2.24 Kitty, kitty bang bang

                                                   warning violence/ gore/ language

    
     Even in the dark, Joe saw the small body on the swing, going back and forth, higher and higher to the point were the boy guaranteed believed that he could swing all the way around. Or maybe he'd gotten so big that he'd stopped believing things like that. No longer listening to that little warning in the stomach when he thought he was about to go all the way around.
     Waving at Rikard in his car, he watched as his big brother drove away, the rest of the kids were still allowed to stay at his house ofcourse.

     Sitting on the swing, Joe felt a bit of memories pressing up on him. Nothing much really, just little things like the scent of the catpoop from the nearby sandbox, mixed with the sour smell from the river. It had cleaned up well since he was a child. To think he once had been so short, that his feet hadn't reached the ground when sitting on these very swings. Now he was worried that the entire thing would crumble under his weight.
     Effie eventually stopped the swinging, the creaking noise from the nuts and bolt coming to an end. They didn't say anything, just kept staring into the darkness.
     I'm sorry. The tiny voice jumped into falsetto as he talked. If he was anything like his dad, the boy felt bad so he appologized even if he didn't know what for.
     So Joe gave a real manlyman answer: Don't worry about it. Even if he had no idea what Effie should be worried about. It's difficult beeing men at times.

     Do you want to talk about it?      His son still looked into the distance: No. Dad probably wouldn't believe him anyway. Grown ups were stupid. And even if he didn't like to think about it, uncle Rikard hadn't actually been mean or even raised his voice. He'd just asked him what had happened.
     Hey.... Joe didn't know what to say or to at the moment: do you want to go and get a late night meal? Live a bit on the wild side? We can have hot dogs... or pizza, your decision. Then we'll go home, okay? What else could he do? Maybe doing something else made the boy feel better. That, and he didn't really want to go back just yet. Joe didn't like it when everyone was arguing. Wasn't he a bit old for that?

     Jumping off the swing, Effie shared his idea of a good time: I want hot dogs and pizza, and soda and icecream for dessert. The stupid grown- ups were long since forgiven. Mawing down all that food was no problem either, he was having a growth spurt!
     Great. Joe was hungry to, he'd just tell his wife when they got back since Oriana had confiscated his phone. Could she even do that?

     Fire is loud, incredibly loud. Roaring with a force that is unknown to sims unless they've been in the midst of it. A contrast to anything warm was cold, but even Bashirs freezing voice had problems beeing heard over it: What the fuck?!! There were few sims in simnation that had the honour of seeing him this upset: Marco!
     Marco was to busy watching the life disappear from that old bitch, to bother with little things like heat. Even if it felt like his skin was about to boil, and he kept coughing from all the smoke, every breath felt like his insides were burning. He still loved fire. But it was difficult killing someone with a knife, took a lot longer than he'd anticipated.

     A pair of skeletal fingers grabbes his arm, pulled him throught the fire away from her. For some strange reason, he didn't feel injured, but that could be the adrenaline. It was really hot here and there, but other than that he felt fine: What the hell are you doing! We need to get out! He'd never heard Bashir like that before, never.
     But.... He pointed to the old woman as the inferno kept raging.

     NO "BUT"!!! He kept pulling him away.
    What about....
    Are you out of your mind?! He heard Bashir was still yelling and coughing at him: Everyone's ran out! Someone torched the place! We need to get the fuck out!!! How the hell did this place even burn this fast? Over the inferno he finally heard the shriekes of an old woman. It felt good, really good, especially because it meant she burned to death, not chocking on the fire.
     Finally he woke up. Shit, he'd torched the place: Damn! Your face! Turned out Bashir didn't handle the heat as well as he did.

     How the fuck was this considered "just outside Riverwiev"? It was in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by nothing but fields and hillbillies! Marco needed to find a phone, and a car to get his insane brother- in law to the hospital. In the lack of any cars (or tractors) driving by, they went as fast as they could to the nearest farm, well aware of the fact that they might end up in more shit. But the dangers from inhaling fumes were to great not to anything about.

     Luckily it was some poor sod that opened the door. He punched the guy when he refused giving him the phone and carkeys. Who the hell claimed the rural areas was full of nice sims?

     BonjourHello I mean.... Dominic hadn't seen the number before, but it sure wasn't local, and on his privatephone at that.
     Linn took a short look at him, before giving the fridge all of her attention. Weren't there any donuts left: Who keeps snagging all the donuts. By the satisfied grin on Loris face it was obvious who was the donut thief: How can you devour crates of donuts each day, and not gain a pound?! Linn kept complaining: There's just like.... vegetables and drinks left here. Who ate vegetables anyway? Might as well go outside and start munching on the nearest lawn.
     Not that she usually cared who her co- workers were talking to, but atleast the one on Dominics phone was male. And the voice sounded irritated and loud after the french answer. Probably his son or something, she thought as she kept raiding the fridge. Oh! Icecream!

     Icecream was a lot better than donuts: I'm going to pretend I don't see a name on this... Linn looked around herself as she claimed the treasure.No point in it ofcourse, the rest were out patrolling. It was kind of the point of beeing a cop really.

    Oui, Dominic nodded at the phone repeating himself. Why was he nodding, it wasn't like anyone on the other side of the phone could see it: Oui bien sûr. He kept nodding for some reason, talking to them before he'd even hung up.

     It's Marco. Dominic was still on the phone whilst simultaneously talking to them, and listening to whoever was on the other end.

     That's not funny frenchie! Lori barked from behind the computer.
     Time to realise the facts: He's dead lobsterboy, best you realise it. It wasn't like Linn was happy about it. It was always hard loosing one of their own.
     Ignoring them, he continued: He can't get a hold of his sister so he wants us to take a look.
     Lori rolled her eyes at him: That's just tasteless.

     Putting the phone on speakers, he held it out for them to hear. That was Marcos voice alright, and a lot of inventive profanities that few other sims knew. Linn dropped the bucket of icecream, it fell to the floor with a dissapointing thud, keeping the frozen contents intact.

     ....Holy shit... There wasn't really a lot of other things to be said.

