#the sandbox castle

[sand-box-castle]

I crack my neck as Gershom fidgets at the table. Whatever it is that he wants to spend all our precious time in here for better be quick.

He sets a small box on the table. "I didn't want everyone else to see, but here."

I raise an eyebrow and pick up the box. It's fairly light. I open it and pick out a pair of gloves that have the tip of the pinky and ring finger cut off.

"Since your last pair got shredded."

I m feel a smile creep across my face. I tug them on, and flex my fingers. "How did you get the right size? These fit better than the last pair!"

He shrugs. "We've been taking care of each other for eight years. You think I wouldn't know what size gloves you wear?" Gershom looks to his hands which are now resting on the table. "Besides, you know all my clothing sizes after having ordered new sets everytime I get kicked around after burning out."

I shake my head. "That's different. And you shouldn't have got these, they're so expensive!"

He shrugs again. "It wasn't that bad. Besides you needed a new pair."

I study the gloves, still a little impressed he got the right size. He's crazy. At least when it comes to gifts.

[simdertalia]

☀️ ACNH Pool Stuff Set 🏖️

Sims 4, base game compatible. 37 items 💗

Always suggested: bb.objects ON, it makes placing items much easier. For further placement tweaking, check out the TOOL mod.

Set contains: -Bag | 4 swatches | 570 poly -Bag Tote 1 | 3 swatches | 586 poly -Bag Tote 2 | 14 swatches | 594 poly -Beach Ball | 4 swatches | 434 poly -Beach Towel | 7 swatches | 1458 poly -Box: Diving Mask | 7 swatches | 2431 poly -Box: Float 1 | 6 swatches | 334 poly -Box: Float 2 | 11 swatches | 334 poly -Box: Ring Game | 1 swatch | 334 poly -Bucket | 6 swatches | 300 poly -Fan | 4 swatches | 1196 poly -Float: Bird (Requires Island Living, bobs in water) | 6 swatches | 1158 poly -Float: Bird (BGC) | 6 swatches | 1158 poly -Float: Ring (Requires Island Living, bobs in water) | 11 swatches | 576 poly -Float: Ring (BGC) | 11 swatches | 576 poly -Mask and Snorkel | 7 swatches | 1480 poly -Ring Game 1 | 4 swatches | 522 poly -Ring Game 2 | 4 swatches | 1042 poly -Rug: Doormat | 3 swatches | 698 poly -Sandbox | 2 swatches | 5058 poly -Shoe Clutter: Jellies (adult) | 8 swatches | 810 poly -Shoe Clutter: Jellies (child) | 8 swatches | 810 poly -Shoe Clutter: Water Shoes (adult) | 8 swatches | 820 poly -Shoe Clutter: Water Shoes (child) | 8 swatches | 820 poly -Shovel | 5 swatches | 252 poly -Star Ball (glows) Requires Island Living, bobs on water | 3 swatches | 2733 poly -Star Ball (BGC) | 3 swatches | 2733 poly -Surfboard | 6 swatches | 1199 poly -Surfboard in Sand | 6 swatches | 631 poly -Surfboard Stand | 1 swatch | 606 poly -Volleyball | 2 swatches | 186 poly -Volleyball Net | 5 swatches | 2502 poly -Walkie 1-3 (3 items) | 1 swatch | 1295 poly each -Wall Palm Decor | 1 swatch | 42 poly

Type “acnh pool" into the search query in build mode to find quickly. You can always find items like this, just begin typing  the title and it will appear.

As always, please let me know if you have any issues!

