Timothy M.

If they had said let's help poor kids or parents rather than poor women, it might have felt more equal. I also think it's a matter of finding something donors will relate to or identify with, and maybe a mother and her child(ren) is an easy 'sell.' When I donate to charity I like to give to very specific projects like 'access to clean water for villages in developing countries' or schools or kids in a disaster area. Donating to 'the poor' in general does not appeal as much. But you have some very good points about the way humans like to divide other people.

As I expected there is something about Bobby and their past relationship which is important. Denial isn't just a river in Egypt,

no prompts this week?

Hmm, so the Lions are interested in Dave. I hope Ross told them he would very much like to be on a team with Dave. It would be a huge plus if Ross ends up a Lion rather than a Leopard. But of course I want him to stay in Melbourne, also for Warwick's sake. Let's hope Richmond contacts Ross asap. I liked Trevor confirming that talking to Julie about his footie future as well as training with the Leopards were good choices. Ross is now getting the benefits of coming out to his mother and his friends. They know what the problem is and can act to help. Ross must realize Warwick is the source of Kevin knowing about the interest of the Lions, and I loved how the worry got around to Jim via the brat. We can all imagine Ty getting on the case immediately, lol. I wasn't too surprised about Ross' mum planning to follow him wherever he ends up, It would be logical, also for her sake. I had already thought about Alistair as a good choice for an agent for Ross, so I'm glad Jim brought it up. In fact I've been wondering why Kevin hasn't suggested it himself. I hope Ross calls him to ask more and for contact details. All of Jim's advice was good, but in particular the part about telling the club as soon as possible after the draft. I'm still hoping for Ross' sake he ends up a Leopard, but he'll still go through a fair amount of hassle as the second out VFL player, particularly if Jim isn't drafted. Nice to see Paddy again and good point about having Ty's knee checked, although I'm sure Julie and the doctor at the Leopards are aware of the matter. But seeing a specialist at the clinic is helpful too. Btw I'm surprised Paddy hasn't caught on to the fact that Ty and Jim are a good team on the field, like Julie told Henry earlier. I think the blues should draft Dad and the brat together. Also I'm waiting for Ty to officially change his name to Brad Flanders. It's good to see Liam's parents being supportive of Neil and Liam and their move to Sydney. Apart from Bruce needing time off from work, they'll also need to organize something for Liam's brother, right? He won't be able to stand the hassle of a long drive to Sydney and he'll need a caretaker while they are away. Another good reason to plan ahead rather than leave everything to the last minute. I like Daphne's sister a lot, she's supportive and caring without being too pushy. I hope her idea for the weekend will work out - and in spite of the semi-cliffie making me it was a good set-up for the next chapter. I have complete faith in Kevin but I can understand Daphne's apprehension too. One thing I've wondered is whether she might know the girl Kevin assaulted, perhaps not personally but via chat forums / the transgender community? I think it would be a good idea if they went back for another visit to try to make more amends. In spite of me moaning about the last cliffie in the story topic I actually think it's lucky Ross got the phone call while Jim is there. He can organize a few large footballers to protect Andrew while he collects his belongings. Leopards to the rescue. Althogether another great chapter, Graeme. Now the wait for next Saturday can begin.

sounds interesting, I'll have to check it out.

Well, fuck you too, Brady, and your selfish bitch of a girlfriend. God, how I hate people who let their girlfriends or boyfriends push them into betraying ther best friends, and of course the lowest, burning pit of hell is too good for the nasty X&¤$# who play this game. I'm glad David brushed Brady off after that, perhaps it will make him pull jis head out of his arse and ditch the bitch. But with David's bad luck he'll be right about losing another friend. I hope Brady will feel the pain of regret for the rest of his life, if he loses David completely. And that goes for Mike too, stupid git. He is destroying his relationship in order to please a perverted control freak of a boss and focus a career that is making him into a heartless fool. Perhaps Rain is bad news, but if he turns out to be someone who cares about David and appreciates him, then maybe he'll deserve him in the end.

Thanks, Emi, I'm glad you liked the story.

LOL, Lisa, glad to hear it. I look forward to see the reviews you'll write for this story.

Yes, and comfort food too. I look forward to hearing what you think of the story.

Yep and six Silver each, but we have more Bronzes than you.

Thanks It was quite a drama at the end, but now we can celebrate. Let's hope they can match the Danish handball women eventually (3 Olympic gold medals).

Interesting how the outside turmoil caused by bigots are matched by inside turmoil and fear of the present state of things not lasting.

