I.X.VIII The Ancient Arts of Sim Fu

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castle keep, fisher, games, gaming, medieval, peasants, royal kingdom challenge, sims, stories

Byram and Raven had become good friends, and Byram took care to brush Ravens coat and to scatter hay for the horses to eat. As a loner sim, Byram enjoyed his solitude, something he was able to achieve while taking care of the horses. In the mornings he would go with his father to fish, they would both stand by the great sea in silence, those were the moments that Byram cherished the most. For William, it was a delight to be so close to his son, just as he had been with his father, his heart would fill with warmth.

A second son was born to Anne and William Fisher, he was named Nigel, after Williams uncle. The boy was born with the traits loves the outdoors and athletic, traits that pleased Anne, maybe she would teach him the art of Sim Fu when he grew up.

Although Faye was neither athletic nor disciplined, Anne believed it was important that she also practiced Sim Fu. The martial arts had been taught to her by her parents that had learned them from their parents and were not only a good art of self defense, but also a great way to stay fit. Anne believed it was especially important for a young woman to learn Sim Fu, this world was harder and crueler towards women, it was important that her daughter had tools to defend herself was she ever to be in a dangerous situation.

Now that Faye was a teenager she not only was able to get a part-time job to help the family financially, she was also able to help out with the cooking, amongst other things. As a natural cook her dishes were naturally delicious without any effort and the family was always delighted to taste one of her specialties. Anne made sure to teach her the recipes her mother and grandmother had taught her, this way her family’s heritage was not lost.

Nigel grew well up into a toddler, he was a healthy child that played well on his own and didn’t make a lot of fuss. It was unclear whether he was to become the heir of the Fisher family, it depended more on what his elder brother decided to do. Time would tell.

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I.X.VII Difference in the Family

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castle keep, games, gaming, le peasant, medieval, peasants, royal kingdom challenge, sims, stories

It was an unfortunate night when the le Peasant family had a visit from a burglar, surely the thief must have mistaken himself, since at the le Peasant house there was very little of value. He left with nothing more than a big scare, since Mark and Caldwell managed to scare him off. He did not take anything, but broke some furniture on his way out. The family was startled by the rough awakening, but nobody was harmed.

Fall was coming to an end and Mary made sure to get the last harvest before the snow came. Hopefully it would be enough, both to pay to Lord and Lady d’Angerville, to the King and Queen and for themselves to survive during the winter months. The new laws of harvest and tax were very hard to live up to, and the family was struggling to make ends meet. During winter they would only have their cows and chickens and if the boys went fishing maybe they would get something before the lakes froze.

It was still to be decided who would be the heir to the le Peasant family, things were very different for peasant families compared to the lords and royals of Castle Keep. Any of the sons could be heir, and in reality it was usually the youngest son that stayed to take care of the elderly parents, or the one that got married last. In some families the parents decided who would take over the farm and announced it to the family when they had made a decision.

“Mother, I do not wish to be the heir to our family,” Burleigh told Mary one afternoon out of no-where. She was quite surprised but decided to listen to his request.

“I wish to learn to sculpt and be an apprentice at a sculpting workshop. Maybe I will get married, maybe not, but most of all, I want to create,” he blurted out.

“My son,” said Mary. “Maybe your traits will enable you to become a great artist, only time can tell. Remember, the road will be very hard for you, nothing comes easy to a peasant son. Your father and I will consider your wish.”

As usual at the le Peasant household, there were always new birthdays to celebrate. This time it was the two oldest daughters that became older. Desirae became a teenager and Edie, her mothers favorite, became a child. The two daughters were each others opposites, one was a dysfunctional sim and for the other there was hope of a brighter future.  Desirae was easily-impressed, mean-spirited and a coward, traits that would make any sim despair about the future, the only thing she got going for herself was that she at least was good. Edie was artistic, a perfectionist and she loved the outdoors, it also helped that she had a beautiful face that would surely secure her a good marriage.

With so many sims growing up, the le Peasant family was having a lot of trouble coping with everybody’s hygienic needs. For a small sum they installed an outdoors shower that could be used when the bathtub was occupied. Of course, only the males were allowed to shower like that where everybody could see. Only the Watcher knows what the neighbors would say if the females were seen showering outdoors.

