The Tomato Legacy, Episode Seven: Humbelina's Choice
I'm getting a jump on one of my sim resolutions for 2012 by updating the Tomato Legacy. Now, if you have a good memory, you may recall me whining about losing this entire update after I had finished typing it up a while back. Because of this, some of the following commentary may suffer slightly. It's difficult to muster up the enthusiasm to try to recreate what I'd already written, so I'll try my best to view it through fresh eyes.
It's been a while, so you might want to take a look at some previous posts:
Episode One: Fried Green Tomatoes | Episode Two: (Tomato) Worms Eat My Garbage | Episode Three: Seedlings | Episode Four: Heirloom Families | Episode Five: For your Humble consideration... | Episode Six: We are not amused.
The most relevant information from last time is that Humbelina, the child of Pepper and Ginger Tomato (featuring Mr. Humble's sperm), has always been the frontrunner for heir. She sealed the deal when she aged up to young adult and decided to take her relationship with Damon Bigfoot to the next level.
That's right where we pick up this time.
Humbelina rolled the want to invite him over, so that's exactly what I did.
Full disclosure: even with the bigfoot romance mod installed, I don't think sims actually roll romantic wants for bigfoots (bigfeet?), and ACR is definitely not engaged, so I am making some executive decisions here. But c'mon... can you blame me?
She really is a special sort, having her very first kiss with a bigfoot.
Llama Mascot: Rah-rah, Furry rights!
Let's not get too political about this, now, shall we? :P That actually reminds me of a Canada Day I spent in our nation's capital. I saw a small Furry rights parade marching through the crowd at one point, and they even had Canadian flags with a little paw symbol in the middle of the maple leaf (which I assume is the symbol for Furries). It takes all kinds, I guess.
Since Humbelina didn't roll any further wants, I didn't take things much further than this for the time being. I think they both ended up with crushes, but not falling in love. I decided that I'd progress then if and when she rolled the want to invite him over again. That seemed fair, leaving an opportunity for other suitors while she's in college.
Aww, isn't he cute? :P
I added some intense eyebrows (from the therapist, I believe) to go with his moustache. I think it completes the look.
Here's proof of my very first evil snapdragon bouquet! I have the hack that makes grouchy sims more likely to create them, and there's no shortage of those in this family. I took this one out of here, because it would be pretty unproductive for the uni students, but I hope this will come in handy one day.
Cal really comes into his own as a romance sim in college. Here he is using his patented behind-the-back-from-across-the-room massage technique on Ivo, one of
pixelcurious's sims.
He also continued his tradition of making over his dates to increase the chemistry. Krim gave Ivo a blonde dye job and scrubbed off all her makeup, because Cal prefers them clean and natural. So it's kind of a makeunder, in a sense.
I think the makeover may have removed her vampire teeth, which is kind of sad.
Ivo's a cutie, either way. I'd love to have her genetics in the family.
Humbelina wasn't exactly serious about her studies, preferring to make friends with the profs as a grade-building strategy. It's not a bad way to go about it, especially with ~cool~ profs like this guy.
That's some very creative hair. It never fails to amuse me when guys have more facial hair than hair on their heads (I see this in real life sometimes, too). What's keeping those sideburns held up? They're just floating there!
Goodwin was quite smitten with Allegra Gorey. She preferred redheads, so he decided to follow Cal's lead and get himself a makeover.
And, as you can see, the flu makes a comeback. *sigh*
Cal's dates are quite profitable, much like his Aunt Aubergine before him.
This alien!coach is a total jerk. Can't he see that Cal's dying with the flu?
Granted, it didn't really stop him from dating.
I was excited when he fell in love with Ivo, but he'll prove to be notoriously difficult to pin down, even for a romance sim. He'll fall in love a couple of times, but with no (conflicting) desire to get married. I know that's only natural for some romance sims, but the sim breeder in me was disappointed.
They were a cute couple, too. It saddens me.
It turns out Ivo liked both brunettes and sims with black hair, so Cal didn't need a change his looks to help him score.
(Oh, as a side note, I've come to think this is why Gilbert Jacquet dyes his hair. I know I've continued to switch him up for various dates. It makes sense, right?)
Cal took Ivo to the couch, while Krim barely noticed. This family has zero boundaries.
Yeah, not only did he not want to get engaged, he actively feared it. Too bad.
This shot serves no purpose other than showing how adorable Krim is in his way-too-big features for his face sort of way.
A rare shot of someone writing a term paper, lest you think all they did was date. (Just mostly.)
Another of Cal's conquests.
Ivo may not have had a shot at a ring from Cal, but she was a good sport and gave substantial date gifts!
Like any of these guys cared about science, but still.
This is just a typical mascot fight, but for some reason Aunt Cherry showed up randomly? That makes perfect sense.
