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novasintheroom · 4 years

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Hey its ray-jaykub! I saw that you did requests and i was wondering if i could get head-cannons on the turtles and what they like to do with their respective s/os

OMG I love you!!! Okay I gotta calm down hooo

Leo

· Love love loves to carry you over rooftops and sit on high points to look over the city with you. This is one of his ways to calm down and think about things without his brothers’ around to stress him out, and having you there some nights, looking at the glitter of the lights – poetry for his heart

· Speaking of poetry – you guys will have contests for who can make the worst poems. Just something to pass off to each other between visits, something you find in your bag or in his bed sheets. Cheesy, unrhythmic, stupid, whatever. You guys have cried laughing before b/c of this. However, every once in a while he’ll slap you with a real intimate and loving poem that just makes you melt.

· You’ve started trying to sneak up on him. It doesn’t work. He still lets you do it, just so he can turn around and grab you at the last second. Sometimes he throws you on the nearest soft surface, sometimes he gives you a big kiss, sometimes he just starts carrying you around like a sack of potatoes – depends on his mood honestly. Your determination to spook him is cute.

· Watching or listening to True Crime stuff becomes a quick couple’s hobby for you guys. Usually it’s playing in the background as you each do chores or work on some project, but you’ll each talk about the case throughout. You’ve hit him more than once for giving away what happened or who killed who. He’s too good at figuring this kind of stuff out!

· He loves when you sit with him when he meditates. Even if you aren’t the meditating type, if you just sit quietly by him or read, he already feels much calmer. If he’s practicing balancing moves, he’ll sometimes grab you to hoist you up in the air, “to practice strength” at the same time. You’ve learned it’s a very bad idea to squirm when he’s got you planking above his head; he will start tickling you if you don’t keep still.

Raph

· Once he gets a good enough disguise, he loves to ride around on his newly built motorcycle with you on the city streets. It’s fun to zip through cars and people and drive out to the sparser points of the city to watch ships come in and out of the bay or go to a park outside the city to watch the lights as they all turn on at dusk.

· Loooovvess having movie nights with you. Seriously asks for it every week. You two get comfy on the couch with like 3 blankets thrown over your laps and watch something like Jurassic Park or Mad Max and gorge on buttery popcorn and chocolate. Sometimes you’ll slip in a chick flick like Pride and Prejudice. He acts like he doesn’t like it, but you’ve caught a goofy, happy smile on him more than once at the end of the movie, and then he starts lifting your hand like Mr. Darcy and adopting more “romantic” actions and it’s just *chef’s kiss*

· You guys will spar together. It’s kinda required once you date him; he wants you to be able to kick butt if he can’t get to you fast enough. But these sessions usually end up with you and him wrestling/tickling each other and him holding you down with a foot while he lifts weights. Get comfy princess, he ain’t moving that foot ‘til he get 100 reps.

· He has a really good eye for fashion and makeup. He’s actually the one that sews together all of his family’s clothes, as much as possible with the scraps they find around. It’s calming to make something instead of the stigma he has of destroying stuff. He’s the first person you SnapChat with an outfit just to make sure it looks good, and he sends back honest feedback, like “why do you still have that scarf, you know it doesn’t match anything in your closet,” or “try the red sweater with that long gold necklace you have.” Everyone compliments your outfits so much because of his input

· Likes to go swimming with you. There’s a few clear, clean pools in the sewers (Donnie approved) where you guys go just to have a good swim. There’s usually some candles lit and music playing. More often than not, you’ll end up laying on his chest while he floats on the surface and just enjoy each other’s company. At least until he gets the idea to dunk you.

Donnie

· Sneaking into the rafters of Broadway is a regular event for you guys. He manages to disable any security they have up around your “spot,” and you get a free show with your favorite person. He’ll be quoting his favorite lines for days after, all the while talking about the next show to see. He’d so be a theater kid if he had the chance.

· One of the main things that got you guys together in the first place was you helping him put together tech he’s working on. It still continues now, since you have a steady hand and a willing ear to listen to his theories and ideas. You’ve even inspired him a few times with your comments! It’s a casual bonding activity for you both, and he values your thoughts.

· Spontaneous dances are a must. Sometimes he’ll grab you and dance around the room – especially if an experiment of his goes well – sometimes it’ll be goofy dances to see how badly you two can embarrass anyone looking, and other times, you guys will just slow dance before you leave, just as a way to be close before having to part.

· You guys form your own little potted plant collection in the lair. It’s both a hobby, and a way for you to check on how he’s doing. If he’s doing well, the plants are watered and taken care of. If he’s getting sucked into things and forgetting to care for himself, the plants suffer. He tries to get an auto-watering system for them, but you shut that down quick. It’s good to do some things yourself rather than rely on technology!

· Cupcake Saturdays are a thing. He’ll take you to a bakery, where you’ll go in and get a box of cupcakes (extra frosting). You guys will then just chow down on them on the rooftop, often with him licking a lot of the frosting off the cupcakes before eating the actual “cake” part.

Mikey

· Such a fan of trying every new restaurant you can find in NYC. It’s become a date-night tradition every Thursday to either order or pick up some hole-in-the-wall place’s food, meet up somewhere, and Gordon Ramsay the crap out of the food. He does a mean Ramsay impression, and you’ve snorted more than one ramen noodle out of your nose from laughing so hard.

· If you aren’t a fan of video games, you will be once you date this guy. It’s not even just watching or playing video games with him, he’s just funny when he plays! He’ll make the most stupid comments about something going on in the storyline, or mess around, even glitch out a game. He’s managed to get out of the maps of Among Us more than once. You’re convinced if he started his own YouTube gaming channel, he’d be a quick star.

· Game nights are a must for you guys. It usually turns into a family game night with you, the turtles, Splinter, April and Casey, which Mikey just adores because he gets to see everyone he loves having fun. You two will usually team up against the others, or turn on each other to stab the other in the back. Uno and Cover Your Assets have made you guys question your loyalty to each other more than once. That Uno Reverse card, man…

· Arts and crafts are his favorite. Anytime a holiday is coming up, Mikey gets hyped ‘cause he knows you guys are gonna start making decorations for it. You guys will usually make decorations for each other. Mikey loves this, just because he feels like a normal person by having actual Halloween decorations around the lair instead of stuff he and his bros scraped together off the streets.

· Loves to stargaze with you in the summer time. He’ll convince Donnie to let him drive the truck out of the city to the countryside of New York, bring you with him, and set up on the roof of the truck in the middle of a field (that he totally didn’t crash through a wood fence to get to). Fireflies will fly over your faces, and he’ll joke that they’re shooting stars and make a thousand and one wishes on each of them. He won’t tell you that all of those wishes are for you and him to be together forever, but it’s not hard to guess with how mushy he gets after each one.

#ray-jaykub #supershiny-raven #answer #tmnt #tmnt x reader #request #headcanons #tmnt headcanons #leo x reader #raph x reader #donnie x reader #mikey x reader #leonardo x reader #raphael x reader #donatello x reader #michelangelo x reader #reader insert #my writing

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wheel-of-fish · 4 years

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By the Numbers Jöback, Hill, Stolle

By the Numbers: The Peter Jöback/Samantha Hill/Jeremy Stolle Stream, August 15, 2020

A more timely roundup! The things that can be accomplished without a kitten on your head!

This was a fascinating boot, featuring a Phantom with a lovely Swedish accented tenor voice, Samantha “too sweet to be hot, except to the Phantom” Hill, and release-the-thirst-floodgates Jeremy Stolle. The Stolle thirst was boundless. The Stolle thirst was all encompassing. There was scarcely a vocal phrasing, gesture, line read or body part that was not only mentioned but gushed over. I did not even begin to count the ways. Every category would have been “greater than infinity”. And, every comment was true. This man delivered! From the height of his tallness to the depths of his deep baritone, Stolle was on a roll in this boot. The boot itself was very good quality, only one large Head occasionally swallowing the action like a black hole. Very worth seeing! The passion of the AIAOY Kiss is matched only by the physics involved in making it happen between oh so tall Stolle and oh so small Hill. But true love always finds a way!

Suggested names for this boot: Jöback in Black Boot, IKEA Phantom Boot, Stolle the Show Boot (Okay, nobody suggested these. It was me. I suggested these. The first one was from Fish’s password for this stream, though!)

Statistician’s Favorite Boot Name: The FÅNTØM Boot (again, nobody’s suggestion but mine, spelling courtesy of missbuster)

Wow, we like to talk about Phantoms: Well this week, we seemed to talk about everybody except other Phantoms. Oh sure, some were mentioned, but let’s mix it up and see what other names were dropped this week. Supply your own context for even greater amusement, because heaven knows you won’t find it here. These numbers are a lot more accurate because, again, no kitten on head this week. It occurs to me that instead of meticulous record keeping, I could just make crap up. Not this week. Maybe next week. All these people were genuinely mentioned in this week’s stream.

Carly Rae Jepsen (7), Vin Diesel (1), John Travolta (3), Antonio Banderas (5), Hugh Jackman (3), Ian McKellen (3), Judy Dench (1), Emmy Rossum (2), Anne Hathaway (4), Russell Crowe (3), Patrick Wilson (1), James Corden (1), Rebel Wilson (1), Hadley Fraser (1), Kelly O’Hara (1), Francesca Hayward (1), Michael Gruber (1)

Fond mentions of 1998 “Cats”: 6

Mentions of 2019 “Cats”: 12 (I have left out any adjectives as most were Not Charitable.)

