Second chapter because the first one was just so long so I split it up.
Ch 2: Its Dinner Time
(Heart's POV)
My stomach growled; I hadn't eaten since this morning before I left. I should probably head to the kitchen and grab something or see if they made anything down there. I'm not sure how all of the hotel works just yet or how much freedom I'll have. I guess that's some questions I'll have to ask Charlie. I sat up from my bed and made sure to fix myself. I decided to take my jacket off since I probably wouldn't be going outside. I remembered to take my room key and put it in my pocket. I headed out of my room and locked the door behind me.
I stood by my door for a moment and looked down the long hallway. I stood frozen in fear. I didn't know if Alastor was in his room, I waited a few seconds. I didn't hear anything, so I decided to head down the hallway and to the lobby. I walked down the hallway slowly, I stopped at what was Alastor's room, number 216. I quickly turned my head then walked fast down the hallway. I got to the stairs and looked down into the lobby. Not much was happening, Husk was at the blackjack table with Angel as they played a game of cards. Charlie stood behind the bar wiping it down while Vaggie swept the floor. No sign of Alastor though.
I headed down the steps and made my way towards Charlie, but on my way, I was stopped by Vaggie.
"Psst, Heart, can I have a moment?" She asked me fast in a whisper.
I was taken aback but I nodded my head to her. "Sure."
Vaggie nodded her head to the stairs, telling me to follow her. Vaggie put her broom up against the stairs and headed up the stairs. I walked back up the steps behind her and Vaggie turned to me once we got to the top.
"What's on your mind Vaggie?" I asked her as I put my hands in the back pockets of my pants.
"Heart, I'm warning you now about Alastor." Vaggie said as her eyes squinted in anger.
My ears stood up, but I turned them backward, "Alastor? What about him? He seems ok to me." I told her, my tail slightly wagging at the thought of him.
"It's all an act." She growled angrily. "I don't trust him, even while he's here and helping Charlie I still don't trust him. Neither should you." She took her finger and poked me in the chest. "Besides, he'll be in the way of your rehabilitation. If you know what's good for you, you'll avoid him at all costs." She warned.
I gulped at the moth demon girl's anger towards the Radio Demon. My ears fell back slightly, and my tail stopped. All I did was nod. "I-I understand." Was all I was able to get out.
Vaggie nodded with a smirk, "Good. Now be off and I'll get back to work." Vaggie walked back down the steps and picked her broom back up where she left it at the bottom of the steps.
Keep away from Alastor.
The words rang in my head. To be honest I should be able to do that. If it is all an act, then maybe I should take Vaggie's warning seriously. I sighed and headed back down the steps. I walked up to Charlie who was sitting behind the bar.
"Hello Charlie." I greeted the princess.
"Ah, hello Heart!" Charlie cheered. "I hope you are settling in nicely?"
"Oh yes I am! All thanks to Nifty she cleaned my room very well. Lots of energy she has." I laughed.
Charlie giggled as well, "I agree. I thank Alastor for bringing her in."
I put my lips together at the name of Alastor being mentioned. He did a lot for Charlie. If what Vaggie says is true though, what could be his plan deep down?
Charlie must have noticed me going silent. She reached over and grabbed my hand. "I saw Vaggie talking to you. I hope she didn't scare you. She can be...a little nasty and straight forward sometimes."
Should I tell Charlie what Vaggie said? Would she believe me? She'd probably tell me something different. Who should I believe in all this then? Maybe I should just keep my mouth shut.
I looked at Charlie with a small smile and shook my head. "No no, she was fine to me. It's nothing major princess."
Charlie seemed to believe me and nodded.
"I have a few questions for you though. I'm sure you have rules here and I want to make sure I follow them." I told her.
Charlie nodded quickly, "Of course! What questions do you have for me?"
"Well, I was wondering about going out? Do we still have the freedom to go out into the city?" I asked first
"Good question." Charlie said as she raised a finger. "While you are a resident here you can come and go as you please, but you must sign out when you go out into town. You must also be back within 24 hours. You only have one day to be out. Since you are also going to be part of the staff here then the rules won't be as strict for you but at the same time you must keep your rehabilitation in mind." Charlie explained.
I nodded, "Second question. How do meals work here? Do we make our own or do you have a schedule?"
Another good question. "Unfortunately, we have no one to work in the kitchen, although I will say that Alastor is a very amazing cook. So, he will cook every now and then for us. Usually it's certain days of the week." Charlie said.
