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  Belalucina Posts: 843 Member

  January 2023

  Wow, I can tell you've definitely put a lot of thought into it! I love that it uses all the packs. Does it use every aspiration once too? I didn't count them all. This is great for someone who likes a planned out story to play out. It would definitely be a long playthrough with 25 generations. I like that you included the collections too.
  
  I will have to attempt this!

  Just in case no one has told you today, you are loved.

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  GhostDragon1351 Posts: 23 Member

  January 2023

  I couldn't use every aspiration but I did use every skills, every traits and most of the careers and collections! If you try it I want to see some pictures haha

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  Belalucina Posts: 843 Member

  January 2023

  So awesome! Yeah I definitely will though I can't say how far I'll get
  
  I'm doing one challenge already, and I have a toddler (irl) so I really only play when he's sleeping lol.

  Just in case no one has told you today, you are loved.

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  Ellupelluellu Posts: 6,929 Member

  January 2023

  Currently too much going on, but i bookmarked this, will ttally try later

  My love, my love, my fearless love, I will not say goodbye..
  Sea may rise, sky may fall, My love will never die..
  My heart, my heart, My drowning heart, Oh all the tears I've cried
  Oh I may weep forevermore, My love will never die..

  
  

  My Story:Villa Catarina

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  Belalucina Posts: 843 Member

  May 2023

  I kind of want to try this with April, June and Steve's daughter when she ages up, to keep their legacy going. She doesn't have the starting traits, but I may add them on as extra traits. Will be a bit before she's aged up though.

  Just in case no one has told you today, you are loved.

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  Belalucina Posts: 843 Member

  September 2023 edited September 2023

  I am finally able to start this challenge with April, June and Steve Fogel's daughter from my One Month One World One Year challenge here.
  
  Some backstory:

  April lived in Strangerville when she was a kid and her parents defeated the Mother Plant. She was very young though, and only remembers small details here and there. She didn't know exactly what was going on, so the plant is very new to her. Since it is defeated, it will have to be resurrected before she can do the Strangerville Mystery for this challenge, so I'm doing the Mother Plant Resurrection Aspiration mod, which adds an aspiration to resurrect the Mother Plant. I guess this part of the story can be considered somewhat of a prologue. She is in the military though and can start going through the ranks there. I've given her the paranoid, geek, and ambitious traits as added traits. Her primary traits are Bookworm, Creative, and Family Oriented.
  
  As to the story, she met General Buzz Grunt while he was acting as a recruiter on Brightchester campus where April graduated with a degree in Language and Literature. One of her dreams is to also become a writer while she's in the military. General Grunt told her to investigate the secret lab where her parents had defeated the Mother Plant. She did, with her best friend Marci. Marci told her about some disappearances that had been happening around Strangerville. While they were investigating the lab, Marci was kidnapped. April joined the military in order to help find out who is behind the disappearances around Strangerville.

  
  So here is my sim I will be doing this challenge with:

  

  Name: April Fogel
  Traits: Bookworm, Creative, Family Oriented, Paranoid, Ambitious, and Geek.
  
  She'll be doing the Mother Plant Resurrection Aspiration first (mod is here), then the Strangerville Mystery. So I will call this part the prologue (for more of the prologue, check the One Month One World One Year challenge thread for the beginning part of this story).
  
  Prologue, part 1:

  April moved into her childhood home in Strangerville. It was nostalgic being back. She made a few changes to the house, mostly updating her old bedroom and turning it into a guest bedroom.
  
  She got some medals from her officer academy graduation and earned the rank of Captain. General Grunt had told her that she would now be reporting directly to him. She was both excited and nervous to finally be able to understand what was going on around Strangerville.
  
  
  But first, she would get started on some more training.
  
  
  Since she didn't need to meet with the General until later, she headed to the bar to meet some co-workers and ask around for some information. General Grunt may be filling her in on some things, but she was still determined to learn as much as she could.
  
  
  She met a stern Major who said that he may know something, but he completely refused to tell her anything and reprimanded her for asking questions.
  
  
  The general was there to meet her when she showed up to the military base. He told her he would give her her first assignment in his office.
  
  
  "You're a commissioned officer now, Captain Fogel," he said as they sat down, "and as such it is your responsibility to manage, problem solve, and lead the soldiers under your command. You will be receiving your orders from me, and you will delegate tasks to the soldiers in your company. Got it?"
  
  
  
  "Yes, General."
  
  "However," he continued, "the missions I am assigning you are top-secret. You will tell no one about them."
  
