Strangetown: Chapter Seventeen - part two

[strangetomato]

 

Warnings: language, sexual situations, drug use


Chapter Seventeen

Part Two


As everyone settled in for dinner, and began to pick up their plates, Tank slipped away to wash his hands.




He usually washed them immediately after he entered a house from outside, and especially before eating, but he also wanted to take a minute to collect his thoughts.




Johnny had picked up on this fact, and had taken this opportunity to corner Tank.




Tank jumped a little when he realized that Johnny was standing right behind him, with his piercing green eyes boring a hole through his head. Johnny regarded him coldly for a moment, but didn't say anything.

"Johnny?" He asked, tentatively. "Do you -"




Before he could finish the thought, Johnny was shoving him across the room.






As loudly as one could say something and still whisper, Johnny told Tank exactly what he thought of him and then some.




"And don't turn around and take it out on Ripp again, either!" He added. "He told me not to even get involved."

"Well, then maybe you shouldn't." Tank risked.

"I don't think that you're going to tell me what to do, Tank! Or do I not recall the outcome of our last confrontation correctly?"

"No." He recalled it correctly, as did Tank. He wouldn't soon forget it.




"I'm not going to do anything to you, but that's only - ONLY - because Ripp asked me not to. Otherwise, I would deal with you the only way you seem to understand."

Tank said nothing, but glared back at Johnny.

"If you ever - EVER - touch him again, I will kill you. Simple as that." The look on Johnny's face was unmistakable. He meant what he was saying.




"Why don't you let Ripp handle his own problems, Johnny? I don't think he needs you to fight his battles for him anymore."

"You wouldn't understand, Tank. His battles are my battles too, and you'd better remember it."

After a few moments, Johnny shook himself off and said. "Now let's go out there and smile and eat dinner together as if this didn't happen. If you breath so much as a word about it -"

"Yeah, I got you, Johnny." Tank confirmed.

They left the room and joined the others at the table.




The Grunt, Smith, and Nigmos families were all gathered around the table together as a single unit for the very first time.

Jenny led the conversation. "So how is everything going at college for everyone?"

"There's going to be a big production coming up next semester." Johnny said. "They haven't decided on a play yet, but I've heard some whispers about it."




"Yeah, Oscar Wilde, or some shi- or something like that." Ripp added.

"The costumes would be interesting, if that's what they go with." Buck said with a smile.

"Unless they contemporize it, or something equally lame." Johnny rolled his eyes. "They're always doing "innovative" things like changing the genders, or setting it in a different culture now. They might even do that minimal black stage thing."




"Isn't that kind of outdated now?" Buck asked.

"Yeah, but some of the proffs worked back when it was popular, so don't try to tell them that! It's so annoying..."




"By the way, Ripp..." He added. "You might want to audition for that this time. At the scheduled time."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah... I always get my shi- stuff done, Johnny!"

"Just barely." Jenny gave Johnny an evil motherly eye, and he said nothing more.

"How about you, Tank? Ophelia?" Jenny attempted to include the quieter members of the group in the conversation.

"Oh, it's mostly just exams and essays for me, Jenny. Nothing too exciting." Ophelia said.

"How about you, Tank?"

"Much the same." Jenny furrowed her brow. Tank was so taciturn.




"I can't wait until we finally get to go to college." Jill cut in. "It's going to be some much fun!"

"That's right." Jenny said. "You two will be taking your exams soon, won't you? Time sure does fly. I'm sure Buck will have you whipped into shape for those exams... right, Buck?"

Buck laughed, nervously. "Yeah, sure, Mrs. Smith." Jill didn't exactly like focusing on studying for exams, no matter how much he insisted on it.

"Buck's such a good student." Jenny smiled, making Buck blush.




P.T. thought carefully, and then spoke to the Grunts.

"Boys, I do hope that our families will be allies to each other in the future, rather than enemies, as has sometimes been the case in the past." He paused for a moment, and then continued.

"I would like to propose that we agree to strive for that goal."




"Of course." Buck said.

"Well, you know what I think, P.T." Ripp said, smiling broadly. "I've been here since day one..."




Tank said nothing. The alien man made him uncomfortable, and anyone could see it.

He respected the General's opinions, and he was reluctant to disregard his father's thoughts on this matter. Sure, the Smiths were nice people, but P.T. No. 9 was an alien, and he might not have the best interests of the sims in mind.

"Tank, don't be a... the man is looking for a reply." Ripp said. "The polite thing to do would be to fu- would be saying something."

"I... I will try, Mr. Smith." He said.

"I don't expect your loyalty to be handed over so easily, Tank, but I do thank you for agreeing to give us a chance. You'll have to decide for yourself, son."

Tank stiffened at the use of the word "son", but nodded in agreement.




"That's okay, Tank." Jenny said, as he began washing up some dishes. "We''ll take care of these dishes later, after everyone leaves. Just leave them in the sink"

"Okay." Tank said, quietly. Cleaning up after himself came to him automatically. He hadn't even thought about it.

"Now, let's bring out this pie!" Jenny smiled. Everyone marveled at how good it was.




"This is killer pie, Buck!" Ripp smiled with an intense grin.

"Thanks, Ripp. It turned out well, didn't it?"




"It's really, really great, Buck. Really great. Really sweet..."




The pie was so sweet and juicy, Ripp had to resist the urge to eat it with his bare hands, getting the warm filling all over his mouth and face, and licking his fingers afterwards. He managed to control himself, though just barely. He contented himself to just fork as much of it into his mouth as he possibly could at one time.




And the pie wasn't even the sweetest thing in the room.




"Johnny, I'd like to speak with you in private for a minute when you're finished, if that's okay." P.T. said.

"Sure, Dad. Once I finish my pie."

When the pie was eaten, P.T. took him aside.




