Ash's Story (Part 5: Modern Sinnoh)

Chapter 30: Soothe Bell

Before the tag team tournament began, Hearthome City still had more places to pull us away from the arena.

Dawn tried to act like she was fine after the Contest, but every poster for Hearthome's stage made her glance away a little too quickly. Piplup stayed close to her legs, and Pachirisu rode on her shoulder with careful little sparks, like she was afraid to make the wrong kind of glitter.

I did not push her. Zoey had already said the loss mattered because Dawn cared. That did not make the hurt smaller, but it made the silence around her easier to respect.

The Pokémon Fan Club was loud enough to break that silence.

The chairman greeted us the moment we entered. "Hello, hello! How, I say, do you do? I am the Pokémon Fan Club Chairman! Indeed, yes I am!"

Dawn blinked. "He really talks like that."

The chairman did not slow down. He told us about Poffins, Sweet Poffins, Spicy Poffins, beauty, coolness, cuteness, and expressing love through food until Piplup looked both fascinated and suspicious.

"Therefore," he declared, "I give you this Poffin Case!"

We each received one, and I smiled at the little case in my hand. "Poffins, huh. My sister Insey loves making these."

Lillie looked interested at once. "Then you probably know what you are doing."

"I know what Insey does," I said. "That is not the same thing."

We tried anyway, because curiosity won and none of us wanted to admit defeat to breakfast before the tournament today.

Making Poffins looked simple until the stirring began. Dawn stirred too fast, then slowed too suddenly. Her first batch came out lumpy but determined, which somehow matched her mood.

She offered one to Piplup, Pachirisu, Buneary, and Ponyta. They tried it politely.

Then they all drifted toward my batch.

Dawn stared at them. "Seriously?"

Tox tasted a tiny crumb from Dawn's batch and considered it medically. "It is not bad. It is simply aimed at the wrong preferences. These would suit Glameow better than your team."

Dawn looked down at her Pokémon. "So I made good Poffins for the wrong partners."

"That is still useful information," Lillie said. "Your second batch can be theirs."

Dawn breathed in, then nodded. "I am not giving up."

The next batch went better. She changed the berries, stirred with a steadier rhythm, and watched her Pokémon's reactions instead of only the recipe. This time Piplup puffed up proudly after tasting his Poffin, while Pachirisu squeaked and spun in delight.

Pachirisu's meaning came in bright little pops. "This sparkle tastes right."

Dawn laughed, and the sound was lighter than it had been since the Contest board left her name behind.

After that, we visited Amity Square to let the Pokémon rest.

Amity Square gave us a few quieter minutes before the tournament swallowed the city. Only certain Pokémon were allowed to walk freely there, but the ones who came with us made the most of it. Pikachu trotted beside me, Dawn's Buneary and our Buneary compared hopping paths, and Eevee kept stopping to stare at the fountains like the reflections might answer her question.

Buneary still moved cautiously around crowds. Hearthome was wider and louder than Eterna Forest, and every stroller wheel or excited child made her ears snap upright. The Soothe Bell prize stayed in my thoughts because of that. Not every Pokémon needed more power right away. Some needed reassurance that a hand reaching toward them would be gentle.