Crossover Chick (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
crossover_chick) wrote2019-12-25 10:37 pm
crossover_chick) wrote2019-12-25 10:37 pm
A Rather Distracted Christmas To All!
Yeah, today has been a day that has largely kept me away from the computer. I mean, it's to be expected -- it's Christmas, I've been opening presents, cleaning up after presents, and hanging out with my parents. But I somehow thought I'd be spending a LOT more time than I actually would on the laptop. . .I entirely blame my father getting a puzzle for Christmas that turned into quite the family project! (It's a picture of a record store in the 60s, and is 1,000 pieces -- needless to say, while we've made good progress, it's FAR from done.)
Anyway, I got a good haul this year from the folks:
-->New flannel sheets (these were technically opened last night; I just forgot to mention it)
-->New slippers (my old ones were finally starting to give up the ghost -- these ones are just as cushy and made from recycled materials!)
-->Two bottles of hot chocolate mixes (Chocolate-Chocolate and Chocolate-Truffle), which, given each has about 20 servings, should last me a while!)
-->Two packages of "Marshmallow Dunkers" (from what I can tell, sticks of marshmallow covered in chocolate and mini-marshmallows. You can dissolve them into a hot drink, or just eat them on their own. Looking forward to trying them tomorrow!)
-->Two packages of Mentos gum (standard stocking stuffer)
-->A package of eight or so chapsticks, this time Hershey-themed (also a standard stocking stuffer)
-->A package of Ferrero Rocher (my favorite candy for this time of year, om nom)
-->A new ice scraper for the car (this year's "practical" gift, inspired by the fact that I have to park in an outdoors lot at work and we recently had a minor ice storm that necessitated some window clearing)
-->A Sims 4 t-shirt (a "three plumbob" design showing Sim moods; I specifically asked for this, and was pleased to get it)
-->A new Corpse Bride t-shirt (another requested gift; my old one was wearing out and was always a touch too small. The new one actually matches my AMA shirt pretty well too!)
-->A plush silver-and-orange dragon (another request, though I had no idea what kind they would get -- he's very cute, though! :D He's from a toy company named Douglas, so I've named him Dougie. He's living on my BTTF pillow above my Victor and Alice dolls at the moment)
-->A custom Corpse Bride necklace (what I asked for was just a butterfly pendant -- my mom instead did more of a locket thing after finding a picture frame necklace, putting a picture of Victor inside and gluing two butterfly charms she painted to look like the ones in the movie to it :D)
-->A custom long-sleeve Valice shirt (which I love because Mom did an AMAZING job photoshopping Victor and Alice together from their respective CB and AMA posters, and did a funny bit of text at the bottom (regarding the Cheshire on the poster -- "But darling, do we really need a cat?" XD I am totally wearing this on my birthday on Friday)
So that was all great -- in fact, I even have pictures of a few of the items (mainly the last three, plus the hot chocolate stuff) over on my tumblr! I also got a lot of happy comments/reblogs on the fics I had queued up on tumblr, and even a fic back in return: "Of Cookies and Snowball Fights," from a regular RP partner of mine, liddellvxndort! Very heartwarming. :)
Speaking of fics -- I owe a couple of you guys, don't I? Let's get on it before it slips into Boxing Day. First up, we have good old Gigs!
Gigs: Doggy Does Better With Twins
Ding-Dong! "Arf! Arf! Arf!"
Lisa stepped back as the doorbell's chime faded into the scuffling of four eager little paws, followed by the thump-thump of hurried footsteps. "Easy, boy!" the familiar voice of one Victor Van Dort called. "Easy – careful! Don't crash into the wall! Sit! Sit, boy! Yes, good Lightning. . ."
Lisa giggled as the door finally opened. "Hi Victor. I see there's one member of the family still getting enough sleep."
Victor managed a half-hearted glare through eyes darkened with exhaustion. "Oh, don't let him fool you," he said, retrieving Lightning's leash from its hook by the door. At his feet, the corgi vibrated, eager to be released from his sit. "He's been up all night, just like the rest of us. He's just better at making it up than Alice or I am." He reached down and scratched Lightning behind the ears. "Isn't that right, silly puppy?"
"Hey, you're the one who made those loud babies," Lightning informed him in a series of short barks, tail wagging. "Your own fault you can't get to sleep."
