"There is a lot of zero's here,", Edward said aloud to the most recent painting of Isabelle, "I think it is well passed time to move, we have been in this far too long.", Edward said to the picture. The painting grinned its perfect grin, as it always did.
Edward raided the fridge yo ward off his gobblerism and went fishing for the day, he returned home just as
Jessica was getting off from the school bus. Edward informed Jess of his
decision, and after a short discussion, they drove to Kim's house to break the news.
"Not that I don't want to see Kim and Delilah, but couldn't you have just called?", asked Jess.
"Some things you have to do in person, not over the phone, and I feel like this is one of those things.", explained Edward to his daughter.
"Hi Kim, we've come to let you know that we'll be moving out of your old rental soon, my fishing business has made me quite wealthy, I've been thinking a lot about it lately, and I'm thinking its time to move on."
"Oh!", said Kim crestfallen, "So you and Jess will be leaving 'The Hollow', then?", asked Kim.
Edward replied, oblivious to Kim's tone, "What? No. I've looked at a few places, and the one I really like is just around the corner, we'd be practically neighbors!", Edward grinned.
Edward explained to Kim his plans for the future. "Jess and I have been sharing a bedroom since she was in nappies, it's bad enough that I get evicted from my own bedroom every time she wants to get changed now, can you imagine how much worse that's going to be when she is a teenager?"
Delilah wiggled her eyebrows at Jess, and flicked her eyes repeatedly in the direction of the house. Jess, picking up on the signal nodded almost imperceptibly. "Is it alright if Jessica and I play inside Aunty Kim?", asked Delilah in the sweetest voice she could muster. "Sure, off you go sweetheart, just make sure that there is at least one cookie left for Edward and I.", responded Kim, referring to the large batch of cookies that Delilah and Kim had just finished making before Edward and Jessica had arrived.
Kim and Edward sat up talking late into the night, much later than would have normally considering it was a school night for Jess and Delilah. Time become irrelevant for the Vampire and the part Goblin as they shared each other's company. Kim noticed Delilah's bedroom light go off, and checked her watch.
Kim finished the conversation with "Fortunately I know the owner, he became a big time movie producer and moved to Starlight Shores. He hasn't been back to the 'Hollow' in a few years, and I know he will take much less than he asking, and I also happen to have relatives in the loans department at the bank, so I can make sure they give you the best terms."
Kim gave Edward a peck on the cheek in parting and promised to make sure Jessica got to school on time.
Edward drove home alone and immediately raided the fridge when he got there. He was enjoying his conversation with Kim so much, he hadn't even realized he had become hungry, something that must never happen if he wanted to avoid becoming the monster that his parents told him as a child that he would become.
With the money from his personal account, Jess's further education account, the loan, and some business expenditure thrown in, Edward had purchased an expansive new residence for Jess and himself, Edward unlocked the gates and parked his old truck inside the gates.
Edward's business had also purchased a fishing boat that he named Tia Dalma in honor of the sea Goddess Calypso, he smiled as he passed her on his way to inspect the second three port garage. He had a lot of hard work to do, to pay for the new lifestyle he had chosen for himself and Jess, but it was worth it.
The second garage had been decked out as a party room, Edward had agreed to buy the place fully furnished and he wasn't disappointed. The spare garage would be an ideal place for his daughter and her friends to hang out after school!
Across from the garages there was a large swimming pool, although Edward wasn't overly impressed with it's shape, it had waterfalls, a spa, and the previous owner had installed a giant cinema screen.
Continuing to explore the property, Edward investigated the garden area that he has seen from the roadside.
The allotted area was massive, although it was bare, it had a sprinkler system built in already, and paths where laid between the rows. It was also fenced off to prevent larger pests from getting in and eating anything that was growing there.
Edward finished his tour by checking out every room in the house. Several of the rooms were empty and unused. Edward attempted to put together a complete picture of the four floors in his head.
He was going to have to change some of the decor to suit his tastes, but he was going to gave to catch a lot more fish first. Several truck loads more. If Edward withdrew all of the remaining Simoleons in his personal account in single Simoleon notes, it wouldn't even fill his pockets.
Most importantly for Edward, he had managed to get this all to happen in time for Jessica's birthday. Jessica got off the school bus with Evette, Delilah, and a new girl to the school that they had all become friends with, Hyacinth Evergreen.
Jessica had also invited Kim and Sally to her birthday party,
who both arrived shortly after the school bus.
After cake, Jess picked up a guitar, Eve who was learning drums settled in, and Delilah sat at the keyboard and stretching her arms out in front of her and cracking her knuckles picked up the tune and jammed.
Hyacinth stood next to the Bass. "Sally can teach you how to play, she can play any instrument!", Eve beamed.
Sally sauntered over to the Bass. "Hyacinth, isn't it?", asked Sally. "Cindy, please.", Hyacinth smiled up at Sally. Sally stood behind Cindy and taking the Plantsim's wrists gently in her hands, attempted to show her where to place them.
"Hrm, you are a little short to play a full sized Bass, when do you age up?", Sally concluded. "Next week on the same day as 'Lilah.", said Cindy, "Thanks anyway, I like dancing, I'm happy to just dance until I sprout and can join in!"
"When does Evette age up?", inquired Kim. "Tomorrow night at full moon it's a family only thing, and it's going to be totally crazy at my house with all of my siblings!", Sally laughed. "How many siblings do you actually have?", Kim asked. Kim knew Sally and Eve, as well as a few of her brothers, one of which was in charge of Tribal Police, and Sally's parents, They lived in an area just outside of Midnight Hollow, but most of them rarely if ever came to town.
