Welcome to Slavestown

Chapter Fourteen

Back in Strangetown, Stan continues to press his thumb against Isabella's forehead, his eyes glowing bright white. Suddenly, a beam of light drapes down from the sky, hitting Isabella's chest, causing her to open her mouth slightly upon impact, a vivacious glow returning to her skin. Isabella groans as Pascal lets go of her shoulders, allowing her to stand up right. All her friends watch intently as Isabella slowly opens her eyes and proceeds to look down at her clothes. She trails her hands down the material, grabbing a small piece of her shirt between her fingertips.

"Pink," she awes, her facing filling with both relief and happiness, "Thank goodness!" she chimes, now noticing that all her friends are staring at her dumbfounded. Isabella nervously lifts her hand, "Uh…hi," she greets.

All at once Ripp, Kea, Tank, Pascal, and Lazlo race over her, swarming her with hugs as they all begin to talk at the same time. "Izzy! I'm so glad you're okay!" Ripp cries, hugging her the hardest.

Isabella smiles, "Me too," she says, eyeing her best friend who is now standing a ways behind them. "So, what did I miss?" she asks.

"Oh, nothing much," Kea replies, dancing around the topic, "Except some of the coolest things I have ever seen!" she continues, bouncing up and down in excitement. "Let's see, first you died, then I bargained with Stan and we all got whisked to an underground casino where I played a televised battle with the Grim Reaper for your life!" Kea tells her, the excitement in her voice only growing, "Then, after I lost, he told me that he was going to bring you back anyway, and then he did and it was AWESOME!"

Isabella nods, tilting her head a bit, "So, not much?"

"Exactly!" Kea agrees.

"Well, thanks for playing for my life, Kea, I really appreciate it," Isabella says, wrapping her arms around her best friend.

Kea beams. "Well, yeah. Of course," she replies. She lets go of her friend, watching as Isabella walks over to the right and stops in front of Tank.

"So, now that you've successfully led an army that kicked some serious butt, are you going to go into the military career?" she teasingly asks him.

Tank smirks, crossing his arms in front of his torso, "No way in hell," he replies, "Though I surprisingly enjoyed working with those people. And even though my dad doesn't want to admit it, I think he hates Pollination Tech #9 a little bit less now."

Isabella laughs as her brother races up to her, pulling her into yet another hug. "Izzy! I just heard what happened! It was all over the news!" Brent says, giving her an update, "But I'm glad to see you're not dead anymore."

"Thanks," Isabella replies, "And thank you two for rounding up all of the troops," Isabella speaks, gesturing to both Brent and Breanna. "I heard you rounded up thousands of sims."

"Yeah," Brent responds, "Aside from all the fistfights we had to break up beforehand, it was kind of fun," Brent says, giving a small nod as he reminisces a bit about his part of the mission, "But all those days of hard work was totally worth it, just to see the look on Loki's face when he realized he was done."

Isabella smiles and laughs once more before stopping in front of Pascal and Lazlo, who are still staring at her nearby. "So, any big plans now that you've successfully won the rivalry?" Isabella asks them.

"Well, I plan on retiring as a cult leader so I can focus on raising Amelia," Pascal answers, "I'd also like to take a trip to Portugal. I heard they have really dedicated readers there," Pascal smiles, "And I want to get a Mohawk – no wait, a fro! No, a Mohawk consisting of miniature fros!"

Lazlo shakes his head as he nudges his older brother in the side. "And I plan on keeping Pascal away from the hair studio," he answers, "And believe me, that's going to be a full-time job," he states, knowing full well the task that he is in for.

Suddenly, Crystal trots onto the roof, an entire camera crew following her. "Hey guys," she greets, pointing back at the crew whose cameras read 'Strangetown News' on their sides, "Sorry to bother you, but these people are doing a special news broadcast about the Strangetown War, and they want to talk to the mayor," she tells them, "Now, I don't know who that would be, and I'm not you sure you guys know either, so I dug through the basement and found the town charter," she says, holding the piece of tattered manila paper out to them as well as the official Strangetown mayoral ribbon.

