The Pokemon Ranch (An Advanceshipping Story)

[Azurelight]

Hello everyone!!! Well, I've had a Bulbagarden account for some time I've finally found enough time to log on and check things out! It's absolutely amazing and the fanfics are written very nicely! DISCLAIMER: I do not own pokemon or any of the characters in the media.

So I've been writing an Advanceshipping story lately, and it's not really related to the anime except for characters and their pokemon and towns. The primary focus of the story is on Advanceshipping and it revolves around a ranch of pokemon (hence the name ) It will include other ships, for now I'm going to name a little Contestshipping. The others will soon unwind as the story progresses This story shall be PG-13, I will occasionally use mild language and there will be some implied humor and action.

I do appreciate grammar corrections because I myself have a problem of constantly correcting others! I do, however, find flaming unnecessary and rude, especially if you don't like the ship. I appreciate all who read and even come to take a look! So even if you won't comment, thanks for visiting and/or reading!!

I hope you enjoy my fanfic! Again, thank you all for taking the time to see my thread!



The Pokemon Ranch








Chapter 1: The Boy in the Tree

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Tiny sprinkles of pure light scattered across the sky like an ocean of diamonds, giving the indigo blanket of the night sky some brightness. A thin sliver of the brilliant moon complimented the glittering stars, presenting itself in the shape of a crescent resting on its right. The sky portrayed a gentle persona, radiating the quiet of the night to every tree, bush, and sleeping creature. It felt as if this enchanted sight could only be seen again through memories.

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A pretty faced girl with two pool-like sapphire eyes were locked on the oddly shaped window of a moderately-sized Honda CRV, infatuated with the country’s magnificent scenery. Her brown hair donned on the delicious shade of ground nutmeg, falling along her face like flightless wings and her skin glistened fairness on her slender body. She was positively lovely looking that night, even though she barely tried. Her eyes were bewitched by what lie outside of the now-stuffy CRV. It felt as if she had been in there for hours. The girl shifted her right hand which had been pressed against her cheek for at least two hours, feeling the cool air start to chase away the compressed warmth. Her elbow was sore from being cramped down against the tight leather arm of her seat.

​

Despite the obvious space and size difference, being in the CRV for fourteen hours now felt like being caged up in a Snubbull carrier. In the background, yet another DJ Mary song began to play on the radio softly along with the sound of chirping Kricketot and Kricketune, and the CRV being the only car chugging along the highway. The small clock under the car’s CD changer read twelve-seventeen p.m. in eerie green text. It had been a day filled with driving; The constant pit stops, the car smelling of salt and vinegar potato chips, and the feeling of slight bitterness mixed in with everyone else’s excitement, ultimately May Maple’s bitterness to her family’s excitement.

​

The Maple family had all been on the road for a good amount of hours and everyone was exhausted. They weren’t far from their new home, or in more specific terms, their new ranch. May sighed, thinking of her old home in Petalburg City. It was where she and her little brother Max grew up together, where she caught and raised all of her pokemon. They were leaving all of that behind for a measly ranch in a town she had never even heard of until now. It was a town with a particularly large countryside. It was called ‘Lunaria’, a mysterious name really. May never understood its meaning. It was a rural area really, and the population of people was probably less than half of Petalburg’s .Everyone else seemed to be happy about the move. Before moving to Petalburg, Norman Maple had grown up on a pokemon ranch back in the countryside of Fallarbor Town. He had always planned to return to pokemon ranching, and Caroline had always stood beside him on this decision. Max didn’t mind the move so much, seeing as he was looking forward to seeing a variety of pokemon in the country. May was really the only one who was down on the move.

​

There was only one thing she could think about, and that was all the friends she had left back in Petalburg: Solidad the beautiful queen of the city, Brianna, the shy, yet occasionally eccentric boy-stalker, Harley, the pompous prince of style, and then there was Drew. May tightened her left arm around a small yellow pack. It contained all of her pokeballs, which was probably her last memory of Petalburg that she got to keep. Ever since they had started to load the car with their belongings, she couldn’t get her mind off of him. The move had ruined everything. She had gone from city princess, to future ranch freak. At least that’s how she put it. Going from a booming, hot city like Petalburg to the small, quiet town of Lunaria was like a Gyarados dropping down back into the form of a Magikarp. Her thoughts zoomed back to Drew. She replayed their last words together over and over again.


