I managed to graduate with a first class honours degree. Mother was away at the time I got the result, so the person I chose to share my good news with was Miya. She gave me the biggest hug her slender frame could manage, which probably made my day even more than getting my degree. Still, Mother was the person I was most anxious to tell, for obvious reasons.
"I'm extremely proud of you," she smiled at me. I knew she meant it. She never pretended. "And I know your grandfather and father would be too," she added, knowingly.
"I know," I replied.
"I've said it before, and I'll say it again; look at what you can do when you put your mind to it," she said. I looked at her ruefully.
"You don't have to tell me that," I said. She gave me a look.
"I'm not so sure," she said. Before I had time to ask her what she meant, she quickly changed the subject, a habit she had when she didn't want to discuss something. When she had finished, I went out to polish my car. It didn't really need it, but I just wanted an excuse to look at it. It had been my twenty-first birthday present from my mother.
I was glad I lived in the countryside, so I could drive it at top speed down empty roads. I had taken Xan and Miya out in it. I had never seen Xan scared before. I told him that if he didn't like my driving, he'd hate my cousin's. Stefan didn't brake very often. He invited me over to his beach house on Seafoam Island for a weekend. That was an experience in itself - I had thought some of the things I got up to at university had been over the top. I doubted if many of the people there were actual friends. I think lots were hangers-on. He didn't seem to realise it though, or if he did, it didn't bother him. I wearily made my way back home, longing to crawl into bed and have a long sleep. Something white flashed by the corner of my eye as I drove past it. I stopped and reversed. Struggling up the grassy kerb, trying to get into the undergrowth on the other side, was a Meowth. It was clearly injured. I got out of my car and went over to it. It hissed slightly as I extended a hand to it, but I could see it was too weak to put up much of a fight. I fetched a blanket I kept in the back of the car, and carefully wrapped the Meowth up in it. I was much nearer to home than a Pokémon Centre, so I decided to look after it overnight and then take it to the Pokémon Centre in the morning. I placed the Meowth on the passenger seat, and got in.
"Don't worry, I'm going to take you to my home. I'll give you some food and maybe that'll make you feel a bit better," I said to it, tickling it gently behind the ear. There was something about feline Pokémon that I found irresistible. Maybe it was their charm or their single-mindedness. Although I had grown up with various Pokémon in the house, none of them had ever been a Meowth, even though I always asked for one. I drove home fast but carefully. Once there, I took it into the kitchen and put it on the table, so I could look at it better. I think its leg was broken, and it had a small cut across its nose, which I cleaned. It had stopped hissing and trying to scratch me anyway. My mother returned home, the Meowth immediately catching her attention.
"What's that?" she asked sharply.
"A Meowth I found on the road. I think it was hit by a car," I told her. "I think its leg's broken." Her face filled with concern and she came and looked closer at it.
"Why didn't you take it to a Pokémon Centre?" she asked.
"Home was closer. I'll take it in the morning," I replied. "I was looking for some food for it."
"Go over to the labs. There's some special Meowth food there. It'll have better nutrients in than general Pokémon food," she said. I hesitated, not wanting to leave the Meowth.
"Do you want it to starve?" she snapped. I made my way over to the labs and got the food. When I got back, my mother had taken the Meowth into the living room and placed it by the fire in a box with a blanket. She was knelt by it, watching it lap at a bowl of water. I brought the food over in another bowl and placed it next to the water. Hungry, the Meowth wolfed it down. My mother stroked it.
"You could have at least put its leg in a splint," she said. I noticed she had done this.
"I'd only been in fifteen minutes before you," I retorted. The Meowth was startled by my raised voice, but was soothed by my mother, who glared at me.
"The poor thing's been through enough, don't you think?" she hissed. She got up and left the room. I sat down by the box.
"I'm sorry," I said to the Meowth, tickling it under the chin and behind the ears. To my delight, it began to purr a little. "You'll be fine," I said to it.