Opinions that “Cats” should only be done as an animation: 2

Oh, hey, yeah, another Phantom, mentions of Gerard Butler: 5 (I have left out any adjectives as most were along the lines of Bless His Heart)

Oh, hey, yeah, another Phantom, mentions of Paul Stanley: 14 (I have left out any adjectives as most were somewhere between Not Charitable and Bless His Heart)

Wishes for Rose to have good luck on her date while the rest of us stayed glued to our monitors on a Saturday night: 9

Inappropriate Random Zoom: to Christine’s dressing table during Raoul’s visit (not NEARLY as inappropriate as the Random Zoom to Barbara the mannequin’s doors of summer during last week’s stream.)

Self-Caress mentions: 3 (The Phantom. The PHANTOM. Not whatever you were thinking.)

What scent are the Phantom’s candles: Hopeless Mist (no, the Phantom’s candles were not discussed this week. As the creator of the candle line which includes Underground Despair, I have decided to use this statistical summary to focus group test additional scentsations suitable for the Phantom’s Lair. You are warned that this may be an Ongoing Feature.)

For Science mentions: 6

Boner mentions: 2 (I will not name names, you know who you are)

Apparent confirmation of boner mentions by people noticing Christine looking down during The Sprawl: 3

Is there any safe way to say that boner mentions are ummm trending downward?: No

Unofficial Dialogue: “TA DAAA” when the Phantom reveals the mirror bride (courtesy Wheel-of-fish, who just barely beat haunted-hideaway to it)

Outrageous Rumors Category:

“Carly Rae Jepsen as Meg…..A dream”—deardaaery

“Carly Rae Jepsen played Meg???” –mrskroger

“I love how these streams can be used to start outrageous rumors”—Aldebaran

“rushing to tumblr to tell everyone about carly rae jepsen playing meg”—Wheel-of-fish

“Vin Diesel played Raoul, fact”—Aldebaran

IKEA mentions: 10

Suggestions for additional characters Jeremy Stolle could play in the All Stolle Show (phantom-of-the basement): Mirror Bride (christinegrrl), Monkey Music Box (Flora-Gray), Madame Firmin (ktarinajones)

Everyone’s a critic: “First review for the all stolle show has to be “he stolle the show” otherwise it’s a missed opportunity”—butdreamsofbeauty

The Phantom’s pillows mentions: 7

People of the opinion that the Phantom should use one of his 600 pillows as a cushion for fainted Christine’s head: 2 (question and number of pillows estimated by ashadeintheshade)

Vintage madamefaust on the Pillow Question:

Look, he took a long time arranging those pillows. They’re from Pier One, they’re expensive, he doesn’t want to put them on the floor.

Erik has skillz:

“You know he’s handy. Everything is probably homemade. Bitch can sew a hem.”—Melancholy’s Child

“Erik as a contestant on Project Runway”—Benny-Lynne

“I’m convinced he hand-sewed the Red Death costume.”—haunted-hideaway

“Five and half months working on that Red Death cosplay”—yamiangie

“has a “Red Death” pintrest”—blahahala

Outrageous Rumors Part Two:

“The pillows are hot-glued to the boat”—wheel-of-fish

People who fell for the Phantom hot-gluing pillows to the boat: 4

Outrageous Rumors Part Three

“Carly Rae Jepsen hot glued those pillows”—wheel-of-fish

We stan a crafty Phantom:

“I just like the idea of Erik with a glue gun”—wheel-of-fish

“erik bedazzling things”—butdreamsofbeauty

“He DEFINITELY has a bedazzler.”—madamefaust

“erik bedazzles his own capes”—christinegrrl

“erik with a staple gun putting pillows on a boat: KACHUNK”— phantomofthebasement

Barbara Speaks:

“Being a mirror bride must be a hard job”—mrskroger

“damn straight”—the-real-barbara

Rare Don Atillio appreciation mention: 1

Andre’s probable fear of ballerinas mentions: 6 (as suggested by madamefaust)

Andre’s issue gets a name: Tutuphobia—Aldebaran

Possible alternate ending for POTO:

There’s like 8 ballerinas….if they all came together the Phantom would have no chance.—hell-lawliet

That’s why Buquet always carries a noose, fear of ballerinas–Aldebaran

AIAOY Kiss comments: 45 comments in 24 seconds

Requests for AIAOY Kiss replay: 6 (replay occurred)

Incorrect use of the Raoul as an International Unit of Measure: 1 (I misstated in the stream that Christine would be 1.62 Raouls in height. This is clearly false, as it would make her much taller than Raoul, who is already impossibly tall. Using as our values Mr. Stolle at 6’3” and Ms. Hill at 5’4”, Christine’s height expressed in Raouls would be .8533 Raouls. The statistician regrets the error. This is why maybe I should just make crap up next time. No, I will not convert the heights to the metric system.)

Debut of IKEA Phantom:

“And the Phantom is just quietly weeping in the angel because…even he knows that is a hard act to follow”—madamefaust

“That is a kiss to cause a Phantom mental breakdown for sure”—Flora-Gray

“oh no the ikea phantom becomes unassembled”—Aldebaran

“he wasn’t anchored to the wall”—Benny-Lynne

“Someone get the allen wrench, we need to put back together a saad boi”—haunted-hideaway

Unholy Trinity of Cooper/Thiago/Uwe mentions: 1 (by madamefaust, who perhaps is protected by the sheer power of her vast Phannish humor and talent. Please do not invoke the Unholy Trinity on a whim yourself.)

Respect given to Steve Barton in the form of “Fs”: 11 (entirely appropriate at any time but especially during a boot with such a stellar Raoul)

Red Death as a Swedish Fish mentions: 3 (not to his face, never to his face)

“tiny swedish fish red death”—Aldebaran

“HE IS A SWEDISH FISH”—madamefaust

“the most dramatic swedish fish”—butdreamsofbeauty

Best from Onthevirg’s Mom: “We should talk about Phantom Jaws”

Fathering Gaze lyric: 1

Split decision on the statement by mrskroger that Wandering Child has a strong Daddy’s Home vibe:

*Strong NO from Wheel-of-fish

*Strong YES from Benny-Lynne

That staff tho:

“Fire Pez One. Fire Pez Two.”—Aldebaran

“Skeletor Pez Dispenser”—DoCTy

“I wonder what it’s like to be that dramatique that you fashion a staff that shoots fire”—haunted-hideaway

“He probably bedazzled the staff as well”—Aldebaran

“oh he definitely bedazzled it”—christinegrrrl

“ ‘bedazzled staff’ definitely sounds like something hmm”—onthevirg

Number of audience cell phone rings at insanely crucial moments: 1

Attempting to bring Logic to PONR:

“I know it’s a plot device, but who has a hood that big, really?”—haunted-hideaway

“THIS IS THE EXACT SAME MAN. MUCH STEALTH. SUPER INCOGNITO”—madamefaust

“Yeah, I don’t know guys…I don’t think that’s Piangi…?” —Flora-Gray

“yeah swedish italian accent is a giveaway”–Aldebaran

Education of the Innocent:

“ok, I don’t know The Lore, why do we call her Barbara”—butdreamsofbeauty

“Haunted named her in a stream. She said: ‘Her name is Barbara and she had hopes and dreams once.’ I said I would never forget it and I have not.”–Aldebaran

The mob storms IKEA:

“time to flat pack the FÅNTØM”—missbuster

“So you’re saying Stolle should just squash the Phantom” —GlassPrism

“he comes apart for easy handling”—missbuster

“Get the Allen wrench”—madamefaust

Reactions to the Phantom after Christine’s final exit: 37 comments in 59 seconds

Sad comment is sad: We don’t even need the allen wrench, he came apart on his own. – madamefaust

Things I wish I had said:

“Moist Raoulette”—haunted-hideaway

“no Tol Raol Pol?”—missbuster, at not seeing Raoul boating away post Final Lair

“No Stolle Tolle Rolle Polle?”—missbuster, with continued disappointment

Dreams do come true:

You know. If you had told 14 year old me that in the future I could watch Phantom EVERY WEEKEND I would have died on the spot—missbuster

Statistician Aldebaran’s two no three favorite personal quotes:

re: Jöback “He crawls with an accent”

“Raoul conveniently wore a ladder jacket to make it easier for Christine to climb”

“Erik is just in a perpetual state of PONR”

Thank you as always for the submission, kind statistician Aldebaran!

#gooood stuff #saturday streams #submission #aldebaran #by the numbers

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aedelia · 4 years

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The Best Gifts

How do you thank someone for not only saving your friends and family’s lives, but your future too? Saying it is a good start, but Danny thinks a gift would be nice too.

Danny was bored. He was beyond bored actually. Two days into Spring Break and he has nothing to do. Sam and her family were off on a trip to somewhere in Europe. Tucker has relatives visiting and can't hang out, and Jazz has practically been living in the library to work on some big senior project that will be due when school gets back. Even his parents were gone, some exclusive paranormal conference in New York, and they wouldn't be back until the weekend.

Danny heaved a heavy sigh. No ghosts had attacked for the last four days and now knowing the value of good time management, he had already managed to finish all of his schoolwork. He listlessly tapped his fingers against the kitchen table where he was seated. Playing Doomed solo was an option, but it's nowhere near as fun by himself, and it feels weird to play video games so early in the day. He got up from his seat and paced for a bit. He could go flying, but he didn't want to tempt the peace or any ghosts hanging about. He stopped and drank a whole glass of water just for something to do. Hydration is important, right? He resumed his pacing for several more minutes, wracking his brain for any ideas that could interest him. He would work on a model rocket, but he had finished the one he got for Christmas over winter break.

