Irresistible

By Chris Devlin

AN: Well, I finally got an idea for Trish's birthday fic. Its not a great idea, but I guess its kinda fun.

Darkness covered Shamuti Island, the full moons reflection flickering in the surrounding ocean providing some natural illumination to the shore line. The waves sloshed gently up against the beaches, the noise calm and serene in the darkness. On the pier, leading out to the Lighthouse, torches glowed gently, the slightest of breezes toying with the flames. Figures sat cross-legged on the hard stone paving, arranged in a semi-circle facing out into the ocean. They were dressed in the traditional ceremonial garb of the Island, each person as a different bird or animal. A small alter was erected in front of them and one by one they stood up and walked over.

"Oh mighty Lugia! We give up these offerings of food so that you might be pleased with us!" cried the first of them, depositing a small pile of fish. The next imitated, this time some fruit, then the next until they had all offered something. The lead stepped forward again, standing proudly in front of the small group. "We pray that our offerings have pleased you, oh mighty Lugia! Now may you grant us one wish upon the Sacred Pendant!" The sea suddenly roared, as if in answer. He smiled. "Then bring forward the Pendant, and let us wish for another year of prosperity on our Island." Another member of the group stood up and walked forward, handing the pendant to the lead member. "Oh mighty Lugia! Let our prayer be answered. Let us..... Hey... wait a minute!" he stopped suddenly, his eyes fixed on the Pendant. "Scarlet... Can you come here for a minute?" he asked. The member who had brought the pendant to him flipped back her mask and stood up before walking cautiously over to him.

"Yes Rayne. What is it?" she asked him, unsure what had happened. He turned to face her, pulling his own mask off.

"This isn't the Pendant Scarlet!" he moaned, putting his hand out for her to see. "It's very similar, but this is definitely NOT the Sacred Pendant!" he added, the anger in his voice evident. The rest of the group gasped in shock and began to mutter amongst themselves. "Where the hell is it? I only gave it to you this morning!" he half-shouted at her.

"I don't know? I kept it in my pocket the entire day. I remember because when those three travellers left I put my hand in to give one of them a Pendant I had gotten for her... Oh..." she muttered, realising what she'd done. "Now that you mention it, it does look an awful lot like the Sacred Pendant. I must have given it to her instead of this one!" she added, crumpling to the floor in defeat. Rayne sighed in exasperation before asking her.

"Well do you know where they were headed?"

"Welcome to Pummello Island! All passengers from Shamuti Island please proceed to gate 2 to claim your luggage." the PA System called out.

"Well that's us!" Chris called out cheerily, hoisting his back-pack on as he stood up. Two different groans came from beside him and he turned round. Trish and Jenn were slumped in their seats, tiredness very much evident in their faces.

"Why are you so energetic Chris? You've been awake even longer than us!" Trish asked, rubbing her bleary eyes with one hand as she tried to get up. Jenn nodded in agreement as she attempted the same.

"Must be my youth. It's really the only thing I have over you two old codgers." he said cheekily. The two older women glared at him, too tired for his attempts at humour.

"We'll kill him later." Jenn muttered to Trish as they both dragged themselves up and followed Chris off the ship.

The sun shone down on the island as the trio emerged from the Ferry Terminal. Chris smiled brightly and stared up into the blue sky, no clouds to be seen anywhere. He looked around and nearly jumped out of his skin when the two tired faces of Jenn and Trish appeared in his vision.

"Ok, first things first, we get to our Hotel. You two need some sleep cos there's no way I want to stare at faces that scary all day." he said, this time getting a half-hearted slap around the head from Jenn who muttered something to Trish. Trish nodded and Chris got the impression that falling asleep near them in the near future would probably be hazardous to his health.

Hailing a cab they all piled in and set off for the Pummello Grand, the largest most luxurious hotel on the island. Trish sat in the back, fiddling with the Pendant she'd received the previous day from Scarlet.

"Its really pretty isn't it." Jenn piped in as they both admired it. "I love the little Ruby gem in the middle, it really brings it to life." she added. Trish nodded in agreement.

"I'm surprised she gave it to me at all though. It's not like we've known her for ages though, I mean we only met her yesterday." Trish said, perplexed. "It is great though. Totally irresistible" she added. Chris snorted derisively

"Its cute, I'll give you that. But is it really as irresistible as me?" he asked, jokingly.

"You wish!" Trish replied, with only a little humour in her voice. "Oh I wish I was totally irresistible!" she said, imitating Chris. Jenn giggled beside her as Chris went silent and muttered something to the Cab driver. None of them noticed the Ruby gem in the pendant glowing softly in Trish's hand.

