The Seraphim Immortal Dynasty: A Sims 3 Story LP

[Deme]

Woo, the rare and deadly triple-post!

Ok, so I have some bad news.
No, don't panic. This isn't dynasty-ending bad news or anything... Just a bump in the road. The bump is that I seem to have lost my flashdrive at school today. My Flashdrive, which had all the images from Chapters 44 and 45. Which means all the wedding photos, among other things.

I'll do a text-only version of what would have been 45, covering Aster's immortality and the wedding... And I've made some new screenshots of some non-game action stuff, like Reed, Aster, and Evanthe's elder wardrobes, some house updates, the current status of the museum, a good look at Orchid's new hair...
That sort of thing.

Luckily, I still have my notes. Here's what happened leading up to the wedding:
Orchid's bachelorette party went well.
Linden picked up some gnomes while on the job.
Orchid completed her LTW by maxing Athletics.
Reed, Evanthe, and Aster all aged up. (Actually, Reed's age up happened on the wedding night, but it's one less thing for me to work into the wedding stuff, and I lost those images anyway.)
I did some remodeling to the back yard that I can post.

Anyway, onto those screenshots.

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(Above: Aster's now-complete museum) (Below: Orchid's YA museum. Looks like I need to go do a sculpture for it.)


Aster's Elder Wardrobe. I may add more face paints:






Reed's Elder Wardrobe:






Evanthe's Elder Wardrobe:







Above: Orchid's new haircut, as already seen in the lost vacation photos
Below: The New Party Space. I may add some plants to the sides.

[Aerodynamik]

Wow. I didn't realize how old those guys were getting.

[Toric]

Looking at those last two paintings, Aster seems to have mastered the art of posing.

I love that Linden solved a mystery on his way home from graduation. It's so storybook.

I kinda hope the proposals continue to go woman-to-man as the generations progress. It's making for an amusing family tradition.

And I'd be fine with a text version of the events. It stinks more that it seems your flash drive is gone for good. My condolences, hope it didn't have anything vital (aside from dynasty images ) on it.

[Deme]

@ Aerodynamik: I know, right? It seems just yesterday I was showing off Aster's toddler pictures...

@Toric: I try and get interesting poses. Sometimes they do not cooperate well.
...As for the proposals... Eh. Next gen, it might be man-to-woman, simply because everyone needs the Seraphim name.
I had some good work on that Flashdrive, but there's nothing else I can do. So that's that.

Anyway, I've got part 1 of this long text chapter done!

Chapter 44, Part 1: A Grand Day

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The breeze was bright and clear, even for the mild, almost changeless, climate of Riverview. The sky was clear, and dawn turned it into a lavender jewel, fading into blue. But it was a day of power, and every gesture resonated with the cosmos.

Yes, even the gestures of wayward angels, setting up a wedding ceremony.
"We need more flowers." Uriel's tone had the nerves of a person mid-way into a frenzy, met as always by Ariel's gentle calm. It was often thought in the Silver City that sort of delicate, fluffy calm she had was an act; that when the moment came, she'd fold. Given the story as it's played out, that seems untrue.
"The flowers are fine, dearheart."
"You think the special effects machines ought to shoot butterflies, or hearts?"
"I'd say butterflies, but hearts are fine. Orchid may like them better."
"...You think it'll be big and extravagant enough?"
"It'll be fine."
The two looked out over the flower-strewn path to the wedding arch, the fenced-off guest seats, the chocolate fountain bubbling its sweetness into the air. The scent of French roses curled into the air. The guest list was huge. Evanthe was standing by with the Moodlet Manager, particularly for Vampire Guests. Everything was slightly fantastic, which was the only thing that was right.

"My little granddaughter is going to be married," Ariel murmured. "For a moment, there, I thought I'd never see the day." Her blue eyes cloud over with tears, even as her smile lights her face. She goes and sits by her flowers. They talk, over a glass of nectar.
"...Yeah. We've done good."
There's another moment of silence, glowing in the dawn.
"It's tonight, right?" Uriel asks.
"Yes, I think so. Everything's ready, and it'd be dangerous to put it off." She nodded, carefully, and placed her glass down on the bar. Perhaps it's a little early in the day, but it's a light nectar she crafted herself.
"...You're right. The longer it gets put off, the greater the chance for failure." Uriel was already planning -- what if one of her older friends died? What if a thief stole a portrait in the intervening hours? There was the sound, almost inaudible, of fingertips drumming away at a tabletop.
"It'll be fine." She repeated. The noise slowed to a hault.
"...You're just saying that."

"Come now, Uriel! You know she cannot lie to you!" A voice boomed out. The voice of the third angel of the house, the person more unobservable than Uriel himself: The Axe of Pangu (or, more currently, Orchid).
"You'd be surprised about how crafty I can be," Ariel replied with an innocent smile.

"You're getting good at butting in."
"BUT OF COURSE! It was only a matter of practice!" There was a pause. "Hey! I am not butting in!"
"You're eavesdropping. That's butting in."
"Fie!"
"Gentles, Gentles...Settle down." Ariel took another sip. "We don't want fighting on my granddaughter's wedding day."
"...About that..." The Angel of the Axe paused. "Do you really suppose this business is legitimate, Uriel?"
"I'da never let Ariel go first if I didn't! Everyone says 'Uriel is schemer! Uriel will do whatever it takes to get ahead! I'm sick of it!"
The silent air blazed with passion.
"I believe you," The Axe said at last, "I keep forgetting the way things are for you two. I apologize."

Ariel held up her hands, and with a pale smile, urged the conversation away from debate.
"You're in a good position -- Orchid will help you if she can, and if she can't, you'll see from me how this plays out. I'm really glad she found you."
"I am only showing a certain heroic concern. But, I will have faith in your methods, Ariel. Uriel."
With that, their conversation fell back into mundane chatter -- the mundane music that fills up the world of sims. Ariel reported her garden's progress, Uriel discussed plans (he is, after all, a schemer), and the Axe told of his adventures being trapped in an Axe until the end of time.

After all, there's nothing he'll ever get to do -- For the plan laid out only needs the power Ariel's line will generate. Anything else is superfluous. The sort of power that let Uriel receive the instructions, that let Ariel take human form... I won't give that power to anyone else. It nearly drove me mad to do it even this once... Well, madder.

In the house, wedding preparations of a different sort were ongoing. In the room that had been for single sims since before Aster's generation was born, still with its blue rug and its half-occupied bunk bed that had been there longer than the bride and groom had been alive, sat its current and (in its present form) final occupants: Evanthe, the living doll, and her young son, the groom of the day.
Linden tightened his tie, examining himself nervously in the mirror. He turned and spread his arms for a double-check. Evanthe laughed warmly once and placed a hand on his shoulder.
“You look fine. And, either way… Orchid’s agreed to marry you, right? She’s seen your true self… So don’t worry about anything else.”

There was a long silence. Linden must have heard it, an unknown quality X in his mother’s words, and as he reviewed them, he came closer and closer to understanding the quantity of X. Until at last, he said,
“Mom? Do you regret not marrying Dad when you had the chance? Before he was turned?”
She sighed.

“Yeah, I do. Ross and I… I was so nervous. And so scared. I’ve never been sorry, for what I am, or ashamed… Just scared. Like it’d kill anything between us. So, I took a long time to even tell him. I still haven’t shown him… I hesitated, and I missed my chance. I regret it – but I think I’m ready to endure it. I’m done running. So you, boy! You gotta get out there!” She laughed him out of the room and into the hall.
He gulped. “Well, here I go.”

The bride had spent the morning in her red kimono, lost in intense meditation. Her heart fluttered, and she folded it into her breathing, made its motions the count of her breath. Living by her heart is all this girl knows to do, and so her meditation had a fundamentally different energy than that of most ascetics, who lived by allowing it to move along without them. However, like those practitioners the world over, those people she wanted to seek out one day regardless of how high their mountaintop, her meditation ground all the resistance in her heart away, to create a discipline made of steel. She may have been as otherworldly as her mother and grandmother, in her own way – that is magic itself, after all.

So when she rose, her heart was honed to a fine point. Her face lit up with radiance, hearing the sound of distant bells and the grinding of the wheels of her guests. Yes, she had invited so many people that there wasn’t possibly room on the guest list for even one more!
“That’s the only way it should be!” She declared as she dashed down the spiral stairs, her hair fanning out behind her.
“Ah-ha! What wonderful courage, young lady!” The voice of the Axe declared boomingly, “To face your fate without fear!”
“I’m plenty frightened! I’m nervous out of my skin!” She smiled and pumped her fist. “But I’m a blushing maiden on her wedding day – that’s how it is. Even the fear… Is absolutely thrilling!”
“Is that how love is, then?”

“Absolutely. Today, my life begins totally differently. Even if it looks the same to everyone else… my fate will not be my own. My life will not be my own. My skin, my dreams, my breath – they’ll belong to another person, too…And his soul will be mine, too. We’ll be together until the end – and I’ll be immortal, so that’s going to be a long time…. It’s an adventure! If I’m scared, it’s only an affirmation of what a wonderful adventure we’ll have!”
“Stop, stop. Please, Miss Orchid… I understand war, but not love. Angels are limited to their purpose… Except perhaps your grandmother and Ser Uriel, now. Still; I can hear the passion of your words. Save them for him.”
She smiled and nodded gracefully.
“I’m sorry. Wish me luck!”
“I’LL PUT ON ALL THE LUCK I HAVE TO BEAR!”

She ran, out into the yard, her sandals kicking up blades of grass and small clods of dirt, her kimono lifted slightly to give her legs the clearance they’d need to run. Around the back of the house, she reaches it – the flower-strewn path between the chairs, leading to the grand wedding arch. Red heart-shape bubbles rose into the air and broke, sending showers of red onto the fields, tinting the light of the early afternoon.
And Linden, standing there with a smile that lost all its nerves in that moment. He tilted his head gently to the side, and held out a hand towards her.
Before either of them could say anything, they knew: in that moment, a lifetime’s worth of happiness was theirs. Between the two of them was a universe all their own, where words did not need to exist. It was a world the color of sunset and the color of dawn, with aquamarine seas the color of the Caribbean, and vast fields of gold. Orchid began to walk towards him, her steps delicate and tentative. As the distance closed, that world expanded, connected by their gaze.
Somewhere outside, in what sims would foolishly call the “real world,” Aster broke into something half-laugh and half tears, clapping with one hand and wiping away tears with the other. To them, it must have been a million miles away. They were the centers of their own galaxy, everything else in orbit around their gazes.
Orchid took his hand and stood beneath the wedding arch. They smiled.

