"It truly lives up to its name as the Town of Flowers! The scent of blossoms is everywhere!"
The trio finally arrived at the location of the Floaroma Contest, Floaroma Town, a famous "Flower Capital." Even walking down the main street, you could smell the fragrant flowers, making it a paradise for flower lovers.
"I heard this is thanks to the Gratitude Pokémon, Shaymin. I wonder if the legend is true!" Dawn said, looking at the flower fields and bringing up the town's legend.
The story goes that a long time ago, a war left Floaroma Town a desolate wasteland. To restore its former glory, the citizens tried planting various plants, but they all failed. It wasn't until a group of Shaymin appeared. Sensing the people's resolve, they used their power to make the land bloom with colorful flowers once more.
"It's very possible!" Ash said. He recalled a certain haughty little grass hedgehog. These adorable Gratitude Pokémon would eagerly help people in need. As a Grass-type legendary Pokémon, restoring barren land to its former glory would logically fall within their abilities. After all, the Gracidea Flower is born with Shaymin, and when Shaymin feel the gratitude of humans, they appear to make desolate land bloom with flowers.
Getting a satisfying answer, Dawn excitedly ran towards the town, with Ash and Brock leisurely following behind. They first registered at the Pokémon Center for their stay. When they went to the Contest counter to sign up, Nurse Joy informed them that the event was still two days away. So, Dawn decided to sign up for a Poffin-making class the next day, and Ash and Brock were dragged along.
Poffin is a popular Pokémon food in the Sinnoh region, a kind of dessert that Pokémon can eat. However, they aren't as well-known as Pokéblocks from the Hoenn region. Pokéblocks are not only more effective than Poffins but can also replenish energy, raise a Pokémon's stats, and even increase a Feebas's beauty. In comparison, Poffins, which only taste good, fall short.
However, Poffins have another advantage: they are easy to make. Dawn only spent a day and had already learned how to make Poffins for various Pokémon flavors. Even Ash and Brock, who were only watching, felt like they had learned a lot. But Ash preferred the more balanced and nutritious Pokéblocks. Brock, as a breeder, also valued the taste and nutrition of Pokémon food, so neither of them thought much of Poffins.
But for Dawn, they were very useful. During training the next day, her usually mischievous Pachirisu was unusually well-behaved. The squirrel would go east when she told it to go east and never west, acting like a perfect little angel. It had completely lost its "demolition" personality and its brain seemed to have cooled down.
Just now, Dawn was doing special training with Pachirisu to avoid repeating its past mistakes.
"Alright, Pachirisu, use Discharge again!"
"Pachi~" Pachirisu slowly channeled the energy in its body, carefully controlling the electric current. Blue sparks flashed in the air and split into smaller branches, forming a small firework display. With Pachirisu as the trunk and the explosive sparks as the branches, a beautiful electric spark tree was created.
"That was great! Much better than last time!" Ash applauded, praising the hard work of both Dawn and Pachirisu.
"Hmph!" Dawn looked proud. "This is the result of Pachirisu and my hard work!"
"Pachi~" Pachirisu stood obediently in front of Dawn, rubbing its cheeks against her leg and blinking its eyes, subtly hinting at something.
"Alright, alright, I know!" Dawn immediately took out a Poffin she had made beforehand and fed it to Pachirisu.
"Pachi~" Pachirisu took the pink Poffin without a word, drooling as it held it. It began to gnaw on the Poffin with its sharp teeth.
"As expected of an Electric Squirrel Pokémon, the way it eats is no different from the squirrels in my past life!" Ash mused to himself, watching Pachirisu eat.
Even Piplup, who was doing coordination training, came over, opened its beak, and pointed to its mouth.
"Don't worry, you get one too!" Dawn took a Poffin out of her bag and gave it to Piplup, who also enjoyed eating it.
"It seems Dawn's cooking is very good, making them eat so intently!" Brock said, smiling at the two small Pokémon.
"Of course! I learned some things about Poffins from my mom before I started my journey!" Dawn said proudly, puffing out her chest.
But when she saw Pikachu on Ash's shoulder, she looked a little disappointed. "But why doesn't Pikachu like them?"
"Because they prefer my Pokéblocks!" Ash said, handing Pikachu a high-quality Electric-type Pokéblock.
The Pokéblocks, which were exchanged from his system's inventory, had spoiled the palates of his Pokémon. They didn't care for the Poffins Dawn made. After all, Ash bought the highest quality Pokéblocks. Though expensive, the quality was unmatched. Furthermore, long-term use could subtly increase a Pokémon's stats. This alone made them worth the high price. As for where he got the money, didn't he have his "jungler," Scizor? Even though Scizor was temporarily offline, it would be back in a few days after Snorlax finished learning its moves. And then, his team might even gain another "jungler."
"Pachi~" Just then, Pachirisu, who had finished its Poffin, licked its lips and asked for another.
"No, you can only eat more if you keep training!"
"Pachi-gee~" Pachirisu refused and began to act cute. But Dawn was firm and refused to give in.
"Pachi~" Pachirisu suddenly lowered its head, revealing a sly smile. It used a widespread Discharge, covering both Dawn and the innocent Piplup in electricity.
"Piplup~" Piplup, ignoring the paralysis, picked up the last quarter of its Poffin, only to find that it had been burned to a crisp. Piplup got so angry that it fainted on the spot.
"You little…" Ash ignored the Discharge and hugged the mischievous Pachirisu. He then flicked its forehead.
"Pachi~" Pachirisu cried out in pain and clutched its head but didn't dare to leave Ash's arms. It knew that this person was very powerful and wasn't afraid of electricity. If it tried to escape and got caught, Ash would definitely pull on its big fluffy tail. It shivered and lay in Ash's arms, acting like a good little Pokémon.
Of course, Ash wasn't going to indulge Pachirisu. With a smile, he reached for its beautiful, big tail and started to pull out a few soft hairs.
"Pachi~" Pachirisu shivered in fear and looked to its trainer for help, but Dawn was busy trying to fix her sparkling hair and had no time to pay attention.
"Ugh! It's happening again!" Dawn yelled in embarrassment, looking at the two people and the one Pokémon struggling to hold back their laughter. She told them to turn around while she took out a comb to fix her hair.
"That voice... it's you, Dee Dee!"
At that moment, a familiar and annoying voice reached Dawn's ears. The trio turned around and saw a young man with short red hair in a green shirt walking towards them.
"It's really you, Kenny!" Seeing her old friend, Dawn fixed her hair even faster, not giving him a chance to tease her.
"You haven't changed, Dee Dee!"
"I told you not to call me that!"
...
"Ahem, Ash, he seems to be very familiar with Dawn," Brock said, winking at Ash. He knew he was about to get a good show. After all this time being embarrassed, he finally got to enjoy some drama. However, Ash's expression remained calm. He had no intention of letting Brock enjoy the show.