Posted originally on the Archive_of_Our_Own at https://archiveofourown.org/
works/11882532.
  Rating:
      Explicit
  Archive Warning:
      Graphic_Depictions_Of_Violence, Underage
  Category:
      M/M
  Fandom:
      ジョジョの奇妙な冒険_|_JoJo_no_Kimyou_na_Bouken_|_JoJo's_Bizarre_Adventure
  Relationship:
      Kakyoin_Noriaki/Kujo_Jotaro
  Character:
      Kujo_Jotaro, Kakyoin_Noriaki, Kujo_Holly, OC:_Stand_User
  Additional Tags:
      post-stardust_crusaders, AU, Getting_Together, Mind_Control_Aftermath_&
      Recovery, Fluff, Drama, Hurt/Comfort, Slice_of_Life
  Series:
      Part 1 of postwar_remix
  Stats:
      Published: 2017-08-27 Completed: 2018-01-07 Chapters: 5/5 Words: 32825
****** three card spread ******
by Nomette
Summary
     "Jojo," Kakyoin says, and glances sideways at him. "It’s good to see
     you again. Thank you for killing DIO."
     It’s such a strange thing to say. DIO’s name doesn’t belong in this
     crowded classroom, stuffed in with Jotaro’s sighing classmates and
     ancient textbooks. The word doesn’t even belong in Kakyoin’s mouth;
     the Kakyoin Jotaro knew wasn’t one for trite sentiments. He has to
     know that Jotaro didn’t kill DIO for him. He didn’t even do it for
     his mother or his grandfather, even if the two of them were what
     propelled him towards the fight. He did it for himself.
     "He really pissed me off," Jotaro says.
     --
     Jotaro returns from Egypt, gets his ass kicked, fights enemy stands,
     and falls in love.
Notes
     the king of swords:
     upright: clear thinking, intellectual power, authority, truth
     reversed: manipulative, tyrannical, abusive
See the end of the work for more notes
***** the king of swords *****
Jotaro arrives late to class due to his mother’s clinginess; it’s been months
since he returned from Egypt, but Holly still insists on chasing him as if he
might vanish at any moment. It tires him. He’d like to vanish, to go somewhere
silent and quiet, peaceful as the night sky over the empty egyptian desert.
Instead, he goes to his desk.
Kakyoin Noriyaki is lounging in Jotaro’s seat.
The last time Jotaro saw Kakyoin, he was being loaded onto a stretcher, and
most of his torso was gone. This Kakyoin looks fine. He’s wearing the same
little smile that Jotaro’s seen a hundred times, the one that means someone’s
about to get their ass kicked. Jotaro suspects that it might be him. Star
Platinum flickers into existence, fist raised and ready to go.
“You’re in my seat,” Jotaro tells him.
“I’ve set up my things,” Kakyoin says mildly. He has, in fact, piled school
supplies on Jotaro’s desk. Jotaro looks at them in disgust. Perhaps an attack
isn’t forthcoming, after all, and Kakyoin is only being Kakyoin.
“Do you mind sitting somewhere else?” Kakyoin asks. Hierophant Green appears
underneath his desk, and Jotaro tenses, but no attack seems to be forthcoming.
Hierophant is coiled in a defensive position. It rises slowly, unthreatening,
and waves lazily at Star Platinum.
“Yare yare,” Jotaro mutters. He does, in fact, mind giving up his seat, which
was chosen to minimize his exposure to giggling schoolmates, but sitting
somewhere else will be less trouble than prying Kakyoin out of his seat. He
takes an empty seat next to his usual spot, keeping an eye on Hierophant Green.
His classmates are whispering annoying things; he wishes they would quiet down
and quit staring. Kakyoin has already turned away from him, his attention
ostensibly focused on the board. Underneath the desks, Emerald Hierophant is
drawing an intricate web through the aisle, but Star Platinum ignores it in
favor of looming behind Kakyoin.
You’d better not have been possessed again, Jotaro informs him. I’ll kick your
ass a second time. It’s been awhile since he communicated using his Stand, but
it comes easily. Kakyoin looks startled.
No, he replies, then covers a snicker with his hand. I see you haven’t changed
at all.
Jotaro doesn’t dignify that with a reply. In a way, it’s just like the last
time Kakyoin appeared in his life; unexpected and challenging, and yet it’s not
the same at all. Jotaro knows Kakyoin, knows him well, knows that Kakyoin takes
his earrings out every night and puts them back in every morning, knows the way
he takes his coffee and the way he takes his tea, knows the sound he makes when
he’s been really, truly hurt. Even without looking, he knows that Kakyoin is
only pretending to pay attention to the teacher, because when the two of them
are in a room of civilians there’s really no one else.
He calls Star Platinum back to his side, and waits.
Jojo, Kakyoin says, and glances sideways at him. It’s good to see you again.
Thank you for killing DIO.
It’s such a strange thing to say. DIO’s name doesn’t belong in this crowded
classroom, stuffed in with Jotaro’s sighing classmates and ancient textbooks.
The word doesn’t even belong in Kakyoin’s mouth; the Kakyoin Jotaro knew wasn’t
one for trite sentiments. He has to know that Jotaro didn’t kill DIO for him.
He didn’t even do it for his mother, or for his grandfather, even if the two of
them were what propelled him towards the fight. He did it for himself.
He really pissed me off, Jotaro says. Star Platinum sticks his fist out,
preening. Kakyoin grins.  
Me too, he says. Just like that, all of Jotaro’s annoyance vanishes. It’s as if
they’re sitting in the back of a jeep together, united in their annoyance with
the old man’s shitty driving, and Kakyoin has just thanked Jotaro for opening
the window. A memory comes to him; once, on a particularly hot day, Jotaro had
been feeling overheated and annoyed, and when Kakyoin had thanked him for
opening the window, Jotaro had snapped back that he hadn’t done it for him.
“I know,” Kakyoin had said lazily. “I’m telling you that it was a thing I
wanted done and I approve.” Kakyoin is kind of an asshole. It’s one of the
things Jotaro likes about him.
“So, do you two know each other?” one of Jotaro's classmates asks, and Jotaro
realizes that he and Kakyoin have been making silent eye contact for a decent
chunk of time.
“Yes,” Kakyoin says.
“Yes?” Jotaro’s classmate clearly wants more information, but Kakyoin doesn’t
offer any. Instead, he points towards the front of the classroom.
“The teacher is looking this way,” he says. Indeed, Jotaro's professor is
advancing on them, but by the time he arrives, Kakyoin and Jotaro are both
studiously admiring their work.
Jotaro doesn’t need to look at Kakyoin to see his smile.
The rest of the class passes without incident. Kakyoin’s Hierophant has wound
itself throughout the room, but it doesn’t do anything more interesting than
nudge a couple of pens and pencils off desks. At first, Jotaro thinks the
movement is some kind of challenge to Star Platinum, but a quick glance reveals
that Kakyoin isn’t paying any attention to him. He’s just amusing himself, in
the same way that someone else might twirl a pen between their fingers.
After class, Kakyoin is surrounded by a small group of people, all wanting to
know where’s he’s from, why he transferred so late in the year, how he knows
Jotaro. Jotaro attempts to escape before he can be implicated in these
questions, but Hierophant grasps him by the leg of one pant and refuses to let
go. Jotaro glowers at Kakyoin, and the crowd around him hesitates long enough
for Kakyoin to skip through them to Jotaro's side.
“Jotaro,” Kakyoin says brightly. “Let’s walk to the next class together.”
Kakyoin walks with a slight limp now, and his back is stiff, but he doesn’t ask
Jotaro to slow down. Instead, he uses Hierophant to support him, and he does it
in the unthinking manner of someone who’s taken an action enough times to be
accustomed to it.
“Why are you here?” Jotaro asks.
“The Speedwagon foundation thought it might be a good idea for me to have
another Stand user nearby while I finish recovering. Besides, I was going to go
school here before the trip.”
“Are your parents here?” Jotaro asks. Kakyoin’s lips quirk up slightly. He
shakes his head. Jotaro waits for him to volunteer more information, but that’s
all there is. Well, it’s not as if Kakyoin’s family is any of his business.
Their next class is separate. Jotaro considers ditching to go talk to Kakyoin
behind the building, but Kakyoin shakes his head and enters the classroom.
Their third class, math, is together, and afterwards they head to lunch.
It’s still a little strange, seeing Kakyoin in this environment. Jotaro keeps
sneaking glances at him. Star Platinum, with its usual attention to detail,
fills his head with little observations: the bright color of Kakyoin’s hair,
the jut of his cheekbones, the pattern of freckles on the back of his neck.
Jotaro’s seen all these things before, but it’s different to see them now, like
returning to a place he hadn’t realized he’d left.
Jotaro usually goes up to the roof to smoke; Kakyoin follows him up. There’s
not any real seating, so the two of them sit on the ground and eat in silence.
Jotaro’s seen Kakyoin eat frogs, baba ganoush, and schwarma without blinking an
eye, but he’s never seen him eat a high school lunch.
Jotaro puts down his plate to light a cigarette, and Kakyoin steals a piece of
ginger off his plate while Jotaro’s hands are occupied. Jotaro doesn’t even
like ginger. He exhales smoke and hands the plate to Kakyoin, who starts to
laugh.
“Good grief,” Jotaro says. “What is it?”
“You,” Kakyoin says. “Us. Smoking cigarettes on the roof when a few months ago
we were fighting an ape on a ghost ship. It’s ridiculous.”
Jotaro shrugs. School has always seemed like a ridiculous thing to him; all
these people packed together in close proximity, all wanting things from each
other, from him. Stupid, immaterial things, things he didn’t know how to give.
The trip had made more sense to him: there had been a problem, and Jotaro and
his group had set out to solve it. For the first time, he’d had the sense of
holding something in common with people, of striving to reach a shared goal.
He doesn’t want to be back on the trip. It was a huge pain in the ass. But
Kakyoin’s right; there was something meaningful about it, something that makes
normal high school seem ridiculous in comparison.
“Well, at this point, we should be used to ridiculous things,” Jotaro says.
Kakyoin laughs, but he looks a little sad.  
“True.”
They sit in silence a long moment. It’s a warm day, but not too bad. Nothing
compared to the dust and the wind and heat they endured on the long trek to
Egypt. Below them, their classmates are gossiping in the front yard, blissfully
unaware of the monsters that go to their school. It’s a good place to sit and
smoke his cigarette, peacefully separated from the concerns of the world below.
Jotaro breathes out the last of his cigarette and turns to Kakyoin.
“Did the old man offer you a position with the Speedwagon foundation, too?”
Kakyoin nods. His expression is contemplative.
“If I recover, yes. So, I suppose there are more bizarre trips in my future, if
I want them.”
“What’s wrong with you?”
“Other than the fact that I almost died, you mean? Many of my internal organs
are transplants. There’s a long list of things I can’t eat, and I have to take
six pills a morning or my immune system starts to chew through the grafts.”
Kakyoin says it very matter-of-factly.
Jotaro glances at him. Kakyoin is very pale, but Kakyoin has always been pale.
There’s a little white in his red hair that wasn’t there before, and he’s lost
some weight, but his gaze is steady and his voice is clear. Jotaro’s been
enough fights over the course of his life to recognize what a defeated man
looks like, but Kakyoin, though hurt, is as sharp as ever.
Good.
“If you’re not going to finish that, I’ll take it,” Jotaro says, gesturing to
Kakyoin’s drink. Kakyoin laughs and holds it away from Jotaro, who sends Star
Platinum to retrieve it. Kakyoin’s look of surprise when the drink vanishes
from his hand is a delight.
“You are a delinquent, Jotaro Kujo,” Kakyoin says, and his tone is a perfect
mock-up of Jotaro's mother. Jotaro would laugh if his mouth wasn’t full of
Calpico. In retaliation, Kakyoin steals Jotaro's drink, but it’s mostly empty.
Jotaro smirks. Anyone else would make a big fuss about indirect kisses, but
Kakyoin just finishes the drink.
Star Platinum traces its fingers along Kakyoin’s hairline, examining the place
where Kakyoin’s shockingly red hair meets his forehead. Jotaro freezes. It’s
been ages since Star Platinum has done anything without orders from Jotaro, but
it’s always been a willful stand.
Stop that, he orders, but the damage has been done.
“Of course you would notice that,” Kakyoin says, and for the first time,
there’s something a little like sadness in his voice. Hierophant appears,
coiled around Kakyoin. Surrounded by green strands like this, Kakyoin bears a
distinct resemblance to Holly in the final days of her disease; a delicate
human form trapped within the thorns of an impossible tangle.
There are a series of small, thin scars at the edge of Kakyoin’s hairline, as
if someone had attempted to scratch clear through to the skull with only their
fingernails. Jotaro hadn’t noticed until Star Platinum pointed them out.
“DIO put another flesh bud in you,” Jotaro says. Kakyoin doesn’t look at him.
“Yes,” he replies. There’s an ugly, naked hatred in his voice when he speaks.
“Saving me for later.” Kakyoin’s gratitude earlier makes a little more sense,
in this context. Jotaro's not sure what to say. He saved Kakyoin, but Kakyoin
saved him too, didn’t he? Someone had to go first. If Kakyoin hadn’t sacrificed
himself to draw out Dio’s stand, it’s likely that none of them would have made
it out alive.
“He tried to crush me under a steamroller,” he offers.
Hierophant uncoils slightly. It extends lazily towards Jotaro, then lightly
bops his hat upwards. Star Platinum catches the offending strand in one hand,
and the touch goes through Jotaro’s whole body like a shock. It’s strange, to
have his hand on this part of Kakyoin. He has the sudden sensation that he’s
slipped his hand under Kakyoin’s shirt, or into his waistband. Somewhere it
shouldn’t be. It feels like the shock of the first time he punched someone, as
if he’s just discovered an entirely different method of communication.
He opens his hand, and Hierophant goes free. Jotaro’s hat is tilted upwards,
revealing his smooth, unscarred forehead.
“Do you have any scars?” Kakyoin asks.  
“Yes, but not from the steamroller. On my ribs, from the knives.” Jotaro rolls
up his sleeves, and reveals his forearm. He’s got quite a lot of scars,
actually. DIO carried around a lot of knives.  
“How sad,” Kakyoin says, examining the thin scar. “How will you become a model
looking like this?” Jotaro jerks his forearm away from Kakyoin’s prying
fingertips.
“I’m not going to take off my shirt,” Jotaro says.
“Mmm,” Kakyoin says. There’s a thin strand of Hierophant Green sneaking along
the ground towards Jotaro. He catches it under one hand as a warning, but
Kakyoin doesn’t say anything, and the two of them sit in silence until the bell
rings.
 
That night, Holly asks him about school, as always. Jotaro takes a bite of his
meal and considers his response.
“Kakyoin was there,” he says at last. Holly’s reaction surprises him.
“So soon! I knew he was getting better, but I didn’t realize he was so far
along. That’s wonderful. You should have him over. Your grandfather does his
best, you know, but they never feed people well at hospitals.”
“You knew he was getting better…?”
“Oh, yes. You know, your grandfather calls me every week. He’s such a worrier.”
Jotaro hadn’t realized Holly and Joseph ever discussed anything of importance.
He’d thought it was all gossip and television shows.
“How is Kakyoin?” Holly continues.
“Fine,” Jotaro grunts. He stole my pen during fifth period, he thinks, and I
still haven’t figured out where he put it, but it gave me something to do
during English class so I don’t mind really. None of that is worth saying to
Holly, however, so he doesn’t bother.
“Is he skinny? Where’s he living? Is it close to your school? If he’s living in
a hotel he can always come stay with us, you know. We have so much room.”
Jotaro has no idea where Kakyoin is staying. It hadn’t occurred to him to ask.
His parents had a home around here somewhere, presumably. “Do you have his
number? I’ll call him and ask him if he wants to stay here.”
Jotaro stares at her.
“You must be out of your damn mind, woman.”
“Oh, so you don’t have it? That’s fine. I’ll visit him tomorrow, after school,
and ask him myself. It’s nice to do some things in person, don’t you think.”
“Absolutely not,” Jotaro says, knowing he’s got no real way of stopping her.
His mother beams at him. Before the meals ends, he’s been bullied into
promising he’ll ask Kakyoin to come over for dinner.
 
The next day dawns, and Jotaro escapes over the walls of his family compound
before his mother can catch him and delay his departure with interminable
goodbyes. For some reason, Star Platinum is slow and reluctant to appear, and
when it does, its movements are sluggish and delayed. Jotaro is tense all the
way to school, worried about the appearance of an enemy stand; he can’t think
of any other reason for his Stand’s sudden lethargy.
He half-expects Kakyoin to meet him on the steps where they first met, for the
sake of drama, but Kakyoin is nowhere to be seen. Jotaro arrives at the school
earlier than usual, which is to say on time, and find Kakyoin seated on a bench
outside the gates, surrounded by a cluster of giggling girls.
“Kakyoin, we need to talk,” Jotaro says.
“Sure,” Kakyoin says. He nods to the girls clustered around him. “It was a
pleasure to meet you all. Thank you for welcoming me to your school. Now, if
you’ll excuse me, I have to talk with Jotaro.”
“Awww,” one of the girls says. “Can’t we stay? We’ve just met, and you’re
already leaving?” She’s a new student from England, and has decided for some
reason that this gives her a connection to Jotaro. He’s been avoiding her for
weeks.
“I’ll tell you about it later,” Kakyoin promises. Inexplicably, his politeness
gets the girls to leave faster than Jotaro's rudeness.
“What’s up?” Kakyoin asks.
“I had trouble getting Star Platinum to appear this morning,” he mutters. Star
Platinum flickers into existence, inexplicably recovered. Kakyoin’s Hierophant
 emerges and cautiously pokes it with a strand, which Star Platinum catches.
“Hmm,” Kakyoin says. Both of them stare at Star Platinum, which stares back,
unmoved.  “Well, I’ll be on my guard,” Kakyoin says.
But there isn’t anything. Star Platinum doesn’t send him any useful information
for the rest of the day: it’s all tiny, irrelevant things, like the fact that
the english girl keeps sneaking glances at him or the way Kakyoin likes to
doodle in the margin of his notes. (He draws three things: a tarot card labeled
the Star, which Jotaro takes as a tacit acknowledgement that Kakyoin knows he’s
being watched, another tarot card, unlabeled, depicting a king with a sword,
and an unkind portrait of their first period teacher which makes Jotaro stifle
a laugh when he spots it.)
At lunch, more students cluster around Kakyoin; Jotaro leaves him to his fate
and heads up to the roof. Kakyoin appears halfway through lunch, blessedly
alone. Jotaro doesn’t see what good he derives from talking to those people,
but it’s none of his business.
“How’s Star?” Kakyoin asks, taking a seat next to Jotaro. Star Platinum, which
has been silently watching throughout the day, glances at him and raises a
fist.
“Er, no thanks,” Kakyoin says. “Jotaro, do you think Star knows what’s going
on? We could give it a pencil and paper, like we did with the fly.”
It’s not a bad idea. Jotaro removes a paper and pencil from his bag and gives
them to Star Platinum, with orders to sketch the scene from this morning. He
and Kakyoin watch with interest as Star Platinum sketches, the pencil moving
across the paper from left to right like a printer. Star Platinum does not
sketch like a human being.
The finished product is a picture of Jotaro’s mother, Holly, peering out of her
window. Jotaro frowns at it, unsure what his stand is trying to say. An ornate
border of thorns frames the picture.
“Yare yare,” Jotaro mutters.
“You’re mother isn’t feeling unwell, is she?” Kakyoin asks.
“She was fine last night,” Jotaro says. “She wanted me to invite you over for
dinner.” Kakyoin looks touched for a moment, and then a slight grin spreads
over his face. Kakyoin’s sadism is his least endearing quality.
“How kind of her,” he says. “Holly is so lovely and accommodating.”
“She wanted me to ask you what you prefer to eat and then call,” Jotaro says,
hating his mother with every fiber of his being.  
Kakyoin gives him a ten-point list.
 
