Color My World Behind the Scenes #2

So, I know you're all excited for the next generation of Color My World. I thought this would be a good opportunity to let you know that the story will be returning in exactly one week from now, on October 6th. The reason for bringing it back on that Tuesday instead of Monday is that October 6th is actually the one year anniversary of CMW! I thought waiting that extra day and starting the tale back up on the same day it all began would be a great way to celebrate the occasion. Updates would still remain on Mondays following that.

In order to help tide you over for these seven days, I am releasing the second half of the Behind the Scenes content I have for the first generation. As always, this content contains randoms things I noticed or thought about the game while taking pictures, how certain shots are set up, and how difficult it can be to get these digital people to cooperate. Enjoy!

You have to wonder about these Sims and their anatomy/bodily strength sometimes. I feel as if I would break my neck trying to lift my head like that. 

The History of the Elves

The History of the Elves

by Wesley Bales

Mrs. Dawson's 11th Grade AP Pre-United History Class

The origin of both humans and elves is shrouded in mystery. Modern day science has theorized that humans have evolved from an ape-like ancestor millions of years ago. While it is true that archeological evidence has backed the reality that more intelligent and "human-like" apes used to roam the eastern continents, there is much to be questioned about the fact that a gap of over a million years separates those finds from the remains of current day humans. If evolution is at play, how come there is no support to show how we emerged from what was ultimately a common animal? How is it possible to go from apes to humans so abruptly? This question has led many to turn their thoughts to the existence of a god simply placing our race on the world.

Or, I should say it is a goddess some believe to have created the world and its inhabitants. The idea that the omnipotent creator is of womanly form stems from our ancient communication with the elves, for a goddess is what they believe in even to this day. If we say we know little about how we came to be, then it can easily be said that we know nothing about how the elves appeared on this planet. No archeological evidence gives any inclination that the elves evolved from a mere animal. The elves have simply existed in the form in which they have always existed. That they possess the desperately sought after gift of immortality only strengthens the argument of many that the realization of both races stems from the power of an otherworldly being. Perhaps humans once had the full answers to "why" and "how" in the days of our infancy. However, any surety that was gained was lost once the breaking of the peace between the elves and humans began.

Ellothiel's Outfits

Ellothiel didn't change her appearance much compared to some other challenges out there, but she has enough different looks for them to be worth mentioning. Below you'll find what I consider to be her "main" looks, which exclude things like her maternity wear. The only outfit not included is her original outerwear because I could not find the CC for it. The links for the majority of the clothing shown here can be found in the Downloads tab.

Feel free to share which Ellothiel is your favorite :D

Dress 1 --- Sleepwear --- Swimwear

Dress 2 --- Mourning Dress --- Dress 3

Dress 4 --- Vacation Outfit 1 --- Formal Dress

Dress 5 --- Hospital Wear --- Dress 6

Vacation Outfit 2 --- Wedding Dress --- Young Ellothiel

Two Futures

I woke up during the middle of the night. It hardly surprised me seeing as I hadn't slept a full night through in years. At first, it had been because of the crying. There was still the occasional crying, but mostly it was now habit that kept me jumping in and out of consciousness. I actually didn't mind the disturbances. For so long now I had felt at peace and didn't need much sleep to feel rested. Being able to lie there and enjoy the calm of the silent night was a nice thing to look forward too as well. How could I complain about having Laril snuggled up against me as he slept on? I was rather annoyed when he went ahead and moved back onto his own side. Laril was an active sleeper. He rarely stayed in one spot for long.

Which One? #4 FINAL

It was a peculiar little family Ellothiel, Wesley, and Laril were making. The five of them were all happy though, and they were much better at taking care of themselves than some other Sims I've left alone on free will.

Which One? #3

Though Wesley and Laril had become friends, they naturally still did always have to try to one-up the other. Laril decided to try his hand at painting by creating the exact same painting Wesley made on his first attempt. Unfortunately for him, his heart was priced one simoleon less than Wesley's. That didn't say much though given that Wesley's was only priced for 3 simoleons.

Which One? #2

Wesley was the lucky duck who managed to slip inside the room to get the honor of the first woohoo. Seeing as how woohoos are controlled more by the mods I have installed than by the actual Sims themselves, I didn't use woohoos to determine Ellothiel's preference. Instead, I used her romantic wishes to guide me in determining what (or, in this case, who) she wanted. At this point in time, Ellothiel had equal desire for both men.

Which One?

I just had to make this kind of save at some point.

Laril will be the one I will always choose for Ellothiel due to him being her "canon" love. However, I really wanted to know who Sim Ellothiel would pick when she had the choice between Wesley or Laril. That led me to putting the three of them together in a household in Dragon Valley and giving up control of them entirely to see what the results would be.

The End

~Eloril~

I was able to remain oblivious to the commotion for a little while. After finally getting the opportunity to raise two of my own children, who could be very delightful, zoning in an out at the appropriate moments had been a skill I had quickly picked up. Letting my mind wander was even easier to accomplish considering the fact that I was also rather tired. I lazily flipped to the next page in my book. The words were barely sinking in, but the half-hearted skimming I was doing was a much needed distraction. If only it had been a strong enough distraction. The commotion got so much louder that I couldn't ignore it any longer.

