Fellowship of the Dynasty - And He Lived Happily Ever After...

[Shewolf13]

*giggling helplessly*  Oh Tia... I don't know why, but the line where you're trying not to let the glee in your voice cracked me up XD  I know the later in a dynasty you go, the better it is to have older spouses, right?

[Tiamet]

*giggling helplessly*  Oh Tia... I don't know why, but the line where you're trying not to let the glee in your voice cracked me up XD  I know the later in a dynasty you go, the better it is to have older spouses, right?

*grins* I feel so bad, she started floating and I was like "YES!"

I like older spouses, since you don't have to wait around forever for the next generation.

I've been worried about timing in this generation in particular since seven has to be female and she therefore has only a certain window to have gen eight.  I guess it has more wiggle room when the heirs are all male, since they have the option of fathering a child when they're elders, and can afford to wait until there is room in the house.  I've been worrying about having another Kat situation, where she was supposed to marry Aragorn, but aged up to elder as soon as she moved in...and Lasse took to her like a duck takes to water. 

[Tiamet]

Chapter Eighteen - Dynasty Princess

"Ho yeah!" Tia yelled triumphantly, as Agnes, er, Meaghan dropped her meager belongings in the house.  "Ten days till elder!" 

Legolas smiled and headed to the greenhouse.  Moments later the sounds of Breaking Benjamin flooded the lot, drowning out the constant tunes from the Spring Festival.

"Is he okay?" Meaghan asked, twirling a strand of her pale hair.

"It's how he celebrates," Gimli told her.  "I hooked him up a decent stereo in there."

Meaghan took the opportunity to fix her hair.



"Oh, yeah, much better."

While Meagan got settled, Gimli finished the mystery invention he'd been working on.  With tears in his eyes, he beheld his daughter.



She was given the traditional Dwarven name of Valerie.

Gimli was overjoyed.  Even as Valerie left with the good wishes of the Fellowship, he wanted only one more thing to make his day perfect.



Whether it was moving in with so many men, or her wardrobe change, or maybe the idea of being stepmom to a simbot, Meaghan turned him down. 



But she was not adverse to a night on the town and a little private celebration.

"I don't understand why all the girls you lads bring home have to be flirty."  Legolas said, as he'd ducked another compliment from the overly friendly Meaghan.



"It seems to go with the athleticism.  But she's family oriented, just like the rest of us."

"And evil and a slob."

"Give her a few days in the house," Gimli said, "Tia seems to knock it out of them sooner or later."

"It never really goes away though," Legolas shuddered.

The next night, Gimli asked her again.



She accepted happily and the told him about the baby.



So they had a private wedding in the yard.

Meaghan was not as lucky as Shannon, for doing her workouts brought on labour.  She drove herself to the hospital in Amber's motive mobile.



Gimli joined her and they became the proud parents of Samanthawise.



"She came with a note." Gimli told Tia, handing it over.

"What on earth can he have to complain about," she muttered, reading quickly.  Then she stopped and stared at the baby in Meaghan's arms.  "Oh.  It seems he 'forgot' to mention a few things to Sam here."

[Shewolf13]

Awwwww!  A nooboo!  So close Tia.  Can't believe 7th gen is here!

[Tiamet]

Awwwww!  A nooboo!  So close Tia.  Can't believe 7th gen is here!

I know! This is my first ever pink burrito!   

Chapter Nineteen - Sam's Lament

Samanthawise Fellowship was perfect.



She was also puzzled.  There was something intrinsically wrong with her position.  It wasn't that she was hungry, tired, messy or bored.  In fact, the adults in her life fell over themselves to make sure she was happy.



It wasn't that she was an only child, for her father had 3 simbot kids, Valerie, Savannah,



and her half brother, Julio.



"Who's the widdle princess, then?" Legolas cooed, as he blew raspberries on her tummy.  "Who's the sweet little girl?"



Girl?

Aragorn sighed, as the baby stared at him with incredulous eyes.  How was he going to explain this to her?



She waved her tiny fists at him indignantly.  He looked down in surprise as she repeated the motion.  His years in the police force had included at course in ALS and he watched in astonishment as the babe in his arms signed again.

Strider?  What happened to me?

"I think Gandalf can explain it best," he told her, calling his grandson over.

"Well, you see, Sammi," he began, to be interrupted by the flying fingers.

Sam!

"Oh, you precious thing," Gandalf chuckled, tickling her.