They walk home together after school in easy silence, Jotaro matching his pace
to Kakyoin’s. It’s nice to walk quietly together, Hierophant winding lazily
through Kakyoin’s legs like some kind of demented snake. Kakyoin doesn’t ask
stupid questions. He doesn’t demand things of Jotaro, doesn’t ask to be greeted
affectionately or cooed over. He simply exists, like a patch of sunlight or a
distant cloud.
Jotaro is suddenly, terribly glad to have killed DIO. The thought of Kakyoin
under that monster’s grasp is unbearable: Kakyoin should always be like this,
unfettered and free, his footsteps moving in perfect sync with Jotaro’s.
“Do I have something on my face?” Kakyoin asks. It’s an old question, one
Kakyoin used to ask when they were together in the back of the jeep. I know
you’re watching me, it says. At his most bored, Jotaro used to treat it as a
game- trying to monitor Kakyoin without making it obvious.
“Yeah, right here,” Jotaro says, and draws an imaginary line over Kakyoin’s
eyelid. Kakyoin snorts.
“Asshole,” he replies. Jotaro nudges his shoulder and sends him stumbling to
the side.
“Bully," Kakyoin says, and flips him off.
“Dick," Jotaro replies.
“Thug.”
“Prick.” Kakyoin is grinning. “Takes one to know one.”
“Hmmpf,” Jotaro says, but he can’t help but crack a smile.
“I’m going to report you to our homeroom teacher for bullying me,” Kakyoin
teases. There’s a truly heinous anti-bullying campaign going on at Jotaro’s
high school- the hallways are filled with horrible posters saying things like
“if you see something, say something!” Jotaro has been staunchly ignoring it
for months. He’s not a bully. He doesn’t even talk to people unless they bother
him first.
“Oh? I’d better make it worthwhile, then,” Jotaro says. Star Platinum appears
right in front of Kakyoin, who smacks into his chest and stumbles backwards.
“You unbelievable fuck,” Kakyoin says, and bursts into laughter. “Fuck this-
I’m not telling the teacher. I’m telling your mom.”
“I will kill you first,” Jotaro says, very seriously.
“Well, hurry up then, we’re almost to your house,” Kakyoin says, ducking around
Star Platinum. Jotaro considers teasing him some more, but Kakyoin is still
fragile. The last thing he needs is a lecture from his mom about playing nicely
with Kakyoin, who’s never played nice in his life. He’s still got that knife up
his sleeve.   
“By the way, Jotaro, did you know that most of our class thinks you’re in the
yakuza? A bunch of girls asked if you’re blackmailing me for money.”
“Good grief. What did you tell them?”
“I told them I was blackmailing you, obviously.” Jotaro glances sideways.
Kakyoin has a wide, self-satisfied smirk on his face. Jotaro decides that he
doesn’t want to know.
“You know, since we’re part of rival gangs and all that…”
“You’re kidding,” Jotaro says. Kakyoin laughs again.
“Obviously. We’re clearly in the same gang. What should we call ourselves? The
Stardust Crusaders?” Jotaro snorts.
“That sounds like a band.” Kakyoin pretends to consider.
“As long as your grandfather isn’t on vocals…” Jotaro winces. Both of them had
to listen to hours of his grandfather’s tuneless singing as they drove through
the desert.
“Not Polnareff, either.” This is a stupid conversation, but Jotaro can’t bring
himself to stop.
“No, not Polnareff,” Kakyoin agrees. “Maybe we can be a drum group. Star
Platinum seems like he’d be good on the drums.”
“Tch. That’s not what Stands are for.” Kakyoin shrugs. Hierophant flickers
outwards, winding its long body around Kakyoin like a string.
“Stands are for whatever we want them to be, I think,” Kakyoin says, and Jotaro
remembers that Kakyoin’s had Hierophant Green since birth. Jotaro’s known from
the moment he first spotted Star Platinum that Star was a thing made for
violence, but not everyone is like him.
“You can start a solo act, and I’ll come watch you at the circus.”
“Harsh,” Kakyoin says. “You would never go to the circus.” Jotaro snorts. It’s
true: he wouldn’t. If Kakyoin was there, though, he’d be tempted.
“I go to school, don’t I?” Kakyoin’s laughter is so loud it startles the birds.
Jotaro’s face feels a little strange. He’s not sure why he keeps smiling.
Jotaro’s good mood lasts all the way until the boundaries of the Kujo estate,
where the sight of his front door reminds him that he needs to prepare for the
upcoming battle. His mother is a tenacious enemy, and this is her home turf,
her center of power. She will stop at nothing to get her way.
“Mrs. Kujo,” Kakyoin says, a wide grin breaking across his face. The enemy has
made contact. Holly crosses the yard and greets Kakyoin with her usual
enthusiasm; Kakyoin responds with uncharacteristic bashfulness and is swept
into a hug.
“You look wonderful,” Holly says cheerfully. “I’m glad to see Papa’s foundation
is treating you well.”
“Just the sight of your face has cured me,” Kakyoin says. Holly laughs, but
Jotaro’s not sure what the joke is. Kakyoin is holding her hands. He scowls and
moves closer, but neither of them is playing attention to him.  
“Now you sound like Papa. How is he doing?”
“Mr. Joestar was fine when I saw him last week,” Kakyoin says sheepishly. “He
switched my discharge papers out as a prank, and I spent 24 hours convinced I
was going to go to school in Alaska.”
Holly giggles.
“Well, we’re glad to have you here. Come on in! You can practice your english,
even if we’re not in Alaska.” The two of them go into the house, Holly’s arm
looped around Kakyoin’s side, as if she’s supporting him. Jotaro is left to
close the gate behind them and follow.
When he catches up, they’re in the kitchen. Holly has switched to english, and
Kakyoin is talking to her in careful, halting sentences.
“... not far from the school.” Kakyoin pronounces the last word very carefully.
“Good!” Holly says cheerfully. “That way, you don’t have to walk as far.  If
you need help, you can always call on Jotaro.”
“I be… hmm… I am fine,” Kakyoin says.
“Oh, of course. You boys are so strong. But it’s okay to ask for help, you
know. Jotaro really likes you, I’m sure he won’t mind at all.”
“Mom!” Jotaro says.
“Oh, Jotaro,” Kakyoin says, dropping back into Japanese and affecting a
schoolgirl accent. “All this time, and I never knew your feelings for me.” He
even has the gall to bat his eyes. This is a worst-case scenario. Kakyoin’s
teamed up with his mom. Jotaro exits the kitchen immediately.
He lingers in the living room for a bit, listening to the cheerful sound of
Holly and Kakyoin talking about food, then takes out his textbook and sets up
on the couch with a sigh. He’s a full chapter into the assigned reading when
Kakyoin finally exits the kitchen and makes his way into the living room.
There’s a flush high on his cheeks, as if he’s been doing exercise.
“Your mom is so nice,” he says, and his voice cracks oddly. Jotaro lifts his
head from the book, eyes narrowed, but there isn’t anything obviously wrong
with Kakyoin. He’s just seated on the couch, quietly removing books from his
backpack, his face turned away from Jotaro.
“Which way is the bathroom?” Kakyoin asks, that strange tone still in his
voice. Jotaro scowls.
“Down the hall.” Kakyoin’s been here before, he should know. Jotaro summons
Star Platinum once Kakyoin leaves the room and listens for any suspicious
activity, but Kakyoin doesn’t do anything other than go down the hall and shut
the door behind him. Strange.
Well, Jotaro’s not going to bother him about it. If Kakyoin wants to say
something, he will. Jotaro returns to his book, and waits. Eventually, Kakyoin
comes back. Star Platinum notes that his eyelashes and the hair at the edge of
his face is wet; he must have washed up in the bathroom. Jotaro turns the page
and the two of them sit in silence until Holly pops in to announce the meal.
Kakyoin pops up like he hasn’t eaten in ages, although Jotaro watched him stuff
his face at lunch a few hours before, and the two of them follow Holly to the
kitchen. His mom’s really outdone herself. Not only has she made curry, katsu,
and miso soup but she’s also made hamburgers, french fries, and apple pie.
“We’re never going to eat all this,” Jotaro mutters.
“American style,” Kakyoin exclaims. “These little hamburgers are called
sliders, right?”
“Yep! Let’s sit down and eat them.” The three of them sit down and give thanks,
and the meal begins.
“I haven’t had good curry since we left India,” Kakyoin mutters. “Hospital food
sucks.” Holly titters. A blush spreads across Kakyoin’s face. While he’s
distracted, Jotaro steals three of the sliders. He’s not sure what the point is
of making food that’s so small. It seems inefficient.
A brief silence spread across the table as everyone shoves food in their mouth.
The meals at Jotaro’s high school kind of suck, so he’s gotten used to eating
large meals when he comes home. Holly’s food is very good, even if he would
never tell her so.
Kakyoin eats lightly, and finishes before Jotaro.
“Are you not hungry?” Holly asks. “You’re so tall, and a teenager! Have some
more.”
“The doctor said I should stick to smaller meals for now,” Kakyoin explains.
“Oh! How responsible of you. But, maybe a little more? It looks like you’ve
lost some weight.” Holly transfers a little food over to Kakyoin’s plate,
smiling. Jotaro hates it when she does that, but Kakyoin just smiles
sheepishly.
“Well, if you insist.” After he finishes his food, he and Holly get into a
conversation about different types of curry around the world, and Kakyoin tells
her the story of the time he ordered vindaloo in India and burned his mouth.
Jotaro remembers this story, since the curry had been so caustic they’d thought
it was a stand attack, but Kakyoin tells it like it’s something that happened
to him on vacation.
“You've certainly traveled a lot, haven’t you,” Holly says. Kakyoin shrugs.
“Here and there. It’s nice to be back in Japan.”
“You sound like Jotaro,” Holly says, amused. “Okay. You boys go out and play,
and I’ll clean up.” Go out and play, as if they’re children. Jotaro grunts and
leaves the table, but Kakyoin stays behind to help ferry the dishes from the
table to the kitchen. Well, whatever. Kakyoin’s role as a decoy means that
Jotaro’s free to go out and smoke peacefully in the backyard without being
caught by Holly.
It’s early evening, and the wind is moving softly in the trees like a whisper
in a crowded classroom. No one’s attention is on him; there are no deadlines,
no enemy stands, no classmates, no family. Just him, and the silence of the
garden. It’s his favorite time of day: twilight, when the nocturnal animals
begin to emerge from their daytime sleep.
Kakyoin finds him without having to look. His footsteps take him in a straight
line to Jotaro’s location in the backyard, as if drawn to him by an invisible
string. Jotaro listens to his approach and thinks, “Stand users are drawn
together.”
Kakyoin stands in the silent doorway for a long time, looking out at the
garden, then approaches and takes a seat next to Jotaro on the veranda that
overlooks the garden. Jotaro lights up a second cigarette and inhales, and the
wind brings him a slight hint of the cherry smell of Kakyoin’s hair. He’s
smelled it before, pressed up against him in the wake of N’Doul’s attack.
You haven’t changed, he thinks stupidly. It’s not true. There’s a sadness that
hangs over Kakyoin like a haze, visible only when glimpsed from the corner of
your eye. But still: he is Kakyoin. He fits besides Jotaro’s side like a deer
in the forest.
The two of them watch Hierophant Green winds his way through the delicate
garden, his form passing like the wind, without a trace. The darkness softens
the edges of Hierophant’s Green unnatural form, transforming him into something
that fits perfectly into the stillness and calm of the approaching night.
“Jotaro,” Kakyoin says. He’s seated close enough that Jotaro can feel the
warmth of his body through his pants. Even in the soft light of dusk, Jotaro
can read the determination on his face. Kakyoin looks directly into Jotaro’s
face and speaks, his voice soft but clear.
“You may resent me afterwards, but I am not the sort of person to pretend like
a liar.”
“What?” Jotaro says. In the half second it takes to process the words, Kakyoin
leans in and presses his lips against Jotaro’s. The kiss is soft and brief,
over in a moment.
Oh, Jotaro thinks stupidly. He’s not sure what to say. No one’s ever had the
balls to just kiss him before. Kakyoin draws back. He’s got his battle-face on,
that calm, hard look that says he’s ready for whatever happens. If the kiss
hadn’t happened, Jotaro would be sure that he was about to be attacked.
Kakyoin’s hands are digging into his thigh, Star Platinum reports. Jotaro
doesn’t remember summoning his stand. He sends it away, and the line of
Kakyoin’s shoulders softens ever so slightly. He thought I was going to attack
him, Jotaro realizes. It’s only a kiss.
They’re still so close. Jotaro wonders whether Kakyoin will kiss him again. It
was a surprise the first time; would it feel better, the second time? Will
Kakyoin keep kissing him? No, probably not. Kakyoin is waiting for a response.
Jotaro doesn’t have one yet.
When Jotaro doesn’t say anything, Kakyoin draws back. He inclines his head
slightly, and bites his lower lip.
“I see. I’ll see you at school tomorrow.” Then he flees. It’s not fast,
exactly, but it’s direct. Jotaro sits, stunned, and listens to the sound of
Kakyoin packing up his things. What is he supposed to say? It’s occurred to him
vaguely that Kakyoin is attractive, but he hasn’t given it much thought. He’s
never really been good at paying attention to other people. Inside the house,
he hears Kakyoin politely offer a parting gift to Holly, then head for the
exit. Jotaro cuts across the house and catches him as he’s leaving.
“I’ll walk you home,” he says. Kakyoin is pale as a ghost, but he nods. Jotaro
locks the door behind them, then catches Kakyoin by the wrist as he attempts to
flee. The two of them are hidden in the doorway, shielded from prying eyes.
“I won’t mention it again,” Kakyoin says, determined.
“You didn’t ‘mention it’ the first time,” Jotaro says. Kakyoin is so close to
him again. Kakyoin’s eyes are wide, his face flushed, his lips pursed together,
his pulse racing under Jotaro’s thumb. He’s talking like Jotaro’s made some
kind of decision already, when he hasn’t really.
Jotaro leans in, and Kakyoin leans away, then catches himself and stands,
trembling slightly, as Jotaro presses their lips together.
The first touch is soft, tentative, as if Kakyoin is afraid of him. Kakyoin’s
lips are soft and warm and it does- it does feel good to feel them pressing
against his own. Is this what kissing is, or how it’s supposed to be? Jotaro is
on the verge of pulling back when Kakyoin opens his mouth slightly and tugs
Jotaro closer.
Oh, Jotaro thinks. An electric shudder goes through his body. He presses
forward, exploring the way their mouths fit together, the feel of Kakyoin’s
body pressed against his own, the taste of his mouth. It’s better than Jotaro
could ever have guessed, simple and overwhelming. Kakyoin’s mouth opens
further, and then they’re kissing open mouthed and sloppy, Kakyoin biting
gently at Jotaro’s lower lip.
“Uh,” Kakyoin says when they draw back to take a breath. Jotaro’s seen the
fine, high line of his cheekbones and the wideness of his mouth before, but
they seem different in the context. They feel like an incitement, an
invitation, even though Jotaro’s not sure to what. He kisses him again. Kakyoin
grabs him by the shoulders and hauls him close, and they kiss until Jotaro’s
head is buzzing. He’s rock hard. It occurs to him that he’d like to do this
again.
In the moonlight, Kakyoin looks less like himself and more like some attractive
stranger, someone Jotaro wants to press against the walls or maybe into his
bedsheets.
Hmm, Jotaro thinks. Well, that worked out nicely. Kakyoin wants to kiss him,
and it turns out that Jotaro enjoys kisses when they come from Kakyoin. It
would have been annoying if they’d been mismatched.
“Next time, don’t run off before I’ve even spoken,” Jotaro tells Kakyoin.
“Next time?” Kakyoin says, his eyebrows rising upwards. “I’m not- you only get
one love confession.” Is that what this was? Jotaro associates these things
with stupid girls handing him notes at school, but he supposes he can see the
similarity. He frowns.
“Next time we kiss,” he clarifies, but Kakyoin doesn’t look any less confused.
He blinks, his red eyelashes casting strange shadows, and nuzzles his nose
against the side of Jotaro’s. Oh. More kissing. Kakyoin is bolder this time,
his tongue moving gently against Jotaro’s, his hand pressed against the front
of Jotaro’s shirt. It’s strange to have someone so close to him, but it doesn’t
feel bad at all. It feels natural, like Kakyoin belongs here, pressed up
against Jotaro.
When they finally break apart, both of them are slightly out of breath. At some
point, Jotaro moved from gripping Kakyoin’s wrist to holding him around his
waist. It’s kind of strange to find his body pre-programmed with instructions
for a situation he’s never been in before, but it’s not any stranger than
finding out that he’s got a stand.
“The next time we kiss…?” Kakyoin asks. Jotaro casts back to his earlier
statement. He’s not usually absent-minded, but Kakyoin’s body pressed against
his is somehow distracting. He can’t remember what he meant to say.
“Never mind,” Kakyoin says. A smile is spreading slowly across his face. “You
really don’t mind if I kiss you?” Jotaro’s response is to press Kakyoin up
against the wall again and kiss him. Something about the pressure of their
bodies against each other makes the kissing more intense, more serious.
Kakyoin’s hips are pressed against his, and it feels really good and somehow
not enough. Jotaro hasn’t been this dizzy since the last time he got into a
fight. He wants Kakyoin with his whole body, wants to taste every little gasp
that comes from the other boy’s mouth.
“Ah,” Kakyoin says, and sneaks his hand under the edge of Jotaro’s blazer to
touch his skin. “Should we… be doing this here?”
“Where else would do it?” Jotaro asks. “My bedroom?” A luminescent blush lights
up Kakyoin’s face.
“What exactly do you want to do in your bedroom, Jotaro?”
“Whatever you want,” Jotaro says, and shrugs. “Homework.”
This close, Jotaro can feel Kakyoin’s shoulders rise and dip when he laughs.
“I think this is more like an extra-curricular,” Kakyoin says. “Besides, I’ve
already said goodbye to your mother. Maybe… tomorrow?”
Jotaro’s not entirely insensitive to the implications. Tomorrow, and maybe the
day after that, and the next week, and the rest of the year. Jotaro doesn’t
like doing activities which give people the expectation that they’re entitled
to his time. It’s possible, though it doesn’t feel likely, that it could get
annoying to have Kakyoin trying to kiss him all the time, but it’s not like
Jotaro’s lost his ability to say no. Besides, Jotaro wants to do this again. He
likes the way Kakyoin feels pressed up against his body, likes the smell of his
hair and the sound of his voice. He wants to find out exactly how well the two
of them fit together.
“Tomorrow,” Jotaro agrees, but they linger in the doorway kissing long into the
night.
***** two of cups *****
Chapter Notes
     two of cups: unified love, partnership, attraction, new relationships
Jotaro wakes, dresses himself, opens the door to his room a crack and looks
both ways for his mother. When the coast appears to be clear, he summons Star
Platinum to keep an eye out and attempts to open the door.
His legs are heavy. His chest feels constricted.
“Ora!” Star Platinum says, and Jotaro realizes he’s been caught by an enemy
stand. He’s just able to turn his head far enough to see Star Platinum trapped
in a tangle of thorns. Much as Jotaro strains, his limbs are paralyzed, frozen
to his side. Star Platinum strains wildly, but the thorns don’t budge. They
don’t attack, either; Jotaro expects them to rise to his neck, or cut into his
side, but they’re totally inert. In the distance, Jotaro hears the sound of
footsteps- Holly! Fuck, he’s got to keep her away from this stand, whatever it
is.
“Jotaro, sweetheart, are you up?” she calls.
“I’m dressing,” Jotaro grunts. “Don’t come in.”
“Okay, sweetie! Don’t leave without coming to see me. I have some stuff I want
you to take to Kakyoin.”
Sweat is breaking out on Jotaro's forehead. His breath is coming fast, as if
he’s been running for miles. His hand trembles on the door. Whatever this stand
is, it’s draining his energy. The thorns are crawling across the floor; they
rise and grip him by the ankle. Impossibly, he can feel Star Platinum slipping
from his grip. His stand vanishes. Jotaro is left standing in his room, soaked
with sweat, his heart pounding in anticipation of pain.
Holly peeks her head in the room.
“Good morning!” she says cheerfully, brandishing a pair of bento boxes. “I’m
glad to see you didn’t slip off! I can’t let you go to school without giving
you a big kiss, can I? My handsome young man.”
“Mom,” Jotaro snarls, and tries to push past her. There doesn’t seem to be any
sign of the enemy stand in the hallway or in his room. He scans the area for
anything out of the ordinary, but it’s just Holly.
“Awww, don’t be like that,” Holly says, and latches onto his arm. “I made some
bentos for you and Kakyoin out of the leftovers. Make sure you give his to him,
okay?”
Kakyoin. Right. Kakyoin’s back in Japan. Of course he is. That’s how all of
this started, isn’t it? Kakyoin met Jotaro at the stairs, and a day later
Jotaro’s whole life had gone straight to hell. Jotaro remembers that he was
planning to invite Kakyoin over tonight anyway, to settle this kissing
business: the stand attack just adds another reason to have him over.
“... parents, poor boy. He needs someone to take care of him.” Oh. Holly’s
still talking.
“Mom,” Jotaro interrupts. “Have you seen anything weird lately?”
A small crease appears between Holly’s eyebrows.
“No,” she says. “Is something wrong, sweetie?”
“No,” Jotaro says. He should stay, in case something attacks Holly, or find a
way to get her out of the house. “I’m… not feeling well. Do you mind driving me
to school?”
“Oh!” Holly says, and clasps her hands together. “Do you want to spend more
time with me? That’s so sweet. My big boy.”
Jotaro’s eaten in some truly tense situations, but breakfast that morning ranks
with the best. He can’t summon Star Platinum without giving away to his mother
that something’s wrong, so he’s forced to use his own eyes and ears to scan the
area, but there’s nothing. Absolutely nothing.
He takes a trip to the bathroom and summons Star Platinum, expecting the worst,
but his stand appears, unbothered. The two of them contemplate each other
blankly. Star Platinum poses, as if to prove that its range of movement is
unhindered.
“Good grief,” Jotaro says with feeling, and follows his mother out to the car.
 
