South Beach
Marina
Half a mile from home Jay pulled into a narrow park overlooking the harbor, turned off the engine, sat in the car for maybe fifteen minutes before getting out and slamming the door and walking slowly across old grass and overgrown stone toward a group of cars. They had planned to do the only thing they could do at the moment and that was drive back to Cloud Lake. Or Sandy Point. Or ditch the car at the Crossing and take the rail back to Wind Island.
He was suddenly and completely shaking exhausted though. Pull over, Fiona had said after giving him a bottle of water. Get some air, she'd said. Take a nap, she'd said, pointing to the back seat with a helpful pat on the open door of the car.
He might do that. For the moment, he was going to sit and look at the harbor and decide if he wanted to do any of those things or just go home.
Fiona had brought Hailie's toy with her, carrying it in her lap on the ride here and now she it on a table beside a bench. Almost immediately fireflies gathered around it. Jay sat in one of the chairs and watched them shimmer and spin which he thought wearily was unusual behavior for fireflies but what did he know about them. Nothing. Maybe it was what they did out here.
"Fiona, that's just a toy. She gave it to you because Hailie tries to help people. Your mother is a zombie and you're obsessing about a toy?"
"My mother isn't a zombie you asshole," she snapped.
He sat and looked at the lights in the shops and the restaurants on the other side of the harbor, familiar places, comforting in their familiarity. No, of course Kenley Dirac wasn't a zombie and he felt guilty for even saying it. "Yeah, sorry, I know that, I grew up with her too."
They sat there without saying anything just looking out at the water. The road was deserted at this time of night so they were comfortably alone.
"What if Gabe has nothing to do with this?" he said in a quiet, tired, empty voice. "Your father didn't say anything about Gabe. There's so much bullshit about him, what he did, what he could do, how many women he had, whether he had ten kids or one kid or none or teleported or turned lead into fucking gold. We've done what you wanted to do and we're no closer to knowing anything at all. I don't even know where we're going to spend the night."
She stretched and pulled at her hair and shrugged. "Probably not the lead into gold thing. Jay I had to start somewhere, and he was a Lombardo, and he was there just before it happened. He was always in trouble and they were friends. My mother would have helped him if she could."
"Not if it split space apart and killed her and ruined her family's life she wouldn't."
"Maybe she didn't know it would do that."
"What's 'it'? We're talking about ghosts and dragons, Fiona. That's magic, that's not physics. She was a physicist not a magician, and she would have known something was wrong and stopped. Okay, maybe not in time if it literally blew up on her but...I don't know, it doesn't make sense."
"There were two of them," she reminded him. "She was working with my dad and he didn't do physics. He did something different. Jay why is that toy shining like that?"
It wasn't just a few fireflies now. It was a cloud of them sparkling and expanding and he didn't actually see any bugs in that cloud. What the hell...
The ground moved, groaning, one long shudder after another and a white tower rose up out of the earth in a wall of arches, doors and windows pushing the trees between them aside as it made room for more behind it. It rang, and stopped, and a breath of long cold air blew toward them. It smelled of pine.
Candles burned. Ivy and roses climbed the doors and flagstones stretched across ground that been bare dirt.
The same little girl who walked out on the pier now stood at the foot of the stairs watching them. She waved and smiled. "Hello Fiona."
Out from behind the ivy and the roses walked a thing. It placed one taloned foot after the other, its head raised, fanged mouth open as it swung heavily around and entered the yellow candlelight.
It cocked its head and snorted. It had wings.
"Jay," said Fiona solemnly, "I think we've found your dragons."
Oh...my....freakin.....god! How are you not famous? Like SERIOUSLY?!?!?! The shots are PERFECT, the writing is CAPTIVATING & SPECTACULAR and (I’m hoping you will know this reference) at the risk of sounding ridiculously cheesy....It looks like “Stella Got Her Groove Back” 😎😎😎
ReplyDeleteNow that is both enormously flattering and funny. Thank you for the compliment! I don't know that I've got my grove back (LOL!) but for the moment I've been able to post a little more frequently. When I move into other sets, and that's breathing down my neck now, I expect to struggle more. These will have to be done from scratch too. Separate thanks for the compliment on the shots. I got stuck trying to get the lights from the lots across the water to turn on and be visible from the lot I was using. They are a huge load for my computer to handle too which meant I had to keep the lot pretty empty or risk crashing.
