"Which of us will stand tall in the end?! Let's find out, Dio! YAAAAAH!"

"WRYRYRYRYRYRYRYYYY!"

With a resounding clash of energy, the two combatants struck one another with their full power - on one side, Jonathan Joestar, his gloves alight with flame and crackling with his Ripple energy; and on the other, the vampire Dio Brando, hands frozen solid in an attempt to guard against the flames of Jonathan's, and for a moment succeeding well enough to shock the hapless onlookers rooting for the Joestar lineage.

"No! He's breaking through!"

But it was for naught. Slowly, Jonathan's fists began to melt the ice, and with it began to slide ever closer to the vampire's chest. One more push...

"Like hell he is!" Dio cried, all of a sudden performing a most unexpected action - using his grasp as a fulcrum, his body pivoted under him, launching a double-booted kick right to Jonathan's sternum, sending both duellists flying in opposite directions. Jonathan was propelled with great force back into the crowd of his fellows and the zombies they fought, winded for moment, whilst Dio flew backward, flying over the edge of the parapet - but before he fell prey to gravity, the demon had one more trick up his sleeve.

"A parting gift before I leave your fellows to ruminate on your failure, JoJo!" he screamed, a cross-shaped slit opening up on his left eye, and a beam of something glowing burst forth; Jonathan merely had time to move his hands into their path to try and block the attack before the ray pierced both, barely missing his head even as it sliced apart Dio's remaining minions and decapitated the rooftop. He could swear it even split the clouds overhead.

My God! He fired some sort of energy ray from his eyes! Jonathan thought with a mixture of shock and horror. Even as he did, he realised he was wrong, for what residue remained seemed to ooze from within the wounds on his palms. Nonetheless, he remained appalled at how close the ray came to incinerating his brain... and furthermore, that Dio's fall from the parapet would surely not be the end of him.

"I must follow him," Jonathan declared, climbing to his feet and snatching a torch from a bracket on the wall. He felt weak, unbearably so, but he couldn't simply fall faint when Dio remained alive and active. "Even though he'll survive the fall, it will surely weaken him; we have to finish him off before he escapes!"

"There may yet be zombies lurking within the castle," Straizo noted with unease. "Master, take the children and Speedwagon to finish off any foes that yet remain; I shall accompany Jonathan, in case he requires my assistance." Tonpetty nodded, grasping Poco and his sister's shoulders with one arm and gesturing for Speedwagon to follow him. As the group of four left the balcony and turned in one direction, JoJo and Straizo turned the other way, making haste down the castle's stairs in pursuit of their vampiric foe, praying they would not be too late.

With a pained growl, Dio finally managed to pull himself wholly together. True, his legs were still rather mangled from taking the brunt of the fall, and his flesh felt nearly as spongy as it looked, but he certainly wouldn't die despite his overconfidence in his durability; merely a few bodies sucked dry ought to recover whatever harm he'd suffered. Why, he could achieve that within what was left of the night, if he moved quickly.

His ears detected the noise of the castle door opening, and shortly thereafter footsteps moving in his direction, through the brush of the surrounding trees that hid him from sight even as they hampered his vision. Damn, drat and blast, had they truly gotten down to ground level so fast? He realised with unerring annoyance that he couldn't outrun them in this state, and could barely outfight them even with his Vaporisation Freezing Technique. He much preferred a straight fight; it was only right that he convey his dominance directly!

Except, perhaps he wasn't so dominant after all. Jonathan's cunning and power had very nearly proven that irrevocably true. And in truth, whilst JoJo had seemed to give his final attack his all, the others were still more than fresh enough to disable him... in which case, he had no choice but to play dirty.

His arms, fully-functioning as ever, dragged him up a tree and hid him amongst its leaves, though he realised that they stung just so with a hint of an ache that he hadn't felt since first becoming a vampire. Exhaustion... damn, he really had drained himself of energy in his fight against Jonathan. The fall had nothing to do with that, of course, it was merely JoJo's skill and wit that caught him out briefly.

In time, his impromptu crater was discovered by two of his foes: JoJo, and the black-haired one called Straizo. He could see JoJo's faint heart already, even if he'd recovered his stamina some, but the other was as alert as a mother cow looking out for her newborn babe. If he took him out, if he drained him of blood before he could fight back, destroying Jonathan would be easy. He just needed his moment, for Straizo to wander beneath his branch... easy, easy...

The first Jonathan knew of Dio's presence was a slight rustling, followed by a loud WHUD. A rapid spin revealed Straizo unconscious, and Dio towering over him, hands clawed and ready to drain him dry.

