Swallowing the Sun

7th Sunrise: Brightly Burning

"Stop staring at me like that!"

The sound of a fist hitting soft flesh resounded in the small room up in the attic. A soft almost soundless cry left Haruno's, no, Giorno's lips and held himself back from crying out loud. Uttering a sound wouldn't be good.

During these moments, it's better to stay meek and quiet in order to avoid more of Maurizio's wrath.

Giorno's gaze flickered worriedly towards Aya― Ariana's crumpled form.

"What?!" The smell of rancid breath and alcohol stench entered Giorno's nose. He kept himself from covering it or cringing away.

A fist landed straight down to his head, his legs easily giving out underneath him, dizziness entering his vision.

"Talk when I'm takin' to ya! If you're worried about that smiley blonde bitch then she should have learned to know her place. Starin' at me with those creepy eyes of hers like I'm the smallest filthy worm she'd seen!"

A sloppy kick went to the unresponsive girl, the worrying pool of red coming from her head had Haru― Giorno fearing for the worst.

"Aria― urk!"

"Shut up!" A kick went to his side causing him to hiss in pain.

Sharp pain went through Giorno's scalp, his face rising from the floor as fingers clutched his hair tightly in a violent hold.

Tears where streaming down his cheeks in waves, how could this happen to them? Did they really do something wrong?

Did he do something wrong?

"It's not your fault Haru. The one to blame here is Maurizio. He's the one that hurt both of us, not you."

That's right, it's not Haruno's fault. It was all Maurizio who hurt them.

But why is Maurizio doing this?

Through his lashes, he caught the familiar glow of Madonna and in an instant, he was being carried carefully, his head tucked onto a warm corporeal body.

"W-What?! W-Who are you?! W-What are you?!" The voice that was filled with malice earlier was now replaced with fear and as much as Giorno wanted to move his head from the chest before him, Madonna's hold guarantees that he can't.

"How dare you hurt them."

Gone was the warmth in Madonna's velvety voice. It was chilling and unfamiliar to Haruno.

"W-What? Who the f-fuck are you?!"

A warm hand caressed Haru―Giorno's cheek and slowly, the familiar feeling of his body melting like goo came over him but easily went away as the pain that he felt melded away with it.

"D-Don't come any closer! W-What the fuck was that?! H-How did you d-do that?!"

Tired and wary, Giorno tried to make what of the situation. Isn't Madonna only visible to him and Arianna? How come Maurizio can see her?

Did she somehow become a 'white lady' that appears to scare people?

(The local children were exchanging stories about 'white ladies' and 'ghosts' haunting some place or another, and somehow, Madonna fits the description of a 'white lady' – wears white, can float, go through walls and do unexplainable things – though Giorno is sure that Madonna is a Guardian Angel rather than a 'White Lady', because Madonna is not the type to scare people and she protects them from harm.)

"M-Madonna?"

"M-M-M-MADONNA?! QUIT S-SCREWING AROUND BOY! YOU CALL THIS W-WOM―"

"Silence." The order came short and quick, before a hand caressed Giorno's cheek once again. "What is it, my little star?" The cold voice became gentle and warm when it addressed him. A familiarity that brought tears to his eyes once again that Madonna was quick to wipe away.

"I-Is Aria alright?"

The tight hold that he was locked in eased up a little, letting him look up to see Madonna's gentle smile, under the veil that mostly covers her face, Giorno could've sworn pale blue eyes looking down at him with warmth.

"Do not worry yourself little star, I made sure that she's fine. Arianna is resting right now."

Relief came over Giorno in waves, the knowledge that his precious sister is fine is a welcomed one. He doesn't know what will happen if he is to ever lose her.

(Like the man floating in the canal this morning, bloodied, cold and not breathing. Just the thought of Arianna at the same position makes his chest hurt and make him want to vomit his nonexistent dinner.)

Tears spilled from his eyes like river, he felt tinier and more fragile than ever.

"T-Thank you Madonna. T-Thank you so much!"

"Sleep now my little star, I'll make sure to take care of this."

Being physically and emotionally tired, his eyelids slipped down automatically as if by command.

"Now," Chills went down on Maurizio's spine. "how shall I educate a useless piece of trash like you?"

Aya wasn't waking up.

She feels really hot to the touch, yet she kept mumbling that she felt cold so Giorno gathered all the blankets he could sneak into their shared bedroom, wrapping it all around her.

Giorno had tried asking Mia to help his sister, but the woman just looked at him like he was some pest, told him that he should try placing a wet towel on Aria's forehead to cool her down, pushed him away from the entrance and then slammed the door to his face.

If only Giorno could do something, get his sister some medicine – something Madonna had told him that his sister needed when she winked back to existence and then out again.

