Dio peered down at the diagram of the Joestar family tree once more.

He knew very little of the circumstances around the death of George Joestar II. He knew that one of his zombies had garnered a position of military power. George had discovered him and was killed trying to defeat him.

Joseph might know more about it. The Erina in Morioh would not.

He supposed it was callous, but the son would make a good test subject before moving on to the father. While his double had allowed him to change the past in some specific ways, Dio didn't know if he would begin to actively oppose him once he began bringing all the Joestars together. Trying to rescue George would be the safest way to test the waters.

But how to do so without causing a paradox? If he knew more details, he could perhaps fake George's death in the past while really pulling him into the present in Morioh.

It wouldn't be too hard to do. But when it came to the others he was planning to go back and find…

He frowned. Would fate be with him, or against him?


Okuyasu looked out the backyard window and pouted. "Aw. Rainy day."

Rikiel sat at the kitchen table and rubbed at his eyes. "Hm. Good day to stay inside. I kinda wanted to check out the beach, though."

Ungalo opened the fridge and looked over the contents. "What do we want for breakfast?"

"No no no. You are not cooking breakfast," Hermes said. "Who here actually knows how to cook?"

"I know how to cook," Ungalo insisted.

"You can cook for my dad," Okuyasu said happily.

"You can certainly put ingredients together in one location," Hermes said.

Ungalo shrugged and shut the fridge. "I think my palate may just be more refined than yours," he said with exaggerated snobbishness as he sat down by Rikiel. "You just don't appreciate the avant-garde."

Hermes snorted. "I don't think that's the case, but sure. What about you?" she asked Rikiel.

He leaned his elbows onto the table and rested his cheeks in his palms. "I dunno. The kitchen at home kinda sucks. I make a pretty good grilled cheese, I guess."

"I like cooking," Okuyasu said. "I mean, I'm still learning how to do it well."

Hermes wagged a finger. "You can cook if you want, but we're supposed to be your helpers while we're here."

He grinned and shrugged. "It's pretty rad just to have you all around, so I don't mind. Do you like to cook, though?"

She half-frowned. "I can, but I kinda just have the basics down. And that's another thing, huh? We all have different basics. Like, my dad was big on Yucatan and Caribbean food. So most of what I know is from that, plus some American food. You two have American food backgrounds, right?" she said, gesturing towards Ungalo and Rikiel. "And you have Japanese," she said to Okuyasu.

"But I'm learning Italian!" he added with a grin.

"Who is learning Italian?" Mista asked as he entered the kitchen. He lifted a hand to his head in mock salute. "Mornin'."

Giorno followed close behind. "Good morning," he said, and he held up the turtle. "Polnareff says good morning, as well.

"Good morning," everyone echoed back, some with more confusion than others.

"Right!" Okuyasu exclaimed. "You guys are Italian! Do you like to cook?"

Mista nodded. "I mean, I tend to burn shit by accident. But I'm pretty alright at it. Plus if you burn some things it actually makes them better because it makes fond."

Ungalo squinted at him. "Makes what?"

"Fond," he repeated. "Like when you cook meat and there's brown stuff on the pan after. You actually want to eat that even though it can look funky. It's the best part of the dish. You can just deglaze the pan with some wine and bam! You got some good sauce."

Rikiel snickered. "You sound like Emeril."

"I'll take that as a compliment," Mista replied. "You know that guy designed food for astronauts?"

"What about you?" Okuyasu asked Giorno.

He tilted his head thoughtfully. "I think I cook fairly well. I think I prefer baking, though. It's a little more exact."

The floorboards in the living room creaked. The group turned to witness Donatello, who looked back at them, frowned, and then walked away.

"Jesus, it's like a Bigfoot sighting," Hermes sighed. "When do you guys think he's gonna give it up? Is he pissed at just Ungalo or at everyone?"

Giorno hummed thoughtfully. "I'll try talking to him later."

"I can cook," Dio said. The group turned to look at him. He leaned against the kitchen entranceway and peered back at them blankly.

"When the hell did you sneak up on us?" Hermes grumbled as she watched him walk over towards the stove.

Ungalo furrowed his eyebrows. "Why would you… you don't need to eat real food, right?"

"Did you pay so little attention to my lecture that you believe I was born a vampire?" Dio asked.