The trip to the Pokémon Centre in the morning confirmed the broken leg. Apart from making sure it got plenty of food and water, Nurse Joy said that the Meowth was fine. It had had a lucky escape. The Meowth seemed happy enough to see me after its treatment, so I claimed it as my own and took it back home with me. I would be moving to Viridian City soon, to take charge of the gym. It could have been sooner, but because of some problems during the rebuilding and my duration at university, the opening was delayed. Mother's connections had ensured I had all the correct paperwork to certify me as the gym leader, though I was sure I would have been able to pass the qualification exam. Well, I suppose it was one less thing to concern myself with. I spent time in the training gym when it wasn't being used by my mother's agents, getting my Pokémon into top condition. Krabby, Machop and Geodude had all evolved into Kingler, Machoke and Graveller respectively. During the summer tuition I used to have, Xan had taught me many small but effective ways of keeping Pokémon in top condition even if they were not battling. He said that Pokémon were like athletes - even if there were no competitions, they still had to practise and exercise. I would train the Meowth too when it was better. For some reason, it seemed to like my mother, though she paid less attention to it than I did. Pokémon were strange.
I had offered Miya a lift into Viridian City, seeing as both of us had business to deal with, though not before I showed her the newly finished Gym. After a couple of hours, we made our way back home. Out of the city, I drove faster down the quieter lanes. Miya kept looking at me.
"What is it?" I asked eventually. She had never complained about how fast I drove before.
"I was just wondering if you'd let me have a go," she said.
"You want to drive my car?" I replied, surprised.
"Yeah… Just for a little bit," she smiled.
"No," I said, shortly.
"Aww, come on! I'd never be able to afford to buy one of these, and I'd like to try it," she pleaded, looking at me sweetly.
"No," I repeated.
"Don't be mean. I'd let you if it was my car," she said. "I won't crash it, I promise. I passed my driving test first time round."
"I don't know," I replied, doubtfully.
"Just a couple of miles down a side road?" she asked. I gave in. If it had been anyone but her, I would have refused, and probably have left them on the side of the road if they nagged me. I pulled off the main road and stopped.
"If you scratch it, you're in trouble," I told her. The way she smiled at me told me that she didn't believe me. We swapped seats. I expected Miya to drive fairly slowly. I was wrong.
"Slow down! You'll damage it!" I cried, clinging on for dear life. She just laughed, swerving sharply off the road we were on, and through the forest on a narrow little road that went downhill. The bushes and trees whipped past. Fortunately, she slowed down enough to pass safely round the sharp bend at the bottom of the hill, then speeded up again.
"Where are we?" I asked.
"Don't worry, I know where we're going. I'm not going to kidnap you," she grinned. After a little while, the trees opened out and a lake appeared in front of us. The road followed the edge of the lake for some way, before turning back into the forest. At the bend, there was a small grassy lay-by, which Miya pulled into.
"That was fun, wasn't it?" she smiled at me. I just looked at her. She giggled and got out of the car. I got out too, to inspect the damage. No scratches but…
"It's filthy!" I almost wailed. Miya simply rolled her eyes and went to sit on a log that was near the edge of the lake.
"Just a couple of miles," I muttered. "It's not a rally car."
"Stop whinging," she said. I could see that whatever I was going to say to her wouldn't make any difference, so I went and sat beside her.
"So, looking forward to becoming a gym leader?" she asked.
"Yes, I suppose so. Mum says it'll be good for my leadership skills," I shrugged.
"She still expects you to take over then?"
"Of course, but then, I'm happy to do that, whenever that will be," I replied, then smiled at her. "I'll give you a pay rise and extra holidays when I'm in charge." Miya flashed a smile at me, then grew serious again.
"Do you really want to take over or is it just what you've been programmed to say?" she replied.
"It is what I want," I insisted.
"I don't believe you. I don't think you know what you want," she said. "You're just following whatever your mother wants you to do because you can't think of anything else."
"That's not true," I replied shortly.
"Can I be honest with you?" Miya asked.
"Of course," I said.
"You're lazy. Lazy in your mind. You don't do anything for yourself unless someone or something pushes you to do it."
"Like what?" I asked.
"The Pokémon Tech. Everyone knew you were capable of doing it, but you needed Xan and I to push you. University. Your family wanted you to go, but it took a row with your mother to make you. Team Rocket. You weren't bothered at all until your mother suggested it, and now look at you. That's just the big things," she said. I shook my head.
"Miya, not everyone is a free spirit like you. You could walk away from what your parents wanted you to do. I can't."