  "Understood, sir." She was finally going to get some information.
  
  "Now, I can't give you much information right now, but I will answer the question you asked me last time concerning the origin of that plant. The answer is...we don't quite know exactly. It does seem to have alien origins, but we aren't certain it's from Sixam. However, even though it is dormant, it seems to be connected somehow to the disappearances. Though there aren't any of those plants around town, a new one pops up near the lab every time someone has been reported missing."
  
  "Why would that be?" she asked him.
  
  "We don't know, but I'm afraid that's all I can tell you for now. The first thing we need before I can tell you more is information on the people who are going missing. I need you to plant 10 bugs on ordinary civilians around town and deliver the audio recordings to me. This could also help protect those civilians, as we'll have more eyes, or should I say, ears on them."
  
  She hesitated, burning to ask questions, but instead replied, "Yes, sir."
  
  He folded his hands and sat back, as if the conversation was over. "Good. Then we will talk some more once you've delivered those recordings. Now, let me show you around the base, Captain."
  
  "Thank you, General."
  
  He showed her another lab on the base that she could use, should it prove useful for her investigation. There was definitely some interesting stuff in here.
  
  
  'What is this thing,' she wondered.
  
  
  On her way home she stopped by Marci's house, even though she knew it was pointless. There was still no one home.
  
  
  It was true what the General had said though. Those plants were only at the secret lab. She had seen them last time she was there. There was nothing in town though.
  
  
  Having dinner at home was a little lonely with no one around to fill the living room and hallways. Nothing like at her family home.
  
  

  
  Notes:

  My military knowledge is very limited, but I will do my best.
  
  Also, in the game she is a "Lacking Corporal" which is level 3, so for story sake, I gave her the level 3 rank of an officer in the army, which is Captain.

  
  @permanentrose this is the challenge I'm doing next, if you want to join after you finish omowoy, or whenever you feel like.

  Just in case no one has told you today, you are loved.

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  Belalucina Posts: 843 Member

  October 2023 edited October 2023

  I'll keep posting this challenge here, since @GhostDragon1351 did ask for pictures.
  
  

  Prologue, Part 2:
  

  April had gotten her assignment, though General Grunt had not told her how she was supposed to bug civilians. She did remember seeing some listening bugs at Erwin’s stand though. Perhaps that would be the first place to go. After her morning jog, she headed to the bar to find his Curio stand around the corner. However, when she got there she was surprised to see someone else behind the counter. A woman with pink hair and very similar clothing to Erwin.
  
  “Hi,” she said. “Can I buy some of those listening bugs?”
  
  
  
  “Sure,” the woman said brightly. “How many do you want?”
  
  “10,” she said and waited until the woman put 10 of them in a bag for her. April paid and then she asked, “So, where’s Erwin?”
  
  
  
  The woman’s smile faded. She looked left and then right, and then whispered. “I can’t tell you here, meet me around back.”
  
  “Uhm, okay.” April looked around, but there was no one around.
  
  She walked over to the side of the stall and the woman introduced herself as Theresa. Then she looked as if she was about to cry and said, “Erwin is…gone!”
  
  
  
  “Gone? What do you mean gone?”
  
  “No one has seen him in over a week now. Of course, no one knows where he lives…but he’s usually always here, at his shop, only he wasn’t…and now…well, here I am.”
  
  
  
  She had just bought the listening bugs. Maybe, this would be the first civilian to plant one on. Perhaps it would help prevent whatever happened to Erwin from happening to her. She took a deep breath and figured she may as well give it a go.
  
  “I’m so sorry. There, there.” She gave Theresa a big sympathetic hug. While she did, she placed the bug.
  
  
  
  Theresa didn’t notice a thing. She smiled and thanked April for her concern. April suddenly felt a wave of guilt wash over her.
  
  April patted her shoulder and said, “Well, it was nice meeting you, Theresa. I hope you find Erwin.”
  
  
  
  Theresa sniffed loudly, but was smiling again. She headed back into the small shack and stood behind the counter again. One of the books there caught April’s eye. Untold Mysteries of Strangerville. It was one of Erwin’s books. He had told her about them last time she was here.
  
  She turned back to Theresa. “Theresa? I think I’ll buy one of these books too.”
  
  ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
  
  On her way back home, she passed by the bar. She could see the usual crowd of patrons and military personnel inside. It wasn’t surprising they hung out there; there wasn’t anything else to do in town other than the occasional hike and a visit to the library. She had spent a lot of time at the Strangerville library as a kid. That had been where she had met Marci. The two of them had played together and talked about books while their parents poured over the various volumes on the shelves, as scant as they might have been.
  
