Author Topic: The Avyan Immortal Dynasty - The Word Unsaid (9/25/20)  (Read 73845 times)

Offline oshizu

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Re: The Avyan Immortal Dynasty - "For Its Own Sake" (5/23/18)
« Reply #15 on: May 23, 2018, 06:03:11 PM »
Loved Kestral and Miko's back and forth as they danced around each other before Kestral proposed.
"Under the shade of the blossoming trees" reminds me of the monk Saigyo's celebrated death poem...
What a captivating proposal! <3

Offline Deme

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Re: The Avyan Immortal Dynasty - "For Its Own Sake" (5/23/18)
« Reply #16 on: May 24, 2018, 09:58:16 PM »
Awww, that was too cute!  I love Kestral and Miko.  They are too perfect for each other.

They are very cute, I agree. I'm always so attached to a founder's spouse.

Loved Kestral and Miko's back and forth as they danced around each other before Kestral proposed.
"Under the shade of the blossoming trees" reminds me of the monk Saigyo's celebrated death poem...
What a captivating proposal! <3

Thank you very much! I sometimes get very in my head about how these things read, and I'm glad you liked! "Dancing around each other," sounds about right to me, ha ha.

Also, now that you've made me check in on that poem, I'm going to have to keep that in mind for later. It seems very useful... for paintimes.


Meanwhile, the news of Seasons has made me super hype, even if it means I'll want to run off of my screenshot buffer for about a month, rather than play much: It has too many implications that might affect Gen 2 and I am so very thrilled for it that I don't want to run into their teen years without knowing what wonderful things this could open up!
Stories In Progress:
The Avyan Immortal Dynasty



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Offline Deme

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Re: The Avyan Immortal Dynasty - "Breathmints for All" (5/28/18)
« Reply #17 on: May 28, 2018, 08:58:01 PM »
Chapter 4: Breathmints for All!

Since Gino’s night of fishing was a tremendous success, he’s taking some time off; called up a neighbor, one Mila Munch. She was with the welcome wagon when he moved in, and I guess he liked knowing there was someone closer to his own age in the neighborhood. Can’t blame him.


“No, I’ve never been a family man. The sea’s a lonely place… Sometimes, feels like a bit of a waste,” he’s explaining, still in his PJs of all things. Not that I’ve never done that; a good pair of PJs can get you through a whole day, right?

“It’s hardly a waste to do what you love!” She proclaims, fervently. “I try and tell my boys the value of a dedication passion, of going out into the wilderness (especially Gunther, who needs a little wilderness), of the value of hard work.”

“I don’t regret it, not exactly; kept me having the time of my life for years! But I’ll say you’ve got the gumption of any sailor, raising those boys on your own! There’s a lot of value of filling your life with people you love, giving them a guide in the world. It’s real swell you can do that.”

“Oh, you shameless flatterer,” she chuckles. “But now you’re closer to the city.”

“I’m doin’ more river-fishin’ these days. Better on the joints. Still got to get up early -- and the fish have to get up early to get past me!”

They both laugh about that for a while.

“I am to understand that Miss Avyan keeps a well-stocked bar,” she says, rising. “Let me pour you a drink; I have a taste for such things.”

“That would be nice.”

No, you can’t fault the old guy for wanting a friend.


Or more than a friend.

“...Mila. I’ll admit, I’m not the best talker in town. But I want you to know. If you could find the time… I’d really love it, if every so often, a beautiful, charming woman like you could stop by and spend some time with me.”

“I think you’re selling yourself short! There’s a lot to recommend, enjoying your time with someone with so many stories, who’s so… energizing, to be around. It’s important to spend time with...someone you care for.”


Well, I’m not going to eavesdrop after that. I think that, you know, unlike some men… He might just want someone in his life.

I’ve got my own accomplishments; some people were busy today; not that I’ll fault Gino his getting busy.


I was scoring a promotion, for starters. Been a long day, and I came out on top.

And since I am the champion, with a bit more cash to throw around…


Bam, house upgrade!
...It’ll look much better when we can slap a second floor up there. One simoleon at a time.

I worry about the new roomie there; it’s not normal for a guy to cry in his sleep. Well, he seems kind of the lonely type.


Oh, well. I mention it to Zest, just after he’d gotten a phonecall from Candy. He grins and clicks his phone off, casually tossing it to his opposite hand, and he says,
“I’ll take care of it! I know just the thing to cheer a guy up.”


“A double-date! Breathmints for all.”
“I could use some,” says Candy, staring pointedly at him. “I was really sick. This morning.”
“Aw. Hope you feel better.” He orders breakfast.

...Zest is...sure something. And by ‘something,’ I mean ‘a person who is missing an unsubtle clue.’ I wasn’t there, but I can promise you:

He was missing her point.

Speaking of things getting missed...

“It’s so frustrating, seeing everyone with someone but you, isn’t it, Ulrike? It’s so annoying, when people are so public, right?” Akira asks, shooting a glance at the other couples enjoying breakfast. I’d heard he was a jealous type.
“...I think a little romance is nice. There’s no need to get all worked up.” As Ulrike answered, there was the subtle noise of a chair scootching back.
Swing and a miss there, Akira. Swing and a miss.

