Chapter 83: Cat Eyes, Looking at Me

Yasu signs up for scouts. 

Rex signs poor Xue up for ballet, sick of the way she hogs the television when his crime shows are on.

Not that he actually likes the crime shows. He only likes complaining about how unrealistic they are.

Fischer commissions the construction of a park for kids. Riverview already has a small garden for that purpose, but it's tiny and more often used as a vampire hangout.

"This place is beautiful," Felicia remarks to her brother. "Fischer is so thoughtful."

"I don't like orange," Javier says.

"This place almost makes me want to have kids," Felicia continues wistfully, pretty much ignoring him.

Felicia and Javier brought along their teen brother Spencer, to pretend they have a reason to be here.

Spencer sits around sulking, wondering which sibling he'll be living with when his father dies. His mother, Maranda, passed away when he was still a young child.

Yay slide!

In the background, The Grind lights up the evening sky.

A huge sandbox.

Wild.

The pirate ship is, of course, superior.

Protective Granny watches the kids, since Fischer works in the evenings.

She takes some pictures of the children enjoying themselves on the playground equipment, but it so dark the pictures all turn out badly.

 Teaching Ashby to play hopscotch was not Shu Fang's best idea.

Yasu uses the park's club house as a good place from which to dump water on unsuspecting adults.

Chauncy Khan gets it first. Chauncy's son, Kirk, is the only other genius in school. Kirk is not seen in screenshots here; he isolates himself away from others even on the playground.

Yasu has always been afraid to approach him.

Alexandra Pate also gets water dumped on her. Yasu has never heard anything positive about Arthur's ex.

"You know not whom you mess with, mortal," the vampire hisses up at the tree.

Chad the scientist is disappointed to see that his great-great granddaughter reads the same science textbook he did as a child.

Why is nothing in this universe progressing?

Home now, Yasu isn't sleepy. She would rather stay up and ask her grandmother about rocket fuel.

"It's caused quite a few fires in my day," Ashby admits.

Ashby recently quit her job. Retiring is for pretentious people.

These brats make it hard to watch TV.

Whatever, Chad.

Bringing yet more business or pointlessness to the town, Fischer pays for the construction of a classy lounge.

He intends to have more of a night life and a social life, but seems to only meet vampires, old people who somehow got lost, or his own cousins.

Still, he hopes he's come a long way from the teen throwing darts in the saloon.

Hmmmm. Relaxing. All those fears are just slipping away...

Dizzy...

Maybe drugs aren't the cure for neurosis.

A vaguely familiar face helps Fischer to his feet.

"Do I need a doctor?" Fischer asks, vacantly.

"More or less," the elderly vampire responds.

Ashby reads Xue a bedtime story. Ashby is not nimble enough to perch on the top bunk anymore, so Xue has taken over Yasu's bed for the time being. 

Fischer somehow makes it home in time to read Yasu and Shu Fang to sleep.

"Is there any chance I could get you too back to your own room?" Fischer asks, at the end of the story.

"Not unless you move Xue. There's no chance I'm sleeping on the top bunk. I might fall off! Sleeping on the top bunk is for stupid people."

Goodnight then.

Rex gets a look at Fischer's Banzai Lounge, since it's complete. Its modern architecture contrasts sharply with the field it's sitting in, and with Riverview, but Rex sees it as a welcome change and approves.

 And the bubble machine is greeeaaaaat, maaaan.

 "Chopsticks again?" Yasu rolls her eyes. "I'm on dessert already, and you're still poking the salad like a 'tard."

"I'm telling Dad you said that word," Xue warns.

"He won't care."

"If you say it at school you get detention."

"We're at home, not in stupid school."

Ashby's artistic work tends to focus on the concrete and useful, rather than the beautiful or thoughtful.

Though sometimes she ventures into the realm of creating something terrifying.

 Yasu asks to come up to play. Shu Fang says she can, but Xue sits on the door in the floor above the ladder.

"Not until she admits she's Chinese," Xue says, arms folded.

 Unwilling to do as Xue asks, Yasu dejectedly goes looking for spare parts in the junk yard.

Something here could very well turn into the next world-changing invention.

As it gets dark, Xue and Shu Fang begin to worry about Yasu.

"I bet she's staying out to get attention," Xue complains.

The darkness doesn't bother such a stubborn child as Yasu. She doesn't even notice it as first she's absorbed in finding spare parts, and then in her homework.

"If she stays out past curfew dad's going to have a heart attack," Xue says. "Then he's going to die and we'll be orphans, because our grandparents can barely even get around now..."

"Don't worry," Shu Fang says. Xue waits for her to give a reason not to worry, but only silence follows.

"Your father will handle it when he gets home," Rex promises.

When Fischer gets home from work, Rex informs him that Yasu is missing. Fischer nods stoically and walks out the front door before breaking down.

