Hey guys, this is a fanfic idea that sort of stuck in my head because:
- I'm bored
- I'm crazy
- I LOVE Contestshipping!

Basically I got it off Earthy Joys by Philippa Gregory, who writes the most awesome historical fiction novels during pre/during/post-Elizabethan Times. Obviously the story is set around there...but I Pokemon-ized many of the places and stuff. I tried to be accurate with the flower info - gardening sites are love - so don't kill me for being somewhat inaccurate! D:

Anyway, let's begin this shall we?

PS: to tie up any confusions, I'll try to add a postnote about some of the stuff I added in the fic.
PPS: THANK YOU AMA FOR BETAING (AND MAKING FUN/CONSTRUCTIVE COMMENTS) ON MY FIC. :D

Warnings: OOC Drew; I tried to make him in-character but it's hard. Oh, and dirty jokes are abundant. Ratings also may go up later on.

La Fleur de Mai (The Mayflower)

The disclaimer for the fanfic is implied.

'-.-'-.-'-.-'-.-'-.-'-Ch 1: Rose-'-.-'-.-'-.-'-.-'-.-'

------------Day------------

Ever since he was able to master the mysteries of the soil, Drew always reveled in the scent of good earth.

He sifted the soil with his gloved hands, admiring its consistency and quality – it was soft enough to let roots grow and compact enough to prevent mineral and water loss. He even took a pinch of it and examined the grains between his thumb and index finger, judging with his sharp eyes. As usual, nothing seemed wrong.

"Such good earth is rare elsewhere – but not here," he mused. "But it's plenty here…I'm glad."

He smiled. He did like his job – a good one, no less. Position as Master Gardener in Merysao Kingdom was hard to come by, even harder to maintain for five years.

But Andrew (Drew) Tradescant was different – he had been widely known for his aesthetic taste in horticulture since he was ten. The King himself had "discovered" his talents whilst visiting La Rousse, and immediately took the boy to the Court. There, Drew was to renovate The Royal Garden, and he did it with much justice. He laboriously planned each plot and oversaw the planting of every flower, bush, and tree. His ambitions for stunning designs worked out in the end – the world knew how beautiful and pleasing it was to see the fertile land gracefully transform as the seasons changed.

"A work of such genius!" many had claimed. "Such vitality is so rare to see in such places!"

Now taking the spade in one hand, he started to plant new roses to augment the Rose Maze. It was a seemingly-intricate arrangement of over fifty rose varieties that wounded around a sizeable area of the Garden. The young shoots, with their tender buds still unopened, lay in the soft loam and were shaded by the other rosebushes that Drew planted years ago.

After laying out most of the planned-out rows, he stood up to temporarily relieve his straining muscles. Surveying the progress, he smiled. Although his gloves were crusted with dirt and his clean clothes streaked, Drew looked forward to a more relaxing time in the courts. He was not a prominent figure there, but he enjoyed some of his privileges.

"These should flower on Mayday…" Drew mused. "Perfect…"

"Selia!" a small, familiar voice piped up and impatiently tugged the gardener's sleeve.

"Rosamunde!" Drew looked down at his old companion, a male Roselia. The Pokemon seemed happy enough – he had gone off as Drew's assistant to oversee the other grounds. "How are the rest?"

"Rose," it murmured in pleasure while giving a graceful bow; nothing was wrong.

The gardener nodded and resumed his work. As the familiar rhythm of the earth being dug and reformed to accommodate the saplings lulled his head, Drew began to think of other things.

The thrill of accomplishment…and the growing pride from such deeds flooded his heart. Nothing made him happier than seeing the best of his abilities shown, may it be his gardens or – rarely – his finesse with Pokemon battling. Other courtiers had no grace when giving commands or making their Pokemon execute their moves. Drew, on the other hand, prided in beauty in each battle, along with the utmost priority being Victory.

But…there was always something missing in the proud gardener. His considerable fame gained him many admirers and rivals, yes…but he always felt a distance. Not that he minded much…

"Mr. Tradescant! Master Gardener, sir!" a piping voice called out.

Drew groaned as a small lady-in-waiting dashed – in an undignified manner, he noted – to Drew. She obviously had planned to give him a hug, but seeing his filthy hands and shirt, she quickly recomposed herself to give a quick curtsey.

