#hey if you’re exploiting people to build a criminal empire the least you can do is sneak in some wordplay

[mechanicalchickens]

Dang, is that a pun in the ominous background conversation? Very dadly wordplay.

[texanredrose]

Family Business

@antonslavik020 made a suggestion and I did my usual thing and ran with it.

Winter stared at the shop, straightening her tie by rote and watching as the last customer left the waiting area, taking his sweet time clamoring into his vehicle and driving off. The sun had already set and the lights were being shut off, everyone except the head mechanic and her sister having gone home for the day. It would be ideal to corner the woman alone, enough shakedowns had taught Winter that limiting her target's backup always provided results, but it would be hard to separate the siblings without direct intervention. 

"You two stay in the car," she said, popping open her door. "I'll handle this." 

"Winter-" 

"This is my job." She turned to look into the backseat, meeting her sister's gaze evenly. "You run the branch, Blake's your bodyguard, and I'm your enforcer. Ideally, no one will even know your name, much less your face." With a nod to the Faunus behind the wheel, she exited the car. "Go grab something to eat. This'll take an hour at most; meet me at the motel on the corner." 

"Be careful," Blake said, amber eyes darting towards the mechanic shop. "Valens don't intimidate easy." 

"That was before they met me," she replied, settling into a role she'd been trained to embody since birth. She didn't have the enigmatic charm Weiss possessed, the sort of imperiousness that could be endearing, but she did have the kind of set to her jaw and tilt to her shoulders than would make men twice her size back down, an unspoken sort of dangerous intent that even a blind man could see. Without lifting a finger, she could inspire fear, but not loyalty- not the way Weiss could. So, she would not be a leader in that sense, but she would lay the foundation for her sister to build an empire over her own in this country. Whatever it took.

ding 

"Sorry, we're closing up shop for the day!" A cheery voice rang out as the younger mechanic rounded the counter, a smile on her lips that faded as she noticed no cars out in the lot and no recognition sparked by the pristine white suit Winter wore. "I'm, uh, sorry. Is there... something I can help you with, though?" 

"Where's your sister?" The icy edge to her voice made the young woman flinch; between the two, the little sister seemed the least keen to interact with others, always a touch shy unless suitably distracted, rambling on about whatever caught her interest. "She's closing up." And then she seemed to steel her nerves, a frown coming to her lips. "I'm sorry, Ma'am, but you'll have to come back tomorrow." 

"Hey, Rubes, what's the-" Then the elder sibling appeared, jumpsuit stained with oil and who knew what else, grease smudged on her cheeks as lilac eyes fell on the newcomer. "Hold up... I'm sorry, Ma'am, but we're closed." 

"Yang Xiao Long." Winter clasped her hands behind her back. "I'm here regarding a business proposal from my employer." 

"Look, if you're part of that chain trying to buy us out-" 

"I assure you, I'm not some corporate lackey." Her eyes narrowed. "And you have much worse than being bought out to consider as a potential future." 

They held each others gaze, silence stretching thin in the shop's little waiting area. 

"Ruby, go home," Yang said, a note of urgency in her tone.

"But-" 

"Go on." The blonde nodded towards the door. "I'll take care of this."

Although reluctant, the younger of the two complied, grabbing the hooded cape she wore everywhere but at work and throwing it around her shoulders, the door bell ringing out as she exited the shop. 

"Smart move." 

"Shut up." Moving around the counter, Yang went and locked the door, closing the blinds along the way. "I'm not the sharpest knife in the drawer but I'm not deaf. I've been hearing all the little whispers about a bid bad mafia family moving into town." 

"Then you're well aware of the wonderful opportunities I can offer you. On behalf of-" 

"Shove it." Now more or less in privacy, the mechanic turned back towards her, brows drawing together as she scowled. "I'm not rolling over, shilling out protection money to a bunch of crooks." She reached up, pulling apart the top portion of the jump suit to reveal a threadbare yellow tank top beneath, chiseled muscles of her arms on display as the sleeves were tied around her waist. Her core- just as defined- became visible with every breath, the tight material stretched to its limit as she settled into a fighting stance, both fists raised. "I don't know how many of you there are, but I know how many I'm gonna take down. All of you." 

"I'm not here to start a fist fight. You're an investment-" 

"Like Hell I am!" Anger and pride ignited in her lilac eyes, making them dance. "This is my terf, not yours. I'm not some cash cow for you to milk." 

"You're insisting on doing this the hard way, is that it?" Her expression didn't break, even with the little lilt in her voice. "You're willing to start a fight with me... with the hope that your sister will be waiting for you at home, safe and sound, when you're done."

Panic flashed in the blonde's expression, all her bravado thrown aside as real fear crept into her voice. "You wouldn't- she's my little sister, you wouldn't." And then the anger came back. "Don't hurt her!" 

