Now that Elena is back with her parents…now comes the hard learning process from all the events that happened.

Ch 17: Suck Out the Venom

[Heart's POV]

This whole evening was an adventure. A crazy adventure. One I don't want to experience again that is for sure. It put stress on me that I didn't want and I'm sure Alastor didn't want either but luckily I felt ok. Nothing hurt. Nothing was in pain. I was alright, but I knew as soon as we got to the hotel he'd want me to get looked over my Dr. Talon. It's just how he was and I knew my husband was protective of me. Especially in the beginning of my pregnancy. Everything was going to be ok. I hoped.

As Alastor drove, I held onto Elena who was now passed out in my arms. I just held her close to me as I cried over her. My little girl had gone through so much and I was worried for her. Pentious used her this whole time. Just so that he could steal her powers from her to get to Alastor. I knew that the snake demon probably had a grudge against Alastor for years now but to go this far as to use our daughter against him…made me sick.

The girl didn't have much power to begin with, at least that is what we thought. It seemed though the snake demon was doing something for her though. She was starting to show signs of fire magic, considering what she did to CJ a while back. That sparked something and maybe her magic could come out if we tried. That is something Alastor will have to do with her though. I am useless at the moment teaching her anything while I'm pregnant.

I was worried about what that machine did to her though and I didn't know what it put her body through. She had been in there for a short time before Alastor came to the rescue…I couldn't do anything. It hurt so much that I couldn't do anything to help her. It made me feel so useless, but at the same time, I was pregnant. There wasn't much I could do…unless I wanted to risk the life of my unborn child…I couldn't do that. At the same time…who knows what would have happened to Elena if Alastor wasn't there in time. I feel it was that fear that was driving me right now. I had failed my daughter and that hurt more than anything.

I soon felt a hand on my shoulder. I looked up to see Alastor looking down at me. "She's going to be ok dear. I promise." He told me in a soft tone. "We are at the hotel. Come on, let's get inside and take her to Dr. Talon." I hadn't even realized how much time passed or that we had stopped moving.

Alastor got out of the car by shadow, appearing by my door, opening it, and taking the girl from my arms. I got out of the car and we quickly walked inside. When we got into the lobby I saw Charlie and Vaggie at the bar. Husk wasn't there so he must have been away. When Charlie spotted us she gasped and quickly got up from the bar over to us, Vaggie following behind her wife..

"What happened?" The princess asked with worry in her voice as she walked beside us.

"It's a long story." I say quickly. "Come with us to Dr. Talon. We'll explain."

Charlie nodded and turned to the moth demon, "Vaggie, stay down here to watch the lobby since Husk is out right now. I'll fill you in later."

I could tell Vaggie was hesitant a moment but agreed, "Ok Charlie. Please let me know how she is." She said before stopping at the bottom of the steps as we walked up and to the elevator.

As we got to the elevator I started to explain to Charlie. "We found her with Sir Pentious."

I saw the princess's eyes go big from that statement, "That snake? Why?" Charlie was surprised.

"Apparently he convinced her he was Alastor's friend and agreed to help her with bringing out her powers." I said and soon the elevator arrived and we got inside and headed up. "She's been going with him for months and skipping school. Her grades aren't that great. She is failing now because of this. All because she wanted to prove to Al she could do something."

"Stubborn just like me." Alastor added in as he held the girl close to him.

"Hardheaded to." I look up at him then back to Charlie. "We found out what was going on with her through the school system. With some spying we found his hideout. We got into his blimp only to find out that he was using her this whole time to get revenge on Alastor."

I saw the shock on the princess's face as I said that. The elevator arrived and we went up to the doctor's door. The rest of the story will have to wait as I knock on the door with urgency. It didn't take long for the door to open a few seconds later.

Dr. Talon looked shocked to see them at his door with an unconscious Elena in Alastor's arms. "What happened?" He asked.

"She just seems unconscious but we want you to look her over." Alastor started to explain. "She was stuck in some kind of machine that was trying to take magic out of her. That is only a guess though, I'm not sure what it was."

"We just want to make sure she is ok." I added.

"Bring her in, I'll look her over." He moved out of the doorway as Alastor and I walked into the room. "Place her on the table." The wolf said as he went around the room to collect his supplies. The scientist put on some gloves as Alastor put her down on his table. Once he had everything he started to try and examine her.