Jotaro arrives at school to find Kakyoin surrounded by a small knot of students
like a gemstone tossed in with costume jewelry. It’s not any of Jotaro’s
business if he wants to waste his time being fawned over, but he can’t
understand why. He advances on the group, grabs Kakyoin by the elbow and hauls
him to the nearest quiet spot, the stairwell to the basement.
“What?” Kakyoin says, wrenching his arm back. There’s wariness in his face, as
if he’s expecting Jotaro to hurt him. “Jotaro, if this is about-”
“Stand attack,” Jotaro says, and begins to explain what happened that morning.
It occurs to him vaguely that he’s got Kakyoin up against the wall, but now’s
not the time for kissing.
“Oh,” Kakyoin says when Jotaro finishes. “Damn. Is your mother going to be
okay?”
“I asked her to go pick up a new sweater for me in Ginza, so she’ll be shopping
all day. We should be able to get back to the house before she does if we skip
the last period.”
“Right,” Kakyoin says. He’s got his game face on. “So what do we do first?”
“Class, I guess,” Jotaro says. Kakyoin just stares at him, as if he’s spoken in
a completely different language.
“Class…” he repeats. “Jotaro, you dragged me across the school to tell me to go
to class?” The end of the sentences comes out muffled with laughter. Good
grief, Jotaro thinks, and starts to walk away, but Hierophant Green grabs him
around the ankles and tugs.
“Wait,” Kakyoin says, still laughing.
“What is it?” Jotaro demands, annoyed. Star Platinum grabs Hierophant Green,
but Kakyoin’s stand just slithers out of his grip. Kakyoin cuts off his escape
path, still chuckling softly, and places one hand on Jotaro's front. Slowly,
deliberately, he raises himself to his maximum height and places a soft kiss on
Jotaro’s mouth.
“Not now,” Jotaro protests. Kakyoin snorts.
“Later, then?” Kakyoin’s tone is light, but there’s a challenge in the way he
looks at Jotaro, as if he’s daring him to back out.
“Good grief,” Jotaro mutters. “Shouldn’t we focus on fighting the enemy?”
Kakyoin’s response is a snort.
I’ve made it through a million stand users , he says, already heading back up
the stairs, but I’ve never had a boyfriend before.  
He vanishes through the door, Hierophant slithering after him. Jotaro is left
alone in the stairwell. A boyfriend? He doesn’t remember agreeing to be
anyone’s boyfriend. The temptation to chase after Kakyoin and call the whole
thing off is strong, but it wouldn’t be worth it. Kakyoin is unbearable when
he’s sulking. Besides, Jotaro still hasn’t gotten to see him with his shirt
off. He thought about it the night before, alone in his bed… thought about
Kakyoin’s lips against his own and the feel of their bodies pressed together
and the breathless way Kakyoin asked what Jotaro wanted to do with him.
If Kakyoin being a little strange is the price he has to pay for kisses, he
supposes it’s not so bad.  Jotaro lights up a cigarette and lingers in the
stairwell listening to his ‘boyfriend’ lying to the other students about his
relationship with Jotaro until the bell rings and all of them scatter to class.
Jotaro finishes his cigarette in the stairwell during the absolute boredom of
morning announcements, then heads upstairs. Kakyoin is in his seat again.
Jotaro considers picking him up, desk and all, and moving him to a different
spot, but decides it wouldn’t be worth the trouble. It’s better to focus on
keeping an eye out for any enemy stand users.
Kakyoin doesn’t seem too worried; he’s back to doodling in his notebook and
sending Hierophant Green slithering between the aisles. It nudges Jotaro’s legs
like a cat when it passes by, then continues, slithering through the aisles
like some bizarre snake. Halfway through the period, when a good chunk of the
class is asleep, it slides towards the board and grabs a piece of chalk, then
starts to draw on the board behind the teacher.
What are you doing?Jotaro asks.
Drawing , Kakyoin replies. I’m bored.Jotaro and Star Platinum watch as
Hierophant creates a self-portrait on the chalkboard. Halfway through, one of
Jotaro’s classmates notices the moving chalk, and there’s a gasp. She nudges
her friend, and now there are two people staring at the moving chalk.
Cut it out, Jotaro says.
Why? Kakyoin asks. If there’s a stand user in this room, they already know who
we are.
That’s not what stands are for, Jotaro says.
I’ve been using my stand like this since kindergarden, Kakyoin replies.  Jotaro
doesn’t have a good comeback to that. It just feels wrong to him to use
Hierophant Green in this trivial way. It reminds him too much of the D’Arby
brothers, or of N’doul. People who became so dependent on their stands that
they built their whole lives around them, instead of creating their own,
separate lives. Star Platinum is part of Jotaro, but it’s not the most
important part.
Kakyoin finishes his self-portrait with a flourish, then sends Hierophant back
to patrolling along the floor. Jotaro is a little grateful when they split up
for second period. It’s unsettling to think about Kakyoin as a small child,
writing wobbly letters on the board of some classroom. It’s a reminder that for
everything they have in common, Jotaro doesn’t know him, not really.
Well, it’s none of his business.
Nothing of particular importance happens in second or third period, as usual,
but Jotaro stays on guard. In a way, the added danger makes it easier to
concentrate: it’s more of a challenge to take notes and keep track of his
surroundings.
At lunch, another crowd of people accosts Kakyoin, and Jotaro is forced to wait
through fifteen minutes of uninteresting small talk before he can grab Kakyoin
and head up to the roof.
“Why are you putting up with them?” he asks in the stairwell.
“Our classmates, you mean? I don’t mind them. They seem friendly.”
“Interfering, more like,” Jotaro says. The people at his school are tiring.
Some of them have known him for years, and it makes them act like Holly- like
they’re entitled to some part of him just because they knew him when he was
six. When he came back from Egypt, they all swarmed him, poking him with
questions about his tan, his scars, his mom, his family. None of them actually
cared about him or any of the suffering his family went through: they just saw
that he didn’t want to tell them, and it made them want to know. Jotaro doesn’t
lose his temper too often, but sitting in that crowded classroom like an animal
on display in a zoo, he came close to summoning Star Platinum and using The
World to escape out a window. He hates gossips.
Kakyoin shrugs.
“I don’t expect us to be best friends,” he says, amused. “But it’s useful to
know what’s going on with people, particularly if I’m going to be here for the
rest of high school.”
“Useful how, exactly?”
“Well, to start with, if someone who’s normally reasonable starts beating the
shit out of random pickpockets, I’ll be able to tell that something’s gone
wrong.” It takes Jotaro a moment to realize that Kakyoin’s referencing the
fight with Yellow Temperance.
“Hmpf,” Jotaro says. “It worked out fine in the end.”
“He tried to kill a pickpocket in front of you, and it didn’t occur to you that
something unusual might be happening?”
“You carry a knife around. Don’t act like you wouldn’t beat up a pickpocket.
You tried to kill me the first time we met.”
“That was DIO, not me,” Kakyoin says frostily. “I would never lower myself to
killing a pickpocket… and the knife has been very useful in the past.” Jotaro
snorts.
“People call me a delinquent.”
They’ve reached the roof. Jotaro wordlessly hands Holly’s bento to Kakyoin, who
gives it a strange look.
“From my mom,” Jotaro explains.
“Ah,” Kakyoin says. He chuckles, but there’s nothing particularly pleased about
his expression. The two of them eat in silence. The curry is even better than
the day before- sitting overnight has given the flavors time to combine.
Kakyoin spoons a little bit onto his tiny hamburger. Jotaro hopes his mother is
safe in Ginza, browsing happily through the department store racks in search of
something that will fit Jotaro’s wide shoulders.
Kakyoin finishes his food and turns towards Jotaro. Slowly, deliberately, he
inches closer, until the two of them are seated thigh to thigh.
“Yesterday,” Kakyoin says, then trails off. Jotaro feels as if he’s got some
kind of double vision: part of him sees Kakyoin, his friend from the long trip
across Egypt, and part of him sees something else entirely. Sees someone
attractive and strong, someone with a wide, kissable mouth and startlingly red
eyelashes. Has Kakyoin always been so handsome, and Jotaro just never noticed?
“You kissed me yesterday,” Jotaro says. “Why?” He’s not entirely sure what he
means by his own question; he’s not sure of himself. What is it about Kakyoin
that makes Jotaro want to kiss him, and why has it only become apparent now?
“I wanted to,” Kakyoin says. His eyes skid nervously away from Jotaro and then
return, fixing themselves on Jotaro’s face. “I like you.”
“Obviously,” Jotaro says. Kakyoin scowls and flicks the brim of his hat. Jotaro
catches his hand by the wrist and lowers it. Kakyoin is flushed, his lips
slightly parted, his wrist warm in Jotaro’s hand. Despite everything, Jotaro
likes him too.
Kakyoin’s mouth tastes like curry and rice, and he’s very bold with his tongue.
Jotaro decides that he likes that too, likes the way Kakyoin opens his mouth
for Jotaro to explore, likes the feeling of Kakyoin’s teeth pressing gently
into Jotaro’s lower lip. It’s a new realm, kissing, but Jotaro’s explored
plenty of new places with Kakyoin. His hat is being pushed up on his head, but
he doesn’t care too much.
“Come here.” He means for Kakyoin to turn towards him, but Kakyoin sits up and
clambers into Jotaro’s lap, his legs parted around Jotaro’s torso, his weight
resting on Jotaro’s thighs. Jotaro catches a glimpse of Kakyoin’s embarrassed,
determined expression, and then they’re kissing again. Kakyoin’s kisses start
soft and build in intensity, his lips pressing in against Jotaro, teasing and
demanding. Jotaro measures out his own response, opening his mouth slowly,
enjoying the little noises of pleasure and frustration Kakyoin makes as they
kiss. Every movement, every touch, every little sigh causes his weight to shift
in Jotaro’s lap, his hips an aching pressure against Jotaro’s own. Jotaro is
half-hard, and the feeling of Kakyoin's body against his only makes the
sensation more intense.
Kakyoin’s hips shifting against Jotaro’s feel so good, and yet it’s not enough.
Jotaro feels like he’s accelerating, his whole body moving towards some unknown
conclusion, and he’s not sure how to stop. Even when Kakyoin stops kissing him
long enough to take a breath, the expression on his face is unbearably sexy,
somehow even more arousing than the actual kisses. Kakyoin is breathing in
little pants, his lips slightly parted, his eyes staring at Jotaro like he
wants to memorize his face.
It’s too much, too fast. Jotaro wants to slow down. Yesterday morning, it
wouldn’t have occurred to him to kiss Kakyoin, and now he can barely make
himself stop. He places one hand against the curve of Kakyoin’s face and gently
pushes it away.
“Jotaro?” Kakyoin asks.
“Too fast,” Jotaro says. Kakyoin smiles ruefully. He confessed, which means he
knew about this before Jotaro- knew that he liked him, at least. He must have
known on the trip too, but he never said anything. That’s for the best, really.
Jotaro would have punched him if he’d tried for a kiss while Holly was still
dying from that monster’s curse.
But Holly is fine now, and Kakyoin is in Jotaro’s lap, and they have time. They
don’t have to rush forward blindly. Time for Jotaro to feel the curve of
Kakyoin’s lips, and kiss the side of his neck, and his jaw, and the soft
underside of his throat. Animals do things like this to show their trust.
Jotaro thinks, and bites Kakyoin gently, his teeth barely grazing Kakyoin’s
skin. Kakyoin shudders slightly. His eyes are heavy-lidded, almost shut. Jotaro
could do anything to him.
He draws back. One of Kakyoin’s hands is gripping Jotaro’s shoulder, the other
is splayed across his shirt. He turns his head to kiss the palm of Jotaro’s
hand. Jotaro realizes that Hierophant Green is wrapped around that arm- when
did that happen- and Star Platinum has a hand on Kakyoin’s back, steadying him.
Kakyoin shifts slightly, his weight pressing against Jotaro’s crotch.
“Should we-” Kakyoin begins. Jotaro never hears the end of the sentence,
because the bell rings, startling both of them.
“Right,” Kakyoin says, looking faintly stunned. “Class.”
Jotaro’s never been more bored by a class in his life, and it doesn’t help that
Kakyoin is only a seat away, close enough to reach out and kiss. It wouldn’t be
worth the hassle to kiss him in public. But Jotaro thinks about it anyway- the
way Kakyoin would open his mouth under Jotaro’s lips, the way he would grab at
the fabric of Jotaro’s jacket and hold onto him like a challenge.
It’s not- he doesn’t normally think about these things. There hasn’t been
anyone who held his interest. But Kakyoin knew him from the moment they met, it
feels like- not during their fight, but the first time they really met. The
person Jotaro fought in the nurse’s office wasn’t Kakyoin; it was something
else, some poor copy dreamed up by Dio. The first time Jotaro and Kakyoin
really met, Kakyoin was flat on his back, the imprint of Jotaro’s fist on his
face, a flesh bud planted in his forehead. He’d thought that Kakyoin would
panic or flinch at waking up in such a situation, but Kakyoin had just looked
at him with determination in his face, as if to say “do it, then.”
He’s glad he did. In retrospect, this thing with Kakyoin’s been brewing for a
while, and he just didn’t notice. So many things happened on that trip that
after a while anything short of total catastrophe just didn’t register. It’s
hard to feel anything with the taste of your own blood in your mouth.
Kakyoin Noriaki, my boyfriend, Jotaro thinks, turning the phrase over in his
mind. It doesn’t sound bad.
Hey, Kakyoin, he says, summoning Star Platinum.
Hmm?Kakyoin replies.
Don’t expect me to buy you flowers, or anything,Jotaro says. Kakyoin stifles a
laugh in his sleeve.
You are so weird, you know that? What would I even do with flowers?
I don’t know , Jotaro says. What do girls do with them?
I’m not a girl,Kakyoin says. I knew you were unobservant, but this is a new
low, considering we’ve roomed together for weeks.Jotaro scowls. Also, girls put
vases in flowers. Your mom does it. The point isn’t the flower. The point is to
give them something nice, to show that you care.
Jotaro almost says, well, don’t expect any gifts, but that feels excessive.
Kakyoin hasn’t done anything to suggest that he wants to be treated any
differently, other than occasional kissing. Jotaro is just overthinking it.
Have you ever given anyone a flower? he asks Kakyoin.
My mom, Kakyoin says, amused. Now shut up, if you’re not going to say anything
useful. The teacher is going over what’s on the final. Jotaro’s never been told
to shut up before. He frowns in Kakyoin’s direction, but Kakyoin isn’t even
looking at him. He’s taking notes.
Well, okay.
 
They ditch sixth period together, united in the opinion that their biology
teacher is absolutely useless when it comes to lecturing. Kakyoin glances back
at the school on his way out, as if he can’t believe how easy it is.
“I’ve never ditched before,” he confesses.
“Seriously?” Jotaro says. Kakyoin shrugs helplessly.
“What was I going to do that was more important than school? I didn’t want to
worry my parents.” Something odd passes over his face, but it’s gone in an
instant. “I guess I should have thought about that before vanishing for two
months.” Jotaro shrugs.
“You invited yourself.” Kakyoin elbows him.
“I know that.” Jotaro elbows him back, smirking. Kakyoin is slim enough that
Jotaro could probably put his hands around his waist. Getting into a shoving
match is distinctly in Jotaro’s favor. Kakyoin stumbles and uses Hierophant
Green to catch himself, then sticks his tongue out at Jotaro.
The two of them walk in silence. It’s a hot day. Summer is coming in. Soon,
Jotaro will be free of the confines of school, free to do whatever he wants.
There’s an ad for an upcoming sumo tournament by the road.
“That looks fun,” Kakyoin remarks. “They didn’t have sumo on the hospital
channels, so I’m behind. Who are the good rookies this year?” Jotaro thinks for
a moment.
“Toyozakura’s not bad,” he decides, and the two of them talk about sumo all the
way home.
As Jotaro predicted, Holly isn’t back from shopping yet. He and Kakyoin search
the house for anything suspicious, but fail to find anything of note. Kakyoin
gets lost twice, and attempts to make fun of Jotaro for having such an enormous
house to save face. Jotaro shrugs.
“Maybe your sense of direction is just bad.” Kakyoin gives him a narrow-eyed
glare, but doesn’t say anything. Search concluded, they pick a couch and settle
down. Kakyoin glances over at Jotaro like he’s considering kissing him again.
Jotaro settles his debate by picking up a textbook and getting started on his
homework. There are worse things he can imagine then getting interrupted by his
mother in the middle of making out, but not many.
Kakyoin follows Jotaro’s cues and gets out his own homework, and the two of
them work in silence. Jotaro’s most of the way through the chapter when he
hears the sound of the garage opening. Holly’s home.
Jotaro raises his head and spots the retreating flash of something inhuman
vanishing into the hallway, and his heart freezes. Something has arrived, but
it’s not necessarily Holly. He puts his book down and vaults the couch in his
hurry to get to the garage.
Holly is bent over and unloading her bags from the back of the car.
“Sweetie?” she says, and straightens up.“You're home early!”
“Felt sick,” Jotaro grunts, scanning the garage for any sign of a stand. His
heart is still hammering. Holly glances at his sweaty face, and then hangs one
of her bags on Star Platinum, who is hovering protectively near her. Only a
quick command from Jotaro prevents Holly’s bags from being flung into the next
dimension.
“Mom?” Jotaro says, half expecting the bags to contain a bomb, but Star
Platinum confirms that it’s just clothes.
“Well, if you're sick, you shouldn't have to carry things,” Holly says, and
loads Star Platinum up with another three bags. “Isn't that why you have Star
out?”
Jotaro's always known that his mother could see stands, but she's never really
acknowledged it before. The first time he summoned Star Platinum in the house
he saw a look of fear cross her face before she clamped her lips together and
pretended firmly that it wasn't there. Since then, he's avoided summoning his
stand around her.
Holly retrieves a fifth and sixth bag from the car, and hands the two of them
to Star Platinum.
“You're very strong, aren't you?” Holly says admiringly.
“Ora,” Star Platinum says, and poses, still holding the bags. It and Holly
sweep out of the room, leaving Jotaro alone in the garage. Something pink
flutters in the corner of his eyes, but when he turns, nothing's there.
He hurries into the house. Holly is talking to Kakyoin: good. He’ll protect her
if anything happens. Star Platinum has put down the bags.
“Jotaro invited me over to study with him.” Kakyoin is saying.
“You know I don't mind at all,” Holly says. “You're always welcome here.”
Jotaro steps into the room and glances around, then summons Star Platinum back
and instructs him to patrol the area.
“Will you be staying for dinner?” Holly asks.
“If you don't mind,” Kakyoin says.
“The more the merrier,” Holly says cheerfully. We can practice our English!”
Jotaro settles back onto the couch and goes back to his textbook. By the time
Kakyoin and Holly are finished making small talk at each other, Star Platinum
has completed the largest circuit of the house he can make. Maybe Kakyoin is
right, and his house is too big.
Holly returns with a pot of tea, which Kakyoin takes with enthusiasm. Jotaro,
annoyed by yet another interruption to his studying, grunts.
“Your mom is so nice,” Kakyoin says wistfully as Holly leaves.
“She’s annoying,” Jotaro says. Kakyoin’s eyebrows go up slightly.
“So, you won’t be wanting any tea,” he says, and moves the teapot out of reach.
“Don’t be annoying,” Jotaro tells him. Kakyoin gives him a narrow-eyed glare of
fury, and Hierophant Green flickers like a flash of lightning, poised like a
snake coiled to strike. Jotaro summons Star, stunned, and then the moment is
gone. Hierophant Green vanishes, and Kakyoin’s expression goes back to normal.
He picks up his book, and huffily returns to reading. Even when Star advances
on him and grabs the teapot, there’s no response. What the fuck.
Jotaro eyes him for a bit, but when no attack appears to be forthcoming, he
goes back to his notes as well. He doesn’t remember Kakyoin’s temper being this
bad, but it’s not like Hierophant Green actually attacked him.
Whatever. If Kakyoin starts to act weird again, Jotaro will punt him out the
window like he did the last time. Jotaro lifts up his paper and goes back to
his biology chapter, willing the world to leave him alone for the half hour it
will take for him to finish reading and do the questions at the end.
 
As it turns out, the world is kind enough to leave Jotaro in peace all the way
until dinner. Kakyoin doesn’t do anything more suspicious than produce a
beautiful set of color-coded notes and review them extensively. He uses
Hierophant Green to hold his flash cards.
After dinner, Jotaro goes out into the backyard and Kakyoin helps Holly with
the dishes and clean-up. Jotaro relishes the time alone. Kakyoin’s a good study
partner, but sometimes Jotaro just wants to be totally alone, unwatched,
unburdened with other people’s attention. His body relaxes in little pieces,
and then all at once, buoyed by the smell of the approaching summer and the
whisper of the wind. He lies back on the veranda and listens, eyes closed, to
the sound of the crickets chirping. One of Kakyoin’s feet shuffles across the
floor when he approaches.
“Go away,” Jotaro says, eyes still closed. Kakyoin goes, and Jotaro is left
with his relief. He stays outside breathing in the warm smell of summer until
the light has faded from the sky and the stars have begun to shine.
Kakyoin is asleep on Holly’s couch, his head pillowed on a stack of books. At
some point, he took off his coat, revealing the rare sight of his undershirt.
He stirs when Jotaro stands over him, then jerks upright, Hierophant Green
lashing out blindly. Star Platinum catches his tail before it can strike
Jotaro. There’s a terse moment of anticipation, and then recognition comes on
in Kakyoin’s face. He blinks.
Star Platinum loosens his grip slightly, and Hierophant Green vanishes.
“Sorry,” Kakyoin says with a yawn.
“You’re lucky it wasn’t my mom,” Jotaro says. Kakyoin laughs sheepishly.
“Your mom doesn’t have quite the menacing aura you have, Jotaro.” True. Jotaro
won’t hassle him too much about it. If Kakyoin surprised him when he was
sleeping, he can’t promise Star Platinum wouldn’t put Kakyoin through a wall.
Even Holly has learned to knock before coming into his room.
“If you’re going to fall asleep, go home,” Jotaro tells Kakyoin.
“I’m going,” Kakyoin says, and yawns again. Hierophant Green begins to gather
up his things, stacking his books and putting away his papers. Kakyoin doesn’t
even appear to notice that he’s summoned his stand. He stands up and stretches,
lifting his hands over his head. Jotaro can see his back muscles through the
outline of his school uniform, his muscles tensing as he bends. Kakyoin might
have lost some weight in the hospital, but he’s still got wide shoulders and
strong forearms.
Jotaro remembers thinking that he might be able to put his hands around
Kakyoin’s waist earlier in the day; he tries it now. Kakyoin pauses, then tilts
his head back to look at Jotaro.
“What are you doing?” he asks. Jotaro’s hands don’t quite make it all the way
around. He can feel the warmth of Kakyoin’s skin through the thin fabric of his
shirt. On impulse, he hooks one arm around Kakyoin’s waist and rests his chin
on Kakyoin’s shoulder. Other people are so small.
“Come over tomorrow,” he tells Kakyoin, his lips brushing the skin of Kakyoin’s
neck as he speaks. It’s not much of a movement to kiss the corner of Kakyoin’s
jaw, so he does it. His boyfriend smells faintly of sleep and warm skin and
tea, and he rests comfortably in Jotaro’s grip. Jotaro can feel his facial
muscles shift when he smiles, but Kakyoin doesn’t say anything. He doesn’t need
to. Jotaro can feel his quiet agreement in the warm press of his body, in the
way their muscles hold their weight together.
It’s nice to be understood.
 