"So, how are things going with your decision, Johnny?" His father asked him, after they had stepped into the study for some privacy.




"Well..." Johnny began, knowing that he hadn't exactly been giving the prospect as much attention as his father would have wanted. "Jayne seems pretty nice. I've been hanging out with her a little."

"Are you any closer to reaching a decision?"

"Well, no, Dad." He frowned. "Don't I still have a couple of terms left at college? Do I have to get married the day I graduate, or something?"




"No, but I would like to see some grandchildren before I die, Johnny." He smiled, but Johnny just frowned at the thought of losing his father.

Yes, okay, I know that. I'll try to give it some more thought."

"Also..." P.T. began. "I can't help but notice that you're still dating Ophelia."




"Ummm..."

"You are, aren't you?"

"Well, yes, but what does that have to do with it?"




"Johnny, when do you plan to tell her?"

"I don't want to tell her! What if I don't want to marry Jayne, Dad?! What if I'd rather marry Ophelia?"

"I thought you said that you weren't that serious?"




"Well, I guess I didn't think that we were, but I think we might be. I don't know, Dad."

"Be careful, Johnny. You might do something that you can't take back."




"Dad, I'm not going to do that." Johnny huffed. "Especially not until I figure out the situation with Jayne."

"Well, that's the smart thing to do, son. You don't need to complicate things any further, and you know that it would."

"I know."




"I hope that you're giving this some serious thought, Johnny. It is serious. Very serious. The survival of our species depends on it. If our genes are slowly dilluted into the pool of normal sim genes, all my life's work will have been for nothing."




Johnny hadn't though of it like that. His father had devoted his entire life to his pollination career. His offspring, Johnny's countless half-siblings, were out there somewhere, and the intention had obviously been to keep them around. His father spoke again.




"Maybe this decision should take more than just your feelings into account, Johnny." He said. "I know it sounds hard, but if you think that it could work with Jayne, then maybe you should let Ophelia be free to marry one of her own kind."




Johnny couldn't help it. He was starting to cry. "But we're the same kind, Dad. We really are."

"Johnny." P.T. put his arm around Johnny's shoulder. "It's not really true. We can live among them, and form relationships with them, but we aren't really sims. We aren't the same."




Johnny couldn't accept that. How could he be any different than Ripp and Ophelia? They were the same. They were all different, as different people are, but underneath it all, they were exactly the same. Didn't they want the same things?




They just wanted to belong somewhere, and with his two friends, Johnny felt like he did belong. He felt at home. He didn't want that to change. He didn't want anything to change. And what his father said about letting Ophelia be free to be with her own kind was awful. What was he supposed to do? Let Ripp have her? Is that what his father meant?




Johnny couldn't accept that. The thought of his two friends, together, without him. And Ripp, well what if he did the same thing to Ophelia that he did to every other girl that he had been with? How could he possibly be any different with her? If Johnny broke up with Ophelia, was it inevitable that she would fall directly into Ripp's open, eager arms? Into his well-trafficked bed?




"Johnny, I'm sorry. I'm not saying that you can't keep your friends in your life. Not at all. That is important too, but our kind has always valued the needs of all above the needs of the individual. We take on the role that is most beneficial to the greater cause. That's how it always is in our culture. And for you, that role would be to have a family with another half alien, like yourself. That serves the goals of our species."

Johnny said nothing more.




P.T. held Johnny in a warm embrace.

"I know that you will do the right thing for us."




Upstairs, Ripp was saying goodbye to his dinner even more quickly than he had eaten it.






He cleaned himself off, swirled some water around in his mouth a couple of times, spit it out, and then drank directly from the faucet for a couple of minutes. His mouth was as dry as Strangetown sand.




Afterwards, as he was leaving the bathroom, he noticed Jill heading out to the balcony. Instinctively, he reacted as he would if she were any other attractive female. He followed her.




Jill's heart leapt into her throat when she realized that he had walk out onto the balcony. She froze, breathless.




"Hi, Jill." Ripp said. "What're you up to out here?"

"Oh, nothing. Just getting away from the crowd. You know..." She hoped that sounded casual.

"Yeah..." He sat down in the other chair.




"So, Johnny said that you're in a band now - The Shifting Paradymes? How's that going?"

"Oh... it's going. We play the campus bar all the time, and we're hoping to get a few paid gigs in the city too."

"I wish I could go to see you play..."




"You should... Come see us sometime."

"Mom would never let me."

"So sneak out." He winked at her, and Jill felt herself grow flush.




After a few moments of silence, she said. "So... I'm sorry about your Dad." Ripp was silent. "It's terrible. I hope that everything is okay..."

He sat there, gazing off into the distance, with a blank stare. It could have been interpreted as completely vacant, but Jill could tell that there was something going on beneath the surface. He seemed so sad. He couldn't possibly have been any more beautiful to Jill.

"Thanks, Jill." He finally said, somewhat absently. "But enough about that. How are things with you?"




"Oh, you know. The same as always." She said quickly, brushing the attention away from herself.

She jumped up. "What a beautiful night..."




She walked by, knowing that he would be watching her.

Ripp watched her petite frame move carefully across the balcony. She was no longer the scrawny little girl that he remembered. Her form was filling out into the woman that she was becoming. When had this transformation taken place? Had he been asleep? When had Jill Smith become such a beautiful woman?

She felt him watching her. His eyes gave off an almost physical presence. She swayed her hips as she walked, hoping that she looked seductive, and not silly.




By the time she reached the end of the balcony, she realized that Ripp had followed behind her.




"Nice view, isn't it?" Jill remarked, jokingly. "My favourite part is the silhouette of those beautiful oil tanks on the horizon over there."

"Oh, just gorgeous." Ripp laughed. "God. Strangetown is such a fucking shithole."

"I know. I can't wait to go to college so I can get the hell out of here."

