Disclaimer: InuYasha belongs to: Rumiko Takahashi, Viz Media, Shogakukan, Sunrise, Yumiuri TV and the other foreign manga rights companies that I have not dealt with. Twiknham owns intellectual rights only to the original characters including: Michael, Lucy, Logan, Armaund, Jin, Sesshoumaru's household staff (minus Jaken) and any characters in this story who reside in Texas. Twiknham makes NO monetary gain from this story, it is a completely free fanfic and Twiknham will not accept any payment. Reviews would be great, but are not required for updates. Also, as with any Twiknham fic, criticisms are welcome but please keep the language clean. Reviews do not come with ratings and are open to all viewers. Thx! –TK
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On Tuesday, Sesshoumaru and Kagome went to the Meguro Ward Office to register their marriage. It was a modern, open-air style building that went against the face of tradition. Most ward offices were old and smelled of age and sweaty bodies. The original Youkai lord had chosen Meguro to live in because of its modern feel and the citizens' desires to keep the town clean and healthy. Several thousand years later, the citizens still subscribed to that philosophy.
The people inside varied from ecstatic to completely indifferent. Kagome watched couples holding hands and couples who sat two chairs apart. She wondered what the others thought of the two of them. It was obvious Sesshoumaru was a high-powered businessman, and although Kagome was dressed nicely, she still felt like the little village sacrifice to the feudal lord. When their names were called, Kagome squeaked in surprise. Sesshoumaru stood and reached for her hand to help her stand and she blushed furiously as she accepted his assistance.
Both took their koseki tohon (Family Register) to the Registrar as the first step to register their marriage. The Registrar was a ferocious looking woman and Kagome had an instant's thought that Kaede would have made a good Registrar. The woman was all business as she glanced at her paperwork and noted that Kagome's brother had registered two months earlier. Looking up, a hint of a smile, the Registrar asked, "When did your brother hold his ceremony?"
Blushing, Kagome smiled. "Sunday." The Registrar raised an eyebrow at the long wait period and Kagome stepped back in. "He likes to plan everything in advance. He's going into law, and wanted to make sure everything was absolutely legal before he took his wife on their honeymoon."
The Registrar nodded. "Why are you applying so quickly after their marriage?"
Sesshoumaru growled, getting frustrated with all of the questions, but Kagome gently laid a hand on his arm and continued to talk with the Registrar. "We didn't want to stand in the way of their happiness. His wife is the type that goes full-steam into wedding preparations and we didn't want to hamper her excitement. However, we've just discovered that they are leaving Sunday for an extended honeymoon, and we wanted to have our ceremony before they left."
"Ah, you're pregnant."
Kagome bristled. "I certainly am NOT! However, neither of us feels like waiting another month to get married. We've already waited almost a year. My brother announced his engagement the night before we were planning to announce ours and we've kept ours a secret for a year in order to honor my brother and his wife. He had the traditional Shinto wedding. Neither of us wants that and we'd like to go ahead and have a small civil ceremony before they leave. If you don't mind…" Kagome held her hand out for the small scroll and the Registrar looked askance as she handed it back.
"Pardon my rudeness."
Kagome bowed. "If you'll pardon mine."
They both smiled and the Registrar held her hand out for Sesshoumaru's. Kagome nudged him. Seth, your Koseki Tohon, please." He was still staring at the girl beside him who had made up an elaborate lie on the spot to keep either of them from being dishonored.
He blinked and handed his scroll to the woman. They had spent hours putting a cloaking spell on the document. It registered his family back five generations. Although that was not unseemly for a document, five Inu generations encompassed most of Japan's history. The spell changed the names to the Shujin name and the dates to human ranges. The cloaking spell held and the Registrar pointed at a name. "This is your grandfather?"
"Yes. Ryoji Shujin. He died during the Sino-Japan war."
"He was an Admiral."
"On the Soryu. He died at Midway."
"My father also died on the Soryu. He once mentioned your grandfather in a letter home, said he was a good man." She looked at Kagome. "You take good care of this man, he comes from an honorable family." Handing them the kon-in-todoke (Registration of Marriage Form), she told them to fill it out and get back in line when they were done.
Leaving the little window, Kagome looked at Sesshoumaru. However, before she could ask her question, he answered it.
