Dawn

**Dawn** (Japanese: **ヒカリ** *Hikari*) is a ten-year-old Pokémon Coordinator from Twinleaf Town and a former traveling companion of Ash and Brock. Her goal is to become a great Top Coordinator like her mother, Johanna. Her first Pokémon was a Piplup that she received from Professor Rowan in the first episode of Pokemon the Series: Diamond and Pearl. Dawn is a secondary protagonist in Diamond and Pearl, a major supporting character in TBA and Pokemon Journeys: The Series, and a minor supporting character in Best Wishes Rewritten, and TBA.

## Dawn

* Dawn
* Young

### Relatives

Johanna (mother)
 Diamond (brother)

## Appearances

### History

#### Pre-series

When Dawn was younger, she attended a kindergarten, where she met her friends Kenny and Leona. She also knew Barry and Noelle from before leaving Twinleaf Town, but it is unclear how and when Dawn first met them.

In *Yes in Dee Dee, It's Dawn!*, Dawn revealed the story behind her nickname, **Dee Dee** (Japanese: **ピカリ** *Pikari*). She explained that she, Kenny, and Leona had been selected as the week's Pokémon caretakers at their kindergarten, and were responsible for looking after the school's pets, Plusle and Minun. While Kenny and Leona cleaned down the pen, Dawn hugged the two Electric-type Pokémon tightly and received an electric shock as a result. This caused Dawn's hair to fizz out and sparkle, earning her the nickname "Diamond Dandruff" or "Dee Dee" for short. From then on, many of her classmates called Dawn by this embarrassing nickname. This led to Dawn developing a fear of Plusle and Minun.

#### *Pokémon the Series: Diamond and Pearl*

Dawn began her Pokémon journey with an overconfident Piplup. She wasn't able to gain his trust at first, but after rescuing him from a swarm of Ariados, the two became friends. Unlike May, she knew from the beginning that she wanted to follow in her mother's footsteps and be a Coordinator. After meeting Ash and Brock, she decided to travel with them, as their experience would likely be helpful to her. Like Ash, she saw a Legendary Pokémon at the start of her journey, the projected soul of Mesprit in *Following A Maiden's Voyage!*.

When Dawn began her journey she took a bicycle, but like Misty's and May's bikes, Ash's Pikachu destroyed it with his Thunderbolt. However, she did not mention this to Ash until more than thirty episodes after it happened, yet only to acknowledge it as an honest accident due to a desperate situation, and didn't hold it against either Ash or Pikachu. Dawn had also planned to take a large suitcase full of clothing with her, but her mother made her leave it at home due to its impracticality. Instead, Dawn took a backpack her mother had prepared for her. Johanna also gave Dawn the first Ribbon she earned as a Coordinator as a good luck charm, an item that would recur throughout the series as a symbol of Dawn's determination.

Upon arriving in Jubilife City, Dawn registered for a Contest Pass for the Sinnoh region. She also obtained a Ball Capsule and some Seals and introduced her Contest cry, which is "Spotlight!" in the English dub and "Charm up!" in the original Japanese version. Dawn lost her first Pokémon Contest in *Arrival of a Rival!* to Zoey, who became one of her closest friends and greatest rivals. After her loss, an upset Dawn called her mother, but Johanna told Dawn not to rely on her and instead rely on friends and Pokémon. Eventually, in Dawn's second official Contest, she was able to narrowly beat her childhood friend Kenny to win her first Ribbon.

Dawn regularly trained her Pokémon and took the opportunity to practice her skills with Zoey whenever the two met, such as in *A Stand-Up Sit-Down!*. Zoey was always helpful to Dawn during their meetings and helped inspire her to come up with new combinations. However, even with Zoey's help Dawn was not able to perfect Buizel's Ice Aqua Jet despite coming up with the idea. Ash later accomplished Ice Aqua Jet in the Wallace Cup, after Buizel had been traded to him.