"I know exactly how you feel, Jill." Ripp smiled. "I was the same way."

"Thank god I'll graduate soon. I would die if I had to spend another year with those assholes. Every guy in my class is a total moron."




"Guys can be idiots. Most of them don't have a fucking clue what to do with a woman, especially at that age." Jill smiled, since Ripp had obviously called her a woman.

"No kidding."

"They probably all like you. They're just intimidated by how fucking pretty you are."

"You think I'm pretty?"

"Well, fuck yeah. Why wouldn't I? You have that perfect alien bone structure."




Jill smiled. Not only had Ripp called her a woman, and pretty, but he had also acknowledged that she was an alien.

"If I went to school with you, I wouldn't be such an idiot about it."

Was he moving closer to her? He was. He got closer and closer until he was close enough that she could feel the heat that radiated from his body.




And his lips were grazing hers.

She couldn't believe that she was actually kissing Ripp Grunt.




"I've always liked you, Ripp." Jill said, feeling her skin tingle at the admission of this fact.

"I like you too, Jill." Ripp had always liked Jill, even when she was a little girl. Not in the same sense that he found himself liking her now, but he had always liked it when she was around. She brought a certain lightness into the room, just like Johnny did, and she was always so attentive to all of the nonsense that he carried on with.

"You're beautiful." He added, which he also believed to be true.

"God, I'm shaking..." Jill said.




He kissed her forehead, as one would comfort a child, but then he moved his hands over her shoulders and down her back, following the line of her zipper. Jill thrilled at the idea of his hands unzipping that zipper, and removing her dress. She wanted his hands to touch more and more of her.




"I've wanted this for a long time." She said.

Ripp didn't know what to say, so he just stared intently into her eyes.

"I... I want you, Ripp." She had stumbled over it a little, almost saying "love", but knowing that this was the wrong thing to say, at least for now.

"I want you too, Jill." Ripp was moving his hands over her back. "God, I want you."

Then his lips were on hers. He pulled her into a forceful kiss.




It wasn't anything at all like she had expected the moment to be, but it was exciting. It was rough and sloppy, and searching. His tongue frantically explored her mouth, and she thrilled at the idea of a part of his body entering hers. His hands moved down her back, over her hips, and all over her backside. He pressed his body tightly and urgently against hers.

It might not have been as she'd imagined it so many times before, but it was better than that in the way that was most important.






It was real.






Neither of them noticed when Johnny stepped onto the patio, and silently approached them.

Finally, Johnny coughed, drawing attention to himself, and Ripp jumped. He quickly pulled himself away from Jill.




"Ripp," Johnny began, "I think that Ophelia wanted to see you. Downstairs. Right now."

"Johnny, I -"

"You'd better go."

"Yeah..." Ripp left, and Jill stood there waiting for Johnny's reprimand. She knew it was coming.




"Look, I know what you're going to say..."




"Jill, you don't know anything!" Johnny yelled. "You know nothing about Ripp! And you seem to have no fucking idea what you're doing!"




"I know plenty, Johnny!"




"Look, Ripp Grunt is not someone you want to get involved with, okay?! He's only interested in one thing!"

"Isn't he supposed to be your friend, Johnny? You seem happy enough to hang out with him, so is he really that bad? Besides, what makes you think that I'm NOT interested in that?!"




"God, Jill! Do you think that you're that special?! Ripp's been with so many different women! You'll just be another conquest to him. Do you really want to give it up like that?"

"Well, Johnny, it's mine to give up, isn't it? What makes you think that this has anything to do with you?"




"Jill, you're my little sister, okay? I'm just not comfortable with the idea of you letting Ripp have his way with you, and then having him toss you aside like a candy bar wrapper!"

"How can you be so sure that he'd do that?"




"Look, Jill! You're just proving my point. I know Ripp, and I know exactly what he's like. He is my friend, but I don't really agree with everything he does, and I really don't want to see my sister on the receiving end of it!"

"Fine! Okay! Whatever you say, Johnny!" Jill screamed. "God, you suck the fun out of everything, Johnny."




"You'll thank me one day, Jill, for being so awful and terrible to you."




Johnny turned and left her standing there.




Downstairs, Ripp stepped out onto the porch where Ophelia was sitting.




"Johnny's going to kill me." Ripp said as he sank down into the chair next to Ophelia.




"Why would he do that, Ripp?"

"Well..." He sighed. "I sort of, maybe, just kissed his little sister."




"You kissed Jill?!"

"No, I kissed Jolene - of course it was Jill, Phi!"




"Well, that's not that bad... she's like, what, sixteen now, right?" She paused, then stressed. "She IS sixteen, right, Ripp?"




"No, he was pissed, Phi! He was really fucking pissed off." Ripp's eyes widened in fear. "I'm a dead man."

"Ripp, are you out here?"

Ripp jumped, but it wasn't the clarion call of an angry Johnny Smith. It was Tank's impatient grumbling.




"There you are! You're not easy to track down."

"What's up, Tank?"

"We're going over to the house." He indicated to Buck. "To check things out."

"You're going to come too, right, Ripp?" Buck added.




Ripp staggered to his feet.

"Why the fuck would we want to do that, Tank?"

"We haven't even set foot in the place for weeks. Someone should check up on it." He paused. "And we might be able to make some sense of the situation." Tank was planted firmly in place. Ripp wasn't going to talk him out of it.




"We can't just fucking take off without saying goodbye, Tank!" Ripp said, though he felt that fleeing the scene of the crime was exactly what he wanted to do.

"It's okay." Buck said. "We told the Smiths that we were going. And we already said goodbye."

"So, are you coming, or aren't you, Ripp?!" Tank said, growly ever more impatient.

"Well..." He looked at Ophelia, as if to ask permission.