They look amongst each other before Pascal steps forward, grabbing the items. He scans the charter over. "Well, according to the official town charter, if war breaks out and the city finds itself without a mayor, the leader of the winning side can either accept the position or appoint someone else that assisted with the victory," Pascal says, looking up from the document, "So Isabella, it looks like you are now officially the mayor of Strangetown!" he declares, pining the ribbon on her shirt.

Around her, everyone cheers as the camera crew begins to surround her, cameras and microphones all pointed at her face. Isabella continues to stand there, shocked as she gazes down at the pin, her hands trailing off the ribbon as she spots Vidcund crouched down on the floor away from the group.

Everyone watches as Isabella moves forward, silently stopping in front of Vidcund. Upon her arrival, Vidcund looks up, nodding in approval. "Congratulations, kid," Vidcund says suddenly, barely able to look her in the eyes.

Isabella nods, her eyes trailing down to the ribbon that is pinned to her signature pink outfit. It's a great honor, but at that moment Isabella realizes that it makes her feel surprisingly empty. "Congratulate yourself, Mr. Mayor!" Isabella says as she quickly removes the ribbon from her shirt and pins it onto Vidcund's jacket. Vidcund looks down at it in utter shock, before looking back up at her, touched, tears forming in his eyes.

"All hail Mayor Vidcund!" Isabella proclaims, stepping to the side and throwing her arms out to present him. Everyone erupts into cheers as Vidcund slowly stands up to face the crowd, empowerment slowly flowing through his body.

"Whoo! Yeah Vid!" Pascal cheers the loudest as the cameras start to surround him on all sides. Isabella and the others back away from the crowds as they watch dozens of citizens rush over to congratulate him as various reporters interview the new mayor of Strangetown.

Vidcund turns to Isabella, who is now standing across the rooftop away from the crowds, and mouths the words 'Thank you.' At this, Isabella smiles, throws her right arm forward and circles it briefly in front of her, offering him an overenthusiastic bow. She leans back and beams, giving a small laugh. Vidcund smiles, his eyes shining.

"Well, would you look at that?" Tank says, pacing up behind her, "It looks like Strangetown has been restored to its former glory!" he narrates, "I guess I can finally check that off my bucket list," he says, reaching into his pants pocket. He pulls out a small list and checks the last box off with a pen.

Kea wraps her arm around Isabella, patting her gently on the shoulder as they both watch the news reporters interviewing Vidcund. "You did the right thing, Isabella," she states.

"You really think so?" Isabella says, turning to Kea.

"I think you know so," Kea answers, "So why are you asking me?" she asks in her typical sassy Kea tone, "Besides, you know how much Vidcund loves the neighborhood – and everyone in it," Kea says, emphasizing her last point as she gently pats Isabella on the shoulder one more time, before going off to converse with Pascal.

Isabella stands there stationary as Kea's words begin echoing through her mind. Isabella looks back up at Vidcund, an unsettling feeling filling her stomach as if part of her is aching to know the truth – but another part of her is too scared to find out how he truly feels about her. Deep down Isabella knows that Vidcund is a complicated sim, and as she much as she hates to admit it, she is well aware that she may be waiting for a day that will never come. At this, Isabella slowly steps back and turns to her friends, noticing that Lazlo is now gesturing her over. Isabella gives a brave grin and walks forward, knowing that she will have to face this problem another day.

"You know," Pascal begins talking just as Isabella arrives, "as much as I hate Loki, part of me kind of feels bad for him…" Pascal trails off, pausing for a second, "-And the feeling's gone!" Pascal completes, heaving a huge sigh of relief, "Well, that's a relief! For a second there, I thought I was going soft."

"Yeah…" Kea speaks, digging into her pocket and pulling out three strips of bacon. She devours all three of them in less than two seconds and burps. "Well, let's go home now. I want to eat the rest of that bacon loaf!" she announces, turning towards the exit stairs.

Tank grabs her shoulder, gently pulling his wife back. "Uh, Kea?" he states, "None of us really have homes. We had to save the city before we got a chance to buy them, remember?"

