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Aliens Stole My Alien Parents

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  • NRoweNRowe Posts: 7,877 Member
    Just popped by and I can see all the images fine.
    Yay Cassie and Mara, I hope they make a go of it...
  • GlacierSnowGlacierSnow Posts: 2,301 Member
    Seems like all the images are displaying for me.

    But I have been having that problem with postimages this week as well, when I was updating my story and posting on some other threads. I had to upload and/or re-link multiple times in a few cases. It's weird, because I've been using postimages for years and this is the first time I have ever had an issue with it.

    Now for the chapter...

    Okay, I love the fact that Agnes Crumplebottom is being charged with battery. ROFL!

    Cassandra's new "snob" trait comes as a surprise. Still wondering what was going on with that phone call though. "Snob" doesn't quite cover that weird response.

    Nice additional info about your alien biology lore.

    Mara is going to miss Oliver so much when he's at college! Not sure the other way. The start of college is such a whirlwind of new things.
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  • mightyspritemightysprite Posts: 5,806 Member
    @DaniRose2143 @GlacierSnow Yeah, sometimes a weird phone call is just a weird phone call, and sometimes people get interrupted for reasons that have nothing to do with the person they're talking to. I'm half tempted to leave it that way and half tempted to use a different idea I also have that would explain the weirdness if I decide that it took place on the same day.

    @NRowe Aw. They are quite securely a couple now I think ;)

    @GlacierSnow
    The game does leave a lot of interesting questions open as to alien biology, no?
    Didn't Seventeen recently make a remark about entering his third gender, or something like that? Seems like there is some lore going on in yours as well :)

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  • GlacierSnowGlacierSnow Posts: 2,301 Member
    @mightysprite
    The game does leave a lot of interesting questions open as to alien biology, no?
    Didn't Seventeen recently make a remark about entering his third gender, or something like that? Seems like there is some lore going on in yours as well :)

    Yes indeed! I love your lore choice. It works very well. I love how surprised Mara was that human males can't do what alien males can.

    Game-wise I keep hoping they will add a "both" option to the question of an individual sim getting pregnant or getting others pregnant in CAS. There's a "neither" option, but not a "both". I want that option so much for my aliens, because I want their biology to be really different from humans.

    In Seventeen & Maldusk I'm definitely going with a non-human approach to the aliens' reproduction, which then has ramifications affecting how they categorize themselves in their society. They don't think about "gender" the same way many humans do, because reproduction, and physical development both literally work differently. Ion is also struggling with translating sixamnian ideas into human terms. "Gender" might not be the word humans would use. More will be revealed as we go. :wink:
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  • luciusstormluciusstorm Posts: 1,552 Member
    @mightysprite, a very interesting chapter...

    It looks to me that Mara's relationship with Cassandra promises to be tumultuous. Cassandra seems to flipping between proud-Goth and loving partner. Very cool.

    I'm looking forward to Oliver at university. He's really starting to steal the show.
    Fate is a riddle and we choose our own answer. Wyrd Girls
  • mightyspritemightysprite Posts: 5,806 Member
    edited November 2022
    Act Two, Day 6

    Ever since the conversation about having children yesterday, Mara felt more and more certain that she wanted to propose to Cassandra. True, they hadn't been together very long, but they'd been best friends all the way through their teens. It wasn't like there were any secrets between them.

    Well. There was one secret, which if Mara was being honest, was precisely the thing prompting her to think about marriage so soon.

    But even if that phone call hadn't happened, even if there weren't a large inheritance hanging in the balance, even if that weren't suddenly the key to her best chance yet at finding her dads... she would still want to propose to Cassandra, right?

    She pondered it on her morning jog.
    With a goofy grin at the idea of being engaged to Cassandra.
    Yes. Tonight is the night.
    01-tonights-the-night.png

    But first she had to get through a day of work.
    Wednesday she'd told off her boss for making all these unjust allegations. Her boss had apologized.
    Thursday she had "worked from home."
    Today was Friday and--
    again.png

    Again?!

    Mara, taken aback, defended herself, but she was stammering a little in surprise and irritation

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    Mara took a moment to think over the week. Her boss's style was highly annoying. But she had learned a lot. She was researching and debating at the same level as her colleagues who were a level or two above her, now. She could probably get an equal or better job at another firm.

    She took a deep breath. This job would not be a dead end. It would be a stepping stone. To whatever she chose to do next. She would stick it out at this firm until she got promoted ahead of her aggravating boss and got to tell her what to do. Just once.

