" HEY ASH GUESS WHAT WE DID!" I yelled as me and my boyfriend ran into the Pokemon Center room we had rented.

Ash turned from his Pikachu with a raised brow. " What?"

" Mia beat Giovanni!" Gary exclaimed.

" And he defeated Archer!" I added.

" Pika pi!" My Pikachu exclaimed as Ash's Pikachu jumped into the air. She followed suit, and they did a high five with their tails.

Ash grinned at the two of us. " Congratulations! I'm so happy for the two of you!"

I grinned. " Thanks."

" Did you ever see the Silph Co building?" Gary inquired.

Ash shook his head. " Nah. We were too busy, defeating Team Rocket over and over and over."

Gary smirked. "Well, let me tell you, Ash. The Silph Co. building is something else. It’s like a maze, but worse. And then, there’s Giovanni sitting there with his smug look, thinking he owns the place."

I nodded enthusiastically. "Oh, you should’ve seen it. Pikachu and I were all over the place, and Gary—" I nudged him playfully, "—was a total legend against Archer. You should’ve been there, Ash!"

Ash chuckled, crossing his arms. "Sounds like you two had quite the adventure. So, how did it all go down?"

Gary leaned back against the wall, looking smug. "Well, it started with Archer. The guy thought he could corner me with his Houndoom and Crobat. But my Arcanine and I made quick work of them. Then, I turned around, and there’s Mia going full throttle at Giovanni."

"Full throttle?" Ash asked, raising an eyebrow.

I grinned. "Oh, yeah. Pikachu and I didn’t hold back. He sent out his Rhyhorn, and we shocked the living daylights out of it. Then, when his Persian tried to get sneaky, Growlie took care of that."

"Growlie?" Ash said, looking at me.

"My little puppy Pokémon," I said proudly. "She’s the best. Anyway, after Giovanni realized his Pokémon weren’t cutting it, he tried some weird gadgets, but, uh…" I rubbed the back of my head sheepishly. "I kind of… well… yeeted them out of his hands."

"Yeeted," Ash repeated.

Gary nodded seriously. "She literally threw his Pokéballs, his briefcase, everything. By the time she was done, Giovanni was running out of the building with his tail between his legs."

"Pika pi!" my Pikachu exclaimed, puffing out her chest.

Ash’s Pikachu clapped his paws together, clearly impressed. "Pikachu!"

Ash laughed. "Man, you two are something else. I can’t believe you just walked in there and took him down like that."

Gary shrugged. "It’s all in a day’s work when you’ve got the right partner." He looked at me and gave a small smile.

I felt my face heat up slightly but quickly grinned to cover it. "Yeah, yeah. Don’t get all sappy on me, Gary."

Ash shook his head, smiling. "Well, I guess that means we can check Giovanni off the list of problems. What’s next for you two?"

Gary smirked. "Oh, we’re thinking of heading to Lavender Town to check out the Pokémon Tower. Mia’s been curious about it for a while."

I nodded eagerly. "Yep! Plus, I’ve heard there might be some ghost Pokémon lurking around. Should be fun!"

Ash chuckled. "Well, good luck with that. And hey, if you run into any more trouble, you know who to call."

I saluted. "Will do, Captain Ash. Come on, Gary, let’s go celebrate!"

As we headed out, I couldn’t help but feel a surge of pride. Taking down Giovanni had been no small feat, and having Gary by my side made it all the more special. This was just the beginning of our adventures, and I couldn’t wait to see what came next.