"Alastor? A cook? I would have never thought." I said surprised.
"Oh yes! All thanks to his mother. He talks about her recipes and her cooking a lot. To think of it, he is actually in there right now making something. Alastor has some southern background so he makes a lot of home cooking. Very good at it." Charlie told me.
Should I trust Alastor cooking food? Could poison it. At the same time, I wouldn't mind trying it out. A man that can cook. Sounds like heaven enough. I shook my head. No! I can't think of Alastor. Why was I thinking of Alastor a lot? What was it about him that I couldn't get out of my head? Did he have a spell on me? I mean, Alastor was from Louisiana, maybe he knew Voodoo magic and had a spell on me.
Oh no I just sound crazy saying that. I pushed it aside and didn't want to think about it.
"How long has he been in there?" I asked out of curiosity.
Charlie put a finger to her chin to think. "Maybe about 2 hours. He takes his time."
As if on time, Alastor walked into the lobby. You could feel his presence. That static feeling was him. It weighed me down, but it was almost comforting.
"Dinner is served everyone." He announced with his arms outstretched.
I turned slowly on my bar stool to face him. What I saw him, I thought my heart would stop. Alastor's coat was gone, his sleeves of his red shirt were rolled up. He didn't have his monocle on as well. He has a little bit of flower on his arms and shirt. What really made me out of breath seeing him was he had his hair pulled back into a tiny ponytail. It almost looked like he had a rabbit tail on his head. He actually looked quite handsome. What also surprised me was I finally saw his tail. That little deer tail of his was probably the cutest thing. It was red with black underneath. I almost wanted to reach out and touch it, but I knew better than to do that. My tail wagged slightly. No! Stop that! Tail, you'll give me away to my thoughts.
I looked up and down at this demon. Why was he making me feel this way just by seeing him?
I stared and I didn't know for how long, but it must have been long enough to notice because Alastor looked at me and was grinning.
"My dear are you alright? You look almost like a flamingo with being that pink." The radio demon let out a small chuckle and covered his mouth.
Oh Lucifer...I was blushing!
Everyone looked at me. I felt so embarrassed and Alastor had pointed it out to everyone that I was looking at him. My ears started to fall against my head. I couldn't stand all the eyes on me. I felt stressed with all the eyes and it started to get to me. I felt a little bit of anxiety.
I really started to feel it all weigh on me when Angel started to laugh at me.
"Haha, someone has a turn on from Alastor." Angel held his sides as he laughed.
That was it. I was then uncomfortable at that point. I needed to get out. I tried not to let the tears fall that started to build.
I stood up from the bar and ran up the stairs and headed to my room. I opened it and slammed it behind me. I was breathing heavy as my back was up against the door. I soon just broke down and cried. I went to my bed and cried into my pillow. I made a fool of myself and it was only my first night here. I don't know if I could stand going back out there. Not after Angel's statement. I didn't feel hungry anymore, but I was excited to try Alastor's cooking. The day was ruined for me. I hate other demons. Why was I put here?
Eventually after crying for so long, I felt my world slowly drifting to black and soon I was asleep.
(Third Person POV) [back in the lobby]
Everyone watched as Heart ran from them. Up the steps and out of the lobby. They could see that Angel had pushed her too far.
"Angel!" Charlie exclaimed, turning her head to him. "That was too far!"
"What!? How was I supposed to know she would react that way!?" Angel said as he put his hands in the air.
"It's her first night here and you go and embarrassed her like that." Vaggie yelled, grabbing him by his shirt collar.
"Heart is different from other demons Angel." Charlie pointed out. "She has a lot more feelings than others probably do." The princess sighed. "She kept herself away from other demons to be safe for this reason. It's bad enough that she's so sweet but because of one wrong thing that she was cast down here in hell in the first place. That's why she's here, to get help from us!"
"I feel you should apologize to her!" Vaggie demanded.
"Apologize!? I don't need to!" Angel yelled.
Alastor was paying no mind to the fighting behind him. He had his back to them, blocking them out. His eyes lay at the top of the stairs where Heart had gone. His ears were perked up and he heard her in her room, she was crying. His smile still laid on his face but wasn't as big as normal. The Radio Demon didn't mean to get the poor girl embarrassed, especially on her first night here. To be honest with himself, he almost felt bad for her. At the same time though...it was all Angel's fault.