    And then she went home and took a very pleasant bath.

    conquered-dead-end-job-fear.png

    And now for the rest of the evening.
    Mara found exactly the right outfit at Thriftea.
    Now, she just needed the right girl.
    02-got-the-right-outfit-now-need-the-right-girl.png

    This time, she thought about what Cassandra really loved to do together. What had Cassandra always wanted to do when they were having a tense moment?
    Dancing.
    That time at the flea market after their first fight
    05-flea-dance.png
    At the prom, still raw from telling Mara about how Kiyoshi had wounded her
    01-dance1.png

    So Mara invited her for a special date out dancing. On her home turf.
    They danced, and talked
    03-dance-and-talk.png

    And some of the conversation was quite romantic
    date-romantic-conversation.png

    Pretty soon they sought out some privacy to enjoy each other's company more intimately, out back by the fountain
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    Mara felt this was the moment.
    "Cassandra, I love you so much, I want to build a future together with you, and only with you."
    She dropped to one knee and clasped her hands.
    "My beautiful girl, will you--"
    And she stopped, seeing the look of shock and panic on Cassandra's face.
    05-knee-shock.png

    This was all wrong.
    Cassandra was sputtering, clearly unhappy.

    Mara sat down again. "Oh my love, I'm sorry, I should have--"
    "It's just so soon. Mara, we were just in high school last week."
    A week is a pretty good run, on normal lifespan, Mara thought, but didn't say it.
    "And it's a shock to hear you say you are ready to settle down all of a sudden. Is there something you're not telling me?"

    Mara took a long look into Cassandra's eyes.

    What kind of future did she want? To be keeping secrets and manipulating the people she loved to make them do what she wanted?
    She remembered how Cassandra had exploded at her, that day at the flea market: You can't choreograph people like that, Mara!
    No. If she wanted Cassandra in her life, she wanted her all the way in.

    "Okay. It's embarrassing, and I feel guilty already that I didn't tell you sooner, but I want you to know everything. Do you promise not to be angry?"
    "Um... I can't promise that."
    Mara felt like she was going to faint, but she blurted it all out as fast as she could. The phone call. The inheritance. The condition that she get married in a week.
    "I'm so sorry that I led you on, and that I proposed, or was about to propose, without even telling you about the money part. But you see, I couldn't go through with it."
    "I'm glad you told me what was going on. Can I ask you something? If there was no inheritance, would you still want to marry me?"
    "I might not have asked tonight, or this week, but I would have asked. And not too far in the future. I want to share my life with you."
    "Are you going to share everything about your life with me? No more secrets?"
    06-heres-whats-really.png

    "None. I hated hiding that from you. I want us to truly know each other."
    Cassandra stood up and took Mara's hands in hers.
    "It does feel soon, but I'm actually excited for you," Cassandra said. "That's enough money that you could have a shot at finding your dads. A real shot. Who knows, it might even work! Getting your family back together is all you've wanted for as long as I've known you. And I love you, and I want to support you and see you happy and, well, you know I'll be on your side for anything you need. Ever. I would love to start our life together by helping you get that inheritance."
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    "Cassandra-- are you proposing to me, now?"
    "Yes. Yes, I am. Will you marry me?"
    "Yes!"
    08-yes.png

    "How about tomorrow?"
    
"Why not?"

    They walked back to Cassandra's house, clinging to each other and giggling like the schoolgirls they recently were.
    Cassandra invited Mara up to her room.
    "What are we going to do there? Watch TV or something?"
    "Um, maybe we can talk, or..."
    This conversation is pretty much just a conversation, but it's T-rated, not G-rated.

    09-want-to-say.png

    They tried to relax on Cassandra's bed, but it was hard to even have a conversation that way for some reason. Mara got up so they could talk.
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    "I feel like I should be ready for woohoo by now," Cassandra said, "I've made you wait a long time already. Maybe... maybe we should just try it."
    "You make it sound like a chore," Mara said.
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    "I don't know, I've never liked the way my body looks, sometimes I just feel so disgusting, especially the places where, you know, where he touched me. It was so long ago now. I should be over it."
    "It's not an obligation. It's supposed to be fun, if it's someone you want to be with."
    "What if you find out after we're married that you don't like doing it with me? Or what if you don't like the way I look naked, or something?"
    "I can assure you that you are the most beautiful thing I've ever seen. And woohoo will be new to me too, you know. We'll be figuring it out together. There aren't rules anyone has to follow. Let's just go by what feels good, to both of us."
    Cassandra kissed her.
    "What would feel good now?"
    "Um, just hold me for a while, and don't put your hands anywhere surprising."
    "You know I won't."
    "I know. I'm working on trust, even with you. There's no one I'd trust more."
    14-talk2.png

    So they held each other for a while. And then said goodnight.

