Chapter Two: The Mall


"Kagome!" Inuyasha called up the stairway, his arms crossed over his chest, his brow furrowed, a baseball cap covering his ears. "Hurry up, would ya?"

"I'm coming!" she shouted back, rushing down the stairway. She pulled back her sleeve and glanced at her watch. "It's almost 3:30. The concert starts at 9:00, but there's supposed to be carnival rides and stuff, and that opens at six. So we've got three hours. Are you ready?"

"I've been ready!" he cried, throwing his hands into the air. "I've been waiting on you!"

Kagome shook her head and walked passed him and to the door. "Mom, we'll be back in two hours or so!" she called over her shoulder and slid the door open, stepping into the bright afternoon sun.

Inuyasha followed her out and shut the door behind him. "So where is this 'mall' of yours?" he demanded, walking alongside Kagome.

"It's not far," she answered, her hand in her pocket to make sure her money was still there. "Just a few blocks away."

They continued their walk in silence. Almost fifteen minutes later, just as Inuyasha began to complain again, the shopping center appeared. Inuyasha scratched at his baseball cap as they entered the double automatic doors and stepped into the air-conditioned mall. Goosebumps ran up Kagome's bare legs. "Brr," she murmured and crossed her arms over her chest tightly. "I haven't been here in so long I'd forgotten how cold it is in here."

Inuyasha rolled his eyes skyward, and cried out softly in surprise as Kagome took his hand and pulled him into the mass of swarming people. Smiling, she led him to a large elegant clothing store called Belk. "What are we going in here for?" Inuyasha whined, resisting Kagome's pull but refusing to remove his hand from hers.

"Because," Kagome replied in a mock-whine tone. "I want to get something for the concert tonight. None of my other clothes fit anymore." She rushed to a clothes rack and felt the cloth of a black velvet skirt. "This is nice," she murmured and searched for a tag, releasing Inuyasha's hand.

He huffed and crossed his arms, glancing around nonchalantly for something that might hold his attention. He would never understand women. Why did she need a whole new outfit just for a gathering? Couldn't she just wear what she had on?

Kagome pulled the hangar with the velvet skirt off the rack and held it to her waist, puckering her lower lip as she examined it. "If I could just find a shirt…" She glanced over her shoulder for Inuyasha, and panicked. "Inuyasha?" she whispered. She clutched the hangar tightly. "Inuyasha!" she threw her hand over her heart as she eyed him several rows down, caressing a burgundy sleeve between his thumb and forefinger. She rushed over to him, her face flushed. "Inuyasha," she sighed, touching his shoulder. "You scared me."

"Why?" he questioned, still fingering the silky sleeve.

"Uh," she murmured, dropping her hand and averting her eyes to the floor. She lifted them again and eyed the shirt Inuyasha was fooling with. "Oh, wow. That's pretty," she said and touched the sleeve he held. She held the skirt she had picked to the bottom of the silk shirt and smiled. It was a perfect match. "I'm going to try these on. Come with me?"

Inuyasha sighed. "I guess so."

Kagome led him to a dressing room and told him to wait outside. He grunted and leaned against the wall outside and waited several minutes before he heard the stall door creak open. Kagome walked out of the stall and over to Inuyasha. "Well, what do you think?"

Inuyasha opened his eyes and looked at her, and his jaw nearly dropped. She was absolutely radiant. Her long, silky back hair fell loosely over her shoulders. The black velvet skirt hugged her curves nicely and rode the top of her knees, a split up the side to a high place on her thigh. The burgundy silk shirt dipped in a deep V, showing a tasteful amount of cleavage and flaring around her wrists. Her feet were bare and she twisted her petite ankle.

"Uh…" Inuyasha stammered. Then he closed his eyes and stuck out his chin, his head turned away. "Whatever."

Kagome sighed. Couldn't he even try to compliment something she did? "I'm getting this. It's two of Crosshair's colors, at least," she said, and hurried back into the stall. Inuyasha's ear twitched under his baseball cap as clothes dropped to the floor. "We need to find you something to wear. Your kimono is beautiful, don't get me wrong, but it's not quite the right color or style for a Crosshair concert. How do you feel about skulls?"


"This is stupid." Inuyasha growled, staring at himself in the dressing room mirror. He held his arms out and missed the feel of his bell sleeves dangling off his wrists. Now, his arms were just bare.

Kagome tapped her chin with her finger. "I think you look great," she finally decided. Your hair matches it well, too. And at the concert—" she paused and glanced around, checking under stall doors and around corners. The room was empty. "At the concert," she resumed, her voice barely above a whisper, "we won't even have to cover up your ears. People go crazy dressing up for rock concerts. Don't be surprised if there are people with scales, tails, or even animal ears."

