Garden Blooming

-.-.-.-.-.

The modest village on the eastern grasslands, known as Rose Town, had always been a town of flowers.

Far away from the larger settlements and built on a relatively secluded plateau that overlooked the vast green sea, Rose Town was primarily inhabited by Flying, Bug, and Fairy Pokemon that had been drawn here by the enormous array of flowers that blossomed on its fertile surface every spring and summer. For the Flying-types, it was a place to come after a long migration. For the Bug-types, it was the plentiful food.

And for the Fairy-types, they claimed that it was the flowers that called to them, attracting them with an irresistible siren song that only one truly in tune with the nature of Fairy-type energy could answer. While it was not unusual for flowers to bloom in such numbers in the springtime, there was something almost mystical about this astounding natural garden. Some said that Xerneas came here occasionally, saturating the landscape with his Fairy Aura and filling it to bursting with life, and this was what called the Fairies here every spring.

The permanent residents of Rose Town could attest to its seemingly supernatural origins. Every fall, the gardens withered and died with the rest of the plant life as the unforgiving cold came to suffocate them, and Rose Town became… just a town. But when the warm weather came back, it exploded back into its former glory, with the thousands and thousands of beautiful flowers coming into being almost overnight. It was a truly magical transformation that always brought great joy and hope to the residents' hearts.

Ribombee was one such resident.

He was a very small Bug-and-Fairy-type, somewhat shy and submissive, that lived in a modest house near the center of town. When winter set in, he turned his home into a small shop, selling his signature Pollen Puffs to any Pokemon that stopped by, in need of a sweet and nutritious treat to help them through the depressing season. It always brought a soft smile to his face to see someone enjoying his treats, feeling happy knowing that even when there were no flowers growing and the town's residents grew quiet and melancholy as they shut themselves away in their own homes, he could help brighten up someone's day.

Of course, Ribombee could not make his Pollen Puffs without pollen. So as soon as spring came and he had sold the last of them, he turned to other work to keep himself busy. Ribombee was fortunate enough to have ownership over one of the grandest and most luscious fields of flowers on the plateau, and he worked day in and day out to tend to his beautiful garden and collect the pollen that he would eventually use to make his treats.

It was hard work maintaining a field all by yourself, as Ribombee had soon found out after he was given the field by its previous owner, a pretty Beautifly that had been ready to retire when he'd first come to town. It was also very lonely work, he found – working from sunrise to sunset with nothing but the flowers to talk to. Not that they weren't lovely to talk to, of course, because as a Fairy-type, he knew that they had voices and emotions and opinions as much as any Pokemon did. But he liked the company of other Pokemon, too, and so he quickly found himself longing for a bit of social interaction in his daily life.

So, Ribombee decided to open his field to the public for others to admire. He even put up a sign over the entrance to the garden, declaring "Pollinators welcome!" to encourage other Bugs to come and help him out, in return for a sweet Pollen Puff as thanks. That did the trick, and soon, Ribombee found himself enjoying the fruits of a fulfilling job as well as the company of many dozens of visitors.

Springtime was easily his favorite time of the year. It was the time when the flowers first bloomed, often in the thousands, singing to him so sweetly that he couldn't help but come out of his home for the first time in months and buzz happily amongst them. It was when the town began to wake up, as the residents came out to enjoy the weather and the visiting Pokemon flocked from all four corners of the world. And it was when Pokemon started to pair off and start families, filling the season with a new, romantic sort of livelihood.

There was never a day when Ribombee didn't have at least one couple coming to admire his garden. It always brought warmth to his heart to see such shining examples of happiness visiting to shower the blossoms with their love. He knew the flowers thrived on it. They always seemed so much livelier when a couple passed by, their hearts and minds so full of each other that it radiated off of them to nurture their surroundings. To a non-Fairy-type, the notion would be ridiculous. But Ribombee knew better. Nature would cease to be without love.

He, himself, had plenty of love to give to the flowers, so he never worried about finding a partner himself. His garden was what brought happiness to his live. His work contented him. It was all he lived for.

