The New Normal - 16-4 - Interlude - Other Participants

The New Normal – 16-4 – Interlude – Other Participants

(Giovanni POV)

After winning their first battle against Bryon and Chuck, they decided to take a small break together since their next battle wasn’t until tomorrow.

So, as per usual at this point, Giovanni invited Juan over to a fancy restaurant that Ariana had helped him to reserve. Though she wouldn’t be joining them for the dinner tonight, as she had her own people she had wanted to meet.

“Ah… I think I’ve been here to this place before. Very nice choice.” Juan said as the two of them took a seat at the table, “Lovely atmosphere, very naturalistic. This might just be the best restaurant in Canalave. Your missus has really picked well.”

“I’ll make sure to pass on the compliments.” He chuckled, “She always has been more well-travelled than I was. My duties as a Gym Leader compelled me to stay in one place.”

“I know how that feels.” Juan nodded, before he let out a wistful sigh as he turned to stare at the view of Canalave below, “But I suppose my time as a Gym Leader is almost at an end. Ah, time has really passed me by.”

“I heard that Wallace was taking your place, now that he’s no longer Champion.” Giovanni said, “Was this something the two of you planned in advance?”

“Oh yes, certainly so.” Juan nodded, “Wallace and I are long-time friends. Actually, I was his mentor for a little bit, but it was clear even early on that he was a far more talented trainer than I was. Honestly, I doubted he even needed my tutoring – I’m certain he would have grown to be what he is now even without my help.”

“Alas, for reasons he still hasn’t yet revealed to me, he submitted himself to my tutoring and quickly proved to be an apt and attentive student.” He continued, “I did my best to try and nurture his incredible potential, but despite everything, his talent and splendour was too much for even me, and the student quickly found himself as the mentor – both in the realm of battling and in contests. His elegance, his artistry, and his strength, all surpassed mine.”

“Were you ever jealous of that?” Giovanni asked.

“No. No, definitely not.” Juan replied, “We all have our different roles to play. Not everyone can be in the spotlight. And besides, to this day I remain honoured to have had the opportunity to teach a man that would become a Champion.”

Giovanni nodded in agreement. It was a pretty big honour.

“So will you be running the Gym alongside him? Or do you have other plans in mind?” He asked.

Juan let out a chuckle, “Ohohoho, no. Certainly not. Wallace does not need my august self looking over his shoulder. I expect him to be run the Gym most exquisitely even without my presence. Instead, I shall be looking to take my talents back to the realm of contests once more. After such a long period of absence, the public deserves to see my artistry once again.”

Juan took a sip of his drink, “Actually, I reached out to some of my former contacts when I was informed of Wallace’s decision. Apparently, the contest scene has much changed since I last graced the stage. And I do not see the need to necessarily tie myself to Hoenn when the contest scenes in other regions are still so new and full of inspiration. That was when a lucky stroke of opportunity fell into my lap. Do you know Will, the Gym Leader of Goldenrod? The man actually reached out to me when he heard of my impending retirement, and he was apparently aware of my history as a contest performer. Thus, he sought after me, requesting for the two of us to become a part-time double-act. I was inclined to agree—”

Giovanni raised a hand as he quickly interrupted Juan, “Wait, wait. Sorry if this is a dumb question – I’m not very familiar with the contest scene, but surely it would be better if you went out on your own, right?”

“Hmm… yes and no.” Juan replied, “Yes, in terms of prestige, it would be better if I remained a solo act. However, not only is prestige not really something I care much for anymore, but I also wanted to try performing as a pair. It’s not something I’ve done before. So since it seems like I’m going to be entering a new stage of my life anyways, why should I not try and experience something new? Moreover, Will seems a fine and talented fellow – and from our many conversations I expect great things to come out of my partnership.”

“I see… well, then I wish you all the best then.” Giovanni said, while inwardly, his mind was already running through the calculations as he processed this new information.

If Juan was going to be staying over in Indigo for a significant period of time, and was going to be tied with Will – a person that he was already acquainted with – then this means that Juan might serve as a link for him to use to grow closer to Will.

Will’s star was on the rise lately. Both the public and himself had taken note of the many successes achieved by Goldenrod while under his leadership. Many believed that it would only be a matter of time before Will made it back to the Elite Four – and unlike last time, he would be staying for a long time.

So that just meant a friendship with Will was going to be valuable in the future. And Juan might be the key to that.

…Of course, it also helped that he enjoyed spending time with Juan too.