“Don’t be upset May, I promise; we’ll still see each other. You can visit every month after you get settled and even if you can’t, it doesn’t matter. Remember, you’re always my sweetheart,”

​

She felt herself blush. His sweetheart, that’s what she was. Despite the dreadful distance between the two towns, they would still be together no matter what. That’s what people in love do when separated. At least that was May’s view on it. She loved Drew, and he was the first boy she’d ever loved. He was hers forever. And I’m his forever…She smiled slightly. At least she would have something to look forward to at the end of every month.

​

May Maple was a sixteen year-old city girl. She owned many pokemon, raising them from when she was only eight. She and her pokemon were very close and she was one of the best battlers amongst her group of friends. Most of her friends in Petalburg considered her to be very pretty amongst others to her joy. Her expression warmed up as she thought of them and she sighed nostalgically. They weren’t completely separated.

​

“Are we there yet?” sighed the annoyingly high and smart-aleck sounding voice. May groaned, this being the millionth time her little brother, Max had asked that question. Max had dark hair like his father’s and wore oversized glasses. He had enormous eyes and was little for a nine-year old. His appearance portrayed a cute, carefree boy, but he had the brain and the mouth of a twenty year-old.

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Instead of shooting a witty comment at her brother’s complaint, May slowly sat upright from her position and rested back in her seat, turning her head towards him. With Drew roaming around her mind, she was icily calm.

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“Come on Max, you’re ruining the peace. Why don’t you just sit back and enjoy the scenery outside?” she asked patiently. To her dismay, the young boy snorted.

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“There’s nothing to see except for boring old trees and fields. Ever since we got here, I haven’t seen one interesting pokemon!” he exclaimed.

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“We’ve seen plenty of Miltank and zigzagoon,” the syrupy voice of Caroline chimed in. May smiled a little as she watched the pretty woman turn their head towards them from the front passenger seat. Her hair color reminded her of faded chocolate that spiraled into gorgeous shiny curls, and her eyes were pigmented a light shade of periwinkle.

​

“I said ‘interesting’, Mom. I always see Zigzagoon and Miltank. I’m never gonna see a cool pokemon around Lunaria,” he whined, “Why couldn’t we move to the Orange Archipelago? There are tons of cool pokemon there!” May glared at him in vexation.

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“Max, we have been on the road for fourteen hours, and nobody wants to listen to you complain every minute of it!” she snapped. The ride had been very tiring. The car was a mess inside: Crumpled up bags of potato chips and chocolate mini brownies were strew all across the floor of the car, not to mention, an empty can of whipped cream stuffed deep under the front seat. On the very back seat, big blankets and pillows spilled over Max and May, and a giant cooler full of what had been their dinner sat up right in front of the two.

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“Settle down, you two! And smile while you’re at it; it looks like our fourteen hours are up!” the proud voice of Norman announced. May looked over at the driver’s seat to see her father grinning gleefully.

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“Finally! We’re here!” Max cried. Norman nodded and began to shift the car right, zooming past a sign that read LUNARIA TOWN. May sighed with relief and sat herself up again, turning towards the window and gazing outside. Settling down shouldn’t take too long, then I’ll see Drew, and Solidad, and Brianna, and everyone again! She lit up inside suddenly and hugged her pokemon pack tight.

​

Lunaria Town had been exactly how May had pictured it, with a few exceptions. The town portion of Lunaria consisted of small markets, restaurants, boutiques, and other media. It was after midnight, so it was completely dark and she could barely make out any of the buildings, except for a pokemon clinic. There were some pokemon outside on some of the buildings, but they were sound asleep.