Luckily he doesn't have to search far. A moment later, he sees Yasu biking up the street.

"I just lost track of time, Dad," Yasu defends. She only returned home because she was tired.

"Then we'll get you an alarm watch," Fischer fumes. "It' nighttime and no one was watching you. You could have tripped and hurt yourself. Or you could have been kidnapped and held for ransom or... or worse!"

"Dad, I'm smart. I'm not going to get hurt out there. So the curfew is ridiculous."

"Just because you think you won't get hurt doesn't mean you're old enough to decide!"

"My MIND is old enough! I'm smarter than most adults I think!"

"You are smarter, but you lack in life experiences. Go to bed!"

Sulk sulk sulk.

Zephram and Taylor's ghosts ignore each other, hoping the subject of Dalma never comes up.

"This isn't an apology for last night," Fischer says sternly. Though he does regret raising his voice. "This is so you won't have to go digging through junk for something to play with."

Yasu jumps up and down excitedly. The chemistry set Fischer bought for her comes fully equipped with substances to experiment with, but they're certified child-safe, unlike the sharp saws and screwdrivers on the old invention bench.

The kit also came with protective gear, which Fischer insists Yasu wears.

To her surprise, Yasu is invited by Kirk Khan's mother to meet the genius boy. The only other genius in school. What if she says something that pisses him off? It seems like everything Yasu says pisses someone off.

Too shy to speak to Kirk, she playfully attacks him with pillows instead. He appears shocked at first; there's an almost inhuman seriousness in his eyes. But then he responds positively.

It is a day for playdates, as Janet arrives on Fischer's doorstep with her son, Rhett.

Though Janet is pregnant again and in maternity wear, she continues to dress stylishly, and for some uncomfortable reason this makes Fischer uncomfortable. He rolls the wish to kiss Janet for the first time, but suppresses the idea.

Since Xue is at ballet lessons and Yasu is at the Khans' house, Shu Fang is left alone to entertain Rhett.

But Rhett mostly entertains himself.  "Did you know that sharks sink when they stop swimming?" he asks. "Most fish have a gas-filled bladder thing that can keep them in place, but not sharks."

"I didn't know that," Shu Fang responds honestly. She is a jaded girl but keeps her voice soft and innocent, always looking to others, respecting their opinions. It serves her well as a child - no one will ever be angry at her. Unfortunately this won't work so well as an adult, since it will likely be perceived as a lack of ambition, naivete, and low self esteem. Life only rewards the loud assholes, no matter what they say when you're a kid.

Yasu progresses to asking Kirk to play pirates. They have no looking glass available, so she just pretends.

"I'd ask you to play space invaders," she says cautiously, "but I don't wanna be insensitive."

"Thanks," he says.

Eventually they talk about space anyway. Yasu hopes to invent Star Trek gadgets. Unfortunately the cell phone has already been done, so she's thinking time travel.

"Where are your parents? It was your mom on the phone with my dad, but I haven't seen her."

"She's a vampire," Kirk admits. "She hates open windows and the outdoors during the day, but leave at night to feed... if my Dad is too tired to feed her."

"That sounds scary."

Kirk looks away. "Yeah."

Fischer teaches his daughters to recycle. He's endlessly paranoid that the world won't be here for his great-great-great grandchildren. That's why the Banzai Lounge is fuel efficient.

He also worries that the arts won't survive, based on a horrible dream he once had, and so personally purchased the theater in town. And the science center. And the hospital...

Born to tinker.

Every shower in the house was booby-trapped. Yasu hoped Xue would pick the shower upstairs, which would have turned her into a blond, but this is fine too.

Yasu visits Kirk more and more often. He did his homework during recess instead of playing outside, and lets Yasu check and copy his answers down while he eats orange sherbet.

"You can call me Khan," he says randomly. "I hate my first name."

"But I like it."

"My parents named me for someone else, so I feel like I don't have my own identity," he complains.

"But I know you're not a starship captain." Yasu smirks. "Or the lovechild of said starship captain and a certain genetically engineered superhuman."

As they go to say their goodbyes for the night, Yasu notices something strange.

Kirk.. or, Khan, frowns. "What?"

"You look like a cat..."

The boy looks down at his skin, a glowing shade paler than before, and darts back into his house.

Yasu runs to catch up to him. "Wait! Explain..."

"This isn't my aunt's house we're playing at," Khan stutters. He drinks something from an unmarked bottle, and the glow immediately fades from his eyes. "My parents are divorced and I live with my dad now instead of in my mom's mansion. Yasu, vampires are EVIL."

"That's not true. I have some... uh... really distant cousins who are vampires..."

"HALF vampires," Khan corrects bitterly. "Like me."

"You're already allergic to the sun," Yasu realizes. A flash of insight based on very little evidence, but a correct one that moves this exposition forward. "That's not normal."

