CHAPTER 205

It was Friday. The accursed day had finally come.

I woke up dreading what was to come this evening. The interview. A horrible knot had settled in my stomach and my sheets were drenched in sweat. I'd gotten nightmares about messing up in some horrible way for the past two nights. Tongue twisted, forgetting my lines, letting my confrontational side get the better of me, everything that could go wrong had replayed in my mind over and over.

"Toge?"

I smiled, stroking Princess' head. "Good morning, baby."

Togetic nestled herself against the covers and begged for five more minutes. Her siblings were all around me. Angel next to the window, as always, and smiling with his eyes. I'd be willing to bet that he was having a very good dream. Honey had somehow fallen off the bed last night and dragged the covers with him, but to his credit, it was supposed to be designed for one person. He'd fallen onto Turtonator's shell and the dragon had somehow not realized it.

Thankfully, Sunshine didn't sleep with Shell Trap on.

Sweetheart swayed back and forth in her cocoon while Buddy was a weird star-shaped thing floating in the sky. He greeted me with a soft click as I stretched.

"It's the big day," I whispered to myself. "Gotta get ready."

The interview was at nine, but obviously I couldn't just show up there thirty minutes early and call it a day. First, I had a final rehearsal with Melody and the team at two in the afternoon, and then I'd have to be at the SGNC building at six-thirty. At least the interview would only last ten to fifteen minutes, but I knew that time slowed to a crawl when I was nervous. It was why my previous Gym Battles had felt like they'd lasted hours and not minutes.

I started the day as I normally did: preparing my team's breakfast and a shower. Jellicent hung around me the entire morning asking about how my nerves were doing. Hell, he even asked if he could be there during the interview for support, but I shut down that idea pretty quickly. It'd be nice, but I doubted the Poketch Company would approve because it could technically look like intimidation, especially with how he easily terrified strangers. If Mallory stepped on my toes like I expected her to, he'd probably swell up in anger. She was a Pokemon activist, but she was no trainer, and everyone on my team aside from Honey was… well, weird. The last thing I wanted was for Princess' protectiveness to be misconstrued or for Sunshine to burn down the entire building.

"Buddy! I'm done with my shower and your bath's ready!" I yelled.

I felt the usual shivers down my spine and heard a squelch as Jellicent slipped under the bathroom's doorframe and crawled into the small bathtub. He was practically invisible in the water, save for his two shining red eyes.

"It's as cold as I could make it," I added. It was as close to the bottom of the ocean as one could get, just like he liked it. "Don't spend too long, we've gotta run in an hour."

Small bubbles popped on the water's surface, and I sat with my back to the bathtub, letting my hair soak in the cold water.

"I've got to take you to the beach when we get to Sunyshore. You haven't been since I caught you in Sandgem."

I heard an excited, distorted boom through the water. My body vibrated at the sound, as if someone had played a bass boost next to me.

"Sucks that it won't be summer so I won't be able to go in. Well, I could, but I'm not crazy enough for it. I think Sweetie's gonna ask to get into the water though," I said. "Did you know she complained to me about you yesterday— wait, it was two days ago, actually. She was all like, Ahhh Buddy's telling me I won't be able to go in the water, go talk to him! But like, way louder."

The water rumbled as Jellicent laughed. Some of it even seeped out and I jumped when it touched my back.

"Arceus, that's cold," I sighed. "Anyway, I'm just relaying what happened. You know I kind of spoil her though, so I appreciate you being there to pull back. I think she'll die on that hill though. We can give her at least one try. She won't go too deep."

I bent my head back and saw the water type looming over me with a disappointed look.

"We'll see?" I tried. "C'mon, if she gets too far I'll recall her."

He finally relented and sunk back inside of the bath.

"I should probably get dressed and stuff," I sighed. "If the interview goes well and the Gym Battle does too, I'll ask Melody about that raise. Plus I'll get the money from Maylene too."

