He continued to pursue bigfoot but the creature fell off a rather medium sized cliff.
Giorno skidded to a halt "Woah, woah, woah!"
He balanced himself so he won't fall. Shining the lantern towards the small abyss, the sasquatch was stationary, moaning.
"I got you now..!" He slid off the slope, being extra careful so he won't stumble down like a moron once again.
He halted right in front of the creature, gasping as he saw that the sasquatch was caught in a bear trap.
"Oh..." he muttered, the sasquatch looked at him with a pained expression.
Without hesitating, the good natured blond immediately crouched and pried the cursed metal open.
The sasquatch stumbled back, panting. It groaned as Giorno paused.
'I hope he is like Androcles' lion...' gulping as he realized that he wasn't so sure if the being is benevolent.
He stared and patted his pockets only to be disappointed that his dad's phone isn't there.
The sasquatch then kneeled in front of him and bowed "Thank... You..."
Giorno blinked twice "YOU KNOW ENGLISH?!" He was absolutely intrigued, the cryptid had been existing in the mountains unofficially and he felt like he made an incredible discovery. Maybe the thing he is talking to right now is the missing link between ape and man.
The sasquatch nodded.
Giorno stood up with a grin, he had alot of questions. But before he can ask some stupid shit, the sasquatch sat back down and said "Can't... Talk... Much." It pointed to itself as it said that.
"Oh." Giorno nodded, maybe he shouldn't ask overly complicated questions. The thing is still an animal after all. Maybe start with something simple.
"Do you have a name?" Giorno asked gently. "Fo..." the sasquatch muttered. Giorno saw that the leg wasn't bleeding, it must have a thick hide to be able to shrug a bear trap.
"Fo... Weva..."
"Forever..?" Giorno repeats, the sasquatch nodded. "Forever! Nice to meet you, my name is Giorno Giovanna." He reached out for a handshake. Forever looked at his hand with curiosity, before taking it.
"This is awesome. A sasquatch..!" Giorno giggled. "Awesome... Squatch..." Forever repeats.
Giorno then rambled about how he just discovered something that will change the world. A bigfoot. A sasquatch. A possible link between ape and man.
But Forever suddenly stood in fear "I... Run away..!"
"Wha-What? Why?" He asked with concern, the sasquatch did look like it was running from something when it stumbled upon his camp.
"Mist..!" It said before scurrying away. But before Giorno can ask, his sides hurt.
"Nggr..!" He guessed this won't be the last time he'll see Forever though. So he sighed and decided to call it a night.
He dragged his sorry ass back to his camp. The familiar figure of his hut, welcoming him back.
As he kneeled down the reed bed, a scary thought invaded his brain.
What in fuck's name terrified that giant? If it scared something as huge as Forever, then it must be dangerous.
Then suddenly, he was wide awake once more. The realization hit him like a truck ad he was on high alert. The thing said something about a mist. What did it mean?
Suddenly, the temperature dropped. It was cold. Giorno felt chills crawl down his spine as he saw remnants of fog around the normally tropical forest. "Well..." he gulps.
He heard a faint giggle.
Giorno stood up bravely as the fog got thicker. He prepared himself for whatever may come with a fighting stance.
"What are the odds that you'll end up here?"
He turned to a random direction as he heard a girl's voice.
"Who are you?!" Giorno called out.
"Don't you remember who I am? I'm not surprised. You did have alot of victims."
Giorno raised an eyebrow. The wind was getting more chilly and cold.
The fire in his lamp died.
The blond young man squinted as he saw a silhouette in the fog. His body shaking but he calmed himself down by controlling his breathing 'Bring it on..!' He dared mentally.
Its...
The dog from earlier. Wagging it's tail in a friendly manner.
"Oh. I thought it was- OH MY GOD!" Giorno yelped as the lab's neck opened up a slit and the wound began gushing out blood profusely.
His eyes widened as he heard a rustle of footstep behind him.
