#auoptions

Teals watched the carefully put together box that was sitting in front of him. It sat untouched in the spot that he had placed it in upon taking his seat in the cafe. Joseph sat with one elbow resting on the table, his chin sitting in his palm. There was a touch of sadness that lingered in that gaze, behind the uncertainty. Why? Because he wasnt sure what would happen next. The assignment that they had been working on together was over now. Which meant there could be no other reason for Caesar to need to see him. Unless he wanted to. And how could he expect that from him? He wasnt even sure if he retained any of his memories at all. Maybe all of this was just his chasing ghosts in hope to capture something that he missed out on.

The dreams didnt help. Every thing he found that reminded him of his recent past with Caesar had his heart aching for some kind of relief. It almost felt like he was going through a second phase of mourning over him, despite the fact that he was there before him. And he was alive. If only there was some way to tell. Granted, he had invited Caesar here to meet him. With the hope that talking to him might stir up some kind of real friendship between them beyond their single class together. A feeble attempt to drum up some old memories. That was Joseph's hope, anyway.

On the table sat a box of wonderfully fresh zeppoles. Why this desert? Well mostly as a joke in spite of himself. He'd accidentally called them Zeppeli without thinking. A hard hint that the blond occupied his mind more often than not, especially now.

I hope this goes well. Caesar and I had a rough start before. But... it's different now, isnt it.

Plotted starter @frenchchariot

“I need you to make the arrangements right away, just put it under Joseph Joestar.” The Old Man spoke into the receiver of a phone.

After arguing for another moment with the unseen person on the other end of the line, he finally hung up with a sigh. Sometimes he felt as though not all the information was being passed along to younger people that started working for the Speedwagon Foundation. He had been directing the foundation since Speedwagon and his grandmother had passed away. There was no reason that anyone there shouldn’t know who he was. Not only that but he had saved the world some fifty years ago and aided in saving it again a second time not that long ago. What were these people doing? Living under a rock? He shook his head, mumbling to himself. Sometimes he swore that fighting with them on who he was, was worse than facing whatever danger he was going to have to plunge himself into next. Occasionally he even got fed the crap about how Joseph Joestar died in the 30s, to which he had to go over and explain the entire situation again. That should have been sorted out by now he thought, Suzie’s mistake cleaned up after he had shown up to his own funeral. Then again if she had forgotten to send notice of his survival and recovery, it was very likely that some people hadn’t been notified still that he had survived the battle against Kars. All of it was very much a chaotic mess that seemed to be the going theme for Joseph’s life. He wasn’t sure if this had anything to do with the Joestar legacy at all or if he just had the worst luck. At least things had been sorted out for now though, that was his hope. Worst case scenario he would have to improvise and find his own hotel stay or something once he got to where he was going.

His travels were taking him overseas again. This time though he wasn’t going as far as Japan or even Egypt. No, he was setting his sights on France. He couldn’t say he had ever been there before, all things considered. While he came awfully close to the country during his battle against the Pillar Men, he never actually set foot in France itself. And while Joseph was getting up there in his age, he was determined to keep up this work until he got too old to do it anymore. After losing Kakyoin, Iggy and Avdol in the fight against Dio and the discovery of the arrows after the fact, he dedicated his work towards tracking down those missing arrows and bringing them into custody. The old man was determined not to let anymore mistakes like Dio happen again. It was one thing for a hundred-year-old vampire to develop a stand, but to throw the lives of innocent people in just to do your bidding, that wasn’t right. There was no telling what kind of powers could be unleashed with something like that. It was better to eliminate the threat for that reason before it could ever become a problem. As such, Joseph had put all of the Foundation on alert for any increased stand activity in any given area. If there was an unusual increase in activity, then it could mean there was a possibility an arrow was being used to create stands in those who were strong enough to obtain one.