“Orchid. You are my treasure – the only treasure I’ll ever need to search for, and the one I’ll go into a million tombs just to be sure I can retrieve. You’re the one who taught me how to be brave, and more than that, to follow my dreams – and they all led straight to you. I promise, I’ll follow you into whatever madcap adventure in the world you find, and I’ll back you up whether you’re wrong or right. I may not be the best fighter, but if you ask it, I will make the world my enemy for you. Now, and until the end of time.”
“Linden, being with you is all the adventure I could ever want: you make life a joy, because no matter what happens, I know you’ve got my back. Because you’re patient and clever. Because you’re there, I’ve got courage and not just bravado. Because your smile is better for lighting up the world than any torch. I promise I’ll slow down when you ask me to, and lean on you when I can’t go on – even if I’d rather pretend I could. I promise I’ll always find a way back to you, in defiance of any fate. Now until the end of time.”

He slipped a ring onto her finger, and she onto him – movements so perfectly in unison they almost seemed rehearsed. But their completely unrestrained, undignified faces told the truth.

“” I Do. “”
And, as the hearts rained around them, they kissed. It blazed hotter than the setting sun, and tasted sweeter than strawberries ripe from the runner. It was completely pure, and they melted into each-other’s arms.

There’s more to the story of that day than this, but…
They lived happily ever after, right there in that kiss. The rest would just be details to them.

[Toric]

Beautiful ending. ....Why yes, that statement is meant to be taken on multiple levels.

That narrator. Nearly drove him madder..... Could we be experiencing this episode through the lense of the Reaper Man? If it's an even higher power than that, this doesn't bode well for the Sims cosmology.

Very interesting chapter. The writing is reminding me a bit of your Pokemon LP. Looking forward to part 2.

[Deme]

Interesting reasoning... It's worth noticing that the other forum STILL has not caught on that this is a being to be speculated about. Maybe this chapter will drop the bomb on them.

I admit, I'm not as satisfied with part 2... But if I kept trying to make it perfect, it'd never get done!

Chapter 44, Part 2

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Before the cake was cut, Ariel tapped on her daughter's shoulder. It was time.
"But caaaake," Aster wailed. "And I wanted to throw some doves!"
"...Throw doves?"
"Like throwing rice, but cooler. I hope there's an inventor in this family one day, so they can build me a dove-launching party cannon."
"...Perhaps," Ariel replied. She didn't exactly think that it'd be possible to build that, but technology still impressed her. Maybe she was mistaken -- she'd consider it more seriously if this weren't an idea of Aster's.

"So, I'll have all the time to wait. All the time, collected in up in spools and fish and fruit and the taste of shaved coconut..."
"There's no shaved coconut in this dish."

The two of them spoke as if nothing was different about today as they walked down the stairs. Down and down they went, entering the lower basement.

Aster stared, as she did periodically when nothing interesting struck her, at the portraits and the sculptures. There were things there documenting a time before she existed; there were things there that pointed toward a time after ‘she’ would ‘die.’ That’s how she saw things, looking at the portraits of her mother and her daughter – she was going to die, except that neither of those words meant what they used to mean.

She knelt down and placed a hand on the head of the little beaming child, frozen in time and ice, that she used to be. She laughed. She laughed and laughed. But if it was so funny, why were there tears streaming down her face?

“…I’ll go get it from the replicator.” Ariel left her daughter alone with her thoughts as a gesture of tenderness.

“I’m sorry, Evanthe – I guess I should have apologized sooner. The two of us…Won’t be the same anymore. Maybe we’ll have a while…But our breaths lose their schedule and day doesn’t follow night…And the moon and the stars don’t have to be out at the same time anymore – that thin, soap-bubble moon in a high summer sky, stripped of the stars… That’s my fate. You’re free of me.”

She rose and faced her sculptures and scared into the half-gleeful, half-furied eyes of her portraits.

“You’re all free, too, OK? Fly away, darling selves! You don’t have to have been me, OK?”

What she did not say, but felt, was that she, too, was free. Free of fear of death, free of the requirements of her past selves, free of the in-synch life she had been.

I have been trapped in my suffering, bound to slave forever, since the first thing in the universe drew breath. I’d break the world to pieces to walk it freely once more. I barely comprehend the meaning of the word now.

…But when she thought it, it felt to her like a nightmare. Ungrateful child.

“But…I think it’ll be good, too. I’m going to enjoy knowing what forever tastes like. Maybe I’ll paint the taste – sort of greenish-silver-purple, or else yellow. Like when you dream you know the meaning of life and wake up crying in the morning and you don’t remember why.”

To the little beaming toddler, to the child bound to her dearest companions, the teenager discovering love, to the young wife coating the world with her views, and to the proud mother and the old woman caught mid-fit of rage at something unseen, she said goodbye as her mother came and brought her the ambrosia.

The two of them sat down to eat. The flavor she had worked so hard for hit her. It tasted, to her, like fireworks and fireflies, like the light of the winter moon. Also like chili and chocolate, and a bit like corn and pepper ice-cream.
“Congratulations, ladies!” Uriel shouted happily.
“…Oh, heavens…The unseen…” She murmured.

The truth of what happened, I cannot attest to. I will only say what she said happened, as she would explain it to her mother.

“The flavor was wonderful… But as I was sitting there, I wasn’t sitting there anymore. I mean, ‘I’ was sitting there, but ‘I’ wasn’t sitting in me anymore. I was watching me. And then…There was something behind me – some big black and white space. And I walked into it by standing still, and moving all the space around me. You know the times in the late afternoon where it looks like you can take the sunbeams and wear them like a scarf? Everything there was like that. And you could see the house from there.
There was another person there. A not-person, anyway. It was sort of like a man, but not a man, all white. I think it had wings it didn’t have at the moment. There aren’t good words for this stuff. Want me to make my own?” Her mother would assure her that no, she understood. ”It actually reminded me of you, Mom…Ummm...I’m not sure why. You have the same color in your hearts. Exactly the same color. It was very excited about something.

…But I kept walking. And eventually…

I came to a room. It was all in white and silver – and it all gave off light. Nothing in there was a sim, but I guess they were all people, like the way the fireflies are people. Un-sims, in an un-office. There were three of them…I guess you’d call them all masculine, but they weren’t men.
There were two on the chair side of the desk. They looked sort of red-colored. I don’t mean their skin or their hair or anything -- those were both very white and shiny like powder-snow. But… there, light broke down. It shattered into a million pieces and became neither a wave nor a particle but almost a syrup, and it was souls that seemed to give off light. So they were red and grey. The one sitting down was smiling, but neither of them was happy, or they’d be some other color. They had big wings.

The other one was black. Everything about it was black – its skin, its hair, its breath, its soul. It was wrapped up in darkness that draped off him like a long robe. It was the blackest thing you could imagine, and then a few shades darker. Its skin ate the light of the room. If it opened its wings, there would just be holes in the world, shining through like stars of another reality.

Its eyes were very, very blue.

…
And they were talking. The one sitting said,
‘I’m sorry about all this trouble. It must be a bother, being interrupted from your busy schedule to meet with us.’ It was met with silence.
‘Ah, actually , that’s exactly what Enoch wanted to talk to you about, even.’ Said the one that stood behind the chair.
More silence.

‘You see, we’ve noticed…Well, you’re sort of getting run-down, aren’t you? We’re getting a lot of complaints. Your last victim –‘
‘They are not victims. They are simply themselves,’ the black one burst out, his words dripping a sort of cold fury.
‘This is exactly what we mean, Oh Winter’s-First-Frost.’ The one standing behind the chair said with a nervous smile.
‘Don’t butter me up with ceremony. What do you want.’

‘Well, we were thinking…You cannot act as psychopomp anymore.’
‘Consider it a vacation.’
‘…I cannot Vacate. The duty must be done. I must exist, and allow the world to operate… As the world stands, there is no other way.’

The other two laughed at this, nervous. I think the redness was draining from them like blood.

‘Well, no. The duty will still get done – your mere existence on this plane will ensure that. We’ll just have someone else act as psychopomp. We’ve got a squad, and you’ll have a nice rest.’
‘This will also give us the opportunity to investigate that unusual situation on the earthly plane as well. It’ll be profitable for everyone. And no more complains to our department, you see?’

‘…That is not…a rest. My duties remain the same. I will know it; the weight of every soul, until it drives me mad. You cannot remove that from me. You’d not risk the end of creation for it.’
‘Nonsense! It’ll be wonderful to get away from those sobbing mortals, right?’
‘Yes. We forbid you from going near that plane, understand? We can’t have… any more trouble.’

The black being pounded on the desk with a fist as thin as bone.

‘You. Piddling. Buerocrats. You know nothing of true duty. Nothing of real work. Restrain me as you see fit. Think things are right because you receive no complaints… But… Perhaps this will only delay matters. There must be an Angel of Death – there’s no power enough to substitute for that. Your reaper men do not know how to care for a harvest.’
His eyes, those very blue eyes like the day sky or the color of infinity, the color of true love, blazed.

…And there aren’t any words at all for what happened next, except that all three of them were gone afterwards.

And then the fireflies came to take me back, and I was properly me again, and people could see me.”

…If she really did see that…Then certainly, she, too, knew the power of the cosmos, generated by this gerrymandered ritual of mine.
The power that will set me free. But it will be only harder from here on out, and all on the shoulders of this family.

…But today, Aster Seraphim goes to bed, listening to the distant chimes coming from upstairs, wraps her arms around her husband, and sleeps the sleep of the conquerer. Sleeps the sleep of the immortal.

Today has been a grand, momentous day.

Aster Seraphim's Requirements: Complete!

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Lifetime Wish: Living in the Lap of Luxury
Career: Architect
Supermax Skill: Painting
Building, Property: Hogan's Deep-Fried Diner, Romper Recreational Park
LTR: Innapropriate in a Good Way, Artisan Crafter, Extra Creative
Best Friends: Ariel Seraphim, Reed (Joy) Seraphim, Evanthe Seraphim, Lindsay Coulter, Helmut Roderickson, Jacob Roderickson, Ross Dorman, Orchid Seraphim, Gabriel Seraphim, Cyriaque Cantu, Ami Oakley
Black Ops: When Dream Come True, Scavenger Hunt: Rare Elements, A fishy science project, Outside Reading, Larger than Necessary Doorstop, Local Artists' Gallery
Portraits: Toddler, Child, Teenager, YA, Adult, Elder
Sculptures/Photos: Child (sculp), Teen (sculp), YA (sculpt and Photo), Adult (Sculp/ Photo), Elder (Sculp)

Orchid's Requirements:

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Lifetime Wish: Physical Perfection
Career: Sports
Supermax Skill: Martial Arts (Maxed, 1/3 Challenges)
Building/Property: Everfresh Supermarket, Riverfront Swim Club
LTR: Opportunistic, Learned Relic Hunter, Jetsetter
Best Friends: Aster Seraphim, Reed Seraphim, Ariel Seraphim, Linden Seraphim, Waylon Shwarz, A bunch of old people (darnit)
Black Ops: Mustle Hustle, The Ultimate Challenge, Celebrity Body, Ticket Counting
Portraits: Toddler, Child, Teen, YA
Sculptures/Photographs: Toddler (sculp&photo), Child (sculp&photo), Teen (Sculp&Photo), YA (Sculp&Photo)

Well, 2 down, 6 to go.

