1
The old hag Yubaba had led Inuyasha, Kagome, Miroku and Sango to their separate bath stalls. Inuyasha and Kagome in one, Miroku and Sango in the other. The bath itself was a sort of Jacuzzi with a perfect temperature of water and a light jetting of bubbles. Inuyasha was sitting down on the seat of the tub and Kagome was snuggling up next to him. The only sound that either of them could hear was the bubbling of the water. Complete peace.
"This is really relaxing," Kagome sighed. Inuyasha nodded in agreement, but she had her eyes closed, so she didn't see him. But she knew he agreed with her.
Suddenly, the sound of voices overtook the sound of the bubbling water. "Do you hear that, Kagome?" Inuyasha asked, looking towards the stall's door. She shook her head. He shrugged it off, and then closed his eyes.
The sound did not go away. It got closer. From what it sounded like, there was a large group of people heading their way. Kagome opened her eyes and glanced at the door. She pulled back from Inuyasha as he got up from the tub. He walked over to the door and peered outside. There was indeed a large group of people, most of which were actually demons. Not mean looking demons, mind you, but demons nonetheless. He looked past them and saw a carriage being carried by four people. Sort of like one of those ancient Egyptian transports that they carried pharaohs and princess in. Inuyasha ducked back into the stall as the gang of people passed. They were heading to the end of the hall. Yubaba had told them that the bath stalls in the room at the end of the hall were reserved for the most important of people.
"Who is it, Inuyasha?" Kagome asked, startling her boyfriend.
"I dunno," he answered, scratching his head.
Yubaba came down the hall and stopped at their door. "This is a real treat," she smiled. "To have such a dignified person at my bathhouse is a real honor."
"Who is that?" Kagome asked politely.
"That," Yubaba beamed, "is the legendary Chinese martial artist known as Mousse."
Inuyasha looked at her dumfounded. The person that he saw in the carriage could not have been who this old hag had just said. There wasn't even a person in it! It was a duck! "But," he started. But the hag cut him off.
"You two should feel really lucky that you get to share in this rare treat!" she exclaimed. She dashed off to the end of the hall, opened the door and slipped inside.
"It was a duck," Inuyasha muttered to himself. "Just a bloody du-"
"Wait," Kagome interrupted, "Didn't Mousse go to Jusenkyou and fall into the Spring of the Cursed Duck?"
Inuyasha stared at her blankly. "What?"
"That's what I heard, anyways," Kagome said, looking at the closed door at the end of the hall. "So maybe that duck you saw..." She trailed off. They walked back into the hot tub and sat back down in it, cuddling.
2
The airport was definitely an intimidating place. So many people, so many shops, so many everything. Kagura had specifically asked the four kids to stick close with her, or else get lost in the chaos that was this airport of Japan. They made their way from the plane and into the lobby, where yet more confusion was awaiting them. They searched the area and people frantically, searched for a familiar face. They saw none and all sighed, breathing out a puff of mushroom shaped smoke.
Hakudoushi had taken his gaze to the top floor, a variable maze of shops and stores and salons and saloons. Seeing this was almost overbearing, and he started loosing his equilibrium. He tumbled over, but got back his balance. "This is almost too much," he gasped.
"Yes, well," Kagura muttered, still searching the lobby, "Welcome home."
"You told Sesshy when we'd be arriving, right?" Rin asked Kagura, holding her hand. Kagura said she had.
Kohaku, meanwhile, had his gaze fixed on something on the ceiling. "What is it, Kohaku?" Kanna asked, trying to look for what it might be that he was looking at. She saw nothing. Then, out of nowhere, Kohaku bolted off. She yelled at him to come back, but he did not. She followed him with her eyes. He ran up the escalator, pushing past all the people. He reached the top floor and leaned over the banister that blocked the plummet to the floor below. She followed his gaze to a catwalk hanging from the ceiling. Then she saw what he had been looking at. There was an oddly colored purple cat stuck up there, lying on its belly, hiding its head in its arms.
Kohaku brandished his sickle and threw it at the catwalk. It struck the catwalk and was repelled back. He tried again, and again missed. On the third time he managed to wrap his sickle around part of the catwalk. Then, without thinking, he stood up on the banister and leapt off, swinging on the chain of his sickle. He clambered up to the catwalk and crawled over to the scared cat.
"It's okay," he said, holding his hand out to it, "You're safe now." The cat looked at him, then to his outstretched hand. It crawled cautiously over to it, sniffed it, and then licked it. He picked it up and petted its head. It was wearing no collar, so he assumed it was just a lost stray.
After he had climbed back down with it, Kohaku rejoined his group. He was welcomed with a bonk on the noggin by Kanna. "Don't ever run off like that again!" she exclaimed. Then she looked at the cat. "Aww!" she said, taking it from him, "She's so cute!" The cat, lying in her arms, began to purr.
3
Kikyou flicked the lights. They still did not work.
She and Renkotsu were coming back down to the cellar to tell their prisoner the decision that she had made about whether or not to let him out of there. She just could not trust him enough to let him out into their house. All she could offer was a compromise: let him out for an hour or so every day for exercise. Renkotsu did not think that this was a wise decision at all.
They arrived at the makeshift jail cell. "We've come to a decision," Kikyou said. "And I'm sorry, but I can't let you out."
"I see," the captor said softly. Kikyou proposed the compromise. He nodded, although they barely saw it. Kikyou walked back up the stairs, but Renkotsu stayed behind.
"I'm really sorry," he said.
"That's okay," said the captor. "You tried your best. That's all I could ask for." He sighed.
Renkotsu took one last look at the cell, and then headed upstairs himself. He found his pet cat demon, Kazan, waiting there for him at the door. He picked him up and walked into the living room. Bankotsu and Sekka were sitting on the couch, watching Love Hina. Bankotsu managed to pry his eyes off the television for a second to see Renkotsu sit down on one of the chairs.
"It's not fair," he muttered, "I want a pet too." Sekka and Renkotsu looked at him. "How come you get to have a pet, but I don't?"
"It's not a contest, Bankotsu," Renkotsu snapped.
"I know that," Bankotsu snapped back, "I'm not competitive." He looked at Sekka. "In fact," he boasted, "I'm the least noncompetitive," he pointed to himself, "so I win. But my point is, I think that I should have a pet."
"Go out and get one then!" Renkotsu blurted out. Bankotsu smiled and got up. "Where are you going?"
"To get a pet," he said, heading towards the front door. He left.
Renkotsu looked at Sekka. "Your boyfriend is weird," he said, shaking his head.
"I dunno," she smiled, "Another cute little animal around the house would be much more fun, don't you think?"
Renkotsu shrugged, then headed to the kitchen to fix a snack for himself and Kazan.
Bankotsu arrived at the local pet shop a few minutes later and was browsing around, looking at all the little critters. The salesman approached him. "Anything I can help you with?"
"I'm looking for a pet," Bankotsu said.
'Naw,' the salesman thought to himself, 'really? Coulda fooled me...' "Well," he said, "We've got a large assortment of animals. But I think I've got something special, just for you..." He led Bankotsu to a small cage lined with straw. A small gray trough filled with slop was leaning against the side wall. Curled up in a ball, sleeping in the middle of the cage was a small black pig wearing a yellow-with-black-spots bandana around its body.
Bankotsu's eyes lit up. "Aww!" he shouted, "That's so cute!"
"He seems to answer," the salesman began, "to the name P-chan."
"I'll take him!" Bankotsu exclaimed.
"Excellent choice, sir."
