At the moment, we have eight playable students living at this 10-bedroom dorm at Académie Le Tour. Who are they?
Newcomers Paola Picaso (in pink) and Parvati Patel (next to the mailbox) and siblings Gabriella and Georgia Newson...
...along with their brothers Gallagher and Garrett Newson (this here is Gallagher)...
...and the Ottomas twins, Oliver...
...and Olivia. As before, my playing policy at college is making sure that everybody has their necessary skills and writes their term papers; as soon as they have done this, they can do whatever they please. That explains Olivia coming back from exam in her PJs!
Like the apartment lots, sometimes the college dorm lots get buggy. Here, the cook turns into a "ghost", and after this first sighting, no cook appears on the lot anymore.
The puppy in its playpen is still here. It was originally bought to fulfill a wish of Helena Stacks, back in the days when she was a student here. Everybody takes turns in looking after Sweetie, the pup that never grows.
With no dorm cook, the students have to provide for their own meals. Georgia treats her dorm mates to salmon for dinner - money is no problem!
Parvati cleans the shower without anybody having to ask her.
This term, Garrett Newson is the first to finish his term paper.
Last term, his brother Gallagher fell in love with Olivia Ottomas.
Georgia Newson is the last to write her term paper this semester. There are only two computers in the dorm, which makes for an interesting challenge in time managment :-)
As you can see, I have not changed much in this building yet, except for most of the students' bedrooms.
Gallagher and Olivia often spend the night together in one of the rooms with a double bed. (It is rare that anyone actually sleeps in the room they originally claimed for themselves.)
Paola can't be bothered to fix herself some proper breakfast and goes for a can of juice instead.
Parvati, on the other hand, is more socially minded (or maybe she just thinks it is her duty as a newcomer) and takes it upon herself to make pancakes for everybody.
Rather stupidly, both Gabriella and Paola get into her way, and instead of brushing past them or asking them to step aside, all Parvati does is watch helplessly as her nice pancakes turn to cinder.
Of course, it does not take long for the pan to catch fire, and the expected hysteria ensues.
However, the sprinkler does its job thoroughly, and nobody is hurt.
Sorry, guys - it is burnt pancakes for breakfast today. Never mind; a lazy student will always prefer a burnt meal to a meal cooked by him or herself!
I've had enough of the cook-less cafeteria - this is a dorm, after all, and not a private residence - and replace the cooker. Sure enough, a properly visible dorm cook appears, and the cafeteria is run as smoothly as before.
Well, more or less!!
Other happenings during this semester include the same old fight Cow v. Llama. Sometimes the cow wins, sometimes the llama.
Georgia and Garrett Newson both get an A+ at their end-of-semester exam.
The same is true for Olivia and Oliver Ottomas.
Gabriella sits down at the chess board with her brother Gallagher not only because she needs a logic skill point in order to complete her very last semester, but also because she wants to have a serious talk with him. He missed his end-of-semester exam - out of sheer laziness! -, and she won't allow this to happen again. "You were doing so well, Gally, always with an A+, and if you really want to become a Game Designer, you better stick it out until the end and graduate with honours!"
(He really was asleep when it was time for him to go to the exam. I did not wake him. Most of the time, the students stop whatever they have been doing - even sleeping - and go to their exams, but not this time.)
Nearly all students need to brush up on their skills this semester.
Parvati and Paola take their first end-of-semester exam a bit later than the others. They return to the dorm happy with their good results. So far, neither of them has shown the wish to declar any particular Major.
Another fight breaks out, and as usual, the Cow is involved. This time, though the one she attacks is an unsuspecting cheerleader.
Georgia has no love interest, but she knows her older brother Gallagher and Olivia Ottomas are "an item", as they say.
Actually, everybody gets along pretty well at the dorm, but there is the occasional misunderstanding.
Oliver flirts with Paola on his own accord. She seems to be pleased, but no hearts are flying. Maybe more will happen once the season turns from winter to spring.
Later, Garrett asks Paola to dance with him, while Oliver is looking on. Checking on him reveals that he, too, wants to ask Paola to dance. Well, this time, Garrett was just a tad faster.
Finally, Gabriella and Gallagher have sat through their very last exams! Gallagher has took his sister's advice to heart and made sure to graduate Cum Laude in Psychology, while Gabriella even made it Summa Cum Laude. To Gallagher's defense, I must say he isn't very well, and has been down with the flu a few times this winter.
Gabriella dons her graduation robe and asks her older siblings, Gavin and Ginger, and some friends to come over from New Maximiliania for her graduation party.
"I think I'll miss you, little Sweetie," she says as she cuddles the never-growing puppy one last time.
Georgia and Garrett return from their exams just in time for their older sister's graduation party.
Parvati and Paola have completed their Freshman Year and arrive back at the dorm at the same time as the Ottomas twins, who have successfully passed their exams as well.
Everybody cheers as Gabriella throws her graduation hat up in the air and announces that she is now going to leave campus for good.
Bye-bye, Gabriella! We'll catch up with you eventually.
Gallagher does not throw a party; he was part of Gabriella's celebration anyway. He now age-transitions into a rather horridly mismatched outfit and gets ready to board the next taxi.
Who will take the two empty rooms at this dorm? What is going to happen between Paola, Garrett and Oliver? How are Gabriella and Gallagher doing back in New Maximiliania?