"It's okay, Ripp. You go on. I'll talk to Johnny."

"Are you sure?" He asked.

"Yes. You should go with your brothers." She looked over at them, but tried not to meet Tank's eyes. "I'll handle Johnny. It's probably better that way."

"Handle Johnny?" Tank asked.

"Mind your own business, Tank." She said, firmly.




She hugged Ripp. His pulse was racing.

"Don't worry about it, okay?" She tried to reassure him.

He let out a heavy sigh, but said nothing. Then he joined his brothers, and they headed down the road.




"God, I can't deal with life tonight!"

Johnny was already in the middle of throwing a fit when he stepped onto the porch. "What is wrong with Ripp? He doesn't have the sense he was born with! He doesn't even have one tiny shred of self control!"

"Johnny, it wasn't such a big deal, was it? He just kissed her."

"Is that what he told you?! He was groping her, Phi! All over! There were hands everywhere! Everywhere, Phi! He was about a minute away from having his hand up her skirt, and -"

"Johnny." Phi said. "You have to calm down."




"Just relax, Johnny." Ophelia reached for his shoulders and began rubbing them. "Everything will be fine."

Everything will be fine. Johnny wanted that to be true. Ophelia had a way of making it seem like everything would be fine. She was so calm and rational about things, where Johnny found himself going off the deep end over the slightest upset. The sound of her voice alone could soothe him.

With her, things really could be fine. Johnny wanted it to be that way.




And he wanted Ophelia. He wanted to be with her. How could that be the wrong thing to do?

He took her into his arms.




"I love you, Ophelia."

"Oh, Johnny..." She smiled. "I love you too."






The Grunts walked towards what was once their home. Like everything else the military issued, it was standard fare. Every one of those houses was sturdily built, but as plain as white bread, and had exactly the same layout inside. The only thing that distinguished it from the others were the people who had lived inside it and their handful of belongings.

Now only their possessions remained inside, like artifacts to prove that they had, in fact, once lived here as a family. Not that those objects really told the whole story.

"Well, here it is."

They stood and looked at it for a moment, and then went inside to look around.




Tank sat down and examined the newspaper from the day that their father had disappeared, as if to look for clues, while Ripp and Buck leaned into each other to keep from falling over.

"God, I hate this place even more now." Ripp said. "We should just light a fucking match and walk away. Then we could just move on with our lives."

"We couldn't do that, Ripp."




"Yeah, I know." Ripp turned to hug Buck, while Tank stood up from the chair and headed towards them.




"So, what's the damage, Buck?" Tank inquired. "Who's looking for answers around here?"




"Well, as you can imagine, the police want to questions us, as does the military." Buck paused. "And then, there's Elise..."




They were all silent, and then suddenly, as if on cue, Elise Pearson was standing in the doorway.

"Speak of the devil." Ripp said.




"I've been calling for almost two weeks." She said. "What exactly is going on here?"




"Our father is missing." Ripp said. "He's gone."






Elise's face twisted into a horrible expression of grief, and she completely broke down, sobbing uncontrollably. The Grunts observed her, each thinking that the most human thing to do would be to go up to her and try to comfort her, but not one of them could bring himself to do it.

After some time, she pulled herself together, and Ripp stepped forward to speak to her.




"Look, Elise - We're sorry. We don't exactly fucking want this either, but there is nothing that can be done about it now. He's gone."




"And I'm also sorry for what I called you at dinner that night." He added. "You're not a bitch. Or, at least, I don't whether you are or not. I hardly fucking know you at all."




He smiled. "And you're not even really that skinny."

Elise took a step back at the last remark, but Ripp said nothing more.




Though he knew that Ripp had probably meant it as a compliment, Buck shuddered at how badly the apology had must have come across to Elise.




"So, that's it?"

"Well, you'll have to speak to the police too. No doubt about it." Tank said. "We'll be giving them your name."

"You think I had something to do with it?!"

"We don't know if you did or if you didn't." Tank said, coldly. "But, as of right now, you're clearly a suspect."




"I don't know anything about it!" She wailed. "Why would I be here right now if I knew anything? You have to believe me!"

"We'll be leaving those decisions up to the police. You are most definitely a suspect." Tank reiterated.




"I believe you, Elise." Buck said, quietly. "You'd have to be a very good actor to come here, and say all this, if you did have anything to do with it."




She looked at the three of them, and thought of what might have been. This could have been her family, if things had gone differently.

"I can... stay and help... if you want me to." Elise said, cautiously.

"Thank you for your offer." Tank said, kindly, as he moved to stand next to his brothers. "But it's okay, Elise."




"We will be fine."




Just up the hill, across the road from the home of the Grunts, the Beaker mansion stood as dark and foreboding as it always had.




Inside the pit, Nervous Subject struggled to keep the last strands of his sanity from breaking. The solitude was beginning to wear on him.

The Beakers had been mostly ignoring him, even forgetting to feed him at times, since Circe had confirmed her pregnancy.




Circe had initially reacted to the situation with her usual charm and goodwill.




But she quickly grew pleased by the idea of carrying on the family line. Loki was beside himself with joy. Between the project in the tower upstairs, and the baby on the way, he couldn't be happier.

The only thing that could distract him from all the joy in his life was the trouble with Nervous, and he chose to mostly ignore this problem.




Nervous Subject's mind was hanging by a thread.

Well, maybe it was hanging by five threads. One for each of the different voices in his head.




The voices, the voices, the voices. All day long, it was the voices, and all night, it was the dreams. The terrible nightmares. It never ended.

If the Beakers paid more attention to him, they may have noticed the severity of the situation. Instead, they responded to his mumblings and moaning by upping the dosage of his medication yet again.




Everything seemed bright and sunny after that, at least on the surface, and that was good enough for Loki and Circe. They were hardly concerned about how this would effect Nervous, since he was becoming more and more of a bother to them, now that they had a project to work on and a baby on the way.

