When the Zombies Come -- a Cottoneye Decadynasty (COMPLETED)

[SimBlip]

Oh! A love letter oozing hearts... very romantic!
Damian Bromberg opens his heart *giggle*
How nice to take care of Betty S. and so sad she didn't get pregnant.
Egypt does indeed look gorgeous and more vibrant then ever now.
Great update!

[MarianT]

Thanks, SimBlip!

Rosa, I do love Seasons.  You get an extra dimension to the stories with the changes in seasons, and you can take longer with romance. As for the complications -- basically you just have to make sure that you don't try for baby at a time when the heir will be a child during winter.

[Roxanne07]

I truly enjoy reading this, Marian. Your story is just full of emotion, and Seasons makes it even better! 

Great updates! Chase is such a cute boy!

[Louise56]

I love your story! You was the first to put Seasons in a story and I could get a taste of it  when it wasn't released in SA yet.

[MarianT]

Chapter Nine – So Little Time

   I tried to make the most of my business trip to Egypt. I made friends with one of the explorers at base camp, Henri Fouchier (he’s from France, in case you couldn’t figure it out from the name).



   And I fished. I now have several crocodiles in case I get that opportunity.



   But I worry that I shall never get another opportunity until I become an elder, thereby failing the decadynasty and disappointing my ancestors, not to mention depriving my progeny of the chance to become world-famous. So I decided to consult the genie.



   She couldn’t do much for me opportunity-wise, but she did shower me with a fortune in simoleons. I used the money to buy the hospital where Grace is rising rapidly in her profession.



   More rapidly than I am in mine, although she is still at a lower rank. These holidays are great for morale, but they do cut into the work week. I’ll reach the top of my career before I become an elder, so it’s not a big problem. Betty is a friendly soul, so the three of us should be able to achieve the required number of best friends and service friends. I’m not sure I could ask the questions that Betty does, however. “How did you die?” is something I always thought was a sensitive topic for a ghost.



   Betty also helps in the garden, which is apparently still considered pleasant enough to attract a gnome. At least, that’s how I assume we acquired this fellow; none of us brought him home from the Spring Festival.



   Thanks to my trip to China, I have managed to max the fishing skill and also complete the Ichthyologist Challenge. I still need 135 more fish (and another 5 opportunities).



   The day of my birthday, I decided to take a break from fishing and go to the Summer Festival with Sarah. We had a great time skating.



   Until we fell, that is. It was my fault entirely – Sarah’s a really accomplished skater, able to go backwards and spin on her own.



   We both had a good laugh over it, and then went over to the Fish Hatchery where I caught a jellyfish. For once, there weren’t any paparazzi around, and I took advantage of our privacy to explain a little about the decadynasty to her and why it might be a while before I could get married. And then I proposed.



   To my relief, she said yes. I told her she could take time to think it over, but she said yes. Yes! But she had to go home because she was getting sleepy. She's a light sleeper, so she doesn't always get a good night's sleep. Sarah is also brooding, a gatherer, a couch potato, and hot-headed. I hope she doesn't decided to break things off between now and the wedding.

        After she left, I had my birthday. It was just me and a unicorn. That should be a good sign, don’t you think?



   I hope so, because I’m in full mid-life crisis mode now. So much to do, so little time. (Five opportunities! 135 fish! Aaah!)

Peace, Chase Cottoneye

[Roxanne07]

Good luck on the rest of your requirements, Chase!

[SimBlip]

An Easter Bunny gnome! How cute!
Congratulations on your engagement and best wishes for your opps, Chase!

[RainBeau]

Technically, the genie could help with opportunities. Unless genies can't ever join the household, I can't remember.

[MarianT]

I didn't know genies could get you an opportunity. But they can't join the household. The only occult allowed is the witch.

[RainBeau]

Oh, then they can't. The only genie-connected opportunities are the ones that relate to bringing them into the household. Although I suppose in a pinch you could do the first two ops and ignore the last one, but I don't know what you would do with the lamp.

