Ash and co. have just arrived from the forest. Their next stop is Veilstone City where Ash will battle for his third gym badge. Dawn has decided to think about her next contest when they get there. Brock states that he knows the perfect place to do that. Brock excitedly has Ash and Dawn follow him. Wondering what Brock's excitement is all about and where he is going, Ash and Dawn do so. Brock ends up leading Ash and Dawn to a Maid Café. Ash and Dawn have never heard of the place before, but Brock states that it is like a second home to him. When Ash and co. walk inside, three young girls shout out, "Welcome home!" Ash wonders what they mean by that, and Brock tells him that it is the girls' way of making them feel more comfortable. The three girls then walk towards Ash and co. and introduce themselves as Spring, Summer, and Autumn. Brock immediately falls in love with the three girls. Croagunk stops the romance by attacking Brock and dragging him away. Spring asks the group what they will have. Autumn says that their specialty is Miltank milk. Brock knows that Miltank milk is loaded with healthy vitamins. Ash and Dawn both want Miltank milk for themselves and their Pokémon. Spring thinks it would be a great idea if they just headed over to the barn.
When Ash and co. arrive at the barn, Spring and Autumn signal over the Miltank. Three Miltank rush over towards the group. Ash looks up Miltank in his Pokédex. Spring states that two of the Miltank are hers, and the third one belongs to Summer. Dawn asks Autumn why she doesn't have one. Autumn sighs that she does have one. The three Miltank run inside the barn. Brock notices that the three Miltank are well-trained. The Miltank are then connected to a machine and Spring gets milk from them. Ash, Dawn, and Brock are each presented with a glass of milk. They gulp the milk down and love the taste. Then Ash, Dawn, and Brock send out all of their Pokémon, and each Pokémon gets some milk.
Brock wonders where Autumn's Miltank is at. Autumn points outside, and they can see it sitting on the grass. Autumn explains that she just got the Miltank, but it won't listen to her. Ash thinks that the Miltank is probably not used to Autumn yet. Autumn is frustrated. She thinks her Miltank is selfish, so she may give up on it. Brock explains that giving up won't solve anything, especially since her and Miltank aren't used to each other that well yet. Spring notices that Brock is very wise. Brock tells her that he is working on becoming a top Pokémon breeder. Brock offers to help Autumn with all her problems regarding Miltank. Autumn is very pleased by this. Suddenly, Summer appears and says that they have a ton of more customers. Spring runs towards Summer. She tells Autumn to stay and listen to some of Brock's helpful advice.
Dawn tells Ash that they should help Spring and Summer. Ash thinks that it's a good idea. Ash, Dawn, and their Pokémon get dressed in some maid outfits. Ash is a bit embarrassed to be dressed up in the clothes, but he decides to stick with it. A few customers enter, but they step aside when they see Ash in his outfit. Team Rocket suddenly appears. They realize that a maid café can be very rich. Jessie thinks that her acting powers will succeed her with becoming a great waitress. Meanwhile, Brock and Autumn are outside. Brock is teaching Autumn some useful things with raising a Pokémon. He says that earning a Pokémon's trust is the most important thing. Autumn asks how she does that. Brock tells her that she has to first bond with her Pokémon. Autumn tries by showing a flower to Miltank. Miltank eats the flower and burps in Autumn's face. Autumn exclaims how disgusting that was. Brock reminds her that kindness and patience is the key.
The next thing that Brock and Autumn work on is praise-giving. Brock explains that it will help. So, him and Happiny cross a bridge together. Happiny gets scared along the way, but Brock's kind words help Happiny cross it. Next up is Autumn and Miltank. Autumn tries to get Miltank to move, but it won't budge. Brock tells Miltank that it has some Pecha berries. This wakes Miltank up, and it begins to cross the bridge. However, when Miltank reaches the middle of the bridge, it gets scared. Autumn pushes Miltank forward, causing the bridge to shake. Autumn hangs onto the ropes to gain her balance, but she ends up falling. She saves herself by gripping on one of the ropes. Brock rushes over to grab her, but the ropes break, and both of them fall. Suddenly, Happiny grabs Brock's leg and throws both of them onto land. Autumn sobs a bit because she is clumsy. Brock doesn't mind, however. He just doesn't want Autumn to give up.
