The Hauptman Immortal Dynasty V2 - Passing The Time

[Enchanted81]

Chapters:
The Hauptman Immortal Dynasty V1
1: A Reminder Of The Past
2: Catering + Nausea = Love?
3: Life Brings Many Changes
4: Too Many Birthdays
5: Wedding Surprises Are Interesting
6: Lazy Days of Summer
7: Wedded Bliss
8: We're Being Watched!
9: Vampire Paranoia
10: A Walk In The Sun
11: Tree House Hideaway
12: Misery Enjoys Company
13: Two Gifts Are Better Than One
14: They Grow Up So Fast
15: Two Teens and An Immortal
16: Trouble In Paradise
17: Crazy Ex, New Toys & Grim Comes Calling
18: Adulthood Calls
19: Time Traveling and Toddler Skills
20: Can't Just Leave It In The Past
21: Stuck In The Future?
22: In The Present
23: Five Down, Three To Go!
24: The Future Brings Fire
25: Preparations For A New Spouse
26: Saying Goodbye, To Say Hello
27: Welcome Number Seven
28: All About Eve
29: How We Spend Our Days
30: A Brisk Journey With Eve
31: Number Eight Brings Faith
31: Watch Out For The Blender!
32: A Long Time In The Making
33: Passing The Time

My name is Mercy Hauptman, what I remember of my past is painful, necessary, but painful all the same.



My family was once a community staple back in Sunset Valley. My Great-Great Grandfather Samuel was the founder of our family. He along with his wife Agnes worked themselves ragged to create a future, a future that was sadly doomed. The Hauptman’s come from a long line of Immortals, in each family there must be eight of us before we are allowed to restart our own lives individually. Sounds pretty easy yes? Well, not exactly, you see the eight must all complete tasks before we are granted Immortality. We are to lead a full life filled with spouses, children and careers.

The hardest part isn't living the Immortal life, it's understanding that once it's done, you leave it all behind and start all over again. Yes, that means you leave your loved ones behind, you regain your youth and move to a new town with the purpose of branching the family out for a new generation of Immortals. You never have contact with your past but as a cruel reminder, you keep all your memories.

But something went wrong with our family, my family, the ones I never got to lead my full life with. I was generation five in the line of Immortals, I was nearing my young adult birthday and had a healthy outlook on my path. I'd heard from my Granddad Warren that our family wasn't the most warm and loving in the early years. I can imagine the stress of starting from nothing and creating an empire will create an environment like that. By the time I was born, this wasn't the case. I got along fine with all my family members, but I was the closest to Papa Samuel. It was him that planned the trip that brought imminent doom to our family, I know he didn't break us apart on purpose but I feel abandoned all the same.

Well, that's enough doom and gloom for now. I suppose you'd like a bit of a background on my family, I'm afraid I can't go all the way back as my memories are only of my side of the family. Yes, Papa Samuel did tell wonderful bedtime stories of past family members filled with adventures but, that's all they are to me, stories. My family was real and are still very real in my heart.

Like I mentioned before, Papa Samuel was our founder, his wife Agnes was a Crumplebottom. Agnes was a grieving widow when Samuel first met her, they fell in love immediately and wasted no time in starting their life together. Agnes was an amazing artist, our house was proudly filled with her paintings in nearly each room. Not long after they were married my Great Granddad Bran came along.



Like Agnes, Bran was an artist, his work was quite different from his mothers, he was after all insane. What a wonderful character he was, my childhood was full of laughter from his antics, my favorite was using the water slide in his formal attire. Bran’s wife was Sonja, she was of the Troutman descent. Bran and Sonja grew up together, from what I was told Sonja always had eyes only for Bran. Papa Samuel always got a kick out of teasing Bran for marrying Sonja in her swimsuit. I'm also told that Sonja is part of where I get my darker complexion from as well as my love for sculpting. Sonja was the biggest change to our house, she not only redecorated the place, setting the standard for all future changes, she changed the way our family loved.



When my Granddad Warren was born, the cold in our home started to lift. Years of pushing for financial security took it's toll on the way we showed our love, Sonja was a breath of fresh air and taught us to love again. Granddad Warren always had wonderful stories of his childhood but as he grew older, he fell to the Hauptmann curse and a career took over. That's not to say that he didn't love and love well, he married Angeline John pretty much while they were still in high school, not literally but you get what I mean. He did however marry her at his birthday party in the family kitchen, I'm told they were both wearing swimwear. Angeline had a difficult time bringing my Dad Stefan into the world, Grim tried to be her midwife much to her annoyance.



Ah my Dad, how can I sum him up without sounding horrible? Don't get me wrong, I love my Dad with all my heart, he's just, well he's a lonely inventor. Not lonely as in we ignore him, lonely as in he really does prefer to be locked away at his inventing table. I can't complain, we may not have had the closest relationship but he married my Mom and that brought my life into existence as well as indirectly my Simbot siblings. My Mom is Dina Colbert and she is the one that broke the chain of Hauptmann boys continuing our line, a little birdie told me that she had a bit of help with that if you know what I mean. My Dad, loner that he is, managed to secretly plan a normal wedding, a first in our family mind you.



I wish I could have seen more of that side of my Dad but you see, Dad being an inventor did the impossible and created my Simbot siblings Shawn, Wanda and Kenya. Papa Samuel did the unthinkable and demanded that Dad set them up on their own immediately upon creation. I know in my heart it was a cruel thing to do, but if our family had any chance of completing our goals it had to be done. My siblings however were never mistreated and were a part of our lives.



