Summerabbacat

"A boot with a round toe, large enough to establish that it belonged to a mature male. Nothing like the shoes that came with the academy's mandatory uniform. A sturdy model with a good grip. The perpetrator must have employed a good amount of skill to climb the stairs noiselessly in those boots." Earnest perhaps, although given how frightened he was to even speak to Lawrence, I doubt he would enter any of the residences without being ordered to do so by Herr Becker or Rector Reichen. There is something really sleazy about Herr Becker. I wonder if he makes soft porn movies on the side, Sauna Twinks, with cameras discreetly placed in all showers, both communal and private. Perhaps Lukas uncovered Herr Becker's secret and had threatened to expose him if he did not cease production immediately.

There are a couple of tunes which could "set the scene" too @weinerdog and @Mark Ponyboy Peters, both rather marvellous disco numbers. Of course there is the rather "obvious" choice too - (Shake, Shake, Shake) Shake Your Booty by KC & The Sunshine Band.

The death of Nathanial's mother may be the straw which broke the camel's' back. Hopefully with support from Alex he may get through it, but I strongly doubt it. A terribly, terribly sad chapter @J92.

With each passing chapter I dislike Charlie a little more. I wish he would leave Nathanial the fuck alone. He has Claire so go play with her. I was so not impressed with Piper and Grant. Changing the colour of a character's hair sounds like she is merely justifying her employment. I have no doubt Charlie will stab Nathanial in the back and take credit for all the good ideas and lumber him with the not so good ideas. He makes my skin crawl.

Jockstrap and Speedo sales will skyrocket.

Will you be airbrushed, photoshopped, videoed from your "best side", and if necessary "enlarged"?

With Mrs Hamilton supervising and videoing it for posting to Thompsonville's Facebook page. Instead of hideous annual "attractions" like the Running Of The Bulls and Idatorid, you have Thompsonville's annual attraction, the Beating Of The Buttocks or should it be the Pleasuring Of The Pony.

Don't you dare, or you will have to be spanked. We can arrange for Scott to do the spanking, or perhaps Justin, or perhaps Matt, or perhaps Luke, or perhaps Tim, Guy, Tony or Aaron. Or better yet, perhaps Mrs Hamilton.

More delights from the Hugillverse in this chapter. Alex made a big "commitment" to giving Neil a key to his apartment so that he may visit whenever he wants to. Neil made what appears to be an ever big commitment in accepting the key. Mother continues to charm and delight. She has proven to be witty, with a refreshing sense of humour and a touch of mischief. I do rather like her @Robert Hugill. If I remember correctly you have remarked previously she is somewhat loosely based on Mother Hugill.

A terrific story from beginning to end @mastershakeme. This final chapter surprised me greatly; Margot suddenly reverted to the delightful woman she was in the first few chapters. One of the highlights of this chapter was the ongoing playful banter between Ryder and Jules; neither is a pushover, and they really seem to enjoy the light teasing.

I had not thought of this and did not know this was possible, but it would not surprise me if Julie did add Matt's name to Levi's birth certificate after her father passed away. There is also the possibility her father's homophobia was exacerbated by his contempt for Matt as his grandson's biological father.

The potential for harm increases exponentially. Levi does not seem to be prone to hysteria so I expect his sense of unease is justified.

An excellent way to look at it @weinerdog. Grotesque isn’t it.

Decidedly so. She got her just deserts. Sh fell off a bridge. Dead. LOL.

I wonder if Levi’s grandfather was an admirer of Franco @Gary L.

I must say the limitations of Levi's former life was somewhat upsetting @Charles26. I suspect money was tight in the Chambers household, whether this was due solely to financial poverty is hard to gauge. I get the sense his grandfather was the type of person who equated happiness with sinning, that joy was a luxury only the wicked could afford, that to be living a morally upright life one had to be miserable. This mentality did not allow for frivolous gifts as such gifts were the work of the devil. It was stated in a prior chapter Levi's grandfather liked the races; I wonder how much of what he earned, if he was still working, was lost to gambling. I also have to wonder if Levi's grandfather was still working. It is not clear if he was of a similar age to Matt's and Luke's parents, but from Levi's description of him, I have to wonder if he was much older, which may also explain why Julie's mother was already deceased. It also appears Julie either did not work outside the family home, or if she did it was menial work for which she would not likely have been paid very much.

How often I have wished to be able to apply more than one emoticon too @Philippe.

