Reaper's Genetic Legacy Experiment [Complete]

[PeregrineTook]

I'm finally up to speed on this story!  Really loving how you flesh out the realities of each world they experience.  Looking forward to how Mary's adventure plays out.

[SadieHamming]

I have a feeling that Mary likes Thomas! I love how your addressing the fact that Mary is going to have identity issues, as she's not sure who she is anymore. She was Mary, and then she always James, but now she can be Mary. I have a feeling that Thomas is going to be able to help her figure out who she is.

Now that my rant about Mary and Thomas is done, I'll say one more thing; Edward is a great brother, but I hope that he keeps his emotions in check before he acts.

[Rhoxi]

I look forward to seeing how Mary's personality unfolds, but for some reason I don't trust Thomas. Maybe I'm just paranoid after all the Island Paradiso drama. 

[rodeo199]

Mary & Thomas sittin' in a tree, K-I-S-S-I-N-G. First comes love, then comes marriage, then comes the baby in the baby carriage. lol

[Mizzilee]

I like Thomas. He's good peoples. Seriously, he seems like such a trustworthy person. I foresee them being really close friends as the story progresses. I think the easiest solution for Mary/James would just be to call her Jamie ^.^

I'm kidding---at this point, I don't think what her name is matters. It's exactly like Thomas said. She is whoever she wakes up to be that day and hopefully she'll learn not to be so pressured into trying to be something she's not or struggle to hard to learn who this 'Mary' person is.

I loved Edward's appearance by the way. Just wish we could have seen an actual screenshot of him! (Or am I the only one who moves random sims in an out of the household to suit my needs? I must be XD)

[LivvieLove]

I'm finally up to speed on this story!  Really loving how you flesh out the realities of each world they experience.  Looking forward to how Mary's adventure plays out.

Aw, thank you. Mary's adventures are going to be quite interesting.

I have a feeling that Mary likes Thomas! I love how your addressing the fact that Mary is going to have identity issues, as she's not sure who she is anymore. She was Mary, and then she always James, but now she can be Mary. I have a feeling that Thomas is going to be able to help her figure out who she is.

Now that my rant about Mary and Thomas is done, I'll say one more thing; Edward is a great brother, but I hope that he keeps his emotions in check before he acts.

Mary and Thomas are quite the pair, and this next update will prove that. Mary struggles with her identity and always will, she's lived two lives and it's been hard on her personally. Thomas is a step in the right direction for her. Edward is a great brother, he's just very ambitious and emotional. Mary is his level-headed sister that keeps him thinking straight and Edward keeps his sister fun and allows her to not let life get monotonous.

I look forward to seeing how Mary's personality unfolds, but for some reason I don't trust Thomas. Maybe I'm just paranoid after all the Island Paradiso drama. 

Yeah, Mary is quite a complicated mess. I love that about her. Their friendship developed awfully quickly so I understand where the lack of trust comes in but he has no bad intentions (that I've imagined at least) for Mary.

Mary & Thomas sittin' in a tree, K-I-S-S-I-N-G. First comes love, then comes marriage, then comes the baby in the baby carriage. lol

Haha, possibly, though I doubt Mary would ever be very good with conventional relationships. She's still got a lot of identity issues to work out.

I like Thomas. He's good peoples. Seriously, he seems like such a trustworthy person. I foresee them being really close friends as the story progresses. I think the easiest solution for Mary/James would just be to call her Jamie ^.^

I'm kidding---at this point, I don't think what her name is matters. It's exactly like Thomas said. She is whoever she wakes up to be that day and hopefully she'll learn not to be so pressured into trying to be something she's not or struggle to hard to learn who this 'Mary' person is.

