Dragonites, Poke Puffs, and the Blessing of the Harvest

After seeing off the three trainers, Naoki got back to work on building the glass greenhouse.

After some consideration, he decided to implement both ideas.

Not only would he build a flower stand, but he would also create a separate glass greenhouse for warmth during the colder months.

The flower stand would be for people, while the glass greenhouse would be for Combee and Butterfree.

In winter, when the temperature drops and heavy snow blankets the ground, not even the hardiest grass can survive—let alone flowers.

This season is particularly tough for Butterfree and Combee, who rely on nectar to survive.

Naoki wasn't sure how wild Combee and Butterfree dealt with this problem, but now that he was here, he certainly wasn't going to let them struggle.

So, he decided to build a glass greenhouse.

This way, when winter arrives, he can move the Combee hives and Butterfree nests into the greenhouse. He'd fill it with pots of green plants and flowers, along with the special honey sold in town, to ensure the Pokémon can make it through the winter safely.

Naoki was skilled at hands-on projects.

By the afternoon, he had already sawed several wooden planks and put them together to form a large flower stand.

His flower field was thriving with hydrangeas, roses, lilies, orchids, and several other flowers unique to the Pokémon world.

He couldn't remember the names of some of them clearly, but he had planted them simply because they were beautiful.

The next step was to figure out how to move the flower stand into the flower field.

Naoki strolled around the field with brother Indeedee, thinking through the logistics and explaining his plan to the curious Indeedee.

"I want to create a garden where I can drink tea and enjoy the flowers, so I can relax here in my free time."

"Ai eh?"

At hearing this, Brother Indeedee suddenly remembered that there was a similar garden in the manor where they used to live.

It promptly exclaimed, "Aiya!"

"Hmm?" Naoki turned and looked at him. "Do you have a solution?"

"Ai Yi." Brother Indeedee nodded confidently.

It gazed calmly at the lush flower field in front of them and said, "Ai eh... Ai eh."

Naoki rubbed his chin thoughtfully and, after a moment, pulled out a handful of translation seeds to understand Indeedee better.

Brother Indeedee repeated, "Ai ya... Ai ya." (First, move the flowers in the middle, then put the flower stand in place, and finally, lay a cobblestone path on the ground.)

"Cobblestones?" Naoki nodded, impressed by the suggestion. "That's a great idea. Thanks, Indeedee."

Brother Indeedee nodded modestly, not seeking any credit.

With a plan in place, the next step was to move the flowers out of the center.

It just so happened that Naoki had planned to build the glass greenhouse later, and these flowers could be moved inside.

After a brief moment of thought, Naoki called over Koraidon and Cyclizar, who were watching nearby. He asked them to bring some empty flower pots from the storage room and began digging up the flowers.

Brother Indeedee watched for a while, then quietly left and returned to the house. There, he whispered something to Sister Indeedee, who was busy making Poke Puffs.

Sister Indeedee blinked in understanding, then stopped what she was doing and fetched a few Sitrus Berries from the fruit storehouse.

These berries are known to restore health and cure status conditions.

She squeezed the berries into juice, poured it into a cup, and handed it to her brother.

So, when Naoki—covered in dirt—finished moving the flower pots to the grass, he found a glass of juice waiting for him on the small table where he usually had his tea.

Naoki didn't need to guess who had left it for him. He smiled, knowing exactly who it was.

Since the Pokemon siblings joined, these thoughtful gestures and little surprises in life had become a regular occurrence for Naoki.

He happily drank the glass of juice and then went inside to place an order for pebbles and mortar to pave the garden path. He used the video phone to call Kelly.

Kelly wasn't busy that day, so after receiving Naoki's call, she quickly delivered the supplies he ordered.

Not only that, but when Kelly learned about Naoki's project, she decided to stay and offer her guidance.

By five o'clock in the evening, the construction in the flower field was finally completed.

A large open space had been cleared in the center of what used to be a square flower field, and the large flower stand Naoki had built was carefully moved to the center by Brother Indeedee, using telekinesis.

A layer of pebbles, still setting, had been laid around the open area, with a path connecting the central space to the rest of the garden.

Soon, the flowers would start to grow along the flower stand, eventually covering it entirely.