  She had been thinking about Marci and hadn’t been paying attention to where she was going and suddenly ran right into someone walking in the opposite direction, snapping her attention back to reality.
  
  
  
  “I’m so sorry,” she blurted out. She looked up to see a handsome soldier smiling at her. He didn’t seem at all bothered that she had run right into him.
  
  “It’s okay,” he answered. “Probably my fault anyways. Walking and playing on my phone is a bad habit of mine. Though, I guess it turned out for good this time.” He grinned at her and held out a hand, which she shook. “I’m Bradley,” he said.
  
  
  
  “April,” she replied. She found herself momentarily forgetting what she had been doing. Instead, she was imagining going back to the bar and having a drink with Bradley.
  
  As if he had read her mind he said, “Sorry I got in your way. Where were you headed?”
  
  “Uhm…” She looked back at the bar. “I was about to stop in and have a drink. You?” Never mind that she had been headed away from the bar just now.
  
  
  
  He laughed, but didn’t point out that she was going the wrong way for a drink. “I wish I could join you, but I’m on my way to work.”
  
  “Oh. Which division are you in?” she asked him.
  
  “Infantry. I help train new recruits.”
  
  “That sounds exhausting.”
  
  He laughed again and April found herself smiling. He was very easy to talk to.
  
  
  
  “I’m eighth division. Intel,” she told him. Unfortunately, that was all she could tell him.
  
  “Oh yeah?” He raised his eyebrows. “An intel girl? Forgive me, I didn’t realize you were military.”
  
  He looked as if he was about to salute her, but she said, “It’s okay, you couldn’t have known since I’m not in my uniform right now. I’m off today.”
  
  “Well, next time we happen to run into each other,” he chuckled, “let’s get a drink together, April.”
  
  “Absolutely.” She smiled and waved goodbye to him. “Next time then, Bradley.”
  
  They parted ways and April continued on her way home. She didn’t really want a drink now. She’d wait and have one next time with Bradley. She realized there were butterflies in her stomach at the thought of having a drink with that handsome soldier. She remembered the Major she had met her first night coming to the bar. He had been handsome as well, but he was stern and unfriendly. She was glad she had met someone she felt she could be friends with. There was also the female soldier in the airborne unit. Nina, she remembered. Nina had told April that it was her goal to be a pilot. She hoped she would run into her again as well, though maybe not literally. She paid close attention as she walked the rest of the way to her house.
  
  ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
  
  Back at home, she settled down on the bed to start Erwin’s book. He was surprisingly a really great writer. It didn’t feel like she was reading a conspiracy theorist’s take on things that had happened around the town, but rather it felt almost like reading a novel.
  
  
  
  There were some interesting bits about a plane crash that had happened, the crater where the lab was, and some things about aliens. Nothing really caught her eye until she read about a disappearance that happened over 20 years ago. That meant that these disappearances weren’t a new thing, but that they had only started back up recently. The first person to disappear 20 years ago was…
  
  
  
  She sat up straight and exclaimed, “Lyla Grunt?” The general’s wife? She tried to remember if he had mentioned a wife. She thought he did have a wife, but she didn’t think her name was Lyla. Maybe he had gotten remarried.
  
  She kept reading. The story was that Lyla had been struck by lightning while visiting her friend Olive Specter, but no one could confirm Olive’s story because a body was never found. Some people blamed Olive, who apparently had a sketchy history to begin with, and others even blamed General Grunt, however there wasn’t any evidence to convict either suspect and so the case had gone cold.
  
  She shivered. She didn’t think this was something she could ask the general about. But if he had someone close to him disappear too, then she was sure that he would be eagerly looking into the reason behind the disappearances. She wondered if this disappearance was connected to the current ones, and if so, why had they stopped and then started up again?
  
  She decided to take a break from reading and do some research instead.
  
  
  
  She looked up Lyla Grunt, but didn’t find too much except what she’d already learned from the book. She then looked up Olive Specter. She found some much more interesting things about her. She was a widow to not one husband, but four. This led to a lot of speculation about her.
  
  
  
  “Maybe Olive really did kill Lyla…” April muttered, but even so, she felt it wrong to judge only by what people on some forums were saying.
  
  Olive had passed away a couple years ago, but she had a niece still living named Ophelia. Maybe she knew something…It might be worth looking into at some point.
  