When he explained this to anyone else, however, they'd usually get a sly sort of gleam in their eyes and shake their heads knowingly. They'd say, "You might be married to your work, Ribombee, but a Pokemon is a Pokemon. One day you'll find that your attention is drawn elsewhere. It's just the natural order of things."

Maybe that was true for other Pokemon, Ribombee thought – like his good friend Staraptor, who'd fly in every spring with the other migrants. The boisterous bird always told the same story about how he'd been content with his work as part of a delivery service ("I see the world and get paid for it! It's everything a Flying-type could ask for!"), but he'd never known true happiness until he met the Pokemon that eventually became his wife and raised three little chicks with her. He'd spent all his life thinking that exploring the world was the way to go, when all this time he'd truly been a family 'mon at heart.

Ribombee would always smile at that story, happy for his friend, but also amused because he knew he'd never be the main character in such a tale.

-.-.-.-.-.

Today was a spring day just like those that had come before it. Ribombee knew his routine, and it was a simple and average one – go into town for breakfast, work in the fields for the remainder of the day, and look forward to a filling dinner and good night's sleep before starting the cycle all over again the next day. He had done this every day for every spring in the several years he'd lived here in Rose Town, so he woke each morning with a perfect idea of what the day would bring him.

A neighbor of his, Fletchinder, was singing for the whole world to hear on his rooftop when Ribombee fluttered out the door that morning. The bird paused just long enough to look down and give Ribombee a friendly wave, then lifted his head again and continued to sing.

Ribombee took a moment to smile up at his neighbor. Instinct drove him to routinely fill the air with his song every day at sunrise. It was a reminder that despite how far Pokemon society had come, they were still living creatures with their own roles to play in the natural world.

At this hour, the streets of Rose Town were filled with the sounds of different kinds of wings beating as Flying, Bug, and Fairy-types went about their business. Of course, there were other kinds of Pokemon walking along the ground as well, mostly Grass-types along with a few others. Ribombee politely greeted everyone that crossed his path – some of them residents he was familiar with, others complete strangers just passing through. All of them were in good moods, which Ribombee acutely sensed as auras spilling off of their bodies to charge the air with a mixture of contentment and excitement. It was like floating through a field of flowers in full bloom – impossible not to feel cheerful with such a feeling hanging so thickly in the air that one could practically smell it.

The Bee Fly Pokemon's favorite breakfast tavern was just as busy as the town's main square outside. The arrival of spring marked the busiest time of the year, so the tavern was full of Pokemon sitting at the wooden tables and chatting with one another as they waited for their food and drinks to be served. Ribombee recognized many of them, such as his friend Bulbasaur, the Dodrio triplets, Dustox the wanderer that sometimes came to town every few seasons, and the odd pair of best friends Swellow and Wurmple.

Heading for his usual table near the window on the east side of the tavern, Ribombee passed by Whimsicott, who waved cheerfully at him. He blushed and waved shyly back – they'd dated for a couple of months the previous year, before breaking off the relationship after it had proved to be going nowhere. She was still a good friend to him, though, even if her smile still had an effect on him.

The morning sun passed through the huge window to illuminate and warm the tables on the east side, which was where Ribombee always liked to sit for breakfast. The tavern's staff quickly noticed that the table was now occupied, and soon a waitress was bustling over to take his order.

The Roserade greeted him with a cheerful, "Morning! Your usual, Ribombee?"

He nodded, trilling happily. "Yes please. How are things going for you, Roserade? We haven't spoken for a while."

She giggled, seemingly finding his politeness endearing. "Oh, very well, thank you~. It's such a fun time of year, seeing so many new faces joining the old ones. Sit tight, 'kay? I'll be back with your order in no time~."

When she bustled off, Ribombee let himself relax in the warm sun with a sigh. At a nearby table, he noticed, there was a Pokemon he'd never seen before. She wasn't too much larger than him, and she carried a lovely red flower over her shoulder like a parasol. Intriguingly, although the flower was obviously no longer rooted in the ground, it still gave off a bright aura. Ribombee had never seen anything like it. He cocked his head, watching the Pokemon as she contentedly sipped her tea, fascinated by her and the flower that should not be so alive but was.