DeleteThank you for reading and commenting. Your attention and support mean a great deal to me. I know writers are supposed to be happy to create even if it's for themselves but the reality is that this kind of production, as minor as it is, sometimes feels like a huge chore. Morale support makes all the difference.
I think I need to read all the way through to really appreciate this because right now I am confused. I'm sure it's because I don't know the whole picture. I do as always, enjoy your exquisite picture and editing. I love how the fireflies kept growing around the toy dragon where it was depicted! So mysterious!!
ReplyDeleteThank you! I'm so sorry it's confusing. I've been building it as sort of a mystery, each chapter opening up more strangeness along with clues. The toy dragon belongs to a little girl who is unusual and the toy is meant to be more than a simple toy. I tried to imply that it was magic in itself, moving on its own and generating sparkles. It probably didn't work all that well! The teenagers have been trying to solve two mysteries: what were the dragons Jay saw when the story opens and what happened to Fiona's parents. I've never tried doing anything like a 'mystery' and it's a bit difficult for me which might increase the messiness of the thing.
DeleteThank you so much for the compliments on the shots. They were such a challenge - they always are but I didn't understand how to use some of the cc and spent a long time fussing with it.
Thank you so much for reading and commenting! I really really appreciate it.
Ahhhhhh, you're truly spoiling us with these frequent updates! <3 When the story's this captivating the wait is always worth it, but getting so much content in such a short time feels like a very special treat indeed. Sessions/Intermezzo is like a gift that keeps on giving and giving. You're too good to us! ^____^ <3
ReplyDeleteNow, where were we story-wise? Oh, that's right. Fiona and Jay had formed some sort of fragile, peaceful-for-the-time-being alliance as each of them was chasing after their own mystery, but there goes the "peaceful" part now, huh? Didn't take long for Jay to revert back to his default settings... "Your mother is a zombie" had me roaring! x'D Subtle as a sledgehammer, our Jay. Though at this point I really gotta wonder - just how big of a crush did/does he have on Dr Kenley Dirac? Sure, she was somewhat of a childhood idol for him, but even so... he seems oddly protective of her somehow.
But I'm glad to see Fiona regain her fighting spirit, weary and exhausted as she is. For one thing, she's sure as hell gonna need it with Jay acting like his usual charming self, and for another, if her theory about her parents is true and if she's really headed the way I think she's headed, I've a feeling that she'll need all the courage she can muster. The closer she comes to discovering the truth, the weirder (and more dangerous) things seem to get... But all in due time, I guess.
I love how Hailie's toy dragon takes a prominent spot in this chapter. It's such a funky little thing, all green and winged and blocky, but none of that seems to stop it from having a mind of its own. Not wanting to stay in the position it's put? Shooting sparks of light out of thin air? No wonder Fiona felt compelled to carry it around with her everywhere! Sorry, Jay, you were dead wrong about this one. ;) And then, in a culmination of epicness, it even summoned Alisana back into the story... And this time she brought company! No, I'm not talking about the crow... ;)
Obviously, it's no secret that cc creators get all warm and fuzzy when they see something of theirs used in fellow simmers' games. I'm no exception. I get super gung ho even just catching a glimpse of my cc in someone's gameplay pic, so I think you can imagine just how completely overjoyed I was when I saw my recolor of the Draco Major strutting around this chapter like it owns it. Is it silly to admit that it totally made my day? If so, then I'm silly. Your stories are always a delight for me all on their own, but this, now this was really something special. My heart is full of all kinds of happy feels and it's all your fault! <3
And you know, this chapter made me realize something. For someone who's spent 3+ years building a world called Wyvern's Bay and has her entire game pretty much built around dragons, I spend embarrassingly little time thinking about the hows and whys behind the beasties. For example, I never really thought about the sounds a dragon might make, and it never occurred to me that it could snort. But now that I've seen it in your writing, it all makes perfect sense! An odd thing to get fixated on, I know, but I found that little detail just so adorable! (maybe because my own dog often snorts around me and I'm imagining the same only on a much, much bigger scale with Alisana and her dragon) It's small things like that that really "sell" a narrative, and now I can't wait to see more of Alisana and her snorting dragon and Jay and Fiona and the gorgeous views of South Beach (because let's be honest, those are a character all in their own right). Beautiful, beautiful work!