Rikiel winced. "I mean, even before...you're a guy from the 1800s. And from a rich family. You woulda had a chef or something."

Dio pulled a knife from the knife block, held it up and considered it, and then slid it back into its slot.

"...Are you gonna give us more lore or are you just gonna be spooky?" Ungalo grumbled.

Dio set a pan on the stovetop and retrieved a carton of eggs and a stick of butter from the fridge. "How do you all prefer your eggs to be served?"

He was answered by vaguely nervous silence.

"...Sunny side up with toast!" Okuyasu finally exclaimed.

"Duly noted." Dio retrieved the bread and looked closely at the toaster before figuring out how it was used. He put a pat of butter into the pan and it sizzled. He looked back at the group. "What, are the rest of you not hungry?"

"Uh. Scrambled for me," Hermes stammered. Rikiel and Ungalo nodded in agreement.

"Hm. No thanks," Mista said, but he was then met with screams of despair from Sex Pistols. "Jeez, fine. What do you want?" he asked with a sigh. There was a small clamor of disagreement. "Hardboiled," Mista called out.

Dio quirked an eyebrow but he grabbed a small pot and began filling it with water. "And you, Giorno?"

"Just toast for me, thank you," he replied.

Dio made Okuyasu's dish first. The toast sprung up just as the whites of the eggs were firm and the outer edges crisped with the butter. The group watched him cook in uneasy silence.

"When my father 'saved' George Joestar from the carriage crash," Dio stated, his tone dripping with sarcasm, "he was given a large sum of money. He used that money to start a sort of hotel, complete with a bar and a limited food selection. Of course, he had zero experience in managing such an endeavor, nor did he have any interest in actually doing so. He merely set it up and hoped that it would start raking money in."

He slid the eggs onto a plate and plucked the toast from the toaster. "Obviously, it failed. He had to shutter the building, but he didn't give up on the idea. Our own house became more of a hostel as he attempted to pay off his debts." He handed the plate to Okuyasu, then returned to the stovetop, placed more bread into the toaster, and cracked several eggs into a bowl. "He had exactly one faithful employee that followed him from fortune to failure. Every responsibility fell to her. Every complaint and threat went to her, as well."

He paused. "Did I mention he was a raging alcoholic? I suppose it isn't too relevant. Anyway, the stress and the overwork ended up killing her. Now, how was the family business to stay afloat?"

He poured the eggs into the pan. "The 1800s were not congratulated for their child labor laws. I had already been assisting in whatever small ways I could, so it was easy to shift many of the responsibilities to me. Things needed to be done. I was there to do them."

He ran a spatula through the eggs; some parts were still runny. He flipped them and let them cook a bit longer. The pot of water with the hard-boiled eggs began to bubble; he turned off the heat. "So, yes. I don't have quite the hubris to call myself a chef, but I do know how to cook."

The scrambled eggs seemed to be done; he partitioned them out onto three plates. "Now, this is a question I find quite interesting. Who was at fault for the death of the employee?"

"What?" Hermes asked, her eyebrows knit with concern.

He distributed the plates. "The employee that was overworked. Was it her fault for not quitting?" The toast popped up; he set it on a plate, handed it to Giorno, and then placed the butter dish on the table. "Or was it my father's fault for not managing the business properly?" His tone now had a sharp edge. "Or is it better to travel all the way up the chain of causality? If George Joestar had not been foolish enough to give my father money, then the business would not exist. There would be no mismanagement. Perhaps then, she would not have died. What do you think? Does the fault lie with the Joestars?"

"Hey, hey, hey. You can't drop a bombshell like this over breakfast," Hermes said. "You have beef with the Joestars because you think it's their fault your dad was a total asshole?"

"I 'have beef' with the Joestars for several reasons, most of which are now resolved," he replied with a shrug. "This is more of a thought experiment than anything else. I was simply curious as to what opinions you all might hold."

Okuyasu was frowning and repeatedly dunking his toast into his eggs. "Um. I mean. Money can go to people's heads," he said. "But I don't know…"

"It was a societal problem," Giorno answered flatly as he buttered his toast. "Like you said. The 1800s did not have child labor laws. There was no protection for employees, either. If a better support system was in place, it would not have happened."

"How optimistic," Dio replied dryly. "And idealistic. But I find that I do agree. Human societies have many points of failure. Some people are shunted out from safety, deservedly or undeservedly. The world does not make room for them." He gave Giorno a sharp look. "Some, however, will find that the world has reserved room for them."