I exhaled a deep, long breath, and Jellicent patted me on the back. I heard Sweetheart scream loudly in the bedroom and I unconsciously smirked.

"Yeah, I'm alright. I've just gotta get through the day," I said as I stood up. "I'll leave you to it and check this stuff out."

I froze when I stepped outside of the bathroom.

"What in the world is happening here?"

First of all, Honey was desperately trying to pull at Sweetheart's outer layer. She was molting again and I hadn't even realized it in my half-asleep state. Electabuzz had slimy liquid all over his hands and small bits of dead shell littered the floor. Princess was gathering them all into a small corner for me while Angel was soothing Pupitar with vines to keep her still. Sunshine was giving her words of encouragement as well and telling her that she'd conquer this region soon if she could get through this and be strong.

Of course, they all stopped when they saw me. Molting already? Wasn't it too early? Her new cocoon was still in its softened state under the half-decrepit one, the usual tall spike-like crown flattened against her head to fit inside of the smaller cocoon. Needless to say, she'd grown again.

"Guys, you should have called me and said something," I said. "I would have recalled her and brought her outside. It's better if she sheds the outer skin naturally."

Electabuzz hung his head low and said it was his idea.

"You're good, don't worry. Now you know for next time," I gently said. "You're almost done, so let me help out."

I crouched next to Pupitar, who was trembling in her shell.

"Shhh, it's okay Sweetheart. I know it's scary, but you're almost done. Your body's changing fast, right? That's no fun, and it's not your fault. Soon you'll be big and strong."

Add getting more soil for her to the list of things I needed to ace this interview for, I thought to myself. TMs could wait for now, but I wanted Sweetheart to get through this as quickly as possible.

Her molting so quickly was proof that the soil I'd bought was effective, so at least that was money well spent. When all was said and done (and I finished cleaning up the floor), she was almost as tall as me… fitting her in this room when she evolved was definitely going to be impossible. I spent the remainder of the morning getting food for myself, doing laundry downstairs and wishing today could be any other day, but soon, the afternoon came and Melody called my cellphone.

"Grace, I'm downstairs to pick you up."

Words that terrified me, even if this was still just practice. She looked quite spry as she rolled down her window to greet me.

"Hi Mel," I sighed.

Spending most of my afternoons had brought me quite closer to her, and I felt comfortable using a nickname for her. She'd been very helpful this entire process and felt like the only actual human that represented the company, along with the rest of the media team that had coached me.

"Ready for your big day?" She said as I walked around to open the door. "You look like you've seen a ghost."

"I'm nervous."

"You'll do fine. Just keep it under control for the first question or so and then you'll realize it isn't that bad, especially with no live audience."

"That doesn't mean much considering how many people will be watching on TV."

"Ah, you're still imagining them there, then?" She asked. "We'll try to go over more destressing techniques when we're at the Poketch building."

I leaned against the car window and sighed.

Just get through this day.

—

After going over everything again, conducting four mock interviews ranging from easy to one where Melody went more in-depth by following up on each question, she decided I was ready and let me rest up for the final two hours. And Arceus, I needed that. I spent it with Princess and Honey keeping me company on one of the couches. It was cute, hearing them whisper about tactics to make me feel better, especially when Honey tried pulling a prank on me by calling for me and then poking me on the cheek when I turned my head. Unfortunately I had to shut them down when Princess suggested maiming Mallory so the interview had to be canceled…

Well, she had said maiming lightly, whatever that meant. I'd wanted to give her a stern talking-to about not being allowed to injure people that had done nothing wrong, but then everyone would have looked at us like we were insane, and I already had enough on my plate to deal with.

Mel and I arrived at the SGNC building— or SGNC Center, as it was called, at seven on the dot. The complex wasn't particularly tall, but it was truly massive, taking up an entire block. It ironically reminded me of the Poketch Headquarters in Hearthome with its modern and sleek design. The front of the building jutted out forward and was a nice blend of metal and glass that revealed the bustling activity within. The doors were also adorned with the large red SGNC logo with bold, white lines surrounding each letter.