  
  
  It was late, and so April decided to have some dinner and head to bed. As she was eating she looked up towards one of the neighbors’ houses. Maybe tomorrow she’d meet some of her neighbors and finish her assignment. To keep them safe she told herself.
  
  
  
  After dinner, she played some games to take her mind off of things before heading to bed.
  
  
  
  ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
  
  The next morning on her jog she ran into Mrs. Sigworth, Marci’s grandmother. She stopped to talk to her.
  
  “Mrs. Sigworth. It’s me, April.”
  
  
  
  Mrs. Sigworth gave her a hug. “Oh, April honey, how are you holding up? I had heard you moved to Strangerville. And even joined the military.” Mrs. Sigworth was in the military too, April remembered.
  
  “I’m doing alright. How about you? How’s Christie doing?”
  
  
  
  “She’s not doing well, you can imagine. As to me and Dylan, well, we’re getting on. We’re doing what we can.” She suddenly got serious and said to April, “You be careful. Something strange is going on.”
  
  
  
  April nodded and assured her. “I will. Don’t worry about me Mrs. Sigworth. I’m doing all I can to help find Marci.”
  
  
  
  “I know, we all are.”
  
  April gave Mrs. Sigworth another hug, and without thinking, planted a bug on her. Again, a wave of guilt washed over her. Mrs. Sigworth wasn’t even a civilian, she was military. But perhaps she would help to find out something useful that would lead her to Marci.
  
  
  
  She said goodbye to Mrs. Sigworth and stared up at the mountains.
  
  ‘Am I doing the right thing?’ She wondered.
  
  

  Post edited by Belalucina on October 2023

  Just in case no one has told you today, you are loved.

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  Ellupelluellu Posts: 6,929 Member

  October 2023

  @Belalucina ,

  I enjoy reading April's adventure Interesting how you included ts2 lore in it, like I said in other thread too
  
  makes me want to load Strangetown and have a rotation with premades

  My love, my love, my fearless love, I will not say goodbye..
  Sea may rise, sky may fall, My love will never die..
  My heart, my heart, My drowning heart, Oh all the tears I've cried
  Oh I may weep forevermore, My love will never die..

  
  

  My Story:Villa Catarina

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  Belalucina Posts: 843 Member

  October 2023 edited October 2023

  Prologue, Part 3
  

  After her jog she finally knocked on one of her neighbors doors.
  
  
  
  The Eggleston's lived there, and she met Alice. They chatted for awhile, and then April planted the bug as she had come to do. She was finding that she was becoming a very 'huggy' person lately.
  
  
  
  Since she had finished placing all the bugs, it was now time to make the recordings.
  
  
  
  She first listened and then made clippings of the interesting bits. There really wasn't much of note. Most of it was idle gossip; a comment about a neighbor's hair, what so-and-so had said, things of that nature. One girl had been afraid she had committed some light treason. Nothing the military would be concerned with. There was one interesting conversation she overheard.
  
  "...no one seems to know where it came from. Even the eggheads can't figure it out."
  
  Were they talking about the scientists? April had seen a few of them around Strangerville, but she hadn't talked to any of them yet. She hadn't figured out if they were working for the military or not. Surely General Grunt would have told her. Anyway, April decided to include that bit in the recordings, just in case.
  
  Then she got to Mrs. Sigworth's recording. She hesitated, but then she pressed play.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  The order had come from the top? But that would be General Grunt. If no one was allowed back in there, why had he sent her there in the first place?
  
  She hurried and finished up her work and then headed out the door. She needed to take her mind off things.
  
  -Later, at 8 Bells bar-
  
  
  
  April had in fact run into Nina again and the two of them had become fast friends. Since she had finished placing bugs and making her recordings, she was now at 8 Bells dancing with Nina. It was nice to unwind and forget about things.
  
  
  
  They were having fun dancing together, but April couldn’t help noticing the Major she had met her first night at the bar.
  
  
  
  He wasn’t in uniform tonight, and she thought he was even more attractive without his uniform. She supposed other girls might say the opposite. You could tell which guys were here in uniform just to pick up girls. At least he wasn’t one of those guys. The way he was leaning against the bar though, eyebrows pulled down in an almost brooding way, definitely made him stand out from the crowd. And his light brown eyes and high cheekbones made him very appealing to April. Who was she kidding? He was downright sexy. She couldn't stop looking at him. He had his arms crossed over his chest and she could see the definition of his biceps under his jacket.
  
  He wasn’t dancing or talking to anyone, but she thought she had seen him glance her way a few times. He looked her way now and her heart skipped a beat. She quickly looked back at Nina.
  