📁 Download all or pick & choose (SFS, No Ads): HERE

📁 Alt Mega Download (still no ads): HERE

📁 Download on Patreon

Will be public on May 18th, 2024 💗

Happy Simming! ✨ Some of my sets are early access. If you like my work, please consider supporting me:

★ Patreon  🎉 ❤️ |★ Ko-Fi  ☕️  ❤️ ★ Instagram📷

Thank you for reblogging ❤️ ❤️ ❤️

@sssvitlanz  @maxismatchccworld @mmoutfitters  @coffee-cc-finds  @itsjessicaccfinds  @gamommypeach  @stargazer-sims-finds  @khelga68  @suricringe  @vaporwavesims  @mystictrance15 @moonglitchccfinds @xlost-in-wonderlandx @jbthedisabledvet

The rest of my CC

A million thank yous to all the Simlish font makers, the font(s) used here are by @franzillasims

[originalaccountname]

bsd does have an overarching story that I want to witness unfolding, but it is and has always been mostly worldbuilding and character lore stuck together with thematic duck tape to hold it all together, and I am standing right next to Asagiri with my own roll of tape to contribute to

[tinyglade-bits]

W.I.P.: A monastery - Tiny Glade

[cranberrymoons]

eddie's first boyfriend is a boy named Gabriel who he meets in 6th grade when he starts middle school. they went to different elementaries, but they hit it off right away and within a week they're best best friends in that way you are when you're 11 years old and see someone who exists on the same wavelength as you and has stars in their eyes and just loves to talk talk talk talk talk and you feel like you're never going to get tired of listening to them. they ride bikes together and their moms drop them off at the mall and they sit in the foodcourt sharing one plate of shitty chinese food because they only had $7 between them and then they go to the hot topic store next to the movie theatre and look at keychains and fall out boy posters. they buy tickets to go see Holes but then sneak in to see Scary Movie 3 instead, and they're friends, and eddie loves his friends, he's always been a guy who has a lot of friends, but none of them have ever made him feel like he has this big big feeling in his chest before, and he doesn't know what to do about it but he just LOVES BEING HIS FRIEND and then it's 20 years later and his son is asking him about the first person he dated and he says well. your mom wasn't the first, I guess, but –

[the-lonelybarricade]

I am begging, begging, the acotar fandom to become familiar with the concept of ship and let ship. If a ship isn't your cup of tea, no one is making you drink it. No one is making you consume content for it. Leave people alone for enjoying the things that scratch their brain. Life is too short and the world is too mean to ridicule people for trying to squeeze a little joy out of silly "what-if" scenarios. These characters aren't real, they're just little dolls whose faces we're smushing together and some of y'all take it way too seriously

[kenobster]

what's this "hold anakin accountable for his actions" bullshit like. do u want me to arrest him and put him on trial?? convict him and sentence him to several life terms in prison???

hes a FICTIONAL CHARACTER lmao

You dont need to hold fictional characters accountable for their actions

art doesn't have morality. it just exists. people who say shit about "holding a character responsible" aren't somehow smarter or better than the rest of us. they're just imposing their own morality onto a work of art. even worse, they're trying to use that work of art to sucker you into their own personal opinions.

The truth is that Anakin did nothing wrong ever in his entire life because Anakin doesn't exist! He and the other characters are made up! They're not victims! They don't suffer!

Maybe you characterize Anakin differently than I do, and that's okay!! But if you're going to say your interpretation is better than mine because yours "holds Anakin accountable" and mine doesn't, then you need to touch some fucking grass tbh

[nyaskitten]

What... what do you MEAN it isn't canon that Cryptor is Pixal's brother, and the main villain of Rebooted??? What do you MEAN he didn't try twist the world how he saw fit, and in a really cool Wu and Garmadon parallel he and Pixal had a really cool and really devestating fight??? Shut up that's exactly how season 3 happened I don't care if canon won't acknowledge what really happened then I DECIDED what really happened!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[novantinuum]

it is literally So funny to me how many people are going apecrap on twitter about Ian retweeting a recent "revive steven universe" poll post with an eyes emoji like. that means Nothing, people. he is just jotting down notes of general fan interest, i am sure.

ESPECIALLY in this dark day and age of shitty treatment of animation workers- i supremely doubt that there is any secret, significant progress being made on some SU revival right now.

[bsptourist]

gm_tppcastle (a.k.a. Super Mario 64 1995 Inside Castle/Courtyard)

created by M.Antman

[this-acuteneurosis]

Can I just say how much I appreciate the fact you don't stray much from the movies?