I grabbed Alastor's hand and had him back up with me to give the doctor space. Charlie stood in the doorway and watched with worried eyes behind us. I felt her hand on my shoulder to comfort me. I looked back at her to give her a thankful smile, thanking her for being here with us.

We watched as the red wolf looked over the girl. Making sure to go over everything he could in the exam, plus pulling some of her blood for some tests. I wasn't sure how much time passed before he walked up to us, taking off his gloves. "She should be ok. Just very weak. I'll see if her blood gives me any other details. For now, I'd like for her to stay here at the hotel for a day or two though so I can watch over her. I'm not sure what that machine did to her or what effects it might have. If it was taking her powers then it might take her a bit to get that back, if they come back at all."

We all gave a sigh of relief either way. "That is still good news that she'll be ok." I said as I felt like crying. All the worry and stress I had on my shoulders finally lifted.

"That is wonderful." The deer demon smiled and held my hand tightly. He then looked at me then up to the scientist, "Do you think you can look over Heart as well? With all that happened I am worried about her and the fawn."

"Al I'm fine." I snapped. I knew he would ask that but I was hoping he wouldn't worry.

"That is a point though." Charlie added, siding with my husband.

"He has a point Heart." Dr. Talon told us. "That was a big stressful situation you were in. With you still so early along we don't want to take anything for granted. First, let's get Elena into a room up here so that I can keep an eye on her. After that I'll look over Heart and the baby." He gave me a worried look with his ears to the side.

I knew it was a losing battle to argue with both my husband, the princess, and my doctor. So, I sighed and nodded in agreement. "Fine. Let's take care of her first."

Alastor went over to pick our daughter back up into his arms as Dr. Talon walked us across the hall and down two doors to a room he had set up. Since the scientist had half the floor to himself, he made this part of the hotel almost like a hospital wing over the course of these few years. It was helpful for times like these when he needed to take care of someone close by. Once he made the bed quickly for the girl, he told Alastor to place her down.

The deer demon placed the girl on the bed and gave her forehead a kiss as he held her hand for a moment. I could tell he was worried for her; it was a side Alastor never showed many people when it came to times like this. His caring side. Especially when it came to his family.

Dr. Talon set a small IV in her arm and a monitor to keep track of everything while she was passed out. Once he was done with all that, he turned to me. "She will be ok. How about you come with me Heart and I'll look you over."

"Of course doc." I nodded, even though I was fine I knew I shouldn't argue. I then turned back to Alastor, "You can stay with Elena for now. I'll be back."

"As you wish, my love." He agreed and pulled up a chair to sit next to the bed.

"I'll inform everyone of what happened. Please keep me updated." Charlie said before walking out and heading back downstairs.

After all that, I followed the wolf demon back to his main office and I got up on the table as well. He went over his usual exam with me. I haven't seen him yet for my monthly exam so I guess this was getting it out of the way.

"Well, everything seems to be ok. Let's do an ultrasound as well just to be sure." Dr. Talon said and headed out the door.

I followed him next door to where he had the ultrasound machine set up. I laid down and he did his usual thing after I lifted my shirt and he did the examination. He was mainly quiet as he was focused on the screen. Soon enough he pulled away and looked down at me. "We'll the little one is fine. I don't see any forms of distress. The heart is beating normally as it should and they definitely got a little bigger since last month. Very healthy one you have here. I'm happy to see that." He smiled.

With that it made me smile as well. "I'm happy to hear that Marcus. I'm glad everything is ok."

He nodded. "Of course, I'm relieved. Now we just have to worry about Elena." He says as he hands me a cloth to clean off my stomach.

I do so then sit up. "We'll probably be staying in the hotel until she is better." I say as my ears go down. "I just hope she'll be ok when she wakes up."

"I think the same as well. Don't worry, with all of us watching over her, she'll be ok." The scientist reassured me as he put a hand on my shoulder.

I nodded and then stood up. "I want to head back to her."

"Go ahead. I have some cleaning up to do. Plus, some tests to run." He says to me as he starts to clean up the ultrasound machine.

At that, I headed out of the room and over to the door that was slightly open. I looked inside to see Alastor still sitting in the chair by the bedside. I walked over and went up to him, warping an arm around his shoulders. "Dr. Talon says the little one and I are alright. Now we can just focus on Elena." I say as I look down at him.

