Disclaimer: Alright. I'll just come out and say it.

I DON'T OWN INUYASHA.

There. I said it. Happy now? -Sniffles.-

A/N: Errrrrk. Another story. Not that you're writing it. Hmph.

Well, don't worry, 'cause you seriously aren't writing this story. o__o

So don't review and say it sucks. Because it won't.

I promise. -Winks.-

Chapter 1

xXxXx

She was different. They all knew; everyone knew. The rest of them had been cold and greedy, hungry for more power and had not cared about anyone else.

But she was different than the others. She seemed to care about everyone but herself. And who was she, you ask?

She was a princess.

Beautiful, honest, kind, generous; she was everything the other princesses had not been.

Thousands of years spent with the others, thousands of years to expect what the next were going to be like.

And then she was born.

Her father, the king, loved her so much he would have given her anything, had she asked for it.

But she wished nothing for herself, and that's what made him love her even more.

How could one find a flaw within this seemingly perfect being?

Well, everyone found out soon enough.

When her father brought forth men for her to marry, she refused them all.

She told them she was not interested in love.

Not interested in love.

There it was, out in the open. The one flaw of the "perfect" princess. But, having the overloving father that she did, he was so happy that she wouldn't be leaving him to live with another man at a different castle, far away.

The one flaw, not even a big enough flaw to call it one.

And so, it became a game for young men to try woo her. To be able to win her heart. But, alas, none of them succeeded.

They were refused, turned down (politely, of course)by the same woman by which the game was created for.

All of them, turned down until only two were left to seduce her.

Inuyasha, son of the blacksmith of the village, and Kouga, son of the great warrior Sesshomaru.

Now, one would think that they did not stand a chance. And they probably didn't.

But one would never know. Kouga, everyone says, would have a good chance, being son to a warrior, compared to Inuyasha, who was just the son of a blacksmith.

If you are one of those people, then you must remember what princess we're all talking about here. The one who cared about others more than herself.

Do you think she would care about whose son you are?

No. Not in the very least.

So it was just them. The others told them it was no use, that they would fail.

But it you don't try, how could anyone ever succeed?

So they accepted the challenge. A meeting was held, where all the men who had played this game went to.

This game had rules. And to be able to play the game, you must agree to them. For what fun is a game without a challenge?

These are the rules:

Rule #1: You cannot bribe the princess to pretend to love you.(Translation: No cheating.)

Rule #2: You are not allowed to pretend to be who you are not.

And finally, the last rule:

Rule #3: You are only allowed 40 days to complete this task. If refused by princess, you must come back to the meeting room. If it takes longer, but you were not refused, the challenge is still incomplete. (They had to write that one down to memorize it.)

They swore an oath to obey the rules, and then they were all dismissed.

The challenge started the next day, the day after they made the oath, like it always had been.

So Inuyasha and Kouga prepared for the next day, the day they would begin the challenge to have the princess fall in love with them.

What was the name of the princess, you ask?

Her name was Kagome.

xXxXx

Inuyasha could still remember that day back when it wasn't down to just two people to finish the challenge.

A day where he had been watching Kagome.

She'd been with the children, laughing and playing, until they ran around her, chanting "Kagome, Kagome,"

The princess had stood there, a smile frozen on her face, until they tugged on her skirt to get her attention. Then she had quickly patted them on the heads and hurried back to the castle.

When Inuyasha told Naraku- one of his friends- about this, Naraku'd snorted, sighed and then shook his head.

"She always did seem so creepy to me when it was my turn to play." Naraku had been one of the "refused" or so they called it. "Good thing I got me a real woman, one who can love," he snaked his arms around the woman beside him and she giggled.

"Right, Kikyou?" Naraku had asked her. "Right, babe." And then she kissed him.

Inuyasha felt jealous right then, and he knew it.

He'd always loved Kikyou, but nobody knew that, nobody except Miroku, for even though of Miroku's big mouth, Inuyasha knew he could trust him.

Now he didn't love her anymore.

Okay- that was a lie. He still loved her, but thinking of Kagome made him forget about Kikyou.

Kagome was kind, and pretty, but so mysterious. She didn't allow anyone in, didn't seem to trust anyone with her heart.

Somehow, Inuyasha believed he was the only one who knew this. The others didn't want to know, or maybe they didn't care.

Inuyasha didn't know what she hid behind that "perfect" personality, and he was afraid to find out.

xXxXx

Kouga thought she was beautiful in every way possible. So kind, so caring, so compassionate! And beautiful, all in one.

She just needed to meet her dream guy, and she would open up.

Kouga had always had a one-sided mind, so nobody tried to argue with him. It was too infuriating.

Being the cold-hearted warrior's son had a great impact on many of the villagers, which he took advantage of.

The only problem was that, after a while, the villagers began wondering who the mother was.

So he began avoiding them.

Instead he hung out with guys his own age, people like Inuyasha, Naraku, Miroku, Bankotsu, Suikotsu, etc.

He was very excited about the challenge.

Although they were friends, Kouga was determined to beat Inuyasha in the game.

He just had to win anyway, for the sake of having the lovely Princess Kagome.

The thought helped him to fall asleep.

xXxXx

They stood, looking up at the castle. It was brilliant, but frightened them at the same time.

Suddenly they straightened, looking each other in the eye. They were not going to lose to each other.

"Let the best man win," Kouga muttered, and Inuyasha nodded.

Together they marched up toward the castle.

The game had officially begun.

xXxXx

A/N: So the game begins. -Snicker.-

Review, please!

- Blood