Chapter 49: The Poffin Class!

It was a dark night, near a garden. A giggling trio sneaked over to the berries field, and helped themselves with some berries! They chowed down on Oran Berries, Pecha Berries, and Sitrus Berries! The ones eating were Team Rocket! "Mother natures the best in my mouth!" Jessie giggled, munching on an Oran Berry! "You gotta hand it to her! She's got more yummy berries better than life!" Meowth sighed with the taste.

"After the grub we had digested, this is like heaven!" James commented. Just then, the trio sniffed some scen't that's been coming to their way! "And now we're being treated to a yummy smell, wafting to our way!" Jessie sighed. "And I think the smell is wafting from that big building over there!" Meowth exclaimed. So, the evil trio made their way to the big house, where they didn't notice a shadow looming over them! This figure did not appreciate intruders intruding her master's home.

It leapt in the air and unleashed Magical Leaf, coming up with a strong wind! Team Rocket were clearly surprised with this uncalled Attack! "That's a Magical Leaf!" Meowth shrieked. "The hag, get your own berries!" Jessie shouted. "Towards the sky in mere seconds! Aaaaaahhh!" James screamed. The wind blew him into the sky! Jessie and Meowth were also blew along for the ride too, as they were sent towards the night sky! "WE'RE BLASTING OFF AGAIN!" Team Rocket screamed.

The figure landed back on the roof, relieved that it has gotten rid of the intruders that nearly disrupted her master's peace and home.

The next day... To the heroes...

Ash and his friends have finally arrived in Floaroma Town! "Well, this is it! This is Floaroma Town!" Hikaru stated. His left arm is still recovering from the accident with Team Rocket, but his left arm only needed a bandage wrapped up, so Hikaru was feeling fine. Of course, he didn't look fine to Monferno, who wanted to stay by his side, rather than going inside his Pokéball. "No wonder they call this town the vivid beauty of growing flowers!" Brock chuckled.

The group arrived at Floaroma Town for Dawn and Hikaru's next Pokémon Contest, which is only a few days away! Dawn seemed to be really excited to be in this town, considering that this town was filled with flowers. The three boys only chuckled to see that their friend has big excitements, considering that she has another chance of winning a Contest Ribbon. The group headed towards a poster where the Floaroma Contest was going to start soon!

"Judging by your faces, I'd say this is your first time arriving in Floaroma Town!" The woman chuckled. The group turned to see a woman with a large hat on her, with her style looking elderly. "Yeah! We arrived at this town for the Contest! This town is just so beautiful!" Dawn exclaimed. "Take it easy, Dawn!" Hikaru persuaded, holding Dawn back, causing her to blush lightly. "Mon!" Monferno agreed. "Our trees and flowers are gorgeous! You never had guessed that this town was a barren wasteland!" The woman explained.

That took the group by surprise! So, the woman began her story about the history of Floaroma Town. "Everywhere you looked, the land was without beauty! And the sad, weary of many people's faces were all over at that time! Many tried to plant trees or flowers, but, nothing seemed want to grow, no matter what!" The woman started. "But, legend has it that one day, a beautiful woman climbed to the top of the hill, to give thanks for nature's great beauty! And with that, the flowers and trees looked as if it couldn't wait to burst out of the ground!" The woman continued.

The woman then finished her story which was that reason why Floaroma Town was now a beautiful town. Dawn seemed to be affected by that story. "What a beautiful story!" Dawn stated. "And beautifully told! Thank you for telling us!" Brock thanked, bowing down. "Yeah! Thank you so much!" Ash, Hikaru, and Dawn agreed, bowing their heads down as well! Monferno and Pikachu bowed down as well!

"It's not only my pleasure, but also my privilege to share a wonderful story among you young people!" The woman chuckled. The woman then said her thanks and told them to have a wonderful stay at Floaroma Town! As the woman was out of sight, Dawn noticed a poster near the Contest poster! "Hey, guys, look! They say there's going to be a Poffin cooking class today!" Dawn explained. "Poffin? What's Poffins?" Ash asked. Hikaru and Monferno sweat dropped, while Dawn gasped.

"Don't tell me you don't know what Poffins are!?" Dawn shrieked. "Again, the two of them are from Kanto, so, of course they wouldn't know much." Hikaru chuckled. "Mon..." Monferno replied. Dawn only made a funny face at the two Kanto boys and smiled. That got the both of them a little ticked off. "I won't have to know id you just tell me!" Ash snapped. "Alright. Relax! Poffins are Pokémon snacks that grow from tree berries!" Dawn started.

Dawn then explained of how she always helped her mom make Poffins, saying that she is now the expert of Poffin making! Hikaru sighed with that. "Technically, you never even made real Poffins before, so you can't say you are the expert!" Hikaru sighed. Dawn flushed with that, and stuck her tongue on Hikaru, teasing him! "Well, you haven't had much experience on cooking, either!" Dawn snapped. Hikaru only snorted with that.