Sam giggled furiously as she waved her little hands.  Stop that!  This is serious!  Then she giggled again.

"You're right, kiddo.  Come on, I'll explain it on a walk."



"You explained the Dynasty rules to a newborn?" Gimli asked, taking his daughter back that night.



"Yes, and she seems to have a firm grip on the situation."  Gandalf told him.  "You just worry about your ops."

I'm still not happy about this, Sam signaled tiredly. 

"It doesn't matter, anyway," Gimli said grimly.  "I'm not letting any boys near her.  Ever!"



"Oi!  Mr Overprotective!"  Legolas called.  "Time for a chat in the greenhouse!"



What happened in the greenhouse stayed in the greenhouse, but it was a humbled and grumpy Gimli who donned his singer costume and went out to trill for tips.



Pip, on the other hand, was reveling in his quest to become the world's oldest acrobat.



Whether it was the way his joints creaked when he contorted or the thrill of wondering if his arthritis cream would catch fire during the fire baton routine, he continued to pack in the crowds.

Sam, like the rest of the Fellowship, aged up to an adorable toddler.



Gimli scooped her up and tossed her in the air.  But Sam had other things on her mind.



So Gandalf sat her down and taught her to speak.



Not surprisingly, given her hobbit nature, her first words were about food.  Specifically, when dinner would be.  Sam was motivated, and picked up the skill quickly.

"Somebody is going to pay for this," she told Gandalf.  "I notice Tia is conveniently absent right now..."



She clung to Legolas, her best friend in the household, for support during these trying, undignified times.  His constant reassurance that all of this was for the best was a comfort to the tiny girl.




 He taught her to walk.



"So, one does simply walk, Great-Great?" she asked.

"Just not into Mordor, my love," he replied.

But they ran into complications with the potty.



All the while, Gimli waited for the ops...

[Shewolf13]

*eyes widen in a cuteness overload*  Awww!  That is too cute!  Not only is she too adorable for words, but I love the fact that she's having an issue with being a girl XD  So cute!

[LivvieLove]

This story is SO hilarious! Oh my gosh I cannot stop laughing! My boyfriend is looking at me like I'm a nutcase! Poor Sam! He's going to be scarred!
What will this do to his(--er--her?) gender identity?!

I swear, Pip was always my favorite and now you've just added the icing on the cake... if he really was reincarnated to do this job I could TOTALLY see him pulling off the acrobat stunts! I love this story! You're almost there! Please don't stop now, otherwise I won't know what to do with myself!

[Tiamet]

*eyes widen in a cuteness overload*  Awww!  That is too cute!  Not only is she too adorable for words, but I love the fact that she's having an issue with being a girl XD  So cute!

I'm having a lot of fun with Sam, I must say!

This story is SO hilarious! Oh my gosh I cannot stop laughing! My boyfriend is looking at me like I'm a nutcase! Poor Sam! He's going to be scarred!
What will this do to his(--er--her?) gender identity?!

I swear, Pip was always my favorite and now you've just added the icing on the cake... if he really was reincarnated to do this job I could TOTALLY see him pulling off the acrobat stunts! I love this story! You're almost there! Please don't stop now, otherwise I won't know what to do with myself!

Thanks, LivvieLove, Pip had definite ideas about how to spend his immortality!  I'm so glad you're enjoying the story, I'm really having a blast with it.

I have to say, though, I didn't have Sam set in stone as the girl until about Gandalf's birth.  The more I thought about it, the more sense it made.  Since then he's always been in the back of my mind as saying "But why do I have to be the one to wear the dress?"

Chapter Twenty - Seventh Gen Stretch

Gimli had given up singing for tips, and had moved on to being a career criminal.  His knowledge of explosives came in handy when faced with stubborn safes and gave him time to spend with his family.



Sam was growing up.  Her toddler days were filled with love and play time.  Aragorn took her out to the spring rider every chance he got.



Merry told her stories constantly.



"And that's how Great-Great Strider got his butt kicked by an old lady with a cane."

"Tell it again, Great-Great Merry.  I like the part where he fell down and broke the table."  Sam begged.

"With all the books you read, this is the only story you can tell her?" Aragorn protested.

She had tons of pretty toys to practice her family...skills...



"Sam, sweetie?" Tia asked cautiously,  "is that doll supposed to be me?"

"Mgragle, orffa bween girl!"  Sam mumbled.  She spat out the doll.  "S'him.  Gonna have words with him."

Tia backed off to see how the rest of the Fellowship were doing.