  
  
  Nina noticed. “Go talk to him.”
  
  
  
  “No, I don’t think he likes me very much.”
  
  
  
  “Then why does he keep looking over here?” Nina grinned at her.
  
  
  
  “Stop looking at him!” she begged, but she was smiling. Ugh, why did she care if he was looking at her? He wasn’t very friendly. Or, maybe she had just judged him too early?
  
  “Fine, I’ll go talk to him. Wait here.”
  
  “Yes, Captain,” Nina replied, saluting her. April rolled her eyes.
  
  She made her way to the bar and sat down next to him. She had talked to him once before, but she hadn’t gotten his name. Now that she was here, she didn’t know what to say. He was a rank above her. Perhaps she should just wait and see if he would talk to her first.
  
  
  
  To her surprise, he did. He turned and said, “Looks like you’re having fun.”
  
  She turned to face him. “Yes. Do you dance?”
  
  
  
  He shook his head. “No…”
  
  Well, maybe her first impression had been right after all.
  
  
  
  “What do you do?” she asked, a little more rudely than she had intended.
  
  
  
  He actually smiled at that, the tiniest of smiles. “Observe."
  
  “Okay…and what have you observed?”
  
  “Nothing of note, yet.”
  
  
  
  “Noting of note?” What was that supposed to mean?
  
  “If you’ll excuse me, Captain Fogel.” He got up and left the bar.
  
  April stared after him. How did he know her name? She hadn’t told him, and she still hadn’t gotten his name.
  
  
  
  She stomped back over to Nina.
  
  
  
  “That didn’t go well, I take it?” Nina asked after seeing her face.
  
  “Apparently, I am ‘nothing of note’, so no.”
  
  
  
  “Yikes. Did he say that?”
  
  “Well, not exactly, but that’s what it seemed like.”
  
  Nina got the impression that April didn’t want to talk about it anymore. She grabbed April’s hand and pulled her to the bar. “Come on, the next round’s on me!”
  
  ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
  
  A couple days later April was finally ready to turn in the recordings from the listening devices. The week had gone by with mostly training and getting debriefed on various subjects around the base. She still had various tasks to do for the military outside of her covert operations. In fact, she had done so well that she had already been promoted to Major. And so, she found herself back in General Grunt's office.
  
  
  
  He greeted her with a hearty, "Congratulations on the promotion, Major!"
  
  "Thank you, sir."
  
  She had expected him to start filling her in on what to do next, but before she could even give the box with the recordings he said, "Major Fogel, I want you to meet someone."
  
  
  
  "You'll be working with him on the remainder of this project. He's already been informed and debriefed on the situation and he will fill you in on what to do next. I have some important matters to attend to, but I will leave the two of you to it."
  
  He motioned at the door. "Major Tomlin, come in please."
  
  
  
  April had to stop her jaw from dropping to the floor because the Major that walked in was the same one who had so rudely excused himself from the bar just a couple nights ago. At least she knew his name now...
  
  General Grunt introduced them. "Fogel, this is Major Tate Tomlin. Tomlin, Major April Fogel."
  
  Major Tomlin gave a salute, which she returned, but the two of them gave no sign to General Grunt that they had met previously.
  
  "Well, I have urgent matters to attend to I'm afraid. Tomlin, I trust you will fill me in later." And with that he left and April was left standing in the general's office alone with Major Tomlin.
  
  
  
  When the general left she noticed Tomlin's shoulders relax, but he still held the same taut line across his features. She wondered briefly how handsome he'd be if he actually smiled a real smile. She shook the thought away.
  
  Not wanting to betray her thoughts, she didn't look him in the eye when she turned to him. Her gaze settled instead on his biceps. Well, that didn't help.
  
  "Well?" she demanded. She was still a little upset about the other night.
  
  
  
  "I'll take the recordings you collected," he said quietly.
  
  
  
  She handed them over to him and he said, "Thank you, this should be enough."
  
  "What are they for?" she asked him.
  
  
  
  He looked slightly uncomfortable, but maybe that was how he always looked. "Really, we are just trying to gather every bit of information about the mother plant as we can."
  
  "What would civilians know about it?"
  
  He didn't answer, but changed the subject. "We have a new assignment. It involves taking a trip to Granite Falls. Do you know the place?"
  
  
  
  "I've heard of it, but I've never been."
  
  "There's an individual rumored to live there commonly known as 'The Hermit.' This individual is supposed to be a plant expert. We must find him or her and gather what information we can."
  
