Theme: 80. Words
Pairing: RedxLeaf (BurningLeafShipping)
Summary: "Can you tell him something for me? Tell him these exact words...I've always loved him and there will be no other for me."
Rating: K

AN: Wow, the themes just keep coming. I've finally hit 81 percent with this. I hope I can finish this by the end of this month! That'll be my NaNoWriMo project...well, that and several others. :/

I wanna start my PokeSpe Christmas project ASAP.

Dear Red,

It's been three years since I last saw you. Your letters haven't stopped coming, but it's not the same as actually hearing your voice.

You must have changed a lot now. I know I have and Blue has too. I'm fourteen years old now. I'm taller and I look older. Blue's gotten taller as well and his hair is even more wild. He's stopped acting like a jerk and even asked me out a few times.

Before you wonder how the dates went, I'll tell you now that I had to turn him down. I don't want to date him.

Pallet Town's changed a lot now. It only seems to have gotten quieter and sadder, especially without you. But everywhere I go, people seem to whisper about the 'legend on Mount Silver'. But I never actually hear your name.

I guess that guy from the league was partly right. You were meant to be a legend and you are one, Red. But they don't even know your name. They don't know it's actually you. It's as if you died and were replaced by a legendary ghost or enigma.

I wish you would come down soon. I miss you.

-Leaf

Leaf sighed as she sealed the letter in an envelope and gave it to her Pidgeot. This had probably been her three hundredth letter...she stopped counting after a hundred...but she had made the promise to write to Red every week. And Leaf held that promise in high regard. Without her letters, she was sure he was lonely.

Three long years had gone by and she hadn't stopped missing him. The Pokemon League had made changes to their rules that seemed to make it impossible for Red to return. First of all, you had to have sixteen badges: eight from Kanto and eight from Johto, the neighbouring region. Second of all, you had to become the champion at the Indigo Plateau. And third of all, in order for Red to actually give up his position as the highest trainer in both regions, someone had to beat him. Leaf had no idea who could take that challenge. Certainly not Blue, he was too busy with his gym. And definitely not her. She gave up on gym matches after three losses against Blue. She busied herself with helping Professor Oak and traveling a little bit between Kanto and Johto.

But Leaf never gave up hope. There had to be someone out there who could take Red on and be the one to bring him down. There was a saying that was as old as time itself. No matter how good you are at something, there will always be someone better than you. Red had been an example of being the best, but times have changed. There was always new and upcoming trainers who were eager to take on the challenge of being the best and surpassing 'the legend on Mount Silver'.

Leaf hoped one of them would succeed.

"Arg, no way!"

"Yes! That's that!"

Blue made a fist and gritted his teeth angrily. How long had it been since he lost? He probably gave out the Earth Badge only twice before. He wasn't used to losing at all. But this kid, this stranger from Johto, had walked into his gym with fifteen badges...eight from Johto and seven from Kanto...and whupped him easily.

"Alright...fine. Here's your Earth Badge. I gotta say I'm impressed...I guess. That kind of power is rare," Blue commented, giving the kid his sixteenth badge. "I haven't seen that power since..." his voice trained off and the kid looked up at him.

"Since?"

"Uh...never mind. None of your business. Take your badge and go." Blue didn't like to talk about Red. He was always filled with anger every time he thought of his rival, the one he was always ahead of, but never better than. Red seemed to beat him at everything and Blue felt grateful that he, at least, had the position of the last and toughest gym leader in Kanto. That was something Red couldn't have.

"Alright, fine...and thanks." The kid paused to pin the badge on his bag and turned to leave, but paused at the door. "Say...Blue, was it? Do you know anything about the legend on Mount Silver?"

It was an innocent question but the reaction he got was not what he expected. Blue slammed his fist into the wall and gritted his teeth so hard, he could hear them grind.

"...I don't like talking about it. If you want to know so badly, go to Pallet Town and find a girl with long brown hair. She'll tell you everything, kid."

"My name isn't kid," the boy retorted. "I just beat you, so I think I've earned a bit of respect. My name is Gold, so remember it!"

"Whatever," Blue growled, walking away. Gold was puzzled. Was this legend on Mount Silver just a hoax? Why did asking Blue about it make him so angry?

"Only one way to find out..." Gold told himself as he left the gym and headed south. "Find the girl with long brown hair and ask her about the legend."

Pallet Town was tiny, but that didn't surprise Gold too much. It's not like New Bark Town was any bigger. But it did have a strange atmosphere about it. The people moved with smiles that looked fake and the silence was smothering. It was as if someone had died.

Did this relate to the legend?

Gold wasn't sure who this 'girl with long brown hair' was and wished Blue had given him a name. He wasn't sure how to start his search.

"Umbree!" his Umbreon suddenly said.