"Oh, cut him a break, Lightning," Lisa said, crouching down to get closer to eye level with the tiny dog. "He wasn't expecting two at once, you know."
Lightning cocked his head, unimpressed. "I had five siblings. My mother never complained."
"Humans and dogs are pretty different, if you haven't noticed. How long did your mother actually have to take care of you?" Lisa scruffed up Lightning's fur, then looked over at Victor. "How are things going with the twins?"
"It's – been an adjustment," Victor admitted, rubbing the back of his head. "I mean, Alice and I did our best to prepare, but – you really don't know how you can handle two infants and a toddler until you're in the middle of it. There's always someone crying, or needing a change, or. . ." He pressed his fingers against his temples. "At least we've gotten Vincent and Lorina on a feeding schedule! Chester's just throwing anything he doesn't approve of on the floor."
"It's the best," Lightning said, bouncing on his front paws.
"Oh, yes, of course you approve," Victor replied, interpreting his pup's language before Lisa could even think to lend a hand. "At least you keep us from having to worry too much about clean-up!" He shook his head. "We're just – taking it day by day. We love them all, but. . ." He sighed, face falling. "I said I didn't want my children raised by strangers, but right now, it's looking like the only solution."
"It's fine – if you need help, you should get it," Lisa assured him, standing up so she could pat his shoulder (which took a bit of stretching still). "You hiring a nanny to share the load isn't anywhere near the same as your parents abandoning pretty much all child care to one. And you know, I'm here to help however I can."
"I do, and it's most appreciated." Victor knelt down and attached the leash Lightning's collar. "I'm sure Lightning appreciates it too."
"Nice to get away from all the crying," Lightning agreed. He licked Victor's face. "Still wish you could take me, though."
Lisa relayed the message, which got a sad smile out of Victor. "I wish I could too – but I'm needed more here at the moment," he said, stroking Lightning's head. "We can't leave Alice to deal with this all alone, can we?" He lightly booped the corgi's nose. "But tell you what – maybe Saturday, if the weather's good, we can get together with the Browns and McFlys and have a day out at Wonderland Park. How's that?"
"That'd be great!" Lightning barked, tail blurring with eager joy. "Go run run run all over the place!"
"Yeah, I thought you'd like that." Victor turned back to Lisa as he stood. "Thanks for that. You're welcome to come too, if you want. So long as you don't mind the possibility of being dragged into diaper duty."
"I'll see what my schedule's like," Lisa promised, before taking the leash from him. "But right now, I've got a different duty to fulfill." She gave the leash a tug, smiling. "Come on, Lightning – let's go paint the town red!"
-->This was inspired by your story about Lightning and Victor both needing to adapt to having a new baby in the house. I figured, after the trials and tribulations of Chester, both Victor and Lightning would have a better time adjusting to the arrival of the twins -- Victor made sure to introduce them right away to the dog, for a start. Of course, having two babies at once presents its own challenges. XD But they're doing pretty well, even with the lack of sleep, and of course good old Lisa is always there to assist. :) Hope you like!
Next up is my pal Moose:
Moose: Where Marty Is The More Learned One For Once
"Okay – I didn't think it was possible, but this is going worse than that time I tried to teach you how to skateboard."
"I concur," Doc said, clinging to the tree with a grip that would put a monkey to shame. Beneath him, his legs were attempting a long and acrimonious divorce, with no consideration for the pain and embarrassment being inflicted on his torso. "Great Scott – it's simple physics! I could tell you exactly how the whole process of ice-skating works without even having to think about it!"
"Yeah, well, I think we've just gotten more proof that talkin' about this stuff and doing it are two waaaay different things," Marty replied, unable to help a little smile as he skated around Doc. "At least with the skateboard you were going in completely green. I thought you said you'd done this before?"
"I have! I just – may have neglected to mention that it was back when I was six." With a grunt, Doc managed to lever one leg back under himself – only for the other to start sliding away. "Damn it. . .and I had about the same skill level back then too."
"Steady, Doc." Marty came up on his side and nudged the recalcitrant leg back into position. "So why'd you agree to come out on the ice today, if it's been so long?"
"Because Clara and the boys have expressed an interest in the hobby, and I told them that I'd be happy to help them out once I'd gotten a refresher," Doc confessed, letting his head thunk against the tree. "Accompanying you and your family on one of your regular expeditions seemed like the perfect opportunity to clear out the rust. I just – I expected the process to be rather easier to pick up. Like the proverbial riding a bike. None of you ever seem to have any problems, after all!"
