Ghastly Hallows--Chapter 14: Back at Home

[KaseOfHearts]

Now, that's a marriage that will last!

[Squirt]

Amen, sister.

[NotJustaBook]

Oh, gotta love an unreliable narrator xD Ha, I love this - she's so cunning!

[PeregrineTook]

Glad you're all enjoying it :=) It's fun writing Zheena as such a manipulative and terrible person. However, despite how non-redeeming I write her, I still find her endearing.

[PeregrineTook]

CHAPTER 5--A LESS THAN TRUE CONFESSION



Zheena wasn't sure if it was seasickness or the early signs of pregnancy. What she was sure of was that she needed to have a little chat with her new husband. Given that she was fairly certain she was pregnant, and they had yet to consummate their marriage, she'd definitely have some explaining to do.



He was out for his morning SCUBA dive,



so she sent him a text to join her on the houseboat when he was finished.



She was striking her best awkwardly uncomfortable pose as he entered. "I need to tell you something," she began, tentatively.



"Okay," he replied, an obvious concerned confusion in his voice.
"Last night," she began, "when I left the wedding ceremony early, I felt sick to my stomach. It hasn't passed. And I don't think it's nerves or seasickness."



"Are you trying to say you're having second thoughts about our marriage?" Alfonso asked.
"Oh no," she replied quickly, "Heavens no! It's just...when I first arrived in town, I didn't know anyone. I was lonely. Vulnerable."
"Okay," he said, encouraging her to continue, but obviously concerned about what he was about to hear.
"The first person I met who really took an interest in me was Akoni Kahale."
"The merman?" asked Alfonso.
"Yes," she said, her voice breaking slightly as if she was about to cry. "He...he took advantage of me...and I think I'm carrying his baby now!"
Alfonso pulled her into a comforting embrace.



"It's alright," he assured her. "It's not your fault. He took advantage of your sweet nature and innocence. We'll just raise your child as our own and no one has to be any wiser."
Zheena smiled in delight at how completely her Alfie was wrapped around her pretty pink finger.
Later that day, she spun into her maternity wear confirming that she was, in fact, pregnant.



She and Alfie were going to go forward as if the indiscretion had never happened. She even went to court to dispute the allegations of cheating that had been lobbied against her.



She lost, of course, because the allegations were true. However, she had to put on a good show for Alfonso.

She had gotten Alfonso's promise that he wouldn't confront Akoni about what he thought had passed between his wife and the merman, but she thought it was in her best interest to make sure Akoni knew what had happened.



"I'm pregnant. It's your baby," she said to him once she was inside.



"And what does your precious Alfonso think of that?" he asked.
"He thinks you seduced me and took advantage of me before he and I had met," she replied rather casually.



"Well, other than the timeline, isn't that exactly what happened?" asked the merman, a twinkle in his eye.
"Umm, no," she replied, perhaps too assertively, "that's not at all what happened. I chose that one time to be with you simply to have the baby. It's nothing more than that."



"Are you sure?" he asked, taking her hands in his and looking her in the eye. She was trying to deny it, but somehow she found herself sitting on the couch with him.



Kissing.
Then they made their way upstairs...







Zheena wasn't quite sure if she felt elated or disgusted with herself as she left. However, she was distracted from such thoughts as her phone rang.
It was Christopher Collins, one of the handsome human men she'd already picked out to be a future baby daddy. He was hoping they could get together soon.



She was going to need to learn to juggle. Quickly!

[NotJustaBook]

Heh, if I were her, I'd have quickly jumped the husband before I started showing... Guess that's why my plans to take over the world haven't succeeded yet.

[PeregrineTook]

Well, she had to have a cover story in case the baby came out as merfolk. Zheena got her Master's degree in manipulation ;=)

[Jane.Eyre.Force]

This is hilarious, and so much fun! I love Zheena, she is so devious! I can't wait to see what will happen next.

[PeregrineTook]

Thanks, Jane! Glad you're enjoying it, and guess what? You don't have to wait to see what happens next! Here it is!!

[PeregrineTook]

CHAPTER 6--HOW TO JUGGLE

Alfonso bought a lot and built a house where he and Zheena could raise "their" baby.





This was very convenient given that the paparazzi weren't respecting the boundaries of the houseboat very well.



Zheena was in the new house when the labor pains hit.



"We're going to the hospital!!" she informed her husband.
"But...I thought we were having a home birth," he said, confused.



"You have a home birth if you'd like, I'll be at the hospital," she informed him.
Someone else showed up at the hospital.



