The Middlemiss Random Legacy (Completed)

[Beks]

Chapter 26 – A Fruit, A Composer, & A Small Appendage

It’s the twins’ toddler birthday!

Ludwig goes first, taken to the cake by his ever-faithful mother. I swear, Elaine doesn't let anyone else get near her babies half the time.

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Here's toddler Ludwig. I don’t know where his hair color comes from. Even if he is still influenced by genetics from the Twinbrook generations (which I sort of doubt), I don’t believe anyone in the Middlemiss line had red hair. Perhaps Elaine’s mother was a redhead? Elaine’s hair does have a reddish tint to it, but it’s more strawberry blonde-ish in tone––not nearly as red as Ludwig’s. I do know where Ludwig’s lips come from, though. That tiny rosebud mouth is all Llewellyn.

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Next is Peach. Nobody else even has a chance to think of scooping her up––Elaine is all over it.

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What a sweetie! Peach’s hair is a shade or two darker than Llewellyn’s, but her eyes are much like his. And she has her mother’s mouth! Right now I think it’s very cute, but I might change my mind once she grows up…

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With a large part of her work for the legacy out of the way, Elaine heads out and starts collecting (her designated "career"). We need to get the household’s net worth up in order for Lucky to complete his lifetime wish. We’re quite close, but his stolen items aren’t quite adding up. Elaine goes out for some gems, with the aid of the Collection Helper.

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*sigh* Riverview is so pretty. And so are sparkly gems.

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Elaine finds some rare gems and metals on her first run. And with a few wedding gifts that arrive in the mail that night (or are finally retrieved after sitting there for a week), the household net worth passes the finish line. Hooray!

The completed LTW doesn’t register for Lucky, though. We’ve definitely cleared the required funds amount. His LTW seems to be bugged. Oh, well. For the sake of the challenge, I’m declaring that he finished it. Because he did. The game just isn’t registering it for some reason.

Lucky is always rolling wishes that have to do with Llewellyn’s spaceship. He once rolled a wish to abduct a sim; he proceeded to abduct the butler, and had a good laugh with her afterwards. This time, he wishes to invade a community lot. Time to singe some ghosts! (And half the town's living residents, some of whom come to the cemetery expressly to see what the hubbub is get bombarded by scary alien lights.)

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The twins learn their toddler skills with plenty of time to spare. Elaine does almost all the training herself, with a little help from Llewellyn with walking.

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Once the twins have learned to talk, they spend a lot of time at the blocks table, chatting away in their toddler language. It’s really freaking adorable. Their speech bubbles hint at their traits––Peach says something along the lines of “Paint!” over and over, while Ludwig eagerly repeats the word “Athletics!” (Not really. It's probably something like "Ball".)

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Elaine has her adult birthday in the midst of teaching the kiddos how to do things. (So does Yuri, but I didn’t get a screenshot of that.)

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In other news, Elaine is pregnant again! And Lucky actually scooched over to sit right behind her when she stood up…that is NOT OKAY, SIR.

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Here is a picture of Peach being adorable.

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What's that you're cuddling, Ludwig? A yeti?!

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Peach is definitely Lucky’s favorite. He autonomously scoops her up at least once a day, sometimes more often. I don’t think he’s ever given Ludwig more than a cursory glance.

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It’s okay. Ludwig is perfectly happy to eat his Imaginary Friend.

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Peach is Artistic, so her mama gets her started early with the art books. For some reason anytime anybody reads to one of the toddlers, they do it out in the backyard. Even when it’s raining. I have learned through this, though, that toddlers don’t seem to get the “Soaked” moodlet. So that’s nice, I guess.

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After an easy breezy toddlerdom, it’s time for the twins to become real, actual kiddos. Ludwig goes first.

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He’s looking more like his dad as he grows up. I was worried that he was going to be a pudding face, but he’s definitely got some Middlemiss features! (The cheeks and eyes, mainly.) Ludwig gains the Frugal trait, to be added to his Brave and Athletic traits.

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Peach goes next.

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She has the most interesting appearance of the two, in my opinion––Llewellyn’s eyes, with Elaine’s nose and mouth. She now has the Friendly trait in addition to Artistic and Loves the Outdoors.

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Peach gets started painting right away. Being artistic, it’s only natural. (It’s also only natural that she have a colorful artsy outfit.)

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Ludwig, meanwhile, gets a head start on cardio, because that is a thing that ten-year-olds do. (Note to self: Fix Ludwig’s athletic gear.)

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Later that day, Elaine goes into labor with child numero trois. Llewellyn, shouldn’t you know what to do in this situation by now? Oh, right, you freaked out for three seconds and then ran off to work last time. Never mind.

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Hooray! It’s another girl, named…Pinky. I swear I was going to delete that name off my list, but I guess I forgot to because HERE. IT. IS. It must be a hillbilly name. I can’t imagine anyone in the late nineteenth century naming their daughter Pinky. But hey, I’m not one to judge.

Pinky is born an Artistic Couch Potato.

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So yes, the two lady Middlemisses of Generation Five are named Peach and Pinky. Pinky and Peach. It’s like…I don’t even know. Two cutesy dogs, or cartoon characters, or something.

Next time, we'll see what mischief Peach and Ludwig get up to, and also find out of Pinky lives up to her name and magically gets pink hair. (Hey, it's in the family!) We'll also see if Lucky gets lucky and lives forever! (He's currently 92.)

[Beks]

Chapter 27 – Out of Luck

Early in the morning on Leisure Day, Lucky and Ludwig (awww, alliteration!) play tag throughout the house and onto Llewellyn and Elaine’s private balcony, disregarding the fact that those two responsible adults are still sleeping. (Maybe Lucky is making up for the fact that he only ever interacted with Peach when the twins were toddlers.) By the afternoon, Lucky and Ludwig are best friends!

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Pinky is a very popular baby. She is CONSTANTLY being snuggled. Poor thing hardly ever catches a break. Good thing she’s not a Loner, ‘cause she’d be having a hard time.

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Llewellyn even brings her to Yvette Grisby’s pool party, which consists entirely of old people (except for Hal Breckenridge, and I think Laurel Grisby is inside somewhere).

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Yes, that is an excellent place to put your baby, Llewellyn. Very safe and cozy. You’re a great parent!

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Yuri is making good progress in the logic skill (which he needs for his career in classical music), so he sits down and shares his brilliance with Ludwig, who is only too eager to spend his Leisure Day learning about triangles. The kids will only get a few days in school, so they can certainly use the extra grade boost. (Side note: The boys' knight costumes are my favorite. I wish adults could wear them.)

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Elaine suddenly completes her Lifetime Wish of Culinary Librarian, long before I expect it. I forgot that you don’t actually have to know every single recipe in order to earn it. It’s really strange. Ah well. Hooray, that’s two out of four LTWs complete for this generation! Elaine shows her excitement in her usual manner.

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Pinky’s toddler birthday arrives.

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She’s her mother’s daughter, all right…

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Pinky doesn’t have any bad traits thus far (i.e. grumpy), but she’s still in a grumpy mood after aging up. I’ve never seen a toddler refuse to go potty before!

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Here she is all cleaned up. She’s the most Joy-ful of this generation, even more than Peach. Of course, she exhibits nothing of the emotion joy. Her default face is positively glowering. I sort of love it.

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Ludwig gets a -20 moodlet from the Evil Gnome that Llewellyn brought from the Twinbrook house. The gnome creeps up behind Ludwig’s bed (though, technically on the other side of the wall) and gives him a good scare. Poor Ludwig!

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Pinky seems…fascinated with books. Or maybe afraid of them. It’s hard to tell.

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Here we have a dramatic scene at City Hall: a lone protester of unicorns, looking on as Bob Newbie offers flowers to his imaginary lover.

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When Llewellyn (who was just inside City Hall sueing for slander) joins the protest, though, it really starts to heat up. I have a feeling that in another life, Llewellyn would have made a pretty good Leader of the Free World.

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Yuri helps teach Pinky to walk. Yuri has always been very good at walking, and he's eager to pass on his skills.

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Peach plays with her baby sister before school one day. How. Freaking. Cute. (I’ve never seen the “hug” interaction between kids and toddlers before. Sooo adorable.)

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Lucky Perkins finally passes away at the age of 96 while practing chess (his favorite pastime).

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Lucky is ready to go. He’s had a good, long life. Off he goes into the big beyond. Thanks for everything, Lucky! You were a top-notch cemetery worker, an excellent chess player, a superb guitar-practice-session-watcher, and a memorable friend and guardian to Ludwig, Peach, and Pinky. (Especially toddler Peach, and child Ludwig. For whatever reason.)

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The household is very sad to see their old friend go. And they’re also sad about…dinner? Did Lucky get reincarnated as a covered pot roast? Good gracious.

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That night, the family attends Peach’s ballet recital. She looks adorable in her tutu! (As a former dancer, seeing ballet in the Sims makes me giddy. Although I’m a little afraid to actually see EA’s attempts at animating ballet steps. So far, I can’t figure out how to make Peach show off her skills. Maybe she needs a few more ballet lessons?)

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Llewellyn has his adult birthday out by the trampoline, where all responsible adults spend their free time.

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Next time, we’ll have some birthdays, and come ever closer to choosing our Generation Five heir.

[Beks]

Chapter 28 – Red Hair, Brown Hair, New Hair, Blue Hair

Before we get to the kiddos’ birthdays, I’d just like to point out what a foxy gentleman Llewellyn has become. (He wished for a makeover after his adult birthday, and I was only too happy to oblige.) Look at that beard. Mm-mm!

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Ludwig and Peach are about to become teenagers and I am super excited.

Ludwig, technically the oldest, goes first.

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Uh, Llewellyn? Did you shrink and dye your hair red and shave off your beard? Where’s Ludwig at??

Oh…

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But seriously! Ludwig is Llewellyn with red hair and no beard. He rolls the Dramatic trait, which should be interesting.

Here goes Peach.

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What a pretty lady! I love how she so closely resembles her mother, but her eyes are closer to Llewellyn’s. She acquires the Perfectionist trait.