He stopped in front of the fridge and glanced at the clock on the wall, it's not too early for lunch. He grabbed a box of saltines out of the cupboard and pulled out a handful. Setting the box back on the counter he eased open the fridge door.

"Hey guys, I have a nice snack for you." he said as he checked for any loose ectoweenies. He couldn't help the sad noise that escaped him when he saw the plate with last night's leftovers had been cleaned bare. At least one weenie must have gotten out of the drawer. He placed a cracker on the plate to lure the escapee from hiding. Small, high-pitched growls greeted him as he slid the duct taped drawer open a couple of inches and sprinkled crushed saltine in the gap.

The ectoweenies were kind of cute when they weren't eating his lunch. Jazz was by far the best cook in the family and he had been looking forward to enjoying the meatloaf again for lunch. His musings were interrupted by tiny crunching sounds. "Aha!" he exclaimed as he snatched the miscreant up off of the plate.

"You've had enough of an adventure, time to go back home," he dropped the weenie through the open gap in the drawer. "Ouch!" he yelped as it managed to bite his thumb on the way down. Danny pouted as he stuck his thumb in his mouth to suck on the bite. The returned weenie was growling its story to the others as he toed the drawer closed before using his free hand to reseal the duct tape.

"For some reason, I'm not that hungry anymore..." Danny muttered as he inspected his thumb. Thank goodness for supernatural healing, what was a bleeding cut a moment ago was already reduced to a light pink line.

Danny resumed his pacing for a moment before sitting back down at the table. He rested his chin on his arms as he watched the seconds tick by on the clock.

‘I have so much time and all I can think of doing is watching the clock tick.’ He mused on the irony of trying to make time and when he finally has some, he can hardly use it.

‘I wonder what Clockwork does when he isn’t pretending to try to kill me. To think that he had planned for us to try to escape to the future to see Dan in order to set me on the path of overcoming that future.’ He frowned, ‘Even then I didn’t actually make it in time to save anyone. It was really nice of Clockwork to not only save them, but to set me further back afterwards so that I could keep my secret and do some damage control. I didn’t even get a chance to thank him for his help.’ He rose to his feet and started pacing once more. “I really should thank him. I think I remember where his lair is. It might take an hour or two of flying if nothing interferes… Should I just show up? That seems kind’ve rude. Maybe I should get him a gift? Thanks for saving my family and friends, and you know, not killing me when you could have. Yeah I should definitely bring a gift, that would be the polite thing when just showing up at someone’s home.” His pacing slowed as his thoughts deepened.

“But what gift do you give the ghost who can control time? And also saved you and your family from terrible fates... He said time is like a parade that he watches from above but it was more like he was helping to direct the parade than just watching.” Danny grinned in delight as inspiration struck, “I know the perfect thing!” he said as he dashed out the door at a quarter to eleven, patting his pocket to check for his wallet as he went.

-----

A quick scooter ride later and he was at the outlet stores by the mall. He looked fondly at the video game store before parking his scooter and walking into the music store. He browsed around the aisles, poking at one or two of the display instruments. ‘I remember when we came here so Jazz could pick an instrument in Middle School; I don’t think she’s played since then.’

When the lady at the desk finished with her short line of customers (mostly band kids buying reeds or random accessories), Danny popped out from the shelves to ask her, “Hey, do you guys have the kind of baton that bands use in parades? I’m looking for a gift for a conductor I know.”

She pursed her lips in thought before sliding her chair over to her computer next to the register. “Hang on; let me see if we have anything like that in stock.” Danny tried to keep from fidgeting as she spent a couple of minutes typing and clicking away at the computer. He was trying to decide whether or not to scratch his nose when she turned back to him.

“So we don’t have anything like that in the store right now. You could special order one if you’d like but that would take a while and unless you wanted a gag gift, would be pretty expensive…” At his crestfallen expression she continued, “However, if you would like to get your conductor friend a conducting baton, a good quality one runes about $20-30 and we have a nice selection I can show you.”

Danny’s face lit up, “It’s not my first idea, but that would be just as good!” The store clerk smiled at him and standing from her computer chair, she led him to one of the display cases by the register.

“These are arranged by price and material. This side is the lower end and is mostly fiberglass and cheaper wood or rubber,” she said, gesturing to Danny’s left, “and these are the nicer, more durable ones to your right. My favorite is the rosewood style right there.” She pointed to a medium priced baton with a nice reddish wooden bulb.

“Tell you what, since this is for a gift, if you get one of the wooden ones I’ll engrave a name for you for free.”

Danny grinned at her, “That rosewood one you pointed out would be great! For the name, could you put it as Clockwork?”

She smiled back at him and chuckled a little, “As in, when they’re conducting everything runs like clockwork?”

“Yeah kinda like that, it’s a nickname, so could you capitalize the C?”

“Of course, that’ll be $25.96 after tax.”

Danny paid her and watched as she pulled a slim case from below the counter. She popped the end cap off and pulled out the new baton.

“Looks to be in perfect shape, give me a minute and I’ll have the name engraved for you.” She picked up a small tool slightly thicker and longer than a pen and flipped a switch on the side. A low buzzing filled Danny’s ears as she carefully engraved the name on the shaft in neat handwriting. The tip of her tongue was sticking out of her mouth as she concentrated. She flipped the tool off and stowed it out of sight before blowing on the engraving to help cool it and to remove any dust. She waved it a couple of times before neatly sliding it back into the case and handing it to him.

“There you go, one personalized baton for your friend!” she chirped.

“Thank you so much, I’m sure he’ll like it!” Danny effused before heading out the door with a wave to the friendly salesperson. He retrieved his scooter and helmet and headed back to Fentonworks. The whole trip only took about half an hour.

-----

Once back at home, Danny stowed his scooter and made a quick stop back in the kitchen. He slapped together a peanut butter sandwich so he wouldn’t have to deal with the ectoweenies again. He scarfed it and washed it down with another glass of water.

“Ok!” he said, talking aloud to help psyche himself up. “I should leave a note for Jazz somewhere in case I’m out when she gets home, and then I need to store the gift in my ghost space pocket so I don’t lose it on the trip. I think that’s everything,” he said with his arms crossed and tapping his fingers against his elbow. He nodded and then reached for the notepad next to the fridge to write out a quick note for his sister.

‘Hey Jazz, I’m going for a visit to see Clockwork, he’s the guy who helped me out during the CAT stuff. Nothing is wrong. I’m going to thank him and probably visit for a bit. Don’t know how long it’ll take but don’t worry if I’m not home yet.’

“She’ll probably still worry and tell me that it’s her job as my big sister, but at least she’ll know I wasn’t kidnapped or something. This should keep her from looking for me too. She’s not going to go searching for me in the ghost zone unless I’m gone a really long time.”

He put the note in the middle of the table then grabbed the gift and lightly skipped down the stairs to the lab. A quick flash of light and Danny tucked the slim case into the special space pocket where he normally keeps his thermos and cell phone. Discovering that ability had made his ghost fighting a lot simpler, no more racing to his locker to grab a thermos or trying to discreetly pull it from his bag when he says he’s going to the bathroom. He still keeps a spare in his locker and under his bed. Sam and Tucker both keep a few too. It never hurts to be prepared, especially when it comes to ghost fighting.

He pulled off his glove and unlocked the portal. It was kind’ve funny that his DNA was still recognizable to the Fenton scanner in ghost form. After pulling his glove back on, he slipped through the portal and was on his way.

-----

Danny hummed cheerfully as he flew through the green and purple mists of the ghost zone. He had been so bored, but he found the perfect thing to do! Even better, since his parents weren’t home, he won’t have to worry about being locked in the zone.

He did a loop and waved at some cute blob ghosts before significantly increasing his speed. ‘I might be able to shave off some of my travel time if I fly near top speed, it’ll be good exercise too.’

Danny continued to increase his flight speed until his surroundings blurred and he weaved among the floating islands, rocks, and other debris with minute adjustments to his path. Amazingly enough, he didn’t encounter any ghosts itching for a fight. ‘Maybe it’s because I’m in the Zone, most ghosts that come through the portal have some sort of goal. Most in the Ghost Zone just want to be left alone. It could also be partly the speed I’ve been going, harder for anyone to try to fight me if I’m already gone by time they notice me.’

He slowed his pace down as the floating gears that fill the space near Clockwork’s lair began to appear. ‘I wonder where all these gears come from. He does have a lot of clocks. Maybe he used to have more? I can always ask him later if the visit goes well.’ Danny gently touched down in front of the large door to the lair. He took a deep breath, thinking, ‘I hope he doesn’t mind a visit. Of course he probably already knows I’m coming here, but still.’ and then firmly clanged the doorknocker.

A few seconds passed and then Clockwork opened the door with a slight smile, “Daniel. Please come in.,” he said while beckoning with his free arm.

“I hope it’s ok that I just showed up.” Danny said as he stepped into Clockwork’s lair for the second time.

“It’s perfectly alright. You are welcome here Daniel, I can always make time for you.” Clockwork replied as he closed the door behind them.

