Number: # 048
Type: Bug - Grass
Species: Nurturing
Gender: 50% Male – 50% Female
Japanese Name: Hahakomori
Description: As Swadloon has finally reached the end of its long and hard fought quest to become a Leavanny, it rejoices as it breaks out of its old confining form into this new light and dandy body. This new body is very nimble and lithe, permitting Leavanny to leap and prance about dexterously without worry, and this is exactly what it will do once it has evolved!
Leavanny has reached the end of its evolutionary line, but its life is only just beginning to whir into motion. All of its life as a Sewaddle and Swadloon was simply preparation for this moment, so it is going to make the absolute most of its life while it can.
This species is incredibly productive and motivated, always working on a particular job or chore. This makes them popular among people who run busy lives, as Leavanny can fill up all the gaps for them. This stems from their parental nature, something that Leavanny are well known for.
Leavanny has an instinctual desire to care for young children, and upon spotting one will hastily weave it a set of clothing composed out of any nearby materials, usually leaves. This can be rather bothersome if Leavanny stops every five minutes to make a pair of booties. Naturally this is restricted to baby Sewaddle and perhaps any wandering baby Pokémon, but Leavanny have also been known to take in lost or abandoned human babies and raise them, making them wear leaf clothing all their lives. Unlike most feral humans, these ones were rather tame.
It is very well known for its adept sewing skills and creative fashion sense, and has risen to cult status among all the artists and hipsters dotted throughout Nacrene City. As a Sewaddle it only had one spinneret at the roof of its mouth, allowing it to make only basic patterns. But now as a Leavanny it has two spinnerets on the side of each arm, totalling at four.
Upon sighting Leavanny you probably noted its scythe-like arms, right? These are as sharp as they look, so don't touch them! They are used for slicing materials into desired shapes and stitching silk to form threads for whatever Leavanny is making. With the spinnerets on its arms, Leavanny can instantly put silk at the tip of its blade, ready to thread away. These arms are also used for battle; but a wild Leavanny will only battle when a baby is endangered. Normally this Pokémon is extremely gentle and friendly, but will not hold back should you raise your fist against a baby. Last year a very foolish trainer set fire to a Sewaddle nest, only to be sliced in half by a furious Leavanny mother!
Leavanny families always have a mother and her recently laid eggs, but a father's presence is subjective. If the father is a fellow Leavanny, then he will stick around permanently, but a father of a foreign species will usually abandon the mother and go off on his own way.
The mother is very fanatic about her babies, and spends many hours weaving countless sets of clothing and blankets, and will even build a small shelter for them out of twigs and leaves. When the babies first hatch, she will squeal in happiness and dress them up in their first set of clothing. She makes so many that there is always many spare sets left over. From here on out she patiently watches over her babies, making sure no harm comes their way. Occasionally she will venture away to gather leaves and berries to eat.
After at least three months the babies are old enough to take care of themselves and wish to do so; but the mother fears for her children's safety and will prevent them from leaving the nest. But as she leaves to gather food, the little Sewaddle will hurriedly run away, never to be seen again. As the mother comes back to her empty nest, she cradles the unused clothing and cries.
Personality: Leavanny are amazing kind and good-natured, willing to overlook anyone's past misdeeds or faults. They are upbeat and overcome and trial or pessimism, and able to merrily hum a tune as they work to overcome issues. Having a Leavanny around can really brighten up your day.
Their maternal instinct is very overwhelming, so they always coo over any babies they see. Their free-spirited nature means they aren't afraid to express their feelings either, so its common to see them bounding down the street throwing petals everywhere.
Being a good parent means being socially adept, and Leavanny points this out well. Across their history they have been known to make many friends and get along with many species of Pokémon and humans. The trading of food for clothing for both Throh and Sawk is one example, and their close friendship with Audino is another. Leavanny sometimes helps Audino tend to injured people by stitching up their wounds and making blankets and shelters.
But every dog has its day, and so does Leavanny. Its protective nature may cause it to overreact in panic or anger should it see a baby being abused, resulting in unintended injury. This Pokémon also takes any mean comments straight to heart if coming from a close friend, such as their trainer. Even though they are normally bright and sunny they can get really down if they feel oppressed or disliked.
Lifespan: Normally Bug types have short lives, but Leavanny has adapted to have a longer life so it may care for its children, as Leavanny can have many clusters of babies every year. Enduring ones can reach up to 34 years of age!
Diet: Leavanny mostly eats leaves, but will sample any berries it manages to find. This may sound easy, but Leavanny will always stop to give berries to babies, weak or hungry looking Pokémon. It often has very few by the time it has reached home.
An easy diet results in an easy Pokémon to feed, so simply letting Leavanny out to nibble on leaves three times a day is enough. Human foods are iffy, as Leavanny's body isn't suited to them. Pokémon pellets should do fine, but check that none of them contain meat first.
How To Bond: Leavanny is one of those loyal species of Pokémon that will faithfully stand by your side the moment you capture it. This is made even more prevalent if you captured it in a previous form, as it will be very grateful to you for bringing it through all the hardships it has faced. Due to their lifestyle Leavanny get rather lonely, so it probably perked up when it realised you wanted to catch it form the wild!
