From: "L-Soft list server at Indiana University (1.8d)" To: "ARTF@MemoryAlpha.nil" File: "LOISCLA-GENERAL-L LOG0007B" ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 8 Jul 2000 16:08:48 EST Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: -= LuC =- Subject: Bitter Sweet Actuality, Pt 4/? Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; format=flowed ----------------------------- Bitter Sweet Actuality, Pt 4 By Luc Di Gregorio ----------------------------- -=Alternate Metropolis=- Tempus smiled. It was working out just the way he planned it. He had opened the door to the stables not knowing what he would find. Well, he had thought. There had been two options- no Lois, or a very frustrated Lois. His smile grew bigger at the thought. He had, after all, made it very easy for Lois to escape. But on the otherhand, he pondered with pleasure, she *was* galactically stupid. But no, he thought. Stupid as he might think her to be, she was still Lois Lane. Fearless and head-strong investigative reporter for the Daily Planet. Wife of the man who had created hope for the future. He held his head in fear of nausea. Much to his pleasure, he had walked in to find . . . no Lois. The few tools he had left behind were scattered about the place, and the wheelbarrow must, he concluded, be lying underneath the pile of hay just below the window. What had she thought, he wondered. Would she even have considered why he, an evil and intelligent man so hell bent on destroying her life, would leave her alone in the stables, not to mention a stable with a perfectly good escape window and some handy tools lying around? Perhaps she hadn’t thought that far. He smiled again. That was what he had counted on. Running at a steady pace, Lois looked back. Upon deciding that she was far enough out of range and deep into the bush that surrounded the area, she stopped and slumped herself heavily under a tree. She sighed in frustration and rolled her eyes. What a nightmare, she thought. But should she be surprised? After all, she pondered lightfully- I *am* married to a man who can fly and heat a cup of coffee with his eyes, and I *have* travelled in time before. Not to mention the list of people who have tried to frame me, hurt me, humiliate me or kill me. She had begun to think that her life with Clark would take a somewhat normal turn now that they had been married for quite while and had settled down. But . . . normal? Hmmmm, she thought with a smile- life with Clark could never be normal. Not that she really minded that. She *was* after all, the best investigative reporter in this country, and she did, as much as she was reluctant to admit it, kind of enjoy the fast-paced and exciting lifestyle she lead. “But sometimes”, she said outloud, looking about herself, “it’s just too much.” Scraping the dirt with a twig, she tried to refocus herself to the problem at hand. She had managed to get far enough from Tempus to think herself safe. All she had to do now was . . . What? She hadn’t really planned this bit, she thought grimly. Frustrated beyond belief, she pounded the tree behind her with her head, and regretted it a short time later when she began to feel a lump forming on her head. “Well,” she concluded, “I might as well keep walking.” -=Hyperion Ave, 1996=- “I still don’t get why I’m here.” Lois’ tone was one filled with frustration and desperation. One minute I’m investigating the story of the century, she thought, and the next minute I’m three years into the future at what supposedly is my future home! Oh God, she pondered, and resisted the urge to curl up and sob. A life, she thought bleakly, with a man I met not even two hours ago. This was all too strange. I suppose he is kinda . . .cute. Lois!, she reprimanded herself, get your mind out of *there*. Misinterpreting the look on her face, and remembering that at that stage in her life Lois had been very reserved and very lonely, Clark tried to comfort her. “Are you scared?” He asked. Lois looked at him determined and embarrassed that he had somehow read her mind. “NO, I’m *not* scared!” she yelled back at him, defensively. The wrong question to ask, Clark thought to himself as he looked desperately at HG Wells. “Miss Lane- let me tell you something.” When Wells finally spoke, his tone was soft and gentle. Lois turned around and looked at him critically. “You have been telling me something for the last . . . however long we’ve been here . . . but you still haven’t told me *why* I’m here. So if you think—“ Clark interrupted. “Lois- let the man speak.” Color rising in her cheek, and evident anger showing at the fact that he had told *her* what to do, Lois bit back her harsh reply. It had been quite a few years since Clark had had to deal with . . . *this* Lois, and while it was an experience he loved at the time, he had been there and had no particular desire to go there all over again. HG Wells cleared his throat. “Miss Lane, Clark. Something unforeseen has happened in your timeline.” He paused for a moment, and found that Clark and Lois were looking at him desperately. Martha and Jonathan Kent had now gathered around to get the explanation they had all been waiting for- in English, they thought bleakly. When Wells had arrived he had begun to explain what was going on, but had been talking so fast and had been using some pretty outdated language. Martha smiled quickly, and refocused her attention on Wells as he went on. “A while ago,” he continued, adding that this had only just recently come to his attention, “a man arrived here in Metropolis. Not from another city, or another country, but from the twenty-second century.” He cleared his throat nervously, as he noted Lois’ sceptical look. “He kept low-key, you see, and has recently established himself as a very powerful and cunning businessman. Nobody suspected anything at first, and it wasn’t until the Council of Interlinear Time Travel of the twenty-second century spotted things going wrong in their future.” “The puzzling thing was,” he went on, “there were no logs and no peculiar entries that showed any unauthorised use of Time Travel.” He licked his lips and Clark saw this as an opportune time to ask a question. “But surely, with all the times that Tempus has travelled back and forth and created chaos, they would have records of *his* movements, so maybe they . . . I don’t know . . . mixed things up or something?” Clark realised how desperate he sounded, but he had come to the stage where he did not really care what was going on- he just wanted Lois back. *His* Lois. “Ahh but you see, Clark,” Wells continued, “at that stage- they had- or won’t have- any records of Tempus’ activities.” ”Of course,” Clark interrupted. “Tempus is from *after* that.” ”Precisely.” Wells responded. Lois cut in sharply, annoyed and thinking this was not really getting anywhere. “Excuse me.” She raised her hand to attract attention. “You know, I’m really . . . find this very interesting, but . . . ahhh . . . *what’s this got to do with me*?!” She had practically shouted the last part of her question. Wells cleared his throat yet again, and continued. “Clark, Lois. . . your Lois, is investigating this man.” ”Joseph McHill?” He asked, somewhat confused. “Precisely,” Wells answered. “But the one very important thing Lois did not know, was that by interfering with the past—“ Clark cut in. “He’s changing the future.” It was all falling into place. “And Lois, this Lois, she’s here because—“ “Miss Lane,” Wells looked at Lois, who had begun to make him quite nervous. “If the investigation into McHill isn’t continued by *Lois Lane* and he isn’t exposed quickly, well . . . the ramifications could be. . .” Wells stopped in his tracks. The rest of the sentence hung suspended in the air about them, and it was Clark who broke the ice. "So McHill... he took Lois. He must have somehow discovered the she was onto him and..." He stopped. It just didn't make any sense- Lois had not been kidnapped, she had disappeared! “But that would mean,” Clark pondered, “that he must be up to something bigger than Lois originally thought.” He sighed heavily. “But. . . what?” Clark’s eyes pleaded with Wells to give him an answer, but Wells simply turned and looked out the window. ________________________________________________________________________ Get Your Private, Free E-mail from MSN Hotmail at http://www.hotmail.com ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 8 Jul 2000 10:30:23 -0400 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: NEW: Tryst (4/?) MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit > PAAAAAAAAAMMMMM!!!!!!!! PAM PAM PAM! PAM! PAM! You called? > You can't do this! These things are illegal! You should be banned from this list, from human > society! This is not fair, you listen? NOT FAIR! Well, if you really feel that way, I suppose I could leave, and stop posting the story... > Pam, please, PLEASE, be kind to a miserable creature and post the rest of the story soon, okay?... > (read the last sentence in the most whiny, pathetic voice you can imagine) Welllll... I've had very little time to work on it the past few days (my baby is sick, and she's given it to me) but I do have another part I could post here... (it won't help Wendy, 'cause she's already seen it on the boards) but it'll be new to this list :) -- Pam Jernigan / ChiefPam / jernigan@bellsouth.net http://www.geocities.com/~chiefpam http://personal.rdu.bellsouth.net/rdu/j/e/jernigan/ God made you special, and He loves you very much. -- Veggie Tales theology The eye sees only what the mind is prepared to comprehend. -- Henri Bergson ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 8 Jul 2000 10:37:23 -0400 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Pam Jernigan Organization: http://www.geocities.com/~chiefpam/ Subject: NEW: Tryst (5/?) MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Tryst part 5 by Pam Jernigan (all feedback accepted, public or private) **** That afternoon, Clark headed back over to the Daily Planet, still worried about Lois. He hadn't sensed her presense at all for hours. He'd been tempted to stay in her apartment, but it had quickly become unbearable without her there. Part of him still wondered if he'd imagined the whole thing, but he couldn't have ... it was too real, too unexpected. Lois had been consistent with the stories he'd been told, but she had a sense of humor, too -- no one had told him that she liked to tease. He marvelled at her resiliancy. She had *died* two days ago. He was very glad that she was still, somehow, present -- but he didn't underestimate how lonely it must be to be so cut off from her former life. Being there, yet insubstantial, seemed scarcely better than death. Several times, he had detected traces of her fear and sorrow in her tones, but each time, she'd quickly regained control of herself. He was glad she'd been able to communicate with him; she'd need that. She would probably have preferred someone else, but selfishly, he was glad that it had been him. Probably his special hearing had something to do with it, but whatever the reason was, she needed a friend, and he was determined to be there for her. And the most concrete thing he could do for her would be to finish investigating her story, find out if she'd been killed for it, and bring her murderer to justice. It was a cold substitute for her life, but it was the best anyone could do. He reached the newsroom shortly after two o'clock, and headed for Ginny's desk. The young assistant had her hands on the keyboard, but they lay idle as she contemplated her computer screen. "Hey, Ginny," he greeted her. She startled slightly, and quickly reached for a tissue to swipe across her eyes. "Hi, Clark. Um ... aren't you supposed to be knee-deep in boxes right now?" Clark grimaced, hoping she'd buy his excuse. "Well, I started, but the packaging store only had a few boxes. They said they'll have more tomorrow." Ginny frowned. "Did you try the store on Third and Franklin? Lemme give them a call..." She reached for the phone, but Clark gently fended her off. "No, no -- it's okay." He paused, letting some of his embarrassment show. "I wasn't really enjoying the job anyway, so I thought I'd take a break. It's just so morbid packing up someone's things -- so sad." Ginny sighed and sat back in her chair. "Yeah, I know. It stinks that we have to do that, but her parents ... I've met them once, and that was enough." She made a face, then shrugged. "Anyway ... I just can't believe she's gone. Lois was so vibrant, you know? So full of life." "Passionate," Clark suggested, thinking of his morning's encounter, realizing too late that he wasn't supposed to have any first hand knowlege of her. Ginny didn't notice the slip, however. "Yeah, that describes her." She stared into space again, looking forlorn. Clark gave her a moment, respecting her grief for her friend, and as he waited, he felt a chill. His pulse quickened; was Lois back? He could hardly ask aloud, but he did glance around the room. Perhaps she would realize that he was aware of her. At Clark's movement, Ginny shook herself out of her reverie. "Sorry. I mean, I shouldn't be surprised. Lois has been in any number of life-threatening situations. It's just that she's always survived them before." "It's a shock," Clark concurred softly. He more sensed than heard Lois comment, "I thought you'd be here. What'd you find?" "And that's what I wanted to talk to you about, Ginny," Clark continued aloud. "Can I see her notes and research? I'd like to see if there's anything I can do to follow up on that story." Ginny looked faintly surprised, but reached for a file. "Yeah, I guess so. Myerson was looking at it earlier, but I don't think he's followed up on anything yet." She handed over the folder. "Personally, I think they're all too intimidated to even try to follow in her footsteps. They're all good at what they do, but Lois was the best for digging up juicy stories." Clark suppressed a grin as he heard Lois snicker. "Well, I'll just have to take it as a challenge." He began leafing through the pages of printouts and hand-scribbled notes. "Good luck. She didn't really have a lot to go on; that's why she headed to Africa in the first place. But we did find out a few things after she left." Ginny seemed in the mood to talk, perhaps in the habit of briefing Perry on the progress of various stories. "The guns were shipped by Rarer There, an import/export business, and after working through multiple layers, we traced the ownership back to Adastra, a medium-to-large sized corporation headquartered here in Metropolis." "Adastra, huh?" Lois spat. "It just figures." Clark closed the folder, his interest fully engaged. "I don't think I've ever heard of it." "A lot of people haven't," Ginny replied. "They build a lot of different things, but mostly sell them to other businesses, not to the public. We couldn't tell who might have been in charge of moving the guns." "It's Carpenter, I just know it is," Lois stated. Clark decided he had to just ignore Lois for the time being; when they were alone he could get the whole story out of her. For now, he couldn't risk making Ginny suspicious. "I figure I might as well start at the top. Who's the company's CEO?" Ginny raised her eyebrows at him. "You're not shy, are you?" Clark shrugged, smiling unapologetically. "If the CEO doesn't know what's going on, he ought to. Either way, I want to talk to him. Where can I find his number?" "Hang on, I've got a business directory here somewhere." She quickly shuffled several piles of booklets on her desk, until she pulled one out in triumph. "Knew that was in there. Let's see...." she thumbed through the pages. "John Carpenter, CEO. I'll write down the address and phone number for you." Efficiently, she copied down the information and handed it to him. "I hear he's a tough nut to crack." "Tell me about it," Lois agreed sourly. "I'll just ask nicely, then." Clark tucked the sheet into the folder with the others. "Thanks, Ginny." "No problem," she assured him as he turned to go. "Give 'em hell, Harry." **** Lois tried to wait patiently as Clark read through her notes and called Adastra to set up an appointment with Carpenter. It seemed as if it had only been moments before that she'd been talking with Clark in her apartment, but a glance at the clock told her that hours had gone by, and she resented having missed them. "Thank you, I appreciate that," he said into the phone. "Goodbye." He hung up, and then spoke softly, seemingly to himself. "Well, that was easy. He'll see me in an hour." "Too easy," she informed him, "but I bet he's just doing damage control. He knew I was onto him. Ginny was right, though; he's a slippery rat. I tried to nail him last month, with minimal success." Clark opened his mouth, then closed it again, looking around the room with a frustrated expression. Abruptly, he stood up and headed towards the elevator. "Hey, wait up! Where are we going?" Clark slowed, and turned to face the newsroom. "Ginny?" he called. "I'm going to interview Carpenter -- I'll bring the notes back when I'm done." Ginny waved acknowledgement, and he resumed his rapid pace towards the exit. Lois glided along beside him, effortlessly keeping pace. "Thanks." A musle twitched in Clark's jaw, but he managed to keep himself quiet until they boarded an empty elevator. As the doors closed, he turned slightly, searching for some sign of her. "Where are you?" "Right here," she said, standing next to him. "Was I driving you crazy?" He smiled wryly. "No, you weren't. Not being able to talk to you was. So what do you know about Carpenter?" "Well, not much, really; he hides his tracks awfully well. But he has no respect for any law that I've seen. Last month, I exposed one of his paper processing plants; it was dumping air and water pollution at a frightening rate, and they'd been bribing the local EPA