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(Volkner POV)

“You’re smiling a little too much, Volkner. Is Jasmine texting you again?” Daisy asked, a teasing lilt present in her voice.

“She was just congratulating me for winning.” He replied, no longer embarrassed by their teasing. If there was one thing that having Flint as a best friend was good for, it was that you learnt very quickly to maintain a calm expression. Otherwise, if his teasing provoked a reaction, then he would only escalate.

Case in point, he was no longer embarrassed when someone pointed out his relationship with Jasmine. After all, being embarrassed about it was basically saying that he was ashamed that he was dating Jasmine – and he certainly wasn’t! So no, he was proud of his relationship.

He then turned to Daisy, who was trying to look over his shoulder, “Don’t you have better things to do than to ask about my relationship? Don’t you have your own friends to text?”

“Nope!” She said, popping the ‘p’. “I texted them all already.”

“What about Misty?” Hea sked, “You checked up on her too?”

“’Course I did. It was the first thing I did.” She replied, “Don’t worry. She has supervision, and she told us she’s doing well. Nothing’s burned down.”

“I would be very concerned if your Gym managed to burn down when half of it is filled with water.” He deadpanned, “It would be almost… impressive.”

“Says you. I’ve seen pictures of your Gym. It’s one big fire hazard!” She shot back, “I don’t know how you get away with all those exposed wires lying about!”

“Trade secret.” He smiled cheekily.

She let out a disbelieving chuckle as she shook her head, and the two of them fell silent again as their focus returned to their respective phones.

However, after a moment, Daisy spoke up again, “…Say, did you ever have Gym Trainers telling you that they want to move on from the Gym?”

“Occasionally. It’s not as rare as you think.” He replied, “Being a Gym Trainer might be a prestigious position, but it’s also a position without much upward mobility. The best you can reasonably hope for is to be recognised and promoted to a Head Gym Trainer, but that’s not easy since there’s only one of those positions per Gym. So every once in a while I’d get people asking me that they want to transfer out. Why do you ask?”

“Well… Misty actually made a comment to Lily a few days ago.” Daisy revealed, “She said that she wanted to try something different.”

“Different? Different how?” He asked.

“A different environment.” She replied, “She talked about how she wanted to learn from other Gyms and see how they run so she can see how she can improve our own Gym. But I think that’s partially an excuse. I think she’s feeling a little stifled at the Gym. And I suspect that might be because we tied her down to the Gym a little too early – before she was able to decide what she really wanted for herself.”

“I think that’s a very mature way to think about it.” He nodded, “Do you have any plans on how to help her?”

“We’re trying to reach out to people and see if they could offer her something.” She said, “But unfortunately, Misty’s just a little too inexperienced right now. It’s hard for her to start as a Gym Trainer when she’s not even gone on her journey yet. Petrel did say that Giovanni could probably find something, but he also said that it would be best if Misty went on her journey first.”

Daisy let out a resigned breath, “So it looks like we’re going to have to wait for now. I kinda feel bad for her­—"

“I can take her.” He said immediately, his mouth moving before his brain did. It was another momentary impulse, and at first he worried that he might have offered something he couldn’t actually follow up on. But then, as he thought over it a bit more, he realised it wasn’t all that bad of an idea.

Because him and Flint were both orphans, the two of them had set up many programs to help those orphaned kids to be given opportunities to allow them to get a head start in their careers. Because of this, it was not uncommon for his Gym to have younger children, those who had yet to go on their journeys yet, to take on minor roles in his Gym so that they could be around trainers and Pokémon and get a feel for what it’s like. It was like being an intern for a Gym Trainer.

Therefore, it wouldn’t be out of place for Misty to do the same. And he said as much to Daisy.

Daisy was very surprised at his offer and instinctively went to refuse, saying that she didn’t want to bother him unnecessarily, but he insisted that it was fine. It was really no bother to him, especially since Misty was going to be far more experienced than the usual children that he worked with.

It took a bit more convincing, but it was eventually settled. One phone call later, and Misty was also quickly informed. Thus, once the Tournament was over, the Sunyshore Gym would have a new assistant coming.

A.N. I wanted this chapter to really highlight how the more unified regions means that stuff like this happens much easier. With the Regional Union in place, now it isn’t so far fetched for people to work in other regions just like this chapter showed. So Juan’s going to be working with Will, and Misty’s going to be working with Volkner.

With Misty especially, I wanted her to be able to learn from more than just the Cerulean Gym. And much like she’s learning from Drake, I felt that learning from Volkner and his Electric types – which directly counters her own Water types – would be invaluable. Hope you enjoyed!