Giorno raised his eyebrows. "What are you implying, exactly?"

"Some people seem to have the winds of fate at their back, don't you agree?" Dio said dismissively. "The Joestars are like that. You are, too." He tilted his head. "How lucky it is that fate sided with you and not Diavolo."

Mista stood up so quickly he nearly knocked his chair over. His face darkened with anger and he began a tirade in Italian but Giorno put a steadying hand on his arm.

"You're done preparing breakfast, aren't you?" Giorno stated. "And you've made your point. May we now eat in peace?"

"Kicking me out of the kitchen?" Dio replied lightly. "I suppose I won't be washing the dishes, then."

"Yeah, I think we can just wash them," Hermes replied. "Thanks for the breakfast, I guess."

Dio shrugged and left at a leisurely pace. The stairwell creaked as he ascended to the second floor.

Giorno set down the butter knife. "Well, I suppose that's his version of opening up about his childhood."

Mista pressed his face into his hands. "I truly don't know how you're getting that out of this. I think he just likes fucking with us."

"It's probably both," Giorno said as he bit into his toast.

"Well, I'm gonna get outta the house after this," Hermes said. "Gonna find out what Jolyne's up to. What about you guys?"

"I'm meeting up with Josuke and Koichi to play video games," Okuyasu said happily.

"I think I might just stay in and relax," Rikiel replied.

"I have a VHS player and some movies if you guys want," Okuyasu added. Rikiel nodded with thankful enthusiasm.

"I was kinda wondering if you two could help me with something," Ungalo said to Giorno and Mista.

"Of course," Giorno replied with a nod.


Mista held up his gun while Giorno watched the stopwatch on his phone closely. Rikiel sat on the couch and observed. Ungalo stared at the cover of a VHS case and furrowed his eyebrows.

"You sure about this?" Mista asked.

"Totally," Ungalo replied. "I wanna get better at it. And Rikiel still hasn't found any more skyfish so he can't really knock me out. So if it won't turn off I give you my permission to straight-up pistol-whip me."

"I mean, if you say so," Mista replied with a shrug.

"Let's aim for thirty seconds to start," Giorno said. "Ready?"

Ungalo nodded. "Ready." He stared at the case and focused; Indiana Jones clambered out of the cover illustration and stood in the middle of the living room.

"Okay, ten more seconds," Giorno stated. "How are you feeling?"

"Still got a good handle on it," Ungalo answered.

"And off," Giorno said.

Indiana Jones disappeared. Ungalo huffed and sat on the couch.

"I gotta figure out what point is best to turn it off to do the whole story switching thing," he explained. "But that's gonna be really hard."

Giorno tilted his head. "Why do you want to find that, exactly?"

"I mean, I want to get better at using it in general, but…" He shrugged. "It sounds kinda dumb. But I was thinking I could choose a character Donatello really likes and is maybe like super rich or cool or something so he can have that for himself. It wouldn't fix what I did but it would be something."

Giorno frowned thoughtfully. "You know, I don't think he would like that."

"Shit." Ungalo frowned. "How come?"

"He wants his life to be his own," Giorno answered. "I think more than anything else, he would like to choose his future for himself. Not by doing what Pucci expects of him, not by doing what Dio expects of him, and certainly not by following someone else's script." When Ungalo's face fell, Giorno reached out and put a reassuring hand on his shoulder. "It was a kind idea. But I think there are other ways to mend the gap between you two."

"Yeah, well, it would help if he actually talked to us," Ungalo huffed. "Like, I get it when it comes to me. But not when it comes to you guys. Like, this is all a big weird situation, but… eh, whatever. I think I'm done practicing for now. Thanks for helping for uh, thirty seconds."

"No problem," Mista said with a shrug as he holstered his gun.

"Do you want to just watch a movie the normal way?" Rikiel asked.

Ungalo nodded. "Yeah, sure. You guys?"

"I think we may head out," Giorno replied. "The rain isn't as heavy now."

Rikiel sorted through the pile of tapes. "There's Indiana Jones, Star Wars, Jurassic Park, a bunch I've never heard of… oh, Titanic."

"Kate Winslet is super hot in that," Ungalo replied. "The story is good too, I guess."

