This chapter was originally uploaded to the Sims2 Exchange on February 5, 2007

Welcome to the Pseudo Legacy�s second part of the second chapter.

When last we left the Legacinas, Zoey had graduated college and returned home to carry on the family line.Her chosen spouse, Christian Corsillo, was a very handsome sim, but not particularly bright. It was unclearwhether he would be able to provide much support for Zoey in her efforts to carry on the family line,especially since there were signs that the family�s enemy, Taylor�s aunt Kirstial, had found where the familywas.

Here is where our story picks up...

Ah, a wedding. They often say it should be the happiest day in a bride�s life, as if it should be of no concernat all to the groom. Shortly before the ceremony was to begin, and before the guests had arrived to taketheir seats, Zoey and Christian stood beneath their wedding arch grinning at one another.

�Wow, everyone�s totally dressed up really nice. You�d think it was a wedding or something.� Christianwatched as everyone came to take their seats.

Zoey gave a little sigh, �It is a wedding, Christian. Ours. Remember?�

�Whoa! We�re like getting married and stuff?� He turned a brilliant smile on Zoey as if this were the bestnews he�d ever heard. �Oh, wait. Yeah, I think I remember you telling me that.�

Grinning back at him, Zoey said, �Let�s do this thing.�

Some short vows were spoken (Christian couldn�t handle anything longer) and rings were exchanged. In justa few moments time, Christian Corsillo became Christian Legacina and joined the family.

The guests all applauded and cheered the newlyweds. Genesis watched with a wistful smile, �Daisy, do youthink we�ll ever get married someday?�

Daisy Bendett snorted, �I hope not. Getting married means growing old and having babies. I�d rather stay adormie for eternity, thanks a lot.�

Genesis blushed a bit, �Oh, yeah. I guess so.�

Victoria watched everyone cheer the young couple, thinking to herself, �I wonder if this is what it was likefor mom when she married daddy. I mean, she married into a legacy family too, and that�s a big step foranyone.� Giving a little shake of her head, she grinned, �Well, at least it�s not me. No babies and messes forme. Just me and Charlie ruling the world.�

Well, it doesn�t hurt to have aspirations after all.

Taylor and Professor Kelly were old hat at throwing parties at this point. For Zoey�s wedding, they pulled outall the stops, even going so far as to rent a dance floor and a DJ booth.

�Taylor, how come you never invited me to any of your parties before now?� Daisy wasn�t really offended,but had a tactless sense of curiosity.

�A man�s gotta do what a man�s gotta do, kiddo.� Taylor was already getting into the groove, �Too manysims, too little time. I�d befriend the whole world if it�d give me a chance. Hey, top this move!�

Professor Kelly manned the turntable, proving herself to be a talented DJ. This wasn�t too surprising sinceshe�d previously wowed the regular party crowd with her mad freestyle skillz. �Come on everyone, get onthe dance floor and shake your thang!� If the Sim State faculty could only see her now...

�Hey Parker, nice suit, dude.� Charlie was enjoying life after college, but was glad to see the old crowd. Hewas also quite glad to see Parker actually wearing clothing.

�Thanks, Charlie. It itches, though. I keep thinking I should...� Parker replied.

Quickly, Charlie interrupted, �No! No man. Just... it looks good. Besides. There are.. uhm.. mosquitos. Yeah,they�d eat you alive with all that skin showing.�

Parker gave Charlie a disappointed look, �Oh. Darn.�

All in all, the party was a huge hit, raising the roof and avoiding the cops being called. Professor Kelly keptthe tunes pumping and Taylor kept the smustle grooving.

�Rahr Rahr Rahr!�

�Christian, I�m so happy today. I mean, I�m not really big on this whole responsibility thing and having tocarry the weight of a legacy on my shoulders, but knowing you�ll be there beside me makes it easier.� Zoeycarefully cut the cake for the official cake cutting.

Christian smiled adoringly at Zoey, �You know I love you, Zo. I wouldn�t want to be anyplace else. Well, �ceptmaybe Disneyland or Hawaii, but I�d probably get bored if you weren�t there with me.�

�Oh Christian. I think that�s the sweetest thing you�ve ever said to me. I think our kids are going to adoreyou.� Getting a forkful of cake ready, Zoey added in a sly voice, �You may not be the sharpest tool in theshed, but you�re going to make a wonderful father.�

�Yeah...� Christian paused and then blinked, �Wait.. father? Who said anything about babies... Zoey...�Before he could say anything more, the piece of cake was shoved into his mouth.

