Sims from Stardew Valley (Finished)

[MarianT]

In the Jungle

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When Sam suggested that they go to Selvadorada, he didn't realize that Abigail would take him up so quickly. Later that day she called him.
"I've made our reservations," she said. "We leave in an hour."
Sam was still protesting when they arrived at their villa. "You didn't give me any time to pack," he said. "I don't even have my guitar."
"You can get one in the market," said Abigail. "I'm sure they have them."

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As it turned out, Abigail was right. Not only could Sam buy a guitar, but the locals promised to teach him some of their songs when he got to be good enough.

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While Sam was strumming, Abigail went off to explore. She soon discovered that she really, really liked hacking away at vines with a machete. There was something primeval, something visceral, about swinging a very sharp knife and seeing vines drop before you.

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When she passed the barrier, she saw a small golden treasure glinting in the rays of sunlight filtered through the leaves. Abigail thought about picking it up, but then thought that it might trigger a trap of some sort. Still, the treasure looked really valuable and she didn't want to leave it behind. Her machete looked as if it might weigh the same as the treasure. Swiftly she swapped one for the other and got out of the way of the fireball she'd set off before it could do more than singe the top of her pith helmet.

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Her path took her to a rope bridge that offered a breathtaking view of a dozen waterfalls. "This place is amazing," she said. "I'll have to bring Sam here to show him."

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The bridge led her to a ruined stone building. At the top she found another threshold barricaded by vines. Without her machete, Abigail had to use her bare hands. It was a painful process, and besides, she was getting hungry. She would come back in the morning after she'd eaten and slept a little.

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Sam listened to the recount of her adventures. "I simply have to get another machete," said Abigail. "Also some plasma bat bait and liquid rush and fire foam..."

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"I'll just sleep on the couch," Sam called, but Abigail was asleep already.

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The next morning Abigail took Sam with her up to the waterfall. He was a little grumpy because he had not been able to do more than nap on the couch, but when he saw the water shimmering in the morning light he agreed that it was amazingly beautiful.

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He was amazed also that he'd never noticed before how pretty Abigail was. He'd always known that she was a fairly attractive young woman, but here, by the waterfall, he thought he'd never seen anyone so lovely. Maybe it was the pith helmet?
Or maybe he was just sleepy.

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Abigail's return coincided with the attack of a swarm of bees. Sam was quite impressed that she had the presence of mind to whip out a Guzmania pollenis and draw them away. "Nice work!" he exclaimed. And he suggested they go to the market to see if she could find another machete.

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There weren't any machetes available, but Sam did find a rose, which he presented to Abigail with a flourish.

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And then he whispered to her that she was so sweet that the butterflies were checking her out.

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Soon the two of them were romantically involved.

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On their last morning, Sam suddenly realized that he would never find a more romantic place for a proposal than Selvadorada. They didn't have time to go up to the waterfall, so he did the next best thing -- he proposed right there, using the band off a Selvadoradian cigar for a ring.

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For a long, long moment, while Abigail inspected the ring, he was afraid she might turn him down. Or she might think it was a cute joke and not take it seriously.

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"Yes," she cried.
Sam still couldn't believe it. "You're not just saying yes because I now have access to the vendors' private stores and can get unlimited machetes?"
"No," said Abigail, "unless you're only asking me  because you don't want to have to sleep on the couch the next time we come."

[coolsim9999999]

Wow!  I never thought that Abigail would marry Sam .  Awesome part.

[FrancescaFiori]

What a thrilling chapter! I like Sam and Abigail's rapport. They do seem to compliment each other awfully well.

[MarianT]

Four Weddings but no Funeral

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As soon as she got back, Abigail went to talk to David2, her purple guinea pig. He affectionately bit her on the nose.

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She then told her mother that Sam had proposed, and she had accepted him. "Wonderful!" said Caroline. "We'll go shopping for your dress tomorrow. Oh, and I'll see if Emily Hudson can do the catering. We may have to go into the city to find a pianist and also look for a photographer..."
Abigail slipped away while her mother was still talking.

