Disclaimer: I don't own Bebop, no money is being made, just wasting time and loving every minute of it.

Session Twelve: Let Me Let Go

Mira stepped out onto the deck of the Bebop. They had reached Mars and docked in the bay of the largest city on the planet. She had a few hours before she met Vicious at the Yenrai mansion. Dawn was just breaking across the red planet and the air still had a chill to it. She pulled her shirt closer to her, trying to keep the coolness away from her.

"Mornings on Mars were always a little too cold for me."

Mira turned around, smiling slightly at her intruder. "Yeah, they were always a little too cool for me too."

Spike sauntered up to her, cigarette hanging out of the side of his mouth and two cups of coffee in his hand. She took one of the mugs, grateful for the warmth in her hand. Looking up at Spike, she cocked an eyebrow.

"Don't you ever stop?"

"Stop what?"

"Smoking. Whenever I see you, you've got one of those white sticks hanging out of your mouth. Don't you ever take a break?"

Spike shrugged. "Sure I take a break. The six hours that I sleep."

Mira shook her head. "They're going to kill you one day, you know."

"Better men have tried to kill me and failed, I doubt a little 'white stick' is going to do me in."

"Suit yourself. You always did do your own thing."

Spike laughed. "You weren't much different."

"No, I guess I wasn't."

Spike grew thoughtful and Mira could see a serious and somber look pass over his face, making him look older than what he really was. He took a deep breath and blew out a stream of smoke before speaking.

"So, what did you do for the past three months?"

"Well, I woke up every morning. Got dressed. Went to work. Came home. Ate dinner. Went to bed. And reminded myself to breathe. After some time passed, I didn't have to remind myself to get out of bed, get dressed and breathe. And life returned as normal. What did you do?"

"Mourned the loss of a friend and tried to forget about losing my true love."

"Did you forget about her?"

"No. The harder I tried, the more I thought about her. The more I thought about her, the more pain I felt."

Mira lowered her head. "I never intended to cause you more pain."

"I don't like seeing you go by yourself to meet Vicious."

"I don't like going to see Vicious either, but this is the way it has to be done. He won't kill me because of the disk and our relation."

Spike shook his head. "Relation doesn't matter. He would kill his own mother if the need arose."

"Well, at least I have the information on my side."

"I'm going to be in the Syndicate with you. I've already made arrangements with Kier. He was a close friend to Lin and Shin. That way if Vicious turns on you, I can get you out."

"I would argue with you, but I know that won't get me anywhere. So I'll just say that you frustrate me."

Spike merely smirked and took another puff on his cigarette.

"Promise me you won't get involved unless Vicious locks me up."

"Fine."

"I mean it Spike."

"I'll promise that if you promise me something."

Mira looked up at him suspiciously. "What?"

"Come back from this. Alive and in one piece preferably."

Mira looked back out at the rising sun over the water of the bay. "It's foolish to make a promise that you know you're going to have to break."

"You can't know that this mission is going to end with your death. No one can predict the future." Spike chuckled to himself. "I was saying the same thing before I left to face Vicious just a few months ago."

"But Spike, there's just some things that a person knows for certain. I'm not coming back this time."

"Yeah. I said the same thing."

Mira stared down at the coffee in her hand. "I wonder what we would have been like together."

"We probably would fight a lot."

"Probably."

"End up saying things we regret. Making bigger issues out of small stuff."

"Most likely."

"But I have been known to say some nice things."

"And I've been known to be very easy going and level headed." She turned to look up at him and found him already staring down at her. Even in the dim morning light she could see the difference of color between his eyes. The artificial left one had more of a red color to it, while his right was deep brown. A deep brown that had dropped all defenses and walls and showed bare-hearted emotions. What was the look Spike had called it? A wistful look in the eye when a hopeful thought passes through the mind. Gren had always had it when he looked at her. She had always had it when she looked at Spike. And now Spike had it. And he was looking at her. Spike leaned down closer to her face.

"I'm sure we would have some light hearted times."

Mira found herself leaning up towards him. "And some quiet times as well."

His lips closed over hers and the world ceased to exist. Five years of waiting had finally brought her to this moment. And as always, cruel fate was tearing her away from him in a few hours. Away from the gentle touch of his hands on her waist. The tender kiss on her lips and the warmth of his body next to her. At last, she had her Spike. She felt his reluctance as he pulled back and she felt the chill in the wind once more on her face. He still held her close, fixing her with his mismatched stare.

"Return to me."

She gazed up into the eyes she thought she couldn't deny anything to, and sadly shook her head. "I can't. I'm sorry."

Spike merely nodded his head and pulled her against his chest, holding her tightly.

"At least promise me you'll try to come back to me."