‘Did he just make a pun?’ Danny wondered, pausing in his surprise before following Clockwork into a lounge area that he hadn’t seen on his initial visit. ‘Not that I really had much time to look around with everything going on and Clockwork manipulating us for a better future. On the subject of that diverted timeline, I shouldn’t forget what brought me here in the first place.’

Clockwork, currently in adult form, had stopped and was now floating by a flat gear suspended at coffee table height.

“Clockwork,” Danny said, “I really want to thank you for your help with that horrible future. I really appreciate that not only did you save my friends and family; you also gave me a second chance to fix my relationship with Mr. Lancer about the cheating thing. He let me retake the test and actually let me study for it during detentions. He even answered questions that I had about the material!” Danny paused to take a breath, “To show my gratitude for your help and to say thank you for giving me a chance, I got this for you.” He rotated his arm slightly to reach into his sub-pocket and pulled out the slim case holding the engraved baton.

As he handed it to Clockwork he said, “It’s not much but I was thinking about how you said you see time like a parade that you’re watching from above, it felt more like you were directing the parade a bit and I’m really glad you kept it from marching off a cliff…” Danny trailed off, halting his ramblings as Clockwork opened the case and gently withdrew the baton. He phased to his older form as he lightly ran his gloved fingers over the engraving of his name.

“It is a lovely gift, thank you Daniel. It is very thoughtful and especially fitting in your case. I will cherish it.,” he said as he slid it into an invisible pocket up his sleeve. “I am glad that you decided to come by. Due to my actions on your behalf, I have been given charge and responsibility for you. Think of me as your ghostly guardian, or mentor. You should feel free to visit me anytime, whether you have questions, are looking for advice, or just want to spend time in a safe place. Cookie?” he offered as he switched to his child form.

Danny was sure his jaw was hanging loose as Clockwork finished informing him of their new potential relationship. Given that he was currently in ghost form, that could be a lot more literal than normal. He was still trying to process this bombshell when his whole train of thought derailed at the sight of the cookie that Clockwork was holding out to him.

“That cookie is green. And glowing.” he said as he cautiously reached out for it.

“Of course it is, “Clockwork replied, “The flour was soaked in raw ectoplasm before it was baked.”

Danny looked slightly repulsed but curious as he examined the cookie now in his hand, “Is it safe for me to eat?” he asked.

“Yes it is, and actually, on the subject of nutrition,” Clockwork said, phasing back to his adult form once again, “You need to increase your ectoplasm intake if you want to remain healthy while using your powers. The easiest ways for you to do this would be to accept it into your diet, such as with these cookies,” he gestured towards the still uneaten cookie in Danny’s hand, “or you can absorb ambient energy from spending time in the Ghost Zone.”

“Wow, you’re being a lot more straight forward now than when you helped save the future.” Danny remarked.

“When I helped you, my hands were tied by my employers; they wanted me to eliminate you instead of solving the root of the problem. Now that I have responsibility for both you and the alternate phantom, I am able to directly advise you when you have a problem as opposed to the convoluted run around that was necessary to keep the Observants from interfering further.” He shifted to his elder form and concluded with, “Maybe they wouldn’t be so shortsighted if they had two eyes instead of just one.”

Danny smiled slightly at the dig at the pretentious eyeballs. He had encountered them a few times while exploring the zone but hadn’t known what their jobs were at the time. “I know I promised that I’ll never turn into Dan, and I’m planning on always keeping my promise! But, is there anything that I need to watch out for to keep everything on track?”

“Do not worry. The actions that you have taken and the choices that you have made have decisively prevented you from ever becoming Dan. You have committed yourself to doing what is right, and remember, Dan was not just you, he was a combination of Phantom and Plasmius. You have nothing to worry about as long as you keep going as you have been. Eat your cookie.”

Danny nibbled at his cookie and was surprised that it tasted really good to him. It was a sugar cookie with a lemon-lime aftertaste that somehow worked really well. As he finished the cookie, he realized that it satisfied a craving that he hadn’t realized he had. Like finally scratching an itch. Danny ate another ecto-cookie from the plate on the table as Clockwork looked on in his child form.

“So I can visit tomorrow too?” Danny asked.

“Of course you may Daniel, you are welcome here any,” he paused and smirked slightly, “…time.” he finished, shifting to adult form.

Danny grinned at him, Clockwork liked puns too! He floated over to the older ghost and tentatively reached for a hug. Clockwork did not hesitate in holding him tight and completing the embrace.

“You are a good and precious child; I already am anticipating your next visit. Unfortunately, you will need to be leaving soon if you do not want your sister to form a search party. She has finished early at the library and will be heading for home shortly.”

Danny hid his smile against Clockwork’s chest as he felt his hair being ruffled. The ticking of the clock under his cheek was comforting.

“Thank you again for saving my whole world. And thanks for the advice and the open invitation. I’ll definitely be visiting more this week.”

Clockwork gave Danny’s head a final pat before separating, “As long as you fly the same speed or faster going home as you did coming here, you will avoid any encounters and will make it home with plenty of time to reassure your sister and to tell her about your day.” Clockwork shifted to his elder form and with his characteristic smirk, stated, “Later Gator.”

Danny beamed with delight as they floated to the door.

“After a little while, Crocodile.”

“We’re far too gharialous for a traditional parting.”

It took Danny a moment to work gharial and garrulous apart before he could shoot back, “Caiman, these puns are getting old.”

Clockwork replied by waggling his eyebrows and shifting to his child form, “Actually, you will find that they are getting younger.”

Danny laughed and waved to his new mentor as he floated out into the ghost zone proper, “I’ll see you tomorrow, bye!” he shouted as he turned and sped off towards home.

Clockwork shut the door once Danny was out of sight and moved to his time viewing room where Danny flying home showed on the main screen. Some of the smaller screens floating off to the side showed him dropping the ecto-weenie back into the drawer in the refrigerator and eating dinner with his sister.

“There are some advantages to being the master of time, and taking care of such a wonderful and delightful child is definitely one of them. The puns are a bonus too.” he mused with a slight lisp and fingering the baton that he’d been gifted. He watched Danny talking to himself during his flight home.

“…and I should ask him where those gears around his lair come from tomorrow. Oh! And if the ectoplasmic contamination in Mom’s cooking is actually a good thing for me. I need to learn about more types of animals and things so I don’t run out of puns!” He was flying home with a huge smile.

-----

True to Clockwork’s words, Danny once again didn’t have any unfriendly encounters while he travelled. He had even managed to shave a couple more minutes off of his flight time! He slowed down as he approached the Fenton Portal and slipped through at normal speed. When he popped through he startled his sister where she was fiddling with some ghost hunting gadgets. “Danny!” she yelled, dropping a Fenton Thermos and some miscellaneous inventions that didn’t actually do anything. She threw her arms around him as he transformed back to human form. “I read your note but I was starting to get worried! I finished early at the library so that I could get dinner started.”

Danny gave her a quick hug back before responding, “I’m fine. Actually, I’m way better than fine! I’ll tell you all about it upstairs, do you think you could make meatloaf again? An ectoweenie ate all of the leftovers.”

His sister ruffled his wind-swept hair before tugging him towards the stairs. “Of course, little brother, I’m so glad that you had a good day and weren’t just playing video games or bored the whole time.” They headed upstairs together and Danny started off his story, “So I was really bored this morning. Incredibly bored. Then I got the perfect idea…”

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donotgogentlyintothatgoodnight · 6 years

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Stranger Places (a stranger things tale) chapter six: eclipse of the heart

Description: Everything changes when Dustin finds his mother’s lifeless body, but he is quickly reminded that he still has family when his older sister comes home. Though she is not the company he wants, can he learn to live with her? Can she readjust to life in Hawkins?

“Come on, Lucas!” Max shouted. “He’s right there. You can totally get him!”

“I’m trying!” He told her, as he moved the joy stick and jammed his finger viciously down on the buttons. But it was too late. The screen read in big letters “GAME OVER.”

“Damn it!” Lucas yelled. “This game sucks!”

“Maybe its just you that sucks,” Max teased, pinching his arm. Lucas rolled his eyes. “Who’s next?” he asked.

“Dustin, you want to give it a try?” Will asked him.

“That’s okay,” He told them. “I’m gonna go play Dragon’s Lair. You guys keep trying though.”

They shrugged and he headed away.

“Wait up!” Dustin paused. He turned to find Mike behind him. “Galaga’s stupid,” he told him. Dustin smiled.

Dustin put in a quarter and the opening music started. Dustin began moving his character, making him run, jump, and swing his sword.

“So how’s it at Steve’s?” Mike asked.

“Okay,” Dustin answers. “He wakes up way too early though. The dude’s a freak.”

“Better than Hopper’s?”

“At least in sleeping arrangements. I have a bed in a room now,” He told him.

“What a luxury,” another voice says. The two look over to the right of them, to find a girl around the same age as them playing Star Wars. “Me and my sister share a room and a bed,” she says, not looking away from the screen.

“I’m sorry?” Dustin tells her, confused as of why she was telling them this.

“Don’t apologize,” she told him. “Just be grateful for having what you have.”

“Who are you?” Mike asked the girl with the short black bob.

She logged her name into the top score board. “A mystery,” she answered, waving her hands in the air. She giggled and skipped away. When she was out of sight, Dustin and Mike shuffled over to the other game. the new score read as “K-ME”

“Kay-me?” Dustin tried to decipher what she had put in. Mike nudged him, pointing at the screen. “Kimmy.”