Marty laughed. "Yeah, that's because me and my folks have been skating since I was a baby. It's that whole 'practice' thing."
"Right, right. . .should have considered that. Theoretical knowledge is well and good, but it always bows its head to practical experience." Doc grumbled as his right leg began to slip again. "Which is probably why I'm so damn good at falling down."
"Don't beat yourself up about it, Doc – balance is tough," Marty assured him. "You should hear some of Mom's stories about her and Dad's early days on the ice! I'm surprised he didn't end up in the hospital after some of his crashes." He poked his best friend in the side. "But if George McFly can master this stuff, so can you."
Doc glanced over his shoulder at George, currently spinning in circles with Lorraine, then gave Marty a dubious look. "I know I'm not usually the one to bring up this matter, but – he is a few decades younger than me."
"Uh, hang on, who was it who was so proud to tell me he'd gotten some magical full-body rejuv in the future where they'd replaced half his internal organs? I think your spleen and colon are younger than I am."
Doc laughed, shaking his head. "Worth a shot." He forced himself to loosen his grip on the tree, pushing back slowly and carefully. "All right. So how do I. . ."
"Here, let me." Marty grabbed Doc's arm and hooked it around himself. "All right, so just hang on tight and let me keep you upright. Think of me like those little walker things you can get at the skating rink."
"Wait, what?" Doc's left foot started to slip, but he managed to steady himself on Marty's shoulder. "The rink has mobility aids? Then why the hell are we out here?!"
"Because Mom likes skating in the fresh air without ten million people crowding up the ice," Marty replied. "And none of us knew that we'd be having to give lessons to a 70-something scientist."
"I didn't think I'd need lessons." Doc pinched his nose. "As usual, hubris is my downfall."
"No, not being able to figure out how to use your skates is," Marty said with a grin. "But that's what I'm here for. So hey, let me show you how you actually move around without doing spread-eagles every five minutes. . ."
-->Yes, I am basically just going to keep giving you "BTTF skating-themed fics" forever now. XD What, I know you like both! And since I think I've tapped the well pretty dry with Lorraine and George's adventures on the ice, I decided to move to Doc and Marty this year! And have Doc be crap at skating because it's funny. I'm actually quite proud of that opener with his legs sliding in opposite directions like they're having a "long and acrimonious divorce," so I hope you do too! :)
And finally, our in-and-out Mad Scientist:
Mad Scientist: Also They Need To Jump The Power On It
"Holy shit."
"What is it now, Jeannie?"
"You know how everything's sort of just – stopped, for a while?"
"Uh, yeah? I live here too? Noticed that not a lot has happened for a while and everybody seems to be in kinda a holding pattern?"
"Don't be sarcastic," Jeannie muttered, chewing a nail as she looked at the memo. "Actually, you what, be as sarcastic as you like – it might be the only way to deal with this shit."
Jack frowned. "Okay, what's going on?"
Jeannie looked up at him with the biggest, fakest smile he'd seen on her in ages (and he'd known her as Harley Quinn). "Turns out that the reason for the 'holding pattern' is my bosses needed to regroup and replan some of the 'Mosaic.' 'Cause, as it turns out, they've got company."
Jack blinked. Blinked again. Blinked one more time for good measure. "Company?"
"Yeah."
"Aren't they–"
"Yeah."
". . .This isn't friendly company, is it?"
"Nooooooo."
Jack started to rub his face, then thought better – smearing his make-up wasn't going to help anything. "Shit. What have we got?"
"Well, fortunately, it looks like three of 'em are confined to certain worlds," Jeannie said, flicking through the papers. "Or groups of worlds. . .one of 'em is in the Legend of Zelda multiverse. Sort of."
"Is this one of those situations where, if you try to explain it, my head's gonna hurt for the rest of the day?"
"Not as much as you might think. He's called Demise, and he's kind of the big bad of that world – the one responsible for the whole 'reincarnation' thing, at least on Ganondorf's end. He's been eliminated in one branch, but none of the others. The bosses have a game plan with Vaati that might be able to get him defeated once and for all. . .there's also a guy in the Final Fantasy cluster that's been destroying 'stagnant' timelines, which – yeah, I bet you can guess why we don't want them running around."
"And the first two don't count," Jack nodded. "They've got a plan for them too?"