Inuyasha stared at her, his lips parted. "You humans are crazy."

She just nodded and circled him. She couldn't help but stare a little longer than she needed to. He was stunning. He wore a black Crosshair short sleeved tee that complimented his torso nicely, showing off the muscles in his arms. It was covered in red, lime green and indigo skulls and tiny crosshairs. The black jeans he wore were baggy but fit him well around the waist. At the moment, his feet were bare, but Kagome was sure she would find some matching tennis shoes or Vans.

A smile lit up her face and she clapped her hands once. "Okay, you can change back into your kimono now," she said cheerfully, guiding him into an empty stall. "Take what you have on and put them back on the hangers. Then we'll find some shoes and we can go home to get ready."

"Get ready!" Inuyasha practically shouted. "I thought that's what we were doing now!"

"No," she replied, her features smooth and her voice even, "We're buying clothes so we can fit in with the crowd. Then we'll go home and just relax for an hour or so, and then we can get ready and leave. Okay?"

Inuyasha huffed and slammed the stall door. Kagome rolled her eyes and walked back into the store, heading for the only shoe rack. She raked her eyes over the five shelves until she spotted a pair of nice black tennis shoes with red mesh and red pinstriped black laces. She grabbed them off the shelf, guessing size, and hurried back to the dressing room. From what she could hear, Inuyasha was having a bit of trouble with the zipper…

She bit her lip and knocked gently. "Hey, could you try these on for me and let me see how they look?" she questioned quietly, unsure of his reaction. She heard him growl and watched as they door cracked open and a long hand flashed out, snatching the shoebox from her hand and closing again. She exhaled sharply and leaned against the door and waited for what seemed like half an hour before she heard Inuyasha's gruff voice float into her ears.

"Yeah, yeah, they fit," it seemed as though he were saying this through his teeth. He tossed the heavy Vans over the stall door. They thudded against the carpeted floor and tumbled to a stop just inches from Kagome's shoes. She narrowed her eyes but held her tongue, placed the shoes back into their box, and placed them on a bench. Just seconds later Inuyasha emerged from the stall, shrugging into his kimono. "Can we leave now?" he griped, crossing his arms.

"Yeah. Get your clothes and follow me to the counter." Kagome replied, annoyed with his bellyaching. She grabbed the shoebox and tuned out Inuyasha's mumblings and headed for the counter. Behind it was a handsome guy with his eyebrow pierced and spiked black hair.

"Well, hello there," he greeted, raising his brows and grinning widely. He leaned toward her over the countertop, resting on his arms. "What can a guy like me do for a gorgeous woman such as yourself?"

Kagome's face seared with heat from her blush. "Uh…" she stammered, unable to take in this suggestion. She felt a presence near her from behind, and the electricity she felt was simply alive. She watched as the guy behind the counter faltered, the smile disappearing from his face as he shot up from the counter.

"You can back off, that's what you can do," Inuyasha answered hotly, clenching his hand into a tight fist.

The clerk cleared his throat and raised his hands as if to gesture that he was unarmed. "Sorry, man. I didn't know she was with someone." He explained.

Kagome turned to Inuyasha. "Inuyasha, calm down," she soothed in a low voice, and then whispered so soft she knew only he'd be able to hear, "We don't want to draw any unwanted attention." and tilted her head suggestively toward a plump security guard standing close by, watching in scrutiny. Kagome removed the clothes that were folded over Inuyasha's arm and placed them on the counter, as well as the shoebox. As the clerk began to scan the tags of the clothes and shoes with shaky hands, Kagome turned back to Inuyasha. "Can you wait for me by the door?"

Inuyasha, without removing his eyes from the store clerk growled deeply. A shock went through Kagome at the throaty sound. "Hurry up."

She hurriedly turned towards the counter with an apologetic smile. "I'm so sorry about him," she said lowly, glancing over at Inuyasha quickly. "Overly jealous, you know," she added as if it would make the previous happenings disappear.

He didn't smile, or even look at her. "Ninety forty-six," he said sternly. Kagome's eyes dropped and she slowly reached into her pocket and dealt him the exact amount. He bagged her merchandise and didn't speak. As Kagome turned to walk away, feeling guilty, he didn't even say "thank you, come again."


"He shouldn't have tried to flirt with you when I was right there!" Inuyasha half-shouted, remembering to keep his voice down in a populated area. It took a great deal of effort.

"He didn't even see you at first. I mean, you scared the poor guy half to death." Kagome said, nibbling on a breadstick from the food court Fazoli's. She stared down at her half eaten spaghetti, and delicately looked up at Inuyasha from under her lashes. She almost giggled at his quizzical expression, staring at her spaghetti too.

"What is that? It looks like a big ball of worms." He scrunched his nose, and Kagome felt her stomach churn at the thought.