"That is good my love. I'm happy that you both are fine." He said as he looked up at me with a smile. He leaned more against me, his head now resting against my side. He gave a sigh of relief. He reached a hand up to rub my small bump a moment before putting it back down. It made me smile when he did that.

After a few moments of silence I said, "I think we should stay at the hotel for a few days." I suggested.

The radio demon nodded. "I was thinking the same. I plan to go get the hound at home and bring him here."

"That sounds like a plan. Why don't you go get him now? I'll sit here with Elena."

The radio demon lifted his head up from my side, "Are you sure?"

"Positive. Go get Rufio. I'm sure he'd like to be by Elena as well."

Alastor stood up from his seat and gave me a kiss on the forehead, "Excellent point my love. I shall return in a jiffy then."

I smiled and my face was warm with a small blush, "Thanks Al."

He nodded and then quickly disappeared into his shadows, most likely back home. Once he was gone it was now quiet in the room. I looked down at Elena and frowned, taking the chair Alastor had just been sitting in. I reached over to hold the girl's hand.

"What are we going to do with you, little one?" I whispered to myself as I looked over her face that looked so peaceful.

After Alastor had returned with Rufio, everyone was now aware of what happened. The hotel was on alert in case Sir. Pentious returned or came looking for Alastor and Elena. Every one of the staff came up to visit Elena as she was still passed out in bed. Probably best we were here instead of at home. There is such a thing as power in numbers and Alastor had learned that over the years at the hotel. That was information I knew from the start. With everything that was going on, I couldn't even sleep.

After dinner, Alastor said I should go rest in my room and he would watch over Elena for the night. There was no point in fighting him, so I agreed but as I lay there in bed, it was too hard. I kept tossing and turning while my mind was still racing. I tried to close my eyes to sleep but it never came. I just gave up. With a heavy sigh, I sat up in bed and ran a hand through my hair a moment before getting up.

I put on a robe that I kept here at the hotel and some slippers before heading out of my room and going to the elevator to head upstairs. Once on the floor, I got off and walked down to the room that Elena was in. When I opened the door, I saw Alastor reading a book by the bedside as he had his cheaters on and Rufio was laying on the bed next to Elena. The hound wanted to be by her and it made me smile that he was worried about her too.

Rufio must have heard me first because he raised his head up as his tail wagged. I could tell he was excited to see me as his tongue fell out of his mouth and he panted slightly.

Alastor looked up from his book, over his glasses, "My wolf, why are you up so late? You should be asleep dear."

I sighed and walked over to the bed. "I tried to sleep, but I can't. I'm just tossing and turning in bed. I figured I'd come up here and sit with you for a bit. Watch over her." I went up to Rufio and started to pet him, his tail wagging more.

"Ah I see." The deer demon puts the book aside and holds his arms out to me. "Come sit on my lap then my love."

I smiled and walked around the bed over to him and went into his arms as I sat in his lap. I relaxed as he held me, his long lengthy arms entrapping me against him. I laid my head under his chin on his chest and let out a sigh of relief. It made me feel better and I knew that it would make Alastor feel a little better to. Rufio was watching me but when he saw me sit in Alastor's lap he calmed down and put his head back by Elena.

Even though Alastor didn't' show it, he was worried. He was scared, but he tried to put on his brave face behind that smile of his. I knew him and I knew that with me around he could put his guard down a little. So, when he had his arms around me held me tightly a moment before loosening again. Just like how he helped me be calm, I helped him feel a little bit better as well with everything that was going on. I felt him let out a sigh of relief as he put his chin on top of my head.

"How has she been?" I asked as I looked over at the still sleeping girl.

"Hasn't moved at all." He told me. "That wolf doctor says she is ok though. He was here about an hour ago."

"If he says she's ok then I'll take his word for it." I say and just look at the girl sadly. "I just want her to wake up."

Alastor tightened his hold on me a moment, "Me to dear. I'm worried just as much as you." He started to pet my head. "Try to rest with me dear. It will all be ok."

I closed my eyes as he started to pet me. "Thank you Al." I said softly as I started to feel the tiredness hit me.