[Deme]

Chapter 45: Baby Blues

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Ta-daaaaaa!

This living room, by the degree of Orchid Seraphim, is now 20% cooler! I've added some arcade machines and a few other games -- my living room should be a place of intense and spirited competition!

I've also colored the rest of the house in my intense color designs. But not much has changed up here.

[img][http://www.carls-sims-3-guide.com/fo...-3~26.jpg/img]
"...W...What are they doing? THEY'VE ASSEMBLED! THEY'RE AN ARMY! AN AAAAAARMYYYY!"
"...They're just relaxing, Uriel. Don't worry."
"They've never 'just relaxed' in a group before. They're plotting something."
"Let it go, Uriel dear."
"(I'm on to you....Gnomes!)"


"Hooooommmmmmme....There's not place like hooooommmmme...."
"...What are you doing?"
"She's trying out a new meditation technique at my advisement, Uriel old chum!"
"...Does meditation even work that way?"
"I don't have breath to control or a body to ignore, so I have no idea!"
"...At least he's honest."
"Shuuuut uuuuppp..... You guuuuuyyys....."

In addition to having to deal with those two interrupting my meditation, I also have to block out the sound of the miner digging away. After it dies down, at least Uriel gets distracted.

"Ah, Uriel. Mind giving me a slight ease-down into this hole?"
"No hands, remember? I'd like to, but... Wait. Why are you going in a glowing hole where I can't follow you? Whyyyy?"
"It seemed like it'd be fun! And there was this darling white rabbit in this little waistcoat, and I thought I might want to see where he's gone."
"...Well, as long as you're down there, think you can punch the Mock Turtle for me? I hate that guy."
"I'll see what I can do."

...But I think all those interruptions upset my stomach. Ugh. Never sick a day in my life, but sick a day after my wedding!

"...I refuse...to cancel...the honeymoon!"
"Honey, it's alright. Your health comes first...Like I said, you make my life an adventure all on your own."
"Hearing that makes my heart sing."
In light of that display...Yes! A vacation will have to wait! It seems spineless, I know, but when my husband (squeeee! <3) asks me to stay, then I'd wish it!
"Don't worry. You'll probably feel better soon. I know what this is."
"You do! Tell me you...Urggg....I'll get back to this later!"

I eventually settle my stomach and come into the kitchen for some alkaseltzer.
"Oh, hey. You're feeling better!...Well, I guess now's a good a time to tell you...I'm pretty sure you're pregnant."
"Pregnant?"
"I was thinking about that myself. It does seem to match the symptoms..."

"...Pregnant."
"That's what we're saying, honey."
"We're gonna have a baby!"
I jump up and hug Linden.
"Easy, easy..."

I couldn't help it, though. I was so excited! I hope whatever sort of child it is, we'll be able to play catch. I don't care about whether my kid's a boy or a girl...But I don't want someone really delicate.

"You're going to wear yourself out like that really quickly. Here, turn around..."
Linden puts his hands to work at my shoulders, and all the nerves that came with that excitement melt away.

I guess delicacy does have its merits...

"I hope we'll do a good job." Oh, dear. I think he's about to go into freak-out mode.
"...Do you think we have the right sort of food? And the room -- you think it's too cold? Should you be eating apples? Listening to music?"
"Linden! It's fine!"
"...Do you know anything about raising children, Orchid? I don't!"
"Well, then let's attack this problem head-on! As a team!"
"Alright! I'll go to the book store!"
Not exactly what I meant!


However, I do like the idea of preparing 'with vigilance'! Everything should be done with vigilance!


The animals are still great company for each other. What a lovely and inspirational moment!
But there's also a sort of love triangle impression that I get -- after all, Dog likes cat. Cat likes ducky. Who does ducky like? It's a mystery.


"...It's come to drink Ariel's blood!"
"She is a little odd."
"Oh, she just came to admire the plasma bushes in my garden, didn't you, sweetie?" Grandmother coos.
"But she's a vampire!"
"...So's my father." Linden points out.
"...Yeah, I'm just walking this conversation, then."

Ugh. Gnomes and pets aside, this baby thing is really taking its toll on me.

Not even a trip to the spa helps my back out, and the weight's throwing off my balance. I've always been a really active person -- being hobbled like this is driving me up the wall!



But some attention from my man makes everything better.
"Our little one's a fighter, too -- listen to that moving around."
"Yeah, baby's gonna have to kick harder to take out his momma, though!"


And no amount of baby bump can keep me out of the fray! It just makes it a safer fray..

Well, safer for my little one. I can't make any promises about Mother.

The only way I can use my time wisely right now...

Is like this. I spend most of my pregnancy in deep meditation. I hope my inner peace will help things along.


"...Aster. With a blow torch. This seems like an incredibly bad idea."
"Don't worry! I have all the best saftey gear!"
"You mean a formal gown?"
"And a top hat! That's the essential element of saftey."
"...Whose idea was it to save the happiness-based spell to make the household fire proof for a later generation? Because that seems like a bad idea now."


"Another night, another case..."
"Like, jinkies, Linden. Found anything? Besides Ariel's very old friends?"
"Well, given the chemical traces on the tattoo needles and the muddy footprints with traces of hair in them, I have determined... That this place is not up to sanitation code!
Oh, and also that the tattoos are fakes. We'd be hearing about more infections if they weren't."
"...Does any of that have anything to do with the case?"
"Somewhat."
"...Pffft. Sims have wierd crimes."

Meanwhile, my parents enjoy their evenings together.
"...Does...Does it bother you? That I'm definately immortal now?"
"Hey, what man at this age doesn't want a younger wife?" He laughs, jovial...And then he becomes very gentle-looking.
"Do you remember what you told me after my mom died?...We're all immortal, because nothing completely leaves the universe. So even after I've died...Because you're alive, some of me will still be with you. And some of me will be in the stars, because I know you love to look at them."
"That's good...Then...I'll look at the stars every night. So you'll know I'll always love you. And I'll tell our granchild's granchild, or whoever's the family stargazer will be, to name everything after you. So everyone will remember that you're there."


Not to interrupt this wonderful moment full of tenderness between a husband and wife...

But the baby's coming!

In the end, I end up going to the hospital -- Linden drives me there in spite of my protests. I could have toughed it out!

But all the same, I come out with my precious little man... Heath. Heath Seraphim.
He's Good and Friendly! His favorites are Veggie Burgers, Latin Music, and...
The color pink. Well, he'll have to be tough enough to live with favorites like those!


And immediately, he's the center of a family full of love.

Orchid's Requirements:

Spoiler

Show

Lifetime Wish: Physical Perfection
Career: Sports
Supermax Skill: Martial Arts (Maxed, 1/3 Challenges)
Building/Property: Everfresh Supermarket, Riverfront Swim Club
LTR: Opportunistic, Learned Relic Hunter, Jetsetter
Best Friends: Aster Seraphim, Reed Seraphim, Ariel Seraphim, Linden Seraphim, Waylon Shwarz, Jamie Neff, A bunch of old people (darnit)
Black Ops: Mustle Hustle, The Ultimate Challenge, Celebrity Body, Ticket Counting, Meditation Benefits
Portraits: Toddler, Child, Teen, YA
Sculptures/Photographs: Toddler (sculp&photo), Child (sculp&photo), Teen (Sculp&Photo), YA (Sculp&Photo)

Heath's Requirements:

Spoiler

Show

Lifetime Wish: We'll see!
Career: Oh, yeah, he needs one of those, doesn't he? Well, luckily, there's some up his alley...
Supermax Skill: He won't even be able to do prep for this until he's a child.
Building/Property:
LTR: I may want 'change of taste' for him. Your opinions?
Best Friends:
Black Ops:
Portraits:
Sculptures/Photographs:

[Deme]

Oh Hai, triple-post. We meet again.

Chapter 46: That Party Left Me a Little Horse

Spoiler

Show

Heath is immediately the center of attention around here -- having a baby in a house with 4 elders certainly livens things up!

While Linden and I are the main doters -- especially Linden, since his hours are so flexible. It might also be because he's a little scared of not being a good dad -- he's lived with us, so he knows what a good dad *looks* like, but not the passion of it! I won't speak ill of Mr. Ross, who is my father-in-law after all, and cordial with all the family.
Well, maybe we'll just have to try harder! For little Heath, too!

Oh, but as I was saying, all the grandparents and greatgrandparents are in on the action as well.

He mostly stays in the grand ancestral swing of his forebearers. Though, that title doesn't really work yet -- maybe in another generation or two.


As much as I love to spend all day doting on my precious child (And I do mean that), I do have other things to do -- work to work on, and...


People to meet! Or, well, chat up while fulfilling opportunities. I've been working so hard on my training I've neglected my social life. But I've gvot to work harder to socialize!

"Latin Music's just the best -- but you work with my father, so I bet you prefer classical or rock, right?"
"Oh my god I am so hungry I think I could eat someone. Please let me go eat!"
"Nonsense! I won't surrender this conversation over anything!"

...In retrospect, maybe my social skills need work. I'll just work harder! MY SOCIAL SKILLS WILL PIERCE THROUGH THE VAULT OF HEAVEN!

Maybe I should learn from my elders?

"I've planted all these new planters, I've gardened for 2 sim lifetimes, and still -- I'm not allowed to order omniplant seeds. I've been collecting steaks for longer than most of these people have been alive! What will it take?"
"A pact! A pact with the aquatic fairies who live beneath the river! Oh, I love those guys!"
... OK, so be a little nutsy. Noted.


"I'll practice by writing thank-you letters for my wedding presents!"
"...Did the lady Orchid recieve any wedding presents? No mail from those irresponsible curs has arrived!"
"That's irrelevant, sir Axe! It's practice, after all! I'll just toss the letters in a heap behind me as I go!"
"Brillaint!"
"...Axey, Orchid, that's...Nevermind. You know what? I'll just mail the letters. We'll say things got lost in the mail. Everyone'll save face."


It seems I'm not the only one in the mood for a fight -- Mother and Grandmother have really been in a bonding mood lately. I think Grandmother wants to assure her that everything's OK, and forever together will also be OK.
How did she get this far only to doubt now? I suppose Mother never does think things through -- she goes wherever her wandering mind takes her. Handling the consequences is for other people.


...I'm still meditating when something unusual happens...

This Papparazzi dies. That's not unusual at all -- one died on a date Linden and I went on, too. But then... The smell in the air wasn't the smell of death. It was like Burnt Ozone and distant lightning.

