#tiberius steele

Peace reigns, now that kitties Tiberius and Meg have found their own favourite spots in the kitchen.

But now, it really is time to say a final farewell to Tiberius - and immediately after his kittens were born! To be honest, I think that's a bit of a low move by Grim, popping up behind the scratching post.

New arrival Dolly (looking so much like her dad, except that her white sock is on a different foot!) doesn't seem to know what she's supposed to do with that fuzzy thing on the end of a stick.

She knows exactly how to deal with the bird on a spring though!

While laying Tiberius to rest, the sisters catch up briefly, but Nancy is so career-focused that the family hardly sees her these days.

Erasmus is still at home, although not for much longer. He's always been quite an outspoken lad, and now - with the idealism of youth - spends much of his time berating his dad for his materialistic outlook. The way Erasmus sees it, there's so much more to be gained by looking beyond their mundane lives, and out into the stars!

There's also a brief visit from a lost wolf - a recently aged-up Dolly doesn't care, as long as she's not expected to give up her bed.

~ Sagittarius

~ Doofus / Independent / Aggressive / Finicky

who arrives just in time to catch Father and Daughter Smustle Time. He doesn't stick around long...

Who needs a love life, when you're enjoying meteoric success in your career? Not Catherine, it seems!

What everyone agrees that they do need however, is another cat. Enter Mozzarella (by @lesyasun - except that I seem to have accidentally given him blue fur, on top of turning her into a him)!

~ Libra

~ Doofus / Lazy / Friendly / Pigpen

At the pet shop, Mary seems to be considering eschewing the traditional witch's familiar, in favour of a parrot.

Lucy might be an elder, but she’s still focused on becoming the foremost Criminal Mastermind in Merybury, and hence needs to keep up her fitness levels.

The gym is also a great place to schmooze. Fancy meeting the legendary Goopy GilsCarbo, and even getting to shake his hand!

Back home, Catherine and Miles have been enjoying a rather different form of exercise.

I think we all saw this coming.

And Miles’ response can be no surprise to anyone either.

Catherine’s dreams of marrying her childhood sweetheart might be crashing down around her, but she still has her dignity. If the relationship really is going nowhere, then it’s time to bring it to an end. For the first time in his life, Miles has been friend-zoned!

At least faithful kitty Tiberius loves her.

He does not, however, like upstart Meg usurping his favourite spot on the kitchen counter!

If it’s cold, put some clothes on, woman!

It’s also a certain handsome young man’s birthday!

Erasmus’ teen stats:

~ Aries 6 / 5 / 3 / 2 / 4

~ Brave / Cat Person / No Sense of Humour / Computer Whiz

~ OTH: Science

~ Favourite Colour(s): Lime Green

~ Aspiration: Knowledge / Family

~ Turn-ons/off: +Alien / +Mechanical  / -Daydreamer

His birthday comes complete with the revelation that he and best friend Edward are starting to see each other as more than friends.

I’m very glad to see Edward having some fun for a change, rather than just bathing babies!

Catherine is back home too, and very happy to be reunited with kid brother Erasmus.

Catherine’s stats

~ Aries 6 / 5 / 5 / 6 / 6

~ Ambitious / Perceptive / Green Thumb / Supernatural Skeptic / Frugal

~ OTH: Science

~ Favourite Colour(s): Blue

~ Aspiration: Knowledge / Family

~ Turn-ons / -off: +Alien / +Intellectual / -Stylish

~ Major: Physics (3.0)

~LTW: Become Chief of Staff

After the shock of nearly losing Tiberius, Lucy decides to adopt a kitten, as although their beloved pet has been given a second chance, they know it can’t last forever. And so Meg (formerly of the Knightley family) finds her forever home.

Meg would like to point out to her new Sim that this is not how you carry a kitten.

Cute, kitteny antics.

Catherine has another reunion, with boyfriend Miles. Amazingly, she still seems totally unaware of his infidelity! Also, for a Family-Secondary Sim, she’s surprisingly reluctant to move the relationship onto a more secure footing.

Indeed, for the moment, she’s entirely focused on her career. Today a paramedic, tomorrow a world-class surgeon!

I’ve been a bit slack lately about posting my gameplay - although I have no idea whether anyone but myself actually cares! 😄

Making friends.

Edward and Erasmus are huggers - bless!

And they even have matching trousers.

Sally is more interested in books than socialising - a future Knowledge Sim in the making perhaps?

Nancy also drops by for a hug from mum. Perhaps she’s feeling in need of some TLC after picking - and losing - fights with almost everyone she meets?

She has great timing, as it’s someone’s birthday, and William would much rather throw a party than go to work.

True to character, he celebrates in his undies, guests be damned.

Lucy is next in line.

Henry seems a tad concerned that the birthday girl has put her back out with all that unfettered candle-blowing.

Little Erasmus is an astronomer in the making.

“Did you know, step-mother, that we’re made of atoms that were forged in the heart of a star billions of light years away? How cool is that?!”

Meanwhile, William has formed quite a surprising bond with Catherine’s cat Tiberius while she's away at college. I think they both look rather fetching with their salt-and-pepper hair.

Oh no, this isn’t going to go down well!

William is horrified to find his pal in an urn on the kitchen counter when he gets home from work! (And is it coincidence that he’s brought Angel of Death Priya Ramaswami home with him? I think not.)

William refuses to accept the inevitable, and pulls a few strings to get access to some rather dubious technology that might just allow him to cheat death.

Amidst a cloud of noxious green smoke...

...Tiberius lives again!

Tiberius, just because.

~ Sagittarius

~ Doofus / Lazy / Independent / Aggressive / Finicky

He remains aloof with the rest of the family, but he’s really going to miss his Sim Catherine when she joins her sister Nancy at uni, which won’t be long now.

