#and is now just Victor Alice and Smiler

[victorluvsalice]

Sims 4 Wednesday -- Potential Tiny Town Challenge

Hi all! As we're between Chill Valicer Save updates this week, I wanted to talk to you about something I discovered relatively recently and have been thinking about off and on -- The Tiny Town Challenge! I first learned about this challenge through seeing a thumbnail for James Turner's version on YouTube, and, curious, tracked down the original challenge and rules to see what it was all about. You can get the full rule set and take a look at the original lot and Sims Deligracy created at the link above, but the basic gist is that you spend the challenge setting up a tiny town on a large lot (preferably 64x64) for seven Sims. Each Sim has a specific money-making skill that they must use to earn the funds to build their house on their specific sub-lot, and a favorite decor style and color that must inform what their house looks like. Each Sim is moved in individually, once the previous Sim has finished their house, and the challenge ends when all seven houses and any communal area is fully built.

I took one look at that and I was like "yeah, I'm into it." XD Both because it sounds like a fun challenge, and because it's a challenge with minimal set-up (which is the problem with the challenges I personally have come up with previously -- I think they'd be fun, but they require a loooot of prep!). Having thought about it for a bit, I have some ideas about how I'd like to do the challenge myself -- and some problems that I'm going to have to figure out before I can set this up as a potential alternate save file to the Chill Valicer Save:

-->Location: I decided relatively quickly that I'd like to do the challenge in Windenburg, setting up a little community on The Crumbling Isle (something like how Plumbob Paragon set theirs up). I almost never play in Windenburg, so I figured that setting the challenge there would be a good way to encourage me to wander around that world and see the sights. And I already have some ideas about using the other lots to make a true town out of the island -- like turning one lot into a Community Space to get a community garden going, or another lot into a retail store that a couple of the citizens run. Might be fun!

-->Citizenry: Well, you guys know me -- of course the first three residents of the tiny town would be Victor, Alice, and Smiler. However, I'm having trouble deciding on who the other residents of the town could be. The way I see it, I have two options for the rest of the group:

Option One: Add Victoria Everglot and Emily Merrimack and do a "Four Victorians Riding A Roller Coaster" polycule thing on the tiny town lot! This would be fun as it would allow for amusing and adorable polycule shenanigans...but the problem here is the color schemes. Specifically, while Smiler is fine with their primary color being Yellow, Victor, Alice, and Emily ALL suit Blue being their primary color (Victor has his blue butterfly and blue tie -- plus I've always headcanoned it as his favorite color; Alice has her iconic blue dress; and Emily has her blue -- everything), and Alice and Victoria would both suit Red (Alice has that iconic red blood splatter on her apron; Victoria has her red dress). Now, I know how I could fix this for Alice -- make her primary color Green, to match her eyes -- but I'm not sure what to do about Victor and Emily. I mean, when it comes down to it, Emily would have to get Blue, look at her, but the only other alternate colors I can think of for Victor would be Black or Grey, and that would result in a depressing-looking house. :( So yeah, bit of an issue there!

Option Two: Add my young Emmett "Doc" Brown Sim (patterned off his appearance in BTTF: The Game), a fem!Malkavian Fledgling Sim I downloaded off the Gallery (which I'm already planning on calling Mal Kavian), a Preston Garvey Sim, and my take on a Wheatley Sim to the gang and just represent pretty much all my favorite fandoms and games in one go. The bonus here is that I've got the full roster of seven Sims; as stated, I'm representing a bunch of things I enjoy, not just the primary three; and I get a tiny bit of diversity by including a black character as a primary. However, there are also a couple of issues here:

I'm not entirely sure I want to do the challenge with the full compliment of seven Sims, as I have trouble wrangling a mere three sometimes in my Chill Valicer Save. And before you ask, no, I don't have For Rent, so I couldn't turn the lot into a Residental Rental and just play one family at a time. I'd have to really fight with my own micromanaging tendencies to get this to work!

We again have color overlap issues because Victor, Preston, and Wheatley ALSO all suit the color Blue (Victor for the reasons listed above; Preston because the Minutemen have blue as their primary color scheme; and Wheatley because his eye is blue in the game). Now, admittedly, this one is a bit easier to solve -- make Preston's color Light Brown to match his iconic duster (yes, Sims 4 actually distinguishes between Light Brown and Dark Brown -- the only color that gets that distinction in the sort!), and Wheatley's White to match his core's outer shell -- but still. I am apparently obsessed with Blue characters!

Now, I can think of an interesting way to solve this dilemma -- set up two tiny towns on the Crumbling Isle on the two biggest lots, and divide the Sims so there's like five or so on each lot. (Suppose it could be like Victor, Alice, Smiler, Doc, Mal Kavian on one, and Victoria, Emily, Preston, Wheatley on another?) That does mean having to do the challenge twice, and wrangling a lot more Sims, but... *shrug* We'll see how I feel!