inspector. They had to shut that one down, and pretend to clean up the others, but it was really just a slap on the wrist." "But I bet he's not happy with you." She grinned. "I get that a lot. I'm really quite proud of the quality of my enemies." Clark rolled his eyes. "With that attitude, it's no wonder you didn't make it to thirty." The elevator pinged softly as the doors opened, and Clark stepped out into the lobby, with Lois close behind him. "Hey, I did my job and I was *good* at it. *And* I was nowhere near thirty, thank you. Anyway, even if he had a motive to do me in, that's a long way from proof." "We'll just have to find some proof then, won't we?" he challenged as they walked out into the mid-afternoon sun. He made a show of checking the street signs, then looking at his notes. "Wonder if it's close enough to walk?" "Yeah, it's not far. Turn left and go two blocks. On the way, I'll tell you what I know about Carpenter, and what happened to the guns once they got to Qtun." **** "I'm afraid I don't know anything about that," John Carpenter said, in languid disinterest. He leaned back and gestured around his office. "I have many businesses of various types, but I'm not able to be personally involved with all of them." "He's lying," Lois scoffed. Clark kept his expression neutral with some difficulty. Any lingering doubts as to the reality of her presence had vanished, in favor of overwhelming annoyance. They really had no evidence, and as such, Clark was treating the Adastra CEO as politely as possible. Lois, however, preferred a direct, confrontational approach. "Go on, Clark, tell him he's lying," she ordered. Clark smiled over clenched teeth. "I understand, Mr. Carpenter. I just hoped you could direct me to whoever might be in charge." Lois groaned. "Clark, you are driving me insane." "I'd have to look into it," Carpenter said. "Rarer There is one of our smaller subsidiaries, you see, so I--" The phone on his desk rang. "Excuse me, this must be important or my secretary wouldn't have put it through." He picked up the handset and swiveled his chair towards the window to begin a low-voiced conversation. Clark listened for a moment, but the call didn't appear related to either Lois or Qtun. Under the pretense of giving the CEO more privacy for his call, he began wandering the office, looking at the few pieces of artwork displayed. When he reached a statue in the corner, he paused, his back to the room. Very quietly, he said, "Lois?" "Yes, I'm here," she replied testily. "Although I don't know why, when you won't listen to a thing I say--" "Just let me handle this, okay?" "Well, what choice do I have, anyway? All right, you can talk to him. I'll just be a good little girl, seen but not heard, although of course no one can see me, either...." Her complaints died down, replaced by dawning enthusiasm. "Hey, there's an idea." Clark frowned, not trusting the note of glee in her voice. "What?" "Never mind, you just keep him talking for a few minutes." His unease deepened, but Carpenter was hanging up the phone, so Clark pulled himself together and walked back over to the desk. "You've got some nice pieces of art here," he commented. Carpenter smiled, the first touch of real emotion he'd shown. "Thank you, I'm very fond of my little collection. "So, you were going to tell me about Rarer There," Clark prompted. "Ah yes. I should have something...." Carpenter swiveled his chair so that he could reach the low filing cabinet beneath the window. Rifling quickly through the folders, he came up with a thick document. "There we are." He turned back towards Clark, explaining, "This is our shareholder's report, which has a good overview of the various subsidiaries, with some names. And this," he pulled from a desk drawer, "is our internal organizational chart. Let me see ... well, you can just have a copy." He tossed both documents across the desk, and Clark, faintly surprised, caught them. "That should give you an idea of where to start." "Thank you," Clark said, glancing through the papers. "I admit, I wasn't expecting you to be so helpful." Carpenter arched an eyebrow. "You've been listening to rumors. Well, I admit that I had no love for Lois Lane." "I did hear a mention of that, yes." Clark fixed his best listening expression, wondering and worrying why Lois wasn't chiming in. Not that she hadn't already given him an earful, on their way over. He could still sense her presence, so she was still here -- she must be up to something. And she had asked him to keep Carpenter talking, so.... "I wasn't in Metropolis at the time, though; perhaps you could fill me in." Carpenter shrugged. "There was a great deal of unpleasantness about one of my subsidiaries -- a pulp and paper plant upstate." As he listened, Clark's attention was caught by a hint of movement behind the CEO. Carpenter had left the low filing cabinet open ... but hadn't it been partly closed? "Apparently, the plant foreman was a bit too eager to cut costs, and skimped on some of the required pollution-scrubbing devices, which meant that the plant was polluting both the air and the water. Even the local EPA inspector had been bribed, to keep from reporting it." In casual glances, Clark kept watch on the file cabinet. After a moment, he saw some of the folders shift ... as if ghostly fingers were moving them. His eyes widened. To cover his reaction, and to keep Carpenter facing forward, he said, "That's pretty brazen. Seems like a very zealous employee, too." "Well, you see we have a profit-sharing arrangement with our employees -- the foreman was able to pocket quite a bit of the savings, and it would have taken our accounting department some time to realize what was happening." A file folder began to rise into the air and open. "Ah, well then, wasn't it lucky that someone caught him, before more damage was done?" Carpenter snorted. "Depends on what you call lucky. That woman was very sloppy in her reporting, splashing mud all over our corporate image. She implied that I was involved -- more thorough investigation cleared me, of course, but it was a huge expense. And we're still cleaning up the public relations aftermath. Not to mention the remediation costs and fines imposed by the EPA. Frankly, we were on the verge of going bankrupt from it all, and then where would all my employees be?" "Yes, I see your point," Clark said, stealing glances at the floating file folder. I don't know how much longer I can stall him, Lois, so hurry up. "I can see that you weren't Ms. Lane's biggest fan." Carpenter took a deep breath, calming himself. "No, I must say that I wasn't, but I do regret her death, if that's what you're hinting at. I would have had her fired, if I could, but I'm not a bloodthirsty man. Besides," he laughed lightly, "I didn't know I was doing any business in -- where was it? Qtun? -- and I didn't know that Ms. Lane was heading there, so I really wasn't in position to do anything about it, even if I'd wanted to." To Clark's intense relief, the folder slid back down into place, and the drawer glided partly shut, back to where Carpenter had left it. Clark stood up, and extended his hand. "Well, I appreciate you taking the time to give me an interview." Carpenter shook hand firmly. "Not a problem, I'm glad for the chance to clear my name. And please, if you find any of my employees involved in something shady, do let me know -- I realize you'll want to get your story, but I will want to begin cleaning house as soon as possible." "I'll see what I can do," Clark replied vaguely. Carpenter nodded. "Thanks. My secretary can show you out." **** Lois remained behind after Clark left, feeling too tired to move. She knew she'd been giving Clark a hard time -- under the circumstances he probably had taken the, well, not-totally-wrong approach, but it was so frustrating not being able to interact directly! However, being undetectable had its benefits. It had taken intense concentration to actually move the folders and papers, but the results had been worth it. She could hardly wait to tell Clark what she'd found. It was odd, really. She never would have wanted to share information with anyone before, never wanted a partner ... but there was something about Clark. Besides the fact that he was the only one who even knew she was there. If only she hadn't died in the jungle ... she might have made an exception to her lone-wolf ways for him. Then again, maybe not, she admitted with a weak grin. And he had seemed fairly annoyed with her, earlier, so maybe he wouldn't have thought it worth the trouble. A tendril of fear crept into her mind; what if Clark had decided he didn't want to deal with her anymore? She had been kind of rough on him, even though it was her own limitations that had angered her. She'd have to make it up to him, somehow, and let him know that she wouldn't go off like that again ... oh who was she kidding, she thought wearily. Her personality was well-formed, and she wasn't likely to change at this late date. She'd just have to hope he was tough enough to deal with it. Maybe if she didn't demand too much of him.... Her musings were interrupted by Carpenter, who had picked up his phone and punched in a long string of numbers. "Hello? ... Yes, it's me ... Find Mohammed for me; I need to talk to him." The name caught her attention; Mohammed was the name of her guide and her personal top suspect for the bomb in her rented Jeep. Of course, there were probably about a million men named Mohammed in the world, but still.... "Mohammed, there you are. No, I don't care what you were in the middle of. I've just had a reporter here sniffing around. Were you able to retrieve the laptop computer?" There was a pause, and Lois felt the darkness begin to beckon. She'd expected it, after her earlier exertion, but she refused to go just yet -- she had to hear this. Not that there was anything to find on the her computer; she hadn't had time to make notes on what she'd found before the explosion. Carpenter relaxed, seating himself behind his desk. "Good, good. Well, in that case, you can return it." He sat upright. "What do you mean, there's a problem with the body?" He listened tensely, and Lois strained to hear, but couldn't make herself move. "No, that doesn't matter ... I don't care how it looks. Fine, fine, just mop it up and lay low for a while. I'll let you know when to expect more." The darkness became more insistent, sweeping over her in encroaching waves, and Lois finally had to allow herself to be carried away, wondering what all that meant, and when she might see Clark again... **** More when I get it written :) -- Pam Jernigan / ChiefPam / jernigan@bellsouth.net http://www.geocities.com/~chiefpam http://personal.rdu.bellsouth.net/rdu/j/e/jernigan/ God made you special, and He loves you very much. -- Veggie Tales theology The eye sees only what the mind is prepared to comprehend. -- Henri Bergson ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 8 Jul 2000 21:58:40 -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: NEW: John and Lois and Clark and Joan (22/?) (John & Lois & Clark & Joan, Part 22) 'Why am I feeling so calm?' Lois asked herself as she and Clark entered his room. If anything, she should be feeling as if she was marching towards a firing squad. Or she should be feeling as if she was a virgin on her wedding night (which unfortunately for her would never happen, Lois realized sorrowfully). No, she shouldn't be feeling calm. Was this perhaps what being in love was like, she wondered: being completely in ease with the other? 'Completely in ease?' How could she feel this way, when she had met him for the first time a week ago? Did she know everything there was to know about Clark Kent? Of course not. Without realizing it, Lois stopped in her tracks, and her body tensed slightly. Clark noticed this, and became instantly concerned. Oh no, she wasn't having second thoughts about this relationship, was she? 'Oh, Lois, I couldn't bear it if you did...' "Lois?" he asked softly, putting a hand on her shoulder. "You okay?" Lois shuddered in another involuntary response at his gesture. God, what was it about this man that made her brain short circuit every time he touched her? What was it about him that gave her a warm and fuzzy feeling inside? What was it about him that made her want more from him? Once again, her mind, heart and body began to do battle inside of her. Her heart wanted to her to kiss him right now and throw caution into the wind. Her body was quickly agreeing with her heart, becoming more and more physically aroused at standing so close to him, with his brown eyes, even with glasses on, boring into her soul. But her mind cautioned her that it was too fast and too soon, and that she and Clark should take things slowly. While her mind was outnumbered two-to-one, it was winning the battle right now. She tore her eyes from his glance, feeling a little vulnerable. After all, it wasn't very often that Lois confided her fears with anyone. She had begun to do so with John, but she still found it difficult. Keeping things to herself, after all, had been ingrained from her childhood. Her eyes gazed at his chest, but realizing that that was a bad idea, she clasped her hands in front of her and looked down at them instead. "I'm just feeling overwhelmed by all of this," Lois whispered. "You and me, together." Clark took a deep breath, feeling relieved. "Me, too," he said simply. Lois looked up at him, looking a little startled. "I don't have much experience with relationships," Clark explained. "We met just a week ago, and we were both dating other people at the time. I think I might have started falling in love with you the day you barged into Mr. White's office. And now, suddenly, I want to take you into my arms and never let you go." "So do I," Lois said, relaxing a bit. "Anyway, I'm still sorry about you and Joan..." she continued, but Clark put his finger on her lips. "No more apologies," Clark stated. "I could say I'm sorry too about you and John, but what happened at that ball happened. We kissed. And I'm not sorry for doing that." Lois nodded, reveling in the fact that Clark was now caressing her cheek with his right hand. 'Mmmmmmmm... More of his caresses and I'll end up dragging him to his... Uh uh, don't go there, Lane,' Lois thought to herself. She wouldn't allow herself to continue that thread of thought, not just yet. "So what happens now?" she asked. "How about dinner?" Clark suggested. "I haven't eaten much all day, and I'm starving." Discreetly he crossed his fingers behind his back. Perhaps he wouldn't have to do that much longer, he hoped... "Have you eaten?" Lois hesitated. It was not because of the prospect of eating with him -- oh no! Dinner right now sounded like a wonderful idea -- it would allow them to take things slowly in their relationship. But they were in Clark's hotel room right now, and she remembered the contents of his refrigerator and of his kitchen cabinets from Saturday morning... "What do you have in mind?" she asked in a guarded voice. The two of them began to walk towards the kitchenette. "How about some stir-fry?" Clark offered. Lois breathed a sigh in relief. Great! Something that won't let her eat like an eight-year-old... Not that she would mind eating like an eight-year-old, but she did have her chocolate cravings from time to time, and she knew that she end up being the size of a beached whale if she wasn't careful. Oh dear, she was babbling in her head again... "Sounds wonderful," she said. "You want any help?" "Sure," Clark replied. "I might need to chop up some vegetables." He opened the refrigerator door. Because of his height, he had to bend over to reach inside. As he was doing this, Lois had wandered to the sink and picked up a sharp knife she had found on the draining board, ready to help, without telling him how inept she was in the kitchen. 'He'll find out soon enough...' She nearly dropped the knife when she turned to face him. Lois remembered Clark's rear end from Saturday morning, when she had seen him in nothing but a towel. As he had retreated to the bathroom to get dressed, Lois had simply stared at his muscular back and his rear end. With the towel on, it had been hard to see how well defined it was. Later, she had been feeling really guilty for staring at him so unabashedly then, while both she and Clark had been still seeing other people. But now, seeing the tight fitting (and still wet, she realized) jeans as he gathered the ingredients for a stir-fry dinner, her eyes remained glued to his rear end, and all she could do was whimper. 'God,' she thought, 'I wonder what would he look like without any clothes...' Immediately she shook her head to try to clear her naughty thoughts. It was obvious that 'taking things slowly' was going to be very difficult. She felt warm. She felt faint. Oh, God, she was actually going to faint at the sight of Clark. How embarrassing was that? Lois Lane does not faint! It was a good thing he was not looking in her direction. And as much as she hated to admit it, she knew that Cat was right: he had one tight end... "What about a tight end?" Clark asked from the refrigerator. Lois jerked her eyes away, mortified. How could she have just said that out loud? 'Note to self,' she told herself, with cheeks blushing. 'Keep mouth shut while ogling.' Fortunately his head was still in the refrigerator. "I, um, asked if you, uh, played football," Lois stammered. "And if it was, did you play tight end..." She relaxed slightly. 'Nice save, Lois.' Clark straightened up, holding a mix of stuff, and closed the door with his foot. "How did you know I played football?" Clark asked casually as he put the food on the kitchen counter. He didn't notice the predicament Lois had just put herself in. 