"LET IT BE KNOWN THAT I AM DEATH, THE GREAT AND TERRIBLE, AND I AM HERE FOR YOUR -- sprinklers? Why am I standing in sprinklers?...Let it be known that this realm of rot is a royal pain..."
"What on earth? You're not Azrael," Grandmother stared at the reaper, her face puzzled.
"Let it be known that he has been relieved of psychopomp duties, and the 2nd Great court of the Silver City apologizes for the inconvenience the transition may cause. Let it be known that all death-related services will proceed as normal."
"....They can do that?"
"They can do that?"
"Let it be known that 'they' can, in fact, 'do that.'"
"But why?"
"Let it be known that I am not authorized or interested in telling that to a pair of...renegades. Let it also be known that the deceased has been allowed to linger too long."
"But I like it here." The Paparazzi starts. "Can I at least say goodbye? I died so far from home..."
"Let it be known that the interests and wishes of the meat are of no interest to the 2nd Great Court of the Silver City's appointed psychopomp."
And with a single wave of his (or her, or its) scythe, the dead woman was struck into her grave, and vanished.

And the reaper vanished without a trace.

"...Oh, Poor Azreal...This was his only way of getting out and about, wasn't it?"
"...I can't say I like their attitude...And they're disrupting the order... I think there's going to be trouble ahead."
"I'll alert Orchid then."


Which is how I learned about this. I'm not sure what to make of it -- from the sound of it, a bunch of stuffed-shirt angelic suits have gotten involved. Well, I'm not going to let any buerocrats get in the way of my life!


Ah, but my socializing efforts have borne fruit!

I was invited to a party of Ross's. He's got a very nice place (Did Mother work here once?), and Linden and I dance the night away!


Of course, Dancing's not nearly good enough for my aunt Evanthe. She kisses him and watches the stars with him the whole night long.


And it seems love is in the air tonight. I think my parents had their own little party at home...

Not that I have any right to talk. Lying there in Linden's arms, our passion done, the house murmuring warm and contentedly... If I could settle, it'd be this. It's a wonderful way to wait, smoothing the worries from his brow when he falls asleep, dreaming logical dreams. Or are they dreams of adventure, with me in them? I don't think I have a place in logical and orderly dreams!


But don't let it fool you into thinking I've gone soft. I'll fight just as hard as I love, until Linden and I are both covered in all sorts of marks!

"Hey princess, what are you doing in the museum?"

"Ah! What? No, I wasn't... Oh, I am...I was painting, and then I stopped, and then I heard something whispering, like 'it will be difficult to advance from here'...And then I followed the smell of honey and I guess I ended up here."
"...And none of that was bad?"
"No, the smell of honey's always a good thing. Intoxicating, like the fall of honey-colored light on peachflesh skin... Ooh, that gives me an idea. Thanks, Museum!"


"Whatcha doin'?"
"Looking for prints."
"Prince?"
"No, no, Finger Prints."
"Didn't The Animaniacs do this gag?"
"It's for work."
"Oh, yeah, that reminds me...Police HQ sent you a present."
"A present?! Really?"

"Linden Seraphim, for your service to the truth....You've recieved..."

"A brand new car! *applause*"
"Wow, I must be doing good work! (wait, was that an applause machine?)...That, or you are tremendously bored."
"How could you tell?"
"Just reasoning. Orchid's likely at work and so on...And also, you're getting meta."
"Yeah, I've been chilling with Aster. It happens."

"Oh, Uriel, I have a surpriiiise..."

"Yeah? Whatcha planting?"
"Omniplants!"
"Really?"
"Really! At last! After all this time! The final plant has been planted!...Except, I think, Pomegranates. But we can get those any time."
The two of them laugh like idiots into the night.

It's a night of good things, it seems.

It's Echo's birthday! She's an older cat now, but she's still got it.


When the photobooth's a-rockin, don't come a-knockin!
"...Now I kind of want to see those pictures..."
"Never. No one will see them...I know too much about blackmail to allow it."


And Aunt Evanthe gets a promotion! She'll probably not max out her career, but she's not in it for the glory or the money -- she's in it for the fish.

Anyway, the next day was Heath's birthday -- a big party was an absolute must, of course!

A party that was crashed. By a horse.
BEST. PARTY. EVER.

It's officially time. Time for Heath...
[img]
http://www.carls-sims-3-guide.com/forum/gallery/albums/userpics/10193/Screenshot-39~3.jpg[/img]

To enter the adorable phase!


Where his hair came from, we don't know. I thought genetics knew Lamarack was right!

Orchid's Requirements:

Spoiler

Show

Lifetime Wish: Physical Perfection
Career: Sports
Supermax Skill: Martial Arts (Maxed, 1/3 Challenges)
Building/Property: Everfresh Supermarket, Riverfront Swim Club
LTR: Opportunistic, Learned Relic Hunter, Jetsetter
Best Friends: Aster Seraphim, Reed Seraphim, Ariel Seraphim, Linden Seraphim, Waylon Shwarz, Jamie Neff, A bunch of old people (darnit)
Black Ops: Mustle Hustle, The Ultimate Challenge, Celebrity Body, Ticket Counting, Meditation Benefits
Portraits: Toddler, Child, Teen, YA
Sculptures/Photographs: Toddler (sculp&photo), Child (sculp&photo), Teen (Sculp&Photo), YA (Sculp&Photo)

Heath's Requirements:

Spoiler

Show

Lifetime Wish:
Career:
Supermax Skill:
Building/Property:
LTR:
Best Friends:
Black Ops:
Portraits: Toddler
Sculptures/Photographs: Toddler (Sculp and Photo)

Also, heck yeah, Omniplant. I have had a good many gardener sims in my day; I tend to skew towards it. Ariel is the first to get the omniplant opportunity.

[Selpharia]

Out of curiosity, what does the omniplant do?

[Deme]

The Omniplant can be fed certain objects, including fruit, fish, and books (those are the ones I know; anyone else know others?), and it will grow that object. I've never actually used it before, since like I said...First time I've gotten this opportunity.
It's at the end of a chain of gardening opportunities that unlock plants like the egg, cheese, steak, and patty plants.
I care less about the omniplant itself (money trees are where it's at) and more about the fact that I *finally* got it, after waiting since Ariel maxed gardening to get the opportunity. And she's maybe the third or fourth gardener I've tended into elderhood. This opportunity has just evaded me forever.

[Toric]

Spoiler

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Ah, the angel. The perfect being of absolute beauty. Grace incarnate, in fact.

And woo! We have our first male immortal! And he's manly enough to like pink and not hide it!

[Aidan305]

Given Uriel's fondness for garden gnomes, I felt that it would be appropriate to link to a League of Steam video that just came out

[Deme]

Only real immortal men wear China Rose.

Chapter 47: We Need a Montage!

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I obviously want my little boy to be the best -- and the best means training! I get to it right away!

[img] http://www.carls-sims-3-guide.com/fo...nshot-2~25.jpg [/img]
Best, just so we are clear, means not having to have his diapers changed.

[img] http://www.carls-sims-3-guide.com/fo...nshot-3~28.jpg [/img]
"Uriel, look at what Gabriel dug up!"
"...Well, it could be worse...It could be a gnome, I guess."
"I kind of expected you to be frightened of Mr. Monster-Skeleton."
"Nope. It's just gnomes. Or other stuff that moves without my permission."
"Excellent! I bet Aster will adore him, and we can put him in the art room!"
"...L-let's not get carried away... I think he's s-staring at me..."

[img] http://www.carls-sims-3-guide.com/fo...nshot-5~31.jpg [/img]
"Little guy, where are you going at this hour?"
"Bwoo."
"...Well, I'll let you do that... I get a feeling you're going to be trouble, little guy."

Everyone's a little bit toddler-crazy right now.
[img] http://www.carls-sims-3-guide.com/fo...nshot-7~30.jpg [/img]
Though with Mother, it's maybe not that distinguishable.
"Look at my horse, my horse is amazing..."

[img] http://www.carls-sims-3-guide.com/fo...nshot-8~25.jpg [/img]
My little Heath is just a bit spoiled by his grandpa -- I think he's developing a discriminating pallet. If it turns out that's his destiny, so be it! A man should know his destiny!

Bedtime Stories with Great-Grandmother Ariel:
"And then Mr. Chaucer says that he's very sorry for writing such naughty things, and hopes God will forgive him... But I think he just did it because it was a popular way of ending a story. And that's all the Canterbury tales there are!"
"Moew?"
"Not until we get into Canturbury Tales fan-sequels. It was a very popular genre in the next few centuries... And not until you get some sleep, my little fellow."
[img] http://www.carls-sims-3-guide.com/fo...shot-10~34.jpg [/img]
It behooves all of us to tend to Heath as best we can! This child with triumph -- I'll put all my heart into that!

[img] http://www.carls-sims-3-guide.com/fo...shot-12~27.jpg [/img]
But we also improve personally! Aunt Evanthe gets an award for her hard work fishing.
"I probably won't reach the top of my career by the time I die."
"That doesn't matter! All that matters is how hard you try! Keep dreaming the impossible dream!"
[img] http://www.carls-sims-3-guide.com/fo...shot-13~27.jpg [/img]
While she's at it, she upgrades a few of Grandmother's sprinklers.

I have to head to work before I can teach Heath much more. Which means it's daddy's turn to teach him to walk!
[img] http://www.carls-sims-3-guide.com/fo...shot-14~32.jpg [/img]
"There, there, little guy... I got you."
"Uhwaaaa!"
"I think that's Todder for 'But who's got you?'"

[img] http://www.carls-sims-3-guide.com/fo...shot-15~24.jpg [/img]
"They plot by midnight."
"Awww, what a cute slumber party. Do you think they're telling campfire stories?"
"Sure. Monster stories. With them as the central character."

[img] http://www.carls-sims-3-guide.com/fo...shot-17~24.jpg [/img]
While she can't understand Uriel or the gnomes, it looks like this paparazzi is scared of the idea as well. HAVE NO FEAR, PAPARAZZI LADY! Orchid will defend you from all darkness!

[img] http://www.carls-sims-3-guide.com/fo...shot-18~23.jpg [/img]
Toddler and Linden cuteness combined! My scouter says the cuteness level... IS... Quite high, actually. (Even I don't go charging into the obvious ones all the time ;) )

Anyway, since I'm home from work, I figure it would be a good idea to start teaching him to talk. This would be a perfect time for a montage!
[img] http://www.carls-sims-3-guide.com/fo...shot-19~24.jpg [/img]
“So….Who wants nachos?”
Blank stares.
[img] http://www.carls-sims-3-guide.com/fo...shot-20~22.jpg [/img]
“Be sure to brush your teeth to make them all sparkly clean!”
”Spawkwy!”
Hmmmm…
[img] http://www.carls-sims-3-guide.com/fo...shot-21~22.jpg [/img]
“Grandma likes dramatic make-up. Can you say make-up?”
Mabe-u—“
”Stop right there! Orchid, quit it; he already likes pink, and adoption’s a no-go! We need all the help we can get!”
”Uriel, quit reinforcing arbitrary gender rules.”
”Yes, Ariel…”
[img] http://www.carls-sims-3-guide.com/fo...shot-28~17.jpg [/img]
”Now, soon your grandma will paint a portrait for every stage of your life!”
“Powtwaid!”

[img] http://www.carls-sims-3-guide.com/fo...shot-24~21.jpg [/img]
I read my little man a rousing tale OF ADVENTURE!

