" Everything's cool. Just hang in there."

Ash gasped. " Gary!"

" Hey don't forget you managed to beat me. You're tellin me you're gonna hand it up over this?"

" I... Know what you mean."

" You do? Then you know you gotta keep on keeping on."

" You're right! Next time I'll win!"

" Good. I don't have aany time to be wasting on some Ashy Loser Boy anyway."

Ash stood there dumbfounded. " I'm.... Still a loser?" He muttered as he stared at his hands.

Of course he was. Gary Oak, grandson of Professor Oak, was a professor.

He knew way more about Pokemon than Ash did.

And ash was a pokemon trainer!

Plus Gary still managed to beat him.

" Earth to Ash? Are you okay?" He heard May ask.

Ash didn't even reply. Before he knew what he was doing he bolted out the door and dropped the letter.

" Ash, wait!" Wisty yelled as she grabbed the postcard. " Ash, come back!"

Ash didn't.

Professor Oak looked confused. " What happened?"

Wisty sighed. " Exactly what I had hoped NOT to happen. Ash just realized something about Gary."

And with that, she threw her Poke Ball. " Altaria, I choose you!"

The majestic blue bird flew out. " Altaria!"

" Cumulo, be a dear and give this to Gary, will you?" Wisty asked as she quickly scribbled something down. " And give him your Poke ball, too. So he can return y-"

" Or we could just phone him." Oak said plainly.

Wisty turned in surprise. " Right. Sorry."

She turned to her bird. " Okay, new plan. Altaria, take Eevee to..... A place and..... Do something fun!"

As Altaria flew off with Eevee for their "fun day," Professor Oak calmly dialed Gary’s number. After a few rings, Gary picked up.

“Hey, Gramps, what’s up?”

Before Oak could say a word, Wisty snatched the phone out of his hand. “GARYLISTENASHISFREAKINGOUTANDEVERYTHINGISINSANEANDYOUNEEDTOFIXITRIGHTNOWBECAUSEHEMIGHTBELIEVINGHE’SALOSERANDOHMYGOSHTHISISCOOLALTARIA’SGONNAHANGOUTWITHMYEEVEEBUTTHAT’SNOTTHEPOINT-”

She kept pacing around the lab, talking at breakneck speed. Her words slurred together into one long string of gibberish, as she waved her hands dramatically.

“Wisty, slow down!” Gary tried to interject, but she was in full panic mode.

“ANDANDANDHE’SRUNNINGANDWEHAVETODOOOOOSOMETHINGBECAUSEASHCAN’TTHINKHE’SALOSERORHEMIGHTNEVERCHALLENGEMYAWESOMENESSAGAINANDGARYIFASHSTOPSTRYINGTOWINTHENICANTCALLHIMASHYANDBYTHEWAYWHYDOYOUHAVEANELEPHANTONYOURSHIRT-”

“WISTY!” Gary yelled into the phone, cutting her off. “Breathe!”

Wisty paused, wide-eyed, suddenly realizing she had been hyperventilating. She sucked in a deep breath, her face turning a shade of pink. “Sorry... I’m just... kinda freaking out!”

Gary chuckled on the other end. “Yeah, I noticed. Now, what happened to Ash?”

Wisty slapped her forehead, as if just remembering the real issue. “ASH! Right, right. He’s upset because he’s, like, having this crisis about you being smarter or cooler or whatever, and he thinks he’s a loser again, and he bolted out of the lab!”

Gary groaned. "Again? Why does this always happen? I beat him once when we were, like, 10, and he still can’t let it go."

Wisty rolled her eyes. " You guys are still ten."

Gary sighed. “I’ll talk to him. Where’d he run off to?”

Wisty blinked, realizing she had no idea. She looked at Professor Oak, who just shrugged.

“Great,” Gary muttered. “Now we gotta find him and convince him he's not a loser. Again.”

“Good luck with that!” Wisty said, flashing a thumbs up even though Gary couldn’t see her. “Altaria’s busy, so I can’t help you with flying this time.”

Gary smirked. “I’ll manage. Just keep Eevee out of trouble, okay?”