She cheered for the fight, of course, like any Tomato would.
Krim found himself a girlfriend, the lovely Jessika by
budgie_budgie.
Something tells me this prof is probably obsessed with the 90's. :P
You've gotta love naming mods.
A rare mediocre date with Cal. I think he got called to class in the middle of it. The sim is the lovely Hattie by
budgie_budgie (why yes, I am a fan of her sims).
Goodwin continued to fall for Allegra, and wasn't even scared off when she grew this scary beard during woohoo.
I sent the whole gang to a community lot to try to meet some different sims, and saw this amusing sight.
NPC on NPC crime!
You've think the evil witch would be harder to con, but she fell for it.
Cal decided to call a taxi (after charming the evil witch - why not, right?), and I saw this option. I had no idea you could do this!
Being a good citizen (or wanting to impress the ladies - take your pick), he called the police.
I was pretty excited by this, but the police, sadly, did not show up on the lot. I wanted justice, dammit!
Then I thought the witch was going to take matters into her own hands. Also exciting!
But it was just her summoning her familiar (which makes my game lag like crazy). I love how you can see their big bug eyes floating in their transparent heads.
Then she complains about the roaches. You put them there, genius!
Also, her face is green again? That makes no sense. I think I was pulling that mod and putting it back in, maybe.
Things continued to heat up for Goodwin and Allegra...
And also Krim and Jessika. First kiss!
Followed shortly by first completely naked woohoo on the couch in the middle of the living room. So romantic. :P
Is that an O-face I see?
Nope, just another date reward.
Here's a closer look at the pretty alien inside the llama mascot costume, also with red eyes. I really should add up how many times this combo has surfaced in Elsewhere.
Then THIS happened.
Frances sighting! :D
He stolled by, then stopped, looked directly into the camera, and thought about his aspiration, as if to ask me, "Humbelina has lots of money, right?"
Yes, indeed she does, Franny-pants. And we all know that fortune and family sims go together like chips and dip, so how could I resist testing this one out?
That's right. I couldn't.
The chemistry was pretty good as it was, but I figured a couple of adjustments could get them to triple bolts. Very exciting!
Frances confessed to liking women (or possibly men, since this is Frances we're talking about here) with tastefully applied makeup.
Humbelina: check!
Frances: But no deadbeats!
Humbelina: But you don't have a job either. Isn't that a little...
Frances: That is completely irrelevant.
Frances: Also, how can I put this delicately? I like a lady with a little, no a LOT, of meat on the bone.
Humbelina: Done and DONE! I'm tired of fighting with my genetics. I was just waiting for an excuse to fill out.
Humbelina took the easier route with her turn ons, though it might have been fun to dye Franny's hair in hindsight.
Then she got to work on her weight.
I figured the highly nutritious Seasons food would do the trick, as it so often does, but she needed a little more.
If chinese food doesn't work, nothing will.
Success!
And yet she seemed surprised.
Cal: Hey sis! Lookin' good!
A typical scene for the Tomatoes in college: Cal making out with some girl, Krim gardening at night, and Humbelina talking to Frances about his, err, rocket.
That is, I think she's inviting him on a date. :P
And I take that as a yes.
Cal fell in love with Roxie, too, but still no desire to get serious. He is 100% romance sim, this one.
Humbelina decided to get a little closer during a slow dance with Frances.
But Frances doesn't move that fast, okay?!
He seemed so pleased with himself! A much more fitting formal dance for a first date.
Humbelina is a little bummed out by the prudishness. Don't worry, dear. I'm sure he'll come around.
Cal's date with Roxie was intense to say the least. They nearly froze to death out there!
Hot.
Humbelina had a lot of work to do to warm up the reluctant Frances.
Slowly but surely, he's responsive.
Things were going really well with Krim and Jessika. Since he was showing no interest whatsoever in any other sims, I decided they should get serious.
She said yes. No surprise there.
They're so adorable together. She has large features, too, so I think they'll be a good genetic match.
I have no idea why or how, but Goodwin and Klara became enemies. I'm blaming Klara, because Goodwin is generally a good guy (it's in his NAME).
Frances, you might be less cold if you wore some clothing out there. Just a hint.
After Frances warmed up a little, things really started to heat up quickly.
These lovebirds were perfectly in synch in their romantic desires.
Humbelina wanted it to be special, so she lit a couple of candles and fired up the hot tub. ;)
Check out that nose profile on Frances! His nose is like a staircase. This picture really shows off the potential for mixing their genes. I'm confident that it'll be interesting, but also sort of harmonious, because their features have similar proportions. Also, Humbelina actually makes Frances seem like he has something of a chin!
And away they go!
Krim was back there gardening like nothing at all was going on. This family has no boundaries whatsoever.
Frances: Dear me, I seem to have swallowed some water.