"I've never seen it," Rikiel admitted. "I'd be down to watch it. Looks like it's just subtitled in Japanese so it won't be too confusing."

"You've never seen it?" Ungalo said in disbelief. "Then we gotta watch it. Let's go."


Jolyne woke up, stretched, and blinked blearily at the drawing of her and Erina. She had propped it up on the bed stand, struck with the irrational fear that it would disappear when she woke up, that any of the events that had transpired the day before would disappear as well, that she would be back in Florida and trapped watching as more and more was taken away—

She pushed the thought away and smiled at the drawing.

The hotel served a complimentary breakfast; she ran down while still in her pajamas, filled a plate with muffins, and ran it back up to her room as if someone would scold her for taking them. That wasn't an entirely irrational fear; her mealtime routine for the past few months had been highly regulated.

She was halfway through a muffin when someone knocked on the door. She swiped a napkin across her mouth and went to open it.

She looked up at Jotaro. "Mornin'."

"Good morning," he replied. He glanced back at the plate full of muffins, then back to her.

"Yeah, yeah, not the healthiest breakfast," she said with a huff.

His posture shifted slightly. "I didn't—hm." He paused. "Are you willing to share? The lobby is busy."

She grinned. "Yeah. I don't even really know why I took so many. I'm not gonna eat them all." She stepped back and Jotaro entered the room.

He took a seat on the couch and stared at the muffins as if considering them deeply. He picked one up and took a bite.

"So, uh…" She trailed off and pursed her lips. "How'd the reporter thing go?"

"Good," he answered.

"Rainy day today, huh?" she added.

"Yes," he replied.

"You know, if you ever answered me with more than one word at a time, I'd have to punch you and make sure you weren't really an alien impersonator," she said with a laugh.

He frowned. Jolyne sighed and picked at the wrapper of her muffin.

"If I were an alien impersonator," he said, "I wouldn't know that the chocolate chip muffins are your favorite ones." He pointed at the plate. "I like them, too. But I took a blueberry muffin so that you could have them."

"Ha. I guess you're right," she said with a wan smile as she looked at the plate. "So I don't have to punch you."

"Of course not." He paused. "I'm really Jotaro just like you're really… Jolaine. Yes, that's your name. Jolaine."

She pointed accusatively. "Ha! Alien! I knew it!"

"My cover is blown," he said flatly.

They continued to eat in silence, but it was more comfortable now.

"I'm meeting with a doctor out of town," Jotaro stated.

Jolyne looked up with concern. "Is something wrong?"

"They did autopsies on some of the early victims," he answered. "I'll be interviewing them."

"So you won't be around much today," she replied.

Jotaro nodded.

"Well, it's a crappy day out," she sighed as she looked at the window. "You shouldn't worry. I'm probably just gonna chill in here."

His posture relaxed slightly. "Good." He folded the paper muffin wrapper and set it back on the plate. "Maybe your friend can visit you."

"Yeah, probably. We can watch TV or something." She grinned. "You'd like Hermes. She's great."

He nodded. "If she came here with you, she must be." He sighed, stood, and brushed a few stray crumbs from his lap. "I have to catch my taxi."

"See you later," she replied.

He paused at the doorway. "Do you want another hug?"

"I mean, if you're offering," she said with a laugh.

They briefly embraced. "Stay safe," Jotaro said.

"Yeah, yeah. Stay safe, be careful, and make good choices yourself," she replied with a grin.

He nodded, adjusted his hat, and left.


Donatello figured he could ignore whoever was in the living room as he ventured into the kitchen to make his own breakfast. However, as he took bread and placed it in the toaster, it became very difficult to ignore them.

"Ah! Why are you fast-forwarding!?"

"I don't like it!"

"It's—it's artistic!"

"It's uncomfortable!"

"Just—stop stop stop! You're gonna skip over—there's still some actual plot before the second tape!"

"Would you two shut the hell up?" Donatello stated. "I have a headache."

Rikiel jumped and turned to look at him. Ungalo tensed. The tape continued to fast forward.

Ungalo stood and faced him. "So, uh—"

"No," Donatello said preemptively. He stared at the toaster as if that would force it to make toast faster.

Ungalo furrowed his eyebrows. "But—"

"Not hearing it," Donatello interrupted.

Ungalo crossed his arms and frowned. "Aren't you the second oldest? You're acting like a toddler."

