Round Ten - Knox 3 / Mazza

Emma wore the dress Shiina had made for her with pride, and got a new haircut to match. She felt every inch the beautiful, sophisticated crime boss - even if she hadn't made it quite that far in her career yet.


Both Emma and Danny loved exercise, and they'd found a new favourite kind...


Unfortunately their bliss couldn't last long. Emma caught colds and promptly passed it on to Danny - the house echoed with their wheezing and coughing.


Danny took a sick day and spent the entirety of it curled up on the sofa, sniffling and occasionally coughing, but by the end of the day he felt a lot better.


The same could not be said of Emma. Her cold seemed to have progressed into something worse - she could barely keep her eyes open and just wanted to stay in bed, and she kept getting nauseous and throwing up. She decided to go to the doctor's in case she had a serious case of flu.


"I've got some news... I went to the doctor, and, well, I don't have flu. I don't even still have a cold."

"That's great, but why the big fuss? And if you're not sick anymore why are you still so sleepy and throwing up all the time?"

"That's the news. I'm pregnant."


Note: This house will eventually become the Mazza house then, I guess, seeing as Danny and Emma don't seem in any particular hurry to tie the knot.

Round Nine - Knox 3

Using their combined wealth as a sports star and a successful criminal, Danny and Emma were able to afford a stylish and very modern house rather than a cramped apartment.


A silly mistake resulted in Emma getting demoted down the ranks of the underground organisation she was part of, and she was absolutely heartbroken.


Danny, on the other hand, was slowly but surely making his way through his career. He'd discovered a true love of studying and could often be found reading some book or other.


The new house had a large back yard and Danny and Emma wasted no time in getting some sports equipment installed. They invited work colleagues home for occasional soccer matches - Danny's work colleagues, of course. Emma wasn't about to risk detection and trouble.


All in all, things were going very well for Emma and Danny. Their shared love of sports just brought them closer together.


It didn't take long before Emma was back in her crime syndicate's good graces and she was back on the "team" when it came to heists. It was dangerous, she knew that - but it felt so good.

Round Eight - Knox 3

Danny was trying to keep his mind off Emma by throwing himself into his training routine, but it was no good. He was a rising sports-star! He could have any girl he wanted! Why was he so hung up about this? He decided he was going to join his teammates and go out for a night on the town.


He met a young lady while clubbing and they got chatting. She looked a bit like Emma, and Danny supposed that was where his attraction to her lay. Still, a date couldn't hurt, could it?


Unfortunately the girl saw right through his attempts.


Like his father had done years before, Danny ended up waiting at the bar. If only Emma would come round to his point of view...


Then a miracle occurred. Halfway through his day's training, Emma marched in through the front door.

"Danny... I've been thinking. Shiina's got a new man and she doesn't need me around anymore. So I was thinking, maybe we should move in together."

"That's... a bit quick?"

"And don't even try to pretend that isn't one of the things you like about me. I'm forward and to the point. I'd never mess you around and you know it."


Danny couldn't believe his luck.


Emma settled in quickly, trying to be a perfect housewife and keep her double-life hidden. For all she'd said about how open she was and how she wouldn't lead Danny on, she still hadn't told him what she did for a living. How would her clean-living athlete take the knowledge that she was rising up through the criminal underworld?


She finally decided to bite the bullet and tell the truth.

"I've got a confession to make... You see this outfit? It's no party costume. This is what I do. I'm a crook. A criminal."

"Yeah, I figured. And you know what? I don't care. I know who you are inside, and that's the girl I love."

It was a corny line, they both knew it, but they didn't care. It was true - they were in love, and nothing else really mattered.


Note: Sorry if all these updates seem really disjointed. My game's been having problems - everything is so bugged and sometimes the photo taking just doesn't work! But I'm doing my best...

Round Seven - Knox 3

Danny Knox didn't know what to do. He was infatuated with his neighbour, Emma, but she was difficult to pin down. One minute she was into him, the next minute not, half the time she wasn't even there (and she wouldn't tell him where she'd gone) and NOW her roommate had gone and gotten pregnant and Emma seemed reluctant to leave her.


