"Hermes. Hermes."
"Heh…" A sleeping Hermes groaned at the distraction.
"Hermes, wake up," Giorno asked as he lightly shook her shoulder.
"No, Dad. We don't even open till noon…" Hermes trailed on until she blinked her eyes open and spotted her blonde haired associate standing above her fully dressed. "Huh?" She muttered before looking at the clock on the wall. "What the hell, Giorno. It's barely 7:30. We still got 4 more hours till check out."
"Didn't you say you wanted to go to the breakfast buffet?"
Hermes's eyes shot back open after hearing that. Thoroughly convinced that early mornings might not be the devil, Hermes got out of bed, got dressed, and headed downstairs with Giorno.
The buffet held up to the high standard this hotel established for them. Eggs, sausage, bacon, pancakes, and biscuits galore, and Hermes happily filled her plate to its limits. She and Giorno filled up some cups with freshly squeezed orange juice before having a seat at an empty table for two. Hermes gleefully dug into her breakfast, and with the shlock that was served at Green Dolphin still steadily ingrained in her memories, she felt as if she was tasting a gift from the Gods above. A nice meal in a gorgeous environment, she felt her troubles easing up on her, until she remembered the company she was with.
"May I ask you something, Hermes?" Giorno asked in the middle of their meal.
Hermes stopped mid-bite, she expected their entire breakfast to be in silence like all their other meals. "Sure I guess."
"What did you do before working for the Speedwagon Foundation?"
Hermes figured Giorno wasn't the one for idle small talk, but the last thing she anticipated was any kind of personal question. She took a moment to think, and to even consider responding at all. "My dad used to have a restaurant, I just worked there off and on while I was in school."
"Used to?"
"...it went under. It's fine. Happens to most local small restaurants."
"I'm sorry to hear that. Did you have any other jobs in mind?" Giorno continued.
"I wanted to run cross-country and try to get a scholarship, no clue what I'd try to study if I did make it to college though." Hermes stopped talking to take a drink of her juice, all the while glaring down at Giorno. "Why am I willingly telling him all this? Guess after 2 days straight I'm familiar enough with this guy, even if he's an ass. But if he wants to all of a sudden get all personal, let's see how he likes it." Hermes finished her drink and wiped her mouth with her sleeve. "Well then what about you? Are you doing your dream job?"
Giorno finished his juice and patted his mouth with a napkin. "More or less."
"Eh?" Hermes wasn't expecting such a quick matter-of-fact answer. "You serious?"
"I had no other aspirations. I joined when I was 15."
"15!?" Hermes screeched. "What the hell? What kinda delinquent were you?"
Giorno thought back to the days where all he did was rip-off tourists and the occasional sly thievery. "I don't really think I was much of a delinquent. I may have pickpocketed from time to time, but I did my part in school and whatnot. I had to join up to get what I needed."
"But at that age? What did your parents think?"
"Good question," Giorno spoke with a tiny hint of scorn. "I might need to ask them one day."
Hermes shifted her eyes away from Giorno. "Okay," She thought. "Not touching that topic with a 10 foot pole. I can't believe this guy has been in the mob since he was a teenager. Are creeps like this just born this way? Yet I'm the one who ends up in prison while this guy seems to be all cozy. But he did say he was pickpocketing at that age, and I was doing armed robbery fresh outta highschool. I guess who am I to judge…" Hermes finished her plate and the pair headed back upstairs to grab their things.
After checking out, Giorno directs Hermes to a nearby parking garage. The parking structure on-ramp led them to the 2nd floor. "Head to the first floor."
"But the arrow is saying to stay on the upper floors."
"Trust me."
Knowing arguing will just give her a headache, Hermes does as she's asked and drives off the directed path and heads to the bottom floor.
"Park over there." Giorno picked a spot right beside an opening in the structure. The gap let them see clearly across the street, while still remaining obscured by the shadows even in the daylight.
"So, what are we doing now?" Hermes asked as she and Giorno exited the car.
Giorno unveiled his Stand once again, this time using its natural ability to float to reach all the security cameras and push them upwards. "That's better," He muttered before turning his attention back to Hermes. "We did our research on Wariano's most frequented locations for when he's by himself, and when he's with his organization. Since this city is so busy, there's several parking structures throughout the busy districts, and they make for perfect observation points. Lucky for us, the city directs all the traffic to the upper floors, only opening the first level on really busy days. Since today isn't a weekend and there's no big events happening, we don't have to worry about being caught while we stake out."
"If there's no big events today, how do you know he's gonna show?"
"Their day to day business is plenty to keep them moving. Only thing I'm not certain of is if they have him strictly in hiding, or if they're letting him walk."
Hermes rolled her eyes again. "Alright, well is there anything you need me to do?"
"This is the long part. Keep watch for Wariano if you can, if not just relax in the car." Giorno instructed. "We'll give it some time here, if he doesn't show we'll go to another structure."
"Don't have to tell me twice." Hermes left Giorno to his own devices while she returned to the car and put the seat back.