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I’m not always very good at hiding my favorites when it comes to choosing an heir, and this time is probably no exception. I’ve selected Peach as my heir. Her traits will work very well with next generation’s requirements, and she’s just so darn pretty. Ludwig would’ve been a great option as well, but Peach has become my favorite. So Peach it is. (If we were still in the golden age of the forums, I might consider having readers vote on the heir…but alas, we are not.)

Now that she’s officially the heir, Peach calls up City Hall and registers for her designated career––a Painter.

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On Spooky Day, the whole family (minus Pinky, who stays home to nap under the supervision of the butler, and Yuri, who has gone to visit his family) attends a costume party at the Jones’ house. They look fabulous in their costumes (though I always hope for something a little crazier).

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Ludwig and this little lady come in the same costume. I try to get Ludwig to introduce himself to her, but instead, the two of them just stand like this for a while. What is it? Nerves? Dislike? Does one of you smell weird? This could have been a significant moment for you guys!

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Llewellyn stays in his clown costume for quite a while after the party ends. Here he is whipping up some dinner in his clown getup. If Llewellyn were to become a clown, I think I would actually NOT be creeped out by him. He’s just too amiable and happy-looking.

"Guess what we're having? CLOWNFISH SUSHI!"

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Yuri spends the night with his wife Nadine (he keeps rolling wishes to woohoo with her). I spend some time over at the Ivanov house, since everyone back home is in bed. Or so I thought. Once Yuri goes to bed at the Ivanovs, I pan back over to the Middlemiss house and find this.

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It’s 3 in the morning, and the entire family is up and trying to get to Pinky, who is crying over a dirty diaper. The entire family! I’ve never seen this before, especially not in the middle of the night when I distinctly, intentionally made sure everyone was in bed a few hours ago. I don’t know how they can hear Pinky crying from upstairs, but apparently they all can. It takes some effort to get everyone back to their rooms, and Ludwig even gets up AGAIN an hour or so later. Needless to say, he’s pretty tired the next day, and the adults in the house sleep until almost noon. Peach is the only one who manages to get enough beauty sleep in time for school.

The next evening, Llewellyn and Yuri both come home from work with big promotions. Llewellyn is now an Executive Chef (Level , and Yuri is a Conductor (level 9). I’m so proud of both of them!

“Hey, man. New threads?”

“Yeah. You?”

“Yeah.”

“Sick.”

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Pinky has her child birthday.

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Here she is! She is the only kid in this generation to inherit Elaine’s eyes and nose. (If her nose is big now, I’m afraid to think how big it’s going to be when she’s grown up…) She rolls the Frugal trait, just like her big brother.

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Ludwig starts working on his athletic skill. He’s not the heir, so I don’t need to focus on him too much, but I’d like him to have a good career when he becomes a young adult and moves out. Best be prepared for anything!

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Peach, meanwhile, continues to paint almost 24/7. (Most of the time, she does it without my bidding.) She reaches level 7 within a couple days of aging up. She creates consistently beautiful paintings, too––they are often these sort of abstract landscapes, with beautiful vivid colors. I'm saving a few of my favorites to hang around the house later on (and a couple are already up).

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There are two easels in the old nursery, and Pinky jumps up and takes over the other one by her own initiative. She spends a lot of her childhood painting next to her sister.

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These three siblings are closer than any other siblings I've played before, I think. The twins have been best friends since their toddler days (that block table works wonders), and the older kids seem to enjoy hanging out with their little sis, at least some of the time.

One night, Pinky asks her big brother for a bedtime story, but instead of getting into her own bed, she climbs in next to her big sister. Awww.

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That Sunday is Llewellyn and Elaine’s one-year wedding anniversary. To celebrate, they go out to a park downtown and have a picnic on the grass. (It’s an unusually balmy day for winter, which is very lucky in this case.)

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They share a meal, and then some kisses, while the paparazzi makes note of the latest celebrity kissing techniques. She's probably on assignment for Cosmo.

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These two have been together for a long while now. Elaine is almost an elder, believe it or not. And they're still as close as ever.

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Llewellyn has to run off to work soon after that, and that evening, it’s Peach and Ludwig’s prom!

Ludwig looks smashing in his hot pink tux.

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And Peach looks elegant as heck in her gold and black ensemble.

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The limo takes them all of three feet, since the school is directly across the street. It doesn't even turn around all the way––just hits a weird diagonal angle and lets the teens out.

Peach is voted Prom Queen almost immediately upon walking into the school. Atta girl! And moments later, Ludwig becomes Prom King!

Not a lot happens at this particular prom. Peach gets rejected for a dance (twice), but that’s about it. Neither twin gets a love interest. I was sort of hoping the game would bring these kids some partners on silver platters. Ah well.

More interesting things are happening at home. Yuri has just reached the top of the music career and is now a Hit Movie Composer.

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And Llewellyn is the victim of someone’s crime––I’m honestly not sure who set this one up. It could be any one of the three kids. They did a rather questionable job, though--they managed to dye the hair on his head, and his body hair...but not his beard. The effect is amazing and I laughed really hard.

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Poor Bluewellyn!

[Beks]

Chapter 29 – The Three Musketeenagers

Big accomplishments are happening in the Middlemiss house of late. We’re approaching the end of Generation Four, and it’s all very exciting!

With a batch of Falafel, Llewellyn maxes out his cooking skill.

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The household funds finally reach the point at which Yuri’s LTW is fulfilled. (We had to reach $259,000, and it took AGES to get there.) Now the only adult left to fulfill their LTW is Llewellyn, and he’ll do that as soon as he gets his next promotion at the bistro.

Yuri’s last romantic encounter with Nadine resulted in a fourth child for him. This is his daughter, Denise. Isn’t she adorable?

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Apparently I didn't get a screenshot of this, but Yuri also gets reacquainted with his alien son, Boris. Boris is a teenager now, and he’s grown up to be Mean-Spirited, which is unfortunate. He doesn’t respond to his father’s efforts very well.

Elaine has her elder birthday.

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I don’t generally like giving my elders canes (it slows them down so much), but Elaine insists, and I must comply.

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Pinky is already forming a solid identity and making progress on her life goals. She pops the Illustrious Author LTW a few times as a child, and I decide to lock it in since it fits with her traits so well. (She’s an Artistic, Frugal Couch Potato.) Pinky starts writing her first nonfiction book a couple days before she ages up. It’s called “Financial Guidelines for Kids.”

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Saturday is Pinky’s teenage birthday, and her big sister surprises her by throwing a big party. It’s been a while since we’ve had a party in the Middlemiss household, and I don’t know if we’ve ever really had one since moving to Riverview…so why not?

The morning before the party starts, Ludwig is having a mood swing and sets a booby trap right in front of his father. Llewellyn gets up from his key lime pie to scold him, then settles back down to finish. And what does Ludwig do? He goes right back to the same sink and re-sets the trap. He’s in for a second scolding…and he gets sent to time-out! I guess I’ve had only well-behaved teenagers in the past, because I’ve never seen someone get a time-out before.

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Yes, Ludwig, I feel VERY sorry for you! You poor thing!

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I do feel bad for him, actually. Ludwig has been struggling to find a girlfriend for the entirety of his teen years. None of the townie girls seem interested in him. They make excuses when he asks them out, or show up for five seconds and run off, or just straight up say that they’re not interested. And because of all the snow days we’ve had (curse you, Seasons!), Ludwig has hardly had a chance to see any of his school acquaintances, let alone find a romantic interest among them. Poor Ludwig. I hope young adulthood treats him more kindly.

Okay, Pinky’s birthday party turns out to be fairly boring. Or maybe I’m just not good at parties. Ludwig chats up a few girls, but none of them jump out as a favorite.

This is Lynne Newbie…

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…and I don’t remember who this is. The nose makes me think "Grisby", but I feel like it was some other town family. Ah well.

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Peach spends the evening making drinks. She is so over being a teenager.

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And what’s more, I completely forget to have Pinky blow out the candles on her cake until after the guests leave. Nobody comments because Peach has the Legendary Host reward, so everyone’s like “What a great party!” even though nothing actually happened and it was terrible.

Ah, well. Pinky can still have a family birthday party! (Dimitri Ivanov is nice enough to stick around for cake.)

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Pinky ages up with her mother’s original hairstyle, because she IS her mother. At least in appearance.

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With a better hairstyle and a touch of makeup, she’s really quite lovely. Her newest trait is Genius.

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Dimitri sticks around even past cake—he dances the night away in the party room until two or three in the morning. Maybe he misses living with his dad. Poor kid.

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Llewellyn comes home that night a Celebrated Five-Star Chef. Congrats, Llewellyn! (I love how he's like, "Please, it was nothing.")

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Here’s Llewellyn’s completed gem collection as well. And we're officially done with Generation Four! Hurrah!

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Yuri has his elder birthday, and as a reward for his long years of helping the Middlemisses, I decide to let him move back home. He’s reached the top of his career and achieved his LTW, and the MIddlemiss kids are all teens now. It’s high time he returns home to spend his remaining years with his wife and kids.

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This is the best picture I got from his birthday party.

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Yuri puts in the call and moves across town to join his family at last. Bye, Yuri! Thanks for everything!

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The twins’ teen years go by smoothly, without much incident. And now that Pinky is a teenager as well, the three of them get along beautifully.

These sisters are so cute together. I love their almost-matching favorite colors.

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Now that she's a Genius, Pinky willingly helps her brother raise his logic skill. It doesn't come as naturally to him.

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"Hold up. You can't move that pawn two spaces."

"But you just said I could, on my last turn!"

"No, you can move any of THESE pawns two spaces, because you haven't moved them at all yet. Once you've moved a pawn once, you can only move it one space after that."

"What?! That doesn't make any sense!"

On their last evening as teenagers, Ludwig and Peach continue to work on their skills. Ludwig will be moving out as soon as he ages up, so I want him to be ready to start a career on the right foot. He spends the evening clashing magnificently with the walls in the party room and doing jumping jacks like his life depends on it.