�Mrfflemrrfle!�

That same night, after all the guests had gone home, and much closer than Taylor would have appreciatedhad he known, Kirstial stood in the trees behind the house. She cackled to herself and rubbed her handstogether evilly. �Tonight it ends. Tonight, I kill the spawn of my insipid brother. It took me years to findthem, but now I�m finally here and NOTHING can stop me! MUHAHAHA!�

Realizing that her voice was carrying, she stopped her sinister laughter, �*cough* Oops. Forgot, I�m trying tobe sneaky here.�

Slowly, she approached the house, relishing every step that took her closer to her final destiny, the finalpower she would achieve when the last of the Legacina blood was on her hands.

Suddenly, a low growling noise caused her to stop and look around.

There before her were two wolves, one with eerie, glowing eyes.

Kirstial paused and considered. There was something she thought she should know about a black wolf withglowing eyes, but she just couldn�t put her finger on it. Well, either way, they were just animals. They�d beno bother at all.

�Out of my way, mangy curs. Hisss!� Kirstial gave her best Vampiric hiss to drive the beasts off.

The grey wolf growled menacingly at her while the black one rumbled in an oddly human voice, �You�re inmy territory, leech. This far from the city, and you�re in the Pack�s realm.�

�What the... !?!� Kirstial pulled back out of reach of the growling wolf and stared at the black one, �You cantalk!? How is that possible?�

�Of course I can, nitwit. I�m the Leader of the Pack.� Balin growled deeper at Kirstial, his eyes growing aferal and dangerous yellow, �You�re not the only supernatural creature on the block, bloodsucker. This is ourterritory and you�re trespassing. And, since you obviously seem interested in this house, it�s now under OURprotection.�

Alegra practically quivered with the anticipation of the hunt, �Can we kill it boss? Please? Pretty please? Withmayonnaise on top?�

�Alegra, you know I hate mayo. It gives me gas.� Balin sighed and gave the canine equivalent of an eye roll.

�But yeah, it�s huntin� time!� Howling to the moon, he signaled the hunt and he and his packmate beganchasing Kirstial through the woods.

Kirstial swore deeply in a hiss as she raced through the woods, using all of her powers to keep her out oftooth and claw of the wolf pack, �$*#@%! Stupid stupid stupid! It�s not fair! I was so close and DENIED!�

One of the wolves nipped at her heels, causing her to run even faster.

�DISAPPOINTED!�

Unbenknownst to the pack and Kirstial as they played their �game� of tag through the woods, there wasanother witness to the encounter. Upon the hill, the gypsy matchmaker Audrey Jitmakusal watched withconcern, �There�s something about that one. Hmm. Something different from the rest of the vampires. Ineed to look into this.�

�Oh great powers, give me insight into the significance of this house, this vampire, this situation. Yourhumble servant seeks the knowledge you have granted in the past.� Audrey summoned her power andfocused it into her crystal ball. The sphere began to glow with the power, swirling with images ofknowledge, power, darkness and DOOM!

�Oh no.. this.. this isn�t good at all. If she gets what she wants...� Taking a deep breath, Audrey tried tosteady her nerves. �Something must be done. She cannot succeed or we�re all doomed.�

�Wait... I know who I need to talk to. Yes yes, that�s just the thing. That will solve everything and mean Idon�t have to get my hands dirty.�

Satisfied at the solution she had come up with, Audrey lifted her crystal ball again, �That�s a good little bally,yes it is. Who�s mommy�s good little ball, showing me the future just like mommy asked. I see some icecream in bally�s future, yes I do.�

Completely oblivious to any of the supernatural goings on, the Legacinas continued with life as normal. Zoeyand Christian settled into their roles as the current Legacy couple, doing their best to conceive the nextgeneration. Not that either of them really complained about that particular task.

They also both got jobs to work towards their respective career goals.

Christian turned out to be a popularity sim with the lifetime want to become Captain Hero. Apparently, thehouse phone would never suffer from lack of use in this generation. His attributes were 4 Neat, 10Outgoing, 4 Active, 4 Playful, and 3 Nice.