Well, that catches you up on the past. Sorry, it was a bit long winded but telling their story helps ease the pain of losing everything dear to me. I know I still have yet to tell you about me, I left my growing up out because well, my life was just getting started and I had a fairly normal childhood. I do however want to explain about the doomed trip.

As an early graduation present Papa Samuel took Bran, Warren, Mom and myself to France. They were all set on getting a vacation home and I was to take up studying the local art for sculpting inspiration. It was a glorious trip, I never wanted to leave and our vacation home was beyond cozy. My art studies had grown immensely and I decided when I got home to begin with some new landscaping projects.



On the day we left, the airlines managed to lose our booking which resulted in separating Bran, Warren and Mom from Papa Samuel and I. As our plane touched down and we deboarded, Papa Samuel went to collect our luggage and asked me to wait at the gate for the others. The last of the passengers came off their plane followed by the flight attendants but my family was nowhere to found. When Papa Samuel checked with the airlines, they said they had no listings of my family ever being on one of their planes. As far as the airlines was concerned, my family never existed. I've never seen anyone in my family ever raise their voice in anger, but I'm sure all of Sunset Valley heard Papa Samuel that day.

When we got home, Grandma Angeline was no where to be found, neither was my Dad for that matter. There was however a new invention in our backyard that was very suspicious. Immediately, I tried calling their cell phones but the voices that answered were cold and unfamiliar. When I asked for my family, I was told I had the wrong numbers. I couldn't take it anymore, my family was missing, Papa Samuel was tearing through the house desperately trying to find anything to give us a sign of what happened. I went down into the basement to hide in the room that was to be my museum but as I passed my Dads room, I noticed for the first time that the door was ajar. Dad always kept his room locked, it was his domain and his alone. As I pushed the door open and turned the lights on, I found the evidence of what happened to my family, my life. My Dad had never recovered from being forced to send my siblings away, it was evident from all the pictures on the walls, nothing in here represented his human family.



Upon further inspection I realized none of his portraits were hanging on the walls as was required for our family. I left his room and entered my own and sure enough my portraits were gone as well. As I left my room to go back to his, I noticed that the doors to the other rooms were open as well, again these doors are never open and as with my Dads and my own room, the portraits were all missing. Papa Samuel came up behind me as I was leaving Bran’s room and told me I needed to come back upstairs, that he found what he was looking for in my Dads room while I was in the others.

As I went towards the living room, I was told to come out to the backyard. Looming in front of us was the new invention of my Dads, Papa Samuel told me it was a time machine and he only saw one of it's kind years ago. He told me it was supposed to be destroyed and my Dad assured him it had been. It was then that he gave me the letter I'd found but forgotten when the missing portraits were noticed. In it my Dad explained how he felt what we, as a family were doing was unnatural, he couldn't forgive Papa Samuel for forcing his other kids out of our house and he took it upon himself to put an end to it all.



My father, a well respected inventor, mastered time travel without anyone knowing. He went into the future and lured each member of my family out of the airport after Papa Samuel and I left France and sent them back in time. Each to their own time period and each without knowing what he was planning. He said in the letter that while he wanted to send me off as well, leaving Papa Samuel alone and miserable as he planned was impossible, as I never left his side. He hoped that I forgave him and said he wished for me to live a natural life away from all Immortals. Inside the envelope was a package of pills, the letter explained that when taken they would end Immortality immediately and Grim would come calling. There was a single dose and it was meant for my Papa when the misery could be taken no longer.

As tears streamed down my face Papa Samuel took my hands in his own. He said the choice was mine, I could live out my mortal life in Sunset Valley and be on my own or I could start over in a new town and continue our families destiny. He went on to say that he was tired and wanted to be with Agnes again, he made up his mind when he read the letter that his story would end here after I made my decision. I tried and tried to make him see clearly, that I could not go on without him, he only shook his head and said that one way or another I must, but again for him, his story was done. He told me I had little time to make my decision and he would leave me alone while I decided, as I began to argue he hugged me and started to walk away.

As I stood there crying to myself and cursing my Dad, I watched him walk across the street to where Agnes and Sonja were buried. I made my way back into our house, I needed to see each and every room before I said my goodbyes. As I left my room I made up my mind, on my wall was a painting of Bridgeport, I'd always wanted to visit there and now I would.



When I made my way across the street, I found my Papa lovingly brushing the leaves away from Agnes' tombstone. When I opened the gate he gave the tombstone a kiss and said he'd see her soon, he then turned to me with a smile on his face and asked where I was moving to. Stunned, I asked how he knew what I planned to do, he took me in a final embrace and said that just like my name I'd find the compassion to forgive and start anew. As the sun began to set, he told me it was time for me to go. He said in his room was a safe with everything I'd need to get started, just as he did so long ago.



As I turned to leave, I heard him whisper to Agnes that the best part of them was free of the curse. I turned back around in time to see my Papa willingly meet Grim and with a final wave he joined Agnes for all eternity.



I mustered up the courage to give my Papa a proper burial, it was the hardest thing I've ever had to do and probably will always be the hardest. I don't know where my life will take me from here but I do know one thing, I will never stop trying to find a way to rescue my lost family members.



So that is my past and this is my future. I'm Mercy Hauptmann, fifth generation and now founder of my own Immortal Dynasty.

