" So......." Ash said, breaking the awkward silence. " What are we doing today, Professor Rowan?"

" Yeah!* Dawn chimed in. " I'm stoked!"

Wisty scoffed and turned. " You have a class to teach, Rowan."

Rowan rolled his eyes. " We can discuss this later, miss."

Wisty rolled her eyes and walked away, Eevee trailing behind her.

Brock leaned in, " sheesh those two need to calm down."

" You can't really blame 'em." Dawn whispered back. " They are rivals, after all."

" Yeah but even me and Gary weren't like this. The only one time-"

" Mind telling the rest of us what you're whispering about, Ketchum."

Ash turned. " Oh. Easy. I'm -"

Before he could reply he heard stomps.

Dangerous stomps.

" Oh no."

Dawn looked at Ash,. panicked. " What do you mean ' oh no'?!"

Before Ash could reply a very very very angry Wisty barged in. She turned to Rowan.

" You." She said in a dangerous voice. " You. You owe me an explanation right now."

Rowan blinked. " Now-"

Wisty grabbed the dude by the collar. " Don't play dumb with me." She whispered. " I might be eight but I'm way smarter than you."

Rowan opened his mouth, but before he could speak the eight year old did the unthinkable.

She yeeted the professor across the room.

Yeeted.

Ash scrambled to his legs. " Wisty what-*

Wisty turned. " Stay out of this."

Ash backed away nervously. " You got it, ma'am."

Dawn raised a brow. " Why'
d you call her ma'am?*

" Because she's angry."

" Where. Is. My. Togepi?"

Rowan looked up. " I have no ide-"

" TELL ME NOW!"

Gary stepped forward. " Now, Wisty. How about we-"

Wisty grabbed Gary's collar and held him up. " Stay outta this Oak. "

" Bu-"

" Might I inform you I have three guns at hand. And I am not afraid to use them. Is that understood?"

Gary nodded with wide eyes, and Wisty dropped him. " You're lucky I'm professor Oak's assistant or you would have been toast."

" Noted." Ash said quickly as he grabbed his best friend and pulled him away.

Professor Rowan slowly got to his feet, straightening his lab coat. He gave Wisty a sharp glare, though his tone remained calm. "Miss Wisty, violence will not solve the problem."

Wisty stomped her foot, her Eevee mimicking her movements with an angry "Eevee!" "Don't lecture me, old man! My Togepi is missing, and I know you had something to do with it!"

"Why would I steal your Togepi?" Rowan asked, rubbing his temples.

"Because you're jealous of my research!" Wisty accused, pointing a finger at him. "You can't stand that an eight-year-old has accomplished more than you!"

"That is ridiculous," Rowan snapped, his professional demeanor cracking. "I am a professor with decades of experience—"

"And yet, no Togepi!" Wisty cut him off, smirking as she crossed her arms.

Ash leaned over to Brock and Dawn, whispering, "Do you think we should do something?"

Brock shook his head. "No way. She just threatened Gary with guns. I'm staying out of this."

Dawn frowned. "She’s eight, though. How does she even have guns?"

"Good question," Ash muttered, glancing at Pikachu. "Think we should intervene, buddy?"

"Pika…" Pikachu looked nervous and shook his head.

Meanwhile, Gary had recovered and dusted himself off. "Look, Wisty, maybe we should calm down and—"

Wisty glared at him so fiercely that he immediately stepped back, holding his hands up in surrender. "Or not! That’s fine too!"

Suddenly, the door burst open, and Professor Oak entered, looking frazzled. "What in the world is going on here? I could hear yelling all the way from the Pokémon Center!"

"Gramps, thank Arceus you’re here," Gary muttered, clearly relieved. "She’s gone full Primeape."

Professor Oak raised an eyebrow at Gary before turning to Wisty. " Wisty, I understand you’re upset, but throwing people across rooms is not how we handle situations."

Wisty huffed, crossing her arms. "Not until I get some answers. Someone here knows where my Togepi is!"

Oak sighed, then turned to Rowan. "Professor, do you have any idea where her Togepi might be?"

Rowan shook his head, his voice firm. "I do not. However, I did hear rumors of a Pokémon smuggling ring operating nearby. It’s possible—"

Wisty’s eyes narrowed. "A smuggling ring? That’s all I needed to hear."

Before anyone could stop her, she bolted out the door with Eevee at her heels.

Ash groaned. "Great. Now we’ve got to chase her down before she gets herself into even more trouble."

Gary rubbed the back of his neck. "She’s already threatened half of us. What’s next? Blowing up a building?"

Dawn sighed. "With Wisty, anything’s possible."

"Let’s go," Brock said, already following Wisty's trail. "We can’t let her handle this alone."

As the group ran after Wisty, Pikachu perched on Ash’s shoulder, looking equally worried. "Pika pi!"

Ash muttered under his breath, "Why do I feel like this is going to end with another explosion?"

Wisty barged into the abandoned warehouse where Team Rocket had set up shop. Togepi’s cries echoed from a cage on a nearby table, making her blood boil. Jessie, James, and Meowth were gathered around, laughing and congratulating themselves on their “brilliant plan.”

“TOGEPI!” Wisty’s voice boomed, causing the trio to spin around in alarm.

“Who’s the kid?” Jessie asked, flipping her hair.

“I dunno,” James replied nervously, “but she doesn’t look happy.”

“Looks like trouble, that’s what!” Meowth muttered, eyeing the furious eight-year-old.

“Trouble?” Wisty growled, stepping forward with Eevee snarling at her side. “You don’t know the half of it.”

Jessie smirked. “Oh, please. What’s a little kid like you going to do to us?”

Wisty didn’t bother replying. Instead, she reached into her bag, pulled out a slingshot, and launched a pellet straight at Jessie’s forehead.

“OW!” Jessie yelped, stumbling backward into James. “She attacked me!”

“That’s just the beginning,” Wisty said darkly. “Now, give me my Togepi, or you’ll regret it.”

“Like we’re afraid of you!” James said, trying to sound brave.

Wisty grinned wickedly. “Your funeral.”

What followed could only be described as chaos.

Wisty’s Eevee darted forward, knocking over the cage and freeing Togepi.

Togepi unleashed a powerful Metronome, which resulted in a random Explosion that sent everyone flying.

Wisty tackled Jessie, pinning her to the ground.

James tried to run but tripped over Meowth, who was screeching about “out-of-control kids.”

By the time Ash and the gang arrived, it was too late.

Jessie was tied up with rope Wisty had mysteriously produced, James was unconscious, and Meowth was clinging to a rafter, shaking.

“Wisty!” Ash yelled, running in with Pikachu. “What are you doing?!”

“Handling business,” Wisty replied, brushing her hands off.

Professor Rowan and Oak arrived moments later, looking horrified.

“Wisty, explain yourself!” Oak demanded.

“I found Togepi,” Wisty said simply, holding the Pokémon close. “You’re welcome.”

Gary stepped forward cautiously. “Uh… did you have to destroy the place?”

Wisty shot him a glare. “Stay out of it, Oak.”

Brock whispered to Dawn, “She might actually scare me more than Gengar.”

“Same,” Dawn muttered, nodding.

Meanwhile, Rowan tried to regain control of the situation. “This is unacceptable behavior—”

Before he could finish, Wisty threw a smoke bomb, covering the room in a thick cloud.

When the smoke cleared, Wisty, Eevee, and Togepi were gone, leaving behind a stunned group of trainers and professors, as well as a very battered Team Rocket.

Ash sighed, rubbing his temples. “She’s eight. How does she keep winning?”

Jessie groaned from her spot on the floor. “Next time, let’s just stick to stealing Pikachu…”