  April was puzzling over how this was related to the disappearances. Major Tomlin just looked at her. She looked away quickly.
  
  "So, will you be accompanying me to Granite Falls?"
  
  
  
  "I'm sorry? You mean, the two of us?"
  
  "Unless you'd rather stay here?"
  
  "No, no, of course not. I'll be going."
  
  That seemed to be the end of the conversation. He motioned for the door and the two of them made their way outside.
  
  
  
  Tate held the door open for her and then exited the office behind her. He breathed a sigh of relief once outside, no longer cooped up in General Grunt's small office. April was ahead of him and he watched her make her way down the steps. She really was beautiful. He had no idea how to speak to her. It seemed he had already given her a bad impression of himself. He found small talk uncomfortable and awkward. He'd wanted to stay in the bar and talk with her more, but being around so many people was difficult for him. He had been watching her dance with her friend and he had been mesmerized. It wasn't that she was an amazing dancer, but the way she moved had been so care-free. It had made him forget about his worries for awhile. Would a weekend with her have the same effect he wondered? That was another worry in itself. He felt crazy just being so close to her. He wanted her to glance at him the way she had across the bar the other night. There had been some desire in her eyes he thought, but now...he was afraid he had offended her somehow. He definitely desired her, but for now he would try to rein in those feelings since she didn't seem to reciprocate them.
  
  April was also worrying about a weekend alone with him. What would come of it?

  Post edited by Belalucina on October 2023

  Just in case no one has told you today, you are loved.

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  Belalucina Posts: 843 Member

  October 2023

  @Ellupelluellu

  Thank you for reading. It is fun including the S2 Sims. I didn't originally plan on it, but when I was looking for a recruiter to get April to join the military he was the only military looking sim in my game and then I just thought of a story to go with it.

  
  Some notes I forgot to add:

  If you go back and look at Major Tomlin on the first night at the bar, you will notice he looks completely different. That's because I gave him a makeover. He's much more attractive now lol, and apparently April thinks so too. I hadn't planned on that popping up from wonderful whims, so that was a nice bonus for the story.
  
  I also hadn't planned on putting in Tate's perspective, but he was totally checking her out as they were leaving the office, so I had to include a bit of his perspective.
  
  Also, again, in the game she got promoted to Sergeant Minor, but I changed things a bit just for story sake. She's now on level 4 of the military career. I will probably have her go the Covert Op route and just keep using officer rankings for her promotions.
  
  The trip to Granite Falls also wasn't planned originally. I have no idea what curve balls the Mother Plant Resurrection aspiration will throw at me, and that was one of them. She has to go find the hermit for the aspiration. Should be fun.

  Just in case no one has told you today, you are loved.

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  Ellupelluellu Posts: 6,929 Member

  October 2023

  @Belalucina , Awesome update

  Had to smile a bit at the bar, poor April , she reminded me of my Hanna
  
  Interesting times coming at Granite Falls, in many ways

  My love, my love, my fearless love, I will not say goodbye..
  Sea may rise, sky may fall, My love will never die..
  My heart, my heart, My drowning heart, Oh all the tears I've cried
  Oh I may weep forevermore, My love will never die..

  
  

  My Story:Villa Catarina

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  Belalucina Posts: 843 Member

  October 2023

  @Ellupelluellu

  Thank you. Aw, yeah poor Hanna, she has had several run ins with someone rude
  
  I'm excited to write about Granite Falls. I started writing a little and I feel like I'm writing too much. Hopefully it will be good.

  Just in case no one has told you today, you are loved.

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  Belalucina Posts: 843 Member

  October 2023 edited October 2023

  This may be a longer update, so I'm going to try doing it in smaller sections. This will only be one part of the camping trip and I'll probably post part 2 tomorrow.
  
  Pre-Granite Falls Drink:
  

  They were set to leave for Granite Falls tomorrow. April would go home and pack and meet Major Tomlin at the bus station in the morning. She still had some time in the day left, so she headed to 8 Bells (there really was nothing else to do in StrangerVille).
  
  
  
  She was at the bar, thinking and dreading the weekend. On one hand, she was excited. She'd gone camping in Selvadorada and loved it. On the other hand, she was nervous to be going with Tomlin.
  
  'Tate,' she thought. It was a nice name, but they weren't really on a first name basis. He must have known he'd be working with her when they talked at the bar; that's how he'd known her name and who she was. Why hadn't he just said something then?
  
  A voice next to her broke her out of her thoughts. "April? I was hoping to run into you again."
  
