Chapter 2

Author's note: I'm sorry for updating so quickly, can't help it.

Inuyasha dropped the paper to the ground, standing up from his seat. His father's eyes never left him, Inuyasha looking to the name written on the paper.

'Sesshomaru.'

He closed his eyes but the name wouldn't go away. It haunted his very being, crawled beneath his skin till it made him sick.

'Sesshomaru.'

Inuyasha didn't have to go with him. Sesshomaru may be his permanent Alpha, but he could bed somebody else. He could change it.

He could change it!

"Sesshomaru."

His father's eyes widened, Inuyasha moving quickly. Sesshomaru fell out of his chair when Inuyasha punched him, Inuyasha growling in rage as he thought of why his sister hated him so much.

Why did she let him see?

Why didn't she tell him that she could see?!

Inuyasha felt his demon scream to be let out, his eyes flashing red. His demon wanted its mate, wanted to submit to its Alpha.

Never.

He would never reproduce with Sesshomaru. Sesshomaru hated him, just like he hated his mother, and his sister. He hated him because he was impure to the bloodline, because he wasn't strong enough. His demon might have chosen him, but Inuyasha wouldn't submit to a man that hated him.

He knew Sesshomaru would only hurt him, would only tell him he was weak. Sesshomaru would mate with him only because his father said so, not because he wanted to. Sesshomaru could never love him, and Inuyasha wouldn't give his body to a man he didn't love.

Inuyasha cracked his knuckles, his entire being on edge.

"She is wrong," he growled, Sesshomaru seeming just as shocked as Inuyasha was. Sesshomaru got to his feet quickly so he didn't look weak, but Inuyasha knew he was nothing but a bastard. Sesshomaru didn't move though, didn't try to hurt him. An Alpha couldn't hurt his beta. Inuyasha would prove him wrong, he knew Sesshomaru would fight back.

Sesshomaru's demon would be gentle.

Inuyasha wouldn't be so kind.

He attacked him, aiming for his throat. Sesshomaru dodged his attacks, Inuyasha growling in rage as he tried to make him hurt him. Their father did not interfere, he couldn't less he risked hurting Inuyasha. He sat back, though his eyes were alert.

They would see if his sister was correct.

Once a beta became fertile and the Alpha was chosen, the Alpha couldn't hurt the beta. It was against the Alpha's nature. They would see, soon enough.

A human had never been right before.

Sesshomaru grabbed Inuyasha's wrist, Inuyasha gasping when he was pushed back. Sesshomaru's expression didn't give away his thoughts, his earlier expression of shock gone. Inuyasha panted as he tried to catch his breath, his eyes narrowed in anger. He charged at Sesshomaru again, trying to get him to fight back.

Sesshomaru simply pushed him away over and over again, his usual hostility gone. Inuyasha grew frustrated, panting heavily as he tried to think of a way to make Sesshomaru fight.

He wasn't his Beta.

Sesshomaru wasn't his Alpha.

"She is wrong." Inuyasha picked up the piece of paper, tearing it in front of them to make a point. He didn't believe for one bit that she was right, that she saw it before he did. He wouldn't admit it, and he would make sure nobody else believed it.

"Find someone else asshole."

Inuyasha turned away, walking out of the dining hall. His appetite was gone. Inutaisho looked to his eldest son, the full demon's confusion evident in the frown on his lips. He sat up some, just mostly glad Inuyasha hadn't broke the table. He was just as curious as to how the girl knew before Inuyasha knew himself, that trait present in no human or demon he had managed to encounter.

"I couldn't fight back." Inutaisho raised an eyebrow, Sesshomaru raising his hands and looking at them in confusion and anger.

"I couldn't fight back."

Inutaisho stood, leaving the new Alpha to his musings. There was nothing he could teach him that he couldn't learn on his own. He had seen many Beta's fight their Alpha's, but he had not seen one hate as much as Inuyasha did. But he couldn't have expected much from a half demon. His demon only controlled half of his, not all of him.

Inutaisho stopped by a painting of Inuyasha's mother, his eyes narrowing slightly.

"You knew, didn't you?"

The painting didn't respond to him, as it shouldn't have. Inutaisho had heard of mates being related, demon's only becoming stronger when they bred with relatives. It was when they bred with humans did their offspring become malformed.

Inutaisho knew it would be hard for Inuyasha, he knew he would take some time to get used to this. But he would have to stay home more now, Inutaisho had to keep an eye on his son.

Once a beta found its Alpha, they would mate. All throughout history demons have tried to escape their destiny, escape their Alpha. But the system has never been broken. Inuyasha would mate with Sesshomaru, willingly. They would reproduce, because that is how the system works. Inuyasha could try to escape the system, mate with others, but he would always been drawn back to his Alpha.

They had no choice.

None of them did.

Inutaisho looked down to the ground, wondering how he could keep Inuyasha in the castle without him trying to run away.

It wasn't uncommon for a beta to kill itself, after learning that they couldn't escape.

Inutaisho wouldn't allow Inuyasha to harm himself. He would make sure of he didn't.

:::+:::

Inuyasha pushed himself as he lifted the weights, trying to get his mind off from what had happened. He talked to Miroku and he told him it was impossible. Humans couldn't foretell who a beta's alpha was, and that calmed Inuyasha.

Demons didn't believe in marriage, their mating marks a substitute for it. It gave the demon more breathing room, not holding them down by the artificial roles marriage held. Inuyasha wouldn't have to marry Sesshomaru, and he didn't have to be with him. He was of high rank, he could mate with whom he wished.