"Pip!" she hollered.

"Busy! Performing!" he shouted back.



"That's unnatural," she shuddered, as Pip began to hop around the stage.

Gandalf and Merry were teaching Aragorn how to hustle pool.  Meahgan was at the spa.  Legolas was fooling about with the bees.



"You look very calm for someone being attacked by bees." Tia said.

"I'm getting used to it," he shrugged.

But even the most idyllic of toddlerhoods must end.

"Are you ready, Sam?"



"Not bad," Tia mused.  "Off to the dresser with you."

"Hobbit hair?" Sam asked, looking at her leggings and t-shirt with glee.

"Not exactly."



"Honestly, Great-Great, I think she's enjoying this just a little too much," Sam grumbled. 

Over the next few days, Sam worked hard at school and Gimli delivered a strange package.  Then, out of the blue, he got a call to deliver some veggies.



He celebrated the completion of his ops with the traditional sprinkler frolic.  Tia joined him, until she notice a flash of red.

"Social Worker?" she shrieked, flying to Sam.  "Inside, now!" Tia ordered, flipping open the catalogue.



"I didn't know we were on the rainbow slider," Merry said, as he lit the fire.

"We're not," Aragorn told him.  "She's freezing!"

Warmed up, Sam was tucked into bed.  Legolas read her a story.



"And that's what happened to the children who stayed out in the freezing cold without bundling up."

"That was awesome, Great-Great.  Now will you tell me the one about Great-Great Strider again?"

Gimli had a week to go until he aged up to elder.  He quit his job as a criminal, which made Aragorn, the former Police Chief, much happier and hung around with Meaghan.  Gandalf asked him what his plans were.

"I was thinking about looking for dragons," he told him.



"But Tia is having problems with the store."

"Is that what all the swearing was about?"

Sam discovered that Jimmy Sprocket put her grandfathers to sleep.



And then she was a teen.



"I'm keeping the pants." she said, stubbornly.

"Okay, but let's tweak this look a bit," Tia said, pushing her to the dresser.

Sam sighed.

[Shewolf13]

Sam is a gorgeous teen!  Poor kid, almost froze to death XD

[Tiamet]

Sam is a gorgeous teen!  Poor kid, almost froze to death XD

I swear, all sims are mad!  Give them a house, they want to stay out in their jammies, Give them a fridge stocked with their favorite foods, they want to try to cook.  And Gimli...well, you'll see.

Chapter Twenty One - In the Dwarven Halls, Ambrosia!

Gimli had four days to go.  He took the opportunity to spend time with Legolas and Sam, both of them preparing the girl for the tasks before her.



"And I have to do it all dressed like Pat Benatar?" she asked them.

Pip was sympathetic.



"The Dynasty is a harsh mistress," he told her.  "Nectar Making night and day..."

"Speaking of which," his father told him, "you've still got some huge Nectar making wishes queued up.  Why aren't you in the vat?"

"I'm an acrobat now, Dad!  Plus I was just about to help Sam with his, er, her homework."

Tuesday night and Prom rolled around.

"Are you going?" Legolas asked.



"I don't know.  If I change, I guess I am."



"Yep, there it is."

Sam, despite being Prom Queen, did not find romance.  She did, however, get into no less than three fights, have punch spilled all over her, worry about aliens, and get turned down for a dance.

"I couldn't help it," she explained to Pip, when questioned about the fights, "she made this face at me!"



"There's more to life than Prom, Sam," he told her. 

"Oh, I know.  There's revenge."



The next day, after Sam was safely got on the bus, the Fellowship plus Meaghan began to whine as one.

"I'm booooored.  I haven't been out of the house in days."

A spa day was quickly arranged.  Out they all went, to come home chipper and refreshed.

Well, most of them.



"NO! Meaghan!"  Gimli was heartbroken.

So was Tia.  "She was only 91!" she cackled in grief.

Gimli spent the next day re-connecting with his other children.



Julio was sympathetic and tried to console him.

"I know she wasn't the cookie baking type, Julio."

"S'aright, Dad, she were like a mum to me.  A mum who run, screaming "Ahh, a simbot!" but a mum nonetheless.  Me an' the girls is sorry fer yer loss."

"You're a kind lad to say it," Gimli replied, hugging his only son.

Trying to cheer him up, Merry bought him a karaoke machine.  It made Gimli and Sam feel better as they belted out Meaghan's favorites.



The rest of the house stuffed cotton in their ears.