The entrance opened up into a vast reception area that sported mainly neutral grey tones. Comfortable-looking couches littered the room with journals that were probably a decade old. Water ran down the walls and down below, and it was only when I stepped forward that I realized the floor ahead was made of glass with water types swimming there. There were Remoraid, Goldeen, Magikarp—

"Grace?" Melody called out.

"Right, my bad."

I hoped they were happy here, but if Mallory the Pokemon activist worked here, they must have been treated well. Plus, I hadn't really felt any fear or annoyance, but then again, I had only stopped for a few seconds. The SGNC logo also flashed behind the reception desk, and multiple people worked there. Melody just strode toward the counter like she owned the place.

"Good evening. Melody Summers and Grace Pastel representing the Poketch Company," she said.

They went through the usual procedure (asking for ID, verifying our claim, and the receptionist typing away at his computer) until he printed some kind of keycard with our names and company name on it to put around our necks. We were directed to a room further down reception, which was basically just another waiting area with more outdated news.

"What now?" I asked as I sat on the couch.

"We wait for Mallory to come and greet us."

I felt my stomach twist. "I thought I had two hours left?"

"It's just for the pre-interview. I told you about this when we first started training, remember? She'll introduce herself to you and make small talk for around ten minutes or so so you become somewhat acquainted. Then you get to read my notes a little more, and you go to the dressing room where they do your makeup, and you're on."

She made a small rectangle with her fingers which I assumed was supposed to be a television.

"Do you think they have water here?" I asked. My throat felt very dry all of a sudden, and my lips felt chapped.

"I'll go get one for you. Do you want anything else?" She asked as she stood. "Snacks?"

"I'm good, thanks," I muttered.

Melody left me all alone. I took deep breaths and tried the trick Bella had taught me to calm down and relax. I closed my eyes, but not too tightly as I sank into the couch and saw myself. You're okay. You're okay. I repeated the sentence in my head until I felt something poke me in the arm and jumped.

At first, I thought it would have been Melody, but I nearly fell over when Mallory Ryan stood in front of me. The short-haired woman who had captivated the attention of millions of Sinnohans stood in front of me. She looked to be in her thirties and had light brown eyes and hair with a smile that somehow made me want to smile back too. On one hand, seeing her here made me realize that this was actually happening. On the other, all irrational fears of her being replaced at the last second with her co-host or some other person I'd never heard of or studied could thankfully be laid to rest.

"Sorry, I didn't know if you were sleeping, or…?" Mallory trailed off.

"Good evening!" I said a little louder than I would have liked. "I'm Grace Pastel."

"I know," she laughed. "Can I sit?"

"Yeah, this is your place— well, not your place, but your job. Or, well—"

"Relax," Mallory said. "I'm not going to eat you. Did Melody not come with you?"

"She went to get me water, she should be back soon," I explained.

The older woman sat down and looked right at me. "You're nervous," she noted. I simply answered with a curt nod. "They must have told you a lot of terrible things about me, but rest assured. I won't be tough on you, not when you're representing the Poketch Company and we share values. This is mostly an opportunity for you to tell your side of the story. The pictures of you standing in that crowd of Pokemon were striking, you know? My daughter tells me she wants to be like you when she grows up."

I let out something between a gasp and a scoff. Someone wanting to be like me? That hadn't even crossed my mind.

"How old is she?" I asked, not wanting to let the conversation die.

"Six. Her name is Harley. You reminded her of those princesses that can talk to Pokemon in those movies kids go crazy for," Mallory smiled. "You made a powerful statement that day. You spoke for Pokemon, and activists like me noticed. You deserve to have a chance to speak, and they'll have a voice through you."

"I… I think we have a lot more in common than I thought," I said.

