Welcome back to the Vetinari Dualegacy! This is Chapter 23.5: All the Riches in the Night!

Last time, Gen 8 got to college, romances flared, the Cow Mascot took to begging from inanimate objects, and Stevie got another Level 10 business under his belt.

And now to the end of college!

It's pretty much business as usual at Havelock House. For a change, almost everyone gathered at the same time for an omelet breakfast. The one missing is Abel, and he had early classes.

Delvecchio would like to remind everyone that he's quarter-alien.

At the end of the day, Abel takes the time to congratulate Sawchuk on falling in love with his brother.

Howe just wanted Abel to hurry up so that he could maul Sawchuk some more.

Awesome cheerleader Kana Knight approves of Cow Mascot Trauma.

Aurie is just as pretty with a Repo Gun as her mother was at her age.

The weirdest part of this picture is that no one is using the Dance Sphere. They're all pretty well addicted to it, and that's a good reason not to pick a fight with a Vetinari, even the nice ones.

Lindsay is wearing clothes! Write that down on the calendar!

My SimSpawn Joyce becomes the first person to bring up the spatula. I've decided that she and Brett should be the last placeholders, so she needed to get pledged in.

“I'm glad you forgave me, Howie.”

“You were trying to figure out who you were. You just went about it in a really dumb way. I couldn't hold it against you.”

“And now I know who I am. And that I'm far happier with you.”

“I'm happier with you, too, Sawchuk. You're not like the other guys I've dated, and it's kind of great.”

“I think your brothers might be shocked if they walked into the room right now.”

“Aaahhhh, they'll get over it.”

“I hope so. I love you, you know.”

“I love you too.”

Howie and Sawchuk make it to the car for a little hanky-panky, and the Coach yells at them to work out.

...I dunno, making the springs shake on that car seems pretty athletic to me.

They finally decide to increase the stalkiness. I mean, they were stalky before, but less stalky than some of the other couples I've had. Now they're almost despondent if their twoo wuv is out of sight.

I sent Sawchuk to a community lot for a few hours. Howie was going to leave campus before Sawchuk graduated, and it didn't seem fair, so Sawchuk got to watch his college clock tick down half a day so that the two of them could graduate together.

As for the others, Stevie was chained to a flower bench. He needed the gold badge, and I decided that his next business should be a flower shop.

It wasn't all work and no play for Stevie, though. Thanks to the Networking Perks, it was easy for him to become friends with his intended, Francesca.

Francesca's another gender-swapped premade. Care to take a guess?

Still need another hint? Her name's FRANCESca.

Still nothing? Her name is Francesca WORTHINGTON.

Yes, Francesca is a gender-swapped Frances J. Worthington, everyone's favorite heavy-browed, lumpy-nosed, chinless La Fiesta Tech premade.

Stevie is pretty well smitten. Also, she rolled Knowledge, so I don't have to worry about any irritating LTWs marrying into the house.

Awww, look how happy he is! How can you not love this guy?

Stevie wasn't the only one whose love life was heating up. I already had Nikolai waiting in the wings for Lindsay and Aurie, but Delvecchio needed someone.

Then I remembered that there was a female Pisces Knowledge Sim who would be perfect for my Pisces Knowledge Sim.

Re-enter Hairbuns Hippie!

Her actual name is Emmy Wood, which just cements how perfect she is for Vex. Brad the Hippie will be thrilled that one of his sons will be marrying a girl named Wood!

Sadly, Vex is shy, and didn't know Emmy very well, but they did have a fun afternoon of Red Hands and poker.

And we'll just hope the spawn look like her, yes?

Nikolai got invited over as well, and definitely approved of Aurie. I set him a mild female gender preference, so things were looking good!

Aurie moved in for an autonomous Dirty Joke! Was there a Prettacy heir in the making?

After several more hours and countless games of Red Hands, no.

I checked Aurie's stats, and despite being in love with several guys, including Abel and Kestrel, she had no gender preference for males.

Only one thing to do!

Back to the Wishing Well, and another all-women drop from a Wish for Friends!

Clearly, this was a sign.

