The New Normal – 8-18 – Interlude – Giovanni
There could be no doubt in anyone's mind that Giovanni was a busy man. With all of his many known, and less known, commitments, he barely had any time for himself. Let alone his family. Especially now that Petrel and Archer were unavailable, two of his most valued subordinates who usually helped with his administrative duties, it meant that he was forced to take on more of the work himself.
Yet he was fully aware that his choice to prioritize his work over other aspects of his life had caused some strain with his personal life. Ariana was happy enough with the time that they had together; any time spent together was still a major improvement over the forced distancing that they had before, so she wasn't really the issue. Though that might just be the excuse that he comforted himself with.
The issue really came down to his interactions with Silver. Or, specifically, the lack thereof.
Silver was a…demanding kid. Giovanni didn't really blame him; he knew the struggles of growing up with only a single parent, after all. So, while it did frequently annoy him, he knew that Silver's constant desire for attention was partially his fault for leaving him alone with his mother, so he tried his best not to begrudge him for it.
Even if it was difficult some days.
But today, with the circuit nearly over, he finally managed to squeeze out an entire day to spend with the family. Ariana suggested for them to take a day trip to the beaches of Vermillion, and he readily agreed. He had been spending a bit too long inside and it'd be nice to stretch his legs and get some sun.
Silver was very excited with the trip, just like any old 7-year-old would be, and the bags under his son's eyes the next day told Giovanni enough about when he was able to fall asleep.
Still, with the near-infinite energy that could only be found in young children, they still managed to spend a nice and relaxing day as a family at the beach. They built sandcastles, played a little bit of volleyball, and had a nice swim around the shallow waters. Even the weather seemed to be looking out for them, with the sun being out with just enough of a cool breeze for it to be not swelteringly hot.
He was fortunate he had made an attempt to disguise himself. His image of a refined gentleman would have been shattered had anyone seen him out like this today. Especially with an 'illegitimate' son. Although, only the biggest of busybodies cared about Silver's illegitimacy, divorces and abandoned children were unfortunately all too common in society, so that piece of news was very quickly forgotten about.
Those that had 'longer' memories found themselves quickly encouraged to keep their silence. It wouldn't do to let the fools continue flapping their mouths.
Eventually, after spending a couple of hours in the sun, Silver tired himself out from playing and they decided to rest at a nearby restaurant near the beach. It was a delectable meal, made better by the company they shared, and a smile never left his face as he simply enjoyed the time that he got with his family.
It was during this time that Silver raised a surprising question.
"Dad, how are you so strong?"
The word 'dad' made his smile grow slightly wider, as it always did, "What do you mean, Silver? What kind of strength do you mean?"
Silver gave him a puzzled look, "There's different kinds of strength?"
"Of course, dear." Ariana smiled as she put down her knife and fork, "Strength comes in many different forms. There's political strength, financial strength, Pokémon strength, and many more!"
Silver shook his head, "I mean as a trainer! Dad's a strong trainer! I want to be a strong trainer too!"
Giovanni chuckled and ruffled his hair, "Well, even as a strong trainer, there are many different types of strength. There's not just one way of becoming a strong trainer."
Seeing Silver's continued confusion, he continued, "Let's use Lance as an example. He's stronger than me, right?"
"Of course, he's Champion!" Silver immediately answered.
"Yes, that's true." He nodded, "But what is Lance most known for?"
"Uh…his Dragons?" Silver replied unsurely.
"More specifically, it is the raw strength that his Dragons have." Ariana answered for him, "Lance's strength comes from raw power. His Pokémon are strong not because they are faster, or more technically trained, although they also are fast and technically trained, but the most important part is that they WILL overpower you."
"Isn't that good enough?" Silver asked questioningly.
"Well, let's look at a different trainer." Giovanni continued, taking on an educational tone, "How strong do you think Elite Agatha is?"
"Uh…quite strong?" Silver answered hesitantly, "She's in the Elite Four, so she must be quite strong, right?"
"The correct answer is VERY strong." Giovanni corrected, though inwardly he knew he might be exaggerating things a bit. Agatha certainly was that in her prime, but nowadays…it was less certain. Though he would never dare to challenge her any time soon.
"But her strength doesn't come from raw power." He continued, "Instead, her power all comes from her mastery of the Ghost types. She has managed to push the potential of Ghost types to their very limit, and is constantly exploring how to expand those limits even further. Compared to her, my knowledge of the Ground type would be seen as paltry."
He leaned forwards, "Let me explain. If you fought against Lance, you would know why you lost. You lost because his Pokémon were stronger than yours. But if you lost against Agatha, I'd most certainly bet that you'd have a tough time understanding WHY and HOW you lost."
"…But then how do I get strong then?" Silver finally asked, visibly upset and confused at their explanations. He must have wanted a simpler answer.
Ariana chuckled and patted her son on the head, "The first thing you should do is to do research. Search up powerful trainers, and see what they do. Look at what tips they can give you. It might seem simple, but you never know if you can learn something from them."
"Next, you should ask questions where you can." Giovanni added, "I know your mother and I are quite busy, but I promise to make some time for you to ask some questions. Or, if I don't have time to answer them, you can just write down your questions and I'll just write down my response when I have time."
Then a pink haired girl flashed through his mind, "Or you can ask Whitney and her friends, I'm sure they'll be happy to help you. But be nice about it! Don't take advantage of their kindness by being rude to them."
Silver nodded seriously, clearly taking that suggestion to heart, "Anything else? I want my Nidorino to become strong."
"Two things." He raised a finger, "The first, is patience. Patience is very important as a trainer. There's no point rushing to get an evolution when your Pokémon hasn't even mastered the basics. Training up a good foundation for your Pokémon early would pay off greatly in the future. Trust me on this."
Silver nodded, so he raised another finger, "The second, is to never let yourself become complacent – that means to always keep moving forwards. If you want to be the very best, you need to keep training, keep studying, and keep improving. Or else someone will surpass you."
"To borrow a quote from John, 'There's always someone better than you'. Never forget it."
Silver bobbed his head up and down, then he quickly scrambled to finish his lunch before bolting out of his chair as he rushed back to the beach. Giovanni let out a sigh at his son's antics, though Ariana just let out another chuckle to his side.
"You think he remembered any of that?" She asked him as she leaned into his shoulder.
He wrapped an arm around her, "I'd hope so. He seemed to be listening quite intently for the most part."
"Didn't you want to discuss politics and business with him?" She asked.
"…I think I might have been too hasty when planning those discussions." He admitted, "Silver is much too young for those."
"Give it a couple of years. He's a smart kid, and more importantly, he really looks up to you. He'll learn." His partner told him, and he smiled down at her.
The two of them enjoyed each other's company for a moment, before a scream of excitement echoed out from their son. With another sigh, he called for the waiter and paid his bill before going after their son, who had been trying to power through the oncoming waves and was asking them to join him.
He was getting too old for this.
A.N. Giovanni's not really been in the spotlight for a while, and I felt now that would be a good time to highlight his relationship with Ariana and Silver. Obviously, it's in a much better shape as in canon, and they've started to become more of a family now.
Silver's still very much and young brat, but he's 7. He'll learn.
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