Welcome, everyone. At long last, I am proud to reveal and to publish a story I have been working on for a very long time. This is a story that means a lot to me, and one I pour my passion and love into hoping to achieve something great. I sincerely hope you enjoy reading it! Having never released it publicly before, only through private conversations with friends who helped give me feedback and advice, I thought the best place to do it for the first time is here, on Thriller Bark. I am very humbled and thank you all for taking your time.
Now, some of you may be confused. So here are some Frequently Asked Questions before we get into it, baby.
My gift to Chris:
Why to read Vertigo
Sitting in my chair while fire crackles in the fire place i took it upon myself to read this work from Christina Mack. I prepared myself a tasty cappuccino, turned on some JoJo music and started to read. And if may use the quote of Jean Pierre Polnareff it is quite très bien. If you are aren't a fan of JoJo just what the fuc..... doesn't matter because this story is more about ones journey to find their identity and life than it is about regular JoJo thematic. Story begins where part 4 ends - discovering an invisible baby, baby taken by the Joestar household to raise as their own. Baby that grows into the girl that has troubles deciding who she is, where does she belong and what is her future. Growing up hearing stories about Joseph , Josuke and Jotaro she can't but feel her life has more to offer than going to school. She wasn't born as a Joestar but she was raised as one , and as such she believes she deserves Joestar like adventure or rather Joestar like life.
If you are someone that at one point in their life thought about who they are and where they belong - you could probably find other works besides Vertigo but what makes this story stand tall is that it just spells adventure - adventure filled with fun and sadness. It is not just a journey of self discovery , it is also a journey of adventure - one can say BIZARRE ADVENTURES.
So yes, turn on some JoJo music, take 30 minutes of your life to read Vertigo. Maybe you can discover something about yourself in the process.
FAQ: #1 - What is Vertigo?
Vertigo is a story I came up with in the Summer of 2016. From then on it developed more and more and more until it became a passion project, one I am putting more focus on than any other personal project I've ever worked on. It is a story that takes place in the JoJo's Bizarre Adventure universe, the one from parts 1 through 6. It follows the story of Shizuka Joestar, the invisible baby from Part 4 that was later adopted by the Joestar family. We begin in 2012 coastal Japan, but in due time we will travel the world, as Shizuka is in for a Bizarre Adventure that will change her life forever, baby.
#2 - Do I need to have watched/read JoJo's Bizarre Adventure to read this?
No! You do not! Vertigo is a story that takes place in the JoJo universe, and pays homage and reference to many JoJo things as well as functions very similiarly, as I try to channel my inner JoJo-esque writer. However, you NEED NOT have experienced the series before this. Rules, characters etc. are explained briefly so you can keep up seamlessly. And for those familiar, you'll get a lot out of it. My writing is very different from Hirohiko Araki-sensei and while I do my own spin on JoJo-related things, this is a very personal story, baby.
#3 - How often will chapters release?
I will release a chapter of Vertigo every 2 weeks. In the meantime every new chapter will be posted in this thread and threadmarked so you can easily follow the discussion of each. The discussion, yes! I would really like to hear what everyone has to say! I invite you all to comment and engage, baby!
#4 - Vertigo is a series, so will it be long?
Oh yeah. Vertigo will be pretty long. This is a story I plan a lot of chapters for. But you must enjoy long-running series, right? I mean... here on Thriller Bark we have sections for One Piece, My Hero Academia, and follow a lot more long-running ones too! Hopefully you enjoy the ride, baby.
#5 - Why should I read Vertigo?
So this is the part where I explain what I offer with my story, huh? Well, here goes nothing. Vertigo will provide you with a lot of humor, action, real yet quirky characters, scenes you will want to immerse and imagine yourself in, but you will also meet distinct personalities, convictions, story arcs and bizarre but intense plots and story progressions, taking you from the quiet suburbia of coastal Japan to the dangerous slums of Paris, or the hidden headquarters of evil lords. Musical aesthetics, vivid fights and tragic tales, all presented with liveliness despite a written format. Through the eyes of Shizuka Joestar and her companions, you will experience a Bizarre Adventure you never thought you would. And perhaps... you will find deeper meanings to appreciate as well. Step right in, baby.
#6 - Any last words?
That's... a dreadful question. Like you're about to kill me or something! But yes, I do have one last thing to say. Vertigo is a story of discovery. What does that mean? Well... I invite you to follow me on this journey and find out for yourselves. However long it may take... Shizuka Joestar's journey and her crew will keep you company for a long time. Finally... I do not claim to be a great writer, perhaps not even a good one, as this is a hobby and any professional writer can probably tear apart the way I write. But it's a passion project from the heart and it's my wish that you will love reading it as much as I love writing it. And it's important to do what you love, baby.
This is a story of discovery. Finding one’s place in the world is no easy task. Everyone goes on an adventure in search for their true purpose. Everyone embarks on a journey seeking answers. However, not everyone ends up reaching that adventure’s conclusion.
This is a story of discovery.
Chapter 01: Shizuka Joestar! The Next Inheritor!
The year is 2012. It’s been 13 years since peace was brought to this wonderful town, after its lifelong nightmare had been brought to justice. For most people, the years passed like any other decade.
For some though, their unusual lives continued at a steady pace.
This is the town of Morioh.
Located in Japan’s M Prefecture, S City. A town off the coast, home to many admired landmarks, and a place with rich history.
This is where our story begins.
ABBA High School, Principal’s Office – 11:40 am
A peculiar figure is seen sitting on their computer. Seemingly busy, the tall person is seen signing papers and printing copies of something. Perhaps examination report papers? This is a school after all.
In the same room, in the corner, a similar figure, though noticeably shorter, is seen punching values into a document in the computer. Seemingly dedicated to his work, he doesn’t even notice the frantically moving person, obviously being worked up about something, instead focusing on carefully carrying out his task.
Suddenly, loud steps are heard from the hallway, catching the attention of the two individuals, who look at the door, as it is suddenly opened by another person, a teacher. His glasses seem to be broken, still on his face, almost shattered. His business suit is a mess, and he is wet from head to toe. Wearing an angry expression, he remains at the door, until moving towards the taller person in the room, clenching his teeth.
Teacher: Mr. Gimme! Principal Gimme: Let me guess. Again?
The Principal sighed, his strange hair moving along.
Teacher: Indeed. That little twerp can’t give me and the others a break! I am confident it’s high time you took action! Time you saw to it personally, sir!
Principal Gimme sighed again, quieter this time, realizing he had to deal with an angry teacher. Again.
Principal Gimme: Can’t you see I’m busy? If I don’t have all the papers printed out by next period, the students won’t have enough time to complete their test because of schedule restrictions! Teacher: Well, if she isn’t taken care of though, then perhaps there might not even be a test at all! Principal Gimme: …Hey you look awful. Want a towel? Teacher: … Principal Gimme: ...? Teacher: Sir, with all due respect, I don’t think you realize the gravity of the situation. Principal Gimme: I’ve been overseeing the students’ education since elementary school. I believe I know well enough how truly important the situation is, taking everything into account. Teacher: Still, this can’t keep happening! I’ve lost two costumes this week, sir! This is the second one. Principal Gimme: Again, I can ask Mr. Hirose over here to tend to your problems as soon as he finishes evaluating the grades!
The figure on the computer, hearing this, turned his chair enough to be able to look back to the two men.
Koichi Hirose: That’s not a problem, I can help out now! Principal Gimme: Thank you, Mr. Hirose! Koichi: Actually… why don’t you take a break, sir? I’ll replace you in the lecture until further notice, Mr. Fernando. I’ll keep the kids in check, they know me well. Principal Gimme: Ah, excellent! Mr. Fernando: Very well… thanks for the consideration, Mr. Hirose!
Koichi Hirose left his duties to attend Mr. Fernando’s classroom lesson. Always willing to help, it’s not a surprise the students greatly respected him.
What was the issue the teacher was talking about though? Whatever it was, there was never a task too hard for Counselor Hirose to deal with.
Class 1-A. A nostalgic sight for Koichi, this is where his old friends used to attend class. "It sure takes you back…" the counselor thought to himself.
Not to mention how it had barely changed facility-wise since 1999, it was Koichi’s favourite place in the whole school.
As he pressed his hands onto the door for it to open, he could sense something was not right, instinctually. Not like a shiver or a chill in his spine, but an off-putting sensation. What is it that makes him feel uneasy right now?
The door opens.
Nothing.
Koichi: (Must have been my imagination. Whatever it might have been, I need to take care of this for Mr. Fernando.)
‘’Good morning, class!’’ said Koichi in a cheerful voice to an orderly class of about 20 or so students. With joy in his speech, he and the class exchanged greetings, which Koichi then returned the favour to with a smile.
Koichi: Unfortunately, your teacher, Mr. Fernando had to take a break. I’ll replace him for the remaining time in this period! No need for a rollcall, I’m pretty sure everybody is here…
The counselor picked up the rollcall notebook to check what Mr. Fernando had written on it, just to make sure that all students were present.
Koichi: Hm? It says in the notebook that everyone was present at rollcall, all 21 students, but I see just 20. Was one of you excused? Student: No, Mr. Koichi! Everyone is here, alright!
A giggle was heard among the students upon that statement.
Koichi: Weird, if everyone is here then… oh... Students: *muffled snickering* Koichi: Let me guess--
A bucket of water fell on Koichi’s head, from the top of the writing board, soaking him, much to his discomfort.
Koichi: …
The entire class burst into laughter. "NICE HAT, MR. HIROSE!" said one of the students, leading to the increase of laughing. In Koichi’s mind, he was pretty happy to see all the students enjoying themselves, but the feeling of embarrassment and slight frustration couldn’t be neglected.
Koichi: Shizuka Joestar.
The empty student seat at the very back of the class suddenly wasn’t so empty. A figure started to form, seemingly out of thin air, slowly bleeding into existence. The form was of a girl, laughing harder than all the other students in the classroom, with a smug expression worn on her face, accompanied by a triumphant smile.
‘’Ms. Joestar, I don't mean to show disrespect but don’t you find this a little insulting?‘’ said Koichi, his voice attributing a more serious tone than before.
Shizuka: Hey, this is a record! I’ve never pranked more than one teacher this way before; can you really blame me for an honest attempt?
The class broke into even harder laughter, but that was where the line was to be drawn.
Koichi: That’s enough!
But the class couldn't shake off the joyous laughter.
Koichi: I said [THAT’S ENOUGH!]
Suddenly the entire class went silent, feeling Koichi’s loud command echo inside their ears, as if he was right next to them.
Koichi: This is the last time you do something like this, Shizuka. For some reason you’ve been repeating your offences over and over lately! Are you asking to be expelled? Not to mention, endangering the use of your... Shizuka: Of course not, Mr. Hirose! I just thought… those pranks were the right thing to do. It’s not our fault Mr. Fernando’s lesson is so booooooriiiiiing~ Koichi: No matter how you see it, the truth is that you’re crossing the line with your offences. I’ll be forced to call your parents if you keep this up. Shizuka: Okay, Mr. Hirose…
Shizuka obeyed Koichi, her smug expression still not leaving her face as she lowered her head into her palms on the desk.
Koichi: Very well, let’s continue the lesson now--
And the doorbell rang.
*R I N G !!*
Koichi: Alright then, I guess that was it. Have fun, everyone! Dismissed!
Shizuka swiftly ran out of the class faster than anyone, jumping out of her seat excitedly, as if she was running a marathon. She ran past the counselor with fleeting precision and went for the yard to meet with her best friend, an exchange student named Bonnie Tyler. The only one she entrusted everything to, and a faithful and loyal companion since elementary school.
As she finally came face to face with Bonnie who was waiting outside of her class at the lower floor, The only thing on Shizuka’s mind was how she was going to get her next prank in play, ignoring Counselor Koichi’s orders.
Her name was Shizuka Joestar.
Bonnie Tyler: Shizu-chan! That was real mean of you, from what you're saying…
Age 16, foster daughter of Joseph Joestar.
Shizuka: Oh c’mon! You have to admit that was cool though! I managed to drop 2 buckets in one day, hell, one period! Bonnie: Hmm.......You know what? You’re right, that was pretty cool!
Real name is unknown, and all attempts to find who she belonged to when she was found in 1999 resulted in failure.
Bonnie was Shizuka's best friend; she had been her closest one since elementary school. A regular teenage girl sporting a single hair bun and vivid eye pigment. Even though her almost too normal looks and behavior for a schoolgirl is something Shizuka disliked about people, Shizuka really treasured her.
Shizuka and Bonnie giggled together on their way outside, exchanging comments about the latest period as they had a stroll.
Bonnie: …But aren’t you a little worried? You might get expelled, up until now your pranks were far and few in between, but you seem to be asking for a punishment… Shizuka: Nah, you know me! I would never do something too risky. Bonnie: If that’s the case, then I must not know you, cause you always go for the riskiest possible approach, haha! Shizuka: So what? If I can’t enjoy my life in this school, then what’s the point? All I wanna do is have some fun, that is all, hah! Bonnie: I’m a little jealous to be honest… you are so carefree, don’t your parents lecture you about all of this? You even got that silly-looking tattoo a month ago, is such rebellious behavior just--
Shizuka suddenly stopped walking and stayed still, putting her hands on her sides, looking at Bonnie straight in the eye through her black shades.
Shizuka: Hey. Don’t you tell me anything like that about my tattoo again. You know how much it means to me, don’t you? Bonnie: Fine, fine... sorry...
The young woman rearranged her school uniform, to proudly show her tattoo. She really did treasure it. A pink star located on the collarbone area of her left shoulder.
