Sim_Spiration 4/4/11
I've written far too much again, and what was a small idea has snowballed as I've set the scene for the pay off. Enjoy.
"You know I'd walk a thousand miles if I could just see you tonight." ("A Thousand Miles" - Vanessa Carlton)
The setting sun was gilding the marble of the entrance hall to the villa a deep bronze as Sophia and Lauren Sartor stepped through the door. "You do it just to be contrary I am sure," said Lauren as she propped her frilly white parasol against the wall so she could divest herself of the wide brimmed hat she was wearing.
"I do not," exclaimed Sophia as she stripped off her gloves, before placing them on the table beside her own parasol. "I am extra-ordinarily fond of the arts, and the Simffizi contains some of the most spectacular examples of sculpture in the world. Is it a crime that I wish to gaze upon them each time we are in SimFlorence?"
Lauren looked at the back of her twin, her eyebrows raised. "You know full well that the David Gallery contains numerous examples of sculpture of the naked male form..."
"Which have been wantonly vandalised by the unwarranted addition of bronze fig leaves," interrupted Sophia, but Lauren ignored her.
"...and as such two young ladies are going to be challenged when they try to enter. I swear that you insist on going there because you enjoy arguing with the curators!"
"I resent that accusation Lauren!" replied Sophia twirling round.
"Your sister is correct my dear niece," said a soft voice in Simtalien.
"See!" said Lauren, throwing her hands up in the air.
"You are far more like your mother than you realise, not just in looks," continued their aunt as she crossed the hall towards the two girls, "but in temperament too. What she ever saw in that staid and stoic Simlish man I do not know."
"My memories are that they were very happy together," replied Sophia stiffly as she moved to kiss her aunt's cheek.
"That I do not doubt, but like your mother, you wear your emotions openly and are quick to anger. Your father, he is much different. One might think it is easier to get blood from a stone than arouse an emotional response from him. He, he shuts himself away."
Sophia was silent. There had been a time before her mother had died, when her father hadn't been like that. His laughter would fill the halls of their Georgian mansion mingling with Giulietta's or being chased by Giulietta's shouts.
"I sometimes think that Sophia just enjoys being challenged, even if she will not admit it," said Lauren as their Aunt Rosa moved to kiss her.
This brought Sophia out of her reverie and she glared at the two of them. "Really, is tonight's sport to be pointing out my flaws? Because if it is, I hope you do not take it terribly if I ask to be excused and eat in my rooms."
Rosa and Lauren shared a look before, the older woman walked across and took Sophia's hands. "Of course it is not. I apologise my dear if I spoke out of turn."
"Apology accepted."
"I trust you had a good day touring the city?"
Sophia's face relaxed into a smile. "We did, did we not Lauren?" Lauren nodded in agreement. "A trip to SimFlorence always soothes my soul, and of course it is always a pleasure to see you and Uncle Luca."
"Now I believe you are flattering me my dear niece."
"Not at all."
"Hmpf," Rosa looked at her for a moment before saying "oh, you had a letter arrive for you this afternoon Sophia." She produced it from her skirt pocket and handed it to her.
Sophia took it, her heart skipping as she saw her name inscribed on it in a familiar, rounded script. "Thank you Aunt," she said trying to keep the tremor from her voice. "If you will excuse me, I wish to wash the dust of the city off my skin before we dine."
Her Aunt inclined her head. "Of course. We will be dining on the veranda in three quarters of an hour."
"Thank you," Sophia gathered up her things and made her way up the stairs, breaking into a run once she was out of sight of the entrance hall. Once in the privacy of her rooms, she unceremoniously dropped her belongings on the floor, before eschewing the use of a letter opener to rip open the seal on the envelope.
It was from Bertie, and her heart soared as she started to read.