Immortal Tracker

Mercy Hauptman - Immortalized
Lifetime Wish: Super Star Actor ( Finished )
Career: Film - Acting Branch ( Maxed )
Supermax Skill: Sculpting ( Supermaxed )
Other Max Skills: Piano, Guitar, Bass, Drums, and Charisma
Traits: Family-Oriented, Virtuoso, Artistic, Nurturing, and Friendly
Likes: Classical Music, Fruit Parfait, and Purple
Portraits: Young Adult, Adult, and Elder
Sculptures: None
Finished Black Ops: Emergency Interviewer / The Importance of Sculpting / Authorized Biography / An Old Ruse / Business Model / Broadyway Cameo
Properties: Hogan's Deep-Fried Diner and Bridgeport Acres ( Fully Upgraded )
Lifetime Rewards: Food Replicator, Artisan Crafter, and No Bills Ever
Best Friends: Emmy Starr, Tiara Angelista, Carisa Ewing, Devin Ashton, Sam Hauptman, and Mindy Hauptman



Sam Hauptman - Immortalized
Lifetime Wish: Superstar Athlete ( Finished )
Career: Professional Sports ( Maxed )
Supermax Skill: Athletic ( Supermaxed )
Other Max Skills: Martial Arts
Traits: Athletic, Disciplined, Vegetarian, Brave, and Nurturing
Likes: Soul, Hamburger, and Grey
Portraits: Toddler, Child, Teenager, Young Adult, Adult, and Elder
Sculptures: Young Adult, Adult, and Elder
Finished Black Ops: The Muscle Hustle / The Right Way To Riot / Sprint To The Finish / Ticket Counting / Playbook Notes / Keep It Up
Properties: Mike's Corner Store and Smuggler's Cove ( Fully Upgraded )
Lifetime Rewards: Fertility Treatment, Watering Hole Regular, and Body Sculptor
Best Friends: Robbie Alonso, Richie Striker, Riley Hauptman, Mercy Hauptman, Lewis Gage, and Ashley Duggan


Jessie Hauptman - Immortalized
Lifetime Wish: Celebrated Five-Star Chef ( Finished )
Career: Culinary ( Maxed )
Supermax Skill: Cooking ( Supermaxed )
Other Max Skills: Piano, Guitar, Charisma, and Drums
Traits: Easily Impressed, Friendly, Couch Potato, Natural Cook, and Neat
Likes: Rockabilly, French Toast, and Lime
Portraits: Toddler, Child, Teenager, Young Adult, Adult, and Elder
Sculptures: Toddler, Child, Teenager, Young Adult, Adult, and Elder
Finished Black Ops: Super Stir-Fry / From One Chef To Another / Spaaaah Marathon / Best Food In Town / New Era Master Class / Save the Herding
Properties: Movie Cineplex and Eugi's ( Fully Upgraded )
Lifetime Rewards: Fast Metabolism, Observant, and Opportunistic
Best Friends: Alexia Hauptman, Kylee Hauptman, Alfred Hauptman, Gabriel Hauptman, Jessie Thayer, and Brandy Collins


Gabriel Hauptman - Immortalized
Lifetime Wish: World Renowned Surgeon ( Finished )
Career: Medical ( Maxed )
Supermax Skill: Logic ( Supermaxed )
Other Max Skills: Guitar and Drums
Traits: Genius, Heavy Sleeper, Dog Lover, Bookworm, and Hopeless Romantic
Likes: Latin, Cobbler, and Violet
Portraits: Toddler, Child, Teenager, Young Adult, Adult, and Elder
Sculptures: Toddler, Child, Teenager, Young Adult, Adult, and Elder
Finished Black Ops: A Little Give and Take / A Charming Experiment / Waste Management / You Don't Really Need It / Tutor Me Please : Richelle Fortin / Blood Is Not Blue
Properties: Sacred Spleen Memorial Hospital and Bridgeport Public Library ( Fully Upgraded )
Lifetime Rewards: Office Hero, Entrepreneurial Mindset, and Suave Seller
Best Friends: Jessie Hauptman, Deborah Hauptman, Rufus Rhineheart, Richelle Fortin, Corey Baker, and Athena Combs


Nikkila Hauptman - Immortalized
Lifetime Wish: The Perfect Garden ( Finished )
Career: Gardener ( Maxed )
Supermax Skill: Gardening (  Supermaxed )
Other Max Skills: Photography and Guitar
Traits: Loves the Outdoors, Excitable, Shy, Green Thumb, and Eco-Friendly
Likes: Country, Falafel, and Lilac
Portraits: Toddler, Child, Teenager, Young Adult, Adult, and Elder
Sculptures: Toddler, Child, Teenager, Young Adult, Adult, and Elder
Finished Black Ops: Filing The Application / The Rockiest Road That Is Rock / Stick Around For The Music / Please, No Ego / The Setup / Cat Herding To Music
Properties: Wilki's Fabulous Books and Bath and Bridgeport Eternal Rest Cemetary ( Fully Upgraded )
Lifetime Rewards: Super Green Thumb, Discount Diner, and Complimentary Entertainment
Best Friends: Harold Laughlin-Rhoads, Amy Laughlin-Rhoads, David Gifford, Beatrice Bonnet, Alain Lefebvre, and Melina Hauptman