"See? You're relaxing already!" She beamed. "I've been in this line of work since I was twenty, so you're in good hands. Did the Poketch Company try to scare you? Let me guess, they showed you the clip of me humiliating Mr. Horn?"

"They did. Multiple times."

"It went viral, and it's what I'm most known for," she said. "That politician was a moron. He spoke all about how expanding into route 214 would be better for Veilstone. What he really wanted was for his rich buddies to have more land to build their mansions on."

The woman rolled her eyes as she recalled the interaction.

The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

"You've got to push back any way you can, right?" She smiled.

"You're a lot more active in this than I thought. I haven't done much compared to you…"

"You're young, and you're a trainer," she shrugged. "Trainers don't really have time for anything."

Mallory paused and her eyes drifted to my Pokeballs and stuck there for longer than I thought was normal.

"Have you interviewed trainers in the past?" I asked.

"A few, but I mainly work in politics," she said.

I nodded, remembering how she had covered Cynthia's brief loss of power in parliament when we were in Eterna and the protests had been in full swing.

"Anyway, people think of me as a ruthless interviewer because I ruined one greedy man's career, but I can be nice too," she said. "Here, let me tell you about a few of the interviews I've had that they didn't show you. It'll help you understand the process as well."

Mallory went on to explain some of her past interviews and the positive effects they had. It was probably to help me get over my nerves, and it was actually helping. Because of all the wariness Melody had beat into my head the last week of training, I'd expected her to be confrontational right away, but it thankfully looked like that wasn't going to be the case. My sponsorship liaison came back with a bag of chips and two bottles of water in her hands a few minutes later.

"Ah, Melody! Long time no see," Mallory beamed.

"Mallory. Still the same as always," she said.

"You know each other?" I asked. "Beyond acquaintances, I mean."

"We've worked together a few times in the past," Melody said, handing me the water. I quickly opened it and downed the entire thing as if I'd been dying of thirst.

"I was just getting to know Grace, but it seems we let time get the better of us. Here, let me explain to you how it's going to happen. You're going to be dolled up a little. There are clothes as well if you want to change."

I looked down at myself and shook my head. Melody had already prepared adequate clothing for the occasion. It wasn't as fancy as what I'd worn during my date with Cece, but the flowery skirt and plain creamy top would do the trick.

"Then, you're going to come to the studio. Since you've seen the videos, you know how it's set up," I nodded, remembering the two couches facing one another at an angle, so both people could easily look at each other and the camera when needed. "Don't get overwhelmed by the crew, they won't be interacting with you at all beyond the countdown before we go live. Then after a few minutes, we'll run ads and it'll be over."

I'd already heard all of this from Melody, but it felt nice to have a refresher anyway. I wasn't as nervous as I had been now that I knew Mallory was nice, but the knot in my stomach was still there, and I really hoped I didn't look too sweaty during the interview. Mallory left soon after that, and I spent the last time I had studying the questions and answers while Mel kept me company.

—

Whereas the dressing room for the Poketch Company photoshoot had only had one attendant, SGNC had at least four people working on me at all times. One of them tried to convince me to change clothes the entire time I was in there, but they ended up fixing my hair that had gotten messed up from me putting my head against the couch for an hour straight and dusting my face with light amounts of makeup. By the time we were done, there was only fifteen minutes left to the interview. I honestly had never been this nervous in my life. Not even when I had battled Roark. My skin tingled and felt like it was burning up.

I tried distracting myself by thinking about what my friends were doing right now. The interview had been announced today as a surprise, so everyone knew about it by now, although Louis and Maeve had already left the city. The rest of them were probably all grouped up in a room waiting for me to get on TV. I imagined Pauline telling me to kick ass and my mood improved slightly.

The studio room was a lot more spacious than it looked on television. Mallory waved at me from the elevated platform where the interview would take place, and a green screen stood behind her.

Guess that view of Veilstone at night was a lie, I mused to myself.

