All Things (Just Keep Getting Better)
By Trish.
Disclaimer: I don't own the rights to Pokémon, Titanic. The story title comes from the show Queer Eye for the Straight Guy. It's called "All Things (Just Keep Getting Better) by Widelife featuring Simone Denny. Got it stuck in my head.
A/N: This is a very belated fic for Jenn's birthday! Sorry for the delay!
~*~
"Have yourself a merry little Christmas…"
Jenn sat up in bed and rubbed her eyes blearily. It was another gorgeous morning on Pummelo Island, the sun streaming in through the curtains. The blonde cocked her head; someone was in the living room singing the yuletide favourite. Shannon did have a very beautiful voice…
The tall American girl swung her legs off the bed and yawned once. The other occupants of the villa were most probably up and about. Trish would be brewing a cup of morning coffee – or else would have sent Chris off on an errand to get her favourite from Jigglypuff Jeans. Mia and Jaime would be asking where breakfast was and complaining that they were not morning people.
The group had decided that this year there would be none of that 'white stuff' at Christmas; so they had gone to Pummelo Island in the Orange Archipelago for a holiday. Luckily, Jenn and Trish were the proud co-owners of a large villa on the northside of the island. They had arrived on the last day of November and would not leave until the thirty-first of January the next year.
Jenn sighed. It seemed that everyone in the group but her was caught up in preparing for Christmas festivities. While Christmas was very important to her; there was another date in December that was dearest to her heart. Her birthday. And this year looked like being a non-event; for no one in the group seemed to care.
Or at least no-one seemed to remember that her birthday was coming up. Not even her boyfriend, Grand Master Ash Ketchum; nor her best friend Trish.
That the latter forgot was a great shock to the blonde. Now while Ash was known for having forgetful moments, Trish was not. And unlike the others, she really had no excuse for forgetting Jenn's birthday; for her birthday fell seventeen days earlier.
The gang had celebrated the Australian girl's birthday in style, and Drake had surprised everyone by proposing, which Trish accepted, naturally. And now everyone had thrown themselves wholeheartedly into Christmas preparations, not realising that Jenn's birthday was four days before Christmas.
'A week to go…and no one gives a damn,' the girl thought to herself. It wasn't as if she expected her friends to drop everything and treat her like royalty. Just an acknowledgement or one or two presents would do. The main thing was she just wanted to feel appreciated, which was something everyone wanted from time to time. And that just wasn't happening at the moment.
The tall blonde dressed in a tank top and shorts before she left her room.
"Morning!" Shannon greeted cheerily as she joined her on the way to the kitchen, carrying an empty plate.
"Morning," Jenn mumbled back. How anyone could be so chirpy in the morning was beyond her. Unless it was caffeine assisted, which was definitely the truth when it came to Trish.
The friend in question was sitting at the kitchen table, one hand firmly grasping her morning mug of coffee while smiling benignly at the general chaos around her. Chris and Mia were squabbling over the comics section of the newspaper and Jaime was attempting to sculpt a Pichu out of butter.
"She must have had one cup already," Shannon whispered to the blonde. Jenn nodded, she was positive that her best friend would not be so benign amongst all that chaos if she was not well caffeinated.
It was a standard joke amongst their little group about the dark-haired Australian and her coffee. The girl was addicted to the stuff, requiring at least 2 cups a day. If she had coffee she was content and rather placid like one of the many teddy bears she collected. Deprive her of coffee and the 'teddy bear' unsheathed her claws. Jenn had given her best friend a small dark brown teddy bear which she had nicknamed 'Mocha.'
"Morning!" Trish grinned at the two girls as they approached. She indicated the rest with a wave. "Welcome to my crèche. Why on earth do I need to have kids when I have them right here?"
"Heeyy!" Chris pouted. "I heard that! I'm not a kid." Mia took advantage of this and snatched the paper off him.