-->Skills, Colors, and Decors: As previously stated, all Sims have to have a specific skill that they use to fund the creation of their home, and a favorite color and decor style that should inform the look of said home. Now, the decor thing is kind of a mystery to me (I mix-and-match styles all the time when building, and I don't have Dream Home Decorator to make Sims Like specific types -- though it does occur to me that I could just fudge it by having each house just reflect their canon in some way), but I do have skills and colors almost entirely locked down for almost all of my potential citizens --

Victor: His color would be Blue (probably darker shades of such), and his money-making skill would be either Painting or Piano (though I'm leaning toward Painting because I've always headcanoned him as being more private with his music)

Alice: Her color would be Green, and her money-making skill either Painting or Writing (leaning toward Writing because I like the idea of her writing her own books)

Victoria: Her color would be Red, and her money-making skill would be either Knitting or Cross-Stitch (since we know she likes to sew from seeing her working on her blanket in the movie when Victor climbs onto her balcony)

Emily: Her color would be Blue (brighter shades), and her money-making skill would be either Flower Arranging (for her bouquet) or Gemology (for the wedding ring that starts the whole Corpse Bride mess -- it just amuses me)

Doc: His color would be Orange (as part of the BTTF logo), and his money-making skill would probably be Robotics (since it's the most sciencey-one), though I wouldn't say no to Fabrication

Mal: Her color would be Red (because, you know, vampire), and her money-making skill would be Wellness (because it deeply amuses me to have a vampire from that clan doing yoga and spa stuff)

Preston: His color would be either Blue or Light Brown (as previously stated), and his money-making skill would be either Fabrication (because he's the settlement guy, and Fabrication is a lot like how the workshops work in Fallout 4), Woodworking (the more low-tech version of that), or Archaeology (because he clearly enjoys the past, given you find him hiding in a museum and his coat is apparently looted from another one -- probably have to use a mod to make it available outside Selvadorada, though!)

Wheatley: His color would either be Blue or White (again, as previously stated), and his money-making skill would be Programming (again, because of the hilarity factor -- I mean, Wheatley CAN hack in the game, but we all know just how "good" he is at it XD)

Smiler: Their color would be Yellow, and their money-making skill --

And this is where I run into a problem, because I'm not entirely sure what to do for Smiler. Because my version of Smiler's primary thing is chemistry (or alchemy, depending on the setting), and I'm not entirely sure how to best represent that with the skills on offer. Should I do Mixology, on the basis that I heacanon they are also awesome at mixing drinks? Herbalism because that's kind of close (I have a mod that puts Granite Falls bugs in other worlds, so that's not an issue)? Do I rely on Simsonian Library's Apothecary mod and related skill because that is arguably closer that Herbalism? Or do I just fudge things by choosing Mixology or something before turning them into a spellcaster and having them focus on the Alchemy section of the spellbook? Decisions, decisions...

But yeah -- that's what I currently have in mind for any future Tiny Town-related save files I may make! Not gonna guarantee that this is gonna happen, but it's a distinct possibility. :) And if you guys have any suggestions regarding how I should do the tiny town (and what the fuck Smiler's money-making skill should be), please let me know!

[thevalicemultiverse]

An interaction with me and Victor's mom be like:

Nell: "I am a queen~" 💅💅💅

Me: "YOU'RE A FUCKING CUNT AND A GOLDDIGGER! END OF STORY!" 🖕🤬🖕

Cuddlepile

Victor: [grimaces] She, uh, s-she won't take that lying down, you know.

Alice: Yes, I hope if you're going to say that to her, you brought earplugs.

Smiler: Or plan to shout it at her from a moving vehicle. Much as we love to slag that woman off, you don't want to stick around to hear her shout back. We've all got better things to do.

[victorluvsalice]

Help: How Do Tav!Smiler in BG3???

Hi everyone -- say, do you remember how, way back at the end of January last year, I made a post about how I'd recently gotten my hands on Baldur's Gate III and I was going to make Smiler my "Tav?" To go with my VTMB Malkavian Fledgling Alice and my FO4 Sole Survivor Victor? Are any of you wondering how that's going?

It's -- kind of not! I haven't actually gotten that far in the game, mostly because I stopped playing for most of 2024 due to a combination of "I want to play with cool mods but I'm nervous that they'll break the game thanks to these glitches I read about on the game's subreddit" and "I am already stressed about this game, Larian, if you're going to get cutesy about when Patch 6 is actually coming out I'm going back to Sims 4 and Fallout 4." I finally picked it back up again late last year, clearing out all my old saves and starting again using the in-game mod manager to manage the mods I wanted. And I made some decent progress for once: getting past the tutorial, picking up a bunch of companions (Shadowheart, Astarion, Gale, and Lae'zel), fetching Withers from his crypt, and helping the tieflings defend their gate from the attacking goblin hordes. I was all set to head into the tiefling camp, start helping them with their problems, and pick up Wyll --

And then Patch 8 came out. And while I was waiting for mods to update (a process that involved me going "shit what's going to happen with ImpUI, the creator said they weren't updating it anymore and I'm pretty sure at least ONE of my mods needs it" and "uh, how DO you update mods in the in-game mod manager?"), something happened in my brain related to an entirely different thing that I enjoy --

That made me realize "fuck, I think I need to restart again...and I might need some help figuring out what exactly it is I want to do." Let me see if I can sum it up step by step:

I. Okay, so -- all three times I've tried to get a playthrough of BG3 going pre-Patch 8, I've always had Smiler start out as a Bard. Because, well, I like the class features they get, and I felt that it suited Smiler pretty well -- they're reasonably musical (they play guitar and drums, after all), and they are definitely a high-Charisma person, which is one of a Bard's primary stats.