It's just so refreshing to see a fic that is built on a clear, unbiased and simple canon base. This way, as you demonstrated, a writer not only has the ability to further explore the main themes and ideas introduced in the source material, but they can also go ahead and naturally develop their own by branching out on those fundamentals. They can offer their perspective by using the source material to their advantage, instead of working against it or even worse, trying to include all contradicting canon aspects. Part of writing a fic is kind of like offering your input in a conversation/disagreement. You have to listen carefully to what the other person is saying in order to form your answer...If you're listening to a thousand different people who are all saying a different thing (in this case, The clone wars, legends, novels, comics ect), you won't be able to give an answer that makes sense, much less give a structured and stable opinion.

I love how you were like "I know star wars is entering an era of a shit ton of spin off content with seemingly no end and most star wars fans know shit like who chewie lost his virginity to and what the kessel run is but screw this. The movies and maybe some late night wiki research is enough."

And you were right.

It's so funny, because I feel like I do ultimately stray pretty far from the movies. Not in terms of events I guess, but especially the prequels, I reject some of the underlying assumptions of what is said on screen and just treat it like fallible people strongly asserting opinions that no one calls them on. See: everything I ever assert about the Force/Anakin's "destiny."

I do think it helped me to stick with limited material. And it wasn't even because I saw all of this new SW content coming. I've mentioned this before, but when I started writing Don't Look Back (when it was just Like Fire and I naively believed I was gonna be done in 200k words, lol, rip past me) I hesitated a lot because as far as I was concerned, I wasn't a Star Wars Fan.

I'd watched the OT and PT multiple times. I knew that novels and games and cartoons existed, I knew people had consumed them all. I had been reading some SW fic because @mylongsufferingroommate had been sending me stuff they were enjoying and I was having fun with it. But like, I would never have called myself a Fan. I got goaded into writing this fic by people who knew me too well and really wanted a political thriller. I wouldn't have called them Star Wars Fans either.

Limiting myself to the six movies I had watched was a preemptive defense mechanism against a fan base I wasn't sure would want to accept me. My thin skin is my own problem, but every time I think about writing in a new fandom the same sort of nerves take me: what if my fanon is "wrong" and people are mean?

I guess what I'm trying to say is thank you so much to everyone who gave me a chance and encouraged me and were excited and shared that excitement.

And please, for the love of all the sky and stars DON'T GATEKEEP FANDOMS.

Don't tell people their canon is too big (@blue-sunshine-mauve-morning and @chancecraz have amazing fics that are much more compliant than mine to the broader canon, as a quick example), and definitely don't tell people their canon is too small. Walk away if you aren't enjoying something. Give compliments when you like something that is unique in a fandom you're familiar with. Be patient with people, be kind.

I could easily have given this story up if people hadn't been patient with me. I got comments as early as my first chapter from people who were angry with a single thing that I said and felt the need to tell me I was wrong. I could have left. I could have stopped.

I'm glad I didn't. But I wonder how many other people have.

[sand-box-castle]

[CW: injuries, infection]

I sigh and wince as I unwrap the bandage from my leg. I don't think it's supposed to hurt this much. "Dad, can you take a look at this?" Aside from watching what I'm doing, I try to avoid looking too much at the injury. I'd gotten on the bad end of a scuffle with Almil when Clm had come across us having a meeting. He'd shot a blast of magic at my leg, and that had shredded through my pants completely, leaving a bloody mess behind. Salil had helped me bandage it to try to avoid grabbing Dad and Mom's attention. That's clearly working so well right now.

Footsteps come down the hall in time with the throbbing pain from my calf. "What happened this time?"

I try to hide my grimace as he steps into my room. "I had a bad run-in underside." I don't think it should feel like my leg is burning.

Dad kneels next to my chair, and picks up my foot, tilting it so he can get a better view. He's silent for a moment too long before he looks at me again. "Astin, what happened?" His voice is as serious as the one night I saw mom stumble inside, blood pouring down her face. Then, he'd asked her what had happened, and then guided her upstairs immediately. She didn't come down for several days.

"I got caught in crossfire when I was talking to one of my informants," I say. That should be vague enough he can't figure out what happened.

"Was it a spell, or straight magic that hit you?" He sets my leg down, and runs a hand over his chin. "This looks badly infected."

