Locke and Key: A Nuzlocke Story

Summary: Leaf is a badass girl from Kanto who takes no prisoners. Fatherless and with a mother she's determined not to disappoint eternally, Leaf sets out with one goal in mind: to make something of herself: a name, a song… a story. This is it.

Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon LeafGreen, or anything about the games. I also don't own the Nuzlocke method, or the comics this story is heavily based on (Hale's Emerald Hard-Mode, the original Nuzlocke comics, etc.)

Important Note: Many chapters from this story utilize lyrics from songs that fit the chapter's mood or tone. The links to each song, with the chapter's name, are in my profile in a long, pretty, organized list that took me forever to make. :)
- 8/28/11

Claimer: I own the Pokemon seen here. As in, they're on my game cartridge, haha. This story is actually a dramatization of my own Nuzlocke Challenge experiences on Pokemon LeafGreen. All of the "deaths" happened, as did the captures, namings, etc.

For those of you who aren't familiar with the Nuzlocke Challenge, I highly suggest it, but just in case, I'll put it here:

There are two basic rules.

You can only capture the first Pokemon you encounter in each new area (Route, cave, city, etc.) If that Pokemon faints or runs away (Whirlwind, Roar, etc.), too bad. You don't get a Pokemon in that area, and you move on.

When a Pokemon faints, it is pronounced "dead" and must be released via the PC. Pansy players deposit theirs in a permanent box. But I'm hardcore like that. ;]

There are some modifications, but those are the rules.

In this story, they will be actual deaths, not releases.

Anyways, comments, concerns, blah blah, I accept anything and everything. (If I even get readers for this, lol.)

Enjoy!

'They say that your eyes contain fire, that your face fills with light.'

-Kate Elliot

I wasn't looking for trouble. Hell, I wasn't even looking for Pokemon. I just needed to get away from my mother, and I was aching for a cigarette. She was driving me absolutely insane.

I stepped into the tall grass, fumbling in my pocked for that last little cylinder of hope. Surely, nothing's gonna attack me. The smell of the smoke'll drive them away, I thought to myself, perhaps foolishly. The tip of the lighter kissed the cigarette, and I touched it to my lips, exhaling my anxieties.

I leaned against the fence, then hopped up on it, the wood pleasantly pressing into my legs beneath the skirt I wore. It was such a nice day outside, the sun warm but not hostile, the wind crisp but not cold. I could hear the kids playing in the schoolyard inside the town, but out here, it was peaceful.

Why don't I ever come out here? I thought hazily.

Suddenly, the grass behind me stirred; I turned, dropping burning ash onto the ground as I did. It caught fire to some strands of dry grass, which panicked me into dropping the whole cigarette.

Bad idea. The tuft caught fire.

And through it, a Pidgey flew out, eyes crazed.

Shit. That's why I don't ever come out here, I thought, sharper now.

The damn thing was glaring at me, it's brown and white feathers ruffled. Like it was a cat, or something, that got squirted with a water bottle. Have you ever been face to face with a Pidgey? Black mask like it's fucking Zorro, or something? I didn't think so. Those things have strong wings and are very determined.

I ran.

Like a pansy.

I hoped I kicked dirt onto it, because it became disturbed behind me. I turned back, grabbing at my aching side, to see it kicking sand onto the tuft of grass I'd set on fire.

Awh. It cared about the grass. Isn't that cute?

I was about to walk back when I heard a stern clearing of the throat behind me. I turned, expecting my mother or some old crone telling me not to smoke, but instead I saw a tall, broad-shouldered man, his labcoat pure, his eyes sharp and critical. Oak?

Crap.

"Professor, hi," I stammered, blinking. I wasn't afraid of him, but come on. The way he was looking at me could boil lake water in Sinnoh. Anyways… he was one of the few authority figures that actually spit some sense into me.

"Leaf, is that right? Leaf Brannigan?" Why was he looking at me like that? Was it the smoking thing? Shit, I shouldn't have come out here, I thought, slightly depressed.

"Yeah. I'm Leaf."

"You're in the same class as my grandson, aren't you?"

"Oh. Green?" That prick. "Yeah. He's in my class. We don't really know each other that well, though." And thank God for it.

"It's a pity. You seemed like a nice girl, Leaf, but…" he walked past me, knocking me aside slightly. I froze, turning to see him pick up my discarded cigarette from the darkened pile of grass and the Pidgey.

Instead of attacking him, the Pidgey looked up at him, and I swear the damn thing smiled. It nuzzled against his hand, then flew off.

I was dumbfounded. That savage little bird just tried to attack me! Oak really was magical.

"You dropped a burning cigarette into a pile of dry grass. Leaf, wild Pokemon live in this grass. You could have started a serious fire, and destroyed their habitat," he said, his tone scolding.

I was, again, confused. He was yelling at me for disturbing the Pidgey and Rattata around here? And… not for smoking?

I mean, yeah, I was fifteen, but still. The legal age in Kanto is twenty-one (miles behind the other regions; Hoenn's age was sixteen!), but most of the kids I knew smoked.

"I'm… sorry," I stammered again, wishing my spine didn't turn to jelly in front of the professor. I wasn't one to back down from flaming eyes, but his held something far more powerful than most of my competitors. He must have been a serious trainer in his day, really; if I was on the battlefield with him, I'd probably forfeit.

"You should be. If that Pidgey hadn't stopped that fire…" He shook himself, then glanced at me.

His eyes caught mine, and we stared for awhile. I was tempted to back down – to look away – but I took a deep breath and held his iron gaze. After a few moments, he smiled slightly.

"Leaf, have you ever considered becoming a trainer?"

A trainer? Me? Most kids who became Pokemon trainers didn't make it – especially from Pallet Town. We were known as the loser's town. We had a horrible football team, too. Everyone made fun of the losers from this hick town.

"Not really. I mean… I guess it'd be pretty cool, though. It's not like I can do much else, the way I do in school," I said honestly. Let's face it, it's true. Skipping all of your important classes isn't the best way to get scholarships.

He studied me for a moment, then nodded.

"Would you like a Pokemon of your own?"

"I… why are you offering me this?" I said, astounded. He had just gotten onto me for almost catching the grassland on fire! What was going on?

"I think you have a lot of unspent aggression, and I think it'd be best spent on the battlefield," he said, honest as I was; it sort of pierced me. What was I expecting, that he thought I had potential? Me? Right.

"Also… I think this will save you from yourself, Leaf. Pokemon change you in ways you'd never expect," he said, and he looked like he was talking about more than one thing at once. Himself? Had Oak been a hell-raiser like me, back in his day?

I doubt they'll make me into any angel, but who knows? "Well… yeah. I'd like a Pokemon. And hey, anything to get me out of Pallet Town."

A ghost of a smile flew over his lips – wingshadows from a distant bird.

"Why don't you come by my lab at… 2:45 today? I'll have three for you to choose from. Right now, why don't you go tell your mother that you'll be gone for awhile?"

I blinked, then nodded, not sure what to say. He straightened, then walked out of the grass – with dignity that I knew I'd never have, even if I conquered every single region. I smiled too – more sad than Oak's had been – and followed, knowing that I'd be back in the grass in less than a day.