"Why not? What's to stop you getting in your car and going off to see the world? You're only twenty-one. Do something impulsive."
"I can't just take off like that," I said. Miya inched a little closer to me and placed a hand on mine.
"She'd probably respect you for it," she said. I snorted.
"Yeah right. My mother doesn't love me, let alone respect me," I replied, fighting the lump in my throat that this declaration brought up.
"Giovanni, that's not true. Of course she loves you. Just because she's not a huggy, overly affectionate kind of person, doesn't mean she doesn't care about you," Miya assured.
"My mother loves her work. I'm just a useful asset to her," I said, bitterly.
"Don't be silly. Has she ever said she doesn't love you?"
"No, but I know she doesn't." I felt like a small child, yet somehow it felt good to air my grievances.
"Look at me." I looked at Miya, my eyes meeting her blue-green ones.
"Now listen to me and think about what I'm saying. Would your mother want you to take over Team Rocket, her life work, if she didn't trust and respect you? Would she have spent all that money on a nice car for your birthday if she hated you?" Miya said.
"I suppose not," I said, not convinced. Miya smiled at me.
"Well, you've got me, anyway," she said, and to my surprise, she leaned her head on my shoulder and put her arm round me. I smiled back at her, and put my arm round her.
"You mean a lot to me," I said. God knows what prompted me to come out with that idiotic sentence. Miya looked at me, a small smile on her lips.
"I know," she said. For what seemed like forever, we sat looking at each other. Then slowly, without any qualms, I leant forwards and kissed her.
I awoke early the next morning with a jump. I remembered the events of yesterday with a sense of disbelief and decided I should go and find Miya before Mother sent her off somewhere and apologise. I made my way over to the rooms that agents stayed in if they were at Headquarters and found Miya's. The Elite agents had their own rooms, so she would always be in the same one. I knocked on the door. Miya answered it, still in her dressing gown.
"Miya, I…" I began, but she smiled at me and pulled me inside before I could finish.
"You're up early," she said, and planted a gentle kiss on my lips.
"I wanted to see you before Mother sent you somewhere. I wanted to apologise for yesterday," I said. A look of surprise appeared on her face.
"Oh?" she said. "What are you sorry for?"
"You know… I didn't mean for that to happen," I said. She laid her hands on my shoulders.
"Well when I said you should do something impulsive, that wasn't what I had in mind," she said. "But it's happened. I'm not sorry at all."
"Really? Then I'm not sorry either," I admitted. Miya smiled at me again.
"Good," she said, pulling me down a little so we could kiss. We hugged, and I was aware of a feeling of tranquillity that I hadn't felt for a long time.
"So…what do we do now?" Miya asked, her head still on my chest.
"That's a good question," I replied.
"It isn't going to be easy," she said.
"I know," I said. "We'll have to keep it from my mother, at least, for the time being. She'll be furious if she found out."
"Well at the end of the day it's none of her business, but I know what you mean," Miya said. "I'll have to tell Cal of course. And Xan. But both of them know how to keep a secret."
"How are we going to be able to see each other when you're away?" I asked. Miya looked at me and smiled.
"We can work something out, can't we? Maybe your car will finally come in useful," she teased. I grabbed her into a tight hug, making her squeal.
Miya and I somehow, miraculously, managed to keep our relationship secret from my mother. Perhaps it was because most of it happened away from home. Mother seemed to accept my frequent disappearances from home simply as visits to friends or just use of my car. She was too busy with her own concerns to care much about mine anyway. And as Miya was her best agent, she had no reason to question what she was doing on missions. We were still careful about how and where we met up though. Miya was completely different to Lauren even in a relationship. Lauren liked being bought expensive gifts, whilst Miya would scold me for doing so. I also had the sense that I was being truly cared for, a feeling that I never had with Lauren. The time I spent with Miya was the only time when I felt I was free from Team Rocket. I was someone else. For over a year I felt that the cloud I was floating on would last forever. But, life being as it was for me, I was wrong. Miya happened to be at headquarters for a couple of days taking a break after a mission abroad. I hadn't seen her for several weeks because of it, so as soon as I could, I went over to see her.
"Hello," I smiled, giving her a kiss as I entered her room. She smiled at me, though I thought I could detect some nervousness. "How are you?" I asked.
