Observing the other people that rode along the escalators, the scenery around her was one she was more than used to. Malls, shopping centers, shopping plaza... whatever you wanted to call them, it reminded Kagome of her shopping trips back in Jr. High before she fell down the well.
Lydia and Allison were just before her while she leaned lightly against the banister.
"Smile Allison. Have you ever heard the saying, don't frown, someone could be falling in love with your smile." Lydia gave her own smile. "Smile Allison, I'm buying you your dress."
"I'll have to admit, as far as apologies go, that's more than I expected." Allison smiled at that, tossing Kagome a wink that had her hiding a giggle.
"Excellent." Lydia tossed a victorious smile before turning to observe the world around her.
Allison also wore a victorious smile as she turned and spoke to the red headed girl next to her. "But not as much as what I'm going to ask."
Both Lydia and Kagome furrowed their brows, obviously wondering what the other girl could have up her sleeve.
"What? What's that supposed to mean?" Lydia stepped off the escalator only to turn to Allison.
"It means, you're going to cancel on whatever dumb, bruited up jock that you said yes to, and you're going to go with somebody else." Allison moved a step to the side to allow Kagome off the escalator, all the while keeping her face neutral.
"Who?" it was at Lydia's question that the sly smirk overtook Allison's face.
She turned to face the perfume department that was just a few meters away, Lydia and Kagome following her line of sight. "Him."
Blinking wide blue eye, Kagome couldn't believe at exactly the who Allison was talking about. He stood at a counter, testing one of the various bottles of perfume that were displayed for customers to try, only to sneeze when he sprayed himself. Kagome couldn't help but smile, Stiles sure was a adorable.
"Oh, don't frown Lydia. Someone could be falling in love with your smile." Allison's tone was just a might condescending, her own smile smug at the corners and Kagome figured this was also part of her own form of retribution for when Lydia made out with Scott.
Although, Allison had broken up with Scott the night they had been trapped in the school, so technically, Scott was free. But then there was that unwritten code about dating your friend's ex's. Shrugging her shoulders, they walked forward to where Stiles stood with a large goofy smile on his face. He looked so happy, she had caught more than once of his crush on Lydia.
"Hey Stiles." she chuckled when he spared her a brief nod before turning his attention back onto Lydia.
Lydia herself pursed her lips as she brought her crossed arms closer to herself in a moment of contemplation. "So... I'm letting you take me to the formal. I mean, I'm free for the formal." she rolled her eyes when Allison lightly elbowed her in the side.
"Great! Would you like to go with me?" his hands swung out slightly, his energy nearly all over the place.
"Love to." Lydia gave a tight smile, turning to Allison with a raised brow before turning on her heal and quickly made her way to where the dresses were.
Allison chuckled as she followed after leaving Kagome and Stiles behind. Kagome turned to the excited boy, seeing that his happiness couldn't be killed at the moment so she moved to follow the other girls to let him have this moment.
"Come on Stiles, you may as well help your date since you're here!" she called to him from over her shoulder, laughing when she heard him mutter something under his breath and the squeak of his sneakers as he ran past her to be next to Lydia.
Quickening her speed so that she was next to Allison, Kagome hummed under her breath and thus drawing the other girls attention. "When did you come up with that little idea?"
"Oh? Not to sure, it sort of just... came to me." Allison shrugged her shoulders as she observed the two ahead of them. Canting her head to the side, she blinked when she came to a sudden realization. "Though... they do look cute together."
Kagome hummed in agreement, grasping her hands behind her back as they walked at a more leisurely pace behind the two. That they did.
The moment they arrived to where the dresses were, Lydia dragged Stiles off for him to carry her chosen selections while Allison and Kagome browsed at a more sedated pace. The two of them shared a laugh when Lydia strutted past them with a Stiles carrying a heavy load behind her, asking if the store was open long enough for her try them all on.
Shaking her head, Kagome continued down the racks taking in the amount of options she had to chose from with a critical eye. Most were short, satiny material and looked like they fit tight to the body. Looking up from the rack she was currently standing at and sweeping her eyes over the section, it was easy to see that metallic, pearls and pastels were the current color palettes of the season. Pursing her lips, Kagome shook her head and decided she wanted something different.
