From: "L-Soft list server at Indiana University (1.8d)" To: "ARTF@MemoryAlpha.nil" File: "LOISCLA-GENERAL-L LOG9912C" ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 15 Dec 1999 05:11:27 EST Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: "Alexis W." Subject: Fanfic help MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit This is just a small detail question for my ongoing fanfic/nfic. Ok in the ep titled, "ATAI," Clark is looking at a pic of Lois and him together. He is using that pic as a practice run in telling Lois that he is Superman. Can someone tell me if someone was holding a Kerth Award and if they were, was it Lois or Clark? For some reason i thought it was taken during Clark's nomination for the Kerth Award, so i thought he was holding it. I would go back to my tape to double check except this is one of the many eps I have yet to get on tape. Thanks in advance! Alexis ;-.) ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 15 Dec 1999 06:31:45 EST Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Annette Ciotola Subject: Re: Prelude Chapter 26 Part 2 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Ok I had to reply s p o i l e r s p a c e Just in Case I don't think I spent more time laughing than I did over this section. The All-Girl Lois band suggestion was priceless. Poor Clark2 ... but the poor ole sap deserved it, he is a bit arrogant. ;) And our Clark, whatta guy ... actually trying to make both Loises behave Priceless! I cannot wait until the next installment and I am a bit envious of those who got to read the whole thing already. Anne :) ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 15 Dec 1999 13:42:30 -0500 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Carolyn Schnall Subject: Re: Idea generators In-Reply-To: <4.0.2.19991212183349.008e4ba0@mail.swcp.com> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Thanks Debby, for the suggestion!! Sounds like a fanfic idea cure to me:) Thanks, Carolyn cschnall@.med.cornell.edu >This afternoon I heard a story on our National Public Radio affiliate's >broadcast of "This American Life", a program with interesting stories about >regular Americans (www.thislife.org). This story was about a fellow who >likes to >investigate open or unlocked doors that lead to mysterious places. He has a >web site, www.infiltration.org and is one of quite a few similar sites. > >Does this fellow sound like anyone we know? Lois, of course. At least up until >she got engaged, she laughed at danger and threw herself bodily into her work >of investigating crime. She didn't care what might happen to herself--she >didn't seem to have a lot of reason to worry about the future. Maybe she >didn't >think she had much to look forward to? > >I think that Clark also likes to investigate mysterious places, though it was >probably easier for him to do so when it wasn't a job and he didn't have that >other, part-time job requiring a special suit. Once he got used to his >abilities and invulnerabilities, he probably didn't fear for his life while >following the lure of the mysterious. Then again, I doubt he follow the lures >with the thought of finding the opportunity to laugh in the face of death. > >Is Perry a retired laugh-in-the-face-er? Does Jimmy want to be one? > >Anyhow, regardless of what I think about the characters, www.infiltration.org >and its other member ring sites may provide fanfic writers with some ideas :) > >Debby >Debby@swcp.com ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 15 Dec 1999 20:40:20 +0000 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Angee Chaudhry Subject: thanks for the info Thanks everyone for the help on the Metropolis and Thanksgiving questions - it's really helped with my story ..... now I just gotta fine tune it .... ;-) Angee. Download NeoPlanet at http://www.neoplanet.com ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 15 Dec 1999 23:48:03 +0100 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Petra Steudle Subject: question for a fanfic MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Hi FoLCs, does anyone of you know what the "international version" of the DEA would be? I'm looking for an organization that represents an international drug department. InterPol or something like that? Thanks for your help :) Petra (who is asking herself why she insited on an A-plot for "Heartache Tonight" ;) ) ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 15 Dec 1999 16:50:58 -0800 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Nancy Smith Subject: Question for a fanfic MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Can anyone tell me the name of the Mayor of Metropolis during "Lethal Weapon?". Nan Smith ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 15 Dec 1999 18:40:27 -0800 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Judith Williams Subject: Re: Question for a fanfic MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit The Original Lois and Clark Episode Guide lists the character played by Nancy Dussault simply as "The Mayor". Jude ----- Original Message ----- From: Nancy Smith To: Sent: Wednesday, December 15, 1999 4:50 PM Subject: Question for a fanfic > Can anyone tell me the name of the Mayor of Metropolis during "Lethal > Weapon?". > > Nan Smith ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 15 Dec 1999 21:59:30 EST Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: "Ann E. McBride" Subject: Re: question for a fanfic MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit In a message dated 12/15/1999 5:49:48 PM Eastern Standard Time, petrast@GMX.NET writes: << does anyone of you know what the "international version" of the DEA would be? I'm looking for an organization that represents an international drug department. InterPol or something like that? >> I think it is possible that some part of Interpol certainly might try to catch drug dealers and the like. I am pretty sure that many times, if there are international drug dealers, the police of all the nations involved work together, sharing information and possibly even agents. (The movie The French Connection comes to mind.) Ann ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 15 Dec 1999 20:20:49 -0800 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: TA Merrill Subject: Re: Fanfic help & Question for a fanfic MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii In an attempt to avoid cleaning the carpets tonight, I sat down for a mini L&C marathon and found answers for these posts: TerriAnn ******************* --- "Alexis W." wrote: > This is just a small detail question for my ongoing fanfic/nfic. > > Ok in the ep titled, "ATAI," Clark is looking at a pic of Lois and > him > together. He is using that pic as a practice run in telling Lois > that he is > Superman. Can someone tell me if someone was holding a Kerth Award > and if > they were, was it Lois or Clark? For some reason i thought it was > taken > during Clark's nomination for the Kerth Award, so i thought he was > holding > it. I would go back to my tape to double check except this is one of > the > many eps I have yet to get on tape. > > Thanks in advance! > > Alexis ;-.) Alexis, the photo Clark is talking to is of himself holding a Kerth in his left hand. Lois' right hand is touching the base of the award. It wasn't taken the night of the ceremony because of their clothes. Clark is wearing a long sleeve black pullover and Lois is wearing a green suit jacket. (Picture is from the waist up.) ********************* >Can anyone tell me the name of the Mayor of Metropolis during "Lethal >Weapon?". >Nan Smith Nan, her name is never given. I did notice one thing about her that I had never before honed in on. She and Dr. Klein are very familiar with each other. Not in a romantic sense, more like siblings. They are on first name basis and argue with each other. They readily invade each others private space without it being a problem. Hmmm, I never saw this before. ****************** Hope this helps. __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Thousands of Stores. Millions of Products. All in one place. Yahoo! Shopping: http://shopping.yahoo.com ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 15 Dec 1999 23:40:52 EST Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: "Alexis W." Subject: Re: Fanfic help & Question for a fanfic MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit TerriAnn- Thanks for your info. That was more then enough info that i needed but since this is an nfic the description of what they were wearing in that pic will prove to be very helpful! Thanks again, Alexis ;-.) ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 15 Dec 1999 23:32:32 EST Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Princess Sarah Subject: HELP!!!! MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit i am looking for a fanfic in which lois is supposedly shot and they have a funeral and everything, but clark still doesn't really believe that she's dead. he somehow finds her alive and it's really WAFFy at the end. i know it's not an alt-clark story and lex could have been involved, but that's really all i remember about it. does anyone have any idea what story i'm talking about? thanks! ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 15 Dec 1999 23:57:57 -0500 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: kubitc Subject: Re: HELP!!!! Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="ISO-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable >i am looking for a fanfic in which lois is supposedly shot and they have a >funeral and everything, but clark still doesn't really believe that she's >dead. he somehow finds her alive and it's really WAFFy at the end. i know >it's not an alt-clark story and lex could have been involved, but that's >really all i remember about it. does anyone have any idea what story i'm >talking about? thanks! Yup, it's Requiem, by Kari Urberg, a great story :) I believe I found it in the Fanfic Archive. -Christy kubitc@kenyon.edu * * * * * * * * * * "She would've been a good woman... if there had been somebody there to shoot her every minute of her life." =96Flannery O=92Connor ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 15 Dec 1999 21:14:37 -0800 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: "Irene D." Subject: Re: HELP!!!! MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii > >i am looking for a fanfic in which lois is > supposedly shot and they have a > >funeral and everything, but clark still doesn't > really believe that she's > >dead. he somehow finds her alive and it's really > WAFFy at the end. i know > >it's not an alt-clark story and lex could have been > involved, but that's > >really all i remember about it. does anyone have > any idea what story i'm > >talking about? thanks! > You may be looking for 'On the Run' by Plan9Lives. It's a work in progress. It was nominated for a Kerth last year, so if you go to the archive and look under Kerth nominees, you should be able to find a link to it. It's really, really long. Actually, thinking about it some more, that's probably not it as it hasn't ended yet and Clark hasn't found Lois yet so... oops. Another story with a similiar theme is by Notrepooh. I think it's called 'A Question of Ethics.' Irene (who wishes she could be more help.) __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Thousands of Stores. Millions of Products. All in one place. Yahoo! Shopping: http://shopping.yahoo.com ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 15 Dec 1999 22:24:33 -0800 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Cynthia Haste Subject: Prelude Chapter 27 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=iso-8859-1 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit Chapter 27 He pulled Lois with him around the wall of the kitchen, as Clark2 and Lois2 entered the bedroom. Clark3, the least used of the group to avoiding discovery in a place that he had no business being, fumbled for a moment before ducking behind the curtains overhanging the balcony. Peeking through the curtains and past the wall to the kitchen he saw Clark and Lois had folded themselves into the small pantry. He also saw Clark pointing frantically down at his feet and realized that portion of him was still visible to anyone in the living room. Just as the door opened, he rose a foot into the air to bring his shoes up under the curtains. While the two women in the group were ostensibly blind to the goings on in the living room, all three men used their enhanced vision to spy on the young man who was evidently friendly enough with Lois Lane to have received a set of keys from her. After the final lock on the door gave way, they witnessed his entry into the apartment. With a cap pulled low over the unruly hair on his forehead, the man could have been mistaken for a bearded version of Jimmy. He was however several inches shorter than the Jimmy Olsen either Clark had met in his own universe. The hair was the same shoulder length brown that both men were familiar with, and the clothing, while more casual than Clark2 was used to seeing his James Olsen wear, appeared to be the style a hip young man might choose. The man paused at the back of the couch after locking the door behind him. He tossed a bag over the back of the couch, which skidded off and landed on the floor between it and the table. He then looked around the room with his head cocked, as if sensing something or someone in the apartment. Shrugging after the brief look, he used the motion to remove the loose fitting jean jacket from his shoulders. He then pulled the flannel shirt from his jeans and proceeded to unbutton the garment while kicking off his sneakers. As the last button opened, he reached under the shirt and began to undo the fasteners of a girdle like object underneath. As soon as the binding garment had been removed, he took a deep breath. “Whooo, never again. I am never using this one again. Maybe I’ll buy some fat clothes and pad myself up a bit. Yeah, the fat guy disguise. That’s gotta be a lot more comfortable than be’in squished. Oh, that feels good…” While she mumbled to herself, she massaged her rib cage and chest through her t-shirt, then removed the mustache, beard and hat. With the loss of the hat, the brown hair disappeared, and a waist long braid of black unfurled down her back. The transformation from scruffy young man to the persona of Lois Lane had taken less than two minutes. And completely mesmerized her three witnesses. It was Lois’s poke in his ribs with her elbow, as she looked at him in question of his catatonic state that broke Clark’s concentration. It was the removal of her flannel shirt as she moved toward the bedroom that brought Clark2 around, as he looked hurriedly around the room for another hiding spot for he and his wife. It was the way she ran her fingers through her hair to fluff it back to its normal buoyancy that caused Clark3 to loose altitude abruptly, and hit the floor with a thud. “Okay, I’ve got you covered, come out with your hands up.” Lois3 whirled around to face the drapes and assumed a fighting stance before the sound had died in the room. She grabbed the nearest weapon, the remote phone sitting on the shelves outside her bedroom, and was brandishing it in the direction of her balcony. “Show time,” Lois whispered the words as she pushed past Clark to open the door of the pantry. “Lois, its okay, try not to be alarmed,” Lois2 spoke in a calm voice from the bedroom doorway, just as Lois came around the corner of the kitchen and into view. Turning to look at each woman in turn at the sound of her own voice coming from the bedroom door just behind her, and then the sight of the movement coming from the kitchen, Lois3 quickly whipped her head back and forth to get a second look before she froze. “Pod people.” She stared into her own eyes in the kitchen doorway as she whispered to herself, “pod people have stolen my body. Oh god…” Lois3 made a break for the front door, only to stop abruptly, skidding across the hard wood floors into the chest of Clark3. “Clark!” The command was issued from twin throats as Lois3 opened her mouth to scream, but it was Clark2 who made it to her first. As gently as possible he folded one arm around her torso, trapping her arms to her body, as he carefully placed his other hand over her mouth. He made sure to leave enough room between his palm and her teeth to make biting him difficult. When he had her partially subdued, he turned around and drew her back into the living room. “Lois, it’s okay, we’re not here to hurt you. And we aren’t pod people either,” Lois said soothingly, but with a bit of humor. “Look, I know your brain is on stimulation overload at the moment. But we need you to calm down and listen to us. Okay?” Lois3 nodded in agreement, her brown eyes wide over Clark2’s hand across her face. At Lois’s nod, Clark2 removed his hand, and loosened his clasp around his captive’s body. The instant she felt freedom within her grasp, Lois3 brought the remote phone she was still clutching in one hand around quickly to the side of Clark2’s head, shattering it into dozens of pieces. She used his brief moment of surprise to drop quickly through the circle of his loosened embrace down to the ground. Bracing her hands on the floor, she swept a leg out to take Clark2’s ankles out from under him. In her agitation she didn’t notice that he remained in the air a little longer than the jump he executed to avoid her foot should have warranted. At the end of her sweep she rolled to the left in the direction of the balcony and came up running. Considering that three of the people in the room claimed supersonic as a cruising speed, her ability to get to the sliding glass door and begin work on the latch before recapture was a testament to the shock her quick reactions had caused in her would be captors. Clark wrapped his arms around her just as the click from the latch told them she had almost won her freedom. He used the same technique Clark2 had used to hold her, one hand holding her arms and another over her mouth. He latched the door again before Lois3 realized that in that brief nanosecond the hand over her mouth was missing, and she could call reinforcements to her aide. With the apartment locked and their quarry recaptured, Clark turned around to face Lois and Lois2 again to give them a second chance to explain things to Lois3. “Oh… this isn’t going at all well.” Lois watched her double strain against the barriers surrounding her while trying to connect with her feet against Clark’s legs. Muffled screams could be heard through the hand covering Lois3’s mouth, and above that hand her eyes were wide and angry as they darted from one of her captors to another. She tried to expand her chest within the iron band encircling her so that she could drop down again. Interspersed with her attempts to mutilate Clark’s kneecaps, she was attempting to hook a foot behind one of his legs to trip him. She gave no indication at all of accepting her situation with equanimity any time soon. “Maybe I should hit her. Worked for me.” Lois2 took one step closer. “No!” Clark3 exploded from his position at the front door and was standing in front of the distraught woman before Lois2 had completed her step. That alone had the effect of quieting the woman within Clark’s arms. Her body movements stilled, and the eyes above his hand, while still showing traces of anger, now showed a familiar sign of amazement and curiosity. “No one is hitting anyone. Neither of you is going to lay a hand on her. Is that understood?” Clark3 unconsciously used a pose he’d seen both Clark and Clark2 use when speaking to their wives. It didn’t occur to him that these women weren’t intimidated by the pose, and were just as likely to do what they thought was necessary regardless of how their husbands glowered at them. Since his sudden move to defend Lois3 had the effect of stunning her into quiescence, neither felt a slap was needed any longer. Besides, part of the purpose of this visit was to convince Lois3 that having a protector around was a good idea. It wouldn’t do any harm for her to think Clark3 had saved her from being assaulted by another version of herself. Lois and Lois2 transferred this information to each other by the simple means of a brief glance at each other, and a nod. “Of course, Clark, if you say so. We just wanted her to calm down.” Lois looked into Lois3’s startled eyes, “You are calm now, aren’t you?” Lois3 nodded slowly, her eyes darting back to Clark3 from Lois’s face. “Okay, Clark is going to release your mouth, but he’s going to keep his arms around you for a minute or two.” Lois nodded to Clark, and he slowly removed his hand from her mouth. Lois3 kept her lips pursed, as if keeping in a scream she knew would have her fully restrained again. “We are not going to harm you in any way. In fact, we’re here to help. I want to explain what we’re doing here, and if you don’t want our help we’ll all go, and you’ll never see us again.” “Now, isn’t that better. I just hate it when someone gags me. It’s worse than being tied up. If I’m gagged, I can’t ask any questions about why I’ve been tied up, and that always bothers me. I hate being tied up and not being able to ask questions about why. I bet you have lots of questions, don’t you?” Lois2 stretched a tentative hand out, and patted her double on the shoulder. Lois3 flinched back into Clark at the contact from a woman who looked too much like herself. “Yeah, lots of questions, like who the hell are you and what are you doing with my face and when are you going to leave?” Her voice squeaked a little, rough from the screams that had been muffled behind the hands of Clark and Clark2. Clark3 laughed, bringing Lois3’s gaze back to the man who had disappeared from her front door only to reappear right in front of her a moment later. “I’m sorry, I’m not laughing at you. You just sound like me a week ago. One of my doubles showed up on my doorstep, and I pretty much had the same reaction you’re having now. Well, I didn’t try to scream or kick him, although I did hit him.” Clark3 shook his hand out as if he’d actually felt the effects of punching his counterpart. “I do think I have a pretty good idea of what’s running through your head right now.” “Do you really? I doubt it. Half of you might look like me, but you’re obviously not me, ‘cus I’m me.” Her eyes lit up, and she looked around the room, “If this is some kinda candid camera show, I’m not amused. Whoever is playing this joke on me had better watch their back. Do you hear that, Jimmy?” She raised her voice a little, though not enough to be heard in the hallway, and looked around the room for a hidden camera. “If you’re doing this to me I’m gonna find the deepest darkest pit of slime and dump you into it.” “Lois, there aren’t any hidden cameras. In fact, we’re kinda hoping to keep our visit here a secret.” Lois held her hand up when Lois3 opened her mouth to interrupt, “I know, none better, that you’re going to want to write about this as soon as we leave, but we hope that you won’t. If you write about us, there’s a good chance that someone in your universe might find out how we got here and find us, or disrupt other worlds. We’d like to avoid that if we could. If we could, we’d probably not have come to you at all, but we need your help.” “My universe? Other worlds? Oh god, I was right. You are pod people!” Her voice cracked at the thought, but she didn’t try to resume her struggles. “Okay, I don’t know why you chose to contact me. I’m not a political leader or anything. Unless…,” her eyes lit up and her voice showed a distinct edge of excitement. “You say you don’t want me to write about you, but that’s not really true is it? You do want me to write your story for the paper so no one will be afraid of you when you reveal yourselves to the rest of the world. Of course. If you want the best exposure, go to the best reporter. Obviously an intelligent race. “Is this all of you? Or are there more of you? Where’s your spaceship? You keep telling me that you won’t hurt me, so I guess that means you’re trying to convince me that you come in peace, right? Did you want anything specific, from our planet, or are you just visiting? Does this visit mean that you think Earth is ready to join the league of worlds or whatever you call it? Oh, sorry, I’ll slow down.” Lois3’s eyes had been darting from one to another of the people in her living room as she rattled off her list of questions in quick succession. Ending with a look up at Clark’s stunned face she asked, “Uh, would you mind letting me go so I can get my recorder? I promise not to run.” “I told you she’d want to write it up,” Clark hissed at his wife as he released Lois3. “Now what do we do?” “Convince her not to,” Lois hissed back, then smiled at Lois3 as she returned from the desk in the dining room with her recorder. “Lois, before you start that tape, can we talk for just a few minutes. You might find there’s a bigger story in helping us out with a little problem we have than in interviewing us all right now.” “A bigger story than having a bunch of space aliens in my apartment? Oh God, you’re here to save the Earth from destroying itself aren’t you? It’s the ozone layer, right? I knew it. Perry made me do that piece on deforestation when I broke my ankle last year and couldn’t get around. I learned a lot more than I ever wanted to know about what we’re doing to the environment, and that’s why you’ve come to me. How long do we have?” “Lois, first off, we’re not space aliens.” Lois2 started, then looked around at the three men in the room, who were looking back at her with triplicate quizzical smiles. “Er… at least not all of us. Have you ever read anything about time travel? Or seen a movie on the subject or something?” “Of course, I read H. G. Wells as a kid, and PBS has been showing the same Dr. Who re-runs for years.” Her eyes lit up as she prepared to go off on yet another tangent. “Ohhhhhhh…. You’re time travelers. You really are me, only not from right now.” She took a closer look at Lois, “Must be from way in the future. I’ve never cut my hair like that, and you do look older.” She looked at Clark2 and ignored Lois as she sputtered her denial, “But I don’t know you. Do I meet you in my future? Is that how you moved so fast?” She directed this last at Clark3, “You used time travel to get from the front door to in front of me without me ever seeing you move. I thought it might have been some kinda transporter beam like they have on Star Trek. Wow. So obviously I’m around for several more years if you’re here.” Lois3 aimed the last statement at the already fuming Lois. Clark used the same hold he’d recently used on Lois3 on his wife. “Calm down,” he whispered in her ear, while smiling in a friendly fashion at Lois3. “She’s not going to like us if you beat her up.” “Actually, you’re close, but not quite there yet. We are time travelers of a sort, but we are actually from the same time line that you live in. We are from other universes. Universes that are just slightly different from the one you inhabit. Like you have long hair, and I don’t. I never lived in this apartment building, but apparently Lois did in her own universe, and you live here in yours.” She pointed at Clark3, “This Clark is a little younger than my husband,” she placed an arm around the waist of Clark2 to indicate which man she meant. “So it is possible that Lois and I are slightly older than you. We aren’t exact duplicates of you, or each other. More like versions of how you might have turned out had your life experiences been a little different.” “Other universes. Right. Like Star Trek when Kirk and company got beamed into a world where they were all evil, and the evil Kirk was beamed into the good universe and almost started a war. Right. Saw the rerun two weeks ago with…,” Lois3 raised her voice and started looking around for cameras again, “Jimmy… get out here right now. I’m tired and hungry and don’t have time for any of your pranks.” She sent a general smile at the group, and started for the front door. “Well, it was nice to meet you, amazing make-up job, ladies.” She looked at Lois while she continued to move toward the door. “Don’t quit your day job though, and you could have gotten a better wig.” Lois3 reached for the top lock as she finished her quip, and found herself groping Clark3’s chest. He’d taken over his position as guard at the front door the instant he’d seen her head that way. One second she’d seen him on the other side of the room, the next second he was once again blocking her doorway. “How do you do that?” Lois3 asked, not bothering to hide her irritation with this whole affair. “Lois, we’re telling you the truth. We are all from different universes, or at least… those two are from one universe,” Clark3 indicated Lois and Clark. “And those two are from another,” waving his hand in the direction of Clark2 and Lois2. “And I am from yet another version of your universe. My universe is very different from the one that you are living in here, while their versions are more similar.” He held her gaze with his, “I think I have a way to prove that what we’re telling you is the truth, if you’ll trust me for just a few minutes.” “Trust you?” Lois3 exclaimed. “Why should I trust you? I don’t know you in this or any universe. Just who the hell are you anyway? I mean, even if I believed what you guys are telling me, which I don’t, why would I bring a bunch of complete strangers to visit myself? I’ve never seen anyone like you here. And I get around a lot. I mean, I don’t know everybody on the planet, but if you’re involved in my life in other universes, why aren’t you involved in my life here? And where is the Lois from your universe, huh? Wha’d ya do, scare her to death with your magic tricks and now ya need a new one?” Clark3 looked uncomfortable, “Well actually, there is no Lois in my universe. At least you aren’t there as you. Please, would you just trust me for five minutes? That’s all I ask. If I haven’t convinced you that we’re telling the truth, we’ll all go back to our respective homes and never bother you again. I promise.” His entreaty drew quiet gasps from both her counterparts, and looking back over her shoulder at the surprised faces of the four other members of this strange party made Lois3 realize how important that promise might be. Lois3 looked into the face of the earnest young man before her, searching for the truth in his dark eyes. “Five minutes. Then you all either get lost, or help me return the favor for this little prank to Mr. Olsen. Something where he decides that making a fool out of me isn’t worth the trouble.” “Five minutes, and then I can’t speak for the rest of the group, but I will be at your command for any retaliation against this Mr. Olsen you might deem necessary.” Lois3 nodded in his direction, and Clark3 looked over at Clark. “I need the device, and if you could set that return feature for here in five minutes, I’d appreciate it. I wouldn’t want to get lost out there.” Clark removed the remote from his pocket. “Where are you going to go?” “My universe. The lake outside is four miles from town, and at this time of day no one should be in the fields. We can easily take off and return to this location, and frankly if I run into anyone on my end I don’t really care any more. If I do end up going back, I have no intention of living my life the same way I have been.” “Are you sure you want to do this?” Lois asked him. “If you give Lois and I a little more time, we might be able to convince her that we’re telling her the truth. If you give up after five minutes…” “I know. It’s okay, Lois. I appreciate everything you all have done for me very much. I think I have to do this part my way. If it doesn’t work, I’ll find another way to live my life where I can help. Clark told me the birds in my universe aren’t migrating the way they should. Maybe I’ll go back and take charge of all the wild species, making sure they thrive as much as possible. “Whatever happens after my five minutes, I want you all to know that meeting you is the best thing that ever happened to me.” He turned to Clark2 as Clark finished the settings for the remote and handed it to him, “Especially you. You have been a real friend to me, and if there is ever anything I can do to help you,” he swept his gaze over the whole group again, “any of you, in any universe, please let me know.” He looked down at Lois3, a mere foot in front of him. “Ready?” At her nod, Clark3 pushed the enter button, the stasis bubble formed around them, and they disappeared. -- All humanity is passion; without passion, religion, history, novels, art would be ineffectual. Balzac The problem: How to get 2 pounds of chocolate home from the store in hot car. The solution: Eat it in the parking lot. ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 16 Dec 1999 08:39:29 -0500 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Phillip Atcliffe Subject: Re: question for a fanfic In-Reply-To: <0.22076029.2589af92@aol.com> MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; CHARSET=US-ASCII On Wed, 15 Dec 1999 21:59:30 EST "Ann E. McBride" wrote: > In a message dated 12/15/1999 5:49:48 PM Eastern Standard Time, > petrast@GMX.NET writes: >> does anyone of you know what the "international version" of the DEA would be? I'm looking for an organization that represents an international drug department. InterPol or something like that? << > I think it is possible that some part of Interpol certainly might try to catch drug dealers and the like. I am pretty sure that many times, if there are international drug dealers, the police of all the nations involved work together, sharing information and possibly even agents (The movie The French Connection comes to mind). < I hate to be a killjoy, Ann and Petra, but I don't think there are _any_ international agencies like that. Even InterPol, AFAIK, is merely a clearing house for information and intelligence relating to criminal activities; it has no agents of its own, and its employees have no police powers unless they have been seconded to it by their forces, in which case they are normal cops when in the area for which they have jurisdiction, and laymen outside of it. Police forces co-operate with one another, no question, but unless deputised (or whatever the equivalent is), a policeman from one country has no more authority in another country than any ordinary citizen. Okay, now someone tell me I'm wrong... Phil ------------------------------------------------------------ "Sic Transit Gloria Barramundi" (Or, So Long and Thanks for All the Fish!) -- not Douglas Adams, but me: Phil Atcliffe (Phillip.Atcliffe@uwe.ac.uk) ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 16 Dec 1999 11:19:49 +0000 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Wendy Richards Subject: Re: HELP!!!! In-Reply-To: <19991216051437.8371.qmail@web901.mail.yahoo.com> MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; CHARSET=US-ASCII > > >i am looking for a fanfic in which lois is > > supposedly shot and they have a > > >funeral and everything, but clark still doesn't > > really believe that she's > > >dead. he somehow finds her alive and it's really > > WAFFy at the end. i know > > >it's not an alt-clark story and lex could have been > > involved, but that's > > >really all i remember about it. does anyone have > > any idea what story i'm > > >talking about? thanks! I've seen Irene's suggestions - it sounds like it could be 'A Question of Ethics,' but there is also the fic in which Lois has been drugged or something so that she appears dead, and although she's been buried, she wakes up in her coffin a few days later.... Can't remember the title or author of that one. Wendy ---------------------- Wendy Richards w.m.richards@hrm.keele.ac.uk ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 16 Dec 1999 04:39:46 -0800 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Cynthia Haste Subject: Prelude Chapter 28 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=iso-8859-1 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit Chapter 28 The group in the living room looked at each other for a moment, none of them sure of what to say, then the two females of the group each issued a heavy sigh. “Well, that went well.” Lois said as her body dropped heavily onto the couch. “I thought we might be stuck here for hours trying to convince her. Now, in five minutes we’ll probably all be heading home.” She rested her head against her husband’s shoulder. “Poor Clark.” “Hey, he might surprise you. Besides, if she sees another universe with her own eyes, she can’t help but listen to us.” Clark2 said in defense of his friend. “Yeah, she’ll either listen to us or go back to reporter mode and try to interview us. Sweetie, am I that annoying when I’m interviewing someone?” Lois2 asked her husband as they resumed the position they’d had on the love seat before Lois3’s arrival. “Worse, baby. You actually give people time to answer the questions, and you expect them to do it too.” He smiled down at her and hugged her with an arm across her shoulders. “You think she’s annoying! At least she likes your wig, and thinks you were born in the same decade as she was.” Lois said from the couch. Lois2 giggled, “I think she was just trying to get to you. That really sounded like something I would say myself.” “I’d never be so rude as to…” Lois broke off and looked up as her husband cleared his throat and looked down at her. “Well, I’d almost never be that rude,” she amended. “I hope he has more luck with her in five minutes than I had with you for the first two years we knew each other.” Clark said, pulling Lois tightly up against his side. “I know I wasn’t really keen on this idea, but now I’d hate for him to have to keep that promise and go back to his universe alone.” “Yeah, me too. I just can’t see him as a super Marlin Perkins. It would be so unfair.” Lois leaned into Clark’s shoulder. “He doesn’t have to make her fall in love with him; he just has to make her believe in us. You guys should be a big help on that front. Seeing is believing when it comes to super stunts.” “Yeah, but we have to get her to agree not print anything on this first. We can’t let her see…” Lois2 broke off as she saw a light form near the front door of the apartment. Lois and Clark looked over their shoulders in the direction she was staring, and saw the light shimmer into the form of the stasis bubble. In the seconds before the bubble cleared, they noticed that Clark3 was standing behind Lois3, supporting her with his hands around her waist. “Someone help me,” Clark3 said as the bubble cleared. “She’s not moving or saying anything. I think she’s in shock.” He cradled her waist with one arm, and moved the other to pick her up at the knees. As soon as he had her aloft in his arms, the frozen woman came to life. “Put me down. You brought us back early.” Lois3 began hitting his chest with her hands as she kicked her feet in attempt to get down. “Oww, that hurt.” Clark3 set her back on her feet. “Does time travel require bullet proof vests? Why didn’t you get me one?” Lois3 ran to her desk and grabbed a pad of paper and a pen before rushing back to where Clark3 was frozen by the door. “Okay, you said five minutes. By my clock we still have a minute and thirty-two seconds. I want the rest of my time.” She turned her back on Clark3. “Let’s go.” Clark3 looked helplessly at the four people staring back at them from the living room, a look of confusion and near panic in his eyes. The men recognized the feeling, having experienced it many times in their dealings with the women in their lives. The women recognized the look, having both spent several hours in the company of a man wearing it. “Lois, later. Maybe. I take it you believe us now?” Lois said, coming around the couch to face the couple at the front door. “Believe you? Believe you? That was fantastic. This whole thing is fantastic. One second I was here, then I was there, then I was here. I want to go there again. Jeez, what a barren little desert that place was. What happened, somebody bomb Metropolis? I can’t believe that tiny little place is my home. Well it’s not my home, but it might have been if I’d been born in that place. Which I’m really glad I wasn’t, but I’d really like to go back there to get another look. I was right at the point of writing about the absence of the docks in my head when this guy,” she tapped Clark3 in the chest lightly, the numbness from her last tap still tingling in her fingers, “hits the panic button.” “Lois, you can’t write about any of this.” Lois ignored the mulish expression on Lois3’s face, “There’s more at stake here than a single story. There will be lots of stories if you can help us out. Ton’s of them. Award winners. If you’re willing to listen to us now, we’d like to tell you what brought us here.” “Help. You guys can hop around to any universe you please, and you pick me out of all the universes…” Lois3 tapped her pencil against the pad, “Uh… do any of you have the figures on how many universes there are?” She looked at the group hopefully. Lois linked her arm with Lois3’s and drew her reluctantly into the living room, plucking the pad and paper out of her hands as they went. “Lois, we really need you to promise not to print anything we tell you. If you don’t give us that promise, we’ll leave immediately, and you won’t have any proof of alternate universes to back up your story. Trust me please. The possibilities that will open up for you if you agree to help Clark will be endless. Worth much more than one little account of your foray into another world that no one will believe anyway.” “Okay, I’m listening.” Lois3 said grudgingly from in front of her mantel. She looked at her five unexpected guests spread in a semi-circle around her. “Which of these Clark’s is it I’m supposed to help anyway? And just what kind of help is it he’s looking for?” “Your word not to print what we’re going to tell you first. Even if you decide not to help us, and given your recent reaction to events I think you will agree, but even if you don’t, you can’t print anything about any of us. Especially Clark,” Lois2 said sternly, coming to stand at Lois’s side in support. “Do you two know how weird it is to talk to myself? Twice over?” Lois3 asked. “Your word.” Lois2 smiled, but her voice remained firm. “Jeez, Ok, Ok, I cross my heart and hope to die. Won’t breathe a word of whatever great secrets of the cosmos you’re willing to impart to me. Although, I don’t understand why you came to me if you didn’t want me to write about it,” Lois3 openly sulked. “Lois, you’re more than just a reporter. If you’re running true to form, you’re caring, thoughtful, inventive, energetic, determined and so much more.” Clark stared at his wife’s profile from where he stood at the far end of the couch. “So, are you the Clark who needs help?” Lois3 ran her eyes over Clark appraisingly. “No, he’s not. He has all the help he needs, thank you very much,” Lois said coolly. She indicated Clark3, “This is the man we’re hoping you’ll be willing to take under your wing.” “Oh, of course, the one who panics. Yeah, I can see where he’d need help. I’m writing a Pulitzer Prize piece in my head and he decides I’m in shock.” Lois3’s tone beat Lois’s for icy content, “So what kinda help are you lookin’ for?” “He wants to change universes. He needs to change universes,” Lois2 broke in before Clark3 could respond directly. “You saw where he came from. It’s not exactly a desert; there is a lot of beauty in that universe that we may never see again in any of ours. It’s just not right for Clark. He needs a little more… variety. A little more action. A little more life.” “A lot more life,” Lois agreed with a nod. “We found out that the Clark who was supposed to be in this universe never made it. You see, you were half-right in your original assumption about where we came from. Lois and I are as human as you are, but Clark was sent to Earth from a dying planet. The Clark that should have arrived on this planet more than twenty-five years ago never made it. And since the universe that Clark came from doesn’t really need his talents, we were hoping that you might help him to acclimate to a more… lively universe than the one he came from.” “Let me get this straight. You guys pop in here from out of the blue, and want to drop off this man from the twilight zone… I mean he’s not just from another universe, he’s actually a space alien from another universe. And you want me to raise him like a little lost puppy.” Lois3 sarcastic comment made the females she was addressing wince slightly. She looked Clark3 up and down slowly twice before addressing them again. “Is he house-broke?” “I am not a puppy… and if…” Clark3 began in outrage. “Clark, quiet.” Clark2 murmured to his friend. “I think she’s thinking about it.” Having come to the same conclusion herself, Lois began eagerly to list Clark3’s better qualities, “Actually, he’s very well read, so he understands the principles that go with living in a busy metropolitan city, without ever having had the practice of it. And really Lois, you have no idea how handy he will be to have around. Much handier than a puppy.” Lois2 energetically added her two cents, “Oh yes indeed, very handy. He can save your life 20 times before breakfast and then supply the coffee and donuts too.” Not wanting to be specific about super abilities until they had come to some form of agreement with Lois3, Lois kept her comments to generalities. “He’s got skills you can’t even begin to imagine. I just don’t know how I got along before I met Clark, and I do know I was real good on my own.” “Oh yeah, the best. None better. Award winning and all that.” Lois2’s adoration of her husband came through in her tone as she practically sighed her next words, “But with Clark, everything just seems to be soooo much better.” “Stop right there,” Lois3 hissed angrily. In a pitch known to strike fear in the hearts of murderers and City Councilmen she continued, “I don’t know what kind of life you guys had in your world. I don’t really care. I’m not sure that I even believe this is happening anyway. I’ll probably wake up tied to an overheating boiler that’s ready to explode with a big lump on my head, which will explain this bizarre nightmare I seem to be having right now. But not even in my worst nightmare would I allow some cookie cutter Lois Lane wannabees from another dimension to pimp for me with some intergalactic stud. “I’m celibate because I want to be. My choice. Not because I’ve been holding out for some kind of out of this world experience with a space alien. It’s an easy choice given my past experience with the opposite sex. Alien or not, I am sure he’s just as self-righteous, self-centered, self-absorbed and self everything else as the rest of men I know. I have no intention of jumping into bed with this guy no matter how highly you two extol his virtues, so you can just forget it.” Shock registered on five of the faces in the room as Lois3’s tirade cascaded over them. Shock turned to embarrassment for three of them, registering in varying shades of red, the brightest shade belonging to Clark3. Lois and Lois2’s shock bypassed embarrassment and tumbled straight into mirth. The only visible warning signs to the spouses who knew them so well were the straining muscles at the corner of their mouths, and the glitter in their eyes. Lois and Lois2 restrained themselves admirably, not wanting to anger Lois3 any more than she obviously was, until they looked at each other. As soon as their eyes met they lost all composure. “Intergalactic…,” from Lois. “S…s… stud,” whispered Lois2. A repressed giggle became a full-fledged laugh and soon they were holding onto each other for support. “No… really…,” Clark3 tried to speak up for himself, while glaring at his laughing friends. When they looked back at him they simply laughed harder. “This isn’t funny. Maybe I should just go back where I came from. Really… please… Lois… er… Miss Lane… I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable. In any way. I just wanted to be able to do more than I could in my world. I just want to help people, anyway I can. I never thought about you like that...” At this lie, from a normally truthful man, his color brightened a few shades more. Lois patted his arm gently before turning to Lois3. She wiped her eyes with the corner of her palm, and sent a quelling glance at the still giggling Lois2, only to ruin the effect when the still smouldering look on Lois3’s face caused her to giggle again herself. It was a brief aberration, and visibly pulling herself together, she tried to make things right. “Lois, that’s not what we meant at all. Clark does need you, but not in that way. You saw where he’s been living. He comes from an agricultural planet with little or no crime. Very well ordered, everyone doing as they ought, everyone polite and helpful, a place I’ve been working my whole adult life to make my world be. Very boring. Not that I’m going to stop fighting crime and corruption just so the excitement levels in my dimension stay high. I just need to acknowledge to myself that I enjoy my work and since my work involves fighting the bad guys, it’s a good thing there’s a lot of bad guys around to fight. I don’t like it when people get hurt by these people, but I do get enormous satisfaction out of putting them away so they don’t hurt anyone else in the future. And that is one of the areas where Clark is most useful.” Lois turned to Clark and patted his arm. She noticed that all three Clarks still showed traces of red on their cheeks, and evidenced their discomfort by adopting the distancing Superman pose so famous throughout at least two worlds. Lois thought it was kind of cute. Lois2 had regained her composure, and gravitated to her husband’s side. She carresed his arm in an almost mirror image of what Lois was doing to Clark. “Very useful indeed. I don’t even want to think of how many tight spots Clark has gotten me out of, starting with my incarceration in a dingy little dungeon in Bahrain. He seems to sense when I’m in danger before I do. Not that I go looking for danger, mind you, it just seems to pop up in the most unexpected places.” Clark2 was looking down at the arm his wife was petting, but at her last statement he looked into her face with a wry grin. “Unexpected. Right. Like a bookie parlor being run from the back of a mini-van parked out on Hobs bay. It was very unexpected that they would try to kidnap you instead of letting you write up their misdeeds and send them to jail. Or, the councilman’s office when you broke in to find those files on the payoffs from the contractors building the new schools. Very unexpected. Who’d have thought he’d take exception to your trying to put him in jail and come after you with a gun? Surprised me. And then there’s the time….” Lois2 reached up and dragged his mouth down to her’s before he could recount any of the other times she had leaped into danger without thinking of the consequences. “You were babbling, dear,” she said when she let him go. Lois2 turned back to Lois3, “The point is that when I do get in too deep, Clark is there for me. The bad guys go to prison, the story gets written, and sometimes the awards get handed out to the most deserving person. Me. ” Clark and Clark2 grinned but didn’t laugh at the last statement. Lois only nodded in understanding. “Of course in our case the awards go to us, as we’re both reporters. Clark’s job as Superman is just something he does on the side. You know, when he’s needed. We still have a perfectly normal life.” Lois2 agreed with that sentiment. “Oh yes, even though Clark is Superman so much that he has little time for reporting, we still have a full life together also. Though if you can, I’d recommend doing what Lois and Clark did. Try and keep it a secret that Clark is really Superman. There are hundreds of places we can go and just be a normal couple, with no one recognizing Clark as a superhero. It’s just that sometimes it would be nice not to be stopped in the supermarket for autographs while I’m just trying to buy bleach to wash out the tub because everybody’s idol has left a ring around it washing out his suit. Or be able to walk in the local park without losing my husband to the kids playing ball or frisbee or whatever.” Lois2 snaked her arm around Clark2’s waist and hugged him with her one arm to show she really didn’t mind all the interuptions she had been fighting with him about just a week before his disappearance. “But the benefits far outweigh the disadvantages. I wouldn’t trade my life for anyone else’s, and we don’t expect you to do that either. We are all different people, even though we look alike. We are products of our upbringing as much as of our DNA.” Lois decided to take it from there “We are certainly not “cookie cutters”.” She made a moue of distaste at the words. “Lois cooks, I don’t. I’m writing a book, she’s completely focused on her job as a reporter. I’m a caffeine junky, Lois drinks herbal tea.” An unpleasant look passed over her face as she remembered the lack of coffee or even soda at her double’s residence, and the taste of the morning brew that would supposedly invigorate her to start her day. It invigorated her enough to distract Lois2 long enough to dump the tea in the sink at the first opportunity. “The Clarks are different too” Lois2 joined in. “Other than the obvious powers as Superman, they have different personalities. Lois rarely finds herself waking up in some strange jungle after she’s gone to sleep in her own bed. My husband is constantly deciding in the middle of the night that he wants to surprise me with a vacation, and he just gets us there. I don’t really think Lois would like it if Clark started doing that to her without asking. My husband and I almost always cook at home, and avoid junk food whenever possible. Clark uses his invulnerability to fat and cholesterol to load up on twinkies and ho-hos. Their schedule at work and Clarks’ Superman activities mean that they end up with more take-out in a month than I have in a year. There’s nothing wrong with the ways each of us lives our lives. We’re just different people.” Lois3 had gone from anger at her misconception to complete confusion again. She was having a hard time thinking of anything that she’d have to offer these amazing people, half of who came not only from another universe, but another planet to boot. Her look-alikes seemed to have much more interesting lives than she did herself. That fact both threw her off a bit, and kept her interested. She was the one who was always on the cutting edge of danger and excitement. How had Jimmy put it last week? Dangling over the jaws of death. Yep, that was her. That statement also seemed to be tailor made for the two women in front of her. To an even greater degree than herself. She had to admit to herself that she was just a tad jealous. Admit to herself, not to them. Lois3 latched onto a word she had been hearing from both women, “What is a Superman?” she asked. -- All humanity is passion; without passion, religion, history, novels, art would be ineffectual. Balzac The problem: How to get 2 pounds of chocolate home from the store in hot car. The solution: Eat it in the parking lot. ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 16 Dec 1999 07:52:27 EST Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: "C.C. Malo" Subject: Re: HELP!!!! MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit re fanfic: <funeral and everything, but clark still doesn't really believe that she's>dead.