After Noelani and Matiu's wedding, the entire company spent the night at the Emerald Tides resort.
Valiant and Jeanette relaxed outside before going to sleep, watching the sea and the starry sky.
It looked like a metaphor for their futures: endless and full of possibilities.
In the morning, everyone had a quick breakfast at the resort, and then they went to Surf Point Beach, still in their formal clothes. This would be the last day of school.
They changed into their swimwear, and Matiu told the students this would be like an informal final exam. "Show what you have learned, and don't be afraid to show off!"
William, Lilinoe and Jeanette were the first to have a go. The other three watched from the pier with Matiu, Noelani and Rascal.
The three taking the exam tried some synchronised moves. William was a little bit late for the handstand...
...but they performed the Hang Ten in almost perfect synchronicity.
Mindy, Valiant and Ruru were next, and they managed a synchronised handstand.
Matiu congratulated them all and said he was proud of them.
While they were chatting on the beach afterwards, William told Lilinoe and Ruru that he and all three of his Isla Paradiso friends had decided to stay in Sunlit Tides, and that they would take part in the firewalking ceremony that night to seal their decision.
Lilinoe and Ruru were delighted to hear their friends would stay with them.
During the midday break, Matiu read the notice about his and Noelani's wedding in the newspaper. The journalist got it all wrong!
Meanwhile, the students had errands to run - they would all be moving out of the boarding school tomorrow and there were arrangements that needed to be made.
William received the money his parents sent him and, as he had promised them, invested a part of it immediately: he became a partner at the grocery store.
Then he visited the house that had caught his eye in the real estate ads.
It was perfect for him at the moment - cozy and surrounded by sea, and in the vicinity of houses his friends would move into. It can be enlarged in the future when - hopefully - Oliana moves in with him and they start a family.
After buying the little house he chose, William still had a few thousand simoleons left, so he made two impulse purchases.
He bought a pickup van to carry his surfboards. Needless to say, when he returned to the boarding school in it, his friends thought it was the coolest thing ever!
He also bought a Hikon QX40di Gladiator camera as a present for Mindy.
She had recently saved up for an underwater camera and had been taking great photos while scuba diving, but she needed a good-quality camera to use on land.
Now William doesn't have that much money left... but he will worry about that tomorrow!
All six students tried to rest as much as possible in the afternoon, to prepare for their night hike to the volcano.
In the late afternoon they visited the beach again, and Mindy gathered everyone to take some group photos with her new camera.
They turned out very good. Everyone would get a copy as a goodbye present.
After sunset, the six students got into William's new van and drove towards the volcano. Lilinoe and Ruru, who had been through the firewalking ceremony last week, would witness their friends performing it.
William parked the van at the foot of the volcano, and they hiked up through the jungle until they reached the skull-shaped cave.
While they were waiting for midnight, Ruru told stories about the fire god.
Although he had heard the stories before, William couldn't help feeling a little uneasy. The atmosphere of the skull cave and the jungle at night, combined with the big decision he was about to seal - it was all a little overwhelming.
To hide his unease, when midnight came he volunteered to walk over hot coals first.
Yay! He did it! Apparently you can bluff yourself into being brave!
Mindy was next. She skipped over the hot coals on tiptoe, but she got to the end successfully.
Valiant walked over the coals with a serene expression, almost as if sleepwalking.
Jeanette was the only one who had problems - she actually got to the middle, lost courage and ran back to the beginning.
Embarrassed, she decided she would try again and get to the end this time, even if her feet fall off. She did it, and didn't lose her feet.
Saturday, last day of spring and end of the school year (part 1)
The six young people sleeping on the volcano woke up at early dawn and congratulated one another. They were a little cold - it had started raining during the night - but they felt accomplished, because the coming-of-age ceremony was almost finished.
They packed their tents and sleeping bags and descended through the jungle to the town while the sun was rising.
They had all seen this beautiful sight before, but for William, Mindy, Valiant and Jeanette this was a new experience: seeing the island and knowing it was now the place they belonged to.
They hadn't packed any food, so they briefly stopped at the shopping centre to buy some sodas from the vending machine before their final stop...
... the Salon, where they would each get a tattoo inspired by their night on the volcano.