�Ever since I was a little kid, I always wanted to be a superhero. Y�know, fighting bad guys, and saving theworld and stuff like that.� Christian was quite earnest in his dreams, �That and I always wanted to fly. Flyingwould be totally cool. Ooh, and a cool costume. That�d be the best.�

�Yes dear, that would be nice.� Zoey, like her father before her, wanted to become a General. Of course,Zoey�s real desire with joining the military was to have permission and encouragement to blow things up.When you have a mean Pleasure sim, you never quite know what their �simple� wants are going to be.

As their daughter and son-in-law drove off to their jobs, Professor Kelly pulled her husband into an embrace,�I think I�m going to miss being empty nesters.� Goosing him, she smiled, �So what do you think of our son-in-law?�

Laughing, Taylor grinned, �I think Zoey couldn�t have possibly found a dumber man to marry...�

Professor Kelly raised her eyebrows.

�...BUT, she seems to love him.� Taylor finished with an impish grin.

Goosing him again, Professor Kelly said, �Come on. Let�s go make use of the living room while they�re gone.�

When the newlyweds got home, Christian promptly threw himself at Zoey, �THEY LIKE ME, THEY REALLYLIKE ME!�

�OOF!� Luckily, Zoey had been working out for her job, so she was able to catch her husband, �Of coursethey like you, sweetie. Who couldn�t like you?�

�I got a promotion! A real live promotion!� Christian was deliriously happy about this.

We know how Christian�s first day at work went, so it only stands to reason that we would want to knowhow Zoey�s first day at work went. Zoey, would you care to share?

�Aw, come on Voice, do I have to?� Zoey sheepishly rubbed the back of her neck as she tried to avoid this.

Yes. You do. Tell them.

�Well... see, I didn�t know it was the general�s plane. And it wasn�t my fault they had the jet fuel tank sonear where it was. I mean, who stores jet fuel near jets? It�s not like I was aiming the bazooka at it onpurpose.� Zoey glanced around and added quieter, �They didn�t know it was me, though. And it really was acool explosion. Such pretty shades of red and orange.�

Oy vey.

�Mrs. Legacina, can I ask you a question?� Over breakfast, Christian had an opportunity to talk with hismother-in-law alone.

�You can call me Professor Kelly, dear. Just like everyone else. Of course you can ask me a question.�Professor Kelly took on a motherly tone with the young man, assuming he had some important, legacyrelated question to ask. After all, they were part of a small, select group of sims that marry into legacies likethis. �What is it you would like to know?�

�If baby birds come from eggs, and omelets are made of eggs, what happens to the baby birds?�

�Uh...�

It wasn�t too much later that it was time to have another birthday in the house.

Professor Kelly grimaced at the number of candles on the cake and the enthusiastic cheering around her, �Ireally don�t want to do this.�

�Come on, honey,� Taylor encouraged her, �It won�t be that bad.�

�Holy Cow, Kelly. You got OLD!� Sandy gaped at her newly transitioned friend.

Sarcastically, Professor Kelly responded, �Thanks Sandy. That just makes me feel wonderful about it. Yougaping at me like some oxygen deprived fish.�

Sheepishly, Sandy apologized, �Sorry. It just...� Pausing, she offered a large and lopsided smile, �It justmakes me grateful that most people don�t want me in their legacies.�

All in all, Professor Kelly looked pretty good for an elder, despite her protests otherwise. While her clothesweren�t spectacular, they also weren�t horrible.

Sighing, she grabbed a slice of her cake, �Well, I guess this isn�t so bad. It is, after all, an excuse to have aparty. That�s the important thing, after all.� It sounded like she was trying to convince herself of it more thanher actually believing it.

That night, a rumbling in Zoey�s stomach caused her to wake up early. As she got out of bed, thinking shemight have to go to the bathroom, her stomach suddenly gave a jerk and *POOF*, a baby bump appeared.

�MOM!!!� Despite the fact that she and Christian had been trying, she still panicked at the whole thing,waking the entire household.

Sensing something was off, Taylor made it a point the next day to seek Professor Kelly out. When he foundher in the den, he got down on one knee and began to serenade her.

�You are my sunshine, my only sunshine. You make me happy when skies are grey!�

Giggling despite herself, Professor Kelly said, �Taylor, there�s no such thing as a grey sky. What are youdoing?�

�I am singing to the loveliest woman in the world and telling her how much I love her.� Taylor continued onsinging, making Professor Kelly smile even more. Suddenly it didn�t seem so bad being an elder.