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Peach does one last painting in her adorable teen outfit that I will sorely miss.

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And Pinky writes her latest science fiction novel, The Alien Painter. (She’s an artistic genius, so scifi is a natural niche for her.)

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Next time, we’ll celebrate Peach and Ludwig’s young adult birthdays and transition to Generation Five!

[Beks]

Chapter 30 – Flight of the Peach

Peach and Ludwig wake up early on their shared birthday. Like, way early. Before everyone else.

Peach is like “I don’t care! Let’s blow our candles out anyway!”

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Ludwig goes first, being the oldest. I’m gonna miss those rosy pink pajamas.

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He ages up with a terrible hairstyle and MASSIVE muscles. Talk about a late bloomer!

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Then it’s Peach’s turn. She is so excited to not be a teenager anymore.

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Here’s Ludwig after a makeover. He rolls the Disciplined trait, to go with his Athletic, Brave, Dramatic, and Frugal traits. He also takes the Firefighter Super Hero LTW. I won’t be able to supervise him in the Firefighter career, but I’m confident he’ll have fun and do a great job on his own. And hopefully, Story Progression will bring a lovely lady into his life as well.

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And here’s Peach. She rolls the Over-Emotional trait. Her other traits are Artistic, Friendly, Loves the Outdoors, and Perfectionist.

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So yes, it’s now time to turn things over to Peach, our fifth generation heir (as I sit here eating some sliced peaches…). First, Ludwig goes to join the Firefighter career. (He sort of looks like he's pumping his arms in excitement in this photo. Such a cutie.)

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Then he comes home to say his goodbyes.

“Bye, sis. Call me if you, like, light yourself on fire while painting.”

“Yeah, not going to happen. I’ll call you anyway, though.”

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Here are the rolls for Generation Five:

Family Structure – Mixed Couple (regular couple, but children must be a mix of biological and adopted)
Number of Children – 2
Income – Artist / Firefighter
Generational Goal – Expansionist (build a major expansion onto the house)
Misc. Fun – Hidden Heritage (one parent of heir’s children must have a hidden trait)

Peach has had a secret dream for some time now. She wants to get out of Riverview for a while. She longs to travel. China in particular seems to call to her, for reasons she can’t explain. As soon as she becomes a young adult and is free to travel on her own, she books a flight to China.

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I know, my graphics are absolutely terrible. I do apologize for my laptop’s terribleness. I was hoping this would be a nice scenic shot. But nope. Can’t even get the grass to show up.

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Peach, being Friendly, immediately wishes to become friends with someone. She wanders up into the hills of Shang Simla to meet some of the locals.

She happens upon this gentleman’s house first. She walks right up and introduces herself to Bao Louie. (Hearts do fly up, but of course I don’t get the camera in place in time to catch them.)

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Bao invites Peach inside and they chat for a while. Peach is overjoyed to learn that he is Artistic, like her. His other qualities are admirable as well––he is Brave, Lucky, a Workaholic…and look at that musculature! Mm-mm.

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Within a few minutes of talking to him, Peach is infatuated. No wonder she felt “called” to come to China. Her soulmate is here!

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Bao is sweet enough to teach Peach one of China’s popular songs. He has a nice voice; hers is absolutely atrocious. Bao doesn’t seem to mind (or notice). In fact, he looks rather smitten himself.

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It’s fate.

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Peach doesn’t waste any time. “So you said yes to being my boyfriend...what about being my husband too? You can come with me to Riverview and never see your home country again, probably!"

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Thankfully, Bao is smitten enough to say yes. Maybe they'll come back for a vacation in retirement or something.

Since Bao is already an Adult, the new couple is eager to get back to Riverview and start a family. But it’s late at night now, and they’re both tired and hungry. So Peach whips up some dinner for them to share, and then stays the night.

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The next day, Peach brings her new fiance to Camp Orchid, overlooking a gorgeous waterfall on the edge of Shang Simla.

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There, they have a private wedding in the most beautiful location imaginable. (Or it would be, if my computer was capable of rendering any graphical detail.)

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Congratulations, Peach and Bao!

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They have their first woohoo in a tent, because why the heck not.

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As soon as their fun time in the tent is over, Peach books a flight home for herself and her husband.

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“Hello, I’d like to book a flight back to Riverview, please. No, not one seat––two.”

[Beks]

Chapter 31 – The Firefighter & The Pink Party

So Peach and Bao are happily married…but there are some complications with Bao’s flight home. Specifically, he doesn’t get on the plane, and Peach arrives home in Riverview alone.

When she gets there, she is greeted by her father somehow trampolining in the middle of nowhere, sans trampoline. How he ended up way out here on the edge of town is beyond me.

“Welcome home, sweetie! Wheeeee! This ground is so…sproingy!”

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*THWUMP*

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"Ah, not so sproingy there, though!"

Perhaps there was an issue with Bao’s visa? Those do tend to take a while to process. Peach calls him long-distance to see if he can come the next day. He promises to be there at 9 am.

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But…he doesn’t show up.

Ah well, the unceasing current of life goes on, and the whole family is yanked down to the courthouse for Peach’s graduation. For a graduation gift (aside from that trip to China, that is), Peach receives a flashy yellow car that her parents are...a little too tall for, I guess?

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Peach graduates with Highest Honors and is voted Most Popular (which is appropriate, considering her LTW is Super Popular).

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At home, Peach calls Bao a second time and invites him to “visit”. While we're waiting, I begin this generation's Expansionist project and build a nice spacious art studio on the side of the house. No more painting in the nursery!

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And the next day…

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Peach is almost as relieved as I am. “What happened, babe?! Did you get lost at the airport? You were right behind me!”

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“Sorry, love. I may be Brave, but airports really scare me for some reason. Also, all the airport toilets were broken. I only just finished fixing them.”

“Oh.”

Peach officially asks Bao to move in, and he joins the household.

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Bao’s traits are Workaholic, Brave, Handy, Artistic, and Lucky, and his Lifetime Wish is, conveniently, to be a Firefighter Superhero––just like his brother-in-law, Ludwig! I couldn’t have picked a more perfect spouse if I tried. (Well, I did try, so...there you go.) I’d love to watch you rescue people from flames and rubble, Bao. Just try not to wear a shirt, okay?

After Bao runs down to the fire department to apply for a job, he comes up behind Peach mid-painting (I love this painting, by the way).

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This is Peach’s face after Bao flexes his biceps and uses the new “I’m a firefighter” flirty interaction.

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“Oh, Bao! I want to have your babies RIGHT NOW!”

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No surprises here.

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Bao settles into the household quickly and easily. He becomes the family handyman, raising his handy skill at record speed and unclogging all the toilets that Peach throws up into.

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Wait, what?

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Bao also has mastered martial arts, so I put him right to work breaking space rock blocks for a chance at a little extra cash. (The rules do allow it.)

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Bao’s favorite thing to do autonomously is paint beside his wife. It’s really adorable. He doesn’t have any painting skill to begin with, but his Artistic trait (and love for Peach, I’m sure) drives him into the new art studio / gallery room every spare moment he has.

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Peach discovers, while painting, that she has a nooboo on the way!

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There isn’t a whole lot going on in Pinky’s life these days. I realized after the last chapter that I can’t actually have her writing books, because we can only earn income this generation through Peach’s painter career and Bao’s Firefighter career. She’s allowed to paint (and keep the paintings in her inventory), or refine her writing skill without actually writing books. And she autonomously plays chess quite a bit. But what about, I don’t know, a boyfriend (or girlfriend)?

Solution: slumber party!

Pinky preps for the party by making a tray of drinks. She really doesn’t seem to know what she’s doing. Perhaps taste those before you serve them, dear.

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The teens arrive! Pinky doesn’t know a lot of teens, but she knows enough to throw an okay party. I like how all the girls are wearing pink. Almost as if they met up beforehand to discuss their outfits.

“Say, do you know this chick at all?”

“Not really. Her name is Pinky, though. She probably likes the color pink. Maybe we should dress accordingly?”

“Good idea.”

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It’s a pretty chill party––lots of hanging out, watching TV, reading, and doing homework, with only a little bit of dancing. (Sounds like my kind of party, honestly.)

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I try to follow Pinky’s lead when it comes to potential partners, and early on, she rolls a wish to talk to Bernardo Lin (son of Don Lothario and Roxie Lin). Then, she pops a wish to learn his star sign. Bingo! They find out that they’re compatible, and start flirting a little bit. Go Pinky!

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The party winds down fairly early, and the kids conk out in the art studio (which has tons of space). Pinky is in the orange sleeping bag. (I don’t know if she managed to communicate to her new friends that her favorite color is definitely not pink.)

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It turns out to be the adults that misbehave at this party. Every time I come back to the kitchen, there are more trays of drinks out. Look at this! Six trays!! You guys are ridiculous! What’s more, someone has managed to flood the kitchen without breaking any appliances. That’s impressive.

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Aaaand I’m out of screenshots. Sorry to end this chapter mid-party, but the fun part is over, I’m pretty sure. Next time, we’ll meet our nooboo!

[Beks]

Chapter 32 – Flames & Babes

The night after her slumber party ends, Pinky goes to prom dressed in her signature orange.

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I mentioned this during Ludwig and Peach’s prom, but didn’t get a screenshot of it. This is the entirety of the limo’s trip to the prom. The Middlemiss house is on the left in the foreground. The school is right smack across the street. The limo literally just turns around 90 degrees or so and lets Pinky out. I guess it’s all about the experience, not the practicality, right?

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Pinky has an okay time at prom, and is crowned Prom Queen. She also is challenged to a dance battle, and wins. But then she asks the most popular boy in school to dance, and he turns her down. I was really hoping she’d get a romantic interest out of this prom (coughbernardocough), but no such luck. And worse, when I check her relationship panel, I discover that Bernardo has acquired a girlfriend since the slumber party. I should’ve had her snap him up while she had the chance.

I get a notification that romance is sprouting for Ludwig––with a woman named Trina Belcher. If you watch a certain TV show, you’ll know why that made me laugh.