"Working on it – involves making sure there's a couple of somebodies to help out when it comes time to confront the jerk. And then there's the Dark Powers That Be in Ravenloft, which means we're gonna have to monitor the whole thing with Soth and Strahd and the former Cenobites super closely. The bosses think they've got a good chance of taking them down, but it kind of relies on them keepin' the element of surprise. . ." She shook her head. "And – well, this one's just FYI, but it's still gonna keep me up at night."
". . .Dare I ask why?"
Jeannie looked up at him. "Mus Parasitos, they call it. A 'multiverse' that's sentient – or, at least aware enough to devour other worlds. Damn thing is attached to the Final Fantasy cluster, apparently. Which is the main reason for the holding pattern – the bosses are working on shutting down the connections and making sure it isn't attached to anything else, and they don't want any 'active' timelines getting its attention and making their job harder."
"Cripes." Jack flopped over Jeannie's chair. "It's almost enough to make you long for the days when we were obliviously beating each other up every five seconds."
"Well, I could take Batsy out of stasis if you really want. . ."
"I said almost."
-->Yeah, a bit last-minute -- I'm sorry, I was stuck for inspiration until you posted what was going on in your latest update, and some of your in-universe stuff that required fiddling! Much like with a previous fic, I decided -- you have to go through this, your characters do as well. Hence Jeannie getting her memo regarding what's going on in-universe, and her and Jack reacting to it. It was quick, but it was fun to right -- I hope it gives you a smile!
Whew! Okay, with that, my dive into Sims 4 to fix up and reupload to the Gallery my "Valice Canon Pets V2" family (Victor, Alice, Scraps, and Dinah -- I wanted to update Victor and Alice's outfits with some of the new pack content -- specifically, give Alice the key necklace from Realm of Magic since I think it suits her), my two Plumbella videos watched (a silly thing where she set up a "birth of Jesus" scene in Sims 4 -- it ended with the toddlerized Jesus biting Father Winter when he wouldn't hand over a present XD; and a history of Christmas in the Sims series that once again proved Sims 2 was an amazing game we need more of), and my relisten to the "12 Pains of Christmas" completed, my Christmas to-do list is FINALLY COMPLETE! :D Yaaaay~ Hope you all had a good holiday! I'm looking forward to a Boxing Day binging on my Watch Later queue. XD
Anyway, I got a good haul this year from the folks:
-->New flannel sheets (these were technically opened last night; I just forgot to mention it)
-->New slippers (my old ones were finally starting to give up the ghost -- these ones are just as cushy and made from recycled materials!)
-->Two bottles of hot chocolate mixes (Chocolate-Chocolate and Chocolate-Truffle), which, given each has about 20 servings, should last me a while!)
-->Two packages of "Marshmallow Dunkers" (from what I can tell, sticks of marshmallow covered in chocolate and mini-marshmallows. You can dissolve them into a hot drink, or just eat them on their own. Looking forward to trying them tomorrow!)
-->Two packages of Mentos gum (standard stocking stuffer)
-->A package of eight or so chapsticks, this time Hershey-themed (also a standard stocking stuffer)
-->A package of Ferrero Rocher (my favorite candy for this time of year, om nom)
-->A new ice scraper for the car (this year's "practical" gift, inspired by the fact that I have to park in an outdoors lot at work and we recently had a minor ice storm that necessitated some window clearing)
-->A Sims 4 t-shirt (a "three plumbob" design showing Sim moods; I specifically asked for this, and was pleased to get it)
-->A new Corpse Bride t-shirt (another requested gift; my old one was wearing out and was always a touch too small. The new one actually matches my AMA shirt pretty well too!)
-->A plush silver-and-orange dragon (another request, though I had no idea what kind they would get -- he's very cute, though! :D He's from a toy company named Douglas, so I've named him Dougie. He's living on my BTTF pillow above my Victor and Alice dolls at the moment)
-->A custom Corpse Bride necklace (what I asked for was just a butterfly pendant -- my mom instead did more of a locket thing after finding a picture frame necklace, putting a picture of Victor inside and gluing two butterfly charms she painted to look like the ones in the movie to it :D)
-->A custom long-sleeve Valice shirt (which I love because Mom did an AMAZING job photoshopping Victor and Alice together from their respective CB and AMA posters, and did a funny bit of text at the bottom (regarding the Cheshire on the poster -- "But darling, do we really need a cat?" XD I am totally wearing this on my birthday on Friday)
So that was all great -- in fact, I even have pictures of a few of the items (mainly the last three, plus the hot chocolate stuff) over on my tumblr! I also got a lot of happy comments/reblogs on the fics I had queued up on tumblr, and even a fic back in return: "Of Cookies and Snowball Fights," from a regular RP partner of mine, liddellvxndort! Very heartwarming. :)
Speaking of fics -- I owe a couple of you guys, don't I? Let's get on it before it slips into Boxing Day. First up, we have good old Gigs!