Bonnie: But, well… you do seem to at least be getting more popular because of this! I heard that 12th grader, Billie Joel, is liking your attitude lately~ Shizuka: Billie Joel? Really?! HAHA! YES! I… uh…
Shizuka wiped a droplet of sweat from her forehead with a finger before letting out a deep breath. ''No it’s okay, I understand, Shizu-chan!'' said Bonnie as she blushed with a smile.
============================
ABBA High School was a great place to be. The facilities hadn’t changed a whole lot since 1999, other than more treelife being planted and pathways between elementary, middle and high school decorating the school’s atmosphere. A beautiful place for teachers and students alike, with unique opportunities for all interests, such as sports activities, reading, acting, a multitude of clubs to take part in and even a swimming pool. The environment was great for everybody.
However, even wonderful places like this have some ugly features hidden underneath.
Somewhere close by, someone was watching the two girls. A tall figure, dressed in black, lighting a cigarette. Wearing a school uniform under the large black trench coat, it looked like a student, a 12th grader. Behind him hide similarly-dressed boys, all of who looked like really tough delinquents.
The taller of the bunch, probably the ‘’boss’’, finished his smoke before leading the bullies, stepping forth from the dark corner from the school yard’s back and going for a closer look at the two girls. His intimidating charisma inspired some members of his gang to follow along, while others calmly observered them from a distance, very carefully.
After a little bit, the leader had come forth, menacingly reaching the two girls.
Shizuka: … Bonnie: What are you looking at? Shizuka: Hey, Bonnie… Bonnie: Yes, Shizu-chan? Shizuka: You know those guys? Bonnie: Uh... no, I don't… Shizuka: Then why are they coming over here?
Bully: Hello there, freshmen. Shizuka: Hey.
A silent moment deafened the atmosphere before the leader of the delinquents decided to speak.
Bully: How are you liking the transition to high school so far? Is everyone treating you well? Shizuka: You kidding me?! Everything’s so fucking cool! Bully: Really? Is that so… Bonnie: Shi... Shizu-chan, I think we should get going… next period is about to start and we’re really gonna get in trouble if we’re late… Bully: Oh, really? That’s ok then, don’t let us occupy your time. Responsibility is the number one priority, after all. Shizuka: Whatever you say, I guess. Bully: However… as far as responsibility is concerned...
Suddenly, the bullies grabbed Shizuka and Bonnie in one fell swoop, before quickly dragging them into the dark corner where they were hiding, meeting the rest of the gang. In the vast main yard of the school, no one really noticed this awful act.
Bonnie: Shizu-chan!! Bully: You are also ‘’responsible’’ to explain yourself to me!
Bonnie was panicking, being pinned on the wall by two of the bullies, hurt by them because of their strong grip and scared for her friend’s and her own life.
Shizuka, managing not to lose face, remained adamant, as she showed an annoyed face to the delinquents.
Shizuka: Hey! You guys are pissing me off now, what’s this? Bully: I’ve been hearing a lot about you lately, little girl. You’ve been taking attention away from me and my pals over here… Shizuka: What? Oh… oh I get it, you don’t like me being the hottest thing in ABBA right now, huh? Bully: Good, you’re catching on, perhaps we’ll end this faster than I thought. Bonnie: …*gulp* Shizuka: So? Bully: So… how about a deal? You decide to know your place and cut that prankster crap, and I don’t bash your head and ruin your pretty face. Then, balance will be restored on our turf. Shizuka: Bash my head in? Wow, no respect at all. What did I ever do to you? Bully: Yeah, alright. Just answer me. Do we have a deal? Or…
The bullies behind started pulling out knives from the pockets of their coats, and their leader pulled brass knuckles out of his left pocket before putting it on his dominant hand. Bonnie was shocked beyond belief, left panicked and speechless as one of the bullies pointing his knife towards her face, coming closer and closer.
Shizuka: How about we let the people decide? After all, everyone seems to be enjoying me more. I am just more entertaining. Isn’t that a sign you should… you know. Move along and accept the times have changed? Bully: You tryna fuck with me, you little shit?! Shizuka: But don’t get me wrong, I do think you’re pretty funny too. I mean, this entire time it's been difficult for me not to burst out laughing just looking at you! Bully: Bitch! I’ll show you your place!
Shizuka, unafraid of the punch coming straight to her face, kept smiling.
Bonnie: …! Shizuka: ARA!!!
Bully: AUGHHH!!!
As if an invisible punch, many times stronger than the brass-knuckled one of the delinquent, punched him straight in the face, a loud cracking noise was heard and he fell down, bleeding intensely from the nose. Immediately putting his hand on his face in pain, he started to wonder what had just happened to him, and why there was blood on his clothes.
Bullies: What the fuck!!? Bullies: HOLY SHIT! Bullies: You little...!! Bullies: Wait a minute?! Where did she go?! Bonnie: Huh…!!! Bully: Where did your bitch friend run off to?! I was going to end her!
The brass-knuckled delinquent made his underlings back off as he approached and threatened Bonnie, getting blood on her from his nose, resulting in Bonnie being even more paralyzed, struggling to even make a noise.
Bonnie: I-I… I… Bully: Where is she, answer me! Or I'm gonna splatter your head all over-- Bullies: Boss! Bully: What the fuck is it now?!
The bully’s clothes had flown off, leaving him only his heart-patterned underwear.
Bullies: Boss! Y-Your clothes!
‘’What?!’’ he exclaimed, too pissed off to feel embarrassed about getting humiliated.
Bully: How did this happen... ???: Now THAT'S not appropriate school uniform… Bully: Where are you!? ???: ARA!!!
A glow started to shine from the bully’s pants, and suddenly, blow after blow of the buttons keeping the bully’s underwear together flew with extreme force into his face, hitting him forcefully out of nowhere on his weak nose. The bully fell unconscious as his brass-knuckled hand loosened up.
Shizuka: He-he-hey…
Shizuka’s figure started to form again, in front of the bullies, out of nothingness. Between the incomprehensible event they had just witnessed and their boss' unconscious body on the ground, they weren't left with too much to say.
Bullies: DUDE WHAT THE FUCK!? Bullies: PLEASE DON'T HURT US! Bullies: LET’S GET OUTTA HERE!!!
The delinquents, horrified at what they had just witnessed, made a run for it, exiting the school premises, using the dumpsters to jump off the wall and the fence gate as fast as possible.
Shizuka: Eat shit, baby.
Bonnie: Shizu-chan!!
Bonnie shouted loudly before falling into her best friend's embrace, bauling her eyes out. Before being able to utter a word, the shock got to her as she fell to the ground, unconscious, just like Shizuka’s latest trophy.
Shizuka tidied her school uniform and left the bully unconscious in the back of the school yard, where he would get noticed... eventually. She didn’t spare the bully another look or thought.
Taking Bonnie in her arms, the young woman noticed they were late for class, and made her way towards the nurse’s office with a cartoony sprint.
This is Shizuka Joestar, a foul-mouthed, ill-mannered girl, foster daughter of Joseph Joestar. She is a rarity among other people. She can become invisible. You see, she possesses what is known by very few people as… a ‘’Stand’’.
‘’This is my story. A story of discovery…
This might sound a little cheesy but…
I think it’s pretty cool.’’
Just like an invisible hand, pushing you forth when you need it most…
Like the ever-glowing Sun lending you its bright light to move forward…
Like a disorienting vertigo, waiting for you to utilize it to your advantage…
Our story begins.
I've yet to be sold on Shizuka, but I'll be here to witness the greatness that's yet to unfold- I am tempted to @ you up there , there but it's a fight I'm not willing to take.
Space Alien when?
I've yet to be sold on Shizuka, but I'll be here to witness the greatness that's yet to unfold- I am tempted to @ you up there , there but it's a fight I'm not willing to take.
Space Alien when?
Morioh, a town of brilliance. It is in a town like this, where people from all walks of life can be found. The funny, the curious, the majestic… and the eccentric, as well.
It is in a town like this, where ‘’weird’’ doesn’t quite cut it. That remains especially true for a special kind of people.
It is at a town like this, where Shizuka Joestar’s life doesn’t seem to be getting a break right now.
ABBA High School, Principal’s Office – 12:35 pm
Principal Gimme had just entered the room. At first glance, he was happy to see everything was still in place. The painting he had brought from home still on the wall, the computer opened to the website he had left it at last period, his little bag of walnuts he snacked on left untouched, delighted at the sight of a stress-free welcome into his office.
That is, until he looked at the chair in the right corner of the room, on which Shizuka Joestar was sitting. Letting out his loudest sigh of that week (so far), he sat down in front of his desk. In that moment, Koichi Hirose opened the door, an angry expression on his face, much to Principal Gimme’s dismay, realizing the very real possibility of more work.
After a brief moment of silence, Koichi decided to break the quiet atmosphere.
Koichi: Mr. Gimme?
Principal Gimme: I know. At this point it’s routine, just tell me what you deem appropriate. Detention? Suspension? A formal warning? Koichi: Mr. Gimme, this is… um… a little more complicated.
Principal Gimme snapped a quick glance at Shizuka who was gazing off into the void, and stared for a few seconds, before coming up with his reply.
‘’Very well’’ the Principal said, taking a more serious expression to talk to Koichi. ‘’Fill me in, Mr. Hirose’’.
Koichi: I’m sure you’re aware of the incidents of last period. Mr. Fernando had to come here to inform us of the… predicament. Gimme: Yeah, yeah. He was soaked. That alone is not enough, you know. Koichi: Indeed. And that’s why I’m here to inform you of 12th Grader, Kamikuro Yami’s horrible condition. He was found beaten up, his nose broken, and his clothes torn off. Not to mention, a knife was found close to him.
Taking a quick glance at Shizuka once again, Principal Gimme looked back to Koichi, starting to sweat nervously.
Gimme: Hey! You’re not implying that... Koichi: Well, unfortunately I can’t confirm otherwise. Ms. Joestar refuses to speak. Me and the council were hoping you could talk to her. Gimme: …Understood. However, if all of you couldn’t convince her to talk, I don’t think I’m gonna have an easy time getting to her. Shizuka: Principal Gimme-- Gimme: Oi! Koichi: ... *sigh*
As Koichi saw that the situation was finally under control, he returned to his post back on the computer, filling in more paperwork and printing a brochure.
Shizuka looked at the Principal and smiled. Shizuka had known Gimme for a long time, since she was in Elementary School. Since Gimme was hired as principal and Budogaoka was expanded and dubbed ABBA, also known as Associated Budogaoka Board Academia, things for the school really turned out for the better. As ABBA had opened its grounds for more accessibility to Elementary and Middle School soon after 1999, Shizuka was familiar with the principal from the beginning.
Having known him almost her entire life, she knew that the one with the upper hand was none other than her, as she perfectly knew what buttons to push to get what she wanted.
Principal Gimme also knew that, and so, after taking a sip of water, he decided to lower his head to make perfect eye contact. Contemplating on his action, he realized it’s been a while since he got serious with this student.
Shizuka: So… are you going to yell at me? Gimme: Not today. Dealing with way too much stress. The most likely result will probably be your temporary expulsion, considering your deeds. Shizuka: But why? I really don’t understand, I was merely acting in self-defense! Gimme: According to Mr. Koichi, the evidence says otherwise. A knife, torn clothes and a broken nose, not to mention you being here safe and sound doesn’t really convince me otherwise. Shizuka: Oh c’mon! Bonnie-chan can testify for me. Gimme: You mean Ms. Tyler? She’s currently at the nurse’s office, still unconscious. Shizuka: But when she wakes up, she’ll surely tell you the whole truth! Gimme: Are you truly that certain that a testimony from her will completely reject all the evidence against you?
‘’Absolutely!’’ Shizuka said, rising her voice’s volume, instantly after Gimme had finished his sentence.
Shizuka: I can tell you with certainty the only bad thing I’ve done today is dropping two buckets of water in a single period. Gimme: … Gimme: But wait… I thought it was just one bucket… Shizuka: … Gimme: … Gimme: Noooooo.... haha! Tell me how you did that. Koichi: I can still hear you.
Principal Gimme responded by fixing his tie, wiping off some of his sweat and nodding positively at his precious counselor.
Gimme: But of course, Mr. Hirose! I was just… attempting to assess the whole scope of the situation. You see... that's what I was trying to do. Koichi: … Gimme: I’ll just continue. Shizuka: Y'know…
Shizuka sat more comfortably on her chair as well, adjusting her position.
Shizuka: No matter what happened, you should realize that bastard deserved it. Gimme: What? Shizuka: That damn delinquent. He tries to act like he’s great, but in the end he’s nothing more than an insecure little guy. This school can do so much better than that. Gimme: What are you trying to say? Shizuka: What I’m trying to say is…
The young woman looked straight at the principal.
Shizuka: I’m very glad he’s out of the way now.
SLAM!
Principal Gimme, pounding down his fist on the table, made a very loud noise that seemed to drown the sound of everything else in the room.
Shizuka, admittedly startled, slightly jumped and then spoke no other word.
Gimme: Ms. Joestar… you know me very well. I will absolutely NOT tolerate this kind of behaviour in my school. Shizuka: … Gimme: If you’re truly the one responsible, I will have no other choice than to expel you until next Tuesday. Shizuka: Tuesday!? But that’s 5 whole school days! I will lose so many absences! Gimme: I am very much aware of that, Ms. Joestar. Shizuka: …
"Were you planning on playing truant, Ms. Joestar?" asked Principal Gimme, a question that got no response rather than the girl looking down on the ground.
