Sacrifice; A Clare Siobhan Sims 4 One-Shot

Sacrifice

Author's Note: Grab your tissues, 'cause this is about to get sad.

At the time of me starting to write this, I watched the last episode of Sims 4 Stranger Stories last night, and it was so powerful that I knew straight away that I had to write something about it.

I hope you enjoy.

Lilith Villareal knew.

She knew from the way her son had disappeared the last time they'd visited Holly Spicer, and from the copy of the "Book of the Dead" she'd noticed on Holly's kitchen table. Most of all, she knew from the way Sammy's voice had trembled and fallen away when he had told her how much he loved her.

One thing she also knew was that she was not going to let Holly and Sammy do this.

Snow filled Lilith's newly-cut hair as she made her way up to the house. As she walked, she turned her head to the left, and saw the familiar walls of the Villareal mansion rising from behind the trees. A lump rose in her throat, and for a second she thought she was going to break down in tears.

Stop it, Lilith, she chided herself. You can't afford to go to pieces. The more time you waste, the more chance there is that Sammy's already...

Forcing herself to stop thinking like that, she hurried onward, fighting furiously against the blizzard. Surprisingly, the closer she got to her destination, the calmer she became. Her racing heart began to slow, and her shallow breaths became calm and soft. She found herself almost accepting what she knew was coming, what had to happen.

The staircase was hidden behind a neatly cut hedge and a couple of pot plants. Lilith spotted it immediately and hurried down the stairs. What she saw made her pinch herself to check she wasn't dreaming.

Sammy B was sitting in the centre of a circle chalked out on the cobblestone floor. His eyes were closed, and he did not react as Lilith entered the room. Surrounding them were potion bottles, spellbooks and cauldrons galore. Bubbles rose from a series of interesting-looking concoctions around the room, and glowing crystals glared down at them from shelves all around the walls. An archway lead into a second, similar-looking room, where Lilith could just about make out the back of Holly's head and a faint blue glow.

It was so stereotypically witchy that Lilith almost wanted to laugh, but she didn't. She hurried through the archway and into the second room. A blue haze was swirling inside a second circle, identical to the one Sammy sat in in the other room. Behind the swirls, Lilith could see the spirit of Phoenix, floating in the air in the same position as Sammy. Holly had her back to Lilith, and was tipping ingredients from a test tube into her cauldron.

Lilith wanted to shout and scream and show Holly who was boss. But she didn't. Instead, she took a deep breath and said, "One question. Abel."

Holly turned slowly to face her. "He was ready, Lilith. He'd had a turbulent, but essentially good life. I thought it was better to bring new life into the world through him, so that his legacy would live on in them. I gave birth to his third child, his second daughter."

When Lilith stared at her in horror, she sighed. "You don't understand."

"Oh, I understand," Lilith breathed. "You fancied having a second child, so you used my brother and your horrible witchy magic to get one! How dare..."

She stopped at the look on Holly's face. "He loved you," she whispered. "He loved you more than anyone else in the world, and you used him. You could have brought him back to life, but you didn't. You're horrible, and selfish, and..."

Holly was crying now, great fat tears soaking her cheeks. "I gave up years of my life so that that girl could live. You don't get to call me selfish. No one does."

Holly wiped her tears away and sighed. "It was Abel's time to go, Lilith. It wasn't hers. Look at her," she continued, and Lilith looked up at Phoenix, with her closed eyes and black, expressionless face. "She was so young, with such zest and enthusiasm for life. She was a person with big dreams and aspirations, who lost her life so unfairly. Do you-"

"So is Sammy!"

"It's his choice, Lilith. Not yours, and certainly not mine. I don't like it any more than you do, but-"

"So why don't you stop it, Holly? Why can't you let him live his life?"

"I can't," Holly replied miserably. "I'm too far into the spell. If I stop now, we could lose them both." She paused, and the pair made eye contact. "I can delay the spell, but not for long. If you're quick, you might have enough time to say goodbye."

For a moment, they stayed completely still, staring into each other's eyes; glowing amber into mystical pink, and in that moment, they both knew what Lilith was going to do. What she had to do.

"You're an amazing person, Lilith Villareal." Holly said finally. "The world could to do with more brave people like you."

Lilith nodded, not trusting herself to reply. She turned on her heel and headed back into the first room.

"Sammy!" Lilith cried. "Oh, Sammy, look at you!"

Sammy's eyes snapped open and he gasped as he spotted Lilith. "Mum!" he whispered and threw his arms around her neck. "Oh, Mum, I thought I wasn't going to get to say goodbye!"

"It's okay, darling," Lilith whispered into his ear, as though Sammy was still a little baby. "It's okay, I'm here."

They stood still for a moment, entwined in each other's arms, until Lilith spoke once again. "I'm so proud of you, Sammy. So proud." She hesitated, before adding, "Tell me, sweetheart, what did Holly tell you to do?"

"Just sit there, and meditate," Sammy murmured. "Feel my heart beating, feel the throb of life in my veins, and let it go. Let it go to her."

"Okay," Lilith said soothingly, as though she were rocking a child to sleep. "Okay."

With as much strength as she could muster, she pushed her son away from her. "I love you, Sammy."

Lilith lowered herself gently to the floor and sat crossed-legged in the middle of the floor. She'd expected to feel afraid, but instead she felt nothing but a complete and utter sense of calm. She took one last look at her sobbing son, before slowly closing her eyes.

It was as if a fog had descended over Lilith. The sounds of Holly's workshop faded away, until all Lilith could hear was her heart, steadily beating away, not knowing that its beats were numbered. How many left before she slipped away?

She was falling, falling, falling. She thought of Sammy, bright eyed and cheerful, willing to sacrifice himself for the cousin who'd been like a sister. She thought of Phoenix, of hearing her song on the radio and feeling so proud, and of the way she'd pushed and pushed to achieve her goals.

More falling. Lilith focused on the sound of her breathing and heart.

She sensed something brushing against her shoulder, and felt sure that it was the spirit of Phoenix. Halfway there. Her thoughts turned from those she was leaving behind to those she would soon join. Her parents, who'd died inches apart on their bedroom floor, staring into each other's eyes. Her boyfriend, who'd died surrounded by his loved ones. Her brother, who'd died in the place he loved most, with friends and family by his side. Lilith would be with them soon, at peace at last.

Further and further she sank, until at last the fog cleared. Sammy pulled his mother into his arms, and she had just enough breath left to whisper three words.

"I love you."

On a snowy night on the island in Windenberg, the raging seas calmed swiftly, just as deep underground, a fighter's life came to its end at last.

I hope you all enjoyed this short story, and that you didn't cry as much reading it as I did writing it.

See you in the next one,

Nita x