II. However, I've never actually been able to come up with a backstory for my Bard Smiler, beyond "probably raised by their uncle Felix instead of Matt and Carol in this universe" and "likely a traveling entertainer/alchemist pre-abduction" (since I've always used mods to have them multiclass into the Alchemist subclass of the Artificer class to represent their talent for all things chemistry and alchemy). I never worried that much about it, though, as I wasn't really trying to make a story out of any of my playthroughs (I only need ONE project like "Londerland Bloodlines" going at a time, thank you) -- they were just supposed to be about having fun. I just thought it would be nice to know what that Smiler was all about.

III. And here's where the entirely different thing comes in. Who here has heard of the web series CaFae Latte? It's a fun TikTok series (though I only watch the YouTube compilations for each season because I don't have and don't want a TikTok account) about a group of people working in and having adventures out of a fairy-owned coffee shop in a more magical version of Minnesota, by one C. M. Alongi. My friend Gigs got me into it last year, and I've been really enjoying catching up on all the various adventures of Bob, Cyrus, JC, Nicole, and all the other staff/customers/related entities who show up. In fact, I've been enjoying it so much that recently I started writing mental fanfic for it --

And me being me, it was of course Valicer-related fanfic. XD Specifically, I started thinking, "wouldn't it be fun to have Smiler get hired as a new barista at the coffee shop? I already have them working at one in the Modern AU! Though, given this is an urban fantasy series, maybe I should go for a not-exactly-human Smiler...maybe I can do something like my VITD Smiler and have them be somehow connected to our favorite eldritch god of happiness Mar-Mal? Yeah, that'd work!" So I started imaging a scenario where a Smiler with a link to Mar-Mal (expressed, of course, through their glowing yellow eyes) got a job at the CaFae and started making friends with the people already there --

IV. Which led to me thinking of a moment where one of the characters asked Smiler if their relationship with Mar-Mal was like being a D&D warlock (since some of the characters are D&D fans). And this made me think, "Hmmm -- I know that eldritch entities ARE valid patrons for warlocks in that game -- just look at Prudence from Oxventure. But can you pick one of those with warlocks in Baldur's Gate III? I've only ever looked at the Bard write-up on the wiki in detail, I should check it out, just for funsies." So one Saturday night, I did indeed check it out, going through the BG3 Wiki's entry on the Warlock class and looking at the special features you get with a Great Old One Patron --

And. Right at level one. I saw that one of the things you get is a slightly-expanded spell list to pick from for your first couple of warlock spells. With the two extra spells Great Old Ones give you being "Tasha's Hideous Laughter" -- the most Smiler spell of the lot because it's literally INCAPACITATING PEOPLE WITH LAUGHTER -- and "Dissonant Whispers" -- a spell I had LITERALLY JUST FUCKING GIVEN SMILER during their second level-up before Patch 8, because I'd decided they should focus on Psychic damage and I could headcanon the whispers as distracting creepy laughter. And then I kept going down the page, and I kept seeing all the mind control spells I thought Smiler should have on the list of spells Warlocks could pick up as they level up, and near the bottom the "Thought Shield" stuff specific to Great Old One Patrons that both grants resistance to and reflects back all psychic damage dealt to the warlock...

V. ...and my brain immediately went "oh hey! Can you imagine a younger Smiler, maybe running away from the local version of Kelman, getting contacted by Mar-Mal and offered a pact to help them out? With their service being to use their talents to spread happiness and joy throughout the world? By any means possible?"

...cue me realizing FUCKING HELL, I MADE SMILER THE WRONG BASE CLASS. *facepalm* Like, how the HELL did I not realize this before?! One of my favorite versions of Smiler is my VITD Smiler, who -- while not exactly in a pact with their god -- does have a strong connection with them through Mar-Mal blessing them, and who I've already decided gets at least one of their special playbook powers through Mar-Mal granting it to them ("Mesmerism," for the curious -- will allow Smiler to Sway someone, then make them forget it happened until the next time they see Smiler. Mar-Mal thinks this is a useful talent; Smiler thinks Alice is gonna get mad at them if they use it). And Warlock is another Charisma-based casting class! Smiler being a warlock of some description TOTALLY makes sense!

VI. Except -- well, it's not quite as simple as that. I've been thinking about this for the past couple of weeks, and I've come to the conclusion that there are three key things about Smiler that I would like to express in the "Tav" version --

a) Their connection to Mar-Mal, and the mind- and emotion-control spells that grants

b) Their musical talents and ability to get people's attention with a show

c) Their alchemist talents and ability to craft various potions and elixirs and whatnot

Now, of those three, a) and b) are easy enough to represent -- I was already planning on multiclassing Smiler with the help of a "go all the way up to Level 20" mod, and "Bardlock" is a very legit dual-class combination, given that both are Charisma-based casters AND learning the "Song of Rest" as a bard gives you the benefit of an extra Short Rest to recharge the warlock spell slots. Plus, for Smiler specifically, Bard has the "buff your allies" spells that I'd like them to have (like "Sanctuary" -- both because it's useful for keeping enemies away from a person and because of the name accidentally referencing Kelman's little asylum of horrors :P) and, as of Patch 8, a lovely "College of Glamour" subclass that would allow them to buff their allies, automatically Charm enemies who attack those allies in melee, and order people around in combat. All things I would love for my Smiler to have! So yeah, to cover those two items, Bardlock Smiler is definitely the way to go.