"-Oh yeah," Kea recalls, slouching in somewhat of a sorrow. Pascal walks up behind the pair, wrapping an arm around each of them.

"Now, now, don't be sad!" he tells them, "You guys can all stay with us!" Pascal offers, "Just give me a minute to fish the raw hot dogs out of the hot tub," he says as Ripp and Tank look up at him, slightly disgusted.

Brent smiles, "That's really nice, but if you don't mind, Breanna and I are going to move in with my parents while our house is getting built."

Next to him, Tank scrunches his eyebrows, "Where did you guys get the money for a house?" he asks, clearly interested.

"I struck oil one day on the plot of land that I bought a few years ago, and the city owes me five million simoleons," Brent answers, causing Tank's mouth to drop.

"Holy shit," he states, "Now that's lucky," he comments, shaking his head. "Well Pascal, as much as I would love to buy a house and move right in, I think we're going to take you up on your offer," he tells the oldest Curious brother, grabbing Kea's hand and gesturing between them, "It sure beats moving back in with my dad, especially now that he has that evil killer robot," he adds.

"Yeah, I'll join you guys, too," Ripp seconds, shuddering at the thought of living with his dad again.

"Sweet!" Pascal says, watching as the cameramen start to leave the roof. "Izzy, are you coming?" Pascal wonders as all five of them look up at her, awaiting her response.

Behind her, Vidcund wraps his arm around her, pulling the young college graduate into a side hug. "Of course she is! It's the least we can do," Vidcund answers, looking down at Isabella, whose face seems almost unreadable. "You do want to stay with us, right?" he asks, afraid that he has spoken too soon.

Isabella shyly nods, butterflies fluttering in her stomach as she finds herself struggling to look up at Vidcund's face. "Yeah, of course," she answers him.

"Great! Let's go!" Pascal sparks up, leading the way, "I can't wait for you guys to see our place!"

The scene flashes to all seven of them standing in front of the Curious residence – the house still smoking from its rooftop. The shutters are in massive disrepair, there are dozens of holes in the lawn, and the plants are terribly overgrown to coincidentally resemble some sort of Frankenstein creature. On top of that, it looks like the house is going to fall apart any second.

"Geez, what a trash heap," Tank comments as one of the pillars falls backwards, causing the entire left side of the house to collapse.

"Well, there goes my room," Lazlo says, surprisingly nonchalant.

Pascal smiles as he steps further onto the lawn, making his way towards one of the remaining standing wall pieces near the front door. "Don't worry guys, we'll just use the back-up house!"

"You have a back-up house?" Ripp asks, somewhat surprised by this news.

"Yeah," Pascal states, opening a small latch that is sticking out of the wall and pressing a few buttons on the exposed keypad, "I built it just in case future me ever travelled back in time and swore revenge," he explains, pressing the large glowing green enter key on the bottom of the keypad.

Pascal quickly runs back, ducking behind the mailbox as the ground begins to rumble. The ground rapidly shakes, causing what's left of the old structure to disintegrate and seep into the sand as a new, identical house generates on top of it, taking its place.

Pascal returns to the others, dusting his hands off as he stops to admire his work. "Not bad," he states, "I just have to make sure to properly secure the gates in case I return to seek vengeance," he adds.

Isabella cocks her head, still slightly confused. "And why would you do that?" she asks.

Pascal turns back to her, his face surprisingly menacing. "Wouldn't you like to know?" he says in a shady tone, throwing his head up as he cackles at the sky. "Bwahaha! Mwahahaha!" Pascal laughs. He coughs a few times and looks over at his deeply concerned friends and family. "So, who wants tea cakes?" he asks in his casual tone.

"We'll have time for that later," Vidcund says, before turning around to face all six of them, "Right now, we have a city to rebuild!"

"And just a little bit more and…there!" Kea says, making a photo frame with her fingers as she looks up at the covered-up city entrance sign. Around her, all the residents of Strangetown are cleaning up the Road to Nowhere, restoring the town to its original state. Isabella walks over to Kea, taking off her rubber gardening gloves after weeding out the entire downtown area with Vidcund. Isabella wipes the sweat off her forehead as the others gather behind her for the unveiling of the sign.