Elaine is getting on in years, so she’s started making herself useful by stocking the food replicator with perfect Fried Peanut Butter & Banana Sandwiches. Llewellyn will be helping with this too, once he learns the recipe for Baked Angel Food Cake.

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I absolutely love Peach’s face when she makes a mistake while painting.

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Bao has his first day of work at the fire station and starts getting to know his coworker, the famous Ludwig Middlemiss.

“Bao, is it? Welcome to the family. You can start by maintaining the fire engine. Not that there’s any point––it’ll still take you hours to get halfway across town to respond to a fire. Don’t worry about that, though. You’ll still get A grades by default, probably. Anyhoo, I’ll be sliding down the fire poles if you need me. Have fun!”

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I’m excited for these two to become good friends. Maybe even besties.

Bao is an obedient employee, being a newcomer. He spends all his time maintaining that stupid fire engine that never seems to reach a hundred percent no matter how hard he tries.

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And he gets to put out his first fire! Looking fierce, Bao.

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A couple days later he gets to respond to this spooky swamp fire out in the middle of nowhere. (This lot makes me feel like we’re back in Twinbrook.)

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After extinguishing the flames, Bao promptly breaks into song whilst the ashes of the blaze sputter and die at his feet.

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Then, he’s met with a new emergency: Carlotta Lobos going into labor.

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“What is this?! This wasn’t part of my training! I’m not qualified to deal with this! Help! Help!”

Since Carlotta’s husband runs inside and is no help whatsoever, it’s left to brave Bao to take her to the hospital. So he does, and she gives birth to a boy. Bao heads back to the fire station, unaware that his own wife will soon be following in Carlotta’s footsteps.

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Back home, Peach maxes out her painting skill…

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…about three seconds before going into labor.

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Peach gets herself to the hospital in style. Bao is still at work, and I decide to keep him there to avoid that awful “Missing Work” moodlet. (And because Peach is boss enough to handle herself, I think.)

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Say hello to Granville Middlemiss. Yes, Granville. Did I forget to mention previously that we hadn’t even gotten to the really ridiculous names yet? Well, we’re finally getting there. You could ask me what the heck sorta name Granville is; I couldn’t tell you. But it makes me laugh every time I see it.

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Bao comes home that night and meets his son. That’s a happy daddy if I’ve ever seen one.

"I'm so glad I didn't have to be there during your birth, son. Fires I can do. Births...not so much."

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Llewellyn looks awfully happy, too…wait, why are you cross-eyed?

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Nooooo!

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I’m not ready for Llewellyn to be old. He’s become one of my favorite sims in this legacy. As an elder, he looks somehow…sunken. Deflated. I guess it’s those adorable chubby cheeks gone wrinkly.

His favorite pastime now, funnily enough, is to brag to his own wife about their grandchildren. All one of them, that is. (I’m realizing, thanks to this picture, that I did not get Llewellyn’s hair color right. At all.)

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All too soon (and yet, not quickly enough), it’s time for Granville to age up and reveal his true self to us all. Elaine, the queen of birthdays, brings him to the cake.

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What a cutie! Granville seems to have inherited most of his mother’s features, but with his daddy’s hair color. I also suspect he may have his daddy’s nose, but it’s hard to tell for sure at this early stage.

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Granville––in spite of his frumpy grandpa name––is an Evil Genius. He likes Pop, Cookies, and Irish Green. And one day, he’s going to take over the world.

[Beks]

Chapter 33 – Doll's Heads

It’s Leisure Day! And while I am very much over celebrating every single holiday in the Sims (one generation of that was plenty), I decide to splurge a little and build this family a pool. I also expand Elaine’s garden, put in some playground items, and rearrange the trees a smidge.

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While the rest of the family enjoys a day by the pool, Elaine seems to prefer the dry thrill of the trampoline. Llewellyn is perfectly happy to dominate the diving board. (They are both mid-flip in this shot.)

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This was going to be a nice calm photo showing everyone having a nice time, but Peach chose that moment to slip and fall into the pool. Thanks, Peach.

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Everybody wants to give Granville a go on the spring rider, but of course daddy gets precedence.

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That evening, Pinky gets an unusual call––from a boy at school she’s never talked to before! His name is Julio Newbie, and he’s calling to ask her on a date.

Pinky goes to meet him. I think I bought this motorbike intending it to be Bao’s, but I shoved it in the underground garage and forgot about it. Pinky, I suppose, has decided that it’s hers. (And she hasn’t even learned to drive. Have I discovered a loophole?!) She’s going to make a legendary first impression on this boy. I mean, who wouldn’t want to go out with a girl riding a motorcycle in a bikini and flippers?

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Pinky and Julio get to know each other. He’s quite cute, and he looks a lot like Bernardo with that haircut. I believe he also wears the same everyday outfit as Bernardo (their thumbnails look almost identical in Pinky’s relationship panel). The two of them get along well, and when Pinky flirts with him, he eats it right up.

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Pinky has to go home once curfew hits, but the next day after school, Julio calls to ask her out again! This is unheard of in my experience. It’s almost like this Sim has an actual brain and actual hormones, instead of just game code determining his every move.

Julio meets Pinky at the police station, of all places. (“I just want to make sure you feel safe!”) Unfortunately, another townie boy beats him there and starts chatting up Pinky first. Pinky is a popular lady!

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This guy, Ken Broke, has a girlfriend already (another Broke, I believe…there are so many and they aren’t even closely related anymore), but he’s still attracted to Pinky, and he ends up hanging around for most of their date, listening to their flirty exchanges and nodding and smiling in approval. (Can you imagine if Pinky married into the Broke family? Pinky Broke. Like…my pinky broke.)

But anyway, eventually Ken wanders off, and Pinky and Julio are left alone to have their first kiss in peace (and make their relationship official).

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The next day is Pinky’s young adult birthday. She starts the day with one final painting in her sister’s art studio.

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In the evening, just before she’s due to age up, Julio calls and asks Pinky out for a third time––and then Ken calls her as soon as she hangs up! I have never had a teenage sim as popular as Pinky is. She turns both boys down, of course––she has some growing up to do.

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She really is a clone of her mother.

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Pinky ages up with the Ambitious trait. I have high hopes for this young lady. She’s going to take the world by storm.

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The next morning, Pinky graduates with merit and wins Most Likely to Fulfill Their Lifetime Wish. I’d agree with that! (Her LTW is Illustrious Author. She’s already halfway to mastering both skills.)

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And with that, it’s time for Pinky to head out on her own. I’m going to miss her, as will the whole family. She’s been a very active and interesting member of the Middlemiss family thus far. I’m excited to see where Story Progression takes her! (Hopefully into the arms of Julio Newbie, once he ages up.)

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After Pinky leaves, life goes on––and the focus is increasingly on Granville, our Generation Six heir. (Whoa, does that mean we're halfway?! I think we're halfway...)

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Granville (I still can't type that without cracking a smile) spends a lot of his time with the peg box. Grandpa Llewellyn helps him out.

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Grandma Elaine does a lot of the toddler skill training, since she’s family-oriented (and since she may not be with us for much longer).

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I don't know what it is about this house, but everybody always takes the toddlers outside to teach them to talk. At this moment it is about 45 degrees Fahrenheit and pouring rain. I'm beginning to question Elaine's mental faculties at this advanced age.

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When she’s not with Granville, Elaine is usually in her garden. We can’t sell her produce, so it’s pretty much all going in the fridge. We have enough limes for about fifteen more generations of Middlemisses to survive on Key Lime Pie.

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Bao is the playful parent, always preparing his son for life in the real world, where there are pink horsies to ride and giant claws to run from.

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He's also the serious one. He concentrates so hard on potty training Granville that he doesn’t even notice when he jams his forehead into a shelf. Ouch?

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Granville's pretty serious about potty training too, though.

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Granville’s favorite toy, by far, is the dollhouse. I guess I’m not surprised that an Evil toddler enjoys biting the heads off small artificial people.

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This I’ve never seen before, though. This is Granville attempting to UNSCREW the head of a doll. Somehow this comes across to me as more vicious and disturbing than innocent chewing (which you could put down to teething).

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This little boy is almost ready to age up. I can’t wait to see what real mischief he’s capable of.

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[Beks]

Chapter 34 – Ribbons & Chopsticks

Peach and Bao are due to have another child. This time, they decide to adopt.

The social worker barges in at top speed, dressed sort of like one of those explorers you see when visiting other countries.

“Greetings, friends! I’ve just been adventuring in the big wide world, and the most WONDERFUL treasure awaits your discovery––PARENTHOOD!”

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And he runs off, leaving the newest Middlemiss in a carrier by the stairs. Elaine, walking by with a bag of garbage, gets to do the honors of opening up the carrier and meeting her new grandchild (but not before dropping the bag of garbage in the middle of the floor).

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Meet Trixiebelle Middlemiss. She’s an Easily Impressed Loner, and she likes Latin music, cookies (just like her brother), and spice brown. And yes, I played with her appearance a little bit in CAS. The rules do allow CAS editing of pudding faces. Huzzah! It’ll be interesting to see how my tweaking turns out as she grows. I am bracing myself.

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Grandpa Llewellyn starts right off teaching her to talk. He doesn’t seem to notice (or care) that his pupil has no interest whatsoever in his instruction.

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I like how Trixiebelle’s hair ribbons stick up through the lid of the toy box.

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The next day is Granville’s birthday. Here's one last shot of him being cute and toddling around with his toy boat.

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Grandma Elaine beats everyone to the cake, as always.

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Granville is now an Evil Genius who also likes to party. Riverview residents better watch out. (Also, please admire his sparkly green Evil Genius outfit. I couldn’t resist.)

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Peach maxes her painting career in excellent time. She’s reached the tippy top of the painting skill in every sense, and she’s really bringing in the big bucks now. We’re financially set for a good long while.

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Ludwig hosts a party for Spooky Day, so naturally we have to send the family over. Or at least Peach, who was invited, along with our freshly minted Party Animal, Granville, whose first ever popped wish is to attend a party.