As for c), however -- that's a little trickier. While the game does have an alchemy system that characters can use to craft various items, I'm not sure that just using that a lot is enough to get across the idea that Smiler is a talented alchemist. Hence why on my first playthroughs, I was using Artificer mods to make them an official Alchemist via the power of subclass. However, there's two potential problems with doing that now:

One, that would mean triple-classing, and I'm not sure if that would be too complicated a character build -- especially since I'm not sure which class should be primary (I was thinking Warlock, as per my initial reaction to realizing how well it fit them above, but given my idea is that Smiler would have at least their alchemy skills before any pact with Mar-Mal, maybe Artificer makes more sense...) and how many levels I should take of each (I want all my feats, but I also want as many goodies as I can get from each class)

Two, the Artificer mod I was using for my latest playthrough via the in-game mod manager, "Artificer for Home Brew - Comprehensive Reworks" -- well, when I first downloaded it, I didn't realize the "Home Brew - Comprehensive Reworks" part of the title was referring to another mod that this mod was designed to work in conjunction with. I thought it was just referring to how the mod creator adapted it to BG3! The mod seemed to work fine for the short time I had it ("Home Brew -Comprehensive Reworks" is not actually required to play with it, from what I can see), but as you might imagine, I am somewhat concerned that the damn thing might break if I keep using it in a playthrough without the "base" mod (and after taking a quick look at said base mod, I'm not interested in it). I know there are other Artificer and even custom Alchemist class mods out there, but I'm not sure which ones are good and/or Patch 8 ready (and at least one seems to have used AI images to generate class icons and pictures for their write-up on how the class works, so I don't want to use that one on principle). I could also fudge it with this mod that turns the "Experimental Alchemy" passive certain Wizards get into a feat anyone can pick up, but THAT requires either waiting until I hit level 4 in a class (which feels like it could take a while) or tracking down a Patch 8-ready mod that allows me to just pick up ONE extra feat (as I feel like getting feats every level or every other level like most mods is a TOUCH overpowered).

So yeah. Shit be complicated, yo. And that isn't even getting into me debating if Smiler's background should be "Guild Artisan" (gives skill proficiency in Insight and Persuasion, has a "can happen anywhere" inspiration trigger) or "Entertainer" (gives skill proficiency in Acrobatics and Performance, has inspiration triggers involving telling stories and participating in comedy contests that do feel very Smiler)! *grabs head* I just want Smiler to be right, damn it!

Which is why I'm hoping to get some advice from the rest of you. What do you people who are more experienced with the game recommend I do to get the Tav!Smiler I want? In fact, let's do it in the form of a poll, bitches love polls:

I'd add in suggestions for how many levels to take of each class (like 12 Warlock/4 Bard/4 Artificer), but I have limited poll options and limited characters within each option, so if you have any suggestions regarding THAT, please leave them in the replies or a reblog, a la Option 7. Any help is appreciated!

[victorluvsalice]

Valicer Multiamory Month, Day Eleven: Home (Multiplayer Wonderland AU)

The inexorable march of Multiamory March (har har) (by @polyamships) continues onward today -- this time with another one of the alternative prompts subbed in for the regular one! Because I couldn't really think of anything I wanted to do with the given Day 11 prompt, "pining" --

But when I took another look at the alternative prompts, my brain immediately latched onto "home" and went "what about a story about the Multiplayer Wonderland group exploring their newly-built house together?" :D And so here we are, with the fivesome of Alice, Smiler, Victor, Victoria, and Emily doing just that. Shout-out to Chapter 5 of PlayerPiano's "Love Stories" Corpse Bride fanfic for what I'm sure was the subconscious inspiration for this idea! Hope you all enjoy!

--

“So – what do you think?”

“It’s wonderful,” Alice said, running her fingers along the ivy pattern in the parlor wallpaper. “I know we all had a hand in designing the place, but – there’s seeing your house on paper, and then seeing it in real life.”

“I know,” Smiler agreed, patting a plush couch. “This is amazing.” They glanced over at Victor with a little smirk. “Dare I ask how much it cost?”

“No more than my parents could afford,” Victor replied, smirking back. “Trust me, they barely felt us dipping into their wallet. In fact, Mother hinted that she could have done with us spending more.”

“Really? This place is already pretty damn big.”

“You’ve seen my family’s mansion – Mother wanted us to go even bigger.” He rolled his eyes. “Probably hoping to show off just how much canned fish could buy to the Everglots.”

“To be fair, it buys a lot – certainly more than we could, before my marriage to you,” Victoria remarked, looking around. “Though, actually, I’m pretty sure my mother is also pleased we live somewhere so big as well. Perhaps it softens the blow of me taking such a step down in status.”

“Well, bully for them,” Alice said, folding her arms. “If it stops them giving us grief about Smiler, Emily, and myself living with you, I’m all for them thinking you’re into conspicuous consumption.”