Professor Kelly and Christian went off to work, leaving Zoey and Taylor to eat breakfast with each other.

�Dad, there�s something I�ve been meaning to talk to you about, but with the wedding, the new job, andmom�s birthday, I forgot.� Taking a deep breath, Zoey began to tell Taylor about the strange feelings sheexperienced near that house down in Sim City.

Taylor�s fork paused over his omelet and a look of concern settled onto his face, �Oh, that can�t be good. Ihad hoped she would never find us.�

Blinking, Zoey looked down the table at her father, �Who would find us?�

Setting down his fork, Taylor considered for a moment and then said, �Zoey, honey, now that you�re heir,there�s some things we need to talk about. There�s a reason this family is a legacy family. This is somethingthat should only be shared with your chosen heir, and since you are mine, I need to tell you about my auntKirstial and the prophecy.�

Zoey listened with a wide-eyed expression as Taylor explained everything. He told her about their familybeing the last of the elves. He told her about the prophecy that his aunt and mother would study and how ithad driven Kirstial mad. He told her about how she had murdered his father, mother and grandfather. Andfinally, he told her how the destiny of the prophecy came to rest on his shoulders, and now was passing toher.

For a long moment, Zoey was just silent, staring at her father with that same, wide-eyed expression. Finally,she blinked and said, quite simply, �Whoa.�

The next night, Zoey was again woken up from a sound sleep by the rumblings in her tummy. This time,though, the rumblings were a bit more extreme. Never one to be quiet about what she was feeling, Zoey leteveryone in the house know that she was having a baby.

�AAAAAAHHHHHHGGGGGGG!!!!!! GET IT OUT GET IT OUT GET IT OUT!�

Luckily for sims, it really is a rather painless process, despite the drama they go on about. Everyone in thehouse rushed in to see the birth, though.

�WOO! A baby! That�s awesome!� Christian cheered and whooted the newborn. Then, ruining the moment,he asked, �Whose baby is it, anyway? Do we have to give it back?�

Sighing, Professor Kelly said, �No Christian. It�s your baby. Yours and Zoey�s. You don�t have to give it back.�

�Oh. Awesome!�

And so, the third generation of Legacinas was born. Everyone welcomed Brody Legacina to the family. Atfirst glance, it seemed that Brody was born with his mother�s black hair and his father�s green eyes.

Determined to reach the top of her career, Zoey decided to leave Brody in the hands of a babysitter whilethe rest of the family had to go off to work.

�Are you sure we�re doing the right thing, Voice?� Despite being a pleasure sim, Zoey didn�t want to haveanything happen to little Brody.

Yes, Zoey. He�ll be fine.

�Yeesh, you�d think I�d never taken care of a baby before. I�ll have you know that I make a good motherwhenever somebody actually lets me breed. Despite being a romance sim, I�m a damn good mother.� Sandywas indignant as she carried Brody to the kitchen for a bottle.

Brody was just completely captivated by her lips.

That night, Brandi Letourneau showed up and started giving Taylor a piece of her mind, �HOW dare youleave a baby alone with a townie! Are you insane?�

�Huh? What is your problem, Brandi? We needed a babysitter, we got a babysitter.� Taylor was flabbergastedby her attack on him.

�That�s not how it�s done! You�re supposed to hire a nanny!�

�Ow! Come on, lady. What is your damage? Everyone knows the nannies are dangerous. You�re not evenpart of this family and you�re freaking out because we had Sandy Bruty babysit?� Taylor rubbed his shoulderwhere she�d poked him, �At least she doesn�t run around poking people for no good reason.�

�Why didn�t you ask me!?� Brandi seemed determined to come off as psychotic as possible. Somehow, shewas insanely jealous of Sandy getting attention in a legacy that she was being ignored in. Eventually shewent home and left poor Taylor alone.

Just in time too, because the next day was a double birthday for the family. First, Brody would betransitioning into a toddler.

Since this is the Legacina family and it�s a birthday, they threw a party. Big shocker there. Three popularitysims in the house means anything can be cause for a party. Buying groceries? Party! Changing the toiletpaper? Party! Clipped your toenails? Party! The regular crew was invited, of course.

With a toss and some confetti, Brody changed from a baby into a toddler.

Brody looked up at the adults around him and wondered how he could get his hands on a piece of cake,since no one was offering him one.