Well, while they’re off muddling about their time, I’m up and about and working my way through my skills.



Behold! With this tumbler, I’ve cleared another barrier, and onto my third stage of my mixology aspiration. I’ll need to have a social occasion soon.


“Sooo, when do we want for a wedding?” Miko asks, sidling up close to me on the couch while a culinary training video plays in the background. Ah, yes, another social event I need to think about.

“Well, we’re going to go for fancy dresses here, right? Guests are a must. I’ll bake a cake.”

“I want our toppers to be something cool! Maybe elves? Ah, no, a lady and a knight!” she said, waving a finger at her own change in suggestion. I chuckle.

“I’ll see if there’s a suitably cool and lady-like knight option.” Armor could make up the difference. “OK, so we’re going to need a lot of time, but… It’ll be hard for us to find time, for a while.”

“That’s true; we basically work opposite schedules. Every night, the moon comes and steals you away, just when I get home; and when you awake, I must depart! It’s all so very Ladyhawke... maybe you transform into a wolf.” The drama of her sigh is patently manufactured… But we both giggle anyway.

“I’m a kestral, aren’t I? So I’m the hawk here! We can’t afford to miss…”

“So we’re going to have to be patient, alright, babe? Until our next mutual day off.” It rankles a little to not be in control of my schedule. Oh, well.


In the meanwhile, we take what moments we can; little kisses as we wind down like this -- a brush of our fingers over a morning cup of coffee -- every time she turns, the urge to just reach out and grab her is irresistable. Maybe I really am a bird of prey.


“Hey, Kest?” Zest brings his breakfast out to the porch the next morning.
“Zest.” I wait for him to explain the uneasy look on his face.
“...So. I’ve got, I mean, haha, I guess it’s good news, but -- well, you know how no news is good news? This is news. Ha.” He pushes my perfectly good leftovers around on his plate. “... Maaike had a baby.”

“No kidding.” And the last horse crosses the finish line. I pour him a celebratory drink that we can take inside. “Congrats, poppa! What’s the scamp’s name?”

“Hobart... Haas.”

“...Hobart.” I ignore the worry in his voice over the kid’s last name not being his, born to another household and all, in favor of this series of wedgies laid out across this poor boy’s lifetime, which just so happened to take the form of a name. A name like Hobart. For entirely separate reasons, we stare off into a great middle distance.



“What should I do? I’m not ready to settle down! I don’t want to take care of a kid!” He bursts out, when I have adequately adjusted to the intense wave of nomenclature-based disappointment that washed over me. Hobart. I ponder my approach here.

“Jonathan Zest --”

“When you say it like that, it doesn’t sound like Jonathan should even be a name,” Zest interjects. “Sounds like you made it up, even though it’s my name. Weird, right?”

“You have a choice,” I ignore this other name vortex into which I am being pulled. “You either be sweet to that girl, do right by her… Or. You don’t. You let her worry about her business -- you have fun having yours. You let it go. Let it all go.”

He doesn’t tell me his answers in words, so much. But he’s not ready for one girl. He won’t worry, and the choice is immediate.

Best of luck, I guess.

I’d like to call your attention to something.

That is a man eating a raw lemons. He just eats two raw lemons and goes back to fishing. What a nightmare.


He needs a break. He really does. I worry about how many more angelfish we can get out; he’s only got the one, and all, but if having Mila over to chat about fishing, and cooking, and what looks like a nice little baby bump she’s got going there. I think I heard them talking about names -- hopefully, they go with some of they better ideas, like ‘Julian,’ so we don’t have to contemplate another Hobart.

He’s not the only person with a guest, though. Akira invited Ulrike over to apologize for the other day.
“I am sorry,” he explains. “I just meant… Well, I want something wonderful, and special, and perfect. I can get a little rough sometimes about it. But also like gestures like this to be intimate. Personal, and private, and without anything in the way.”


“Just like this. Isn’t this nice?”
“It is,” and Ulrike relaxes, melts into him.


So he’s finally making some progress. Ah, what could have been -- sorry, Ulrike.

There’s something funny about it, though. I go to work. I come back from work. I am immediately dragged by Catarina out to karaoke, all the household’s young people. I grumble, because I am tired enough to pass out right there on the sidewalk, but…

I may just know a girl who loves karaoke like I love the satisfaction of being right, and so, there we go.

And Akira, for a guy who just got a girlfriend, looks like he’s fit to tear out his hair. Weird. We more or less scatter after that.


Zest talks to Catarina, but I’m going to save you a lot of time and tell you to just put a pin in it, it goes nowhere right now.

Akira gets closer to somewhere, entering in a private room with just one occupant: this married lady, Anaya Jang.


“Don’t you want something more? Something that leaves you completely satisfied, someone that feels really, truly yours? I… I want that. I just can’t believe --” He breaks off, his body tensing “I can’t believe your husband can give you that. But I think I can. I want that. Do you?”

“I want it like I want a grilled cheese sandwich.”