He mostly focused on getting in peak condition - he would become an athletic superstar no matter what. Occasionally he let off steam with a few parties, which Emma and Shiina would briefly turn up at just to be polite. It was kind of embarrassing.


But sometimes he managed to catch Emma in a good mood. Maybe she'd never want to move in with him or be serious, but Danny was open to seeing how things went, and a few stolen kisses would do for now.


Note: Literally nothing happened this round >:(

Round Six - Knox

Noah and Ruth were getting used to life without their father. It was strange not having him around but at least they still had each other, as well as Kaylynn and Danny.


Danny made time to teach Noah to play basketball. Noah was adequate at it but didn't show any outstanding passion for it or any other sport, but he liked spending time with Danny.


Ruth grew up into a beautiful but flighty young lady. Her previous bookish nature was thrown to the wind in favour of being a party girl, and being at a prestigious academy and thus surrounded by people with money only helped that side of her personality. She wanted presents and parties and nights out clubbing.


Noah remained studious and had a great interest in science and learning in general. When Ruth tried to get him to join her sneaking-into-nightclubs missions he would always decline and instead watch the stars on the newly-built balcony with his father's old telescope.


They were still close even though they were heading down completely different paths in life. Ruth would beg for "help" with an essay and Noah would roll his eyes and agree while telling her to keep it a secret; he didn't want the whole academy asking him to do their work for him.


"Have you done your homework?" Kaylynn asked Ruth one evening as they sat down for dinner.

"No," admitted Ruth without a hint of remorse. "Why should I? I'm a teenager, it's not like the Child Protection Services are going to come and kick the door down because I'm not getting top grades anymore. I have much better things to do."

"You always used to do your homework without me asking," sighed Kaylynn.

"That's because I was a little swot."


Danny made sure to call his father and sister every day. He was ready to graduate from high-school and was incredibly excited about the possibilities his future held.


As well as running up huge bills on the telephone, he enjoyed working on getting to his peak fitness level. He would be old enough to start playing sport professionally soon and he wanted to make sure he was the best around when the talent scouts came knocking.


Danny graduated, cutting his hair short and donning some slightly suaver but still relaxed outfit choices.

"Why've you got to leave and be all grown-up with a job and things? Jobs suck," said Ruth with complete conviction.

Danny assumed she was joking and laughed. "Jobs aren't all that bad. They're great if you can find a vocation you're passionate about."

Kaylynn was less amused.


Danny moved out to one of the apartment complexes; he was renting one opposite Hiro's sister and her friend. He said goodbye to his stepgrandmother, his aunt and his uncle and set off for an independent life, leaving Kaylynn alone with her increasingly difficult teens.

Round Five - Knox

Jasper had moved out of the Knox family household, taking Destiny with him, so Cassius and Kaylynn decided this was the perfect time to renovate the house to make it impressive enough to get the kids into a private academy. Danny and Noah were slightly less enthusiastic about renovation.


Cassius and Kaylynn invited the headmaster around for dinner and a tour of the house, and thanks to the new decor and Kaylynn's delicious pork chops he was impressed enough to immediately grant the kids a place at his academy. Cassius was thrilled.


The change in school proved a good idea. Ruth and Noah's grades progressed much faster than they would have done otherwise, and as they were both scholarly types they were ecstatic about it. Ruth loved it, and the fact she looked super-smart in her uniform was always a bonus.


Junko Nakamura found the whole thing amusing.

"Why're you wearing that? You look like you're off to Hogwarts or something."

"Shut up..." muttered Noah, secretly wishing he'd had time to change into his normal clothes before she came over and made fun of him.


Their run of good luck almost ended when a burglar targeted their house. Thankfully he was not the brightest crook in the gang and ended up tripping both the car alarm and the security system, calling the police onto the scene immediately. The noise was deafening! The criminal was quickly apprehended.


Cassius had managed to put off death for a little while thanks to the genie's intervention, but he couldn't avoid it forever. He could feel the end creeping up on him. It was sad but inevitable.


Kaylynn reacted extremely badly and had a full-on nervous breakdown. Danny had to take care of the kids while she recuperated and called Destiny for backup frequently.