The cab pulled up in the driveway to the hotel and the doorman jogged quickly over to the car, pulling the door open and letting everyone out. Jenn pulled herself out first and smiled at him.

"Thanks" she said, moving round to the trunk to collect her bags. The doorman smiled back and turned his gaze back to the cab. Trish smiled as she straightened up and walked over to Jenn. The doorman smiled again, unable to stop as she walked past him. Chris moved to the other side of the cab and paid the driver before joining the others.

"We got everything?" he asked as he helped unload the trunk, the heavy cases thumping when they hit the hard ground. Looking up he caught a glimpse of Trish, her hair shining in the bright sunshine, her eyes sparkling with beauty and light. He wasn't sure why he hadn't noticed before but Trish seemed much more attractive than usual. It was then he saw the doorman, staring at her with a look of undisguised lust in his eyes. Chris growled and quickly gathered all their cases together. "Come on, lets go." he said, his voice taking on a serious tone as he began hustling the girls towards the entrance. They went on ahead as Chris kept behind them, giving the doorman a vicious look and making sure not to tip him.

The trio quickly checked in and made their way up to their rooms. Trish and Jenn were sharing, while Chris took a room to himself, but the three congregated in the girls room first. It was fairly large room. Two large single beds took up most of the space and a door led through to a smallish, but not uncomfortable living area where they all crashed into chairs, exhausted. Chris immediately fell asleep, fatigue finally claiming him. Trish smiled to herself, things had been pretty ok since they'd arrived at the Hotel. She was pretty sure that at least some of the male staff had been checking her out, and she knew at least another couple had been smiling at her. She smiled some more. It wasn't often she indulged her ego but she decided that this was a reasonable occasion to build it up a bit. She was on holiday after all, and for her birthday too no less. Plus there was that other thing. Neither Chris nor Jenn had noticed but when they had entered the hotel someone she'd gushed over for years had been standing at the check-in desk. Drake, the Pummello Island Gym Leader and Number One Member of the Orange Crew. The best thing being that he had smiled at her too. Now she smiled even wider, a happy faraway gaze in her eyes.

"What are you smirking at?" Jenn asked suspiciously. Trish glanced over to see her best friend looking at her inquisitively. "You look like the Cat that got the cream." she added. Trish smiled at her and sighed.

"He's here." she simply replied before gazing off into space again. Jenn frowned before a smile began to play across her lips.

"You mean Drake? Yeah I thought it might have been him, but I didn't want to say in case it wasn't." she said. "He seems shorter than I imagined." she mused. Trish giggled at this and her best friend gave her a grin.

"He was checking in here too." Trish added. A sly look came over her face. "He was checking in and I was checking him out." she said, barely able to contain herself.

"That was such a Chris thing you just said." Jenn pointed out. As if in reply Chris mumbled in his sleep before returning to otherwise quiet slumber. "Admittedly a rather tame version of his gutter-talk but a Chris thing all the same." she added. Chris had a reputation as something of an innuendo freak and made constant references to his 'Hard Drive'. Trish sniggered and nodded her agreement. They looked over at the young man who was now deeply asleep and snoring slightly.

"Probably dreaming of Officer Jennies again." Trish said referring to his long-time fascination with the uniformed Officers. Jenn nodded.

"Yeah, well lets just leave him here for now. I for one need some sleep of my own." she replied getting up and heading into the bedroom. "I'll set my alarm so that we can get a couple of hours of sleep then hit the town. I really wanna visit the Red Kingdra Club tonight." she suggested.

"Sounds good." Trish replied and followed her out of the room, closing the door behind her. Silence descended upon the room, only Chris's breathing making any sound whatsoever. He shifted himself lightly onto his side and muttered again.

"Mmm, Trish."

The flashing neon lights of Pummello's Entertainment District lit up the street like a fair ground, bright pinks reflecting in shop windows and car windshields. Chris stood in front of a small shop window and pretended to fiddle with his hair. In reality he was watching Trish in the reflection. He wasn't sure exactly what, but something had changed. She was no longer the same Trish he thought of as an older sister and confidante, but rather Trish the goddess that had been before his eyes all this time and that he had been blind to see. He tried to remember exactly when he realised it. It had been that cab journey earlier in the day and he was teasing her about something when...
Suddenly a pain unlike any other he'd ever experienced, shot through his head and he grasped at it in agony. It felt like a part of his brain was burning, as if he had tried to access something he shouldn't have. He forced himself to think of something else, puppies, kittens, a Harem of Officer Jenny's anything to make the pain disappear. Eventually he clamped onto the thought of getting drunk enough to dull the pain and slowly it began to dissipate. He gasped, realised he'd been holding his breath and inhaled deeply. His heart raced and he straightened up a bit, reaching into his pocket for his cigarettes. Lighting one he slumped on a nearby bench, his hands shaking. Then, as suddenly as it started the pain vanished. He glanced over towards Trish and Jenn who were consulting a local guide to nights out and didn't seem to have noticed him at all. Sighing, he composed himself, finished his cigarette, put it out in the nearest convenient spot and stood up before walking towards them. In his mind he tried to think how to explain what had just happened. It was then that he realised that he couldn't remember what he had been thinking about before the pain. He put it down to being so shocked by it and assumed it was nothing important. Approaching the girls he quickly swallowed a breath mint and hid the packet in his pocket.