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"I don't want a big wedding," she told Sam. "Did you know that 30 percent of all couples spend more than $10,000 on their weddings? It would take us forever to pay it off. Let's just elope." Sam, who had no interest in dressing up in a tuxedo, agreed.

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The second wedding took place between Sebastian and Penny. Sebastian discovered that he liked having Penny around. "If you marry me," he told her, "then you won't have to waste any time walking over to use my computer."

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Penny wanted to elope, too. "Let's keep it as private as possible," she told Sebastian. "You know my mother and punch bowls."

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Maru had vowed never to become interested in anyone again but to spend the rest of her life rescuing strays. She had heard there were many strays that could be found on Deadgrass Island in the middle of the night. She didn't find any dogs or cats there, but she did find Shane Wetzel. It was obvious that he'd been imbibing too freely of juice.

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"Shane," she said, "you've got to lay off the juice. It's really bad for your liver. I've been a nurse. I should know."
"I don't need a lecture from you!" he shouted.

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Maru shouted back. "You need a lecture from someone! You're ruining your life. And don't say it doesn't matter what you do. Of course it matters."
"I'm sorry," said Shane. "I just had a bad day and I was taking it out on you."
"No," said Maru. "You were taking it out on yourself. I just got in the way."

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Shane left, but Maru stayed at the beach until daybreak, watching the waves roll in. To her surprise, she got a text from Shane soon after sunrise: Ur rt. I do need help. Come over & talk?

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"I'm going juice-free from now on," said Shane. "I want to thank you for being honest with me. Come out for breakfast?"

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Over breakfast (Shane drank water), he told her that he hated his job at Jojamart. "If I work harder I can get a promotion, but I don't really want a promotion," he said. "It's like going deeper into the inferno. But I do want to make progress at something."
"Quit your job," Maru suggested. "You could take up..." she hesitated. Leah was the town painter, Clint and her mother the woodworkers, Willy Breen the fisher, Elliott the writer, and Sam the musician. "You could help me when I set up my vet clinic."
"Or I could take up fossil-hunting," mused Shane.

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In no time at all, he and Maru got married.

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From the diary of Tildy Holmes:
Rasmodius was talking to a small animal in a cage when I went to see him.
"Great news!" he greeted me. "The Junimos have decided to try living with us as small pets. This is Junimouse, that's Hogimo, that's Guinimo, and Bubimo is the purple one."
"I'm surprised they're willing to stay in a cage," I said.
"Well, they don't stay any longer than they want to," said Ras. "Hogimos went over to Whiskerman's Wharf and sent me a postcard, and Guinimos is experimenting with rocket fuel. They pretty much come and go as they please."
"I have great news, too," I said. "The eighth wedding just took place. That means mine is the next, except I have no idea whom to marry. It seems like all the eligible bachelors have been taken."
Wizard Rasmodius coughed. "All?" he questioned.

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And then he surprised me by dropping to one knee. I tried to stop him. "No. Wait. Are you sure you want to do this?"
Of course he was really embarrassed that I'd turned him down. And I felt really bad about hurting his feelings. So he apologized and I apologized.

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The next time he proposed, I said yes, and we had a quiet wedding at home.

And this ends the first part of Sims in Stardew Valley.

[FrancescaFiori]

The wizard! I absolutely did not see that coming! What fun! I like Shane and Maru together, too. I think she'll be very good for him.

This was a lovely journey, and it was so nice to see everything come together so nicely. I'm very happy to see that this is only the end of the "first part!" What's next, I wonder? I can't wait to find out!

[oshizu]

Tildy and the Wizard, how perfect!
Looking forward to getting to know all the couples better in Part 2!