Granville gets to ride in his mama's sweet ride for the first time ever.

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Peach is happy to see her twin brother again. Since moving out, he’s gotten married to Trina Belcher (heh) and had a daughter. You look smashing as ever, Ludwig!

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This little nugget is Ludwig's daughter, Darla.

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Granville goes up to introduce himself to his uncle, only to find that his uncle is a three-star celebrity who is not impressed by his nephew’s credentials. One day, Granville. One day.

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This lovely lady looking longingly into some random gentleman’s eyes is, in fact, Ludwig’s wife Trina. (And the guy she’s making eyes with is one of Ludwig and Bao’s coworkers. Hmmm.)

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Aside from meeting some new family members, it’s not a very exciting party. Granville pretty much does this the whole time:

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Grandma Elaine takes good care of her new granddaughter, reading her toddler books on the edge of a giant pool in which a small child could easily drown. Why is everyone drawn to this exact spot on the property when there are so many other spots to enjoy?! (And what’s worse, there’s some routing issue with this side of the pool, and people are always getting stuck there until I reset them. The call of the void, I guess.)

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Bao continues his hobby of merging with the furniture and singing at inopportune times. (Though really, he has a nice voice, so I can't say I mind.)

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Granville pops a wish to get a chemistry lab station thingy, so I oblige and set one up in the party room for him (so he can dance and discover potions simultaneously). Doing those two things at once, it turns out, is actually rather dangerous.

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Bao has reached level 9 of the firefighter career. This career has been bugged for me in the past, and it is again this time around––for some of the house fires, Bao is required to save, say, 4 sims, but only 3 are in the house, so he fails the job by default. He does have a few successes, though, including this big house fire in which he gets to save his sister-in-law.

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“Pinky! I put all the fires out! You’re safe! You just have to go outside now!”

Pinky: *screams at refrigerator*

That night, death comes for Elaine.

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Elaine lived to be 98 years old. And even now, though she ought to have died a while ago, she is not ready to go. She loves her family too much to leave them behind.

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RIP, Elaine. You were the most dedicated mother, wife, and grandmother I think I’ve ever seen in this game. You were the queen of birthday cakes (she literally took every single one of her children and grandchildren to their cakes for every single toddler and child birthday…QUITE an accomplishment), a wonderful gardener and chef, a skilled collector, and an exemplary first spouse of Riverview. Enjoy the afterlife, sweet one.

To finish, here’s photographic proof that Granville has inherited his father’s hidden Asian Culture trait. Hooray!

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Next time, we'll see Granville age up to teen and start scouting out some spouses. Whoever Granville's future wife is, I hope she's preparing herself. (How does one prepare oneself to marry an Evil Genius, anyway? I guess we'll find out.)

[Beks]

Chapter 35 – A Grim Mistake

Poor Llewellyn is heartbroken over Elaine’s death. How do I know? He actually starts showing his Grumpy trait, for the first time ever.

In the past, I always forgot that Llewellyn is grumpy because he was so good-natured and amiable all the time. He almost never did mean or grumpy interactions with his family members. That is…until now. He inherits Elaine’s inventory, which includes the cane she stopped using near the end of her life for some reason. One of Llewellyn’s first actions after seeing his wife die is to harass the world with his new cane. I thought it was funny, until I realized how sad it is.

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When he’s not wagging his cane around and grumbling, Llewellyn just screams in rage at the universe. Over and over again. It’s really quite depressing. I can only hope that time will heal the wound. It usually does.

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Luckily, there’s Trixiebelle’s birthday the next morning to cheer everyone up!

Grandpa Llewellyn takes over cake duty in memory of Elaine.

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Dancey dancey.

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Trixiebelle grows up to be very, uh, cuddly looking. I guess that’s what happens when you give your toddler a super round jaw in CAS. *shrug* At any rate, she’s adorable! And…she gets the Inappropriate trait. This should be interesting.

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The following day is Granville’s birthday. Peach throws him a little party, with the secondary goal of making some more friends for herself (she’s not even halfway to her Lifetime Wish of having twenty). Notice Trixiebelle laughing at her brother instead of cheering.

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Here’s our handsome lad after a brow and hairdo adjustment. He inherited more of Elaine’s features than I realized! He’s got the Joy nose, to be sure, even more than his mother does. Granville ages up with the Eco-Friendly trait. I love the idea of an Eco-Friendly Evil Genius. He must care a lot more about the earth than he does about his fellow humans.

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The next day, Peach has her adult birthday in front of her easel.

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Bao responds to an emergency at Elewellyn’s (the renamed Bistro) downtown. If you’ve never worked in food service, this is a pretty accurate representation of what it’s like most of the time. (Not the emergency…just the many cooks in uniform freaking out simultaneously.)

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Llewellyn, who’s worked here forever and of course owns the joint, nods ceremoniously to his son-in-law after it’s all over.

“Good to see you, son. How's life?"

“Oh, you know. Hot."

"On second thought, I don't want to know."

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It’s been a while since I’ve allowed the parents in my game to go on a vacation and leave the teens alone. This time, when the option comes up, I decide to go for it. Granville is a party animal; he wouldn’t blow this opportunity in real life. I’m a little nervous because last time I did this in a game, my teens got grounded afterwards and were stuck in eternal sneak mode. I really hope that doesn’t happen this time. I guess it wouldn’t be the end of the world. At any rate…off the adults go!

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Granville immediately calls up every teen he knows (there are actually quite a few) and invites them for a party that evening.

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In preparation for his big teen bash, Granville starts practicing mixology. He intends to throw the most epic teen party in the history of Riverview, and good drinks are a requirement. Better start catching those cans, Gran. You have ladies to impress!

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As for Trixiebelle? She’s content to hole up in her grandpa’s bedroom and play computer games all day. At least, that’s the plan so far. Who knows what she’ll do when the teens start arriving around dinnertime. I’m curious to see that Inappropriate trait in action, but Trixie is also a Loner, so it’ll be notable if she even comes downstairs during the party.

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The party starts promptly at five. Oh, did I mention that this is a swimsuit party? Of course it is. And of course, none of the girls actually wear bikinis. They all dress a little more modestly. The boys are slightly disappointed, perhaps, but the girls are here to have fun, not to parade around for the men. More power to them!

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We have several potential spouses here. This is Randi Newbie. She’s an Evil Genius, just like Granville. I shudder to think of the empire they could build together.

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She even looks a little bit evil. (Beautifully evil, that is.) I sort of love it.

Unfortunately, everybody at this party is already in a relationship. Story Progression matched everybody up and, of course, left Granville out. Also, while I have Gran go around and talk to the ladies, he isn’t immediately attracted to any of them, and none of them have compatible signs with him.

Waaait a second. On second glance, Gran DOES have the “Attractive Company” moodlet! He must have gotten it when he met one of the girls at school. But who is the lucky lady? It’s one of these three…Randi Newbie (right), Paula Simovitch (center), or Blanca Dean (left).

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The dancing eventually dies down and Gran leaves the room to meet his other lady guests (one is Good, and therefore won't like him, and the other is a Broke who inherited all the awful Broke and Grisby features…no, thank you). Randi sneaks over to the fireplace and appears to be playing with fire. This could get very interesting.

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Eventually, I get Gran alone with Randi, and there it is! The moodlet. Gran is attracted to Randi, and I had no idea.

As always, I like to give my Sims some say in their love lives, as much as possible. For most of this party, Gran doesn’t give me very much to go on. His only girl-related wish is to become friends with Randi. It’s a start, but nothing more. The two of them do become friends by the end of the night. Then, right as the party ends, Gran rolls the magic wish: to kiss Randi for the first time. Bingo!

This party goes on for EVER––until sometime after 9 the next morning! A couple of the guests leave around 1 am, but the rest linger and either pass out on the floor, take naps on various beds, or wander the house throughout the night. Granville himself conks out in the foyer––he has a “sleep on floor” action that I’ve never seen before––then gets up and goes to bed around 4. Man, it’s just like a real-life party, where everybody’s exhausted and hungover afterwards!

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At 6 am, more slow dancing is happening out in the backyard, and more guests pass out from exhaustion. There also appears to be a giant pile of garbage in the garden? That’s interesting. Granville gets up around 11 when he learns that the adults are coming home early and hurriedly cleans the kitchen.

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The adults return in Llewellyn’s spaceship. (And Bao has aged up to elder. I forgot that it was his birthday.) Llewellyn comes inside for the scolding, and Granville is grounded.

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Right after yelling at his grandson, Llewellyn heads out into the yard to find Trixiebelle.

“There’s my little angel. How was your weekend, perfect child?”

“As sweet and lovely as I am, Grandpapa.”

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So yes, Bao ages up to elder while away on vacation. I notice something weird when he gets back, though––his LTW has been reset. To complete it, he needs to save 30 sims from death in his career as a firefighter. He was at 10 previously; now it’s back to zero. Not a huge deal––just strange.

But not as strange as this.

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Bao is 73. He’s been an elder for less than a day. And he’s dying of old age?? Excuse me?

I’m baffled.

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Well, this is really sad. Poor Peach! She just became an adult and has already lost her husband. Bao leaves behind a teenage son and a younger daughter. What the heck?? I’ve never had this happen before. It’s almost like Lincoln’s untimely demise all the way back in Generation One, except at least in Lincoln’s case, there was a distinctive reason he died early. A meteor fell out of the sky and crushed him. You can’t really argue with that. But Bao…what, did he contract some incurable disease while lying on the beach in Hawaii or whatever? I don’t understand!

Anyway. That happened. And I’m never sending adults away on a vacation again. This bug is far worse than eternal sneak mode.

RIP, Bao. You were a wonderful addition to the household. A valiant firefighter. A saver of lives. A great father and husband. An opera-worthy bathtub singer. You will be greatly missed.

At least Grim has some presence of mind.

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“Oops! I do believe I have made a mistake!”

You’d better believe it, buddy.