"My dearest Sophia,
I hope this letter finds you well and that you are enjoying your stay with your relatives in Simtaly. It is nice to be back home in Regalton for the break, and Papa and I are spending much of our time pouring over the plans for the alterations we wish to make to the house. I confess, I wish you were near, so that we could consult with you too, after all this will be your home too in little more than a year and I wish it to please you. But that is not the only reason I wish you were near.
I miss you.
I find myself wondering how long it would take me to walk the miles between Simland and Simtaly, because walk them I would if it meant I was guaranteed to see your beautiful face..."
Sophia snorted at that. He was an idiot, but... She read line again and a smile crept over her face. He was a romantic idiot, and she loved him and was aware of how keenly she missed him. She could not stop herself from grinning as she read the rest of the letter.
***
Unusually for me, I feel I have to write a few disclaimers for this drabble, mainly because it is a drabble and I’ve not done any research for it.
First off, yes SimFlorence is based on the real place, but it’s over twelve years since I visited the city, and it was the height of the tourist season and was crowded and dirty and I didn’t like it much, so my memories of the place won’t be without fault.
Likewise, yes the Simffizi takes its name from the Uffizi, but I didn’t get time to go and visit the gallery when I was in Florence, and so I have no idea as to what it looks like inside aside from the fact that it’s full of OMG gorgeous artwork. Therefore the gallery I’ve mentioned is completely fictitious, and since I can’t remember the year the Real!David was moved from the Palazzo Vecchio to the Galleria dell'Accademia and the Replica!David was put in his place, doesn’t actually contain the statue. I just wanted to name the gallery after one of Florence’s most famous artworks, while leaving the wriggle room that the gallery could actually be named after a benefactor.
I also have no idea whether young ladies would have been permitted into such a gallery in the Uffizi or not, and don’t want to spend the hours it would take to research it, just for this drabble. The whole point of the incident is to show some more of Sophia’s character.
Lastly, the thing with the fig leaves… This is something which I remember seeing on a documentary and being presented as fact. However, I can’t remember who did it or where it happened, and I think they were actually plaster fig leaves not bronze. No matter, it strikes me as such a wonderfully prudish Victorian middle class thing to do, I had to include it in this.
"You know I'd walk a thousand miles if I could just see you tonight." ("A Thousand Miles" - Vanessa Carlton)
The setting sun was gilding the marble of the entrance hall to the villa a deep bronze as Sophia and Lauren Sartor stepped through the door. "You do it just to be contrary I am sure," said Lauren as she propped her frilly white parasol against the wall so she could divest herself of the wide brimmed hat she was wearing.
"I do not," exclaimed Sophia as she stripped off her gloves, before placing them on the table beside her own parasol. "I am extra-ordinarily fond of the arts, and the Simffizi contains some of the most spectacular examples of sculpture in the world. Is it a crime that I wish to gaze upon them each time we are in SimFlorence?"
Lauren looked at the back of her twin, her eyebrows raised. "You know full well that the David Gallery contains numerous examples of sculpture of the naked male form..."
"Which have been wantonly vandalised by the unwarranted addition of bronze fig leaves," interrupted Sophia, but Lauren ignored her.
"...and as such two young ladies are going to be challenged when they try to enter. I swear that you insist on going there because you enjoy arguing with the curators!"
"I resent that accusation Lauren!" replied Sophia twirling round.
"Your sister is correct my dear niece," said a soft voice in Simtalien.
"See!" said Lauren, throwing her hands up in the air.
"You are far more like your mother than you realise, not just in looks," continued their aunt as she crossed the hall towards the two girls, "but in temperament too. What she ever saw in that staid and stoic Simlish man I do not know."
"My memories are that they were very happy together," replied Sophia stiffly as she moved to kiss her aunt's cheek.
"That I do not doubt, but like your mother, you wear your emotions openly and are quick to anger. Your father, he is much different. One might think it is easier to get blood from a stone than arouse an emotional response from him. He, he shuts himself away."
Sophia was silent. There had been a time before her mother had died, when her father hadn't been like that. His laughter would fill the halls of their Georgian mansion mingling with Giulietta's or being chased by Giulietta's shouts.