[MarianT]

Introduction to Part II

A few words before I begin the next section (more than a few words, actually, but I'll put the dull stuff in spoilers). First of all, from now on this is going to be more Sims than Stardew Valley, and once I go to Generation 3, it will be entirely Sims. If we get Seasons, I might try to incorporate more of the Stardew Valley festivals.

This isn't based on any challenge, although I do hope to get the Ten Families, Ten Generations Achievement, assuming my computer lasts that long. It's kind of an anti-challenge and definitely doesn't involve min-maxing. If you're interested in my play style, here it is:

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

I'll be playing on long, with Aging for Active Household Only. All my families will have at least one pet -- cat, dog, or rodent -- and will have to do laundry. I may have everyone join some club, too. My families will be able to move to larger houses as they have more money. I'll play in rotation, 3 days per family. Chapters will be irregular for a while. Some periods may not be covered simply because everyone is just grinding at skills and jobs.
Playing on long, some age groups are too long, for me, anyway, so here's my schedule:
Babies age up when good friends with both parents.
Toddlers age up when all toddler skills are maxed.
Children age up when all childhood aspirations are achieved.
Teens age up when they have 3 character traits, either positive or negative.
YAs age up when they've maxed cooking, handiness, and parenting.
Adults age up when they've maxed a career or completed their lifetime aspiration.

I haven't decided what to do with elders yet. They might move in with their adult children if the house is big enough.

I've tried to leave enough room for future venues and more houses.

Besides thanking ShaddBoi1 for his many Sears houses, I also want to thank @Playalot for her Contemporary, Maybe? (no one is living there yet, but someone will), and Arid Ridge (Sam Marsh and Abigail Soriano, currently). I also want to thank @IronicBeauty for the house that Dr. Harvey and Leah Stauffer moved to.

[FrancescaFiori]

You are such a champion writer of challenges! This sounds like it's going to be a lot of fun to play, and to read about. Thanks so much for sharing your ruleset and your thought process. I'm so excited to see the whole town full of families progress!

[MarianT]

2.1 Good News!

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"Yes, that's great news, Haley. And I'm so glad that Alex is pleased with the little fellow."

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As soon as Mayor Ted Lewis hung up the phone, it rang again. Matilda Holmes this time.
"A beautiful little girl, with the tiniest finger nails? Congratulations!"
Lewis was grinning when he turned to Marnie. "Can you believe it? Six new babies in Pelican Town. We're having a population explosion and I couldn't be happier."
"That's great, dear. There's something --"
The phone rang again.

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This time it was Elliott Betancourt.
"You and Gunther decided to adopt? And you ran into Robin and Demetrius Carpenter at the agency? How wonderful!"
Lewis turned to Marnie. "If you're looking for a job opportunity now that the ranch is gone, you could try running a diaper service. With 8 babies in town, there's certainly a need."

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Marnie coughed. "As I was trying to tell you, dear, I've started a new career -- in politics. I was thinking you might be able to give me a few pointers. I held my first protest this morning, and the only person who showed up was another protester"
"I've never actually done a protest," said Mayor Lewis.

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"Or maybe you can tell me how to deal with the opposition," Marnie continued. "I ran into Victor Feng this morning and got into an argument with him. He's the head of the Simist Party, you know, and of course I'm a Siman."
"Just don't talk to the opposition," said Lewis. He wondered if now was the right time to tell Marnie that he'd been a Simist all his life. Probably not.

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Now that they had a little extra money, Marnie and Lewis decided to adopt a kitten for Jas. Nobody could think of a good Siamese name, so they called him Simkit.

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Unfortunately the woman from the shelter definitely preferred animals to little girls. "My dollhouse!" squeaked Jas. "What have you done to it?"

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That night, after Lewis had repaired the dollhouse, Jas had a chat with the monster under her bed. "See my dollies?" she said. "This terrible woman tried to take their home away from them. Here's her name and address. I want you to go and make her life miserable."
Her Aunt Marnie might be going into politics, but Jas knew all about intrigue.

