From: "L-Soft list server at Indiana University (1.8d)" To: "ARTF@MemoryAlpha.nil" File: "LOISCLA-GENERAL-L LOG0002B" ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 8 Feb 2000 00:13:44 -0800 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Amy Lauters Subject: Night Terrors (4) MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Thanks to Hazel for her suggestion about formatting. (And for the great FDK ... it's addictive stuff!) Harmony *** "Maybe we're going about this from the wrong direction," Lois pondered later that day, as the pair worked their way back to the university, looking for Alexis. "What do you mean?" Clark asked. "Well, based on what we know so far, Alexis's father was working on controlling adolescent behavior through dream control, and she's building on that work by using media messages to accomplish the same kinds of things," she said slowly. "Let's make the logical leap, here - the senior Dr. Turner must have been using media messages, too." "I think I follow you. If he was using media to control the behavior of children through their dreams - " "Then those messages might be around somewhere," Lois finished. "But Alexis said most of her father's research was destroyed," Clark offered. "Maybe not," Lois argued. "Maybe he found what Alexis was looking for. Maybe he found the trigger." "The trigger that allows messages not only to suggest dreams, but to control them?" "Exactly," Lois said. They stopped in front of the social science building. "But if he died in his sleep, a side effect of his research - " "Then someone else must have known the trigger," Clark finished, glancing over his glasses into the building. "Alexis is in class." "Great," Lois sighed. "What about Mike?" Clark looked more deeply into the building, to the dank corner Mike called his office. "Not there." Lois collapsed on a bench near the rose bushes out front. "Let's wait. I want to work some of this out." Clark sat beside her. "OK, smarty, where are you going with this?" "If someone is controlling my dreams, then someone already has the trigger - either Alexis, who doesn't have to tell us this and probably won' t, or the person who killed Dr. Turner," Lois reasoned. "Maybe the most logical thing to do is look back over the last few weeks and catalogue the kinds of media I've been exposing myself to." "Beautiful and brilliant," Clark said, kissing the top of her head. "Yeah, and also really busy and unlikely to know what I've been watching that's out of the norm," she said glumly. Clark glanced back into the building. "Alexis is picking up her books. It looks like class is over." Lois stood up, grabbed Clark's hand, and hauled him up. "Let's go talk to our resident dream control expert." The pair worked their way against the sudden tide of students changing classes and into the building, where they caught up to Alexis just as she was leaving her classroom. She looked less than pleased to see them again. "Didn't I answer all your questions already?" she asked. "We just have a few more," Lois said. "Can we find someplace private?" "Look, I'm really busy today, OK? Maybe tomorrow." Alexis started to pull away. The thought of the 24 hour deadline passed through Lois's mind and she flashed a look at Clark. Clark cleared his throat. "We just need a few minutes. We have an idea about your project you might be interested in." Alexis narrowed her eyes. "What kind of idea?" "How much did you know about your father's research, Alexis?" Lois asked. "Five years ago, were you here in Metropolis?" "No," Alexis said. "I was working on my undergraduate degree at Stanford." "Why did you come back here?" Clark asked. "For the chance to work with Dr. Soppeland," she replied. "I needed his expertise to help me complete my father's work. And where else would I finish a PhD in this field?" Mental note, Clark thought. Check out schools that have dream studies experts in psychology programs. "One more question, Alexis," Lois said. "How did your father die?" Ashen, Alexis turned back toward Lois, rigid. "What is it about you reporters? Don't you know when to stop? Why can't you leave the past alone?" she raged. "He was my father. He's dead. I loved him. He's gone. And I don't want to talk about this anymore!" Her piercing words flew into the dead silence of a crowded hallway full of students. "Have a little respect for the dead and for their loved ones! And get your information someplace else, Ms. Lane." Alexis stalked off toward the direction of her cramped office, leaving a stunned Lois to look at her equally subdued husband with an expression of disbelief. The students in the hallway began to stir and mumble about rights to privacy as they dashed to their classes, and Clark quickly stepped over to put his arms around his wife. "Are you all right?" he asked softly. She stared at him. "What did I do, Clark?" He sighed. "Only what you've been trained to do. Asked a question, expected an answer." "What do we do now?" Lois asked. Grimly, he stared in the direction Alexis went. "Get our information someplace else." *** ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 8 Feb 2000 08:18:49 -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 Questions MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="Windows-1252" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Hey guys! Thanks to everyone who replied to my questions - I think I have enough info now to work with. I also think some rewriting of Ripples is required , but, hey, that's my problem. ;) 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: Tue, 8 Feb 2000 11:30:58 +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: LabRat and Fanfic recomendation: Wendy's FTGG In-Reply-To: <20000208015943.23946.qmail@web906.mail.yahoo.com> MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; CHARSET=US-ASCII On Mon, 7 Feb 2000 17:59:43 -0800 "Irene D." wrote: > Okay, I'm embarrassed now. Please find someone else > to praise. How about Nan Smith? Well... I could embarrass Irene too by saying that I've nominated her in a few categories as well... but let's move on to Chris Carr, a hot favourite of mine for New Author, and especially to her story 'So... that's what you've been hiding,' which is my personal favourite. Anyone who hasn't already read it, RUN and do so now!! Wendy ---------------------- Wendy Richards w.m.richards@hrm.keele.ac.uk ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 8 Feb 2000 08:05:58 -0500 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Chris Carr Subject: Re: LabRat and Fanfic recomendation: Wendy's FTGG On Tue, 8 Feb 2000 11:30:58 +0000, Wendy Richards wrote: > >Well... I could embarrass Irene too by saying that I've >nominated her in a few categories as well... but let's >move on to Chris Carr, a hot favourite of mine for New >Author, and especially to her story 'So... that's what >you've been hiding,' which is my personal favourite. Anyone >who hasn't already read it, RUN and do so now!! > Well, Wendy, what can I say, except thank you for that confidence booster! Much appreciated. Chris ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 8 Feb 2000 06:07:39 -0800 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: James Tull Subject: Caped Fear - the MotherLoad ! - Hey Labby :-) Comments: cc: labrat@UKF.NET MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii A MG+ ASCII FILE!!!! How long did it take you to write the nfic version? How big is the nfic version? How long did it take you to edit for general consumption? Enquiring minds want to know! _______________________________ It boggles the mind. It boggles the Word Processor too. It to our computer 5 minutes to perform a find and replace on hard returns into hard spaces! It started out at 389+ pages and I was able to weedle it down to 118. I told my brother-in-law the size of the file and it staggared him. I am somewhere on page 3 (about page 10 uncompressed) and I am totally enthralled, if not a little grossed out. I can only read it at home because it looks a little suspicious to be carrying around a textbook size bundle of paper! James ===== Mr. D8a Philipians 4:8 The love of James' life is Elisabeth, but... Daddy's little sweetheart is Rosa! __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Talk to your friends online with Yahoo! Messenger. http://im.yahoo.com ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 8 Feb 2000 09:11:15 -0500 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: James Tull Subject: Re: New-7 Days of Superman Part 4 of ? >I'm looking forward to the Tempi conversation -- and beyond to where we >haven't gotten yet! > >Hazel I am looking forward to it as well. RL is conspiring against me. Baby gas, crashing servers, maybe being sent to Sweden soon, and state side 'field trips' are keeping me pretty busy. But I will have part 5 out this week. ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 8 Feb 2000 16:29:30 +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: SIP - Connections part 5 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Carol, what is it with you guys at the moment, that there's one wonderful story after the other being posted here and on the MBs? Year 2000 sure has started with great fanfiction so far and your story, Carol, definitely is no exception. You find me on the edge of my seat with "Connections". What a thrilling story! I'm really nervous about Lois working for Trask (although I feel she won't be fooled about that man's sanity too long) and even more so about Zara and Ching. Horrible Visions of Clark willing in to go away with them before he has the chance to meet Lois are playing in my mind, but I'm optimistic that you won't do that to us. Oh, and I can't wait for Clark to recognize Lois. What is he going to do? How's he going to react? Will he just blurt out his feelings, be just stunned and speechless or will he have enough self restrain to hide his astonishement and behave as normally as he can? The only thing I would like more, would be... MORE!!! Nicole -- 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, 8 Feb 2000 15:31:59 +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: Best Villain Quiz: results MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; CHARSET=US-ASCII This quiz seemed to stump even more of you than usual - even Diyan, who absolutely stunned me on the last quiz, had problems! The answers to the Best Villain Quiz are: 1: Doppleganger, by Nan Smith 2: An Ordinary Man, by Wendy Richards 3: Suffer the Little Children, by Jenni Debbage 4: Dagger's Edge, by Nan Smith 5: Preparations, by Phil Atcliffe 6: Strange Visitor from the Congo, by Wendy Richards 7: The Master Race, by Jenni Debbage 8: Fear of Discovery, by Yvonne Connell Scores: Irene got 3 points :( Hazel got 10 points, doing far better on the excerpts than the quotes. Note to Hazel: guessing at the psychology of the quiz-setter doesn't get you any extra!! Pam gets 7.5 - half-points for getting a couple of authors but not stories. Dia gets 7 points from quotes (she identified the wrong Phil episode) and 4 points from excerpts. This makes her total 11. Julie sent her entry directly to me, and she gets 6 points for correct guesses from the excerpts. And finally, Nan: I debated whether to give her 17 or 18 points, but she did describe Jenni's 'Suffer...' very well, so I made it 17.5. Seems we can tell what type of stories Nan prefers, though she did have the advantage of recognising two of her own! Over to you, Hazel! Wendy ---------------------- Wendy Richards w.m.richards@hrm.keele.ac.uk ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 8 Feb 2000 10:43:34 EST Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Rose Cookson Subject: A Fanfic Question MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit I'm hoping one of you will have a solution to this problem of mine. I'm working on a fanfic, and I need to refer to many dates in the past. However, if I were to refer to say, September 7, 1972 (that's just an example, don't respond with a solution to that specific date!), how would I know which day of the week it was? Is there any website I can go to that can help me figure it out? Or am I gonna have to count backwards on my fingers or something? Help, please! Thanks! Rose ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 8 Feb 2000 07:48:20 -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: Best Villain Quiz: results MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Wendy Richards wrote: > And finally, Nan: I debated whether to give her 17 or > 18 points, but she did describe Jenni's 'Suffer...' very > well, so I made it 17.5. Seems we can tell what type of > stories Nan prefers, though she did have the advantage of > recognising two of her own! > > Over to you, Hazel! > > Wendy > > ---------------------- > Wendy Richards > w.m.richards@hrm.keele.ac.uk Actually, I like most different types of fanfic, except deathfic, Wendy. Even soppy, sentimental romance-type. I've just got a good memory for what I read, or watch on TV. (What I *hear* is another story altogether. That's why I make people *write* down directions for me. Otherwise it goes in one ear and out the other.) Nan ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 8 Feb 2000 16:03:03 +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: A Fanfic Question In-Reply-To: <47.14fd2b6.25d193a6@aol.com> MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; CHARSET=US-ASCII Rose, do you use Windows? If so, open the Calendar (it's on your toolbar, if you click on the clock) and you'll also find it in Accessories. Alter it to the year and date you want, and it will show you what day of the week it was! Wendy On Tue, 8 Feb 2000 10:43:34 EST Rose Cookson wrote: > I'm hoping one of you will have a solution to this problem > of mine. I'm working on a fanfic, and I need to refer to > many dates in the past. However, if I were to refer to > say, September 7, 1972 (that's just an example, > don't respond with a solution to that specific date!), how > would I know which day of the week it was? Is there any > website I can go to that can help me figure it out? Or am > I gonna have to count backwards on my fingers or > something? Help, please! > > Thanks! > > Rose ---------------------- Wendy Richards w.m.richards@hrm.keele.ac.uk ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 8 Feb 2000 11:13:35 EST Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Rose Cookson Subject: Re: A Fanfic Question MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit In a message dated 2/8/00 8:03:30 AM Pacific Standard Time, w.m.richards@HRM.KEELE.AC.UK writes: << Rose, do you use Windows? If so, open the Calendar (it's on your toolbar, if you click on the clock) and you'll also find it in Accessories. Alter it to the year and date you want, and it will show you what day of the week it was! >> Thank you so much Wendy! You're invaluable! Rose ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 8 Feb 2000 11:42:28 -0500 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: "Felix E. Sung" Subject: Re: A Fanfic Question The Calendar applet in Windows only works for dates in 1980-2099 (I think). For dates before 1980 you could try looking in an almanac for the "Perpetual Calandar", which lists the fourteen possible calandars and a table that shows what year goes with which calendar. For you math gurus out there (like me), there *is* a formula which will calculate the day of the week for you. Here's a link if anyone's interested: http://www.pauahtun.org/CalendarFAQ/cal/node3.html Scroll down to section 2.5 ("What day of the week was 2 August 1953?"). Felix -- Felix E. Sung fsung@justice.loyola.edu ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 8 Feb 2000 09:06:39 -0800 Reply-To: creolel@ca.freei.net Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Lori Llorence Subject: Re: Night Terrors (4) Comments: To: Amy Lauters MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit I want MORE!! This is a great story! I can't wait to see what is going to happen next. Don't keep us in suspense too long!!! Lori (who is checking her e-mail every 5 min. for the next installment!!) :-) -----Original Message----- From: Amy Lauters [mailto:alauters@CSD.UWM.EDU] Sent: Monday, February 07, 2000 2:14 PM To: creolel@mail.ca.freei.net Subject: Night Terrors (4) Thanks to Hazel for her suggestion about formatting. (And for the great FDK ... it's addictive stuff!) Harmony *** "Maybe we're going about this from the wrong direction," Lois pondered later that day, as the pair worked their way back to the university, looking for Alexis. "What do you mean?" Clark asked. "Well, based on what we know so far, Alexis's father was working on controlling adolescent behavior through dream control, and she's building on that work by using media messages to accomplish the same kinds of things," she said slowly. "Let's make the logical leap, here - the senior Dr. Turner must have been using media messages, too." "I think I follow you. If he was using media to control the behavior of children through their dreams - " "Then those messages might be around somewhere," Lois finished. "But Alexis said most of her father's research was destroyed," Clark offered. "Maybe not," Lois argued. "Maybe he found what Alexis was looking for. Maybe he found the trigger." "The trigger that allows messages not only to suggest dreams, but to control them?" "Exactly," Lois said. They stopped in front of the social science building. "But if he died in his sleep, a side effect of his research - " "Then someone else must have known the trigger," Clark finished, glancing over his glasses into the building. "Alexis is in class." "Great," Lois sighed. "What about Mike?" Clark looked more deeply into the building, to the dank corner Mike called his office. "Not there." Lois collapsed on a bench near the rose bushes out front. "Let's wait. I want to work some of this out." Clark sat beside her. "OK, smarty, where are you going with this?" "If someone is controlling my dreams, then someone already has the trigger - either Alexis, who doesn't have to tell us this and probably won' t, or the person who killed Dr. Turner," Lois reasoned. "Maybe the most logical thing to do is look back over the last few weeks and catalogue the kinds of media I've been exposing myself to." "Beautiful and brilliant," Clark said, kissing the top of her head. "Yeah, and also really busy and unlikely to know what I've been watching that's out of the norm," she said glumly. Clark glanced back into the building. "Alexis is picking up her books. It looks like class is over." Lois stood up, grabbed Clark's hand, and hauled him up. "Let's go talk to our resident dream control expert." The pair worked their way against the sudden tide of students changing classes and into the building, where they caught up to Alexis just as she was leaving her classroom. She looked less than pleased to see them again. "Didn't I answer all your questions already?" she asked. "We just have a few more," Lois said. "Can we find someplace private?" "Look, I'm really busy today, OK? Maybe tomorrow." Alexis started to pull away. The thought of the 24 hour deadline passed through Lois's mind and she flashed a look at Clark. Clark cleared his throat. "We just need a few minutes. We have an idea about your project you might be interested in." Alexis narrowed her eyes. "What kind of idea?" "How much did you know about your father's research, Alexis?" Lois asked. "Five years ago, were you here in Metropolis?" "No," Alexis said. "I was working on my undergraduate degree at Stanford." "Why did you come back here?" Clark asked. "For the chance to work with Dr. Soppeland," she replied. "I needed his expertise to help me complete my father's work. And where else would I finish a PhD in this field?" Mental note, Clark thought. Check out schools that have dream studies experts in psychology programs. "One more question, Alexis," Lois said. "How did your father die?" Ashen, Alexis turned back toward Lois, rigid. "What is it about you reporters? Don't you know when to stop? Why can't you leave the past alone?" she raged. "He was my father. He's dead. I loved him. He's gone. And I don't want to talk about this anymore!" Her piercing words flew into the dead silence of a crowded hallway full of students. "Have a little respect for the dead and for their loved ones! And get your information someplace else, Ms. Lane." Alexis stalked off toward the direction of her cramped office, leaving a stunned Lois to look at her equally subdued husband with an expression of disbelief. The students in the hallway began to stir and mumble about rights to privacy as they dashed to their classes, and Clark quickly stepped over to put his arms around his wife. "Are you all right?" he asked softly. She stared at him. "What did I do, Clark?" He sighed. "Only what you've been trained to do. Asked a question, expected an answer." "What do we do now?" Lois asked. Grimly, he stared in the direction Alexis went. "Get our information someplace else." *** ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 8 Feb 2000 12:19:38 -0500 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Chris Carr Subject: Re: A Fanfic Question On Tue, 8 Feb 2000 10:43:34 EST, Rose Cookson wrote: >if I were to refer to say, September 7, 1972 (that's just an example, don't >respond with a solution to that specific date!), how would I know which day >of the week it was? Is there any website I can go to that can help me figure >it out? Rose, of course there is! Aren't there websites for everything these days? :) Try: http://personal.ecu.edu/mccartyr/MyCalendar.html This is an absolutely wonderful site, and will give you calendars for any year from 1582 onwards. (It certainly helped me when I wrote my time travel stories, I can tell you!) Chris ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 8 Feb 2000 17:28:56 +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: Friendly request MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; CHARSET=US-ASCII I'd like to ask list-members a favour here. I think this is probably in the FAQ, but we all need reminding occasionally... When you're replying to someone else's post, could you please *not* include the entire post you're replying to? It's easy enough to go through and edit so that only the relevant portion(s) of the original post remain. This makes life easier for those who receive the list in digest form, as well as making mail download faster for those who pay for their time online! It also makes the message easier to read, since we don't have to scan the message for the new comment. Second, could people try to combine posts where possible, rather than sending several one-line emails? It cuts down on traffic, which is always helpful. Thank you very much. :) Wendy ---------------------- Wendy Richards w.m.richards@hrm.keele.ac.uk ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 8 Feb 2000 12:35:20 -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: Nomination Question (was RE: Wendy's FTGG) Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="ISO-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Petra wrote: >I wouldn't be too surprised if one of Wendy's biggest competitors - >in no matter which category ;) - would be Wendy herself . This post has made me wonder about nomination-related issues. On Erin's Kerth web site, there's a question as to whether you can nominate one story in a bunch of categories; the answer is that you can, but there are lots of Kerth-worthy stories, so consider it carefully. While catching up on my reading so I can nominate stories, I noticed that there are some stories which are strong contenders in several categories: a dramatic story may have a good villain and concern L&C's children, making it eligible for 3 categories, plus best overall fic. In fact, most stories can easily fit into more than one category. I thought the Kerth quizzes might help me, but it seems they too have significant overlap. Plus, I don't want to limit my reading to only stories included in the quizzes, since there's so much more out there. So I've been torn as to how to nominate, because I don't want to nominate 1 story in too many categories, but I also don't think a story should not win one award just because it won another. There's also the case of more than one of an author's stories being nominated in the same category, as Petra mentioned concerning Wendy. I can think of a few other prolific authors to whom this could happen. I'm not sure in this case whether to nominate two of one author's stories for a category. In some ways, I think it's unfair not to because we're not really judging authors here; we're judging stories. But in another way, especially if the 2 competing stories are related or parts of the same series, it's hard to nominate both (since Erin's site said we could nominate more than one story per category as long as we don't go overboard ;) I don't remember having this problem in the first Kerths, but it did come up for me last year. For the first year, there were more categories so the problem wasn't as great, plus there were so many authors that overlap wasn't as likely. Recently, however, the trend appears to be a handful of very prolific authors whose stories are eligible for (and are strong contenders in) multiple categories. So I was wondering how all of you were nominating stories: restricting yourselves to 1 category per story (and how did you choose the 1 category?) or nominating 1 story for multiple categories? How do you feel about one (admittedly talented) author holding several nominations in one category? Christy kubitc@kenyon.edu * * * * * * * * * * "Single-mindedness is all very well in cows or baboons; in an animal claiming to belong to the same species as Shakespeare it is simply disgraceful." -Aldous Huxley ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 8 Feb 2000 13:28:48 -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: Kerth Category Quiz: Original Premise Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Little disclaimer thingy: The stories featured in this quiz qualify for the Original Premise category in the Kerths this year -- at least *I* think they do! ;) While these stories are not "Elseworlds" in that they more or less fit within the show's canon, they present an original plot that is not based on an episode. (One fic took its initial backstory from a situation from the show, but it goes far, far beyond that!) They were all uploaded to the archive in 1999. However, these are by no means the only stories on the archive (or elsewhere) that qualify for this category, and this is not a specific recommendation for any of these stories over any others that might also qualify. No offense to any other story or author is intended. :) This was an interesting quiz to put together. For the most part, stories that fit in the same category are usually more or less of similar length, but not this time: Two of the stories are less than 20K, three hover at the 140K mark, and one is close to half a meg! Good luck on finding 'em. Quiz rules: The quiz has been divided into two sections: single quotes and excerpts. If you can't get the story from the single quote, then you can scroll down and try the excerpt. When you answer (and DON'T forget the spoiler space!!), let us know if you deserve two points for your answer (if you got it from the quote) or only one point (if you got it from the excerpt.) Feel free to hunt the archive if you're unsure -- no points will be deducted for looking things up. Have fun! Quote 1: "All through my career, everywhere I went, you would be there, undoing whatever damage I tried to do. I can't imagine what my life would have been like without you." Quote 2: "Maybe I can trust *him*, but not his wife, Lois Lane. And he wouldn't be able to keep a secret from her -- I've heard that she twists him around her little finger." Quote 3: "*You're* my Tornado?" Quote 4: "Look, Kent, I don't have an S-signal, so just do me a favor and let the big guy know I want to talk to him, okay?" Quote 5: "I'm not Claude Rochert, Lois." Quote 6: "He's really worried that this Van Doren character is somehow behind a plot to kill his friend--you know, the Prince?" Quote 7: "Wait a minute, you mean you saw her holding Karly, and imagined her holding your baby? Clark, that's so sweet!" Quote 8: "We have two thefts, one of a Brazilian plant, the other of a culture of harmless bacteria. Same MO, but I have no idea how to connect them. Or why anyone would try and steal either item anyway." Quote 9: "So, we'd better get going and check on the red haired woman in my apartment and see if we can help Althea Fitzgerald." * * * S P O I L E R S P A C E For another hint, try the excerpts below, worth one point apiece: EXCERPT 1: "The doctors told me that I had only a matter of days, or possibly even hours left to me. I didn't fancy staying in that prison hospital while I shuffled off my mortal coil," he said, "so I thought I'd come look you up, instead." "You escaped? Again?" Wells asked. "Of course," Tempus said. "I always escape. You should know that by now." Wells acknowledged the comment with a faint nod, and said, "But, why did you want to come here?" "I wanted some company." "And you chose me." Wells sounded faintly sceptical. "Why?" "Why not? EXCERPT 2: "You see," said Sabrina, raising a face that, although strained, was devoid of tears, "Someone gave her a tip. They want to make sure that this thing gets out." She looked at Clark. "'Make sure this thing *gets out*?'" said Lois. "Wouldn't he be more anxious to keep you quiet?" "Lois, it's not the Assistant D.A. who's threatening her," said Clark. "So someone is threatening her! Is that why she went to Superman for help?" "I thought you said you didn't tell her!" said Sabrina reproachfully. "I didn't; she found out on her own," said Clark briefly. He added, not without a touch of pride, "I guess it was too much to hope that the best investigative journalist in Metropolis wouldn't find out about it." EXCERPT 3: 'You asked about my 'stubborn, brilliant' colleague - should you be jealous? I don't know. Probably not, since she barely knows I exist most of the time (she's a bit like you, crazily in love with a guy who's something of a public figure around here and who she *knows* she can't have). But my chances just dipped through the floor over the last couple of days - she thinks I behaved unprofessionally in relation to something we were working on and now I'm worth less than the dirt on the floor. And I guess she's right, too, but she won't listen to my attempts at apologising. Oh well, what can I do?! 'Maybe you should just marry me, Tornado - then we could comfort each other in our unrequited love instead. Do I need to tell you I'm joking? Probably not. 'I'm glad you're getting on better with your greenhorn colleague. Be nice to him - you were a beginner once, too, you know! EXCERPT 5: Even the man standing furtively in the shadows behind a dumpster seemed a natural part of the scenery. Yet if Henderson's story was right, this was the man who "had something to give to Superman." Clark still wasn't sure what to expect. A quick X-ray glance had shown that "George Washington" had a switchblade in his sock and brass knuckles in his pocket, but there was no sign of a weapon that could be dangerous to the Man of Steel. There were no other people nearby who could possibly be part of an ambush. Unless -- Clark's eyes narrowed as he took a closer look at the man's left hand. He was clutching something. Something that Clark couldn't identify... Because it was in a lead box. Clark rocketed skywards in panicky reflex as his every sense screamed, "Danger!" Something to give to Superman? Something in a *lead* box? Kryptonite! EXCERPT 5: "Adam found proof that Tirelli's been using an illegal mix in their fuel system. And, get this! Not only is it illegal, but it's also highly toxic. Tirelli had a medical report commissioned that says his technician staff are risking a one in ten chance of contracting carcinogenic heart and lung defects just from inhaling the fumes from this stuff when they service the cars. Then he buried it so no one would find out." Lois was frowning at him. "What kind of proof?" She ran a swift glance over him. He wasn't carrying anything obvious. "We need solid documentation here, Clark, or Perry's never going to - " "Which is why Adam's going to make sure that the Tirelli garage is unlocked at precisely 2.45 a.m. tomorrow morning," Clark told her excitedly. "As you can imagine, the security in this place is brutal, but Adam says we'll have a window in the regular security patrol of about forty five minutes, which should be more than enough time." "Time for what? Clark, Tirelli isn't going to keep paperwork in a *garage*!" "No, but the technical specifications of the fuel *will* be stored on the main computer system in there. All of their records will be. All we have to do is get inside, tap into their mainframe and download the information onto disk." EXCERPT 6: Bobby let go of her wrist and turned to face a particularly deep, black shadow. "It's okay," he said gently, and Lois was stunned at the difference in his tone. "You can come out. This is Lois." Slowly a shadow moved within the other shadow, and took on the form of a man. The faint glow of the streetlight that filtered through the boarded up window reflected off of glasses, and Lois knew all at once who it was. "Clark?" The word was a half-sob. Clark moved cautiously out of the darkness to within a few feet of her. Lois didn't move for a long moment as she took in her husband's appearance. His clothes were torn, and the front of his dark shirt was streaked with rusty stains that could only be blood. He was wearing a coat that was obviously second-hand and a little too tight, but his glasses were still in place, although one lens was cracked completely across. He had a heavy five o'clock shadow, and he looked lost and scared, exactly as she had imagined he might, wandering around the huge city without his memory. He stared intently at her, and slowly his expression changed to one of half-recognition. "This is Lois," Bobby repeated, still in that gentle tone. "She's your wife. She'll help you now, Clark. It's gonna be all right." EXCERPT 7: "Clark, this is Karly, Karly, this is my friend Clark." She started bouncing Karly up and down again, making faces and cooing. "He-llo, Karly! You are such a big girl -- oh, yes, you are! Such a big girl!" Lois then spun her around over her head, play-biting her stomach, the child all the while laughing and squealing in sheer delight. Clark had never seen Lois like this before. She looked so happy and content. An image began to form bit-by-bit in his mind. It was the same image in front of him now, but it seemed to be moving in slow motion. He saw Lois playing with the baby, but instead of a little blonde girl, it was a dark-haired little boy cradled in her arms. A dark-haired little boy with chocolate eyes and a gap-toothed grin, wearing a red and blue jumper with a yellow belt, and red socks and shoes. It was the most beautiful baby Clark had ever seen. It was *their* baby. The image of Lois holding their baby -- *his* baby -- in her arms took his breath away. EXCERPT 8: Someone had gone to great lengths to steal two apparently worthless objects and then done apparently nothing with them. If this wasn't enough of a riddle, Jimmy was dying of a supposedly harmless infection. Something hit him at that point. Neither situation made sense, unless he put them both together. The only possible use for the plant was as a poison, and Dr Winston had said the bacteria could be used to make insulin. What if you could make them make poison instead? But who would want to harm Jimmy, and why? That was the question. He picked up his phone and was about to call Lois, when one of the nurses entered. "Mr. Kent? There's a phone call for you in Dr Winston's office. It sounded urgent." He thanked her and hurried towards the office. Who could be calling me here, he wondered, as he picked up the handset. "Mr. Kent? I have important information concerning James Olsen." "What?" "Not for you. Send Superman to the old industrial estate. I'll be waiting for him there." EXCERPT 9: By the time Clark returned to the Planet, Althea Fitzgerald had taken up unobtrusive residence in the lobby of the Daily Planet, comfortably ensconced in one of the large vinyl couches which formed a square in the centre of that space. She had bought a couple of magazines, something she greatly missed, and, under the guise of reading them, was keeping a careful eye on the elevators and on the main entrance. Spotting Clark Kent as he entered the building, she watched his athletic stride as he crossed the lobby, and was pleased when he did not notice her. She was also keeping an eye out for Morgana and her brother, wondering if they would show up at the Planet to confront Lois and Clark openly or if they would wait until later, when there were few people around. Their mission wouldn't take long, just a matter of finding Clark, then pulling the trigger. And Lois, too, for good measure. Hit and run. After that, they would vanish back to where they'd come from. Clark didn't know about kryptonite yet and so it would be easy to take him by surprise. ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 8 Feb 2000 19:30:15 +0100 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Kaethel Subject: Re: Nomination Question (was RE: Wendy's FTGG) MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit Hi Christy! From: kubitc > So I was wondering how all of you were nominating stories: restricting > yourselves to 1 category per story (and how did you choose the 1 category?) or > nominating 1 story for multiple categories? How do you feel about one > (admittedly talented) author holding several nominations in one category? Well, prolific writers deserve to be nominated several times, IMO, and anyway, what I look for in a story isn't the name of a famous author, but the quality of the story in question, although I admit that some authors have a style I like very much so I kind of run to read their story as soon as they hit the archive... but this is not the point when nominating a story. I mean like you said, we don't nominate an author, but a fanfic, i.e. a plot, powerful scenes, stuff so beautifully written that it brings you to tears or have you ROTFL... it doesn't matter if the story has a famous byline or not under it. I'll probably nominate several stories by the same author in the same category, actually, several authors have several nominations in the same categories... but what can I do about it? I know I couldn't tell myself "No, I won't nominate this story because in the same category I already have another story by the same author, or because I've already nominated two stories of this particular author." That would be frustrating, and that wouldn't be honnest with what I really think. However, I understand your concern about not wanting to end up with Kerth Awards that have only two or three writers competing, because there are a lot of very good writers on FoLCdom, and besides, it would be no fun. But I don't think this is a good idea to refrain yourself from voting for a story because it happens to have its author already nominated. If the story is one of your favorites, then vote for it. To chose the nominations, I try to remember what were the feelings I experienced while reading the story. That's how I choose them... I'm not good with picking up categories, though, and right now, I'm trying to catch up with my fanfic reading (something I'm *really* late with ) while sorting out which story goes in which category, and oh boy, is this complicated ;) Take care :) Hélène :) ------------------------------------------------------ Kaethel on irc / Kaethel79 on AIM kaethel@club-internet.fr "I said nine I thought you'd be naked... er... ready!" ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 8 Feb 2000 13:50:42 -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: Kerth Category Quiz: Original Premise MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit I do enjoy these quizzes, even though I never know them all... :) s p o i l e r s p a c e Quotes: Q1: The Ties That Bind, by Chris Carr Q2: This sounds really familiar, but I'm not placing it... Q3: Nary a clue... intriguing quote. Q4: I know this, and it's by Hazel, but I'm blanking on the title Q5: Just going on Claude's made-up last name, I'm guessing Caped Fear, by Labbie Q6: Assassin's Dagger, by Nan Smith, who excells at Original Premises :) Q7: Sounds like "Sweet, Sweet Fantasy Baby" but I can't be bothered to look up the author Q8: Color me clueless Q9: ditto Well, the excerpts helped me last time, let's see... E2: I *know* I've read this... E4: Aha! I shouldda known this from the quote... Penfriends, by Wendy E5: Yep, this is the one I thought it was, but I still can't remember the title! E6: I had the right author, but the wrong story: This is Burnout. E8: Now I know I haven't read this one E9: I have read this, but it was a while ago... an old Lois travels back through time to help the younger Lois & Clark... Hmm, I didn't do so good! Oh well... -- ------------------------------------------------------- Pam Jernigan | jernigan@bellsouth.net ChiefPam on IRC | ChPam on AOL IM ------------------------------------------------------- "Not only was Ivan an idiot, but he generated a telepathic damping field to turn the people nearby into idiots, too." --An exasperated Miles contemplates his cousin in _The Warrior's Apprentice_, by Lois McMaster Bujold ------------------------------------------------------- http://www.geocities.com/~chiefpam ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 8 Feb 2000 19:00:22 +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: Kerth Category Quiz: Original Premise In-Reply-To: <3.0.6.32.20000208202753.00908430@actcom.co.il> MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; CHARSET=US-ASCII Trust you, Hazel, to send this out just as I was about to go home from work! Now I *have* to stay and work out my entry! s p o i l e r s p a c e Quote 3: Aha! 'The Penfriend' by a too-prolific author, Wendy Richards Quote 5: Burnout, by LabRat Quote 6: Assassin's Dagger, by Nan Smith Quote 7: It's Just a Sweet, Sweet Fantasy, Baby, by Allison Forbes Quote 8: Ah! Had to check this one, since it has an unpronounceable title... Cybercerpent's Plantathera Lactarius Quote 9: Strange Visitor, by Carol Malo EXCERPT 1: Ties that Bind, by Chris Carr EXCERPT 4: Ah! Hazel's Honour Among Thieves! Howzat? :) Wendy ---------------------- Wendy Richards w.m.richards@hrm.keele.ac.uk ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 8 Feb 2000 14:14:20 -0800 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: Kerth-Category Quizzes: Best Series In-Reply-To: <20000206040943.69840.qmail@hotmail.com> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit Hi Dia: I didn't realize I had anything that was eligible! Thanks, Carolyn >For those of you who are interested, here is my list of stories which are >eligible in this category (Iím not certain that this list is exhaustive, so >please correct any errors): > >*Yvonne Connell "Fear of Discovery" >*Mandy Crustner "When Separate Worlds Collide" >*Irene Dutchak "Firestorm," "Starfire and Sunstorm" >*Dawn Field "What If I Never Left Krypton," "Something to Talk About," >"Return of Kal-El" >*Elaine Gustainis "By the Light of the Silvery Moon" "To The Stars," >"Mystery at Neewatoree Falls" >*IRC RR unintentional 5th season >*Pam Jernigan "Just Like ThatÖ?" "Being Lois Lane" >*Letitia Logan "One Mistake" >*Maria TB Mendoza The Knowledge Series >*Notrepooh "Coming of Age" and "Tempered by Fire" >*Mobile Richard "Life in a Different World" >*Wendy Richards "Big Boys Do Fly" >*Wendy Richards "It Happened One (Super) Night" and "Itís a Super Life" >*Carolyn Schnall "Psychic" parts II and III >*Nan Smith the Dagger stories >*Trevise "Awakenings," "Here We Go Again," "Right On Time," "The End Of The >Beginning" > > >-Dia >zimri@hotmail.com >______________________________________________________ >Get Your Private, Free Email at http://www.hotmail.com ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 8 Feb 2000 11:18:42 -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: Kerth Category Quiz: Original Premise MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit > Quote 1: > > "All through my career, everywhere I went, you would be > there, undoing whatever damage I tried to do. I can't > imagine what my life would have been like without you." > > Quote 2: > > "Maybe I can trust *him*, but not his wife, Lois Lane. And he wouldn't be > able to keep a secret from her -- I've heard that she twists him around her > little finger." > > Quote 3: > > "*You're* my Tornado?" > > Quote 4: > > "Look, Kent, I don't have an S-signal, so just do me a favor and > let the big guy know I want to talk to him, okay?" > > Quote 5: > > "I'm not Claude Rochert, Lois." > > Quote 6: > > "He's really worried that this Van Doren character is somehow > behind a plot to kill his friend--you know, the Prince?" > > Quote 7: > > "Wait a minute, you mean you saw her holding Karly, and imagined > her holding your baby? Clark, that's so sweet!" > > Quote 8: > > "We have two thefts, one of a Brazilian plant, the other of a culture > of harmless bacteria. Same MO, but I have no idea how to connect > them. Or why anyone would try and steal either item anyway." > > Quote 9: > > "So, we'd better get going and check on the red haired woman in > my apartment and see if we can help Althea Fitzgerald." > > * * * > Figured I'd just use your spoiler space: > S > P > O > I > L > E > R > > S > P > A > C > E > > 1. "Ties That Bind" by Christine Carr 2. Not a clue. 3. "The Penfriend" by Wendy Richards. 4. "Honor Among Thieves" by Hazel 5. "Burnout" by Labrat 6. "Assassin's Dagger" by Nan Smith (heh heh) 7. I've read it, but I can't place it. 8. Had to check the spelling here: Plantathera Lactarius by Cybercerpent 9. "Strange Visitor" by Carol Malo How'd I do? Nan ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 8 Feb 2000 14:37:07 -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: Kerth Category Quiz: Original Premise In-Reply-To: <38A06C11.B8C71DC6@earthlink.net> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Nan, yes, the spoiler space was added deliberately so that you could simply add it into your reply without typing it yourself; but I'd appreciate knowing if you got your answers from the quotes or the excerpts! Hazel (who notes that for some odd reason, Nan's last two posts arrived in her mailbox *before* the post to which she was replying. Have you been talking to Herb lately...?) ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 8 Feb 2000 20:44:14 +0100 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Kaethel Subject: Re: Kerth Category Quiz: Original Premise MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit Okay, I'll try to do better than with the previous one S P O I L E R S P A C E Quote 1: I know for sure I've read that... Quote 2: no idea Quote 3: The Penfriend, by Wendy Richards Quote 4: Oh, I know that too... maybe I'll find it with the excerpt. Quote 5: Burnout, by LabRat Quote 6: no idea Quote 7: It's just a sweet sweet fantasy, baby, by Alison K. Forbes Quote 8: Could it be Plantathera Lactarius by the Cybercerpent? Quote 9: Doesn't sound familiar > > S > P > O > I > L > E > R > > S > P > A > C > E > > EXCERPT 1: Ties that bind by Chris Carr EXCERPT 2: still no idea EXCERPT 4: Oh, I *know* this EXCERPT 6: still don't know EXCERPT 9: no idea :( Hélène :) ------------------------------------------------------ Kaethel on irc / Kaethel79 on AIM kaethel@club-internet.fr "What you see is what you get" ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 8 Feb 2000 11:44:46 -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: Kerth Category Quiz: Original Premise MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit I already had your post here, Hazel. don't ask me. My server has been doing some wierd things recently. I got the answers from the quotes, though. That's why I cut off the excerpts. Nan Hazel wrote: > Nan, yes, the spoiler space was added deliberately so that you could simply > add it into your reply without typing it yourself; but I'd appreciate > knowing if you got your answers from the quotes or the excerpts! > > Hazel > > (who notes that for some odd reason, Nan's last two posts arrived in her > mailbox *before* the post to which she was replying. Have you been talking > to Herb lately...?) ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 8 Feb 2000 14:46:06 -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: Nomination Question (was RE: Wendy's FTGG) MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit > I'm not sure in this > case whether to nominate two of one author's stories for a category. In some > ways, I think it's unfair not to because we're not really judging authors > here; we're judging stories. True... but otoh, we're trying to recognize authors, too, and I like the idea of spreading the glory around so the maximum number of people get the thrill of being nominated. So, when I'm looking at a category and an author I like has several stories that fit, I try to pick the one of those that I think is the best, and only nominate/vote for that one. And if I've just nominated six stories by one author, I really think hard about nominating them in yet *another* category. I also try to balance out my votes ... if the same stories are up for Best Drama and Best Overall, just for instance, I'd try to vote for one in Drama & the other in Overall (assuming they're both excellent stories), in order to spread the awards around... And the problem with having two stories by one author in a category is that that author's fans can only vote for one each, so they might both lose. Frex: Wendy (with 50 dedicated fans) has two stories nominated; they're both great stories (natch) but the vote gets split so they each get 25 votes. Pam (with 35 dedicated fans) has only one story nominated, but her groupies all vote for it, so she gets 35 votes, and her crappy effort wins even against two superior stories by Wendy! (These numbers are, of course, all made up and just meant to make you laugh :) But I hope you see my point. It's only a possibility, but that's the sort of calculations I've seen in people predicting Hugo awards.) > I don't remember having this problem in the first Kerths, but it did come up > for me last year. Well, the first year, Chris Mulder won in every category in which she was eligible :) Last year, Erin Klingler took a lot of honors -- we seem to have a tendency to pick a hot author and stick with her :) (Who wants to bet that Wendy gets that role this year? ) I can see the argument for considering every category in isolation; if you think story A is the best in that category, you vote for it, even if it (or it's siblings) is up in six other categories as well. But I'm looking at this as more of a fan-participation thing rather than a contest based strictly on literary merit. I don't think it's as much fun for anyone if one author walks off with half the awards (well, okay, that author might enjoy it but not necessarily, since we have very generous & kind-hearted authors here, who tend to want to share the wealth). So I try to avoid nominating or voting for one story/author over and over... Just a few incoherent points for y'all to ponder! :) -- ------------------------------------------------------- Pam Jernigan | jernigan@bellsouth.net ChiefPam on IRC | ChPam on AOL IM ------------------------------------------------------- "Not only was Ivan an idiot, but he generated a telepathic damping field to turn the people nearby into idiots, too." --An exasperated Miles contemplates his cousin in _The Warrior's Apprentice_, by Lois McMaster Bujold ------------------------------------------------------- http://www.geocities.com/~chiefpam ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 8 Feb 2000 14:58:10 -0500 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: fchisham Subject: Re: Friendly request MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII At 05:28 PM 2/8/2000 +0000, you wrote: >I'd like to ask list-members a favour here. I think this is >probably in the FAQ, but we all need reminding >occasionally... I'd like to thank Wendy for bringing this up. I have noticed as well some people responding to messages and quoting the entire email in their message. Try not to do this if you can. It sometimes makes downloading email a longer period of time. Also, do try and combine your posts if you can. I can certainly understand forgetting to mention something or accidentaly sending something to the list that was meant to be private. Thanks a lot folcs! If you don't know where the FAQ for this list is located, please go here to view it: http://listserv.indiana.edu/scripts/wa.exe?A2=ind9904D&L=loiscla-general-l&P=R8389 and http://listserv.indiana.edu/scripts/wa.exe?A2=ind9904D&L=loiscla-general-l&P=R8726 Thank you so very much! Farah -- MU1 Farah Chisham, horn US Navy Band, Washington DC ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 8 Feb 2000 21:16:40 -0000 Reply-To: Yvonne Connell Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Yvonne Connell Subject: Combo: Kerth Quizzes and Nominations MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Kerth Quizzes: Just wanted to pop up a quick thank you to our quiz setters, Hazel and Wendy. I haven't been competing because I've got such a lousy memory, but it's been fun reading the answers, and they're an invaluable aid when trying to get to grips with the categories and what sort of stories might be eligible. Thanks, guys, and keep up the good work! Nominations: Pam said: [snip lots of sensible comments] Just a few incoherent points for y'all to ponder! :) Not at all, Pam! You made some kind, generous points which I, for one, totally agree with. Now descending back into semi-lurkdom to begin another fight with the illusive Muse - she's decided she wants to write comedy, but I want to write angst ;) Yvonne (yconnell@ukf.net) ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 8 Feb 2000 16:41:32 -0500 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Guy or Lesley Hilliard Subject: Re: Kerth Category Quiz: Original Premise MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit s p o i l e r s p a c e > > Quote 1: - No Idea > Quote 2: - No Idea > Quote 3: The Penfriend by Wendy Richards > Quote 4: Sounds familiar > Quote 5: Sounds familiar > Quote 6: This is Nan Smith's Assassin's Dagger > Quote 7: No Idea > Quote 8: Platanthera Lactarius by Cyberserpent > Quote 9: Strange Visitors - C. Malo > > EXCERPT 1: - Ties that Bind - Christine Carr > EXCERPT 2: -- Still no idea > EXCERPT 4: Honour among theives - Hazel > EXCERPT 5: Burnout by Labrat > EXCERPT 7: Sounds so familiar -- but I just can't place it > Lesley aka Ladyhawke ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 8 Feb 2000 22:39:23 +0100 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Nene Subject: Re: Combo: Kerth Quizzes and Nominations MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit > Now descending back into semi-lurkdom to begin another fight with the > illusive Muse - she's decided she wants to write comedy, but I want to write > angst ;) > > Yvonne > (yconnell@ukf.net) > By all means, Yvonne, WRITE ANGST!!!!! I love it!! :))) Elena (who knows that lots of FoLCs prefer WAFFY stories, but can't help loving fics where poor Clark is put through hell.....as long as he comes back from it ;) nene2811@tin.it ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 8 Feb 2000 13:55:32 -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: Kerth Category Quiz: Original Premise MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Okay, let's see how I do with this one. S P O I L E R S P A C E Quote 1: The Ties That Bind by Chris Carr - a beautiful story! Quote 3: The Penfriend by Wendy Richards Quote 8: Platanthera Lactarius by the Cybercerpent - I think Quote 9: Strange Visitors by Carol Malo EXCERPT 2: Ack. I know I've read it and liked it but ... Excerpt 4 - Honor Among Thieves by Hazel - a fun vignette. Excerpt 5 - BurnOut by Labrat Excerpt 6 - I know it's one of Nan Smith's Dagger series but I'm not sure which one. Excerpt 7 - Again, I've read it but don't know. How'd I do? Irene ===== Outside of a dog, a book is Man’s best friend. And inside of a dog, it’s too dark to read. Groucho Marx __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Talk to your friends online with Yahoo! Messenger. http://im.yahoo.com ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 8 Feb 2000 14:08:12 -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: SIP - Connections part 5 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit "C.C. Malo" wrote: > Hi, > > Here's the next part. Feedback would be very welcome. > > Carol Like a lot of people, I'll wait and send my feedback when you're done. I've peeked a little and I can tell from what I've seen that if I get involved in this one, I'll never be able to concentrate on my latest, Carol Please do finish, though. I can see from what little I read, before I prudently backed off, that this one will be awfully good. The thought of Lois and Trask together is downright scary! And I've read enough of it that I really want to see how this comes out! Nan ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 8 Feb 2000 22:43:05 -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: Caped Fear - the MotherLoad ! - Hey Labby :-) MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit James wrote: > How long did it take you to write the nfic version? > How big is the nfic version? > How long did it take you to edit for general > consumption? > > Enquiring minds want to know! ~~~Geez, James, you don't really expect me to know the answer to these, do you? I had a hard enough time keeping the plot under control. Okay, let's think. I can't say how long CF took to write because I did it in fits and starts. I half wrote it back in....um, 97? I think. Just after AKAS aired here for the first time. Then it lay fallow for over a year and a half because the Muse suddenly decided she wanted to try her hand at nfic. So there were a lot of gaps in between before it finally got finished. The nfic (original) version is um.......0.98MB. And to edit it down to pg took no time at all. Half an hour tops. Most of the nfic segments in CF were boxed off scenes on their own, so they were easy to excise in their entirety.~~~ > I am somewhere on page 3 (about page 10 uncompressed) > and I am totally enthralled, if not a little grossed > out. I can only read it at home because it looks a > little suspicious to be carrying around a textbook > size bundle of paper! ~~Grossed out? Oh...Valley Vale. Don't worry, Lois gets him out of the picture pretty quickly. Glad you're enjoying so far, James - hope it continues - and thanks for the interest! Sorry I couldn't help much with the statistics. LabRat :) ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 8 Feb 2000 16:48:56 CST Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Jessi Mounts Subject: Re: Kerth Category Quiz: Original Premise Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; format=flowed >Quote 1: > It's by Chris Carr. But after looking it up Ties That Bind? >Quote 2: > No idea. >Quote 3: > Penfriends by Wendy Richard. I love that one. >Quote 4: > Sounds familiar. >Quote 5: > Burnout by Labrat. > >Quote 6: > Don't know. > >Quote 7: > Don't know again. > >Quote 8: > Kinda sounds familiar. >Quote 9: > Maybe I this isn't one of my better quizzes. >* * * > >S >P >O >I >L >E >R > >S >P >A >C >E > >EXCERPT 2: It sounds like a scene from Fear of Discovery 2, by Yvonne Connel, but I'm not sure if that's right. >EXCERPT 4: Oh, it's Honor Among Thieves by Hazel. > > >EXCERPT 6: > Still don't know, but I'm reading this as soon as I find out! >EXCERPT 7: > Don't know. > >EXCERPT 8: I don't think I've read this. >EXCERPT 9: > Well, it sounds good. I think maybe better stick to just watching everyone else answer the quizzes. ;) Jessi jessi914@hotmail.com ______________________________________________________ Get Your Private, Free Email at http://www.hotmail.com ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 8 Feb 2000 20:15:37 -0500 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Yael Kfir Subject: Re: A Fanfic Question Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit On Tue, 8 Feb 2000 10:43:34 EST, Rose Cookson wrote: >> if I were to refer to say, September 7, 1972 (that's just an example, don't respond with a solution to that specific date!), how would I know which day of the week it was? Is there any website I can go to that can help me figure it out? << Rose, It happens to be that the days in 1972 are exactly like in 2000, (another useful information I've learned during the Y@2K panic...), so you can simply open your calendar and check. Yael. ----------------------- - Oh, god... - Zod. (Superman II) ----------------------- ______________________________________________ FREE Personalized Email at Mail.com Sign up at http://www.mail.com?sr=mc.mk.mcm.tag001 ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 8 Feb 2000 20:32:40 -0500 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Yael Kfir Subject: Re: Combo: Kerth Quizzes and Nominations Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Yvonne wrote: >> Now descending back into semi-lurkdom to begin another fight with the illusive Muse - she's decided she wants to write comedy, but I want to write angst ;) << I vote for both! :c) Good to hear from you again, Yvonne, we haven't heard much from you lately. Yael (Who should have combined this message with the answer to Rose, but only got to that thread after replying. Sorry). ----------------------- - Oh, god... - Zod. (Superman II) ----------------------- ______________________________________________ FREE Personalized Email at Mail.com Sign up at http://www.mail.com?sr=mc.mk.mcm.tag001 ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 8 Feb 2000 20:42:50 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: SIP - Connections part 5 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Carol, You've amazed me (again!) with your wonderful storytelling. I am fascinated with your ability to describe events, emotions, and juggle all the characters in this riveting fic. My stomach is already in knots, wondering how in the world you're going to resolve all the issues. Love the angst and mystery and Lois's intrepid reporting instincts, which include a bit of thievery already . s p o i l e r s p a c e Several great new twists, that I have not seen done before: Bringing the New Kryptonians and Bureau 39 at the same time, and then Lois being recruited. So many delightful aspects to your story, I could go on and on. I was, however, just a bit confused by the opening paragraphs, even to the point of re-reading several times. I'm assuming you will be addressing the reason for the justice and revenge, and how Lois got to the point of being on the van? (I also apologize if you have already addressed this issue on the list, sometimes I get too fast on the delete key.) Thank you for this wonderful and future rereadable epic to be. (Is that redundant?) Kate ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 8 Feb 2000 18:09:34 -0800 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Betty Huang Subject: Re: SIP - Connections part 5 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Hey Carol, do you mind editing my stories? --- Kate Crane wrote: > Carol, > You've amazed me (again!) with your wonderful > storytelling. I am fascinated > with your ability to describe events, emotions, and > juggle all the characters > in this riveting fic. My stomach is already in > knots, wondering how in the > world you're going to resolve all the issues. Love > the angst and mystery and > Lois's intrepid reporting instincts, which include a > bit of thievery already > . > s > p > o > i > l > e > r > s > p > a > c > e > Several great new twists, that I have not seen done > before: Bringing the New > Kryptonians and Bureau 39 at the same time, and then > Lois being recruited. > So many delightful aspects to your story, I could go > on and on. > I was, however, just a bit confused by the opening > paragraphs, even to the > point of re-reading several times. I'm assuming you > will be addressing the > reason for the justice and revenge, and how Lois got > to the point of being on > the van? (I also apologize if you have already > addressed this issue on the > list, sometimes I get too fast on the delete key.) > Thank you for this wonderful and future rereadable > epic to be. (Is that > redundant?) > Kate > __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Talk to your friends online with Yahoo! Messenger. http://im.yahoo.com ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 8 Feb 2000 18:21:48 -0800 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Betty Huang Subject: Re: Caped Fear - the MotherLoad ! - Hey Labby :-) MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Here is a little test to see if my stories is understandable. If anybody can understand this one, I am willing to give them two free gift certificate to McDonald's resturant. Just send me a detail report with your address on it. There are three stories so choose one and Please, I am only going to send two to one person at one adress. Remember that this is only part of the story, I will send the rest when I have time. ___________________________________________ Part I. Authors Comment: Comments are welcome at bhuang60641@yahoo.com, but please don’t tell me “How did you know that there is so much robbery going on”, as commented by my boss #2 Hoori Bhawnani, when she read this story that I’ve wrote this story a week back (11/10/99). No, I don’t listen or read the newspapers on current news. What can I say; I have a six sense at least that’s what everyone who knows me thinks. Note: This maybe my last story to Fanfic, due to my inability to find a proper editor of my own. However, I am working on “Utopia 102:Forgiveness” and “Utopia 103: Tolerance. If you wish to see it, you may email me, but I doubt you will. These “Utopia” stories are based on my own observation of the world around me, it is by no means should be though of as a fact, but whether, it states my philosophy on how Utopia may be achieved. Utopia 101: “When Neighbors Unite” Three years had past with a very busy schedule for Superman. Clark had hardly seen his wife, Lois in estimation of two years. As recently, yet another predicament is developing at a local Bar. Baron Sunday was in town again, He was sitting at the bar counter, contemplating his next move to finish off what he had done in the past. He could not figure out how Clark had managed to withstand his most powerful spells, his voodoo. But One day, he met Mr. Gadget in a bar as he was questioning what he had done wrong. Mr. Gadget whispered to him. “You know what you did wrong. You didn’t use Kryptonite.” “Kryptonite? What has that got to do with Clark Kent.” Mr. Gadget proceeded to explain how they found out that Clark Kent was superman and how Henry Potters had almost succeeded in killing him until Lois interrupted. Then, he told about other issues, such as the Kranite and serum 7, and how it affects Clark. “So-, Clark Kent is Superman. Now I know what I did wrong.” He thought to himself, “I was trying to kill him with the wrong nightmare. Heck! It wasn’t even a nightmare, making him feel like he’s boxed in. I sure can use this Henry potter’s situation to my benefit.” That Night he constructed another Clark Kent voodoo doll. But this time he needed more, and more power. In order to do so, he needed more life force from the other sygics and mind readers. He needed their powers. But meanwhile, Clark was having trouble sleeping as he dreamed of Henry Potters and his assistant, the infamous mad scientist digging his knife into him. Clark wakes up in a sweat, not knowing why he had this strange feeling of impending doom. But the small scars on his right chest still remained, after two and a half year since that incident with Henry Potter’s assistant. He gets up to go downstairs for a drink and to ponder on the incident with the mushroom serum. He remembers that it had a very bad effect on him. He wonders if Lois will ever be safe around him. What if someone had put a crushed serum seven pill in his food and drink? Will he have the ability to fight the effect? Two days later, Star rushed into the daily Planet building and talked to Lois in a frantic full blabbering mode and excited manner. “Star. Star! Take a deep breath and calm down.” Star took a deep breath and then said, “Lois, someone’s been killing all my friends at the School for the fortuneteller and Mind readers. Molly turned up dead the other day, all old and gray like a mummy.” “What do you mean old and gray like a mummy?” “Old, like if she just turned 200 years old. I know my friend Molly; She’s not that old. She’s just turned twenty, Lois.” She thought for a second, “This has all the makings of a dark voodoo spell.” Lois could see that Star was really worried. As Lois listened in on Star’s apparent explanation on why her fellow fortune tellers was killed and how the assassin had avoided detection, Clark was working on the computer when he started seeing Baron Sunday’s face in his head laughing at him saying, “Okay Clark, AKA superman. I am coming for you. This time I am prepared to give you an agonizing death.” “Lois”, says star, “This kind of thing doesn’t just happen. The cops can’t help. It’s black magic. Whoever did this is fueling up for his big revenge.” Star paused for a while for breath before continuing, “Some unfinished business. I tell you, I think NIA agent Matt Young is in trouble and…” then the name became fuzzy to star, she could not see or remember who the second man was, “Anyhow, the two men are in great danger.” “We’ll look into it.” Two more days pass as another sygics turns up dead. That was also when Lois started noticing that Agent Matt Young was starting to change for the worse, getting more unpredictable and violent. For the two days prior, Lois had looked into the incident after hours as a personal favor to star but came up blank. “Who ever it is sure covered their tracks up.” The next day, Lois and Clark got news of two more death of three well know fortunetellers. Perry White screams across the room for Lois and Clark to get into his office. “Have you guys have any leads to all the deaths of those fortunetellers?” Perry says after Lois had sat down in her seat. “No. Perry but Star did come by a few days ago and she was telling me how she thinks that it is the works of some dark voodooist out for revenge.” Clark knew it was Baron Sunday’s, but did not say anything; he let Lois finish.” She told me it was some sort of thing like sucking up enough life force from the victims in order to juice up for a finial revenge attack.” “On whom?” “I have no idea Chief.” “Okay, talk to star some more and see if she can tune in on this man’s frequency.” As Clark and Lois was about to leave, “And Lois, if star come let her speak to me. I have something I need to speak to her about.” “Okay, chief.” Once outside the room, “Okay, spill it. You’ve been too quiet in there. What’s up?” “I think the unknown person is Baron Sunday.” “How did you know that?” “The other day when star was here, I heard Baron Sunday’s voice in my head. I think he knows I’m Superman.” Clark whispers the last sentence to Lois, who is obviously by now giving Clark that concerned look, knowing that Baron Sunday is after Clark. That was when Clark heard an ambulance rushing to the hospital, “Metropolis General, I have Agent Young here prep for emergency. Fatal Heart attack.” “Oh, oh.” “What. What did you hear?” “Nothing Lois.” He said because he did not want her to worry. “Clark.” Lois says in a tone of voice that Lois was saying, Answer me or else. “Just an ambulance taking NIA agent Matt Young to the hospital.” “Clark. That means Baron Sunday will be coming for you next.” “I’m ready for him.” “Are you? He knows your secret. Who knows what else he had found out.” “We better go talk to Star.” “Sure. If you think it is necessary.” Lois and Clark talked to star in her home. She also mentioned to her that Perry wanted to see her. “I know what he wants but I don’t think astrology is very accurate. I foretell the future, Lois. I’m not a __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Talk to your friends online with Yahoo! Messenger. http://im.yahoo.com ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 9 Feb 2000 02:31:58 GMT Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Diyan Subject: Re: Kerth Category Quiz: Original Premise Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; format=flowed * * s p o i l e r s p a c e * * 1. Christine Carr “Ties That Bind” from the excerpt 2. 3. Wendy Richards “The Penfriend” from the quote 4. Hazel “Honor Among Theives” from the excerpt 5. LabRat “Burnout” from the quote 6. Nan Smith “Assassin’s Dagger” from the quote 7. Allison Forbes “Sweet, Sweet Fantasy, Baby” from the quote 8. 9. Carol Malo “Strange Visitors” from the excerpt Okay, I decided to not spend much time on this quiz, so I looked only briefly at the quotes before moving on to the excerpts, and then, deciding I was finished, I looked at everyone else’s responses to find out what numbers 2 and 8 were. But since no one had found number 2, I took that as a challenge, and went looking for it. It was uploaded to the Archive in October 1998, so it’s not eligible, but here it is: >Quote 2: > >"Maybe I can trust *him*, but not his wife, Lois Lane. And he wouldn't be >able to keep a secret from her -- I've heard that she twists him around her >little finger." 2. Mobile Richard “Legal Weapon” -Dia zimri@hotmail.com ______________________________________________________ Get Your Private, Free Email at http://www.hotmail.com ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 8 Feb 2000 20:34:40 -0800 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Amy Lauters Subject: Night Terrors (5) MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit The first logical step - check out Alexis' background - they assigned to Jimmy, who was more interested after he pulled up her drivers' license picture. "Cool, she's hot! She dating anybody?" Assuring him she didn't know, Lois turned to her assigned task: Trying to remember everything she had watched, read, listened to or accessed over the last few weeks, ever since Lex started permeating her dreams with his message of loss and vengeance. Even with the help of her daily appointment calendar - a diary of her life she'd be lost without - this promised to take some serious time. Clark, meanwhile, took off for Star Labs, and the one person with scientific expertise he and Lois trusted completely. Dr. Klein, as usual, seemed to be deep into an experiment of his own when Clark showed up in his office. Clark cleared his throat. "Dr Klein?" Dr. Klein looked up, peering over the top of his microscope. "Clark! What can I do for you?" "I'm not disturbing you, am I?" Clark asked. Dr. Klein moved out from behind his tall lab desk and gestured to the dusty chair opposite his own office chair. "Not really. I'm working on a blood project for a friend. It can wait. What's this you and Lois are working on this time?" Briefly, Clark filled him in on Lois' dreams, Dr. Turner's death, Alexis' refusal to give information about her father's work, and their idea that someone else had the trigger that allowed mere media to become the tool of dream control. Dr. Klein rubbed his chin for a minute, then ventured, "I knew Dr. Turner; the scientific community here in Metropolis can be a close-knit group. I was saddened when I heard he'd died, but I never dreamed it might have been part of his own experimental work." "Dr. Klein, what do you think of our theory? That some kind of trigger exists that can allow someone to control the dreams of others?" "It wouldn't be impossible," Dr. Klein said slowly. "Turner's work was closely followed, not just by his employers, but by a number of us. The basis for it was the idea that exposing adolescents to positive messages just before they slept would induce good dreams, and good dreams, a stronger sense of self-worth. A stronger sense of self-worth, then, might help these troubled youth make better choices, and therefore, modify their behavior." He frowned. "I didn't know he was looking for an actual way to control the dreams themselves." "Do you think that's possible?" Clark asked. Dr. Klein leaned back in his chair. "Maybe. If he had proof that his methods worked, he might have found a biochemical trigger. If he was monitoring brain wave patterns as they slept, comparing them . it's a long shot, Clark. If we could find his research, we might be able to discern what he'd found." It was Clark's turn to frown. "But Alexis implied her father's research was gone. That's why she's redoing it." "Are you sure, Clark? If she's at the point of duplicating her father's research, she must be building off of something," Dr. Klein said. "She obviously knew enough about it to pick up where he left off." "The problem there, Dr. Klein, is that Alexis refuses to talk to us about this," Clark said. "She was more than specific about that." Dr. Klein shrugged. "So find his assistant." Clark went on alert. "Assistant?" "Yeah, new up and comer. I think he's got a university position, now," Dr. Klein said. "He couldn't keep working at Lex Labs, with his boss dead, and Star Labs wasn't interested in his work at the time. I hear he's doing good work." "Do you remember his name?" Clark asked, almost sure he knew the answer. "Mike Soppeland." *** "I knew it!" Lois cried out jubilantly. "I knew that smarmy prof had something to do with this." "Beautiful and brilliant, I've said before, and I'll say it again," Clark rubbed a hand along her shoulder, and bent to kiss her. She leaned into his kiss, bringing her arms around his neck and pressing up against him, stretching like a cat. Breaking the kiss, Lois gave him a glorious smile. "But I love hearing it." "Guys, I hate to break this up - but you really want this," Jimmy bounced up. "Alexis did do her undergraduate work at Stanford, and she is the daughter of Dr. Frank Turner, but check this out: She was kicked out of Stanford, under this huge scandal." He handed Lois a photocopy of a student newspaper article. "Sex for grades." "And all roads lead to Mike Soppeland," Lois crowed. "When do we nail him?" "Actually, Lois, the article doesn't say Soppeland; it says Martenson," Clark pointed out. Lois dismissed that with a wave of her hand. "So he changed it. So what. It 's gotta be him." "Lois, we can't make that assumption. Particularly since Soppeland was supposed to be Dr. Turner's assistant here in Metropolis five years ago, not trading sex for grades in California," Clark reasoned. "Come, on, Clark," Lois cajoled. "You know it's got to have some kind of connection. That creep was dripping 'I sell grades for sex' when we saw him this morning." "Well, yeah, but I want to know why he didn't mention his own connection to dream control when we talked to him," Clark said thoughtfully. "You aren't going to find out today guys; it's after 8. P.M. As in the evening," Jimmy said. "There's no way he'll be on campus at this time of the night." "So pick up the phone book, Jimmy," Lois retorted. "Where does he live? What's his number? Call him! So we can talk to him tonight. We've only got 14 hours left of Perry's 24 and I don't want to go to bed . now that we know someone's controlling my dreams." "Reality check, honey. We've established dream control is possible. We have not yet established someone's controlling your dreams," Clark said. "I refuse to accept the alternative," Lois said emphatically. "I have to." "OK, Lois, Soppeland lives over on Hyperion. Weird, how close he lives to you guys," Jimmy said. "Want me to call him to set up an interview?" "No, Jimmy," Clark looked at the address. "I think we'll just drop in." "Now you're talking, sweetheart!" Lois jumped up and started for the elevator. "Beautiful and brilliant," Clark let out a low whistle of appreciation. "Come on, farmboy," she called back, laughing. ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 8 Feb 2000 22:15:05 EST Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Alicia Utowski Subject: Re: Kerth Category Quiz: Original Premise MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit S P O I L E R S P A C E Quote 3: Wendy Richards' The Penfriend Quote 6: Nan Smith's Assassin's Dagger Exerpt 1: Chris Carr's Ties that Bind That's all I know... don't think I've read any of the others... if I have, it's been a long time and I don't remember Alicia ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 8 Feb 2000 21:10:01 -0800 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Betty Huang Subject: Utopia 101 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: multipart/mixed; boundary="0-1804289383-950073001=:3521" --0-1804289383-950073001=:3521 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Disposition: inline Well, here I go and this is the second try at this. __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Talk to your friends online with Yahoo! 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//////////////////////////////////////////////////////////// //////////////////////////////////////////////////////////// /////////wEA/v8DCgAA/////wYJAgAAAAAAwAAAAAAAAEYYAAAATWljcm9z b2Z0IFdvcmQgRG9jdW1lbnQACgAAAE1TV29yZERvYwAQAAAAV29yZC5Eb2N1 bWVudC44APQ5snEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA --0-1804289383-950073001=:3521-- ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 8 Feb 2000 21:22:59 -0800 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Betty Huang Subject: Re: Best Villain Quiz: results MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii You too. Wow! I thought I was the only one. --- Nancy Smith wrote: > Wendy Richards wrote: > > > And finally, Nan: I debated whether to give her 17 > or 18 points, but she did describe Jenni's > 'Suffer...' very > > well, so I made it 17.5. Seems we can tell what > type of stories Nan prefers, though she did have the > advantage of > > recognising two of her own! > > > > Over to you, Hazel! > > > > Wendy > > > > ---------------------- > > Wendy Richards > > w.m.richards@hrm.keele.ac.uk > > Actually, I like most different types of fanfic, > except deathfic, > Wendy. Even soppy, sentimental romance-type. > I've just got a good > memory for what I read, or watch on TV. (What I > *hear* is another story > altogether. That's why I make people *write* down > directions for me. > Otherwise it goes in one ear and out the other.) > > Nan > ...And I thought I was the only one. __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Talk to your friends online with Yahoo! Messenger. http://im.yahoo.com ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 9 Feb 2000 11:24:07 +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: Utopia 101 In-Reply-To: <20000209051002.3554.qmail@web3306.mail.yahoo.com> MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; CHARSET=US-ASCII On Tue, 8 Feb 2000 21:10:01 -0800 Betty Huang wrote: > Well, here I go and this is the second try at this. Please do not send attachments to this list, *particularly* not in Word as opposed to plain text, since they can carry viruses. They also make download times much, much longer. If you want to post your stories, Betty, can you paste them into the body of an email in future? Best wishes, Wendy ---------------------- Wendy Richards w.m.richards@hrm.keele.ac.uk ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 9 Feb 2000 03:28:58 -0800 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Melisma Subject: Re: A Fanfic Question In-Reply-To: <47.14fd2b6.25d193a6@aol.com> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Rose, go to http://www.earth.com/calendar - they have a feature where you can call up practically any year and you get a calendar grid. Very useful. I used it to predict my paydays for the next five years, and you can go back quite a while, too... Melisma (yawning under her rock at 3am, and asking that any of her 'sisters' on this list will write to her, as she's lost some of your addresses and has to tell you something important - apologies to the other listmembers for mentioning it onlist :) At 10:43 AM 08/02/2000 EST, you wrote: >I'm hoping one of you will have a solution to this problem of mine. I'm >working on a fanfic, and I need to refer to many dates in the past. However, >if I were to refer to say, September 7, 1972 (that's just an example, don't >respond with a solution to that specific date!), how would I know which day >of the week it was? Is there any website I can go to that can help me figure >it out? Or am I gonna have to count backwards on my fingers or something? >Help, please! > >Thanks! > >Rose > > ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 9 Feb 2000 03:43:55 -0800 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Melisma Subject: Re: Friendly request In-Reply-To: Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Ooopies, me bad. So sorry folcs, I just sent a response, and I think I was guilty of just that. It's really easy to do, but I'll try to remember, promise... Melisma (cringing under her rock) >I have noticed as well some people responding to >messages and quoting the entire email in their >message. Try not to do this if you can. It sometimes >makes downloading email a longer period of time. ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 9 Feb 2000 06:50:18 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: SIP - Connections part 5 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Nicole, Nan, and Kate, thanks very much for your comments. It's reassuring that you think this is off to a good start. Nicole, I'm flattered that you like this story so far. :) Also glad to hear you're a little nervous about Lois and Trask and about Z & C. :) Need to have a little respectable angst in the story somewhere. Nan, you wrote: <> But thank-you for letting me know you're interested. And keep working on your latest! Kate, much appreciated, as always. <> Mine, too. I know *what* the resolution will be but the last part of the route there is still a bit murky. <> No, I haven't -- much of it does come out later in the story but it shouldn't be so distracting in the beginning. Thanks for telling me that! I'll go back and rework this part, maybe even drop the first couple of paragraphs entirely. That's one of the parts I've been wondering about. And thanks for sticking with it. Carol ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 9 Feb 2000 11:53:05 +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: SIP - Connections part 5 In-Reply-To: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; CHARSET=US-ASCII On Wed, 9 Feb 2000 06:50:18 EST "C.C. Malo" wrote: > I'll go back and rework this part, > maybe even drop the first couple of paragraphs entirely. > That's one of the parts I've been wondering about. Carol - I *like* the first couple of paras! Please don't excise them! Wendy ---------------------- Wendy Richards w.m.richards@hrm.keele.ac.uk ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 9 Feb 2000 06:53:09 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: SIP: Connections - part 6 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Hi -- yet another part. Um, I hesitate to ask for feedback, but.... I'm wondering if I should cut some of the detail in this section. -------- Connections, part 6 Not far away, Zara and Clark were standing on a rusty iron foot bridge which crossed the narrow, oily width of the narrow canal which diverted part of the unruly Hobbs River. "What I can't figure, Sara, is what links the victims to this part of town. According to Henderson's profilers, murder victims usually come from the area where their bodies were found and the killer usually comes from within a two mile radius. But I don't get it here." He turned to look at the woman standing beside him. "So what am I missing?" "I've read about these cases. A young woman, a middle-aged man, and a young man, just out of his teens -- only the older man's identity confirmed, an accountant from across town." "Henderson's found some more, but still no tie in. The woman, girl, " he corrected himself, "was a prostitute, probably from this neighborhood; the guy he's still not sure about, looks like he was on the streets, a drug user, but no one down here knew him." "Clark, why don't we check around a bit -- maybe we can spot something the police have missed." A small smile flitted across Clark's face as he replied. "Between Henderson's expert team and my, uh, sight, I don't think we've missed a lot." Zara began to walk the short distance to the end of the bridge. "Still, you can't tell. We might..." She was interrupted by the shrill wail of multiple sirens blaring from the centre of town. Clark's head snapped up and he spoke quickly. "Excuse me, Sara, gotta go." The next second he was flying east. Zara looked up and smiled. She'd heard the sirens, too. Looking around and noticing no one, she rose effortlessly in the air, gaining altitude, and then she shot towards the sound of the sirens. This was Ching's test. They would both watch with interest. As Superman got closer to the source of the sirens, he spotted a school bus straddling precipitously across the steel and concrete railing of the long suspension bridge which arcs high across the mouth of Metropolis Harbor. Far above the icy waters, the bus wobbled precariously, threatening to topple at any moment, plunging its frightened young passengers below the frigid surface. Easy, Superman thought as he descended toward the bus. Then he felt the first wave of weakness wash over his body. He'd only felt it once before, but he recognized it immediately -- Kryptonite. The closer he got to the bus the stronger the effects of the green crystal on his body. As he felt himself losing altitude more rapidly than he could easily control, he knew he would be powerless to prevent the bus from slipping. Those children would die. He fell away, far enough to feel some of his strength returning. Not much. Maybe enough. He sped toward a huge sports dome set up in the centre of Metropolis Central Park, quickly circled it, removing the strong fiberglass tarpaulin that formed its roof. Seconds later, carrying the fabric, he shot back to the teetering bus, giving it a wide birth as he swung far below it. Still he was close enough to feel the effect from the Kryptonite, as it seeped into his muscles, weakening him. He fought against the mounting pain as he pushed himself to stretch the fabric across the water, lashing it to the concrete footings of the bridge. The canvas had been developed specially to withstand the forces of severe winter storms, its fabric reinforced with steel fibres. It should withstand the weight of the bus, serving as a giant net to catch the falling bus. It had to. Grabbing the tarpaulin's two loose corners in each hand, Superman flew far enough out over the water to form a safety net. The harbor police had diverted both road and water traffic from the vicinity of the bridge, anticipating the crash of the bus. Ambulances and fire engines were roaring up to the scene, their sirens echoing the tension in Superman's gut. Zara watched all this impassively. Somehow she was sure that Ching would not let these children die and somehow she was also sure that Kal El would rescue them. She watched as he worked at lashing the ends of the canvas and then, holding one corner, as he flew out to grab the remaining corner of his improvised net. Her enhanced vision allowed her to see the physical strain that Kal El was under. His face grimaced with the pain from the Kryptonite, and his movements were sluggish as he forced himself to complete his task. Then she noticed a man in a dark leather jacket slip unobtrusively to the footing opposite where Kal El now hovered, just as the bus lost its balance and hurtled over the bridge. The makeshift net held and the bus was safe, cradled in a giant hammock strung across the water. Sweat beading on his brow, Superman watched, exhausted as the bus finally lost its equilibrium, pitching downward over the side of the bridge. Blowing out a breath of relief, he saw that the bus was secure, at least as long as he could withstand the waves of Kryptonite which now felt much closer to him. Where was it anyway? Quickly scanning the bus, he noticed the green crystal encased in a small box on the front dashboard, just as his super-vision began to fail. He was getting weaker. Raising his voice so that it would carry inside the bus, he shouted for the driver to throw the box as far as he could out the other side. The driver did and Superman began to feel some of his strength return -- not much, but at least enough for him to hold up his end of the makeshift net until the fire department could lower its ladders and slings to slowly remove the bus's passengers. It would be alright. Feeling relieved he looked around and noticed the black-suited figure standing at one of the footings. That was odd; he hadn't been there a few minutes ago. How'd he get there? It took a while for the fire department to remove all the passengers and Superman had no choice but to wait it out. The bus had landed on one side and at first it had proved awkward to get the children out. Attempts to negotiate a huge crane from a major construction company were going slowly; it managed to arrive just as the last handful of children were being hoisted to safety. The bus driver was the last to be rescued. The man in the black suit was gone; Clark had watched as he stepped behind the huge footing and then vanished. Later, as he was talking to the bus driver, Superman could make no sense of how the accident had happened. The driver was defensive in face of a series of hostile questions from the police who were in the process of testing his alcohol level, although it was obvious that he was sober. The bus would be thoroughly inspected for mechanical failure although the bus driver was sure that hadn't been the problem. He was perplexed and angry, still shaken by the experience. He had no idea why the accident had happened. Much later that night, close to midnight, as Clark landed on the small balcony of the Clinton Street apartment, he was shocked to see Sara, along with the man in black whom he'd spotted that afternoon at the bridge, waiting for him. Both were dressed in black uniforms and appeared oblivious to the freezing January temperature. "What??" "Lord Kal El," Zara began.... "I am Zara, kin to your mother Lara, both of us descended from the house of Ra. We've come to take you home." ***** Lois tried again to reach her father before she caught the plane to Kansas. There was still no response so once again she left a message, this time letting him know she would be out of town for a few days. She didn't tell him where she was going and she left no number at which she could be reached since she had no phone and doubted if anyone would take a message for her at the Apollo. She wasn't too surprised at her failure to get hold of Sam Lane; getting in touch with her father had always been an iffy thing, even when he and her mother had been married. When she got back she would try a different way to get in touch with her sister and mother. But she was disappointed; somehow she'd hoped that her father would be waiting for her, grateful that she was still alive. As she replaced the receiver, she heard the PA announce her flight departure. Hoisting her backpack over her shoulders, she strode quickly to the departure gate. ***** Clark listened in both wonder and disbelief as Zara and Ching talked to him in his small living room, providing him with answers to questions he'd had for so long. Who he was and where he'd come from. At first, he'd been skeptical, not believing that he could possibly be from another planet. The idea of extraterrestial contact with Earth had been one that he'd always thought of as unlikely, but perhaps an outside possibility, like the existence of angels or sasquatch. He'd always thought there should be a little tangible evidence before believing. But Zara's and Ching's ultimate proof, the fact that they too had powers like his, was pretty convincing. So he listened to what they had to say, quelling the various emotions which swept over him. They told him of how the planet Krypton had exploded, leaving no survivors. They were New Kryptonians, citizens of what had once been a Kryptonian colony, founded by Kal El's great grandfather, Zon El. At the time of Krypton's destruction, New Krypton had been engaged in bitter and often violent negotiations with the mother planet, seeking more power to make its own laws. "So that's why I wasn't sent to New Krypton?" Clark asked. "Probably. At the time you were sent, New Krypton was led by Lord Nor the Elder. He and your father were enemies and Jor El, I'm sure, did not trust him." "But he must've trusted your father. I mean, he and my mother were cousins you said." "True, they were second cousins." Zara met his eyes for a moment and then lowered them. "But my father was not well and he knew he would not live much longer. He made provision for my mother and me but he would probably not have been able to protect you." "I don't get it -- why should a baby need protecting?" "Kal," Zara noted the flicker of surprise that crossed his face when she used his proper name, "your grandfather was the ruler of Krypton and he was a great leader. But Nor was his enemy and the El family knew he would not hesitate to kill you so that you could never become the focal point of rebellion." "What about you?" Clark asked. "How did you manage to escape from this Nor?" Zara smiled for the first time since she had entered Clark's living room. "Ching's family. They have always served the Ras with honor. And they did so after my father's death. Lieutenant Ching has always been my protector." She turned to look at the man beside her but his face remained impassive although he nodded his head slightly to acknowledge her comment. "Why now? Why come for me now -- why not thirty years ago or whenever it was that your troubles with this Nor Family ended? Somebody just remember I existed?" "Kal El, " Zara's words were formal, a rebuke of the accusation in his tone, "we were not certain of your survival; in fact, given the level of our technology at the time, it seemed unlikely. But we have come now. New Krypton needs you, Jor El's heir, to lead it in the crisis we now face. This is what you are destined to do." "What?" Clark stood and ran a hand through his black hair and looked at them both as though they were crazy. "Why should I want to go there?" "Because they are your people, my lord," Ching said, speaking for the first time since they had entered Clark's living room. "It is your duty. Throughout the last month, we have observed you. Today we saw that you are worthy to lead us." "You made that bus to go off the bridge." The anger in Clark's voice was clear. "You could have killed those kids!" "Highly unlikely," Ching said calmly, "I would have intervened." "Oh, Kryptonite doesn't affect you?" Clark's voice was sarcastic as he glared at both Zara and Ching. "It can be countered with lead. Interesting how this planet intensifies its toxicity." Ching's voice was cool as he continued. "The Kryptonite was housed in a box which could be automatically opened and closed by remote control. One of our people, posing as a mechanic, placed the box in the bus before it started its route this afternoon. If you had failed, I would have closed the container and you would have been able to use your regular super strength to complete your task." Clark caught the slight trace of sarcasm in Ching's words but made no comment on it. "One of your people? Just how many people are here?" "Only a few. Our mission is only to contact you. " "Look, Earth is my home..." Clark started. Zara's voice was soft as she interrupted him. "No, Kal. How can it be -- you're so different from these people. What is there here for you? You belong with us. You must feel a great emptiness inside you, an emptiness that only your Kryptonian heritage can fill. You must be curious to know what your home is like, to live among your own people. New Krypton is where you belong." "My lord, it is your duty," Ching added. "Besides, Metropolis is so inferior to Krypton. Its technology is primitive; its people are not your people." Clark spoke slowly, thinking about what they had said, and also about what had not been said. "I'm not so sure about that. I need time to think about what you've said." "There is no time." Ching's voice was impatient. "We've been here too long already." "Kal, New Krypton once again faces a threat from the Nor family. They will destroy what we are if they succeed. Our people need you." "Why me?" "You are the descendant of the great Zon El, his heir. Only you can lead New Krypton." Zara's voice was urgent she spoke. "And then I return here?" "Yes," Zara didn't flinch as she spoke. Clark's tone was equally emphatic as he repeated his earlier words. "I need time to think." ***** After they'd left, Clark sat down again, his mind racing over all that Zara and Ching had said. Partly, he was elated. Part of him could hardly wait to go with them, eager to see New Krypton, to travel to a distant universe, something that scientists on Earth still only dreamed of or played academic games about at university conferences. Even his extraordinary powers would not allow anything that astonishing. He'd tried once to reach the moon but had fallen back, unable to do without oxygen for the time required to get there. But the stars had always fascinated him, their bright solitude succoring him in his loneliness as, sometimes, late at night he flew high above the clouds. And now he knew he did belong somewhere. He was Kryptonian. He had family --- distant, admittedly, but real family. And there was a people of whom he was a part. He was not the last one. He was not alone. There was a whole culture on that distant planet, with beliefs and values and customs that he wanted desperately to know about. That he'd dreamed of knowing ever since he'd began to develop his powers and realized that he was different, really different from those around him. And, over and over, had wondered why. From that time forward, he'd always taken great care to hide what his body could do, afraid of what would happen if he were found out. He'd been frightened, too, of the power of these new abilities as they developed throughout his adolescence. At times he'd overused them, applying a bit too much force to push a car out of a snow bank or to tackle someone in a high school football game. After that particular incident, his participation in sports became a question of finely tuning his skills, enough to be part of the team, but not quite enough to be its star. For him, the joy of sports became the team work required to assist a fellow player score a touchdown or a basket. One summer, he'd helped repair a dock at a local marina, lifting rocks that no one else could manage, when he was suddenly aware of the stares from the two guys with whom he was working. Then he'd realized the problem: he shouldn't have been able to lift those rocks. So he covered up, claiming he'd been overextending himself; it was the adrenaline that had given him the extra strength, but man, he sure was beat now. Maybe he'd sit it out for a bit. His companions had laughed, kidding him about showing off and left him to sit in the shade. That wasn't the only incident. He'd accidentally started a fire in the storage shed behind the bleachers on the Smallville High football field when he'd looked over there quickly to see if the team's missing equipment had been left there by mistake. No one thought, of course, to ascribe the fire to the heat rays he had accidentally activated as he had tried to use his x-ray vision to scan the area behind the bleachers. Instead, there was much talk of spontaneous combustion, especially by him, as he and two of his friends raced to the storage shed to douse the flames. After that, he resorted to solitary walks in the woods where he could find somewhere to be alone and try out his new powers. Lifting, pulling, throwing. Finding out how fast he could run. Learning to control his x-ray vision. Using his breath to create whirlpools of fall leaves -- even doing that a few times to the wheat in farmers' fields. A few years ago he'd been embarrassed to learn of the crop circles in Kansas fields which experts were busy investigating. Still, they'd been fun to make. He'd made them shortly after he realized he could fly, when he was eighteen. At night, he would swoop down low over the fields, thrilling to the whoosh of rustling wheat as he flew above it. That's when he'd made the circles, patterns of rings scattered across the fields. The first time he'd saved someone's life had been an accident. He was eighteen and he'd been walking along a busy street in Mexico City when a heavy stone balustrade on an old colonial building had suddenly broken away, hurtling downward. Instinctively he'd thrown up his hands and stopped the falling object, deflecting it so that it fell away from the small group of people on the pavement. Then he got out of there real quick. But it had felt good to know that he had prevented someone from being hurt. Just so long as he could pull it off without anyone noticing. It was Lana who had finally noticed. Shortly before they had got engaged, she'd accidentally discovered him "pulling one of his stunts" as she started to call it, and, to put it mildly, she had freaked. Then she had calmed down, read him the riot act, and kept her eye on him. He'd figured he'd been lucky -- he'd always thought that sooner or later he was going to get caught and he was lucky it had been by Lana. So he grew even more cautious. But he'd never been happy about it, although he had alway felts grateful to Lana that she was still willing to marry him even though he was so different. The deal would be that he wouldn't use the powers. Ironically, now he was faced with losing his powers again, this time really losing them. On New Krypton, his powers would probably disappear. Zara and Ching had told him that they had just recently begun to develop abilities similar to his which they had concluded were the consequence of living under a yellow sun rather than Krypton's red sun. Their powers were still weak -- they could only fly short distances, for example. Clark tried to decide whether this mattered to him or not. At first he had resented the powers but now he wondered if they had partly shaped who he was. Although he'd always been stronger and faster than his friends, he'd spent nearly eleven years of his life as a pretty normal kid and it had been the happiest time of his life. The powers had isolated him, made him cautious although there had been wild moments of pure joy, too, as he soared and twisted and slid through clouds and then shot to the bottom of ocean floors, seeing things that he'd never dreamed of. The price for that had been high -- the constant vigilance to keep his secret and to be less than he could be. And the torment when he saw things happen that he knew he could prevent. This last year had been different though. If his life was still one of isolation at least he'd found great satisfaction in the role he'd played as Superman. It had felt good. He smiled as he recalled saying that to Lois Lane when she had hurtled into his universe and made him realize that it was the right thing to use his powers to help others. Thinking about her made him restless. Slipping out his back door without bothering to change into the Superman costume, he lifted slowly into the dark night sky, gliding low until he came to stand in a cemetery in the heart of the city, in front of the grave of a woman he'd never met. Lois Lane, 1967 -1993. She would have been twenty-six when she'd died in the Congo. He still found it hard to accept. He'd searched everywhere after the other Lois Lane had vanished back into her own universe after the most incredible forty-eight hours of his life. He'd felt things for her in that short time that he'd never felt for anyone. But he'd found nothing. Then, last November, when he'd returned from the other universe's Metropolis, he started his search all over again, buoyed by H.G.Wells'statement that Lois was where he would least expect it. Once again, he failed to find her; old H.G. wasn't infallible, he'd thought with some bitterness. When he'd returned from the other Metropolis he'd finally understood that the attraction which he felt for that Lois Lane was in some sense not real. He'd realized that as he'd watched when the Clark Kent from that world had finally returned home safely and embraced his wife. Clark had felt no jealousy, just envy that his counterpart had found the love of his life while he had not. And, as he had watched, he'd felt that it was right that those two were together and that it would have been wrong if she had stayed with him as he asked her to when she had come to his world. At least the trip to the other Metropolis had given him that awareness. Now he touched the head stone that marked her grave. He should accept that it was Lois Lane who was really buried here. Give her up. Perhaps his mind could, but he wondered if his heart ever could. One more reason why he should go to New Krypton, to accept the finality of what had happened to Lois Lane. New Krypton was his future. Soaring into the sky he flew back to Clinton street, once more entering his apartment and gazing around it. So he was Kal El, not Clark Kent. As soon as that thought passed through his mind, he rejected it, memories of the warmth, of the love, and the strength he'd found in that Kansas farmhouse flooding his mind. All of a sudden he needed to see that farmhouse again, just as he had needed to see Lois's grave a few minutes ago. Once again he soared into the sky, this time starting to fly southwest toward Kansas only to be diverted by yet another emergency --this time, a riot at New Troy State Penitentiary. It would take him most of the day to help negotiate a deal between the angry prioners and the state authorities. He'd never been called on to do that before --to act as a peacemaker. Maybe it was a sign. Maybe he did have something to offer Zara and Ching. ***** end, part 6 ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 9 Feb 2000 12:35:37 -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: Betty's Fic (was Caped Fear.....) MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Hey Betty! It may also help you if you ensure that anything you post to the list has the appropriate header attached. Some FoLCs may have deleted this post of yours because they didn't want to read about Caped Fear and would never have known that it has nothing to do with that subject, but is about something else entirely. LabRat :) ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 9 Feb 2000 08:17:19 -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: SIP: Connections - part 6 In-Reply-To: <18.d74181.25d2af25@aol.com> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Carol, I just read these last two sections and you are heading for *such* an explosive confrontation here! S P O I L E R S P A C E Trask has recieved "new funding" just as the NKers are going to actually prove him right... hoo boy. The juxtaposition of all these major events promises to be quite entertaining! This section brought up a question, though -- if Lois spotted the globe in just a minute or two, why didn't Trask find it before this? IIRC, B 39 *had* found it in the show, and they had it stored in a separate velvet bag. I liked the way Clark spotted Lois and the way it reminded him of his own "humble" beginnings in Metropolis; it was fun to have her among a list of other people around. But if that's the case, you may not want to have such a long, descriptive sentence about her -- the sentence about her was almost twice as long as the ones describing the others. Just a thought. This Clark is *much* more susceptible to the temptations of what Zara and Ching are offering him -- unlike our Clark, he doesn't have much to hold him to Earth. I can't wait to see how you're going to handle this! Hazel ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 9 Feb 2000 08:17:21 -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: Night Terrors (5) In-Reply-To: <007b01bf72b6$fdb6e760$0f02000a@csd.uwm.edu> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Amy, you've got LnC doing good investigative reporting and a highly in-character Jimmy. This is looking good. I hope that Lois is actually wrong in her assumption re Alexis' mistake in her college years; the woman can't *always* be right. ;) My only other suggestion (and thanks for the extra hard return!) is that your posts can be a little bit longer... anything up to 20K will come through just fine, and we won't mind having more to read! :) Hazel ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 9 Feb 2000 13:38:56 +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: Re: SIP: Connections - part 6 In-Reply-To: <18.d74181.25d2af25@aol.com> MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; CHARSET=US-ASCII On Wed, 9 Feb 2000 06:53:09 EST "C.C. Malo" wrote: > Hi -- yet another part. Um, I hesitate to ask for > feedback, but.... I'm wondering if I should cut some of > the detail in this section. -------- Carol, No detailed comments since I've already given you those. I love this story anyway, but in the light of your comment above I wanted to ask you not even to consider cutting anything in this section. I read through it again and I can't see how you could cut anything out without losing the impact. These scenes are crucial to what you're setting up. You need these to explain the motivations and emotions of your characters; as for the bus scene, that needs the detail in order to help your readers visualise it. Maybe some readers will disagree with me ; but I think the detail is not only necessary, but it adds to the beauty of your writing. Wendy ---------------------- Wendy Richards w.m.richards@hrm.keele.ac.uk ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 9 Feb 2000 08:59:29 -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: Kerth Category Quiz: Original Premise Answers In-Reply-To: <3.0.6.32.20000208202753.00908430@actcom.co.il> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Here are the answers to the Original Premise quiz: Story 1: The Ties That Bind, by Chris Carr Story 2: Legal Weapon, by Mobile Richard Story 3: The Penfriend, by Wendy Richards Story 4: Honor Among Thieves, by Hazel Story 5: Burnout, by Labrat Story 6: Assassin's Dagger, by Nan Story 7: It's Just a Sweet, Sweet Fantasy, Baby, by Allison Forbes Story 8: Platanthera Lactarius, by Cypercerpent Story 9: Strange Visitors, by C. C. Malo Dia once again caught me making a mistake re "Legal Weapon," which was uploaded in '98. I'd forgotten that Mobile Richard missed "New Author" by a single story -- my apologies. :( Pam, who specializes in complicated scoring, ;) got 10.5 points -- let's see now. Two complete quotes, two authors, and one title; then one complete excerpt, plus matching title to one of the authors she got from the quote. We'll make it an even 11 by throwing in half a point for describing the plot of Carol's "Strange Visitors." ;) Wendy gets fourteen points: six quotes and two excerpts. Nan also gets fourteen points, but they come from seven correct quotes. Helene got nine points: four quotes and one excerpt. Lesley got eleven points: four quotes and three excerpts. Irene got 10.75 points: four quotes, two excerpts, and naming Nan and the series without the actual title. :) Jessi got 6.5 points: two complete quotes plus an author, then one complete excerpt plus a title. :) Dia gets twelve points: four quotes and four excerpts. And I *told* you, Dia, that looking things up are just fine -- even if you had to go back to '88 to find it! :blush emoticon Alicia gets five points: two quotes and one excerpt. Julie Gibson, "reporting from off the list" as she puts it, got six points for six excerpts. Another strong showing, with ten respondents; I guess everyone is doing their Kerth reading! :) BTW, Yvonne, thank you very much for your kind words: >Just wanted to pop up a quick thank you to our quiz setters, Hazel and >Wendy. I haven't been competing because I've got such a lousy memory, but >it's been fun reading the answers, and they're an invaluable aid when trying >to get to grips with the categories and what sort of stories might be >eligible. Thanks, guys, and keep up the good work! I'll just remind you, though, of the those little "disclaimer thingies" that Wendy and I add to the quizzes: not only are my choices very subjective, but there are lots and lots of stories out there that were *not* put in the quiz, for reasons that have nothing to do with quality or eligibility. Please keep that in mind for your reading and nominations! Wendy and Nan tie for first place at fourteen points, four points less than the maximum, with Dia (naturally) coming in at a close second with twelve points. Well done, everyone! I'll be sending out the next quiz shortly... Hazel ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 9 Feb 2000 09:43:12 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: SIP: Connections - part 6 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit In a message dated 2/9/00 5:39:40 AM Pacific Standard Time, w.m.richards@HRM.KEELE.AC.UK writes: << Maybe some readers will disagree with me ; but I think the detail is not only necessary, but it adds to the beauty of your writing. >> I agree with Wendy, all of the descriptive elements give credence to motivation. I love the way you're portraying this Clark as so much more susceptible to the lure of New Krytpon. (as I write, the strain of that sad music from BGDF is playing from today's ep on TNT ) Kate ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 9 Feb 2000 09:46:34 -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: Kerth Category Quiz: Original Premise Answers MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit > Pam, who specializes in complicated scoring, ;) got 10.5 points I suppose I should apologize for that... Okay, I'll either stop showing off partial knowledge, or go to the trouble of actually looking up the full answer! Will that help? -- ------------------------------------------------------- Pam Jernigan | jernigan@bellsouth.net ChiefPam on IRC | ChPam on AOL IM ------------------------------------------------------- "Not only was Ivan an idiot, but he generated a telepathic damping field to turn the people nearby into idiots, too." --An exasperated Miles contemplates his cousin in _The Warrior's Apprentice_, by Lois McMaster Bujold ------------------------------------------------------- http://www.geocities.com/~chiefpam ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 9 Feb 2000 08:36:25 -0800 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: peabody Subject: FW: RE: Re: SIP - Connections part 5 Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain |Carol wrote: |>> No, I haven't -- much of it does come out later in the ||story but it shouldn't be so distracting in the beginning. Thanks for ||telling me that! I'll go back and rework this part, maybe even drop the ||first couple of paragraphs entirely. That's one of the parts I've been ||wondering about< Carol, please don't drop that part; it really helped to set the mood for the story, and to explain Lois's mindset. It's much easier to accept her cynicism when it's preceded by the story about the death of other people in the party, her own near-miss, and the apparent betrayal by someone she trusted. I like the idea of opening with an action sequence, too. It caught my attention right away and kept me interested. It sets the suspense nicely, and encourages the reader to continue reading to learn the rest of the story. Pat peabody@mcs.com pattijean@aol.com ---------------- Sent from a WebBox - http://www.webbox.com FREE Web based Email, Files, Bookmarks, Calendar, People and Great Ways to Share them with Others! > ---------------- Sent from a WebBox - http://www.webbox.com FREE Web based Email, Files, Bookmarks, Calendar, People and Great Ways to Share them with Others! ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 9 Feb 2000 12:54:21 -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: Kerth Category Quiz: Best Comedy Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Little disclaimer thingy: The stories featured in this quiz qualify for the Best Comedy category in the Kerths this year -- at least *I* think they do! ;) This category is obviously subjective, even more so than many of the others. All the fics in this quiz were uploaded to the archive in 1999. However, these are by no means the only stories on the archive (or elsewhere) that qualify for this category, and this is not a specific recommendation for any of these stories over any others that might also qualify. No offense to any other story or author is intended. :) Quiz rules: The quiz has been divided into two sections: single quotes and excerpts. If you can't get the story from the single quote, then you can scroll down and try the excerpt. When you answer (and DON'T forget the spoiler space!!), let us know if you deserve two points for your answer (if you got it from the quote) or only one point (if you got it from the excerpt.) Feel free to hunt the archive if you're unsure -- no points will be deducted for looking things up. Have fun! ...Oh, and Pam? Be creative as you'd like. I also smile when I score your quizzes. ;) Quote 1: "Sure, CK, you look a little like him. It would be great. Heck, you're a big guy, I bet one of Superman's suits would fit you... like it was made for you." Quote 2: "Besides, there are over one hundred channels available for me ... and the two of you ... to surf through. Thank goodness for cable." Quote 3: "Lois, I- I was wearing a bullet-proof vest." Quote 4: "You know, you're lucky you didn't go the other way. Derek was looking for a sacrificial victim, I think." Quote 5: "Griffin is a world-class prankster, and we are a world-class newspaper. So we gotta pull a world-class newspaper-type world-class prank on a world-class prankster." Quote 6: "Tell him to make it something *tasteful* this time." Quote 7: "Enough talk, let's neck." Quote 8: "Welcome, Mr Kent. I hope your experience here is different to that of Mars." Quote 9: <> Quote 10: "Oh, man! Why would C.K. be wearing spandex underwear?" * * * You can try the excerpts below, for one point apiece: S P O I L E R S P A C E EXCERPT 1: "I guess you don't quite fill Superman's suit as well as I thought you would." Jimmy plucked at the loose material across the chest and the shoulders. "You have a nice build, CK, but I suspect you'd have to work out quite a bit more to fill out that chest and those shoulders. And what about here?" Jimmy patted the tightly-stretched fabric at Clark's waist. "Have you been hitting on Lois' secret stash of Double Fudge Crunch Bars?" "Jimmy!" Lois swatted Jimmy on the arm in mock anger. Jimmy lifted the cape a bit. "I know the cape is pretty long, but I never remember it dragging on the ground like.... Oh, yeah -- Superman is a little taller, isn't he?" Jimmy patted Clark on the shoulder. "Not bad, CK, but I don't think anyone is going to mistake you for the Man of Steel tonight. The glasses don't really fit in, either." "Well, Jimmy, it wouldn't do for Superman to be walking into walls and such, would it?" Lois grabbed Clark's arm. "He's all the Superman I'll ever need." EXCERPT 2: "Tonight ... on the Sci-Fi Channel's STAR WARS MARATHON..." Lex loomed over Jimmy. "Luke, I am your father." Jimmy screamed in denial. "Noooooooooo!" Lois found herself toe to toe with Clark in a narrow hallway. "I'd rather kiss a Wookiee!" she heard coming from her lips. "I can arrange that!" Looking at the flash in Lois' eyes, Clark had a vicious sense of deja-vu of the time when she hid every emotion behind her defensive prickles. Mxy sighed. "Ah. The classics." EXCERPT 3: Lois reached up and stroked his face, the face which was now very dear to her. "Clark. you can't believe how happy I am to see you alive. But- but *how*? You were shot at point-blank range. you *had* to be dead!" She saw him frown again. "Ummm. well, Lois, there's something I have to tell you. And I know I should have told you before now - it wasn't fair of me to deceive you the way I did. And the way this worked out, you had to suffer needlessly, all because I never told you." His voice was soft, apologetic, regretful. He held her closer to him again briefly, then loosened his grasp so that he could brush a kiss across her forehead. She waited. After a moment, he spoke again. "Lois. the reason I wasn't killed tonight is because that bullet couldn't have killed me." He sighed heavily, as if afraid that she would be angry when he finally told her. EXCERPT 4: "And another thing, how come you don't look as stressed as the rest of us?" she demanded. "What are you, superhuman?" Don't even go there, Clark thought to himself. "How would you like me to act, Lois? Like Derek there?" he replied instead, nodding towards one of the other senior reporters. She had to laugh when she looked in his direction. Derek had moved his computer to one side of his desk, to make room for what looked like a pagan shrine. Several candles burned already, and he lit another one, looking towards Perry's office and muttering as he did so. "What is he doing?" she whispered, her face beginning to show a hint of amusement. "Keeping away evil spirits? Trying to stop time?" Clark guessed, watching his partner rather than the sight she was trying to comprehend. "Because, you know, Lois, I'm sure Derek has some candles to spare--" EXCERPT 5: "Uh, Chief?" he said. "What if we give the Prankster a piece of his own medicine? Pull a prank on *him* before he can pull one on *us*?" "Ooooh, Jimmy," Lois grinned. "I like it! It doesn't have to be malicious; just give him an idea of what it's like to be on the receiving end. I'd *love* to get even with him for almost costing me my presidential interview, not to mention just scaring me to death ...." She looked over at Clark. "You think Superman might be persuaded to help us, sweetheart?" "I could ask him," Clark allowed, a smile that matched his wife's creeping across his face. "He might like to get even for the contact lens stunt ...." "I know *I* would, for making me wear Lois's dress," Jimmy added, making a face. "Oh, I dunno, son - I thought it looked pretty good on you. But my poor tie ...," Perry chimed in, surprising the others that he was even *thinking* of endorsing Jimmy's idea. EXCERPT 6: Safely back in the car, Lois held up the tacky glass and plastic cylinder ecstatically. Clark couldn't help but grin in admiration of her sheer tenacity and gall. "You were wonderful, Lois! The story you told them was amazing." The retro-60's cafe hadn't wanted to let go of their new decoration and Lois, with Clark occasionally chiming in, had had to do some fast talking. "You weren't so bad yourself," she said, graciously including him in the ranks of the chosen. "Thank you, ma'am, but I think it was the fact that you were able to identify it so completely, right down to that dent on one side, that convinced them it was really ours to begin with." EXCERPT 7: Was he flirting with her? No... no he was just being Clark. He had turned back to his paper. Yes! Lois thought. He looked right at me and didn't recognize me. She hadn't believed it would really be possible until now. Wow, the secret identity thing worked. She had to test it some more. "Excuse me again, but aren't you Clark Kent, that reporter from the Daily Planet?" Clark put down his paper and turned to Lois. "Yes, I am." "I read your stuff all the time. You and your partner, Lois Lane. You two are very good." "Thank you, we always try to do our best." "Oh, you do. Tell me, what is Lois Lane like?" "Well, she's stubborn but brilliant, quite passionate but is prone to hair-brained schemes which usually get us into trouble." Lois' face darkened a bit but she held her tongue. "And she's almost as attractive as you." "Really? I.... What!" EXCERPT 8: "You go first," they said together. Karen's news couldn't possibly be any match to his. He was going to tell her tonight because he knew that he wouldn't like it if Karen had kept a secret from him. Nathan wanted to introduce her to his parents in the near future. He had never met her parents. Karen insisted that they had their own affairs to deal with. He took the initiative. "I'm--" his voice dropped to a whisper as he bravely continued. "The son of Superman." "Good evening, Nathan," the King greeted him. "Is it all right if I call you that?" Nathan jumped out of his skin, wondering how long King Arthur had been there. "Uh...yes, sir. It is a pleasure to meet you, your majesty." Nathan bowed politely struggling to smile. The King returned his grin. Karen looked like she was at a loss for words. "Nathan...I would like you to meet... my parents." EXCERPT 9: "Tonight, my friend, you are taking me to dinner." "I am?" "Yes, you are. And then you are going to take me flying." "I'm gonna what?" "You heard me." "But what--how--I can't--" "Clark." "I mean I'm not--" "Clark." "I can contact Super-" "CLARK!" "What?" "Relax." EXCERPT 10: "You think you know a guy." Jimmy shook his head and sighed. He'd respected Clark. He might even venture to say that he'd idolized the man . . . but red spandex! "Man, I'm never gonna shake hands with C.K. again!" As Jimmy walked up the sidewalk, unconsciously following the streets back to his apartment, he decided to take a more pragmatic approach to this particular dilemma. After all, that's what Lois and Clark would do, right? Since he didn't think Clark to be the spandex wearing type, at least not under his work clothes, he decided that there must be a logical explanation for what he'd seen. So, why would C.K. be wearing red spandex? ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 9 Feb 2000 18:25:01 -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: SIP: Connections - part 6 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Wendy wrote: > << Maybe some readers will disagree with me ; but I > think the detail is not only necessary, but it adds to the > beauty of your writing. > >> To my great frustration at the moment I haven't had time to do anything more than dl Connections to disk, Carol, but you know of old what I think about this one in general. I love the detail you include in your stories and the thought that you might excise some of it fills me with horror! Please, don't. I need to know that I can count on you for some more of those 'Stunned of Cumbernauld' moments when I read your prose and think, "Darn. Isn't that beautiful? Wish *I'd* thought of that." And then have to sit in silence for five minutes before recovering and getting on with the story. ;) LabRat :) ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 9 Feb 2000 13:45:15 -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: Kerth Category Quiz: Best Comedy MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit > ...Oh, and Pam? Be creative as you'd like. I also smile when I score your > quizzes. ;) Okay, just remember you asked for it! s p o i l e r s p a c e Q1: I know this is by Tank, lemme look up the title... of course, The Costume Q2: Myxed Signals, by the IRC Round Robin group (and it's hilarious) Q3: This is by Wendy, I'll have to look up the title on this one, too... The Confession Q4: I'm not placing it... Q5: Story by Melisma, Pranks to the Prankster? Q6: LOL, I know this one -- The Quest, by Chris Mulder & me Q7: not placing it... Q8: ??? Q9: ??? Q10: Oh, Mann, by Karen Ward See if I get any help from the excerpts: E4: I think I've read it, but that's about all I know... E7: Oh yes, I have read this... it's cute E8: No, I definitely haven't read this! E9: LOL -- I don't know that I've read it, tho I guess if I know a story, I get it from the quote... :) Another mediocre score, oh well... -- ------------------------------------------------------- Pam Jernigan | jernigan@bellsouth.net ChiefPam on IRC | ChPam on AOL IM ------------------------------------------------------- "Not only was Ivan an idiot, but he generated a telepathic damping field to turn the people nearby into idiots, too." --An exasperated Miles contemplates his cousin in _The Warrior's Apprentice_, by Lois McMaster Bujold ------------------------------------------------------- http://www.geocities.com/~chiefpam ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 9 Feb 2000 10:09:20 -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: Kerth Category Quiz: Best Comedy MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii S P O I L E R S P A C E Okay, from the quotes: 1 The Costume - an LnC vignette - Tank Wilson 2 Myxed Signals - IRC Round Robin 3 The Confession - Wendy Richards 4 The Deadline - Jonty 5 Pranks to the Prankster - Melisma 10 Oh, Mann! - Karen Ward Excerpts 6 The Quest by Pam Jernigan and Chris Mulder 7 The Secret Identity? by Tank Wilson 8 A Yankee in King Arthur's Court - Amanda Leach The only one I don't know is no. 9 Irene ===== Outside of a dog, a book is Man’s best friend. And inside of a dog, it’s too dark to read. Groucho Marx __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Talk to your friends online with Yahoo! Messenger. http://im.yahoo.com ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 9 Feb 2000 14:12:42 EST Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Alicia Utowski Subject: Re: Kerth Category Quiz: Best Comedy MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit S P O I L E R S P A C E >From Quotes: 1. Tank Wilson's The Costume 5. Melisma's Pranks to the Prankster 10. Karen Ward's Oh Mann! >From Exerpts 2. IRC Round Robin Team's Hickory Myxery Dock? I don;t know about the title, but I know it was a round robin 3. Wendy Richards' The Confession 6. Pam Jernigan and Cris Mulder's The Quest Alicia ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 9 Feb 2000 14:25:42 -0500 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Yvonne Connell Subject: OT: Ignore me, just testing If this gets to the list, then I'm happy because it means I can post to the list from work without using my slooooow lineone account. Yvonne (yconnell@ukf.net) ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 9 Feb 2000 21:15:43 +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: SIP - Connections part 6 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: multipart/alternative; boundary="------------18DE66A61A16AC07CFD7C515" --------------18DE66A61A16AC07CFD7C515 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit I apologize for forgetting about the spoiler space in my former post. * * * S P O I L E R S P A C E * * * Carol, I loved this part and I wouldn't cut out anything you wrote. Wendy is right, every detail only feds to the beautiful language! I noticed one minor point though: > Clark listened in both wonder and disbelief as Zara and Ching talked to him > in his small living room, providing him with answers to questions he'd had > for so long. Who he was and where he'd come from. At first, he'd been > skeptical, not believing that he could possibly be from another planet. The > idea of extraterrestial contact with Earth had been one that he'd always > thought of as unlikely, but perhaps an outside possibility, like the > existence of angels or sasquatch. He'd always thought there should be a > little tangible evidence before believing. But Zara's and Ching's ultimate > proof, the fact that they too had powers like his, was pretty convincing. So > he listened to what they had to say, quelling the various emotions which > swept over him. > As far as I remember "Tempus Anyone" Lois asks Alt-Clark "How many people know that you are from another planet?". Because of that, I always assumed that Clark already knows he's an alien. Another point would be that he probably talked to our Clark when he was in Metropolis. Don't you think they would also have talked about their origins? Hey, and you nearly killed me with this sentence here: > All of a sudden he needed to see that farmhouse again, just as he > had needed to see Lois's grave a few minutes ago. Once again he soared into > the sky, this time starting to fly southwest toward Kansas only to be > diverted by yet another emergency --this time, a riot at New Troy State > Penitentiary. > So near and yet so far! All the while you described Lois going to Smallville, I was sitting in front of my PC thinking: Wouldn't it be a wonderful idea to let them meet on the Farm? And then you started the sentence above and I was delighted! Only to get a big disappointment almost imediately though when Supes got stuck in another rescue :-( I still hope for that meeting in Smallville though :-) I think it would be so romantic! Oh, and I know I repeat myself, but more, please?! Nicole -- 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/ --------------18DE66A61A16AC07CFD7C515 Content-Type: text/html; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit I apologize for forgetting about the spoiler space in my former post.
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Carol,
I loved this part and I wouldn't cut out anything you wrote. Wendy is right, every detail only feds to the beautiful language!