"What's up, Metro?" Gold asked. His Umbreon pointed towards a lab near the water. "Hey...is that Professor Oak's lab? Awesome! I can get him to check out my Pokedex! Good call, Metro!"

The two of them, trainer and pokemon, hurried over to the lab and went inside. Professor Oak was genuinely pleased to see Gold and gave him a Pokedex rating. Gold decided that Professor Oak was probably a better person to ask about the Mount Silver legend.

"Hey, Prof Oak? Do you know anything about the legend on Mount Silver?"

Professor Oak pursed his lips. As a league representitive, he wasn't allowed to tell the truth about Red and who he was. All he could do was lie.

"Sorry. I don't know anything."

"Really? But...you're the professor and you live here in Pallet Town..." Gold said, confused. "Blue told me to come here for the truth about the legend. Was he wrong?"

"No," Oak admitted. "But I can't tell you. I'm sorry." He tried to politely dismiss Gold from his lab, but Gold had one more question.

"Then can you tell me who the girl with long brown hair is?"

"Who?"

"That's what I want to know..." Gold said. "Blue said if I wanted to know the truth, I should find her and ask her."

Professor Oak pretended to think. The league said he wasn't suppose to tell people about who or what was on Mount Silver, but that didn't mean someone else couldn't. And she was the only one who had all the answers as well.

"Her name is Leaf. She lives just down the road from here. You'll find a sign outside her house that will tell you it's hers. If she isn't home, try next door."

"Thanks, Oak!" Gold grinned and rushed out the door. Oak smiled as the door closed.

"Arceus be with you, Gold. You may be the one to bring him down."

Leaf's House

"Well that's rather obvious, isn't it?" Gold asked his Dragonite, Jupiter. Jupiter chuckled and nodded. Gold raised his hand and knocked on the door. A woman who looked to be in her forties answered and Gold presumed she was Leaf's mom.

"I'm sorry to bother you, but I'm looking for Leaf," Gold said politely.

The woman shrugged. "She's not home. She's next door, looking after his mother."

"Whose mother?"

"We're not allowed to say..." the woman whispered mysteriously and closed the door. Gold was getting weirded out. He glanced up at his Dragonite, who looked just as puzzled as he did.

"This has to be because of the legend...I'm sure of it, Jupiter!"

Unwilling to give up, Gold hurried over next door. He paused only to read the sign outside. It was badly damaged and the only thing he could see was -d's hou-.

"Creepy..." Gold commented. He raised his hand and knocked. Instead of a woman answering, a teenaged girl opened the door and faced Gold with soft green eyes. Gold's yellow eyes widened when he saw she had long brown hair.

"Can I help you?" she asked.

"Um, sorry if this sounds rude, but are you Leaf?"

"Yes..." she gave him a suspicious look. "How did you know my name?"

"Blue sent me to look for you and Professor Oak told me," Gold admitted. "I heard you know about the legend on Mount Silver."

"Huh, you're the first person who has come to me looking for answers..." Leaf put a finger to her chin. "You said you talked to Blue?"

"Yeah, I was at his gym. We had a great match, but I beat him!" Gold said proudly. Leaf's eyes widened.

"How many badges do you have?" Gold was shocked at the sudden fierce question, but he showed her the flap on his bag with all sixteen badges pinned to it. Leaf's jaw dropped and she gasped.

"And I beat the Elite Four as well. I'm the new champion," Gold informed her. "So will you tell me about the legend?"

"Yes," Leaf whispered. "Come inside." She fixed a soft and sad look on Gold. "I've been waiting for you for a long time."

Gold didn't dare question that. He and his Dragonite stepped inside to the dark living room. A woman was on the couch watching TV. She didn't look up to acknowledge Gold's presence and Gold vaguely wondered if this was a good idea.

Leaf led him into the kitchen and sat him down. "Would you like a drink? Lemonade, Moomoo Milk, water...?"

"Lemonade sounds good. And water for my pokemon, please," Gold added. Leaf got out six bottles and poured them into bowls for his pokemon. She got two cans of lemonade and gave one to Gold and then sat down opposite him.

"First of all, I wanna apologize for startling you. No one's ever come here to ask about him and I was starting to wonder if anyone ever would," Leaf began. She sipped the lemonade and continued to talk. "The legend on Mount Silver isn't a wickedly powerful pokemon or an elderly trainer who's as old as Arceus and trains from night to day to night. That's probably what you've heard, right?"

"Something like that," Gold admitted.

"People." Leaf rolled her eyes. "The truth is something the Pokemon League wanted to hide for a long time. It was to encourage trainers to never give up if you wanted to be like the legend. If they found the truth, the whole thing blows over. Quite frankly, they don't see how much this town has suffered for it." Another sip of lemonade. "His name is Red," she finally said. "This is the town he was born and raised in. Three years ago, he became the champion and the very strongest trainer in such a short time, the league had a hard time accepting it. They declared his prowess legendary. They wanted to make him some sort of god-like figure to trainers, but the truth is he was only a boy when he won. He was only eleven."