"I wonder how hard it is to get to Hiroshima from here," Donatello mused as he watched the toaster.

Rikiel frowned at him. "What?"

"Listen, I get that I fucked up and you're mad about it, but it's not even good for you to be so mad about it forever," Ungalo said quickly. "You'll pop a blood vessel and die or something. And you're really only inconveniencing yourself by acting like this. We don't have to be all brotherly and shit if you don't want to be," he said as he pointed at Rikiel. "But you could at least talk to like, everyone else. Like Rikiel! He's cool. Or Hermes, who is the coolest. No offense," he said to Rikiel.

"None taken. I agree," he mumbled.

"Like if you were just avoiding Dio, I'd get it, because out of all of us you have the most reason to really hate him," Ungalo continued. "But this just sucks."

Donatello grabbed his toast, set it on a plate, scraped up some butter, and then spread it. He took the plate and left.

Ungalo threw up his hands. "Alright! Whatever. I don't care." The couch creaked as he sat back down.

Rikiel stood and approached the VHS. "I'm just gonna put in the second tape."

Donatello shut the bathroom door, sat on the floor, and bit into the toast. He scarfed it down, looked at the bathroom door, looked at the remaining slice of toast, and then sighed.

If he gave up his anger, he thought, what did he have left?


Jolyne put on a TV show that required very little brainpower and sat on the couch. When someone knocked on the door she leapt to her feet. She swung the door open and beamed. "Hermes! What the hell, did you drown on your way here or something?"

"Went for a run in the rain," Hermes replied, and she grabbed some of her hair and wrung it out towards Jolyne. Jolyne laughed and hopped back.

"You want a muffin?" Jolyne asked as she pointed towards the plate.

"I already had breakfast," Hermes replied. She paused and her expression grew more sly. "You'll never guess what I had."

"Donuts," Jolyne instantly replied.

"Nope."

"Cereal?" she asked.

"Nada."

"Pancakes," she declared.

"Scrambled eggs," Hermes replied.

Jolyne gave her a bemused look. "Wait, why did I have to guess? That's a totally normal breakfast food. Hell, that's what we had at Green Dolphin like every day."

"Scrambled eggs," Hermes clarified, "that were cooked by your weird great-great-whatever-uncle."

Jolyne stared at her. "Whaaat."

"Yeah, it was an experience," she replied. She jabbed her thumb towards the bathroom. "Can I shower here? I did last night but I just want to again."

"Go for it," Jolyne replied. "I have some new clothes if you want to wear 'em so that those ones can dry."

Hermes clapped her hands together and made a slight bow. "You're the best."


Dio grew tired of staring at the diagram and thinking so he went downstairs and peered into the living room. Ungalo was cocooned in a blanket and curled up on the couch while Rikiel was sitting with his knees to his chest. Dio squinted at him and leaned forward. "Are you crying?"

Rikiel shrugged and wiped at his face with his sleeve. "Ugh. This part of the movie is way too stressful."

"I don't ever want to be on a sinking ship," Ungalo grumbled. "With my luck I'd never get a lifeboat."

"What movie is this?" Dio asked as he pushed Ungalo's legs to the side to make room in the middle of the couch. Ungalo huffed and sat up properly.

"Titanic," Rikiel answered. "About the boat that sank in 1912."

"I know what the Titanic was," Dio replied. "I just haven't seen this documentary."

"S'not a documentary. It's like a romance drama thing," Ungalo replied.

"Then what's happening here?" Dio said as he peered at the screen. "Who are the characters?"

"You can't just hop in when there's like fifteen minutes left of the movie and ask us what the plot is," Rikiel grumbled.

"Then I'll just rewind," Dio replied, and they both shouted out as he got up from the couch.

"Just wait until we're done and we can start it over!" Rikiel exclaimed.

"Also, it's on two VHS tapes," Ungalo added. "If you rewind this one you'll just hit the halfway point."

Dio rolled his eyes and sat back down. The movie continued. The ship sank. Passengers got into lifeboats or clung to the wreckage. Leonardo DiCaprio froze and drowned while Kate Winslet wept. Kate Winslet grew old, reminisced, dropped a gem into the ocean, and passed away. They reunited in an afterlife version of the ship and were applauded by the cast. The credits rolled.

"There," Rikiel huffed. "Now you can rewind."

"No matter how many times I watch this film the ending will remain the same," Dio stated.