"I know very well how to make Poffins more than you do, Dawn." Hikaru sighed. "Oh yeah!? Why don't you prove it at the cooking class!?" Dawn challenged. "My my, does the lady ask for a challenge? Well, in that case, your challenge is accepted!" Hikaru teased. Both Ash and Brock sweat dropped as Ash said something about the same thing for PokéBlocks and Poffins!

"So, if Poffins are Pokémon snacks, that makes it the same as the Hoenn region's PokéBlocks, right?" Ash asked. "Well, it can be the same with PokéBlocks, but I've heard that Poffins are made with a different recipe!" Brock explained. "And, not only do Poffins make Pokémon super healthy, they keep and feel looking just great!" Dawn finished. "Say, how about the four of us take a Poffin cooking class to see who has the better make!?" Hikaru challenged.

"Oh? Bring it on!" Ash answered, determined to win! "I'd say yes!" Brock agreed. Dawn grew happy that the two Kanto trainers were going to make Poffins in the class, just like her!

Later, the group had arrived near a large building, next to a garden filled with flowers and berries! Ash immediately shouted out rudely to the building! "Anybody home!?" Ash called. There was no answer, to which Ash immediately sighed. "I can't believe there is nobody here!" Ash groaned. Hikaru smacked Ash on the head, irritated. "Keep it down! You're going to cause a kick out for all of us!" Hikaru snapped. "Kick out?" Ash repeated.

Ash rubbed his head and continued shouting! "Uh, hello!? I would really like to take your Poffin cooking class now, please!" Ash shouted again. POW! Hikaru again punched Ash on the head! "Ow! What was that for!?" Ash snapped. "You're going to frighten that Roserade over there!" Hikaru explained, pointing to a field of flowers! Ash grew confused until he spotted a Pokémon that looked like a bouquet! "Roserade!" The Pokémon called, frightened a bit.

"Oops. My bad!" Ash shouted, loud enough for the Roserade to hear! "Sorry about that! Just because he's loud now doesn't mean he's rude all the time!" Dawn called, making the three boys to sweat drop. Roserade still grew a bit frightened with the new visitors coming. "Lets check out that Roserade!" Ash exclaimed as he scanned the evolved Pokémon with his Pokédex!

"Roserade, the Bouquet Pokémon. Roserade is the evolved form of Roselia. It lures enemies with its sweet aroma, and attacks with dancer-like elegance." Ash's Pokédex buzzed. "So, that's the second evolution from Budew, huh?" Hikaru asked. "I guess it is! Budew does evolve into Roselia, then to Roserade!" Ash exclaimed, grinning. Just then, a woman called out to them! "Did you say you're here for a Poffin cooking class?" A woman called.

The group looked to see a woman watering flowers! She had brown eyes, green hair, cream colored sweater, and a brown skirt! "I made you wait. I'm terribly sorry." The woman apologized. Brock again went for the woman in love! "Apologies are a waste of time! I would've happily waited until the end of time for just one fleeting, but radiant glimpse of your beauty, my blooming flower!" Brock said smoothly. The girl grew surprised and sweat dropped with this.

"Oh! Thank you! How nice!" The woman stammered. "May I ask your name?" Brock asked. "Forsythia, hello!" Forsythia answered, blushing lightly. "Forsythia, for one in the throws for such blossoming beauty, it's the perfect name!" Brock replied. "Ah! To stand in the field of flowers with you!" Brock exclaimed. "This is getting tedious..." Hikaru muttered. Just then, Croagunk jabbed Brock with a Poison Jab! "Of course... I can... Stand anywhere!" Brock groaned. It dragged Brock away with two long croaks.

Forsythia sweat dropped before guiding the other three! "Very well, then! Will the rest of you come this way?" Forsythia asked.

Later, everyone got ready for the Poffin cooking class, with Forsythia as the teacher! Roserade and Lotad gave Forsythia the cut berries in order for her to get ready for the group! "First, you put your berries in a pot of cold water! Then, you turn the heat up all the way, while stirring non-stop! It's this constant stirring that makes the Poffins flavor, you see!" Forsythia explained. She put the cut berries in a pot of water, and turned the heat up!

Forsythia then stirred the berries around, turning it into pink creamed looking mixture! "Okay! Is everybody with me so far?" Forsythia asked. "You bet!" The four trainers exclaimed. They all put on their aprons for cooking. Ash and Hikaru took off their fingerless gloves for the stirring! Monferno stayed close to Hikaru so that nothing bad happens to his friend. Dawn set up the timer for the Poffin preparation! "That's that! Good!" Dawn exclaimed.

"What are you messing with your Pokétch for?" Ash asked. "You see, Ash. If the Trainers or Coordinators want their Poffins perfectly, they need to measure the time needed!" Hikaru explained. "Y-You didn't needed to explain for me, you know!" Dawn exclaimed, blushing. "Oh... Uh... Sorry." Hikaru stammered. He concentrated on his mixture, stirring slowly! Forsythia came by and smiled. "It seems that the two of you done this before, coreect?" Forsythia asked.