The drugs might not have been doing Nervous Subject any good, but they served the purposes of the Beakers. They kept him quiet.




Outside the stone walls of the Beaker mansion, Olive Specter stood watching from a distance.




Olive was ready. Her plan wasn't complicated. It was bold, aggressive, and not entirely her style, but it would do the job with quick and perfect violence. She was waiting for the right moment to carry it out, which was now upon her. She would act the following evening.

She would kill them both, and take back her son.








  (Continue to Chapter 18...)

Comments

[redqueenofevil.livejournal.com]

YES!!!! Hurry, Olive! I hope she rescues Nervous with style.


Visiting the Grunt house was a good idea. It definitely answered the question of Elise's happenings.

And Johnny needs to come clean with Ophelia. His anger might subside a little, if he did. Afterall, the micromanaging of his sister just seems a tad hypocritical if he's a two timing kind of guy himself.


And poor Tank. He can't get any slack from anyone, so now he has to get grief from Johnny?

[music-simbol.livejournal.com]

OMG! OMG! OMG!! Just wanted to be first! I'll be back!

[indigoleo.livejournal.com]

Great update as always.
I have to say I really, really love the pictures. I think I could look at each one and point out something great about them. I know I said it before but I love some of the faces you catch on your sims. Let's see, how about a few favorites from this part?
Jill's sidelong glance at Ripp during dinner. Could she look any more like she's crushing for the guy? The one of Johnny with his dad after PT ask him how things were going with Jayne. "Uh, well, ummm", *snort*. The look on Johnny's face when he tells Jill she'll thank him one day (I'm willing to bet that day's a long way off!). Ripp with his arms crossed when Elise walks in the door. And Circe look of 'calm and goodwill' at the baby pop.

Boy, Johnny has just run the gamut of emotions tonight, hasn't he? I like that he's so protective of his friends and family. Of course, sometimes he's a bit over protective, too. His confrontation with Tank in the bathroom was great. His trying to talk sense to his sister was good, too. I doubt very much she'll listen to him although his advice is sound.
"Well, that's not that bad... she's like, what, sixteen now, right?" She paused, then stressed. "She IS sixteen, right, Ripp?"
Ha, ha! Johnny's gonna kill me! Oh, Ripp, you really need to learn to keep it in your pants once in awhile. You are going to get into so much trouble. Speaking of trouble, Johnny really has his own delimma to deal with and soon it seems. I'm very interested to see how that works out. If he'll go with his father's wishes or if he'll stay with Ophelia. If he was more like Ripp he could try both at once but I can't see Johnny going that way.

Olive was ready. She would kill them both, and take back her son. Oh, oh, oh. All hell is going to break loose soon in Strangetown. I hope she hurries before Nervous looses what's left of his mind. I don't think he's got much left. I hope you let us know what voices he's hearing although I think I know who one of those voices may be.

[madame-ugly.livejournal.com]

You've made Johnny Smith exactly the kind of unlikable character I always pictured him as. He's two faced (defending Ripp while simultaneously bad mouthing him) and manipulative (carrying on with two women and stringing his father along, too). But he still has this annoying endearing quality. Yeah, you've fleshed him out to be every bit as annoying as I always thought. And I love it.

Will Ripp use the painkillers as an excuse for his roaming hands and tongue? Not that he was really taking advantage of Jill (who clearly is dieing to get it on) but. . .there are just things you have to say no to. And tongue wrestling (while high) with your best friend's little sister while a guest in their house, a house her family has always welcomed you in. . .yeah, that's just not cool. (and I'm sure PT would be less than thrilled to know about it, too).

Speaking of PT, does he have the same expectations for Jill that he does for Johnny? She's half alien as well. Will she get "the talk" before going to college, too? Is there some alien boy out there that daddy has arranged for her to marry?

It was nice to see Elise again, too (even if we don't see her much after this). She was a big loose end for me. (and totally off topic but it made me laugh--and I'm not trying to be mean--the fish survived not being fed all that time? I really expected either Ripp or Buck to find the bodies and have a little spot o' drama).

Tank's stepping into the role of General again, too, directing his brothers (and Elise). That must be a relief for him, to be able to fall back into that familiar rut. Ooh, how's Frances going to react to all this? Will the police interview Tank at Frances's? Will Frances want to distance himself from Tank, lest his disapproving family have their name sullied by the investigation?

And then there's Nervous. Hang on, baby, your mom is coming (and she's bringing hell and Daddy along with her). Five voices, huh? Something tells me there's some kind of significance there, but I don't feel like thinking about it all that hard (I'll leave that to you!).

Circe pregnant made me laugh. Those pink maternity clothes. *snicker* It would be like Mother XYZ being preggo. I hope they don't become bored with the baby like they have with Nervous.

What happened to Nervous's dog?

And last but not least, thank you for updating so regularly. You're story is really raising the bar (and it always helps me get out of little ruts I have with my own stuff--like right now, I just want to whip out some Peculiar)

[dothesmustle.livejournal.com]

Circe had initially reacted to the situation with her usual charm and goodwill.

Oh, Circe! Seriously, that picture cracked me up.

Oh boy, the Nervous-Olive reunion. I cannot wait for that.

"Hi. I'm you're mother, and the Grim Reaper is your father. I kill people, he takes names."

Ripp and Jill! I was trying too muffle my laughter when Johnny caught them. That was priceless! Johnny is the just the best over-protective older brother.

Keep writing, please!

[lyla09.livejournal.com]

I've been reading your story for weeks, and I think is absolutely GREAT, if not the best I've ever read about Strangetown.

Your characters look so alive, with all their inner conflicts and their complicated relationships to each other, and your skills at storytelling are AMAZING!