I noticed one minor point though: 

Clark listened in both wonder and disbelief as Zara and Ching talked to
him
in his small living room, providing him with answers to questions he'd had
for so long.  Who he was and where he'd come from.  At first, he'd
been
skeptical, not believing that he could possibly be from another
planet.  The
idea of extraterrestial contact with Earth had been one that he'd always
thought of as unlikely, but perhaps an outside possibility, like the
existence of angels or sasquatch.  He'd always thought there should be
a
little tangible evidence before believing.  But Zara's and Ching's
ultimate
proof, the fact that they too had powers like his, was pretty
convincing.  So
he listened to what they had to say, quelling the various emotions which
swept over him.


As far as I remember "Tempus Anyone" Lois asks Alt-Clark "How many people know that you are from another planet?". Because of that, I always assumed that Clark already knows he's an alien. Another point would be that he probably talked to our Clark when he was in Metropolis. Don't you think they would also have talked about their origins?

Hey, and you nearly killed me with this sentence here: 

All of a sudden he needed to see that farmhouse again, just as he
had needed to see Lois's grave a few minutes ago.  Once again he soared
into
the sky, this time starting to fly southwest toward Kansas only to be
diverted by yet another emergency --this time, a riot at New Troy State
Penitentiary.


So near and yet so far! All the while you described Lois going to Smallville, I was sitting in front of my PC thinking: Wouldn't it be a wonderful idea to let them meet on the Farm? And then you started the sentence above and I was delighted! Only to get a big disappointment almost imediately though when Supes got stuck in another rescue :-(
I still hope for that meeting in Smallville though :-) I think it would be so romantic!