The days fall into a pattern. Jotaro wakes up, goes to school, meets Kakyoin at
lunch and takes him home when classes are over. After school, they study, or
watch sumo, or sit in peaceful silence, enjoying the sounds of the city as it
settles down to sleep. Sometimes Kakyoin climbs into Jotaro’s lap. Sometimes
Jotaro kisses him up against the wall where no one can see. Slowly, kiss by
kiss, inch by inch, Jotaro is learning the little contours of Kakyoin’s body,
the swell of his hipbones, the curve of his lips, the taste of his mouth.
Neither of them has had the courage to do anything below the waist yet, but
Jotaro thinks it’s probably a matter of time. He doesn’t mind. It’s only been
two weeks, and he likes taking his time, going piece by piece.
If this is what having a boyfriend is like, Jotaro finally understands the
appeal. Everything is a little bit more tolerable with Kakyoin around, as if
his presence alone somehow dampens all the annoying things that Jotaro hates
about school. It’s not that people whisper any less, or talk anymore, but at
least Jotaro has something else to think about. He starts going to his classes
more frequently, and even summons up the initiative to check out PE for the
first time in months.
He doesn’t change into the PE uniform because he’d rather be soaked in sweat
than deal with infinite questions from idiots about his scars. The teacher
looks at him with obvious surprise when he walks onto the court, but doesn’t
say anything. Good. Kakyoin, who is a bit of a polite idiot, does change.
Jotaro takes one look at him in the school shorts and t-shirt and bursts into
laughter.
“You look ridiculous,” he says.
“Not any more ridiculous than you,” Kakyoin snaps. “Are you going to exercise
in that, then wear it to school?”
It’s an incredibly weak comeback. Jotaro wore his school uniform through the
fucking desert and under the burning light of a miniature sun, and so did
Kakyoin. Jotaro can’t stop laughing.
“You’re embarrassing yourself,” Kakyoin says, but his face is red. They’re
playing volleyball today. Fuming, Kakyoin heads over to the court, grabs a ball
and chucks it at Jotaro’s face.
Jotaro deflects it, still chuckling, and heads onto the court.
“I’m going to destroy you, Kakyoin,” he announces cheerfully, and serves the
ball back at Kakyoin. Kakyoin sneers and catches the ball with a strand of
Hierophant Green. There’s a gasp from the rapidly growing crowd of bystanders,
but Jotaro ignores them.
Are we using stands? Jotaro asks, calling forth Star Platinum.
Do you even know how to play volleyball? Kakyoin asks, which is its own answer.
I get a point when I hit the ground on your side within the boundaries, Jotaro
says.
If, Kakyoin says, circling around the court.
The game begins. Kakyoin tosses the ball through the air; Star Platinum
deflects it with enough force to make Kakyoin skid backwards when he catches
the ball. There’s a loud pop. The sad remains of the volleyball flop
pathetically onto the court. There’s a loud gasp from some of the onlookers,
and then one girl, braver than the rest, tosses a new volleyball to Kakyoin.
“New rule,” Kakyoin says. “Each popped volleyball counts as a point for the
other person.”
“Trying to rules-lawyer your way to victory?” Jotaro asks. “It won’t work.”
“Trying to keep your property destruction to a minimum,” Kakyoin retorts.
Jotaro doesn’t dignify that with a response, just squares up and stares at
Kakyoin, waiting for him to get on with it. The volleyball comes hurtling
through the air; Star Platinum deflects it. There’s another pop.
“Point,” Kakyoin says lazily. They glare at each other through the tennis net.
Jotaro hasn’t had this much fun at school in a long time. It takes another two
popped volleyballs before Star Platinum manages to calculate the maximum
possible striking speed, but once he does, the third volleyball lands
perfectly.
“Three to one, Jojo,” Kakyoin says.
“Enjoy your lead while it lasts,” Jotaro tells him. Kakyoin picks up the ball,
tosses his head back to get the hair out of his face, and serves at a speed too
fast for Jotaro to process. It’s not too fast for Star Platinum, however, and
the ball bounces back towards Hierophant, who also deflects- and the game is
on. This kind of combat is more about mental stamina than actual physical
effort; Star Platinum and Hierophant are the ones battling. Jotaro and
Kakyoin’s real job is not to flinch. As long as they keep their attention and
will focused, the game will go on.
Kakyoin stares at Jotaro from across the net, his eyes concealed by his lenses.
Jotaro stares back, looking for a weakness. Hierophant Green has spread across
the court, casting a wide net along the ground. Star Platinum can’t throw the
ball fast enough to get past this net without puncturing the ball, but
Hierophant Green doesn’t have any hope of actually scoring a point on Jotaro
from this position. It’s a stalemate. Kakyoin is smirking.
“What was that about my lead, Jotaro?” he asks. The ball goes flying past his
face, then comes hurtling back at Jotaro. There’s a shout from someone off
court. A baseball comes hurtling through the air. Hierophant Green diverts it
away from Kakyoin, but his attention wavers. Star Platinum’s volleyball catches
him right in the stomach, knocking him flat on his back.
There’s a frozen moment in which Jotaro can see the edges of Kakyoin’s scars
peeking out from beneath his flipped up shirt, and then a group of girls runs
onto the court. Kakyoin sits up stiffly, smoothing his shirt down, and then
vanishes from view, lost in the circle of classmates. The girls circle and coo
like doves, and when Jotaro crosses the court towards them they all scatter.
“Enough of this,” Jotaro says, irritated, and heads towards the bench. As
usual, it’s impossible to do anything fun at school without it being ruined by
his classmates. Kakyoin trails behind him, still slightly winded but refusing
to acknowledge it, and the two of them take a seat. Kakyoin is sweating from
the sun. He takes a drink of his water bottle, and Jotaro watches him tilt his
head back with interest. Kakyoin’s got a small hickey just below the curve of
his jaw; Jotaro enjoyed putting it there.
Despite everything, he feels a small smile creeping onto his face.
“Nice catch,” he tells Kakyoin.
“Nice throw,” Kakyoin shoots back, “but I still won!” Coming from anyone else,
Jotaro would take this kind of arch look and tone as an invitation for a
beatdown, but he finds it endearing from Kakyoin. He leans in now, bringing
every inch of his superior height and bulk to bear, and enjoys the way Kakyoin
puffs up to match him and refuses to back down, even when it’s obvious he’s
outmatched.
“You want a rematch?” Jotaro asks. This close, he can feel the ghost of
Kakyoin’s breath on his face.
“You’re lucky we’re in public,” Kakyoin tells him, and it would be a better
threat if he weren’t so obviously fighting a smile. The smile wins, and Jotaro
pulls back before he can be tempted into kissing Kakyoin on his dumb smug face.
He subsides back into his usual slump, and Kakyoin whacks his shoulder.
“Does that work on other people?”
“Reminding them how small they are?” Jotaro asks, then answers his own
question. “Yeah.”
Kakyoin’s response is a snort.
“You’re an arrogant prick,” he says, glancing over at the volleyball court. Two
of their classmates have taken over the court and are nervously contemplating
the volleyball as if Jotaro and Kakyoin might have somehow imbued it with
special powers.
“Technically, the Speedwagon foundation asked us to avoid showing off our
stands in public,” Kakyoin says, but he’s grinning.
“They’ll gossip about it for a week and then forget when Ryu gets a new car,”
Jotaro says scornfully. “What good does it do them not to know?”
“It doesn’t help them to know, either,” Kakyoin says, unexpectedly serious.
“We’re the only ones that can help, so we have to.” There’s a grim expression
on his face; it clashes badly with his school shorts and shirt. Jotaro doesn’t
want to think about their stands now. He wants to admire the curves of
Kakyoin’s calves and forearms and think about the only good thing he got from
the road trip to Egypt.
“I know,” he says instead. He does know. Of all of Kakyoin’s qualities, this is
the one Jotaro respects the most: that Kakyoin, when he sees evil, squares up
to fight. It’s something they have in common. “But not right now.”
“No,” Kakyoin says. He puts his hand on the bench next to Jotaro’s, just close
enough that their hands brush, and smiles. Jotaro pulls away.
“Come on,” he says, and gets up. “Let’s go up to the roof.”
 
The next day at lunch, the class representative wedges herself between Jotaro
and Kakyoin while her brother, Ryu, lures Kakyoin to one side with the promise
of shared notes. It’s a maneuver so obviously designed to separate them that it
makes Jotaro’s sense of danger twinge, but the class rep doesn’t flinch when he
summons Star Platinum.
Mei, he thinks. Her name is Mei. They were friends in middle school, but Mei is
the kind of girl who makes a point of having everyone as her friend. Even now,
when Jotaro hasn’t said a friendly word to her in years, she smuggles something
into his locker every year on his birthday. Last year, it was a pack of his
favorite kind of cigarettes. Mei’s pretty okay. He hopes she hasn’t gotten
involved in any stand business.
“How’s your mom?” she asks, and Jotaro’s sense that he’s going to be attacked
by an enemy stand user intensifies. But Mei’s eyes are on him. She doesn’t
notice Star Platinum at all, although… she is wearing a headband. Hmm.
“Fine,” he grunts, and makes to pass her in the hallway.
“Good,” she says, ducking out of the way. Some girls have tried to physically
block Jotaro off to keep him from escaping their prodding questions. Some girls
have discovered that Jotaro has no problem pushing people aside if they get
between him and the exit.
“We were all worried when she got sick,” Mei continues. “I visited her a few
times while you were gone, to help keep the house in order.”
“What’s the point of this conversation?” Jotaro asks, still walking away.
“Well, Kakyoin’s come to school, and you two know each other through the
Speedwagon Foundation,” Mei says. Jotaro starts to walk faster, sure that he
knows where this is going. Mei chases after him, still talking. “So, I was
wondering if anything weird was going to happen, and if it does, is there any
chance you could keep it away from the school?”
Jotaro stops, turns around, and glares. Mei shrinks down a little, but stands
her ground.
“Anything weird?” he says. “What do you know?”
“I know that the entire hospital wing exploded,” she says, bluntly. “I know
that the nurse had some kind of weird breakdown, and that you and Kakyoin had
some kind of fight that blew out the windows in the east wing. I know you don’t
like being here, so maybe… don’t come if there’s going to be a fight?”
Huh. That’s… not really what Jotaro expected. But Mei is the class rep for a
reason. She’s obviously scared, but she’s soldiering through it, because she
thinks it’s her duty to ask. Jotaro sighs.
“Good grief. I- I’ll keep it in mind.”
“I don’t normally make this kind of offer, but I’m willing to do some of your
homework if it’ll keep you away from here.” Mei looks determined. She’s got
some kind of deluded sense that she’s protecting the students here from him, as
if this were somehow Jotaro’s fault. All he wants is to live quietly. It’s not
his fault he was born with a birthmark in the shape of a star and a target on
his back.
“I’m fine,” Jotaro says. “I don’t think there will be any more fighting, and if
there is, Kakyoin and I will take care of it somewhere else.”
Mei’s lips press together, and she nods.
“You’re not going to tell me what’s going on, are you?” she asks, but it’s not
really a question. It’s resigned. Jotaro’s lip curls. Is he supposed to feel
sorry for her because she’s so weak she can’t even summon up the courage to ask
a real question? He turns his back on her and heads for the stairs, and Mei
just watches him go.
Jotaro heads up to the roof, where he lights a cigarette and tries vaguely not
to feel offended. It’s none of Mei’s business, is what it is. She doesn’t know
what it’s like to fight for your life against a complete stranger, with your
only protection a demon you’re not entirely sure you can control. Star Platinum
flickers into existence, as if offended by the memory, but Jotaro waves him
away. He knows Star now, but that had been then, when Jotaro was still clinging
to the idea that he could get away from the long, bloody legacy that haunts his
family like a ghost. Even now, after Dio’s death, it’s still with him, like the
star on his shoulder and the scars on his skin that will never fade.
He smokes until his cigarette is down to the filter, but Kakyoin never comes
upstairs. His damn politeness has probably gotten him trapped down with those
idiots, but if he wants to waste his time, that’s his business. He knows, as
Jotaro knows, that none of them will ever understand him, so why is he wasting
his time? Jotaro grinds the embers of his cigarette under his heel and exhales
the last of the smoke into the hot summer air.
“Good grief.”
 
After school, Kakyoin states his intention to go home and study there, and
Jotaro, on impulse, offers to go with him. He’s never been to Kakyoin’s house.
He doesn’t expect the response he gets: Kakyoin turns towards him, face blank,
and spends a good thirty seconds coldly accessing him, time enough for Jotaro
to grow suspicious and then annoyed.
“Okay,” Kakyoin says, and walks away, his decision made. Jotaro almost doesn’t
go with him, since whatever Kakyoin shows him is guaranteed to be a huge pain
in the ass, but he asked. He could go home and Kakyoin wouldn’t mention it to
him ever again; he can tell by the way Kakyoin walks away, by the fact that
Kakyoin hasn’t glanced over his shoulder. He’s leaving it up to Jotaro whether
he wants to get involved.
Jotaro thinks about it. He stands there as Kakyoin walks away, not chasing
after him, and then he decides that whatever Kakyoin’s deal is, it’ll probably
become his deal sooner or later, because that’s how this works. All bullshit in
this world eventually becomes Jotaro Kujo’s problem.
He doesn’t chase after Kakyoin, exactly, but his steps are longer, and Kakyoin
isn’t hurrying. His limp has faded over the three weeks that he’s been up and
about, his legs adjusting to the new strain of daily motion, but they’re still
not up to full capacity. At the end of the school day, they still drag a
little.
Kakyoin never says anything to anyone about it, but Jotaro can see. He’s gotten
his mom to drag an ottoman into the living room so Kakyoin can prop his feet up
when he studies instead of putting them on the couch. He’s about to find out
whether Kakyoin has an ottoman at his house, he supposes.
Neither of them make small talk on the way to Kakyoin’s house. Kakyoin’s
shoulders are loose and a little slumped, like he’s tired, and his expression
is perfectly neutral. He leads Jotaro to a small block of apartment buildings
not far from the school, then unlocks the front door with his key. They climb
into the elevator and climb up to the third floor. High enough that it would be
hard to reach from the ground floor, low enough that Kakyoin could use the
window as an exit with Hierophant’s help.
Kakyoin’s lives in a small studio apartment that feels like a hotel. Someone,
probably in the employ of the Speedwagon Foundation, went through and stocked
the place with the basics. Table, check. Sofa, check. Chair, check. There are
not pictures on the wall, no clutter, no dishes in the sink, no sign that
anyone has ever lived here. Jotaro’s stayed in a hundred hotel rooms like this
across the middle east.
“Where are your parents?” he asks, finding his voice. He thinks, based on the
composition of the living room, the small size of the house, the haunted look
on Kakyoin’s face, that they don’t live here.
“They’re in a graveyard in Narita,” Kakyoin says, and puts his backpack down by
the couch, then walks past Jotaro into the kitchen and starts to open the
fridge.
He’s not looking at Jotaro.  
The last time Jotaro felt this stunned, Joseph was on the floor with blood
streaming from his neck. It would have been less painful if Kakyoin had turned
around and slugged him in the face. He’s been slugged in the face more than
once. He’s never had to deal with Kakyoin, frozen mid-gesture in the act of
opening the fridge. I’ve stopped time, Jotaro thinks, and sucks in a deep
breath. He can deal with this. Kakyoin is.
Time resumes. Kakyoin takes a drink out of the fridge, opens it up, and takes a
sip. He’s still not looking at Jotaro. Jotaro is at a genuine loss as to what
to say. He’s not sorry. This isn’t his fault. He’s not going to say “this
sucks” or some other kind of weak exclamation. Kakyoin knows that this sucks.
He knows it better than Jotaro or anyone else ever will, and anything Jotaro
has to say is just extraneous. Jotaro is extraneous. He can’t do anything about
this.
“Dio?” he says at last. It must be. Everything terrible comes back to that man,
with his maddening beauty and his devil’s smile.
“Yeah,” Kakyoin says.
“That fucker,” Jotaro says, and Kakyoin lets out a short, sharp laugh.
“Yeah.” He turns back to Jotaro. He’s got his battle face on, the one he wore
against D’Arby. The “I, Kakyoin Noriaki, will not allow myself to falter,”
face, but there’s no one here for him to face down but Jotaro. “Did you want
something to drink?”
Jotaro nods. Kakyoin brushes past him to go get a glass, his movements stiff
and careful. He grabs a glass from the cabinet, and washes it off in the sink.
Jotaro’s never felt so far from him before. On impulse, he slings his arm
around Kakyoin’s waist from behind, like he’s been meaning to do since the
tennis court, and Kakyoin freezes. His body goes as stiff as a board, but he
doesn’t push away.
Jotaro waits. It’s all he can do.
Slowly, so slowly, Kakyoin relaxes. Inch by inch, the stiffness in his
shoulders diminishes, until at last he leans back, the back of his head resting
on Jotaro’s chest. He’s so small like this, with all the fight poured out of
him. Jotaro hates it. If it were anyone else, he would be shoving them off of
him, but he doesn’t mind supporting Kakyoin’s weight. If this is all he can do,
he wants to do it.
The water runs from the tap and splashes gently over the sink. It fills the cup
and overflows. The air conditioner hums softly. Outside, people walk up and
down in the hallway, talking and laughing. Inside, Kakyoin sighs, and then
gently pulls away from Jotaro. They face each other. Kakyoin’s eyes are dry.
“Jotaro,” he says quietly.
“Noriaki,” Jotaro replies.
***** the devil *****
Chapter Summary
     the devil: bondage, addiction, sexuality, materialism
Chapter Notes
See the end of the chapter for notes
After the miserable intimacy of the revelation of Kakyoin’s family situation,
it’s a relief to return to studies and tea and carefully managed distance.
Kakyoin goes into his room and flops down on his bed with a stack of books, and
Jotaro takes up residence on his tiny couch and does homework, sinking with
relief into the soothing tones of his biology textbook.
After an hour or so, he remembers that Kakyoin offered to let him look at his
notes, and goes into the bedroom. Kakyoin is sprawled out on a pile of books,
asleep, his long coat discarded and his shirt partly unbuttoned. Jotaro feels
an uncomfortable tug of something like sympathy, and clears his throat loudly
to make it go away.
“Hey, wake up. I need to borrow your notes.”
“What?” Kakyoin says, and jerks upright. “Oh. Mmm.” He yawns widely, then
rummages through the papers scattered on the bed. His stand searches with him,
the tail weaving through the different papers until the correct notebook is
retrieved. Interesting. Kakyoin’s first instinct when he woke up was to go for
his stand.
Jotaro takes the notes from Hierophant Green and starts to turn away, then
pauses.
“What do you want to do for dinner?” he asks. Kakyoin’s response is a shrug.
“I usually go out,” he says, yawning. “There’s a couple of nice places near
here. I’m not much of a cook. How’s the couch?”
“It sucks,” Jotaro says.
“You want to come sit me with me on the bed?” Kakyoin offers. Jotaro considers.
“I’m alright,” he says, and turns away. Kakyoin’s hair is mussed from sleep,
his face soft and open, not all the way awake. Jotaro doesn’t want to see him
like this, his defenses still unfinished. Delicate things are a pain in the
ass. He sits on the couch for another half an hour, tolerating the pokes of the
miserable piece of furniture that the Speedwagon foundation probably bought at
a yard sale, then returns to Kakyoin’s room.
Kakyoin has cleared a spot for him. Jotaro slides in next to him, his back up
against the headboard, and the two of them sit together in silence, Jotaro
doing math problems while Kakyoin scratches out an essay in English.
After the essay, Kakyoin pulls out a sketchbook, then gets to work on a
picture. An art project? Kakyoin is tracing his pencil lines with a black pen,
bringing forth shape and clarity from the whirling chaos of the sketch. It’s an
image Jotaro has seen somewhere before, though he can’t remember where: a naked
man, pouring water into a pond under the night sky.
“The Star,” Kakyoin says, glancing at something over Jotaro’s shoulder. Oh.
Star Platinum has manifested to peer at its image on Kakyoin’s paper. “It’s the
eighteenth card in the tarot.”
Star Platinum reaches out and traces the edge of the paper, and Jotaro wonders
for the first time whether stands can see themselves in mirrors. He wonders
what Kakyoin sees in Star Platinum, in him. A memory stirs: a long ago
conversation over a campfire, long after the others in their party had fallen
asleep. Abdul had been rifling through his deck with the idle calm of a
habitual gesture, and then he’d held out his cards to Jotaro and asked him to
pick one. The Star. The Star. No matter how many times Abdul shuffled, the card
Jotaro picked was always the same.
“Abdul once told me the meaning of this card was peace,” Jotaro says, surprised
at the quiet grief in his own words. “I guess I picked the wrong card from his
deck.” Kakyoin is silent for a moment, and then his shoulders rise and fall in
a wordless shrug. He bumps his shoulder against Jotaro’s.
“You’re reliable and steady. Maybe everyone else is just reading you wrong.”
Jotaro snorts. He’s well aware that he’s not normally the most placid person.
Star Platinum is an violent stand, for a person who’s never minded solving his
problems with his fists. Only a few people have ever been able to read him
properly, and few of them as well as Kakyoin.
Jotaro gives in to the impulse to thread his fingers through Kakyoin’s hair and
feel the soft waves against his fingertips. Kakyoin closes his eyes and leans
into the touch like a cat. At this distance, Jotaro can see every twist in the
winding scars that bisect Kakyoin’s eyelids and it fills him with an awful
tenderness.
“I’m not like this with other people,” Jotaro says softly. “You’re just weird.”
“True,” Kakyoin says, and there’s a haughty pride in it. He knows himself for
the gemstone he is- the emerald to Jotaro’s sapphire. People talk about
“letting others in” and “sharing your feelings”, but Jotaro doesn’t feel like
he needs to do that with Kakyoin. He feels like they’re already there, like
Kakyoin’s been present all these years in Jotaro’s heart without either of them
knowing.
Their lips skim against each other in a gentle kiss, and then Kakyoin pulls
away. Jotaro lets him go. He rests his chin on Kakyoin’s shoulder and watches
him sketch.
“What’s the meaning of the Hierophant?” he asks.
“Divine authority,” Kakyoin replies, and gives Jotaro an imperious smile. “So
listen up.” Jotaro’s response is to gently bite the soft skin of Kakyoin’s
neck. Kakyoin’s fingers are on his chest, rising gently upwards over the curve
of his muscle. They settle over his birthmark. His star. Kakyoin speaks, and
his voice is a low, steady whisper with the smooth cadence of recitation.
“The Hierophant is the connection between the divine and the ordinary, the
bridge between heaven and earth. In the west, this card is sometimes known as
the Pope- the head of the church, the interpreter of divine mysteries.”  
“Divine mysteries, huh,” Jotaro says. He moves his hand down to Kakyoin’s
waist, and Kakyoin turns to face him.
“Yeah,” Kakyoin says, and raps him on the forehead, as if to say that Jotaro is
the biggest mystery of all. Jotaro doesn’t dignify the gesture with an answer.
Instead, he lowers his head, bringing his lips closer to Kakyoin’s, and this
time Kakyoin doesn’t pull away. He fists both hands in the fabric of Jotaro’s
shirt and pulls him close.
Jotaro’s got Kakyoin down on the bed beneath him with his shirt unbuttoned and
his breath coming fast when the phone rings. Kakyoin lets out a little noise of
annoyance and Jotaro kisses it out of his mouth, pins him with his whole body,
enjoying the way Kakyoin arches up against his weight.
“Ignore it,” Jotaro says against Kakyoin’s mouth.
“Mmm,” Kakyoin replies. His eyelids flicker, and a strange green glow flickers
on beneath his eyelashes. His stand’s shape is distantly visible in his pupils
as his eyes move, tracking Jotaro’s movement.
The phone stops ringing. Hierophant Green’s hung it up. Jotaro wants to ask
what it’s like, keeping your soul so far from your body, but he wants to kiss
Kakyoin even more. He does. He also slides his thumb beneath the edge of
Kakyoin’s waistband. Kakyoin’s hips jolt upwards in response. He grabs
shamelessly at Jotaro’s hips, sliding his palm along the front of Jotaro’s
painfully tight pants, and then they’re shucking out of their clothes and
touching each other with more enthusiasm with expertise. Jotaro’s not an expert
on romance but it doesn’t really matter; the only thing that matters is kissing
Kakyoin, wrapping him up close and feeling the slide of his hand against
Jotaro’s cock, his warm mouth, the little noises he makes when Jotaro touches
him.
It’s so fucking good, even if it’s not that different from getting off by
himself. Kakyoin’s mouth and hands are warm and slick and pressing against him,
but it’s more than that, it’s the whole combined experience of sharing their
bodies like this, tangled up in each other, kissing and biting and touching.
“Jo-Jo-” Kakyoin stutters out, and comes with a bitten-off little moan in the
back of his throat. Jotaro doesn’t say anything. He can’t. His body is all
locked up, caught up in the feel of everything and nothing as he follows
Kakyoin over the edge, his cock spilling out into his hand.
“Fuck,” he says. It’s a little bit before he can make himself move. He’s got
his head in the curve of Kakyoin’s neck, and it smells pleasantly like sweat
and sex and Kakyoin’s shampoo.
“Get off,” Kakyoin says, sounding strained.
“Just did,” Jotaro says, and rolls off his boyfriend. Kakyoin shoves his
shoulder half-heartedly in retaliation for the pun, and the two of them lie on
the bed for a little bit, flat on their backs and loose-limbed with afterglow.
Kakyoin is grinning at him, haughty and mischievous and perfect. His red hair
hangs down into his face. There’s a sheen of sweat on the trim lines of his
shoulders and biceps, and cum splattered across the scars on his abs. He’s the
sexiest thing Jotaro’s ever fucking seen.
Hierophant Green brings them both tissues, and Jotaro wipes off his hands and
tosses the tissues in the trash, then lights up a cigarette and watches with
lazy interest while Kakyoin finishes cleaning himself. Kakyoin’s face is
stained with a light flush, and he’s studiously pretending Jotaro isn’t
watching. Jotaro exhales smoke, smirking, and reaches out to run his fingers
along the curve of Kakyoin’s hipbone.
Kakyoin scowls and tosses the tissues in the trashcan, then turns over,
allowing Jotaro to see the scar plastered across his front in full for the
first time. He reaches out, covering the scar with the palm of his hand, and
Kakyoin matches the gesture, laying his palm across the top of Jotaro’s bicep,
over his heart.
Then he steals Jotaro’s cigarette.
“Hey,” Jotaro says. Kakyoin puts the end in his mouth and inhales, hard, then
tosses the cigarette over one shoulder and blows smoke in Jotaro’s face.
“No smoking in my bedroom,” he says.
“Asshole,” Jotaro says. He sends Star Platinum to retrieve his cigarette, but
Hierophant Green has already thrown it in the trash. He reaches for another
cigarette, and Kakyoin kisses him on the mouth and pushes his hand away.
“Bitchy,” Jotaro says.
“It’s my bedroom, and I don’t want it to smell like smoke,” Kakyoin says.
“So open a window,” Jotaro says.
“Smoke in the living room,” Kakyoin says, eyes dangerously narrowed. Jotaro
rolls on top of him, pinning him to the bed by his wrists, just because he can,
then rolls off and heads to the living room. His pants are still unbuttoned. He
lies back on Kakyoin’s shitty couch and smokes while Kakyoin listens to the
message on his answering machine.
It’s Polnareff. Of course it’s Polnareff, and he’s left a long, excited
voicemail in French. Kakyoin listens to it with a notepad in hand, jotting down
little notes, and when he’s done listening to the phone call he picks up a
french-english dictionary he keeps by the phone and leafs through it.
Translating, Jotaro assumes.
He finishes his cigarette and listens idly as Kakyoin punches a number into the
phone and carries on a brief but animated conversation with Polnareff.
Kakyoin’s French is slow and halting, and sometimes he has to default to
English to clarify, but it’s still impressive that he can carry on a
conversation. Jotaro knows about five words in French, and all of them are
insults.
It’s Kakyoin, though. Jotaro expects it from him. Kakyoin has a gift for
understanding things, for chasing down knowledge which Jotaro doesn’t care
about. He makes it interesting, just by making it his own.
After the phone call is done, they turn back to each other.
“I should head home,” Jotaro says. It’s gotten dark. The light comes in through
the slanted windows, turning Kakyoin into a tall, slim silhouette. “But first-
dinner?”
 
