This is a collaboration between me and Eskarina.
Even if it was night and they had to rely on a few strategically placed lanterns and the full moon, the garden was still beautiful. They were too close to the city for the stars to be seen but far enough away for the vegetation to drown out the noise.
Jolyne had been there during her escape attempt, but it was not the same to see the thick groves, the romantic ruins, and the large pond while trying to appreciate it instead of hiding away in it. She was not used to seeing gardens like this; of course, Giorno's garden had its flowers and grass, but it was in an exuberance that was far removed from a normal orderly garden.
"So, where do you want me to start?"
Jolyne turned to him, thinking for a second. "Honestly, I don't really know all that much. If you could start from the beginning, that would be great."
Thus, Giorno began. He told her about a boy adopted by the Joestar family, then about stone masks and vampires. About the theft of a body and how a man who had not been human for a long time used it to continue doing evil and bringing about children into the world whom he did not care for.
"When you're ready, I will introduce you to a friend of your father's. Although, it might be strange even compared to what you're used to."
He told her about being 15 years old, having a dream bigger than him and finding a family, only to lose it soon after. From believing that he had fulfilled his dream to realizing that it was only the beginning of a life that he was not sure he could handle. About Dr. Kujo telling him about his father and what he was going to do to him if he happened to follow in his path. About Pucci and his words of greatness.
Once he had started to speak, he was sincere, which he rarely was, for he also spoke of being afraid. Being so scared that he had decided to turn to Pucci, hiding his fears. About his disappointment at discovering that this supposed family was... well, Donatello.
"Donatello... He murdered my great-grandfather, didn't he? I mean, it all happened really fast, but he mentioned something about Joseph at the swamp," she said, already guessing the answer.
"Pucci told us that Joestar blood could give us power. I ignored him since I've never cared for the whole thing... The only thing I was remotely interested in was about bringing people back, so I hadn't paid close enough attention to Donatello until it was too late."
Although he was unable to look at her, he reached out his hand without thinking to help her cross a small bridge that crossed a stream. Of course, before he offered his hand, she had already jumped the obstacle.
"Joseph Joestar was a brave man. I did not know him for more than a few minutes, but he died saving his daughter, a girl whom Donatello was going to kill without mercy. He was a hero to the end."
"Shizu..." she whispered. "I'm going to kill that bastard."
"There was another man, a Josuke. He was able to heal her in a jiff with his Stand," he clarified, trying to reassure her.
"I didn't even know that Gruncle Josuke had a Stand..." She sighed heavily as she leaned against the railing of the bridge. In the dark, she could not see too much. "I know they did it to protect me, but... it feels weird when thinking about it, that you know more about them than I do."
He didn't have to know Jolyne that much to notice that her blinking had increased in speed, trying to hold back tears that threatened to spill.
She had mourned the death of her great-grandfather long ago and the loss of her family alone many times. But it was as if she had wept for a lie and the new truth was even more painful, burning her inside. She felt like a crybaby lately, especially now that she couldn't actively fight. What could she do other than that? Fuck everything, if she needed to cry, she was going to do it anyway. Her tears fell with an angry pout.
"I don't want to cry anymore," she said with an angry sniff. "I feel like an idiot, but this is bullshit."
Everyone at Passione knew that Leone Abbacchio was a tough man who was used to making tough decisions. And now seeing Jolyne cry, Giorno understood why he ended up lending his phone to her to get in touch with her father. His instinct to protect her began to sound stronger than his instinct to possess her.
"I brought you here to keep you safe, but not only for you. Donatello is dangerous." She looked at him, giving her full attention. Her sobs reduced a little. "I told you that my Stand is the only one that can cancel his. He won't mind hurting or killing anyone who comes between you and him. I don't want him to do the same thing he did to Joseph Joestar, you understand?"
Of course, she understood, but that didn't make it hurt any less, although at least now she understood why she was crying.
"I understand, and I think I should thank you." She suddenly began to cry harder. "It's just not fair."
"It's not." Giorno had seen many tears in his life, many even caused by him, but few ever weighed him down as much as hers. "Please don't cry. Ogni tua piccola lacrima è oceano sopra al mio viso."
"What does that mean?" Jolyne said, looking at him curiously as she tried to wipe away her tears.
