We're now getting into Golden Wind, originally just called Vento Aurea. This is the second part that has Italy in it, but last time we only spent a few chapters there, so I didn't bother calling the Italian cities by their Italian name. Here I will be, so bear that in mind.

Rarita Zeppeli, often just called Rarity, was the young daughter of the Zeppeli family's second son. Her mother and father wanted to return to the family's native Napoli, and she was eager to experience more of her Italian heritage. She gave her beloved grandmother Applejack a final hug before leaving, and soon reached their family's old home. After a visit to her great-great-grandfather's grave, she visited a local sculptor named Scolippi. That's when something weird happened.

She saw an arrow coming in to strike him and moved him out of the way, the arrow hitting her shoulder. When it was retrieved by some unknown men, ten year old Rarity saw herself looking at a crystalline figure, glowing a brilliant violet and shaped like a human woman with no features other than hair and eyes, a horn growing from its forehead. She thought it resembled herself as a grown woman. It turned out, much like her grandmother, Rarity had the potential to gain a Stand, but had never truly gained one from birth, unlike her uncles Hol Horse and Gyro. But now she had one, which she came to call Art of the Dress, due to her desire for fashion and the fact the her Stand had an artistic look.

It was three years later in school when she met a young man named Giorno Giovanna, an Italian-Japanese man with a bit of English in his blood as well. Together they went over their histories, and laughed at the fact that their families had once been at odds. Giorno showed a picture of his birth father, whom he never knew. Both his parents were Stand users, but his mother Tomomi was neglectful of him, eventually marrying an Italian man after his father's death as a coping mechanism. Soon Giorno and Rarity began a romantic relationship.

The year was now 2001, just three months after the turn of the century. Koichi Hirose and his girlfriend Yukako Yamagishi were traveling to Italy on an important mission. Jotaro had only wanted Koichi to go, but Pinkie insisted Yukako would be a nervous wreck worrying about him if she didn't go as well. After arriving at the airport in Napoli, Koichi checked with the exchange office to see how many lire it would take for a taxi. Yukako still had three quarters of the lottery money from the Harvest incident, and Koichi had several hundred thousand yen of his own.

Between them they had just under fifteen million lire after the exchange, enough for a comfortable vacation after their mission. Their goal was to find a young teenage boy named Haruno Shiobana. According to Jotaro he was the son of one of the Ten Glory Gods he and he friends fought in Egypt, Tomomi Shiobana. Specifically Jotaro wanted a skin sample from Haruno for the Speedwagon Foundation to check. They already had a picture for reference, and had his address at a local boarding school.

"This boy rather reminds me of Jotaro or Josuke," Yukako noted. "I told Jotaro the same thing," Koichi admitted, "He was quiet about it. Haruno's not supposed to be dangerous or anything, but Jotaro asked that we keep out of contact regardless. He felt our powers could approach him more subtly than Star Platinum or Crazy Diamond. And forget Stands like Music in the Trees or Smile." He wasn't really interested in touring Italy, but Yukako did at least want to try the local cafes first before they headed off to Disneyland Paris. With her temper under control around him, Koichi found it hard to tell her "no".

Nearby, the couple saw a local boy with blonde hair showing off a trick for the security personnel. He pushed his ear all the way into his head, impressing them in spite of how disgusting it was. The guards thanked him as he passed them a carton of cigarettes with some money stuffed inside. "A bribe of some sort?," Yukako wondered, "But for what?" Koichi got suspicious. "Keep Love Deluxe wrapped around our luggage. I don't think it's safe around this airport." Yukako nodded, strands of her hair wrapping around their suitcases.

The boy spotted the couple. "Hey, you two looking for a taxi? I drive one part-time, and I'm on my way home, so I'll give you discount. How about a hundred and eighty thousand lire to take you into town." Koichi chuckled. He was already told it would take half that amount for an official taxi. "That's way too expensive, even for a discount." The young man raised an eyebrow. "Your Italian's very good. But you're both Japanese, right?" "Yes, we have a few Italian speakers in our hometown," Yukako explained, "They taught us the language." It was a lie. Even with Pinkie and Tonio being able to teach them, this was a high priority assignment, so they didn't have time to learn properly. Instead, they had Rohan use Heaven's Door to make it so they knew Italian and could speak it fluently.

"Come to think of it," Koichi said, "You look like you're in middle school. Are you even old enough to have a license? And what about what you handed those guards? I saw you slip them some money." "Ah, that was just a parking fee," the boy said, "Tell you what, how we go with ten thousand lire instead, and I'll waive the tip." Koichi and Yukako looked at each other. "I think we'll wait for an official taxi, thanks," Koichi said. "Alright, but the line is rather long there," the boy pointed out.