     Even if the others seemed to be able to controle their joy, Oriana was happy seeing Vera again. If Anya and Milo had shown up it would have been just like the good old times. Except that her brother was missing, and Joe wasn't back yet. Atleast Vera would be on her side, which was probably why the rest seemed so cranky. The adult had discussed the matter with Jonny ofcourse, but for some reason they meant she'd "misunderstood" something. Why didn't they want to listen to her, and why didn't they believe her? Why were they beeing so stubborn? She wasn't stubborn at all ofcourse.

     How are the kids? Oriana asked, vividly remember how tired she'd been the last time they met.
     Smiling at her, she answered: Growing up fast. And Arnie finally started working a bit less to. She seemed so calm and unworried: Which means I can go outside the house a bit again. So, where are your kids? 
     At Rikards. Vera knew who he was ofcourse. They had gone to school together, but he was a bit older than them.

     He still married to Sunniva? Vera asked, which Oriana ofcouse confirmed. Even if she'd grown up, none of them understood what he saw in her. He could get someone way better, even if he was ugly as sin. That could easily be forgotten when he was such a large chunck of beef; kind of ugly- hot. Not that Oriana noticed.....
     Her and Vera hadn't had a lot of contact as adults, but that's the strange thing about good friends; when you meet again, it feels like you've never been apart to begin with: Why don't you sit down Vera, Oriana said walking into the kitchen, whilst talking over her shoulder: I'll fetch you something to eat. With a cop- boyfriend and twins, I bet you never get to eat without anyone talking to you. Are you two ever getting married? Great, now I'm starting to sound like someones nosy aunt....
     She heard Vera laughing in the background.

     Only Orianas mother could have decided on such a silly kitchenplanning. Vera followed, waiting at the entrance to the room: How are things going? She asked again.
     Weighing a bit for and against it, as the others still chattered in the livingroom: Not good at all. I have no idea where Marco is, or if he's even alive. The others, she didn't lower her voice wanting them to hear what she had to say: Thinks I should forget about it. And you know what? I ran into someone I know, that claimed my brother... my brother was a dirty cop and in league with the criminals because we needed simoleons. Which we don't.
     Oh? Vera sounded surprised, but kept typing on her phone without looking up: Who was it? Someone I know? 
     Yeah, Jonny- turd of all sims.
 

     Typing a bit more, Vera gave her a short awkward smile and explained: Sorry, it's Arnie nagging.... would think a grown man knew what to do with his own children right? 
     Oriana nodded, men were stupid. And so was family.
     Vera continued: So Jonny- turd is a criminal, is that what you're saying? 
     Oriana had always knows he was a douche, but still.... she nodded anyway.
     And he claims Marco is a dirty cop, but it's not true?
     She nodded again.
     Damn! That grin on Veras face was impossible to recognize to Oriana.
     I know right? Even if Oriana had been good at keeping her source a secret, she decided to share it. Maybe that would get the others of her back! Why hadn't she though about that before?

     Still with her nose down in the phone, Oriana made sure to talk loud enough for the rest to hear: And I have gotten help from someone else to.... Finally Vera looked at her: Is that so? Anyone else I know?
     Biting her mouth together, trying to keep an acid smile away when Meave pretended not listening: I don't think so. His name's Adam. He's been helping me pretty much from the start. Kind of wonder where he finds all that information though....
     Really? Adam you say....
     Yeah. He has one of those stuffed bodytypes you know. Kind of like a sausage right before the skin cracks. Olive eyes, tanned skin, poopbrown hair and massive cheekbones.... kind of looks like he's smiling all the time.... a bit creepy really....
      Vera just shook her head calmy: Doesn't ring a bell.... Then she went on the phone again.

     Finally following her into the livingroom with the rest of them, Oriana sat down, and said: Why don't you sit down Vera?
     She pulled her phone out again, and looked at it: I can't right now?
    It's not the best place for pie, I know but.... We can just sit in the kitchen! Oriana kind of liked eating in the livingroom at times. Made her feel naught for some reason: Or we can just pull the table closer to your seat!
    You can take my seat? Rye was already standing up. To think a punk- rocker was such a gentleman when the paparazzo didn't see him?
    No need to, but thanks for the offer. I won't stay long.

     Wait! So that means you won't have the pie? Time to focus on what was important! Who didn't want pie? Well, I'm not letting good pie go to waste! Standing up again, Oriana grabbed the plate as Vera made a small grimase and appologized. Not that Oriana actually minded, it meant there would be more for her: I'll just put this back in the fridge then. She might as well do it anyway, as she'd forgotten brewing coffe anyway. Having guests was tough work.

     Why did she always forget something? Ah well, atleast the others were talking about something else than how stupid and crazy she was for still wanting to find her brother.
     Her ears rang, she couldn't really hear any thing other than the ringing for a small ammount of time. Looking at the others, Oriana didn't seem to be the only one with ear problems. The sounds slowly came back though, probably because she was farther away.

Then it's that strange sensation when you see something that you'd never expect. What was Vera having in her hand? It was shiny, and it looked unfamiliar, but still familiar in some way. The others were acting strange to.

     Walking closer, Oriana slow mind still didn't work properly. Why wasn't Meave moving? Why was Rye and Christine running off?

    Then there was this odd noise, it didn't sound like the other. But she saw Vera pressing on something in that thing in her hand, then Rye fell over like a well used rag.

     Oh shit, that was a gun! Why did she have a weapon, and why had she been using it on the others? She hadn't even noticed the unknown sims pouring into her home before now. That woman just walked up an shot Rye again, then a man walked up to Chrisine and shot her. Even if she surrendered.

     She didn't notice Rye still moving his fingers, trying to cling on to life. But she saw Vera coming closer, pointing that thing at her.
     It's nothing personal Ori. I'm really sorry.

     It didn't hurt, but an area of her chest got wet and cold. The only thing she noticed was several pair of feet around her. But Veras cute voice was easy to recognize, even if Oriana could have sworn it didn't sound like it once had. It might as well have belonged to a stranger.
     No, the strangers voice that sounded so much like Veras: I don't need any help. You go upstairs, you downstairs and Gregory take the outside. We're alone, but let's be on the safe side. I'll finish up here. We'll leave as soon as the check is done.

     Hearing the others feet walking away, Oriana was still sitting on her knees. Her chest kept getting wetter. It had to blood, or maybe she was just sweating.
     Did I miss or something? Veras stranger voice said. Then that clicking sound was there again.
     For some reason Oriana felt something strange inside her brain. She often did, but not this way: it felt like something tried getting out. Maybe it's how it felt like to die. It didn't seem so bad really, dying that was. It didn't hurt, nor was it scary. It was just a bit cold and wet at the moment: Vera wait. Why did she say that?

