The second interlude of The Absolutely Crazy Matriarchy

1. Welcome to Another Absolutely Crazy Interruption, starring everyone's favourite antagonist, Stella Chandler. Once upon a time, there was an evil witch named Stella. She was thrown into prison for trying to kill her cousin and take over Veronaville.

2. Joining Stella in prison was John Smith, the caretaker, whom Stella was required to cook and clean for. John was in charge of the garden, the bills and anything that Stella was unable to do as a prisoner, such as grocery shopping. The two hated each other on sight.

3. Stella was forced to take the cure for being a witch - prison authorities feared that she would use her magic to escape. Stella was not pleased about this.

4. However, she reverted to her nonmagical self and resigned herself to her fate of attending to a man whom she hated.

5. However, hate often leads to stronger emotions. John fell for Stella; Stella decided that John would be a useful tool in her revenge.

6. When John proposed to Stella, she accepted. Her dreams of legacy fame were over, but she had other plans.

7. The wedding was necessarily secret - John doubted that his employer would be pleased that he had wed a convicted attempted murderer. Stella didn't care - she wanted to proceed with what she termed "Plan G", and John had refused that particular step without marriage.

8. It didn't take her long to begin.

9. John was surprised when Stella began showing. Stella wasn't - it was, after all, what she had been hoping for.

10. Eventually, Stella's pregnancy could no longer be hidden. John's employer wasn't pleased, but couldn't do much about it. John pleaded with his employer to allow him to raise the child; eventually, he was given permission.

11. John was not around when Stella went into labour. She didn't particularly want him to be.

12. She gave birth to a baby girl, much to her delight. The baby had none of her mother's alien appearance, which was all the better for Stella's plan.

13. Baby Veronica slept soundly the first night, unaware of the destiny her mother had planned for her.

14. Stella was involved in a chemical accident when Veronica was growing up, turning her into a Plant Sim.

15. Stella resisted efforts to turn her back - after all, she was still green, and now no longer required sleep or food to survive.

16. Time passed, and Veronica grew into an... interesting child. Stella didn't care about her daughter's looks. The plan involved a radical change of Veronica's appearance anyway - how she looked now was unimportant.

17. Stella taught Veronica everything - how to walk, how to talk. She taught her how to lie, how to cheat, and how to take revenge. Veronica lapped it all up. She was her mother's daughter.

18. Time kept passing, and Veronica became a child with a burning desire to avenge her mother's imprisonment, and to take the Legacy for herself.

19. Veronica eagerly studied the path to her revenge - she became accomplished in languages, assassination techniques, several different martial arts, explosives and poisons. She also readily understood the theory behind magic that her mother taught her, though without being a witch herself, the practical side was a tad tricky to master.

20. Stella was there the whole way, encouraging her daughter's malice and hatred. Veronica learned eagerly - she was still her mother's daughter.

21. Her father tried to intervene, but Veronica had a way of acting as though her father's words had sunk in. In actual fact, Veronica despised her 'weak' father and planned to annihilate him as soon as she was finished with the Chandlers. Stella had no objections - she cared nothing for John, her hated jailor.

22. Stella, in her bored confinement, became skilled in many fields such as gardening and robotics. She ensured that her daughter had adequate nutrition for growth, and even created a Servo to care for Veronica as she grew. Stella, as a joke, named him Byte.

23. Eventually, Veronica's birthday rolled around. Stella was alive with glee. Her daughter could at last begin to implement the final stages of Plan G.

24. Veronica knew that she was no masterpiece, but she didn't particularly care. She knew that part of Plan G was to radically change her looks and make her beautiful, and the feminine part of her buried deep below the surface rejoiced at the chance to be pretty. She grew up with her mother's thirst for knowledge, in addition to the decades-old grudge.

25. Stella presented Veronica with all she would need for Plan G - a home plastic surgery kit, a Servo for when she had the legacy in her grasp, and the phone number of a mystery 'someone' whom Stella claimed would help the cause.

26. When the prison authorities decided to allow her to continue her education, Veronica eagerly phoned for a taxi to Sim State University. She knew that the Chandlers would be headed there soon enough, because the Greek House was there.

27. Without a backwards glance, even to her mother, Veronica got into the taxi and left forever.

28. Veronica got to college, and checked into a cheap dormitory on campus. The where didn't matter yet. Veronica, under the name Vanessa May Jones, would get herself into Annya-Nagard-Cham House soon enough. What mattered now was her transformation from ugly duckling into bird of prey.

29. Eagerly Veronica, now Vanessa, configured the machine. She planned to take on the role of a 'face one' townie perfect for placeholder status. With a bit of tinkering and some adjustment, the machine was ready. Veronica placed her face into the machine, and her metamorphosis began.

30. Veronica didn't recognise herself. She had transformed herself into a vapid, bubbly blonde of the personality that Veronica despised. She no longer looked like either of her parents in the slightest, barring her brown eyes, which, unlike green skin and black eyes, were common among Sims. Vanessa smiled slightly at her unfamiliar reflection, and went about the business of revenge. ___________________________________________________________________________________ That's it for this interruption. Join us next time for the last of the Chandlers' childhoods, and their arrival at college!