Now the hard part. Breaking the news to Suzie Q…

***

The next day Joseph arrived at the airport in Paris, France. Things had gone exactly as he thought they might. Needless to say, his sweet Suzie Q was not happy to hear that he was going off on another trip after the last one had been so dangerous. She had been with Joseph since he recovered from his injuries he got facing off against Kars and Wamuu and given his record this shouldn’t have been a surprise. But, up until Dio emerged from the shadows, their lives had been pretty peaceful. Even so, Joseph himself had always been full of chaos and energy, that was just the way his life always seemed to be. Despite all that though, she still wasn’t pleased to hear that he was rushing off to put himself in the middle of another mess. This time he made sure to promise not to keep it from her, even though he thought it might be in her best interest to bother her with the details of such dangerous things. After a good lecturing or two, he was finally able to get things settled down and prepare himself for the trip he was about to make. He wasn’t sure how long this was going to take but had promised he would stay in constant contact on any updates. Of course, his biggest concern was tracking down the arrows and that would likely take priority over small updates for Suzie. Something he wasn’t going to tell her. He knew better than that. Now that he had landed in France though, he could get to his hotel and begin his work.

There was one problem.

Stepping out of the airport, Joseph took a look around. Realizing everything was in French the Joestar’s face contorted into confusion. He couldn’t read this! There was no way he was going to be able to navigate around a country he didn’t know the language. Not without some sort of guide or someone who could translate for him. Even though he traveled quite a bit he never bothered to learn much in the way of other languages. Joseph didn’t mind the work, but he still didn’t like hard work. And learning another language was no easy task. As such, he figured he better get someone who might know more about France than he ever could hope to understand. That being the case, the old man headed over to the nearest phone booth he could find. Taking a moment to rummage around for something to pay for the phone before some passer-by mistook him for an unfortunate homeless man and offered him a little bit of coin for his trouble. There again, he had no idea what they were saying to them as they apologized for him in French and wondered off after surrendering the needed coin for the phone. All he got from it was that someone was being kind enough to help him out when he needed to make a phone call. Why he thought traveling here would be any different than anywhere else, he didn’t know. He should have thought better about making his arrangements when he talked to the Foundation over the phone. Having someone here ready to meet him who spoke the language would have been the better way to go.

“Hello? Hey! I need you to contact an old friend of mine.” Joseph said into the phone and then paused for a moment. “Because I can’t read or speak French! What does it matter what I need it for? Just reach out to Jean Pierre Polnareff, tell him Joseph Joestar is in Paris looking for him.”

Plotted starter @shabcn

When Joseph stepped out from the blinding light, he was met with a cool breeze. A chilling breeze. Much different than what he had been used to whenever he was in Egypt not too long ago. The old man brought his arms up to cross across one another. A shiver ran down his spine. Why was it so damn cold? Taking a look around at his surroundings, he understood where the chill in the air had come from. The terrain around him was snowy, a frozen landscape everywhere he looked. The air crisp and thin, having his breath leave his body in white clouds of steam. (Of all the places to end up!) To make matters worse, night covered the landscape, making the wind that rolled in, bone chilling cold. Although what he didn’t realize was that there was another reason why a chill had gone down his spine. A sense of familiarity in this place. The more he looked around, the more that he felt like he had been here before. He understood that they could be taken to any point in time and any location within that time. It all just depended on what the next target was. Where the next part was located across time. At first glance, Joseph thought he had merely just walked into some quiet, snowy little village surrounded by tall mountains in the distance. However, now that he was getting a real good look around the location something told him that this place was one, he had seen before. It came in the form of a dull ache in his chest. It felt as though dread was tugging at his heartstrings and pushing forth an old memory that had long sense dulled over the years. A memory that he had never forgotten, but only learned to cope with as time went on.

(Oh no…)

His arms slowly came to drop to his sides as aged teals moved between the small homes and businesses of a town tucked quietly in the mountains of Switzerland, then out to the distance. The mountain range that spread across the land. Sure enough, there sitting on the edge of town was the ruin of a large rundown hotel. One that had in its glory days been some kind of tourist attraction, now nothing but a forgotten relic carved into the mountainside. His heart dropped at the sight of it. He thought he wouldn’t have to ever lay eyes on it again. And yet here he was. Why of all places would he be brought here to this site? Joseph didn’t even want to go near that place, knowing what it meant. Knowing what had happened there. And given the time of day, he could guess that that event would have just befallen him. This was the part where he had lost Caesar, forever. Arriving just moments too late to save his life and having the heartbreak of finding him. His realization. Joseph felt it all right in that moment. The ache in his chest so strong that it stole his breath away, allowing for the chilled air to sting his lungs. The old man had to lower his head, a hand moving up to press to his chest. As if this would stop the ache in his heart that he felt at that moment. It was like he was reliving it all over again. He could see the scene so clearly in his head, despite the fact that it had happened to him fifty years ago. What would have happened if he had ben able to save Caesar? He had asked himself this question many times over. Wondering again and again if he would have ever settled down with Suzie or if he would have stayed by Caesar’s side, growing old with him just as he had. He could never know. And more importantly, he was here for a purpose he didn’t have time to focus on that.