"It just means... Nothing, it doesn't mean anything," he said. She had already laughed at him enough for today.
"Oh come on, that's not fair." Her curiosity surpassed her sadness. "You know I don't speak Italian."
"Well, you can entertain yourself by learning, and then you will know what I said," he said, relieved that her sobs seemed to be coming to an end. "I learned as a child when my mother and I moved here."
At her curious gaze, he explained. "I am actually Japanese."
"I guess I should be surprised, but you've seen my dad, and he could have fooled me too." She chuckled. "Whatever you said must have been tremendously corny for you not to want to tell me, but I suppose I can entertain myself in finding out. Hell, I have more Italian blood than you. I guess most people don't know that you're half-Japanese, right?" Giorno confirmed with a gesture. "Gee, I feel like you know a lot about me, yet I don't know anything about you."
"I usually know more about everyone than they would like. It's just part of my job."
Getting an idea, he bent down and grabbed a handful of gravel. "Well, let me show you something. The power of my Stand."
With a golden glow, the small stones became fireflies that began to flutter across the surface of the lake.
"Donatello's power is to bring back what was. Mine is to create life anew."
"Cool, you can create life while string it is for me. What a great power, Jolyne," she said sarcastically, although the last part came out almost a whisper.
He was quiet for a moment as they watched the fireflies. "You've beaten quite a few Stand users and kept Donatello at bay by 'just making strings,' signorina. When I first got my Stand, I only knew how to make frogs. It took me a long time to figure out how I could heal people. They told me that you thought of sewing yourself up with your own stand when you were injured multiple times in a row. You're already strong, but you will be very powerful over time; you just have to learn to handle the Stand well. "
"I hope so because I really want to beat Donatello." She turned to him, her eyes reflecting the light of the fireflies and an expression of doubt that made her seem a bit helpless. "I've got to ask because this has been bugging me for a while, but what's Donatello's deal when it comes to me? I mean, you've made it clear to me that he's crazy and he's a monster, but he wasn't just talking about killing me."
"I don't know him all too well, but it's not all inside his head..." Giorno appreciated that the darkness obscured the color of his face, as a blush dusted his cheeks. "Joestar blood... It smells, well, delicious. Always. In your case, it has another effect." He sank a hand into his hair before continuing, feeling like he was going to die of shame. "Please don't think I'm anything like him. I wouldn't do anything to you against your will. But your blood's scent... It turns us on. A lot."
If Giorno had been able to look at her at that moment, he would have realized that Jolyne was blushing even more than he was.
"It's nothing personal, it's like..." He tried to describe it, and the words came on his tongue. "If I was a drug addict and you were my personal brand of heroin."
There was silence in which Giorno didn't dare look at Jolyne until he heard her giggle. When he turned, he realized that she was covering her mouth in a vain attempt to keep from bursting out into laughter.
"Sorry, but did you seriously explain something to me using a Twilight quote?" She started laughing and laughing, unable to stop. "I'm currently reading the book. Abbacchio laughed when he saw me buy it, but who knew you'd be a fan too?" She attempted to take a deep breath to calm herself. "I'm sorry, but you, a descendant of a real vampire, quoting Twilight is the last detail that has taken my sanity. I need to sit down."
Giorno motioned toward a bench and they went there to sit under the light of the stars and more and more fireflies. As for Jolyne, she couldn't stop giggling. He was thinking of creating some kind of insect when he looked in her direction and saw that there was a huge butterfly flying straight towards her. It landed right on the tip of her nose, her eyes brighter than fireflies.
It was only a few moments before it continued on its way on the night flight, but the expression of Jolyne, who was used to seeing things that could easily be labeled as magic, turned warm and sweet. She looked at Giorno as if to ask him if he had seen what happened too. Not only did his expression soften, but his heart felt lighter too.
Jolyne put her hands to her face and touched the spot where the butterfly had stopped with an expression of happy disbelief. Giorno was tempted to turn everything around him into butterflies, but he held back. Something told him that it was not going to have the effect that a real butterfly had. His subordinates loved her, and even the lepidoptera wanted to be near her. There was something sweet and pure about her, not in the puritan sense, but in the genuine one. He was sure that this had nothing to do with blood. She was a wonderful person who had spent all day in a luxury mall yet was genuinely happy to be the handle of an insect.