"I knew Ryoji Shujin. He was young when we met. His parents died during his childhood and his wife died in childbirth, leaving him the lone carrier of his family name. When he died, I took his family name to preserve it. He was a good and faithful friend."
Kagome was shocked that he'd shared that much detail of his life. At his look, she smiled. "I'm glad you chose a good name. This place is creepy, can we hurry up and get out of here?"
Sitting down and filling out the kon-in-todoke did not take long. However, waiting in line to turn it in for the kon-in-todoke-juri-shomeisho (Receipt of Registration of Marriage) was lengthy. The Registrar glanced over the kon-in-todoke to ensure everything was filled out properly. Then she stamped it and completed the kon-in-todoke-juri-shomeisho. Handing it to Sesshoumaru, she wished them both a long and successful marriage before sending them on their way. The entire experience took two hours and Sesshoumaru was ready to rip heads off by the end of it.
Kagome wanted to pat his arm in consolation, but was afraid to touch him. He'd been pretty snarly all day and she was afraid of making it worse.
As they walked out of the office, he suddenly took her hand and looked at her. "Hello Wife." Under all Japanese law, they were now officially married. "When is the civil ceremony again?" He knew, he just wanted to hear that this trial of his patience would be over soon.
"Thursday during lunch. Oh my gosh! I just remembered." She ran to the car and waited impatiently as he slowly walked to the vehicle.
Sesshoumaru was wondering at the emotionless state of Japanese marriages. He had never been married before, and had not truly understood that the legal requirements provided no space for love and romance. He thought the entire procedure was even more heartless than he had been during the feudal era. His wife's antics at the car brought an invisible smile to his soul. They were now married in the eyes of the law. However, they still had to perform the civil ceremony to become married in the eyes of her family. He was also still trying to decide if he would perform the demon rituals. He finally made his mind up to take it one day at a time. If his employees would not accept her as his mate, he would have no choice but to complete the mating rituals.
"Seth, for someone who moves as fast as you, you sure are slow today. Hurry up and unlock the car!" They had decided to leave Michael at home for this business and Kagome was STILL waiting on him to unlock the car.
"Is my wife hungry?"
Kagome suddenly realized her stomach was growling. "Yes, but first we have to go see Lucy. I forgot to invite her to the ceremony Thursday."
"What is involved with this ceremony?"
"Mom got a friend of Grandfather to agree to say a couple of words about our marriage."
"I am being married by a Shinto priest?" He highly doubted this was arranged with the priest's full knowledge of the situation.
"No, we are being married by a judge in a little chapel."
"Does it not take months to arrange a chapel?"
"Normally, but you're not the only one who has connections in this family."
He opened the door and ushered her in, thinking that 'family' had both good and bad connotations for him. When he got in on his side, he turned to look at her. "Where are we going?"
"A little coffee shop down the road from where I work."
Sesshoumaru put his hands on the wheel and turned to look at her. "About your job…"
"Are you going to say something to make me mad?" She crossed her hands over her chest and looked out the window.
"Probably."
Taken back by his honesty, she turned in the seat to look at him. "I'm listening."
"I talked with your boss yesterday. He said you could work from home if you reported in daily." Her eyes widened and he was half afraid she would hug him. He was not ready to think about how the other half felt.
"Really? That's awesome! So I can work from your house and it won't cause problems for you?"
"Yes." That single word did not properly answer both questions; but when she looked at him, he cranked the car and headed towards town.
A/N: "I hate mudding, yes I do! I hate mudding, how about you?" Maybe if I did it for a living, but I'm a desk jockey dammit. Everything hurts! That aside, I hope each of you had a great week! Well, you wanted them married, and my story just happened to take them there. Kinda impersonal, the Japanese way of getting married eh? Perfect for a certain sexy male protagonist. Don't worry, the story's not over yet.
I've gotta tell you that I received some fabulous reviews this week, which surprised me because I felt last week's chapter was a builder and not anything worth getting worked up about. I apparently was wrong. I'm hoping the lack of flames is because it IS a well written, characterized etc… story and not because I've scared you. I promise I don't bite and if I need to correct something, I won't know if you don't tell me. For those of you who have been reviewing, faithful as well as once-off, THANK YOU! You really made my week last week.
Thanks again everyone for reading and please have a safe and fun week this week. -TK