Thanks ! We did it!

Finally, but it remains to be seen whether Robbie can fuck things up again. Hopefully, he'll be honest with Nathan, both about his feelings and the price Fran extracted for keeping his secret. However, it would be even better if he said 'fuck the consequences' and came out. Preferably in a way which gave him the upper hand with Nicola and shamed his uncle and aunt for being bigoted idiots.

The title was ominous in itself, and we got the reveal which shook Tobyn so badly and astounded the pack. What are the choices now and has things changed between them, tipping the balance Kellar was trying to maintain? For once I have no insights in the significance of the chapter title and note, other than the obvious. But I would like to defend Tobyn a bit, because I feel sorry for him. Sure, he's acting dense and has only himself to blame for stubbornly refusing to admit what is obvious to Tilly, and thus setting himself up for this most humiliating experience in front of his pack. But these four days have been one shock after another, and Tobyn has barely recovered from one mind-blowing situation before he's thrown into the next. Of course, I feel sorry for Kellar too, and his hurt makes me But at least he has a grip on what is going on between them. In addition, he's the new saviour of the pack, even if he's uncomfortable with the attention; he is welcomed and listened to with respect and he's immediately gotten close to Sibyl, the most venerated pack member. He isn't burdened by preconceived notions about earth mates and duty to a pack, he has been honest about his attraction to Tobyn right from the start, and his dreams of love and a place to belong will be fulfilled with their bonding. To him all the changes are positive and his choices are clear. Tobyn managed to get over feeling betrayed by Kellar not warning him about Elinor and the possibility of her finding an earth mate. But then he learns Kellar has kept an even more important and life-changing secret from him. Of course, this was not intentional and it was caused by his own unreasonable dislike of the concept of earth mates, and a series of unlucky circumstances. He might as well blame his mother or Tilly. But to find out in this manner - Kellar was horrified and knew this was going badly wrong. Tobyn will work it out, but I don't blame him for not wanting to do this in front of Tilly and the rest of his pack. Walking away was the only way to deal with this, after all we could hardly expect him to say: "Oh, I see, well that's OK then, we're earth mates, let's get bonded and make some dust." All his choices and dreams have turned to dust, and his life has changed to something he never anticipated or wanted. Let's give the poor guy a chance to come to terms with his destiny. Of course, if he doesn't and rejects Kellar utterly, then we can get out the pitchforks and torches and start hunting him down.

It was wonderful to read Denny's thoughts about the group of friends and how much they mean to him as well as Greg. Apart from Mikey he is probably the one getting most benefit from this companionship, and it was fitting he saw Mickey as the deserving the first kiss and thank you. I loved Greg giving his friends special treats at the lunch line and I fell over laughing at the banana for Jay. Trust Greg to notice Mickey being well endowed. It was nice to get a glimpse of Linda and her protective stance about her little brother even when he annoyed her due to being in love. I wonder if she'll agree to the Prom date if Bobby does not drop Zane completely. Perhaps him doing his best to keep the idiot under control will be enough to earn him a date. The ending had me shaking my head, silly Jay getting all worked up over not having come up with an idea for the one month 'anniversary.' As if Mickey cares about that as long as he can be with his sexy Dane. Great chapter, min ven. Thank you, Gary, for helping.