The couple turned to see he was right. "I guess we might as well," Yukako noted. Koichi nodded. If it was a scam, they could easily deal with it. "Bene," the boy said, "Please leave your luggage in the front." Koichi did so. "Make sure you drive straight to the hotel." The boy grinned. "Sure... But only with your luggage." He drove off, confident the guards would do nothing since he paid them off. But then he felt the back tire start to get heavier. "Stalled? This was supposed to be a new taxi."

He then saw Koichi and Yukako approaching. Koichi had in fact used Echoes Act 3 to stop the tire. The boy made no sign of panic or defeat, but simply got out of the car, a serene look on his face. As he ran off, Koichi overheard the guards. "Looks like Giorno Giovanna messed up for once. I can't believe he had engine trouble." "That's what he gets for trying to trick Japanese tourists when he's half-Japanese himself. You'd never know it the way he dyed his hair." "He didn't dye it, it just suddenly turned from black to blonde. Pretty weird. He says that it's hereditary, and he got it from his father, who died in Egypt."

Koichi quickly got out the picture. "They do look similar." "Koichi, there's a problem," Yukako said, "I can't feel the luggage in Love Deluxe anymore." Koichi looked in the passengers seat, and saw their suitcases were gone. Though when he looked closer, he saw they had merely been shrunk into small spheres, that were changing into frogs right before his eyes. "Stands users are drawn... To other Stand users...," he muttered, remembering the unspoken rule of fate posited by Hazamada, "But I never thought we'd run into him like this..."

Giorno chuckled as he waited for the frogs he created from the Japanese couples suitcases to return to him. "You look happy," Rarity said as she came up, "You get something good?" "I managed to grab some luggage from a Japanese couple on vacation," Giorno explained, "For some reason the taxi I was using stalled, but that's what Stand power is for." "You do realize we can only make use of the cash," Rarity pointed out, "The luggage will be tracked and ID'd, and forget selling off the travel papers."

They heard someone clear their throat behind them. They turned to see an older man approaching carrying a shovel, a single tear leaking from his right eye. "You two are Giorno Giovanna and Rarita Zeppeli, yes?" "My friends and loved ones call me Rarity," Rarity replied. The man shrugged. "I believe this is the first time we've met, yes? I assume you know who I am." "Leaky-Eye Luca," Giorno said, "They say you refused to back down from a fight, even though your opponent had plunged a knife into your face. Even now, after you recovered, your right eye still keeps tearing up."

Luca sat down on a nearby log. "Come sit. It's awkward to talk when I have to look up at someone." As Giorno sat down, Luca said, "Listen, there are three 'don'ts' when you want to establish a good friendship. Don't lie, don't bear grudges, and don't forget to be respectful. Nice, huh?" "Your point?," Giorno asked. Luca angrily aimed the handle of his shovel at Giorno. "I'm the one talking right now!" He then felt something impact on his head. He felt there, but found nothing. "What happened to don't forget to be respectful?," Rarity asked.

Luca was confused. She was the only other person there, yet she was in front of them kneeling down and had not moved. Luca took a deep breath. "Forgive me, but respect does run both ways. I heard the two of you were running a part-time gig at the airport. But I have yet to receive a gift of respect. Show me your wallet." Giorno tossed him the wallet. "I should mention I already paid for protection," Giorno said, "I'm all tapped out for now." Luca scoffed. "You paid off the security guards? That's got nothing to do with me." He looked in the wallet, but only found a photo of a blonde man with a star-shaped birthmark on his neck, the name DIO Brando written on it.

"What is this, a photo holder?," Luca demanded. "No, that's my wallet," Giorno said. "Then where's all the cash!," Luca called out. "I already said, I don't have any," Giorno replied, "I dislike having to repeat myself. If I have to say something more than once, it means the listener is unintelligent." "Or ignorant," Rarity pointed out, "Considering your attitude earlier, Luca, you sure have a habit of breaking your own rules." "Why you...!," Luca said as he swung his shovel, only to get shocked when it impacted on something invisible in mid-air.

As he tried to figure out what he hit, he saw two frogs hop out of a drain. One hopped on Giorno's leg, the other Rarity's. "What is that doing here?," Luca asked, "Swat it off!" Giorno looked confused. "Why would I? It's not harming anything. And it's just acting on instinct by returning to me." "You're gonna keep saying no to Leaky-Eye Luca!," Luca demanded. "It's two to one and you only have a shovel," Rarity noted, "Which we can dodge easily to fight back."