“Perhaps they just think we’ll be better hidden away from society in all these rooms,” Emily joked, bouncing in place. “Oh, but it is so nice for all of us to have a bit of space to ourselves! I really didn’t expect you to actually give me a room just for dancing!”

“We know how much you love it,” Victoria said, smiling as she looped her arm through Emily’s. “And if I got a room for sewing, and Victor for his piano, and Alice for her drawing, and Smiler for their chemistry…”

“Which, I love how you put that up in the turret,” Smiler said, grinning. “Makes me feel like a wizard in a tower.”

“Which is ironic, given that was always Victor’s favorite game to play back when we were small,” Alice chuckled. “But yes, it really is lovely to have a space that’s all mine. And a house that’s all – ours.” She blinked some sudden wetness out of her eyes, then laughed. “Certainly blows my initial sketches out of the water.”

“To be fair, Alice, you drew those when we were eight,” Smiler reminded her, ruffling her hair. “And when there was only three of us to worry about.”

“And it was still a very nice house,” Victor agreed. “Though...I wouldn’t be opposed to this one making its way into Wonderland now.”

Alice grinned as the vines on the wall sprouted rainbow-colored flowers. “I’ll see what I can do.”

[victorluvsalice]

Valicer Multiamory Month, Day Twenty-Eight: Magic (Valicer In The Dark AU)

The end of Multiamory March (as made by @polyamships) creeps ever closer, and today's prompt is a simple but fun one: "magic!" I have a number of AUs where magical things happen, so filling this one? Not a problem. :p Now, one might have expected that I'd do something for the All The Fairy Tales AU for this one, or perhaps the Medieval Fantasy AU, or maybe even the Valicer Forgotten Vows AU --

But when it came time to figure out something for this prompt, the first thing that actually came to mind was my beloved Valicer In The Dark AU. Which does indeed have magic in it -- just, uh, magic you don't want to mess with too much. Which led to me thinking about what the trio would have learned about magic, growing up in Duskwall -- and what Alice and Smiler might think about Victor getting into it once he embraces being a Whisper. And so the story below was born! I hope you enjoy. :)

--

Magic was dangerous.

That was a fact of life one learned early on, living in Duskwall. Magic, and anything related to it, was dangerous. The old tongue of sorcery was the domain of demons now, who used it to torment all who opposed them – from freezing them in storms of ice, to drowning them in massive waves, to burning them with whips of fire. And rituals? Well, you never knew what mysterious, otherworldly force would consent to lend you a bit of its power – or for what purpose. The city was full of stories featuring those who had dabbled in what they didn’t understand, and ended up paying a terrible price. Who had discovered that the power they so eagerly sought was also their inevitable downfall. Magic was dangerous, and thus best avoided.

Alice and Smiler had known that too – they’d grown up hearing all the stories, all the warnings, after all. And for the most part, they’d followed said warnings – Alice had confined her interest in the fantastical to her imagination, where magic could run wild without hurting anyone, while Smiler had channeled their desire to accomplish incredible things into alchemy, which often ran up against the side of magic, but never quite crossed over. Even after Alice suffered the death of her family and ten years in Rutledge Asylum, and Smiler finally ran away from home and was cheerfully swallowed up by the Advocates, neither of them were tempted much by the mystical.

And then they met Victor. Who – after some initial reluctance – wholeheartedly embraced life as a Whisper. Who poured through ancient volumes of spellcraft and sorcery, studying distressingly complex diagrams and practicing words no human tongue should be able to form. Who asked his ghostly mentor what rituals he knew, and how best to perform them. Who eventually came up with his own spells, designed to translate any language or ward them against spectral attacks or even drag them all temporarily into the ghost field. All the sort of terrifying, dangerous activities that any sensible person would want to avoid.

But – well. One could accuse Alice and Smiler of being a lot of things, but “sensible” was not usually one of them. And things Victor did – first, they were genuinely incredible feats of arcane power. Second, he always tried to be as safe as possible, and only use them for the whole crew’s benefit. And third – whenever he spoke a word that brought lightning arcing down from the sky, or drew a symbol that lit up a ghostly map of the city, Alice and Smiler would see the joy on his face –

And think, how could they deny the man they loved such pleasure?

[victorluvsalice]

Valicer Multiamory Month, Day Ten: Meet the family (Modern AU)

We've hit the double digit days now in @polyamships's Multiamory March -- and, in a break from tradition with these "prompt fic" challenges/collections, I've stuck with the same universe for two days in a row! Mostly because when I saw today's prompt, "Meet the family," I knew I wanted to do Victor and Alice meeting Smiler's parents, Matthew and Carol Alton --

But, uh, as it turns out, I only have two universes where Matt and Carol actually show up as Smiler's parents -- the Modern AU and Valicer In The Dark. And I'd actually already written VITD Victor and Alice meeting Matt and Carol as part of the last chapter of "A Murder Shared Is A Murder Thirded" (said last chapter is not actually UP at the time of posting, but still). So Modern AU it was! XD Anyway, here's the trio arriving at the door of Matt and Carol's place, with Victor and Alice about to make an interesting discovery about the pair...