He made a decision. He couldn't simply sit there and ignore something so interesting, especially a flower with such an attractive aura. He had to talk to her.

"Excuse me," Ribombee said quietly when he had reached the Pokemon's table. "Hopefully I'm not disturbing you, but… your flower…"

The Pokemon perked up, eyes alight with interest when she saw him. "Oh, you like it?" she asked. "Are you a Fairy too, then?"

She was incredibly pretty, Ribombee noticed, and her aura was not unlike that of the flower – tantalizingly sweet and fragrant.

"Yes, Bug-and-Fairy-type," he answered her. "My name is Ribombee. I own one of the flower fields around Rose Town, but I've never seen a flower like yours."

"That's because it's special," the unknown Fairy-type explained, smiling at him. "I was born on this flower, you see, and I've never parted from it since then. We keep each other alive. It grants me my power and I keep it fresh and strong. We're almost one and the same."

"Makes sense," Ribombee murmured, momentarily letting the flower's scent wash over him and drinking it in welcomingly. "Your auras are very similar. They're difficult to distinguish from a distance."

"I love flowers," she said dreamily. "I've come here this spring because I heard their call. This is a part of the world I'm not familiar with, so when I first heard so many of them singing, I simply could not resist. This entire town is alive with the song and the fragrance of flowers."

Ribombee nodded, remembering the first time he'd come here – overwhelmed into an almost drunken bliss in a town saturated with Fairy Aura, which burst out from the very earth through the flowers' petals to fill the air thickly like the honey sold by the Combee. Over the years, he'd grown used to it, but it was never not intoxicating.

"That reminds me, what is your name?" the Bee Fly Pokemon asked with a start.

"Floette," she answered sweetly. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Ribombee."

Even her name was pretty, Ribombee now knew. The sound was like flower nectar for his ears.

He paused for an instant too long to savor the sound, and he blushed for spacing out like that. "So are you here in Rose Town for any particular reason?" he asked quickly to cover for himself.

"No, but I will be staying for a while," Floette replied earnestly. "Now that I'm here, I want to see everything it has to offer."

Ribombee smiled. "Oh, good. Then I'll be seeing you again soon."

Good? He blinked at his own choice of words.

"Maybe," Floette told him, returning his smile, except hers was slightly teasing in nature. "You mentioned owning a flower field, yes? Perhaps I'll drop by sometime to say hello."

No sooner than she said that did Ribombee realized he'd like that very much. To have her visit his garden, that is.

He noticed Roserade coming back with his drink out of the corner of his eye, so he bowed slightly and said, "It was nice talking with you, Floette, but now I have to have my breakfast and go to work in my field. I hope you enjoy Rose Town."

Impossibly, Floette's voice and smile both turned sweeter. "I already am, thanks to you."

The Bug-and-Fairy-type had already turned away by the end of her remark, and for that he was thankful, because the honest, honeyed tone she used was sufficient to stain his cheeks pink under his coating of yellow fur.

She really was nice. One of the nicest Pokemon he'd ever met, even compared to Whimsi–

He shook the thought of his ex-girlfriend away. It was a bit odd to compare her to a Pokemon he'd only just met.

Already at his seat by the time Roserade arrived, Ribombee accepted his breakfast with a warm word of thanks. Inexplicably, he glanced over at Floette in time to see her take a dainty bite of her own food, appearing to savor it with a muffled hum of contentment. He allowed the corners of his mouth to quirk upwards before he hastened to bring his gaze back to his meal.

He wasn't quick enough to avoid attracting the attention of Roserade, however. "Did you speak with that Pokemon?" the waitress asked innocently, although she was giving him a very knowing look that he had seen all too many times before.

"Yes…" Ribombee replied, hesitant to continue the conversation for fear of where it was going. "She looked new, so I wanted to welcome her to Rose Town."

"Mm-hmm, and you go out of your way to do that for everyone, do you?" Roserade replied, with the tiniest hint of skepticism as she laid his plate down on the table before him.