Naoki could already picture the cobblestone paths and flower stands draped in lush vines, forming a hidden, natural garden. The thought of that future scene made him feel thrilled. He thanked Kelly, "I really appreciate your help with this!"

Kelly smiled and replied, "No problem at all. You've already paid me!"

Naoki: "…"

Thinking ahead to his next project, Naoki added, "Oh, by the way, I also plan to build a glass greenhouse on the ranch, one that can keep warm during the winter."

"A glass greenhouse?" Kelly pondered for a moment before replying, "Of course, we can do that! The only thing is, we've run out of glass building materials at the store. The next shipment should arrive mid-month. If you can wait until then, I'll deliver it to you as soon as it comes in."

"That works," Naoki nodded. "As long as it's built before winter."

His gaze drifted toward the Butterfree and Combee buzzing nearby.

Kelly followed his line of sight and quickly caught on to his thoughts.

"Don't worry," she said with a reassuring smile, waving goodbye. "It'll be ready in time. See you later!"

"See you!" Naoki waved as Kelly left.

Just as she departed, Zack pulled up in his truck at the ranch.

Naoki helped load several large barrels of milk and bags of rock salt into the truck. As he noticed the large, golden pumpkins already filling the bed of the truck, he commented with a smile:

"Looks like you had a good harvest today!"

Zack laughed heartily. "Yep! The crops in all of Kosaji Town are growing beautifully this autumn! The weather's been perfect, and no natural disasters! We have the King of Bountiful Harvests to thank for that!"

As he said this, Zack's face took on a more mysterious look.

"Hey, did you hear? The harvest in the neighboring town didn't go so well this year! They had heavy rain for days during the summer, and the fields were all flooded over there!"

"It's amazing how just a few kilometers away, their fields got drenched, but here, we hardly had any rain."

Naoki: "…"

He silently glanced over at the Dragonairs and Dragonites resting nearby, recalling the legends that claimed they were once worshiped as weather controllers by humans. 'Could those old stories be true?'

Was it because of the presence of these Pokémon that Kosaji Town had been spared from the flooding?

Zack, seemingly struck by a thought, suddenly asked with wide eyes, "Could it be that the King of Bountiful Harvests is protecting us?"

In Zack's mind, the King of Bountiful Harvests was brought to town by Naoki, and everyone followed Naoki's lead in believing in the King. When it comes to knowledge about this Pokémon, Zack thought no one understood it better than Naoki.

Naoki smiled politely and replied, "Well... I'm not entirely sure, because I've never actually seen the King of Bountiful Harvests myself. I've only heard of its legend and know it's a very powerful Pokémon."

Zack thought for a moment before deciding, "Alright. I need to talk to the other farmers about this later! Maybe they've noticed something too."

Naoki chuckled to himself, thinking, 'Go ahead! The King of Bountiful Harvests might appreciate you spreading the word on his behalf. After all, he could be watching.'

The idea of the King blessing the crops for a good harvest, while Dragonite and Dragonairs ensured the ranch had good weather, really seemed like a perfect combination for farming!

Zack had come and gone in a hurry, eager to share his thoughts with the farmers in the neighboring town. He planned to ask them to start honoring the King of Bountiful Harvests to see if they could also gain his blessing.

As Zack disappeared into the distance, Naoki wandered over to the lake, where a few Dragonairs were soaking in the water. He smiled and asked, "Are you guys blessing the ranch with good weather?"

"Woo?" The Dragonairs looked puzzled, clearly not understanding what he was saying.

Naoki chuckled and patted their heads. "If people knew what you were doing, they'd be very grateful. They might even bring you some of the crops and food they've grown as thanks."

It reminded Naoki of the stories where people worshipped Dragonite by offering gifts at the lakes where they lived.

Of course, the Dragonairs didn't seem to understand—they hadn't done anything special as far as they were concerned.

"Hmm," Naoki mused, "maybe it's because there are five Dragonairs and three Dragonite with strong auras gathered here. Those auras could be affecting the weather around us."

He thought of the Dragon Holy Land in the anime, where flowers bloomed year-round, supposedly influenced by the power of the Dragonites that guarded the place.