Lilya Hauptman - Immortalized
Lifetime Wish: Professional Author ( Finished )
Career: Journalism ( Maxed )
Supermax Skill: Writing ( Supermaxed )
Other Max Skills: Piano
Traits: Couch Potato, Loner, Bookworm, Hopeless Romantic, and Perfectionist
Likes: Songwriter, Stu Surprise, and Spice Brown
Portraits: Toddler, Child, Teenager, Young Adult, Adult, and Elder
Sculptures: Toddler, Child, Teenager, Young Adult, Adult, and Elder
Finished Black Ops: Networking Is Key / The Glory Of Vaudeville / Deliver A Book To Egypt / Eating Contest / Drink Promotion / Tons Of Tips
Properties: Steve's Business Complex And Restaurant and Bridgeport Sports Zone ( Fully Upgraded )
Lifetime Rewards: Bookshop Bargainer, Never Dull, and Attractive
Best Friends: Maurice Crooks, Elizabeth Tillman, Brock McGrath, Garth Rucker, Vickie Parrot, and Harlan Murray


Eve Hauptman - Immortalized
Lifetime Wish: Perfect Aquarium ( Finished )
Career: Business ( Maxed )
Supermax Skill: Fishing ( Supermaxed )
Other Max Skills: N/A
Traits: Friendly, Light Sleeper, Angler, Commitment Issues, and Workaholic
Likes: Indie, Tri-Tip Tofu Steak, and White
Portraits: Toddler, Child, Teenager, Young Adult, Adult, and Elder
Sculptures: Toddler, Child, Teenager, Young Adult, Adult, and Elder
Finished Black Ops: Stinky Bugs / School Yard Chums / Say Hello To My Little Fish / A Public Speaking Event / Make-A-Dream / Funny Looking Fish
Properties: LlamaCo Stadium and Plasma 501 ( Fully Upgraded )
Lifetime Rewards: Stone Hearted, No Jealousy, and Hover Bed
Best Friends: Alecia Paulsen, Manuel Ayres, Dianne Martin, Scottie Lawrence, Gus Mahan, and Gerard Fay

Faith Hauptman -
Lifetime Wish: Bottomless Nectar Cellar ( Finished)
Career: Nectar Maker ( Maxed )
Supermax Skill: Nectar Making ( Supermaxed )
Other Max Skills: Painting, Guitar, Bass, and Drums
Traits: Good, Hates The Outdoors, Insane, Ambitious, and Born Saleswoman
Likes: French, Cobbler, and Spiceberry
Portraits: Toddler, Child, Teenager, and Young Adult
Sculptures: Toddler Child, Teenager, and Young Adult
Finished Black Ops: Pile Of Permission Slips / A Fishy Science Project / Young Politician's Club Induction / Outside Reading / Interior Decor / Tough Negotiating
Properties: Plumbob Pictures Backlot and Aquarius ( Fully Upgraded )
Lifetime Rewards: Haggler, Competitive Eater, and Festival Frequenter
Best Friends: N/A

[Katluvr]

What an awesome beginning to your new dynasty!  I love how you wove the glitches that stopped your first attempt into your story.  Mercy turned out beautiful and I hope Bridgeport (and EA) treats her well.  Can't wait to find out what happens next!

[Metropolis Man]

I love the edges on the pictures. Looks like the real deal in an album. Nice touch.

[Gogowars329]

You really are a great writer! The way you've joined the bugs into the story! I know Mercy can do it!

[cathyknits]

I'm so happy you've restarted - I really enjoyed your first attempt. Good luck to Mercy!

[Alexandria_]

I'm glad to see you're giving this another try, and what a wonderful start! I absolutely love all the detail you've put into the beginning.
Mercy is a beautiful young adult - I really love her style.

[Enchanted81]

Catering + Nausea = Love?

Bridgeport is an interesting town, full of constant action and so much traffic! It takes me forever to get to work each day, it's worth the frustration though. On my first day I met Emmy Starr and Devin Ashton, since my status around town isn't the best, Emmy pretty much shrugged me off.

I've been spending most of my time at the fire station, well honestly, I'm living there. My house is still under construction and I'm in need of some funds before it'll be "live-able". My second day of work was filled with humiliation, the catering company that is normally on set couldn't make it in, the backup company should have the health inspectors called on them! About an hour after lunch I started feeling queasy, not wanting to make a fuss I decided to work through the impending upheaval of my lunch. As soon as the director called "cut!", I was running down the hall to the restroom. Unfortunately, in my blind need to get there fast, I ran into Matthew Hamming and he made acquaintances with my lunch. Mortified, I ran into the restroom and tried to hide. Emmy came in shortly after and told me the director said to go home and sleep it off.

Fast forward a week and my house is nearly done. Work is still fun and the ribbing from my coworkers has gone down to a dull jab here and here, but each time I'm on set with Matthew, the whole place goes quiet. I've been catching him watching me since that fateful day and it makes me worry about my future in this business.

One night after work, Devin and I went out for a bite to eat at Hogan's, after Devin went home I decided to call and work out my problems with Matthew before I lost my job. He agreed to meet me for drinks at Hogan's, I know it isn't the most trendy place in town, but I'm hoping to avoid further embarrassment. After nearly an hour I was ready to throw in the towel and go back to the fire station but as I started to call a cab, Matthew pulled up. We sat outside and talked for a while before he asked if we were going to get the drinks, I was so lost in the conversation and trying to find a way to bring up the previous debacle that I'd forgotten. When we went inside I tried to bring up what was on my mind, each time I'd start, he would steer the conversation to questions about my life and what I thought about living in Bridgeport. Eventually, I gave up trying to apologize, we called it a night and went our separate ways. I ended up leaving Hogan's with more questions than I had to begin with, mainly why Matthew was so interested in who I was.