Oh, and I know I repeat myself, but more, please?!
Nicole
--
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/
  --------------18DE66A61A16AC07CFD7C515-- ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 9 Feb 2000 10:27:09 -0800 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Audrey Rempel Subject: Re: Kerth Category Quiz: Best Comedy MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Great Quiz Hazel! Let's see how I do: - > S > P > O > I > L > E > R > > S > P > A > C > E Quotes: Quote 1: superhero costume party, oh I know this! Quote 2: Mxyed Signals, IRC RR Quote 3: Wendy Richards, The Confession Quote 4: The Deadline, Jonty Quote 5: Melisma, Pranks for the Prankster Quote 10:Oh Mann, Karen Ward Excerpts: Excerpt 1: Tank Wilson, The Costume, An L&C Vignette Excerpt 6: Pam Jernigan and Chris Mulder, The Quest Excerpt 7: Tank Wilson, The Secret Identity? Excerpt 8: read it, don't recall Excerpt 9: read, it, don't recall Had to look up some titles, but most I at least the authors. That made them much easier to look up :) What fun! Audrey __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Talk to your friends online with Yahoo! Messenger. http://im.yahoo.com ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 9 Feb 2000 16:24:05 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: SIP: Connections - part 7 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Hi - part 7 --I was going to post this tomorrow morning but then I read Nicole's post. As always, feedback is very welcome. Carol ------------- Connections, part 7 Lois Lane wasted no time once her plane landed at Wichita Airport. Skirting the passengers rushing to the luggage carousels, she strapped on her backpack and strode over to the car rental kiosks where she picked up the bottom of the line special -- small, no guts, but it would get her to Smallville in more style than she'd been accustomed to in the last four years. Early the next morning in Smallville, Lois began her search, for what she wasn't quite sure. Clark Kent? Superman? The truth? After finishing a quick breakfast in Smallville's only motel, she hit the pavement, stopping in local shops and Maisie's diner, asking about the Kent family. Not much to be found out that she hadn't already learned from her research, except here she got a sense of the closeness of a community where families had a long history. People held good memories of Jonathan and Martha Kent, although the town was reticent on the subject of their son, whom the older residents recalled as just one of the kids. Most of Clark Kent's peers had left Smallville, in search of careers elsewhere, but a few had stayed and they, too, spoke fondly of Clark Kent who had been one of them, not particularly outstanding, but one of them. At the hardware, feed and seed store, Lois asked about the Kent farmhouse and found that it had been up for sale since last spring. Times were not good for farmers and when Tom Jackson, who had bought the farm after the Kents died, had himself passed on, his widow had rented out the fields to neighbors, put the property up for sale, and moved into a small frame house in Smallville. She was Lois' next stop. Anita Jackson, a spare grey-haired woman, welcomed her visitor, inviting her into her small living room for some tea and muffins. Thanking her, Lois followed her into the room, charmed by its eccentric coziness. As they talked, it became clear that Anita didn't have much to add to what Lois had already discovered. She remembered Clark Kent and how she'd felt sorry for the young boy who had been orphaned and taken away from his home to nearby Lawrence where he had lived with his grandmother for two years until her death. After that, she'd heard he went into a succession of foster homes until he was old enough to go to college. She wasn't sure though. Then she smiled at Lois and said she had something that she'd brought from the Smallville farmhouse. Mrs. Jackson left the room for a few minutes and came back with a box containing a couple of old photograph albums as well as many loose, unmounted pictures. "I found these in a closet after we first moved in. We bought the house furnished. What use would a young boy have for furniture? I meant to take these to the boy's grandmother but somehow I never did. Raising six kids and running a farm keeps you busy." She looked apologetically at Lois and then sighed, leaning back in her chair. "Then I heard his grandmother had died and I didn't know where he was. Now he's Superman, with important things to do, and probably forgotten all about these." Eagerly, Lois leaned forward. "Could I see them?" she asked. "Of course." Anita handed her the box. "Are you a friend of his? Do you think you could give these to him? I'd be grateful. It's something I should have done years ago." Lois looked at her, surprised. "I'd be pleased to do that, Mrs. Jackson. I don't know when I'll see him but I promise you he'll get them." She placed the lid back on the box and rose to leave, again thanking the woman for her help, not believing her luck in getting the photographs. Outside Lois looked around her, basking for a moment in the winter sun that somehow had not managed to shine in Metropolis since her return. Then she unlocked the trunk of her car, carefully placed the shoe box beside her backpack, closed the trunk, and then walked the few paces to the driver's side of the car. She had just enough time to look at Clark Kent's boyhood home before sunset. Forty minutes later, she pulled up in front of a frame farmhouse, its front facade bordered by a porch which seemed to Lois like a perfect spot to spend a summer evening. Had the Kents done that, sipping lemonade as they talked about the day's events? She shook her head, laughing at herself. That must be a scene from an old movie she'd seen; certainly it wasn't anything she knew from her own childhood. She mounted the steps of the porch, observing that the place needed a fresh coat of paint. Peering first in the window to see if anyone one was there, she knocked on the door. No answer, which pleased her. Reaching into her purse, she pulled out her Swiss army knife and adroitly picked the lock. She found nothing much inside. Mrs. Jackson had removed all the furniture and so it was very unlikely that Lois would discover anything that told her about Clark Kent in these empty, dusty rooms. After a quick tour of inspection upstairs she returned to the front room, thinking she had probably wasted her time in coming. Trask was right. The answer to whatever was going on with Clark Kent was in Metropolis. She stepped back out onto the verandah. It was getting late and within the hour the place would be in total darkness. Her hand touched one of the roof's supporting posts and she looked at it for a minute, noticing the initials, still visible through the layers of white paint, carved just above where her hand rested. C.K. She smiled, remembering how she too had once carved her own initials on the sill of her bedroom window, thrilled with a penknife given to her by her cousin. Then she stepped lightly down from the porch onto the stone path which curved out of the front yard toward the barn, smiling at her sentimentality, tucking it back into some obscure corner of her mind. The barn was easier to get into than the house had been. Once inside, she looked around, not really knowing what she was seeing. It looked kind of rustic was about all she could think. There was still the slight smell of farm animal about it but mostly it looked empty. She walked over to a few bins that she supposed were animal stalls. Hard to imagine a space alien here. Approaching the centre of the barn, she gazed around, her eye caught by the thick rough hewn timber which supported the centre beam of the barn. Again she noticed the nicks in the wood and she looked closely at them, looking for the same initials she'd seen before, pleased when she found them. In fact, there were a series of slashes cut into the wood; one at about six feet and beside it, the initials, J.K. Jonathan Kent, she thought. Then lower, much lower, starting at her knee level, were a series of straight horizontal lines, each one dated, with the initials C.K. beside it. A young boy measuring himself against his father. And then the initials stopped, just when he was a about five feet tall. Lois touched the last cut, feeling a sadness for this boy who had lost so much. Once again, the words echoed in her mind. Who are you, Clark Kent? And now the question, are you Superman? Or is he you? Turning she left the barn, deciding to take a final tour around the property before she left. ***** The thought of paying a final visit to Kansas had never really left Clark's mind the whole time he'd been arbitrating between the head of the prisoner's committee, the warden, and the Governor of New Troy. As soon as he felt confident that a settlement seemed in sight, he'd taken off, once more flying south-west. As the sun blazed low in the afternoon sky, he landed in front of the small farmhouse which had been his boyhood home. He hadn't been at the farm in a very long time, not since he'd finished college and that had been the only time he'd returned since his parents' death. It had been too painful, conjuring memories which were too happy and hurt too much. He'd left without having the courage to knock on the door to even introduce himself. Now he needed to be here, to remember his childhood. If he was to leave Earth for New Krypton, he knew he first had to return to this farm. Gazing at the front porch for a moment he could almost see his mother there, sitting in the swing his dad had hung from the porch rafters as a special present for her. She had loved that swing and so had he. Now it was gone. Stepping lightly up to the front door, he was surprised to find it unlocked. The real estate agent sure was doing a lousy job of keeping an eye on the property, he thought. He hoped he wouldn't find it vandalized. He opened the front door and was relieved to find no signs of damage. Although the house was empty, he still could see it as it had been in his childhood -- the fieldstone fireplace in front of which his mother used to sit as she read to him in the evening, the kitchen where he and his mom and dad had played all sorts of games as he was growing up, the weird tiles that his mom had made at a ceramics class and which his father had used to make a backsplash behind the kitchen sink. He was pleased to see the tiles were still there and that they didn't look as weird as he'd thought when she first came home with them. "Who knew, Mama, you were ahead of your time?" he said to himself. Upstairs there were still a few signs that Martha, Jonathan and Clark Kent had once lived there. The bold chevron wallpaper that his mother had hung in the spare room was still there. And in his bedroom, above the window frame, he spotted the nails from which he'd suspended a wire for the antenna of a remote control radio he'd had. Standing by the window, he remembered how excited he'd been when he and his dad had got those first radio signals from a foreign land. Smiling he looked at the bookshelves, just a little uneven, which his dad had helped him build to house his books and his prize collection of "stuff". He'd never thought about it as a kid, but he realized now his parents had been remarkable. This was his home; leaving it had been the most painful thing he'd ever done or ever would do, he thought. Whatever he was, he was Martha and Jonathan Kent's son. He wondered what they would think about his returning to New Krypton. Then he wondered how it was that they had found him. He had no idea. He descended the stairs slowly, deep in thought as he crossed the small hallway to the front door, and then stepped out onto to the porch, standing in the last rays of a winter sunset for a moment before crossing to the barn. Pushing aside its large wooden door, he once again entered the world he'd grown up in, distressed now by its emptiness. That wasn't right, he thought, as he crossed to the centre of the barn, unaware as he did that he was being watched. Lois wasn't sure why she had returned to the barn after finishing her tour of the farm but she had. She hadn't found much at the farm and she just couldn't believe that she was going back empty handed. So she walked back to the barn, this time methodically working her way around its interior corners, looking for anything that might be out of the ordinary. She had crouched down to examine a loose floorboard when she saw the outline of a man about six feet tall enter the barn. Not moving, she watched as he walked toward the centre of the barn. There was still just enough natural light for her to make out who it was. Clark Kent. She was astonished. Why was he here? She watched as he walked toward the post which she had examined about half an hour ago. Very slowly his fingers traced each groove which he had carved there so long ago and then he reached up and touched the line that was his father's. She caught her breath as he leaned against the post for a moment, touching his forehead against the line that was his father's. Then he turned, sliding his body down along the post until he was sitting on the barn floor, his shoulders slumped and his head bowed. At that moment, Lois knew that whatever Clark Kent was, he was no android, no alien threat, but an ordinary man. She should leave; this was his place, not hers. She rose, unintentionally making a slight noise as she did so. She should get of here, she thought, but somehow she couldn't leave him there alone. At the sound of her movement, he raised his head. "Who's there?" Lois emerged out of the shadows, walking over to where he was sitting, embarrassed that she had been found out, yet needing for some reason she didn't understand to comfort him. "Lois Lane," her voice faltered as she became aware of the totally stunned look on his face as he gazed up at her. So she repeated more firmly, "My name is Lois Lane and I, uh, just happened to be, I mean I just wanted to say, to say... that you're not alone," she finally blurted out. Where had that come from? she wondered. And why wasn't he saying anything? Why was he staring at her, slack jawed like she was a ghost? Shouldn't he be mad at her or something for invading his privacy? He was making her nervous. "Lois," his voice was soft as he said her name. "Lois Lane," he repeated, this time with wonder in his voice. He still hadn't moved from his seated position and she wasn't sure what to do next. Why didn't he stand up? Well, she would have to take the next step. "You're Clark Kent. Superman." So now they were introduced. "Lois," he repeated her name again, his dark eyes searching her face. It looked like he wasn't going to stand up, or say anything for that matter. Well, this was her opportunity to talk to him, to try to get to figure him out. So she sank crosslegged to the cold stone floor in front of him and began the conversation. It was getting dark now and she would have liked more light but she didn't want to risk suggesting they go somewhere else in case he might suddenly remember that she was an intruder. So many questions flooded through her mind but all of them seemed either too distancing or too personal. "You must've spent a lot of time here when you were a kid." That seemed safe. He didn't reply to that but instead asked, his voice still holding that odd tone of wonder, "Are you real?" What? A new hypotheses flashed through her mind -- maybe Clark Kent was just a little strange. She should be careful. "Last time I checked, I was." She gave him a small crooked grin as she added, "and this floor is very cold." "Oh, sorry. We should go somewhere warmer." He rose to his feet, reaching automatically to help her as she too stood up. For a moment, their eyes met, and he kept his hand on her arm. "You are real." Well that was good to know, she thought; she'd always kinda assumed she was real. "Very real and just a little chilled, so let's go somewhere more comfortable." He stepped a few paces back from her. "Here, let me warm you up." He looked at her intently, focusing his eyes so the rays they emitted undulated slowly, gently over her body, warming her. It was Lois's turn to stare amazed. What he was doing felt wonderful, almost like a caress, and she hoped she wasn't blushing. "Wow," she breathed, then regaining her composure, she gave him a very dignified, "Thanks." He nodded at her respectfully, "You're welcome." And once again there was an awkward silence as both stood still, looking at each other in the twilight's lengthening shadows. "Well," Lois said, "I guess we should be going, unless there's something else here you wanted to do?" "No, no... " his voice was shaky. "I found what I was searching for." Was that a trace of suppressed laughter in his voice, she wondered, as he continued, "I should have known it was here." Clark looked down at the woman beside him as they left the barn and walked out into the cold evening air. He was doing his best to contain the joy that engulfed him, that was coursing through his soul. He wanted to shout her name to the heavens, do cartwheels in the sky, to pick her up and fly away with her. But he also wanted to give her the third degree -- just where had she been these last four years?? He had completely forgotten about New Krypton. Right now, a pure happiness that stopped time and blocked out the world, all worlds, flooded his senses. He had found Lois Lane. Or she had found him, which didn't surprise him. He should have known. Mentally, he put H.G. Wells back on his pedestal. Instinctively, he turned to her, picking her up in his arms, ready to fly back to Metropolis with her, but was stopped by her cry of outrage. "Hey, what are you doing? Put me down." He did, quickly. "I thought we'd go back to Metropolis, back to my place." Her eyes widened. "Back to your place! Look, I don't know what you're thinking, Clark Kent, but that's not what I meant when I said we should go somewhere comfortable." Her body was rigid and her voice annoyed as she spoke. "I hadn't figured you for that kind of guy," she muttered. "That kind of guy!" he said, cluing in to what his action had implied. "Look, that's not what I meant." His hands made a conciliatory gesture as he tried to convey what he feared he was making a mess of. He'd better watch his step here. This was the first time she'd met him, and, he had to admit, it was the first time he'd met her, too. She was not the other world's Lois Lane; she belonged to this world and this was their first encounter. Somehow he'd never really thought about what this moment would be like other than that he sort of figured she would fling herself into his arms. Now that he stopped to think about it, that idea had been pretty naive. The woman standing in front of him with arms crossed and eyes narrowed in suspicion was not flinging herself into anyone's arms. "I can, uh, fly, and it seemed like the easiest way to get back to Metropolis. I do it all the time," he added by way of explanation. "I wasn't trying to abduct you." He found the idea distasteful and was a little outraged that she had interpreted his action that way. "Oh. Oh, of course. Sorry." She uncrossed her arms and continued, "But I have a car which, if I don't get it back to the rental agency at the airport by noon, tomorrow, will cost me big bucks." She stopped speaking for a second. "I'd still like to talk, though, if you've got time." If he had time? He smiled at her, his happiness resurfacing. "Ms. Lane, for you, I have all the time in the world." She relaxed and returned his smile. "Great, but we go in my car and I drive." ***** end, part 7 ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 9 Feb 2000 15:27:29 CST Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Jessi Mounts Subject: Re: Kerth Category Quiz: Original Premise Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; format=flowed I know it's too late now, but I'm going to say it anyway. I'm sorry. I forgot the spoiler space again. So if you happen to read this for some reason before you read my answers, and don't want to spoiled, don't read it. Jessi jessi914@hotmail.com ______________________________________________________ Get Your Private, Free Email at http://www.hotmail.com ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 9 Feb 2000 17:05:01 -0500 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: Another test, and apologies! Sorry - just figuring out the web interface! Testing to make sure I can post. Wendy ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 9 Feb 2000 14:14:21 -0800 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Audrey Rempel Subject: Re: SIP: Connections - part 7 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Carol, This is just ... amazing, fantastic, perfect ... I mean, WOW! S P O I L E R S P A C E I was so hoping they'd meet in Smallville, and you exceeded all my expectations. This was great: > "No, no... " his voice was shaky. "I found what I was > searching for." > Was that a trace of suppressed laughter in his voice, > she wondered, as he continued, "I should have known > it was here." > Clark looked down at the woman beside him as they > left the barn and walked out into the cold evening > air. He was doing his best to contain the joy that > engulfed him, that was coursing through his soul. He > wanted to shout her name to the heavens, do > cartwheels in the sky, to pick her up and fly away > with her. But he also wanted to give her the third > degree - just where had she been these last four > years?? I want to describe how this made me feel, but I can't! I have no words and am speechless. You've taken my breath away. And the end was just perfect: > If he had time? He smiled at her, his happiness > resurfacing. "Ms. Lane, for you, I have all the time > in the world." > She relaxed and returned his smile. "Great, but we > go in my car and I drive." So perfectly Lois! Okay, I've used the word perfect a lot, but I mean it, and I love it! More! Audrey Who really is a sucker for alt-Clark in all his alt-universes. --- "C.C. Malo" wrote: > Hi - part 7 --I was going to post this tomorrow > morning but then I read > Nicole's post. As always, feedback is very > welcome. > > Carol > > ------------- > Connections, part 7 > > Lois Lane wasted no time once her plane landed at > Wichita Airport. Skirting > the passengers rushing to the luggage carousels, she > strapped on her backpack > and strode over to the car rental kiosks where she > picked up the bottom of > the line special -- small, no guts, but it would get > her to Smallville in > more style than she'd been accustomed to in the last > four years. > > Early the next morning in Smallville, Lois began her > search, for what she > wasn't quite sure. Clark Kent? Superman? The > truth? After finishing a > quick breakfast in Smallville's only motel, she hit > the pavement, stopping in > local shops and Maisie's diner, asking about the > Kent family. > > Not much to be found out that she hadn't already > learned from her research, > except here she got a sense of the closeness of a > community where families > had a long history. People held good memories of > Jonathan and Martha Kent, > although the town was reticent on the subject of > their son, whom the older > residents recalled as just one of the kids. Most of > Clark Kent's peers had > left Smallville, in search of careers elsewhere, but > a few had stayed and > they, too, spoke fondly of Clark Kent who had been > one of them, not > particularly outstanding, but one of them. > > At the hardware, feed and seed store, Lois asked > about the Kent farmhouse and > found that it had been up for sale since last > spring. Times were not good > for farmers and when Tom Jackson, who had bought the > farm after the Kents > died, had himself passed on, his widow had rented > out the fields to > neighbors, put the property up for sale, and moved > into a small frame house > in Smallville. She was Lois' next stop. > > Anita Jackson, a spare grey-haired woman, welcomed > her visitor, inviting her > into her small living room for some tea and muffins. > Thanking her, Lois > followed her into the room, charmed by its eccentric > coziness. As they > talked, it became clear that Anita didn't have much > to add to what Lois had > already discovered. She remembered Clark Kent and > how she'd felt sorry for > the young boy who had been orphaned and taken away > from his home to nearby > Lawrence where he had lived with his grandmother for > two years until her > death. After that, she'd heard he went into a > succession of foster homes > until he was old enough to go to college. She > wasn't sure though. Then she > smiled at Lois and said she had something that she'd > brought from the > Smallville farmhouse. > > Mrs. Jackson left the room for a few minutes and > came back with a box > containing a couple of old photograph albums as well > as many loose, unmounted > pictures. "I found these in a closet after we first > moved in. We bought the > house furnished. What use would a young boy have > for furniture? I meant to > take these to the boy's grandmother but somehow I > never did. Raising six > kids and running a farm keeps you busy." She > looked apologetically at Lois > and then sighed, leaning back in her chair. "Then I > heard his grandmother > had died and I didn't know where he was. Now he's > Superman, with important > things to do, and probably forgotten all about > these." > > Eagerly, Lois leaned forward. "Could I see them?" > she asked. > > "Of course." Anita handed her the box. "Are you a > friend of his? Do you > think you could give these to him? I'd be grateful. > It's something I should > have done years ago." > > Lois looked at her, surprised. "I'd be pleased to > do that, Mrs. Jackson. I > don't know when I'll see him but I promise you he'll > get them." She placed > the lid back on the box and rose to leave, again > thanking the woman for her > help, not believing her luck in getting the > photographs. > > Outside Lois looked around her, basking for a moment > in the winter sun that > somehow had not managed to shine in Metropolis since > her return. Then she > unlocked the trunk of her car, carefully placed the > shoe box beside her > backpack, closed the trunk, and then walked the few > paces to the driver's > side of the car. She had just enough time to look > at Clark Kent's boyhood > home before sunset. > > Forty minutes later, she pulled up in front of a > frame farmhouse, its front > facade bordered by a porch which seemed to Lois like > a perfect spot to spend > a summer evening. Had the Kents done that, sipping > lemonade as they talked > about the day's events? She shook her head, > laughing at herself. That must > be a scene from an old movie she'd seen; certainly > it wasn't anything she > knew from her own childhood. She mounted the steps > of the porch, observing > that the place needed a fresh coat of paint. > Peering first in the window to > see if anyone one was there, she knocked on the > door. No answer, which > pleased her. Reaching into her purse, she pulled out > her Swiss army knife and > adroitly picked the lock. > > She found nothing much inside. Mrs. Jackson had > removed all the furniture > and so it was very unlikely that Lois would discover > anything that told her > about Clark Kent in these empty, dusty rooms. After > a quick tour of > inspection upstairs she returned to the front room, > thinking she had probably > wasted her time in coming. Trask was right. The > answer to whatever was > going on with Clark Kent was in Metropolis. > > She stepped back out onto the verandah. It was > getting late and within the > hour the place would be in total darkness. Her hand > touched one of the > roof's supporting posts and she looked at it for a > minute, noticing the > initials, still visible through the layers of white > paint, carved just above > where her hand rested. C.K. She smiled, > remembering how she too had once > carved her own initials on the sill of her bedroom > window, thrilled with a > penknife given to her by her cousin. Then she > stepped lightly down from the > porch onto the stone path which curved out of the > front yard toward the barn, > smiling at her sentimentality, tucking it back into > some obscure corner of > her mind. > > The barn was easier to get into than the house had > been. Once inside, she > looked around, not really knowing what she was > seeing. It looked kind of > rustic was about all she could think. There was > still the slight smell of > farm animal about it but mostly it looked empty. > She walked over to a few > bins that she supposed were animal stalls. Hard to > imagine a space alien > here. > > Approaching the centre of the barn, she gazed > around, her eye caught by the > thick rough hewn timber which supported the centre > beam of the barn. Again > she noticed the nicks in the wood and she looked > closely at them, looking for > the same initials she'd seen before, pleased when > she found them. In fact, > === message truncated === __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Talk to your friends online with Yahoo! Messenger. http://im.yahoo.com ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 9 Feb 2000 18:16:40 -0500 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: SIP: Connections - part 7 Carol, I loved this section. Absolutely adored it! s p o i l e r s p a c e I think this is quite the most romantic and *wonderful* meeting between an Alt-Clark and an Alt-Lois yet. The sense of wonderment Clark feels when he sees Lois just runs off the page (screen ?), and Lois's own reaction is terrific, too. I also love Clark using his heat vision so unselfconsciously around her, and the instant spark of recognition between them: Clark could be expected to know that this woman is special, but the fact that Lois knows it too is wonderful. Those few short paras are so well written, Carol! Wendy ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 9 Feb 2000 18:37:46 -0500 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Gerry Anklewicz Subject: Re: SIP - Connections part 5 In-Reply-To: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit > I'll go back and rework this part, maybe even drop the >first couple of paragraphs entirely. That's one of the parts I've been >wondering about. And thanks for sticking with it. Oh no, Carol, don't drop the first couple of paragraphs. Revising is OK. I've just read parts 1 - 5 and it was the opening that I found so riveting. I love the way you write and the idea to mesh so many separate storylines is wonderful. When I think that Trask really has an alien invasion with Zara and Ching and their friends, it makes me love the story even more. I'm really glad that there isn't a lot of cheesy emotions floundering in this story. O look! Connections 6 is up ahead. I'm going to have to stop writing so I can read... Gerry > ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 9 Feb 2000 18:51:24 -0500 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Guy or Lesley Hilliard Subject: Re: Kerth Category Quiz: Best Comedy MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit s p o i l e r s p a c e > Quote 1: The Costume by Tank Wilson > Quote 2: Mxyed Signals By the IRC round robin > Quote 3: The Confession by Wendy Richards > Quote 4: No Idea > Quote 5: Pranks to the Prankster by Melisma > Quote 6: No Idea > Quote 7: No Idea > Quote 8: A Yankee in King Arthurs Court by Amanda Leach > Quote 9: No Idea > Quote 10: Oh Mann Karen Ward > EXCERPT 4: I know I have read this but just can' think of the name > EXCERPT 6: The Quest by Chris Mulder and Pam Jernigan > EXCERPT 7: No Idea > EXCERPT 9: No Idea ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 9 Feb 2000 19:56:57 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: SIP: Connections - part 7 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Oh Carol.....you have outdone yourself.....that was.....Magic. My heart was racing! Kate ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 9 Feb 2000 18:43:52 -0800 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Betty Huang Subject: Re: Betty's Fic (was Caped Fear.....) MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Sorry about that, I was trying to find the email adress for the list and I had used someone else header to email the thing. --- LabRat wrote: > Hey Betty! > > It may also help you if you ensure that anything you > post to the list has > the appropriate header attached. Some FoLCs may have > deleted this post of > yours because they didn't want to read about Caped > Fear and would never have > known that it has nothing to do with that subject, > but is about something > else entirely. > > LabRat :) > __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Talk to your friends online with Yahoo! Messenger. http://im.yahoo.com ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 9 Feb 2000 18:53:41 -0800 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Betty Huang Subject: Re: Utopia 101 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Sure Wendy, I just got a bit confused by some email I've got. Why don't you write a email for me and tell them that if they want to try for that mcdonald's thing in the leader of my first, but the same type, email; they can email me personally. --- Wendy Richards wrote: > On Tue, 8 Feb 2000 21:10:01 -0800 Betty Huang > wrote: > > > Well, here I go and this is the second try at > this. > > > Please do not send attachments to this list, > *particularly* > not in Word as opposed to plain text, since they can > carry > viruses. They also make download times much, much > longer. > > If you want to post your stories, Betty, can you > paste them > into the body of an email in future? > > > Best wishes, > > > Wendy > ---------------------- > Wendy Richards > w.m.richards@hrm.keele.ac.uk > __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Talk to your friends online with Yahoo! Messenger. http://im.yahoo.com ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 9 Feb 2000 19:50:50 -0800 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Betty Huang Subject: Second email attachment MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii To: Wendy I don't know about getting viruses through email. Last time I tried to do the copy and past from this site. It made my sister's computer stall or the proper term is freeze. Betty. __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Talk to your friends online with Yahoo! Messenger. http://im.yahoo.com ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 9 Feb 2000 22:50:10 -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: SIP: Connections - part 7 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit YAY!!! s p o i l e r s p a c e Carol, I just tonight got caught up on this engrossing story... wow! You had me terrified there for a while, but yay, they met -- at the farm, of all places! I'm glad to see Clark didn't totally forget himself; so she doesn't think he's insane And I hope she remembers to show him the pictures she got from Anita... This was just beautiful, all of it. I wouldn't cut any detail out, either, although I'm not in a critical mood here :) 'cause I'm so happy they've finally met... of course, you still have a few twists and turns left to go, but I suspect you'll get us safely to a happy ending :) Next part, please! -- ------------------------------------------------------- Pam Jernigan | jernigan@bellsouth.net ChiefPam on IRC | ChPam on AOL IM ------------------------------------------------------- "Not only was Ivan an idiot, but he generated a telepathic damping field to turn the people nearby into idiots, too." --An exasperated Miles contemplates his cousin in _The Warrior's Apprentice_, by Lois McMaster Bujold ------------------------------------------------------- http://www.geocities.com/~chiefpam ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 10 Feb 2000 09:57:02 +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: SIP: Connections - part 7 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Oh, what did I say? O knew I was going to love it! * * * S P O I L E R * S P A C E * * * Carol, thanks for listening to my pleading . This part was really, truly wonderful. I'm so happy you let them meet on the farm! And the moment was chosen exactly right! I loved Clark's reaction. Stunned and joyous but still having enough sense not to overreact. And I also loved that Lois recognized Clark as an "ordinary man" when she saw him sinking to the ground in the barn and gave up on all theories she had built around his existance. Oh, and I can only second Wendy's and Labrat's statements. Your language is so beautiful. Every word seems to be in exactly the right place. It's a pleasure to read! Nicole -- 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: Thu, 10 Feb 2000 10:16:07 +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: Second email attachment In-Reply-To: <20000210035050.12113.qmail@web3301.mail.yahoo.com> MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; CHARSET=US-ASCII Betty, virus *can* be transmitted through email attachments, and Word attachments in particular are very virus-prone. But in any case, the rules for this list state that attachments must not be sent to the list; you know that now and I know you won't do it again! Wendy On Wed, 9 Feb 2000 19:50:50 -0800 Betty Huang wrote: > I don't know about getting viruses through email. > Last time I tried to do the copy and past from this > site. It made my sister's computer stall or the > proper term is freeze. ---------------------- Wendy Richards w.m.richards@hrm.keele.ac.uk ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 10 Feb 2000 08:16:16 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 SIP Connections 5, 6, 7 comments MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Hi, Long post warning, I fear, but I wanted to let you know how much I appreciate the comments on these parts of my story. All in one post.:) Labrat and Wendy, you make me blush with your comments on my writing style. But I labour over this -- a word crosses my mind every second day or so, and then I revise it while you two produce so many wonderful stories -- whole scenarios written in showers, while running marathons, etc <<'Stunned of Cumbernauld>> ?? Gerry and Pat, thanks for telling me you liked the opening sequences. Pat wrote: << it really helped to set the mood for the story, and to explain Lois's mindset.>> That's what I wanted it to do . :) but I didn't want to write her whole story because I feared getting bogged down in it ( Lois & Claude in the Congo: A story of Diamonds, Cheesy Emotions, and Betrayal But I do try to be careful. Hazel, your comments have been quite helpful. I'd forgotten about the velvet bag --have to do some revision here. Also <> You know, I added that extra bit in my revisions because I thought I wasn't making the point --back to the original. :) Kate <> Thank-you. It seemed very logical to me that he would be --aside from the very powerful personal motivation, there would also be that natural curiosity about an unknown planet, etc. And thank you for your response to part 7 -- I especially liked writing that part.:) Pam, very good to know you think this is going okay. :) <> Well..... Audrey, your enthusiasm is very encouraging! :) Thanks for referring to the parts you liked --I'm always curious about that. Nicole: <> I'm not as sure of this interpretation. But << Another point would be that he probably talked to our Clark when he was in Metropolis. Don't you think they would also have talked about their origins?>> Yes! That's so obvious! But I didn't think of it. Thank-you for catching that -- now to fix it. When I read your comment about the farm, I decided I'd better post part 7. :) Good to know you weren't disappointed by it -- I had feared that it was too low key. part 8 tomorrow morning. Carol ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 10 Feb 2000 08:18:33 -0500 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Yvonne Connell Subject: Re: Combo: Kerth Quizzes and Nominations On Tue, 8 Feb 2000 20:32:40 -0500, Yael Kfir wrote: >I vote for both! :c) Good to hear from you again, Yvonne, we haven't heard >much from you lately. Thanks, Yael :) Hopefully now I can post from work, there'll be no stopping me . Yvonne ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 10 Feb 2000 14:04:25 -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: re SIP Connections 5, 6, 7 comments MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Carol wrote: > Labrat and Wendy, you make me blush with your comments on my writing style. > But I labour over this -- a word crosses my mind every second day or so, and > then I revise it while you two produce so many wonderful stories -- > whole scenarios written in showers, while running marathons, etc <<'Stunned > of Cumbernauld>> ?? Hah! I wish! Actually, our writing styles don't sound too dissimilar, speaking as one Rewrite Queen to another. Sometimes I find it impossible to advance from one paragraph to another before I've absolutely gotten paragraph one word perfect (as I view perfect anyway ), right down to last period. It just gets written over again and again until I'm happy, then I can move on. Then, on other days, I lighten up. I live for cheesy emotions, Gerry. It took much restraint to hold back on those until part 7. > But I do try to be careful. > ~~~Cheesy emotions in no way, shape or form describes what you wrote for part 7, Carol! Throw out that dictionary you have and replace it, it's leading you astray. ;) Try poignant, witty, waffy and just plain, darn perfect. I loved it. *And* you made me cry. That's twice in one week (Wendy being the other culprit with For The Greater Good). Don't know what's gotten into me. I do *not* cry at fanfic. ~~~ > part 8 tomorrow morning. ~~~Yay! ~~~ LabRat :) (having caught up, now avidly waiting with the rest of the list to see what happens next...) ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 10 Feb 2000 14:14:16 -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: Betty's Fic (was Caped Fear.....) MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Betty wrote: > Sorry about that, I was trying to find the email > adress for the list and I had used someone else header> to email the thing. ~~~No apology necessary, Betty. I've often used any old post for convenience when replying to the list. However, the best thing to do if you're new to lists is to just take a few moments before you hit send to check over all the details. We've all been there, so don't feel that you're being singled out. A few seconds to check the 'to' box, your subject header, and other details is all that it takes to keep everyone happy. Actually, if I'd known you were a 'newbie' I would have sent my response to you privately. I had thought that you were used to lists, if not *this* list, because I know you post regularly to the Dean mailing list and I'm sure that the rules must be much the same there as here. As this apparently turns out not to be the case, I promise to up my tolerence level in future. LabRat :) ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 10 Feb 2000 16:01:33 +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: re SIP Connections 5, 6, 7 comments MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Labrat wrote: > ~~~Cheesy emotions in no way, shape or form describes what you wrote for > part 7, Carol! Throw out that dictionary you have and replace it, it's > leading you astray. ;) Try poignant, witty, waffy and just plain, darn > perfect. I loved it. *And* you made me cry. That's twice in one week (Wendy > being the other culprit with For The Greater Good). Don't know what's gotten > into me. I do *not* cry at fanfic. ~~~ I second that, Carol, there's nothing cheesy about part 7 IMO! Oh, and ratty, I used to think the same thing, but I'm long over the "I don *not* cry at fanfic" stade now. I had my first good cry about a fanfic while reading the fanzine. The last sentence of Zoom's story was so beautifully heroic, I totally lost it! Once the dam was broken I had a *really* good cry while reading "without consent" from Wendy and to top that, I think I cried *bowls* of tears while reading "For the Greater Good". Sometimes I couldn't even see the sentences anymore and even *thinking* of it now, makes my eyes tear up again!! whiny, whimpy, teary Nicole ;-P (but it feels so *good*!) -- 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: Thu, 10 Feb 2000 10:20:42 EST Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Rowan Fuller Subject: Re: Utopia 101 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit This Utopia 101 is it a story and if is it available? Thanks Rowan :) -- -- -- LaneKent@aol.com http://members.aol.com/lanekent For news of updates to my site: http://www.onelist.com/commun ity/LaneKent ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 10 Feb 2000 11:00:25 -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: Kerth Category Quiz: Best Comedy Answers In-Reply-To: <3.0.6.32.20000209195441.00903100@actcom.co.il> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Here are the answers to the Best Comedy quiz: Story 1: The Costume, by Tank Story 2: Mxyed Signals, by the IRC RR Group Story 3: The Confession, by Wendy Richards Story 4: The Deadline, by Jonty Story 5: Pranks to the Prankster, by Melisma Story 6: The Quest, by Chris Mulder and Pam Jernigan Story 7: Secret Identity, by Tank Story 8: A Yankee in King Arthur's Court, by Amanda Leach Story 9: Maybe I Need Glasses, by Maria TB Mendoza Story 10: Oh, Mann!, by Karen Ward Pam has a very "tame" score of twelve points for six excerpts. Boring, Pam! Get more creative next time! ;) Irene gets fifteen points, for six quotes and three excerpts. Alicia gets 8.5 points: three quotes, two excerpts, and an author (with the wrong title, sorry!) Julie Gibson, once again "reporting from off the list," is the only one who actually got *all* of them. She gets fourteen points: four quotes and six excerpts. Audrey gets thirteen points: five quotes and three excerpts. Lesley gets thirteen points, for six quotes and one excerpt. Irene wins with fifteen points; Julie is a very close second. Well done! Over to you, Wendy, and we're nearing the home stretch... :) Hazel ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 10 Feb 2000 10:29:02 -0600 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Amy Linnea Lauters Subject: Night Terrors FDK MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Hi, everybody -- For those of you reading "Night Terrors", I wanted to know if you thought it would read better if I included timings in the story, particularly after the point where they're given only so much time (trying not to give too much away for those who haven't read it yet). Like, (8 p.m. : Blah blah blah). I'm thinking it might enhance the pacing of the story. What do you think? Also, Alexis and Lori, your comments earlier this week sent me back to my laptop in a hurry! This FDK is addictive! Hazel, your suggestions have been so helpful. One of the reasons I was only sending so much at a time was I wasn't sure of the list limitations for space. Now that I know, you'll all have to wait until I've got a lot to send :) I'm still hoping to finish it by the weekend. You all inspire me! Amy (Harmony on the boards) ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 10 Feb 2000 17:06:49 GMT Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Diyan Subject: Re: Kerth Category Quiz: Best Comedy Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; format=flowed * * s p o i l e r s p a c e * * Quotes: 1. Tank Wilson “The Costume: and L&C vignette” 2. IRC Round Robin “Myxed Signals” 3. Wendy Richards “The Confession” 4. Jonty “The Deadline” 5. Melisma “Pranks to the Prankster” 6. Pam Jernigan and Chris Mulder “The Quest” 7. Tank Wilson “The Secret Identity?” 8. Amanda Leach “A Yankee In King Arthur’s Court” 9. Maria TB Mendoza “Maybe I Need Glasses” 10. Karen Ward “Oh Mann!” In case you're wondering: no, I didn't recoginze all these; half I got by doing research :) -Dia ______________________________________________________ Get Your Private, Free Email at http://www.hotmail.com ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 10 Feb 2000 17:12:53 +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: Kerth-category Quizzes: Best WAFFy MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; CHARSET=US-ASCII Okay; well, Hazel's passed the baton back over to me. This time the quiz is for the category of Best WAFFy story, and all the stories used in this quiz are eligible for this year's Kerth Awards. As usual, little disclaimer thingy: there are doubtless many more stories which qualify for this category, and the fact that I've not selected them is by no means a comment on the stories, the authors or anything else! Another disclaimer here: 'WAFFy' is probably the most subjective category in the Kerths. What I find WAFFy might not be particularly so to another reader, and equally, something another person might absolutely adore just might not do it for me. So what we have here is my own subjective opinion, augmented by conversations with others, as to what stories give us those warm and fuzzy feelings. I hope it's not too eclectic a choice! There are just two more quizzes to follow after this one (we are *not* doing Best Fic - that's *far* too subjective!) Good luck, and remember the spoiler space; scoring system as usual with quotes/extracts. Wendy ---------------------- Quote 1: She was Lois Fudd, tricked off a cliff by Bugs Kent! Quote 2: Lois stood up now and starting to unbutton his pajama top, she grinned, "I happen to prefer an older man; well, that is, just ONE older man!" Quote 3: She had asked him to marry her! Quote 4: As she listened to her father talk, Lois thought, as she had once before, that they were Dr. Frankenstein's daughters. Well, he'd always wanted a son and now he was going to father Data. Quote 5: "You've decided Luthor isn't what you want - too murky for you, perhaps? What am I - insurance?" Quote 6: "Why are you ruining my *life?*" Clark angrily asked the blue-suited figure in the mirror. Quote 7: "I don't need another mother, Lois, I already have one!" Quote 8: 'We could be at opposite ends of a room, but when we look over at each other, we seem to know exactly what the other is thinking or feeling.' D i a 's S p a c e Extract 1: Within seconds Lois' expression morphed from terror, to astonishment, to ... anger. "Are you saying that you're nothing more than a refillable costume?" "What? No, I--" "That there's nothing more to your heroism than a super repertoire and a red cape?" "No, but--" "That's what you made it sound like, Superman," she said, her arms defiantly folded. "All right," Clark said, raising his hands almost in a gesture of surrender. "I do admit that being Superman is a lot more than the powers. It's why I chased Waldecker all over the place." "You chased Resplendent Man?" Clark nodded. "I felt he was using *my* powers for personal gain." Extract 2: At first it was such a light touch on his face he thought it a piece of feather and tried to brush it away. Then, suddenly, he could sense what felt like fingers softly tracing his mouth. "What are you doing out here, sleepy? Waiting for ME to show up now?" the voice asked. At first he thought he was hearing the television or radio, and without opening his eyes he smiled and turned on his side. "Clark! Wake up sweetheart!" the now familiar, voice strongly urged. Clark recognizing the delightful sound, slowly turned and opened his eyes. There in the dark he could make out a shadow; a very attractive shadow. He slowly reached for the light on the end table and there standing before him was the most beautiful woman he had ever seen. "Lois???" he questioned the voice, sitting up on his elbows. "Don't you wanna come to bed?" she asked sweetly. Extract 3: Abruptly torn from his contemplation of beauty personified, Clark's head lifted in a move that Lois had once likened to a bird on the alert. And, just like a startled bird, his action would almost inevitably be followed by flight. Attuned to him, Lois somehow sensed his movement without needing to see it. She looked at him, her face a silent question. He glanced around nervously, checking that nobody was watching, then made a discreet gesture with his hand. She understood, of course. She nodded an acknowledgement and mouthed, "I'll cover." As he rose from his chair, his hand reaching for the knot of his tie, he wondered for the umpteenth time about her readiness to lie for him. Even after all the hurt his excuses had caused her, she was willing to protect him with her own. Was this, he wondered, simply a contradiction in Lois's complex personality, or was this the ultimate form of forgiveness for his past actions. He did not know. All he knew was that he loved that about her, too. Extract 4: Clark's voice turned harsh, his dark eyes blazing. "Okay, Ms. Logic. Turn around and walk away from me. I won't stop you this time." He folded his arms across his chest and narrowed his eyes. She looked at him, speechless for once, not moving. "Go ahead, " he taunted. "You can do it. It's the *logical* thing to do. Just like it was the logical thing to search for me. To risk your life for me." She stared at him for a moment, her temper rising. How dare he? She did not belong to him. Then, in a swift determined motion, her dark hair swinging, she turned and strode away from him. She walked about fifty feet, her thoughts and emotions jumbled. What if he was right? He was so stubborn. It was her decision to make; he'd always waited for her to make the decision. He was waiting now. She turned to look back. He was still standing there, his arms crossed and his legs planted slightly apart, Clark Kent Superman. Kal El. She met his stern eyes and then, for some reason, she had no idea why, she laughed. She laughed at the ridiculousness of their situation and at herself for the inconsistency of her feelings, torn between her need for autonomy and her need to love more than just herself, to love him, and she laughed at his stubbornness. Then she saw the harsh angles of his face soften into a smile of his own, the most wonderful smile. She began to walk back to him. He met her half way. Standing in front of him, she said, "OK, I figure it'll take a week to organize a small wedding." She poked him in the chest with her index finger. "Next Saturday." Extract 5: She began to walk off towards her desk, but caught sight of the expression on her partner's face. He looked stunned, as if he'd learned something about himself and realised he didn't like it very much. He walked swiftly to her side, catching her arm lightly. "Lois, I know it looked bad. But I promise you, I was only trying to look out for you - " "You have a funny way of showing it, Kent," she retorted. "And anyway, you're not my father, or my husband, and even if you were it still wouldn't give you the right to take control of my actions. So back off, lose some of your darned cockiness and learn some better journalistic ethics. *Then* I might be prepared to work undercover with you again." Leaving him standing in the middle of the newsroom, she stalked off. Extract 6: "Superman?" "Hm?" "Thanks for saving me today. It's getting hard to count how many times over I owe you my life...." It was late, she was tired, and her brain was thrilled to realize just how close she was sitting to the man she loved. But whatever the reason, a sweet, sentimental note had crept into her voice. "I don't know what I'd do without you." Her tone was not lost on Superman, nor was the soft half-smile that made her look so gentle and inviting. He smiled in return, and took her hand in his. "You'll never have to find out, Lois, I promise." Lois' heart almost stopped beating at those words. Those were *commitment* words. Could he possibly mean... Was this it? Was this what she had dreamed of for so long? "Superman...." She leaned toward him, hardly realizing that she was doing so. He was quick to reciprocate, and in an interminable instant, their lips met. He lifted one hand and traced her jaw with his finger as his tongue pressed into her mouth, tasting her hungrily. She was soft, she was sweet... and she was Lois.... Extract 7: Sure enough, Lois was asleep in his bed. She was still wearing the sweatpants she had come over in, but had changed into one of his t-shirts. She was lying on her side under the covers, hugging his pillow close to her body. Clark simply stood there watching her for several seconds, waves of love and relief washing over him. He briefly considered spending the night on the couch, but he realized that Lois was sending him a message by falling asleep in his bed. Lois was inviting him to hold her, to fall asleep in her arms the way he had dreamed of doing so many times. It was a wonderful gift, and one he had no intention of refusing. Clark grabbed a pair of shorts from the pile of clean laundry that he hadn't yet gotten around to folding, and headed into the bathroom to wash up. As he splashed water on his face, he noticed Lois's travel toothbrush resting on the counter next to a rumpled hand towel. As Clark dried his face with the towel, he could detect the faint smell of her perfume. He inhaled deeply, amazed at how tranquil he felt. It was so nice to see her things in his bathroom; it felt so *right*. Extract 8: Lois felt Clark's breath on her cheek as he moved his face closer to hers, and, even after all these years, it caused her skin to tingle and her heart to race. The love they had for each other was stronger now than it had ever been, and, knowing that, it made Lois wonder why she'd ever struggled over the decision to marry Clark in the first place. Thinking back to the time when he'd had asked her to marry him, she remembered what a tough time it had been for her. Not only did she have to adjust to new discovery that Clark was Superman, but she'd also had to deal with the cemented-since-childhood anxieties she'd had about marriage. But through it all, Clark had remained strong, and had never let her down by giving up on her. And because of that, Lois had been able to move forward in their relationship, never once looking back on things or regretting her decision. The words of the song made her realize how much her life had changed since she'd met him. The best years of her life had been the ones she'd spent with Clark, and she knew she wouldn't trade them for anything. The music softened, and Clark rubbed his hand lightly over the small of Lois' back. He loved the way she felt in his arms, with her head tucked so perfectly underneath his chin and nestled against the base of his throat. It was almost as if they'd been made for each other. ---------------------- Wendy Richards w.m.richards@hrm.keele.ac.uk ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 10 Feb 2000 12:39:54 -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: Kerth Category Quiz: Best Comedy In-Reply-To: <20000210170650.38616.qmail@hotmail.com> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Dia, sorry I missed your entry! You get (if I'm not mistaken) the FIRST perfect score in all the Kerth quizzes, with a full twenty points -- congratulations. :) Hazel ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 10 Feb 2000 09:24:57 -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: Kerth-category Quizzes: Best WAFFy MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii S P O I L E R S P A C E Oh, wow, I can't believe how horrible I am in the WAFFy story category! I recognise most of the excerpts but for the life of me, the only one I think I'm sure of is #1 UltraMatum by Zoomway. I thought I knew it from the quote but was sure when I read the excerpt so I don't know how you want to score this. Irene -ashamed of her response but happy that it's a good excuse to do a LOT of rereading! ===== Outside of a dog, a book is Man’s best friend. And inside of a dog, it’s too dark to read. Groucho Marx __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Talk to your friends online with Yahoo! Messenger. http://im.yahoo.com ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 10 Feb 2000 13:21:52 -0500 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Yvonne Connell Subject: Re: Kerth-category Quizzes: Best WAFFy S P O I L E R S P A C E Well, I always knew I was useless at this game, and I was having difficulty with the WAFFy category anyway, so it's no surprise that I can only get one from the extracts: Extract 4 is Carol Malo's Recognition: The Only Way Only one, but it's a darn good one, Carol :) Yvonne ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 10 Feb 2000 13:43:41 -0800 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Amy Lauters Subject: Re: Kerth-category Quizzes: Best WAFFy MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Wendy, I just love reading these excerpts. It just reminds me of how many stories there are out there I haven't read. For this one, I think I can place a couple: s p o i l e r s p a c e 1. I recognize the quote, but I can't place the story. 2. Umm, I don't even recognize the excerpt, but it sounds good! 3. I had to go the excerpt, but the best I could come up with was "I think it came out in November ..." 4. THe story has a beach in it. I think. 5. No clue. 6. I'm hopeless. All I remember is that I really liked this story. 7. Hopeless. 8. Hopeless. Every Sunday morning I get up and read the new stories posted to the archive, but now I realize in how many of them I don't pay attention to author or title. Call me hopeless (just not late for dinner.) And I guess I flunked. ----- Original Message ----- From: Wendy Richards To: Sent: Thursday, February 10, 2000 9:12 AM Subject: Kerth-category Quizzes: Best WAFFy > Okay; well, Hazel's passed the baton back over to me. This > time the quiz is for the category of Best WAFFy story, and > all the stories used in this quiz are eligible for this > year's Kerth Awards. As usual, little disclaimer thingy: > there are doubtless many more stories which qualify for > this category, and the fact that I've not selected them is > by no means a comment on the stories, the authors or > anything else! > > Another disclaimer here: 'WAFFy' is probably the most > subjective category in the Kerths. What I find WAFFy might > not be particularly so to another reader, and equally, > something another person might absolutely adore just might > not do it for me. So what we have here is my own > subjective opinion, augmented by conversations with others, > as to what stories give us those warm and fuzzy feelings. I > hope it's not too eclectic a choice! > > There are just two more quizzes to follow after this > one (we are *not* doing Best Fic - that's *far* too > subjective!) > > Good luck, and remember the spoiler space; > scoring system as usual with quotes/extracts. > > > Wendy > > ---------------------- > Quote 1: > > She was Lois Fudd, tricked off a cliff by Bugs Kent! > > > Quote 2: > > Lois stood up now and starting to unbutton his pajama top, > she grinned, "I happen to prefer an older man; well, that > is, just ONE older man!" > > > Quote 3: > > She had asked him to marry her! > > > Quote 4: > > As she listened to her father talk, Lois thought, as she > had once before, that they were Dr. Frankenstein's > daughters. Well, he'd always wanted a son and now he was > going to father Data. > > > Quote 5: > > "You've decided Luthor isn't what you want - too murky for > you, perhaps? What am I - insurance?" > > > Quote 6: > > "Why are you ruining my *life?*" Clark angrily asked the > blue-suited figure in the mirror. > > Quote 7: > > "I don't need another mother, Lois, I already have one!" > > > Quote 8: > > 'We could be at opposite ends of a room, but when we look > over at each other, we seem to know exactly what the other > is thinking or feeling.' > > D > i > a > 's > > S > p > a > c > e > > > > > Extract 1: > > Within seconds Lois' expression morphed from terror, to > astonishment, to ... anger. "Are you saying that you're > nothing more than a refillable costume?" > > "What? No, I--" > > "That there's nothing more to your heroism than a super > repertoire and a red cape?" > > "No, but--" > > "That's what you made it sound like, Superman," she said, > her arms defiantly folded. > > "All right," Clark said, raising his hands almost in a > gesture of surrender. "I do admit that being Superman is a > lot more than the powers. It's why I chased Waldecker all > over the place." > > "You chased Resplendent Man?" > > Clark nodded. "I felt he was using *my* powers for personal > gain." > > > Extract 2: > > At first it was such a light touch on his face he thought > it a piece of feather and tried to brush it away. Then, > suddenly, he could sense what felt like fingers softly > tracing his mouth. > > "What are you doing out here, sleepy? Waiting for ME to > show up now?" the voice asked. > > At first he thought he was hearing the television or radio, > and without opening his eyes he smiled and turned on his > side. > > "Clark! Wake up sweetheart!" the now familiar, voice > strongly urged. > > Clark recognizing the delightful sound, slowly turned and > opened his eyes. There in the dark he could make out a > shadow; a very attractive shadow. He slowly reached for the > light on the end table and there standing before him was > the most beautiful woman he had ever seen. > > "Lois???" he questioned the voice, sitting up on his > elbows. > > "Don't you wanna come to bed?" she asked sweetly. > > > > Extract 3: > > Abruptly torn from his contemplation of beauty personified, > Clark's head lifted in a move that Lois had once likened to > a bird on the alert. And, just like a startled bird, his > action would almost inevitably be followed by flight. > > Attuned to him, Lois somehow sensed his movement without > needing to see it. She looked at him, her face a silent > question. > > He glanced around nervously, checking that nobody was > watching, then made a discreet gesture with his hand. > > She understood, of course. She nodded an acknowledgement > and mouthed, "I'll cover." > > As he rose from his chair, his hand reaching for the knot > of his tie, he wondered for the umpteenth time about her > readiness to lie for him. Even after all the hurt his > excuses had caused her, she was willing to protect him with > her own. Was this, he wondered, simply a contradiction in > Lois's complex personality, or was this the ultimate form > of forgiveness for his past actions. > > He did not know. > > All he knew was that he loved that about her, too. > > > > Extract 4: > > Clark's voice turned harsh, his dark eyes blazing. "Okay, > Ms. Logic. Turn around and walk away from me. I won't > stop you this time." He folded his arms across his chest > and narrowed his eyes. > > She looked at him, speechless for once, not moving. > > "Go ahead, " he taunted. "You can do it. It's the > *logical* thing to do. Just like it was the logical thing > to search for me. To risk your life for me." > > She stared at him for a moment, her temper rising. How > dare he? She did not belong to him. Then, in a swift > determined motion, her dark hair swinging, she turned and > strode away from him. She walked about fifty feet, her > thoughts and emotions jumbled. What if he was right? He > was so stubborn. It was her decision to make; he'd always > waited for her to make the decision. He was waiting now. > She turned to look back. He was still standing there, his > arms crossed and his legs planted slightly apart, Clark > Kent Superman. Kal El. > > She met his stern eyes and then, for some reason, she had > no idea why, she laughed. She laughed at the > ridiculousness of their situation and at herself for the > inconsistency of her feelings, torn between her need for > autonomy and her need to love more than just herself, to > love him, and she laughed at his stubbornness. Then she > saw the harsh angles of his face soften into a smile of > his own, the most wonderful smile. > > She began to walk back to him. He met her half way. > Standing in front of him, she said, "OK, I figure it'll > take a week to organize a small wedding." She poked him in > the chest with her index finger. "Next Saturday." > > > > Extract 5: > > She began to walk off towards her desk, but caught sight of > the expression on her partner's face. He looked stunned, as > if he'd learned something about himself and realised he > didn't like it very much. > > He walked swiftly to her side, catching her arm lightly. > "Lois, I know it looked bad. But I promise you, I was only > trying to look out for you - " > > "You have a funny way of showing it, Kent," she retorted. > "And anyway, you're not my father, or my husband, and even > if you were it still wouldn't give you the right to take > control of my actions. So back off, lose some of your > darned cockiness and learn some better journalistic ethics. > *Then* I might be prepared to work undercover with you > again." > > Leaving him standing in the middle of the newsroom, she > stalked off. > > > > Extract 6: > > "Superman?" > > "Hm?" > > "Thanks for saving me today. It's getting hard to count > how many times over I owe you my life...." It was late, > she was tired, and her brain was thrilled to realize just > how close she was sitting to the man she loved. But > whatever the reason, a sweet, sentimental note had crept > into her voice. "I don't know what I'd do without you." > > Her tone was not lost on Superman, nor was the soft > half-smile that made her look so gentle and inviting. He > smiled in return, and took her hand in his. "You'll never > have to find out, Lois, I promise." > > Lois' heart almost stopped beating at those words. Those > were *commitment* words. Could he possibly mean... Was > this it? Was this what she had dreamed of for so long? > "Superman...." She leaned toward him, hardly realizing > that she was doing so. > > He was quick to reciprocate, and in an interminable > instant, their lips met. He lifted one hand and traced her > jaw with his finger as his tongue pressed into her mouth, > tasting her hungrily. She was soft, she was sweet... and > she was Lois.... > > > > Extract 7: > > Sure enough, Lois was asleep in his bed. She was still > wearing the sweatpants she had come over in, but had > changed into one of his t-shirts. She was lying on her side > under the covers, hugging his pillow close to her body. > Clark simply stood there watching her for several seconds, > waves of love and relief washing over him. > > He briefly considered spending the night on the couch, but > he realized that Lois was sending him a message by falling > asleep in his bed. Lois was inviting him to hold her, to > fall asleep in her arms the way he had dreamed of doing so > many times. It was a wonderful gift, and one he had no > intention of refusing. > > Clark grabbed a pair of shorts from the pile of clean > laundry that he hadn't yet gotten around to folding, and > headed into the bathroom to wash up. As he splashed water > on his face, he noticed Lois's travel toothbrush resting on > the counter next to a rumpled hand towel. As Clark dried > his face with the towel, he could detect the faint smell of > her perfume. He inhaled deeply, amazed at how tranquil he > felt. It was so nice to see her things in his bathroom; it > felt so *right*. > > > > Extract 8: > > Lois felt Clark's breath on her cheek as he moved his face > closer to hers, and, even after all these years, it caused > her skin to tingle and her heart to race. The love they > had for each other was stronger now than it had ever been, > and, knowing that, it made Lois wonder why she'd ever > struggled over the decision to marry Clark in the first > place. > > Thinking back to the time when he'd had asked her to marry > him, she remembered what a tough time it had been for her. > Not only did she have to adjust to new discovery that Clark > was Superman, but she'd also had to deal with the > cemented-since-childhood anxieties she'd had about > marriage. But through it all, Clark had remained strong, > and had never let her down by giving up on her. And > because of that, Lois had been able to move forward in > their relationship, never once looking back on things or > regretting her decision. The words of the song made her > realize how much her life had changed since she'd met him. > The best years of her life had been the ones she'd spent > with Clark, and she knew she wouldn't trade them for > anything. > > The music softened, and Clark rubbed his hand lightly over > the small of Lois' back. He loved the way she felt in his > arms, with her head tucked so perfectly underneath his chin > and nestled against the base of his throat. It was almost > as if they'd been made for each other. > > > > > > ---------------------- > Wendy Richards > w.m.richards@hrm.keele.ac.uk > ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 10 Feb 2000 21:32:11 +0100 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Tedras Subject: R: SIP: Connections - part 7 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit I'm missing part 5 and 6 could anybody send them again. Probably better at my home mail .... not to the list? Tedras Blue Dragon ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 10 Feb 2000 16:10:25 CST Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Jessi Mounts Subject: Re: Kerth-category Quizzes: Best WAFFy Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; format=flowed * * * S P O I L E R S P A C E * * * Extract 3: Well, I've read and I liked it, but right now I couldn't figure out what exactly it is if my life depended on it. Extract 5: Perfect Match by you, Wendy, I think. Extract 6: Blanket Friends by Susan VanCott Extract 7: A True Partnership by Kathy Brown Jessi jessi914@hotmail.com ______________________________________________________ Get Your Private, Free Email at http://www.hotmail.com ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 10 Feb 2000 17:17:45 -0500 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: James Tull Subject: Nomination Question! My wife would like to nominate Allison K. Forbes The Lovers' Tale but is at a loss as to what category it best falls under. Any Suggestions? ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 10 Feb 2000 15:18:44 -0700 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Erin Klingler Subject: Re: Nomination Question! In-Reply-To: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Hi James! >My wife would like to nominate Allison K. Forbes The Lovers' Tale but is at >a loss as to what category it best falls under. > >Any Suggestions? It can be tough to decide, can't it? Unfortunately, I'm not help on this one. I haven't read it. What does it deal most with? A revelation? A modified episode? A short, WAFFy story? I don't know if this helps, but I always consider what the story is mostly about when I want to decide which category to nominate it under. Hope to hear from you soon! Erin :) __________________ erink@ida.net Visit my LNC/Kerth Website: www.ida.net/users/davek ***** "It's not the years that count, it's the moments...right now, as they happen." __________________ ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 10 Feb 2000 15:24:51 -0700 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Erin Klingler Subject: Kerth Nominations Announcement MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Hi everyone ;) James' question reminded me that I was going to send a reminder to you all. There is only about ONE WEEK left to send me your nominations for this year's Kerth Awards. Last day for accepting nominations will be Sunday, Feb. 20th. So for those of you (like me ) who still have stories to read and nominations to decide on, please do so in the next several days. Happy reading! Erin :) __________________ erink@ida.net Visit my LNC/Kerth Website: www.ida.net/users/davek ***** "It's not the years that count, it's the moments...right now, as they happen." __________________ ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 10 Feb 2000 18:13:22 -0500 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: Nomination Question! I've just taken a look at the story in question, and my guess as to appropriate categories would be Vignette and/or WAFFy. Hope that helps! Wendy ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 10 Feb 2000 16:30:10 -0800 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Betty Huang Subject: Re: Kerth Nominations Announcement MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Sorry, I wont be doing any nominations. I'll just stick to hoping that some day I'll win first place to something, instead of always winning second places. --- Erin Klingler wrote: > Hi everyone ;) > > James' question reminded me that I was going to send > a reminder to you all. > There is only about ONE WEEK left to send me your > nominations for this year's > Kerth Awards. Last day for accepting nominations > will be Sunday, Feb. 20th. > So for those of you (like me ) who still have > stories to read and > nominations to decide on, please do so in the next > several days. > > Happy reading! > > Erin :) > __________________ > erink@ida.net > Visit my LNC/Kerth Website: www.ida.net/users/davek > ***** > "It's not the years that count, it's the > moments...right now, as they happen." > __________________ > __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Talk to your friends online with Yahoo! Messenger. http://im.yahoo.com ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 10 Feb 2000 16:41:06 -0800 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Betty Huang MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Acturally, I'm new to both. --- LabRat wrote: > Betty wrote: > > > Sorry about that, I was trying to find the email > > adress for the list and > I had used someone else header> to email the thing. > > ~~~No apology necessary, Betty. I've often used any > old post for convenience > when > replying to the list. However, the best thing to do > if you're new to lists > is to just > take a few moments before you hit send to check over > all the details. We've > all been there, so don't feel that you're being > singled out. A few seconds > to check the 'to' box, your subject header, and > other details is all that it > takes to keep everyone happy. > > Actually, if I'd known you were a 'newbie' I would > have sent my response to > you privately. I had thought that you were used to > lists, if not *this* > list, because I know you post regularly to the Dean > mailing list and I'm > sure that the rules must be much the same there as > here. As this apparently > turns out not to be the case, I promise to up my > tolerence level in future. > > > LabRat :) > __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Talk to your friends online with Yahoo! Messenger. http://im.yahoo.com ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 10 Feb 2000 17:16:19 -0800 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Betty Huang Subject: Re: Second email attachment MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Sure. But will I stay on the list is another thing. --- Wendy Richards wrote: > Betty, virus *can* be transmitted through email > attachments, and Word attachments in particular are > very > virus-prone. > > But in any case, the rules for this list state that > attachments must not be sent to the list; you know > that now > and I know you won't do it again! > > > Wendy > > > On Wed, 9 Feb 2000 19:50:50 -0800 Betty Huang > wrote: > > > I don't know about getting viruses through email. > > Last time I tried to do the copy and past from > this > > site. It made my sister's computer stall or the > > proper term is freeze. > > ---------------------- > Wendy Richards > w.m.richards@hrm.keele.ac.uk > __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Talk to your friends online with Yahoo! Messenger. http://im.yahoo.com ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 11 Feb 2000 00:15:29 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: Night Terrors FDK MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit In a message dated 2/10/00 11:29:20 AM EST, alauters@CSD.UWM.EDU writes: << Hi, everybody -- For those of you reading "Night Terrors", I wanted to know if you thought it would read better if I included timings in the story, particularly after the point where they're given only so much time (trying not to give too much away for those who haven't read it yet). Like, (8 p.m. : Blah blah blah). I'm thinking it might enhance the pacing of the story. What do you think? Also, Alexis and Lori, your comments earlier this week sent me back to my laptop in a hurry! This FDK is addictive! >> Yeah, times might be helpful. I've noticed with your writing style (which is really kewl btw) that you set it up more like a TV script. I feel like I'm reading a TV script with a bit more detail. I don't know if others feel the same way, but this lets me feel like I'm in the middle of it. Like Hazel, i too hope that *Alexis* isn't as bad as Lois thinks. I mean *Alexis* and I do share a name, so I kinda feel connected to her. ;) Alexis ;-.) {who just had a small ephinany....Does FDK mean feedback in short hand?!?} ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 11 Feb 2000 06:39:44 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: SIP: Connections - part 8 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Hi - here's part 8. I'm going out of town later today so I won't be able to post part 9 until next Friday for which I apologize. After that, I'll be back to regular posts again. Carol -------- Connections, part 8 Once they were in the car, Clark suggested they have dinner, thinking this would provide them with a chance to talk in a more casual but also, he hoped, from Lois's point of view, a respectably neutral setting. He watched her as she drove, wanting to ask her so much, but unsure where to start. Right now he was happy just to sit beside her while she drove, studying her profile. Aware of his scrutiny, Lois gave him a brief glance. "Don't worry, I'm a good driver." Then she laughed briefly, "I guess *you* don't need to be much worried about that, do you?" "Not much," he grinned, "but it's good to know you're not going to wipe out some other driver as soon as you get the chance." "Not likely," she said emphatically. "Not sure, but I think I turn left at that next intersection." "Yeah, just past Wayne Irig's place. It's the next farm up ahead, and then left at the intersection." "You know this area pretty well?" Lois asked as they drove by the bright lights of the Irig farmhouse. "Yeah," his voice was husky as he continued, "I know it pretty well. I grew up here -- that was my dad's barn you found me in." He noticed her lips curve in a slight smile as he said this. "What?" he asked. "Nothing. Just the idea of someone *finding* Superman." But, to be honest, she'd been more surprised by how soft his voice had sounded, different from the formal enunciation she'd heard on the Superman tapes in Trask's office. And something in the low, softness of that voice had touched her. The smile had been at herself as she found herself increasingly puzzled by this man; at not finding the final truth about him. The elusive Superman, she thought. "Like maybe you were looking for me?" He spoke deliberately although he was careful to keep the tone of his voice light. "Maybe." Her voice was noncommittal, although his comment spooked her. Had he been reading her mind? Which reminded her, her cover was now blown and she wondered how Trask would react when he found out. If he found out. "This my turn here?" "Yeah, we're not too far from town, now." "Have things changed much around here since you were a kid?" Lois asked as she drove into the intersection, her attention focused as much on an oncoming pickup truck as on their conversation. She was also planning ahead to the questions she would ask him over dinner. At least she had the chance for an interview. As far as she could tell from all the research she had done, no one had yet got an exclusive with Clark Kent/Superman. So why didn't she feel quite comfortable with the fact that she had? "Not much," Clark answered, "but to tell you the truth, I haven't been back here too often since I finished high school." Lois barely heard this response as she concentrated on both her driving and the upcoming interview, wondering if Superman didn't give interviews, why he was going along with this one. And why did he keep staring at her? She'd better watch her step. She picked up on his last words. "High school?" She followed that thread, asking him about Smallville High and his experiences there, which, it turned out, had been, in many ways, similar to her own high school years. It was a pretty safe topic to explore as long as they kept to those generic experiences which both stimulate and frustrate adolescents everywhere. By the time they pulled up in front of her motel room, she felt like Clark Kent was a pretty normal guy. They'd both been editors of their high school newspapers and, as she removed her keys from the ignition, they were laughing about their first experience writing a bad story, not properly checking their sources, and the disaster that had ensued. As they walked toward the Smallville Motel Bar and Grill, Lois added the final comment. "Perry would have killed me for that." Then she froze. She shouldn't have said that; he didn't know she had worked for the Planet, that she was a reporter, did he? She gave him a sideways glance to see if her slip had registered. "Yeah, he would." For a moment, neither spoke as Clark met her gaze, the trace of a knowing smile lurking in the depths of his dark eyes as he waited for her to speak. "I, uh, used to know Perry White," Lois said as she continued walking, reaching for the knob of the lobby door just a shade after he had opened it for her. "Ah," he said as he stood back to let her enter. Once inside, Lois cast a quick glance around the small deserted foyer, noting its dark wainscotting, red flocked wallpaper, and the cluster of framed photographs which covered the upper half of one wall. One photograph captured President Heston talking with three men whom she did not recognize but were probably Smallville notables. Then she spotted what she was really looking for -- the door to the ladies room. "I'll meet you in the bar, okay? I'd just like to freshen up a bit." "Sure. I'll just wait out here." Clark wasn't in any mood to let her out of his sight and he briefly wondered if there was a back exit for the washroom. Then he chided himself for being suspicious. Anyway, if she did take off, it wouldn't take him long to find her. This time she would only have ten minutes on him, not four years. Casting a brief glance in the direction of the washroom, he wondered how long he should give her. Was ten minutes long enough? Lana had always taken forever in the ladies' room; he suspected she completely redid her hair, makeup, and who knew what else while she was in there. Maybe he should give Lois fifteen minutes. As he leaned back against the wall opposite the door through which Lois had vanished, he wondered why had she come to Smallville? Why had she been in the barn? He looked forward to finding out. Inside the ladies' room, Lois hurried, fearing the man outside would clue in to the fact that she was about to get a major interview with him and take off on her. After all he could fly. As she dried her hands, she wondered if he ever needed to freshen up. How his body worked. Hmm... how his body worked, she smiled to herself. She hadn't expected to find him attractive, but she did. She grinned at herself in the mirror. Watch it, girl -- if you fall for him, you give him the upper hand. And then she saw him in the barn again, his hand touching the post his father had carved. And she didn't know what to think. Taking a deep breath, she grabbed a comb from her backpack and quickly ran it through her hair, wrinkling her nose in distaste at her new hair color. Then she strode out to meet him. Clark looked up at her surprised. Five minutes. And she was beautiful, more beautiful than he had ever thought; although he was more than a little shocked by the fact that she had auburn hair. In his dreams, *his* Lois had always looked exactly like the Lois whom Tempus had brought from the other Metropolis. *This* Lois was different, and he liked the differences -- she wasn't quite as thin, verging on voluptuous in fact, and her hair was longer, nearly shoulder length. He liked how it swung when she walked. Still, the color... he looked at her hair accusingly. Lois noticed the look. "What?" Had he begun to have second thoughts about the interview? "Nothing... Nothing." He looked at her hair again. "Your hair," he said and then stopped, at a loss for what to say next. Somehow, 'I thought you'd be a brunette' didn't sound right. Relieved, Lois grinned. "I know -- bad dye job. It's little too red." This guy's got a lot of experience with women if he can spot a cheap dye job, she thought. Mentally, she pushed him a little further away from her. Then she remembered he'd been engaged to a blonde which probably accounted for his knowledge about hair dyes. Mentally, she pulled him back into the room. She preceded him into the dark, wood-panelled bar, suddenly aware that, in some way, he seemed to become diminished, almost furtive as he hung back behind her. Why? she wondered. She waited until he was beside her and she caught a glimpse of the mask that his face had now become. Then she remembered he was Superman and this was a public place. Her thoughts were interrupted by the waitress, who greeted them cheerfully before leading them to a small table in a dimly lit corner of the room, not too far from where a large TV, currently tuned to the WWF channel, was mounted above the far end of the bar. If the waitress recognized Clark, she gave no indication. Nor did the few other customers who were seated at the bar or at a couple of tables nearby. But this was the town he had grown up in. Now that he was Superman, surely they must recognize him, Smallville's most famous son, Lois thought. Still, he certainly didn't look like a superman, dressed as he now was in faded jeans and a plaid shirt -- he looked like a farmer, she thought wryly. If the waitress and the few customers who were there this midweek evening did recognize him, they gave no indication of it, and as it became apparent that they would not, she felt his tension diminish and then, finally, he smiled at her, a wonderful smile that wiped all other thoughts from her head. "So...," Lois said, wondering if she would be able to follow that up with anything a little more original. She wasn't, but then neither was he. "So...," he replied, not able to stop smiling at her. "I bet you're a brunette." That comment surprised her. "Uh huh." Lois picked up the menu, looked it over quickly, and then closed it. "Why'd you change it?" Why this interest in her hair colour, she wondered? "It seemed like a good idea at the time," she responded and then turned her attention to the young woman who was asking if they had decided what they wanted yet. "How'd you like working for Perry White?" Clark asked. Lois grinned, deciding there was no sense in dissembling. "I loved it. Couldn't get away with a thing, though. He taught me a lot." "Me, too. I figured I was real lucky to get to work under him." "How long have you worked at the Planet?" Lois asked him as the waitress brought them each a glass of red wine. "Close to four years. I started a few months after you disappeared in the Congo." He looked at her intently, his voice gentle as he asked, "What happened to you there, Lois?" "I'm surprised you even know about my Congo trip. I wouldn't expect any one to find it of much interest after a couple of weeks." "Are you kidding? Top journalist disappears covering a major story on gunrunning. Perry said he had people search everywhere. He was pretty upset by it all." "He did? He was?" Lois was touched by this; yesterday, she'd had the feeling that people had forgotten her pretty quickly. "He was like a father to me," she said quietly. "Does he know you're back?" "No, I tried to get in touch with him but he's out of town." Clark searched her eyes as he repeated his earlier question. "Why, Lois? What happened?" Lois hadn't expected this kind of question from him. In fact, she was taken aback that he even knew of her existence. And besides, this was *her* interview; she was the one who was supposed to be asking the questions. "I don't get it, Clark. Why are you so interested?" Clark hesitated before speaking and when he did speak, he kept his voice light. "You worked for the Planet and you disappeared; that interests me. Just as I'm interested in, why, after four years, you show up in my dad's barn." This question, Lois had been expecting, and, in the back of her mind, had been working out what her answer would be. 