Peeking out from between some dresses, was the skirts of one dress that caught her eye. Making her way towards it, Kagome pulled it off the wrack and took in the dress she now held up. The top was a fitted semi-sweetheart with the skirts flaring out due to the black lace netting. Over all, it was a wine satin coloring, but a black detailed lace over top. It had a classic feel to it that spoke to her.
Taking it with her and flipping to observe the back, she walked her way back to Allison as she looked for the price tag. Canting her head to the side, she blinked at the price for the dress. It was more than she was used to when buying clothing, but it was also going to be worn for a special night. And it was in her price range.
"Hey Allison, what do you think about this one?" she nibbled on her lower lip as she rounded the corner. Looking up, she paused when she saw Peter standing there holding up a silver colored dress to one of Allison's hands that was in his grip. Peter looked up, the polite smile on his face souring a little when his gaze landed on her but quickly righted itself. Allison didn't see the minute change as she had quickly whipped her head about to face her.
"Hi... Peter." Kagome trailed off, her happy shopping spree with some girls having plummeted to the deepest part of the ocean at sight of the male.
"Kagome, what a surprise." his tone was honestly surprised as well as tight, but he easily masked it with a polite smile.
Allison whipped her head back and forth between the two, brows furrowed as she shifted closer towards Kagome. "Do the two of you know each other?"
Kagome turned to Allison, though Peter was still in her peripherals, and her own brows furrowed the tiniest amounts at the twitchy edge that Allison had. "We met the other night, when he came to pick up my aunt for a date. But it was canceled because of an accident. Everything alright, I take?" she returned her attention back to Peter, her entire being reading innocent curiosity.
"Yes, thanks for asking." he turned to replace the dress back to the wrack he had taken it from before facing them once again. His eyes darted to the dress Kagome was holding and his head tilted slightly. "Nice choice, it really compliments you."
Kagome's eyes darted towards Allison when the girl shifted closer yet again and then quickly back to Peter. "Thank you." her words were slightly dragged out, having not expected those words.
She was about to turn to Allison when an announcement was made. "Would the owner of the blue Mazda with license plate number..."
"Did she just say blue Mazda?" Allison looked down before brows furrowing and she began digging through her purse. "Oh, that's my car!"
Kagome stood there with wide eyes as she watch Allison storm off. Blinking, she pursed her lips at the feeling that the shopping spree had come to an end. Sighing through her nose, she contemplated the idea of dragging Stiles away from Lydia to get a ride home the moment she paid for her dress along with a few accessories.
"How's Melissa doing?" at the sudden question, and completely change of topic, Kagome whipped her head to face Peter.
"She's... doing good." Kagome's eyes trailed off to the side, in the direction Lydia and Stiles were, which was towards the changing rooms. "Well, if you don't mind, I'm going to go." she absently pointed towards said changing rooms and mentally banged her head.
She had made a few short steps before Peter spoke up again. "You're date is very lucky."
Blinking as she stood there, she turned her head to observe the male behind her. "I'm no going with anyone." she had no idea what possessed her to announce that she was going alone, but she couldn't take it back now. Shaking her head, she continued on her way towards the changing rooms, blinking when she noticed Scott sitting on the base of manikin displaying a dress. He was well hidden however with the racks behind him and blocking Peter from actually seeing him.
Smiling at seeing Stiles slumped in an uncomfortable looking chair, she laughed when he noticed her and quickly scrambled to sit properly. "That's all you found?"
"I'm a simple girl with simple tastes." she giggled when Stiles rolled his eyes and muttered something about her being anything but simple.
They both turned when Lydia stepped out of one of the changing rooms wearing a two toned dress. It was a nice dress, but... it just didn't quiet suit the girl. She blinked when she noticed Kagome there, her eyes quickly zeroing in on the single dress. "Oh? That was fast."
"Was just telling Stiles that I wanted something simple." Kagome shrugged her shoulders.
"I see." Lydia blinked, obviously not expecting that sort of reply. She quickly shifted however, into drawing attention to her. "Just means I can hear your opinion. What do you think?" she gave a small twirl with a smile on her lips.
"It's nice, but it makes you look pale. No offense." she quickly raised her free hand at the narrowed eyes that were suddenly directed towards her. "In my opinion, I think this one would look best on you." she reached into the cabin, shifting through the dresses that hung there until she pulled one she had seen Lydia had eyed earlier. It was a pale peach pearl color with a thin black sash wrapped high on the waist to add some contrast.