Dozens of people were moving out and about, shouting at each other about technical terms I didn't understand at all except a loud 'go in ten', which meant that I had ten minutes left. With nothing left to do, I joined Mallory on the platform, although she was too busy to chat. People orbited and talked to her constantly, and she would instantly answer. With nothing left to do, I recited the answers in my head as I tried to calm myself the best I could. We both sat down on the couch as the technical crew adjusted the lighting and large microphones hung over our heads, just out of camera's frames.

"One minute left," Mallory said as she crossed her legs.

"Yeah."

It was a simple answer, but at least I could speak. The minute felt like an eternity, but suddenly.

"We're live in five, four, three, two, one!"

As if a switch had flipped, Mallory's face grew more… brilliant. Captivating. I didn't miss the cue and began to smile as well, just like Mel had taught me. Not too wide, but just enough to not look obnoxious.

"Good evening, ladies and gentlemen. We are live on SGNC and I'm Mallory Ryan. Some of you may have noticed already that my cohost Patrick isn't here—" She stopped to wave in the distance, and I saw the man wave back. "Hello Patrick," she laughed. Was that allowed? I guess it was just how they did things on the network. "He's standing by because today, SGNC is bringing you an exclusive interview with Grace Pastel! Rising star in the League Circuit, acclaimed as one of the best first-years this cycle, she's an expert on battling and training Pokemon. Grace, how are you doing tonight?"

"I'm doing great, t—thank you. I'm happy to be there and to have an opportunity like this."

Oh, Arceus, I'd stumbled over my words already. Mallory ignored the small hiccup and continued.

"Many of you at home know this already, but Grace has received mounting amounts of public attention for many reasons, but today we're here to discuss what happened on route 215. Before we get into that, however, why don't you introduce yourself to the viewers not familiar with you? Even I'd like to hear a little more about where you came from. My daughter's fascinated about you."

The first question had arrived, and she'd weaved it seamlessly into the interview like we were having a natural conversation and not some scripted jargon.

"Sure thing!" I said. "I grew up in Jubilife my entire life with my father. When I was younger I couldn't even imagine I'd become a trainer, but once I actually experienced—" I accidentally bit my tongue and paused. "Experienced what it was like to train with Princess for the first time, I caught the bug and I never looked back."

"Fascinating. And Princess is your…"

"My Togetic," I said. I'd completely forgotten to specify that! Damn it. "It's been tough, but I wouldn't have it any other way. I love my job and I love my Pokemon with all my heart. They're like family to me."

My face twitched, and I made sure my smile was still there. I couldn't keep it completely still all the time, because then I'd look like a psycho. Normally I would have smiled anyway when talking about my Pokemon, but I was way too nervous to be normal at the moment. My palms were full of sweat and I was too scared to wipe them on the couch or my skirt.

"Trainers often say that they love their Pokemon, but it looks like your love extended to more than just your team. Almost two weeks ago, Grace arrived at Veilstone's gate with what the Rangers and multiple news stations called an army that could have threatened the city."

She paused, and I assumed the technical crew was showing a picture of the event to the people at home.

"What do you have to say to that?" She finished.

"I definitely know that it looked weird. People aren't used to that many Pokemon cooperating together," I started. "And the unknown or the unusual can be scary. They truly meant the city no harm and just wanted to send me off with a bang."

"And when you say send you off, do you mean that you befriended all of those Pokemon?"

"That is what I'm saying. I might not know all of them individually, but I still consider them friends, and I hope the reverse is true. What I experienced on the route was truly magical. I met so many Pokemon and realized that they're just like us. They have their community, worries, and drama as well."

Mallory's smile widened, which told me she was genuinely doing so. "A lot of people, trainers included—" I didn't miss the strong inflection on the word. "Think that Pokemon are just animals for entertainment or even food. I think it's important for someone to shine a light on their individuality. If you had one moment to share with us that stuck with you, what would it be?"

