1. Hello again! Golly, it’s been ages since I last updated this story, hasn’t it?
I know, I know. But you see, I have this Officially Wacky Boolprop
Challenge going on, and the next chapter for that story will involve Sims
from this one, and the only problem with that Cunning Plan is that the
timelines aren’t quite in sync. This update should correct that. (I hope.)
If you’d like to get a feel for my OWBC before the not-really-a-crossover
comes out, it’s in the “Officially Wacky Boolprop Challenges” forum over
on Boolprop. [/shameless self-promotion]
But this story is not an OWBC. This story is Already in Progress…

2. To begin with, Trixie got fired.
TRIXIE: I don’t want to talk about it.
What went wrong, Trixie?
TRIXIE: What part of “I don’t want to talk about it” do you not
understand?

3. TIRTHA: See, isn’t this better? Doesn’t this cheer you up?
TRIXIE: Tirtha, we can’t afford to keep eating out if I’m out of work. You
don’t have a job and now I don’t either.
TIRTHA: Sure, but we’ll regroup and economize tomorrow.
TRIXIE: I don’t know…
TIRTHA: No, no, it’ll be fine. Just cheer up tonight, and then we’ll see
about tomorrow tomorrow, ‘kay?
TRIXIE: Okay…
TIRTHA: Great! I gotta go – do you need to?
TRIXIE: No. I think I’ll wander over to the bar.
TIRTHA: Careful what you order – most of their drinks are way
overpriced.

4. TRIXIE: So, Mr. Bartender, I’ve got a question for you.
Trixie, Tirtha’s on her way back from the bathroom.
TRIXIE: I’ll make this fast. (to bartender) Have you had any redheaded
dead guys in capes come in here recently?
BARTENDER: Sorry, lady. I work the day shift.
TIRTHA: Trixie! Are you pestering people about Kacper again?
TRIXIE:I’m not pestering anybody!
TIRTHA: Yes you are. Come on, let’s go to the park.

5. ABHIJEET: Hey. You’re with the alien girl, right? In the long white coat.
TIRTHA: We’re friends, if that’s what you mean. (suspiciously) Why?
ABHIJEET: Your friend’s looking for a redheaded dead guy in a cape,
right?
TIRTHA: Oh, don’t you encourage this stupid fixation of hers, now!
Waiiiit a minute… You’re not that crazy guy who’s into other people’s
past lives, are you?
ABHIJEET: No, just my own. But you might want to direct your friend’s
attention over there. (discretely indicates a point behind and to Tirtha’s
left)

6. TIRTHA: Well, I’ll be!
TIRTHA: Psssst! Trixie! Look over there, quickquickquick.

7. TRIXIE: Ihay! Ellohay! Oday ouyay owknay away ampirevay amednay
Acperkay?
REDHEADED DEAD GUY WHO ISN’T KACPER: Whoa – what’s
wrong with you, lady? Speak Simlish, because I don’t speak Crazy.
TRIXIE: I – But – You don’t speak Alien?
REDHEADED DEAD GUY WHO ISN’T KACPER: That either. Was
there a point to this?
TRIXIE: …Do you know a redheaded d – uh, vampire named Kacper?
REDHEADED DEAD GUY WHO ISN’T KACPER: Nope.
TRIXIE: Oh. Well here, let me give you my card in case you run across
him, okay? I’d really like to talk to him.

8. The Mr. and Mr. Littledragon household doesn’t have big dramas going
on – just the ordinary everyday things that mark a life. Some good…
AMY: Ha ha! I got an A+! I rock. Hey Da and Ba! I got an A+! You have
to take me out for ice cream now.

9. …some bad.
HARKON: Nirel! I thought we agreed that you weren’t going to try and
reheat anything until after we got the knobs with the raised numbers for
the stove!
NIREL: But I was hungry!

10. And some a bit of both.
AMETHYST: Bye, sweetie. (kisses Harkon) I’ll miss you.
HARKON: I’m going to miss you too, Mom. (sniffles and hugs Amethyst
tightly)
AMETHYST: (scoffs) Your Da and I are gonna be sitting on a celestial
beach somewhere, having banana daiquiris without the hangover. Don’t be
in too much of a hurry to join us, or I’ll tell the celestial bartender to leave
the triple sec and the sugar out of yours. Love you, kiddo.
HARKON: Love you too, Mom.

11. AMETHYST: Well, Nirel, I may not have been too happy about the age
gap or how you two met –
NIREL: You weren’t.
AMETHYST: I know that! Didn’t I just say that? I may not have been
happy in the beginning, but now I can see that the two of you are just
perfect for each other. You take care of my baby, now.
NIREL: Or you’ll tell the celestial bartender to leave out the sugar and
triple sec?
AMETHYST: No. I’ll tell him to leave out the rum.