I always loved Strangetown, and now I love it even more! My favourite character is Nervous, and I hope he'll be fine, though I don't want to see the Beakers and their unborn child die...they don't look totally evil to me, they don't kill people like Olive does, and I think they could be redeemable...but I guess they're going to die anyway, except for the baby. One thing I know for sure, is that the Beaker mansion is going to burn to ashes.

Please, make Olive pay for all the people she killed! I felt so bad when Buzz died, I knew he just wanted the best for his sons and he was not a bad man!

I think I know what's happening to Nervous (I suspect Loki may have cloned him five times, even if I don't get the purpose of it, or maybe he invented something to control death, or to create death using Nervous'genes), but I guess I'm wrong...something tells me that despite all his sufferings, Nervous is going to act against his own mother to protect the Beakers (they're his family, after all, and Nervous is so kind-hearted that I can see that happening)...we'll see.

I like also the other characters (especially Buck: I think I know what do you plan to do with him and Jill), and I hope the Curious brothers will get more screen-time soon. Also, the babies are all great. I can't wait for the next update: when do you plan to post it?

P.S. Sorry for my bad english! I hope you understand what I meant :)

[franwi.livejournal.com]

No pressure, Johnny, it's YOUR decision... but I'm sure you'll do what's RIGHT for your SPECIES... Oh brother. PT is tightening that vice now, huh? I want Johnny happy with Phi! They really are meant to be. There was a time where they seemed to be growing apart, but these days they seem closer than ever - and now he's being told to stick to his own kind. Poor Johnny. And wow, that was a miserable night for him, between Tank, PT, Ripp and Jill.

The Ripp and Jill stuff was... very very good. Seriously I was near-drooling over them. Then suddenly Johnny popped up and I was all, "Oh fuck, oh fuck, oh fuck!" I had to stop reading there and take a break, fearing to read on! LOL.

But I came back and was happy that Johnny harnessed his anger and sent Ripp off right away. It gave him time to calm down and talk to his sister. Johnny knows what Ripp is like, and since he can't change that, the best he can do is caution Jill. Warning her not to play with fire. He probably trusts her to have more restraint than Ripp at this point.

But beyond that, I wonder how Johnny felt, seeing Jill getting so affectionate with a sim, knowing PT's expectations of him. Will Jill face the same pressure to marry within their species, or will her sim-features get her off the hook? Johnny's gotta be wondering.

I loved the Grunt brothers going to the house together. I don't know how you manage to show them growing closer, without changing their personalities, but it's wonderful to see. Ripp and Tank are more at ease around one another, while still maintaining their own quirks. And Buck's a bit more subdued after dealing with everything, but it's all been a natural progression. I love how I can see the changes but it doesn't feel forced.

Man, I feel sorry for Nervous, although being ignored by Loki and Circe is probably better than having them lavish you with attention.

You know what's scary about Olive's plan is that she doesn't really know what Loki and Circe have been doing to her son, right? For all she knows, they could have been raising him lovingly, treating him as their own, but Olive would still be planning to kill his "parents" and tear him out of his home because he belongs to her. It just so happens the Beakers deserve it. ;)

[saunasims.livejournal.com]

Too under the weather to make a real comment comment, but: I do think Tank is my favorite character officially now. The social awkwardness, the obvious need to be loved but almost complete incapability of showing that, the torn but mending relationship with his brothers.. Awww.

Also, I for one have no expectations for the Beaker baby to make it. Besides, do we *really* want to see the horror of a Circe+Loki genetic merger? Brr, man. Brrr! I say let Olive cleanse the whole place with fire. Maybe sprinkle some salt on the ground afterwards just to make sure. x.X

I know Olive's the ultimate evil, but I honestly dislike her less than the Beakers (obviously). I think it's the fact that she is so cold and inhuman as she is: she makes me thinks of sharks and those deepsea fish with the massive mouths and lures. She seems very.. Business. The Beakers are more like really mean monkeys. And I've seen just how ugly and mean monkeys can get. Go shark! Down with monkey!

[cindyanne1.livejournal.com]

Yay! New update!

And now that I've put the baby down I can type with both hands! Woo!

Okay, okay...

"God. Strangetown is such a fucking shithole."

That's my new favorite quote EVAR. Hee hee hee.


Was it just the painkillers that made Ripp sick or was it something else? I'm hoping it wasn't something else... **worries**

And I like Johnny... always have, even though he's always seemed a bit of a jerk to me, lol. He was the first Maxis sim I ever played, and I remember being hopelessly annoyed with him once I got him married off to the daughter of my first ever CAS family. Well looking back I think it was more that I was annoyed with his Popularity sim wants. Meet people. Have parties. Have eighty-million best friends. Blah. Nope, not when I'm saddling you with five kids my friend, lol! Hee.

I usually change him to a Knowledge sim these days. I can deal with the wanting to see ghosts and being saved from death... but I digress...

I feel sorry for Tank too. And Ripp goes without saying! Hmmm... might Jill be the one to settle him down? Or is that wishful thinking on my part, lol! Well, not really... 'cause I do loves him as the endearing, but bed-hopping male ho you're playing him as.

And the Beakers. Oh I loved that picture of Circe... just perfect! I always had the feeling Loki was one who wanted to procreate to pass on the family name, too. It always struck me as interesting that when you first start the game Loki has a want to have a baby and a fear of seeing a ghost. Yes that can change if you don't play them right away (I've had sims become vampires, for example, and when finally got round to the Beakers, Loki would have the want to become a vampire and not the want for a baby.)

But, I guarantee... if you start up a new Strangetown and run into Loki, make him selectable and look at his wants. He'll have a want for a baby and a fear of seeing a ghost. Makes me wonder if Maxis didn't start out making him a Family sim. (shrugs) Anyway...

