YOU CAN'T TRUST FREEDOM . . .

Hmm…

(He’d be the first to admit it, the personal stuff between Diego and Johnny is a little less amusing.

Well, less amusing is the wrong word. It’s always fun to learn the petty grievances everyone has towards each other, but it’s much less…

Relevant.)

Fate, huh…

Did ya stop working for the Joestar patriarch after Nicholas died? I highly doubt that man would ever have wanted Johnny to touch a horse again.

(He’s probably pushing the envelope now. Civil War can work with next to no information because it draws directly from the mind at the moment.

But this is juicy. You can’t be too prepared, and all.)

If anything, there’s some credit to Johnny’s name; whether it’s a dead brother or paralysis, he really used that to push forward, huh. Leaving stuff behind, to move forward, and all.

No. Continued working for him until I was… Ah, probably 15, maybe 16? Started working for him when I was… Can’t remember. 7 or 8, something like that.

He still had horses to tend to, after all. I just… Saw a lot less of him. And Johnny, for that matter, until we started racing.

(The years all blurred together in his head. He remembered only being hired after his mother passed, and that was almost certainly a sympathy hire, considering the other stable boys were considerably older than him. Johnny was the only person even close to his peergroup.

… Diego doesn’t really mind talking about this, actually. Some of the weight feels lifted, somehow.

He’s been holding onto this for as long as he can remember.)

Oh. But of course…

I would never dare downplay his talent, he certainly has it, even if he is… We’ll say handicapped, now.

I was just always better when it came to racing. He beat everyone else in his league; I heard he won the Kentucky Derby, too, or something like that?

(Diego takes one last puff of his cigarette, tasting the familiar burn of the filter. That’s his cue to drop it & stomp it out… And time to go, he begins to think. How long had he been hanging around here, talking?)

… Well, it’s been nice. But I’m afraid I’ve got to hit the road.

(He's not going to lie, Axl doesn't think there'll be a lot left to do, whether he succeeds or the race ends. This is towards the final leg of the race, so tensions are mounting, and a heavy sense of finality hangs around in the air.)

I have to thank you for the info, Mr Brando. It'll help a lot. You don't even know.

(He watches the cigarette drop through the air, only for it's elegance to be abruptly ended by a heel stomp.)

I'd hate to keep you waiting.

(Although it's not sopping with sarcasm, Axl leaves before offering a proper goodbye, or Diego has the chance to say one.

(There’s a low chuckle as Axl hears Diego speak, although whether it’s at the “not low enough” slight or the revelation of Joestar’s dead brother.

He takes a pause, so he’s breaking the next part of his conversation away from the laugh.

It would be in bad taste.)

It sounds awful. Quite tragic. Remarkable that he threw himself further into horse racing despite such trauma, huh?

I suppose that’s the price, I guess. Would he be this… talented without that death in the family?

Guess he left something behind to move forward, but that something happened to be a someone…

(That’s more a mutter to himself.)

You said you knew… Nicholas Joestar? That must’ve been rough, to see that at a young age, much less know him…

(Maybe he betrays a little too much about the knowledge Civil War lets him privy to at this point, or maybe he’s prodding too much out of pure ignorance.)

(Diego just shrugs at that, a low hum at Axl’s questions. He does briefly wonder why Axl is so interested, but he still reasons that Johnny is a common enemy… So he continues.)

The Joestar’s have always worked with horses. Mr. Joestar- his father was a horse breeder.

(… Can’t shake the habit of calling him by his title, no matter how long ago it was–)

I suppose it would only make sense, just to keep the family name going… I am surprised he decided to return at all, considering his back injury.

I remembered him being a good jockey, when we were younger– just not as good as me.

(There’s a nudge towards their rivalry. If Diego were competing, he’d always best Johnny– always. Even if Diego had the severe disadvantage, fighting his way out of poverty in order to get where he was, he still came out on top… He supposed that’s why Johnny was so bitter.

There’s a brief smug smile at the thought. But it disappears before he carries on.)

… It wasn’t nice, no.

(He does shudder a little upon recollection of it, but he plays it off by tugging his coat closer to him.)

But it couldn’t be helped. I’m… Pretty sure he was dead as soon as he hit the ground, anyway, even if any of us could have gotten to him.

(He'd be the first to admit it, the personal stuff between Diego and Johnny is a little less amusing.

Well, less amusing is the wrong word. It's always fun to learn the petty grievances everyone has towards each other, but it's much less...

Relevant.)

Fate, huh...

Did ya stop working for the Joestar patriarch after Nicholas died? I highly doubt that man would ever have wanted Johnny to touch a horse again.

(He's probably pushing the envelope now. Civil War can work with next to no information because it draws directly from the mind at the moment.

But this is juicy. You can't be too prepared, and all.)

(Axl, much like most of America, had forgotten Johnny grew up in Britain; all anyone really cares about it where they’re born.)

Right.

What’re the chances you’d both end up in the race the, hey?