Aurie's 20th Simultaneous Lover is Wendy Kosmokos, the prank-happy Townie.

Aurie quite happily takes Wendy to the car for some sweet sweet WooHoo.

Lindsay, meanwhile, stakes a claim on Nikolai.

I changed her out of her pajamas for the occasion.

At some point, Stevie gave Nikolai a makeover because his hair had some issues, so don't be surprised when it changes.

Here is your Gen 8 Prettacy heir: Lindsay Vetinari!

Nikolai might think Aurie's hot, but he only has giant red hearts for Lindsay.

Aurie drowns her sorrows in karaoke.

“When the working day is done, oh girls, they wanna have fu-uun!”

...Or not.

Because there's never a bad time for dancing in your pajamas with your big brother.

“Howe, now that we've finished our exams, there's something I need to ask.”

“Okay, shoot.”

“Sawchuk? What are you doing on the floor?”

“You have been amazingly patient with me when I didn't deserve it. I am completely head-over-heels in love with you.”

“Howie, will you marry me?”

“Of course I will, you big goof.”

“I am quite possibly the happiest man alive.”

“I think we're tied.”

Only one thing left to do!

Howie pops into a not-at-all Howie-appropriate outfit. Sawchuk fares very slightly better.

They both graduate with 4.0s, and the Big Man on Campus memory.

With the two of them moved out, it was time for Stevie to open another business!

Another satisfied customer for Stevie!

Makeover chair aside, it's a flower shop called Raindrops on Roses.

I did not get any interior pictures. Sue me.

Orikes writes the Pseudo Legacy.

It's the usual cast of customers, including Connor.

Vex and Abel did selling and restocking, Aurie ran the register, and Stevie gave makeovers and picked up the slack when someone needed an Energizer break.

I see absolutely nothing wrong with steering the burglar towards the Sucker Cake. That's my revenge for him making Six and Ellie throw up flamey thought-balloons several times a day.

The big decorative trellis is the Sucker Cake for Raindrops on Roses. I sell it as quickly as I can restock it.

When you do that, the business will turn a tidy profit.

Abel lures in Jason Greenman, ignoring the looming specter of the buttcracks of Chester Gieke and Former Mayor Komeiclone.

Their custom shirts got deleted in a CC cull, and they haven't stopped by a clothing shop yet so I can fix it.

OK, Chester is playable and I could fix it if I wanted to, but it's sort of hilarious, so I haven't gone out of my way to do it.

Too-naked Chester is not amused by Vex's attempts to sell him flowers. I guess his sexy robot boyfriend doesn't like plant life.

Tragically, his sexy robot boyfriend isn't all that crazy about Chester either, but I don't want to crush his dorky little heart.

Aurie puts the screws to Johnny Angel, while the twin buttcracks look on.

Also, never let it be said that I can avoid temptation...

Johnny Angel just had to get a Stevie Special.

We do not need your bland Face One genes here, Johnny Angel! Enjoy being dirtied up a bit!

Vex was having some issues with his Motives and his Aspiration, so I called up Hairbuns Hippie/Emmy Wood for some date time.

This time, they're better acquainted, so there is more Slow Dancing and less Red Hands.

Vex finally scores his First Kiss.

Then Emmy goes in for a butt-grab, which just goes to show that she hasn't been traumatized by Chester Gieke's buttcrack yet.

Next up was Abel, who was equally in need of some Aspiration.

Kaylee got distracted, and wandered inside, and I was reminded of why I'd been trying to keep the dates strictly outside.

All it takes is one seemingly innocent hug...

...and Aurie flips her lid.

See, when Abel caught Aurie cheating with some random Townie, he fell out of love with her, but she was still in love with him. He was one of her 20 Simultaneous Lovers, in fact.

Emphasis on the was.

“Aurie's hot when I just cheated on her with my girlfriend and she slapped me and I'm Furious with her!”

Abel just broke my brain again.

Kaylee soothed Abel's troubles away, but she had one of her own—with Aurie Furious at her, those 20 Best Friends her LTW calls for just got a little bit farther away!