Alastor raised his power, it grew dark around him and you could hear the static coming from him. Shapes and symbols started to float around him.
Everyone had stopped yelling and looked towards Alastor. They all looked in fear.
He was angry.
Without looking back, Alastor raised his right hand backwards and seemed to make a glowing aura around Angel. The spider demon was then raised off the ground, and he struggled to get free from whatever magic Alastor had put on him.
Angel grunted, "Let me go you fucking strawberry asshole!" Angel yelled as he continued to struggle.
Alastor closed his hand more, almost like he was squeezing. He turned around to look at them and they could see that Alastor's eyes had changed and grew bright. The static he gave off was also hard to bear and it grew louder.
"You will apologize to her!" Alastor commanded, his voice deeper and scarier. He started closing his hand more around Angel.
"Al stop it!" Charlie screamed." You're hurting him!"
He jerked his head towards Charlie, "That's the point! I won't let go until he agrees to apologize!" Alastor yelled and looked back to Angel.
The Radio Demon squeezed more.
Angel couldn't breathe now. "Ok!" Angel finally got out.
Alastor then let go of Angel with his powers and returned to normal. He fell to the ground in a heap. Charlie and Vaggie went over to help him up.
"What was that?" Alastor asked, cupping his one long ear.
"I said ok!" Angel yelled looking up at the Radio Demon. "You crazy fuck. I said ok to apologizing to her." Angel put a hand around his sore neck. "You could have killed me."
Alastor put his hands behind his back and tilted his head slightly. "Indeed, I could have, but I didn't. I wanted to watch you squirm." Alastor laughed.
"Your sick man." Angel pointed out.
Charlie and Vaggie looked at him angry.
"Thank you. I'll excuse myself now." Was all Alastor said and walked away into the kitchen.
"Why did he react that way?" Charlie asked aloud.
"Because he's dangerous, Charlie." Vaggie said. "I told you this right from the start that it was a bad idea to let Alastor in here." She helped Angel up onto the bar stool.
Charlie looked in the direction Alastor left and then up to the stairs.
"I have a feeling that it's not because of that Vaggie. He did it for a reason." Charlie told her.
"Then what could it be!? Just because of what Angel said? I agree it wasn't necessary, but I don't think Alastor needed to take it that far!" Vaggie exclaimed.
"I'm not fully sure yet because I don't want to draw to conclusions but give me a few days and I might have an answer for you." Charlie said.
Vaggie sighed in frustration.
After all that happened that night, Alastor seemed to disappear. He knew that no one probably wanted him around. Everyone still ate what Alastor had made but they were glad he wasn't around right now.
Alastor was in the kitchen after everyone had left the area. He grabbed a plate and small bowl and fixed up some food. This wasn't for him. He was making it for her.
Before, Alastor was watching from the kitchen door window while Heart was down in the lobby talking to Charlie. He saw that when Charlie mentioned that he could cook he saw a smile come to the girls face even though it quickly left. He knew she would be surprised that a powerful demon like him could cook. It seemed to make her excited. She must have really wanted to try his cooking. Alastor remembers chuckling at the thought.
Alastor still wanted to give her that chance. He hoped that she would at least let him in her room. Once he was satisfied with the plate, he turned into a shadow and sneaked by everyone in the lobby, who were now talking and laughing. Alastor got out of his shadow form when he got to the hallway. He looked back at them in the lobby and then went on walking.
Charlie was busy talking but in the corner of her eyes she saw something go up the stairs. She looked up and then saw Alastor walking down the hallway. She saw something in his hand. She gave a small smile at the sight. Alastor still wanted to make sure Heart got some of his good food.
Alastor walked down the hall and stopped at Heart's door. He gave a small knock. He waited a moment but heard nothing and got no answer. He tried the door handle, it was unlocked. He slowly pushed the door open and walked into the room quietly.
Alastor saw her there. She laid on the bed on her side, her head in her pillow. He could hear from her steady breathing that she was asleep. He didn't want to disturb her, so he gently put the food down on the side table by the bed. Hopefully she liked what he made.