"Dio! This ends now!" Jonathan screamed, acting almost before he'd realised what he was doing - his arm crackling with Hamon, it stretched a good ten feet between them, cracking the vampire across the jaw and flinging him away. Yet, though JoJo poured as much energy into the blow as he could, he could tell it hadn't worked properly. The impact felt too solid, and retracting the limb was difficult, reconnecting joint to joint unusually painful, an imposing task that left Jonathan breathless with exertion.

Still, Dio wasn't in great form either. Jonathan had expected him to leap up from the impact, sneering with contempt, yet he took his time to stand, angry but silent and clearly unsteady. Had their earlier fight really taken such a toll on the both of them...?

"This cannot continue, Dio," Jonathan uttered calmly, stepping around Straizo's form to impose himself between his ally and his enemy, burning torch in hand. "You didn't even freeze Straizo's body. That proves you're out of power."

"Pah! So are you, Jonathan," Dio spat, rising to his full height at last with contemptuous mirth. "And unlike you, all I have to do to recover is take your blood or his! You're outmatched! Though I'll give you credit for your tenacity, even in the face of overwhelming odds."

"If I set you alight, you'll burn, just as you did at the mansion," Jonathan explained calmly, advancing just a couple of steps. "And this time, you haven't the energy to survive. Even if you struck me a fatal blow, do you believe yourself so agile that you can avoid its touch, Dio?" Though he remained collected externally, internally he raged at the injustice his adoptive brother had wrought upon him. How dare he be so heartless? And how dare he believe himself so invincible, when he'd so very nearly perished upon the parapet?

Indeed, Dio seemed to realise his predicament too, and grit his teeth with fury. There was no chance his legs would carry him around Jonathan without the flame setting him alight; he hadn't the strength left for another burst of fluid from his eyes. They were deadlocked, stalemated, even as Dio matched Jonathan's steps forward. And wasn't that just like Jonathan, to match him time and again? He beat Jonathan at boxing and kissed his girlfriend, Jonathan in turn beat him badly enough to make him cry. He transformed into a vampire and killed George, JoJo impaled him upon a statue and left him to burn. He slaughtered hundreds, including JoJo's mentor and close ally, JoJo in turn destroyed his zombies and nearly slew him. They were equals in so many ways.

Yet somehow, JoJo refused to break! His nobility, his honesty and courage, all shone through despite the torment Dio had put him through, despite everything. His heart of gold remained untarnished, and he imagined Jonathan would mourn him even if he somehow lost. That was always what drew him to the man, after all... it was what he... liked about him? He liked that part of JoJo?

No. Not "like". Dio's eyes widened with revelation, and he stumbled back to his previous position, breathing heavily. It can't be... not with him!

"You realise your predicament, Dio?" JoJo asked, taking another few steps toward Dio, his expression stoic. "You have no path to victory, and no hope of escape. You may as well accept your fate." He hadn't yet lunged... was JoJo still so trusting, even now? Could Dio... perhaps, if he...

The vampire chuckled ominously, his smile returning just so. "JoJo, it's struck me that you haven't even realised yet."

"Realised? What do you mean?" Questioning, curious, ever seeking to redeem - yes, a weakness that can be turned against him, Dio plotted, already working over the shock of his realisation. Yet, so difficult to phrase in a way that doesn't seem like weakness on my part... but then, perhaps I should make myself seem weak? As if my will and arrogance had finally broken... yes, I just need to spit it out already! Any phrasing will do...!

"I... I love you. I always have."

"Wh-what?!" JoJo exclaimed, now stumbling back himself, away from eyes that suddenly pleaded with a bizarre affection. "Dio, what are you saying? You mean even from the moment we first met...?"

"I- yes, it's true," Dio improvised, using Jonathan's own words to his advantage as he began moving toward the man again. "The moment I saw you... I was struck with feelings I'd never known before then! That was why I stole Erina Pendleton's first kiss, after all," he explained with false regret, deciding it'd be better if he used that to distract from how he frequently killed people. Thank goodness that Speedwagon character wasn't around this time to sniff him out. "I just... I'm truly sorry for doing so, JoJo, but I couldn't bear the thought of her having you! I overreacted at the thought, and...!"