Spring thanks Ash for her help and tells him that she can handle things by herself now. With the work complete, Ash decides to practice his training for the Veilstone Gym. Meanwhile, the two trainers that went into the maid café before finds another café. This mysterious café isn't even listed on the map, so they assume that it was just recently built. The two trainers walk inside, and Team Rocket greets them. Wobbuffet tries to prepare a cup of coffee for them but fails. Meanwhile, Ash is training with Turtwig. The two of them are practicing their Energy Ball attack. Turtwig gathers up a bunch of energy and tries to form it into a ball. It doesn't work out too well though. Turtwig is feeling sad, but Ash tells Turtwig to keep on practicing, and it will eventually get it. Dawn notices that Ash and Turtwig are working hard. She decides to practice for her next contest. Suddenly, Zoey's words from her last contest re-appear in Dawn's head. Dawn isn't feeling too confident in herself at the moment, so she begins to cry a bit. Ash walks up to Dawn and wonders why she is crying. She makes up an excuse that she got something in her eye. Then the two find something to eat.
Brock continues to teach Autumn. He says that grooming is an important part in raising a Pokémon. Brock provides an example by scrubbing Happiny's head. Autumn tries to do the same with Miltank, but she ends up making a mess. So Autumn then finds a bucket of water and splashes the water on Miltank, but it hits Brock too. She panics and tries to find a towel for Brock, but she ends up tripping over a bar of soap. Autumn begins to whine about how useless and clumsy she is. Brock is able to cheer her up, and Autumn promises to try harder.
The coffee that Team Rocket has served to the two trainers is nothing but hot water. The two trainers are disappointed with the place. Team Rocket's café doesn't have Miltank milk, so the trainers leave. James and Meowth wonder how they are going to find any customers without Miltank milk. Jessie knows that there is a way.
Meanwhile, Brock and Autumn are continuing their own training. Miltank has found a tree with berries. It rams the tree once and the berries fall. Then Miltank rams the tree a second time, and a bunch of Beedrill appear. Brock tells Autumn that she needs to stay calm and protect her Pokémon. Getting excited will only anger the Beedrill. Autumn follows Brock's advice and stays in front of her Pokémon. One of the Beedrill charges towards her, but Happiny uses an attack that confuses the Beedrill. While the Beedrill are confused, Brock, Autumn, and Miltank run away. They run out to an open field where they are safe. Miltank shows its appreciation towards Autumn by licking her. Suddenly, a net drops on Autumn and her Miltank. Brock quickly grabs onto the net before it is pulled up. The net is from Team Rocket, and they say their motto. When they are finished, Autumn begins to freak out.
Ash and Dawn are eating ice cream when they notice Team Rocket's balloon passing by. They see Brock there and conclude that there is trouble. When Team Rocket lands, Brock, Autumn, Happiny, and Miltank are placed in a cage. James shows them the key - the only way out of the cage. Happiny uses an attack that places Team Rocket to sleep. The key falls out of James' hands, and Autumn picks it up. Brock realizes that Happiny has learned Secret Power. Autumn opens up the cage, and they all escape. Just before they are out of sight, Wobbuffet throws a bucket of water on Jessie, James, and Meowth. They notice Brock and Autumn escaping with Miltank.
Team Rocket isn't about to give up yet, and they re-appear in their balloon. Jessie sends out Seviper, and James sends out Carnivine. Ash and Dawn meet up with Brock and Autumn. Ash sends out Turtwig and orders it to use Energy Ball. With all its might, Turtwig tries to blast Team Rocket, but the attack still isn't good enough. Dawn wants to attack, but Brock stops her. He thinks that a tag battle with him and Autumn will strengthen Autumn's bond with Miltank. Seviper attacks, but Happiny's Pound attack does more damage. Autumn then orders Miltank to use Tackle. Miltank charges towards Carnivine and tackles it hard. Autumn is glad that Miltank is listening to her commands. Happiny throws Seviper at Team Rocket and pounds them again. Finally, Miltank uses Rollout. The attack causes Team Rocket to blast off again.
Autumn gives Miltank a hug. Miltank finally is going to listen to Autumn. So Autumn hooks Miltank up to the milk machine for some milk. Spring and Summer are glad that Autumn's Miltank will now obey. Brock tries to flirt on Spring and Summer again, but Croagunk stops him. It is now time for Ash and co. to depart. Ash and Dawn thank the three girls for everything. Autumn is sad that Brock is leaving. Before Brock leaves, he gives Autumn one last piece of advice. Then they wave goodbye and continue their journey towards Veilstone City.