Jotaro comes home late and a little drunk from the ramen place. Holly is
waiting in the kitchen. He never called to tell her where he was. He doesn’t
want to encourage the expectation that she should know where he is at all
times. She’s annoying, but- if he didn’t have a mother- if his mother was dead-
he can’t even approach the thought. He put his life on the line for a
continuous fifty days to ensure that it would never happen. The day to day life
of interactions with Holly are irrelevant to the question of her existence,
which Jotaro will always protect with everything he has.
He comes in by the front door, and hates that he thinks of Kakyoin in that
lonely apartment, slipping silently into his hotel room bed. Holly greets him
with arms around his waist and starts to chatter, and he waits until she’s
subsided to speak.
“Mom. Did you know?”
“Know about what, honey?”
“Kakyoin’s parents.” Holly’s lips press together.
“That poor boy. So quiet and responsible. It must be so hard for him, but he
never complains. The first time Joseph tried to set him up with a new
apartment, he refused.”
“What happened to his house?” Jotaro asks, and then regrets it. He shouldn’t
ask questions he doesn’t want the answer to. Holly glances away and doesn’t
answer the question.
“I’m glad he has you,” she says at last, and Jotaro is suddenly, quietly,
furious. Holly is no better than one of his classmates, clucking over a sad
story that has nothing to do with her. Kakyoin is his friend, his boyfriend,
and yet Jotaro was the last to know.
“Why didn’t you tell me?”
“You didn’t know?” Holly says.  Her eyebrows draw together. “I thought. Well.”
She tries to smile. “Kakyoin keeps to himself, doesn’t he.”
Jotaro feels - something. Annoyed, maybe, that he couldn’t figure out something
so obvious. It was there from the beginning, in the way he never needed to call
home no matter how late he stayed over, in the way he obviously did all his own
laundry and cooked his own meals.
It’s none of my business, he thinks viciously. I didn’t do this. I didn’t want
this. I never asked to be born with this star on my neck. I’m not- I don’t owe
him anything. It’s Dio who did this, Dio who put him in that apartment, Dio who
dragged him halfway across the world. Jotaro is viciously glad that he killed
Dio, and yet it’s not enough.
He wishes- he wishes he could give Kakyoin something else. He wishes Holly
would stop staring at him.
“Are you okay, sweetie?” Holly asks.
“I’m fine,” Jotaro bites out, and almost believes it.
 
He almost doesn’t go to school the next day, but it’s stuffy in the house, and
he doesn’t need Holly hovering over him the whole day. Kakyoin isn’t at school
when Jotaro reaches it- he pulls up a little bit later, in Ryu and Mei’s car.
Polite as ever, he opens the door for Mei to get out, then excuses himself and
walks over to Jotaro.
“New friends?” he asks. Kakyoin gives him a disdainful look.
“As if. Neither of them are stand users. It makes all the posturing a little
hollow.”
“Did Ryu threaten you?” Jotaro asks, amused.
“No, but I think that’s just because they want to try bribery first. They
really want to know about you. I told them, there’s nothing to know.”
“Big words from such a small guy,” Jotaro tells him, and smirks at the narrow
glare Kakyoin gives him.
“I’m average height,” Kakyoin says sourly. Jotaro is tempted to wrap his arm
around Kakyoin’s waist and tug him closer to make his point, but it wouldn’t be
worth the gossip. Even now, Mei’s minions are watching them.
“Chinrest height,” Jotaro says. Kakyoin gives him a flat stare, then sweeps
past him, presumably to go to their class. Jotaro watches him go, amused, then
realizes that Kakyoin’s probably going to steal his seat yet again. Son of a
bitch.
The day passes in a blur of boring classes and sideways glances from Kakyoin,
and soon enough it’s lunch, Jotaro’s favorite part of the day. He's brought his
walkman. He and Kakyoin sit, Kakyoin’s head propped on Jotaro's shoulder, and
listen quietly to Sting while eating lunch. There’s a hickey from the day
before just visible under the edge of Kakyoin’s collar, and Jotaro smirks every
time he sees it. He’s got his arm around Kakyoin’s waist and his lips about two
inches from Kakyoin’s when he hears the sound of footsteps on the stairs.
One, two, three, and then the intruders are on the landing. Jotaro unhooks his
arm reluctant from Kakyoin's waist, and the two of them turn to glare at the
intruders. It’s the twins. Mei, the class representative, and her brother, Ryu.
Jotaro didn’t hear them until they were practically at the top, although that
might have been the walkman.
“What do you want?” he demands.
Mei takes Ryu’s hand and walks across the distance between them, stopping just
a few feet away from Jotaro.
“Students have been disappearing from neighboring schools, then turning up
dead,” Mei says quietly. “What do you know?”
“Nothing,” Jotaro says flatly, already exasperated with the nosy bullshit he's
sure is incoming. “I’m just a student.”
“A student… with a stand?” Mei asks. Hierophant Green and Star Platinum flicker
out, ready to do battle, but Mei doesn’t blink. She can’t see them. Still not a
stand user- not even the best actor could fail to blink with Star Platinum’s
fist an inch short of their nose.
“Where did you hear that word?” Jotaro demands.
“I asked first,” Mei says quietly. In the ensuing silence, Jotaro stands up.
Mei is tall, for a chinese girl, but she’s tiny compared to him. Everyone is.
But she doesn’t flinch, even when he stands next her, forcing her to crane her
neck up just to meet his eyes.
Ryu says something to her in Chinese, and she responds in the same language,
but doesn’t look away. She’s got guts, Jotaro will give her that.
“Are you the person whose job it is to stop this?” she asks.
“Shut the fuck up,” Jotaro tells her. “You don’t know anything about me, or any
of this. You’re just hiding your desire for gossip behind pretending to care
about others. I have nothing to say to you. Stop bothering me.” He turns his
back and starts to walk away. There’s a flash of something green. Ryu shouts
his sister’s name. Jotaro whips his head around in time to see Mei go
plummeting off the roof.
Kakyoin throws himself after her without hesitation, a coil of Hierophant Green
wrapped around his waist. There’s a heartstopping moment where Jotaro can’t see
either of them, and then a crash that shakes the building. Hierophant Green is
yanked forward; Star Platinum catches it before it can go plummeting off the
edge.
Jotaro sprints to the edge. Kakyoin and Mei are dangling three stories above
the ground.  Mei has her hands in a death grip around Kakyoin’s wrist.
Kakyoin’s eyes are closed; he must be concentrating on Hierophant Green. How
much weight can his stand hold, and for how long?
Jotaro braces himself, drawing on the bone-deep conviction it requires to use
his stand’s final ability, and stops time.
Star Platinum: The World hits him like a truck, bearing down on him body and
soul. His whole being is subjected to an immense pressure, as if he were a
single gear straining against the power of some leviathan machine. It’s not
that hs ability has a clear limit; it’s that a few seconds is all he can stand.
But a few seconds is all he needs.
He gets down on his stomach at the edge of the roof and has Star Platinum throw
Kakyoin up. Once he’s got Kakyoin’s wrist firmly in his grip and Star
Platinum’s arms back around Hierophant, time starts again. Kakyoin jolts in
Jotaro’s grip when he finds himself suddenly displaced, but his concentration
doesn’t slip. Mei’s brother charges over to the edge and grabs Kakyoin’s
forearm, and together he and Jotaro haul Kakyoin and then Mei up over the edge.
There’s a trickle of blood making its way down Kakyoin’s forehead and a large
gash on Mei’s leg, but they’re alive. Ryu grabs Mei in a hug and hauls her away
from the edge, speaking in rapid-fire Chinese. Kakyoin watches them go, his
breath coming in rapid pants. Hierophant Green seems to have taken damage from
breaking their fall, but Jotaro’s seen Kakyoin shrug off much worse.
“Nice catch,” Jotaro tells him.
“Thanks,” Kakyoin replies, and lifts his hand to his face, frowning. There’s
red on his hand. The two of them look down. A large spot of blood is forming on
the front of Kakyoin’s shirt.
“My shirt!” Kakyoin hisses, and starts to strip out of his coat. On the trip,
both of them would have dismissed something like this as a scratch and moved
on, but they’ve rejoined the civilized world, where people treat a little blood
like it’s the end of the world.
“You can probably get gauze in the hospital wing, to keep it from leaking onto
your pants,” Jotaro tells him.
“Tch,” Kakyoin says, and glances over at Mei. She and Ryu are speaking in
Chinese- having an argument, if their tone means anything. Mei is clutching her
wrist, and her leg is going to bruise where it slammed into the wall, but it
doesn’t look like anything is broken. Ryu has his arm hooked around his waist,
like he’s worried she might fall, but Mei doesn’t seem to need it.
As Jotaro watches, her brother picks her up, kicking and shouting, hauls her
over one shoulder, and starts to haul her towards the stairs.
“Thanks,” he says to Kakyoin, then keeps walking. Mei’s angry yelling fades
into the distance, and Kakyoin stifles a laugh.
“Did you see the enemy stand?” Jotaro asks. Kakyoin hesitates. He looks shaken,
but not hurt. Strange.
“I don’t think so,” he says at last, and glances towards the edge. “But why
Mei? She’s not a stand user.”
“Bad aim?” Jotaro says. “She was standing next to you.”
“Why knock me off the building? Hierophant can hold my weight alone without too
much trouble. It would make more sense to go after you.”
“I can stop time,” Jotaro points out.
“Yeah, but can you fly?” Jotaro thinks back to the fight against Dio, and to
the acrobatic stunts he managed while chasing him through the city.
“...sort of.”
“Seriously? Since when?”
“It’s not like I’ve practiced,” Jotaro says, annoyed. “I did a lot of things
when fighting against him that I don’t want to do again.” Kakyoin makes an
aborted motion towards his waist, as if he was about to touch his stomach, and
nods.
“I'm going to go to the infirmary,” he mutters, and walks down the stairs, his
back rigid with pain or pride. Jotaro does not offer to go with him, having no
desire to revisit the place where they had their first fight.
Instead, he lingers on the roof, annoyed by the invasion of his personal space.
Is there nowhere in the whole damn school a man can go to smoke in peace? He
finishes his cigarette, exhaling his annoyance with the white smoke, and
meanders back down into the school, Star Platinum at the ready in case the
enemy stand user has any stupid ideas about ambushes.
Star Platinum pauses at the bottom of the stairwell, then retrieves something
from behind the door. It’s a walkie-talkie: small, black, discreet. It’s still
on. Jotaro glances upwards. He and Kakyoin stood by the doorway and talked;
it’s entirely possible that they were overheard. But what good is it spying on
them like this? Any enemy stand user already knows who Kakyoin and Jotaro are.
It’s not like they’ve been subtle with their stand usage.
Star Platinum tosses the walkie talkie to Jotaro, and the line shuts off with a
beep. Jotaro stares at it, eyes narrowed, tempted to just destroy the damn
thing. There’s the distant sound of footsteps. He puts the phone away and
readies Star Platinum just as one of his classmates comes hurrying into the
stairwell.
“Oh! Jotaro!” she says, and covers her mouth, blushing. Her name is Susie or
something like that, and she’s one of his most insufferable classmates. He
takes a step backwards as she bats her eyes and clings to his arm. “Fancy
meeting you in this… dark stairwell… there’s no one else here...”
“What are you doing here?” Jotaro demands. He considers summoning Star Platinum
just to get her off his arm, but the last thing he needs is more weird rumors.
He settles for prying her off and retreating into the bright hallway outside
the stairwell.
“Aw, don’t be like that,” she says, jutting one hip out in a transparent
attempt to look cute. All Jotaro can thinks of is how easy it would be to knock
her off her feet. “I’m looking for Ryu, have you seen him?”
“No idea,” Jotaro says, and begins to walk away, but his classmate chases after
him.
“Jotaro, wait! Why don’t you call him?”
“Call him?” Jotaro asks. The girl points at his walkie-talkie.
“Isn’t that Ryu’s? The twins use them to call each other at lunch...”
Jotaro tosses the walkie-talkie to his classmate, who catches it, looking
surprised.
“Hey, girl. What’s your name?”
“Siouxsie,” she says, smiling.
“Right. Susie. Call Ryu on that thing.” Susie picks up the phone, fiddles with
a dial, and turns it on.
“Hello? Ryu?” There’s no response. She fiddles with the dial, then calls again.
Nothing. She tries to hand it back to him, but Jotaro put his hands in his
pockets.
“Keep it,” he says, and walks away.
 
Mei and Ryu don’t talk to him after that. Mei doesn’t even come to school the
next day, and Ryu steadily avoids Jotaro in every class they have together.
He’s not obvious about it. But sometimes, out of the corner of his eye, Star
Platinum will catch Ryu staring, but when Jotaro turns his head he always looks
away. He’s finally pulled together enough sense to be scared. Good. Maybe he
can keep Mei out of trouble and out of Jotaro’s hair.
I don’t need you in my life, Jotaro thinks. Life is better when it’s just him
and Kakyoin spending their time together: listening to music on the roof,
getting drunk and calling Polnareff on the phone, staying out late at arcades
and restaurants. Some things he does with Kakyoin are new, and some he’s being
doing for years, but all of them acquire a new shine and a different
significance when he does them with his boyfriend. There’s something about
Kakyoin’s steady presence by his side that makes him feel like himself- not a
Joestar, not a Kujo, not a minor celebrity at school or a thug in a prison, but
just himself, just Jotaro.
Jojo, Kakyoin calls him, and Jotaro likes to kiss the sound of it out of his
mouth, likes to hear Kakyoin stutter out the syllables of his name between
little shudders of pleasure. He thinks he’s in love, probably. It’s not so bad,
love, not as annoying as everyone makes it sound. People treat it like an
obligation, but it’s not. He doesn’t have to kiss Kakyoin’s neck or sit with
him and watch sumo. But he wants to.
They stay out late drinking on Saturday night, then call Polnareff and laugh at
his cursing over the phone. It’s some ungodly hour in france. It starts to rain
on the way home, and Kakyoin and Jotaro compete to see who’s stand can best
repel the raindrops. Jotaro is tipsy and a little wet and he can’t stop
laughing at the sight of Kakyoin’s curly hair plastered to his face with rain.
“I’m getting soaked,” Kakyoin says, laughing, “and your stand keeps punching
rain at me.”
“Well, if you’re already soaked,” Jotaro says, and gets splashed for his
trouble. Star Platinum defends him, and they end up having to go back to
Jotaro’s place to get new clothes. They change in Jotaro’s room: Jotaro into a
new uniform, and Kakyoin into a set of Jotaro’s pajamas. Jotaro’s clothing is
comically oversized on Kakyoin.
Jotaro smirks, and Kakyoin narrows his eyes and threateningly wraps a strand of
Hierophant Green around Jotaro’s leg, but neither of them say anything. The
moment Kakyoin turns his back, Jotaro scoops him up in a bridal carry and flops
him on Jotaro’s bed. Kakyoin smacks him in the stomach with Hierophant Green,
hard, and in retaliation Jotaro pins him to the bed and kisses him into the
sheets. Kakyoin bites Jotaro’s lip, but he lets himself be kissed.
One kiss turns into two, and then three, and four, and then too many to count.
They don’t stop until Jotaro hears the sound of his mother coming down the
corridor and regretfully pulls away. Kakyoin makes a face, but he flops off the
bed, and when Holly comes in the two of them are standing a respectable
distance apart.
“I made you hot cocoa,” she says cheerfully.
“Thanks,” Kakyoin says, and the two of them go and sit on the back porch and
drink it while watching the rain. The pitter-patter of raindrops swallows
everything, enveloping them in a blanket of white noise. Jotaro is warm in his
coat, his wet hair beginning to dry into springy curls. He realizes he left his
hat on the bed.
“Hey, Jojo,” Kakyoin says softly. “Do you think stands can act on their own?”
Jotaro considers. In the distance, Hierophant Green is slithering through the
garden, a sinuous, shimmering shape barely visible in the darkness and rain.
“Star Platinum used to bring me things. Before I knew what it was. They would
appear at my bedside, or when I turned around. Books, beer, food. I thought it
was a demon.”
“Hmm,” Kakyoin says, and nothing more.
“What was it like, having a stand as a kid?” Kakyoin smiles, but it’s a little
sad and wistful. He props up his chin on one hand and stares out into the
pouring rain.
“I don’t know what it’s like not to have a stand,” he says. “As long as I can
remember, Hierophant Green was always with me. My imaginary friend, and then my
real one.” He laughs a little, caught up in some memory. “I was a weird kid.
Not scared of anything. I didn’t get other people, and I didn’t want to. They
were so… ordinary.” He doesn’t explain any further. He doesn’t need to. Kakyoin
has a gift for saying exactly the things that Jotaro is thinking, as if
someone’s given him a window directly into Jotaro’s heart.
“Before I met you, I thought I was complete. But then I saw your stand, and I
realized… that I was only part of something bigger.” He doesn’t look entirely
happy at the last, and no wonder. He’s paid an even heavier price than Jotaro
for being drawn into this world of stands and monsters. No, not drawn in. He’s
lived here his whole life, never had an ordinary childhood or a chance to be an
ordinary person.
“I’m glad I was able to meet you,” Kakyoin says quietly. Jotaro covers
Kakyoin’s hand with his own, and Kakyoin turns to look at him. His eyes are a
dim lavender in the light of dusk, immeasurably strange and precious.  
“I know,” Jotaro says quietly, and kisses him. He does know. Kakyoin was the
first person to look into him and understand him, the first person to share his
principles, to share his heart. He puts his feelings into his kiss. It’s all he
can do. He’s always been clumsy with words, but he thinks that Kakyoin will
understand his intentions, the things he says with his body.
“This isn’t Star Wars,” Kakyoin says when they break apart, and it sounds like
he’s striving to be annoyed, but he’s smiling. “Don’t say, ‘I know’. Say, ‘me
too’, or even ‘I love you.’ That would be best.”
“Bossy,” Jotaro says, and kisses him again.
“Asshole,” Kakyoin says, but he’s grinning like he just won the lottery. He
curls one hand in Jotaro’s hair and they kiss under the awning of Jotaro’s
house like it’s the first day of their honeymoon.
 