Arrrggghh, Kevin's parents drive me nuts. I'm not surprised he's more than happy to be back in Sydney and away from them, even if he'll miss Warwick as well as Deon and the other Leopards. Are they the norm for Australian parents or unusually nosy? It's not so much that they are concerned and interested enough to ask those questions, but that they don't understand how far they are overstepping the limits when Kevin objects. And interogating his friends as well as the girl he's told them he has only just begun to date is simply disgusting as well as terribly impolite in my book. At least the Wembleys were better behaved, but then I guess he's not their son. Daphne's siblings at least had legitimate concerns causing their probing, and while she may have felt uncomfortable discussing her worries, she recognized their genuine care for her well-being. I had to laugh at their reaction to her telling them about Kevin being a player. But while she may have been tolerant of Kevin's parents' unacceptable behavior, I bet she'll feel just as uncomfortable when he gets grilled by her family, in spite of her joking about it. It was sort of sad and funny at the same time reading about Kevin and Warwick both being reluctant and pressured about sex. The reasons are different, but if they stay friends and things work out, it may be something they can laugh about together at some point. When I read about those two (and Deon etc) I keep forgetting how young they are, not yet 21. Is it normal for young people in Australia to be on the look-out for their 'rest-of-my-life' partner at that age? I can understand wanting a steady boyfriend / girlfriend and hoping it will last, but I think Warwick is worrying too much. To me Warwick shouldn't feel bad about 'using' Ross to get over Kevin. He's taking it slow and has thought about being supportive and feeling protective about Ross. If he's there for Ross when he comes out, as well as having helped him deal with his worries about being gay and having sex, then Warwick has done his 'duty' and repayed whatever Ross has invested in their relationship. I loved Ross taking the initiative to get in touch with Julie and putting himself up as a prospective Leopard. But I guess you're not surprised I feel that way, lol. Julie is probably right about the motivation Ross will have from now on. I wonder how much of him holding back on the field is due to his self-doubts about being gay or perhaps even a fear of physical contact with other guys? But maybe his lack of work ethic is quite separate from other issues? btw when we first meet him coming home from an early morning run and with the way his mum and Wu talks about him, not working hard enough would have been the last problem I would have thought of. Hmm, perhaps he and Charlie could benefit from talking about compensating for lack of agressiveness during games? And once again we end with Ross' now even more pressing and real worry about being drafted by an interstate club. I wonder if he'll tell Trevor about being gay at the first meeting or later (probably the latter). But perhaps he'll save this tidbit for scaring off clubs he doesn't want to get drafted by?

I thought David did well in this chapter, trying to think positively about his work and his relationship. He didn't insist on having the talk with Mike right away but focused on the healing via intimacy and closeness. He may be wrong about being too dependent on Mike (who would probably disagree about this) but at least he's doing his best to fill his time with stuff which makes him feel good. I can see why he hopes this will make him less likely to be annoyed with Mike workng too much. Of course the danger is they drift apart due to not spending time together. Joining other guys playing racketball rather than being alone with Rain sounds like a good idea. Or if David doesn't feel up to spending time with Rain, he can tell him to join the League. One of his best decisions is to get in touch with Brady, I hope he goes through with it.

Next chapter tomorrow, so I need to get my review in here. I'm not going to comment on your sneaky way of telling us who became head coach, not will I say anything about the slight weirdness of Warwick setting up Kevin with Daphne. For once I agree with Wu. The important part was the double date went well, in spite of the awkward beginning with Ross realizing he needed to come out to Kevin. I was impressed with Kevin taking the lead and being honest about such personal stuff. I think Daphne was impressed too, and they certainly seem to be a good prospect for dating and perhaps becoming a couple. I liked the tracking of the convoluted route which started with reconnecting with Deon. Warwick needed to find Kevin a girlfriend to moved past his crush and dating Ross may help too. He may be doing that for the 'wrong' reason, but at least he's giving Ross the care and support needed. They are taking it slow and talking about how to proceed, and if they end up as friends there will be nothing to regret. Holding hands, hugging and kissing will be good practice for Ross and help him get over the incident with Stuart. But the final part of the chapter with Ross facing the potential of being drafted by a club far from his family and friends was scary and sobering. Particularly after the Brisbane guy showing up - and we know Paddy held Ross' lack of consistent work ethic against him. It also pointed back to the talk with Sam and Marcus which also gave Ross' mum a better understanding of what her son may face. I remember Tony telling Paddy that if they were not prepared to support Jim it would be better not to draft him. How much truer would this be for poor Ross. I sincerely hope he ends up a Leopard.

YES! My opinion of Alex has been vindicated. Awesome.

The only good things about this chapter were Cory calling his parents, and particularly his dad, on all the BS, and the fact he made it home safely. I hope he sleeps until Efrain arrives.

I knew the cat was pregnant, but SIX kittens! Wow. I'm glad Sifta is safe now.

I'm glad Toph escaped when his mother arrived. Gary may be a wonderful boyfriend in all other ways, but I don't like it when he tries to pressure Toph about Mrs Denny. All my distrust of Gary returns when he suddenly informs Toph about her pending retirement or suggests the 'love' note is actually genuine. It makes me think Gary considers Toph an immature and petulant child who is wrong about his mother, instead of at least considering the fact that Toph ran away from home for a reason, and there are other people (eg Teddy) who finds her manipulative and tiresome. It may be she's not as bad as Toph makes her out to be, but Gary should believe in his boyfriend and support him rather than making him uncomfortable by dismissing those very real feelings of fear and panic which his mother causes. Gary's behavior in this matter makes me

Just read the whole story again, it was even better the second time.

It's nice to see Finian taking things in his stride and gently chide his mate for not confiding in him. The meeting with Penelope was quite funny.