[MarianT]

Chapter Ten – Waiting and a Wedding (not mine)

   I have finally caught 350 cold, slimy, smelly fish. I had to go to China to do it, but I’m done. I learned one interesting thing – the place where you stand to catch deathfish is marked by a “No Fishing” sign.



   I haven’t had to work these past few days. I was hoping to be offered an opportunity in guitar or even fishing (I’ve got crocodiles, I’ve got dragonfish), but the only phone calls have been from elderly women wanting to date me and a self-designated agent (I know I’m in show biz, but I don’t really want an agent). In short, not much is happening. We had a deer bounce by the house the other day.



   Grace aged up and promptly went into a mid-life crisis just like mine (except that she was allowed to get a make-over).



   She also went to a costume party. I think she looks much better as a mermaid than she did as a burglar.



   Grace decided to develop her logic skills by concocting a Young Again potion for Betty. Both of us believed strongly that she and Bob Newbie were destined to be together and to have a child who might become friends with my children (if I ever complete enough opportunities to have them) and perhaps even marry into the dynasty. Unfortunately, she has mostly succeeded in blowing herself up.



   But Betty took matters into her own hands yesterday. She found a bottle marked “Fountain of Youth” at the Elixir Shop and bought it. As soon as she’d swallowed the potion, she had a strange feeling.



   It couldn’t have happened to a nicer and more deserving girl. Betty is really sweet. If I weren’t already in love with Sarah…but no, I’d keep remembering that she really belongs to the same generation as my great-grandparents.



   Anyway, she called up Bob and invited him over. Grace and I had hoped to cure him of vampirism, too, but we never found the right elixir. We heard chimes a little while after they went upstairs.



   Shortly after that, Betty proposed.



   The next thing we knew they were married. Betty moved out to join Bob. I guess it was necessary, because there’s a 50-50 chance her baby will be a vampire, which would have wrecked our dynasty. Still, we’ll miss her.



   I hope all goes well with them. Let’s hear it for Bob and Betty Newbie – I mean Simovitch! May they live long and prosper.

Peace, Chase Cottoneye

[SimBlip]

The picture of the deer in front of the house is stunning! I wish small wonders like that happen in real life.
Grace looks sultry in her mermaid outfit.
And, oh yes, let's have it for Betty Simovitch! Chase and Grace are such good children to come true on Cherie's promise! Hooray, Betty and Bob! 

[MarianT]

Chapter Eleven – Another Wedding (mine)

   After I reached the top of my career in music, becoming a Hit Movie Composer, I achieved my lifetime wish and picked up a Motive Mobile. The next thing I did was to quit my job and apply for work as a private investigator.



   Did I want to do this? No. I love music; I love making music. But I’ve only received one skill opportunity in my entire adult life, and I did not want to wait until I almost became an elder for three opportunities that might not materialize. So I spent a night and a day driving through blizzards and rifling through the mail of strangers, in order to solve three private investigator cases.



   I was terrified the whole time that the paparazzi would catch me and I’d lose some of my friends. When I invited Sarah over the house, she didn’t want to come (well, it was 8 a.m.), and I was afraid that someone had told her I’d been rummaging in garbage cans.



   Luckily, she agreed to marry me.



   We bid good-bye to her housemates, her sister Kristal and Odin Crosby, and headed for the bedroom. There I heard the sweetest music ever – chimes playing Rock-a-Bye, Baby.



Peace, Love, and Happiness, Chase Cottoneye

P.S. I’m really hoping this one is a girl – Betty and Bob had a boy.

[RainBeau]

So much yay in the last two updates! I hope it's a girl too! They absolutely must get married! It's too good not to happen.

[MarianT]

Thanks, Rosa and SimBlip!

And SimBlip, we get deer regularly in our back yard, but yes, it is a small wonder. Even though we've lived here for 6 years, we still go to the window to watch.