I grimace. "It was straight magic. I tried cleaning it out the best I could. It's been like this for a couple days now."

Dad's head snaps up. "Days? When did this happen exactly?"

"Three days ago." I can feel I'm shrinking in on myself. "I didn't think it would get this bad."

Dad grabs the roll of bandages on the bed and starts rewrapping my leg. "We're going to Stlyl's immediately. He'll be able to see if he can heal this."

A wave of panic crashes down. "We can't."

"You don't get a choice in this." Dad's voice is rough. "This is not looking good. Grab a change of clothes just in case, and something to keep your mind occupied." He stands. "You have five minutes."

[talentedtrait]

isn’t it so cute how we all have the same game but we have different sim styles and stories and different saves but it’s all from the same material

[thxnks4themrms]

This is where I post from and you guys are always invited 😁😁😁

[tinyglade-bits]

🪻 Daily Theme: Hermit Hut. A sort of combination between a micro-castle and a trullo pugliese. Do you know what's a trullo?

🦆 Follow me on Instagram

[soundcrusher]

Me: *reads somewhere that Sephiroth's 30* Me: "Heh... funny." My Brain: "Reeve's 35 years old." Me: "... You know what would be funny?"

Either way, that's how this little drabble came to be.

Short Summary: What if Sephiroth and Reeve met when they were both young and working at Shinra?

Animals are kind creatures, if you treat them with respect and a careful hand. Something Sephiroth learned during his time in Rhadore when meeting Rosen’s dog for the first time. 

He was never judged by the dog, nor did it ever force him to be something he didn’t not feel like. Instead, it accepted him as just another kid, and even when Rhadore was destroyed alongside its people, the dog still was kind to him. Even as Hojo made him kill it, after keeping it a secret from him for a few days. 

The dog even looked at him, as if it knew that its death wasn’t fully his fault. That this was the only way, and it was okay. It was okay for Sephiroth to kill it, but still. The death was still on his hands, and so, the young soldier refused to interact with animals again. Mostly because he didn’t want to be responsible for another animal's death, nor did he want Hojo to get any ideas about including innocent creatures in his experiments. After all, monsters were one thing, dogs, cats, and other pets were another. 

So, it came as quite a surprise when Sephiroth entered an empty office and found a small, black and white cat stacking chairs to try and attempt to climb back into the vent it obviously fell out. 

And when the stack fell and the cat subsequently with it, Sephiroth quickly rushed over to help it up. Picking up the small thing and getting quite surprised by the cartoonish proportions, together with the cruelty made cape, gloves, and crown. 

The cat, perhaps a toy, looked like the creation of a child itself. Or, at least its clothes looked like it. Its body, face, and fur looked well crafted. Perhaps it was a prototype of something that hasn’t come out yet? Then again, why would a prototype run around freely? Or, maybe, the cat was one of Hojo’s newest creations, sent to on an errant no-one knew about, and it fell out of the vent while trying to return to the science floor. Then again, this office wasn’t anywhere near close to the science floor. In fact, they were closer to the Urban Development floor, than anywhere near Hojo’s domain. 

“Aye, laddy, if it’s no’ too much tae ask. Wuid ye let me go?”

The cat spoke, and it left Sephiroth look as bewildered as he felt, because, why would a cat that’s clearly not a cat, be able to speak? And in such a funny way too? It didn’t make any sense, and at the same time ruled Hojo’s involvement completely out. 

��Laddy?” Asked the cat, as it tilted its head to the side. Somehow managing to look concerned for him, despite its tightly shut eyes and lack of any human facial structures. Then again, the ears and mouth of the cat were quite expressive. 

“I… am sorry.” Was the first thing that came to the young soldier's mind, before carefully sitting the cat down on the table. “I didn’t expect you to speak.”

