Dream About Me: updated Oct. 6

[Butterscotch]

Dream About Me: an HM64 fanfic
Table of Contents:
ch. 1
ch. 2
ch. 3
ch. 4
ch. 5
ch. 6
ch. 7
ch. 8
ch. 9
ch. 10
chapter 11
ch. 12

Chapter One: Jack


"Take care of it," Doug said. "I'll have Gray deliver your hen to the farm later."

"Thanks, Doug," Jack replied. "I have to run more errands, so just have him put the hen in the coop,ok?"

Doug smiled at the younger man, and followed Jack outside. Jack paused at the gate of the Green Ranch and waved goodbye, then hurried off to finish the errands he had spoken of. Doug looked over his property with a small smile on his face. The tall green grass rippled in the soft spring breeze, and Doug could hear the sounds of cattle and sheep. Farther off, he heard the sound of his son, Gray, chopping wood. Doug walked over to the side of the house and rung the large bell that hung there. The sound echoed all over the ranch, given the right conditions, it was possible to hear the bell from Jack's ranch.

As the sounds faded, Doug's two children approached him. Ann came running, and her braided hair was disheveled. Gray came more slowly, and he was still carrying the axe.

"What's up, Dad?" Ann said breathlessly. Doug smiled at his daughter. She was the spitting image of her mother. He reached out one hand and smoothed back her hair.

"I need you to peel some potatoes for dinner," he said. Ann nodded and ran off. Doug turned to Gray. "Jack just bought a hen. Can you deliver one to him?"

Gray nodded and headed for the chicken coop. Doug frowned as he watched Gray walk off. Ann was cheerful, cute and friendly. He didn't worry about her much...But Gray on the other hand. Doug shook his head slowly and went back inside.

~*~*~*

"You sure bought a lot of seeds!" Popuri giggled.

Jack grinned. "I know, but you have to spend money to make money, right?"

Popuri frowned, and tilted her head. It was clear that she didn't get it, and Jack decided to change the subject. "Thanks for helping me carry this stuff home," he said.

"No trouble at all!" Popuri smiled. "I enjoy walking in the country, and I like visiting your farm!"

By now, they had reached the entrance to Jack's Ranch. Popuri paused at the gateway and gazed around her. Acres of land, mostly un-used lay before her, and Popuri had no difficulty imagining all that land covered with flowers. "Oh, I wish I could have this much land to grow things on!" she exclaimed wistfully.

Jack smiled. "Maybe someday...you will," he murmured. Popuri grinned back at him.

Neither of them noticed Gray, who was standing in the doorway of the chicken coop. Jack and Popuri headed inside, and when the coast was clear, Gray rushed home, his mind full of the scene he had witnessed.

author's notes:
I've taken a renewed interest in HM64 lately. ^-^
I never wrote a fanfic for this game before, though I came close when I first played it. I had a whole plot line thought out, but I never wrote it down. This story is pretty close to what I imagined out five years ago though
I hope you enjoyed chapter one! ^^

[BorderWolf]

Great chapter Butter!

[Entegy]

I read this at Solider a few hours ago.

[allmighty]

Great!

[moko]

good chapter! i hardly ever see any hm 64 fan fics anymore. i started one about karen and kai, but it didn't really work out..................... i was a lousy writer back then. -_-'

and you've inspired me to finally write my popuri and grey fan fic! hopefully...............

[Butterscotch]

Thanks everyone! ^-^
It feels nice to be writing again.

[moko]

yes, it always does. i actually started a new fan fic about joanna............. but that's off topic.

[Kayla]

Good job, Butters!

[Butterscotch]

Dream About Me: An HM64 fanfic

Chapter Two: One Arrival, and Two Departures

On the fifteenth day of Spring, Popuri, awoke early and rushed downstairs. She didn't even bother to change out of her pink pajamas.

"Is he here yet?" Popuri exclaimed.

Lillia shook her head. "Not yet. Why don't you get changed and have some breakfast?"

Popuri fidgeted. "I can't help...I'm so excited to see Daddy!" she said. "He said he had exciting news in that post-card he sent, remember?"

Lillia nodded. "You'll find out soon enough," she said.