Can't wait to see more of Olive's plan! She's another one I've never really played much (just sort of left the whole Specter house alone) but I am really liking what you're doing with her and with Ophelia!

Great update as always! And I loved the pics!

[ikichi.livejournal.com]

I'll miss Ripp. :D

You know... I get the feeling that while Johnny may love Phi, he's not In Love with her. And that he'll run to her because of what she represents to him. In a way, she's another mother figure, to chase away monsters and kiss away the boo-boos that life throws at him. And he's done very little of that for her. I like Johnny (he's brought much awesomesauce and LOLs in my game) but he's got so much little emperor in him I want to smack him sometimes. Yea, he's trying to be too many things, but he's got a wicked sense of entitlment.

And Tank really, really, REALLY needs to let someone in and be a friend before he pops. It's a shame it didn't work out with Phi, but I KNOW how sweet and loving he can (autonomously) be, and it breaks my heart to see him so alone.

[80sfiend.livejournal.com]

Oh wow this was so good!!!! :D :D I can't explain how much my shipper heart is bursting! :) Jill got her moment!!! I mean I know that Ripp's a player but it was so awesome seeing them together and that he wants her! You did an amazing job on this but especially their scene together...I LOVED IT. :) I'm so in awe of your storytelling genius. :)

All of this was great, I loved P.T and Johnny's chat, and the set up for the next chapter...Oh I love this!!! :D

I'm seriously contemplating making a Jill/Ripp icon...that's sad isn't it? ;)

[ricamarcella.livejournal.com]

Ohmigosh, it's gonna be one big episode next!!! I'm so excited, I can't wait! When do you think you'll finish it? I figure you've got dozens of fans by now, and you can't keep them waiting!

I'm speculating the five voices might be Olive's victims, rather than clones of Nervous, but we'll have to wait and see.

I think everyone's expecting the Beakers' kid to live because there have been previous episodes in which the Beakers die, but Nervous raises their kid happily. I think such perfectly peachy endings have become a given when it comes to the Nervous-Beaker scenario; I'm glad you're ready to dish us something more complicated. Whenever authors deal with that the goal is always the same--to have him escape--but often it's Pascal (on occasion, Ophelia) who's the rescuer, not Olive. And the rescuer is always someone good. I like how original you've made it by making another villain the rescuer--it also makes the situation more complicated, as the reader doesn't know how to cheer for in the conflict (OK, maybe we can all cheer for Nervous).

[ricamarcella.livejournal.com]

Oooh, oooh, oooh! Just went over Nerv's dream sequences again, which seem to include Olive's tampering with plants (when she thought about poisoning Ophelia but failed?), the scissors episode in which the General dies, the Beaker mansion fire, and a fourth one in which Nervous enters the room of "her/she" and "she" is hanging from the ceiling--with a terrible smell around. Is this Circe or Olive? Or another victim from after the Olive-Loki showdown? No... I think this Olive's last kill(s) will be in that house on that night.

[sea-serpent.livejournal.com]

Hi! New reader here <3

There's so much drama going on! I love sim stories with complicated plots like this one.

I've just read all chapters in one go, so I'm not entirely sure what to comment on... I adore Ripp, he's such a sweet character (and a slutty one, but slutty sims are the best :P). I have to say though, I'm dying to see more of Frances, if only because the fangirl inside of me demands that he and Tank get together (it would be cute, and adorkable, and would bring so much angst! Ahhh...)

Anyways! Ignore me, I'm a terrible commenter because I rarely have anything useful to say :P

Do you mind if I friend you so I can keep up on the updates? I don't usually hang around thesims2, and I don't want to miss anything!

Woaw!!

[sofieamalien.livejournal.com]

Woaw! I found this story last night and just finished reading! It's very well written and I really like the plot. You're causing me to fall inlove with the strangetown sims all over again :D

Great Story! Please keep posting more chapters!

Love, Sofie

looooong comment....

[squirrel-tamer.livejournal.com]

I both love and hate Johnny sometimes. I think it’s awesome that you made him into this wannabe hero type where he thinks that it’s his job to protect everyone, but I kind of want to knock some sense into him. Not everyone needs saving, y’know? And poor Tank! He managed to reconcile with Ripp only to have Johnny strain the situation again. I hope that eventually Johnny and Tank manage to at least respect each other. Maybe they could bond over mothering Ripp? Hahaha.

I enjoyed the small talk around the dinner table. The expressions on some of their faces were just too charming. And poor awkward Tank, he doesn’t really know what to do these days. He’s still got a lot of the General in him and I doubt he’ll ever really manage to completely ally himself with the aliens. But I’m glad that he’s being civil and you can tell that at least some part of him wants to belong with these people.

Also, I know that PT thinks his way is the right way, but I really hate how he’s basically guilting Johnny into choosing Jayne. I know he’s only doing what he thinks is best, but marriage shouldn’t just be a logical choice! I hope that Johnny follows his heart in the end. If he ends up with Jayne than it should be because he really does care about her and not because he feels guilty.

And he says himself that he loves Ophelia. That he wants to be with her.

I really hope that he doesn’t hurt Ophelia by being indecisive.

Also I’m not sure about Jill getting ‘the talk’, because as of right now there are no aliens her age. I thought maybe there’d be talk of her becoming a pollinator, but I wonder if she’d be accepted when she doesn’t really look alien. Hmmm….

And I think that PT is wrong. Johnny is a Sim. He is the same as Ripp and Ophelia. Maybe not on the outside, but on the inside he is very much the same.

"I know that you will do the right thing for us."

Way to really nail that one in their PT. ‘FOR US’. PT is a good guy, but I can’t help hating him a little. And feeling bad for hating him because he honestly thinks he knows what’s best and maybe he’s right, but it’s just really unfortunate that Johnny is so locked into such a role.

