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?"

"Yes," my mouth automatically responded, my brain lagging seconds behind. I felt filled with hope and a renewed wanderlust. I knew it was insane; travel another region so quickly without even taking time to unwind from my last journey? Any normal kid would have refused Oak's offer, or at least given it a second thought. I hadn't planned to leave home again for a long time. But something in my mind spurred me onward, and I knew this was what I had to do to find 151—that was the nickname I had given the mysterious new Pokémon. It had to be in Johto, and I had to be the first one to find it.

Oak nodded at my response as he plugged a USB into the side of my Pokédex. The screen flashed on, off, then on again as it downloaded new data. The machine made its typically rebooting noise. "I knew you would want to. We can talk about the details after this press conference. Come by my lab immediately after this so that we can get you set up with Elm's system. I also have an update on Mewtwo."

He handed the Pokédex back to me with its screen on. The display's percentage now said "61.5% COMPLETE," since it now accounted for all of the Pokémon in Johto and Kanto. I scrolled down the list until I reached where the completed entries of Pokémon ended. Beyond Kanto's creatures were slightly grayed out images of Johto's wildlife. Their colors would remain muted, I assumed, until I captured them. I stopped and scrolled back to 151's spot. It wasn't even grayed out, it was just a shadow. An unknown. A legend. Before it, colorful images with memories to recall; after it, grayed out adventures waiting to be had. In its spot, a mystery to be solved.

"Thanks, Professor," I said.

"Of course."

At that moment, we heard the door open, allowing for the noise of the crowd outside to pour in. The security guard peered in at us, the lighting crew, and cameramen. "Ready?" he asked.

I gulped, nodding as everyone else verbally affirmed that they were good to go. In response, the guard at the main door nodded and let the flood of people in. They clawed and climbed over each other, hunting for a good seat. The front-most rows filled quickly, like a flood of water overcoming a ditch on the side of the road. The rows after it filled just as quickly, as each seat was taken over by reporters from every news station imaginable.

They talked anxiously as the technical crews did one final check with our mics. They tugged at the wires attached to the microphone sitting in front of me. Once assuring it was the way they wanted it to be, they tapped lightly on the foam. Sure enough, the equipment captured the sound and sent it through the room. At this, the reporters grew quiet, anxious for what came next.

The crew cleared away, and the cameraman began a countdown with his fingers: Five. Four. Three. Two. One, I counted along in my head. He gave a thumbs up, and the light atop the camera turned green. Some people said some formalities, reminding me and Professor Oak that we could refuse any question at any time. I ignored most of what was said in exchange for staring into the camera. I was a Pokémon in the headlights of a car, knowing that I needed to move but also too scared to do it.

"Phoebe, are you ready?" Oak's voice snapped me out of my daze. I looked at him, his brownish gray eyes compelled me back to the present. I looked out onto the crowd again, feeling sick to my stomach as they waited for my response on baited breath.

"Yeah, I am," I responded. I pushed my fear down inside of me. The panic was overwhelming, but I knew that I had to manage it.

Given my okay, the prompter chose the first question. The reporter stood to her feet, brushed the wrinkles out of her scarlet skirt, and began. "Phoebe Kennett," she said.

I waited a moment, expecting her to go on. She didn't, so I leaned into the mic to respond. "Yeah," I stuttered. "That's my name." My words stuck in my throat and it felt like a lump the size of a Poké Ball was keeping them from escaping.

A chuckle moved through the audience. The reporter flashed a white smile at me. "You seemed nervous, and I thought that might help snap you back to the here and now." She was right, it had made me laugh a bit with the audience which calmed my nerves, albeit only by a small amount. She continued. "My question is: how long were you away from home for Professor Oak? Was it ever hard being on your own as a sixteen-year-old without parental guidance?"

"About a year," I responded. "Wait, maybe more like eleven months. I'm not really sure." I shrunk into my chair after realizing how much I had butchered my answer. "And I wasn't really alone ever, I had Charizard and an amazing team of Pokémon to keep me company. Plus, I checked in with Oak and mom once a week; more than once if I had something exciting to report."

The reporter said her thanks and took her seat again. Hands shot up again, and the next on—a bald man—stood to ask "What Pokémon did you have on your team besides Charizard?"

"It's changed a lot since the start. I didn't really understand type matchups for a while, so I got my butt handed to me by other trainers until I built a better team. However, Charizard has stayed by my side this whole time. I refused to ever put him in a PC. For the battle with the Elite 4 and with Mewtwo last week I used Charizard, Pidgeot, Raichu, Beedrill, Alakazam, and Gengar."

The questions continued on for a while like that. Reports asked a wide variety of questions ranging from what my favorite Pokémon species is—Charizard of course!—to what my battle style was like, how I had learned to take such detailed notes, questions about Mewtwo—which was a fun moment to recall—and even about my "beauty tips to staying fresh on the road." I had to refuse the makeup question since I didn't wear any; the sweat just made it feel like plaster on my face.

By the end of the interview, Oak and I were having a great time answering questions. The reporters were enjoying themselves too. I answered more freely by the end, almost all of my nerves had vanished once I realized how fun it was to tell my story. My responses felt more natural and forthcoming after having been at it for almost an hour. Then, the bombshell question dropped when the same dark-skinned woman in the red skirt and blazer from the first question stood up.

"I neglected to mention who I was when I asked you my first few questions. My name is Paloma Hamilton from Johto Times-News. It has come to our understanding at my station that Kanto and Johto are two very different regions with very different species Pokémon. So tell me, Phoebe, do you really believe that you've caught them all? Are you going to ignore the extra ninety-four Pokémon in Johto that you haven't caught and written about? Don't they deserve to be studied in such detail that you did for Kanto's species?"

As I collected my thoughts to answer, Oak cut me off with his hand. "Actually, minutes before this interview took place, I asked Phoebe here if she wanted to help with another special project." Any reporters that had zoned out by now sat up straight in their seats. Notebooks ruffled to fresh pages and pens scribbled down Oak's every word from that point on. "Professor Elm of the Johto region and I have made a program that we're calling REP—the 'Regional Exchange Program.' Our plan is to send our best students to the other's region so that we can expand on what knowledge we already have.

"Surely, a girl like Phoebe who has lived in Kanto her entire has missed details regarding Pokémon that she can find in her backyard. It might take a fresh set of eyes to catch little habits about wild Pokémon that could unlock knowledge about the different species. That is why I will be sending Phoebe to Johto to work with Professor Elm, and I will be receiving a student here to work with me. Elm has yet to choose his protege, but the name will be released by him once he finds the person bests suited for the job. More information will be coming about this whole process in the coming weeks, but for now, that is all the time we have. I want to thank you all for coming out today."

With that being said, Professor Oak stood up and walked out of the room to the backstage area. I quickly followed suit as reporters raised their hands. Realizing they weren't getting any answers and that I was still retreating, they began to shout over one another, hoping for just one more answer to their new questions about the program. I smiled and waved goodbye to them all before letting the security guard close the doors behind me. After all, I now had questions of my own about this new project the professor had for me.