"Dio, I... I don't know what to say," Jonathan stammered, stuck for what to do next. A lifetime of supposedly loving him, him, and yet for all that... after all he'd done, all the vile-

"JoJo, please!" Dio begged, falling to his knees before Jonathan and clasping his hands (subtly directing the torch's flame away from himself in the process). He could see Jonathan ticking it over in his head, and knew he had to misdirect the man before it was too late. "I know I've done some terrible things, but I truly do regret all of them! All I seek is a second chance, by your side! You, your noble gentle soul, that is all I ask for from now on! I'll do anything for that alone!"

"Anything, you say?" Jonathan considered, rubbing his chin in thought. If Dio is telling the truth... if he really is seeking redemption... all I have to do is return that love whole-heartedly... but he couldn't do that, surely? It simply wasn't Godly for one man to love another, and after all, Dio was seemingly as far from God as any man could get! Besides, there was Erina to consider, too! Yet, he couldn't deny that from time to time, he'd glanced at his adopted brother's figure as they grew up and found himself strangely affected. Aroused, one might even say. Of course, he'd denied himself those thoughts as soon as they arose for more reason than one, but with Dio pleading him for his affection now... on his knees before him... slipping his hands down to the hem of his trousers- wait a moment.

"Absolutely anything, JoJo," Dio clarified with an indecent smile, unbuttoning tugging JoJo's trousers and underwear down partway before the other man could so much as object, and giving him a look that dared him to do so as he finished the job. A slight shiver ran through Jonathan's body as the cool night air chilled his nether regions, and though he considered objecting to the situation, he ultimately allowed Dio to continue what he was doing, throwing the torch down in a way that ensured its point stuck into the ground firmly.

He was rewarded with a firm grip against his buttocks, and a hungry mouth around his genitalia - soft still, but hardening ever so slowly as Dio suckled upon the member. His tongue swirled and lapped around the head, encouraging JoJo to stiffness with delectable sensation, a sort that Jonathan hadn't known before now, but which left him breathless and blushing regardless of his internal struggle about the matter.

"Ngh... Dio..." JoJo sighed, looking down at his impromptu partner with an expression torn between concern and pleasure. Was he really doing this? With his stepbrother? With a vampire? What would anyone else think if- his train of thought cut itself short as Dio suddenly plunged JoJo deep into his maw with a moan, taking his entire length into his mouth and throat without so much as gagging, only to rhythmically swallow along his shaft in a way that had Jonathan gasping loudly. The heat and moisture of Dio's orifice was enticing enough, but combined with that, he could do little more than grasp his lover's hair to prevent his knees from buckling beneath him.

About a minute later, the vampire pulled free, examining the saliva-soaked cock he'd been working for the past couple of minutes with a coy smirk. Even if it had started soft, it was certainly standing to attention now, as stiff as it was going to get until shortly before orgasm - not that it wasn't already impressive.

"I have to say, I'm almost jealous," the vampire admitted, standing upright to meet his stepbrother's gaze, unfocused as it now was. "With your size and sweet personality-" He had to keep playing that lovey-dovey aspect up, after all- "I'm shocked no women have ever propositioned you."

"It... wouldn't be right of me to take advantage of them like that," Jonathan stated, pressing his forehead against Dio's gently as he caught his breath. "Even with Erina, lovely as she is..." Jonathan hesitated at this stage, unsure how much to say, but was prompted to continue by Dio's hand on him, stroking him just a little as the vampire began releasing his own clothing with the other. "We've only indulged each other's desires once before. I'd never suggest putting her in a disadvantageous situation, of course-"

"Then, you're saying I wouldn't be your first?" Dio asked, fluttering his eyelashes in a way that was perhaps slightly hurt, and even that had Jonathan feeling just a little saddened for Dio. "Alas. But..." His trousers and underwear fell free, finally exposing the vampire's own erection, not so long as Jonathan's but of similar girth.

An apparently-shy smile crossed Dio's face as he pressed himself against JoJo, rubbing both of their members together gently as he whispered "At least you'll be my first, JoJo." Deception of the highest order, naturally - of course Dio had slept with others, men and women alike. Was he shy about what he liked, after all? But like a fish falling for the bait on a hook shortly before being reeled in, Jonathan's expression softened, his blush spreading even as he laid a gentle kiss on Dio's lips.

Hold on, shouldn't I be the one taking charge here?! Dio thought, a hot rush of anger filling him at the thought, though he leaned into the kiss with a fair bit of fervor. Damn it, I don't know what came over me; I shouldn't have sounded so submissive, and now he thinks... Before he could coagulate the ending of that thought into something more than incoherent annoyance, he found himself pulled into a hug, tightly enough to draw forth a gasp.