Danny had recently made friends with Hiro Nakamura. They shared some of the same hopes in life, both wishing to be world-famous athletes, and even though Hiro's sport of choice was soccer he often came over to play basketball. Inevitably, Destiny and Hiro met. Danny smiled. If his baby sister HAD to go out with guys then it might as well be Hiro. He was a good guy, and if he slipped up... well, Danny knew where he lived.


Note: goodbye Cassius :(

Round Four: Knox

Ruth and Noah were growing up quickly. Ruth was undeniably Cassius's favourite and he carried her around with him whenever she could, much to her delight.


Noah didn't lack for love and attention, though; how could he in a house full of so many people? Destiny in particular liked coddling him and dressing him up. Jasper had to remind her frequently that babies were not little dress-up-dolls and she should wait until she was much, MUCH older before she went and had one of her own.


Jasper's worries weren't entirely unfounded. Even though Destiny had discovered the wonderful concept known as "dating" she hadn't found any boys she wanted to kiss yet. She was a bit of a tomboy herself and preferred to go on just-friends dates. She wasn't extravagant and didn't demand expensive restaurants; a trip bowling or just hanging around at home were good enough for her.


Like Jasper, Cassius couldn't help but worry. He knew what teenage boys were like; he'd been one once and then raised two of his own, and Destiny was a sweet girl who tended to assume the best of people.

"Not all people are as trustworthy as me and you, sweetie," said Cassius delicately over breakfast. "I just want you to be careful, you're my little girl."

"Thanks, but I can look after myself," said Destiny, smiling as ever. "Don't forget, I grew up around Uncle Will. I may be nice but I'm not a doormat!"

Cassius sighed, ever more aware he wouldn't be able to look after little Ruth when she hit that difficult age.


Destiny's life wasn't all boys, boys, boys anyway. She'd made friends with Jacinta Davies; they were an odd couple, to say the least, but somehow it worked. Jacinta kept Destiny on the straight and narrow and Destiny helped Jacinta let her hair down and live a little - all that repression couldn't be healthy! It hadn't escaped their eagle eyes that their parents were "involved" and were delighted by the notion that if Jasper and Sabrina got married, they could technically be sisters!


Jasper and Sabrina's daughters weren't the only ones who knew things were serious between them now. Their mutual friend from work, Ash, had congratulated Jasper on netting such a sensible (and pretty!) lady friend, and Jasper hadn't said a thing to disabuse him of the notion.


He talked to Sabrina about it.

"Is it okay if I tell people that we're... involved? I mean, I can understand if you're worried about people gossipping - "

"Of course it's okay! It's more than okay. I can't keep denying it, it's over between me and James. We're going to file for a divorce. I want to be with you. Just you."


Romance was in the air all over the Knox house. Twins and the progress of time hadn't dampened Cassius and Kaylynn's enthusiasm for one another at all - Kaylynn still thought he was hot, with or without the dapper hat.


The twins were finally out of the cantankerous toddler years, and it was becoming ever clearer that even though they had all of their father's colouring they had their mother's facial features. They were both pleasant, tidy children and got on well, although Noah was a little more boisterous than his sister. They both shared their father's love of science and could talk about planets and aliens for hours.


Unfortunately the downside of the twins now being old enough to have a bit more autonomy was that they could get at the computer. One of them had jammed the CD drive with peanut butter (at least, Kaylynn assumed it was one of the twins - surely Danny knew better?) and Kaylynn was left to fix it. Unfortunately despite her love of tinkering she managed to get the shock of her life when she jammed the screwdriver into the wrong bit and had to have a long lie-down.


Family breakfasts and dinners were more than a little hectic. Kaylynn knew things would be a little less crazy once Jasper moved out, possibly taking Danny and Destiny with him, but at the same time she couldn't help thinking it would be a good idea to do some renovations anyway. Cassius had gotten it into his head that they should try and get Ruth and Noah into a private academy and they needed a much more impressive house if they were going to schmooze the headmaster...


Note: Destiny kept autonomously giving Noah baths and playing with them; even though she's a Pleasure sim she really loves looking after babies! Once she has enough reward points she's getting a secondary of Family, definitely. Danny spent most of this round playing basketball. I don't know what to do regarding moving them all around, if Jasper and Sabrina have a baby I want Destiny around to look after it but the house would be SO CROWDED.