Luca made to the swat the frog on Giorno himself. "I wouldn't do that," Giorno warned, "This frog is a living thing and will defend it's existence. So long as you don't attack its harmless." "Stop your babbling nonsense!," Luca called out as he swung to swat the frog. Once he impacted, he felt his consciousness instantly fade. "I warned you," Giorno said, "This frog has a life it wants to protect. And it's not obedient towards me." Luca had just enough consciousness left to register that the frog was unharmed. He however, had an impact on his head that matched his shovel.

During the attack, Giorno's coat had partially come undone, revealing his own star-shaped birthmark. "I tried to warn you," he said, "Attacking this creature will only result in death." Rarity came over to do up his jacket as the two frogs landed near each other and turned back into suitcases. "For someone who talked about establishing rules of friendship, he wasn't very friendly," she noted. Their legs intertwined as they stood to kiss each other. "Ah, you're the only one I feel I repeat myself around, Rarity," Giorno said, "Because I feel I can't tell you how much I love you enough."

"It's that same charm and charisma that made me fall for you," Rarity admitted, "Shame Luca never got the message." "Yes," Giorno said, "Other people making me repeat myself... Is just useless. A waste of breath." They headed off, not seeing Echoes in its Act 1 form in the background. The two of them were also Stand users. Giorno's Gold Experience could send life energy into inanimate objects to turn them into animals. Art of the Dress could create crystals grown on existing molecules, meaning she could even grown them in midair. She was the one who struck Luca in the back of the head earlier and also created a crystal wall to block the shovel.

A little later Koichi and Yukako had reached Giorno's address near an Italian market. Despite the fact that people were leaving their luggage around, a local merchant assured them it was safe and that no one would think of stealing it in this part of the city. Just then, they heard a gaggle of girls talking excitedly. "Giorno, can I sit next to you!?" "Hey, let's have some tea together!" "I can pay!" "Ladies, please," came a familiar voice, "I already have a signorina at my side. Having more than one is getting greedy."

The girls walked off, a little disappointed but not upset. "Ciao, Giorno." Giorno was sitting with Rarity at the cafe. "Didn't your father have three other mistresses besides your mother?," Rarity pointed out. Giorno smirked. "I only need one woman in my life, and I'm sitting right next to her." "Oh, you flatterer!," Rarity said as she playfully pushed at Giorno. "There you are!," Koichi called out. Giorno recognized him and Yukako and freaked out. "Who's money is that!?," Koichi demanded, having seen Giorno handling some bills, "And where's our luggage.!?"

"Ah, sorry," Giorno said, "But I already sold it so... Ow..." Rarity had elbowed him. "It's not nice to lie when you know we can't sell off the luggage." Giorno raised an eyebrow, and Rarity facepalmed as she realized she'd just outed herself as an accomplice. Just then, Giorno felt his hand get heavier, sinking into the table. "This is... The same thing that happened at the airport... I had thought the car had stalled but... Rarity, your Stand!" Koichi and Yukako gasped as Rarity glowed with energy. "Art of the Dress!" The crystalline figure appeared and pointed.

Yukako used Love Deluxe to pull Koichi to the side as blunt crystal formations appeared in midair and shot at him. "That power," Yukako noted, "She can create crystals from nothing." "Not quite," Rarity said, "I grow crystals rather than create them, but I need something to grow them on. Luckily any molecule will do, so I can grow them on water or even in the air." Meanwhile Giorno had broken through the table and his hand was about to hit the ground. "Gold Experience!" A gold humanoid with ladybug decorations on its hands appeared and hit the pavement with its fist.

"Him too!," Koichi realized, "Echoes!" Echoes went behind the table. "He's not there! S-H-I-T, he's out of the five meter range!" "Out of range?," Koichi said, "That should be impossible. If he moved himself he should have gotten hurt from how heavy he was." Rarity grinned, making the Japanese couple confused. "You still haven't noticed it. The tree that seemed to come out of nowhere." Koichi realized what she was talking about and spotted the tree, Giorno on top of it. "I'll say it just once," Giorno said, "Stop following me."

Koichi scoffed. "Echoes! Knock the tree down!" "Yes Master!" Echoes went to punch the tree, only for it and Koichi to get thrown back into the nearby car. "Koichi!," Yukako called out as she ran over to him. "I'm okay," Koichi said, "Just got stunned, in more ways that one. Somehow, that tree was able to reflect my attack." "I must say," Giorno said, "Despite your grudge for me stealing your possessions, you didn't attack with your full strength. I guess you're a good person." He slid down a crystal ramp made by Rarity and they started running off. "Ciao." The Japanese couple looked dumbfounded at the situation. "I think we need to call Jotaro," Koichi said.