'Okay, now is the time to panic...' She thought furiously. "Uh, I don't know, um, I thought I overheard someone say that you played tight end. That's all." "Oh," Clark answered. "To answer your, question, I played middle linebacker, not tight end." Something happened that he didn't understand. Lois was acting more nervous than before, and her pulse rate jumped way up when he closed the refrigerator. Had he done something wrong? No, she had just said she was overwhelmed at everything, right? Deciding to ask about it later, he reached up into one of the kitchen cabinets and took out an oversized wok. This time Lois deliberately did not look at his direction. * * * * * * * * The rest of the dinner preparations, and then dinner itself, was spent talking. For several hours, they talked their breakups, they talked about each other, and they talked about their dreams. Lois was still a little sad at how she was a factor in Clark and Joan's breakup, but she was very happy at how it had been done. Clark did not try to lie about it (unlike her father). He had simply told Joan, and then had let her decide the fate of their relationship. It had showed Lois that he was honest. It had showed her that he was decent. It had showed her that he cared. Lois was surprised, however, at the fact that Joan had suspected Clark's feelings. She had wished that Joan had clued her in earlier... Clark, in turn, was surprised at how Lois told him about her dysfunctional family. It had seemed like it was something Lois didn't tell anyone. He was, of course, glad and honored that she told him. It had given him more clues into the gigantic puzzle that was called Lois Lane. They were washing the dishes together (Lois washed and Clark dried), now that they had finished their dinner. Lois' mind began to wonder as she took stock of what they were doing. She imagined the two of them married, doing things around the house together (like washing dishes), having a quiet evening at home together, and then making noise in the bedroom... 'That's it, enough of the fantasies!' Lois reprimanded herself. To prove her point, she picked up a recently cleaned knife and thrusted it Clark's direction, not noticing that the blade was pointing towards him. Clark was equally out of it, enjoying the simple activity of washing dishes together. So when he blindly reached for whatever dish or utensil Lois had in her hand, his hand was heading straight for the sharp point of the knife. Lois' eyes flew open when she heard an odd sound of bending metal. She jumped backwards, with the knife clattering on the floor, feeling quite alarmed and panicky. Now she remembered that she had been holding the knife by the handle. Oh God, she didn't just accidentally stab Clark's hand with the knife, did she? Oh, please God, no! She looked at the floor, expecting to see a knife covered with blood. She was in no way prepared for what she saw. The knife was on the floor, with its blade all curled up and definitely unusable. There was no blood. Lois looked at Clark's right hand next, finding his hand uninjured and unmarked. Clark had noticed the commotion, and was looking rather astonished himself, but for different reasons. Lois said nothing but stared at him, incredulous. Finally Clark picked up a towel and dried his hands. He grabbed Lois' hands, with no resistance from her, and dried them as well. Then he guided her out of the kitchen and the sofa in the middle of the room. He began to speak. "I have something to tell you..." * * * * * * * * -- Felix E. Sung fsung@justice.loyola.edu ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 9 Jul 2000 08:19:23 -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: When Lightning Strikes Twice: Part 24/? MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1 Author: Wendy Richards Title: When Lightning Strikes Twice Rating: PG-13 Part: 24 of ? Comments: very much appreciated, publicly or privately. I would like to thank very much all those who've been encouraging me in respect of this story, in email, on IRC or on the list and boards; and in particular Jenny and Chiara who frequently waylay me to ask when the next instalment is due! This one's for you two. :) ----------------------------------------------------- Clark ran his hand agitatedly through his hair as he moved away from the laptop; he really needed to be getting back to Metropolis. But as Lois came into his field of vision, he remembered something he=92d forgotten to ask about.... =93Lois - how=92s your arm? Does it hurt still?=94 She turned, her other hand automatically going up to cover the area of the burn. =93It=92s not too bad - it doesn=92t even hurt now. Your mom changed t= he dressing for me just before you came down, and she said it=92s healing well.= =94 =93I=92m glad,=94 Clark replied huskily. =93You know I really wish I could h= ave prevented it? I was so worried about you at first....=94 =93I know,=94 she assured him, and her softened expression told him that she= was touched by his concern. =93Really, Clark, it=92s not that bad. Sounds to= me like Jimmy had a far worse time of it.=94 Bile rose in his throat again at the reminder. =93Yeah. He... they were brutal with him, Lois.=94 His words were jerky, but he couldn't help it. It wasn't just Jimmy: his friend=92s injuries represented a reminder of everything Luthor had done and had tried to do. =93Clark, you really hate Luthor, don=92t you?=94 Lois asked slowly as they = stood facing each other, barely six feet apart, in the kitchen. He swallowed. =93Lois, I have always tried never to hate anyone. I=92ve trie= d to believe that every person has good in them, no matter who they are. But Lex Luthor is the only man who has ever made that resolution hard.=94 He paused, inhaled deeply, then continued. =93Yeah, I hate him. For everything he=92s done over the past few days. For what he put you through when you found out what he was really like. And for what he wanted to do to you two days ago. And because he=92s put a look in your eyes I=92ve never seen befor= e as long as I=92ve known you, Lois.=94 =93What look?=94 Her voice was little more than a whisper. =93Fear.=94 He shook his head, turning away and resuming his seat at the tab= le; she came to sit opposite him again. =93We=92ve been in a lot of dangerous situations together - you=92ve been in life-threatening situations far more times than makes me comfortable, but I=92ve never seen that look of cold, hard fear that I=92ve seen over the past couple of days. And Luthor=92s put that there.=94 Lois was silent for a few moments, and Clark wondered whether she was upset or angry at his telling her that he thought she was afraid. But it appeared that something else entirely was on her mind. =93Clark, when you do catch him, overpower him, what are you going to do wit= h him?=94 she asked slowly, her gaze holding his firmly, her expression tense.= The fear he=92d referred to only moments earlier was still in her eyes, only= this time something told him that she wasn=92t afraid for herself. He drew a long breath; this was the eternal question to which he=92d kept returning over the past few days. That one time when he=92d actually had Luthor in his grasp, he=92d had some thought of flying him back to the laboratory where the Tesla coils were, to try to reverse the transfer in the same way as he=92d ultimately reversed Resplendent Man=92s power transfe= r. But would he have actually succeeded? Clark knew that was highly unlikely. Luthor would not, unlike William Waldecker, have been a willing participant. He could figure out how to operate the Tesla coils easily enough, or get someone to show him, but he couldn=92t envisage Luthor lettin= g himself be taken there. Not unless Clark managed to render him unconscious first, which he wasn=92t even sure was possible, Luthor would cause as much havoc as possible on the journey there in order to force Superman to let him go. The thought briefly crossed Clark=92s mind that he could perhaps giv= e some other people - trained soldiers, perhaps? - Super-powers, so that they could aid him in capturing Luthor, but he quickly dismissed it. He didn=92t want the fact that powers could be transferred getting out. And what if anyone he gave powers to refused to give them up afterwards? He couldn't allow himself to be the cause of, potentially, another all-powerful madman on the loose. So the Tesla coils were out. Which left... what, precisely? Only the option which he knew had been there all along; the option he had been trying to deny existed. =93Clark, would you kill him?=94 Lois=92s soft, insistent voice asked the question he had been trying to avoid asking himself. From her expression, it was clear that it hadn=92t been easy for her to ask him, but there was also something else, something which seemed to suggest that, for Lois, perhaps this was the most effective, most obvious way out of the situation, as reluctant as she was to suggest it. Reluctantly, hesitantly, he tried to answer, to be honest about the thoughts he=92d been having over the last couple of days, the strange, dark emotions he=92d discovered within himself. Having discovered that he was capable of pure hatred, was it possible that he was now capable of worse? =93No,=94 he began firmly. =93You know Superman doesn=92t kill.=94 But, as he gazed uncomfortably down at Lois, the questioning expression in her dark eyes made it impossible for him to prevaricate. And anyway, wasn=92= t it an option which *had* occurred to him, much as he tried to deny it to himself? Clark sighed heavily. Perhaps he needed to talk about this, and he felt sure that Lois would understand - so would his parents, of course, but he felt reluctant to unload his guilt about the scenario onto them. They had enough to cope with as it was; he=92d seen their faces when they=92d realise= d how close he=92d come to dying the previous night. Lois, on the other hand, was his best friend and someone who also understood almost better than he did himself what Superman stood for. She might be able to help him exorcise those demons which were urging him to follow these unfamiliar murderous impulses. =93Maybe,=94 he admitted. =93I don=92t know... I=92ve been wondering if it=92= s possible that I might.=94 Dropping his gaze, he added slowly, =93I=92ve never had thi= s feeling about anyone before - a sort of burning anger, a *hatred* deep inside me... he makes me feel murderous. If I could have got hold of him yesterday, after I=92d lifted that boy out of the car... he was a kid, Lois,= just twelve. He and all those others died because it was *convenient* for Luthor to have me out of Metropolis.=94 Clark spat the last half-sentence out, his tone vicious. He felt a light touch, and looked down to see Lois=92s hand on his bare forearm. She didn=92t speak, just offered the comfort of her presence; wordlessly, he took her hand and steered her back to the table, where he sat opposite her and reached across for her hands; she offered them to him, stretching across the table to meet his half-way, and curled her fingers around his. =93I think I=92ve been trying to have it both ways over this, Lois - saying =91Superman doesn=92t kill=92 as if Superman was really someone other= than me, while at the same time admitting that *I* want to kill Luthor - yes, I do, or part of me does,=94 he added quickly, seeing her expression of surprise at his words. =93It=92s everything he=92s done. I think if I=92d fo= und him two nights ago, when you were in the hospital, I might have done it too.=94 He finished on a whisper, almost as if what he was saying was so appalling that he couldn=92t speak it out loud. And that was true; up until Lois had teased the answer out of him, he hadn=92t even been able to admit it to himself. Pausing for a moment, Clark swallowed before continuing. =93You see, when he= used his heat vision on you I really thought he'd killed you. And I just let him get away - I was too shocked, too torn up about you to think straight. I didn=92t go after him - I couldn't. I had to stay with you. But later, I got furious. And if I=92d found him then, knowing he could have killed you, I could have torn him apart with my bare hands.=94 Briefly, he glanced down at their joined hands. =93And now?=94 Lois prompted softly, her gaze still holding his, her express= ion understanding but tense. =93It=92s worse now. You know that,=94 he told her. =93After yesterday... I = was battling my conscience all night, Lois. I=92ve never believed in killing. I=92ve always held the view that because I=92m so much stronger than other people - than humans - it would be wrong of me to use my powers for any other purpose but to do good. I still think that. But now I=92m almost telling myself that, as much as I hate the idea, by killing Luthor I *would* be doing good. I=92d be preventing him from causing the deaths of an= y more innocent people just for his own convenience.=94 =93And preventing him from killing you,=94 Lois pointed out, but he shook hi= s head. =93That can=92t be a consideration.=94 =93It *has* to be a consideration!=94 Lois protested emphatically, and this time he couldn't miss the determination in her voice. =93You=92re the only person standing between Luthor and whatever he wants - world domination, even. If Luthor kills you,=94 her voice cracked on the last two words, but she took a deep breath and continued, =93then what hope does the world have?= What chance is there of ever defeating him?=94 She had a point, Clark thought soberly, and it was one he=92d already though= t of himself. But on the other hand, he couldn't allow himself to kill in self-defence - and yet, a tiny voice prompted him, self-defence was an acceptable defence in murder trials. And in this case, he would be fighting against someone of equal powers to himself, so he wasn=92t talking about a situation where his powers made him far superior in strength to his opponent. So there was that, and there was the undeniable fact that with Luthor dead, his killing spree would be brought to an end. Many more lives would be *saved* by the death of Luthor, and if Clark had to kill the man in order to bring that about, then perhaps that was a necessary evil. If need be, Superman could stand trial afterwards, though he suspected that the police might not prosecute. In fact, Clark acknowledged silently, the last time he=92d spoken to Henderson, the laconic detective had actually made it clear= in his own oblique manner that he would be grateful if Superman solved the problem in such a way. But thinking about it, rationalising it in this way was one thing; actually doing it was another thing entirely. He sighed heavily again as he refocused on Lois. =93I just don=92t know if I can,=94 he told her heavily. = =93I know - or at least a part of me knows - that it=92s the logical thing to do,= and a part of me even accepts that there=92s justification for it. But I don=92t know if that=92s the part of me which would be required actually to *do* it.=94 And, he knew, he wasn=92t sure whether his guilty conscience wou= ld ever let him rest afterwards if he did so far forget his ethics as to kill. He already felt guilty for even contemplating it. Clark paused suddenly, frowning, as he remembered something. Tightening his grip on Lois=92s hands, he said abruptly, his tone almost forbidding, =93You= want me to kill him, don=92t you? You told me, yesterday morning - you said you wished Superman had killed Luthor.=94 Lois flushed, and her gaze dropped to the lap. =93I thought I was talking to= Clark,=94 she muttered. =93I mean, Clark, not Superman. The Clark Kent I thought you were, not the... the Clark who is also Superman.=94 Looking away, Clark closed his eyes briefly, sighing inwardly. Lois had a valid point, in a general sense: he had frequently allowed her to confide in him, in one persona, about his alternate self. He had even used Superman to direct her towards himself, and if she realised that she would be entitled to be angry with him. But in this case it genuinely hadn=92t been his fault. She had raised the issue, saying that she wished Superman had killed Luthor, and he=92d been so taken aback that he had been unable to resist discussing it. But he simply didn=92t want to get into an argument about his shortcomings right now. He was about to tell her so when she spoke again, pre-empting him. =93Okay, Clark, I said we should save all this until later, and we will. And= anyway, I guess I can understand - well, sort of - why you did what you did. I mean, you had to make sure that no-one knew who Superman really was, because... well, because you couldn=92t have the secret getting out - =94 =93Lois, I=92ve known for a long time that I could trust you with this,=94 h= e interrupted. =93Don=92t you remember me telling you, only a few days ago, ho= w I was grateful that you hadn=92t published a lot of the stuff you know about me - about Superman?=94 As he watched her, she nodded and he could tell she was remembering the day he=92d come and ended up giving her an unusual treatment for cramps. =93I do trust you, Lois. The thing with this is that once I decided I wanted= to tell you, I had to find the right time - and then the Luthor thing happened and it all got so crazy....=94 =93It=92s okay, Clark,=94 Lois interrupted. =93I do understand that much. An= yway, this isn=92t getting us anywhere. Are you saying you would kill Luthor, or you wouldn=92t?=94 He grimaced again, shaking his head. =93Lois, I just don=92t know. I don=92t= even think it=92s something I can make up my mind about in a rational way - if...= no, *when* I confront him again it=92s not going to be something I=92ll have= a lot of time to plan. It=92ll all be over very quickly, and I=92ll have to ma= ke some split-second decisions. If I hesitate for an instant...=94 He broke off= , but Lois knew what he=92d intended to say. =93If you hesitate, he=92ll kill you, Clark! You have to get in first.=94 =93Kill him, before he kills me.=94 Clark=92s voice was monotonic. =93*Yes,* Clark! That=92s what you have to do!