12. AMY (plaintively): Can’t I come with you, Grandma?
AMETHYST: No, honey. You can’t come until you’re an old, old woman.
AMY: Can I have a banana daiquiri, then?
AMETHYST: No, but I bet if you asked Ba, he’d make you a banana
milkshake. (kisses Amy) Be good, Me The Younger, and (slightly choked
up) always remember that I love you so, so much!
AMY: …Grandma? Can you go back to being mean, please? I don’t know
what to do when you’re nice.

13. And so Amy Littledragon The Elder passed out of this life and into the
next.
AMETHYST: Where’s my daiquiri?
GRIM REAPER (peevishly): .iv. .e a .eco.., .il. .ou? .ee..!

14. Amethyst Littledragon, age messed up because of the rebuild. I would be
willing to swear that as a child, Amy cheated at chess, but as an adult, she
proved to have seven Nice points. Perhaps something changed during the
first rebuild… Amy was very happily married to Perry, a friend of her
brothers, and they had one child. Perry would have been perfectly happy
with twelve, or even with ten, but Amy only ever rolled the Want for one.
For all her sour faces, Amy had a heart of gold, and I’ll miss her.
Goodbye, Amy.

15. And speaking of Littledragons and the rebuild, Jasmine has moved on to
the great Criminal Underworld in the sky. Or wherever. She was
permaplat for years, so the hula zombies should come as no surprise.

16. Jasmine (Scott) Littledragon, age really really old. (Her records were,
ahem, “misplaced” during the rebuild.) Jasmine became a Criminal
Mastermind and was the true driving force behind such notorious events
as the diversion of an asteroid towards the planet, the mysterious
disappearance of forty-seven dollars and twenty-three cents from each and
every bank account in the entire world, and the inexplicable popularity of
The Gloaming by Sophie Mayer. She was also the one who finally got
Perry to tell Amy that he liked her – no small feat when dealing with a
man who has a grand total of zero Outgoing points. She was, I believe, the
only Sim left who had survived the previous rebuild. (She survived
Amethyst by a matter of hours.) It’s the end of an era, folks. Let’s have a
moment of silence for someone who will be truly missed.

17. Although perhaps none of us will miss Jasmine quite as much as Lucy.
THE SHRINK: Bertrachten Sie mich, bitte.
LUCY: Argle blargle smiff narple glah…
THE SHRINK: Hmmm. Und wie bildet das Sie Gefühl?

18. Sally Grew Up Badly – understandably, seeing as her grandmother went
and died during her transition – and newly Teenified Oliver worried about
his little sister. He may have only one Nice point, but that doesn’t mean
that he doesn’t care.
OLIVER: So, Sally, let’s go paint the town red. You and me.
SALLY: Really? You want me to go out and do stuff with you? And I can
walk with you instead of behind you? And you’ll tell everybody I’m your
sister, and everything?
OLIVER (grits his teeth): Yeah, I’ll even tell people you’re my sister.
SALLY (eagerly): Can I hold your hand?
OLIVER: Don’t push your luck.

19. Operation Cheer Up Sally worked well.
SALLY: Ha ha! I did it! I did it! I got to Level 3! What level are you at,
Ollie?
OLIVER: Um… Five?
VIDEO GAME: Level! Level! Level! Level! Fifteen! Fifteen! Fifteen! Fifteen!
OLIVER: Er –
SALLY: It’s okay, Ollie. You don’t need to try to make me feel good
about myself. Can I have some more quarters? I want to try to make Level
Four.
OLIVER: Sure, okay.

20. OLIVER (in pained tones): Sally, must you eat like that?
SALLY: Uh-huh.
OLIVER: The food’s not going anywhere. You can use one hand and take
small bites, like normal people.
SALLY: Uh-huh. snarf It tastes better like this.
OLIVER: It does not.
SALLY: How do you know? Have you tried?
OLIVER: Of course not.
SALLY: But I’ve tried it your way. (with her mouth full) This way tastes
better.
Oliver has ten Neat points. Sally has one.

21. Of course, when you are a teenaged boy, taking your little sister out on the
town gets you teased mercilessly.
OAKAPPLE SHANKEL, YOUNGEST CHILD FROM MY OWBC: So
you took your sister out, huh? What’s the matter – couldn’t get anyone
better? Well, with the way you dress, I’m not surprised.
OLIVER: What’s wrong with how I dress?
OAKAPPLE: Are you kidding? One of those rhinestone cowboys from the
Seventies wouldn’t be caught dead in what you’ve got on.
OLIVER: I bet they wouldn’t do this, either! (noogies Oakapple
mercilessly)
OAKAPPLE: Hey, ow! Stop! I’m sorry, I’m sorry!
Oakapple and Oliver are best friends. (shakes head) Teenage boys!