"Hey Izzy, check it out! I took the liberty of designing the sign myself," Kea says, walking towards the five-hundred-foot-long rope that is hanging off the edge of the purple curtain, "It's similar to the old one, with one key difference," she explains. She walks a few meters forward and twirls back around to the crowd of sims that are all standing behind her. "Are you guys ready?" she asks. Everyone cheers in response. "Alright then! Here we go!" she exclaims.

Kea yanks the rope down as the curtain opens, revealing a large white background sign with the words, 'Welcome to Strangetown' written in bacon lettering. Underneath it, the subline reads: 'Welcome, college townies!' Kea moves her eyebrows up and down at Isabella as if to enthusiastically ask, 'What do you think?'

Isabella smiles and nods in approval. "Kea, it's perfect," she states.

"Yeah," Kea seconds, "And I even wrote who the mayor is under this second curtain!" she exclaims, pulling on a second rope and exposing the sign next to it which looks also identical to the first one, except it reads: 'Mayor – Victor Valant Vosho the pregnant guy's blonde brother' on it with the first three guesses crossed out.

Vidcund looks up, scrunching his face in thought. "She never did get my name right," Vidcund comments, turning to Isabella before cracking a small smile.

Later That Afternoon:

Ripp, Isabella, Tank, Kea, Lazlo, Brent, and Breanna are standing on the center of a stage in the middle of the city watching as Vidcund gets sworn into the mayoral office by the head of the Strangetown Council, Pascal Curious. In front of them, hundreds of residents are gathered watching the scene unfold – including several cameramen and all of Kea's fellow college townies.

"Vidcund Curious, based on section 17a of the Strangetown Charter and Isabella's choosing-" Pascal begins, stopping to give her a small smile as he looks up from the charter that he is reading from, "You have been chosen to become mayor of the city of Strangetown," Pascal explains, placing a hand on Vidcund's shoulder as he kneels in front of him, Vidcund's hand on the black book. "Do you accept these responsibilities and solemnly swear to protect the city and all who dwell in it?"

"- I do," Vidcund answers, never sounding more confident of anything in his life.

Pascal smiles, "Well then, as head of the Strangetown City Council, I hereby appoint you, Vidcund Curious, mayor of the city of Strangetown – with all of its rights and privileges," Pascal announces, giving his younger brother a pat on the shoulder, "May you make our city proud," he adds, as he places the mayoral sash over his brother.

Vidcund gets up from off the ground and watches as all the residents erupt into applause in front of him, a few of them bouncing up and down as they give the newly appointed mayor a standing ovation. Vidcund turns to his friends and family that are all standing onstage clapping for him as well.

"Thank you, everyone," Vidcund says, speaking into the microphone that is behind the podium. "Thank you," he states once more as the crowd wanes down a bit. "I just wanted to thank everyone who took time out of their lives to help with the war. I know it was a scary time for all of us, and I am so glad that it is over and that we have people here that are willing to risk their lives for the safety of this city and for the amazing residents that live here," he speaks, stopping to allow the crowd to cheer once more.

Vidcund swallows, "I especially want to thank my brothers, Pascal and Lazlo, who have stuck by me through what has definitely been the hardest time of my life," Vidcund says, turning a bit so that he can gaze at them, "And as expected, they will be resuming their same positions on my staff as they did during my first and second terms in office – with Pascal being the head of the Strangetown City Council and Lazlo being my chief financial adviser," he states as Pascal and Lazlo awkwardly wave at the crowd.

"I would also like to thank these six people that are standing behind me," Vidcund continues, turning towards the others that are standing in a line on the back portion of the stage. "And if you don't mind, I have prepared a special thank you speech for each of them," Vidcund informs the crowd as he flips through his notecards. He stops in front of Brent and Breanna.