Gigs: Doggy Does Better With Twins
Ding-Dong! "Arf! Arf! Arf!"
Lisa stepped back as the doorbell's chime faded into the scuffling of four eager little paws, followed by the thump-thump of hurried footsteps. "Easy, boy!" the familiar voice of one Victor Van Dort called. "Easy – careful! Don't crash into the wall! Sit! Sit, boy! Yes, good Lightning. . ."
Lisa giggled as the door finally opened. "Hi Victor. I see there's one member of the family still getting enough sleep."
Victor managed a half-hearted glare through eyes darkened with exhaustion. "Oh, don't let him fool you," he said, retrieving Lightning's leash from its hook by the door. At his feet, the corgi vibrated, eager to be released from his sit. "He's been up all night, just like the rest of us. He's just better at making it up than Alice or I am." He reached down and scratched Lightning behind the ears. "Isn't that right, silly puppy?"
"Hey, you're the one who made those loud babies," Lightning informed him in a series of short barks, tail wagging. "Your own fault you can't get to sleep."
"Oh, cut him a break, Lightning," Lisa said, crouching down to get closer to eye level with the tiny dog. "He wasn't expecting two at once, you know."
Lightning cocked his head, unimpressed. "I had five siblings. My mother never complained."
"Humans and dogs are pretty different, if you haven't noticed. How long did your mother actually have to take care of you?" Lisa scruffed up Lightning's fur, then looked over at Victor. "How are things going with the twins?"
"It's – been an adjustment," Victor admitted, rubbing the back of his head. "I mean, Alice and I did our best to prepare, but – you really don't know how you can handle two infants and a toddler until you're in the middle of it. There's always someone crying, or needing a change, or. . ." He pressed his fingers against his temples. "At least we've gotten Vincent and Lorina on a feeding schedule! Chester's just throwing anything he doesn't approve of on the floor."
"It's the best," Lightning said, bouncing on his front paws.
"Oh, yes, of course you approve," Victor replied, interpreting his pup's language before Lisa could even think to lend a hand. "At least you keep us from having to worry too much about clean-up!" He shook his head. "We're just – taking it day by day. We love them all, but. . ." He sighed, face falling. "I said I didn't want my children raised by strangers, but right now, it's looking like the only solution."
"It's fine – if you need help, you should get it," Lisa assured him, standing up so she could pat his shoulder (which took a bit of stretching still). "You hiring a nanny to share the load isn't anywhere near the same as your parents abandoning pretty much all child care to one. And you know, I'm here to help however I can."
"I do, and it's most appreciated." Victor knelt down and attached the leash Lightning's collar. "I'm sure Lightning appreciates it too."
"Nice to get away from all the crying," Lightning agreed. He licked Victor's face. "Still wish you could take me, though."
Lisa relayed the message, which got a sad smile out of Victor. "I wish I could too – but I'm needed more here at the moment," he said, stroking Lightning's head. "We can't leave Alice to deal with this all alone, can we?" He lightly booped the corgi's nose. "But tell you what – maybe Saturday, if the weather's good, we can get together with the Browns and McFlys and have a day out at Wonderland Park. How's that?"
"That'd be great!" Lightning barked, tail blurring with eager joy. "Go run run run all over the place!"
"Yeah, I thought you'd like that." Victor turned back to Lisa as he stood. "Thanks for that. You're welcome to come too, if you want. So long as you don't mind the possibility of being dragged into diaper duty."
"I'll see what my schedule's like," Lisa promised, before taking the leash from him. "But right now, I've got a different duty to fulfill." She gave the leash a tug, smiling. "Come on, Lightning – let's go paint the town red!"