    Cassandra ran to find her mother.
    "Mom! I'm getting married!"
    "Oh sweetheart! That's wonderful!"
    14-getting-married.png

    "You're really happy for us?"
    "Of course. I wasn't sure about Mara in the beginning. But she's proven herself to be a good friend to you, she wants only the best for you, and if the look on your faces when you're together is anything to go by, you adore each other. One doesn't always know what's going to happen in a marriage, but I think you two have a very good start. Would you like me to officiate?"
    "Mom! You can do that?"
    "Certainly, I am a notary, it's helpful in my line of work from time to time."
    "That would be wonderful."
    15-yes-and-im-a-notary.png

    "Cassandra, my darling girl?"
    "Yes Mom?"
    "Don't forget to be happy."
    16-dont-forget-to-be-happy.png

    Post edited by mightysprite on
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  • NRoweNRowe Posts: 7,877 Member
    Congratulations Mara and Cassandra o:)
  • SnowBnuuySnowBnuuy Posts: 1,767 Member
    I had issues seeing the pictures the other day, so I held off until now to read < 3
    I love that everyone seems casual about the werewolf and Oliver is like HUH? until everyone notices and leaves. Come on folks, they're just like everyone else! They just get a bit...bitey when they're stressed : P I like the thought of Oliver going into Physics, but I like that their tech is so complicated a lot of Sixamians have little idea how to use it. Snob trait sounds abour right for a member of the Goth family : P

    I love the discussion about the sexes and pregnancy : P I love the idea of Mara and Cassandra having kids at some point! Lil half alien babies ;-; I also really love how you tie in gameplay with story!
    they/them or she/her
  • mightyspritemightysprite Posts: 5,806 Member
    Thanks @NRowe and @SnowBnuuy :)
    Tying in gameplay and story: I'm not a creative enough writer to think up and plot out a whole story on my own. The fun thing about TS4 is I can have an idea for a story, and then I really don't need to have much more than that because the game will give me a lot to go on. Especially weird things. I like weird things. Then I imagine what the characters are talking about and thinking about, and before you know it, there's another plot point in the works.
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  • luciusstormluciusstorm Posts: 1,552 Member
    @mightysprite, do not undervalue the skill and creativity it takes to take the disparate and chaotic elements handed to you by the game and weave them together into an engaging, thoughtful and insightful story... which you do with every new chapter.
    Fate is a riddle and we choose our own answer. Wyrd Girls
  • mightyspritemightysprite Posts: 5,806 Member
    That's so kind @luciusstorm thank you :blush:
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  • DaniRose2143DaniRose2143 Posts: 8,658 Member
    @mightysprite Another of my favorite couples is getting married! Congratulations to Mara and Cassandra as they start building a beautiful life together.🥰
  • GlacierSnowGlacierSnow Posts: 2,301 Member
    Wow. What is up with that boss?

    Congratulations to Mara and Cassandra! I'm glad Mara came clean and told Cassandra about the money.
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  • mightyspritemightysprite Posts: 5,806 Member
    Thanks @GlacierSnow and @Metior_Ice :)


    Act Two, Day 7

    The day of the wedding was cloudy. Perfect, if you're a Goth.

    The outfits were thrifted. White suits, green heels.
    outfits-were-thrifted.png

    01-outfits.png

    The backyard looked beautiful.
    02-backyard-looked-beautiful.png

    Ash interrupted with a text:
    its-so-perfect.png

    Ash, that is so perfect.
    NOW the day is truly perfect.

    As the sun set, they got ready to walk down the aisle.
    "You're sure about this, huh?"
    "I've never been more sure about anything."
    03-never-more-sure-about-anything.png

    Oliver walked with Mara
    04-mara-and-oliver.png

    Mortimer walked with Cassandra
    05-cassandra-and-mortimer.png

    When one little girl is all grown up, and another little one is getting ready to be born...
    06-family-moment.png

    Candles glowed as they said their vows
    07-vows1.png

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    Their friends and loved ones wept
    09-friends-wept.png

    And they're married!
    10-married.png

    "It's traditional to allow the newlyweds some time alone," said the very pregnant Bella, making a very quick dash down the aisle and disappearing into the house, perhaps with a different urgent need on her mind
    its-traditional-to-allow-them-some-time-alone.png

