cute update! I love your pic skills:D..I was thinking the same thing as Chessa...cat lady here we come! haha....I love the freetime painting options....can't wait for the next update

edited for bad spelling!

Hehe, no more strays But I did need a cat for the next generation of kitty heirs. Glad you guys are enjoying it! The next update should be soon, I've already written it and just need to take pics. Hopefully tomorrow. Up til now, I was mostly taking care of legacy-type things and basic set-ups. Things will be getting a little more interesting in Part 5...

Kooli, I love this Legacy...and yay for the kitty legacy aswell! Thats such a cute idea :D

Yay for strays! I have my sims adopt a couple of strays sometimes.
You've actually made some of the more boring parts of a legacy interesting, like choosing a job and whatnot! That's quite an accomplishment.

As always, the sight of the castle awed Aleydis. She felt such a sense of belonging. In their own way, the overgrown and graffiti-ed ruins were as beautiful as she imagined the hall had looked when it was brand-new. She had a fierce desire to paint the scene, just as it was, before the almost ethereal quality was lost in the restoration.


Aleydis heard a truck slow down and stop, and she turned to welcome Tucker. He was smiling and carrying a picnic basket and blanket. Wow, he's really trying to win me over, huh? Sigh.

Tucker gestured at the supplies. “I thought an early lunch might be welcome, especially in such a scenic place. I hope you don't mind,” he babbled on. “I was hoping maybe it could undo some of what happened at our last lunch.”

Aleydis tamped down her irritation at the delay in investigating more of the ruins and smiled. “That sounds lovely...”


They chatted while they ate, enjoying the last warm days before winter's bite gripped the land.

“About the other day...” Tucker started haltingly.

Aleydis held up a hand. “Please, let's just forget about it for now, ok?” Tucker looked irritated but acquiesced. “We'll talk later, right now I want to survey the ruins and make plans for the restoration. We have a lot of work to do and I'm not even sure what or how many workers we'll need. This isn't a date, this is business.” Tucker had the good grace to look embarassed. Aleydis stood up, brushing dirt and crumbs off of herself. “Let's start over here and make our way around.”


While she pointed out the worst damaged areas, Tucker explained what would be needed to repair them. He is definitely talented. I had no idea how that was even going to be salvageable. At least my business sense functions, if my common sense does not. She found her thoughts wandering throughout the morning and afternoon. “Tucker? Hey let's take a short break, half an hour or so? We have a few more hours of daylight but I need a rest.”

“Oh. Ok, I could use a drink or something anyway. I'm going to drive down to the Stop-Mart, did you want to come with?”

“Um... thanks but no. I'm just going to sit here and relax a little.” Without you.

“Alright then,would you like anything?”

“Bottled water if you don't mind? Thanks.” Aleydis smiled at him in dismissal.


With a last look at her, Tucker got into his truck and drove off. Alone. I'm HOME. She walked through the ruins again, spotting where she had found Ror. A grin lit her face. She wandered aimlessly, touching the walls from time to time. As she was walking back toward the road, Aleydis stubbed her toe on a rock. “OHMIGOD OW! Shiiiiiiit! Stupid rock! Mmmphmmm...” She gritted her teeth, hopped a bit, and leaned down to nurse her aching foot. When she did, she noticed an uneven patch of ground that had been half-covered by the rock.


“The hell?” Her toe forgotten, she leaned down and dug in the dirt, listening intently for any indication of Tucker's truck returning.


A book? It was wrapped in an old, rotted piece of linen. When she unwrapped it, her breath caught. It was one of the most beautiful books she'd ever seen. The tooled leather cover was obviously very old, it was worn down to almost nothing on parts of the spine. The intricate designs in the leather, luckily, remained. The pages were yellowed and caked with dirt, the spidered handwriting on them almost illegible. Aleydis stroked the cover reverently for a second, but mindful of Tucker's imminent return, she wiped it off as gently as she could and stowed it in her bag. The temptation to open it was overwhelming but she resisted. For some reason, she felt this was private. She did not want to share whatever she had discovered with Tucker. As if her thoughts had conjured him, the rumble of the truck's engine approached.

-tiptoes in- Awesome update. Your pictures are so nice, and I love the kitties. -tiptoes out-

Great update brilliantcat, I wonder whats in that book? I love your pictures, there so bright and clear...

Oooh, what's in the book?! I'm intruiged, and I love this story!