“Instinctively, he reacted as he would if she were any other attractive female.”

Oh Ripp you sleezeball! I really love what you’ve done with Ripp’s character. How you make him both likeable and hateable at the same time (you do that with all your characters actually and it adds a really great touch of realism, because its very rare that people are all good or all bad). Ripp being skeevy is quite all right with me. It fits him, but ooooo! I wish he would think before he rushes into things. I know some of it may have to do with the painkillers, but goodness! I think most people (even those of relatively loose…morals) would think twice before making out with their best friend’s younger sister.

I know Jill was loving it, but it’s true that she doesn’t really know the real Ripp. And I think she would mind just a bit if she really sat down and thought about all the girls he’s been with.

I do love that he commented on the ‘perfect alien bone structure’. Because has he met any female aliens really? He has yet to meet up with Stella or Jayne, so the only alien bone structure he’s seen besides Jill’s is Johnny and PT’s. Heehee. I know he was more than likely just saying that to really butter Jill up, but I like to think that he spends time admiring Johnny’s beautiful bone structure.

I love the “God I’m shaking….” line, because that really seems like the proper response to something like that - especially as a teen. I also like that Jill is perhaps the first person that Ripp’s put the moves on that he actually likes as a person and not just a conquest. But it’s pretty obvious that she cares for him on a much different level that he cares for her.

[speedspin-88.livejournal.com]

OOOhhh...I can't wait to see what Olive does to the Beakers. Free Nervous! Whoo!
I love that Ripp has the decency to watch his speech around Mrs. Smith. Even though if I ctually met Ripp I wouldn't like him he's just hard not to like cause he's Ripp.
I've gotta agree with Madame Ugly on his character, but once again he's hardnot to like. I mean-he's Johnny...
Pregnant Circe is pretty funny. She does a lot of wierd autonomous things in my game.
I was wondering where Elise went...anyway I love thisstory cont wait to read what's next!

[pixelcurious.livejournal.com]

D'oh! I thought I had commented on this. But I obviously didn't.

Forgive me if I mention something that's been extensively covered in comments already, but I'm not going to unfold and read them all right now :) But...

He usually washed them immediately after he entered a house from outside...

Touch of OCD, Tank? (I would horrify him. I never even wash mine before I eat, unless I know they're actually dirty. I do wash them after using the loo, at least)

That habit did give Johnny the perfect opportunity to get Tank alone and be all meddlesome. Given his and Tank's history, there pretty much HAD to be a confrontation. That doesn't mean I didn't sigh. That was so not necessary, Johnny!

The dinner conversation was nifty, with all the expressions, and the theater discussion felt real. I thought, "Hmm, sounds like someone's had this conversation in real life..." :) Then PT with his proposal. Of course Buck and Ripp are on board. And good of Tank to be civil and agree to try.

PT's attitudes are interesting... let's all try to get along and be allies... BUT we're a race apart and not like you at all. I have my own theories on that. How different can aliens and humans be, biologically, if they can interbreed? Sure there are differences in skin color, features, lifespan... but how significant are those differences? This "keep the race pure" notion feels like eugenics to me (which is a very broad term) but more specifically like scientific racism (which is, of course, a pretty nasty set of assumptions and practices, which I won't accuse PT of, but I'm reminded all the same).

Well. Let's move on. RIPP! That's your best friend's little sister, and a high school kid with stars in her eyes! The age difference actually isn't all that great, of course, and considering it's Ripp, the maturity level isn't that different either. ^_^ But... yeah, bad judgment call, my friend!

I do think Johnny handled that pretty well. And it seemed like he's moving toward a decision about Ophelia, so that's all to the good. I do like them as a couple. I mean, if he and Ripp can't/won't be humping in your story, Phi is a good second choice. *wink*

I have to say, I thought the same as Mme. Ugly about the fish. Tank did say it had been weeks since they set foot in the house (I forgot that Buck hadn't been at the Smith's very long.) I bet the littler fishies are missing now, though...

Since I already read the one you just posted, I know the Evil of Olive has come to fruition... and I wonder if the Smiths and Grunts can see the burning of the Beaker mansion from their frontyards...

[missgan.livejournal.com]

Nooooooo Jill, stay away from Ripp! :(:(:(
I am completely on Johnny's side in this situation. I hope Johnny really does lose his shit with Ripp when they get back to their house in LFT - like a previous comment said, kissing (and groping!) your best friend's younger sister in their own house where you've always been warmly welcomed as a guest is NOT the way to go!
I've always liked Ripp and laughed at his antics in college, but this really pushes it for me!
Yea, I think that I may be a prude like Johnny, actually.

Anyway, I'm so excited that Olive's going to act soon! And it'd better be soon, because Nervous sure looks like he's not going to be able to hang on any longer!

[ohflark.livejournal.com]

Johnny needs to back off Tank a bit.

I mean Johnny knows that when Tank is confronted with anger he gives anger back. I think the only reason why Tank didn't have an outburst is because he didn't want Jenny to think badly of him since Jenny is was nice enough to invite him over for dinner,


It seems to be made out that Ripp and Tank are the hotheads of the story but I am actually starting to think that Johnny is more hot headed then both of them.

:o

Ripp kissing Jill?


Poor Jill is going to end up corrupted.

and what if Buck really isn't gay and he really does like Jill?

Ripp really knows how to piss people off.

[pnkpnthr334.livejournal.com]

Johnny is just getting more and more aggressive!
Jill and Ripp!!! OMG!!! Wow, I can believe she wants to do THAT with him. =O
I hope Olive saves Nervous from that hell hole!

[simstate.wordpress.com (from livejournal.com)]

Olive! My fav serial sim murderer!

[saphira-314.livejournal.com]

I started reading your story because you were mentioned on Sim Secret last week, and I absolutely love it!!!! Hoping for an update soon :)