Giorno kept his eyes on three different buildings outside the structure while Hermes attempted to relax in the car. Her mind began to wander once more. "Come on, how long is this gonna take? If we're really just waiting to spot this chump this could take forever. Still, I guess it is a little cool being on a stake out. Being a detective, hunting down the perp and striking at the right moment. I'd make for a real badass…but considering who I'm with, am I really the good guy here? I don't even know the real reason we're looking for this guy anyway? If Giorno just needs to send a message, why can't he just tell anyone else in Grande's group? If only asking him questions wasn't such a damn headache. Still, even though he's an ass, he does have the serious act to make for a fantasy detective. I've seen too many movies I guess, but there's no shame in pretending."
After about an hour of nothing, Giorno asked Hermes to drive him to another parking structure. Giorno repeated the process with the cameras and found more buildings to keep his eye on. This time however, Hermes joined him in the stake out. Even though there were tons of people walking in and around the buildings, she couldn't deny the miniscule thrill she'd get when she'd see a man with a ponytail walk by. Her heart would skip a beat every time she saw a sleazy looking rotund man look a wee bit suspicious. There was something satisfying about believing she was doing good, even if Wariano Grande was nowhere to be found.
The pair moved to a third location, now with Hermes fully invested in the hunt. "Okay, where're we looking?" She asked.
Giorno turned his head in surprise at Hermes's investment in their job, but it helped put him at ease knowing she was helping. "That restaurant, that hotel, that coffee shop, and that alley between the cellphone shop and the coffee shop." Giorno pointed out all their spots for a potential Wariano sighting.
"I'll keep an eye on the alley and the coffee shop," Hermes stated proudly. "Not a single bastard's gonna escape my sight."
Hermes's enthusiasm was infectious, Giorno felt more motivated than ever knowing he wasn't at this alone. Giorno had forgotten what it was like to work in a team like this, and frankly, he also forgot how much he missed it. "I'll take the restaurant and hotel then. I hope those eyes are sharp."
"Sharp enough to poke your eyes out, Shorty," Hermes retorted, prompting a light laugh from both of them.
"You're welcome to try," Giorno answered back. Humor was never his strong suit, but after these past few days, being around Hermes actually let him let his guard down for a moment. A moment that wouldn't last.
"Oh we'll see about-" Hermes quickly quit talking when she noticed someone coming out from the alley. "Giorno, look." Hermes moved behind the concrete wall and pointed at the alley.
Emerging from the alley were three men. One in a black suit and sunglasses with greasy blonde hair standing in front of the other two, a brunette man in the back in street clothes carrying a large sweater, and in the middle stood a portly man with a thick mustache and long ponytail.
"Oh shit, that's him right?" Hermes asked. "Alright, what…now?" Hermes turned to her partner, and Giorno looked like a switch had just been flipped inside him.
"Gold Experience!" Giorno summoned his Stand and began digging through his bag. He pulled out a banana, dropped it on the floor, and touched it with Gold Experience. The banana quickly morphed into a tranquilizer rifle.
"What the fuck!?" Hermes immediately jumped back. "What the hell kind of Stand ability is that!?"
"Gold Experience lets me give life to any inorganic object, turning it into any organic object. Inversely, I can change it back into its original form," Giorno explained while he picked up the gun.
"That doesn't explain what you're doing with that gun!"
"This is for the men beside him, not him." Giorno spoke with irreverence, like a cold, heartless, demon. "This won't kill them, just incapacitate them. If we get Wariano on edge, we can follow him, and find out where he's hiding."
"Hey!" Hermes ran towards Giorno, glaring down at him. "You didn't say shit about any shooting. You said you needed to send a message to him once we find him and we found him. Go over there!"
"I'm definitely sending a message. A message to him and his entire organization. They should have never tried to touch my Passione."
"Your Passione? What the hell are you talking about?"
"Did they not tell you? I'm the Don of Passione, the biggest Familia in Italy."
Hermes couldn't believe her ears. This whole time she thought she was working with some lowlife wannabe grunt, now Giorno's saying he's the top man behind his whole mafia. "What the…that's bullshit! Why didn't any of them tell me!" She wasn't sure if she should be more pissed at Giorno or Jolyne's Dad, but Giorno was closer. "What are you trying to do?"
"I'm going to find out where he's hiding and get to him while he's alone, and once I have him I'm going to make him pay."
"Right this way, Mr. Grande," The blonde man in front of Wariano said. He started leading Wariano to the hotel, while the man behind him used the large sweater to cover Wariano's head. This movement prompted Giorno to get into position with his rifle.
Hermes's worst fears were coming to fruition. All it could take was one wrong move, one missed shot, one unfortunate bystander, one car driving in the wrong place, for some poor innocent soul to end up just like her, and just like Gloria. While Giorno positioned the rifle for him to take the shot, Hermes immediately grabbed the barrel and pushed it away.
"What are you doing, Hermes!? We're so close?" An annoyed Giorno replied.
"No one said shit to me about this being a hit!" Hermes shouts. "I'm not letting you drag me or anyone else into this!"
"What are you talking about?"
"I know your game and I know your type! Running your little gangster politics and not giving a damn about anybody else around! I'm not letting someone else get caught up in this bullshit! To hell with Wariano! To hell with the Speedwagon Foundation! And to hell with you!" Hermes roared. "Fuck him up, Kiss!" Hermes sends her Stand flying at Giorno.