With less than a day until my house was finished, I decided it was time to go home and setup a sculpting station to see if the old passion was still there. When I picked up my chisel it felt like second nature and hours quickly passed as I shaped my first piece of clay. I got so lost in what I was doing that when the contractors came to tell me my they were done, I barely heard them. They set my keys down on the counter as they left and told me to enjoy my new house.

A few days after I settled in, I was on my way off the set at work when Matthew asked if I'd like to go back to Hogan's and have drinks with him. I was pretty wary at first, seeing as we hadn't said more than a sentence to each other since the last time, but I figured why not, all I have at home is a sculpture to go back to. After we finished our drinks, I was reaching for my phone to call a cab when Matthew sat on the sidewalk and asked me to join him. I gave him a quizzical look and he grabbed my hand to pull me down.



As I was making myself comfortable, he pointed up at the sky and asked me if I knew what the constellation above us was. I told him I didn't and he said it was called Lyra, the constellation was of a Lyre and he began to tell the story behind it. As he finished his story, he said that it's believed that the gods put the harp in the sky as a reminder of the undying power of great music and true love.



I knew at that moment that I was meant to share my life with Matthew. Like previous Hauptman's before me, I wasted no time in doing things the "proper" way.



We spent the first days of our marriage lounging around the house and working on our hobbies. Matthew decided to take up painting much to my delight, he also began working on a small garden to provide us fresh produce. My status in town shot up beyond what I could of imagined when the town caught word of our marriage. Soon after we were both being sent gifts from all sorts of companies, luckily one gift was a much needed car. Matthew sold his when we got married to add a second story to our house, he said it would be needed for our children and that night we began working on that future.

Sure enough, we had a little one on the way in no time. Pregnancy isn't something that sits well with me, morning sickness is not something I care to repeat. Especially, when Matthew makes jokes about getting out of my way before he meets my lunch again. Even though I know the tricks to determine if you have a boy or girl, I decided to let fate have her way. As long as our baby is healthy, the gender doesn't concern me, though I do suspect Matthew is rooting for a boy.



One night we were laying in bed discussing baby names, though I'd never brought my family history up, I figured it was time to tell Matthew the full story of my past. He laid there quietly and unmoving as I revealed my past in all it's heartbreaking details. When I was done, I excused myself and went outside for some air. Matthew came out shortly after and sat next to me on our back porch, he took my hand in his and said my past had no impact on our future. My families destiny would still go forth, he had no problems with being part of it and he only had one request, that he would name our child. When I asked him what names he had in mind, he swept me up in his arms and said it was time for bed.

We both read all the books we could get our hands on and were pretty confident that when the time came it would go well. What they don't mention in those books is that labor hurts just as much as the birth! The final result was beyond worth any amount of pain and Matthew nearly broke my heart as he handed our child to me and told me his name.



Mercy Hauptman -
Lifetime Wish: Super Star Actor ( Not Finished )
Career: Film ( Level 6 )
Supermax Skill: Sculpting ( Level 8 )
Other Max Skills: Not Yet Decided
Traits: Family-Oriented, Virtuoso, Artistic, Nurturing and Friendly
Likes: Classical Music, Fruit Parfait and Purple
Portraits: Young Adult and Adult
Sculptures: None Yet
Finished Black Ops: Emergency Interviewer / The Importance of Sculpting / Authorized Biography / An Old Ruse / Business Model / Broadyway Cameo
Properties: None Yet
Lifetime Rewards: None Yet
Best Friends: Matthew Hamming

House Walk Through

Front view of the house



Back view of the house



Main entrance which is pretty bare at the moment



Hallway leading to the master bedroom, bathroom and nursery.



Kitchen and lounge area mix



Master bedroom



Master bathroom



Nursery



Extra bathroom



I still have a bunch of little details to add to the rooms to make the feel like a home and lived in, as well as finishing off the flooring for half of the downstairs. The upstairs doesn't have much except for a bedroom at the moment, which is still being worked on, so I didn't take any screenshots of that.

[Alexandria_]

Wonderfully written, I like how you've detailed how everything lead up to their relationship - it makes it feel more real.
I also love the look of your house.

[Esther1981]

Beautiful restart. The way the bugs were worked in was inspired! I also love your house. Very beautiful!

[Gogowars329]

Welcome Matthew! He's one of my favourite Bridgeport Sims! The picture with Matthew and Mercy looking at the stars is cute.
The house looks great.

[Enchanted81]

Life Brings Many Changes

The name Matthew chose was Sam, he knew how close I was to Papa Samuel and figured it was only fitting that we name our firstborn after someone special. Motherhood seems to suit me, I just can't seem to get enough of spending time with our child, poor Matthew though has been swamped at work. I was dreading the day my maternity leave was over, the thought of leaving little Sam home with anyone other than Matthew is terrifying to me.



Sure enough though, you can't stop the aging process, at least not at this point in Sam's life. With Matthew being promoted at work, his hours have been a bit easier, but he's taken up fishing and that keeps him away more than I like. The day of Sam's birthday was again one of those days when there just wasn't enough hours in the day. We had a family party for him early in the day before Matthew had to leave for work.



I spent the better part of the day teaching Sam how to walk, he can sure be a stubborn little thing. Each time I got him up on his own two feet, he'd plop back down on his bottom and give me a knowing look. Of course, I just went back over and got him up and the game would start all over again. By lunchtime we were making good progress with a few steps here and there. We were also working on potty training in between learning to walk, thankfully he's taken to that pretty well and it should be over in no time.