In *Dawn's Early Night!*, Dawn felt confident but lost in the Performance Stage of the Hearthome Contest. In the Solaceon Contest, which took place in *Team Shocker!*, she did not pass the Performance Stage for the second time in a row, due to being overzealous with Ambipom's Swift appeal out of desperation to make up for the previous loss. This marked a notable change in Dawn's character. After the second blow to her self-esteem, she didn't know what to do and was still very upset throughout *Tanks for the Memories!*. After this, she became more focused and regained her confidence after battling Maylene in *Crossing the Battle Line!*. She also began to practice in earnest for all her Contest's performances and battles. Following Zoey's advice to show off the Pokémon and not its moves, Dawn was able to pass through the first round in the Wallace Cup and eventually break her losing streak by narrowly defeating May in the final round of the competition in *Strategy With a Smile!*. Since this turning point, Dawn has maintained her focus and humility.

After learning of the upcoming Contest in Celestic Town, Dawn became very dedicated in her training to the point of overworking her Pokémon in *A Lean Mean Team Rocket Machine!*. Due to her intense efforts, she managed to win the Contest in *Battling The Generation Gap!*. One of Dawn's combinations in that Contest inspired one of Ash's notable tactics, the Counter Shield. In *A Breed Stampede!*, her Mamoswine began to disobey her after evolving. Despite this, she was still eager to train it well and finally gained its trust after healing it in *Trials and Adulations!*. However, Mamoswine still rebelled and disobeyed Dawn after it was hit by an attack and lost its temper in the semifinals of the Lilypad Contest in *Dressed for Jess Success!*. Even though this caused Dawn to lose, she remained calm and optimistic that she and Mamoswine would be victorious the next time.

Dawn traveled back home with Ash and Brock for the annual Twinleaf Festival in *Strategy Begins at Home!*. Dawn went on to compete against her mother in a two-on-two Contest Battle. Johanna's Glameow and Umbreon versed Dawn's Piplup and Pachirisu. Although Johanna won the match with relative ease, she was impressed by Dawn's teamwork and complimented her. The homecoming helped Dawn to regain her focus, especially after a venture into her own subconscious in *Historical Mystery Tour!*. Once the festival ended, the group left Twinleaf Town at the end of *Challenging a Towering Figure!*.

Her encounter with Mesprit, like Ash and Brock's encounters with Azelf and Uxie respectively, proved to be fate as Team Galactic intended to capture the lake guardians to awaken Dialga and Palkia at Spear Pillar. The lake guardians communicated telepathically with Ash, Dawn, and Brock, and teleported them to the Team Galactic Headquarters. With the help of Cynthia, the three Trainers foiled Team Galactic's plans and freed the lake guardians in *The Battle Finale of Legend!*

In *Double-Time Battle Training!*, Dawn and her friends watched Zoey compete in the Brussel Town Pokémon Contest. Zoey was victorious, and Candice brought over an array of desserts to celebrate. During their meal, Candice introduced the Tamato Berry Ice Cream Sandwich, describing it as "hot and spicy on the inside and cold on the outside", and saying that oftentimes things that don't seem to go well together are actually the most compatible. The dessert and Candice's words inspired Dawn to create a new combination using Ice- and Fire-type moves. After many failed attempts, she perfected her technique called Flame Ice, which involved Cyndaquil using Flame Wheel while being encased in Mamoswine's Ice Shard attack. She used this move later in the Daybreak Contest.

Dawn revealed the story behind her nickname, "Dee Dee", to Ash and Brock in *Yes in Dee Dee, It's Dawn!*, though Ursula happened to overhear the conversation. In the final round of the Daybreak Town Contest, Ursula battled Dawn using her Plusle and Minun and deliberately had her Pokémon shock Dawn's hair to recreate "Diamond Dandruff". Even though Dawn temporarily succumbed to her trauma, she was able to overcome her inhibition with Mamoswine's and Cyndaquil's encouragement. Ultimately, she defeated Ursula, winning her final fifth Ribbon as well as the opportunity to participate in the Sinnoh Grand Festival.

