WHOO HOO! YAY! This is from my favorite part of the game; Locke's Scenario. I had a lot of fun writing this chapter and the next, so I hope you enjoy them. I wrote them quite a long time ago, but not much has changed in them because I liked the way they turned out. I'm such a Locke freak, it's hilarious! Oh yeah, there is a lot of foreshadowing in this chapter that isn't resolved until chapter...um...33...So I hope you have a good memory! (There will be at least 40 chapters in this fic...which was actually my original goal! However, I have to write/finish 10 of them, but still...that means I have 30 done! squee!) There are a few things that won't make sense until you read those chapters, but whatever. They make sense to me because I know why Locke says what he does. You will get it eventually. Kay, enjoy!

13. South Figaro

Locke quickly ran around a house to hide from the soldier on duty on the eastern side of South Figaro. Luckily, the soldier didn't catch up with him in time and just looked around, Locke out of his area of view. He had worked hard to stymie the efforts of the Imperial troops, but now he desperately needed to escape. Within an hour, he was almost spotted by a dozen soldiers and he couldn't find a way out of the heavily guarded city.

"Nuts!" He exclaimed under his breath as he leaned against the wall of a house to catch his breath. "There's nothing I can do here besides get caught by soldiers and killed. Gotta get the Narshe on the fly…"

He saw some stairs ahead, causing him to smile and mutter, "The stairs that the girl talked about. Good, I need some potions anyway." He carefully and nonchalantly made his way north up the stairs and saw a building. Curious to what was inside, he knocked on the door and looked around as he waited for someone to open it. Hmm…maybe I knocked too quietly…He thought to himself as he bit his lip. He was just about to knock again when the handle turned and the door opened, revealing a small boy.

"You're not the merchant," he said simply as Locke narrowed his eyes.

"Uh, no," he replied in confusion. What a way to greet people…

"My grandfather won't talk to you unless you are the merchant who brings him his cider." The little boy blinked blankly at Locke, who remained confused. "So…bye."

The door was then slammed in Locke's face and he could hear the bolt lock. With a slight scoff in response to the boy's rudeness, he shook his head and continued walking to the Item Shop. The bell on the inside of the door rang to indicate that he walked in, and the sales clerk smiled in his direction.

"Good day, sir!" He said cheerfully as Locke walked up to the counter and leaned on it. "What can I help you with?"

"I just need ten potions," he responded as he reached into his pocket and pulled out some gold pieces.

"That'll be 3,000 gold pieces, please." Locke started to carefully count the gold as the clerk went under the counter and grabbed the potions. As he counted, he noticed with his peripheral vision that a merchant was staring him down on his left.

With a scoff, Locke turned toward the merchant and snapped, "What?"

"I just couldn't help but notice," he started with a chuckle as he continued to inspect Locke. "You're that thief, Locke, aren't you?"

"Hey!" Locke threw back as he slammed the correct amount of gold down on the counter, causing the clerk to jump in the air. "Call me a treasure hunter, or I'll rip your lungs out!"

"Ha!" The merchant snorted as he crossed his arms over his chest. "Try me!"

Locke quickly grabbed the potions, put them in his pack, then faced the merchant with an intimidating glare. The merchant slightly cowered, but weakly punched Locke in the shoulder. Annoyance fell on Locke's face as he pulled out his dagger.

He gasped with an idea and he put his dagger away. With a smile on his face, he ripped the plumed hat right off of the merchant's head, eliciting a rather feminine scream from his lips.

"What are you doing?" The merchant shrieked and put his hands on his now bare head.

"I just want to try it on because it's so stylish." Locke put the hat on his head and kicked the merchant in the stomach, causing the man to run into the grandfather clock that was behind him. It was a miracle that the glass didn't shatter with the impact. The clerk gasped as the merchant fell to the ground, barely conscious. Locke ripped the man's merchant garb right off of his body as he slowly attempted to climb to his feet. "I can't have the hat without the rest of the outfit!"

"You bastard!" The merchant cried as he wrapped his arms around his nearly naked body.