"I sometimes think that Sophia just enjoys being challenged, even if she will not admit it," said Lauren as their Aunt Rosa moved to kiss her.
This brought Sophia out of her reverie and she glared at the two of them. "Really, is tonight's sport to be pointing out my flaws? Because if it is, I hope you do not take it terribly if I ask to be excused and eat in my rooms."
Rosa and Lauren shared a look before, the older woman walked across and took Sophia's hands. "Of course it is not. I apologise my dear if I spoke out of turn."
"Apology accepted."
"I trust you had a good day touring the city?"
Sophia's face relaxed into a smile. "We did, did we not Lauren?" Lauren nodded in agreement. "A trip to SimFlorence always soothes my soul, and of course it is always a pleasure to see you and Uncle Luca."
"Now I believe you are flattering me my dear niece."
"Not at all."
"Hmpf," Rosa looked at her for a moment before saying "oh, you had a letter arrive for you this afternoon Sophia." She produced it from her skirt pocket and handed it to her.
Sophia took it, her heart skipping as she saw her name inscribed on it in a familiar, rounded script. "Thank you Aunt," she said trying to keep the tremor from her voice. "If you will excuse me, I wish to wash the dust of the city off my skin before we dine."
Her Aunt inclined her head. "Of course. We will be dining on the veranda in three quarters of an hour."
"Thank you," Sophia gathered up her things and made her way up the stairs, breaking into a run once she was out of sight of the entrance hall. Once in the privacy of her rooms, she unceremoniously dropped her belongings on the floor, before eschewing the use of a letter opener to rip open the seal on the envelope.
It was from Bertie, and her heart soared as she started to read.
"My dearest Sophia,
I hope this letter finds you well and that you are enjoying your stay with your relatives in Simtaly. It is nice to be back home in Regalton for the break, and Papa and I are spending much of our time pouring over the plans for the alterations we wish to make to the house. I confess, I wish you were near, so that we could consult with you too, after all this will be your home too in little more than a year and I wish it to please you. But that is not the only reason I wish you were near.
I miss you.
I find myself wondering how long it would take me to walk the miles between Simland and Simtaly, because walk them I would if it meant I was guaranteed to see your beautiful face..."
Sophia snorted at that. He was an idiot, but... She read line again and a smile crept over her face. He was a romantic idiot, and she loved him and was aware of how keenly she missed him. She could not stop herself from grinning as she read the rest of the letter.
***
Unusually for me, I feel I have to write a few disclaimers for this drabble, mainly because it is a drabble and I’ve not done any research for it.
First off, yes SimFlorence is based on the real place, but it’s over twelve years since I visited the city, and it was the height of the tourist season and was crowded and dirty and I didn’t like it much, so my memories of the place won’t be without fault.
Likewise, yes the Simffizi takes its name from the Uffizi, but I didn’t get time to go and visit the gallery when I was in Florence, and so I have no idea as to what it looks like inside aside from the fact that it’s full of OMG gorgeous artwork. Therefore the gallery I’ve mentioned is completely fictitious, and since I can’t remember the year the Real!David was moved from the Palazzo Vecchio to the Galleria dell'Accademia and the Replica!David was put in his place, doesn’t actually contain the statue. I just wanted to name the gallery after one of Florence’s most famous artworks, while leaving the wriggle room that the gallery could actually be named after a benefactor.
I also have no idea whether young ladies would have been permitted into such a gallery in the Uffizi or not, and don’t want to spend the hours it would take to research it, just for this drabble. The whole point of the incident is to show some more of Sophia’s character.
Lastly, the thing with the fig leaves… This is something which I remember seeing on a documentary and being presented as fact. However, I can’t remember who did it or where it happened, and I think they were actually plaster fig leaves not bronze. No matter, it strikes me as such a wonderfully prudish Victorian middle class thing to do, I had to include it in this.