Silent Stardust of the Moon

Chapter 49: A Fateful Reunion. Arriving at Dio's Mansion

"Haa...goodness it's so hot." Hikari sighed while waving her hand in her face. The Egyptian sun beat down heavily on Hikari as she took out a handkerchief wiping the sweat from her forehead. Though she considered it might be worse when she thought about that Sun Stand. That was horrible. Suddenly she felt something cold pressed against her cheek and she jolted from the sudden touch. She touched her cheek as her sapphire eyes trailed up the arm that held the bottle of water and Hikari smiled seeing who held it. "Thank you very much, JoJo." Hikari thanked him, taking the bottle and happily drinking it.

"Jotaro! Hikari!" The two teens turned their heads when their names were called. "Let's go!" Joseph called out. Jotaro and Hikari followed after Joseph and Avdol, but there was no Polnareff. Hikari looked around but didn't spot the eccentric Frenchman. "Where's Mr. Polnareff? Oh dear, I hope he hasn't got into too much trouble." Hikari said worriedly.

******

She was right to worry. Polnareff seemed to attract unwanted attention to himself. Right now Hikari was left confused as she saw Polnareff sitting on the ground trying to quickly scoot away from another man who appeared to be a beggar. The man started to yell at Polnareff, and he retaliated by yelling back. This continued until another man appeared on the scene then handed Polnareff some money before walking off. This caused the beggar to once again yell at Polnareff.

"Hey! Polnareff!" Avdol yelled out. "Don't just sit there with your mouth agape! Give that money to him immediately." Polnareff looked confused before looking back at the man. "Oh, I get what's going on here. He's a beggar."

"You'll have to forgive my friend's obliviousness." Avdol said, apologized to the man. "He's not accustomed to the rules of this city."

"Why didn't you tell me you were a beggar in the first place?" Polnareff said facing the man.

"It's called having a shtick, you numbnuts. People around here as a mute beggar!" The Beggar said.

"There's something known as a beggars' association here." Avdol said.

"Beggar's Association?" Hikari questioned, confused on what that is. Does something like that exist? Apparently, it does. "Beggars have their own areas where they're paid to do nothing but sit around and beg all day. While it may seem strange to us, the rules they put in place helped keep everything running smoothly." Avdol explained.

"Get out..." Polnareff said looking bewildered.

"Yes, and that exchange from earlier has hurt my pride! I wonder if I make more money by disguising myself as a foreign beggar. The hobos, they are a-changing." The Beggar then stood up and faced the group. "Oh, by the way, I thought I recognise you from somewhere. If I'm not mistaken, you're Avdol the Fortune-teller. Way I hear it, you got spooked and fled to Japan. Apparently, someone was looking to kill you."

"I'd rather discuss us needing a favour from the one who knows everything there is to know about this area. You'll be well compensated." Avdol reached into his jacket and pulled out the photo. Avdol handed the man the photo and said, "It's imperative that we find the building as quickly as possible, we're running out of time."

The Beggar examined the photos for a few minutes, then with a flourish of his hand, he grabbed his cloak and ripped it off revealing a very nice and stylish suit underneath it. The Beggar put on a fedora hat completing the outfit. "I've done enough work for one day." He then walked over to a rather expensive looking car. "You gents have my word that I'll find the mansion in three hours. Just sit tight." Hikari and Polnareff looked the most confused out of the group as the man got into his car and drove off.

"That was...um...unexpected." Hikari said. "Wait...where's Iggy?"

******

The Joestar Group have been waiting around for the wealthy beggar for a good while now. But that's all they can do for the time being. Polnareff puffed out smoke before crushing his cigarette on the ground. "Come on, give it to me straight, Avdol. Do you honestly believe that guy has any chance of finding Dio's mansion?" Polnareff asked.