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“Look! A Furret!” Max called, his hands and face were pressed against his window. He pointed out several more pokemon that had been unusual to the parts of Petalburg. It wasn’t too long until they finally passed town. They were now entering the fields of Lunaria, which were astonishingly very lovely to see. The slender moonlight skimmed over the grassy plains, coloring them silver, and large patches of a variety of flowers stood tall in the night.

​

“So beautiful…” Caroline trailed off as they passed a field of zinnias. They flared garnet under the black sky. Albeit the fact that Lunaria Town was a pittance in size compared to Petalburg City, the country was endless and so was the plethora of unique pokemon.

​

The car began to slow and soon made a left turn, passing a big wooden sign that read MAGNOLIA MEADOWS. The CRV was pulling through a small path surrounded by gigantic trees and flourished greenery. The trees began to lessen and another bunch of plains smoothed the earth. May spotted a huge log cabin with a comfy looking porch. The house looked to be about two-stories tall, but she couldn’t see most of its features. Surrounding the house were two massive portions of land planted itself in the possession of the house, being divided up into different portions. One portion was covered with a field of chromatic crops, and the other with an enormous barn and a smaller coop in comparison. May stared in awe at the sight.

​

“Is this our new home?" She asked. Norman chuckled and shook his head.

​

“These are our neighbors. We’ll be living right
next to them; we share the fence to one of their ranch fields with ours. They’re nice folk, and I’m pretty sure they have children; you should introduce yourself as soon as we’re settled. Who knows, you could make friends,” he said.

​

“Yeah…sure…” May replied, barely listening as she stared out the window again. The car drove past the neighbors’ ranch and soon, Norman slowed it, turning it right into a wide path. Max gasped.

​

“This is our new house?” he asked in shock. May also stared, her eyes wide with surprise. The house was a whopping log cabin which was about the same size as the neighbors’ house. There were large windows plastered all along the house and the entire bottom of the house was made of gray and brown bricks. The car pulled up into what looked like a garage. Now they could see a small garden surrounding the house. There was also a long, curved cobblestone stairway which seemed to lead up to the door. The overall appearance was beautiful.

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“We’re home,” Norman breathed. He parked the car for good finally and wrenched out the keys, opening his door and stepping out. Caroline turned to the kids.

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“Thankfully, your father and I had the movers’ pokemon move everything in, so you two can just bring your stuff up to your rooms and get to sleep quickly,” she smiled and opened her door to step out as well.

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May sighed, the weariness thick in her breath. She clicked her seatbelt off and then opened her door, jumping out while clutching her pokemon pack. She watched as her father unloaded the trunk, setting down what seemed to be hundreds of suitcases.

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“Mom, can I let my pokemon out? They’ve been cooped up inside their balls all day,” she said. Caroline nodded.

​

“Of course you can, but make sure they’re in their balls by the time we get to sleep. I don’t want your Skitty to sneak up on me again while I’m asleep.” She sighed. May nodded and unzipped her pack, grabbing all of her pokeballs and tossing them lightly in the air.

​

“C’mon out, guys!” she beamed as seven pokemon appeared. In front of her stood her Blaziken, Venasaur, Beautifly, Munchlax, Glaceon, Wartortle, and her Skitty. The petite kitten pokemon bounced up playfully and began to run around in circles hyperactively.

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“Come on everyone, let’s get everything inside, we can play all you want tomorrow!” she exclaimed.

​

Everyone was soon taking suitcases and packs into the house. The outside may have been an incredible sight, but the inside was equally magnificent. The living room was a wide, open space with their old couches placed around in a right angular fashion with the television in front. The kitchen was Caroline’s dream, complete with granite counters and a large gas stove and a black oven and microwave. The fridge was made of hard oak and already packed with snacks as was the pantry. In the middle of the kitchen was an island counter where three tall sitting stools were placed in a neat row. At the right end of the kitchen was a round, bamboo dinner table that seated four and behind it was a white door with closed blinds. It must have led to the backyard. Everything seemed to be in place.

​

“Wow, the movers did a great job,” May said as she dropped off yet another suitcase into the living room. By now, every pack but one was in the living room and everybody was already exploring the house.