"Here is where you get your comeuppance, Kira Yoshikage..!" He heard her snarl.
He turned around and saw a short bloody pinkette girl glaring him down.
Giorno screamed in fear, but his reflex was to punch the threat away. Totally baffled as it phased through her.
The girl, about the same age as him, blinked as her bloody and mangled face turned to normal.
"O-Oh! Now this is embarrassing!" She stuttered as Giorno backed away. "Hey, I'm sorry! I thought you were someone else!" She giggled nervously.
"You're... You're a ghost..!" Giorno mumbled in high alert.
"Yes but- hey! I'm not gonna hurt you, calm down! I can't even touch you, see? See?" She grinned reassuringly as she waved her hand through his face.
Giorno fainted and lost conciousness.
.
. . .
.
Morning came, and Giorno finally woke up. Groaning as his sore body acted, he rolled and pushed himself to stood upright.
He still has to do his morning run. Giorno shook his head quickly and started doing his braids.
What a strange dream.
"Does that count as a nightmare..?" He asked no one in particular.
"I don't know, what are you talking about?"
He turned his head to the same girl last night, she was sitting on a tree branch with a coy smile.
. . .
Jonathan politely sat as Father Pucci continued his homily "Last night, there were three women walking down the road. I told them 'Hey you three women! Why are you walking down that road, there's nothing there!' Then they flew away. I said aww them was birds."
He raised an eyebrow as murmurs from the crowd emerged.
"What's that got to do with faith?" One brave soul asked.
"Nothing, I just need to get that off my chest." Pucci replied.
'I can only pray that Giorno's training is going along swimmingly. Today, Josuke is going to refill his food stock and fuel the generator. I wonder how he's doing?' Jonathan thought to himself as the attendees of the mass grew restless.
"You're a bad priest!"
"Hey, shut yo ass up." Pucci snarled at the random old man.
"Your mom gay!" Some black kid said.
"Oh, we talking about moms now, huh?! Alright, alright! You new gen bitches gonna know how its done!"
The priest cleared his throat as he prepared to roast the kid "Your momma is so ghetto, when she breastfeeds, KOOL AID COMES OUT!"
Jonathan winced, he can only wonder how Enrico was still a priest at this point.
.
. . .
.
Giorno backed away as the girl floated towards him with curiosity. "I wonder what you're doing here? This mountain is too dangerous for hikers, you know."
"I-Is that how you..." Giorno drifted off, still unsettled.
"Oh no, far from it actually." The girl said as she sat down next to him. Arnold arrived and nuzzled towards her shoulder.
"I have been observing you for quite some time. I wonder what you're training for."
Giorno sighed and lowered his guard "It's... Complicated."
"You're not going anywhere, are you? Come on, tell me! I'll tell you my story after." The girl smiled.
He looked at her briefly, she seems just like a normal girl other than the fact that she's... You know, dead.
"My name is Sugimoto Reimi. You can call me Reimi." She introduced herself.
"Giorno Giovanna..." he mumbled in reply.
"Okay, GiornoGiovanna, it's nice to meet you! Now, care to tell me why are you here?" Reimi leaned towards him, causing him to back away. "Uhh... I guess it won't hurt to tell you." He replied.
"Of course! You know, roaming around here for 7 years as a wanderer makes you crave for someone to talk to!" She giggled.
"You've been... For 7 years?" Giorno asked as his eyes widened.
"Hey, you go first." Reimi pouts.
The blond sighed, and he told her everything. Her eyes widened "No way."
"Yes way." He replied.
"All this for that. It's kinda sad but I guess you are a man on a mission." She pondered as Giorno nods. "You're crazy." Reimi said with a small smirk. "I guess I am." Giorno replied with a small smile. He finds it weird that he was talking to a ghost.
Reimi averted her gaze, she stared into nothing with a solemn look as Arnold whimpered. Her bright smile disappeared.
Giorno blinked and stared at her eith concern "It's okay, you don't have to-"
Fuck you Giorno, flashback time.