She buried her face into his shirt. "I'll do my best, but that isn't a promise."

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Vicious sat behind the large desk, long fingers steepled as he thought. He knew Mira would come back to the Dragons. He also knew her reason for coming back. Despite their close relation, she was completely different from him. Killing came easily to him. Healing was her natural talent. He was always feared. She was always loved. So had been Spike. Mao Yenrai had no doubt placed those two in charge of the Dragons. Spike had talent he never used. Mira was just well loved. And he was always shoved into the background. Well, not anymore. Despite the fact that Mira was no longer a Dragon, she still viewed Vicious as a threat, and she should. Her plans for coming was so she could eraditcate him. No doubt she would use the disk with the bank accounts as her free ticket in. Vicious grinned. He already had looking into her famous library and found that she had destoryed everything. The disk she was going to give him would be useless. What she was going to do with the Syndicate was something he didn't know, but that didn't concern him. She wouldn't kill him. Her sense of family ties was too honorable to kill a family member, never the less her twin. No, she would pull the gun and pause before firing it. And that would be her mistake. Her last mistake.

"Lord Vicious."

He shifted his eyes towards the Red Dragon member.

"Miss Davenport to see you."

"Send her in."

"Sir."

A second later, a woman walked through the door. It wasn't Mira though. The hair was long and white, the eyes a cold blue and the face hard. On a second glance, Vicious saw that it was Mira, but not the Mira he knew. Perhaps killing her right off would be slightly harder than he anticipated.

Mira walked up to the desk and the thin man that was standing behind it. Her brother watched her with cold eyes. She was amazed at how dead those eyes were. Her emotionless mask remained in place, hiding the nerves she was feeling at the moment. It had been obvious he had watched her for a long time and very closely. He most likely all ready knew that she had destoryed the library. She had told Spike and the crew of the Bebop only so they would allow her to go in solo. And judging from the look in Vicious' eyes, he wasn't about to play along with any scheme she had in mind. Whatever she was going to do, it would have to be fast.

"Welcome home Miranda."

"I guess I should say the same to you too, Merlin."

"Merlin is dead. My name now is Vicious."

"Good."

His eyebrows came together for a split second in slight confusion. "What do you mean by that?"

"I won't so bad for killing my brother Merlin if he's all ready dead."

Mira pulled the small gun from her coat pocket and fired it. The window behind Vicious' head shattered. He still remained in the same spot, unmoving and unnaturally calm. But he hadn't moved at all. The bullet had grazed his cheek, leaving a small horizontal red line with a few drops of blood trailing down the side of his face. His dead eyes still focused on hers.

"I believe your aim is slightly off."

Mira raised the gun again. "If I wanted to put a bullet in your head, it would be there."

Vicious grinned. "Go ahead. I know you want to see me dead. Pull the trigger."

He saw her finger begin to squeeze the trigger, but it stopped. A flash of doubt passed across her eyes. He had been right. She didn't have enough guts to pull the trigger. It would cost her. No one challenged him and walked away. Vicious whipped a gun out from under the desk and fired before Mira could even register the movement. In the Syndicate, she was known for being thorough, he was known for being fast. Shock replaced the doubt in her eyes. The gun dropped from her hand, barely making a sound on the thick carpeted floor. She looked down at the red spot on her shirt. He had gotten off a gut shot. Vicious watched as her eyes unfocused and she fell to the floor. He hit a button on the desk and his bodyguard came into the room.

"Get her out of here before she leaves a stain on the carpet. Put her in the cell."

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Kier pushed all emotion out of his mind as he lifted the limp woman off the floor and carried her out of the office. He had been a good friend to Shin and Lin, two members of the Red Dragons that had sacrificed themselves for the Syndicate. He had especially grown close to Shin, who firmly believed Spike was coming back to take over. Kier had always looked up to Mira though. He was only fifteen when he met her, but it had been love at first sight, so he thought. As he grew older, his teenage crush had changed into an admiration for her. Then she left the Syndicate. Shortly after, Spike left. But now they were coming back. Kier didn't know all the details, he just hoped that they would overthrow Vicious and turn the Red Dragons back to what they were.

He looked down at the woman in his arms. Her stomach was bright red, but from he could tell, with proper medical attention, she should survive. However, Vicious had told him to take her to the cell. Kier could contact Spike as soon as he placed her in there. Once Spike came, he could deal with Vicious and Kier could provide the medical attention Mira would need.

Kier gently laid Mira down on the stone floor of the cell. He leaned over her, acting as if he was checking her wounds while he pulled his transmitter from beneath her coat and tapped off a message to Spike. Slipping the communication device back into his coat, he rested his hand on her pale forehead.

"Hang in there. Spike'll be here soon."