[Beks]

Chapter 36 – Grandfathers and Gran Parties

Things are progressing rapidly between Granville and Randi. They came away from Gran’s secret teen bash as best friends, and the next day, Randi decides to come home with him after school.

As soon as they walk through the front door, Randi offers Gran a bouquet of flowers. (At this point she still has a boyfriend, mind you.) How bold! How very modern! (I've been watching too much Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries.)

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Gran uses this opportunity to broach the subject of Randi’s boyfriend, Abdul. Turns out, Randi’s not actually that into him. She agrees to break up with him. (It probably helps that she’s evil.)

Gran then pops the question. The teen version of the question, that is.

“Hey, so, prom starts in an hour. Want to go with me?”

Randi says yes, but unfortunately has to run off home before the limo arrives to take them across the street (and before I can snap any more pictures). Gran sits in the limosine alone, looking fly but lonely.

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Granville has pretty much the best prom posible in The Sims 3. Randi asks him to go steady, and then the two of them share their first kiss. He’s also crowned Prom King, and he and Randi are considered the “dynamic duo” of the dance. I’m glad somebody’s finally having a good prom!

Gran and Randi (that makes “Grandi” an obvious ship name) have some good times together as boyfriend and girlfriend. Randi works in the graveyard at night (where else?), so she doesn’t have a lot of free time, but on her free afternoons she likes to come over and lose to Granville at chess. (Notice Llewellyn being grumpy outside the window. *sigh* )

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Bao has his first haunting. I don’t even hear the creepy ghost music initially––I just happen upon him calmly meditating right next to his grave. Ah, Bao, I miss you.

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A couple days later is Trixiebelle’s birthday. She ages up after taking a nap on the butler’s bed.

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Here’s teen Trixiebelle. She rolls the Brave trait to go with her Loner, Easily Impressed, and Inappropriate traits. She’s got an interesting personality, this girl, and I’m curious to see what wishes she rolls as she grows up. (One of her first as a teen is to skinny dip with her grandfather…but let’s not talk about that.)

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Poor Llewellyn is both depressed and bored since losing his wife. He only works about 12 hours a week now that he’s at the top of his career, so he has a lot of time to kill. I take this opportunity to see what Pinky is up to. One afternoon, Llewellyn goes over to visit his youngest daughter, who has been married for a while and has just given birth to a boy named Donnie. Llewellyn is only too happy to brag about his other grandchildren (“Yes, see, Granville here is the HEIR, so he’s VERY special”) while Julio, Pinky’s husband, takes care of baby Donnie. Hi, Pinky! Glad you’re doing well!

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Trixie struggles to find romance or friendship as a teen. The first friend that Trixie makes in school is Francine Broke (whom we met briefly at Gran’s party). The two of them seem to get along well––Francine’s insane trait combined with Trixie’s inappropriate trait means that they have a particular kind of weirdness together that I like. And with Trixie’s inappropriate trait…

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…boundaries can be crossed that couldn’t be otherwise. Francine rejects the kiss, of course––she has a boyfriend and has only just met Trixie anyway. Even though further research through MC confirms that Francine and Trixie both prefer females (which may or may not be a result of Trixie’s attempted kiss), Francine ages up that very evening and soon has a child with her boyfriend. I was hoping for a romance between Francine and Trixie, but I guess it wasn’t meant to be.

Trixie rolls a wish to learn the Athletic skill soon after this. Some time on the treadmill trims her down nicely, though her weight fluctuates a bit through her teen years (mostly because I don’t always remember to have her work out). With that Brave trait, I wouldn’t be surprised if Trixie ends up in a career that requires Athletic skill. And it’s nice to see her taking good care of herself, too.

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A day or two later…the long-awaited departure.

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Llewellyn passes away at the age of 99 while asking his grandson about his day. Gran is so upset, he accidentally gets his hands stuck in his grandfather’s ghost abdomen.

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Llewellyn is ready and shakes hands peaceably with death. Honestly, I think he was ready to go as soon as Elaine died, but it wasn’t yet his time. Now he’s lived a good long life and deserves a restful afterlife.

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RIP, Llewellyn! You were the cheeriest grumpy sim I’ve ever known, the best cook, the most loving father and husband, and possessor of the cutest cheeks of all time. You were also the last Imaginary Friend this legacy will see, after two generations before you. You were the bridge between Twinbrook and Riverview, the link between the sundered halves of the Middlemiss legacy. You were one of my absolute favorite Sims to play. I shall miss you. Come back to haunt us, okay?

(Side note: Up until Llewellyn was about 90, I was dreading his death. He’s become one of my favorite sims ever, for reasons I can't entirely explain. I was reading back through old chapters of this legacy recently, and I actually teared up when I got to Llewellyn as a toddler. He was just so darn cute, from start to finish! Anyway, it was defintely his time to go, so it's more sweet than bitter now. But we may be seeing Llewellyn again one day, in some way or another. I don’t think I could bear this being the last we ever see of him.)

Another ghost appears mere seconds after Llewellyn takes the dive into his urn––Bao! He shows up just in time to comfort his wife over yet another bereavement. What a sweetheart.

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And now our household has shrunk to the smallest it’s been in…well, ever? Possibly? Since Generation One? I’m not entirely sure. But this big house feels pretty empty with only three people in it.

So what’s the solution? A massive party! Gran’s young adult birthday party, to be exact.

Gran starts preparing by mixing some party drinks and cooking up some tofu dogs. He’s getting rather good at both mixology and cooking (not to mention logic).

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I’ve been doing some renovations to the house, yet again. Honestly, I’m getting quite restless in this house…but since moving isn’t really an option at this moment in time (maybe next generation), I go for some renovations instead. Gran’s party room has already undergone a couple of makeovers. I think I’m finally happy with this one (I combined it with the old nursery to create more space).

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We get to see some familiar faces at the party, as always. Ludwig is still rocking that pink tux and that horrific ponytail.

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Pinky has somehow acquired an upright bass (and has also aged up with an ugly ponytail). She delights everyone with some very enthusiastic bass playing.

"Yay! I don't know what I'm doing! Yay!!"

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Even Llewellyn comes back for the party! Well, for the trampoline, that is. He spends the whole night out there, doing backflips with the paparazzi lady.

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A nice crowd gathers for the cake. There’s Randi on the far left; and Trixiebelle laughing at her brother as usual; and the girl in the lime green hoodie is cousin Darla, Ludwig’s daughter, who’s grown up to be very pretty (and has inherited Elaine’s hair color!).

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Here we go…

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Once he he ages up, Gran doesn’t go straight for the mirror. He looks around the room and notices that Randi has disappeared. She must have slipped out amid the clamoring for cake. He finds her out by the trampoline, under the stars, scratching her neck and looking impatient.

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“Took you long enough,” she says.

“I came as fast as I could!” says Gran. “Jeez, you’re a tough woman to please.”

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“And that’s the way it should be. Say, do you have a unibrow? Gross.”

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“Uh, thanks. At least I HAVE eyebrows. Did you draw yours on with a micro pen?”

“Ignoring that…were you going to ask me something, or what?”

Granville does ask Randi to move in. She says yes.

Randi jabs him in the ribs before they head inside. “Are you sure that’s everything you wanted to talk about, Unibrow?”

“Yup.”

Here is Granville, our sixth generation heir, after a haircut and some magic mustache-growing tonic. His final traits are Evil, Genius, Party Animal, Eco-Friendly, and Childish. His LTW is to become a World-Renowned Surgeon.

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And here is Randi. She’s going for a 1920s vaudevillain vibe. Her traits are Evil, Genius, Excitable, Loser, and Savvy Sculptor. That last trait is going to be utterly useless, but that’s okay. At least she has an option for a hobby. Her LTW is to become an Empress of Evil, which I would LOVE to indulge for her…if only this generation’s rolls allowed it.

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Speaking of which, here are our Generation Six rolls:

Family Structure – Mixed Couple (regular couple, but children must be a mix of biological and adopted)
No. of Children – 4
Income – Medical / Private Investigator
Generational Goal – Hobby, or Obession? (pick a non-money-making hobby for your heir based on their traits/personality)
Misc. Fun – Identity Crisis (your heir must have a trait that conflicts with their career roll)

So! Gran and Randi, once they get around to marrying each other, will have four children, a mix of biological and adopted. (It’ll be interesting to try and come up with a motivation for two Evil sims to adopt.) Gran will work in the Medical career (in contrast with his Evil trait, which fulfills the Identity Crisis roll). Randi will be a Private Investigator. And Gran’s hobby? Throwing parties. What else? And mixology, as a part of that.

It’s going to be a wild ride. Stay tuned for the official start of Generation Six!

[Beks]

Chapter 37 – Villain & Villainess

Before we commence with Generation Evil Genius, a couple of game and house updates.

First, I’ve uninstalled Seasons. My game was getting extremely laggy, and I think a lot of it was due to weather. The easiest thing was to just uninstall it. I’m also running out of space on my laptop again, and getting rid of an EP will help alleviate that. So far, I only miss two things: the fall colors, and Llewellyn’s spaceship. (It’s okay. I replaced it with two more flashy sports cars.)

Secondly, I’ve done some more house renovations! I basically just swapped the living room with the kitchen and dining area. We use the kitchen much more anyway, so now it’s much more spacious and not hiding behind that big staircase. Hurrah! I also updated the walls and floors in the foyer and the upstairs hallway. However, I did not realize until I basically finished writing this post that I failed to get screenshots of the updates. Those will come next chapter.

Righto! Back to the story.

Randi settles into the house with ease. Gran doesn’t wait long to bring up the all-important question that comes with young adulthood in a legacy. His proposal is nothing fancy or fluttery, though. He just comes downstairs, where Randi is practicing chess, and asks his lady for a quick word.

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As soon as Randi defeats her invisible opponent and stands up, nerves get the better of Gran, and he promptly thrusts his whole arm through Randi's back and gets stuck there. Gran, if you’re trying to feel up your girlfriend, at least be forthright about it!

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At least he realizes how strange this action was, and seems to regret it.

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Anyway. Gran gets down on one knee in his pajama pants.