Alastor looked down at her sleeping face. He memorized it, but he has already done so beforehand earlier that day. This creature that has come to the hotel, she was different. Something Alastor couldn't explain himself. Something about her just screamed at him but he didn't know what it was saying, he just had that knowing that he needed to protect her. He didn't want to see her sad. He wanted her happy and bright all the time. Her smile was the purest he had seen, and her laugh made him feel light on his feet. His cold heart after all these years, felt warmer. This feeling though, what was it? It tore at him, unknowingly on what to do with himself. He wasn't good with feelings, he never expressed them much, so he had no knowledge of them. He was going to learn though. Learn what this feeling was so that he could better understand. Plus understand why this girl had this effect on him.
Alastor took one of his clawed fingers and ran it across the soft flesh of the girl's cheek. The feel of skin under his fingers sent him back to memories of the past, memories that he enjoyed. The killing and slaughter; that always made him happy. For some reason though, he couldn't even try to harm her. The thought crossed his mind many times, but something seemed to stop him. Something in the back of his mind told him not to harm her. The voices in his head were calm and quiet.
In fact, Alastor had the opposite feeling. The feeling of protection. Protection? Why though? Alastor couldn't understand. He only did things to please his own accord, but protecting another demon? The thought never once crossed his mind.
Alastor again took his finger and ran it up Heart's cheek this time. He led his hand up till he was at her hair and he set his hand on top of her head. Once he did that, he then saw her tail wag against the bed. He started to stroke her head and her tail wagged more. Making a thumping against the bed. The Radio Demon let out a small chuckle at the sight. He eventually went to her ears and played with the soft short fur on them.
The deer demon then felt the girl start to stir under his hand. He must have done too much and she was waking up. Quickly he acted and became a shadow and slithered across the floor and out the door, reappearing in the doorway. He slowly closed her door as she started to wake up.
(Heart's POV)
I slowly started to awaken from my tired state. I could feel someone had a hand on my head slightly as they petted me lightly and I could feel my tail was wagging. Stop it tail! I felt a strong presence was also by me as well. I shifted slightly and then I felt the hand leave my head.
I slowly opened my eyes and looked over my shoulder towards the door. I barely saw who was in the doorway, but they were closing my door. The door fully closed, but I could have sworn I saw the slight dark silhouette of Alastor. Alastor? Why would he be in my room?
Then I smelled it. I used my nose and looked to the side of my bed. There was a plate of food there. Did Alastor bring me this? I sat up in my bed and looked at it. Why would he do that? Wonder if he made sure everyone in the hotel ate? It must have been what he made tonight. There was a bowl as well, I picked it up and looked at it. I wasn't sure what it was, but it smelled amazing. My mouth started to water. I then felt my stomach growl. I knew I was still hungry. I decided to give in to my stomach and started to eat.
I had no idea what the food was, but it was fucking amazing. I gulped down all the food within a few bites. It was so good for something I've never had before. I lived in Tennessee all my life when I was alive but whatever Alastor made was more southern than me.
I put the dirty dishes back beside my bed. I then hesitated. I didn't want to go back downstairs. Not after all that. I was still too afraid to face anyone. At the same time, I felt bad just leaving them here and not taking them down to the kitchen.
I know what I can do. I'll take it down later when I know everyone is away in their room and asleep. I decided to spend some of my time unpacking what I brought with me and put it away in the dressers and stuff. I pulled out one of my dresses I had packed. I rarely wore dresses, but I figured I'd bring one or two with me. Never know when you'll be invited to a party. I looked at my vanity mirror and put the dress up against me and did a little swing like a dance. I gave a twirl and laughed at my silliness. I put the dress away with some other clothes and soon I was all unpacked. I'm sure that if I realized I forgot something I could always go back to my home and get it. Hopefully Lizzy will be taking care of it and I won't come back to a mess.
I think I should have brought my Tv, because I had nothing to watch in my room. I brought some DVD's but no way to watch them on a tv. I took a player but I figured there would be a tv but there wasn't. Maybe I'll go back tomorrow to my home and grab the small one I kept in the kitchen because the other one would be too big. I'll ask Charlie if I can go out tomorrow.
Soon it was almost midnight, so I stuck my head out of my hotel room door and perked my ears to see if I heard anything. I had the dirty dishes in hand. I walked down the hallway, walking quickly past Alastor's room and to the end of the hallway. I peeked around the corner to look down into the lobby. I saw no one, except for Husk who was passed out on top of the blackjack table with a bottle of whisky laying on his chest. I gave a small chuckle at the sight.