>> Christy replied: <> I think so, too, and it is in the fanfic archive. This was maybe the first fanfic written with this theme and is one of the best, in that genre, I think. Carol ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 16 Dec 1999 06:43:04 -0800 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Nancy Smith Subject: I need a few opinions MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Okay, for those of us who write fanfic, we have to make certain assumptions and draw certain conclusions about things that happened in the actual show. I need a few opinions from people for a detail in my current fanfic. What would have been done with Luthor's Kryptonite cage after he supposedly committed suicide in "The House of Luthor?" How long would it have been kept around, and where would it have been kept? Nan ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 16 Dec 1999 14:52:53 +0000 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Wendy Richards Subject: Re: I need a few opinions In-Reply-To: <3858FA77.DA1BE9C5@earthlink.net> MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; CHARSET=US-ASCII On Thu, 16 Dec 1999 06:43:04 -0800 Nancy Smith wrote: > What would have been done with Luthor's Kryptonite cage > after he supposedly committed suicide in "The House of > Luthor?" How long would it have been kept around, and > where would it have been kept? Well, nothing was ever said. I've assumed in at least one fic that Nigel St John (who, after all, disappeared after the end of S1, to resurface by Phoenix) might have taken it, hidden it, dismantled it, etc. Given that Luthor's 'death' occurred just as he was about to be arrested, I'd have assumed that the police were about to search all his personal and business premises, so St John (who should have been a guest at the wedding) could easily have ducked down to the cellar and dealt with the cage once it was obvious Superman was gone. Just my guess/assumption, that's all; but since there's no canon to work with, you could assume what you like! Wendy ---------------------- Wendy Richards w.m.richards@hrm.keele.ac.uk ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 16 Dec 1999 10:02:46 -0500 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Pam Jernigan Organization: http://www.geocities.com/~chiefpam/ Subject: Re: HELP!!!! MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit > I've seen Irene's suggestions - it sounds like it could be > 'A Question of Ethics,' but there is also the fic in which > Lois has been drugged or something so that she appears > dead, and although she's been buried, she wakes up in her > coffin a few days later.... Can't remember the title or > author of that one. > That sounds icky ... it also sounds like a Leanne Shawler fic, except it was about Mayson, not Lois -- "This Drake is no Sitting Duck" if my memory serves. Personally, I think Princess was looking for Requiem, but I guess we'll only know if she tells us :) -- ------------------------------------------------------- Pam Jernigan | jernigan@bellsouth.net ChiefPam on IRC | ChPam on AOL IM ------------------------------------------------------- "I know -- I'll tell the story of the Grapes of Wrath." "Ooh, that's a classic. This should be good." "Once upon a time, there were some very cranky grapes..." -VeggieTales, "God Wants Me to Forgive *Them*?" ------------------------------------------------------- http://www.geocities.com/~chiefpam ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 16 Dec 1999 10:31:22 -0500 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Hazel Subject: Re: I need a few opinions In-Reply-To: <3858FA77.DA1BE9C5@earthlink.net> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Nan asked: >What would have been done with Luthor's Kryptonite cage after he >supposedly committed suicide in "The House of Luthor?" How long would >it have been kept around, and where would it have been kept? A good question, Nan, but as Wendy says, you've got pretty much a free rein to deal with it as you'd like. I liked Chris Mulder's handling of the problem in her "Dimensions of Loving," in which Luthor had the bars melted down and then mixed with several other chemicals in order to make a sort of kryptonite rock crystal. I liked it mostly because I am extremely cynical of the amount of K that seems to float around on the show -- you'd think half the planet ended up on earth somehow, from the sheer volume! That's one reason I stuck that line about "neon-painted rocks" into my "Never Ever" list. ;) Seriously, though, Kryptonite should be a highly valued and rare commodity. Definitely selling at more than a thousand dollars per ounce. Unless Clark and specifically told anyone what happened to Sman (and I doubt he did!), I would imagine that Luthor's wine cellar would be pretty low on the search-and-seize list. That being the case, there's plenty of time for Nigel, St. John, or any other (relatively) loyal flunky to sneak into the basement and get hold of it. And really, if they hauled it back up to its original hiding place, who's going to find it? Unless, of course, some cop helps himself to a drink while they're searching the place. :) If not, there's no reason why it couldn't remain suspended by the rafters, a quiet menace literally waiting for the hammer to drop. So whatever you want to do with it, Nan -- it's all yours! And I hope you use it soon, as I like forward to more of your fic. Hazel ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 16 Dec 1999 10:32:39 -0500 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Marnie Rowe Subject: Re: question for a fanfic MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Hey I am not going to tell you that you are wrong but for some reason I had always thought that drug and smuggling were two crimes that the officials didn't get their backs up over duristiction, or however you spell that word, and it is one that they will cooperate the most with? You can correct me this is only an assumption made on movies and the news combined lol there is an accurate set of medium isn't it .. Marnie Rowe ---------- > From: Phillip Atcliffe > To: LOISCLA-GENERAL-L@LISTSERV.INDIANA.EDU > Subject: Re: question for a fanfic > Date: Thursday, December 16, 1999 8:39 AM > > On Wed, 15 Dec 1999 21:59:30 EST "Ann E. McBride" wrote: > > > In a message dated 12/15/1999 5:49:48 PM Eastern Standard Time, > > petrast@GMX.NET writes: > > >> does anyone of you know what the "international version" of the DEA > would be? I'm looking for an organization that represents an > international drug department. InterPol or something like that? << > > > I think it is possible that some part of Interpol certainly might try > to catch drug dealers and the like. I am pretty sure that many times, > if there are international drug dealers, the police of all the nations > involved work together, sharing information and possibly even agents > (The movie The French Connection comes to mind). < > > I hate to be a killjoy, Ann and Petra, but I don't think there are > _any_ international agencies like that. Even InterPol, AFAIK, is merely > a clearing house for information and intelligence relating to criminal > activities; it has no agents of its own, and its employees have no > police powers unless they have been seconded to it by their forces, in > which case they are normal cops when in the area for which they have > jurisdiction, and laymen outside of it. > > Police forces co-operate with one another, no question, but unless > deputised (or whatever the equivalent is), a policeman from one country > has no more authority in another country than any ordinary citizen. > > Okay, now someone tell me I'm wrong... > > Phil > ------------------------------------------------------------ > "Sic Transit Gloria Barramundi" > (Or, So Long and Thanks for All the Fish!) > -- not Douglas Adams, but me: Phil Atcliffe > (Phillip.Atcliffe@uwe.ac.uk) ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 16 Dec 1999 10:38:29 -0500 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Marnie Rowe Subject: Re: I need a few opinions MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Wow its a good thing that I read Hazel's reply when it appeared before starting my own, it said almost every point that i was going to make..but I had an idea too that the cage itself was not kryptonite, that it was a good conductor and the chunk of kryptonite was as the top and when Luthor turned the switch on that barrel it sent electricity thru the green stuff into the metal that the cage was made up of.....? the chunk could have gone into Nigel's pocket easier than anything? Marnie ---------- > From: Hazel > To: LOISCLA-GENERAL-L@LISTSERV.INDIANA.EDU > Subject: Re: I need a few opinions > Date: Thursday, December 16, 1999 10:31 AM > > Nan asked: > > >What would have been done with Luthor's Kryptonite cage after he > >supposedly committed suicide in "The House of Luthor?" How long would > >it have been kept around, and where would it have been kept? > > A good question, Nan, but as Wendy says, you've got pretty much a free rein > to deal with it as you'd like. > > I liked Chris Mulder's handling of the problem in her "Dimensions of > Loving," in which Luthor had the bars melted down and then mixed with > several other chemicals in order to make a sort of kryptonite rock crystal. > I liked it mostly because I am extremely cynical of the amount of K that > seems to float around on the show -- you'd think half the planet ended up > on earth somehow, from the sheer volume! That's one reason I stuck that > line about "neon-painted rocks" into my "Never Ever" list. ;) Seriously, > though, Kryptonite should be a highly valued and rare commodity. Definitely > selling at more than a thousand dollars per ounce. > > Unless Clark and specifically told anyone what happened to Sman (and I > doubt he did!), I would imagine that Luthor's wine cellar would be pretty > low on the search-and-seize list. That being the case, there's plenty of > time for Nigel, St. John, or any other (relatively) loyal flunky to sneak > into the basement and get hold of it. And really, if they hauled it back up > to its original hiding place, who's going to find it? Unless, of course, > some cop helps himself to a drink while they're searching the place. :) If > not, there's no reason why it couldn't remain suspended by the rafters, a > quiet menace literally waiting for the hammer to drop. > > So whatever you want to do with it, Nan -- it's all yours! And I hope you > use it soon, as I like forward to more of your fic. > > Hazel ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 16 Dec 1999 16:20:11 -0500 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Phillip Atcliffe Subject: Re: question for a fanfic In-Reply-To: <199912161535.dBGFZ6511742@admin.cgocable.net> MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; CHARSET=US-ASCII On Thu, 16 Dec 1999 10:32:39 -0500 Marnie Rowe wrote: > Hey I am not going to tell you that you are wrong but for some reason I had always thought that drug and smuggling were two crimes that the officials didn't get their backs up over duristiction, or however you spell that word, and it is one that they will cooperate the most with? You can correct me this is only an assumption made on movies and the news combined lol there is an accurate set of medium isn't it .. < I think you're right, Marnie, in so far as police all over the world will co-operate to deal with druggies, but nonetheless, a cop from country A cannot make more than the local version of a citizen's arrest in country B. The police of country B, assuming that they don't get all huffy about "foreigners" barging in on their territory, will generally be only too happy to throw the book at a suspect who's detained in this way, but the cop from country A had better be careful not to do anything that could be considered unreasonable in terms of restraint or use of force, or country B's courts could well prosecute _him_ (or her). Phil ------------------------------------------------------------ "I think... I think I am! | I think _I_ am: Therefore I am... I think?" | Phil Atcliffe -- The Moody Blues | (Phillip.Atcliffe@uwe.ac.uk) ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 16 Dec 1999 16:44:57 -0500 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Phillip Atcliffe Subject: Re: I need a few opinions In-Reply-To: <3.0.6.32.19991216172913.0092c720@actcom.co.il> MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; CHARSET=US-ASCII On Thu, 16 Dec 1999 10:31:22 -0500 Hazel wrote: > I liked Chris Mulder's handling of the problem [what happened to Luthor's Kryptonite cage?] in her "Dimensions of Loving," in which Luthor had the bars melted down and then mixed with several other chemicals in order to make a sort of kryptonite rock crystal. > I liked it mostly because I am extremely cynical of the amount of K that seems to float around on the show -- you'd think half the planet ended up on earth somehow, from the sheer volume! < Wasn't it Larry Niven (in MosWoK) who suggested that, from the tonnage of Kryptonite that has fallen to Earth, someone worked out that Krypton must have been a neutron star? (Well, it explains the super-strength... ) Later, both the comics and the animated series speculated that Kal-El's spaceship somehow drew the stuff along with it as it travelled to Earth, so that a disproportionate amount of the stuff ended up here. As for L&C... _was_ there all that much? I can only remember 5 storylines in which the stuff featured (6 if you count TA, but that was another universe), plus the 3 that featured Red K. There was the one big chunk that Wayne Irig found, most of which was destroyed in GGGoH. He sent a smaller chunk off for analysis, and Luthor got his hands on that. Most of it was used to make the cage, but there were still a couple of small pieces around; Ariana Carlin and Rollie Vale got theirs from LexLabs, and Jason Mazic got his (via Nigel) from Vale -- IIRC. The only other pieces I can remember are the ones Tempus found in Schuster's Field, which presumably had broken off the big chunk when it hit the ground. Of more interest that way is where the _Red_ K came from. How did it get to be red, anyway (the pre-Crisis comics had the green stuff pass through a "cosmic cloud" that altered its structure somehow)? Again, IIRC, Gene Newtrich found the stuff, and his sisters and Jerry White got their pieces from his. So it can be argued that only 2 pieces of Kryptonite are known to have fallen to Earth. Even that's rather more than one might expect, but improbable events do happen. Remembering the Newtrich sisters reminds me of a nasty idea that I had a while ago: somone looking for an anti-Superman weapon could do worse than talk to Nell Newtrich. Her Red-K laser worked very well; what do you think one using _Green_ K would do to the man in the suit? Nothing good, I'm sure. Phil ------------------------------------------------------------ Gravity is a Downer... So let's go flying! -- so sayeth Phil Atcliffe (Phillip.Atcliffe@uwe.ac.uk) ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 16 Dec 1999 09:16:50 -0800 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Nancy Smith Subject: Re: I need a few opinions MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Thanks to everyone for their input. Because of it, I now have a reasonable explanation for how my bad guy got his hands on Kryptonite, without having to postulate another piece being found somewhere--and the nice thing is that it will tie neatly into the plot and help lead to my villian. I figured if I threw the question out on the list I'd have my solution pretty quickly. Many thanks. Nan Phillip Atcliffe wrote: > On Thu, 16 Dec 1999 10:31:22 -0500 Hazel wrote: > > > I liked Chris Mulder's handling of the problem [what happened to > Luthor's Kryptonite cage?] in her "Dimensions of Loving," in which > Luthor had the bars melted down and then mixed with several other > chemicals in order to make a sort of kryptonite rock crystal. > > > I liked it mostly because I am extremely cynical of the amount of K > that seems to float around on the show -- you'd think half the planet > ended up on earth somehow, from the sheer volume! < > > Wasn't it Larry Niven (in MosWoK) who suggested that, from the tonnage > of Kryptonite that has fallen to Earth, someone worked out that Krypton > must have been a neutron star? (Well, it explains the > super-strength... ) Later, both the comics and the animated series > speculated that Kal-El's spaceship somehow drew the stuff along with it > as it travelled to Earth, so that a disproportionate amount of the > stuff ended up here. > > As for L&C... _was_ there all that much? I can only remember 5 > storylines in which the stuff featured (6 if you count TA, but that was > another universe), plus the 3 that featured Red K. > > There was the one big chunk that Wayne Irig found, most of which was > destroyed in GGGoH. He sent a smaller chunk off for analysis, and > Luthor got his hands on that. Most of it was used to make the cage, but > there were still a couple of small pieces around; Ariana Carlin and > Rollie Vale got theirs from LexLabs, and Jason Mazic got his (via > Nigel) from Vale -- IIRC. > > The only other pieces I can remember are the ones Tempus found in > Schuster's Field, which presumably had broken off the big chunk when it > hit the ground. > > Of more interest that way is where the _Red_ K came from. How did it > get to be red, anyway (the pre-Crisis comics had the green stuff pass > through a "cosmic cloud" that altered its structure somehow)? Again, > IIRC, Gene Newtrich found the stuff, and his sisters and Jerry White > got their pieces from his. > > So it can be argued that only 2 pieces of Kryptonite are known to have > fallen to Earth. Even that's rather more than one might expect, but > improbable events do happen. > > Remembering the Newtrich sisters reminds me of a nasty idea that I had > a while ago: somone looking for an anti-Superman weapon could do worse > than talk to Nell Newtrich. Her Red-K laser worked very well; what do > you think one using _Green_ K would do to the man in the suit? Nothing > good, I'm sure. > > Phil > ------------------------------------------------------------ > Gravity is a Downer... So let's go flying! > -- so sayeth Phil Atcliffe (Phillip.Atcliffe@uwe.ac.uk) ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 16 Dec 1999 13:07:57 -0500 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Marnie Rowe Subject: Re: question for a fanfic MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit I conceed, you are right lol I was saying mainly that they were more likely to work in concert, but I have no real clue how it all works I was just blathering lol Marnie ---------- ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 16 Dec 1999 19:29:27 +0100 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Petra Steudle Subject: Re: question for a fanfic MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Phillip Atcliffe wrote: > I hate to be a killjoy, Ann and Petra, but I don't think there are > _any_ international agencies like that. > [...] > Police forces co-operate with one another, no question, but unless > deputised (or whatever the equivalent is), a policeman from one country > has no more authority in another country than any ordinary citizen. Hm, too bad. You mean I'll have to wait a few decades until some sort of world drug police exists? ;) In that case the local police will do. Which agency in England would handle drug crimes? The MI6? Scotland Yard? Petra ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 16 Dec 1999 18:38:08 +0000 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Wendy Richards Subject: Re: question for a fanfic In-Reply-To: <38592F87.7E65ABC9@gmx.net> MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; CHARSET=US-ASCII On Thu, 16 Dec 1999 19:29:27 +0100 Petra Steudle wrote: > In that case the local police will do. Which agency in > England would handle drug crimes? The MI6? Scotland Yard? MI6 is part of the British spy division - MI5 operates internally, and MI6 internationally. And as far as I know (correct me if I'm wrong) Scotland Yard is simply part of the London police force, but the detective division. Police forces in Britain are divided by region, though each regional force cooperates with the other. Drug crimes are dealt with by the drug squads from each regional force. Wendy ---------------------- Wendy Richards w.m.richards@hrm.keele.ac.uk ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 16 Dec 1999 12:46:54 -0600 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Kathy Brown Subject: Happy Holidays from the Fanfic Archive Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Happy Holidays from the Archive staff. :) The Archive has begun its holiday break. We will begin editing stories again by January 15, 2000. If you have stories to submit, I'd recommend waiting until mid-January to send them in. You can send them in now, but they will just sit in my mailbox until next year. The Archive *will* be uploading stories all during our break. We have a several great stories scheduled to be uploaded during December; January will feature two stories a week. Thanks to all the fanfic authors who made 1999 our most prolific year so far. I haven't done a final count yet on stories, but I am almost positive we will easily top our average of 250 stories/year. And of course, thanks to the readers -- your feedback gives authors the added incentive to keep turning out these great stories. :) On a personal note, I will be going NOMAIL on the fanfic list for the next month. If you need to reach me, please write me privately at . I can't promise a speedy reply, however, so if you need immediately attention on an Archive-related matter, please contact Lauren at . Please keep in mind that Lauren will not know the status of any stories being edited, but if you have a question about uploading, or see a problem on the Archive itself, she's the one to contact. :) Have a great holiday everyone! Kathy _________________________________ Kathy Brown Editor-In-Chief Lois & Clark Fanfic Archive: kathyb@springnet1.com OR kathyb@lcfanfic.com KathyB on IRC _________________________________ ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 16 Dec 1999 22:25:11 +0100 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Petra Steudle Subject: Re: question for a fanfic MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Wendy wrote: > Police forces in Britain are divided by region, though each > regional force cooperates with the other. Drug crimes are > dealt with by the drug squads from each regional force. Well, it looks like I'm going to use a general expression such as "local police" or "drug squad". Not very catchy though... ;) Thanks everyone for your help :-) Petra ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 16 Dec 1999 16:41:46 EST Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Princess Sarah Subject: Re: HELP!!!! MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Thanks for your help everybody. The one I was looking for was A Question of Ethics. But I haven't even read Requiem or On the Run yet so now I have something to keep me busy for awhile. Thanks again! ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 17 Dec 1999 00:04:50 -0000 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: hummingbird Subject: Re: question for a fanfic MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit You could try the following web site - it has a load of information of all sorts of Police activities. www.met.police.uk/police/mps/mps/specop/index.htm There seems to be a lot of information there that you may find useful or it may point you to some links that could be helpful. Regards Eileen ----- Original Message ----- From: Wendy Richards To: Sent: Thursday, December 16, 1999 6:38 PM Subject: Re: question for a fanfic > On Thu, 16 Dec 1999 19:29:27 +0100 Petra Steudle > wrote: > > > In that case the local police will do. Which agency in > > England would handle drug crimes? The MI6? Scotland Yard? > > > MI6 is part of the British spy division - MI5 operates > internally, and MI6 internationally. > > And as far as I know (correct me if I'm wrong) Scotland > Yard is simply part of the London police force, but the > detective division. > > Police forces in Britain are divided by region, though each > regional force cooperates with the other. Drug crimes are > dealt with by the drug squads from each regional force. > > > Wendy > > > ---------------------- > Wendy Richards > w.m.richards@hrm.keele.ac.uk ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 16 Dec 1999 18:10:10 -0800 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Cynthia Haste Subject: Prelude Chapter 28 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=iso-8859-1 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit If anyone out there hasn't been checking out the stories being posted to Zoomways board recently, you are missing out on a veritible treasure trove of great stories. Some of the best stories I've read all year are being posted lickety split by some truly gifted authors. Run, don't walk to http://www.zoomway.com/boards and check them out. Chapter 29 “Superman is a reporter’s best friend, and a foe to every evil-doer within flying distance. That’s what we were talking about when we said how handy he is and how great his skills are,” Lois smiled at the remembrance of the storm those words had touched off before. “We know that helping a complete stranger acclimate to your dimension won’t be easy. But there is a trade off. You get the benefit of his super sleuth and rescue abilities, and he gets the benefit of your knowledge of this dimension.” At Lois3’s look of confusion, Lois continued, “Clark is not just an alien. He’s an alien with a kick.” Ready now for revelation number three, Lois walked to the kitchen an picked a glass out of the dish drainer by the sink. She filled the glass with water from the tap, and walked back to the living room. “Honey, the water’s a little warm for my taste, would you mind cooling the glass a little.” Clark blew a gentle breath below where her fingers gripped the top of the glass, and frost started to form on the sides. “Thank you dear.” Lois turned to Clark2 “Now the candles. It’s getting a little dark in here.” Used to getting cryptic orders from his wife, Clark2 glanced at the candles and they flamed immediately to life. “Thank you,” turning to Clark3 Lois continued, “and of course saving the best for last, why don’t you show Lois how little floor space you can take up.” Clark3 levitated slowly off the ground. Lois3 had turned her head to watch as each man performed his amazing feat. On Clark3’s rising off the ground she felt her knees give way on her. Clark3 was instantly by her side to catch her before she could sink to the ground and he carried her to the couch. Lois3’s eyes were wide, proving that she had not completed the faint started by his levitation act, but had the courage to stay conscious while her world continued to turn upside down. Clark3 withdrew his arms from around her, “Do you want something to drink? A cold washcloth for your head? How about an asperin? I know this is a lot to take. Jeez, we’ve given you so many shocks today it’s a wonder you haven’t had a heart attack. I’m really sorry. This was a dumb idea all around. Do you think you could just forget this ever happened? We’ll all go back where we came from and you’ll just think of this as that nightmare that you thought you were having. I didn’t think this through when I said I wanted to live on a world where I could do more. I never would have come here if I knew it would upset you so much.” Clark3 trailed off slowly, feeling the weight of her steady gaze. Lois3 stared at him for a few more moments, then turned to where the two other Loises were standing together watching her, “Do they all babble?” she asked, thinking of the way one of the women had silenced her husband for that offense already. Clark laughed outright, and Clark2 grinned widely. Lois gave her spouse a swat with the back of her hand and a quelling glance from Lois2 turned Clark2’s laughter into a cough. “Actually,” Lois sniffed, “for some reason I am the one accused of being the babbler in the family.” Lois smiled at Clark3, “I think he’s just nervous.” Having a man who could levitate act nervous around her caused Lois3 to gain a bit of her confidence back. “So what else is there?” Ticking off her fingers Lois2 said, “They have the cooling breath, the heat from their eyes goes from warm and cozy, all the way up to laser level, they can see through just about anything, they are really fast, I mean really fast. Bullets bounce off them like ping pong balls, they never get sick, in fact they are pretty much invulnerable to just about everything ….” Lois took up the litany, “Except for a substance called Kryptonite, which you may not find on this planet, since the Clark that was supposed to be here never arrived. You should keep your eyes open for any pretty colored rocks that Clark reacts oddly to though. They don’t need food or water to sustain them. Although all of them do eat, their energy seems to come from the sun. They require a lot less sleep than we do. I don’t think there’s ever been anything that Clark has tried to lift or move that he hasn’t been able to,” a quick glance at her husband confirmed this notion by the shrug of his shoulders. “And then of course there’s the flying.” “The flying?” Lois3 asked faintly. “Well you saw… oh, you thought he just levitated. Well you really don’t want someone flying about your living room, do you?” Lois2 asked reasonably. “When necessary they can fly faster than the speed of sound. Very handy when all you can think to say in a certain situation is ‘Help, Superman’ and the next thing you know there’s a sonic boom and he’s standing there holding the guy who just moments before had been holding you.” Lois nodded in agreement. “Very handy indeed. Of course, it’s also useful for quick trips to Paris or the Fiji Islands. But that ‘Help, Superman’ phrase is a good one to learn early. Even before I knew who Clark was he was constantly saving my life both as himself and Superman. He made my life as a reporter so much easier too in ways I never found out until much later. “He could see through walls and see if we were walking into a trap. He has a perfect memory. Never needs to take notes. Very useful when a tape-recorder would just make a source nervous. His hearing comes in handy all the time, can’t remember how many idiots plotted our doom when they didn’t know he was listening in, but I know there were a bunch of them. And of course being able to heat a gun up in the hand of someone hell bent on shooting you is always nice. I can’t even tell you how many times my job was made easier just by having a super hero close by.” Lois patted her husband’s chest, grateful for past good deeds, and those not even performed yet. “Not to mention how the women swoon over him. You’ve no idea how useful that can be when you’re trying to get past some battle-ax receptionist with an attitude problem. He charms them while I sneak past and get the story before they can say pink slip.” Lois2 added for good measure, “And no one will ever be at the scene of the story faster. Nope, you’ll never be scooped again.” Lois3 had been staring keenly at Clark3 throughout the seemingly endless list of the alien’s attributes. She was silent for a moment, as if to make sure they were through extoling his virtues. “But can you pick a lock?” she asked. Clark3 had been trying to seem innocent and non-threatening while the two Loises went through the list of his superhuman abilities. Lois3s question startled him. “Uh… no….uh… I mean where I come from we rarely use locks. If you need assistance choosing the correct one I’m sure I can research those available on this Earth and determine strength, number of tumblers, the reliability of the maker, and uh… well I’m sure I could pick a lock if given access to a terminal. I’m quite good at research. Of course you seem to have a large number of locks on your door already, but if you are unhappy with them, I’ll be happy to assist you in choosing a new one. I want to help in any way I can.” Clark3s manner was as eager as the puppy his hostess had likened him to. Lois and Lois2 glanced at each other and giggled. Clark mumbled something that sounded like, “like a lamb to the slaughter”. Clark2 had spent enough time with Clark3 that he had hopes for his wising up before she got him arrested. Lois2 reached over to tap Lois3s shoulder and draw her attention away from Clark3 and back to them. “See, he needs a lot of help. You know. Learning all the new things he needs to know to survive in the real world. We could take him to Dr. Klein at Star Labs. The Dr. Klein of this dimension has already met with the Dr. Klein of my dimension, so he already knows about other dimensions. But Clark wouldn’t be happy in a lab, under a microscope, being poked and prodded and studied all the time. “He needs to be out in the real world doing things that will help his fellow man. Regardless of the differences in our personalities, we all felt you were probably the best bet for someone to help Clark fit in here without becoming some kind of experiment for a semi-mad scientist. It’ll take some getting used to, but with all that you’ve seen in the world you won’t be as surprised as some would be at his abilities. You obviously use disguises,” Lois2 waved at the now discarded mustache, beard and wig, “and you rely on your ability to blend in to do your job. Those are things that Clark must learn to do to have a normal life, and help people as he wishes.” “A disguise. Hmmmm, yes we’ll need a disguise. There will be lots of times when you’ll be too close to the scene to be able to use your powers without people knowing. Explosions and terrorist activities and stuff like that. We’ll need some kind of uniform so people will never equate Clark with this Super person. Hmmm.” Clark3 watched, bewildered as the wheels in Lois3’s head turned. The four other players in the drama smiled to each other in triumph. “Can I make a suggestion?” Lois asked. “You’ll need something that causes everyone to notice him, but not pay too close attention to his face. You don’t want anyone noticing that Clark Kent and Superman look a lot alike.” Lois turned to Clark and Clark2, “Guys?” she asked as she twirled her finger in the air. “Do you ever feel like a performing seal?” Clark asked Clark2 as he moved back from the couch to give himself room. “Arf,” Clark2 answered, in a believable imitation of a seal. “Arf,” the second seal noise came from a red, yellow and blue, spandex-covered superhero. “And you love it too.” Lois2 reached up to kiss him on the cheek, not surprised when he turned his head to catch her reward with his lips instead. Clark3 and Lois3 sat stunned on the couch. This was the first time that Clark3 had seen the super-suit. He couldn’t believe these men whom he had begun to like and respect were prancing around some strange woman’s living room in what looked like psychedelic, glow-in-the-dark long johns. With a cape no less. Okay, they weren’t prancing. They were standing with their arms crossed across their chests checking each other out. Maybe they were looking for wrinkles. Although, how there could be wrinkles in those outfits mystified him. There didn’t look to be room to hide a dime to call home with much less a wrinkle. Lois3’s thoughts were much simpler. “Wow.” Lois and Lois2 laughed out loud again, “Yeah, that’s pretty much what we said the first time too. In fact I haven’t stopped saying it yet, and I’ve seen him like this almost daily for the last five years.” Lois hugged her husband’s arm to herself, before she ran the tips of her fingers over his spandex clad chest. “Yep, he is pretty wow in and out of the suit.” Clark shot her a quelling look, even though he knew it was a waste of effort. “The thing is that no one is looking at your face when you wear the suit,” Clark justified his ensemble. “At least that’s what my Mom said when she made it, and it seems she was right. I worked right next to the best reporter on my world for almost 2 years before she discovered my secret. Even now I work with people all the time who know me as both Superman and Clark Kent, and none of these people think we’re the same person.” Clark kept his arms crossed over his chest. “I don’t really need the suit, since the people on my world know who I am. But it does tend to keep Superman separate from Clark, so I wear it unless there’s a dire emergency where I just can’t get to it fast enough, which is rare. The suit seems to make people respect me, and listen to what I tell them. That makes my life a whole lot easier.” “They wouldn’t be listening to you because if they didn’t you could squash them like a bug and they know it, hmmm? Honey?” Lois2 smiled and trailed her fingers up his shoulders to where the spandex ended at his neck, her fingers finding bare skin and the silk of the hair at the back of his neck more interesting than the suit. Clark glanced at Clark3, still sitting on the couch next to Lois3, and noticed the definite look of distaste if not horror on his face as he looked at the apparel he and Clark2 were sporting. Clark allowed himself a small smile at the sight. “Wow” Lois3 reiterated. Then shaking her head at herself, and the lack of original material, she again grabbed onto something she’d heard, “So if your Mom made the suit, she knew she was sending you to Earth to be a super hero.” “No, our birth parents sent us to Earth in the different universes when we were just babies,” Clark answered. “I don’t think any of our birth parents realized what the difference in the suns of our home planet and Earth would do to our physiology. Each of us, in our own universe, was found and adopted as a baby by a farming couple named Martha and Jonathan Kent.” “Martha and Jonathan Kent? Of Kansas?” Lois3 asked breathlessly. “You were raised by Martha and Jonathan?” Clark met Lois’s eyes in surprise. “You know Martha and Jonathan?” Lois asked. “We’re good friends. They’re like surrogate parents to me. I met them several years ago on a story about UFO hunters. I visit them every chance I get, and they’re supposed to be here in three weeks for an art festival here showcasing some of Martha’s work. All this almost makes sense now. If I couldn’t deal with alien dimension jumpers, I can’t think of anyone more qualified to do so than Martha and Jonathan Kent.” Lois3 looked over at Clark3, as if talking only to him “I was almost killed on that story. Some obsessed megalomaniac who had been kicked out of the military for his obvious mental deficiencies kidnapped me. He’d gone underground, and convinced everyone he’d been killed. “When I ran into him he dragged me on a plane intent on teaching me how to fly without the benefit of being an alien. Right before he pushed me out the door of the plane I kicked him in the face and grabbed the parachute hanging over his head. Then I jumped. I didn’t have time to put the chute on right; I just put my arms through the straps, hung on tight and pulled the cord. I dislocated my shoulder on the bounce, ended up with several scrapes and bruises, a concussion and a badly sprained ankle. “I landed in one of the fields on the Kent’s farm. I was pretty out of it for a while, but I managed to convey to them that some pretty nasty people were out to get me, and I needed to lay low. Martha never batted an eye. She bandaged me up, put my shoulder back in place - God that hurt - and hid me when the jerk that tried to kill me came banging on the door. “I’d obviously broken his nose when I kicked him,” Lois3 smiled grimly, “because there was a definite nasal quality to his tone that wasn’t there before. Jonathan had him lined up in the sights of his hunting rifle the whole time he was trying to intimidate Martha, but he didn’t have to worry. That’s one woman you just can’t intimidate. Anyway, she convinced him I wasn’t there, and he left. Later, I heard that a farmer a little less light on the trigger finger than Jonathan blew him away while he was trying to force the guy’s wife to admit she had me hidden in the barn. One less bad guy. The Kents and I have been good friends ever since.” Clark3 had stared steadily into Lois3s eyes as she told her story. Her face had been playing through several emotions as she spoke. There was fondness and respect for the Kents, anger at her kidnapping, excitement at her escape, remembered pain at her injuries, and satisfaction at the outcome of the whole affair. He was mesmerized by her. In the short time he had known her she had been subject to several startling revelations and just recounted a story that made his invulnerable insides quiver in fear for her. At no time had she shown any evidence of fear of her own. “I really like her,” Lois whispered for her husband’s ears only. “Definitely a Lois,” came Clark’s dry comment. -- All humanity is passion; without passion, religion, history, novels, art would be ineffectual. Balzac The problem: How to get 2 pounds of chocolate home from the store in hot car. The solution: Eat it in the parking lot. ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 16 Dec 1999 21:29:20 EST Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: "Ann E. McBride" Subject: Re: question for a fanfic MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit In a message dated 12/16/1999 1:39:31 PM Eastern Standard Time, w.m.richards@HRM.KEELE.AC.UK writes: << And as far as I know (correct me if I'm wrong) Scotland Yard is simply part of the London police force, but the detective division. >> As a resident of the US, I obviously know even less than you about the police force in the UK, but I do read a lot of British novels. I am sure that I have read some detective novels by Georgette Heyer (written in the 50's or 60's no doubt ) in which detectives from Scotland Yard go to other towns, usually fairly small ones, to help the local "constabulary" solve the murder case in the book. (Two guys named Hannasyde and Hemingway come to mind.) So it may be possible that Scotland Yard, while mostly in London, does have some sort of jurisdiction outside London. Ann ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 17 Dec 1999 13:00:26 +0000 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Wendy Richards Subject: Re: Happy Holidays from the Fanfic Archive In-Reply-To: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; CHARSET=US-ASCII On Thu, 16 Dec 1999 12:46:54 -0600 Kathy Brown wrote: > Thanks to all the fanfic authors who made 1999 our most > prolific year so far. [snip] And of course, thanks to > the readers -- your feedback gives authors the added > incentive to keep turning out these great stories. :) As an author, a general editor and most definitely a reader, can I say a very big THANK YOU to Kathy whose hard work and dedication ensures that there is an Archive at all, and one which is updated every week with great stories. When you're just a reader, as I used to be, you can have no idea of how much work goes on behind the scenes to ensure that stories get up there, and most of that work is done by Kathy. Thanks also to Lauren who manages the site. And happy Christmas to both of them; Kathy, have a wonderful time sunning yourself and reading fic! Wendy ---------------------- Wendy Richards w.m.richards@hrm.keele.ac.uk ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 17 Dec 1999 05:07:30 -0800 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Cynthia Haste Subject: Prelude Chapter 30 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=iso-8859-1 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit Chapter 30 Clark2 was nodding in agreement, while looking fondly at his wife, who tried to look indignant, while her excitement at the story of Lois3’s narrow and harrowing escape shined from her eyes. “See, that just proves it. We don’t need you; we can save ourselves. You’re just handy to have around on occasion,” Lois teased her husband with the tart words, while reaching under his cape to pat his thinly clad behind. “I’m glad you’re friends with Martha and Jonathan. If anyone can help you teach Clark what it takes to get by safely on this world, I agree with you it’s probably them. And I’ve never even met this world’s version of the Kents. It’ll also help to have Martha around to sew the suits.” “Oh, we won’t need Martha for that,” Lois3 said “I’m very good with a sewing machine myself. I make a lot of my own clothes, and everyone always compliments me on them, so I’m sure a simple thing like that suit will be easy.” At Lois and Lois2s wide-eyed looks, she gave a little laugh. “You mean neither of you sew? Why not? It’s so easy, and if you can’t find it on the rack you can just go whip it up yourself in no time. I put Lucy and myself through college on a shoestring after our parents died. Making all our own clothes helped a lot, and we were often better dressed than a lot of the other kids in school.” “Your parents are dead?” Lois asked, distracted from the fact that Lois3 not only sewed, but seemed to like doing it too. “Yours aren’t? It’s okay. It was years ago now. I was pretty devastated at the time, since we were such a close family. I guess that’s one of the reasons I love the Kents so much. They’ve given me back a lot of what I’ve missed since my folks died. It was a lab explosion. They both went instantly. That’s probably the way they would have wanted it. They loved each other so much that the only time they took off work was for an event with Lucy or I, or if one of them was sick. Neither would go into work without the other. They worked side by side for seventeen years, spent all their free time together and never got tired of each other’s company. When they fought it was loud and quick, and then it was over and forgotten. “I thought I’d die too when I lost them, but there was Lucy, and I had to fight to keep her with me until I was eighteen and could be legally responsible for her. She’s a very popular singer now. Lives in Malibu and makes regular trips with Greenpeace to save the whales or baby seals or whatever their current mission is. She does tend to go through relationships rather quickly, but over all I think I did a pretty good job with her. I miss her a lot, even though it can be exhausting spending more than a few days with her at a time. And I do have the Kents.” The history lesson caused Lois’s head to spin a little. She looked over at Lois2 and saw the same look of distressed confusion on her face. Lois knew that although Lois2’s relationship with her parents was easier than the tenuous relationship she had with her parents, some of the ease that Lois2 enjoyed came from the fact that her parents lived in California, and a whole continent separated them. As difficult as her relationship was with her parents, Lois would never wish either of them dead, and she was sure Lois2 felt the same. She was just happy that the time Lois3 had spent with her parents seemed happier than any she remembered having with her own parents. Clark could see the signs of slight distress on his wife’s face. He uncrossed his arms, releasing the super hero to become the super husband, and put a comforting arm around Lois’s shoulders. Lois3 looked up from the couch where she had been plucking a loose thread while telling of the deaths of her parents. She noticed the sheen of unshed tears in the eyes of both Loises, and said sharply “They were my parents. Not yours. Mine. My life, my parents. Besides, I have the Kents now.” She looked back at Clark3, still seated next to her on the couch. She looked away from the sympathy in his eyes, but she didn’t have the heart to reprimand him for it as she had the two other women in the room. “Back to business. There’s a great yardage store about 3 miles from here. There’s a terrific Chinese place right next to it. How about I take some measurements, and get a good look at one of those suits without anyone in it. Then I’ll go pick up the material and some food. I don’t know about the rest of you, but drama always makes me hungry.” Clark3 sat up straight at her threat to make him one of those suits. “I am not wearing that…that… outfit,” he stated firmly. Lois3 turned back to him from the mental measurements she had been taking of Clark. She looked at his agitated face for a moment, and spoke as if calming a child, “It’ll be all right. They are right you know. You don’t want anyone looking at your face, and in that get-up you won’t have any problem at all remaining anonymous.” She reached over and patted his knee as she saw his face calm down only slightly at her reassuring tone. “But you’re right about not wearing one of those suits. Especially that one.” She pointed at Clark. “His love of junk food is obviously starting to show up. We’ll have to get you a size or maybe even two smaller than the one he’s wearing.” Lois’s gasp and angry look at the implied insult to her husband’s waistline turned into a giggle and then a laugh at the look on Clark3’s face. While the Loises all shared a laugh, Clark and Clark2 looked at Clark3 with sympathy. “Definitely a Lois,” Clark2 sighed. “You have two choices here, my friend,” he told a distressed Clark3. “You can give in now, or you can give in later. If you give in now, she might let you wear the suit on the outside of your skin, instead of imbedding it into you as she seems to want to do right now. If you give in later, you’ll still give in, but you may wear her down a little. That means that while you don’t win this round, you might win the next. “I’ve found that the only good time to have a prolonged fight with my wife is when I can see an issue coming up between us that is really important. Lose the little fights. Lose some of the big ones. Just make sure that when she’s about to go stick her head in the lion’s mouth and is trying to tell you not to follow her because the lion might not bite her if you’re there, well, make sure that those are the fights you win. Play dirty. Make up the rules as you go along. She will. Just make sure that you win the important fights.” Clark2 put a hand on Clark3’s shoulder, “And this isn’t an important fight.” Lois2 stared at her husband in dismay. He had just informed four, almost complete strangers his tactics for handling an argument with her. Not that she hadn’t realized long ago what he was doing. She’d used his tactics to her advantage on more than one occasion. She just didn’t like his announcing to the whole room that there was a way to handle an argument with her. She hit him across the chest with a carefully gauged swat. “While your collecting suit materials, you may want to lay in a supply of titanium bats too. They say the stupidest things on occasion, and you need to bring it to their attention so they don’t make a habit of it. Of course, you may be luckier than I am and this Clark may be missing that trait.” Giving her husband an angry glare and to prove that, other than a suggestion that she was in the habit of beating her husband with a bat she had more discretion than he did, she promised him, “We’ll talk later.” “If I was stupid enough to say something like that Lois wouldn’t wait ‘til we were alone to let me have it. I guess that’s just one more way you two are different.” Clark shook his head at Clark2, “And even if I thought something like that, and I don’t,” he paused to direct the comment to Lois before looking back at the besieged Clark2, “I’d never say something like that. Especially in front of Lois.” He felt the need to ask something that had been bothering him since the night before last, “Did you really call her a harpy?” “No!” Clark2 had seemed to shrink in size from the moment he’d realized the mistake his tongue had led him to a moment before. Now he became even smaller under his wife’s angry look. “What I said was she was acting like a harpy. Acting like, not that she actually was one.” He looked at Lois2 in surprise. “You told them that? Jeez, did you give them a blow by blow account or what?” “Actually, Lois told me before we ever went to your universe. I just couldn’t believe you’d say something like that to Lois. But then, I didn’t know you all that well before…” Clark was shaking his head at his spandex-clad twin. “Hey,” Lois tapped him in the middle of his S with the back of her hand. “You have your moments too, Mr. ‘Keep Secrets From My Wife’. Leave Clark alone. If Lois wants to squish him, she’ll ask you.” She turned back to Lois3, “For the most part, they really are incredibly considerate and helpful. Just watch out for those times he gets it into his head that he’s protecting you from something by not telling you the whole story. They don’t lie well, so you’ll probably figure that out right away.” “Oh, I’m sure I’ll learn as I go. This does look like it might turn out to be more interesting than a story about alternate universes. And much more fun than a puppy.” “So you’ll do it?” Lois asked. “Yeah, I think I will. I’ve been running through my mind how many times I’ve wanted to see through walls in the past month, and it’s a pretty high number. And I can’t see anyone running around town in one of those outfits without generating a few stories for the press.” “You’ll have to help him learn about this universe so he can live here comfortably. He’s read an entire library worth of books, so he knows which fork to use and to cross in the cross walk, but it’ll still be hard for a while. And you can’t tell anyone that Superman is really Clark Kent,” Lois stressed the last sentence. “That’s really important. You’ll get a lot of stories from his Superman activities anyway, without revealing the big secret “He’ll need some kind of identification and help finding a place to live and getting a job. He was some kinda combination of librarian, genealogist and researcher where he came from, but because of all the reading material he’s gone through he could probably do just about anything he puts his mind to. If you can convince everyone he’s a reporter, it’ll make your job a lot easier. You’ll get to spend more time together, and that means he’ll learn quicker, and be able to help you on your stories too.” “From what I saw of that universe, in the brief time I was there,” Lois3 scowled at the man sitting next to her on the couch, “it’s going to take a lot of time to bring this immigrant up to speed on how the real world rotates. I’d hate to ask Claude to hire him. The man believes that when he’s doing his job he’s doing you a favor, and he likes his favors returned in a way that I have no intention of gratifying. I might just skip Claude, and go right upstairs to Lex. And if he gives me a problem, I’ll call Perry and threaten to go to the Star again.” Lois3 ignored the looks of surprise and distaste on the faces around her, looking instead at Clark3, “Perry’d love to give Lex a rap on the knuckles anyway, so I kinda hope it’s harder to get you hired than I think it will be.” Lois recovered her voice first, or at least most of it. “Excuse me?” she squeaked. “Just what position does Claude have at the paper? And Lex too? God, I can’t wait to get home. Clark, maybe it’s not safe to leave him here. We might be throwing Clark to the lions.” “Honey, we did that when we agreed to have Lois help him get used to this universe.” Clark’s arms tightened soothingly around Lois. “Maybe the Claude and Lex of this universe aren’t anything like the Claude and Lex of ours.” “Are yours unregenerate slime buckets?” Lois3 asked. “Worse,” Lois answered. “Well, the only Claude I knew in my universe was a bit of a would be Romeo. One night with Cat Grant, this sports reporter for the Planet, and he decided he’d rather be a Claudine. He went for the whole nine yards with an operation in Sweden and everything. Now he’s a she, and she’s chasin after guys.” Lois2’s surprising answer startled a giggle out of Lois. “And as for Lex Luthor, he was just making a name for himself as a philanthropist when I got myself captured. By the time I got back to Metropolis he’d been killed by Tempus.” “Hmmm… well Claude is constantly in jeopardy of some female he’s offended turning him into a Claudine without benefit of anesthesia.” Lois3’s contempt for the man was evident in her tone. “Lex, he’s another story… Three weeks ago Lex Luthor offered Perry White, he’s the majority stockholder as well as managing editor of the Daily Planet, a deal he couldn’t resist. He gave Perry thirty percent of the broadcast news division of Lex Corp in exchange for twenty percent of Perry’s stock in the Planet. The deal was heavily weighted in Perry’s favor, I think by a couple million. “Lex then convinced Perry to switch jobs for six months. Lex told him he’d always wanted to see what it took to run a major metropolitan newspaper. In fact that’s the reason he gave for wanting the deal so bad in the first place. Perry would not only get to run the broadcast news division, he’d be able to produce too. That meant that a lot of stories close to Perry’s heart would have a wider audience than the Planet reaches. LNN is syndicated to eighteen hundred stations around the world. The Planet’s syndicated, but not every story that should be is picked up. “Three days after he starts running the Planet, Lex picks Claude as Editor for Metro News. Gives the guy authority on hiring and firing as well as story approval. We’ve had people quitting right and left ever since that happened, and lots more are likely to jump ship before the dust settles. I can’t think of anything that could ruin the paper quicker than having that slimy little weasel in charge of the news.” Clark was holding Lois securely in front of him with both hands splayed over her stomach. He spoke carefully from over her head, “Lois, I don’t know if the Lex Luthor in your universe is anything like the one in our universe but….” “You wouldn’t trust him as far as you could throw him? Or I guess I should say as far as I could throw him because you could probably throw him pretty far.” Her eyes lit up and she turned to Clark3, “Maybe that could be your first job here. You want to help people out, and it would help a lot of people, especially me if Lex was out of commission long enough for me to figure out what he’s up to. I seem to be one step behind him all the time, and it’s really getting frustrating. A concussion, a couple cracked ribs, maybe a broken leg or two and he might be laid up long enough for me to get some work done on him.” “Uh… Lois… I really don’t…” Lois broke in on Clark3’s fumbled words. “Lois, he can’t rough people up for you. If anyone would like to see Lex Luthor squished like a bug, it’s me. Well actually, I have seen him squished like a bug a couple of times, but it never seemed to take. Maybe if he’d been completely disintegrated in a laser blast or something….” Clark pulled Lois back against him again, and kissed the top of her head gently before speaking firmly to Lois3. “Clark can’t use his powers to deliberately harm people. Ever. For one thing, it’s not in his nature to do so. For another, he needs people to trust Superman, not fear him. If he harms anyone, even someone as evil as Luthor, people are going to point that act out as a reason to get rid of Superman. He’ll have enough people after his hide once they know about him. Criminals, the military and people paranoid about alien invasions in general to name a few are going to try to figure out how to kill him. We don’t need to add to those numbers by making John and Jane Doe frightened of his power.” “I didn’t mean he had to break him personally, maybe he could just throw Lex up against a brick wall and the wall could do the actual breaking,” Lois3 offered. One look around the room and she saw her cause was lost. “Okay, no rough stuff. I never attack someone unless I’ve been attacked first anyway, so I can understand the attitude. Unfortunately, Lex doesn’t strike me as someone who gets physical, he probably has an army of henchmen to handle that for him. I’m more worried about him in the boardroom. I just don’t trust him.” “That’s probably a good thing.” Lois said. “Forewarned in forearmed. I didn’t believe Lex was evil for the longest time, and that ignorance almost killed me. Several times.” “I won’t let anyone kill Lois,” Clark3 said quietly from his corner of the couch. “Well, that’s nice. Although I do a pretty good job of taking care of myself, it’s always nice to know you have back-up there if you need it.” Lois3 patted his knee patronizingly, and stood up. “So what do I need besides a bunch of spandex and some elastic thread?” The next half hour was spent measuring the suit with a beet red Clark2 still in it, and by itself with a casually dressed Clark giving Clark3 quiet advice on the possible care and feeding of Lois Lane. He was careful to moderate his voice to a level discernible to super ears only, but all three women were aware of the conversation’s focus due to Clark3’s frequent startled glances in Lois3’s direction. The women broke up the lesson when the time came to take measurements of the man for whom the suit was to be made. Clark3, who had just begun to get comfortable with an occasional casual touch from one or the other of the three women, suddenly had two of them running their hands over his body measuring every inch of him, while a third took notes. Clark3 was soon a quivering mass of nerves and almost useless as a mannequin as he simply could not keep still. The least breath on his skin from one of the women made him jump. Lois saw all the good work she’d done to accustom him to a woman’s touch go up in smoke as Clark rushed to keep Clark3 from punching a hole in the ceiling when Lois3 determined that he dressed left. Since their model refused to come within their reach again, Lois3 offered him a broom and told him to make himself useful by getting rid of the cobwebs while he was up there. She professed herself happy with the measurements she already had, and ready for her shopping expedition. -- All humanity is passion; without passion, religion, history, novels, art would be ineffectual. Balzac The problem: How to get 2 pounds of chocolate home from the store in hot car. The solution: Eat it in the parking lot. ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 17 Dec 1999 08:43:28 EST Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Charlotte Fisler Subject: Re: Superman comics & L&C MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit In a message dated 12/13/99 12:13:56 AM !!!First Boot!!!, Budmayes@AOL.COM writes: << How many of you who read the Superman comics have noticed that the titles have finally started to show Lois & Clark as a married couple? In fact, the characterization seems to be getting closer and closer to L&CTNAOS. One issue has Lois & Clark in the bedroom and Lois 'angsting' over the recent Mrs. Superman scandal. Clark has to reassure her of his love. >> Me, Me, and happy I am. DC says in some of the letters to the editor that Lois and Clark are in for some tough times as a married couple, and I react to that with a bit of trepidation. But marriages are like that sometimes, and it's great to see them acting really married. Here's hoping DC keeps up the good work (writing) Charlotte ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 17 Dec 1999 09:26:41 -0500 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Pam Jernigan Organization: http://www.geocities.com/~chiefpam/ Subject: Re: Prelude Chapter 30 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Cindy, I've been reading this story over here instead of the message boards, so I'm glad you're posting both places, and I just had to say that this bit... s p o i l e r s p a c e > Since their model refused to come within their reach again, Lois3 > offered him a broom and told him to make himself useful by getting rid > of the cobwebs while he was up there. She professed herself happy with > the measurements she already had, and ready for her shopping expedition. had me ROFL!! And what an interesting universe you're setting up... I look forward to the story that this is a prelude to And how many chapters are there to this, do you think? I'm just wondering if you'll be done with it before I leave for Christmas vacation on Monday... PJ -- ------------------------------------------------------- Pam Jernigan | jernigan@bellsouth.net ChiefPam on IRC | ChPam on AOL IM ------------------------------------------------------- "Here, buggy-buggy," he cooed plaintively. "Come to Papa, that's the good girls..." He paused, and peered worriedly under a side-table. "Buggy-buggy?" "Now...*that* cries out for an explanation," murmured the Count, watching him in arrested fascination. --A Civil Campaign, by Lois McMaster Bujold ------------------------------------------------------- http://www.geocities.com/~chiefpam ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 17 Dec 1999 14:26:56 +0000 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Wendy Richards Subject: Merry Christmas, and going nomail MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; CHARSET=US-ASCII Since I receive mail from this list at my work email address, and I'll be away from the office over Christmas and New Year, I'm going nomail in a couple of hours. Please, no-one post any really great stories while I'm gone! ;) If anyone wants to contact me privately over the next couple of weeks, use my home email address (wendy@kingsmeadowcr.freeserve.co.uk); I think I've already alerted all my co-authors, beta-readers and people I beta-read for to my absence, but in case I haven't, consider yourself notified! And can I wish everyone on this list a very happy Christmas and a peaceful New Year; *not* new Millennium, since contrary to popular misconception, the third millennium does not actually start until 1 January 2001! ;) Wendy ---------------------- Wendy Richards w.m.richards@hrm.keele.ac.uk ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 17 Dec 1999 14:30:13 +0000 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Wendy Richards Subject: Re: Prelude Chapter 30 In-Reply-To: <385A4821.E3D1B552@bellsouth.net> MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; CHARSET=US-ASCII On Fri, 17 Dec 1999 09:26:41 -0500 Pam Jernigan wrote: > s > p o > i l > e r > s p > a c > e > > > > Since their model refused to come within their reach > again, Lois3 offered him a broom and told him to make > himself useful by getting rid of the cobwebs while he was > up there. She professed herself happy with the > measurements she already had, and ready for her shopping > expedition. > > had me ROFL!! Yeah, and what about the bit just before it? "Clark rushed to keep Clark3 from punching a hole in the ceiling when Lois3 determined that he dressed left." Just dropped in as an incidental, passing comment! > And what an interesting universe you're > setting up... I look forward to the story that this is a > prelude to Oh, me too! Can I have a sneak preview of that one, too, Cindy? (especially as it'll annoy Pam if I do! ) Wendy ---------------------- Wendy Richards w.m.richards@hrm.keele.ac.uk ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 17 Dec 1999 09:56:36 -0500 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Pam Jernigan Organization: http://www.geocities.com/~chiefpam/ Subject: Re: Prelude Chapter 30 Comments: To: wendy@kingsmeadowcr.freeserve.co.uk MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit > Oh, me too! Can I have a sneak preview of that one, too, > Cindy? (especially as it'll annoy Pam if I do! ) That's okay, Wendy, I've recovered my equilibrium now ... Chris Mulder has started writing "Meet Me in Kansas City: The Metropolis Years," and I've seen it ... it'll be at least a year til she finishes, so I've got *lots* to gloat about hoping this reaches Wendy before she goes nomail... -- ------------------------------------------------------- Pam Jernigan | jernigan@bellsouth.net ChiefPam on IRC | ChPam on AOL IM ------------------------------------------------------- "Here, buggy-buggy," he cooed plaintively. "Come to Papa, that's the good girls..." He paused, and peered worriedly under a side-table. "Buggy-buggy?" "Now...*that* cries out for an explanation," murmured the Count, watching him in arrested fascination. --A Civil Campaign, by Lois McMaster Bujold ------------------------------------------------------- http://www.geocities.com/~chiefpam ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 17 Dec 1999 14:58:47 +0000 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Wendy Richards Subject: Re: Prelude Chapter 30 In-Reply-To: <385A4F24.A7CB095F@bellsouth.net> MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; CHARSET=US-ASCII On Fri, 17 Dec 1999 09:56:36 -0500 Pam Jernigan wrote: > That's okay, Wendy, I've recovered my equilibrium now ... > Chris Mulder has started writing "Meet Me in Kansas City: > The Metropolis Years," and I've seen it ... it'll be at > least a year til she finishes, so I've got *lots* to gloat > about Oh wow! Now, *that* is a story I want to read in one piece, when it's finished and Chris has dotted every i and crossed every t, and made it as perfect as she is capable of. So in order to have that pleasure, I'm willing to wait.... Some things are worth waiting for, and I'll enjoy the anticipation! > hoping this reaches Wendy before she goes nomail... It did... Wendy :) ---------------------- Wendy Richards w.m.richards@hrm.keele.ac.uk ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 17 Dec 1999 09:00:59 -0700 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Vicki Krell Subject: Re: Prelude Chapter 30 MIME-version: 1.0 Content-type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" OMG, there is going to be a sequel to one of my all time favorite fanfics, Meet Me in St. Louis???? I am SO excited!!! Chris, thank you, thank you, thank you!!! I'll just try to be patient and wait a year (a whole year?? Sorry) before I get to thoroughly enjoy it! Vicki (who's waiting for her heartbeat to slow back down to normal...) Cindy, this is such a wonderful story. Thank you so much for writing it and sharing it with us. This certainly makes me look forward to coming to work in the morning! P.S. Hope you had good look with finding Pokemon stuff. Since Hanukkah's over, I think my kids may have enough stuff for awhile (she said hopefully...) Vicki Krell Sponsored Projects Officer Office of Research and Creative Activities Arizona State University (480) 965-2171 (480) 965-1703 - fax Vicki.Krell@asu.edu -----Original Message----- From: Wendy Richards [mailto:w.m.richards@HRM.KEELE.AC.UK] Sent: Friday, December 17, 1999 7:59 AM To: LOISCLA-GENERAL-L@LISTSERV.INDIANA.EDU Subject: Re: Prelude Chapter 30 On Fri, 17 Dec 1999 09:56:36 -0500 Pam Jernigan wrote: > That's okay, Wendy, I've recovered my equilibrium now ... > Chris Mulder has started writing "Meet Me in Kansas City: > The Metropolis Years," and I've seen it ... it'll be at > least a year til she finishes, so I've got *lots* to gloat > about Oh wow! Now, *that* is a story I want to read in one piece, when it's finished and Chris has dotted every i and crossed every t, and made it as perfect as she is capable of. So in order to have that pleasure, I'm willing to wait.... Some things are worth waiting for, and I'll enjoy the anticipation! > hoping this reaches Wendy before she goes nomail... It did... Wendy :) ---------------------- Wendy Richards w.m.richards@hrm.keele.ac.uk ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 17 Dec 1999 12:58:01 EST Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Kath Roden Subject: Re: Prelude Chapter 30 Comments: cc: chaste@CYBERHOTLINE.COM Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; format=flowed Cindy! This is Super! I love the Martha and Jonathan explaination, that was truely inspired. And I can actually hear the gears clicking away in Lois3's mind... Great stuff... Been thinking again about the Title... "Searching for Home" >The problem: How to get 2 pounds of chocolate home from the store in hot >car. The solution: Eat it in the parking lot. BTW: Love this sign off... ______________________________________________________ Get Your Private, Free Email at http://www.hotmail.com ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 17 Dec 1999 10:15:58 -0800 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Elisabeth Subject: OT: It's a girl! MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii We are proud to announce the latest collaboration of James & Elisabeth Tull... RoseMary Grace Tull Date: 12-15-1999 Time: 4:47 PM CST USA Weight: 7lb 2oz Length: 18.5" Please, join us in praising God for the wonderful gift He has given us. P.S. Momma's doing OK, but she is really stiff and sore. I have off until January 3rd. Daddy. __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Thousands of Stores. Millions of Products. All in one place. Yahoo! Shopping: http://shopping.yahoo.com ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 17 Dec 1999 10:18:14 -0800 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: "Irene D." Subject: Re: OT: It's a girl! MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Congratulations, James and Elisabeth! Christmas will be a lot of fun for you this year! Glad to hear that everyone's okay. (Elisabeth, trust me, the soreness does go away.) All best wishes, Irene --- Elisabeth wrote: > We are proud to announce the latest collaboration of > James & Elisabeth Tull... > > RoseMary Grace Tull > > Date: 12-15-1999 > Time: 4:47 PM CST USA > Weight: 7lb 2oz > Length: 18.5" > > Please, join us in praising God for the wonderful > gift > He has given us. > > P.S. Momma's doing OK, but she is really stiff and > sore. > I have off until January 3rd. > > Daddy. > > > > > __________________________________________________ > Do You Yahoo!? > Thousands of Stores. Millions of Products. All in > one place. > Yahoo! Shopping: http://shopping.yahoo.com > __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Thousands of Stores. Millions of Products. All in one place. Yahoo! Shopping: http://shopping.yahoo.com ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 17 Dec 1999 11:23:55 -0700 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Vicki Krell Subject: Re: It's a girl! MIME-version: 1.0 Content-type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Mazel tov! (congratulations!!!) Vicki Krell Sponsored Projects Officer Office of Research and Creative Activities Arizona State University (480) 965-2171 (480) 965-1703 - fax Vicki.Krell@asu.edu -----Original Message----- From: Elisabeth [mailto:all4_mr_d8a@YAHOO.COM] Sent: Friday, December 17, 1999 11:16 AM To: LOISCLA-GENERAL-L@LISTSERV.INDIANA.EDU Subject: OT: It's a girl! We are proud to announce the latest collaboration of James & Elisabeth Tull... RoseMary Grace Tull Date: 12-15-1999 Time: 4:47 PM CST USA Weight: 7lb 2oz Length: 18.5" Please, join us in praising God for the wonderful gift He has given us. P.S. Momma's doing OK, but she is really stiff and sore. I have off until January 3rd. Daddy. __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Thousands of Stores. Millions of Products. All in one place. Yahoo! Shopping: http://shopping.yahoo.com ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 17 Dec 1999 12:03:11 -0800 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Nancy Smith Subject: Re: OT: It's a girl! MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Congratulations, James and Elizabeth! Nan Smith Elisabeth wrote: > We are proud to announce the latest collaboration of > James & Elisabeth Tull... > > RoseMary Grace Tull > > Date: 12-15-1999 > Time: 4:47 PM CST USA > Weight: 7lb 2oz > Length: 18.5" > > Please, join us in praising God for the wonderful gift > He has given us. > > P.S. Momma's doing OK, but she is really stiff and > sore. > I have off until January 3rd. > > Daddy. > > __________________________________________________ > Do You Yahoo!? > Thousands of Stores. Millions of Products. All in one place. > Yahoo! Shopping: http://shopping.yahoo.com ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 17 Dec 1999 12:02:32 -0800 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Judith Williams Subject: Wendy's millenium MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Wendy wrote: And can I wish everyone on this list a very happy Christmas and a peaceful New Year; *not* new Millennium, since contrary to popular misconception, the third millennium does not actually start until 1 January 2001! ; I'm with you on that one Wendy. One is almost forced to celebrate the millennium this year, but I intend to celebrate next year too. My own Superman and I will be taking off just before Christmas to spend a few days in Vancouver, B.C. Our family is scattered; son in California, daughter # 1 in Cape Town, S.A. with her hubby's family and daughter # 2 in New York with her new hubby's family, so we're free to second honeymoon. The best of everything for Christmas and the New Year to Kathy and you hard-working editors and web site keepers, writers and readers. Jude ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 18 Dec 1999 07:36:21 +1100 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Jenny or Joe Stosser Subject: Re: Wendy's millenium In-Reply-To: <001301bf48c9$a98427a0$88709cd1@v1t9j4> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" At 12:02 PM 17/12/99 -0800, Judith Williams wrote: >Wendy wrote: And can I wish everyone on this list a very happy Christmas >and a peaceful New Year; *not* new Millennium, since >contrary to popular misconception, the third millennium >does not actually start until 1 January 2001! ; > >I'm with you on that one Wendy. One is almost forced to celebrate the >millennium this year, but I intend to celebrate next year too. > I read a comment somewhere yesterday which wondered whether (since there's a lot of "new Millennium" phraseology being bandied around) the *old* Millennium is being celebrated anywhere Jen jenerator@ozemail.com.au -*-This message is umop ap!sdn (Jenerator or Some1Else on IRC) -*- JenerEight on AIM -*- ICQ: 11477318 Photos of David (7) and Megan (4) on the Stosser Family HomePage: http://geocities.com/Heartland/Estates/4583 Please sign our guestbook! ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 17 Dec 1999 16:08:00 EST Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Annette Ciotola Subject: Re: Prelude Chapter 30 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit In a message dated 12/17/1999 9:58:14 AM Eastern Standard Time, jernigan@BELLSOUTH.NET writes: << Chris Mulder has started writing "Meet Me in Kansas City: The Metropolis Years," and I've seen it ... it'll be at least a year til she finishes, so I've got *lots* to gloat about >> stop teasing Anne ;) ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The Nfic Archive http://move.to/nfic (a new quick link URL) My Lois & Clark Web Site http://fly.to/superman.net "If something looks like a duck, walks like a duck, and talks like a duck ... chances are pretty good it is a duck." -- LL, SVFAP ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 17 Dec 1999 16:11:01 EST Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: "Alexis W." Subject: Re: OT: It's a girl! MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit In a message dated 12/17/99 1:16:17 PM EST, all4_mr_d8a@YAHOO.COM writes: << We are proud to announce the latest collaboration of James & Elisabeth Tull... RoseMary Grace Tull >> CONGRATS JAMES AND ELISABETH! And welcome to little RoseMary, the newest member of the FoLC family! =) Alexis ;-.) ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 17 Dec 1999 14:35:17 -0800 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Cynthia Haste Subject: Re: Prelude Chapter 26 Part 2 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Annette Ciotola wrote: > Ok I had to reply > s > p > o > i > l > e > r > s > p > a > c > e > > Just in Case > > I don't think I spent more time laughing than I did over this section. The > All-Girl Lois band suggestion was priceless. Poor Clark2 ... but the poor ole > sap deserved it, he is a bit arrogant. ;) Thank you Anne. The All-Lois band was just a little dig at Clark2. I think Lois2 has figured out that psychological torture works better against him than running over him with her jeep. Although, I'm sure she's been tempted a time or two, regardless of the insurance claims involved. > And our Clark, whatta guy ... actually trying to make both Loises behave He has very little success in this. Especially as they collect reinforcements . > I cannot wait until the next installment and I am a bit envious of those who > got to read the whole thing already. I'm so late with answering comments, that I'm up to Chapter 31 already. And since there are only 29 pages left, you will have the whole story anyway. Then the gloaters will just have the changes I'm making to the story to crow about. Thanks for your kind comments. I hope you enjoy the rest. Cindy -- All humanity is passion; without passion, religion, history, novels, art would be ineffectual. Balzac The problem: How to get 2 pounds of chocolate home from the store in hot car. The solution: Eat it in the parking lot. ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 17 Dec 1999 14:50:27 -0800 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Cynthia Haste Subject: Re: Prelude Chapter 30 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Pam Jernigan wrote: > Cindy, > > I've been reading this story over here instead of the message boards, so > I'm glad you're posting both places, and I just had to say that this > bit... > > s > p > o > i > l > e > r > s > p > a > c > e > > > Since their model refused to come within their reach again, Lois3 > > offered him a broom and told him to make himself useful by getting rid > > of the cobwebs while he was up there. She professed herself happy with > > the measurements she already had, and ready for her shopping expedition. > > had me ROFL!! And what an interesting universe you're setting up... I > look forward to the story that this is a prelude to And I thought Lois3 was being practical . I'm glad you like the universe. I wrote this story just to see if anyone wanted to read the story I really wanted to write. I'm really glad it's getting such a positive response. > And how many chapters are there to this, do you think? I'm just > wondering if you'll be done with it before I leave for Christmas > vacation on Monday... I leave at 4:00 AM PST for my vacation. Everything has to be posted by then so I can work on while I'm gone. I may even start posting more than two chapters a day, if I can get it edited that fast. Pam, since I love your stories so much, I really get a kick out of the fact that you are even reading mine, much less enjoying it. Thank you very much for writing. Cindy -- All humanity is passion; without passion, religion, history, novels, art would be ineffectual. Balzac The problem: How to get 2 pounds of chocolate home from the store in hot car. The solution: Eat it in the parking lot. ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 17 Dec 1999 15:06:38 -0800 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Cynthia Haste Subject: Re: Prelude Chapter 30 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Wendy Richards wrote: > On Fri, 17 Dec 1999 09:26:41 -0500 Pam Jernigan > wrote: > > > s > > p o > > i l > > e r > > s p > > a c > > e > > > > > > > Since their model refused to come within their reach > > again, Lois3 offered him a broom and told him to make > > himself useful by getting rid of the cobwebs while he was > > up there. She professed herself happy with the > > measurements she already had, and ready for her shopping > > expedition. > > > > had me ROFL!! > > Yeah, and what about the bit just before it? > "Clark rushed to keep Clark3 from punching a hole in the > ceiling when Lois3 determined that he dressed left." > > Just dropped in as an incidental, passing comment! Well it was just a pasing comment. Anyone who's measured someone for a suit of clothes (especially the first time they've been measured) is aware of the response they are likely to get. Superman just jumps a little higher than most men. It was an obviously innocent line, meant simply to show how seriously the women were taking their measuring responsibilities. These are very thorough women. Besides, the visual is very funny. > > And what an interesting universe you're > > setting up... I look forward to the story that this is a > > prelude to > > Oh, me too! Can I have a sneak preview of that one, too, > Cindy? (especially as it'll annoy Pam if I do! ) Yes and no. If you read how I pieced this story together, you know that I don't write from "a-z". I write "m" then I write "l" then I'll write a little "a" then I come up with something that I think will work around "w". The forty seven pages I have written should really be around eighty. (Someone needs to revive poor Irene. I think she just fainted) I'll be hounding people for editing assistance again as soon as I've connected some of my dots. Probably mid January. Wendy, you need to be crowing about your own story. For anyone who missed my post the other day, go to http://zoomway.com/boards/ and look for "For the Greater Good" under the fanfic section. Have hankeys ready when you get there. Cindy -- All humanity is passion; without passion, religion, history, novels, art would be ineffectual. Balzac The problem: How to get 2 pounds of chocolate home from the store in hot car. The solution: Eat it in the parking lot. ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 17 Dec 1999 15:24:23 -0800 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Cynthia Haste Subject: Prelude Chapter 31 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=iso-8859-1 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit Chapter 31 The shopping trip seemed to gain popularity as soon as Lois3 mentioned it. “I’ve been shopping with Martha when she’s picked up material for Clark’s suits. We can be in and out of the store in minutes.” Lois wanted to keep the ball rolling now that Lois3 seemed to be going along with the plan, and she wasn’t adverse to doing a little sight seeing as long as she was in a strange universe. “Well you don’t think Clark buys his stuff do you? We can’t always get the tailor to turn them out as fast as he goes through them. I know all sorts of shortcuts to creating the suit” Lois2 put in her bid to get out of the apartment for a little while also. “That ski suit you came up with was a good idea, but most sports stores have an aerobics department, and those materials stretch, breathe and wash easier than the ski suit. I know the best ones to use.” “Hold on a minute here,” Clark2 spoke in what he hoped would be the voice of reason. “We can’t have 3 Lois Lanes traipsing around Metropolis buying super-suit material. It sounds like Lois here,” he pointed at Lois3, “has made herself as notor… er… famous as you two have,” he paused to wave his hand at Lois and his wife. “If not exactly a celebrity, there are probably dozens of people in this city who will recognize her on sight. To suddenly have triplet Loises running around town is going to start people talking. We don’t need that right now. I think we need to trust her to get what we need, or you two need to flip a coin and one of you go out.” “Oh, I don’t think we need to worry about people thinking we’re triplets. I have lots of disguises here that would keep my sister from recognizing me,” Lois3 offered. “A disguise comes in real handy on some of my stories. Wouldn’t do for the councilman that I interviewed in the morning about his family values campaign to know that I’m also the more-than-just-an-escort he hired that night.” Lois3 rose from the position she had resumed on the couch after her grueling measuring job and walked toward the bedroom as she spoke. Her last statement brought nods and sounds of general agreement from Lois and Lois2 as they followed her to the bedroom. The men in the room were evidently growing roots, as they seemed unable to move. The look of horror on the faces of Clark and Clark2 told what they thought of a duplicate of their wives playing a lady of the evening. Clark3 slowly floated back down to the couch as his eyes followed her every movement with a mixture of fear and wonder. Lois3 paused at her bedroom door, and looked over the shoulders of her two look-alikes at the two men frozen in her livingroom. “Gotcha!” she said with a smile. “You guys need to learn how to hide your feelings better,” she said, her eyes moving between Clark and Clark2. “I’ve gotten the distinct impression that neither of you approve of me, and frankly I don’t care. I do what needs to be done to get the story out. I don’t compromise my principles in the process, but I am certainly willing to bend them a little now and then.” Lois3 lost her smile as she looked at Clark3 sitting on the couch with a slightly stunned look on his face. She stared at him for a full minute while silence invaded the room for the first time since she arrived home that afternoon. “As for you,” she paused for another moment, her expression serious, but not unfriendly, “I’ve seen that expression before too. Don’t fall for me, Mr. Greenjeans. I don’t have the time. I’ll fit it in my schedule to train you in the arts and devices of villains and how to get on in polite society with people with more than the next crop dusting on their minds. I can certainly see that there could be certain benefits to having someone invulnerable around on occasion, and having an inside scoop on the city’s first flying alien might be enough to pull down that Pulitzer my mantle needs. But anything else is definitely out. “Just because these guys,” she waved at the women waiting to follow her into the bedroom, “found time in what I’m sure are very busy schedules for a relationship with your look alikes doesn’t mean you’re going to luck out in this direction,” she pointed firmly at her breast. “There’s probably a milkmaid out there somewhere just dying for her Prince Charming to come flying in on an updraft. I’ll even help you find her.” She finished kindly as she turned to enter her bedroom. Lois, the last of the women at the bedroom door, turned to her husband before entering. “She’s a goner,” she whispered very softly with a wide smile, before closing the door behind her. When Lois turned into the bedroom, she noticed that half of Lois3 had disappeared into her closet, and that half seemed to be knocking on the interior closet walls. With a slight creak, a crack appeared in the middle of the closet, and with a push Lois3 revealed a hidden compartment. “Useful for hiding my notes. I’ve had my place broken into a couple of times when I was on a hot story.” Lois3 led her two guests into the spacious closet behind the closet. There were two four-drawer file cabinets in the corner, with a single-drawer desk along the same wall. On the other side of the small room was a multi-tiered closet organizer. The shelves held several wig-forms, both male and female. The rods supported several different types of clothing, from a three piece mens suit to a leather ensemble that looked like the hanger took up more space than the clothing. Spotting it by the telltale feathers, Lois recognized a familiar chicken outfit among the disguises. “Don’t ask,” Lois3 admonished them both when she noticed Lois’s stare. “Suffice to say I’ll do just about anything to get the story.” She waved her hand at her many disguises. “Go for it. We probably just need hair and makeup on you two. Your clothes should be okay. Although you both look a little more stealthy than I like. People watch people who look stealthy. At least, they should.” Three quarters of an hour later they were putting the finishing touches on their disguises. During the time Lois and Lois2 had been occupied with creating higher cheekbones, larger eyes and smaller noses, Lois3 had regaled them with the story behind each of the three Kerths she had standing on her bedroom dresser. “Any particular reason why you don’t have them in the living room?” Lois2 asked, checking her profile and brushing another shadow along her chin with a blending pad. “They tend to intimidate. Besides, I like to see them before I go to sleep. Usually gives me pleasant dreams,” Lois3 answered, giving Lois2’s long red wig another tug before settling herself on the bed. “I have to say that you are taking this whole thing remarkably well.” Lois put the finishing touches on her eyebrows with a light dusting of powder to lighten them. She glanced over at Lois3, lounging on the bed. “Most people who have five people, two of whom are carbon copies of themselves and three of whom are obvious aliens, descend on them with the information that their world is just one in an infinite number of possibilities would probably have gone into a catatonic fit by now. If they had finished having hysterics that is. And to top that off we ask you to help one of the aliens to learn to live a superhero’s life in your world, and you barely bat an eye.” “Oh… trust me… I batted an eye or two. I may not be as calm on the inside as I’m projecting on the outside.” Lois3 rose from the bed, stood behind Lois and adjusted her wig from behind also. Their eyes met in the mirror. “I’ve found that it doesn’t usually pay to wear my emotions too close to the surface.” She gave both women a sudden smile, “Besides, my life gets weird sometimes and I just kinda go with the flow to see where that takes me. It usually pays off in the end. “I got the scoop just two weeks ago on a guy who had invented an invisibility suit. While all the other reporters in town were busy hunting down mediums to contact the ghost of Claude Raines that everyone thought was haunting Metropolis, I was getting the real story. I convinced the guy to get rid of the suit and burn his notes before the military got their hands on him.” Lois 3 shrugged her shoulders and stepped back from behind Lois’s chair. “If something like this were going to happen to anyone, it just makes sense to me that it would happen to me. My life’s just like that. In fact, if I ever found out that this happened to anyone else, not like you read in the Intruder or anything, but for real, I think I’d be a little jealous.” “Tell me about it. You wanna compare weird, I can give you weird.” Lois finished her eyebrows and stood for Lois3’s approval, “Well, I look pretty close to my Lucy when she went blonde. How do I compare to yours?” “God, I can’t get over that means there’s also two Lucys. Now that’s something to worry about.” Lois3 and Lois both laughed. “What? What’s wrong with Lucy? She’s a doctor with a husband and 2 kids. My God, she’s a member of the PTA and organizes bake sales. Other than being boring beyond belief, what’s wrong with Lucy?” Lois2 asked as she finished her own transformation and turned to confront them. Lois and Lois3 looked at each other after Lois2 recounted her Lucy’s virtues. “Now that’s weird,” they voiced their assessment in tandem, then laughed again. Whatever conversation had been taking place in the living room ended abruptly at their reappearance. The three men rose quickly from their positions around the living room. Two of them hid their hands behind their backs as if caught stealing from the cookie jar, and one simply stared at the women with eyes that threatened to pop out of his head. “Clark, honey,” the redhead said, sidling up to Clark and putting her arm around his waist, “what did we decide about telling tales. I thought we agreed not to tell on each other.” “And you, my dear, are still in the dog house,” the blonde told Clark2 as she threaded her arms around his neck and looked him full in the face. “You haven’t done enough good deeds yet to start getting yourself in hot water by talking about me behind my back.” Clark looked guiltily into his wife’s dark eyes for just a moment, before he smiled. “Switch,” he said, looking at Clark2. “Are you sure?” Clark2 asked, suppressed laughter in his voice. “This one might not be as mad at my disappearing act as that one. Maybe I’ll just keep the blonde.” “In your dreams, buster.” Lois shrugged herself out of the arms holding her loosely about the waist and stepped toward her husband. “Actually, we took a vote, my husband wins, and we’re both going home with him.” “Oh, no you’re not!” Clark2 took possession of his wife’s arm and spun her into both of his. He tipped her over one of his arms, and kissed her into and out of a deep dip. “I prefer redheads anyway. Especially when they’re really my favorite brunette.” “You still look a lot a like,” Clark said, looking his wife over with careful admiration. “I guess you can tell people you’re cousins or something. Hopefully you won’t run into anyone who knows the whole family well. Hopefully you won’t run into anyone at all.” Clark put his hands on Lois’s shoulders and looked into her eyes. “We weren’t exactly telling tales, honey. We’re going with you. We’ll keep an eye out for trouble from a little higher up.” “Clark, we don’t need bodyguards,” Lois said, stepping away from him a bit without dislodging his hands. “Or baby-sitters,” she added firmly when she saw the crooked smile come to his face. “We are perfectly capable of keeping out of trouble on our own.” “Honey, I know…” An arrested expression came to the faces of all three men, and their eyes focused on a wall separating them from the next apartment. Lois2 left her husband’s side, and turned on the television. She flipped through the channels with the remote, searching for the news, assisted by her husband’s murmur of, “Channel five, baby”. Channel 5 showed a newscaster standing in front of a burning warehouse in what looked like downtown Metropolis. Lois2 reached the channel just as the female reporter announced that because of the contents of the building, storage boxes and corrugated card board sheets, the fire department was having a great deal of difficulty containing the blaze. When they thought they had it under control in one area of the facility and would start to fight it in another, embers buried deep in the cardboard would ignite again causing the area they thought under control to flame up again. They had poured gallon upon gallon of retardant on the stock to no avail. As soon as a section of the stock caught fire, hundreds of burning pieces of cardboard would start flying through the air, igniting other sections. The heat from inside the burning building had burst many of the windows facing the street and in the back alley, and now the burning debris was flying around the street, threatening both the onlookers and other structures. The fourth and fifth floors had already collapsed, and there were unconfirmed reports of fire fighters trapped under the rubble. The seventh, eighth and ninth floors held the offices for the company. Even though it was Sunday, several people had come to work to get a jump on their week. Now the fire department was exhorting these same people to jump through burning, flying debris to a small safety net seven floors below. Lois turned toward her husband with a familiar request when she felt the breeze of Superman’s sudden appearance, to find herself facing dual Supermen again. “Only one of you can go,” Lois said quickly as both men headed for the balcony. “I’ll go,” Clark2 said, without stopping his stride. “I have experience being Superman in a universe other than my own.” “And who do you think has been flying patrol in your universe for the past couple days? Batman?” Clark asked. “I’ve handled this exact same type of fire in my own universe. I know how many people I can carry at the same time out of those upper floors without any of them getting harmed by the flying debris. I know how long to freeze the stacks of paper to make sure hidden embers are taken care of. You stay here and point out my technique to our friend here,” he pointed to Clark3, “and I’ll go take care of business.” “I think you should both go, and now.” Lois2 pointed to the TV screen. On one side of the burning building was a large toy store and on the other a Mexican restaurant. An explosion within the building had caused huge blocks of mortar and burning debris to block the front entrances to both of these establishments. The cameras panned over the faces of frightened patrons trapped inside as firemen tried to remove the blockage to release them. “Clark, street clothes,” Lois2 ordered her husband. “You’re in charge of getting those kids free. Just make sure no one sees you do it while Clark is making an appearance in the air. Lois and I will point out what you’re both doing and why to Clark.” Clark was out the door to the balcony and in the air so fast none of the human eyes in the apartment could follow him. Clark2 spun back into his civies and took off after him before the curtains had settled from the breeze Superman created as he sped by. “Wow!” Lois3 stared intently at the television as Clark came into view. Luckily the people in the warehouse were more frightened of the fire than of the man in blue hovering outside the window. First into his arms was a sixty-two year old woman who had held her first grandchild in her arms the day before. She figured she had a lot to live for, and if this polite young man wasn’t being harmed by the flying sheets of burning cardboard she could see swirling around him, she’d take her chances too. Clark wrapped his cape around her and delivered her safely to the stunned paramedics below to have her lungs checked out, and went up to get more passengers. On his subsequent trips he carried between two and three people to safety depending on their size and level of distress. None of the people he ferried to safety suffered any ill effects from the burning embers flying all around the building. The firefighters removing the larger pieces of the building that blocked the entrance to the toy store were surprised at how light the large pieces of mortar were. Clark2, vibrating his body at super speed to remain invisible, assisted them in their endeavor. The vibration stirred up the burning bits and pieces that had settled around them. As these pieces began to raise themselves off the ground to join the sheets and sparks already flying through the air, Clark2 blew a light sheet of ice over them, putting out the embers and weighting them back to the ground. He sprayed an area all around the front of the toy-store with the same breath. As the firefighters cleared the last of the debris blocking the doorway, the air was miraculously clear of the ash and ember that had plagued them. The frightened patrons of the toy-store found the way to safety oddly slippery, possibly from the chemicals the firefighters were using to fight the fire, but all of them made it out of harm’s way without suffering a single burn. Clark2 turned to assist the men clearing the way to the door of the Mexican restaurant as soon as everyone had cleared the toy store. Entering the window of the seventh floor again after he had delivered the last of his cargo to safety, Clark scanned the rest of the building for heartbeats, and drilled himself quickly four floors under the one he was on. Almost directly under where he had been standing he found that the almost simultaneous collapse of the fourth and fifth floors had trapped four men under tons of material. Scanning the area under which they lay, he found that two of the men were lying under desks. One of these had a foot trapped under debris, but the other looked to be in good shape. Another man had found a small pocket of safety created by a wooden support beam that had fallen over part of the wall. The ceiling of the fourth floor had fallen on that. His tent-like enclosure wouldn’t remain safe long as the support beam was now burning from both ends. The fourth man had only a faint heartbeat, and it was apparent from the check Clark did of his vital statistics that he had already slipped into a coma. There was a large gash along the right side of his head which was bleeding profusely, and both of his legs were crushed from above his knees on down. He also lay in the most dangerous position of all four men. Moving any part of the material on top of him was likely to shift the rest and crush him instantly. Clark decided to free the man threatened by the burning beam first. Grasping the topmost end through the flames even as he cooled the fire with a freezing blast, he carefully used it as a lever to push the ceiling up and off the wall on which it lay. When he had created an opening wide enough for the man to come through, he reached his hand in and felt it grabbed frantically by the man underneath him. Clark pulled up on the hand, pulling the firefighter free before he carefully laid the beam back down. He covered the man with his cape and quickly flew the man to safety. He went after the man whose foot was trapped next. Clark lifted the larger pieces of building off the desk before clearing everything out of the way that restricted the man. Last to go was the portion of shelving unit that trapped the man’s foot. As the blood flowed back into that appendage the man screamed in pain. Before he took another gasp of air he found himself in the care of paramedics already treating the wound they had been warned to prepare for. By the time he had freed the other man trapped under the desk and flown him to safety, he could sense the building cooling off and assumed that Clark2 was somewhere nearby, having succeeded in ensuring the safety of the people in the nearby buildings. When he returned for the final victim, he found Clark2 staring down into the lifeless eyes of the man with the brain injury. “He didn’t make it.” Clark2 handed the body over to the super hero without looking at him. “I’ve got most of it out downstairs. The locals can mop up the rest. I’ll just go make sure there’s nothing smoldering on the upper floors and then I’m heading out.” He finally looked up at Clark and asked, “Was he already gone when you got here?” Clark looked down at the man in his arms, grime and blood covered his face and hands. The only color on his entire body came from his eyes. Bright blue and completely lifeless. “No. He was still alive when I got here.” Clark felt sick to his stomach at the admission. The headwound meant that the man would have spent the rest of his life in a vegetative state. That is, he would have if the paramedics had been able to keep him alive long enough to get him to a hospital where the surgeons could stem the flow of blood coming from his crushed legs. But he would still have lived. He probably had a family. Friends. People who would forever mourn the loss of this man. He had denied these people a last chance to see him alive. To say goodbye, to make amends, to tell him how much he was loved. Clark sighed and turned toward the window, his back to Clark2. “If you finish up in here, I’ll head back as soon as I deliver him downstairs. I’ll check the surrounding buildings to make sure none of the embers are still alive before I go.” Clark2 watched him go through the window before he took the hole that Clark had made on his way down up to the floors above him. He checked each floor for hot spots before taking off from the roof in the direction of Lois3’s apartment. -- All humanity is passion; without passion, religion, history, novels, art would be ineffectual. Balzac The problem: How to get 2 pounds of chocolate home from the store in hot car. The solution: Eat it in the parking lot. ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 17 Dec 1999 21:10:37 EST Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: "Eileen F. Ray" Subject: L&C Fanfic Holiday Hiatus :) MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Hi everyone, The L&C Fanfic Round Robin writers will be on hiatus for the next couple of weeks because of the holidays :). Our next writing session will be in January 2000 (boy it feels weird to type that date ). Cheers and Happy Holidays :). Eileen Eraygun@aol.com ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 17 Dec 1999 22:27:22 -0500 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Pam Jernigan Organization: http://www.geocities.com/~chiefpam/ Subject: Re: Prelude Chapter 30 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit > And I thought Lois3 was being practical . Yeah, but she's being so matter of fact about a guy hanging out on her ceiling that I just cracked up... and I did understand the "dressed left" comment, but it made me think "poor Clark", which dimmed the humor content. > Pam, since I love your stories so much, I really get a kick out of the fact > that you are even reading mine, much less enjoying it. Thank you very much > for writing. Well, thank you :) and believe me, it's no hardship to read this, or to say nice things about it! You've done a great job with the characterizations. It's a long story, but I've never once felt like you were just "killing time" to pad out the length, and that's very nice ... I can't stand stupid contrivances to artificially extend angst... -- ------------------------------------------------------- Pam Jernigan | jernigan@bellsouth.net ChiefPam on IRC | ChPam on AOL IM ------------------------------------------------------- "Here, buggy-buggy," he cooed plaintively. "Come to Papa, that's the good girls..." He paused, and peered worriedly under a side-table. "Buggy-buggy?" "Now...*that* cries out for an explanation," murmured the Count, watching him in arrested fascination. --A Civil Campaign, by Lois McMaster Bujold ------------------------------------------------------- http://www.geocities.com/~chiefpam ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 17 Dec 1999 23:36:45 -0500 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Tara Smith Subject: Re: OT: It's a girl! Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Congrats! ------Original Message------ From: Elisabeth To: LOISCLA-GENERAL-L@LISTSERV.INDIANA.EDU Sent: December 17, 1999 6:15:58 PM GMT Subject: OT: It's a girl! We are proud to announce the latest collaboration of James & Elisabeth Tull... RoseMary Grace Tull Date: 12-15-1999 Time: 4:47 PM CST USA Weight: 7lb 2oz Length: 18.5" Please, join us in praising God for the wonderful gift He has given us. P.S. Momma's doing OK, but she is really stiff and sore. I have off until January 3rd. Daddy. __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Thousands of Stores. Millions of Products. All in one place. Yahoo! Shopping: http://shopping.yahoo.com ----------------------------------------------- FREE! The World's Best Email Address @email.com Reserve your name now at http://www.email.com ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 17 Dec 1999 20:53:32 -0800 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Cynthia Haste Subject: Prelude Chapter 32 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=iso-8859-1 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit Chapter 32 Clark2 entered the balcony door to find his wife comforting Lois. Lois looked up from the couch when she heard the door slide open, and a mask fell over her face. But not before he had seen her distress. “He’ll be here in a minute,” Clark2 told Lois from the comfort of his wife’s arms. “He was going to check the buildings in the vicinity and then follow me.” “Okay,” Lois said calmly, her cover firmly in place. “How are you? Everything go okay? Did anyone see you?” “I’m okay,” Clark2 said, hugging Lois2 a little closer to him and speaking over her shoulder. “Did you guys see me on TV?” At the negative shake of Lois’s head he nodded, “Thought I was moving fast enough. Of course, after the big blue bird appeared, I’d guess everyone was pretty focused on him.” Lois2 moved her head back from where she had rested it on his chest. “Did everything go okay?” “Yes, dear.” Clark2 smiled softly down into her eyes and caressed her cheek with one hand, moving the red hair she was wearing behind her ear. “I did just as you ordered, and got the people out of the buildings on either side. I finished up and cleared up the hot spots in the warehouse while Clark got everyone out.” “Yeah,” Lois3 said quietly. “We saw all the people he brought out. But he didn’t get everyone out alive, did he?” “No, Lois, he didn’t,” Clark2 addressed Lois3’s question, but looked at Clark3 while he spoke. “Even with the two of us there. One of them died.” “And if neither of you had been there?” Lois3 asked softly. “How many lives did you each save just by being there?” Lois, Clark2 and his wife, all looked at her, startled expressions on each of their faces. “Clark, I’ve seen fires like that before,” Lois3 continued. “I’ve reported on them from the street and watched the body bags as they’re loaded into the wagon. That area in particular is notorious. Low water pressure. The MFD typically has two tanker trucks and one ladder truck per station. And the stations are getting fewer every day, so they’re often kept too busy to give support on a fire outside their area. Criminal in a city this size I know, but the city council has cut the fire department’s funding in three of the last four quarterly budget meetings. “I didn’t see one of those trucks that haul extra water on the street, did you?” Clark2 shook his head silently. “Like I said, pressure’s low in that area. Without a pumper to bring water into the area, they’d never have gotten that fire out this quickly without your help. A fire like that damages a lot more than one building. A fire like that one kills a lot more than one man. What you guys did was beyond incredible. I mean, watching Clark fly around like that was incredible, but what’s really important here is all the people who get to go home tonight instead of to the morgue.” “It’s still hard when even one dies,” Clark said from the balcony doorway. Lois jumped at the voice, startled once again at his ability to sneak up on her even when she knew he was coming. She walked over to him, staring into his solemn eyes with compassion in hers. “Are you okay?” she asked a super hero for the second time in minutes. “Yeah. I wish it hadn’t happened the way it did, but it could have been worse. One of the guys was in danger of getting toasted, and another was injured and at risk of losing his foot. All of them were suffering badly from smoke inhalation.” He drew Lois closer to him and flipped the blonde wig onto a chair, pulling out the pins she’d used to subdue her curls in the process. He buried his face in her brunette locks and just breathed in the clean, fresh scent of her. “Are you okay?” “Yeah.” Lois leaned back and ran the back of her hand over his face. “They had a close-up on you when you carried him out. I could tell how much pain you were in. I think the world will know how much pain you were in by the time the eleven o’clock news is over.” “So Angela’s camera caught you from afar. You guys promised me the exclusive,” Lois3 pointed out carefully. “Uh… I know it’s a little raw right now but…” “Yeah, the fire’s a little raw right now, but the real story is Clark.” Clark indicated Clark3 with his left hand before bringing it back to Lois’s hip. “The first sighting’s going to make headlines all over the place, but a personal interview with Superman is what’s going to be the big story tomorrow. And that’s the one you’ll get tonight. After we’ve gone.” Lois3 looked at Clark3 speculatively. “So that’s what you want to do here? Fight fires and save lives?” “I want to do whatever I can. I don’t even know what they did inside the building, and you know as much as I do about what both of them were doing when we could see them, because you heard everything I did from Lois and Lois.” He grimaced at the double names before addressing Clark, “I have a lot of questions about what went on inside that building.” “How about you two take Clark out to the middle of nowhere and have a super hero question and answer session while we go shopping?” Lois moved herself back slightly in Clark’s arms without leaving them. “I’ve already given him a human’s eye view of some of your rescues, maybe you guys should fill in the gaps for him.” “Yeah, he’s never had to disarm a gunman without singeing the crook’s fingernails,” Lois2 pointed out, still ensconced within the arms of her own super hero. “We’ll get started on his suit while you guys run through the ABC’s of Superman.” “Honey, you guys can’t be seen buying yards and yards of blue spandex and red silk right after a similarly clad man was seen flying through the skies of Metropolis.” Clark shook Lois slightly at the mutinous look on her face. “It’s one thing for Lois to get the exclusive on Superman. It’s another for her to be seen buying his underwear.” Clark3 blushed brightly as the three women lost their militant stance and broke out laughing. “No problem,” Lois3 said on her way to her bedroom. “One more transformation and no one will know Lois Lane had anything to do with the purchase of all those yards of material. Be right back.” “She has a secret room, Clark,” Lois whispered. “We finally know someone good who has a secret room.” Clark groaned and buried his face in her hair again. “The jury’s still out on that one, honey. It might just be contending with three of you at once but I think this feeling in the pit of my stomach is pure unadulterated terror.” “It has a chicken suit in it,” Lois offered hopefully, laughter in her eyes. “A chicken suit, huh?” Clark raised his head from hers and joined in her laughter. “People who wear chicken suits can’t be all bad. Maybe things’ll turn out for the best after all.” “I have a very good feeling about what we’re doing here,” Lois said, shaking herself loose from him to retrieve her wig. “Clark noticed when the flying embers started winking out and dropping to the ground before I did. He pointed out that one of you must have been cooling them off with your breath to keep them off the people coming out of the toy store. I think he’ll make an apt pupil for the two of you.” Lois as a blonde faced her husband again. “Just don’t take too long to show him the finer points of disarming villians and bombs. It shouldn’t take us long, and I’m sure Lois will want to do several fittings before the suit’s finished.” “You’re really serioius about no overhead escort?” Clark asked unhappily. “What if you run into Luthor?” “Right. Like Luthor frequents yardage stores.” Lois wound her arms around Clark’s neck and kissed him softly. “Honey, I love you. I love our baby. I am not going to do anything that will deny me the pleasure of spending decades and decades with both of you. Promise.” “You’re pregnant!!? With his kid?” Lois3 stood in the doorway of her bedroom staring at Lois. Her hair, teased and tangled and worn in a rat’s nest around her face and head, had somehow been lightened by several shades and streaked liberally in shades of purple, red and lemon yellow. She sported four earings in one ear, three in the other, a silver hoop at her nose and another at her exposed bellybutton. A pair of dungarees, ripped all the way across at the knees and torn in several other places, threatened to fall off her hips, and the top she wore looked as if it came out of Lois’s lingerie drawer. To complete her disguise, she wore a pair of small, wire rimmed, mirrored sunglasses, making it impossible to see her eyes. “Oh, that is so cool.” Lois2 said, looking Lois3 over in admiration. “I love that outfit. I don’t suppose you have another that I can change into?” “No, cause you’re my Aunt George, and Aunt George’s don’t wear clothes like this. You can be Aunt Bess,” she told Lois. “I get to be Nancy. Used to be my nickname in grade school cause I kept stumbling across mysteries everywhere I went and then figuring them out.” Lois3 walked over to the hall mirror and mussed her hair up some more, pulling a purple lock down over one eye. “I used my laptop while the color dried to post a notice at a couple bulletin boards the kids hang out on. By noon tomorrow, every yardage store in America is going to be sold out of blue spandex and red silk. And the lucky teens that get there first will be sporting superhero costumes of their own. No ones going to remember a teenager badgering her poor old aunts into buying her material so she can make her own costume. But we gotta go now. These kids move fast, and if we don’t get down there we might be too late.” “I am not going to be Bess,” Lois said, kissing Clark’s cheek before joining Lois3 at the door. “You will if I’m George. Maybe we can think of something a little more attractive by the time we get there.” Lois2 kissed Clark2 on his lips and made it to the front door just as Lois did. She turned to say a final goodbye to the men standing about the living room, and took in the frozen pose all three of them had adopted upon Lois3’s exit from the bedroom. Lois2 clapped her hands sharply. “Hey, wake up! You guys are going somewhere to hold class, right?” Clark and Clark2 had jumped and shaken their heads at the sharp sound she made bringing her palms together. They nodded slowly in response to her question. “Good. Don’t be long.” She blew an air kiss in the direction of her husband, and the three women exited laughing. Just before they entered the stairwell at the end of the hall they heard Lois2 ask, “So, Lois, since Lucy’s a musician, do you ever get to sit in with her band?” “Oh yeah, I play a pretty mean drum. Drives ‘em crazy at work when I’m banging away on my desk with pencils while trying to think. Why do you ask?” “We have to follow them,” Clark said, looking through the wall to the hallway beyond so he could follow the trio down the back stairs. “What if she does something to get them arrested?” “Clark, it’s a disguise. I don’t like it either, especially that nose ring thing. I don’t think it’s real though. I don’t know about your wife, but if mine even thinks I’m spying on her we might be lookin’ for a new home for me next.” Clark2 waved his hand in front of Clark3’s face, still frozen as he too kept track of the women’s movements. “So ya wanna learn how far up you need to throw a bomb so it won’t damage anything when it blows up?” “That wasn’t in any of my books.” “What? What wasn’t in any of your books?” Clark2 asked smiling. “That… that…,” Clark3 waved at the door the three women had left through, “what she was wearing. What she did to herself.” “That, my friend, is what is known as a teenager.” Clark2 patted his stunned friend on the back. “Get used to it. There are probably a lot of them around that look just like that if she thought she could blend in with that disguise. Peel off the black eyeshadow and wash out the dye from her hair, and she’s still Lois.” “Whatever was under all that grunge is certainly nothing like my wife. Thank God,” Clark said forcefully. “Let’s just get out of here. The sooner we can wrap this up the happier I’ll be. I don’t need Lois getting any more dangerous habits than she already has. Any ideas on where to take Clark?” “How about the cave where we arrived?” Clark3 broke in on whatever Clark2 was about to suggest. “It seemed pretty deserted on that mountain, and we’d still be within hearing distance of Metropolis if they got into any trouble.” Clark looked at Clark2 who shrugged his shoulders. “This rock is his real estate now. I guess he should be the one who picks the place to party. You wanna lead the way?” Clark2 asked their student. “We can give you a couple ideas on how to find points of reference in strange places while we’re in the air. Nothin’ like heading for Hawaii and ending up in Hong Kong.” -- All humanity is passion; without passion, religion, history, novels, art would be ineffectual. Balzac The problem: How to get 2 pounds of chocolate home from the store in hot car. The solution: Eat it in the parking lot. ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 17 Dec 1999 23:04:06 -0600 Reply-To: truitt22@flash.net Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: timothy truitt Organization: tnt technical services Subject: Re: OT: It's a girl! MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Congratulations - glad to hear all are healthy and doing fine merry Elisabeth wrote: > We are proud to announce the latest collaboration of > James & Elisabeth Tull... > > RoseMary Grace Tull > > Date: 12-15-1999 > Time: 4:47 PM CST USA > Weight: 7lb 2oz > Length: 18.5" > > Please, join us in praising God for the wonderful gift > He has given us. > > P.S. Momma's doing OK, but she is really stiff and > sore. > I have off until January 3rd. > > Daddy. > > __________________________________________________ > Do You Yahoo!? > Thousands of Stores. Millions of Products. All in one place. > Yahoo! Shopping: http://shopping.yahoo.com ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 18 Dec 1999 00:34:10 EST Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Tank Wilson Subject: A Christmas List 1 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit I recently posted a couple vignettes to Zoom's boards. It was suggested to me to post them here also even though most of you who wish to will have already read them. These are two stories (the second to appear in a separate post) that are based on them same basic plot point but approached from two different directions. for those who haven't seen them, I hope you can enjoy them. A Christmas Wish 1 by Tank Wilson "There you go, darlin', how's that?" "Great, Perry, thanks." Lois Lane laid her head back onto the freshly fluffed pillow. "Where's Alice? I thought she might come with you tonight?" "She's at the airport picking up the boys and the grand kids. We're going to have a houseful this Christmas. She wished she could be here and she sends her love." "That's nice. I'm glad you're able to have the whole family together for the Holidays." Lois briefly took her gaze from Perry to once again take in the bland hospital room that had been her home for the last few weeks and was going to be where she spent her Christmas this year. She sighed. "Are you okay, honey?" Perry saw her give him a sad smile and a nod. It was killing him to see her like this. "Say wasn't that the Kents I saw leaving just before I came in?" "Yeah, they flew in all the way from Smallville just to see me. They've been so great to me all this time. It's like they've gone ahead and included me into their family even though Clark and I never had the chance to get married before .... well you know." Perry just nodded in response. Clark's disappearance shortly after Superman had left to help out the New Kryptonians had been tough on everyone at the Planet but obviously none more than Lois. He had, decided on his own, to go undercover to see how the criminal element would take advantage of Superman's absence. A couple stories had come in, but after that there had been no word. Perry had known that Lois had written those stories. There just was no way that she could disguise her style enough to pass for Clark's. It hadn't taken long for Perry, with a little hindsight, to put the puzzle pieces together and realize what Lois had been attempting. Her trying to cover for the man she loved was sweet but he guessed the pain she carried over his leaving just got to be too much for her to try and pretend any more. It had been over a year now that Clark had left and while Perry knew that in her heart Lois never gave up on the idea that he would eventually come back she had seemed to come to an uneasy acceptance of a world without Superman and had learned how to function within it. "Lois, the suits upstairs wanted me to tell you how proud they were of that Pulitzer you finally bagged. It was a great achievement in investigative reporting." Lois chuckled a little. "I'll bet that's what they said." She reached over and touched Perry's hand. "Are you sure they didn't mention anything about the increased circulation that the story brought?" It was Perry's turn to chuckle in response. "Well not in so many words but I'm sure they appreciated that aspect also." Perry noticed they both avoided the obvious. That that story was the reason Lois was lying in this hospital bed, and probably wouldn't ever get out of it. Perry glanced at his watch. "Oh, honey, it's getting late and I promised Alice I be home before the grand kids were tucked into bed. But I hate to leave you here all alone, it being Christmas Eve and all." Lois patted his hand. "Don't worry about it, Chief. Not only were Jon and Martha here earlier, but Jimmy dropped by for a while too. My folks should be back from Europe in another couple days. They wanted to cut their second honeymoon short but I told them I would be fine till they got back. Lucy has a flight out late tomorrow so I'll probably see her soon also." Lois gave Perry her best brave smile. "You need to be with your family now. I'll probably just sleep tonight and most of tomorrow away anyhow. Go, and give the family an extra hug for me." Perry smiled back at the daughter he never had. It broke his heart to see her lying there so frail and tired looking. "I'll come back tomorrow afternoon, and I'll bring Alice, and the baby." "That would be great, Perry, I'll look forward to it." Perry turned slowly to leave as Lois sunk deeper into her pillow and seemed ready to fall asleep right then. As he walked down the hospital hallway he happened across Lois' doctor. He stopped her. "Excuse me doc, could you give me an update on Ms. Lane's condition?" The doctor hesitated only briefly. She knew who Perry was and his real relationship to her patient. "I'm afraid I can't tell you anything new Mr. White. The toxins she absorbed into her body during that investigation are still slowly shutting down her organs abilities to do their jobs, just as they have for the last several weeks. Even though we know what is affecting her, we have no way to stop it." The doctor checked a folder she had in one of the large pockets on her coat. "You told me she had started this particular investigation about three months ago?" At Perry's nod the doctor continued. "I'd say that the toxins started their work way back then, and the effects have only become noticeable as of a few weeks ago. Unfortunately, by the time we were brought into the picture, it was too late." She saw the pained look in Perry's face. "I'm sorry, we are doing everything we can to make her time left as comfortable as possible." The doctor started to move off when Perry's hand on her arm stopped her. "How much time does she have doc?" The doctor stared at the floor for a couple seconds before she looked up into Perry's eyes. She shrugged helplessly. Perry squeezed his eyes shut to hold back the threatened tears that wanted to flow. It was not going to be a very Merry Christmas this year. ***************** Lois woke up with a start. What was that noise, she wondered? The room was completely dark as she let her gaze sweep from one corner to the next. Suddenly she heard it again. It sounded like sleigh bells? A dim cherry red glow began over in one corner of the room. It grew in brightness till it resolved itself into the form of a white bearded man in a red suit. "Santa?" Lois immediately regretted her words. She was a grown woman, not a child. Why would she be dreaming about Santa Claus, and dreaming she must be for there was no other explanation her logical mind would except. True, it was Christmas but still .... "Hello, Lois." He reached a red mittened hand over to take one of her's in his. Lois started at the touch but he held it tight. For some reason Lois didn't feel that this man dressed like a mall Santa was any danger. "Who are you?" He smiled and his cheeks blushed crimson. "I got the impression you recognized me right off, Lois." He chuckled. "I go by many names. Kris Kringle, St. Nick, and the more common, Santa Claus." "Yeah, right." Lois' defenses began to go up but she didn't take her hand back. Santa, because that's that only way Lois could think of him, laughed out loud. She was surprised when the loud noise didn't bring a nurse running. "Okay, fatboy, why are you here? Shouldn't you be delivering toys to all the good boys and girls around the world?" Lois tried to frown but instead found herself fighting a grin. "That's already been taken care of, Lois. I just have one more thing to deal with this Christmas morning." Lois gave him a raised eyebrow and a silent invitation to elaborate. Santa chuckled again. "Lois, do you realize that the expose' you wrote on McCade Chemicals will save the lives of over twenty thousand people over the next several years." Lois gave Santa a puzzled look. "How would you know that?" "I have impeccable sources." He laughed when Lois frowned at him. She couldn't help but watch his belly jiggle as he laughed. It looked just like a bowl full of .... she shook her head to clear it of the image. This whole dream was getting weird and Lois was beginning to think she wanted to wake up. "Let's cut to the chase shall we. I know that the story I wrote did a lot of good. It exposed illegal toxic waste dumping and got me my Pulitzer." She looked away as she sighed, then in a softer voice, "it also got me killed." "I know." He patted her hand again. "You may not believe this, Lois, but every year I'm allowed to grant some deserving person one wish." His smile was warm and comforting. "This year I have chosen you." Lois' look changed from puzzled to wary. "Isn't that a little out of your league, *Santa*? I'd think that would be more the province of say an angel or a spirit of some sort?" "Well I do represent the spirit of Christmas, and we all have the same boss after all." He stepped closer and traced her jaw with his hand. "Come on, Lois, what have you got to lose?" Lois stared at the cherry glow that painted the plain ceiling of her room. This by far was the weirdest dream she'd ever had, well except for the time she actually tried anchovies on a pizza. Old Santa did have a point, what did she have to lose. "You're supposed to know all about the people you give your gifts to, right? I mean you have that list that tells you who's naughty and who's nice?" Lois saw him smile and nod. "Well, if that's true, I think you'd know what I'd wish for." "Yes, Lois, I think I do know." Santa stepped back and brushed his hand along side his nose. The cherry glow increased for a second then it changed over to blue. As the figure of Santa Claus disappeared it was replaced by another one. At first the figure was dressed in a colorful blue and red costume, then that changed over to all black, the the glow died down to a soft amber and revealed a man in jeans and a T shirt standing there. Lois thought her heart would burst. "Clark?... Clark!" All weakness left her frail body as she tossed aside the covers, leapt out of her bed, and launched herself into her long lost lover's arms. Lois felt Clark embrace her with all the fierceness of desire that a man could feel for a woman. Their lips met in a kiss that seemed to last a lifetime. Clark carried Lois back over to the bed and slid in next to her. Lois literally tore the shirt from his back as her hands explored the magnificent stomach and chest that she thought she'd never feel again. He planted kisses all along her neck and throat, until he captured her lips in his again. There would be no need for any words to be spoken. All thoughts of dreams fled as their minds and bodies became one in a fire of passion that had been silent for too long. Lois knew that her one wish had been answered and nothing else in the world mattered. ****************** The day after Christmas was always a tough working day. It was hard to get people to focus back on their jobs, whether it be due to too much partying or just too much holiday, it was always tough. This one was especially tough for Perry White. He stepped out of his office and looked out over the newsroom as his staff moved in slow motion about their tasks. "People," his stentorian bellow brought everyone to attention. Many of the folks were shocked at the visage their editor and chief presented. He looked tired, and older somehow. There were deep lines edged around his mouth and eyes, and his pallor was almost gray. "If I may have your attention for a moment." He stopped long enough to sigh and wipe haphazardly at his eye. "Yesterday morning, Christmas day, at 4:37 a.m. Daily Planet Pulitzer prize winning reporter Lois Lane passed away." He allowed a few moments for the stunned murmurs to run through the audience. "She was a dear friend to some of us, a valued colleague to others, and a trusted voice to this city. She will be missed by all." Perry didn't bother to dismiss the crowd with his usual rejoinder of 'get back to work, we've got a paper to put out'. Instead he just turned and shuffled back into his office. He shook his head as yesterday's events replayed in his mind. Since Lois' family was still out of town, the call had come to Perry to come down and claim the body and make the arrangements with the local mortuary. He was greatly saddened by the news but he wasn't shocked. He'd been trying to ready himself for this day ever since they had to put Lois in the hospital in the first place. The biggest shock had been when he saw her. Just the other day she had looked so wan and frail, but the Lois he saw yesterday was like the Lois of old. She seemed at peace, as if she were merely sleeping. Whatever she had been dreaming about must have been nice because Lois had a smile on her face. Perry took a little used bottle out of his drawer and poured a small amount into a paper cup which previously held coffee. He held the cup up in salute. "Here's to you, honey. May you and Clark now be together, and know the happiness you both so richly deserve ... forever." He tossed back the drink, crumpled the cup in his hand, and tossed it into the corner. fin ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 18 Dec 1999 00:37:26 EST Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Tank Wilson Subject: A CHRISTMAS WISH 2 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Here's number two. A Christmas Wish 2 by Tank Wilson Lois Lane nearly stumbled down the ramp toward her desk as she juggled several files and a raft of printouts, trying to catch her phone before the party at the other end gave up. She managed not to fall, threw the armload onto what little open space that had previously existed on her desk, and grabbed the phone. "Lois Lane. Oh hi, Martha, yes I've got my ticket and I'm looking forward to coming out there for Christmas. My flight arrives around two in the afternoon on the 24th. No, no, that won't be necessary. I've already rented a car which will be waiting." Lois took a moment to sit in her chair. "What? Oh, thanks. Yeah, it was pretty exciting winning a Pulitzer after all this time. Yeah, it was touch and go for a while there. They thought I might have been exposed to some of the toxic chemicals that McCade was illegally dumping but I've been given a clean bill of health and have been back at it for a few weeks now." Lois turned her head as she noticed Perry ou t of the corner of her eye. He crooked his finger at her. "Ooops, Chief is calling Martha, I've got to go. I'll call you when I get in. Give my love to Jonathan, bye." Lois ran back up the ramp to the chief's office and poked her head in the door. Upon noticing her, Perry waved her in. "I don't suppose that was your source on this City Council scandal you've been chasing." He asked. "No, I'm afraid he is out of the city until after the holiday. Sorry, Chief, nothing for this evening's edition." "Great Shades of Elvis, how do they expect me to put out a newspaper without any news to put in it?" Lois laughed. "You'll think of something, Chief, you always do. No, that was Martha I was talking to. I'm going to Smallville for Christmas." Perry smiled. "That's great, honey, I'm sure you'll have a great time." Perry hesitated. "Ah, have either of you heard anything from Clark?" Lois didn't try to hide her pain. She just shook her head. "No, not yet, but I'm sure he's just not able to contact us. Probably in too deep or something." Lois held her hand up to the chief, her index and middle fingers crossed. "Keep you fingers crossed, Chief, hope for the best." Lois left Perry's office quickly. She didn't like lying to Perry, but when Superman left to help the New Kryptonians several months ago, she and Clark hadn't really taken much time to work up a cover story for his absence. Their minds had been on other things. She had come up with the fairly lame cover story of Clark deciding to go undercover and infiltrate the criminal element to see what effect Superman's leaving was going to have on organized crime. Perry had been upset that they hadn't cleared it with him first, but otherwise seemed to buy into it. Lois had ghost written a couple sketchy articles purportedly from Clark but had given up doing so after a few weeks. Her heart just wasn't in it. She was too worried about his actual well being. She just told everyone that she hadn't heard anymore from him and let them draw their own conclusions. Stopping back at her desk, Lois gathered her briefcase and her bag. She quickly checked her bag and upon finding the airline ticket safely tucked away, set off for home, and a bout of packing. ****************** Lois glanced out the window of the 747 for the tenth time in the last few minutes. She was bored. She hadn't realized how much she had gotten used to flying via Superman Express, and how slow and mundane commercial flights actually were. Of course, one didn't usually snuggle up in the arms of an airplane, kissing its neck and face trying to distract it from its intended course. The passenger next to Lois gave her a sharp look at her sudden giggle. Lois blushed and turned back to the window and its exciting view of cloud tops. Lois wondered if Perry thought it was odd that she was flying out to Kansas to spend Christmas with the Kents. Yes, Lois was technically still engaged to Clark, but Lois was sure that Perry believed that Clark was not coming back. With her parents still in Europe on their second honeymoon, and Lucy stuck back in California at school and not able to make it back east, it gave Lois a perfect excuse to visit the two wonderful people that she often wished were her parents too. She shook her head, nah, Perry probably didn't think it strange at all. He'd met the Kents a few times and he knew how Lois felt about them. The great thing was, they felt the same way about Lois. The trip had been no problem, other than Lois' boredom, until they reached the airport in Wichita. Just her luck, they were experiencing one of their infrequent snow storms at that time. The plane had had to circle for over an extra hour, until the under-manned and over-worked ground crew could get their runway cleared for a safe landing. The delay didn't do much for Lois' already dark mood. Once on the ground she made her way to the first phone in the terminal that she could find. She glanced back over her shoulder at the conditions outside. The snow had been coming down for a few hours already. It was about thirty degrees, which was unusual for this area this time of year, but up at 20,000 feet where the precipitation was coming from it was above freezing so it started out as rain but changed into a heavy wet snow by the time it reached the ground. Lois deposited her coins and waited for someone to answer. "Hello, Martha? Hi, it's Lois. Yeah I know, the stupid pilot was too afraid to land in a little snow so we circled around for over an hour." Lois checked her watch. "It's about three thirty now. It'll take me about half an hour to collect my bags and rental car, so I should be there around six or seven depending on the roads." Lois shook her head as she listened to Martha voice her concerns. Lois laughed. "Don't worry, Martha, you forget where I come from. The folks down here might be intimidated by a little snow but in Metropolis this is just another typical winter day." Lois could tell that Martha knew she was just blowing smoke and that the conditions were anything but typical no matter where you came from, except maybe Minnesota. The drive would be dicey no matter how much experience you had, but Lois hadn't come all this way to spend Christmas in the Wichita airport. "Yes, Martha, I will take it easy, and if it seems too bad I'll just turn back and give you a call. You to, Martha, give my love to Jonathan and I'll see you soon." Lois hung up and after a quick check of the information boards, headed in the direction of baggage claim. ****************** Lois had been on the road nearly three hours but she wasn't sure how far away from Smallville and the Kent's farm she still was. The car was beastly hot as she had to have the heater and fan on full to keep the snow from freezing on the windshield. Visibility had been dropping steadily for the past hour and she now could barely see where the road ended and the snow filled ditches began. The first part of her trip hadn't been too bad and Lois had scoffed at all the drivers who seemed so petrified by the conditions. This was nothing to an old veteran winter driver like Lois. The blacktop roadways were still warm enough to cause most of the snow that hit them to melt and had merely been wet with a few scattered slippery spots. Now that she was on the gravel back roads the snow was piling up and making travel increasingly more difficult as time went by. Not for the first time this evening had Lois wished that she had her jeep. She had had the road pretty much to herself for the last half hour or so. She figured most folks must already be where they planned to be for the night, and she was determined that she would soon be also. It was only a little before seven o' clock but the heavily overcast sky was quite dark and her headlights merely reflected off the bright white flakes falling in front of her. She was never sure if it was the hypnotic effect of watching the snow falling, or if the snow had just covered the warning road sign so she had missed it, but when the road took a sharp curve to the right, Lois didn't. She found herself helplessly plunging down a steep embankment until the car was brought to a sudden stop. Lois lurched forward cracking her head against the steering wheel. The last thing she remembered was the sound of the engine dying, then silence and blackness. The rental car lie forlornly alone, half buried in the drifts with just the twin red spots of the tail lights shining weakly through the gloom as the snow continued to fall. ********** Lois pulled her head back from its resting place on the steering wheel. She gave it a shake to try and clear the cobwebs which turned out to be a big mistake. Pain, like a hot knife stabbed her right behind the eyes. She gingerly put her fingers up to her forehead and discovered the beginnings of a significant lump forming there. As her eyes cleared she noticed what seemed to be a cherry red glow filling the interior of the car. Then suddenly, she heard a sound. It sounded almost like ... sleigh bells? "Hello, Lois." Lois nearly jumped out of her skin as the voice sounded from behind her. She twisted around to get a better look at the owner of that voice. "What, who ... Santa?" Lois' eyes nearly fell out of her head as she took in the vision of a jolly looking, white-bearded fellow dressed in a red suit sitting calmly in the back seat of her rental car. Lois put her hand back up to her head and began to talk to herself. "Well, Lois, you are either hallucinating or you're still unconscious and are only dreaming." She took her hand away and addressed the fellow. "So, what are you, a hallucination, or a dream?" He smiled, his cheeks getting rosy as he did so. "Which would you prefer?" "I think I'll go with the dream. Hallucinations can have such unpleasant connotations and complications." "Very well." "So, Santa," Lois felt odd calling this mall refugee that but she had no other frame of reference. "Shouldn't you be out delivering toys to all the good girls and boys?" He chuckled. "All in good time, Lois, all in good time. First I have another little task to perform." Lois gave him a wary look as she cocked her eyebrow but didn't say anything. "Did you know, Lois, that the expose' you did on McCade Chemicals will result in over 20 thousand lives saved that would have other wise been lost over a period of several years. Entire communities will be spared thanks to your courage and resourcefulness." Lois ducked her head so he wouldn't see her blush. "Yeah, well, they don't give out Pulitzer's for garden show exhibitions." "No they don't, but I somehow don't think that your motivation was strictly for the Pulitzer." Lois blushed again. "You pursued this investigation at great personal risk to expose the bad guys and right a wrong that had potentially calamitous consequences." "It's what I do." Lois gave him her best reporter stare. "So, *Santa*, why are you here?" He laughed and Lois watched as his belly jiggled just like a bowl.... No she couldn't go there. "Lois, every Christmas Eve I get to pick out one extra special, deserving person to grant a Christmas wish. This year I pick you." "Huh?" Lois frowned. "I don't mean to sound ungrateful or anything, but isn't granting wishes more along the line of, oh I don't know, say and angel or fairy godmother or something?" "Lo-is," she was startled by the way he used her name. "I grant the wishes of children all over the world this night. What's one more wish, besides what have you got to lose?" Lois shrugged. "You're right I don't have anything to lose, but I'm afraid the one thing that I would wish for is probably a little out of your league." Santa laughed again. "Well, we will just have to see about that, won't we." He reached over and touched the lump on her head. "In the meantime, that appears to be quite a nasty bump you have there. Perhaps you'd best get some rest before you are rescued from this little predicament." Lois suddenly found herself unable to keep her eyes open. She leaned forward and laid her head back against the steering wheel and promptly fell asleep with the sound of sleigh bells and laugher ringing in her ears. *********** Lois jerked her head up and looked wildly around. There was a fellow banging on the side window of the car. She couldn't hear what he was saying. As she reached for the handle she noticed that it was daylight, and who ever her savior was he had dug out a space around the driver's door of the car. She rolled down the window to reveal the anxious face of a young man about twenty two or twenty three years old. "What?" Lois knew that wasn't the most intelligent response she could give, but she had apparently just woken up from being knocked out all night. "I asked if you are okay, ma'am. Do you want me to take you to a doctor?" Lois waved off his concern as she opened the door and began to climb out of the front seat. Her long cramped muscles began to protest. "No, I'm fine. I'm on my way to Smallville." The young man pointed back in the direction that Lois had come. "Well, ma'am, you missed the turn off about two miles back." "Great." Lois was just a bit tired of being called ma'am so she yanked the back door open and pulled her bags out of the back. She saw the flashing blue light of the snowplow that the young man had obviously been driving when he had stopped to help her. "I don't suppose you know where the Kent farm is?" He smiled. "Jonathan and Martha Kent? I sure do. They're just up the road about a mile or so. I can take you right to them." He began to assist her up the slope but she pulled her arm away and trudged up the hill ahead of him. "That would be great, thanks." She didn't know if he had heard her, but that didn't matter, she wanted to get out of here, now. Ma'am indeed she thought in disgust. *************** Martha opened the door after Lois had set her bags down and knocked. Lois had waved goodbye to her young rescuer and had marched up to the porch straight away. "My god, Lois, are you all right? We were so worried. Come in, come in." "I'm fine, Martha, I just had a little accident about a mile back. I slid off the road." Lois had picked up her bags and followed Martha into the kitchen. "I guess I must've knocked myself out on the steering wheel because I just woke up when the snow plow guy found me this morning. You wouldn't believe the crazy dream I had. I ..." Lois suddenly realized that they weren't paying attention to her story. Martha had gone back to the table and sat next to Jonathan who must have been there already. They were both just smiling. Martha was near tears. Lois was confused and was just about to ask what was up when she suddenly heard a noise coming from the other room. "That's it, Mom, I'm not waiting any longer. I'm going out to look ..." Lois' heart nearly stopped when she saw who came around the corner. "Clark?" "Lois." "Clark!" Lois dropped her bags and launched herself across the room and into the arms of the man she loved. He was back! She hugged him, then her lips sought his desperately as if to prove this wasn't a dream. She stopped just long enough to look deeply into in eyes . "So, Santa did come through for me after all." She smirked. "What?" Any further words that Clark might have wanted to say were quickly cut off by Lois' lips as they found his and silenced him in the best way possible. This was definitely going to be a very Merry Christmas. fin ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 18 Dec 1999 07:43:05 EST Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Charlotte Fisler Subject: Re: OT: It's a girl! MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Congratulations. James and Elizabeth. How wonderful for you both. Charlotte ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 18 Dec 1999 06:12:07 -0800 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Cynthia Haste Subject: Prelude Chapter 33 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=iso-8859-1 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit Chapter 33 “Whew…” Lois3 sat back in the driver’s seat of her Blazer. “I was afraid we were going to have to sneak out the bedroom window to get away without an escort. Those guys are a little over protective, don’t you think?” “Clark’s a little nervous lately.” Lois sank back in the bucket seat of the Blazer after buckling her seat belt, “He’s been in four different universes in the past two days, and as close as some of them have been, none of them have felt like home to either of us. And for some reason, he doesn’t trust Lois and I to stay out of trouble on our own. And with a third party…” “We’re going to a fabric store, not an NRA rally.” Lois3 pulled her vehicle out of the underground parking lot and onto the street. “What’s he got to be worried about?” “Well, I do have a reputation for getting into trouble on my own, and I think he’s about three times more scared right now about my safety as he usually is.” Lois stared out the window at the familiar landmarks as she explained, “Lois’s husband would probably be making waves right now too if he wasn’t in the dog house.” “Oh yeah. He’d be all over me,” Lois2 chimed in from the back seat. “Luckily, I don’t even think we need to worry about them checking on us from five miles out right now. I’ve caught him in the act of doing that a couple times, so he knows I can sense him. They’ll probably just do what we told them to and give Clark… that is the Clark we’re going to leave here, a few lessons on how to use his powers.” “Don’t you feel smothered having someone watch you like that all the time?” Lois3 honked furiously as someone tried to crowd her lane. “Mostly, I feel cherished.” Lois answered. She smiled and folded her hands over her still slim abdomen. “Clark knows that I can take care of myself, but there’s been enough times when he’s had to save my life that he also knows I can get in a little deep. Now that I’m carrying our baby, he’s even more sensitive to the thought of me being in danger.” “You really are pregnant?” Lois3 asked, taking her eyes off the road and staring at the hands Lois had clasped over her stomach. “I guess it would be rude to ask if you’re sure it’s his. Which is why I’m not going to ask,” Lois3 rushed the last sentence as both her guests hissed in anger. “I’m just kinda surprised, I mean… not just for the obvious reasons… little green men have been conducting experiments in this universe for years on human reproduction. I guess one of ‘em got it right if you were able to get pregnant. I’m really surprised though that you even want to have kids. I mean… I know you said we aren’t the same and all that, but you look like me, and you sound like me, and I never pictured me as a mother. I mean, I never pictured myself as a mother.” Dead silence filled the car after Lois3 finished speaking. Maneuvering around a corner and down an alley kept her occupied for a moment, but as the silence reached her she took her eyes off the road and looked at each of her passengers in turn. Noticing the anger evident on both women’s faces, she decided to tread warily. “Clark said no one was going to hit me,” Lois3 said, “I can call him you know.” Lois looked over her shoulder at Lois2. Their lips began to twitch, and in another moment they were both laughing. Lois3 replayed her sentence in her head, and found nothing funny about it at all. Certainly nothing that would cause her guests to forget whatever she’d said that had angered them and start laughing. Maybe Clark’s hearing wasn’t all that good after all. Maybe they were laughing because they knew he couldn’t get to her in time. “What?” Lois3 asked nervously. “That’s how it starts,” Lois answered. “You feel threatened, and the first thing you do is call for Superman. You’re adapting even quicker than I did, and I kept him pretty busy when he was first getting started.” Lois lost her laughter, but there was no longer any anger in her face or voice as she said, “Lois, Clark is not a little green man. He is an alien, but he was raised as a human. He has all the feelings, hopes and dreams of a human male. In Clark’s case, that means he wants to have and raise children with the woman he loves. Me. We want to share some of the love we have for each other with someone who is a part of each of us. I am very happy, and very proud to be carrying Clark’s child.” Lois3 had parked the car in the parking lot of a small group of shops. She had turned the car off and turned in her seat as she listened to Lois talk about her and Clark’s feelings about the pregnancy. Lois2 leaned forward between the bucket seats of the car to spear Lois3’s eyes with hers. “And neither one of us will allow you or anyone else to make anything more out of the children we’re carrying than the miracle that they are. You will not do or say anything, especially in front of our husband’s, to take away any piece of the joy that we all feel. You will not say anything to make them nervous or worried about our pregnancies, and you will definitely not mention little green men in front of them. If you do, Superman won’t get to you fast enough.” “Jeez, take a chill pill, George,” Lois3 grumbled. “Ya know, they are aliens, and…” she broke off as both Lois and Lois2 leaned toward her. “Okay, okay, no little green men, no alien stuff at all, treat it as a regular pregnancy. Uh… two regular pregnancies?” she lifted an eyebrow in question to Lois2, and at her nod continued. “But really, even if they were regular pregnancies, regular pregnancies end up with regular children. You know, babies. Loud, energetic, confusing… uh… smelly babies. Doesn’t that scare you even a little? Even more than having a baby with a… a… well, you know. I mean, you guys may have more experience with kids than I do, but I gotta tell you, kids scare me more than a room full of spiders. “What are you going to talk to them about? What if your husband’s expect you to stay home and take care of the baby all day, and all you have in your life is spit-up and dirty diapers? Then they start walking around… you can’t understand what they’re saying, and the little girl on the third floor eats dirt. I know, I heard her mom talking to her about it. Aren’t you scared you won’t know what to say when your kid eats dirt?” Lois glanced at Lois2 and saw some of her own nervousness in her counterpart’s eyes. “We’ll do what every parent does I guess, deal with things as they come up. Clark and I haven’t talked about it yet, but I’m sure he won’t expect me to give up my job when the baby comes. And for the rest… I don’t have a lot of experience with children. And, I have to admit that I am a little worried about what kind of mother I’ll be.” At Lois2’s snort she admitted, “Okay, a lot worried. But Clark is great with kids, and I know he’ll help me through this. And the most important thing is love. Our child will have that in spades.” “But even if Clark lets you go back to work, aren’t you scared it’ll slow you down?” Lois3 asked. “I don’t do pieces on garden parties and dog shows, I expose crime and corruption. Sometimes, that means I have to hang out with uh… people of questionable character. And sometimes the people I expose get a little… irate that I put their story in print. I go on all night stakeouts. I travel. I couldn’t do what I do if I had some kid waiting for a four o’clock feeding at home. I’d hate not doing what I do.” Lois listened to the scruffy teenager talk about some of her own concerns about becoming a mother. Listening to the words she’d been hearing in her own mind over and over again ever since she and Clark had started talking about starting a family, helped clarify the real issue for her. “First off, Clark doesn’t “let” me do anything,” Lois stated firmly. “We’re partners. We’re a team, and that means that we both take care of and worry about each other. I’ll go back to work because that’s what makes me happy. And Clark will be supportive of that because even more than wanting a child, my husband wants me to be happy.” Lois’s voice softened, “Second, we will both have to make some compromises, Clark and I. What I do sounds pretty much like what you do, and I love it too. But I love Clark more. And I love the baby too. I won’t give up my job, but I may scale back a little. If I expect Superman to scale back his work so he can help support me with the baby, the least I can do is try to keep his number one customer out of harm’s way as much as possible.” “The least of my worries is Clark trying to make me slow down at work.” Lois2 had sat back against the seat cushions of the back seat again, so both women had to turn their heads to look at her. “Clark would love the chance to be a Mister Mom, and if getting me back to work so he can concentrate on spoiling our baby is what it takes, he’ll probably fly me there himself. I might slow down just a little since I’ll know Superman’s busy changing diapers, but we can probably get him one of those snuggly thingies in blue spandex so he can just tuck the baby in it when he rescues me from a six-story drop. “See, it’s different for me,” Lois2 directed the comment to Lois3. “Everyone in my world knows who Superman is, and that means that everyone will know who and what my child is too. I’d feel safer if Clark were responsible for taking care of our child, and Clark will probably feel the same way. I’m not afraid of taking on a crime boss or city hall. I’m terrified that someone will try to get at either Clark or me through our children.” Lois laid a hand on Lois2’s knee and squeezed it gently, giving her friend a look of compassion and understanding before turning to Lois3. “That’s the main reason we want Clark’s, the one we want to leave here, identity to be kept a secret. He deserves to have a personal life. He deserves to find someone who can love him for who he is rather than what he does. He deserves to have a family of his own, without it being front page news.” She turned back to Lois2, shaking her head sadly, “I really don’t envy Lois and Clark having to keep the press at bay when they find out she’s pregnant.” “Like I said before, the benefits of being with Clark far outweigh the problems we face by being together,” Lois2 reassured her friend. “This is just one more problem we’ll have to face before we can fully enjoy having a family together.” “Benefits, huh?” Lois3 questioned. “So they are some kinda super studs.” Lois laughed, “Wouldn’t you like to know? Come on. They probably won’t leave us alone too long. Let’s surprise them by getting the material and some food, and then getting back to the apartment without any mishaps.” She patted her stomach. “Besides, junior’s starting to get hungry.” “I am an investigative reporter you know,” Lois3 pointed out as she exited the Blazer and locked the doors. “And…?” Lois trailed off as the three met at the front of the vehicle. “I’m just saying I ask questions. If I don’t get the answers I’m looking for, I keep asking ‘til I find out what I want to know. Usually people find it easier to just tell me when I ask the first time. Saves everybody a lot of trouble.” “Ummm… well… as far as finding out about the sexual expertise of Superman, you’ll have to go about your investigation in some other way, cause Lois and I ain’t tellin’.” Lois winked at Lois2. “Boiling acid, brain-washing, ten thousand foot drop without a parachute. All been done before, and I still kept my secrets.” Lois3 looked at her visitors, their arms linked together to present a front of solidarity. The gleam of the hunt was in her eye, but she shrugged her shoulders non-chalantly, ending in the shoulder slumped pose of the teenager she was portraying. Digging her hands into her front pockets so forcefully that the two women following her were sure the jeans would follow her hands’ downward movement, she turned toward the store. “I’m not interested enough in the answer to do any personal research. I’ll just aim Cat at him, and I’m sure I’ll get an in depth report,” her voice came out as a sulky mumble as she shifted into character. Lois3 shuffled to the entrance of Yards by the Mile, the largest fabric store in her Metropolis. She waited for Lois to open the door, as her hands seemed glued to the bottom of her pockets. With the door opened for her, she slipped in with the all too visible invisibility that many teens used. Lois3 shifted her eyes around the store and without ever removing her chin from her chest surveyed the emporium’s entire contents within a moment. Having been a regular patron of this establishment as Lois Lane, Lois3 had a good idea where both silk and spandex were located. As a scruffy teen however she had never been in the store before, and couldn’t make a beeline for the materials she’d come to purchase without a little inspection. She decided that the spandex, located seven rows to the left and four into the store would be clearly visible from the front door, and she made that her first stop. Before the trio reached the colorful materials, they caught the eye of a plump fiftyish saleswoman, who came over to offer her help to Lois and Lois2, while keeping a wary eye on the shabby teen who accompanied them. “This is a shopping trip for our niece,” Lois answered in response to the sales woman’s query. “She evidently picked up something on the web and is just dying for an particular look.” Lois shrugged and gave the woman a conspiratorial look. “It sounded more colorful than what she usually wears. We’ve been trying to get her into pastels for years now. And since her birthday’s next week…” Lois2 and Lois3 had reached the spandex section by now. They were holding a quietly loud conversation on how much better Lois3 would look in a yellow body suit, rather than the blue she was evidently insisting on. The loud came from Lois2’s normal conversational tone, and the quiet came from the incoherent mumble of Lois3. Having settled on both of the bolts, they moved onto the nearby thread racks. “I’d better go help with this,” Lois gently disengaged herself from the saleswoman. “My sister will let her buy out the whole store if I let her.” Lois caught up with her co-shoppers in the silk department. After going through the same amusing ritual of offering alternate suggestions to the red that Lois3 picked out, the three women added the bright fabric to the growing pile in Lois2’s arms. With the materials for the suit and the cape picked out, the three women moved to the checkout line, Lois2 in the lead as if eager to relieve herself of her burden. “We’ll take it all.” Lois2’s voice sounded both weak and desperate as she glanced over her shoulder at her moody niece. “George, you can’t. I know we said she could have anything, but did you price the silk?” Lois reached out a hand to stay Lois2’s reach into her purse. “Bess, if she’s happy, I’m happy. Really happy,” Lois2 stated firmly. “Let’s do this and get out of here. Whatever costume she’s come up with can’t possibly be completed until after we’re back home, so we won’t be around while she wears it.” Lois2 lifted the blue and yellow spandex bolts from the pile. “Besides, if she’s working in spandex she’ll need lots of material to practice on before she gets it right, and the silk is evidently for some kinda cape, and I don’t even want to know what she’s going to do with the vinyl. So…” “I want it all,” Lois3 growled the words clearly from behind Lois. Lois jumped and glanced over her shoulder. Lois3 was still contemplating her toes, but the line of her mouth was grimmer than it had been throughout the shopping trip. She was rocking back and forth on her heels, and each time she came forward her forehead reached a little closer to the back of Lois’s neck. Lois quickly stepped aside and nodded to Lois2. “Buy it. All of it. After all, what good is our vacation money if we can’t spend a little of it on our favorite niece,” Lois crooned the last soothingly over her shoulder, and Lois3 stopped rocking. “You put the plane tickets on your card. Let me take care of this,” Lois2 offered as Lois went for her purse also. Lois looked at Lois2 curiously as the saleswoman happily rang up their choices. “We can square everything up when we get home.” Her eyes widened as Lois2 pulled out several hundred-dollar bills to pay for their purchases. “Of course, since you make so much more than I do…” “We’ll work it out later.” Lois2 smiled back at the saleswoman as she collected her change and the three large bags of material, handing the latter over to Lois3. “Happy birthday, honey. I hope it turns out just like you want it to.” As they exited the store they met an incoming trio of teens, two males and one female. One of the boys was muttering about the trick red cape that he expected his squeeze to make for him. Lois3 grinned against her chest. “Just how much cash do you have on you?” Lois asked Lois2 on their way back to the Blazer. “Fifty thousand, give or take what I just spent,” Lois2 answered airily. “Fifty thousand?” Lois stopped in her tracks. “Dollars?” “Give or take.” Lois2 kept her light tone. She laughed after glancing at the stunned looks her companions were sporting. “Okay, I didn’t want to say anything to you or Clark, but I didn’t know what sort of circumstances we’d find my husband in. He’s been known to get himself in trouble before, and whether it’s bail or bribe I wanted to have enough on me to be able to take him home with us. Luckily, I didn’t need it.” “Where’d you come up with that much cash?” Lois asked. “We didn’t stop at a bank before we left. Do you realize that’s more money than I make in a year? Well, after taxes that is. You do realize that since you have a Pulitzer already that if you also make more money than I do, I’m going to have to hate you.” Lois2 laughed again. “It’s Superman money. If Superman had to depend on me to get him out of jail, I’d be baking files into a cake rather than accessing my checking account. And considering the fact that a good third of the criminals he apprehends accuse him of assault, I’d be too busy baking cakes to keep my job.” “The police actually arrest him?” Lois couldn’t even imagine the police in her Metropolis supporting a criminal’s claim against her Superman. “Clark insists on it. He claims it makes people believe he doesn’t hold himself above the law,” Lois2 said in disgust. “He’s never been convicted, in fact the charges are usually dropped at the first hearing. It is time consuming, so I’m trying to get the police department to make him an honorary member. I’ve got a little resistance coming from one of the DAs, but I think my idea will go through.” “I’ll take that idea under advisement if we have the same problem here,” Lois3 said. “I guess living with a guy who’s invulnerable to bullets makes it safe to keep a bunch of cash laying around the house. I never keep cash around if I can help it. Too many break-ins these days.” Lois2 nodded. “We always keep a lot of cash on hand. Clark usually donates to whatever natural disaster he's helped out on most recently, and sometimes American dollars work faster than an American check. He can get the cash to the people who can do the most good, rather than some government source where only half the money gets to the people who need it. I just took some of his own money to get him out of trouble. Now we can use it to set up Clark in this world with a little nest egg ‘til he’s on his feet.” Lois2 smiled smugly. “I consider setting up a new Superman a worthy charity. I can’t wait to see how our accountant handles this on our taxes.” “You know he has no concept of money. That never occurred to me,” Lois mused having overcome her momentary jealousy after Lois2’s explanation. “He’ll need a new wardrobe as Clark, as well as the one we’re supplying for Superman. He hasn’t ever been to a supermarket, much less a mall. And he’ll need a place to live, which requires references. He doesn’t even have a valid ID much less references.” “No problem,” Lois3 piped in too brightly considering the persona she was imitating. She had already put her packages in the back of the vehicle, and joined her guests in leaning against the side of the SUV. “Fifty thou will buy several IDs. I’ll start working on that as soon as we get back. And since I minored in shopping, I can teach him the ropes. It’ll give me a chance to get that interview. Nothing like a trip through a mall to leave a man weak and vulnerable. And as far as living arrangements, there’s a place in my building that’s open. I’m pretty sure I can get him in there.” “That’s convenient,” Lois2 said. “I don’t suppose it has the same exposure that yours does? That side of the building is ideally suited for the undetected comings and goings of a super hero.” “Oh yeah.” Lois3 nodded. “It’s 501, four floors up from mine, in the opposite corner. Guy moved out last month, and they had to do some… uh… restoration work to his place. I don’t think they’ve even shown it yet.” “Restoration work?” Lois had caught the too innocent tone in Lois3’s voice that said that she was somehow involved in the need for restoration. “Uh… yeah.” Lois3 was studiously studying her toes again. “A flying skunk somehow got on the guys balcony. Evidently the guy scared the poor little critter several times before animal control got there to remove it, and it got… scared again… a lot… while they removed it. By the time they offered the skunk to Met Zoo, the apartment was uninhabitable.” “A flying skunk?” Lois2 laughed. “On the fifth floor with no trees nearby. That must’ve been an amazing animal. I didn’t even know there was such a thing. Maybe we could make a brief trip to the zoo so we can get a look at it.” “Looks pretty much like a normal skunk.” Lois3 raised her chin from her chest and offered a small smile. “My theory is it’s a cross between a flying squirrel and a skunk, but it just looks like a normal skunk.” “My theory is that the guy in 501 stepped on the toes of the woman in 105,” Lois matched Lois3’s smile, “and somehow she got a skunk up on the balcony.” “So maybe I know people who know people who know about skunks. Does that make me automatically guilty?” “No, it makes you someone who’s toes need to be avoided,” Lois2 laughed. “Too bad 501 didn’t know that.” “People who keep locking the elevator on their floor even after they’ve been warned not to get what they deserve,” Lois3 said smugly. “The elevator didn’t bother me, I usually use the stairs anyway, but every time I passed through the lobby I had to listen to people complain that the elevator was stuck on the fifth floor. Enter the skunk, exit the problem.” Lois3 dusted her hands against each other. “Uh… Clark’s nose is just as sensitive as the rest of his senses,” Lois said. “You’re sure that all evidence of the skunk has been removed, right?” “Yep. They washed everything down several times, repainted and put in new carpet and linoleum.” Lois3 smiled smugly again, “Management didn’t do much to keep the elevator in service and the tenants happy. It was an expensive lesson for them.” The three women looked at each other in silence for a moment before breaking into laughter. “Let’s not tell our husbands about this,” Lois said between giggles. “I don’t know about yours, Lois, but mine’ll just worry if he knows how the apartment became available.” “You don’t know people who know people who know skunks?” Lois3 asked. “Oh, I’m sure I do,” Lois admitted. “But Clark wouldn’t like it much if I called upon that knowledge.” “Oh… well… I guess that’s just one more reason to keep going it alone.” Lois3 lost her smile, resumed her sulky expression, and pushed herself away from the car. “Let’s go to the Sports Palace and pick up a few ready made outfits for Superman, and then get some Chinese for all the Loises and Clarks. I’m suddenly very hungry for ice cream, and I should probably have some dinner first before I indulge.” Lois3 led the way to the large sporting goods outfit, as Lois and Lois2 exchanged a knowing look behind her back. They went through a repeat performance for the staff of the Sports Palace as they chose several blue body suits from the selection, differing only in that their niece was purchasing the items as a present for her boyfriend. The aunts were suitably embarrassed at Lois3’s insistence on adding a dozen bright red briefs to her choices. After a stop at Ralph’s Pagoda, over Lois’s strenuous objections, to pick up food for six, they returned to Lois3’s apartment. As each woman took charge of the bags from one of their stops, Lois2 picked the food, they unloaded the car and returned to the still empty apartment. -- All humanity is passion; without passion, religion, history, novels, art would be ineffectual. Balzac The problem: How to get 2 pounds of chocolate home from the store in hot car. The solution: Eat it in the parking lot. ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 18 Dec 1999 10:26:28 -0500 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Pam Jernigan Organization: http://www.geocities.com/~chiefpam/ Subject: NEW fic: Marry Christmas MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Tank, thanks for reminding me to post this little thing here, too :) All feedback is welcomed -- in fact, if you're going to be nasty, please do it in public so I can bribe other people to come to my defense To properly understand this fic, you need to know that in the latest James Bond movie, one of the "Bond girls" was named Dr. Christmas Jones, played by Denise Richards. An actress who previously had a bit part in an episode of L&C... MARRY CHRISTMAS by Pam Jernigan Jimmy Olsen entered the hotel lobby and looked around for his father. It had been a few years since the last time father and son had spent any time together, and Jimmy was cautiously looking forward to the evening. The NIA agent had mentioned that he had something important to communicate, and hinted that he might be around more in the future -- Jimmy didn't quite know what to make of that, but he tried to keep his hopes up. "Jim! Over here!" Jimmy turned his head to see his father beckoning him from across the room, and he hurried over to join his dad at one of the small conversation areas. After an awkward moment, they shook hands, and Jimmy sat down on the hotel couch, facing his father on a matching couch across a low coffee table. "So, Dad ... good to see you." "That it is, son, that it is ..." Jack Olsen kept glancing around the room, and Jimmy noticed that his father had a seat that faced the entrances. Old spy habits seemed to die hard, but then, he supposed that if the habits died, so might his dad, and he didn't want that. "Are you in town for long?" "Well, actually ... yes, I think so. See, the big news is...." Jack scanned the room once more, then focused on Jimmy and smiled broadly. "I've quit the agency." Jimmy blinked. "Wow, really? I thought you loved it!" Jack shrugged ruefully. "I loved it, but it didn't love me. I wasn't fond of the idea at first, but it's grown on me -- there were a lot of things I couldn't do before, that now maybe I can. Like spend time with you." "Wow," Jimmy repeated, slightly stunned at the thought. It had taken him a while to get used to the idea that his dad was an NIA agent, instead of the cover stories he'd always been told, and now he'd have to adjust his thinking again. He smiled suddenly. "I'd love to spend more time with you, Dad!" Jack smiled, settling back into his seat, his gaze flicking out into the crowd again before returning to Jimmy. "I was hoping you'd say that." His voice lowered, and his eyes dropped. "I know I haven't been much of a father -- and I can't make it up to you, I know, but ... I was hoping we could start again. At least we might be friends?" "Well, we can sure give it a try--" Jimmy broke off as his dad rose to his feet, smiling over Jimmy's head in warm welcome. Jimmy turned, and almost fell off the couch as he beheld a stunning young brunette. "Hello, Jack, sorry I'm late," she began, then caught sight of Jimmy. "Is this your son?" Jack guided her around to sit on the couch next to him and said proudly, "Christmas, meet James Olsen. Jim, this is my ... friend, Dr. Christmas Jones." She flashed him a look full of hidden meanings, but Jimmy was too distracted by another puzzle. He frowned at her, and asked "Haven't we met? Yeah, we did! You used to work at the Daily Planet for a little while!" "She did?" Jack asked in some amazement. "It's not exactly her field." "She did," Jimmy confirmed, then hesitated. "But you didn't go by Christmas, you said your name was Angela?" Under the interested looks of both Olsens, Christmas blushed and explained, "Well, a few years ago I spent some time interning there, but it didn't take me long to realize it wasn't the job for me, so I went back to school and finished my degree in nuclear physics." "Oh," Jimmy said blankly. "Did the stuff with the Space Rats scare you off? It's not usually that weird around the Planet -- well, not always, well -- um, anyway, I'm sure nuclear physics is much less exciting." "You'd be surprised," she replied, smiling slightly. "And I went by Angela because I got tired of the jokes about my name -- especially considering that I went to work there in December! So I used my middle name -- my mother actually christened me 'Christmas Angel'." She shook her head indulgently. "I love my mom, but she's not all there sometimes." "So, you're a doctor now ..." Jimmy tried to imagine this. "And how'd you meet my dad?" "Through a mutual friend," Jack explained. "And I can't give you many more details except for his name." "Bond," Christmas intoned, her mouth twitching with humor. "James Bond. He's a heck of a guy, I have to admit, but ... he had a little bit of a problem with commitment." Jack smiled fondly at her. "So I was able to steal her away -- you see, Jimmy, she's the other reason I don't mind retiring." Jimmy stared at his dad in dismay as the implications began to sink in. Angela -- Christmas -- was an old *girlfriend* of his, for pete's sake. Surely his dad didn't mean to.... Jack watched his son and sighed. "I can see you've guessed -- I hope you'll be able to accept it in time. I honestly had no idea you two had known each other." "I should have realized," Christmas said mournfully, "But I just never imagined -- I'm so sorry that this comes as a shock to you, Jimmy, I always liked you ... we were just never meant to be together." Jimmy looked from one to the other. "Are you guys saying what I think you're saying?" Jack nodded. "Jimmy ... meet your new stepmother." Christmas smiled brightly. Stunned, Jimmy remembered the first time he'd met this woman -- he hadn't been able to say anything coherent then, either. Almost inaudibly, he muttered, "I guess this means I'm not in charge of it." THE END -- ------------------------------------------------------- Pam Jernigan | jernigan@bellsouth.net ChiefPam on IRC | ChPam on AOL IM ------------------------------------------------------- "Here, buggy-buggy," he cooed plaintively. "Come to Papa, that's the good girls..." He paused, and peered worriedly under a side-table. "Buggy-buggy?" "Now...*that* cries out for an explanation," murmured the Count, watching him in arrested fascination. --A Civil Campaign, by Lois McMaster Bujold ------------------------------------------------------- http://www.geocities.com/~chiefpam ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 18 Dec 1999 17:16:26 -0000 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: hummingbird Subject: Re: OT: It's a girl! MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Congratulation James and Elisabeth and best wishes to you both and your new arrival for Christmas The New Year. PS - Irene is right - the stiffness will go away before you know it. Regards Eileen B ----- Original Message ----- From: Elisabeth To: Sent: Friday, December 17, 1999 6:15 PM Subject: OT: It's a girl! > We are proud to announce the latest collaboration of > James & Elisabeth Tull... > > RoseMary Grace Tull > > Date: 12-15-1999 > Time: 4:47 PM CST USA > Weight: 7lb 2oz > Length: 18.5" > > Please, join us in praising God for the wonderful gift > He has given us. > > P.S. Momma's doing OK, but she is really stiff and > sore. > I have off until January 3rd. > > Daddy. > > > > > __________________________________________________ > Do You Yahoo!? > Thousands of Stores. Millions of Products. All in one place. > Yahoo! Shopping: http://shopping.yahoo.com ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 18 Dec 1999 14:06:24 EST Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Kate Crane Subject: Re: NEW fic: Marry Christmas MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit LOL Pam, I just saw the Bond movie yesterday, and I knew she looked familiar....different hair color I guess...she was much better suited as Jimmy's girlfriend than as a nuclear scientist. Love what you've done here. Kate ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 18 Dec 1999 19:57:34 -0000 Reply-To: Yvonne Connell Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Yvonne Connell Subject: NEW: God Rest Ye Merry, FoLCdom MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="Windows-1252" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Hope this doesn't offend anyone ;) God rest ye merry, FoLCdom, Let nothing you dismay, For Kathy Brown our archivist Keeps order to this day. To save us all from missing stories, when they go astray: O tidings of Lois and Clark. Lois and Clark, O tidings of Lois and Clark. >From everywhere around the world, The many stories came, And unto fans of L&C, brought tidings of the same, How that in New Troy state was born The son of Clark by name: O tidings of Lois and Clark, Lois and Clark, O tidings of Lois and Clark. The readers of these stories Rejoiced much in mind, And overlooked their other chores - Their partners cried 'Unkind!' And sat down at their computers These fanfic tales to find, O tidings of Lois and Clark, Lois and Clark, O tidings of Lois and Clark. But when to fanfic they did come, Where superchild did lay, The found him in a blanket, 'He's yours' the note did say, His mother Lois was delighted, Clark grinned all day: O tidings of Lois and Clark, Lois and Clark, O tidings of Lois and Clark. I know, I know, it doesn't make a lot of sense, but it was the best I could do! Thank you to ALL the archivists (Kathy just fit the tune best ), thank you to the writers, thank you to the readers, and thank you to all you wonderful FoLCs who keep the story and this community alive. Best wishes, Yvonne (yconnell@ukf.net) ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 18 Dec 1999 16:26:52 -0500 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Tara Smith Subject: Help with a minor point Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit This is just a minor point in my story. I need to know what a place used for public gatherings or rallys and stuff that is in a park would be called. Thanks in advance :) Tara ----------------------------------------------- FREE! The World's Best Email Address @email.com Reserve your name now at http://www.email.com ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 18 Dec 1999 16:28:21 EST Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: No Name Available Subject: Re: Help with a minor point MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit In a message dated 12/18/1999 4:27:20 PM Eastern Standard Time, jilectan@EMAIL.COM writes: << I need to know what a place used for public gatherings or rallys and stuff that is in a park would be called >> 'the great lawn"? Isn't that what they call an area in Central Park in New York City? --Laurie (who pretty much never ventures the hour into NYC) ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 18 Dec 1999 15:44:13 -0800 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Cynthia Haste Subject: Prelude Chapter 34 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=iso-8859-1 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit Chapter 34 “Just drop everything on the couch, while I get out of this get-up.” Lois3 told Lois, dumping the bags from the Sports Palace she carried before heading for the bedroom. “Food in the kitchen, you guys make yourselves at home with my cabinets if you want to get started.” They did. Lois2 opened the bags of food and placed the containers on the dining room table while Lois opened cabinets in the kitchen looking for plates and glasses. Choosing to use the chopsticks packed with the food by Ralph himself, they picked at the food hungrily before it had a chance to hit their plates. Lois3 returned fifteen minutes later with a remote phone at her ear. “Yeah, I know…. You’ll really like my cousin, Jack. I think you guys will be best friends…. Clark Kent…” Lois3 looked over at Lois2, “Middle name?” “Jerome” “Jerome” Lois3 repeated into the phone. “Um hm… He’s about six four, brown hair and eyes, two ten, all muscle, age twenty-seven… He has journalism and criminal science degrees… um hm… has a history at several papers in the states as well as Europe. Yeah… obscure ones, but respectable…. Yeah, I’m sure he’d like you to work on his resume too…. I think he graduated from somewhere in the mid-west…. Ohhhh. That’s a good guess. Respectable, but I don’t know anyone who actually went there. Too bad he won’t be running into anyone from his Alma Mater… I’m hoping to get him a job here in Metropolis…. I just hope his passport’s up to date….” Placing a hand over the receiver, she looked over at the dining room table where Lois and Lois2 were still eating directly out of the food containers. “Do either of you have a full face picture of your husband we can use for driver’s license and passport picture?” At a nod from both women she returned to her phone conversation. “I have an interesting little piece of e-mail I’ll be sending you in a minute. Don’t know why I should bother, I plan on seeing you first thing in the morning…. Okay, eleven then…. Yeah… Me too, Jack.” Lois3 pushed the antenna on the phone in before sitting down at the table with Lois and Lois2. “One identity for Clark Jerome Kent coming up.” She added her chopsticks to the mu-shu pork that Lois was trying to finish off. “We can pick it up at eleven tomorrow morning. Picture?” She finished off a bite and dove into the ignored sweet and sour shrimp while both women dug out their wallets. “Perfect.” She chose one from Lois before going to her computer, taking the last of the moo-shu pork with her. Lois3 booted up her computer and scanner while her guests finished their meals. Lois, pouting a bit over the loss of the pork swept some mixed vegetables onto her empty plate, and satisfied herself with those. Lois3 came back to the table with the empty mu-shu container in time to hear Lois and Lois2 telling each other they couldn’t eat another bite. She sat back in her chair and put her feet up on an empty seat next to her. “Just as well these guys can fly,” she said between bites of Szechwan chicken “We bought for six, but it looks like you two ate for four.” Lois3 smiled at their embarrassed looks into the half empty cartons of food. “No problem. I’ll finish off the rest, and we can just tell them we forgot to buy anything. We just need to get rid of the evidence before they get here. Then they can go get us another dinner.” She picked up the container of Beef Chow Mein. “We’ll all be hungry again in an hour anyway.” “I can’t believe I ate that much from Ralph’s of all places,” Lois groaned, looking down at her stomach to see if the meal was showing. “Well, at least we have access to whatever food takes our fancy when we get hungry again. Clark knows the best places to eat all over the world. Take out is authentic and hot when it gets to the table.” “Must be nice.” Lois3 said, swallowing a mouthful of rice. “I guess you guys can go just about anywhere you want when you go out. I bet you get a lot of bargains too. You can go directly to Taiwan for all the stuff they import here." “Do you pay fees here for imported items?” Lois asked, nibbling on an almond cookie. “Well if you mean import tax, yes, we do.” Lois3 finished off the last of the kung-pao beef. “Pretty high too if you ask me. I think I pay enough tax each year through payroll and purchases to finance a small war.” “Yeah, I guess some things are unalterably universal.” Lois smiled. “Well, expect that to change. No more import tax. I bought a silk sarong the last time we were in Manila that would have cost me three times more if I had bought it at any store in Metropolis.” “Oh, yes. The bargains are just out there waiting for you. I found a beautiful tourquoise set in Columbia.” Lois2 was munching on her own cookie, but eyeing the last of the chow-mein that Lois3 was holding protectively to her breast. “You get jewelry in Columbia? That’s where we get our coffee beans.” Lois reached out her chopsticks to spear a piece of pineapple in the sweet and sour, only to have them deflected as Lois3 got there first. “Clark gets them fresh at least once a week, more often if we’re entertaining. Of course, with the health kick you guys are on you’d probably be more interested in the teas we pick up in Ceylon.” “I have a closet full of Italian shoes.” “My pearls were mined for me personally off the coast of Japan” “Did I ever show you my engagement ring?” Lois2 brought her left hand up to display the 4-carat diamond “Clark found the stone in South Africa, and cut it with his laser vision.” “That’s just lovely, I have a…” Lois3 laughed into the last of the egg fu yung “You guys are so competitive.” Lois and Lois2 both looked at Lois3, then at the empty cartons of food now sitting on the table, then back up at the woman who had been very effective at keeping the last of the food away from both of them. “You should talk.” Lois pointed her empty chopsticks at the last of the mixed vegetables as they disappeared into Lois3’s mouth. “You’re not even eating for two, and you just matched two women who are bite for bite.” Lois3 looked at the empty cartons littering her dining room table in dismay. “I didn’t… oh dear… I guess I was more stressed than I thought…” She looked up to meet the laughing eyes of her guests, and laughed herself, “Look, I needed my strength, okay. Like I said, they can go get their own dinner. Let’s just hide the evidence before they get here.” Lois and Lois2 cleared the table, returning the unused plates to the cabinet while Lois3 unloaded the fabric onto the surface of the dining room table. They laid the pattern material on the floor, and with Lois holding one end flat and Lois2 holding the other, Lois3 used the notes she’d made on Clark3’s measurements to quickly sketch several outlines on the paper. They were halfway through cutting out the third set of spandex when Lois3 declared she needed a break. “I think I need to stretch my legs a little.” Lois3 stood up from the crouch she’d been in for the past hour and shook her limbs. “You know, I was supposed to write up this piece I’ve been working on this afternoon. It’s too late to make it into the afternoon edition, but we could walk to the Planet and you guys could kinda hang while I get it done.” “I could do with a little exercise myself.” Lois, still on the floor, stretched her legs out in front of herself and arched back against the back of the couch. “But I’m not sure a visit to the Planet is in line with the low profile I promised my spouse I’d keep while we’re here.” “Come on, you guys can be my cousins this time. It’s unlikely that anyone in Metropolis is going to meet the real ones anyway. Besides, Lex always works late. I’d love to get your opinion of him.” Lois3 held out a carrot to her cohorts. “Everyone in Metropolis seems to think he’s the best thing since sliced bread. He just enjoys too many co-incidences of good fortune for me. You know, like a business man dying and Lex buying up all his assets for a song, and those assets tripling in value three weeks later because the government announces a big contract with one of the dead man’s companies. Widow and orphan’s are comfortable on the money Lex paid them, but would have been rich beyond their wildest dreams if they’d hung in there instead of selling out. Lex seems to get a lot of that sort of luck.” Intrigued by the idea, Lois rose to her feet, “Clark would really object to me being anywhere near Lex Luthor, any Lex Luthor, without him close by.” A light came on behind her eyes, “I know, I’ll leave him a note.” *** “Well at least she left you a note,” Clark2 said encouragingly. “It’s part of our deal,” Clark said morosely. “Deal? She made a deal with you that you get a note?” Clark2 felt a twinge of envy that Clark had convinced Lois to let him know before she did something dangerous without his assistance. “What does she get?” “She gets to dangle over the jaws of death.” Clark was staring at the single line on the paper in front of him, indicating that his wife was doing just that at the moment. “And junk food. She gets to eat junk food” Clark2 stared at his beleaguered friend in amazement. After a few moments of sympathetic silence, he couldn’t help but comment, “Man, I’m not telling you how to run your marriage, but I think I’d have asked for something more than just a note.” “I tried,” Clark said, his voice at least an octave higher than normal. “I don’t remember the whole conversation, Lois was talking a lot. All I remember is that she gets to race headlong into danger, I don’t try to keep her away from my twinkies, and I get a note.” A thought occurred to him that made him feel slightly better. “You didn’t even get a note,” he pointed out to Clark2. “Your pregnant wife is out there with my pregnant wife doing god knows what and you don’t even have a note.” Clark2 digested that for a moment before sitting down heavily next to Clark. “Yeah, I guess a note would be good right about now.” The two men sat at the table with their chins in their hands. One feeling the effect of only having a note to show for the lack of his spouse’s presence, the other feeling sorry for himself for the lack of any note at all. “Yah know, sometimes…” Clark2 finally found his voice. “I know” “Yeah, but then…” “I know” Both men sighed simultaneously. Clark3 had been keeping his own counsel since the three men had returned to the apartment. There was massive evidence of a sewing holocaust, but the three women were missing. He hadn’t felt he had enough experience in the business of being a super hero to put his bale of wheat in, but it didn’t look like these two were going to be doing much in the super hero department right now either. He was pretty sure that being a super hero did not mean you let your loved ones walk into a possibly dangerous situation without you being there to back them up. At least, he hoped it didn’t. “Uh…guys? Not being married, or even having had any serious relationship, I’m not sure what the procedure is here, but don’t you think we should be out there trying to find them or something?” Clark3 spoke softly, so as not to startle the two men who seemed to have drawn within themselves. “I mean, I’m really new to all this and everything, but I’d kinda like to know where my Lois is right now. I mean the Lois that lives here. If you’re so worried about this Luthor person, maybe she shouldn’t be working with him at all.” “Don’t ever tell her that,” Clark stated emphatically. “If you tell her you think she needs to stay away from Luthor, she’s likely to move in with him just to prove she can take care of herself. Just keep an eye on him. Keep an eye on both of them. She doesn’t seem to like him much, which is a point in her favor. You can help her unmask him, but you will never be able to keep a Lois from putting herself in dangerous situations. And I don’t think unmasking Luthor can be done without a lot of dangerous situations. For both of you.” “If he’s so dangerous, why are we sitting here while your wives are walking into his den?” Clark3 wasn’t sitting, in fact he was pacing back and forth behind one of the empty chairs and flexing his hands in agitation. “I’m weighing how mad I want Lois to be at me against how much I want to go scoop her up and rush her back to our universe,” Clark said calmly. “Prepare yourself to make a lot of decisions like that. And prepare to pay for those decisions.” “Well I never had to deal with Luthor,” Clark2 said with visible relief. “I knew about him of course, even wrote a story on him when faulty waste disposal caused his nuclear power plant to overheat Metropolis. But Tempus killed him before I became Superman, so I never went through some of the things Lois told me your version did to you two.” “Count yourself lucky.” Clark rose to his feet, “How about we just hover above cloud cover so we can be on hand if needed?” Clark3 eagerly led the way to the balcony door. -- All humanity is passion; without passion, religion, history, novels, art would be ineffectual. Balzac The problem: How to get 2 pounds of chocolate home from the store in hot car. The solution: Eat it in the parking lot. ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 18 Dec 1999 18:28:50 -0800 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Cynthia Haste Subject: Prelude Chapter 35 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=iso-8859-1 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit Chapter 35 A little more than halfway to the Daily Planet, the trio was garnering admiring glances from the male population of Metropolis as they walked three abreast down the sidewalk. Lois and Lois2 had donned their wigs again, and with Lois3 as herself, the blonde, red-head and brunette offered a beautiful smorgasbord of femininity. “I’m a little curious about how my job differs from yours, considering that the three of us all have the same job.” “Well one big difference is that I don’t work for Claude. Or Lex.” Lois shuddered. “James Olsen has taken over as editor until Perry finishes his term as Mayor,” Lois2 said. “From what I remember, Perry was a lot more challenging to work for. James pretty much approves everything I do. I’m not even sure he reads it all. I can’t wait for Perry to quit playing politics and get back to his real job.” “James Olsen?” Lois3 asked. “Any relation to Jimmy?” “One and the same,” Lois answered for her twin. “In my universe Jimmy is a research assistant with a yen to be a photojournalist. In Lois’s universe he’s a computer whiz who made his first million before he was twenty, and the proud owner of the Daily Planet.” “Jeez, I’ve been asking a millionaire to get my coffee for me? Does this mean that all those games he plays on the computer when he doesn’t think anybody’s looking are going to pay off for him here too?” “Like we told you, the universes are similar, but not identical,” Lois2 answered Lois3’s question. “He might have the potential for cashing in on his computer knowledge, but he may never use it. He might end up as the photojournalist he wants to be in Lois’s universe, or he might just be happy as the gopher-game player he is here. The same people seem to show up in universe after universe, but their lives don’t always follow the same path.” “Except you two married the same men,” Lois3 pointed out. “That’s just because each of us would only settle for the best.” Lois smiled brightly, causing a middle-aged gentleman to walk into a light pole. “We have led different lives in our different universes, but when it comes to men there’s one thing that both Lois and I agree on. That doesn’t restrict you to the same choice that we made. Had we not brought Clark here, he wouldn’t have been available to you as a possible life mate anyway. There’s a good chance that there’s some guy out there who was born in this universe and is your soul mate.” “I doubt it,” Lois3 mumbled the phrase as she pushed through the revolving door to the Daily Planet. “Man problems?” Lois asked gently as she joined Lois3 inside the building and looked around the lobby at familiar surroundings. “No, thank heavens.” Lois3 punched the up button on the elevator as if it had offended her. “I didn’t have time when I was younger, I was taking care of Lucy as well as myself. The guys I met were more interested in where the next party was or satisfying a passing itch than getting a teenager to eat her vegetables. I wasn’t ‘fun’ enough for them. And since most of my dates after college seemed to lose interest after the first ‘no,’ I haven’t been bothered with men much lately either. Life’s hard enough when you just have to worry about taking care of yourself, without having to worry about taking care of a man at the same time. Clark better be self-sufficient soon, ‘cus I don’t have time to baby-sit for long.” “From what my husband’s told me about him, I don’t think he’ll need too much supervision.” Lois2, the first one in the elevator as it arrived, turned and glared at a young man until he decided to take the next car and leave the women to themselves. “The kind of help he’ll need is more the ‘getting a life started’ kind, and you’ve already done a lot to get him started on that with the ID etc.” “Hmmm… we’ll see,” Lois3 mused, staring at the glowing disks above the elevator door as they ticked off the floors to the fifth. The doors opened onto a familiar scene for all three women. The furniture arrangement was slightly different from what both Lois and Lois2 had expected, but the energy and noise levels were exactly the same. Lois3 sailed down the ramp leading from the elevator and placed her purse on a desk near the pit. “Lane, your story should have been in three hours ago. What…” The handsome Frenchman seemed to have been on the look-out for Lois3. He erupted from the editor’s office as soon as they reached the desk. “Oh, I’m sorry Lois. I didn’t realize you had company. And such beautiful company as it is.” Claude’s voice lost the autocratic tone he’d started with, and now oozed charm. “Claude,” Lois3 nodded at her editor grimly, “these are my cousins, Lillian and Lenore. Ladies,” she stressed the word, “this is Claude.” Lois2 held out her right hand to meet the one offered by the Frenchman. She gently used a nail from her left to scratch a non-existent itch at the side of her mouth, making sure her wedding ring was prominently displayed. Instead of shaking the hand as she’d expected, he raised it to his mouth and kissed the back, running his lips across her knuckles while staring soulfully into her eyes. Lois2 snatched her hand back quickly. “Sorry,” Lois said with a voice that said she was clearly not as Claude’s hand reached for hers, “forgot to wash up after cleaning out the kitty litter box. Wouldn’t want you to catch anything nasty.” “Lois, my dear,” Claude oozed over to Lois3, attempting to brush up against Lois who avoided the contact by moving to the other side of the desk, “when might we expect your article on the car theft ring? We’d expected to run it in the afternoon edition. Lex was very… disappointed, when I told him the hole I was frantically attempting to fill was caused by your tardiness.” “Claude, I told you that story wouldn’t be ready for a day or two.” Lois3 spoke to her editor without looking at him as she went through the boot-up process on her computer. “I still have some work I need to do on it, although I made some great strides today. I found out the name of the guy who’s been paying off the kids for stealing the cars, but I have a feeling he has someone he reports to and I’d like to find out who that is too.” “And I told you to wrap it up today.” Lois3 stiffened under the hand Claude placed on her shoulder before glancing at it and then angrily up into his face. Claude raised his hands in the air as if in surrender, a smile on his face that did not reach his eyes. “So jumpy, Lois. If there is another Mr. Big besides the Mr. Big you originally set out to uncover, he’ll just have to remain anonymous. That story will run in the early edition tomorrow morning. Are we clear?” “Perfectly. You’re willing to rush a story to print before it’s been fully investigated, to fill some space in a paper people are going to quit reading soon because the stories printed in it are incomplete.” Lois3 dismissed him by turning back to her keyboard and starting on her article. “Nonsense, Lois,” Claude said jovially, his eyes passing from Lois to Lois2 invited them to join him in laughing at Lois3’s silly ethics. “I’m sure the story will be as wonderful as the rest of your work. Just put what you have down and send it to me. I’ll edit out anything that seems rushed, and flesh it out a little where it seems weak, and we’ll have a great story that will enthrall our readers.” He grabbed Lois2’s arm, running his fingers up the back of it and back down to the elbow. “In the mean time, I’ll entertain your guests in my office so you won’t be distracted.” *** “If that man touches my wife one more time he’s going to spontaneously combust.” Clark2 was getting more of an eyeful than he wanted from five miles up over the Planet. Clark had stopped off on the way to lift a school bus back onto the bridge it was hanging onto by the rear tires only. He joined the two other super heroes a moment later *** “Oh, no…” Lois2 giggled girlishly as she accidentally stepped back and directly onto Claude’s instep, causing him to lose his grip on her arm. “We only came in with Lois to see how she puts together a story. We don’t get to visit much, and this is just sooooo exciting for us.” Claude raised an eyebrow wolfishly at Lois, and received an emphatic shake of her head. “My husband doesn’t allow me to be alone with strange men in their offices. Ever since the boxing commission took away his license after that horrible accident in the ring he’s been angry about just about everything. A man just looking at me is taking his life in his hands.” *** Clark snickered at the warning. “That’s my girl.” He sobered as he caught site of a familiar face on the top floor of The Planet. Lex Luthor appeared to be alive and well and collecting a few things from his desk before leaving his office. He wished Clark2 would hurry up and deal with that alarm they’d heard. He might need some back-up. *** Claude shrugged philosophically before turning back to Lois3. “Thirty minutes, Lane. Your multiple Kerths won’t help you keep your job if you can’t get your stories in on time.” Claude’s charm seemed to have deserted him. “No prob. Almost done.” Lois3’s fingers flew over the keyboard even as she answered. “Oh…” She turned to face Claude full on. “Just a warning. I ran across a guy today who might be coming to you for a job soon. His name’s Clark Kent. Don’t give him one. He can’t write his way out of a paper bag. And besides, he was honing in on one of my stories. You know I won’t allow anyone to move in on my turf. If he does get a job here, he’s likely to make my life miserable, and when I’m miserable the people around me usually end up pretty unhappy too.” *** “Oh no…” Clark3’s voice mirrored the dismay in his eyes. “She hates me already. I make her miserable. I can’t stay here if I already make her miserable.” Clark smiled and laid a hand on Clark3’s arm. “Just listen.” It was Clark’s turn to play super hero, but Clark2 was handling the apparent mugging they’d heard going on a few blocks from the Planet. The only cry for help that would pry him out of the sky now would have to come from his wife. *** Claude rested a hand on Lois3’s desk, and brought his face level with hers. “You do not make hiring policy in this division, Miss Lane. If this man comes to me for a job I will give him the same consideration I would any applicant, and if I choose to hire him you will be civil not only to him but the rest of your co-workers. Is that clear?” Lois3 sighed and turned back to her keyboard. “Whatever. I know you’re desperate to fill the desks around here since people keep quitting on you. Just keep him far away from me if you do feel the need to hire the hack. *** “See, she just got you hired without you ever having to interview. Bet he makes you her partner too.” Clark shook his head, ever in awe at the ingenuity of the various Lois Lanes. His awe turned to dread as Lex Luthor stepped off the elevator onto the newsroom floor. *** Lois’s back was to the elevator, but the hairs on the back of her neck told her that danger loomed in that direction. She casually picked up a picture of a laughing Lucy from the desk and used the reflection in the glass to see why her disaster alert had gone into full alarm. The breath caught in her throat when she caught sight of Lex Luthor surveying the activity on the floor as he leaned against the guardrail that lined the pit. Lois2 and Lois3 were both aware of her distress as her body tensed and her breathing became shallow. Lois2 moved from her position next to Claude, to one next to Lois. “Done,” Lois3 said triumphantly. She hit the send button and started the shut-down procedure on her computer before flanking Lois’s other side. “We’re outta here.” “You will stay until I have checked your story.” Claude insisted as Lex approached. “You never give me my re-writes anyway, Claude; you seem to prefer to edit my work yourself,” Lois3 pointed out as Lex joined them. Lois2 and Lois3 moved closer to Lois. “I was on stake out all night last night, and since the cars moved at two o’clock this morning I’ve been on the run since then. Unless you want to sign off on my massive overtime this week, I’m history.” “Lois, Lois, Lois. Your work is always worthy of whatever price we have to pay for it.” Lex stared curiously at the woman he’d never met but who was showing signs of distress in his presence. “I don’t think I’ve ever met your charming guests.” “Lex, these are my cousins on my father’s side, Lillian and Lenore. Lillian, Lenore, this is Lex Luthor. The temporary managing editor of the Daily planet.” At Lois3’s stress of the word ‘temporary’, Lex’s eyes caught her own for a moment. His exuded amusement at her attempt to put him in his place. Lillian and Lenore, with arms around their middles, had hands that were anchored firmly against their sides by their elbows. Lex took the hint that had escaped Claude and didn’t even offer to shake hands. “Lovely, the resemblance is striking. I’d be able to identify them as a relative of yours wherever I met them.” Instead of shaking hands, Lex picked up the picture of Lucy from Lois3’s desk. “I don’t even think your own sister looks as much like you do as your cousins do. Curious,” Lex purred the words as he replaced the photo. “Lucy takes after Mom,” Lois3 said smoothly. “We take after Dad’s side of the family. And of course Lenore and Lillian being twins…” “Ahhh… that explains it of course.” Lex continued his scrutiny of the women, settling on an obviously unsettled Lois. “And you, Lenore was it?” Lois nodded slightly, “Does the resemblance extend to your chosen profession?” “Actually we’re housewives.” Lois’s voice was low but surprisingly strong. “We spend our days making cookies for bake sales and participating in car pools. It’s a lot more fascinating than most people think it is. I can tell you all about our day if you’d like. You’d be surprised at what can come up during my day to throw off my laundry schedule. I was telling Lois that she should do a whole series on it, but she just doesn’t seem interested. Maybe you should talk to her about it.” As she got into character, Lois lost her nervousness and Lex’s eyes all but glazed over. “Unfortunately, they’re only in town for the day before leaving for a vacation in Scranton tomorrow, I don’t think I could do the series justice,” Lois3 spoke an exasperated aside to Lois, “just like I told you before, Lenore.” And then back to Claude and Lex, “And since I haven’t seen them in ages, and don’t know when they’ll be back in town, I am leaving now.” She grabbed Lois’s elbow and moved to steer her toward the elevator. “Lovely to have met you both,” Lois called over her shoulder. “Maybe next time we’ll stay longer. I’m sure once you hear a few stories about my sewing circle, you’ll agree to do that series.” “Yes, I’m sure I’ll find it fascinating,” Lex waved his fingers at the departing women as they waited for the elevator, and released a relieved sigh when they disappeared within. “Beautiful but brainless. I much prefer the challenge that Miss Lane presents.” “Don’t bother, Mr. Luthor,” Claude only called him Lex behind his back. “That is one cold fish.” “Ahhh, but that is where the greatest challenges are found. A woman as passionate about her work as Miss Lane appears to be is channeling that passion into the wrong areas. I plan on finding out what happens when that passion is channeled into the correct areas.” Lex gazed at the closed doors for another moment before heading toward the editor’s office. Claude followed in his wake. -- All humanity is passion; without passion, religion, history, novels, art would be ineffectual. Balzac The problem: How to get 2 pounds of chocolate home from the store in hot car. The solution: Eat it in the parking lot. ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 18 Dec 1999 23:16:54 -0500 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Anita Hook Subject: Re: Help with a minor point In-Reply-To: <383004890.945552412930.JavaMail.root@web08.pub01> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" At 04:26 PM 12/18/99 -0500, you wrote: >This is just a minor point in my story. I need to know what a place used >for public gatherings or rallys and stuff that is in a park would be called. >Thanks in advance :) > >Tara Hi Tara, In New England, every town had a 'common' located in the center of town. The original use was for public grazing of cattle. Later they were used for public gatherings and rallys particularly around the time of the Revolution. Hope this helps. Regards Anita ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 19 Dec 1999 02:38:33 -0500 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Tara Smith Subject: Re: Help with a minor point Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Thanks Laurie and Anita for your help on that. I just couldn't think of what that area was called. :) Tara ----------------------------------------------- FREE! The World's Best Email Address @email.com Reserve your name now at http://www.email.com ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 19 Dec 1999 12:38:13 -0800 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Cynthia Haste Subject: Prelude Chapter 36 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=iso-8859-1 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit Chapter 36 Lois was leaning against the back of the elevator, practicing deep cleansing breaths. “In with the good, out with the Lex, in with the good, out with the Lex.” “Are you okay?” Lois3 asked as the elevator neared the lobby. “Just dandy,” Lois answered from her position as wall support. “Let’s just get back to your place quick, okay? My Lex hasn’t been alive again for almost a year. I think I’d like to finish up here and get back to a universe where he hopefully stays a bad memory.” She pulled on Lois3’s sleeve as they exited the elevator, “Never turn your back on that man. He’s just as dangerous as my version was. And I got the feeling that regardless of how you feel about him, he’s more than a little interested in you.” “Yeah, I’ve picked up on that a couple of times myself.” Lois3 patted the hand on her arm before heading toward the revolving doors. “He’s barking up the wrong tree though if he thinks he has a chance with me. Claude will probably warn him off and then that’ll be the end of that.” Lois3 looked around the outside of the building. Darkness had fallen while they were inside, and evening traffic had picked up. She didn’t much feel like the two mile walk back to her apartment. “Taxi?” Lois3 suggested. “I’ve got a better idea,” Lois2 said, leading the way into the alley behind the Planet. “Clark.” Her request, no louder than the conversational one she was using with Lois and Lois3, brought a breeze that materialized into three Clarks. Clark eyed Lois warily until she moved over to him and locked her arms about his neck. He folded her into a tight embrace, feeling the tremors running through her body as she shuddered against him. “You rang?” Clark2 asked his wife, kissing her lips lightly as a greeting. “Home, James.” Lois2 linked her arm around his neck to bring him down for a more serious greeting of her own. “Are you okay?” Clark asked his wife softly. “Oh… no… but I will be,” Lois said weakly. “I’m glad you’re here.” She smiled up into his surprised face. “And here I thought you’d be mad.” Clark smiled back down at her. “Anyone else but Lex and I would be. With him, any him, I’m always happy to have you to back me up.” Lois kissed him, seeming to draw strength back into her body as she did so. “I’m glad you got my note.” “Me too. Although I think I want to renegotiate our deal a little. ‘Gone to the Planet’ is a very short note.” Clark was feeling better himself after the kiss. “You said you wanted a note. Not a letter, not a book, a note. You got a note.” She paused to note that her defense of the sparse information she’d left him hadn’t lightened the concern in his gaze. “Did you read the ‘Love, Lois’ part?” “It was still a pretty skimpy note,” Clark said after a kiss to let her know he reciprocated the sentiment. “I really think we need to set up a few more parameters for future notes.” “We’ll talk about it later,” Lois said, having no intention of ever bringing up the subject again. “Right now I want to get back to Lois’s apartment, and then I think you should go get some dinner for you guys because we somehow didn’t get enough for everyone and ended up eating everything we bought. And then after you’ve gotten your dinner, I’d really love it if you’d go get me some double fudge chocolate chip ice cream…” “I have some in the freezer,” Lois3 offered. “Probably not enough,” Clark said, a statement affirmed by Lois’s nod. “There’s a new gallon…” Lois3 started, then paused. “You’re probably right. I feel like I could use some myself.” She had been glancing at Clark3 when he wasn’t looking at her ever since the men had joined the women. Now she looked directly into his eyes, obvious excitement in hers, “So how does one travel by super hero?” “Well, I’m not the pro here, by any means. And Clark and Clark carry Lois and Lois differently from each other. I guess the best way would be for you to just let me know how you want to be carried.” Clark3 answered nervously. “Well, when I was watching Clark carry out that first woman from the burning building, she looked pretty safe,” Lois3 replied after a moment pondering. “I think I’d like to be carried like that. At least ‘til I’m a little more comfortable with the experience.” Lois tugged on Clark’s neck, indicating she wanted to be picked up. “I’m very comfortable with the experience, and I still prefer to be carried this way.” Looking at Lois, held closely to Clark’s breast, Lois3 reassessed how comfortable she’d feel in that same position. It was too late to change her mind as Clark3 scooped her up and joined Clark and Clark2 carrying their individual burdens to her apartment. Taking time to notice the teasing kisses Lois2 was laying on her husband’s face and neck, she wasn’t sure if that was the right way for her to travel either. Her first experience in the air was otherwise exhilarating for her. “Much better than LexAir,” she murmured as they passed a startled hawk. The hawk returned to its perch inside the penthouse apartment of Lex Tower. It chattered incessantly about the encounter with the flying humans for the next three days, much to the annoyance of its master, who eventually decided that the noisome bird had run itself into a wall and was no longer in possession of its senses. He donated the expensive hawk to a local sanctuary and took a large deduction on his taxes for his generosity. Landing on the balcony, the six took a moment outside the building while Lois3 pointed out the balcony of Apartment 501 as a proposed site for Clark3’s first apartment in her Metropolis. The location was scouted by all three men from the air, and declared the best site in the entire building for unobserved entries and exits. “I hope it’s still available by the time I have the money to rent it.” Clark3 took one last glance at the apartment balcony on the fifth floor before following everyone else into the apartment. “I heard what you did for me with your editor,” he told Lois3. “I want to thank you. But even if he hires me, it’ll probably take a while for me to put enough money away for an apartment. I can just live out of my cave until then.” He looked around the living room at the two cut patterns for the body suit and the one almost finished, as well as the unpacked bags with the expensive Sports Palace lettering. “It looks like I owe someone my first few months salary as it is.” “Nope, in fact, if we could raise the landlord, you could probably sleep upstairs tonight.” Lois2 said, reaching for her purse, and pulling out several stacks of bills. “Most of these are thousands. Uh… Cleveland is on yours, isn’t he?” she asked Lois3. “I have no idea. But I’m pretty sure no one else does either, so they should be safe. Well, Lex probably knows. We can check on the web before he uses them.” Lois3 went to her computer and booted it up. “There are several five-hundred dollar bills; that’s McKinley, Lois. And then a couple thousand in hundreds. Franklin.” Lois2 ignored his stunned look as she continued to add to the bills she was dumping in his arms. “That one I know is right, so there’s a good chance the rest are too.” Lois3 paged expertly through the web while giving a running commentary to her guests. “Yep. Cleveland on the thousands and McKinley on the five hundreds. Let me have one of each so I can check a couple other points…. 1934 series…okay, the signatures match up, so these are probably just as real here as where they come from. I don’t think a sudden influx of fifty thousand is going to break the mint either.” “Fifty Thousand? Dollars?” Clark3 dumped the money onto the floor at his feet as if it was on fire, and he could suffer burns from it. “I can’t possibly accept this.” He started picking up the money and trying to give it back to an uncooperative Lois2. “Consider it a baby-sitting fee.” Lois2 laughed as she adroitly sidestepped him again and whisked her purse out of his reach. “I brought it with me to bail my spouse out of whatever trouble he’d gotten himself into. You kept him gainfully occupied while he was with you. You deserve it.” Clark3 continued his attempts to return the money. “Clark!” Lois3’s sharp voice broke his concentration on Lois2. “Take the money. You’ll need it. It’s money that would go to a good cause in their world, and from what I just read on the web, Superman has been busy doing several good deeds this evening. He’s a good cause. That means you’re a good cause. As excited as I am about this project I am not financially able to finance it. Lois and Clark are. Take the money.” Clark3 looked down at the bills he held in his hands, and the ones that still littered the living room floor. He then looked over at Lois3, still seated at her computer. She nodded to him, and he visibly relaxed. “I don’t know what to say. I’ll only use what I need, until I have my own job, and I’ll try to pay the rest back to you somehow,” he told Lois2, obviously touched. “Nope. With the balance you’ll start your own Superman Foundation.” Lois2 walked over to Clark3 and hugged him, causing him to lose control of the rest of the money in his arms. “Once you get rolling here, you’ll probably be offered all kinds of money as both reward for saving someone or as a donation from complete strangers who like what you’re doing. I’m sure Lois can help you funnel that money to worthy causes until you can set up a staff to handle it for you.” “Fifty-thousand dollars?” Clark murmured into Lois’s hair. “I’ll tell you later,” she whispered back. “My wife is right.” Clark2 clasped Clark3’s hand in his as he took charge of his wife again. “You kept me sane long enough for her to find me. That alone is worth every penny. I really want to thank you for that.” Clark3 had noticed the move that removed Lois2’s arms from around him and placed them around her husband. His eyes were merry as he asked, “Still nervous?” “Just don’t want to leave you with a couple broken arms when we go.” Clark2 smiled back. “What?” Lois2 sensed a private joke that somehow involved her. “I’ll tell you later.” Clark2 said smiling down at her. “Are we about done here? I’d really like to sleep in my own bed tonight, and it’s starting to get late. I told Clark I’d leave him the suit you brought for me. He can wear that until Lois has one finished for him. He has money, job prospects, and a rudimentary knowledge of super…” All three men cocked their heads to the left, and Lois walked over to the TV and turned it on. A water main had broken downtown. Besides the six car accident the ensuing flood had caused, the water spraying up in the air had hit some power lines with enough force to loosen them. They were lying in the water around the disabled automobiles, sparking uncontrollably. The only thing between the stranded motorists and death was the rubber in the tires of their cars. “My turn,” Clark said, heading for the balcony. “Huh-uh.” Clark3 caught him by the shoulder before he cleared the couch. “My turn. I may as well get started now.” Taking a deep breath, he became an almost invisible blur. When he came back into view he was dressed in blue spandex with a cape that was slightly askew. “Wow.” Lois3 murmured breathlessly. She rose from her computer desk to tuck the rest of the cape into place. “Uh, I don’t suppose you could give me a ride? I could write up the disaster while you clean it up.” “Sure,” Clark3 said eagerly, her interest in accompanying him distracting him from both the embarrassment of wearing the suit for the first time as well as the nervousness he was feeling over his first attempt as a super hero. “Clark, Lois.” Lois caught them before they left. “We’ll probably be gone by the time you get back.” Clark3 showed his alarm at her statement, and she hugged him. “You’ll do fine. We’ll stick around long enough to make sure you don’t need any back up, but I don’t really think that’s going to be necessary.” She looked over her shoulder at her husband, “We really need to get home.” At his emphatic nod, she turned back to Clark3. “I think we’ve done just about everything we can for you. The rest is up to you and Lois. Either Clark and I or Lois and Clark will come back in a week to see if you need anything else, but I think the best thing to do is just what you’re doing now. On the job training is the best kind.” “Thank you is so inadequate for what you’ve all done for me,” Clark3 said, shaking hands with both Clarks and hugging Lois and Lois2. “I have to go,” he waved a hand, indicating the escalating scene on the television, “but I want you all to know that if you ever need me, all you have to do is call.” “We’ll find a way to stay in touch,” Lois2 said, returning his hug. “I promise.” She offered her hand to Lois3. “Take care of him.” “Hey, I’ll do anything for a good story,” Lois3 said airily as she shook Clark’s hand. “I’m sure I’ll be amply rewarded in Kerths and Merriweathers for anything I do for him ‘til he gets the hang of things here.” She shook Clark2’s hand firmly, and reached for Lois’s. “Besides, catching a cab can be tough in this town. I think I’ll be taking frequent advantage of a whole new mode of travel.” “We’ll be watching,” Clark told the departing pair as they headed for the balcony. “Electricity can be tricky.” “I think I can deal with it,” Clark3 said, taking Lois3 up in his arms. “If I recall correctly from my rudimentary electrical reading, those wires should run between 7,200 and 9,500 volts each. If there were a major line down I’d be more worried. I don’t want to tangle with 500,000 volts this early in my career. Just spot me for a while, and…” Lois3 withdrew an arm from around his neck to tap him on his chest. “Let’s go,” she ordered somewhat breathlessly. Clark3 looked down at her for half a second, curious about the slight elevation in her body temperature, before smiling at the four people who had changed his life so drastically, and then took to the skies. “She is one dead duck,” Lois2 observed quietly as Clark3 and his burden disappeared into the night. “And she’ll love every minute of the hunt,” Clark2 teased, bringing his spouse in for a hug. “Right.” The word was muffled as Lois2 nuzzled his neck. “You guys keep an eye on him,” Lois ordered as Clark3 came into view on the television screen. “We need to turn ourselves back into ourselves before we get out of here. Come on, Lois, let’s get rid of the wigs.” The two super heroes critiqued Clark3’s handling of his first rescue while Lois and Lois2 returned their borrowed disguises to the hidden closet in the bedroom. They applauded the way he first captured the sparking wires and returned them to the poles they’d escaped from. They readied themselves to fly to the rescue when he took a moment to fuse the wires back in place, not sure if he had chosen the correct leads to fuse them to. Since the lines didn’t immediately explode they decided that by luck or the knowledge he’d gained from reading up on the subject, Clark3 had chosen correctly. When the budding super hero chose to lift the cars out of the water and set them down in dry territory for the standard emergency services to deal with, each man nodded in approval. Knowing your limitations was an important part of being a super hero. Supporting the fire fighters and EMT’s was smarter than trying to free the people in the cars himself. Soon enough he’d have the experience at locating head and neck injuries that would make extricating an injured motorist less tricky. As long as he moved the disabled vehicles carefully, their occupants should suffer no further harm. They caught occasional glimpses of Lois3 as she attempted to get near enough to the scene of the accident to get a couple first hand quotes from the recently rescued motorists. As she rounded the cordon set up by the fire fighters and prepared to breach it she stepped too close to the large pool of water that had collected in the roadway before the water main had been shut off. Clark3 balanced the car he was carrying to the triage area onto one hand and caught Lois3 with the other just as she was about to overbalance into the pool. He dropped both his charges next to an ambulance and went back for the last car. “Good boy!” Lois applauded from over Clark’s shoulder. “She’s in a much better position to get the story now.” “She damned near electrocuted herself trying to get it,” Clark said grimly. “We don’t know how secure those lines are, or if any others are loose just waiting to fall down. She should have stayed well back of the area until he finished with the injured.” “Yeah, yeah. Like she was ever in any danger of even getting a pinky wet with him around,” Lois2 said sassily, linking her arm around her husband’s waist as they watched the rest of the rescue. Clark3 removed doors and in one case a roof to make it easier for the professionals to do their job. Lois3 was moving from car to car talking to occupants, in one case climbing into the back seat through a broken window to retrieve a teddy bear for a distressed youngster in the front of the car. Clark3 quickly distracted a fireman when he attempted to escort Lois3 out of the area, drawing more approval from Lois and Lois2. “Well, I think he’s got it.” Lois turned to her husband. “What do the pros say?” “It’s a good start,” Clark2 offered. “I think he’ll have more problems figuring out how to deal with this Lois than how to deal with disasters,” Clark said, eyeing his wife warily. “Good,” Lois said happily, her response baffling her bemused husband. “She’ll keep him on his toes so when the criminals start trying to test him he’ll be ready for them too.” Clark groaned and ran his fingers through the silky hair she’d freed from the blonde wig, settling his hands on either side of her head. “Let’s go home.” -- All humanity is passion; without passion, religion, history, novels, art would be ineffectual. Balzac The problem: How to get 2 pounds of chocolate home from the store in hot car. The solution: Eat it in the parking lot. ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 19 Dec 1999 12:38:48 -0800 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Cynthia Haste Subject: Prelude Chapter 37 (the last one) MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=iso-8859-1 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit Chapter 37 Two weeks later the two couples met again in Clark and Lois’s universe by pre-arrangement. The setting was the one negotiated by all four parties. Giving in to the women’s desire for dinner and dancing, the men insisted on an out of the way nightclub. The women settled for a favorite of Lois2’s in her own universe, a small jazz club in the outskirts of Amboise in the Loire Valley of France. While most of the inhabitants of the area would recognize Superman by his colorful attire, Lois Lane and Clark Kent were unknown to the residents. Without planning, the couples dressed alike for the casual atmosphere, the men in jeans and turtlenecks and the women in casual skirts and silk blouses. Although the couples drew several interested glances, as much for their striking good looks as for the obvious fact that twins had married twins, the intimate atmosphere made even the men feel comfortable in their anonymity. Taking a break from the dancing, the handsome couples ordered another bottle of the area’s Vouvray wine for the men and mineral water for the women. They sat in companionable silence for a few moments, enjoying the music, the atmosphere, and a few quiet moments of peace in each other’s company. Although they had eaten an excellent meal in Le Mans earlier, Lois and Lois2 were perusing the limited menus for a snack to satisfy what seemed to be a never ending hunger they were both suffering from. Lois held the menu in one hand, while with her other she was drawing intricate patterns on her mate’s thigh under the table. Lois2 had shed her shoes, and was doing the same to her husband’s shin with her toes. Both men were having a hard time remembering the main reason they agreed to the gathering. Other than to satisfy their wives craving for a night out on the town with each other. “How about this selection of pate and cheese?” Lois2 suggested, raising her teasing toes to just over Clark2’s knees, resting her foot in his lap. “They do an incredible salmon mousse that will melt in your mouth.” “I was thinking of the goose liver myself.” Lois’s fingertips grazed the inner seam of Clark’s 501’s and he sat up abruptly, drawing curious gazes from the couple across from him. Lois ignored the movement as her fingers traced the seam back down to his knee. “I’ve never really been a liver fan before, but for some reason that just sounds delicious right now.” Clark plucked the menu from her fingers, and placing it on the table he grabbed the hand that had found its way to the top of his thigh again in his. Bringing it to his lips he kissed her palm. “One of everything. If your hands are feeding that voracious child you’re carrying, maybe they’ll be too busy to drive me crazy.” “What do I do about Lois’s feet?” Clark2 laughed, and then groaned as Lois2 flexed her foot against his thigh. He captured her foot in both his hands, and took control of it with a gentle massage. “Stop,” he told her sternly; her answer was a saucy smile. Clark called over the garçon and ordered an ample selection of pates, cheeses, fresh fruits and vegetables in flawless French, all the while playing with Lois’s fingers, concentrating on the sensitive area between each digit. He caught the sound of her heart rate increasing as he went through the lengthy list of local delicacies he was ordering. When the waiter went off to fill the order, he looked down at his slightly breathless wife with a raised eyebrow. “Are we even?” “No,” Lois plucked her hand from his and placed it back in his lap. “So everything sounds great with Clark and Lois,” she directed her comment across the table as she renewed her slow torment of her husband. “Oh, she’s happy all right. He had some concerns about the frequency with which he was being called upon to rescue her, but I told him that was normal.” Clark2 lost his grip on his right wife’s foot when she started running her left one up his leg. He cleared his throat and glanced at her nervously, feeling no sense of relief at her innocent expression. “Um… it seems that uh…” “He got the job at the Planet, and while Claude didn’t make them partners he has been sending them out on several stories together,” Lois2 continued for her husband. “I don’t think all the situations that have come up recently with Lois are her fault. From what she tells me, Claude seems to be assigning them, and her in particular, to the most dangerous stories he can get away with. She was in the middle of a drug smuggling story when we saw them last week, and Clark had just rescued her from being shot up with something nasty by the gang leader. And then of course there’s her association with Superman. She’s already been pushed out of two windows and off one roof since her article on him came out. She seems to be taking it better than he is.” “So they’ve already started testing him.” Lois removed her hand from Clark’s lap momentarily as their food arrived, and she chose an abundant selection for her plate. “What’s he doing about that.” “He worries that they’ll go after Lois when he’s not around to save her, but he’s not too worried about himself. Yet. We tried to talk to him about that. Invulnerable does not mean invincible. I think the biggest concern he has at the moment is that the asteroid is going to hit when he doesn’t have any super back-up, and he’ll go through the same experience that Clark had in our world.” Lois2’s flexing of her toes against Clark2’s inseam could have been the cause of his sudden blush. “I told him we’d talk to you about letting your Dr. Klein visit once a month to see if he needs anything.” “Bernie is working on a way we can contact each other, without actually jumping to each other’s universe,” Lois said around an overfilled cracker. “It probably won’t be any more than a panic button to start with, but at least we’ll know if we’re needed in another universe, without having to lose any sleep over it.” Lois smiled at Lois2. “Said sorry already,” Lois2 mumbled over her own mouthful. “That’s okay, I wouldn’t have missed it for the world. Using Bernie is an excellent idea, by the way. I think we can trust him to go, check up on Clark and get back without getting himself or anyone else into any trouble.” Lois finished off the gooseliver, and started on the crudite, dragging the crisp vegetables through the brie before popping them in her mouth. “And his personal life? He does have one doesn’t he?” Clark asked, sending a brief glance across the table before returning his eyes to the amazed perusal of the food his still slender wife was consuming. “Oh yeah. Cat’s after him at work, but so far he’s been able to fend her off.” Lois2 added melon and orange slices to her plate. “He’s been traveling all over the world testing out his language skills. He joined a fan club for the Metro’s, a reading group and the neighborhood watch. He loves meeting new people. He spends hours and hours online talking to people from all over the world. TV and movies are going to keep him amused for a long time. He’s got a lot of catching up to do. He even likes Barney.” Lois2 grimaced over a bite of apple layered with camembert. Lois surveyed the remnants on the table, and decided she couldn’t eat another bite. Except maybe for one little piece of cracker with a little bit of veal pate, a little being all that was left, and a little bit of brie, that last smidgen glued to the plate would do, and a light dusting of cauliflower on top. Clark stopped watching her eat. Lois gave Clark a little breathing room as she removed her hand from his lap to use the moist washcloth provided with the food to wash the hand she’d used to eat. She drank the last of her mineral water as her fingertips found his inseam once again. Clark sent quiet thanks to the proprietor of the establishment for the tablecloths that draped the table. As long as he kept his seat, he was safe from embarrassment. On the other hand, he’d have to stand up to leave if he wanted to get his wife home so he could pay her back for her teasing. He started conjugating French verbs while keeping only half an ear on the conversation around him. He moved onto multiplying prime numbers, and when the back of her hand brushed against the front of his jeans, he started estimating the tensile strength of the studs in button fly jeans “We really appreciate you two making the last two visits,” Lois said, returning her hand to Clark’s knee as he began muttering to himself. “We’ll have Bernie check on him regularly until the panic button’s ready, then we’ll send him with several for both Clark’s and your universe. I’m going to carry one on me, as well as place them at strategic places where I’ll be able to get to them if I get separated from my purse for any reason.” Lois sighed, sat back in her chair and patted her stomach. “Life’s so much better now that I’m party to the “Emergency Use Only” devices.” “Lo-is,” Clark stopped whatever he was going to say when her hand drifted up his thigh again, before returning itself to his knee. “I’m really going to miss you guys for the next several months.” Lois2 inspected the dishes as the waiter removed them, spying and spearing a plump strawberry hidden under a decorative lettuce leaf before he cleared the table. “Us too.” Clark2 captured his wife’s foot again and resumed his massage. With the food gone her hands were now free to continue what her trapped foot could not. Clark2 looked down at her hand, and then at her face, “Ready to leave?” Lois2 moved her hand down to his knee as she shook her head, “No.” Lois smiled slightly at the interchange. She and Clark had had a busy few weeks after returning from their adventure. They’d completed an investigation of the illegal aliens being smuggled into Metropolis who were turned into slaves for ruthless industrialists upon their arrival. Their investigation had included brief trips to the Philippines, Cuba and Tai-Wan as they tracked down the source of the steady flow of free labor. When they finally made it home from a long day at work Superman got busy. The days Superman had been absent had been noted by the criminal element of Metropolis. By the time most of them made plans to take advantage of his disappearance, he’d returned. That didn’t stop them from putting their plans into action anyway. Bank robberies, arson and even murder had risen slightly during the past two weeks, and only in the past few days were things quieting down again. Snuggling up at night and quick kisses on his way out the nearest window were nice, as long as they also had time to enjoy a longer interlude with each other once in a while. Not having had that luxury since their return had the normally high level of sexual tension Lois experienced in Clark’s presence going off the scale. It seemed that the pair across the table was suffering from the same sense of frustration she was experiencing. Besides the two trips they had made to check up on the newest super hero, they’d had to cope with their own fallout from Clark2’s much longer disappearance from his universe. As far as both of them were concerned, dealing with the press had been almost as bad as dealing with the criminal element. They had redirected their telephone calls to their press agent, and when a couple of the more resourceful members of the fifth estate gained access to their cell phone numbers, they’d not only had to change the numbers, but also contact all their friends and family with the new ones. That had been a little more contact with friends and in particular family than Lois2 wanted. Instead of spending their rare few moments together alone after their reunion, she found herself repeating over and over and over again the story they had come up with to explain Clark2’s absence. Her temper suffered, and the one thing that would have calmed her down, kept getting interrupted. As much as she had been enjoying the evening, a pleasant rendezvous with friends was not how she wanted to spend the first uninterrupted night she’d had with her husband in almost a month. “You know what I like best about dinner in France?” Lois’s left hand began wandering up Clark’s leg again as she looked at the slim watch on her right. “It’s 12:30 AM here, but in Metropolis it’s only 7:30 PM.” She turned and looked into Clark’s dark eyes and purred, “We get to do the whole night over again when we get home.” Held captive by her gaze, Clark’s body froze for a moment. When she pursed her lips and blew him a kiss, he became a whirlwind of activity. Clark stretched his hands over his head and back, using the movement to dislodge her hand from his inseam, and give himself a moment of relief. He pushed his chair back slightly from the table, sliding his lap from under the table cloth and hoping that would keep Lois’s hand to herself for the few brief moment it would take him to get them out of here. Calculating the exchange rate at super speed, Clark opened his wallet and removed enough American dollars to cover their bill and put a smile on their French waiter’s face for the rest of the night. “Well, this has been great, but I think we really should be going now.” Clark stood, thanking whoever had decided that nightclubs should be dark, and bent slightly from his knees to keep the bulge Lois had created with her teasing below the table top as he reached for Clark2’s hand. “We’ll see you again in eight or nine months. Let’s go Lois.” Clark maneuvered his grinning wife in front of him as he headed for the exit. “Come on, sweetie,” Lois2 laughed. “I guess your torture ends earlier than you thought it would.” “Well I’m just glad he caved first.” Clark2 grinned in her ear. He was keeping his wife close in front of himself for the same reason Clark was almost walking on Lois’s heals. “Could mean I wasn’t doing something right,” Lois2 murmured, shivering slightly in the night air as they exited the Club. “Trust me, honey,” Clark2 ran his hands up her arms and back down again, “if you did it more right you’d never be allowed out of bed.” He kissed the back of her neck, and smiled at the shiver than ran through her body. Moving around to the back of the building the men felt a little more comfortable in the privacy that the unlit area provided, and separated themselves slightly from their spouses. “Sorry to call the night short, but…” Clark started, not sounding sorry at all as he held Lois close to his side. “Hey, don’t worry about it. If anybody understands, I do.” Clark2 smiled at his double as Lois2 caught the hand that was wandering southward from the small of her back. Leaning carefully from his hips, Clark kissed Lois2’s cheek. “Keep an eye on him. If he gets lost again he’ll have to stay that way ‘til after the baby’s born.” Clark2 kept his own comfortable distance as he kissed Lois lightly on the lips. “Don’t worry. I’m sticking close to home from now on.” “Famous last words,” Lois2 whispered to Lois as the two hugged. “We’ll send Bernie a month from now. He’ll check on Clark first so you guys can get an update from him.” Lois said, anchored firmly to Clark’s side again. “Hopefully he’ll have his panic button perfected by then, and we’ll all have a better way of contacting each other.” Lois2 waved goodbye with one hand as her husband tugged her by the other into a deserted corner of the parking lot. Since the sudden appearance of Superman in his world wouldn’t cause more than passing comment, they were going to go up about a hundred feet in the air and use the Time Machine from there. Anyone seeing them reappear in their world would just think they had missed seeing them fly in. Lois2 stopped in her tracks just out of earshot of Lois and Clark. “Oh…dear.” Clark2 looked down at his wife, “Forget something?” “Well… yes,” she said, slightly dismayed. “But I don’t think it will matter. At least… I hope not.” Clark2 sighed. He couldn’t wait to get his wife home, but if she had something on her mind other than him… “Do you need to go back and talk to them?” “What? Oh… no… definitely not… it’s just…” Lois2 stuttered slightly, obviously distressed. “Honey, what is it?” Clark2 pulled her into his arms and linked his hands in the small of her back. “Well, it’s just a little cold now, or I might have noticed earlier.” Lois2 leaned back against her husband’s hands and looked up at him under her lashes. “You see, I was really excited about seeing Lois and Clark again. I kinda rushed dressing and… well… you noticed earlier when we were dancing that I wasn’t wearing a bra, which with this blouse really isn’t necessary anyway.” She allowed the slightest smile to come to her face, “Well it seems that in my excitement I forgot all my underwear and…” Clark covered Lois with his body as the sonic boom filled the night. Two windows on the back of the night club burst outward into the parking lot, as did the windows of several cars in the parking lot. “That is so irresponsible. I can’t believe he did something like that.” Clark said angrily, looking around to see if the flying glass had damaged anyone. Comforted by the fact that no one was injured, Clark grabbed Lois’s hand and pulled her toward the trees that lined the lot. “I don’t need anyone asking us if we saw anything. Jeez, I just hope these people are covered by insurance. He should know better. What could have possessed him?” Clark muttered to himself angrily as they left parking lot behind. “I think Superman will give this establishment a donation tomorrow, and ask the proprietor to find the owners of the damaged vehicles. I can’t believe…” “Clark, calm down,” Lois couldn’t help laughing a little at his agitation. “I’m sure he had good reason for leaving as fast as he did. Maybe they suddenly remembered leaving the stove on at home.” She tugged on his hand to bring him to a stop. “Let’s forget about them. I want your attention focused on me for the rest of the night.” “No problem, honey. You have my complete and undivided attention.” Clark placed his arms around his wife and linked his hands in the small of her back. “I just don’t understand…” “Clark!” Lois said sharply. “You said undivided. In about seven months we’re going to have a permanent guest in our house. I don’t know how many more of these evenings alone we’re going to get from now on.” Lois continued, looking up at him from under her eyelashes to verify that his attention was indeed focused on her, “I mean, pretty soon I’ll be fat and you might not want to spend a quiet evening with me.” “Lois, there will never be a time that I won’t want to spend every spare moment I have loving you. It wouldn’t matter if you got fat from all that chocolate you eat, or if you were pregnant with twins.” When Clark tried to pull her close for a reassuring kiss, he was stopped by a hand in the middle of his chest. “Well, you say that now, but… I was kinda wondering if maybe…” “What, honey?” “Well… I was just wondering if I my body might already be getting a little bigger. You know… I’ve never been pregnant before, so I didn’t know how soon I would start showing, and when my clothes would stop fitting, and I was just a little worried about it, especially some of my special clothes.” “Special clothes?” Clark asked, slightly bemused by the patterns Lois was drawing on his chest with her fingertips. “Yeah,” Lois raised her eyes from the middle of his chest to look him in the eye. “You know, like that black teddy you bought me for our honeymoon. You should be happy to know, it still fits. In fact, after trying it on this afternoon I decided the silk felt so good against my skin that I decided not to take it off and…” Several patrons of the small nightclub who were out in the parking lot investigating the damage fell to the ground as the air was suddenly filled with another sonic boom. Two more cars lost their windows, but while everyone at the establishment was very confused, no one was hurt. Superman simply added the price of the additional windows to the money he gave the proprietor late the next afternoon. He counted the extra time the loss of the windows gave him well spent. The (whew) End -- All humanity is passion; without passion, religion, history, novels, art would be ineffectual. Balzac The problem: How to get 2 pounds of chocolate home from the store in hot car. The solution: Eat it in the parking lot. ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 19 Dec 1999 20:17:03 EST Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: No Name Available Subject: Re: Prelude Chapter 37 (the last one) (no spoiler) MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit I haven't read this one yet--just saw it now in my in box. :) I've been looking forward to the parts to this for so many days now, that I can't believe it's over. So... if you've been calling this "prelude," is there a main part that comes next? --Laurie ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 20 Dec 1999 02:45:41 -0000 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: LabRat Subject: New Fanfic: Season's Greedings To One And All MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Any time, mi amigo. LabRat :) > > I can't post to the list from here, but I wrote this Christmas vignette this > evening, and was wondering... would you post it to the list on my behalf? > I'd appreciate it! > > Thanks, > > W. > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- -- > -------------------------- > - Seasons' Greedings to One and All - > > by Wendy Richards > > > Lois stood by Clark's side, gazing down out of her large picture window at > the scene below as the carollers sang their Christmas message. In the space > of less than half an hour her Christmas Eve had changed from a lonely, > miserable experience to perhaps the best Christmas she had ever had. All > through December Clark had been trying to convince her that Christmas could > be wonderful, even magical, but she had refused to believe him. And yet > now.... > > Now, as the notes and harmonies echoed upwards, she knew what Clark had > meant about Christmas magic. It had all started when she'd opened her door > to find him there, when he should have been in Smallville with his family. > Oh, he'd muttered something about the planes being grounded because of snow, > but that had been such a patent lie. She'd known it, and he'd known she knew > it too, but she hadn't dared ask him why he'd given up his Christmas with > his parents for her. She knew the answer, though: because she would have > been alone otherwise, and Clark cared too much for her to allow that to > happen. > > So he'd come to be with her, and he'd even brought her a Christmas present, > which had surprised her since they'd already exchanged presents the previous > evening. That star, which he'd said was from both him and Superman; it was > beautiful, and it had brought a lump to her throat, because it was a sign > that both men cared enough for her to choose something special, something > which could not simply be *bought*. It looked ice-cold, and yet was > strangely warm to the touch, and was less fragile than it appeared at first > sight, and when she'd put it on the top of her poor bedraggled tree it > somehow seemed to make the tree itself look more proud. She would have to > ask Superman, next time she saw him, exactly where he'd got it or how he had > made it; Clark's simple upward gesture with his finger had not been that > informative. > > She hoped Clark would be able to get another flight first thing in the > morning, though. It wouldn't be fair if he didn't get a chance to see his > folks at all because of her. Perhaps she would ask him later. > > But not now. Now... her hand, almost of its own volition, slipped into his, > and his fingers closed around hers as if the gesture was entirely natural. > But why had she done that? Lois had no idea - but it had seemed the right > thing, the natural thing to do. Like moving closer to her best friend, too, > and even laying her head on his shoulder. He returned that gesture by > resting his own head on top of hers. > > They stayed in that position for what seemed like a very long time; the > carollers, almost as if they knew that this was a very special moment for > their audience, lingered long enough to sing a second carol. As the final > verse of 'God Rest Ye, Merry Gentlemen' faded away, Lois was suddenly > conscious of the sheer proximity of her partner, her friend. Oh, being > physically close to Clark was nothing new: they were both people who tended > to reinforce words with gestures and even touches, and besides, they had > been exchanging hugs on occasion since their friendship became openly > acknowledged between them. But this... this was somehow different. She was > holding his hand, and their heads rested together, and she knew very well > that any outsider seeing them would automatically assume that they were an > established couple. Which they weren't... but right now that possibility > suddenly didn't feel unpleasant. Far from it. > > In fact, as the music died away entirely, she knew that it would be the mo st > natural thing in the world right now for her to turn to Clark, and he to > her, and for them to kiss. Which was exactly why it would not happen, she > knew. They were best friends, and their friendship had survived a number of > traumas - including Clark telling her back before the summer that he was in > love with her. She had rejected his love then, and had prepared to marry > another man, stopping the wedding only at the altar. Clark had later > retracted his declaration of love, just at the point at which she'd been > prepared to tell him that her feelings for him were stronger than she'd > thought. That entire incident had made her realise that perhaps it was safer > if she and Clark remained close friends. If they allowed anything else, such > as sexual attraction, to get in the way, it would destroy their friendship. > He'd clearly come to the same conclusion, she had decided. > > But... as Clark moved slightly away from her, she was conscious of a sense > of loss, a regret for what might have been, an opportunity lost. She must > have uttered some tiny whimper of protest, however, for suddenly he was > looking down at her, concern in his soft brown eyes. > > She gazed up at him, her own eyes liquid, and she saw in his expression > something... longing? Her lips parted involuntarily as she continued to > stare up at him, and her free hand raised itself almost of its own accord to > rest on his chest. > > Afterwards, she could never tell which one of them had moved first. All she > knew was that suddenly his lips were on hers and her arms had looped > themselves loosely around his neck, her fingers touching the ends of his > hair. The first touch of his lips almost had the power of an electric shock; > with an inarticulate cry, she parted her lips further under his, allowing > him access. > > His kiss was at first tentative, as if he was afraid she would push him > away, but as her response let him know that she wasn't objecting, he grew > more confident. His hands came up to cup her face, holding her tenderly as > his mouth continued to explore her, nibbling at her lips, his tongue darting > forward to tease her. > > Suddenly Lois knew that all her earlier rationalisations about maintaining a > platonic friendship with Clark were a complete fallacy. The reason she felt > so close to this man, the reason he had become essential to her life, was > that she was in love with him. And she had probably been in love with him > for a very long time. And he loved her too, she was sure of it. She had no > idea why he'd told her he didn't that day outside the Planet, but that didn' > t matter now. They were meant to be together, lovers as well as friends. > > Kissing him back with all the love she felt for him, Lois realised that she > knew something else too, and she would have some questions for Clark once > they ended the kiss. For instance, why had he decided to come to her as > Clark rather than Superman tonight? Although she could guess the answer to > that one. He wanted her to accept him as Clark, the man he thought he really > was, rather than the flashy Super-hero in the costume. And yet, now that she > 'd realised the truth, she could see that Clark *was* the Super-hero too, in > so many ways. But he was also the kind, gentle, caring, humorous guy she > worked beside, and loved. > > Why had she suddenly realised the truth tonight, when she'd known Clark for > a year and a half and had never guessed? She wasn't sure exactly; perhaps it > was a combination of things. Before Clark had knocked at her door, she'd > heard the rush of wind which usually preceded Superman's appearance at her > window, for one. And perhaps she'd finally seen through the coincidences of > Clark's disappearances and Superman's arrival on the scene. And perhaps the > truth had been revealed in their kiss, when Clark had kissed her for the > first time in a way which laid his heart bare before her. > > Perhaps. And perhaps it was all part of the true magic of Christmas. > > Clark raised his head then, smiling warmly, lovingly, down at her and drew > her back into the centre of the room, near the tree. Still holding her close > to him, his hand caressed her hair as he gazed at her, his love blazing from > his eyes. "Merry Christmas, Lois," he whispered huskily. > > She smiled up at him then, reaching up to caress his jaw. "Thanks to you, it > is, Clark," she told him softly. "I love you - both of you." > > Before his jaw could hit the floor, she had reached up and silenced his > protests with her kiss. > > > > > - The End, and Christmas Greetings to All - > > > ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 20 Dec 1999 02:46:21 EST Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: "Alexis W." Subject: "ADITLOM" (RPG) Ninth Installment, Week #10 (Part 1 of 3) MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: multipart/mixed; boundary="part1_0.4fb72ab1.258f38cd_boundary" --part1_0.4fb72ab1.258f38cd_boundary Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable New Fanfic (ongoing) "A Day in the Life of Metropolis" All characters are property of DC Comics, WB, Lois and Clark etc.. unless otherwise noted. =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D Feedback is welcomed whether public or private. But no grammar please! =3D)= NO=20 ONE responded to my last post except for one person.. (thank you!) Please=20 let me know if you loved it or hated it.. etc.. My cast and i would really=20 appreciate it! Thanks. =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D Summary: This is the ninth installment of a rpg club I created on yahoo. We came up with a story line, and we can correspond through email, dialogue, etc.. Anything goes. If you want more information on this club or if you would like to join in the fun yourself please go to: Yahoo! Clubs= =20 adayinthelifeofmetropolis=20 Thanks. Alexis ;-.) {"ADITLOM, arbitrator} PS :This weeks installments include picture attachments! =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D Cast List Clark Kent : Alexis W. (that's me!) Lois Lane : Alexis W. Cat Grant: Renda Mayson Drake : Renda Sam Falcon : Lisa H. Bruce Wayne : Lisa H. Ellen Lane: Tina T. Dr. Sam Lane: Rachel Dan Scardino: Abie Marie =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D WEEK #10 (12/13 to 12/19/99) Ellen to Sam Ellen: =93You finally decided to show up. You=92d better have a really good=20 excuse for being two hours late!!=94 She stood in the entryway waiting=20 impatiently for the answer. Sam: =93I'm sorry, Ellen...I don't have a good enough excuse, I'm afraid, so= I=20 won't even waste my breath talking about it. Will you please forgive me?=94=20= He=20 said as he gave her a puppy dog look. Ellen: =93I=92m sorry but I won't forgive you, not this time. You=92ve done=20 this to me for the last time. But you=92re going to make it up to me! You=20 will take me out to dinner but we have to find someplace nice since we=20 missed our reservations!=94 She grabbed her coat and purse before walking o= ver=20 to him. Sam: =93All right, we'll go someplace nice. I'll even take you somewhere=20 better than the place I had previously planned on! How does that sound?=94 h= e=20 asked as they headed out the door towards the car. Ellen: =93Ok well it better be nice.=94 She waited for Sam to open the door= for=20 her. Ellen was going to make him pay for making her wait. =20 * * * *=20 Cat and Mayson at Shae Vou! Catherine and Mayson were being pampered and made beautiful for the=20 night's exciting ball. Cat decided to call the hospital and check on the=20 co-pilot's condition. She talked to the unit nurse who told her that the=20 co-pilot was holding his own, and was expected to make a recovery. Unfortunately the co-pilot would require some surgeries to fix the burns on= =20 his hands and lap and abdomen area. "Thanks for your help. I shall check=20 back again to see how his progress is coming along." Cat hung up the=20 phone and said to Mayson. "The co-pilot is better and he should=20 recover." Mayson: "Cat that is good news, very good news indeed!" Mayson knew how=20 much Cat hated that the pilot did not survive, and she hoped with all=20 her heart that the co-pilot continued to get better. Cat: "Yes, it is good news, in a day with so much bad news, hearing that=20 at least one of the pilot's will live is good to hear." Cat told Mayson.=20 "Let's toast the co-pilot with our lattes. May he continue in=20 recovering!" Mayson: "Salute! To his health!" Their cups touched then they lifted them up and drank the hearty=20 chocolate latte, hoping that for the co-pilot's family that the good=20 news continued to come. Cat: "We can't lose another person, not today, not again!" Mayson: "Amen to that!" =20 =20 * * * * Re: In the room Clark stepped out of the shower and wrapped a blue towel around his=20 well-defined body. He walked out of the bathroom and noticed Lois still=20 lying on the bed. With all of the things that occurred today, he figured=20 it was best to let her sleep. Clark started looking for his tux. "Arggh,=20 now where did I put it?" he muttered to himself. His eyes rested on the=20 clock sitting on the nightstand. It was getting pretty late and Lois=20 needed to get ready if she wanted to get to the ball in time. Clark=20 walked up to Lois and lightly shook her. "Lois, wake up..." "Hmm..." "Lois, it's getting late. You need to get ready for the ball." "Oh okay," she said as she rubbed her eyes. "Thanks, Clar...Ahhh!" Lois almost fell off the bed, but Clark was there to catch her. "Lois, are you all right?" "Yeah, I'm fine..." she answered uncomfortably. Lois' eyes were=20 traveling up Clark's body. Her partner was only wearing a towel and as=20 much as she hated to admit it, she liked what she saw. "Whoa Mama!" she=20 whispered to herself. "What was that Lois?" "Oh, uh...I heard you were looking for your tux. Some English guy came=20 in here a few minutes ago and dropped it off." "Oh, that would be Alfred." "Okay. Well Alfred said that you acccidentally left it in the plane and=20 some woman found it. He hung it in the closet for you." "Thanks for telling me." Clark noticed Lois' eyes were focused on the=20 towel wrapped around his waist. "Oh, I wanted to start getting ready for=20 the ball so I took a shower. I hope you don't mind." "Ah, no. That's okay. Speaking of showers, I think I'd better go take=20 one myself!" Lois would of done almost anything at that moment if it=20 meant getting away from Clark's nice body. She stood up and tried=20 walking past him. Lois accidentally brushed her hand down Clark's chest=20 which caused both of them to gasp for air. Lois blushed as she walked=20 into the bathroom. "Whoa, it's steamy in here!" "Sorry about that. My shower lasted longer then I thought!" "That's okay. Let's just hope there's some hot water left. Because if=20 there isn't then we've got a problem!" Lois said as she smiled and=20 closed the bathroom door behind her. >tbc<=20 * * * * Re: Ellen to Sam Sam reluctantly opened the door for his ex-wife. *Okay, she's mad,* he=20 thought. *So what? I can handle her. I handled her for 23 years...I can handle her=20 for one=20 night!* He opened the door wider so Ellen could step out into the hall. He=20 fiddled with the wallpaper on the corridor wall as she carefully secured=20 all the locks on the door. *Just like Lois' door...'* =20 Ellen and Sam walked out to the car and this time Ellen didn=92t have to wai= t=20 for Sam to open the door. Ellen: =93Hmph! Lets just get something straight just because you are being=20 polite and opening doors for me does not get you off the hook for being=20 late,=94 she barked as she got into car and slammed the door shut. "Oh, boy." Giving himself enough time to think about tonight's plan, Sam=20 walked over to the driver's side of the car. *'Okay, slick, we'll just play= =20 it low-key=20 for right now. Don't talk, don't say a word. Let her simmer for a while.=20 Then we'll=20 see who's not talking to who.* Sam smiled and reached for the door handle.=20 But=20 then he pulled back. *Who am I kidding? I sound like a kindergartner giving=20 someone the silent treatment. Okay, we'll just play it by ear...hopefully we'll at=20= =20 least say a *few* words to each other this evening...* he wished as he got=20 into the car. * * * * Re: In the room Lois finished up with her shower. She wrapped a red towel around her=20 curvacious body. Clark was busy adjusting his bow tie, when Lois stepped=20 out of the bathroom. "Clark, have you seen my dress?" "Umm,I think I...Whoa!" Clark stumbled backwards into the dresser when=20 he looked over at Lois who's cleavage was spilling out of her towel.=20 Lois ran up to him, with one hand clutched to her chest. "Clark, are you=20 all right?" "Yeah um yeah..." Clark's voice squeaked. He took a big breath and tried=20 to focus on her eyes. "I think Alfred took the liberty of hanging up=20 your dress with my tux." "Oh yeah, you're right!" Lois reached over and took her dress out of the=20 closet. "Thanks Clark! By the way, you look great in that tux!" "You look great in that towel!" Clark muttered to himself. "What?" Lois asked. "I uh, I said, I can't wait to see you in that dress!" "Oh! Well it isn't really anything to drool over..." "Okay," Clark laughed. "Really, it isn't," Lois remarked as she walked back into the bathroom. >tbc<=20 * * * * Limo picks up Cat and Mayson at Shae Vou Cat and Mayson stepped out of Shae Vou and into the limo waiting for=20 them. They both looked ravishing with their hair done up in the latest=20 Parisian styles and their nails manicured and polished in french=20 manicures. Cat: "Mayson, I am so excited we have had lovely beauty oil baths and=20 been pampered to the max, I am rested and looking forward to stepping into my designer gown and shoes and partying the night away!" Mayson: "Cat, I am too! And I can't wait to dance with Ramone, while you=20 and Diego were gone earlier, he was teaching me to dance the lambada!" Cat: "Ohh la la, Mayson you go girl, but watch out because Ramone is=20 quite the ladies man!" Mayson blushed and replied. "Yes, I kinda gathered that because he looks=20 at you like he is making love to you with his eyes!" Cat: "Exactely my point. You know these Latin men their blood runs hot=20 hot hot. But I love Diego and Ramone, they have been very good friends=20 of mine since my college days." Mayson: "Well just between you and me. I wouldn't mind getting to know=20 Ramone much better." Mayson told Cat and smiled. They arrived at the Celtic Queen and got out of the limo. They went to the=20 elevators and up to the floor their suite was on. When Cat opened the=20 door the aroma of roses hit their noses. To Cat's and Mayson's surprise=20 their suite was filled with roses of all colors and in various=20 arrangements and there were notes for them both on the desk. The notes=20 read: To two of the most beautiful roses in Gotham. With respect and=20 Love!!! Diego Dela Vega! and Maysons was signed. Looking forward to=20 dancing with you! Your's Ramone. Both women screamed with delight at the thoughtfulness of the Dela Vega=20 Brothers and the expense they went to in filling all the rooms of the=20 suite with roses. Cat: "Wow! Mayson, I told you this was going to be a wonderful night!" Mayson: "I just can't believe it! I feel like Cinderella and any minute,=20 I'll wake up and find that it is just a dream." Cat picked up a yellow rose and inhaled it's fragrance, then she held it=20 up to Mayson's nose. "Cinderella, this is no dream, and you are going to=20 the ball with Prince Charming!!!" They both said at the same time! "Let's get dressed!!!!" =20 * * * * Scardino makes a phone call "You take an awful risk by making the presumption that I am in need of=20 anything," Scardino read out loud, trying to sound as stuffy and British=20 as possible. "I doubt very highly that you have anything to offer to me.=20 Until you have proven useful, I suggest you stay out of my way, if you=20 value your health." He slammed down the top of his laptop and laughed.=20 "Luthor, Luthor, Luthor. Can't even trust a corrupt FDA agent. And if=20 you can't trust the corrupted, who can you trust?"=20 Scardino leaned back and sighed. "Time to check in with Fearless=20 Leader..." He dialed up his boss on the ever-present cell phone. "Tom=20 Paris checking in with Starfleet Command. Hi, Admiral, I think my=20 shuttle's gonna crash." "Shut up and tell me what you know," his boss snapped. "We don't have=20 time for you to show off your Trek knowledge." "Luthor didn't take the bait. He thinks I'm taking a risk for even=20 presuming that the highest of the high could need anything. No pun=20 intended." "Well, you're being switched to Gotham City." "What about Luthor? I thought I was supposed to be stinging Luthor." "You are. He's headed to Gotham, and you've got to beat him there." Scardino grinned. "Aye, aye, Admiral." "Shut up, 'Paris,' or I'll bust you down to Ensign."=20 >tbc< * * * * Upstairs When they get to his room, Sam turned around in his arms and put her=20 hands on his chest. He put his hands on her waist. "So we have a couple of hours right?" Sam asked with a smile. "Hm, hm, but we have to get ready." Sam's smile broadened. "How long will that take really?" "Depends on how distracted . . .." She pulled him down and they started kissing. They ran their hands all over=20 each other as their lips caressed. Sam reached back and locked the door. Bruce's hands went for the bottom of=20 her shirt and he started pulling it out of her pants. Once Sam had locked th= e=20 door, she started pulling his silk shirt out of his pants. Her hands=20 slipped. "Hmmmm," he groaned. They let go of each other long enough to pull their shirts all the way=20 off. Sam put her hands on his abs and rubbed as they continued to kiss.=20 Bruce's arms wrapped around her and he massaged her back. Together they started walking over to the bed. =20 * * * * Re: Ellen to Sam As they were driving to the resturant Sam put a CD in the CD player and=20 turned it on Ellen noticed it was their wedding song. She thought that was= =20 a=20 dirty trick because he knewit still got to her. She tried hard not to get=20 affected by it, but to no avail, she started to smile Sam smiled. He had=20 predicted accurately that their wedding song would affect Ellen. Now what?=20 How about their first date? 'I have that song in here somewhere...' Sam ben= t=20 over and rummaged on the floor, looking for the tape. All of a sudden, Elle= n=20 screamed, "Watch out!" Sam glanced up and was immediately blinded by a pair of headlights=20 headed straight towards them...=20 >tbc< * * * * Off to the ball... "Okay, I'm ready! How about you?" Lois asked Clark as she opened the=20 bathroom door.=20 "Yeah, I'm just about...WOW! You look great Lois!" Lois blushed. "Ah this old thing..." "Lois, I'm serious here. You're breathtaking..." Clark took a deep breath as he noticed how the fabric from her dress=20 clung tightly to her curvacious body. (See picture in folder, picture #1).=20 Then his eyes traveled up to her chest. He watched the top of her cleavage=20 rise=20 and fall with each breath she took. *Whoa...* Clark thought to himself=20 as he wiped the sweat from his brow. "Clark, you can stop being nice. This dress isn't that great," Lois said=20 as she brushed her fingers through her hair. "Lois, yes you do! I mean come on, take the compliment, will ya?" "Okay," Lois laughed. "You don't look so bad yourself, farmboy!" (See=20 picture in folder, picture #2). Clark smiled and winked at her. Lois was=20 embarassed so she looked down at the floor. Clark watched her and noticed that she didn't have her shoes on. "Oh, here you go!" Clark handed Lois her shoes and she thanked him with=20 a smile. Clark watched Lois putting on her shoes. He sighed to himself=20 as he looked at her long, slender legs. Those legs that seemed to go on=20 forever. A pair of legs that he wouldn't mind running his fingers down. "Okay, let's hit the road!" Lois remarked as she grabbed her purse. "Lois, what about a jacket? It's freezing out there!" "I'll be okay Clark, so let's go!" "No you won't, so at least let me give you my jacket." "No, Clark! If it means that much to you, I will wear this silk shawl=20 that came with the dress.=94 Lois grabbed the shawl and wrapped it=20 around her shoulders. "Okay, I have a cover, so let's go already!" "Wait a minute!" "What now?" Lois complained. "Here, take my arm..." "What???" "Take my arm." "Clark!" "Lois, I'm supposed to escort you, and this is what we call escorting,=20 okay. I promise we'll break once I get you inside the Observatory." "Fine," Lois answered back while rolling her eyes. She and Clark linked=20 arms as they shut the bedroom door behind them. >tbc<=20 --part1_0.4fb72ab1.258f38cd_boundary Content-Type: image/x-art; name="pic#1~1.art" Content-Transfer-Encoding: base64 Content-Disposition: inline; filename="pic#1~1.art" SkcEDgAAAAAHAEAVA8sAmwAGAUEKwNwPQeR/WTujnbG++bibsbBtFKExNhqbDHHspJQUNkTS D1aBrYCmhoOrdzfW1kICQG6BymgWmHTLWFUEOoZ8VgspB8Z+oL8JmGUyjv4TakwpRtq451aP Ub9nLSDMnd2OTz++vIi2KeY/6MXsbqGgQtWicr1ohcIErw29kEYDuzSc2VmAWQBBCsAVIDrk d1uunGcV9v27kQ4a9HAkkyJGG/R0YRg0QyCmblxM3ciwRuawu8D4XFb1xkSEzHN+9shwmX0t Ma4vlO6I9a/Tt3C8ZFH/5KBR4/N6bRLQvqcUgE4AQQrAlx9J5HRXumucYjfuzx+FfpRoV0m/ TvmFhSJ8tUiSJokVePT79WIuIYNVAMkN58Y0qunP9/qWLQM/t9KOFChmlfRIEz2G64li9egA ZwFBFJ0BJo9BfHzk/kd2Y+ZkDNhpH7v6hdi5X05M5tNLt8NvO0ufdjd5oUCyiJ+ezcdwQ++Y 0I5mxTjd+v7S+VbvmLdGGBWwL2fH7H5/j0UYOuiSAU8cSzCNu1r+qadx4daZaxbG3llmPZDR YXGW/M4bXXlztCM8lLJqCX101xevAkxkTIRL7+d6LGpvgw1jCuOXjxv2g1m5IauxkRcK0pSt aVEUpomQ5EFY87uZDq4aXgf+4Y2ITKcCk8Wqvr2Tv1I8yuujnNvgbDAZ+ADkQIyc82sYyP/v DfXhhgkQKDTYp3v9s59mR4BIAEEUFA+HOogBjAHkK1953c0v/eirxr5b4RFUza0HIOQZX/97 qpH/e0WsuTDkABoCBiEIFQIeAgEEGQAGARMCChMEHwAIFh4FHj0AQRQPDYdJuQG8AeQfWdz3 d397RqSkLIS5JOQVX/97qo/75ViFhAAWUAEgAAoTAAABAAoQAyAEIwkXASINDsdyAkEnwgFD j3l7e+XGAUjrjzxBpo//am9WVl95CPGw4UEaSU/TCVS0CLRYWqlNfdsqbpfKSYCNNS/74YAA ddasSBX4//SO4zXAP6gpr8NNGVXEZIih5Lyttr2s+Yw2UHOcsu/oKBUG0kEg1yL61M3O5uZu CgFZowGaL34iw5fl0L667n2SAs7xQ57/oDz52Ux3yRKMqteS6UxjSUaAfpgQbuJaiB6ixKAO vjUaUM75tiEkFKQRV0KQQtbhAQ82ZmZmZ73Mybu53O5mZmLA5L5Z3Tp1WAsKLyhbL+yIxYVK oKhKNM1pphdmMusSZ6zNlrPwfurs2n8uQeT3pInR85mzKEbfdYDQhsRvTjIPCmy/wOS9Wd0j zSHHpiJigjA39mIwkuSOy1Qt2VNXlxzxu6IC0TPHFwQMhT9xKUst8jMBIEaT0mgwEZEWgIV2 gsDBEl0DxLYPAPAFso8I0dRFSloJ8R1eh1Ps9hR4igJr0PU6/vedftgRAEEnAQGH8AKsA6oD AAAD/70FEQBBJwEBh8oChwOaAwAAA/+9BSsEQU7PAViPfIMBhgHlbwKoTpp10FjMssn/20WX /1l/E7vlJf3cwMvJ32lM32uZYcHeVVFOOKbPlU2uUlLL5W1VSz7suDBRGfcLmlm1S8uYqKrC qE3blACeU3N3J7b93elRWtKe5S3atqqqirI3x+x+eZmZgAK2kSpXXtbVVVb9mDEUkSGn+V54 RUySqUp+Uju2BW+pDJuKPVSNrmBHDyHJmcgsscIJ8ma18LLKskuKFLJwSnFOW/EPQBAAAe1L dr93d3d3d3d2rd3u93ve97u73ve7u73d3d3e/ezlUwFa7pz9SS4sWDGLuX9bIDboK0GTjAPB ACAfBxG4sgeANxCAybGEn1LsI0Zv2CUfzBAJfZ7ZKeOebABjBQWWJZMIAoiASgBDQZ7AFJCA ALc7a+Wa/P8A5VIBGq2pPyks785qEc+4KlQnMiuprXp7uyeartzcWrZYbbcGw37tmDg271CZ 4suZAM58F0qs/fX+/ltX3Zj6xXpsrbX/zsf8PD11M56+oCnVhjyWtdDL7BgiBJaKeF5JEEEl RGVdG1JJSjZZ9CQBBLCKlBBJfzzTMWjEEsmluRQjyGZGU4JWIvQihA6dJoKVgNEgAjhoWAoW IYtUiSA+ZBoF4RrL3EId8I1AU7D2Ih2PRb3u4RtMl23OjvE/SHkG0dJ7DPPxq3AQh27k5ElW 8c3mMXG5PEEOvaLXTnWWR0pgR4ZfnBEl/Jk12nbom8BpAH1KGXl3hvcAAgBBAAIAQQAnBEGb AWdFi4sBwQHl2gFXud3P/3qDvnPIZjGkIlCKSACAKigAkKFAKIECqVSoSQIlSwqVpIqokqlq olqZKtBUW2qqEk1SSEApRWKVGqpDUVUsUhBCpIJQQhJUogKpKQilRRUFJFRKkVRVEQpFaVqx qqoA5ZIBX/97qpH/ewIAAAAAAhRACApAgEAAGRAQEAYBkAgBCwJARhVxoGAAIACAAAhqBhAh AQYAAAgQAAAQJAQQAAAAAIo65ZEBWu6qfFI+TQmDEn9PjWYsxPhu8O7g1jvGGfG41zFWmsOi sFCPEENEb5Qg8KEG6c7DgZrFwcUI4oXZ3Axi+rvDg3+Df+HpN1jrHUB1AfnF0XOzs5rzr3CI 73G/Fh/j7HdNbOkvFV5zeHjlrgC1k1wpExHtfFERlP3c5ULFjy4FpOosOYgkjWZvlJj50Qz1 d92ncyY0VXXt1mP6IX3UkePM5VMfEq4KW7xUSns5TOeVXsz8USGJsXfXBSR2mtw3Jqmr0bB+ RWrIlE1+oPTJo2gPGdDieU3byAq6XJ2gEzzh8Yd03kgeSBTtlkeESGB7ExOCJKllLW82OUyI X9zWJtso9z0SzaEhsD734h7R8rGTQpKTNPGYE73QahLQuX7RmrFZznjv++h4RdvlQVdj7tF+ ThtmchsfI1a2A9HQpTebZ+ZSyaZfvWP/bSPuMXtgpT4PVqRRKsP/ValDB7K0CdKwzL3r/KNl nc59f9bH/H+AAgBBAAIAQQDPyw== --part1_0.4fb72ab1.258f38cd_boundary-- ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 20 Dec 1999 02:51:11 EST Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: "Alexis W." Subject: "ADITLOM" (RPG) Ninth Installment Week #9 (Part 2 of 3) MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: multipart/mixed; boundary="part1_0.33b70d7a.258f39ef_boundary" --part1_0.33b70d7a.258f39ef_boundary Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable * * * * Re: Ellen to Sam Ellen instinctly grabbed the wheel and swerved the car out of harms way=20 stopped on the side of the road. They were both visually shaken Ellen: =93OH MY GOD! YOU IDIOT! YOU ALMOST KILLED ME! WHAT THE HELL WERE YOU= =20 LOOKING FOR? UNLESS YOU WANT TO TAKE ME HOME NOW, YOU WILL LET ME DRIVE THE=20 REST OF THE WAY!=94 Sam, who was visibly shaken, looked at Ellen. He was in the same state as=20 she Ellen was except she was furious. "I'm sorry...I was looking for a=20 tape. I didn't see that truck. I'm=20 really sorry..." Seeing that his lame apology had no effect on Ellen, he=20 plunged on. "Do=20 you want to go back, or do you want to keep on going?" Then he put in the=20 tape he was looking for and when Ellen heard it she calmed down enough to=20 control her temper. Ellen: =93Ok we can keep going, but for pete=92s sake keep your eyes on the= road=20 this time.=94 "Sure." Sam carefully eased back into traffic, looking in every direction to make=20 sure=20 that there was no possible chance of crashing. Ellen was giving him a look=20 that=20 seemed to say, "Hey, I said be careful, but I didn't mean go 15 miles per=20 hour..." Sam sped up a little bit and tried to relax. You don't face death like=20 that every day, after all...=20 >tbc< * * * * The Limo Lois and Clark walked down the long hallway towards the front door of=20 the manor. "Man this place is too dark and dreary for me!" Lois=20 remarked. "Yeah, tell me about it. I mean I could never survive in here!" "Huh?" "Uh, um I mean Superman would have problems living here." "Oh yes, definately." They continued down the hallway when Lois noticed a picture of Mr. and=20 Mrs. Wayne. "Wait a minute, are we in..." "Wayne Manor, yes." "Oh my God!" Lois shrieked. "I wonder if Bruce is here? I really would=20 like to see him!" "Ah, Lois if Bruce is here, he's probably busy." "Oh but Clark, he knows me. He'll have time for me..." "Well, he could be here or already at the ball. I mean we really don't=20 know," Clark said uncomfortably. "Master Bruce is still here," piped in Alfred. "He is?" "Yes, Ms. Lane, but he is very busy. He said that he looks forward to=20 seeing you and Mr. Kent at the ball this evening. He's especially=20 looking forward to seeing you again, Ms. Lane." "Really?=94 "Yes. He was really pleased with your profile you wrote about him for=20 the Planet. Master Bruce was so pleased that he wants to thank you in=20 person." "Wow..." "So you two go off to the ball and have a lovely time," Alfred added as=20 he opened the door. "I will let Master Bruce know that you are on your=20 way." "Thanks Alfred!" "You're welcome Ms. Lane." Lois and Clark walked out of the two huge iron gates, where a limo was=20 waiting for them. "Where did this come from?" Lois asked. "I, uh...I called for one. Is that okay with you?" "Yeah, it's fine. I just thought we would go by cab." "Well, you're Lois Lane. A cab just wouldn't cut it!" "Aww, thanks Kent!" Lois half-heartedly said as she patted him on the=20 cheek. Clark opened the car door and helped Lois inside. Then he=20 followed. "Kent, do you have to sit so close?" "Well I can't help it Lois. It's a limo. Limos aren't exactly known for=20 their huge seating arrangements. Besides Lois, there could be worse=20 people you could be next to." "Yeah I suppose..." "So relax. It's time to party!" Clark smiled as Lois leaned back in her=20 chair. He started putting his arm around her shoulder, when Lois shot=20 him a stern look. "Don't push your luck Kent!" >tbc< * * * * Your Limo awaits my Princess! Catherine Grant put the finishing touches to her designer ensemble when=20 she heard a knock at the door. She opened the door to see the handsome=20 Don Diego Dela Vega and his brother Ramone. "Your lLimo awaits my=20 Princess!" Diego told Catherine as he kissed her hand. Then stepping=20 back Diego took in every delicious curve of Catherine's lovely body. The=20 gown didn't leave much to the imagination. (See folder, picture #3)=20 Diego appreciated every lucious curve of the beauty before him.=20 Cat blushed and said. "Mayson will be ready in a moment!" Then she=20 blushed again as she saw the look that both men were giving her. =20 =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D Mayson enters the room! Mayson looked in the mirror one more time then decided that she couldn't=20 do anything more to make herself presentable. So she walked out into the=20 main room of the suite, and oh la la the look on Ramone's face as he=20 saw her. "Mayson, my dear, you are a vision of loveliness! You are so=20 beautiful, all the gentlemen will try to steal you away from me=20 tonight." Ramone stepped up to Mayson and kissed her hand and arm.=20 "Ramone, you make me blush!" Mayson replied to his ardent romance. Cat: "Well, I think we should all get to the limo and on the the ball,=20 after all I need to be there early." Diego: "But of course my Angel. Shall we go?" Cat: "Yes let's leave now. Tonight is going to be wonderful!" =20 * * * * Re: Ellen to Sam They finally arrived at the restraunt both tired and hungry. To avoid an=20 argument, Sam got out and opened Ellen's door and held out his hand.=20 Ellen graciously excepted the offer and they went into the restraunt arm=20 and arm. Things were starting to look up for them.=20 =20 Sam smiled. Ellen was actually being affectionate. And after the=20 surprise ordeal they had both gone through, he had thought that the=20 night was permanently ruined, no matter what he did to try and right all=20 the wrongs...looked like luck was with him tonight. However, when he got inside and looked at the menu, he did a double=20 take. Maybe luck *wasn't* with him tonight. He hadn't known that this=20 restaurant was so expensive...it *was* new, after all. He hid his grimace behind his menu and glanced at Ellen, who was=20 grinning from ear to ear. She was ordering the most expensive thing on=20 the list, no doubt. Just to see how he would react, of course. He hid his face behind the menu again. Time to start praying...=20 =20 * * * * In the Limo After Diego and Ramone made sure that Catherine and Mayson were=20 comfortably seated in the limo, they got in and fastened their seat=20 belts. Diego could hardly keep his eyes off of Catherine. *She looks like=20 Aphordite, the Goddess of Love!* Diego thought to himself as he looked=20 Catherine up and down. Cat's designer gown fit like a glove and the=20 shimmering colors set off her long tawny mane. "Catherine, I know you=20 shall be busy tonight; but remember the tango and the lambda and the=20 waltz are mine!" he reminded his lovely date. Cat: "Diego, you shall have all the dances that you wish once everyone=20 arrives and the ceremony begins!" Cat told her handsome and persistent=20 date. Cat had forgotten how persistent Diego can be when he pursues a=20 lady. She smiled and took out her compact to check her make-up. Mayson and Ramone were gazing into each others eyes as if they were the=20 only two people on the planet. Mayson was a vision in her designer gown=20 and her hair looked like the sun on the ocean at morning=92s sunrise. Cat: "A toast!" She raised a glass of champagne as did the others. "To=20 the Enviromental Ball and to all of us here, may we always be as happy=20 as we are right now!" Diego: "Salute! Catherine, as long as I am with you, I shall always be=20 happy!" Cat: "Diego, I feel the same way about you!" And to her surprise, Diego=20 gave her a very hot and passionate kiss. A long, lingering kiss. Cat=20 could feel his hands burning through the thin material of her dress as=20 if they were moulding the two of them into one being. "Diego, you take=20 my breath away!" Diego: "Catherine, if you would only trust your heart, I'd give you the=20 world!" Diego told her and smiled as he handed her a handkerchief so she=20 could fix her lipstick. =20 =20 * * * * Re: Ellen to Sam The waiter came by and asked if they were ready to order and Ellen spoke=20 up first. =93Yes, I first want to order some Escargot for an appetizer.