It’s the last good night he has in a while. Sunday, Kakyoin goes to the
Speedwagon Foundation to get some kind of medical check-up, and Jotaro spends
the night alone in his room. He doesn’t mind being alone. It’s the room that
bothers him. The rain has continued, soaking into the sidewalks and trapping
him in the close confines of his house. His scars keep him up late into the
night, aching like old memories.  His sheets are too soft, too warm, too close.
He smokes through all of his cigarettes and is left twitchy and unsatisfied.
Monday, Jotaro wakes to the sound of thunder, turns off his alarm, and goes
back to sleep.
His mother comes in at about ten, holding a phone, and hands it to him.
“Kakyoin for you,” she says. Jotaro squints at the phone, ready to be annoyed
if Kakyoin doesn’t have a damn good reason for calling him, but he does.
Kakyoin always comes through.
“One of our classmates is dead,” he says. “Yuki, from classroom B-2. Someone
shot her with an arrow. They found the body outside the school.” Jotaro feels
very tired, as if all his nights without sleep are crashing in on him all at
once. It’s happening again. In his mind’s eye, he pictures the corpse of his
faceless classmate and the streaky lines of dried blood. Even with Dio burned
to ashes in the sun, even with everything that Abdul and Iggy and Kakyoin gave,
it’s not over.
“Do you need backup?” he asks.
“I’m fine. Where are you?”
“Stayed home to sleep,” Jotaro says. There’s a soft huff of laughter from
Kakyoin.
“You really got smashed the day before yesterday, huh?” he says teasingly.
“No,” Jotaro says. He only had a couple of beers, barely enough to make his
head buzz. It takes a lot to get him drunk. He just didn’t want to see anyone
today. He still doesn’t.
“Do you want me to come?” Jotaro asks. Kakyoin snorts, and Jotaro realizes what
he’s just asked.
“They’ve already moved the body, so don’t bother. I’ll see you tomorrow.”
Kakyoin’s voice is crisp and unworried. Jotaro can easily imagine him standing
at the school desk in his crisp uniform, sunglasses sitting above his high
cheekbones, Hierophant Green out and scanning the area around him for any sign
of a threat. He’ll be fine even without Jotaro’s help.
“See you then,” Jotaro confirms, and hangs up.
God, he’s tired of corpses and stand users, but it’s not going to stop, not
now, not ever. Outside, the rain is beating down against the windows, and
inside, Jotaro is flat on his bed, wishing he hadn’t smoked all his cigarettes
the night before. He could leave. He could walk out into the night and not come
back, ever, to this empty house and these obligations, but he won’t. It needs
to be done, and so Jotaro will do it, because no one else can. But first, a
moment to sit in peace and listen to the rain, and think of Kakyoin with his
bright hair and haughty smile and warm skin.
It’s a little after noon when Jotaro finally leaves his room, and Holly is in
the laundry room humming to herself and airing out old linens.
“Where are you going, sweetheart?” Holly asks.
“I have a phone call to make,” he says. He has Joseph’s phone number memorized,
from the calls he used to make as a little kid, back when he enjoyed listening
to his grandfather ramble over the phone. Back in those days, Jotaro was still
small enough to fit comfortably within everyone’s expectations.
Joseph picks up the phone and answers in fast-paced, enthusiastic english.
Jotaro sighs.
“Hey, old man. Shut up and listen.  A girl at my school is dead. I think it’s a
stand user. Did we get all of Dio’s minions?”
Joseph, to his credit, takes a moment to answer.
“There’s been a series of attacks on Speedwagon Foundation personnel in Egypt
doing clean-up on DIO’s mansion.” There’s a moment of hesitation. “Some people
have been afflicted with a strange memory loss before dying, so there’s
definitely a stand involved. Be careful. How was this student murdered?
“I wasn't there. I just know they found her dead outside the school.” He
remembers the confrontation with Mei and Ryu. “Apparently other schools in the
area have been having people turns up dead as well.”
“I'll have the foundation look into it,” Joseph says. “For now, keep a close
eye on your mother.”
“Obviously,” Jotaro says, and when it becomes apparent that Joseph doesn't have
any more useful advice to offer, he hangs up.
Now that he's awake, he's hungry. He goes to the kitchen and serves himself a
large serving of leftovers, then goes back to bed. There's something bothering
him.
Where did Ryu and Mei hear the word “stand”? Who have they been talking to? Mei
was scared and frightened after she fell off the building, but she wasn't
surprised. She didn't ask what had happened or act shocked. She came up
expecting something strange. She came up with a speech prepared, and a
question… about dead students at surrounding schools. But what drove her to
connect Jotaro to the dead students?
He decides to pay her and her brother a visit.
 
The Jin siblings live in a large house not far from the Kujo estate. Jotaro
visited a few times when he was younger: the twins liked to throw lavish
birthday parties and invite everyone in their grade. Jotaro hadn't been the
most social, even then, but his mom had made him go. His memories of the
parties are vague, but he remembers that Ryu had a good collection of model
planes and that the snacks were good.
Jotaro makes his way over a few hours after the end of school and is confronted
at the gate by a security guard who asks for his name, age, and reason for
visiting. Star Platinum could put his arm through this fat little bureaucrat’s
chest without a problem, but Jotaro's not Dio. He considers just having his
stand lift him over the gate, but the last thing he needs is some self-
important guard trying to chase him down.
“Kujo Jotaro, 18. I'm one of Mei’s classmates and I want to talk to her about a
school project.”
“Is she expecting you?”
“Yes,” Jotaro says, and gives the security guard his flattest, most bored
stare. The man begins to sweat. He fumbles his way through a series of papers,
then gives Jotaro the go-ahead and opens the gate.
The path to the main house is long and winding, designed to remind the walker
of the sheer extent of the house, and Jotaro hates it. He hates that his name
was already on Mei and Ryu’s list, which means that they've been expecting him.
At the main house, a security guard redirects him towards an open garage on the
left side of the building. It's a bright day, the sun shining down on the clean
lines of the garden, and somewhere a radio is playing american rock music.
Jotaro recognizes the sound of Blue Oyster Cult.There's a beautiful old car
sitting on a pair of blocks in the driveway with the hood open. It's a yellow
1970’s Mustang, and Jotaro takes a moment to admire the lines of the chassis
before a sound draws his attention to the underside of the car.
He summons Star Platinum and walks around the side of the car, where he is
confronted with the sight of Ryu’s legs. The rest of his body is under the car.
He must hear the sound of Jotaro's footsteps, because he says “Meimei’s in the
house.”
“I'm not here for Mei,” Jotaro replies. It'll be easier to deal with the
siblings one at a time. A pause, and then Ryu replies. He sounds annoyed.
“Well, you’re going to have to wait, then, because this transmission needs
fixing, and I’m not starting over. If you’re going to smoke, do it away from
the oil cans.” Jotaro glances behind him at the oil cans and takes a step
sideways, then lights up a cigarette. He's on the verge of telling Ryu to hurry
up when there's the crackle of a telephone line.
“Who you talking to, Li?” The voice is male, speaking English in an American
accent. Ryu must be talking on the phone to the other person while he works on
the car.
“Someone from school. Talk to you later, okay, Mac? Stay out of trouble.”
“As if,” the other person says, and hangs up. Jotaro is left with the sound of
the radio and the occasional clunk as Ryu completes whatever he's doing
underneath the car.
Eventually there’s the sound of something sliding into place, and Ryu slides
out from under the chassis, shirtless and greasy. He walks over to the
workbench, humming, and wipes his hand on an old rag, then pulls on an old
shirt. He’s tall, taller than Kakyoin, almost as tall as Jotaro, with wide
shoulders and an easy smile.
Jotaro’s seen him lose his temper exactly once, in their freshman year. A
transfer student trying to establish himself as a cool guy had been harassing
some girls in their art class. Jotaro didn’t remember the details. He
remembered the calm, pleasant expression on Ryu’s face as he stood up,
retrieved a steel ruler from the wall, and slammed it down on the offender’s
hand, breaking three fingers. He’d hauled the other student up against the
wall, and whispered something that made him go pale. Then he’d called his
sister over.
When the teacher arrived, Mei burst into tears and swore that it had been an
accident, that she’d only been defending herself, and the other student, white
with pain and stammering, had collaborated their story.
What a pain, Jotaro remembers thinking, but it hadn’t been a pain for Ryu. None
of it had touched him. Jotaro was willing to bet that accusations never did.
“What brings you here, Kujo?” Ryu asks. Kujo, not Jotaro, though they've known
each other vaguely for years. Ryu doesn't look expectant, or scared, or
interested. He looks mild and slightly bored, like he's about to deliver a
presentation.
“Why'd you spy on me and Kakyoin?” Jotaro asks.
“Don't know what you're talking about,” Ryu drawls, and it's a little too
deliberate to be sincere.
“Don't fuck with me,” Jotaro says. Ryu gives him a glance that sweeps from the
tip of his hat to his feet, then raises an eyebrow.
“You're not my type,” he says. Jotaro takes a step closer, then another step,
until he and Ryu are standing face to face.
“Talk,” Jotaro says. Ryu swallows nervously, but he stands his ground.
“No,” Ryu says. “I suppose this is the part where you threaten to hit me.”
Jotaro's lip curls. He is tempted to give Ryu a black eye just for being in his
business, but going to Egypt has spoiled him for violence. Beating up nosy high
schoolers feels like kicking a dog. It’s beneath him. He steps back.
Ryu’s eyebrows go up.
“Damn, did getting a boyfriend make you go soft? Kakyoin must be better at
giving head than I thought.”
Fine. Jotaro didn't come here intending to pick a fight, but if putting Ryu's
face in the dirt is what it takes to make him talk, so be it. Ryu's jaw makes a
satisfying crack when it comes in contact with Jotaro's fist. He staggers
backwards and laughs. There’s blood in his teeth.
“Fuck you, Kujo,” he says, and swings. Jotaro doesn't remember seeing him pick
up a wrench, but he feels the impact all up his arm. He doesn't get another
strike. Jotaro grabs his arm on the next swing and pries the wrench from his
fingers, ignoring the answering punch to his stomach, and slams him against the
wall. It’s a struggle not to summon his stand, but he’s not going to use Star
Platinum against some dumb high schooler. His head is buzzing. He punches Ryu
in the stomach over and over, then knocks him savagely to the floor. There’s a
screwdriver sticking out of the meat of his thigh. He ignores it.
Ryu tries to get up, and Jotaro kneels on his chest, then brings his fist down.
Ryu's nose breaks with a crunch. Jotaro punches him again. He can feel the
impact of Ryu’s skull against the pavement all up his arm. He’s so sick of all
these fucking idiots in his business, pushing and prodding and scrabbling at
his life like stray dogs scrabbling for scraps in the street. It’s
embarrassing. He slams Ryu’s face into the floor one more time for good
measure, then stands up and kicks him in the ribs. Ryu sucks in a gasping
breath. He’s gone limp, lying on the floor with blood leaking from his nose and
mouth.
“What the fuck do you think you're doing?” Jotaro asks. Ryu stares up at him,
half-dazed, and doesn't answer.
“Who told you about stands?” Jotaro demands. “Talk!”  He grabs Ryu by the shirt
and hauls him to a sitting position.  Ryu pinches at his bleeding nose and
takes a deep breath.
“Eat shit, Kujo,” he says, and vanishes. Star Platinum flickers into existance,
but there’s nothing, no trace, no sound, no trail. A throbbing pain appears in
Jotaro’s chest, and he lifts his hand to find a knife jutting from his
collarbone. A few inches higher, and it would have been his throat. He yanks it
out and tosses it to the ground, then hurries out of the garage.
What's this stand do? Teleportation? Has Ryu been hiding it, or is it someone
else's stand?
He’s a few steps out of the garage when he hears someone call out from inside
the house.
“Oi, Ryu, are you coming to archery practice?” That’s Mei’s voice. She’s
yelling from somewhere in the house.
No response. The only sound is Jotaro's labored breathing.
“What’s more important than archery?” Mei calls. Jotaro can hear her footsteps.
Still, no sign of Ryu. Star Platinum informs him that someone's come out of the
house. He hurries out onto the path and almost collides with Mei, who's dressed
in archery club gear and heading towards the exit. There’s a large bruise on
the left side of her face, but she looks happy and cheerful.
“Kujo!” she says, clearly startled. “What are you doing here?” Jotaro is half
expecting a stand attack, but unlike Ryu, who was acting weird from the moment
Jotaro arrived, Mei is clearly on her way out of the house.
“Talking to Ryu,” he grunts.
“Oh? I didn’t realize. I thought he was working on that damn car.”
“He was,” Jotaro lies. He doesn’t want to involve Mei if she’s just a civilian-
that’ll only lead to more trouble. Mei makes a face.
“I swear, he loves that thing more than his girlfriend. I wouldn’t put up with
it, but it’s none of my business. Anyway, say hi to Kakyoin for me, will you?”
She starts to hurry away, but Jotaro grabs her by the arm. He doesn’t want to
hurt her, but that doesn’t mean he doesn’t have questions.
“Eh?” Mei says, looking bewildered.
“Who told you about stands?” he demands. Star Platinum looms over him. Mei
shrinks down.
“I h-have to get to archery practice,” she says, and tries to pry her arm free.
Jotaro doesn't let her. There's the flash of something out of the corner of his
eye. He catches the vague shape of a stand, and whirls.
“Ow, my arm!” Mei says. “Jotaro… there’s something on your shirt. What's going
on?”
“Never mind. Get out of here,” Jotaro says. Mei casts a frightened look at him
and runs away down the path. The moment she vanishes out the front gate, a
security guard comes running up the path towards him. A few more come from the
house, their guns unholstered and pointed at him.
“Hands on the back of your head!” one of them shouts. Jotaro’s surprised these
miserable guards are even allowed to carry weapons.
“Don’t you need a permit for those?” he asks. Star Platinum eyes the men
scornfully. He could beat them up easily, but these are professional security
guards. If he doesn’t let himself be taken in, the next group to get involved
is the police.
“You're under arrest,” a guard shouts.
A bullet speeds towards him and then stops, caught in med-air. Star Platinum
tosses it scornfully back at the bodyguard, who yelps and flinches when it
strikes him in the forehead.
“Must have been a misfire,” Jotaro says scornfully, and spreads his arms. “Come
on, then. Arrest me.”
 
The holding cell of the local prison is exactly as Jotaro remembers it. The
same scared policemen, the same faded paint, the same old telephone for his
free phone call. He hesitates, then dials Kakyoin's number. No one answers. The
phone rings and rings and rings. It's almost 7. Where is Kakyoin, if not at his
house?
He scowls, then leaves a message on the answering machine.
“Kakyoin. Ryu has a stand. It can make things disappear. Be careful. I'm in the
local prison.”
That done, he hangs up and calls Holly.
“Jotaro?” Holly says. “Oh, you just missed Kakyoin! He said to meet him at the
school.”
“The school?” Jotaro says.
“For your project, with Ryu and Mei?” Holly says. “I'm so happy that you're
making friends, sweetheart.”
Fuck.
“When did he come by?” Jotaro demands.
“About… half an hour ago. I told him to wait, but he seemed to be in a hurry.
Where are you right now, sweetie?” Holly asks.
“Prison,” Jotaro grunts, and hangs up. There's no time for this.
He hangs up, turns to the guard, and summons Star Platinum: The World.
Within moments, he's out of the prison and headed towards the school. Kakyoin
will be there. Kakyoin may be fighting some unknown number of Stand Users at
this very moment. Jotaro trusts his boyfriend's strength. But he can't help but
think of the last fight Kakyoin was in- of how still his body looked as they
loaded him into the ambulance.
Jotaro hurries forward into the darkness of the evening, blood soaking into his
clothes, and hopes it's not too late. 
Chapter End Notes
     Leave me a comment and let me know what you thought! ; )
***** the king of wands *****
Chapter Notes
     king of wands
     upright: natural-born leader, vision, entrepreneur, honour
     reversed: impulsiveness, haste, ruthless, high expectations
See the end of the chapter for more notes
It’s bad form to speculate on the way to a fight, but Jotaro’s mind keeps
circling back to the memory of Kakyoin’s bleeding body. Kakyoin’s chest had
made an awful wet noise with every breath, and his blood had been warm and
sticky on Jotaro’s clothes as it dried. By the end of the night, Jotaro had
been shivering, draped in a cold layer of Kakyoin’s discarded life. He quickens
his pace. He’s almost to the school.
His goals are clear: to find and defeat the Stand users, and to rescue Kakyoin,
who has probably been fighting against superior odds for some time.  Kakyoin is
experienced, intelligent, and strong-willed, but there’s only so much one
person can do against two people. Jotaro will find and retrieve him. He refuses
to consider any other possibility. To do otherwise would be an insult to
Kakyoin’s strength.
The last gasps of sunset are fading from the reddened sky when he reaches the
school. It’s never really night in Tokyo; the light pollution smears the night
sky into a blood-bruised shade of grey. The school gates are smashed open, and
a dark splash of blood is visible in the incriminating glare of the
streetlights. Star Platinum retrieves a single scrap of torn green fabric from
the gate. This is a piece of Kakyoin’s school uniform. Only a few nights ago,
Jotaro had this same fabric spread on his bed as he kissed Kakyoin and
unbuttoned his shirt. Kakyoin’s red hair was so brilliant against the emerald
background, and his mouth was so warm against Jotaro’s. Jotaro never wants to
see his uniform stained with blood again.
He strides forward into the building, Star Platinum at the ready, all senses on
high alert. The front of the school is a mass of shadows, and Ryu’s already
proven his ability to move unseen. The front door of the school is open and in
the distance Jotaro can hear the faint sound of voices borne by the wind. The
hallway is dark, and the lights flicker, casting a strange light across the
bloody hallway before flaring to life.
Jotaro looks over the blood splatters and thinks. Someone, probably Kakyoin,
ran down this hallway, dripping blood as they went. They weren't badly hurt-
nothing more than a superficial slice, probably to their left arm. Someone else
pursued. The pursuer wasn’t in a hurry. They took care not to step in the
blood, but slipped up in one spot and left the outline of a heel.
Movement at the edge of Jotaro’s vision. There’s a saccharine anti-bullying
poster plastered on the wall, depicting a smiling face with the caption, “If
you see something, say something!” The face and body of the poster are normal,
but the eyes- the eyes bulge out from the paper, the pupils square, the iris
moving as they turn to stare at Jotaro.
“Ora!” Star Platinum shouts, and rips the paper into shreds. The next poster on
the wall blinks, and suddenly they’re all looking at him, every poster animated
with the same malignant stare.  
Star Platinum tears through the corridor, ripping the posters to shreds, but
the feeling of being watched persists. The eyes are everywhere.  He can feel
their attention on him like a spotlight, tracking his every move. This must be
Mei’s stand. Jotaro didn’t want to believe that she was involved. But he’s seen
this malevolent gaze in action before- nothing, no matter how small, ever
escapes the class representative’s attention.
“Good grief,” Jotaro mutters. Just what he needs- another gossip.
He steps forward, and the window shatters. Glass sprays into the hallway.
Jotaro jerks backwards, Star Platinum deflecting the shards. In the midst of
the sparkling shards, a single spent bullet lies smoking, but Jotaro didn’t
hear a gun go off. The next window down the hall breaks, and then the next, and
then the next, until the whole hallway is filled with smoking shards. It’s not
an attack. It’s… a distraction.
Something grazes the side of Jotaro’s leg, spraying blood across the hallway.
Jotaro stops time.
He turns, and comes face to face with a bullet. A moment more, and it would be
buried in his skull. In the darkened space beyond the hallway, a deeper shadow
can be seen: an elongated shadow in the approximate shape of a man. Ryu’s
stand. Star Platinum snatches the bullet out of the air and tosses it down the
hall, but though Jotaro squints into the cavernous darkness, there’s no sign of
Ryu. Jotaro hopes the bullet catches him in the forehead.
He needs to find Kakyoin, so he takes his remaining seconds and runs.
Time resumes once he’s around the corner, out of range of Ryu’s bullets. The
wind is rattling through the broken windows, filling the school with a eerie
howl. A pair of eyes track him hungrily from the photographic display on the
wall. Star Platinum drives his fist into the glass, shattering the display, but
the eyes only reappear in the next poster.
Fuck it. It’s just like a normal school day. Hundreds of eyes watching him, Ryu
is being annoying, and he just wants to find Kakyoin and go home.
A voice speaks.
“Do you think you’re going to win, Kakyoin? Imagine that you do. You and your
boyfriend beat me, and then you go home. You lose your Stand, of course. But
that doesn’t matter, right?”
Kakyoin is alive. Kakyoin is somewhere nearby. He must be. Mei’s voice is
overpoweringly clear, but he can’t see her. He calls on Star Platinum to check
the area, and his Stand lets loose a barrage of punches, but there’s nothing
there. Jotaro is alone in the darkened hallway, Mei’s words crawling down his
spine. He sprints through the darkened hallway, heading towards the stairs.
“I’m sure you’ll enjoy living a peaceful life. When you get the news that
Jotaro’s been killed in the line of combat, you won’t even be upset. By then,
you won’t have seen each other in years. Kujo won’t have any use for someone
who can’t fight by his side.”
Jotaro sneers. Kakyoin on his deathbed would be better company than Mei. In the
following silence, he hurries down the corridor and up towards the stairs. He
imagines that Kakyoin is making some sort of reply.
He’s almost to the stairwell when he hears Mei’s voice again.
“Careful,” she says. “Talk like that will make your mouth bleed.” Jotaro can
only imagine that in the intervening silence Mei is hurting Kakyoin.  He
hurries into the stairwell, then pauses. For the first time, he can hear the
distant sound of Kakyoin’s voice.
“Your punishment will be severe,” Kakyoin is saying. His voice is cold and
haughty, composed in spite of whatever Mei is doing to him. Jotaro feels an
unexpected stab of relief. He’s not one to worry. But Kakyoin’s parents died.
If Kakyoin died, Jotaro would- Jotaro would-
No. Now’s not the the time to think about that.
“Someone who acts like an authority should be held to a higher standard,”
Kakyoin finishes.
“Agreed,” Mei says. “Last chance. Kujo’s not going to save you. But he didn’t
save you last time, did he? You were in the hospital, and he was back at school
with his Stand and his arrow, killing innocent people. Don’t die for him.”
“Don’t make threats you can’t carry out, Mei,” Kakyoin says flatly.
“I don’t need to carry anything out, Kakyoin. I just need to wait. How much
longer can you maintain your footing? One minute? Two minutes? Your web is
thinning.” There’s a savage triumph in Mei’s voice.
No response from Kakyoin. The light of the moon shining in through the windows
flickers and dies as a pair of huge, dark eyes blot out the glass. The pupil of
each eye is a second eye with a strange, cross-shaped pupil.  
“Kujo,” Mei says. “Come to watch your boyfriend die?”
Star Platinum shatters the glass, and the eyes vanish. Through the broken
frames, Jotaro catches sight of the distant shape of Mei’s silhouette. She’s
standing on the roof, the full moon shining behind her, an arrow held in one
hand. Between them, another silhouette stands, impossibly situated on empty
air. No- as Jotaro’s eyes adjust, he sees that Kakyoin is standing on top of
Hierophant Green, which has spread out, forming a vast, intricate web between
the four buildings that encircle the school’s central courtyard.
“Electric Eye!” Mei cries out, and points towards Jotaro. Her legs are splayed
wide, one hand on her hip, the other pointed up towards the sky. Electric Eye’s
is humanoid, its face obscured by a series of wide, slowly rotating rings, each
of them emblazoned with dozens of eyes. Some of them are watching Kakyoin,
others watching Jotaro, others tracking the windows and walls. Mei has
apparently tired of using others to gather information for her.
Jotaro moves, and something slices through his skin. It feels like a hundred
simultaneous papercuts, like he’s standing against a wall of knives, but Star
Platinum’s fists catch on empty. There’s nothing there but the moonlight and
the shadow of the battle above.
“While she’s looking at you, every line becomes sharp,” Kakyoin whispers. He
must be using Hierophant Green to project his voice. “If you try to move while
under the shadow of Hierophant’s Web, you’ll be cut to pieces.”
“I can hear you,” Mei says. Her voice is low, as intimate as if she were
whispering in his ear. It makes Jotaro’s skin crawl. “You should be more
worried about yourself, Noriaki.” She hefts a shape- a bow- and Jotaro realizes
what’s going to happen in the instant before Mei pulls the arrow back and
fires. Kakyoin jerks backwards, an arrow jutting from his shoulder. A cold,
furious rage builds beneath Jotaro’s skin as she reaches into her quiver and
takes aim again.
“Good grief. You wanted to talk to me? So talk.”
“I tried talking to you,” Mei snaps. “I tried talking to Kakyoin. I tried
talking to your mother. But you’d rather kill someone than make small talk,
isn’t that right, Kujo?”
She pulls back, ready to fire another arrow, and Kakyoin strikes. The strands
of the web break all at once, and Kakyoin plummets downwards, crashing through
a window and into the school, away from the effect of Mei’s Electric Eye.
Jotaro takes the distraction and runs. Kakyoin is now somewhere on the fourth
floor, in the south corridor, directly beneath Mei, while Jotaro is across from
him on the second floor.
He summons Star Platinum and runs, his body aching with each step, the stab
wound from earlier reopened and bleeding sluggishly down his side. Ryu will
probably wait for him in the stairwell up to the roof- there’s only one way up,
and Jotaro will need to take it to get to Mei.
“New World Order,” Ryu whispers.
There’s something slithering through the shadows. Star Platinum drives his fist
into the wall and hits only plaster. A faint sound of distant laughter as the
shadows regroup and spread across the wall, devouring the windows and roof
until the light from the moon is blotted out. Jotaro swings again, and wheels
on empty air. The absolute darkness is disconcerting- he can’t tell the window
from the walls, or the ceiling from the floor- he’s absolutely adrift in an
endless void.
Someone is whispering something, but Jotaro can’t make it out. It fades and
rises in tone, a distant murmur that makes Jotaro’s skin prickle with dread. A
pair of eyes appears in the darkness, and then another, and another, until
Jotaro is surrounded by a multitude of slickly-gleaming watchers.
“Is that supposed to impress me? More faces for me to punch?” He swings his
hand forward, stabbing his finger into the darkness, and Star Platinum surges
forward with a shout. The eyes of Mei’s stand vanish under a barrage of blows
so fierce they crack the walls. It doesn’t feel like an effort to destroy
things with Star Platinum. It feels like letting go. The world is made of
glass, and Jotaro spends every day trying not to break its delicate pieces in
his too-strong hands.
The ceiling shatters. A bullet cuts a red line of pain across the outside of
Jotaro’s thigh, and he grins. Ryu is a terrible shot. Star Platinum retrieves
the spent bullet and hurtles it back into the darkness as blood soaks down
Jotaro’s pants.
“You won’t hit New World Order like that,” Ryu says. His voice is faded, like a
radio with run-down batteries, barely able to send out a signal. Jotaro thinks
about the way Mei’s voice rang out clearly across the rooftops, the way Ryu
always knows what to say to direct the teacher’s attention where he wants it.
This must be New World Order’s power.
With a shout, Star Platinum lifts Jotaro upwards, propelling him through the
overhanging darkness and into the dusty space of the floor overhead. Like Ryu,
New World Order can change appearances, but not reality.
“I don’t need to hit your pathetic Stand,” Jotaro says, and walks away. Though
the darkness slides out along the floor and ceiling, Jotaro continues to walk,
propelled by years of muscle memory. Appearance is irrelevant. Only actions
matter. Ten steps to the next classroom, and twenty to the second. He’s at the
corner when the darkness lifts all at once, blinding him with the painful
immediacy of the moonlight.
Kakyoin is on the roof, his back to the four story drop and a gun against his
head.
“Kujo,” Ryu says. “Come up onto the roof, or he dies.”
Jotaro gives Ryu the finger, but he goes.
 