"I'm fine," she said.
"That's good," I smiled, putting my arms round her. "I've missed you," I said. She gave me another nervous smile and put a finger to my lips.
"I've got something to tell you," she said.
"Oh?" I replied, taking hold of the hand the finger belonged to and kissing it.
"I'm pregnant," she said, simply. As if I had been electrocuted, I let go of her and stared at her.
"How can you be?" I asked, finding my voice.
"I don't know, but I am," she replied. "Accidents happen." We stood in silence as I tried to absorb the news. But the thought that came to my mind wasn't about the prospect of becoming a father. It was about my mother and what her reaction would be. And that made me do the worst thing I could have done in the situation. I panicked.
"Have you told my mother?" I asked. She shook her head.
"No. I'm going to go and see her soon."
"You don't have to tell her," I said. Miya gave me a strange look.
"Of course I do. She needs to reassign me for a while because I won't be able to do as much fieldwork."
"I mean, accidents can be corrected," I said.
"I want to keep the baby," Miya said, her eyes slightly narrowed.
"You can't," I said.
"Why not?" she asked.
"Well, look at the consequences. How are you going to explain it to my mother? What about your career? You can't do a job like yours with a baby."
"I know what I'm going to say to her. And as for my job, well, your mother had you and continued working, and she's done okay, hasn't she?" Miya retorted.
"I don't want you to have the baby. Doesn't that mean anything?"
"Not while you're being so childish."
"I am not."
"Yes, you are. All you can think of is a quick way out."
"It's the best way."
"Who are you to decide what's best for me?" Miya said angrily. I took a breath to calm myself then tried to calm her.
"Miya, I only want to protect you. You know what my mother is like when she's angry. You've heard the stories…" I said, reaching out to touch her face. She stepped back.
"Don't be so stupid," she snapped. "I know your mother better than ninety-nine percent of Team Rocket and I know she would have nothing of the sort done, especially to me."
"You can't rely on your position to get you out of everything," I told her, my voice also rising again.
"I have never used my status to help me in personal gain, and I don't intend to now," Miya said through clenched teeth. Her usually calm blue-green eyes were a dark storm. I had never seen Miya truly angry before, and I felt sorry that I was the cause of her anger, but that was less important than the matter at hand.
"How about you come with me this afternoon and tell your mother exactly why I'm pregnant?" Miya said, somewhat tauntingly.
"You know I can't do that," I answered.
"Why?"
"You know why!" I cried.
"Well, fine, have it your way. I've taken care of myself for most of my life, I can raise a child by myself too," Miya said.
"What are you saying?" I asked, taken aback.
"If you don't want our child then you can't have me," Miya said. "Leave."
"But Miya…"
"I don't want to know. Just go." She turned her back on me. I reached out for her shoulder.
"You can't just brush me away like that," I said. Her reaction was like that of an enraged Persian. She whipped round and pushed me backwards towards the door, her face twisted in fury.
"I'll do what I want to do. It's too late to try and be nice. I know exactly how you feel, you've made that quite clear. Now get out of my room!" she yelled, tears springing from her eyes. I grabbed her wrists to stop her trying to hit me. If I hurt her physically she didn't let it show.
"I'm sorry," I said, but I knew the damage had been done. I let her go and left the room, trying to make sense of things.
Miya didn't go to see my mother until a couple of days later. She was right about the treatment she received – Mother took her off fieldwork straight away and reassigned her to the laboratories and instructing trainees. Mother seemed to survey me with suspicion when she asked if I had heard about Miya's pregnancy, but I think it was more to do with the way I was underwhelmed in my response. A few days after Miya and I had our argument, I was standing talking to Xan outside the training gym.
"You can't just pretend it's not happening," Xan said.
"I know Xan. Under other circumstances I'd be happy, but under these circumstances I just can't," I replied.
"You can still be involved in the kid's life," Xan said.
"I don't think Miya wants that. Not after the other day."
"Well she's still pretty upset with you, but I've never known Miya ever refuse to talk to someone ever again."
"I've never known Miya to get that angry."
"It doesn't happen very often, but I've seen it before. Give it another day then go and see her," Xan said.