“Oh, Eevee’s fine! Altaria’s a great babysitter!” Wisty said confidently, but then her face fell slightly. “I mean... I think.”

Gary laughed. “I’ll check in later. Don’t worry. We’ll get Ash sorted out.”

As the call ended, Wisty turned to Oak with a deep sigh. “Well, that went well, right?”

Professor Oak just gave her a bemused look. “I’d say you handled that... uniquely.”

Wisty grinned. "Thanks! I aim to confuse."

When he finally landed outside Oak’s lab, Gary jumped off his Dodrio and barely had a second to brace himself before WHAM—he was tackled to the ground by none other than Wisty.

“GARYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY!!!” Wisty shouted in his face, shaking him by the collar like a ragdoll. “ASH FEELS TERRIBLE AND IT'S ALL YOUR FAULT AND NOW HE LOVES YOU LIKE A FRUIT OR SOMETHING, I DON’T KNOW, BUT YOU GOTTA FIX IT BECAUSE HE’S HAVING A CRISIS AND IF YOU DON’T-”

Gary’s world was spinning as Wisty shook him violently, her words blending into nonsense. “AND FRUITS ARE GREAT BUT YOU CAN’T JUST LEAVE HIM HANGING LIKE A BANANA OR A KIWI OR WHATEVER—AND IF YOU THINK ABOUT IT, IT’S REALLY YOUR FAULT BECAUSE YOU KEEP CALLING HIM ‘LOSER BOY’ BUT HE REALLY LIKES YOU, LIKE A PEACH—”

Gary, completely disoriented and dizzy, tried to speak. “W-Wisty... wh-what are you even... talking about?”

Before she could continue her fruit monologue, Professor Oak hurried over and placed his hands firmly on Wisty’s shoulders, gently pulling her off Gary. “Wisty, dear, I think Gary needs a moment to, uh... process... whatever you just said.”

Wisty huffed, crossing her arms as Oak held her back. “But Ash loves him like a FRUIT!” she repeated as if this was the most important revelation of the century.

Gary, still lying flat on the ground, blinked up at the sky in utter confusion. “What... is happening?”

Just as Gary tried to stand up, Wisty broke free from Oak’s grip and wham!—tackled him again, knocking him flat once more. “YOU GOTTA FIX THIS, GARY, OR ELSE HE’S GONNA TURN INTO A MELON OF SADNESS!”

Gary groaned from beneath her. “Wisty, please... I don’t even know what you’re saying...”

Oak sighed and shook his head, now rubbing his temples. “Oh dear... this is... certainly something.”

Wisty stood up again, determined. “You’ve GOTTA talk to Ash before he melts into a puddle of... fruit juice or... sadness or something!”

Gary, still trying to regain his composure, slowly got to his feet. “Okay, okay... I’ll talk to Ash... just, no more tackling, please?”

Wisty grinned widely, as if she had just solved the greatest crisis in history. “Good! Now go be his fruity best friend, Gary!”

Gary blinked. “Fruity best—what is going on?!”

" Aaaaash?!" Wisty yelled as the group walked through the forest. " Ash!"

Gary leaned in to talk to his Grandpa. " How is she herself again? She was talking like a five year old back there and now she's back to being an eight year old with the attitude of a ten year old."

" Because she knows you're gonna find Ash." Oak whispered back.

" Contemplateable."

" ASH!" Wisty yelled. " ASH PLEASE! TELL US WHAT'S WRONG! WE'RE YOUR FRIENDS!"

when no one replied, Wisty sighed. " Great." She muttered. " This is just great."

" What?" Gary asked.

Wisty picked up an apple eating Bulbasaur and Squirtle with glasses. " Take one guess on who these are." Wisty groaned.

Gary's eyes widened. " What are they....."

" Char! Charmander!"

Wisty looked down. A Charmander was pulling her pants.

Wisty sighed. " Let me guess." She said as she crouched down to let the Charmander climb on her head. " Ash left you?"

" Char! Charmander!"

Wisty sighed again. " Knew it."

" Saur."

" Squirtle!"

Wisty set them down. " Okay then. This is great. The only thing we know is he's sad and he ran somewhere."

Wisty kicked a rock. " AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAASH?!"

No reply.