    Vera sighed before answering: Please don't make this harder than it is. This is just business.
     Come a bit closer.... Oriana had to say it a few more times before her once friend heard her: I need... I have.... She had what? Dying felt kind of strange, like something dragged her entire soul out of her very beeing. Wonder if it had felt like this for the others. Though she was pretty sure she saw Death in the background waiting for her. Or maybe it was her imagination.

     Sliding over, finally resting on the floor Vera kneeled down. Was this really how it felt to die?

     Grabbing Veras leg she could hear her screams, but for now Oriana didn't care. She did feel a bit lighter though.

     This place was so boring.... Like most kids, Odin liked babies but they weren't that interesting. And Sunniva was pretty and all, but she talked to them like they were babies to. Which he wasn't! In addition old fairylady didn't like Skuld either, but no one liked her anyway. Not that it was okay beeing mean to her because of that, she was his sister after all.
     Wisely they had retreated to some massive orange bedroom, and as a result was still bored. But it was still better than having old fairylady staring at Skuld. Odin was so bored he'd even started biting his own nails! They didn't taste very good.

     Lucky was bored to, but they were still trying to be on their best behaviour. Oriana was going to have their hides when she heard about Effie attacking old fairylady! Or Meave would have old fairyladies hide, if she heard what happened to Skuld. Probably both! They were so grounded!
     It's not fair! Why did Effie get away! Lucky wanted to go home to. Maybe mum finally had gotten a hold of dad, and he was on his way home. And she was sitting in this boring house, with nothing to play with other than babytoys: I'm bored!

Jarl promptly jumped down from his seat, and poked Lucky until she jumped up from the sofa he grabbed his chance. Lucky had soft hair, so he put his hands into her ponytail and started ruffling it: Is this better?
     Stop it!!! Lucky was annoyed, boys were so stupid! Ofcourse Jarl stopped doing it, he was a nice boy: But you weren't bored any more were you? She hadn't actually wanted him to stop, because it was better beeing annoyed than beeing bored.
      Maybe we can tell some ghoststories? Odin said 
     Ghost stories are lame... Jarl said; atleast when their supernaturals in the livingroom...

     Nodding, Odin could see that: Yeah, it's probably a bit pointless going; he made his voice pretend- scary: and then the werewolf stalked them home... and sat in the chair and had some coffe whilst talking about what he watched on the news today.... Because that was what they were doing in the livingroom. Three supernaturals, and "what's his name" talking about the weather, tvshows and their jobs.

     The other kids laughed at his pretend-scary story. How could any sim have a problem with supernaturals anyway? Probably afraid they would bore them to pieces!
     Do you think we'll be that lame when we grow up? Lucky asked.
     Nah, Odin quickly parried: We're never growing up! He really didn't want to grow up, it would be great to stay a kid forever and ever! And why was Skuld still so quiet anyway? It wasn't like her to be so quiet just because some old sim yelled at her.

      I think they bored Skuld to death already, he lauged. But she didn't have any unfriendly comments back at him, she just kept looking dreamily into the air like she was thinking about something. Until she finally said: I would love to live forever....
     Yeah! Lucky smiled; That would be so awesome! Imagine what toys they will have in the future! They started discussing what toys the future would hold for them. 
     But Skuld didn't want to live forever as a kid, she wanted to grow up and then never age or die. She had to figure out how to do that! She knew that she fairylady could have lied just to get a closer look at her, but why would she? The thought that someone might not actually think about what was best for Skuld, was a thought impossible. Why would someone not give her everything she wanted?

     They never got the opportunity to stay interested, as Sunniva came through the door with the baby. She looked pale and had a strange facialexpression none of the kids recognized. She did her best to pretend everything was normal though, even as her voice was highstrung and the smile plastered on. Did she think they were idiots?
     Hi kids? Are you having fun? No they weren't, this place was lame. Yet they politely answered "yes ma'am".

     Rikard say that we're going to play a little game now. It's called the "quiet game" and the rules are that we all have to be as quiet as possible, for as long as possible.      Yeah, dad usually plays that with us to, when he thinks we make to much noise. Odin quickly answered without thinking. But it was true, dad had played it with them a lot of times, and thought they didn't get why. They humoured him the best they could. There were many responsibilities when having parents.

     After a strange look, she said: It's not the same thing. It's very, very, very important that you are quiet in this quiet game. And that you stay down on the floor whilst doing so. 
     Okay, that was strange but they had done odder stuff than that: And, she continued; if you hear anything strange or any loud noises, it's very important that you still don't make a sound. She was starting to look a bit panicked.  And turn off your cellphones, so that no one accidentially phone you.... Really lady? What cellphones? The only one that had one was Effie, and only Oriana and Meave knew he had one. Like dad would let any of them touch such scary things!
     What was going on? They still did as they were told since she looked so panicked. Odin had never missed his dad more in his life. He'd make anything better a long time ago, and he was big and strong to!

     It was just something about springweather that never wanted to make up it's mind. It was warm, but still cold. Other than that it was a quiet night, they were after all lucky enough to live pretty far away from the downtown area.  
 So, you see Effie, when Rikard asks you a question, you can just answer it. He doesn't automatically believe the grown- ups. He's a pretty nice guy even if he looks a bit....
     Hairy? Effie thought his dad was hairy to, but not as hairy as uncle Rikard. He was worried he'd be that hairy when he grew old to.
     Well, yeah he's hairy to! But I meant that he might look and sound a bit strick, but he isn't. Actually he meant that his brother looked angry, but it wasn't the best choice of words to a kid.

     What happened anyway? He'd also tried getting it out of the boy, but ofcourse he didn't answer. Must really blow beeing the oldest kid in the house. He'd gotten that it was something about Skuld, and that fairy, and Effie had tried to protect the girl. Which was odd, because she was one tough nut to crack. But atleast his little boy had protective instincts... hopefully he wouldn't turn into some miniature Marco.