"Yes, Mrs. Kishibe, I will make sure he goes to bed at 9." Reimi bowed as the woman smiled sweetly "We'll be back at 11."
"Mom, I'm 13 I don't need a freaking babysitter!" Rohan protested from the living room.
"Now, now, don't be like that, Rohan. Or I won't let you play that gamestation." Reimi Sugimoto, age 17.
"You're unfair!" Rohan stomped towards his room.
Mrs. Kishibe left and got inside her husband's car. They drove off.
Reimi sighed and closed the door. She was living on her own after her parents died from a terrorist attack. The only thing they left her, was Arnold.
Since then, the Kishibe family tried their best to help her, because they are her neighbors and they are decent human beings.
The young woman sighed as she knocked on to Rohan's room.
"Rohan? Are you there?"
"Go away."
She pouts before deciding to enter. There he was, playing that console.
"Mind if I join?" She asked as she saw a spare controller besides his bed. "No." He huffed.
She just shrugged before deciding to sit next to him. Thinking about it for quite sometime, she decided to let her bubbly self take over and started telling Rohan about her day.
"You know, there was this one guy from my school who was a bit weird. He keeps looking at me, or rather, my wrists?"
"I don't care." Rohan dismissed as he continued to play.
"Earlier today, I walked passed him and I heard him whisper 'tonight' as I went by. Isn't it creepy?" Reimi asked.
Rohan trembled, he paused the game before grabbing the spare controller and handing it to her "You can play, just don't start another scary story..!"
Reimi giggled, this boy has always been a scaredy cat. He was a bit pouty, but she knows he cares for her.
"You're like the little brother I never had." Reimi softly told him. "How can you say that after you destroyed my character?!" Rohan screamed.
The babysitter laughed before wondering if she left enough food for her dog.
The two played until it was almost time for bed.
"... Tell me a story." Rohan requested as he was tucked in to his bed. Reimi grinned.
"Not that story! Something that'll make me sleep, not creep out!" He whines.
"Okay, okay, I will! Now, lets see..." Reimi pondered.
"Once upon a time, there was a young boy from a rich family. His fate would soon be intertwined with another boy who came from a poor one." Reimi warmly said.
"Eww, are they gay?" Rohan groaned.
"Hey, they aren't! And what's wrong with being gay? Anyways..."
Soon, the story about the marvelous, coriageous man fighting his adopted vampire brother with the power of the sun sent Rohan in to a deep slumber.
Reimi smiled, fondling his hair before deciding to leave him be.
Until, she heard a banging from the door downstairs.
She gasped and ran to see what the ruckus was.
There was an ax embedded in the front door. She looked outside the window but it was smashed. She squealed as she was knocked back by the shards.
The man entered.
"... Kira Yoshikage?" She said in an unsure tone. He was the quiet kid in her chemistry class.
"Sugimoto Reimi." Kira replied as he equipped his hatchet.
"Wha- what's going on, why are you doing this?!" She asked as tears threatened to fall. "My urges, have gone out of control." He said monotonously.
Reimi's eyes widened, he was going to rape her, or so she thinks.
She quickly bolts towards Rohan's room and barricaded the door. She panted as Rohan yawned.
"Reimi? What'a going on?" He asked innocently. Reimi rushed towards him and whispered "There was someone downstairs who wants to kill us!"
Rohan's expression scrunched up as he whined "I told you to stop scaring m-"
The door banged as Kira tried to smash it with an ax from the other side, causing them to yelp.
"There is no time! Go get the bedsheets and curtains, we-" she opened the window but gasped as she saw that her beloved dog was murdered down the lawn. A pool of blood under it's carcass.
Rohan did what he was told as the door continued to bang. He saw his stunned babysitter "Reimi, what do I do now?"
No response.
He shook her "What do we do now?!"
It snapped Reimi out of her trance, she has to get her shit together. So they tied the bedsheets and curtains so they can rappel down the second floor window and call for help.