"Here we go!" Locke shouted as he quickly threw on the merchant's clothes. He inhaled as he zipped up the pants, then exhaled when they were on. "They're a little tight, but the price was right."

"Ow," the merchant whimpered as he fell face first onto the ground. Locke knelt down next to him and lifted the merchant's head by his hair so he could look at him in the face.

"Now, what did we learn about calling people certain nicknames?" Locke chastised as the merchant continued to whimper.

"Sorry!" The merchant said quickly and Locke smiled. "I won't do it again!"

"Very good!" He clapped his hands together in mock excitement and caused several people in the item shop to stifle their laughter. Locke let go of the merchant, resulting in his forehead smacking into the floor. With a chuckle, Locke stood up and saw the horrified face on the clerk's face, so he gently waved at him. "Have a good day!"

Locke left the Item Shop and cheerfully made his way back to the house with the odd little boy. He knocked again, and the little boy opened the door. He raised an eyebrow at Locke, clearly recognizing him from before, and Locke smiled.

"Hi," he said cheerfully as the little boy remained in the doorway. Once again, he silently blinked at Locke. "Um…I said 'hi.'"

"Merchant, right?" Locke had to refrain from batting the boy over the head with a blunt object, so he politely smiled and nodded instead. "Okay. You may proceed."

"Thanks, buddy," he replied as the little boy gave him an annoyed look. After a beat of standing still, the little boy directed Locke to the back entrance of the house, which was down a floor. He opened the door for Locke without a word, so Locke patted the little boy on the head in appreciation.

Soldiers and Magitek armor were everywhere that Locke looked and he realized that there wasn't going to be a safe way through the city. He cocked his head to the side when he noticed that one of the soldiers was watching the waterwheel on the side of one of the buildings very closely. As he passed the soldier, he overheard him say, "Whoa…I'm getting dizzy…"

As he continued, he saw two soldiers were who away from their ranks chatting like two school girls. He didn't stop walking though; instead he slowly made his way toward the two soldiers.

"So, I heard there are two secret tunnels under the rich man's house. One leads out of town, the other to one of these houses…" One of the soldiers said as the other one fixed his helmet.

"Well, isn't that fascinating?" The second soldier drawled, his voice laced with sarcasm. "My news is better. I heard they grabbed a famous general who turned traitor!"

"No shit!" The first soldier exclaimed. General found traitor…Locke thought to himself as he listened to the two men gossip. It can't be…

Proudly, the second soldier nodded his head. "Yeah! She's locked up somewhere in this town."

'She?' Okay, not who I thought. Who is it then? Oh well, at least I know that there is another way out of here now……He thought as he continued to walk closer to them. He was only a few feet away from the men now, so they adverted their attention to him. "Hi!" He said cheerfully as the two soldiers sighed and rolled their eyes.

"We're not buying anything, so go away," the first soldier snapped as they separated and went back to their posts.

"Thanks!" Locke called after them as they completely ignored him. He let out a chuckle as he thought of his next plan. Okay…how to get into the rich man's house now…I won't be able to get in wearing this…

He walked to the northern part of town and climbed the stairs. It was relatively quiet at this part of town, so Locke felt slightly relieved. As he turned the corner, he saw a soldier in green armor. When the soldier spotted him, he couldn't have looked more irritated.

"Scram, you blockhead," he snapped.

"You don't want to buy anything from me?" He asked, putting his hands on his chest to feign shock. The soldier groaned as he continued to pace at his post. "Well, you don't have to be so impolite."

"I'm quite busy right now, if you couldn't tell," he shot back as Locke laughed.

"Oh yeah, I think you're going to wear a path in the floor if you keep 'working hard,'" he replied as the soldier glared at him. "Hey, ya know, I like your armor. I wonder if it'll fit me."

"What the hell is wrong with merchants nowadays?" The soldier asked himself under his breath. "Can't they just ask if I want to buy anything and then leave?"

"Well, I'm not your average merchant," Locke informed the soldier as he took a few steps toward him.

"Oh, yeah? And what makes you so different from the million others that roam the city streets?" The soldier demanded with a scowl.