Just as he was trying to force these feelings down and move himself forward with the task at hand, his old eyes caught sight of something in the snow. A trail of footprints and fresh ones. Squinting at the sight of them, he followed their path. They appeared to lead out of town and towards the old hotel. They looked as though they had only been formed minutes ago. His heart leapt. Could it be? Joseph straightened up and looked behind him. There was no sign of his younger self or Lisa Lisa. That meant that they hadn’t figured it out yet. They didn’t know that Caesar and Messina had left for the old hotel just yet. Which meant right now he would be on his way to fight Wamuu. There was still time! And even though this wasn’t what he was there for, he had a feeling that his goal was probably hiding within that old hotel anyway. The next part had to be there. It only made sense for it to be given the circumstances he had come into this world. It was almost as though they had to go through trials to achieve finding another part. Each one, harder than the next. This was probably going to be the hardest thing he ever did. Especially if even in his advanced age and knowledge of Caesar’s fate—he ended up there too late. If his younger self wasn’t going to take this seriously until after he was dead, then he was going to fix that mistake for him.

The old man bounded through the snow after that, following the prints out to the old hotel. It was a good thing he used enough Hamon to stay in decent shape, otherwise at his age he wouldn’t have been able to make the trek. If his timing was right, he should arrive there just before himself and Lisa Lisa. Which meant that he should at least have a chance to do something about Caesar’s fate. Joseph knew now that when he had seen that light and heard his yell, it had been Caesar’s last. Back fifty years ago, he hadn’t actually realized this until he managed to get inside the damn place and found his bubble. He didn’t know why the time had been switched from day to night. But for some reason in this situation, he had been given a chance to stop the fate of the other before it was too late. Exactly what would happen if he did this, he didn’t know. The idea of time traveling was to let things happen the way it should. But he wasn’t sure he could stomach watching himself cry over Caesar’s death. He wasn’t sure he wanted to try and console himself and tell him that it would get easier with time. Eventually he would come to terms with his death, but it would always be a tender subject. His heart would never be able to fully heal from the loss of Caesar. Even now when he was nearing his seventies his heart hadn’t healed completely. Even despite having found a way to move on and have a family, his heart still held a hole in it where he had loved and lost Caesar.

By the time he arrived, he found the wall had already fallen in. So, the fight had already moved inside. Time was running short. He didn’t hesitate though, climbing through the rubble to get inside the old hotel, coming upon the scene. There was already a good deal of blood left on the floor of the lobby, but from what he could tell, Caesar was still alive. Maybe barely, but alive. And then he saw it, the large chunk of debris that had become his tomb. It came loose from somewhere above, breaking apart and heading right for where Caesar was to meet his final resting place. Joseph stepped forward though, throwing a handout to extend the purple vines. Hermit Purple came shooting out of his forearm, wrapping around the large chunk of debris first. The thorny vines constricting around the rock like a snake that had trapped its pray. Sparks of Hamon exploded all along the purple vines, spreading across the rock before it finally broke apart, exploding and raining down in small bits of debris and dust. Well, it wasn’t a graceful saved, but he had stopped it from crushing him. Calling back his stand he moved over towards him. By now, his other self should be arriving to the scene. The old man knelt down though beside the fallen Caesar. He hadn’t bled to death already had he?