I loved Edward's appearance by the way. Just wish we could have seen an actual screenshot of him! (Or am I the only one who moves random sims in an out of the household to suit my needs? I must be XD)

Haha, it's like you read my mind for that one. Thomas is a very nice guy and he and Mary have a lot in common, but I doubt I could ever have Mary fit into a "conventional" love-marriage relationship. At least, not the lovey-dovey kind. Yeah I didn't get a good picture of him (unfortunately) but I adore his look. He pulls off the dreads and beard so well! Story Progression has been mum about most of the gang as of late, so he seems to be keeping to himself (which seems highly unusual compared to his wild, out-there personality).
Oh, believe me, I do much fancier tricks with my sims to get the screenshots I want. I think if everyone saw how painfully motivated I was to get the right shots from Isla Paradiso they would all bust out laughing. I knew off the get-go what I would need to get the right people in the right places, and boy was it a lot of work to do it!


Erm, sad announcement.
Well I have bad news with a good outcome for everyone. I had a busy week planned out, and a few of you may know I was in an accident a few weeks ago where my car is undriveable (thankfully no one was hurt though). I got a new job and everything seemed to be looking up. I was going to attend training this week but with my car in the shop that posed problems for me, so my parents came up and booked a hotel and offered to drive me to and from my training to ensure I got there and learned. I had packed everything up and went to the hotel with my parents and got checked in and just as we were about to hit the hot-tub Monday night my boss called and said she "didn't feel the training would help me" and also that she was letting me go because "things just weren't working out." I was put in a really awkward situation that ended in tears and depression as my parents canceled everything and took me home and drove all the way home to Indiana (3 hour drive) at night after telling me to not feel bad about it. Everyone tells me it wasn't me as it was them not planning ahead of time the cost it would take to take on another person, but it still took a major hit to my pride. My boss (well, ex-boss now) contradicted herself several times in her "I'm letting you go Speech" about how I needed experience but going to training and getting experience wasn't good for me, so I know something fishy was up. It still sucks and I've been moping about it, but I know I'll have to get back on the horse and keep looking for jobs. I've had just an awful month, really, but the good news is, I can now play Sims a little more as I'm home.
So That means updates for everyone, however, you'll have to excuse me as I'm still an emotional rollercoaster from everything (I'm angry and bitter and confused, mostly). This is likely more than any of you will need to know/want to know about my personal life, and I usually try to keep it separate, but I just wanted to explain why I was suddenly available, but not quite all the way happy.
Anywho, look for updates today/tomorrow. I'll be posting. Happy Simming everyone.

[PeregrineTook]

Comforting hugs.

[Mizzilee]

That's horrible, Livvie! I'm sending you lots of love and hugs through the computer screen right now. I really hope things get better for you!

[SadieHamming]

Livvie, I'm sorry that it didn't work out. It was wrong of her to have you come all the way out for training and tell you just before that it wasn't going to work. I hope that things are looking up now. Take care of yourself and try not to stress too much(I know it's hard) Virtual comforting hug!

[Rhoxi]

That's really unprofessional to hire someone and then fire them before they even have a chance to excel at performing the job hired, especially where the person incurred expenses in the process.  There's a little voice in my head screaming "Detrimental reliance!" but I doubt that helps you very much. For what it's worth, I think I speak for a lot of us forum-ers in sympathizing and wishing you well.

[LivvieLove]

I appreciate all of the comforting thoughts being sent my way, it's been rough but I'm sure that I'm due for a good day here soon, haha. Anyways, until that day comes, here's another update! Playing Sims has really been helping me feel better about my day, so there might be two in a row due to lots of pictures, we'll see how well I consolidate the update.

Becoming Mary
Mary had restless sleep that night on the couch at her mom's house. Her house was still in the process of being built and she knew it would take time, but it wasn't just the discomfort of the couch that kept her up. Bear looked at her from across the room, aware of his new owner's sleep-issues.
"Oh Bear, why is this identity thing such a crisis?" She groaned as she laid her arm over her eyes. "Why can't I just 'be me' like everyone is telling me to? Who am I? Does it even matter?"
Bear whined and rolled over, his tongue fell out of his mouth as he panted.
"I wish I were a dog." Mary said as she peeked over at Bear. "Then I wouldn't have to worry about this stupid identity thing - I'd be a dog!"
Bear barked softly, just letting air through his vocal cords gently, he came over and licked Mary's hand.
"Do you know who I am?" Mary asked him quietly. "You probably know the secrets of the universe but simply can't communicate with anyone about it."
Bear immediately stood up and began to chase his tail, nipping at it and barking in surprise when it hurt.
Mary laughed. "Or not." She rolled over on her stomach. "What time is it anyways?" She squinted at the clock above the mantle and saw it was only three in the morning. "Ugh!" She plopped her face onto the couch pillow.