(Honestly, pretty likely, considering anyone with a horse - and even some with camels - was there, but the fact they’d both go onto have such an intense relationship throughout was far more intriguing.

Maybe it’s the tone in Diego’s voice, maybe it’s genuine curiousity, or maybe Civil War has a subconscious cue in Axl’s head that tells him to ask more, but…)

Say, Joestar has a brother? How come I’d never heard of that?

I’ve read too many briefings on him, but that…

Well, for some reason, it’s never been brought up.

Low, but not low enough, apparently.

Oh well.

(He’d already accepted that winning the race, even if he were either near the top of the leaderboard or at the top of it, were still relatively slim.

But Valentine’s paychecks were still nothing to be scoffed at. The win would simply be a bonus.)

He had a brother, yes– ‘had’ being the keyword here. His name was Nicholas.

(Not sure if he should be sharing this information with Axl, but… It’s not like him & Johnny were going to be the best of friends anytime soon. They were fighting on the same side, anyway.)

He was… Thrown off his horse when it got startled by a white mouse. He got trampled to death.

… It was a tragedy, really. The Joestar’s like to keep it hush-hush, you know.

(There’s a melancholy tone to Diego’s voice, taking another puff from his cigarette. It wasn’t the only death he bore witness to as a child, and it certainly didn’t sting as much as his mother’s, but…)

Well. Life’s a bitch, and then you die, I suppose.

He takes a pause, so he's breaking the next part of his conversation away from the laugh.

It would be in bad taste.)

It sounds awful. Quite tragic. Remarkable that he threw himself further into horse racing despite such trauma, huh?

I suppose that's the price, I guess. Would he be this... talented without that death in the family?

Guess he left something behind to move forward, but that something happened to be a someone...

(That's more a mutter to himself.)

You said you knew... Nicholas Joestar? That must've been rough, to see that at a young age, much less know him...

Unfortunately, I think over here we prefer our American blooded yankees.

That is to say, unfortunately the papers prefer that Joestar problem.

(A - well, I won’t say warm, but it’s not openly dismissive - roll of the eyes.)

That must be some famous Brando hospitality the papers are yet to catch on to.

(He pauses. Something he saw in the papers comes to the forefront of his mind.)

Say… Didn’t you know Joestar from a long time ago?

Ugh. Him.

(… Diego didn’t expect said Joestar to amount to much in the race, given his injury. But, in retrospect, it would only be natural that he would be competing, given they were on his home turf.

There’s a beat of silence at the question.)

Ah… Yeah. Something like that.

I used to work for his father, when we were both kids- I suppose you could say we were friendly, if only to an extent. Far more than now, anyway.

(These are memories Diego really didn’t like reflecting upon.)

… But his brother was better company.

Right.

What're the chances you'd both end up in the race the, hey?

(Honestly, pretty likely, considering anyone with a horse - and even some with camels - was there, but the fact they'd both go onto have such an intense relationship throughout was far more intriguing.

Maybe it's the tone in Diego's voice, maybe it's genuine curiousity, or maybe Civil War has a subconscious cue in Axl's head that tells him to ask more, but...)

Say, Joestar has a brother? How come I'd never heard of that?

I've read too many briefings on him, but that...

That is to say, unfortunately the papers prefer that Joestar problem.

(A - well, I won't say warm, but it's not openly dismissive - roll of the eyes.)

That must be some famous Brando hospitality the papers are yet to catch on to.

(He pauses. Something he saw in the papers comes to the forefront of his mind.)

That is to say, unfortunately the papers prefer that Joestar problem.

(A - well, I won't say warm, but it's not openly dismissive - roll of the eyes.)

That must be some famous Brando hospitality the papers are yet to catch on to.

(He pauses. Something he saw in the papers comes to the forefront of his mind.)

He sees a lot of things that way…

(A sympathetic chuckle.)

Frankly, I just avoid it all by staying outta the public eye. Does wonders for your PR, to not have one to worry about.

(Axl can’t tell if it’s carefree or narcissistic for Diego to view his word as the only important one.)

The news may be the hardest battle to win, I guess. S'why only one man gets to be President.

Of course he does.

(Diego doesn’t even want to honor the man with his name, just rolls his eyes.)

And that’s easy enough for you to say. Its a little difficult when everyone in America is watching you.

(… In all honesty, if Valentine didn’t tell him who to look out for when it came to Axl, the man would have probably just blended into a crowd–

Only probably, of course, Diego can sense he’s a fellow Stand User. They’re supposed to be drawn to eachother.)

Mmm. Maybe.

… I’m going to have a cigarette before I hit the road.

(There’s a hesitant pause.)

(Not patronising, but slightly matter-of-fact.)

It's like you volunteered for it. When you walk outta this you'll probably be some kind of celebrity.

(He eyes the cigarette.)

Nah. I'm more of a drinking type. I'm sure you could infer that.

Hate cigarettes anyways.