She later trained in *Teaching the Student Teacher!* where she came up with a new tactic for the Grand Festival, the Ice Chandelier, which she managed to perfect by trial and error. Though she originally wanted to see Pachirisu use its Discharge attack while surrounded by Mamoswine's Ice Shard, she eventually decided to cover Pachirisu in a larger bubble of ice from Buneary's Ice Beam. This gave Pachirisu enough room to run, making Ice Chandelier look its best. Besides coming up with combination moves, she also acquired a new Pokémon, Togekiss. Dawn trained with Togekiss in *With the Easiest of Grace!* to find a way to battle with it while not ignoring its need to move gracefully, and she was eventually able to adjust her own battling style to accommodate her new Pokémon.

Dawn entered the Sinnoh Grand Festival in *Last Call — First Round!*, using her Buneary and Cyndaquil in the Appeals Round. She progressed through the round and battled Ursula first in the next episode. With Mamoswine and Pachirisu she was able to successfully use her combination Ice Chandelier to defeat Ursula's Gabite and Flareon. In the following episode, she defeated Jessilina and progressed to the finals. Dawn would face Zoey in the final round, which fulfilled the promise the two had made with each other after their first Contest to someday meet in the last round of the Grand Festival.

It was a very evenly matched and close fight between her Piplup and Togekiss and Zoey's Glameow and Gallade, but in the end, Dawn lost. After the finals, she met with her mother and returned the Ribbon Johanna had given her as a good luck charm at the very start of her journey. Dawn said that she no longer needed to walk in her mother's shadow, and only needed her Pokémon's care and support to become a Top Coordinator, proving to her mother and to herself how much she had grown as a Trainer.

After the competition, Zoey told Dawn that Candice was throwing a victory party for her in Snowpoint City and that Dawn was also welcome; however, Dawn declined the invitation, stating that she still wanted to support Ash in his upcoming battle at Sunyshore Gym and in the Lily of the Valley Conference. She then thanked all the Pokémon that had traveled with her through Sinnoh for their hard work and pledged to not give up her dream of being a Top Coordinator.

After Ash competed in the Sinnoh League, she contemplated whether or not to go with Ash and Brock to Kanto. However, she received an invitation by Paris for her Buneary to work with her for a short while as a Pokémon fashion model and decided to stay in Sinnoh. Dawn and Ash later shared a final high-five, their trademark exchange throughout *Pokémon the Series: Diamond and Pearl*, before Ash and Brock left for Kanto.

After Buneary's modeling work with Paris was completed, Dawn decided to spend some time at home before considering her next move on her journey to become Top Coordinator. In DPS01, Dawn decided to go to the Hoenn region, since Hoenn is the region Contests originated from. However, though she was certain she would take Piplup, she did not know if she should take all of her other Pokémon with her to Hoenn or not. She sought advice from Professor Rowan, who instead sent her to help a new Trainer who was having trouble deciding what her first Pokémon would be. Dawn and Shinko ran into an Ariados's web, reminiscent of the first challenge Dawn faced with Piplup. Dawn's Cyndaquil evolved into Quilava in order to protect the two Trainers, and it was then that Dawn realized all of her Pokémon still had the potential to grow with her. She decided to take all her Pokémon to Hoenn with her and soon left on her new adventure with her dream of becoming a Top Coordinator burning as bright as ever.

Dawn briefly appeared in a picture on Brock's memory wall in the special episode DPS02.

### Character

Dawn grew up inspired by her mother's achievements and from a very young age decided that she wanted to be a Coordinator. She takes immense pride in what Johanna was able to accomplish and this is reflected in her determination to follow in her footsteps and become a respected Top Coordinator. As a kid, she would help Johanna prepare Poffins for her Pokémon, something which led Dawn to discover the perfect recipe for her own Pokémon years later.

Dawn is notable for her confidence since she almost always tries to look towards the future rather than dwell on her mistakes. In the Japanese version, Dawn's catchphrase is "Daijōbu!", which can be translated as "It'll be fine!" or "Don't worry!". Although not consistently translated in the English dub at first, she began to regularly use "No need to worry!".

