Summerabbacat

He does not look hairy enough @weinerdog, and he is way too handsome.

All is not what it seems, with Jack, Vince and especially now Theo surrounded by the forces of evil, by "those" who seek to only feather their own nest. Mmmmm, sounds awfully like many current world leaders @Laura S. Fox. The darkness is closing in on Theo, which reminded me of a song by The Human League, from their masterpiece Dare. The lyrics of the song match the predicament Theo currently finds himself in.

I am just so pleased @Josh Aterovis has seen fit NOT to present we readers with an AI generated image of Kyle. And if the shaving cream is for Kyle, a razor will not suffice @drsawzall. It may take a chainsaw to manscape that particular "beast". I had a great laugh initially too @Josh Aterovis as I nearly always misread the name Kyle as Kylie in deference to our beloved Ms Minogue, an Aussie icon. I then very very briefly had an image of a hairy Kylie, which is what prompted the laughter. A hairy Kylie Spinning Around, would just not do.

Especially if, as @weinerdog commented above, he keeps killing off his soldiers who fail to do what he wants or do something he deems stupid.

The Nimrud Panther has taken on a "character" of its own @pvtguy, but I have to agree the story is so good without it that its discovery will almost be a non-event. I think what it has been used for is of the most interest, particularly after some of the humorous uses @Quarterbear listed for it several chapters prior.

Another call (beg, grovel) for PJ and Joss to have a story of their own @Robert Hugill. I think it goes without saying that many of we Hugillites have found them a delightful addition to this story. Of all your couples featured to date in the various stories, I think PJ and Joss contrast the most, although Russ is quite different from Brian and Gordon too.

This theory has merit @weinerdog.

"As I entered, I noticed what appeared to be a skinny gorilla in a basketball jersey and cutoff sweat pants sitting on the couch playing some first-person shooter video game on the TV." When I read this description @Josh Aterovis, I assumed the person in question was wearing a gorilla costume. But no, he really was gorilla-like. "I took the only other chair in the room and glanced over at Kyle again. I'd never seen anyone so hairy. A dark pelt covered almost every square inch of exposed skin, including his shoulders and what little of his back I could glimpse from where he sat leaning forward on the couch. He was almost enough to make me believe in the existence of Sasquatch." A good friend of mine from college was at the time dating a guy of Palestinian descent (he had been her boyfriend in high school). The first time we went to the beach and he was wearing a yellow/lime coloured Speedo I got the shock of my life. It was like he was wearing a full body Flokati rug; the hair was so thick and dark you could see through the Speedo and he was very hair everywhere. It was so long too; you could have plaited the hair on his back. My friend loved it; suffice to say I did not. Killian is hyper-critical of himself, finding it difficult to forgive himself for making what he deems stupid mistakes (clearly this does not apply to his driving @drsawzall). He was perhaps a little careless in downloading images from his Bondesque pen/video camera in the vicinity of the antique store, but he will learn from this mistake I believe. I wonder if Skye might be a good "match" for Ricky Wong. Israel Meeks is certainly looking more suspicious as the possible looter at least. I have just had another thought regarding the murderer. What if Israel and Bridget were in partnership carrying out the looting and Bridget murdered Professor Healy in a crime of passion, encouraged by Israel to do so. Israel then murdered Bridget because she was becoming unhinged from having committed murder and Israel was worried she would blow their cover. Just a thought @Josh Aterovis.

It has begun, with Chandar recognising departure from the south of Highshaw Valley will elude Judayah of Enkarra and his soldiers, as they are not aware of the trail which has been cleared by the mountain clans in the hills for this very purpose. Willem of Shalamar aka the Warlock has prophesied a future of bravery and altruism for Jamal, who was also received and revered by the spirit of his father, Lucius of Jeebath. For a moment I thought we had a cross-over appearance in this story @Mark Ponyboy Peters, with a question posed to Chandar by the knight Sir Brynden, which I misread as Sir Brayden. LOL. I thought he was too young to be a knight yet anyway, but with a recommendation from King Elwyn of Geronia anything is possible I guess.