"Brent eXtreme and Breanna Bertino," Vidcund begins, "Your excellent people skills, upbeat personalities, and strong educational backgrounds are what made you two so successful in rounding up the troops that we needed on our side. For your services to this great city, I hereby grant you – Brent eXtreme - a position at level ten of the Paranormal career track."

Behind Brent, Lazlo nudges Pascal in the side. "What's level ten?" he mutters.

"-Cult leader," Pascal whispers back, beaming as they stare at the crowd. He and Lazlo turn to each other and grin.

"Wait, WHAT?!" Brent calls out, turning to Vidcund; not believing what he is hearing.

"I'm giving you your dream job as a gratuitous gift for helping us save the city," Vidcund clarifies, wondering why Brent is so confused.

"You can do that?!" Brent squeaks.

Vidcund nods, "Yeah." Brent leans backward and passes out, causing Breanna to bend down and check on him.

She stands back up, giving everyone the okay symbol. "He's fine, he's just a little overwhelmed."

"Well, that's understandable," Vidcund says, stopping in front of Breanna, "And Breanna Bertino, for your outstanding service to the city and our shared love of plants, I hereby grant you a position at level ten of the Natural Scientist career track."

"That's very sweet, Vidcund," Breanna replies, "But if you don't mind, I think I would like to earn that position on my own," she states.

Vidcund smiles and gives a small nod. "I respect that. But at least take this coupon for your troubles."

Breanna grabs the coupon from Vidcund and reads the small print. "Ooh. 25% off all haircare products!" she exclaims, showing it to Pascal.

"Now that's a good one," he agrees as Vidcund stops in front of Ripp Grunt himself.

"Ripp, Loki was very cruel to you, and for that I am sorry," Vidcund apologizes his hands behind his back, "Now I know you have had a hard life, but hopefully this will make it a little bit better," he says, handing the check to him.

Ripp looks down at the money from Olive's will, his eyes widening like saucers. "Oh my god! I-I think I'm going to pass out," Ripp says, starting to feel dizzy. Tank grabs a hold of him.

"And Tank," Vidcund continues, staring at Ripp's brother. "You are one heck of an officer – and it would be my honor to bestow upon you the top position as the leader of the Armed Forces of Strangetown," he offers, but Tank shakes his head.

"Thanks Vidcund," he states, "But the military career is not really my calling," Tank confesses.

"Well then, at least let me give you something so that you go after what your true calling is," Vidcund states, pulling out a small white business card. "At least let me get you your own cooking show," he says, handing Tank the business card.

His face lights up as he scans it over. "My own cooking show? Oh my gosh! I guess I better start learning how to cook then," he comments as nearby, Brent has since gotten up from his earlier incident, and is nudging Ripp in the side.

"Bet you it only lasts one season," he mutters under his breath; Ripp laughs.

Vidcund sighs, taking a deep breath as he stops in front of Kea, who has been standing on stage the whole time, surprisingly calm. "Kea, I will get to you momentarily, but first I need to pull someone out of the audience," Vidcund announces as he begins scanning through the crowd. "Crystal Vu? Is she here?" Vidcund asks. A few townies nod and move her towards the front of the audience, "Come here," Vidcund states, grabbing her hand and helping her jump onstage.

"Crystal, you were a gigantic help throughout this journey. These past three months, you have established hope in a city that had none. Your countless acts of bravery and devotion to me and to what is right has earned you the title of 'Loki Slayer,'" Vidcund says; Crystal gives a small laugh, "I hereby appoint you, Crystal Vu, head of the Department of Defense, where I am sure you will excel greatly," Vidcund says, placing his notecards down to give her a round of applause as the others join in behind him. Crystal turns around and eyes the crowd, who is cheering twice as loud for her.

Crystal steps back, feeling slightly overwhelmed as she accepts the medal that Vidcund is handing her. She pins it on her shirt as she shyly waves to the crowd. She then walks over to Lazlo, who is shooting her a 'thumbs up', and stands up next to him, her face still filled with shock as she basks all of the cheers in.

"Hey," Lazlo speaks suddenly, "Do you want to go out with me again?" he asks.