Holding it up, she smiled before handing it to Lydia. It complimented her strawberry blond hair and fair peach skin. And knowing Lydia, she would be able to flaunt it with all she got wearing it. "There you go."
Lydia observed the dress in her hands with a critical eye, though they would dart up to her and then to Stiles before going back down to the dress. Pursing her lips, she watched Kagome with a raised brow. "Hm."
Kagome rolled her eyes fondly as Lydia darted back into the cabin before making her way to a free cabin herself to try on the dress she had picked out. While she was in the process of stripping down her clothes to try on her chosen dress, Kagome went over what Allison had been talking about when they met up. It had to do with her family, with having learned something and she was having some difficulty dealing with, but that it was nothing major to worry over.
Reaching behind her to zip the dress up, Kagome blinked when it suddenly clicked. Allison knew about her family. Hands dropping to her sides, she brought them to the front as she looked off to the side as her mind went over this new sudden information. What did that mean for Scott? So far they didn't know who the second beta was, but how long was that going to last. Absently going through the motions, she pulled back the curtain so she could see how she looked in the full length mirror they had installed in the hallway of cabins, and looked at her reflection without really seeing it. She was lost on what to do with her new found information, and she wasn't even sure if it was the truth to begin with. She couldn't very well ask Allison without explaining herself either, that she knew of werewolves or pointing out that Scott was in fact the second beta.
Her brows furrowed as she smoothed her hands down the front of her dress. She jumped suddenly when a wolf whistled echoed from behind her. Spinning about, she blinked wide eyes as Lydia sauntered her way towards her.
"Well, well, well. Looks like you got it in one go. It's really unfair, the rest of us girls have to go through a throng of dresses before we find the one. But not you." Lydia circled her with a critical eye, humming as she eyed her up and down.
Looking down at herself, she placed her hands flat against her stomach wiggling her toes when she just barely saw them over the edge of the skirts of the dress. "You really think so?"
"I know so. I also should thank you for helping pick out mine. It really does suit me." Lydia's voice trailed off, drawing Kagome's attention into observing how the girl was fixing her appearance in the mirror.
"I see you two found your dresses then." both turned to see Allison standing at the end of changing cabins, a dress in her own hands.
Kagome raised a brow when she noticed it was the one Peter had pointed out. Seems despite how uncomfortable Allison had been around him, she obviously took his fashion advice to heart.
"Well, we're not the only one. Hurry up and try it on! I want to see how it looks." Lydia shooed Allison into a cabin to try the dress on and the moment the curtain closed, she was back to adjusting her appearance in the mirror.
Hearing a tired sigh from the area for those waiting just outside the changing cabins, Kagome made her way towards where Stiles was more than likely still sitting. Peeking around the corner, she observed how Stiles slouched in his chosen chair, letting gravity pull him. Giggling, she leaned against the wall of the cabin next to her and crossed her arms.
"Tired or bored?" her question had Stiles loll his head towards her and she had to admit he was doing a rather great impression of a sloth.
"Is that a trick question?" his whimper had her giggling again.
Shaking her head, she tossed a quick look over her shoulder to where Lydia was still checking herself out in the mirror and Allison still in her cabin. "Well, I think we're almost done here. Just waiting for Allison to try her dress on and then I think Lydia is going to either drag us to where we can get shoes and accessories, or we're going home."
"Oh thank god." the words came out in a rush as Stiles adjusted his position to something more comfortable.
"Speaking of which, think I can hitch a ride home?" her eyes scanned the store that was in her sights, wondering if Peter or Scott were still lurking around.
"Yeah, sure I guess." he absently waved a hand in the air, and Kagome wasn't sure if he was being honest in giving her a ride or indicating he heard her request.
A curtain being pushed open drew her attention and she watched as Allison stepped out. She had to admit, the dress looked good on her. Which meant Peter really did have good taste in fashion, funnily enough. Moving forward, she smiled at Allison to indicate her opinion.
"And?" her question was hesitant and posture slightly unsure.
"It looks great." Kagome placed her hands atop Allison's shoulders and directed her towards the mirror, making her stand next to Lydia who was once again observing with a critical eye. "See, amazing."