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At Elliott's and Gunther's house, little Jeffrey became a toddler.

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The two of them also adopted a puppy, a Jack Russell terrier named Coco.

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The ultimate in cuteness -- Jeffrey inexpertly picking up Coco.

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Over at the Mullners'/O'Briens' Alex and Cody are having some quality father-son time. Cody has the wild trait, so he loves this. We hope he'll live long enough to try roller coasters.

[FrancescaFiori]

So many babies! The town is booming! And adorable baby animals, too!

I hope Mayor Lewis isn't too threatened by Marnie's entering politics. I have a hunch she'll be quite good at it!

[MarianT]

2.2 Meet the Toddlers

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In alphabetical order: First up is Madilyn Barnhart, daughter of Cliff Barnhart and Emily Hudson. Cliff is a self-employed woodworker, and Emily is in the culinary business. Emily has no interest in being married or having a family, so Cliff is raising Madilyn on his own. Madilyn has the clingy trait.

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Jeffrey Betancourt is the charming son of Elliott Betancourt, a writer, and Gunther Rowley, the town's curator. He's already friends with their Jack Russell terrier Coco.

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Amy Bibbler is the daughter of Penny Bibbler, a part-time teacher, and Sebastian Carpenter, a computer whiz, and the granddaughter of Pam Bibbler and Robin Carpenter. She might look angelic, but she can throw her cereal bowl with the best of them.

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Stephen Carpenter is the son that Robin and Demetrius Carpenter, a scientist, adopted when they began feeling the pangs of empty-nest syndrome. He is independent, but will probably become attached to their labrador, Sooty.

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Valerie Holmes is the daughter of Matilda Holmes, a farmer, and the Wizard Rasmodius. Besides being fussy, she's a little bit different. No cats or dogs here, but as soon as she's older she can get to know Junimouse the rat, Hogimo the hedgehog, Guinimo the hamster, and Bubimo the Bubalus.

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Gus Maldonado is the son of Maru Carpenter, veterinarian, and Shane Maldonado, astronaut. He is also the grandson of Robin and Demetrius Carpenter and great nephew of Marnie Maldonado. Gus is inquisitive and will soon learn more about Cookie Monster, their English setter.

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Cody O'Brien is the son of Alex O'Brien, the athlete, and Haley Hudson, the Internet personality. He's the great-grandson of George and Evelyn Mullner. Possessing the wild trait, it's likely that he'll inherit his father's athleticism. He already has his mother's good looks.

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Raina Soriano is the daughter of Abigail Soriano, archaeologist, and Sam Marsh, guitarist. She's the granddaughter of Pierre and Caroline Soriano and Jodi and Kent Marsh. She is another independent child but fond of Abigail's purple "guinea pig," David2.

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Kathy Stauffer is the daughter of Dr. Frank Harvey and Leah Stauffer, who's an artist. The glasses make her look serious, but she's actually quite silly. Her future friends are Itsy, a Grand Bernese, and Bitsy, an Irish Wolfhound.

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Besides the above nine toddlers, I'm including Vincent Marsh and Jas Lewis as future founders. That means I'll be following 11 families in total. (Some people can't count -- I thought I had only 10 children. Oh well...)

[FrancescaFiori]

What a marvelous tour of all the toddlers! Interesting about Clint being a single Dad, but it does make a lot of sense, and he looks very sweet reading to Madilyn.
Kathy does look awfully serious in that picture, and so perfectly color-coordinated. Nice to know that she's silly at heart.
It's also fun that all the families have pets! I look forward to meeting them in the future.

[Magpie2012]

Are Vincent and Jas related in any way? Sorry, my brain is fried so I can't recall so well lol If they aren't they could always hook up with each other and then it will only be 10 families you follow :-)

[MarianT]

Are Vincent and Jas related in any way? Sorry, my brain is fried so I can't recall so well lol If they aren't they could always hook up with each other and then it will only be 10 families you follow :-)

Jas and Vincent aren't related, so that is a possibility.