     Effie was a lot smarter than his dad to, as he changed the subject quickly: Why didn't we take a cab anyway? 
     I couldn't get one!! It wasn't always easy hailing a free cab in this city. Though when he thought about it; who would want to pick up a crazy man walking around with a kid way after bedtime.... It was strange no one had called the police on them.
     Effie didn't look to awesome either, actually he looked far from awesome.

     Do you want to go in through the backdoor? I'm sure jarl and Odin won't mind you sleeping in their beds for once. Joe was a pretty smart guy sometimes, and this was one of them. He didn't want to go in through the frontdoor either. To much arguing.
     Looking up at him, a worried look almost disappeared: Could I? I don't want to be yelled at by mum...
     She won't yell at you Effie.... Yes she would, she'd yell at both of them.

     It's so quiet..... he said as they rounded the corner of the house. It was strange not hearing anything from the inside. But the house was pretty well insulated.

What was that? Was that a gun? Why was there a gun in his face? Joe didn't notice that he dragged Effie behind him, and for once he wasn't protesting against beeing pushed by an adult. What was he supposed to do? Why was there a weapon here? Was that guy a cop? He didn't look like a cop, maybe it was an undercover one? They could look pretty bad most of the time, but why would one of    Marcos co- workers pull a weapon at him and a kid?
     I.... I'm unarmed..... Joe stuttered. Wondered if sims understood how it felt having a gun in their face?

     The pistol-pointer took the time to pull an amused face, and even answered: Good to know. 
Was there an escaperoute for Effie here? Joe took a quick peek around, to the gunmans obvious amusement. Then he moved slowly backwards with Effie behind his body. Maybe he should jump the guy? On the other hand running away seemed more tempting, even if it most likely meant he'd get shot in the back. What would be better for Effie? Was there more of them around? Why was he so damned crazy he couldn't even think straight?!

     It always seemed like these things took forever, and that Joe had pondered in things for ages, but it couldn't have been more than a few seconds.
     They were going to die. His little Effie was going to die and there was fine little he could do about it, other than pleading. But the guy didn't seem like a very friendly type.
     Let the boy go.... Joe knew it was pointless, but he had to give it a try, unknowingly to himself backing away from the gunman. Not that it helped, since he just followed.
     I won't harm the kid. The man lied, but atleast he had the decency not to scare the boy more than he already had.

     Joe just closed his eyes, hoping that madness came before death. But that one time he could have needed it, crazy- Joe was hiding to. Damned crazy- Joe..... 
     His son was going to die and it was fine little he could do about it.  Even Efraim tugging at his shirt, trying to get his attention didn't make a difference.
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'Claps hands' Marco is safe! Never thought anything else did you? He's the heir after all. I thought about having more from that place him and Bashir gets to, but figured not to. It's getting to long already.
And that's googletranslate french, so it's probably not accurate.

Thanks for reading

2.23 Liar, liar house on fire

                                                     warning: violence/gore/language

     The blue man was interesting enough to look at, but any illusion that anyone had ever had about vampires were brutally shattered by the pure nerdiness of what was known as Albert. Yes, Albert; the nerdiest vampire in simnation. Turned out that he'd been in charge of opening the store "Nerds inc" with the slogan: "Nerds? We got 'em". Wolf the genie didn't seem to impressed at the information though. Turned out that supernaturals were just as boring as all other grown ups.

     It was a bit strange beeing at uncle Rikards mansion, but Efraim didn't complain. He'd rather be home though. Like a lot of older kids, he was sure it was his job beeing mature whilst uncle Marco and Bashir were gone. Not that it was easy acting grown up when your voice changes between falsetto and deep.
     The younger ones needed to see him calm, so that they wouldn't be nervous and to keep the adults from getting worried. What Effie really wanted to do was to crawl into mums lap and cry; not dads, he'd freak out; but mum was strong and tough.

     His parents had been supposed to move in together, but it had been postponed due to uncle Marco. And it was for the best, because Jarl and Odin needed him. And so did Lucky now that her mum couldn't find her dad either. That was different ofcourse, he was just overworked. But to be honest even a child like him was getting suspicious that something had happened. They still needed to stick together now. Skuld could take care of herself, but he'd carry her worries to if she ever needed it.

     The fairylady and Jarl had been talking for quite some time. Well, mainly she had been talking with that super cute voice, and he had been listening. She kept saying he was a plantsim and that meant he could do plantstuff that ordinary sims couldn't. That made him special! It was kind of fun beeing special, but it was easy to say when you were pretty and only had sparkly wings.
     He was green and full of leaves, they were gross. And to be honest the fairylady didn't look very trustworthy most of the time, and liked to exaggerate a bit it seemed. What would he even need to photosynthesis for? That was just strange, and probably not even true. Jarl got a bit bored in the end, and instead went to play with Lucky and Odin. Grown ups were boring, even when they had sparkling wings.

     Jarl wasn't the only one that was bored. Skuld was to, and ended up studying the supernaturals from her chair. They sounded pretty much like other sims, the voices were deep, and they talked about the same boring stuff.
     But maybe they looked different on the inside from other sims? What about their brains? Did they even have brains? And what about wings, did they disappear when they died? And why could vampires die anyway? Weren't they supposed to be dead already, Skuld thought as she studied the nerdiest sim in simnation. She wasn't surprised that most of them were guys though. Rikard was a bloke, so obviously most of his friends would be to.

     The boring looking guy "what's his name" barely even looked at her, so Skuld looked at the fairy instead, just to find that the woman was already studying her.
     You're a very pretty girl, her voice was over- the- top cute, bet a lot of boys liked that. Skuld didn't have a light voice, hers was pretty deep already. Odin said she sounded like a man, which was stupid.

     I know, Skuld simply answered. It wasn't bragging, it was true, she was pretty.
     The fairy studied her for a while, before talking again: Did you know that in the old days, a lot of supernaturals never got old, and lived forever?
     Listened with an intensity unknown to her, she pretended not to be interested: That's not true... Ofcourse Jarl wasn't the only one that had noticed the fairylady liked to exaggerate a bit.
     Oh yes it is! She insisted: Nowadays most supernaturals ages and dies like normal sims. But a few figures out how to live forever. But it's just for the most powerful ones. She said it with such a longing voice, that it ended up haunting the young girls mind.