=94 Lois insisted, her voice t= aut. She curled her fingers more tightly around his hands, and even despite his Super-strength and invulnerability, he could feel the pressure of her grip. =93Please, Clark! I don=92t want him to kill you! If you die....=94 If he died, Clark knew, then Luthor=92s next actions would be unrestrained b= y concern that Superman was looking over his shoulder. He was silent for a few moments as the implications of what he was considering doing played through his mind. Could he really set out deliberately to kill someone? Even if that someone was Lex Luthor, who would very probably embark on a campaign of mass murder, violence, intimidation and world domination if Superman was out of the way? He just didn=92t know, couldn't come to a decision. And his guilt over the very idea that he wanted to kill Luthor was threatening to overwhelm him at the same time. Sighing deeply, he gazed intently at Lois, seeing the pleading, the naked fear in her eyes. He could understand it; after all, with him gone, she would be in even greater danger, as well as everyone else Luthor had a real or imagined grudge against. =93Lois... I=92ll think about it. That=92s all I= can say. I know what you want me to do, and I guess from your perspective I can understand it,=94 he added, releasing her hands and standing up. =93But you = of all people know what Superman has always stood for - you have to understand how hard it is to do something which would change that so irrevocably?=94 She nodded reluctantly, but then she was clutching at his arm again, not willing to let him to move just yet. =93Clark, you said yourself - Luthor could have more Kryptonite. And if you allow him to get the advantage of you again, he=92ll use it - this time he could kill you! That=92s why this afternoon is so important - you=92ll be catching him off guard, making him lose his temper and his rational judgement. You have to make the most of the opportunity - if we=92re right, he=92ll come flying after you without stopping to think.=94 The message behind Lois=92s words was coming across loud and clear to Clark. But= even though he could see her reasoning, it still wasn=92t that simple.... He covered her hand with his again briefly before stepping back, drawing his arm away from her grasp. =93I really have to go now. I have to do some things before this afternoon... see Henderson, check on Jimmy, call in at the Planet....=94 He shrugged in a helpless gesture, knowing that she wanted= a more definite answer from him, but feeling unable to supply it right now. But she was standing too now, in front of him, her hands reaching for him, her voice a ragged whisper. =93Clark... be careful. Please. I don=92t want t= o lose you.=94 She was thinking of him, he realised, not just for the consequences if.... Wrapping his arms around her, drawing her close in a brief but warm hug, he murmured against her hair, =93I promise. I=92ll be careful. And I=92ll think= about what you said.=94 She nodded and stepped back, her eyes shimmering - tears, for him? he wondered. =93Call me - or come and see me - whenever there=92s... news.=94 The words lay unspoken between them, neither willing to voice the real fear that he might not survive this time. =93Promise,=94 he told her, then spun quickly into the Suit and went out to = the barn to tell his parents he was leaving. ***************** ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 9 Jul 2000 08:29:52 -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: Tryst (4/?) On Sat, 8 Jul 2000 10:30:23 -0400, Pam Jernigan wrote: >but I do have another part I >could post here... (it won't help Wendy, 'cause she's already seen it on >the boards) but it'll be new to this list :) Hmmm. Well, I' been patient; I pleaded nicely, I very politely didn't ask again immediately after you posted Part 5 here; but my patience is running out, Pam! I mean, two or three days between instalments is reasonable. You've kept us waiting for SIX DAYS! WHERE IS PART 6??!!! Wendy (getting ever more desperate by the minute over here!) ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 9 Jul 2000 12:38:16 -0400 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: NEW: Tryst (4/?) MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit > Hmmm. Well, I' been patient; I pleaded nicely, I very politely didn't ask > again immediately after you posted Part 5 here; but my patience is running > out, Pam! I mean, two or three days between instalments is reasonable. > You've kept us waiting for SIX DAYS! > > WHERE IS PART 6??!!! Sorry, Wendy :) It's been a very unproductive week, I'm afraid. And I did warn you, going in, that this hadn't been written so it wasn't going to be posted regularly. I have another 3-4 pages written (and rewritten, which was part of the problem) but I figured that was too little to post, so I'm working on getting more ... as soon as my husband goes back to work and gets out of my hair I may be able to get more done :) I'll leave it up to you ... do you want a short part now, or a longer part later? -- Pam Jernigan / ChiefPam / jernigan@bellsouth.net http://www.geocities.com/~chiefpam http://personal.rdu.bellsouth.net/rdu/j/e/jernigan/ God made you special, and He loves you very much. -- Veggie Tales theology The eye sees only what the mind is prepared to comprehend. -- Henri Bergson ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 9 Jul 2000 13:36:25 -0400 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Joy Sowell Subject: Re: NEW: Tryst (4/?) Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit <> Whatever you have now works for me. :) ______________________________________________ FREE Personalized Email at Mail.com Sign up at http://www.mail.com/?sr=signup ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 9 Jul 2000 14:45:19 EDT 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: When Lightning Strikes Twice: Part 24/? MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit S P O I L E R Wendy, I love how you've shown how people deal with a crisis. Early on, Lois had a flash of anger due to the revelation, but as there were bigger problems to deal with, she quickly prioritized her problems, getting beyond her anger to do what was more important.. being supportive to Clark. Being in a crisis does make us deal with problems in a different way. This is very realistic. LaurieD ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 9 Jul 2000 16:00:10 EDT 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: Tryst (4/?) MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit In a message dated 7/9/00 12:41:56 PM Eastern Daylight Time, jernigan@BELLSOUTH.NET writes: << I'll leave it up to you ... do you want a short part now, or a longer part later? -- >> Anything is better than nothing, Pam. I'll take short now and longer later. Ann ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 9 Jul 2000 21:08:44 +0100 Reply-To: "yconnell@ukf.net" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: yconnell Subject: Re: NEW: Tryst (4/?) MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Pam said: > Sorry, Wendy :) It's been a very unproductive week, I'm afraid. And I > did warn you, going in, that this hadn't been written so it wasn't going > to be posted regularly. > I know just where you're coming from, Pam . > I have another 3-4 pages written (and rewritten, which was part of the > problem) but I figured that was too little to post, so I'm working on > getting more ... as soon as my husband goes back to work and gets out of > my hair I may be able to get more done :) I'll leave it up to you ... > do you want a short part now, or a longer part later? > -- My vote goes for the latter - makes me feel better if there's someone else out there grinding out a story as slowly as me ;) Having said that, I'd really like to see more sooner rather than later, so can't you just send hubby back to work NOW? Yvonne (yconnell@ukf.net) ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 9 Jul 2000 17:07:54 -0400 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: NEW: Tryst (4/?) MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit I appreciate the nagging, everyone! :) I have been able to get more done today although I'm not quite certain it's all ready to post... (hubby went out on errands, and even though the kids didn't nap, they did get exiled to their rooms for an hour :D ) Ann opted for: > short now and longer later I was afraid someone would ask for that! Yvonne said: > makes me feel better if there's someone else out there grinding out a story as slowly as me ;) Hehe! So when *do* we get more FOD? > Having said that, I'd really like to see more sooner rather than later, so can't you just send hubby > back to work NOW? He insists that his two week vacation isn't over until Monday morning, so ... no, 'fraid not. :) I guess I can post my one scene... -- Pam Jernigan / ChiefPam / jernigan@bellsouth.net http://www.geocities.com/~chiefpam http://personal.rdu.bellsouth.net/rdu/j/e/jernigan/ God made you special, and He loves you very much. -- Veggie Tales theology The eye sees only what the mind is prepared to comprehend. -- Henri Bergson ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 9 Jul 2000 17:20:12 -0400 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Pam Jernigan Organization: http://www.geocities.com/~chiefpam/ Subject: NEW: Tryst (6a/?) MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Okay, in response to shameless begging, here's a short part... more should follow fairly soon but it's not quite ready yet. **** Lois reflected wryly that she was getting too used to her new existance; she made the journey out of the darkness with all the excitement and drama of a routine commute to work. The only worrisome part was deciding her destination, but the Planet seemed a good bet. Even if no one were there, she could get her bearings and see how much time had passed. The newsroom was quiet and the last rays of the setting sun were peering through the high windows; obviously she'd missed a few hours. Had she missed Clark, too? He wasn't at his new desk, and her heart sank, but then she spotted him talking to Ralph. She moved slowly towards them, wondering at what point Clark would become aware of her. "Okay, Ralph, that's the last one finished." Clark tossed a printout and a floppy disk onto his partner's desk. Ralph glanced at it. "Thanks, Kent. You do fast work." Clark smiled tightly. "Well, I have to meet someone for dinner." Lois felt a pang of loss and betrayal, and scolded herself for it. He was a great guy, why shouldn't he have a girlfriend? She couldn't expect anything different. It was just that she'd felt such a connection to him ... and he had seemed to reciprocate. But how real could it have been, if he were dating someone else? She wouldn't have thought he would take relationships so casually ... but it was absolutely none of her business. If she had still been alive, it would have been different, but as it was ... she had no hold on him. Ralph looked up at Clark, grinning slyly. "You dog! Not in the city a week, and already you've got a date. What's she like?" Clark pondered the question for a moment, then smiled. "Well, she's beautiful, and very smart, and she's very, ah, well-built. For her age." "For her age?" Ralph laughed, and tried to elbow him in manly camaraderie. "So how old is she? Seventeen? Sixteen? You can tell me!" Lois frowned, starting to wonder where this was going. Clark's eyes were brimming over with mischief. "Seventy-five, I believe," Clark replied, smothering a chuckle as Ralph's face fell. "She's my mother's aunt; I'm staying with her until I get an apartment." Relief flooded Lois, and she laughed. Clark startled slightly at the sound, and glanced around quickly before turning back to his intended victim. "Hah hah, Kent, very cute," Ralph was saying sourly. "Well, if you're done making fun of me, I'm going home." "Yeah ... sorry about that, I just couldn't resist." Clark really did look sorry, too, though Lois considered that Ralph had set himself up for it. "Goodnight." Clark headed back to his desk. "Hi, Clark," Lois greeted, feeling much more cheerful. "Good one. I'll have to tell Ginny ... well, you'll have to tell her, I guess, but she'll appreciate it, believe me. And don't feel sorry about making fun of Ralph; we all do it, and he richly deserves it. But never mind that; you will never guess what I found out at Carpenter's." Clark looked around in frustration; Ralph was still there. Inspiration struck, and he picked up his telephone handset, keeping a finger on the switchhook so that the phone wouldn't know it was off the hook. "Hi there, nice to hear your voice." "Oh, good idea," Lois said warmly; not only was he *not* cheating on anyone, he was smart as well. "Yes, nice to see you, too. So do you want to know what I found?" "Of course I do," he replied, his smile widening into a grin. "Although you almost gave me a heart attack with that little stunt." "Um, yeah...." She grinned, remembering the look of shock on his face, then sobered. "Listen, Clark ... about the way I was, earlier...." She stumbled to a stop. "Hey, it's okay," he hastily assured her. "Don't worry about it." "I just didn't want you to think ... I mean...." True, he didn't seem to be holding her actions against her, but she still felt that he was owed an apology. "Lois," he said quietly, "It's okay. Really." She searched his face for hidden resentment, but found none. Well, good. She'd never been good at apologizing anyway. "Okay, then. Good. So, when I went through the cabinet, I found a folder labeled 'Qtun' and it had a list of names and numbers, and what looked like a contract, although I didn't have time to see what it was for." Clark raised an eyebrow. "Well, he was lying -- you were right. Not that I'm surprised. He flatly said he wasn't aware of doing any business there." "And that's not all," she added quietly. "After you left, he made a phone call, and I *think* he talked to my guide from the jungle." Clark sat up, hunching his shoulder against the phone. "That's not proof, but we can probably get a copy of his phone records, as corroborating evidence. What did they talk about?" "Well, I couldn't hear it all; I was pretty tired and fading out by then. They talked about my laptop -- sounds like they were checking to see if I'd stored anything incriminating on it. Which I hadn't. And then...." she paused. "Well, it's not important." "Maybe not, but what was it?" She sighed, then spit it out. "Mohammed said there was a problem with the body." Clark grimaced. "Oh. Sorry I asked." He looked around, and noticed that Ralph had finally gone. The need for subterfuge gone, he returned the phone handset to its cradle. "It's okay, I'm fine. It's just kinda creepy, you know? But then Carpenter said that whatever it was didn't matter." She paused, then continued on in a firmer tone. "So where does that leave us?" Clark sagged back into his chair. "I'm pretty certain that he knew about the gun shipment, but we can't prove it. And he certainly sounds involved in your, um, accident, but we can't prove that, either. What I can't figure is how he knew that you were heading over there." "Yeah ... that might be the key." "So who all knew you were going, anyway? Perry and Ginny, obviously, and probably most of the Planet staff." Lois thought back. "Well, the staff knew I was going somewhere, but I doubt many of them knew details. You could ask Perry who he told; I stayed pretty quiet about it." "Okay, I'll ask him tomorrow." Idly, he picked up the shareholders' report that Carpenter had given him earlier, and began paging through it. "I've been looking through this but it's all too vague to be helpful, just a lot of company propaganda." Lois gave it a cursory glance. "Yeah, I saw that when I was investigating last month, and it was -- hold it!" Clark stilled, looking up curiously. "What is it?" "Flip back a page or two." He complied, turning them slowly. She wasn't sure what she'd seen, but if she were right ... excitement coiled in her stomach. Or the region where her stomach would have been, at any rate, and it didn't matter anyway, because-- "A-ha! That's what I thought. AlphaDynamics." Clark glanced at the page, which consisted mostly of a corporate logo, some pictures of employees hard at work, and a glossy paragraph which said very little, but said it in glowing terms. "What about it?" "That's where Alan works," she said triumphantly. He frowned, but then his eyes widened as he got the reference. "Alan, as in the guy who called today?" "Alan, as in the guy who's been sticking to me closer than glue for the last month or more. We met at one of those big political bashes -- I was working, he was playing. For some reason that I frankly don't understand, he fell for me, hard." Clark said softly, "Oh, I understand." She blushed, taken aback by the unexpectedly sweet comment. "Thanks ... it's just that, well, sometimes I'm not very ... um ... nice. And I wasn't ever interested in him, but he wouldn't take a hint. He kept calling, and inviting me places, and if I told him I was busy, he'd keep calling, and asking me if I were mad at him, and was I still his friend, and ... I don't know." She sighed. "He was just very hard to get through to, and he was a nice enough guy, so ... I let him take me to dinner once. Once! I was going to let him down easy, but he just kept mis-interpreting what I was saying. It was really making me crazy." She took a deep metaphorical breath. "Anyway, the point is, he works for Carpenter -- a couple of layers away, but they might still know each other -- and I told him about my trip." "So we that might be how Carpenter found out," Clark summed up. "Well, I will definitely pay Alan a visit tomorrow -- where does he work?" "Oh, no," she contradicted, "You're not