Silenced filled the room for a little bit. Koichi observed from his position, contributing to the silence, no longer typing anything. The sound of incoming e-mails broke the sound of nothingness, and gave way for Shizuka’s next response.
Retaining her confident expression and looking back up, Shizuka’s tone of voice lowered, as she replied to Principal Gimme.
Shizuka: Mr. Gimme… you’ve never given me such a penalty before. Gimme: Sorry, Ms. Joestar. But I’ve come to the conclusion that this needs to be stopped now. Ever since the term started a couple of weeks ago, your ‘’pranks’’ have only been getting worse and worse. Your middle school behaviour doesn’t even compare to some of your latest offences. Shizuka: … Shizuka: But... I... Gimme: Listen to me, Ms. Joestar. I know very well that deep inside, you are a good person. Have no doubt about it, I wholeheartedly cherish many of the moments we’ve shared since you were this small. However… Shizuka: I understand.
The Principal, retaining his serious expression, suddenly raised his brows in surprise.
Gimme: …You really do? Shizuka: Yes, I’m serious.
Gimme stopped thinking for a moment. ‘’Very well.’’ Is the only thing he could muster to say at that moment, opening his mouth to speak without a second thought.
Without a moment’s passing, Principal Gimme nodded at Koichi to stand up.
Gimme: Mr. Hirose… go to the teacher’s lounge. Call the Joestar household. Koichi: Shizuka, is Joestar-san at home?
The penalized student, refusing to talk at first, thought ''screw it'' and declared;
Shizuka: No. Koichi: Anybody else? Shizuka: Today… is Uncle Josuke’s day off. Koichi: Alright, I shall call and see if Josuke-kun answers.
As the room was filled with silence once more, Shizuka decided to leave Bonnie a missed call on her phone, and then leave. As she stood up, tidying her outfit once more to show off her tattoo and went to grab the door handle, Principal Gimme also stood up.
Gimme: Ms. Joestar… no, Shizuka. Shizuka: Yes, Mr. Gimme? Gimme: I want you to know something… No matter what happens, you can’t lose your way. I know you, Shizuka. I know you’re a good person inside. And I know that can’t be changed, no matter what falling-outs we may have sometimes. Shizuka: … Gimme: You were, are, and will be who you’ve always been; a good person. That can’t be changed. This particular little inconvenience can and will be fixed. It can’t come between us. Don’t let this bring you down. Stay true to your nature. Shizuka: …Understood. Gimme: …Have a nice week.
Shizuka quietly locked the door to the principal’s office, as she picked up her backpack and headed for an exit to the school premises. Seemingly without even noticing it, she was out of the school in no-time, as if time had skipped ahead. Probably because she was recollecting the sincerity in the Principal's by-the-numbers, mechanical words of advice.
Shizuka: …’’I’m a good person.’’ Shizuka: … Shizuka: Of course I am. I am… Shizuka: A Joestar.
===========================
Higashikata Residence, 13:45 PM
*ring ring*
*ring ring*
*ring ri-*
???: Higashikata Household, good afternoon.
The Higashikata Residence. Oddly dark, no lights were on and the curtains blocked any sunlight. As the afternoon had just begun for everybody else, it looked like the day had just started for this modest house.
At that moment, a phone call broke the monotony of the atmosphere, and the call receiver was prompted to open the window, the sun finally due to greet the house.
???: Hm? Yes, this is Josuke Higashikata.
… Josuke: Ah, Koichi-kun! Good afternoon.
… Josuke: I see.
... Josuke: Roger that. I’m on my way.
=======================================
Shizuka Joestar was on her way to the Higashikata house, knowing her dad wouldn’t be home until the evening, and that she didn’t have keys to the house. In a melancholic mood after leaving the school, she wasn’t pleased to know that rain was on the way.
Not having packed an umbrella in her school bag, she didn’t really enjoy the atmosphere, to say the least. All she had was her sunglasses, which she pulled out of her bag and wore on her face, blocking just a little bit of the rain.
Thankfully, the Higashikata house wasn’t very far away, and she arrived just in time before the first thunderous roar was heard from far, far away.
As she was getting anxious from her clothes being drenched, taking it as somewhat of a divine intervention for her shenanigans on her teacher, she forcefully knocked on the door.
…
And did so again.
5 minutes passed.
5 minutes full of quiet anger and forceful knocking.
As Shizuka was filled with more and more frustration, displeased at how her day was going, the pent-up aggression needed to be released.
That’s what she was thinking, as she broke down the door to the house, with an otherworldly barrage of swift energy.
Shizuka: Uncle Josuke, I’m home!
No response.
Shizuka: Uuuuuuncle JOOOOOOOsukEEEEEEEE!
As nobody but the rain outside responded to Shizuka’s words, the young woman quietly moved upstairs to Josuke’s room.
Upon the realization that nobody was in the house, and noticing the motorcycle, from the window, missing, Shizuka felt even worse. The man of the house had probably left for the school to pick her up. Knowing she won’t be able to relieve her anger, she just sat on Josuke’s bed, resting her head on a pillow.
Shizuka: This day is fucked.
====================================
Higashikata Residence, 15:00 PM
The sound of a motorcycle could be heard from outside. As the rain was getting worse and worse, the rider wasted no time in getting off the vehicle, taking off his helmet and going for the door.
Only problem was… the door wasn’t there.
Absolutely shocked to see the main entrance to his house demolished, the rider quickly stepped inside, leaving his helmet on the couch next to the entrance and beginning to search the house.
‘’Damn…’’ he began saying to himself, internally. ''I need to make sure whoever is in here doesn’t leave the house… that scumbag has the cheek to go directly for the head of the police force!’’
Upon finishing his thoughts, Josuke Higashikata gained composure and walked behind a few steps, to where the door lay, broken in many pieces. ''Looks simple enough'' he said internally... and then an aura enveloped his surroundings.
Josuke: Crazy Diamond.
With just the saying of those words, Josuke put the door back together in less than a second, and made sure it was locked, like magic. Anxious to discover the perpetrator responsible for breaking into his own house, he started scouting the first floor.
As soon as Josuke was done with checking almost the entire house, he realized only one place remained to look; his own room. Josuke didn’t suspect anybody breaking into his own room, but wanting to make sure, he started turning the handle.
Josuke: …!!
Much to Josuke’s surprise, there was only Shizuka Joestar, who was watching a movie on TV, covered in Josuke’s bed blankets, rain water staining them.
Curious as to what was going on, Josuke panicked and looked at the young woman, sweat rolling down his face. Entering the dark, unlit room, he approached the young woman and talked in whispers.
Josuke: Shizuka-chan… Shizuka: Oh… hey, Uncle Josuke. Josuke: Shizuka, you can’t be this calm right now! Shizuka: What? What’s going on? Josuke: SHH!!
Josuke, looking around and outside the window, took a step back and then moved closer to whisper into Shizuka’s ear, with a worried expression on his face. Josuke's bizare hair moved along with him.
Josuke: We might have an intruder in the house! Don’t move, I’ll keep searching for them. Shizuka: An intruder?! Josuke: SHHH!!!! Shizuka: Wait… how do you know we have an intruder in the house? Josuke: Someone broke down the door, and I think I even saw some wet footprints that weren’t mine upon entering the house! Shizuka: Broken door? Footprints? Josuke: Yes, now stay here, close the TV for a little bit, cause the less noise we make the better off we’ll be-- Shizuka: I broke that door. Those were probably my footprints from outside. Josuke: … Shizuka: ...tee-hee...? Josuke: Shizuka-chan? Shizuka: Yes, uncle Josuke? Josuke: WHAT were you THINKING!? Shizuka: What!? You weren’t here, I was getting soaked outside in the rain, and I had been knocking on the door for so long until I just decided to break it down! Josuke: And you broke down the door!? Shizuka: Right, like you can’t fix it with your Stand. Josuke: That’s not the point! Shizuka: Then what IS the point!? God dammit, all of you today! Josuke: …?
Shizuka kept watching TV, as Josuke took a moment to read the atmosphere. He then left the room, the room illuminated by the blue-ish mixture of light from the weather just outside the window and the television.
10 minutes passed before Josuke came back, having put on more ordinary clothes and made Shizuka a quick snack.
Josuke: Shizuka-chan?
But the girl was not very responsive. Her expression staying the same and her eyes glued to the television, blocking all outside communication.
Josuke: …Had a rough day, didn't ya? I brought you a sandwich, maybe it’ll cool your nerves. I made it as special as you like it. Shizuka: … Josuke: …Reservoir Dogs, huh? You really like that movie. It’s one of my favourites too, actually. This torture scene in particular is the highlight of the whole thing for me!
Shizuka wasn’t responding, and Josuke could feel her mood. Knowing it would be hard to break the ice, but determined to do so, Josuke remained in the room and put the plate with the sandwich on the lamp stool next to his bed. Squatting down to meet Shizuka closely, he looked at her for a little bit.
Josuke: Shizuka-chan… do you want to tell me about it? If you don’t, then that’s perfectly fine. Shizuka: I beat the hell out of a guy today. Josuke: ... is... is that so? Shizuka: He attacked me and Bonnie, what was I supposed to do? Josuke: Koichi told me you also played a prank today. I won’t judge you for defending yourself, as you say, but it is a fact that you’re not doing very well at school. Shizuka: But everybody likes me! Even the losers from other classes! Josuke: I wasn’t talking about that. I mean your behaviour. I’ve been hearing from dad that you’ve not been getting many good grades. Shizuka: Speaking of Papa Joseph, is he at home? I came here because I knew he was outside with mom. Josuke: No, he’s not home. I called him on his cellphone, he said he’ll be back as soon as he can.
Shizuka smiled faintly, taking the blankets off of her as she adjusted herself on the bed and turned down the volume of the TV.
Shizuka: That’s good news. Josuke: Yeah… but you didn’t answer me. What’s going on with you and your behaviour at school, recently? Is there a problem? Shizuka: No, I’m just my usual self. Unfortunately, that's the same for everyone else too. I don’t get why I’m being scolded all the time, just for doing what I want. Josuke: …I’m probably not the best guy to tell you this… to tell the truth, Joseph is much more fitting to lecture you. I... god... I'm sorry sweetie, but... Shizuka: ...yes? Josuke: You need to get a grip, Shizuka.
Shizuka seated herself more upwardly on the bed and looked at Josuke with a clearly displeased glare. That was the last thing she expected Josuke Higashikata to say.
Shizuka: Excuse me? Josuke: Listen, Shizuka-chan. I know you’re a teenager, I was in your place once too. I was immature too. But, that is no excuse for what you’ve been doing. You’re being... extra immature. Shizuka: Then what else should I do, Josuke?! Josuke: Please look at this from a point of view other than your own, Shizuka-chan. Shizuka: All I’m trying to do is live my life the way I want to, I want to have fun! Hell, I believe this is destiny! …Papa Joseph used to be like me. Josuke: Oh… so this is about Joseph, again.
Shizuka, pissed, stared at Josuke, dead in the eye. Josuke didn’t respond to her expression however, simply staring back at her how he had been doing the entire time.
Shizuka: …What do you mean again? Josuke: You should know that Joseph-- Shizuka: WHAT ABOUT HIM!? He lived his life just like me, he used to tell me about it all the time! If anything, you should know better, you’re his son, and me, I’m…
The head of the Morioh police force stayed there, like a statue.
Shizuka:He used to tell me about himself all the time! He was awesome, YOU were awesome! What am I doing wrong?! Josuke: That doesn’t mean you have to follow suit. Don't you know that we... wh-why do you want to keep up that attitude?! Shizuka: I’M A JOESTAR, DAMMIT!!! Josuke: …
Shizuka took a moment to cool down, enough for her breathing to resume a normal pace once again. Taking no more than a single glance at Josuke, she took her school bag from the floor and didn’t look back, leaving the room, the blankets falling on the carpet.
Going down the stairs, Josuke quickly started going after her. Worrying about where she was headed, he came to the door, to see it broken into pieces once again, this time many more of them.
In the rain, only her silhouette could be seen, walking casually in the distance.
‘’Shi… SHIZUKA!!! WHERE ARE YOU GOING!!!’’ is all that could be heard, except the rain dropping. Josuke gave it his all so that Shizuka could hear him. But neither could hear the other.
Shizuka: (I’m tired of all these god damn lectures… damn it all…) Josuke: SHIZUKA!!! ANSWER ME!!! Shizuka: (Don’t worry about me… I’m a Joestar, I’ll know what to do.) Josuke: …That girl…
Josuke stepped back inside the house, a presence forming behind him, putting the broken pieces of the door back together while he picked up his cellphone to make a call.
I hope you enjoy it! You don't have to be a JoJo viewer/reader to enjoy Vertigo, but if you want the maximum requirements, you probably only need to finish Part 4, cause part 5 and 6's events are irrelevant to Vertigo despite it taking place after them.
The rain had come to a close. Though truly a weather phenomenon of massive proportions for this time of year, for outside observers it seemed to pass and go almost instantly, in just a couple of hours. But for Morioh’s residents, the storm’s halt was nothing short of a joyous event.
For most residents, at least.
Joestar Residence, 16:05 PM
Suzie Q: When I get my hands on that little brat…!!
Suzie Q, wife of Joseph Joestar. Also known as Suzie Q Joestar. His lifelong partner since the start of the 1940s, she’s currently living with Joseph in Morioh, for both of them to be in contact with the rest of their family.
Right now though, no sort of such happy intentions were anywhere to be found in her thoughts.
Joseph: Calm down, Suzie. I’m sure Josuke must have just exaggerated, Shizuka wouldn’t just do all these things! I’m sure it’s one of her typical shenanigans, yet again.