“Oh,” he replied.

Mike chuckled. “I think she liked you.”

“No. Why?” Dustin asked, confused.

Mike shrugged. “Just a feeling. Lets get back to Dragon’s Lair.”

Dustin searched around for her from his spot, but she really had disappeared. If he did have a chance with her, it was long gone.

Dustin and Steve sat in front of the T.V while they ate pizza. Steve had rented Evil Dead, hoping it would cheer Dustin up after having to go back to school.

“How was your day?” Steve asked.

“Mrs. Gonzales is making me see her every week now.”

“Sheesh,” Steve replied. “Sorry, dude.”

Dustin shrugged. “The party and I also went to the arcade after school for a little bit. I met a girl there.”

Steve laughed. “That’s great! whats her name?”

“Kimmy, I think.”

Steve nodded. “Cool, when are you seeing her again?”

Dustin paused. “I’m not. I didn’t get her phone number. She just kinda said I was lucky to have a bedroom to myself and left.”

Steve raised his eyebrow at him.

“Don’t ask. It confused me too.” He told him. “How was your day?” Dustin asked, switching the conversation over to Steve.

“Good. Practice went well for the most part,” he told him, leaving out the part where Billy and a few of the boys talked about Jackie like a piece of meat.

Dustin nodded, taking another bite of his pizza.

“I, uh,” Steve began. “I ran into Jackie today too.”

“So?” Dustin replied, with a mouth full of cheese and bread.

“I think she had a pretty rough day.”

Dustin seemed unfazed by the statement.

“Some girls were bothering her today,” Steve added, thinking it would make Dustin a little more sympathetic, but it didn’t. Instead, all he said was, “Girls are weird.”

Steve sighed. “Yeah, but that’s besides the point. I think she could use a friend.”

Dustin let out a huff. “If I say I’ll go visit her Thursday after school, will you stop talking during the movie?”

“That depends,” Steve told him. “Do you mean it?”

“Yes, now watch Ash kick the shit out of this demon thing.”

Steve smiled, proud of himself and grabbed the last slice of pizza.

When Thursday did roll around, Jackie decided that she had spent enough time hiding from her problems and came back to school. Steve noticed her standing at her locker, grabbing a few of her belongings from there, before heading out to start her day outside of classes. He started walking over but stopped when he saw another person strut up to her. Billy Hargrove.

“Hey! There you are, good lookin’,” Billy greeted her. “I missed you.”

She looked around her. “Oh, you’re actually talking to me?” she played dumb.

Billy threw her one of his signature smiles. “Jackie right?”

“Friends call me Jackie,” she told him. “You can call me Jacqueline.”

“Can you believe her?” Steve overheard a girl say to her friend. “Freaking Billy Hargrove and she’s acting like he’s repulsive.”

He is, Steve thought.

“Alright then, Jacqueline,” he said, “How about you and me get together some time? I can show you around town?”

She laughed, “Thanks but I know my way around town.”

“Then how about a movie?”

She closed her locker and looked him in the eyes with a smile. “How about no?” And with that, she left him standing there, feeling defeated and irritated by her locker. Steve couldn’t help but smile at the way Jackie shot Hargrove down though. She was tougher than she looked.

Jackie went out through the front exit and started walking to her mother’s car. She had decided to start using it since she had finally found the keys for it and it was way too cold to keep walking home.

“Jacqueline,” she heard her name being called in a familiar voice. She turned around to see Dustin running up to the car. Her heart jumped and a smile spread across her face. “Dustin!” she said excitedly. “ How are you? Do you need something? Do you need a ride to Steve’s or the arcade or somewhere?”

“Actually,” he began and let out a shiver. “Shit, its cold out.”

She took off the scarf she was wearing and handed it to him. He stared at it for a moment, recognizing it. “You went in my room?” he questioned her, irritated.

“Only for a second. I needed something warm,” she explained herself. “What were you going to say though.”

Dustin sighed. “I, uh, was wondering,” he started. “Would you wanna hang out today?”

She smiled. “Ah, Dusty-”

“Dustin,” he corrected her.

“Sorry. Dustin, I can’t today. I start my job at Cindy’s.”

Dustin was sort of relieved to hear this. He really wasn’t ready to hang out with her yet.

“What about saturday?” she asked him.

“Saturday, me and the guys are running a dnd campaign.”

“Oh,” she said, disappointed. “Well maybe-”

“Dustin! You wont believe what just happened to Jeremy Davidson!” Lucas yelled at him, with Mike and Will behind him.

“Yeah!” Mike began. “The kid’s crazy! He got like twenty jello packets and just decided to start throwing them down the hall so he could slide down them, and Mr. Anderson slipped on one, breaking his nose! He just got four week suspension!”

“His excuse was that it was for a science experiment!” Will added.

“What are you doing out here anyway?” Lucas asked, but then noticed the teenager Dustin was talking to. They all stared up at Jackie. Jackie felt nervous, like there was something on her face that was gross they weren’t telling her about.

“Um, Hi guys?”

The boys smiled. “Jackie!” The boys attacked her knocking her over, back pack and all. She laughed.

“Geez, guys!” Dustin said irritated.

“When did you get back?” Mike asked.

“Saturday.”

“Where have you been?” Will chimed in.

“Just away,” she said with a giggle.

“We missed you!” Lucas told her. “The original Dungeon Master!”

“Oh my god!” Mike exclaimed. “You have to lead our campaign saturday! Like old times.”

“Maybe, that would be cool!” she told them, happy that they still remembered her.

“We can all go over to your house!” Lucas added. “We have two new party members though that were going to join us.”

“Sounds like a blast!” she added.

Dustin rolled his eyes and started walking towards Steve’s car. The last thing he wanted was for Jackie to be hanging out with his friends. Why couldn’t she make her own?

“Why aren’t you with the rest of the shitheads?” Steve teased.

“They’re busy,” Dustin said aggravated. “Let’s just go.”

“I thought you were hanging out with Jack-”

“She’s busy today,” he cut Steve off. “Let’s go.”

You would’ve thought that Cindy’s diner was actually ran by Cindy. But it’s Cindy’s grandson, Nicholas, that actually manages and runs the place since Cindy has since moved to St. Augustine, Florida since opening up the quaint diner. Jackie followed around Cindy’s great-granddaughter, Beatrice for her first training shift. Beatrice was funny; she had the biggest hair in Hawkins, wore bright orange lipstick with blue eye shadow, and a know-it-all attitude that the customers loved. Jackie spent her five hour shift following Beatrice around, taking orders, learning where everything was, food running, and pulling the hem of her uniform’s skirt down. By the time it was time to leave, it was 10:30 pm and she was exhausted from the day.

“You did a good job today,” Beatrice told her. “I think you could actually be on the floor by yourself next shift.”

Jackie smiled at the promise of making tips. “Really?”

“Yeah,” Beatrice told her. “I’ll let pops know.”

Jackie smiled. “Thanks. Is it alright if I use the telephone?”

“Have at it, kid,” Beatrice told her, throwing on her down coat.

Jackie dialed the Harrington’s house. It rang a few times before the machine picked it up. Then the beep came, indicating Jackie to start her message. “Hi, This is Jacqueline Henderson, Dustin’s sisters. Was just trying to reach Dustin, but I guess you all are out for the night.” Jacqueline paused, she twirled the phone cord around her finger. “Anyway, Dustin, if you’re listening, I’m sorry about today. I love you.” She hung the phone up and began dialing another number. This time someone picked up. “Hello?”

“Hey. Jonathan?”

“Yes?” the other line said.

“It’s Jackie,” she told him. “Do you want to hang out?”

“Look,” Jonathan said, pointing up at the night sky. “There’s Mars.”

Jackie laughed, taking a sip of her milkshake. “That’s not Mars,” She told him, pointing in the opposite direction. “That’s Mars. See, it’s red.”

“Okay, Galileo,” He teased her.

“And over there is the constellation Perseus,” she drew out with her index finger.

Jonathan took a few fries, popping them into his mouth. “Oh, I see it.”

“yeah?”

“No,” he told her, laughing. She gave him a shove. Going to the lake at night was Jonathan and Jackie’s favorite past time. They’d usually bring cards, or his radio. If they were feeling adventurous, a ouija board. But tonight, they just brought milkshakes, burgers, fries, and each other. “What do you think is out there?” He asked her.

“I don’t know,” she told him. “The universe is so vast and inconceivably big that anything is possible. It’s possible there’s some form of space whale out there swimming in nothingness with all its space whale friends. It’s also possible that it’s just us. Which scares the shit out of me.”

Jonathan looked at her. “Why’s that?”

“Because, the universe goes on forever. And we don’t even make up a speck of it. If we’re alone in all of that, what does it matter if we’re here today and gone tomorrow? It’s indifferent of our existence,” She answered truthfully.

“Wow,” Jonathan said. “That’s a bleak way of looking at it.”

“Well, you asked,” she said irritated by his response, lying down on the grass. Jonathan stared at her. He remembered when her features weren’t so angry and sad. When no matter what, there was always a smile on her face. He laid down next to her.

“I like the space whales theory myself,” he told her. She looked at him, then rolled her eyes and let out a slight chuckle.

“Me too,” she agreed.

Jonathan’s face turned serious. “Where did you go?”

Jackie’s eyebrows furrowed. “What do you mean?”

“Come on, Jackie,” he told her, exasperated. “You know what I mean. Where did you go? I thought you were dying.”