     Skuld liked beeing rude to grownups, they were stupid and not smart like her: So you're weak.
     Annoyingly the fairy didn't get offended: Yes, unfortunately. I tried my hands at alchemy to. Leaning even more forward, she continued: It's said that there's a recipeit that can make you young and healthy for all eternity. Drink it once, and you'll never die. 
     Now she listened even more, pretending harder that she wasn't. Alchemy? She could do that. If that stupid fairy could manage it, it would be a piece of cake for her! But it seemed that the fairylady would do anything to crush poor Skulds dream: Unfortunately only those with supernatural powers can work with the most powerful potions. It's something in our touch that makes them potent, and guaranteed to work!

      Just like that, an ambitous young girl already knew what she wanted out of life: to never die: I could do it. Skuld said with the utmost confidence: I'm special and really clever. 
     Then let me take a look at you then, fairylady said to her. Quickly walking over, Skuld let the woman touch her face and hands. She almost covered the surprise exclaiming: You know, I actually think you're right! You could be an alchemist!
     Ofcourse I can. The girl said with confidence. Really, who else could do it?

     Expecting the lady to let her hand go, she instead felt the womans hard grasp around her wrists: Who's your mother?
     What? Skuld didn't get why she wanted to know. She didn't care, so why did others?
     What's your mothers name? That cute voice was probably supposed to sound scary.
     I've never even met her! The girl hissed at the old lady, as some mansvoice she didn't recognized started talking in the background.
     Without a break, the woman continued: You look a lot like my stepmother. She cheated on my dad, got pregnant and gave the baby to the father. How old are you? She demanded with hard voice. The grip around her wrist got even harder. Why the hell did the school teach them that men were stronger than women? That hurt! 

      None of your business you old bitch! Skuld hissed at the old lady as she stood up trying to grab her around the face to get a better look.
     As the man "what's his name" had barely started reacting, Effie was already on his way throwing himself around the ladies arm. He was scared, but the grown ups didn't do anything and since he was the oldest, it was his job saving the day. Even if it was Skuld.

     Finally letting go of her arm, Skuld was able to get a bit away from the fairylady. If it had been Efraims doing, the other grown ups finally interfering or the fact that Rikard came into the room was to be unsaid.
     She and her wounded pride still didn't get an appology from the old hag. Not that she really cared; she was busy thinking about eternal life. The thought of having a mother didn't even cross her.

     Expensive shoes is a bitch to walk in, the heels has a tendency to clack gainst wooden floors, making it difficult to stay quiet. All depending on the shoe ofcourse. Womens heels are often louder than mens, but when someone needs to get the hell out a place these were way to loud.
Certain sounds were easy to recognize, even when one had never heard them before; like knives slicing in sims for instance. Not a very pleasant sound either. Where the hell had that come from? He hadn't even noticed until the boy was laying on the ground gurgling for air.

     
     Atleast that arsehole had been clever enough to quickly pick the gun up, and shoot another way. And even better; no ricochetes. Even if his ears rang like a band of gnomes had a wild party in there.
     What the hell? Marco was almost at a loss of words for a change, as Bashir cut the rope with the small, bloody knife.
     He would've killed me next...
     Like he didn't know that: You could still have let him shoot me. He'd let donutbeard- boy kill Bashir without hesitation: And why the hell didn't they search you? He was whisper yelling at the guy as best he could.
     I took it from donutboy when I was behind him, it was just in his belt for some reason... Couldn't duckface atleast sound like he was as stressed out as Marco felt: And I don't think Ori would have forgiven me if I let her brother get killed...

      The tiny knife was sharp enough by the feel of it, but the now- dead- boy had picked a damned thick rope. And maybe his brother in law tried not stabbing him in the prosess to. Either that, or things just felt like they took a hell of a lot longer: Yet you tried getting Rowena to get rid of me...  Marco hissed: Hurry the fuck up!
     I'm going as fast as I can you gorilla, or do you want me slicing your wrists... And I told Rowena to get rid of you, because she hates my fucking guts. She does the opposite of what I suggest; always has. Still as calm as they come, and a wholehearted bastard. No shit? Everyone hated his gut. And did he have to say it so drily? That just made him more irritating as he continued: I can't believe she was dumb enough to take you here...
     For once Marco had to agree with ratbreath: What's going on with her anyway?

     Bashir talked with the same low voice: I don't know. She gets crazier by the moment, but I have no idea why. She talks to someone who's not there... sees things that doesn't exsist... I don't know, don't care either, probably stress or something.... Bashir wasn't particulary well- versed in the world of psychology. By his own will ofcourse, he worried that he'd then realize how many things that guaranteed was wrong with him.
      The sudden feel of blood getting back into the hands would normally have been a relief, but it stung and itched like hell. Marco took the opportunity to rub the aching wrists, while trying to get up. Even his knees was aching after the odd position.
     Nothing beats escaping death by a breath, and learn that your own family gets even freakier: We need to get out of her.

     Hogging both weapons, Bashir answered: Obviously, and you're a bigger target then me.... so after you...
     What do you mean "after you"? Is there a window here or something? Marco hadn't seen one atleast.
     It's a loft blondie.... Or as much as one could call it a loft anyway, it was more like a tiny room at the topfloor that was for unuseful crap. But there was a limit to how descriptive one could be when sims wanted you dead, and you happened to be stuck somewhere in the middle. Donut- boy was already starting to smell a bit in the moist humidity. Doing his best not to beat his in- law into a bloody pulp, he whisperyelled: Lofts have windows!!!
     Slowly eying him up and down, with one eyebrow raised Bashir asked: ...and you usually fit through these windows? Right, there was that.

     Rubbing his back with sore hands, Marco wondered why it took so long before the aching stopped. Where was the adrenaline when needed: Where are we?
     It's a storage outside Riverview. They're in the prosess of ditching it. 
     Still doing his best to try to get some useful information out of duckface: How many are there? That was the important thing to ask, when there were no windows one could press yourself out of.
     No idea, I've been kept away from most part. You know, since they were going to kill me? They've taken my phone, and I've constantly been followed by a minimum of two idiots the few times I've even been allowed to move around. I think it's pretty empty... or not.
     We need to get out of here someway, are there any backdoors, anything?      
    No. 
    Bashir was the appifany of irritating behaviour, atleast to Marco. What the hell were they supposed to do then: Well, why don't they have any backdoors?! 
     It's a storage. How blonde could this guy possibly be?

