Pure of Heart [ON HOLD UNTIL FURTHER NOTICE]

Chapter 3: The Interview

My right leg bounced frantically as the cameras flashed around me. Technical crews were still setting up, so that meant testing the angles and the lighting. Occasionally they checked the flash to make sure we didn't look pale like ghosts. I felt something press down on my leg, and I whipped my eyes up from the floor to look at Professor Oak. His hand steadied my shaking and he said, "Relax. I know this is your first interview, Phoebe, but the key to performing well is to relax."

"But it's live, it's not a performance," I said.

"Every time that you appear on screen is a performance. You don't act like you, you act like what you want them to see." He pointed at the cameras as he spoke.

"Yeah, I guess you're right." My leg continued bouncing as I spoke. I smirked and said, "But that doesn't change the fact that I've had way too much coffee this morning."

Oak chuckled. "I assume that's why you're shaking so much then. Try decaf next time."

I smiled in return. His words made me feel slightly better, but it still didn't remove the pressure that the night before had placed on me. I flipped through the pages of my journal—which was sitting open in front of me—to the latest entry. The words were scrambled and messy, a side effect from me writing at 2:00 in the morning mixed with the frantic feeling the situation had placed on me. I felt the calm that Professor Oak had just given me wash away as I tried to make out my chicken scratch words. The final sentence of my entry made me shiver as I read it. "I am a fraud," it said.

"You recorded everything in that book, right? That means that everything you need to say is in there. If you feel at a loss for words when they start bombarding you with questions, just take a peek at what you wrote. I'm sure you'll be able to recall something. Or, just check your Pokédex." He raised an eyebrow, "You brought that, right?"

"Yeah," my words came out softly, almost under my breath. I took a long pause, trying to figure out if I wanted to tell him or not. I decided that it was weighing me down too much already and that he needed to know. "But, I have something to tell you about the Dex, Professor." I fished the device out of my bag as I spoke, "There's a problem. Just...look."

Professor Oak grabbed the Pokédex from my hand and flipped it open. The screen flashed to life and displayed a percentage at the top. "99% COMPLETE." To my surprise, however, Oak smiled and chuckled a little bit. He turned to look at me with a big grin on his face. "My dear, you've beaten me to the punch it seems. I was planning to bring this up during the interview.

"But I suppose I should ask you now before the pressure is on. How would you feel about traveling to another region to capture more Pokémon? Completely new species to us that we have never seen here in Kanto. I'm sure you've heard that Johto has more species, right?"

I felt the weight from the night before release with the professor's words. Every ounce of me was filled with relief. "There are more than one-hundred and fifty Pokémon?" I played dumb, prompting Oak to explain further. Obviously, there were more, I had already encountered an extra one that wasn't supposed to exist according to the Pokédex. Plus, there had to be more to populate the world outside of Kanto.

"It wouldn't be too far from home. Our friends in the Johto region asked me if I wanted to a sort of 'foreign exchange' study. You would go there, and one of their trusted assistants would come here. I've already exchanged data concerning our respective Pokédexes with Professor Elm, but he and I would rather have our best assistants travel the other's region. Considering the fact that you are the first to capture all the Pokémon in Kanto, I figured that you would be the best candidate. So, Phoebe, are you interested?"