'Just passing through,' seemed lame. Briefly, she'd thought about expressing an interest in mid-western barn architecture but that sounded even lamer. Coincidence? 'Why, Clark, I had no idea,' sounded pretty fake. 'Because it was there,' lacked originality. So she met his eyes and told him the truth, at least, in a way. "Maybe I was looking for Clark Kent." She gave him a crooked smile, tilting her head slightly to one side as she spoke. "Were you?" Clark spoke slowly, his voice husky, but his eyes still held a question. At that moment, much to Lois' relief, their waitress arrived with dinner, her timing so impeccable that Lois decided she would leave a large tip. "It looks good," Lois said as she picked up her fork. "Did you ever come here when you were growing up?" "Once, for my mom's birthday. It's changed a lot since then -- I don't remember much about it though, just a feeling that there was not so much black leather." His eyes swept the room and then he grinned at her. "I remember Dad got them to make a birthday cake -- it was a secret and I was pretty excited." Recalling what she'd read about his parents' death, Lois' face softened. "And was she surprised?" "Yeah. I really think my dad pulled it off. Keeping stuff from my mom was next to impossible." He smiled, for a moment recalling his mother's delight with the small gifts and events which he and his dad had planned for her. "I'd forgotten about that day." Lois looked at him, at the wistfulness in his dark eyes, and once again she felt that confusion about who this man was. He seemed like a pretty ordinary man. "Your parents sound like wonderful people." "They were. They were killed in a car crash when I was ten." His voice was flat as he spoke. Impulsively, Lois reached across the table to touch his hand for a moment and as she did, she met his eyes. "I'm sorry, Clark. It must have been so hard." Caught by the sympathy in the depths of her brown eyes, he said, "It was a long time ago." He felt the loss of her touch as she withdrew her hand. "What happened to you after that? Did you stay in Smallville?" Just as Clark was about to answer, the TV announcer cut into the current programming with a news bulletin announcing a catastrophic earthquake in Mexico City. Clark's face froze as he listened for details, aware of Lois's voice saying, "You have to go." His distress was evident in his face. There was no question in his mind about leaving but, more than anything, he did not want to leave Lois Lane. "You'll be here when I get back?" "Probably not. I have to get my car back to the airport and, by the sounds of it, you'll be gone for some time." Clark panicked a bit. "When can I see you again?" Lois looked at him surprise. He made it sound as though this had been a date; she'd thought it had been an interview. "I'll be in Metropolis. I'm staying at the Apollo Hotel." "Never heard of it but I'll find it." Then he was gone, not exactly in a blur, but quietly out through the back exit, leaving Lois sitting there, thinking about all that had happened in the last couple of hours and aware that things were not nearly as simple as she had thought. ***** end part 8 ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 11 Feb 2000 12:33:21 +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: SIP: Connections - part 8 In-Reply-To: <2.dab3e6.25d54f00@aol.com> MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; CHARSET=US-ASCII Carol, another stunning instalment! Wonderful dialogue, and great interaction between them! s p o i l e r s p a c e I love the way that everything was proceeding on two levels here. Lois thinks she was the one looking for Clark; he's been looking for her for months. She thinks this is the first time they've met, whereas he knows so much about her and is desperately trying not to let it show. And, best of all, she thought she was interviewing him, while he had other intentions entirely. >>>Then he was gone, not exactly in a blur, but quietly out through the back exit, leaving Lois sitting there, thinking about all that had happened in the last couple of hours and aware that things were not nearly as simple as she had thought.<<< This is a lovely finish. No, nothing is as simple as she'd thought; she's already a goner! And it'll be interesting to see what happens to her relationship with Trask now she's discovered that Superman's actually a pretty nice guy, with whom she has a lot in common, and whom she's attracted to! And, of course, now that Clark's found his Lois, what will he say to Ching and Zara? This is so intriguing, Carol, and it's got me hooked! Wendy ---------------------- Wendy Richards w.m.richards@hrm.keele.ac.uk ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 11 Feb 2000 05:07:37 -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: SIP: Connections - part 8 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Carol, what a lovely installment! Wendy has already picked out all my favourite bits and pieces to compliment you on so I will just say that I can hardly wait till you're back from your trip so I can read more of this fantastic story. Irene ===== Outside of a dog, a book is Man’s best friend. And inside of a dog, it’s too dark to read. Groucho Marx __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Talk to your friends online with Yahoo! Messenger. http://im.yahoo.com ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 11 Feb 2000 08:39:39 -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: SIP: Connections - part 8 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit This is so wonderful, Carol... it's gonna kill me to wait til next Friday, but maybe you'll be able to get a lot written while you're gone and move up to *two* posts a day! The more I think about it, the more I love the idea that Alt-Lois found Alt-Clark, instead of the other way around Gives them a much more equal place to start from... and I'm glad that Lois is realizing how much more there is to Clark than Superman... So I'm betting there's no way that Clark's going to New Krypton now And I imagine Zara & Ching won't be happy ... but hey, what luck! We've got Col. Trask to take care of those meddling aliens... Not that I want them killed, just gone... I believe that peoples tend to get the government they deserve, and if the NK people want Lord Nor, they can have him. It may shock them enough to reform their feudal system!! So the only tricky part is convincing Trask (or at least B39) that Clark is on *our* side... if only we had someone on the inside, who liked Clark but was working for B39... oh wait, we do! Even if all my speculations are wrong, tho, I'm sure I'll keep on enjoying the heck out of this story... have a good trip, Carol! -- ------------------------------------------------------- Pam Jernigan | jernigan@bellsouth.net ChiefPam on IRC | ChPam on AOL IM ------------------------------------------------------- "Not only was Ivan an idiot, but he generated a telepathic damping field to turn the people nearby into idiots, too." --An exasperated Miles contemplates his cousin in _The Warrior's Apprentice_, by Lois McMaster Bujold ------------------------------------------------------- http://www.geocities.com/~chiefpam ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 11 Feb 2000 15:45:00 +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: Best WAFFy quiz: ANSWERS MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; CHARSET=US-ASCII For some reason, this one seems to have been the most difficult yet! I'm not sure whether it's quiz-weariness setting in, or whether my choice of stories in the WAFFy category just doesn't accord with other people's, but... anyway, here are the answers. 1: Ultra Matum, by Zoomway 2: When Magnolias Bloom, by Jennifer Eagan 3: Counting the Ways, by Chris Carr 4: Recognition: The Only Way by Carol Malo 5: The Penfriend, by Wendy Richards 6: Blanket Friends, by Susan VanCott 7: A True Partnership, by Kathy Brown 8: Through the Years, by Erin Klingler Scores: Irene gets 2 points for identifying one quote. Yvonne gets 1 point for identifying *my* personal favourite in this list. Jessi gets 2.5 points for two extracts and one correct author: #5 *was* by me, but you named the wrong story Amy: umm - 0 points! But thanks for taking part! Julie, reporting from off the list again, gets 7 points for corrrectly naming seven stories and authors from the extracts, and is the winner. Coming up next: Vignettes, followed by the final quiz from this team, Krypton/New Krypton, presented by Hazel on Sunday. Wendy ---------------------- Wendy Richards w.m.richards@hrm.keele.ac.uk ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 11 Feb 2000 16:45:06 +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: Kerth-Category Quizzes: Best Vignette MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; CHARSET=US-ASCII This is my last contribution to the Kerth Quizzes: Best Vignette, a story of 30KB or under. You can do a lot in 30KB, as I discovered when searching through all the eligible stories to see which ones qualified for this category. As usual, there are many vignettes not included in this quiz; some, incidentally, were left out because they'd recently appeared in Best Comedy and Best WAFFy - shows how some stories qualify for a lot of categories! But other than that, the usual disclaimer applied: the inclusion or exclusion of stories does not represent any judgement on their suitability for nomination. 'Nuff said! On with the quiz! As usual, two points for the quote, one point for the extract. Thanks for playing! Wendy --------------------- Quote 1: Fiance, she thought. It was a wonderful word, perhaps the most wonderful word in the English language. Quote 2: I loved him. I really did. So much, that it almost hurt. Quote 3: "You sick, twisted, sociopath." Quote 4: "Could we maybe do this someplace that's not so musty and not owned by a killer?" Quote 5: "And, believe me, Lois, NOTHING is going to stop me fulfilling my destiny with you!" Quote 6: "I get the weirdest looks at the hardware store when I buy more of this stuff every week!" Quote 7: "it's fun to go to a dark, smoky bar ... find a good-looking stranger...." Quote 8: She was his universe, and he wanted her. Keening softly, he mourned. Quote 9: Keep your mind on the job and off his pecs! Quote 10: "You know, the guy in blue tights, flies around the city doing good deeds. That's me." Quote 11: "Keep it." Quote 12: "They didn't have any silver Jeeps down at the dealers, did they?" D I Y A N 'S S P A C E Extract 1: When had her feelings for Clark begun to deepen, to broaden, to consume her? She guessed the process had started soon after they had met, though it had happened so gradually that she could pinpoint no one time or event and say, it happened then. That was the moment. The first time she had suspected that there might be something more between herself and Clark than just friends had been on the day she was to have married Luthor. She had stood in front of the mirror, trying on her new name for size. Lois Luthor. But, like a dress a size too small, it squeezed her, pinched her, and made her feel uncomfortable. Then she tried other variations. Lois Lane Luthor. Lois Luthor Lane. But neither of those fitted better than the first. Then, as though she had discovered something unexpected on a previously unnoticed rack at the back of the store, she tried on Lois Lane Kent. There was something about it. It was not her style, but it flattered her. It was comfortable. She had suddenly thought to herself that she could get used to it with practice. And moments later she had said, "I can't," instead of, "I do." Extract 2: And this quiet, gentle man, had chosen me to become his wife. Me, a stuck-up, pig-headed investigative reporter, who would to anything for a story. But Clark saw something in me. Something I had never seen. And he loved me for it. I had been scarred by my past and had built up walls around me. I never wanted to get hurt again. But Clark managed to work his way in, bit by bit, day by day. I remember how shocked I was, when I realized that I loved him. And falling in love with him had been so easy, I don't know why I fought it so long. We were very happy together. That changed, however, on May 12th, 1996. It was the day of Superman's press conference. It was the day he left earth to help his people on a planet called New Krypton. A planet he had never seen and yet was willing to fight for it. He was even willing to die for it. And I was willing to let him go, because I knew that no matter how much I needed him, he was needed there too. And so I let him go. Before he left through the great window in the Daily Planet newsroom, he looked down on me, his eyes telling me that he loved me, no matter what. And I looked up at him, tears welling in my eyes, and returned his gaze. I remember I tried to tell him that he shouldn't leave. Because I needed him. I believe he saw what I was trying to tell him, for he just hovered there, not knowing what to do. His eyes told me he was sorry. Then he turned and all of a sudden he was gone. It was the last time I ever saw him. I cried a lot, back then. I cried for the two years I had wasted, for the short time we had had together, for all the heart-to-heart talks we had shared and for all the conversations we would never have. But mostly I cried for the loss of the love of my life. Even today, sometimes, late at night, I cry into the darkness. Because I feel cheated by the short time we had had, and I blame myself for wasting so much time, before I finally saw the man beneath the suit. Before I finally saw the kindness, he carried within. Extract 3: "Lois, I - I never meant to hurt you . . .I, was" he choked on his own words, but then continued on, determined to make her understand "I was afraid Lois, I wanted you to be dependent on me because, then you couldn't leave me, then you couldn't hurt me. But I never meant to hurt you." He repeated as he looked up to meet her gaze. The tears in his eyes were the only proof she needed. "Oh Lex," Lois could barely hold back her own tears as she held this fallen man in her arms. "Come here, honey, it's alright . . .it's okay." she ran her fingers through his dark curls and whispered soft reassurances in his ear. She hugged him tightly as she made her decision. "I would never ask you to change Lex. After all, I fell in love with you the way you are." Lois couldn't help but give a soft chuckle as she realized she was admitting that fact to both Lex and herself at the same moment. She pulled away just enough to look him in the eyes "What I do need you to do, is let me in on exactly who that is. If we can't trust each other ..." "Then we have nothing." Lex finished for her. "I'll never let you down again, Lois." Extract 4: He was far too busy to say anything else for some time after that, and his mouth was too full, anyway. After some time, he became aware that he and Lois were sprawled across the room's double bed, although he had no clear memory of how they had gotten there, and his mouth was locked to hers. She was kissing him feverishly and somewhere along the way his shirt, and hers as well, had vanished. What had brought him back to at least a nodding acquaintance with the outside world was the feeling of her fingers fumbling with his belt buckle. He pulled his mouth back about half an inch. "Lois..." She let go of the buckle, tangled both hands in his hair and pulled his lips back to hers. Several long, delirious kisses later, he drew back again as her fingers tugged at his buckle once more. "Lois, this is getting pretty close to the point of no return. Maybe we better..." The buckle gave, and a second later the snap and zipper of his jeans. He stifled a gasp as her hands were suddenly in places he'd only imagined them being before. He closed his eyes, the protest dying on his lips. The hell with it. He didn't really want her to stop, anyway. Extract 5: "You're right, Clark," she said. "We've waited this long. What could a little longer hurt?" "Thank you, Lois." He stroked her cheek, then lifted her face to meet his. It was some time before they spoke again. "Lois. I'm scared," Clark said awkwardly, as though the words had forced their way out into the open against his will. "I know," replied Lois. "You know? I didn't mean for you to. . ." "You didn't want me to worry, is that it?" "Yes." "Clark, I've told you before. You can't always protect me." "I know that, Lois. But this is different." "How is it different?" "Usually, I'm scared for your safety. It's been years since I've really had to worry about my own. But now? This frightens me, more than I ever thought it would." "Clark, you're one of the bravest people I know." Extract 6: "And no saving yourself, either," he added as an afterthought. "Not while you're looking, anyway," she agreed, smiling sweetly. "But I wouldn't put it past me." "No, no," he riposted, sounding amused. "You gotta follow the rules." "Yeah, right, when have I ever followed rules?" He leered at her briefly, prowling around the shadowed perimeter of the room. "Well, I guess that's why I had to resort to tying you up." "A temporary inconvenience," she scoffed, although truthfully she wasn't quite as nimble as she used to be, and if she didn't get out of this soon, her legs might fall asleep. She focused her attention on the edges of the building, hoping to see some movement. "But now would be a good time to tell me all the details of your diabolical plot," she hinted broadly. "Hmm?" That distracted him, briefly. "What diabolical plot?" Extract 7: "... and, ah, seize the ... moment. Do you know what I mean ... honey?" Clark swallowed hard, envisioning her across a smoky room, smiling warmly at him, flirting in public.... Oh, this could be good. "I've never done it ... but it sounds like fun." "Oh, I think it will be." She smiled, then gave him a look of limpid innocence. "So, then ... you'll watch Laura while I go out?" He stared at her, too lost in a sensual fog to make immediate sense of this, his brows coming down in confusion. She didn't mean...? Her sultry look dissolved into giggles as she watched him trying to process this. "Lo-is!" She laughed harder, but moved closer. "You should have seen your face!" He pulled her into a hug. "That was *not* funny!" "Oh yes, it was!" Extract 8: A lamp near the chair cast a soft light upon her features and made her hair look golden. He watched her--this creature of light--while he drank, studying every nuance of the face he now loved more than any other. Her voice was being imprinted upon his very cells, and her touch he would forever know ... even in a dark room. His life was intertwined with hers now, just as hers was with his, and it felt so right. She began humming softly to him--not like the earlier, rather tuneless, sounds she'd made when she was nervous--this was sweet and beguiling, and he paused in his feeding to smile at her. She smiled in response, saying that "Klar" sound again, then went back to humming. He lifted up a hand to her and, as she always did, she took it and kissed his fingers. Then she brought his small hand up a little further, and held it to her cheek for a moment--sharing her love, and showing him how to do the same. Safe in her arms, he seemed to have everything he needed, everything he'd journeyed so far to find. Then, unexpectedly--because he'd forgotten that he'd given up hope of ever getting it--she gave him the one thing still missing from this new world of his ... She sang him a song. Extract 9: He unfolded the arrow and stared at this third clue. Again, the 'El' symbol, but this time she had sketched a pair of glasses lying open over the 'S'. Clark stilled as shock coursed through him. The meaning of this was unmistakable. He didn't even need the words underneath to realise what Lois was telling him. She had written, "I *see* who you are." She knew. Lois had figured it out; how, he had absolutely no idea. Even more important, he had no idea how mad she was about it. Probably pretty furious, he guessed, judging by this elaborate charade. He knew Lois; if she had been just a little bit mad, she would have waited until he'd awoken and would have discussed it pretty aggressively with him. If she'd been *a lot* mad, she would have woken him up there and then and yelled at him. For her to construct this kind of thing, she had to be furious at a rate of at least nine and a half out of ten on the Lane scale. Extract 10: Lois turned back and opened the window allowing Superman to glide in. "Superman, what a unexp,- er pleasant surprise." She placed her hand on his arm and gave him one of her most dazzling smiles. "What brings you around here, no bad guys to catch?" Lois almost bit her tongue as she thought, Stupid Lane! Really stupid. She never thought the day would come when she didn't want to see Superman but the uppermost thought in her mind was how to get rid of him, fast. "You told me to come, remember." Lois was confused. She hadn't seen Superman in a couple days. Not for lack of trying, they just never seemed to meet up lately. Of course she hadn't been thrown off any buildings lately either. "No, I haven't talked to you in...." Then it hit her. "Oh my god!" Extract 11: "Yes! No! Oh, I don't know. You can see how screwed up this has made me. Clark, I consider you my friend, my best friend, but I don't know about this. I'm not sure how to... Clark!?" Suddenly, Clark had that irritating far-away look in his eyes again. Lois could just about guess what was coming next. "Ah, I'm sorry Lois. I just remembered that I..." He patted his pants pockets. "Seem to have mislaid my keys. I think they might have fallen out when I was down in the locker room. I'd better go see if I can find them before some over zealous janitor accidentally throws them out." Clark started backing out the door. "I promise, we'll continue this later. Be back as soon as I can. I'm really sorry." As Lois watched Clark disappear around the corner she angrily kicked back in the chair and threw her pen against the wall. She shook her head. "Oh yeah." Heavy sarcasm belied her words. "There's definitely a future there." Extract 12: "Honey, its silver! It's way too obvious to the, uh, 'bad guys'. They spot you in minutes!" Clark interjected. They'd been discussing this since that morning at breakfast, when Clark had innocently mentioned that her silver jeep might not be the best vehicle for trailing criminals like the one they'd trailed the night before. The man they'd been following had spotted them and ditched them all in the space of five minutes. "That was one time! It's never happened before and won't happen again! I was just sloppy!" They had arrived at Lois' desk now, and she sat down and swiveled the chair to face her husband. "Honey, I think it'd be easier to do our jobs without so flashy a car. That's all, I swear." "I love my jeep! It's beautiful!" ---------------------- Wendy Richards w.m.richards@hrm.keele.ac.uk ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 11 Feb 2000 09:58:51 -0800 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Audrey Rempel Subject: Re: Kerth-Category Quizzes: Best Vignette MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Fun Quiz, Again, Wendy! Let's see how I do: --- Wendy Richards wrote: > D > I > Y > A > N > 'S > > S > P > A > C > E > > Quotes: 1. Know it, part of a companian piece, one from Lois' pov, one from Clark's 4. by Nan Smith, Just Say Noah ending re-write … ah! Title is 'Just Say … I Love You' 6. 'Lessons', Pam Jernigan 7 'Evening Delight', Pam Jernigan and Chris Mulder 10. Tank Wilson, 'The Kiss' 11. Tara Smith, I think, not sure of the title … Oh! There it is, 'The Jeep' Excerpts: 1 This is frustrating! I know it but … 2. Again, know it! Just can't remember what it's called or who it's by! 3. Ah, yes, the Lois and Lex tale, let me see … And 'With Her Strength, I Survive', by Erthangel 5. Argh! It's a great story about why Lois and Clark didn't make love before he left for New Krypton, but for the life of me … can't remember the title or by who! Oh, Chris Carr, 'Au Revior and Not Goodbye' 8. Oh, that was a beautiful story, let's see, by Hazel? Hmm … Nope! Chris Mulder, 'The Child Who Fell >From the Sky!' 9. Sounds familiar, but 10. Oh, I know this! Lois is talking to Clark on the phone, after Honeymoon in Metropolis, I think, and invites him over, and then Superman arrives and all is revealed! But I can't find it! Grrr. Audrey Who was quite delighted to find the 'What's New' Archive with all the stories uploaded in 1999 by month ... very handy! __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Talk to your friends online with Yahoo! Messenger. http://im.yahoo.com ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 11 Feb 2000 19:59:04 +0100 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Kaethel Subject: Re: Kerth-Category Quizzes: Best Vignette MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit Had to do some research for this one S p o i l e r S p a c e Quote 4: "Just say... I love you" by Nan Smith Quote 10: "The Best Policy" by Tank Wilson Quote 11: "The Kiss" by Tank Wilson" > > D > I > Y > A > N > 'S > > S > P > A > C > E > > Extract 3: "And with her strength, I survive" by Erthanngel Extract 5: "Au Revoir And Not Goodbye" by Chris Carr Extract 7: "Evening Delight" by Pam Jernigan and Chris Mulder Extract 8: "The Child who fell from the sky" by Chris Mulder Extract 12: "The Jeep" by Tara Smith Boy, I still have a lot to read Take care :) Hélène :) ------------------------------------------------------ Kaethel on irc / Kaethel79 on AIM kaethel@club-internet.fr "Well, he's a man, I'm a woman... do I have to draw you a diagram?" ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 11 Feb 2000 16:14:16 -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: Kerth-Category Quizzes: Best Vignette MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Ah, vignettes... love 'em. So let's see if I *remember* any of them... s p o i l e r s p a c e (and apologies for forgetting to do this when commenting on Carol's story; my bad...) Q1: Not a clue :) Q2: No clue, part 2 Q3: I have a feeling this refers to Tempus but other than that I'm drawing a blank; I could have it confused with Yvonne's FoD, which is *not* a vignette Q4: Ah! This one I know; it's by Nan Smith and it's (obviously) a rewrite of JSN... off to the handy-dandy archive to get the title... "Just Say ... I Love You" Q5: no clue, part 3 Q6: lol, this is Lessons, by Pam Jernigan Q7: lol part 2, this is Evening Delight, by Pam Jernigan w/Chris Mulder (I'll be quite surprised if anyone gets this from the quote!) Q8: Don't know; sounds awfully sad... Q9: lol, good advice, but I don't know where it comes from Q10: no idea... Q11: Two words, Wendy?? That's a bit challenging, don'tcha think? Q12: sounds familiar, but I'm not remembering anything Now let's try excerpts... E1: Ah, now I have it... The Best Bargain, by Christine Carr E2: Aww, what a weeper! Sounds like Tank E3: Bleh! I've read this, but I tried to forget it instantly... E4: good thing I knew this from the quote, 'cause I wouldn't have gotten it from this extract... E5: I'm not recognizing this, but it looks intriguing. E6: nice selection E7: hey, you gave away my ending! E8: haha, I know this one now... The Child Who Fell From the Sky, by Chris Mulder E9: I know I've read this... E10: lol, I think I know this now, it's by Tank... let's go look up the title... "The Best Policy" Very funny E11: don't know it... E12: The Jeep, by Tara Smith I'm glad I got some of these from the exceprts, cause getting 3 out of 12 was pathetic, considering I wrote two of them... Excellent work on these quizzes, Wendy! I know I appreciate your and Hazel's efforts. I just do interesting answers so you can have fun scoring me -- ------------------------------------------------------- Pam Jernigan | jernigan@bellsouth.net ChiefPam on IRC | ChPam on AOL IM ------------------------------------------------------- "So is the answer A) B, B) C, C) D, or D) A?" "Is this a trick question?" "Yes. The answer is 'meat'." --Whose Line Is It Anyway, spoofing Millionaire. ------------------------------------------------------- http://www.geocities.com/~chiefpam ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 11 Feb 2000 18:14:14 -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: NEW: The Open Road (INTRO) Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="ISO-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable TITLE: The Martha Chronicles 2: The Open Road PART: INTRO AUTHOR: Christy Kubit (kubitc@kenyon.edu & attalanta@aol.com) RATING: PG? FEEDBACK: All comments welcome, public or private. Please send editing or typos privately. SUMMARY: Twenty-something Martha returns to Smallville to catch up with childhood friend Jonathan. I've been working on this story (and the others in the series) for almost two years now and I'm not satisfied with it yet, but it is taking up precious thesis-writing time. So I decided I needed to send it to the list in hopes of getting some feedback and suggestions for what is missing and what needs to be completely redone (again :) This is the second part of a three-part story about the pre-Lois & Clark life of Martha. When we last saw Martha (in The Martha Chronicles 1: The Martha Bums) she was leaving Smallville after a summer visit with cousins, during which she met Jonathan Kent. The story is in first person because Martha is telling it to her teenaged granddaughter. Much thanks to everyone who read portions of this Martha story while I was writing it and after I thought I=92d finished Special thanks to Debby and Margaret, who helped me get the story straight. (And I apologize for not thanking them in "The Martha Bums," but I was under the obviously false impression that I=92d finish the series quickly and have one long thank you at the end. Guess not.) All comments are appreciated (grammar-type stuff privately please), especially since the story has been majorly redone since it was last read by anyone other than me. Christy kubitc@kenyon.edu * * * * * * * * * * "Single-mindedness is all very well in cows or baboons; in an animal claiming to belong to the same species as Shakespeare it is simply disgraceful." -Aldous Huxley ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 11 Feb 2000 18:21:03 -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: NEW: The Open Road (1/9) Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="ISO-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable TITLE: The Martha Chronicles 2: The Open Road PART: 1/9 AUTHOR: Christy Kubit (kubitc@kenyon.edu & attalanta@aol.com) RATING: PG? FEEDBACK: All comments welcome, public or private. Please send editing or typos privately. SUMMARY: Twenty-something Martha returns to Smallville to catch up with childhood friend Jonathan. Afoot and light hearted I take to the open road, Healthy, free, the world before me, The long brown path before me leading to wherever I choose... -Walt Whitman My Chrysler died on I-70, just after passing a green sign that read "Smallville: 4 miles." It was probably over-heated or in need of some essential fluid like oil or gas; I didn=92t know. Luckily the sign was referring to "downtown" Smallville and, from what I could remember, there was a garage a few miles outside the center of town. So I hiked into town, found Morris=92s Garage right where I had left it ten years ago, and used the pay phone to call Jonathan. I stood outside the garage and enjoyed the warm autumn sun as I waited, reveling in the chance to stretch my legs after hours -- weeks -- of driving. When the heat became unbearable I gulped a cold, sweaty bottle of Coke I bought from a machine inside Morris=92s "office." After what seemed like forever, a red pick-up truck pulled up in front of the garage and made a sudden, lurching stop. The driver's door opened and out hopped Jonathan. Without a thought, I ran to him and we hugged, Jonathan lifting me easily off my feet and spinning me once around. Jonathan looked a lot different than I remembered, even different from the last photo he=92d sent me, his senior year class picture. He was wearing glasses now, a round, wire-framed pair. His dark hair was shaggy and he was taller and more sturdily built than I remembered. The hard physical labor of farming had done wonders for his body; gone was the skinny boy I=92d kissed ten years ago. I blushed when I saw Jonathan was studying me too. I=92d changed a lot since he last saw me. Now my red hair was long, with a once-expensive, now over-grown cut, straggly from infrequent shampoos. I was wearing a long flowing skirt -- comfortable for driving -- and a white cotton blouse. My worn leather sandals were dirty after the walk from my car to Morris=92s Garage, and I had a brown leather purse slung over my shoulder. "I was hoping to surprise you, you know, just turn up on your doorstep," I told Jonathan. "You *did* surprise me. I get a postcard every few weeks saying where you where when you sent it but probably aren=92t anymore. So I know you=92re not getting *my* letters." "No, I wasn't," I admitted before heading into the garage to tell Morris where he could reach me after he got a chance to look at the car. I grabbed a backpack from the back seat of the car, then climbed into the pick-up after Jonathan. The ride to the farm was noisy: Jonathan and I were both trying to bring each other up to date on our lives. Jonathan's parents were living with him on the farm and his sister Josie, who attended Kansas State, had an off-campus apartment, so she was now officially out of the house. "Good," I said when I heard about his parents. "I like your parents, especially your mother. I was pretty bratty back then, and she was one of the only people who could find it in her heart to be nice to me." Jonathan=92s friend Wayne, whom we had fished with during my previous visit, was still living on the farm next door with his parents, and now his new bride. Henry was still in Smallville too, but he had become the manager of Harley's Feed Store and was planning on taking over after childless Mr. Harley retired. I marveled over how settled everyone in Smallville was, a stark contrast from my friends, many of whom were now in graduate or professional schools of some type, or testing out their new-found independence with trips overseas. Some of my Beacon Hill neighbors had "married well," according to my grandmother, which was, I knew, where her hopes for me laid. I watched the Smallville scenery whiz by as we headed towards the Kents=92 farm, surprised that most of the landscape was exactly the same as it had been a decade ago. I wondered whether it was only the buildings that were the same, or if the people hadn=92t changed either * * * * * =09=09=09=09=09 6K Except for a fresh coat of white paint and a young peony bush blooming near the garage, the Kent farmhouse was not different. The kitchen had the same sturdy decor, and smelled of roasting chicken. I inhaled slowly and smiled at the welcome, familiar scent. In fact, the only thing that I could tell had changed was the woman standing with her back to us, intent on setting silverware and glasses on blue place mats around the table. Mrs. Kent looked as though she=92d aged much more than ten years. Her once-brown hair was now fully gray and she had put weight on her large frame. She turned around when she heard the screen door bang behind us, revealing a wrinkly smile. The pair of glasses perched on the end of her nose bumped into the side of my face when she hugged me. "It's so nice to see you again, Martha," she told me, and I felt secure in her sincerity as I hugged her back. "It=92s nice to see you, too, Mrs. Kent," I told her sincerely. I saw that Jonathan's mother had set four places at the table and grinned, setting my bag down at my feet. "Let me show you where you can put your things," Jonathan offered. "Oh, no. I don=92t want to impose," I insisted, though imposition was one thing my road trip had often relied upon. "Just direct me to the nearest hotel." "Don=92t be silly, Martha," Mrs. Kent insisted, patting my hand. "You=92ll stay here, with us." I opened my mouth to argue, but Mrs. Kent intercepted my objection. "Besides, you=92ve managed to pick the busiest weekend of the year to visit; it=92s the annual Corn Festival. All the hotel and motel rooms in Lowell County have been booked for months!" "Corn Festival?" I asked cautiously. "We=92ll tell you all about it at dinner," Jonathan answered, leading me upstairs and reacquainting me with the house. He reminded me where Josie=92s old room was; I could stay there. I headed downstairs for dinner, marveling at how oddly things had turned out; I had now chosen to be in Smallville, the town I=92d been quick to scorn years ago. It was strange that I would feel comfortable here, I realized as I arrived back in the kitchen. The last time I=92d been here I was such a spoiled brat. Sure, I had some reason to be upset at being sent away for the summer, but nothing excused the way I had acted. And how had Jonathan changed, I wondered. For a minute I felt uncertain, worried that he was now completely different from the Jonathan who had rescued me from a disastrous church picnic. But then I reminded myself that Jonathan and I had kept in touch; I would have known if he=92d changed much. We could pick things up right where we=92d left them: we were friends. When I got to the kitchen I saw Mr. Kent sitting at the table, napkin tucked into his denim shirt. Like his wife, he was built thick, with a sizable paunch hanging over his silver-buckled belt. His feet were crammed into white, too-small bunny rabbit slippers. "Hello, Mr. Kent," I said with a grin as I sat down at the table. "I like your slippers." "Eh," he grunted, looking down. "They=92re Josie=92s. Mine=92ve worn out." Okay, I thought, so Mr. Kent wasn=92t as friendly as his wife. Maybe he remembered me from my last visit. I turned from him and smiled at Jonathan as he sat down across from me. Mrs. Kent had made chicken, mashed potatoes, gravy, and green beans, and I caught a whiff of something apple-smelling for dessert. I ate heartily, welcoming the home-cooked meal after weeks of feasting on greasy food in sketchy roadside diners. "So, tell me about this Corn Festival," I began as I spooned homemade gravy over my potatoes. "Oh, it=92s the biggest weekend of the year, Martha," Mrs. Kent told me as she passed the plate of chicken to her husband. "The harvest is over and it=92s time to celebrate. We put on a Corn Festival every year at this time, spare no expense." "What *is* a Corn Festival, exactly?" I asked, looking at Jonathan, who was cutting away a pat of butter to spread on his green beans. "What do you do there?" "You do everything," he said, as if that explained anything. "There=92s a Corn Queen Pageant, Husk-Off, Corn-O-Rama. There=92s popcorn, creamed corn, corn on the cob..." His voice trailed off, and I wondered if I had stumbled into some sort of psycho small-town crop worship ritual. I must have had a strange expression on my face, because Mrs. Kent laughed when she looked over at me. "I know; it sounds a little bizarre, doesn=92t it?" I nodded. "Don=92t worry. It=92s actually part carnival, part craft fair, and only part harvest celebration." I grinned, and took a bite of chicken. "So, when does this Corn Festival start?" "It officially opens tomorrow night with a speech by the mayor," Jonathan said. "But the town=92s been gearing up ever since harvest ended. Mom=92s on the organizational committee, and she=92ll be baking pies all tomorrow morning and afternoon to get ready." "Do you need any help?" I offered Mrs. Kent. She seemed surprised at my eagerness, but agreed she could use another body in the kitchen. "Besides," she added, "Jonathan=92ll be helping his dad fix a fence in the back tomorrow morning. Then they=92ll set up the bandstand with a few of the other men -- Mr. Irig, Wayne, Henry, and Pete Ross -- in the afternoon." Wow, a band, I thought. Hopefully the music=92ll be something with a beat, something to dance to. As long as it wasn=92t all square-dancing... Jonathan's father, slightly more wary of me than his wife was, changed the subject, gruffly asking me where I was headed and what I was planning to do once I got there. I explained that I wasn=92t sure yet, and was met with a well-disguised scowl. Mrs. Kent promptly changed the subject, asking me about my college years. Before I could respond, Mr. Kent took the opportunity to brag about how well Josie was doing at Kansas State, and to share her plans to "find a good match there." Mrs. Kent laughed and Jonathan added that, while Josie wanted to be a nurse, their father still held out hope that she'd find a husband and "settle down." I was familiar with that line of thought, that was for sure. I cheered Josie's independent streak, which I could tell didn't sit well with Mr. Kent, but it was time to drag him into the 20th century; women were liberated now. At least they were in Boston, and I hoped the same was true in Kansas. I wondered what Jonathan thought about all this: his mother seemed to support Josie=92s career plans, but it was obvious his father did not. Perhaps Mr. Kent=92s old-world political viewpoints extended into the personal realm. After all, an independent, single girl could be a threat to his son, the only child left at home to run the farm. Maybe he thought I=92d corrupt him, maybe encourage him to use some of the family farmland to grow marijuana, I mused. After dinner was finished the four of us helped wash and dry the dishes, and store the left-overs in the fridge. Mr. Kent had to rise even earlier than usual to help Mr. Irig and Mr. Harris the next morning, but Jonathan, his mother, and I settled in the living room with coffee. "So how long will you be staying?" Jonathan's mother asked, adding generous portions of cream and sugar to her coffee. continued in part 2 * * * * * * * * * * "Single-mindedness is all very well in cows or baboons; in an animal claiming to belong to the same species as Shakespeare it is simply disgraceful." -Aldous Huxley ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 11 Feb 2000 18:24:01 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: The Open Road (INTRO) MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Christy, So glad to see the return of the Martha Chronicles!! I was enchanted by the first installment and was hoping to see more. In anticipation, Kate ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 11 Feb 2000 18:24:49 -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: NEW: The Open Road (2/9) Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="ISO-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable TITLE: The Martha Chronicles 2: The Open Road PART: 2/9 AUTHOR: Christy Kubit (kubitc@kenyon.edu & attalanta@aol.com) RATING: PG? FEEDBACK: All comments welcome, public or private. Please send editing or typos privately. SUMMARY: Twenty-something Martha returns to Smallville to catch up with childhood friend Jonathan. continued from part 1 I shrugged. "It'll depend on how long it takes Morris to fix the car. Is he good?" "The best in Smallville," Mrs. Kent said with a grin. I hoped he wasn=92t also the only auto mechanic in Smallville. I asked about how Josie was doing at Kansas State, hoping to get a more accurate picture than had been given during dinner. Mrs. Kent beamed with pride when I mentioned her daughter, then proceeded to tell me about her courses, the clubs she had joined, and her friends. Josie was taking classes in communications, besides her nursing major, and I could tell that it was from her mother that she=92d gotten her gift of gab, not her father, who=92d seemed to have passed his silent, almost foreboding presence down to Jonathan. I was glad Mrs. Kent was so proud of Josie, since Jonathan=92s letters seemed to indicate that she=92d been devastated by the deaths of her two eldest sons. Richard and Jerome had died in Korea, just after I left Smallville that summer. Jonathan had called to tell me and I wanted to turn right around and head back there, but of course my grandmother wouldn=92t let me. I knew Mrs. Kent had had big plans for Jerome. He had been interested in boats, and the Navy, with its rules and regulations, had been a natural choice. I wasn=92t sure about Richard. In many ways a typical middle brother, according to Jonathan, Richard had been competitive, aggressive, and rebellious. Whereas Jerome was ambitious, analytical, and serious, Richard liked to fight; whether it be a battle of fists or wits, he was quick with both. He had bounced around a lot, never really being interested in one thing or another, but trying everything: football, music, and, finally, the Navy. Before Jerome left for the navy Jonathan had been sure their father would force his middle son to take over the farm, giving the boy some much-needed responsibility. Jonathan seemed to have a good handle on the interplay between his two older brothers, but I wondered where he fit into the picture. Jonathan appeared to be the calming influence of the Kent clan, quiet and undemanding, a perfect third child. He worried about everything from his own family to world problems, often taking the problems upon himself to fix, as he had when his brothers joined the Navy and later when word came that they had been killed. "Martha?" "Sorry," I apologized after Mrs. Kent=92s gentle voice brought me back from my thoughts. "What was it you said?" "I was just saying that Josie took an art history course at Kansas State last semester and really enjoyed it. That was your major, wasn=92t it, dear?" I nodded and Mrs. Kent chuckled. "When she calls home she=92s always telling me about her classes, and they=92re so technical I have to ask her to explain everything twice. But then she explains it, and I understand. Well, most of the time. I tell her she should major in education, the way she explains things to me, but she wants to go to nursing school, and eventually get a job as one of those medical reporters on TV. And she=92ll be a good one, too," Mrs. Kent assured me. "She=92s a real beauty, that girl. Have I shown you her picture?" I shook my head and Mrs. Kent disappeared for a minute, then came back carrying a glossy, 8" x 10" photograph in a heavy wooden frame. She sat back down beside me and laid the picture gently on her lap, turning it towards me. The photograph, probably taken during Josie=92s senior year of high school, showed a pretty girl with long, dark hair spilling onto her shoulders. Her head was tilted in that fake, photographer-posed way, but her smile was sincere. "She=92s very pretty," I told Mrs. Kent. "She really could be on TV." Except for the dark hair, Josie didn=92t look much like Jonathan, that was for sure. Hidden behind his glasses, Jonathan=92s eyes were bluish gray, but Josie=92s were large and brown, and, unlike her older brother, her smile was playful, almost defiant. From the memory of my first visit to Smallville, she looked more like Richard and Mrs. Kent, while Jonathan resembled his father and oldest brother. Cradling the framed photograph in her arms, Jonathan's mother excused herself, explaining that she, too, had to wake up early to finish her household chores before the Corn Fest committee meeting. When she left, Jonathan and I looked at each other expectantly, then both started talking. We laughed nervously and I gestured that he should go first. He said, "so, you really don't know where you're headed after Smallville?" I shrugged my shoulders. "Wherever the car takes me," I joked. "Seriously, Jonathan, I don=92t know. What I do know is that I don't want to be in Boston. I don't want to live in that stuffy prison with my grandmother as warden. I=92m not a child anymore; I=92m discovering life for myself now," I said with a confidence I wish I felt. Sure, I liked traveling and seeing new things and meeting new people, but every once in a while I had the distinct feeling what I was really doing was putting off my acceptance of adulthood. Lots of people my age were married, had jobs and families. Sometimes a part of me, a small but still-there part, wished I was one of those people. When that happened, though, I reminded myself that I did have a family, like them or not, back in Boston, and that was usually when I pulled off at a truck stop to find a pay phone. Besides just missing Jonathan as a friend, another bout of loneliness had been what had steered me back to Smallville; Jonathan=92s family was peaceful, it was loving, it was... not mine. Jonathan nodded, as though he understood, though he couldn't. He'd known for his whole life what he wanted to do: stay in Smallville and farm. I never had that kind of confidence, not about the direction my life was headed, at least. Most of the time it felt like I was living on a ship that was being blown in one way or another by my grandmother, and, boy, was she full of wind. The conversation hit a lull, and I peeked at Jonathan when I didn=92t think he was looking. He wasn=92t; he was staring at the cloudless sky off in the distance. I remembered how, one night ten years ago, Jonathan and I had taken a walk to the Smallville High football field to star-gaze. The field had been built next to the high school, in one of the few valleys punctuating the mostly-flat landscape. Consequently, on summer nights when the school=92s lights weren=92t burning, the surrounding hills and trees blocked what little brightness the "night life" of Smallville afforded. We brought a blanket that night, laid it down on the forty yard line, and spent hours consulting an astronomy book by flashlight, pointing out constellations. The clear sky of Smallville had impressed me back then; I was used to Boston, where so many lights colored the skyline it was impossible to pick out even the Big Dipper or Orion. The Boston sky wasn=92t black, really, but dark brown, and I couldn=92t remember ever having seen stars as clearly as I had that night in Smallville. Why was it that everything seemed clearer out here? I stared up at the sky, trying to remember the constellations we had picked out during my last visit, and, surprisingly enough, I found that I could. My neck was still craned to the sky when Jonathan touched my arm gently. "Martha, I=92m sorry but I=92m awful tired and I=92ve got to get up early tomorrow. I=92m gonna head inside. You can stay out here if you like--" "No, I=92m kinda tired too actually." So I followed Jonathan into the house and upstairs. He stopped in the doorway to Josie=92s bedroom and, before I knew it, had kissed me on the cheek. "Goodnight, Martha," he said quietly before ducking his head and continuing on to his bedroom. * * * * * "So, dear, tell me about what you=92ve been up to. I didn=92t ask last night because I know you and Jonathan have kept in touch, and he=92s heard all your stories before," Mrs. Kent said as she spread a thin layer of dough over a glass pie plate. She was right; Jonathan and I had been writing back and forth for the past ten years. He knew all about my adventures at Bryn Mawr College, as well as how I got there in the first place. "Well, my junior high and high school years were tough. My mother spent all her time taking care of my father, who was getting sicker and sicker. Grandmother and Grandfather were busy with their charity functions and dinner parties, and by trying to run my life," I tried to joke. But Mrs. Kent just smiled and nodded that I should continue. "So I kind of immersed myself in school and books; I guess it was easier to forget my troubles when I read about someone else=92s. Jonathan and I sometimes traded book recommendations in our letters. My father finally died -- he gave up, really -- during the fall of my junior year. It wasn=92t really a surprise, but that didn=92t make it any easier. I miss him, but his death has been the toughest on my mother. She was always kind of reserved and quiet, but she became apathetic, almost non-communicative. She wasn=92t eating or sleeping, and she stayed inside all the time, hardly even leaving her bedroom. My grandmother had scads of doctors check her out, and that spring they diagnosed her with depression. They prescribed her tons of medications, none of which helped. One even made her worse, and she was in the hospital for a while so they could get the doses right." "Oh, dear, how=92s she doing now?" Mrs. Kent asked. "Better, I guess. Sometimes certain events or seasons make her worse, but the last time I phoned, Grandmother said my mother was trying out some new medication. It=92s working well, she said, and without some of the side effects she had before." Mrs. Kent got up to set two pies in the oven and I remembered complaining, years ago, that taking care of my father took up all of my mother=92s time, and that she never played with me, a sign, I was sure, that she loved my father more than me, or, worse yet, didn=92t love me at all. But now I=92d trade anything for those times, not only because my father, though sick, was alive, but because my mother was too. Jonathan=92s mother sat back down in a floury cloud. "And how have your grandparents coped with all this?" she asked. "Well, Grandmother was embarrassed when my mother was admitted to the hospital. I think she thought her illness reflected poorly on our family. For some reason -- maybe because it was psychological -- depression wasn=92t a *real* disease to my grandmother. And my grandfather wasn=92t any help; he=92s like my mother, more quiet and reserved. I think he=92s used to letting Grandmother make all the decisions." I paused for a drink from the coffee cup on the table in front of me. I remembered trying to explain everything that was going on with my family to Jonathan on the phone. He tried to be understanding, but he was too far away to offer much comfort. I had wondered whether it was because his family was so different from mine, or because we were growing apart. "So that was high school. Then, during my senior year, I begged to be allowed to choose where I went to school. See, my grandmother had gone to Wellesley and my mother had gone to Wellesley, so guess where I was headed. But I applied to a bunch of other schools too, all single-sex and all in New England, which was what Grandmother agreed to pay the application fees for. I got accepted to most of them, and that was when the fighting started. "I wanted more than anything to go somewhere else, anywhere else. My first choice was Bryn Mawr, in Philadelphia. We fought about it for months, then, all of a sudden and quite unlike her, Grandmother gave in. I think the only reason she said yes was that it=92s a lot like Wellesley. Grandmother never said what changed her mind and I didn=92t ask; I was afraid she=92d change it back." "Just a minute, Martha," Mrs. Kent interrupted. "I told Jonathan I=92d check on one of his calves; she hurt her leg last week and got back from the vet=92s yesterday." "Okay," I said, and continued cutting up apples from the burlap sack on the floor. I remembered calling Jonathan the night Grandmother changed her mind. He was sincerely excited, but after I hung up I couldn=92t help thinking that, if I were him, I=92d be jealous. Here I was, going to this great college while Jonathan was working at his family=92s farm. I was overjoyed because I had received permission to attend a school whose yearly tuition was probably more than Jonathan=92s parents=92 income. I had felt suddenly ashamed for even having phoned Jonathan. I had been afraid college would create a chasm between us. Keeping up our friendship was hard enough when we were just separated by a few states; how tough was it going to be when I was at Bryn Mawr and Jonathan was still at home? I could only hope we would survive. And, somehow, we did. I really don=92t think college changed me much; I made some close friends but graduated with the uncertainty about my future that had been expected in my freshman year, but soon became frustrating and trite. I didn=92t want to get married; many of my Boston friends and a few of my Bryn Mawr ones had recently become engaged. I didn=92t really have any marketable skills; I had graduated with an art history major and astronomy minor, for Pete=92s sake. And I didn=92t want to go home. "Okay, dear, you were at Bryn Mawr--" "Right, well, there wasn=92t really anything special about college. Last year I shared an apartment with three other girls. Jane was a Spanish-education double major. She had a steady boyfriend all four years but ended up ditching to travel to the Phillipines to teach English. "Amita was my roommate for all four years, and she=92s in grad school at Columbia; she was a physics major but she=92s a big history buff. She was born in India and her family had some tough times there before she came to school here. Some of them are still over there but they=92ve got papers in for a move to the U.S. "Our other roommate, Emily, is in San Francisco studying psychology. Her sister just started college at a school out West and Emily wanted to be near her. I think Em mostly chose to go to graduate school because she didn=92t know what else to do." I glanced over at Mrs. Kent, who nodded. But I wondered if she was afraid her darling dreamer Josie was going to come back to school with the same plague of uncertainty which was plaguing most college kids. "So then you bought your car?" Mrs. Kent asked. "Actually, first I went back to Boston for a little while." That was going to be tough to explain; even though I felt sophisticated and self-sufficient being away from my family, I had always gone back home for breaks. I felt guilty about leaving my mother alone with my grandparents. "I wanted to spend some time with my mom first, you know? After the summer, though, I still didn=92t know what I wanted to do, but I knew I didn=92t want to stay in Boston. So I used some money that my father had put in a trust fund for me to buy a car. I had some friends who were going to Europe before settling down, and I liked that idea, so I had my own tour of the U.S." "Why not Europe with your friends?" Mrs. Kent asked. I wondered what she thought about what I was saying. I was talking about friends going to Europe; I wondered if she or Mr. Kent had even been on a plane. I wondered how they were funding Josie=92s schooling. "Well, I had lots of high school and college friends scattered around the U.S. I thought I could visit them, and maybe find a job and somewhere to live along the way. "It was tough getting my family to =91let=92 me. Legally I was an adult, but when are you ever an adult in your mother=92s eyes?" I asked and out of the corner of my eye saw Mrs. Kent smile. "I mean, my mom=92s health was bad enough; I didn=92t want to risk her going over the brink." continued in part 3 * * * * * * * * * * "Single-mindedness is all very well in cows or baboons; in an animal claiming to belong to the same species as Shakespeare it is simply disgraceful." -Aldous Huxley ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 11 Feb 2000 18:28:22 -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: NEW: The Open Road (3/9) Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="ISO-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable TITLE: The Martha Chronicles 2: The Open Road PART: 3/9 AUTHOR: Christy Kubit (kubitc@kenyon.edu & attalanta@aol.com) RATING: PG? FEEDBACK: All comments welcome, public or private. Please send editing or typos privately. SUMMARY: Twenty-something Martha returns to Smallville to catch up with childhood friend Jonathan. continued from part 2 Because, I thought, even though I carped and complained, I loved my family. Just because they were controlling and none too eager to accept the fact that I was a grown-up didn=92t mean I felt good about disobeying them. And, as predicted, Grandmother, Grandfather, and Mother balked at my plan, but I had been away from the comfortable cocoon of our house in Beacon Hill too long to lapse back into unquestioning obedience. Guided by Kerouac and Ginsberg, I was soon on the road. I wasn=92t sure where I'd end up, but I *did* know it wouldn=92t be Boston. "Where did you go?" "Well, first I visited Amita in New York City. We haven=92t been very good at keeping in touch since school ended and I wanted to see her again. I liked some of the museums and concerts there, but New York just isn=92t the place for me, too big and dirty." Mrs. Kent nodded emphatically, perhaps comparing New York to Kansas City or Wichita. It wasn=92t really the city that bothered me, I remembered. Amita had been living in a commune with a bunch of other students. They were kind of wild and I got tired of the too-sweet smell of marijuana and calls from the Fifth Precinct for bail money. "After that I decided that I missed my college friends and bought a plain ticket to California, to see Emily. I spent a few weeks there; the sun was nice after a chilly East coast fall. Emily, her sister, and her mother, who had emigrated from Czechoslovakia when she was a girl, taught me some great recipes. "Then I went back to Boston and started my road trip for good. I drove down the coast, to Washington, DC for a while. Then I started driving again, and was mostly lonely. I got tired of sleeping in the back of my car and eating meals in dirty highway grease pits. So I decided went to Miami. It was nice there, and I decided to get a job in a bookstore. I got a room at this broken-down boarding house. But then it got to be spring and it got to hot for me. So I left and went to Atlanta, then Cincinnati, Detroit, St. Louis." "That sounds exciting," Mrs. Kent marveled. "Actually, I got tired of it. So I decided to visit a friend, and Jonathan was the closest one to St. Louis, so here I am." What I needed was a good friend to temper my loneliness before I continued on to Denver, Los Angeles, and San Francisco. I promised myself that I=92d be back on the road soon, after a quick stop-off at Smallville to see Jonathan. I actually wasn=92t sure whether the Kents, or any of Smallville, would welcome me back; I had been awfully snooty during my first visit. But after spending months passing through inner city neighborhoods, greasy gas stations, and lonely country roads, I had changed my outlook on life. "Well, that=92s quite a story, something to tell your grandchildren someday, though probably by that time, traveling may not be as big a deal as it is now. They=92ll probably invent all sorts of crazy things: flying cars, robots to clean your house, maybe even a machine that you can tell to cook dinner for you." "No more homemade apple pies?" I asked. "I sure hope *that* machine is never invented!" * * * * * "So what kind of food do they have at Corn Festivals? Just corn?" I asked Jonathan as he pulled the Kents=92 new red pick-up out of their driveway and headed towards downtown Smallville. After spending the day helping Jonathan=92s mother bake for the festival, I knew there was a variety of desserts, but I hoped every main dish wouldn=92t be corn-based. Confidant he wouldn=92t hit any cows, horses, or pigs -- since no pedestrians in their right mind would be walking down the old dirt road into town on a Friday evening -- Jonathan turned towards me and smiled. "Yup, everything=92s corn-based; the hamburgers are really corn-burgers, the hot dogs, well, those are corn dogs, of course, and you know the stuff you baked with my mom tonight?" I nodded. "Well, *it=92s* corn-based, too. You only *thought* you were making pound cake; it=92s really *corn* cake," he said with a wink. "Ha." I stuck my tongue out at him before he turned his attention back on the road. "No, not everything has corn in it. Actually, most things don=92t. Farmers around here do grow other things too, you know: wheat, sorghum, barley, oats. But when the Corn Festival started, the family that paid most of the expenses owned a corn farm, so..." I nodded and turned my attention out the window. It was just getting dark, and I could see far into the distance, where the flat landscape was decorated by the remnants of harvested crops. I wondered whose fields we were passing, and whether I would meet them tonight. Jonathan and I had plans to spend the night with his friends Henry and Wayne, and Wayne=92s wife and Henry=92s girlfriend, but I=92d been told all of Smallville would be there. Apparently nighttime entertainment was so unusual that when it did happen, the whole town emerged from their cocoons for a glimpse. Probably the kids who=92d teased me on my first visit would be there, too, and the Websters. But they wouldn=92t be kids anymore, I reminded myself, they=92d be the same age as me. Hopefully they wouldn=92t still be so mean... Stop it, Martha, I told myself. You=92ve changed in ten years, and probably they have too. They might not even remember me, that was so long ago. Things=92ll work out this time, I assured myself; I=92m not the same self-centered brat I used to be. Maybe they=92ll see that and we=92ll get along, I hoped. This time, though still nervous, I was happier about being in Smallville. I had actually *chosen* to come to Kansas, and, after being here only a few days, I was already much more relaxed than I had been on the road. I had escaped the crowded, impersonal cities of New York and Boston. It must have something to do with the fresh air and the clear, starry skies, but for the first time in a long time I didn=92t feel anxious about my future. I hadn=92t made any decisions, but I felt more relaxed in my state of limbo. I knew I could always go to graduate school, or get a job in an art museum in any of the cities I=92d visited. Or I could do both. Or neither. Or change my mind after starting one. I didn=92t have to plan out my entire life right then, I decided. I could just take it as it came. I smiled, reveling in my new, mellow attitude. Maybe this was the way to live: relaxed and calm. I refocused on the view out the truck window and noticed that we had reached downtown Smallville. It was exactly how Mrs. Kent had described it to me: "part carnival, part craft fair, and only part harvest celebration." Lining the streets and sidewalks were booths manned by gangly teenagers, advertising various Smallville merchants. There was a barbecue pit emitting tantalizing smells, and the gazebo in the center of town was decorated with streamers and balloons. There were carnival games, craft booths, and picnic tables covered in red-checked tablecloths. After driving slowly down the street, Jonathan spotted a rare open parking space down on a side street, quickly headed over, and pulled in. We got out of the truck, Jonathan dropped a couple of coins in the meter, and we headed back towards the festival. We were a little early so we took our time walking to the picnic tables where we were to meet Jonathan=92s friends, passing booths sponsored by familiar local merchants. On our left, the Harley=92s Feed Store booth sold candied apples, funnel cakes, and frozen lemonade beneath a striped awning. On our right, the booth advertising Morris=92s Garage drew crowds of festival-goers tossing various small metal pieces -- I assumed car parts -- into a worn rubber tire. Further down sat a table sponsored by St. Luke=92s Episcopal Church, selling freshly-baked goods available both for consumption at the festival and whole pies and breads to take home. (Among them I recognized the desserts Mrs. Kent and I had baked earlier that day.) Next to the St. Luke=92s booth were fold-out card tables guarded by middle-aged women proudly displaying handmade crafts: sweaters, quilts, embroidery, jewelry. At the end of the line of booths was an open area, a large bandstand at one end. Couples and families sitting at picnic tables and on folding chairs littered the lawn, enjoying the musical sensations of the Smallville High School Marching Band, heavy on the flutes. The conductor was a balding middle-aged man wearing a bright red suit coat and black pants decorated by a gold braid down each leg. Jonathan and I found an empty table to the left and far from the band, and listened to a brassy rendition of a Brahms Hungarian Dance as we waited for Henry and Wayne. "Jonathan! Martha! Jonathan!" I heard a masculine voice call out only a few minutes later, and soon felt a hand on my shoulder. I turned to see two men and two women standing behind us, and Jonathan and I stood to greet them. I recognized the man whose hand was on my shoulder as Henry Miller; tall and lanky, he had the same white-blond hair he=92d had a decade ago, now with the beginnings of a beard poking through his freckled skin. Jonathan introduced me to Lauren, who, like her boyfriend, was tall and lean, with a dark, curly braid trailing halfway down her back. Then Wayne, whose dark hair was cut in a boyish buzz, introduced me to his wife, Betsy, a short woman with thick glasses and chin-length mousy brown hair. Both women greeted me warmly and I couldn=92t help but smile back. After setting jackets and sweaters on the picnic table to reserve it, we headed towards the food booths, Henry and Lauren leading the way and Jonathan and I trailing slightly behind them, followed by Wayne and Betsy. "So how do you like Smallville so far?" a quiet voice asked me, and I turned to see Betsy taking several short steps to catch up with me. "It=92s nice," I told her honestly. "I=92ve been doing so much traveling that the peace and quiet is relaxing." "Oh?" Betsy asked as we reached the end of the line that began at the barbecue, and gathered plates, silverware, and napkins. "Where have you traveled?" I grinned at her. "Where *haven=92t* I traveled?" I laughed. "I=92m originally from Boston, went to college in Philadelphia, and I=92ve been driving around the country since graduation: New York, then back to Boston and California for a while, Washington, D.C., Miami, Atlanta, and lots of other towns in between." "Wow," Betsy marveled, and, overhearing my itinerary, Lauren dropped back in the line to join our conversation. "You=92re lucky to have traveled so much," Betsy told me. "Wayne and I married the week after I graduated from high school, and the only place we=92ve ever been is Kansas City for our honeymoon!" Lauren laughed. "That=92s why *I=92m* not accepting any man=92s proposal until he assures me we=92re spending our honeymoon out of state," she insisted. Henry heard his girlfriend=92s thinly veiled threat and poked his head between her and me. "Why do you think you haven=92t had any proposals?" he joked back. She smiled and gently pushed him back to his place in the line. "So, Martha," she refocused her attentions on me, "where was your favorite place so far?" And, grinning mischievously and raising her voice just enough so Henry could hear her, she added, "so that I=92ll know which exotic locale I want to visit on *my* honeymoon." "Probably California," I told her, taking a few steps as the line progressed. "I didn=92t get to spend much time there, but I really liked it, especially the weather. And it=92s much more open out there, with cool ocean breezes and warm beaches. It isn=92t uptight either, like it is in New England. I think I=92ll probably end up living somewhere out west," I told them, "and definitely not Boston or New York. I like big cities, but New York=92s just too much, and I=92ve spent enough time in Boston." "Have you been to Metropolis?" Betsy asked. "No," I told them. "I=92d planned on stopping there, but I got sick of the dirty, over-crowded, crime-ridden cities back east, so I decided I=92d save it for another time." By now we=92d reached the grill, and I stuck my plate out to accept the hamburger one of the aproned chefs was offering. Betsy and Lauren each took a hot dog, then we moved past the barbecue and stopped at a small condiments table before continuing down the line for corn on the cob, potato salad, baked beans, and creamed corn. The three women headed back to our table, juggling our plates plus the men=92s, so they could pick up drinks for the group. We slid the over-loaded plates on the picnic table, then sat down ourselves. "So how long are you planning on staying in Smallville?" Lauren asked as I laid a napkin on my lap. "I=92m not really sure. Right now my car=92s dead, so I=92m not going anywhere." "You should stay =91til Halloween," Betsy suggested as she buttered and salted her corn on the cob. "The Smallville branch of the Future Farmers of America sponsors an all-city dance in the high school cafeteria. There=92s a costume party, bobbing for apples, and a carnival for the little kids. I usually run a caramel apple booth, and this year Lauren=92s gonna help me make them. You could help, too," Betsy offered. continued in part 4 * * * * * * * * * * "Single-mindedness is all very well in cows or baboons; in an animal claiming to belong to the same species as Shakespeare it is simply disgraceful." -Aldous Huxley ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 11 Feb 2000 18:32:11 -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: NEW: The Open Road (4/9) Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="ISO-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable TITLE: The Martha Chronicles 2: The Open Road PART: 4/9 AUTHOR: Christy Kubit (kubitc@kenyon.edu & attalanta@aol.com) RATING: PG? FEEDBACK: All comments welcome, public or private. Please send editing or typos privately. SUMMARY: Twenty-something Martha returns to Smallville to catch up with childhood friend Jonathan. continued from part 3 At that point the men returned with large cups of lemonade, so we stopped our conversation to concentrate on our heaping plates and the SHS Marching Band, who had started a badly-arranged medley of melodies from The Music Man. We were stuffed after dinner, so we decided to walk around for a while. We revisited the St. Luke=92s booths, where I bought a quilt to send home to my mother and a hand-knit wool sweater for myself. When we passed the booth for Morris=92s Garage, Jonathan, Wayne, and Henry insisted on trying to win each of us a prize. They each handed an orange ticket to Morris, who was working the booth, and received three tries at tossing heavy metal pieces into the tire. Neither Henry nor Wayne got their pieces in the tire in their three tries, so when Jonathan stepped forward to take his turn, I cheered him enthusiastically. "Come on, Jonathan! You can do it!" Jonathan turned back to look at me and grin, then proceeded to miss his first two tosses. "Oh, boo!" Henry shouted. "Boo! Hiss! I bet your girlfriend can throw better than that!" "She=92s not my--" Ears reddening in embarrassment, Jonathan started to correct Henry, then stopped. Then, with a quick glance at me, "No, she couldn=92t." He turned back to the tire and tossed his last metal piece, missing by nearly a yard. "Ha!" Henry called out again. "Just what are you ha-ing about?" retorted Jonathan. "You didn=92t get any in, either." Jonathan and Wayne continued to kid each other until Henry added, "I bet your girlfriend *could* throw better than you." Well, that was about all I was going to take. I was willing to put up with their macho posturing because it seemed to be how they teased each other, but I had played intramural softball for a few seasons while in college, and if I was going to get dragged into this... Wayne and Jonathan were still going at it, so no one noticed when I took a ticket from my own pocket and traded it for three metal pieces. "Hey, you all had better not spend all your money here," Morris warned me with a grin, "cuz you=92ve still gotta pay me when your car=92s finished." By that time, and because they heard Morris, everyone had refocused their attention from Jonathan and Henry to me. I took one of the metal pieces and, after chanting a short Buddhist prayer I=92d learned from Amita, I tossed the piece towards the tire. It missed by nearly a mile, causing Henry to laugh once again. "Okay, so your girlfriend *can=92t* out-throw you! Her arm=92s even worse than yours!" I resisted making a face at Henry before my second toss. Instead I took a deep breath, decided to hell with Buddhist prayers, and concentrated on tossing the metal piece, which sailed in a neat arc from my hand to the center of the tire. I turned and smiled triumphantly at Henry and Jonathan, at which point Henry intensified his teasing of Jonathan, who, once again, turned red. "Well, Miss Clark, you=92ve got your pick." Morris pointed to the back wall of the booth, where an assortment of stuffed animals sat on a shelf. I smiled and motioned for Jonathan to pick one. His entire face now the color of a tomato, he pointed blindly to a prize, and Morris unhooked it and handed it to him. Jonathan wordlessly accepted the stuffed animal, a large green frog, and the six of us turned and headed away from the booth. But Henry couldn=92t stop laughing. "I can=92t believe it! Your *girlfriend* won you a prize!" he howled. "It=92s supposed to work the other way around, Kent." "Shut up, Henry," Lauren interrupted. "I think it=92s sweet. And it=92s nice of Jonathan to accept the prize without any stupid, macho remarks." She paused and patted Jonathan reassuringly on the shoulder. "What does it matter that she=92s a girl? It doesn=92t take testosterone to throw a piece of metal!" "Besides, you two didn=92t win anything for Lauren and me," Betsy added. "Are you... jealous? Should we go back to the booth so us girls can try to win you boys something?" Betsy grinned at Lauren, and they turned back towards the booth. Taking a few quick steps, Henry caught up with them. "No, no, that=92s okay. Jonathan knows I was only kidding, don=92t you, Jon?" Jonathan, still seemingly stuck at the point in the conversation when Lauren called accepting the prize "sweet," simply nodded at his friend. "No harm done," Henry insisted, slapping Jonathan=92s back companionably. So Lauren gave up, and we continued our tour of the festival. After a few minutes I noticed a booth sponsored by Ransom=92s New and Used Books. "Oh, you have a bookstore?!" I exclaimed to no one in particular. "Of course," Wayne answered, looking at me as if I=92d just arrived via the latest space ship from Mars. "Why shouldn=92t we?" "Sorry. I didn=92t mean that you *shouldn=92t.* In fact, I=92m really glad you do," I explained. "It=92s just that I=92ve been traveling down all these freeways and back roads lately, and there aren=92t many signs saying, =91Next Bookstore, 5 miles.=92 I=92ve really missed bookstores," I sighed longingly. Lauren smiled at me. "We=92ll have to go later this week. You, me, and Betsy can spend a day together on the town," she promised. "But unless it=92s over the weekend, we might have to go at night since I have work." "Where do you work?" I asked Lauren as the six of us browsed through Ransom=92s small selection of books. They didn=92t have many, but, I reminded myself, they would surely have more in the real store. This was just a booth in a carnival, and I should be glad a bookstore would even *have* a carnival booth. "I=92m a teacher." "That=92s great," I exclaimed, turning to Lauren. "What grade?" "Second." I=92d half-expected her to say that she taught the entire school, that Smallville had a one-room schoolhouse, though from the band we=92d heard earlier I knew they at least had a separate high school. I had been pleasantly surprised by a few things since I=92d arrived: the bookstore (that was mostly relief, but I did have doubts whether such a small town would have a bookstore), Lauren working (I hadn=92t expected many Smallville women my age to have actual jobs, just stay home and help out on the farms). I had to remind myself that Smallville wasn=92t really a backwards hick town; that was my old mistake, and this time I was determined to look beyond the surface. We wandered away from the bookstore booth and back towards the picnic table area, when Henry spotted a "Test Your Strength" carnival game where you could swing a hammer and try to ring the bell at the top of a column. "Oh, yes! We=92ve gotta try this." He didn=92t say, but we all knew he was still thinking about me winning Jonathan that stuffed frog. Lauren rolled her eyes as Henry handed his last orange ticket to the barker. "You know, you don=92t have to win anything for me, Henry," she said with a sigh. "I don=92t *have* to, but I=92m gonna," he insisted as he picked up the hammer and took a couple of practice swings. "Nothin=92 to it." With a grunt, he swung the hammer high over his head and slammed the target, sending the ball about halfway up the column, topping off at "better luck next time." Lauren tried unsuccessfully to suppress a smile as she slid her arm around Henry=92s waist. "Well, look at it this way, honey, you got above halfway, so you=92re closer to =91top dog=92 than =91wimp,=92" she told him, indicating the top and bottom labels. But Henry was not to be comforted. "Hey, Irig, you got another ticket?" "You can=92t have it, Henry," Wayne told him. "I don=92t want it," he assured him. "It=92s your turn to take a crack. See if you can win *your* girl a prize." Wayne shook his head reluctantly, but Henry insisted. Finally Wayne plunked down his ticket and gathered up the hammer. Wayne=92s strength surprised me, and he hit the ball at the top of the column, ringing the bell. He laughed, and was rewarded with a hug from Betsy and reluctant congratulations from Henry. After Betsy picked out her prize, a small, square batik, we headed back to the picnic table area, where a "real" band was setting up. The majority of the tables had been pushed back to the perimeter of a large square dance floor. By that time we=92d walked off our post-dinner fullness, so Henry, Wayne, and Jonathan went up to another booth to fetch drinks while Lauren, Betsy, and I secured a table. Minutes later they were back, armed with pitchers of beer and a stack of cups. I noticed, though, that Wayne handed Betsy a separate cup, filled with soda. I wondered whether she wasn=92t of age, or if for some reason she didn=92t drink. She didn=92t seem that young, I thought, and then was distracted by a loud crash as the band began their music, mostly relatively recent rock hits, sprinkled with a square dance. After draining the pitchers of beer, the six of us joined the growing crowd on the dance floor. The band began a Chubby Checker tune, and dancers began the twist. I was pleasantly surprised to see that, like the rest of the group, Jonathan knew the dance, and he seemed comfortable dancing. We twisted and spun through hits by Little Richard, Chuck Berrie, and Bill Haley and His Comets until the mosquitoes started biting and we started slowing down. Finally we gave up trying to keep up with the quick dance steps and abandoned the floor for a picnic table. It was late by then, and most of the festival-goers left were around our age. I guessed that anyone younger was at home asleep, and anyone older had had to put those younger ones to sleep. After Betsy took a seat then started to nod off, we all decided that we should really be going. I said good-bye to my new friends, and Lauren promised that either she or Betsy would call me sometime to set up a date at Ransom=92s book store. * * * * * "You awake?" Jonathan asked after pulling onto the sleepy nighttime streets of Smallville. "Yup." Though I had been dangerously close to nodding off; Jonathan=92s voice had brought me out of the half-asleep-half-awake state I=92d been in after settling into the pick-up=92s cushy seats. "I wanted to say I=92m sorry about the festival," he began. "Sorry about what?" "I=92m sorry I said you couldn=92t throw well enough to get it in the tire. I didn=92t mean it; I just got flustered when Wayne called you my girlfriend and I didn=92t know whether to correct him or not because I don=92t know if you *are* or not, or if you=92d want me to *say* that you are... I just don=92t want you to be mad." "I=92m not mad," I assured Jonathan. "I mean, when you guys started acting so macho, well, I thought that was silly, and then I didn=92t like anyone saying that I couldn=92t throw because I=92m a girl, so I just had to show off," I admitted. "I didn=92t mean that you couldn=92t throw," he explained. "Honest. And thanks for winning me the frog," he added. "You=92re welcome." I grinned in the dark interior of the pick-up, then watched out the window as harvested fields and glimmering constellations whizzed by. "Jonathan?" "Yea?" "What you said about the girlfriend thing..." "Yea?" I laid my left hand on his right, which was resting on the stick shift between us. "That was okay, too." * * * * * We pulled into the driveway of the Kents=92 farmhouse, the truck=92s tires grinding against the gravel. We got out of the truck and quietly made our way inside, not wanting to wake Jonathan=92s parents. They had planned to go to the Corn Festival that night, too, but it was late and they were probably asleep upstairs. Instead Jonathan and I saw a soft yellow light illuminating the large porch. Music flitted towards us, through the damp night air. I looked at Jonathan, but he just shrugged. Hand in hand, we approached the porch and saw Jonathan=92s parents, huddled close, dancing to the slow music. When we reached the porch steps they saw us, too, and broke apart like teenagers caught by a police officer, groping in the back seat of a car. continued in part 5 * * * * * * * * * * "Single-mindedness is all very well in cows or baboons; in an animal claiming to belong to the same species as Shakespeare it is simply disgraceful." -Aldous Huxley ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 11 Feb 2000 18:35:42 -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: NEW: The Open Road (5/9) Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="ISO-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable TITLE: The Martha Chronicles 2: The Open Road PART: 5/9 AUTHOR: Christy Kubit (kubitc@kenyon.edu & attalanta@aol.com) RATING: PG? FEEDBACK: All comments welcome, public or private. Please send editing or typos privately. SUMMARY: Twenty-something Martha returns to Smallville to catch up with childhood friend Jonathan. continued from part 4 Jonathan=92s father was considerably more embarrassed than his wife. "Oh, uh, hello, you two. We were just, uh..." "The music at the festival was too lively for us," Mrs. Kent explained calmly. "There=92s a nice radio station out of Kansas City that plays romantic numbers on Thursday nights. Care to join us?" "Uh, I don=92t know," Jonathan began, sounding just like his father. "Sure. Mind if I turn this up just a bit?" Mrs. Kent motioned for me to go ahead, so I did, then sat down on the porch steps for a minute and unbuckled and removed my sandals. "Why are you taking your shoes off?" Jonathan asked. I just smiled at him and tugged on his arm until he sat down beside me on the steps. I bent down and undid on his shoelaces, then, under his nervous, watchful gaze, removed his worn white tennis shoes and socks. I set them next to my own sandals, then pulled him to his feet and led him off the porch. Jonathan smiled as the cool dewy grass wet our feet, and I settled into his arms. We listened for the rhythm of the song, then began swaying gently. I watched lightning bugs flicker on and off as they buzzed around us, upset by our intrusion in their private night flights. The floor boards of the porch creaked as Mr. and Mrs. Kent resumed their dancing positions, and we swayed together until the song ended. A disc jockey=92s practiced velvety voice carried out into the starry sky. "This next song=92s a personal favorite of mine. It=92s a few years old, but it=92s perfect for all you lovebirds out there." I recognized the soft piano chords of the song before the words started, and I laid my head on Jonathan=92s broad chest. I wanted to rest it on his shoulder, but I was so short I would=92ve needed a milk crate to reach it. Someday when I=92m awfully low, When the world is cold, I will feel a glow, Just thinking of you, And the way you look tonight. I smiled and sighed, then closed my eyes and lost myself in the feel of Jonathan=92s arms around me, the feel of my own arms reaching up to rest behind his neck. Crickets -- or some other undoubtedly-large country insect -- chirped in counterpoint, and I could feel the cool wetness of the autumn air on my bare legs. Even though we were in a wonderfully romantic situation, I didn=92t feel nervous or apprehensive like I had at dances or on dates in high school and college. I just let the music wash over me. Oh, but you=92re lovely, With your smile so warm, And your cheeks so soft, There is nothing for me but to love you, Just the way you look tonight. With each word your tenderness grows, Tearing my fear apart, And that laugh that wrinkles your nose, Touches my foolish heart. I longed to sneak a peek at Jonathan=92s parents dancing on the porch, but I reminded myself that we had intruded on them; this was their dance. But, through the soft strains of the radio, I thought I could hear what sounded like a kiss, so I took their lead, opened my eyes, and craned my neck. Jonathan took my hint and kissed me gently, once, and then I set my head back onto his chest. Lovely, Never, never change, Keep that breathless charm, Won=92t you please arrange it =91cause I, I love you, Just the way you look tonight, Just the way you look tonight. I sighed as the music faded out and the same smooth voice broke in to introduce the next song. Smiling up at Jonathan, I took his hands and lead him back to the porch to grab our shoes. "I think I=92m gonna head upstairs," I told the Kents. "I=92m a little tired from all the dancing at the festival. Good night." Mr. and Mrs. Kent wished me a good night in return, and I headed inside, followed closely by Jonathan. The screen door of the porch slammed behind us and I smiled for the Kents, happy at the romance still alive in their marriage. * * * * * For the second morning in a row, I awoke in a bed. A real bed. Not the back of my car, not a fold-out couch in the living room/dining room/kitchen of a generous-yet-broke friend, not even the cardboard mattress of a cheap hotel room. A real, honest-to-goodness bed. I smiled through my hazy sleep-state and stretched out -- back arched, arms over my head -- in a fair imitation of one of the Kents=92 house cats. I snuggled back under the warm quilt and flannel sheets, and basked in the comfort of the bed, drifting out of sleep and wakefulness. I heard a noise from downstairs and thought of Jonathan. There had always been other boys; Grandmother felt it her place to set me up with the best connected young men in Boston, boys whose fathers were successful lawyers, doctors, or businessmen. But each time one of them kissed me good night at the end of the date, I couldn=92t help think of Jonathan and the kiss -- my first -- we had shared on my last day in Smallville so many summers ago. Rolling my head to the side, I forced myself to look at the round little alarm clock beside the bed. 9:25. I closed my eyes and rolled back over. Wait a minute... 