[img] http://www.carls-sims-3-guide.com/fo...shot-25~20.jpg [/img]
Yes, father! Work some triumphant rock into my montage! I’m so happy!

”Speaking of rock, there’s a performance festival in the park today.”
[img] http://www.carls-sims-3-guide.com/fo...shot-26~20.jpg [/img]
”Oh, goody! I do so want to see a show!”

[img] http://www.carls-sims-3-guide.com/fo...shot-27~18.jpg [/img]
Grandmother enjoyed the show… as a Mexican wave of 1.

Wait a second, I’ve gotten off track! I’ve got to finish the montage!
[img] http://www.carls-sims-3-guide.com/fo...shot-29~14.jpg [/img]
“Anyway, just know that your mom will always be your best friend.”
”Best….Fwiend…”
He says, nodding to sleep as he speaks.
“Come on, little guy. Let’s get you to bed.”

”Goodnight, house. Goodnight, everyone.”

[img] http://www.carls-sims-3-guide.com/fo...shot-30~12.jpg [/img]
”AAAAAAAAAAHHH! THERE ARE TWO OF THEM! It’s night of the living gnomes!”
”Good night, Uriel.”

I'll do requirements update when I'm not about to go on a trip.

[Deme]

Also, in response to some comments: That's darn graceful pillow-fighting. As for the video... Heh.


Chapter 48: Maybe He'll Stand a Ghost of a Chance

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Linden is, as always, on the case!

"Listen, Sir... I really, really, really do like art, too. Pleaaaase give me the information I want. I've been on this job for days."
"I dunno...How much do you like art again?"
This is why I'm not cut out to be a civillain detective. Because I would so punch him in the soul. FOR JUSTICE!

Speaking of For Justice, our parents went out and had themselves a night on the town.

Wait...That has nothing to do with JUSTICE!
...My life needs more Justice.


"If we get trapped up here, like fireflies and souls becoming stars... That'd be OK," Mother whispers, "Right? We could just stay here and everything would stay the same..."
"It'd be very nice."
"Ok, then I'll go smash the elevator."
"Wait, wait! Come back! I thought you were being metaphorical, honey!"
"...I meant smash the elevator metaphorically?"
"What, get it really drunk?" Evanthe adds in from her place on the dance floor.
"Nah, I've tried that. It just converts the alcohol to fuel."
Father just shakes his head thoughtfully.
"I suppose that would be a problem with these fuel-smart machines..."
"How smart can it be if it refuses free drinks?" Evanthe points out. "Come on, you two. Let's cut a rug."


Everybody was sim-fu fighting...Those cats were fast as lightning...
Aster: "Karate-chop dancing will cut all the rugs!"


Evanthe: "Isn't this one walk like an Egyptian?"
Aster: "When do I have to listen to the commands of the musical overlords, huh?"


On another note, there is incoming toddler cuteness! Those with small hearts should not watch, or their hearts will grow 3 sizes today!





"My life is so lacking...in drama! What am I to do with an adorable child, a supportive inter-generational household, and the most loving husband, sidekick, and sparring-partner in the world?"
"...I'll let you think about that, dear."
"Dangit, Linden! I was having a speech!"

Well, I suppose a solution will be forthcoming...


Oh, yeah. Woo Hoo his brains out, that's what.


My husband: stealthiest man in the world.
"Think you may have succeeded, Orchid. I didn't even know it was possible to do that."



"Hey, check out how awesome I am!"

"I can pull dirt out of wood! And eat it!...Actually, that's kind of tasty."
"Yeah, I'm taking away your woo-hooing priveleges."

The next day, the final day before Heath grows into a child, we spend in the park Mother owns.
[img]http://www.carls-sims-3-guide.com/forum/gallery/albums/userpics/10193/Screenshot-22~20.jpg[img]
"Ahhh, what a lovely place to read books..."
"Grandmother, that is hopelessly boring! Go do something fun!"
"But...But..."
"There, there, Ariel. Why don't we go play with Heath? This is a family outing, after all."


And we all head to our activities.


"I swear, it's been ages since I've done any vacationing or exploring at all! It feels like we're never going to get to go."
"I can't make any garuntees. The next trip is Orchid's -- cosmic forces seem to resist the idea of us all going."
"Cosmic forces?" Linden asks.
"Yeah...I'm not sure I can explain it -- it's just a bad, bad idea. Even Aster agrees, complaining something about glitching the game."
"Guuuys! You're not watching my PHENOMENAL HOPSCOTCH SKILLS!"


"Everybody was sim-fu fighting... Darnit, that song's caught in my head! I can't stop the beat!"


"Woo-haaa! Ride 'em, little cowboy!"
"Wooo!"
"See? I can be fun! Not as much fun as The Moviegoer, but fun!"
"Aw, I knew that. Kids these days..."

And a good time was had by all. Until it was foiled by work. Curse you, work! One day, I will have VENGENCE!

"Aaah, another serene day, watching a fishing trip...Uh...Hey. There are two bobbers in the water, but I only see one of you. Where's Aster?"

"She said something about 'the super-reel powered by her mind' and 'not scaring the fish with psychic powers' and ran off..."
"I'll go look for her...Oh, there she is... On the other side...Of the island...."

"HOW LONG ARE THESE FISHING LINES?!"
[b]"As long as you believe, Uriel. As long as you believe."[b]

Late that night, Uriel was checking on Heath downstairs when...Something unusual happens.

"Billy?"
"What a sweet kid... My own great-grandson."
"Yeah. He'll be a good kid, I think."
"He'll need it. You're almost halfway there, right?"
"It's exciting, isn't it?"
"You're doing a better job watching out for things than I would have expected from you."
"Gee, thanks. Glad to see the afterlife hasn't changed you... Into a nice guy."
The two of them paused, and the air relaxed.
"I hope he does well...My own, sweet little great-grandson..."
Billy's ghost smiles and puts the toddler to bed.

"Gweat-Gwandpa!"
"Get some sleep, kiddo. You've got a long life ahead of you...But we're all watching over you."



That's true. The real work is already beginning.

All the photos of Heath's birthday came out sort of odd --

I mean, come on! He grew his head right out of frame!


We've already set up his room: I hope it's not alright: I personally would have liked something Cambodian, or otherwise wonderfully exotic, but everyone else insisted this would be better. It's near mine, adjacent to an empty will-be bathroom.




But there's our Heath! He says the apron is to help with cleaning -- I guess he's something of a little Neat freak.
Well, I suppose someone has to be.

Orchid's Requirements:

Spoiler

Show

Lifetime Wish: Physical Perfection
Career: Sports
Supermax Skill: Martial Arts (Maxed, 1/3 Challenges)
Building/Property: Everfresh Supermarket, Riverfront Swim Club
LTR: Opportunistic, Learned Relic Hunter, Jetsetter
Best Friends: Aster Seraphim, Reed Seraphim, Ariel Seraphim, Linden Seraphim, Waylon Shwarz, Jamie Neff, Nelson Rosa, A bunch of old people (darnit...Also, I need to make this list up better.)
Black Ops: Mustle Hustle, The Ultimate Challenge, Ticket Counting, Meditation Benefits, Health and Wellness Seminar
Portraits: Toddler, Child, Teen, YA
Sculptures/Photographs: Toddler (sculp&photo), Child (sculp&photo), Teen (Sculp&Photo), YA (Sculp&Photo)

Heath's Requirements:

Spoiler

Show

Lifetime Wish:
Career:
Supermax Skill:
Building/Property:
LTR:
Best Friends: Linden Seraphim
Black Ops:
Portraits: Toddler
Sculptures/Photographs: Toddler (Sculp and Photo)

[Squark]

Spoiler

Show

Late that night, Uriel was checking on Heath downstairs when...Something unusual happens.

"Billy?"
"What a sweet kid... My own great-grandson."
"Yeah. He'll be a good kid, I think."
"He'll need it. You're almost halfway there, right?"
"It's exciting, isn't it?"
"You're doing a better job watching out for things than I would have expected from you."
"Gee, thanks. Glad to see the afterlife hasn't changed you... Into a nice guy."
The two of them paused, and the air relaxed.
"I hope he does well...My own, sweet little great-grandson..."
Billy's ghost smiles and puts the toddler to bed.

"Gweat-Gwandpa!"
"Get some sleep, kiddo. You've got a long life ahead of you...But we're all watching over you."

Dawww... So sweet

[Deme]

I admit: that was my favorite thing to write in this chapter, because it completely throws all my emotional plans for Heath into total chaos. That sort of thing is great.

[Deme]

Chapter 49: Mandatory Tournament Arc

Spoiler

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My little boy is growing up. I should be happy, but a bitter discontentment grows within my chest. I am almost an adult, and my son a child...But there is still so much left undone! So much left unknown! Can I manage my supermax, or do I admit defeat, and devote myself to athletics? Will our pool be of use to any but my own self, forever? The gym will be mine and only mine; there'd be no point to it.
...But I'm still just standing here in the kitchen. I'm just running away, aren't I?

"I have decided! No more! I am going to China to challenge the tournament immediately!"
Linden smiles.
"Alright, then. I'll pack my things."
...
"No. I'm sorry, dearest... But I must go... alone!"
"What?"
I see...A real look of honest alarm on his face. Even after we've always been together, hero and sidekick, wife and husband...
"This is the test of my soul -- the long, dark night of the heart! If I succeed, or fail, I must do so alone! It is as it is prophesized by angels!"
"...Has it?"
"I did mention it yesterday, didn't I? Cosmic forces...Seem to be blocking our motions. If she does a trip, I want it to be a solo. I'm not losing people for this."
"And I want to know what 'cosmic forces' means!"
"It's like this, see: Our motions have always been slightly hampered -- since the moment Ariel landed, we've been bound to this place, with those three exceptions. I get a feeling, and that's how I know -- we can't go those places. It's like a bad vibe. I stick a metaphorical hand in that direction, or through that mode of transport, and it gets metaphorically bitten clean off. Cosmic-like... Right now, the plane to China's giving off a mild version of that. Like, there's a feeling I get, and I don't think I could get more than one person past it. I don't even like the one."
"Why is it doing that?"

"...I...I don't know. Not exactly. It could be another group of Powers, but ... It could be the Silver City. It could be Sim Magic, even."
"But why would the Silver City hamper our activities?" Ariel, listening in, comments.

"Maybe to make it extra-challenging? Maybe it's got something to do with what they did with Azrael. Maybe there's another war on. What are you asking me for?! I've got, like, one contact, and he's not paid me much mind since we left limbo!"
"I understand, Uriel. Don't worry; you're doing your best." Ariel smiles, consolingly. "I'm sure we'll figure everything out."

"So it's decided. As ordained by FATE ITSELF,"
"I never said Fate was involved..."
I ignore him.
"As ordained by fate itself, I go alone!"
This is my challenge! This is my quest! No matter how hopeless! No matter how hard!
"If these cosmic forces try and stop me, they'll have problems of their own!"


And so I make my calls.