     Give me the glock, Marco held his hand out: I know how to use one! Bashir eyed him up and down suspiciously, hogging the weapon close: It's the gun ratbreath....
     I know, Bashir answered matter- of- factly. He just didn't mention he wasn't a very good shot, he'd never had any weaponstraining. But strangely enough he didn't want to give it to someone who was a great shooter, and really hated his guts. It was kind of asking for more trouble, since he'd already killed donut- boy.
     I'm not going to kill you, you moron! A gunshot would kill you to quickly. He ended up taking the weapon out of those gross man-hands instead. Knives? Bashir was such a pansy.

     Hurrying over to the door, they stood a while listening- Marco with his ear against the door. Or he was until: You know, if someone were right outside they'd heard us a long time ago. Still as dry as ever.
     Giving the guy an annoyed glare, he whisper- hissed: Well, someone might have showed up AFTERWARDS!!
     As great the idea of arguing over petty things are, whilst there's a building full of sims wanting you dead, it also leads to not paying a attention. Every single time he opened his mouth, whatever he said came true as they now heard a couple of voices, and hard boots stomping on the floor. Quickly checking the hinges showing that the door went inwards, made them hide behind it hopefully giving a natural shield. Not that it would help a lot. Unfortunately Bashir took the same thought and hid behind him again.

    
     As the voices got closer and the door opened, they both took the same thought: Why the hell hadn't they hidden the corpse? It was straight infront of the fucking door!
     Maybe luck still worked in Marcos favour, or maybe it was one of the good things about having men and women working toghether? The two thugs were so busy flirting, their heads close together as they were on their way doing their dirty business. So this was to be the help for the executioner? Just two sims that no one would have looked twice at if they met on the street?

     Having the door closing behind them, it took a few seconds before they even reacted to the sight of a dead comrade.
     Training since he was a teenager, it was the very first time he'd ever used it on another sim. No matter how many times he'd wanted to. But desperate times calls for desperate measures, or so others claimed. For now that was good enough. The lovely little symbol of a silken black sash with x- ammount of grading, was at home. A small, very significant symbol of the many years of training sim- fu.

     He really hadn't thought that one through. The heavy mans body made such a noise, it had to been heard all the way downtown. Then he ended up with a lot bigger problem; the woman shyed away from him in fear, staring at him for something that seemed like an eternity. But it couldn't have been more than a few seconds.
     Marco couldn't hit a woman, less likely kill her. Those women would really be the death of him.

     There was that sound again, this time blended in with the gurgling of someone choking on their own blood. Not to mention it made a lot less sound than kicking the daylight out of someone. Did this mean that duckface was more clever than him?

     Kneeling down quietly the woman still tried grasping for breath, without managing it. Atleast it made a lot less noise than his solution.
     You killed her!! It was a statement, one couldn't just walk around killing women!
     No, she's still alive unless you can hear it... or see it....
     Then make it go faster!! Marco whisper- yelled at him. He'd shoot her, but it would make to much noise. This was horrible!! Poor lady....
     How the bloody hell am I supposed to do that? Do you think this is something I do every fucking day?! He gestured towards the woman crawling on the floor now: Look at that, she's not going anywhere.... well.... fast atleast. eventually she fell on her dead mates, making a delightfully tiny sound, barely hearable.

     What the fuck is wrong with you?? Marco was still doing his best to whisper, and not scream in the guys face.
     Tearing his eyes away from the woman finally taking her last breaths, or trying to take them, Bashir answered: You know you kicked that guys skull in right? 
     That's different!! You can't just kill women! That's sick!
      Bashir actually laughed; a soft, low genuine laughter he'd never given the guy credit for having. But really, was that something to laugh about?!
      What? How is that  funny?! 
      Clearing his throat, Bashir got back to his usual self, saying: We need to get out of here; incase the guy here fell loud enough to be heard through the entire building.

     As silently as possible, they kept sneaking down stairs and around corners. Bashir knew this place a lot better than him, but as he'd already mentioned; they had kept him away from most part. What Marco just couldn't understand was why a storage- building had so many floors!! Probably an old officebuilding that had been converted... fucking politicians fault.    
     Marco liked having a gun, especially when he realized that the few thugs they saw had a tendency to have either knives or revolvers. But for now a gun was just to loud to be of any use. As Bashir had thought, the place seemed to be pretty empty of folks. It wasn't like criminals usually had an office, or a common place they hung out. That would have been pretty idiotic, but this was apparently a temporary place set up because the morcus had insisted. They were used to working in different ways than just common criminals. After all, why else would they be dumb enough to have meetings with Rowena.

     Things were starting to get to close for his liking. One look, just one little gaze to the left and she'd seen them. Even if the thugs were few and far between, they were still to many. They were never getting out of here.
     Waiting for the footsteps to leave, Marco never let out the breath he was holding, even as the sound dissapeared to the top floor. From the upstairs they could hear the walking and talking of several other sims. But for now they were alone, atleast alone enough: Aren't there any ways out of here? Marco had never talked so silently in his life. They would never get out the front door, not with this speed.
     There's windows that we won't fit through: Bashir was getting annoyed, as they clinged to the few boxes hoping no one would turn their head. This was sick! And the three dead thugs would be missed. If they were lucky, all the experienced criminals were gone, but the missing ones would be detected either way.

     Calling their voices whispers would be a horrible overstatement. He'd liked better not to use his voice at all, but Bashir seemed to be as much at loss as himself. That was, until: Rowenas office. There's an old door there that used to leave to an escaperoute. It's probably been sealed. 
     Rowenas office? His cousines office? What if she attacked them? He couldn't injure his cousine, or even let ratbreath do it. And why the hell was that guy pointing that damned stinky knife at him?!
     No
     She's not there you gorilla... Great, now he was mindreader to: She just calls it that, for when she needs to talk to someone without beeing disturbed. This is still a storage....
    It was a good thing that he'd kept his hope down to a minimum as he was close to giving up. But it was always that small thought of his children that tugged at the back of his mind. He really wanted to see them just one last time. Just once.
    Then he had one of those other thoughts again: Wait. What about the informant?