Peace

It was a confusing several weeks until Eloril and Erien's wedding. Ceremonies generally took place near the groom's home, but Erien's parents put up a fight for a while to have it take place in the northern lands instead. They argued the exception could be made seeing as how they and Erien would live separately afterwards. Tradition had it that they would move in with our family, but Taragond and Milui were going to continue being advisers to the northern leaders. They couldn't do that if they moved to the east. Everyone was fine with delaying the ceremony so we could travel to Erien's home- save for nana and Erien herself. Nana had been frustrated since she was the one in charge of making most of the arraignments. All of her hard work would have been thrown out the window. Erien simply didn't want to have to bother with the traveling. It was naturally her opinion which swayed her parents' hearts. We went ahead with nana's plans.

As nana's plans were incredibly traditional, the ceremony was thrown at the common grounds. There was little to do in terms of setting anything up seeing as how the emphasis of the event was on the bride and groom and not the decor. Guests were welcomed and greeted for the first hour after things started off in the later part of afternoon. Once everyone had been acknowledged, the proper ceremony began. Ada, nana, Taragond, and Milui said a few words before Eloril and Erien exchanged vows and rings.

Answers

"She wouldn't say anything other than that she was able to talk to someone who gave her the encouragement she needed to find enough meaning to want to keep living." - Eloril, Compromise.

"I asked him why he always shows up like this- now and when he came before to reach me when I was at my lowest point." - Ellothiel, One Special Day.

___________________________________________________________________________________

Revelations

Being back was the strangest thing. As cliched as it is to say it, so much of what I was experiencing felt like a dream. Being in Sunset Valley again was half of the reason why I felt like that, of course. Then there was the other half that was me having a hard time accepting that the past several days had actually happened. My proposal had been up in the air for months now. Ada, naturally, had given my idea instant approval. The leader of the southern land had come around quickly as well. The leaders of the northern and western lands had been the stubborn ones. I had convinced Erien to convince her father to convince the northern leaders, so there was that. The rest of my efforts went into making appeals to those in the west. Because they were the furthest away from the humans geographically, they had the least amount of interest in interacting with them again due to that great distance.

When Anoriand, the son of those leaders, suddenly spoke up and said he wanted to participate in the first trip, the whole thing switched around rather rapidly. That had occurred at the end of summer. The last few weeks had been preparing all the technicalities and paperwork for our visit. Due to Pemir's words that first time I consulted with him about the idea, I made sure that ada made sure to provide plenty of protection for our group. It was only Pemir and I who knew that government officials were dressed up as normal citizens to act as our secret bodyguards while we were in town. They were so good at blending in that even I forgot they were there. I was free to stand and stare without being disturbed to my heart's content.

A Proposal

It was an odd thing. Not too long ago the park where festivals and parties were held had been full of people. Now there were only a scarce few remaining. It was to be expected for a early afternoon celebration. They did not usually hold the grandeur of the parties that began around supper and lasted until the next morning. An all night celebration had been what ada had been planning, but my stubborn insistence that I would not attend such an occasion frustrated him to the point where he agreed to move my welcoming-back event earlier in the day. It was the lone way he was able to get me to come. One could otherwise not throw a party if the one it was for did not show up. The result didn't make ada happy, but I was satisfied. My people had thankfully realized that my mood was not particularly cheerful. I was welcomed by all, but everyone was content to leave me be for the most part. Some did strike up a conversation. I began conversations as well. However, the fear I had that I would face more insensitive words became something I didn't have to fear at all. It was true that many of the party-goers expressed their thoughts of me surely being glad the order was over, but that was the extent of what I had to handle.

Most of the discomfort that was experienced was a result of the still awkward air between Galith and I. I had sought her out that morning to reconfirm that I wasn't upset. She had asked to be forgiven, and I had forgiven her. It was when she acted as if that had never taken place when I did begin to grow somewhat upset. In truth, I had already moved on past the whole issue. Galith's comment had hardly been the first inappropriate thing that had ever been spoken to me in my life. It was more frustrating to have her linger on the matter than the actual matter had been. I had hoped to speak more about it to her, but with her and Rendion being the two in charge of providing music for the party there was not a moment to talk.

Home

I felt both nervous and calm as I stood there. My body was certainly hesitant. It was frozen like a statue.  My mind and heart, however, well, perhaps I was panicking so much that my heart was racing so fast that the constant hum was the source of the otherwise empty feeling within my chest. Whatever was going on with me, I actually didn't want it to stop. That morning had been the first morning in weeks where I hadn't woken up sobbing. It was the first time since my life utterly fell part where I felt relatively sane. The sight of what was before me was causing a state of surrealism that was blocking out the heartbreak that had been plaguing my existence.

Completed

Lemerion was glad to be getting out of the house. Spring had decided to go out with all the force of a typhoon. The roaring winds were just as endless as the rain. Flood warnings came almost every day. The farmers were beginning to worry that all of their crops would be absolutely ruined. Thankfully, nature's wrath ended when summer began. The black stormy days gave way to bright blue skies with white, wispy clouds. The heat remained at just the right temperature as well. For someone who loved the heat like Lemerion, the change was a most welcome one.

