In the story Giovanna's husband falls ill and dies within a couple of days leaving her a widow, after a while her son falls ill as well. As a mother she feels obligated to care for every need of her sons', so she asks him if there's anything that she can get him to make him feel better, and he tells her that he would like Federigo's falcon. The falcon was the only thing that Federigo had left after he was forced into poverty and was his pride and joy. Giovanna felt awkward asking him for something when she never even paid any attention to him. If she would of talk to him before she could had gone to Federigo as a friend and asked for a simple favor, having the feelings he had for her there's no doubt that he would have loved to help her but, since she didn't it made the situation extremely different.
If Giovanna would have been at least friends with Federigo she could have asked him if he could perhaps bring the falcon by so her son could enjoy it, or maybe give her the bird. Giovanna didn't think she should have talked to someone that she wasn't interested in, but what she was really portraying was a rude woman who thought that she didn't need anyone but the people in her circle. Giovanna should have appreciated Federigo for being a nice person and all that he would do to get her attention, because he had