​

“May, could you pick up the last pack? I believe it’s yours, “Caroline’s voice rang out from the kitchen.

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“Okay!” she replied. She sighed at her family’s eagerness towards the house. More than the house, she truly looked forward to exploring the new ranch land. Her friends would be in complete awe at the beauty of Lunaria when she visited and told them. She stepped out into the cool night, inhaling the fresh, crisp, country air. Even the air was distinctly different with its clarity unlike Petalburg’s, where common fresh air was infested with smoke fumes and the odor of saturated fats. Even though she was separated from her friends, the move didn’t upset her too much anymore. Drew’s words kept rolling around her mind, incubating her heart like an egg.

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“Blaze!” a deep voice piped up from behind her. May turned to see Blaziken standing behind her.

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“Okay, you can come too, Blaziken,” she smiled and the two rode down the stairway to the car. She stared off towards the neighbors’ farm. Their livestock land was far behind the houses, but Norman was right about the fence being the only division between their fields. May stepped over to the suitcase with Blaziken following close by; instead of grabbing it and dragging it back to the house, she quietly unzipped the small, topmost pocket and pulled out a small photograph. She gazed at it for a few seconds and then pressed it against her chest.

​

“Love you Drew…” she whispered dreamily.

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“Blaze…” Blaziken growled, picking up the suitcase and pulling it over the house for May. She quickly looked up as he left and then back down at the picture. The pokemon was soon out of sight, leaving May alone clutching her cherished photo. She gently kissed the face of the photo.

​

“I miss you…” she whispered. The photo was all too nostalgic every time she gazed at it. In the picture, Drew was giving her one of his famous smirks and his grassy hair swished across his face as the wind tugged at him. Despite his smug look, his eyes gave away warmth and compassion. May vividly recalled the event in which the photo was taken, they were all at the pier near one of the sailor residents in Petalburg, training their pokemon and goofing off. It was one of the best days in Petalburg that she had with her friends. Just the thought of them made her heart heavy.

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May slowly began to bring her hands lower, until it suddenly blew out of her hand. A nasty gust of wind soared passed her, carrying the photo away. May gasped in shock.

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“No!” she cried, dashing after the flying piece of paper. She anxiously sped after it, an alarm going off in her heart. May found herself running across the wide backyard of her house, her heart was racing. She couldn’t bear to lose even one picture of Drew. May reached the back fence that separated the field for the future livestock and the backyard and she climbed over it hastily. The photo was now higher up in the air, as if the wind was actually trying to steal the photo of Drew. By now, May was panting and she slowed to a pitiful stop as she watched the photo being carried away.

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“Oh man…” she whimpered as it rose up and away. She hung her head low and clenched her fists.

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“That was my best picture…” she sighed. She leaned back on the fence for support, throwing her head back in frustration. It felt as if this were a sign that they’d never see each other again, but then again, it was just one picture ; Unfortunately her favorite.

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“Pika!” May jumped up in fear at the sudden yelp and whipped her head around eagerly.

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“Who’s there?” she shot out. She stared to the right of the fence which was directly into the neighbors’ land and widened her eyes in astonishment. A giant alder tree stood tall in the corner of the neighbors’ side of the fence. It was so tall, that it leaned slightly over to their side of the fence. She stepped back a bit and just stared at the massive alder.

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“Pi!” the same squeak had come from the alder tree. May jumped again a little but she wasn’t as scared. She now knew it was a pokemon, but it certainly didn’t sound like a pokemon that usually hung out in trees like and Aipom or a Treecko. The longest branch that hung over her family’s ranch field began to rustle and an array of leaves sprinkled onto the ground. She took a couple more steps back and watched silently, ready to hop over the fence and run home if the pokemon was hostile.

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“Pikachu!” a small, chubby figure leaped down from the branch and hopped over to May’s feet. She widened her eyes in awe at the pokemon.