“I was,” she answered, avoiding eye contact.

“I thought you were dead.”

Jackie’s body tensed at that sentence. She crept a glimpse of his face, that read concern and confusion. The whole town thought she was a ghost and with good reasoning. Jackie took in a deep breath and turned her body to face Jonathan. “I can’t tell you where I’ve been. But I can tell you that I am alive and well and here now with you, Jonathan Byers.”

Jonathan frowned at her. “I wish that were enough.”

She frowned back. “I’m sorry,” she whispered.

“Why can’t you tell me? We were best friends. Aren’t we still?”

“Because of the same reason you can’t tell me about where Will went,” she explained. “Not only would it change things, it would make them worse.”

He looked at the patch of grass between them, plucking random blades. Jackie gave him a soft smile, reaching for his hand. Jonathan, not thinking, jerked his hand away back from hers.

This. This small and insignificant gesture broke Jacqueline’s heart. Jackie sat up, shock and defeat painted across her face.

“Jackie, I’m sorry,” Jonathan tried to explain.

“It’s okay,” Jackie said as if the wind was knocked out of her, avoiding eye contact with the boy next to her.

“It’s just. I didn’t,” He stuttered, as all the wrong words began to take form.

“No, I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have done that.” She wiped her cheek with the sleeve of her jacket. “Besides, what would Nancy think?”

“Jacqueline,” he said reaching for her arm. But she had already gotten up and began to walk back to her car.

“I’ll see you at school,” She told him, trying to keep her voice as steady as possible.

Don’t ask me why I named the chapter what I named it; I don’t know. Anyway, is anybody really reading? Can you guys tell me what you think about the story? What did you think about the chapter? Is anybody just starting to tune in? Should I keep going? Because its gonna end up being a lengthy one. Yeah. Anyway, I hope you enjoyed it. Until next week!

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writingloveletterstilshefell · 7 years

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Love Doesn’t Discriminate (Part IV)

Word Count: 3637

Authors’ Note: Hey guys! This is part 4 of the fic, and we are happy to be sharing it with you. Also, up until now, we’ve been updating pretty much weekly, but are going to be taking a short break from LDD due to work and school stuff. We’re planning to be back with another new part in three weeks or so, but have fun with this until then!

Part I Part II Part III

Pippa had been watching the small rescue party for a couple of weeks when she started to notice how close they were getting to the castle. One of the first things she had done after Jefferson had managed to stumble his way home was restore the tree that had fallen over and revealed the secret road to his and Y/N’s eyes. She couldn’t have a brute of a man and his sidekick undermine everything she had done to teach the spoiled Prince how to love.

“The old man is insane, we’ve been looking for the girl going on a month and we haven’t seen head nor tail of her,” Daveed muttered to Oak, who was standing by his side watching the old man deconstruct before them whenever they came to where he believed the road to some beast’s lair was.

“Where is it? Please! Somebody must know what I’m talking about!” Jefferson was as close as he could be to the tree, his nose practically touching it. “This can't be real. Less than a month ago this exact tree was fallen into the road.”

“Are you sure we're not in the wrong place. We've been to twenty different places that you're sure are the one,” Daveed called, his back resting against a tree across the road. It was getting almost ridiculous. Every single day, Jefferson would run up to a tree, sure that it was where the road once was, and every single time he would mutter that it must be somewhere else before they moved on their way.

“The girl probably ran away, and he was too crazy enough to admit it to himself, so he came up with this crazy story.” Oak covered his mouth to attempt to keep in a laugh for the old man’s sake. It was his daughter they were talking about.

Pippa sat about a hundred yards away from the group, just far enough that she could see the group, but that they couldn’t see her through the thick vegetation. This search had gone on for far too long. It was time for it to be over.

Against a tree on the side of the path she knew they had to pass, she waved her hand. Once she was sure that what she had planned was settled underneath the tree like it had been sleeping, she arranged the cloth she had taken from you over it.

“That should do the job just fine.”

After Oak and Daveed had managed to convince Jefferson that there was no possible way that this particular tree he had stopped at had fallen over to reveal a hidden passageway, they decided to set up camp for the night.

They had to practically drag Jefferson from the tree and farther down the path. They had learned over the weeks that the only way to keep him from complaining all night was to move him away from the tree he had been fixating on all day. It felt like they had gone over every tree along the way.

“Oh my God. Is that?”

Oak pointed towards a tree before turning away, not able to look anymore. Against the tree rested a dead body that looked as if it had been gnawed on by the wolves Jefferson said had chased him.

“Y/N!” Jefferson screamed, rushing over to the body. He kneeled down beside it in a patch of moss and cried. He reached for a scrap of fabric lying next to him, and he knew it was her. The fabric matched the fabric he had seen a hundred times.

“Jefferson I haven’t seen any evidence that it’s her,” Daveed called, staying as far from the body as possible. Jefferson across the way held up the scrap of fabric, and when he recognized it, he felt like somebody had taken his bow and shot his heart. It couldn’t be possible. Y/N belonged to him. What would dare harm her?

“Well, we don’t need to look for her anymore.”

Watching from a branch at the top of a tree across the way, Pippa observed the proceedings and knew that none of the three believed that there was any way you were still locked in a castle.

Daveed and Oak were trying to figure out whether to find a way to carry your body home, while your poor father was hugging what was left of you to his chest.

In a moment of silence, Daveed took advantage of the stillness and broke down. It wasn’t fair. You were supposed to be his wife. You may not like him but he knew that he would have eventually won you over in the end. He had with everyone else.

You had been trapped in the castle for nearly a month, spending most of your time hidden in your room. Pippa had come to visit you on multiple occasions, bringing you books to read and making your time alone slightly more bearable. You had been forced to continue attending dinner each night with the prince; you had begun to eat out of necessity, even though you detested his presence. You both sat silently until you were allowed to return to your room. While you felt guilty, you had never attempted to find your way back to Lacamoire’s room, in fear of getting lost in the castle again. You were sure to ask Pippa about this the next time she showed up.

“Will you take me back to the room with the organ?”

Pippa stopped flipping through the book in her hands, her head turning towards you.

“The organ? Lacamoire? How did you find his room?”

“You walked right by it on the night we met, and I ended up going back there. But if I tried to find it again I would surely get lost.”

She continued to watch you as you explained yourself, fidgeting slightly as you waited for her response. You were surprised to see her smile back at you, setting the book down as she stood from her chair.

“Yes, I'll take you to see Lacamoire,” she said softly. “But you must never go back there on your own.”

You tilted your head in confusion as she led you to the door of your bedroom. You followed her out as she began to walk through the corridor.

“Why not?”

“It's in the West Wing. The prince would go mad if he found you there.”

“What's so special about the West Wing,” you asked, sprinting a couple of steps to catch up with her. Since you had confined yourself to isolation in your room whenever possible, you hadn't taken the chance to explore the castle since you had run off that first night.

“It's where the prince resides the majority of the time. He has forbidden most people from entering.”

You went quiet as you walked through the castle with her, thinking about the prince. You hadn't spoken to him since he had thrown a bowl at you at dinner, and you had chosen to ignore his existence ever since. You looked around at your surroundings as you passed, trying to memorize the route for future use of you needed it. Finally, Pippa came to a stop in front of a familiar door, and both of you could hear voices from inside. You turned to thank her for bringing you, but she had already disappeared again.

You shrugged to yourself and pushed the door open, curious as to who was with the organ. At his base sat the beautiful tea pot you had recently learned was named Renee, along with the candelabra and a couple of other objects with whom you had not yet been acquainted. All their eyes moved to you as you entered.

“Miss (Y/N),” Chris greeted you warmly, walking over to where you lingered in the doorway. “How nice to see you out of your room for a change.”

You smiled at him in return; Chris had been nice to you each time you saw him, escorting you to and from dinner every night. You often heard him attempting to coax the prince into starting a conversation with you, to no avail.

“Ah, so you're the girl they've all been talking about!”

Your eyes glanced towards the floor at the sound of this new voice, and you found yourself looking at a moving statue of a lion carved from dark marble. It paced towards you beside Chris, it's head lifted to get a better view. Your smile brightened as you kneeled down to examine it.

“Yes, I suppose I am. My name is (Y/N). It's a pleasure to meet you.”

“I'm Anthony,” the lion responded, bowing his head politely. “I was the captain of the guard before-”

“Anthony,” Chris interrupted, cutting him off mid-sentence. You turned to look up at the candelabra as he stood over you.

“Before you were turned into furniture,” you inquired. “That's not exactly a secret; it's fairly obvious you were all human at some point. So what happened to make you all like this?”

They all stared blankly at you, Chris and Anthony backing away. The soft music Lacamoire had been playing in the background abruptly went silent as he responded to you.

“It is not our story to tell you. You'll have to ask the prince.”

“Because he's going to tell me everything,” you muttered sarcastically. “He doesn't speak to me as it is, I won't be going to him to learn anything.”

“He really isn't as bad as he makes himself seem,” another voice offered. “You only need to know him a little better.”

You looked at the object that had spoken, a little feather duster that fluttered by Anthony’s side. You found yourself captivated by the elegance of such a small object. The handle was carved like the head of a dove, with accompanying wings used to hold itself aloft. A small plume of feathers in the same brilliant shade of white hung from the bottom, floating in the gentle breeze that wafted with each flap of the wings. Upon being noticed, she drifted in your direction, her little head bowing to you much as Anthony had.