She put her breadstick down gently and was tempted to push her plate away, but maybe, just maybe, she could make some progress here. "This is spaghetti," she answered. "It's good." She picked up her fork and swirled the tongs in the noodles, and she felt Inuyasha's eyes watch as the spaghetti was wound around the fork, a utensil he'd never seen before. She held it up to him and he recoiled. "Try it."

"No chance." He pushed back the chair he was sitting in, awkwardly but able to pass as…human. The legs scraped on the tile floor.

Kagome's eyes softened. "Oh, come on," she pushed, nudging her fork at him.

Inuyasha's cap twitched subtly, indicating a perking of ears. He sniffed the air softly and found the aroma somewhat appealing. He eyes the yellowish noodles and red goop with scrutinizing amber eyes and sighed heavily.

"Pleeeeease?" Kagome begged, puckering her lower lip in a puppy-dog pout.

Inuyasha rolled his eyes skyward. "If it'll make you shut up, then fine."

Kagome smiled and watched as he leaned forward and sniffed it again, then opened his mouth and took the bite of spaghetti. Kagome withdrew her fork and watched him chew. "Well?"

"S'okay." He replied, still chewing. He finally swallowed and stood up. "Can we go? We got your clothes and your weird food already."

Kagome stood, bringing her plate with her, and tossed it in the trash. She headed for the door with Inuyasha at her side. She blinked as they stepped into bright sunlight outside and shielded her eyes with her hand.

"So, tell me about this 'Ouija' person you're so excited about." Inuyasha suggested, his arms crossed over his chest as they headed for Kagome's house.

Kagome smiled. "Ouija is my cousin. She's my mother's brother's daughter. I know that's confusing, but it's really simple. Anyway, she's…" her voice trailed off and a thoughtful look came to her face. She tapped her chin with her finger. "Well, she's eighteen now, I think. We used to be really close as little kids. See, my uncle didn't always have the best intentions in life. Mom would always bring her to our house when her dad used to get into trouble."

"Trouble?" Inuyasha questioned, looking down at her. "What kind of trouble?"

"Um," Kagome bit her lip. "Trouble with the law. See, he was trafficking drugs and was caught when he tried to rob a thrift store. He's in prison now, and he will be for quite a while longer. Ouija loved her dad. But now, she wouldn't know him if she saw him. Mom went to visit him in prison once. She said he's like a totally different person. He was always rough looking, but he was such a softie. Mom said prison had completely changed him."

Inuyasha was silent. Though he didn't quite understand, he knew that he shouldn't ask questions. He interpreted that whatever that man had done, it was very, very wrong. It brought out a deep sadness in Kagome, and he didn't like it. "And…"

"Oh, I'm sorry." She looked up at him, smiling again. "About Ouija. Last time I saw her, I was twelve and she was fifteen. She was taller than me, so I guess she still is. She had long brown hair. And her eyes were amazing. You'll never see eyes so blue. She was always so clever and intelligent, and she had a wonderful sense of humor. But she had a wicked temper. She wasn't someone you'd want to mess with. I remember my mom saying that she was strong as an ox. She's skinny and pretty, but she had so much strength. Very stout."

"Hmm." Inuyasha huffed. He was trying to picture the girl, but was coming up short with the few details he had.

"She was always a rocker. She has an American mother, you know." She looked over at Inuyasha. "Her mother was diagnosed with cancer just a month or so after Ouija was born. Ouija never knew her. But she's not really sad about it. She always said she was glad that her mother was in a better place. Elaine was her mother's name. She was a beautiful woman. Ouija took after her mother more than her father – physically, I mean. Her eyes, her hair, her face. She even looks American. You'd never think she's Japanese."

"What's this 'America' place you keep talking about?"

Kagome faltered. "Oh! I forgot. It hadn't been established in your time. I'll show you in my history book when we get home."

Soon enough, after Kagome rambled on about school and homework, they ascended the stairs to Kagome's shrine and headed to Kagome's room. She glanced over at the clock. "Five o'clock. We've still got an hour. Sit here," she said, nudging Inuyasha towards her bed, "and I'll go get my history book out of my bag."

As she rushed out the door, Inuyasha looked around her room with bored eyes. He took a long, deep breath and let it out slowly. Kagome's scent saturated every surface of this room. Jasmine and herbs. It was intoxicating. Even now, Inuyasha could feel his guard slipping and his senses buzzed. The door suddenly slung open then, bringing him back into reality. He gasped and jumped off the bed, claws at the ready, teeth bared.

Kagome gasped softly and stepped back, dropping a thick book to the ground. Her eyes were wide and she began to tremble.

Inuyasha instantly stood upright again and dropped his hands. He cleared his throat and looked away. "You should've knocked or something."