He blushed again. "If you must know, I quite liked her flower," he grumbled. "It was pretty and smelled nice."

Mischievously, Roserade hinted, "You sure you were looking at the flower, sweetie~?"

Before the little insect could stammer out an indignant reply, the waitress was already heading off to another table, her leafy cloak rustling loudly behind her.

He remembered that that particular Grass-type had been very enthusiastic to hear of his brief tryst with Whimsicott a while back, and sympathetic when the relationship drifted apart. Maybe it was simply because she considered him a friend, or maybe she was always that excited when she heard about a new couple getting together. No matter which way he looked at it, though, she was far too excited about him talking to Floette.

Hmm… he thought, frowning after her.

Floette finished her meal before him, and so she wasn't there when he brushed the crumbs away from his mouth and fluttered out the door. Roserade was nearby when he left, so he called quietly to her and she wished him farewell with a wave of her hand.

Just before he turned away, she winked. Much to his frustration.

-.-.-.-.-.

It wasn't until many days later when Ribombee next met the intriguing Pokemon known as Floette.

"…and that should do it," he finished giving directions to the nearest fruit farm. "I hope you find what you're looking for."

The one to which he spoke, a bird who said her name was Trumbeak, thanked him for his help and gathered her chicks (three Pikipek and an absentminded Rowlet) before flying off in the direction he'd indicated. Ribombee waved slightly to their retreating tail feathers, feeling happy that he was able to be of assistance.

He turned back to his flower garden, which stretched all the way to the horizon in front of him, and let out a breath of air. It was time for him to get back to work. Such an immense garden wasn't going to pollinate itself.

He flitted here and there, his senses on alert for the auras of those flowers that hadn't yet produced seeds. There weren't many in this particular patch – he'd been hard at work here when Trumbeak had arrived. He had to move on to another part of the field, and he did so without hesitation, buzzing up into the sky and heading to what felt like a promising location.

There were Bug-types all over today, volunteering their time to help Ribombee pollinate, which he much appreciated. He murmured hellos to those he passed by, a Butterfree and a Vivillon, before he descended upon the area from where he had felt the aura emanating. Sure enough, one expert glance told him that these flowers needed his care.

He hadn't been working for very long when he felt a new aura approach, one that he was sure he'd felt before. Just as he was trying to figure it out, a voice called out to him. "Hi again, Ribombee."

The smile was already on his face as he turned around to regard Floette. And when he did – oh, how lovely she looked in full sunlight. Her pure white skin seemed to almost sparkle, and she looked so natural amongst the flowers that already bathed the air around them in their own unique sparkle.

It took a conscious effort to stop his smile from becoming too wistful as he gazed upon her. She was… well, she was beautiful.

"I'm so glad you could come!" Ribombee enthused, fluttering forward and extending his hands.

Giggling, Floette reached out and allowed him to clasp her hand in both of his. She twirled her flower and gushed, "I've never felt so alive in my life. So many flowers… the Fairy Aura is stronger here than I've ever seen it elsewhere."

"It's what makes springtime so magical here," agreed Ribombee. "There's always so much energy in the air at this time of year. And Fairies and Bugs are drawn here from all over to fill the town with even more life."

"It's just miraculous," said Floette.

That's exactly what it was. Ribombee realized it as the truth the second the words left Floette's pretty lips. It was a living miracle, one that came bursting forth in the form of millions upon millions of flowers rich in Fairy Aura every single year. Something like this shouldn't be natural, and yet it was.

"You're right, it is," he told her, smiling with the realization.

With a giddy twirl, Floette tittered again and exclaimed, "Oh, you're so lucky to live here, Ribombee. I'm too envious."

"Don't be," chuckled Ribombee, feeling strangely giddy as well. The energy flowing from the field and into the air around them made him feel bold enough to continue, "You can come live here with me. It would make me feel even luckier if I had someone as beautiful as you to share it with."

For the first time since he'd met her, Floette's immaculate white cheeks became stained with pink, and her hand flew up to cover her mouth in shock.