22. Now, there was a slight problem at Mifune’s house. The turkey went green
and buzzy. Mifune’s reaction was to attempt to eat a generous serving.
I cancelled the action, of course. And told him to clean up the health
hazard.

23. You can see how well he did at that.
Mifune had succumbed to a glitch that mostly affects married Sim males
in my game: he became constitutionally unable to Clean Up any dishes, no
matter where they were placed or who ate off them last or what they
contained, had contained, or didn’t contain.

24. Eileen did the cleaning up, because I don’t like roaches, even virtual
pixlated ones. But I don’t think it’s fair that husbands sometimes get out of
chores like that.

25. Fortunately, Venus the dog has still not been housebroken. That left
Mifune plenty of other opportunities for cleaning up unpleasant messes.
Venus has a sneaky nasty habit of peeing when everyone is a) asleep, b)
on the complete other side of the lot, or c) both. By the time anyone gets
over to Scold her, she’s forgotten what they’re upset about.

26. Over at the Brotherhood, there was a change in leadership. It wasn’t
entirely unexpected, I suppose, but nobody was properly prepared.
BARTHOLOMEW: Oh snap! Is it that time already?
GRIM REAPER: .e..
BARTHOLOMEW: Can I just go change out of my pajamas?
GRIM REAPER: .o.
I have no obituary for Bartholomew, since he was never intended to be
more than an extra who showed up in the background. Whoops.
You deserved better, Bartholomew. I hope you get it wherever you’re
going.

27. CALVIN, THE NEW GUY IN CHARGE (V.O.): The place was in a
quite a state when I got here, Matthias. Is everything okay?
MATTHIAS (V.O.): Sure, it’s fine. Why do you ask?
CALVIN (V.O.): Well, there were the weeds. And the holes. And the
shelves are completely empty. Have you had the store open in that state?
MATTHIAS (V.O.): No, not exactly open…
CALVIN (V.O.): And there aren’t any new members, either.
MATTHIAS (V.O.): Well, we don’t proselytize…
CALVIN (V.O.): No, we don’t. But have you even had the Thursday night
informationals?
MATTHIAS (V.O.): Not since Ty died…

28. CALVIN (sympathetically): Oh. I’m sorry. Ty was your old me?
MATTHIAS: No, he was my hus – I mean, no, he was an ordinary
brother. He died right after Hobbes gave me my skin back. I thought it was
a miracle, but I didn’t realize it came with a price tag. I’d give anything to
return it.
CALVIN: Return what?
MATTHIAS: My skin. (confidingly) I had threeps.
CALVIN: But you’re green. Threeps is irreversible.
MATTHIAS (testily): I know. I said it was a miracle, didn’t I? I did
everything I thought Hobbes wanted, and he gave me my skin back, but
then he took Tyrone away. You know, I’m really glad you’re here – I’ve
been starting to question my faith. Will you have time to talk after dinner?
CALVIN (dazed): Um, sure.

29. Both Amethyst and Jasmine were good friends of Sarah Jane, and
naturally their loss affected her deeply. It’s a sad thing when you start
losing friends.

30. Fortunately, Sarah Jane has the knack of acquiring new ones.

31. Descartes moved back home after college, and immediately got a job as a
Dread Pirate, because he is awesome like that.

32. And Tim decided that he wanted to have an anniversary party. Everyone
was invited: his brother, in-laws, nieces and nephews, and old friends.
TIMOTHY: Bertie! Good to see you!
BERTRAM: Hey, Tim! Congratulations on lasting it out! (laughs) Just
think, if things had gone a little bit differently, it could have been me at
this party.
TIMOTHY: No it couldn’t.
BERTRAM: Oh, not with you necessarily – I know you don’t swing that
way. But it could have been with Sarah Jane…
TIMOTHY: No it couldn’t. Come have a juice.

33. And before the evening devolved into mahjongg and early bedtimes, there
were some new friends introduced.
DESCARTES: Dad, I’d like you to meet my friend Abbey.
ABBEY: It’s very nice to meet you, Mr. Miller.
TIMOTHY: So, Abbey, you get along with my son okay, do you? He
doesn’t get on your nerves or anything?
ABBEY: Oh no, Mr. Miller! (smiles at Descartes) I can’t imagine him
getting on anybody’s nerves.
TIMOTHY: Ahuh. Remind me to tell you my stories about potty training
him sometime.

34. And the sentient couch means that it’s time to wrap this chapter up! Until
next time, Happy Simming!
***********
The Shrink’s lines, in order (translation by Yahoo! Babel Fish, so if there’s a mistake I
wouldn’t know):
Look at me, please.
And how does that make you feel?
The Grim Reaper’s lines, in order:
Give me a second, will you? Yeesh!
Yes.
No.