I'm going to give all the thanks to everyone who reviewed, and answer or clear up some stuff!

Much kudos to:

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DevilishGrl17

Golden Skies~(heehee.. the truth about Hojo had to come out somewhere!)

mojojojo

trublue

tillywilly

karri

setsuna

helen

animeangel~ Thanks so much for the advice! I'm a dorknugget, so I can't figure out HTML to save my life, but I spaced everything out in this chapter, and it DOES look better! *Bows down in gratefulness*

Lil Kagome

kittimarie8

hugs&kisses145

Mihara Aya~Thanks so much for the praise!

Geminia~ Geez, I'm just like a slushy! Ya'll are all making me melt with the reviews!

FirexAngel~Much thanks to your advice too! The R rating is strong, and on MediaMiner, I have this fic at NC-17, but, it will eventually reach a lemony point, but right now, it'll stay at PG13

moongoddess1989 ~Thanks a lot for reminding me about the disclaimer! Ahh, I can't believe how stupid I was to forget that! Shh... we'll keep this between us and Rumiko won't have to know about it.. heehee!

Mystic Kintoun~I will certainly NOT let you forget about my storry.. heheeh! J/k.. not really... but, lol!

EmeraldDragon~ I owe a lot to you first of all! You reviewed for me at MediaMiner, and I love your reviews! They make my heart flutter... heehe! Btw, if you may have noticed, or will notice, I think the ff.net version of Playing the Game will be a little different than the one I have on MediaMiner, because I changed some things around.. gah, you'll see! Thanks for the support!

DeprivedSoul

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Thanks to all the reviewers! I DO hope this story gets a lot of reviews.. reviews are like endorphines. Instant happiness! Heehee... but, I'm just saying that reviews will determine if put out more stories or not so..... everyone whose reading and likes it but doesn't review should review! Or I will open cans of kick @$$ all over--- oops, heehe, got carried away! Sorry about that! Well, I guess it's on to the story! Make sure you read my LOOOOOONG author's notes down at the end of the chapter too! There will be a special bakery treat for you... *No Inu, it isn't Ramen!* Heheehe...oh, and I don't own Inu-Yasha... I never will either.. unless we do some serious time warping.. but, I won't count on that! Besides, Rumiko Takahashi is the only true owner!!!!!!!!!

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Places to Go, people to see

Inu-Yasha had a lot on his mind at the moment. I mean, it wasn't every day that you get an offer out of the blue to go to Tokyo.

'This all seems so suspicous... Sesshomaru knows something that I don't. There has to be a reason he doesn't want to do it. It's not like him to back out of something he'd get all the glory for,' Inu-Yasha thought.

And, who the hell was Kagome Higurashi? He'd checked the folder Sesshomaru had given him for any pictures or information about her, but he'd found none.

'She's probably just some little girl who'd be a waste of my time...'

Yea, that was it. Deciding he didn't want to think about it anymore, Inu-Yasha felt very relieved when his home came into view. All he could think about was maybe showering and getting in his comfy bed.

After parking the Jag, he locked it up in the garage and went to the front yard to get inside his house.

Stepping back for a moment to admire his home, he thought about how much he'd worked his ass off to get here. Even though he didn't like to admit it, without Sesshomaru and Kaiyan's help, he wouldn't be where he was. He'd probably be working for minimum wage at Burger King or something. His only regret was that he wished his Mother could see how well he was doing.

Inu-Yasha had just walked in through the door of his multi-million dollar home when his cell phone vibrated at his side. He then grimaced. He wasn't home but for one second, and he was already getting a phone call. What the hell was wrong with people these days?!?

'Aw fuck… not another interruption! All I wanna do I go to sleep!' Inu-Yasha thought irritably. With a sigh of frustration, he yanked the phone out of its carrying case and checked the caller id. Needless to say, when he saw Sesshomaru's name flash upon the phone, the last thing that came to his head was to do the taco dance. (A/N~ Heehee.. the taco dance is a dance that I made up, and it involves a huge hat and a lot of funny words! )

He answered the phone in a not-so-pleasant-manner.

"What the hell do you want?!?"

A deep chuckle came from the phone. The last thing Inu-Yasha needed to hear was Sesshomaru laugh at his grumpiness.

"Oh, dear brother… I thought I would just call to check up on you. I do worry for your sake so much.. I am rather surprised though. I would have thought you'd be in bed by now… do you want me to come over to read a bed time story?" Sesshomaru said with amusement evident in his voice.

"Alright, quit with the bullshit Sesshomaru. What the hell are you doing calling me at 2 A.M.?"