Joseph Joestar, foster father of Shizuka Joestar. Having grown less melancholic since 1999, he decided to enjoy his life in Morioh a long time ago, and is currently residing here with his family.
A long time ago, in 1999, Joseph Joestar came to Morioh to meet Josuke Higashikata and help solve a bizarre mystery. While there, he and his illegitimate son, Josuke Higashikata, found an invisible baby. After many hijinks, Joseph took the baby under his wing and grew her as his child. Naming his foster daughter Shizuka Joestar, the rest... is history.
However, he, too, isn’t in the most pleasant of moods at the moment.
Suzie Q adjusted her glasses and turned around, looking at her husband straight in the eyes, with a more-than-apparent expression of anger.
Suzie Q: It seems you’re forgetting we’re talking about the same girl that tattooed your family’s birthmark without telling us, last week! She is more than likely to have done all of what Josuke told us, perhaps even worse! Joseph: I trust Shizuka. She wouldn’t be so reckless. Whatever the case, we’ll learn as soon as we find her!
The elderly woman seemed like she was about to reply with yet another lecture to her husband, but as she was about to open her mouth, she just sat down on the couch, letting off a sigh. Closing her eyes to calm down for a little bit, she opened them rather quickly after a few seconds, once again directing her attention over to Joseph.
Suzie Q: Well, at least we know for sure she isn’t heading over to us. If she was, she’d be here already. I say we go right now, perhaps she’s at Bonnie’s as usual. That poor little girl, getting wrapped up into such unorthodox farces…
‘’Not a bad idea!’’ exclaimed Joseph, smiling faintly at his wife, and slowly getting up from his armchair.
Joseph: I’ll go get the car keys, you get ready, put something good on, Bonnie-chan and her mom haven’t seen us in a long time, after all.
Joseph's beloved wife couldn’t help but feel a little offended, thinking he didn’t appreciate her fashion taste, as he usually does. But her feelings towards Shizuka were vastly superior, repressing anything else. As such, she ignored her husband’s comment and got up, heading for the door.
‘’I swear to god…’’ she thought to herself, internally.
Suzie Q: (I swear to god… this is all Joseph’s fault. We don’t seem to be getting a break, at all…)
Suzie, continuing her inner monologue, contemplated Shizuka’s current state, hoping for the best.
Suzie Q: (…If she isn’t at Bonnie’s though, there’s only one other place she’s bound to be. She always goes there…)
===========================================
Shizuka: Are you for real!? Mikitaka: Yes, I am confident that this is the truth.
Shizuka Joestar had found herself at Mikitaka Hazekura’s house. Shizuka used to go out of the house a lot as she was growing up, whenever she made a mess or just felt guilty about something.
She’d always go to her friend’s house, Bonnie’s place. However, when she was not able to find comfort in her best friend, she always had a back-up plan. Someone who she always knew was free, at all times.
Mikitaka Hazekura.
Shizuka had known about Mikitaka from Josuke, heard stories about him. After the first time she visited him, there was no turning back. A friend who was always there. A rather… ‘’otherworldly’’ idea for a friend, however.
"That sounds so cool! I wish I could go…" exclaimed the penaltized student, browsing through pictures of a stylish looking young man in her cellphone, a folder titled "Billy".
Mikitaka: It would be most beneficial to you, truly. However, I have already mentioned the flight has been booked, 3 days ago. Father Arthur cannot afford to bring another passenger along, especially this late, when the plane leaves off early tomorrow. Shizuka: I don’t get it… it’d be the most fun thing ever! I always wanted to go abroad… and it is the best way to spend my boring week of expulsion too… Mikitaka: Father Arthur made it clear; his religious trip to the shrines of Mexico is a 2-person offer only, excluding the rest of the passengers of the plane that will bring upon said religious trip. Shizuka: What’s so special about his companion anyway? Who even is his companion? Is the pope going with him or whatever? He is, isn't he? I knew the Pope sucks but damn… Mikitaka: Not exactly. Kojiro, son of a local Morioh family, is going with Father, because of his devotion to the church and the religious practices he has been keeping up his whole life. He is still very young. Shizuka: Pffft…
Shizuka’s expression turned from interested to disappointed in a matter of seconds, as she shrugged and turned her head the other way, losing herself in her phone once more.
Shizuka: All this church nonsense is making me angry, they’ll just look at old shacks, that’s all. At least if I was there I’d actually have fun. Sounds like that poor kid is going there for a chore.
Mikitaka, gazing into the distance, standing on top of his bed straight on his feet for a while now, answered back to Shizuka.
Mikitaka: I am sorry to give you sad news on this day, Shizuka. It really is not my intended action, but I thought it would be good to know the facts. The flight has been booked, so perhaps you should spend your week otherwise.
Shizuka slowly raised her head up to Mikitaka, who was sitting up on his bed. With a smug expression, she looked into his eyes.
Shizuka: Yeah, but… wouldn’t it be funny if… you know, I went anyway~? Mikitaka: I seem to not be able to pinpoint what exactly constitutes as ‘’funny’’ about that. Your intentions are not the most correct in my eyes. You told me about today. I don’t think your close ones would be content with this decision you propose taking, judging from past experience.
With a swift response, Shizuka declared ‘’Who cares about THEM?’’, much to Mikitaka’s surprise, who still kept the same expression he had for the entire time since the young woman came to his house.
Shizuka: Papa would surely understand at least, I bet he’d do the same. Plus, Bonnie would totally cheer me on if she wasn’t resting her head at home right now… I hope.
Mikitaka turned his face towards Shizuka, with a seemingly stricter but still neutral expression.
Mikitaka: I still do not agree. Now if you’ll excuse me, I am too busy. Perhaps you should head back to your home? According to what you told me, your parents should have arrived by now. Shizuka: Yeah, but I am… wait, what are you busy with? Mikitaka: I am in the state of being ‘’tired’’. I would like to sleep. Therefore it is what I am going to do. Shizuka: …Standing up? On your bed? With your shoes on? Mikitaka: I do not understand the question. Shizuka: …With a school outfit on? Mikitaka: This is my ordinary clothing. Shizuka: But you’re not even in school anymore. Mikitaka: Yes. Shizuka: … Shizuka: Okay.
Shizuka got up from the ground, shoved her phone in her bag and opened the door to Mikitaka’s room, making her way towards the exit, at a nonchalant pace.
Shizuka: Goodbye, Miki-kun! See you later!
As Shizuka headed outside the door, having opened it, she quickly stepped back inside, as if she had remembered something at the last minute.
Shizuka: Oh! Also! You’ll help me out with the flight, right? …Miki-kun! You’ll help me, right? We’re not done yet!
…
The young woman received no reply, being met with just the sound of her friend snoring, still up on his bed from what Shizuka could glimpse of the bedroom view.
Ignoring this, she exited and closed the door behind her.
Turning the handle, she raised her hand towards her face, looking at her wristwatch and gaining a surprised expression. Seeing as how it was getting late, almost 5 in the evening, she headed for Bonnie’s house, wondering if she had woken up by now.
Shizuka: Papa will have to wait, just a little bit.
From far away, behind one of the houses down the street, a careful observer was located.
Tall, with a black trenchcoat and a butterfly knife in hand, he took his cigarette out of his mouth, threw it on the ground and stepped on it, with calculated movements. Still in the shadows, he suddenly stopped doing hand tricks with his knife, and put it back into his pocket.
???: Eyes on the prize, you dumb broad.
=======================
‘’Bonnie! See who’s at the door, please!’’
‘’Okay Mom!’’
Tyler Residence, 16:20
Bonnie Tyler had only woken up an hour or so ago, her sweet mother having taken care of her and placed her on the bed, to make sure she would heal as soon as possible. Still recovering from the shock, she remained in bed, contemplating if her best friend was fine after what happened that morning at ABBA.
Bonnie had only regained her will to move again a few minutes ago. The first thought on her mind was to answer Shizuka, who had texted her, but was disrupted by a bell ring.
With a quiet sigh, she shrugged, clipped her hair to be more comfortable, put her pants on, all the while making her way towards the door awkwardly.
The bell rang once more, a couple of seconds before Bonnie placed her hand on the handle and opened the door to be met with unexpected visitors.
Joseph: Good afternoon, Bonnie-chan! Suzie Q: Oh, look at you! You’ve grown a lot since the last term! Bonnie: …Uh… h-hello! Good afternoon, Mr. and Mrs. Joestar!
‘’Who is it, Bonnie-chan?’’ Bonnie’s mother shouted from the kitchen, where she was making a meal for her dear daughter, the smell of healthy chicken soup decorating the household atmosphere.
Bonnie: It’s Shizu-chan’s parents! Should I let them i--
‘’Hold on!’’ Joseph exclaimed suddenly, in English, before Bonnie could finish her sentence. Bonnie turned to look at him with a curious expression.
Joseph: We’re not here to stay; we just want to know if Shizuka is here. She hasn’t returned home and we thought maybe she was hanging out with her friend. Suzie Q: Is Shizu-chan here, sweetie? Bonnie: No, but she texted me, that she’ll be coming over here soon.
Bonnie took out her phone and looked at her messages quickly, curious to find out what her best friend had been up to.
Bonnie: She says… ‘’@ Miki-kun’s, r u awake?’’ and apparently now she’s coming here. Suzie Q: I suspected she might have gone to Mikitaka’s house, that rascal is all too generous with her. Oh well… the important thing is that she’s coming here now. I can’t wait to see her.
Joseph slowly turned his head towards his wife, a little worried at her choice of words, knowing his foster daughter was in for a lecture.
Bonnie: Umm… so… would you like to come in? Joseph: OH! Oh right, yes, if you don’t mind we’d like to wait for Shizu-chan to come here. Bonnie: MOM! Mr. and Mrs. Joestar will wait for Shizu-chan here for a little bit!
‘’I guess I’ll have to make meals for our lovely guests as well!’’ spoke Bonnie's mom from the kitchen, the aroma of the wonderful fragrance leading the noses of the household’s guests towards the food's direction, before they sat on the hall’s couch in an orderly manner.
Bonnie took a glance at Shizuka’s parents and then went to her room, secretly planning to text Shizuka about it. Once she was out of view, she ran into her room fast and awkwardly like before, and locked the door. With a swift motion she fell on her bed and took out her phone. "Alright then…"
Bonnie: ‘’Shizu-chan, where are you right now?’’
The teenager, waiting for a notification beep, pressed her head on her pillow, looking at the ceiling.
‘’Please be safe, Shizu-chan… ‘’ she thought to herself, nervousness possessing her, not only in worry of her best friend’s safety, but also dreading the lecture she was probably gonna get from her parents.
Her bedroom was stripped of urgency, as Bonnie rested on her pillow and sound vanished, leaving her thoughts as the only active presence in the room.
=======
Shizuka was heading to her friend’s house. The dark clouds still decorating the sky from before, she was getting anxious that the storm would resume, but kept her hopes up, as she opened her schoolbag, to drink from her bottle of water, and looked at her wristwatch once again, retaining her steady pace towards her destination.
Morioh was unusually quiet, even a pin dropping could make a noticeable sound. For Shizuka, this was a peculiar change of atmosphere from the intense weather from just half an hour ago. But also because she wasn’t ever as well-accustomed to any lifestyle as the loud kind.
…
Shizuka: OH!!!
Shizuka shouted in the middle of the street, as if surprised by a horror movie jumpscare.
Shizuka: I FORGOT!!! MY SUNGLASSES!!!
Shizuka kept panicking, speaking her thoughts out loud, breaking the unusual silence of the town in a ‘’captivating’’ manner.
Shizuka: I can’t go without my sunglasses, it’s like macaroni without cheese! Spaghetti without meatballs! Ravioli without eggs! IT JUST DOESN’T WORK!
Shizuka’s eyes looked as if they were ready to pop out of her head, as she placed her hands on her head with a strong grip, still panicking.
‘’That’s it, I need to run back!’’ she shouted aloud, as she did an almost military-like 180 degree turn, ready to run back to Mikitaka Hazekura’s house, making a runner pose as she was about to take off.
But just about 30 centimeters away from her face upon her turn, stood a towering 2-meter tall man, seemingly waiting for her to turn so their face-to-face meeting could initiate.
Shizuka: …woah.
The tall man tidied his trench coat, combed his eye-popping spiky, dyed hair back with his thick fingers, and scratched his nose, where 3 nose rings could be found. His left hand still in his pocket, the man lowered his head down to make eye contact with the young woman, all the while not speaking a single word.
‘’Name’s Everblack.’’
That’s all the tall, coated person said, looking straight into Shizuka’s eyes, with a less-than-holy intent, to say the least. Shizuka was still retaining her runner position.
Shizuka: …Boy… are you a big guy or what… Everblack: … Shizuka: What? You wanna chat? I can’t right now, I have to be somewhere, but we can talk in a little bit. If you wanna wait here I’ll meet you again when I come back, see you later!
Shizuka went to run from the man’s right side, to make her way to Mikitaka’s house, as she had intended. However, she could only get one step ahead of him before the large man swiftly grabbed Shizuka by her school uniform’s back, and raised her in the air with just his one hand, the young woman’s senses of dread slowly increasing.
Everblack: … Shizuka: …Strong. I see. Everblack: My boys… Shizuka: Eh?
The man lowered his head, not looking at the young woman, slicking his hair back again with his hand, and adjusting his nose rings once more.
Everblack: How dare you do that to my little brother… to my boys… Shizuka: I don’t think I know… what you’re talking about-- GUUUGH!!
Upon Shizuka finishing her sentence, Everblack swinged her away extremely fast, the force of his fist pressuring and hurting the former, before she landed behind a house, in a dark corner where no one could notice the two.