"Sixteen sisters and twenty eight brothers, but I think Ma is trying to convince Da to get another litter on her before she get too old.", Sally laughed. "I've been trying to convince my folks to find another hobby for years!".
Kim tried to imagine a family so large, mentally picturing her own family tree, she couldn't remember anyone in it having more than three children.
The party flowed late into the night, before the adults insisted it was bedtime.
'Best sleepover ever!' insisted Delilah the next morning.
"Now don't forget Evie ages up tomorrow and she won't be at school all week because of the family rituals wolves do. So every body come to my place after school Friday to see the new improved grown up Evie, yeah?", Jessica told Delilah and Cindy, as they queued up to have their names marked off as they entered school.
"Its our age up day on Friday.", Delilah said, nodding at Cindy, "Maybe we can convince everyone to let us have the party at your place?.", suggested Delilah. "Done Deal!.", replied, Jess." "I'll swing it with the oldies!"
Friday eventually came around for the girls. Jess, true to her word, had gotten the party approved with all of the relevant adults, and Fleur Freebird joined in. "I'd love to stay for the pool party as well, but my parents are taking me to Egypt, I hate the sand, it gets everywhere!", Fleur sighed, rolling her eyes. Fleur's mother was a French Genie, her father was Egyptian, and they alternated traveling to one country or the other to celebrate their wedding anniversary, this year it was Al Simhara.
They girls quietly agreed to hold off the pool party until after Fleur's parents had come to whisk her off to the airport. "Time for 'Honey, I shrank the sims', and cake, in the pool", Cindy giggled. Delilah dipped a toe in the pool. Swimming was not her favorite thing. She took a deep calming breath. She was going to have to get in. She didn't want her best friends to think she was a scaredy cat.
"Ahhh, save the cake!", yelled Eve as the dark clouds overhead unleashed their payload. The two teenage girls scooped up the cake and as many other plates of food they could rescue, and the party moved indoors.
Kim bit her tongue and tried not to make a comment, she glanced at Sally, who had also noticed.
Despite that Edward knew everybody in the room and was very friendly with each and every one of them, he was twitching. Kim had noticed a long time ago that Edward, when he became uncomfortable around strangers or more than a half dozen sims, his knee would bounce. Kim had also noticed that Edward had attempted to reread the same page a dozen times over.
"Okay girls, I suggest anyone who doesn't way to stay and do dishes disappears out to the play room now.", suggested Kim. She observed that Edwards twitch subsided as the four teenagers filed out of the room.
Edward got up and raided the fridge.
"How about Jess Jettstar and the Broken Hearts", Evette suggested, pointing to the design on the front of the drum kit.
"That's fantastic, but what happens when I meet a knight in shining armor, who whisks me off to his palace, then you'll be "No Jess Jettstar, and the Broken Hearts. We need a band name without our names in it.", advised Jess.
"What about 'Four Non Blondes'?", suggested Delilah. "The names taken.", offered Sally from the couch.
"Twisted Sisters", suggested Eve. "Nope, Twisted Sister is already taken.", said Sally.
"The cure!", proposed Delilah. "Same.", said Sally.
"Rush?", offered Eve, not to be outdone. "Same." said Sally again.
"Joy Division?", tried Delilah, only to be informed by Sally that the name had already been used.
After a momentary lull in the conversation, Delilah and Eve started again.
"New Order?", "Vixen?", "Rainbow?", "Nightwish?", "The Banshees?", "Rose Tattoo?".
"No, no, no ,no ,nope, no. Haven't you kids heard of any of these bands, they all exist!, said Sally exasperated.
"Led Zeppelin?", "Dread Zeppelin?", "Faster Pussycat?", "Metallica?", "Cindarella?", Eve and Delilah competed. Sally just shook her head at each attempt.
"Quiet Riot?", tried Delilah. Another nod in the negative from Sally.
"Audioslave?", asked Eve, again Sally nodded in the negative.
"Five Finger Death Punch!", suggested Delilah, surely there's no band.. "I have a 5 FSP tour shirt", said Sally.
"Claws, Paws, Fangs and a Celery Stick?", offered Delilah, poking her tongue out at Cindy, "Are you going to help or what?"
Cindy just shrugged her shoulders, "How about four girls with instruments who can't play a tune?"
"Neither of those names are taken, but I think both are a bit long.", mediated Sally, sensing the growing tension in the room. Delilah was about to say something unpleasant to Cindy when Jess interrupted. "Yeah. How about we think about band names when we actually sound like a band?
Authors note:
Not that there's a band in the next gen rolls, I hinted at it in the notes of the previous chapter, but I now have assembled my first attempt at a complete band despite having all expansions for over six months!
I haven't actually calculated how many people it takes to trigger Ed's 'Too Many People', moodlet, but it's not that many. Definitely six or less... (and all of those at best friends.)
Edwards parents never told him that he would become a monster, nor that hunger would trigger it, but Edward ran away so long ago that his memories of the event have changed over time.
I was going to put the four cutaway shots of the house floors in notes instead of mid chapter, but I thought it odd that Edward might spend two or three screens investigating the sheds and the pool, then completely ignore the actual house. Also, I had to modify the pool, even though it came from a blueprint for some reason no body can swim in it, even after I added ladders and a diving board. Access to the spa is fine.
I thought I had gone to great lengths to put everything in sim inventories or family storage before shifting houses, but all of these books and fruits appeared after the move. I had to dump then on the ground one at a time (Right edge of pic) to remove them from the family inventory. With the books I only had the option to read them or put them away one at a time. Needless to say with all of the crowding around the second floor bookshelf it took nearly a full sim day to clean up....
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