Chapter Seven

Kakyoin picked at his breakfast, and just the act of eating seemed to tire him out again so he napped after that. Apparently, his body needed the rest after his fever the night before. He didn't remember much, but he knew he hadn't had a restful sleep.

By the time he woke, his parents had left for work and Jotaro was sitting on his futon, reading. He glanced up, seeming to know as soon as Kakyoin woke up.

"Hey, can I get you anything?" Jotaro asked.

"I just need to get up," Kakyoin murmured resignedly.

Jotaro was on his feet, and walking over, offering a hand. Kakyoin reluctantly accepted his help, getting to his feet. His ankle was a little sore but not as bad as it had been when he had been surprised by it earlier. He gritted his teeth as he tested it, and took a cautious step.

"I think I can manage," he said, and would if it killed him.

Jotaro respected his decision and let him go.

It was slow going to the bathroom, but Kakyoin made the round trip without falling on his face so that was something. He sighed as he collapsed back onto his bed before glancing out the window. It was sunny and looked warm, the exact opposite of yesterday. He reached over to his desk to grab his sketch book and pencil case.

"I'm going outside. I can't breathe in here anymore."

Jotaro glanced up and stood, tucking the book he'd been reading under his arm. "Probably do us both good."

Kakyoin wasn't entirely upset with the thought of company, especially since Jotaro was quiet. They'd actually always been able to enjoy a lot of companionable, non-awkward silence together. Unlike when Kakyoin had shared a hotel room with Polnareff, who talked nonstop. He really did like the Frenchman, but sometimes he could exhaust Kakyoin's introverted soul as well.

Kakyoin took his usual seat on the bench, and it was warmed from the sun, the air fresh, and it actually felt revitalizing. Kakyoin breathed deep, letting it wash over him.

Jotaro sat in the shade under the tree, leaning against the trunk, as he continued to read.

Kakyoin flipped to a clean page in his book and opened his pencil case. He didn't really know what to draw, so he just started sketching whatever he was seeing, this being the clouds slowly moving across the blue sky.

It started out like that anyway, and he let his tired mind wander, soaking up the sun.

It took a bit for him to realize the shape his clouds were taking, and when he did, his lungs froze and he broke the tip of his pencil on the paper, leaving a small pile of graphite dust. He stared at the vague outline that had taken the shape of Hierophant.

Why could he not stop thinking about his lost Stand? It was over, he needed to get over it!

Fury tore through him at his inability to think of anything else and in a fit of rage, he threw the sketch book across the garden.

Jotaro's head snapped up. "Hey!"

Kakyoin buried his face in his hands, fingers digging into his scalp. "I can't do this anymore. I can't!" he shouted.

Jotaro was up, cautiously approaching him. "Kakyoin. Talk to me."

"Why do you even care?" Kakyoin demanded.

"Because you're my friend, you idiot!" Jotaro told him firmly. "And I want to help."

"You can't help me!" Kakyoin snapped, lurching to his feet, gritting his teeth against the pain in his ankle. "You don't even know! You have no idea what this is like for me! You got your Stand, what? Three—four months ago? I've had mine for years! And for years, Hierophant was literally my only friend. Do you have any idea what that's like? Being so alone and the only friend you have no one else believes exists, until you start to wonder whether you're crazy too?"

Jotaro simply stared at him, not speaking, hands shoved into his pockets. That just made Kakyoin angrier.

"And then I finally find people who are like me, who finally understand me, and then I lose the one thing that made me different, so I have nothing in common with my new friends either!"

"That's not true," Jotaro told him. "We will always have the shared experience. Friendship isn't dictated by being alike anyway."

"I'm sure you'd know," Kakyoin scoffed.

"Actually, I wouldn't," Jotaro finally snapped. "Why are you laboring under the impression that I have friends? I never had friends either. Maybe once upon a time I did, but not for a while."

"Please..." Kakyoin spat.

Jotaro's eyes flashed. "You think anyone wants to be friends with someone who has too much attitude, is too quiet, gets into too many fights—son of a dead-beat musician who walked out on his family?!" Jotaro snapped his mouth shut at the last one as if he'd said more than he wanted to.

Kakyoin looked away, biting his lip almost to bleeding.

"But yeah, you're right," Jotaro continued gruffly. "Compared to a loser like you, I had it made."

Kakyoin swung a fist at him before he even knew what he was doing. It slammed into Jotaro's jaw, and the force knocked his hat off.

"Ora!" Star Platinum appeared with a disappointed glower, already positioning himself between the two young men, though whether it was to stop Kakyoin or Jotaro, wasn't determined.

