their giant pillow. Nova paced around the room and accepted pets from anyone with a spare hand. Hannabelle was showing baby Nora how to model walk.

And there in the center of the room, Pocki sat on the floor, making friendly murmurs into a cat cage. He murmured words of no distinct interpretation, but Maxine thought she heard him say something about toe beans and cream cheese.

Huh, yeah, cats probably would like cream cheese, wouldn't they? Maxine absentmindedly approached Pocki. Of course, they're lactose intolerant. I highly doubt Pocki doesn't know that. Probably he's just making a pun. To a cat who can't possibly appreciate it. Well, who with good taste really does appreciate a pun? ...Cats have good taste?

This line of thought quite captured Maxine's train of thought, and she stood still while her brain puzzled the idea of cats actually appreciating puns. Maxine couldn't imagine that a cat would actually do so. After all, there were approximately 400 billion puns that could be made with "furr," "purr," and "paw" alone, and half of those were in the Garfield movie. Even if a cat liked puns, then it probably wouldn't take long for them to be horribly tired of puns before long. Then again, cats didn't have very big brains, so maybe they were more easily amused. Then again, Fate and Mitzy seemed rather smart for cats. Not to mention that Princess Trixie Puff did in fact have a skull big enough for a big brain, so perhaps she was smart enough to be sophisticated.

"Maxine, your legs are made with knees, not trees, so I'd appreciate it if you'd come down to where I can reach the p-late. It would not be good for you to be late and poor little Tiffy's snack would be delay-te."

"You kill me with those puns, Pocki," said Maxine, who went ahead and crouched down next to her manager. "So, Tiffy, was it? We have a new cat?"

"We certainly do," Pocki answered with a smile and a bit of a sigh. "Tiffy is just a bit shy because she doesn't know anyone. Maxine, why don't you offer the cat a bit of this meat? She might like you. I'm hoping she'll take it, but if she's too shy we'll have to put her away in the back until she gets a little more...acclimated."

"Coolio. I bet she'll like a bit of steak."

It was actually Maxine who liked the bit of steak that she held out in her hand. It was a nice juicy bit of rare-cooked meat, and for a moment Maxine wondered if it wouldn't be better to give the cat raw meat. But cooked meat was more sanitary, so Maxine just held the fine smelling beef blessing out to where only the bewhiskered creature in the cat carrier could get at it. She also silently promsed herself that she would beg Pocki for some of it later in the day.

The beef was tempting to cat as well as human. After several tense seconds of holding out the meat, a little face popped out of the carrier, just enough to reveal a cat face. It was a rich, brown cat with long fur and green eyes. If Maxine had asked, Pocki would have told her that the cat was of the Tiffany breed, but it's just as well because Maxine didn't know what that meant anyway. All she knew was that a wide-eyed fur creature was there, staring alternatively at her, Pocki, and the food.

"It's okay, little fuzz," Maxine said gently. "You don't have to come out until you're ready, okay? Why don't you just take this meat and accept it as good intentions?"

"Mi...mioh..." the cat whimpered. "mioh."

"It's okay...it's okay...food is good, kitty..."

It apparently was, as Tiffy bit the end of the scrap and retreated back into the carrier. Knawing sounds proceeded out of it forthwith.

"I didn't know we were getting a new cat." Maxine peeked inside the carrier. "I guess she would have been too shy to be in the catwalk."

"Ah, yes, it is my constant place in life to be a source of refuge for all feline kind," Pocki smiled. "Poor Tiffy here....comes from a devastating background. Pray, don't ask her about it. She's sensitive. However, one good thing about her experiences in life is that she is a doctor. Her knowledge of medicine is unmatched in feline form!"

"Cool." Maxine cooed into the carrier. "Paging Dr. Cat...paging Dr. Kitty Cat..."

From where she was crouching, Maxine didn't quite have a very good view of some of the other people sitting on the back chairs. Maxine could never be sure, as she was looking at the kitty, but in her periphery she could have sworn that the dark haired woman she'd seen before had slammed her hand against the underside of one of the kitty towers. A moment later, and the woman's howling made sure that everyone was looking.

"Ow, oh, it hurts," she clenched her teeth. "Oh, no, it's bleeding! It hurts so much!"

