My life should be a dream, really. A fairytale come to life.

“But little does this Snow White know…”

(TW: suicide, abuse)

“Look, Sir Cletus, I expect you to make a proper woman out of my daughter.”
“Yes, Mrs. Halstoff.”
“Right now, she talks constantly about getting a job, living on her own, even making money! That is no place for a proper woman.”

“There are fires in your future, Helms. Dragons will spit what you love to ashy dust.”
“Spit, Fairy, really?”
“Look this girl sucks at writing.”

“But I have warned you, Helms. Beware the easiest path to your desires, for at the end you will only find pain and–“
“Fire, yes, I get it. Beat it, would you Fairy, I see my bride-to-be.”

“Oh my darling Dinah, to think today at lest we will be wed!”
“Indeed, Cletus.”

“To begin the day, here, a bouquet of your favourite flowers: lilies! They match your pure innocence, my heart.”
I loved him. I really did. But the idea of committing myself to a man was so hard. But he promised he would take me away from here, away from my oppressive parents.

I prayed and prayed that it was true.

“Must we hold the wedding here, darling?”
“My heart, your parents have generously offered to pay for the wedding, but only if we hold it on their grounds. After that, I promise, we will be away to our new home.”

“Look at you, you stinking fairy! You are feeding my daughter those lies, aren’t you? Women are not made for schooling or work! Our place is in the home!”

“Why, just look at the scandalous outfit she is in now!”
“Mother, it is a swimsuit for our pool.”
“Exactly!”

“My heart, I feel as if you are avoiding me.”
“Darling, I would never.”
Only I was, out of instinct. Deep within my mind, a voice whispered that things were not right. That this was not the commitment I thought it was.

The wedding altar brought more tension to my shoulders that I could not release. Helm looked at me with love, yes, but there was something else, a light in his eyes that seemed odd. Hunger?

“Gosh, I cannot wait to get a job! Maybe I’ll be an astronaut!”
“My heart, uh, let us wait until after the ceremony to discuss such things. It is… Bad luck.”

“Oh my heart and my everything, I knew from the moment I first saw the ocean in your eyes that you were my dream and destiny. I knew that without you, I would perish, doomed by heartbreak and drowned by want. I promise you that I will fulfill your every desire, satisfy your every want–“
“Son, let’s not get so graphic here.”
“Sorry, Mr. Halstoff.”

“Dinah, please, he is not what he seems.”

But I ignored that voice. Helm had promised me the moon, the stars, and the sun, and with his money and support, I could finally break free of this family and earth.

“Good, good. One potential shame to our family name is gone.”

“Hmmmph, well I tried. I suppose I could turn him into a horse?”

“Dinah, now that we are wed, please understand, your desire for a job is improper. I have many tasks I will need of you around the manor.”
“W-What?”

“Please understand, such a huge house requires upkeep and–“
“You told me you had servants! That I could do what I wanted as we would not need for anything!”
“I, well…”

“It can’t be. It can’t be. This must be a bad dream…”

“Excellent, Cletus, excellent. The house and home is yours… So long as I get my grandchild.”

“Mother? You–“
“Don’t you start with me, Dinah! Your father and I have spent two decades taking care of you and preparing you to be a proper wife, and what do you do? You squander every courtship, push back against every rule, and threaten to leave me and your father alone! Is this how you repay our love and care? With abandonment?”

“You– You arranged this, didn’t you? Everything he said…”
“Hmph. Most of the things that man says are hopeless lies. He’s such a Mooch, but that made him easy to manipulate.”

I couldn’t believe it. Two years of courtship, of promises — all a lie! Well, a ring on my finger didn’t mean he owned me. Not in this century. So I sought out a coveted military career, hoping to work to the stars…

“What are you doing on that computer, Dinah? You know they are the Devil’s Letterboxes.”
“Mother, it is not! Just because you want to stay stuck in the 1800s doesn’t mean the rest of the world is!”

“You were acting improper again, weren’t you?”
“Everything I do is improper to you!”
“Because it is! Where’s dinner for tonight? Where’s the wedding cake? You are neglecting your duties as the woman of the home!”

“I need to do something. I know — mac and cheese! That solves everything!”

“My heart, dinner! Where is my dinner?! I have been sitting here for hours, watching TV, and no sustenance has appeared!”
“How about I feed you your own heart.”
“That’s for the honeymoon! Now feed me!”

“Mac and cheese? Is that the best you can do, woman?!”

Nothing… Nothing was true. It was a lie to get this ring on my finger!

“Oh Cletus, you beast, I want you to tame more than my daughter.”
“Juliette, baby, just call me the beast master.”

Great. That love potion isn’t going to make things better now.