Crystal nods slightly as both of them continue to stare straight ahead, still in utter shock. "-Yes," she answers almost immediately.

Crystal and Lazlo turn their heads and look at each other, both of their faces shining with happiness.

"Alright Kea, it's your turn," Vidcund says, moving back in front of the young townie.

"Lay it on me, dork," Kea says, she turns to the side noticing that Isabella has her eyebrow raised, "I mean-Mayor Dork," Kea corrects, shooting Isabella a double thumbs up.

Vidcund laughs. "Kea Kalson, as the first ever college townie to successfully break the cycle, you risked your life for a city that degraded you since the day you were born," Vidcund explains, "Then you helped us round up groups of sims to restore and save it," he adds, "Your dedication and trust in premade sims is one of the things that made this mission so successful. If it weren't for you and your fellow college townies, we probably wouldn't have stood a chance," Vidcund admits to the crowds, "Kea Kalson, it is my honor to bestow upon you the highest honor that I have ever given anyone – the key to the city," Vidcund states, holding out the gigantic golden encrusted foot-long key and handing it to her.

Kea's eyes widen as she picks it up, cradling the large key in her arms. "Whoa!" she oohs, "What does it open?" she asks.

"Uh, I think it's a metaphorical thing," Pascal speaks up next to her.

"Oohh…" Kea replies, gazing down at the key once again, "So metaphorically what does it open?"

"Also Kea," Vidcund begins again, still standing in front of the former college townie, "Due to various circumstances – including all of the terrible crap that you had to endure, such as Loki trying to kill you your senior year of college, I would like to give you something else," Vidcund tells her, "Since Loki tried to shorten your life by attempting to feed you to a cowplant, I am going to extend your life by granting you your lifetime want," Vidcund explains.

In front of him, Kea's eyes widen, a cloud of realization floating into her mind. "Wait. Does that mean…?" she begins.

"Yes Kea," Vidcund answers, "It is my honor to bestow upon you the most coveted position in the Law Enforcement career track. From this day forward, you will be known as Kea 'The Lightning' Kalson, Captain Hero," he declares, as Kea races over and frantically shakes his hand.

"YES! YES! YES!" Kea shouts, throwing her hands up as she bounces around in a circle in celebration. "Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!" she cries, before frantically grabbing Pascal and kissing him on the side of the face. "Muah!" she says, leaving Pascal somewhat creeped out as she runs forward and blows kisses to the crowd, "I love you crazy premades!" Behind her, Isabella is smiling about a mile wide, happy for her friend's utter excitement.

"And yes, to answer your next question," Vidcund speaks up once more, walking over to Kea's new position onstage, "It does come with a complimentary meat basket." Vidcund announces, handing the gift to her. Kea shrieks.

"Oh my gosh! I'M GOING TO EAT ALL OF IT RIGHT NOW!" Kea taking the basket from Vidcund and racing to the other side of the stage.

Pascal steps forward. "Uh, isn't anyone going to stop her?" he asks, gesturing towards Kea, who has already eaten an entire package of beef jerky.

Tank shrugs it off, "Eh, she'll tire herself out."

Isabella laughs, happily watching as her friend devours even more of the basket, a huge mob of cameramen snapping photos in front of her. Isabella looks up, noticing someone's shadow covering her. Vidcund stands tall, his eyes filled with gratitude as he stares at Isabella.

"Isabella," he says softly, speaking in his standard casual tone, "I know you think that you were useless in this endeavor," Vidcund begins, "But it's average sims like you that make this whole city work. Your unselfishness and spontaneity, as well as your care for others, is what saved this city and everyone in it from a bitter defeat," he tells her, not bothering to look down at his notecards, "You are the reason why half of us on this stage are standing here today. I thank you deeply for all the hospitality that you have shown my brothers and me, and for all the months that you put yourself in harm's way for the good of simkind," Vidcund says, noting that Isabella is paying attention to every word.

Vidcund nervously looks down at the ground and sighs, putting his notecards away and clasping his hands together in front of his body before saying his last sentence. "Izzy, for saving me and the city, I will give you anything in world."

