Moving on

by

There had been a time when Vin hadn't needed to consider how his actions might affect anyone but himself. That time was gone. He had family. A family that would stand with him no matter the consequences of the recent events. He looked around at the others and wondered ... could he have done anything differently?

Sure he could have. One of the things Josiah drilled in to him as teenager was that you always had choices; you always could have done it differently. Obviously, the others were wishing he had.

Ezra coughed, "Mr. Tanner, I did not believe it was possible to reside in a locality that was more dangerous and dilapidated than your last domicile, I stand corrected."

"Vin, living here is asking to get shot, stabbed, or mugged on a regular basis," Nathan pointed out.

"Does seem a might dangerous, brother," Josiah agreed.

"Junior, hope you got your life insurance up to date," Buck shuddered.

JD said nothing, he just swallowed and looked around again.

Chris stared at him. "Are you looking to get killed?"

Vin was afraid this would happen when they saw his new apartment. They hadn't liked it when he had lived on the edge of Purgatorio. They were really not happy now that he was living in Purgatorio proper.

"I'm not looking to get killed, my life insurance is current, and I'll be fine," He assured them.

Nathan snorted.

"Look, I appreciate that you're all worried about me, but it's not like I don't know what I'm doing," Vin assured them.

Chris raised an eyebrow.

"The old place was just as bad when I moved in there," Vin pointed out.

"Why does that not reassure me?" Ezra asked.

"Did you have a local gang lord looking to kill you back then?" Buck inquired.

"Yes, actually, I did," Vin pointed out.

JD nearly whimpered. How could Vin like living like this?

Mario and Vin have been butting heads since high school, picked up right where they left off when Vin moved back," Josiah explained.

"And you had to move right into his back yard." Nathan shook his head. Some people had no sense of self preservation what so ever.

"Why?" Chris asked, leaning against the doorframe.

Vin took a deep breath. How could he get them to understand?

"Consequences of some recent events."

They all blinked at him in confusion.

"What recent events?" JD asked.

"The kids I started out protecting are moving back into the old neighborhood, they're protecting the younger kids, helping the elderly, making sure the drugs and gangs don't come back in their area," Vin started.

"And that's why you had to leave?" Buck sputtered.

"I wasn't needed, they're taking care of themselves," Vin responded with pride.

"So you decided to move out and find another neighborhood to save, brother?" Josiah chuckled, understanding.

Vin smiled and blushed slightly, he had never really thought of it that way, just knew he was getting itchy to move. Josiah had him sounding like a hero or something.

"I'll start stocking up on my first aid supplies," Nathan said.

"Guess JD and I'll start stocking up on candy again," Buck grinned. It was a tactic that had won the pair great popularity in Vin's old building.

"I believe it would be prudent to become acquainted with the natives," Ezra smiled showing his gold tooth.

"Know where Rio is?" Chris asked, smiling predatorily.

"I can handle him," Vin glared at his boss.

"Don't doubt it, just thought I would make my presence known," Chris responded.

Vin snorted. Yeah right, intimidation had always been Chris's forte.

Well, know your enemy was one of the first things he had learned in the army. It was time for the bad element of the area to meet it's enemy.

"There are a few things I could use from the store," Vin smiled.

As the seven took to the street for the needed supplies, and marking this new territory as theirs, the bullies, pushers, and gang members moved aside. What Vin had once done alone, he would now be doing with six brothers.