(Oh, and for reference: Carol mentioning Victor getting a special dip with no artichokes is a reference to the original "Meet The Family" set of Not-Incorrect Quotes, where Victor revealed he's allergic to artichokes in response to Smiler texting their mum to make her artichoke dip. The allergy itself is a headcanon based off an old Corpse Bride storyboard. *thumbs up*)

--

“Smiler!”

“Hey, Mum! Dad!”

Victor stared as Smiler practically threw themselves at their parents, wrapping them in a hug that was eagerly reciprocated. Wow...you’d never get away with that in my family, he thought, biting his lip. Mother would consider it so lower-class to actually show affection to her only child, and Father would be more interested in making some terrible joke that wouldn’t land at all… His eyes went to Alice, watching the scene with a sad, nostalgic smile. Then again, at least I have parents, so maybe I shouldn’t complain.

Smiler pulled away from their folks after a moment, grinning to beat the band – though, admittedly, they did that on a regular basis anyway. “Great to see you guys again! I’m really looking forward to this!”

“It’s great to see you!” Smiler’s father – Matt, if Victor remembered correctly – agreed, smile as bright as his child’s. He promptly turned it on Victor and Alice, walking toward them with arm outstretched. “And it’s a delight to meet you two at last! Matthew Alton!”

“Victor Van Dort,” Victor said, taking his hand (and privately hoping his handshake was firm enough). “And this is Alice Liddell.”

“Pleasure to meet you,” Alice nodded, offering her own hand in turn.

“Oh, the pleasure is all ours,” Matt assured her, pumping both their arms. “Smiler’s told us so many wonderful things about you two!”

“Anyone who makes them so happy is more than welcome in our home!” Smiler’s mother – Carol, yes – added, coming to join her husband.

“I’m glad to hear–”

Victor blinked as he realized he had to look down rather farther than he’d though to meet Carol’s eyes. “That,” he finished lamely. What – she barely comes up to Matt’s shoulder! I haven’t met anyone so short since Lord Everglot! And that was back in Burtonsville, where I’m used to people being odd sizes! Does she think I’m looming? I hope not… He hunched down slightly, trying to reduce his six-foot-three by a few inches. “T-they’ve told us a lot of n-nice things about you too.”

“Yes – I’m rather looking forward to experiencing you in the flesh, not just secondhand,” Alice said, cool as a cucumber – though Victor spotted her eyes flicking between the pair.

“Oh, us too,” Carol said, beaming. She turned and waved them through the door. “Come on in – we’ve got plenty of nibbles! And don’t worry, Victor, I made a special dip for you. No artichokes, I promise.”

“Thank you.” Victor watched as she went inside with Smiler and Matt, then nudged Alice. “She’s in heels!”

“I noticed! Tall ones too!” Alice shook her head, then smiled at him. “Well – makes our height difference look normal, doesn’t it?”

“I suppose – at least they seem nice.” Victor took a steadying breath, then started in. “Let’s just hope this goes better than when I first met Victoria’s parents.”

[victorluvsalice]

Valicer Multiamory Month, Day Twenty-Two: Space (Valicer In The Dark AU)

Multiamory March (as created by @polyamships) continues onward with a very simple prompt today: "Space!" Which could mean a lot of things -- your polycule in outer space, your polycule talking about personal space, your polycule using the space bar a lot -- but I chose to interpret as "the polycule's home space" -- that is, where they live. And that in turn led me to come up with a story about the Valicer In The Dark crew and their space -- aka, their lair in Six Towers. Specifically, a story talking about how they turned what was originally just a place to hide for a couple of days into a real home. So here's Smiler, surprising Alice mid-clean with a trip down memory lane...

--

“Remember when we first stumbled across this place?”

Alice looked over at Smiler, leaning on the stair banister and watching her dust. “Hard to forget, given we were on the run after being accused of murdering a Spirit Warden,” she reminded them.

“Fair enough – but it was a wreck then, wasn’t it?” Smiler asked, undaunted. “Cobwebs dangling from the ceiling, dust piled thick on the floors, almost every room stripped bare…”

“Toilet not hooked up to anything,” Alice couldn’t resist adding.

“Exactly! It was a mess! Even the library looked like one of Victor’s windstorms had swept through it, and that was the nicest spot in the house!”

“I remember.” Alice folded her arms, smirking. “And I also remember you constantly insisting it wasn’t that bad.”

“I had to keep our spirits up somehow,” Smiler replied, grinning back at her. “We were in a lot of trouble at the time, and we weren’t going to find a better place to hide.”

“True enough.” Alice tilted her head. “Why the trip down memory lane?”

“Because I overheard Victor tell Elder Gutknecht just now how glad he is that we don’t have any repair jobs hanging over our heads for the moment, and it hit me just how far we’ve come,” Smiler told her, descending the last few steps and spreading their arms to encompass the room. “I mean, look at this place! We’ve scrubbed it top to bottom, replaced all the broken windows, gotten new furniture, added lights and heat and decorations...we’ve really made it our home.”

Alice looked around their makeshift living room – at the piano Victor had so carefully fixed up resting against the right wall; the guitar Smiler had brought along from their old home in the Advocates propped up next to it; the easel she’d bought with some of the Van Dorts’ stolen Coin tucked up against the stairs leading up into the tower; the couch that had been the payment for their first proper heist sitting in the middle of the room; the rocking chair that had been gifted to them by a grateful Six Towers resident standing temporarily still next to the left wall. “We have,” she agreed softly. “I don’t think anyone could say that we haven’t made this space our own.”