This gives him a moment of pause, the romantic tension of the moment broken.

“...Is that a lot?” He just had sort of been picturing a metaphorical hunger up until this point, if I had to guess.


“It is.”

“...We’ll see about the sandwich later, then,” he says, managing what I would call an A+ attempt to sound seductive about grilled cheese.

And as for me…

I tell Miko to pick the songs; frankly, I will be happy if I can stand upright through the whole thing. The music started, and a microphone lands in my lap.


“It’s a duet. You’ve got the first part, OK?” She asks. I sigh with mock reluctance, nod, and get into the rhythm. Her face lights up.


“Don’t go breaking my heart.”
“I couldn’t if I tried.”
“Oh honey, if I get restless --”
“Baby, you’re not that kind.”


We share a little smirk over the role reversal there, as if I were the one to worry about getting restless. But we can chuckle about it, and let the song wash around us. I try my best to keep up, and I’d say I do a pretty good job -- one day, I’ll beat her. You’ll see. For now, though, I’m content to just watch the smile of her face until I’m about dead on my feet.
Stories In Progress:
The Avyan Immortal Dynasty

Offline oshizu

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Re: The Avyan Immortal Dynasty - "Breathmints for All!" (5/28/18)
« Reply #18 on: May 28, 2018, 09:34:58 PM »
This latest update was too funny. I adore the house with its wraparound porch and octagonal (hexagonal?) tower!
I loved everything about this update but my favorite part had to be Akira trying to work with the grilled cheese thing,
"....is that a lot"?
Agreeing with Kestral here that the man deserves an A+ for effort, haha.

Though Kestral is the same age as her roomies (except for Gino), she has all the focus and drive.
She pursues her loftier ambitions while her minions "muddle around," feel confused and unsure, cry in their sleep.
Kestral is the orchestra leader. I guess that makes Miko her concertmaster?
They are both being so patient about having children. I'm feeling less patient, lol.

Poor, poor Hobart Haas. At least his name achieves alliteration? *giggles


Offline Deme

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Re: The Avyan Immortal Dynasty - "Breathmints for All!" (5/28/18)
« Reply #19 on: June 05, 2018, 06:45:23 PM »
Thanks so much for the huge comment!

This latest update was too funny. I adore the house with its wraparound porch and octagonal (hexagonal?) tower!

It's coming along! I have a fondness for Queen Anne style houses, so I spent a while doing research for a good reference for one before working on this house, which is still rather a work-in-progress even at my end.


I loved everything about this update but my favorite part had to be Akira trying to work with the grilled cheese thing,
"....is that a lot"?
Agreeing with Kestral here that the man deserves an A+ for effort, haha.

He tries. He tries... What's a man supposed to do when someone's speech bubble is a picture of grilled cheese, I ask you?


Though Kestral is the same age as her roomies (except for Gino), she has all the focus and drive.
She pursues her loftier ambitions while her minions "muddle around," feel confused and unsure, cry in their sleep.
Kestral is the orchestra leader. I guess that makes Miko her concertmaster?
They are both being so patient about having children. I'm feeling less patient, lol.

Hee hee.

Hey, you've got to build up the antici...wait for... pation. Well, that, and get Kestral some better money and better hours. Do I succeed, or does my patience fail? Find out... Eventually!


Poor, poor Hobart Haas. At least his name achieves alliteration? *giggles

That it does. And, hey, The Sandman's Hob Galding was an inspiration for this story, so we'll count our poor Hob as a sort of unintentional reference.
Stories In Progress:
The Avyan Immortal Dynasty

Offline Deme

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It's Just a Jump to the Left...

Hey-hey-hi, everyone! Mikoooo here! So, I don’t normally do my own storytelling here; you’re Kestral’s audience… But there’s kind of sort of something that happened last time? And I kiiind of never told Kestral. But if it’s you guys knowing about it, it’s OK, right? It’d just upset her, and I wouldn’t want to do that.

 It’s just a jump to the left -- and then a step to the riiii~ght! That’s right, we’re doing the time warp again! To be exact, we’re flashing back to when Kestral was at work, just before karaoke night. Ulrike had just left a bit ago, and Akira said he had something for me.


“A pretty flower for a pretty lady, right? It’s a shame I couldn’t find it in pink, but… I thought you’d like it.”

Maybe I wasn’t really awake, but I totally froze for a second. My heart beat like a butterfly’s wings -- it was all kinds of butterfly, really.

“Uh, shouldn’t you be saving that for Ulrike?” I tried to stall out the feeling. Wouldn’t it be just like Akira, doing something that looked like flirting with me, but he really wasn’t? Because he was soooo out of my league? It had happened maybe a million times before -- Ha ha, silly Miko.

Instead, he looks at me for a minute. He lays out a sigh like it’s a bag of bricks he’s been carrying.


“I don’t want to think about her right now. It’s, it’s fine when we’re together, but when she’s out… Who knows where she goes, what she does, who she does anything with? I don’t mind having a good time, but I want someone… A little closer to home.” He glanced up from his own thoughts. I felt so bad for Ulrike -- I don’t think she’d do anything to worry about, but -- but I was thrown off that train by what he said. “What’s wrong? Haven’t you always...You know. Liked me?”

