And Iâm not even here to post something brand new, as I made this top a few months ago, and never shared it. Itâs a simple edit of a top from Outdoor Retreat (you now, the first game pack), to remove some patterns, and give it nicer color options. I think this sweater will the perfect thing to wear in Henford-on-Bagley!Â
That feel weird for me to post CC while in my own game, I have hardly used any for some time now. I donât play much, but when I do, Iâm working on some new families to share with you, so I canât use custom content⌠but I have fun!
I think I should create a smaller Mods folder with only the essential things (Like body hairs, my eyes replacement⌠and maybe a few clothes for the guys as they donât have much!). Itâs nice to have lots of clothes and hairstyles, tons of face details to make your sims more realistic, but itâs sometime a bit overwhelming, especially when you just want to play, without feeling obliged to give a makeover to all the sims you meet!
Anyway, enough rambling, here is the download link !
Download: SimFileShare
My Terms of Use are on this page. If you like this and my other creations, you can also follow me on Twitter!
Aahhha, you asked for more post-Mugen train Rengoku angst? No? Oops--
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Kankagari: The Rengoku family has long had this practice. For the duration of a pregnancy, every seven days the wives will spend two hours gazing at a large flaming torch. This seems to be what causes the men in the family to have flame colored hair.
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If Shinjuro finds you in here, heâll kill you.
You slide the shoji behind you as quickly and quietly as possible. You rush across the nearly empty room, bare feet padding across the tatami floor. The room has a quiet and eerie stillness to it, one that hasnât been disturbed in a long time.
That is, until you.
You rush to the chest at the end of the room to start wreaking havoc.
The chest opens with a pitiful creak. A dust cloud spouts out of the box and you cough, trying to muffle the sound with the sleeve of your kimono.
Before the dust even clears youâre shuffling through the chest.
You would have asked Senjuroâs permission if he was here. But heâs not at the estate right now, and you couldnât imagine facing Shinjuro with the request. Besides, you need to do this now. Shinobu said youâre two weeks in, so youâve already missed a week. Maybe, though, if you start now, it will still workâŚ
It feels wrong to be so disrespectful with her things. A beautiful silk obi sash. A scroll wrapped and sealed. A jade hair comb. All carefully placed in the chest, now pushed aside so you can find what youâre looking for.
You are sure, though, that Ruka will understand.
Shinjuro? Not so muchâ
â and thatâs why your heart skips a beat when the shoji slams open behind you.
âWhat the hell do you think youâre doing?!â
You flinch, but donât turn to him. Youâre almost at the bottom of the chest, and you have to find it.
âDonât you dare disrespect me,â Shinjuro booms, and you hear his heavy footsteps against the mat as he stomps across the room.
Butâ there! Your hand wraps around the smooth polished glass. And that meansâ yes! The stake is next to itâ
Suddenly Shinjuro is hovering over you. He snatches your wrist with a grip so tight you nearly drop what youâve been searching for. He yanks you up by your hands, his eyes burning with fury, his hot breath reeking of sake. He opens his mouth to yell, but his breath hitches when his eyes see what youâve pulled from Rukaâs chest.
A torch in one hand. An hourglass in the other.
The rage that had sharpened his features suddenly dulls into confusion.
âWhat⌠what are you doing?â
You swallow and stare defiantly back at him.
âIâm pregnant,â you say, your voice firm. Itâs the first time you, personally, have incurred Shinjuroâs wrath. But youâre not sorry. You know your husband would have understood, too. âThe child is Kyojuroâs.â
Shinjuroâs grip around your wrists loosens. He blinks.
You take the opportunity to jerk your arms free of his grasp. Your cheeks are burningâ you are being so disrespectful right now.
But you need to do this. Youâd never forgive yourself if you ruined the Kankagari.
Itâs⌠itâs something Kyojuro would have wanted you to do, too.
âI need to begin now,â you say as you stride across the room with as much dignity as you can muster. âMs. Shinobu said I am already two weeks in. I cannot risk losing another week.â
You leave the room and turn the corner around the shoji. As far as you can tell, Shinjuro hasnât moved from the chest to follow you.
â
The flames of the torch dance against the walls of the room. Even when you blink, now, the white spots of the fire twirl and spin against the blacks of your eyes.
Out of your peripheral vision you see the sand in the hourglass has almost finished falling.
Thereâs a knock on the shoji. Senjuro must be home.
You donât answer. You donât want anything to risk you taking your eyes off that flame.
Another rap, and a pause. Then you hear the shoji slide open.
âAh, onÄsan, Iâm sorry,â Senjuro says. âI saw the flame, and thought maybe you had fallen asleep. I didnât want it to burn while you slept.â
You smile at the sweet boy. âItâs alright, Senjuro-kun,â you say, again eyeing the last few grains of sand yet to drop to the bottom half of the hourglass. âIâm almost done.â
Senjuro closes the shoji and steps into the room. âWhat are you doing?â He asks as he sits down beside you, folding his feet under his legs.