Stevie was lucky, and his girlfriend just wandered by. Also, he can Flirt For Stars without having to worry about physical harm.

And seriously, Francesca has no chin! The children are going to be delightful. Her heavy brows with Stevie's weirdly-placed, perma-stoned eyes? YES. YEEEESSSSSS.

A revitalized Vex moves from Townie Prof Hates to Little Nemo.

Little Nemo writes the Far Away From Eden Apocalypse, and Prof(essorbutters) writes the Squeaky Clean Legacy.

Whitney stops by too, and Stevie was nice enough to not shove a Sucker Cake her way.

Why sell heirs Sucker Cakes when there are plenty of SimSelves with bottomless pockets?

Smoothiequeen writes the Villainous Apocalypse.

Stevie finally gets his Silver Cosmetology Badge!

And then she's nice enough to buy a Sucker Cake.

That's Pigtails the Ice Queen of Bluewater Village in the white pants; she's actually a pretty good customer. Perhaps she is mesmerized by the eyes.

Sadly, it's not all smooth sailing...

There are the broke...

...the rich-but-difficult...

MichelleFobbs created the Planetary Apocalypse.

...and the easily-distracted-by-Pillow-Fighters.

Peter Ottomas, you are broke! Go home! Zinnia, BUY SOMETHING.

They say sharks can sense blood in the water from miles away, and then they circle in for the kill.

Sharks are the ultimate predator, wasting no time or energy before striking.

Some sharks can move in so suddenly that they can separate their prey from a school, targeting it with pinpoint accuracy.

Then, the skilled shark can move in on another member of the school.

A few customers later, and that last gold star went flying!

Blite writes Ten Caesars, and his SimSelf is a good sport.Oz Warner is courtesy of Ladylarkrune's Yakko's World OWBC.

Everyone was glad to get back to Havelock House, including me. Aurie and Lindsay took full advantage of the hot tub. It's been out back for a few generations now, and I don't think anyone's used it as much as these two have.

Joyce is still in her pledge period, so Red Hands gets her to stick around for a while. Pizza's also good, as long as she doesn't have to watch Stevie eat.

Vex was actually standing over her the whole time she was eating, trying to interact with her, and I think we share a dislike of people bugging us while we eat, so I can't say I blame Joyce for letting Vex have it.

Poor Abe went around the bathroom breaking everything he used. He clogged a toilet, broke that sink, then broke the shower. And then turned on the stereo in the living room and broke that too. He's not that messy, I swear!

Lindsay seemed a little tightly-wound, so I made her get dressed and called up Nikolai for a date.

See? New hair for Nikolai.

I think Nikolai will be a good addition to the Prettacy. He's got recessives for hair, eyes, and skintone, so that should make for a whole ton of variety.

Or at least I can hope so, right?

Future genetics aside, Lindsay and Nikolai got some practice for what they'll need to do to bring in Gen 9.

Abel, meanwhile, had cornered Stevie for some Red Hands, because he was a little Aspirationally sour after I made him fix all the stuff he broke.

This is perhaps not Stevie's best look. The slack jaw along with the perma-stoned eyes really makes him look like he's On Something.

But then he goes and does stuff like this that just makes me adore him.

Aurie's still hanging around too, although since she's Permaplat, I don't need to try to keep her happy anymore. She's satisfied going on the occasional date, and mostly just taking care of herself on her own, like a good little Sim.

Kaylee just shows up and lets herself in on a pretty regular basis. The guys don't mind, and are always willing to have a dance-off.

Of course, when Vex realizes that Abel's not in the room...

...he goes and finds him and dances there.

And then Stevie joins them.

These guys take the concept of “bro-mance” far too seriously.

Before long, though, it's the end of the semester, and you know what that means!

“Nikolai, will you marry me?”

“Da!”

“You're not joking, are you?”

“Nyet!”

No, I'm not actually going to make Nikolai all Russian. Mostly because aside from “da” and “nyet,” my Russian is limited to “dasvedanya” and “glastnost” and “perestroika” and “borscht” and cuss words, courtesy of the Russian undergrads I used to work with.