William seemed to have spent all his courage on the firewalking, because he was terrified of the tattoo artist's needle. He chose a dolphin both on his chest and on his back, because during the night he kept thinking of swimming and riding the waves.
Valiant chose a symbol of the fire god with protective wings, because the volcano had given him an unexpected sense of calm.
Mindy had dreamed of talking to a mermaid with sea-green hair, so she decided on an image of her on her belly.
Jeanette asked for a butterfly and a rose, to represent the flora and fauna of the island she wanted to explore.
Saturday, last day of spring and end of the school year (part 2 - the end)
After the salon the students returned to the Academy for the last time. Matiu congratulated William, Mindy, Valiant and Jeanette on becoming adults according to Sunlit Tides traditions. Everyone was a little bit teary-eyed - this was not a real goodbye, because they would all live on the island and remain friends, but life would still not be the same.
There was just one last thing to do - all six students took the University acceptance test to see how well their skills had developed.
Unsurprisingly, all six got maximum credits for Physical Education and they were all eligible for a scholarship of at least 1000. Jeanette was the absolute record-holder: she got not only a full scholarship, but also at least some credits for every major.
Individual results under spoiler tags:
After that, it was time for everyone to move into their new homes.
Ruru and Mindy decided to move in together straight away.
The other couple, Valiant and Jeanette, decided not to take this step yet. Valiant moved into a wicker house next door to the one William chose...
... while Jeanette bought a houseboat moored in the marina. It had been owned by a marine biologist and was full of science equipment - an opportunity too good to pass!
Lilinoe bought a small modern house near the festival lot.
As William drove to his new home, he passed by Matiu, Noelani and Rascal, who were going to live in Noelani's home. The boarding school building was going to be empty over the summer.
Finally, a home of his own! William placed Mindy's group photos on the bamboo walls and went outside to try out the hammock behind the house. The rain had stopped and the sky was clearing.
If this was what adulthood was like, William felt that he was going to like it!
THE END
(For a story in which barely anything happens, I got ridiculously invested in it! I felt terrible breaking up the large household and moving them away one by one, although it was always going to happen. )
Comments
After Noelani and Matiu's wedding, the entire company spent the night at the Emerald Tides resort.
Valiant and Jeanette relaxed outside before going to sleep, watching the sea and the starry sky.
It looked like a metaphor for their futures: endless and full of possibilities.
In the morning, everyone had a quick breakfast at the resort, and then they went to Surf Point Beach, still in their formal clothes. This would be the last day of school.
They changed into their swimwear, and Matiu told the students this would be like an informal final exam. "Show what you have learned, and don't be afraid to show off!"
William, Lilinoe and Jeanette were the first to have a go. The other three watched from the pier with Matiu, Noelani and Rascal.
The three taking the exam tried some synchronised moves. William was a little bit late for the handstand...
...but they performed the Hang Ten in almost perfect synchronicity.
Mindy, Valiant and Ruru were next, and they managed a synchronised handstand.
Matiu congratulated them all and said he was proud of them.
While they were chatting on the beach afterwards, William told Lilinoe and Ruru that he and all three of his Isla Paradiso friends had decided to stay in Sunlit Tides, and that they would take part in the firewalking ceremony that night to seal their decision.
Lilinoe and Ruru were delighted to hear their friends would stay with them.
During the midday break, Matiu read the notice about his and Noelani's wedding in the newspaper. The journalist got it all wrong!
Meanwhile, the students had errands to run - they would all be moving out of the boarding school tomorrow and there were arrangements that needed to be made.
William received the money his parents sent him and, as he had promised them, invested a part of it immediately: he became a partner at the grocery store.
Then he visited the house that had caught his eye in the real estate ads.
It was perfect for him at the moment - cozy and surrounded by sea, and in the vicinity of houses his friends would move into. It can be enlarged in the future when - hopefully - Oliana moves in with him and they start a family.
After buying the little house he chose, William still had a few thousand simoleons left, so he made two impulse purchases.
He bought a pickup van to carry his surfboards. Needless to say, when he returned to the boarding school in it, his friends thought it was the coolest thing ever!
He also bought a Hikon QX40di Gladiator camera as a present for Mindy.