- Esotheria
I have to post this in pieces because blogger is swooning...
DeleteFirst, OH THANK YOU!! I am just breathless after reading one of your comments, flattered and excited and grateful and immediately thoughtful. Usefully thoughtful, I hope. You absolutely make a dark day bright.
Dragons. I spent time thinking about dragons as animals. What kind of animal would a dragon be, a big animal for sure, but like a big dog or a big cat or a horse or a bird? The size of a dragon makes me think in some ways it would behave like a horse instead of a dog. A dog is aware of the space you use. You can step on a dog and hurt it, and the dog knows that. A horse doesn't care where you are. It's big. It owns the space. It isn't concerned about problems associated with you getting into its space. It can kill you by crushing you against a wall. Birds are just totally different creatures and despite the wings, I don't think a dragon is like a bird. So it's sort of a dog-horse creature. A horse snorts. It makes a whicker sound deep in its throat when its happy. It can make a sound like a scream. It does not growl. A horse won't protect you. It depends on you to protect it. Horses don't have weapons either like a dog's teeth and a dragon has teeth and fire. Cats aren't protective either. Hey, tough spot you're in, see ya. I decided dragons are like dogs that are as big as horses and have talons like predatory birds.
Reply #2
DeleteJay. Jay is convinced his mother wishes he were someone else, someone he does not admire. 'Oh look at that, you did that just like Gabe would have.' 'You remind me so much of Gabe when you do that.' He has relatives who have nothing good to say about Gabe. Kenley Dirac was way up on a pedestal for Jay and he absolutely aspired to emulate her (unlike Gabe), and she 'mothered' him, paid attention to him, helped him do small things, sort of looked after him when he was cornered or bullied. Would Camilla have done those things? Of course, and she thought she did. For someone to claim that Kenley Dirac was delusional or stupid or ridiculous is like someone criticizing both his hero and his mother. It makes him angry and anxious and protective. And now he's caught in this mess and he doesn't know what was real, what was fake, whether Kenley was forced to do something or did it of her own free will, and he absolutely does not believe she would do magic. It would be a sign that Kenley Dirac was not the person he thought she was so maybe she didn't care about him like he thought she did. He's been an unhappy little boy, isn't happy as a teen, just had his dreams of a future threatened, and his heroine might not be real.
Fiona is relentless. She believes she can find the weapons she needs, make them up, scare or confuse people when it's necessary, and she does not consider quitting as a conceivable option. She doesn't need to quit. She's going to do this. Yes, she can, of course she can, and maybe she'll use Jay if she needs him (sorta). Period. She is truly afraid her parents are really dead but she has some reason now to believe her mother isn't, so maybe this is not just a quest for revenge.
I couldn't come up with a way to get from one place to another, couldn't have doorways opening up just at random, and realized Hailie could help me. The gift was for both her brother and Fiona but Fiona was right there and miserable, and the toy was a dragon, so it had to be magic. Just had to be.
Reply #3 - Blogger is at least not refusing to even respond now.
DeleteI LOVE your dragons! I want to be able to show them off in full light instead of the dark, which I'm planning on doing. I'm about to have to build a set for my next chapter (AHHHGGG) and would like to use some of your sim downloads. (I have them but in one case I ran into a problem - will let you know if it happens again.) The set is going to be as simple as I can make it,'fantasy', not medieval. These people can see cars, and planes, and Alisana watches people text on cell phones as she calmly walks in and out of her archway so they're not going to be banging out swords. Clothes are a problem. Anyway, I'm going to make it as easy on myself as possible and may come asking for ideas and help.
I wish I could do something for you that is as meaningful as what you do for me. Thank you!