I do. I did! I had!



But things were different now.



“...I don’t want to screw this up. Kestral’s really important to me; I don’t want to betray her trust. Sorry.”


“Oh, come on, Miko.” He gave me such a pitying look -- or, maybe just a skeptical one? “I know you; this isn’t going to last. I can do better.”

In that moment, I could see everything in him that I like, or used to like – he’s handsome, he’s charming, he’s cool. But…I saw something in Akira I didn’t like at all, too.

I’m in love with Kestral, and I really want to make that work! And it hurt that he didn’t get that!

“...I. Sorry, but I don’t think we can be friends for a while.”



“Forbidden words! What’s wrong with wanting to make someone happy?”

That’s what I want to know!

Please, please, pretty please with whipped cream and a cherry on top, don’t tell Kestral, alright? I don’t want to go around making everything worse for everyone!

But yeah, that’s why Akira was so mad during karaoke night.



Probably why he was macking on a married woman, too.

And for me, that’s why I realized...


”Don’t go breaking my heart!”
”I won’t go breaking your heart!” I really do mean that. It’s easy for me to like people! But I’m growing by really loving someone, by learning to listen to all the little moments she drops that guard down a smidge, by hearing the ways she expresses her feelings. By really investing myself into really building a life with someone, and asking for the same.

It’s not like she hadn’t just finished an hours-long shift in the dead of night when we came here, after all. And it was a lot of fun!

So, in short!


”So don’t go breaking my heart!”
”I won’t go breaking your heart!”
”Don’t go breaking my --”
”Don’t go breaking my --”
””I won’t go breaking your heart!””

It really is more fun to do a romantic duet!



The next day, Kestral didn’t work until late (I have a shift, sorry, future me who’s going to get married, for not being you yet!), so she decides to work on making some drinks at a party; she’s got to prove she can do it, after all! I don’t have long to stay there, so I’m technically not a guest, but I caught the start.
And wowzers, but Candy’s so pregnant.


“Candy’s gonna have a baby! There’s more babies!”

“Wow! That’s so exciting! Do you know the baby’s sex yet?” I ask him, since he escaped to my room.

“AAAAAAH!”

So either he didn’t know, or this is some crazy gender customization stuff I didn’t know about. Well, whichever, good luck!


“Candy…” Was probably in labor. “You want me to drop you off at the hospital on the way to work?”

huff I’m -- huff -- fine. Don’t want to -- augh -- wreck the party.”

...Well, OK then! That’s some very serious party dedication.

I heard about this later, but apparently while Kestral was mixing drinks, Ulrike told her something pretty bad.

“Hey, you know Johnny’s in such a pre-parental panic that he put your cake in the dishwasher, right?”
I bet you could have heard every individual ice cube settle in the glass.

“Augh! I needed that cake for gold. This isn’t gonna satisfy the almighty party council.”

“...I’m sorry?”

“How dare you, Zest. How dare you.”


He really was distracted. It was still a silver party, and Kes still made all her drinks! And afterwards, Candy gave birth to a healthy baby girl named Yaritza!
Kestral stared at Johnny like he’d grown a second head before she just walked off mumbling, “Really, Zest. What is wrong with the women you woohoo with?” But really, aren’t most names good names? Besides, I’ve heard Kestral’s baby name list, and they’re cute -- but I wouldn’t call them normal names.

What happened after that, I’m sort of reconstructing.


See, this fantastic-looking guy posted this wonderful hands-free selfie from the bluffs. I don’t mean hot-fantastic, I mean… Just look at him! He can really mug for a camera, it just makes me smile.

Anyway, but look in the background! There’s Johnny and Maiike… And then there’s Gino and Mila, out having a really cute night out! It seems like they had fun, and it really is so sweet to see someone else being a little faithful, too.

It really never is too late to find love, right?


I’m at home reading after my shift, considering going renaissance sim for a bit; it sounds fun, right? I’m not sure this’ll really last – I love my job and someone has to help those sims left behind, but I still – I have a lot of energy. I wanted to taste more of the world before settling, you know? So I thought I’d try making that energy go into Intellectual pursuits, instead of romantic ones! Even if I can’t really get very far until I feel ready to change jobs. Kes will just need to supply the amount of kisses I was hoping for with my original dream, and it’ll be a perfect balance~

Speaking of Kestral!


Guess who got promoted up to line cook!
“Awww, yeah. Just one promotion away from that branch now. I like the coat, too.”

And since tomorrow is a day off for the both of us, due to Kestral’s new hours…


It’s finally time! Last one to the wedding arch is a noob!
Stories In Progress:
The Avyan Immortal Dynasty

Offline oshizu

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I would have posted my comment earlier but someone distracted me into watching "Don't Go Breaking My Heart" music videos on Youtube.
Shockingly, I'd never seen them before.
So, of course, first I watched the Elton John with Kiki Dee at the studio video first. Next, I watched the Elton John with Ru Paul version second.
And now I'm back to your wonderful, latest update!