“Randi…I know I’m a soulless scoundrel, but YOU are, amazingly, even worse than I. I’ve never known anyone so cruel, nor so beautiful, as you. I would die of misery were I to live this dastardly life alone without you as my queen, my co-conspirator. What do you say we unite our powers and destroy the world together?”

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“Ooh, do I get to wear this expensive diamond on my finger for the rest of my life? Okay, then. Yes.”

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These two would probably wait a while, realistically, and procrastinate on the inevitable sappiness involved in a wedding…but they’ve got four kids to pop out and two careers to start on. I say we get cracking.

But first, Gran insists on throwing a bachelor party. While Gran is busy concocting beverages and making the perfect party playlist, Randi goes out and gets herself a job as a Private Investigator. I think she’ll make a great one. (Better than Glen in the Honeyheart dynasty, at least. Thank goodness she has no chance of magic jelly bean death.)

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She also gets in some stakeout practice. I love the notification that pops up during her first stakeout.

“A bird in the bush is worth two bushes in the hand…wait what?”

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Gran’s guests start arriving around 1 in the afternoon. Gran’s “Dress to Impress” outfit comes with a pretty snazzy hat.

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It’s a hopping party, such as it is. Trixiebelle surprises everyone by jumping into the fray and making some drinks. She stays there for much of the evening, even with that “Crowded” moodlet. (You can also see her dancing up a storm in some of the later screenshots. She may be a bit of a party girl at heart after all.)

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The party dancers show up…and perform in the upstairs bedroom, where Randi (who WAS on a stakeout, but snuck home when I wasn’t looking) is primping, or something. Why they decided to perform there, I have no idea.

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Gran’s best-friend-as-of-this-evening, Stephan Rhoades, spends much of the night dousing Gran’s enemy (and Randi’s ex), Abdul McDermott, with fizzy nectar. What a good friend!

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Stephan is also the one to make a toast for the party guests.

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“Attention, everyone, attention. Now, Gran and I have only been friends for about…ten minutes, but I have to say, I am already convinced that he and Randi are destined to be together. How do I know? How do I know that Gran was meant to win the heart of Randi Newbie? Because she doesn’t have one, and neither does he! These two are going to build a great and terrifying empire together, and we’d all do well to surrender now while we have the chance. All hail Emperor Granville and his dark queen!”

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Everyone: “ALL HAIL EMPEROR GRANVILLE AND HIS DARK QUEEN!”

Stephan: *sprays fizzy nectar*

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It’s an awesome party. There are awesome party makeouts!

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And awesome party fights!

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And awesome party bubble blowing, complete with awesome party hiccups!

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This is Granville’s second party that lasts until the wee hours of the morning. Maybe it’s his Party Animal trait? In any case, even an all-nighter doesn’t keep Randi from rising early and scaring her soon-to-be-mother-in-law half to death.

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It also doesn’t stop these two from throwing their wedding that very day, less than 24 hours after the bachelor party began. That makes three party days in a row for Gran, something I may never allow to happen again. Parties are exhausting, even in games!

I’m convinced Randi is faking the dopey face in this photo.

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Congrats, you two! I mean…all hail Emperor Granville and Dark Queen Randi.

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Randi enjoys the feeling of power that comes with wielding a knife, so she volunteers to cut the cake.

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And Granville…dances on the countertop. (I installed a few counters in the party room after the bachelor party. Granville knows exactly why I put them there.)

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And at the end of it all, our newlyweds still have enough energy to enjoy their first woohoo (and hopefully bring in the next generation.)

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Whew! That’s enough parties for me for a while. Next time, we’ll say hey to Generation Seven (hopefully) and watch Gran wreak havoc on the medical community become a very knowledgeable and responsible doctor.

[Beks]

Chapter 38 – An Empire Is Born

First off, the promised house updates! Here are the new kitchen, living, and dining areas (again, I essentially swapped the kitchen and the living room):

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And the slightly updated painting-baby-fitness room:

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The morning after the wedding, Granville goes out and applies for a job at the hospital. How he lands one as an Evil sim can only be explained by the fact that he’s also a Genius. Or maybe he played up that Childish trait and expressed interest in pediatrics? (Either way…concerning.)

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Randi discovers that she’s pregnant, but doesn’t seem to care very much. Not surprising. And while Granville immediately rolls a wish to have a boy, Randi just rolls a wish to steal candy from her own baby.

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These two do seem somewhat excited to be parents, if only because they’ll have a real, live minion to groom.

“Isn’t it amazing, Randi? We can shape our child to be a brilliant psychopath like ourselves!”

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Randi has a pretty easy pregnancy. She keeps herself busy with investigator cases and a full day at the spa.

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She even conducts a pregnant stakeout, something I’ve always wanted to try (for the outfit’s sake). Actually, the dress she spins into seems like better camouflage than the trenchcoat she had before.

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She likes to make weird fishy faces while stakeout-ing.

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Trixiebelle goes to prom on one of her last days as a teenager. Her hard work in the athletic skill has really done her good! For some reason she doesn’t change into her formal wear for the dance, but I guess that’s her choice.

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Meanwhile, Randi stalks around the house with her big belly doing this. Have you ever seen anything so terrifying as a pregnant Randi Middlemiss? I don’t know if I have.

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Trixie has a fairly typical prom––she gets in a fight, checks out other people’s outfits, and loves the decorations. Then I get a weird notification: “Trixiebelle is definitely impressing Trixiebelle with the chicken dance. Trixiebelle started to do it too! This duo is definitely hitting it off.”

Uh. Okay? Right after that, Trixie wins prom queen. Hooray! And that’s about it for prom drama. I was hoping Trixie would get a romantic interest out of it, but no such luck. I guess she'll have to make do with herself for now...? 

Randi goes into labor that night in the middle of a game of Darwin’s Revenge.

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Granville, who was out at the bistro for a mixology opportunity, takes his time meeting his wife at the hospital––he just sits outside the restaurant in his pink scrubs and plays with his toy yeti for a while first. (I wonder if that’s the same toy yeti that Ludwig played with as a toddler?)

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Eventually, he finds his way to the hospital.

“What do you mean, I have to ‘be there for my wife’? She can handle squeezing out a human just fine without my help!”

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A little while later, Randi delivers a baby girl named Bambi. (I only just realized that Bambi rhymes with Randi. Which sort of rhymes with Gran. Granrandambi. Bamandagran. Grandibam. Bamangrandandi.)

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Llewellyn’s ghost visits that night, and at one point I find him drifting underground somewhere between the garage and the swimming pool. Spooky.

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Gran and Randi approach parenthood with a noticeable about of apprehension, but they put in a good effort. Randi looks a bit befuddled whenever she holds her daughter, but also a little bit enchanted. I think she’ll be a good mother, with some practice. (She's going to get lots of it.)

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Gran, meanwhile, prefers to sit by and play dolls while his daughter screams. He’ll get there one day.

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Randi continues to work hard as a Private Investigator. She completes at least one case a day, sometimes two or three (depending on how busy I am with the rest of the family). I’ve given her an updated work outfit, though I couldn’t figure out how to change her hairstyle. Ah well.

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A couple nights later is Trixiebelle’s young adult birthday. The sparkles hit her mid-workout.

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Trixiebelle has grown up into a beautiful young lady! Her final set of traits: Easily Impressed, Loner, Inappropriate, Brave, and Athletic. Her LTW is to Become an Astronaut.

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Bright and early the next morning, Bambi ages up to toddler.

Trixie: “Haha! Babies can’t blow out candles! This is stupid!”
Peach: *sigh*

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Eventually the family gathers to cheer Bambi on.

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Here’s Bambi. She’s quite a nice combination of her parents––she looks more like Granville from the front, but more like Randi from the side. This little lady is Excitable and Insane (how could she not be, with two Evil parents), and she likes Chinese music, Falafel, and the color Lilac.

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After cake, it’s time for Trixiebelle to move out on her own. I do regret that we didn’t find Trixie a partner while she was a teenager––I’m sure Story Progression will hook her up with somebody, but I can’t be sure that it’ll be someone who’s good for her. Trixie deserves to be happy. I’m excited to see where life takes her.

Trixie bids her family goodbye and walks out into the big wide world. She looks pretty excited.

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See you around, Trixie! Good luck!

[Beks]

Chapter 39 – Welcome, My Pupil

Peach completes her Lifetime Wish a day before her elder birthday. The tiniest party ever at Lynne Newbie’s house allows her to make her twentieth friend and become Super Popular.

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A day later, Peach ages up to elder during a solo game of Sim Gnubb.

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I think she's still lovely as an elder (though she doesn't look too pleased herself).

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Randi and Granville are pretty cute together. They’re both very busy with work and skilling, but thankfully they can help each other out to some extent. One thing they like to do is hang out in their upstairs lair (a.k.a. bedroom), where Randi hacks into various computers for her clients while Gran discovers potions. (And gets singed a lot. For an Evil Genius, he’s surprisingly inept at potentially evil scientitific pursuits.)

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And Bambi? Bambi is doing very well.

She is a practiced pouter.

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And an avid reader.

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And a hard worker.

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And an eager twister of doll heads. (Maybe she inherited a LITTLE of her parents’ evilness. But just a little.)

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With two Evil parents, Bambi doesn’t get quite as much love and attention as she might have otherwise. Or she wouldn’t, if it weren't for Grandma Peach.

It’s Peach who teaches Bambi to talk…

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…and Peach who prepares Bambi for the future, in which she will undoubtedly be Scared by her parents every five minutes.

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Bambi’s parents aren’t totally aloof, though. At least, Granville isn’t. He volunteers to teach Bambi to walk, and autonomously cares for her now and again. (I don’t think I got a single screenshot of Randi with her daughter as a toddler.)

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I have to give Randi a bit of a free pass, though. Midway through Bambi’s toddlerhood, she becomes occupied with something else.

Randi must adopt another child. It’s a requirement of this generation. If it weren’t a requirement, I’m confident that Randi would never find it in her heart to open her home to a needy child. (You may recall that she doesn’t HAVE a heart.) However, this is a Random Legacy, and Randi is subject to the randomness just like everyone else.