Inuyasha calmed more with that thought, putting the weight back on its bar. He sat up slowly, closing his eyes as he grabbed his water bottle. He took a large gulp, thinking about what he should do next.

"Inuyasha." He opened his eyes, looking to his father who stood in the doorway. His eyes were solemn, but Inuyasha didn't want his pity. He didn't want to be told that life wasn't fair, that Sesshomaru would be a good Alpha.

He didn't want to hear any of it.

"Your sister passed." Inuyasha's eyes widened in disbelief, standing abruptly as his lips parted in disbelief. She had no children of her own to speak of, and with that thought Inuyasha felt suddenly very alone. He closed his mouth, hardening his features. She was the one who sent him that letter. If she hated him so much, then he would hate her as well.

"She was bound to anyway." His father seemed surprised by his answer, Inuyasha brushing past him as he left his workout room.

"I don't care anymore."

His father wasn't so easily put off, standing straighter.

"She didn't send you that letter to hurt you Inuyasha," Inutaisho told his son, Inuyasha turning sharply to look him in the eye. His father was a traditional man. If he had been a beta, he would have easily rolled over and accepted it. Maybe that's why they were so different.

"Sesshomaru is a monster! I would have rather mated with Kouga!" Inuyasha yelled, the wolf at least fighting him over Kagome instead of just outright hating him. His father seemed taken aback by Inuyasha's outburst, but then suddenly he smiled.

"Your sister had been old Inuyasha, senile even. There was no possible way she could have been correct." Inuyasha relaxed slightly at his words, knowing she had started to forget about him more often. He nodded once, knowing his father must have been right. His hatred towards her dwindled just slightly.

"Instead of dwelling on it, let's go to our family estate in the Japanese Alps. I'm sure a vacation will allow us to forget this quarrel." Inuyasha nodded again, seeming more relaxed than before.

"I need a break," he commented aloud, his father grinning as he threw an arm over his youngest son shoulder. Inuyasha tried to get away but Inutaisho would not be moved. With all of this stress behind them, Inutaisho acted how he usually did, being the glue that kept the trio from falling apart.

"Hot springs and endless food! We can go tomorrow morning if you wish," His father told him, Inuyasha suddenly remembering his game. Tomorrow was Saturday and he knew he should go, but he had dealt with enough stress for the day. He nodded, his father sending him to his room to get his things packed.

His father wanted to stay for a week, giving them some time to just relax from the stress of the city. His father loved humans to a fault, but even he could only deal with so much of the bustling city before he started to lose his nerve.

Inuyasha pulled his suitcase from his closet, already feeling better about himself. Sesshomaru wasn't his Alpha, and that was final.

"Inuyasha."

Inuyasha looked over his shoulder, frowning at Sesshomaru who stood by his open door. He was the last person Inuyasha wanted to see right now.

"I am not your Alpha." Inuyasha full heartedly agreed on that one, Sesshomaru walking further into his room. Inuyasha was immediately on guard, Sesshomaru having never come into his room before. Sesshomaru always told him he reeked of his mother, staying away from his room.

Inuyasha didn't back down though, Sesshomaru stopping in front of him. His eyes wanted to hurt him. Inuyasha narrowed his own eyes, waiting to see what he would do. He wanted Sesshomaru to hurt him, he wanted him to prove he wasn't his Alpha.

Sesshomaru raised his hand, his fingers sizzling with acid. Inuyasha didn't close his eyes, daring Sesshomaru to do it.

"You disgust me," Sesshomaru told him stoically, Inuyasha wanting nothing more than to tell him the same. But Sesshomaru did more than just disgust him. Inuyasha didn't respond as Sesshomaru's hand inched closer, Inuyasha feeling the heat on his skin.

"Things like you deserve to die." Inuyasha grabbed Sesshomaru's hand, but the acid wasn't there anymore. Inuyasha pushed Sesshomaru away, the full demon seeming a tad confused. Inuyasha jumped up, kicking him in the face. Sesshomaru stumbled back only a step, his eyes staring him down.

"Fight back!" Inuyasha yelled, tired of Sesshomaru's antics. He kicked him again, Sesshomaru falling onto his bed. Inuyasha jumped on top of him, grabbing Sesshomaru's shirt as he growled in his face.

"Fight back you coward! You useless piece of shit!" Inuyasha yelled in his face, Sesshomaru panting from the pain in his jaw. He didn't respond though, Inuyasha raising his fist to punch him again.

But Sesshomaru wouldn't fight back.

"Why are you playing along with her game?!" Inuyasha questioned, demanding an answer. Sesshomaru didn't respond. He kept his lips shut, but Inuyasha could see he was confused, angry even.

"I'm disgusting! You fucking hate me! So prove it and fight back!" Sesshomaru laid passively on the bed, Inuyasha growling in frustration. He got off of him, stomping over to his suitcase. Sesshomaru was probably just doing this as his sister's dying wish.

Inuyasha didn't care, he would make sure that he avoided Sesshomaru like he normally did. He gasped sharply when he was grabbed, Sesshomaru turning him around and pushing him against the wall.

For once, Inuyasha would have been willing to let him hurt him.

Sesshomaru was angry, Inuyasha could see that.

"Sesshomaru."

Inuyasha looked to the doorway to his father, the man probably attracted to their fight from Inuyasha's yells.

"I told you not to hurt him. Are you trying to go against my orders?" Sesshomaru frowned, pulling away from Inuyasha. He left the room, Inutaisho following after him. Inuyasha snorted, wondering when his brother became so obedient. His father probably just wanted him in full health when he actually found his Alpha.

The only thing was, Inutaisho had never ordered Sesshomaru to do so.