Joseph sat with his head resting on his hand, scowling at the rest of the room. He felt a little awkward being there, honestly. But he couldn't say no to Suzie Q, she was so excited about him meeting some of her friends, that he wasn't going to turn her down. He hated seeing her upset and sometimes that wasn't a hard thing to do. Granted, there were times where she drove him nuts, too. But he supposed that was how it was supposed to be. They'd gotten married when they were both pretty young, but it had been a fairly good marriage none the less. Everything he had gone through had matured him a great deal after all. So despite concerns from any of his friends and family--after they all got over the fact that he had lived through his fight with Kars--everything seemed to be going well. Life had, for the most part returned to normal. Erina had seemed to take a liking to Suzie as well, thinking it was a good idea that he found someone to settle down with. He had been a wild card his whole life after all, perhaps having Suzie in his life would force him to be a little less reckless and keep him from getting into too much trouble. He guessed he should have expected that kind of reaction from his granny, but truthfully it had been a little bit of a hit to his ego. So, of course he couldn't say no to Suzie when she had insisted that they bring in one of her old friends. It had been so long since she left Italy, after all. That's what the argument had been. 

(So, I"m just going to sit here for this tea party? I get being a supportive husband and all but this...) 

He sighed as he watched Suzie prepare everything. She was running around making sure that she got the tea brewed, had the cakes set up just perfectly. Everything that seemed appropriate to invite someone over for tea. All the while, he just sat there, slumped in the chair he was sitting in. His elbow was resting on the arm of the chair, and he had set his chin in his palm. He did have to admit though, seeing her smile happily as she perfected the last few things was pretty cute. Her eyes seemed to sparkle with happiness and she was quietly humming to herself as she worked. She hardly seemed to notice how dismayed Joseph was at the moment, lost in her own excitement. Seeing her like this brought back memories. (Some things never do change.) Memories of the way she took care of everything for Lisa Lisa. How she would bustle about with chores and making sure that he or Caesar didn't need anything. She'd been just as cute back then, than she was now. Her habits hadn't really changed much in that department, even being married to him. He didn't think she would ever stop being that way, although if his real estate job worked out, they may eventually start getting help to do all those things for her. That was something that he wanted to do for her at least. Take good care of her, just as she had done for him whenever she had been tending to his wounds after the fight with Kars. He really wouldn't have survived if it hadn't been for her careful care. That was enough to have him smiling a little bit to himself as he watched her. 

It had been about ten years . Ten years since he had defeated Kars and set the world up for peace. Nothing else had really happened since and it wasn't long after he got married to Suzie that the two of them moved back to New York to be closer to Erina. Because nothing had really changed since Kars was defeated, Joseph had started to slack off a little bit on his Hamon training. Hamon was life energy and it could very well keep himself from aging too quickly if he kept up with it enough. He did do a little bit here and there, just enough that he didn't completely forget how to use it, but it was never for anything serious. He had made the decision that he would gradually let it go though because in the recent years he realized if he didn't he may out live Suzie by many years. There wasn't really a need to keep up with it now. Besides, growing old with Suzie didn't sound like a bad thing. They could probably even start a family together and live a normal life. Something no Joestar had really had the chance to do. Both his Grandfather and his Father had lost their lives and his mother had been forced to go into hiding under a false name. After everything that had happened and all that he had done to get to where he was now, settling down seemed like a good idea. He had grown tired of losing things he cared about anyway. Losing people that he cared about.. (Maybe this won't be so bad after all. Doing something that normal people do.) 

"Jojo, could you straighten up please? I want everything to look perfect and you--" Suzie had turned to him as she spoke. She covered her mouth, looking a little amused before she continued, "--you kind of look like a slob." 

"A what?" Joseph blinked, surprised by her words. "A slob? You think I look like a slob? I'm the best looking thing here!" 

It may have been ten years, but he hadn't changed all that much. At least his ego hadn't changed all that much. There was one thing that had though, he had mellowed out a little bit. It seemed that Erina had been right about having someone around to settle him down and have him acting less reckless. The temper that he had always had wasn't as hot as it used to be. So when she had blind sighted him with those words, it wasn't something that had set him off. He had been surprised by them and she seemed to think it was funny--probably because she knew that saying something like that was bound to hurt his ego. His words had sent her into a fit of giggles as she finished up the last few things for their guests. It had done what she had asked though, he had sat up a little bit in his surprise. His eyes followed her as she went to go get the last of the array of deserts she had been setting up. She paused in the doorway, looking over her shoulder at him and gave him another cute smile. 

"I guess you're not so bad looking, even now," She said before disappearing with another small giggle. 