So Randi does what she must do. She hacks into her own criminal record (she was a criminal for a day before joining the household, after all) and wipes it clean with the touch of a practiced investigator. She tidies up her financial records, too, while she’s at it. She ups her credit score a tad and embellishes her employment history––a nonprofit internship here, some daycare experience there. She does the same for Granville’s records. Then she calls a social worker, who arrives that evening with a new Middlemiss in tow.

The social worker gets out of the car to say farewell. “Don’t worry, kiddo. I did a full background check on your new parents and they are some of the most wonderful people you’ll ever meet. You’re going to be well cared for. Be good in there!”

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The little girl waves goodbye and dodges the gnomes in the front yard to reach the door of her new home.

Randi hears the front door slam and turns from the fridge where she was about to fix herself some late-night sushi. She watches as a young girl with pale blonde hair enters the room. She wonders what the actual heck she was thinking when she agreed to this.

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The girl walks right up to Randi, a big smile on her face, and sticks out her arms for a hug. “Hi, Mom! I’m Leola!”

Randi pastes a tense smile on her face and lets her new daughter hug her. “Uh…hi.”

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Then, straightening up again, Randi realizes something. This is an opportunity. An opportunity to mold a young girl––a complete stranger––into a true daughter of Dark Queen Randi. Who knows where this kid came from? Who knows what she could become? She could be anything! ANYTHING! She could very well be Evil just like Randi and Gran!

“Welcome, my pupil.”

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So, here is Leola. I edited her a little bit in CAS, but not too much––she was very pretty from the start. Leola is not Evil. (That would’ve been hilarious, though.) Instead, she is a Neat, Ambitious Vehicle Enthusiast, and she likes Egyptian music, Sushi, and the color Lilac (just like Bambi). Basically, she’s on her way to becoming the opposite of what Randi was hoping for––a nice, responsible person who can befriend inanimate objects. We’ll just have to see who Leola decides she wants to become as she grows up.

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Leola seems very sweet from the start, but perhaps a bit confused. The first thing she does after arriving at her new home is ask the paparazzi lady for a bedtime story. The paparazzi lady is nice enough to agree, but of course she can’t get through the door. So Leola goes for the next available adult––her dead grandfather, Bao.

“Hello, mister. I’m new here, and you look nice. Could you please read me a story?”

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Sweet old Bao says of course he will, and heads into the house to find a book.

“Whoa. People can float through walls here? This is awesome!”

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Leola’s persistence with getting a bedtime story turns out to be problematic. The “Listen to bedtime story” action is bugged in my game––it keeps canceling, no matter how many times Leola asks or who she goes to. She returns to Bao three more times that night to ask for a story, but each time Bao goes to the bookshelf, he takes down a book and then drops the action from his queue. This troubling pattern afflicts Leola throughout her childhood; she rarely gets enough sleep because she stays up half the night asking everyone for a bedtime story over and over again. The poor dear!

Speaking of bugs, here’s a fun one. The next day is Sunday, and since there’s no school, I send Leola to the playground to get to know a neighborhood girl who lives down the street. While the girls are chatting, this family shows up––including this toddler, who appears to be an amputee and who travels by gliding effortlessly across the surface of the ground. (I wish I could post a video, because it was amazing.)

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Then he starts leaping around in midair in the general vicinity of some guy's waist, waving his (newly sprouted) arms and squealing with joy.

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Eventually, I figure out that there is another Sim involved here. An adult Sim is holding the toddler, but they’ve caught the invisibility bug that is slowly taking over the town. Any interactions with an invisible Sim are apparently very screwed up. I guess toddlers carried by invisible Sims don’t have limbs until they are “tossed in the air” or set on the ground. Then they’re fine. There are always new things to learn in The Sims 3!

It’s been a little while since Gran’s thrown a party. It’s the workweek right now, and as a doctor Gran’s hours are pretty intensive, but he can at least work on his mixology skill until the weekend arrives. He invites Randi to help him practice.

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“Hey babe, wanna taste my first-ever Stomach Churner?”

“Do I ever!”

Peach, however, has all the time in the world to party. Since she’s friends with half of Riverview, she’s always getting invited to parties. Ludwig is kind enough to host one at his house that he recently moved into with his new wife, Hayley. (His first wife, Trina Belcher [still laughing over that], passed away a couple weeks ago.) Pinky is there, too! It’s nice to see the siblings together again.

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Ludwig and Pinky are also freaking adorable at this party and go out into the garden to dance together. I don’t usually miss siblings once they move out, but I do miss these two.

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And lastly, before we go…Peach has a secret. She’s discovered a way in which to dominate her Evil daughter-in-law. These two women actually get along surprisingly well––Randi only sneaks up and scares Peach once a day or so, and their friendly interactions are enough to nullify the effects of that. Even so, Peach likes to know that she could take Randi down in a second if she needed to.

How, you ask?

With the power of sports.

“Catch this one, Randi! Hi-YAH!”

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“No, please, I––“

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*SMACK*

And Randi gets pummeled in the face with the ball. Every time. Hey, at least they’re good friends this way!

That’s all for now. Next time we’ll watch both Middlemisses girls adventure through their childhoods. And we'll definitely have to make time for another party. It’s been too long!

[Beks]

Chapter 40 – Joyride

Granville is doing very well in his career. At just over halfway through his young adult years, he is already halfway through his medical career in terms of promotions. He may slack off when he’s home (his favorite activity is playing with the dollhouse…), but when he’s at work, he pushes hard, and his work is paying off.

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I always get a little concerned, though, when he gets the “Fiendishly delighted” moodlet while at the hospital. The popup note says he gets it “From watching Sim suffer”. That’s just really not okay.

Randi is also making steady progress as a Private Investigator, but I’ve uncovered a weakness of hers. In one of her cases, she has the option to befriend, bribe, or beat up a sim for information. Can you guess which one is most suited to an Evil sim? Is there any room for doubt? Of course she’s going to go for the brawl!

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This is Hayley, Ludwig’s new wife. And yes, that is Ludwig, providing some soothing background music as his wife and niece have a bit of an altercation in the front yard.

And if you coudn’t tell in the previous screenshot…Randi LOSES! I’m sure her Loser trait is partly why (or maybe the only reason why), but there is also the fact that Randi has zero athletic skill. I think this woman is going to have to hit the gym.

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I send her there the next afternoon, and who does she run into but her sister-in-law, Trixiebelle! These two haven’t interacted much before, and I’m kicking myself for not making it happen sooner. Randi and Trixie are utterly bored with each other––they’re completely unfazed by each other’s Evil and Inappropriate traits! And thus, they are destined to be best friends. Within a couple hours, that’s exactly what they become. It’s fate.

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Back at home, it’s time for Bambi’s birthday! Peach does the honors. I think these two look somewhat alike in this photo.

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Here’s the birthday girl. Bambi becomes a Bookworm, to go with her Excitable and Insane traits.

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For a short while, Bambi and Leola are the same age, and they both have a rollicking good time, whether together or apart.

Leola’s favorite activity is playing outside. None of the kids in past generations have shown much interest in the springy horse toy or the playground, but Leola hardly does anything else.

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She seems to have given up on her quest for a bedtime story, though. When she finally succeeds in getting one from Grandma Peach, she just looks bored.

“Why did I put so much effort into this...?”

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One afternoon, both girls pop wishes to go for a joyride. It only makes sense that they do it together.

I love watching these two joyriding side by side, because Vehicle Enthusiast Leola always looks like she’s having the time of her life, while Bambi looks absolutely terrified.

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Leola: “Wheee! I can’t wait to do this in real life!”

“Leola! I think…I think I’m stalling! What’s happening?! Why can’t I––“

“You released the clutch too fast, Bambi! You have to release it SLOWLY as you change gears. Oh, and you probably didn’t give it enough gas.”

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“Wait, you're saying our couch is a stick shift?!”

“Duh.”

Bambi seems a little traumatized by her first driving experience. She keeps her helmet and goggles on for the rest of the afternoon, even as she writes on the computer. Hey, writing IS a dangerous activity.

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Leola has her teen birthday. I was totally planning to throw her a birthday party (remember how I promised to throw a party last time…?), but I forgot. So she ages up outside next to her beloved purple springy horse toy thing.

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Leola acquires the Eco-Friendly trait, which seems somehow incompatible with her Vehicle Enthusiast trait. She applies some cruelty-free makeup and cuts her hair. She also becomes possibly the skinniest teen Sim I’ve ever seen. Yikes. I think you need to start using MORE of the earth’s resources, honey, not less.

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With their two oldest children growing up so fast, Gran and Randi decide it’s time to add to the family. Their methods of seduction always cause me to raise an eyebrow, though.

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“YAHH!”

“Aggghh! Why am I so aroused all of a sudden?!”

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“Oh, you devil! Scaring me half to death––I can't get enough of you! Come here!”

At least it works.

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Randi is slowly adjusting to motherhood––that is, she’s slowly putting some more effort in. One night I find her tucking Bambi into bed with a bedtime story. She seems to have lost the book she was holding, but she can still tell a good story, evidently. Bambi loves a good story, even if the bad guys win in the end (she IS insane).

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I feel very lucky to have captured this rare moment of tenderness.

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Hopefully that tenderness continues, because we may have another minion on the way soon!

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Gran, blissfully ignorant of the approaching addition to the household, merrily sings his way through breakfast most mornings. His singing seems to cause a glitch with the frying pan––or maybe he’s purposefully waving the pan around as a part of his pancake serenade. Who knows? In any case, his pancakes are always great quality.

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Let’s end this chapter with one of the funniest (and scariest) glitches I’ve seen yet. Well, mostly scary. This isn’t something you want to see when you look out your window, is it?

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Granville’s fancy sports car gets crushed by the school bus just as Bambi is arriving home from school (or possibly departing school––you may remember, the school is directly across the street). And I make the mistake of pausing the game to look inside the wreckage.

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*shudder*

Good to see you’re okay, Granville...