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“A Pikachu!” she exclaimed. She bent down to get a closer look at the electric mouse. His fur shone a dusky silver color due to the dark and there were two red circles on his cheeks. May smiled at him and petted his head.

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“What’re you doing in a tree, cutie? I’ve never really heard of Pikachus to hang out in trees…” she said. She didn’t notice at first but, as he stepped closer, there was a small piece of paper in his mouth. He poked the paper towards her, beckoning her to take it.

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“What’s this?” she asked as she took the paper. She flipped it over and gasped. It was her photo that had flown away.

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“You caught it! Thank you!” she cried, picking up the Pikachu and hugging it tightly.

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“Chu…” the Pikachu seemed to be grinning. With that, he leaped out of her arms and back into the tree. May raised an eyebrow and walked closer towards the tree.

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“Pikachu?” she asked. She saw the pokemon, but he clearly wasn’t alone. The Pikachu rested atop the shoulder of a silhouette of somebody. May squinted her eyes and finally determined the figure to be a boy up in the tree. She could barely make out any details of the silhouette, but she did see a baseball cap and a scarf hanging from one of his arms.

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“Hello?” she asked in a small voice. The figure didn’t move, but the Pikachu smiled at May.

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“Pika!” it piped. May watched the boy lift his arm to pet the top of the Pikachu’s arm. She stepped up closer, clutching her photo.

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“Um, thank you for saving my picture!” she called. There was a long pause between them and all that could be heard was the mellifluous whistle of the wind. Finally, the figure of the boy threw his head back and relaxed himself on the alder branch.

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“No problem; I suggest you get home though, your mam and pap might start to worry,” his voice was slightly deep, like those of average teenage boys, but it had a certain edge to it. He sounded mellow and carefree, striking curiosity in May to see what he looked like. She tried squinting her eyes for a better look, but the darkness prevailed. She stepped back a little and kept a firm gaze on the alder tree.

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“Um, okay then, thanks again!” she said. The boy didn’t answer, but it looked like he had turned his head towards her. She nodded and waved to him and the Pikachu, stuffing the picture in the pocket of her shorts and climbing over the fence. As she made her way back to the house, she couldn’t help but look back at the alder tree.

*~*​

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When May got back to the house and all of her pokemon were returned to their pokeballs, Norman decided to call together a family meeting. It had been a long time since she had seen her father in such a pleasant attitude. It was his dream to purchase and run a pokemon ranch as he had always told her and Max. Seeing him so happy felt good to her, but it still didn’t erase her sourness about moving away from her friends.

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“So, how do you like the ranch?” he asked, his eyes were bright. Max was grinning and nodding like a madman.

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“I love it! There are so many cool pokemon here; I almost swear I just saw a Murkrow, I can’t wait to read
up on them!” he chimed. May looked at her brother and shook her head.

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“There’s one you don’t need to teach how to battle.” She scoffed. Max stuck his tongue out at his sister.

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“You’re just jealous because I’m smarter,” he jeered. May shot him an agitated glare.

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“What about you May, what do think of the new ranch?” Caroline quickly cut into the dispute. She looked up at her parents; her eyes were frozen onto them.

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“Because it makes you guys happy, I guess I’m happy too!” she smiled weakly, trying hard to cover up her pessimism about the move. They obviously didn’t buy it, seeing as Caroline immediately sighed.

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“I know you too well, May. Whenever you lie, you always give me that half-frown-half-smile. Your father and I won’t be upset, we just want to know how you’ll feel about living on the ranch,” she said in the sweetest possible voice. May leaned back in her chair and gave them a bored look.

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“Well, if you want the truth…I’ve got mixed feelings about this whole thing,” she affirmed. Norman folded his arms and smirked.

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“Well, once you get used to farm life, maybe you’ll like it. I loved living on my father’s farm,” he said. May sighed and looked away.

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“Maybe…” she said. For reasons unknown to her, the boy in the tree came wafting into her mind when she said that.


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Heheh...Not too shabby, huh? Well, thanks for reading and viewing!! I should post the next chapter soon, hopefully!! Thanks to everyone again!