“Mmmmhmm – and I know it’s not perfect,” Smiler said, hand held up to forestall any argument. “It’s still really drafty, and all the rooms are kind of small, and the sewer outside still stinks. But – I just wanted to acknowledge all the progress we’ve made.” Their smile turned soft. “And that I’m really, really glad I get to share it with you and Victor.”

Alice smiled back. “So am I. Which is good, because if we ever attempted to move, Lord Rowan would be on us in a heartbeat.”

“Oh, definitely. Not worth the risk.”

[victorluvsalice]

Hi again everyone -- it's now time to look at the CAS items that came with the April Pride SDX drop for Sims 4! However, unlike the Build/Buy stuff, which I loved unconditionally, I found the new CAS assets more of a mixed bag. Like, there's some good stuff in here, don't get me wrong -- I liked the new clothing fine, and the tattoo is at least interesting --

And then you have the new makeup they added. A very dramatic eye shadow in various Pride colors, with stars drawn on the sides of the eyes and sparkles underneath. And – okay. I really, really wanted to like this eye shadow. I really did! Because it looked just like the kind of fun, over-the-top thing that Smiler would put on for a rave or something like that –

BUT. For whatever reason, this makeup ALSO comes with a blush – and the blush is HORRENDOUS. It’s a dark pink, and it’s not only on the cheeks, but also ON THE TIP OF THE NOSE. Like, seriously, LOOK at that first picture – it makes Smiler look like they’ve either got a sunburn, or they’re having an allergic reaction to the makeup! It completely ruins the entire look! *facepalm* Ugh...I’ll stick to the other eye shadows on offer, thanks Sims 4!

Fortunately, as previously indicated, the other CAS stuff proved to be much better than that horrendous makeup. I in fact quite liked the new clothing on offer – as is probably obvious by the fact that I dressed all three of the trio in almost the exact same outfit. XD To go through them in more detail:

-->First, we have Smiler, aka the person most like to actually wear these new items, showing off the new open checkered button-up and undershirt, jean shorts with stitched rainbow decoration, and pride flag shoes! All in the nonbinary swatches, of course. :D However, I didn't like how the new thigh-high socks looked on them, so I instead went with some High School Years socks with a cool “etched” rainbow leaf design on them. Seriously, that pack is AMAZING for finding shit Smiler would wear in it.

-->Alice got the asexual flag swatch of the top and shorts, of course – AND the thigh-high socks, since they actually did look good on her. I like how fun this swatch is, with all the rainbows and hearts and plumbobs. :D The sneakers, however, are a pair from Fitness Stuff, as I stumbled across them while looking for the Pride sneakers and thought they paired nicely with all of Alice’s ace stuff. :)

-->And Victor got the bisexual flag swatch for the top, shorts, and sneakers! Along with short purple base-game socks because the taller ones didn’t look good on him (they’re technically striped but you can’t see that here...mostly because you can barely see the socks). I admit, I’m not so sure of this look on him as I was with Alice and Smiler – his absurdly thin frame makes some CAS items look weird, and those shorts are one of them. The shirt’s not bad, I’m just not sure the bi pride colors suit him that much. Maybe a more pastel version would be better? I dunno, but hey – gotta try these things out before you know for sure, right?

And as for the new Pride tattoo – well, I had to check that out on Smiler, since I’ve always envisioned them as the most likely to get a tattoo out of the three. I’m – not exactly sure what to make of it, honestly. It’s a very abstract, ribbony design, with little flowers or starbursts in it. Not bad, just – I’m not sure if it’s them? *shrug* Certainly not the worst, that’s for sure! THAT honor belongs to that damn make-up. sigh Seriously, what is with that blush…

But yeah – overall, not a bad little Pride update! It was fun to update the Polyheart OT3 House some more, and to do some dress-up with my trio. :) Hopefully it won't be too long before I'm showing you the completed OT3 house! (Or, if we're really lucky, pictures from a new save file with the three, though that depends on if they can fix that new "occult eyes don't stay on Sims" bug, AND if I can figure out why Smiler's yellow eyes stopped glowing when I was able to check them out in CAS...)

[victorluvsalice]

Well, it took a while, but here we are, the final chapter of "Start At The Beginning...Sort Of!" Which is also the longest chapter, because -- as per the chapter title -- this is where all the exposition lives. XD But yes, if you were at all interested in seeing how this story wrapped up, here you go!

[thevalicemultiverse]

LB!Alice, looking at VITD setting: It can't get weirder than this.

*Camera slowly pans to BABS setting with ominous music (courtesy of an Amorphous Flute Player)*

Londerland Bloodlines Alice: Oh God, what's wrong with that one?

Valicer In The Dark Smiler: Well, for starters, apparently both the sun and the moon are evil and trying to melt people's brains or turn them into cultists! Or both!

LB Alice: ...I'm never complaining about the bizarre parts of my own world ever again.