-->This was inspired by your story about Lightning and Victor both needing to adapt to having a new baby in the house. I figured, after the trials and tribulations of Chester, both Victor and Lightning would have a better time adjusting to the arrival of the twins -- Victor made sure to introduce them right away to the dog, for a start. Of course, having two babies at once presents its own challenges. XD But they're doing pretty well, even with the lack of sleep, and of course good old Lisa is always there to assist. :) Hope you like!
Next up is my pal Moose:
Moose: Where Marty Is The More Learned One For Once
"Okay – I didn't think it was possible, but this is going worse than that time I tried to teach you how to skateboard."
"I concur," Doc said, clinging to the tree with a grip that would put a monkey to shame. Beneath him, his legs were attempting a long and acrimonious divorce, with no consideration for the pain and embarrassment being inflicted on his torso. "Great Scott – it's simple physics! I could tell you exactly how the whole process of ice-skating works without even having to think about it!"
"Yeah, well, I think we've just gotten more proof that talkin' about this stuff and doing it are two waaaay different things," Marty replied, unable to help a little smile as he skated around Doc. "At least with the skateboard you were going in completely green. I thought you said you'd done this before?"
"I have! I just – may have neglected to mention that it was back when I was six." With a grunt, Doc managed to lever one leg back under himself – only for the other to start sliding away. "Damn it. . .and I had about the same skill level back then too."
"Steady, Doc." Marty came up on his side and nudged the recalcitrant leg back into position. "So why'd you agree to come out on the ice today, if it's been so long?"
"Because Clara and the boys have expressed an interest in the hobby, and I told them that I'd be happy to help them out once I'd gotten a refresher," Doc confessed, letting his head thunk against the tree. "Accompanying you and your family on one of your regular expeditions seemed like the perfect opportunity to clear out the rust. I just – I expected the process to be rather easier to pick up. Like the proverbial riding a bike. None of you ever seem to have any problems, after all!"
Marty laughed. "Yeah, that's because me and my folks have been skating since I was a baby. It's that whole 'practice' thing."
"Right, right. . .should have considered that. Theoretical knowledge is well and good, but it always bows its head to practical experience." Doc grumbled as his right leg began to slip again. "Which is probably why I'm so damn good at falling down."
"Don't beat yourself up about it, Doc – balance is tough," Marty assured him. "You should hear some of Mom's stories about her and Dad's early days on the ice! I'm surprised he didn't end up in the hospital after some of his crashes." He poked his best friend in the side. "But if George McFly can master this stuff, so can you."
Doc glanced over his shoulder at George, currently spinning in circles with Lorraine, then gave Marty a dubious look. "I know I'm not usually the one to bring up this matter, but – he is a few decades younger than me."
"Uh, hang on, who was it who was so proud to tell me he'd gotten some magical full-body rejuv in the future where they'd replaced half his internal organs? I think your spleen and colon are younger than I am."
Doc laughed, shaking his head. "Worth a shot." He forced himself to loosen his grip on the tree, pushing back slowly and carefully. "All right. So how do I. . ."
"Here, let me." Marty grabbed Doc's arm and hooked it around himself. "All right, so just hang on tight and let me keep you upright. Think of me like those little walker things you can get at the skating rink."
"Wait, what?" Doc's left foot started to slip, but he managed to steady himself on Marty's shoulder. "The rink has mobility aids? Then why the hell are we out here?!"
"Because Mom likes skating in the fresh air without ten million people crowding up the ice," Marty replied. "And none of us knew that we'd be having to give lessons to a 70-something scientist."
"I didn't think I'd need lessons." Doc pinched his nose. "As usual, hubris is my downfall."
"No, not being able to figure out how to use your skates is," Marty said with a grin. "But that's what I'm here for. So hey, let me show you how you actually move around without doing spread-eagles every five minutes. . ."
-->Yes, I am basically just going to keep giving you "BTTF skating-themed fics" forever now. XD What, I know you like both! And since I think I've tapped the well pretty dry with Lorraine and George's adventures on the ice, I decided to move to Doc and Marty this year! And have Doc be crap at skating because it's funny. I'm actually quite proud of that opener with his legs sliding in opposite directions like they're having a "long and acrimonious divorce," so I hope you do too! :)
And finally, our in-and-out Mad Scientist:
Mad Scientist: Also They Need To Jump The Power On It
"Holy shit."
"What is it now, Jeannie?"
"You know how everything's sort of just – stopped, for a while?"