Winter had done far too many intimidating shakedowns to count but this marked the first time she heard those words, and the first time she was snapped away from the present to relive a memory she'd thought she'd buried. Her entire life revolved around fear, intimidation, and manipulation- it would surprise no one that it extended to her home life as well. But she remembered, clear as crystal, the day their father gave Weiss her scar, the day she tried to be a real big sister and protect her... and she remembered saying those words just before she learned the hard way that doing the right thing meant paying a very steep price. 

"She won't come to any harm," she said, the words leaving her lips before she had a chance to process them, and she had to bite back a curse as she effectively dug a hole for herself. Too much emotion had slipped out- the words sounded honest and genuine and she meant them, and Yang didn't miss that fact. "If you cooperate." 

But it was too late. She'd shown too much of her hand and now the mechanic felt emboldened. "Oh, so somewhere in there lurks a real person, huh? You got a conscience under all that blood on your hands?" 

"I do exactly what you're doing now- I protect my family." 

"Bunch of criminals make for a lousy family." 

"So you weren't born to a mechanic?" She took a few steps away, shifting her attention to a picture on the wall- a father, and two smiling daughters, in front of the very same shop. "You came to this life of your own volition?"

"It's not the same-"

"Yes, Yang, it is." Winter looked back at her, trying to recapture the intimidation she'd had before, inspire the same fear. "This is the life I was born to live. I'm an enforcer- I work for my family to protect their interests. Become one of those interests, and I'll protect you, too." 

"What kind of family requires a weekly joining fee, huh?" Yang jabbed a finger at her. "Don't sell this as something it's not. You'd rather bleed us dry than get your own hands dirty." 

"Oh, I'll beat you bloody, if that's what you'd prefer." She brought her hands around to the front, made a show of cracking her knuckles. "Getting my hands dirty is my job. And the fee is just... upkeep." 

"Upkeep?" 

"Keeps police and inspectors away, encourages business- everyone who joins the family helps each other out. That's how it works." 

"And anyone who wants to move away gets erased from the records, permanently," Yang said, settling back into her stance once more. "I'm not that dumb." 

As much as she didn't want to admit it, she could admire the fire she saw shining in the woman's eyes. The courage, the drive- how could she not? But she had a job to do. 

"We're looking to build a... different sort of family here." She settled into a stance of her own. "We'd much rather handle things amicably." 

"What part of extortion is amicable, exactly?" 

"Do you know how they do things in Atlas?" Winter began to circle, keeping herself loose and watching for an opening. "First, they pick a place they like. Then, things start to go wrong there- all sorts of things. Slashed tires, broken windows, mysterious fires- enough to put a place out of business. And then someone shows up, and it all goes away... for a price." She offered a small shrug, as if the whole thing bored her. "I always thought it a bit extreme." 

"Oh, so this is the kinder, gentler mafia?"

"If you'd rather, we can go things the old school way." 

"How about this?" Yang shot forward, throwing a punch that moved as fast as lightning, and if she hadn't been anticipating such, she would've been laid out in one hit. However, Winter didn't expect the second strike- didn't think the woman could move quite that fast consistently considering her solid build, but she managed to block or dodge effectively. She'd been in too many fights by this point to be taken entirely off guard, and despite the elbow to her gut, she managed to sweep Yang's legs from beneath her. With the blonde landing solidly on her back, winded, Winter quickly put her forearm across the woman's neck. That should have been the end of the fight. Most people would stop there, because what was keeping Winter from killing her? But Yang saw the restraint and exploited it, used her superior strength to roll both of them over until she found herself trapped beneath the mechanic, arms pinned to the sides of her head. "No one's coming in to save you, huh?" Lilac eyes narrowed, anger still in her voice. "If one hair on Ruby's head-" 

"There's no one else," she said, struggling and failing to dislodge the woman atop her. "I came alone. I told you; we do things differently." 

"Why? Why did you come to Vale?"

Winter remained silent for a moment but caught in that lilac gaze... the truth poured from her lips. "We can't change Atlas. We can't save it. But if we set up a foothold here, we can stop it from happening again." 

"You didn't like the way your bosses did business, so you decided to come do it yourself?" The woman rolled her eyes with a sour frown. "How enterprising of you." 

"It's not that simple." 

"Than simplify it." The grip on her wrists tightened. "Or else."

"Or else what?" Winter raised a brow. "For all your disdain of criminals, you'll become one yourself and kill me?" 

"It's self defense." 

"Of course it is." She sighed, irritation plain in her voice. "It's almost like I ensured you'd have that excuse." 

"... what do you mean by that?" 