Akira! How dare he get bent out of shape about Miko not blind-siding Kestral for him.
He's the jealous sim--he should know how much that would hurt!
Miko is a most adorable narrator in your story.

Booo, Johnny Zest! Cake mishaps are the worst! Hope Kestral still managed to mix her aspiration's three drinks during that house party!
And oooh! They're getting married at last!



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Offline Deme

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I would have posted my comment earlier but someone distracted me into watching "Don't Go Breaking My Heart" music videos on Youtube.
Shockingly, I'd never seen them before.
So, of course, first I watched the Elton John with Kiki Dee at the studio video first. Next, I watched the Elton John with Ru Paul version second.
And now I'm back to your wonderful, latest update!

I might have put on headphones so I would not have to explain why I listened to that song approximately 25 times in a handful of days, ha ha.

Akira! How dare he get bent out of shape about Miko not blind-siding Kestral for him.
He's the jealous sim--he should know how much that would hurt!
Miko is a most adorable narrator in your story.

Of course he understands! That's why he doesn't want to think about it happening to him. She is a very fun narrator to write for; she may have to make a return narration spot some time :D

Booo, Johnny Zest! Cake mishaps are the worst! Hope Kestral still managed to mix her aspiration's three drinks during that house party!
And oooh! They're getting married at last!

She did, don't worry. It wasn't a gold party, but it did its other job.

And I hope it's something worth looking forward to!
Stories In Progress:
The Avyan Immortal Dynasty

Offline Deme

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Re: The Avyan Immortal Dynasty - "Can't Blame a Girl..." (6/11/18)
« Reply #23 on: June 11, 2018, 05:19:45 PM »
Chapter 6: Can't Blame a Girl For Wanting To Linger



I had to set something up; I mean, seriously.

This…isn’t exactly what I wanted, but it’s a start; it’s a beginning of a place where generations of sims can express their feelings. It’ll grow. But even if it’s just a little thing, even if it costs so much money, I wanted to make sure Miko had something at least a little beautiful.


The party gets underway -- and, well, while I’m here, might as well do a little of the prepwork. Besides, a gourmet cake is a gourmet dish, right? Something cute and tiered. Gotta knock those out at an event sometime.


“Kestral Avyan,” Miko says, watching me bake. “You’re not trying to accomplish goals on your wedding day, are you?”

“Hey, gourmet dishes don’t cook themselves.” Does setting count as cooking itself? Doubtful. “Besides, we’ll need to cut a cake, right? And so voila, I provide.”

“Well, just don’t get so caught up in providing that you forget: there’s more sugar than just cake!”



That’s some sweet stuff right there.
“Arright. You ready?” I ask.

“Yup!”

The rest of the party can just catch up.



The sight of Miko walking up to the arch, smiling at a private joke with the light bouncing off her pink spun-sugar hair, is one that’s just for me.


As is the little whisper, giggling, that we’re matching again -- so we are. A balance of black and near-white.

“I await your vows, my lady knight.”
“Let’s get rolling.”


Our witnesses come on shuffling in; took ‘em long enough.


She takes my hand in hers. I called my shot, and here I am. Here she is. I guess if you’re being technical, in a sort of mathematical sense where things add up and the sums do not suddenly rise up and smack you across the face, here we are.



 And in, the real sense sense, where that statement isn’t true just any old time two people are in a room.

Here we are.

And I think of all the things I could say to that, and look: if this moment called for a poet, someone shoulda made me one. So I’ll just have to tough the words out, and they might come out a little roughed around the edges.



“The life’s an adventure, isn’t it? There are so many beautiful things to see, and so many wonderful, amazing people to meet. And some of them are just a brief brightening -- a summer breeze! And some teach you lessons, and some people you give something to. You just never know! And I didn’t know! That when I looked at the pretty eyes of a girl and thought ‘She really needs someone playing support! And it’d be cool if I could!’ that I’d have met one of the most daring people I’ll ever known, one of the most amazing people I’ll ever know…”


“Awww, babe, do go on.”

This gets a chortle from the attendees.


“And what exactly do you think I’m doing?” Miko said, giving me a look. “Someone I’d want to look out for, in sickness and in health, in wealth and in poverty… Whether she’s taking down her goals or so obsessive she can’t take a break long enough not to cook at our own wedding...”

If it weren’t for the spring allergies I spontaneously developed, I might have told her to go back to complimenting me. Curse you, seasons! Well. It’s fine.

“...Someone who’d teach me what a wonderful thing it is, to really let someone into you heart. To let them see you flighty! To let you see them shy! To hear the little languages they speak, to notice again and again, all the things to keep loving them for. To be someone’s heart, and to have them be yours.” She places a hand over my heart; does she feel it right then, the way her fingers press against my pulse. “It’s a really good heart.”

...Silly girl. What’s a gal to say to that?

“And with this ring, we’ll go on this adventure together!”