I.X.VI Going Places

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castle keep, games, gaming, medieval, merchants, royal kingdom challenge, sims, stories, wall

The joy of music was what motivated Lecie Wall in everything she did.  The family was doing well both socially and financially, they now had reached a certain level of comfort that not all merchant families enjoyed. Of course, the tax system was harsh on merchants and a lot of their income went to the nobles, still, the sum of their earnings were big enough to give the Wall family a good and comfortable home.

Ermengard worked hard to learn new skills, she was starting to gain a broad knowledge of skills, both painting and logical skills and even fishing and cooking. It seemed she had the ambition to learn and wanted to excel in life, either that or she was utterly bored by the daily life at home. What impressed her parents the most was that she did all this without much encouragement from their part, of course they praised her hard work, but sometimes they worried that she was taking on too much.

Elmer had been working late nights on a big case that would hopefully bring him a lot of money, his spotless reputation as a private detective had gotten him appreciation from the King himself. This great honor meant he was given the town keys and a weekly stipend that was quite generous. However, this made the honorable Mr. Wall feel he needed to work even harder in his cases, all to not disappoint the Queen and King of Castle Keep, who counted on his skills to keep things in order in town.

For Ermengards birthday, the three women of the household had a small celebration on their own. Elmer was working late as usual and it felt inappropriate to invite friends to a party when their father was working so hard. She grew up well and although the two daughters looked quite different from each other and from their mother at first sight, they all shared distinct Wall features, such as their small pointy noses.

“Girls,” their mother announced while they were eating the cake she had baked. “Your father and I have a great announcement to make.”

The two young sims looked at each other and then at their mother with high expectations.

“We have now enough fundings to finally send you both to school,” Lecie continued. “It will not be the best schools available, but good schools still.”

“Bega,” she said and turned to the oldest daughter. “I hope you will find knowledge and peace with your traits at the Dribbledine Sports Academy. And Ermengard, you have gained entry to the school of Peace and Love.”

“Oh, mother,” Ermengard finally said. “This is the best birthday present ever!”

I.X.V A New Chance at Happiness

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castle keep, games, gaming, medieval, merchants, potter, royal kingdom challenge, sims, stories

It was settled then, Rudd Potter, youngest son to Mr. and Mrs. Potter, was to be the heir to the Potter family and was to be sent to LeFromage Art School. The fee was payed and the boy was to leave in the morning. Tilton, who was brave and friendly, did not necessarily like being overlooked like this, but he seldom spoke his mind in the matter. This evening however, was too much for him. Their mother, Winifred had cooked Rudd’s favorite meal and she was far from concealing her feelings of dislike for Tilton and of overwhelming delight for Rudd. If only Tilton could be more like Rudd, she repeated, if only he could be less of a disappointment.

“Brother,” Tilton finally spoke not able to hold his tongue. “While I am proud of you to be the next head of this family and I admire your artistic skills, I can not stand one more moment of our mothers dislike for my person. With all respect, I will retire for the evening.” He stood up and left the room.

“But Tilton!” Winifred shouted. “What is it you say about your mother. I do not dislike you, can I not be happy for our dear Rudd?”

“Of course you can, mother dear,” he stopped at the door to say. “But not on my expense.”

When Rudd left for boarding school, Tilton felt even more lonely in his parents home. The two brothers had been friends and Tilton found his parents even less bearable now that he didn’t have someone to share his fate with. He went about his chores and worked the night shift at the mausoleum, he hoped he could save enough money to buy himself a little place as soon as he became young adult. Who knew, maybe he would meet a nice girl and get married.

Osmond Potter grew up into an adult, which the family celebrated with a small gathering. Soon it would also be time for Winifred to pass on to adulthood, life surely passed by quickly when there was much to do. They still had a way to go on achieving their life time wishes, but there was still time.

With the days passing so quickly, Winifred and Osmond considered having another child. With all the troubles between herself and Tilton Winifred longed for the days when the boys were little toddlers and things were simple. Maybe having another child would mean a second chance at parenthood. Osmond was delighted to hear the news that Winifred was with child, they both felt rejuvenated and young again by it.

Tilton thought his parents were mad to have another child, he did not consider them as successful parents, at the same time he secretly hoped this was to be a second chance for them to be good parents, and he wished the child would be loved dearly by everybody. Winifred and Osmond were so happy to be with child again that a new sense of happiness spread in the whole house, making everybody feel much better. Even Tilton found moments of happiness and peace.