[victorluvsalice]

Alice Liddell's birthday has come around again, so it's time for the annual photo post celebrating it featuring my beloved plushies! And this year, I decided to do something a little different than the usual "having a special dessert with their loved ones" pic -- remember how, when I first got Smileon, my Smiler bear, I took a picture of them riding Us? Well, I remembered, and I thought it might be fun to have Us giving Alice Dolly a ride for her birthday! Which, in an attempt to involve the other plushies, turned into Alice riding Us and having a race against Dougie the dragon while Victor Plush and Smileon watched and cheered Alice on in the background. ...No, I wasn't deliberately referencing the fact that the Kentucky Derby was also this weekend, but maybe some subconscious influence snuck in. XD Happy Birthday Alice!

[thevalicemultiverse]

HEY GUYS! LOOK WHAT I CAN DO!

*Pops off head and holds it in my head*

TA DA!

((Okay, I can't resist doing two similar-but-different responses to this one because I can't pick between them:))

#1. Cuddlepile:

Alice: [stares, then shakes her head] Okay, Wonderland, do you really have to make me see --

Victor: [in a very squeaky voice] That. Actually. Happened.

Alice: ...WHAT?!

#2. Valicer In The Dark:

Alice: [stares, then looks over at Victor and Smiler] Did that actually just happen, or is my mind playing tricks on me again?

Victor: [staring] No, it just happened...but I'm not sure how, because -- they're n-not anything I can actually sense.

Smiler: What, really??

Victor: Nope. Not a horror or a demon or a ghost. I'm -- at a loss.

Smiler: Huh. [leans in toward the head] I don't suppose we could ask what exactly you are?

Alice: I will never understand how you can just do that sort of thing.

[thevalicemultiverse]

If you could make your ideal trail mix, what would you use and why?

Inevitable High School

Alice: I -- don't know. I actually don't know the last time I ate regular trail mix. Is there a standard recipe?

Victor: I'm pretty sure most of them are mostly nuts and chocolate?

Smiler: [fiddling on their phone] I am pulling up Wikipedia...okay, says here that it's usually made up of granola, dried fruit, nuts, and sometimes candy -- though yeah, Victor, I think most of the ones I've seen in stores are mainly nuts and choc --

Smiler: [pause] That can't be right.

Victor: What can't be?

Smiler: Says here the American term for trail mix is "gorp."

Alice: ...what??

Victor: ...who calls it that?!

Smiler: [beaming] Me, from now on.

Alice: No!

[victorluvsalice]

It seems to have become a tradition over the last couple of years for me to do a "bonus image" of some kind to go along with the more "traditional" valentines on Valicertine's Day (such as "the ideal OT3 build" and "It's Just Math"). However, when I first tried to come up with an idea for this year, I found myself drawing a total blank. Like, I knew I very much wanted to do something, I just wasn't at all sure what. After some very unsuccessful pondering, I finally thought, "well, maybe I'll just make some extra Valicertines instead. If I can come up with an idea for another one of those, of course... Let's see what's here in the Chill Valicer Save screenshot archive -- aww, here's a cute one of them sitting at the kitchen table together! I could do something with that -- maybe a joke about how Valicer is 'kitchen table polyamory?'

"...wait. I have more than one pic of them around that table..."

And so this image was born! :D My original plan was to just group together a bunch of pics of them around the big round kitchen table that they owned for most of their stay in Henford-On-Bagley...but then I stumbled across the picture in the top left corner of them clustered around that tiny rectangular table, the one that they brought with them from their old house when they first moved into the haunted farm, and I was hit with a wave of nostalgia so strong that I just HAD to use it. :) And then I came across the picture in the bottom left corner of them at the table in the kitchen of their Sulani honeymoon cottage, post the Valicer Wedding, and couldn't resist using that one either... And thus the image basically became a "through the years" montage of them at various kitchen tables in their lives. (And in various kitchens -- it's kind of fascinating to see the farmhouse kitchen evolve, isn't it? I'd forgotten how EMPTY it was when they first moved in because they had like no money. XD) I'm quite happy with it -- brings back a lot of good memories. And I am still amused at how literal "kitchen table polyamory" was in their lives. :p (And will continue to be, if I can ever get another save file going...)

[thevalicemultiverse]

Tour guide at the Clown's Gallery Museum in the BABS universe pre-1997: The Egg Registry uses these painted eggs as records of the face paints of registered clowns under Clowns International, both as a method of copyright for a performer's design and to differentiate human clowns from regular domesticated clowns. Their facial markings are kept in a separate registry at the Institute of Coulrology.

Valicer In The Dark

Alice: ...one of these days we have to have a proper contest between our world and this one and see which one actually wins for being the most fucked up.

Smiler: Are the -- domesticated clown's markings also painted on eggs? Just curious.

[thevalicemultiverse]

To the group (Cuddlepile):

This or That:

Waffles or Pancakes....

Choice wisely....

Cuddlepile

Alice: ...a bit weirdly ominous there. Anyway, neither taste that different to me, so I'm going with pancakes because they have "cake" in their name and I do love cake.

Smiler: I'm for waffles myself -- I find 'em easier to make and I like pouring syrup into all the little holes.

Victor: Oh, I'm really not sure...but I'm pretty certain we had pancakes more than waffles growing up, so I'll say "pancakes" because I'm a little more familiar with them.