“I'm Jasmine by the way,” she chirped. “I can't believe I haven't had the pleasure of meeting you yet.”

“Me either,” you admitted softly. “You're beautiful.”

She dipped her head again, smiling kindly at you. If it was possible for her to blush in this form, you were sure from her movements that she would be. Anthony bounded forward again, lifting his head up to nudge her gently.

“Yes, she is, even without being human. But you should have seen her, (Y/N). She could outshine all the stars in the sky with a single smile. None of the nobles could ever match her beauty. But yes, she is as beautiful now as she ever was.”

“Anthony,” she squealed, fluttering down to nuzzle against his mane. “Stop, you're embarrassing me!”

You watched as the two of them laughed with each other, then stepped around them to approach Lacamoire where he sat. He looked over at you and grinned, beginning to play a quiet waltz.

“How kind of you to come by, Miss (Y/N). It only took you a whole month.”

“I'm sorry; I didn't want to get lost and was worried I could not find my way back.” Your cheeks flushed red and you ducked your head guiltily. You didn't think about the implications of your words until Chris spoke up again.

“And what changed your mind? If you were nervous about getting lost, how did you manage to get all the way here?”

You bit your lip and shifted on your feet. You tried to come up with a convincing lie, a sudden feeling of uneasiness washing over you when you thought of telling them about Pippa.

“Well… I drew out a map for myself, so I wouldn't get lost. I passed this room while I was wandering around after I first got here, which is when I met Lacamoire initially.”

“And what a lucky coincidence it was,” Lacamoire commented. “I am grateful to have made such a lovely new friend.”

You continued to smile as your stomach curled tightly, reminding you to feel guilty for having lied to them all.

“We are, all of us, very grateful to have you in the castle. It is a welcome change from being trapped here with only each other.”

You looked down at Renee as she spoke, hopping across the floor at your feet. She was smiling up at you, porcelain shining in the light from Chris’ candles. You tried to smile back, suddenly saddened by the memory that you were trapped here indefinitely. Your father's face appeared in your mind, and you began to wonder if he was managing without you. Without warning, tears began to spill down your face.

“I'm sorry, child,” Renee murmured. “I didn't mean to make you cry.”

“It isn't your fault,” you whispered, your throat constricting. In the back of your mind, you noticed the music changing, taking on warm and soothing tones. Everyone else became quiet, knowing there was nothing they could say to make you feel better, since they had no way to help you. You supposed you would become used to being here at some point, but even after a month, it had not yet set in.

“I'm sorry,” you said after you had calmed down. “I didn't mean to break down in front of you all.”

“It is to be expected from time to time,” Chris comforted you. “If there was anything we could do to help…”

“You wouldn't be able to because of your master. I understand. I do not fault any of you for my actions. I chose to stay in my father’s place, after all.”

“You are very brave,” noted Jasmine, fluttering into view.

The others murmured their agreement.

“Perhaps something to lift your spirits,” Lacamoire suggested cheerily. He sped up the tempo of his playing, falling into a light-hearted melody that brought a smile to your face. You recognized it as a song your mother would sing for you when you were a little girl. Taking a seat on the bench placed in front of him, you listened intently as the music flowed through you, brightening your mood in a matter of minutes.

When he had finished the song, you felt a gentle touch on your shoulder. You turned your head to find Chris standing there. You were surprised to see that Renee, Anthony, and Jasmine had all vacated the room while you were lost in the music.

“I was just leaving, and wondered if you would like me to escort you back to your room?”

“That's very kind of you, Chris,” you replied. You took the hand, or rather, candle, attached to his arm and allowed him to help you up. “Thank you Lacamoire. Now that I know the way back, I will be sure to visit you far more often.”

“I look forward to your return, Miss (Y/N). Have a good day.”

You inclined your head in a polite gesture of gratitude before turning to let Chris lead you from the room.

“He's your friend, isn't he,” you asked softly, your voice echoing through the empty hallway. Chris turned to look at you as he continued to walk, the flames at the end of the wicks of his candles burning the tiniest bit brighter.

“Lacamoire?”

“No, the Prince.”

Chris looked away from you as he exhaled, his breath collecting in a deep sigh. Your head tilted slightly as you watched him, lengthening your steps to keep up with him.

“He was. Well, is, really,” he corrected himself. “We have been friends since we were boys.”

“So, what is your place in the castle? I've never thought to ask before now.”

“To be honest, I don't have a place in this castle. The prince’s father took me in after my mother died, raised me as his own. Although I knew there was never any expectation of a seat on the throne for me. I was just glad to have a home, and a brother I could depend on.”

“I had no idea,” you whispered, an ache burrowing its way into your heart.

“How could you,” he asked in return. “You have only been here a month, and although everyone seems to like you, no one has spent much time speaking to you. You must be very lonely.”

“It's not so bad, I suppose. But everyone seems so friendly; why have you all been avoiding me so completely?”

Chris paused for a moment, considering whether or not he should tell you the truth. He came to a halt in front of your door and made his decision as he pulled it open for you.

“The prince requested we keep our distance,” he replied honestly. He continued to look into your eyes, even though it was evident he was ashamed of the command his prince had given him. You could not help the frown that appeared on your face, but you immediately forced it into a small smile for him. It wasn't his fault, after all.

“Well, thank you for returning me to my room, Chris.”

“You’re very welcome, Miss (Y/N). I hope you have a lovely evening.”

You managed to hold your cordial smile for him until the door was closed behind you. Not even a moment later, your smile had fallen. You flopped down onto your bed, staring idly at the ceiling as you thought over his words. Why would the prince demand such a thing of his servants, when he knew you would be suffering so detrimentally? How could such kind people still serve him so faithfully when he behaved so cruelly, despite their affirmation that he had been a good man before his transformation? None of the answers you could come up with left you feeling satisfied with your conclusion.

After nearly half an hour of inward debate, you pushed yourself up from your bed and slunk over towards the door. Opening it just a crack, you stuck your head into the corridor to look around. With no one in sight, you slipped out as quietly as you could manage. You began to sneak back towards the West Wing, your anger and frustration fueling your confidence. If the prince was going to continue to treat you so poorly, then you saw no reason to heed his wishes to stay away.

You traced your steps back towards Lacamoire’s room. You noticed the door was closed as you passed it, though you could still hear a melody trickling faintly out into the corridor. You paused for a moment to listen, the sorrowful chords surging through you even at such a quiet volume. Tearing yourself away, you continued to pass doors until you came to the end of the hallway. Taking the passage to your left, you stepped into a long hall bordered by suits of armor on either side. You could have sworn they were staring at you as you passed them, the pervasive feeling of eyes on your back ever present.

You began to rush down the remainder of the hallway, a sudden need to get out of their line of sight taking over you. Turning down into another corridor, you were relieved to find this one mercifully empty, lined with doors. You wandered down it for a few moments before beginning to test each of the doors. You wiggled the handles on each one, but to your annoyance, they were all locked. You were just about to give up on your exploration when you finally found one that swung open.

You took a few steps inside, looking around at the tattered remnants of what once was an elegant study. There was splintered wood and shards of glass covering the entirety of the floor; you stepped around the largest piles of debris, but could still hear it crackling beneath your shoes. Your attention had been caught by a shredded portrait that hung on the wall, you eyes tracing over the deep claw marks that scored the canvas. Your hand reached up, delicately grasping a section of the torn painting and lifting it, hoping for a glimpse of the picture underneath. When pieced together, you got the image of a handsome face.

Long brown hair the shade of deep ash framed exquisite brown eyes. As you looked at the section of the portrait, you couldn't help but feel that you had seen those eyes before, but at the moment couldn't place them in your mind. Eventually, you pulled your hand away, allowing the canvas to fall back as it had been where it was torn. It was only then that your focus moved to the table that sat in the center of the room.

You marveled at the blood red rose that floated just behind a case of glass. As you stepped closer to it, you noticed the enchanting glow that emanated from within the flower. Your mouth fell open in surprise as you looked over it. Fallen petals lay blackened on the table beneath the rose like they had been scorched by a flame after they fell. There were very few left on the rose itself.

Reaching the table, you leaned closer to further examine the flower. You were close enough to see your breath creating a small cloud on the glass, and stretched out a hand to touch it. You had just placed a single finger upon it when you heard a rush of air behind you. A low growl rumbled through the room, deep enough to feel in your bones. You sucked in a sharp breath but didn't dare turn around.

“What in hell are you doing in my study?”

Authors’ Note: Come tell us what you think about this part of LDD. We love feedback and we are always happy to get asks from you guys.

With much love,

Zoe and Cass

Tags: @hamlltvn @fandomsinabookshelf @secretschuylersister @plamspringsdancingontables @awesome-wow-imagines @superwholockbooknerd526 @pixel-pisces @fly-f0rever @hamwriters

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simsvip · 7 years

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It’s that time again! Today was the broadcast for The Sims 4 Vampires Game Pack expected to release next Tuesday. The hour and a half long livestream was hosted by SimGuruNinja, SimGuruMegs, SimGuruGeorge, and SimGuruEmory, a team that walked us through the upcoming CAS, gameplay, and more that we can expect in the next DLC.

Create A Vampire

First, we saw Create A Sim, as usual. The CAS assets team truly took a step up when it came to the new Victorian and modern styles, mixing unique outfits with hidden skulls for that extra spooky yet elegant look.

