iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

I'm done after this, I swear. Then I will leave y'all alone until the next update. Just had to enjoy these old photos before I deleted them again. 😂

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I'm not saying you need to have mods to have pretty sims, I'm just saying I can't believe they used to look like that. 😂

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Here's the first appearance of a couple familiar faces! Finnick didn't show up until after Aeterna did, though the character he's with already existed! You won't meet her for a looooong time. And there's Quinn, who is virtually unchanged. 👀

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Aeterna was dreamt up in July 2023, and Alex (still Phaedra, at this point) was originally a knight from a common family. Where'd that storyline end up? 😂

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THE OG Luna and Alex, before I used mods. I've played Sims since it first came out, but I didn't use mods until the middle of 2023. Soooo 𝘢𝘵𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘷𝘦. 😂

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The very first picture ever taken of Luna and Alex. Alex was named Phaedra at this point. 😂

Kate 🌹💖🏳️‍🌈 @aeternalsims.bsky.social · 27/09/2026

I got a new laptop today and it connected me back to my OneDrive, which blessed me with pictures from the OG versions of this story that had been long deleted off my old laptop. Y'all wanna see some horrors? 😂

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"What's the most controversial thing you do in your writing in 2026?" Sometimes I like to acknowledge nuance in my writing. This is a cutesy little story that I write because it fills my cup, but I'm a political writer elsewhere on the internet. Nuance is a hard one to get away with these days.

𝘎𝘰𝘥𝘥𝘦𝘴𝘴, that took all day. I'm splitting this scene up into two parts because I didn't realize how long it got. More fun now that we have a little back story? 👀 As always, excited to hear what you think! 💖 The second part will be posted. Definitely. 😂 #aeternalsims #simstoryteller #simsgameplay

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"You said you would have your work cut out for you." "Right?" Audriel drawled, taking a slow step toward me. "Let us find out… if you would like to get out of the maze before dark!" I shot him one last smile, watched his eyes widen, then took off running.

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𝘎𝘰𝘰𝘥. "How fast can you run?" I purred, biting my lip flirtatiously as I took yet another step away of the pergola. "I beg your pardon?" he asked, raising an eyebrow at me, but I could not help but notice that his voice lowered, and he looked intrigued.

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I turned my lips up in the most perfect, sugary sweet smile I could manage. "You do not know your way out of the maze, I presume?" He stood, cocking his head to one side, preparing himself for something. "I… do not," he said slowly.

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"If what they say about you is true, then I have my work cut out for me." "Your work?" I cooed, taking a step toward the entrance. "I am to be your personal guard, as I understand it," he admitted, narrowing his eyes suspiciously

𝘠𝘰𝘶 𝘸𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘣𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘧𝘪𝘳𝘴𝘵. I wanted to think him pretentious, but his demeanor was so gentle. Perhaps he was someone I should like to know after all. I chewed on my lip to hold back a smile, smoothing my dress as I stood up from the table. "Oh, but most of them are true," I cautioned him.

"𝘕𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨?" I gasped playfully. "I am surprised my court has not talked you to death about me." "I try not to listen to whispers, my lady. I like to come to my own conclusions about people."

Audriel chuckled, shrugging. "That's the gist of it." "Extraordinary storytelling, Audriel. You paint a vivid picture. I enjoyed it, truly," I laughed. He shook his head, smirking, tapping his finger against his arm in feigned annoyance. "Alright, 𝘓𝘶𝘯𝘢, what about you? I know nothing of you."

"Oh, um… that's a story, but the brief version is that a knight needed a squire, and my father is metalsmith, so I was the nearest child that knew anything about a sword." "You just happened to be there, and now you are in Summersong falling into my bushes. That is what you are going with?"

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"I truly cannot be bothered to care, Audriel. My governess concerns herself enough with that for everyone," I said, waving it off. "I only ask because I am curious how you came to be here."

Right, so you are a 𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺 𝘵𝘢𝘭𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘥, 𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘨 tourney knight. I am gathering you are a commoner, as well. I should know you if you were not." "Yes, my lady," he hesitated for a moment. "But I have been around the Winter court since I was young. I am well acquainted with noble etiquette."

"No, that is impressive!" I insisted, covering my mouth to stifle my giggles. I could see his discomfort fading into a casual confidence as he leaned back against the table, a small light finally appearing in his tired eyes.

"I won a tournament," he mumbled, drawing each word out as long as possible as he said them. He rolled his eyes playfully when I laughed out loud. "It was the Winter tournament!" he defended.

"I appreciate the vote of confidence," he joked, sitting up straighter. "Well, I ought to be. You have found your way onto my guard. Do explain to me how that happened." I could see pink return to his cheeks, humming as he ran his hand through his hair.