He also didn’t get the memo that Erasmus is a Cat Lover: “I do not like you, small blue Sim!”

Catherine proves to be a natural with her baby half-brother, and as a result, he gets far more nurturing than either she or her sister did.

Even so, he’s quite an independent child, and totters to his feet...

...and ages up, all by himself.

Maybe it’s an alien thing, but his hair literally sprouts overnight!

Erasmus’ child stats:

~ Aries 6 / 5 / 3 / 2 / 4

~ Brave / Cat Person / No Sense of Humour

~ OTH: Science

William Collins displays hitherto unsuspected talents! Maybe he should have gone into Entertainment rather than The Law?

Little Catherine gets picked up off the floor long enough to age up! (Why does my game love this hair so much for toddler girls?)

~ Aries 6 / 5 / 5 / 6 / 6

~ Ambitious / Perceptive

And Lucy continues to demonstrate very little aptitude for parenting - isn’t it lovely to see such a supportive environment for the little ones?!

Fortunately, Nancy grows up relatively unscathed - even if she is turning out to be one of my least personable Sims!

~ Scorpio 10 / 6 / 8 / 2 / 1

~ Devious / Anxious / No Sense of Humour

~ OTH: Fitness

~ Favourite Colour(s): Pink

However, at least she’s now big enough to get her own breakfast, which is an essential skill in this household.

Ah, the exuberance of youth!

How cute! I didn’t know that adults could play with the dollhouse along with the kids. :)

A life of crime might not have been Lucy’s first choice of profession, but actually she’s doing rather well in it, and has become chummy with colleague Melissa Fancey (whose attire is certainly most apt).

Meanwhile, Nancy has befriended Townie kid Orlando Bertino.

William loves a party, so he gathers everyone that he knows to celebrate Catherine’s birthday. It’s certainly a very jolly affair, with several gate crashers!

Happy birthday, Catherine!

~ Aries 6 / 5 / 5 / 6 / 6

~ Ambitious / Perceptive / Green Thumb

~ OTH: Science

~ Favourite Colour(s): Blue

And then it all descends into chaos, when Augusta catches Philip foolishly sneaking a kiss with Caroline in the kitchen!

For reasons not satisfactorily explained this sparks a full-on fistfight between William and Harriet Smith (who wasn’t even invited)! Come on, you lot, it’s a kid’s birthday party, for goodness’ sake!

John Willoughby and new acquaintance Melissa Fancey escape the melee in the kitchen for a bit of a boogie in the living room.

Lucy and Henry Crawford opt for a quiet catch-up in the bedroom - all perfectly innocent, they just decided to hang out together on the bed!

The kids remained blissfully unware of the drama that ensued at the party, and in the aftermath are more interested in developing their own friendships. Level-headed Clara Dashwood seems an unlikely friend for crazy mixed-up kid Nancy, but we’ll see! Catherine and Gabriel Smith (yet to be introduced) are getting along famously, however.

Catherine’s also become very fond of stray moggy Moonshine, who is still touring the neighbourhood. But he seems very picky - he hasn’t yet chosen a family to move in with. (Seriously, how do you get strays to move in?)

William also has a new friend. Townie Marisa Bendett is often to be found hanging around the house, and seems to have developed an unaccountable obsession with William. I’m not sure whether she’s just looking for friendship, or maybe something more...

Definitely something more! But is William naively oblivious to her intentions, or is he willingly playing along?

Lucy’s solid friendship with George Wickham remains entirely platonic - and he pops by just to do a bit of gardening for her.

Unfortunately, there’s no love lost between the girls - Nancy’s favourite pastime is tormenting her younger sister. (And yes, I’ve now realised that I goofed up the placement of the fireplace in the living room!)

Even though his daughters are quickly outgrowing the dollhouse, it’s still just as popular with William!

Let’s start with a birthday! And a party of course.

Nancy’s teen stats:

~ Scorpio 10 / 6 / 8 / 2 / 1

~ Devious / Anxious / No Sense of Humour / Perfectionist (poor Nancy, she keeps on drawing the short straw!)

~ OTH: Fitness

~ Favourite Colour(s): Pink

~ Aspiration: Fortune / Knowledge

~ Turn-ons / -off: +Fitness / +Serious / -Well-Liked

The party spirit inspires William to finally ask Lucy a question that’s been his mind for a long while now - and the answer is a resounding yes!

Being a teen means discovering new ways to torment little sister Catherine.

Pillow-fighters United are in the house.

It just can’t be a party at the Steele house without some drama - Tiberius the kitten pees in the middle of the floor, and a newspaper carelessly left lying around catches fire, all at the same time!

William comes to the rescue, in his undies of course. (Not sure why Ellen and John are grappling with each other in a corner!)

Tiberius doesn’t understand what all the fuss is about! (Sim kittens are so teeny!)

What, wait, hang on?! William’s stalker Marisa Bendett follows him home from work most days, and manages to corner him in the kitchen for a snog when no one is looking. For the moment, it remains their little secret.

Even with a rather drama-filled home life, Catherine is a happy child.

And Nancy is rather liking what she sees in the mirror, despite an outbreak of teenage acne.

Another birthday, another party!

Catherine’s teen stats:

~ Aries 6 / 5 / 5 / 6 / 6

~ Ambitious / Perceptive / Green Thumb / Supernatural Skeptic

~ OTH: Science

~ Favourite Colour(s): Blue

~ Aspiration: Knowledge / Family

~ Turn-ons / -off: +Alien / +Intellectual / -Stylish

For once, the party goes off without a hitch! (Although Nancy clearly couldn’t be bothered to change out of her school uniform for the occasion.)

And then it happens (this was the first alien abduction I’ve ever had in my game!).

And it happens to the Sim probably least likely to have wanted it to happen!