“Dinah, what are you doing eating in the bedroom? The empty dishes are piling up in the dining room and the stove looks a fright. Didn’t your mother teach you anything?”

Later that night, as a storm that I did not plan raged…

“I can’t sleep. Can’t imagine why not. His hands all over me… It all felt cold as ice. And this room is frigid too.”

“God, to put these clothes back on just to avoid opening the armoire… I feel so dirty. So cursed.”

“Oh why was I such a fool? Why couldn’t I see through his lies?!”

“They’re never going to let me leave this house.”

“For my father’s money… It was all to get this, in the end. I was the pawn of both sides. He gets the fortune, they get me… Forever. I can’t go back up there… I can’t leave… But maybe…”

 

An hour later, smoke flows into the upstairs bedrooms…

“My plumbob! What is this! The fire is huge!”
“Oh no… Cletus, no, it can’t be!”

“Woman, what are you doing?! Get away from those flames!”
“No.”

“‘No’?! Dinah, what is the meaning of this?!”
“I’m sorry, Mother, but you won’t let me meet my destiny, so I have chosen my own.”

“What do you mean?! Oh Dinah, don’t do this! It’s not worth it!”
“It is, though. Finally I can make a choice for myself. Goodbye, Mother.”

Darling, no!

We didn’t mean it, Dinah!

Please step away! The fireman is almost here!

Dinah, no, no no no no–

… [hack, wheeze, cough]

“I… What? What is this?”

It’s the best I could do.

“… Fairy?”

He wouldn’t listen to me, nor would you. But the fire… I didn’t anticipate you choosing that. Such an extreme decision for such a young life.

“I had to. I would never be free again. At least dying let me make one last choice.”

But at what cost? You had a life stretching out ahead of you. I could have helped you leave. Do you really think I would let a woman be used and abused?

“Yes, because I did not think you were real.”

“But I am real, Dinah. And Death and I made a trade. You come back to us, you live your life out– but with his Touch.”

Gross.

“Oh come on, way to ruin this dramatic moment. Now open your eyes. Your family does not know where you are… But they may, in due time. Do with that what you will.”

“…. Where am I?”

Coming to a blog near you…

(House is the beautiful Secret Victorian Mansion by PolarBearSims!)

 

Bloopers

Man, I have such Commitment Issues.

That’s why I’ve decided to float in mid-air water rather than marry my husband!

Apparently, when I was making this family, the game gave me a great suggestion for Juliette here. Sexy.

I told Cletus to tell her to pose, thinking maybe I’d get the option to have her crying. Instead I got this.

“Duh hoy, Cletus, sure is great we got married!”

“Um, hello, I can’t get to the chair clipping through my dress!”

Sims… I had to move that back table flush against the wall and somehow that 1mm more space let it work.

I reshot the scenes with Dinah in her career outfit, but it just didn’t flow well enough as I’d have to take even more pictures, and I already took plenty.

Similarly, everyone was actually awake when she was in her nightgown. Here’s Cletus being creepy!

So, um, it took forever to cause that fire. I finally had to look up how to set a Sim on fire.

And of course, it finally started when I let her go take a pee break. Then I accidentally removed it with cheats when trying to remove the extra crap.

Dale was very excited about the cheap rugs.

Yeah that would’ve helped, eh?

So the fire scenes, shot as they were, were unplanned! I was trying to set human-Dinah on fire, but she kept trying to run to the back of the room to scream, and then I just so happened to cancel her moving when she decided walking through the fire was the best way to get to a good spot. Hence her acting utterly unfazed at bursting into flames. Honestly I think it worked great for the story.

Reborn-Dinah, on the other hand, wasn’t supposed to catch on fire at all! I was trying to get her to pass out in front of the fireplace, and she caught her ass on fire instead. Again, it gave me great shots, so not a big deal. Then the fire caught AGAIN and I put out the fire for the “dead body” shot.

Also I could not keep everyone out of that stupid pool. I was using MasterController constantly to switch their outfits to Everyday or Formal. And any time you see people insulting each other, I had to direct it (except for that perfect shot of Juliette scolding Dale. She did that on her own!). Everyone had friendly relationships in the family and I felt bad having to ruin that! I don’t know how you all do your intense stories with death and tragedy and shit.

Finally… My current Sims 3 legacy. I am struggling to load it. Within a few minutes, I get Error code 12. I can barely get a few in-game hours of play in, and it’s incredibly disheartening. I actually loaded this save to test if I had the same issue, and as far as I can tell, I don’t. I love the Sims 3 the most and I don’t want to abandon my other legacy, but if it’s truly unplayable, at least I’ll have this one instead.