The final layout is this: Kakyoin and Ryu on the north side of the courtyard,
and Jotaro at the south end. Between them, the four story drop to the courtyard
below.  Mei is invisible, her stand situated on the west building, across from
the exit to the roof. Jotaro is pleased to see that Ryu’s shoulder is bleeding
heavily. Star Platinum must have caught him with the bullet earlier. Kakyoin’s
uniform is shredded, the arrow jutting from his shoulder, but he’s not dying.
Good enough.
Jotaro takes the final step onto the roof and instantly finds himself caught in
the glare of Mei’s Electric Eye, but Mei herself is invisible. Electric Eye is
an unsettling Stand: under the military uniform, the stand’s forearms are
covered with hundreds of blinking, moving eyes. Some of the eyes are bruised
and shut- the ones that Jotaro destroyed earlier, he supposes. When Ryu and Mei
confronted him less than a month ago on this very same roof, they weren’t Stand
users. Something changed that.
There’s a wet thunk, and Jotaro feels a sharp pain in his left arm. One of
Mei’s arrows. Why is it that every second-rate psychotic thinks it’s a good
idea to fill Jotaro with holes? Can’t they just skip to the end, and present
themselves for a beating? Jotaro rips out the arrow and tosses it
contemptuously to the ground.
“Jotaro!” Ryu shouts, and fires a warning shot over Kakyoin’s shoulder. The
bullet clips him, making Kakyoin teeter dangerously at the edge of the roof.
Jotaro stops time. The World hits him like a punch, bearing down on him with
immense, terrible pressure. Kakyoin is too far to reach in the few seconds
Jotaro has.
Mei’s words echo in Jotaro’s head.
“You lose your Stand, of course,” she’d said. It’s a four story drop into the
courtyard, and without Hierophant Green…
Mei’s Electric Eye slices into Jotaro as his Stand removes his coat, but it’s a
pain he can bear. Star Platinum balls up the coat and hurls it across the
rooftops, knocking Kakyoin away from the edge and out of the path of Ryu’s
bullets. Stand or not, Jotaro would still put his money on Kakyoin in this
fight.
Mei’s Electric Eye is still bearing down on Jotaro, holding him prisoner in a
pattern of lines. She’s probably wearing a set of those stupid shutter
sunglasses. With a shout, Star Platinum hurtles shards of glass from the broken
windows in a circle around Jotaro, and time resumes. A cry of pain, Mei’s
Electric Eye wavers and blinks out, and Jotaro runs forward, Star Platinum at
the ready.
On the other roof, Kakyoin throws himself on Ryu, scrabbling for the gun, and
drives his fist into Ryu’s face. Once, then twice, Ryu’s skull cracking against
the roof.
“New World Order,” Ryu shouts. The shadows on the roof coalesce into a tall,
thin-limbed approximation of a man. Ryu’s Stand is a shape so dark that
Jotaro’s eyes can only interpret it as an inkspot, a pool of darkness utterly
without depth. It knocks Kakyoin off Ryu. There’s no sign of Hierophant.
Can a Stand be taken out of a person? Jotaro’s Stand is connected to his
family- the great stupid Joestar legacy- but there’s never been any explanation
for Hierophant Green. None of the other Stands Jotaro encountered were able to
do things like this, but no Stand has been like the last. He doesn’t know.
There’s the sound of footsteps. Mei’s image fades into sight- she’s on the west
roof, not far from her Stand. New World Order’s control is wavering as Ryu and
Kakyoin battle on the north roof. The spotlight wavers, then turns to the
battle as Mei tries to help her brother.
Jotaro charges forward, and Mei’s Electric Eye swivels and turns back to him.
Star Platinum hurls a piece of glass, catching Ryu in the back, and he
staggers. Kakyoin punches him in the face and shouts triumphantly. Ryu’s hands
are closed around the gun.
“Mei,” Kakyoin shouts. “It’s over!” Ryu tosses his gun aside, then takes a
single step towards the edge, his body jerking like a puppet on strings.
Kakyoin must have been using his Stand to infiltrate him while he stood there
with a gun against his head. That’s Jotaro’s partner- composed to the last.
Mei doesn’t so much as turn her head. There’s blood on her face from the shard
of glass. Her stupid shutter glasses hang brokenly from her face, her mouth set
in a snarl.
“Mei,” Ryu pleads. He’s only a few feet from the edge. “Mei, come on.”
Kakyoin extends one of his legs over the drop, leaving him teetering on one
leg. Jotaro doesn’t know if Kakyoin is really going to drop him. He thinks he
might. There is a vicious streak in Kakyoin when it comes to the dispersal of
justice. Mei’s body is shaking. Her fingers tremble on the bow and arrow. One
by one, the eyes on her stand facing Ryu blink shut.
“I understand,” Ryu whispers, and Mei vanishes. Ryu’s body contorts as
Hierophant Green shudders within him, but his Stand’s power holds. He teeters
at the brink of the edge, and Kakyoin hauls him back and throws him on the
ground.
“Ryu!” he shouts. “Stop!”
“It’s not… my choice...” Ryu gasps out. His shoulders contort in an awful spasm
and Jotaro realizes- he’s laughing. It’s a horrible sound. Even as Kakyoin
punches him in the stomach, even as Ryu’s body shakes with the force of
Hierophant's rage, he keeps laughing.
Downstairs, a door slams. Jotaro turns, but Mei’s gone, running somewhere
through the the school below them. Ryu is collapsed on the ground, breathing
hard. Kakyoin gives him one last contemptuous glance and strides away, his fury
radiating from him like a tangible thing. Jotaro matches Kakyoin’s stride with
his own.
They converge on the west roof. Kakyoin glances at Jotaro, taking in the ripped
pants, the wounds bleeding from his collarbone and thigh, and Jotaro does the
same to him. Kakyoin’s uniform is in shreds, a broken arrow jutting from his
collarbone. Star Platinum extends a hand, his fingers gentle on the inflamed
skin around the wound, then jerks it out at a nod from Kakyoin.
Their eyes meet. Jotaro feels a tiny kick of something like relief. Of course
Kakyoin is fine. Of course Kakyoin kept his composure even with his life on the
line, and of course Kakyoin is holding Jotaro’s jacket, because Kakyoin always
has what Jotaro wants.
Their lips brush in a gentle kiss. All Jotaro can think is how annoying it’s
going to be to track down Mei when all he wants to do is take Kakyoin home and
sleep curled up together. Kakyoin sighs like he’s thinking the same thing, his
warm breath skimming against Jotaro’s skin. They part reluctantly.
“Nice throw,” Kakyoin says, and hands Jotaro back his coat. A smile pulls at
the edge of Jotaro’s mouth as he pulls it back on.
“Nice catch,” he says. “Looks like we win.” Kakyoin’s laugh is barely an exhale
of air.
“Mei’s left the volleyball court. We should track her down.”
On the opposite roof, Ryu’s fingers close around the gun. Jotaro turns, Star
Platinum at the ready, and Ryu lifts the gun to his own head and pulls the
trigger. It clicks on empty.
“I shot my last bullet over your shoulder on purpose, Kakyoin,” he shouts. His
voice rings out clearly over the rooftop. “Listen to me. You have to save Mei.”
“I’ve got something saved for her,” Jotaro says, and Star Platinum raises its
fist.
“He’s been helping,” Kakyoin says unexpectedly, and Jotaro squints at him.
“He’s been leaving me clues,” Kakyoin clarifies. “There’s a third enemy, and
they’ve got some ability to control people. I’m not sure what it is.”
“Well,” Jotaro says, glancing at Ryu over Kakyoin’s shoulder, “let’s go find
out.”
 
Ryu is lounging wearily on the rooftop when Jotaro and Kakyoin arrive, his head
resting on his Stand’s shoulder, his legs sprawled out in front of him. The
idiot wore designer jeans to a fight to the death.
“Talk,” Jotaro says.
“Someone broke my nose,” Ryu drawls, and spits blood on the concrete. “I
can’t.” Jotaro grabs him and hauls him to his feet. Ryu is limp. His eyes are
unfocused. He probably has a concussion, at bare minimum, and his left arm is
broken. His lips twist in a bloody, uneven smile.
“I can’t tell you,” he repeats. When Jotaro lets him go, his knees give way,
and only Kakyoin’s stand prevents him from falling to the concrete.
“Stop wasting time on me,” he says quietly. “You have to find Mei.”
“You’re dy-” Kakyoin begins.
“I know that,” Ryu snaps. “Find… find my sister. And if you’re so concerned,
give me a cigarette.”
Kakyoin raises an eyebrow disdainfully, but he has Hierophant retrieve Jotaro’s
cigarettes and lighter from his pocket.
“Don’t you want an ambulance?” Jotaro asks, and Ryu laughs. It’s a horrible wet
sound.
“Called one when you showed up,” he says. The words seem to be costing him more
and more effort. Kakyoin lights the cigarette, and Ryu takes it with trembling
hands. His nose is a broken mess, dripping blood down his face.
“Mei would never leave me to die,” he says quietly. “She’s not in control of
her actions. She was only… she was only trying to help.” He closes his eyes and
exhales, the smoke obscuring his face. “Some advice. Don’t ask questions, and
don’t listen to other people. And Kujo… how’s your mom doing?”
For a moment, Jotaro thinks it’s a threat but Ryu is in no shape to be fighting
anyone. A warning, then. Ryu’s speech is restricted in some way by the enemy
Stand user, but there’s no time to ask him about it. Holly is in danger. Jotaro
and Kakyoin leave him there on the roof, a cigarette between his lips, blood
forming a black puddle beneath him. They take the stairs two at a time on the
way down, and as they’re leaving the school, they hear the distant sound of
ambulance sirens.
 
The path to Jotaro’s house is fairly long, leaving them time to talk.
“How long have you been investigating them?” Jotaro asks.
“About a month. Mei’s been inviting me to her house. At first I thought it was
a boring high school thing, but then I saw the murders on the news. Someone’s
been trying to make new Stand users. Ryu left a note for me to find saying that
they were going to meet someone at the school tonight. In retrospect, it was
probably a trap.”
He smiles grimly.
“They seem to think that you’ve been killing people.”
“Good grief,” Jotaro mutters. “Why didn’t you tell me?”
“I was going to, when I had something concrete,” Kakyoin says, and glances
away. When he speaks, his voice is very quiet. “I figured you had enough
problems.”
“Dumbass,” Jotaro says, and takes Kakyoin’s hand. In the moonlight, Kakyoin
looks weary and beautiful, a thin smear of blood trickling down one cheek. “You
look like shit,” Jotaro tells him, and interlaces his fingers with Kakyoin’s.
“Same to you,” Kakyoin says, and they hurry through the darkness towards his
house.
At the steps, Kakyoin jerks and gasps for breath.
“Go,” he says.
“What?” Jotaro demands.
“Hierophant Green,” Kakyoin hisses through gritted teeth. His knees buckle, and
he stumbles blindly away. Jotaro doesn’t have time for this. He needs to get to
his mother. He picks up Kakyoin, slings him over one shoulder, and sprints the
last few blocks to his mother’s house. The walls of the compound have just come
into view when Jotaro feels something slice into his leg.
“Kujo,” Mei shouts, and strides out of the shadows near Jotaro’s doorway. Her
stand flares out behind her, eyes all focused on Jotaro.
Star Platinum surges forward, but Mei is just out of reach.
“Summer is ending,” she spits. “The leaves are falling from the trees.”
The wind blows, bringing with it a single leaf, and Jotaro feels a line carved
across his body as it crosses the path between him and Mei. It slices Kakyoin’s
shoulder, too, and he jerks.
Jotaro catches sight of the knife in Kakyoin’s sleeve. Slowly, carefully, he
has Star Platinum work it free. Mei has gone silent. But her Stand… her Stand
is talking, and the voice coming from it is not her own.
“You’ll pay for what you did to Lord Dio, you little bitch,” Electric Eye says.
“Even if these pathetic high schoolers can’t beat you, I’ll find more. You,
your precious Kakyoin, your whore mother-”
Star Platinum angles the knife against the gleam of the streetlight, and Mei
flinches as it shines directly into her eyes. Electric Eye’s effect wavers, and
Jotaro takes the moment to toss Kakyoin to the side, out of Mei’s line of
sight.
The wind stirs in the trees, tossing another leaf across Jotaro’s path and
cutting a slit in the front of his pants. The door to the Kujo estate opens,
and Holly stands there, silhouetted in the light from the house.
“Jotaro?” she says, bewildered.
“Mom, no!” Jotaro shouts. He throws himself forward, trying to get between Mei
and Holly, but he’s too far. Mei turns her Stand towards Holly, and Electric
Eye’s spotlight lights Holly up. Jotaro’s heart stutters.
“There will be no fighting today!” Holly declares. She stabs one hand forward
to point at Mei and a tangle of thorns rises from the ground, enveloping
Electric Eye. “This is the power of my Stand,” Holly shouts. “Paradise City!”
Mei gasps as the vines wrap around her legs, then her waist, and Electric Eye
shudders and vanishes. There’s a wrenching sound, and Mei gasps, clutching her
stomach. Her throat heaves, and a chain slithers from her mouth. She vomits
several yards of metal onto the driveway and collapses.
“Mom?” Jotaro says, disbelieving, and the Stand turns towards him. It’s pink,
wearing a little apron, with two little buns made of flowers and hair of
thorns. A sensation like pins and needles floods Jotaro’s body, and Star
Platinum vanishes.
“Yes, dear?” Holly says, and catches sight of Jotaro’s expression. He feels
like he’s just been hit by a truck. “Oh, don’t worry about that. Paradise City
is very protective. She doesn’t like having other Stands around, even though
I’m sure Star Platinum is a good boy.”
“You have a Stand?” Jotaro demands. Holly looks concerned. She walks over to
him, taking in his bruises and cuts, worry growing on her face.
“I’ll go call the Speedwagon Foundation right away,” she says, worried. “You
must have hit your head hard. And what’s this? An arrow? What are the kids
doing these days?” He mouth forms into a thin, unhappy line. “Don’t you worry,
sweetheart. Come on in and I’ll get you fixed up.”
“Woman!” Jotaro snaps. “Go back to the Stand!”
“Paradise City? She’s been so helpful around the house.” Holly says. Her Stand
scoops Mei up into her arms, and she and Holly head into the house. Jotaro has
no choice but to follow. He collapses into a chair, and Holly goes and fetches
the first aid kit.
“So,” Holly says sweetly. “I see that you broke out of prison.”
“Uh, yeah,” Jotaro mutters. His mother’s calm expression hasn’t changed. She
gives him a warm smile as her Stand brandishes a cup of apple juice at him.
“It’s important to restore your energy after you’ve lost a lot of blood,” she
chirps. Jotaro takes the cup, overcome by the amount of motherly energy present
in the room, and drinks. Paradise City offers him some cookies and ruffles his
hair. Mei stirs as Holly is applying a bandage to Jotaro’s shoulder, then sits
bolt upright.
“Ryu?” she says, and runs for the door. Paradise City blocks her way.
“Who- what-” Mei gasps, near hysteria. “Where am I?” Her frightened gaze turns
back to Jotaro, and all the color drains out of her face. She sags to the
floor, tears trickling down her face.
“My brother,” she whispers. “Is he still alive?”
Jotaro regards her coldly.
“Oh,” she whispers, and hangs her head. Her shoulders are trembling. “Go ahead,
then.”
“I’m not going to kill you, you dumb bitch,” Jotaro snaps. “Whatever idiot was
controlling you- that’s the person you need to look out for.” Mei stares at him
blankly, then looks back down at her hands. A long moment passes. Mei’s fists
clench and unclench as she thinks, her composure returning to her piece by
piece.
“Kakyoin,” she says at last. “Kujo, where is he?”
“What’s it to you?” Jotaro demands. It is strange, now that he thinks of it.
Why didn’t Kakyoin follow them in?
“I introduced him to her,” Mei says urgently. “It must be her. No one else knew
anything about this. She was the one who kept bringing me information, giving
me suggestions- Siouxsie!”
“Who?” Jotaro says.
“One of our classmates, you dumbass,” Mei snaps. “She’s been following you for
months.”
“Lots of girls do that,” Jotaro says blankly. “How does her Stand work?”
“I don’t know,” Mei says. “I didn’t even know she had one! Ryu, Ryu was more
suspicious, but… he never said anything to me. But maybe he did and I just
didn’t hear. If she took over his Stand…”
Jotaro goes outside. The street where Kakyoin was is empty. There’s nothing but
a smear of blood where his body lay on the street. Jotaro should have brought
him in the house, but Holly had him by the shoulders, and he forgot, and now-
Mei is pale and shaking.  Pieces of glass are still embedded in her face, but
she doesn’t seem to notice that she’s trailing blood.
“You have to go,” she whispers. “Rescue Kakyoin before Siouxsie finishes him
off. I- I can’t.” Her body is trembling. “Siouxsie’s chains are waiting for me.
I can feel them...”
“Stay here with my mother,” Jotaro instructs. “Her Paradise City will prevent
anyone else’s Stand from taking effect. If anything happens to her, I’ll hold
you responsible. The last I saw, your brother was still alive.”
Color springs back into Mei’s cheeks.
“I’ll defend her with my life,” she says. “Good luck.”
 