"Shit!" Giorno dropped the rifle and had Gold Experience hold up its arms to block a barrage of strikes from Kiss.
While Kiss laid into Gold Experience, Hermes charged at Giorno. She swung her fist directly at his face, only for him to catch it with his hand, though grunting from the impact regardless. She tried her other hand and Giorno managed to catch that one as well. Gold Experience caught Kiss's punches as well, landing the Stands in the same position as the users. While Giorno was not a physically weak man by any measure and he was quick enough to catch Hermes's strike, he could feel that Hermes had the strength advantage over him. While in his grip, both Hermes and Kiss leaned their heads back and slammed it against Giorno's and Gold Experience's.
The impact of the headbutt knocked Giorno back, forcing him to let go of Hermes and nearly falling onto his backside. She followed up with another punch but Giorno side-stepped and jumped away from her. "Hermes, stop! I don't want to hurt you!"
"Just fucking see if you can!" Hermes sent Kiss to grab a cone beside their parking spot and launched it towards Gold Experience.
Gold Experience deflected the cone with a punch. "Muda!" Giorno shouted as the cone turned into a small hummingbird.
"Shit, that ability could be trouble," Hermes's mind raced to find a way to put Giorno in his place. "This lot is empty on this floor, there isn't much I can grab. Oh wait!" Kiss quickly headed for the wall and ripped a fire extinguisher from its glass case. Kiss placed a sticker on the extinguisher, giving her a blunt object for both hands.
"So that's her Stand ability," Giorno observed. "She can make copies of objects, I need to stay on my guard." Kiss began swinging the fire extinguishers at both Gold Experience and Giorno, forcing him to repeatedly step back. As Giorno retreated, he kept sliding Gold Experience's fingers on the ground, creating plots of soil around the lot. "If I can just get her in this spot." The flurry of swinging anti-Giorno's safety safety equipment pushed them to the opposite end of the structure. Giorno side-stepped her again leaving her back facing the wall.
"What's his deal? He's just retreating, he hasn't even thrown a punch." Hermes's attempts at closing the gap between her and Giorno continue to fail. "I gotta get him somehow." Kiss cocks back her duplicate extinguisher. "Eat this, Gangster Prick!" Hermes shouted before launching the extinguisher at Giorno's head. Giorno managed to avoid the missile-like fire extinguisher by just a hair, only for Hermes to rip off the sticker on the other one. The copy now returning to the original, it flung backwards and collided with Giorno's back, knocking him to the ground.
"Ack!" Giorno shrieked as he plummets to the unforgiving concrete floor.
"Yeah, you like that!?" Hermes roared as she approached her fallen foe. "This is the last time you drag anyone into your mafia bullshit!" Kiss cocked back its fist.
"Gold Experience!" Giorno shouted as his Stand touched the soil Hermes stood on and rolled away.
Kiss's fist cracked the concrete where Giorno's head once was, and then started feeling a sensation under their feet. Before she could react, Hermes became surrounded by long roots and branches sprouting out from soil beneath her. None of them pierced or even harmed her, but the force and hardening of the plants pinned her against the wall, keeping her trapped and unable to move. "What the, what is this!?"
"I figured you'd be tough, I didn't predict you'd come at me like that though." Giorno returned to his feet, attempting to stretch the pain out of his back.
"Let me out! I'm not finished with you!" Hermes's frustration and rage was insatiable.
Giorno may have stolen from women before, but he had never struck one, let alone killed one. Even when he had Gold Experience kick Kiss's wrist on the first day he felt uncomfortable about doing it. Even if he's a criminal, he still had a gentleman's code he lived by. "You've lost this fight, there's no reason to continue."
"Don't talk to me about reasons! I've got plenty of reasons to put you down!"
"I can't let you do that, nor could you."
"Shut up! What do you know!" Hermes began feeling desperate. She knew if she let Giorno go about the hit something terrible would happen to someone unrelated that doesn't deserve it.
Giorno turned his attention back to the tranquilizer rifle. "That bastard has it coming for trying to hurt someone close to me."
That statement struck a chord with Hermes. "He what?"
"I'm paying him back for what he tried to do to my closest friend." Giorno picked up the rifle and started heading back towards the car. "I'm sorry for lying to you, Hermes. You have been a real help here, but I have a job to do. I'm grateful for you and the Speedwagon Foundation's help, even if they're just paying me back what they owe me."
Hermes nearly pulled her braids out. "Can someone just tell me the truth already!" She started beating on the plants with her bare fists. "I'm tired of all this cryptic bullshit! Them owing you, why you're looking for this guy, I just want the truth damnit!"
Giorno stopped walking and turned back to Hermes. "Wait. You actually don't know, do you?"
"What was your first fucking clue!?"
"Well that explains why you were so willing to try to fight me." Giorno approached Hermes and used Gold Experience to remove her plant prison.
"What's that supposed to mean?" Hermes asked.
"It's because…" Giorno looked Hermes in the eyes. "...I'm the one who killed Pucci."