The three of them stood there before the mirror, Kagome watched from the corner of her eye how Allison became more confident the longer she stood before the mirror. Her expression also became somewhat dreamy, the same one she wore whenever Kagome was sure the girl was thinking about Scott.
"Well, I have my pick. I don't know about you two, but all I need now is a pair of shoes and I'm set to go." Kagome gave a playful spin before making her way back to her cabin to get back into her own clothing.
A few minutes later, she was tapping the toe of her shoe against the floor to help it fit properly and left the changing cabins. Noticing that Allison and Lydia were still changing, Kagome called out her farewells. "I'll see you two tomorrow. And Lydia?"
The girl in question peeked her head out from behind the corner and gave her a questioning look. "Yeah?"
Kagome smile as she pulled Stiles out of his chair. "I'll be stealing Stiles, just to let you know!"
She gave him a look before pursing her lip before muttering a 'I don't care' and ducking back behind the curtain. Stiles sputtered as he was dragged behind her to the shoes.
"I just need shoes, hopefully that won't take too long." she released him to carefully fold the dress over her arms as she observed the store setup.
"Oh thank god." he sounded relieved, letting out a harsh breath.
"If Lydia were your girlfriend, you would more than likely be forced to sit through more and longer shopping sessions. You do know that, right?" she threw him a sly smirk before facing forward and walking down the aisle of shoes as she hunted down a pair for herself.
Pausing before the aisle that had the 'proper' shoes to go with her dress, she carefully handed her dress to Stiles and looked for her new to be shoes. 15 minutes later, she had a pair of black high heels and dress and was walking with Stiles to his jeep.
"Thanks again for giving me a ride." she playfully placed her head against his shoulder and battered her eyelashes at him.
He gave her a playful push as he rolled his eyes. "Yeah, yeah. The things I do for you and your cousin. One of these days, I'm going to be asking for a return favor." he pulled out his keys and unlocked his jeep and climbed in.
"Don't worry about it. Now how excited are you to be taking Lydia to the formal tomorrow?" she threw him a sly smirk, chuckling when a blush stole across his face and he gave her a goofy smile. It was answer enough for her.
The next day went by in a buzzing blur, and the only incident was when she heard that Scott wasn't allowed to go to the dance due to failing three classes. It was either that or he be cut from the team, but apparently, the coach wasn't about to let him walk away.
Getting home had been a rush, promising to see her ride to the dance later as she ducked around other rushing students. The halls were packed, more so than normally, that it took longer than to get to her bike. And then making her way out of the parking lot was a whole other mater entirely. She had thought fighting against hordes of demons had been chaotic, she was sure they would turn tail at a horde of hormonal teenagers getting excited about a school dance.
If there was one thing she was thankful for, was that biking to school instead of taking a bus or train allowed her to get home in record time and rush up the stairs so she could quickly shower. She was just rinsing out her shampoo when she heard Scott cry out her name.
"Come on Kagome! You aren't the only one that needs to shower!" he banged on the bathroom door with a grumble.
"You have your own bathroom, go a head and shower!" she called out, applying and lathering conditioner into her hair.
She was in the process of twisting her hair to rest atop her head and rub her body down when Scott gave an annoyed growl. "If we both shower at the same time, there will be no hot water for either of us!"
"I'm used to taking cold baths or showers, so go ahead. I'm almost done anyways." she rolled her eyes when he gave a frustrated huff that she could hear through the door and over the sound of the water rushing over her.
Shaking her head, she gave a pained 'eep' when a drop of soapy water landed in one of her eyes. With a frustrated sigh of her own, she figured she would have to end her shower a littler sooner than she had thought and stood beneath the hot spray. She hissed when the temperature dropped suddenly but pushed herself to take the cold temperatures. Well, looks like her cousin would be finishing his shower with on a warmer note than herself, but she still had a lot to do before she was ready.
Jumping out, she nearly slipped on the floor as she wrapped a towel around herself and grabbed a second one to dry her hair as she ran back to her room. Rushing to get ready for a school function had her adrenaline pumping like it hadn't from a long time now. She was excited that she was rushing around and in a mild panic for something that wasn't life threatening, even if she was tripping over herself in getting dressed. She nearly tripped once again on a discarded towel as she made her way back to the bathroom so she could finish her hair and do her makeup. Giving the fabric on the floor an evil look, she muttered under her breath in Japanese before shaking her head. At the moment, she could care less that she was running around in her underwear, her cousin was still in the shower anyways.
