"Why can Scizor evolve again, Ash?" Dawn asked curiously on the road to Floaroma Town. She had held back her questions out of politeness while they were with the woman from the flower field, but now that they were on their own, she couldn't contain her curiosity any longer.
"It's a form that can temporarily boost a Pokémon's power!" Ash patiently explained to both Dawn and Brock, who was listening in silence. "The conditions for this form are that the Pokémon must be in its final evolutionary stage, it needs a special Mega Stone, and the trainer must have a Keystone. When the Pokémon and trainer are completely in sync, the Pokémon can temporarily gain a much stronger form!"
He explained that this research was still being developed by Professor Sycamore in Kalos, and the results wouldn't be public for a few more years. By the time he normally travels to the Kalos region, the research on Mega Evolution would be nearly complete. After all, by that point, Sycamore would have collected vast amounts of data, and his papers would be published.
"That sounds amazing! Can my Piplup... or Pachirisu evolve?" Dawn's eyes lit up. She was about to ask about Piplup, but she remembered the final evolution condition.
"They can't, but Buneary's evolved form, Lopunny, can!" Ash recalled her current team and knew that only Lopunny would meet the conditions, as it gained a Mega Evolution in the sixth generation. After Mega Evolving, Lopunny's typing changes from Normal to Normal/Fighting, which removes its only weakness. He did think that its Mega Evolved form looked a bit "ugly," as its entire body turned a darker color, and its personality shifted from gentle to that of a ferocious rabbit.
"Buneary!" Dawn quickly pulled out her pink Pokédex and looked up Buneary's evolution. She found its appearance to be quite nice and in line with her expectations. "I'll ask Buneary if it wants to evolve later!"
Seeing how excited Dawn was, Ash had a feeling that Buneary wouldn't want to evolve. After all, it had a crush on Pikachu. Mega Lopunny would be several times taller than Pikachu, and how could they have a good relationship then?
"By the way, Brock, your Steelix can Mega Evolve too!" Ash said, seeing that Brock was about to speak. Brock was stunned for a moment, then smiled. They had been companions for so long that they knew what was on each other's minds. But Steelix...
"The main sources for Mega Stones are Hoenn and Kalos, so if you're interested, you should look for them there!" Ash kindly advised the two of them.
He didn't give them his own Mega Stones for two reasons. First, he knew their strong-willed personalities would never allow them to ask for something so valuable. Second, their family backgrounds were both quite well-off. Brock was the Gym Leader of Pewter City and would be able to find a Mega Stone on his own in the future. As for Dawn, she was the daughter of the top coordinator, Ayako. Even if her mother was retired, finding a Mega Stone for her daughter would be an easy task. Besides, it wouldn't be too late to give Dawn a stone when she finds a Pokémon she truly connects with.
"By the way, Ash, how did you know she was a Pokémon hunter? I'm from the Sinnoh region, and I've never even heard of her name." This was one of the two remaining questions in Dawn's mind. The other was how he knew about Mega Evolution, but she was smart enough not to ask about that.
"Silly. You don't read the news. These notorious Pokémon hunters are definitely covered in newspapers and magazines!" Ash lied without hesitation, then lightly flicked her smooth forehead, making her tearfully clutch it.
"Ouch!" Dawn held her forehead with one hand and balled her other hand into a small fist, swinging it at him. But Ash, wanting to tease her, ran just out of reach, making it seem like she was about to hit him but always just missing.
"Pika~" Not wanting to be a third wheel, Pikachu had already jumped down and was watching the two of them with Brock. They continued to chase and run until they arrived at a small village.
"Hmph, I'm not talking to you anymore!" After running for ten minutes, Dawn was out of breath and drenched in sweat. She knew he was just toying with her. She sat on the ground, pouting with her head turned away from him.
"Haha, well, I guess I'll leave you two alone! Pikachu and I are heading to the village first!" Seeing the pair of them, Brock, a perpetually single man, laughed loudly and took the equally single Pikachu with him toward the village.
"Pika Pi~" Pikachu waved to Ash, decisively abandoning his trainer for a chance to be with his friends.
"See? They're laughing at us. Get up, Dawn!"
"No!"
"Then... do you want to bite me?"
"You pervert! I don't want to!"
"Huh... what are you thinking?"
...
The two were stuck in a long stalemate. No matter how much Ash tried to convince her, Dawn refused to get up, her attitude firm. The only change was that her face was getting redder, and she kept glancing at him.
"Alright, if you're going to be stubborn, then I'll just have to be forceful!" Ash smiled, walked up to her, and put his hand on her soft, pale legs, lifting her into a princess carry.
"Ah! Let me go!" The sudden action startled Dawn. She quickly wrapped her arms around his neck. Though she was mumbling for him to put her down, she didn't resist much and simply covered her short skirt. She could feel how strong he was; no matter how much she wiggled, he didn't even tremble.
"Hey, Ash, can you change the way you're holding me?" Her face was flushed, and she was holding her skirt, afraid of exposing herself.
"Sure!" The boy changed from a princess carry to holding her with her legs wrapped around his waist. He wrapped one arm around her waist and the other on her backside, carefully holding her skirt in place as they slowly moved forward.
"Ash, you're so mean!" Dawn didn't know how to react. This position was even worse than the princess carry. Now, she had to desperately grip his waist to keep herself from sliding down.
"Don't worry, we'll get there soon with this position!" Seeing that she didn't refuse, he didn't change his hold. Why pass up an opportunity to deepen their relationship?
"Mm, th... then... can you... not... move around so much!" Dawn was so flustered she was practically a steam engine, and her words were coming out jumbled.
"What do you mean?" His hands were being perfectly honest, so what was she talking about?
"Mmph!" But Dawn stopped talking. She held her hand tightly over her cherry lips, and her blue eyes looked as if they were about to tear up.