    Mara had hired the bartender from the Shrieking Llama in Windenburg, but he seemed more interested in chatting up the caterer than in tending bar
    "It's the weirdest thing, I feel like I've been at a wedding in this house's backyard sometime before, but I know I never have," the bartender said.
    11-don1.png

    "Do you believe in past lives?" asked the caterer, fluttering her eyelashes. "What are you doing later?"
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    All the caterer made was several plates of caprese salad. They were delicious.
    13-caprese-salad.png

    "Do you think anyone minds that it's only caprese salad?" asked Cassandra.
    14-little-nervous.png

    "It's the kind of food you like, isn't it?" asked Mara.
    "Yes, it is. She really got it right."
    "Then it's what we'll all have. What about you, Oliver? Not hungry?"
    "Just trying to get all this homework done."

    And they danced.
    lets-just-dance.png

    Later, Mara welcomed her bride into her home
    15-welcome-home.png

    "I'm glad my bed made it over here. I guess the rest of the stuff is coming tomorrow. Um... how long are you going to keep your dads' bed here too? It's a little weird sharing a room with it."
    16-the-beds.png

    "I'm not ready to give up on them yet."
    "You could just put it in storage or something. It doesn't have to be giving up."
    "Still though. Seeing it every day helps me stay hopeful. Also it would give me a place to sleep in case, well, in case you aren't ready to share a bed yet."
    talk-with-candles.png

    "Okay, I'll agree to keep the bed, if you're willing to get rid of the living room couches."
    "The couches?"
    "I need somewhere for all my beautiful pink upholstered furniture to go, if it isn't going in here."
    "Erg... um... yes, okay, a beautiful pink living room it is."
    Cassandra smiled. "But don't worry about sleeping in the other bed. What I'd most like to do with this one, on our first night here, is to get into it with you."
    "You're sure?"
    
"Never been more sure."
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    They did what felt good.

    By the next morning, it felt as if they'd invented it.
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  • _Gina_Gina Posts: 253 Member
    Congratz on the successful wedding! Heh, I really like how you keep using what the game gives you and actually putting it into the story in a way that makes sense. Like that typical thing with hired staff not doing their job. :D
  • GlacierSnowGlacierSnow Posts: 2,301 Member
    I see they opted for a traditional "Sims" wedding...

    ... Text message about unrelated topic right before the ceremony, officiant racing for the bathroom, guest doing homework, bartender chatting up the caterer (who only makes one type of dish) instead of tending the bar. :joy::joy: Brings tears to my eyes.


    So happy for them both. Love their wedding outfits! :love:

    Can't wait to see what happens next.
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  • DaniRose2143DaniRose2143 Posts: 8,658 Member
    @mightysprite That was a lovely wedding and I really like the idea of having the ceremony there. I'm happy that Bella has embraced Mara's relationship with Cassandra. I was getting a little nervous for a minute with their bargaining over the furniture, I was like, 'No, don't have an argument now! This is a special, happy night!'.
  • mightyspritemightysprite Posts: 5,806 Member
    Thank you all :)
    Besides the fact that Mara only knows a couple of bartenders, I did decide to lean into this Sims 2 callback just a little bit by hiring Don
    TS2_MarriageFaliure.jpg
    At the beginning of the game in TS2, Cassandra and Don are standing at a wedding arch in the Goths' backyard. She is trying to get him to marry her, and it's set up so that he will probably leave her at the altar.
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  • mightyspritemightysprite Posts: 5,806 Member
    Aliens Stole My Alien Parents, Act Two Day 8

    Well, readers, here we are at the conclusion of the scenario, at least the way I'm counting.
    After getting married for the inheritance, Mara finally has over 15,000 simoleons. She and Oliver have already completed all the other goals.
    Of course, the game decided I'd lost when Oliver aged up to a teen, but I wanted to get them to this point anyway :)

    So now it's time for a happy reunion with their dads...

    ...but how exactly does it happen?

    I think we need a couple more chapters to show that part. For fun. And because I already had some leftover plot points to make an ending out of.

    (These last couple chapters will have more staged pictures and less gameplay than before.)