Popuri turned and started up the stairs. She didn't get very far, because Basil walked in the door just then. Popuri squealed, and threw herself in his arms. Basil laughed and picked her up and swung her around, then hugged her tight again. When he released her, Popuri looked at him closely. He had lost weight, and had more gray hairs than he had had when he left last fall. Popuri frowned a bit, then swung her head, hard, back and forth. It was nothing.

"Daddy! Daddy!" Popuri chirped, "What's the surprise?"

"I'll tell you after breakfast," Basil said with a smile. "Now, you run along and get changed".

~*~*~*

"Well, Poppy...its like this,,," Basil began after breakfast was over. The three were still seated at the table with their dirty dishes in front of them. Upon hearing her father's tone of voice, a little fish began wriggling in Popuri's stomach. Basil sounded so serious....He took a deep breath. "Well, your mother and I have been having marital problems."

Popuri's eyes widened. She opened her mouth to speak, but Basil raised one hand. "We...we're not going to get a divorce or anything, if that's what you're thinking," he said, and Popuri let out a tiny sigh of relief. "What we're going to do is go on a second honey-moon."

"That's a great idea!" Popuri squealed. "When are you going? Where will you go? How long will you be long?"

"We're leaving the day after the Flower Festival," Lillia said. Popuri frowned. So soon? "And...we'll be gone for an entire year...."

Popuri's jaw dropped."A whole year?! Why so long?" she said, with a touch of sulkiness in her voice.

"Well, we were going to stay away for a month, but then we realized that by the time our honeymoon ended, it would be time for me to leave again," Basil explained. "So, we decided that Mom would travel with me this year."

"But...what about me?" Popuri asked. She felt so silly asking that, after all she was nearly 18, but it still troubled her.

"I talked to Mr. Green, and you'll be staying with him at his ranch," Lillia replied. "Won't that be nice? You'll get to stay with your friends, Ann and Gray!"

Nice? Nice?! Popuri sniffled a little. "But why can't I stay here, alone?"she asked. "Or with Elli?"

"Your father and I thought it would be good for you to stay in the country," Lillia said, as if Mineral Town were a horribly polluted city or something. Popuri sniffled again. "And that's our final decision!" Lillia added in a sharp voice.

~*~*~*

And so, on the day after the Flower Festival (and just two days after her own birthday, Lillia and Basil dropped her off at the Green Ranch. Doug and Ann were waiting outside to greet her. Gray was nowhere to be seen.

"Have fun and be good, Poppy," Lillia said and hugged her daughter close. Popuri leaned her head on her mom's shoulder for a moment, savoring their last hug. It was easier for her to say good-bye to Basil, since she had so much experience doing it. Still, when she saw her parents leave,she began to cry. Popuri didn't cry often, but when she did, she cried with the abandon of a small child. She cried so hard that she nearly made herself sick, but afterwords, she felt much better. Ann gave her friend a small hug.

"Feel better?" she asked. Popuri nodded, and Ann smiled. "I'll show you to your room." Ann said.

Popuri reached for her bags, but Ann told her that Gray would get them later. Popuri wondered again where Gray was, but didn't ask. Ann lead Popuri inside and upstairs.The second floor of the house had three rooms on one side, and two on the other. The first room on their right was Doug's, and the second room was the guest room where Poprui was staying. Ann's room was opposite Popuri's and Gray's was opposite his father's. The last room, located between Ann and Gray's rooms was the bathroom.

The guest room was small, but pretty. The blankets, curtains, pillows and rug were all blue and white, with touches of yellow here and there. Popuri liked it right away. Ann sat on the bed and grinned at Popuri. "I'm glad you're staying here," she said. "I know we're not real good friends, but I know we'll have fun! Right?"

Popuri grinned back. "Right!"

[BorderWolf]

Not bad Butter! Nice to see Ann being kind to Popuri.

[moko]

yeah, it's going really good!

[allmighty]

Good Chapter, Butters!

[Balto]

Pretty cool, I like it! ^^

[Firefly]

Good job, Butters!

[Butterscotch]

Dream About Me: An HM64 Fanfic

Chapter Three: Green Ranch

Ann spent the rest of the day showing Popuri around the ranch. It was far larger than Popuri had realized, even larger than Jack's farm. The two girls ended the tour in the barn, where Ann showed Popuri where the barn cat had hidden her litter of kittens in the sweet-smelling hay. The girls spent a long time playing with the kittens, talking and laughing all the while. By the end of the day, they were better friends than they had been, and Popuri was glad of it. It would make her stay at the Green Ranch much easier.