“Ye’re no’ tae first.” Chirped the cat happily, while raising its big gloved hands up slightly and shaking its head. “Then again, no’ many see me. So, ye’re the first tae meet me, laddy.” The cat quickly jumped up. Which caused Sephiroth to reach for the sword that should have been on his back, if it wasn’t for the fact that Shinra forbid him from being armed inside their building. A rule the teenager didn’t understand, considering a state of emergency could always happen. Then again, the cat didn’t look like a threat. Not with how it raised its paws, maybe hands, in a placating gesture. Quickly shaking its head and telling Sephiroth that it didn’t mean to startle him. It just wanted to get going, because it didn’t want to get caught. 

A sentiment Sephiroth understood all too well. 

But this was Shinra, and no matter what, someone will find out about where you went or what you’ve done. And in a pout of childish rebellion, as Hojo would call it, Sephiroth let the cat go. He even helped it back up into the vent, before cleaning up the office and leaving for his next assignment. Expecting to never see the cat again, or, at the very least, hear that it was caught and destroyed to ensure no-one would ever find out that the building was infiltrated by a toy. 

So, Sephiroth was very surprised when he saw the cat again. Sitting in the corner of the elevator he was supposed to use to get to the lower floors, as if no-one would suspect a thing. It was strange, to say the least. Especially with how unresponsive the cat was. Slumped over, as if all energy has left it. 

 It was concerning, but at the same time, Sephiroth tried no to think about it that much as he selected the correct floor. Eyes ever so often darting over to the small thing, until it decided to finally move again. But it never did. The cat that, so far, has been the only nice thing in this place, wasn’t responding when he softly poked its pink nose, nor when he carefully played with its paws. It didn’t even flinch, when he re-tied its scarf. No, but it did start when Sephiroth accidentally pulled on its ear. 

And so, the teenager did it again. Moving quickly backwards, as the cat jumped up. Claws extending out of the soft gloves, before quickly retracting at the sight of the frightened youth. Not that Sephiroth would ever admit to being frightened by a small toy. 

“Ay, laddy! Why wuid ye do ‘at?!” Shouted the cat angrily, while stomping one of its feets in frustration, perhaps? Or, maybe, the cat was disgruntled from being woken up from its nap?

“I am… sorry mister cat… I just… I was worried.” Hojo would have admonished him for even thinking about feeling worried for a simple, insignificant, toy. But Hojo wasn’t here right now. The cat was. And the cat seemed to calm down at the sight of the silver haired boy’s open expression. 

“Ye’re just like… Well! Ye dae look like a lot’s on yer mind. Wanna talk about it?”

It was a kind offer, all things considered, but then again, Sephiroth didn’t know how to feel about it. On one hand, he wanted to talk about somethings, especially Rhadore, but then again, how would the cat react to him spilling some truths? Maybe it was all a test and it would report back to Hojo, or, it wasn’t. 

But what was worse? The cat being a spy for his ‘father’, or it deciding to leave him, the second it knew just what kind of monster he was?

However, before Sephiroth could give his answer, the door to the elevator opened, and a boy older than him stepped in. Dark brown hair that was previously slicked back, but now disheveled, falling into tired brown eyes, while he clutched a document folder to his chest. Mumbling something about a missing cat, before looking over at where Sephiroth was kneeling down to better talk to the cat. 

At first, the older boy’s expression didn’t change much. His eyes looked just as tired as they did before, but the second they landed on the cat, the boy’s face lit up brighter than Midgar’s neon lights. And with a happy shout of “Cait!”, the boy dropped his folder in favor of scooping up the toy cat. Squeezing it tightly to his chest, as if he was scared it would disappear again. 

“Where were ye?! I was so worried!” Sobbed the boy, and Sephiroth found himself in an awkward position. How was he supposed to react, when the cat he thought didn’t belong to anyone, belonged to another boy? It was obviously his toy, from the way the brunette clung to it like a lifeline, and from how the cat patted the boy’s back. 

“I was jus’ looking around. An’ found a friend.”

The boy looked over at that. And all he found was the wide eyes of Sephiroth staring into his own bright ones. Never once had someone called him a friend, and even if they did, they soon enough left him. It was something that would surely happen this time around too. The boy would take Cait. He would take him, and never let them see each other again. 