"Well behave yourself," Trish chided as she sipped her coffee. "Otherwise I won't let you have that Victoria's Secret catalogue we got in the junk mail."
The Scot sat up straight, eyes suddenly bright. "I'll be good!"
"You've trained him well," Jenn chuckled as she sat down between the two, ruffling the young man's hair.
"Yup," Trish smiled. "Its just a matter of knowing which buttons to push…"
"I'm not a dog," Chris protested.
Mia smirked. "Down boy."
"Oh shut up you," he grumbled.
"Poor Chris," Shannon sympathised. "The only guy in a group of girls here."
"Not really," Mia laughed. "I mean there's Puck, Ben, Ash and Drake. Nor would I say 'Poor Chris' either. After all we know he likes it."
"True," Chris conceded.
"So what's everyone doing this Saturday?" Jenn asked, hoping to hear something along the lines of "it's your birthday…"
But Trish just blinked. "That's the twenty-first right? Nothing much, I think I'm going to dinner with Drake's family."
"I'll be there too," Shannon nodded. "Mia's going to tag along."
"I was going to one of the local bars," Chris mused. "Why?"
Jenn sighed inwardly as her heart sank. No one remembered. "Oh nothing really. Just wondered what everyone was doing, that's all."
Trish finished off her coffee and stood up. "Well, I've got to get going. A lot of things to do and people to see…"
The blonde frowned slightly. "Okay." That was another weird thing she had noticed about her 'twin' lately. Trish had been extremely busy the last few weeks with some secret project and Jenn could not get one single detail out of her. No matter what she tried to bribe her with, be it chocolate or coffee – the dark-haired girl refused to tell.
"Right," her best friend dashed out of the room and soon returned with her handbag, keys and cell phone. She grabbed Mia and pulled her to her feet. "You're coming with me remember?"
"Uh yeah," the seventeen-year-old brunette nodded as she followed the elder girl to the entrance to the foyer.
"Hey wait," Jenn called out suddenly causing the two to freeze in their tracks. "Do you think I can come with ya?"
There was a quick glance between them before Trish shook her head. "Sorry Jenn, but no. You wouldn't like it." The next thing Jenn knew, the front door slammed behind them.
"Oh." Shannon walked in to see the blonde visibly deflate, shoulders slumped.
"Are you okay?"
"Is it just me or is Trish acting rather peculiar?" Jenn asked while still gazing at the front door.
"Isn't she always rather peculiar?" the younger girl joked before patting her on the arm. "Nah, she's just busy with preparations that this will be the best Christmas ever."
"But why won't she let me help? Have I done something to annoy her?"
"Nothing of the sort," Shannon reassured her before leading her into the living room. "Now how about you tell me if this tinsel is crooked?"
Jenn followed but not before sparing one last glance towards the door. What was her best friend up to? She hated being kept in suspense.
~*~
Four days later…
The sun hit Jenn in the face as the curtains were flung back with a cheery "HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!"
The American girl sat up with a slight grumble to see Trish grinning like a Cheshire cat with the girls' growlithes, Mac, Beth, Hamlet and Ophelia bouncing up and down at her feet; barking happily. Jenn's morose mood from the previous weeks lifted almost instantly.
"Thanks. I thought you wouldn't remember," she confessed sheepishly as she swung her legs out of bed.
"Hey, my name's not Dory you know," the dark-haired girl chuckled. "That's more your territory not mine."
"Hey…" Jenn pouted. "That's not nice to a Goddess on her birthday!"
In reply her best friend just gave her a hug. "I know. I also know that a certain man is waiting in the living room to wish you a happy birthday."
"Ash?"
"No, Drake in a tiny black jockstrap and nothing else."
Jenn's
eyes brightened. "Oooh really?"
"You wish!"
"But I do!"
"Of course it's Ash waiting for you," Trish smiled as she left the room. "Now get changed and don't look like something the Meowth dragged in."
"Hey!"
~*~
Jenn
changed into a red halter neck top and black silk pants; and was met by a
whistle of admiration from her boyfriend.
