"Really Gramps?" Gary asked, too busy darting around his office to bother looking at the screen his grandfather's face appeared on. "I don't really have anything like a tux. Can't I just go dressed in a kimono?"
"Gary you know how important this is for me," Professor Oak said, a pleading look on his face.
"Fine Gramps," Gary said with a sigh, glancing at his grandfather. "There better not be any creepy cameras there or anything! I won't go if I'm going to be on camera."
"I can't make any promises," Professor Oak admitted. "I'm not as much of a famous professor anymore—"
"Don't say that Gramps," Gary interrupted. "You're still smart and all, you're just not as young and hip like those newer wanna-be profs."
Oak laughed. "Thank you Gary, but as I was saying there may still be cameras there because Ash is coming home, and I hear he's made quite something of himself."
Gary froze. Ash was coming? He wanted to ask all sorts of questions (How has he been? Where is he traveling now? Is he dating anyone? Is he staying this time?) but he stopped himself on account of his pride. He couldn't go begging for information from his grandfather, he was Gary Oak for pete's sake! Instead he allowed himself to say, "Is that so?"
Gary could hear the smile in his grandfather's voice as he said, "Yes. Delia is very excited. She runs around the house all day cleaning. Mimey has been staying out of her way, and I haven't seen much of him lately."
Gary nodded and grabbed a pokémon egg he was watching for a friend. He was reorganizing his office for a visitor he was expecting later. The room was never clean so he rarely showed other people the room, only when they specifically asked to see it. The visitor later was another gym leader, and his job was to see if Gary was keeping up with the standards the Pokémon League established.
"Maybe he could stay with you while he's here?"
Gary nearly dropped the egg in its case. "What?!" he gasped. Oak looked taken aback and he amended, "Um, I mean why?"
"Because there isn't much room at Delia's house with all of the things set up the way they are, and no one else he's close to has an extra room available nearby," the professor said, a look in his eye that said he might know more than he was telling.
"Well…" Gary hesitated, "Um… well I guess if he has to then. I just have a tiny apartment in the gym and it doesn't really fit two people."
Oak looked saddened. "Oh well if that's the case then—"
"I'll make room," Gary interrupted, surprising himself as he did. "Um, it's not a problem."
Oak brightened. "Thank you so much Gary. Well I have to go. Remember to have a tux by Wednesday."
Gary shrugged and went back to placing the egg in the shelf. He actually dropped the egg when something occurred to him. The egg thankfully landed on a huge pile of papers and slide unharmed to the ground. Gary was stiff, not wanting to confirm the thought that crossed his mind.
"Are you ok Gary?" Oak asked before hanging up.
"Does this mean…" Gary began. "Does this mean that Ash is going to be…my uncle!?"