Mary saw every hour after that on that clock in Palmira's living room. Palmira chose a house that was already in town, but Mary insisted on having hers built. She was growing to regret that idea with all the time she stared at the clock. When it was around seven, Mary allowed herself to get up and shower. She gave Bear a meal and a good brushing before calling a taxi to head to the library.
Thomas was already there waiting for her.

"Thomas, you're here early... and here I was thinking I would've been considered far too early." Mary said with a smile.
He smiled. "I love the library. I thought I'd get some searches in prior to you getting here so I could lay out your options a little faster."
"So I'm opening an Inn, how exactly does that even work?"
"You'll need land first, land to build on, then blueprints and you'll probably want to think of a name and a business formula. You'll then need to interview some people for positions and set up your layout so that it's yours."
Mary raised her eyebrows. "You really did do research."
"Well, actually, you got me thinking about this business venture you want to do, and I'd really like to be a part of it, if that's ok. It just feels right." Thomas seemed to have something behind his voice, but Mary didn't push or question it.
"Welcome aboard, I'm likely going to need a lot of help." She laughed. "Anyways, where can I start?"
"Here, let's use the computers to do some land-hunting?"
"Sounds good..." Mary paused for a minute as Thomas started to head for the stairs. "Uh, Thomas?"
"Yeah?"
"Uh, what, exactly, is a computer?" Mary gave him a sheepish smile.
Thomas grinned. "You've never used one in Isla Paradiso, did you?"
"We mentioned them a little in schools, but they're a mystery to me."
"Follow me, I'll show you."

After several complicated hours of explanation later, Mary was sort-of in business.

"Uh... Thomas?"
"What is it? Did you accidently exit out of the browser again?"
"No, I think I found a plot."
"Really?"

"Yeah, come take a look at this, it's completely beach-front."
"It's also near the center of town..." Thomas said while tilting his head to the side, "that could cause issues, you know."
"Well, it's closer to all the stores and what-not."
"It's also closer to the riots and other problems."
Mary rolled her eyes. "Honestly, and people think that's awful?" She joked.
"It may damage business."
"Or it may bring a different kind of business. We won't know until we try."
"If you're sure."
"I am, but how do I buy it?"

Thomas and Mary took a taxi to their Inn location. It was just a piece of beach, really, but Mary was thrilled.

"This is incredible!" Mary started to jump with excitement.
She was so excited that she jumped into a particularly close hug with Thomas, one that made her feel incredibly self-aware.
As they broke apart Mary couldn't help but feel inadequate and uncomfortable.

She glanced at Thomas' watch and feigned surprise. "Oh, my, is that the time?" She said quickly. "I completely forgot that I have an appointment soon. I really should go."
"Oh, ok." Thomas said quickly as he looked at his watch as well. He called a taxi for Mary and mentioned something about getting together later to work out the details of the construction work.
In the taxi, the driver impatiently asked where Mary was heading. She was numb for a moment as she stared down at herself. "Salon." She said as she snapped out of her trance. "To the local salon please?"

Mary's gut was sinking as she approached the bright building. She didn't feel acceptable now, but what makes her believe that changing her clothes would make her more acceptable? She shook the thoughts out of her head and approached the door. The receptionist smiled at her and ushered her to take a seat.
"Someone will be with you shortly." She smiled a sickeningly faked smile.