"Yeah! When I was a kid, I always helped my Mom in the kitchen!" Dawn explained. "Hey! You're not the only one who helps out!" Hikaru complained."Oh... That's just great! Helping your mom..." Forsythia giggled. Brock this time bragged about on how he always helped with his family with the cooking and with his brothers and sisters! Just then, he stopped, remembering about the Poison Jab. Croagunk almost got him, that is, until Brock stopped. "I got it. Can we move onto something else?" Brock asked.

Croagunk stopped the move and croaked again. Later, everyone kept on stirring until their Poffins mixing was done! Both Hikaru and Dawn were finished! "Time!" The two of them said. They took a moment to look at each other and blushed while looking away. Monferno saw what was happening, and smirked. "Not... Another... Word, Monferno." Hikaru muttered. Monferno rubbed the back of his head and smiled sheepishly.

The two of them poured their mixtures in the mold platter for the Poffins for it to cool it down! "So, once it's fully cooked down, you pour it in the mold, check!" Brock stated, writing the things down in his notebook. "Exactly!" Hikaru chuckled. Just then, the three of them heard a little spilling and burning! "You've got to stir it faster!" Forsythia called. Ash was having a bit of a trouble with stirring his Poffins!

"You mean, like this?" Ash asked, stirring faster. "No! That's too fast! You're going to spill it!" Forsythia called. "Okay then, how about this?" Ash asked, stirring a bit slower. "No! That's too slow! You're going to burn it!" Forsythia called. But, it was too late. Ash panicked, once seeing that his Poffin began to burn out! Roserade shook her head with disappointment.

Later, everyone was finished! "My Poffins are good to go!" Dawn called. "So are mine!" Hikaru called. "And so are mine!" Ash exclaimed, forgetting that his Poffins were burnt. "Alright, great! Then I guess it's gotta be snack time!" Forsythia called. With that, Ash, Dawn, Hikaru, and Brock threw out their Pokémon for them to eat their new snacks! Aipom, Luxio, Turtwig, Piplup, Eevee, Staravia, and Sudowoodo came out of their Pokéballs!

"You're gonna love these Poffins! Eat all of it, and you'll be set in order to win our Contest!" Dawn assured. Hikaru snorted with that, unsure with that. Dawn has put in the same flavor for one Pokémon, like Glameow! For him, he knew what his Pokémon liked, so he inserted different berries with different tastes and flavors for Monferno, Luxio, and Eevee! The three Pokémon tasted their snacks and enjoyed it! Their eyes glinted with light! "Tastes great, right?" Hikaru asked. The three nodded with certain!

Suddenly, all of Dawn's Pokémon began to our their tears out! "Wait! What's wrong!? It's the recipe my Mom made for her Glameow!" Dawn asked, shocked to see her Pokémon crying! Brock gave his Poffins to his Croagunk and Sudowoodo, to which they liked! Unfortunately for Ash, his Pokémon refused to eat his burnt ones as they ate some of Forsythia's Poffins, and some of Hikaru's as well! "Of course... No one would want to eat any of mine..." Ash moaned.

Ash let out a shout, startling Roserade as he began to eat one of his burnt ones! "YUCK!" Ash yelled, to which Forsythia noticed. "It's your first try! It takes a lot of practice for the Poffins to taste good!" Forsythia tried to assure. Dawn tried to let her Pokémon eat it one more time, but Pachirisu messed her around, knocking one Poffin out of the window! "Hey! I worked really hard on this!" Dawn complained.

Later, the snacks were all eaten, except Dawn and Ash's, which theirs were thrown away. Dawn grew grumpy with this. "It seems that your Pokémon didn't like your Poffins, too!" Ash teased. "Hey, she didn't know that Pokémon had different tastes on Poffins, so chew her out later!" Hikaru called. Dawn flushed, then blushed for a bit, with a sigh. Her Poffin making didn't turn out well. "Pokémon all have different tastes!" Forsythia explained. That got Dawn by a surprise! "Is that true!?" Dawn gasped.

"Of course! Just like when people have different tastes, too! It's how you feel! Same with them!" Forsythia explained. Forsythia asked what Pokémon Dawn's mom had. Dawn responded it as a Glameow, to which then Forsythia explained that Dawn should try a different approach of her Poffins! "A different approach?" Dawn repeated. "Like, make some more Poffins that are more suited for your Piplup, Buneary, and Pachirisu!" Hikaru explained. "Oh... I see..." Dawn sighed.

Later, Forsythia praised everyone for trying their hardest of making their first Poffins! "Why don't we all take a break and relax with a cup of tea?" Forsythia suggested. "I'm well suited for it." Hikaru sighed. Monferno agreed with his call. As both Forsythia and Roserade gave out teas, Roserade immediately hid out of the room!

So, with the Poffin class complete, the results show that Hikaru and Brock made the best Poffin for their Pokémon, with Ash and Dawn out of luck, from burnt Poffins, and the not best flavor for their Pokémon! Now, the heroes will soon discover of what a Forsythia and Roserade were like when the two of them met for the first time! How will this go? Will Dawn make the best Poffins for her Pokémon for the next Contest? Stay tuned for more!

To be continued...