I felt my heart rate speed up at the first unscripted question. That wasn't one of the ones she'd sent to us, but my mouth surprisingly started to move before I'd even realized it.

Well, beyond the moments with Night and Bella, I had plenty. "There was a Simisage that visited us every so often. At some point, he'd grown so attached to me that he decided to introduce me to his kid. She was the cutest little Pansage I'd ever seen, and shy too. She befriended Princess and Angel— that's uh, my Tangrowth— and they played together for a long time. I thought that was very cute. It just… filled my heart with happiness I couldn't explain."

I finally understood what Melody meant now. Despite my stumbles, I was beginning to hit my stride.

"But there's another side to the story," I continued. "She told me that she feared being captured and ripped away from her dad, or for the opposite to happen. That is why I believe that trainers shouldn't capture Pokemon without their consent. It's a mistake many of us make… I made it too, when I was just starting out, but I've grown past it. When you look at a wild Pokemon you want to catch, think about if they have a life they'd be leaving behind. Family, friends, dreams… they all have those."

I finally stopped and inhaled sharply. That had been completely unscripted, but Mallory seemed over the moon with me.

"That was very eloquently put, Grace, and I agree completely," she said. "But it's still something a lot of people have yet to realize. I noticed that you said that Pansage talked to you directly? Could you go more into that?"

I stopped myself from biting my lip. We were going completely off script now, huh? Mallory's face was completely still, like an Ekans lying in wait for prey, but she was still being polite and not as harsh as she could be. I knew she was curious about my capabilities, but unfortunately, I had to shut her down.

"Hatterene translated her words for me," I said.

Mallory deflated, although she hid it well.

"Ah, yes. Hatterene. The Rangers said that their Pokemon felt like she was an incredibly powerful Pokemon, along with Decidueye. You spoke to them when you were about to leave and your words were caught on video. Play the clip, please."

We stood in silence for around thirty seconds until someone in the technical team motioned at us with a thumbs up. I felt a surge of panic when I realized I'd called Bella her name, but remembered I had only whispered it. Could people make it out if they zoomed in on my lips?

"Talks of getting Decidueye books and paint, along with calling Hatterene your teacher. There was obviously a personal connection there."

I restrained a sigh. I needed to keep this concise and short.

"I can't deny I connected to them both more than the others," I said. "They're friends of mine."

"Friends of yours, you say. Not many trainers would be able to boast befriending Pokemon that powerful. Could you go a little bit more in detail about that process?"

Arceus damn it, she was fucking good at her job. I'd explicitly asked her not to approach the topic, but she was leaving me an out.

I was good at words too.

"It started when I nursed an injured Ponyta back to health under an overhang. A lot of Pokemon ended up taking refuge there for the night and I met Hatterene and Decidueye soon after. They helped me navigate the route and taught some of my Pokemon. We bonded a lot, but they're a private bunch. As a renowned Pokemon activist, surely you'd understand respecting their wishes."

Mallory's lips twitched, and she leaned back against her chair, her eyes still hungry for answers. She was admitting defeat. "Of course. Now, let's move on. I've participated in many protests, especially when I was young. From Anti-Parasect to anti-expansionist protests, I've seen my fair share of marches against injustices done against Pokemon. Would you consider ever joining one of these?

Back on script, I noticed. "I would, so long as they remain non-violent," I said. That last part had been added by the Poketch Company, but I thought it'd been a given when I answered. "I don't have much time since I'm a trainer, so I can't exactly put money where my mouth is, but whenever my schedule opens up, I'd be willing to join."

"You should! People often have this negative view of protests, especially in Sinnoh and our neighboring countries. They're much more culturally accepted in Unova, Kalos and Galar. Protests give you the opportunity to meet a lot of like-minded people. It's actually how I met my husband, believe it or not," she smiled. "You might not have the time, but what about donating? There are a lot of resources and charities that'd be willing to take your money."