Kewl! I knew she must find a clue about its past somewhere. That's a gorgeous book, by the way.
Also, I was just curious (as I am quite often) how exactly you set up your shots. Is Aleydis's house and the castle actually in one big lot together, or do you move her back and forth? And what animation(s) did you use to get that last pose of Tucker's?

Mysterious! Great update...

I'm really loving this :D
your pictures are gorgeous and it has a great plot.

Thanks for all the great replies I got the silly legacy stuff out of the way so I can get back to the plot.

As for how I set it up, the ruins are one lot and Aleydis has a separate lot (so I didn't break the rules of the legacy challenge). Unfortunately I borked the ruins lot so I have to redo it. At least I saved the floorplan and I have pics >_< Tucker's pose was really easy, it's a Hula & More > Reactions > Embarassed and I just had to time it right to snap the shot.

great update! great shots:D

Great update! :D

Great story, Aleydis is really pretty!

Mentally and physically drained after the long day walking the ruins and fending off Tucker's amorous advances, Aleydis had forgotten the book waiting in her bag. She flipped the lights on and sluggishly dropped onto the couch. Within seconds, she had dozed off, snoring lightly.


Roused by Ror's rough sandpaper tongue on her palm, she jerked awake. “Sorry baby, I'll get you some dinner.” Aleydis wearily refilled his dish. I don't know why I'm so exhausted after a little hike. Well, mom always said a hot bath would fix you right up. I'll have to make do with a shower. The hot water pelted her face, invigorating her. Much better!


A now-revived Aleydis called for takeout and, remembering the leather tome, pawed through her bag. Again, her breath caught at the sight of it. She scrutinized the cover and grabbing a sketchbook, roughed out a quick drawing of the book. Curiosity eating at her, she finally opened it.


“GODDAMMIT!” She shrieked in utter frustration. While the pages were still intact, the handwriting was faded to the point that it was illegible. Aleydis fought the urge to scream. This has -something- to do with my family, she raged internally. This could tell me what happened to Baron Hawthorne and his family... but I... can't... BLOODY... read it! She peered at the print, her nose practically touching the pages, but it was no use. In addition to being faded and smudged, the writing was archaic, the language hard to understand. Clearly it was English but the spellings she could make out were strange. The book was very, very old. On the verge of tears, she set the book down. “I wonder,” she muttered pensively. Aleydis dialed the number and fidgeted while it rang.




“Hey Randall! Yes it has been a long time... I'm so sorry I haven't kept in touch... Yes, mom's fine. She's working on a big case, something about a political scandal, I'm not sure, I moved away after college so I don't follow the news. Dad and his floozy are touring Venice. Look, it's really nice to catch up with you... Uh huh. Twins? How wonderful, I get to be an auntie,” Aleydis' patience was growing thin. “Randall? Hey, bro? I know it's a bit odd to get a call out of the blue but I was hoping...” She took a deep breath. “You still running that antique bookshop? Oh, good! I'm glad business is going so well but I actually had a reason for calling.” Jeez, the boy never shuts up, no wonder I 'forget' to call him. “I need to get in touch with a book restorer. Or something. I have this book, see, and it's really really old.” She spent several more minutes listening to Randall's play-by-play of his life since their last talk but finally managed to wrangle a name from him.


“I'm so glad we had this chat. Yes I'll try to call more often, maybe I'll make it up there to see you and Madeline, after the babies are born. Congratulations hon!” With great relief, Aleydis hung up the phone. Good grief, Rand, you can still jabber like nobody else I know. She dialed the number her brother had given her. Hopefully it wasn't too late and someone would be there. By the eighth ring, she was about to hang up when a raspy voice croaked “Hello?”

“Oh, Mr. Tan? I'm so sorry to have disturbed you, my brother gave me your number, he thought you might be able to help me. Randall. Randall Wyndham? Right, I'm his sister Aleydis.” She explained about the book and set up a meeting in two weeks' time. Argh, I'm not going to survive two weeks with this damn book! I want to know what it says now! Ok, I'm acting childish. Focus, girl. Concentrate on the restoration project for now. A knock at the door shattered her reverie. Who the hell could that be at this hour?

Ooh, more! You keep leaving us hanging, you naughty thing!

Great update, Brilliantcat! Can't wait to find out about the book.
Poor Aleydis! That Tucker is very annoying. Did he lock himself out of his house or something? :p

great update!
I have to say I don't care for Tucker....he needs to go away:p
love your pics and writing!

Ooh! My first thoughts when I read the second paragraph was she's pregnant of course, I'm probably completely wrong

“Tucker?” Aleydis goggled at him like an idiot. “What are you doing here?”