Pulling out the blow-dryer, she eyed the contraption warily before plugging it in and turning it on. It had been... a rather long time since she trussed herself up like she would be now. Contraption on full blast and hot air hitting her full force, she forced herself to ease up as she began brushing through her hair. It was during moments like these that she hated the length and thickness of her hair, it took far too long. She figured when it was near dry enough she put the blow-dryer away and began fixing her hair. Pulling it to one side, she began twisting it to put it in a bun and tucked and pinned stray strands to hold it all in place. Twisting her head from side to side to observe her work, she grabbed a bottle of hair spray to lock the style into place.
Coughing lightly, she waved a hand before her to help clear the air and once again rushed back to her room to put on her dress. When she nearly tripped on the damn towel once again, she grumbled and went back to pick it up and hang it nicely on the back of of her desk chair so it was out of the way and she wouldn't accidentally kill herself over the damn thing. Going over to her closet, she pulled out her dress and stepped into it, pulling it up and securing it before zipping it closed. Readjusting to it fit properly, Kagome moved to where she stored her new shoes and slid into those. While she would admit they were more than likely to be worn rarely, she did enjoy the added height they gave her. Moving to her dresser, she pulled on some simple accessories such as a three strand silver necklace, silver earring and a thick black bangle.
Running around was done far more carefully now that she was wearing the ankle breakers, she returned to the bathroom to do her makeup. Like everything else, it would be kept simple. Tinted lip gloss, the lightest amount of blush and light smoky eyeshadow. Doing a check, she smiled at her reflection and grabbed the lip gloss and left the bathroom feeling triumphant. It was on her way back to her room that her aunt came out into the hall.
"Wow, wish I looked that good at my high school dance." her aunt made her way towards her, shaking her head with a smile on her face.
"I'm sure you looked beautiful." Kagome smiled at her aunt brightly.
"No, no I did not. Big hair, neon colors and big clunky jewelery, were not the greatest of mixes. But did I enjoy that night." her aunt closed her eyes with a chuckle as she allowed herself to recall the memory.
"Okay, from that expression, I really don't want to know!" Kagome raised her hands as she laughed at the expression and dreamy sigh from her aunt.
Walking into her room and needed to raid her closet in order to look for a jacket. Spying the jacket she had worn to the first party after school start, her lips quirked up into a half smile. It felt like so long ago, it had also been the one she worn when she first met Derek, even if she didn't know it at the time. Pulling it out, she put it on and took a look in mirror.
"Oh, I have to get a picture of this. Just wait, one, second!" at her rushed words, Kagome blinked as she leaned back to catch her aunt racing out the door in order to hunt for a camera.
Looking back at her reflection, she tilted her head to the side. She had never been one to toot her own horn, especially after meeting Inuyasha, but she had to admit, she looked hot. Meaning she couldn't blame her aunt for wanting to document the outfit. She was in the process of pocketing her set of keys, cell phone and lip gloss when her aunt returned in a rush, smiling brightly as she was turning the camera on.
"Okay, let's go downstairs to take this, your room looks like a hurricane passed through." her aunt tossed her a teasing smirk that Kagome rolled her eyes at.
"I'll clean it up tomorrow, I promise." she walked arm in arm with her aunt downstairs.
"Oh I'm not worried about that, my son cleaning his room on the other hand... it'll take an actual kick in the butt for that to happen." the two shared a laugh while her aunt separated herself from Kagome to be able to take a picture. "Now smile!"
Kagome smiled, indulging in the rapid fire of pictures being taken only to turn her head when a horn was honked outside. "That's my ride!"
"Go knock em dead. Make those boys regret not asking you!" her aunt called out after her, to which Kagome wished a farewell and made her way to the car already full of classmates that were cheering and wolf whistling as she made her ways towards the car.
Skipping a beat, she rushed the short distance with the full intent of being able to enjoy the night with her friends.
AN: Next week(end), I'll be traveling to Munich! Oh I'm so excited. But it'll happen after I post next week's update, so no worries there. Read, enjoy, and review!