Although they had gone all over the farm, Popuri still hadn't seen any sign of Gray. When they returned to the house, Popuri saw that her bags had been moved into her room, and she remembered Ann saying that Gray would do that for her. Popuri washed up and was just about to go downstairs for dinner, when she remembered something.

Ann was a lousy cook.

"I have to eat her cooking for a whole year?" Popuri thought. "No wonder Gray is always so cranky." She giggled, and felt better as she went downstairs.

Ann, and Gray were already seated, and Doug was carrying a pot to the table. Doug set the pot down and held Popuri's chair out for her. She smiled at him, and sat down. There was stew in the pot, and it smelled heavenly. Popuri's stomach growled.

"Who cooked the stew?" she asked.

"I did," Doug said, chuckling a little. He ladled some stew into Popuri's dish. "Gray and I do all the cooking around here, and I've gotten pretty good at it, if I do say so myself."

'That's great! I'm so relieved!"Popuri blurted out. She gasped when she realized what she had said,and clapped her hand over her mouth. Doug burst out laughing.

"My cooking isn't that bad, is it?" Ann asked, but she was grinning when she said it. Only Gray did not laugh; he just tugged at the brim of his cap and ate his stew in silence.

~*~*~*

Popuri woke early the next morning. Unlike many people she didn't have any trouble falling asleep in a strange bed, but fell asleep as soon as her head hit the pillow. When she awoke she was bursting with energy. She washed up, changed and went downstairs. Someone was already awake and she could smell sausages cooking. Stomach growling, Popuri walked into the kitchen and saw Gray standing at the stove.

"Good morning!" Popuri said. She peered over his shoulder to see what he was cooking. "PANCAKES!!" she squealed, and clapped her hands. "I LOVE pancakes!"

"Okay," Gray mumbled.

"Pancakes are my favorite breakfast," she said. Gray didn't say anything, but Popuri didn't expect him to. "I even have them for dinner sometimes!

Gray placed a plate of pancakes in front of her. Popuri was so eager to taste the pancakes that didn't even pour syrup on them. She cut off a piece and popped it in her mouth. Her face lit up.

"Its really good!" she exclaimed. Gray handed her the syrup.

~*~*~*

Popuri discovered another good thing about Green Ranch that day...It was very close to Jack's farm. Popuri paid him a visit that same afternoon, following Jack around as he did his chores. She chattered away as she did, saying whatever nonsense popped into her head. Finally Jack had enough.

"Please, Popuri, I've got a headache...can you just, um, be quiet?" Jack said.

Popuri blushed. "I'm sorry," she said.

"No, its okay; you don't have to apologize or anything. Just...don't talk so much,"

Jack got the quiet he wanted, but it was an awkward one. Several times he started to say something, then stopped, because it seemed hypocritical of him. Then he had an idea; he beckoned for Popuri to follow him, and led her to a small patch of seedlings. Popuri's eyes lit up and she knelt down to get a better look.

"These are pink cat mint seedlings!" she exclaimed.

Jack blushed. "Well, I knew you liked flowers...."

"Thank you, Jack!" Popuri looked around her. "Gee, it sure is getting dark. I should be getting back to the Green Ranch...."

"Okay, Popuri, "Jack smiled, "Feel free to visit whenever you want!"

Jack walked Popuri to the gate, and held it open for her. Then, to her surprise, shut it between them, with her outside and him inside. Jack gave a little wave and headed back to his house. Popuri waved back weakly, but as soon as Jack was out of sight, she curled her hand into a tight fist. Some gentleman he was! Sure it was only a little ways to go, but that wasn't the point. He should've walked her home. Popuri remembered that the time she had helped him carry his seeds home, he hadn't escorted her home then either. By the time she got to the Green Ranch, she was fuming! Stupid old Jack. See if she ever paid him a visit ever again.

As she neared the barn, Popuri heard a strange sound. It sounded like a cow was in pain. She hesitated, then started to walk to the house when she heard the sound again. This time, she knew she could ignore the sound, even though she had no idea what she could do to help a sick cow.