InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Gambling Your Way to Freedom ❯ Coffee and Books Fix Everything ( Chapter 4 )

Gambling Your Way to Freedom

Chapter 4: Coffee and Books Fix Everything.

When Kagome returned to her senses, the first thing she noticed was how safe she felt. It was hard to think of the last time she felt this way, but then she realized her backrest was breathing and there were arms wrapped around her. Opening her eyes, she realized they were back in his car and she was sitting in his lap. Glancing back at him, she was shocked by the intensity of his gaze.

“Are you feeling any better?” he said softly and Kagome felt his fingers thread into her hair. She nodded slightly and he shifted her in his arms. “Do you want to go home?”

She mentally scoffed. He meant his home, where he would no doubt want more sex. Did she really want to deal with that right now? She shook her head, ignoring the little voice that told her she was only delaying the inevitable.

“No, it's ok.” She said finally, leaning forward away from him. “I'm alright.”

He opened the door and she slipped off his lap, awkwardly waiting as he got out. He offered his hand to her, but she refused, gasping as they rounded the corner.

“It's a castle! But I thought this was a mall?”

Sesshoumaru chuckled, pleased with her response. “It is. The mall has a jousting arena built within it.”

“What do you mean?”

“Jousting is a medieval sport.”

“I know that,” she said exasperatedly. “I just don't understand why they have an arena here.”

“You'd be surprised. It's very popular, epecially with younger people.”

“Oh,”

As they entered the mall, her eyes were drawn to the displays surrounding the arena and Sesshoumaru made a mental note to buy tickets. As she careened her neck to look around the various people standing in front of the gift shop, he had to admit, he was rather surprised by the amount of people here, but then again, it was Saturday.

“So, where would you like to go first?” he said finally.

“I…I don't need anything,” she said, her gaze falling to the ground. “It doesn't matter.”

All the light seemed to vanish from her eyes and he frowned, wondering just what she'd had to deal with to develop such anxiety. Her eyes kept drifting up the store displays, and by her occasional gasps, he knew she'd found several things she liked. However, her entire aura screamed nervousness, as if she were afraid to anger him by requesting something. “Come now Kagome, I understand your anxiety, but there are no strings attached to this. You had to leave most of your things in Japan, did you not?”

She nodded. “Everything I own was sold as far as I know. At least that's what Hojo said. Then obviously all my earnings from the club went towards my debt. Everything I have was given to me by Sango or Hojo.”

“Well then, might I suggest clothes and perhaps some things you might enjoy - do you have any hobbies?”

“I like to read,” she said softly. “And I have always wanted to try crochet.”

“Crochet?”

“Yeah,” she replied nodding again and he noticed her eyes light up as she spoke. “I heard some girls at the club talking about the different things they'd made and it seemed pretty interesting. They said they learned from YouTube. I was just never able to get supplies to try.”

“Hmm, we might not be able to find supplies for that here, but we can look.”

“Ok,”

They passed a store display lined with plushies and he motioned to it. “Do you like anime? This store looks interesting.”

***

“Are you sure all this will fit in your car?” Kagome asked as they exited yet another clothing store. She was positive they'd visited every store in the mall now. He seemed determined to buy everything she showed interest in and it was unnerving to think of all the new clothes she had. She'd never owned this much in her life.

“Miroku should be here soon with the truck,” he replied, pulling her from her thoughts. “He'll be taking most of it.”

“Who's Miroku?”

“A friend. He works at the ranch.”

“Oh, ok. So, how big is the ranch anyway?”

“Not big. I just have a few horses. Miroku looks after them and does odd jobs around the house for me.”

She nodded. “So, where are we going now?”

“There's a book store just along here.” He pointed up the hall and Kagome's eyes were drawn to a large bookstore complete with…

“Coffee!”

Sesshoumaru chuckled, enjoying her obvious excitement. “Would you like some?”

She nodded emphatically and they soon were sitting down at a small table near the door, drinks in hand as they watched the passing shoppers.