going without me; I want to see that weasel's face." "Ooo-kay," Clark smiled faintly. "If that's the way you want it. Just, ah, let me know when you arrive tomorrow, so I can set it up." "Deal." Lois paused, realizing that they'd probably reached the limit of things they could do tonight, investigation-wise. She didn't feel the least bit tired, so she would probably stay conscious for another few hours; the evening loomed large and empty. "So, you've got to be going, I guess." Clark glanced guiltily at his watch. "Yeah, I guess so ... what are you going to do tonight?" She forced herself to sound cheerful. "Oh, I just figured on a quiet evening at home; you know, relax, watch some television...." "Ah. Well, that sounds good." He stood, tidying up the few stray papers on his desk. He turned towards the elevators, hesitated, then turned back, speaking in a rush. "Do you want to come with me to dinner?" Lois smiled at his nervousness. Maybe he did like her, after all. She struggled to keep her voice neutral. "What about your aunt?" Clark shrugged. "She'd invite you herself if she -- well, she's read your work and liked it, and she always tells me I can bring friends." A smile played along his lips. "It's not like you'll eat too much." Lois laughed, feeling immensely cheered at the prospect of an evening with a friend. "Okay, then, let's go." **** -- Pam Jernigan / ChiefPam / jernigan@bellsouth.net http://www.geocities.com/~chiefpam http://personal.rdu.bellsouth.net/rdu/j/e/jernigan/ God made you special, and He loves you very much. -- Veggie Tales theology The eye sees only what the mind is prepared to comprehend. -- Henri Bergson ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 9 Jul 2000 16:46:35 -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: Tryst (6a/?) Thanks, Pam! I waited to see whether you were going to post this on the message boards as well, but when nothing appeared within twenty minutes I couldn't hold out any longer. ;) s p o i l e r s p a c e This just gets better and better. I love Lois's jealousy when Clark talks about having a dinner date; I love Clark's murmured, 'Oh, I understand' in response to her comment about not understanding why Alan fell for her; and I especially love neither of them wanting their time spent together this evening to end. Can't wait to see this dinner date!! Wendy ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 9 Jul 2000 18:53:44 -0400 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Rich & Dawn Subject: New Reference Site MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Hi FoLCs, I'd like to tell you about a new reference site that's been developed. It's a link for fanfic archives, so if you'd like to be added to this list, let us know. There is also a table of fanfic stories available on Zoom's message board. This table contains the title, author, and status of the stories posted there, ie: number of parts, if the story is complete, name changes, etc. Some of the ways this table was designed to help was if you were looking for a fic that may have only been posted on Zoom's board, or if you wanted to find a fic in its early stages with comments, or to see if you have all the parts posted to date for a particular story. A special thanks to LabRat for designing and updating this table. So, check it out at http://www.geocities.com/Area51/Meteor/7378/lnc.html and let us know what you think. Thanks! Dawn ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 9 Jul 2000 18:07:38 -0700 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: Tryst (6a/?) MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Thank you for responding to the shameless begging, Pam. This was lovely. Irene ===== www.communities.msn.com/equestrianmusic __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Get Yahoo! Mail – Free email you can access from anywhere! http://mail.yahoo.com/ ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 10 Jul 2000 07:42:34 -0400 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Pam Jernigan Organization: http://www.geocities.com/~chiefpam/ Subject: NEW: Tryst (6b/?) MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Parts 6a and 6b are being posted together on the message boards as Part 6 -- I had to synchronize the post numbers 'cause I'm not smart enough to keep up with two different systems :) Tryst part 6b by Pam Jernigan **** "Aunt Opal, I'm here!" Clark called as he entered the hall of the townhouse. The walk from the Planet had been nice, if necessarily quiet; they had conversed only briefly, when no one had been close enough to think that Clark was talking to himself. He still wasn't quite sure what impulse had prompted him to invite Lois along to dinner; she would inevitably be relegated to invisible third-wheel status, which couldn't be much fun for her. He'd just hated the idea of her stuck in an empty apartment all evening ... besides, when she was around, he knew for certain that he wasn't crazy. "I'm in the kitchen," Aunt Opal replied. "How was your day?" Feeling awkward, Clark turned to where he estimated Lois to be, and gestured gallantly towards the kitchen. "Relax, Clark," she told him, with a hint of amusement in her voice. "You don't need to open doors for me, I can manage perfectly well. Anyway, you don't want to look like Jimmy Stewart in Harvey; he was committed." Clark shrugged, and started walking. "Suit yourself. But I'm not worried. Harvey was able to get him back out again, and I'm sure you'd do no less for me." "Well, of course!" she laughed. Smiling broadly, Clark entered the kitchen. "Hello, Aunt Opal. What's for dinner?" She smiled at him from where she was standing at the stove, stirring the contents of a large metal pot. "Nothing special, I'm afraid -- just my famous beef stew. Can you close that window, dear? The air felt good earlier but now it's a bit too cool." "I think I can handle that." Suiting actions to words, he crossed the kitchen and closed the window. "Beef stew, huh? You wouldn't be experimenting with your secret recipe, now would you?" Opal's eyes twinkled. "Maybe. Laura sent me some wonderful Arabic spices from Egypt, and I just had to experiment a little." With the window closed, the savory smell of the stew filled the room. "Mmm, Aunt Opal, that smells great." "Sure does," Lois chimed in. "It's almost enough to make *me* hungry." "Well, it's almost done, so we'll just see how you like it, dear. Can you set the table for me? And no speeding around, please; it makes me too worried about my china." "I'll be careful," he promised, knowing that she really wasn't worried; she just liked being able to talk to him while he was working. Clark busied himself setting the dining room table, resisting the impulse to set three places. "So your aunt knows about your abilities too," Lois murmurred. "Interesting. How many people do?" "Only her and my parents," he whispered. "And you." "So Clark," Aunt Opal called from the next room, "how was your day?" He grimaced. "It was ... weird. Remember I told you that Lois Lane was overseas, on assignment? Well, we heard today that she'd been in an accident." "Is she all right?" "Ah, no, I'm afraid not." He paused, hating to say it, but in too deep to back out. "She's dead." Aunt Opal peered in from the kitchen, her face distressed. "Oh, no! That poor girl -- she was so young! And I know you were looking forward to meeting her." Clark smiled wryly, remembering his excitement, just a day or two ago, about the prospect of meeting Lois. "Yeah. She is -- was -- something special. So I was investigating her last story, to see if I could find anything." Briefly, and leaving Lois out of it, he recounted their investigations. Opal entered the dining room, carrying a covered basket of hot fresh bread. "That's such a tragedy. I certainly hope you get to the bottom of it." "Well, I'm trying." He looked at his aunt, she was looking a little tired. "Is the stew done? Should I bring it out?" "Yes, dear -- the serving dish is right next to the stove. Thank you." She settled into a chair. He returned carrying the soup tureen, and set it in the middle of the table. "Here we go." "Perfect. Shall we eat?" They helped themselves to the food and began eating. "Aunt Opal, this stew is great." "Yes, it did turn out well," she agreed. "I'll have to experiment further." There was another short pause as they ate, but Clark was uneasily aware of how bored Lois must be, watching them. He searched for a topic of conversation. "Aunt Opal, do you believe in ghosts?" She looked up from her dinner, brows drawn in over bright brown eyes. "Ghosts? Whatever brought that on?" "Gee, I dunno," Lois murmurred, with a tinge of humor in her tone. He smiled briefly. "Well, it's just that the news of this death ... it got me thinking. So, do you?" Opal sat back, regarding him thoughtfully. "As a rule, no. I believe in an omnipotent God who created the world, and created rules for the world. People live only once, and then face judgement." "Well, what about the stories people tell, about haunted houses and things?" She tilted her head, considering. "Well, I don't know for certain. But people can make things up, or imagine them. And I do believe in the supernatural, you know -- there are angels and demons at work in the world." "Oh, for pete's sake," Lois muttered. "I am *not* a demon." "I'm not saying that everything unexplained is demonic, you understand," Opal continued. "But it's a possibility to be considered." Clark's eyes widened. Had his aunt really just responded to Lois without knowing it? It must have been just a coincidence. He struggled to keep up his end of the conversation. "So how do you explain me, then? Some of the things I do could be called supernatural." "Yes, dear," she smiled at him fondly, "but you're one of God's children all the same. As I said, God created rules for the world, and for the most part, he follows them. But sometimes, in special circumstances, he steps outside the rules. That's what we call a miracle." **** More when I get it written :) but hopefully this week will be better than last... -- Pam Jernigan / ChiefPam / jernigan@bellsouth.net http://www.geocities.com/~chiefpam http://personal.rdu.bellsouth.net/rdu/j/e/jernigan/ God made you special, and He loves you very much. -- Veggie Tales theology The eye sees only what the mind is prepared to comprehend. -- Henri Bergson ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 10 Jul 2000 17:54:01 +0100 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: When Lightning Strikes Twice: Part 24/? MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Laurie wrote: > S > P > O > I > L > E > R > > > > Wendy, I love how you've shown how people deal with a crisis. Early on, Lois > had a flash of anger due to the revelation, but as there were bigger problems > to deal with, she quickly prioritized her problems, getting beyond her anger > to do what was more important.. being supportive to Clark. Being in a crisis > does make us deal with problems in a different way. This is very realistic. Thank you; I feel very complimented! I'm glad that the diminution of Lois's anger in the circumstances I presented here seemed credible. Wendy (who was being urged, on the boards, to make sure Lois tore Clark apart for deceiving her and losing his temper with her!) ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 10 Jul 2000 10:44:46 -0700 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: New Story: Best Laid Plans Part 8/? MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Best Laid Plans--Part 8/? by Nan Smith The retirement home where Edward Keene, formerly Captain of the Sun Princess, resided had been decorated for Christmas. In the corner of the lounge a Christmas tree that stood a good twelve feet tall glittered with silver garlands and frosted ornaments. Dozens of tiny, multi-colored lights twinkled merrily, and Christmas music played softly in the background. Captain Keene was seated in an armchair by the picture window when they entered the room and in his lap lay what appeared to be a photograph album. The old man looked up with a smile on his round face. His hair was white, his eyes blue and twinkling. If he'd had a beard he would have looked exactly like one of the department store and street corner Santas that abounded in Metropolis at this season of the year, Lois thought. As they approached, he rose to his feet. "Ms. Lane and Mr. Kent?" "Yes," Clark said. "Captain Keene?" That's me," the old man said, cheerfully. "The kid I spoke to said you wanted to talk to me about Lex Luthor." Clark shook hands with him. "Yes, we wanted to ask you about his wedding. You performed the ceremony?" "Yes." Captain Keene waved them to chairs. "I sure did. Of course--" He leaned back in his chair. "--Luthor wasn't anybody, then, but I could tell he was a comer. And that bride of his, she was something special. Beautiful woman, and really built." Lois smiled a little at the man's enthusiasm. "Do you remember her name?" "Sure! Mrs. Luthor!" He laughed at their expressions. "Hey, it's a joke! I'm retired, I ain't senile!" They all laughed. Captain Keene held up the album. "The kid I talked to said you might want to see a picture." At their nods he opened the book and began to flip through the pages. "I've got pictures of every couple I ever married. Here we are." He turned the album around to display the picture on the open page. Lois looked at the photograph and did a classic double take. "Lex Luthor and Ari Carlin," Captain Keene said. "Married October 8th 1984." Lois looked up at Clark almost in shock. "Arianna Carlin is Mrs. Luthor?" "That guy in the alley," Clark said. "He thought he heard 'Harry'. It was actually 'Ari'!" "I guess this explains a few things," Lois said. She handed the album back to the Captain. "Thank you. You've just given us the answers to a lot of questions." ******************* "The question is," Clark said, as they made their way back toward the Jeep, "is Arianna Carlin working with Luthor or on her own?" "I think the next move is to confront Dr. Carlin," Lois said. "I don't know what she thinks she's doing, but I have some serious issues to discuss with her." "Inspector Henderson needs to know, too," Clark said. "She may be a lead to wherever Luthor's holed up." "You call him, I'll drive." Lois was almost surprised at how calm she felt on the surface, but underneath anger was boiling. Arianna Carlin had acted so concerned for her, so sympathetic--and all the time she'd been scheming against her. No more, though. The tables were about to turn. They were still almost a block from the Daily Planet when both of them realized that all was not as it should be. A crowd of people was gathered in front of the Daily Planet Building, and persons were emerging from every visible door, as fast as they could. Lois pulled the Jeep into an empty spot by the curb, and they jumped out. "Come on!" Clark began to run toward the Planet, Lois on his heels. When they got closer, Lois could see the people fleeing the building had tears streaming down their faces, many were coughing and gasping for breath, all of them obviously in distress. Clark stopped and sniffed. "I smell tear gas on their clothes. You stay here, Lois. I'll take care of it and be right back." "Go," she said. He nodded to her and ran toward the Daily Planet, one hand on his tie. As he vanished through the revolving door, Lois saw her--the woman who looked exactly like her ran past, apparently unaware of Lois's presence. Lois hesitated for a moment, but the temptation was too much. She had her cellular phone tucked into her shoulder bag. If she could find out where her double was headed, she could call Clark and perhaps they could unravel at least part of this tangle. She turned and followed. Ahead a blue car, driven by someone who looked very much like Dr. Carlin from her perspective, pulled up to the curb. The double opened the rear door and climbed in. The car pulled out immediately into traffic again, cutting off a pickup truck in the process, and joined the slowly moving stream of cars that were the precursors of rush hour. Lois reached her Jeep, scrambled into the driver's seat and started the engine. Traffic was heavy, but she wasn't about to let the blue car get away. Gritting her teeth, she nudged the nose of the Jeep into the small space left between the rear bumper of a compact car and the nose of a bright red sports model. Predictably, the driver slammed on his brakes when she cut him off, and delivered a clearly audible series of imprecations to her back, but Lois didn't even glance around. All her attention was centered on her quarry. She was almost certain that the driver of the blue car was Arianna Carlin. This time she was going to get some answers. ********************** Following the blue car in her silver Jeep Cherokee without being noticed was more difficult than she thought it would be in the heavy traffic, Lois discovered after a few moments. One blue car in the sea of automobiles would be easy to lose, but Lois's single-minded determination was more of a help than she realized. She barely noticed it when she cut under the nose of a gasoline truck to beat the light at an intersection, or the dump truck bearing a load of gravel that screeched to a stop to avoid her, when she made a questionable left turn in front of a traffic light that was in the process of turning from yellow to red. She had to stay back far enough that the occupants of the other car wouldn't notice her, but not so far back that she was likely to lose them. It was harder than it might seem, until she realized where they were going. There was a short cut to Lex Tower that she knew would shave nearly five minutes off the trip. Mentally, she crossed her fingers. Her guess had better be right, she told herself, and swung to the right at the next intersection. Ten minutes later she pulled into the