Twenty years ago, Dawn's mom Johanna lost a Pokémon Contest to Lila from Celestic Town. That battle ended Johanna's winning streak, but Lila quit Contests and became a top Poké Stylist. Now that Dawn and her friends are in Celestic Town, she and Brock visit Lila's store but learn that Lila is out. Disappointed, Dawn heads to the Celestic Town Contest, only to find that Lila is among the competition! Lila's making her big comeback, and she puts on a great show with her Cherrim. After Jessie puts on her Jessilina disguise and takes to the stage with Yanmega to try out her Fantina imitation, it's Dawn's turn to show off her ice-skating Buneary.

After that first round, Dawn finds Lila backstage—having a video conversation with Johanna! That twenty-year old battle was the turning point when Lila decided she really wanted to be a Poké Stylist, but her competitive spirit returned when she saw Dawn's earlier Contest battles on TV. Now she's back, and she'd love to win her fifth ribbon by beating Dawn. Jessie doesn't make it to the second round, but both Dawn and Lila move on and advance to the final round without any fuss. To start off their battle, Lila's trusty Delcatty uses Substitute to get the drop on Aipom. Then, after its Cute Charm ability charms Dawn's Ambipom, it hits Ambipom with Sleep.

Things are looking bad, but Ambipom manages to wake up and fight back. However, its attacks don't always work because it's still charmed by Delcatty. Dawn keeps battling anyway and as soon as Ambipom recovers its senses, it unleashes a huge Swift move. Delcatty counters with an equally amazing Shockwave. Their attacks light up the stage, with the crowd watching in suspense as Ambipom's Swift finally overpowers Delcatty. That makes Dawn the winner! Fortunately, Lila's a good sport, and she gives Dawn and her friends a chance to pick out free outfits from her store. Once our heroes get some new clothes, it's time for them to get back on the road and head towards their next adventure!