"Uh, yeah? I live here too? Noticed that not a lot has happened for a while and everybody seems to be in kinda a holding pattern?"
"Don't be sarcastic," Jeannie muttered, chewing a nail as she looked at the memo. "Actually, you what, be as sarcastic as you like – it might be the only way to deal with this shit."
Jack frowned. "Okay, what's going on?"
Jeannie looked up at him with the biggest, fakest smile he'd seen on her in ages (and he'd known her as Harley Quinn). "Turns out that the reason for the 'holding pattern' is my bosses needed to regroup and replan some of the 'Mosaic.' 'Cause, as it turns out, they've got company."
Jack blinked. Blinked again. Blinked one more time for good measure. "Company?"
"Yeah."
"Aren't they–"
"Yeah."
". . .This isn't friendly company, is it?"
"Nooooooo."
Jack started to rub his face, then thought better – smearing his make-up wasn't going to help anything. "Shit. What have we got?"
"Well, fortunately, it looks like three of 'em are confined to certain worlds," Jeannie said, flicking through the papers. "Or groups of worlds. . .one of 'em is in the Legend of Zelda multiverse. Sort of."
"Is this one of those situations where, if you try to explain it, my head's gonna hurt for the rest of the day?"
"Not as much as you might think. He's called Demise, and he's kind of the big bad of that world – the one responsible for the whole 'reincarnation' thing, at least on Ganondorf's end. He's been eliminated in one branch, but none of the others. The bosses have a game plan with Vaati that might be able to get him defeated once and for all. . .there's also a guy in the Final Fantasy cluster that's been destroying 'stagnant' timelines, which – yeah, I bet you can guess why we don't want them running around."
"And the first two don't count," Jack nodded. "They've got a plan for them too?"
"Working on it – involves making sure there's a couple of somebodies to help out when it comes time to confront the jerk. And then there's the Dark Powers That Be in Ravenloft, which means we're gonna have to monitor the whole thing with Soth and Strahd and the former Cenobites super closely. The bosses think they've got a good chance of taking them down, but it kind of relies on them keepin' the element of surprise. . ." She shook her head. "And – well, this one's just FYI, but it's still gonna keep me up at night."
". . .Dare I ask why?"
Jeannie looked up at him. "Mus Parasitos, they call it. A 'multiverse' that's sentient – or, at least aware enough to devour other worlds. Damn thing is attached to the Final Fantasy cluster, apparently. Which is the main reason for the holding pattern – the bosses are working on shutting down the connections and making sure it isn't attached to anything else, and they don't want any 'active' timelines getting its attention and making their job harder."
"Cripes." Jack flopped over Jeannie's chair. "It's almost enough to make you long for the days when we were obliviously beating each other up every five seconds."
"Well, I could take Batsy out of stasis if you really want. . ."
"I said almost."
-->Yeah, a bit last-minute -- I'm sorry, I was stuck for inspiration until you posted what was going on in your latest update, and some of your in-universe stuff that required fiddling! Much like with a previous fic, I decided -- you have to go through this, your characters do as well. Hence Jeannie getting her memo regarding what's going on in-universe, and her and Jack reacting to it. It was quick, but it was fun to right -- I hope it gives you a smile!
Whew! Okay, with that, my dive into Sims 4 to fix up and reupload to the Gallery my "Valice Canon Pets V2" family (Victor, Alice, Scraps, and Dinah -- I wanted to update Victor and Alice's outfits with some of the new pack content -- specifically, give Alice the key necklace from Realm of Magic since I think it suits her), my two Plumbella videos watched (a silly thing where she set up a "birth of Jesus" scene in Sims 4 -- it ended with the toddlerized Jesus biting Father Winter when he wouldn't hand over a present XD; and a history of Christmas in the Sims series that once again proved Sims 2 was an amazing game we need more of), and my relisten to the "12 Pains of Christmas" completed, my Christmas to-do list is FINALLY COMPLETE! :D Yaaaay~ Hope you all had a good holiday! I'm looking forward to a Boxing Day binging on my Watch Later queue. XD
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Though I feel bad I haven't done much for you over the years. :( I'm stagnant on the Secundus Fair fic, so I'm at a loss.
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And it's all right -- I understand about writer's block. And you've certainly got a busier life than I do! *pats* Just thanks for still being there. It's nice to see a face I've known since nearly the beginning of my time online. :)
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