That good, huh? ;)
And Humbelina falls head over heels for Frances, followed closely by him falling for her.
Their wants are, once again, a perfect match. I decided to save the engagement for another day, so I can get another dream date and more potential gifts.
Krim: Hey, I just thought of something... our grandfather was HOT!
Humbelina: Yeah, yeah. Let's just stick to the task at hand here, okay?
The very next day, Humbelina decided to take things to the next level.
Frances nearly craps his pants with excitement. Jewels! Riches! It's all coming together for him.
Everyone now: Awwwww!
Let's keep this engagement party rolling, shall we?
Too cute. :)
Goodwin's line will be more of an experiment in combining Maxis premade features. Ginger Newson + Herb Goodie + Allegra Gorey = ???
Frances showed up later that night with a date gift, but there was a bit of a collision.
Hey, wait now! What's going on there?
No biting! Bad Frances! Down boy!
Humbelina: Why is he in my way?!
Humbelina: HELP!
Frances: TaaDAAA!
Frances: *cheers* Yeah, go ME!
Humbelina: I'm so out of here.
Frances: *grabs boobies* Honk honk!
This is really going to be a very different sort of Frances than the S,HWC version, I can tell. ;)
And so he snunk away into the night, looking a little perplexed by the whole event.
Cal was having another really steamy date with
budgie_budgie's Mariam, getting me all hopeful again for potential genetic blending.
But alas...
Oh, well. She had to settle for one of his trademark massages.
It's really too bad, because Miriam was really into him and ready to take things further, romance sim or not.
It's time to head back home!
Cal got a stuffy business-minded transition outfit, and seemed horrified by it.
Krim didn't fare much better, but took it in stride.
Humbelina: Well, at least it wasn't as bad as Cal's!
Goodwin didn't do too badly. I wouldn't exactly choose that outfit, but at least it matches?
Once Cal returned home, he got himself a leather jacket and a job in the slacker career, which suits him much better.
This alien maid has some interesting features (from a face replacement) to go with her genetics. Maybe she'll find a place in this legacy one day?
Pepper lost her job as mayor, thanks to my "say yes" policy to all chance cards and job offers.
I decided to finally start moving non-heir sims out of the house, because things were getting way too crazy (oh well, I did pretty good with it - up to generation four). Tiny Tim was the first to go, with his great-grandmother loving ways.
He moved to an isolated little cottage by the sea, though he'll later move when I realize he can't leave the lot to go to work without disappearing forever, never to return (and causing me to have to quit the lo)t. Only those completely reculsive sims who never go to a community lot and never have a job, or are witches who can fly off the lot, can make do in a place like this.
Even here in solitude, he thinks of how much he'd like to make grilled cheese for Strange.
I really need to find someone else for this guy.
This may look like Johnny, but he's actually Markus, the son of Ripp and Johnny, from my Good Genes III entry. They all live in Elsewhere, too.
A kitty pic, just 'cause.
Constoluto (remember him?) aged up to teen. His genetics make me question my choice in heir just a little, but I'm aching to move forward with the next generation. He came along a little too late, and I was already set on Humbelina.
Didn't you miss this mad house?
Strange: Cake is nice, but it's no brains.
Humbelina went for a dip in the newly renovated pool.
Yes, I can clearly see what Frances sees in her. Pow!
Speaking of, she's quick to invite her beau (teehee) over to casa Tomato.
He moved in, of course.
He looks like he was being startled by the security bot, but it was actually just his transition coming on.
Oh, nice. Real nice! Bahaha!
He came with a nice chunk of change, too, not that I'm surprised. He's a Worthington.
Oh, man. It just gets better and better. A criminal Frances! Yes, that's just about perfect.
He cues up to start his obsessive triple bolter stalking.
I think she looks nice with her more mature makeover.
Now that she has a job, she's irresistible! (She's in the criminal business, too. It's a family thing.)
And they're off!
No chimes yet. Frances initiated this woohoo, so it would seem that he's not as eager for children as Humbelina is, but I'm sure she'll talk him into it, being a family sim and all.
Aubergine was obsessed with buying property in her old age. Why not? They have plenty of money and I plan to send each generation on a family vacation.
Frances also gets a dapper makeover to suit his new criminal lifestyle. I've never tried longer hair on him, but I like this look.
But here's where things get complicated. Despite triple bolts and an engagement, Damon still shows up at the top of Humbelina's relationship panel. I think she's still carrying a flame for him, and he, you know, lives with them. This could get interesting, to say the least.
Another dip in the pool results in baby chimes. Generation five is in the works!
Cue awkward dinner moment.
Frances: So, ummm, who's the hairy guy? And why is he playing footsie with my wife-to-be?
Humbelina: *stares longingly across table*
Yeah, this will definitely end well.