Isabella gazes up at him, her mind going in a thousand different directions. She looks to her friends and family, then at the crowd, and finally at Vidcund who is awaiting her answer. Isabella sighs, finding her stomach tied up in knots. "But, what if I can't have what I really want?" she states into the silence.

"Well," Vidcund says, shuffling his feet a bit, "As mayor of the city, I can assure you that whatever you want is not out of reach," he assures her sweetly. Isabella looks up at him, the pair staring at each other longingly without saying a word – silently speaking with their eyes.

Pascal taps his foot impatiently, glancing a few times at his wristwatch before walking over to them. "Uh, yeah, can we move it along here? I still have to pick up my daughter from daycare," he complains.

"Oh, sorry," Vidcund apologizes, breaking the moment. He turns back to Isabella, "So uh, is there anything else that you want?" he asks her.

"Actually, now that I think about it, there is one thing that you can do for me," Isabella says, a smile appearing on her face. "Can you-?" she waves Vidcund over and whispers the rest of her request in his ear. Vidcund pulls away and nods, seeming rather flustered as he moves away from her.

He readjusts his tie, nodding firmly. "Yeah, I can do that," he tells her. Vidcund walks to the center of the stage and stops in front of Tank and Kea, "Izzy says that she would like to pitch in with the city to throw you guys a proper wedding," he reveals, "That is, if you want it, of course."

"Kea?" Tank speaks up, looking towards his wife. Kea looks up from her meat basket and smiles.

"Yes! Definitely!" she beams, "But can you give me at least a month? Cause I want to buy a dress for it."

Vidcund nods. "Alright. Just let me know when you guys are ready."

Thirty minutes later, after the ceremony has ended and the last of the crowds are dispersing, Isabella is standing at the base of the stage watching as Tank and Kea happily tell their friends and family members about their plans for the wedding. Isabella smiles as she feels Vidcund walk up next to her, standing at her side.

"You know, that wasn't really what I asked for but – thank you," Isabella speaks, still staring straight ahead.

"I know," Vidcund answers, crossing his arms as he stares forward as well, "- But I couldn't say what you really wanted out loud," he confides, "It would've been all over the press. And trust me, if the press got a hold of this story, they would run with it."

Isabella nods, understanding exactly what he is saying. "Yeah…" she states, a hint of sadness lingering in her tone.

"But hey, I'll give it to you someday," Vidcund promises Isabella, playfully nudging her in the side to cheer her up, "Just be patient," he tells her. "Oh, and you don't have to pay for any of the wedding. I owe you like ten thousand simoleons based on what Pascal ate alone so – you won't have to pay for anything for a while."

"Vid-" Isabella starts to protest, but Vidcund firmly shakes his head, waving away the very thought.

"No, I insist," he asserts.

Isabella steps back and closes her mouth, shocked by how much Vidcund's backbone has appeared to grow. "Oh. Thanks," she states, smiling as she finds herself surprisingly pleased by this newfound discovery.

Pascal walks over and stops in front of them, carrying Amelia in his arms, as the other sims that are staying in their house follow behind him. "And now we can go home and get back to our normal boring lives…" Pascal trails off, before throwing his free hand up enthusiastically in celebration. "YES!" he cheers.

Fifteen Minutes Later – At the Curious Residence

The Curious brothers walk through the front door of their new, replicated house, leading their guests into the main hallway. "Okay," Pascal says, leading the way as he turns to the others, still holding on to his daughter, "The bathroom's over there," he points out, "And to answer the question that at least half of you are thinking – yes, there's wifi. And no, I don't know the password."

"I thought it was 'Loki is an ass'?" Lazlo asks, watching as Kea attempts to connect to the wifi on her cell phone.

She shakes her head, "Nope. That's not it."

"Okay, then change 'ass' to 'asshole,'" Pascal tells her, gesturing down at the floor.

Kea smiles, moving her head back a bit in reaction as she hits 'enter' on her phone, "Yep! Got in!" she chimes.