Shizuka landed on her sides, on a trashcan, and without being able to speak a word because of her pain, her eyes again seemed like they were about to pop out of her head. Only this time, it wasn’t out of spite for having forgotten her glasses.
This was more serious.
Shizuka: ….a-….ack- !!
Everblack: There’s no point fighting back. Accept the consequences and I might just let you live… in the end.
Shizuka was still lying on her sides, her head pointing at the ground, as she seemed unable to move.
Everblack: Good… someone’s got a brain.
The bulky man lowered his head as a morbid grin slowly started to form on his lips.
‘’Here goes…’’ Everblack exclaimed, as he took off his trench coat to reveal his awe-inspiring muscles in one single movement, as if the coat moved on its own. Cracking his fingers, he formed a fist with his right hand, and moved quickly towards Shizuka, his fist going for her head, within the brink of a moment.
‘’Eat it, bitch!’’
…
Suddenly, his fist stopped.
Just a few inches away from Shizuka’s head, Everblack’s fist had come to a halt.
Everblack: …!!?
Shizuka slowly raised her head, and stared into Everblack’s visible eye, her expression from before having completely changed.
Shizuka: Hitting a student… outside of school… I think I’ve discovered a new low in human dignity… Everblack: …What did you...!!?
Shizuka slowly regained her balanced and stood up, the tall bulky man remaining in his halted position, against his will. Slowly, a fist started to form around Everblack’s arm, as if it was there all along, having gripped his hand before it hit Shizuka. Everblack moved back, creating distance between him and his target.
Shizuka: Everblack… was it?
Shizuka, completely regaining her balance and standing on her two feet, turned her head to her right, her left eye still pinned on the thug’s face, as if it was a matter of life and death whether she’d keep looking or not.
The man’s fist was let free, as he quickly pulled back, grabbing it forcefully with his other hand, his attention silently shifting from his hand to the young high schooler, at a periodic pace.
Bleeding into existence seamlessly, two arms formed around Shizuka, still invisible to the attacker. Muscular arms, nd soon enough an entire figure, a new presence, had emerged, standing behind Shizuka. The form of this figure was different to anything else on planet Earth. This was it.
Shizuka’s Stand.
Everblack: …What the...!!?! Shizuka:ACHTUNG BABY.
The figure passed through Shizuka’s body, basking in glory, menacingly.
With one fell swoop, the figure quickly moved from behind Shizuka, jumping forward, putting all of its power into a fist directed at the man’s chest, smiling confidently.
Everblack, as if he could hear the voice of his instinct 100% accurately, crossed his arms and tried to block the force coming towards him.
Despite it, the man was pushed back even when putting his whole strength into his block. He felt as if nature itself released its intensity through that motion, the wind from the impact gaining a force of its own.
Now pushed back, the man was bleeding on his bruised forearms, which he used to block the assault. Slowly losing his composure, his arms trembling and his eyes twitching continuously, Everblack grabbed his arms, each with the other, his eyes pinned on his attacker.
Everblack: …HNGHHH!!! BITCH!!! Shizuka: Looks like I didn’t make myself clear before, but I’m really not interested in taking you on. So I’ll try to be as clear as possible this time around… Shizuka: Fuck off.
Shizuka kept glaring at her attacker, wearing her determination on her sleeves. Her carefree attitude from before seemed to have completely vanished, now replaced with something completely different.
Everblack kept panicking, gripping his arm in silent pain as he couldn't take his eyes off his feisty victim.
Everblack: ….I…!!! I- I! I… Shizuka: Yes? "I" what? Finish your sentence already. Everblack: You… Shizuka: Me? Everblack: ….NGH!!! Shizuka: Sorry, they don't teach us that at school.
The young high schooler shifted her position, now standing completely straight and upward, with her hands in her pants' pockets, and called her Stand back as it proceeded to slowly dissolve into nothing. With a quiet sigh, she looked carefully at her attacker, who was now kneeling in pain. She gave him a sarcastic look as she rose an eyebrow.
Shizuka: Good, then it seems we’re done here. I think I’m starting… to piece this together. You’re the boss of those school thugs huh? I’m not one to judge, but being a typical school bully OUTSIDE of school is dumb as all hell. Everblack: …!!! Shizuka: Ok, silent treatment. Anyway, ya wanna hear this right now; tell ‘’your boys’’ to leave me alone, and all this can be water under the bridge. We’re not cool, but at least we can settle this. I’m busy right now. Everblack: … Shizuka: …I’ll take that as an ‘’ok’’. Now if you’ll excuse me, I have to be somewhere.
Shizuka picked up her school bag, wore it tightly over both shoulders and cleaned a tiny droplet of blood from her school outfit. Soon, she started to move from the dark corner towards the street, setting off for Mikitaka’s house.
All the while, Everblack stayed silent, sweating nervously, irises twitching, his arms still gripped tightly as his head remained squashed against the ground. Shizuka pulled a bottle of water from her bag to quench her thirst and quickly clean any leftover blood off her face. Just as she closed the bottle cap, she was surprised to be met with something other than the street she was heading towards. Abruptly, she had found herself facing the grey and cloudy sky.
She had been pushed to the ground by an obviously fuming Everblack. Her head squelched against the cold and wet grass.
Shizuka: AA- Agh-!
Her neck was being forced downwards, clenching tighter with every passing moment, rendering her unable to speak or do anything. It had all happened too fast just now. Everblack’s expression was completely blank. Blood was dripping from his injured arms down to Shizuka’s face.
Shizuka: NNN-!
Shizuka’s expressions of anguish failed to stop Everblack, his squeeze only growing stronger with each second.
That was it.
In an instant, a huge concentration of force was pressed with intense speed against Everblack’s face, pushing him away from Shizuka.
A punch.
With intense wheezing, Shizuka grabbed her throat and started breathing heavily, attempting to recover. Her breathing was fast; on closer inspection, an onlooker would assume 10 breaths were inhaled and exhaled each second.
Meanwhile, Everblack was in the middle of the street, splattering blood in the cement, suffering in silence, grabbing his face with both of his hands, as the pain he had felt before vanished before an even greater punishment.
Half a minute had passed, and Shizuka was still grounded, in an upward position, trying to calm herself down and hiding her anguish from her facial expressions, in case Everblack had not given up yet.
The dreadful moment came soon afterwards, however. Everblack stepped up.
Shizuka: … Everblack: Fucking bitch… Shizuka: (Has he not learned his lesson yet!? Fuck… Fuck…) Everblack: I will…
Everblack formed fists with both of his hands. All of his focus was put into those two fists; so much so, Shizuka noticed he had made both of his hands bleed by pressuring his fists so much into his palms. "That's so gross" she thought to herself.
Everblack: I will… Shizuka: …? Everblack: Destroy you. Shizuka: That line… *cough* Everblack: ?!
Shizuka slowly raised her head up to her attacker, one eye closed, the other piercing into his own eye.
Shizuka: Sucks. Everblack: AAAAAAARGH!!!
Everblack moved towards the young woman, both of his fists aiming for her face.
A mere second later, his fists were full of blood. A perverted grin stretched across his wicked face indicated the success of his punch.
But something was off. Soon enough, Everblack started to notice his hands were bloody… not because his target had bled out on him… but because he had striked the hard cement street Shizuka was once laying on. As if she had completely vanished from existence, Everblack found it hard to comprehend what had just happened. Suddenly, a huge force of energy came in contact with his head, similar to before.
A punch.
Everblack refused to fall down, mad with anger, his expression giving all of his inner thoughts away. He quickly turned his head towards where the punch came from, but couldn’t find anyone there.
A punch.
Everblack was pushed towards the ground, gripping his right side where the strike was directed. Stepping back up, momentarily numb of his pain, he took a second to collect himself. Awkwardly running to the middle of the street seconds later, his balance was nowhere to be found. Soon enough, he began looking all around him to find the young woman, his teeth clenched in anger.
Everblack: ….!!! …!!
Gasping intensely, so hard that every other sound stood puny against the gasps, Everblack started to go into blind rage. Punching the air around him with no coordination for a lengthy period of time.
‘’Hey.’’
That was what could be heard from behind the tall thug, who turned around swiftly upon hearing it.
‘’I thought I told you to fuck off.’’
Another sound, from behind him again.
The tall man put all of his strength into his punch, as he quickly turned and punched what was behind him, thin air once again.
Everblack's irises still twitching, his whole body shivering and his arms moved as if he was about to have a seizure. Like a wild animal feeling in danger, his spasms led him nowhere as he continued to punch the air around him. The commentary did not help his condition at all.
"Okay, now I'm worried." Everblack: AAAAARGH!!
"Hey, ol' redface lookin' guy. Don't you know you'll pop a vein if you push yourself further?" Everblack: SHADDUUUUUUUP!!!
"Worst case scenario you go number 2, so please mister, cease." Everblack: NGAAAAAAGH!!
Getting tired of punching nothing out in the middle of this terrible weather, the man took out a knife from his pocket. He pointed it everywhere around him, in hopes of hitting something. Anything.
But nothing happened.
"ARA!!!"
Another punch.
The man’s nose must have definitely been broken now. A loud cracking noise was heard, while Everblack squinted intensely in silent anguish.
‘’This is getting pathetic.’’
Out of nowhere, right in front of the man, who was now down in the ground, tears coming out of his only opened eye appeared a figure. Bleeding into existence out of thin air, feet, legs, a torso, and finally a full silhouette had formed.
This was Shizuka Joestar. Besides her, floating, stood a large, purple and majestic figure. It was indescribable... and only its user could see it then. That was her Stand, Achtung Baby.
Shizuka: I’ve messed you up REAL good. WE’RE. DONE. Capiche? Everblack: ….NGHH!! Shizuka: You must not be right in the head if you continue after this. I don't want to feel guilty over this stupid exchange, so I’m calling an ambulance for you. If I remember right, Nijimura-kun is working part-time today, so you will be okay. Never cross me again and I can guarantee your safety. Even for someone as pathetic as you. Everblack: … Shizuka: Let’s hope this is the last time we meet.
Shizuka had put her right hand in her pants, and was already searching to find her phone among all the other stuff she had absent-mindedly kept in her pockets, such as a wallet, candy wrapping, stickers and a couple of pens.
Her fingers making contact with the phone’s screen, Shizuka tried to remember the home number for the local hospital instead of just dialing emergency services. Before being able to complete her thought however, suddenly...
Everblack jumped towards Shizuka.
Before being able to reach her though, an uppercut from a swift punch, coming from Shizuka's side, sent the tall thug flying upwards, suspended in mid-air from his perspective.
Shizuka: You…
Both of Everblack's eyes opened, as he was still being pressured upwards. His attention focused on the young woman when he started to sweat intensely.
For this one time… fear was the only feeling and thought running in his brain.
Shizuka: You deserve this. Everblack: I’m- Shizuka: AAAAAH!
Achtung Baby instantly formed out of thin air in front of Shizuka.
From all directions, with immense speed, a barrage of powerful blows surrounded Everblack. The battle is over!
With a final, powerful blow, the man was pushed far away, flying many meters away, with immense momentum. What was just about 3 seconds felt like an hour-long constant stomping sensation.
The moment the loser of the fight hit the ground, a droplet of rain fell on Shizuka Joestar's face. Hearing thunderous growling from beyond the mountains, it was not long before a sudden cloudburst concluded the scene.
Shizuka spit blood from her mouth into the ground as she proceeded to get her phone out, as she was planning to.
Shizuka paid little attention to the body of the man far away from her, all of it was focused on the buttons of the phone screen she was pressing to call the hospital.
Shizuka: This day… more and more bullshit by the minute.
======================
DELINQUENT THUG: EVERBLACK
STATUS: R E T I R E D
======================
About 15 minutes had passed; the ambulances had already arrived and examined Everblack, ready to send him on his way to the hospital. Shizuka was just sitting on the pavement. She had already decided she would tell the ambulance’s hospital staff who were picking up Everblack that she had just ‘’found him like this’’ and was sure she had no incriminating evidence on her like blood, which she hid using Achtung Baby, or her lightly bruised neck, which she hid by appropriately positioning her uniform top.
However, even if that were to work on the nurses… it surely wouldn’t work on Joseph.
And that was correct.
===============================
Currently at the dimly lit hall room of the Tyler household, Shizuka was sitting on the couch, looking at the ground, hands formed into fists put against each other, while her best friend Bonnie stood back, letting Joseph and Suzie Q lecture her, obviously anxious, her own mom uninvolved.
Suzie Q: WHAT WHERE YOU THINKING!? Joseph: We made it clear multiple times to never use your abilities on other people! And here we come to find out you did it twice today? Suzie Q: Aren’t you ashamed of yourself? Shizuka: …
Shizuka recollected her memories of her actions that day… thinking back to when she was found out…
===============================
Shizuka: He’s gonna be fine, right? Nurse: Not sure… he must have broken more than just a couple of things. But if it was too serious, he probably would have… already… Shizuka: Died? Nurse: Y-yes.
The nurse was surprised at the young woman’s quick and morbid response. She continued, curiously staring at her with widened eyes.
Shizuka: Good to hear he’s gonna be fine. Nurse: So… thanks for reporting this so fast! It’s a busy day today at the hospital; thanks for letting us know as soon as possible, injuries this serious need to be taken care of with the utmost priority! Shizuka: Sure. It was my pleasure.
As the nurse started to move back to the ambulance, to help carry the injured and unconscious Everblack into the vehicle, Shizuka was pleased to finally be able to go back to her friend Mikitaka’s house and pick up her forgotten glasses. She also felt comfortable enough to remove Achtung Baby’s effect from her clothes, which were still slightly blood-stained.