Mary's discomfort was palpable as another woman came over and introduced herself.
"Hi there, are you..." She paused as she looked at the paper in her hand. "Mary?"
Mary stood up immediately and shook her head. "Yes ma'am. That's me." She tried to be as firm as she could, as confident as she could when using the words 'that's me.'
The woman smiled a genuine smile and held out her hand. "I'm Cody, a stylist here, so what brings you here today Mary?"
"I uhm..." Mary felt awkward. "I want to figure out who I am. I've lived my whole life as two separate people, and I need to find... to become something like... well, me I guess."
Cody didn't even seem phased by this. "What kind of look are you going for?"
"I grew up dressed mostly like a boy." Mary confessed. "I've never actually had a chance to be a girl..." She tugged the ends of her short hair nervously.
Cody smiled. "So you want to try something more feminine?"

"Yeah... At least, I think so? I'm not really sure what you can do with this..." She scruffed up her short hair.
"Believe me, in these modern times we can do quite a bit. Tell me, have you heard of extensions before?"

It wasn't long before Mary stood exposed in front of the mirror. She moved uncomfortably in her skin.

"Don't worry doll, just breathe and relax with me." Cody put a reassuring hand on her shoulder.
"What are extensions, again?" Mary asked quickly.
"Just fake hair that we attach to your real hair to give it a longer or fuller or different appearance. It's temporary and can be removed. I'm going to do a fusion method, as your hair is much too short for me to attempt a weave-in."
"Fusion?"
"Glue, honey, it'll come out normally with a little bit of heat - like a flat iron directly on the glue, nothing that will permanently be damaging. Normally I recommend clip-ins to my first-time extenders, but I worry that would be too noticeable in your hair. Just give me a call if you want them removed and I can do it in a flash." She gave a warm smile. Cody examined Mary's face. "You have beautiful skin, but can I please wax those eyebrows of yours? You would look so much more defined without those bushy brows covering your gorgeous eyes." Mary laid back in the chair by the wax pot.
"Yeah, I suppose so..." Mary shifted in the seat she had been put in to wax her eyebrows. "Nothing is permanent, right?"
"Of course not!" Cody said suddenly. She pulled Mary into a siting-up position. "What I'm doing for you is entirely superficial. I'm just going to add some length to your hair, show you how to put on a little makeup and give you some different clothing options. At the end of the day if you feel uncomfortable or just want to let it go, you can wash it off and take out the extensions and be the exact same woman who walked in the door not but a few minutes ago. This won't change who you are, this is just helping you shine that personality of yours for everyone to see."
"Who am I though?" Mary asked quietly.
Cody rubbed her hands on her apron after she washed them. "Sweetheart, that's not a real question to ask yourself."
"What do you mean?"
"At the end of the day, it doesn't matter what you call yourself or how you think you've verbally labeled yourself that makes you you, it's the actions you did and whether or not you feel happy with the choices you made. You are not something you can just slap a label on to make sense of, no one is. Look around, everyone here is a little different in how we dress and act and talk. We're all confused about the idea of "who" we are, but at the end of the day, if we're happy with the choices we've made then we're happy with ourselves. There's no such thing as a definite label."
Mary let that sink in and didn't respond. For some reason, that made a lot more sense than she expected it to.
She let Cody tweeze, wax, pull, prod, poke, tug, braid, brush, powder, comb, adjust and work with her. When it came time for the clothing part, that's when the questions started up again.
"What do you feel more comfortable in? Dresses, pants, skirts?"
"I guess... pants, but I've never really worn a dress."
"Then I can set you up one for a special occasion, but let's stick to an everyday wear. So pants, do you like the feel of vests? I noticed you had one on, and I think I have something you might like."
"Yeah, it's what I've always worn."
"Good! Comfort is key, and familiar things tend to be the most comfortable for us." Cody smiled. "Here, try this on!" She handed her a few articles of clothing. "Also, how do you feel about high-heels?"
"High-what?" Mary asked suddenly. Cody tossed her a pointed shoe with lots of straps. "What is this?" Mary asked thoroughly confused.
"It's a shoe." Cody said trying to suppress a laugh.
"How?!" Mary shifted the shoe in both hands with confusion. "It looks like a weapon!"
Cody laughed. "So no high-heels then." She threw a pair of level black shoes that were more familiar to Mary. Mary put everything on and adjusted everything when Cody showed her in the mirror.