"Happy Birthday," Ash murmured as he kissed her gently; placing a dozen red roses in her arms.
"Why thank you," Jenn beamed.
"Now grab your purse, because we are going out for lunch at a very classy restaurant."
"Oh my." Her day was getting better and better.
"Have fun guys," Chris called out as they were leaving. "Don't do anything I wouldn't do!"
"Ash, remember to have her back here by four thirty," Trish told the Pokémon Grand Master. "Jenn needs to get ready."
"Ready for what?" Jenn questioned.
"That is for me to know and you to find out…later!" her best friend poked her tongue out. "Now off with you both!"
~*~
After a lovely and satisfying lunch, Jenn returned to find some clothes laid out on her bed. What made her curious was that it was none other than the evening dress similar to that worn by Kate Winslet in her favourite movie Titanic. She fingered the material; soft wine red silk with a intricately beaded black chiffon overlay. It was a very beautiful dress but Jenn had not had the chance to wear it much.
Trish hurried in, her peacock blue evening gown swishing softly. "Okay are you getting ready yet?"
"Uh, why am I going to wearing this dress?"
"Because you have to look the part for your Titanic themed birthday party!" It was then that Jenn noticed that her best friend's evening dress was in the style of the early 1900s.
"I'm having a Titanic themed birthday party?!" she squeaked in amazement.
Trish nodded as she pulled a small velvet box out of a drawer. "Yep. You told me you didn't have a large party for your twenty-first, so you're getting your large party now."
"But…why?"
"Why not?" the dark-haired girl handed the box over. "Here you can't forget the necklace…"
"So that's why you've been so busy and secretive," Jenn realised.
"You got it."
The blonde engulfed her friend in a bear hug. "Aww, thank you so much! And here I thought that you didn't have time for me anymore."
Trish chuckled. "You are a silly thing. Of course I'll always have time for you, you know that."
"I know," Jenn gave another hug. "It just seemed like everyone was too preoccupied with Christmas to care about my birthday…"
"Poor Jenn…"
"Anyway, so what exactly do you mean by a Titanic-themed party?" the American girl was curious.
"Everything from that era and movie. The clothes, the menu, the music, The Song, I even have a fake prow of a ship!"
"Wow, sounds like you've really gone all out with this party," Jenn was amazed at the fact that her friend would go to all this trouble just for her.
"Yep, this party even has its very own icebergs!"
"Icebergs???"
~*~
Trish was speaking the truth as Jenn found out when she arrived at the venue. Two large icebergs glittered in the moonlight as they floated in the Olympic sized swimming pool. A tall platform stood at one end and was built to look like the prow of a massive liner. Colourful lanterns bobbed in the gentle breeze as uniformed waiters circulated amongst the many tables set up and decorated with lilac and white roses while a string quartet provided the music.
Jenn stared at the frozen blocks of ice and shivered as a breeze sent some of the chill her way. "How on earth did you manage to pull this off??"
Trish grinned. "All thanks go to Puck. He magicked them in for me today and he'll magick them away when the night is over so we don't get a small flood when they melt…" She gave her friend the once over. "Aren't you glad you look the part of Rose? You fit right in here very nicely."
Jenn's shoulder length blonde hair had been softly curled and swept up into an elegant style befitting the period and the elegant beaded red gown she wore. Long white silk gloves reached to just below her elbows and a duplicate of the necklace that was worn in the movie graced her slender neck.
"Thank you," she beamed. "Only thing is, Kate is a lot shorter than I am. But she is not a Goddess, unlike myself. Goddesses are never short…"
~*~
The evening passed by pleasantly. Jenn enjoyed watching people go up on the fake prow of the ship and enact the famous 'flying' scene. A hidden fan recreated the windswept effects and Todd Snap was there to record it all on camera.