In stark contrast to May's inexperience and self-doubt at the start of *Pokémon the Series: Ruby and Sapphire*, Dawn was overly confident and assured in her own strength at the beginning of her journey. Because of this, she became emotional after she was eliminated from Pokémon Contests, and often cried after losing. After failing to pass the Performance Stage two times in a row, Dawn became depressed. In *Tanks for the Memories!*, Dawn remembered these failures and had to excuse herself so she could cry. These behaviors were completely opposite those she had exhibited at the beginning of her journey, something Ash and Brock took notice of. Their encouragement was not enough to renew her psyche though, and it was not until she defeated May to win the Wallace Cup that she truly regained her confidence and focus. After this point, Dawn took on a more positive and determined personality. In addition, she became more mature. Instead of reverting to her old headstrong and confident attitude, she became more aware of her faults and how she could work to overcome them. Dawn was also more aggressive than May whenever she had to confront Team Rocket.

Dawn has a close relationship with Ash, and they often share a high five when one of them accomplishes something. Throughout their journey, they were very supportive of each other, usually training together and pushing one another to become better versions of themselves. Sometimes when Ash challenged a Gym Leader, Dawn would wear her cheerleading outfit and perform a routine alongside her Pokémon to encourage him. In *Uncrushing Defeat!*, upon noticing how disappointed in himself Ash was for losing a Full Battle against Paul, Dawn presented a circus act to cheer him up.

A key example of Dawn's growth and maturity occurred in *Trials and Adulations!*, in which she was separated from Ash and Brock and her Mamoswine's leg was badly injured. Instead of panicking or trying to force Mamoswine to continue walking, Dawn thought back to lessons Brock had given her about Pokémon care. She recalled that the sap of a plant could help soothe pain and called upon her Pokémon to search for it. Dawn applied the sap, wrapped the wound, formed a bed of leaves for Mamoswine, and gathered food and Berries for it to eat. Dawn was ultimately rewarded as she gained her Mamoswine's respect and loyalty. Dawn's actions go deeper than that though, they are evidence of her growth as a Trainer and person.

Over the course of her journey in Sinnoh, Dawn was able to come up with various combinations to show up her Pokémon's looks and strength. This began with something as simple as making her Piplup's beak grow longer when using Peck, a technique she used even until the end of the Grand Festival. She later followed with simple spinning, which her Piplup and Buneary first practiced for a while in Oreburgh City. The spinning move was adapted by Ash in his first Gym battle in Sinnoh.

Later on, Dawn began experimenting with more complex combinations, such as Flame Ice and Ice Chandelier. After a lot of practice, Dawn's Pokémon were able to master these combinations in battle. Coincidentally, both of these moves were used to defeat Ursula.

Originally, Dawn had great concern about her appearance and would not show herself to Ash or Brock until she felt that her appearance was acceptable. In fact, Dawn often slept in a tent while Ash and Brock slept outside. However, after *Tears for Fears!*, Dawn began to sleep outside as well and was less concerned with her appearance in front of Ash and Brock. This may have been an indicator that she had become more focused as a Trainer and Coordinator, paying more attention to her Pokémon and less attention to her looks. Even so, whenever Dawn knew she was going to be on camera, she would pause to brush her hair, such as in *Last Call - First Round!* when Rhonda wanted to interview her for her broadcast of the Grand Festival.

Dawn also has an interest in fashion and often reads the Poké Chic magazine. In *The Bells Are Singing!*, Dawn revealed that she was the one to design Buneary's vest, but also admitted that her mother was the one to sew it. In *Arriving in Style!*, she demonstrated her talent for designing again, sketching many different outfits for the Hearthome Collection. Though she was initially unsure about her creations, she set her mind on designing simple dresses and accessories after realizing the actual role of a Pokémon Stylist. For that, she was praised by Hermione, who said Dawn has the true spirit of a Stylist.