Making a turn using only her one foot, she was on her way.
Walking alongside pavements and house overhangs to avoid the rain, she was at least glad that the worst event of the day- by far- was over. The young woman opened her phone again to check the time, it was getting noticeably late and the last thing she wanted was an even quieter Morioh around her. Soon, she checked her notifications to see if she had received any messages from Bonnie Tyler.
Shizuka: (Bon-Bon… I wonder if she’s responded, or even woken up…)
*DUH-DING!* Shizuka: (Oh! There she is...) Shizuka: (‘’Shizu-chan, where r u right now?’’, ‘’Shizu-chan r u ok?’’ aw… that’s so nice of her. Well then. Wait... ‘’Shizu-chan ur parents r here’’? Why?)
Shizuka looked up and then back into her phone again as she was making her way to Mikitaka’s house patiently.
Shizuka: (Shit… well at least… oh, another message. ‘’Ur parents are coming to see u Shizu-chan! Hope ur ok )
…
Shizuka: I better hurry or-- Joseph:SHIZUKA JOESTAR! Shizuka: …
Joseph and Suzie Q had arrived by car, stopping just behind Shizuka, as the latter slowly turned around in dread, facing them, sweating harder than even during her confrontation with the thugs’ boss. Joseph looked at Shizuka and smiled, ready to pick her up.
"Where have you been? Y o u n g L a d y?" said Joseph in a gleeful tone, using his Engrish accent.
Shizuka was fast in her reply, trying her best to hide her guilt behind a forced façade, which would hopefully convince her guardians. Putting on a grin, she replied to her precious dad.
Shizuka: Oi! I was… just going to Miki-kun’s house! I forgot my glasses. Suzie Q: Why is there an ambulance here?! Did you get hurt?! Shizuka: No! Don’t worry. Suzie Q: Are those… bloodstains on your uniform?! Are you ok?! Shizuka: No? What stains?
The doubtful mom looked into her daughter's eyes.
Shizuka: I can explain.
Joseph’s smile from before slowly vanished, as he seemed to have noticed something important…
Joseph: No… Shizuka: … Joseph: You… did that, didn’t you?
Joseph pointed to the person still being carried by the paramedics, as Shizuka looked back and very swiftly turned her head back again to face Joseph, her fake smile now lost.
Shizuka: …Papa Joseph, I REALLY have a good reason for this. Joseph: I knew it! Get in the car right now! Suzie Q: Surely you don’t mean… Joseph: …
Looking at her foster daughter in shock, Suzie Q’s expression very quickly changed to that of a very angry one, as she locked her eyes on Shizuka, a guilt trip that definitely seemed to work at the moment.
Suzie Q: Shizuka Joestar, step inside the car RIGHT NOW! Shizuka: But mom, I need to go to Miki-kun’s house! I swear I will explain it all when-- Suzie Q: NOW I SAID! Shizuka: YOU DON’T UNDERSTAND!
Shizuka’s temper had reached a high, which was quickly halted by a simple stare. Her dad's stare.
Joseph stared into Shizuka with an obviously displeased expression, the last straw for Shizuka’s confidence. Slowly, without any further convincing from her parents, the young woman came closer and opened the car door to the backseat of Joseph’s car.
Shizuka: …
Everything was quiet. Nothing except the car’s engine and the droplets of rain hitting against the road could be heard until the family arrived at the Tyler house. Silence, behind which Shizuka knew was hiding a lecture that was going to keep her down quite significantly.
She hated those.
=================================
Suzie Q: Look at you! You made us come here and become a burden to the poor Tylers…
Suzie looked back at Bonnie’s mom, who was quick to reply, after taking a look at the soup which seemed to be almost ready.
Ms. Tyler: Oh no! Don’t worry about me; it’s been a while since we’ve dined together anyway.
The room went silent, as Shizuka slowly turned her head up, facing Joseph directly.
Shizuka: I didn't make you come to this house at all... Joseph: Shizuka-chan. Shizuka: … Joseph: Let’s talk.
Shizuka put on a bold expression and stared back into Joseph, prepared. Not only did she make it obvious she felt uncomfortable by not talking, being at her best friend’s house, but also because she knew Joseph well, he would never come to her with stuff like ‘’we need to talk’’ unless it was something big.
And so, Shizuka placed herself more comfortably on the couch, putting her hands together and pointing her eyes to Joseph, determination prevalent in her expression. This was going to be an important talk.
‘’Here we go’’ thought Shizuka to herself. Despite determination written on her face, she was known to have a particular displeasure for coming to arguments with her beloved step-father. She admired him and for her idol to scold her, it meant that Shizuka would need preparation of astronomical proportions. And in a situation such as this, openly arguing with him in front of her best friend, Shizuka felt like a fish out of water. She was continuously taking different stances on the couch.
Bonnie on the other hand kept quiet and didn’t try to force happy input, unlike her shy mom. She was always trying to be honest with herself and her friend, which is why she was also looking all around the room, relating to Shizuka’s feelings at that moment. As if their feelings were intertwined and connected by an invisible thread.
Soon enough, Joseph decided to break the silence.
Joseph: Have you nothing to say? We’ve told you many times before you shouldn’t use your abilities! What are you getting out of this?
Shizuka, obviously displeased, finally snapped out of her silence and looked at her father, ready for a heated argument. The only thing going through her head was ‘’just do it’’ and nothing else. It was now or never.
Shizuka: WHY?! I’ve had it up to here with that! You and the others like Uncle Josuke used to do it all the time, why am I not allowed to? Hell, you even used your own Stand to find me! Joseph: That’s different! No harm was done, while you’re using your ability to disrupt our peaceful town. Shizuka: My point still stands; you used to use your Stands all the time! What do you have to say about that, dad? Joseph: Shizuka… look at this beautiful town, there is no reason to disturb its quiet atmosphere. Why do you feel the need to act like that? Not to mention, what would happen if others were to find out about us? Shizuka: …
Joseph was ready to lecture his daughter when the latter decided to cut him off, feeling as if her point was more important than an apology and explanation.
Joseph: I’m sorry, Shizuka, but-- Shizuka: This is the problem, actually. Exactly that. This town is way too quiet... I feel suffocated, I want to be able to be who I am. Back then you didn’t care whether or not you or Uncle Josuke or Hirose-sensei or anyone else was-- Joseph: Ah, now I get it.
Joseph’s interfering line seemed to make Shizuka snap for a second, as she sat more upright in her position on the hall’s couch in a flash. She no longer felt like being comfortable on it.
Shizuka: Oh? What do you get? Joseph: This is what it’s about, every time… I guess… here we go again. Shizuka: Here we go again? Are you fucking serious?! Suzie Q: LANGUAGE, YOUNG LADY! Shizuka: Oh COME on, mom! Are you for real right now?! Joseph: Are you unhappy, Shizuka? Shizuka: What? Joseph: Are you unhappy, Shizuka? Shizuka: Well… no, I... Joseph: Then why do you feel the need to do all of this? Shizuka: Because everything sucks! The amount of things I enjoy doing here I can count on my fingers, in just one hand!
Suzie Q was taken aback for a second, only to be brought back to reality almost immediately, quite heated up.
Suzie Q: You disrespectful little…!! Shizuka: Oh what? What? You and dad are never doing anything remotely interesting! Neither is anyone else! Why does everyone have to be so boring? Suzie Q: Now listen here, Shizuka Joestar. We have come so far to ensure that you live a peaceful and happy life because we love you. And you… you seek exactly the opposite! We can’t… we just can’t fathom that... Shizuka: Well you better work on that, because that’s just how things are, so deal with it. Joseph: You talk to your mother like that?! She’s right, we didn’t raise you like this! Shizuka: OH-HO-HO-OH MAN I was waiting for when THIS would be brought up. Again, like always. This is exactly what you did! I grew up with your stories and lived through some of them! What happened to you, dad? What happened to the ‘’bizarre adventures’’? Joseph: ...Really...? Shizuka: Yuh? Joseph: If there was one thing I could wish for and make it so that it was real… it would be for you to NEVER go through anything that I went through. Shizuka: …What?
The young woman’s face wore a perplexed yet eager-to-get-angry expression; the words coming out of her step-father’s mouth came out of left window for her. She took a quick look at the direction of Bonnie, who couldn’t help but glance back and then quickly look elsewhere, her feelings of guilt still strongly resonating within.
In the meantime Joseph looked at Suzie Q and held her hand, letting her lean on him until Shizuka turned to face him once more, turning her head at an angle to express her curiousness.
Shizuka: Say it already! What did you mean by that? Joseph: You don’t understand the true meaning behind those times. They might have been as enjoyable and as entertaining as nursery rhymes to you but they should never become an aspiration, love. Shizuka: Because? Joseph: Pursuit of adventure… is that what you seek? Shizuka: Oh! HELL YEAH! Finally, Papa; you seem to get it now. Are we on the same level now? Joseph: I’m afraid not… Shizuka: And why is that? Joseph: It is exactly because of such daydreaming that incidents like today happen. You do not understand that— Shizuka: I don’t understand why you’re such a— Joseph: SHIZUKA JOESTAR!!! Shizuka: NO! LET ME FINISH! And-- Shizuka Joestar!? HUH!? Where is the ‘’Joestar’’ in all of this!? No Joestar leads such a life! You, Jotaro-san, Uncle Josuke, you all share something in common, but where is that in me? If I’m a Joestar, I can’t live like this. I shouldn’t have to! Joseph: And because of that you go and beat people?! Shizuka: GOD DAMN IT!!! FOR THE LAST TIME, THEY STARTED IT! Joseph: And you finished it! What about you getting expelled for an entire week?! Shizuka: Mhm, so you know that too.
Shizuka looked at Bonnie quickly who seemed to be on the verge of tears. Shizuka’s stare however was not a hostile one. Instead it embodied reassuring relief; Shizuka knew how to display to her best friend what she was thinking perfectly. She was visibly telling her that it was fine. That she liked her presence.
This honesty of Bonnie’s had proven to be her biggest weakness many times in the past as well, having filled Shizuka’s guardians in on the events of the day, it was a most difficult situation for her. She felt guilty for having done this to her friend, even if she knew Shizuka held their lovely friendship extremely valuable. Once more, she made way for the argument to continue much to her dismay, as she left quietly. Ms. Tyler was left there, playing the role of an idle, mute viewer of the conflict as Shizuka looked at her friend exiting the room but was brought back to reality when she heard Joseph talking to her. But at this point she had had it.
Joseph: You have been getting into trouble lately, but today was the last straw. We expected some things from you, knowing your recent behaviour, but not sending people to the hospital! Shizuka: Oh for fu-- Joseph: Your behaviour was unacceptable and I will see to it that you won’t repeat such a thing again. Shizuka: You won’t do shit. Joseph: Why you-- Shizuka: Like you always do nowadays.
Dead silence filled the room. A fleeting sensation of shock struck everyone except Shizuka who stood up to face Joseph, displaying a mundane and disinterested grimace.
Shizuka: I’m a Joestar. Right? Joseph: Shizuka: I'm not for this life.
Joseph was almost on the verge of tears as he took a step back. Clutching his fist, as soon as he returned, it was obvious he was about to exhibit a fierce comeback.
Joseph: You… if it weren’t for us finding you 16 years ago, you’d just be a lost nobody! We gave you all we have! How dare you just… Shizuka: … Joseph: …Just…
Dead silence devoured everything yet again. Shizuka’s face was at its most expressive in that one moment, lit by the chandelier’s dim light, accentuating her conflicted feelings. She first sat down once more, calmly, her mouth hanging slightly open as her eyes were hardly able to focus on Joseph’s face, her hands trembling, just a little bit.
This was not something she expected to hear.
This was all finished when Shizuka clenched her fist and hit the wooden handle of the couch, which took Joseph and Suzie Q by surprise.
Shizuka: I… I thought that you of all people would understand me. But this… this is…!!
The young woman was unable to finish her sentence.
Joseph collected himself.
Joseph: Shizuka, please. That’s not what I-- Shizuka: No. Stop. End it there. Better nip this in the bud.
Suzie Q, placing her hands on her face, visibly shook, moved closer to Joseph as the latter couldn’t bear to look his awe-struck daughter in the face and held his head down.
Shizuka: Let’s just go home.
Shizuka went for the door handle slowly, her mind probably going through many emotions and making many thoughts. But as soon as she turned the handle, she pulled away suddenly, turning around and walking through the hallway, looking at Ms. Tyler. She took a moment to think again, before asking the woman if it was okay for her to go to Bonnie’s room and wish her good night. Ms. Tyler forced a plastic smile and approved her request. Shizuka thanked the lady, making her way up the stairs to her room, leaving everyone else behind.
In the meantime, Joseph and Suzie Q were left alone with Ms. Tyler, not uttering a word, facing the silence of their own design and embracing in the middle of the soundless, painfully illuminated hallway.
====================================
The door in Bonnie’s room was heard creaking. The young woman, softly cozy under her bedsheets, looks to the door to see her bestie standing in front of the now open door, lit by the light of the moon, coming in through the window curtains like a ghostly apparition.
Shizuka: Can I come in? Bonnie: …Yeah.
The young woman entered the room and closed the door behind her, adjusting her nape-length hair to be more straight. Approaching the bed, she took a seat down on the floor next to the mattress, to reach an eye level with Bonnie.