Soon the deer demon started to hum something softly but it felt like it filled the whole room. It made me feel calm and my body felt heavy. Eventually I fell asleep in his arms like I did and we stayed like that until it started to get lighter out. My dreams were just a blank void, I didn't dream of anything. Thankfully that is all it was. I didn't want to have nightmares. I felt like I was only asleep for a few minutes until I was woken up by Alastor shaking me slightly. "Heart, wake up dear. I think Elena is finally waking up."

I heard that and looked up, sitting up more in his lap while blinking my eyes the best I could. I looked over at the bed and saw the girl's ears moving a bit. I got up off Alastor's lap and stood closer to the bed.

When I got up it got Rufio's attention and now he was looking up and at the girl too, his head tilted to the side as he gave a small whine.

"Elena? Honey, can you hear me?" I said softly to see if she was listening.

I felt Alastor behind me now as he was looking over. Her ear twitched in my direction when I spoke. Soon enough her eyes slowly opened, her eyes adjusting to the light for a moment. She blinked a few times until she looked over and saw us standing there. She had a smile on her face but then she started to cry.

"Oh, my baby." I say softly and get into bed with her, wrapping my arms around her and holding her closely. She gripped onto me as she started to cry. Rufio made a small noise and tried to get closer to us as well. I looked up to Alastor. "Go get Dr. Talon, I'm sure he'd like to know she's awake."

"I'll send Shadow to get him." He said and snapped his fingers. Soon enough his familiar appeared for a moment before disappearing and going off to get the wolf scientist.

In a raspy whisper I started to hear her say. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry." Over and over again as she cried.

"Shh my pup, it's ok. "You're alright. "I reassured her as I put my head on top of hers. "You're fine and we're here."

Alastor sat next to me and he started to pet the girl's back as she was in my arms. When he touched her she looked up and over at her father and then looked away. She must have thought he was mad at her. Looking at the deer demon's face, I knew it was the opposite. If anything, she would just get a punishment for this, most likely retaking first grade but we'll see what we can do about that. We'd have to talk about that at another time, but for now we had to get over what happened with the snake demon.

"Don't worry, my light, I am not angry with you. I am just glad you're ok." Alastor told her as he continued to pet her back.

Soon Dr. Talon came into the room and walked up to us. "I heard the news and came as fast as I could. I'm happy to see she is awake. I know this is sudden but can I do a quick check over on her please?"

I nodded. "Do what you have to Marcus." I tried to get the girl away from me a little. "It's ok Elena. Let grandpa look over you ok." The girl was reluctant but nodded and sat up more to face the wolf scientist.

Luckily she could lean against me as he looked her over. After he was done he let out a sigh of relief. "She is perfectly fine, but she may be weak for a bit. So, we'll keep her here till tomorrow just in case."

"That is a relief to hear. I'm just glad she's ok." I say as I started to pet the girl.

Dr. Talon put a hand to Elena's head to pet her as well. "You gave us all a scare, Elena. I was so worried. I haven't felt what I have in years. I hope you learned your lesson from this?"

Elena started to cry again from his words. "I'm sorry. I never meant to hurt anyone nor did I want to have something go against daddy. I didn't know his true intentions. I'm sorry." She cried harder after that and started to say sorry over and over.

I held her tightly as she did and Marcus pulled his hand away as his ears went down. Alastor looked at her well as his ears went back slightly. "My light, you must know that not everyone's your friend. Not everyone is an enemy either. Although when it comes to strangers, they are people you do not know. Therefore, people you cannot trust. Especially if they say they are my friends. I may have friends but they are all in low places and would never come to find me. I know you wanted to prove things to me but this was not the way to do it. You got hurt because of it and I don't even know what to think of what might have happened if we hadn't found you or discovered what was going on in time. I hope you know that in the future I wish for you to be more careful of people. Can you do that for me Elena?" Alastor had told her.

The girl was crying still but looking at her father as he spoke. She nodded. "Yes daddy…I understand….and I'm sorry." She sobbed.

Alastor took the girl into his arms and held her close. "Shhh, its ok my fawn. I understand. I'm not mad at you. I am just looking out for you." He put his face in her hair and kissed her head. "I don't want to lose you."

"What is important is that you're ok. You're here with us and Sir. Pent won't hurt you again. Otherwise, he'll get a good beating." I say as I tried to help the mood.