     Looking around himself, hoping to avoid prying eyes Bashir also thought it was to much talking for his liking: What? There was something about his wife and her brothers family, they talked to much.
     The cops have an insider. Is the informant here? Marco explained: I'm not a dirty cop. Not that Vigdis had actually said directly that they had an informant, but it had been pretty obvious either way. Not that he usually cared about sims like that, but for once he didn't think anyone deserved whatever faiths someone like Rowena would find for them.
     I know. We need to keep moving. Bashir thought Marco was even slower finishing things than the old owl- aka his wife. 
     Really? Why did he always have to drag every single little thing out of that guy?! Couldn't he just finish one sentence: How the hell do you know?
     It's me blondie.....
      No it's not
     Yes it is. I work for the city. We're trying to get rid of the Morcus. Kind of obvious when thinking about it, isn't it? They really didn't have time for any more arguments at this moment.
     Then why haven't you gotten caught?! No way was Rowena that stupid. She was related to him after all.
     Even with that low whisper, he managed to keep his voice immensly dry: Because I've been doing this my entire adult life, and always pin it on someone else. So obvious wasn't it.

     There was no way that could be true, how dumb did that guy think he was anyway? Was ratface one of the good guys? Ofcourse the term "good" could be discussed. But MorcuCorp should have been all over the city by now, and they weren't. No. No way duckface had been working with them the entire time. Besides, if he'd been pinning his own wrongdoings on others, it meant lots of sims was dead because of him. That was rotten. Atleast Marco was highly law- abiding..... 
     He didn't bother telling duckface it was clear for them to move on. If he wanted to pretend beeing a good guy now, he could damned well keep up on his own.

     What a great joy that he'd gotten a hold of a gun! It was a lot more effective way of beating the guards unconscious than just with his hands. Ofcourse it would be a lot better, if he could use it to shoot someone with! Atleast this time, Bashir had the decency to prevent the guy from falling that loudly.
      Finally outside the "office" Marco huffed whilst dragging the passed- out guard inside. This guy was still alive. It was just that they hadn't expected someone in there. Retrospectivly the should probably have stopped and wondered why else someone would be standing outside. This whole "having death breathing down your neck"- thing didn't do wonders for his usual calm professionalism.

     And there she was, just sitting there, that old hag he hated so deeply. To think he'd been worried about Rowena. Atleast she would most likely have attacked, but this old lady just sat there staring arrogantly at them.
     Not a word! Bashir was a lot quicker than him this time; where's you co- worker. None of them expected her to answer: Just down the hallway, in the next room. Why are you two alive?
     Marco just couldn't take his eyes off her. And here he had been thinking about how he couldn't harm a woman. But she didn't count as a woman, or as a sim for that matter.
     Try the door you gorilla! Bashirs irritated voice quickly woke him up again. Ofcourse she was right, not only was the door locked and barred from the outside. It was rusted in place. To bad Rowena hadn't been a complete moron.

     So close, they had been so close. He didn't have time for this, what was he going to do now? This had been their only chance. Again Bashir interrupted his thoughts: I'll go find the other Morcu.
     Still with his hands again the barred door, Marco asked him to wait: Give me the knife, you take the gun. After a break he continued: Use it on yourself if you get caught.  
     Taking it from him without hesitation, he left with a pair of famous last words: I'll be right back.
      No he wasn't. He was going to kill the other morcu to be on the safe side, then rat him out to Rowena, or get out on his own. Marco really hated that guy.

     There was someone he hated a lot more. Old and fragile with clear eyes and still a strong voice, the old principal hadn't moved. Marco had never forgotten her, never. No matter how hard he'd tried, she always lay in the back of his mind. She even smelled the same, her scent easily overwhelming the rotting stink of the room. Poor Joe.
     The guard still hadn't moved, but as it turned out a strange knifewound had magically appeared on his back. Bashir must have stabbed him when he wasn't looking. Killing someone defensless wasn't his style; clearly his brother- in- law had gotten that.

     He was going to die either way, wasn't he? He'd never get out of here alive, even when they were so close to escape. Gnomesized windows, damned blocked doors, damn Rowena, damn Bashir, but most of all: Damned that old hag to hell and further down....
      He was going to die either way... another look at that creature on the chair nearly made him see red. Joe was his best mate, even better than Rye had ever been. He'd tricked that old bitch time and time around just to give Joe a break once in a while. Retrospectively he realized that he should have told someone, but they had just been kids and assumed no one believed them. And let's face it, it was more common for men beeing that way.

     Joe had been a good kid, sensitive, sweet and vulnerable. Completely unlike him. But there she'd been, turning him into some gross, fucked up mess that still wasn't near normal. Just look at her sitting there, and she didn't even remember him.
     Do you even remember me? He wasn't supposed to say that out loud, how come the words has escaped his mouth?
     From the inteviews on tv yes, she gave him a short suspicious look.
     That's not what I meant, he barked out to loudly, quickly silencing himself again: From school.... you were my principal, I practically lived in your office. Remember?
      A short surprised look on her face dissapeared quickly. Maybe he had just imagined the face she pulled? Whatever he was looking for, wasn't coming. Turning away from him she simply said: It's been many years, I can't remember every kid I ever met.

     "Every kid", he wasn't just "every kid": I really should kill you. He did his very best not to kill her instantly.
     Smiling acidly at him, she said: What are you going to do Marco? Beat me to death? How did she know his name, if she couldn't remember? The thought that she might remember it from the tv intervjues, or picked it up from this place didn't cross his mind. It was everything he needed. He hated the way she said his name: No. You're not worth using that much energy on. It was strange what a calmness he felt sinking in over him, pushing the anger away. He felt just like he did when he was meditating.

     But they were rudely interrupted before anything could happen: he's here! Some unknown voice shouted.

     Barely noticing the sims getting engulfed in fire, running around wildly pulling it with them, Marco still kept his focus on that old hag. He was a freak, he just had to accept it, he hadn't even moved an inch, it had just engulfed the nearest thug, immideately bringing her screaming to her knees. Fine, if he was going to die, so was the rest of these arseholes. They deserved burning, until their stomachs cracked open as their intestines boiled. Unlike last time, this fire was scorching, spreading through the buildings inventory. It took the sims so long to die, and so short for the inventory to catch fire.
     He could barely hear voices over the roaring flames, but that didn't matter to him at all.

     Despite him just starting a fire on a whim, the old lady didn't move or say anything. She might have been in shock, but that didn't bother Marco. If he was going to die anyway, he might as well have one last wish come true, right? He deserved it, he'd been such a nice guy since he had kids. With a good hold around the knife, he stabbed the hag in the stomach, just to make sure she couldn't get away again.