“...I had no idea, too. That I could care about someone this much. I thought of all this mushy business and figured I’d pass, that it wasn’t my bag; that I only needed me, maybe a business partner, nothing all entangling. Nothing I wouldn’t be OK losing. I know better now.” There’s a lot of things I’ve got to accept as stepping stones, midway points -- as things before what I really want. The house with its half-hearted second floor. The bar on the porch. Outrunning death like keeping plates spinning.


There’s nothing halfway about her. Even the way she melts, goofy-faced, into my touch, is complete as a squeeze to my heart.

“I know I’ll never lose you; anything in the world can try, sure -- but everything you’ve given me is something I’m holding onto. Your smile in the morning when you’re just waking up. The way your eyes light up…. All your faith, and all the heart you gave me:



“With this ring, I hold it all. And I will never let you go.”



And we are woman and wife.



We end up so swarmed with well-wishers that we end up, laughingly, sharing our first slice of cake in our bathroom.


“You keep it clean enough, right, Miko?”
“I do my best! Let’s just not test it!”



And we escape by talking a little, too. Dreaming of the future. There’s stuff there we don’t want to touch right now -- but then there’s trying to decide when we’d have money for a baby, and that’s a question I’m going to leave to her for right now; she’s going to have to have the kid, after all.


I take a few (not my best, if I’m being honest) pictures, too. Because I’m going to want to remember this, hang ‘em up in our room like a chain of daisies. We’ll get better ones for a real portrait. We will. But I think these’ll be by our bed for a long, long time.
“No photo-bombing gnomes, though,” she comments, disappointed. Seeing my face, she adds, “C’mon! It’d be funny!”


And...Well, we spend some other sort of time away from the wedding. Which ended up being pretty eventful in another way -- but I’ll tell you about that next time, OK? Can’t blame a girl for wanting to linger on her wedding a little.
Stories In Progress:
The Avyan Immortal Dynasty

Offline oshizu

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That was a most fantastic wedding, starting with the shot of Miko walking toward Kestral, as glimpsed through an arch decorated with blossoms in shades that match Miko's hair and gown.
The wedding vows also incredible!
Miko is so adorably earnest and open-hearted about her love for Kestral--she is always keeping Kestral honest.
Kestral's little asides/admissions about trying to stay on track with challenge/aspiration goals made me giggle. Of course, she's busted by Miko.

What a sweet wedding--Kestral remarks that she doesn't do romantic stuff yet Miko expresses enough feels for the both of them.
Thank you for reminding me of how a sim wedding should be, Deme! Very well done, I loved it! <3 <3 <3

Offline Deme

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Thank you! I do love sim weddings. Just sappy, sappy speeches all the way home (And Kestral, refusing to look away from the prize. It's so wonderful having a sim who can justify all your weird game-play decisions in-universe. Would recommend....Though I suppose a lot of simmers get that sort of vibe from inserting the watcher.)

And I also want to, sincerely, thank you. I have a few friends I ask to read this and tell me their thoughts, but your comments do a lot to help keep this story feeling like it's worth sharing, and I really appreciate that.


Addendum: So, this story had a very near miss in the recent past! Back on, oh, Sunday I think it might have been, maybe Saturday, the weekend was a rough haze for me... My laptop, which had been the device on which I played this game, died abruptly! Yipes. Once the panic died down, though, it turned out that my saves, most of my notes, and my screenshots were all on the cloud, and things are running just fine on my new laptop. But geeze was I worried!
Stories In Progress:
The Avyan Immortal Dynasty

Offline Deme

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Re: The Avyan Immortal Dynasty -"All This Feelings Junk" (6/16/18)
« Reply #26 on: June 16, 2018, 11:27:32 PM »
Chapter 7: All This Feelings Junk

So, the wedding had another little story, right? The sun is setting slowly over the party. Miko wants to socialize, I’m taking care of the bar. It’s been a perfect wedding. And up walks Gino, a little slower than usual.


“I got my notice today,” he said with a little sigh. “Time to get the ol’ affairs in order.”
Now, I could ask the reasonable question, which is whether he was just going to take that lying down. But I’d wreck my whole gig.

“That’s rough. Anything I can do with that?”

“Probably not. I’ve been enjoying the liveliness! I’ve been enjoying the company… All the company, if you understand me. I’ve got a little boy, you know. Julian.”

“Congrats!” So, this glass for my sympathetic bartender shtick has gotten really, really clean in the time I spent waiting for him to say anything more. “What’s your drink, Gino? I’ll make you a double.”

“I don’t think you can make a double of a Sour Punch, but sure! I’ll give it a shot!” This gets a smile out of the old guy, at least.

“If someone told you that, they’re just afraid to try. If it’s double the liquor, it counts. Break out a taller glass.” I start mixing it up as he settles back down and says, into the silence:

“Have you ever really wondered about what it means to get your affairs in order?”

“I refuse.”

“Fair enough, little missus,” he shakes his head. “What I mean is… Let’s say you love someone. Like you’ve never loved anyone.”

“Like you love Mila,” because there’s no such thing as a real hypothetical anymore. Also, because I just got married, so, you know.

