Lux Apollo

This wasn't what I was expecting for the next chapter, but what a wonderful way to play with our emotions and build our anxieties in parallel with Kye's (*Sir* Kye's) as we head into the home stretch... Great job.

Morningnanigans?! Amazing! Another sweet chapter, and a very nice place to end. And that last sentence? Beautiful. I hope the other readers 'get' it. It is something special. I am a little disappointed we don't get anything about David's father other than his general distrust and concerns being articulated, and on top of that no touch of David's perspective at the end of it all. Not saying he should have the last word, but... I dunno. Something feels incomplete considering we haven't had anything told to us in his voice in several chapters, and that after nearly ending his life... We don't need closure because this is not an 'ending' per se, but David's perspective has been the one constant throughout while Twoey has dropped in and out of the reader's view. One could say it is appropriate for Twoey to have the last word because he is the title object, but in a lot of ways this truly is 18 Weeks off David just as much, and it feels awkward to have the ending told by someone on the outside looking in after being so overwhelmed with David's inner world for over 100 chapters. I will miss these characters and this story. Thanks for it, skinny. Quite the ride indeed.

Great chapter, exposing us to an insecurity of Corey's that we hadn't seen a dressed yet. I like that Jason had the wherewithal to confront Corey about it without going completely apeshit, and Corey had the balls to call his mother back in front of Jason and own up to things.

I wonder when these two will start seeing some good news? Kraig is not going to react well to learning of his temporary psychosis. Deke can't lie to him, can he? He's going to have his work cut out for him. Is Uncle Radford just a bitter old man, or does he have a connection to the experimentation? Or, will he take up this shares information as a way of eventually challenging Deke? Augh, my mind is swimming with possibilities. Great job!

A wonderful end to a wonderful story. Ugh, I just can't get over the optimistic tone. I love it. I had a strong feeling there was something between Brent and Donny. After all of Clint's stumbles, it's nice to see that other characters are having them as well. Someone needs to slap the word faggot out of Brent's vocabulary. It was a big contributor to the rift between him and Donny. Ah, but misunderstanding resolved and Sheila gets just desserts without over playing it. Lovely job, Cynus. I am sad that it's over so soon. :-D

Tense beginning, leading into delicious, luscious sweetness. I feel very indulged and happy. Nice work, Gary.

Warm fuzziness! :-) I am such a pessimist, I am having trouble accepting that Isobel is not a snake in the grass. Now what is big B going to do for his big final plot?

Yeah, and damn them for writing so much amazing music and leaving it in manuscript only!

Kuhlau's music is wonderful! A lot of his piano music is really fun to play, and fits under the hand well. Ugh, it's such a total shame that we lost so much of his music to a fire.

Bobby's father was a difficult man to get along with in the comics. Their could have been any number of reasons for them fighting, but it would probably stem from some bullshit regressive beliefs his father had - or even something as simple as Bobby's grades. In the comics his Dad, William Robert Drake, is Irish Catholic, and his mother, Madeline Beatrice Bass-Drake, is Jewish. William is quite judgmental and at least a touch racist in the comics. He didn't approve of Bobby's asian girlfriend Opal Takanawa, and expressed strong displeasure when he thought Bobby was in a relationship with Rogue (something that never actually happened in the comics, they are just somewhat close friends) because she was a mutant, and possibly because she was from the south as well. Basically, he's a difficult man to get along with and has been hard on his son his whole life. For Bobby, his dad is a big psychological stumbling block and they've eaten away at him in ways beyond what he realizes. John, stronger? Feeling better? I think you will like next week's entry. It's also a longer one.

If you've watched any of the X-men movies, the subtext there makes it completely impossible for Bobby to loom large over John, no matter what context their relationship exists in, whether Bobby is present or not.

