I don't own Inuyasha, boohoo.

>

Chapter 9: Preparations

After Toga had left the others followed Takagu and Susano-O out of the main room, what they walked into was what appeared to be an indoor forest. Instead of columns there were trees, massive trees. The trunks were so large a person could get a serious workout simply by running around the bases. Like the other room the ceiling was glowing softly but the leaves and branches that filled the air above them obstructed the glow. Takagu detached herself from the King and skipped off to the right disappearing behind a tree. The King continued going straight ahead as several wraiths appeared and surrounded him. Takagu came back into view as the group continued to follow the King. She was hopping up in down in place with a couple of wraiths standing just behind her.

"This way!" She said happily. The door the King and wraiths had exited through slid shut so the only option they had was to follow her. Yukio stood staring after the King a little expectantly.

"Yukio, you should go change before dinner, your robes are torn." Takagu scolded him as she wagged her finger at him. Yukio looked painfully distressed and even blushed slightly. Thrusting his chin up he walked past the group towards the back exit.

"Yes, do as the baby tells you." Sesshoumaru said as Yukio passed.

Yukio paused and looked at Sesshoumaru out of the corner of his eye. With a twist of his wrist he started the scythe rotating, transferring it to his left hand as the weapon spun. As the weapon was transferred one of he chines came close enough to Sesshoumaru to cut off several of his hairs. Sesshoumaru narrowed his eyes and let out something like a growl. Suddenly the light from one of the wraiths flared to blinding.

"Don't worry, I'm not going to do anything." Yukio said to the wraith as he walked on by, turning right after exiting the room.

Takagu watched him disappear from sight all the while sticking her lower lip out in a pout. When she heard Sesshoumaru scoff she turned her head around and gave him her pout. He glared at her.

"Damnit, why are we going along with this?" Inuyasha demanded.

"I don't see why we can't eat something." Shippo said from his perch on Kagome's shoulder.

"More importantly it sounded like we are going to find out something about thins Aneko-Kimi." Miroku put in.

"Yes, Aneko-Kimi is a princess of hell, we will probably need to gather some information before going after her." Sango agreed.

"Uh, you guys." Kagome said hooking her head in Takagu's direction.

Takagu's eyes had gone wide with confusion as they had spoken. Miroku and Sango looked sheepish as they realized they had been talking about fighting with Takagu's mother in front of Takagu.

"Odd . . ." Takagu said as she looked up in concentration.

"What's odd?" Kagome asked.

"Aneko-Kimi isn't here." Takagu said looking at Kagome.

"You can tell?" Miroku asked.

"Oh yes," Takagu said with a giggle, "She's always making a ruckus. Now come on you have to clean up before dinner."

"I don't think so." Sesshoumaru said as he started to walk past Takagu. She opened her mouth to say something but before she could say anything the wraith nearest him flared again but this time the light flaring condescend into lightning, moving across it's form in a threat. Sesshoumaru paused before stepping closer to the wraith. The lighting jumped snaking out and swiping Sesshoumaru, before he could react several strand of lighting jumped and wrapped around him, stinging him until smoke rose from his clothes.

"Stop!" Takagu ordered the wraith, for the first time sounding more like a girl her age then a toddler.

The lightning dissipated and the wraith stood down. Takagu looked down at Sesshoumaru, who had to kneel down from the lightning attack. Streamers of smoke were still coming from his singed clothes.

"You will do as I say, Grandfather's orders are in effect." Takagu said putting her hands on her hips." Suddenly everyone was confused, was this the same girl as the one they had meet in the River of Memories?

"Whoa, she got an attitude all of the sudden." Sango whispered to Miroku.

"I wonder if before was just an act?" Miroku whispered back.

Suddenly Takagu turned and skipped out of the room.

"Or, maybe it's not." Miroku said.

They followed Takagu out the door and down the hallway to the left, the two wraiths following behind. After awhile Takagu came to a stop in front of a large white door that looked very much like all the other doors they had passed.

"This is a wash room where you can get cleaned up." She said gesturing to the door, which opened at her movement. Inside was a small sitting room with two doors, one going to the right, the other to the left.

"To the right is the women's washroom, the left the men's. When you are ready, or dinners ready, the wraiths will lead you to the dinning hall." Takagu said. She smiled brightly as she bowed to them before skipping off past them, going in the direction they had come from.

Shippo bounced off of Kagome and headed for the women's washroom. With a shrug directed at Sango, Kagome followed. Soon they had separated going to their appropriate rooms. In the men's room Inuyasha and Sesshoumaru looked around suspiciously. Miroku glanced about and saw a pitcher and bowl sitting on a nearby table. He shrugged.

"Probably should do as ordered, I don't want to end up like Sesshoumaru." Miroku said.

Sesshoumaru took a threatening step towards him when Inuyasha stepped out from between them. Out of nowhere three wraiths appeared and Sesshoumaru ceased his intimidation, sort of. He still glared at Miroku. When he finally looked away from him though, he found one of the wraiths uncomfortably close to him. The wraith lifted it's hand and let it hover over Sesshoumaru's nearest sleeve. A soft glow shinned on the cloth and when the wraith moved it's hand away the cloth was both repaired and clean. Inuyasha stared in astonishment before noticing that a wraith was headed towards him.