"And say what? We'll never agree on anything. She wants me to tell my mother. I can't do that. Not yet, anyway," I said.
"She does have a point, Gio. Nothing stays hidden from your mother forever, and it'll be a lot better if you tell her now rather than have her find out in a few years from someone else," Xan said. "I mean, it's not like she can send you to your room now is it?"
"It's not me, it's what might happen to Miya," I said.
"Miya's a tough girl, you know that," Xan said. I sighed.
"Giovanni!" We both turned around to see Cal marching up the hill towards us at a fair speed. I could tell from his body language that he was not happy. Cal didn't slow down as he approached us, instead he marched right up to me and stopped. I waited for him to say something, which he did with his right fist. Fortunately, I managed to react quickly enough to move so that it was only a glancing blow, and then had to defend myself as Cal tried again. Xan pulled us apart.
"That's enough," he said.
"Bastard!" Cal yelled at me. "Do you know how upset Miya's been? She's been in tears because of you."
"I didn't want to upset her," I retorted.
"It's all great fun and games for you until some responsibility comes along, isn't it?" Cal snarled.
"It's not like that. And frankly it's none of your business," I said.
"When something happens to Miya, I make it my business," Cal retorted. "I told her something like this would happen when you got together. I was right."
"Well good for you," was my sarcastic response. Cal was incensed and tried to hit me again, only to be held back by Xan.
"Cal, leave it. None of this is helping Miya," he said. "It's been as much a shock for Gio as it has been for the rest of us."
"I can't believe you're defending him!" Cal exclaimed.
"I'm not taking sides in this. All I care about is Miya, not attributing blame to anyone," Xan replied, evenly. Cal glared at Xan, then me before releasing himself from Xan's grip and marching off back down the hill.
"Thanks. That man's always had a problem with me," I said. Xan gave me a look.
"Just because I stopped Cal taking a piece out of you doesn't mean I think you're in the right," he said. "Anyway, I'll speak to you later. I'm supposed to be meeting Dahlia."
"Okay," I replied, watching him stride off in the opposite direction to Cal.
Moving into the Viridian City Gym I suppose came as a blessing. It took me away from the headquarters and Mother, and also away from Miya. Not that I wanted to be away from Miya, just that I thought it would be better for us to be apart. Besides, being a gym leader helped take my mind off a lot of things. When they gym finally opened, business was great. The demand by trainers to battle for a badge was huge, and even took my mother by surprise. I won the first six matches easily, and almost won the seventh, but lost it by the smallest of margins to some smart-arse brat. It was also nice to have the gym serve as a base for Team Rocket – it meant that I effectively had lots of Pokémon to choose from, all kept in one of the secret rooms beneath the gym. Although it meant I had regular contact with my mother over the phone, I didn't have to see her all that much, and therefore didn't feel under any pressure. She trusted me enough to leave me alone to do things by myself. Sometimes she needed me over at headquarters, so one of her agents would take my place for a day or so. Usually it was Xan or another elite agent, but to my surprise on one occasion, Miya turned up.
"What are you doing here?" I asked.
"There was no one else available to look after the gym and your mother thought that I would welcome the opportunity to come and see you," she replied.
"I suppose it has been a while," I said. Miya hung her coat up and looked at me.
"Why have you been avoiding me?" she asked.
"I haven't," I denied, noticing the evidence of a bulge in her tummy where the baby was growing.
"You never come and see me when you're over at headquarters," she said.
"I don't have the time," I said.
"You manage to see Xan if he's around," she said, not quite hiding the annoyance in her voice. I took a breath, closed my eyes and opened them again.
"Look, Miya. I'm just not ready to be a father."
"I've kind of worked that out from your behaviour," she retorted. "I'm sorry Giovanni, but you need to…grow up. You're acting like a spoilt brat with half a brain, which isn't what you are. Now, what do I need to know about the gym?" Her words though they were not spoken harshly, stung. Instead of arguing back however, I did as she requested and filled her in on aspects of the gym, such as where the Pokémon and badges were kept. Without further ado, I left her to it. I still did not see much of Miya throughout the rest of her pregnancy, and when I did it was awkward. I knew deep down it was silly, but I kept convincing myself that what I was doing was for the best.