I have just re-read the paragraph in which Martin refers to both Benjamin and himself receiving the unpleasant texts from Scragtasha. Only Martin and @Paladin are privy to the content of those texts, but I would urge Martin to consider having the police accompany him when he and Benjamin go to collect Benjamin's belongings if there is even the hint of physical harm to either or them. If not, perhaps he should consider having Simon accompany them, or at least recording their visit in case Scragtasha makes any threats to either of them or to Justin. I also would not put it past Scragtasha to fabricate a story and report Benjamin and Martin to the police, anything from one or both assaulting her to Martin threatening to kill her. We already know their divorce was acrimonious and it appears Scragtasha is itching for yet another showdown with Martin. She appears to be quite the narcissist so I am surprised Martin even considered she may have quietened down by the following morning. If anything, I think not reacting to her texts will inflame her rage even further.

Louis and Charlie enjoyed an evening of PJ's culinary delights, and the banter between the impish PJ and the growling Pericles was most amusing. Joss surprised by involving himself more in the discussions of the renovation of their home and his and PJ's likes and dislikes, and with questions, primarily for Louis, about his upcoming work. And of most importance, Louis was commissioned to add further to his 'dazzle of dicks' with dick drawings of both PJ an Joss, and a full length nude of PJ for Joss' viewing pleasure; and, a night out was agreed to at the pub/club PJ and Joss like to frequent in which PJ is attired in a jockstrap and Joss in cut-offs. Well it looks like you have left the "big reveal" to the last chapter @Robert Hugill, which I seem to recall you may have previously stated. Another use I have thought of for The Nimrud Panther, particularly if it was in the possession Ian's Aunt, was as a "weapon" for coshing over the head any would be burglar(s).

I am very impressed with Art's dads (bloody spellcheck does not recognise the plural 'dads', obviously assuming every person has only one dad). They are doing a fine job raising him, setting a good example for him and his friends; setting rules to be abided by without being unrealistic and/or dictatorial. Seth has led a very sheltered life. I wonder if being an only child has perhaps contributed to this too. His parents need to be exposed to how his friends' parents are raising them to perhaps loosen their stranglehold on his freedom. They are by no means "bad" parents, they just need to chill out a little and let him grow.

Me too @Lee Wilson. My parents whilst still married to each other were like Shelly and Tanner Milton. Once they divorced they both became more overprotective and I rarely had any privacy. I was also no beauty, fugly in fact (glasses, braces and acne) and not particularly sociable (some things never change), so sleepovers and messing around with other boys never happened. It was also fairly obvious I was likely gay (poofter being the preferred word of my classmates), although I did not get hassled for this to any great extent, apart from by a couple of nasty girls whom I disliked intensely.

Damn. I guess that dashes any hope of potential child neglect charges being brought against Scragtasha. I may appear to be a vengeful bitch, but I hate bullies, and Scragtasha is a bully. And I particularly loved @FanLit's description of Scragtasha "She intends to dash any hopes of changes to her role as the conductor of everyone's lives." She has been allowed to get away with this behaviour for too long. I will be interested to find out what Benjamin's twin sister, Maria, thinks of her. Will she defend her mother in a united female front, or has Scragtasha alienated her too.

Martin and Nathan were "cute" during their "stalker" telephone call. I sense they will eventually realise they don't have to label themselves with any sexuality descriptor to define their relationship status. Nagtasha responded to the news Benjamin is gay just as a I thought she would; with hysteria, nastiness and threats, not only to Benjamin but to Martin too. Given this latest development I am going to change the name I have been calling her from Nagtasha to Scragtasha. If Scragtasha persists in being a hostile harridan I hope Martin takes his Mr Nice Guy gloves off and goes gung-ho for the ho. I cannot remember (and I am too lazy to research it) if it is Benjamin or Noah who is the twin. If I remember correctly I think Noah is less than 16 years of age. If so, does Scragtasha ever leave him at home by himself whilst she is off bonking her boyfriend? If so, is this something Martin could use against her? Whatever he does, Martin should keep the text messages Scragtasha has sent to him and likewise Benjamin should keep those she sent him, especially if she has made any threats. It is about time she was brought down a peg or two. Martin should also ensures he now excludes his child support contribution for Benjamin as he will be living with him now rather than Scragtasha. Bring out the artillery @Paladin and let Martin and perhaps Benjamin use it on Scragtasha and take her down. And if that does not work, sool Simon onto her.

Bloody hell you must be a fast reader @chris191070, just like @weinerdog.