Rosamunde, which had returned to Drew's side to watch, gave a disapproving glance before looking away.

Brianna was a pretty girl, about sixteen, who was naught but a new one in the court. Ever since she caught a glimpse of the gardener, she has never failed to bother Drew during his work. Her advances were exceptionally annoying to him. Today she wore a modestly cut but gaudy dress, with a matching hood. Pearl earrings – probably borrowed from some friend – dangled delicately from her ears.

"Master Gardener, the Majesty must see you at once. Delegates," the girl gasped to catch her breath. "I am assuming you also will be having your lunch near the kitchens?"

Brianna looked at Drew with hope. As a lady who took charge of most of the cooking servants, she always had to mention that tidbit. Such women always irritated Drew. As if their perfume and false flattery weren't bad enough to ruin his image of them.

"I think I will dine with the King," Drew replied coolly, pretending to resume his work. "I think he will not mind me meeting him earlier than the usual time."

The lady flinched visibly by the blatant rejection. But flouncing her skirts in a huff, she dashed again off to the courtyards.

"Charmamente," she said curtly. "I shall dine with men with better taste."

"I hope you do too," the gardener muttered under his breath; he hated those saucy, uppity women.

It took a few minutes for his annoyance to pass, and for the Rose Maze to be kept in good order. He was generally happy with the day's work and was about to leave for his appointment with the King when he heard a faint patter of footsteps.

"Faith, I wish you weren't so picky on the flowers…"

Drew turned around, confused at who was traipsing around the fields at this hour – it was well into lunch – and irritated by the femininity of the voice. He just hoped it was not another crazy female admirer…

But when he glanced at the source of the voice, all of his bitterness seemed to vanish.

A Beautifly with stunning wings fluttered around the roses he painstakingly planted, and was being choosy with the ones it wanted to dine from. Flitting from each delicate blossom, it tasted each blossom's nectar, shooing away from the ones it disliked and hovering longer over the favorites. Certainly this was from an extinguished breed…Drew admired the gloss of its scales, the shine in its eyes. A true beauty, if he saw any. Seeing from the stare his own Pokemon also had, Drew knew Rosamunde felt the same.

But the girl who owned the Beautifly was…something else. Delicately formed arms tried to catch her butterfly Pokemon in vain. She wore a simple but elegant dress, indicating someone of high status. Her face was red from frustration, but also there was some weakness and tenderness that appealed to the Gardener's heart. Even her brown hair, which was usually supposed to be hidden under a hood to hide its sensuality, flew out in various directions in the playful wind.

"Faith! Fai- Ah well. Have fun with your meal…" the maid finally huffed resignedly before being diverted by her surroundings. "Ooh! These are really pretty…"

The soft hands than cradled the roses – "Hybrid Tea" Drew recalled suddenly – and the small face neared the petals to sniff them. She closed her eyes briefly to enjoy the smell, and found herself smiling. Even though her Beautifly may spurn some of these flowers, she certainly loved them all the same.

Suddenly, she sensed someone's presence. Carefully she stood up, trying to see who had trespassed into her privacy. But no one was there…save for a Roselia who seemed to be laughing at a joke she was unaware of.

Meanwhile Drew, seeing her become tense, had wisely run off to avoid any sort of accusation. Truthfully, he couldn't keep his eyes off her as she admired her flowers instead of, thankfully, admiring him. Blushing furiously in the Fountain Garden, he had fled from the Rose Maze like a little boy in love.

"God…I am indeed as silly as one," Drew cursed at himself for being weak.

Still his mind suddenly drifted to that maid with the finicky Beautifly. To Drew, that girl was a rarity: a precious, delicate rarity.

------------Night------------

"Hey nonny nonny, why doust thee sing tonight…" a rousing voice murmured in the already-noisy Halls. Dinner and other courtly ceremonies were over, and most were off to bed.

"Harley!"

The gangly man, who had been just singing a random ditty, stood up comically to greet his friend. His gaudy green robes swished and sparkled in the dim torchlight.

Drew, on the other hand, looked more refined. Before dinner he had changed his clothing. A dark vest, emblazoned with a rose insignia, comfortably covered his simple cotton shirt. Simple black leggings also added a nice touch to the outfit. Now that he had finished dinner and met the King about trivial matters, he was ready to sleep.