Then Sam left her dull old (out of tune) father, to go and shake hands with whom she hoped would be her next partner.



"How did Arlo get to Appaloosa Plains?" Gandalf asked, elbowing his was through the crowd at the window for a better look.

"Don't be ridiculous, it can't be him."  Legolas said, pushing Gandalf's head down to see for himself.

"Not with those cheekbones." Pip put in, standing on a chair behind him.

"He's wearing capris!" Aragorn snorted, as Merry wiggled under his arm.

"Dad, there are those pictures of you and Uncle Borrie in China.  I wouldn't be saying anything."

Legolas looked around.  "Where's Gimli?"

"Just getting my axe, I mean, that wrench I misplaced the other day," he called cheerfully.

Pip craned over the others and slipped off his chair.  His lightning fast reflexes, tuned by years of acrobatics, turned the fall into a front flip, his feet catching Legolas in the back of the head.  Gandalf lost his footing, fell into Aragorn and Merry and the whole lot of them crashed through the screen, landing in a pile at Pip's feet.

"Ta-da!" he crowed.

Sam's new friend backed away in horror, as much from the tangle of lunatics in front of him as from the cheerful Gimli, thoughtfully smacking his wrench in his hand, who exited the house.

"Come in for a cuppa, lad." he growled.

Arlo's hair and the dashing cheekbones were down the street like a shot.

Sam stamped her foot at them.  "Really?"  She looked at them again, her belligerent father, the flopping grandfathers, and began to laugh.

They all played in the sprinklers till midnight.



Cake slices ignored, one elder portrait done and hung, and Gimli ate his first ambrosia.



Another Fellowship Immortal.

Gimli Fellowship (Gen Six)
Traits: Eccentric, Brave, Lucky, Handy, Charismatic
LTW: Monster Maker
Property: Rustler's Den
Building: Appaloosa Plains Public Library
SuperMax: Inventing
Career: Fourth Dimensional Architect
3 LTR: Efficient Inventor, Artisan Crafter, Festival Frequenter
6 BlackOps: Broadway Cameo, Master Invention, Showtime in the Park, Charismatic Cash, A Package For You, Ingredients Ripe for the Eating.
6 Best Friends: Kate Velasco, Rian Adair, Rene Curran, Ashley Hanna, Julio Fellowship, Cemre Lora
Portraits: Toddler, Child, Teen, Young Adult, Adult, Elder.

[Gwendy]

"How did Arlo get to Appaloosa Plains?" Gandalf asked, elbowing his was through the crowd at the window for a better look.

Not gonna lie, that was my first thought, too. It's also the shirt.

[Shewolf13]

OMG!!! I was dying!  That whole scene of them crowded around the door and them crashing through... pure brilliance! I'm still giggling at it XD

[Tiamet]

Not gonna lie, that was my first thought, too. It's also the shirt.

*grins*  We now have Arlo Impersonators.  How cool is that?

OMG!!! I was dying!  That whole scene of them crowded around the door and them crashing through... pure brilliance! I'm still giggling at it XD

Thanks, I thought it was something they would do! 

Chapter Twenty Two - A Girl's Gotta Do What A Girl's Gotta Do.

Samanthawise was a brilliant, talented and outgoing teenage girl.  But underneath it all, she was a hard-headed little hobbit with definite opinions and a couple of grudges.  She was bitterly disappointed that she couldn't garden, although cooking was an acceptable substitute.  As for the other indignity, well, when she got a hold of him...

But Sam also had to deal with hormones the rest of the Fellowship couldn't even fathom.  She couldn't seem to get Not-Arlo out of her head.

She was delighted when she came home from school to find him chatting about his hopes for love and family with Merry.



"Oh, Great-Great Merry," she trilled, as the smell of baking wafted through the open window.  "I've made your favorite, nice fresh Country Bread."

Clever, clever Samanthawise, knowing the way to open a hobbit's mouth is to wave food in front of it.

Not-Arlo hopped into his ride and disappeared.  Merry came in and sat down with his granddaughter, salivating at the mounds of fresh butter and jam on his bread.

"Not so fast," Sam told him.  "You were chatting all afternoon.  What's the skinny?"

"His name's Zakary." Merry shrugged, reaching for the platter.  "Turns out he's never even heard of the Bunch family, funny, inn'it."

"Don't forget that he's one of those guys who claims he's waiting for true love," Pip said, pulling up a chair and reaching for the treats.