"Dude, that was a butterfly kiss."
"I may have quoted Twilight, but you are being incredibly cheesy right now."
"Well, it's your fault for living inside a fairy tale," she said, shrugging her shoulders, pretending to be upset. "Really, this is like a Disney Worldland but without the tourists, and people are instead dressed in expensive designer clothes."
"Well, this is Italy, the birthplace of fashion and fairy tales, signorina," he replied, feeling relaxed for the first time that night. Perhaps more relaxed than he had been in a long time.
"The fashion, maybe, but most of the stories come from northern Europe and the mythology is Greek," she replied, crossing her arms proudly. "I'm not ignorant, I know many things. Maybe not very useful information, but I know stuff.
"To be honest, I've already watched the Twilight movies," she told him in an act of trying to sympathize with him. "You know, the typical thing where you claim you're seeing it just for laughs, yet you just so happen to see each of them on the day of their premiere. Because I'm supposed to be a tough girl and all that. Also, I was obsessed with vampires." She stretched without any shame. "But as much as it destroys my image to say this, I'm gonna say it anyway. This is beautiful."
"Yes," said Giorno, unable to avoid staring at her. "Absolutely beautiful."
The look was so intense that Jolyne couldn't help but notice that it wasn't the lake, the garden, or the fireflies that Giorno was looking at. He was caught.
"I... I'm sorry," he started to say hastily. "I shouldn't... Shit. It's not that you're beautiful. I mean, yeah, but that's not what... It's the whole attraction to the blood thing. It's making me lose my mind. You make me feel drunk and I don't know what I'm saying. It's not because you're pretty." Giorno was horrified at everything he had just said. "I mean, even without the blood involved, you are beautiful."
"Actually, I also think you're pretty," she told him with an apologetic smile.
"You mean handsome, right?"
"No, I mean pretty. Even though you're tall and buff, you have lovely golden curls and a beautiful face," she said with a chuckle. "You're prettier than me, the pretty Disney prince."
"Handsome prince," Giorno said in a whisper, a bit annoyed.
"Well, that's your opinion, pretty boy."
"You're being mean." His eyes widened suddenly. He pointed at her accusingly. "I see now. That's how you're able to get along with Abbacchio so well. Do you know what he did to me when we first met?"
When he told her, rather than make her feel bad, the tea incident kept her laughing until her belly ached.
Normally, Giorno wouldn't like to be laughed at even when they were joking, but there was something about the sleepy Jolyne looking at him with the moonlight reflecting in her hair.
The way she laughed only made him want to hear that sound more. It was weird, but even though he felt the blood calling out to him, he didn't feel the same urgency. In fact, he was beginning to feel not only relaxed but at peace. Had he ever felt so relaxed with someone before?
Apparently, it was mutual, as Jolyne began to yawn. If he thought about it, with the night before and shopping with Trish, she had to have a considerable amount of stamina. He kindly told her that they should go to sleep and walked her back through the garden and the silent mansion. The hallway windows let in all the moonlight until they reached her room.
She stared at him one last time; it was easy to believe that he was the son of a vampire, with all his beauty glowing in the dark. It was a bit difficult not to stare at him sometimes.
They were going to say goodbye when Giorno noticed a leaf stuck in Jolyne's hair and asked her permission to remove it. When he released it, a curl went directly over her face. It was silly, she could have pushed it away, but nevertheless, he didn't think before he moved to tuck the curl behind her ear.
As he ran his fingers over her soft cheek, his hand couldn't help but linger. She stared at him with her huge green eyes, lips parted. Her lips seemed to be begging for something. At that moment, Giorno believed that he could never refuse her anything.
As she shut her eyes, he leaned in, moving his face closer. He heard a sudden sneeze and felt a breeze on his face before Jolyne scooted away. Without saying anything more than a hasty 'I'm sorry, good night', she fled into her room to take refuge in her bed, covering herself up to her head.
Giorno wiped his face, went to his room, and once safe within the walls of what was his sanctuary, he shouted every expletive he knew into a pillow.
Butterfly: I'm going to make her sneeze, MUAHAHAHA