I snuck down the steps and past Husk and into the kitchen and flicked the light on. I haven't been there yet, but it was a little bigger than a normal kitchen, but not as big as a restaurant kitchen. I went to the sink and placed my dishes inside. I figured I'd better wash them too. I turned on the hot water and grabbed the sponge next to the sink and put a little soap on it. I made sure the water was hot and cleaned off my dishes real fast. I put them in the strainer for now and grabbed a towel nearby to clean the water off my hands.
It was then that I heard it, the static in my ears and the footsteps close to the kitchen. I looked up at the door and through the small window on the door I saw the face of Alastor that lit up in the darkness behind the door.
I almost screamed in shock and surprise, but it was stuck in my throat. My heart started to race, and my breath was heavy.
The door opened and Alastor walked in, he stared at me for a moment.
"Did you like the food?" Alastor asked right away. "I wanted to make sure you got some of it."
"Oh-Oh yes. It was very good. Something different I've never tried before." I answered. "I felt bad leaving my dirty dishes in my room. So, I figured I'd bring them down and wash them real fast." I got silent again.
"At midnight?" Alastor chuckled, amused that I was down here so late at night.
"I couldn't face everyone again." I whispered, my ears going down slightly.
I wanted to apologize to him from before. I played with my hands a moment and looked down at the floor, I dared not look at his face. My ears went flat against my head. "Alastor...I wanted to apologize to you...From earlier." I heard him start to walk over to me, but I continued to talk. "I didn't mean to stare at you. I know that some say that staring can be rude." Alastor was soon standing right in front of me, but I still did not look up at him. I started to get air stuck in my throat from being so close to him. "I hope you can forgive me?" I finished.
Alastor said nothing. He took one of his clawed fingers and put it under my chin, he forced my face up to look at him, but I kept my eyes to the side, looking over his shoulder.
"Darling, look at me." Alastor finally said.
I was hesitant, but I obeyed. I laid my eyes upon his grinning face. The way he spoke and gave people nicknames was normal, but it was unusual for me, so I ended up blushing a little bit from him calling me Darling. My tail wagged.
No! Stop it tail! You're not helping me!
"You don't need to apologize to me. It is Angel who should apologize to you and I realized that...I should too." Alastor told me.
I was taken aback from the statement. He wanted to apologize...to me? My ears went back up fully from that, he had my full attention.
"You? Why?" I asked him.
Alastor took his hand away from my chin and kept his smile but it wasn't as wide as it usually was. His eyelids fell slightly, and he spoke softly, "Because of me I made everyone look at you and I didn't realize how uncomfortable that made you till it happened."
It was weird to see a big powerful demon like him to care; I was amused slightly. I smiled a tiny bit and let out a small laugh. "It's ok Alastor. It's not like you would have known in the first place. Sometimes when people just look at me, I will get slight anxiety and freeze. I get embarrassed." I told him.
"I know that I wouldn't. Now that I do know now, I feel bad about it. Which is surprising...even for me. Because I like to see people suffer, but you ...you're different." Alastor told me. "I-I don't actually want to see you like that."
I blushed again slightly. What was up here? Was I speaking to the right Radio Demon? He seemed to be nice and caring. It was probably all an act, like Vaggie warned me about. He just wants to butter me up. I pushed that thought aside for now and enjoyed the moment anyway.
"I always knew I was different. I don't belong down here. All because of one little mistake I ended up here." I sighed and looked away again. "I hate it down here."
Alastor was silent, but his smile got big again. Like a thought went off in his head. "I don't blame you for hating it. I will say one thing though, I'll make sure you still can be safe here."
I let out a breath that was a small laugh. Yea right, "Safe? That would be nice, but I know that if I'm anywhere in hell. I'm not safe anywhere. Not even here." I said that with a little hate in my voice.
I walked around the Radio Demon and out of the kitchen. I left him there. I walked fast, almost angered by the thought. Safe? In Hell? I don't even think I could believe that, not even from the strongest demon there. I tried to hear behind me, and I didn't hear footsteps, so I knew that Alastor wasn't following me. Good. I didn't want to deal with him anymore today.
I headed straight to my room, making sure to lock the door. I got in my pajamas and just went to bed. My first night here and I wasn't in the best mood. I tried my best to just sink off into sleep. I couldn't be by Alastor, who knows what he could do to me. He made me scared, but at the same time there was something about him I couldn't understand. I didn't know him. I think the next best thing I'll try and do while I'm here was...to avoid Alastor as much as I possibly could. I'd watch him from afar if I could, to better understand him.
End of chapter 2