Immediately Tiffy came charging out of the carrier, a little plastic box hanging from her mouth by a strap. She charged towards the distress call, her little paws padding against the plastic mats on the floor. The plastic box plunked on the floor before the woman, a red cross visible on top. Tiffy meowed once at the woman, then, by some means Maxine didn't understand, opened that plastic box with her paws.

"Little Miss Tiffy," Pocki approached the woman and gently put his hands on her shoulders. "Says that she would like you to sit down so that she can get a good look at your hand."

"Oh...sure..." the customer blushed a bright red, wiggling a little with glee at Pocki's touch. "I, um, I'll do just that...."

"Mioh!" Tiffy sternly huffed.

"Oh, yes!"

The woman promptly sat down. From there, Tiffy pulled a little pad out of her box and flipped open the lid. It wasn't obvious what the liquid on the sponge inside the pad was supposed to be, but it smelled antiseptic. Tiffy dipped her front paws into it and patted them both down carefully. She dipped her nose into it briefly and snuffled a couple of times, then wiped her nose into a little cloth. Only then did she approach the hand. Tiffy stared, sniffed a bit, and then meowed a couple of times. Out from her little med kit came alcohol wipes and bandages.

"What exactly happened?" Pocki asked.

"It was an accident," the woman blushed. "I...tripped, and I meant to grab that cat tower over there to stop from falling, only I smacked into it instead."

"Oh, I see what happened," Pocki poked about at the underside of one of the cat tower's levels. "One of the cats must have roughed up the bottom of this cat tower. Some of the wood underneath is exposed. I humbly apologize to you for my negligence, Miss...?"

"Courtney," she answered, a little dreamily. "I...uh...it's nice to meet you."

Tiffy meowed once more, and it was a nice sound, a polite request for attention. Courney turned to the cat, who was gently touching a part of her hand that wasn't injured. The injured part was now securely wrapped up in bandages and giving off a pleasant, clean smell. Courtney examined it in pleasant surprise. She blushed red as Pocki kneeled down beside her to get a look. She turned only slightly in his direction, but then blushed harder. She leaned towards the cat to disguise her shyness.

"Your name is Tiffy, right?" Courtney slowly moved her non-injured hand forward. "You did such a good job on my hand, little sweetie. May I please pet you?"

Tiffy's next "mioh" was shyer, but still welcoming. Courtney gently rubbed under Tiffy's chin and scratched behind her ears. Tiffy purred, closing her eyes with pleasure. Pocki, smiling and coming even closer to the increasingly ecstatic customer. Much to Courtney's bliss, his smile was directed at her.

"Look's like you've made a fur-iend." Pocki winked at her. "Wow, Courtney, you have such a way with cats. That's pretty impressive."

Courtney's red cheeks returned. "You...you really think so?"

"Absolutely. It takes a good soul to truly understand a cat, and let the cat understand you. Could you use your understanding to tell the cat that she can accept affection from me also?"

At that point, Pocki reached forward to likewise stroke Tiffy, and Maxine could see in the customer's eyes her desperate hope that Pocki's hand might accidentally touch her own. At this point, Maxine started to realize that perhaps it wasn't such a good idea for her to be a passive observer. Pocki didn't seem to notice that Courtney was crushing on him hard.

Then again, what am I supposed to do about it? Maybe it's okay for them to date... Maxine thought about Pocki with a girlfriend, and shuddered. Anyway, I've got dishes to wash-

"Unhand her, foul beast!"

Paul, bearing a sword that gleamed in the flourescent lights, dashed past a dazed Maxine and charged towards Pocki. The latter immediately jumped to the side. Though Pocki's movement was incredibly graceful, nobody noticed it. They were all too distracted by Tiffy, who jumped into the air with a kitty shriek and hustled back into the cat carrier, leaving all her medical supplies behind.

"Stay back from the gentle lady," scowled the scrawny knight. "It is bad enough that you lure unsuspecting women to your place of burger, but to surrepticiously allow them to be drawn into the wickedness of your evil...that is unspeakably dangerous, and I will not allow you to seduce-"

"How dare you!" Courtney, now red with anger, stomped in between Pocki and Paul. Whatever gentleness Pocki ascribed to her vanished under the power of her ferocious scowl. "Pocki is a pure gentleman through and through. He doesn't go rushing around like an idiot with a sword about to hurt someone! How could you even think he's evil in the first place? Are you stupid?"