Bonnie: Shizu-chan… I-- Shizuka: Shhh… I know what you’re going to say. Your next line is ‘’I’m sorry for the trouble I caused you’’, right? Bonnie: …Well… Shizuka: Heh... It’s fine, you needn’t worry about this. You know how it is. It’s all cool, girl! We’re tight! And that’s not gonna change even when hell freezes over.
The shy girl started feeling butterflies in her stomach, also sensing tears starting to form.
Bonnie: *sniff* but… but still… Shizuka: I’m having none of that, Bons! You heard it here first. No matter what, it’s gonna be okay. Please never forget that… alright?
Bonnie stayed quiet for a second before taking her bedsheets a bit more off her face to wipe some of her emerging tears in order for her best friend to see her slowly forming smile. Using her forearm to wipe the rest of it, a brand new expression was revealed behind it. A bright smile.
Bonnie: YES! Shizuka: Oh, Bonnie! That’s what I like to see!
The two best friends leaned closer to each other and embraced in a tight hug. Perhaps they felt that this inconvenient event was just another testament of their ironclad friendship and how much it could withstand.
They were proud of it.
Shizuka: Bons… this is gonna be… a bit hard for me to say to you and also a bit sudden but… are you gonna to be okay if we don’t see each other for a week? Bonnie: Eh? Well… well you won’t be at school but we can still meet outside of it, right? Shizuka: No, no. I mean… not at all. Not in school, not out of school. Would that be okay with you? Bonnie: Shizu-chan… what are you talking about?
Shizuka made herself comfortable on Bonnie's bed, as she lay on it upwards, sitting at the edge of it, completely fixated on the daughter of the family.
Shizuka: Well, you see… I think I might not be in Morioh until next week. I will be back for school so we’ll see each other again then, though! Bonnie: What? …I don’t understand. Where are you going? Shizuka: Well, no offense, I love you so much, but I am afraid I can’t tell you. I don’t want anyone to find out. Bonnie: But… I’m gonna be concerned without you. Who will I talk to? What will I do? Shizuka: Oh don’t worry! We can text and video chat each other whenever you need! Literally just call whenever; there is nothing so important that can occupy me when you’re in need for some chatting, Bons. I’ll drop everything. Bonnie: ...Are you going to do something dangerous, Shizu-chan? Shizuka: Of course not, dude! Just you wait, I’ll be back before you know it. Say, when I’m back, how about we talk about it over some pizza? And I’m buying. Bonnie: I don’t know…
The nightly breeze crept its way inside the dark room, as the tone of the conversation turned hollow.
Shizuka: If you want me here though, I will stay.
Bonnie thought to herself, while Shizuka sat down once more and crossed her legs, stretching her arms and letting out a huge yawn, letting some steam off from her time on that uncomfortable couch. Soon enough, Bonnie turned to her friend and the latter did so as well, smiling.
Bonnie: Will… that make you happy? Going to wherever you’re going, I mean. Shizuka: Yeah, I’d like it! Bonnie: Then… I guess you can go? I guess so, so many years of friendship is going to be enough to keep me going for a week, right? But it’s going to be lonely, even with texting and stuff… Shizuka: You mean it? Thank you! …
Shizuka felt her reply was a bit too fast, as she slowed down and gave her next words some more thought before exclaiming what she was thinking to this precious person of her life.
Shizuka: Though I understand… if I were you I’d be a bit upset as well. But please… put your trust in me. If there’s any time that I was 100% truthful and serious about something, it’s this time. Bonnie: …Do you promise to be back next week for school? Shizuka: Yes. I do. Bonnie: Pinky swear. Shizuka: Oh, but of course. How could I forget, duh~
The two girls smiled to each other, both bearing a wonderful grin of reassurance to each other, as they came together for a pinky promise. Bringing their hands up and down three times, they then pulled back, this time their eyebrows forming a jokingly evil expression to accommodate their smiles.
Bonnie: Hahaha! Hah... oh... you’re awesome, Shizu-chan. Shizuka: Shut your pie hole, it’s you.
The two girls then fist-bumped each other before pulling away their arms in a wavy way. It was their honored signature gesture. Bonnie, as fragile and humble as she was, couldn’t help but adopt the same feelings and expressions as her best friend during these beautiful moments.
Shizuka: Well then… I guess I shouldn’t keep your mom or my folks waiting. Sorry I was not able to spend as much time with you today as I wanted to… Bonnie: Don’t sweat it, Shizu-chan. Every moment is appreciated. Today you saved me from those bullies... that's more than enough, fufu! Shizuka: Would ya say I've filled my quota? Bonnie: Hmmm... maybe for this week. Shizuka: GAHAHAHA!!
Bonnie shut her eyes and laughed along, while her best friend felt her cheeks hurting from all the smiling and laughing. It was the best kind of pain to be in.
Shizuka: Wow… Then… Good night, Bons. You’re epic. I’ll be seeing you later!
Shizuka sat up and winked at Bonnie before facing away from her and towards the door.
Bonnie: Wait a second, Shizu-chan! Shizuka: Yeah? Bonnie: The place you’re going to… what are you doing there? Shizuka: Well…
Shizuka slowly walked to the door and exited the room, preparing to close the door behind her, looking at Bonnie Tyler through the small gap between the door and the sill. With a feisty nod, she confidently responded.
‘’I’m going on an adventure.’’
================================
Shizuka walked down the stairs and came to the hallway, where she noticed her parents sitting there with Bonnie’s mom, having a talk of their own. Shizuka told the lady good night and glanced at her parents.
Shizuka: Are we going? And can we at least make a stop somewhere? I forgot something. Joseph: We’re sorry for the inconvenience, Ms. Tyler. Fortunately, we shall leave you alone from now on. Good night. Ms. Tyler: Oh no, don’t worry about it! Good night, I wish you all the best. Joseph: Thank you very kindly. Suzie Q: Much obliged, good night. Shizuka: Later.
As they were ready to go, a knock was heard on the front door. Catching them by surprise, Suzie Q looked back at Bonnie’s mom.
Suzie Q: Are you expecting anyone this late? Ms. Tyler: Not really…
Ms. Tyler moved towards the door and turned the handle, opening the door slowly. A figure quickly hopped into the picture, surprising everyone briefly.
Mikitaka: Salutations! Shizuka, I acquired your glasses and brought them to your nearest possible location, since I couldn’t find anyone at your abode. Knowing you wouldn’t want them harmed, I put them on, so as to…
The bizarre man slowly quieted down and then stopped, observing his surroundings. Everyone’s attention was directed at Mikitaka. Putting on an expression of curiosity, looking at every person in the room at a time, he curiously inquired.
Joseph Joestar and his wife, Suzie, had just left home together. Having work to do on a weekday, they made haste and entered their car, leaving their suburban home completely quiet. Shizuka’s parents decided that since she didn’t have to go to school, and her friends were occupied with going to school instead, she was not really able to do much, other than just stay at home.
A lack of worry that fueled Shizuka’s real intentions.
Shizuka Joestar was alone at the house, with no one there to see her. Nothing but the sunlight penetrating her room through her windows and curtains was there to wish her a good morning. As the engine of a car roared before it disappeared into the distant road, the young woman got up from bed and looked out the window, squinting her eyes to combat the sunlight rays assaulting her vision, only to find out nobody was outside. It was probably late in the morning and everyone had already gone to work or school. ‘’As if the town of Morioh couldn’t get any quieter’’ Shizuka said aloud before sighing audibly.
After laying on her bed upright for 2 whole minutes trying to fully wake up, she noticed how she was truly alone and unmonitored, deciding it was time. Picking up her phone from the stool next to her bed in order to text with Mikitaka, Shizuka must have yawned about 4 or 5 times while typing out a single message to her friend, tears still in her eyes from the recently-halted rest. Contrary to her state of being at the moment though, it only took one second for Shizuka to jump from the bed to the closet in her room, dismissing the need for her flippers or all of her morning routine. She did not exactly consider brushing her teeth or brushing her hair a priority.
Shizuka wore a smug expression as she opened her closet, phone in hand. She felt a vibration and stopped for a second to check her device.
‘’Are you sure you want to do this? I am unsure of whether or not your parents would allow such a sudden expedition to the airport.’’ responded Mikitaka. Shizuka took a bit of her time in front of the closet to message the weird man back.
‘’Chill bro, were gonna b ok ’’
Throwing the phone on the bed to examine the closet more carefully, Shizuka springed back into position in front of the closet, investigating her wearable belongings. Observing many wonderful jeans, she didn’t hesitate taking all of them out instead of picking just a pair or two. There was a reason behind this, surely. Feeling as if there was not enough variety in her choice of legwear, she picked up some very casual pairs of pants she thought she had grown out of, a hypothesis debunked by her trying out some of them.
Then came the shirts. From flamboyant-albeit-fancy 80’s-inspired strass-filled pieces to regular typography-only T-Shirts or single-coloured bland shirts, the teen did not exactly care much for keeping one kind of clothing style for her venture. She took as many shirts as she thought could fit into the largest sac-voyage her family owned and threw them on the bed, the hangers still in.
Shizuka: I can just take 'em out later. It's easy.
As far as jackets go, Shizuka did not much care for loud designs; most of the ones she owned were dark in colour and made of leather or were extremely puffy for the Winter season she dreaded with all of her being. Not sparing much of a thought, she took out 5 of them she thought were appropriate enough and threw them on the bed as well.
Finally, she was able to close her closet and look in the cabinets next to it. Realizing no one was there to see her, she took a sniff out of the drawer and inhaled the freshness of her underwear. Suzie Q was an absolute pro in freshening clothes and Shizuka appreciated that extraordinarily so. Time had come to stop daydreaming about putting on fresh underwear however and instead just grab a bunch of them. From striped panties to baggy briefs, she picked one of each type she had and carefully placed them on the bed. As far as bras and socks were concerned, only a couple or so would suffice. Once more, not sparing much of a thought, she placed them on the bed as well.
Preparing a couple of pairs of socks and shoes and judging her sac-voyage-destined wardrobe was ready, the young woman put on a new shirt, new underwear and new pants to start her day proper, as she was about to exit her room and start her morning routine proper, also to look for the bag. Before being able to do so though, a thought came to her which hit her as hard as if a hammer had just landed on her head.
She had forgotten something. But what exactly?
Shizuka briefly looked around her small room. Looking at her bookshelves, she didn’t think she was too keen on taking something to read along. Her large collection of manga was already read by her, she was the type of person to order a manga volume and read it the same day it arrives in the mail. "I gues... I can grab the first 2 volumes of this... I've wanted to re-read this for a while." she thought, taking and shoving two manga volumes into the sac-voyage. But that wasn't what she'd forgotten.
Glancing at her diary, she doubted she needed to occupy herself with it when she would have more exciting things to do than write by hand. The teenager was puzzled until her eyes met with her bedside table. On top of it, a family picture.
Shizuka, still barefoot, slowly reached for the picture and held it in her hands, as the world seemed to go silent, the morning breeze mute. It was a picture of Shizuka along with her friend, Bonnie Tyler. Joseph and Suzie Q were also in the picture, standing behind the two girls, placing their hands on their shoulders with proud smiles on their faces. Bonnie’s mom was also in the picture, sitting next to Suzie. This picture seemed to have been taken years ago, while Shizuka was still in elementary. Perhaps 4th grade? The girl quietly smiled as she thought what crime it would be if she didn’t take it along. ‘’How sacrilegious of me. Barbaric, even.’’ she said to herself out loud as she placed it next to the clothing.
The young woman then looked at the clock. It was 10:00 AM exactly, something that seemed to make Shizuka jump, as she quickly made haste to the bathroom to start off.
================================
It was 10:33 AM, putting on her shoes at last, Shizuka thought she was good to go. She felt a sudden vibration in her pocket that caught her off-guard. Taking her smartphone out, she started chatting a bit with Mikitaka.
‘’I am ready, however I still disagree with this particular venture. Please communicate with me from a closer distance when we meet each other.''
‘’Dude I said dont worry about it lol u know me ’’
‘’I shall not lower my guard. You know better than to initiate reckless ‘’foolishness’’ as you humans call it, correct?’’
‘’Yea whatever but when did u say the plane leaves? 12?’’
‘’That would be a correct calculation.’’
‘’Good Ill c u at ur house in a few’’
Shizuka felt her phone vibrating, however she did not care as much to answer after making herself clear as much as she did about getting her sac-voyage to fit. Stuffing bags of junk food and a surely superfluous amount of water bottles must have been the reason behind it, but the young woman still considered their inclusion a necessity of utmost importance.
Barely managing to get the zipper to close, Shizuka was sweating as she let out a huge gasp of pain.
‘’Achtung Baby.’’
A ghostly figure behind her emerged, which picked up the heavy bag for the girl. Shizuka properly did her hair with a brush on the way out after messing it up with her continuous bag struggling and wiped off sweat from her brow, finally stopping after putting on her glasses on top of her head in a careful manner. Looking at her Stand, which was carrying the bag, she smiled at it, something it returned back. Exiting the room and going into the hallway, she noticed the left-open and ransacked fridge which she closed with her foot as she walked past it. Coming to the living room, she looked back and took a moment to observe the unlit house and spare some final thoughts for it. She did not exactly love her home, but she definitely had a special place in her heart for it.
Finally, Shizuka took out her wallet from her pocket that didn’t have the phone in it, checking if she had taken the right amount of money. Having plundered Joseph’s second wallet that he didn’t know she knew about, the girl decided that 70 thousand or so yen would be fine, doing the dollar calculations in her head.
The young woman was ready to go until she felt something eerie. She wondered what that sudden feeling that made her heart pound painfully for a second was.
Regret.