Off-script again. I couldn't really fault her, though. At this point, we were having a conversation and the script was only used whenever we ran out of stuff to say.

"I'd be willing to, but I have a few things I'm saving for right now. What's most pressing is a Shiny Stone for Princess, but there's a bunch of other stuff I won't reveal."

Disappointment flashed on her face, but she left it at that. "Trainers and their secrets," she said. "Speaking of Unova, have you heard of this recently created group called the Plasma Organization?"

"I have, but not much," I said. "I'd like it if you could explain it in more detail."

That was honestly just me trying to fill the runtime with Mallory speaking instead of me. It technically wasn't a lie. I'd only heard what Melody and the others had told me about it, so not much.

"They're a political group in Unova that fights for Pokemon rights and freedom," she said. I noticed that she'd left a lot of it unsaid. They wanted to rip Pokemon and their trainers apart. That was arguably as bad as capturing a Pokemon without their consent. "They're small, but growing quickly, and I've donated plenty to them."

I blinked. Mallory was SGNC's most popular anchor. She had a fortune and probably hundreds of millions if not billions of Pokedollars to her name. Donations from her were no small thing and could make a real difference.

"What do you think about them?"

I cursed internally. Now that I'd lied and said I didn't know much about them, me coming out against what she'd just said would make me look either like a huge hypocrite or a liar. But coming out in support would also bring the Poketch Company an incredible amount of negative press and would possibly hurt their relationship with Unova's government. Melody was probably fuming outside the studio right now.

"I'm not really the best at politics, but I'd be willing to take a better look at them later," I said. "What you said sounds good, but I'd like to be informed about the Plasma Organization before making an opinion."

Mallory faced me and winked with her eye hidden from the camera. "I'll send you some information later. Now, although I would have liked to hear more about it, you've shared your experience on route 214. You're starting to become known for training on route instead of in arenas, and you've been spotted numerous times on route 215. Have you had any similar experiences on that route?"

I sighed in relief and began to recite my answer.

Mallory never went off script again, and fifteen minutes passed in a flash.

—

"What the fuck was that, Mallory?!" Melody yelled. I'd never seen her so angry. "What happened to not stepping on the Poketch Company's toes?!"

The short-haired woman waved a hand dismissively. "Come on. The girl handled it perfectly. She's better at this than most of the old men I speak to."

"Yes, she did, but it could have been a complete disaster! Do you think SGNC will let this go if the Poketch Company escalates this?!"

"I'll probably get yelled at by the executives, but I know their limit," she answered. "That's why I stopped eventually. I stopped right in front of the line."

Melody exhaled. "Arceus, I've never felt so powerless as I was watching the show behind the studio door. You did wonderful, Grace. I've gotten a few texts, and the company's happy with you."

"Can we talk about that raise, then?" I asked.

"Tomorrow."

Mallory stared at her watch. "The ads are still running. Can I have a word with Grace in private?"

"What for?" Mel asked, crossing her arms.

"That's why I called it private. Because I'm not going to tell you," she said with a smirk. "Don't worry, it won't be anything bad. You owe me a favor."

"She does?" I frowned.

"People often trade favors in the industry," Mallory explained.

"Just make it quick," Melody said after clicking her tongue. She left the waiting room I'd gone back to.

"What'd you think about the interview?" Mallory asked after a few seconds of silence.

"I thought it was one of the most terrifying things I've ever done and that you nearly cost me my sponsorship, so I wouldn't exactly call it a good experience."

The woman laughed. "I was a little hard on you, but nowhere near as bad as I could have been."

"That doesn't reassure me one bit. It feels like you bulldozed over me to satiate your curiosity, and I dislike that. You slighted me."

"I did. I wanted to see what kind of girl you were. Dull, or sharp. It turns out you were the latter."

She paused again.

"You know, my daughter told me she wanted to be a trainer like you when she grew up. I told her that I'd never let her be a trainer."