I don't believe there is any excuse for Thomas Donnelly's appalling behaviour @drpaladin. He is a complete arsehole. I so want to describe him as that other word I cannot use as I think that it is more befitting. His life is one of business investments, ways to demonstrate what a great man he is. He is so fucking shallow and conceited he makes me want to puke. I don't believe there is a snowballs chance in hell he will "make up" with Owen as this would require him to climb off his self-built throne upon which he sits. He will never understand Owen because he does not want to. As for Suzanne Donnelly, it would take a miracle, one bigger than the second coming of Jesus, for her to defy Thomas in any way. Her remark "I'll help you pack" after Thomas had just delivered his condescending lecture to Owen, spoke volumes. I was wrong about her when I said she had the intelligence and personality of plasticine, a pot roast would be closer. The bright side of Owen leaving behind his meagre belongings was that he left that crucifix behind, the one which had been watching and judging him for years. It would have given me the creeps.

Eric astounded me too @mayday. Suzanne Donnelly aka Charlie McCarthy behaved as I thought she would, looking to her husband for an instruction as to what she should think, how she should feel and react. Thomas Donnelly surprised me to some extent; his arrogance even greater than I thought and his heart even colder than I thought. It appears he is totally devoid of concern or love for anyone other than himself. I am inclined to believe he even thinks of Suzanne as a business investment. I too was surprised Owen's car was in his name. I think @drpaladin is probably correct, the car could be claimed as a business expense.

Eric's reaction really surprised me; clearly he has enough of his mother's warmth and caring to counteract the cold detachment of his father, a father who is a clone of his brother, Thomas. It would be difficult for Suzanne to lose her mind @Aevylian; she would have to prove she had one to begin with.

The Big Bad Wolf? Members of Jehovah's Witness? An encyclopaedia, vacuum cleaner, Tupperware or Avon salesperson?

"Levi looked back across the quadrangle at Jimmy and Dan, who were looking his way. Then his gaze shifted to another group of kids, at the edge of which sat Casey Thompson. He was looking at Levi, in much the same way as a cat would look at a bird, he thought, and it unnerved him." If I remember correctly it was a Thompson who assaulted Aaron when he was younger, and it was Luke and Matt who were instrumental in seeing he was brought to justice. It will not surprise me if the family has "recruited" Casey to attempt to charm Levi, win him over, before inflicting harm on him to avenge what they see as Matt and Luke's wrongdoing to one of their own. I hope my speculation is way off, but one should never underestimate how low the Thompsons will stoop. "Maybe there was something in that old saying about hating the sin, but loving the sinner? Who knew?" What a crock of faecal matter. That is what it is Levi. I think with continued visits to Father Costas for counsel, Levi will gradually recognise the Old Testament for what it is, the rantings of flat earthers who wandered through the desert cooking with camel shit. A quiet, rather uneventful chapter @Mark Ponyboy Peters. I hope Levi is not going to be subject to ill-treatment at the hands of the Thompsons' for the reasons I have stated above, but it is certainly not beyond the realms of possibility. Avalon and its inhabitants are welcoming Levi more and more with each passing chapter; he appears quite content with it now being his home. Just the name itself implies something beautiful and serene. I would so like to post Avalon by Roxy Music for this chapter as it is such a wonderful song, but I cannot bring myself to do so because Bryan Ferry is such a twat.

I must say @Topher Lydon you painted very vivid images of most of the "cast" in this story, at least for me. Most had a very real physical presence.

I have never seen that show as I did not own a TV for most of the years during which it was broadcast. I suspect I may well have liked it though.

I wonder @Paladin if Butch might have room to squeeze cleaning of my apartment into his busy schedule. He sounds positively gorgeous and so thorough. I was surprised Shane, Lachlan and particularly Maria were oblivious to Martin and Nathan being a couple. I am almost certain Nathan accompanied Martin, Benjamin and Justin to the luncheon at Shane and Lisa's home. If so, who did they think he was? It proves one thing though, both Benjamin and Justin are discreet. Rick proved his weight in gold again with champagne flowing at the lunch. Such a thoughtful man. Eddie's suggestion to have a barman to serve at the party to ensure no one under the age of 18 is served alcohol was a very sensible one. Simon's mention of Natasha and the possibility of a complaint from her was very wise, particularly given her previous report to the police. It was interesting to note Maria and Lachlan picked up on this too, suggesting both are well aware of what a spiteful and vindictive bitch Natasha is capable of being. Zaphod Beeblebrox? WTF. I think you may have mentioned this character in one of your prior stories @Paladin because the name does sound vaguely familiar.