"So you figured out where this "Red Kingdra Club" is yet? I would kill for a drink." he said peering over Jinn's shoulder. The two women glanced round at him and then back at the map.

"We think so. It's about 5 minutes down to the left." Trish answered before glancing back round at him. "Have you been smoking again?" she asked, her slightly upturned nose indicating that she could smell it. Chris simply nodded as Trish sighed and turned away again. Chris began to study his shoes, something he'd always done when he'd felt embarrassed, but instead caught himself staring at Trish's figure. As if on automatic he slowly reached out with one hand to touch her. His body seemed to lose all self control and no matter how he struggled he couldn't stop his hand from edging forward.
'But this is what you want... Right?' his mind spoke to him. Chris couldn't deny that he did but he didn't know why. Something inside him was screaming, pleading with him to stop, telling him that this wasn't right and something VERY weird was going on. But his body wouldn't listen and his hand moved forward even more until there was less than a centimetre between them and Chris could feel her body-heat.

"Yeah. It's definitely this way." Trish suddenly spoke and moved down the street to the left. Chris's body finally gained control again and his hand came snapping back to his side sharply. His head throbbed in pain and a few seconds later he began to follow her down the street, all memory of the past few moments erased in a sudden urge to go and have a drink with her. Jenn eyed him suspiciously as he walked away, positive that she'd seen what she thought she'd seen. Then and there she vowed to keep a close eye on him, and an even closer eye on Trish.

Trish stood at the bar, a crisp Orange Island bank note in her hand as she waited to get served. In the background thumped some loud pop music and Trish found herself tapping her foot involuntarily to the beat. She was quite surprised that Jenn hadn't offered to come to the bar with her, instead the blonde American grabbed onto Chris and stopped him as he started to go with her. She'd have to ask her about it later.

"Hi there." came a smooth deep voice from Trish's right. She turned round and was faced with one of the most gorgeous men she'd ever seen. He was about mid-thirties to look at and reminded her of Harrison Ford when he did Indiana Jones, rugged and handsome in a strange way. She smiled at him and giggled slightly.

"Hi." she replied back.

"So, I'm Gregg and I was wondering if I could buy you a drink, maybe have a dance and if you feel like it, something to eat sometime?" he said quickly. Trish smiled more but thought it a bit strange that someone should offer so much on the first meeting. Putting it down to being a line she proceeded cautiously.

"Well, you can buy me a drink and then we'll see how I feel." she answered. Gregg smiled back and turned to the bar. By now a bartender had approached them and was about to take the order when he noticed Trish. Gregg failed to notice and began to order anyway.

"I'll have a Jack Daniels and Coke and for my lady friend here a........" he said.

"Hi, I'm Steve." the bartender interrupted putting his hand out to her. She put her hand out and introduced herself, slightly puzzled as to what was going on.

"I'm Trish, it's nice to meet you Steve." she replied. Before she knew it Steve had taken her hand a placed a light kiss on it. She pulled it back quickly, not sure how to react. Gregg seemed to have a fair idea of what to do and quickly began shouting.

"You touching my girl buddy!?" he asked accusingly, his finger pointed outwards and his right hand clenched into a fist. Trish turned and stared at him dumbfounded.

"Listen, I am NOT your girl!" she yelled at him, turning around to walk away from him. "And you can keep your dri......" she stopped as she noticed what stood before her. There were around twenty men, just standing in front of her, all staring eagerly and happily at her. One of them began to shout.

"Yeah, she aint your girl!! She's mine!" this was followed by another. "No! She's mine!" and another "I'm telling you she's mine!". In less than a minute a small battle had begun as the men all fought over her, each one claiming her as his own. Suddenly Jenn came running over and grabbed her.

"What the hell is going on here!?" she asked as she tried to move Trish away from the ever growing fight. Trish just shook her head, totally unable to understand what was happening. Eventually they reached a small table in a dark corner. Chris was passed out and lying slumped on the table.