I.X.IV Return to Happiness

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castle keep, de Servant, games, gaming, gothic, medieval, nobles, royal kingdom challenge, sims, stories

With all the children off to boarding school there was very little to do at the Dark Castle when it came to housekeeping. For Thea de Servant it meant she could dedicate herself to become the culinary librarian she had as a life-time wish. Lord Harald had allowed her to use the library, however, there weren’t many books about cooking or containing recipes. Seeing the enthusiasm in Thea de Servant to learn new cooking recipes, Lord Harald felt compelled to order books in the subject, he found her eager to learn woke something in him that had long been dormant. She reminded him of himself when he as a young sim started to read about science. When giving it some thought he realize that cooking had similarities to making chemical blends, which was something he really enjoyed doing.

Lord Harald and Thea started to spend a lot of time together in the library and to his own surprise, he felt his opinion of her was changing. He no longer saw a young childish, easily-impressed sim without much to offer, now he was beginning to see her as a young intelligent sim, a sim with potential. He realized that he actually really enjoyed spending time with her and found himself often seeking her company.

This new development was making him feel much better about life in general, he found he wasn’t as sad as he used to be and that he almost enjoyed life. This made him feel extremely guilty towards his beloved late wife, Lady Godiva. It seemed he was getting on with his life. He resented that he was not as sad and would spend more time at the cemetery by her grave to remind himself of what he had lost. He just couldn’t bear with the thought that he might be forgetting their strong love for each other.

Lord Harald was torn about how things were developing, he had set his mind on feeling miserable for the rest of his life, until he would pass and be united Lady Godiva. However, lately he was finding life to be almost bearable, on the verge of pleasant, and he could not deny that Thea de Servant had something to do with it. Still, he was a sim of honor and he could not bear to blemish the memory of his wife. His thoughts tormented him and he felt unsure of what to do. Truth be told, he actually enjoyed being more happy.

For his birthday, Thea de Servant baked a delicious cake for him and they had a quiet and dignified celebration, just the two of them. It was while eating this cake, that Lord Harald came to an astonishing realization, he wanted to live long, and enjoy himself while doing it. He did not want to just wait for the days to pass by until his death, he wanted to cherish each one of them, and he wanted to share them with Thea.

I.X.III Aging Up

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castle keep, d'Angerville, de Servant, games, gaming, medieval, nobles, royal kingdom challenge, sims, stories

It was one of those periods in life, at the d’Angerville family, when life seemed to be passing by very quickly and there was little time to stop and reflect. It seemed like everybody was getting older and the birthday celebrations stacked one after the other. First out was Lord Francis d’Angerville himself and he was all but happy to become an elder, just days ago he was a strong and healthy adult and suddenly his hair was gray and his limbs tired. The Watcher had really no mercy, he thought.

The twins, Jamie and Katelyn, returned from boarding school to celebrate their birthdays. Both were excited to become teenagers and it seemed like boarding school had done them good. Specially Katelyn, who gained her first positive trait when she became artistic. Suddenly, Lady Arabella felt much more pleased with her youngest daughter, she even thought she had grown into a beautiful young sim that had a chance to get married well. Katelyn gained a lot of attention for her great looks, but her grumpiness and the fact that nobody had given her attention as a child, had made her a bit resentful and cynical.

Not everyday was a celebratory day at the White Castle though. Behind the great feasts, the drinks and the pastries, Thomas de Servant went about his chores and ensured that the household ran smoothly. With all the sims coming and going for the parties, few noticed him and he was almost forgotten by his masters. He did not dislike the loneliness but he wished for some kind of gratitude from his masters, or at least some acknowledgement of his good performance.

For Lady Arabella’s birthday the family held a great ball, that was as great and pompous as the hostess, sims would talk about it for decades. For Lady Arabella, becoming and adult wasn’t as traumatic as becoming an elder was for Lord Francis. It wasn’t as noticeable as becoming an elder, still, it did stir some thoughts in her. Until now, she had been pleased with having four fantastic children that would spread the seeds of the d’Angerville dynasty, making it strong and lasting. However, suddenly she felt the urge to become a mother again, to have a little toddler that played the xylophone and laughed like only a toddler could. She missed those days of motherhood and soon she would not be able to be a mother again.

Thomas also grew into an elder, but there was no celebration for him, really nobody even payed attention to it when it happened, they were all in bed, sleeping, tired from all the parties. There wasn’t even a cake.