Alfonso was displeased to see that an aged-up Akoni Kahali had shown up for the birth of his daughter. Zheena avoided their interactions completely.



But finally, Zheena emerged from the hospital with a beautiful green baby: Abbica Rae Ghast.

Now that she was free of her pregnancy, she was ready to begin her juggling act. Fortunately, she had gotten a reply to the e-mail she'd sent her favorite aunt...



re: Juggling Act
[e-mail]
to: [e-mail]

1) Buy all the helpful rewards that you can, ESPECIALLY "Above Reproach." It helps keep people from reporting on your infidelity, even though it won't stop them if you carry on long enough. I also use "No Jealousy," and other rewards that just help with romanticizing, like "Attractive" and "Master of Seduction."



Above Reproach was all she could afford at the moment, but it was a good start.
The message continued...



2) For me, it helps to only have a few at a time. That way, it's easy to screen a lot for those two-three-four-five people, and a nice fail-safe way to check is clicking on their picture in the Relationship panel and seeing if you have the options to "Chat"/"Invite Over"/etc. If one of the romantic interests is on the lot, either take your date somewhere else or ditch the date and take the other romantic interest somewhere. Sometimes when they're in two different rooms I have my sim goes back and forth, but that's very risky, and if you're doing some serious juggling it's best to be on the safe side.



"Dating one at a time and not crossing paths," Zheena said to herself. "Seems simple enough."





Aunt Azokka went on to tell her,

3) Particularly if your sim is a celebrity, move around while on a date--a lot. Choosing a good location is also important. I usually choose the Consignment/Elixir Consignment Store after it closes, since other sims never show up, and it's easy to spot paparazzi. Of course, the Elixir Shop never closes, but you can always keep resetting the cashier, and they never seem to notice, anyway. It's also good to build a secret love nest in a place where sims never go: the art gallery, for example. Buy the lot, set up the love nest, and once you have the "target" inside, delete the door until you're ready to go home. Paparazzi and other sims can't get in, and the target can't leave.

Zheena wasn't in position to buy any more properties, but a make-out session in the mausoleum worked well enough.



And who would question two friends going to a game at the stadium together?



Actually, neither of those were quite satisfying. She needs a love nest. Good thing she still has that houseboat.



Walls and doors do wonders for privacy.



Further advice from auntie included:

4) If there's a boyfriend/girlfriend, only go out and be romantic in public with him/her, and, as mentioned earlier, screen the lot. Townies don't mind if it's all romantic interests, but they aren't happy with someone cheating on their partner and will report it as soon as physically possible. For romantic interests, go with the Consignment Stores, or visiting their house. Visiting the house is always a good option, since there's no chance of someone showing up and you have full access to the facilitites. Housemates are easily evaded and generally won't notice, due to Above Reproach.

"Here's me with my loving hubby, everyone!" Zheena proudly announced.



"And here's one just for me," she thought to herself.



And Aunt Azokka's final words of instruction were as follows:



5) Pay attention to the messages coming up and the reactions of sims around them. By the time I had Nataliya juggle, most of the sims in town had died off so it was easy to find empty lots, but if the town is populated you'll need to pay more attention. If you're out in public with a romantic interest (again, only if you have a partner), use minimal romantic interactions: flirting, watching the stars, etc. If you get the message that "Sims are starting to notice something between X and Y/might want to stop before someone gets hurt," cease immediately and move to isolated location for more serious wooing.

"Well, hello, mister werewolf," Zheena greeted the furry supernatural.



"Oh, I was just being polite and saying hello," she assured Akoni as she rushed back over to their date.



All this juggling might be exhausting, but Zheena had to admit, it was also rather fun.


(Special thanks to Azokka for the helpful advice and screenshots and to Rhoxi for Percival's great comic relief)

[Jane.Eyre.Force]

I really enjoyed the screenshots of Zheena's aunt typing out the e-mail. I thought the guy splashing about in the fountain was a particularly funny detail! Great update!

[PeregrineTook]

Thanks! The shots of her "aunt" and the nonsense with the fountain were done by my friend and fellow simmer, Azokka. She had done the text portion of it simply by giving me some advice for this challenge, then we developed the idea that it was an e-mail from Zheena's "aunt." Technically, the Sim is one of Azokka's Simselfs, so not technically her aunt, but we went with it ;=)

[Squirt]

Also, Auntie Azokka sounds good.

[PeregrineTook]

I know, right?

[Jane.Eyre.Force]

Auntie Azokka is such fun to pronounce. I'm just sitting here saying it out loud to myself.
...I need more hobbies.