"What happened to him!?" Trish asked as she sat down. Jenn motioned to the other figure sitting in the corner. The figure waved briefly but Trish couldn't make out who it was.

"Chris started getting... well... rather odd when you left there. He kept trying to follow you, be near you. Then when he saw you talking to those two guys he nearly exploded in anger. He was about to storm over there when he suddenly started having what looked to be a REALLY powerful headache. It was almost as if he was fighting something inside his head, when it stopped he couldn't remember a thing. Then he collapsed on the floor just over there." she tried to explain. Jenn turned to the figure in the darkness. "Luckily you were here and helped me get him onto the seat.... Then the fight started." She turned back and looked at the brawl. By now almost every man in the club was there, fighting and screaming for her.

"Lets get out of here. I don't think hanging around any longer is a good idea." said the figure in the dark. Jenn and Trish nodded in agreement and a groan of affirmation came from an almost semi-conscious Chris.

It wasn't until they reached the hotel that Trish finally realised who the figure was. It was Drake. Apparently he'd seen them check in to the Hotel earlier in the day and had seen them in the club too. He'd been on his way over to say hi when Chris had collapsed. The trip back revealed a bit more of the strange events too. Almost every guy that passed Trish was falling over themselves to get to her. Almost every guy, but not Drake. Jenn had commented on that in the Taxi, which was luckily driven by a woman.

As they entered the hotel it began again. Males everywhere beginning to squabble and fight over her, while others started to shuffle towards her like extras in a zombie movie. They quickly made their way to the elevator, Drake carrying the again un-conscious Chris over his shoulder. They got in and pushed the button for their floor. The lift whirred and began the journey upwards.

"So can anyone come up with a good reason for what's going on?" Trish asked. Jenn and Drake both shook their heads and Chris groaned some more.

The lift dinged and the doors slid open slowly. Jenn stuck her head out and confirmed it was empty before they piled out and made their way to the Girls' room. Chris was dumped un-ceremoniously on one of the beds while the others went into the living area and sat down.

"Something very strange is going on. That we know. But we have to figure out what it is and how we can stop it." Jenn began. Trish and Drake nodded in unison. A groaning came from the other room, followed by some muffled swear words and a thump as something large and probably Chris-shaped fell onto the floor. "But first I'll go deal with him." Jenn said as she got up and left the room, leaving Drake and Trish alone. Trish shifted in her seat, unsure if she could trust Drake, especially after the past few hours events. But Drake said nothing and moved uncomfortably in his seat too.

"So... I uh want to thank you for helping Chris earlier, it definitely sounds like something was happening to him, and to those other guys." Trish said, trying to break the silence. Drake smiled at her.

"No problem." he replied. Trish smirked slightly.

"I get some guys interested and they all start a fight.... thats gonna be a weird one to tell the family." she said, a slight laugh in her demeanour now. Drake laughed too, nodding. "So.. how come you were there anyway?" she asked. "I mean doesn't your girlfriend mind?" Drake's smile faded slightly, but remained none the less.

"Nope. I'm single, which makes it a lot easier." he replied. "Besides I like the atmosphere in there. Its usually quite relaxed and enjoyable." he added. Trish blushed slightly, embarrassed.

"Yeah, sorry about that." she said. Drake smiled at her some more.

"Don't worry about it. You weren't to know that would happen." he assured her. "Besides, I'm glad I met you all. Especially you." he added again, himself beginning to blush slightly. Trish looked at him warily, not sure if he was going to start acting like all the other guys. "But I assure you I have no intention of claiming you as my own." he said, sensing her discomfort. Trish smirked at this.

"Maybe once we figure out what's going on we could, I don't know, go get something to eat?" Trish offered, trying to sound calm and collected despite the fact that she had just asked her number one crush out on a date. Drake nodded.

"That sounds good. I'd like that." He said. Trish grinned, her face going scarlet. The door to the other room opened and Jenn padded in, concern on her face.

"Well that was strange." she said as she sat down. "Chris said that something was acting against his will, causing him to do things that he didn't want to do. He can't remember anything that happened, just that he lost control of his actions and every time he tried to stop it his head would just explode in pain." she explained, her face a picture of puzzlement. Trish and Drake frowned at this. Suddenly a knock came from the bedroom door. Trish stood up and began to head towards it when Drake stopped her.

"Better let me get that. Just in case something happens." he said and headed for the door. Trish nodded and sat back down as he left the room. Jenn glanced at him, then back to Trish.