Lindsay graduates with a 4.0 and the Big Sim on Campus memory, plus she helped Stevie out at ToyZ and earned herself some sales and register badges, and she snagged Nikolai.

Also, I have seen worse outfits to grow up into.

Finally, all the residents of Havelock House can fit around the poker table all at once!

And do not be fooled by Stevie's look of permanent stonedness. He may look like “whuuuut” 24/7, but he's taking Abel for everything he's got.

Vex met Naked Lady, and wished he hadn't.

Weirdly, I only ever get Naked Lady streaking at Havelock House. I have two other Streakers, both male, and I see them at the other houses, but never here. It's like Naked Lady has marked her territory. Her naked, naked territory.

Evil Llama continued to be a nuisance.

“Woooo! I stole a tree! Dad would be so proud of me for Sticking It To The Man!”

He is such a dork, I LOVE HIM.

Vex needed a little affection, so he called up Emmy Wood. They will not make it inside on this date either, but at least it's not taking place on concrete in front of an Energizer.

You will notice Brett back there, pledging in and trying to look as though he does not thoroughly approve of PDA.

Vex and Emmy finally fall in love! I don't know that I've ever had two Sims this shy get together before, and it felt like it took forever!

It was totally worth it, though. Once I change her turnons, they should have three bolts, and will never, ever stop stalking each other.

As Knowledge Sims, I like to think they both enjoyed this learning experience.

Abel was having a bit rougher of a time of it. The fireflies didn't want to be friends with him!

Also, he kept breaking things, and I kept making him fix them. After this, he had to go fix the shower he'd just broken.

Of course, with two Pop Sims, a little Red Hands sets them right.

And then Abel got to repair the dishwasher he broke.

Stevie tried to talk Kana Knight into a makeover, but the option to give her one never showed up. I was kinda bummed, because she'd look great with some eyeliner!

When it came to the end of the semester, there was only one thing for the twins to do, and that was propose!

Emmy accepted, of course, and GoS had that Earth Day theme a couple months back, so she can even keep her hippie clothes when she moves in with Vex! Because she just wouldn't be Hairbuns Hippie without the Hippie.

And another happy couple for the record books!

Not to be outdone, Abel dragged Kaylee away from the poker table outside and did a little buttering-up before the main event.

Kaylee happily accepts, because Abel Is The One, despite the neck-up tragedy.

So, Abel's happy, Kaylee's happy, Vex is happy, Emmy is happy...

Only one thing to do!

Safe to say that Abe came out on top when in the Battle of the Transition Outfits. Poor Vex is like Farmer Bob over there.

Both of them graduate with 4.0s and the Big Sim on Campus memory, and because they both helped out at Stevie's businesses, they ended up leaving with close to $40,000... each.

The redheads are the last two in the house, and Stevie wastes no time taking Aurie to task for breaking the dishwasher.

Seriously, I've owned dishwashers and showers and sinks before, and none of them break as often as this!

OK, the toilet in my current apartment has some issues, but the maintenance guy thinks there are roots growing into the pipes and making things clog. Either that or I poop saplings. TMI? You're welcome!

Aurie tried to get back at Stevie for the lecture, but couldn't bring herself to really unload on the guy.

“I'm so bad! I stole another tree!”

If you want to be bad, you're going to have to steal things larger than bonsai trees.

“But I have to liberate my arboreal brethren! Dad says so!”

This is Emmy Wood's new look. She's friends with Stevie, and he wanted to invite her over. Strictly in the interests of getting to know his brother's fiancee better, of course, nothing untoward happening here.

Emmy's so thrilled about being engaged that she couldn't stop talking about it, even if Aurie didn't seem nearly as into the conversation.

Aurie wandered away and Stevie came in, and Emmy was slightly baffled by his choosing to chat with the dishwasher over her.

Perhaps he's trying to find out if he should enroll in an appliance repair school.

It's Aurie's favorite hobby!

She might enjoy this just a little too much...

But then, so do I.

One last Cow Mascot Trauma under her belt, Aurie heads back to Riverblossom Hills.

The yellow shirt and pink pants are not an inspired choice.