And arrive in China alone, with naught but Sir Axe and Uriel. And I make my calls: Before I leave, I will have conquered this tournament! My challengers await!


And while I await them, I complete the last few hours of meditation needed to complete the meditation challenge!
And then it is time to let the matches begin!


I wish it could always be this easy -- my fists, my feet, my body in a blur of motion and power, but as fast as I move, the world's gone slow and heavy. Each movement is careful, deliberate, and weighted.

"I also wish it could always be this easy: you know, where they actually show up at the house instead of backing down like cowardly dogs?!"
"Man, you sure take this stuff seriously... But why don't you just go talk to them?"
'Yes! Yes, pin them where they live, where they cannot escape!"
"What are you, a supervillian?"
"Don't be silly, Uriel! She is a servant..."
"Of Justice!" "Of Justice!"

"Right. Of course."


But I do go and seek out some oppponents...


And I spend the nights strength-training.

And I spar. If I'm not training, I'm sparring. If I'm not sparring, I'm training...
As my enemies come at me, yes, there are moments of trepidation...

Yes, there are moments of fear as my opponents make their lightning-swift advancement...


But I draw in my courage!

And begin my triumphant counter-attack with fierceness that cannot be swayed!

"Mine is the kick that will shape the vault of heaven! Who the --"
"Wait, wait! This is a child-friendly record, remember? No Gurren Lagaan quotes!...Or at least not that one!"
"Right, right..."


And I can stand this tall, fight this hard, getting better and better with every match...

Because like all heroes, I have something to fight for. I know this trip probably seems selfish to everyone, even Uriel... But I want his future to be without worries. I don't want to have to think about me when I should be worried about his life.


"Does this feel like a chapter in a different dynasty to anyone else? I mean, my incredible wit and I are just wholly redundant."
"Alright, alright...." On the more normal side of things, I use one of those nifty new tablets to practice my people skills to try out on my opponents. I've already got several challenges done.

"My husband is dead!"
"Aww, that's too bad. Why don't we beat each other up? That'll make you feel better, right?"
"My heart is broken!"
"Come on! Punch me!"
"....Yeah, OK."
See? Already I'm so much better!
"I see nothing wrong with her socialization tactics!"
"Now, see, Axey? This is why we just let you fight things, while *other* angels did the talking."

Hush, you two! I am Orchid, the unconquerable!

"She batted you away with her hand. Unconquerable, my ethereal foot."
"Hush!"


"Lady, quit giving me signals! I can't just force-choke a guy! Force-choking is a heel tactic!"



Is it just me, or am I fighting the same people over and over again?


This woman is my fiercest opponent: I fall before her time and again, but I re-challenge her. Again.
And again. And again. In spite of her lower belt, she is a fiercesome fighter...
I've come so far. I've learned so much, from both my defeats and my victories.

I am a sim fu king, from these matches!

"You have learned much, young Orchid. Go forth and conquer."

I will not lose again!


I will only advance, to my final match.


It's against this guy. Maybe China just has one fashionable hairstyle?


I focus my will. I must win this; there's no room for failure at the top!


I throw my whole body into my kicks, launching myself into the air and scoring a point. In the next round, he hits my off shoulder and scores a point.
Yes, a tie. Yes, a moment in which everything hangs in the balance. How wonderful! I live for this part!

I let him back away in fear as I advance. I pound him and do not let up until he surrenders.

He bows. I bow. I've done it!
"I did it! I supermaxed my skill! I AM THE QUEEN OF THE WORLD!"
"Magnificent work, Lady Orchid!"
"Good job! I knew you could do it!"
"Bring on season 2's villains, bigger and badder! I want a demon tournament next time!"

"...I don't have the heart to tell her this is the last tournament she'll probably get to participate in."
"For the best, Uriel. For the best."

And now I head home to my family, triumphant at last. Make way for athletic equipment for everyone!

Orchid's Requirements:

Spoiler

Show

Lifetime Wish: Physical Perfection
Career: Sports
Supermax Skill: Martial Arts
Building/Property: Everfresh Supermarket, Riverfront Swim Club
LTR: Opportunistic, Learned Relic Hunter, Jetsetter
Best Friends: Aster Seraphim, Reed Seraphim, Ariel Seraphim, Linden Seraphim, Waylon Shwarz, Jamie Neff, Nelson Rosa, A bunch of old people (darnit...Also, I need to make this list up better. I keep forgetting to write down their names), like half of China
Black Ops: Mustle Hustle, The Ultimate Challenge, Ticket Counting, Meditation Benefits, Health and Wellness Seminar
Portraits: Toddler, Child, Teen, YA
Sculptures/Photographs: Toddler (sculp&photo), Child (sculp&photo), Teen (Sculp&Photo), YA (Sculp&Photo)

Heath's Requirements:

Spoiler

Show

Lifetime Wish:
Career:
Supermax Skill:
Building/Property:
LTR:
Best Friends: Linden Seraphim, Orchid Seraphim
Black Ops:
Portraits: Toddler
Sculptures/Photographs: Toddler (Sculp and Photo)

[Squark]

Heh. Orchid is fun to read.

EDIT: If you ever do Uriel... I think I just found an outfit you must put him in at least once.

[Deme]

I actually do have that outfit...And I have Uriel modeled in case of Dynasty Fail or the like, hee-hee...

Chapter 50: Cooking up A Chapter

Spoiler

Show

My name is Heath Seraphim. When Mom came back from China, she told me I should do a section of the family’s record.
It seems kind of… Silly? Like, I don’t just see why Great-Grandma Ariel (Who says ”Just call me Ariel, or Grandma Ariel, honey; it’ll save in the long run.” I guess she means when she’s a ghost? She’s just about the oldest person in the world. I’m glad we got to meet like this.) doesn’t just do it; it’s be all in her words, nice and smooth and tidy, right? So that’s better. It’s got to be.
But I’ll do what I’m told. I hope…Uhhh…Whoever you are? I hope you enjoy this, whoever you are!

I already mentioned Grandma Ariel, so why don’t I say a little about the rest of my life? I live with my mother, who’s a world-travelling martial artist, and my father who’s a detective. Mom says they’re champions of justice! I’m not sure what Mom is doing for justice… But I think it’s better not to stay stuff like that. I also live with my 2 grandmas, and my grandpa. I’ve got another grandpa, but he doesn’t live here, because he’s a vampire. I don’t get it... Being a vampire seems ok. Nothin’ special.
Grandpa Reed is a really good cook…

So I’ll give it a try, too. I need to do something to make life easier on everyone, so it’ll be muffins.

Besides, Grandpa’s too busy making kissy-face with Grandma Aster. They’ll be at it all day, so I’m not gonna get food unless I do it myself.
”Uhh, Heath, kiddo? You may want to know what they’re up to…” That’s Mr. Uriel. He’s…I dunno. He’s not a ghost, but he’s not a living thing. I think he’s pretty cool, just seeing everything and being invisible and doesn’t afraid of anything.
“Nah, I really don’t. Bleg.”


”I tried to get him to stop you two woo-hoo maniacs…But nooo….”
”It’s the inaugural bed-use! It’s a ceremonial right and someone has to perform it! It’s just unfortunate Heath’s soul isn’t enlightened as the sacrifice yet!”
”…We should probably wash the sheets.”
”Wash the sheets… And never tell him. EVER.”

Uriel took the record from me for a bit. Dunno why.

”Come! Witness the renovations to the one, the mighty, the training room!”
“You mean the gym, Mom?”
”Heath, what did I tell you about calling things things?”
“’Always go for the more epic?’”
”That’s right, dear!”

“Anyway, it’s nice that you redecorate the room.”
”Darn right! Bask in the glory! Train with me, my son!”
“…I’m going back downstairs to make muffins.”
”Noooo! Rejected! Forlorn!”

Oh, something good happened before I left for school today.

”Ariel my dear, I have a big announcement!”
”Oh?”
”As of that last tree’s moneybags… We are millionaires!”
[b]”Really? Golly...It seems so far from
”The rich get richer. That’s the law of this world.”
”Oh, and I suppose our being immortal has nothing to do with it, of course.”
”…Well…If you put it that way….”
Grandma Ariel smiles brightly. ”Perhaps I shall invest in a jaunty tophat and monocle to celebrate. I bet I could be like that cartoon duck on the TV, and just roll around in it.”
”Hey, what about me?”
”… You can’t use money…So I, my dear, am a millionaire. You remain my steadfast Uriel, as always.”
”No fair! No fair!”
They laugh.


“When something’s strange in the neighborhood”
”Who you gonna call?”
”Ghostbusters!””Ghostbusters!”
”Whut. What is this?”
“I’m doing Karaoke with great-great-grandpa Norman!”
”I see that! I mean…What? How? Why?”
”When I showed up, he introduced himself. We got to talking, and he mentioned he wanted to try out this blasted machine.”
”…Really? …Well, OK. The fact that he’s a ghost doesn’t bug you, kiddo?”
I turn the machine back on.
“I aint afraid of no ghost.” I shrug. “He’s family. The fact that he’s dead is just OK.”
”Awww…That’s mighty sweet.”


”Oh, I see…So even gnomes get older, too.”
”You….You think they’ll die, Ariel?”
”I do rather hope not.”
”…”
”Uriel?”
”I-I mean, I hope you die, you dumb gnomes! See if I care!”
”Oh, Uriel…*giggle*”

In the morning, Grandma Aster looks over a project long in the making.

”Yes, my army, yes… We shall run the earth with the hound as our vanguard, and dominate the artistic world by dominating this world! And maybe re-instate Pluto as a planet!”
”…Yeaaaahh…Good luck with that…”

”But first, we must defeat my nemesis, my own hand! Sculpture army, to my aid!”
To the surprise only of Grandma Aster… They didn’t exactly leap out and help.
”Like all mad creators, I am turned on by my creations in the end! I only ask that you do the ‘chase me through the artic’ thing first!”

I’ve been baking a lot of sweets, and wanted to do the practical thing by making some money with them. There was a simfest in the park, so I thought I’d take advantage of the crowd.

No luck. I come home in defeat…
But I did find Grandma Ariel hoping to help me with my homework.

”’What do you want to do with your life?’ Well, your teacher sure asks interesting questions. Is it right to truly know what you want to do ‘with’ your life? Not in it, but as a resource to be used? I think the Existentialists would argue that…”
“…I think I just want to cook, Grandma Ariel. Maybe find a way to make cookie monsters.”
”That sounds like a fine answer, Heath.”
”What do you think the odds of making cookie monsters are?”
”A boy can dream. A boy can dream.”

But then Grandma Ariel had her own ghost to deal with…

I think there’s something really nice about that, and I hope whoever’s reading that thinks so, too.


Dad got promoted! He’s at the top of his career now… But all he can think about is how loud Mom’s miner is.

