Swallowing the Sun

6th Sunrise: Two Peas in a Pod (Part V)

"From now on call me Arianna or Aria ok? And you're going to be Giorno, Giorno Giovanna."

Innocent eyes blinked. "But why?"

A warm smile curled on pink pouty lips.

"Because we need to adapt GioGio. It's the key to survival. If we don't adapt, we're gonna be left hanging by the thread and don't you like it? Giorno I mean, Giorno is such a cool name, if you remember our lessons what does it mean again in Italian?"

"It means 'Day' right? And yeah, I guess it sounds cool but Aya― err… Aria, what does your name mean?"

Small fingers threaded on soft dark tresses, scratching the scalp in just the right way.

"From what I know of Italian names, Arianna means 'Most Holy' or to put it in another way, 'Very Holy'."

"I think it suits you."

One golden eyebrow rose. "Hm?"

Wide innocent eyes blinked again, seafoam staring right at seafoam speckled with gold.

"I mean, you are my Guardian Angel and Guardian Angels are holy beings, right? It suits you just right."

A surprised giggle, one that you could compare to tinkling soft glass came bursting out from pink lips.

"And Giorno suits you just right because you're bright as the day, my own star in human form."

One dark eyebrow rose. "Wouldn't it be more fitting if it's the Sun."

"Oh Gio," Thin arms enveloped a small body, the other easily replicating the gesture.

"The Sun is also a star, but unlike the other stars, the Sun appears in the day instead of the night, that's the reason why stars are awesome. It doesn't matter whether it's day or night, they always shine as bright as they can no matter what the circumstance, unbothered and beautiful; and you're just like that to me, my brightest star."

A pout. "I can never just win against you when it comes to using words. That's not fair."

A giggle and a squeeze. "Don't worry, there's a lot of time to practice and improve. With the way you're going now, you're gonna be someone who's really good with words, a silver tongue and a sweet talker. Geez, calling me a Guardian Angel like that." A click of tongue. "I was so not prepared."

The other scoffed. "Like you're one to talk. Though I really don't know what a 'silver tongue' nor a 'sweet talker' could mean nor how both of that could even happen, you're the one who's using all the big words so, you're probably both of those that you mentioned."

"Well,"

Spiky golden blonde hair, intense green eyes and a derisive smirk flashed in her mind. A friend from a lifetime ago making a show of dressing down an overeager imaginative desperate pretentious girl – in other words a bitch – who had slapped Emi because of stealing the girl's 'man'. The 'man' here being Emi's friend who's viciously taking joy of humiliating the girl in front of the principal and the student councilor.

(Gideon had always had a way with words like no other, a man who can compliment and insult you at the same time without you being the wiser.)

"I learned from the best when it comes to weaponizing words. And I'm going to teach you whatever I learned from him."

"Will you ever tell me your greatest secret Aria? Like, where you learned what you learned or whoever taught you?"

"Of course." Seafoam eyes lost its glazed-out appearance, more attentive and there than it appeared before the talk of silver tongues and sweet talkers.

"I'll tell you everything when you're a bit older and able to understand more, I swear on it."

"You pinky swear on it?"

A lightly tanned small pinky was held out, a fairer pinky finger hooked on it, squeezing in a promise.

"I pinky swear on it."

They are four and now going to school. It's almost a year since they started living here in Italy and of course, as it is, even children can also be cruel. A fact that she, as Emi, had gone through when her family was the talk of the town after her mother's divorce with the asshole.

Before the older and bigger kid could push Giorno to a puddle, Arianna had already tugged her brother to her side, leaving the boy's hand outstretched in a ridiculous way, the cronies on his back stopping from their snickering.

Arianna opened her mouth. "Was there something you want from us?" She spoke fluently and confidently with the right accent and inflection, voice demure and curious.

The three blinked at her in surprise, probably not expecting their own mother tongue flowing fluidly from the mouth of a foreigner kid. They probably expected her to stumble with her words, stutter and look at them shyly with a look of incomprehension on her face. They all recover rather quickly though, her bright blonde hair probably had them concluding that she's also a local despite the glaring visual that she shares the same face as her brother. Arianna never really did speak out as much in their introduction earlier this morning, just her name and a customary 'nice to meet all of you' that was mirrored by Giorno's.

An introduction that was probably reported by the little boy who she recalls was in her 'class'.

Arianna immediately concluded that he's probably related to the other boy beside him with the same nose and freckled face.

"Oh it's nice to see you there Angelo." The boy appeared to be surprised, blinking his large brown eyes.

Elbowing her twin, Giorno looked at her before speaking. "Yes, it's nice to see you again. Are one of them your older brothers?"

Finally getting over his surprise, the boy nodded before grinning at the older boy who Arianna had suspected to be his brother. "This is my big bro, Tomaso, big bro these are the foreigner twins I was talking about earlier!"

As one, the twins bowed their head respectfully, the habit of doing it still a common place to the two of them. Arianna reached her hand towards her brother and the bubbling happiness of him reciprocating the action automatically was not lost on her. So with a smile, she introduced herself.

"My name is Arianna Giovanna."

"And I'm Giorno Giovanna."

"It's nice to meet you Tomaso." They spoke in synch.

The three older kids seemed dumbfounded at their apparent fluency with the language, a considerable win in Arianna's books as it would help keep the negative thoughts and bullying from them at bay. As is, they would even start to assume that they are also locals, something that would work on their favor if they want to keep bullying from being an issue.

And if Arianna has a means to do that, she will do it, not only for her, but also for Giorno.

"Ahh… I guess it's nice to meet you too?"

Both of them nodded in synch, an action that the kids didn't miss.

"We will be leaving now." Arianna took hold of Giorno's hand and smiled sweetly towards the kids. "We'll see you again tomorrow Angelo! Bye!"

With one last wave, they walked away from them in a leisure pace.

That would at least keep the bullies at bay and make them approachable, Giorno needs friends who's at his age too, letting him have that opportunity is something that Arianna would make for him, let him have that one normal thing to make his life happier.

Now, to survive at their own home.

A/N: So hey guys, sorry for the late update school started once again and I got a shit ton of requirements to do so I never really got around uploading this. But here it is now, thankfully the storm that struck us (Storm Ullysses) didn't do much damage in our region other than toppling a few trees in our backyard. I pray for my fellow Filipinos out there who is suffering right now because of the huge flood and here's to hoping that they would be able to pick themselves back up. Hope you guys enjoyed this chapter as much as I did, enjoy the floof for now because shit is about to go down in the next few chapters.

Anyways carry on, keep safe, stay healthy and may God bless your lovely souls!