"Is he acting strangely at all?" she asked her friend. Trish merely shook her head and then gazed dreamily at the ceiling.

"Nope. Although I am. I just asked him out on a date and he accepted." she told her. Jenn's eyes widened and she jumped over to her friend and embraced her in a huge bear-hug.

"That's great!" she exclaimed. "Well, at least something good has came out of all this." she added as she let go of Trish. Trish nodded and smiled broadly. Drake quickly stuck his head round the door.

"Quick question. Were you three recently on Shamuti Island?" he asked.

"Yeah, we left there yesterday afternoon and got the ferry here." Trish replied, confused. Drake's head disappeared and his voice could be heard muttering to someone. A few seconds later a young woman with long red hair stepped into the room. Trish recognised her immediately. "Scarlet? What are you doing here?" The young woman blushed slightly.

"Well, it's a funny story." she began.

The three listened as Scarlet explained the mix up with the pendants. She told them about how the offering to Lugia had been made and that the Sacred Pendant that she had accidentally gave to Trish had the power to grant one wish. Jenn and Trish's eyes lit up when they heard that.

"THAT explains EVERYTHING!!!" they cried in unison. Scarlet looked at them, confused.

"What d'you mean? What's been going on?" she asked.

"Earlier on today Trish made a wish. She didn't mean it, and she didn't even realise it, but that's the only explanation I can think of!" Jenn told her. Trish nodded in agreement.

"I wished I was irresistible. Which is exactly what happened. No guys could resist me at all. Which is why they all got into that fight!" she said as it all fell into place. Then she realised something. "But what about Chris? His headaches and memory loss?" Trish asked. Scarlet pondered for a few moments, trying to figure out how to explain the young man's behaviour.

"I can only assume it's because you are so close to him, right?" she asked.

"Yeah, he's like a brother to me." Trish replied.

"So to him, feeling that way towards you was so alien, so wrong in his mind that he knew something wasn't right. So the wish tried to protect itself by messing with his head. The fact that it caused him to pass out, as you say he did, only goes to show how hard he was fighting to control himself." she offered.

"That would make sense." Drake said. "Anyway, since things seem to be under control here I think I'm going to my bed. I'll pop round in the morning to see how everyone is." he said, standing up and leaving the room. He gave Trish a warm smile as he left and she felt her spine go all wobbly.

"So how can we stop it?" Jenn asked. "I mean it's not exactly going to be easy to live with is it?" she added. Scarlet smiled broadly.

"That's the easy part. All you have to do is tell the Sacred Pendant to stop. Whoever designed it to grant wishes obviously appreciated that sometimes they can go wrong and left in a failsafe where you can cancel the wish within twenty-four hours." she explained. Trish blinked unbelievably.

"That's it?" she asked. Scarlet nodded. Reaching round the back of her neck, Trish undid the clasp and removed the Pendant. Holding it in her hand she examined it. "Erm... Cancel my wish... please." she mumbled at it. Nothing happened for a few seconds, but just as she was beginning to panic the Ruby gem glowed, before fading away to nothingness. A loud groaning came from the next room and a few seconds later Chris staggered in through the door.

"What the hell happened? I feel like I drank an entire brewery." he said as he slumped in a couch, grasping at his aching head. He glanced round at the three women who were all staring at him. Trish had her gaze fixed on him.

"Hey Chris." she said.

"What?" he moaned.

"What would you rather have. Me or a Harem of Officer Jenny's?" she asked, giving him her best seduction look. Chris stared at her blankly. Slowly a look of disgust crossed his face.

"Eww. Why would I even have to make such a choice. Its the Jenny's all the way. No-offence but I just don't think of you that way Trish." he said, totally freaked out by her question. He clutched at his head again before standing up. "I'm going to bed. Gonna try and sleep this off. Night all." he said and staggered from the room, back to his own.

"Well, everything seems back to normal." Jenn piped up. The three women smiled happily.

"Oh... Erm. Just one question Scarlet. If someone was completely unaffected by it, then what would that mean?" Trish asked. Scarlet pondered some more.

"Well if it was a woman then it just means that she isn't a lesbian. If it was a guy then maybe it means he already found you irresistible in the first place." she answered. Trish nodded, taking it in. "Why, anyone in particular?" she asked a mischievous smile on her face. Trish nodded some more before answering.

"Lets just say, that a certain Gym Leader is going to have to make good on his promise to go to dinner with me."

Fin

Well there we go. I FINALLY got it finished. I hope you like it Trish, something a bit different I think you'll agree. There are a couple of things I'm not too happy with but otherwise I'm pretty pleased with it. As usual I want loads of reviews n stuff.

Chris Devlin