Ash's Story (Part 5: Modern Sinnoh)

Chapter 14: Dee-Dee

The morning of the Floaroma Contest arrived with sunlight spilling over flowers and Pachirisu trying to eat breakfast before anyone else knew breakfast had begun.

Dawn caught him halfway inside the berry pouch. "Pachirisu, we talked about this. Contest training first, berry reward after."

Pachirisu froze with an Oran Berry pressed to his mouth, then turned his eyes wide and sweet enough that even Piplup looked offended by the performance.

Pachirisu's meaning came in bright, shameless sparks. "Small berry now. Big sparkle later."

Dawn tried the routine again, this time asking Pachirisu to circle Piplup instead of racing toward the berry pouch. Pachirisu made it halfway around before getting distracted by his own sparks, but Dawn corrected him without yelling.

That mattered. She was learning that some partners did not become calmer because a Trainer demanded it. They became steadier when the Trainer gave the chaos a shape.

Buneary watched from beside Ponyta and copied Dawn's arm motions with exaggerated seriousness. Ponyta lowered her head to avoid a stray spark, but she did not retreat. The four of them looked messy together, yet they also looked like a real team beginning to understand where everyone belonged.

Dawn held her ground for almost three seconds. "That is not how training works."

Pikachu sat beside me with his tail curled around his paws, watching Pachirisu like he was watching a tiny storm choose where to land. After everything that had happened with Hunter J, having Pikachu warm and annoyed beside me made the whole morning feel safer than it had any right to feel.

"Pikachu, can you show Pachirisu how to store electricity without blasting everyone?" I asked.

Pikachu hopped forward and nodded with coach-like seriousness. He gathered electricity into his cheeks, held it steady, then released it in a controlled ring of sparks that glittered around him before fading.

Pachirisu watched with wide eyes, then copied the glow. For one second, the sparks came out beautifully, tracing a bright circle around Dawn's feet.

"Nice work, Pachirisu!" Dawn said. "Thanks, Pikachu."

"You make a great coach, Pikachu," I said with a grin.

Pikachu's meaning came proudly. "Tiny lightning listens when food waits."

Then Pachirisu noticed the berry pouch again.

Dawn rewarded him with one Oran Berry, and because she was fair, she gave one to Piplup too. Both Pokémon immediately wanted more. Dawn refused until they practiced the appeal again, and Pachirisu's cheeks puffed out with betrayed drama.

Dawn pointed at him with warning. "Do not even think about shocking my hair."

Pachirisu thought about it very hard.

The Discharge burst was smaller than it could have been, but it still left Dawn's hair frizzed into sharp points and sent Piplup rolling backward. Pikachu stopped the worst of it with Thunderbolt, but even he looked like he regretted teaching a student with no patience.

Dawn touched her hair with trembling hands. "Oh, not my hair again."

A boy's voice called from the path. "Hey, Dee-dee! Still having bad hair days?"

Tox went completely still. "Oh no. Only one guy says that name with that much confidence."

Dawn turned around so fast that Pachirisu nearly fell from her shoulder. "Kenny?"

A boy walked toward us with a Prinplup at his side, smiling like he had found exactly the reaction he wanted. "Good to see you too. And your hair."

Dawn tried to flatten the spikes with both hands. "Anybody can have a bad hair day."