Kagome moaned as she inhaled the steam wafting from her cup, her eyes closed as she savored the moment.

He chuckled. “Happy?”

“I love coffee,” she said, biting her lower lip in a strange half smile. “Sango always made a big pot for me and the girls every morning. My favorite thing is to put ice cream in it.”

“Ice cream?”

“Mmhmm,” Kagome nodded. “It makes it really frothy and also cools it down a bit too which I like. It's good in tea too, but coffee is my favorite.”

When they'd finished their coffee, Kagome began meandering through the aisles, her fingers trailing almost reverently along the tomes. She looked so peaceful, Sesshoumaru almost felt he was intruding. His phone vibrated and glanced down to read Miroku's text. Taking another look at Kagome, he decided to take a chance.

“Kagome,”

“Hmmm?” she mumbled, her eyes now hungrily scanning the pages of a thick novel.

“I need to go meet with Miroku. I'll be back later.” She nodded absentmindedly and he held out his credit card, slipping it on top of the page she was currently devouring. She finally looked up at him, her eyebrows drawn down in confusion. “Anything you want.” He said gently and she nodded again jerkily.

He found Miroku outside, casually leaning against the truck as he ogled a passing woman. “Really monk, can't you control yourself for one moment?”

“Hey! I haven't been a monk in a very long time, and there's no law that says I can't look.” He smirked, and Sesshoumaru realized there was no use. The man was hopeless, but he was also one of the best bodyguards in the business. He'd met Miroku years before and immediately been amazed by his skills. He had an uncanny ability to blend in with any surrounding and his background as a monk gave him an edge against youkai as well. When Sesshoumaru moved to America a few years back for a change of scenery, he'd casually offered Miroku a job as his ranch hand and had been completely surprised when he'd accepted.

“So, how's it going?” Miroku asked, nodding in the direction of the mall.

“As well as can be expected. Took a while to get her to buy anything, but I think she's starting to relax a little. She's in the bookstore.”

“Need me to stick around?” He asked as he secured the shopping bags under a tarp in the truck bed.

“The books should fit in my car. Do you know of any craft stores in the area?”

“Uhh,” Miroku looked around for a moment, completely baffled and shrugged. “That's what Google's for!”

“Hnn, send me the address and we'll meet you there. Kagome wants to learn how to crochet.”

“Huh, ok. I'll let you know when I find something.”

He nodded and returned to the bookstore, finally locating Kagome seated in the middle of one of the aisles, her eyes avidly scanning the pages of what looked like a mystery novel.

“Having fun?” he asked, kneeling down beside her. He picked up one of the books from the small pile beside her and glanced at the title. Another mystery novel. She finally looked up at him and he noted she used the receipt to mark her place. “Did you find everything you wanted?”

She nodded. “I wanted more, but these will do for now. Thank you.”

“No problem. What did you decide on?”

He listened intently as she showed him her finds. It turned out she had somewhat of a weakness for mystery and thriller books. She said her favorite part was figuring out the who's and what's before the end of the book. She also had a complete set of Harry Potter books, which she said had been a favorite of hers since middle school. She'd also gotten a romance novel, which she bashfully explained was by one of her favorite authors. According to her, this particular author's plot was usually just as interesting as the romance, and there was usually a mystery as well, which made it all the better to her.

He picked up her books, briefly wondering why she hadn't gotten a bag for them, and led her back out among the throngs of shoppers. They made their way back through the mall and were almost back to the entrance they'd come in at when Kagome stopped and looked around in confusion.

“Is this mall a circle?”

He chuckled. “Yes. However, Miroku once got lost in here so don't feel bad you didn't notice.”

She eyed him dubiously. “How do you get lost in a circular mall?”

“I suspect there was a woman involved, but you can never tell with him.”

She giggled. “So, where to now?”

“You'll see,”

She eyed him suspiciously, recalling what had happened when they'd arrived at the mall. She was unsure how many more surprises she could handle, but he refused to say anything further and with a sigh, she resigned herself to whatever he had in mind.