While he didn�t grow up with the Legacina elf ears, he did look quite a bit like his mom. His personalityturned out to be an interesting mix of his mother and father. He had 4 neat, 10 outgoing, 9 active, 4 playful,and 1 nice.

Finally, the time had come for Taylor to say goodbye to his youth. He stared forlornly at the blazing infernoon top of his cake. As he sighed and got ready to blow them out, Sandy walked by and whispered, �I�mgoing to miss that cute elf butt of yours.�

�SANDY!�

When the candles were out, Taylor was an elder. All in all, it wasn�t a bad look for him.

�You sure about that, Voice. I can hear you sighing.�

Okay, okay. I miss you being all cute and blond. You�re the first founder I�ve ever gotten this far, so I feel acertain amount of attachment to you, after all. Not to mention, that�s a pretty ugly outfit.

�Yeah, I agree. I�ll be changing it as soon as I finish my cake.�

In the background, Genesis asked Zoey, �Who�s your dad talking to?�

�Uhm... It�s a long story.�

Speaking of Genesis, it�s not a bad time to look in on how things were going at Phi Dagga Katta. Things hadquieted down quite a bit since Zoey left. With just two of them in the house, it didn�t quite seem to be partycentral any more. Taking advantage of the lull, Genesis did some work on the house itself.

�I don�t understand why this shower keeps breaking. Or why there are so many dents in the tile and theshower head itself.�

I�m sure it has nothing to do with the fact that Zoey used to fix it by screaming and bashing it intosubmission with a wrench. I�m not sure how it worked, but eventually the shower would cower intosubmission and stop leaking.

�Did you say something, Vic?�

Life for Phi Dagga Katta was as normal as possible. Which probably wasn�t very normal.

�Hey look, Vic! I�m a zombie! Watch me dance! Rahr. Brains. Braaaaiinnnnns.�

�Genesis, I�m studying here.�

Back at the Legacinas�, Christian, in his neverending quest to make new friends, was getting to know Goopy.�So, Christian, my man. I heard you got another promotion down at the police department?�

�Oh yeah! They really like me down there. They�re actually letting me put real bullets in my gun now. Theysaid I�m working really hard and deserved the promotion.�

Actually, Christian was working really hard. Despite his .. mental issues .. he was very serious aboutbecoming Captain Hero. He spent a great deal of time in the basement working out to become the physicalideal needed.

That part was easy for him, though. It was no big deal for him to work out for all hours of the day.

The hard parts were the other required skills. Logic was a true uphill battle for the simple sim. It wasn�t hardto feel sorry for him as he struggled with the concepts and strategy of chess. Even when he was playingagainst himself.

�I hate this game. I�m always losing.�

Christian, you�re playing against yourself.

�But it�s HARD!�

�So, they say that if I keep up the good work, they�ll keep my name on the list for potential Captain Heroes.I know there�s some radioactive exposure component, but it�d be so worth it.� Christian finished explainingthe whole thing to Goopy.

�Exposure to radiation is worth it?� Even Goopy wasn�t sure he bought that one.

�Oh yeah! I�ll get to wear a really cool costume afterwards!�

Yes, Christian had his priorities.

Very soon, it was time for Victoria to graduate. During the party, Taylor and Professor Kelly had a quietmoment together while they ate from the buffet.

�It�s hard to believe our little girls are all grown up. Actually, it�s hard to believe it was that long ago that Iwas living here and we were dating.�

Professor Kelly considered, �Time does go by quick. A blink of an eye and we�re old.� She paused and thensmiled, �But I wouldn�t change a thing, Taylor. What use is having a life if you don�t actually choose to live it.Come on. We�re getting philosophical in our old age. I hear they�ve got a bubble blower out front.�

�Ooh, a bubble blower! I always wanted one of those.�

Suffice it to say, the party was a success. Everyone made good use of the bubble blower and the cops nevershowed up. The whole family was there (well, except for Brody, of course) along with many of the collegefriends that the girls had made.

�Good luck, Vic. I.. I�ll miss you!� Genesis waved as Victoria waited for the cab to show up and take herhome.

�Keep the home fires burning, Genesis. It won�t be too long before Zoey�s kids are here and ready to takeover.� Victoria was anxious to get on with her life.

�Keep the.. but Zoey was the one who set all the..� Blinking, the naive knowledge sim suddenly smiled, �Iget it! Okay. Bye! Good luck!�

The first step in getting on with her life was to marry Charlie Thompson. True to his word, he had gottenhimself a career and bought them a house. Victoria was delighted with the house, since it had everythingthat money and motherlode could buy.