"I am sometimes. Like at recess today. And it's not exactly an allergy. Anyway I'm messed up because my mother gave me a vaccine to protect against Vampirism-B-Gone. VBG is a very strong drug that racists have injected into toddlers in this neighborhood before; it prevents them from ever becoming vampires. One of the Cantina kids was lost that way."

Yasu knows he's talking about Pablo, but doesn't say so.

"The problem is the vaccine has side effects," he continues. "Like early sun sensitivity. But the real issue is, I don't want to be a vampire. I'm constantly taking VBG."

"Why? Vampires are stronger, better-"

"Evil!" Khan shouts. "My mother wanted me to turn you, even! Doesn't that upset you?"

"Whoa, why?"

"'Cause you're a genius. What more reason does she need? She's a controlling freak. A monster."

"I'm sorry," Yasu stammers.

"Maybe you could help me. Your dad owns the science center. If I study chemistry a bit more, and you can get me in there... maybe I can make a better VBG that will cancel out the vaccine..."

"I think it's probably more complicated than that," she says gently. Making new medicines can't exactly be like making a casserole from leftover fridge ingredients, or a toy dog from excess scrap metal.

"But I promise I'll try if you'll study hard," she continues, saluting him. "Us geniuses should stick together."

"O-okay." Khan nods. He didn't expect his request to get a positive response, but it did, and he is grateful.

She narrows her eyes at him. "You also have to promise me you won't take anything that could hurt you."

A more difficult request, but one he agrees to immediately, without really thinking about it.

...I swear I didn't put them that way.
________________________________________________________________________
Etc.: So that's 3 kids and property mogul. All of generation 9's parameters are met.

The secondary career for Yasu's generation was architect, but I'm changing it to freelance scientist / chemistry addict so I can really test out the new chemistry set. This is permissible under the "expansion gift". =) Kirk Khan already has genius, which he needs to solve the unsolvable (I don't think it's a spoiler to tell you I've chosen him to be Yasu's mate). He probably won't get computer whiz, but if he ends up with an intolerable trait like slob I'll spend the points to switch it out. I have generation 11 and 12 pre-rolled (they'll be used in my next legacy!), so I plopped architect into generation 13 as a primary career, because I DO want to try architect. The rest of generation 13 is not rolled yet. And no, no spoilers!

I'm really starting to like this house. It took all these generations to get it looking kind of how I wanted it to. Sadly I'm on generation 9 and must leave it soon.

I placed the Banzai Lounge from Bridgeport and the new park from generations in my town. There was a perfect spot for the park, but the lounge had to be thrown out in the middle of nowhere (well, behind the science center building cluster). I added some swampy grass to the world map in front of it, so it looks like you drive through a crappy field to get to the parking garage. I didn't want to put up with bouncers so I deleted the divider ribbons and that seemed to work. I also linked the VIP and normal section with a door. The idea behind Bridgeport was cool, and all the clubs look really neat, but I find it the fame thing bleh in practice.

Yes, I got sick of the fires and had Ashby QUIT her job. I would have retired her, but I was afraid to, since the message that came up for my confirmation stated her pension would be negative one million, one hundred ten thousand and some. With a full age bar and then some, she achieved her lifetime wish of saving 30 sims. She never got the super awesome science facility worm hole disaster, which I think awards you the golden fire hydrant. She did get the ribbon. I was sad, but not sad enough to force the woman to continue.

The alarm still sits there on my lot, but it can't be maintained and doesn't go off anymore.

I'm having a weird glitch with Kirk. The Khan family's home is not clickable, regardless of whether or not anyone is home. I used MC to move Kirk and his dad to another house, and Yasu visited him at that house, but when it got late Kirk decided he lived at the old house. This has now happened to him twice. Hopefully it won't be an issue later.

I was planning to set Yasu up with a boy named Tavares (the child of two town newcomers, one being a clone of Talfryn from The McDermott Random Legacy), but little Tavares aged up to teenager without warning. I was sulking over that when I found Yasu playing with a kid named KIRK KHAN. And with a name like that, it was fate. My first impulse was to switch his vampirism off and pretend he was never a vampire (THEY HAVE COMPLETELY OVERRUN MY TOWN), but Kirk looks so cute as a vampire, I couldn't leave it alone. Talfryn makes a really neat looking old man in my game by the way.

"He looks like a cat," was my boyfriend's initial response to Kirk when I was looking at what he'd look like as a YA (yes I'm a terrible cheater). So you can blame him for that line. Kirk descends from some Bridgeport import with big pretty eyelashes (not Ace Wilde... some other guy with a scarf or something). That was several generations ago, so I was pleasantly surprised to see the genes carried.

PS The mentally unbalanced should not blow bubbles. Recreational bubbles are not for everyone.