"If I'd come in broad daylight, spoke softly, let your anger be seen by others, would you have the same defense? Would anyone believe your word over mine?" Winter glanced down at her suit. "As far as the public's concerned, I'm the daughter of a businessman. And you're a mechanic who got mad at a customer- you do realize this could've gone very wrong for you, yes?" She tilted her head. "But now-" 

"Now I could just dump you outside and call the cops in the morning. Act like I didn't know a thing- you just got mugged and left on my doorstep." Her grip relaxed a little. "You're really banking on me not killing you, huh?" 

"I'm betting on you having a better conscience. You'd be surprised how few morals are instilled in children who grow up as part of the family." 

Slowly, Yang's grip relaxed even more as her expression smoothed out. "You don't mean you were just the kid of some low level thug. You were up there." 

"My father is the boss in Atlas. He took my grandfather's idea of building an alliance between businesses and perverted it into what you hold such a great disdain for," Winter said, weighing her options. She might regain the upper hand, regain her feet, but she couldn't beat the mechanic in a fair fight. And she'd really rather not shoot the woman. "My sister and I came to Vale because we know this is where he's coming next. If we can build up before he gets here, we can stop Vale from becoming another Atlas." 

Slowly, the pressure on her wrists disappeared entirely, though she couldn't quite get up yet with Yang hovering over her, lilac eyes searching her expression. "Lord help me, but I think I believe you." She sighed. "What would joining your family mean for me and mine?"

"We need a place to start laundering money. An honest business- you keep doing what you're doing and we'll just be using your books on occasion."

"And what's the price?" 

"You're one of our first partners." This part Weiss had explicitly ordered her to abide, despite her arguments that it would set a bad precedent. Still, she had to obey if they were going to get anywhere in Vale. "You can name your price." 

Yang seemed to mull the thought over before nodding. "Fine." And then she reached for Winter's tie, yanking on it to pull her up and into a kiss. Not rough or hard, not even that long, and it left her blinking in surprise and confusion as the mechanic pulled back. "There. Am I paid up for the week?" 

In that moment, she should've got angry. Should've lectured that this wasn't a game, that she should be taking this seriously. Should've demanded a real answer. Instead, she replied. "... no." 

One hand buried in greasy blonde locks, and she smelled of oil and sweat, but at that moment, Winter didn't rightly care. What they were trying to do was insane, she'd accepted that, but she'd yet to fall victim to the madness herself. Apparently, it would find her anyway, in her sister's insistence that they could beat their father at the game he created, in this mechanic willing to fight to protect her shop, and now in herself for wanting nothing more than those hands on her again, this time with less of an intention to bruise and more to soothe. 

Maybe madness was the only way to make sense of the world.

An hour later, Winter watched as Blake pulled up, getting into the passenger seat without a word and merely nodding for the Faunus to continue driving. "It's done; the mechanic agreed to be a front." 

"Winter, what happened? You look like you fought a grizzly bear." 

She winced, hoping that the details would be left well enough alone. "Nothing of import. Intimidation didn't work, so I had to use other means." Eventually, she sighed, passing a hand over her face. "And... the mechanic agreed to put us in touch with more places that might be open to an arrangement." 

"That wasn't part of the plan." Blake noted, those keen amber eyes drifting her way and staying for just a second too long. "Did you two decide that before or after the hickey?" 

"Hickey- Winter." Her sister leaned forward, noting that her disheveled state wasn't the byproduct of a fight, at least not entirely. "What happened?" 

"I let her name her price," she replied, reaching up to straighten her tie before remembering that she didn't have it anymore. "In hindsight, I should've taken into account that she's... very..." 

"Attractive?" The Faunus offered, that little curl to her lips indicating amusement. "Would explain why you insisted on handling it alone." 

"Don't you start-" 

"Both of you, stop it." Weiss pinched the bridge of her nose. "I can't believe this. But... she is on our side?" At her nod, the woman sat back and sighed. "I suppose that's what really matters. But be careful, Winter. You know this could be used against you." 

From the corner of her eye, she saw the way Blake's ears flicked and the pensive expression on her face. Winter felt tempted to call her sister out on being a bit hypocritical, but opted against it. After all, they'd gotten this far on madness; no sense in trying to apply logic now.

Meanwhile, at a little house just down the road from the mechanic shop, Yang stumbled through the door and plopped down on the couch, putting her face in her hands and sighing heavily. Already she could hear her sister coming down the hall, hurrying to the living room with relief evident in her voice. 

"Oh, Yang, I'm so glad you made it home, I-" And then she stopped dead in the entryway. "Yang... why are you covered in scratch marks? And bite marks? And... is that that woman's tie?" A beat of silence. "What the hell happened?" 

"Well... either the best thing to ever happen to me," she replied, turning slowly to look at her sister. "Or the biggest mistake. Jury's still out on that." 

And she really wasn't sure when she'd find out.