Night had fallen over the Mediterranean, the sea breeze that came in was chilling, though the air was salty. The days were counting down until he would have to face their enemies. It was getting closer and closer to crunch time. And now that he had learned a little more about what they were after and its importance, it meant that training hard was his focus. Joseph could not let the Stone of Aja fall into the hands of the Pillar Men. It could be the end of humanity if it did and that wasn't something he was about to take, if he could help it. It was more than that, of course. He didn't much have a choice but to defeat them--if he wanted to live, that is. With the poisonous rings that had been implanted around his heart and throat, if for whatever reason he didn't meet his end of the deal, they would kill him within minutes. To say that he wasn't at all nervous about it would be a little bit of a lie. But the young man wasn't going to let that detour him from sharpening his skills. Again, not that he was being given much choice. The training they had him undergoing was incredibly intense, so much so that he could easily pass it off as some form of legal torture. Now that the sun had gone down, training should be over for the day. But with the days becoming more and more numbered, he wasn't ready to call it quits until his body couldn't take anymore.

(It's nearing the end of the thirty days now. If I don't work twice as hard now than I still might not be strong enough to face them.) 

The benefit of going on after the island had gone dark was that now he  didn't have to worry about the glare of the sun beating down on him. Of course, concentrating his Hamon was still no easy task. The mask that sat securely over the lower half of his face ensured that taking in air and controlling his breathing was not an easy task. It had been an annoyance when he first arrived to Air Supplena Island, but by now he had gotten used to it for the most part. On the hottest of days though, where the sun was high in the sky, it did make breathing difficult. It was those days that he found himself struggling a little more to focus on keeping his breathing even. Which meant that his instructor only made things harder for him. Something that Joseph always found to be incredibly irritating. He understood that all of it was for his own benefit and in the long run having the mask on would help him be able to control himself easier, but that was part of why he had come to hate his instructor and the training that he was putting him through. Perhaps when it came time for the final exam, he would thank him for all the hell he'd been subjected to. But on days like that, he could hardly think of anything but punching the man in his face. If the situation wasn't so serious, he might have been more inclined to do something like that. Joseph had gotten himself into trouble for less, after all. 

(At least it's quiet now, so I don't have to worry about that horrible man giving me a hard time.)

He took a deep breath, which was something of a feat through the mask he was wearing. The way it was constructed was something like a gas mask, so getting air to come through it was not an easy task. He had learned that the hard way when it was first put on his face. If he couldn't remain calm and steady his breathing, he wouldn't be able to get enough air to his lungs. That meant that he could easily pass out if he wasn't careful. Now that it had been a couple weeks though, even with the work it took for this to happen he had gotten used to the labor of the task. Standing perfectly still, he inhaled deeply. He kept his arms raised so they were positioned above his diaphragm, helping to bring the air into his lungs. What he was doing was concentrating on channeling his Hamon into his hands. Visualizing the energy surging through his body and coming out through his fingertips. It took a deep breath in to start before he released the air slowly, exhaling. At the same time this was happening the life energy rippled through his body until yellow sparks touched along his fingertips of each hand.

Joseph had decided he wasn't going to be trying any hard tasks while it was dark now. With the sun having gone down, there was a shadow that had been cast across the island. Which meant that trying to see well in his training arena may prove to be a little dangerous. The only reason for this was because there was a large, circular pit that sat at the center of the satellite island he was training on. This pit was lined in full with sharp, pointed spikes. He'd been working on crossing this pit on his feet by the use of his Hamon. And little by little he had managed to move across it without too much trouble. Although right now, he still couldn't walk very quickly across it without worrying about falling in. The loss of focus meant impaling yourself on the spikes below. Lucky enough for him, he'd been able to regain his focus in time before the sharp points could penetrate all the way through the soles of his boots. At night, where this pit was lost in the shadow of darkness, he wasn't sure it would be a good idea to try it. If he lost his focus even for a second, he wouldn't be able to clearly see all the points below to catch himself. The light of the moon reflecting off the sea and the few lights that lined the island did help to give it some light outside. But that was it for the most part, everything else was dark. 