She graduates with a 4.0, the Big Sim on Campus memory, and Permaplat status thanks to 20 Simultaneous Lovers.

Poor li'l Pop Sim Stevie doesn't like to be alone, so he called up Francesca for a date.

The closest they got to the house was the sidewalk. Most of my dates don't make it into the house. Lawn is so much easier.

Yes, they are very sweet together.

Stevie steals something that isn't a tree! Hooray!

“Thanks for moving in! Have some pizzas, leftover cake, and a pie!”

“Yay?”

“So if your mom's THE SimSelf around here, couldn't she have gotten us out of this?”

“Eh, she said something about me being 'non-crucial' and you're just sort of along for the ride.”

“Whee.”

Stevie, meanwhile, pops the question to Francesca, who is more than happy to accept.

The last engagement of the generation, folks!

Stevie fares the best out of everyone, I think. Not only does he grow up in something that matches, but it's something he could conceivably wear!

He graduates with a 4.0, the Big Sim on Campus memory, and a shiny new engagement ring.

College was ticking by for the other students, too.

Six Landgraab was perhaps more intimately acquainted with Naked Lady than he wanted to be. He and Ellie are on the shy side, like Mal.

He'd much rather spend time with shy Inara.

They don't even mind that their dates are punctuated by Lisa Ramirez coming by for her daily slapping.

All the excitement proves to be too much for Six. He is plumb tuckered out!

When Ellie is not being slapped by Lisa Ramirez, she's dating Michael Turner.

However, they'd have both been happier without the idiot Llama Mascot cheering on their First WooHoo.

The llama hung around, and Six was not amused by its antics.

Ellie was even less amused, and you'd think the llama would have learned its lesson about poking fun at people with the Vetinari features, but sadly not.

Ellie let him know that pretty sundress aside, she was more than ready to kick some ass.

Six's response to the fight is his usual nonchalance. He's a lot like his dad that way.

It's been a while since that particular Llama Mascot has had any skill points, so Ellie wins the fight pretty handily.

Things are more or less back to normal the next day. Six comes into Ellie's room to make the bed and gets sidetracked by the Red Hands.

Someone goes in for an Argue, because they are Vetinaris (except in name), and that is what they do.

And Lisa Ramirez comes by for slapping.

Finally, though, Ellie and Six graduate with flying colors and prepare to move on to the next phase in their lives.

They proposed to their respective Significant Others, Inara and Michael.

Inara and Michael accepted, because They Know What Is Good For Them.

And they graduate into outfits that at least match, by virtue of being full-body, even if they're totally wrong for the people they're on. Still, can't complain about clothes that don't make my retinas burn.

There were largely similar happenings at the other houses. Inara, Edmund Fitzgerald, Kaylee, and Wydah throw a pajama party!

Sir Bricks-a-lot is still far too popular.

Wydah has a little fun with the Repo Gun.

Kaylee finally gets herself PermaPlat from 20 Best Friends.

And, of course, there is dating. Wydah and Mitch, in this case.

Kaylee and Abel are still very much a couple.

Very much a couple.

These pictures were taken before Six and Abel graduated, naturally. Hooray for showing things out of order!

Everyone's a big fan of Six's date gifts, even if I didn't let them keep the piano.

Last but not least, Edmund Fitzgerald and Channon.

That's the not-evil Llama Mascot, by the way. You can tell because the not-evil one is skin 4. The other two have paler skintones, so the only way to check is by the name.

They manage to get in one last bit of fun before their last final.

They all graduate with an overwhelming display of “meh.”

Recently-engaged Inara and PermaPlat Kaylee are the first ones out the door. And they also do it in clothes that don't completely ow!

Edmund Fitzgerald takes the time to propose to Channon, who accepts because she rocks and would also like to be Platinum for when she heads back to Riverblossom Hills too.

Edmund Fitzgerald and Wydah move back home. Edmund Fitzgerald fares better than Wydah in terms of clothing.

Wydah was Platinum from a date with Mitch, and seems to be giving Jonah Powers a “keep on walking, bub” look there.