"Funny you should mention that Inu…"

"Yea, yea, yea..don't Inu me. Just cut to the chase."

"I need you to leave for Tokyo soon…."

"Soon? As in a few days?."

"No.. soon, as in.. now."

Inu-Yasha almost fainted.

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'Fuck Inu-Yasha, what the hell am I doing here at the airport at this ungodly time of night?!?'

Miroku was waiting in his SUV in the parking lot of the L.A. International Airport for Inu-Yasha to show up, and let's just say he wasn't a happy camper.

"Man, I really am too good for that man. All I get is a lousy message on my cell that says, ' Yo, Miroku. Pack some luggage and get your ass to the airport-- Inu' and that's that. No FORMAL phone call or anything." Miroku muttered to no one in particular. He was used to getting into some sticky situations with Inu-Yasha, but not if he could help it.

With a loud sigh, and some funny mumblings about Inu-Yasha getting castrated, Miroku rested his eyes against the steering wheel and feel into a light slumber.

He needed to catch up on the sleep that had been wrongfully stolen from him by a frantic Inu-Yasha.

Oh, what dreams he had during that nap. Beautiful, scantily clothed women dancing around him, giggling and caressing him.

' Oh Miroku,' they would say, ' your so big, and strong, and handsome, and sexy….' Ahhh, yes, the power of dreams. They can be quite pleasurable until someone interrupts them.

Tap. Tap. Tap.

Tap. Tap. Tap.

"Oi, Miroku! Wake up bouzo! This is no time to be napping!" Inu-Yasha said while tapping the driver side window.

Miroku began to stir, but he wasn't waking up fast enough for Inu-Yasha's taste.

Inu-Yasha plugged his fingers in his ears as he yelled, "PERVERT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

With a jump, Miroku automatically yelled, "I swear I didn't do it!"

Inu-Yasha sweat dropped.

Miroku looked guiltily around and saw a reddening hanyou outside his car door. With a nervous laugh, he began to roll down the window.

"Why, if it isn't my best pal Inu-Yasha! What a surprise seeing you here!"

Inu-Yasha looked at him with disgust written plainly over his handsome features.

"Dumbass, I was the one who told you to meet me here! Get out of the damn car!"

"Wait a sec bucko! How do I know if your really Inu-Yasha? You could be some figment of my imagination." a suspicious Miroku said. He WAS still half asleep.

"For the love of god!" With that, Inu-Yasha opened the car door and yanked a yelping Miroku out of the car.

(A/N~ Miroku lives life on the dangerous side-- he doesn't lock his car door at night.. Heehee! )

"Dammit Inu-Yasha! This isn't fair! We can't go rendezvousing at empty airport parking lots! If you wanted a date, you could of atleast taken me out to a nice restaurant.." Miroku groaned. That earned him a slap upside the head from a pissed hanyou.

"Just shut the hell up Miroku! I need your help." Inu-Yasha mumbled.

He really didn't like asking people for their help. Asking for help made him feel…. weak?

Of course, Miroku wasn't going to be satisfied with his plea.

"No way jose! I'm not going to let you scam me into another adventure without getting the full story!"

With a sigh, he began to tell Miroku about the whole Higurashi merger story. About 10 minutes later, Miroku was finally caught up with everything.

"Alright.. I can understand why Sesshomaru needs you to go do some of his dirty work, but what does all of this have to do with me? I don't even work for the company!" a grouchy, and lets not forget very sleepy, Miroku sounded out with a pout on his face. Suddenly, even the pavement was looking like a nice place to sleep...

"Miroku buddy, we've been friends forever! Why would you wanna give up a trip to Tokyo?" an inquiring Inu-Yasha asked.

"Because I have better things to do with my time than stick around for some boring merger!" Miroku said as he rubbed the sleep out of his eyes. He DID have better things to do with his time than to save Inu-Yasha's sorry ass. He was a rather important man himself, mind you.

Miroku Sayano was, like Inu-Yasha, a very wealthy & handsome bachelor. Like

Inu-Yasha's family, Miroku's family were the founders of a very well-known business, Kazana I.C. Miroku had made a name for himself in the business district of L.A. for his persistance & his successful business deals. Unlike Inu-Yasha, Miroku has a little thing we call patience.

Another thing he also had was good looks. Miroku had this bronze, sun-kissed skin, deep violet-purple eyes, and dark, cropped hair with a small pony tail. Sounds like a pretty likeable guy, right? Well he IS likeable.. but there is the catch. The catch you ask? Well.. we'll just say his luck with the ladies isn't nearly as good as Inu-Yasha's, due to the fact that he cannot process what the words *No*, *Quit*, & *Leave me alone & never talk to me again* mean.