  
  
  "Bradley! Nice to see you again!"
  
  "Can I get you a drink?"
  
  
  
  "Sure. Just a Sweet and Spicy. Thank you."
  
  Bradley ordered their drinks and they talked for a bit. He was a bit younger than her; he hadn't been to university, but had joined the military right out of high school. His family didn't have a lot of money, so he was going to use his benefits from the military to go to university eventually.
  
  
  
  She told him about her family and the various places she'd lived since her family traveled so much. He seemed genuinely interested.
  
  He even asked her to dance.
  
  
  
  She gladly accepted. He was easy to talk to and she felt herself relaxing. He even flirted with her a few times.
  
  
  
  But still, she found her mind wandering ahead to a cabin in the woods with Tate. She blushed, feeling annoyed that he was intruding on her thoughts here with Bradley.
  
  
  
  It was getting late though, and she did need to pack.
  
  "I'm sorry, Bradley. I've got a trip in the morning and I need to prepare for it."
  
  
  
  He seemed sad she was leaving. "Can I get your number? I'd like to see you again."
  
  "I'd like that," she told him. They exchanged numbers and she headed home.

  
  The next morning:

  She woke up early to have breakfast and go on her morning jog. Breakfast did not go as planned...
  
  
  
  Thankfully, she extinguished herself; she seriously hoped the rest of the day wouldn't go like this.
  
  
  
  On her run she passed by General Grunt.
  
  
  
  She thought that he must live nearby. She wondered where he was headed. He didn't see her, so she continued on her way.

  
  At the cabin:

  They arrived at the cabin mid-day. It was small; one of the smallest around the campsite. That was the military for you - paying for the cheapest possible accommodations.
  
  It was a hot day for autumn. She had dressed for warm weather, but Tate was wearing the same jacket he had on before.
  
  "Aren't you hot?"
  
  
  
  He looked down at his jacket and then back at her. "Do you want me to take it off?"
  
  Her face felt hot. Not what she meant. "Uhm...no."
  
  "It's supposed to be cold later. I hope you brought a jacket."
  
  "I did."
  
  "Let's check out the inside." He headed inside and she followed behind him.
  
  The inside consisted of one large room with one bed separated from the living space by a measly partition.
  
  
  
  "There's only one bed..."
  
  "I brought a sleeping bag," he told her. He was looking away from her. Maybe he was as embarrassed as she felt.
  
  Still, they'd be sleeping in practically the same room. "Okay..." she sighed.
  
  "I'm going to head outside." And then he was gone.
  
  
  
  April sat on the bed and put her bag down. At least the bed wasn't too uncomfortable. She felt a little bad for Tate having to sleep on a sleeping bag. It was weird the military had paid for this cabin. She guessed they probably didn't check it out ahead of time, but just paid for something cheap for the weekend. She was actually surprised they'd paid for a cabin at all; they could be sleeping in a tent. She decided to be thankful for what they had.

  
  Later:

  It was cold; Tate had been right. She decided to make a fire. Her brother, August, called and she chatted with him for a minute. Tate came out of the cabin and made his way over to join her. She was noticing that he didn't like spending a lot of time indoors. She said goodbye to August as Tate sat down.
  
  
  
  He sat next to her and they were quiet for a bit.
  
  
  
  "Any idea where The Hermit lives?" she asked him.
  
  "No idea. I suspect we'll need to hike around a lot. We may need to camp out there in the woods if it ends up being very far away. There's a place to buy supplies near here. We should get some tents just in case."
  
  She nodded. Maybe The Hermit didn't want to be found. "Must be lonely..." she murmured.
  
  
  
  "Lonely?"
  
  "The Hermit, I mean."
  
  
  
  "I think it sounds nice," he said. "Living out here in nature away from all the hustle and bustle."
  
  "So, nothing like military life."
  
  
  
  He smiled then and April wondered if maybe all she needed to do was just get through his tough shell to see what was underneath. He was handsome when he smiled.
  
  "Do you like to fish?" he asked her.
  
  She was a little taken aback at his random question. "Fishing? I did fish a little when I lived in Sulani. My brother, Toby, was much better at it though, but not August." She laughed at the memory of August being upset about hurting the fish.
  
  "You have brother's and sisters?" he asked her.
  
  "Yes, four brothers and two sisters."
  
  "Sounds like you are close with them."
  
  She smiled. "Yes. Do you have any siblings?"
  