     He then pulled out a chair, sat opposite her and wathced. He wanted the last thing she'd see in her life to be him.

     Uncle Rikard wasn't very nice in Efraims young mind. He had walked in on them after he helped Skuld get away from the old fairy. Asking what was happening. Then the fairy had lied!! That he had just attacked her after reprimanding Skuld for beeing rude! He didn't attack anyone!! Adults were so stupid. He wanted to take care of the other kids, but this was to much for him.

     Effie wanted to get away from it all sometimes. Everyone treated him like he was a kid! He was almost a teenager, and so much more mature than the others. So he snuck out! The grown- ups could look after the other kids, he wanted to be alone just for once! Sitting on the swing he almost regretted it, the moon looked unusally eerie tonight. But he couldn't go back to uncle Rikard after running away.

     Hello? Joe picked up the phone, thankful for the interruptance after all the simdrama that had been going on. Meave and Oriana was really at a go, and he had to side with his wife, even if he agreed with Oriana. And what was up with this Jonny thing? Was Oriana making stuff up to keep them out of her hair?
     Rikards voice was calm at the other end, telling about how Efraim had run off. He hadn't wanted to pick him up because he was the one that had made him run off in the first place.

     Joe didn't think that type of behaviour sounded like his son, but atleast Rikard was keeping an eye on the boy, until he could pick him up. The nearest playground was the place of choice to hide for a kid appereantly.
     Effie ran off, he told his wife after a questioned look. Rikards there with him.  
      You were supposed to turn the phone off and put it in the hallway like the rest of us! Oriana complained. So that they wouldn't get interrupted like this. Not that she'd thought about the kids dissapearing, so good thing he hadn't.
     Yeah, I lied... Joe wasn't sorry. He'd kept it in case something like this would happen, which he'd anticipated with his brothers layed back attitude about tweens: I'll go pick him up. He kissed her goodbye and went out the door.

     Hello, answering the phone he assumed it was one of his co- workers from MorcuCorp: Come again?! He was actually surprised, even if he had hoped for something like this to happen: They torched the place, and she's dead? Ouch. His boss was dead, caught in some inferno in a storage- building in Riverview. Well, that happens when someone tries cooperating with the criminal gangs in Jericho, and that other shithole.

     It meant there was a golden chance for him. Not that they hadn't planned on making an opportunity like this, but this made it a whole lot easier. He'd been sure to get whatever information he could from that woman, Oriana. Her name, where she lived, what was going on, who she lived with, when they were at home and the list just went on. She was quite gullible.
     Ofcourse, he'd only helped her since he was plotting taking over MorcuCorp, but needed a way of getting rid of his boss. That old hag just never wanted to die of age, and he'd run out of patience.

     The idea had been to pin the kidnapping of the cop on her and Rowena, without the cops finding him. But now that they had died anyway, he really had to get rid of anyone that could lead the cops to him. Which had been the plan all along anyway, but that woman just never went to the damned police!

     He hadn't told this to his partner in crime how he'd worked ofcourse, but she'd long wanted to take Rowenas place as a leader and this night he'd told her what he'd been up to. For some reason she'd just given a short, smug grin. They would continue their cooperation the two of them. Ofcourse, he wasn't planning on ending up the same way as his now dead boss. The two of them were going to work with real business, that involved real simoleons. Not some idiot mumbo- jumbo and sources of eternal youth.
     First, they had to tie up some loose ends.
     They're dead... he finally hung up on the good news, waiting to see another smug grin that never came: So what do you say? It's now or never... Nothing beat a good ol' clichè.

     She had such a sweet little kitten voice: Deep cleaning?
     Adam nodded, still having a bit of problem understanding how he'd been able to get all that information out of Oriana: Sounds good. Maybe a bit uncalled for, but it was better to be safe than sorry, since he'd already started using clichés. Just in case this Oriana had shared information about him with the sims around her: How do we....
     No problem, she said again: They'll let me in. Just make sure the others aren't far behind. When they hear the first shot, they move in to. She wanted to be fast in and out again. The lack of planning could be a problem, but it was nothing they couldn't handle. 
      Adam felt he needed to warn her: There's some armychick with them....Rowenas sister I believe. He'd nearly croaked when he'd figured out who this "Meave" was. If she was anything like her golden- eyed sibling, they were in for a lot of trouble.
     No problem, I'll take her out first. 
     What about the kids, and that other guys family?
     She looked just as uncaring as earlier: No problem, I'll send Sylvie and her friends after them. Shouldn't be any problems there. Two adults and five children....
     Adam nodded, that's what he'd figured out atleast.

     Oriana had made everyone turn their phones off and stuff them in the hallway, including Joe. No more interruptions! Or so the idea had been, but when she heard the knock on the door she found herself beeing glad. Mainly because they were still acting like they knew everything, and that they also knew it better than her. Which was stupid!!
     Even in the darkness outside, Oriana recognized the woman standing there, and what a welcomed surprise it was.

     Hey Vera, Oriana let her into the house without hesitation, hugging her tight. It had been ages since they had seen eachother.
     Hi Ori, she answered: How are you holding up? It was so typical of Vera to worry about her.

     Hi everyone. Vera said with that sweet little kittenvoice that a lot of sims found annoying. Luckily she didn't need any introductions, everyone knew her after all.   
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poses ag, pnmai, zhi, sunny, AG, Imho, Traelia, VKG, jasumi, ohoh, Woe, Morphead etc...(it ended up beeing to many to credit. Sorry)

Everyone knew there would be a fire. For all those "what?" moments that you have going on, I can tell you that I'll explain it later, I just want to wrap this part up first. I lost a bit of important things, when my computer broke down so I have to improvise a bit. The whole "beeing zen" thing to do magicstuff, is pretty common in fantasy litterature, if anyone reads that (no one reads that do they, it's just nerds like me).

The fairy is Lukas daughter, he and Iva had a thing going in generation 1. Which means that Skulds mum is fairyladys stepmum. And eternal life is a cliché, I know but it's the sims. Vera is a childhoodfriend of Orianas if anyone wonders where's she's coming from. Last seen in chapter 2.15. And Adam is the guy that has been feeding Oriana information.

Thanks for reading