Many Pokémon took part too. The most adorable one was when Pikachu convinced her mate Raichu to recreate that famous movie moment. The two electric mice stood on a couple of boxes, Raichu holding Pikachu around the waist as she stood with her small paws outstretched. As their tails streamed back in the breeze, Pikachu purred "Piiiika Pikachu! Pikaka Chuuuu!" (Look Raichu! I'm flying!!!)
"Aww, aren't those chu just adorable?" Jaime gushed with her hands clasped in front of her causing her friends to shake their heads and groan.
"That was feeble," Chris complained as he took another glass of alcohol from the waiter.
"I try," the Canadian grinned cheekily. "Say Ash…"
"What?" The Grand Master answered rather warily. "If it's about being able to borrow Pikachu and the other Pokémon for dress-ups – it's NO."
"Aww," Jaime pouted.
"Did someone mention dress-ups?" James, the former Team Rocket member, seemed to materialise out of nowhere by Jaime's side.
"Yeah, but I don't dress up humans," the redhead frowned. "I only dress up Pokémon or animals."
"No fair…" the lavender-haired man pouted. "That's discrimin…disrimmin.."
"Discrimination?" Jenn offered with a raised eyebrow.
"That's the word!" James smacked his fist into his hand. "Thanks!!"
"So Jenn," Trish spoke up. "As part of tonight's theme, you can re-enact that "You can draw me in this and only this," scene later on…"
The blonde brightened. "Oooh that's a great idea! Ashy and I can do it later…" She winked at her boyfriend who reddened slightly at all the smirks from their friends. Ash was a very good artist, a little known talent he had kept secret until Brock told everyone.
"Who said anything about Ash being there?" her best friend blinked. "You need a proper artist so Tracey has kindly agreed to…"
"Tracey??!" Jenn's eyes almost bulged out of her head.
"Tracey," Ash confirmed. "After all this scene demands a better artist than I to do justice.." He was interrupted by his girlfriend grabbing the lapels of his dinner jacket.
"I don't care if you draw me as a stick figure, honey," Jenn hissed. "But I am not, I repeat not, lying there with nothing on save for this necklace, in front of Tracey!!!"
The Grand Master just smiled and kissed her on the nose. "Aww, but you can't say no. Tracey will be so disappointed, he was really looking forward to it…"
"I don't care, I'm not gonna do it! I don't just disrobe for any guy!" At this statement both Brock and Chris's faces fell.
Trish then giggled. "Oh that was just too easy," the dark-haired Australian shook her head.
"What was?" Jenn narrowed her eyes.
"You've been had, dear Sis," Mia chuckled.
"Wha??"
"We haven't arranged for Tracey to sketch you at all," Trish explained with an impish grin. "But Ash and I decided to say that so we could see the look on your face!"
"Ooooh, you two are sooo mean to me!" the blonde pouted. "I'm going to have to punish you later!"
"You do that," Ash winked as he drew her into a tight hug.
"You know I will!"
"This will make you feel better," Trish passed her a flat, gift-wrapped present. "From me to you."
Jenn opened it and her eyes widened. "OMIGOD!!! Where did you get this?? I thought they didn't make one…" For she held in her hand a wall calendar entitled "The Men of the Pokémon League" featuring shots of all the young and hot looking male Gym Leaders and Trainers.
"They don't," Ash chuckled. "But Trish here bullied us into it just for you."
The girl in question looked smug. "I prefer to call it 'forceful persuasion' myself…"
"And you are so good at it too," Drake smirked.
"I know!"
Jenn grabbed her friend in a tight hug. "Thanks!!! I love it!!"
"No worries," Trish choked out. "But breathing would be nice…"
"Sorry," Jenn let go. "So this was done just for me?"
"Well, yeah. But I did get a copy for myself as well as Mia, Jaime and Shannon."
"This day has been just wonderful," Jenn sighed happily. "I thought it started off bad, then things just kept get getting better…"
The End
Author's Note: Eh…Jenn loves everything about the Titanic so that's why I used it. Hope you like it Sis!