"He's our new paparazzi.  Don't know why we need a new one, Helen Meza is still calling for dates."  Gandalf said, drawn in by the aroma. 

Merry choked a bit.  "She's one of my best friends, son.  Try to show a little respect, the woman has got to be 900 years old by now."

"And still human," Gandalf pointed out.

"Back to Zakary," Sam said firmly.  "Being one of the pap, he'll be hanging around the front gate anyway.  I want you guys to make friends with him.  Keep him around until I get home from school."

So they did, hiding all of Gimli's heavy tools first.

Sam chatted him up constantly.



"He's so dreamy," she told her grandfathers, once Zakary had bolted once again at the sight of Gimli sharpening his screwdriver.

"He looks a little shifty eyed to me," he rumbled, as Sam took the rest of his tools away.  "He's too old for you."

"Everyone is too old for me!" Sam protested.  "Except Riley, and he's not right in the head."

But that was soon to be rectified.



Happy Birthday, Sam!

"Okay, Tia," she sighed, heading to the dresser.  "What kind of frou-frou are you putting me in now."

"Nothing, actually.  You look great!"



Sam spent the first day of her young adulthood running about town, buying property and getting a job at the diner.  Legolas gave her Amber's old motive mobile.

Zakary came by and enjoyed a game of billiards with Gandalf. 



But as soon as Sam got home, he bolted.  There was no time to chase him, as graduation was working again.



Sam was Valedictorian and Most Likely to Have a Large Family.

"Not bloody likely" Gimli snorted.  Pip decided to get into the Fellowship Sleeping Bag act.

But her romance with Zakary was proving more problematic.  Sam, having built up a relationship with her sisters over the years, called Savannah for help.  Valerie was a loner, but Savannah was more outgoing.



"But that's just it, Sav, I can't get married.  That's how it goes."

"You can get engaged, Sam, there's no rule against that."

"Isn't that a little underhanded?" Sam asked.  "Oh, hey Greg," she waved at the postman.  "I mean since it'll never happen?"

"Never say never, Sam."  Savannah told her.  "How's Dad dealing with all this?"

Sam laughed.  "Badly.  But Great-Great just keeps giving him the evil eye."

So after a lot of romantic interactions under the treehouse at Cinnamon Crest, Sam proposed and Zakary accepted.  She tried to ignore the fact that her teeth were starting to chatter from the cold and Zakary had to pee.  Three times she tried to lure him up to the little love nest, and three times it wouldn't work.  They couldn't get up the ladder.  So home they went.

He gave her flowers, and then took off for parts unknown.



Sam was getting frustrated.  She had been chasing him down for four days.  The next morning she rounded up the grandfathers and sent them off to the spa.  Gimli grumbled about being chased from his rocker for a paparazzi.

"He's a line cook now. Just go, I keep getting these urges to just marry Zak and I don't know how long I can hold out."

So off they went, and Sam made the phone call.  It took six tries, but the chimes were finally heard.

After throwing up on Valerie at work, Sam came home to tell the family.



Gimli pushed back the urge to find his tools and tried to give Sam a massage for her aching back.



"Dad!" she shrieked.  "My legs aren't supposed to do this!"

Zakary was overjoyed.



As were the grandfathers



And her sisters and brother.



Appropriately enough, on Love Day Sam went into labour.  Zak met her at the hospital, and a few hours later, Frodo made his appearance.



Gen Eight was here.

[AkonIsAwesome]

I really love your story! It's great to read! I'm always amazed by the careers and skills that everyone uses in their dynasties - I'd never be brave enough to try Nectar-making or self-employment careers. They seem so difficult.

[Tiamet]

I really love your story! It's great to read! I'm always amazed by the careers and skills that everyone uses in their dynasties - I'd never be brave enough to try Nectar-making or self-employment careers. They seem so difficult.

Thanks!  I'm glad you're enjoying it, I'm having a lot of fun with it.

I was afraid of the careers and skills too, but I found that if I did some preparation in the generations before it made it much easier.  For instance, when Aragorn went to France back in Gen Two, he didn't just pick up the Nectar Makers, but some high quality nectar as well.  That was what Pip sold to reach level ten, it had been aging forever down in the basement.

When I knew Gandalf was going to do Alchemy, I started Legolas growing the ingredients he would need for the potions I would use the most of.  Plus he bought out the expensive potions at the store, so that it was the same, one day career boost for Gandalf.

The best thing about the dynasty is that it makes you try new things and you will learn so much about the game from doing it.  Yours is coming along quite nicely!