(For some reason, Madonna can't ma-te-ri-a-lize(?) herself. She would often appear like a ghost(?) and disappear. Madonna says that she doesn't know the reason either, she says something about probably overdoing her abilities and it had backlashed on both her and Aria. Giorno thinks that it has to do with Madonna becoming visible to Maurizio.)

He felt so helpless and useless.

He wished that he could do more for Aria now that she needed it most. Aria had always done everything for him. Protecting him, caring for him and loving him so much that he wouldn't have to look for Mia and their stepfather for affection. All he can do right now was hope for the best that Aria would get better.

"They're right here! The devil's spawns are right here!" Hearing Maurizio's booming voice, Giorno immediately went to his sister's side, curling himself over her, making sure that if the man ever tried to do anything, Giorno would get it first.

His sister had suffered enough because of him.

(Aria was just there. Unmoving. Lying on the floor, face down. Red liquid pooled under her head, staining her shiny golden hair, turning them brown and matted. Aria had always had a fairer skin tone than him, but now she was paler, almost blending in with her favorite white dress that she was wearing, her white dress that also has flecks of red in it. The particular memory had turned into a recurring nightmare that he would find himself lying awake at the middle of the night with tears in his eyes.)

Giorno doesn't want to see that again.

Thumping heavy foot falls can be heard coming upstairs, multiple unknown voices chiming in laughter and a discussion about taking the goods or something. They were all talking in Italian and Giorno had to thank his sister once again for her genius and sharing her knowledge to him, he doesn't particularly care where she picked it up, but it's extremely useful, knowing their situation.

"Ha! If those two were the devil's spawns, how can I be so sure that there looks were up to the Euros I'll be paying you?"

"You'll see it for yourself. Its appearances were incredibly deceptive, hiding in angelic faces, I'm sure that those things could be used in your trade."

"Haha! If you're not lying then I'll give the amount you were asking for!"

"I'll be expecting it then, Mr. Carlo! Here, in this room."

There was the sound of a knob turning, afterwards the door banged against the wall as it opened.

Peeking over his shoulder, he saw three other men besides Maurizio, all dressed finely in dark clothes.

"That's them over there."

The shortest approached their bed and Giorno did his best to curl protectively over Ay―Aria. He closed his eyes, his body shaking in fear as he buried his face over the crown of Aria's golden hair. The distinct smell of sweat, flowers and chocolate entering his nose, willing himself not to cry.

Because as he had concluded, crying doesn't solve anything.

"Hmm… I thought I just saw a pair of beautiful eyes then, Lorenzo, Ramir."

Heavy footsteps went closed towards their bed then suddenly, Ha―Giorno cried out when he was lifted off their bed, but the most concerning here was when Aya―Aria was lifted too. Giorno subconsciously curled on himself, very much like a kitten being lifted by the scruff. And with that, the both of them were facing the short bearded well-dressed man called Carlo and Maurizio who looked incredibly pleased with himself.

What's going on? What do they want from us?

"L-Let go of us! Put Aria down!" With all the courage that he has, Giorno scratched at the arms currently carrying him, glaring at them with everything that he had.

"Whoa there, kid! We ain't doing anything," He slowly approached him, taking hold of Giorno's chin and lifting it to his eye level. "yet." The last word tucked in malicious glee.

With how close they were, Giorno is now able to see what the man looked like even with the room's low lighting. He was a dark haired tanned man with a face full of beard, his eyes were brown like mud but the color barely seen because of his dilated pupils, the whites of his eyes tinged slightly with red. There's a hinge of hysteria in there, greed and another that Giorno couldn't identify, but it made him feel uncomfortable, so uncomfortable that he couldn't help but shudder in fear and disgust.

If Har—Giorno remembered correctly, Aria had once told him to keep away with people with the same look in their eyes, they were dangerous and much more towards children.

"What beautiful eyes you have." Giorno cringed away from the thumb stroking his cheek. It felt so wrong, extremely wrong, very unlike Madonna's loving touch.

"Gio…"

With the sound of her raspy and weak voice, Giorno whipped his head to look at his sister. She squirmed at the man's grasp but gave up after a few seconds, her gaze flickering towards him and then the man holding his chin. Her hazy seafoam eyes speckled with gold narrowed, a frown marring her red chapped lips.

"Let go of him." It was stated in such a commanding tone that surprised the men in suits.

"Sure thing, Tesoro."

And much to Giorno's horror the man repeated his actions towards a still weak Arianna, lifting her chin up and giving that disturbing stare.

"Mio Dio, what a lovely Angel you are. Truly wonderful. This gold woven hair," He let his hand card through Aria's golden curls, fingers inspecting the unusual orange-y tips. "This pretty, pretty face." Giorno agrees wholeheartedly with the man's observation but what he doesn't like is how the man's hand kept touching his sister. Its disgusting, like the man was observing a very beautiful doll that he wants to buy.