âKyojuro watched your mother do this every seven days before you were born,â you explain. You smile at the thought, but bite back the sting behind your eyes. Youâre sure if he was here now, he would be at your side every day, too. âHe told me once that he would try to sit with her while she did it, but would often fall asleep instead.â
You hear Senjuro let out a small gasp. âWait,â he whispers. âThatâs⌠this is the Kankagari, isnât it?â
Finally, the last grain of sand in the hourglass falls. You fall forward, catching your head in your hands, massaging your eyes. The image of the flame is burned in your head. It doesnât stop dancing, now, even with your eyes closed.
Itâll be a long pregnancy.
But as you open your eyes and look to Senjuro, your heart is full.
You smile at him, giving him his answer.
The grin that appears on his face is one that would have rivaled even his brotherâs. And suddenly heâs tackling you in a bear hug. You catch him in your arms, giggling.
âThatâsâ thatâs amazing! Is it really true?â He says into your neck, and you realize heâs crying.
âYes,â you nod, squeezing him, âShinobu confirmed it this morning. Thatâs why I rushed home, to begin the ritual.â
Just as quickly as heâs tackled you, he scrambles away from you. âOh! Iâm so sorry,â he shakes his head and bends down, looking at your stomach. âIsâ are you okay? I hope I didnât hurt himâ itâ you!â
You answer by tackling him back in another hug.
âYouâll be an uncle, Senjuro.â
He laughs and hesitantly hugs you back, scared to hurt you and his brotherâs child.
You wipe your own tears as you squeeze him tighter.
â
âThatâs oddâ it smells like someoneâs cooking.â
You nod in agreement. You and Senjuro walk through the halls of the Rengoku estate, following the smell. Usually itâs you who prepares the foodâ so itâs strange that the smell of salt is wafting through the air.
So strange, in fact, that you and Senjuro can hardly believe your eyes when you slide open the shoji to the dining room and thereâs a whole spread of food lined on the table.
âIâ whatâ whoâ?â Senjuro canât find the words. You canât even find any.
Because, whatâs more, itâs salt grilled bream and sweet potatoes on the table. Kyoâs favorite.
Youâre so shocked by the spread that you donât even notice Shinjuro entering the other side of the room until he sets down another platter of sweet potatoes on the table with a clank.
Neither you nor Senjuro know what to say. Shinjuro sits, pouring himself a glass of sake. You and your little brother-in-law can only stand in the doorway, mouth agape.
The room is silent, save for the sound of the evening bugs outside as they start to sing for the night.
âSenjuroâ Shinjuro finally says after a sip of sake.
He straightens. âYes father?â
âHave you heard? About the baby?â
Senjuro blinks and looks up to you. Then, he answers hesitantly, not sure how to interpret his own fatherâs behavior. âUm. Yes, yes I have. Isnât that such a blessing?â
Shinjuro nods at his son, then at you. Finally, he motions to the food loosely, as if putting together the spread isnât as big a deal as it is. âYouâll need to eat good meals everyday. For the baby.â
You and Senjuro share looks. After a pause, you both sit down at the table with Shinjuro.
Thereâs another moment of silence, but then Senjuro smiles and bows his head.
âItadakimasu, father,â he says. Then, he eyeballs you.
You open your mouth to begin the word of thanks, but the sound gets stuck. Shinjuro sits across from you, his eyes closed as he sips his sake. You bring your hands together to begin the thanks. But it feels wrong.
Senjuroâs puffy eyebrow quirks in confusion at your silence.
Finally you lower yourself to the floor, bending your belly as carefully as you can over your knees, pressing your head into the floor.
âPlease forgive me, otousan,â you say. âI was incredibly disrespectful today to the Rengoku family. I should have asked for your permission before taking the things for the Kankagari. Thank you forââ
âGet up,â Shinjuro orders. Youâre used to being interrupted by him, so you quickly obey. You feel Senjuroâs hand on your knee under the tableâ his way of silently supporting you against his rude father.
But the usual apathy in Shinjuroâs eyes is gone, and instead now he looksâŚ.softer.
âKyojuro wouldnât want you on the floor like that, with the child.â
You bow your head. âYes. Thank you, otousan.â Then, after a pause, you add, âItadakimasu.â
The silence that follows is awkward, but again, different from the normal angry silences that follow Shinjuroâs usual bouts of rage.
âMeshiagare,â Shinjuro says, and begins serving the fish.
You and Senjuro begin eating in tow.
Itâs not a perfect family dinner.
Thereâs not much conversation, and when there is, itâs still awkward. The food isnât necessarily delicious. Shinjuro still drinks far too much sake.
But, you know deep down, somewhere, Kyojuro would be so, incredibly, wonderfully happy at the sight of his family eating together.
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Author's notes: Thank you for reading! This is kind of a sequel to this, but can be read alone too :3
Itadakimasu: Thanking everything involved in the preparation of a meal
Meshiagare: said by a chef or host to show that the food is ready to eat
OnÄsan: big sister, can also be used for sister-in-law as well
Otousan: father, can also be used for father-in-law as well