"Miss, please," Paul pulled his sword back, but kept it at the ready. "You stand between myself and justice! I would fain have your misguided but sincere heart suffer from-"

Paul paused. Though he had kept an eye firmly on Pocki, from behind him appeared the Burg-girls, each glaring daggers down Paul's neck. Marlene ran her fingers over her axe. Darlene pulled daggers out of her hair. Faline rested her sledgehammer on her shoulder. Irene pulled an absurdly long and sharp nail file out of her sleeve. While Paul couldn't exactly see what was going on behind his back, the tension emitted from the four waitstaff filled the air like a flood of beef gravy.

Gently Pocki pushed Courtney aside (she bit her lip and repressed a dramatic sigh at his touch), and faced the apparent knight. For a moment it seemed that Pocki was about to say something. He paused, and drew back his accusing finger with the shake of his head. After taking a moment to inhale and exhale, his benevolent smile regrew on his face.

"Mr. Paul, might I ask you one simple question?"

"You may ask, fiend," Paul growled. "But you may not appreciate the answer you discover."

"Yes, I expect so. Might I ask, have you actually made a purchase?"

"Of course not! As though I would sully my body with your foul slop!"

"Hm, yes, but a cursory glance at our door would have told you that only those who make a purchase are allowed into the kitty area." Pocki waved his hand in the direction of the door. "Ladies, please escort this...gentleman out of our store."

"Yes, Pocki!"

The girls chimed together with requisite giggles, before returning to stone-faced sentinels. They poked Paul away with their weapons out to the dining area. Pocki turned away in dignified frustration. If he'd planned on dwelling on this particularly unique drama for a while, it was interrupted by Courtney and her ever-smiling face.

"Wow, you're such a commanding presence..." Courney said dreamily.

"That was nothing. It's small work dealing with petty 'heroes'," Pocki said as he took Courtney by the hands. "I'm so sorry you had to see that. First you are injured, and now your...serenity is disturbed by an intruder. This is not the kind of experience I want my customers to have at the Kitty Burger. Please, allow me to bring you a blueberry-acai smoothie on the house for your troubles."

For some reason, Courtney's eyes brightened, and she stared at Pocki like he was the moon. Pocki deposited her out into the dining area. It was about that point that Maxine realized that she was staring again, and she'd better actually do something instead of just standing there. Tiffy had knocked over the plate of meat on her way back to her carrier, and Maxine turned just in time to see Narnia run off with a piece of steak.

Maxine sighed and crouched down at the front of the carrier. "Are you okay in there, Tiffy?"

A shiverring "mioh" emerged, almost breaking Maxine's heart. She picked up another piece of meat and put it at the front of the carrier.

"You'll be alright, Tiffy. That Paul guy might be loud, but I'm pretty sure he wouldn't actually hurt you. And that's even assuming he gets back in here again, which...."

Maxine paused. Sure, Pocki probably wouldn't let him back in, but that Paul guy was pretty determined. But it was better not to scare the cat.

"Well...you'll be alright, okay?"

"Yes, she certainly will," said the suddenly appearing Pocki over Maxine's shoulder. He shut the door to her carrier and picked it up before heading to the privacy room in the corner. "But not until after she acclimates. Honestly, I try to give my cats a good home, and this happens. Maxine, offer some of that meat to the princess before you go back to the kitchen."

"Alright."

For some reason it didn't seem weird for Maxine to bow before Princess Trixie Puff as she obeyed the order. Neither did the two teenaged girls immersed in the princess' fur mock the busboy for bowing. Maxine hustled off hoping that there weren't too many dirty tables in her absence as she re-entered the dining area. Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed Courtney at one of the tables, a tall glass of purplish blue in front of her. Courtney sipped at it dreamily before she noticed that Maxine was looking at her.

"He gave me a smoothie," she sighed.

"Uh....okay."

"He gave me...a smoothie..."

As much as Maxine wanted to be disturbed at this, the thought of an angry 3R1N kept her from forgetting that she was on the job. She rushed off back into the kitchen for her dish cart. Unfortunately, her hopes of escaping to the dining floor unaccosted were dashed. A tentacle blocked her path.

"Plain One!" 3R1N called from over her sizzling burgers on the grill. "You were slow in decontaminating my tentacle! Get your closing chores done quickly tonight, because you've got an hour of decontamination training after we close!"

Maxine winced. "Yes, 3R1N."