9:25?! Nine o=92clock on a farm was like noon at home. How could I have slept so late? I got out of bed and pulled a robe on before heading downstairs. I made my way into the kitchen, my bare feet padding on the cool linoleum floor. On the kitchen table, next to a place setting sans plate, sat a folded note, my name neatly printed on the outside. The note, from Mrs. Kent, said that she had gone early to the Corn Festival; she would be helping to judge the Corn-O-Rama. (I didn=92t even want to *guess* what that was.) Mrs. Kent had left a breakfast plate warming in the oven for me. I opened the oven to see a dish with an inverted pie plate over it. Using a pair of cow-shaped pot holders, I removed it and placed it on the table, then proceeded to devour the pancakes, eggs, and bacon. As I ate I looked around the kitchen, relaxing in its homeliness. It was nice, I decided, living somewhere that felt like a home. For so long I had been on the road and, even when I briefly lived in my own apartment, it didn=92t feel like home. It wasn=92t practical to furnish an apartment, I=92d discovered after trying to fit a chair in my car while packing to leave Washington, DC. And it was nice just having people around who knew me; I=92d grown tired of being surrounded by strangers everywhere I went, having to introduce myself and find new friends. Sure, Jonathan=92s parents didn=92t know me very well, but they made up for it in their thoughtfulness, leaving me a breakfast plate in the oven, asking whether I wanted green or yellow beans for dinner: little things you missed when you lived mostly on your own for a year. And I enjoyed hearing the noises that accompanied living with other people: innocuous chit-chat, laughter, even the occasional raised voice. The boarding houses and apartments I=92d stayed in were echoingly quiet. Sure, it was peaceful and sometimes relaxing, but you get tired of all that silence. I reread the note Anna had left for me and smiled as one of the Kents=92 cats brushed its tail along my leg, begging for the leftover piece of bacon I had saved for her. * * * * * "Jonathan, what do you think happens when we die?" We had been sitting in silence so far that night, staring off the porch and into the darkening landscape. I had been pointing out the constellations to Jonathan as soon as they were clear in the twilight sky. See, Grandmother, I wanted to say; my astronomy minor *was* good for something! We had spent the whole day at the Corn Festival, watching the Corn Queen Pageant, the Husk-Off (Wayne took second place), eating dinner accompanied by one of Smallville=92s three barbershop quartets, then dancing until the novelty of the polka band wore off. Jonathan didn=92t answer me right away, and I blushed under the soft yellow lights of the porch. What a stupid question; probably Jonathan just believed in heaven and hell like every other church-going Christian and he was just disappointed that dumb old heathen Martha didn=92t believe in them either. "I think," he began slowly, in a little more than a whisper. I scooted closer to him and watched the emotions playing across his face. He had thought about this, I realized, maybe as much as I had; I could tell by the way he was talking, the way he seemed to be feeling each word, testing it out on himself first and relishing it, before releasing it into the twilight. "I think we go somewhere, not heaven or hell, just someplace different. And while we=92re there we feel every feeling we ever made anyone feel. So if you did something nice for someone, you=92d feel the good you made them feel. And if you did something bad, you=92d feel that, too." "Like revenge?" "No," he was quick to correct. "Not revenge. A sort of... understanding. So that you realize what impact you had on other people, how you made them feel. That way you learn how important you were on this Earth and how much you changed other people=92s lives." "And you do that forever?" I didn=92t want to offer up the alternative; the ideas of never and forever boggled my mind. I couldn=92t imagine ending, ceasing to be, fading into darkness or being zapped into oblivion; how can you imagine the end of yourself? Even thinking about it made me want to cry, since that would mean that my father had stopped being, that I would never see him again... But I couldn=92t imagine forever either, living day after day, for the rest of time, *never* having the relief of an end. The very idea exhausted me. Every time the opposing concepts were brought up I was sent into a tailspin, not able to rectify them but not able to get them out of my head either. "Pretty much. I think feeling all those feelings has got to take a long time. Like if you murdered someone you=92d have to feel all the pain that you caused that person, and not only that person, but every member of their family. You would have destroyed another person=92s universe, a whole piece of the future, and I think you=92d have to feel all the pain that goes along with that. And you=92d never stop feeling it because the world=92s pain over losing that unique universe would never end. Or if you saved someone else=92s life, then you=92d feel the joy of being alive that they felt, all through their life, and that same joy for their children, their grandchildren, and so on. It would never end." "But what if you killed someone else accidentally, or by self-defense, or you killed someone evil... What if you killed a Hitler?" Jonathan smiled ruefully. "I don=92t know. I didn=92t say my theory was perfect; it=92s just an idea." "Okay, so what about an ordinary person? I mean, I haven=92t saved anyone=92s life; what=92s going to happen to me?" "We=92re still young, Martha. Who knows what=92ll happen to us? But you=92re right: most people *don=92t* save someone else=92s life. Or kill someone. Not physically, at least, but maybe they do emotionally. Maybe if you=92re so mean to someone -- your spouse, say, or your parents -- that you destroy them, you destroy their confidence and their happiness. Then you=92d have to feel that loss, and the way that loss effects everyone who ever knew them and everyone who ever knew *them.* And if you=92re so kind to someone that you change them for the better -- open doors and create new worlds for them -- then you=92d get to feel every joy you helped them feel, and every joy that they helped others feel because of the joy *you* helped *them* feel. You can see why it=92d take forever." I smiled. "But how does that balance out?" I asked. "I mean, even murderers do kind things and even the most saintly person hurts people. Does that mean that you spent your life alternating feeling joy and pain?" "I don=92t know," he repeated. "It=92s just what I=92ve been thinking. Maybe you feel the smaller emotion first and then you=92re left free to feel the bigger emotion. Like if you=92re the saint, first you=92d feel the pain you caused, because it=92d be so little in comparison to the good, that it would only take a little while and then you=92d be done with it. And then you could feel good for the rest of forever. Sort of like purgatory before going to heaven. "And if you=92re the murderer, well, you=92d better enjoy the good feelings while you=92ve got them, because, for you, forever=92ll be filled with doom and gloom," Jonathan kidded. "But seriously, I think this way would be better than just straight heaven or hell, because people aren=92t purely innocent and good, or purely selfish and evil. But I think that mostly they=92re good, though; most people *do* want to do good, but maybe they get side-tracked, or maybe so many bad things happen to them they can=92t see the good in themselves anymore." continued in part 6 * * * * * * * * * * "Single-mindedness is all very well in cows or baboons; in an animal claiming to belong to the same species as Shakespeare it is simply disgraceful." -Aldous Huxley ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 11 Feb 2000 18:38:58 -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: NEW: The Open Road (6/9) Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="ISO-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable TITLE: The Martha Chronicles 2: The Open Road PART: 6/9 AUTHOR: Christy Kubit (kubitc@kenyon.edu & attalanta@aol.com) RATING: PG? FEEDBACK: All comments welcome, public or private. Please send editing or typos privately. SUMMARY: Twenty-something Martha returns to Smallville to catch up with childhood friend Jonathan. continued from part 5 I smiled, closed my eyes, and quoted to Jonathan: "=92It=92s really a wonder that I haven=92t dropped all my ideals because they seem so absurd and impossible to carry out. Yet, I keep them, because in spite of everything I still believe that people are really good at heart. I simply can=92t build up my hopes on a foundation consisting of confusion, misery, and death. I see the world gradually being turned into a wilderness, I hear the ever-approaching thunder, which will destroy us too, I can feel the sufferings of millions and yet, if I look up into the heavens, I think that it will all come right, that this cruelty too will end, and that peace and tranquillity will return again.=92" "That=92s beautiful. It sounds familiar, but I can=92t quite... Where=92s it from?" "The Diary of Anne Frank," I told Jonathan. "It=92s one of my favorite quotes." "Well, I think that=92s the way it is, that people are mostly good, and that peace and tranquillity will predominate in the end." "You=92ve thought a lot about this, haven=92t you?" He nodded. "After Jerome and Richard died I was really confused. I tried to pretend everything was okay, but it wasn=92t. You could probably tell from my letters. My mom kept saying that they were in heaven and I know it=92s strange, but all I could think about was all the bad things they did: how Richard fought with my father, how he told my mother to go to hell when she asked him to consider going to college. Jerome didn=92t do as many mean things, but he used to pick on me and Josie when we were little and wouldn=92t let us play with him and Richard. "So I couldn=92t understand how they could go to heaven. They weren=92t bad people, but they=92d done bad things, like everyone. So I started wondering how many bad things you had to do to go to hell. Was there someone -- God, maybe -- watching everything and keeping score? =91Jonathan Kent was just mean to his sister,=92" Jonathan mimicked a booming voice. "=92That=92s one mark against him; he=92s only got ninety-nine left if he wants to get into heaven.=92 Or did it matter what your intentions were, like if you hurt someone but you weren=92t trying to, maybe it was just a mistake and you get a freebie. "My brothers weren=92t saints: they died fighting a war, after all. They were sent overseas to kill people. I wanted to believe they were in heaven, but I couldn=92t forget the bad things they=92d done." "But they were only kids, Jonathan." I was surprised he=92d doubt that his brothers were in heaven; I=92d always believed my father was in heaven, and he=92d died an adult, much less innocent than Richard and Jerome. "You said yourself the first time I was in Smallville that they went to Korea not knowing what was going on there or why they=92d been sent there. Do you think they wanted to kill anyone?" "I don=92t know," Jonathan admitted, his voice gruff. "I didn=92t know what to think then, and I still don=92t. I mean, if you join the Navy, shouldn=92t you realize that you might have to kill someone? How could they sign up without knowing that?" "Jonathan, they were just kids; they wanted excitement and adventure. They wanted to find something to do with their lives, maybe a way to get out of Kansas, travel, see the world. And they were serving their country, too. What could be better?" I put my arm around Jonathan=92s shoulder. "They didn=92t know what they were doing. They were just trying to be good kids." "But they should=92ve known!" Jonathan exclaimed, choking back a sob. "Their leaving home destroyed my parents. Mom glued herself to news programs, then fell apart when the war became official. Dad and Josie tried to pretend everything was okay, but they were worried too. I mean, a third of our family was suddenly gone, fighting in a war! They should=92ve known what that would do to us!" "They *didn=92t know,* Jonathan." At that point I realized Jonathan hadn=92t completely mourned for his brothers yet, if such a thing was even possible. It had been years since they were killed, but he had spent that time being the comforter, the calm one, the person to go to when you were upset. He had taken up that burden and he had done well with it, but it was long since time for Jonathan to grieve for himself. Then I remembered something Emily had said to me one Friday night junior year. Jane was home for the weekend to help celebrate her parents=92 twenty-fifth wedding anniversary, Amita was at the library studying for an organic chemistry exam, and Emily and I were in her room talking. Oddly enough, Jane=92s parents=92 anniversary struck a chord with me, and I was upset that my parents would never have the chance to celebrate *their* twenty-fifth. I was angry as well as sad, and the anger made me feel guilty. Thankfully, Emily understood, and explained that it was okay for me to be angry. Her own father had died when she was a child, and her family had been angry for a long time. And they all felt guilty about being angry too, until one of her mother=92s friends said what they were feeling was normal. It wouldn=92t hurt my father, Emily told me, but the guilt on top of the anger would eat away at me, making me feel even worse. She said that if I just let myself feel angry, I could stop being a victim and start trying to live despite my father=92s death. "You know, Jonathan, it=92s okay to be angry at what happened to your brothers. It was horrible and unfair. Their deaths hurt your family and none of you will never be the same." "Gee, thanks, Martha. You know just what to say to make someone feel better," Jonathan said sarcastically. "Let me finish," I told him. "What happened to your brothers was very bad, and it=92s okay to feel angry. It=92s okay to cry and be hurt and yell about it. But feeling guilty *because* you=92re angry isn=92t going to help anything. There=92s nothing wrong with being upset. You *need* to be upset at what happened. If you weren=92t, you wouldn=92t be human." I faced Jonathan and wiped his cheek dry. "It=92s okay," I repeated, and as his tears came full-force, I gave him what I hoped was a comforting hug. * * * * * "Okay, so here are our choices: we can go to Ransom=92s, then get lunch; or we can get lunch first; or we can grab lunch at the Corn--" "I think Martha=92s seen enough of the Corn Fest to last her a lifetime. Let=92s go to Ransom=92s first, then play it by *ear,*" Lauren suggested with a wicked grin. "Ha, ha," Betsy said as she pulled the green Chevy pick-up out of the Kents=92 driveway and headed to the center of town, shifting a bit in her seat. I noticed she was sitting on a large folded-over pillow, making her tall enough to see over the dashboard and steering wheel. The three of us fit rather loosely in the cab of Betsy and Wayne=92s truck. "So, Bets, what=92s Wayne doing since you took the truck for the day?" Lauren asked, reaching over me and cranked the window open, letting the warm autumn breeze in. "Don=92t know," Betsy said as they sped down the deserted country road, passing a house every half-mile or so. "He knew I was taking the truck, but he was outside when I left." Lauren nodded, leaning back in the faux leather seat, resting her arms on the seat backs, behind Betsy=92s and my backs. "Oh, Martha," Betsy warned as we neared town. "Don=92t expect too much of our little bookstore. I=92m sure you=92re used to much nicer stores in Boston." "Right now all I need is one bookshelf, and I=92ll be happy," I told her. "I brought all my favorites with me -- they=92re in my car still -- and every time I see a bookstore I stop and buy new ones, but it=92s been a while since I=92ve been in a bookstore. It=92s been a long time since I=92ve passed anything besides fields and cows and the occasional tree." "Did you have a favorite bookstore at home?" Betsy asked. "Yea, Everard=92s, in Phillie. The owner was the wife of one of my professors and she used to save new releases by my favorite authors for me. College campuses have the best bookstores," I told them. "Better than Boston, even." "So you liked Philadelphia?" Lauren asked. "I mean, would you like to live there sometime?" "I don=92t know. I really liked California when I visited it. But I made some great friends at school." "Roommates?" Lauren asked. "Yea, most of them were my roommates. My senior year I lived in an apartment with my three best friends: Amita, Emily, and Jane." "Amita -- that=92s a pretty name," Betsy said. "She=92s from India originally. They moved to the U.S. when Amita was twelve, I think. India had abolished the caste system in 1948, but her family was still looked down on; they were Harijans, Untouchables. Everyone hated them. There were rules for everything: who they could talk to, what jobs they could have, who they could marry. So Amita, her parents, and her older brother left India and moved here. Actually, they were lucky they had enough money to come here at all; they were really poor, but they had a few relatives here already, and they helped out." I took my wallet from my purse and flipped it open to a picture of the four of us at graduation. There, next to me, was Amita, her long black hair spilled over her shoulders, and the tiny gold stud in her nose glinted in the California sun. Lauren took the wallet from me and studied the pictures, and Betsy managed a glance when we stopped at a stoplight. "Who=92s this?" Lauren pointed to Jane, who stood next to me. She was the only one of us who stuck with the trendy too-short hair cuts we=92d given each other freshman year; it made her limp brown hair appear thick and healthy. Her brown eyes were squeezed shut in a smile. "Jane. She=92s from Oregon. She was pretty much a typical American teenager: Peter-Pan-collar blouses, penny loafers and white bobby-sox, her boyfriend=92s high school ring on a chain. Jane=92s boyfriend wanted her to marry him right after high school, but Jane wanted to be a teacher. I think she=92s changed her mind, though; now she=92s in the Phillipines teaching English," I said. "Wow," Betsy marveled. We were nearing the center of town, I could tell. I could hear, faintly, the twang of a country singer accompanied by squeaky stringed instruments. "And who=92s this?" Lauren asked, pointing to Emily. She had forgotten to take off her glasses, like she usually did when her picture was taken. Instead, the small round lenses shone in the sun. Her dark wavy hair was frizzy in the summer heat. "That=92s Emily, my other roommate. She=92s from Prague originally; my freshman year I lived in a special-housing dorm, for international students. When Prague was taken over by Hungarian Nazis, Emily and her family thought they could stay even though they=92re Jewish; her father was a well-known doctor. But he was taken to a work camp in the Ukraine, and Emily, her sister, and her mom escaped to Switzerland." "Wow, what a story," Betsy said. "Meeting all those different people is sure an experience you couldn=92t get in Smallville." "I know; I=92m lucky. Getting to know Amita and Emily showed me that. Before I used to complain a lot; my father died when I was in high school, and he was sick for a long time before that. And we lived with my grandparents, and I don=92t really get along with them. But there are worse things than losing a parent; I know that now." "Your mom=92s parents or your dad=92s?" Betsy asked as she looked for a parking space. The square was still crowded from the Corn Festival, but there were more parking spaces to be had than that first night. "My mom=92s. We=92ve lived with them as far back as I could remember: me, my parents, and my grandparents." "My grandparents used to live with us, too," Lauren said. I realized that until that point, I=92d been monopolizing the conversation, talking about my friends, my family. Don=92t be so selfish, I scolded myself. Everyone has stories to tell, not just you. Lauren continued, "I loved it, though. My one grandmother still lives here with us, but she hasn=92t been well, so I=92ve been taking care of her. My other grandparents live in Minnesota, and my brothers and sisters and I would take turns spending school vacations with them." Betsy found a space and parked the truck, and the three of us hopped out. Led by Lauren, we headed to the bookstore. Ransom=92s was an old red brick house with large windows, one displaying a small square "Help Wanted, Please" sign. We pushed our way through the screen door and a bell rang. Ransom=92s looked like lots of bookstores in Boston: dark and musty, but comfortable, smelling like the inside of a new book: all clean and fresh and a little intoxicating. The walls were lined with shelves and oversized velvety chairs and antique-looking tables decorated with teetering piles of books. To my left, in a separate room, I could see the children=92s section, where chairs, shelves, and books were scaled down a size. "Lauren, Betsy! Hi!" a voice called from behind the a cashier=92s counter next to the door. The boy behind the counter looked to be about fifteen. He was tall and skinny, needing to grow into his body like a child growing into hand-me-downs. He had wavy brown hair, braces on his teeth, and a pencil stuck behind his ear. "Bobby, how are you?" Betsy answered. "Great. So, are you just browsing, or can I help you with something in particular?" "Actually," Lauren said, "we=92re just showing around a new friend." A new friend. I was their friend. I grinned proudly. "Martha, this is Bobby Webster. Martha--" "Bobby *Webster*? Frances and Skip Webster=92s son?" "Yea," he said, a quizzical look on his face. He had been five years old, a little boy, during my last visit to Smallville, so it wasn=92t surprising that my distant cousin didn=92t remember me. I surely hadn=92t recognized him, and I know I had changed a lot as well. "I=92m Martha Clark," I explained. "My mother and yours are cousins: Elizabeth Clark, er, Williams; her maiden name was Williams." A look of dawning appeared on his face, but Betsy and Lauren were still confused. "I stayed with the Websters during my first visit to Smallville, when I was thirteen," I told them, then wondered if Lauren and Betsy could possibly remember me. Maybe they were in the group who made fun of me at church that first Sunday. Oh, no... "Did you two live here ten years ago?" "Yup, both Smallvillers, born and raised," Betsy said, then, seeing what was probably a look of dread appear on my face, added, "And, yea, I do remember you visiting that summer, but I=92m a few years younger than Wayne, and I wasn=92t friends with him and Jonathan and Henry back then. But Wayne told me about that summer when Jonathan said you=92d come back." I turned to Lauren. "And I was in Minnesota, with my grandparents most of that summer." I gave a sigh of relief; I couldn=92t help it. It was better if they didn=92t remember the brat I=92d been that summer. There would be enough people who did. Wayne and Henry, for two, but they weren=92t acting strange about it. That sure made life easier. continued in part 7 * * * * * * * * * * "Single-mindedness is all very well in cows or baboons; in an animal claiming to belong to the same species as Shakespeare it is simply disgraceful." -Aldous Huxley ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 11 Feb 2000 18:41:37 -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: NEW: The Open Road (7/9) Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="ISO-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable TITLE: The Martha Chronicles 2: The Open Road PART: 7/9 AUTHOR: Christy Kubit (kubitc@kenyon.edu & attalanta@aol.com) RATING: PG? FEEDBACK: All comments welcome, public or private. Please send editing or typos privately. SUMMARY: Twenty-something Martha returns to Smallville to catch up with childhood friend Jonathan. continued from part 6 I turned to Bobby. "How=92s your family? Everyone still living at home?" "Skip is; he=92s fixing to take over the farm. When Pa admits he=92s too old for all that manual labor, that is. Ruth just got married and she=92s living in Kansas City with her husband. And Adie=92s actually been away from home the longest. She won a scholarship to a boarding school in Chicago, and now she=92s a freshman at Northwestern. Kenny and I are still at home." "That=92s nice --" I started to say, but I was interrupted by the ring of the bell on the door, signaling the arrival of two middle-aged women. They stopped at the cashier=92s counter to chat with Bobby, and Lauren, Betsy, and I began browsing the stacks. I went immediately to the fiction section, checking to see if my favorite authors had any new releases. They didn=92t. At least, they didn=92t *here.* The last time I spoke to her on the phone, Emily mentioned that Madeleine L=92Engle, whose writing we both enjoyed, had a new book out, a children=92s book. I checked the bookstore=92s small, brightly-painted children=92s room, but there was nothing new. I had been a L=92Engle faithful ever since reading her first book, The Small Rain. Emily told me it was overwhelmingly autobiographical. Yea, I=92d said, *my* autobiography. The protagonist of the book, a young pianist named Katherine Forrester, is a lonely only child of self-absorbed parents who shove her off to boarding school to get rid of her. Katherine=92s mother dies during the course of the book, but, Emily told me, in real life it was L=92Engle=92s father who died when she was young. I could definitely relate. I wandered back over to the bookstore=92s main room and found a small travel section. I paged through an illustrated United States atlas, pondering my next stop on the road. After flipping through Alabama (been there) and Alaska (too far), I stopped for a minute at Arizona, studying awe-inspiring pictures of the Grand Canyon. Maybe I=92d go there next, I thought. I=92d never been, and it would be an improvement in scenery over flat old Kansas. Maybe I=92d-- "--back in Smallville? Remember that spoiled red-haired little girl who visited with the Websters back some summers ago?" a high-pitched voice asked from somewhere behind me. Oh, God. Not again, I thought. Things had been going so well... "She=92s back?" another voice said. "Why would she be back *here?* She visiting the Websters again?" "I do believe she=92s staying with the Kents," the first voice put in. "And I hear she=92s become quite the strange bird. Went to some fancy girls=92 college out East and she=92s been driving cross-country. Believe it or not, her car *broke down* here in Smallville. How convenient," the woman said icily. "Why would she even *want* to come back?" "From what Louise said, she=92s fixed her sights on Jonathan Kent." "Jonathan Kent!?!" "That=92s what Louise said." Who was this Louise, I wanted to know? And why in the hell would she know -- or make up -- anything about me? I felt like growling, but kept quiet, wanting to hear what else the women were going to say. "She=92s probably looking for some kind of stable family situation. You know the reason she was sent here that summer is because her parents were traipsing around in Europe, even though the father was sickly." Not true! I wanted to yell. They were not *traipsing!* They were looking for better medical care. There were experimental treatments! I stood very still; I couldn=92t see them, but I didn=92t know whether or not the women could see me. Should I turn around? I wondered. Was I hidden from behind. My red hair would be a dead give-away if the two women did notice me. "Hey, you okay?" This voice came from my left, and I turned toward it: Betsy. "I=92m fine," I told her. She looked unconvinced. "Really." "Okay," she said slowly before Lauren approached us. "You guys finished?" she asked. Betsy looked at me. "Yea," I said. "I just need to pay for this book." I held up the atlas and headed towards the cashier counter. I gave the book to Bobby, who rang it up while I ever-so-slowly turned around, looking for the two women back near the travel section. "Martha?" Bobby asked, and I turned back around. Grrr. Why=92d he have to use my name? I hadn=92t heard the two women use my name, but surely they=92d recognize it if they heard it. "Martha?" he asked again, louder this time. To quiet him down, I unclasped my purse, removed a few crumpled dollars from my wallet, and handed them to him. I was turned completely around, looking for the two gossiping women when I heard the friendly tinkle of the door bell behind me. I whirled around, but they were already gone. Craning my neck, I tried to look out the window, trying to see who these women were and if they were looking at me, if they=92d spotted me. The jingle of change in Bobby=92s hand caught my attention, and I abandoned trying to see out the window. I held out my hand and accepted the coins, dropping them in my purse, then rejoined Betsy and Lauren, who had been browsing as they waited, and left Ransom=92s. * * * * * That afternoon Jonathan and I drove to Morris=92s, to get the rest of my stuff out of the back of my car. When we got back to the Kents=92 we sorted through the boxes, stacking some of them along one wall of Josie=92s room, and unpacking others. There were so many boxes and bags and crates stacked in the back of the car that I=92d forgotten I had even brought them. One box was filled with cooking supplies. Not utensils -- those were available anywhere I stayed and actually considered cooking -- but nonperishables: spices, herbs, and powders from Emily=92s mother, Amita and her friends, and random other places I=92d visited. I had spent the previous night baking and talking with Mrs. Kent, who=92d asked me to call her Anna. I=92d shared my raisin scones recipe, which I=92d inherited from my mother, and she contributed a recipe for creme de menthe brownies, as well as blackberry pie and oatmeal raisin cookies. But our collaborations weren=92t all successes. The previous night=92s attempt at combining our particular strengths -- mine being exotic spices and hers, traditional dishes -- had resulted in disaster; mixing cottage cheese, cayenne pepper, and several varieties of beans, we=92d learned, wasn=92t a good idea. Jonathan had been a good sport and tasted the concoction, but his father merely poked at it with his fork, wordlessly removed a stack of hamburgers from the freezer, and headed outside to grill them. So, the night Jonathan and I rescued my cooking supplies from Morris, we set them on the kitchen counter and tried to decide what they wanted to become. Mrs. Kent -- Anna -- came downstairs and sat with us, finally hinting that we might want to try fried chicken; combining my herbs and hers could make an "interesting" batter, she said. "I think I=92ll stick around tonight," Jonathan said as he washed the chicken. "We don=92t need a rerun of yesterday=92s fiasco." "Ha, ha," Anna said, reading the labels of the various jars and shakers we=92d removed from my box. She separated the vials into ones we would use, and began placing the rest of them in the box. "Wait," Jonathan said as he washed his hands. "Let me see those." He dried his hands and combed through the box, exchanging a few of the vials his mother had decided to scrap, ending up with a handful of Korean spices. "Those are pretty spicy, Jonathan," I warned him. "Are you--?" At that point, Mr. Kent stuck his head in the kitchen, cautiously eyeing the makings of dinner. "Am I gonna need an extra glass of water again tonight? Or will I be barbecuing again?" "No barbecuing, but you might need some extra water," I said, glancing over at Jonathan=92s pile of seasonings. "And Jonathan=92s helping out so you=92ve got someone else to blame if it doesn=92t taste good." "Here," I said as Jonathan=92s father laughed and left the kitchen. "Why don=92t we add these spices to whatever you usually put in fried chicken batter?" I suggested. "We can let Jonathan play chef and decide how much to put in." "*Play* chef?" Jonathan asked with a tug on the tie of my apron. "Yea, play," I said with a grin. "So, Martha," Jonathan=92s mother began conversationally, "did you find anything at the bookstore with Lauren and Betsy?" Yea, I thought, gossipy people. "I bought an illustrated atlas; maybe it=92ll give me some idea where else I want to visit," I said, going to the refrigerator and searching through the stocked shelves until I found a drawer of fresh vegetables. I took them from their bowls, washed them, then got out a cutting board. We chopped and mixed and basted in silence for a while, Jonathan in charge of the batter for the fried chicken; Anna, rice and gravy; and me, the salad. I was mixing oil, vinegar, and herbs for the salad dressing when Anna said, "Oh, Martha, I wanted to let you know: George and Jonathan and I go to 10 am church services tomorrow morning. You=92re welcome to join us, but don=92t feel obligated." "Thanks," I said with a grin. God and I hadn=92t exactly been best of friends lately, but partly that was because I didn=92t like going to church alone. I thought church should be more of a social activity, a family activity... * * * * * Our dinner that night was delicious. Jonathan=92s chicken batter was... interesting: spicy from the Korean flavorings, but in need of refinement. After dinner, as Jonathan and I sat on the porch, the conversation turned to one of my least favorite topics: the future... "And you don't ever want to leave this farm?" I asked Jonathan in frustration. "You've lived here your whole life; you=92ve never even left Kansas! Don't you want to travel? There's a whole big, beautiful world out there to see!" That was Jonathan's cue to smile and nod. "I know, but I'm not much for traveling; I like it here in Smallville. I suppose if I had a reason to go -- someone to visit or something special to do -- I might change my mind. But I like it here. I know everyone and I like most of them. There aren't the drugs, or crime, or poverty like in the rest of that 'big, beautiful world' of yours." "You're right; Smallville doesn't have a lot of the same problems big cities have, but what *does* Smallville have? Where do you go if you want to visit a museum, or hear a concert... or see a *body of water*? I mean, it's a nice place to visit, but I don't know if I would want to *live* here." Jonathan smiled again, which really frustrated me. He was always so calm and I always got so frazzled. How could he be so sure of himself? "I want to live here," he said simply. "It's where I belong; everyone needs to find a place to belong, don't they? I mean, you knew you didn't belong in Boston, so you left, and now you're looking for somewhere to belong. Well I don't have to look. I already know: I belong here. Some people are born to farming and some people just sort of fall into it. I was born a farmer." "But how do you know you won=92t belong *more* someplace else?" I asked, but we were interrupted by the ring of the telephone. Jonathan went inside to answer it, leaving me on the porch to plan my rebuttal. But when he came out he had a forlorn look on his face. I asked him what was wrong. "Oh, no, nothing's wrong," he assured me, resuming his seat on the two person rocking chair next to me. "It was Morris, from the Garage. He wanted to let you know that your car's all fixed. He knew it was late to call, but he thought you might want to get going as soon as possible. He opens the garage at nine o=92clock Monday morning." Jonathan=92s voice was sad, almost wounded, and I wondered if maybe he didn't want me to leave. I studied his face for a few minutes, the stubborn look in his worried blue-gray eyes, his lips set into a hard line, the anxious crease above his eyebrows. I took a deep breath, then took a chance. "Come with me, Jonathan," I blurted out. "There's so much to see; we'd have such fun exploring it together." I stared into his eyes, which showed his surprise and, I was sorry to see, regret. "Martha," he sighed, and scooted next to me until his hip and thigh were pressed against mine. I held my breath waiting for the answer, even though, deep inside, I knew what it would be. Instead, he cupped my chin in both of his hands and kissed me. When he pulled back I blinked in surprise; maybe I *didn't* know what his reaction would be. I certainly wasn't expecting that. Even though it felt nice. *Really* nice. I blinked again and he took my hand and looked me in the eye. "Martha, I'd like to go with you; it wouldn't really matter where; I'd go just to be with you. But I can't," he announced. "You're probably the best friend I've ever had; it feels like I've known you forever, and I almost have. It doesn=92t matter that most of the time we=92ve just been pen pals; I can talk to you so easily. And kissing you. I... I... well, I could do it for the rest of my life," he blushed, "but I can't leave the farm," he concluded reluctantly. "Yea, Jonathan, fine," I said, trying unsuccessfully to keep the bitterness out of my voice. I pulled my hand out of his and stormed up the stairs. But it wasn=92t fine. Why was he doing this? If he wanted to come with me, then why couldn=92t he? I left home; why couldn=92t he? We would have such fun together, discovering Seattle, Los Angeles, the Grand Canyon... And he could always come back. There had to be *some* vacation time running a farm, maybe winter. We could take off then and come back before spring planting time arrived. Why not? Maybe he was afraid. Why else would he want to stay in Smallville? Maybe I should just take off Monday morning. There=92s nothing keeping me here. I could just leave. And I did want to go; I just wanted to take Jonathan with me! I refrained from slamming my bedroom door shut and, in the dark, went over to close the curtains and lower the shade before changing into my nightgown. From my window, I could see Jonathan, now walking slowly in the grass. Finally he sat on the edge of the porch, his head in his hands, his glasses resting on one knee. He ran a hand through his shaggy hair, pushing it off his face. He looked so sad, almost pathetic. How could I leave him? I remembered what he=92d said: he would've followed me just to be with me. Why can=92t you, then? I thought. He could kiss me for the rest of his life. "All you have to do is say the word," I whispered, "and we could leave together." I slowly drew the shade, stripped, and slipped into my nightgown. How could he not want to get away from here? Just for a little vacation. He had to agree to that. He just *had* to. And that kiss; he'd felt it just as much as I had. I know he did. I adjusted the top sheet and blanket around myself and found a comfortable position. I could get really used to that kiss... continued in part 8 * * * * * * * * * * "Single-mindedness is all very well in cows or baboons; in an animal claiming to belong to the same species as Shakespeare it is simply disgraceful." -Aldous Huxley ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 11 Feb 2000 18:49:03 -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: NEW: The Open Road (9/9) Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="ISO-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable TITLE: The Martha Chronicles 2: The Open Road PART: 9/9 AUTHOR: Christy Kubit (kubitc@kenyon.edu & attalanta@aol.com) RATING: PG? FEEDBACK: All comments welcome, public or private. Please send editing or typos privately. SUMMARY: Twenty-something Martha returns to Smallville to catch up with childhood friend Jonathan. continued from part 8 * * * * * That night Jonathan and his father came home from the forum angry about the governor's ideas for the new laws. Amid grumbling -- mainly Mr. Kent=92s -- the four of us ate the dinner I'd made and, after the dishes were done, Jonathan's parents settled down to watch television before going to bed, while Jonathan and I braved the cold for our nearly-nightly time on the porch. We sat in silence for a while, Jonathan posed stiffly, careful not to touch me. Probably he thought this would be one of our last nights on the porch together. I decided not to keep him in suspense any longer. "I got a job today," I blurted out without thinking, more to fill the quiet than to start a conversation. I immediately berated myself for telling him so quickly; I had planned to wait a while, get comfortable with the idea myself first, but there it was, flying out of my big mouth and into the charged but still-quiet air between us. "You what?" he managed to choke out despite his obvious shock. "I got a job," I said matter-of-factly. "At Ransom=92s. Remember when I visited there with Lauren and Betsy?" Jonathan nodded numbly. "Well, there was this Job Opening sign in the window and I thought, well, that would be a good place to work, at least temporarily. It=92s too bad Smallville doesn=92t have an art gallery or print shop, cuz then I could work there. I=92m not complaining, but, well, maybe there are other people interested in art and we could start our own, fill it with local artists=92 work..." I was changing the subject and I knew it, but I couldn't shut myself up. I was waiting for Jonathan to say something, to interrupt me, to give some indication about how he felt. But he just sat there, staring into the snow-covered front yard and letting hypothermia set in. I stared out at the snow too, watching it tumble calmly to the earth, heedless of my situation. Silently I cursed myself first for getting the job and then for telling Jonathan about it. His silence was disconcerting, so I kept talking even though I had no idea what was coming out of my mouth. Suddenly I felt a hand on my leg and looked down. There was Jonathan, posed on one knee. He took one of my hands in both of his and, after a noticeably loud, nervous inhale, looked me in the eye. I was confused -- he wasn't sitting next to me anymore -- what was he doing? And why was he doing it on his knees? I felt one of his thumbs stroke my hand and forced myself to focus on his face, on what was happening, instead of my doubts about selling the car. "Marry me, Martha," he said gently, and suddenly I understood what was going on. He was proposing. To me. But why? What would make him think...? Oh, getting a job; it made my stay in Smallville seem permanent. I tried to concentrate on what Jonathan was saying. "...love you, Martha. You know that, don't you?" I must have managed to nod, or something, since he continued. "I wanted to ask you earlier, but I thought you wanted to leave. Then you said you wanted me to leave with you, so I thought you might have feelings for me too. And you were still here, but I wasn't sure if you really wanted to stay or if you couldn=92t leave because your car wasn't working. And you stayed after it was fixed, but that could mean that you didn=92t want to leave or that you were waiting for me to come with you. But now that you got a job, you *must* want to stay." He paused and looked at me expectantly. I stared at him for a few long moments before realizing that he wanted an answer. I blinked, trying to refocus: Jonathan was asking me to marry him, to stay here in Smallville, here with him, forever. Was that what I wanted? I watched Jonathan's face fall while I took time to think. He must think I don't love him... "I *do* love you, Jonathan," I began cautiously, and took his hand. He allowed himself to smile, but I don't think I reciprocated. "And this is, this is really flattering..." His face fell. Oh, God, he was probably regretting having proposed now. But I couldn't say yes if I didn=92t mean it, just to make him feel better. He was waiting for the =91but=92; I gave it to him. "But I can't marry you, Jonathan, not yet at least." As soon as I spoke I regretted what I had said; Jonathan's face, previously unsure but allowing himself to be cautiously optimistic, fell to somewhere between hopeless and despair. Could I have said that better, I wondered. "It's not that I don't love you. I do, a lot," I tried to clean up the mess I'd made of this whole potentially beautiful situation. "It's just that everything's changing so fast. Just today I just made the decision to stay in Smallville for a while. And now you=92re proposing. It's just too much, Jonathan." "Fine. I understand." Jonathan quickly got up and went inside. He took the stairs two at a time on his way to his bedroom, and I leaned back in the cold wooden seat in despair. It had hurt me to hurt him, but I didn't know what else to do. His proposal *did* happen too fast. I had just made one big decision, now he was asking me to make another? How unfair! I *did* love him; I just didn't know whether what I felt could really last *forever.* How different were my feelings for him from my feelings towards the few boyfriends I=92d had in high school and college? I was only twenty-three; how could I know whether I'd love Jonathan for the rest of my life? I stayed on the porch, shivering from the cold, until my feet were so numb that I doubted they could still carry me inside. But I got up and left the porch, navigating the icy steps and thick snow, which gave a guttural purr as my steps flattened it. I walked around the house, near the barn, and then further out, into an empty field. Flinging my arms over my head and closing my eyes, I let out a scream. Boy, did that feel good. Hoping I wouldn=92t wake anyone, I decided to try it again, then fell backwards, letting the soft snow cushion me. I opened my eyes and stared in awe at the stars, so bright against the dark, unspoiled Kansas night sky. Stars sure didn't look like this in Boston, I remembered. What was it that made Kansas so different? I rolled over, by now thoroughly soaking myself with the wet snow and stared back at the dark windows of the house; was it that house, that family, that man, that made everything here special? * * * * * The next morning I got up early; I had hardly gotten any sleep the night before and, after waking up nearly every hour on the hour, I decided to give up and get out of bed. Wearily, I made my way downstairs to find Jonathan's mother making breakfast in the kitchen. It smelled delicious, and I told her so after greeting her with a "Good morning." She nodded at my compliment and wished me a civil "Good morning" as well, but something seemed strange, or perhaps strained. "Anna, is there something wrong?" She sat down next to me and looked at me, long and hard, for a few minutes. I had a hard time reading her face, so I let her begin. "Have you seen Jonathan at all this morning?" I shook my head. No. "Go look," she said, gesturing towards the window. I got up and peered out the window, not knowing what to expect. What I saw was surprising, and funnier than I was ready for. I laughed, and Anna soon joined me; Jonathan was outside, dressed in his warmest bad-weather clothing, plowing a field through the snow. "*What* is he doing?" I asked her between guffaws. She simply shook her head before joining me at the window to get a good look at her son. "He was up early -- before George, I think -- and he's been out plowing ever since." "Now I'm kinda new to this farming stuff, but this isn't normally the time of year you plow the fields, is it?" I asked, just to make sure I was finding the correct part of the situation funny. "No, dear," she assured me before reclaiming her seat at the table and taking a long sip of hot coffee. "Did something happen between the two of you last night?" she probed. I sat down too. "He didn't tell you?" I was surprised; Jonathan had a good relationship with his mother and I know he had gone to her for advice several times. I was expecting her to recite an already-prepared a speech chock full of words of wisdom that would help me solve my problem. Our problem. Anna shook her head. He really hadn't told her; I must've really hurt him. Oh, Jonathan, I'm sorry. "I got a job at Ransom=92s yesterday," I began, but Anna interrupted me. "Martha," she exclaimed. "Wow, I'm, well, I'm *really surprised.* What does that mean?" she asked, and I realized that that was the question that Jonathan should've asked last night. Instead of assuming he knew what I wanted, he should've asked what my getting a job meant. For all he knew, it could've meant I was low on cash. "Well, it means I want to stay in Smallville. I was pretty sure that=92s what it meant; that is, until I told Jonathan about it last night." "He doesn't want you to stay?" she asked incredulously. I smiled and shook my head. "Oh, he wants me to stay all right," I assured her, and she let out a relieved sigh in response. "In fact, he wants me to stay so much that he proposed," I finished. Anna fell silent and her eyes widened. I grimaced -- what did this reaction mean? Did she not *want* me to marry her son? This whole time I thought that she liked me, and last night I thought that she probably would've been pleased if she'd have known about Jonathan=92s proposition. She=92s certainly been supportive of our relationship, however undefined it is, so far, encouraging us to talk to each other instead of bottling things up and driving everyone crazy. "Oh, I'm sorry," I said, trying to cover up the discomfort that had suddenly filled the room. "Maybe I shouldn't have told you," I worried. "Oh, no, dear, no," Anna assured me, patting my hand. "I'm not disappointed or upset, just surprised. And I'm not surprised that he asked you," she clarified," just surprised he did it so suddenly. Jonathan's not usually so... spontaneous." "I know. I was surprised, too," I admitted. "I take it, from his reaction," she gestured out the window, "that you said no." I nodded. "Do you want to talk about it?" she asked gently. I slumped down in the hard wooden chair. I did want to talk about it, but did I want to talk about it with Jonathan's mother? What the heck. "It's not that I don't want to marry him *ever,*" I told her. "And it's not that I don't love him, because I really do. I just don=92t know if I love him *enough.* I mean, we=92re gonna have to be together our whole lives; that=92s practically forever." Anna grinned. "Well, Martha, it=92s not a prison sentence, you know." "I know, it=92s just a long time. I mean, I=92m only twenty-three. I just got out of school. I don=92t know what I want to do with my life, or where I want to do it. And I love Jonathan and everything, but I=92m sorry; marrying a farmer in Smallville kind of limits my options. I love him, but I=92ve just made a really huge decision, and now he=92s asking me to make another one." "Martha, there's no rule that you have to accept a man's proposal the first time around," she said simply. "Did you tell him that you love him?" I nodded. "Well, then, he knows how you feel, and you *certainly* know how he feels. Everything else will fall into place, believe me," she said, rising from the table to rinse her cup out in the sink. "And the love you feel for Jonathan right now doesn't have to be enough to last the two of you forever. It will grow over time. You just have to trust that, and trust him, and don=92t make any decisions till you=92re ready." Anna smiled at me before heading through the living room and upstairs. I fixed myself a breakfast plate from the food warming in the oven. I had just sat down to eat when Jonathan, wet and ruddy-faced from the cold air, came inside. I watched him peel off his boots and a few layers of clothing, waiting for him to speak first. He didn't. "Good morning," I offered. "'Morning." "Your mother and I were wondering what you were doing out there," I began, trying fairly successfully to suppress a laugh. "I like plowing," he explained, fixing himself breakfast from the leftover food. "It calms me." I decided to leave it at that, and instead played with the scrambled eggs still on my plate. Jonathan got up and found a glass jug of buttermilk in the refrigerator, and then poured himself a large glass. I sighed; usually when he drank buttermilk it meant something was bothering him. This was definitely not a good sign. I decided to try again. "I'm sorry about last night," I began. "I didn't mean..." "Didn't mean to say 'no=92?" he asked hopefully. "So, then, you will marry me? I know you said that you could say yes 'tomorrow,'" he said, quoting back to me what I'd said last night with an excited grin, "but I didn't realize you meant it literally." "I didn't," I quickly clarified before he got his hopes up any further. Again, he wasn't listening to what I had to say, or how I felt, before he rushed ahead and said things he couldn=92t take back. "I was *going* to say that I didn't mean to hurt you, not that I didn't mean to say no," I explained softly. He looked at me through narrowed eyes. Ashamed, I turned my attention back to my breakfast. Jonathan quickly finished his breakfast and re-dressed himself for the arctic freeze we were experiencing outside. Wordlessly, he went back out, slamming the door behind himself. I watched through the window as he went back to plowing the snow. * * * * * After lunch and without a word to me, Jonathan and his father headed over to the Irigs=92 farm, to let the neighbors know what they had learned at the farmer=92s forum in Danbury. The Smallville constituency, from what Jonathan=92s father said after returning from the forum, wasn=92t going to be happy, and had a lot of mobilizing to do. I was helping Anna can vegetables when the phone rang, and Anna went to answer it. After a puzzled look she handed the phone over to me, saying, "She=92s right here." I took the phone, wondering who it could be: Jonathan? Lauren or Betsy? A friend from home or college? Who knew I was here? The voice on the phone surprised me, and I listened wordlessly, in shock, only managing to nod or whisper "uh huh" in response. The line went dead and I passed the phone back to Anna, who hung it on the receiver. "Well?" she asked. "It was my grandmother," I said softly. "I have to go home. My mother=92s in the hospital; she took too many sleeping pills." To be continued (and maybe finished) in The Martha Chronicles 3. Note: The song Jonathan=92s parents and he and Martha dance to is "The Way You Look Tonight," by Tony Bennett, from the soundtrack of My Best Friend=92s Wedding (originally from the album Long Ago and Far Away, released in 1958). * * * * * * * * * * "Single-mindedness is all very well in cows or baboons; in an animal claiming to belong to the same species as Shakespeare it is simply disgraceful." -Aldous Huxley ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 11 Feb 2000 18:53:04 -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: NEW: The Open Road (8/9) Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="ISO-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable TITLE: The Martha Chronicles 2: The Open Road PART: 8/9 AUTHOR: Christy Kubit (kubitc@kenyon.edu & attalanta@aol.com) RATING: PG? FEEDBACK: All comments welcome, public or private. Please send editing or typos privately. SUMMARY: Twenty-something Martha returns to Smallville to catch up with childhood friend Jonathan. continued from part 7 * * * * * Things were a lot clearer in the morning. I awoke early, and stayed in bed for a while, giving myself time to think. There was no way I could *force* Jonathan to come with me, I realized. What was I supposed to do: kidnap him? Don=92t be ridiculous, I told myself. If you want to be with him, you=92re gonna have to stay in Smallville. At least for now, until he agrees to come with you. Boy, things would be a hell of a lot easier if he would've just agreed to leave with me. We could be free spirits together. Sure, I'd probably have to teach him how to relax; he was used to the structured schedule of farm life, waking up at the crack of dawn and working all day. But he would=92ve enjoyed it. I got out of bed and, after a stop in the bathroom, headed downstairs. I reached the kitchen the same time as Jonathan=92s mother, who was stumbling through the screen door. "Good morning, Martha," she said, dropping on the table what had been bundled in her apron. Shiny red apples tumbled off of the table and onto the floor. "'Morning, Mrs.-- er, Anna, sorry," I said. I was still getting used to using Mrs. Kent=92s first name. I should call Jonathan=92s father was George, Anna had assured me, but I hadn=92t even attempted that one yet. "Where is everyone?" I asked her as we retrieved the runaway apples and replaced them on the table. "Out back checking on some of the animals. There was a thunderstorm late last night and they=92re agitated. It wake you?" I shook my head. "Jonathan tells me Morris fixed your car." I sat down across from her, then looked down at the apples spread out on the table, picked one up, and twirled its stem between my middle finger and thumb. "Uh huh." "Does that mean you're leaving us?" she asked. I looked up at her and saw that she was watching my face for any foreshadowing of my answer. I shrugged my shoulders and returned my attention to the apple, twirling the stem counterclockwise now. "Jonathan also told me you asked him to leave with you." Shocked, I looked up. I felt betrayed and defensive, and had trouble choosing between the two. I went with the latter. "I wasn't trying to... I mean... I'm really sorry, Mrs. Kent. I mean, Jonathan isn't going to leave the farm so you don't have to worry," I blurted out. "That's not what I'm worried about, dear," she said gently, laying a hand on mine, stopping its frantic twirling of the apple stem. "You know you're welcome to stay here as long as you'd like. Just because your car is fixed, you don't have to leave us until you're ready." Patting my hand, Anna rose from the table, found a bowl, filled it with the apples, and left it on the table before leaving the kitchen. I looked back down at my apple, then sank my teeth into its ripe flesh, trying to catch the juices on my tongue before they dripped onto the tablecloth. But I wasn't successful, and they formed rivulets on the table, and I had to get a sponge from the sink to clean up my mess. Anna was right: I was enjoying myself and I didn't need to leave Smallville yet. Even when I went "into town," no one was as openly hostile to me as they were during my last visit. I could find a job here, probably, and stop living off the Kents. Maybe I could work at Maisie=92s and make raisin scones. Even though I hadn't heard any complaints and I'd been helping with the chores and offered money for room and board -- which they=92d refused -- I was surely a financial drain on the Kent household. But do I really want to make arrangements to stay here? And if so, how long? If I got a job, there=92d be expectations: a certain degree of longevity, then a two weeks=92 notice when I did decide to leave. I finished the apple and tossed the core in the trash. Where else would I go? If I wanted to continue my trip and Jonathan wouldn't come with me -- and deep down inside I knew he wouldn=92t say yes -- I'd have to go at it alone. I might as well stay here, I decided for the second time that day. At least until I could say for certain that I wanted to leave. * * * * * That night we went to a baseball game, bringing back memories of my first Smallville visit. But my previous baseball fiasco had been witnessed only by the Webster clan, so I pretended to know what Henry and Lauren, the baseball gurus of our group, meant when they discussed the merits of professional designated hitters and the risks involved in trading for pitchers. Even though all of Jonathan=92s friends were nice, as usual, the situation was strangely pressured since the other two pairs really were *couples,* while Jonathan and I were just friends. Good friends, but I sure didn=92t feel like we had a *relationship.* But Henry and Wayne kidded Jonathan, laughing that he had a girl, "and a good-looking one, too, if I do say so myself," staying right there in his own home, for Pete's sake, and the opportunity was going to *waste.* The rest of the group laughed good-naturedly, but I noticed Jonathan's chuckle was nervous. So what did that mean? Did Jonathan want more out of our friendship? Did I? Even if I did, should I risk our friendship? Jonathan and I rode home with Wayne and Betsy. When we reached the Kents' farm, Jonathan invited them in for a bite to eat, so Wayne parked the truck and the couple joined us for our now-traditional nightly porch time. But our evening didn=92t last long. Wayne commented that Jonathan, who was being rather quiet, was just trying to get Betsy and him out of the way so that he and his "girlfriend" could spend some time together, *alone.* Jonathan and I didn=92t laugh, though, so Wayne told us we were acting like an "old married couple." "You live together, don't *do* anything, and then sit around on the porch every night," he clarified, as if we didn't already know what he was talking about. "My parents, heck, my *grandparents,* have a more *active* relationship than the two of you!" Neither Jonathan nor I responded, and Wayne must have realized that his observations weren't exactly welcome because the four of us sat there in silence for a few minutes. Wayne then made a show of checking his watch, saying that he and Betsy had to get home. Jonathan and I wished them a good night, then looked at each other expectantly. "We don't act like an old married couple," Jonathan stated. But then his resolution wavered. "Do we?" "I don't know," I admitted. "My grandparents are the oldest married couple *I* know, and I sure as hell don't act like my grandmother," I said angrily. What did that "old married couple" crack mean, anyway? "So what kind of couple are we then?" Jonathan asked tentatively. So he thought of us as a couple. I=92d never really been part of a real *couple* before. I'd dated a little in high school and college, but I always felt more like a decoration on someone's arm or a thorn in someone's side. I realized Jonathan was waiting for an answer, so I turned to look at him. I couldn't tell what he was expecting. "Well, we're..." my voice trailed off. "We're friends." I played with the hem of my skirt, making sure I was too busy to look at Jonathan. "I know we're friends," he repeated, handing the conversation back to me. "Close friends," I offered quietly. He nodded. "But how close?" he asked, suddenly louder and more forceful. I looked over at him and saw that he wanted an actual answer this time. "This close?" he asked, quiet once again, before placing his hands on my shoulders and kissing me. My eyes closed involuntarily as we kissed, Jonathan guiding things a little farther than they=92d previously gone. I sighed when our lips finally parted, then opened my eyes and saw Jonathan looking at me nervously, waiting for a response, so I decided to give him one. I put my hands on his shoulders, copying his gesture, and ran them down his arms to catch his hands in mine before returning his kiss in full force. We sat there, each of us taking turns initiating and reciprocating his kiss, losing ourselves, being found, then losing ourselves again... Until we heard a loud noise from the kitchen. Jonathan got up and went inside to check on it and I followed, my hand resting on his back as we sneaked into the house. Jonathan flipped on the light, only to reveal one of the Kents' house cats standing guiltily on the table next to an overturned bowl of apples. We both breathed a sigh of relief and the cat jumped from the table and fled into the darkness of the living room. "You know, I'm really tired," I began, easing my hand off Jonathan's back and inching towards the cat's escape route. "I think I better be getting upstairs to bed." Jonathan nodded mutely, then watched as I made my way through the dark house, just avoiding stepping on the cat, who had, by that time, taken refuge on the bottom step of the staircase. I was taking the chicken=92s way out and I knew it. But I had learned how Jonathan felt about me. Maybe now I could figure out what I felt about him... * * * * * The next morning I awoke shivering. I opened my eyes to see that during the night I had kicked the sheets and blanket onto the floor. I grabbed the coverings then went over to the window to adjust the curtains, which were aiming a stream of nascent sunlight square in my eyes. Fixing the curtains, I took a glimpse outside. To my surprise, the flat, rolling landscape was covered in a beautiful white blanket of snow which glistened as the rays of the sun reflected off of it. Clean white lines traced the skeletons of the branches of the oak tree growing just outside my window. They sure had strange weather in Kansas, I thought as I made my way downstairs. Only last night Jonathan and I had been talking outside, wearing just thin jackets to guard against the late fall chill, and here it was, the next morning, and there was thick snow covering the ground! Maybe that old adage I=92d heard about New England so many times was also applicable to Kansas: if you don=92t like the weather, just wait five minutes. In the kitchen I was surprised to find only Jonathan's mother sitting at the breakfast table, sipping from a mug of steaming coffee and paging through the morning paper. I checked the clock on the wall; I had gotten up early enough to catch Jonathan at breakfast. So where was he? "Good morning, Martha," Mrs. Kent greeted me with a sleepy but cheery smile. "Did you see the snow?" I nodded. "'Morning, Anna." I got a mug out of the cupboard, poured myself a cup of coffee, and took the seat next to Jonathan's mother. "So where=92re Jonathan and Mr. Kent?" "Oh, Jonathan didn't tell you? They went to Danbury, about an hour's drive, for a forum on the new agricultural laws the governor's proposing. They'll probably be back just before dinner." I nodded. "And about dinner," Mrs. Kent began slowly after taking a sip from her mug. "Do you think you could handle it alone tonight?" "Sure," I told her. "Are you headed over to Danbury, too?" "No, I've got some errands to run in town this afternoon; nothing exciting: just some shopping, visiting one of the women from church who's in the hospital. She's elderly, her husband died a few years back, and a couple of us thought we'd stop by and see her." I nodded. "Okay. I'll probably go for a walk, read for a while, get dinner ready," I told her, then got up to make myself breakfast. Jonathan's mother laughed. "Sounds like a nice, relaxing day," she said before getting up to rinse out her cup and heading upstairs to get ready for the day. After I finished breakfast I went back upstairs and took a long, hot shower, wondering what I'd do with a day to myself. Back in Boston I=92d spent practically every day alone, but I couldn't for the life of me remember what I'd done with all that time. Since returning to Smallville I'd spent much more time -- and more *enjoyable* time -- with others: Jonathan, his parents (although his father was still pretty distant, he *had* warmed up to me a little), Jonathan=92s friends, even the farm animals. So what would I do today? I wondered. There was something I'd just recently decided to do, and I concluded that today was the perfect day. Jonathan and his parents weren=92t around, and it was important that they not be here -- especially Jonathan =96 so it would be a surprise. I smiled conspiratorially at my reflection in the bathroom mirror. First I called Betsy and asked if she could give me a ride to the Garage to pick up my car. We decided on a time and, after having up, I stared at the circle of numbers on the phone for a minute. I felt a small, nervous thrill; this was a big move I was contemplating. This is what you want, isn=92t it? I asked myself. Yes, I finally decided, and dialed the number. I toyed with the spiral phone cord for a minute, biting my lip nervously as I waited an answer on the other end of the phone. continued in part 9 * * * * * * * * * * "Single-mindedness is all very well in cows or baboons; in an animal claiming to belong to the same species as Shakespeare it is simply disgraceful." -Aldous Huxley ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 11 Feb 2000 18:59:18 -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: NEW: The Open Road (INTRO) Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="ISO-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit >So glad to see the return of the Martha Chronicles!! I was enchanted by the >first installment and was hoping to see more. Kate, I'm glad you enjoyed it and I hope you like this story. Also, I forgot to add in my author's note that this story touches on the subject of religion and God. I have no good reason to assume what I did about Martha's or Jonathan's beliefs in God; I just made that all up. I wanted to add a disclaimer about this, though, because I am on another list which was recently embroiled in a religion-based debate, and I want it to be known that I am not trying to offend anyone. Thanks, and enjoy :) Christy kubitc@kenyon.edu * * * * * * * * * * "Single-mindedness is all very well in cows or baboons; in an animal claiming to belong to the same species as Shakespeare it is simply disgraceful." -Aldous Huxley ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 11 Feb 2000 16:42:33 -0800 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Audrey Rempel Subject: Re: NEW: The Open Road (INTRO) MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Christy, this is so sweet! I nearly cried when I saw this is my mailbox, because it was *another* great story starting from *another* great, must read author, and I really don't have the time for this!! But as we know from Lois' experience, not having the time just doesn't cut it, we should just give in gracefully and go with it! So I did :)! This is such a great portrayal of Martha and Jonathan. The characterisation was wonderful. I loved Jonathan plowing the snow! It was marvelous being able to delve into their personalities, and see traits that Clark would have in the future. Sorry, I have no helpful advise or constructive criticism. I just want to read more! Audrey who's tried telling fanfic she doesn't have time for it, but then it looks at her with those big puppy-dog eyes, and that's it, she a goner! __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Talk to your friends online with Yahoo! Messenger. http://im.yahoo.com ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 12 Feb 2000 04:45:59 GMT Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Diyan Subject: Re: Kerth-Category Quizzes: Best Vignette Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; format=flowed * * D I Y A N ‘S S P A C E lol, Wendy. You know, I hope, that I was just rambling and not complaining :) Quotes: 1. Chris Carr “The Best Bargain” 2. Chris H. “A Life So Changed” 3. 4. Nan Smith “Just Say. . . I Love You” 5. Christine Carr “Au Revoir, and Not Good-bye” 6. Pam Jernigan “Lessons” 7. Pam and Chris “Evening Delight” 8. Chris Mulder “The Child Who Fell From the Sky” 9. Wendy Richards “It’s as Plain as the Nose. . .” 10. Tank Wilson “The Best Policy” 11. Tank Wilson “The Kiss” 12. Tara Smith “The Jeep Excerpts: 3. Erthanngel “And With Her Strength I Survive” Well, I didn’t think you would put this in a quiz after the venomo-- er, interesting reaction some people had to it on IRC. . . -Dia ______________________________________________________ Get Your Private, Free Email at http://www.hotmail.com ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 12 Feb 2000 01:11:39 -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: Kerth-Category Quizzes: Best Vignette Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Ok, I'm going to try this one, too :) s p o i l e r s p a c e Quote 4: Just say . . . I love you by Nan Smith Quote 6: Lessons by Pam Jernigan Quote 12: The Jeep by me I couldn't get anything more from the excerpts :( oh well, I got six points anyway. ----------------------------------------------- FREE! The World's Best Email Address @email.com Reserve your name now at http://www.email.com ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 12 Feb 2000 01:30:54 -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: Threads of Confusion (5/?) Metropolis Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Ok, here goes again. Let me know what you think. Threads of Confusion (5/?): Metropolis Maggie wrinkled her nose at the properties she held in disgust. Out of the entire board, she had only four properties. Martha had almost two full sides and Jonathon had everything else. "Your turn," Martha said. She held the dice out to Maggie. Maggie examined the board. This version of Monopoly had been based on Metropolis. Many of the properties were places she, herself, had seen--including the Lexor Hotel and Lex Towers. The playing pieces had also been based on people who were now or had been living in Metropolis--Superman, Ultrawoman, Lex Luthor and Vixen, to name just a few. Maggie had chosen Vixen as her playing piece. Interestingly enough, Martha had chosen Superman and Jonathon had chosen Lex Luthor. The area before her piece was fraught with dangers. Martha owned Lex Towers and the Lexor Hotel--the replacements for the standard Boardwalk and Park Place. She had hotels on both of them. The railroad and other property group on that side, which also had hotels on them, were both owned by Jonathon. Unless she managed to land on Community Chest or Chance, she was doomed. Knowing her luck, she'd probably land on Lex Towers. She eyed her small pile of money, then grinned. "Here goes everything!" She rolled the dice. They came to a gentle halt against the chance cards--an eleven. Maggie sighed and moved her piece to the Lex Towers. "How much do I owe you?" "$2000." Maggie picked up her small stack of money and four properties and handed them over to Martha with a grin. "I am now officially bankrupt. Here's my stuff!" Martha accepted the small pile and properties and placed them with hers. Jonathon reached for the dice to take his turn. Maggie leaned back in her chair watching the two. She wished she'd met these two earlier. Clark had suggested that she come to Smallville with him and Lois several times, but something had always come up to keep her from going. They seemed like very nice and trustworthy people--they'd raised Clark, after all. She was pretty sure she could trust them with her secret, too, if she decided to tell them. Of course, telling them might not be necessary. They had raised a Kryptonian, after all, and Maggie had undoubtedly already shown them many times that she was no normal human without even knowing it. Maybe she should just come out and tell them . . . With a suddenness that caused her to sit upright, her superhearing cut in. Something had just exploded north of Metropolis. An instant after she heard the explosion, the room seemed to ripple. Maggie swayed in her chair and leaned back as vertigo got the best of her. She closed her eyes for a moment, and when she opened them, Martha and Jonathon were watching her, looking worried. "Did you feel that?" she asked them. "Yes, we did. Are you all right?" Martha came over to her chair, a concerned look on her face. Maggie nodded. "I'm fine. It just felt like the world dropped out from under me for a minute there. I wonder what caused it." "Maybe there'll be something on the news," Jonathon suggested. Maggie nodded and grabbed the remote from the table beside her chair. She turned the TV on and switched to a channel she knew of that gave nothing but continuous news broadcasts. It was showing an old broadcast of a major pile-up that had happened earlier in the day, but, after a few minutes, it was interrupted and the scene shifted to one of the news studio. "We interrupt this newscast to bring you a special bulletin," the newsman said. "Just moments ago, there was an explosion a few miles north of Metropolis. Jim Stevens takes you to the site of the blast." He turned and the camera zoomed in on another large screen behind him. It was obviously the site of the explosion. Pavement and dirt had been blasted away, leaving a crater, and the edges of the site looked scorched. The anchor, a good-looking dark-haired man, was standing just in front of the crater. Wind was whipping around him and lightning occasionally flashed in the background. "Thank you, Alex. I am standing on highway 253, north of Metropolis, before a crater caused by a mysterious explosion just a few minutes ago. We were fortunate enough to be close enough to actually see the explosion when it happened, although we didn't manage to get any footage of the event. Although we do not know what the cause of the explosion was, we do know that at least one person was caught in the blast--Superman." Martha gasped. Maggie shot a look at her. "I hope Lois wasn't there, too. Superman wouldn't be hurt by a little explosion." "With me here is an eyewitness of the explosion." Jim extended a hand and motioned another man to step up beside him. "Mr. Dalton, could you tell us what you witnessed here, tonight." "Um, sure." The man was wearing what Maggie would have called the classic wanna-be cowboy outfit--leather cowboy boots, tight blue jeans, flannel shirt and a cowboy hat. She'd seen plenty of them in California to be able to spot the type a mile away. He probably drove a truck, too. "Well, I was driving along and these kinds in a convertible ran me off the road. I was calling a tow service when Superman flew up and pulled my truck out of the ditch. He had this lady with him. She stayed out of the light, so I couldn't see who she was. I was driving off and looked back in my rear-view mirror. I could see Superman 'cause of the lightning. He was holding the lady. That's when that explosion hit. When I could see again, they weren't there." "Thank you, Mr. Dalton." The anchor turned back to the camera. "More as it develops. Back to you in the studio, Alex." The view on the TV changed back to the studio, but nobody was listening. Maggie muted the TV and turned to Martha and Jonathon. "Do you think they're all right?" "I hope so. There's really no way to find out." Martha stood and went over to the window and looked out. "If only we had some way of contacting them--like Batman's sky signal or something." "A signal . . ." Maggie sat up straight. "Wait a minute! We can! Jimmy's got this signal watch! He wears it everywhere! I'll bet Clark would show if he heard that!" "Signal watch?" Martha looked puzzled for a moment, then grinned. "Of course! It emits a hypersonic signal that only Superman--" "Or Sara," Maggie interjected. "Right. Or Sara can hear." Martha flashed Maggie an indecipherable look. "Let's just hope we don't call up the wrong superhero by mistake." "Right." Maggie jumped out of her chair. "I'll go call Jimmy." "Wait a minute," Jonathon stopped her. "They could be on their way home, now. We should give them a little time to get home or call and let us know they're all right. It's only been a few minutes since the explosion, after all." "What about that weird ripple thing, though?" Maggie brushed her hair out of her face. "They didn't mention it on the TV. Something strange happened out there. We need to know if Lois and Clark are all right. We need to know now!" "She's right, Jonathon." Martha turned away from the window to face her husband. "Go call your friend, Maggie." Maggie nodded and ran for the phone. To be continued . . . "So, we meet again, for the first time, for the last time!" Dark Helmet, Space Balls ----------------------------------------------- FREE! The World's Best Email Address @email.com Reserve your name now at http://www.email.com ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 12 Feb 2000 16:30:35 -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: Threads of Confusion (6/?) Voyager Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable Ok, here's part 6. Read. Send fdk. Or don't. Threads of Confusion (6/?) Voyager The universe blinked. Clark staggered, nearly overcome by a wave of vertigo. Only the feel of Lois' body in his arms kept him from giving in to it and falling to the ground. "Clark? Clark, what's wrong?" Lois' voice sounded faintly through the ringing in his ears. He shook his head and fought to steady himself. Lightning flashed with the crack of thunder almost immediately after. "Clark! Clark, we have to get out of here! Clark?" Lois sounded frantic. He pushed back the vertigo by sheer force of will and lifted about a half-foot off the ground. He flew as fast as was safe for his precious burden out of the storm. As soon as they were out of danger, he came to a skidding halt on his knees in the dirt and let Lois down. Lois went to her knees in front of him and took his face in her hands.=20 "Clark? Are you all right? What happened?" The vertigo was receding. Clark looked up into the face of his worried wif= e and smiled shakily. "I'm all right now, honey. I don't know what happened= , but I'm fine now." She looked unconvinced. "I felt a little dizzy for a minute there, too, bu= t nothing like what happened to you. Are you [i]sure[/i] your all right?" Clark cupped her face in one hand and smiled. "I'm fine, honey. I promise." She looked doubtful, but didn't say any more about that. Instead she said, "Maybe we should head back to the house and see if we can find out what happened." "Good idea." He stood slowly, then scooped Lois up and looked around, trying to determine which way Metropolis was. "Clark, I don't see Metropolis." "Me neither." He glanced back at the storm that still raged behind them.= =20 "We can't have gone that far. Maybe we're just looking in the wrong direction." "Probably." He grinned reassuringly at her as he lifted off into the air. As they gained altitude, both concentrated on looking for the city they called home= . There was no sign in any direction of anything man-made. No roads, houses or telephone poles anywhere. It was as though no one had ever been there.= =20 After searching fruitlessly for an hour, they set down on a near-by hillside. "Maybe that thing that made you dizzy--maybe it was time travel." Lois suggested. "It could have been, I guess. It didn't feel much like it, though. I didn't get dizzy when H.G. Wells took us back in time." He looked up at th= e clouds that covered most of the sky and stopped, staring. "Lois, it wasn't time travel." "What?" Lois, too, looked up. "Oh, my God! We're not on Earth anymore!" Above them, partially covered by the clouds but clearly visible nonetheless= , shone two reddish moons. Both were significantly larger than the Earth's lone moon. "Clark, what are we going to do?" Lois sounded panicky. "How can we get home from another planet?" Clark took a deep breath and gathered Lois into an embrace. "I don't know, Lois. We'll figure something out. Maybe there're people on this planet somewhere who can help us." She looked up at him, a strained expression on her face. "I hope so." His superhearing cut in abruptly, and he jerked his gaze upward towards the faint sound. It sounded familiar--like a shuttle entering the atmosphere.= =20 "Well, this planet isn't completely deserted, anyway. I can hear a space vessel of some kind." He listened for a moment, then pointed. "It's comin= g from that direction." The noise from the shuttle became rapidly louder, until Lois, too, could hear it. It became obvious fairly quickly that the shuttle wasn't slowing down. Clark couldn't even hear an attempt to use maneuvering thrusters. H= e focussed in on the source of the noise and caught a brief glimpse of an unconscious pilot. "Lois, they're in trouble. They're coming in out of control." "Go. Help them." Lois pushed away from him and stepped back. He flashed her a grateful look before flinging himself into the sky towards the tumbling shuttle. He reached it quickly and caught it by the nose. From that vantage point, he could see directly into the interior of the shuttle. One of the passengers--a man in a blue, grey and black uniform--was pulling the unconscious pilot out of his chair. Behind them, a young blond woman with = a strange metallic device over her left eye was rapidly pressing controls on the console before her and a strange looking humanoid was staring at him.= =20 Clark smiled reassuringly at the creature as he slowed the shuttle. The craft was going fairly quickly--still over the speed of sound--so it took him a little longer to slow it down than it would have if it were a plane. When he had it slowed enough, he brought it down to land it on the hillside near where Lois was waiting for him. He set the shuttle down and stepped back. Lois ran up beside him. After a moment of looking the craft over from it=92s scorched stern to the bow, Lois said, =93Clark, whoever is in there speaks English. They might b= e human.=94 Clark nodded. =93I noticed that too. I=92d say they probably are human--o= r at least some of the people onboard are. I caught a glimpse of them while I was landing the shuttle.=94 =93Maybe they=92ll help us get home. Can you see what they=92re doing?=94 = Lois asked impatiently. Clark concentrated for a moment, trying to use his x-ray vision to see through the hull of the craft. After a minute, he stopped and shook his head. =93Too dense. I can=92t hear what they=92re saying, either=97it=92s soundproofed.=94 =93We=92re going to have to wait for them to come out? Great.=94 Lois loo= ked somewhat less than thrilled by that. =93Well, I do know that at least one of them is an alien.=94 At her surpri= sed look, he continued. =93It=92s got spots on its face and forehead and slitt= ed amber eyes. Other than that, it looks pretty humanoid.=94 =93Great. Just what we need! Little green men.=94 Clark grinned. His wife=92s tendency to get sarcastic when she was irritat= ed was one of the things he loved about her. A sound from the ship made both of them turn to look at it. A hatch had opened at the rear of the vessel and the alien Clark had been talking about had just come out. He looked around, then came around the ship to Lois and Clark. =93Hi there! I=92m Neelix. Thank you for your help. I=92m not sure we wo= uld have landed well without it.=94 He eyed Clark uncertainly. =93Um, pardon = me for asking, but just how did you do that? Catch the shuttle and all withou= t a tractor beam or a hover pack or anything? I=92m not ungrateful or anythi= ng, but . . .=94 Clark shot Lois an amused look, then turned back to the alien and deliberately sidestepped the question. =93I=92m Clark Kent and this is my = wife, Lois Lane. We were hoping you could help us with a problem, now.=94 =93I=92m sure the Captain wouldn=92t mind helping you since you saved our l= ives.=20 We=92ll have to get back to Voyager first, though.=94 Neelix looked curiou= s, now. =93Just how did you get all the way out here, anyway? I know that at least Ms. Lane is human, and we thought we=92d met all the humans out here already.=94 =93That=92s our problem, actually.=94 Lois said. =93We were on Earth just = a little while ago, then we were here. We don=92t even know where here is.=94 Neelix looked startled. =93You don=92t know . . . we=92re in the Delta Qua= drant.=20 Voyager got dragged out here about five years ago and is trying to get back to Earth.=94 =93Neelix! I require your assistance!=94 a stern female voice called. =93On my way, Seven!=94 Neelix replied. Then he said to Lois and Clark, = =93Come on inside. We can talk more in there. When Seven of Nine says she needs assistance she=92s usually not joking.=94 Clark exchanged a look with Lois before they followed the alien to the rear of the craft. =93Seven of Nine . . . that=92s an unusual name. Is she an alien, too?=94 = Lois asked. =93What?=94 Neelix glanced at Lois. =93Oh, no! She=92s as human as you ar= e. She was a Borg drone. She has a human name but she prefers to be called Seven of Nine.=94 As Clark entered the craft, he glanced around, not certain of what to expect. The Delta flyer had a more spacious interior than he had expected based on what he knew of space shuttles on Earth. These people seemed to have a level of technology pretty close to that of New Krypton. Lois was apparently thinking along the same lines, for she said, =93Well, a= t least these people have a better sense of aesthetics than the New Kryptonians did.=94 The alien--Neelix--hurried over to where the young woman Clark had seen earlier was working on some futuristic looking circuitry of some kind. =93What do you want me to do, Seven?=94 he asked eagerly. =93Hold this.=94 She handed Neelix a tool of some kind and positioned it ab= ove the stuff she was working on. The device, whatever it was, hummed slightly= . =93Who are they?=94 =93They=92re from Earth, too! That=92s Clark Kent and that=92s Lois Lane. = They=92re stranded out here, too.=94 =93Hold the inducer still,=94 Seven ordered. =93We must repair the impulse engines before the alien fighters reach our position.=94 =93Alien fighters?=94 Lois asked. =93Did we just get ourselves into a war?= =94 =93We were attempting to re-stock our food supplies when we were attacked b= y unknown alien fighters. We uncertain as to why they attacked.=94 Seven tol= d them. =93How long until the drive is repaired, Seven? I need to get Mr. Paris ba= ck to sickbay. He has some injuries I can=92t fully repair here.=94 The newco= mer paused as he saw Lois and Clark. =93Hello. I see we have guests.=94 =93I=92m Clark Kent and this is Lois Lane.=94 =93Ah, yes, you=92re the one who landed our shuttle. You have some very interesting bio-readings--what we could get of them, anyway.=94 He turned back to Seven of Nine. =93Seven?=94 =93Repairs will take approximately twenty minutes.=94 She turned and gave h= im a pointed look. =93If I am not interrupted any more, Doctor.