Locke grabbed the soldier by the collar, smiled right at him, and said, "I'm different because, heh, I'm not one." In response to the soldier's queer glare, Locke kicked him in the stomach, knocking him out. A look of disappointment washed over his face as he looked at the soldier on the floor. "Aww, that wasn't any fun. I guess they let anyone into the Imperial army nowadays."

With a sigh, Locke dragged him behind some barrels that were to his left and quickly took the armor off of the unconscious soldier. He realized that the entire situation was all too familiar as he held the helmet in his hand. Stealing clothing to sneak in unnoticed…it's like riding a damn bicycle…

"Here we go!" He said to himself, took off the merchant attire and changed into the soldier's shiny armor. "These are a little too big, but they'll do." He grimaced at the stench and stuck out his tongue in disgust. "Sweet goddesses! Don't soldiers believe in showering every once and a while?"

Ignoring the smell as much as he could, he threw the merchant clothing off the back of the balcony and walked back down the steps to figure out his next move. He wasn't sure what he was doing, so he was making up his plan as he walked along the streets. This must be the rich man's house…He thought as he noticed a very large house at the northern part of town. As he tried to find a way inside, he passed a soldier who let out a loud sigh of relief.

"Good day, commander!" He greeted Locke with a salute. Locke walked over to him and figured if he could get him out of the way, he'd be able to continue through the town.

"Hi," he said back as he nodded. "Ya know, I've been noticing how hard you've been working hard all day and I must say, I'm damn proud. Since I'm such a great guy, I'll take over your shift for a while."

"You mean time's up?" Locke nodded again and the soldier dropped his poise. "Oh, good! I'll take a break! I hear there are some hot girls dancing at the café." He gently elbowed Locke and winked.

"Go get 'em, tiger," Locke said facetiously as the soldier giddily walked toward the café. He couldn't help but laugh and put his hand to his forehead. "These soldiers are pathetic."

For lack of better places to go, he followed the soldier into the café to hopefully gather more information. It's worked before…he thought as he looked around. There were several dancers on the stage and the soldiers were watching them as if they had never seen a woman before. Many of them were whistling and holding up gold pieces for the girls in one hand and a large mug of beer in the other.

One soldier placed his mug on the table and as he passed Locke, he muttered, "Never a dull moment. Time to guard the passage under the big mansion." He let out a large sigh as he continued with, "Oh well. Life is tough…"

Well, that's two soldiers who have confirmed a secret passageway in the mansion…He thought as he continued to make his way through the café. He noticed that there was a stairway, so he walked down the stairs as carefully as he could. The armor that he was wearing restricted his movement, so he held onto the railing to make sure that he wouldn't fall down the stairs.

There was a door in the basement, so he barged right in without knocking. Inside there was another merchant who leaped in the air at the sight of Locke.

"Hey, you!" The merchant cried as Locke clumsily saluted.

"Howdy," he said with a nod as he took a few more steps in the tiny room and looked around. "Hmm, this is a nice place you have here. I mean, it's a little bare, but if you add some curtains, a little color, maybe a few pictures, it'll be perfect."

The merchant slowly backed up and nervously said, "W-What do you want with me? Come to steal my cider?"

Locke looked at the table that the merchant was standing next to and saw a bottle of cider. He felt his brain start to work, so he put his hand to his face and began rubbing his chin. Hmmm… "Ya know, now that you mention it, I am kinda thirsty."

"You thief!" The merchant cried as he pointed a finger at Locke.

"Tsk tsk tsk," Locke started as he took off the soldier helmet and held it against his hip. "Such accusations! Ya know, this has just been bothering me ever since I was younger, so since you brought it up, I just have to ask. What is with everyone using that negative connotation? I mean, there are different words that can be used. Ya know, like, 'treasure hunter.' That's just so much better."

Locke could tell that he threw the merchant off guard with his gift of rambling, so he stopped talking and with one swift movement, he hooked his left arm and had contact with the merchant's temple. He watched as the merchant crumpled unconscious to the floor in a heap of robes and limbs.