One night I came home from work and found Matthew teaching Sam to talk, I paid no attention to what they were talking about and starting working on my sculpting. During one of my breaks I was on my way to the restroom when I caught part of the conversation. Matthew was telling Sam the story of my past, I decided to stay back where I couldn't been seen so I could hear the story from his point of view. When he got to the part about how my father had betrayed us all, my heart started breaking all over again. In the grind of creating a life for us and our future, I'd completely ignored trying to find a way to save my missing family members. It's not that I'd forgotten or did it on purpose, I just didn't have the means to pursue that daunting of a task.



Since that night a depression had set over me, I spent most of my time at work and working on sculpting. Sam's next birthday came and went, we didn't do anything other than have a birthday cake. I feel terrible for not being there as much as I should for Sam, but I'm behind on my goals and I feel like Grimm is breathing down my neck. In the quiet hours of night, I have trouble sleeping, it's too quiet and I swear I can hear my family calling out to me. Most nights I wake up drenched in a cold sweat, the clock tells me that I've only been asleep for a few hours, in my dreams it feels like days.

Matthew has been wonderful during all this, Sam's goal is to become a superstar athlete, so in his spare time he's been taking him to the gym to work out. I just can't find a way to snap out of this funk and Sam's teenage birthday was upon us, we'd even skipped over Matthew's birthday during this time. When we asked Sam if he wanted a party with his friends from school, he declined saying he didn't even want a cake. So once again, the day came and went and on that day I decided it was time to take a different approach to my dilemma.



Matthew has become quite the skilled fisherman, though he hasn't caught his dream fish yet, he has been finding trinkets that he brings home once in a while. His new spot for fishing is at the graveyard late at night. I once asked him if he'd ran into any ghosts yet and he just smiled and said a few. He said he find the graveyard peaceful and it comforts him to know there's life after death.



Most night I find myself at my sculpting station, I've started working on ice as a medium and I have to say I'm quite fond of hacking away at a chunk of ice until it becomes something beautiful. I've asked Sam to pose for me and he's agreed numerous times, but I think he's getting a bit tired of it since everything I've tried doesn't stop the ice from melting. One of these days though, one of these days.



Matthew and I were watching tv one night when we decided it was time to teach Sam to drive. I begged him to let me be the one to teach him, after all I did have a whole lifespan to make up for. Matthew just chuckled at me and said have at it, it was one headache he would gladly do without. Personally, I didn't see any headaches coming out of teaching my son responsibility, boy was I wrong!

The next day, I came home early from work and as Sam came down from his room and I started jingling the car keys. He looked at me like I'd lost my mind as I tossed them to him. It didn't start out bad, he got in and put his safety belt on, checked his mirrors and put the car into gear. Had no problems backing the car out and getting in the right direction, but as soon as he started going forward I thought I was going to need a neck brace. It was like I was inside a frog that would not stop hopping! I tried explaining to him that he needed to keep a steady pressure on the gas pedal and that taping the breaks every few seconds wasn't necessary. He ended up giving me a look at was reminiscent to the looks he gave me as I was teaching him to walk.



After he finally got the hang of it and applied for his drivers license, we went home. Sam was told that his license would be mailed to him shortly, which just made him more anxious, I suggested he head to the gym to work off the nerves but he said he was good doing a workout from home. I was off to continue my experiments with ice, Matthew posted a note on the fridge that he was out fishing and wouldn't be home until late that night. Life was starting to come together again.

Just when I thought I had perfected my non-melting sculptures, the phone rang, Matthew had finally caught his prized death fish. He was so excited that I could barely get a word in edge wise, he made me head out to the garden to see if his life plants were harvestable yet and was disappointed to find that they weren't. He said that he was going to try and catch a few more fish and would be home soon. As I hung up the phone and headed back in, I walked in to find a puddle in front of my sculpting station. With a sigh, I cleaned up my mess and headed off to bed.



With Sam's young adult birthday fast approaching, Matthew was starting to get really worried. His life plants still hadn't reached the point that he needed them to and he wanted his last gift to us to be ambrosia. He'd recently made me purchase a food replicator so that way we'd have a stock of ambrosia for after he was gone. Each time he brought up ambrosia, my heart would sink. I wasn't prepared to lose Matthew this quickly, I don't think I ever would be prepared for that. But as days come and go, plants do grow and Matthew had reached his goal of replicating ambrosia for Sam and I.



As I mentioned earlier, Sam's birthday had finally come. We tried again to get him to have a party, becoming a young man was after all something to be celebrated. He again declined but said he would like a cake this time. When I asked him why he never wanted to have friends from school over, he said it wasn't a big deal, he just wasn't that close to anyone his age and preferred company that was more mature. This seem a bit odd to me but who was I to argue, he was about to be an adult.





That night I had to work, if I would have known what was to happen, I would have never left the house. Sam was already in bed getting a good nights sleep for his graduation when it happened. Matthew must have been getting ready for bed as well, but he never made it that far. Grimm had come for my beloved, he did it in such a sneaky way that I feel he was punishing me for what my father did. My father had cheated Grimm of the souls he was to reap from my past, but Matthew greeted him willingly and moved on without argument.