Getting back to Japan had been a long flight and after what they had just endured, it would be a relief to go back. Joseph was ready to check on his daughter. If they'd been correct about what had been making her sick, the moment that Dio was defeated, she should have started to recover. From what he had heard over the phone, this was what had happened. As soon as Dio had been destroyed, Holy had been able to wake up--her fever gone. Now that things had calmed down, it was safe for Suzie to come visit Japan just as she had planned on doing a few weeks after Joseph had gone to see their daughter. Despite his attempt to keep her in the dark about everything that was going on while he was away, she had ended up finding out about it anyway. With his relief she took it easier than what he had thought she might. But perhaps that was because she had been there fifty years ago whenever Joseph was facing one of the worst threats to plague the world. At least it was over with now, he could take some relief in knowing that. Although, once again it had cost them a price that he never thought he would have to pay again. The price of the lives of his friends. It wasn't something that he would have foreseen happening again since fifty years had passed without any issues. 

From what he had originally understood, three lives had been lost in Eygpt. Advol, Iggy and Kakyoin. The three had fallen while making the final stand against Dio. After they had traveled all that way together and survived so much, so many difficulties and other stand users. Their lives had finally been wiped out far too soon. Honestly, Joseph felt a bit responsible for it all. He had been the oldest of the group and had been the one leading the whole operation. If it wasn't for his Hermit Purple, they might not have ever known about Dio's return  until it had been too late to stop it. Joseph had been the one to drag Jotaro into it after Holy had called him for help about his 'evil spirit'. It was because of his bloodline that Holy had even gotten sick and was put on the verge of death because of a stand that she would never be able to use. The Joestar legacy seemed to continue as a plague upon the lives of anyone that came into contact with them. At least the foe that had hid in the shadows since his Grandfather's death was finally gone now. That at least could put some peace of mind in the hearts of those who had survived it. Except, he had allowed the three of them to join their journey and even asked Iggy and Advol to. It was the same dance, but to a different song. He had been just as helpless to stop their deaths as he had been to stop Caesar's fifty years ago. 

"He what?" Joseph said, holding the other end of the phone reciever to his ear. He was standing in the main room of his daughter's home. His back to the daughter and son duo as they were quietly conversing with Suzie. Or well, Holy was at least. After a few more exchanges, he hung up the phone and turned around to face them. "Jotaro, we got to get to the hospital!"  

(Finally, some good news. But I wonder how...is it possible that we were wrong about his state before?) 

The expression on the old man's face was hard to read. He looked relieved but also as if something was weighing heavy on his mind. The news he had gotten was good, but it was also serious. He had just gotten off the phone with the Speedwagon Foundation. They had notified Joseph that Noraki Kakyoin had survived the battle in Egypt. When they had gone to retrieve him at the scene, he had a very faint pulse. With their expertise they were able to save his life. However, his condition was still critical. The wounds he had suffered at the hands of DIO had taken a toll on his body. It was for Kakyoin that Joseph felt the worst for between himself, Jotaro and Polonareff. He had lived and that was great news, but already he had almost been blinded and then he had nearly lost his life. The boy was so young and to have his life nearly robbed of him that way, not once but twice. He didn't know what to think about that. There was so much that he wanted to do to prove the family of the young man that had not meant to put their son's life in such great danger. In the very least, he owed them an apology. But before he could get that far, they would have to go to the hospital to see him. From the sounds of it, he had only just regained his consciousness, but it was much better than having lost him completely. Joseph was already in the mind set to do what all he could to ensure his recovery went smoothly. 

Once they got to the hospital, the two stood outside the room for a moment. Joseph was just about to open the door to go inside but he found himself hesitating. His mind weighed down by the damage that could have been done to the kid lying in the bed on the other side of the door. All of this because he had been care less. He had let teenagers get involved in a fight that they shouldn't have ever been part of. None of this would have even been possible if it hadn't been for the fact that Jotaro had been able to exceed expectations in his skills and win against DIO. The truth was that they would probably all be dead if he hadn't been able to push himself beyond his own limits. Even Joseph had died for a short time before Jotaro had brought him back to life. If anyone deserved to be here it was Jotaro. Joseph felt like he was the one who had put Kakyoin into this position. The only reason he had come was because he had wanted to talk with the doctors and his parents. He wanted to check on him and find out what he needed. The old man was determined to make things right the best he could. And to let Kakyoin himself know how relieved they were to hear that he was alive. Which meant, he would have to get in touch with Polonareff as well in France and let him know what had become of their friend. (Maybe I should just wait out here and talk to his parents.) 