“She’s a wonderful lady! A hard worker! A sweet woman. And it’s...it’s real fun. Just being around her.” The promised drink arrives at his seat. “Maybe I’m just being sentimental, on account of your wedding. Sweet wedding… But there are things I’d like to say to a woman like that… But then I’d leave her a widow, just like that! That seem fair to you? Is it settling my affairs to go all in -- or to keep things settled?”


“I think you asked me because you know what you want -- and if you didn’t want to do it, you wouldn’t even need to be asking this question. If she won’t be happy, she’ll say no. If that’s fine with her, she’ll say yes. Go get her, tiger.”

I won’t ask why he was in PJs. I think he might have slept through the start of the party.

“Oh, yeah! No moving her in!” I shout after him.



“Mila! I’m glad you came!”

“It’s always a delight. And a fine sartorial choice you’ve made, dear.”

“Every party can be a pajama party if you want it to be! Besides, it’s a perk of being an old guy.”

“I’ll have to try it sometime.”

“ I want to ask you something. It’s important.” He takes a deep breath, holds it a while. “We both know we -- there’s just not enough room for us to ever live together.”

She nods, sadly.

“But all the same: you’re a beautiful, excitin’ part of my life. And I want everyone to know it. I want you to know it, now and forever, from the bottom of my heart.”



“So I’m asking you to marry me.”

“Oh!”

“Oh?” A little waver in his voice tells its own story. But then the ring is swept up onto her finger, dazzling.



“Don’t worry! Yes, of course I’ll marry you!”

“Arright! Off we go to the arch!”

“Right now?”

“Life is short! Up you go!”



“Gino!” She says it like a scolding, but then the lift throws her head back; her laughter throws her head back, her braid draped over his arms. “Hahahaha! You stallion! This can’t be good for your back.”

“...No,” he admitted, in a slightly strained voice. “Not really.”

“I can walk there just fine.”

“We’ll run, then,” he said, swinging her back down.



And so they end up running; when Mila runs by I can hear her making a noise somewhere between a pant and a laugh, outpaced by a man a whole life stage ahead of her.

“I -- I didn’t think of myself as the marrying kind. I’ve got to admit, I don’t know what to say.”



“Except that I love you. And I didn’t think my heart would be settled, not if you weren’t sure of that. I’ve seen the sea in a million moods, I’ve fought fish the size of me! But I feel like this, right here -- you, right here --  is the most thrilling, amazing thing I’m going to find, and my… Well. My biggest catch.”


“I think that’s just right. I’m honestly very surprised. I’ve thought of myself as, oh, splendidly lucky; lucky to have loved someone once, and with him having a wonderful family. If that was all the love allotted to me, I’d have been happy.” She guides his hand into hers. The dusk between them is bridged. There’s an outside world, sure, but it was miles away.  “You’ve given me far, far more than my share. No matter how long it lasts, I’m so happy to share my love with you, to share a family with you.”



“As long as we both shall live,” Gino said, his voice breaking huskily over the sentiment, like water over river rocks. “...And as long as you care to remember.”
“As long as you’ll have us,” she answers.


“I now pronounce us man and wife. You may kiss the bride.”


And Gino Levin and Mila Munch marry alone in the dusk; I think they liked the privacy, a little moment -- a series of moments -- carved out just for the two of them, like the sudden elopement of young lovers.

When the night’s gone very still and dark, and the party’s dispersed, Gino goes out fishing again.

And maybe the fish sense something; maybe there’s something a little faster to the twitch of his fishing rod, a lightness to his step that doesn’t drive away the fish. How should I know?

But apparently, a newlywed can catch a lot of fish when he’s happy; he fills out his first aquarium’s worth of angelfish.


I can just tend my bar in the night, and I’ve got to laugh. I’m in such a sappy mood. All this feelings junk. It’s really alright.

Mila probably understands just how short time is running there. Sure, active might add a little extra. It might not.
But this is probably why, the next day, they go out to celebrate, and spend a little time together. And I came, too.


Oh, and Zest is here with a pretty thing. He has embraced this philosophy of bad humor and fairly white-bread debauchery.

Me? Miko’s at work. So I’m just here for the pictures of experimental food!

Don’t know if I’ll keep the experimental food pictures as a museum thing. They’re not worth a whole lot. But hey! It’s an idea for now.


The actual happy couple gets their own table, away from this whole business. As they deserve, and can talk about this and that -- more sailing stories, Mila’s first three kids: little Julian, too.
“Of course, I do intend to make his food. I think it’s an important touch, even when you’re just considering baby food.”
“That boy’s going to be spoiled rotten! I need to come see him.”
“...You do.”

Before we leave,  Johnny tells me he picked up some Lilies and Snapdragons. How good!

Just after dinner, because when you’ve resigned yourself to the so-called “fact,” like you’re just going to take what’s given to you even when that’s losing, you know, existing, you’ve got to gamble on when the last time is, she invites Gino to the chateau.

Well... I can’t think there’s anything wrong with making every second count.

 and I’m there, too, because I hate being left behind when people are out and about. Gets me behind on all the good gossip. Besides, my wife gets to come join when she’s done working. I’ve got seconds to make count, too.