She had recently saved up for an underwater camera and had been taking great photos while scuba diving, but she needed a good-quality camera to use on land.
Now William doesn't have that much money left... but he will worry about that tomorrow!
All six students tried to rest as much as possible in the afternoon, to prepare for their night hike to the volcano.
In the late afternoon they visited the beach again, and Mindy gathered everyone to take some group photos with her new camera.
They turned out very good. Everyone would get a copy as a goodbye present.
After sunset, the six students got into William's new van and drove towards the volcano. Lilinoe and Ruru, who had been through the firewalking ceremony last week, would witness their friends performing it.
William parked the van at the foot of the volcano, and they hiked up through the jungle until they reached the skull-shaped cave.
While they were waiting for midnight, Ruru told stories about the fire god.
Although he had heard the stories before, William couldn't help feeling a little uneasy. The atmosphere of the skull cave and the jungle at night, combined with the big decision he was about to seal - it was all a little overwhelming.
To hide his unease, when midnight came he volunteered to walk over hot coals first.
Yay! He did it! Apparently you can bluff yourself into being brave!
Mindy was next. She skipped over the hot coals on tiptoe, but she got to the end successfully.
Valiant walked over the coals with a serene expression, almost as if sleepwalking.
Jeanette was the only one who had problems - she actually got to the middle, lost courage and ran back to the beginning.
Embarrassed, she decided she would try again and get to the end this time, even if her feet fall off. She did it, and didn't lose her feet.
All six went to sleep tired and satisfied.
The six young people sleeping on the volcano woke up at early dawn and congratulated one another. They were a little cold - it had started raining during the night - but they felt accomplished, because the coming-of-age ceremony was almost finished.
They packed their tents and sleeping bags and descended through the jungle to the town while the sun was rising.
They had all seen this beautiful sight before, but for William, Mindy, Valiant and Jeanette this was a new experience: seeing the island and knowing it was now the place they belonged to.
They hadn't packed any food, so they briefly stopped at the shopping centre to buy some sodas from the vending machine before their final stop...
... the Salon, where they would each get a tattoo inspired by their night on the volcano.
William seemed to have spent all his courage on the firewalking, because he was terrified of the tattoo artist's needle. He chose a dolphin both on his chest and on his back, because during the night he kept thinking of swimming and riding the waves.
Valiant chose a symbol of the fire god with protective wings, because the volcano had given him an unexpected sense of calm.
Mindy had dreamed of talking to a mermaid with sea-green hair, so she decided on an image of her on her belly.
Jeanette asked for a butterfly and a rose, to represent the flora and fauna of the island she wanted to explore.
After the salon the students returned to the Academy for the last time. Matiu congratulated William, Mindy, Valiant and Jeanette on becoming adults according to Sunlit Tides traditions. Everyone was a little bit teary-eyed - this was not a real goodbye, because they would all live on the island and remain friends, but life would still not be the same.
There was just one last thing to do - all six students took the University acceptance test to see how well their skills had developed.
Unsurprisingly, all six got maximum credits for Physical Education and they were all eligible for a scholarship of at least 1000. Jeanette was the absolute record-holder: she got not only a full scholarship, but also at least some credits for every major.
Individual results under spoiler tags:
After that, it was time for everyone to move into their new homes.
Ruru and Mindy decided to move in together straight away.
The other couple, Valiant and Jeanette, decided not to take this step yet. Valiant moved into a wicker house next door to the one William chose...
... while Jeanette bought a houseboat moored in the marina. It had been owned by a marine biologist and was full of science equipment - an opportunity too good to pass!
Lilinoe bought a small modern house near the festival lot.
As William drove to his new home, he passed by Matiu, Noelani and Rascal, who were going to live in Noelani's home. The boarding school building was going to be empty over the summer.
Finally, a home of his own! William placed Mindy's group photos on the bamboo walls and went outside to try out the hammock behind the house. The rain had stopped and the sky was clearing.
If this was what adulthood was like, William felt that he was going to like it!
THE END
(For a story in which barely anything happens, I got ridiculously invested in it! I felt terrible breaking up the large household and moving them away one by one, although it was always going to happen. )