"W-wha....?" Teals widen as they caught sight of the message he had recently received from him. Instantly he felt the heat rush to his cheeks, as a blush so red it touched his ears coated his features.

A single trembling hand came up to cup his mouth. All he could do was stare at the image. His heart pounding so terribly loud in his ears it was deafening. It wasnt a bad feeling in the slightest, the sight of it had his stomach fluttering. It was just that he was in the middle of one of his other classes at the moment. Which meant that he would not be able to do anything about the image he'd gotten. (What a damn tease!) Was all he could think. Worst part of it was that in the middle of a lecture, he wouldnt be able to rush out in fear he might miss something. Although he felt that trying to focus on anything else right now would probably be impossible. Maybe the better option was just to excuse himself for the day and find his way home or even to Caesar. Anything would have been a better option than trying to keep himself still in class. Especially when his body was starting to react to the message, stirring fron the waist down. It had him fidgeting a little--his pants suddenly becoming more and more uncomfortable.

(Who sends a damn nude knowing the other person cant do anything about it! Ah, this is bad...)

He resigned to lying his head down on the desk in defeat, a hand slipping below to cover himself in case someone might have noticed. The class was almost over now. So he would try his best to wait it out, even if it was uncomfortable. Then when he was able he would--carefully--leave the hall and go find somewhere to take care of his problem. Nothing could get him passed the embarrassment though, his face remaining red the rest of the talk. Any of the information that had been passed along had been lost on deaf ears as all he could think about was Caesar.

(I'll get you for this, Caesar...)

Big City Troubles

Joseph/Santana au @mixcoatll

Joseph Joestar was a formidable Real Estate agent of New York. He had everything that an ideal salesperson might need in order to make a name for themselves. Alongside his charm and good looks, he had connections around the city. Being born part of the Joestar family meant that he had access to the networks his grandmother had built being a socialite herself. The Joestars were a wealthy family and well known throughout most of the city by name alone. Joseph had been raised by his grandmother, a spunky elderly British immigrant who had always had a taste for high society. The setting hadn’t necessarily been Joseph’s cup of tea, but it did come in handy from time to time when he found himself in a pinch. Getting himself out of trouble was easier when he was able to drop his name. And naturally it meant that it was a little easier for him to conduct big business in his chosen career path. The fact that he seemed to be a natural at it was only a bonus to his already well-built reputation and claim to fame through the family name and fortune. The only thing that kept Joseph out of being classified as just another wealthy snob, fed by a silver spoon his entire life was the fact that he didn’t fancy high society or fancy parties or anything of the sort. While it was great to use to his advantage in sticky situations, Joseph much rather spend his time exploring the city and talking to folks as opposed to pretending to be interested in the talk of politicians or large company shareholders.

That’s why it wasn’t uncommon to find the young Joestar venturing around the streets when he wasn’t busy working. He dressed himself casually, too. Feeling more comfortable in the clothing that most people wore as opposed to walking around even dressed like he thought he was better than others. It just wasn’t who Joseph was. While there were times, he displayed his spoiled mentality through immature jests or the fact that he disliked hard work, he didn’t necessarily feel as though he were better than anyone else. At least, he didn’t walk around with the air of someone who thought they were better than others. One thing his grandmother managed to teach him was modesty. Though even with that said there were times where Joseph put himself higher than those that crossed his path and made enemies with him. It was those people that he mocked openly and made them feel like they weren’t as good as he was. Even times when he was in the middle of a fight with another and felt as though he had the upper hand. This was where he crossed the line of mild arrogance. Not something that was necessarily taught to him, it was just part of his personality. To say that his wealth didn’t have some effect on his general personality wouldn’t be entirely true, as even he had his moments where he underestimated someone and got himself into some trouble. That was the life of Joseph Joestar though. A young, wealthy real estate tycoon in the making who was the epitome of chaos. A healthy mix of charm and terrible luck.