Aria is not a doll, no matter how much she looked the part, at this point, Giorno is contemplating if he should stab the man's eyes for looking at Aria like that or cut off his dirty hands that continued to touch her.

(The brutality of his thoughts surprised him a little bit, but is it really surprising to want to protect his sister? She is all that he has, and he would be angry at himself if she lets her get hurt again. Aria was always the one to shield him, shouldn't it be his turn now?)

Aria also looks incredibly disgusted and uncomfortable, her glassy eyes turning into a fierce glare as she tried to resist the hold on her chin.

"Let Aria go!"

"Oh, Aria was it?" His smile turned sleezier, almost a leer. His eyes still looking at Aria as if she was a very expensive jewel, like how Miya looked at every new man she would bring in their former home.

"A pretty name for such a pretty girl. And my, what exquisite pair of eyes you have, just like your brother."

"Let us go." She growled under her breath, it was a warning, the vague lines of Madonna loomed over the men before disappearing.

SMACK!

The sound of the backhanded slap rebounded across their tiny bedroom attic and it took Giorno a few seconds to process what just happened.

Aria slumped down, having passed out after taking the heavy handed hit, the rings that the disgusting pig was wearing left imprints on her cheek that was starting to redden.

"DON'T HURT HER!" In his anger, Giorno didn't noticed the golden glowing figure that appeared beside him for a second, the only sign it had been there was when one of the man's many golden rings turned into a fly.

He thrashed wildly on his captors hold.

"LET GO OF US! LET HER GO!"

The fly had gone unnoticed by everyone until it landed on Carlo's cheek and he swatted it away.

"Looks like I'll need to teach them a little, but I guess that's fine, they're high quality goods after all. Maurizio," Giorno still continued to thrash despite all of his limbs being locked to his sides, muscular arms squeezing him against an equally muscular torso.

(The man holding Giorno whispered something to his ears, but he ignored it in favor in watching the exchange before him.)

"It looks like I'll be taking your offer."

Much to Giorno's wide eyed horror, the despicable disgusting man handed Maurizio two wads of money from his brown satchel. Maurizio looked incredibly pleased with himself.

He sold us.

Giorno blanked out, his mind replaying the thought repeatedly and loudly.

HesoldushesoldushesoldushesoldushesoldushesoldushesoldusHESOLDUSHESOLDUSHESOL―

Giorno stopped thrashing, going boneless, his mind blocking out the conversation of the two awful greedy creatures. Both of them undeserving of the title a man, for what man could just talk about selling children so loosely?

Like they were just discussing the weather outside and settling where they would take a picnic.

Giorno withheld the instinctive tears from his eyes because they're useless. Incredibly useless.

He gritted his teeth and clenched his hands into a fist.

He feels useless. He can't even do anything on his own. Helpless.

(Uselessuselessuselessuselessuselessuselessuselessuselessusele―)

("No.")

A voice that incredibly sounded like Aria echoed in his head, shattering his train of thought.

("You are not useless.")

Something sparked within Giorno's eyes, the withering flame turning into a raging hellfire that will consume everything on its wake like a blinding newly formed star. Side-eying his unconscious sister, Giorno's resolve became resolute and then he glared straight on to the creatures. Useless examples of humans that they are.

("You're brilliant Gio, don't let anyone tell you otherwise, not even yourself.")

Giorno composed himself and observed. Because that's what Giorno is extremely good at. And he will adapt, like what his sister had taught him to. What he had to do.

("That's what the star on our backs represent, Gio. We Joest― don't waver, we don't give up, we overcome challenges, we adapt, we want, we dream, we achieve, we survive, we're brilliant, we're bold and we shine brightly with resolve at the face of adversity. We are stars, Giorno. Don't ever forget that. And don't ever let anyone tell you and convince you otherwise, not even yourself.")

Giorno will make sure that he and Aria survive this challenge life had given them. They'll shine brightly, untainted, like a star. Like the Sun.

No, that's not right, they'll swallow the Sun and be the Sun and not like the Sun.

They are, after all, are stars, running through their blood are a cosmos of star bits, burning, brilliant, luminous and right.

Because, what else could the star on their backs mean?

A/N: Hi, uhmmm... sorry if I hadn't updated for months. My mind wasn't in the right place, college, my own self and another relative dying had me forgoing this, I hope y'all can understand that.

Thank you for all the support and I couldn't thank you enough for all your encouraging words. I hope y'all are healthy and doing fine and I'm wishing you all the best for this year. I hope you enjoyed this chapter see you guys on the next update!