It will want to create clothing or accessories for you, and it is important that you happily accept these; if you show ungratefulness Leavanny might take offense and become upset. An upset Leavanny isn't hard to cheer up, but it's still not a nice sight.
Depending on how long it has known you, Leavanny may see itself as your friend, servant or mother! I've seen Leavanny who carry their trainers around in leafy blankets, much to their discomfort. If you find behaviour like this to be unpleasant, politely tell Leavanny that you appreciate the gestures but to stop, Leavanny will understand where you are coming from.
Make sure that Leavanny understand that you do care for it. Buying it some nice materials to sew with will really get the message across. Spend a day or two occasionally just with Leavanny doing the things that it likes, whether that is quietly sewing, or staring at babies through day-care windows. This will allow you to bond closer to Leavanny more than any physical gift possibly could.
Battling: It's not really interested in battle, but for the sake of protecting its babies it's good at it anyway.
Leavanny is swift and agile, able to dodge attacks and slip though defences, delivering powerful counterattacks. The scythe-like arms scare off quite a few, and for good reason too. They're designed for slicing leaves apart, but can easily slice a Pokémon in half too.
As strong as it is, Leavanny is rather refrained in battle, as it will only fight to protect its babies or allies, or if its trainer orders it to do so. They like to leap about and use either quick jabs or long sweeps, depending on the speed and endurance of the enemy.
It still has five threatening weaknesses that cannot be countered, so observance is key to involving this species. Fortunately Leavanny's speed will make it difficult for most Rock types to land a hit however, and Poison and Ice types are rather rare in Unova. Flying are Fire are your biggest concern, as both have a quadruple advantage and can keep up with Leavanny in terms of speed.
String Shot is still Leavanny's main move, as it will give Leavanny one more advantage and set you up for the next move. Leaf Blade and X-Scissor are both strong moves that put Leavanny's arms to good use, and their sharpness may negate any typing weaknesses. These are even stronger with a Swords Dance to back them up. A good tactic is to slow foes down with String Shot, giving you time to get in a Swords Dance and finish off with an offensive move.
Leaf Storm is seen as a last resort, as it is very powerful but will leave Leavanny exhausted afterwards. Only use it if you are sure it can finish the battle, otherwise Leavanny won't have the chance to defend itself from a counterattack.
If you know how to put speed to good use, and know how to dodge typing weaknesses, then Leavanny will serve you well. Be advised that Leavanny doesn't like violence and forcing to it repeatedly fight may break its sprit and faith in you.
With Fellow Pokémon: Leavanny are fantastic on almost any Pokémon team, and many trainers have one simply for that purpose.
As expected, they get along astoundingly with youngsters; making even the solemnest children squealing in delight in seconds, it will quickly become the 'mother' of the group (even if it isn't female!). It will become very close and protective of these Pokémon, making endless streams of gifts for them. It will even turn against you in order to protect them, but this is only in the most extreme of circumstances.
For older Pokémon Leavanny is very polite and generous, combine that with very few flaws, and you have an easily likable Pokémon that will quickly earn the respect of its peers. Audino, Sawk, Throh, Lilligant and Panpour are all Pokémon it gets along with very well. Expect some close friendships to form while you are away.
A notable percentage of Pokémon hold some sort of distrust against Ghost and Dark types, as they are natural pranksters, troublemakers and villains, it is simply their part to play in this world. Even so, Leavanny is often willing to overlook this fact and seek the kind Pokémon hidden way within everyone. This sort of insightfulness is what earns valued friends, as e all know that Ghosts aren't easy to befriend, but will stick with you for life (and beyond!) once you have.
Warnings: Beware of handling Leavanny's arms, it is very wary of them anyway, but your unexpected contact may result in injury. And don't abuse a baby when Leavanny is nearby, I doubt you would anyway, but doing so will make Leavanny interfere and potentially injure you.
Summary: Leavanny is a fantastic Pokémon that is loyal, useful and makes a good friend. They get along with the majority of trainers, especially those who are lonely or nervous. Their simple diet and hardy nature makes them easy to care for as well. This Pokémon has very few drawbacks and multiple qualities and talents, and can help in so many different situations. This Pokémon is highly recommended for trainers of all ages and skill.
Next Time… Number 049 Venipede!
A/N: Sorry for the late chapter. I've wanted a Shaymin really really badly, and today someone offered to trade for one! But my DS wouldn't connect due to our router settings, so I changed the security settings to WEP to fix it, only to screw up the whole connection. Three hours later, after I had fixed it, not only did my DS still not connect, but I found that Shaymin already been traded away… I'll… I'll never get a Shaymin…
Fun Facts: Leavanny may be based on both a bipedal Phylliidae and, like its prevolutions, is also based on the Epargyreus clarus caterpillar. It also resembles a praying mantis, as well as a human mother.
Leavanny is a combination of leaves and nanny, and Hahakomori is a fusion of ha (leaf), haha (mother) and komori (babysitting). I'll never stop being amazed at how diverse yet adaptable Japanese is.
