Chapter XVI.
So we had a few days in Winter at the big house before I realised I need to learn stuff, and started a quick Learn Your Garden save - I posted the quaint house elsewhere. But you're a forum regular, so you might've seen that.
Not long after loading up the save in Winter, the first snows settled in. This is great and cozy. It reminds me of The Sims 4.
Scarlett's hubby is an elder. Rather too soon. I'm such a fan of the Cats & Dogs paintings, and there's a nautical theme to the study. One of my favourite novels is Dickens' semi-autobiographical
David Copperfield. And some of the Cats & Dogs decor captures that magical, wide-eyed, and somewhat naive childhood fascination with the sea as the early chapters of the novel. The pictures feel like they belong in Peggotty's upturned boat. I'm rambling.
Here's the family!
I had to remove the club activity of using the diving board, because brave manly men - Don - would actually go out into the blizzard to do that. He's with us until we know if he child with Alexis is a girl. If it is, he moves into Slipshod, if not we try again. Those are the cold weather clothes that they were all randomly assigned, don't worry. If you're keen to see what insane, evil Persephone keeps warms in (and you weren't, but it's polite to go along with me here) that's still to come.
Elderly Wolfie makes his way to be a pro athlete in the blizzard. That's breaking the realism. Poor man.
Experience with another save makes me worry that everyone will be slipping in mud when spring comes.
More moody shots of the weather. Like everyone else, I took a disproportionate number of pictures of fairly mundane moments... because Seasons. In a complete surprise, Scarlett thinks deeply about juice making.
Moving on, Don got him some hot weather clothings. Don is a subtle, refined, elegant sim. I'm
told I go for Elegant, so this must be it.
Persephone reminds me of something out of Dr Seuss. I couldn't not use that.
Persephone's current ambition is - rather optimistically - to be everyone's friend. To meet people. In different places! Friends! And when Ahilac invited Persephone over, she wanted to see that house in the snow.
And who did we find wandering in the snow... but Darling Walsh. Look at the cogs turning in the Grinch's green face!
Darling was a day from Elder when she moved in. No matter. Nothing a cloned serum can't fix. We have plans for Darling!
She's pulling a face because she's completely ungrateful for the present she got. If you're wondering if I ever changed her hair or clothes, no I didn't. So I trust you'll cope with the disappointment. You'll be fine.
Here's the fully decorated "winterfest" tree. I think that red carpet looks really great, and I'm just so pleased that there's space for such a thing in a house.
And most of the household are here for the grand meal. If some aren't, that's not because I made them go streaking the snow. Obviously. Like, who does that?
Katherine was trying to be a Rambunctious Scamp. And... she didn't die of cold. So. Good stuff.
Having completed festivities, the next plan was put into action. We visit the Flints at Oakenstead. They moved in before anyone from the eugenics family could, and that's sad. But! If a young girl was born here, she could be thrown at one of the green Slipshod boys! The catch is that the inconvenient Flints are not accommodating of this. They were a neat family of four when they moved. The mother, London. The father, Sylas. The children, Ashley and Lilah. But now the parents are elders - so London can't have any more - and the daughter Lilah is still too young. That's where Darling comes in.
That's the Flints' house we are going to maneuver into the hands of one of the Cornelius + Persephone bloodline.
The Grinch herself makes free use of the fancy piano. I love to cringe at her outfit. It's too much.
Scarlett is key to the plan, as she is the well-raised child with the charisma and traits able to insta-friend London Flint which is necessary to bring up the "move in" option. Also, Sylas was added to the family club for the easy sauna try-for-baby with Darling which happens off stage. On that Move In screen we aren't going to move any one in... we're going to offload Darling. Once she's pregnant.
The Flint teens eating grilled cheese. Ashley on the left, Lilah on the right.
I like her red hair. But she wasn't available. Maybe Darling will make a nice kid. Hopefully a daughter. Otherwise the Recapture of Oakenstead will be delayed a generation.
Speaking of Darling. She's now pregnant. Took the test. No strawberries available, but listened to a tiny bit of pop before moving her into the Flint household. Hopefully Sylas wont tell whose child it is. He won't live forever anyway. Really, it's pure luck if we get a girl for Drew or Kurt.
That might be the last we see of Miss Walsh. Other good news that happened off stage, Don and Alexis did have a girl, and a greenboo, named Kellie. She's still in a bassinet. When the message popped up Don was moved out as well.
So the side-effect of a group outing anywhere near a sauna is that romantic interactions happen that cause relationships to strain. Here, upon returning home, Persephone is upset with Wolfie for being romantic with Scarlett. Stuff happened. And Wolfie has a long lasting negative moodlet for being caught. You're quite right. Wolfie and Scarlett are a couple. Katherine is their child. So for Persephone to be upset... yeah. Maybe everyone can have breakfast in their own rooms away from each other for a day?
So we've seen Alexis and her brood. But the forgotten sister Rosalind did have one child with Gavin. Meet Miss Alaina Davenport.
Considering her mother... wow. She's gorgeous. I'm all amazement. Gavin has a nice and neutral face and seems to have passed on most of the good features. Maybe we're getting a bit ahead of ourselves - sometimes childhood is misleading and weirdness shows as a teen. She might get weird. But on the whole, I am greatly encouraged. Lets face it, her mother Ros is a bit of a fright.
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I can't tell you what thrilling things happen next because I only have 4 or 5 pictures left, so apart from Apollo coming back again (and a picture of Ms Whitman's house in the distance) this is all caught up. It's still winter. Scarlett has her adult birthday tomorrow on New Year's Eve, and Friday in spring we'll get to see Katherine as a teen.