"Ah, you are a tourney knight. That explains it," I teased. "What does that mean?" he asked wryly. "Your lack of self-preservation skills is 𝘢𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨. I would have thought your survival a miracle had you ever seen combat," I giggled, grinning brightly.

His face lightened at the question, his shoulders relaxing as he touched his face softly. "It's preferable to a hit from a lance, but I can't say I want to repeat it." There it was. Now that I had his attention, I may have been able to get something out of him.

"That is not so, but my heart nearly stopped when you took that fall," I admitted, leaning forward into his line of sight. He straightened up once I caught his eye, as though actually speaking 𝘵𝘰 me had only just occurred to him. "Are you alright? The scratches look painful," I chuckled softly.

"It was warranted. I have more than inconvenienced you," he said absently. Almost automatically. My heart sank at that. I had been too busy scolding him to notice that he needed help, and now he was apologizing to me for needing it at all.

"I beg you, forgive my poor etiquette. I had hoped to make a better impression on the Summer court." "No apology necessary, Sir. If you were speaking to someone else perhaps, but…" I trailed off. "Do forgive me for my severity earlier. I am… out of sorts at the moment."

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That would explain why I had never seen him before, but it explained little else about his presence there in my garden. "What is your name, sir?" "Audriel, my lady," he responded, raising his eyes for a moment to nod politely.

"Are you not from the city, Sir?" "No, my lady. The Stronghold," he answered, his voice low. "I have never had need of lighter clothing." Of course he was a winter knight. They were always ill-prepared, which is why we rarely ever received them.

"This is all you own? Is it your first day here?" I quipped, raising an eyebrow at him. "My fourth," he corrected. He sank back, shrinking as he looked away. It was only then that I noticed the dark circles under his eyes, and the exhaustion in his voice.

"Though I must ask what you were thinking wearing garments like that?" The young knight pulled at the damp flannel shirt that was still clinging to him. "It is all I own, my lady," he said quietly.

He nodded, taking a deep, steady breath before responding. "Better," he said slowly. "Thank you, my lady. I am embarrassed you had to do this." I sighed, finally sitting back myself, crossing my arms. "The heat can be unforgiving."

A small smirk appearing on his lips made me aware that I was staring, and I quickly averted my gaze back to the fabric in my hand, touching it to his skin one last time. "Your color is better," I murmured. "How are you feeling?"

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He was younger than I had even realized, my age or a couple years older, but still far younger a knight than I had ever seen sought for the Rose Guard. His features were sharp, but still kind.

I fumbled with the cloth as I aimlessly brushed it across any skin I could see. I became so intent on it that it took some time for me to notice the boy was watching me. I shot him a half-hearted smile, taking a moment to look at him and check on his color.

The boy hissed between his teeth as I touched the cloth to one of the scratches on his cheek, and I whispered an apology as I wiped the blood and sweat away. "The bushes did not appreciate the intrusion, I am afraid," I added, lightening my voice in the hopes that it would comfort him.

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I dipped the linen into the cool water and touched it to his neck, causing him to jerk away. "Do not fuss!" I huffed, turning his face back toward me.

"I need you to turn around," I said gently. He did not move, so I added, "Sir, you must cool down." He groaned, but cooperated, fighting to stay upright as he turned toward me.

I had hoped the young knight would have improved while I was away, but when I returned, he was still shivering and had only moved to take off his sweater. I sighed as I put the bucket down, quickly tearing a large piece off my linen underskirt to use as a towel, as I had once seen my handmaiden do.

I had to use my entire body weight to get the rope to budge on the old, rusted pulley, but after several minutes, I managed to drag a bucket of cold water up from the bottom of the well.

I ran to spot in the maze where we housed an old well, one that had been there long enough for the stones to begin crumbling, with moss and mushrooms filling in the cracks.

I chewed on my lip while I racked my mind for what to do next, and without any option to get out of it, I did the only thing I could think of.

"Do not stand!" I commanded, hurrying away. I searched the garden for someone better suited to handle him until the midday heat began to have its way with me as well, and I had to accept that I was, somehow, the only other person there. 𝘖𝘧 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘴𝘦.

The true problem was that I had no idea what to do once I got him settled. This kind of foolishness was usually the job of the Healers to deal with, but the maze was a decent walk from the castle, and I was afraid the boy would hurt himself if I left him that long.

Once he was free from the armor, I helped him to his feet, which I immediately regretted. He teetered as he stood, nearly taking me down with him before we got to the table.

His thick gambeson was soaked with sweat, as were his clothes, which were far too heavy for the weather. "𝘋𝘰 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘢 𝘥𝘦𝘢𝘵𝘩𝘸𝘪𝘴𝘩?" I mumble, more to myself than him. Not that it mattered. He was still too out of it to notice.

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He watched his own hands closely, taking deep breaths as he attempted to get the ties undone. My irritation lost its edge watching him struggle. "Let me help you," I sighed, softening my voice.