At the last of the spare houses, Joyce reminds Brett who's the boss. She will straight up put you through a wall, people!

Channon prefers putting soap in the fountain. She must get it from her father's side of the family tree.

And you know she gets this from her daddy.

Fortunately, so does Mitch.

Brett still has an uncanny ability to know when Mitch is rolling the Want to Fall In Love With Joyce.

Also, I bought them a hot tub, because Channon wanted one. Joyce and Brett got to break it in.

No, Brett is not wearing pants.

Mitch invited Wydah over for a date and some hot tub time, and Wydah got more than she bargained for when Naked Guy showed up too.

Naked Guy left before things got really interesting, which Wydah was probably happy about.

Mitch did coax her into staying the night, which made them both happy.

Kaylee let herself in and started a pillow fight with Mitch, who was still in his underpants, which made Wydah less happy, but Kaylee is capable of behaving herself.

Channon and Edmund Fitzgerald are more low-key when it comes to romance.

I will say that I love Edmund Fitzgerald's expression here.

They finally rolled the WooHoo Want at the same time, so I let them have it. Took 'em long enough!

These two, meanwhile, are just far too cute together.

“Hey! I wasn't even rolling it this time!”

“Just reminding you!”

Brett is totally paranoid about leaving Joyce and Mitch alone together. He doesn't need to worry; she only has eyes for the fauxhawk!

Possessiveness aside, he's still quite the hottie.

This was right before the last semester, so Joyce and Brett went off to placehold Havelock House, leaving Channon and Mitch behind.

Final exams were had, and sleep was needed.

Channon gets reasonably un-horrible clothes for the transition. Mitch, not so much.

And with everyone graduated and engaged, it's time to scoot back to Riverblossom Hills for a minute!

Heh... That tight end has a pretty tight end. ...Why do straight guys watch this again?

“Oi! Hands off, creep!”

“Come on, Nuala, like you haven't given it up before.”

“I said back off!”

“Hey! What's going on out here?”

“This jerk tried to paw at me!”

“Please! You wouldn't dress like that if you didn't want it.”

“I can dress however I want! That doesn't give you the right to do anything!”

“Is that what you tell all the other guys in school?”

“I haven't done anything with anyone!”

“Yeah, right. That's not what I hear in the locker room.”

“All right, you need to stop talking to my niece like that. And you need a serious attitude adjustment if you think it's okay to touch people who don't want to be touched.”

“What, is this a whole family of freaks!”

“Uncle Cass isn't a freak! You're a freak! Get out of my house!”

“Or what?”

“Listen, kid, this is not a negotiation. You have overstayed your welcome, if you were even welcome in the first place. You need to leave now.”

“Who are you to tell me to do anything?”

“I am older than you, bigger than you, and I have zero tolerance for someone trying to force another person to do something they don't want to do. So get out.”

“Hey, kiddo. You okay?”

“Boys are so dumb, Uncle Cass.”

“Yeah. Too bad we're so darn cute, huh?”

“That's not funny.”

“Everybody makes mistakes, Nuala. Your mom and I, we could write a book on messed-up relationships.”

“I know.”

“But I know your mom doesn't want you to make the same mistakes we made. You're a smart kid; I know you see that your mom's not always happy with the way she lives. And I've really hurt myself getting involved with the wrong guys.”

“So I'm just supposed to make new mistakes?”

“Well, yeah.”

“Are you sure that's right?”

“The whole point is that you get to decide who you want to be, and that means you do things different than your parents. If you want lots of friends, that's fine. Great, even. That doesn't mean you have to date them all. Trust me, that is not as fun as it sounds.”

“I never even kissed a boy before.”

“Wait until you find the right one. You won't regret it. And never give the jerks even a second of your time.”

“Thanks, Uncle Cass.”

“It's what uncles do, I guess. I'm sort of making up uncling as I go.”

“You're doing a pretty good job.”

“No matter what, your mom and I love you, okay? Even when you make new mistakes.”

“I know.”

Yay for family bonding moments!

Next time, weddings and babies as we get Gen 8 hitched and start bringing in Gen 9!