However, when I heard that the baby had been born, curiosity got the better of me, and I went to see Miya the day after she came home, hoping that I wouldn't meet Cal whilst I was there. Nervously I knocked on the door, wondering what the reaction would be.
"Come in," Miya said, pleasantly enough. I entered the small suite of rooms, noticing several congratulatory cards on a shelf. "It's a girl!" one of them proclaimed loudly. A girl. So I have a daughter.
"I wasn't sure if you were going to come or not," Miya said, interrupting my thoughts.
"It is only right that I should," I said.
"You didn't want anything to do with her whilst I was pregnant," Miya replied, with an air of disbelief.
"Can I see her?" I asked. Miya nodded, and disappeared into the next room. Her attitude surprised me somewhat. So far she had expressed no anger whatsoever. I hadn't really expected to be let in. Miya returned, carrying the baby wrapped up in a blanket.
"Your daughter," she said, placing the baby in my arms before I could do anything else. I looked at the baby, unsure of what I was supposed to do. I hadn't expected her to be so tiny. I felt a wave of relief sweep over me when I saw that she looked like Miya, rather than me.
"She has your father's eyes," Miya said.
"Really? How can you tell?" I asked.
"I have a photographic memory when it comes to people and Pokémon," Miya replied. I took her word for it. There was an awkward silence.
"Does she have a name?" I asked.
"Yes. Jessica Violet," Miya told me.
"Oh," was all I said. "Musashi?"
"Of course. It could be Sakaki, but then, you wouldn't want that, would you?" I didn't reply. I looked at the baby – Jessica – again. My decision had long ago been made.
"You know I can't accept her Miya, not yet, anyway."
"Damn your mother, Giovanni," Miya snapped.
"It's not just her…" I began, but Miya interrupted.
"Look, if you're not willing to be Jessie's father, then fine. I want you to keep right away from her. No birthday cards, no Christmas presents. I want Jessie to have a real father, not some shadowy figure." She took Jessica out of my arms, and I knew that it was time for me to go.
"Take care of her, Miya," I said, as I opened the door.
"Your father would be ashamed of you," came the short reply as I stepped outside. The remark was meant to sting, and it did. I forced back the tears that pricked the back of my eyes as I shut the door and shut out what should have been the most important people in my life.
It was not as bad as I thought it would be, not seeing Jessica. That is not to say that I didn't care for her, but because I lived in Viridian City, away from Team Rocket's main operation base, I just became detached from it all. Even if I went to see my mother, that was no guarantee to see Jessica, for I learnt from Xan that if Miya was to go away, she would leave Jessica in the care of some people she knew. Xan said that Miya was very secretive about it, even with him. When I did see Jessica, it was usually from a distance. It became clear that she viewed Cal as her dad, although I knew that Miya insisted that Cal was "uncle". Cal, if he saw me nearby, would exploit the fact that Jessica adored him.
"She's a beautiful little girl, Gio," Xan told me, on more than one occasion. The strain of trying to be friends with both Miya and I was a lot on Xan. I knew he wished that we could be friends again, but for me, at least, it wasn't that simple. Besides, I was kept busy by my mother, and therefore didn't really have time to dwell on things. Mother didn't really ask any questions about Miya or Jessie, much to my relief. She obviously didn't suspect anything. But someone else eventually did. Stefan. We were both by ourselves, having a conversation about various things.
"I saw Miyamoto the other day," Stefan said.
"Oh?" I replied.
"She had her little girl with her. She's a cutie, isn't she?"
"Yes. Miya's very proud of her," I said, trying to remain nonchalant. Stefan nodded and took a sip of his drink.
"Not like you," he said, almost casually. My heart leapt into my mouth.
"What do you mean?" I asked, as calmly as I could.
"Jessie's yours, isn't she?" Stefan said. I struggled to answer.
"I…" was all I could manage.
"Don't worry, I won't mention it to your mother," Stefan told me, seeming to enjoy watching me squirm. "I'm under the impression that she doesn't know."
"How did you know?" I managed to ask.
"Just little things over the past couple of years that I've noticed. The fact that when I asked Miya if you were Jessie's dad, she got rather angry…that clinched it," he told me. I sighed.
"It is a rather touchy subject," I said.
"Tell me all about it," Stefan said, pouring me another drink.