Well it's a sure bet. The movie has had a cast screening and received a standing ovation, with one Charlie Brown a stand out. Harpo called it @Mark Ponyboy Peters, 50 years ago, with backing vocals by Frida (and that is not my cat Frida). This chapter needed a "pollen warning", with the following moving me tears: "As we stood there in the cool night air, city lights shimmering on the harbour below us, the sails of the Opera House bathed in light, I finally realised something. The boy who’d once been terrified of being seen had become someone the whole world was about to notice. And my heart soared for him." And just when I thought the chapter could not get any better, you inserted the following @Mark Ponyboy Peters: "There was a darkness about the poster, which we had passed as we had entered the theatre, yet at the same time there was light, along with youthful beauty, and strength and power on display. And if you looked really closely, you could also see the hand of Barnabus being held by Elwyn, which I felt sure would cause the righteous brigade to totally lose their marbles over, when they eventually noticed". What a great feel good chapter Mr P.

It appears from this chapter and the synopsis that this is Charlie's "fate" for starring as the Prince in The Boy Who Would Be King: If Charlie is even half as hot as David Essex when he reaches adulthood, he will have many adoring fans.

Veridien Academy, a bastion of elitism based solely on the financial and social status of its students' families. I imagine it to be a hotbed of arrogance, bullying and discreet, or perhaps even indiscreet, homoeroticism. The imperious housemaster Herr Becker "welcomed" Lawrence with a less than subtle dig at his "lesser" personal circumstances when Lawrence remarked he was non-plussed by his accommodation: “A man who knows his place. You will get far in life, Mr. Garth, despite your humble provenance. Humble compared to your fellow students, whom you will soon meet, of course. Focus on your studies, and Veridien will provide all you need to succeed.” Lawrence appears averse to the likes of Herr Becker and the equally condescending Anton, who went out of his way to try and intimidate Lawrence, whom Bastien Hawthorne seemed quite taken with. Methinks jealousy reared its ugly head, a jealousy which may have led to murder, a murder to remove a competitor for Bastien's affections perhaps.

Lukas von Keller and Bastien Hawthorne, upper-class sounding names for rich, spoilt, male students at a prestigious all-boys academy. Marius Vassier, a suitably pretentious sounding name for an obviously wealthy, exceptionally well-groomed private eye, whose opinion of himself and his abilities appears to be matched only by his opinion of Jakob Whitlock, the "common garden variety" detective and his large, awkward nephew, Lawrence Garth, the son of Whitlock's selfish, irresponsible, self-centred sister, Denise Whitlock. The character names alone are enough to have captured my attention @Laura S. Fox. By placing them into a somewhat surreal setting, at least as far as Veridien Academy is concerned, only adds to the intrigue and we have not even proceeded to the first chapter yet. @Seraph28 has sensed an Agatha Christie vibe, whereas I have sensed an Inspector Morse vibe, primarily from the description of Whitlock. Whitlock is very astute, perhaps somewhat short-tempered and reclusive, an honourable, humble man with a very strong desire for justice, regardless of the "politics" associated with obtaining justice.

This story made its debut in the Top 10 at #10 in the Most Read Romance genre for the month ending 10/04/26, a very good performance @Paladin given you post on average only one new chapter per week.

Like it's an actual "chore" for we readers @Robert Hugill. LOL. Who knows, you may receive a prestigious literary award for the enduring popularity of this story. Perhaps a Nimrud Panther? Or a 'dazzle of dicks' drawn by none other than Louis Martinson, or a lacquered artwork or marbled toilet completed by Charlie Busch, or a 'shitting' fat cheque from Eileen Garner (whom I have just read is widowed, so she won't be getting Louis to draw Stephen Garner's dick any time soon).

Another top 10 placing @Robert Hugill for the month ending 10/04/26, #6 in the Romance genre, which follows on from a #7 placing for the month ending 03/04/26 in the General Fiction genre.

Congratulations @Josh Aterovis, this story is #1 in the Most Read Paranormal genre for the month ending 10/04/26 (or 04/10/26 in American date format).

I was thinking a "Bond girl" so Killian could flip the script and turn her down when she hits on him. When questioned by her as to why, he could respond with "because Lovey, I give good head too, probably better than you do”.