�Everyone�s here, Charlie. You sure you still want to go ahead with this?� Victoria looked out at all theguests, her own voice sounding a little nervous.

Taking a deep breath, Charlie nodded, then said, �More than anything, Vic. You and me together, do or die.World beware.�

A smile broke out on her face, �Good enough for me. Let�s do this thing.� And with that, she grabbed himand pulled him into a huge kiss, cementing their unconventional vows.

Parker grinned and applauded, �A little odd, but they seemed to really mean it.�

Genesis gave a wistful smile as she nodded in response to Parker�s comment. There was a touch of envy inher as she watched the two get married. Charlie was once a placeholder as well, but would her future aftercollege be as bright?

The most enthusiastic applause came from Taylor. �Well Voice, both my babies are married now and I�vealready got my first grandchild. I think we did a pretty good job.�

Definitely, Taylor. You and Professor Kelly made and raised some beautiful girls. Very unique girls. You shouldbe proud.

�I meant you too, silly. We couldn�t have done it without you.�

Shhh. I�m supposed to just be the narrator, remember? But.. thanks Taylor. I appreciate the sentiment.

The party retired to the game room where everyone made good use of the toys that Charlie had bought tomake Victoria happy. The biggest hit was definitely the poker table, which also made Victoria happy, since allthe winnings came to them.

�When are you and Charlie going to try for a baby?� Melissa asked Victoria. They�d been friends since highschool and still loved gossiping together.

�Oh, no kids for us. Charlie needs to focus on his skills and I�ve got this whole world domination thing to seeabout. There�d be no time for kids.�

That�s what Victoria thought, but sometimes life has other plans...

A few days later, Victoria got quite the shock, �VOICE!!! I told you I didn�t want any kids!�

It wasn�t me, Victoria. You and Charlie did this one all on your own*.

�&%#$*!�

Victoria, watch your language!

* Seriously. TwoJeff�s Autonomous Casual Romance mod allows for both autonomous woohoo, risky woohooand try for baby. They chose to try for a baby all on their own.

Life moved ahead like it always does back at the Legacina homestead, with little Brody learning all thenecessary skills a toddler should learn.

Brody was a bit of a scamp, but was enthusiastic about learning whatever he could. When his parents orgrandparents weren�t helping him with walking, talking or poo.. uhm.. potty training, he was engrossed inhis other educational toys.

Blessed with the best of both his parents� looks, Brody was an adorable and an easy toddler.

�Me adowable!�

Yes, yes you are. And heaven help us if you turn out to be a Romance sim.

�Yay! Womance!�

Oh boy.

�Aw, no fair.� Christian stared at his son with a look of disappointment on his face.

Brody looked up at his father and tilted his head questioningly, �What wong Daddy?�

�You got the radioactive exposure and I didn�t.�

Eventually someone explained smart milk to Christian, since it�s quite obvious he�d never been exposed to itbefore. Of course, they also had to explain to him that it wouldn�t help make him radioactive either.

Brody was also adored by both of his grandparents. Professor Kelly would often sit with him for hours, justwatching him play with his toys or helping him play. What was a grandson if not another potential bestfriend?

The older Legacina couple continued to be as amorous as ever, but took their romps to their bedroom ratherthan the living room, now that they had a little one around all the time.

�Gosh you�re sexy. Rahr!�

Okay, leaving these two alone now.

�I�m pregnant again!� Zoey gasped in surprise as her baby bump appeared.

This shouldn�t have been that big of a surprise since she and Christian had been trying quite frequently toconceive a second child. Still, I suppose there is a level of shock when all that hard... uhm.. work, makesitself known.

That same night, it was time to have another birthday party, this time for Brody transitioning into a child.Christian made the invitations this time, so there were a couple of new faces among the usual suspects.

Goopy frowned over towards one of those new faces, �Who�s the ape?�

�Goopy!� Zoey, not one to shy away from insults, was still a bit surprised, �That�s Tamara .. something.Tamara Almassizadeh. She was a friend of Christian�s from Sim State.�

�Hrmph. Something about her...� Goopy shook his head and turned his attention towards the cake.

�I gwo up now!� Brody was just as excited as all the adults.