"What? Why? Because it's not safe?"

"Because I hate trainers," she snarled. "Keeping Pokemon confined in Pokeballs. Using them for bloodsport. Kidnapping. They're all horrible people. You're one of the good ones, Grace. One who I hope one day will put their money where their mouth is and free Pokemon from oppression and accept them in our society as equals, not pets."

"You—"

"And I know you knew what the Plasma Organization was. You know their goal. To end the trainer phenomenon once and for all," she said. "I think it's a noble one. When the first domino in Unova falls… other regions will be next. They call it Domino Theory."

"You're mad," I said. "Utterly insane."

"You've simply grown too accustomed to the systemic oppression Pokemon face," she shrugged. "I don't blame you for not understanding. You've already made so much progress alone and reached a point that few trainers do. Your points during the interview were so great… that's why I think you're one of the good ones."

I scoffed. "I'm out of here."

"You think Sinnoh is bad?" She said. "If you ever go to Unova, you'll realize how they trample on anything that isn't human!"

Her voice had been a distant yell by the time I had left the room. Now I knew why she'd gone off-script and pushed me so hard in the interview. It was partly curiosity, but she wanted to see how far I'd go in supporting her cause. How truly good one of 'the good ones' could be. Aside from a few hiccups, I'd basically aced the thing and I was never coming back.

"What'd she tell you— don't just walk past me," Melody exclaimed. "What happened in there?"

"Mallory's a damn wackjob," I said. "She supports Plasma."

"Yeah, I saw the interview. She said she donated to them. I'm surprised the SGNC lets her say that, but she is known as an eccentric."

"She told me that she hated trainers. To my face."

"Okay. Well, uh, I knew she was a bleeding heart activist, but I never expected her to go that far."

"People like her make the people on the fence about this entire ordeal treat actual reasonable reform like some crazy thing," I sighed. "Whatever."

"I'll talk to the Poketch Company about that raise," she said. "Do you have a tentative number?"

I dragged my trainer ID out of my purse and checked how much money I had. The entire thing amounted to 245,000 Pokedollars and some change. I'd get another twenty-thousand next month from the LTIP, thirty thousand from hopefully beating Maylene. Then, I'd get paid another 250,000 at the end of this month, meaning that I theoretically didn't need a raise to get a Shiny Stone by the end of March. I would have liked to get this month's salary raised, but the contract had explicitly stated that I could only renegotiate every three months.

However, I needed the money for other things, and more importantly, I didn't want to wait for the end of March.

"I'd need a raise to at least 350,000 Pokedollars per month," I said. "That's the minimum amount. I deserve it. I know there's been problems, but you can't deny I've worked. You keep telling me that sales from younger people have gone up and companies trying to eat into your market are stagnant when young people are who they are especially targeting because there's less brand loyalty."

"I think that's a passable number," she said.

"Great. I want another thing. I want to get paid on the first Friday of every month instead of the last."

Melody opened the car door for me, and we went inside.

"That's an arbitrary change, unless you want to buy something and you don't want to wait," she said as she closed the door.

"You know what I want. I asked for it already, a Shiny Stone. You shot me down immediately though."

Melody sighed. "I'll see what I can do, but that's a lot less likely than the raise. If you start moving your payday around, other people we sponsor will get antsy, and we just got over that phase."

"What if I get an impressive win against Maylene?" I asked. The goal still remained: to have Maylene either get so angry she lost focus or broke while not looking like a terrible human being. Luckily for me, she was pretty terrible too, so I had something there. If I was lucky, she would only reach the first stage. That'd make these negotiations a lot easier.

"It'd have to be at least as good as your win against Fantina, if I had to guess. The higher-ups really loved watching that one. They even had a highlight reel made to put on our website."

"As good as my battle against Fantina?" I said, excitingly biting my inner cheek. "That's what I was hoping to do, so I'll try."