Wisty sighed. " Oh, Ash."

She sighed and saw a tree. With an idea, she grabbed onto the branches and hoisted herself up.

Max watched. " Is it safe?"

May nodded. " Think so."

Then she looked around. " Where's Brock?"

" Back at the Pokemon Center." Gary said casually.

Max and May gasped.

" Uh oh....."

May looked at the grandfather and grandson. " We're gonna..... Keep Brock in check. See you later!"

Oak waved, while Gary watched Wisty. " Be careful!"

" I am! Trying to anyway."

She finally reached the highest branch and cupped her hands. " Ash! Why can't you see what I see? What the Professor sees? What your friends see?"

She paused. " What Gary sees."

She looked around. " Ash, when Gary said he had no time for you, he meant for you to get back to work! He didn't mean for it to be this!"

Wisty sighed. " Ash, if Gary didn't care, would he come all the way from Sinnoh JUST to make sure you were okay?"

There was a tense silence. Then, they heard a whisper.

" R- really?"

Wisty's eyes widened at the sound of Ash's voice, barely audible from somewhere deeper in the forest.

"Really?" the voice whispered again, this time a bit clearer.

Gary sighed in relief, exchanging a quick glance with his grandpa before stepping forward. "Ash?" he called, his voice firm but gentle. "Where are you?"

After a few moments of hesitation, the bushes rustled, and out stepped Ash, his head down and fists clenched. His hat was pulled low, shielding his face from view. He looked defeated, like the weight of the world was resting on his shoulders.

Gary took a deep breath and walked up to him, his usual smug demeanor softening. He knew Ash had been through a lot, and now wasn't the time for their usual banter. He crouched down slightly to be eye-level with his old rival. "Hey, Ash... It's okay. Let's talk."

Ash shook his head, his voice trembling. "Gary, I... I don't think I can do this anymore. You're... you're a professor now. You’ve always been better than me. And I'm still just... just a Pokémon trainer." He glanced down at his hands, guilt and doubt etched into his face. "I don’t even know if I’m good enough anymore."

Gary frowned, the weight of Ash's words sinking in. For a moment, he didn’t know what to say. But then, instead of responding with words, he simply sat down on the grass and opened his arms.

Without thinking, Ash collapsed into him, wrapping his arms around Gary in a tight embrace. Gary pulled him close, holding him steady as Ash buried his face in Gary's shoulder.

“Shhhh... It’s okay, Ashy Boy,” Gary whispered soothingly, patting Ash’s back gently. “You’re okay. You’re not a loser. You’ve never been a loser. You’ve come so far, and I know you’re gonna go even further.”

Ash stayed silent, his body trembling slightly as Gary continued to hold him.

Gary gave a small smile, his voice soft. “You think I’m a professor because I’m better than you? No way. I’m a professor because that’s my path. But you—you're one of the greatest Pokémon trainers I know. You always push forward, no matter how many times you fall. That’s why I respect you.”

Ash sniffed, his grip tightening around Gary’s jacket. "Really?"

"Really," Gary confirmed, his voice gentle but firm. "You’re not alone in this, Ash. You’ve got friends—Wisty, May, Max, Gramps—heck, even me. We’re all here for you. You don’t have to do this alone."

Ash slowly lifted his head, his eyes red from holding back tears. “I just... I just want to be good enough.”

Gary chuckled softly, giving Ash a reassuring squeeze. “You already are, Ash. You always have been.”

Ash blinked, his resolve slowly returning as he looked into Gary’s eyes. There was something comforting in the way Gary spoke, as if no matter what happened, everything would be alright.

Gary smiled warmly. “Now, how about we head back to the lab? We can figure this out together.”

Ash hesitated for a moment but then nodded. “Yeah... okay.”

Gary stood up, helping Ash to his feet, and clapped him on the back. “There’s the Ash I know. C’mon, let’s go.”

As they began to walk back, Wisty, who had been silently watching the whole exchange from her perch in the tree, grinned widely and gave a thumbs-up. “See? I told you, Gary’s like a fruit! A comforting, wholesome fruit!”

Gary groaned, shaking his head. “Still not sure what that means, but thanks, Wisty.”