“Um, I know we spent all day together but as you said, it was just business...”

She sighed and pressed her forehead to the door. “Look, it was a tiring day. I don't even have the energy to cook, much less discuss... THIS... whatever it is.”


He grinned boyishly. “Well I can help there!”

Aleydis cut him off. “No, I already ordered some food. I'd really just like to eat and get some sleep. I have to work early tomorrow and then get some of the interviews going for contractors. It's practically winter, if I don't get moving there's no way we'll be able to start before the ground freezes and it starts snowing.” She sighed again. “There's the delivery. We'll talk, I promise. Lunch, next week?”


“Oh. Ok. Well that should be fine. I already gave you the list of some of the contractors that I know, right? Next week then. No champagne this time,” he added.

Aleydis glared at him. “No. I'll see you then.” She was tempted to slam the door, but refrained. Suddenly famished, she gobbled the sweet and sour pork, sharing a bit with Ror and the as-yet-unnamed stray who seemed to be making a permanent home with her.


The week passed in a blur of interviews and requisitions. My god I never realized how much work this was going to be! I'm going to get fired if I take another day off, Aleydis mused. She had been contemplating quitting in order to have more time to get things set up at the castle, but her savings was wiped out. Most of her earnings was going towards the restoration project so she hadn't even been able to set anything aside. She groaned as she headed to the restaurant to meet Tucker. What a bloody mess, hopefully I can let him down easy.

“Aly, here!” Tucker waved her over.


“Tucker, look...”

“I'm so glad we're finally getting to spend some time together!” He smiled brightly at her. “I know I botched our first date, I hope the picnic sort of made up for it. I want to woo you like you deserve.”

Woo? Did he just say 'woo' me? “Tucker, I don't think...”

“You're so beautiful and sweet, you deserve a guy who can treat you well, especially after what you told me. Someone like you shouldn't be taken advantage of like that, I'm so sorry you thought I did. If I had any idea, I would have behaved myself!”

Aleydis fought the urge to laugh hysterically. Talented he may be, but he's a little warped in the head I think... “Ok, slow down champ, you're not listening. I don't want you to 'woo' me. I'm... I'm really not interested in a relationship right now, ok? I'm much too busy. It was just a drunken mistake. But, um, I hope we can still work together,” she finished lamely.


He stared at her for an agonizing minute. Oh god, please don't start crying, she begged. I cannot deal with a sobbing man. He finally spoke. “Aly, I had no idea. You seemed interested and I really like you... I'm... pretty embarrassed here.”

Relieved he had chosen not to make a scene, and actually seemed to be taking it pretty well, Aleydis felt a bit sorry for him. Just a bit. “Tucker, don't be. We're still friends, right? And it's not you, I just don't want to be with anyone right now.” Liar liar, a tiny voice in her head sang.

“Well, ok. As long as it's not some other guy I suppose I can deal.” He winked at her. “So, um, can two friends... maybe hang out tomorrow? I have stuff going all morning, taking care of prep for the castle and all, but I'm free in the afternoon.”

Aleydis tried not to roll her eyes. Talk about obvious... “I would but I have a meeting tomorrow. A rare book specialist is coming all the way out here to see me about...” Oh shit. Well, the cat's out of the bag now. Tucker raised his eyebrows at her. “About this old book I found up at the ruins last week. I have no idea what it is, I can't read it. I need him to take a look and tell me if he can restore it.”


“You didn't tell me?” He looked wounded.

“Well it was while you were at the Stop-Mart. I put it in my bag and sort of forgot until later that night.” Which isn't entirely untrue, she thought. And damn my big mouth!

“Oh. I guess that's understandable. It was a long day. So you're going to tell me all about what this guy says, right?”

She looked at her watch and nodded distractedly. “Sure, of course. Look, I really need to get back to work, I'm late already. I'll call you.”

Tucker tried to engulf her in a hug, but Aleydis dodged and hurried out the door.

Nice update he's very persistant isn't he :D!

Hehe. I love how he said he was embarrassed and then just kept right on going. That fellow makes me uncomfortable though he's a bit pathetic.
Can't wait to find out more

Awesome! You're great with setting up shots and poses. Can't wait for more about that book!

Thanks guys Tucker is a tad annoying I will admit. They had 3 lightning bolts though so ACR went nutso as soon as they met. Of course, he's not all he seems... and he does have some redeeming qualities... More about that in the next chapter