The team debated about the question “What really is a -real- vampire” according to SimGuruNinja. So they decided that they wanted to make all the things!

The player will be able to create a vampire by clicking the plus sign (similar to creating an alien). Furthermore, in CAS they’ll be able to add a Dark Form as an alternate version of their Sim. They’ll also be able to click the X to delete the Dark Form completely from their Sim.

You’ll be able to add 10 new eye colors, 3 misshapen eyebrows, 3 sunken eye sockets, 4 eye details, 4 cheeks details with veins/cracks/age, 4 vampire mouth details, and 4 versions of Vampire teeth. All of these can have makeup applied to it as an overlay. For the less creatively inclined, there are Vampire Archetypes that will put these details on your currently created Sim.

Adult Female – 5 Hairs, 3 Full Outfits, 4 Tops, 5 Leggings, 4 Bottoms, 2 Necklaces, 1 Earring, 2 Eyeshadows, 2 Lipsticks

Adult Male – 5 Full Body, 3 Tops, 2 Bottoms, and a Top Hat (that almost didn’t make it into the game)

Boys – 1 Full Outfit

Girls – 1 Full Outfit, 2 Hairs

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All CAS assets are available for both regular and Dark Form, and they are also all available to all genders.While children won’t have Vampire powers until they are teens, they can have Vampire eyes.

Aspirations & Traits

There are three new Aspirations for the different kind of vampires. There aren’t any traits.

Master Vampire – Do vampire research and the top level of vampire hierarchy.

Good Vampire – Be a moral vampire without giving into their thirst.

Vampire Family – Build a family of vampires.

World: Forgotten Hollow

The world of Forgotten Hollow is a remote and dark town that has five lots. There are small hidden secrets around the world for players to find, but there wasn’t any mention of a hidden lot. (The boarded up cave seen in the trailer cannot be visited.) One is empty completely, two are occupied by premades, and two houses are open to moving into. IN the largest lot that overlooks Forgotten Hollow from a hill lives Count Vladislaus Straud, the lore oriented vampire introduced to us in the Community Blog.

The town is decorated with cemeteries and headstones, a veil of fog at night, many bare and brambly trees/shrubs, and is a unique world that has a longer night cycle than others.

Here are other key notes of Forgotten Hollow’s atmosphere:

Crows will fly around the world and land on objects

A waterfall in the background has a cave with bats flying out of it

There is a ‘Lovers Lookout’ area with a large, dead, gnarly tree and statues

Made with stories in mind with lots of picturesque views

Lot Traits

Three new lot traits will be available to lots anywhere in the game, no matter the world they are placed in.

Registered Vampire Lair – Occasionally get things in the mail that helps new vampires such as Plasma Packs.

On A Dark Ley Line – Increases the chance of a baby being born as a Vampire. According to SimGuruGeorge, “Maybe you’re hoping for your children to turn out as vampires. It’s a good idea if both of your parents aren’t a vampire to settle somewhere that has this trait.” Sounds like this trait will give a chance for regular Sims to have their own Vampire.

Vampire Nexus – A lot of vampire visitors

Build/Buy

It’s hard to build a lot with The Sims 4 Vampires game pack without a hint of elegance. Lots of tassles, stone, ornate objects have small hidden skulls. It’s safe to say that a lot of the pack is heavy in Build/Buy content which is perfect for builders. Some objects of note include:

Carpets, Runners

Statues and Pedestals (Gargoyles, Werewolves, Ladies, Vampire Llama)

Chandeliers, Tapestries

Wallpapers (including a reflective one)

Bassinet for Vampires (but can be used for regular Sims too)

At least 1 Bed, 3 Chairs, 1 Couch, 2 Clocks, 1 Fireplace

Paintings (with multiple swatches)

Cobwebs (varying on size with animated spiders)

Antique Toilet (with new animation to pull the flush cord)

Radiator (doesn’t provide heat, though)

Windows (with built in curtains)

Fence and gate with glowing eyes

Bearcula (a large stuffed animal that doesn’t cast a reflection)

Wall Decals

While these aren’t a gameplay object, they are deserving of some attention in their own right. The Vampires game pack will add over a dozen of these cracks, tears, stains, and so on. Better yet, they will not cost any simoleons to place on the lot and look great on windows as well. There are also ivy and brambly looking vines that are perfect for outdoor overgrowth.

Deco Tombstones

These tombstones aren’t connected to any Sims and are perfect for cemetery lots. (No, we won’t get a Cemetery venue in this pack.) You can engrave an Epitaph on them to read when visiting, but there isn’t any other interaction to Mourn or Summon ghosts like with regular graves.

Coffins

These are new gameplay objects that not only act as a bed but as a tombstone too. Vampires are able to Engrave an Epitaph, Read Epitaph, Sleep, Use, Claim, and Hibernate.

There are three new coffin types to choose from. There is a low-quality wooden box, a medium quality casket, and a more ornate and decorative coffin that looks fancy. All of these can be WooHooed in with a vampire. After an almost uncomfortable wait for it to stop bumping around, small bats form a heart shape at the end.

Motives

Vampires in The Sims 4 are unique and very different to regular Sims. Their motive panel is replaced with different needs and an experience bar. Typically, Vampires will need to fill Thirst, Social, Hygiene, and Fun. However, they will not need to use the restroom or sleep except to replenish the new Vampire Energy bar.

Vampire Energy

This is how Vampires use their powers and survive in sunlight. It can be replenished by sleeping or using the Dark Meditation interaction. The longer a Vampire is in sunlight, the more this motive decreases, but they can take refuge as long as there is something blocking the sun above. Vampires will burn to death in the sunlight.

When a Vampire interacts with a coffin, they can choose to sleep or Hibernate for a long period of time. They will sometimes have “daymares” during the day time.

Drinking Plasma

Vampires will be able to ask a Sim to take a polite drink. Being friends will increase the chances of the Sim agreeing. However, they are also able to force taking a drink from them which will decrease their relationship. Drinking Plasma will increase experience towards their Vampire Rank.

Using the Compel for a Deep Drink interaction might make Sims pass out. And yes, there will be bite marks.

Plasma Fruit

For Vampires that opt not to drink from other Sims, the fruit can be found on the glowing purple Plasma Tree in the dark of the woods. This fruit will fill the Thirst motive.

Vampire Ranks

There are five ranks for Vampires to work their way through to gain Powers and become stronger. When a Vampire ranks up, it seems more Powers might be unlocked to them.

Powers & Weaknesses

As your Vampire uses their powers, drink, and use various other interactions, they will gain experience and Power Points to spend on a skill tree. There are 25 Powers and 11 Weaknesses, and some have multiple levels to vary the degree of effect.

Some of these Powers include Irresistible Slumber, Supernatural Speed, Mesmerize, a way to lower needs, project mood auras, mist form to teleport with, and more. Weaknesses include Withered Stomach, Uncontrollable Hissing, and a weakness to the sun with Thin Skinned. The third level of Thin Skinned is described as “You’re gonna die.”

Interactions

Many interactions depend on whether your Vampire is talking to another Vampire or a regular Sim. If they have the right Powers, Vampires can also command other Vampires to do their bidding. Here are some interactions that you might see:

Vamp Socials

Vamp w/ Sim

Complain about sunlight

Mock Mortality

Vamp w/ vamp

Recall Mortal Life

Discuss Plasma Flavors

Turning Sims into Vampires

When a Vampire turns another Sim, they will go through a process of transformation. The Sim will no longer fill their Hunger motive when eating and will slowly starve to death. Once the process is finished, they will become a Vampire. Vampires cannot autonomously turn other Sims.

Curing Vampires

Hunting for vampires is very possible in this game pack. After creating the potion, your Sim/Vampire can pick a fight with a Vampire and throw the cure at them, forcing them to be healed. It’s important to know Vampire Lore skill to cure Vampires.

Skills

Vampire Lore Skill

Read to learn more about Vampires from the computer or books. This is a 15 level skill that is unique compared to other skills in the game.

Pipe Organ Object & Skill

This is a 10 level skill that unlocks more and more songs that are available. Sims will be able to write songs, play songs, pluck at it for inspiration, practice, and even play haunting music with wispy spirit animations coming out of the organ.

While many of the songs (called Cinema songs) are familiar with creepy sounds, not all of them will be spooky. In fact, some of the types of music include Theme, Avant-garde, Cinema, Jazz, Circus, Gospel, Classical, Drama.

Drinks, Potions, and Food Recipes

As always, there are many new recipes to find in The Sims 4 Vampires pack. Some of these new drinks and potions will even affect your gameplay.

Plasma Jane (a mixed plasma drink)

Vampire Protection cocktail

Sunlight Revisal potion

Plasma fruit salad

Reconfiguration Potion (resets Vampire Powers)

Miscellaneous

New plant called Sixam mosquito eater will eat mosquitos

Wolfsbane Plant

New Vampire urn with black and gold trim adorned with bat

Garlic objects repel vampires and the scent is visible to Vampires only

Vampires can spar just for fun, fight to cure another vampire or fight for experience

Vampires can “Drain Life Spirit” but we’re not sure what it does yet

The Sims team says this is just the tip of the iceberg for The Sims 4 Vampires Game Pack. Will you be picking up this pack next Tuesday? What did you notice in the broadcast that we missed?

Let us know what you think in the comments below!

The Sims 4 Vampires Broadcast Rundown It's that time again! Today was the broadcast for The Sims 4 Vampires Game Pack expected to release next Tuesday.

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