Entry Five: The First Birthday
"Sabrina!" Adam called as he walked into the house, "Sabrina, He came!"
There was no answer. Adam frowned as Father Time stepped inside, "Sabrina," her father called timidly.
Silence.
Adam ran up the stairs and into the room with the orb. He let out a frightened gasp as his eyes fell upon his sister.
"What's happened?" Father Time asked, concerned, just reaching the top of the stairs. The color left his face the moment he saw his daughter. "Get the Altar," he said to Adam, his tone serious, "now,"
At that moment Sabrina's eyes flung open and she let out a bloodcurdling scream. She thrashed around on the floor, her limbs lashing out violently.
Adam returned, dragging the Altar behind him. "Help me lift her," Father Time commanded urgently. The two men carried Sabrina over to the Altar with difficulty. The moment the Watcher was over the Altar, her body relaxed and she fell silent. As Her family watched, Sabrina's skin turned a sickly green; a sign that the Altar was working.
"Now, where's the dynasty founder?" Father Time asked, not taking his eyes off of Sabrina.
Adam, breathing heavily, responded, "The Sim World."
Father Time turned immediately to face Adam, "What did you just say?" he whispered, his voice quivering.
"The founder is in the Sim World," Adam repeated confused, "What's wrong?"
Father Time sighed, "We need the founder here," he explained, "And since it's a dynasty, the only way for sims to get here is...death." his voice broke on the last word.
Hopelessness engulfed Adam as a single tear fell from his eye. "How-" he paused and swallowed, "How long does she have?"
Father Time looked down, avoiding his son's eyes.
"Isn't there another way?" Adam asked desperately.
Father Time sighed, "Well, there is True Love's Kiss. But since Sabrina's true love is-"
At that moment, a familiar high-pitched tone reached Adam's ears. He turned and saw the orb glowing on the table.
"You must help the dynasty," Father Time said urgently.
"But, that's not what my powers are for. I can't...I've never..."
"Listen to me, boy," Father Time rose and grabbed Adam by the shoulders, "That dynasty is your sister's only chance. And right now, the dynasty needs someone to guide them. If you don't do this, they will fail. I'm begging you," he looked at his son pleadingly, "do this for your sister."
Adam looked back at him uncertainly, "But if my powers weren't meant for using the orb, won't they-"
"Yes," Father Time interrupted, "But it's a risk we're going to have to take."
Adam swallowed, not meeting his father's eyes. He nodded. Slowly, he walked over to where the journal was lying open on the ground. He picked it up and flipped to a clean page.
Adam sat down, then glanced back at his sister, lying motionless on the Altar. He took a deep breath, then touched the orb. He gasped, and began to write...
For years I've wondered what being the Watcher was like. When I was little, I used to stare as mother would place her hand on the orb, making it glow. Now, it's me in the chair, me guiding sims. And I hate it.
Its like looking through a cloud. Everything's foggy. Sometimes, when there's a gap, I can see clearly, and it's amazing. But other times the fog completely hides my view and all I see is darkness. When this happens, my thoughts get all jumbled and I can't think straight. It's really disorienting.
After taking a few minutes to adjust, I was able to make my way to the Bellator household. I opened my mouth to say something, but hesitated. How should I introduce myself? Was there something specific I had to say? At that moment I realized exactly how unprepared I was for this. But it needed to be done.
I cleared my throat cautiously, "Hey guys, what's up?"
Chris looked around, startled, "You're not the Watcher, who are you? Where is she?"
"My name's Adam, but sims know me as the Grim Reaper. Sab- I mean, the Watcher, is my sister. I'm standing in for her."
"Where is she?" Christopher repeated.
I took a deep breath, ready to tell him everything, but I paused. Watching was a tricky business, I had to be careful. I found myself thinking, 'What would Sabrina do?' When the answer came to me, I replied, "She's out of town at the moment. She has some business to take care of."
Chris nodded slowly, not looking convinced. I sighed.
"So, what's going on?" I asked, trying to change the subject.
"It's Michael's birthday today," Chris responded.
"Really? Wow. Is Michael your first kid?"
"Yeah," Chris answered, smiling, "He's named after a famous athlete, you know."
Speaking of athletes, I was flipping through the journal earlier and I noticed that my silly, silly sister forgot to mention everyone's traits.
-Christopher: great kisser, natural cook, angler, friendly, nurturing (replaced daredevil)
-Jamie: flirty, virtuoso, party animal, genius, bookworm
-Michael: athletic, friendly
Jamie quickly planned Michael's birthday party. It wasn't a bad turn out.
Then she brought the little tyke to the cake.
"Okay, Michael," she whispered happily to her baby, "make a wish."
Even though there were a lot of guests, only Chris came to cheer.
"This kid needs a makeover," I said to Jamie, "Badly."
Everyday:
Formal:
Sleepwear:
Seriously, if I didn't have a manly reputation to uphold, I'd be all over this kid.
He has Jamie's eyes and skin tone, and Christopher's hair. And are those the famous Steel lips I see?
But the birthday wasn't the last eventful thing to happen that day.
I guess that Jamie got pregnant again while Sabrina was out.
"ARGH," Jamie cried out in pain.
"she's having the baby! She's having THE BABY!" Chris screamed over and over.
"Look man," I said calmly to Chris, "Your screams probably aren't helping. Why don't you just go lay down or something?"
Chris nodded and darted into his room where he immediately fell asleep.
Meanwhile...
Welcome to the world, Audrey Bellator.-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Adam fell back as his mind was ripped away from Sunset Valley. Father Time hurried to his son's side.
"How do you feel?" Father questioned anxiously.
Adam, breathing shakily, responded, "Drained. Completely drained."
Father Time let out a sigh of relief. Adam turned to look at his father, but darkness started to close around his vision. He slumped to the side, almost falling out of the chair. "What's happening to me?" he asked in a strained voice.
Father Time bit his lip, thinking carefully, "You see Adam, our powers, our abilities, are very...unique. One could say that they have a mind of their own. What happens is that when your powers are presented with something they're not made for, they recognize it, and they adapt. When you used the orb, your abilities didn't know how to handle it. That's why you feel terrible. But the more you use the orb, the more your powers will adapt." Father Time helped Adam to his feet before continuing.
"However, if your powers change too much, there will be...consequences. But as long as your abilities don't fully adapt to the orb, everything will be okay."
Adam looked up at his father with worried eyes. "And what happens if they do adapt fully?" he asked in a whisper.
Father Time hesitated, "Hopefully, you won't have to find out."