Jotaro wasn't looking at his Stand or Kakyoin though, who was panting and trembling in anger. He was staring, wide-eyed, over Kakyoin's shoulder.

"What?!" Kakyoin demanded.

Jotaro slowly pointed. "Kakyoin."

The back of Kakyoin's neck tingled suddenly and he turned. A wispy figure was hovering behind him, as pale and uncertain as a mirage, but there.

"Hierophant," Kakyoin choked out.

The Stand cocked his head to one side even as he faded. "No, wait!" Kakyoin cried, reaching out, but his fingers only touched air.

He was weak in the knees, trembling, and he collapsed onto the grass, trying to pull air into his lungs.

Jotaro strode over to stand beside him, tugging his hat back on. "I saw him too," he said simply.

"But…how?" Kakyoin demanded, worried this was just a dream. "I was sure…"

"I don't know," Jotaro said. "But he was definitely there."

Kakyoin wrapped his arms around his ribs as he willed himself to stop trembling. It really had happened, he told himself. Maybe Hierophant wasn't really gone after all.

Jotaro walked over to pick up Kakyoin's discarded sketch book and pencils and then returned to reach a hand down to him. "Come on, you shouldn't just sit there all day."

Kakyoin looked up at him a bit hesitantly. Jotaro sighed and tugged his hat down over his eyes. "I'm sorry I said that to you. I had to get you mad."

Kakyoin frowned as he grabbed Jotaro's hand and allowed the other boy to haul him up. "What? Why?"

Jotaro shrugged. "Had a suspicion. You were so convinced you had seen Hierophant yesterday and I wanted to know if I'd be able to as well. You were upset then, so I thought if I could get you mad again the same thing might happen."

Kakyoin stared at him for a long moment then snorted. "Now I feel bad that I hit you."

Jotaro's mouth turned up at one corner. "Nah, I probably deserved it."

"You really saw him?" Kakyoin asked quietly, choking on the words as his emotions flooded in.

"Yeah," Jotaro told him sincerely.

Kakyoin blinked and a tear fell from his eye which he angrily dashed away. He still couldn't seem to control his emotions.

Jotaro gripped his shoulder tightly. "Come on, I'm hungry. How about some lunch?"

Jotaro could already see the difference in Kakyoin as they sat at the table having a quick lunch. He looked like a bit of weight had been lifted off his shoulders and Jotaro, in turn, felt like some had been lifted off of his too.

"How did you know?" Kakyoin asked, nibbling at a slice of apple. "I didn't really think you believed me…not really sure I trusted myself."

"I did," Jotaro said firmly. "Every time you've ever said anything, it's turned out to be true. I figured you were the last person I'd expect to lose it."

Kakyoin snorted. "I'm not so sure about that. Especially after what you've seen this week."

Jotaro scoffed. "You realize I know the old man and Polnareff too. Next to them anyone would look sane."

"Thanks," Kakyoin muttered.

Jotaro cracked a very small smile. "I guess I didn't really peg you for suicidal."

Kakyoin put the half-eaten apple slice carefully back on his plate, looking down at his hands. "I don't know if you should be so certain about that either."

Jotaro glanced up at him, narrowing his eyes. "Really?" he asked cautiously.

Kakyoin wrapped his arms around himself as if he were cold or nauseous. Jotaro suspected both. "I don't know. When I woke up in the hospital, I…I kind of wished I hadn't. I felt like I'd been given a second chance after you pulled that fleshbud from my head. I was free of Dio's control and had the power to choose what I wanted to do, and I wanted to help save your mother and kill the monster responsible for making me feel worthless and weak. But when Dio defeated me so easily…and then when I thought I had lost Hierophant..." He bit his lip, hugging himself tighter. "I wished I hadn't woken up. Then yesterday in the pond, I could have gotten myself out if I had really tried but…I gave up. I thought I was insane and felt even more worthless. I don't know what would have happened if you hadn't come."

Jotaro swallowed hard, watching his friend struggle. "Look, I can't imagine what Dio put you through, but when he took you out back there, you still didn't back down; you used the last of your strength to tell us about Dio's Stand and because of that, I was able to defeat him. I never would have been able to do that without you."

"I think you would have."

"No," Jotaro said firmly, sitting up straighter. "I was scared shitless, I had no plan but to go in there swinging. In fact, the only thing that kept me going after I thought he'd killed the old man, was that I knew his Stand's secret. That's the only thing I had to hold on to. If you hadn't gotten the message across, Dio would have killed me and I never would have seen it coming."