=94 =93Of course, of course. I should get back to my patient.=94 He nodded at = Lois and Clark. =93Nice to have met you.=94 =93Is there any way we can help?=94 Clark asked Seven and Neelix. Seven gave him a cool look. =93Not unless you can lift the shuttle back in= to space.=94 He grinned. =93Actually, I can. You=92ll have to tell me where to take it= , though.=94 =93You are serious?=94 He nodded. =93Very.=94 =93Very well. Neelix, take Mr. Kent into the cockpit and show him where Voyager is. I will continue to repair the impulse engines.=94 The woman t= ook the device back from Neelix and turned back to the circuitry. Neelix turned to Clark. =93Just follow me.=94 Clark followed Neelix through a door in the forward bulkhead and into another room. This was obviously the cockpit of the Delta Flyer. There were several stations with chairs and a lowered area he remembered seeing when he=92d caught the ship. The Doctor was kneeling over the blond man Cl= ark had seen=97evidently Mr. Paris. He was running a device over Paris and consulting another one. Neelix led him over to one of the stations and pressed controls. A screen beside them lit up with a schematic of a solar system. It had six planets, including one that Clark assumed was the one they were on, and an asteroid belt. Also shown in the diagram was a small ship. =93This is Voyager=92s last known position.=94 Neelix told him. =93We can= =92t get an accurate fix on her because the plasma storm, =93 he indicated a picture on the diagram, =93is disrupting our scans. We can=92t get a fix on the alien ships at all, any more. They seem to have some kind of field that keeps us from getting a lock on them.=94 =93Can I see a larger picture of this ship of yours?=94 Neelix pressed controls and the picture of a ship replaced the diagram of the system. =93This is Voyager.=94 =93Do you have some kind of portable breathing system I can use? I can onl= y hold my breath for twenty minutes.=94 Neelix gave him a startled look. =93Twenty minutes? Sure, we=92ve got por= table breathing units. I=92ll get you one.=94 A beeping from the console in front of them drew their attention. Neelix pressed controls and the image changed from the ship to the hillside they were on. Part of the hill had vanished and a group of uniformed lizard-lik= e aliens were coming out of a large door set into the hillside. They were carrying large, dangerous-looking weapons. =93Seven, we have a problem!=94 Neelix yelled into the back. A moment late= r, Seven appeared through the door and came over to Neelix and Clark to look a= t the screen. =93I have been unable to repair the impulse engines. If you can lift this ship into space, you had best do so now,=94 Seven told Clark. =93Right.=94 Clark turned and nearly bumped into Lois. He took her by the shoulders and kissed her. =93You=92d better find a seat and strap in, hone= y.=20 If there=92re enemy fighters out there I don=92t know how smooth this ride = will be.=94 =93Ok.=94 She smiled up at him. =93Be careful.=94 He nodded and squeezed past her and went out the back. The hatch closed behind him. He went around the side opposite the oncoming aliens and bent to lift the ship. The sound of boots on dirt was getting closer. Just as he began to lift th= e ship, one of the aliens came into sight. It aimed its weapon at Clark and fired. A beam of blue energy jumped from the weapon towards Clark. Clark flung himself into the air and sent a beam of heat vision at the weapon.=20 The beams hit something mid air and dissipated harmlessly less than a foot from the weapon. The alien jerked it up and fired again and once again, Clark dodged agilely. A sound behind him caught his attention and he dodged, trying to avoid two more energy beams. He failed and one of the beams struck him and coiled around him, pinning his arms to his side. The thing flared and he fell, unable to stop himself as the thing drained energy from him. He landed at the feet of two of the aliens, still fighting to free himself from the glowing coil. One alien took aim at him and fired. The last thing he saw was another of the aliens firing at the Delta Flyer. ----------------------------------------------- FREE! The World's Best Email Address @email.com Reserve your name now at http://www.email.com ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 12 Feb 2000 16:32:45 -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: Threads of Confusion: A Tank Ending Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable Threads of Confusion: A Tank Ending Voyager =93Clark! Clark, please wake up!=94 Lois wailed. Tom Paris touched her hand to get her attention. =93I=92m the medical assi= stant on Voyager. Let me see if I can help him.=94 She nodded and stood, taking a step back as Paris examined the body of her husband. After a few minutes, he looked up at her and shook his head. =93= I=92m sorry, Ms. Lane, he=92s dead. There=92s nothing I can do for him.=94 =93No!=94 she wailed. =93What=92s this? What=92s this? One of my prisoners is dead?=94 Their g= uard stepped up to the forcefield that penned them in. =93Oh, goodie! This mea= ns we can dissect him now!=94 Lois gasped in horror as the alien spoke into his com unit. After a few minutes, several more guards came into the room. They conferred with the first guard, then came over to the cell. =93Step back!=94 One commanded them. Seven of Nine, Neelix and Tom Paris backed away from the forcefield in silence as the guards deactivated the field and came into the cell. As one of them bent to lift the body, Lois threw herself at him, but was shoved roughly back. Paris caught her and held her as the guards removed the body from the cell, then reactivated the forcefield. Lois slumped in Tom=92s hold as Clark=92s body was carried out of their sig= ht.=20 Tom lowered her to a sitting position on the hard metal floor as she sobbed= . He exchanged helpless looks with the other Voyager crewmembers. There was a sudden flash of light as someone appeared in the cell with them= . =93Lois Lois Lois! Whatever are you crying for?=94 Lois looked up at the sound of the voice and smiled joyfully. =93Tank! I knew you wouldn=92t leave me here!=94 She jumped to her feet, all signs of her previous grief all but gone, and threw herself at the newcomer. He caught her and they kissed passionately.= =20 =93Of course I came for you, darling! Didn=92t I tell you I=92d always be = there when you needed me?=94 =93Who are you?=94 Tom asked the man. =93I=92m a Q of the Q continuum. You can call me Tank,=94 the man said aft= er he and Lois broke off another passionate kiss. He looked around the cell dispassionately. =93You know, this isn=92t exactly the kind of place Lois should be hanging = out in.=94 He snapped his fingers and the cell was replaced by the bridge of Voyager. All five people from the cell plus a very surprised Doctor were there, standing in various sections of the bridge. Captain Janeway stood when she saw them. The Q, Tank, waved her back to he= r seat. =93Don=92t worry, Captain. Lois and I are just passing through. Yo= ur crewmembers can explain everything to you. Oh, and your airponics bay is full now. You can leave the system at any time. I=92d send you home, but = the continuum has decreed that if I interfere in a story line even one more time, I=92ll be made mortal, and I don=92t think I can deal with that.=94 =93Let=92s get out of here, Tank!=94 Lois demanded. Tank scooped Lois up in his arms and snapped his fingers again. A rip appeared in the air before them. Beyond it, they could see a hilly landscape covered in greenery. Tank started to walk through it, then snapped his fingers. =93Oh, yeah, I almost forgot.=94 He turned toward the viewscreen that showed the planet they had just been o= n a few minutes before and snapped his fingers. Abruptly the planet exploded= , sending debris in every direction. Ignoring the now destroyed planet, he turned and walked through the rip in the air, which sealed behind the two. Metropolis Maggie stood at the top of the Luther Towers. She stared down at the groun= d far below. She had nothing left to live for. Lois and Clark had died in an explosion and Jimmy had vanished. There was really only one thing left that she coul= d do. She jumped. She crashed into the ground and lay there, bleeding through the rents in he= r flesh caused by the impact and the broken bones. She pushed herself up in time to see the sixteen-wheeler bearing down on her. The steamroller behin= d it finished off what the sixteen-wheeler had left behind. The stampede of mammoth=92s that followed the steamroller covered all evidence that anythin= g living had once been there. Stunned passerby=92s stared in shock for a few minutes as the mammoth=92s vanished into the distance. =93Wow! I didn=92t know mammoth=92s existed any more!=94 one commented. A= murmur of agreement rose across the street. Someone else added, =93Much less in t= he numbers needed to make a stampede.=94 An all too familiar whistling sound sounded. As one, the people looked up just in time to see a missile headed for the dirty spot where Maggie had landed. The bright flash of the explosion could be seen from space and obliterated Metropolis. The End So? What do you think? Should I use this as tne real ending, or continue from part 6? Tara "So, we meet again, for the first time, for the last time!" Dark Helmet, Sp= ace Balls ----------------------------------------------- FREE! The World's Best Email Address @email.com Reserve your name now at http://www.email.com ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 12 Feb 2000 13:53:45 -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: Threads of Confusion - a Tank Ending MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Tara, You know that I thought this was very funny but people on this list who don't read Zoom's msg board won't have a clue what that was all about. For the education of those who don't read the boards, one of the board members (Hi, Tank) always complains if stories are too WAFFy. He does it very tongue in cheek and writes some lovely stories as well, but then always demands that other writers maim and kill their characters. It's a running gag and lots of fun! Many of us have started writing 'Tank endings' for our stories where we answer his demands for more WHAMs. That's what Tara's ending was all about. Very funny, once again, Tara. I'm sure Tank appreciates it! Irene ===== Outside of a dog, a book is Man’s best friend. And inside of a dog, it’s too dark to read. Groucho Marx __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Talk to your friends online with Yahoo! Messenger. http://im.yahoo.com ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 12 Feb 2000 22:31:46 -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: Question MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="Windows-1252" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Hey guys! Been catching up on some fanfic and while reading one, a rewrite of Season's Greedings, I was reminded of a question I've wanted to ask since watching the episode. So....what exactly *is* Arbor Day? 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: Sat, 12 Feb 2000 14:51:27 -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 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="Windows-1252" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Hey Mz Rat: It may seem weird, but we USns set aside a day every year for the planting of trees. The exact date varies, not every state recognizes it and it's not an official holiday, but a lot of folks beautify whatever seems appropriate by planting trees on Arbor day. Other folks plant trees whenever they feel like it. Many use the appointed day to plant trees in commemoration of someone or some event. Jude ----- Original Message ----- From: LabRat To: Sent: Saturday, February 12, 2000 2:31 PM Subject: Question > Hey guys! > > Been catching up on some fanfic and while reading one, a rewrite of Season's > Greedings, I was reminded of a question I've wanted to ask since watching > the episode. > > So....what exactly *is* Arbor Day? > > 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: Sat, 12 Feb 2000 18:10:55 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 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit In a message dated 2/12/00 5:47:56 PM Eastern Standard Time, labrat@STARLABS.FSNET.CO.UK writes: << So....what exactly *is* Arbor Day? >> "Arbor Day" is a very, very, minor holiday in the US, designed to have the community planting of trees. It is held in the spring in the states which actually acknowledge its existence. This year it is on April 28. It does not show up on lots of calendars, because it is so unimportant to most people. Apparently around 1900, people in small towns would get together and plant trees in the town square or something. When I was in high school, we needed a good story for the school newspaper, so we decided to get the Student Council to plant a tree on Arbor Day. We then took pictures and had a lovely front page article. The relative insignificance of Arbor Day is what makes Clark so shocked at Lois's comment, I think. Ann ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 12 Feb 2000 18:51:53 EST Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: "Lorie Y. Crisp" Subject: Re: Question MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Aaahhhh......Arbor Day.....the official day for the planting of trees. It's so important, John Denver wrote a song about it.......I think...... Lorie :-) ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 12 Feb 2000 18:57:50 -0500 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Chris Carr Subject: New: Tie Story (1/1) MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1 TITLE: Tie Story PART: 1/1 AUTHOR: Christine Carr (c.carr@virgin.net) RATING: G FEEDBACK: Comments welcome privately or via the fanfic mailing list SUMMARY: A late evening, an angry Lois, and the truth about Clark Kent=92s ties=85 ****** The imperious rap on his front door brought a smile to Clark Kent=92s lips. Only one person knocked like that: Lois Lane, the woman of his dreams, and, if their Almost First Date was any indication, perhaps soon to be more than a dream. Lois=92s knocking grew ever more insistent as Clark put on his glasses and jogged up the few steps that cut off the living area of his apartment from its entrance. Clark knew that knock; Lois was on a mission, though what could have brought her here at ten in the evening was anyone=92s guess. He pulled the door open, and stood back to let her pass. Lois strode in, planted her feet firmly on the floor, six inches apart, placed her clenched fists on her hips, and stared up at him belligerently. Suddenly Clark realised that this was not Lois in her I-am-hot-on-the-trail-of-a-story mode. Nor was it her Clark-I=92m-being-stalked-by-a-psycopath-and-have-come-to-you-for-protection= mode. No, this was Lois in her all-out-rage mode, and it was pointed at him. This was not good, he decided, though what he had done that could possibly have provoked her this time, he had no idea. As far as he was aware, he hadn=92t done anything to antagonise her since, oh, last Monday at 3pm when he=92d made the mistake of mentioning Mayson Drake=92s name within her heari= ng. Clark didn=92t bother to ask Lois what had brought her to his apartment in such high dudgeon, though. He knew her well enough to realise that asking wouldn=92t be necessary; she would tell him soon enough. Indeed, she demanded, "Where is it? You got rid of it, didn=92t you?" Clark=92s eyebrows crawled up his forehead. "Got rid of what, Lois?" Her questions gave him no clue as to what it was she wanted, though he shouldn=92= t have been surprised by that. Lois in full-rant was prone to babbling, even more so than usual, and that babbling sometimes degenerated into riddles. All he could hope was that at some point in the conversation, her random thought processes would gel into some sort of sense. As she continued, however, Clark realised that that wasn=92t going to happen anytime soon. "You started going gooey-eyed over Mayson =96 and what you see in her, I can= =92t even begin to imagine =96 and you haven=92t worn it since. You=92ve cast it= aside like a discarded rag. Yesterday=92s news." "Lois? What are you talking about?" "I bet you don=92t even still have it! I bet you gave it to some thrift sho= p or, worse, threw it out with the garbage." "Thrift shop? Garbage? What=97" Lois gave up her stationary stance and stalked down the steps. Then, to Clark=92s astonishment, she carried on stalking, straight into his bedroom. He trailed after her and watched, fascinated, as she headed directly towards= his wardrobe, threw the door open, and began to rout through his tie rack. After a minute or so she straightened, turned to face him, and said, "Hah! You see! I was right! It=92s not here!" Then Clark was shocked to see Lois=92s shoulders slump and her face crumble.= He walked up to her, reached out to her, wanting to take whatever the cause of her pain was away, and make everything all right again. However, she spun away from him, dodged around him, and bolted back into the living room.= Confused by her behaviour, Clark found himself momentarily frozen to the spot as he tried to make some sense of it. When he emerged a couple of seconds later, Lois was sitting on the sofa, her= head in her hands, crying softly. "Lois?" said Clark softly. "What=92s wrong? What were you doing in there?"= Lois didn=92t say anything, just continued to sob. "Come on," he said. "You can talk to me." "You were my best friend, but now you=92ve moved on. Pastures green, and al= l that?" "Lois, I don=92t know what=92s going on here, but you are my best friend! Nothing can change that." "Not even Mayson Drake?" "Mayson? What=92s she got to do with all this?" Lois shook her head. Clark came to sit down beside her and said, "Lois, can you just start at the= beginning. I want to understand what=92s going on here, and just now I real= ly haven=92t got a clue, so=85" Lois sniffed loudly and nodded. She took at deep breath and said, "It was something that Ralph and Eduardo said. I overheard them talking by the water-cooler this afternoon. Eduardo said, something like =91Jimmy sure get= s through a lot of girls=92 and Ralph replied, =91Yeah. Seems like its a different one every day.=92 Then Eduardo said, =91He seems to tire of them = at the same rate as Clark tires of his old ties=92. Then Ralph said, =91I wond= er what he does with all his cast-offs,=92 and Eduardo said, =91Who, Jimmy or Clark?=92 and then they both started laughing and, as I was walking past, Ralph said, =91I=92d watch out if I were you, Lois=92, and=85" "And?" asked Clark. "I didn=92t think much about it at the time," Lois said. "I mean, your ties= are a standing joke at the Planet. But later, when I got home, I got to thinking=85" "And?" said Clark again. "I gave you a tie for Christmas. And you wore it a couple of times, but I haven=92t seen you wear it since. And I wondered what you=92d done with it.= I mean, if you liked=85 it, you=92d still have it. But you don=92t, do you?" "Well, yeah, I do," said Clark. "No, you don=92t," said Lois. "It=92s not on your tie rack. I thought=85" To his alarm, Clark saw that Lois was beginning to sniffle again. "I thought," she said, struggling to continue, "that if you liked it=85 or i= f you liked me, because it would then have some kind of sentimental value, you=92d have kept it. But you haven=92t." Things were beginning to make sense to Clark at last. This wasn=92t just about a tie. It was also about Lois=92s old insecurities about relationship= s resurfacing as they were wont to do from time to time. "Lois," he said, injecting as much sincerity as he could into his voice, "I loved that tie. It was a great tie. And I still have it, but=85 Lois, I=92m sorry. It was = an accident, I swear." "What was an accident?" Lois asked, her voice muffled by her hands. Clark sighed. "You=92ll see. Wait here a moment. I=92ll be right back." He went into his bedroom and hunkered down by his bedside commode. He pulled out the top drawer and ferreted around until his fingers connected with the object of his search. The silk was smooth under his fingers and he= found himself shaking his head ruefully. What, he wondered, had been the point of keeping such a useless object. The answer to that was easy; it had sentimental value, even if it no longer had value of any other kind. For a moment he held it in his hands, just looking at it. Then he pulled himself to his feet once again, and retraced his steps. Lois looked up at his return. For a moment Clark could see an uprush of joy= suffuse her face as she saw that he really hadn=92t disposed of the tie. Bu= t then she frowned as she looked more carefully at what he was holding, or, to= be more precise, the way he was holding it. The thin end of the tie was held in his left hand and the thicker end in his right, and between them lay, dangling material, frayed ends and=85 empty air. The tie had been ripped in two. Lois blinked a couple of times, then she said, "What happened to it?" "I=92m sorry," said Clark again. "It=92s a problem I have. They keep shredding." He forbore to say that they shredded when he pulled on them too= hard as he spun changed into Superman. "I usually get rid of them, but, as you said, you gave me this one. And that made it special. I couldn=92t bea= r to throw it out." "Oh, Clark=85" Lois=92s mouth was wobbling again, but this time with relief= . "I can=92t believe you kept it!" "Of course I kept it." "So, you don=92t want to cast me aside." "No, of course not!" Then Lois launched herself at him, wrapping her arms tightly around his neck. They hugged. Cuddled. Embraced. Kissed. And generally had a good time. It was only much later that Lois thought to ask again, "Clark=85 What exactl= y did happen to that tie?" ***** END Thanks, I think, to Wendy, who encouraged me to share this piece of fluff with the rest of you! ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 12 Feb 2000 19:08:55 EST Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: "Lorie Y. Crisp" Subject: Re: Threads of Confusion: A Tank Ending MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit ROFLMAO! of course, at first I was thinking "what kind of sicko freak would do this?!" Then I realized it was a joke (I hope). Anyway.....I, for one, would like to put in her two cents worth. I personally like the crossing of Lois and Clark with Voyager; those are two of my favorite shows. And I like the Threads of Confusions stories. I'm interested in reading the REAL ending.....lol SuperLorie:-) (who needs a clever, funny quote with which to end her letters) ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 12 Feb 2000 16:17:43 -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: New: Tie Story (1/1) MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Thanks, Wendy, for encouraging Chris to post this. Chris, I was ROTFL by the time I got to the end. This was really cute. Irene ===== Outside of a dog, a book is Man’s best friend. And inside of a dog, it’s too dark to read. Groucho Marx __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Talk to your friends online with Yahoo! Messenger. http://im.yahoo.com ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 13 Feb 2000 00:18:59 -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: Question MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Thanks everyone! Curiosity now satisfied. LabRat :) ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 12 Feb 2000 19:30:59 -0500 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: Best Vignette Quiz: ANSWERS MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1 The answers to the Best Vignette quiz are: 1: The Best Bargain, by Chris Carr 2: A Life so Changed, by ChrisH 3: And with her strength, I survive, by Erthanngel 4: Just Say... I Love You, by Nan Smith 5: Au Revoir and not Goodbye, by Chris Carr 6: Lessons, by Pam Jernigan 7: Evening Delight, by Pam Jernigan and Chris Mulder 8: The Child Who Fell from the Sky, by Chris Mulder 9: It's as Plain as the Nose..., by Wendy Richards 10: Honesty is the Best Policy, by Tank Wilson 11: The Kiss, by Tank Wilson 12: The Jeep, by Tara Smith This was another tough one, judging by the responses: only Diyan identified all of these - and how you got some of them from the quotes I cannot imagine, Dia!! Others had particular problems with #2 and #9. The scores are as follows: Audrey identified 5 from quotes (10 points)and 3 from the extracts (3 points). One extra point for describing Chris Carr's vignette perfectly even though she couldn't name it; no points for the description on #10 because although it's partially accurate it's not really close enough. Total 14 points. Helene identified 3 from quotes (6 points); 5 from extracts (5 points). Total 11 points. Pam: 3 from quotes (6 points); 4 from extracts (4 points). Total 10 points. Tara: 3 from quotes: total 6 points. Diyan: 11 from quotes (22 points) and 1 from extract (1 point). Total - an amazing 23 points, one less than maximum. As for that story you commented on... well, doesn=92t that prove I make no judgements as to a story=92s merits? ;) Right - now over to Hazel for the final instalment in this partnership's Kerth quizzes. This quiz-setter would like to thank everyone who's taken part, as well as those who haven't submitted answers but who have said they appreciate the reminders of stories they might have forgotten. Don't forget to send in those nomination forms, now!! Wendy ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 12 Feb 2000 19:41:10 -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: Threads of Confusion: A Tank Ending Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Yep, definately a joke. I probably should have explained the 'Tank Ending' thing, but I didn't think of it. Don't worry, there will be a real ending, but I'm nowhere near it right now. There's still a lot of torment I have to put Lois and Clark and Jimmy and Maggie through first :) Tara ------Original Message------ From: "Lorie Y. Crisp" To: LOISCLA-GENERAL-L@LISTSERV.INDIANA.EDU Sent: February 13, 2000 12:08:55 AM GMT Subject: Re: Threads of Confusion: A Tank Ending ROFLMAO! of course, at first I was thinking "what kind of sicko freak would do this?!" Then I realized it was a joke (I hope). Anyway.....I, for one, would like to put in her two cents worth. I personally like the crossing of Lois and Clark with Voyager; those are two of my favorite shows. And I like the Threads of Confusions stories. I'm interested in reading the REAL ending.....lol SuperLorie:-) (who needs a clever, funny quote with which to end her letters) "Boom, baby, boom! I am the evil midnight bomber that bombs at midnight!" the Evil Midnight Bomber from the Tick ----------------------------------------------- FREE! The World's Best Email Address @email.com Reserve your name now at http://www.email.com ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 12 Feb 2000 19:19:29 CST Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Jessi Mounts Subject: Re: New: Tie Story (1/1) Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; format=flowed Oh, perfect! Loved it, loved it, loved it. Don't you dare call something this good a piece of fluff! :-) Jessi jessi914@hotmail.com ______________________________________________________ Get Your Private, Free Email at http://www.hotmail.com ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 13 Feb 2000 12:18:18 +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: New: Tie Story (1/1) In-Reply-To: Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" At 06:57 PM 12/02/2000 -0500, Chris Carr wrote: >TITLE: Tie Story >PART: 1/1 >AUTHOR: Christine Carr (c.carr@virgin.net) I wonder which of the ties this story refers to? (See http://www.chantico.com/alastor/ckties/index.shtml) 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: Sat, 12 Feb 2000 20:32:15 -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: New: Tie Story (1/1) Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Definately a good vignette! You're not allowed to call something this good and WAFFy a piece of fluff. :) Tara (as opposed to Pagimon, which was definately fluff!) ------Original Message------ From: Jessi Mounts To: LOISCLA-GENERAL-L@LISTSERV.INDIANA.EDU Sent: February 13, 2000 1:19:29 AM GMT Subject: Re: New: Tie Story (1/1) Oh, perfect! Loved it, loved it, loved it. Don't you dare call something this good a piece of fluff! :-) Jessi jessi914@hotmail.com ______________________________________________________ Get Your Private, Free Email at http://www.hotmail.com "May the schwartz be with you!" Yogurt, Space Balls ----------------------------------------------- FREE! The World's Best Email Address @email.com Reserve your name now at http://www.email.com ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 12 Feb 2000 20:53:42 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: NEW: The Open Road (1/9) MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Christy, I just finished The Open Road and I loved it just as much as the first one. :) I loved all the little references to L&C, that was great! Now I'm looking forward to part three. Molly ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 12 Feb 2000 21:58:03 -0800 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Amy Lauters Subject: Re: New: Tie Story (1/1) MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Chris -- This was a great story. I loved it! You can try out more of these on me any time! -- Amy ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 13 Feb 2000 04:35:08 -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: Kerth Category Quiz: Krypton/New Krypton Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Well, folks (or FoLCs), this is it: the last Kerth Category Quiz. Wendy and I have enjoyed the journey and the company of all those who came along with us. Don't forget nominations end this week, so I guess we have good timing. :) Little disclaimer thingy: The stories featured in this quiz qualify for the Krypton/New Krypton category in the Kerths this year -- they are either about Krypton, New Krypton, or repercussions relating to NK. They were all uploaded to the archive in 1999. However, these are by no means the only stories on the archive (or elsewhere) that qualify for this category, and this is not a specific recommendation for any of these stories over any others that might also qualify. No offense to any other story or author is intended. :) Quiz rules: The quiz has been divided into two sections: single quotes and excerpts. If you can't get the story from the single quote, then you can scroll down and try the excerpt. When you answer (and DON'T forget the spoiler space!!), let us know if you deserve two points for your answer (if you got it from the quote) or only one point (if you got it from the excerpt.) Feel free to hunt the archive if you're unsure -- no points will be deducted for looking things up. Have fun! One story had NO dialogue whatsoever, so the "quote" is actually a line of prose. You will also note, once again, the hazards inherent in having two quiz-makers instead of one, but I wrote this one before Wendy posted her last two, so don't blame me! ;) Quote 1: "It's no longer possible for me to be two people. I can't disguise myself with a pair of glasses and some loud ties anymore. If Superman is to live to help the people of this world Clark Kent must die!" Quote 2: "What would you tell them? That you are really Kal-El, disguised as Superman and Clark Kent, and that you are from another planet that is more technologically advanced than ours, and that Earth is not the only inhabited planet in the universe?" Quote 3: "Physically, I am excellent, as always, Wife. Mentally, however, I have a conundrum with which I wish to present you." Quote 4: "I couldn't fight as Zara and the other nobles did, the Elite. They stayed in the safety of their palaces and sent the people they owned to do their fighting. They called them Expendables." Quote 5: "Oh no, Lois, it is the nobles' place to prostrate themselves before you and Kal." Quote 6: His world wasn't made up of grand governments or gleaming metropolises or brilliant scientific discoveries, but of loving touches, tender smiles and sweet songs, and they were being denied him. Quote 7: "I don't want memories. I want you." Quote 8: "He's not coming back...he promised me he'd come back...nooo, it's too late..." * * * Try the excerpts below, for one point apiece: S P O I L E R S P A C E EXCERPT 1: "Clark can be 'found' after having suffered these terrible injuries while away on his undercover assignment. We'll say that you were caught in an explosion, try to keep it as close to the truth as possible. Most of your scars and wounds are already healed so we won't have to worry about them. Whatever healing left to do will seem natural. After you've been back long enough to have erased all superficial marks, Superman can make his reappearance and tell the world he is back." "Ah, Lois?" Clark tried to get her attention, but she ignored him; she was on a roll. "This will be a new, slightly different Superman. He will be even more stoic and distant. He will swoop in and save the day," Lois looked comical making her flying motions with her hands and arms, "then he will fly right back out again, being too modest and too busy to hang around and chat." Lois favored Clark with an intense stare. "I mean, it's not like he has to try and impress anyone anymore, does he?" "No, Lois he doesn't. But even if all my other wounds have healed up," he held up his three quarter left arm, "I'm still a little obvious, don't you think?" EXCERPT 2: "Lois, I have something I need to talk to you about." "Uh oh. I'm not going to like it, am I?" "Well ..." "Don't tell me. Your people contacted you and you have to leave." "No..." "You're suddenly feeling guilty about what's her name and you don't want to see me any more." "No..." "You've found someone else here and you want to leave me for her. You want us to just be partners and friends. That's it, isn't it! I knew this would happen! But that's okay. I can accept..." "Lois! I want to marry you!" EXCERPT 3: "Clark," she said, grabbing the front of his shirt. "They're back!" "*Who*?" Clark asked, feeling exasperated, and a little helpless. "Your homeboys, the Kryps from the 'hood, the --" Clark rubbed his temples. "Honey, is this about that 'Yo MTV Rap' nightmare?" Lois, still holding his shirt, dragged him to the doorway, opened the door, and pointed to Trey and his young charges. Trey bowed politely just a second before Lois slammed the door again. "See? They're back!" "Okay, calm down. I'm sure there's a good explanation." Lois folded her arms. "Borrowing sugar? Collecting for the paper?" Clark straightened his shirt. "Why don't we find out?" "Let's not, and say we did." Clark looked at her sympathetically, but sternly. "It'll be fine, Lois. I'm not going *anywhere* with them." Lois nodded. "You're right. It's not like Earth recognizes the Kryptonian draft board." EXCERPT 4: "Things happened to me on New Krypton. Things that changed me." Lois reached up to outline the scar above Clark's right eye. "You mean more than just physical scars, don't you?" "Yes. Things I'm not sure what to do with or how to handle." "We can handle them together, Clark. You are not alone in this. You don't ever have to be alone again." That comment made Clark attempt a smile but his lips were quivering and his try only pulled up one corner of his mouth. Clark reached for the top buttons to begin taking off his shirt. "Let me do it?" Lois asked as she reached for his buttons. Clark relinquished the task and rested his hands at Lois' waist, watching her face as more of his chest was revealed. Lois unbuttoned Clark's shirt and pushed it open at the shoulders, revealing a circular scar on his right shoulder. With a shaky finger, she touched the indentation. EXCERPT 5: At his cry the unicorns sprang forward taking the strain of the sledge with ease and soon the powerful animals settled into a steady gallop as behind them the sleigh glided smoothly over the frozen ground. "Actually, green kryptonite is the source of Krypton's wealth and influence." Kal's laughter subsided as he returned to more serious matters. "The crystal is the only means of powering the hyper-light drives which make inter-planetary travel possible. There are other fuels which are used on shorter journeys but no others are capable of producing speeds to traverse the galaxies. All of the planets in the Confederation use green kryptonite in their ships plus a number of worlds outside the alliance." "And Krypton is the only source?" As Kal nodded in affirmation Lois whistled keenly. "Talk about cornering the market. This green stuff must be worth its weight in gold." "More than gold, Lois. Gold is actually mined on many of the worlds, platinum and diamonds are more rare but kryptonite of any colour is only found on Krypton. And yes, we do make a great deal of money from the trade." EXCERPT 6: There was a voice, then two voices: a "her" voice and a "him" voice, but not the ones he'd always known. Faces came into view, smiled at him and made sympathetic sounds. A hand reached out to touch his. He grasped at a finger, clutching it tightly, and got an encouraging response from the faces. This was all well and good, but he wanted more. He wanted holding, and caressing, and he wanted the song. He also wanted out! His face crumpled in frustrated despair, and the "her" voice became concerned. Hands reached to pick him up and arms cuddled him close, wrapping the blanket more securely around him. He stared at the "her" face above him, pondering it. Not like the "she" he remembered, but the eyes were glowing with love and the smile was tender with sympathy. She was murmuring to him in a tone of voice he recognized, even if there were no recognizable sounds. He reached up a hand to her face and she gently took it into her own, and kissed it. He smiled at the sensation of her lips against his tiny fingers. Here was a feeling he knew. EXCERPT 7: "Lois. . ." Clark said again. She spotted a streak of silver light. Was that, she wondered, the New Kryptonians' spaceship leaving orbit? Or was it a shooting star? In case it was the latter, she silently made a wish. **Please, let him come back to me. Let this be *au revoir*, and not good-bye.** "I love you," he said, and the declaration warmed her. And, in that moment, she knew that, one day, her wish would be granted. The sorrow in Lois's eyes and the downcast set of her mouth eased slightly as she realised two things. First, while she could not contact Clark, he had nonetheless managed to reach out to her across the distance of space and had contacted her. Second, Clark had restored her hope, just when she needed it most. He had sent her the sign that she had been seeking. Lois knew then that she would find the strength to face up to the future. She would endure his absence, and when - when, not if - he finally returned to her, she would be waiting for him, just as she had promised. EXCERPT 8: "It started pretty soon after you left. She became very withdrawn, very quiet. We kept telling her it wouldn't be very long before you came back and everything would be back to normal. At first she believed us, and she kept vigil at that window every night, just watching your star. Your father and I didn't really think anything of it at first. But then she started sitting in there for hours at a time, just watching the sky, and telling herself over and over that she had to be patient, and wait for you to come home. Then one day she didn't come out. I went up there to check on her and that's how I found her. Sitting cross-legged, rocking, and holding that little bear. And she was talking quietly to herself. Saying the same thing over and over." She paused for a moment to let Clark absorb everything. "We called the doctor," his father chimed in, "but he found nothing wrong with her physically. He said her condition was the result of a traumatic event, and the only thing to do was keep her safe and comfortable, and love her. He said there was nothing he could do." Clark knelt at Lois's side again, taking her hand. "My sweet, precious Lois," he whispered, kissing her palm, "please, come back to me." ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 13 Feb 2000 09:09:50 -0500 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: Kerth Category Quiz: Krypton/New Krypton Thanks, Hazel! Great selection, as usual. Okay then.... s p o i l e r s p a c e Extract 1: Love Disabled by Tank Wilson Extract 2: Something to Talk About, by Dawn Field (I knew it was part of Dawn's What If I Never Left Krypton trilogy from the extract, but had to check which one). Quote 3: Blast from the Past Part 2: The Return of Lord Kal-El, by the IRC Round Robin (at least, the quote was from 'Lord Kal-El', the extract was from the first part). Quote 4: Power to Forgive, by Sharon Gilbert Quote 5: Universal Union, by Jenni Debbage Quote 6: The Child who Fell from the Sky, by Chris Mulder Quote 7: Au Revoir and Not Goodbye, by Chris Carr Extract 8: Come Back to Me, by Allison Forbes. What, no Escape from Krypton in this quiz? ;) Wendy ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 13 Feb 2000 09:52:09 -0500 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: "Felix E. Sung" Subject: Re: Kerth Category Quiz: Krypton/New Krypton S P O I L E R S P A C E All right, I'll try this one... On Sun, 13 Feb 2000 04:35:08 -0500, Hazel wrote: >Quote 1: Tank Wilson's "Love Disabled" >Quote 2: Not sure... maybe from Dawn Field's NK trilogy? >Quote 3: IRC RR's "Blast from the Past" >Quote 4: No idea. >Quote 5: Jenni Debbage's "Universal Union" (Book I) >Quote 6: Don't know. >Quote 7: Grrrrr... >Quote 8: ????'s "Come Back to Me" (can't remember the author, sorry!) >* * * > >Try the excerpts below, for one point apiece: > >EXCERPT 2: Now I know: Dawn Field's "Something to Talk About" >EXCERPT 4: Still not a clue. >EXCERPT 6: Stil don't know. >EXCERPT 7: Chris Carr's "Au Revoir and Not Goodbye" (Notice that the title is in the excerpt! :) ) >EXCERPT 8: I still can't remember who wrote this one. Argh! And again, the title is in the excerpt! Hazel, many thanks to you and Wendy for these quizzes. Have you thought of doing them again for the NKerths this summer on Zoomway's board? Felix -- Felix E. Sung fsung@justice.loyola.edu ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 13 Feb 2000 17:00:21 +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: NEW: The Open Road MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Christy, finally a continuation of "The Martha Bums"! You know I have been waiting for this one and I wasn't disappointed! * * * S P O I L E R S P A C E * * * As someone who was privileged to read an early draft of this story, I must say, I was impressed how you managed to straighten it out, without cutting too much back, especially Martha's school and college years and her time on the road. I loved it how you developed the relationship between Jonathan and Martha and how you showed Martha's struggle between her wish to be independent and her growing affection for Jonathan. I also love your portrait of Jonathan. He seems very in character to me and I can very well see the young man you describe develop into the man we all know from the series. Now I can't wait for part three. I want to see them happy! Nicole -- 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: Sun, 13 Feb 2000 12:24:34 -0500 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: Kerth Category Quiz: Krypton/New Krypton On Sun, 13 Feb 2000 09:52:09 -0500, Felix E. Sung wrote: >Hazel, many thanks to you and Wendy for these quizzes. Have you thought of >doing them again for the NKerths this summer on Zoomway's board? Thanks for taking part, Felix! There have been quizzes in the past on the nfic email list (lcnfanfic, which can be joined from www.onelist.com), and it would be a great idea to have some again before the nKerths. But Hazel, as I understand it, doesn't read nfic, and while I do, my interest is more in the longer, dramatic stories rather than vignettes, so I wouldn't be the best person to do it. Any other volunteers, nearer the time? Wendy ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 13 Feb 2000 12:30:32 -0500 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Chris Carr Subject: Re: New: Tie Story (1/1) Thanks very much to the people on and off the list who said that they liked Tie Story. If I can't call it fluff, can I at least call it nonsense? ;) Chris ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 13 Feb 2000 18:32:58 +0100 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: =?iso-8859-1?B?SOls6G5lIFZhcmxldA==?= Subject: Re: Kerth Category Quiz: Krypton/New Krypton MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit Okay, guys, my fuzzy mind didn't seem able to do anything with the quotes, this time, although I've read most of this fics several times... > S > P > O > I > L > E > R > > S > P > A > C > E > > EXCERPT 1: Tank Wilson's "Love disabled", I think > EXCERPT 2: I think that's the second part of Dawn Field's "What if I'd never left Krypton" series... um... what was is called... "Something to talk about" > EXCERPT 3: Oh, I *know* that... > EXCERPT 4: I think that's Sharon Gilbert's "Power to Forgive" > EXCERPT 5: Jenni Debbage's Universal Union > EXCERPT 6: Chris Mulder's "The Child who fell from the Sky", though I had never considered it as a Krypton story, but why not? > EXCERPT 7: Chris Carr's "Au Revoir and not Goodbye" > EXCERPT 8: Boy, I know this one as well... it's something with Lois not realizing that Clark is back because he had promised her he was her husband and then they see a psychiatrist who says Clark has to make love to her so that she comes back to him. As for the title and the author... I can't remember, I'm sorry Hélène :) ----------------------------------------------- Kaethel on IRC / Kaethel79 on AIM kaethel@club-internet.fr "To thine own self, be true" ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 13 Feb 2000 13:04:03 -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: NEW: The Open Road Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="ISO-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Nicole wrote: >finally a continuation of "The Martha Bums"! You know I have been waiting for >this one and I wasn't disappointed! I'm glad :) Thanks to everyone who's posted their feedback for The Open Road. It's been so long since I posted the first story in the Martha Bums series that I was worried it was long forgotten. >Now I can't wait for part three. /me smiles sheepishly. There may be more separation between parts 2 and 3 than there was (1 year) between parts 1 and 2. I have a little bit written- mostly scenes I had originally intended for part 2 but decided would fit better in part 3, plus the last two scenes of the story; sometimes I write backwards. I also have approximately 5 other stories in some stage of creation, so I'll probably finish one of those before writing Part 3. Christy kubitc@kenyon.edu * * * * * * * * * * "Single-mindedness is all very well in cows or baboons; in an animal claiming to belong to the same species as Shakespeare it is simply disgraceful." -Aldous Huxley ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 13 Feb 2000 13:43:50 -0500 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Clarissa Kent Organization: @Home Network Member Subject: Re: Kerth Category Quiz: Krypton/New Krypton MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit S P O I L E R S P A C E Quote 1: Love Disabled by Tank Wilson Quote 3: Blast from the Past - IRC Round Robin Quote 4: Power To Forgive by Sharon L. Gilbert Quote 5: Universal Union Book 1 by Jenni Debbage Quote 6: I Can't remember the title, but this story was great! Quote 7: No idea, but it sounds good. Quote 8: Come Back To Me by Allison K. Forbes ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 13 Feb 2000 19:00:21 GMT Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Diyan Subject: Re: Kerth Category Quiz: Krypton/New Krypton Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; format=flowed Wendy wrote: >and how you got some of them from the quotes I cannot imagine Um, well, I, uh, I reread all the stories uploaded to the Archive in 1999 that were under 30K until I found the right ones. * * s p o i l e r s p a c e * * Okay, here we go (without checking my answers, so I hope they’re right) Quotes: 1. Tank Wilson "Love Disabled" 2. Dawn Field "Something to Talk About" 3. IRC RR "Blast From the Past" 4. Sharon Gilbert "Power to Forgive" 5. Jenni Debbage "Universal Union: Book One" 6. ? 7. Christine Carr "Au revoir. . . and not good-bye" 8. Allison Forbes "Come Back to Me" Excerpts: 6. Chris Mulder "The Child Who Fell From The Sky" ______________________________________________________ Get Your Private, Free Email at http://www.hotmail.com ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 13 Feb 2000 19:04:27 GMT Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Diyan Subject: 2001 Kerth category Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; format=flowed I would like to propose a new Kerth category for the 2001 Kerths: Most Innovative Idea I had some trouble narrowing down my nominations in the ‘original premise’ category. I nominated more stories in that category than in any other category, even after dispatching several to the ‘villain’ and ‘dramatic’ categories. I found myself roughly dividing the remaining stories into two categories One of them fits best with what I understand the ‘original premise’ category to be: stories with a strong A-plot that is not copied or continued from an episode or another story. (Of course, it's possible that I've misunderstood the category) The stories which fall into my other category are stories that use a particularly creative idea or explore an area that has not previously been explored by fanfic. I’ve tentatively named it ‘most innovative idea.’ If we’d had this category this year, I would have nominated Chris’s "Ties that Bind" (who else has made Tempus the protagonist? (twice?)), Nan’s "Dagger of the Mind" (having Clark’s amnesia result from a new blend of Kryptonite was ingenious), and Jenni’s "Master Race" (Lois and Clark don’t usually adopt anyone but the baby from "Family Hour"), to cite a few examples. -Diyan zimri@hotmail.com ______________________________________________________ Get Your Private, Free Email at http://www.hotmail.com ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 13 Feb 2000 17:49:39 -0000 Reply-To: Yvonne Connell Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Yvonne Connell Subject: Re: New: Tie Story (1/1) MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit LOL Chris! That's a hazard of being Superman I never thought of before . Yvonne (yconnell@ukf.net) ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 13 Feb 2000 12:41:30 -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: Goodbye to an old friend MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit I know I'm going OT for a minute, but want to note the death last night of Charles Schultz and the publication today of his farewell Peanuts comic strip. I will miss the gentle humor from these old friends. To go back on topic, sort of, I always saw the character of Lois Lane, as brilliantly created and developed by Teri Hatcher in LAC:TNAOS as Peanuts' Lucy, all grown up mentally and physically but struggling to get there emotionally while carrying a big chip on her shoulder. Hmmm. is there a crossover here? Jude ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 13 Feb 2000 22:20:35 +0100 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Chiara Prato Subject: R: Goodbye to an old friend MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit We'll miss him so much!!!!!! A big kiss Chiara -----Messaggio originale----- Da: Judith Williams A: LOISCLA-GENERAL-L@LISTSERV.INDIANA.EDU Data: domenica 13 febbraio 2000 21.41 Oggetto: Goodbye to an old friend >I know I'm going OT for a minute, but want to note the death last night of >Charles Schultz and the publication today of his farewell Peanuts comic >strip. I will miss the gentle humor from these old friends. To go back on >topic, sort of, I always saw the character of Lois Lane, as brilliantly >created and developed by Teri Hatcher in LAC:TNAOS as Peanuts' Lucy, all >grown up mentally and physically but struggling to get there emotionally >while carrying a big chip on her shoulder. Hmmm. is there a crossover >here? Jude ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 13 Feb 2000 18:14:57 EST Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Laurie Dunn Subject: Re: New: Tie Story (1/1) MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit How can you call it nonsense, Chris, when it answers the question that is etched in all of our minds... " Where, oh where do Clark's ties go?" Good job. LaurieD ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 13 Feb 2000 18:51:12 -0500 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: NEW: 1/1 A Valentine's Rendezvous MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1 In honour of tomorrow=92s =91feast-day=92... This is set in Season 1, ju= st after The Foundling, though I=92ve taken very slight liberties with the timeline in that, while Foundling was first shown on 20 February, I=92m =91pretending=92 that it took place in the week preceding that date. All rights etc belong to those who have the legal right to them. --------------------------------- A Valentine=92s Rendezvous by Wendy Richards Valentine=92s Day. One of the crassest celebrations ever invented, Lois thought savagely as she fought her way through what seemed like armies of dedicated purveyors of romance at the mall. As if it wasn't enough that every single shop in the place had windows full of huge red hearts and pink bows and cute teddy-bears, casual traders were everywhere with their stalls and carts, huge helium balloons floating above them. Lois hated Valentine=92s Day even more than she hated Christmas. It was just= so crassly consumerist, she had decided in her teenage years. Simply another excuse for Hallmark and other such companies to make a fortune - and as for the florists who doubled the price of their flowers and tripled the price of red roses, they were simply opportunist rip-off merchants. In her first year at the Planet, she had written a piece for the Saturday supplement on the fourteenth of February as a cynical marketing device - heck, they even had *kids* sending each other Valentine cards these days! the annoying voice of her conscience pointed out. She grimaced. She hadn=92t *wanted* them anyway - it was a stupid idea.= But every year, reliable as clockwork, all the girls in her class would come into school boasting about how many they=92d received and speculating o= n the identity of the senders... and even Lucy=92s count had extended into double figures by the time she was fifteen. But she'd been at school then; somehow it seemed to her that adults should be more sensible, less prone to such childish stunts. And yet at work that day Cat had sidled up to her, a smug expression on her face as she=92d smile= d at Lois. =93So, Lois, doing anything special tomorrow?=94 =93No, why would I?=94 Lois had retorted, turning away. =93Oh, come on! The most romantic night of the year - you mean you aren=92t spending it with a gorgeous guy who=92ll wine you and dine you, and swear undying... passion for you?=94 Cat had grinned maliciously before continuing. =93Oh, but of course, I forgot... this is *Lois* I=92m talking t= o. You=92re more likely to spend the evening with a computer, aren=92t you?=94 Turning to walk away, her point made, Cat had then added, =93I do hope you=92= ll be happy together, Lois - you and your career, I mean.=94 She=92d cast the older woman a bored glance before tossing her head and walking away, but as she=92d done so Lois had caught sight of Clark, who was= sitting at his desk nearby. It seemed as if her partner had overheard the exchange, for he was looking in Cat=92s direction with an unusually annoyed expression on his face. The last thing she'd wanted was anyone=92s sympathy,= however, so she swept past him and back to her desk. So what if she wasn=92t spending Valentine=92s Day with anyone? she told herself now. It wasn=92t as if there was anyone she wanted to be with, anyway. She just wasn=92t interested in men.... Except one. One man she had fallen head over heels in love with the very first time she=92d seen him. One man who somehow made every other man she=92= d met seem insignificant. One man who was just... perfect. And who was maddeningly, completely out of her reach. Oh, he cared about her, he'd made that clear on several occasions. He seemed to see her as a friend, and he=92d even kissed her once, though that had - sadly - only been because he was under the influence of a pheromone. But he didn=92t confide in her, and she was forced to conclude that he didn=92= t really trust her. He'd never told her his real name, just told her, when she=92d asked, that Superman - the name she=92d coined for him - seemed to h= ave caught on. He never told her anything personal about himself. And even just the other day, when she=92d given him his globe back, he'd said nothing abou= t what it was or what significance it had for him. One-sided love was such a painful thing, she mused, trying not to look at all the cards and heart-shaped chocolate boxes on the displays. But on the other hand, had she ever tried to tell Superman how she felt? How did she know he felt nothing for her in return? That kiss... that pheromone, she remembered suddenly. She and Clark had concluded in the end that it only worked where there was some underlying attraction there to begin with. that annoying little voice interjected again, but she brushed it aside. Superman had swallowed the full-strength version of the spray that day at the airport. He had then declared that he loved her, and kissed her like she had never been kissed, before or since - if he hadn=92t been holding her at the time, her legs woul= d simply not have held her up. She knew it had been the pheromone, because he would never had made such overt advances to her without it. But... if it was the pheromone, then he *had* to be attracted to her! And if he was attracted to her... why didn=92t= he do anything about it? Why didn=92t he...? Suddenly she remembered something Clark had said to her,= the evening of the charity auction when she=92d failed to buy the date with Superman. =91Have you ever thought that Superman might be afraid to show his= true feelings?=92 Clark had asked. At the time, she had been vaguely comforted by those words, but she hadn=92t given the idea much thought since= . But... could it be true? And if it was... what could she do about it? Tell him how she felt, she thought with sudden resolve. It was Valentine=92s= Day the next day: the perfect opportunity. If she could find him, that was.... On impulse, she marched into the nearest card shop and bought the most romantic Valentine card she could find. *************** Driving to work the following morning, Lois was regretting her impulse of the previous evening. What made her think that Superman would be remotely interested in her romantically? And how on earth was she planning on getting the card to him, anyway? It wasn't as if she could simply put it in a mailbox addressed to =91Superman, Metropolis.=92 And if she did, and it somehow got to him, how many other thousands of women would have done the same thing? No, it was a crazy idea. She might as well tear up the card and throw it in the trash, she decided. As she marched down the ramp into the bullpen, she noticed several of her colleagues giving her strange looks. Wondering whether she was wearing odd shoes or snagged pantyhose, or even whether the buttons of her blouse were askew, she thought of fleeing to the ladies=92 room to check; but then her gaze was caught by a blaze of colour on her desk. Red. Deep red... crimson. The colour of red roses. They were red roses. A dozen of them - no, ten of them, she realised as she reached her desk; she dropped her coat and bag in amazement as she stared at the arrangement. And they were fresh: these had not come from any florist. Drops of dew still gleamed on their petals. A card was propped up in front of the vase, the envelope addressed to =91Lois Lane.=92 Ten roses; that was a strange number. Out of the corner of her eye she could see Cat surreptitiously watching her, a disbelieving expression on the older woman=92s face. Lois couldn=92t blame her: the idea that someone would send her roses was almost too weird to be true. She ripped the envelope open and stared at the unfamiliar script on the plain white card within. =91To Lois, who will always be special to me - One rose for every month since we met. An Admirer.=92 She turned the card over, but the reverse was blank. There was no other clue as to the sender. Ten roses... ten months. She counted back... last May. Who had she met for the first time last May who would send her flowers? May. The stolen car ring. The Messenger explosion... the Prometheus space station. Superman! But... Superman wouldn=92t send her red roses... would he? She slid into her chair, trying to quell the instant thrill she felt at the possibility. No - there had to be someone else. Lex... she=92d also met Lex Luthor then for the first time, at the White Orchid Ball. And, she had to admit, this was certainly in Lex=92s style. But if it was Lex, he would follow it up in some way. But did she want him to, if it was? If she was honest with herself... no. She knew Lex found her attractive, and in fact he'd asked her out a couple of times now. Although she had been on at least one date with him, there was always a nagging suspicion in the back of her mind that his interest in her wasn=92t entirely motivated by admiration; he=92d be a dangerous man to cross, and perhaps even more dangerous to get involved with. And anyway, she wasn=92t in love with him. She never felt, with Lex, any desire to forget her inhibitions, to abandon herself to his kisses - and the thought of going to bed with him had never even crossed her mind, she realised suddenly. So if her admirer was Lex, then what would she do? She pushed that thought aside; after all, it might not be. There was still Superman. But how was she going to find out? Jimmy rushed up to her desk, disturbing her contemplation. =93Hey, Lois, thi= s just came for you!=94 he exclaimed, pushing an envelope into her hand. =93Ni= ce flowers, by the way - he must be crazy about you!=94 Lois waved him away, only opening the envelope once he=92d gone. Inside was = a plain sheet of white paper, with no distinguishing marks whatsoever, but on it was a message in the same handwriting. =93Lois - I hope you liked my surprise. If you want to know more, meet me tonight - Daily Planet roof, 8pm. An Admirer.=92 She lowered the paper to her desk, staring blankly into space. The Daily Planet roof? What did that suggest...? Lex would never suggest that - he=92d= send a car to her apartment, sweep her off to his penthouse or to the best table in the most expensive restaurant in town. No, it couldn=92t be Lex. She was amazed at the sense of relief she felt at that conclusion. So... could it be Superman? Getting onto the roof would be no problem at all for him. But if it was Superman, why hadn=92t he just said he=92d meet h= er at her apartment? It was at that point that Lois began to wonder whether this wasn=92t all jus= t an elaborate set-up. It wouldn=92t, after all, be the first time that someon= e she=92d been responsible for putting in prison, or whose career she had brought down by one of her investigations, had tried to harm her in some way. What if it was? What if she turned up on the Planet roof that evening and some crazed madman tried to push her off? Sure, she could always yell =91Help, Superman!=92 but there was no guarantee that he=92d get there = on time. =93You okay, Lois?=94 a concerned voice asked softly, and she turned to see Clark Kent bearing his usual good-morning tokens, a mug of coffee and her favourite doughnut. He laid them on her desk and hovered, awaiting an answer. She was about to brush him off with a non-committal answer, but something about his concerned expression stopped her. This, after all, was the guy who had saved her life a few weeks ago, who had held her in his arms on her kitchen floor after that crazy master of disguise had tried to strangle her. The man she had pleaded with to stay, not to leave her. Looking at Clark then, seeing an echo of the caring, worried look he=92d worn then in his expression now, she suddenly wanted to confide in him. =93See this,=94 she told him, gesturing towards the note. He read it quickly over her shoulder, then glanced back at her. =93This is a= problem?=94 She shrugged. =93Tell me I=92m being paranoid if you like, Clark, but it see= ms weird. Why the Planet roof? Who=92d want to meet up there? Superman, maybe, but why would Superman send me roses - I mean, the guy could have any woman he wants!=94 She broke off quickly, not wanting Clark to detect her yearning. =93Anyway, I was just a bit... well, what if it=92s someone wantin= g to get revenge on me?=94 He was silent for a moment or two, then he offered hesitantly, =93I=92m not doing anything tonight, Lois - if you want, I could hide up there and keep an eye on you. When your... =91admirer=92 turns up, if it=92s someone you wa= nt to be with, I=92ll just disappear.=94 Lois stared at him. =93You=92d do that for me?=94 He seemed surprised. =93Of course.=94 Clark as her protector? Remembering the way he=92d dropped his pencil at least twice in yesterday=92s staff meeting and had taken ages to find it again, her initial response was to be sceptical. But then she remembered again his concern for her safety over the Winninger murder; he really had gone to a lot of trouble to watch out for her safety, and he had saved her life. On impulse then, she reached for his hand and squeezed it. =93Thanks, Clark. That=92s really nice of you.=94 When he=92d gone back to his own desk, she tried to focus on work but instea= d began to tap her pencil against the edge of her desk. Clark really was a pretty nice guy. Okay, they=92d had their ups and downs, and she was still a= little mad at him for lying to her over the burglary at his apartment - she couldn=92t understand why he would have done that. But he was... nice. Maybe, if this thing was just a trick after all, she=92d ask him to go for a= drink with her later on. **************** It was cold up on the roof, and dark. Lois shivered a little even wrapped in her overcoat, and checked her watch for the tenth time since she=92d emerged from the stairwell. Clark was already up there somewhere, probably hiding behind one of the ventilation shafts, she assumed; he=92d stopped by her desk about ten minutes earlier to tell her he was on his way up. She=92d= gone home earlier to change clothes, but had been back in the newsroom for about half an hour, finishing up a story. So when was her =91Admirer=92 going to show up? And how was he going to arrive? Out through the stairwell... or by helicopter, perhaps? Or under his own steam.... She searched the night sky; nothing but stars and the lights of the city. =93Oh, this is ridiculous!=94 she muttered suddenly. She wasn=92t going to h= ang around any longer - someone was obviously playing a practical joke on her. Cat, most likely, and how Ms Grant would laugh if she knew that Lois had actually taken the bait and was standing around on the Planet roof like a lemon. She was about to stalk off towards the stairwell door when suddenly there was a sound, almost like rushing wind. She froze. =93Lois?=94 That voice... she recognised it! And... she swung around, searching. Where was it coming from? =93Yes...?=94 she called in reply. Where was he? =93I=92m glad you came.=94 This time the deep tones were unmistakeable. She caught her breath. =93Thank you for the roses. They=92re beautiful.=94 =93I=92m glad you like them,=94 he replied, and she swivelled around as this= time the voice was coming from somewhere else. He was managing to keep himself hidden extremely well as he circled the roof, staying behind her all the time. =93Why don=92t you come over here where I can see you?=94 she asked softly, turning in the direction of his voice again, wanting... *needing* to see him to convince herself that this was real, that it really was the man who she=92d been hoping had sent her the roses and those notes. =93In a minute, Lois,=94 he answered, and again the voice came from behind h= er. =93Why did you send me the flowers?=94 she asked him. This time his voice held a note of amusement. =93Why do you think? It=92s Valentine=92s Day, Lois - isn=92t that what people do on Valentine=92s Day?=94= =93Only if... if they mean it,=94 she answered, her breath caught in her thr= oat. =93And you think I don=92t?=94 His voice was soft, a questioning note in it.= =93I... wasn=92t sure,=94 she told the darkness. =93I mean it,=94 he said, his tone more assured this time. =93Then... come here and let me see you,=94 she asked, unsure why he was insisting on hiding himself from her. It wasn=92t like him to be quite so shy, so unsure of himself. Okay, at times in the ten months she=92d known hi= m he had seemed awkward in her company, sometimes leaving abruptly if things threatened to get a little too personal. But this... this was different, surely. He=92d declared himself now by sending those flowers, by telling her= she was special, by meeting her like this. =93Close your eyes,=94 he instructed softly. Lois obeyed, feeling a little thrill at this intrigue he was indulging in. It was all part of the magic of the occasion: the flowers, unsigned; the strange location for their meeting; his lurking in the dark even though she was now very sure that she knew who he was. She heard the soft footsteps, the rustle of his garments; felt his presence as he stopped in front of her. =93No peeking, now,=94 came the low whisper o= f his voice; his breath was warm on her chilly face. She waited, breathless with anticipation. Then she felt warm lips on hers, a kiss which was beautiful in its sweetness, devastating in its effect even though it wasn=92t particularly passionate; it was a declaration of something, though; the same declaration which the red roses had made. Yes, she knew those lips from the way their owner kissed her: she had been right. She had known who her secret admirer was. As the card had suggested, someone she=92d met first last May; someone who thought she was special to him. And it was someone she trusted implicitly: she would go anywhere with him and feel safe. She didn=92t need = a protector with this man. As the kiss ended and her admirer stepped back, Lois fumbled in the large pocket of her coat, glad now that she=92d given in to the impulse she=92d ha= d before leaving home. She pulled out the Valentine=92s Day card she'd bought the night before and which she=92d written before leaving home so that she could give it to him. Opening her eyes and smiling up at him, she held out the card. =93Happy Valentine=92s Day, Clark.=94 His eyes widened as he accepted the card from her; obviously he=92d been expecting her to be disappointed that it was him. She linked her arm through his, leaning into his warm body; instantly he looped his arm around her shoulders instead, holding her close. =93You guessed it was me?=94 She raised an eyebrow in a challenging manner. =93Lois Lane, top investigative reporter? You think I wouldn=92t?=94 No need to tell him that = it had been a dawning realisation in the car on her way home to get changed: that she had also known *Clark* for ten months, that she knew he admired her, that he'd told her once that he thought she was a very special person. And that he=92d overheard her conversation with Cat. She=92d half-thought he'd arranged this - sent her the flowers, the note - because he felt sorry for her, because he wanted Cat to know that she'd been wrong about Lois not having anyone to be with. But when he=92d spoken t= o her through the darkness, she=92d known that sympathy had nothing to do with= why Clark had done this. And mere curiosity had nothing to do with why she was here with him, and why she=92d given him the card. She could no longer fool herself where Clark= was concerned; she was falling in love with him. Okay, he wasn=92t Superman = - but who was? But he was reliable, caring, gentle, loyal and the best friend she=92d ever had. And his kisses had the power to drive her insane; even though her focus on a man who was unattainable had led her to overlook that fact, it was undeniable once she remembered the small number of occasions on which they had kissed. As for Superman - oh, she would always have feelings for him, but although he was clearly fond of her, her musings on the way home had led her to realise that even if he did feel the same way about her as she did, they could never have a relationship. Wanting to be Superman=92s girlfriend was like wishing for the moon - he was out of her reach, and even if she got her wish she was unlikely to be satisfied with the outcome. Whereas Clark... with Clark she could have a real relationship, with a man she could feel equal to rather than inadequate next to. They could do all the things couples do. And best of all, she felt sure that she could trust Clark to be open with her. If she hadn=92t been dazzled by Superman, she had accepted as she=92d got ready, she probably would have fallen in love with Clark a long time ago. But thanks to the fact that he=92d now made the first move, they could make up for lost time. There was just one thing, though.... =93Clark - just how did you manage to keep behind me all the time without me seeing you move?=94 His faint laughter came to her through the darkness, and he moved a little ahead of her to open the door, gesturing her to go in front of him. =93I=92l= l tell you later, perhaps. For now... may I take my Valentine out to dinner?=94= - The End - ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 13 Feb 2000 19:06:06 -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 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Wendy, oh i just loved the wee little romantic fic , and i never guessed that she had guessed that it was Clark, duh... oh well glad to see this and many more in the future yes??? Marnie ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 13 Feb 2000 16:38:31 -0800 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Melisma Subject: Re: NEW: 1/1 A Valentine's Rendezvous In-Reply-To: Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" OH WENDY!!!! ...I absolutely *loved* this one :) I wish it had happened just like this on the show, instead of all that messing about, wasting time, that TPTB did... Guys, if you have not read this, WHAT THE HELL you waiting for? Go read it NOW!!!! Melisma (sniffling under her rock, slowly recovering from this beautiful vignette, and proud, very proud, to be a Wendy's Number One Fan...) ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 13 Feb 2000 17:40:09 -0700 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Sheila Harper Subject: OT: Broken Hearts Club review Comments: To: LoisandClarkNAOS@onelist.com MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: multipart/alternative; boundary="----=_NextPart_000_0017_01BF7649.5FB12BC0" This is a multi-part message in MIME format. ------=_NextPart_000_0017_01BF7649.5FB12BC0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable "The Broken Hearts Club" (Rating: 4 stars out of 5) I didn't know what to expect from this film when I sat in the Eccles = Theater listening to Greg Berlanti's pre-screening speech and = introductions. I'd heard it compared to "Diner," but that didn't help = because I'd never seen that movie either, and a picture about gay = lifestyles just didn't sound interesting to me. I figured I'd just enjoy = watching Dean during his scenes and hoped his part was big enough to get = through the next two hours. When my friend expressed qualms about the subject matter, Dean assured = her that she wouldn't be concerned about it by the time she was five = minutes into the picture--and that was certainly true for me. From the = moment Dennis took the picture of his three friends checking out the = "meanwhile" (eminently droolable hunk) who just went by, I had forgotten = that I thought the subject was boring and might make me squirm. Instead, = I was giggling (and later, howling with laughter--not just a quiet smile = that says, "Oh, that was cute") and getting interested in these guys' = lives and finding myself remembering lines after the first hearing. No = wonder Dean commented on the quality of the writing during the Q&A = session; no wonder he told me that the cast quoted funny lines to each = other. Six friends, all different and so clearly drawn that you could = never mistake one character's line of dialog for another's. And unlike = some movies that were supposed to be very funny comedies--but weren't, = this one kept me laughing the whole time--except those moments when my = heart was breaking. I'll describe the setup, then summarize the rest of = the story. It opens with a black screen on which is written a definition of = "meanwhile"--from a gay perspective. Then we cut to a busy coffee shop = where four of the friends are talking: Benji (Zach Braff), a thin, = spiky-haired young man who is always being teased about liking guys on = steroids because he drools over hard bodies; Howie (Matt McGrath), a = short, psych student with glasses who doesn't want to settle down with = the guy who loves him; Patrick (Ben Weber), a tall guy with thinning, = curly brown hair, who is really hung up on his average appearance ("On a = good day, if the other guy's drunk enough, I'm a 6 in a world of 10s = looking for an 11"); and Dennis (Tim Olyphant), who is tall and = nice-looking and wants to be a professional photographer but is = beginning to realize that he isn't good at anything except being gay. It = is Dennis's 28th birthday, and his friends give him a relationship book. = He takes their picture--but just before he releases the shutter, a cute = guy goes by on a bike. One of the three calls, "Meanwhile!" and the = other two turn to look. So when Dennis takes the pic, his friends are = looking away with funny expressions on their faces.=20 Titles followed, with several scenes intercut: Dennis taking pictures = around West Hollywood; Howie and Patrick shopping for a housewarming = gift for Patrick's lesbian sister; and Cole (Dean), who is trying to = break into the industry as an actor, breaking up with his blond = boyfriend at the restaurant that is the guys' home-away-from-home. I = have to admit that I nearly choked when Cole earnestly said that their = time together was among the best moments in his dating career. Whoa! I = hadn't learned enough about Cole yet to differentiate him from Dean, and = I wasn't quite ready to plunge into seeing him as a gay man. However, = the title sequence introduced a lot of information about the characters: = besides Dennis's love for photography, we saw Cole reading his "dear = John" speech from the palm of his hand, and we learned that Howie (and = the others) want to be generally perceived as straight, even though = they're gay. The scene in the housewares' department where Patrick = grabbed total strangers and asked them if Howie was straight or gay was = hysterical. The next scene is at the Jack of Broken Hearts, the restaurant/lounge = owned by Jack (John Mahoney), who was a Shakespearean-trained stage = actor for years until he retired with his little restaurant. He has a = very long-term relationship with the man who plays piano at the = restaurant, known to the younger men only as Purple Guy. Cole is getting = a bite to eat in the kitchen before going to work (waiting tables, we = assume). Taylor (Billy Potter), a short, pudgy black man who is in a = long-term relationship and proud of it, chews him out for bringing his = boyfriend to the restaurant to break up with him. Dennis also arrives to = start his shift and we learn that Dennis and Cole are housemates and = that Jack is catering Dennis's birthday party later that evening. We = also find out that Jack sponsors and coaches a softball team, the Broken = Hearts, and that it's the worst team in the league. At the party, Cole is talking with a younger man, Kevin (Andrew Keegan), = a "newbie" to the gay world (defined on-screen like "meanwhile"), who = came to the party with Benji. Benji goes to join the rest of his friends = where they discuss how unfair it is that their dates totally ignore them = if Cole gives them his attention. This was an interesting series of = scenes. I *recognized* how the guys acted a lot of the time--just like = girls in high school, peeking out from behind a door in the kitchen to = see a cute guy that they like and quickly closing the door so he won't = catch them looking, talking cattily about the really beautiful, popular = girl who seems to snag all the guys. It was so weird because four of the = guys kept flip-flopping between what I had always perceived as male = actions and attitudes and female ones. Two didn't change: Taylor always = acted in what I saw as a feminine way--his voice, his walk, his tastes, = etc. And Cole always acted very masculine, other than the fact that he = hit on males instead of females--he was athletic and interested in guy = things and didn't sit around talking about his feelings--and the other = four guys envied him for it. He made the whole "being gay" thing seem so = easy. The Variety reviewer didn't think that the friendship between the six = seemed either generous or deep, but what I saw were six men who could = talk to each other and who were "there" for the others when they needed = someone. Even Cole, who spent his time listening to the other guys talk = about their feelings rather than sharing his own, immediately came to = his friends when they were hurt, even when his dishevelment made it = pretty obvious what the call or page had interrupted. That reviewer also said that BHC *celebrated* the superficiality of the = West Hollywood gay culture, and, again, I didn't see it. Maybe I haven't = seen enough gay films (none, in fact), but I sat in the movie distressed = by these guys' original lifestyles, not because I'm straight and they're = not, but because their sexual relationships were so pointless. I would = have felt the same about a group of straight guys whose entire lives = were given over to the pursuit of parties and one-night-stands. Nothing = that I saw in the movie made me think that this lifestyle was supposed = to be a good thing, so I didn't see any celebration of it. And when I = walked away from the movie, I felt like the characters had not only seen = the superficiality of their lifestyles but were mostly trying to do = something change them--or at least taken a first step toward it. The Variety reviewer's comment, "So, these four best friends pushing = 30--the horror, the horror," also seemed like he was expressing his own = feelings rather than what the movie was showing. No one was bemoaning = their age, approaching age, or aging appearance. Only Patrick was hung = up on not being able to get guys because he wasn't attractive = enough--and that didn't seem to be an age-related thing at all. In fact, = the person in the show who is shown as having it all together is Jack, = who is an old man. He's also the person who "does the de rigueur drag = performance bits," as the reviewer called them, but I saw that scene as = a send-up of gay "drag" performances.=20 The reviewer's mention of "rote exclamations of 'Miss Thing' and 'Oh = Mary'" had me at a loss since I'd never noticed them. Maybe you have to = be really familiar with the vocabulary to catch all those things. That = may also be why the reviewer calls this formulaic and = stereotypical--apparently he's very familiar with either gay films or = gay culture, and as part of the mainstream audience this film is aimed = at, I'm familiar with neither. I'd have thought the story was more = stereotypical if everyone had changed and matured as a result of the = events the characters go through, but I thought Berlanti avoided that = trap pretty well. I also disagreed with the reviewer's assessment of the = comic scenes in the amateur softball games as "offensively retro." Sure, = I wondered if gays would think that they were being stereotyped when = most of the guys were helpless sissies on the field. But I thought it = was balanced out by Dennis's competence and Cole's athleticism, which is = why the scene with Cole trying to pick up the catcher for the Hollywood = Firemen's team worked so well. Stereotypical or offensively retro or = not, the whole softball game was ROTFLMAO funny. I could hardly get a = breath for laughing so much. BTW, that's one of the reasons I definitely = wanted to see BHC a second time--I wanted to try to catch all the = dialogue I was laughing across the top of. Lest you think I disagreed with everything the Variety reviewer said, I = did agree that the professional cast was "personable and naturalistic," = that the movie was "slick and well-acted" with a "lively enough" pace = and a "smoothly handled" tech package. I found the characters' lines = more than just "tart" or "barbed one-liners": they made me laugh, and = they made me remember them when I don't remember things I hear very = well. I think most of us would enjoy seeing this movie, even if only for = a humorous look into a foreign lifestyle.=20 Besides, Dean did a great job of making me believe he was Cole. He = didn't act "gay" like the other guys; he had to pull it off without = being able to act effeminate or walk "prissy." Yet, he made me believe = that a man could be athletic and reserved about sharing his feelings and = unaware of colors and interior decorating (face it, the way most of our = husbands are) and still be sexually attracted to men. So that's one of = the things Melody and I disagreed about. One of my chief memories from the trip will be seeing Dean smile and = tell me that he's confident enough of his masculinity and of his = intelligence to take on a role of a gorgeous, dumb, gay guy. In that = moment, I realized what Zoom had meant by actors being typecast, that = just the name and job descriptions change while the character stays the = same. More than even his sexual orientation, Cole's intelligence (or = lack of it) signaled that he was an entirely different character than I = had ever seen Dean play, and in some ways, that was harder for me to = watch than Cole being gay. In the following section, I'm going to mention the arcs each character = goes through, and those of you who don't want to know how things work = out will want to stop here. s p o i l e r s p a c e The rest of the movie looks at the changes the six friends undergo. = Dennis realizes that he wants something more than a string of = meaningless sexual encounters, which is why he gives his party guest the = "cut-bait treatment" referred to in the Variety review, but when he = finds the right person, he finally realizes that he needs to *be* the = right person, too. That's why he decides to leave Kevin behind while he = goes to Europe to work on his photography. I feel like the Variety = reviewer missed the whole point of that: Dennis dumped the guest = *before* they had sex, not afterwards, and he left Kevin behind so he = could work on learning who he was as a *person,* not just as a gay man.=20 Through a very funny subplot involving his lesbian sister, her = argumentative partner, and artificial insemination, Patrick becomes = involved in parenthood and learns to look at something bigger than his = own lack of self-esteem.=20 Howie keeps looking for greener pastures than the friend/partner he has = and makes his way through guilt and jealousy to learn to value his = friend. But it isn't a "settling for second best" sort of choice. Howie = had somehow imagined that the world was full of wonderful gay men who = were incredibly handsome and interesting and sexy, which he finds out = isn't true. He realizes that he really loves his friend--who has always = loved him. Taylor slowly recovers from being dumped by his partner, but we really = don't see him pick up his life and go on. He doesn't look for anyone = else--we just see him progressing through various stages of grieving (as = enumerated by Howie). Taylor and Benji seemed to be the least = fleshed-out characters in the group. Benji feels that his friends have abandoned him when he starts hanging = out with a gym bunny and *his* friends, and he makes some telling = comments about how miserable the guys are when they're together--as if = being together is an excuse to focus on the things they dislike in their = lives. However, his new friends, who laugh and have fun together, get = him involved in drugs but are nowhere to be found when he's in trouble. = The other five guys all show up, and he sees who his real friends are. = This was the most sitcom-ish subplot in the movie. Cole's subplot is interesting but in some ways ultimately unresolved. He = is established as being gorgeous but dumb, yet able to get any guy he = wants. We see his dating habits contrasted with Dennis's (Cole prefers = even short-term relationships to one-night-stands, always hoping the = next guy will be "the one"), and Dennis points out that Cole's = ex-boyfriends never hate him, although Cole says, "I would hate me," if = he was in their position.=20 Cole isn't making enough as an actor to live on, although he's getting = work. When he finally gets a part as a day-player (a few lines and a lot = of standing around adding to the scene) on a movie with a handsome movie = star who is rumored to be gay (although married), he again proves that = he can get any guy he wants. However, the movie star dumps his = "pretty-boy extra" so callously that Cole's careful break-up speeches = seem like the height of consideration and love. Cole is devastated (and = I was so sory for him), but unlike his friends, he doesn't share it at = all. In fact, he doesn't even let them know that he slept with the = star--or even that the star is gay. Instead, he puts on a smiling face = and joins them at the restaurant, finding comfort in the fact that they = like him as he is. He also looks for comfort in his normal fashion, = immediately setting out to seduce Kevin, not knowing that Dennis and = Kevin had gotten together during his on-location shoot. So, by the end = of the movie, Cole has gotten a taste of what he does to his boyfriends, = but I don't know that it changed him. In fact, given that his character = was established as not being very smart, any major change might have = been out of character. All in all, though, a fun way to spend two hours. Sheila ------=_NextPart_000_0017_01BF7649.5FB12BC0 Content-Type: text/html; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable

"The Broken Hearts Club"

(Rating: 4 stars out of 5)

I didn't know what to expect from this film when I sat in the Eccles = Theater=20 listening to Greg Berlanti's pre-screening speech and introductions. I'd = heard=20 it compared to "Diner," but that didn't help because I'd never seen that = movie=20 either, and a picture about gay lifestyles just didn't sound interesting = to me.=20 I figured I'd just enjoy watching Dean during his scenes and hoped his = part was=20 big enough to get through the next two hours.

When my friend expressed qualms about the subject matter, Dean = assured her=20 that she wouldn't be concerned about it by the time she was five minutes = into=20 the picture--and that was certainly true for me. From the moment Dennis = took the=20 picture of his three friends checking out the "meanwhile" (eminently = droolable=20 hunk) who just went by, I had forgotten that I thought the subject was = boring=20 and might make me squirm. Instead, I was giggling (and later, howling = with=20 laughter--not just a quiet smile that says, "Oh, that was cute") and = getting=20 interested in these guys' lives and finding myself remembering lines = after the=20 first hearing. No wonder Dean commented on the quality of the writing = during the=20 Q&A session; no wonder he told me that the cast quoted funny lines = to each=20 other. Six friends, all different and so clearly drawn that you could = never=20 mistake one character's line of dialog for another's. And unlike some = movies=20 that were supposed to be very funny comedies--but weren't, this one kept = me=20 laughing the whole time--except those moments when my heart was = breaking. I'll=20 describe the setup, then summarize the rest of the story.

It opens with a black screen on which is written a definition of=20 "meanwhile"--from a gay perspective. Then we cut to a busy coffee shop = where=20 four of the friends are talking: Benji (Zach Braff), a thin, = spiky-haired young=20 man who is always being teased about liking guys on steroids because he = drools=20 over hard bodies; Howie (Matt McGrath), a short, psych student with = glasses who=20 doesn't want to settle down with the guy who loves him; Patrick (Ben = Weber), a=20 tall guy with thinning, curly brown hair, who is really hung up on his = average=20 appearance ("On a good day, if the other guy's drunk enough, I'm a 6 in = a world=20 of 10s looking for an 11"); and Dennis (Tim Olyphant), who is tall and=20 nice-looking and wants to be a professional photographer but is = beginning to=20 realize that he isn't good at anything except being gay. It is Dennis's = 28th=20 birthday, and his friends give him a relationship book. He takes their=20 picture--but just before he releases the shutter, a cute guy goes by on = a bike.=20 One of the three calls, "Meanwhile!" and the other two turn to look. So = when=20 Dennis takes the pic, his friends are looking away with funny = expressions on=20 their faces.

Titles followed, with several scenes intercut: Dennis taking pictures = around=20 West Hollywood; Howie and Patrick shopping for a housewarming gift for = Patrick's=20 lesbian sister; and Cole (Dean), who is trying to break into the = industry as an=20 actor, breaking up with his blond boyfriend at the restaurant that is = the guys'=20 home-away-from-home. I have to admit that I nearly choked when Cole = earnestly=20 said that their time together was among the best moments in his dating = career.=20 Whoa! I hadn't learned enough about Cole yet to differentiate him from = Dean, and=20 I wasn't quite ready to plunge into seeing him as a gay man. However, = the title=20 sequence introduced a lot of information about the characters: besides = Dennis's=20 love for photography, we saw Cole reading his "dear John" speech from = the palm=20 of his hand, and we learned that Howie (and the others) want to be = generally=20 perceived as straight, even though they're gay. The scene in the = housewares'=20 department where Patrick grabbed total strangers and asked them if Howie = was=20 straight or gay was hysterical.

The next scene is at the Jack of Broken Hearts, the restaurant/lounge = owned=20 by Jack (John Mahoney), who was a Shakespearean-trained stage actor for = years=20 until he retired with his little restaurant. He has a very long-term=20 relationship with the man who plays piano at the restaurant, known to = the=20 younger men only as Purple Guy. Cole is getting a bite to eat in the = kitchen=20 before going to work (waiting tables, we assume). Taylor (Billy Potter), = a=20 short, pudgy black man who is in a long-term relationship and proud of = it, chews=20 him out for bringing his boyfriend to the restaurant to break up with = him.=20 Dennis also arrives to start his shift and we learn that Dennis and Cole = are=20 housemates and that Jack is catering Dennis's birthday party later that = evening.=20 We also find out that Jack sponsors and coaches a softball team, the = Broken=20 Hearts, and that it's the worst team in the league.

At the party, Cole is talking with a younger man, Kevin (Andrew = Keegan), a=20 "newbie" to the gay world (defined on-screen like "meanwhile"), who came = to the=20 party with Benji. Benji goes to join the rest of his friends where they = discuss=20 how unfair it is that their dates totally ignore them if Cole gives them = his=20 attention. This was an interesting series of scenes. I *recognized* how = the guys=20 acted a lot of the time--just like girls in high school, peeking out = from behind=20 a door in the kitchen to see a cute guy that they like and quickly = closing the=20 door so he won't catch them looking, talking cattily about the really = beautiful,=20 popular girl who seems to snag all the guys. It was so weird because = four of the=20 guys kept flip-flopping between what I had always perceived as male = actions and=20 attitudes and female ones. Two didn't change: Taylor always acted in = what I saw=20 as a feminine way--his voice, his walk, his tastes, etc. And Cole always = acted=20 very masculine, other than the fact that he hit on males instead of = females--he=20 was athletic and interested in guy things and didn't sit around talking = about=20 his feelings--and the other four guys envied him for it. He made the = whole=20 "being gay" thing seem so easy.

The Variety reviewer didn't think that the friendship between the six = seemed=20 either generous or deep, but what I saw were six men who could talk to = each=20 other and who were "there" for the others when they needed someone. Even = Cole,=20 who spent his time listening to the other guys talk about their feelings = rather=20 than sharing his own, immediately came to his friends when they were = hurt, even=20 when his dishevelment made it pretty obvious what the call or page had=20 interrupted.

That reviewer also said that BHC *celebrated* the superficiality of = the West=20 Hollywood gay culture, and, again, I didn't see it. Maybe I haven't seen = enough=20 gay films (none, in fact), but I sat in the movie distressed by these = guys'=20 original lifestyles, not because I'm straight and they're not, but = because their=20 sexual relationships were so pointless. I would have felt the same about = a group=20 of straight guys whose entire lives were given over to the pursuit of = parties=20 and one-night-stands. Nothing that I saw in the movie made me think that = this=20 lifestyle was supposed to be a good thing, so I didn't see any = celebration of=20 it. And when I walked away from the movie, I felt like the characters = had not=20 only seen the superficiality of their lifestyles but were mostly trying = to do=20 something change them--or at least taken a first step toward it.

The Variety reviewer's comment, "So, these four best friends pushing = 30--the=20 horror, the horror," also seemed like he was expressing his own feelings = rather=20 than what the movie was showing. No one was bemoaning their age, = approaching=20 age, or aging appearance. Only Patrick was hung up on not being able to = get guys=20 because he wasn't attractive enough--and that didn't seem to be an = age-related=20 thing at all. In fact, the person in the show who is shown as having it = all=20 together is Jack, who is an old man. He's also the person who "does the = de=20 rigueur drag performance bits," as the reviewer called them, but I saw = that=20 scene as a send-up of gay "drag" performances.

The reviewer's mention of "rote exclamations of 'Miss Thing' and 'Oh = Mary'"=20 had me at a loss since I'd never noticed them. Maybe you have to be = really=20 familiar with the vocabulary to catch all those things. That may also be = why the=20 reviewer calls this formulaic and stereotypical--apparently he's very = familiar=20 with either gay films or gay culture, and as part of the mainstream = audience=20 this film is aimed at, I'm familiar with neither. I'd have thought the = story was=20 more stereotypical if everyone had changed and matured as a result of = the events=20 the characters go through, but I thought Berlanti avoided that trap = pretty well.=20 I also disagreed with the reviewer's assessment of the comic scenes in = the=20 amateur softball games as "offensively retro." Sure, I wondered if gays = would=20 think that they were being stereotyped when most of the guys were = helpless=20 sissies on the field. But I thought it was balanced out by Dennis's = competence=20 and Cole's athleticism, which is why the scene with Cole trying to pick = up the=20 catcher for the Hollywood Firemen's team worked so well. Stereotypical = or=20 offensively retro or not, the whole softball game was ROTFLMAO funny. I = could=20 hardly get a breath for laughing so much. BTW, that's one of the reasons = I=20 definitely wanted to see BHC a second time--I wanted to try to catch all = the=20 dialogue I was laughing across the top of.

Lest you think I disagreed with everything the Variety reviewer said, = I did=20 agree that the professional cast was "personable and naturalistic," that = the=20 movie was "slick and well-acted" with a "lively enough" pace and a = "smoothly=20 handled" tech package. I found the characters' lines more than just = "tart" or=20 "barbed one-liners": they made me laugh, and they made me remember them = when I=20 don't remember things I hear very well. I think most of us would enjoy = seeing=20 this movie, even if only for a humorous look into a foreign lifestyle. =

Besides, Dean did a great job of making me believe he was Cole. He = didn't act=20 "gay" like the other guys; he had to pull it off without being able to = act=20 effeminate or walk "prissy." Yet, he made me believe that a man could be = athletic and reserved about sharing his feelings and unaware of colors = and=20 interior decorating (face it, the way most of our husbands are) and = still be=20 sexually attracted to men. So that's one of the things Melody and I = disagreed=20 about.

One of my chief memories from the trip will be seeing Dean smile and = tell me=20 that he's confident enough of his masculinity and of his intelligence to = take on=20 a role of a gorgeous, dumb, gay guy. In that moment, I realized what = Zoom had=20 meant by actors being typecast, that just the name and job descriptions = change=20 while the character stays the same. More than even his sexual = orientation,=20 Cole's intelligence (or lack of it) signaled that he was an entirely = different=20 character than I had ever seen Dean play, and in some ways, that was = harder for=20 me to watch than Cole being gay.

In the following section, I'm going to mention the arcs each = character goes=20 through, and those of you who don't want to know how things work out = will want=20 to stop here.

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The rest of the movie looks at the changes the six friends undergo. = Dennis=20 realizes that he wants something more than a string of meaningless = sexual=20 encounters, which is why he gives his party guest the "cut-bait = treatment"=20 referred to in the Variety review, but when he finds the right person, = he=20 finally realizes that he needs to *be* the right person, too. That's why = he=20 decides to leave Kevin behind while he goes to Europe to work on his=20 photography. I feel like the Variety reviewer missed the whole point of = that:=20 Dennis dumped the guest *before* they had sex, not afterwards, and he = left Kevin=20 behind so he could work on learning who he was as a *person,* not just = as a gay=20 man.

Through a very funny subplot involving his lesbian sister, her = argumentative=20 partner, and artificial insemination, Patrick becomes involved in = parenthood and=20 learns to look at something bigger than his own lack of self-esteem. =

Howie keeps looking for greener pastures than the friend/partner he = has and=20 makes his way through guilt and jealousy to learn to value his friend. = But it=20 isn't a "settling for second best" sort of choice. Howie had somehow = imagined=20 that the world was full of wonderful gay men who were incredibly = handsome and=20 interesting and sexy, which he finds out isn't true. He realizes that he = really=20 loves his friend--who has always loved him.

Taylor slowly recovers from being dumped by his partner, but we = really don't=20 see him pick up his life and go on. He doesn't look for anyone else--we = just see=20 him progressing through various stages of grieving (as enumerated by = Howie).=20 Taylor and Benji seemed to be the least fleshed-out characters in the = group.

Benji feels that his friends have abandoned him when he starts = hanging out=20 with a gym bunny and *his* friends, and he makes some telling comments = about how=20 miserable the guys are when they're together--as if being together is an = excuse=20 to focus on the things they dislike in their lives. However, his new = friends,=20 who laugh and have fun together, get him involved in drugs but are = nowhere to be=20 found when he's in trouble. The other five guys all show up, and he sees = who his=20 real friends are. This was the most sitcom-ish subplot in the movie.

Cole's subplot is interesting but in some ways ultimately unresolved. = He is=20 established as being gorgeous but dumb, yet able to get any guy he = wants. We see=20 his dating habits contrasted with Dennis's (Cole prefers even short-term = relationships to one-night-stands, always hoping the next guy will be = "the=20 one"), and Dennis points out that Cole's ex-boyfriends never hate him, = although=20 Cole says, "I would hate me," if he was in their position.

Cole isn't making enough as an actor to live on, although he's = getting work.=20 When he finally gets a part as a day-player (a few lines and a lot of = standing=20 around adding to the scene) on a movie with a handsome movie star who is = rumored=20 to be gay (although married), he again proves that he can get any guy he = wants.=20 However, the movie star dumps his "pretty-boy extra" so callously that = Cole's=20 careful break-up speeches seem like the height of consideration and = love. Cole=20 is devastated (and I was so sory for him), but unlike his friends, he = doesn't=20 share it at all. In fact, he doesn't even let them know that he slept = with the=20 star--or even that the star is gay. Instead, he puts on a smiling face = and joins=20 them at the restaurant, finding comfort in the fact that they like him = as he is.=20 He also looks for comfort in his normal fashion, immediately setting out = to=20 seduce Kevin, not knowing that Dennis and Kevin had gotten together = during his=20 on-location shoot. So, by the end of the movie, Cole has gotten a taste = of what=20 he does to his boyfriends, but I don't know that it changed him. In = fact, given=20 that his character was established as not being very smart, any major = change=20 might have been out of character.

All in all, though, a fun way to spend two hours.