”Ahhhhhh! Reed, what the heck is that?!”
”You like it? I sculpted it today…”

”Haven’t thought of a name yet, but I bet he’ll be happy with the others.”
”…Yes. All the others. All. All. The other…. Gnomes….*audible spasm of terror*”
”Sometimes I wonder if you’re alright in the head there, Uriel. I really do.”
“I think they’re funny!”
”…Of course you do. But look! Look at their eeeevil!”

”They’re consulting Aster’s sculpture-army! We’re lucky they don’t realize it won’t work!”
“It kind of looks like they’re admiring the sculptures. They’re pretty, and there are a lot of them… I bet it’s like going to a museum for them.”
”That’s what they want you to think.”
…Well, anyway, it’s not like the statues are actually an army, so why worry?...But I don’t think Mr. Uriel would listen to that.

Another day, another failed attempt at making a sale…

“Dad, I can see you there.”
”I know, but I don’t want to scare off any of your customers and keep an eye on you.”
“Thanks, but I don’t think I’ll have any customers tonight. Wanna do homework?”
”Of course!”

“So, how do the bush-things work?”
”It’s a psychological phenomenon. Basically, people only notice things their personal views of the world can handle. The rest is filtered out so that the person doesn’t have to deal with it. Most people’s brains go ‘eee-yup, I don’t want to deal with a guy covering his face with leaves,’ and so they kind of ignore my existence.”
“Huh. People are weird – what’s so weird about that?”
”…Relative to our house?...Nothing, really.”

The next day was Mom and Dad’s birthdays!

Mom got to the cake…

And aged-up with a midlife crisis. She declared, loudly, that she was “In Crisis!”

Then it was Dad’s turn.

Sparkles must be pretty scary…

But he looks the same to me, and no midlife crisis, either.

Yeah, this feels like a good place to stop. I’ll let Mom control it from here.

Orchid's Requirements:

Spoiler

Show

Lifetime Wish: Physical Perfection
Career: Sports
Supermax Skill: Martial Arts
Building/Property: Everfresh Supermarket, Riverfront Swim Club
LTR: Opportunistic, Learned Relic Hunter, Jetsetter
Best Friends: Aster Seraphim, Reed Seraphim, Ariel Seraphim, Linden Seraphim, Waylon Shwarz, Jamie Neff, Nelson Rosa, A bunch of old people (darnit...Also, I need to make this list up better. I keep forgetting to write down their names), like half of China
Black Ops: Mustle Hustle, The Ultimate Challenge, Ticket Counting, Meditation Benefits, Health and Wellness Seminar
Portraits: Toddler, Child, Teen, YA, Adult
Sculptures/Photographs: Toddler (sculp&photo), Child (sculp&photo), Teen (Sculp&Photo), YA (Sculp&Photo), Adult (sculp and photo)

Heath's Requirements:

Spoiler

Show

Lifetime Wish:
Career:
Supermax Skill: Cooking
Building/Property:
LTR: Speedy Cleaner
Best Friends: Linden Seraphim, Orchid Seraphim
Black Ops:
Portraits: Toddler, Child
Sculptures/Photographs: Toddler (Sculp and Photo), Child (Sculp and Photo)

[Deme]

Chapter 51: Aster Says Goodbye

Spoiler

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The dream slithered in my skin, trembling my breath out like an incubus. Is it not a dream, though, if you're awake, right?
I was awake, watching my daughter blow out her candles, but the dream came anyway and didn't listen. Sparkles -- the paleness of a face gone like a daytime moon, the white marble against the bathroom tile, rising the meet the sky... The pool of death at the edge of the robe...
It would not leave me be.

"Honey, what's wrong?"
Reed asked. I jerked my head up as the day itself swam back into focus.
"...It's probably nothing." I lie. I know I'm lying, he knows I'm lying, but the lie coils weakly beneath his gaze. Love is abstract, people say. They are liars -- I can touch it, still, after all these years. It is the chain of his vision and the line of his hand on mine.

"...Stay with me today."
"You know I always will."
"Not always." We have had this discussion, as I get ready to pull the thorn of his life from my body, to open a wound I never had, to pull myself apart by the capillaries, because it is not true. But today...


Today he kissed the fear from my lips. Again. And again, and again, until I feel solid and real and whole. I feel like I exist, and am connected to the world.
I want to take him away and watch the stars with him again.
"I'd like that. It'd be the perfect cap to the day, don't you think?...The stars are less still than people think -- but I only really see that with you."

...But that is not the course of events.

"The stars..." Sparkles.
"I'm not sure these are stars..."

The face gone pale and thin as the moon. I am airless, he is Zero-G, and we are lost on the moon.


"I....I think I see it. I'm sorry, but I see it...There's so much... Waiting out of sight."


"No, no. No. No. It's too... It's too..."
"Oh, dear..."
Mother murmurs begind me.

But we're on the wood of the deck, not the bathroom. I am here, and so I take his loneliness. All I could change was that small bit of fate. Only that.


It's too little.
DON'T THINK I'M SO MAD I DIDN'T KNOW IT WAS FATE!
...Don't think I'm so mad that I didn't want it to change.


"DOn't be sad. Please, please, darling... I think we'll be Ok."
"There are things you need to be solid for!...Like...Like...Like, OK, I can't think of anything! Being unsolid is kind of amazing and I want to feel your organs...But please...Don't leave."
"...I have to. Don't worry... Nothing ever leaves, remember? So my love will never leave you. My heart goes with you for infinity."


They say something about the reaper, my Mom and Uriel. I let the sound wash over me without meaning -- does it matter? He never came. Reed saw himself out, and shut the lights of the world off as he goes.
I am not listening.


I don't know the sound that escapes me then; it is not a scream, or a wail, or a sob. It may not even be a noise --
but I pull it from the bottom of my feet and my knees and the bowl of my pelvis and the coils of my innards and the base of my lungs. I pull it from some place that now, now, is hollow, and it pulls up the taste of bile and tears, it pulls my heart through bloody and raw.
My soul is pulled out and let into the air like a wisp of smoke, catching in the stars and filling up my world. I can't see -- everything is blurred out. My heart is in my eyes.

And the rest fades into a blur, lost in that non-sound from my soul, that anti-song, that sound of ultimate suffering.




...

...Reed...

...

...

Do they come to understand, in their own ways?...Does someone tell them?...
It doesn't matter... He's gone.


...






It doesn't matter if they found solace, in their lovers or their protectors or their own true selves... It doesn't matter.
This didn't even happen to real people.

There's a limited amount of realness, and the rest collapses as the entropy eats the world. I...I believe...
And that woman crying in the room full of easels... She is not real. We can leave her. There's no longer enough love, no longer enough realness, in the world to make a wretch like that real.
So her tears don't... They don't matter. They're not real-person tears.


....Vanthe?
"...Vanthe, why are you crying? Didn't you hear me? It's all...Just...A dream..."

Then she stands before me like she always was to me.

"Aster...It's OK to be sad...But please, remember."
"?"

"I know...That you've always said it's love that makes something real. It made me real, it made Reed a real member of this family, and it made you feel like there was something real in the world...And now Reed's gone."
The unreal woman nods.
"Aster? Aster, look at me."


"His love made you real. And...my love makes you real. And those things can never leave, because they're in you...You're real. Your world is real."


The world swims back into focus. And there is my Vanthey, reaching her arms to me.

I can wait. I can wait until I see him again, until I see her again, when this is all done.
I can wait.
We'll keep our hearts real until then.

As long as I can remember that last kiss, and a girl and her doll.

Spoiler

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Goodnight Reed Seraphim, Age 92 days.
Son, Husband, Father, and Friend. Something Special.

I'll miss Reed. He was the first sim I ever raised from infancy to his death, and I really enjoyed him. He was stable in a house of madness, he was alarmingly sweet and well-behaved for an adoptee. I'm really very glad I welcomed him into the family, for my own play and for Aster.

[Toric]

Awww I'll miss Reed. It's true, he was the one normal guy in a house of supernaturals and/or crazies. (I'm looking at you, Detective I'm-A-Bush.) I only hope the reaper's apparent forced retirement doesn't bode ill for Reed's departed spirit.

The conversation between Evanthe and Aster was really sweet, even better that there were great images to go with it. I'm glad 'Vanthe was able to talk her out of retreating into her delusion, however true it may be.

I'm curious, was the bathroom death vision a reference to events from a corrupted save?

[Deme]

Well, a game that crashed before I could save it...But yes. Reed initially died in the upstairs bathroom while Aster was out.
I figured no matter how I cut it, his number was up... So I used the opportunity to give him a nice afternoon smooching with his wife. I do, however, feel sad that he went before getting watch the stars one last time.

[Squark]

Hooray for plot-induced foresight leading to slightly less heartbreaking events!

I've had sims die at wierd times. After waiting over 15 days for the Grandmother/stay-in nannie of my Legacy challenge died, I was kind of taken a back when the founder died at 92. I still think I should have been able to do something with the painting he died while working on. A famous (well, successful, at least. I might not call him famous, considering he only started painting full time after he retired) painter's last work? Come on. I should be able to sell that, or hang it up as one last memorial.

[Deme]

Sim death timing is weird...The dog lived with a full age bar forever, but my people have dropped at 96-ish at the latest.

[Squark]

Wait, is the doggy dead?

[Deme]

You have to remember I play a bit ahead... Where I'm standing, Heath's a teenager and I'm trying to decide what to do about his first love (who is, unfortunately, a babysitter). And, anyway, I've been expecting Gabriel's time to be up for at least a week -- I think actually several weeks.

[Deme]

Chapter 52: Another One Bites the Dust

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It's Orchid, returned to you from her sojourns!
In the face of my father's tragic death, we all had to find a way to cope. The specter of death loomed so close, and while my immportality was near-certain, I still felt it prowling!


Linden and I had to cope with this long night of the soul by celebrating life!
...But I'll be honest. I'm no closer to finding a way to avoid his fate, or to return Grandmother otherwise, or to meet him again after...
Nothing! And he's no closer, either! Oh, despair!


And I can tell it weighs heavy in his heart, too.
"...Where are your pants? Where are your pants!"
"Oh, yeah....Well...You know, I don't really have a good reason. Sometimes, a man just doesn't want pants."
"Think of the children!"
"Fine, fine...Pants."
"...It's good to know everything is back to crazy -- I mean, normal."


"Feel better, honey?"
"...Mostly."


"I still miss him, though."
"Yeah. It's not the same with just the two of us."
All the same, Mother and Evanthe have really been spending almost all their time together.

Like all of us, they try to escape the shadow of...
[img]
http://www.carls-sims-3-guide.com/forum/gallery/albums/userpics/10193/Screenshot-6~31.jpg[/img]
"Come, sims, and greet...the end!"
Death.
"The end formally apologizes for tardiness, by the way." This reaper adds, in a feminine voice.

Who is it this time? True to the reaper's words, we all converge to see...

Gabriel... Poor sweet dog.
But... it could be worse. Evanthe's older than 90 as well, after all.