Miroku was a very big romanticist, and was always out to look for the mother of his child. For some odd reason, unbeknownst to Inu-Yasha, he thought he would die without an heir. Needless to say that didn't go over very well with most women at the bars and the clubs. Now back to the story….

"I'll make it worth your while.." Inu-Yasha teasingly said.

"How in the hell can you make it worth my while? Dammit Inu-Yasha, you made me meet you at 2 in the morning, babbling about some sudden trip that you wanted me to come with you, and you make it sound like it's some dire emergency! Did I forget to mention that we're in the L.A. International Airport, and it's 2 A.M.? Who in the hell boards a plane at this time??? Again, I ask, how in the hell can you make it worth my while?!?" Miroku screamed as he frantically paced around Inu-Yasha.

Inu-Yasha wanted to slap himself in the head. He really wanted Miroku to go.. he was like his only real friend. Miroku's business skills were also kick-ass, and it'd be nice to have a friend around in case Tokyo was a complete bore.. or, to be more specific, this Kagome Higurashi girl wasn't at all what Sesshomaru made her out to be.

A grin passed over his face. He knew how to hook Miroku in.

"Oh, silly me… did I forget to mention that Tokyo is known world wide for it's women? Yes.. the women.. oh, the beautiful women! But, silly me, your not interested," Inu-Yasha said with persuasion laced in his voice," so, I guess I'll just go without you then."

"Beautiful women?"

"Yes, my deprived friend, beautiful women."

A dreamy look came over Miroku's features. Oh, yes, Inu-Yasha had hooked him.

"I do love beautiful women, but.."

Uh oh. Buts were never good.

"You barely gave me any time to pack you dumbass! I didn't bring nearly enough of what I would normally need!"

"Miroku, that's the least of our worries right now. We'll get that all taken care of when we get to Tokyo!"

At first Miroku was a little hesitant to go with such a spur of the moment type of deal. He liked to sit things out and plan everything. But.. there were the beautiful women. The beautiful women definitely beat out his conscience.

"Well then, what are we waiting on? Beautiful women, here we come!"

The friends then promptly got their luggage out and went to go buy a ticket.

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On the plane ride…

"KYAAAA! HENTAI MAN!!!!" *Slap* *Slap* *Slap*

(a/n~ sorry miroku fans! I can't help it... I laugh my ass off everytime he gets pimp slapped!!)

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Back at the Higurashi Country Estate…

After A LOT of makeup reapplications and second thoughts on jewelry, Kagome was finally ready. She took a good look at herself in her vanity mirror, and smiled when she saw the beautiful reflection smiling back at her.

'Ha…. Eat your heart out Britney Spears!' she thought with a sly expression across her face. Yup... atleast her erm-, assets, were real.



She had a short, strapless, sparkling dark green gown on with white and black sequins. Strappy black stilettos adorned her french manicured feet. Her hair was down and had a lot of volume to it. She definitely looked amazing. All she had to do was grab her glitzy black handbag and she was good to go.

She looked at the diamond studded watch on her wrist and realized she was going to be even more late than what she already was if she didn't put a step on it.

"Pierre! Pierre! Get the limo ready, it's time to go!" she yelled. I mean, surely he'd be able to hear her 2 floors down, right? She rushed to her window to see Pierre running towards the limo barn. With a knowing smile, she blew herself a kiss at the mirror as she made her way out of the room, turning off the lights as she locked her door.

You never knew when Souta was going to have one of his curiosity phases.

' Hmp, puberty'.

With a shake of the head, she made her way to the long, winding staircase. As she made her was down to the first floor, she saw her parents talking in hushed tones in the dining room. They almost seemed to be arguing, which was very rare. 'What's up with them?' Kagome curiously thought.

"You know she's not going to go along with it Kenji! She'll hate you forever if you force her into that!" Mrs. Higurashi whispered harshly.

'They're talking about me! They have to be!' Kagome thought nervously.

Something fisy was definitely going on around here. Kagome hid behind the wall to hear more of the conversation. She didn't like eavsdropping like this, but what's a girl to do?

"Listen to me Makoa, I'm not going to force her into anything! I would never do that to my own daughter! Marriage is one of the only options though!" Kenji replied back, his edges already frayed.

'Marriage!?!?!?!' Kagome thought, her ears burning at that thought. (a/n~okay, is it just me or whenever any of ya'll get in trouble or something along that nature, do your ears start to burn? Maybe I'm just one in a million....'