Alastor smiled at that. "Exactly. I can just do the same thing to his blimp like I did when I first arrived at the hotel." He gave a laugh. "Oh my, that was exciting to see."

I chuckled. "I bet it was my love. I wish I was there to see it."

He looked at me with a soft look. "Without this hotel I wouldn't have met you, my wolf. I wouldn't be where I am today without you."

"Oh Al, your being cheesy." I giggled.

He chuckled. "Sorry my love I guess I got carried away." He cleared his throat. "Anyway. Let's just let you rest Elena and have you back up and going home in no time. I'm sure you must be starving. How about some soup to start so it's not too overwhelming?"

"That is probably a good idea. Try to get some food in her. She has been out for almost a whole day." Dr. Talon agreed.

"That would be wonderful." Elena answered.

"Fantastic. I'll let little Nifty know and I'm sure she'll have it in no time." Alastor said and snapped his fingers to have his shadow appear again and told it to have Nifty fetch the food and it nodded before darting off.

"I will be going to get some more rest. I was up off and on all night. If anything arises please let me know." Dr. Talon said with a smile.

"Of course, Marcus. You should rest up now." I said to him and watched the wolf demon walk out of the room. I looked over at Alastor and the girl now in his arms.

My brain wandered for a moment. I honestly don't know what would have happened if we didn't get to her in time. Would she even still be with us? It was all hard to think about. The last thing I wanted as a mother is to lose their own child. I don't want that. I never want that, ever again. Elena was our special girl. Our first born and it made me worried for a moment about the second one that I now how growing. I had more to protect now more than ever. I don't regret having Elena and I won't regret to having this child nor any others that might be in our future. I was going to have my hands full that is for sure. Having kids was hard enough. Having kids in hell was making things ten times harder.

"Heart…your crying love. Are you ok?" I heard Alastor's voice snap me out of my thoughts.

I looked up and wiped away my tears I didn't even know were escaping my eyes as I thought. "Sorry…hormones." I said as an excuse.

"Come here love." Alastor wrapped an arm around me while having an arm around Elena. "Everything will be ok now. I promise."

"Thank you, love. I'm sorry." I say sadly.

"No need to apologize. I know the fawn makes your wires short circuit." He kissed my cheek before looking at Elena. "Plus, I know a certain fawn I have now that makes us all feel worried, right?"

Elena's ears went down again. "I know. I worried you both. I should have told you but…I wanted to surprise you."

"I know dear, but now we hope you learned something from this at least. I don't even what to think about what you'll have to do for school." I say worried. "With how everything is you might have to retake first grade."

"Retake?" The girl asked, I think she was a little confused.

"Yes, retake. You'll have to start from the beginning of first grade again." Alastor elaborated.

Elena looked so downhearted when Alastor said that, her ears were flat against her head as she looked away. "Oh." Was all she said.

"But I'm going to see what we can do to help you. Maybe we can have you take some classes in the summertime to help you. We'll see ok." I tried to reassure her.

All the girl did was nod, she knows she did bad now when her school is affected.

"We'll work something out." Alastor added and held us both tightly.

After a short time, Nifty had come up with the soup for Elena. She also asked how she was doing and made sure everything was alright before she decided to take her leave. The girl ate the soup as the little cyclops talked. When the soup was gone, the maid took her bowl and said her goodbyes before heading back out.

Once she left, Elena yawned so she laid back down to take a nap. She was feeling a lot better at least. We tucked her in and we still sat beside her throughout the day.

Seeing how everyone was checking in on Elena made me feel better. It reminded me that demons did care about others, especially the kids. They were just as important. It made me glad to be part of this small 'family' here at the hotel. They would always be my friends and they would always be here to help us. Seeing how they took care of Elena over the years made me feel better about how they would treat the new baby when they arrived. They would be welcomed into this hellish place with a family that loved them. Blood or not.

Everything would be ok and that comforts me more than anything.

End of chapter 17 finally! I want to apologize to my readers who have been wanting updates on this story. My writing motivation is very low but i've been trying to get it back up again to try and help me. I know i keep saying this and i apologize. Just stick with me as i get through this. I don't know why its been harder and harder for me to write lately but i will try my best to get chapters done to this when i can.