100

I don't know how I managed to function over the next several weeks. Mustering up the courage to call Mr. Finley back that one evening had been a nightmare. Blessedly, he had been understanding even though he rightfully remained displeased with my behavior. I promised him such a situation would never occur again- whenever the moment came for us to try once more did occur again. I began to think that that moment would never actually arrive. The truth is that I was barely keeping my head above the surface of the bottomless pool of depression in which I was currently treading. It was just when I was starting to get a grip after Ranna's death when more bad news came. Alcarien had passed away too. Then it felt like the next day Aewen was also gone. Delerith followed shortly after. It seemed to me as if time had decided to stand entirely still, but in reality it was moving so much faster than I wanted to admit. I started to hate answering the phone. I know the children hated to hear it ringing.

Desperation

It was strange having Eloril back after having him gone for a while. I hadn't realized when I sent my family away just how much I would miss them- even though I continued to believe my choice had been the best one. To have my brother back was incredibly comforting. Eloril's presence gave me the boost I so desperately needed in order to be able to go back to being on my own until his next visit. I was glad nana had been persistent about him still coming around. I had come to think that I knew pretty much all the answers and paths a situations could have, but in this case I was shown that there was still some thing about which nana knew best.

The one downer about Eloril's trip happened when we took a walk alongside the river. He had suggested we go closer to the water. I believed he merely wanted to enjoy the sounds of the quiet current, but the truth was that Eloril wanted to talk to me in an area more secluded. It was then that Eloril revealed to me how ada continued to be highly upset with me over me having banned him from visiting. Apparently, he had made a stance of not writing letters to me and not opening the letters I sent him in an attempt to persuade me to change my mind. As much as his decision hurt me, I knew they were because I had hurt him. However, I was adamant about not revoking my decision. I let Eloril know that. He had already figured that would be the case, and so he told me not to worry. He, nana, and I all understood it was impossible for ada to stay mad at me for long. We reasoned he wouldn't last a month before the guilt of ignoring his little Calenmir got to him and he was the one changing his mind.

Planning

I'm sure ada thought he was helping me to feel better. I had let him know when he came visiting again that I was pregnant. That had led way to him bringing up that it might be wise to discuss basic plans about me returning home. Ada came into my room while I was taking a break from writing to have that discussion with me. Technically, I would still not be home for a long while since I would never dare to leave before that moment when my last child had passed on, but he was still bringing up all sorts of things. He thought it would be best if nana and Abrien came home a little before me. That way they could get them set up before they had to stress about preparing for my homecoming. Ada understood I would rather not have any big sort of celebration. However, there at least had to be one night of feasting. That I would have completed an order from the Goddess would be no small thing. Then he backtracked to suggest ideas of how all the items I wanted to bring me with could be transported back. I had left with almost nothing. I was returning with roomfuls of stuff. Ada hadn't been too pleased when I had first mentioned all of the mementos I wanted to keep. I was stubborn though. Knowing I was going to eternally suffer the pain of losing over one hundred children, retaining some of the treasures they cherished was the minimum that should be allowed me.

I let ada ramble on as he continued with his suggestions. I was hardly paying attention for I didn't like making such plans. To think about that particular future wasn't desirable. All he was doing was slamming the harsh reality of what I faced at me over and over again. He spoke so excitedly. I understood ada was looking forward to finally having me home, but it seemed he had forgotten that all of what he mentioned would be taking place when my heart would be the most shattered it would ever be. How could thoughts of a rich feast and night of festivity excite me when I'm sure the last thing I would want to be doing is cheering on the fact that all my children were dead?

Busy

The period of where I didn't want to get up to do anything lasted about a week. I had to thank nana in a away for forcing me to think about how little time Maldor had left. The constant thoughts had prompted me to call him as much as I could before the inevitable happened. That inevitable was bad enough, but what really brought me down was how quickly Naldir had followed. I hadn't even been aware that he had been sick. Apparently, his wife and children hadn't wanted to worry me. None of them expected his illness to take his life so suddenly. But it had. I had lost two sons within a span of several days, and there was little anyone could do to cheer me up. It wasn't as if cheering me up was possible anyway. I wondered if I had ever been truly cheerful since Elrunamir's passing. I might have thought I was happy, but there was that pain always underneath. It was endless and deep, and it only grew more so with each day that sped by. The number of children left to grant me temporary joy was rapidly dwindling while the number of deaths that caused my heartache mounted ever higher.

Reconsidered

There was a constant hum of activity coming from the nursery. Thankfully, Isebrilia had taken to Abrien quickly and had warmed up to her brother sharing her space. She didn't cry when either were in the room anymore, which was a blessing. It was crazy enough in there without her adding to the stress. Nana and I were constantly running in and out trying to take care of the three toddlers while also keeping the house in order. It was a good day indeed when I only had to focus on teaching Cugu as Isebrilia had completed that phase. She was content to sit next to Abrien as they played with the xylophone and peg box.