Sherlock came out of his mind palace at about 7 am feeling slightly hungry (he normal did because he did a lot of work whilst he was in there. Organising, reshuffling, moving entire rooms etc.) However he knew that he ate yesterday so he stayed on the sofa with his eyes closed instead. He stretched out his sore limbs before he heard a cough and a tapping noise coming from the other side of his room.

Mycroft was standing there, looking impatient, bored and amused all at the same time. When Sherlock spotted him, he smirked. He could already feel the power he held over his dearest brother simply by looking at the older man. 

"I understand you've met young Alex" Mycroft said to his brother, eyes gleaming with mischief. 

“Yes. I have met Alex, my daughter. Imagine the shock when I found out that my dearest brother knew about her for all this time?” Sherlock replied, his face as serious as it could possibly be.

Mycroft laughed at that, obviously not finding the situation as serious as Sherlock. "Yes. Imagine." 

Briefly, Mycroft wondered if he was about to witness Sherlock upset and angry to what their mother called 'Redbeard level'. 

Sherlock raised his eyebrows at his brother and sat up so he can talk to his brother properly. “Mmmm yes. It was quite a shock to find out that my brother had been in contact with my mate behind my back and didn’t even bother to tell me that he knew where he was all this time. I knew that you were hiding something but this… this is much bigger than I thought it could be.”

"He's not your mate, Sherlock." Mycroft said, practically growling at the stupidity of his brother. How his brother could believe that John was his mate? Surely the fact that John had left him was enough to show how John felt for him. "He never was. You didn't bond. You were just... a couple. If you were mates, he wouldn't have run off and needed my help"

Not only did the fact that they hated one another fuel their rivalry but also the issue of them both being Alpha's meant trouble. Mycroft was obsessed with power and as an Alpha, he wouldn't let himself be seen as weaker than another Alpha. 

“We were so close to bonding Mycroft. You don’t understand. You never did. I loved him and he loved me but you just had to put your big nose into it and ruin everything!” Sherlock stood up, walking right up to Mycroft’s face “Maybe if you had told him to talk to me about it then we would still be together and I would have 12 years of memories of my daughter and my wonderful mate.”

"You keep calling him your mate, he's not your mate" Mycroft replied, casually checking the watch he kept on a chain and disregarding the rest of what Sherlock had said to him.

 Sherlock suddenly grabbed Mycroft around the throat and banged his head against the wall. “He would be my mate right know if you had keep you big nose out of the way 12 years ago.” He snarled the words at the older man.

Mycroft gagged at first before easily wrenching his brother's hand away from him. He'd been expecting an attack and Sherlock must have not eaten or slept for some days, as his grip was weaker than Mycroft remembered. 

"If you had been a good enough Alpha, I'd have had no need to help John and dear Alex." Mycroft replied, no traces of guilt on his face but a smirk to show how he loved having this power over Sherlock. 

“Fuck you, Mycroft.” Sherlock turned around and sat back down on the sofa. “How was I a bad Alpha then if you know so much about our relationship?”

Mycroft shrugged. "You must have done something, brother mine, or John would have stayed and would still love you. He's been dating a lot, he forgot all about you." 

He knew what he was saying lies but he did just love to irritate Sherlock.  

“Like the guy who we saw kissing another girl in the restaurant last night? Didn’t really seem like a loving relationship. At least I didn’t cheat on John when I was with him.” Sherlock got up off the sofa and went into the kitchen to make coffee for himself, he already knew that Mycroft would not stay for long (just long enough to annoy him however).

"Hmm." Mycroft hums, checking his watch again. "Anyway, I just wanted to inform you that I will not be taking any money from you, so don't bother trying to pay me back for the funding I provided to your ex and daughter." 

“Why not? She is my daughter not yours.” Sherlock turned around and crossed his arms, looking at Mycroft sternly.

"I have my reasons, dear brother." Mycroft headed towards the door, no longer interested. "Have a good day. Do send Alex my love" 

“Mycroft!” Sherlock snarled. “Reasons. What reasons?” Sherlock followed Mycroft to the door, trying to push him out of the way so he couldn’t exit the flat until Sherlock knew what Mycroft had meant by that comment.

Mycroft didn't answer however and simply left the flat before Sherlock could catch up and get in the way, disappearing into a black car with his usual condescending smirk on his face. 

Sherlock sat back down on the sofa and groaned. Did he really do something wrong? Did he really force John to move out? Maybe he had. He wasn’t sure though. Maybe he should follow his own advice and talk to John about it further.