parking lot of the Moritomi Building and cut the engine, and a short time later she was seated on a bus stop bench across the street from the entrance to Lex Tower's underground parking lot, watching the street from behind an open newspaper. In less than three minutes by her watch, she was rewarded. The blue Ford turned the corner and eased into the underground lot of Lex Tower. Lois debated. Apparently the car and its occupants were free to come and go; the security guard hadn't stopped them for more than a cursory glance. They would probably, she thought, go up the elevator that reached the basement lot. How was she going to get in to follow them? Well, if her double was familiar with Lex Tower, then they knew her. Her face was her passport. Lois stood up and headed briskly toward Lex Tower. There was a side entrance not too far away, she knew from her many previous trips to this place, normally watched by a single guard. Lois headed toward it as nonchalantly as she could. The guard, she saw, was Ron; she'd spoken to him a few times. That was a touch of bad luck because he knew Lois Lane, but she summoned the bravado that had helped her bluff her way through many worse situations and walked briskly up to the entrance, barely glancing at the man. He nodded to her and opened the door without a word. Lois entered the building casually, only releasing her breath once more when the door closed behind her. Her next goal was the elevator. She needed to see where Dr. Carlin and the double were going. The ground floor entrance to the elevator that came up from the underground lot was located in one of the side hallways. Lois made her way toward it as quickly as she could without appearing hurried or doing anything to attract attention. It was warm inside Lex Tower. She unbuttoned her coat as she walked, with a businesslike stride, toward her goal. Much to her relief, no one looked at her, or paid her the slightest attention. As she reached the hallway in question, she checked before entering it. It was a good thing she did, she thought. Two persons were waiting by the doors; one was an athletic-appearing young woman with short, blond hair. The other was Nigel St. John. They stood side by side without speaking, facing the elevator doors, and as she watched, the doors opened. The two entered without a word. As soon as they closed, Lois moved quickly toward the elevator. Two men in business suits passed her, never glancing in her direction. She halted before her goal and watched the indicator as it crept steadily upward, marking the ascent of the elevator to the floor just beneath Lex's penthouse itself, and stopped. That must be it, she thought, and tried to quell the pounding of her heart. She had to be calm and collected about this, she knew. No one must guess that she was not the double. Briefly, the irony of the situation occurred to her; up until now the double had been pretending to be her. Now the situation was reversed. Well, now what? It wasn't safe to use this elevator. She could very well run into someone who would know the difference, or something else could give her presence away. But this wasn't the only elevator in the building; far from it. In fact, there was one toward the back of the building, if she recalled correctly, that had been used by the penthouse's housekeeping staff. That looked like the best bet for her. The elevator was where she remembered. Lois boarded it and punched the button for the floor directly beneath the one where the other elevator had stopped. No use taking foolish chances, she thought. Now, if only no one decided to call this one for the length of time it took to get up there. Unfortunately, someone apparently did. The car slid to a stop on the thirtieth floor and Lois stood aside as a man pushing a janitor's cart boarded, and punched the button for the thirty-first floor with a stained index finger. They went into motion again. The man didn't look at her and didn't speak, which she thought was odd, until she noticed the earphones and the fact that he was tapping out a rhythm on the push bar of his cart. He exited on the thirty-first floor and the car resumed its journey. Lois held her breath, praying for no more interruptions. The Fates or the gods or somebody must have been with her, for at last the elevator slid to a stop at her destination. Lois stepped out, trying to look casual, but the floor appeared deserted. As a matter of fact, she realized, the lower floor hadn't been heavily populated, either. Perhaps the fact that Lex had been arrested and many of LexCorp's less reputable ventures had been exposed was contributing to the situation; she didn't know, but she wasn't about to argue with her good luck. Looking up and down the hall, she hesitated, trying to decide what to do next. Well, now was probably a good time to call Clark and let him know where she was before he became frantic, and before she got in any deeper. A few minutes later, she gave up. Clark wasn't answering his phone; he must be busy, somewhere. Fortunately, there was another option. She dialed her boss's phone. Perry wasn't answering, either. Well, the best she could do was to leave a message on his answering machine. That done, she headed for the stairwell. ******************* When Clark charged into the Daily Planet Building, he could smell the teargas strongly. The stairs were crowded with people half-blinded by the effects of the stuff, trying to escape the irritating fumes. He flew up the stairwell over their heads, tracing the smell, but already sure where he would find it. The newsroom was full of gas. The few employees who still remained there blundered about blindly, tears streaming down their faces. Someone had thrown open the windows and Perry crouched in the corner of the room closest to them with Jimmy, Jack and Cat, his jacket covering their heads. "Everybody get down!" Clark called. "I'm going to clear the gas!" He inhaled deeply and released a blast of super-breath, blowing the irritating vapor out the windows. It looked as if a hurricane had hit the place when he had finished, but at least the air was clear. He sped across the room to Perry and the others, picked them up bodily and rushed them to the restrooms. "Splash your faces and eyes with cold water," he directed. "Your hands, too. Whatever you do, don't rub your eyes!" "Right, Superman," Perry choked out between coughs. Cat, her mascara smeared beyond repair, stumbled into the ladies' room, with an incoherent stammer of thanks. Clark rushed around the room, assisting the remaining five employees, then turned his attention to the tear gas container. It had stopped spewing gas before he got here, but the container undoubtedly held the fingerprints of the person who had thrown it. With the toe of his red boot, he nudged it into a trash container and set the container on a desk, then picked up the phone and called William Henderson. By the time he had finished his call, Perry White, his eyes still red and watering, had emerged from the men's room. "Mr. White, what happened?" he asked, quickly. Perry mopped at his face with a paper towel. "There was a woman. I could have sworn it was Lois. She threw the canister in here, then just took off." "The double," Superman said. "Look Mr. White, I've called Henderson. The canister is in here. It may have this woman's fingerprints on it. Make sure he gets it, will you?" "Sure thing, Superman. Thanks." "You're welcome." Clark was gone on the word. He needed to get back to Lois. He didn't feel safe leaving her alone; the campaign against her, whatever it was, seemed to be accelerating. The Jeep was gone when he reached the sidewalk, and so was Lois. Clark resisted the urge to tug at his hair. Where *was* she? He snatched out his cellular phone. She had hers with her, he knew. At least he could contact her. No tone greeted him when he flipped it open, and then he noted the little blinking red light. Low battery. In all the confusion of last night, he must have forgotten to charge it. It figured. Well, he could call from the newsroom. He hurried back up the stairs. Perry turned when he heard the door to the stairs open. "Clark! Where's Lois?" "I don't know." Some of his frustration must have shown in his voice, for Perry grinned marginally. "She took off again, huh?" "Yeah," Clark said. "The battery on my phone is dead. I'm going to call her from..." Suddenly aware of something that had been nagging at the back of his mind, he broke off. "Where's Dr. Carlin?" "She left about half an hour ago," Jack volunteered. "Why?" "Arianna Carlin was married to Lex Luthor," Clark said. "She's been the office spy all along, and who knows what else." He reached for the phone. "Great shades of Elvis," Perry said. "I knew she was off track with Lois, but I can't believe she fooled us all like that." "Don't blame yourself, Chief," Jimmy said. He picked up his copy of Dr. Carlin's book. "She wrote the book on it." Clark stared at the title of the book, the phone receiver in his hand. With his new knowledge, inspiration struck suddenly. "That's it!" "What is?" Perry asked. Clark set the phone down and hurried to Arianna Carlin's office, Perry on his heels. A quick riffle through her files yielded what he was looking for. "Look, Chief. These are all Dr. Carlin's latest columns." He scanned the first one, quickly. Now that he knew what to look for, the answer leaped out at him. "Aha! There it is!" "What?" Perry asked. "The reason for all the pro-Luthor, anti-Superman demonstrations. She's used subliminal messages in her columns--look here. If you look at the first letter of every paragraph, it spells out 'Superman is Evil'." Perry took the paper. "Well, I'll be..." "Look at this one. 'Luthor Unjustly Accused'." He picked up several more. "'Man of Steel Wicked', 'Luthor Good', and 'Free Luthor'." "I seem to recall seeing that one around," Perry said, drily. "Yeah. No wonder twenty percent of Metropolis is suddenly anti-Superman." "Yeah, well, the good doctor's got a loyal following," Perry said. "But what good will it do them? The courts aren't influenced by public opinion." "I don't know," Clark said. "That might not have anything to do with it. He could be planning something where he needs to distract the police force and Superman, or something. It wouldn't be hard to create chaos in the city with demonstrations everywhere." "Yeah, it could be," Perry agreed. "Chief!" Jimmy rushed into the office. "We just got a call! There's a bomb in the building! It's going off in five minutes!" "Judas Priest!" Perry muttered. "What next? Okay, Jimmy, sound the alarm. Get everybody out of here." "I'll try to get hold of Superman," Clark said. "Get out of here, Chief." He headed for the stairs at a run. In the background, the phone in Perry's office shrilled, but no one bothered to answer it. ********************** (to be continued) ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 11 Jul 2000 06:28:12 -0400 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: John Debbage <106532.433@COMPUSERVE.COM> Subject: New Red Sky Part 16 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1 Title: Red Sky Part: 16 Author: Jenni Debbage Rating: PG-13 Feedback: I'm sorry that it's taken sometime for me to post the next installment but I caught a nasty virus over a week ago and I'm just now starting to feel well again. Also my posts have almost caught up with wh= at I have written of this story, so consequently my posts will be further apart. But I will try to carry on writing as fast as possible. I would like to thank those who commented on the MBs about enjoying and missing R= ed Sky and all those list members who have emailed me to say how much they like this story. Your comments are very welcome and much appreciated an= d please keep sending them to me; they give me inspiration to keep writing. It seemed too as if the gods were smiling on her proposed endeavour,= for slowly, as if a thunder storm had rolled on its relentless way, the rumbling subsided and a comparative calm descended eerily on the tiny forest clearing. Swinging round to confront her only source of knowledge, Lois shoute= d; her voice, still pitched to be heard above the deafening roar, dropped in= to the stillness. "Paul, what's happening?" "I think that it's stopped." Paul stated the obvious as he hurried from the veranda on which he'd been sitting with some of the others and looked through the murky clouds of gas and steam in the direction of the crater. "Forever?!" = "I don't know, but I doubt it. Once volcanos start erupting they ca= n go on for days. But I've no idea when the next explosion will be. It could be minutes or hours and it could be worse." "Worse!" One of the elderly visitors squeaked as she clung to her partner. "Worse! We're all going to die." The little band of refugees that Lois had collected around her were obviously showing signs of wear. Grey, sooty slag streaked their skin an= d settled on their hair and clothes. They were tired and frightened and it= hurt to breathe the thick ashy air. They were all close to panic. Lois stalked determinedly towards the house and the strangers who were sharing= her family's jeopardy. Had these people known her they would have recognised that Mad Dog Lane was now in command. "No, we are not going to die! And I won't listen to anyone who tell= s me differently! My husband is bringing a boat to rescue us." Her brown eyes flashed fire as she aired her wishful thoughts. "Now it appears tha= t Solvan has given us a break for the time being, so let's take a moment to= compose ourselves and make some plans." Lois's stare defied any one of them to disagree and thankfully Eva Blanc hurried to assist. "What do you all say to a nice cup of tea?" Th= e woman sent an apologetic smile to Lois at the feebleness of her suggestio= n, but hey, it was better than doing nothing. "Tea! Tea would be good," Lois reinforced. "Well I'm very dry," Mia, who had come to stand by Lois' side, added= with a cheerfulness that was just a little forced, " so I'd really enjoy = a drink. Do you have Oolong, Lois?" "Now why am I not surprised that you drink that brand, Mia?" She wa= s warming more and more to this lady, which was fortunate for the plan she had in mind. Once more Eva addressed her hotel guests, proving that she was quite= equal to the task of bolstering failing spirits, "Would you ladies care t= o give me a hand? And I'm sure that we could all do with something to eat.= " "Oh no!" The smaller of the two women wailed. "I couldn't eat anything. I have a nervous stomach you see . . . and I would be sick for= sure if I ate anything." "Now, Lily, you know how much you've been enjoying my cooking at the= hotel and I'm sure I could rustle you up something light." Eva's arm snaked around Lily's thin shoulders and her brightly rallying tones drift= ed back to the others as the three women disappeared inside. "It's almost lunch time and everyone must be hungry. Besides, we don't know how long it'll be before we get our next meal, better to eat now while we can." "Exactly," Lily's friend could be heard agreeing. "We need to keep our strength up to face the ordeal ahead." Clearly Lily's friend was hardly the optimistic type. "Sorry about my wife," the man called Arthur offered. "She's a prey= to anxiety attacks. . . always has been. We had one hell of a job persuading her to come on this trip . . . I guess she'll never step foot outside New Jersey ever again. That's if we get off this island in one piece. . . ." Arthur caught Lois' ferocious stare and quickly amended. = "When . . . when we get off this island." "Good!" A sharp nod of satisfaction accompanied Lois' snort. Then she turned her attention to the newlyweds who sat near her on the steps. "I'm sorry, I've yet to introduce myself. I'm Lois Lane Kent and my children are in doors. My husband, Clark, was one of the men who helped get you out of the hotel and he is as you know . . . not here. Now, as i= t seems we might be spending sometime together I think we should all get acquainted." "Sounds like a good idea," the young man spoke up with a smile, "and= I might as well start the ball rolling. My name is Patrick and this is my wife, Amy." His face reddened slightly at this still unfamiliar title. For a short while the group's troubles were forgotten as they each introduced themselves and told a little of their histories and fortuitous= ly Lily and friend emerged from the kitchen with trays of coffee and tea. = Shortly afterwards, Eva helped by Tula, Jimmy and the children carried a small lunch of sandwiches and fruit out to the waiting band. This welcom= e repast was consumed quickly, not only due to the fact that most found themselves very hungry, but to enjoy the food before it became contaminat= ed by the smoky atmosphere. Having eaten and drunk her fill, Lois found herself retracing her steps to the top of the cliff path, only to be disappointed once again by= the empty inlet beneath her. Nevertheless, she was determined not to sin= k into a depression. There was a job to be done. Squaring her shoulders, with one last wistful look around the bay, she approached her old compatriot in many a risky mission. Yet had any of these past trials bee= n quite so full of deadly danger as the one she now contemplated? And, in order to secure his support, a secret had to be revealed, which did not s= it happily with her conscience. James Olsen was sitting as close as he dared to the girl he tentatively hoped would be his newfound love interest, while Tula in turn= sat with her grandmother on the swing-seat. The trio were seated at the far end of the veranda, a little way from the rest of the group, which suited Lois' purpose entirely; for this conversation she needed seclusion= . = At Lois' approach, they smiled consolingly up at her. "No sign of CK yet?" Jimmy asked solicitously. "'Fraid not. But I'm not about to give up on him yet." Lois' answering smile was tired but defiant. "Tula, the kids are getting fairl= y restive, worrying about their father and all, and you're so good at takin= g care of them . . . and I wondered . . . please, would you mind?" Lois asked pointedly. She hated to deceive her new acquaintance in this way but Lois deemed it necessary to be rid of the younger woman while she revealed her= intentions. Mia already knew the secret and Jimmy was an old and trusted= friend whom she required to help her in her quest. But, though Lois was pretty sure that Tula was also trustworthy, old habits die hard and she wasn't about to disclose Clark's other identity if it wasn't needful. Thankfully, Tula was as good natured as she was kind and she obligingly set off at Lois' request to tackle her task of child minding. = = Even though she was aware that Lois had an ulterior motive in wishing to speak privately to her grandmother and Jimmy, Tula stoically accepted tha= t whatever the subject was, it was definitely on a need to know basis. = Another person, however, was not so uninterested in what was going on and= surreptitiously sidled forward to eavesdrop, if he could, on the conversation. Knowing Lois of old, James Olsen too was convinced that a plot was devolving in that foolishly brave mind of hers and he jumped right in wit= h his enquiry. "Okay, Lois, what are you planning? CK told us to meet him= here and I doubt he'd be too happy if we went out looking for him. = Besides, the visibility isn't that great and we'd probably end up bypassi= ng each other." "That wasn't what I had in mind." Lois made her self comfortable in= the spot on the swing that Tula had just vacated. "But you do have something up your sleeve . . . I know that look too= well . . . and it gives me a bad feeling." "James Olsen, you're getting to be as big a fusspot as Clark." But evasion tactics were useless in this case and she just couldn't afford th= e time to cajole him. Taking the bull by the horns, Lois plunged right in.