    The morning after their wedding, Mara found a large envelope full of cash in the mailbox.
    "I guess it's the inheritance!" she crowed to Cassandra.
    "Are you sure that's how they do it?" asked Cassandra.
    Mara looked in the envelope. There were a whole lot of 100-simoleon bills in there.
    "That's how they do it," she confirmed.
    Mara called up her contact and reported that she had doubled the 7500 simoleons, as promised, and was ready to exchange the money for information about her dads.
    call.png

    "She says to go to the airport!" Mara said cheerfully. "I'm so excited!"
    "I'm coming too," Cassandra said. "Remember what you said. That you wouldn't go to meet her again without me."
    "I'm supposed to come alone," Mara said.
    "Oh, she won't see me," said Cassandra. "I'll get a driver."
    Mara checked the bus schedule and got ready to go. She heard the faint hum of an engine, and suddenly Cassandra wasn't there anymore.

    Inside a very unobtrusive car, Cassandra directed the driver. "We're going to the airport. I need to see where that bus pulls in. Don't get too close."
    "You don't have to tell me that, my dear, I've been doing this job a long time," said the driver.
    The bus stopped in an airport parking lot. Cassandra watched Mara get out and meet a woman with curly brown hair and a bold makeup choice. They got into a car and drove around the side of the airport terminal.
    "That's the area for private aircraft," said the driver. "Looks like they're headed off on a longer trip. Would you care to continue on your family's plane?"
    "I should probably tell my mom first," Cassandra said. "Is there any way to tell where they're going?"
    "Air traffic control will have their flight plan. It so happens your driver's buddy in air traffic control owes him a favor. Hold on." The driver muttered into his phone for a few moments, pulled unobtrusively around to get a view of which planes were preparing for takeoff, muttered into his phone again. "He says, Tartosa."
    Cassandra called home. "Mom? Mara and I decided to take a honeymoon in Tartosa. Can I use the plane?"
    cassandra.png

    "Tartosa!" Bella gasped. "IN Tartosa!"
    "Mom? Is that okay?"
    "Oh, yes, everything is fine, sweet girl. I believe I may just be going into labor at the moment. You certainly may use the plane." Then Bella hung up abruptly.
    "Where are we going?" Mara asked the woman as they boarded the plane.
    "Don't ask questions," said the woman. "And turn the location off on your phone."
    It was an overnight flight. Mara slept. As dawn broke, all she saw was water for a while.
    Then a bluish smudge of land crept into view
    tartosa1.png

    Green hills, lush vegetation and tiled roofs
    tartosa2.png

    A familiar-looking bay
    tartosa3.png

    "Just like in the painting!" Mara exclaimed.
    tartosa4.png

    They landed on a small airstrip and were bundled off into a van.
    "Phone," demanded a gruff driver.
    Mara texted Cassandra as fast as she could "Losing my phone, do your best, love you"

    Somewhere in the mountains, a very unobtrusive private plane had just landed, and an empty jeep waited there. Cassandra and the driver disembarked from the plane and got into the jeep.
    "You're driving me in Tartosa too?" asked Cassandra.
    "I am under strict instructions not to let you out of my sight whenever I drive you," the driver said. "My license is valid in most countries."
    Cassandra looked at a text on her phone. "I'm about to lose touch with Mara," she said to the driver.
    "There's only one airstrip in Tartosa," said the driver. "This one doesn't count. We'll be able to narrow it down."
    Cassandra's phone rang. It was Mom.
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  • DaniRose2143DaniRose2143 Posts: 8,658 Member
    @mightysprite
    Oh my, everything is happening at once. More than ever I'm wondering who the aliens are working with. The meeting in San Myshuno is where my mind starting asking those questions. I beginning to wonder if the aliens really are aliens? Or are they government agents who are after Mara, Oliver, and their dads? Was this all a setup to lure Mara into their hands? Drama. Danger. Intrigue.
  • luciusstormluciusstorm Posts: 1,552 Member
    @mightysprite
    I'm thinking driver's first name is Agent. :)
    Fate is a riddle and we choose our own answer. Wyrd Girls
  • GlacierSnowGlacierSnow Posts: 2,301 Member
    Aaaaa! The suspense!

    Mara had better be okay. Cassandra and Oliver need her!

    I am super suspicious of this mystery lady who doesn't let Mara ask questions.
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  • mightyspritemightysprite Posts: 5,806 Member
    @luciusstorm Pretty much.
    @GlacierSnow , you'll just have to wait and see! in the meantime, a hint
    Everyone is shady in their own way.
    @DaniRose2143 Yep, a lot is going to happen at once, because I was and also wasn't prepared to make the ending now.

    I promise you two things: 1.) I will have fun, and 2.) I sincerely hope that you have fun as well.

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