"Dio," Jonathan spoke into his ear, voice tender in a way that soothed Dio's spirits. "Perhaps it was always our fate to be together like this. I feel an odd warmth towards you - despite my misgivings, if we are to lie together, then let us give ourselves to one another completely." He released Dio then, taking a few steps away from the torch to sit upon the grass nearby, prompting Dio to take a seat next to him. Though he was naturally suspicious, Dio complied, moving to kneel next to JoJo, and this time being the one to initiate their kiss. He'd take charge yet, or his name wasn't Dio Brando.

But, if he was the one in charge... why was it that Jonathan's passion made him so pliable? Though he tried to grasp JoJo's hands firmly, he nonetheless found himself pushed to his back, his lover overtop gazing fondly into his eyes in a way that was perhaps designed to disarm him. Oh, if he could be press his fingers into JoJo's neck... but then, he considered, why would he? He had him exactly where he wanted him! He supposed, anyway. He did want JoJo, after all, even if he had to be the one to take the Joestar man inside himself, rather than the other way around.

Speaking of which, how could Jonathan give himself to Dio completely, so to speak, if he wasn't in the right position for it? Though he somehow wanted to remain facing JoJo, Dio nonetheless twisted round beneath him, encouraging the man to let Dio turn himself onto his hands and knees, his backside pressed firmly against Jonathan's slick hardness.

"Go ahead, JoJo," Dio encouraged, his tone a mixture of love and lust whose sincerity even he wasn't sure of. "Take me. Let me feel you inside me."

Breathing heavily, with Dio's encouragement in his ears, Jonathan grasped the vampire's hips and thrusted between his partner's cheeks a few times, then pulled back a little to position himself properly. The head of his cock pressed against the ring of Dio's rear, then pushed in, both men releasing sighs of pleasure as JoJo's head and shaft stretched Dio out. Doubtless, there'd be pain too under normal circumstances - but the circumstances were far from normal, and Dio was hardly willing to wait.

A sigh turned to a gasp as Dio suddenly pressed back further, taking most of Jonathan's length into himself in one fell swoop. A look of pleasure shot at Jonathan clearly showed his step-brother's own desire to be taken, to be fucked hard, and a mere moment of hesitation preceded just this, Jonathan beginning to take full strokes in and out of Dio's backside, each rapid thrust drawing himself out almost fully before ramming back in with a meaty slap.

A litany of grunts and groans left Dio as he was taken, his mind only partially focused on why he'd asked Jonathan to do this to start with as instinctual lust began overtaking his usual bodily control, to the point of forcing a blush across his face. If JoJo were to run a hand round Dio's front, he'd find that Dio was as rock-solid as him; even if he didn't, the vampire's self-manipulation ensured that every movement into him ground directly against his prostate, whilst equally squeezing tightly around the shaft penetrating him.

For Jonathan's part, he found the sensation particularly intense. Though Dio was especially tight at his entrance, the hole in its entirety was unusual in how it massaged him, not to mention more difficult to press into for friction, quite unlike his earlier encounter with Erina. Despite this, the friction merely added to the experience; if his hands weren't about Dio's sides with a vice grip, he was sure he'd have collapsed by now, and whilst he tried to keep the noises he made quiet, he nonetheless couldn't help but moan over his lover for the night.

As it was, he suddenly felt near-compelled to lean forward over the blond, trapping Dio's hands under his own and hitching his footing, like a dog mounting another in the throes of heat, though for Jonathan, he merely did so to further increase the speed of his thrusting, amplifying both men's pleasure and sending metaphorical lightning bolts shooting through the vampire's spine, not to mention other parts of his body. And what, exactly, was so incredibly intense about the situation? The romantic setting? The sweet nothings now being whispered into his ear by a man he'd suddenly found himself lusting for? The fact that he'd hated that man until just a few minutes ago, and perhaps still did? The fact that it was JoJo of all people?

It didn't matter. He was getting fucked hard, by somebody he found irresistible, and a familiar tension was starting to build in him as a result. Dio didn't typically allow others to penetrate him like this, but it had happened a few times in the past, even if he kept entirely quiet about those times. The lesson learned to ensure orgasm was to ignore his genitalia, and focus on the hole being punished by his erstwhile enemy; his internal self-awareness made this all the easier, the sensation rapidly escalating as a result, and he forced himself to bite down on to his lips and tongue and cover his mouth with one hand to keep down the imprudent noises he knew he was going to make.

When his climax finally hit, as reality washed away in a sea of ecstasy and his penis ejaculated hard beneath him, entirely untouched and barely noticed for the body-quaking pleasure battering the rest of his frame, Dio was rather sure his screams were still audible enough for anyone in a few meters to hear with ease.