That particular day, Joseph was minding his business heading towards a local diner, his hands tucked into the pockets of his jeans. Those that recognized him, he gave a short wave to though never truly stopping to chat with them. He was much too set on his destination to stop and get tangled up in some idle chat at the moment. The day itself was overcast. Although the sun tried to peak through some of the clouds in the sky, it remained cloudy all the same. The breeze that passed over the busy city was a little chilling, which had him glad that he wore so many layers when he did go about casually. It probably wasn’t the best days to go out and be walking around without a purpose, but he couldn’t just stay home and do nothing when he had time off from his work. Joseph was a busy body; he was always doing something. Something which usually ended him in trouble. Even as his grandmother would have described it, he was a fine businessman but still a troublemaker. Nothing he would have thought too much about, it was just the way he had always been. It wasn’t like he always intended to get himself wrapped up in situations, these sort of things just tended to follow him. Whether it was because he spoke with an accent and was mistaken for a tourist or because he had a bad temper, it was hard to say. There was also just the fact that when something bad was going down, he couldn’t just keep on walking and ignore that it was happening. A trait that he had unknowingly gotten from his grandfather.

Lost in his head and aloof to the world around him because of it, Joseph failed to notice the small group of officers standing outside the diner he was about to enter. Nor did he realize just how close to the door one of the larger of the three was. For that reason, when he pulled back the glass door to enter the establishment, the door knocked the officer forward. The result of this action had the man stumbling a couple steps and spilling the coffee he had been drinking all over his uniform. It wasn’t until he heard his frustrated grunt and caught the nasty glare when the man turned around, did he realize what had happened. In that moment, Joseph had one or two options: he could just apologize and head inside anyway. Or he could apologize and walk away, removing himself from the situation. Both of these seemed like reasonable options, except that the group of policemen were ones that were familiar with Joseph. Not to mention they were a group of the more corrupt officers of the city. That meant that they didn’t much care for Joseph and his antics. The fact that he got involved and broke up their shake downs on more than one occasion. Or the fact that Joseph had proved he was much crafter and a much more capable fighter than they anticipated. Escaping them for that reason had always been easy for him to do. Anything he chose to do, even if it involved apologizing just wasn’t going to be enough to satisfy this cop. No, he likely had some personal agenda against Joseph and would sooner fabricate some story to get him in trouble than just take the fact that this had been a simple mistake and a case of him just not paying attention to where he was going. That put him in a little bit of a dilemma. And one that he needed to decide awfully quick on what he was going to do next because he had a good guess what these guys might do.

“Now officer… let’s not be so hasty. Clearly that was just a mistake…” Joseph started. He held both hands up as though he were surrendering himself over to them.

He took half a step backwards keeping an eye on them. He knew what was going to happen next, they would likely try to grab him up and give him a shake down or find some excuse to detain him. For that reason, he waited until the officer took a step towards him, in way of the door and made to swing it open as quickly as he can. Just as he had hoped, it slammed right into the guy’s face and had him stumbling back into the other two, nursing a bleeding nose. That was Joseph’s cue to turn tail and make a run for it. He wasn’t going to hang around and get caught up for assaulting an officer even if they had the intent on taking the first hit. Of course he knew that this would get him into some trouble later and he might even be doomed if someone he did business with caught sight of him running from the police, but that was the thing—that was if he got caught. Joseph didn’t intend on that happening, either. For that reason, the moment he hit pavement he moved as fast as his legs could carry him. Dashing through crowds and dodging other people rushing by, slipping between buildings for coverage or shortcuts, anything he could find to put some distance between himself and the shouting group of officers that were rushing after him. It was probably a good thing that he was in top physical condition, otherwise he couldn’t imagine outrunning them would be so easy. It helped that he knew the city well and could cut through allies in order to avoid being seen by anyone who might be able to tip off to the police where he went.

Just for good measure, the moment he found himself in more familiar territory, he ducked into the nearest business building, both to avoid the officers rushing towards him and anyone else from seeing him. Though it probably seemed strange, having a person dressed in civilian clothing ducking into a large, polished building. Even worse for the fact that he was glancing out towards the one-way windows and watching as the group of officers passed by, looking in every which direction for him and asking a few other pedestrians on the street where he might have gone. Joseph himself stood in the lobby of this building watching them pass while he caught his breath, huffing quietly to himself before sighing in relief as they continued on down the street. At least for the time being it seemed like he had managed to give them the slip. As for how long that would last, he couldn’t say. He could only hope that he had done enough to get himself out of their path. Hopefully something more important than detaining the young man who spilled your coffee would come about and draw their attention away from him. Until perhaps the next time he had a run in with that particular group of officers.