Mary reached out and touched it. "Is that really me?" She asked quietly, with wonder.

"Yup doll, that's 100% you with just some different clothing and a new hairstyle. The lipstick doesn't hurt either." Cody said with a satisfied grin. "Unfortunately, because you're hair is so short, you'll have noticeable short pieces next to your longer pieces that came with the extensions, but thankfully it looks really natural on you. Now let's get to work on that special occasion dress you want to try. Do you have a color preference?"
"I like natural colors, browns, greens... I guess." Mary responded, still in awe of her reflection and how different it looked compared to before.
"Those are nice colors with your skintone. Now how about fit, do you prefer it to be a little tighter fitting or looser? I would take a stab in the dark and say looser, but I like to be sure."
"Looser, definitely."
"I'll also try to keep it on the longer side for more comfort... hmm... here, try this one!" She tossed a brown dress over to Mary who took it excitedly.
"How do I put this on?" Mary looked at it confused. Cody, again, tried to suppress a laugh.
"Oh doll, just slide it over your head." She said grinning. She paused as Mary attempted. "You might want to take off your other clothing first though."
"Oh... right." Mary smiled awkwardly. Cody helped her into the dress and pulled Mary's new hair back and curled a few pieces. She added clips and pins to keep other strands back. She also handed Mary some strappy sandals that had no heel. Mary gave Cody a thankful look that she was sticking with easy things for Mary to figure out.

"Now sleepwear! So, let's find you a sexy-little number for that guy-friend of yours."
"Wait... how do you know about-"
"Oh please girl, no one comes into this salon wearing a masculine costume and confidence to match it only to ask for something more feminine without reason, and what makes a girl want to be more like a woman than that of a suitor."
"Well, he's not actually my suitor." Mary said quietly.
"No, not yet he isn't, but after today you'll have many!" Cody teased as she dug through the drawers in her wardrobe. She pulled out various items of clothing and held them up for inspection, occasionally nodding, or other times squinting one eye and shaking her head 'no.' She pulled out another article of clothing.
"Uh, is that a corset?" Mary said with eyes wide in shock.
"So no corset then?" Cody took Mary's eyes in consideration. "Nope, I guess not." She answered her own question. "How about this one?"

Mary rubbed her hands against the material. "It's so soft..."
"That's silk, dear."
"Wow, I've never had anything made of silk." Mary said softly.
"Now you do! One more to go - swimwear! So you can take that man of yours to the beach!"
"What's wrong with the swimwear I have?"
"Everything." Cody said bluntly. "Your swimwear shouldn't have boots involved, sweetie."
Mary shrugged.
"So I guess you're not a bikini kind of girl, are you?"
"A what?"
"One piece it is."

"I feel completely exposed."
"You're supposed to. Imagine if I had given you a string bikini."
Mary's eyes went even wider.
"Anyways, so, how do you like it?"
"It's really different, but I like it." Mary said smiling. "I may not know exactly what I want in my life right now, but thank you."
"You're welcome sweetie." Cody gave another genuine smile. "Can I call a taxi for you?"
"Yes, thank you."

Mary had gained something in that moment, whether it was confidence or knowledge of herself she couldn't be sure, but she had a feeling she knew someone that would know.