Shizuka could not dismiss a feeling of uneasiness. She had done many things behind her parents’ back before. Leaving home when grounded secretly, getting a tattoo, she had even stolen her dad’s car once to go to Akira Otoishi's annual Morioh concert event. But this striked her as crossing the line for a moment. After a little bit… it was no longer a fleeting thought.
‘’This is what I want. And I don’t belong here. That should be enough.’’ She thought to herself before rendering her thoughts negligible. She couldn’t spare any time for second thoughts, not now. The pent-up discomfort and lack of satisfaction stirring up inside the girl for years had driven her to do this. For once, an opportunity had presented itself and she was just going to stop chasing it?
Shizuka: I'm a JoJo. We don’t let shit slip by.
Killing her doubts and without further ado, she set off, climbing out the window along with her floating bag and a bottle of water in hand. As she walked out of the window and into her porch’s pavement, she turned right and started strolling, her bag accommodating her from behind. The teenager took out her phone, dismissing Mikitaka’s missed message and browsing her contacts. With a sketchy move of raising her hand high before selecting a contact with her finger, she put on her glasses and hit the profile titled ‘’Bonnie’’.
‘’Hey its me. U wont see this probably cuz ur @ school but Im going now. Call or text me whenever Bons ’’
Shizuka resumed casually strolling down the quiet town, heading for her valued Miki-kun’s place, while browsing the internet on her phone.
It was time.
==================
Mikitaka: I need to confirm, it is highly important. Shizuka: God damn, for the last time, YES!
Mikitaka was visibly concerned but still kept walking along with Shizuka towards the airport near the pier. Shizuka had grown tired of his continued questioning, inflicting undesired doubt she was better off without.
Mikitaka, still not fully approving of his friend’s actions, felt reluctant to continue regardless of his concerns. He regretted not being able to speak his mind but could not do much about it in the current situation. Instead he thought questioning Shizuka more thoroughly was the best approach at the current given moment.
Mikitaka: And where exactly is your self-designated destination, Shizuka? Shizuka: Mexico.
Mikitaka’s mouth started hanging open as soon as Shizuka exclaimed her destination, also starting to nervously sweat. Despite all this, he simply continued to walk along and ask questions.
Mikitaka: Why Mexico? Shizuka: I’d love to go to other places, such as Venice or Paris, or Hong Kong, or the Galapagos Islands, but right now I know of a little airplane that can take me to Mexico, without even stopping at other countries to get on another flight! Straight from Japan to the east coast of the US, isn’t that awesome? Mikitaka: But you do not even have a passport from my knowledge. Shizuka: That won’t be a problem. Do you remember… Father Arthur’s apprentice kid you told me about? Mikitaka: I do recollect such a memory, indeed. Shizuka: All I have to do is convince Arthur to take me to Mexico instead. We’re gonna see the remains and ruins and all that good stuff he was going to do with what’s-his-face anyway if it makes him happy, so I’m sure he won’t have much of a problem. Mikitaka: Kojiro Nakatsukasa is the child’s name. Shizuka: Cool beans. Still, church stuff is BO-RING. But as for me, I’ll get to have fun and I’ll even be nice to Father Arthur so he won’t complain a lot. He can arrange to go with that toddler some other time. Mikitaka: It is a strictly religious trip. You will-- Shizuka: Okay listen, li-listen dude. Listen man. I could not be giving less of a singular, solitary, particular, individual, remote, exclusive shit even if I tried to right now.
Mikitaka remained silent, still accompanying Shizuka and her floating backpack along Morioh’s outskirts.
Shizuka: Worst case scenario, if he says no, I’ll know what to do. This cannot possibly go wrong. It's foolproof. Mikitaka: If that is the case as you propose, then why was my accommodation a necessity as you explained previously?
Shizuka swiftly turned to face Mikitaka, close her eyes and wore a huge grin on her face before putting her index finger in front of her mouth. She quickly turned her head sideways before addressing Mikitaka in a cute but peculiar manner.
Shizuka: It’s a sur~pri~se~! Mikitaka: …I see.
The two of them assumed their previous positions and kept making their way towards the airport. Mikitaka felt regretful but still could not accumulate the energy required to talk to Shizuka again, whether it was to discourage or question her. There was simply no such option for him.
Shizuka took great pleasure in the current situation, comically making her way down an empty Morioh highway, raising her legs high before taking steps forward, seemingly without a care in the world, drawing closer and closer towards the pier.
The adventurous teenager soon felt the urge to go faster, beginning to sprint before long, smiling fiercely all the while. Mikitaka noticed his friend gaining speed in a hurry and did his best to tag along, the elation of the whole situation not being able to be understated. Before long…
=================
Arthur: Yes, son? Kojiro: Is it going to be very hot there, Father? I heard Mexico is warm even this time of year… Arthur: That is true. However, no truly faithful lamb of the Lord such as yourself should be phased by the presence of mere heat. Instead… your devotion to Him should instead become that heat, an internal warmth representing your passion. A much more powerful flame. Kojiro: Oh… That’s right, Father! I’m sorry for making a fuss… Arthur: There is no need to apologise, my son. I am very happy that you volunteered to accompany me to the rich ruins of ancient times. Kojiro: Of course! I would never miss such a thing! I can’t wait! Arthur: Hahaha… I’m looking forward to it, as well.
Arthur calmly sat down on a bench in front of the gas station next to the airport and put on his helmet before Kojiro decided to follow suit and accompany his beloved mentor. The two of them opted to relax and unwind before it was their flight’s time.
Father Arthur, Morioh Resident & Church Priest
Nationality: British Age: 39 Height: 180 cms
Kojiro Nakatsukasa, Morioh Resident & Middle Schooler at ABBA
Nationality: Japanese Age: 14 Height: 157 cms
The two Morioh residents were excited to be going to Mexico. Their long history together had finally led up to this moment.
Kojiro was raised in a strictly Christian household, faithfully growing up to be a respectful Christian, making his friends and family proud as the years went on. After many years of friendship with the local church’s priest, Arthur Rown, a man who came to Japan in search of greater peace and preaching His word to a distant nation, the two spent more and more time together as time went on.
Eventually, Arthur’s desire to visit an archeologically-rich sight for religion-related reasons caught the eye of the town’s most faithful Christian child. Kojiro’s family happily obliged to their son’s request to accommodate the humble priest to the US and one thing led to another. At long last, the time had come for them to take off and begin their adventure.
Unbeknownst to them, they weren’t the only ones around with adventure on their minds. Close by…
Mikitaka: …but what will come of it when your invisibility runs out? The staff will realise there is an extra passenger, with luggage as massive as yours. Shizuka: That’s actually a fair point. Hmmm… I do have an idea though. Brainstormed it real quick just now. Mikitaka: Quite fast. What is this ‘’idea’’ to be exact? Shizuka: You’ll see. Just keep me company and we’ll figure this out-- OH! There they are! Mikitaka: Father Arthur and Kojiro Nakatsukasa. With only 15 minutes left, the plane shall be exiting the vicinity within the scheduled timeframe. Shizuka: Yeah, that.
Shizuka and Mikitaka had arrived at the airport after walking around the quiet town of Morioh. Finally arriving at the destination, the young woman decided it was high time she stopped being so leisurely and grabbed onto her sac voyage’s handles with her hands instead of letting it appear as if it levitated behind her like a ghostly pursuer. Of course she still had Achtung Baby do all the work, as there was no way she would just hold onto that monster of a bag on her own.
Soon enough, the two friends approached the gas station, pretending to be just passerbys looking to buy some food from the kiosk next to it. Shizuka nodded at her peculiar-looking friend by assuming a very straight stance and winking at him, so as to let him know to assume movements of normalcy. As soon as the peculiar man got the message, he replicated the same stance before both of them passed in front of the priest and 8th grader who appeared to be casually chatting. A true achievement of stealth in Shizuka’s eyes, as all observant onlookers would detect a high-schooler of Shizuka’s stature would be unable to lift such a tremendous bag and a man of Mikitaka’s stature did not seem young enough to be wearing a school outfit.
As soon as they arrived at the front of the small kiosk off the right side of the gas station, Shizuka let the sac voyage drop on the ground and was consequently quick to grab two bars of chocolate displayed in front of the shopping stand. Mikitaka looked closely as his companion handed the sweet snacks to the cashier, not uttering a single word all the while reaching for her wallet. Mikitaka gave it his all to retain his position of normalcy, as far as he was concerned, his friend’s instructions were still in procedure.
Mikitaka: I must inquire, what is the plan, Shizuka? Shizuka: Shhh.
The reckless high schooler finished her exchange with the cashier and handed one chocolate bar to her friend while she slowly put on her glasses, kicked the large bag forward and once she had found what seemed to be a desirable spot, sat down on the ground next to the kiosk, out of view of Arthur and Kojiro. Mikitaka turned his head to look at Shizuka but retained his ‘’normal’’ stance. Shizuka turned her head in response and smiled at him, instructing him to sit next to her using her hands.
Mikitaka followed through, albeit in a difficult manner, as he was still doing his best to keep his stance unbroken. Shizuka put her hand on her friend’s shoulder and pushed him with a little bit of force, still smiling at him. Mikitaka and Shizuka had been friends for a long time, so much so that they seemed to understand what each other meant without the need for uttering words. A most laconic approach, seemingly unfit for a relationship involving such a verbose alien individual and a mouthy girl.
Mikitaka stared back at Shizuka and unceremoniously lost his stance, loosening up in a flash, as if time had skipped and the process was already complete. The two were soon enough on the ground, legs crossed, chocolates still in hand, looking at the view of the pier nearby.
Shizuka: A beautiful ocean, delicious chocolate, and the company of a friend. Truly a perfectly pretty prologue for what’s to come, wouldn’t ya agree? Mikitaka: We still have not gone over the actions. Shizuka: Relax. I have the perfect plan. I considered your concerns and I think I agree with you. Mikitaka: In regards to the fact that this is a most probably risky venture and as such would be rendered unadvisable? Shizuka: No, about the extra passenger. Mikitaka: …Is that so… Shizuka: This is where you come in. Don’t think I don’t pay attention to you, because I really am going to depend on your advanced alien morphing powers you’ve kept me posted about. Mikitaka: Are you referring to my abilities coming in use as a valuable asset to the completion of your as-of-yet unannounced objective? Shizuka: Uh… Yes.
Shizuka’s smile turned awkward for a second, momentarily being flustered at the complicated words of her friend. She soon broke her silence by unwrapping the chocolate and taking a bite off the fresh top.
‘’I think I’m going to get rid of that brat.’’ She exclaimed.
Mikitaka’s eyes widened and he started sweating nervously as he looked at Shizuka munching on her chocolate bar. The teenager looked back with a cheeky glare, which further worsened the awkward man’s expression.
Shizuka: I won’t kill him. Mikitaka: I did not-- Shizuka: For a second though, you did. Mikitaka: … Shizuka: Dude, come ON! I’m not THAT cruel, am I? Yikes… Mikitaka: I guess I must have obtained the state you call ‘’getting ahead of oneself’’ and I apologise for my misbehavior if that is the case.
‘’Don’t worry’’ exclaimed Shizuka, taking another bite off her still perfectly cold chocolate.
Shizuka: I will do my absolute best to ensure his safety. But let’s just say… [Engrish] this town ain’t big enough for the two of us. Mikitaka: I do not seem to understand.
Shizuka adjusted her glasses before taking a large bite out of her chocolate. After a few seconds and with the swallow of the latest piece, she turned to Mikitaka with a confident smirk and raised her finger, ready to talk.
Shizuka: Alright, so, I'll take his place and become a stowaway. I'll find a way to direct Arthur to the plane while simultaneously keeping him separated from Kojiro, who will be left behind for a little bit, allowing you to observe him well enough, leading to the next step. I'm gonna need you to take his form and follow in time. You can probably replicate his passport as well. I’ll be right behind you, unseen by staff and passengers. When it’s time, I will also find a way to get you out of the plane before it takes off, me still on board, before you start losing it over the intense noise. Mikitaka: ... Shizuka: Capiche?
Mikitaka seemed flustered and his mouth was open agape as his facial expressions couldn’t be read, still struggling to progress what he had just been told.
Mikitaka: I see… but-- Shizuka: No buts! We got, like, 10 minutes! This needs to happen now. I told you the plan, let’s just go with it and if push comes to shove, I am perfect at improv. Mikitaka: I do not approve of this. Shizuka: Approval is overrated, baby.
Shizuka bit down on the last piece of her chocolate bar before standing up in a comedic manner once more, shifting her attention towards the trash can next to the kiosk, a silver sign on it reading ‘’KEEP MORIOH CLEAN’’, before throwing the wrapping paper in the bin.
As Shizuka swallowed the last bit of her sweet snack, she closed her eyes as an arm bled into existence from behind her slowly, grabbing onto the luggage, overlapping with Shizuka’s hand which was also grabbing onto the bag, lifting it up effortlessly. Not wasting a moment further, Shizuka followed up, gesturing at Mikitaka to stand up with her free hand, the unwrapped chocolate still in his hands. The awkward man stepped up slowly, assuming a neutral facial expression, however dreading every step he took, and deciding not to have his face reflect his emotions.
Shizuka soon grew tired of waiting and grabbed her pointy-eared friend from his uniform collar as she led the way walking fast back towards the direction of Arthur and Kojiro. Mikitaka was taken aback by the cheeky attitude of his young friend but walked along anyway, before the latter turned her head back and raised her eyebrows at him.
With one overexpressive grimace, she asked Mikitaka:
Shizuka: What're ya waiting for!? WE GOT A FLIGHT TO CATCH!
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, there but it's a fight I'm not willing to take.