"Oh, come on! I'm not even left handed!" Locke said to the body, quite disappointed. He sighed when he realized that he knocked the merchant out cold. With a shrug, he threw the helmet on the bed in the corner then rubbed his hands together. "Oh well, here we go!"

As carefully as he could, he took off the soldier armor and changed into the merchant's outfit, again having to inhale as he put it on.

"Are all merchants freakin' anorexic or something?" He cried as he jumped up and down to get the pants on. "There! Okay, now let's take the cider back to…Oh no. I have to see that annoying kid again, don't I? Tch. Oh well."

He walked over the 'pile of merchant' and grabbed the bottle that was on the table. Walking over the merchant again, he quickly made his way up the stairs and through the town to get back to the old man's house. The path was clear because that soldier was on his break, and he was the only obstacle that Locke had to face in the first place.

Sighing, he knocked on the back door again, dreading the sight of the little boy. Of course, the little boy opened the door, but this time his face was a little more animated when he saw Locke; instead of the deadpan look that he gave him the first two times, he clearly gave Locke an aggravated look.

"You again?" The little boy asked as Locke nodded.

"I have the cider this time," he clarified as he showed the bottle to the little boy. "That's your cue to move, munchkin."

Insulted, the boy moved and Locke made his way through the house until he found the old man. The old man was sitting at his desk, peacefully reading a book. Locke couldn't help but feel sorry for him for having such a peculiar grandchild, but shrugged it off and walked up to him.

"Here you are, sir!" He exclaimed cheerfully as he handed him the green bottle of cider.

"Ah! Cider!" Like a little kid in a candy store, the old man drank the cider with deep glugs. As he was drinking, Locke looked at the bookshelf that was next to him. He let out a satisfied exhale as he gazed at the bottle. "Ahh, nothing like cider."

"So rumor has it that there's a passage somewhere around here," Locke started without looking away from the books. "Do you have any idea where I can find it?"

"Huh? Secret passage?" The old man put the bottle down and rubbed his chin with his fingers. "Well, there is one that leads to the rich man's house. Is that what you mean?"

"Yeah," Locke said, pleasantly surprised at how easily the old man was spilling information. "How can I get to it?"

"Oh, it goes from this house to the rich man's house. I used to work for the rich man, you know," he stated as Locke turned toward him. "Go downstairs and give my grandson the password."

"What's the password?" Locke asked as he put his hands on the desk and leaned forward.

"It's…uh…" His eyes wondered off in thought as he looked up at the ceiling, at the desk, then back at Locke. "Umm…I forget!"

"Okay, thanks anyway," Locke replied as his heart slightly fell. Great, more time with the grandson…He thought as he hopped down the stairs, only to see the little boy waiting at the foot of them. Locke stood on the last step and looked at the little boy in hopes that he would move. "So, uh, your grandfather says that there is a secret passage way somewhere around—"

"The password is…?" He drawled with a dry tone of voice.

"You know, he didn't tell me," Locke said as he put his hands on the railing and leaned over so he was above the little boy's head. The little boy had to look up at Locke at such a steep angle that Locke thought he was going to topple backward. "How 'bout making this a multiple choice test? I do better on those. I don't have to improvise as much."

The annoying little boy sighed and reluctantly said, "Okay, fine. The password is either courage or…uh…." he trailed off as he tried to think of two more things to say, clearly proving to Locke what the answer was. "Or rosebud or—"

"I'm gonna go out on a limb here and say, 'courage,'" he interrupted, causing the little boy to blink.

"Secret entrance," he said as he moved out of the way and walked to the wall opposite of the back door. He pushed on a brick, causing it to pop open, revealing a small red button. Letting out a slight grunt, he pushed it, causing part of the brick wall to open, revealing a secret staircase.

"Huh," Locke said in wonder as he walked toward the staircase. He stopped and ruffled the little boy's hair first and said, "Thanks a bunch, kiddo!"

The little boy put his hands on his head to fix his hair and Locke chuckled as he made his way down the stairs toward the rich man's house.