Deciding she didn't want to hear anymore, she regained her composure and cleared her throat, walking in on the two.

Startled, her parents looked up and saw Kagome staring at them intently.

"Oh, hello sweetheart! My, you look very radiant tonight!" Mrs. Higurashi said with hint of nervousness evident in her voice.

"Hi… did I interrupt something? It looked like the two of you were arguing…" Kagome trailed off.

She knew they weren't going to tell her anything about that conversation; obviously, Kagome wasn't supposed to hear any of it.

"No, sweetie, your mother and I were just talking. Kagome, we have a very important business associate staying with us for a while. They should be arriving tonight. Your mother and I were just talking about his sleeping arrangements."

Mr. Higurashi smoothly said, unlike her obvious mother.

It wasn't a rare thing for people the family was doing business with to stay with them, but what bothered her was the there were 4 guest bedrooms, but what really got her was the fact they were lying to her like it was nothing.

"Alright, whatever. I'm leaving for Sango's dinner party. I'll call for Pierre around 12 or so.. don't worry, I'll be back by curfew…" Kagome said with sincerity. Even if they weren't going to be truthful with her yet, she had a feeling that they shouldn't know she had heard what they were talking about. She just decided to drop it; she knew her parents would never force her to do anything bad or whatever. So, what's the worce that could happen?

It was most time to make the appearance at Sango's dinner party anyways.

Putting a smile on her face, Kagome yelled out the door,

"Bye Mom and Dad! I'll see you later!"

With that, Kagome was finally out the door and on her way to a rather eventful night.

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Thanks everyone who reviewed on ff.net! It feels so awesome for people to review and critique your work... thanks everybody! I'm so very happy!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Yes!!! Chapter 3 is done!!! Aren't you all happy?!??! I know I am! Lol! Well, everyone, please do me a favor and review! You know you want to.. I'll even throw in a cookie! Everyone likes cookies, ne? That's what I thought! Review, review, review! You know you want to!!!!!!!!!! Oh, lol, before I forget! Okay, the only way I'm getting access to Inu-Yasha is through the internet, and the English dub that Adult Swim is putting out. But.. of course, I can't settle just for that! I've been DYING to get my hands on an Inu-Yasha graphic novel, or some manga, but all the sites I go to only have a few novels here, and a few there. From my research, the Inu-Yasha manga is in Volume 31, which is WAAAAAAAAAY ahead of the anime, and from what *resources* say, it's getting close to the end! Knowing the way America works, I probably wouldn't see the whole series for years, and I can't stand for that! So, I'm looking for a site that has the monthly issues of Inu-Yasha the manga; I know you might think I'm being picky, but this is it: I don't wanna spend a lot of money on let's say.. 12 issues, and not be able to find anymore after that. As long as the graphic novel/manga is in English or has subtitles, I'm cool. I'm not good with Japanese characters.. the only thing I know how to do is my name! So, if anyone has some REALLY good sites for me to visit, please please please fill me in! I so wish I lived in Japan.. I'd get to see all of my favorite animes whenever I damned well pleased, and getting a comic would be like going for a walk in the park. Okay, now that I'm done ranting and raving, PLEASE REVIEW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! My e-mail is Lilfriedette_07@rock. com.. c'mon guys.. you can e-mail me.. I don't bite!!! One more thing.. please If any one has any information about my wanting info on ordering the manga and/or the graphic novels, please get in touch with me!!!

Thanks for listening!

¸.·´´´(``·.¸(``·.¸l¸.·´´)¸.·´´)```·.

«´¨`·.¸~*KiiKii*~ ¸.·´¨`»

``·.¸,,(¸.·`´(¸.·`´l``·.¸)``·.¸)¸¸¸.·

P.S.~ Okay, I read on a anime web board site (sorry, can't remember the site, but it was real & did have threads and stuff ) that there will be new Inu-Yasha episodes coming to Adult Swim in August. They said they'd be stopping in July, but start dishing us the new episodes in August. I think Adult Swim sucks ass during the school year, because just to get my dose of Inu and the gang, I have to stay up till 12! ( I live in Central time in case you were wondering ) So, they better make it worth my while!!!! Oh, I don't know if the new eps are actually coming- it was just a post by someone who said they had read it on a site. So don't *sit* me if I'm wrong! *Phew* And now, I'm done!

(\/)~ Quote of the Day ~ (\/)

"If your parents never had children, chances are neither will you."

Thought of by my ingenious friend, Lauren!

Hugs & Kisses Lauren!