Sheila

------=_NextPart_000_0017_01BF7649.5FB12BC0-- ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 13 Feb 2000 19:56:50 EST Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Singin Drew Subject: Re: NEW: 1/1 A Valentine's Rendezvous MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Wendy, I have to say... You've done it again! Your writing is so wonderful... I just love reading it. I was about to delete it (as I have a habit of doing that because I usually end up reading them on the archive anyway!) but I saw it was by you so I just HAD to read it immediately! It was adorable. I thought that she had thought so... but you never know! It was excellent! But one more thing: I want more! Kristin ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 13 Feb 2000 21:07:31 -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: NEW: The Open Road (9/9) MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Okay I was riveted even tho I was sick enough to fall out of my chair and you are leaving us with a too be continued?????? not nice at all.. *pout* anyway hope that you see that any doubts that you had about this story were nerves, it was very very well written, hope part 3 is not long in surfacing.. Marnie ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 13 Feb 2000 21:38:53 -0500 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Gerry Anklewicz Subject: Valentine's Expectations 1/1 In-Reply-To: <001f01bf7690$43060760$eb1e8d18@co61019-b.hala1.on.wave.home.com> MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit This story is in response to Tank's challenge. Lois and Clark have been dating for a short time and of course there are... Valentine Expectations by Gerry The mall was crowded and noisy. Filled with clumps of teenagers either wandering from store to store or just hanging around, rushed women trying to do a weeks worth of shopping in one short afternoon, and frantic men looking for last minute gifts, the mall definitely was the last place Lois Lane wanted to be on a Saturday afternoon. Sitting down with a piece of chocolate that she felt she deserved for having to put up with this crass commercialism, she looked around her and decided that she wasn’t happy with her alternatives. ‘The problem here,’ she told herself, ‘is expectations. I’ve been dating Clark for a few weeks and all of a sudden, I have to worry about Valentine’s Day. There are expectations that he’s going to have and that I have as well. I have to get him something. But, I ‘ve only been dating him for a short time and whatever I get him he’s going to read the wrong message into it. He’s my friend, but if we weren’t dating, I wouldn’t necessarily... strike the necessarily....I wouldn’t,’ she edited herself, ‘get him anything. Now we’re an undefined couple or at least an on-our-way-to-being-a-couple’ and all of a sudden I’m expected to celebrate this non-holiday called Valentine’s Day. The only ones who benefit from the day are florists, greeting card companies, chocolate companies (oh, alright, there is something good about Valentine’s Day).’ “Conspicuous consumerism,” Lois spat out the alliteration. ‘I don’t really have to get him anything, but expectations come into this as well. Knowing Clark, he’s going to do something really special. He’s already invited me out for dinner. Clark is the most romantic man on the planet and I can guess what I can expect from him. Flowers. Candlelight. Champagne. A box of chocolates (yes please). Romance. He could sweep me off my feet if I let him. So, I’ve been in this mall for three hours and all I have are sore feet, a headache, and a chocolate bar wrapper. No gift. No idea what to get him. It’s time to leave.’ Lois scrunched up the wrapper, threw it into the garbage can and headed toward the exit. She had tried to find the defining Clark gift without it seeming cheesy, crass, or common. If she was going to get him any kind of gift, it had to be the perfect gift. She didn’t want him to be disappointed thinking that he had gotten her something special and she just got him something...last minute, and it had to be the right price, not too much and not too little. She had to show him that she could deal with Valentine’s Day too. Lois started looking in the better men’s shops. Her first thought was a tie, but that would be like bringing sand to the Sahara. When she looked at sweaters, she decided that clothing was much too impersonal. She knew his taste in books and CDs, but once again they were too impersonal. Maybe if there was a special, meaningful book or CD she could get it for him, but she couldn’t think of anything. She saw some displays of boxer shorts with glow-in the dark hearts on them, but they were too crass. ‘Although,’ thought Lois, ‘I wouldn’t mind seeing what Clark looked like in boxers or briefs .’ She smiled at her temerity. She was looking for a gift that would knock his socks off. She immediately discarded the idea of red socks with hearts. Tickets for sporting events. Cologne. A desk accessory. A coffee table knickknack. All those might be appropriate for a birthday, maybe for Christmas, but not for Valentine’s Day. At one point she had thought of preparing a romantic, candle lit dinner for Clark, but then she remembered that she would be the cook and pasta salad isn’t very romantic. ‘This is the stupidest shopping expedition of my life. Why am I falling for this? I really know better. I just should have told Clark that Valentine’s Day is foolish and we should just ignore it and move on.’ It had been years since Valentine’s Day meant anything to her. Why was this year different? ‘Clark.’ She knew that with all her frustration and resentment, she wanted to be with Clark on Valentine’s Day and she wanted him to bring her flowers, take her out for dinner, look at her as if she was the only person in the whole wide world, court her and, of course, bring her some chocolates. And so, she had to find the right gift for Clark because there was no way that he was going to get the upper hand. When Lois reached her parking spot, she was surprised that she hardly remembered driving home. Rather than pay attention to her driving, she pondered the alternatives and came up with nothing. ‘I want to get him something that says he’s special, that says I care, but that doesn’t make any commitments. Clark is the nicest person. He cares about me in a way that I’ve never felt before. Whatever he does, seems to be for my good rather than for his needs or wishes; though, he can be an overprotective mother hen which is really annoying. But when I think about him like this, I do get this warm and fuzzy feeling all over. ‘He’s extremely patient. I know that he’s cared about me for a long time, but he’s waited for me to be ready. He never pushed hard; he just nudged gently. He never tried to change me; in fact, he seems to enjoy me for who I am rather than for who he wants me to be. Lois walked from her jeep over to her apartment still thinking about Clark. ‘He’s a good man. It’s not just a surface trait. It goes deep down. He cares about individual people as well as the common good.’ ‘He’s gentle. His physical size is deceptive.’ Lois let herself into her apartment and plopped herself onto her couch. “Lois Lane,” she said out loud, “you are an incredibly blind woman. This man loves you and you know it. You also know that you love him. Okay, I admit it. I love Clark Kent.” Lois closed her eyes and let the admission sweep over her body. Her head felt clear; her heart beat normally; her stomach felt settled. Her feet still hurt, but she’d get over that as soon as she took her shoes off. ‘Maybe, it is time to let him know how I feel. He’s always waited for me to let him know how I feel.’ Lois smiled. She knew what she would give Clark for Valentine’s Day. ***************************** Clark stood in front of Lois’s apartment door. He clutched a large bouquet of perfect red roses in one hand and grasped a bottle of champagne in the other. He carried a large, red heart-shaped box under his arm. ‘Okay,’ he thought, ‘This is it.’ He knocked on the door with the champagne bottle and didn’t have to wait long before Lois answered the door. He stood and stared. “Lois, you look incredibly beautiful. That burgundy dress looks fantastic on you.” “Do you think so?” countered Lois, blushing a little at Clark’s unabashed admiration. “Oh, yes.” He stepped inside the door wanting to hug her, but he was hampered by all his gifts for her. “These are for you, Lois.” He handed her the bouquet of roses. “Clark, these are absolutely beautiful. Thank you.” She took the bouquet from him and walked towards the kitchen with Clark following her. As she filled a crystal vase with water and placed the roses in it, Clark went to the cupboard and took out two champagne flutes. “Aren’t we going to dinner?” “We are, but I made the reservation for a bit later. I thought it would be nice just to relax a bit before we go out. Let’s go sit down.” Lois led them into the living room. She placed the roses on the coffee table and sat down. Clark poured the previously cooled-by-super-breathe champagne into the flutes and handed one to Lois. He sat beside her and asked, “Be my Valentine, Lois?” Clark watched the pink rise in her face. She glanced down and stared at the champagne flute. Clark kicked himself. He knew that he was coming on too strong again. He had embarrassed Lois and that made him feel uncomfortable. He knew that Lois was cynical about the commercialism of Valentine’s Day. That was one of the reasons that he decided to make a big deal out of the day. It could be a fun way for them to get closer. Or not. Just as he was about to apologize for putting his foot in his mouth, Lois shyly glanced up at Clark, sheepishly smiled at him, and lightly tapped her champagne flute against his. ‘Okay, Kent,’ he thought, ‘This is looking good. Whatever you do, don’t push it.’ “I got you something for Valentine’s Day,” she said to him as she picked up a thin, square boxwrapped in a flimsy white paper and decorated with a large handmade red tulle bow. Clark stared at the box. It was so beautifully wrapped that he didn’t want to open it, but he was curious to see what Lois would get him for Valentine’s Day. He hadn’t really expected anything, but... “Aren’t you going to open it?” she asked. Clark realized that this gift was important to her. He also realized that she was anxious for him to open the gift and to react. “It’s wrapped so beautifully, Lois. I hate to ruin it, but here it goes...” He carefully removed the bow, took off the paper and opened the box. He removed the top layer of tissue and found an old, thumbed through copy of Elizabeth Barrett Browning’s Sonnets from the Portuguese. He flipped through the pages seeing notes in Lois’s handwriting. Clark felt a tightness in his throat. Lois had given him something that was deeply meaningful and personal about herself. He opened the fly-leaf and read: “Clark, How do I love you? Let’s count the ways... Lois.” He looked at Lois, but didn’t know what to say. She was looking at him with what appeared to be a pleased, yet smug smile. Speechless, Clark slowly leaned toward Lois staring straight into her eyes. He put his hand on her cheek and with his fingers pushed back her hair. He whispered, “I don’t know what to say Lois. This is incredible.” On the last word, their lips touched lightly. But neither of them were satisfied with the gentle kiss and they pressed harder against each other and began exploring. Clark’s h ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 13 Feb 2000 18:41:04 -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: Valentine's Expectations 1/1 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Ack, Gerry, the ending's missing! Irene ===== Outside of a dog, a book is Man’s best friend. And inside of a dog, it’s too dark to read. Groucho Marx __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Talk to your friends online with Yahoo! Messenger. http://im.yahoo.com ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 13 Feb 2000 21:41:26 -0500 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Gerry Anklewicz Subject: Re: Valentine's Expectations 1/1 In-Reply-To: <20000214024104.379.qmail@web903.mail.yahoo.com> MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit I know, I'm trying to fix it now. Something went kafluyy in the downloading Gerry ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 13 Feb 2000 21:43:45 -0500 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Gerry Anklewicz Subject: Valentine's Expectations with Ending 1/1 In-Reply-To: <001f01bf7690$43060760$eb1e8d18@co61019-b.hala1.on.wave.home.com> MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit Sorry about the problem on my last message. I think I've fixed it. Lois and Clark have been dating for a short time and of course there are... Valentine Expectations by Gerry The mall was crowded and noisy. Filled with clumps of teenagers either wandering from store to store or just hanging around, rushed women trying to do a weeks worth of shopping in one short afternoon, and frantic men looking for last minute gifts, the mall definitely was the last place Lois Lane wanted to be on a Saturday afternoon. Sitting down with a piece of chocolate that she felt she deserved for having to put up with this crass commercialism, she looked around her and decided that she wasn’t happy with her alternatives. ‘The problem here,’ she told herself, ‘is expectations. I’ve been dating Clark for a few weeks and all of a sudden, I have to worry about Valentine’s Day. There are expectations that he’s going to have and that I have as well. I have to get him something. But, I ‘ve only been dating him for a short time and whatever I get him he’s going to read the wrong message into it. He’s my friend, but if we weren’t dating, I wouldn’t necessarily... strike the necessarily....I wouldn’t,’ she edited herself, ‘get him anything. Now we’re an undefined couple or at least an on-our-way-to-being-a-couple’ and all of a sudden I’m expected to celebrate this non-holiday called Valentine’s Day. The only ones who benefit from the day are florists, greeting card companies, chocolate companies (oh, alright, there is something good about Valentine’s Day).’ “Conspicuous consumerism,” Lois spat out the alliteration. ‘I don’t really have to get him anything, but expectations come into this as well. Knowing Clark, he’s going to do something really special. He’s already invited me out for dinner. Clark is the most romantic man on the planet and I can guess what I can expect from him. Flowers. Candlelight. Champagne. A box of chocolates (yes please). Romance. He could sweep me off my feet if I let him. So, I’ve been in this mall for three hours and all I have are sore feet, a headache, and a chocolate bar wrapper. No gift. No idea what to get him. It’s time to leave.’ Lois scrunched up the wrapper, threw it into the garbage can and headed toward the exit. She had tried to find the defining Clark gift without it seeming cheesy, crass, or common. If she was going to get him any kind of gift, it had to be the perfect gift. She didn’t want him to be disappointed thinking that he had gotten her something special and she just got him something...last minute, and it had to be the right price, not too much and not too little. She had to show him that she could deal with Valentine’s Day too. Lois started looking in the better men’s shops. Her first thought was a tie, but that would be like bringing sand to the Sahara. When she looked at sweaters, she decided that clothing was much too impersonal. She knew his taste in books and CDs, but once again they were too impersonal. Maybe if there was a special, meaningful book or CD she could get it for him, but she couldn’t think of anything. She saw some displays of boxer shorts with glow-in the dark hearts on them, but they were too crass. ‘Although,’ thought Lois, ‘I wouldn’t mind seeing what Clark looked like in boxers or briefs .’ She smiled at her temerity. She was looking for a gift that would knock his socks off. She immediately discarded the idea of red socks with hearts. Tickets for sporting events. Cologne. A desk accessory. A coffee table knickknack. All those might be appropriate for a birthday, maybe for Christmas, but not for Valentine’s Day. At one point she had thought of preparing a romantic, candle lit dinner for Clark, but then she remembered that she would be the cook and pasta salad isn’t very romantic. ‘This is the stupidest shopping expedition of my life. Why am I falling for this? I really know better. I just should have told Clark that Valentine’s Day is foolish and we should just ignore it and move on.’ It had been years since Valentine’s Day meant anything to her. Why was this year different? ‘Clark.’ She knew that with all her frustration and resentment, she wanted to be with Clark on Valentine’s Day and she wanted him to bring her flowers, take her out for dinner, look at her as if she was the only person in the whole wide world, court her and, of course, bring her some chocolates. And so, she had to find the right gift for Clark because there was no way that he was going to get the upper hand. When Lois reached her parking spot, she was surprised that she hardly remembered driving home. Rather than pay attention to her driving, she pondered the alternatives and came up with nothing. ‘I want to get him something that says he’s special, that says I care, but that doesn’t make any commitments. Clark is the nicest person. He cares about me in a way that I’ve never felt before. Whatever he does, seems to be for my good rather than for his needs or wishes; though, he can be an overprotective mother hen which is really annoying. But when I think about him like this, I do get this warm and fuzzy feeling all over. ‘He’s extremely patient. I know that he’s cared about me for a long time, but he’s waited for me to be ready. He never pushed hard; he just nudged gently. He never tried to change me; in fact, he seems to enjoy me for who I am rather than for who he wants me to be. Lois walked from her jeep over to her apartment still thinking about Clark. ‘He’s a good man. It’s not just a surface trait. It goes deep down. He cares about individual people as well as the common good.’ ‘He’s gentle. His physical size is deceptive.’ Lois let herself into her apartment and plopped herself onto her couch. “Lois Lane,” she said out loud, “you are an incredibly blind woman. This man loves you and you know it. You also know that you love him. Okay, I admit it. I love Clark Kent.” Lois closed her eyes and let the admission sweep over her body. Her head felt clear; her heart beat normally; her stomach felt settled. Her feet still hurt, but she’d get over that as soon as she took her shoes off. ‘Maybe, it is time to let him know how I feel. He’s always waited for me to let him know how I feel.’ Lois smiled. She knew what she would give Clark for Valentine’s Day. ***************************** Clark stood in front of Lois’s apartment door. He clutched a large bouquet of perfect red roses in one hand and grasped a bottle of champagne in the other. He carried a large, red heart-shaped box under his arm. ‘Okay,’ he thought, ‘This is it.’ He knocked on the door with the champagne bottle and didn’t have to wait long before Lois answered the door. He stood and stared. “Lois, you look incredibly beautiful. That burgundy dress looks fantastic on you.” “Do you think so?” countered Lois, blushing a little at Clark’s unabashed admiration. “Oh, yes.” He stepped inside the door wanting to hug her, but he was hampered by all his gifts for her. “These are for you, Lois.” He handed her the bouquet of roses. “Clark, these are absolutely beautiful. Thank you.” She took the bouquet from him and walked towards the kitchen with Clark following her. As she filled a crystal vase with water and placed the roses in it, Clark went to the cupboard and took out two champagne flutes. “Aren’t we going to dinner?” “We are, but I made the reservation for a bit later. I thought it would be nice just to relax a bit before we go out. Let’s go sit down.” Lois led them into the living room. She placed the roses on the coffee table and sat down. Clark poured the previously cooled-by-super-breathe champagne into the flutes and handed one to Lois. He sat beside her and asked, “Be my Valentine, Lois?” Clark watched the pink rise in her face. She glanced down and stared at the champagne flute. Clark kicked himself. He knew that he was coming on too strong again. He had embarrassed Lois and that made him feel uncomfortable. He knew that Lois was cynical about the commercialism of Valentine’s Day. That was one of the reasons that he decided to make a big deal out of the day. It could be a fun way for them to get closer. Or not. Just as he was about to apologize for putting his foot in his mouth, Lois shyly glanced up at Clark, sheepishly smiled at him, and lightly tapped her champagne flute against his. ‘Okay, Kent,’ he thought, ‘This is looking good. Whatever you do, don’t push it.’ “I got you something for Valentine’s Day,” she said to him as she picked up a thin, square boxwrapped in a flimsy white paper and decorated with a large handmade red tulle bow. Clark stared at the box. It was so beautifully wrapped that he didn’t want to open it, but he was curious to see what Lois would get him for Valentine’s Day. He hadn’t really expected anything, but... “Aren’t you going to open it?” she asked. Clark realized that this gift was important to her. He also realized that she was anxious for him to open the gift and to react. “It’s wrapped so beautifully, Lois. I hate to ruin it, but here it goes...” He carefully removed the bow, took off the paper and opened the box. He removed the top layer of tissue and found an old, thumbed through copy of Elizabeth Barrett Browning’s Sonnets from the Portuguese. He flipped through the pages seeing notes in Lois’s handwriting. Clark felt a tightness in his throat. Lois had given him something that was deeply meaningful and personal about herself. He opened the fly-leaf and read: “Clark, How do I love you? Let’s count the ways... Lois.” He looked at Lois, but didn’t know what to say. She was looking at him with what appeared to be a pleased, yet smug smile. Speechless, Clark slowly leaned toward Lois staring straight into her eyes. He put his hand on her cheek and with his fingers pushed back her hair. He whispered, “I don’t know what to say Lois. This is incredible.” On the last word, their lips touched lightly. But neither of them were satisfied with the gentle kiss and they pressed harder against each other and began exploring. Clark’s hand left Lois’s face and he wrapped her in his arms as he continued to hungrily deepen the kiss. At this moment he knew that he had found his way home. “Oh Clark, I love you so much.” “Lois...” Clark still didn’t know what to say. All he could feel was the warmth inside of him and there was no cold chill of doubts following it. So instead of speaking, he just kissed his Lois again. This wasn’t the first time that Clark had kissed her passionately, but this was a kiss that Lois would never forget. She knew that her gift was the right one for Clark and the right one for her. And then, the little rogue in the back of her mind, popped up and challenged, “Let’s see him top this one.” “Lois,” Clark interrupted her thoughts, “Open this.” He passed her the heart shaped box. Lois thought that there must be at least four layers of chocolate in it. “Clark, I have a choice here: kissing you or eating chocolate. I know that you’re not going to believe this, but I think the chocolate can wait.” “Just open it, Lois.” Lois opened the box. She was puzzled because instead of the traditional box of chocolates, she found a Superman action figure lying on top of a bed of sumptuous red velvet. She picked up the action figure looking at it from all angles trying to figure out what it meant. She then rifled through the velvet and the box looking for some other clue to the meaning of the gift. Nothing. “Superman?” Lois asked, trying to understand why Clark would give her this action figure when he knew that she was interested in him and not in the super hero. “Yes.” Clark acknowledged his name. And something in Clark’s tone of voice, something not quite Clark, told her to look at him. He was watching her, a mischievous grin on his face. “I love you, Lois. I wanted to give you all of myself,” he explained. And then Lois began to understand what it all meant. Clark just told her that he was Superman. The significance was percolating through her and she was feeling as if she was suffering from information overload. She wanted to yell some kind of error message, but she wasn’t sure which one. She knew that she had to digest what she had just figured out. She didn’t know what to say. She didn’t know what she was feeling. This was incredible, but how did she feel about it? She got up and began to wander around the room. Clark got up and followed her with his eyes. “You’re...you’re Superman!” she stuttered. “You’ve known me all these years and you never told me you were Superman.” “Well, I couldn’t at the beginning...” he tried to explain. “And you lied to me,” she continued without listening to him. “You’ve been consistently lying to me and then you have the audacity to want to have a relationship with me?” “There were reasons...” “Clark, you said you were my friend, but friends don’t lie to each other.” “It wasn’t really lying...” “Right, obfuscation isn’t lying. Give me a break...And I’ve said things to both of you. Oh my goodness, I’m so embarrassed. How could you have let me say those things?” “I didn’t...” “I trusted you and expected you to trust me. I thought you were honourable and kind and good and my friend. Now I’m not sure who I’m dealing with. I don’t know who you are, anymore?” “I’m Clark...” “Why didn’t I see this? Every time you ran out on me, every time you disappeared when something dramatic or dangerous was happening, every time you got a Superman exclusive, every time you knew who was coming to the door, every time you broke into an office or cracked open a safe...” Lois was beginning to see possibilities in this. Clark could feel Lois calming down. He walked over to her and put his hands on her arms. She didn’t flinch or shrug him off. “Lois?” he asked, “How are you feeling about this?” “I’m angry. I’m hurt. I want to yell. I want to scream. I feel like I’ve been deceived by my best friend and that isn’t a nice feeling.” “Lois, I always knew that I was going to tell you. It just got to a point that I didn’t know when to tell you. It’s a secret that I’ve kept all my life. No one else knows except for my parents. It’s a secret that you’re safer not knowing.” “And you have just given me your biggest secret as a Valentine’s Day gift.” “And you gave me your love.” Clark looked at Lois not sure what to say next. She wasn’t responding, just staring into his eyes, but it seemed that the angry fire was beginning to die down. “Are we going to be able to get over this?” “Yes, I think so, but we also have to a lot to talk about.” “I have nothing to hide anymore. I’ll answer all your questions.” “What happened to the chocolates that were originally in the box?” “The chocolates?” the question, coming out of the blue, put Clark off balance for a moment. “What chocolates?” “In the box where you put the Superman action figure.” “There were no chocolates. I play basketball with the guy who owns a box factory and he got it for me when I asked him.” “Oh, I would have liked some chocolate right about now.” “What about dinner? We still have reservations.” “If you don’t mind, I think that we still need to talk and you probably don’t want to do that in a public place. I’m not sure how calm I can stay.” “Okay. I’ll go get some take-out and find some chocolate. I’ll be right back.” Clark leaned over, tenderly kissed Lois, and stepped back. “I’ve always wanted to do this in front of you.” He removed his glasses, ripped open his shirt to reveal the S-symbol, and spun around. In seconds, Lois faced Superman...Clark for the first time. She stared in disbelief as she watched him go to her window, look back at her, and leap up into the air. She watched as he flew off. “That’s really not fair. He can fly, and he ended up getting me the more exciting Valentine’s Day gift.” She looked down at the Superman action figure in her hand. “Just you wait. Next time, I’ll get you.” The End ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 13 Feb 2000 21:50:07 -0500 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Gerry Anklewicz Subject: Re: Valentine's Expectations with Ending 1/1 In-Reply-To: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit My apologies for the mess that the story came in. If you have patience read on and I'll explain why. If not, just delete. Yesterday, after I posted the story to zoomway's boards, my laptop burped and died. It took the disk with the back up copy of the story with it. Everything on that disk got erased. But, I'm not computer illiterate. Right! I realized that I could download it from the boards, but the line alignments weren't right. So, I aligned the lines and downloaded it onto the list. Well, guess what? The alignment was off when I downloaded . As I was realigning the lines, my e-mail server kept sending me error messages that I ignored. Then when it came up on the list, half of the story was missing. I downloaded it again, but and everything looked ok so I sent the story off. Well, it wasn't ok and I'm really, really sorry because I think you deserve better quality. But it's there now. Gerry ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 13 Feb 2000 22:04:50 -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: Kerth Category Quiz: Krypton/New Krypton Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Ok, I couldn't get any of the quotes :( Some of them sounded familiar, but I couldn't quite place them. S P O I L E R S P A C E EXCERPT 1: Tank Wilson's Love Disabled?? EXCERPT 3: Blast from the Past Irc round robin EXCERPT 4:This is probably a Tank-fic, but I can't remember the name. :( EXCERPT 5:A Universal Union by Jenni Debbage? EXCERPT 6: I don't recognize this one, but I want to read it now :) EXCERPT 7: Au Revoir and not Good-bye by Christine Carr (you practically gave us that one! :) EXCERPT 8: Come back to me by Allison Forbes ----------------------------------------------- FREE! The World's Best Email Address @email.com Reserve your name now at http://www.email.com ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 13 Feb 2000 22:27:10 -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: Valentine challenge: As seen thru the Eyes of a Bee MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit I don’t know how widespread certain commercial campains are but I had this hit me about the same time that the valentine challenge was issued.. there is a commercial all over the tv here in Canada for Honey Nut Cheerios, it is based on the frog prince theme.. And part of this story is credited to my Best Friend, Pat Rowe, who put up with me writing this on the phone, plus adding very good suggestions, like to write the derned thing. As Seen through the Eyes of a Bee…. Princess Lois was sitting beside the well idly tossing flower petals into the water below, watching as the ripples flowed out and back thinking that was what she felt like lately, like she was the petal and life was the water in the well, when she heard a croak. She looked up in surprise to see a singularly ugly frog, all glistening green and slimy looking but it was an unusually large frog and its eyes were strangely canny, one could almost say intelligent. It seemed to have a golden like marking on its skull, on the crown of the skull ironically enough, where a crown would be worn by a human. She thought of the minstrel’s tale that she had heard a while back about the frog prince…. And she began to lean forward pursing her lips in preparation for the kiss when something seemed to buzz in front of her face making her jump back. It was a Superman Bee, holding a picture of her ever-faithful stable boy Clarkie Kent. The Bee buzzed to her, “why are you going to kiss this frog Princess? When you can have the love of this one?” Princess Lois sat back and protested, “But should I kiss this frog, he will turn into the princely man of my dreams…” The superman bee buzzed around her showing her the different faces of her stable boy in all ways that he looked while he was around the princess. The Superman Bee buzzed at her again, “Princess, would you rather have a primping and pompous prince or a devoted servant to your every wish?” The bee had a point Princess Lois thought, she turned back to the frog as she got to her feet and asked, “you don’t mind if we are just friends do you?” And then she was off sprinting to the castle to find Clarkie who was her dream man after all. As she was sprinting off, the Superman Bee leaned in close to the frog and asked, “you are not really a prince are you?” the Lex frog croaked a no. The End.. (honest) ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 13 Feb 2000 22:37:59 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: New: Tie Story (1/1) MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit In a message dated 2/13/00 12:30:50 PM Eastern Standard Time, c.carr@VIRGIN.NET writes: << If I can't call it fluff, can I at least call it nonsense? ;) >> No, because it wasn't nonsense. It was a delightful vignette. ;) Ann ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 13 Feb 2000 21:57:52 -0800 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Amy Lauters Subject: Valentine's Stories and Night Terrors MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Boy, that's a strange subject line, isn't it? All of these Valentine's stories are great! Wendy, yours was so sweet I found myself going, "AWWWWW" at the end. Keep up the great work. I know I promised more of Night Terrors this weekend, but it's been a hectic week, and my husband (who always roots for the bad guy ... ) gave me some great ideas for villainous deeds that I have to work out first. I'll post some more tomorrow. Wishing everyone a Valentine's Day filled with love, laughter and romance Amy ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 13 Feb 2000 23:47:10 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: Outrageous Intentions, A L&C vignette MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit I don't normally post to this list, but since everyone has posted their Valentine's to the gentle readers on both Zoom's board and this one I thought I do so too. The following is just a little throw away vignette, given to the board as a Valentine. We start out with a certain intimate conversation seen on the episode "Virtually Destroyed" and veer off into a twilight zone of illogic and the absurd. Please don't hold me too close to proper character motivations. This is for fun. Outrageous Intentions by Tank Wilson It was a typical sidewalk cafe. One you'd see often, with a few tidy, blue clothed tables and a view of the Metropolis traffic, both vehicular and pedestrian. It was a sunny day and the young couple seated at one of the compact tables were enjoying the remainder of their lunch. Lois Lane slurped the last of her thick chocolate malt from the tall glass while an astonished Clark Kent looked on. "I feel much better." Lois said as she set down the now empty glass and looked up into the face of her fiancee'. "You want anything else?" "Just watching made me full." "I'm not full at all," she giggled self-consciously. "It's weird." Her contented mood quickly sobered. "Anyway, here's what's been bugging me. The other night I was thinking about all of my past relationships, and so what I did was make a list of all the positive ones and all the negative ones." "And?" Clark encouraged. "And they all ended up in the negative column, especially my last on with Lex." "Ouch!" Clark grimaced. "Yeah," she replied with a heavy sigh. Clark favored Lois with one of his killer smiles. "But now you have me, so none of that matters." "Oh, Clark." They clasped hands and Lois kissed his fingers. They stared into each other's eyes for a few moments letting their love be communicated wordlessly through their eyes. Lois had to shake herself free of the spell. She wanted to get this out in the open. She needed to finish this conversation with Clark. "My point is that, I've worked through a lot of my fears - a, a lot..." she hesitated briefly, "except maybe one. And, and it's not really a fear, it's actually more of a concern about - that one thing." Clark seized upon her statement. "Actually you bring up a good point, because we've never really talked about our pasts." "Right!" She jumped in enthusiastically. "Right exactly, and - ah," Lois moved her chair closer to Clark. "Well I just wanted you to know, why I'm a little skittish - about crossing the intimacy threshold, and you've been so understanding that I thought that, maybe, you were a little skittish too?" Her tone was hopeful. Clark seemed a little uneasy. "Well my experience had been a little different." "Uh um," "I'm a little different." Lois nodded not quit understanding where this was going. "Sure." "I mean... I've had girl friends, I've dated, but - that - thing, the intimacy threshold, the *big* threshold, " they shared some nervous laughter, Clark sighed before continuing. "I've never really crossed it." Lois' face blanked. "I've, I've stepped right up and taken a good look." "Oh my god." Lois couldn't look Clark in the face. "Lois I'm not from here. So I'm always asking my self, do I belong? Am I really supposed to have a life here?" "Oh my god!" Lois looked about her as if seeking an escape. "Lois, are you listening?" Clark entreated. "Cause I'm kind of pouring my heart out here." Lois returns her attention to Clark. "Oh I'm sorry - I, I'm sorry, I'm just a little... " She suddenly stands. "Could we walk?" "Sure." Lois quickly starts off down the street. Hastily throwing some money on the table Clark hurries after her. They stroll side by side as Lois gathers her thoughts. Her hands animate her distressed mood. "So what you're saying is you're a vir - vi - a very patient man." "Lois, I needed to be sure." His earnestness was evident. "I needed to meet the one person I could share everything with." "No, I admire the way that you dealt with this." Her hands were never still as she alternated between wringing them and making aimless gestures. "I just also feel a little... " "Yeah?" "I just wish that you had told me." Exasperation crept into her voice. "This is big!" "I didn't exactly know how to bring it up" Lois plunged ahead not really hearing Clark's response. "I mean it already adds a lot of pressure to a situation that had plenty of pressure." Clark stops her. "Lois, there is no pressure because, I'm sure that I've made the right choice." He gave her a crooked little smile. "You are the person that I've waited for." Lois frowned. "I just wish I'd waited too." "No, no, no." Clark responded. "Well I do." Her voice became chagrined. "Especially since they were practically federal disasters." Clark shook his head. "Well don't think of it that way." He grinned. "I'll be your first non-federal disaster, and you'll be my... " "No, I can't do this!" Lois pulled away from Clark and hurried away down the walk. "Lo-is." Clark quickly caught up with her and pulled her over to a nearby bus bench, where they sat. "What's the problem now?" Lois took a deep breath. "You don't understand the pressure this puts me under. You have no frame of reference. What if my lovemaking disgusts you?" Clark shook his head at his overly emotional fiancee. "Lois, I can't possibly be disgusted by anything that involves you. I love you." He gave her a smile. "Besides, as you say, I have no frame of reference. Making love to you will define love making for me and I know it will be wonderful." Her eyes grew wider as he talked. "See, that's exactly what I mean! You only have your expectations." She clenched her fists and stared at the ground. "Clark, you are a gentle and compassionate person. I know you are also a hopeless romantic. How can I compete with the poetic ideals you have probably fabricated about what love and sex should be." Another sign escaped from her lips. Clark put his arm around Lois. "Lois, I think you are worrying about nothing. I can't imagine anything being better than making love to you." Lois jumped up. "See, that's what I mean." Lois mood changed from agitated to thoughtful in the blink of an eye. "No, we need to demystify sex for you." Lois looked up into Clark's face, a thoughtful frown on her face. "No, I'm afraid the only solution is, we're going to have to get you laid." "What? Lois!" Lois wandered off down the street and began talking to herself as much as to Clark. "It should be someone you know, none of those professional floozies. You never know where they've been. It's too bad Cat's not still around. She do it in a minute, and call it a wedding present." Lois shook her head. "No, it's a good thing she's not here. I wouldn't want Clark to be subject to anything too weird too early." Also, Lois thought to herself, Cat might just be a little too good at it, and Lois wanted to make sure it was with someone she was confident she could compete with. She had found another bus bench, and sat down, all the while chewing on her lip and muttering to herself. "It's too bad Mayson died, she liked Clark." Meanwhile Clark had caught back up with Lois, she turned to him as he sat. "What about Alice, her and Perry aren't together now. I'm sure she'd like some company." "What!" Lois shook her head. "No, you're right. That's too sick. Help me out here. Are there any gals at the Planet that you've been the least bit curious about?" Clark couldn't help it. He stroked his chin as if thinking it over. "Well there is that one little blonde in composing." Lois came instantly to attention her voice held a suspicious note. "Who? Who is it, what's her name?" Clark chuckled and put his arm around Lois' shoulders. "Lois, I'm just kidding. You have to know that the minute I set eyes on you, for all intents and purposes, all other women faded into insignificance." Lois stroked his cheek. "That's so sweet." She gave his cheek a little pat. "How about any past girlfriends from Smallville. There's Rachel, but no, she seems a bit too needy. Any others?" Lois saw Clark drop his head into his hands. "Clark?" He looked up at her. "There was only one other girl that I ever dated much in high school, Lana Lang. But we never hit it off really well. She was always concerned about her image and how anything we did would reflect on how others saw her." Lois smiled. "She sounds perfect. Is she married?" "I don't know, and I don't care." Clark grabbed Lois' hands. "Lois I have no interest in 'test flying' anyone else to satisfy your twisted little scenario here. I am and always have been in love with you and only you and I won't sleep with anyone else just to please you." Clark frowned. "Did that sound as stupid as I thought it did?" He shook it off. "Besides, Lois, everyone knows that Clark Kent and Lois Lane are engaged to be married and as such no one would want to do what you suggest under those conditions." Lois smirked. "Oh, I think you'd be surprised there flyboy." Lois, jumped up. "That's it!" She turned to Clark her mood suddenly animated again. "You're right, Clark Kent can't go around seducing someone when he's an engaged man. But Superman can." She began to pace around the bench. "Heck, as Superman you could have your pick of virtually any woman in the world. She'd have to single of course. Superman couldn't be seen courting a married woman." Once Lois came around in front of him again, Clark reached out and pulled her into his lap. "Lois, listen to yourself. Now you are suggesting that Superman lead some poor woman on, just so he can get his jollies? I couldn't do something like that even if you weren't in the picture." She leaned her forehead against his. "What do we do then?" He laughed. "I guess you'll just have to get used to the idea that I only have room in my life for one special woman. That discovering everything there is to know, and I mean *know*, about her is what I plan to spend the rest of my life doing. Don't think of yourself as being my first, Lois. Remember instead, that you are going to be my *only*, and I wouldn't want it any other way." Anything Lois might have had to say was silenced by Clark crushing his lips against hers as he sought to convey without words all those things he had been trying to tell her. Unfortunately the tender tableau was interrupted by the screeching of tires as a seemingly out of control yellow taxi cab came squealing around the corner. It soon became apparent that the speeding vehicle was headed directly toward them. Clark grabbed Lois around the waist and attempted unsuccessfully to levitate. "I can't fly. Run!" (and so we slide back into the third season episode of "Virtually Destroyed) Happy Valentine's Day to all the Gentle Readers ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 13 Feb 2000 22:58:17 -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: OT: New email address for KathyB Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" ; format="flowed" Hello all, Yes, once again, I have a new email address. This time, however, it is good news (no moving out of state, no insufferable ISP, no ISPs being purchased and making me change my address). I am now the proud owner of a cable modem -- yipee! So, effective immedately, you may reach me at: KathyBrown91@home.com (It's not case sensitive, at least according to my tests, so you can put it in all lower case if you want!) My Archive address, kathyb@lcfanfic.com is still good ... it's a forward account which will begin coming to my new address shortly. The same will also be true of the stories@lcfanfic.com address. All get to me, just via different paths. :) My old address, kathyb@springnet1.com, will be active for the next month or so while I get everything switched over, but I'd prefer it if everyone would start using the new address now. Thanks! Kathy -- ______________________ Kathy Brown kathybrown91@home.com kathyb@lcfanfic.com KathyB on IRC ______________________ ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 14 Feb 2000 01:10:25 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), Seventeenth Installment, Week #18 (Part 1 of 1) MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="ISO-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable New Fanfic (ongoing) "A Day in the Life of Metropolis" (PG-13) 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 Please let me know if you loved it or hated it.. etc.. My cast and i would=20 really=20 appreciate it! Thanks. =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D Summary: This is the seventeenth installment of a rpg club I created on yahoo. We=20 came=20 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} =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 Batman: Sam F. Anya Starr: Tabitha Jimmy Olsen: Abbi Marie Lucy Lane: Liz Ellen Lane: Tina T. * * * * WEEK #18 (2/7 to 2/13) Re: Back at Ellen=92s Place =93Isn't there some way that you could make some time for us, um, um, I=20 mean them. I=92m sure they miss you as much as you miss them," Ellen=20 stated.=20 In a quieter voice, hoping that he wouldn't hear she added, "I miss you=20 too." >tbc< * * * * Re: Jimmy and Lucy are dancing (awwww!) Gossip Gerty, who had been hovering about the edges of the room, started making her way over to Jimmy Olsen and his dance partner. She moved right=20 up to them and cleared her throat before saying, "Excuse me, may I talk with= =20 you for a minute, Mr. Olsen?"=20 =20 Lucy had, as before, her head upon Jimmy's shoulder with her arms tied=20 casually around his neck. She took a relaxing breath in, and as she let=20 it out she heard the woman's voice. As a reflex she looked up and saw=20 the woman standing in front of them. Lucy and Jimmy had stopped dancing=20 by this point. There was a moment of awkward silence as Lucy looked into=20 Jimmy's eyes questionably. You can tell by her look that she wanted to=20 know, (1) who is this person? and (2), what does she want with Jimmy? She waited for Jimmy to answer the woman back...=20 =20 "Excuse me but I bet he'll probably talk to you after he finishes=20 dancing," cut in Anya glaring at the rudeness of the woman.=20 =20 "Ummmm... I can talk to you, yeah..." Jimmy trailed off and then looked=20 at Lucy. "As soon as I, ah, finish dancing. I, ah... yeah."=20 =20 Gerty hrumphs and walked away, but stayed close enough that she could talk=20 to him as soon as the dance was over. >tbc< * * * * Batgirl Still watching from the roof, Batman waited for some sign of what he=20 needed to do. Behind him he heard the click of someone's shoes on the=20 roof. He stayed where he was since he recognized the sound. "So have you been busy?" he askrd. "Things are pretty quiet. There were a few minor things I took care of." "I should have been there, but I had obligations here." "It's all right. So are they still pretty shaken up after that ride?" "Somewhat. They are more shaken up by Luthor's pressence. He's not here=20 just to hear The President's speech. Did you see anything on your way=20 here." "No, but I saw you two and didn't look around much. So where's Sam?" "On her way out to the car. Why don't you look around?" "Sure. Any idea what's going to happen?" "None and I don't like it." "At least we're here. It's all we can do." She walked away again and left him watching.=20 >tbc< =20 * * * * Re: Got Ice? Lois got back to the veranda and walked through the double doors. She=20 saw Cat staring intently at the bomb. "Okay, I've got the ice," she said as she got down on her knees and=20 started ringing the outside of the bomb with it. As Lois and Cat where busily trying to cool down the bomb, both women=20 heard a noise. "What the hell was that?" Lois asked. >tbc<=20 =20 * * * * Re: Jimmy and Lucy are dancing (awwww!) Lucy turned her head over in Anya's direction.. "Thanks. I was about to=20 say somethng myself, but I'm not to good at those kind of things.." Lucy and Jimmy started up dancing again... "So, what was that all about?=20 Who is she?" Lucy asked Jimmy's curiously.=20 >tbc< * * * * Re: Got Ice Cat looked up and replied. "Lois! You don't want to know!" Cat told her=20 as she looked up watching two men in black repell down from the wall and=20 onto the veranda. Catherine Grant scrambled to her feet and so did Lois.=20 "Well, it's just another fight in the ole town tonight!" Cat replied as=20 she felt for the part of the bat grapple that she'd found earlier.=20 As the thugs approached, Cat could tell that they were more muscle than=20 brain, so she waited for one of them to come to her and then she kicked=20 him back against the wall. "These dummies never give up!" Cat yelled to=20 Lois as she saw her pacing with the other guy. Cat turned around and placed some more ice on the bomb to make sure that it was stable. She turned=20 around and handed Lois the large silver ice bucket. "Makes a nice taker=20 outter!" she told Lois and smiled. >tbc< * * * * Re: Jimmy and Lucy are dancing (awwww!) Jimmy looked after the woman who was retreating to the bar. "Heck if I=20 know... I've never seen her before in my life. Wonder what she wants?"=20 >tbc< * * * * Re: Got Ice? "Thanks," Lois said as she took the ice bucket from Cat. A man dressed in black came up behind the perky reporter and knocked the=20 bucket out of her hands. "Hey!" she complained. Lois gasped for air as the= =20 man grabbed her tightly around her neck. But that didn't last long. With=20 one=20 step, Lois was able to flip the man over on his back. As he stood back up fo= r=20 his second attack, she kneed him in the groin. "Hiya!" the reporter yelled=20 as she=20 gave him a karate chop to the back. "You know, it's nice to have great legs!" Lois said as she smiled at Cat. >tbc<=20 =20 * * * * On the phone "What do you mean there aren't any rooms?" Clark angrily asked. "But=20 we're Lois and Clark from the Daily Planet. The famous Lane and Kent=20 reporting team from Metropolis! Excuse me? You don't care...fine we'll=20 just take our business elsewhere!" he yelled into the receiver as he=20 slammed the pay phone down. *It's Lois. She brings out the worst in me. She brings out the worst in=20 me and I love it! Speaking of Lois what am I going to do with her? I've=20 called every hotel and motel here in Gotham and they're all full. Now I=20 know Lois needs more sleep then I do, a lot more then I do, so I've got=20 to get her settled somewhere fast...* Clark nervously thought to himself=20 as he ran his hand through his hair. The best thing for him to do now, was to find Miss Falcon. He would go=20 outside and look for her. >tbc< * * * * Gerty Frustrated, Gerty walked over to one of her crew, a tall dark bearded=20 man. "I want to talk to Mr. Olsen. Right now he won't give me the time of=20 day. He's the short one out there dancing. Go get him for me, tell him=20 it could involve a great deal of money." "Yes, Ma'am," the blue-eyed man answered. He walked out to the couple. "Excuse me, may I have a word with you, Mr. Olsen?" Jimmy turned his head and nearly choked. ***This guy would make Shaq=20 look like a shrimp!*** he thought as he looked up at the towering=20 henchman. "Uhhhh..." Jimmy looked at Lucy. "I'll-- I'll-- I'll be right=20 back, Luce. I'll meet you at the bar, okay? Order me a Coke?"=20 =20 The man led Jimmy over to Gerty. "Before we get started, I just want to=20 say that I admire your work Mr. Olsen. I saw you taking pictures during that= =20 commotion earlier. Did you happen to get one of that kiss between Miss Lane and Mr. Kent?" Jimmy gulped. Of *course* he had taken a picture. He had several. It was=20 his plan, that when and if Lois and Clark ever got together, he would=20 give them a collage of pictures of their most initmate moments. He hadn't=20 told anybody yet, for obvious reasons. But what could this guy, who looked=20 like a seven and a half foot version of Commander Riker from TNG, want=20 with a picture of Lois and Clark? "Um, maybe. I've taken a lot of pictures tonight. I can't be sure until=20 I develop my film." >tbc< * * * * Look for Week #19 coming to a PC near you! =3D) Enjoy! Alexis ;-.) {"ADITLOM" arbitrator} =20 =20 ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 14 Feb 2000 07:42:44 -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: Kerth Category Quiz: Krypton/New Krypton Answers In-Reply-To: <3.0.6.32.20000213113213.008fe320@actcom.co.il> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Here are the answers to the Krypton/New Krypton quiz: Story 1: Love Disabled, by Tank Story 2: Something to Talk About, by Dawn Field Stroy 3: Blast From the Past, by the IRC RR Group Story 4: The Power to Forgive, by Sharon Gilbert Story 5: A Universal Union Book 1, by Jenni Debbage Story 6: The Child Who Fell From the Sky, by Chris Mulder Story 7: Au Revoir, and Not Good-bye, by Chris Carr Story 8: Come Back To Me, by Allison Forbes Please note that while Blast From the Past was initially posted as two separate IRC stories (Blast From the Past: The Field Trip and Return of Lord Kal-El), it was uploaded to the archive as one. Wendy gets thirteen points: five quotes and three excerpts. And no, "Escape >From Krypton?" was *not* included. ;p I figured it would be harder this way, since you'd be expecting it! ;) Felix gets 10.25 points, getting the "Pam Jernigan" prize for complicated scoring: four quotes, plus one and a half points for story 2, plus one excerpt, and a quarter point for getting the name of story 2 from the excerpt. Whew! :) Helene gets six points, plus extra credit for describing story 8 so well. You had the title right there in your description, Helene... Clarissa gets twelve points for six quotes. Dia does her usual fabulous job and gets fifteen points: seven quotes and one excerpt. Tara gets five points for five excerpts, and complains that I handed "Au Revoir..." on a platter. Well, what was I sposed to do? It was the third time it was featured in a quiz... I was running out of good choices! Dia comes in first with fifteen points (surprise, surprise), with Wendy a close second. Well done, everybody! Now, just to prove that I'm totally insane, ;) I have made the following calculations: Pam receives the "Best Participant" award for participating in no less than eleven quizzes. :) Dia receives the "Best Scorer" award for consistently getting, if not the highest score, among the top scores in every quiz answer she submitted. Wendy receives the "Best Sport" award for taking the time to take part in no less than six of my quizzes, even though she was so busy compiling her own! :) Felix asked: >Hazel, many thanks to you and Wendy for these quizzes. Have you thought of >doing them again for the NKerths this summer on Zoomway's board? Felix, thanks for the thanks. :) But as Wendy pointed out, I don't read nfic. I think *you* just volunteered yourself, though. ;p Thanks to all the players that took the journey with us in these past few weeks; Wendy and I have really had a lot of fun. And hurry up with your nominations, because the deadline is coming towards us faster than a speeding bullet! :D Hazel ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 14 Feb 2000 12:46:17 +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: Kerth Category Quiz: Krypton/New Krypton Answers In-Reply-To: <3.0.6.32.20000214144151.00903100@actcom.co.il> MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; CHARSET=US-ASCII On Mon, 14 Feb 2000 07:42:44 -0500 Hazel wrote: > Wendy receives the "Best Sport" award for taking the time > to take part in no less than six of my quizzes, even though > she was so busy compiling her own! :) Naah, I just get the 'sad git who doesn't have a life' award for spending so much of my free time reading fic! Wendy ---------------------- Wendy Richards w.m.richards@hrm.keele.ac.uk ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 14 Feb 2000 13:01:32 +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: NEW: 1/1 A Valentine's Rendezvous In-Reply-To: <69.11b858b.25d8acd2@aol.com> MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; CHARSET=US-ASCII Hi, and thanks to everyone who posted about this silly little piece of fluff. I appreciate your taking the time to post, very much. Kristin, I don't always send my vignettes to the Archive, as it happens - I kind of think there's too much there by me as it is, so.... anyway, glad you liked it. > But one more thing: I want more! More? Of what? (she asks innocently) Wendy ---------------------- Wendy Richards w.m.richards@hrm.keele.ac.uk ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 14 Feb 2000 13:13:37 -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: Fw: Yet another quiz ;) MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit Helene is now out of town and has asked me to post this for her. I'll post the answers in a couple of days. Have fun! LabRat :) *********************** Helene writes: Okay, guys, here's another quiz... slightly different this time (you'll understand soon enough ). It started as a joke the other night on irc, something about a new "category" for the Kerths, and it turned into a quiz, just for the fun of it and because we're going to miss Hazel's and Wendy's quizzes. Usual disclaimer: All these stories are elligible for this year's Kerths. However, this quiz does not represent any judgment on their suitability for nomination, as usual. And as you're beginning to get used to, two points for the quotes (well, some of them are more like small excerpts ) and one point for the excerpts... plus another point if you find out what all these stories have in common Don't forget the spoiler space ;) Quote 1: "There's nothing to discuss. I told you... something... and you, uh, reacted. That's all there is to it." <*Please* drop it> he pleaded silently, just wanting to be on his own with his thoughts. Quote 2: "It was a... one-night stand. This guy and I... we just got carried away. I didn't mean it to happen, and I guess I just forgot about contraception. Stupid, I know." Quote 3: Maybe I am a coward, Clark muttered silently to himself. But it's safer... Quote 4: "The Planet is paying for this date, right? Let's go out to dinner, and have a great meal and some good wine, all on expenses. How about it?" Quote 5: "You'll be fine. You know they've tested this stuff over and over." She nodded, still a little pale. "And hey, have I ever dropped you?" he teased. Quote 6: She tapped the egg-pan experimentally with a metal spoon; no reaction. Quote 7: "You mean no-one had told him how babies were made? What did he expect might happen after he had... you know... with you?" Quote 8: "My God! It's Lois Lane! Where the *hell* did she spring from?! Quote 9: "Goodbye, Lois. It's been a privilege to know you. Quote 10: "I suppose that's the price I have to pay for being Superman's mistress." Quote 11: "Lois, I'm going to kiss you, you know that?" Quote 12: "Yes, Clark, I did want it... but I thought I was making love with Clark Kent." Quote 13: "Lois, I- I was wearing a bullet-proof vest." Quote 14: "Let's hope he stays dead this time..." S p o i l e r S p a c e Excerpt 1: "A career break?" he repeated incredulously. Shaking his head, he continued, "No, you can't be Lois Lane. The Lois I know would barely agree to take a vacation, let alone a career break. You've got to be a fake. Unless...." he added, deliberately trailing off in an uncertain tone. That got her attention. "Unless what?" Clark smiled cruelly as he moved in for the kill. "Unless you've lost your nerve." She gasped, staring at him in appalled shock. Her hand went to her throat as she tried to speak but seemed unable to find the words. Excerpt 2: "He?" Clark was nonplussed for a moment. "I thought you didn't know..." "No, I don't," Lois replied quickly. "But I can't call her 'it' so I alternate... Oh! There he goes again!" She paused. "It's happened a couple of times before, but it was so slight I wasn't sure if I'd imagined it - just a funny fluttering sensation. But this baby is definitely moving now!" Clark stared at her, taking in the wonder and delight in Lois's expression. His heart was filling up with a whole range of emotions he couldn't have identified if he'd tried. He began to stretch out his hand to touch Lois's stomach, hesitated, then withdrew it, realising that he had no right to expect that she would let him. Lois, still engrossed in the wonder of feeling her baby's movement, caught Clark's gesture out of the corner of her eye. She reached for his hand and drew it to her stomach. Clark stepped closer to her and dropped to his knees to bring himself level with her. As his hand rested on her bump, the baby began to move again. Excerpt 3: "Superman, did you mean it when you said you didn't believe I loved you?" Clark closed his eyes briefly. How could he answer that one without telling her the truth? But didn't he owe her the truth, despite his crass and cowardly behaviour in putting off the problem until tomorrow? "Lois, I... you really don't know me well enough to understand your feelings for me. You've been dazzled by the things I can do, like flying, saving your life... you don't know *me*. And that's why I didn't - " Lois interrupted him, saying savagely, "Oh, yes? And just who gives you the right to pontificate like that about what I do and don't know? I can't remember when I've last been so patronised* by anyone! I've been dazzled by you - you know that for a fact, do you? Was I being dazzled when I found out that it wasn't you who was causing the temperature rises in Metropolis? Sure, I think it's great that you can fly - but if you couldn't see that I fell in love with the man underneath the costume and the powers, then you're not the decent, true and caring man I thought you were." Excerpt 4: "Are you implying that I lied?" Lois's glare became even more annoyed. "Well, you did, didn't you? Since when has Lois Lane, ambitious award-winning journalist, expressed a desire to settle down with a husband and kids? I distinctly remember you stating in no uncertain terms a couple of weeks ago that you *never* intended to have children." Clark allowed a smile to hover about his lips. "See? See? We couldn't be more incompatible!" Lois insisted excitably, stabbing the air with her index finger as she spoke. "You actually believe in happy-ever-after. You *like* kids! You want a house with a picket fence and half a dozen little Kents running around in the garden, and a little woman inside baking cookies in the kitchen." Clark mused Excerpt 5: "Well, Mr Kane, what happened then was rather similar to what happened in that other universe I mentioned: a certain rogue time-traveller from the future, whose name is Tempus, by the by, travelled to this dimension with the intention of killing you before the Kents were able to find you. I guessed his dastardly plan and arrived there just before he did, but he then threatened to find you at some point during your childhood: after all, everyone in the future knew just where and when Clark Kent grew up. So I conceived of this plan, and I smuggled you into my time machine. I decided to bring you into the future by thirty years, and I chose California instead of Smallville. The family I chose almost at random, except for the fact that the Kanes were a childless couple, just like the Kents. I hoped that by altering the course of history to this extent I would ensure that Tempus would never be able to find you." Excerpt 6: Then he noticed the sheet of paper on the floor by his feet. He picked it up and turned it over. To his surprise, it contained a print-out of the 'El' symbol from his suit. Written underneath, in Lois's handwriting, were the words, "Just who are you?" Puzzled, he placed it on the coffee-table and walked towards the kitchen. On the table, next to a now-lukewarm cup of coffee, was another sheet of paper. This also bore the 'El' logo, but next to it was an outline of the State of Kansas. Written on the bottom of the page, also in Lois's handwriting, were the words, "Am I getting close?" Excerpt 7: "You look just like your mom, and that only makes me love you even more," Clark crooned. "She's beautiful, and smart, and she's got a wonderful smile which makes me melt inside... she loves to go flying, and I know you're going to as well. When you're older, my darling daughter, I'll take you flying above the clouds in my arms and tell you all about your family and where we come from. And your mom and I will always love you and protect you." As Lois watched, Clark bent his head so that his hair brushed Katy's dark head, and his lips gently caressed his daughter's face. The intimacy between father and daughter made Lois feel almost like an intruder; but then Clark's super-hearing must have alerted him to her presence. He looked around and extended his arm towards her, inviting her to join them. Excerpt 8: She stole a glance at Clark as they neared her building; he was apologising again for what he described as his 'high-handed behaviour' at his apartment, and assuring her that he had only said it because he didn't want her to get hurt. She supposed that he was right; she would be in more danger alone than with company, and it was nice of him to be so concerned. She paused and touched his arm lightly. "Clark, I appreciate your concern. Just... next time, try not to sound like some sort of macho male Super-hero, right?" Clark grinned. "Sure - I guess I should have remembered your aversion to Super-heroes!" Excerpt 9: Okay, she missed him. *Missed* him? Lois Lane, who never wanted a partner, *missed* Clark Kent, the hack from Smallville? Clark had said something similar, she remembered. Just before he'd given her the letter, as she'd been trying to persuade him to stay he'd told her that she didn't need a partner and never had done. She had told him that she *wanted* one. Yes, she wanted a partner now. She wanted *Clark* as her partner. She'd become accustomed to him in the few months he'd been at the Planet; his writing style did seem to complement hers, and he had a talent for investigative work. There were times when she just didn't know how he did it, but he came up with the goods. That farmboy from Kansas sometimes seemed to be able to find a needle in a haystack! Excerpt 10: "Clark, what's wrong?" His head jerked up in shock. "What do you mean, Lois? Nothing's wrong." "Oh, come on, Clark! Do you really think you can fool me? A three-times Kerth award-winning investigative journalist? Besides, I *know* you." "Oh, you do, do you?" His tone was cynical, and he instantly regretted allow ing that emotion to seep through as he saw her eyebrows lift. "Look, Lois, I know you're good at your job. I've never doubted it. But when it comes to people I don't think you're so good at figuring things out." He grimaced inwardly; he needed to stop saying things like that. It would only make her even more suspicious. Her eyes flashed briefly. "Look, Clark, I really don't know what it is I've done, but it's pretty obvious from your behaviour towards me lately that I've hurt or offended you in some way. But we're supposed to be friends, so can't we sort this out? Can't I just say I'm sorry for whatever it is, or are you going to carry on with this until I work out for myself what I've done wrong?" Excerpt 11: As she began to speak again, she noticed a book on his shelf, one she would never have imagined Clark reading. Pulling out Nancy Friday's 'Women's Sexual Fantasies,' she turned to Clark and asked him, "How come you have this?" Clearly he saw the question as a non-sequitur, for he blinked for a moment. Then he flushed when he saw which book she was holding. "Oh, that," he muttered. "It was a present," he added more firmly. "From a very old and very close friend." Lois's breath caught in her throat as she suddenly felt time appear to move in slow motion. She swung back to Clark's bookshelves, suddenly noticing lots of other old friends there... Austen, Dickens, O. Henry, 'An Evil Cradling,' 'The Time Machine'... it could be a coincidence, but now she was very sure it wasn't. Excerpt 12: His hand curved along her jaw, across her cheek and into her hair. "Lois, I... I love you. You mean everything to me. And I know that you don't love me, that you just see me as your best friend, and I'm happy to be that, believe me. I don't want to embarrass you, or demand anything you don't want to give...." He *did* love her... but what about his retraction, the day Mr Stern had bought the Planet? Lois hesitated, then reached up to caress his face with as much tenderness as his caress had held. "Clark... I think maybe you'd better kiss me," she murmured. His eyes widened this time, but he didn't hesitate. His head lowered, and his lips met hers. Excerpt 13: "Who is it?" she demanded sharply. The voice which came back was muffled. "A friend." "Who are you?" A pause. Then the voice replied, "I have some information about Clark Kent's shooting." With shaking hands Lois opened the door and mutely invited the stranger in. Something about the way he walked seemed familiar, but she couldn't put her finger on what it was. She turned to face him, but his face was shaded by the hood and so she was unable to see his expression. "You'd better tell me whatever it is you know, then go," she said tonelessly. "If that's what you want," the stranger's voice replied softly. Lois started; it couldn't be.. The hood was thrown back, and Clark stood in front of her. Excerpt 14: "I... well, we shared a bed, but nothing happened." his conscience reminded him. <*She* didn't!> "You mean even then you suspected something wasn't right?" Lois began to feel as if things might be all right. Clark hadn't slept with the clone, he'd been aware very early on that there was something weird about her. "Errr... no, not then," Clark confessed. He *had* to be honest about this if their relationship was to survive, he believed. "No - uh, she fell asleep. And I... well, I didn't know what to expect. I mean, the next morning I was confused, wondering whether you... she... had gone off me or something... I mean, I've never been married before, or lived with someone... I thought, okay, she *could* be tired, it was a long day... but then she wasn't interested in talking about it, or planning - and she even cancelled Hawaii." He met Lois's eyes. "It was all so - confusing, I just didn't know what was happening. And call me stupid, but I just didn't figure out immediately that she was a fake." ************************************************************************** Thanks :) Hélène :) ----------------------------------------------- Kaethel on IRC / Kaethel79 on AIM kaethel@club-internet.fr "To thine own self, be true" ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 14 Feb 2000 06:48:11 -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: Re: NEW: 1/1 A Valentine's Rendezvous MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit > I don't always send my vignettes to the Archive, > as it happens - I kind of think there's too much there by > me as it is, so.... anyway, glad you liked it. Wendy, that's something that you need to change immediately!! I'm getting off the fanfic listserv this week, and I haven't been on Zoom's fanfic board for nearly 3 weeks--in an attempt to recapture my life--and so far, I've been able to keep control of my addiction by reading the new stories on the archive each week. But now you tell me that you aren't sending everything to the archive??!! AARRGGHH!!!!! That is manifestly unfair and discriminatory and--and any other epithet you want to add. C'mon, Wendy, be fair! Some of us really like your little vignettes! Sheila ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 14 Feb 2000 05:42:04 -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: Fw: Yet another quiz ;) MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii S P O I L E R S P A C E I love this quiz - all Wendy Richards' stories! Quote 2: It Happened One (Super) Night Quote 4: The Perfect Match Quote 5: Big Boys Do Fly Quote 6: It's as Plain as the Nose Quote 10: A Conscious Choice Quote 12: Escape from the Prankster Quote 13: The Confession Excerpt 1: The Healing Time Excerpt 3: An Ordinary Man Excerpt 7: It's a Super Life Excerpt 8: I think this is Strange Visitor from the Congo Excerpt 9: Dear Lois...Love Superman Excerpt 11: The Penfriend Excerpt 14: A Time to Rebuild How'd I do? Irene ===== Outside of a dog, a book is Man’s best friend. And inside of a dog, it’s too dark to read. Groucho Marx __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Talk to your friends online with Yahoo! Messenger. http://im.yahoo.com ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 14 Feb 2000 05:43:11 -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: NEW: 1/1 A Valentine's Rendezvous MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii I agree with Sheila, Wendy. Please send this to the archive. It's sweet, it's cute and it deserves to be reread next Valentine's day. Irene --- sharper wrote: > > I don't always send my vignettes to the Archive, > > as it happens - I kind of think there's too much > there by > > me as it is, so.... anyway, glad you liked it. > > Wendy, that's something that you need to change > immediately!! I'm getting > off the fanfic listserv this week, and I haven't > been on Zoom's fanfic board > for nearly 3 weeks--in an attempt to recapture my > life--and so far, I've > been able to keep control of my addiction by reading > the new stories on the > archive each week. But now you tell me that you > aren't sending everything > to the archive??!! AARRGGHH!!!!! > > That is manifestly unfair and discriminatory > and--and any other epithet you > want to add. C'mon, Wendy, be fair! > Some of us really like your > little vignettes! > > Sheila > ===== Outside of a dog, a book is Man’s best friend. And inside of a dog, it’s too dark to read. Groucho Marx __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Talk to your friends online with Yahoo! Messenger. http://im.yahoo.com ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 14 Feb 2000 13:41:40 -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: Fw: Yet another quiz ;) MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Irene wrote: > > How'd I do? > I should have mentioned that I have absolutely *no* intention of trying to work my way through Helene's points system! . I'll post the answers she gave me on Wednesday. Helene tells me that she should get access to a pc on Thursday, when she'll mark up the individual scores then. LabRat :) ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 14 Feb 2000 08:53:43 -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: Fw: Yet another quiz ;) MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=iso-8859-1 Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable LOL, H=E9l=E8ne, Just by glancing through the quotes, I've got an idea of what the theme might be... and it's too funny! Let me see if I can get all of these... s p o i l e r s p a c e Q1: Not placing it from the quote Q2: It Happened One (Super) Night Q3: can't quite pin it down Q4: The Perfect Match Q5: Big Boys Do Fly Q6: dunno Q7: It's A Super Life Q8: Strange Visitor from the Congo Q9: Dear Lois, Love Superman Q10: A Conscious Choice Q11: I love this line, but the stories are all blurring together... Q12: not getting it... Q13: The Confession Q14: can't quite tell... Okay, on to the excerpts, and for these I'm going to do some research... (I figure it's easy enough, all the possible answers are grouped together on one Archive page, right? ) E1: Ah! The Healing Time E3: An Ordinary Man (had to look this one up) E6: It's As Plain as the Nose... (had to look this one up, too) E11: The Penfriend! (Nancy Friday was a dead giveaway ) E12: Escape from the Prankster (looking it up) E14: Must be A Time to Rebuild ... it's the only one left! All of these great stories (and the crappy ones too ) were by Wendy Richards, and that made this quiz hilarious.... thanks, H=E9l=E8ne!= ! -- = ------------------------------------------------------- Pam Jernigan | jernigan@bellsouth.net = ChiefPam on IRC | ChPam on AOL IM ------------------------------------------------------- "So is the answer A) B, B) C, C) D, or D) A?" "Is this a trick question?" "Yes. The answer is 'meat'." --Whose Line Is It Anyway, spoofing Millionaire. ------------------------------------------------------- http://www.geocities.com/~chiefpam ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 14 Feb 2000 15:01:17 -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: Fw: Yet another quiz ;) MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Fwding this to the list, Julie . Makes it easier for Helene to work out the points when she comes back. LabRat :) > S P O I L E R S P A C E > Reporting from off the list: > > My guess is the topic is: Most prolific writer: Wendy Richards!!! > > I only guessed the second one by the quote (It must be Monday!!). All the > authors are Wendy! Gee Whiz!!! > > 1. The Healing Time > 2. It Happened one (Super) Night > 3. An Ordinary Man > 4. The Perfect Match? > 5. BBDF1 > 6. It's as Plain as the Nose ... > 7. It's a Super Life > 8. Strange Visitor from the Congo > 9. Dear Lois ... Love Superman > 10. A counscious Choice > 11. The Penfriend > 12. Escape from the Prankster > 13. The Confession > 14. A Time to Rebuild > > > > Julie > > > ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 14 Feb 2000 10:39:12 -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: Fw: Yet another quiz ;) In-Reply-To: <001f01bf76ed$5e457440$1231883e@d9t5t7> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" I have to disqualify myself a bit, since I knew about this in advance, but hey. ;) S P O I L E R S P A C E First of all, these are all Wendy fics! Excerpt 1: The Healing Time Quote 2: It Happened One (Super) Night Excerpt 3: Ordinary Man (I think) Excerpt 4: Ah! The Perfect Match. And one of my favorites, simply because we *discussed* it on the list. :) Excerpt 5: Should've known... Big Boys Do Fly 1, set in "Marner Sisters" studio. ;) Quote 6: It's As Plain As the Nose... Excerpt 7: It's a Super Life Quote 9: Dear Lois... Love, Superman Quote 10: Sheesh, what a quote! Concious Choice Excerpt 11: The Penfriend Quote 13: The Confession Excerpt 14: A Time to Rebuild ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 14 Feb 2000 07:40:44 -0800 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: James Tull Subject: Nomination Comments: To: "Erin K." Comments: cc: rbain@uswest.net MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Mr. D8A Nominates Becky Bain's Timeless for the Alt-Universe and Revelation Categories. Fabulous story Becky! I was a faithful B&B watcher until it started getting Really weird. You captured the characters of both worlds well. James ===== Mr. D8a Philipians 4:8 The love of James' life is Elisabeth, but... Daddy's little sweetheart is Rosa! __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Talk to your friends online with Yahoo! Messenger. http://im.yahoo.com ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 14 Feb 2000 07:55:15 -0800 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: James Tull Subject: part 5 Comments: To: 7d , BackStep Fiction , Tad Flowers , Marc Gartin , Dave and Debbie Harrison , Backstep Operation , Travel Time , Dad Tull , Danny Tull MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Part 5 of Seven Days of Superman has been pre-empted by real life. It has been rescheduled to this week and hopefully will not be pre-empted again. Teaser "Dr. Klein I'm pregnant." "You can't be! All the tests showed it to be impossible! Unless..." "Bernard Oliver Klein! I can't even believe you'd think..." "NO! NO! NEVER! Well actually maybe, but when I really think about it, it's not likely." The look in Lois' eyes could have given even her husbands heat vision a run for it's money. Dr. Klein decided that full surrender was in order. "Never would have crossed my mind. Nope. No-way." To Be Continued. James ===== Mr. D8a Philipians 4:8 The love of James' life is Elisabeth, but... Daddy's little sweetheart is Rosa! __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Talk to your friends online with Yahoo! Messenger. http://im.yahoo.com ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 14 Feb 2000 12:35:21 -0800 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Comments: RFC822 error: Incorrect or incomplete address field found and ignored. From: Carolyn Schnall Subject: Review S5 Ep 11 Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/enriched; charset="us-ascii" Times_New_RomanHi FoLCs: Oh Give Me A Home By Jeff Brogden Edited by Diane Levitan S P O I L E R S P A C E OK, this was not exactly in the TV ep format, though this did not bother me, and once again, I had to print out the text version. I really loved this story. I took my time reading it because it was so compelling and I didn't want it to end. I thought the chemical plot was wonderfully conceived, that the barn scene was exciting, which would have been thrilling to see on film, and that the hospital scene was very moving. Actually, seeing Clark struggle against the ropes was scary and yet very well done. I thought the whole story was extremely well thought out, that it would have been a great x-mas ep and that it fits in with the canon well. Of course, L&C have to wait till all kinds of things happen to tell the Kents about the pregnancy! The whole Jon and Martha story, about their considering giving up the farm was a great surprise. I was as stunned as Clark and I like to be surprised. The resolution was a nice twist. Lois' probing mind getting her in to trouble was nicely explored and her apology was interesting. There was only one slightly strange note about that. After Battleground Earth, I doubt the people of Smallville still thought of Lois as a celeb but this is very minor point in an otherwise terrific story. I'm really have a great time! Onto S5/12! Thanks, Carolyn cschnall@.med.cornell.edu ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 14 Feb 2000 17:34:06 -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: Re: Nomination MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit James wrote: > Mr. D8A Nominates Becky Bain's Timeless for the > Alt-Universe and Revelation Categories. > And you aren't alone, James. ;) And in lots of other categories too, like Best Overall Fic. I'd also add that imo you don't have to be a fan of Beauty & The Beast to thoroughly enjoy this wonderful fic. I wasn't, yet Becky handles the characters and themes of both shows so movingly and well that I didn't at all feel out of the loop at any point while reading and I was as keen to see Vincent and Catherine get a happy ending as I was Clark and Lois. LabRat :) ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 14 Feb 2000 12:58:26 -0800 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Amy Lauters Subject: Night Terrors (6 of 6) MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit Thanks to everyone who's given me feedback. Enjoy the conclusion ... Amy *** They took the Jeep back home, stopping to check for messages before going to Mike's townhouse, just two blocks south of the Lane-Kent residence. They were almost home when Clark remembered to ask Lois about her media "diary." "Well, I didn't find anything too unusual," Lois said as she turned down their street. "I spent a lot of time online the last few weeks, researching story ideas before I went to bed. Superman's been busy a lot at night, and it seemed a good idea. But that's not unusual, Clark; I've done that frequently for a long time." "What about the sites you've visited?" Clark asked. "Any new ones?" Lois thought hard for a minute, as she pulled up the curb by their mailbox so Clark could grab the mail before she turned into the driveway. "Well, I always start with the usual - you know, yahoo, CNN. I did do a search a couple of weeks ago for information about frequent flyer mile. I heard a rumor ." Clark looked at her skeptically. "Well, OK, I heard you could cash them in for Godiva chocolate." "Well worth searching for, honey," Clark said kindly. She gave him a look. "Well anyway, it didn't turn up much, but I used a new search engine to find some of the information. Turnkey dot com," Lois set the brake and reached into the back seat for her laptop case and notebook. "I don't remember using it again, but I hardly ever pay attention to which search engine comes up when I click 'search' on the navbar. I just use whatever comes up, to start off with." "Worth investigating, anyway," Clark said, picking up his cellphone and dialing the office. Jimmy answered on the second ring. "Thought you guys were going over to Soppeland's place," Jimmy said. "We are, Jimmy," Clark replied. "But could you check something out for us?" "At your beck and call. Even if it is closing on 8:30. Who needs sleep, anyway?" he answered cheerfully. "That's the spirit, Jimmy," Clark laughed. "Could you check out a new search engine called Turnkey? Find out who owns it, who runs it, that kind of stuff." "You got it. Want it faxed, emailed or phoned in?" "Just call us when you get it; we'll figure out the details then," Clark said. "Got it." "Thanks, Jimmy." Clark got out of the car. "He'll check out Turnkey." "Great, that's one more thing off the list," Lois said as she walked to the front door, keys in hand. As they walked in the house, Lois noticed the light flashing on the machine. At the touch of the play button, they heard the voice of Alexis Turner, obviously shaky. "Ms. Lane, Mr. Kent, this is Alexis Turner. I wanted to apologize for my outburst earlier. I really think I can help you if you tell me why you're interested. Please call me back at 555-9837." Lois looked at Clark. "That's an about-face. I wonder what happened." "So what do you want to do next?" Clark asked. "Drop in on Mike Soppeland, or call back Alexis?" "How about we do both?" Lois suggested. "I'll call Alexis back, and you drop in on Mike Soppeland. I wasn't really looking forward to more of his - " She hesitated, then in a voice dripping with sarcasm, said "- charm, being wasted on me." "Suits me," Clark said. "Meet back here in an hour?" "Fine," Lois grabbed the phone to call Alexis. "Bring back some sandwiches or something, will you? We haven't eaten much today, and I'm starving." "Got it." With a whoosh, Clark left, as Lois dialed Alexis. She picked up on the first ring. "Alexis? This is Lois Lane." "Oh, Ms. Lane, I'm so sorry about my outburst this afternoon. It really wasn 't called for," Alexis said. Lois reassured her quickly. "Hey, I've heard it before. Comes with being a reporter. Sometimes I have to ask questions I know might hurt people, but that doesn't mean I take pleasure in it." "I know," Alexis hesitated. "Can we meet? I've got some things to tell you, and I don't want to do it over the phone." "Where?" Lois asked. "How about Centennial Park?" Alexis suggested. "It's practically deserted at this time of the night, and we can grab a bench." "By the fountain?" "Fine. See you soon." Lois heard a click, then hung up the phone herself before scribbling a quick note to Clark, just in case. She rushed out the door, headed for Centennial Park. *** Lois never went to Centennial Park without a brief sigh of contentment and little twitch of remembrance for the times she and Clark had spent together there. She made her way quickly to the fountain, where she waited just a few minutes before Alexis came out of the darkness, into the floodlights near the water. Alexis gestured to the bench in front of the fountain, and Lois sat down next to her. "So," Lois started. "What do you want to know?" Alexis looked around nervously before starting off with, "Are you interested in dream control because you have a personal experience with it?" Lois raised an eyebrow. "What might make you say that?" "Very few people are interested in my research unless they've had some reason to get interested," Alexis said. "We're kind of the loons on campus in a way, thinking about controlling dreams." Lois thought for a moment, then decided. "Yes, I've had recent personal experience where I thought my dreams might be controlled by someone else. My editor thinks I'm nuts, but I can't explain them any other way." Alexis visibly relaxed. "It's easier to talk to someone who might understand." "Alexis, I understand why you're doing your research, but I've got a lot of questions for you," Lois said. "You should know, we checked out your background." Alexis looked resigned. "Then you know about Stanford." "We know about the scandal that got you kicked out of school," Lois continued. "Does that have anything to do with why you want to talk to me? Is Professor Soppeland involved?" Surprised, Alexis stood up. "Mike? He had nothing to do with Stanford. It was Dr. Mortenson. He was a software engineer. I don't even know why I got involved with him; I've never had trouble with grades. Somehow, I felt compelled to work with him, sleep with him. Somehow, when our relationship made news, it came out as a sex-for-grades scandal. My father was devastated." She paced in front of the bench, unable to keep still. "He died soon after." "Software engineer," Lois echoed. "Does Dr. Mortenson have anything to do with Turnkey?" "Turnkey is his search engine. I was beta testing it for him," Alexis explained. "What does that have to do with anything?" "It might be the key to this whole story . no pun intended," Lois hastened to say. "Alexis, when did your physical relationship with Dr. Mortenson start? Before or after you started using Turnkey?" Alexis stopped pacing, thinking hard. "It was after, I think. No, I know it, because I started the beta testing after I answered his ad in the paper, and we got involved after that." "And you felt 'compelled' to sleep with him?" Lois asked. "I wonder ." "Wonder what?" Alexis asked eagerly. "I wonder if Turnkey is the mechanism for subliminal media messages used to control dreams?" Alexis abruptly sat back down. "My father thought people could be controlled through subliminal media messages before they slept. But he needed a trigger, something within the person that responded to the messages. I always thought it would be something biochemical." "Maybe it is," Lois said. "Turnkey might just be the medium for the messages, not the trigger itself. What have you found in your own research?" "Well, Mike has steered me in some great directions. One idea was we could use natural chemicals that come within food products. We've tried all sorts of things, but the kind that's work the most often - without guarantees of success, mind you - has been caffeine," Alexis said. "What's hard about that is caffeine naturally prohibits sleep. We've had a hard time hitting on the right combination of caffeine and other substances to both induce sleep and control dreams, and subsequently, behavior." Could it be that simple? Lois wondered to herself. "Alexis, did you know that Mike was your father's research assistant?" Her blue eyes widened. "No." Alexis grunted in disgust. "No wonder he knew what directions to point me in. He probably knows half of this already!" "So, Turnkey sends subliminal messages when you use it. Caffeine, in small amounts, just before bedtime, might trigger a dream that's based on those subliminal messages. If the dreams are forceful enough, they could change behavior," Lois summed up. "Well, well, Ms. Lane, I do believe you're right," Mike Soppeland stepped out from the shadows, gun in hand. "Alexis, I'm disappointed in you. Sharing your research like that." "It was you, wasn't it?" Alexis asked. "You who killed my father?" "No, Alexis, your father died of a massive heart attack in his sleep. Probably caused by your actions," Mike smirked. "I hope that doc was worth it." "I don't understand," Alexis cried out. "And you won't. You may never know how this all worked, and I'm not going to tell you. That would be too cliché," Mike dismissed the idea. "Ms. Lane almost had it worked out, but she can't be allowed to continue. Too bad, too, because I was enjoying your dreams, Lois. I loved watching your marriage crack, just a little, under the strain of those dreams. Too bad I have to kill you; eventually, I would have had you in my bed." "Not likely," Lois said angrily, realizing if Mike was here, Clark must be nearby. "I obviously underestimated your investigative skills, and your hold over that husband of yours," Mike continued. "I really thought he'd have you evaluated, maybe bring you to me for dream therapy. Ah, well. The best-laid plans, and all that." "Clark trusts me, and he believes in me," Lois said, praying that Clark was listening in, high above. "That's a kind of relationship you'll never have." Mike scratched his chin with his left hand, the other rock steady as it held the gun on them. "Don't know that I want to. Too hard to be good all the time." Just a few more minutes, Clark. Let me see what else I can get out of him, Lois implored silently. "Too hard to be good? Is that why you hooked up with Mortenson? So you'd have an easier way of sending messages to your subjects?" "Well, actually, I didn't realize it would work so well until Alexis got into so much trouble," Mike conceded. "Morty was using some of my ideas to try to get Alexis into bed with him. It worked, and the result distracted Frankie-boy so much it was easy to plant messages in his own equipment. I shudder to think what kind of dreams caused his heart attack." "You monster!" Alexis screamed. "You killed my father, took his research, set up the scandal that nearly cost my career and pretended to be my friend, the whole time!" She started running towards him, arms outstretched, heedless of the gun. "Alexis, wait!" Lois called. "You little whore," Mike snarled as he pulled the trigger. A hand came out of nowhere, stopping the bullet before it would have it Alexis in the stomach. "Trouble, Ms. Lane?" Superman asked. "Get him, Superman!" With a whoosh, Mike lost his gun and found himself wrapped securely in a red cape, tied in a perky bow in front. Lois took out her cellphone to call the police, and Alexis collapsed in a heap on the ground, sobbing. Superman turned to Lois. "Clark is on his way, Ms. Lane. He thought he'd send me ahead; we've been following Soppeland for some time." "Thank you, Superman," she smiled at him. With a nod, he flew off. Moments later, Clark ran into the clearing. "Is everyone all right?" "We're fine, Clark; Alexis is a little shaken up. The police are on their way," Lois told him. "Jimmy called just as I was getting to Soppeland's house," Clark said. "He' d found a picture of Mortenson and Soppeland together in the same Stanford newsletter. Apparently, they go way back," Clark said. "He also found a list of investors in Turnkey; it went public recently. Soppeland and Mortenson were at the top of the list. When I saw Soppeland's car pulling out, I called Superman and followed him here." "Did you hear everything?" Lois asked. Clark nodded. "Everything," he confirmed. "He must have seen you in the neighborhood, and decided he had to have you. The only thing I don't get is what might have caused your dreams. You don't regularly make a habit of drinking coffee before bed, do you?" Lois sighed. "No, but I do indulge in a double-crunch fudge bar as a bedtime snack. Chocolate has caffeine in it. The company sent me a case a couple of weeks ago, said I was one if its best customers." She sniffed. "It was a little embarrassing, so I didn't tell you, but who am I to turn down chocolate?" Clark snorted. "Who, indeed? Five bucks says when we check with the company in the morning, we'll find they never sent the chocolate. I'll bet this guy - " he waved in Soppeland's direction "-did." "Probably," Lois answered. The clearing started to fill with police officers, and one female cop came to tend Alexis. "Let's explain this and get back to the Planet." *** "Jiminy crickets, Lois," Perry exclaimed as he read their copy in his office, just a few hours later. "I give you 24 hours, and you pull it off in 16. Dream control!" "Well, chief, as we said, stranger things have happened to Lois," Clark said. "That's the truth," Lois added, stretching and not even bothering to conceal a yawn. "You two head home, catch some sleep," Perry said. "See you around noon." With a grateful smile, Lois stood. "Come on, Clark." They walked into the elevator, letting it take them to the ground, where Clark spun into Superman and took them home. He lay his nearly sleeping wife on their bed, stripping her gently and pulling the covers up. "G'night, Clark," she said, as she drifted into a deep, dreamless, sleep. *** A man stroked a cat in a dark, dusty room, the only light a glow from a fire in the corner. "Next time," he growled. "Next time." THE END ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 14 Feb 2000 14:14:36 -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: Nomination In-Reply-To: <001b01bf7711$c162f2e0$1125883e@d9t5t7> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" >James wrote: > >> Mr. D8A Nominates Becky Bain's Timeless for the >> Alt-Universe and Revelation Categories. >> And Labrat added: >And you aren't alone, James. ;) No, most definitely not... I also included this one in best overall fic! >I'd also add that imo you don't have to be a fan of Beauty >& The Beast to thoroughly enjoy this wonderful fic. I wasn't, yet Becky >handles the characters and themes of both shows so movingly and well that I >didn't at all feel out of the loop at any point while reading and I was as >keen to see Vincent and Catherine get a happy ending as I was Clark and >Lois. I'd never even *heard* of B&tB before, but Becky just sucked me in... now, *that's* good writing. But James, one small word of caution: the way you worded your post makes me wonder if you intended it to be your nomination, as opposed to simply recommending Timeless to others. If so, allow me to remind you that posting nominations to this list won't help! You have to e-mail your nominations to Erin (and quickly, too!) if you want 'em to count. :) Hazel ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 14 Feb 2000 11:45:56 -0800 Reply-To: creolel@ca.freei.net Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Lori Llorence Subject: Re: Night Terrors (6 of 6) Comments: To: Amy Lauters MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Excellent ending to a fabulous story!! The only thing I have to say is...MORE!! I can't wait to read more from you!! Lori ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 14 Feb 2000 15:12:37 -0500 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: NEW: 1/1 A Valentine's Rendezvous On Mon, 14 Feb 2000 06:48:11 -0700, sharper wrote: >> I don't always send my vignettes to the Archive, > >Wendy, that's something that you need to change immediately!! [snip] > C'mon, Wendy, be fair! Some of us really like your little vignettes! Umm... thank you, Sheila! I didn't know that... and this isn't really a pathetic cry for feedback, although I don't know if anyone likes a story unless I get told. Some of us writers can be very insecure! Anyway, Sheila, cry heard - it's just been sent off to Anne for my PG section on annesplace. I think all my vignettes should be there. And thanks for the vote of confidence! Wendy ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 14 Feb 2000 15:14:24 -0500 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: James Tull Subject: Re: 2001 Kerth category I second your motion and I would add an additional Category. Best Crossover Now I know that this seems self-serving, but there were several stories that could have fit that bill this year and next. Timeless - B&B Phil's Doctor Who Phil's C&H a couple good X files Quantum leap 7 days ( I hope I get it done by December! :-O to mention a few. James, Who wishes that he had more than two minutes to rub together at the same time! ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 14 Feb 2000 15:24:18 -0500 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: Fw: Yet another quiz ;) On Mon, 14 Feb 2000 08:53:43 -0500, Pam Jernigan wrote: >Just by glancing through the quotes, I've got an idea of what the theme >might be... and it's too funny! > >s >p >o >i >l >e >r > >s >p >a >c >e ....and I'm only now recovering from the embarrassment! Just owning up to the fact that I had to go to the extracts before I could identify three of these, and that there was one other I couldn't identify without looking up my story files on my hard drive. Well done, Helene! Oh, and Pam: >All of these great stories (and the crappy ones too ) were by >Wendy Richards, You're right there! So how many should we allocate to the second category? I'm starting in single figures... I hope! Wendy (who didn't need make-up today to have red cheeks!) ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 14 Feb 2000 15:47:01 EST Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Alicia Utowski Subject: NEW: Basketball- A L&C Valentine MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="ISO-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable Basketball- A Lois and Clark Valentine by Alicia U. (lxu2@po.cwru.edu or alicia3456@aol.com) Please give me feedback... please give me feedback ;p ******************************************************* Ugh, why did I agree to play basketball with him? I tried to move my an= kle again. Oh God, the pain! It shot up my leg all the way up to my hip. =20= Okay, so moving wasn't the best idea I'd ever had. Back to my original ques= tion, what in the world possessed me to ask Clark to play basketball? Could= I have been jealous? No way, he can do whatever he wants to in his free ti= me. It's not like we're married or anything. So what if he'd rather play b= asketball with Jimmy than do something with me. I know we've only been dati= ng a couple of weeks, but he should spend time with me. A relationship, if=20= he wants one, is about spending time together. Yeah, I could just see him s= itting here telling me that we spend time together all day at work and that=20= he and Jimmy only have a chance to play once a week and only when it's warm=20= out, but I guess I feel excluded. And then whenever we end up spending time= together, he has to run off, especially when things are getting intimate. =20= The one good thing that happened today was that I found out why he's always=20= leaving me. Okay, maybe I should be mad about that, but right now my ankle=20= hurts too much to even care. I'm sure that when the pain subsides I might b= e angry, but maybe not. I'm not in the mood to talk about that right now, m= y ankle hurts so badly, and my brain is on too much sensory overload to thin= k straight. The one thing I know for sure is that I love him with all my he= art, and it will take much more than that to keep us apart. It all started this afternoon. It was unseasonably warm for February in= Metropolis, so Clark and Jimmy decided to play a quick pick-up game after w= ork. But I overheard them planning, so I kindly asked them if I could play=20= too; okay maybe it was more like weaseling my way in, but so what if a girl=20= knows what a man wants and threatens to withhold it from him that's the Amer= ican way. Anyway, Clark gave in a lot more easily than I would have thought= , so I went home on my lunch break to grab a pair of jogging pants, a sweats= hirt, and some athletic shoes. I was surprised I still had those shoes in m= y closet because sports aren't my favorite thing in the world. Those shoes=20= probable haven't moved from that spot since the day I bought them. I think=20= the last time I played basketball was back in high school gym class. And ev= en back then I wasn't very good. The boys used to call me "Old Granny Lois"= because I guess I didn't know how to shoot or something stupid like that. =20= Despite my dubious basketball history, I was excited that I would finally be= able to see what guys do when they hang out. Well not just any guy, I want= ed to see Clark when he was totally relaxed, just being "one of the guys." =20= And if I had to play basketball to do it, well so be it. I was going to pla= y basketball. After work, we changed into our athletic clothes and met at the court in= Centennial Park about a block away from the Planet. The first thing I saw=20= when I got there was Clark's amazing smile. He must not have believed I wou= ld come ready to play. It must have been a shock to his system seeing me in= anything that looked athletic. He and Jimmy must have doubted that I'd com= e, judging from the shocked look on Jimmy's face. =20 Clark was wearing a white tank top and a nicely form-fitting pair of black s= horts, which clung to his legs very nicely. I won't even go into the other=20= parts those shorts accentuated. I found myself staring at him, frozen in pl= ace. His muscular biceps rippled every time he moved his arms, and under hi= s tank top I could see his well-defined pecs and his six-pack stomach. And=20= when he walked, the muscles in his thighs rippled quite nicely under those s= horts. How could I have ever thought Clark didn't have a body to die for? =20= Oh was I wrong. I could have sworn a little ball of drool was hanging off t= he corner of my mouth and my tongue was hanging out of my mouth. I must hav= e been lost deep in my thoughts because I didn't notice Clark walking toward= s me until he put his hand on my shoulder. "Lois, you came!" Clark exclaimed when he put an arm loosely around my=20= shoulder. I looked at him almost not believing that the gorgeous bicep I was admir= ing just a moment before was now draped across my shoulders. The weird thin= g was that it was not warm out here yet he was wearing a tank top and shorts= . Granted it was unseasonably warm for winter in Metropolis when we should=20= have had a foot of snow on the ground, but it was still only about 55 degree= s. Jimmy and I were both dressed warmly in sweats, but Clark was dressed li= ke it was summertime, and his skin did not even feel cold. That mildly surp= rised me but I quickly dismissed my thoughts when Clark led me over to the c= ourt. Jimmy was there bouncing the ball on the hard pavement and occasional= ly shooting lay ups. =20 Jimmy was obviously annoyed that I came. He obviously wasn't expecting=20= Clark to let me come, and then he was obviously not expecting me to follow t= hrough. I know he values his male bonding time with Clark but he had to und= erstand that Clark and I are together now and I'm going to become an importa= nt part of his life. "Okay, Lois, you're on my team, I guess. You and me versus Jimmy, okay?= " Clark winked at me as he said, "Even though I want to play you man-to-man= ." I was shocked when I heard that comment. Wow, that was really lude, and= something I would never expect Clark to say in front of me. Maybe he loose= ned up when he was with "the boys." I laughed a little and said, "You'd bet= ter watch yourself, Kent." Jimmy grinned, "Well, Lois, CK's not that good. I always kick his butt,= so he probably needs your help." I knew Jimmy was teasing, but I was surprised that Clark wouldn't defend= himself to Jimmy in front of his girlfriend. Instead, Clark merely nodded, "I know, I'm pretty bad But together we'r= e going to win." He grinned widely at me, "Because now I have my secret wea= pon." Please, what did he think I was, some kind of athlete? Jimmy gently lob= bed me the ball and said, "Here Lois, take a shot from anywhere. Let me see= what I'm up against." I barely caught the ball even though it was thrown very softly, and I sh= ot. Both Clark and Jimmy looked at me like I was psycho when I pushed the b= all with two hands and shot from my chest. The ball landed a few feet in fr= ont of the hoop and Jimmy tried to hide his laugh. Clark redeemed himself f= or his earlier comment, though, when he grabbed my hand and said, "Thank God= she's on my team, Jim. You're in trouble now!" We started playing, and Clark was very generous when we played. He pass= ed to me often even though I missed it half the time, and even when I caught= it, Jimmy stole it as soon as I tried to dribble. Clark was a good player,= although not as good as Jimmy was. Jimmy was beating us 10-2 when it happe= ned. Clark had just passed me the ball when Jimmy came up to defend me. I=20= tried to make a move on him, why I will never know. I tried to dribble acro= ss my body, but when I tried to run after it, my foot got caught on Jimmy's=20= and my ankle turned in a very weird position. I fell to the ground and scre= amed. Instantly, Clark was at my side yelling for Jimmy to get some ice. T= his is when I found out what Clark had been hiding from me. =20 Clark must have been worried about me and forgotten himself because he p= ulled his glasses down his nose and looked at my ankle. Even through my pai= n-induced haze I wondered what he was doing looking at my ankle. It wasn't=20= as if he could see anything but skin Boy was I wrong. =20 I looked up into his face. His eyes were clouded with worry and his mou= th was almost twisted with sympathy. But the thing that alerted me the most= was that he had his glasses down at the bridge of his nose. I had never se= en his eyes without his glasses before, and for some reason he looked so dif= ferent without them, almost like someone else. I couldn't place who that so= meone else was until Clark muttered, "Not broken, thank God." What? How could he have known that it wasn't broken just by looking at=20= it? It wasn't like he could x-ray it with his eyes. Boy was I wrong! It h= it me then. Why was he able to wear a tank top and shorts in the cold and h= is skin still be warm? Why does he always have to leave me whenever we are=20= having a meaningful discussion and always seem so sorry and leaves such lame= excuses? How could he look at my ankle and say it's not broken? Who does=20= he look like without his glasses? It hit me then. It made so much sense. I guess it took a brain clouded= with pain to realize that Clark Kent, the mild-mannered reporter I had, I a= dmit it, fallen in love with, was also Superman, the other man I still had s= ome feelings for. This was not the time to confront him about it, though, b= ecause Jimmy was running back towards us. Clark helped me sit up and he removed my shoe and sock. Even his gentle= motions around my foot made pain shoot throughout my body. It felt like lo= ng needles were poking every organ in my body. Each time I grimaced, Clark=20= seemed to hurt even more than I did. It was so sweet that he felt so badly=20= about this, but it wasn't his fault. It was my choice to come here and try=20= to play with the guys, and if I hadn't made that stupid move none of this wo= uld have happened. "Clark, it's not your fault," I pleaded. "You're making me feel worse w= hen you blame yourself." Jimmy handed Clark the ice and he used my sock to tie it to my ankle. T= he ice was cold, but at least it numbed the pain for now. =20 "CK, shouldn't we take her to the hospital to get it x-rayed?" Jimmy won= dered. He was obviously blaming himself too. After all it was his foot tha= t made me trip. "Maybe we should, Jimmy. I don't think it's broken, but we can never be= too careful." "I'm so sorry, Lois. I didn't mean to trip you," Jimmy said with a plea= ding look in his eyes begging me to forgive him. =20 I sighed; I didn't need this pity party. What I needed were some painki= llers and a nice soft bed. "It's not your fault Jimmy. Don't worry about it any more. Let's just=20= get this ankle x-rayed and get it over with." I humored them, not wanting t= o let my new found knowledge slip. Clark nodded, "Yeah, Jimmy why don't you just go home. I can drive Lois= over to the hospital for the x-rays." "Okay, CK, just let me help you get her to the car. It's a pretty long=20= walk back to the parking garage." I jumped in here. "It's okay, Jimmy. I found a meter on the street. S= ee I'm parked right up there. I think I can hobble up there if you guys jus= t help me up." I secretly hoped Clark would scoop me into his arms and carr= y me up to my car. He did just what I was hoping when he said, "No, Lois, I don't want you=20= to put any more weight on that ankle. I'll carry you to the car. You're no= t heavy." Jimmy's eyebrows nearly jumped to the top of his forehead. "Are you sur= e about that CK? Sometimes you have trouble carrying your own briefcase." I laughed at that, now knowing that Clark could probably pick up the ent= ire Earth if he so desired. Now it was actually kind of funny thinking back= to all of the things he pretended he couldn't do. Even his lack of basketb= all skill was all a ruse to prevent people from catching on to his secret. =20= No one would guess that Clark the weakling was really Superman the Man of St= eel. "It's okay Jimmy. She's not heavy. Could you just grab the ball?" Clark scooped me into his arms effortlessly. It was a wonderful feeling= being wrapped up in his strong arms, although it would have been so much be= tter had my ankle not been sending shooting pains up my leg. Still, this po= sition just felt so warm, so natural. How had I ever thought any differentl= y? How had I almost let this wonderful man slip through my fingers? He leaned down to give me a soft, sweet kiss on the cheek and he whisper= ed, "It's okay, Lois." I buried my head into his strong chest wondering if the pain would ever=20= go away. Granted it felt so good being held in his strong arms, cuddled sec= urely against his chiseled chest, but I wasn't enjoying the feel of his body= 's close proximity as much as I would have otherwise. =20 Soon we reached my car and I handed him my keys. It didn't take Clark l= ong to get me settled in the back seat with my ankle slightly elevated on hi= s gym bag. I laid silently on the back seat realizing that under any other=20= circumstances, his careful ministrations would have probably annoyed me to n= o end. I don't like being treated like a china doll, but today my ankle hur= t so badly, I needed him to take care of me. =20 Before Clark started the car he turned around to check on me again. "Lo= is, are you okay back there? How are you doing?" How was I doing? Was I okay? My ankle only felt like six long needles=20= were sticking in it, but sure, I was fine. I gritted my teeth when I realiz= ed that he was just feeling bad for me. He was Superman and had probably ne= ver felt a kind of pain like this. I force a smile on my face to reassure him when I said, "Sure, Clark, I'= m doing as well as can be expected." Clark reached his hand back towards me and I grabbed it. He squeezed my= hand to reassure me, and I gave his larger hand a quick kiss. It was so sw= eet of him to worry about me even though he knew it wasn't broken. But it w= as swelling up now and turning an interesting shade of greenish purple. Now= almost looked like had a grapefruit stuck under my skin, and it kept swelli= ng more by the minute. =20 The whole time we were at the hospital, Clark never left my side. He wa= s so sweet while we waited what seemed like forever to get an x-ray. And th= ey call it Fast Track. At least Clark kept my mood light by telling stupid=20= jokes and reassuring me that I would be all right. I had already known for=20= some time that Clark was the man I loved, although I had not admitted it to=20= myself until recently, but today he proved that he was the one without a dou= bt. Even the fact that he was Superman and that he had kept the secret from= me for nearly a year and a half seemed so insignificant now. Clark and I spent nearly two hours at the hospital, only to find out, as= Clark had suspected before, that I hadn't broken any bones. I did, however= have a nasty sprain. The doctor said that some sprains take even longer to= heal than most breaks, but what does he know? A little sprained ankle isn'= t going to keep Lois Lane down for long! =20 Before I left, they gave me a pair of crutches that I was supposed to us= e for a week and an air cast thing that I was supposed to wear until the swe= lling subsided, and they told me to ice it for twenty minute intervals for t= he next two days. They also told me to make an appointment with an orthoped= ic specialist to make sure I didn't do more damage to the ankle than a sprai= n. To make matters worse, they told me to take it easy for the next few day= s. I wasn't supposed to go to work at all. What did they expect me to do,=20= sit around and look pretty? I can't remember the last time I'd called in si= ck to work, and it had to happen now right in the middle of the school board= corruption story. If only Clark hadn't been right there listening to the d= octor's orders, I might have been able to get away with coming in to work to= morrow. =20 After they discharged me, Clark helped me hobble back to my car on my un= steady crutches. It was slow going, but I knew I had to get used to walking= on my own with these ungodly things. I couldn't have Clark carrying me aro= und forever, as much as I may have wanted him to. =20 When we got to my apartment, Clark saw me in and helped me to the couch.= I collapsed on the soft cushions, thankful to finally be off my feet. Cla= rk rushed into the bedroom and collected a couple of pillows for me to eleva= te my ankle on. He brought me a bag of ice as well as a blanket so I wouldn= 't get too cold. The ice was so cold, and I started shivering. I asked Cla= rk to sit on the sofa with me, to warm me up because the blanket wasn't doin= g much to keep me warm. He had changed back into his work clothes in the in= terim probably because he wanted us to think he was getting cold, like a nor= mal human would in that tank top and those shorts. Clark, always eager to please, immediately helped me sit up slightly and= positioned himself under me, cradling my upper body in his arms. We sat th= at way without speaking for such a long time. I'm not exactly sure how long= it was in reality, but, to the two of us, it seemed like forever. He gentl= y ran his hand up and down my arm, stopping at my hand to run little circles= around my palm. I closed my eyes and nearly fell asleep in the warm comfor= t of his embrace. Neither of us wanted to be anywhere else right now. Fina= lly I spoke, "Clark, tomorrow's Valentines' Day. Everything I planned is go= ing to be ruined because I can't walk. It was going to be so perfect. We w= ere going to have a romantic dinner at La Tratoria, and then I was going to=20= invite you back here. Then I was going to tell you exactly how I feel about= you." Clark hid an amused expression as he said, "Exactly how you feel about m= e? How do you feel about me? Lois, don't worry about it. My perfect Valen= tines Day is one that I spend with you." How did I feel about him? Wasn't it painfully obvious? In this close c= ontact, couldn't he see just how my body was responding to him, just as I co= uld see how his body responded to my soft touch? "Oh, Clark, I've been wanting to tell you this for so long, but it's jus= t never been the right time." Clark wiped away a tear that had fallen down=20= my cheek, and our eyes met. Then and there I wondered again why I had fough= t these feelings for so long. I loved Clark Kent. That felt so good to fin= ally admit. I loved him with all my heart, my soul, and every muscle in my=20= body. "I love you, Clark Kent. I think I've loved you for some time now, b= ut I was trying to fight it so hard." Clark visibly gulped, his eyes betraying his every emotion. He'd obviou= sly been waiting to hear these words for some time now, possibly even since=20= the day he met me. Clark bent down silently and captured my lips with his own. Our kiss st= arted out slowly, each of us exploring the others' lips, then it became much= more passionate. I felt a bolt of electricity between us as soon as our li= ps met. When I parted my lips, his tongue slipped into my mouth and we expl= ored each others' mouths for a long time. Clark kisses so well, I can't bel= ieve I hadn't taken advantage of this talent before. Now that all of our in= hibitions were gone, I turned to lie on my stomach on top of him. His hands= had somehow found their way under my shirt, and I shook when I felt his han= ds against my bare skin. I untucked his shirt and began to unbutton it. As= suddenly as we started, Clark stopped me while I tried to undo the first bu= tton. Oops, I had forgotten, Clark didn't know I knew about Superman yet. =20= He was probably worried that I would find the Superman suit under his shirt. I finally had to get this out into the open. I covered his hand with my= other hand and declared, "Clark, don't worry. I know." Clark backed away from me, eyes filled with fear. "You know? Know what= ?" I sighed. I guess if I was in his position I might feel the same way. =20= I had to let him know that he had nothing to worry about. I wasn't going to= tell anyone, and I had loved him before I know, and I still love him now th= at I knew. =20 I reached up and pulled off his glasses, still amazed at how different h= e looked without them, and I unbuttoned a few of his shirt buttons. "I know= you're Superman, Clark." "Lois, I'm so sorry. I was planing to tell you tomorrow=85" I cut him off, not wanting to hear how he was going to explain himself.=20= It didn't matter now, I even understood some of the reasons he probably had= n't told me about himself. "Clark, it's okay. I'm not mad." Clark's eyebrows shot up. "You're not mad? I thought I was talking to=20= Lois Lane here." I sighed again, sometimes my reputation is not the best when it comes to= dealing with interpersonal relationships. It was probably right of Clark t= o think I would be angry with him for not sharing his secret sooner. "Clark= , I'm not mad. I realize you have your reasons for not telling me. In fact= , some of the ones I've come up with make good sense. I mean, if I knew, I'= d automatically become a target, someone else to use to get to Superman. An= d before you got to know me, I was just another reporter who would stop at n= othing to get the Superman story. It makes perfect sense." Why was I being= so logical? I'm never this understanding, especially to Clark. It had to=20= be a combination of the pain medicine and love that clouded my other reasoni= ng skills. Clark shook his head violently, "Lois, you were never just another repor= ter. I always knew you were the woman for me. I've loved you since the mom= ent I set eyes on you, and I knew you'd be the one I'd tell about myself. I= 'm just sorry you had to figure it out on your own." I interrupted him with another kiss. Nothing that happened in the past=20= mattered to me now. All I wanted at this moment was to feel his lips agains= t mine and his strong arms around me. =20 For the rest of the night, Clark helped me forget about the pain in my a= nkle. We alternated between talking about Clark's childhood and how he came= to be Superman and kissing. Every time our lips touched, I literally heard= fireworks in the background, and I knew this was where I needed to be for t= he rest of my life. Much later, Clark had to leave because there was a four alarm blaze down= town that needed his help. At least this time he didn't have to make some s= ort of lame excuse. What amazed me the most was how he changed into Superma= n. It was the most amazing thing I have ever seen. He almost looked like t= he Tazmanian Devil of Loony Toons' fame, starting as Clark and then spinning= in place so quickly he almost became invisible, then appearing dressed as S= uperman. Before he left, we shared another soul-baring kiss, and he promised to b= e back to check on me tomorrow, Valentines' Day. =20 ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 14 Feb 2000 16:32:08 -0500 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: "Felix E. Sung" Subject: Re: Fw: Yet another quiz ;) S P O I L E R S P A C E Cool! A Wendy Richards quiz! >Quote 1: "The Healing Time" >Quote 2: "It Happened One Super Night" > Quote 3: ???? >Quote 4: "The Perfect Match" >Quote 5: "Big Boys Do Fly", Part I, I think >Quote 6: ???? >Quote 7: "It's a Super Life" >Quote 8: "Strange Visitor From the Congo" >Quote 9: "Dear Lois... Love Superman" >Quote 10: "A Conscious Choice" >Quote 11: "The Penfriend" >Quote 12: ???? >Quote 13: "The Confession" >Quote 14: "A Time to Rebuild" >Excerpt 3: I still don't know. I must not have liked it. 8*) >Excerpt 6: Duh! "It's As Plain As the Nose" >Excerpt 12: Don't know. Doesn't sound like something I would dislike, though. 8*) Okay, so I'm a big fan of Wendy's work. Except #3,12,13, I've read all of these more than once. I can't help it -- she's *good*. :) Felix -- Felix E. Sung fsung@justice.loyola.edu ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 14 Feb 2000 16:35:58 -0500 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Gerry Anklewicz Subject: Re: Valentine challenge: As seen thru the Eyes of a Bee In-Reply-To: <000e01bf769b$6160b740$eb1e8d18@co61019-b.hala1.on.wave.home.com> MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit Marnie, Oh that was so cute, especially the Lex frog. But doesn't Princess Lois get to turn stable boy Clark into her own prince when she kisses him? Gerry ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 14 Feb 2000 16:44:18 -0500 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: "Felix E. Sung" Subject: Re: Fw: Yet another quiz ;) S P O I L E R S P A C E On Mon, 14 Feb 2000 15:24:18 -0500, Wendy Richards wrote: > >Just owning up to the fact that I had to go to the extracts before I could >identify three of these, and that there was one other I couldn't identify >without looking up my story files on my hard drive. Well done, Helene! > Well, that's okay, Wendy! Just how much hard drive space does these fourteen stories take up alone -- 3MB? 5MB? 7MB? (Okay, maybe the last figure is a bit high. :) ) Hmm, I wonder which author we can embarrass next for an all-by-____-quiz? Any suggestions, email me privately... ;) Felix -- Felix E. Sung fsung@justice.loyola.edu ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 14 Feb 2000 16:44:32 -0500 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Gerry Anklewicz Subject: Re: Outrageous Intentions, A L&C vignette In-Reply-To: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit You are definitely warped, but fun. ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 14 Feb 2000 22:02:19 GMT Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Diyan Subject: Re: Fw: Yet another quiz ;) Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; format=flowed * * S P O I L E R S P A C E It’s a Wendy quiz!! All these stories are by Wendy M. Richards. >From the quotes: 1. “Healing Time” 2. “It Happened One (Super) Night” 3. “An Ordinary Man” 4. “The Perfect Match” 5. “Big Boys Do Fly” just reread this story this morning- and liked it even better the second time around :) 6. “It’s as Plain as the Nose...” 7. “It’s a Super Life” 8. “Strange Visitor from the Congo” 9. “Dear Lois...Love, Superman” 10. “Conscious Choice” 11. “Healing Time” 12. “Escape from the Prankster” 13. “The Confession” 14. “A Time to Rebuild” ______________________________________________________ Get Your Private, Free Email at http://www.hotmail.com ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 14 Feb 2000 17:14:23 EST Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Rowan Fuller Subject: Re: Night Terrors (6 of 6) MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Okay when's the sequal. I loved it. Rowan :) -- -- -- LaneKent@aol.com http://members.aol.com/lanekent For news of updates to my site: http://www.onelist.com/commun ity/LaneKent ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 14 Feb 2000 17:03:44 -0700 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Becky Bain Subject: Re: Nomination In-Reply-To: <3.0.6.32.20000214211407.00900100@actcom.co.il> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" >>James wrote: >>> Mr. D8A Nominates Becky Bain's Timeless for the >>> Alt-Universe and Revelation Categories. > >And Labrat added: >>And you aren't alone, James. ;) and then Hazel piped in with: >No, most definitely not... I also included this one in best overall fic! Geez. Thanks, everybody! Becky (blushing furiously) rbain@uswest.net The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams. - Eleanor Roosevelt ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 14 Feb 2000 19:07:28 EST Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: "Lorie Y. Crisp" Subject: Re: NEW: 1/1 A Valentine's Rendezvous MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Awww.....that was so good! My face is hurting from smiling all the way through it! ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 14 Feb 2000 19:31:17 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: NEW: 1/1 A Valentine's Rendezvous MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit In a message dated 02/14/2000 8:42:04 AM Eastern Standard Time, sharper@CNCC.CC.CO.US writes: << in an attempt to recapture my life- >> But Sheila, that life better include writing more fanfic for us!!! --L (an admirer) ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 14 Feb 2000 19:41:08 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: Fw: Yet another quiz ;) MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit In a message dated 02/14/2000 4:44:51 PM Eastern Standard Time, fsung@JUSTICE.LOYOLA.EDU writes: << Hmm, I wonder which author we can embarrass next for an all-by-____-quiz? Any suggestions, email me privately... ;) >> Irene? --Laurie (who will take any opportunity to embarass Irene about how wonderful her stories are) ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 14 Feb 2000 20:53:35 EST Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Susan VanCott Subject: NEW: (1/1) FEBRUARY 15 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit This is set during mid-Season 1. Technically, it takes place the day after Valentine's Day. Comments welcome pub/priv. Happy Valentine's Day, everyone. FEBRUARY 15 Susan VanCott (Kirshnera@aol.com) "You know," Lois began from her position on the floor, "I had a date tonight." "A date?" Clark repeated from where he was tied up, a few feet away. "*Yes,*" she hissed. "A date. It *is* Valentine's Day. Maybe I should say was." "It's probably around midnight." "Was, dammit." "Hey," he protested, "don't act like this is all *my* fault! This is *not* all my fault." "Not your fault? Not your fault? Who, may I ask, decided to check out 'that old abandoned warehouse' with *no* backup? Huh? Without even telling *anyone* where we were going?" "You wanted to chase the cars that had just left!" "That would have been at least *reasonable*! We could have figured out where they were going! But no, instead, we have to be sitting here, tied up on this *freezing* floor at midnight, February 14th, doing absolutely *nothing* useful. And Lex! He's going to think I stood him up!" "It'll be good for him." "Look, just because *you* have no one to be with doesn't mean you have to drag *me* down with you." "If you didn't want to go, you could have just *said* you had a date. I had no idea you'd have a date." "Not have a date? Clark, it's *Valentine's* Day. Of *course* I have a date!" "I thought you hated holidays. *Especially* sappy ones." "What do you think I am? The Grinch? Just because I turn my nose up at *artificial* sentimentality doesn't mean I ignore the emotion entirely. And I'm all for a genuine celebration of a genuine holiday." "Oh, right, of course, and little pink hearts with lace around them fit *perfectly* into your 'genuine' category, do they?" "Don't be so fifth-grade. He sent me three dozen roses." "What's the point in that? Do roses say anything that words can't? Are they any better than paper hearts?" "*Now* who's the cynic?" "I'm just trying to make a point." "And that point would be... what, exactly?" "That... that... never mind." "I thought so." "Don't sound so smug." "He was supposed to pick me up *five* *hours* ago. Five hours! I wonder how long he waited." "Have we really been here that long?" "Yeah," she replied sarcastically, "the hours just seemed to *fly* by. God, I love being tied up in a dark, damp warehouse." "I wonder if they're coming back." "They're not coming back. For all they know, we could've brought the police tailing right behind. Of course, we *didn't.*" "You know, I don't seem to recall *you* saying 'Let's call the police before we break into that warehouse.'" "I hate you." "Happy Valentine's Day." "Shut up." "You know, Lois...." "What?" "Nothing." She made an exasperated noise. "That has to be one of the most annoying things in the world. If you're going to say something, say it. Don't make me wonder." "All right, fine. I was going to say that there might be a way out of here, but I realized I probably shouldn't try it." "Shouldn't try it? Of *course* you should try it, before we both die of cold!" He shrugged. "All right." He split the ropes that held him, and they fell in a heap around his body. He quickly moved over to Lois and snapped her bonds. She looked at him strangely. "How did you manage *that*?" He smiled. "Come on." He tried to lead her to the door, but she refused to follow. "No, wait a minute. Tell me how you did that." "I work out." "No amount of working out could allow you to *snap* rope like that. Do you *know* the tensile strength it must have? Try again." "Magic." She glared at him. "Okay, okay, truth. I'm Superman." "You're *Superman?*" "Yeah, you know, dark hair, wears a lot of blue and red, flies around the city...." "I know who Superman is," she responded dryly. "Well?" "Well *what*? What do you want me to do? Run around and shriek that my partner is Superman? Write an expose? Faint? Slap you? Fall into your arms and declare my undying love?" "Well, I...." "Wait, don't answer that. Okay. You're Superman. I'm glad you shared that with me, although it would have come in a *hell* of a lot handier six hours ago." "I don't know, it just seemed sort of anticlimactic." "To you, maybe. When was the last time you saw anything really *surprise* me? A secret identity is nothing all that shocking. I suspected Superman-- you-- had one, anyway. And that one day I'd be hearing 'Lois, I'm really....' You know." "Really." "Yes, so let's *go*!" He nodded, and they left the warehouse. ********************** The ride back to the inner city was mostly quiet, as the two had lapsed into thoughtful silences. Once removed from the annoyingly damp, rather smelly, and definitely uncomfortable warehouse, their moods could only improve, and they were no longer so quick to snap at each other. They were about a ten minutes' drive from home when Clark spoke. "I'm sorry I made you miss your date." She considered that for a minute. "It's all right. You weren't... completely wrong about the way I feel about Valentine's Day." "I didn't need to press it, though." "No, it's fine. I'm sort of glad you did. I was being sort of... well, crabby, I guess. And I know I didn't seem really grateful back there... but thanks. And if it means anything to you, I was a little more surprised than I let on." He smiled. "It does. Sort of." "And I'm glad you told me. I realized later that was a tough decision." "I've never told anyone else." She glanced at him from the driver's seat, then reached out to touch his hand. His hand immediately turned to hold hers. They remained silent until they reached Clark's apartment. Reluctantly, Lois let go of his hand. "This is where you get off, partner." He nodded, but paused. "Lois...." "What?" "Would you like to... come flying with me?" "I.... Yeah, Clark. Yeah, I'd like that." She got out of the car and went to stand next to him. "Were you going to put on the, uh, the outfit?" "The suit? No. It's nighttime. No one could see us even if they were looking up." He put an arm around her waist, and they took off into the night sky. She gasped at the sudden acceleration and clutched at his arm. "Sorry," he apologized. "I get nervous about takeoffs in the middle of the city. Easy to spot, you know?" "Guess so," she chuckled. "Showoff," she muttered under her breath. He laughed. "Hey, I'm allowed. No one's ever known me as Clark first, then found *this* out." She nodded, digesting that. "It does bring a new insight into your admittedly odd personality." "Odd? And I try so hard...." She gave him a gentle shove. "Yes, odd. I do have one question, though." "Hm?" "Why tonight? I mean, you could've thought of another way out, or we could've waited to be found." "I don't know, I just was sick of playing games, I guess. You carry a secret with you for so long, there's a point at which it all catches up with you and you realize you don't *want* to have to hide." "Then I'm glad that I was the one there when you reached that point." "I wouldn't have reached it if it wasn't you." "You mean that?" "Mean that? Yes, I mean that." She reached over and kissed him gently on the cheek. "Thank you." He held her a little tighter to his body in response. "Careful, Lane, getting sappy on the sappiest holiday of the year." "It's the fifteenth," she protested. "Not a cliche any more." "Oh, good." He pulled her face to his for a soft kiss on the lips. "Happy February fifteenth." She sighed happily. "You were right, you know." "About...?" "The roses. They don't say anything words can't. All they do is wilt." "You're still keeping them, though?" "Of course. Clark, they're *roses.*" He rolled his eyes. "But... I appreciate this more." She snuggled into his embrace as they flew over the city. **********THE END************ http://angelfire.com/ny/loisclark/ ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 14 Feb 2000 21:48:41 -0500 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: "Felix E. Sung" Subject: Re: Fw: Yet another quiz ;) On Mon, 14 Feb 2000 19:41:08 EST, No Name Available wrote: >In a message dated 02/14/2000 4:44:51 PM Eastern Standard Time, >fsung@JUSTICE.LOYOLA.EDU writes: > ><< Hmm, I wonder which author we can embarrass next for an >all-by-____-quiz? Any suggestions, email me privately... ;) >> > >Irene? That's a great idea, Laurie, but I had asked everyone to *email* me with suggestions. ;) Now we can't surprise her. :) I did find someone else to embarrass, and I wrote up a quiz a few hours ago. I want to get some feedback from Wendy or Hazel to see if I did it right, and I want to wait until LabRat posts the answers to the Wendy Richards quiz. :*) Felix -- Felix E. Sung fsung@justice.loyola.edu ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 14 Feb 2000 18:07:53 -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: Fw: Yet another quiz ;) MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Laurie, cut that out! Please? Irene (yes, you embarrassed me yet again!) --- No Name Available wrote: > In a message dated 02/14/2000 4:44:51 PM Eastern > Standard Time, > fsung@JUSTICE.LOYOLA.EDU writes: > > << Hmm, I wonder which author we can embarrass next > for an all-by-____-quiz? > Any suggestions, email me privately... ;) >> > > Irene? > > --Laurie (who will take any opportunity to embarass > Irene about how wonderful > her stories are) > ===== Outside of a dog, a book is Man’s best friend. And inside of a dog, it’s too dark to read. Groucho Marx __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Talk to your friends online with Yahoo! Messenger. http://im.yahoo.com ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 14 Feb 2000 22:16:00 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: Fw: Yet another quiz ;) MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit In a message dated 02/14/2000 9:48:58 PM Eastern Standard Time, fsung@JUSTICE.LOYOLA.EDU writes: << ><< Hmm, I wonder which author we can embarrass next for an >all-by-____-quiz? Any suggestions, email me privately... ;) >> > >Irene? That's a great idea, Laurie, but I had asked everyone to *email* me with suggestions. ;) Now we can't surprise her. :) >> Don't worry, Felix. I'm sure Irene was embarassed plenty just by being suggested. So, my goal is achieved. ;) --Laurie (Irene's #1 fan)