  
  
  He was quiet for so long that April wondered if he had heard her, but then he stood up and said, "I have a sister." Then he walked away back to the cabin. He had a bad habit of doing that, but this time April wondered if there was something more to it. She didn't think he was trying to be rude.
  
  He came out a minute later with two fishing poles and headed down to the river.
  
  
  
  They fished in silence for awhile and April noticed how at peace he looked out here. She felt at peace suddenly too.
  
  

  
  Hiking:

  They still had some daylight and so they decided to go ahead and start hiking.
  
  
  
  April purchased some tents and supplies at the camping lodge and the two of them set out. April had changed into her cold weather clothes and they brought umbrellas since it looked like it might rain.
  
  They walked close together for awhile just taking in the scenery. Granite Falls was beautiful. Sometimes they walked in silence, and other times they talked.
  
  
  
  "Have you been camping before?" he asked her.
  
  "I camped in Selvadorada. I did a lot of archeology work there with my family."
  
  
  
  "Your family sounds nice..."
  
  "Yes, they are..."
  
  It started to drizzle then and they pulled out their umbrellas. Then April spotted something. "I see something up ahead!"
  
  
  
  Sure enough, there was a strange thicket with some sort of opening. April had experience hacking vines away and she also had a machete, so she decided to check it out.
  
  
  
  Tate swatted some mosquitos away. "Ack. Did you bring bug spray?"
  
  "Nope."
  
  
  
  And with that she plunged through the thicket.

  
  Notes:

  I realize Bradley and Tate are kind of similar looking...but they were both random townies that the game generated and I just gave makeovers.
  
  
  
  
  Bradley is a romantic interest now since they flirted at the bar.

  Just in case no one has told you today, you are loved.

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  Ellupelluellu Posts: 6,929 Member

  October 2023

  @Belalucina Oooh

  Interesting! Guys may look the same, but are different Bradley being nice and all.. but perhaps too nice? So often girls fall for the "bad guys"... not saying Tate is, but more mysterious and sort of "exciting" Just how I understood it. Haha would not be first time I am wrong.. or last

  My love, my love, my fearless love, I will not say goodbye..
  Sea may rise, sky may fall, My love will never die..
  My heart, my heart, My drowning heart, Oh all the tears I've cried
  Oh I may weep forevermore, My love will never die..

  
  

  My Story:Villa Catarina

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  Belalucina Posts: 843 Member

  October 2023

  @Ellupelluellu

  No, I think you're right. Mysterious and exciting is a good way to put it.

  Just in case no one has told you today, you are loved.

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  Belalucina Posts: 843 Member

  October 2023

  I decided to make my own thread for this story. You can find it here.

  Just in case no one has told you today, you are loved.

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  n0t_flora Posts: 1 New Member

  November 2023

  hi! do you think you would update this challenge for the newer packs like growing together and horse ranch?

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  Belalucina Posts: 843 Member

  November 2023

  @n0t_flora,
  @GhostDragon1351 hasn't posted since January, but you could always just add those packs on at the end or wherever you feel like squeezing them in.

  Just in case no one has told you today, you are loved.

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  GhostDragon1351 Posts: 23 Member

  December 2023 edited December 2023

  n0t_flora wrote: »

  hi! do you think you would update this challenge for the newer packs like growing together and horse ranch?

  
  Hi! Yeah I would love to add those in I will probably add them at the end tho since it would be a lot easier
  

  Belalucina wrote: »

  @n0t_flora,
  @GhostDragon1351 hasn't posted since January, but you could always just add those packs on at the end or wherever you feel like squeezing them in.

  
  Omg! Sorry I haven't posted but I'm so happy to see that you are doing the challenge and I love seing April's adventure! I just read trough everything and it's so so fun

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  Belalucina Posts: 843 Member

  December 2023

  @GhostDragon1351 good to see you! And thanks for reading my story so far. I'm hoping to finish it next year.

  Just in case no one has told you today, you are loved.

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  GhostDragon1351 Posts: 23 Member

  December 2023

  n0t_flora wrote: »

  hi! do you think you would update this challenge for the newer packs like growing together and horse ranch?

  
  I just updated the challenge with two new generation for Growing together and Horse ranch! I also added a bonus task in Gen 11 with the home chef hustle stuff pack and I'm planning on adding a generation for For Rent

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  GhostDragon1351 Posts: 23 Member

  December 2023

  Belalucina wrote: »

  @GhostDragon1351 good to see you! And thanks for reading my story so far. I'm hoping to finish it next year.

  
  Awsome can't wait to see the rest of it!

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