He would lose a friend, without even getting the chance of becoming friends in the first place. It's unfair, but Sephiroth shouldn’t have expected anything else. And yet, he really wanted this time to be different. He wanted to make a friend, and be allowed to keep them. Even if they were nothing more than a robot cat toy. 

“Thank ye fo’ finding Cait.” 

“What?”

“A-ah… I said… Thank you for finding Cait…” 

Did Sephiroth say something wrong? Why was the boy looking so lost all of a sudden? Was it because he asked ‘What’? Should he have said something different? He should have said something different, he knew it, but at the time, Sephiroth was just too surprised at being thanked that he couldn’t think of something else to say. People don’t usually thank him, especially for things that are as mundane as finding a lost toy. Even if said toy was clearly more advanced than most. 

No, most would be condescending at most, but the other boy didn’t look like that at all. On the contrary, he cried when finding Cait, looked over at Sephiroth, as if he had never seen a fellow child, and then proceeded to thank him for doing the bare minimum. 

This boy didn’t act like any of the adults, and Sephiroth found himself liking his new acquaintance for that. 

But instead of telling the boy that, Sephiroth asked the boy why he repeated his thanks, to which the boy let out one long sigh, before telling him how people think less of him for using his accent. “I’ve been training to speak like everyone else, instead of how my parents and Cait do. It’s… been hard, but! People started to treat me nicer! So, it’s a win!”

The boy sounded so hopeful, and Sephiroth couldn’t help to wonder how unfair it was for the boy to not be allowed to speak in his natural accent. It sounded nice, even if it was a little strange. And he told him so, which caused the boy to blush and hide his face behind Cait’s body. 

“Ye’re jus’... just… You’re just saying that to be nice!” Muttered the boy. 

“I’m not.” Responded Sephiroth, before looking over at the floor display. He’ll have to get off soon. Or, perhaps, he could stay longer on the elevator with the boy and Cait? There was nowhere he had to be, and Hojo’s tests weren’t starting anytime soon. Sephiroth could stay with the boy for a little while longer, and so, he did. 

They moved past his stop and left the elevator at the older boy’s stop. And with nothing better to do, Sephiroth followed him all the way to the office of the Director of Urban Development -Reeve Tuesti, if he wasn’t mistaken-, and watched his new friend drop off the folder, before showing him around the floor. 

It was nice to just listen to the boy ramble about the things his co-workers did, and how their office was often full of chatter and the occasional drama, when someone misplaced a pen, or when someone decided to pull a prank on someone else. And when time for lunch came, the boy grabbed Sephiroth’s hand and pulled him towards the canteen. Smiling brightly, as he yet again got to show off more and more of the Shinra building. But when asked if the boy had seen every floor, he grew quiet. Muttering a few things in between the small bites he took of his sandwich, before admitting that he always tries to not go anywhere near the science floor. 

“Hojo scares me…” Admitted the boy, after finishing his orange juice. “He… I don’t want to be near him. And I don’t want him to be near Cait either…”

“Why?”

The boy was quiet for a moment. Looking at Sephiroths with uncertainty in his eyes, before scooting closer to him with his chair. Making sure that no-one was looking in their direction, or paying attention to them. “I can bring things to life.” Whispered the boy quietly. Eyes focused on Sephiroth, as he tried to decipher the confused look on the silver haired boy’s face. “I… don’t know how. But I can make toys move and act on their own…” He continued, but stopped when Sephiroth failed to give an answer, or say something in response. 

And how could he? Bringing things to life sounded like something straight out of a fairytale, and yet, the boy didn’t look like someone who would, or could, lie. So, Sephiroth decided to believe him, and to not tell Hojo anything. What he doesn’t know, could never interest him after all. Also, Sephiroth didn’t want to lose a possible new friend. So, he promised the boy to keep his secret. To which the boy smiled in relief and continued to tell him about other mundane things that happened around the Shinra building. Only getting up, when someone in a suit walked over to inform his new friend that he was needed. To which the brunette let out a sigh and got up. Smiling at Sephiroth, while picking up Cait and thanking him for finding his toy. 

It wasn’t until later that the young soldier found out that his friend’s name was Reeve. 

Reeve Tuesti, Director of Urban Development, and youngest board member.