Chapter Text
It's not time to make a change
Just relax, take it easy
You're still young, that's your fault
There's so much you have to know
Heaven was quite different than Jonathan imagined it would be.
It wasn't the traditional idea of heaven. No pearly gates or angel chorus greeted him when he first arrived, and so far he hadn't met an omnipotent creator, though perhaps they were very busy dealing with the living people on Earth. Instead, it was more of an ever-expanding landscape of clouds and fog. There were no trees or flowers to add a bit of color, no man-made structures like homes or shops to visit, no seasons or weather to liven up the days.
This world was controlled by thought. If Jonathan wanted to read a book, he could concentrate on that want and a bookshelf would appear before him, lined with a thousand books he'd never even heard of before yet all fit his current interests. If he wanted to speak with someone, he'd merely have to think of a person and a road would form, leading towards friends and family. The only thing it couldn’t do was answer anything asked with malicious or harmful intent. He wasn’t quite sure how it was able to detect that (nor did it really affect him since he wasn’t an inherently vengeful person), but it could do many bizarre things, so it was best not to question it.
It was a strange existence, Jonathan decided, but it wasn't terrible.
He spent most of his days - although they weren't "days" in the typical fashion, as there was no sun or moon to mark the passage of time - with his parents. He'd never known his mother, as she had passed away when he was just a baby, but she knew him quite well.
"I watched you grow up, JoJo." She told him. "From this spirit world, I was able to watch you grow into a strong and gentle young man. I'm ever so proud of you."
"Really? The dead can watch the living?" Jonathan asked, hope fluttering in his chest.
"Not quite. The dead can watch their children, but nothing more." His father said. "If the child dies, they cannot go back."
Jonathan's heart sank. He'd hoped he could visit Erina; even if he could not talk to her directly, he still desperately wanted to see her face again, to know if she was handling his sudden death well.
There was, of course, a possibility that she might give birth, but it was a slim chance. They had been married for a mere five days, and there was very little opportunity during that time in which they could have conceived a child.
Still, Jonathan tried not to let it bother him. Erina would join him in her own time, and hopefully it wouldn’t be soon. Perhaps she would get remarried. The thought of losing the love of his life wasn't exactly a pleasant one, but in the end Erina's happiness was more important than his own, and if she could find that in the company of another man then Jonathan would wholly support her.
So while he waited for the day she would join him, Jonathan spent his time in the company of the family he had here with him.
He got to know his mother for the first time. His father had always told him of her when he was a boy; the courage she had, her natural curiosity for oddities, and the warmth her smile brought over any being. Now that Jonathan could properly meet her, he could clearly see those same qualities as well.
He reunited with his father, who praised his son for the courage he'd shown in the face of danger and apologized for not being a proper loving father while he was alive. Jonathan told him there was no need to worry, that it was all in the past and it even built a bit of character.
He was even able to play with Danny once again like he had done when he was a young boy. The old dog was still as loyal and energetic as he had been all those years ago, nearly tackling Jonathan to the ground when they met again.
Eventually, Jonathan sought out Zeppeli, to properly thank the man for training him in the ways of Hamon, and for giving him enough strength through his sacrifice to aid him in his technically-not-final battle with Dio.
"I only wish I could have given you enough to let you live a long and fulfilling life, JoJo." The old Hamon master had replied, a sad sort of smile on his face.
Jonathan shook his head. "You did what you could, and I am forever grateful. The last few months I spent with you and Speedwagon were some of the best I've ever had."
Zeppeli tipped his top hat backwards, looking up at the empty sky. "The life of a Hamon warrior is a difficult one. I left behind a wife and son in my pursuits to destroy the stone mask, and while I do not regret it, I still wish I could have been more present in their lives before I passed on.”
“You can still watch them from here, though, right?” Jonathan asked.
“Of course, and what a blessing that is.” Zeppeli lifted the golden string hovering at his chest, tied directly to his heart; the string that guided the spirits back to the living world, allowing them to watch their families. “I had thought that I might be cursed never to see them again, but it seems whatever God rules this land is a merciful one. However, it’s far from a perfect solution. Spirits cannot interact with their loved ones, only watch from afar. As much as I would love to speak with them again, or comfort them when troubled, there is little I can do.”
“I see…” Jonathan murmured.
Zeppeli clapped a hand on the young man’s shoulder, abruptly changing the subject. “Well enough of this dull lamenting. We’re dead, so let’s lighten up a little, shall we? You’ve already defeated Dio, so we ought to celebrate!” He pulled a wine bottle and two glasses out of thin air, pouring out the drinks and handing one to Jonathan while raising his own in the air. “A toast to our lives, however short they may have been!”
“Ah, right. To our lives!” Jonathan clinked his glass against Zeppeli’s. He stared at the deep red liquid in his hands, watching his own reflection become distorted by the ripples on its crimson surface.
“Something wrong, JoJo?”
“It’s nothing…” He murmured, taking a sip from the sweet beverage and staring upwards. “It’s just...where is Dio? I tried to find him here, and yet I couldn’t reach him. Do you think...do you think he may still be alive?”
Zeppeli sighed. “I don’t know much about how this place operates, JoJo. Whether evil spirits are sent to hell, I cannot say. But if there’s one thing I do know is that looking for that man will not bode well for you. Leave the devil be. I’m sure he’s experiencing a rather fitting punishment for his cruelties.”
Jonathan nodded blankly, but it did little to quell the sinking, gnawing want for an answer constantly tugging at his chest. To be truthful, he wasn’t sure why he wanted to see Dio again.
He was the reason for Jonathan’s early death, the cause of so much pain and misery throughout his life. Even now, he couldn’t fully forgive Dio for everything he had done.
But at the end of the day, they were still brothers. Adopted brothers, and only for about eight years - not even half their life times - but brothers nonetheless. Even if all those years spent under the same roof were nothing but carefully calculated deceptions meant to lure Jonathan into a false sense of security while Dio formed his schemes, there was genuine joy found in those memories. Perhaps Dio hadn’t been feigning kindness the entire time. Perhaps shrouded in the darkness of that vampire’s heart was a sliver of a human man.
Perhaps they could be brothers again, as they once were, and with that thought in his head Jonathan finished off the last of his glass, staring out into the unknown beyond.