Chonny! Tombra! Seena! Twovid! So much love. Very warm and romantic chapter, and I am glad that Twoey is showing that he will call David out on his shit, and Ginny's suggestion that they take some time for her to better understand David's state of mind, memories, worldview etc. before sending get him off to the clinic. It's maybe the most rational move the psych peogle in David's life have made since Ginny sent David away to Dr. Keating for ethical/attachment concerns. Too bad Keating wasn’t very helpful, but this story wouldn't have been nearly as interesting if David hadn't skipped out on seeing him early on. Looking forward to the next day, as always.

Glad to have you return. Nice work here, and I'm so glad that Guy is back with the boys.

I liked this chapter. It really feels like Devin is starting to settle into his life as it is now. The ending was sweet, even if the sex had a bit of a mixed feel to it. Cheers!

October 12 2021 I was using the gym in the subbasement again today. It’s actually been nice, getting back in shape. After initially shedding a few pounds, I’m starting to put on a bit of weight but it’s the good kind: muscle. It’s just the beginning of things, of course, but I’m starting to see hints of progress. My predictions about using the Danger Room were right, though. Hank’s been bitching and moaning about some of the damage I’ve done the last few times I’ve gon

Tim, you are lucky the female crowd is strongly outnumbered here... I'll post some more thoughts in a while, but I have to go back to packing.

It's going to be an adventure seeing how David balances out his life so that both his needs and Mike's needs are met to stabilize their relationship.

Ch- ch- ch- choral OVERLOAD!!!! But in all seriousness that is some wonderful stuff Tomas.

God, I love Britten. It's been forever since I've listened to any of his stuff though. His choral works are a joy to sing. Thanks for posting it!

Ah the things we do for love. I don't think Brady is the type of person to make such a life-altering decision without being sure it's worth the risk. It's entirely possible that the lack of co-habitation and the coldness on the part of Divya's parents is rooted in cultural attitudes. David's conversation with Brady wasn't particularly long, so we have no idea what he did or didn't say to Divya or what his deep thoughts are about the event. The late-night phone call to David was not the time to be discussing that stuff. It was a piss poor attempt at an apology, but calling was still was better than leaving David in the lurch. Even though David hates Divya, for better or worse he wouldn't dream of not supporting Brady. You are right that the past two chapters have been rather introspective for David, even when he's had conversations with people. Other than talking to his mother, there has definitely been a level of inward focus that he's shown. I don't think David or Mike necessarily thought that Mike had a bad day in and of itself, and you can see Mike is trying despite whatever limitations he has work-wise (whether they are self-imposed or not). It's only been a week since their big blow-up and they have yet to get a chance to sit down and really talk about Mike's job (next chapter!). It will be interesting to see how Mike chooses to present himself and how David reacts.

Thanks Tim! I really do strive to make my characters and their actions 'real'. I'm glad I'm succeeding here. To be honest I thought this was, perhaps like the last chapter, a more drama-free event. I actually thought we were going to have a much longer and larger conversation with Brady, but things didn't turn out that way when the words began to flow.

I wonder if David will let us in on some of his happier memories at some point? He's shown us a lot of tragedy so far, and you are right that all of these things feed into his insecurities. Brady's feelings for Divya must be pretty damn strong for him to have left his family, David and other friends behind and followed her to the West Coast. The biggest question with Divya is trying to figure out exactly why her family has been so indifferent to Brady. Thanks for reading and for the comments, skinny.

I had always wondered why David didn't seem to have any friends from back home - at least none that he talked about. When I started writing this chapter, he whispered into my ear those tough memories. I wonder if they will come back to haunt him? Rain is necessary, or I'd be completely rewriting the story, Gary. I think David has faith in himself right now that he can tamp down on those feelings. He's stronger than he might seem at times. Don't worry too much about Callum. Like David said, he's just eye candy. Thanks for reading and your comments, as always!

Dude, a little angry tonight? I think you need to give Brady and Mike a little more credit. Brady messed up tonight for sure, but like Mike said this is really unusual for him (even with Divya's influence). David and Mike ended up having an okay night. One can hope that this is a good sign for the conversation they have coming up on the horizon...

For this evening, a wonderful interpretation of Stefano Landi's 'Passacaglia della vita' by Marco Beasley and L'Arpeggiata.