Kagome exhaled, still shaken. He had looked so feral, so dangerous. He had only actually turned on her a few times, and all of those but one weren't of his own decision. She hadn't been frightened as much as by his appearance as much as of the thought that he would actually hurt her, would know her as an enemy. She couldn't bear that thought. "Um," she murmured. "It's okay." She bent over and picked up her book and turned to her desk, not quite looking Inuyasha in the eye. She had her back turned to him as she flipped open to the atlases in the front of the book and searched for a map of North America. She had reached it when Inuyasha's usually gruff voice reached her ears.

"Kagome?" he said, speaking softly. "You know I wouldn't ever hurt you, right?"

Kagome bolted upright as something tugged at her heartstrings. She whirled around to face him and didn't meet his eyes. He was staring at the floor, eyes covered by his bangs. His hands were clenched at his side. Kagome didn't move. "Of course."

He didn't move either. He almost seemed frozen. Until his hand flashed out and reached for her wrist, and pulled her to him. Her eyes snapped wide and she took a sharp breath as his arms enveloped her. "I won't ever hurt you. I need you with me." he whispered it so faintly, Kagome wasn't even sure she was hearing him clearly. Nevertheless, she bowed her head and leaned into his chest, his arms winding tighter around her.

For all she knew, they stood that way for nearly an hour. But soon enough, Inuyasha released her, his face tense as usual. He was himself again. "Now when's this concert of yours? I want to get to it, and then get back. We still have half the Sacred Jewel to find before Naraku does."

Kagome nodded. She pointed to a plastic bag beside her bed. "Your clothes are in there. I'll go into the bathroom and get ready. I'll be out in a few minutes."


Inuyasha sat on Kagome's bed uncomfortably with his legs crossed Indian-style, tugging at the short sleeved tee he wore, scratching at the dark pants. They were so much tighter than his kimono which now lay strewn across Kagome's comforter. He still didn't understand why he had to wear these stupid clothes. He hadn't yet put on his shoes, which he was grateful for. He never liked shoes, so he never wore them. But Kagome had insisted: "You really don't want to walk barefoot at this kind of place, trust me."

He growled and huffed. It was all so ridiculous. At this point, all he was looking forward to was his own time, his own venue. This modern time was much too loud, bright, and smelly for his taste. But Kagome lived here, so he'd put up with it for just a while longer before plunging into the well for another month or so. His ears twitched as he heard a door open and close, then footsteps nearing the room. He glared at Kagome as she entered the door, and she immediately picked up on his sour attitude. She glared right back.

"Oh, come on. It's just a few hours. It won't kill you." She rolled her eyes and growled as she walked to the bed and picked up his kimono, folding it and placing it in a neat pile on the end of the bed.

"I'm not so sure about that," Inuyasha muttered under his breath, pulling at his sleeve – if it could be called a sleeve.

He looked up at Kagome and studied her for a few seconds, which was all his half-demon eyes needed to keep the image in his mind for several good hours. She looked wonderful in her new clothes and black heels. Her makeup was darker though, her eyes smoky and fit for an evil demon. Her lips had a clear reddish gloss on them that smelled faintly of raspberry. Her cheeks were flushed and her hair was very, very straight and shiny. "Are you ready?" she asked, motioning towards his shoes with her eyes.

"Yeah, yeah," he garbled, sliding off her bed and stuffing his feet into the heavy shoes.

"You look great," she said appreciatively, raking her eyes over his form. "Just one more touch and we can go." She rushed to her desk and slid open a small drawer, removing from it a wooden long-handled brush.

Inuyasha backed away, wide-eyed with his hands up. It reminded Kagome of a scared puppy with its tail between its legs. "Don't you come near me with that thing." Inuyasha snapped, memories of painful tugs and knotted tangles flooding his mind.

"Just a little brushing. Your hair needs it so bad, Inuyasha. Please?"

"No!"

"Please?"

"No, Kagome! I hate that thing!"

"What are you, a puppy?" she questioned, throwing her arms up and nearly throwing the brush.

Inuyasha's eyes narrowed to slits and he growled deeply. Puppy, huh? He thought. "Fine. But if you hurt my head again, I swear…" His voice trailed off as Kagome neared him.

"Yeah, yeah," she mocked, going around him and gently pulling the brush through his silky white tresses.

"I mean it!" he shouted, protecting his pride.

Kagome just smiled and continued brushing his hair. When she encountered a knot, she tenderly teased it out and finished. She stepped away and put the brush back in its drawer. "All done. Now let's go."

"Finally!" Inuyasha cried, throwing his hands up. He hastily headed for the door, Kagome following him.

"Have a great time, you two!" Kagome's mother called as they headed out the front door and into the busy Tokyo night.