= = "I want to try to get back to Mia's house." "Lois!!" Was all that Jimmy could stutter. "Oh, my dear, don't you think that's a little dangerous," warned Mia= , but it was clear she wasn't totally averse to the idea. His stupefied glance swung back and forth between the two women; the= younger female filled with steely determination and the older unhappily resigned. "Oh no, I can't let you do that. CK would have my hide when he gets= here and finds you've gone." Jimmy's self survival instincts rose to the= fore. Lois' chin lifted a little higher. "And how do you propose to stop me?" But knowing full well that she needed Jimmy's help with this, she abandoned her no one messes with Lois Lane' image for a more subtle attac= k. "And Clark won't kill you because you won't be here . . . you'll be with= me." Jimmy gulped; Lois had finally lost her marbles. "I was afraid you were going to say that. Lois, you're crazy. Why would you want to go ba= ck into that inferno?" "It may have escaped your notice but the inferno has stopped and . .= . ," even now Lois hesitated at the final fence, "and Mia has something tha= t I need." "Yes, it has stopped, for now, but who can say how long that's gonna= last. And what could Mia have that would be so important that you would risk your life . . . and mine, for that matter? And you'd better tell me= , because I'm not going anywhere unless you convince me it's worth both of = us risking our necks." A faint smile crinkled Lois' lips as she realised that she'd already= won James over, but he did deserve the truth. A simple appeal for him to= trust her just wasn't enough in the face of such danger. "Jimmy, what I'= m about to tell you is a huge secret and I know that you're a reporter, a great reporter, and this information could win you a Pulitzer, but I need= you to promise me that you'll never write this story . . . that you'll never tell anyone . . . ever." "A Pulitzer!? And you've been sitting on it for . . . how long?" = Jimmy shook his head disbelievingly. "Lois Lane turning her back on the ultimate prize . . . it must be important, unless . . . ," and he was not= without his own intuition, "does this have something to do with Superman?= " = The hero was the one person on this Earth, apart from her family, for who= m Lois would be prepared to kill a story. "Yes!!" Lois immediately seized on this suggestion. Could she possibly get away with this prevarication? Yet even as she contemplated the possibility, her mind rejected the idea of pulling the wool over the eyes of someone she valued so dearly. "Well, yes . . . sort of!" Some sort of explanation was required here. "You know that Mia is a practitioner of alternative medicine," and here she touched lightly the woman sitting by her side. "And we both think that she might have, and I= say might because we can't be certain . . . ." Recognising that Lois' tendency to babble was settling in, Jimmy prompted, "Yes, Lois, I get the picture, but could you hurry this along because I'm not sure how long we've got." With raised eyebrows at her one time acolyte's temerity, Lois did as= she was bid, under some measure of pique. "We both feel that she might have discovered something that could help to protect Superman from the effects of kryptonite poisoning. But we can't be sure and that's why we want to take some of the stuff back to Bernie Klein in Metropolis. Only,= we don't have any of it here and I want to go back to Mia's home and fetc= h some." "WE want to go back and fetch some!" Mia interjected calmly. "Mia! You can't! It's too perilous!" Lois exclaimed in horror. "No more for me than you, my dear. And we must be practical; I know= where to look and you don't. And forget about suggesting that I could te= ll you where to go, because that might be easy enough for finding the medici= ne chest, but the real treasure is in the plants and the soil and we don't have time for orienteering. Providing of course that the particular area= isn't already under a river of lava." Mia's logic could not be refuted, but Lois felt she had to try. "Bu= t, forgive me, Mia, you're old and the going could get very rough." "Yes, my child, I'm old and I've lived a very lovely life. I have n= o regrets and so, if necessary, I'm expendable. If we get into trouble and= I'm slowing you down then you must leave me . . . ." "No way!! You're not coming if you think we would ever dream of doi= ng that. This is not a suicide mission!!" James Olsen was adamant. Lois clasped Jimmy's hands and her eyes glowed with relief. "Then you're in, Jimmy?" "Well, I can see what a good thing this would be for Superman and if= this can help him do his job then I can't really refuse. But . . . ." = James Olsen was no fool and he'd been taught his job of investigating by two of the world's best. "But, how come you know this about Superman? I= mean CK told me that Superman came here when you first found the kryptonite, but you and Clark specifically said that you wouldn't bring h= im back . . . so how would Mia know that anything she had could affect Superman? What's going on here, Lois? What are you hiding?" Finally, James Olsen had asked the right questions and finally, Lois= had reached the time and place where she could no longer lie to their longest and dearest friend. "That's the other part of the secret, Jimmy, the big part." = While Lois talked, Mia hung her head, not wishing to influence the younger woman in anyway, though, in all honesty, she agreed with Lois' ta= ke that it was the moment for a revelation. "You know how much Clark and I care for you and, well, that might be= one of the reasons why we've kept this from you, because this is a dangerous secret and anyone who knows could become a target. But it isn'= t the only reason; it's just that we've kept this to ourselves for so long that it's become a habit and the only people who know are those that have= to or, like Mia here, have somehow found out by themselves." A puzzled frown creased Jimmy's brow, yet deep in his eyes was a hin= t of realization, almost as if he knew what was coming. "Found out what?" With a gulp of resignation, Lois finished quickly, "Clark is Superman!" Shades of long past memories chased their way across James Olsen's frozen face. There was no denial as the reasons for once mysterious and puzzling happenings fell neatly into place. "CK . . . and Superman!" It was almost inaudible. "Clark is . . . Superman!" His tone hardened. "But why couldn't you tell me. . . . All= these years . . . . You must have known you could trust me!" "Of course we trust you, Jimmy," Lois was quick to reassure. Even though many years had passed, she well recalled her hurt sensibilities wh= en finding out that piece of information; her feelings that somehow Clark ha= d betrayed her. But there was no time to indulge Jimmy's bruised emotions= . = "All the terrible traumas we three have faced and overcome together must prove that to you. And we've only ever kept this one thing from you." "It's a pretty big thing, Lois," Jimmy regarded her ruefully, "findi= ng out your best friend isn't who you thought he was." "Oh, Jimmy, I know how big a shock this must be, but Clark is still CK; the same person you watch football with or drink a few beers with. S= o, okay, he happens to have a few other . . . unusual physical abilities but= it doesn't change who he is or the fact that you are his closest friend."= = Lois searched the shut face to see how he was reacting to her words. = "Jimmy, I don't mean to down play your hurt feelings, but we don't have time for this discussion. Later, when we get off this island you can ra= ve at us as much as you please, but right now Superman needs your help . . .= I need your help. Will you come with me, Jimmy, to find something that cou= ld make a difference to Clark and to our children? They're half Kryptonian and kryptonite hurts them too." "It does?! No kidding!" The Jimbo of old surfaced for a moment. = "Though I guess that figures." His eyes strayed to the cliff top as if h= e expected Clark Kent to appear, floating over the edge, but then he'd just= found out that was impossible thanks to the kryptonite. "Hmm, I don't really have a choice, do I?" "Of course you do, Jimmy. I would never coerce you into doing anything you weren't comfortable with." This time a heartfelt grin split Jimmy's face. "Oh no! Since when did you change, Lois Lane?! I've lost count of the number of times you'v= e persuaded CK and me into doing something against our judgement. Hey, and= that means Superman too. You are amazing Lois and I should have known th= at only a super husband could keep up with you. Okay, so how do you plan on= doing this?" = = ***** Joel had been horrified to hear of his mother's intentions. = Thankfully the loud background din had ended a short while ago and he had= been able to creep closer to the side of the house, using the veranda as = a cover. His super powers still weren't working and he'd had to rely on normal hearing to eavesdrop on his mother's conversation, but he'd heard every word. = Now he made his own plans. He was well aware that this was a dangerous undertaking and he wasn't about to let Mom and Uncle Jimmy go o= ff alone without the benefit of a super hero, albeit a very junior one. Of course, he understood that his mom would certainly veto his suggestion th= at he should join them, yet Joel didn't allow that knowledge to interfere wi= th his decision. He would simply stow away and not reveal himself to her until it was too late to turn back. But in order that his plan should succeed he needed someone to cove= r for his absence when the expeditionary force left (Mom was sure to want t= o say goodbye), which meant that he had to let Julian in on his plans. = However, it was at this point that he discovered a large flaw in his supposing. "No way!! I'm not about to let you go off exploring on your own, Joel." "Julian, I'm not exploring. This thing is very important. It could= mean a lot to Dad and the rest of us. It's not as if I want to go. To tell the truth, I'd as soon not," Joel admitted readily, "but this could = be a cure for kryptonite and Dad would want me to protect Mom." "I didn't mean you shouldn't go," his fellow conspirator confided, "just that I should go with you." "That's crazy, Julian! You could be hurt," the youthful protector stated determinedly. "So could you!" Julian hissed back with just as much determination.= = "You don't have any powers at the moment and you've also forgotten a very= important point. You're going to find soil that's got kryptonite all through it and as it's called the rainbow ground I'm pretty sure that mea= ns it has red and green in it. So this time I can probably help Mom better than you." He finished on a triumphant note, but Julian wasn't the type = to crow, so he added kindly. "And we always share each other's adventures; = we look out for each other." Unfortunately, Julian was right. Joel had never encountered green kryptonite before but from what Mom and Dad said, it could really make hi= m sick and he wouldn't be able to do anything if he was sick. "Okay, I agree," he grinned sheepishly at this admission and receive= d a reciprocating smile. "We can get Clara to cover for us. Then we need = to find a way to sneak into Mr Blanc's car, because that's what Mom's going = to travel in." Julian was entering into the spirit of things. "That's not a proble= m; the car's parked at the side of the house. We can slip round the back of= the building and climb into the boot . . . I mean trunk, of the Roller."= = Occasionally Julian's British heritage surfaced. "Mr Blanc never locked= up after the men got out." The two gave each other a high-five and hurried to carry out their plan and almost met with another stumbling block. It seemed that Clara wasn't about to cooperate; she too wanted to go adventuring. For a while= the three argued over her participation, but finally the secretly terrifi= ed girl allowed herself to be persuaded by Julian's insistence that at least= one of his children, who knew what was happening, should be around when = Dad arrived. And it wasn't as though anyone else could be let into the secret of the significance of a kryptonite cure and Dad needed to know wh= y half his family had disappeared into the interior. Thankfully, Clara saw= the importance of putting Daddy in the picture and she knew her father we= ll enough to realise that he'd be real upset and would need his favourite daughter' to comfort him. = Within minutes Clara was proving that she was her mother's daughter= as she added her inventive mind to conclude the plotting. "Okay, I'm in.= = But you guys better get going, because it looks like Mrs Valliere is abou= t to talk to Mr Blanc about using his car," and indeed Mia had approached t= he said gentleman and was avidly explaining her need for the use of his vehicle. "I'll tell Mom that the two of you have gone down to the beach = to watch out for the Swallow. And let's hope that she's in too much of a hurry to come looking for you." Then she surprised both her brothers by giving them a swift hug. "G= et going and be careful . . . and look after Mom and just make sure you all get back here." = Clara's eyes were moist as she watched them disappear in the directi= on of the cliff path. Hopefully if anyone else was watching they would assu= me that the boys were headed for the beach and wouldn't notice that the two shortly left the path for the cover of the bushes and doubled back around= the bungalow. Within a very short time Joel and Julian had hidden themselves away and pulled the trunk lid almost shut behind them. They fervently prayed that no one would notice the tiny gap that was left and slam the lid home, as being locked inside would severely curtail their plans. With bated breath they settled down to await the arrival of the others. A wait which was not overly long as Mia used her considerable power = of persuasion on the incredulous Philippe Blanc. = = "You want to do what?!" was his stunned reaction. "Philippe, it's not as if I want to go back for sentimental reasons,= but I must fetch my medicine chest. Even you must admit that there are very good reasons for not allowing it to be destroyed." = "Yes, indeed, I find the practise of alternate medicine very worthwhile," Lois heartedly concurred. "Well, to be honest I don't know much about it, but my mother- in-law is a Kansas farm wife and she always= says that the old remedies are the best." This statement wasn't exactly true as Martha was a very modern thinking person, but then again she wasn= 't the type to dismiss any concept out of hand. "And I have a scientist friend back in Metropolis who would love to study Mia's cures." And that= part was definitely no lie although Lois was certainly not going to expla= in the whole story. "Philippe, Solvan seems to have calmed down for the moment, so now would be the best time to go and if you let us use your motorcar then it wouldn't take so very long," the old lady cajoled. The thing was that Philippe was feeling extremely ambivalent; he was= pretty sure that the situation was much too volatile to allow these women= to go off on their own, but he also couldn't disagree that Mia's medicine= s were worth saving because both he and his wife had benefited from the old= lady's doctoring. = "Perhaps I should go with you. I mean I'm the best person to drive the Rolls; she is a bit temperamental," the man reluctantly offered; he really had no wish to venture back into Solvan's path. Lois quickly cut in, "Oh, no, Mr Blanc, that's not necessary. You really should stay here and take charge of the others. Besides, Mr Olsen= , here has offered to take us and he knows a lot about old cars." Jimmy blushed at Lois' testament, after all the only vintage cars he= 'd driven were those old buggies he had owned when he'd been the newsroom goffer and co uldn't afford anything