Ungalo squinted at him. "That is kind of how movies work, yeah."

Dio leaned forward and rested his chin on his palm. "There's no doubt that her husband died during the disaster. They show his frozen corpse and they show his soul in the afterlife."

"Oh, they weren't married," Rikiel explained. "It's a whole thing about how she's engaged to this awful rich guy but DiCaprio is a poor guy from Wisconsin that falls in love with her and—well, just watch the movie."

"I will not." He stood and went to the front door. "I'll be going out."

Ungalo looked out the window. "Guess it's a good day for it for you. No sun."

"Astute observation," he replied as he picked up his umbrella. He looked at it with vague amusement; for once, he would also be using it for its intended purpose.


Hermes finished showering, dried off, and changed. She joined Jolyne on the couch and watched whatever was on TV; that was entertaining for a while but then she stood and went over to the window. She stretched out her arms and legs, then poked at the part of her belly that had scarred. There was some residual soreness but she was feeling much better.

Jolyne let out a little sigh as she shifted her position on the couch. Hermes came up behind her and leaned her elbows onto her shoulders. "Jolyne. Hey. Jolyne. Jolyyyyne."

Jolyne didn't respond. Hermes smacked her hands lightly against the top of her head as if she were playing a drum. "Jolyne, stop ignoring me, you can't do it forever."

"I'm not ignoring you," she replied. "I just wanted to see what you would end up doing to get my attention."

Hermes bapped at her braided buns. "Is it working?"

Jolyne struggled not to grin. "Jolyyyyne," Hermes whined once more. "I'm boooored."

"Sounds like a personal problem," she replied.

"Come on, what are you even watching?" she said as she pointed at the TV. "I know you've gotta be bored, too."

"I'm not bored," Jolyne lied.

"Should I be worried about another belly button piercing showing up?" Hermes asked.

Jolyne snorted. "Alright, alright. I'm pretty bored. What do you wanna do?"

Hermes slumped over the back of the couch. "What is there to do around here? I don't really care that it's raining. I want to go out."

"Well, there's the beach. There's some cool cliffs. There's a couple public park areas. There's food."

Hermes slumped so far forward over the couch that she began to slowly slide face-first towards the cushions. "A snack or something might be nice."

"There's a café," Jolyne replied.

Hermes was muffled now, her face pressed flat against the seat cushion. Her legs swung up and she idly kicked at the air. "Hmm. That might be good."

String zipped out of Jolyne's arm and she pulled at Hermes's ankles. She flipped over with a yelp and would have landed on her butt on the floor but the strings latticed to catch her.

"Rude!" Hermes exclaimed. Jolyne only laughed.


Yoshikage Kira wanted a quiet life. A peaceful life. A life in which he could do what he pleased.

A vampire and a gaggle of Joestars suddenly appearing in his home did not mesh with his carefully maintained lifestyle.

Of course, fate tended to bring those with powerful Stands together. His father had gushed about Dio to him as he swung the Stand Arrow around triumphantly, but something about his story seemed off. The Dio he had encountered had been helping the Joestars. The one his father had met seemed opposed to them.

But when he had appeared within his home, his suspicions had been confirmed. Dio would be hunting for him. He didn't seem to realize that Kira was Kosaku; at least, he hadn't acted that way when he ran into him on the street.

But if he were as clever as his father insisted he was, Dio would realize who Kira was at some point. That could not be allowed. Their coincidental meetings must have had some greater meaning; Kira decided that the winds of fate were blowing at his back.

He knew he could delay the ignition of Killer Queen's bombs, but he hadn't yet attempted to delay one for a full day. He could feel the strain that came with pushing a Stand ability towards its limit. He hadn't dared to try to erase Dio as soon as he ran into him on the street; even if the chances of his survival were slim, if Dio lived through the attack, he would immediately be able to deduce who Kira was.

So, Kira had bided his time. He would ignite the bomb when Dio had no reason to believe that the man he had just happened to run into was the killer.

He walked in the rain, an umbrella propped against his shoulder, and he decided that the winds of fate were with him once more. He spotted Dio walking up the road ahead of him. His father had used his captured crow to keep an eye on the vampire; now all Kira had to do was activate the bomb.

He watched carefully. Dio turned a corner; perhaps he was headed towards the café. Kira maintained a safe distance as he followed him but then he stopped in his tracks.

