The Spider Queen

(Alpha Star System – Planet Gaia)

(N'rean City- Mall of Volantis)

"It feels good to be back…" Sophie sighed happily as she held Cleo's hand.

The pair were walking through the mall and spending an afternoon window shopping for new clothes and other items.

Most clothes and goods could be ordered online through the virtual Net but there was just something special about walking and inspecting the clothes yourself.

"I was thinking about getting some… sexy underwear…" Cleo whispered seductively as she stood on her tip toes and pressed a soft kiss against Sophie's lower chin.

She wanted to kiss her girlfriend's lips but unfortunately it was a bit difficult to meet the lips of someone who was around seven feet in height.

Cleo was not a short girl but damn… she sometimes felt tiny as she walked next to her girlfriend, and it was not a good feeling.

"Babe… don't tempt me like that… we just got back yesterday…" Sophie replied with a warning glint in her eyes.

She had to push down the urges that were starting to rise up in her body as she became more aware of Cleo's soft fingers that were grazing her palm.

Sophie took in a few deep breaths to calm down and then gestured towards a shop that was right around the corner.

"Do you want to take a look at the bookshop?" Sophie asked sweetly as she tilted her head to the side.

"Sure… I don't mind checking it out," Cleo replied as she walked with an additional spring in her steps.

The two girls neared the tiny store that was squeezed between a large jewellery store and a weapons shop.

A sign was plastered across one of the glass windows with the words 'Rose's Library' printed out in a bold front.

The door was open and only one employee could be seen standing behind the cash register with a bored look on his face.

He was an average looking man in his early twenties with a crop of fiery red hair that was neatly combed to the side.

"Welcome to the…. um… welcome to the Rose's Library!" the young man stammered as he was a bit taken aback by Sophie's hybrid appearance.

To his credit, he recovered quickly and gestured towards the back of the shop where rows upon rows of bookshelves could be seen.

This store was like a relic from a bygone era. Each book that was on the shelves was made from paper and ink.

The atmosphere inside the store was very quiet and comfortable.

Oddly enough there was not a single android in sight, nor any signs of technology save for the cash register in front of the young employee.

Clearly whoever was the owner of this store was a bit eccentric and probably didn't expect to earn a significant amount of profit.

With the ease and access of the virtual Net, physical books were a rarity that were mainly collected by the upper class.

Sophie nodded politely at the young man behind the counter and then led Cleo to the back of the store.

"What genre do you like to read?" Sophie asked curiously as she saw her girlfriend walk over to a small directory map.

"I love fantasy and romance s…" Cleo replied casually as she ran her fingers along the map and hummed quietly to herself.

"I used to read them a lot when I was younger… and well I guess that I'm still a bit nostalgia for them to be honest…"

"What about you?"

Sophie thought about the question for a moment and then gave a reply, "Hmm… I'm a decent fan of horror."

"I mean… I like reading adventure and fantasy stories as well but I'm not really the biggest fan of romance…"

"The main characters are always so unlikeable… I get so irritated when their love interest starts abusing or hurting them and it's written as a sign of affection."

"Or just a troublesome bump in the journey to a happy ending."

Cleo nodded her head in agreement and then quickly darted off to a certain section as a book caught her eye among the sea of titles present on the bookshelves.

"Check this out!" Cleo said excitedly as she pulled a book from the shelf and handed it over to Sophie.

"The watchmaker chronicles?" Sophie raised an eyebrow and asked with a puzzled tone.

"It's about time travel! This girl gets sent back to the ancient Earth era and falls in love with a local warlord!" Cleo explained as she flipped over the book and read the back.

Sophie listened with an indulgent smile on her face as her girlfriend walked from bookshelf to bookshelf and picked up more books.

Every time that she selected a new one, Cleo would turn around and explain to Sophie just how amazing the book was or how she was a big fan of the author.

Truthfully this was the first time that Sophie had seen this side of her girlfriend and frankly speaking…

She looked quite adorable.

Even Sophie herself was infected by Cleo's enthusiasm and decided to grab a book of her own that she saw in the horror section.

It was called 'The Psylock Experiments' and the cover had the illustration of a young woman attached to a bizarre looking torture device with several needles inserted into her body.

The description on the back claimed that it was based on a true story, but Sophie scoffed as she read that line.

Every cheesy horror or movie had that same tagline. Sophie picked up her book and followed behind her girlfriend as she wandered around the bookstore.

"Okay… I think that's enough…" Cleo finally spoke after thirty minutes had passed.

"You think? Look at how many books are in your hand?!" Sophie teased with a mischievous glint in her eyes.

Cleo was currently holding over eleven s in her palms and was awkwardly trying to stop the pile from falling over.

Sophie shook her head and reached out with her arms to take half of the books away from her girlfriend.

"Thank you, babe...' Cleo smiled sheepishly as Sophie leaned in and planted a soft kiss against her forehead.

'Anytime honey… what else are girlfriends for?" Sophie chuckled lightly as she walked over to the counter.

The young man behind the counter held up a small metalloid device and a beam of red light shot out which then scanned the books in front of him.

A small monitor popped out from behind the desk with the total cost of the books which was around three thousand Enas.

"Are you paying separately or…" the young man politely asked.

"Put it on my card," Sophie quickly interrupted him as she saw Cleo open her mouth to offer to pay.

The young man nodded and then held out the payment device. Sophie reached into her storage bag to pull out a thin black card which she then inserted into the device.

It only took a few second for the payment to process and then a soft bleeping noise was heard.

"Thank you for shopping at Rose's Library… would you like a bag?" the young man asked softly as he pushed the books towards Sophie.

Sophie shook her head to decline his offer and then placed the books one by one in her storage bag for safekeeping.

It was really useful to have a pocket dimension especially when on a shopping trip.

The pair walked out of the bookstore and Cleo turned to face her girlfriend with a stern expression on her face.

"Babe… you can't pay all the time… it's not right…" Cleo said firmly as she planted her hands on her hips and stared at Sophie.

"You know I get a stipend from the royal treasury so I can afford to treat you and buy you gifts so please let me…"

"No… I don't want you to spend…" Sophie hesitantly replied as she could tell that her girlfriend was feeling a bit annoyed.

"And is it right for you to pay for everything?" Cleo quietly retorted in a calm tone.

"Sophie… I am grateful that you want to treat me all the time but our relationship… I want it to be equal…"

"You can pay sometimes, and I can pay sometimes…"