Certainly, JoJo noticed over his own pleasure, and was only incited to further ramp up the speed and power behind his thrusts by the feeling of Dio quailing beneath him. Not that he would last much longer, for how the blond man's behind clamped around his cock like a mobile vice, as if milking him like a cow's teat, on top of everything else. Within seconds, his own peak began approaching, a white heat building at the base of his groin and almost-too-slowly forcing its way up his length. Though he sallied on unsteadily until he hit his limit, Jonathan finally pressed as deeply into Dio as he could, his shaft throbbing hard within Dio's quivering hole as he deposited rope after rope of thick seed into the man, and groaning deeply into his lover's ear throughout the event.

Ultimately, both men found themselves staying put, Jonathan lying on top to catch his breath as Dio barely held himself up on his hands and knees. Both were seeing stars as a result of their respective orgasms, both very pleased with how the situation had turned out. However, as JoJo finally pulled free, his shaft slightly damp with seed and surprisingly- or unsurprisingly, considering- clean of any other refuse, he realised those stars weren't fading, but intensifying. His exhaustion, delayed but not excised, had finally caught up with him.

Collapsing onto his back, the last thing he saw before blacking out was Straizo beginning to stir, one hand unsteadily attempting to push himself upright.

Late the next morning, Jonathan awoke in a soft bed in a room painted cream, blinking away his tiredness as he came to. Where was he? What had happened to bring him here from... oh, yes. Last night had felt good, unbelievably so; yet, unrealised until now, a wash of shame struck him for what he'd done. What on Earth had he been thinking?! Had Dio somehow hypnotised him last night?

No, he decided after some thought, it was all my own doing. I let myself be sullied by an undue promise, and that only burdens me further with dishonor... no, with guilt over my own selfish desire.

"What am I going to tell Erina?" he pondered out loud, unaware of the presence seated next to him with folded arms.

"I'd suggest not telling her at all," Straizo muttered coldly, spooking the Joestar greatly. "I don't claim to understand why exactly I found you in such a... compromising position last night, but in light of your otherwise-unimpeachable character, I've made sure no others have learned what transpired. Her included."

"I... thank you, Straizo," Jonathan stammered out uncertainly, before his expression crumpled with doubt. "You shouldn't have, though. I hardly deserve such assistance after what I did, and it wouldn't be right to keep this from everyone else."

"The Lord is perfect. Humans are not. I, for instance, fear old age more than I fear death," Straizo elaborated, "and it's crossed my mind many times that vampirism would be an easier route to agelessness than Sendō, though it might condemn me to Hell to put on the mask or take in the blood of another vampire. I worry my resolve will break before my life sees its end, in truth... perhaps I'll ask you to end me before it's too late, if I ever come to that conclusion.

"That said, even you have had insights you'd never normally act on in the years before last night, true?" the dark-haired Ripple user asked. And indeed, putting Straizo's confession to one side for the moment, thoughts harboured that one might consider both lurid and sinful crossed Jonathan's mind in rapid sequence. In hindsight, it struck him just how many focused on Dio, regardless of the associated emotion.

"It's hardly fair to judge a good man for failing once after so many prior successes, then," JoJo's fellow Hamon master concluded, nodding in response to Jonathan's affirmation. "And despite what your honour might suggest, I hardly think Erina would appreciate an honest explanation, either. It'd break her heart." Jonathan couldn't see the fault in this, either, despite how it pained him to hide the truth from his beloved. This, then, could well be a secret he and Straizo took to their graves - if Straizo met his grave peaceably, of course, though Jonathan surely wished he did not.

"Then... am I to continue on as normal? As if nothing happened?" Jonathan asked, still concerned, still wrestling with his conscience about whether to do the right thing, about what the right thing even was in a situation such as this.

"It's what I'd do. I'll leave you to make your decision, though," Straizo confirmed, stepping out of the room and pushing the door to behind him. "When you're ready, breakfast will be available," he added through the doorway as an afterthought.

For a time, Jonathan merely lay there, mulling over his actions. The night itself would remain unique in his mind, he told himself. He'd never let it happen again. The problem was, could he live with himself if he simply let it be, suffering no consequence for his actions? And if he talked, how would his image be altered? Who would hate, and who would forgive?

...and just as importantly, he realised with a jolt, had Straizo killed Dio, or had the vampire gotten away? Throwing off the covers, he opened the door and began to head downstairs.