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The Clean-up

The next morning dawned miserably cold in Magnolia Promenade, but most of the Malone family simply didn't care. It was a Sunday, and nobody was doing anything but helping clean up their new "Junk House". The first moment walking in was a shock to all the kids, but with the dumpy apartment they lived in... let's just say the shock disappeared quickly.

Bennie's first priority was putting traps in all the mouse holes and marking them for the pest company who was fumigating tomorrow. He had also contracted a junk company who was going to get rid of the junk in the yard to make it safe(r) for the kids.

As the day went on, the mice realized that this house was under siege and stopped coming out of their holes, which made everyone happy. Each pile of trash or dirt that was picked up, and each bit of graffiti scrubbed off the walls seemed to make a huge difference.

Little by little, a ray of hope started shining through. Maybe there WAS a house under all this mess. At least, until you walked into the next room.

There was no chatting, and barely any noise at all except the rattle of things being picked up and trash bags being opened. Then Marnie pulled out the vacuum. And for once, it worked.

Myles, of course, was wearing his scout uniform, because he had scouts later, and was going to take the bus there and back.

Nobody was looking forward to having one less pair of hands for a while, though.

Even Bennie was pitching in. He was doing a lot of the heavy work (like getting rid of the clearly defunct appliances in the kitchen and basement), but he even figured out how to run a vacuum for the "attack" on the master bedroom.

After Myles left, the kids took a picnic break in the newly cleaned dining room, while Marnie went to work on the kitchen counters. She found, much to her surprise, that they weren't in as bad a shape as they thought they were.

In Magnolia Promenade, far from all the work (and away from harm) was Benji and the twins. After spending the morning cooped up in the house, he finally had had enough. He bundled them up as tight as he could.. and headed out to the park across the street.

Playing in the snow.. has no age limits, apparently. The twins were tossing snow everywhere, and Benji was trying his.. hand? .. at making a couple snow angels.

Benji quickly talked little Brett into making a Snowpal, and he immediately showed how much toddlers like snow with this beatific smile.

Pulling a triceratops out of his pocket, Braydon occupied himself without any concern for the strange mound of snow not ten feet from him.

Slowly, the snowpal started to actually take shape, although I don't think Brett had any hand in that part.

It was the perfect day. For a toddler, at least.

Even Benji seemed to be having a good time. They did start to get pretty cold, though, so before too much longer, he trundled the twins back inside.

Back in Oasis Springs, the upstairs had been cleaned, and the assault on the basement was in full swing.

Myles (who, being a scout!), was thinking ahead, and had brought a couple new boxes of trash bags with him when he came back from scouts, which were definitely coming in handy already.

Jaz was still disgusted with each new room, and wasn't afraid to show it.

However, she wasn't afraid to pitch in, knowing that somewhere in this mess was a room just for her. The boys would be sharing a room, as would the twins, but she was going to get a room to herself. She wasn't sure why she was the only one who didn't have to share a room, but she wasn't about to turn it down.

Back at the apartment, Benji had come up with a great idea.

...Because he had to show Shaylee something.... he invited her over.

He greeted her with a kiss on the cheek.. and then turned around and pointed.

"Look.. it's gone. Nobody's noticed! And my new bank account is sixty five hundred richer!" he crowed.

Laughing evilly, she practically jumped into his arms in excitement. "So it's happening, huh? We're really moving to San Myshuno??"

"You bet!" he exclaimed, and kissed her quickly, before mentioning he was in charge of two toddlers he had left alone in the apartment.

Shocked he'd left them, Shaylee hurried upstairs to meet Braydon and Brett.

Braydon was more than happy to say hello to someone new....

... While Brett was a bit shyer.

Hearing water running where it shouldn't be, Benji went into the store bathroom, only to find the toilet shooting water everywhere. In disgust.... he found a wrench and a plunger and went to work. He knew how to fix it thanks to his mother, but he absolutely hated fixing anything, so he wasn't enjoying himself.

Shaylee, however, was having a blast. She'd always loved kids.. and two little gems like Brett and Braydon (who were on their best behavior) seemed like the best sort of afternoon to her.

Brett and Braydon showed her how to turn on the music, and she filtered through some channels before settling on one she liked.

By the time Benji got back upstairs, the three were definitely good friends.

Brett, however, needed to go potty, and Braydon just HAD to show Shaylee his block skill.

Back at "Junk House"..

.. Myles decided that the utility room needed cleaning next, and after getting rid of the cobwebs, he started cleaning the floor.

The second bedroom was nearly clean, too, including the closet.

Marnie was working on the floor in the main room, and Bennie had gotten rid of that old stove. Things were nearly done.

Shaylee had left, but Brett wasn't done with the music yet.

Benji showed his little brother some moves, but then I got this pop-up...

... And quickly changed the music for poor Benji. I mean, he was really being fairly good.. for Benji.

He had even managed to put together a salad for himself and the twins for dinner.

Then, he scrounged up a toddler book and read both a story as they fell asleep.

Benji, then, wisely, got rid of the nasty salad and headed to the living room to play some MySims Racing online with friends. On a whim, he entered a tournament.. and came out 100 simoleons richer!

Things were winding down for the night in Oasis Springs.

Bennie was fixing the sink in the basement bathroom...

And everyone had decided for Jaz that the pink room was to be hers. She wasn't sure why nobody else wanted it.. but she wasn't going to complain. Having her own room was still a luxury she wasn't 100% sure how she had gotten.

The last thing of the night was mopping the mess that Bennie had left behind.. and the house was ready for the pest and junk companies the next day. They wouldn't be allowed back for 24 hours after the pest company.. which was cutting their move in time really close.. but at least the house would be as clean and pest free as possible when they showed up in two days with their furniture.

The bus ride back to Magnolia Promenade was virtually silent, because it was nearly 1 AM and everyone was thoroughly wiped out.

Arriving home, they all tried to stifle the yawns and stumbled up the stairs to go to bed. The missing suit of armor was completely missed.

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