There was Josuke, Okuyasu, and Koichi; all three of them looking cheerful as they came onto the road from the right. Josuke spun his umbrella and was talking excitedly while Koichi nodded and Okuyasu grinned. Okuyasu spotted Dio, called out to him, and gave a cheerful wave. Koichi and Josuke did not look nearly as enthused.

Kira hesitated. He heard more talking and he looked to the left. There were the two girls that had appeared in his office; they were sharing an umbrella and talking. Hermes looked up and waved at Okuyasu. Okuyasu waved back happily.

Oh, for God's sake. Kira bit at his nails. His window of opportunity was slipping away. What would better? To wait and perhaps lose the perfect bomb, or to attack now and hope for the best?

He had to be decisive.

The umbrella exploded and Dio disappeared.

Josuke, Okuyasu, and Koichi stopped walking and stared in shock. Hermes and Jolyne went-wide eyed. Jolyne looked around, searching for whoever had been the source of the attack, her arm beginning to unravel.

They all jumped when Dio reappeared. Well, a Dio reappeared. He stood a few paces away from where the bomb had gone off and he looked as if he were struggling to contain his amusement. Then, another Dio appeared exactly where he had been erased, looking disgruntled. The double all but pointed and laughed.

Kira turned and began to slowly walk away. The Joestars and their friends were too distracted by the two Dios to notice him leave.


"What the fuck," Jolyne exclaimed.

"Two," Josuke said as he pointed uncertainly. "There's really two of him."

"Oh, goodness," the double said as he waved a hand dismissively. "That was funny."

Dio seethed.

"Hey, uh, mysterious second Dio," Jolyne said. "What just happened?"

"A Stand attack, of course," the double replied. "But I would not be too worried about the user. They're long gone by now. You should now worry about him," he said as he nodded towards Dio.

She frowned. "What?"

"He was limited by Rohan's rules," the double explained. "But now that he has died and returned, the rules are no longer active. Would you like to know something interesting? Based on my prior experience, he is now statistically 97% likely to go on a rampage and convert most of the inhabitants of Morioh into zombies."

"I have no reason to do that," Dio snapped.

"Do you really need a reason?" the double asked with a shrug.

"He's lying," Dio said to Jolyne. Jolyne only squinted at him. The double disappeared.

Josuke frowned. "Uh… how about we talk about this over coffee?"


Jolyne and Josuke took a seat at an inside table. Jolyne watched Dio suspiciously while Josuke looked worried.

Okuyasu, Koichi, and Hermes got in line and considered their orders while also keeping a wary eye on the table from a distance.

"So...you're Jolyne's friend, right?" Koichi asked.

"Yup," she answered. "Hermes Costello. Nice to meet you."

Koichi nodded in agreement, but his expression was deeply thoughtful. "We were gonna play video games, but we kinda ended up just talking about you guys the entire time," he admitted. "This is a really crazy situation. Josuke knew about the two Dios thing because Jotaro talked to him about it but to see it in person..." He trailed off and shrugged.

"You'll have to meet all his kids sometime," Okuyasu said cheerfully. "They're pretty fun. Except for bathroom boy. But the other ones are cool. I'm learning a lot of English from them."

"Your English is already really good," Hermes replied.

Okuyasu grinned. "Oh! You think so?"

"I don't know why you don't just ask Rohan to write in that you know it," Koichi said with a shrug.

"Well, I have thought about that," Okuyasu admitted. "But then I had a nightmare that I was at a super important meeting and I had to present to a bunch of investors. I knew how to talk to them because Rohan wrote that I could. But then Rohan got abducted by Mikitaka's spaceship and Heaven's Door deactivated and I forgot how to speak English in the middle of my speech! I was so embarrassed I woke up crying! So I want to learn it for real so that doesn't happen."

Koichi couldn't help but smile. "Alright. That is a pretty good reason."


"So, uh…" Josuke said nervously. "Jotaro did talk to me about the whole danger double situation. Okuyasu, Koichi, and I were kind of brainstorming ways to get rid of him earlier."

Dio stared at him blankly. "Do tell."

"So plan number one is we use Koichi as bait and then sic Yukako on your double and she kills him with the unstoppable power of her obsession and/or love," Josuke explained. When Dio looked confused he explained further. "She's his girlfriend. She's, uh… intensely protective."