"Eleven?" Gold's eyes widened in shock.

"I suppose the shock of knowing how old he was is the start," Leaf admitted. "But to Red, being the best was inevitable. To him, raising and training pokemon seemed to come as naturally as breathing. He won eight badges in record time and put Team Rocket out of commission. He took on the Elite Four and beat them single handedly. He took on the champion, who was Blue at the time. Blue was always one step ahead of Red, but Red would always catch up and beat him. No one could surpass him," Leaf added thoughtfully.

"Team Rocket wasn't put out of commission," Gold told her. "They came back in Johto, but I stopped them. I even awoke legendary pokemon!"

Leaf's gaze didn't waver but she did smile. Gold smiled back, but he still wasn't done. "Leaf...why is he up there? Why is this whole town acting as if someone's died?"

"The league wanted him up there," Leaf said. "They wanted to test his power and endurance. They wanted to put him up on the highest pinnacle possible between both regions and show the world he is the best and can't be beaten. This town began to suffer because the league forbade us from talking about him. We weren't allowed to say we were proud of him or proud to come from Pallet Town because this is where he's from. In a way, Red did die to all of us. He vanished and was replaced by this imaginary legendary enigma that people talk about. He's gone and all of us feel like something is missing. Look at his mother..." she said, pointing back towards the living room. "When Red was five, his father walked out on the family, leaving his mother to raise him alone. Times were always hard for them but Red made a promise to send his mother money from battles he won. I suppose that was a part of why he became so strong," she added.

"She was so proud of him for all his accomplishments. The money he gave her helped them tremendously and she thought they could finally live a decent life. But Red was called away and she sank into depression...even all the money that Red earned as the champion can't compensate that loss. She just wants her son back."

Gold nodded, a sinking feeling bubbling up in his stomach. No wonder this town felt so unhappy. They were forbidden to talk about the one hero that had made them all proud.

"What does it take to reach him?" he asked.

"Everything you have," Leaf answered. "The league had changed their rules about a year ago. The requirements are sixteen badges and becoming the league champion. The only thing is..." Leaf paused and looked at Gold with hope in her eyes. "He's not allowed to come down unless someone beats him and proves they can surpass the legend."

Gold took the hint. "So if I beat him...he'll come home."

"Exactly. That's my wish anyway..." Leaf said wistfully. Her words touched Gold deeply and he wondered how much this girl had suffered in comparison to the town.

"Leaf, I have one more question. Why is it you're the only one who knows so much and is willing to talk? How do you know so much about Red?"

Leaf looked down at her lemonade, but the look in her eyes told Gold she was seeing something else. She didn't say anything for a few seconds. Finally, she sighed and looked at Gold.

"I'm his best friend...and I've loved him since we were children," she admitted. "And I miss him more than anything. I don't mind spilling the beans about him, as long as it gets him down here." She fixed her eyes on Gold again. "You're the only one I've seen whose got what it takes to climb Mount Silver and beat him. So I have to ask you now...what will you do now that you know the truth about the legend on Mount Silver?"

"I'm going to climb up Mount Silver, find him and beat him," Gold said confidently. "I don't care what it takes. I'll beat him and bring him down from the mountain."

"I was hoping you would say that." Leaf took out a pokeball and gave it to Gold. "This is my Pidgeot. He knows the way up Mount Silver. When you find him, I want you to give it your all. And...tell him something for me."

"Yeah?" Gold said, accepting the pokeball.

"Tell Red I love him and I want to see him again. I want to hear his voice and feel his presence again. It's been way too long since I've had him beside me and not having him has been a huge hole in my chest."

"I will," Gold promised.

"You know, we've been talking for so long and I never bothered asking you your name," Leaf said. "And here I am trusting you with something important."

"You can trust me," Gold said. "My name is Gold. I'm from New Bark Town in Johto. And Leaf, I swear I'll beat him so he returns to where he belongs."

"Thank you, Gold..." Leaf said in a whisper. "You've given me hope, something I held but wasn't sure if it would actually happen. For his sake and this town's sake, I hope you beat him."

Gold grinned. "Watch the news," he told her. "It'll make headlines."

It was a long trip up Mount Silver. If it weren't for Leaf's Pidgeot, Gold was sure it would have taken him longer. But here he stood in front of the legend himself and was shocked to see how bad he looked. His hair was tangled and messy underneath the cap. His clothes were torn up and outgrown. He had circles under his eyes and looked painfully thin. Gold realized that the only food he must have gotten was from Leaf sending it up with her Pidgeot.

