51) Heads Will Roll

First stop: Varia Headquarters.

Mira felt confident parking in the driveway, knowing that the squad is still in Japan. However, she knew couldn't stop the new recruits from frantically dialing on their phones to announce the arrival of an ex-assassin. So before she entered the mansion, she cut off all the phone lines, smirking to herself in satisfaction. "There. I just reduced your phone bill".

She was aware of the presence behind her, and she turned around, smiling at the poor cadet who stood there, legs shaking uncontrollably. "You can thank me later", she said to him. "Hey, you work at the tech section, don't you?"

"Uh, y-yes ma'am", he stammered.

She nodded, walking towards him. "So you're a brainiac, I take it? You know, people like you are very hard to find these days. Who recruited you?"

"M-my cousin, ma'am. He-he works for Levi".

"Is that so? Well, I'm sure he's in good hands. Levi's very reliable", she said, draping her arm around his shoulders. "And you know what? So are you".

He shook underneath her arm, barely meeting her steady gaze. "Please don't kill me. I-I know who you are".

"Of course you do, dear. The only ones who don't are already dead. Don't worry, I won't kill you. I need you. Because you're gonna patch me through to the squad's communication. I want to know their numbers, all of them. I want to be able to hear them even if they can't hear me. I want you to do as I tell you. Okay?"

"Y-you m-ma..massacred your husband and his family during your w-wedding", he blurted, flinching from some anticipated blow that never came. "H-how do I know you won't do the same to me?"

Coated in ice, a single nail extended towards his neck, ending in a dangerously sharp point. "You just have to trust me", she said, drawing just enough blood to make him shiver again. "Now, let's go, shall we?"


She breathed in deeply the scent of the mansion, a mix of stale cigarettes, overcooked meat and booze. This is it, she thought. Home sweet home.

From the corner of her eye, she could see her new friend looking around frantically at his surroundings. Lowering her lips to his ear, she whispered, "You said you knew who I am, didn't you?"

"Y-yes, I b-believe I did".

"Well, then you must know that I was Varia too. One of the best. Do you know what that means?" When he didn't answer, she bared her canines at him in a malicious grin. "Don't try to run or I will seriously tear your ass up. Comprende?"

She didn't wait for him to reply. Instead, she steered him towards the heart of the mansion, where all communication was regulated. As soon as they walked through the door, all heads turned and stared.

She threw him onto an empty desk, but she didn't let go of him. "Start working". To the rest of the, she said, "That goes for the rest of you too!"

Even as all activity resumed, there was always one person who was stupid enough to keep staring at her. Naturally, Mira focused her attention on him as she sat on his desk. "There's really nothing to stare at over there, don't you think?"

"Master Xanxus is gonna come back!" he yelled, forcing himself not to quaver beneath her cold gaze. "And when he does, he'll--"

"He'll do what?" she growled, a frozen hand immediately clamping around his neck. She squeezed harder, challenging him to say another word. "Xanxus will do what to me? Tell me!"

As her victim struggled to speak, she had frozen his neck completely. Grabbing his head with both hands, she twisted it off and threw it to the front of the room. Cries of fear were heard from every corner as Mira strode towards the front. Picking up the detached head by its hair, she turned the whole thing into a chunk of ice and drop kicked it towards the wall, shattering upon impact. Blood and brain matter dripped onto the floor into a neat little puddle of death.

"You", she said, pointing at a random person. "Get this trash cleaned up".

She watched him scamper into obedience. Raising her voice to address the lot of them, she said, "Know your place, all of you. Otherwise I wouldn't mind decapitating another one of you lowlifes. Now get to work!"

No one dared to look at her as she walked down the aisle towards the door. That's good, she thought, walking just a little bit faster. Nothing to see here.


She could've walked the mansion's empty hallways blindfolded and still made it to her room without running into a wall. Dropping her luggage in a corner, she went straight for the bathroom. At the sight of her reflection, her lip curled in disgust. Blood dotted from her hairline down to her left cheek, and she wiped it off with her forearm. Still the stain remained, coloring her skin crimson. She tried to wash it off frantically, trying to keep her hands from shaking at the same time. Buck up, Mira. You're the one who decided to come back to this.


Alright, the significance of birthdays:

I figured that if I start setting dates, I could actually finish the story and MAYBE even work on a sequel.
So this is how it's gonna go:

Updates for March:
(7)For ookawa, a 3-chapter update.
(17)For Saint Patty's--2 chapters.
(25)PhoenixRage92--3 chapters.
(28) Namikaze Hatake--2 chapters, because 25 and 28 are just TOO CLOSE.

Updates for April:
(19) Saku-chan0, Juno Tartini--5 chapters, because it just so happened that two ppl have the same birthday.
(28) Thorch Phoenix--3 chapters.

Hana Izuru, p3nny, and leaping-leeches : I HAVE NOT FORGOTTEN ABOUT YOU. :)

Okay, so this may not be final. I could finish before the due dates above.
Thanks for reading!