This reading has a plethora of vivid imagery and depth with a free-flow. The simplicity in your pictures kept the reader engaged and I think that any other write would find that quite challenging. I highly encourage you to put your skill some place to get published and I think you will find many
ReplyDeletesatisfied readers. I will follow-up on all
Future production! Thanks ��
Thank you! How kind and so encouraging, thank you. I work very hard on both the pictures and the writing, and like many people I tend to be my own most severe critic. It is absolutely lovely to receive such a compliment. Thank you again!
DeleteThis was an awesome chapter! Their poses during conversation were great, totally matched their dialogue and emotions. And um the little girl looks creepy... and they remained pretty calm seeing the dragon. Very fun update!
ReplyDeleteThank you! Yeah, those poses were really hard to master. I wanted live conversation between the two of them as well so tried to find ways to overlay the poses, with very limited success. The little girl is definitely different and would probably give me the creeps if the rest of the scene hadn't scared me half to death! The shock of seeing a whole building come up out of the ground cushioned the OMFG reaction to seeing a dragon, or at least a really big strange scary looking animal. (I'd personally be more frightened by a large snarling dog, at least I think I would.)
DeleteIt is really nice to hear from you! Thanks so much for reading and leaving a comment.
This is awesome and so magical! Finally they get to see a dragon again! Loved what you did with the toy and the sparkles, so creative. The location is so lovely too, your shots are wonderful and the conversation and everything flows so nicely.
ReplyDeleteGreat update and looking forward to the next. :)
Hey it's so good to hear from you! Thanks for reading all these - I'm going to send replies going backwards (my normal method of dealing with life anyway).
DeleteI'm really glad you like this one. It was one of the hardest pieces I've ever tried to do from every angle, writing and location and shots, just all of it.
The toy had to be special. I've never attempted to enter a world like this, one I created a LONG time ago, and bring along characters like Jay and Fiona both of whom just walked out of the air for me. Hailie is one of them and a gift from her, that gift, definitely meant something special.
Again, I really appreciate that you read all of these and left me comments!
Love this! I really like the toy "clue" and wonder if Haille knows more.
ReplyDeleteHailie probably does. The dragon toy wasn't just a toy and she knew it and knew her brother would need it. Thank you so much!!
DeleteFirst of all: that harbor is absolutely stunning! So beautiful!!! Playing in that world must be so much fun.
ReplyDeleteSecond: this was a great way to portray the heroes' struggle and frustration, then the supernatural aid (dragon toy), leading to the revelation of their next challenge (I'm a little bit too obsessed with Campbell's Heroes Journey and can't help looking at stories with that in mind nowadays, haha!) Really nicely put together.
The way you used the building tool in TS2 to reveal this building was pure genious. The way it grew by increments out of the ground was great visually! I also love the building itself; it's so unique and reminds me of old ancient remains. It also looks a bit like a stage, with all the decoration in the front, and a flat backside. It's almost like the girl and the dragon has showed up to give Jay and Fiona a private show.
The dragon looks really cool! The size of it is perfect! It'll be exciting to se how this plays out. / Ani
Oh thank you!
DeleteI love that harbor too but it was enormously difficult to set up for those shots. I wanted lot view lighting on imposter lots which is impossible. I used Honeywell's Lot Imposter mod to make it possible. It's tricky and labor intensive (has to be individually installed in every window in every lot like a curtain) and doesn't reliably turn on. She's tried to make it as consistent as possible so you just have to work with it. When it works, it's wonderful. I set up the shots and moved in and out of the lot over and over again to grab it when it worked. I highly recommend it!
I've read Joseph Campbell's work many times and agree with you. The coming of age, the acceptance of responsibility and aid, and yes, the resemblance is there and deliberate. At one point he compared his situation (with frustration) with Luke Skywalker's, asking (mockingly) whether Fiona believed that was his role here. It didn't fit of course for a variety of reasons including the fact that he wouldn't recognize it.
Thank you so much about the building. I wanted something with a kind of courtyard feeling, nothing specifically historical but clean-lined, and relatively simply to create so I could recreate it if necessary. It's a reveal so in that sense it's definitely a stage. The dragon and the girl and the crow are together. The toy dragon lit up. The connection is there.
Thank you thank you!