Kakyoin looked down at his plate, arms still folded over his chest.

"And I think if you had gotten too far gone yesterday, Hierophant would have found some way to appear and save you."

Kakyoin finally looked up at him again. "You think?"

Jotaro nodded. "Yeah."

They were silent for a long moment, then Kakyoin said, "Why do you think I can't call him at will anymore?"

"Well, maybe he's healing too." Jotaro shrugged. "That's what I'm thinking. I started to wonder when I realized you could see Star Platinum still. At first, I thought it might just be residual, and we didn't really have anything to go off of but…then you said all that stuff at the pond and I knew I had to see if it was true."

Kakyoin nodded and managed a small, wavering smile. "Jotaro…thank you."

"Good grief," Jotaro muttered, tugging his hat down. "Are we gonna make this a chick-flick moment, because I will leave if that's the case."

Kakyoin snorted. "I'd rather not."

"Good." Jotaro stood up and extended his hand. "So, are we still friends, or what?"

Kakyoin looked up at him in surprise. "O-of course," he said and clasped Jotaro's hand, squeezing firmly.

"Good," Jotaro repeated, shoving his hands in his pockets. "Then how about you show me how that damned game really works?"

Kakyoin gave a genuine smile. "Only if you promise not to cheat—at least not until Hierophant is recovered. Then I'll show you how to win a game…without your grandfather's help."

"You're on," Jotaro said.

Kakyoin creamed Jotaro in every game they played but they both enjoyed themselves. They were still sitting on the floor, concentrating intensely, when Kakyoin's mother returned home from work. She knocked on the door and opened it, seeming slightly surprised and relived to see them both up and playing games.

"Noriaki! You're looking better."

Kakyoin turned to her with a smile. "I do feel better, mom."

Something passed across her face as her smile loosened, her lavender eyes twinkling.

"I got something special for you for dessert. I just have to go grab groceries from the car and I'll start on dinner."

"Let me do that for you," Jotaro said, standing up as Kakyoin glanced at his friend with surprise. Usually Jotaro didn't do anything unless asked.

But he understood as soon as Jotaro left the room and his mother came in, kneeling beside him and pressing her hand to his forehead.

"Mom, I really am fine," he said, but gently. "The fever's gone."

She smiled. "Yes, and you look…you just seem happier."

Kakyoin smiled genuinely. "I am. Jotaro helped me work some things out today and I feel better now, about everything."

His mother took his face between her hands and pushed his long forelock out of the way. "Oh, sweetie, I'm so glad you've made such good friends. I still wish you would tell me and your father what really happened, but I understand if you don't want to—and that's okay. I'm just glad to know that you're feeling better."

"I really am. I promise," he said softly and allowed his mother to pull him into a hug, pressing his face into her shoulder. He let out a long sigh and wrapped his arms around her in turn.

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw a long green and silver tail wrapping around his waist and his mother's and could feel Hierophant's comforting presence at his back. He smiled against his mom's shoulder and hugged her harder, burying his scarred eyes against her soft sweater.

"I'm just really glad to be back," he whispered to her, eyes wet.

His mother ran her fingers soothingly through his hair. "I'm so glad to have you back too, Noriaki."

He heard Jotaro walking back toward the room and pulled away from his mother, quickly dashing a hand across his eyes as his mom got up with one last stroke of his cheek.

Kakyoin stood up with only a little difficulty as Jotaro came into the room, a questioning look in his eye. Kakyoin just smiled, telling him that he was all right.

And for the first time in a long while, he actually felt like he was.

Kakyoin still wasn't very big on eating, but he ate more of his dinner that night than he had been lately, and then his mother brought out ice cream with the fixings for hot fudge sundaes, along with a whole bowl of cherries.

He grinned as he poured far too many onto his ice cream, and his parents laughed. Jotaro rolled his eyes and muttered under his breath.

And that night, when he climbed into bed, he wasn't as wary because he knew that any nightmares he had would be unfounded this time. Past trauma that could no longer hurt him.

And he did have nightmares—after all, he couldn't expect them to go away that quickly. This time it was Dio leaning close to his face, grinning wickedly as he shoved a hand through Kakyoin's middle, fingers clenching around his insides.

"It's useless, Kakyoin," the vampire whispered, breath hot on his ear. "You'll never escape me, not really. And what can you do now? Without a Stand, you're no better than a pitiful rabbit."