=94=20= Sam=20 cringed but didn't say a word. =93And then I want to have the Lobster dinner= ,=20 with mashed potatoes and gravy, and steamed carrots. I would like just wate= r=20 to drink. Sam what are you going to have?=94 He was staring at the menu wi= th his mouth open. He tried to restrain himself from having a seizure right=20 there in the restaurant. All he did was smile sweetly and look at the=20 waiter.=20 "Um, waiter, I'll just have some water...and...uh...some scraps of=20 whatever you have left from other people's dinners. That's free, right?" Sam was a doctor, of course, but that didn't mean he was rich. Most of=20 his past attempts at achieving fame had failed...and that got him no=20 where financially. He looked at the price for the lobster dinner Ellen=20 had just ordered and couldn't restrain himself from grimacing this time.=20 Time to start praying again...=20 * * * * The Observatory! The limo pulled up at the front entrance of the Gotham Observatory. The=20 driver opened the door for Catherine, Mayson, Diego and Ramone. The=20 foursome stepped out one at a time and proceeded to the door of the=20 Observatory. The doormen opened the doors as they approached. Cat looked=20 around the place one last time to make sure that all would go as planned=20 and no more surprises would happen. The place was still empty except for=20 the four of them. Cat had to arrive early since she was one of the main=20 Escorts/Hostesses. The place was a shimmer of Gold and Silver balloons=20 and a mirid of lights and confette. The large net holding up the finale=20 confette=20 was in it's place and the chandalers were all in place and hopefully they=20 wouldn't=20 crash like the one did earlier in the day. Cat whispered to herself..."Well, it's almost showtime! I'll keep my=20 finger's crossed!" =20 =20 * * * * Re: Ellen to Sam Ellen: =93You can have some of my escargot and what ever is left of my=20 lobster dinner, I know I won't eat it all sorry I couldn't help myself.=94 She wasn't really sorry, and her face showed it. She was grinning ear=20 to ear. *See if he will ever stand me up again.* =20 Sam watched Ellen grin. If he concentrated hard enough, he would=20 probably hear her laughing maniacally under her breath. "Thanks."=20 No effect. Sam was going to have to force himself to be polite and=20 controlled the rest of the evening. No screaming in public.=20 *Oh, well. At least I have good company...* He smiled along with Ellen,=20 who was still grinning, and was now shaking, trying to keep herself from=20 bursting out in laughter. He sighed again. It took too much energy to stay=20 mad at a happy person.=20 =20 * * * * Re: The Observatory! Lois and Clark's limo pulled up to the Gotham Observatory. Darkness was=20 finally falling, so the building was lavishly lit up. Clark stepped out=20 of the limo first so he could escort Lois out of the car. Once again,=20 the couple linked arms and as they walked up to the double-doors of the=20 Observatory. A couple of doormen stood outside. They were holding=20 clipboards. "Oh! Uh my name is Clark Kent and this is my date, Lois Lane." "Your date, Clark?" Lois whispered in his ear. "I think you're pushing=20 your luck!" Clark shot her an annoyed look. Lois moved away from his ear and looked=20 towards the doormen with a forced smile. "Ah yes, Mr. Kent and Ms. Lane, please..." the the doorman motioned=20 them through the door while the other man checked their names off his=20 clipboard. "Wow! Was that celebrity treatment or what?" Lois commented. "Well in a way we are celebrities, Lois." "In Gotham, Clark?" "You'd be surprised...=94 "Hmm..." Lois said as she shrugged her shoulders. The pair continued to walk through the beautiful Observatory, when they=20 both noticed Cat with some Latin man. "Would you look at Cat..." "And THAT dress," Clark finished. "I wasn't talking about THAT you idiot!" Lois snapped as she hit Clark=20 in the stomach. "I was looking at her date!" "Oh..." "Then again, what am I thinking. You're a male. You're full of=20 testoserone so obviously you would be drooling over 'the Cat who forgot=20 to buy a whole dress!'" "Yes, Lois I am a male and I am full of testoserone, but you've got one=20 thing wrong. Cat is the farthest thing from my mind, when I only have=20 eyes for you!" Clark grinned as he grabbed Lois around the waist and=20 pulled her close. >tbc<=20 =20 * * * * Re: The Observatory! Catherine Grant and her handsome date Don Diego Dela Vega strode=20 together with Catherine's hand in the crook of Diego's arm. Her gown=20 flattered her curves and flowed like a fountain around her ankles. The=20 strapless designer gown with her lovely hair and eyes made her look like=20 a *Goddess* just stepping down from Mount Olympus.=20 Catherine noticed that a couple had arrived she turned, smiled and gave=20 a small, royal type wave. "It's Clark Kent and Lois Lane. They work with=20 me at the Planet!" Catherine told Diego as he turned to see the couple.=20 Catherine: "Well, everything looks like it is going to go as planned! I=20 hope that the feed for the President's greeting toast goes okay!" Diego: "Well Catherine, you know satellite feeds, sometimes they work=20 and sometimes they don't!" Catherine: "Bite your tongue Diego, this is no joking matter!" Cat told=20 Diego but she smiled as she looked into his deep, dark and handsome=20 eyes. Diego kissed her cheek softly and smiling lead her into the main ball= =20 room. "Shall we dance once before the crowd arrives?" Catherine: "Ohhhh. 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Subject: "ADITLOM" (RPG) Ninth Installment, Week #10 (Part 3 of 3) MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: multipart/mixed; boundary="part1_0.b828abb3.258f3b08_boundary" --part1_0.b828abb3.258f3b08_boundary Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable Re: The Observatory! Mayson/Ramone Mayson watched as Diego lead Catherine in a romantic dance. The music=20 was of a latin flavor a sultry and romantically latin desire song. Ramone: "Mayson, would you do me the honor of this dance?" Mayson: "Ramone, yes certainly!" Ramone took Mayson's delicate hand and they danced closely, cheek to=20 cheek. Mayson's heart raced and she blushed because she knew that Ramone=20 could feel her heart racing. He smelled of fine Spanish cologne and=20 cheroots, the finely handrolled variety. Mayson felt like she was=20 floating on wings of angels there in Ramone's arms, nothing else=20 mattered, they were the only *two* people there. =20 =20 * * * * Re: Ellen to Sam At last she couldn't control herself, Ellen burst into laughter. The=20 whole resturant began looking at them. She couldn't stop laughing and=20 Sam couldn't help but start laughing too. The waiter came and told them=20 if they didn't stop laughing they would have to leave, but by that time the= y=20 couldn't stop, so they were escorted out and told not to come back until=20 they had controlled themselves. It took awhile but they finally stopped laughing. Sam was in no hurry to go back in there but he wasn't going to=20 suggest anywhere else. He didn't have to. Ellen: =93I=92m in a better mood why don't we skip this and go to McDonald'= s?=94 =20 "That is the best suggestion I've heard all evening,=94 remarked Sam. He hel= d=20 out his arm for Ellen to take. As they walked over to the car, Sam glanced up=20 at the=20 stars. It was a beautiful night...and getting better every minute. >tbc< * * * * Re: The Observatory! Mayson/Ramone "Yuck, Clark!" "What?" "Your hand is around my waist... take it off!" Clark did as she said, as he gave her a puppy dog look. "Oh okay, I guess I shouldn't be that rude and I'm sorry. But Kent, I'm=20 not your date, we had an agreement remember? Besides once Bruce gets=20 here I hope I don't see you for the rest of the night! By the way, where=20 is that handsome Mr Wayne?" "Lois..." "What? I mean Alfred said he wanted to see me, so if Bruce is here, then=20 he's probably looking for me!" "Whatever Lois. Whatever you say." Clark knew this was going to be a=20 long night. Lois and Clark continued walking through the Observatory, when they came=20 upon Cat and her date dancing really close. "Well we both know what Cat wil= l be doing after the ball...I bet he'll be another notch on her garter belt!"=20 Lois=20 whispered to Clark. "Lois! Would you stop being so nasty towards people." "Clark, it's Cat what else am I supposed to think?" "Think nothing...Cat is a great woman. And I doubt she thinks about=20 hauling every man off to her bedroom." "Well Kent, you haven't been at the Planet that long to know. I have=20 been here since day one and believe me I know." "Whatever Lois. And even if what you say is true, it is none of our=20 business!" Lois rolled her eyes but decided not to dwell on Cat=92s love live=20 anymore. >tbc<=20 =20 * * * * Re: Ellen to Sam Sam opened the car door for Ellen. "Thank You," Ellen said as she got in. Ellen was hoping that this day=20 would get better and it had. Sam got into the car and before he started=20 the car he looked around for a tape. He put it in the player and started th= e=20 car. "Hmm, this is the song that you played when we had our first fight, I=20 wonder why you put that one on,=94 she commented. Sam had found all the songs that calmed Ellen down during their=20 marriage. He was prepared for anything=20 =20 All of a sudden it started to rain. The top was down and by the time it=20 took Sam to put the top back up Ellen's dress was soaked. Sam slunked=20 down in the seat preparing for the worse, he knew Ellen was soaked and he knew she was going to be mad. Ellen (trying to hold in her temper): =93Ok, Ive had enough and I would=20 like to be taken home. This was a mistake I don't know why I thought=20 that going out with you would ever be fun, It wasn't during our=20 marriage. SO TAKE ME HOME NOW!=20 >tbc< * * * * Looking for Bruce "Lois, it looks like he's not here yet, so instead of staring at=20 everyone else dancing , why don't you and I dance?" "Clark..." "Aw, come on Lois. I=92m not a bad dancer. In fact I learned a few dance=20 moves from a Nigerian Princess." "Clark, I really don't care...I just want to get away from you." Lois=20 tried to break away from him but Clark held her back. "Geez Clark,=20 that's quite a grip you've got there!" "Lois, you can't leave! You said that we would go as each other's date.=20 I don't want to look bad right now. When the room fills up with more=20 people then fine. But as of now you and I should stay together." "Clark..." Lois whined. "Just think of it as an undercover assignment." Clark pulled Lois close=20 to his body and started dancing with her. Lois sighed in frustration.=20 The pair had spent a total of 30 seconds dancing when Lois tried to=20 break free. "LET ME GO CLARK!" she yelled. Clark calmly held onto her arm and tried to calm her down. "Hush Lois, just dance." He took his=20 hand and ran it down her cheek. For some odd reason Lois actually calmed down. She wrapped her arms around Clark's waist and laid her head upon=20 his shoulder. >tbc< =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D Re: Looking for Bruce...Diego to Cat! Diego watched the exchange between Catherine's friends Kent and Lane.=20 "Catherine, your friend Mr. Kent has a wild one on his hands!" Diego=20 said to Catherine as they danced. Catherine: "Diego, Lois is just trying to figure out how to handle being=20 a top reporter and being a woman, and where both of these roles meet and=20 seperate!" Cat told Diego, trying not to sound stupid while trying to explai= n=20 Lois' mood swings where Clark was concerned. Diego: "Well, my Princess! I am certainly glad that you have no trouble=20 with your career and your gender!" Diego told her and kissed her full on=20 the lips. Catherine: "Diego, my dear friend! I still am not easy!" Catherine said=20 to him and smiled. Diego: "You American Women, so proud of your independence, and your=20 sensuality! I for one am very proud to be your date for this night."=20 Diego whispered in Catherine's ear as they danced like feathers on the=20 ballroom floor. Catherine thought to herself...*Poor Clark, I=20 wish Lois would give the guy a break. He is so sweet, handsome=20 and just a generally grand guy!* Then she giggled slightly, and=20 thought...*That makes Clark sound like a TV character!*=20 Diego lead on through a difficult part of the dance and they ended with=20 all the pomp and circumstance of the Latin dance. Catherine curtised to=20 Diego and thanked him for a wonderful dance. Catherine: "I need to make sure that the video screen is up and running,=20 you keep Mayson and Ramone company and I'll be right back!" Diego: "I await your return!" =20 * * * * Look for Week #11 coming to a PC near you! 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--part1_0.b828abb3.258f3b08_boundary-- ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 20 Dec 1999 03:26:57 EST Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Charlotte Fisler Subject: Re: Prelude Chapter 37 (the last one) MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Bravo, Cynthia. Great story. I'm up at three thirty am to get the last two chapters after finally printing and reading the earlier parts Saturday and Sunday. Thank heavens for weekends. Charlotte ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 20 Dec 1999 10:12:14 -0500 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Phillip Atcliffe Subject: New: "The Spirit of..." MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; CHARSET=US-ASCII Content-Transfer-Encoding: QUOTED-PRINTABLE Everyone else is posting Christmas stories (gee, I wonder why...? ),=20 so here's a little something that came to mind under the influence of=20 IRC last Saturday night, and the fact that it snowed that day. Like=20 Wendy's story, it takes off from "Season's Greedings", except that she=20 expanded on the tag, and I fooled around with the teaser... Phil, thinking that the _sensible_ (?) thing to do about the Millennium=20 would be to back-date the year by 1 (effectively establishing a year=20 zero A.D. -- or B.C., for that matter ), say on January 2nd, and=20 then we could have _another_ excuse for a huge party, and all the=20 century problems would be solved! It won't happen, of course.... ------ The Spirit of... By Phil Atcliffe (Phillip.Atcliffe@uwe.ac.uk) The boy squeezed the Space Rat again, spraying himself with whatever=20 the stuff was that it had inside it. He grimaced for a moment, but then=20 his face broke into a smile. "Cool!" he said, and turned to run off=20 down the street. He drew level with the little girl and her snowman... her *stupid*=20 snowman! How come it had all that neat stuff? A snowman didn't need=20 gloves or a hat... but *he* did, and he wanted them. "This is mine," he said, taking a glove from the wooden "hand" of the=20 snowman. "And so is this..." He went around behind the snowman to take=20 the other glove. "...and I want this..." He took the top hat from the=20 snowman's head. "...*and* this." The last thing he filched was the woollen cap that the little girl was=20 wearing. She hadn't said or done anything while he stole the gloves or=20 hat from the snowman, but taking her cap was too much; she reached out=20 and, as firmly as someone her size could, grabbed it back. The boy wasn't pleased by this small show of resistance. "Gimme it!" he=20 yelled, but the little girl just stared back at him defiantly before=20 running away. Not far away, Lois Lane and Clark Kent were walking together along the=20 sun-lit snow-covered streets, discussing the meaning of Christmas.=20 Clark was all enthusiasm, but Lois, with a sizable store of bad=20 childhood memories of this time of year, was maintaining that Christmas=20 was just another holiday - nice, but no more so than the 4th of July or=20 Arbor Day. Clark was trying to explain to Lois why Christmas was something=20 *different* to any other holiday. "See, what I think makes Christmas so=20 special is the whole spirit of..." His voice trailed off as his super-hearing kicked in. The boy had=20 gathered a gang of his cronies, and they were chasing the little girl.=20 They'd cornered her by her snowman and were about to attack en masse -=20 with snowballs, admittedly, but there was a tone of real menace in some=20 of what he could hear. "Spirit of what, Clark?" asked Lois, curious about his sudden=20 abstraction in the middle of a typically endearing (though she'd never=20 admit that to anyone), impassioned speech on the joys of... just about=20 anything. Clark had a zest for appreciating some things that, very=20 occasionally, she wished she could emulate, and it wasn't like him to=20 break off half-way through an attempt to make her see things from his=20 perspective, however misguided and na=EFve that might be. "...peace and good will..." he muttered, his voice sounding slightly=20 grim. He looked at her for just a moment, and she could almost see the=20 wheels turning inside his head; he was thinking hard about something,=20 that was certain, but what? "Excuse me for a minute, Lois," he went on. "I have a short lesson on=20 good will to deliver. Join me?" He didn't wait for an answer, but=20 sprinted down the street and around the corner. Behind him, Lois stood and stared -- but not for long. She didn't know=20 what was going on, but he'd invited her to join him, and she was going=20 to do just that. She took off down the street after him. Once around the corner and out of sight of Lois, Clark spent a=20 microsecond deciding whether to change into the suit, but decided=20 against it. No-one was looking, so he could use his powers briefly=20 without changing into Superman, which might be better for what he had=20 in mind. Besides, he could hear that Lois was coming after him, so it=20 would be good not to have to come up with another excuse for=20 disappearing. He turned on a little super-speed and flashed past the group of kids=20 preparing to unleash their assault on the little girl. He kept to one=20 side, so that when he made his entrance, so to speak, it would look as=20 though he had come from behind the snowman. The boys threw their snowballs, and the little girl raised her arms and=20 scrunched up her face in distress, expecting to feel the stinging=20 impacts... but nothing happened. She opened her eyes to see a large figure between her and the other=20 kids. It was a man with glasses, smiling down at her. He was wearing a=20 dark overcoat which he had spread wide, and she vaguely realised that=20 the snowballs must have hit him instead of her. She looked scared,=20 thinking she was in trouble, but he knelt to meet her downcast,=20 troubled eyes. "Don't worry. They won't hurt you. Neither will I. In fact, I think=20 four to one is rather unfair, so I'm going to give you some help." As she watched, amazed, he reached down and scooped up a handful of=20 snow, quickly forming it into a ball. Then he rose and whirled around=20 to throw it, all in one graceful movement. The snowball shot along the=20 street to land squarely in the face of one of her tormentors, all of=20 whom were watching the two of them, startled and wary. The little girl couldn't help herself; she giggled. The man smiled down=20 at her again. "That's one down," he said quietly. "Care to help me get=20 the rest?" Her giggle became a smile, and she bent down to make a snowball=20 herself. The man did the same, and the fight began. What followed could best be described as a massacre. The boys did their=20 best against the girl and her unexpected ally, but their numbers were=20 no match for the deadly aim and rapid fire of the man in the overcoat.=20 Before long, all of them save one -- the biggest boy, the one who had=20 started it all -- were lying sprawled on the sidewalk, brushing snow=20 from their faces and necks. The chief bully, though spared by Clark, had been hit once or twice by=20 his team-mate. He hadn't done much in return, seemingly dumbfounded by=20 the rout of his troops. Now he just stood there, awaiting his fate --=20 which was not going to be what he thought. Lois had arrived in time to see the "battle", and she was more than a=20 little amused to see her partner taking part in a kids' snowball fight.=20 She wasn't surprised to see him on the side of that little girl --=20 Clark was a soft touch for the underdog if there was ever one -- but=20 his skill and marksmanship with a snowball had impressed her. 'Must be=20 all those Kansas winters,' she thought. 'They must call him "Dead-Eye=20 Kent" back home in Smallville.' Then, to her surprise, he waved her over, calling out, "Lois! This=20 *big, tough* boy here thought it would be a really good idea for him=20 and *three* other kids to gang up on this young lady." He paused to=20 exchange a smile with the happy little girl. "I think we took care of=20 the others, but would you care to show a little female solidarity and=20 deal with Mr Courage here?" How could she resist? She quickly picked up a handful of snow. The boy,=20 she saw, had recovered from his stupor, and would have tried for some=20 measure of revenge... until he saw the grin on her face.=20 He was in *big* trouble. He turned to run, but was too late. A perfectly-aimed snowball caught=20 him on the side of the head, taking off his cap and sending snow down=20 his neck and onto his back. As he wriggled in frosty agony, staggering towards the orphanage gates=20 in a vain attempt to avoid dislodging any more of the snow down the=20 back of his neck, Clark was applauding his partner. "Nice shot, Lois!" Lois, pleased as always by praise -- and especially from someone whose=20 opinion she valued -- pirouetted and bowed slightly in recognition of=20 the tribute. "Thank you, Clark," she replied, smiling. "You're pretty=20 good yourself. We should have a contest sometime." Clark recoiled in mock horror. "Oh, no! I'm not going up against you in=20 a snowball fight! I set too much store by my own skin." But his eyes=20 were twinkling, and he went on, "Not unless it's on my home ground..." Lois lifted an eyebrow, but didn't reply. Clark met her gaze for just a=20 moment before crouching down by the little girl. "You'll be okay now.=20 Merry Christmas." The girl didn't say anything -- it was only later that Clark realised=20 that she hadn't said anything at all, the whole time -- but she threw=20 her arms around him in a big hug. Lois watched, touched by the sight of=20 the big man and the small girl -- and remembering times when Clark had=20 hugged *her.* Her wistfulness turned to surprise, and even a little=20 shock, when the little girl pulled away from Clark and ran over to her,=20 wrapping her arms around Lois' leg in equal gratitude. Now it was Clark's turn to feel wistful, but for a different reason.=20 Lois was still staring down at the girl, so he took the opportunity to=20 hide the sudden upsurge of feeling that the sight of the two of them=20 roused in him, and step over to the trio of snow-covered youngsters. "As for *you*..." he said sternly, "I hope this has taught you not to=20 bully other people -- especially not at this time of year. And I better=20 not hear of anyone trying to get back at that little girl, or there'll=20 be *real* trouble. "Oh, and you can tell your big friend that *I've* got a friend, too --=20 Superman. He's looking forward to visiting you guys on Christmas Eve,=20 and he'll make sure he checks on how she is... and, believe me, you=20 don't want *him* getting mad at you!" The kids looked thoroughly intimidated by the thought of *Superman*=20 watching over them, and Clark didn't think they'd retaliate -- but he=20 made a mental note to check, anyway. Then they realised what he'd said=20 about the Man of Steel coming to visit, and broke into excited chatter. A man came out of the orphanage gates and shooed the boys inside, then=20 came over to speak to Clark. "Thanks for helping Danielle, sir," he=20 said in a kindly voice. "I don't know what got into those boys. They're=20 good kids. They usually look after the other orphans; I've never known=20 them to bully anyone before." "No problem," Clark replied cheerfully. "Maybe they got a little=20 carried away -- what with Christmas coming and all. Don't be too hard=20 on them." The man laughed. "I don't think that'll be necessary -- not after you=20 and your..." He paused as Lois came over, holding Danielle by the hand.=20 He looked from one reporter to the other, obviously trying to work out=20 what, if any, relationship existed between the two. Lois and Clark realised what was going on and hastened to fill him in.=20 "Friend!" they said simultaneously -- then looked at one another and=20 laughed. The man joined them, and Danielle smiled, although in her case, it was=20 more in reaction to the good humour of the three grown-ups. "After you=20 and your *friend* took care of them," the man went on. "Thank you=20 again; not everybody would have helped a little girl like that." Lois and Clark demurred politely and, after telling Danielle that it=20 was nice to meet her and wishing her a Merry Christmas, went to go, but=20 the man pulled Clark back. "Can I talk to you for a minute?" he=20 whispered. "Sure," Clark replied. "Lois," he called, "You go on ahead. I... want=20 to talk to... this gentleman for a minute." "Sure, Clark," she said. "See you back at the office." After Lois walked off, Clark looked inquiringly at the man, who=20 murmured softly, "I heard what you said about Superman -- were you=20 serious?" Clark grinned. "Yeah, I was serious. It was meant to be a surprise --=20 only the Superintendent knows -- but I thought telling the boys about=20 it would keep them from trying to get back at Danielle. He's coming,=20 all right -- *and* I'll make sure he knows about her." "Oh, that's a relief," the man sighed. "I didn't know anything about=20 it, and it would have been awful to have to disappoint the kids." Clark grimaced. "Well, that might still happen if there's some kind of=20 an emergency... but I'm sure Superman will get here sometime over=20 Christmas." "That's great." The man turned to the little girl. "Time we went home,=20 Danielle. Thanks again, sir." "Any time. 'Bye, Danielle." Clark waved as the man and the little girl=20 crossed the street to the orphanage gates, then turned and began to=20 walk back to the Planet. Back at the Planet, Lois was feeling depressed. Her part in Clark's=20 impromptu rescue of Danielle had relieved a little of the frustration=20 that she felt about not being able to join in the festivities as=20 whole-heartedly as she wished she could, and she'd let off some more=20 steam complaining to Jimmy about all the hype that made Christmas into=20 more of an ordeal than a holiday. She'd felt refreshed after that, ready to take control over Christmas=20 and do it *her* way... and then it had all fallen flat. Her mother=20 couldn't make it "home" this year; she couldn't even get her father on=20 the phone; and Lucy was spending her Christmas with a new boyfriend in=20 Venice, California. The Lane luck was running true to form; Christmas=20 was starting to look like any other day, except that it would feature a=20 turkey TV dinner because no-one delivered take-out that day. Clark noticed Lois' downcast demeanour as he came into the newsroom,=20 and it didn't take much imagination to guess what the problem was.=20 Clark wasn't particularly surprised, knowing Lois' family, but he did=20 feel sorry for her -- and also just a little bit pleased. This was an=20 opportunity too good to pass up. "Hi," he said, coming over to her desk. "Your family busy over=20 Christmas?" She looked startled. "How did you know?" He just smiled at her. "I know *you.* And I also know what you're going=20 to do over Christmas: you're coming home with me, to Smallville. Then=20 we can have that snowball... 'contest' after all -- on my home ground." "Oh... no, I couldn't--" she began to protest, but Clark would have=20 none of it. "Yes, you could. Come on, Lois, Mom and Dad would love to have you=20 visit, and I am not going to let you stay here all by yourself. So...=20 either you come, or I'm going to have to stay in Metropolis." Lois didn't know what to say. She wanted to be angry with him for=20 trying to organise her life for her, but she was touched by his concern=20 -- and, though she wouldn't admit it, perhaps not even to herself,=20 excited by the thought of spending Christmas with Clark. And since he=20 was determined that that was going to happen, she thought it... safer=20 if it happened with his parents around. 'Besides,' she thought with an internal snicker, 'it'll be fun to blow=20 him away in a snowball fight!' With that decided, she could do nothing but agree. She began to muse=20 over the details, like getting plane tickets to Kansas so close to=20 Christmas, but Clark told her he had all that covered. How, she didn't=20 know, but he told her not to worry about it... so, she didn't. He went back to his desk, and Lois found herself with a much lighter=20 heart. It occurred to her that maybe *this* was the spirit of Christmas=20 that Clark had tried to tell her about earlier, and it was somehow=20 fitting that it was to be found in someone who practised what he=20 preached. She would have taken that train of thought further -- and other,=20 related thoughts regarding him -- but Perry came out of his office full=20 of a potential story regarding the latest toy craze, and all she could=20 do was think how the greed and insanity that the editor was delighted=20 by contrasted with Clark's thoughtfulness and delight in giving.=20 She got up and went over to his desk to brief him on their new=20 assignment. They grabbed their coats and headed out to do their job...=20 but both of them were more interested in thinking about the coming=20 holiday. Clark was happy that he'd be able to make this Christmas=20 special for Lois, and his partner was thinking along much the same=20 lines; she was sure that this was going to be a Christmas unlike any=20 other, and this certainty both excited and frightened her. For now, though, Lois was able to look out at the city as the cab sped=20 along and feel something that she had doubted that she'd ever know=20 again. Yes, the Christmas spirit was abroad in Metropolis, and a=20 good-sized chunk of it had taken root in her best friend and partner --=20 which made Lois feel like she'd been given the most important gift of=20 all. The End ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 20 Dec 1999 12:42:35 -0500 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Hazel Subject: El-symbol? Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Martha got the El-symbol (or S-symbol, if you prefer) off Clark's baby blanket. Where did the one that's on the back of his cape from from? And more to the point for the fic in question, where did alt-Clark get the symbol for *his* cape? Lois wasn't doing a very good job before he pulled out *his* blanket, but that only takes care of the "S on his chest." :) So where'd the one for the cape come from? Thanks, Hazel ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 20 Dec 1999 12:48:08 -0500 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Joy Sowell Subject: Re: El-symbol? Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit I don't know for sure, but perhaps "our" Martha sewed the other one, and Lois did the same for Alt. Clark???? ______________________________________________ FREE Personalized Email at Mail.com Sign up at http://www.mail.com?sr=mc.mk.mcm.tag001 ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 20 Dec 1999 11:33:30 -0700 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: sharper Subject: Millennium MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit >>Phil, thinking that the _sensible_ (?) thing to do about the Millennium would be to back-date the year by 1 (effectively establishing a year zero A.D. -- or B.C., for that matter ), say on January 2nd, and then we could have _another_ excuse for a huge party, and all the century problems would be solved! It won't happen, of course....<< Okay, I need an explanation here. Decades start with Jan.1 of the year beginning with the new number (i.e. 80's started Jan. 1, 1980; 90's started Jan. 1, 1990), which means that the very first decade (200 decades ago) was only 9 years long (1 A.D.-9 A.D.). Centuries start with Jan. 1 of the year beginning with the new number (i.e. 18th century began Jan. 1, 1700; 20th century began Jan. 1, 1900), which means that the very first century (20 centuries ago) was only 99 years long (1 A.D. - 99 A.D.). So what's wrong with starting the 3rd millennium on Jan. 1, 2000, and just saying that the first millennium (1 A.D. - 999 A.D.) was only 999 years long, like the first of all the other year groupings were? SheilaH (whose math side flares up occasionally and demands consistency) P.S. BTW, Phil, I loved your little "Spirit of Christmas" offering. I really think that's what Clark should have done in the real episode. (Would've saved Dean having to get in the costume, too :) ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 20 Dec 1999 13:47:42 -0500 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: "Terry S. Horowit" Subject: Re: Millennium In-Reply-To: <002a01bf4b18$cbaeebc0$ab01140a@net.cmn.net> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" >>Okay, I need an explanation here. Decades start with Jan.1 of the year >beginning with the new number (i.e. 80's started Jan. 1, 1980; 90's started >Jan. 1, 1990), which means that the very first decade (200 decades ago) was >only 9 years long (1 A.D.-9 A.D.). Centuries start with Jan. 1 of the year >beginning with the new number (i.e. 18th century began Jan. 1, 1700; 20th >century began Jan. 1, 1900), which means that the very first century (20 >centuries ago) was only 99 years long (1 A.D. - 99 A.D.). So what's wrong >with starting the 3rd millennium on Jan. 1, 2000, and just saying that the >first millennium (1 A.D. - 999 A.D.) was only 999 years long, like the first >of all the other year groupings were? OK, this is not my understanding of how this works. Decades and centuries start with Jan. 1 of the first relative year (clear as mud, right?). That is, the 80s started with 1981 and the 18th century started with 1701. The first decade of the Common Era went from 1-10 CE; and therefore, the first day of the new millenium will be Jan. 1, 2001. millenium is, by definition, 1000 years - NOT 999. My guess is that everyone will party in a couple of weeks, and then the same time next year, everyone will decide they did it wrong and will party all over again! Terry ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 20 Dec 1999 13:52:15 EST Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Carms C Subject: Re: El-symbol? MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit That brings another point to mind. Lois can barely cook anything how did she manage to sew a whole suit for the Alt-Clark? ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 20 Dec 1999 15:32:52 EST Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: "Ann E. McBride" Subject: Re: El-symbol? MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit In a message dated 12/20/1999 12:42:58 PM Eastern Standard Time, zis-s@ACTCOM.CO.IL writes: << So where'd the one for the cape come from? >> Obviously, from the superhero embroidered symbol shop. Seriously, that was never explained on the show. I always figured that Martha, being the creative, artsy-craftsy kind of person that she was, had an embroidery function on her sewing machine and did the extra El symbols herself. After the first one, they got bigger, too. Now, as to how did Lois, who can't boil water, sew a costume for Alt-Clark? Well, if I remember correctly, the blue part was a ski suit she bought, (he comments on it in the episode). Who is to say that she can't sew? Just because she can't cook, doesn't mean she can't sew. Given her propensity to to get into very tight spots, I would imagine she rips a lot of clothes and would need to know how to mend at the very least. Of course, there is still the El symbol issue, but maybe the sewing machine she used could do embroidery too. Ann ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 20 Dec 1999 15:34:06 EST Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: The Zoomway Subject: Re: El-symbol? MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit In a message dated 12/20/99 12:53:19 PM Central Standard Time, Ellimrac00@AOL.COM writes: << That brings another point to mind. Lois can barely cook anything how did she manage to sew a whole suit for the Alt-Clark? >> What does cooking have to do with sewing? With the S symbol, the series went back to the movie lore for some reason. The idea that the S shield is the symbol for the house of El and only coincidentally looks like our letter "S". In the current comic continuity (post 1985) the S was designed by Clark and Jonathan to go with the suit that Martha created. It stood for ..... Superman Aren't there applique machines that use a ton of thread spools of various colors? You put in a pattern and the machine creates the applique to that pattern? Now Martha might have gotten one of those machines, or, through Murray (Superman's agent) the right to reproduce and sell the symbol was sold to a company and that means Martha could go to a store and buy as many of the darn things as she wants Even Barry, the Superman look-alike, had an authentic looking Superman costume (well, other than the beeper he wore on the belt ;) If we assume that with the original suit Martha created, she was able to cobble that together only from items available in Smallville, then Lois, finding them in a big city like Metropolis shouldn't be impossible. She could have even gone to a place that makes appliques to order (for the shield that goes on the cape) put in her order, and it could have been ready fairly fast. Admittedly that might be a stretch, but I think she'd have had an easier time finding a place to make a patch like that in Metropolis than Martha would in Smallville. To Alt Clark, it was a "ski suit", but to Lois, it was a beacon, a symol ;) A "real world" example is that my brother is trying to make his own Crow T. Robot from Mystery Science Theater 3000. He's been buying components all over the place, including ebay.com. Now, to some people, a bowling pin is for bowling, but for my brother, it's Crow's mouth Zoom ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 20 Dec 1999 17:06:42 EST Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: "Alexis W." Subject: Re: Millennium MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit In a message dated 12/20/99 1:45:51 PM EST, horowit@UMIACS.UMD.EDU writes: << OK, this is not my understanding of how this works. Decades and centuries start with Jan. 1 of the first relative year (clear as mud, right?). That is, the 80s started with 1981 and the 18th century started with 1701. The first decade of the Common Era went from 1-10 CE; and therefore, the first day of the new millenium will be Jan. 1, 2001. millenium is, by definition, 1000 years - NOT 999. My guess is that everyone will party in a couple of weeks, and then the same time next year, everyone will decide they did it wrong and will party all over again! Terry >> Whoa there.. all of this is it the millenium or not, talk is making my head spin. Or in the words of Lois when she was interrupted from trying to *celebrate* with her new hubby Clark, "I'm getting a headache!" Alexis ;-.) {who's going to make it simple.. she is going to party this year and again next year.. I mean what's the hurt in celebrating the new milleumium twice! It gives us an extra excuse to go crazy once again! ;)} ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 20 Dec 1999 17:06:45 EST Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: "Alexis W." Subject: Re: New: "The Spirit of..." MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit In a message dated 12/20/99 5:12:38 AM EST, Phillip.Atcliffe@UWE.AC.UK writes: << Everyone else is posting Christmas stories (gee, I wonder why...? ), so here's a little something that came to mind under the influence of IRC last Saturday night, and the fact that it snowed that day. Like Wendy's story, it takes off from "Season's Greedings", except that she expanded on the tag, and I fooled around with the teaser... >> Phil.. I loved it! I had a HUGE WAFFY feeling and i was giggling along with the little girl and Lois as Clark was making his *attack.* I only wished that I had someone like Sman around when i was hit with snowballs as a kid. :( The kids would make them out of pure ice and they hurt... :( Anyway it was nice seeing some jerks getting what came to them. It was actually theraputic to me in a way... But enough about me... I loved it! It might just be me but I could picture Lois and Clark doing that for their own child if it happened to them. Then again their child would be have super-human so who knows what they could do! But I still saw the maternal and paternal instinct there if you know what i mean. We all know how the *real* story goes but i would encourage Phil, if you could to write a story about what happens to Lois and Clark in Smallville. I know that a lot of stories like that have been written but i love your writing style and I know everyone has a different interpretation when it comes to Lois and Clark's relationship, no matter what stage it is at! Thanks for a wonderful read! Alexis ;-.) {who can't wipe the HUGE WAFFY grin off her face! =)} ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 20 Dec 1999 17:06:41 EST Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: "Alexis W." Subject: Re: El-symbol? MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit In a message dated 12/20/99 1:53:19 PM EST, Ellimrac00@AOL.COM writes: << That brings another point to mind. Lois can barely cook anything how did she manage to sew a whole suit for the Alt-Clark? >> Um well I'm no expert when it comes to the whole Alt-Clark thing but Lois was using a sewing machine and i do remember Alt-Clark asking her if she could sew and she said "well actually i am not sure but we are about to find out!" Maybe it was beginner's luck or something. Or since she has been around her Sman for such a long time, she just knew how those things worked. She also had worn a similar suit like that when she was Ultrawoman. Maybe Lois watched Martha sew her suit for her and she learned by watching her. Then again, this is a fantasy show so most people would just tell us to go with the flow, if you know what i mean. On the topic of the S on the back of Superman's suit.. if I recall I thought Clark/Sman did not have this S on the back of his cape in the Pilot ep. I could be wrong.. but that's what I thought. I may be getting it mixed up with the cartoon Sman which i watch from time to time on the WB network. He DEFINATELY does not have an S on the back of his cape. Alexis ;-.) {this is such a good question that maybe someone should write fanfic about it! ;)} ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 20 Dec 1999 19:02:07 EST Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: "Eileen F. Ray" Subject: NEW " WE WISH YOU A *WARY* CHRISTMAS " Part 2 of 7 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit TITLE: WE WISH YOU A *WARY* CHRISTMAS PART: 2/7 AUTHOR: An IRC Round Robin RATING: PG-13 SUMMARY: It's a little over three months since the birth of the twins and Lois and Clark are in full holiday mode preparing for the babies' first Christmas. However, the preparations have to be moved to the back burner when Lois' journal is apparently stolen and they have to recover it before Clark's *super* secret is revealed to the world. FEEDBACK: All comments public and private are welcome. __________________________ "He did, huh? And did he give you any suggestions for how to do that?" Clark raised an eyebrow. "You suggesting I don't know how to do that all on my own? No, forget I said that." He continued cuddling them with a fond expression on his face. "Anyway, you didn't complain last week when I brought back that Belgian chocolate, did...." His voice trailed off as his attention was caught by something outside the conference room. His glasses had still been a little way down his nose, and his super-vision had kicked in, allowing him to see beyond the blinds. "What is it, Clark?" Lois reached out to touch his arm, attracting his attention. He turned to face her, a wary expression on his face. "Honey, someone seems to be looking at our laptop - I'm sure it's ours, I recognize the Superman sticker you put on the lid." "I thought Jimmy'd put it away in his locker!" Lois exclaimed. "Who is it - and what are they doing? How dare they...?" Clark shrugged. "It's Ralph. Now hang on, honey, don't go steaming out there... I guess he can't do any harm - " "Can't he?" There was a note to Lois' voice which made Clark stare at her in alarm. "What do you mean? There's nothing on that computer which would... is there?" "Well..." Lois' voice trailed off, but at Clark's stern expression she continued. "Um... I might have... there might be some Superman stuff on it," she muttered quickly. "What?! And you gave it to Jimmy to check?" Clark was incredulous. "You know what Jimmy's like - no password is secure enough to keep him out!" "Well, I figured all he'd do is run the Y2K tests, not search through our files," Lois excused herself. "Anyway, if Ralph really is-" Before she could continue, Clark frowned and, placing the baby swiftly in his carrier, gestured her to silence. The door swung open. "Hey, just thought I'd see how my favorite honorary grandkids are doing!" the familiar voice of Perry White boomed. "Hi, Perry," they said together, and Lois giggled. Perry smiled back and hunkered down beside the babies. "Merry Christmas, Jo, Matt...." "Chief, I'm gonna go get us some eggnog - be right back," Clark announced, then slipped out before either Perry or Lois realized it. Looking back into the conference room to be sure Lois was busy with the babies and wouldn't scold him later, then around at the news floor to ensure that no one else was looking his way either, he sidled up to Ralph. "Merry Christmas, Ralph." Ralph nearly jumped two feet, so engrossed was he with Lois' password screen. He hit the ESC button fast, then said, "Oh, hey, Clark, didn't see you there. Merry Christmas to you, too." "Hey, Ralph, would you do me a favor? I promised Lois and Perry some eggnog, but I don't see any here..." "I think I saw some down at the coffee stand beside the front door on the way in." Ralph grinned, then took off. Behind him, a gust of wind whistled, and the computer disappeared. Clark stowed the computer safely away in Jimmy's locker and slipped back into the conference room. He was glad to see that Perry was still playing with the twins and he hadn't been missed by either of them. "I've forgotten just how fast children change at this age. I swear that Matthew has grown since I saw them last week." Perry sighed and stood up. "Take some advice, kids, and don't make the same mistake I did. Take your time coming back to work, Lois. You both should spend every minute you get with these two." "I fully intend to spend as much time as I can, Chief," Lois replied. "But there are times when I realize that I need to work too. I'd hate to lose my edge." "I was thinking about that, Chief." Clark said. "Maybe we can come to some arrangement where we both work and get to spend time with the twins. We could work from home a few days of the week." "Let me think about that and I'll get back to you when Lois' maternity leave comes to an end. Meanwhile, Alice is in the newsroom and we want to give you something for the babies for Christmas." Perry opened up the door and ushered Lois back into the newsroom. He picked up Matthew's carrier and gestured for Clark to pick up Joanna's. Alice saw the conference room door open and began to make her way towards them. She had two small packages in her hands. "Here, Lois," she said as they caught up with her. "I hope that you'll like these. Perry and I want to start a tradition going with these gifts." Lois took the gifts from Alice. "Can we open them now?" she asked. Alice nodded so she handed one to Clark and began taking off the wrapping paper. Everyone else in the newsroom drifted over to find out what was inside. Lois had the paper off in record time and then grinned and gave Alice a big hug. It was a beautiful ornament for the tree. The airplane was the first one in a series of Hallmark ornaments and was obviously for Matthew. "What's in that one, Clark?" she asked as she handed the gift to their audience so they could see it too. Clark had unwrapped Joanna's ornament and found it was a wonderful little teddy bear. "These are just wonderful, Perry, Alice. They'll be treasured and put on the tree every year." Lois was so glad that the gifts weren't something like those Teletubbies that Jimmy had brought, or worse yet, something to do with that awful purple dinosaur. Just then, Ralph came back up with the eggnogs for Clark. "Here you are, Clark. I made sure that they didn't put any rum in the one for Lois." "I tried to get her the no-fat version too, but they were all out of that one," Ralph said as he handed the cups to Clark. He then bent down to Joanna's carrier and began to play with her. After a few moments Ralph cried, "Hey, watch out!" and began backing away from the baby. "Oh, I'm sorry, Ralph," Lois said with artificial sweetness. "I'm sure Joanna didn't mean to throw up on you that way. But you know how babies are." "Darn, this is a new suit. I bought it just for the party." "Well, maybe you'd better clean up before that stain sets in." As they watched Ralph scurry off, Clark leaned over and whispered in Lois' ear. "If I didn't know better, honey, I'd swear you trained Jo to do that." Lois smirked. "Actually it was an accident. But you know, Christmas just wouldn't be Christmas without Ralph decorated with something, um... sticky." Clark chuckled, then suddenly got *that* look. Lois sighed. "What is it?" "A riot at the Heavenly Heaps ice cream factory." "How can you have a riot at an ice cream factory?" "Honey, I just pick up distress calls, I don't interpret them," he said, and kissed her cheek. "I'll be back as soon as I can." Lois shook her head and looked at the twins. "Won't daddy be fun on Career Day?" Though feeling the holiday cheer, having Clark depart focused her thoughts on the laptop. How could she have just casually decided to hand it over to Jimmy? She trusted him, but mistakes, crashes, even thefts could happen. Maybe she was just worrying too much. Maybe not enough. "Hell," she whispered, then called, "Jimmy!" The young man came trotting in obediently, but cautiously. After the Teletubbies fiasco he could faintly hear the ice cracking beneath his feet. "Mind if I stand back a little, Lois? I saw Ralph wearing baby shampoo." Lois laughed. "That's fine, Jimmy. I need you to bring me the laptop from your locker. Clark said he put it there." "No problem ... uh ... you're not going to try working during the party, are you?" "How come everyone thinks I'd do something like that?" "Uh .. no reason. Back in a flash," he said, and hurried out of sight. Lois paced in front of the babies, awaiting Jimmy's return. "That's another lesson, Jo and Matt. When Jimmy says 'back in a flash', it's not the same as when Daddy says that. Okay, scratch that, your daddy comes back in a blur ... Next lesson, your mother loses her mind because she brought her laptop to a party at a time when things are being stolen!" Jimmy finally came running back, pale and perspiring. "Lois, I just checked my locker. Your laptop isn't there." "Oh god." Jimmy patted her arm reassuringly. "It's not all bad news. The Teletubbies were swiped too." Lois pasted on a bright smile to hide her panic. "Well, whoever it is won't get far. Those things will make the thief lose his lunch in no time." Jimmy snickered at that, but abruptly stopped when he saw a frown form on Lois' face. "Although then he might be sick on the laptop, and that wouldn't be good, would it?" "Well, I-- Not that there's anything important on there, really," Lois reassured him, pasting her bright smile firmly back into place. "So then why'd you want me to fix it?" Continued in part 3/7 ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 20 Dec 1999 19:02:10 EST Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: "Eileen F. Ray" Subject: NEW " WE WISH YOU A *WARY* CHRISTMAS " Part 3 of 7 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit TITLE: WE WISH YOU A *WARY* CHRISTMAS PART: 3/7 AUTHOR: An IRC Round Robin RATING: PG-13 SUMMARY: It's a little over three months since the birth of the twins and Lois and Clark are in full holiday mode preparing for the babies' first Christmas. However, the preparations have to be moved to the back burner when Lois' journal is apparently stolen and they have to recover it before Clark's *super* secret is revealed to the world. FEEDBACK: All comments public and private are welcome. __________________________ Lois stared at him for a second, then laughed. "I was just thinking, you know, it might be a good backup, because sometimes I--- never mind. Thanks, Jimmy." It was an unmistakable dismissal, and Jimmy gratefully escaped. Lois turned away from the windows and frowned in fierce worry. Now what was she going to do? She'd intended to copy the journal over to her other machine, but the local network had been down, and she could never find a floppy when she needed one. Clark had lots, but she didn't know his organizational system and hadn't wanted to explain why she needed it. "Okay, kids," she addressed the sleepy twins, "Mommy's going to have to get the computer back. But promise me not to tell Daddy just yet, okay? He'd only worry." She heard a tapping on the door, and whirled around to see Drs. Klein and Friskin peeking their heads in. "May we see the babies, Lois?" Ruth asked softly. "Oh! Yes, of course," Lois replied, forcing her worries to the back of her mind. "They've just eaten so they're thinking of falling asleep again." "Matthew looks like he's asleep already, but Joanna looks wide awake," Klein observed, from a safe distance. Ruth laughed. "We've just seen Ralph," she explained, then tempted fate by leaning forward to pick up the alert Joanna. "Let's see if you like me more than you like him, darling!" Lois grinned, some of her tension easing. "I think you're safe, Ruth." "Just don't psychoanalyze her, sweetie," Klein advised nervously. "Some people don't take that very well." "Nonsense," she replied briskly. "More self-knowledge is always valuable. And in this case, I diagnose a little party girl!" She arranged the baby so that Joanna could see more of the festivities. Lois smiled fondly. "I admit she likes people, but I think it's too early to tell." "We'll just have to keep close tabs on them both as they grow," Ruth concluded, smiling fatuously at both children. Lois felt her eyes widen in some dismay at the thought, but decided not to argue the point. Dr. Klein leaned in close and whispered, "It's the eggnog. Tomorrow she'll have forgotten all about it." She smiled at him, wondering if this constituted support, but was saved the necessity of a reply by Clark's re-entry into the room. "Well, I got to ... um ... the Salvation Army in time. What did I miss here?" Clark had exited the elevator several minutes earlier, quickly mingling with the partying crowd in the newsroom and trying to make it appear as if he'd never been away. Swiftly dodging one of the secretaries who was drunkenly waving a sprig of mistletoe in his direction, he had scanned the area for Lois. It seemed as if she was still in the conference room. He really needed to get back to her-- she could hardly be enjoying the party if she was shut in there with Matthew and Joanna all night. Although, on reflection... Clark smiled wryly as he reminded himself that Lois would probably prefer to be exactly where she was - especially if he was with her - than to have to mingle and make polite small talk with some of their colleagues. These days she was a far cry from the old Mad Dog Lane who had never heard of social chit-chat or taking time off work. And she even counted some of their co-workers as friends. But still.... His musings were interrupted by Jimmy grabbing hold of his arm. "CK! I've been looking all over for you-" "Is it Lois? The babies?" Clark felt a cold hand wrap around his heart, and he quickly tried to use his X-ray vision without being seen. "No - they're fine, CK! At least... they were ten minutes ago. I think Dr. Klein and Dr. Friskin are with her now." Jimmy swallowed nervously. "No, it's... um... about your laptop, CK," he added bravely. Clark gave Jimmy a puzzled but impatient stare. "Yes, Jimmy? I'm kind of in a hurry..." "CK, it's gone!" Jimmy gabbled, having decided it was probably going to be easier to come out with the bad news and take the consequences. Clark, who had been about to stride off, froze in mid-step. "Gone? What do you mean?" His voice was calm, deliberate, and Lois - or numerous 'victims' of Superman - would have recognized it as faintly threatening. "Um... gone, Clark! It was in my locker, you know? You put it there yourself! And then Lois asked me for it back-- she wanted me to bring it to her in the conference room, but when I went to get it, it wasn't there!" Realizing that he would have to delay his return to Lois' side a little longer, Clark sighed visibly and changed direction towards Jimmy's desk, hoping that some other curious denizen of the newsroom hadn't decided to examine the contents of his wife's directories. Exactly what had she meant anyway about having left some Superman stuff on the hard drive? What sort of Superman stuff? Nothing that would give away his secret identity... he hoped. On the other hand, why else would she have been so concerned? Why would she have looked so guilty when she'd mentioned it? It wasn't in Jimmy's locker. Nor was it on his desk. Nor on the desk of anyone else in the vicinity. Clark sighed again and turned to face his younger colleague. "Jimmy, I need you to find this. Now. And