Sam didn't take his father's passing easily and found himself in the sports bar more than anywhere else. Anytime I tried to approach him, he'd shake his head and say he had to go. Drowning your sorrows isn't the way to deal with anything but I have no clue how to help him if he won't talk to me.



Little did I know he was talking to someone, her name is Mindy Schwarz and she's a bouncer at the club Sam has been frequenting. I found out the way everyone else did, the paparazzi had caught on to his trail and announced it to the world in the morning paper.



I spent my elder birthday home alone, my best friend Devin offered to bake me a cake but I declined. Our house right now felt nothing like a home and I was happy to have some time to myself to reflect on my life so far. It was no where near over, I still had a couple promotions at work to go, I managed to perfect my ice sculptures and I had to have an elder portrait done to get everything in order for my first taste of ambrosia. What I did have out of order was how to save my family, I still hear them at night, I hear my name and then the rest gets lost in oblivion.





Sam's graduation was on the somber side, he was excited to start his life and felt bad for celebrating when his father had just passed. It was a struggle just to get him out the door and into his robes, eventually I won the argument, even if I had to throw a little guilt in there. This was a part of his life that he would regret ignoring later on and I just wasn't having it.



Mercy Hauptman -
Lifetime Wish: Super Star Actor ( Not Finished )
Career: Film - Acting Branch ( Level 8 )
Supermax Skill: Sculpting ( Supermaxed )
Other Max Skills: None so far
Traits: Family-Oriented, Virtuoso, Artistic, Nurturing and Friendly
Likes: Classical Music, Fruit Parfait and Purple
Portraits: Young Adult and Adult
Sculptures: None Yet
Finished Black Ops: Emergency Interviewer / The Importance of Sculpting / Authorized Biography / An Old Ruse / Business Model / Broadyway Cameo
Properties: Hogan's Deep-Fried Diner and Bridgeport Acres ( Fully Upgraded )
Lifetime Rewards: Food Replicator, Artisan Crafter and No Bills Ever
Best Friends: Emmy Starr, Tiara Angelista, Carisa Ewing, Devin Ashton and Sam Hauptman

[Gogowars329]

Happy Birthday to Mercy and Sam! R.I.P Matthew. You're going to have an Immortal soon.

[Enchanted81]

Too Many Birthdays

It didn't take long for Sam to decide that he wanted to spend his life with Mindy. He'd had her over at the house a few times and she seems pretty decent. Sam even had more guts than I did with explaining about our family. One day while I was working on my collections stored in our basement, I found Sam and Mindy down there. He was explaining the history of our family and the trials we must go through. He explained to her that he wanted to be with her more than anything else he's ever wanted and though he couldn't give up the Immortal life, he'd understand if she didn't want to be part of it. I don't think I've ever been so nervous for my son, in those few moments that must have been only just enough to breathe, I stood my ground prepared to console my son. To my surprise Mindy, much like Matthew, didn't have a problem with the life we had to lead. She understood what her part in it would be and that it would go on long after she was to be. Not one to wait, as all Hauptmans seem to be, Sam dropped down on one knee and gave Mindy one of the wedding rings I passed on to him when his father died.

The next day we setup a wedding area at Bridgeport Acres, our family would have many weddings to come and unlike in the past, it would be done properly. After everything was done, Sam called and made arrangements for the wedding. Mindy quit her job at the sports bar Sam met her at and moved in with us that day, she had many things to get started on to prepare her for her new life. The wedding was set for the next day but the wedding night seems to have taken place once Mindy was all moved in. I don't know how she found time to take an art, cooking and gardening class between their attempts at procreating.

The next day when everyone was awake, I sent Sam off to get ready and took Mindy aside to start working on her. She had a dress and veil that was passed down from her mother, the only thing that we added to it was a fresh flower from the garden. After a quick trip the Sam's body sculptor, we had Mindy and myself dressed and were off to get them married.



The days that followed the wedding were productive. We seemed to have a grandchild on the way, Mindy's morning sickness started shortly after they said their vows, needless to say the wedding party was cut a bit short. Sam spends a lot his time working out, each morning when he gets up he goes for a jog across town. Mindy has been painting, cooking and tending the garden Matthew left behind, bless her heart the poor girl works herself the the bone and she ready to pop like a balloon. I finally got my final promotion at work, Mindy is one level away from being able to paint my elder portrait and I'm home free.

Heh, home free, that's a funny word. I thought I was home free while I was leaving work, but I came home to Mindy in labor and a very unprepared Sam trying breathing techniques. I managed to get Sam calmed down, he didn't stop with the breathing though as he thought it was helping him. I ushered Mindy off to the car and we were all off to the hospital to meet my new grandchild.



The next morning Mindy gained her last level in painting and was able to paint my Elder portrait, once she finished and it was hung in our basement I replicated the ambrosia that Matthew had prepared and had my first taste of Immortality. I must say, I don't see what all the fuss about ambrosia is. I happen to find the fish beautiful and it honestly doesn't taste that bad.



Oh silly me, I bet you're wondering about my grandchild right? Well we ended up with a bit of a surprise, Mindy and Sam are the proud parents of twin girls! The first born and next in line for Immortality is Jessie, she was born with the traits of easily impressed and friendly. If my gut instinct is right, we have a chef in our future.

My second grandchild is Alexia, she was born with the traits of excitable and good sense of humor. Mindy's mentioned that she feels Alexia will take after her artistic ways, at least she doesn't have to deal with the pressure that will be forced upon Jessie.