Then his thoughts drifted to the Jewel of Life created by Arceus, which could make land fertile and contained a dragon energy.

'If you think about it, the good weather and harvests in Kosaji Town might really be thanks to the presence of these Dragonites and Dragonairs,' Naoki concluded.

Dinner that evening was, once again, prepared by Sister Indeedee.

She had spent the entire afternoon in the kitchen making steamed buns.

In that time, Sister Indeedee had also made two large boxes of Poke Puffs.

She generously shared the treats with the Pokémon on the ranch, especially with the two wild Dragonite and the five Dragonairs.

The wild Dragonites and Dragonairs were so grateful and happy that Sister Indeedee, delighted by their joy, promised to make more Poke Puffs for them whenever they wanted.

Watching this, Naoki couldn't help but feel conflicted.

'Oh, goodness! This was never my plan,' Naoki thought, a bit overwhelmed. 'I didn't mean to make Sister Indeedee work so hard to feed two wild Dragonites!'

After receiving their much-loved Poke Puffs, the two wild Dragonites happily gathered up the treats and signaled to the five Dragonairs that it was time to head back to Dragonite Island.

Naoki, confused by this sudden departure, quickly called out and stopped them. "Wait, why are you leaving?" he asked.

One of the wild Dragonite blinked at him and responded, "Awoo!"

Curious, Naoki popped another translation seed into his mouth, preparing to hear what the wild Dragonite had to say next.

"We promised the Dragonairs and Dratini on the island that we would return every night and bring them food so they wouldn't worry!" 

One of the wild Dragonites added, "Those little Dratini said that when they grow up, they want to come here to work, just like us!"

Naoki couldn't help but think that when the wild Dragonites went back to tell the others about today, they'd all want to join the ranch too.

Naoki: "..."

"Alright then, just be careful!"

Seeing how eager they were to share with the other dragons, Naoki handed them two more boxes filled with treats. 

"From now on, these will be your reward. Every day after work, you'll get a full box of Poke Puffs."

Hearing this, the two wild Dragonites' eyes lit up. 

With their Poke Puff boxes in hand and dreams of a future filled with snacks, they happily set off for home.

Later that evening, it was time for the tavern to open.

However, Naoki decided to stay home and watch TV instead.

Lately, Naoki had been feeling a bit restless, probably from eating too many seeds. Even when he did visit the tavern, he couldn't quite follow the Pokémon's conversations.

But just as Naoki was settling in, he suddenly heard the wail of sirens outside.

Startled, Naoki quickly got up and went out to investigate.

To his surprise, he saw the familiar figure of Officer Jenny arriving on her motorcycle, with her trusty Growlithe by her side.

However, Growlithe wasn't acting as a guest today. Instead, it stuck close to Officer Jenny, as if they were on official business.

"Excuse me!" Officer Jenny greeted Naoki cheerfully, then added, "I'm going to park here first. After I finish up, I'll come by with Growlithe for a drink."

Naoki's mind raced, thinking of the bad guys from the anime who steal other people's Pokémon, and he blurted out, "Is there a Pokémon hunter in town?"

Officer Jenny blinked in surprise, then burst into laughter. "No, no, Kosaji Town has a great reputation for public safety. There aren't many Pokémon hunters around here. We're just out to patrol the mountains tonight."

Naoki let out a sigh of relief. "Patrol?"

"That's right!" Officer Jenny nodded. "It's autumn, and there are a lot of dead leaves in the mountains. Some trainers like to camp out there, and there are wild Fire-type Pokémon too. If they're not careful, it could cause a forest fire."

"During this season, I go on patrol every night to make sure nothing like that happens. It would be terrible if a fire broke out."

Naoki imagined the devastating scene of a forest fire and nodded in agreement. "You're right. Thank you for all your hard work!"

"As long as it helps prevent something like that," Officer Jenny replied with a soft smile, her expression then turning serious. 

"Winter is coming soon. If a fire starts, it won't just harm Pokémon— the forest food supply would be destroyed too. Even if the Pokémon survive, without food, making it through winter would be nearly impossible. It's a critical issue."

Growlithe, standing dutifully beside her, nodded with determination: "Arf, arf!"