He raised a foot and kicked Kakyoin in the chest so he flew backwards, his insides, the color of Hierophant Green, streaming out of him. He was falling, falling…

Kakyoin jerked upright with a gasp, biting back a grunt of pain as his injury pulled at him. Gulping in ragged gasps and cautiously clutching his middle to find if he was still together, he looked up and saw not only Star Platinum sitting in the spot he had taken up in his vigil, but Hierophant as well, a little wispier than Jotaro's Stand, but definitely there, watching with concern.

Jotaro's blankets stirred and his voice came through the dark. "Kakyoin?"

"I-I'm fine," he said, voice getting stronger as he went. "Just a dream."

He saw Jotaro glance over at the two stands, smiled a little and laid down again.

Kakyoin also slumped back into bed. Recovery may not be entirely easy, but he was getting there. One step at a time.

Jotaro strode into Kakyoin's room to find his friend perched, cross-legged, on the bed, his sketch book in his lap.

"Hey, your mom gave me this for you. You got it in the mail," Jotaro said, tossing Kakyoin the envelope he had been holding.

Hierophant appeared and caught it before it fluttered to the ground and Kakyoin reached up and took it from his Stand. "What is it?"

"It's from Polnareff," Jotaro said.

Kakyoin opened the letter and pulled it out, reading for a second before he smiled and shook his head. "Seems like he's already getting himself into trouble. But he sounds good. Better than I remember him being when he left the hospital." He finished the letter and handed it to Jotaro. "Says he's planning a visit with Mr. Joestar."

"It will be good to see him again," Jotaro said, shoving his hands in his pockets. "Look, I've been thinking. I kinda need to get back home."

Kakyoin looked up, a little sad but with a smile. "I understand. I'm sure your mother misses you."

"Yeah," Jotaro rubbed a hand against the back of his neck. Truth be told, he kinda missed her too. "You're gonna be okay if I leave, right?"

Kakyoin smiled. "I think I can manage. I would like to have my room to myself again. Hierophant will keep me company. He's getting stronger every day."

He was too. Jotaro and Kakyoin had taken to going to a spot under an old overpass a few blocks away and training with their Stands. Hierophant was growing more and more solid as Kakyoin recovered more fully as well. Which is why Jotaro felt that he could go back now, no longer worried about his friend's recovery.

"Good," he said. "I guess I'll be heading back tomorrow, then."

Kakyoin nodded.

Jotaro wasn't entirely sure he wanted to go back to normalcy yet, but Kakyoin was only a short train ride away, and once Polnareff came to visit they would likely be obliged to take the Frenchman sightseeing. That would likely be a time and a half, but he found he was kind of looking forward to it too. Jotaro had never really had friends to do anything with, and it was kind of nice.

The next day, when he was packing his stuff, he found the polaroid again and looked at it for a long time before he crossed over to Kakyoin's desk and tacked it onto the cork board above it. He figured he needed it more than Jotaro did right now.

He slung his bag over his shoulder and went out to the front room, hurrying to catch a ride with Mr. Kakyoin who had promised to take him to the train station on his way to work.

"Thank you so much for coming, Jotaro, we'll miss you," Kakyoin's mom said, giving him a hug and a kiss on the cheek.

Jotaro tugged his hat down over his eyes. "It was no problem. I'm sure I'll be back at some point."

"You're always welcome," she assured him, squeezing his hands before finally letting him go.

Jotaro turned to Kakyoin. "See you soon?" the redheaded boy asked.

Jotaro shrugged, holding out his hand. "Anytime."

Kakyoin clasped his hand and then surprised him by yanking Jotaro forward into a firm embrace. "Thank you," he whispered before he pulled away.

Jotaro snorted. "Good grief, maybe I should stay if you're gonna act like that."

Kakyoin snorted, and handed him a roll of paper. "Here. Remember to think of some places we can go when Polnareff visits."

Jotaro smirked. "Yeah, I will."

He followed Kakyoin's father out to the car and then when they got to the train station, endured another round of thank yous and a handshake. He tugged his coat around his firmly as he paid for a ticket and got on the train. Once he found his seat, he sat back, looking out the window.

It was then that he remembered the roll Kakyoin had handed him and he reached into his pocket where he'd stashed it and pulled it out.

It was a sketched representation of the polaroid but with all their Stands in attendance too, standing protectively at their backs. Jotaro smiled and rolled it carefully back up before tucking it into his bag and tipping his head back to look at the early morning sun.

He began to think that maybe things would actually get better after all.

Thanks for reading! If you enjoyed this, I have more to come! You can also follow me on Tumblr (at: lady-wallace) I do writing updates, and also take fanfic requests and commission on Ko-fi (You can also just stop by and say Hi! ^_^)