In the girl's room Sango and Kagome washed up. Shippo splashed his face in one of the washbowls that had been left out. Two wraiths stood by and when Sango had finished washing up one of them approached her, giving her a small bottle.

"For the two-tailed." The wraith said in it's watery voice.

"Thank You." Sango said bowing slightly at the strange creature. The wraith bowed back.

Sango opened the bottle and sniffed it.

"What is it?" Shippo asked leaning up to sniff it as well. Sango giggled.

"It seems they thing Kilala smells. It's a floral scented soap."

"Mew!"

Sango poured some of the soap into her hand. She proceeded to rub down and wash Kilala, whose purring said she forgave Sango for insulting her. Suddenly they heard a loud commotion coming from the men's washroom.

"I said get the hell away from me!"

"What are YOU doing!"

Both of these remarks where coming from Inuyasha. Kagome sighed heavily and walked out to the sitting room. The doors leading to the men's washroom was wide open. They could see Sesshoumaru staring with disdain at Inuyasha while Miroku tried futilely to calm down Inuyasha.

"Please Inuyasha, it's not so bad." He said moving in front of Inuyasha who had a huge pile of shampoo on his head. It was dripping off his hair onto his robes making him wet all over. Kagome giggled and Inuyasha turned on her.

"You stay out of this!" He yelled pointing at Kagome. "Back off you creepy ass ghoul!" He yelled when a wraith started to come near him.

Suddenly a loud chiming came from down the hallway, echoing off the ceilings.

"Dinner is ready." One of the wraiths said and moved to the open doorway, walking out into the hallway. "Follow me."

It turned right and headed down the hallway. Kagome looked around and realized that all the other wraiths had disappeared. Inuyasha's right, they are creepy.

Inuyasha managed to draw everyone's attention when he crouched down started proceeded to shake like a dog riding himself of the shampoo residue and water.

"Disgusting mutt." Sesshoumaru said walking past them, strangely being the first to follow the wraith.

"Hey your all clean, and your robes are repaired." Kagome said pointing at Sesshoumaru's clothes. He stopped and glared at her. She gulped.

Sesshoumaru disappeared as he followed the wraith down the hallway. Soon all of them followed. Once in the hallway they followed the wraith down one hallway, then another, until Kagome was hopelessly lost.

Did this place look this big on the outside? She thought.

Finally they came to the biggest doors she had seen yet. The two story rice paper sliding doors where gigantic. And unlike all of the other doors, which had no markings on them, this one had a beautiful black tree design going up each on the panels, with blackbirds and flowers mixed in. As they approached the doors slid open and revealed a large room with most of it three steps lower then the level they were standing on. In the center of the room was a dinning table that could fit 20 people and looked very small in the vastness of the room. Large red banners hung from the glowing ceiling, moving with the soft breeze in the room.

Yukio was already sitting at the table, on the left hand side to the tables end. Obviously he had changed his clothes and had taken off his armor. He was sipping from a goblet when the doors opposite the one they had entered slid open, revealing the King. It appeared as if the King hadn't even changed and there were still wraiths hovering around him. He held up his and waved them away, which they promptly did. Yukio stood up and bowed to the King as he descended. The King acknowledged him with a nod and then gestured to the rest of them.

"Please take a seat." He said in that booming voice made all the louder by the large room.

They all did as they were told. Sang sat next to Yukio, who gave her a once over. She glared at him while Miroku sat down next to her followed by Kilala and Shippo. On the other side the two pillows that made up the seats nearest the King had been removed so Kagome sat down three seats down from the King followed by Inuyasha. Sesshoumaru stood glaring at all of them.

"I think you should sit down Sesshoumaru." The King said not even looking at him.

"And I think not." Sesshoumaru said defiantly. Suddenly a wraith appeared next to Sesshoumaru, it's light pulsating.

"I wouldn't do anything rash, young man. After all if I condemn you to the pits what fate will befall your young ward, Rin." The King said.

"You know about that?" Kagome said leaning forward.

"Of course I do. As I said before I know all that goes on in my realm."

"Then why, sir, did you ask us for our names?" Miroku asked.

"Formality, manners." He said smiling, "Let's wait for Toga and Takagu before we discuss your plan of action with regards to Aneko-Kimi."

And as if on cue, the doors the King himself had entered from slid open. Toga stood there sans armor. His long luxurious kimono partially hid by Takagu's who was now attached to his side.

"Please, Papa!" She pleaded.

"I said no, Takagu." He said guiding her with a hand on her back.

>

I know, I know, I said they'd be having dinner soon after chapter 7 and they will! Apparently though I write more then I realized and I had to write this transistion like scene because if I included the dinner it would get too long. So next chapter will defently have the dinner scene and this will be the chapter where what's going on is explained so if you want to know, review!