"You go first." Reimi said as she pushed Rohan up the window. Rohan hesitated "I'm afraid of heights."
The door was destroyed. Reimi turned to face the killer as Rohan's eyes widened.
"Here's Johnny." Kira said monotonously in an attempt to reference The Shining.
He pried away the destroyed wooden door.
"There is no time!" Reimi shrieked, she turned her back towards the advancing Kira in an attempt to shoo away Rohan.
"Run! Run and sa-" Reimi gasped as the hatchet blade landed on her back.
"NOOOO!" Rohan screamed but he slid down the makeshift rope and fell flat on his ass.
"REIMI!"
It was the last thing she ever heard before everything went black.
.
. . .
.
"And then, I've been 17 years old for 7 years..." she said with a dry laugh. Giorno's fists were clenched, Arnold retreated, threatened by Giorno's angry aura.
"I have never felt such hatred from a man I never met before." He told her calmly.
Reimi simply shrugged "Atleast I prevented him from potentially harming little Rohan." She sighed before blinking back to her happy self "Oops! Sorry if I darkened the mood, I never got to talk to people ever since that and its driving me nuts!"
"It's okay Reimi. I-" Giorno's eyes widened. "Wait... Can you say his name again?"
"Kira Yoshikage. You know him?" Reimi tilted her head to the side. Giorno had a hunch, he scurried towards his dad's phone as Reimi stared at him with confusion.
Giorno scrolled and tapped the contenders of the Juniors "I think I do."
"Who are you talking to?"
Giorno raised his head up and saw Gappy holding a large bag of food and a large canister of fuel.
Giorno turned towards Reimi but the girl dismissively waved and said "He can't see me."
Giorno returned his gaze to Gappy.
"Well, I thought it would atleast take another week for you to went insane." He shrugged as he set the canister down and refilled his fridge.
"I'm not insane!" Giorno said as he went towards him to help.
"That is exactly what an insane person would say." Gappy smiled.
"Then I am insane!" Giorno protested.
"Oh, so you admit it?" Gappy asked. "No! I-" Giornk sighed.
"How's uncle and Johnny?"
Reimi and Arnold disappeared as Gappy stayed for a couple of hours to catch up with Giorno.
The ex navy noted how well Giorno's progress was.
"People are looking for you." Gappy said as they both ate boiled chicken. "Tell them I am alright." Giorno said.
"We told them you died." Gappy replied as he took a bite.
"What?! Why?!" Giorno asked.
"Just kidding."
Soon enough, they both said their farewells "See you next month!" Gappy said as he entered his car.
"Yeah... See you." Giorno waved as the car retreated off to the distance.
"Wow, you must be a celebrity."
Giorno jumped as Reimi startled him.
"How come he can't see you?" The blond asked. "I only show up those people I want to." Reimi smiled.
"... Why me?" Giorno asked.
"I thought you were Yoshikage Kira. Since you're blond and all." The ghost cheekily replied, causing him to frown.
But a thought entered his head.
"Wait, since you're... You're a ghost and I can see you, does this mean I can see my father again?" Giorno asked with a shaky voice.
Reimi's face softened "I'm sorry, but you told me he died contently. I can't cross to the afterlife because my death has no closure, and I guess it will never have any as long as Kira is out there..."
"Oh..." Giorno deflated, he sat back down "I just... I miss him so much. I'd do anything just to see him again."
Reimi tried to comfort him but her hand just went through his back "Well, the least you can do is respect his last wishes."
Giorno turned to face her. She smiled "Win."
His eyebrows furrowed as he was determined once again. But he remembered where they left off "Yoshikage Kira is one of the competitors in the tournament."
Reimi gasped at the sudden revelation.
"I, Giorno Giovanna, promise to bring him to justice, so your soul can rest." He swore. "R-Really?! You don't have to!" The ghost told him.
The blond smiled "I want to."