�Yep little man! You get to grow up now, and pretty soon mommy will have a baby brother or sister for youto play with.� Christian kissed his son on the forehead and helped him blow out the candles.

With a wobble and a twirl, Brody changed from a cute toddler into a cute child. A cute and charming child.Almost immediately he started going around to all the guests and introducing himself.

�I�m Brody! Who�re you?�

�Brody, I�m your Aunt Victoria. I�ve been here to see you before. I even changed your diaper once or twice.�Victoria blinked at her nephew.

�Oh. Okay. Nice to meet you!� And off he went to the next person.

�Hi! I�m Brody! Who�re you?�

Genesis was the next victim. �Uhm. I�m Genesis. I�m the family�s placeholder at Phi Dagga Katta. When yougrow up and go to college, you�ll come stay with me.�

�Oooh. That sounds like fun!�

While Brody was getting to know his guests, Tamara started talking with Christian, �Christian. It�s so good tosee you again. Your house is lovely. Why don�t you give me a tour? I�m sure there�s so much I�d like to see.�

Christian, being the cute but oblivious man he was, missed the slightly suggestive way that Tamara madeher suggestion, �Sure! Want to see the basement or the upstairs first?�

�Oh, definitely the upstairs.�

There was quite a bit more exploring that Tamara wanted to do upstairs than see the bedrooms and thelayout of the house. How and why it happened was almost irrelevant, but it was only a short time beforeshe had Christian exactly where she wanted him.

That said, there only so many excuses that can be made for a man in Christian�s situation. It was, after all,the bed he shared with his wife.

A wife who was self-centered, but not the most oblivious person in the world.

�Christian? We�re going to play some pool and wondered if you...� She stopped dead in her tracks andstared at the bed.

�CHRISTIAN CORSILLO LEGACINA!!! WHAT ARE YOU DOING WITH THAT APE FACED WHORE IN MYBED!?!?� The betrayal was a slap in the face for Zoey. She may be a pleasure sim, but she had beencompletely faithful to Christian since they were engaged.

Christian quickly got out of bed and pulled his clothes back on. Shock and confusion reigned within him ashe faced down the fiery fury of his wife.

�How dare you!? How dare you!!! In our very own bed! On your son�s birthday! What were you thinking? Ofcourse you weren�t thinking. You don�t have a brain to think with!�

Zoey�s fury aroused the interest of some of the guests. Most were polite enough to wait outside, but Victoriawasn�t about to let a show like this pass her by.

Christian stammered with a pitiful confusion, �I.. I don�t...�

*SLAP* Zoey slapped him good before he could finish whatever excuse he was going to say, �You�re darnright that you don�t! You don�t ever do that. EVER! And you won�t ever do that with me again! GET OUT!OUT!�

While the drama was happening upstairs, Tamara used the distraction to slip downstairs and out of thehouse, �Heheh. Exactly according to plan.�

Plan? According to plan? This is going to take a flashback, isn�t it?

Of course it is. A few days earlier...

Tamara glanced at the piece of paper in her hand again, �I think this is the address. Awfully creepy place foran internship, but if it gets me the credit hours and pays well enough, how bad could it be?�

�Thank you for dinner, Ms... Anicagel, you said? This is a bit of an unusual interview, and I�m still a littleunclear on what exactly you want an intern to do. The job description said something about... a minion?�Tamara ate her dinner while trying hard not to stare at her potential employer.

�Yes Ms. Almassizadeh. I have been too long without the support I need, and that support should be in theform of a minion. You see, I have a vested interest in destroying the Legacina family and I have recentlydiscovered that my usual direct course of action is not going to work.�

�Wait... did you say Legacina? I know a Legacina. A couple actually.� An old hurt resurfaced as Tamaratalked, �In fact, one of them stole my man! Christian was mine until that Zoey slut stole him from me.�

Kirstial stifled her surprise as she gave a pleased smile, �Oh, that is excellent. Then it appears we both havesimilar goals in this particular case. Let�s retire to the living room where we can discuss this in comfort.�

�I�ve loved Christian forever. I know he felt the same way for me.� Tamara explained her past to Kirstial.