Dio quirked an eyebrow. "And Koichi agreed to this plan?"

"He came up with it," Josuke replied. "Plan number two is Mr. Kujo punches him until he explodes, since that worked the first time."

"While still very stupid, that sounds much more reliable than plan number one," Dio replied.

"You don't know Yukako very well," Josuke said with a shrug.

Jolyne leaned back in her chair and crossed her arms. "Here's a plan three. We ignore the double."

Dio narrowed his eyes and Jolyne smirked. Josuke leaned his elbow onto the table and rested his chin on his palm. "Why do you say that?"

She shrugged dismissively. "Dunno. From what I've seen of him, I kinda like the other version of Dio better than this one. Plus, it seems like the only person who has beef with him is you," she said as she watched Dio closely. "And I think that's just because he calls you out on your bullshit."

He felt rage boiling at the back of his throat as he leaned forward. "Are you so stupid as to not see that he is doing some sort of act in order to gain your favor? I don't know what he's planning. But whatever it is, it will be far more cruel than anything I have ever attempted to do to your family. I am sure of it."

She gave him a look somewhere between doubt and disgust. "How do I know that you're not planning something? Your double said—"

His nails dug into the surface of the table. "You don't know what you're talking about when it comes to him," he snapped.

"Has anyone else interacted with this double that we could ask about it? I mean, this is my first time seeing him, and I don't think Jotaro's seen him in person, but anyone else?" Josuke asked.

Dio's eyes went wide. "Exactly," he exclaimed. "Jolyne, you would believe Giorno—"

"Now, why would we do that?" his double replied. "Surely it would be easier to just ask me to my face."

Dio tensed. His nails gouged at the tabletop. His double smiled and turned to Jolyne. "What would you like to know?"

She laughed triumphantly and slammed her hands flat against the table. "Alright!" She pointed at Dio. "What's he really up to?"

His double hummed thoughtfully and his eyes glinted as he turned to look at Dio. "I do believe he's planning on fighting fate in an attempt to defy me," he answered, "though he may not know or care what the consequences may be." He tilted his head. "Perhaps it is time for a demonstration."

Dio disappeared but the double remained. Jolyne felt a flash of nervousness. Josuke gulped.

"Say, Jolyne," the double said. "Would you like to see a world in which Dio really is just some guy?"

The nervousness flared into fear. She frowned at him. "Hold on a second—"

She disappeared. Josuke grit his teeth and looked up at the double.

"Hm." The double considered him deeply. "I think I'll bring you along because it would be funny."

His shoulders hunched and he grabbed onto the table. "Wh—"

Josuke disappeared.


The world shifted severely. Dio landed in a place completely unfamiliar to him. He tensed and watched his surroundings carefully.

A young woman walked blearily through her living room. She was wearing pajamas but she had parted her hair into several ponytails. While it didn't seem like she was paying much attention in the first place, Dio figured that his double had made it so that she was unable to see him. As she wiped sleep from her eyes, she approached a couch. An older woman was sleeping there, with empty beer bottles set by a gaming controller beneath her. The younger woman lightly touched her shoulder; the older woman kept sleeping.

The younger woman frowned and the shoulder poking grew harsher. The older woman swatted her hand away and rolled over so that her face was pressed against the couch. The younger woman watched silently for a few moments, then sniffed. She swept her forearm across her face, then reached into the pocket of her pajamas. She pulled out a phone and tapped at the lit-up surface.

Dio turned to his double. "What's this? Did I miss a child in Florida?"

His double sighed. "No. Her Stand is merely slightly tangled in causality and possibility. Annoying." He glanced back over his shoulder and waved a hand dismissively. "Off we go."


Jolyne held out her hands and felt her way through the darkness. She was inside some sort of building, but there was little to no light. She could see thin beams of sunlight cutting through gaps in the wood in the distance. She knocked her shin against something metal; she grunted in pain and scowled.

She heard movement and she paused. The building seemed like a barn or some other sort of large storage structure, so perhaps there were rats or other critters scuttling through the darkness.

There was more movement, now from a different direction. She went tense and listened closely.

She felt an instinctive fear as she heard the sound of reptilian chittering. She steeled herself for a fight.


Josuke stared up at a wide blue sky. He looked around and saw nothing but empty plains. The wind whistled emptily.

"Well, shit," he said to himself.