"Well, 'ow you do, Master Planter. Have ye sown real seeds yet, hmmm?" Harley then chuckled at his unclean joke.

Drew's nose wrinkled slightly. "No, and I suggest you keep your mouth shu-"

"Ah but why, may I ask? A silent fool is a poor fool, for no one will pay for his jokes unsaid and songs unsung. Although you may appreciate it, others may find the absence of my charms…devastating," Harley smiled.

"…right," Drew sighed; Harley had a point. "So…have any interesting tales of Court I need to concern over?"

Harley gave a dramatic thinking pose before answering: "Nayy…extremely quiet place now, despite what next week'll be. For shame! Mayday around the corner and Merysao Castle is nothing but glum and blah-"

"Aren't you supposed to…well, fix that?"

"I try, but I know why many are all down…"

"And..?"

"…nothing for you to worry about, Gardener," Harley cut in shortly; his jolly demeanor seemed to vanish. "Maybe if you care enough about others, you may realize later why."

"!! Harley you- are you calling me a heartless bastard now?"

"Words unsaid are the most truthful, eh?" Harley retorted.

"You're wrong! In fact, I had a revelation- "

"A revelashion! Wonderful! About plants, or about people? I'm sure it won't be nice if it were the latter."

"Actually, I saw a really pretty girl…"

"A maid! Well!" the jester cracked up in laughter. "I see you are all grown up!"

"No! it's not like that!"

"Well, as soon as you know, you'd be having a new kind of garden…with flowers that burp, cry, and…"

SMACK.

Drew's hands stung from the impact, but it was well worth the pain. Harley rubbed his neck indignantly as the strike burned his skin.

"What was that for?"

"For being an insensitive humorist you are! Can you not make dirty jokes like that in front of my presence?!" Drew said in a quiet, dangerous voice.

"Well…"

Soon the two stopped walking. The pair had walked across to their private chambers during their conversation. Harley, still nursing his red neck, was too glad to leave Drew.

"I'm off to bed, Master Gardner. G'nite…" Harley muttered unappreciatively. "Damned uncalled for, that strike…"

The crazy green jester sauntered off into the darkness.

Still stinging from the insult, Drew stormed to his room. Instead of falling asleep on his bed like he normally did, he opened the window to let in some cool air. It definitely let him relieve his anger. As he glanced over the scene before him, which was obviously his gardens, he sighed.

Throughout the day, he had wondered about that quiet maid. He never encountered the girl again after seeing her at the Rose Maze, but he longed for those sad, soft eyes and pretty hands…

Drew blushed again as he mused over his new obsession. "Stop being a total sap," Drew muttered to himself, as he changed for bed. "You must be calm, cool…"

Still, all he thought of was the strange girl.

"Who was she?" he mused.

Finally lying down on his bed, he momentarily glanced at the potted morning glory near his bedside; he had a habit of nurturing certain plants in his own room every now and then. Its buds were closed tight, untouched by morning. As he drifted to sleep, he wondered how pretty the flowers would look on the girl's bedside the next morning…

Meanwhile, Rosamunde wandered around the halls, trying to find something to do.

'-.-'-.-'-.-'-.-'-.-'-TBC-'-.-'-.-'-.-'-.-'-.-'

Well did you like it?! OMG IT TOOK ME A LONG TIME. Well, here are some A/N's!!!

1. Tradescant: Wiki article has an extensive bio on how this famous English gardener(s) did wonders to horticulture.

2. Merysao: It's the acronym for "Mayrose". There really isn't a flower named that, but I decided heck, this kingdom will be named after it. I am so subtle…hehehe.

3. Hybrid Tea: If you google it, it's a common ornamental rose found in many flower shops. They ARE really pretty…but relatively fragile since they are put in tea – hence the name xD

4. Harley's Voice: I tried to make him sound like a relaxed, drunk (?), and jolly jester dude because he is…pretty funny/scary like that. The spelling mistakes were purposely made to personify his speech.

5. Brianna: I forgot her name, so I had named her Harriet...god I'm terrible Dx

Please review! I like cookies with them :P