when you do, bring it to Lois and me in the conference room, okay? There's... um, some sensitive material on it. To do with one of our investigations. If it got into the wrong hands, well..." He trailed off deliberately, matching his tone of voice with a stern expression. Jimmy gulped and nodded. Turning then, Clark headed back towards the conference room with the intention of finding out from Lois exactly what she had stored in the computer's memory. However, the presence of Bernie and Ruth in the conference room had prevented him posing the immediate questions, and instead he'd had to put his mind to coming up with an excuse for his absence. Lois, he noticed, seemed a little bit nervous. He crossed to kiss her, a glint in his eye which he knew she would recognize. "Hi honey - I missed you," she told him as she kissed him back. Jimmy sighed as he watched Clark go back into the conference room. He was wondering just how to start looking for the missing laptop. "Clues," he said to himself. "Where would I start looking for clues?" He got up from the desk and went over to his locker. Nothing there seemed out of place. He stood up and decided to do a careful search of the newsroom and see if there was anything out of the ordinary. Maybe the thief had dropped something helpful. Ten minutes later he had searched the entire floor. The laptop had not been abandoned anywhere and there was nothing to go on. He turned and surveyed the area one last time. "Maybe if I went up the ramp to the elevators," he thought. "The height might just be enough to see something I missed from down here." He was almost up to the elevators when he was intercepted by one of the girls from Research. "Jimmy, I've been looking for you all evening," she gushed. "They've just started the music and I was hoping you'd like to dance with me." Jimmy sighed but allowed himself to be dragged off to the makeshift dance floor. Maybe he would have better luck later when the place was quiet. At the sound of the music Bernie looked up from the babies and smiled at Ruth. "Care to join me on the dance floor, cupcake?" "I'd love to, Bernie." As the doctors exited the conference room, Clark turned back to Lois. "Honey, we need to talk." "Talk? Why do we need to do that, sweetheart?" Lois replied nervously. "Well, for one thing, Jimmy just told me that your laptop is missing." "He what? Why on earth would he tell you a thing like that? He must be pulling your leg. You know Jimmy - he's such a kidder." "Lo-is ..." "What?" "Jimmy isn't kidding and you know it." "Well...er, that is-" "And there's something important on that laptop, too, isn't there?" Before Lois could answer, Clark got *the look* on his face again. "What's the matter?" "It's a fire, in Suicide Slum. A bad one. I'd better-" "Go! And be careful." Clark kissed her quickly. "I will be. But we still have to talk when I get back." "Of course." * * * The fire in Suicide Slum was followed by a 20-car pileup on the expressway, which was in turn followed by a hostage crisis at a local post office. Lois followed Clark's activities around Metropolis with mixed emotions. As much as she missed him, she was relieved that he wasn't there to continue their talk. Particularly since she had no idea what she was going to say to him. Lois sighed. At times like this she wished she really could become invisible. Clark drifted in mid-air for a moment as he overheard the report of a brawl at the Ace o' Clubs. "'Tis the season," he said sourly and flew back towards Suicide Slum. Continued in part 4/7 ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 20 Dec 1999 19:02:04 EST Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: "Eileen F. Ray" Subject: NEW " WE WISH YOU A *WARY* CHRISTMAS " Part 1 of 7 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit TITLE: WE WISH YOU A *WARY* CHRISTMAS PART 1/7 AUTHOR: An IRC Round Robin by Zoomway (zoomway@aol.com); Melisma (dlgray@usa.net); Eraygun (Eraygun@aol.com); lady_hawk (lhilliar@idirect.com); WendyMR (ida18@HRM.KEELE.AC.UK) Chrispat (cp13607@aol.com); ChiefPam (jernigan@bellsouth.net) RATING: PG-13 SUMMARY: It's a little over three months since the birth of the twins and Lois and Clark are in full holiday mode preparing for the babies' first Christmas. However, the preparations have to be moved to the back burner when Lois' journal is apparently stolen and they have to recover it before Clark's *super* secret is revealed to the world. FEEDBACK: All comments public and private are welcome. __________________________ "Clark, please stand still," Lois admonished as she swept a comb through Clark's hair. "Honey, I can comb my own hair." "Usually, yes, but you have your ... Christmas hyper thing going. I'm surprised you aren't out building a snowman or telling the twins that Night Before Christmas story." Clark winked at her. "I told them that one last night while you were soaking in the tub." "There," she sighed. "Now you don't look like one of those actors who combs with an eggbeater and can't remember how to shave." "Thank you," he whispered and kissed her softly. "I guess I get a little carried away, but I *love* Christmas." "Really?" Lois asked with a smile. "You hide it so well." "Plus," he added, wrapping his arms around her, "it's the babies' first Christmas, and we get to show them off at the Planet." Lois nuzzled Clark's neck. "The proud daddy." "Look who's talking," he whispered against her hair. "You had sixty photos made of them and mailed out to everyone, even the car insurance guy." Lois shrugged as she pulled away. "He gave us great rates this year." "Uh-huh." "Okay, so I'm a little proud, too." Clark tipped his head to the side teasingly. "A 'little'?" Lois sighed. "Okay, they're my masterpiece. Now go bundle up Pulitzer and Nobel, or we'll be late for the party." Clark saluted. "Already bundled and accounted for." "Superman is quick today," she said and drew a finger down his jaw. "Only when he has to be, but last night..." Lois quickly moved her finger to his lips. "Don't tempt me to be *really* late for the party. Okay, we have the babies, our coats and... oh, would you get my laptop, Clark." "Lois, even you wouldn't work at a party." "No," she smiled. "Though it scares me that I probably would have a few years ago. It's just that Jimmy wanted to make sure it's Y2K compliant. It's a little old. You know, from back when a GIG of memory was a lot." Clark nodded. "Oh yeah, the one that runs on kerosene. I'll get it," he said, and blurred out of sight. "Not so fast!" Too late. Oh, well, maybe he wasn't meant to have his hair combed after all. Sure enough, within a few seconds her husband had returned, his hair sticking straight up again. Lois resignedly pulled out her comb, but when she also pulled out the tiny aerosol can of hairspray, Clark threw up his hands in protest. "No, no, honey, not the hairspray - you know it chokes me. I'll be good, I promise. No supermoving at all..." Lois giggled. "At least, not until we get home, you mean. Come on - we're gonna be late to the party." In a flash she had put on her coat and scooped up Joanna in her carrier and the diaper bag. Clark grinned and added Matthew's carrier, his wallet and the car keys to the burden in his hands, then followed his wife out the door. * * * "Here you go, Jimmy," Lois grinned, shifting Joanna and the diaper bag to the other hip so she could pass the laptop over without dropping everything. "Thanks, Lois. Just give me a day or two and this will be the hippest, most modern laptop you ever saw." Jimmy took the computer, but the babies had his attention. "Hey, you two, look what Uncle Jimmy got you for Christmas..." Lois eyed with disdain the two Teletubbies dolls Jimmy was waving in front of the twins. "Oh, lord, not you too, Jimmy?!" "What?! What did I do?" Clark chuckled and pointed at the stuffed toys. "It's the dolls, Jimmy." "What about them? I thought they were the latest thing for kids." "What they are is a crime against humanity!" "Now, honey-" "Okay, maybe that's a bit strong, but they're pretty darn close to it. I think it's mind-rot television for preschoolers and Matt and Jo are not going to get sucked into it." Jimmy shook his head slowly. "Then I guess I should get rid of the dolls?" "Sounds like a good idea to me, Jimmy." * * * After getting Lois and the babies settled in the conference room, Clark ventured back out on the newsroom floor and headed for the buffet table. He made his way across the room, meeting and greeting various members of the Planet staff, including Allie Anderson, a motherly middle-aged woman who worked in the Research Department. "Happy Holidays, Allie," Clark said, giving her a warm smile. "Merry Christmas, Clark. I was hoping I'd see you. Are Lois and the babies here?" "Yep, they're over in the conference room and I was sent out to forage for food. Lois told me I had to snare a piece of your famous fudge mocha cheesecake and it always goes fast." Allie frowned slightly. "I'm afraid there's no cheesecake this year, Clark. What with my mother passing away and all, I just haven't been in a festive mood." "I'm sorry, Allie-" "There's nothing to be sorry about, Clark. Mom was over ninety when her time came and she had a rich, full life." Allie sighed. "Anyway, I'll see you later. I've got to help set up the sound system." As Clark waved goodbye and turned back to buffet table, Dr. Klein and Dr. Friskin motioned for him to join them. "Hey, Bernie. Ruth," Clark said as he picked up two plates. "Glad you could make it." Klein leaned forward, glancing from side to side. "Just so you'll know, Clark, Perry told us that there have been some thefts at the Daily Planet. Nothing big, but I thought maybe you could tell Superman to keep an eye out." Clark frowned. "It bothers me when anyone steals, but particularly around Christmas time." Ruth sighed. "There is an increase in crime during holidays. Too much ready cash, packages unguarded. It seems to invite predators," she said, and bit the head off of a gingerbread man. Klein winced. "But the Planet? I don't like to think an employee would do something like that. It's like STAR Labs. Kind of a family atmosphere." "Bernie," Ruth laughed. "Remember the party at STAR Labs where some kind of laxative was put in the punch?" Klein put down his cup. "I didn't say it wasn't sometimes a dysfunctional family, Ruth." Clark nodded. "I'd hate to think it's a member of the staff. I mean we aren't a high security operation here. A lot of people from messengers to school tours come through here in any given week. Still," he sighed, "Maybe Superman can do some checking." Klein put a chocolate Santa on one of the plates Clark was filling. "It's for Lois when she feels better." Clark raised an eyebrow. "Feels better?" "Yes, I thought I heard her yelling something about her tummy." Clark grinned. "Tubby, Bernie, not tummy." "Ah," Klein nodded, and took the chocolate back. "No, a Teletubby .. never mind. I think I'll just get this plate to Lois while I'm ahead." Clark walked through the newsroom with his head slightly lowered so he could see over his glasses frames. Nothing seemed suspicious. Maybe the thief wouldn't strike at the party. He opened the door to the conference room. Lois was turned slightly as she nursed Matthew. Clark beamed. His unsettled feelings about the thefts vanished. "I love watching you nurse the babies. Have I said that yet today?" Lois returned his smile. "Not today, no." "Anything I can do to help?" "Can Kryptonian males nurse ...wait, forget I even asked!" Clark set the plates down on the table and lifted Lois and Matthew and began to sway them in his arms. "I asked my dad how to be a good father, and he gave me some good advice." Lois rested her head against his shoulder. "And that would be?" "He said being a good daddy is keeping the mommy happy." Continued in part 2/7 ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 20 Dec 1999 19:02:13 EST Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: "Eileen F. Ray" Subject: NEW " WE WISH YOU A *WARY* CHRISTMAS " Part 4 of 7 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit TITLE: WE WISH YOU A *WARY* CHRISTMAS PART: 4/7 AUTHOR: An IRC Round Robin RATING: PG-13 SUMMARY: It's a little over three months since the birth of the twins and Lois and Clark are in full holiday mode preparing for the babies' first Christmas. However, the preparations have to be moved to the back burner when Lois' journal is apparently stolen and they have to recover it before Clark's *super* secret is revealed to the world. FEEDBACK: All comments public and private are welcome. __________________________ * * * Lois set the baby carriers down next to the front door as she dug her keys out of her purse. She had passed carolers down the block and was glad they hadn't made their way to the townhouse yet. The mood she was in, "Deck the Halls" would take on a whole new meaning. Lois unlocked the door, picked up the babies, and was pleasantly surprised to find Martha and Jonathan seated in the living room. "Thank goodness," she said, followed by an exasperated sigh. "Oh, honey," Martha cooed and took one of the babies. "You look exhausted." Jonathan took the other and smiled. "Too much dancing?" "Dancing? Well, that's as good a word as any for what I've been doing," Lois grumbled and sat down heavily on the sofa. "Uh-oh," Jonathan said. "Trouble with Clark?" "What? No, Clark is an angel, as usual. I'd put him on top of the Christmas tree if he'd fit." Martha laughed and took a seat next to Lois. "He's out being Superman?" Lois nodded. "The man of steel has been busy all day, and that's the only thing that's saved my neck up to now." Jonathan started to eat a cookie, received a reproving look from Martha, and handed it to Lois. "You think Clark will be upset by something?" he asked, wistfully watching as Lois took a bite of the cookie. "Upset?" Lois repeated, as if Jonathan had spoken a foreign phrase she was utterly unfamiliar with. "Clark is always honest with me, but I guess I haven't been quite as honest with him," she said, and offered a bite of her cookie to Jonathan. He looked at Martha, sighed, and looked back. "No thanks, I've had plenty." "Did you lie about something, honey?" Martha asked, trying to follow Lois' one-sided conversation. "Is not telling him something a lie? If so, I lied." Jonathan shook his head. "No, that's not a lie. I mean I told Martha I was going to burn all evidence of Clark's spaceship after some men came nosing around, and I meant it ... but I couldn't do it. It was part of Clark. But..." "But," Martha interrupted, "he never told me that he'd changed his mind and hidden it instead." Jonathan tugged at his collar. "I could sure use a cookie." Lois smiled. "When did you find out, Martha?" "Remember the year you met Clark?" "*That* long? Sheesh, it's a good thing I found out Clark is Superman on my own." "Honey, what is it you didn't tell Clark?" * * * "Hey, hey, come on guys, it's almost Christmas!" Superman shouted as a chair was broken over his head. The Ace o' Clubs was a lot of things, but dull was never one of them. "Lay off Sooperman, he's my fav'rit'!" Bibbo said, and butted the man in the stomach with his head. Clark stood there, arms folded, all Supermanish, but decided there was little he could do here. Some fires just had to burn themselves out naturally. "Great fight, ain't it," a man in a torn sailor's uniform said. "Yeah, great," Superman replied. "What started it?" "Oh, Pockets was puttin' up Christmas decorations for Bibbo, but he didn't take the Halloween stuff down first. The wires shorted, and that Santa Claus on the roof that waves ... have ya seen it, Supes?" "No, haven't seen it." "Well, the Halloween wires crossed with the Christmas ones, shorted out, and Santa's arm waved clean off, busted through the skylight, and landed in the chili." "The chili?" "Yeah, it'll put hair on yer chest. Anyhoo, the chef got sore, and started cussin' out Pockets. I don't know what he was sayin' 'cause he don't speak English too good." "Must be catching," Clark muttered. "It's been a great fight ever since. You ain't really gonna bust it up, are ya, Supes?" Clark waved the man's breath away. "I'm sure having more nog than egg in the eggnog hasn't helped much." "Oh yeah, it's real good." Clark patted the sailor on the shoulder. "I guess I'll just let you guys have fun here, and head home." "You got a home, Supes?" "I ... uh..." "They say Batman lives in a cave. Have you met Batman?" "Once or twice." "Does he live in a cave?" "I never met him at ... home," Clark said hastily, and departed. * * * Lois shrugged. "That's the whole story, and I'm sure Clark won't be too happy about it." Jonathan glanced up. "You won't have to wait long to find out," he said, indicating Clark's entrance through the window. Lois, Jonathan and Martha all rose from the sofa in unison as Clark spun from cape to T-shirt and jeans. It was an awkward moment, since the Kents, like Lois, had temporarily misplaced their smiles. Clark slipped his glasses into place. "No offense," he joked, "but you look like a police line-up. Anything wrong?" "Clark," Lois said as she approached him. "The laptop is still missing, and I was hoping to get it back before I had to tell you exactly what's on it." Martha nudged Jonathan. "Honey, we'll take the babies upstairs." Jonathan nodded as he placed some cookies in his pocket. "And make sure they have a nice nap." Lois leaned against Clark as she watched the Kents ascend the stairs. She found it easier to look anywhere but in Clark's eyes. He sighed, putting an arm around her shoulder and walking her back to the sofa. "Honey, what is it?" Lois sat down, but kept her face lowered. "I guess I wasn't thinking. I was sure my journal was on the desktop ... I mean it is on the desktop computer, but I had transferred it to the laptop months ago ... and forgot. I meant to delete it ... but ..." "Lois," he whispered and rubbed his hand across her shoulders. "I just want the truth. I don't care how bad it is, I just want to know what you're upset about so I can help. Or at least," he added with a smile, "be upset with you. What's in the journal?" Lois finally met his gaze. "It's something I hoped to leave for our children. Kind of a legacy." "About?" "Us." Clark took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "Lois and Clark ... and Superman?" "Yes," she said, her voice gone small. "I'm so sorry, Clark. It's one of those things that seemed like a good idea at the time, but when something like this happens," she sighed, "I can almost hear Jay Leno asking, 'What the hell were you thinking'? And believe me, Clark," she added quickly, "if someone reads that journal and decides to offer it for public consumption, being invited to the Tonight Show isn't too farfetched." Clark ran a hand through his hair. "I guess it's pretty thorough." "Thorough?" Lois managed a sardonic laugh. "I even have an A through Z cross-index." "I guess if you wanted to leave a complete journal behind for the children, you'd ... there's something for 'Z'?" "Lying to Sergeant Zymeck to cover for the jewelry store robbery." Clark closed his eyes. "Oh, boy." "Clark," Lois said softly and rubbed his arm. "Ever since I found out I was pregnant, I've been doing a lot of personal reassessing of my life and thinking about what used to be important to me versus what *is* important to me now." "Like maybe quitting the Planet to be a stay-at-home mom." Lois nodded. "And it's not even the fact that our kids could be special or different from other kids, Clark. It's just that I've decided I don't want to be chasing down a lead when the babies take their first steps or say their first words." "Sounds like my old nightmares of having to be Superman and missing out on important moments in my children's lives," Clark said soberly. "Oh, Clark," she sighed and laid her head against his shoulder. "You *have* to be Superman because no one else *can* be, and whether you believe it or not, you're here for me when I really need you and you'll be here for our children when *they* really need you. But," she added with a shrug, "the world can get by with one less journalist." "Maybe the world can, but I'm not so sure about me." Lois smiled. "I'll always be your partner, Clark-- I don't think I'd know how *not* to be-- but maybe you can just think of our home as the branch office of Lane and Kent." Lois waited for a response, but didn't try to coax one. She'd learned from experience that was the best approach because Clark had two modes: 'knee jerk' and 'deep contemplation'. Happily the 'knee jerk' zone had passed. Finally Clark took her hand and tipped his head, indicating he wanted her to rise with him. She wasn't sure what he was up to as they approached the window and he opened it with his breath, but she was at least fairly sure he wasn't planning on throwing her out. With the window open, she could hear the carolers she had passed earlier. Clark reached into his pocket and threw a few bills down to the Victorian-attired singers. As the children in the group gleefully scooped up the money, a man stepped forward, doffing his hat. "Thank you," he shouted up to the window. "Have you a request, sir?" "'It Came Upon a Midnight Clear'." Continued in part 5/7 ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 20 Dec 1999 19:02:15 EST Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: "Eileen F. Ray" Subject: NEW " WE WISH YOU A *WARY* CHRISTMAS " Part 5 of 7 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit ITLE: WE WISH YOU A *WARY* CHRISTMAS PART: 5/7 AUTHOR: An IRC Round Robin RATING: PG-13 SUMMARY: It's a little over three months since the birth of the twins and Lois and Clark are in full holiday mode preparing for the babies' first Christmas. However, the preparations have to be moved to the back burner when Lois' journal is apparently stolen and they have to recover it before Clark's *super* secret is revealed to the world. FEEDBACK: All comments public and private are welcome. __________________________ "Very good, sir!" "Oh, Clark," Lois whispered and dropped her head against his shoulder. "I don't know if you're in total denial about the laptop, or if I have a full-fledged rant coming later, but ... thank you." Clark rested his head atop hers. "Then you remember." "Of course I remember. Three years ago we stood at my apartment window and listened to the carolers. I took your hand and didn't let go." "Exactly," he whispered. "We both held on. We'll find that laptop. Besides," he added, his voice gone smoky. "I wanted so badly to kiss you that night. I won't pass the chance up twice." Lois turned into his embrace and the kiss that was waiting for her. It was three years late, but worth the wait. As Clark's lips closed over hers, Lois' mind drifted back to that night three years earlier. She had been all alone in her apartment that Christmas Eve, all of her friends and family having had other plans. She'd heard the sound of rushing wind outside her window, and had thought, with a sudden leap of hope, that Superman had come to join her, but it had been Clark who'd knocked at her door. She remembered his present to her, the beautiful star which, he'd said, was from both him and Superman. And there had been an expression in his eyes as she'd opened it.... How had she not recognized just how much he loved her? And then there had been the carolers. It had been an incredibly romantic moment, she'd even known that at the time. As she'd stood next to Clark, her hand in his, his head tilted so that it was resting on hers, her heart had skipped a beat waiting for him to turn towards her.... She'd expected that he would kiss her then; she'd ached inside for him to do just that. He would wait until the carol had ended, then he'd turn her in his arms and tilt her chin up to him, and.... But when the carolers had finished and silence had once again descended, Clark had stood awkwardly for a moment before muttering something indistinct and moving away from her. Lois had stood still, deeply disappointed and wondering whether he simply hadn't felt anything at all during the few moments they'd been standing together. Had he not been affected by the sheer romance of it? But now, three years later and with a lot of explanations behind them, she understood perfectly. He *had* been deeply in love with her then, but having had his love rejected once, he'd been scared to try again. Her courageous superhero, so uncertain when it came to his emotions and his love for her. As the carolers ended their rendition, Clark's mouth lifted from hers and moved to caress her earlobe. "Sweetheart, I love you. Nothing matters beside that, I promise." Lois caught his arm. "Clark - what if whoever has the laptop reads my journal and finds out that you're Superman? Our lives will be destroyed - Matt and Jo will never be safe!" Clark was silent for a moment, which only served to make Lois feel even worse. Then he inhaled deeply, his dark eyes gazing fondly at her. "Honey, if that happens, we'll deal with it. We've always known that there's a possibility it'll happen some day." His sensitive fingers traced her cheekbones before trailing into her hair, combing the tresses away from her face. "But let's not assume the worst before it happens, okay? We'll get it back. We'll find whoever has it and with any luck they won't even have got past your security password." Lois gulped. "Um... password?" Clark's expression turned into a frown. "Honey... you *did* password-protect the file, didn't you?" "Um... I know you and Jimmy tell me I should, but... but I don't always remember and... and I don't think I did with this file." Tears were pricking at her eyes now. Not that she was afraid of Clark's anger. No, she was more upset at her own stupidity. Her careless actions had put their family's safety and privacy at risk, and for that she would never be able to forgive herself. Clark would forgive her, but that was only because he was the kindest, most loving man she had ever met. Unable to bear his sympathy any longer, she pulled away from his embrace, willing him to yell at her so that she could at least feel punished in some way for her carelessness. "Lois," he spoke quietly, not wanting to upset her any more than she already was. "Just remember that I love you and the twins more than anything else in the world. There's no sense in punishing yourself over this." Before she was able to reply, one of the twins began to cry. Lois was glad of the distraction and vanished up the stairs. It was almost an hour later when she had finally fed both of the babies and got them back to sleep. After giving her some time to settle down, Clark had joined her in the nursery and watched quietly while she fed them. He helped get them settled for the night and then gently led her into their bedroom. "It will all look better in the morning, Lois." he said. "We'll sit down with Mom and Dad and sort out a plan." * * * The next morning, Lois awoke to the wonderful smell of bacon and eggs. She was glad that the twins were starting to sleep through the night. She would need all her energy to help get the laptop back. She was just about to get up to check on the babies when Clark came in with a cup of herbal tea. "Just stay there and drink this while I check on the twins. I'll get them changed and then bring them in for breakfast." Lois grabbed his hand and pulled him down for a quick kiss. "I love you, sweetheart," she said and let him go get the babies. While she was nursing them, Clark went back downstairs for a tray with Lois' breakfast. Once everyone had been fed and the babies were tucked back up in their cribs for a morning nap, Lois and Clark went downstairs for a family conference. Jonathan and Martha were sitting at the kitchen table waiting for them. "Morning and thanks for breakfast," Lois said as they sat down. "The babies are all set for the next few hours so it's time to put a plan together." "I guess the first thing to do is to make a few calls to the 'usual suspects'." "Who?" Jonathan asked. Clark chuckled. "Over the years Lois and I have built up a kind of network of sources, informants-" "Snitches," Martha said matter-of-factly. Lois smirked. "Exactly." Clark shrugged and grinned. "Okay, snitches. I guess the best one to check would be Bobby Bigmouth. He might know something about the thefts that have been occurring at the Planet." Lois nodded in agreement. "We should also check with Bill Henderson and Maggie Sawyer. Maybe the MPD has some leads." "Right-" Clark began but he suddenly grew silent and a faraway look came into his eyes. "Bank robbery?" Lois asked. Clark shook his head. "Earthquake?" Martha suggested. "Actually it's a Santa emergency. I just remembered I promised the Coates Orphanage I'd help Santa hand out gifts this morning. I'm sorry, honey-" Lois smiled warmly. "There's nothing to be sorry for. I knew when I married you that you were a world class sentimental softy. I wouldn't have you any other way." She kissed him quickly. "Hurry back, and give my best to Santa." "All right, honey, I'll be sure to do that. Now promise me that you'll try not to do anything too *interesting* while I'm gone, okay?" Clark grinned, spun into his costume, and disappeared in a blur. "Well, I guess that puts this planning session on hold," Jonathan said as he began to clear away the breakfast dishes. "What makes you think that?" Lois asked. "Well, Clark just said-" "I'm not planning to do anything interesting. Just make a few phone calls, that's all. Nothing to worry about." Half an hour later, Lois threw the cordless phone disgustedly on the couch. She hadn't been able to reach any of their snitches. She looked at her watch and grimaced. The babies would probably need to be fed pretty soon, but maybe Clark would be back by then. They could go out and see if they could track somebody down. If he wasn't, well... * * * Clark gave out the last of the gifts and accepted the last hug from the kids. After a last round of Merry Christmases and handshakes from the staff, he waved to them all and rose into the air. The children clapped and cheered as he suddenly blurred out of sight. Clark grinned to himself. He knew they loved watching him do that, so he always tried to make it a little dramatic for them. As soon as he was safely out of sight, he changed direction and landed in the alley behind Louie's pool hall. He spun into his Clark Kent clothes and entered the building. This time he wasn't met with hostility, but was immediately shown into Louie's office. Louie grinned when he saw who his visitor was. "Well, well, well, if it isn't the new poppa. How're the kids...keepin' ya up at night?" Clark shook Louie's outstretched hand. "Everyone is fine, Louie, but I need a favor. Someone has been lifting stuff from the Planet including Lois' laptop and we'd appreciate you keeping an eye out for it." He whistled. "Good luck with getting that laptop back. Those go pretty fast." Clark sighed. "That's what I was afraid of, but anything you can find out will help." "You got a list of what's been ripped off?" Clark shook his head. "Not yet, they're still putting it together at the Planet right now, but I'll drop it back by as soon as it's done." "Sounds good to me." "If anything comes up just give me a call. You have our number, right?" "Sure thing, kid. Anything for you and Lois. I'll get my guys right on it." Continued in part 6/7 ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 20 Dec 1999 19:02:20 EST Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: "Eileen F. Ray" Subject: NEW " WE WISH YOU A *WARY* CHRISTMAS " Part 7 of 7 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit TITLE: WE WISH YOU A *WARY* CHRISTMAS PART: 7/7 AUTHOR: An IRC Round Robin RATING: PG-13 SUMMARY: It's a little over three months since the birth of the twins and Lois and Clark are in full holiday mode preparing for the babies' first Christmas. However, the preparations have to be moved to the back burner when Lois' journal is apparently stolen and they have to recover it before Clark's *super* secret is revealed to the world. FEEDBACK: All comments public and private are welcome. ____________________ "Jeez, I don't think I've ever been down this deep in the morgue before," Jimmy said warily. "It's kind of creepy. I keep expecting the cigarette-smoking guy from the X-Files to turn up." "It's not that bad once you get used to it, Jimmy. Clark and I have been down here quite a bit." "Oh, really?" Perry asked as he raised one eyebrow. "Yes, for research," Clark added hastily, "but what we want to see is right around this corner." "Great shades of Elvis! It looks like someone has been living down here." "Hey, Chief, there's that old TV set and Cat's 'Virginia is for Lovers' coffee mug." "Well, I'm glad we found that item. Now her collection remains intact," Lois said sarcastically. "But whose room is this?" Perry asked. "Mine, I'm afraid." All eyes turned to see Allie Anderson. "Allie, what do you mean this is your room? You've been living down here?" Perry asked. "What the Sam Hill has been going on?!" "Take it easy, Chief," Clark said calmly. "I think Allie's more than willing to tell us what's going on. Isn't that right?" The woman sighed and sat down wearily on a cot in the corner. "I guess so, but it's a long story." Lois and Clark both smiled at Allie warmly. "We've got plenty of time." "Well, when my mom got sick this last time the insurance didn't cover a lot of her treatment and care. We used all her savings and mine but that didn't come close to covering it. So I started paying the medical bills and while I paid them my own bills kept piling up. Finally I got behind in everything including my rent and I was evicted from my apartment." "Great shades of Elvis." "I needed somewhere to stay, but I couldn't afford another place and I couldn't face living in a homeless shelter so I sold most of my stuff and moved in down here." "So that explains why you were always the first person here in the mornings and the last person to leave at night," Jimmy interjected. Allie nodded. "It's easy to be on time when you live on site." "And the missing items?" Lois asked. "I borrowed a few things from the newsroom to make it a little more livable down here. I was going to return them as soon as I could." "Allie," Lois said softly as she took a seat on the cot. "You could have come to Clark and me about this. I know we haven't been close, but I'll never forget you're the one person in Research who didn't send Clark condolence fudge ..." "Or throw darts at Superman," Clark added as he took Lois' hand. "We'd have been more than happy to help out." "Or the hardship fund," Perry offered. "That's what it's there for, Allie. I can't imagine the Planet getting along half as well as it does without you keeping the young ones in line and on the ball. Right, Jimmy?" Jimmy blinked. "Definitely, Chief. Allie and I keep the kids in line." Perry rolled his eyes. "Allie, let me look into the hardship loan program for you." Allie smiled as she rose from the cot. "I appreciate this more than I can say, but my retirement is next month, and once I get the lump sum from my pension I should be able to pay everything off and have a fresh start. I couldn't really see putting anyone out for just a month's wait," she said, but raised a hand to stave off comments. "I've been fine, really. The Planet's always been my second home and you're all like family to me and I've never really regretted that ... well, not until this one," she said, indicating Clark, "came to the Daily Planet." Clark put a hand on his chest. "Me?" Allie nodded. "You were different. You didn't come here looking for a Pulitzer or to set the world on fire. You were looking for something entirely different," she said, and glanced at Lois. Lois blushed. "Well, I'm entirely different, that's for sure." Allie laughed. "I rooted for you right from the beginning, Clark. Sometimes I even wanted to catch Superman and tell him to make up his mind about Lois or butt out of the competition. You know those tights can be very distracting to women." "Amen," Lois interjected as her blush deepened. "But why root for me instead of Superman or ..." "Dan Scardino?" "Ouch, yeah, that guy." "Because Lois needed you, not them." "Amen," Lois repeated more soberly, and glanced up at Clark as she drew her thumb across the back of his hand. It was Clark's turn to blush. "Well, I needed Lois, too." "You needed her *more*," Allie corrected. "I knew you could lose your job, the Planet, and everything else, but if you had her, you'd get by. That's why you were different." Clark swallowed. That was almost word for word what he had told Lois long ago. "You're right," he said softly. Perry stepped forward. "Allie, how about at least spending the rest of your time before retirement with Alice and me. Then when you get your pension, you should be able to find a nice little apartment in town, and we'll throw a housewarming." Allie glanced around her humble surroundings. "I accept, Mr. White. I'm proud, but not stupid." Perry laughed heartily. "Thatagirl!" "I think living in a small apartment will suit me after this, though I had been saving for a place in the country. Isn't that a silly dream for someone who's lived in the city all her life?" "I don't think so," Jimmy said and shook his head. "I stayed in Smallville for a while last year, and aside from being a Kryptonian slave, it was a real nice place." "Wayne Irig," Lois blurted. Clark frowned, "Wayne Irig?" "Sweetheart, you said that he moved into town because he couldn't stand living alone in his old farmhouse after his wife died, and he wanted to lease it out." "Honey, how did you remember that? I only mentioned it in passing." "The caramel apples ... Wayne Irig ... I took a memory association course. I chose food for memory keys ... you're pasta, by the way ... and do I really have to explain this any further?" "No," Clark laughed, "but I was really starting to like it." "Me too," Jimmy added. "What food am I?" Lois sighed loudly, "Bacon double cheeseburger, lettuce, tomato, no onion." "Wow," Jimmy whispered. "That's me, all right." "Allie," Clark interrupted. "Lois is right. Wayne's place is one of the nicest in the county. Beautiful view, duck pond and your own garden." "Sold!" Allie said cheerfully. "Great, I'll phone Wayne tonight. When your pension starts, you'll be all ready to move in." "Maybe Superman can fly you out there. It'll give you a chance to ask him why he dumped me." "Lois--" "Just kidding," she said as she rose from the cot and slipped her arm around Clark's waist. "Bless you both," Allie said, and hugged them. Clark smiled. "Merry Christmas, Allie." "I actually think it will be," she said with a smile. "All right, let's all pull out," Perry interrupted. "No need to get sloppy about this," he said, and sniffed. Perry, Jimmy and Allie all started heading up the stairs. Jimmy glanced back down at Lois and Clark. "Aren't you guys coming up with us?" Clark shrugged. "We thought we'd pack some of Allie's things up and put the other stuff back where it belongs." Jimmy nodded. "Need any help?" "No!" they said in unison and too eagerly. Jimmy winked knowingly. "Gotcha. What about the laptop, Lois?" "Oh, I'll pick it up on the way out. I have the combination to the vault." "For real? How long before I get the combination?" Lois averted her glance. "Oh, whenever you can walk up behind Perry quietly enough while he's spinning the dial." Jimmy laughed. "Goodnight, guys. Merry Christmas." "Merry Christmas, Jimmy." Clark turned to Lois as soon as the stairwell door closed. "Merry Christmas, honey." "Merry Christmas, Clark," she whispered against his lips as she pulled the chain, putting out the light. THE END ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 20 Dec 1999 19:02:18 EST Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: "Eileen F. Ray" Subject: NEW " WE WISH YOU A *WARY* CHRISTMAS " Part 6 of 7 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit ITLE: WE WISH YOU A *WARY* CHRISTMAS PART: 6/7 AUTHOR: An IRC Round Robin RATING: PG-13 SUMMARY: It's a little over three months since the birth of the twins and Lois and Clark are in full holiday mode preparing for the babies' first Christmas. However, the preparations have to be moved to the back burner when Lois' journal is apparently stolen and they have to recover it before Clark's *super* secret is revealed to the world. FEEDBACK: All comments public and private are welcome. __________________________ * * * Meanwhile, back at the townhouse, Lois closed the door of the nursery, and tiptoed to the stairs. Martha met her at the bottom. "Are they asleep again?" "Yes. Listen, Martha, would you mind keeping an eye on them for a few minutes? I'm going to see if I can find Bobby." "Not unless I go too," Jonathan said as he entered the room. Lois thought about protesting, but even though Clark wasn't their son by blood, that fixed gaze of determination was all too familiar. Lois shrugged and took his arm. "This should be eye-opening." "Oh, my," Martha said, and then placed her fingertips on her lips and merely shook her head. She tried to convince herself that he only wanted out of the house so that he could finally eat the cookies he'd hid in his pocket. Still, she hoped he'd be careful. "So," Jonathan said as Lois pulled out of the driveway. "Where do we start?" Lois half-smiled. "Where the elite never meet. The Ace o' Clubs in Suicide Slum." "That sounds familiar." "Oh," Lois said dismissively as she took a sharp turn. "I was Wanda Detroit there, but Bibbo understands what happened back then ... I think." "Ah," Jonathan nodded. "I hear pretty rough trade frequents that place. I'm glad I decided to tag along." "Me too," Lois said sweetly and patted his leg, then suddenly slammed on her breaks and put her head out the window. "Try your turn signal next time, jackass!" Jonathan tapped his pocket and sighed with relief that the abrupt halt had not crushed the cookies when he'd been given a closer than expected look at the jeep's dashboard. Lois blushed. "I'm sorry, Jonathan, I'm not like this ... well, not every day ... well, when I'm not driving." "No problem, Lois. I've been driving with Martha for three decades." He readjusted his seatbelt. "Though she's more the hand gesture type ... uh, not *that* hand gesture. It's taken me years to decipher them." Lois laughed as she took the waterfront exit. "I am sorry, Jonathan, really, but my biggest thrill was getting Clark to yell out the window on occasion. For some reason that just turns me on ... that is, it's so unusual for him ..." "I understand, Lois. Martha's drive-don't-kiss gesture affected me the same way." "Well," Lois said with a determined sigh, "here we are." "That Santa on the roof only has one arm." "Oh, that reminds me. Don't eat the chili," she said as she exited the jeep. Jonathan smoothed back his hair. "Lois, I wouldn't even drink the water here." "Good plan." She smiled and took his arm again. Surely Clark would forgive her for taking his father to Metropolis' premiere den of iniquity ... someday. * * * Clark entered the nursery window. "Hi, Mom," he said and gave her a hug. He looked at the twins and then scanned the house. "Where's Lois?" "Lois?" "Petite, sexy brunette wearing a ring like mine, remember?" "Oh, honey," she laughed nervously. "She just ... stepped out for a while." Clark straightened and folded his arms. "Okay, let's have it." Martha sighed. "She and your father went out to find that Bobby Bigmouth person." "*Dad* went with her?" Martha shrugged. "He insisted." "Oh, boy, I hope Lois doesn't ... I hope ... I've gotta go." Martha looked at the babies when the window clattered shut. They stirred only slightly. Martha pulled up the cover on Matthew. "That was your father, dear. He's just going to find your grandfather, who really has it coming when he gets back." * * * Clark flew over Metropolis scanning for the jeep and Lois, trying to follow the scent of his mother's homemade gingerbread cookies, but this time of year the scent was everywhere. He did, however, spot Bobby Bigmouth coming out of Ralph's Pagoda. Clark swooped to a stop in front of him. "Bobby Bigmouth?" "Superman? Hey, you know me?" "Well, I know Lois and Clark and they know you. Have you seen or spoken to Lois recently?" Bobby shook his head. "Nah, not for a while, and ya know, Superman, she always had the best bribes. Clark was the nice one, though." Clark cleared his throat. "She was looking for you. She needed information on a stolen laptop. Stolen from the Planet." Bobby suddenly looked uncomfortable and belched loudly. "The Planet, huh? Well, I'm sure it'll turn up. I should get going, hope ya find Lois," he said and placed a hand on his stomach. "I must have eaten too fast." Clark sighed and was airborne once again. Where was she? Where were *they*? They weren't at Bobby's usual haunts, not that he really had any. Clark thought Ralph's Pagoda could be scratched off the list in the future. As he neared the waterfront, he got a sinking feeling. He x-rayed the Ace o' Clubs. "She couldn't... yep, she could." Deciding to remain in 'the suit', he entered the club where an extremely noisy Christmas party was in full swing. The sailor from the night before was moving towards Lois, which was no surprise since she was the most attractive woman there, and one of the few conscious ones. "Wanna dance, baby?" Lois literally recoiled from his breath. "Okay. We'll pick separate counties and exchange photos." Jonathan stepped forward. "Please leave the young lady alone." The sailor fixed his eyes, a literal roadmap of bloodshot veins, on Jonathan. "Who're you? You her old man ... real old man." Clark stepped in front of Jonathan and faced the sailor. "No, I am." Lois' eyes widened. "Superman is just kidding," she said, and tidied what was left draped on the sailor that resembled a uniform. "We're not married ... yet." The sailor backpedaled quickly. "Sorry, Superman, didn't mean to tread on your toes." Clark turned to the intrepid investigators. "Lois, Mr. Kent, could I see you outside for a few minutes?" He quickly ushered Lois and his dad out of the smoke-filled bar and over towards the relative quiet of the parking lot. "Care to explain what you were both doing in there?" "I was trying to find Bobby Bigmouth and get some information on the things missing from the Planet," Lois tried to explain. "And I thought I should come along just in case there was any trouble," Jonathan continued. "Well I found Bobby and he didn't have any leads. I guess our only hope right now is Louie." Clark pulled a folded piece of paper out of his belt. "I guess I'd better get this list to him." "Clark, before you do that can you give us a lift back to the townhouse? I'd like to go over that list of missing items before you give it to Louie." Lois and Jonathan got back into the Jeep, buckled up the seatbelts and let Clark pick them up and take them back home. He dropped the Jeep off in the driveway and took off. Once out of sight, he circled back, landed, and spun back into jeans as he entered the house. Everyone regrouped back at the kitchen table and Clark pulled out the list of items again. "Look at this, Clark," Lois said. "The laptop seems to be out of place on this list. There's the old black and white TV from the staff lounge, a coffee cup that Cat left behind, an old sweater and other odds and ends. I know the laptop is old," she continued, "but it doesn't fit with the rest of this stuff." "Okay, let's call Perry and get him to meet us at the Planet." With that, Clark picked up the phone from where Lois had left it and arranged for all of them to meet at the newspaper. * * * Lois and Clark arrived ahead of Perry so Clark used the opportunity to scan the building. He wasn't entirely sure what he was looking for, but he would know it when he found it. They went up to the newsroom to wait for Perry and found Jimmy looking rather upset. "I've looked everywhere I can think of for your laptop, but there's no sign of it anywhere." Perry stepped off the elevator just in time to hear Jimmy's last statement. "Is that what all this is about?" Perry asked as he joined them in the conference room. Jimmy gave a rather half-hearted nod. "Not entirely, Chief," Clark replied. "The laptop is one thing, but I think I know where all the other things have been disappearing to." "Oh, well, I know where your laptop is. I put it in the vault during the party last night along with all the other valuables. With all those people in the newsroom, I didn't want anything to go missing," Perry explained, clearing up one mystery. "So where'd the other things go?" Jimmy asked. "Come with me down to the morgue and I'll show you," Clark replied and led the way down to where all the back issues of the Planet were kept. Continued in part 7/7 ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 20 Dec 1999 21:38:53 EST Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: "Eileen F. Ray" Subject: NEW " WE WISH YOU A *WARY* CHRISTMAS " Addendum MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Hi everyone. Just one more thing needs to be added to the story ;) The writers would like to acknowledge that the character Allie and her situation were inspired by the storyline in Adventures of Superman #492: 'Homeless for the Holidays' which was written by Roger Stern with artwork by Dan Jurgens. Cheers, Eileen ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 20 Dec 1999 22:04:26 EST Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: No Name Available Subject: Re: El-symbol? MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit In a message dated 12/20/1999 5:07:14 PM Eastern Standard Time, MsLoisette@AOL.COM writes: << and i do remember Alt-Clark asking her if she could sew and she said "well actually i am not sure but we are about to find out!" >> I think the question was could she sew as well as Martha... --Laurie ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 21 Dec 1999 03:09:06 -0000 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: LabRat Subject: Fanfic Question MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="Windows-1252" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Hey guys! Yup, with my usual flair for good timing, I'm mailing again for help just when the list goes dead over the Christmas hols. Not to mention the Muse returning from her vacation on Mars and deciding we really *should* take a stab at writing some of Second Degree Burns at 3.07 am. ;) Anyway.....the question: In quite a few fanfic I've seen reference to a diner called The Daily Java. Is this an invention of the fans, does anyone know? Or is it something that appeared on screen that I just haven't noticed and part of the show's canon? I know there's a coffee shop in the lobby of the Planet, but I can't remember seeing it called anything. Thanks!! LabRat :) Doc. Klein's LabRat labrat@starlabs.fsnet.co.uk "A celebrity is a person who works hard all his life to become well known, then wears dark glasses to avoid being recognised." -- Fred Allen "Fame is being asked to sign your autograph on the back of a cigarette packet." -- Billy Connolly. ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 20 Dec 1999 22:14:14 EST Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: No Name Available Subject: Re: Fanfic Question MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit In a message dated 12/20/1999 10:12:30 PM Eastern Standard Time, labrat@STARLABS.FSNET.CO.UK writes: << In quite a few fanfic I've seen reference to a diner called The Daily Java. Is this an invention of the fans, does anyone know? >> Wasn't that the coffee cart in front of the Planet? --Laurie ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 20 Dec 1999 22:26:03 EST Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: The Zoomway Subject: Re: Fanfic Question MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit In a message dated 12/20/99 9:14:34 PM Central Standard Time, Larus2407@AOL.COM writes: << << In quite a few fanfic I've seen reference to a diner called The Daily Java. Is this an invention of the fans, does anyone know? >> Wasn't that the coffee cart in front of the Planet? >> You can see the Daily Java here: http://www.zoomway.com/loisandclark/virtual/htm/java.htm The espresso coffee cart near the Planet was Sandmarsh's, I believe. Zoom ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 20 Dec 1999 19:52:02 -0800 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Nancy Smith Subject: Merry Christmas FoLCs MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Before everyone vanishes for the Christmas holidays, I wanted to take this opportunity to wish everyone a very Merry Christmas and a prosperous New Year, which will hopefully contain lots and lots of new and inspired fanfic from all the writers that have given us so much enjoyment in 1999. Nan Smith ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 21 Dec 1999 00:24:17 -0600 Reply-To: truitt22@flash.net Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: timothy truitt Organization: tnt technical services Subject: Re: Merry Christmas FoLCs MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit I want to echo Nancy's greeting. Everyone have a wonderful holiday season. merry Nancy Smith wrote: > Before everyone vanishes for the Christmas holidays, I wanted to take > this opportunity to wish everyone a very Merry Christmas and a > prosperous New Year, which will hopefully contain lots and lots of new > and inspired fanfic from all the writers that have given us so much > enjoyment in 1999. > > Nan Smith ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 21 Dec 1999 09:55:15 -0000 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: LabRat Subject: Re: Fanfic Question MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Thanks, guys! LabRat :) > In a message dated 12/20/99 9:14:34 PM Central Standard Time, > Larus2407@AOL.COM writes: > > << << In quite a few fanfic I've seen reference to a diner called The Daily > Java. > Is this an invention of the fans, does anyone know? >> > > Wasn't that the coffee cart in front of the Planet? > >> > > You can see the Daily Java here: > > http://www.zoomway.com/loisandclark/virtual/htm/java.htm > > > The espresso coffee cart near the Planet was Sandmarsh's, I believe. > > Zoom > ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 21 Dec 1999 11:01:20 -0500 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Phillip Atcliffe Subject: Re: Millennium In-Reply-To: <002a01bf4b18$cbaeebc0$ab01140a@net.cmn.net> MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; CHARSET=US-ASCII On Mon, 20 Dec 1999 11:33:30 -0700 sharper wrote: [Snip millenium discussion] > SheilaH > (whose math side flares up occasionally and demands consistency) The problem is that it's a clash _between_ Mathematics and popular perception. People talk about "the 80s" or the "1900s", but _mathematically_, a decade starts with xxx1 and ends with xxy0, and a century with xx01 and ends with xy00, because there was no year zero. If the year of Jesus' birth is year 1 A.D., then it's not 2000 years from that date until 2001. But what attracts public attention is the change in the numbers, not what they mean. > P.S. BTW, Phil, I loved your little "Spirit of Christmas" offering. I really think that's what Clark should have done in the real episode. < Thanks, Sheila. Me, too. It really bugs me to have Clark run off, leaving Lois with the "spirit of... shopping" line, particularly when Superman was not really needed in that situation. It just added to Lois' feelings of alienation -- which may have been what the producers intended, but that doesn't mean I have to like it. Phil,whose mathematical side is often flared up -- say, 74.074074.... percent of the time ------------------------------------------------------------ Gravity is a Downer... So let's go flying! -- so sayeth Phil Atcliffe (Phillip.Atcliffe@uwe.ac.uk) ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 21 Dec 1999 13:47:39 +0100 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Nicole Wolke Subject: Re: "WE WISH YOU A WARY CHRISTMAS" MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Merry Christmas FoLCs, I loved the new story by the IRC Round Robin group! Many wonderful waffs along the way (the scene with the carolers for example) and other scenes were so funny, I was laughing out loud in front of my computer :-) A few highlights out of many: "Thank you," he whispered and kissed her softly. "I guess I get a little carried away, but I *love* Christmas." "Really?" Lois asked with a smile. "You hide it so well." ++ "You got a home, Supes?" "I ... uh..." "They say Batman lives in a cave. Have you met Batman?" "Once or twice." "Does he live in a cave?" "I never met him at ... home," Clark said hastily, and departed. ++ Lois laughed as she took the waterfront exit. "I am sorry, Jonathan, really, but my biggest thrill was getting Clark to yell out the window on occasion. For some reason that just turns me on ... that is, it's so unusual for him ..." "I understand, Lois. Martha's drive-don't-kiss gesture affected me the same way." ++ Clark entered the nursery window. "Hi, Mom," he said and gave her a hug. He looked at the twins and then scanned the house. "Where's Lois?" "Lois?" "Petite, sexy brunette wearing a ring like mine, remember?" -- AKA CKgroupie on IRC NKWolke@eifel-net.net Are you always searching for news about Dean Cain? And don't you have enough time to find them? Go to: "The Dean Cain News Page" http://members.tripod.de/CKgroupie/ ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 21 Dec 1999 08:31:10 -0500 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Joy Sowell Subject: Re: "WE WISH YOU A WARY CHRISTMAS" Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Nicole Wolke wrote: carried away, but I *love* Christmas." "Really?" Lois asked with a smile. "You hide it so well." that was one of my favorites, too. Great job guys!! ______________________________________________ FREE Personalized Email at Mail.com Sign up at http://www.mail.com?sr=mc.mk.mcm.tag001 ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 21 Dec 1999 09:31:14 EST Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: "Ann E. McBride" Subject: Re: Merry Christmas FoLCs MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Merry Christmas to you, too, Nan. Hope you have a wonderful holiday with your children. Merry Christmas to all FoLCs out there. Many thanks too, to the fantastic writers on this list. Ann