This was the legend of Mount Silver? The situation was worse than Gold thought.

"I take it you're here to challenge me," Red said. Gold winced at how raspy and tired it sounded.

"I am, but before we battle...I wanted to talk to you."

"I'm not here for talking," Red said, annoyed. "They put me here for battles. That's all."

"Ah quit it. It's not me who's got words for you. It's Leaf," Gold said and Red's eyes widened.

"You've talked to her? How is she? Is she alright?"

"Not really," Gold said. "None of Pallet Town is. They're missing someone important. Leaf is the only one who's willing to talk about you."

"Why?" Red asked.

"Because the league doesn't want people to know the truth about you. They want people to believe you're some almighty powerful pokemon god when the truth is right here in front of me...you're just a teenager that's wasting his life up this mountain. They actually forbade Pallet Town from talking about you," Gold informed him and Red's hands clenched into fists.

"This isn't what I wanted. I wanted to be a legend and have people know my name. Not for the league to make a lie about me..." Red looked at Gold. "What did Leaf want?"

"For me to tell you some important words. She loves you and she misses you way more than you can imagine. She wants you to come home to her," Gold said. Red's fists unclenched themselves and he looked down sadly.

"She's the only one who bothered to care...always sending me food and letters...it figures she would be the one to tell you about me." He looked back up at Gold. "But I can't leave here unless I'm beaten. I can't go back home and...I can't see Leaf either."

"That's what I'm here for," Gold said with a smirk. "I aim to beat you and send you back home. I made Leaf a promise to beat you for your sake and the town's, but also for her sake. She needs you back."

Red wanted to say he needs her as well, but Gold had already called out his Feraligatr. The battle had begun.

Three days later, Leaf and Red's mother were watching the news. A breaking story had come on and the two women sat up straight.

"Champion from New Bark Town beats Legend of Mount Silver! Legend scheduled to come home!"

"He did it!" Leaf shouted. "I knew he could do it! Red's coming home!"

A gloomy mood seemed to have lifted from all of Pallet Town. People were filled with happiness at the news that their legendary hero was finally returning home. Leaf ran out of the house and went to tell Professor Oak, Daisy and even Blue about the news.

Later that day, when the sun was going down, two figures walked through the gates of Pallet Town. One was supporting the other and they were going slow. Red had been so weakened from malnourishment and lack of decent sleep that Gold had to help him get from one place to another. Leaf's Pidgeot followed behind them with Gold's Dragonite and Red's Charizard, who looked as weakened as Red did.

"How's it feel to come home?" Gold asked.

"I'm not home yet..." Red told him. "Not until I see Mom and Leaf."

"You will," Gold assured him. The younger boy led the older one down the road to his house. Before he could even knock, the door flung open and Leaf and Red's mother burst out. Red's mom quickly pulled her son into her arms, crying and kissing him over and over. Leaf, on the other hand, was hugging Gold and thanking him over and over. She was also crying, but Gold didn't mind.

Finally, Red and Leaf faced each other for the first time in three years. Despite Red's filthiness and thin state, Leaf thought he was still as good looking as he was when he left. Neither of them said anything at first, but Red startled Leaf by making the first move and pulling her into his arms.

"I missed you more," he whispered in her ear.

His words meant so much to Leaf and she pressed her lips to Red's cheek.

"Welcome home, Red," Leaf whispered back. Those were the words Red had wanted to hear for a very long time. They filled him with renewed vitality and he hugged Leaf tighter and kissed her on the lips.

Neither Gold nor Red's mother minded. The older woman was also thanking Gold for bringing her son down from the mountain and back home where he belonged.

"It was no problem..." Gold said, glancing back at the two teens who were still lip-locked. "Just make sure he gets a bath and a lot of food. He stinks."

Daaaaaamn, this took me all morning and part of the afternoon to finish. I could have made it longer, but I decided against it.

Random question, but for all you players who played Gold/Silver/Crystal or HeartGold/SoulSilver, did any of you feel a sense that something was missing when you walked into Pallet Town? I did. It was as though something or someone needed to come back. That was before I learned Red was in the game and on Mount Silver. When I beat Red, I felt a sense of accomplishment...not for just beating him, but I figured maybe he would go home. That was a long time ago on my Crystal version, of course, but the feeling remains today.

What was Red doing on Mt. Silver? How long had he been there for? And why? Obviously these are never answered in the games, which is why fanfiction is so handy. I don't know why Leaf wasn't shown in HG/SS (probably for the same reason they replaced Kris with an stupid girl - maybe Gamefreak hates girls) so I tried to make Leaf more of a 'casual' trainer, someone who wasn't as serious as Blue and Red about training.

I absolutely loved this. Maybe I should do more stuff with Red and Leaf as a pairing.