And we can enjoy some time together. Just me, her…


“And the tickle monster!”
“Ahahaha~ Ow, my sides! Ahahahah Hey, that’s not -- Miko!”

I’ll have to get payback!

And a powerful smooching, to close out the night peacefully.

Little did I know, the true horror that awaited me in the morning…

“Akira Kibo, what is that?” Whatever it is, it’s going in the blackmail folder.
“Casual friday?”
“Too casual. Put it back.”


I can get another turn closer -- yeah, that’s right, another mixology level. They certainly fly by… This is a solid 7: nothing to worry about but hitting the career branch for this level.

Later that day, Gino stops by our dear neighbor’s to see his son.

“Hey there, little man. Hey there… Look at you. How tiny! You’ve got to grow up big and strong, alright? And be good for your mom, OK? What else… Oh. Yeah.” He bounces the boy up once more, and holds him as tight as he can. “I love you. Remember that.”

Julian probably would never remember this moment. It’s all kind of unfair, isn’t it? Well, that’s why I’m getting out.

Miko’s giving stuff some thought. Because she heard about that, and she let out the biggest, goopiest “Awwwww” you’ve ever heard.

I know it looks like she’s mopping, but that is a zone right there, and she is in it.
“Alright! Bathroom’s washed! Dishers are in the dishwasher! Teapot’s clean! I am doing my best thinking, I am living my best life! ...What do I want?”

She takes a deep breath, and she smiles a big, bright smile.


“Keeestraaal~ Are you ready?”
“I think we’re ready. Soo… The marriage bed’s still pretty new. We might still need to… Try it out.”
“And try for a bit more than that, teehee.”

That’s right. We think the days off are getting decent; the pay’s getting manageable.


“Yes!”
We’re going to have a baby!
Stories In Progress:
The Avyan Immortal Dynasty

Offline oshizu

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Re: The Avyan Immortal Dynasty -"All This Feelings Junk" (6/16/18)
« Reply #27 on: June 16, 2018, 11:57:44 PM »
First of all, yes, your story is very much worth sharing.
I love Kestral's sassy narration, the playful stream-of-consciousness dialogue which is as silly as it is thoughtful, and the many lovely screenshots and great facial expressions.
it's always a pleasure to notice that you've updated!
Also, I'm so glad to hear that you, Kestral's story, and the images survived your recent laptop catastrophe. What a close call!

Oh, the somber, serious and senior romance of Gino and Milo, in the wake of the giddy, giggly, also serious, but oh-so-much-younger romance of Kestral and Miko.
Mila's relationship with Gino makes me like Mila a lot more than I ever have.
Amidst all the poignant carpe diem moments, Akira in his...what outfit is that? Please remind me: is he a roommate along with Johnny Zest?
Kestral looks fabulous in her tuxedo. I was wondering what she'd say while looking that awesome and I got: So I’m just here for the pictures of experimental food!
Hah!

So excited about Kestral and Miko expecting!!!

Offline MarianT

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Re: The Avyan Immortal Dynasty -"All This Feelings Junk" (6/16/18)
« Reply #28 on: June 17, 2018, 08:47:47 AM »
Such a sweet story about Gino and Mila. Good to see that Kestral and Miko are bringing in the next generation.
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Offline Deme

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Re: The Avyan Immortal Dynasty -"All This Feelings Junk" (6/16/18)
« Reply #29 on: June 17, 2018, 09:51:39 PM »
First of all, yes, your story is very much worth sharing.
I love Kestral's sassy narration, the playful stream-of-consciousness dialogue which is as silly as it is thoughtful, and the many lovely screenshots and great facial expressions.
it's always a pleasure to notice that you've updated!
Also, I'm so glad to hear that you, Kestral's story, and the images survived your recent laptop catastrophe. What a close call!

Oh, the somber, serious and senior romance of Gino and Milo, in the wake of the giddy, giggly, also serious, but oh-so-much-younger romance of Kestral and Miko.
Mila's relationship with Gino makes me like Mila a lot more than I ever have.
Amidst all the poignant carpe diem moments, Akira in his...what outfit is that? Please remind me: is he a roommate along with Johnny Zest?
Kestral looks fabulous in her tuxedo. I was wondering what she'd say while looking that awesome and I got: So I’m just here for the pictures of experimental food!
Hah!

So excited about Kestral and Miko expecting!!!

Thank you! It's really very nice to hear. I basically feel the same way about Gino and Mila; I hadn't really given her much thought before this story, but I think, on the whole, that I am very glad she's a part of it; It's a really sweet, sentimental thing, seeing these two kind of unexpected characters happy, riding atop by and large the game's happenstance (the wish to marry her was Gino's own whim, and there; there, I personally just melted.)

Also, yes! I moved Akira in with Miko, so Kestral doesn't really care much about them, but he and Johnny are both housemates. And pollinators, though each for their own reasons.


Such a sweet story about Gino and Mila. Good to see that Kestral and Miko are bringing in the next generation.

Thanks! I'm looking forward to introducing them!
Stories In Progress:
The Avyan Immortal Dynasty