During the girls' infant years, the house was serene. Both girls have nearly the same schedule and sleep through the night without much fuss. Sam is the ever doting father and proudly boasts how his girls are so well behaved, little does he know that teenage years for girls are much different than that for boys. In the meantime, I just smile to myself and wait for the day he has to teach them to drive. I remember that day still all too well, no whiplash for me this time thank you! And much like Sam's first birthday, we kept the first birthday a family affair.





Mindy and I took it upon ourselves to teach one child each set of their toddler skills, we figured it would save time this way and wouldn't confuse either one with different teaching styles. Alexia doesn't seem to learn things as fast as Jessie, once they got their walking and talking down though, there was no stopping them. I noticed Sam starting to worry a bit after spending a day chasing the girls around the house. I think he's starting to realize how full his hands are going to be with each birthday.



The toddler years sure do go by too fast, I remember all too well how fast it went when Sam was that age. I wasn't prepared for him to grow up and I'm not prepared for my girls to either. Both girls have a doll that is very similar to the one Sam had when he was a child, I think he still has it laying around somewhere. They spend a lot of their time singing and playing with those dolls, there really isn't much else we have to teach them. Mindy bought some coloring books for Alexia to help her advance her artistic skills for later on. There wasn't much we could do for poor Jessie, she does however get a mini oven to bake on for her birthday.

The day of the big birthday, Mindy decided she didn't want to throw a party. She's nearing her elder birthday and I fear the girls just took too much out of her so late in life. Sam has been brooding lately, I don't know if he's worried about the next stage of the girls' life or if he's worried about loosing Mindy this quickly in their marriage. As each Hauptman has learned before us, you can't stop the future and life does go on.







With all the birthdays left and right in our household we also had an adult birthday for Sam and an elder birthday for Mindy. I can say I'm definitely glad that birthdays for me are over, they get so tiring after a while. The child years for both girls went pretty well, neither girl acted out and both were content to do their own things. I am a bit disappointed that neither of the girls seemed very interested in the play area we have in our yard. Sam was the same way when he was younger, I can only hope that future generations put it to some good use.

Mindy dutifully takes care of the portrait painting, cooking and gardening for the family, Sam really couldn't ask for a better wife. I've been spending a lot of time working on my gem collection in our basement, there isn't much sculpting for me to do anymore unless a birthday has come upon us. Sam still goes out jogging each morning, one day he stopped by the consignment shop and was able to pick up a miner for me and a martial arts book for himself. After a few chapters into his book, Sam decided to take a quick visit to China to pick up more martial arts supplies. During his reading he found that he'll be able to help me with my gems by breaking space rocks. Alexia has really taken to painting, she's at her easel more often than not, she has expressed interest in sculpting but I've told her that she needs to wait until she's older. Jessie's cooking is going slowly for her, she complains that all she's able to do is bake desserts and no one ever comes to buy from her bakers stand.

Both girls are enrolled in ballet as their after school activity, Alexia though doesn't seem that fond of it and refused to go to her recital. She said it wasn't fair of the school to plan a recital on her birthday and she would rather watch Jessie perform than be on stage herself. Luckily, the school took in to consideration her participation outside of the recital and she still received a ballet trophy. After the recital Alexia took off for home and broke out her birthday cake. Jessie, being the attention getter she is, stayed late to gush over the recital with her school friends and missed out on having her own birthday cake.







The teenage years are in full force. Alexia has grown more sophisticated if you will and doesn't find her sisters antics very funny anymore. One morning over the weekend, I was  walking up the front steps bringing in the mail only to find the girls having a "friendly" pillow fight. Jessie seemed to have gotten a bit carried away and nearly took off her sisters head, Alexia was all ready to let her have it before I broke up the brewing fight. Later on that night, Alexia wasn't too keen on keeping up with her chores and started mouthing off to both her parents. I managed to get her out of the house for a talk and she didn't take too well to Grandma giving her a scolding.



Thankfully, the next day things had returned to somewhat normal in our house. As a way to show the girls that responsibility and respect are something you earn, Sam decided it was time to teach both girls how to drive. Of course since they both got shiny new cars for their birthdays, a bit of begging and puppy dog eyes from both girls was enough to cave him in eventually.



Mercy Hauptman - Immortalized
Lifetime Wish: Super Star Actor ( Finished )
Career: Film - Acting Branch ( Maxed )
Supermax Skill: Sculpting ( Supermaxed )
Other Max Skills: None so far
Traits: Family-Oriented, Virtuoso, Artistic, Nurturing and Friendly
Likes: Classical Music, Fruit Parfait and Purple
Portraits: Young Adult, Adult and Elder
Sculptures: None Yet
Finished Black Ops: Emergency Interviewer / The Importance of Sculpting / Authorized Biography / An Old Ruse / Business Model / Broadyway Cameo
Properties: Hogan's Deep-Fried Diner and Bridgeport Acres ( Fully Upgraded )
Lifetime Rewards: Food Replicator, Artisan Crafter and No Bills Ever
Best Friends: Emmy Starr, Tiara Angelista, Carisa Ewing, Devin Ashton, Sam Hauptman and Mindy Hauptman

[Gogowars329]

Congrats for your first Immortal! Happy birthday to Jessie and Alexia many times! I love how you dressed them!

[Enchanted81]

Congrats for your first Immortal! Happy birthday to Jessie and Alexia many times! I love how you dressed them!

Thanks Gogo! I'm a bit farther ahead in my game than the story has progressed, just need to find the time to write it up so everything is all caught up.