"Sweet," Pascal replies, walking towards the kitchen, "I guess I did know the password after all!" Pascal declares, kneeling in front of the refrigerator. He opens the door and breathes in the familiar scent of their food. "Ah! It's good to be back!" he states, eyeing one of the containers that is on the refrigerator door. He grabs the strawberry yogurt and scans over the expiration date. "Aww man! The yogurt expired!" he stands up in place and shakes his fist in the air. "CURSE YOU, LOKI BEAKER!"

Nearby, Vidcund and Lazlo exchange strange looks with one another.

"Well, I guess it's as good as time as any to check our messages," Lazlo says, walking over to their beige answering machine that is mounted against the wall. He presses the large oval button that is on the top of it.

"You have twenty-five new messages," the automated voice rings as all of their friends gather up behind Vidcund and Lazlo, intrigued. "Message one-" the voice states calmly.

"VIDCUND, WHERE THE HELL ARE YOU?!" Circe's voice blares from the machine, "I HAVE BEEN STANDING OUTSIDE FOR TWENTY MINUTES AND I AM VERY HOR-"

Vidcund quickly presses '9,' erasing the message. "Uh, just erase all of those," he tells him as Lazlo nods and begins flipping through the call history. Pascal walks up behind him, scanning the calls over.

"Geez, do we have any messages that aren't from Circe?" he asks as Lazlo continues to look through the calls. "Hey! Here's one!" Pascal notices, pressing message number sixteen.

"Pascal, it's Mortimer," the Pleasantview veteran speaks through the phone, "I just called to tell you to quit leaving your pottery magazines on our lawn," he says, "-And I know it's you because you're the only person who-" Pascal presses '9', quickly erasing the message.

Pascal leans up against the wall, giving a nervous laugh. "Uh, ignore that last one," he states, before walking back into the kitchen; his brothers follow him.

"So, whatever happened with the whole cult thing? I mean, are you still the leader?" Vidcund asks, placing his hands on the white counter top as Pascal places Amelia in her high chair.

"Yeah, but we had to shut it down," Pascal says, turning towards his brother, "There's too much pressure nowadays to conform to society's standards," he explains further, "-Also, I ate the charter," he states. Vidcund gives Pascal a puzzled look as his older brother crosses his arms in front of his body, defensive. "I got bored!" he chimes as the others walk into the kitchen and join them.

Isabella stands up next to Pascal. "But weren't they mad when they found out that you guys were the Curious brothers?" she wonders, leaning down on the counter top as well.

"They were mad at first, but at the end of the day, they're just sims - like you and me," Pascal explains, "And deep down they were just happy to have people who listened to them," he says knowingly, "I even made some friends!" Pascal exclaims, taking out a picture of him smiling with some of the cult members – his arms around them as Lazlo stands awkwardly in the background. Pascal sighs and shakes his head, smiling as he reminisces on that very day. "Yeah, that's a good-looking group!" He tapes the photo up on the kitchen photo wall.

"Wow, you turned Loki's own cult against him. I gotta say, Pascal, I'm impressed," Vidcund wanders over to him, "That takes skill."

"And…?" Pascal trails off, waiting for an add-on.

Vidcund smirks, letting out a nose breath as he rolls his eyes. "And you were right; your plan worked."

"Thank you!" Pascal says, holding his finger up in point. Pascal watches as Vidcund nods and moves into the living room.

"Well, I should probably get those hot dogs out of the hot tub," Vidcund explains as he backs towards the roof. Lazlo watches as Vidcund races up the stairs, his youngest brother shaking his head in thought.

"Well that's odd," Lazlo says, still gazing out the window.

Pascal moves up next to him, "What's odd?" he asks.

"Nothing. It's just after defeating Beaker and becoming the mayor again all in one day, I really thought Vidcund would be more excited that he got the city back."

Pascal places a hand on Lazlo's shoulder, silencing him for a moment. "…Wait for it!" Pascal says, as everyone stops what they are doing to listen.

"YEAH! WHOOO-HOOOOO! I AM AWESOME!" Vidcund's voice echoes from the rooftop. Lazlo looks to Pascal and smiles.