I.X.II The Growing Pack

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castle keep, games, gaming, medieval, monastery, royal kingdom challenge, sims, stories

Fall came to the monastery at Aspen Wood Hills once more, while the trees became red and yellow and the leaves fell, it still seemed like time stood still. Apart from the seasonal changes, everyday was like the other, quiet and calm. Life as a monk or nun was not for great adventurers or thrill-seeking sims, it was for those who longed to immerse themselves in hard work and inner peace.

Becoming elder did a lot of things to a sim, for once, Peter started to worry about things that he had never given a thought to earlier in life. He was very thankful to Helena and happy to have her company, she was devoted to the Watcher and hard-working. She was certainly a good addition to the monastery, still her shy and quiet nature meant that she was not a sim to lead the masses in their spiritual journey. However much he loved her, as a father loved a daughter, her muteness would not enable her to hold the weekly sermons and to spread the word of the Watcher, even she herself knew that.

Since Helena the Monk was a dog-lover, she and Peter decided to adopt an elder dog from the pet shelter. Her name was Sadie and she was a skittish dog that had a lot to learn in spite of her old age. Helena was very happy to have Sadie, it gave her great joy to play with her and take care of her, and Sadie took to her very quickly.

Best friends forever, Faye Fisher and Helena the Monk, spent a lot time together, playing music and playing with Sadie. Faye would come over to the Aspen Woods Monastery so often that her parents started to think she might want to become a nun herself. This concerned them, but they did not dare to speak of it. For the teens, being together playing music made all their worries go away and life felt good and fun.

While Helena would do an excellent nun who could care for the animals and the monastery in general, Peter realized that for the monastery to grow he needed to recruit a charismatic nun or monk that would hold sermons and engage the sims of Castle Keep in devoting the Watcher. He got the idea that he might start making inquires among the teenagers of Castle Keep, he would try to find someone that was good and charismatic and see if he could persuade their parents to take a place at the Aspen Woods Monastery.

I.X.I Defective Succession

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castle keep, de Servant, games, gaming, medieval, royal family, royal kingdom challenge, sims, stories

As a young adult, King Edmund I had felt invincible, on the verge of immortal. He was the ruler of Castle Keep and there was little that stood in the way of the things he wanted, he could do anything he wanted, he could go anywhere he wanted and if there was anything that he could not do, he could change the laws to please him. At least that was what the young King thought at the time. As he became an elder sim, he realized that a sim life was so different from what he had thought as a young sim. Being the King of Castle Keep did not mean doing and going wherever he wanted, he learned the hard way the duties of being the leader of the kingdom, being a good father and most importantly a good husband. If only he could tell his young self that his sim days were counted.

In spite of the  King’s low spirits, the Royal Court celebrated him with splendor and nobody, except Queen Eleanor, noticed that he seemed sad and nostalgic.

While Queen Eleanor I grew into an adult, Princess Catherine became a teenager and went back to the Royal Castle to celebrate her birthday before she headed back to boarding school, as all royal children. She had gained the snob trait, that did not impress her parents very much nor the Royal Court. Still, it was inevitable, as a privileged child raised at Smuggsworth Prep School, it was hardly unexpected.

Princess Catherine spent only a day at the Royal Castle before heading back to school, and in that short time, she outplayed her talented mother at the piano with her virtuoso trait and outranked her father at chess with her genius trait. Princess Catherine was truly an accomplished sim, and at such young age, not only was she genius and virtuoso, she was also ambitious which made her devoted to gaining skills and reaching whatever goal she set her mind on.

“She would have made an excellent ruler,” King Edmund I sighed when they bid her farewell.

For John de Servant, working at the Castle had become much easier since the three royal children were away at boarding school. He now had plenty of time to both read and devote himself to the garden, something that he enjoyed very much. The Royal Couple spent most of their evenings at balls or other parties, so in the evening John found time to chat to the other servants or read his books in the library, of course, after having finishing all the household chores, which weren’t many. In the morning, while the King and Queen slept late, he tended the garden and prepared everything for their breakfast. Although he had plenty of time for himself, he did miss the children sometimes.

Queen Eleanor I was a party-animal, and she loved going out in town, she only wished that there would be more places to go out to. Now that Godiva Vaughan had passed away it was only the d’Angerville noble house that held regular balls apart from the Royal Ball’s at the Castle. There was only the lounge at Chez Victoria and Lord Bacchus’ Ballroom to go out to, at least as a member of the Royal Family, the peasants had their Poor Man’s Dance Square, but it wasn’t appropriate for the Queen to venture there.