Disclaimer: I do not own these characters nor do I make money from them, Rumiko Takahashi does.
A/N: This was written for the first anniversary of Dokuga_Contest on Live Journal. The prompt was Paper.
Paper constantly intertwines with human lives, often on the most intimate levels. Babies are issued their first piece at birth; the last piece is signed when the final breath is drawn.
Kagome signed and dated the paper before her. As she gazed at it, she was amazed by the strength and power held by something so fragile.
She fell in love with paper as most children do, filling reams of it with colorful drawings, glitter, and childish scrawls proclaiming love for Mommy and Daddy. Hours were spent learning to fold it into a personal zoo filled with exotic animals. A pair of sharp scissors delivered a blizzard of delicate snowflakes and piles of confetti.
Early birthdays were filled with wonderful presents wrapped up with beautiful printed designs, some too pretty to tear off the packages. As she grew older, gifts were replaced by heart-felt greeting cards carrying joy and good wishes from family and close friends.
Books filled with printed paper provided limitless entertainment. When she was younger, bedtime stories carried Kagome to exciting adventures in distant foreign lands and worlds, allowing her imagination to run wild. Romantic tales read during her teen years invaded her daydreams. Star-crossed lovers would persevere against all odds while their friends cheered them on. Ultimately they would unite in the end; victorious and happy as good defeated evil once more.
The paper in her life wasn't always so friendly and carefree though. High school was where it took on more serious overtones. It was used to teach her complex concepts, and then test her absorption and understanding of that knowledge. It permanently recorded her answers and from there, her grades. She discovered the many unique facets of an individual could be crushed onto faceless pulp, reduced to a two dimensional plane. This compilation of information that was 'Higarashi, Kagome' on paper, would be scutinized by people who would probably never meet her. Her worthiness was judged from that one sheet.
Then Sesshoumaru entered her life. Their friendship, at first cautiously cordial, began to steadily grow into a more intimate relationship. He was anything but the cold, unfeeling aristocrat he portrayed to others. Though outwardly stoic, he wrote fiery poetry for her in beautiful script on handmade paper, skillfully infusing his emotions both into and onto it. She kept these manifestations of his love for her in a dresser drawer, tied with a red ribbon.
They were mated by pack law, the only law Sesshoumaru recognized. There was no paperwork involved. That they were committed to each other was never a question in her mind, she did not need to confirm to the world they belonged together. Kagome's family gently pressed her to make their union legal, but a traditional ceremony was not something she would ask of him.
Though he normally avoided participating in human rites, he surprised her by proposing and agreeing to wed her according to her family's wishes. He loved her and she loved her family. If this small thing would remove their unease, he would acquiesce.
She looked again at the sheet she held, and smiled knowingly. This marriage certificate may have the power to bind them together in the eyes of the law, but it was only a chain of paper. One human, one daiyoukai, were joined for a lifetime by bonds far stronger than mere words on fiber.
A/N: Thanks for reading!