Only now did Ribombee's brain catch up with the rest of him, and the weight of what he'd just said came crashing down on him. Shock and embarrassment and shame and mortification slammed into him all at once, numbing him as if he'd been doused in a Stun Spore.

"W-Would you… really like that?" Floette murmured, with a strange expression of awe, as if she had only laid eyes on him for the first time.

Would I?

It had come out of nowhere. It had just… snuck up on him and tumbled out as an accidental proposal.

He'd never noticed it until now, but there it was. He liked her. Enough to want to spend the rest of his life with her.

Staraptor had been right, the crazy bird. No matter if he was a Fletchinder singing from the rooftops or a Whimsicott playing harmless pranks or, indeed, a Ribombee pollinating the flowers that sang to him so compellingly, he was a Pokemon with his own natural place in the world. All the affection he thought was exclusively reserved for his beloved garden had wandered onto something… no, someone else and grabbed hold of her tightly.

Ribombee loved her. Love at first sight. Something that a Fairy-type like him, normally so in tune to the emotions of others, had never seen coming.

Do I want her to stay with me? he asked himself.

… Yes, yes I do.

And he told her as much, no matter how embarrassed he was with himself for saying it aloud. But he needn't have worried about it.

Floette reached out again, this time to wrap her arms around his body and pull him close to hers. He felt their bodies pressing against one another, their chests bumping together and allowing them to feel each other's heartbeats. He felt her face so close to his, their breaths mingling, their cheeks nuzzling.

It was only them now. Ribombee only knew of himself and the extraordinary girl offering him her love.

Below them, the flowers trembled energetically, although there was no wind. It was just as Ribombee had always believed – that love nurtured them, made the Fairy Aura stronger. And now it was his love for Floette and her love for him that fed the magical plants.

"I think I want that too," she murmured in his ear. "I want it very much."

They could both feel the atmosphere growing hotter and heavier as the flowers put out more of their energy into the air around them, fueling their growing love just as the powerful emotion fueled them.

Hands slipped through Ribombee's fur as their owner slid them up to his face and clutched it gently. Floette smiled dazzlingly at him, her eyes blinking coyly. He met her gaze and smiled back, nudging her face with his own in a strong show of affection.

In an even stronger show, she pressed her lips against his and hummed at the contact. Ribombee's heart was set a-racing the moment he felt her silky, soft kiss, but he soon relaxed into it and hummed back.

They broke apart, elation running through their veins and shining out of their eyes.

"Shall I buy you dinner tonight?" Ribombee offered.

In response, Floette kissed him a second time. "I'd love that, my sweet~."

Holding hands, they set back off across the field, and the flowers shivered and stretched their stems up a little straighter wherever their shadows fell across the ground.

When they arrived at the tavern in which they'd first met, popular little Ribombee was met with much applause and congratulatory remarks from the other regulars when they saw him with his new soon-to-be partner. Even Whimsicott – whom at one point he'd also considered the love of his life – was excited, showering the couple with her glee. Meanwhile, Roserade and Staraptor, on separate occasions, managed to catch Ribombee's eye and mouthed to him, I told you so.

He didn't mind his friends' light teasing. Not one bit. Not when Floette was there, sitting across the table with a flirtatious look in her eye.

Once, Ribombee's garden was what brought joy to his life.

Now he had a partner whose love for him mirrored his own for her just as strongly. Not even the power of the flowers themselves could compare to his dear Floette.

-.-.-.-.-.

This one was a bit different than the previous "Pokemon Courtship" one-shot I did, but I liked it. Pokemon Mystery Dungeon is always a great series to take inspiration from.

I headcanon the idea that Fairy-types can "understand" flowers, and that they get some of their powers from flowers due to them being rich in "Fairy-type energy". Fairies and Ghosts are the only truly supernatural Pokemon, I think.

I'm planning on making this a series of sorts, so if there are any Pokemon you'd like to see me pair up, feel free to send a request. (I'm currently working on a Sceptile x Goodra request, but others are always welcome.)