�You were lovers then?�

�Uhm. Well, no. Not exactly. But... but he was always nice to me, so I know it was just a matter of timebefore he admitted his true feelings for me.� Tamara was adept at living in her own little land of delusion.�That was until *she* came along. Zoey Legacina. Grr. Elf-eared whore. Uhm. No offense, ma�am.�

�None taken.�

�You see Tamara, I have a vested interest in seeing to the destruction of the Legacinas. Originally, I hadplanned on just going in and slaughtering them, since that was really the most straightforward option, butapparently that isn�t going to work this time around. With your help, though, we can see they suffer greatlybefore I find a way around my current obstacles.� Kirstial gloated as she worked on hiring her first minion.

�So what do you say?� Kirstial asked expectantly.

�Three credit hours, $9 an hour, and the opportunity to win back my man and make Zoey�s life hell?� Tamaragrinned and gave a thumbs up, �Count me in, boss!�

Back in the present, Zoey contemplated unconventional uses for a cue stick, �I could use it to smack himupside the head. It also wouldn�t be a bad idea to stab him with it. Repeatedly.� She was definitely nottaking Christian�s infidelity well at all. Not that most women would.

Christian attempted to fix the situation, but the wounds were till too raw, �Zoey, I...�

�I DON�T WANT TO SEE YOUR FACE!!� Zoey exploded in fury as he approached her after the party guestshad all left. It was probably the first time a Legacina party hadn�t been a success.

�Voice! Can�t we kill him? I hear there�s some sort of boolprop death torture technique that you can use tomurder him in a gazillion different painful ways.�

Oh boy. No, Zoey. Just.. just go to bed. We�ll deal with this in the morning.

In another part of town at that very same time, the gypsy Audrey Jitmakusol was venturing intouncomfortable territory.

�Audrey, darling!� Grandmaster Vampire Robi Yang greeted his guest with over the top enthusiasm.

Enthusiasm that quickly turned into a hiss and a snarl, �I�d been hoping we could discuss your last insult tome and mine. Now it�s time for you to pay.�

�Whoa! Hold on there, Robi! Ixnay on the iting-bay! I like my neck in tact, thank you very much.� Quicklytrying to diffuse the situation and literally save her neck, Audrey said quickly, �I�ve got some informationthat you would be very interested in hearing.� She paused and added under her breath, �Besides, it�s not myfault that you paid for a blind date and got Brandi. Everyone knows she�s psychotic.�

Watching the whole thing were the other vampires living under Grandmaster Robi�s command. Together,they formed a powerful faction of the city�s supernatural underworld. Of course, that didn�t necessarily meanthey all carried themselves with the same dignity.

�Hey Audrey baby! I love those wrinkles, sweetcheeks! Give me a call some time.� Stephen Tsang wasn�treally the smartest vampire in the group.

�Oh Stephen.� Mary groaned, �Shut up. Robi�s trying to be impressive and you�re ruining it. Can�t you keepyour undead libido in your pants for a few minutes at least?�

�Okay Audrey, make it quick. I don�t have all night here. We haven�t had dinner yet, and if you�re wastingour time, you just may end up being the main course.� Robi ignored his underlings as he continued to dealwith the gypsy.

�Oh, this is something you�ll definitely be interested in. Here, let me show you.�

Audrey pulled out her crystal ball and quickly summoned up a vision of Kirstial to show the GrandmasterVampire, �See her. She�s making a power play in -your- territory.�

�What!?�

�See, I thought you might be interested in the fact that there�s another vampire in the city.� Smugsatisfaction crept into Audrey�s voice.

�Grrr, we�ll show her. How insolent of her to just waltz in here and not pay proper respects first.� Robigrowled and gestured dismissively at Audrey, �Okay, you can go. The information is appreciated, so Iconsider us even now.�

�Hey baby! Don�t forget about me. You me and that ball could have some fun in a hot tub full of tapiocapudding, sweetcheeks!� Stephen got a little louder as he tried to make an impression on the gypsy of hisdreams.

�Stephen, have you been taking lessons from the Gage Uglacy School of Seduction?� Mary cringed as hecontinued his �technique�.

�Yeah, it�s an online course. How�d you know?� Stephen was quite proud of himself.

Sighing, Mary rolled her eyes, �Just a wild guess.�

And this is where I leave you, dear readers. Christian�s consigned to the doghouse (or at least the boy�sroom, since he can�t actually sleep in a doghouse), and his marriage to Zoey seems to be dissolving quickerthan soap in a fountain. Kirstial�s plans are being adjusted accordingly, but what will happen when the SimCity Vampires get involved?

Only the next chapter will tell!

Thanks for reading! I love the comments and feedback, so keep it coming, please. :)