Edward had moved into an all-brick house near the center of town. Mary knocked on his door lightly before it was pulled open by her brother.
His eyes went big and he looked her up and down. "Excuse me, ma'am. You look like my sister Mary, except I know that can't possibly be her because I just saw her yesterday and her hair was much shorter then."
"Oh shut-it, you." Mary gave him a swift punch in the shoulder.
"I was hoping that my sister would've gotten a demeanor to match her new clothing, not keep her old one." He teased.
Mary stuck her tongue out at him.
"Really, sis, what's with this?" He asked as he looked her up and down.
"I wanted to try something different." Mary sighed as she looked down at herself. "Does it look bad?"
"No, it just doesn't look like the Mary I'm used to, but if it makes you happy, then it looks amazing."
"I think it does make me happy."
"You think? Since when is my baby sister ever not sure of herself?"
"I've been really unsure of myself a lot lately, actually." Mary said uncomfortably.
"I don't believe it." Edward leaned back against a table.
"No, seriously. I just this guy... and things just feel... different now."

"Glasses guy you were with last night?" Edward asked with surprise.
"Thomas." Mary corrected him.
"Ah, yeah, Thomas, that's the one. So you really like this guy, eh?"
"I'm not really sure what I feel, but I guess so? I think I'm having a complex."
"Well, something's got you worked up sis, I've never seen you so unsure in your life, and that's highly unusual for you."
"I just have a lot of unanswered questions." Mary confessed. "That's all."
"Then why not find the answers to them?"
"It's not that simple, Ed." Mary sighed.
"Why can't it be? You're always trying to find some definite answer to every problem in life, Mary. Truth be told - life isn't a math equation. Sometimes, there is no 'right' answer. Sometimes, there are gray areas. If you have feelings for this guy, or you just aren't sure... sometimes you have to pursue it to figure it out, not just stand back and wait for the answer to become apparent."
"Why is it that everyone always seems so sure of these things? Do I really just miss out that much on the answers in life?"
Edward shook his head. "You're impossible, sis."
"Hey!"
"No, I'm serious. You're impossible and determined and logical and thoughtful. If someone doesn't push you in the right direction in life, then you'll end up stuck pondering things rather than living. So stop pondering. Don't think about whether you have feelings for a guy, just feel them. That's why they're called feelings you know."
"You know that doesn't come easy to me Edward." Mary said defeated.
Edward sighed and hugged his sister.

"You love me." He said simply. "You love mom. You love Bear and Aunt Mylee. Those aren't things you think about everyday. You have to tap into that. You have to start thinking about people in terms of feelings and not equations - it's not easy either way. Feelings are complicated, but very rewarding if you let them happen."
"Which button do I push to activate feelings over logic?" Mary said sarcastically.
Edward rolled his eyes at her. "Come'on, sis, let's grab some dinner."
They went to Flying V's and grabbed a burger together. They talked about Edwards new job as a Firefighter, and how their mom decided to join the hospital after taking on training under Mylee. Halfway through, Mary got a call from the builders - her house was done.
"Hey, come check it out with me?" Mary called to Edward as they left.
"Can't. I'm due in early at the station tomorrow, I'll stop by tomorrow evening though. Think about what I told you earlier though, ok?"
"Yeah, yeah."
Mary took a taxi home and got the pictures on her phone of her new home. It was simple, clean and hers.



They even put the bookshelves exactly as she liked, but what she didn't expect was to have a visitor when she got there.

"Thomas?"

[SadieHamming]

Mary looks so pretty! Not that she wasn't pretty before, but that hair looks really good on her. I think her outfits are very Mary-like. I loved how the stylist had to explain everything to her, like the dresses and heels  Her house is very pretty. I think it definitely matches her personality. Simming is always good for the soul. They should make Sims for Everyone's Soul.  LIke Chicken soup for the teenage soul.

[PeregrineTook]

Mary's delightful, but I think Bear and Edward being nice counterpoints to her personality.

[Kavey]

This is a glorious day, Mary's hair is grown! I wish I had those lovely locks… *sigh*
I'm glad to see that Eddy is doing well too, and not pillaging random towns. Best of all is to here from you again Livvie, and I know I'm a bit late, but virtual hugs from me to you. Hang in there, make Agnes proud!

[Serenity S.]

Now go Mary, throw your identity issues in trashbin and kiss him! You need to find yourself and you need another person to tell you things about humans and personality and yourself and such...