"Come along, little doggy...I'm glad my first job is a sweet dog."
"Your first job? So you're not the same as last time?" Grandmother asked in-between tears.
"...He kind of ended up taking mental leave. We're doing re-organzing."
"...Reorganizing..."
"..Mental leave?" Uriel asks. Grandmother glances nervously upward again, as if to meet Uriel's eyes.


"Hmmm...They really haven't said how to get you off this plane, doggy..."
The reaper sort of fumbled around for a few minutes. I think we all felt rather emberassed... The only one who wasn't was Mother. She alternated between crying...And furious stares like black holes.
Eventually, Grandmother sighed and said,
"Try a proper lure. Do they not train your class of angels these days?"
"No one knows how to train Death! Death never needed training before now! We're in over our heads!"
"Reeeeaaaaly, now? I think I'll make a note of--"

"No, no! Forget I said anything! I'm supposed to be monitering you people, not blabbing! Agh! I did it again! Stop! Forget I said anything!"
"But..."
"That is not an adequate amount of forgetting!"
"But perhaps if you..."
"Stop remembering!"
"Very well?"
"...Ok. So. Lure."


"Get the stick, get the stick..."

"Yaaay, you're getting the stick!"
The reaper looks at all of our expressions, moving from sad to just mildly perplexed...
"I AM DEATH, THE GREAT AND POWERFUL! FEAR ME, AND BEGONE!"


Somehow, I feel less than awe-and-terror stricken, here...
Well, I suppose Gabriel seemed happy to be moving on... I think we're all going to miss him, incompetant reapers aside.
"Come on, Ariel...Let's go set up a nice memorial."
"*Sniff* Coming..."


"Citizen of Sim-Earth, you are free to leave our presence!...Please?"
"Where. Were. You?"

"Pardon?"

"W-when...When Reed died, we all waited for you! He...He had to go...All alone..."


"You blather your apologies, but you're no more weighty than gravity! All your heaven's power is just as hollow as air!"
"But, I...We just don't know..."
"Do not fail a soul again. Do. Not. Forsake someone. Don't take them from me, and make them have to go alone! Or we shall see my wrath. Unlike you, I am not some impersonal force of reality. I am unreality, and therefore your undoing!"
The Reaper just stared at my mother before vanishing.

"Mother...That was kind of amazing."
"...I wish I had had a glove to throw."
"You're wearing gloves."
"Well, then I wish I was wearing more gloves! Doublegloves! All the gloves!"



"Everything's happening so oddly these days...That we all forgot to say goodbye. Oh, Gabriel..."
"He had a good life...It was even fun, having a dog for a while."
"...I'll miss him. I'll miss them all."

Orchid's Requirements:

Spoiler

Show

Lifetime Wish: Physical Perfection
Career: Sports
Supermax Skill: Martial Arts
Building/Property: Everfresh Supermarket, Riverfront Swim Club
LTR: Opportunistic, Learned Relic Hunter, Jetsetter
Best Friends: Aster Seraphim, Ariel Seraphim, Linden Seraphim, Waylon Shwarz, Jamie Neff, Nelson Rosa, A bunch of old people, Jennifer Clearly, Billie Rosa, Several Coworkers, like half of China
Black Ops: Mustle Hustle, The Ultimate Challenge, Ticket Counting, Meditation Benefits, Health and Wellness Seminar, Showing off for the Scouts
Portraits: Toddler, Child, Teen, YA, Adult
Sculptures/Photographs: Toddler (sculp&photo), Child (sculp&photo), Teen (Sculp&Photo), YA (Sculp&Photo), Adult (sculp and photo)

Heath's Requirements:

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Lifetime Wish:
Career: Cooking
Supermax Skill: Cooking
Building/Property:
LTR: Speedy Cleaner
Best Friends: Linden Seraphim, Orchid Seraphim
Black Ops:
Portraits: Toddler, Child
Sculptures/Photographs: Toddler (Sculp and Photo), Child (Sculp and Photo)

[Deme]

Since I dislike triple-posting, but have had no other choice... It's time now for me to post two chapters together! Hooray?

Chapter 53: Happy Song Occaison, Dear He-aath, Happy Song occaison to you!

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Hello, it's Heath again. Since most of this chapter is about me, Mom said I should write it. It's a pretty short selection, actually... I hope that's not trouble.


Well, this first note's not about me; it's about my dad, who was awarded the key to the city for his detective work. Grandma Aster said something about missing the mayor with the good hat...
But I think our mayor's alright, really... Though, yeah, she couldgo with a monocle or something.

Anyway, there's one major complaint that'd show itself in the next election season...

She didn't buy a cookie, even when I came to take advantage of there being a person.

"Uhhh...Ma'am? If you're that hungry, I have these pies..."
"Oh, I'm so starving..."
"Ma'am. Pies. Right here. For sale. They're not very expensive..."
"Oh, what I would not give for something to eat!"
"...Nothing I say matters, does it? I'll stand here all day, and no one will buy anything, and then it'll be my birthday. And I'll have never sold a cookie."

And this is exactly what happened. Yay for predicting the future?


Well, at least Mom, in her rush for the feeling of youth, bought me a nice car.
...I'm not sure how that works, either, but thanks, Mom.

We invited all the local girls to my party, in hopes of getting to know some classmates, but most of them graduated as I was waiting for the party to arrive, or right after the party...So I guess that's no good.
I wonder if I'll have any classmates later on?

"I wish one of my new classmates is really nice!"


"You know, this kind of tickles..."
"Tickles with the menace of unseen fairies! They're getting an expansion pack, so they're bound to be feeling uppity!"
...Eh. There are worse things Grandma Aster could be saying on my birthday, I guess.


I forgot to wish for not-weird hair. Rats!

Anyway, off to get makeovers I go! I think I need glasses...



But maybe one day I'll get contacts. It could work.





Anyway, with my age-up, I'm now a natural cook. Let's get to it!

Chapter 54: Growing

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After this short reprieve, it is Orchid's turn into the fray once more!


Heath immediately wants to learn to drive, so Linden set ought to teach him.
"Easy...Easy...Easyonthegas!"
"Dad, the speedometer says I'm going 5 MPH."
"Well, we're in a residential neigborhood. Better safe than sorry..."

"Pah! I should have taught him... We'd be street racing in the desert at 180 MPH in no time!"
"Please don't. We have a dynasty to think of, and part of being immortal means not dying in a firey car wreck in a desert."
"He's my boy; we'd jump out in time."

"...Alone in the art room...All alone...Evanthe won't be home for hours and hours..."

"MY ARTISTIC FURY CANNOT BE QUELLED! ASTER SMASH!"

"If we sell it as modern art, it'll all be OK...Ariel, when did my existance become babysitting lunatics?"
"Oh, but it's so lively here. After Limbo, I still can't get over how noisy it is. It's very nice..."


Evanthe finally managed to reach the penultimate level of her career!
"Good work, Vanthe! Fingers cross and stars crossed and I'll start crossing things!"
"Yeah. Let's hope...But it's not a regret. I think I buried those long ago."
"...Good. I hope they won't be zombie-regrets."

Heath buys up the other restaurant in town for his business... And for his property, he picks up...The Banzai lounge!



He opened it up nicely, making it a casino/bar/dance area...

And he added rooftop gardens.

Area 1 is palm-themed, with a bench for couples...

Area 2 is flowers, with a fire pit...

Area 3 is half oriental flowers and bamboo, and the other half is trees. Bonsai abound! With a magical tree in the center... It's for show.

And area 4 is aquatics and fountains.


"Cooking? Do you have time to bake that before school starts?"
"I'm living life on the edge, Uriel. Being dangerous."
"...Your edginess needs work. So... Prom is this Thursday. Met a girl?"
"Well, there are a couple of girls in scool. They're really hard workers; they've got part-time jobs babysitting."
"...REJECTED!"
"But..."
"No, try and find someone else. I can't explain why."

"Honeybunch, what's wrong?"
"Oh, nothing, Linden...I just don't feel... Extreme enough."
"Get over here. Let me tell you something."

"You are the most extreme...Otherwise, I wouldn't love you so extremely."
Best part of my morning.


Speaking of gains, Echo finally maxxed her hunting! Good kitty!


"Oh powers of the heavens, oh sweet and tender crystal orb... Reveal to me the future!"

"Answer hazy; try again later.
Your lucky color is romantic indecision; your lucky number is dead...Oh, dear."


"What's that? That grill...getting used?!"
"Well... I decided. I want to learn as many recipes as I can, but learning recipes isn't any good...Unless I cook them."
"Reasonable enough. Good job picking a wish, too."
"Thank you...But...Everyone has some rather odd expectations for me, don't they?"
"Yeah, I guess. We'll fill you in. One of these days. Eventually."


And Linden maxed his Logic Skill! I guess we're all reaching the pinnacles of our abilities -- but even if no one acknowledges it, we must keep striving for the top!


Hence my efforts with a new haircut!
I'm...Not totally thrilled. But I can't just be complacent!

In the morning, in the garden, there's a meeting between old help-meets in the garden.
Evanthe," Grandmother calls her over with a warm smile. "I just wanted to thank you, for helping Aster in her grief...And thank you, for being a part of our family."
"Glad to be one."
"You always will be."


With everything coming along so well, we all agree it's time to re-model the museum to give everything space.

And so there it is -- everyone except Grandmother has their own little room, fanning out from the central chamber. We keep our awards there, as well.

Orchid's Requirements:

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Lifetime Wish: Physical Perfection
Career: Sports
Supermax Skill: Martial Arts
Building/Property: Everfresh Supermarket, Riverfront Swim Club
LTR: Opportunistic, Learned Relic Hunter, Jetsetter
Best Friends: Aster Seraphim, Ariel Seraphim, Linden Seraphim, Waylon Shwarz, Jamie Neff, Nelson Rosa, A bunch of old people, Jennifer Clearly, Billie Rosa, Several Coworkers, like half of China
Black Ops: Mustle Hustle, The Ultimate Challenge, Ticket Counting, Meditation Benefits, Health and Wellness Seminar, Showing off for the Scouts
Portraits: Toddler, Child, Teen, YA, Adult
Sculptures/Photographs: Toddler (sculp&photo), Child (sculp&photo), Teen (Sculp&Photo), YA (Sculp&Photo), Adult (sculp and photo)

Heath's Requirements:

Spoiler

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Lifetime Wish: Culinary Librarian
Career: Cooking
Supermax Skill: Cooking
Building/Property: Little Corscican Bistro, Banzai Lounge
LTR: Speedy Cleaner, Born to Cook, Fireproof Homestead
Best Friends: Linden Seraphim, Orchid Seraphim
Black Ops:
Portraits: Toddler, Child, Teen
Sculptures/Photographs: Toddler (Sculp and Photo), Child (Sculp and Photo), Teen (Sculp and Photo)

[Squark]

What's wrong with the babysitters, if I may ask? Do they not grow up, have only 3 traits, or something like that?

[Deme]

They age up oddly, often skipping entire life stages unexpectedly. They can be a young adult with an empty life stage bar in the morning, and a mature adult that same evening -- even if you control them. NPCs are buggy like that.