The door to Kakyoin’s apartment is open, spilling a thin sliver of light into
the hallway. The apartment is empty. There's a note on the couch, written in a
girl's handwriting.
“Have you ever been to the old Noraki residence? This is the address. Come.
Take your rightful place beneath my heels.”
Jotaro is tired. His uniform is stiff with his dried blood. He could call the
Speedwagon Foundation and ask them to send someone, and wait. But who does the
foundation have? Police? Civilians? Polnareff, in France? Joseph, in the USA?
By the time their planes touched down, Kakyoin would already be dead and
buried. No, it has to be Jotaro, just as it always is. Even if the Foundation
did have someone closer, he wouldn’t trust them to handle it. The thought of
entrusting Kakyoin’s life to some random person is worse than anything Siouxsie
could do to him. Kakyoin is his boyfriend, his love, his responsibility.
He calls a cab.
The Kakyoin estate is a modest two-story house in the suburbs, once well-kept
and friendly and now falling into ruin. The flowers under the window boxes have
died, and the bushes along the path to the house are dense and overgrown. The
door is open. Jotaro turns on the light and coughs, assaulted by the sudden
smell of decay. The furniture, the tables, the chairs, the family pictures
displayed in the hall- everything is faded by a thin layer of dust. There are
still dishes in the drying rack, as if the residents of the house had just
stepped out one day and then never come back. There’s a wide, dark bloodstain
across the couch, but it’s old. Oh.
Kakyoin’s parents must have been killed here.
An intake of breath, and a tinny voice speaks.  
“Search the house. Find Kakyoin,” a voice commands. “I’m getting bored. Fight
him. Use your Star Platinum.” Like before, the words are painfully, intimately
close, but there’s no one to be seen.
Suspicious, Jotaro thinks. Ryu’s words come back to him. “Don’t listen to other
people,” he’d said. But Jotaro can't just get up and leave. He stuffs his ears
and continues into the house. The doors are all shut. He goes down the hallway
room by room, and finds a bathroom, a closet, a stairwell, and a room in such
wild disarray that there must have been a fight there.
This must have been Kakyoin’s bedroom, once. There's a small television hooked
up to a console, and two shelves worth of books. The writing desk is smashed,
as if someone was thrown into it, and blood and shards of glass are littered
across the floor. The light overhead is flickering ineffectually, casting a
painful light over the ruined objects.
Kakyoin was here. Jotaro forges forward into the rest of the house- upstairs,
downstairs, but there's nothing. Finally, he glances out the window, and sees
Kakyoin lying in a crumpled heap in the backyard. He rushes outside. After
everything- after all of Egypt, to lose him here, because of a simple mistake-
Kakyoin is breathing shallowly, but he is breathing. Thank god. There's blood
on his chin. But he's alive. In the darkness under the tree, everything about
him is pale and faded, as if he were another picture trapped under a layer of
dust.
“Kakyoin,” Jotaro says, and shakes his shoulder. No response. Jotaro isn't sure
what to do. Memories of Egypt are crowding in on him faster than ever. He
should call an ambulance. He wants Kakyoin to wake up. He hefts his unconscious
boyfriend in his arms and makes his way down the corridor, towards the front
yard. If he can make it to the street, he can call a cab.  Halfway through the
house, Kakyoin stirs.
“No,” he says. His eyelids flutter, and he gasps for breath.
“Noriaki,” Jotaro says, not sure how to answer. Kakyoin’s eyes snap open.
“Jotaro!” Kakyoin shouts, and shoves him away. He falls onto the floor. Star
Platinum catches him, and Kakyoin makes a horrified sound. “Hierophant Green,”
he chokes out, then stumbles to his feet. “Jotaro, get away from me!”
But it's too late. A sharp, aching pain invades Jotaro’s torso. His heartbeat
stutters. His vision blurs with spots of grey. The shadow from before is
creeping across the ground, blocking out the light.
Kakyoin speaks- or at least, his mouth moves, but Jotaro can’t hear a word he’s
saying. His mouth is blurred out like a grainy VHS tape. This is New World
Order’s ability, but Ryu is far from here, if he’s alive at all.
What kind of goddamn bullshit? Jotaro thinks. There’s something sliding inside
his skull. He feels a stab of revulsion. His vision is filled with green. His
legs twitch, jerking like a marionette, stirring an old memory. This is
Hierophant Green’s ability. Star Platinum shoves a hand into Jotaro, but
Hierophant Green is wrapped tightly around Jotaro’s organs. The attempt only
makes his vision blur and his knees weak.
       “Stop!” Kakyoin shouts, and the pain in Jotaro's stomach lessens, then
doubles. Kakyoin’s forehead is furrowed as he tries to command his Stand, but
the best he can manage is halting the tide for a few moments.
“Kill him,” Siouxsie commands. “His stand will vanish when he dies.”
“I don’t take requests,” Jotaro says coldly.
“How did someone like you beat Dio? It must have been blind luck.” There’s a
hunger in the voice. “Use your ability. Star Platinum: the World. Kill Kakyoin.
Rescue yourself.”
“And give it to you?” Jotaro says, taking a guess. Jotaro’s vision is fading in
and out. His limbs won’t answer his command. He’s had worse, but not by much.
“Fuck off, bitch.”  
Kakyoin’s agonized expression shifts into something like determination. He
straightens up on wobbling legs, one arm around his stomach.
“She's using Ryu's stand to hide herself,” he says. There's a hard resolve in
his face. “It's been an honor to fight by your side.”
Jotaro's vision is vanishing in wide spots of grey. He sees Kakyoin stagger
down the corridor, and into the kitchen, but when he tries to follow his legs
won't move. Hierophant Green is lashing underneath his skin. There's a long
moment, and then Jotaro feels the pressure in his chest dwindle and vanish. His
heart sinks.  
He rushes into the kitchen. Kakyoin is slumped over on the ground. A knife is
jutting from his neck. There's blood everywhere. He's not moving. Jotaro's
vision blurs. There's a howling, screaming part of him that just wants to kneel
by Kakyoin's side and grasp desperately at his dead body, but there will be
time for that later, when he is alone with his grief again. 
Kakyoin made him so happy. 
“Siouxie,” Jotaro says, and straightens. “I'm going to kill you.”
With a shout, Star Platinum fills the air with a barrage of punches. It scours
every inch of empty air, until something invisible catches the edge of its
fist. Siouxsie appears in a flash of air and goes flying into the wall.
“You want to go?” she spits. “Let's play! Master and Servant!”
A series of chains spring into place between Siouxsie and Star Platinum. She
points to Jotaro, malice on her face.
“Hit him!” The command resonates into Jotaro's mind, as if he himself had given
it. Star Platinum’s fist crashes into his face. The punch staggers him, and he
stumbles backwards. The pain doesn't even touch him. He snarls, and sends his
stand away. He'll kill this bitch with his bare hands.
“Do you want to hear about how I killed Kakyoin’s parents?” Siouxsie taunts.
“He was rewarded as a traitor deserves.”
“A traitor to who? Dio is dead. I felt his skull crack under my fist." A
thought occurs to him, and he lifts his finger and points at Siouxsie. "I'll
show you how. Star Platinum: the World!”
Jotaro's body can barely stand the strain of using The World, but it doesn't
matter. If he knew that it would burst the heart in his chest to kill Siouxsie,
he would still do it. He lurches across the room and slams his knuckles into
Siouxsie’s face. Time resumes. Jotaro drives his fist into her stomach with
enough force that he feels a rib crack, but it's not enough. He could break
every bone in her body and it wouldn't be enough. He wants to punch her until
her skin splits from the impact and she's nothing but a bloody mess.
“Hit me!” she yells. Jotaro obliges. His knuckles are raw and aching when Star
Platinum lifts Jotaro up and hurls him across the room. He hits the wall with a
thud. Star Platinum wrenches his arms behind his back, holding him in place,
and try as he can, he's helpless to make his Stand stop. Siouxsie’s chain has
grown in length to wrap around Star Platinum’s entire body.
It's been a while since Jotaro lost his temper. Almost everything in this world
is too ridiculously trivial to be worth bothering with. Siouxsie isn't worth
it. She's less than trash under his shoe. Kakyoin wasn't trivial, though.
Kakyoin is- was- one of the few things Jotaro enjoyed. It feels like every time
he manages to snatch a moment of peace, it slips through his fingers.
Siouxsie’s nose is bleeding. She stalks past him, towards the kitchen. The
sound of her voice carries.
“Poor Kakyoin. How saaaad. Should I bring his body over, so you can look at
your dearly departed boyfriend? I never thought he'd be so devoted.”
She comes back to Jotaro, clutching a meat hammer in her hand. Star Platinum
forces Jotaro to his knees.
“Spit on me. I can tell you want to. Hurt me. Use your Stand to do it.” Her
voice is breathy and excited. She picks up the meat hammer and caresses his
face with it.
“You're in a hurry to get your ass kicked,” he tells her. “Just like Dio. Soon
you'll be together again.” A look of rage flits across her face. She hefts the
hammer and smacks it into Jotaro's stomach. He feels one of his ribs crack.
“Hurt me,” he mocks. “You’re weaker than a child.”
Siouxsie winds up and kicks him in the stomach. Jotaro's bruised torso gives a
shout of pain, but he'll die before he lets her see his expression change.
“How useless,” he tells her. Over her shoulder, he sees something moving. A
stand? Ryu's stand? No. It's Kakyoin. He's bloody and unsteady, but Kakyoin is
alive. Relief hits Jotaro at the same time as Siouxsie’s hammer, and the breath
is knocked out of him.Time skips a moment, and the world reassembles itself
into a different place, a place where Kakyoin is alive and therefore can still
die. Jotaro needs to keep Siouxsie’s attention away from him at all costs. 
Jotaro makes eye contact with Siouxsie and lets a smile pull at the edge of his
mouth.  
“Useless, useless, useless,” he drawls, mimicking Dio’s tone. Siouxsie is
trembling with rage. Star Platinum’s hold on Jotaro's wrists tightens to a
bruising intensity.
“I'm going to have your Stand pull you apart,” she snaps.
“I doubt it,” Jotaro says as Kakyoin's knife sprouts from the front of her
neck. She turns, and Kakyoin's fist catches the edge of her jaw. The room
stinks of blood. She yanks the knife out, her lips moving in wordless syllables
of pain, and tumbles to her knees. Kakyoin knocks her to the ground with a
rough kick and retrieves the knife.
“You made my house a murder scene,” Kakyoin says. His face is remote and
unforgiving as a statue. He lifts the knife.
Blood splashes across the carpet. The chains on Star Platinum crumble into ash.
Kakyoin tosses aside the knife and slumps to his knees. It’s silent in the
house. Outside the wind blows the leaves across the abandoned lawn. The only
sound is Jotaro’s own breathing, and the rapid stutter of his heart. Kakyoin’s
head is bowed like a man in prayer. His shoulders are slumped. He gives a long,
drawn-out sigh, then turns to Jotaro. A pair of cuts on his neck are bleeding
freely. Of course. He faked the knife wound.
Jotaro leans back against the wall and breathes out the remains of his panic.
Kakyoin is alive. Everything else is irrelevant.
Well, not everything.
“You should probably call an ambulance,” Jotaro says.
“Yes,” Kakyoin says, and lurches to his feet. “I didn’t actually manage to stop
Hierophant Green from obeying her commands- I just ordered him to shrink. I
apologize, but your liver probably isn't in the best condition.”
Jotaro starts to laugh. The motion hurts his stomach, but he can't stop. After
a moment, Kakyoin joins him. Jotaro never thought he’d be so relieved to hear
the Kakyoin’s stupid laughter, but he is. It’s awful. He’s going to have to
spend his life protecting it, because the alternative would be unthinkable.
He thinks about saying something stupid like ‘I thought you were dead’ or ‘I
would have killed her for you’ or maybe just an apology, but decides against
it. The words stick in his throat. Once again, he’s miles behind Kakyoin, a
useless bystander to the ruins of his boyfriend’s life.
It feels like time skips. One moment Kakyoin is in the kitchen, and the next
he's kneeling in front of Jotaro, his expression concerned.
“Hey, stay awake,” he says. “The medics will be here soon.” He cradles Jotaro’s
face in one hand, and gently tips some cold water into his mouth.
“I’m fine,” Jotaro says petulantly.
“Of course you are,” Kakyoin says, and makes him drink more water. “Hierophant
Green just shredded your internal organs.”
“Next time, you can be shredded, and I’ll punch,” Jotaro suggests.
“Wasn’t that our fight against Dio?” Kakyoin asks, startling a laugh from
Jotaro. His rib sends a stabbing pain through his body every time he exhales.
“I don’t much like playing this part,” Jotaro says. He expects some kind of
smart remark from Kakyoin, but his partner is silent. Through the shroud of his
eyelashes, he can see that Kakyoin’s face is pale and worried. It’s not like
him to fuss. He tips his head backwards and scrabbles in his pocket for a
cigarette, then remembers that Kakyoin gave his lighter to Ryu.
“Good grief,” he mutters, and tips his head back to clunk against the wall.
“Thank you,” Kakyoin says quietly.
“For what?” Jotaro asks. His eyes keep slipping shut. “We won.” Kakyoin makes a
muffled sound, and Jotaro opens one eye to peer at him from under his
eyelashes. His vision must be blurry. It looks like Kakyoin is about to cry.
“I didn’t tell you I was investigating, because I wanted to handle it on my
own,” he says quietly. “This was my family, my business... but in the end, you
had to come and rescue me..." There's a low fury in Kakyoin's voice, and Jotaro
doesn't understand why. What else could Jotaro possibly have done?
 "What are you so pissed about?" he demands.
"Nothing," Kakyoin says, in a way that means it's definitely not nothing. Good
grief. Please, let him keep a lid on it until later. Jotaro can barely deal
with emotional conversations on his best day, and today is not that day.
"You're a good boyfriend," Kakyoin says, even more quietly than before. He's
not looking at Jotaro. "Thank you." Jotaro contemplates this. He barely even
did anything in this fight.  He showed up, got kicked around for a bit, and
then watched as Kakyoin kicked Siouxsie's ass. It’s not really up to his usual
standards, but it worked out in the end.  But Kakyoin isn’t talking about that,
is he? He thanked Jotaro for being a good boyfriend, as if their whole
relationship- the fleshbud, the trip to Egypt, the hospital, the kisses- was
somehow Jotaro doing Kakyoin a favor. What a ridiculous thing to say. 
“Don't thank me,” Jotaro snaps, annoyed that Kakyoin can’t see what’s obvious
to him. Jotaro's not keeping Kakyoin around of some kind of misplaced pity. He
likes being with him. “You're a good boyfriend too. I wouldn't want to date
anyone else." Unbelievably, this simple statement causes tears to well in
Kakyoin’s eyes.  Jotaro feels a stab of panic. He’s too exhausted to deal with
this.
"Thanks," Kakyoin says, again. Damn, did Siouxsie hit him in the head or
something? "I just- this house-" Kakyoin takes a deep, shuddering breath. "All
this- my parents being killed, Mei, Ryu, Siouxsie- all of this is Dio’s fault.”
It sounds like he’s trying to convince himself. How absurd. Yes, maybe Kakyoin
could have stayed home, and maybe he would have been able to protect his
parents. Maybe they would have lost to DIO without him. Maybe Joseph would be
in the ground without Kakyoin to fight by his side. There’s no way to know.
“Have you been blaming yourself all this time?” Jotaro asks, incredulous.
“Idiot. Of course it's Dio’s fault.” Kakyoin looks away to hide whatever
expression is on his face, and Jotaro feels a stab of annoyance. His desire to
make Kakyoin understand him overpowers his hatred of empty words.
“Noriaki, look at me,” he snaps. “Don’t take too much on yourself. You make my
life better than anyone else, dumbass. I’d be pissed if you got yourself
killed.” Kakyoin's expression wavers. Jotaro wants to look away, wants to allow
Kakyoin the privacy of having a breakdown in private, but he can't risk being
misunderstood, not on something this important. Kakyoin's face is so pale.
There's so much blood on it. But he's not hysterical. He's a strong person, a
good person, a person who put his life aside to help the family of a stranger.
A person heavily invested in his own pride, a person like Jotaro, who takes it
on himself to do what's right. Jotaro’s boyfriend. His partner.
He'll understand. He has to understand. 
At last, Kakyoin nods. 
"Same to you, asshole," he says. "You've got nerve, lecturing me on taking too
much on yourself. If you die from this, I'll kick your ass." This startles a
smile onto Jotaro's face. Kakyoin is clearly feeling better. Jotaro's glad. He
curls his hand around Kakyoin's, and the two of them sit in silence, united by
a mutual exhaustion. It's quiet in the old house. Jotaro's broken rib protests
with every throb of his heart. But he can hear ambulance sirens approaching in
the distance, and Kakyoin’s hand is warm in his.
They’re going to be fine.  
Chapter End Notes
     - Epilogue and Extras to come next week!
     - Shout-out to my beta HasturIsMyCopilot, without whom this would
     have 300% more weirdly repeated phrases.
     - Minor edits done to end of chapter on 12/13.
     - Questions? Comments? Let me know what you thought. : )
***** EPILOGUE *****
Chapter Notes
See the end of the chapter for notes
At the end of the night, Kakyoin needs a blood transfusion and minor surgery.
Jotaro needs eight hours of surgery, and three days in the ICU. He doesn't
remember any of it. His memory stops at the floor of Kakyoin’s house and begins
again in the hospital. It’s late. Someone has their fingers in his hair, gently
petting the top of his head like a parent soothing a child.
“Mom,” he mutters sleepily, but the sensation doesn’t let up. He cracks an eye
open. It’s dark. It must be late at night. Despite the faint light of various
machines, he can’t see anyone at his bedside. Puzzled, he scans the room.
There’s an EKG machine, an IV drip- and Kakyoin, asleep in an armchair, his
chin propped up in his hand.
Jotaro feels the phantom sensation of hands in his hair again, and turns to
find Star Platinum and Hierophant Green huddled together against the far wall.
Star Platinum has Hierophant Green pinned against the wall, but it doesn’t seem
hostile. Hierophant’s hand is in Star Platinum’s hair, its lower body tangled
around Star Platinum's legs. Somehow, despite the lack of expression on the
stand’s faces, Jotaro has the sensation that he’s interrupted them in the
middle of a conversation. Star Platinum’s arm is around Hierophant Green’s
waist. Kakyoin’s stand glances at him, then hides its face behind Star
Platinum’s bulk, and the two stands go dim and indistinct and fade away,
leaving Jotaro with the confused sense of having awakened into a dream.
“Noriaki,” he mumbles. No response. “Hey. Noriaki.” Kakyoin stirs, then jerks
awake in his chair. There’s deep shadows under his eyes, and he moves
carefully, as if every movement hurts. But he’s alive, and if his lack of
hospital gown is any indication, he’s doing better than Jotaro.
“Jotaro,” he says sleepily. “You're awake!”
“Yeah,” Jotaro mumbles. His mouth feels like something crawled into it and
died. “How long have I been out?”
“Three days,” Kakyoin says, yawning. “The story is that you're sick. Mei keeps
coming in and leaving your homework.”
“My homework?” Jotaro says, disgusted.
“She filled it out in your handwriting and everything. She’s very good at
forging handwriting.” Kakyoin sounds like he’s a little ambivalent about Mei’s
skills, but Jotaro isn’t. Everything about Mei is fake.
“Ryu alive?” Jotaro asks after a bit.
“Yeah. Pretty sure Mei would have tried to kill us if he wasn't.” Kakyoin
doesn't sound dismayed. He tried to kill Jotaro, after all. Maybe this is just
how he makes friends.
“She can try,” Jotaro says. The mention of Mei reminds him of Star Platinum,
which - “I woke up and our stands were cuddling,” Jotaro says.
“Star Platinum was in on this?” Kakyoin says, eyebrows rising slightly. “That's
new.”
Jotaro scowls at him.
“Are you telling me Hierophant Green does this all the time?” For some reason,
Kakyoin looks relieved.
“It likes to go off and explore when I'm asleep or not paying attention. I
found out it could shrink because it kept hiding in random places around the
house.”
Jotaro starts to say that Star Platinum keeps to itself, but how would he know?
More than once, he's jerked awake from some nightmare and found Star Platinum
hovering over his bed. For all he knows, it goes out wandering every night.
“Good grief,” he mutters. For some reason, this brings out a thin smile across
Kakyoin’s face.
“I see you’re feeling better,” he says, and has Hierophant Green bring over a
tray with water and meds. Jotaro eyes the stand suspiciously, but Hierophant
Green doesn’t show any signs of feeling cuddly. It sets the tray on his lap and
retreats into the dim space underneath Kakyoin’s chair. Is it possible for a
stand to look embarrassed?
The meds knock Jotaro right back into exhaustion, but he manages to force out a
few more words before falling asleep.
“Why are you here?” he asks.
“Ryu is like two doors down, and I didn’t like the idea of leaving you
unconscious and unguarded. But mostly- because I want to be.” Sleep is crashing
down on Jotaro, but he manages to speak.
“Good,” he says, and gestures to Kakyoin. “Come here.” A little line appears
between Kakyoin’s eyebrows, but he goes. Jotaro grabs him by the collar and
hauls him down for a kiss. Kakyoin’s lips are slightly chapped, but Jotaro
doesn’t care. Kakyoin is here, and Kakyoin is alive, and Kakyoin is his.
Jotaro’s not the possessive type. He’s not inclined to defend anything but his
own space. But Kakyoin fits so perfectly beside him; Jotaro’s space is better
with Kakyoin in it. This must be what love is.
Kakyoin is the person for him. He’s sure of it. He curls his hand in the fabric
of Kakyoin’s uniform, then reluctantly lets go.
“Jojo?” Kakyoin says softly. Jotaro answers the unspoken question.
“I wanted to,” he says. “Now come here.” Kakyoin glances at him, then at the
bed, then climbs in. It takes a little maneuvering on both of their parts, but
Kakyoin settles in at Jotaro’s side, his head leaning against Jotaro’s
shoulder. He’s so small. But strong. Jotaro’s injuries are proof of that. His
body is heavy with exhaustion, his chest aching with every breath. He can
barely keep his eyes open.  But he has one more thing to say.
“I love you, Noriaki,” he says. It’s not much of a confession. But in the
white-hot moment where he thought Kakyoin was dead, he regretted not saying it.
Next to him, Kakyoin stirs and places one hand over Jotaro’s.  
“I know,” he says, and sleepily plants a kiss on Jotaro’s shoulder. “Me too.”
 
SOUNDTRACK
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FANART
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Chapter End Notes
     A big thank you to everyone who read and commented, and particularly
     to Hasturismycopilot for her tireless beta work! Kakyoin's side of
     the story will appear in the other work in the series, "Burden of
     Interpretation."
     If you liked Three Card Spread, please consider leaving me a comment
     or reblog. Thank you for your attention!
End Notes
     Catch me yelling about Joestars on tumblr at
     nomettesbizzareadventure.
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