[MarianT]

2.3.101 Week One -- Barnharts

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"Clint, I really do think it's better if we not see each other any more," said Emily Hudson. "You're a great guy, and I don't want to hurt your feelings more than necessary. Take my word for it, I know that marrying you would be a mistake."
"I can accept that," said Clint, "but I wish that you would at least come and visit your daughter.

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She's really quite adorable, and she has your big blue eyes.

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Well-behaved, too. She doesn't like peas, but she ate every one without throwing them all over the floor."
"Doesn't sound much like my daughter then," said Emily.

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At that moment Madilyn Barnhart came inside. She was rather shy so she peeked at the new person through her fingers.
"You brought her here?" hissed Emily. "I thought you'd agreed not to use her as a ploy to get me to marry you."
"Maddy is not a ploy," protested Clint. "It's okay, pumpkin," he hastily assured his daughter. "I just thought for her sake -- and yours -- that you might want to develop a relationship with her."
"That's not a good idea," said Emily.

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"I had a talk with Dr. Harvey about my being noncommittal with high control needs, and he agreed that exposing a child to an on-again off-again mother would probably not be a good idea.  I'm not going to imprison myself in a dull humdrum existence for her sake, and I don't want to engender the sense of insecurity that would result from my abandoning her several years from now. So I think it would be best if you left," Emily finished.

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Clint took Madilyn with him, but before going home, he stopped to see Dr. Harvey. Just because the guy was a doctor didn't mean he had the right to interfere in Emily's life like that.
Dr. Harvey wasn't home, but his wife Leah and their daughter Kathy were. "Can you say 'Pleased to meet you, Kathy'? Clint prompted. Maddy didn't say anything but did remove one hand from her eyes the better to see the stranger.
"Kathy loves going to the park," said Leah. "I have a commission to work on, but as soon as I finish, maybe we could meet up?"
"Or I could take both girls tomorrow," said Clint. If Maddy wasn't going to have a mother, he could at least make sure she had some friends.

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The park was a big success with Maddy and Kathy. They weren't great friends yet, but they enjoyed the tunnels.

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They only stayed in the park an hour or so before Clint took them home. When he dropped Kathy off, Leah said she would take them too sometime.

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It was hard getting their schedules to mesh, however, so Clint often took just Maddy. He played pirates with her when she pretended she was on a pirate ship (and he leapt higher than he would have thought possible).

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He preferred being an astronaut on her spaceship, though, as this role didn't require much in the way of jumping around.

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Clint couldn't spend all this time playing with his toddler. He had work to do -- mostly supplying Granite Falls National Park with souvenir mascots to sell to tourists. Maddy stayed safely at a distance when she watched him, but Clint felt that she would be safer somewhere else. He tried calling Emily again.

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"Can't you just come over and play with her for an hour or two?" he asked. "You don't have to be her mother -- you could just be a nice lady who comes and plays dolls. Besides, she's such a delight -- I feel selfish keeping her all to myself."
So Emily came over -- "just for an hour," she said.

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Clint took the opportunity of her visit to get some laundry done. He didn't like wasting energy on a machine, so the washtub was a good alternative. Besides, it was better exercise than he would have expected.

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And the clothes definitely needed washing. Maddy's t-shirts might be tiny, but they contained more grubbiness per square inch than his sawdust-encrusted aprons.
But even with a friend and a part-time mother, Clint felt that Maddy's social circle was incomplete.

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A solution occurred to him in the middle of the night and he couldn't wait until morning to act on it. The kitten's name was Cupcake.

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Cupcake was a big success with Maddy.

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And Clint found that he enjoyed her, too. Emily might dread being trapped in a humdrum existence (she was thinking about moving to San Myshuno), but Clint couldn't think of any adventure greater than looking after the two precious gifts in his care.