better. Nevertheless, he rose bravely to the occasion. "Yeah, I'm kinda interested in old crocks . . . er cars, that is." Jimmy smiled apologetically for his obvious gaff. "I'm sure if yo= u give me a quick lesson I'll get the hang of things." "Hmm," was the proud owner's only comment and frowning uncertainly h= e led Jimmy away to give him a crash course in driving his prize possession= . Lois, meanwhile took the opportunity to advise her children of her plans and to remind them to heed Tula while she was gone. She was surprised and dismayed to discover from Clara that Joel and Julian had go= ne down to the beach to watch for the approach of the Swallow. To tell the truth, she didn't really blame them for going off; her own nerves were frayed from waiting and worrying about Clark and she understood that her boys would prefer to do something constructive rather than cool their hee= ls waiting around here. So she contented herself by relaying her instructio= ns to Clara and asking Tula if she would take on the responsibility of child= care for a short time. = Understanding, from the looks that her grandmother was sending her, that this was somehow a very important quest, Tula assured the worried mother that she would be pleased to look after the children and wished th= e little party godspeed. And so, after hugging and kissing Nathan and Clara with more fervour= than usual, she gazed longingly at the cliff top, wondering if there was time to descend to the beach to kiss her eldest children. But Lois was well aware that time was of the essence and the boys might not be readily= found. She turned reluctantly at Mia's behest, veering off to enter the= bungalow to emerge a moment later with the essential lead lined box. The= se plants were growing in kryptonite rich soil and if they were to travel ba= ck to Metropolis with the family, Lois wanted them safely locked away. The two women, young and old went to join Jimmy in the Rolls Royce and the dangerous mission began. = = ***** Continued in Part 17 ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 11 Jul 2000 06:27:52 -0400 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: John Debbage <106532.433@COMPUSERVE.COM> Subject: New Red Sky Part 15 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1 Title: Red Sky Part: 15 Author: Jenni Debbage Rating: PG-13 Feedback: I'm sorry that it's taken sometime for me to post the next installment but I caught a nasty virus over a week ago and I'm just now starting to feel well again. Also my posts have almost caught up with wh= at I have written of this story, so consequently my posts will be further apart. But I will try to carry on writing as fast as possible. I would like to thank those who commented on the MBs about enjoying and missing R= ed Sky and all those list members who have emailed me to say how much they like this story. Your comments are very welcome and much appreciated an= d please keep sending them to me; they give me inspiration to keep writing. Chapter Nine Respite It seemed the small circle of frightened survivors, standing by the ruins of the hotel, was all that was left of human kind amid the devastation. Lois stood forlornly watching her husband disappear down th= e cliff face. She felt so bereft. So often, in the past, she had stood by= as Superman had flown off to save the day, but then she had believed him = to be invincible; this time he was all too vulnerable. A gentle tug on her arm brought her back to the present and the desperate situation they were in. "Come on, Mom," Joel whispered cajolingly, though the young boy's voice still trembled from shock at witnessing his father's fate. "We have to go meet Dad at the bungalow." Lois shook off her self-wallowing and became the decisive competent professional that most people associated with the personae of Lois Lane. = She had the responsibility of getting her children and friends out of thi= s mess and she wasn't about to shirk her duties; if only she knew a little bit more about volcanos and what to expect next. There was, however, an expert on hand. "Paul, what do you think? Can we reach the bungalow by road?" The teenage boy turned to survey the mountain top now obscured by a dense mushroom of black cloud, through which fiery missiles continued to hurl high into the sky. Around them the atmosphere was thick and hot. = Paul was somewhat stunned by the reality of his prediction, yet these people needed his expertise . . . . "Paul!" Lois placed her hands on his shoulders and swung him to fac= e her. "Paul, we need to know!" "The road . . . yes, I think so. Most everything's falling on the town and to the north. The further south we go the safer it should be . = . . unless . . . ." "Unless . . . ." Jimmy prompted. "We get caught up in a pyroclastic flow," Paul finished in a rush. "Pyroclastic flow," Lois digested this piece of information. "Do I want to know what that is?" "Not really . . . but it's deadly." "Then we shouldn't hang around to find out." Attempting to find the= most comfortable place to carry Nathan on her hip and grabbing for Clara'= s hand, Lois started down the road. "Come on people, lets get out of here.= " Clara, still staring aghast at the spot where she'd last seen her father, was almost yanked off her feet at Lois' tug, but dejectedly she turned at her mom's command. "Mom, will Daddy be okay?" she asked in a tiny voice. Time might be their enemy but Lois took a moment of the precious commodity to reassure her small daughter. "Oh, sweetie, of course he wil= l. It'll take a lot more than a stupid volcano to beat your Daddy." Lois replied with forced confidence. "And the sooner we get to the bungalow t= he sooner we'll all be together . . . ." A startled shriek halted her in her tracks as the newlywed bride pointed to the mountain. "Look!!" The group obeyed in unison and their terrors escalated at the sight.= = =46rom out of the smoke blanketing the crater, streams of bright red lava= began their journey down the mountain, following the river bed and destroying everything in their path. "It's heading for the town," James Olsen bellowed. But even in his panic, the instincts of the trained reporter never left him. Lifting the= ever-present camera that hung around his neck, he snapped off a few pictures as he began the retreat, pushing Joel and Julian before him in t= he direction of the way south. They ran as fast as they could out into the countryside, helping the= slower members to keep up. The destruction was less apparent in this par= t of the island, though a few trees and bushes had been uprooted and a few more holes had appeared in the surface of the road. Indeed, as with the town, the forest on the coastal side of the road had suffered the worst damage and in places large swathes of earth had fallen away into the sea.= = Lois prayed that their holiday home had not met with this fate. Out of the mists they had left behind came an unexpected hooting and= the sound of a well-honed engine. As they peered backwards, emerging fro= m the clouds, came the gleam of chrome and the shinny black nose of Philipp= e Blanc's classic car; its stout top in place to protect those inside. It bumped across the uneven roadway and stopped by their side, revealing its= driver and passengers to be Philippe and Eva, along with Mia and the old priest. "Grandmere!" Tula could not contain her surprise or her joy and she= leaned into the car to hug the old lady. "You're safe! Thank goodness!"= "As are you, my dear," the lady replied with a great sigh of relief.= = "And Paul . . . and all your friends. I'm so happy to see you." Mia's glance took in all the members of the party. "But . . . oh my . . . ! = Lois, where is your husband?!" = "We got separated," came Lois' troubled reply. "He's headed for the= harbour and a boat. We're to meet him at the beach below the bungalow. = I just hope he'll be all right." Tula had been examining the interior of the car and what she didn't find disturbed her. "Grandmere, where has Uncle Butto gone?" She prayed= that her summation of his destination would be wrong, but knowing her unc= le she didn't think so; Butto took his responsibilities seriously. = "He's taken the jeep and headed for the copra plant; there's a ship = in dock and he wants to oversee the evacuation. And he's hoping to pick up some of the farmers who weren't at the meeting along the way." The old lady looked just as worried as her granddaughter by this turn of events. = "I did try to persuade him otherwise, but you know how he is; he can't stand by and watch people in trouble without trying to help and neither c= an your husband, my dear Lois." Mia's comforting gaze rested on the two anxious women. "We shall just have to have faith and trust in their resourcefulness. Now, we have to do our part." And she turned business like toward the driver. "What do you say, Philippe, will this ancient relic of yours take on some new passengers? It'll be an uncomfortable ri= de but we'll make quicker time than on foot." The owner of the ancient relic' seemed rather peeved at this insult = to his prize possession. "Mia, this relic' is the most reliable car ever made; they built them to last in these days and she'll take on more than any modern motor could. Come on, everyone, climb on board; it might be a= squeeze but we'll manage." = That said, Philippe exited the car and started loading bodies into t= he interior. And a tight fit it was. The older members of the party were squashed on the wide back seat with the children deposited on their laps= . = The roomy floor took Lois and the honeymooners, while the two male visitors, whose names were Arthur and Tom, piled themselves awkwardly int= o the trunk. Eva found room for Tula alongside her in the front passenger seat and Jimmy and Paul were left clinging to the running boards. = The confident owner climbed back behind the wheel and the antique motor purred into life, the huge tyres gripping the uneven road surface a= s the over laden vehicle moved off slowly but certainly along the road sout= h. And not a moment too soon as another loud explosion of a different origi= n reached them from the town; the gas station had finally blown. Under normal circumstances the journey had seemed short, but these were definitely unnatural times and the trip appeared unbelievably long t= o the worried passengers. Nonetheless, all journeys end and everyone was relieved when Philippe turned the car into the drive leading to the holid= ay home. There, to the surprise of all, sitting untouched in the clearing was= the lovely cottage. Indeed, nothing had changed, except the blue sky of the morning had turned black and the far off rumbling still assaulted the= ir ears. The passengers tumbled out of the transport and gratefully stretched= muscles and limbs that had stiffened painfully due to the cramped conditions. Free from the interior of the motor, Lois and her children r= an immediately to the top of the cliff path to view the expanse of sea benea= th them, but much to their disappointment the now grey, murky waters were shrouded in ashy cloud and the bay, in the short distance they could see,= was devoid of any ships. "Mom, where is Daddy? You said he'd be here." Clara's fears for he= r dearest Dad had robbed her of her usual confidence and she sidled closer = to her remaining parent, her hand stealing plaintively inside that of her mother. The three boys too huddled around Lois. "On the Swallow, sweethearts. He's going to come and save us." Yet= Lois' feelings didn't match her assured tone, but she wouldn't allow her children to be upset by her frightened imaginings. "There hasn't been time for Roy and your Dad to climb down the cliff= and get to the Swallow and sail it here, kids." Jimmy had come up silent= ly behind them and he added his reassurances to keep the children calm. = "You'll see, they'll be along soon and then we can all get on board and sail out of here." Turning at the sound of his voice, Lois mouthed a silent thank you t= o her old friend. But was Jimmy just being optimistic, or did he truly believe that Clark and the Swallow were out there? "And you know, we seem to be pretty safe here for now," Jimmy added,= keeping his tone upbeat, "so why don't you children go and pack up your things, because we want to be ready to leave just as soon as your Dad get= s here." "Should we, Mom?" Joel asked reluctantly. His place was by his mother's side. While his father was away, he was the super hero of the family. "I can stay with you if you want me to." A gentle smile lit Lois' face as she recognised Clark's eager yet serious expression in the face of her son. "No, Joel, I'll stay on watch= here while you all pack your stuff. But mind, we can't take everything with us. The space on board the Swallow will be needed for survivors, so= only pack the things you most want to take home . . . and only use one suitcase . . . and don't make it too heavy . . . we're not dragging an overweight bag around with us." At Clara's crestfallen look, Lois quickl= y reminded her offspring. "We're the lucky ones; everyone else here has ha= d to leave without taking any of their things with them. The people who li= ve here have lost all their belongings." "That's okay, Mom, we understand." As always Julian was the first t= o comprehend the islanders' plight and his tender heart was filled with compassion for these people whose homes had been or might be destroyed. = "Come on, Clara, you've enough stuff back home anyway." Brave and headstrong, little Clara Kent was not without kindness. = "You know, Julian, maybe I could share some of my things with some of the= kids here . . . ." "That's a great idea, Clara. And maybe we could get some of our friends to share some of their stuff too . . . ." "We could have a collection for the children," Joel added his ideas = to his siblings' suggestions. "Wou . . . would Nathan 'ave to share mine marbles?" The toddler's concerns hung in the heated, ashy air, his little legs paddling harder along the ground as he hurried to keep up with his older brothers and sister. Julian pulled the tiny worrywart against his side and laughingly ruffled his hair. "Oh, I think that you could keep your marbles, Nathan;= I mean they are your very special toys." "And mine Superman doll . . . ?" The children's laughter trailed back to their troubled mother as the= y picked up their feet and ran the last few yards to the house and disappeared inside = = "They really are great kids, Lois," James Olsen vocalized his almost= envious thoughts; if only his marriage had worked out then he might have had a child by now. "You and Clark must be very proud." "We are . . . but they're not always little angels," she grinned ruefully. "And now I should really go and supervise their packing or there's no telling what we'll end up taking home." "No, Lois! It's obvious that you want to stay and look out for Clar= k. I can take care of the kids. And, besides, I know just who would like t= o help me." A knowing look passed between the two long term friends. "It'= ll give me a good excuse to spend some time with her." "You really do like her, Jimmy?" Lois enquired and at his nod of acknowledgment she continued. "I'm so glad for you." "Well, we've only just met and you know my track record isn't that good on whirlwind romances," Jimmy admitted with a grimace. "But it feel= s like I've known her forever." Lois placed a comforting hand on Jimmy's shoulder. "You don't have = to rush things, you know. Something tells me that Tula's going to need a friend . . . a best friend, in the next few months." She leaned over and= brushed an encouraging kiss on his cheek. "Be that friend and let the future take care of itself," she advised then sent him in the direction that her children had taken. = = Her attention returned to the fate of her husband; was he safe? And= if he had escaped the volcano, had he managed to steer clear of Ms Chen's= clutches? To say that Lois was growing a little annoyed and frustrated b= y that woman's actions would be a slight understatement and if Clark didn't= deal with Hazel's unwelcome advances soon, then she had every intention o= f doing so. A frown creased Lois' clear skinned brow as she contemplated t= he problem. She was assuming that, since she'd made Clark aware of his bizarre behaviour, he did find Hazel's flirting distasteful . . . but wha= t if he didn't . . . ? Where did that leave her? "You seem very troubled, Lois, but I'm sure there's no need for concern. Clark will come back to you." The intrusion startled her. Lois still wasn't sure just how much sh= e trusted this old lady, but as she searched Mia's tired face she could fin= d no trace of guile, only a returning gaze of warm sympathy and steadfastness. Under the older woman's kindness, Lois felt her barriers give way; she was so weary and the need to share her concerns grew stronger. And this elderly gentlewoman reminded her so much of Martha . = . . . "But this island has changed Clark . . . ." Lois' voice was barely more than a whisper. "My dear, I doubt that it's only his physical capabilities that make= Clark strong." "But you don't understand, Mia. He's not just changed physically. = Since he came to this island, Clark has been acting strangely." "And because of that you think he might fall prey to that little vam= p who intends to make him her next notch on the garter belt she obviously favours." Lois gazed in wide-eyed surprise at this aristocratic being. Did anything get passed these all-seeing eyes? "You noticed!" "Well, I admit to being extremely interested in the real man behind the super hero, in a purely altruistic way. So perhaps I was paying clos= e attention and I've lived a very long time and met all sorts of people, women far more predatory than that beauty." Mia stretched her hand out t= o take hold of Lois' nervously twisting fingers. "But your husband loves y= ou very much; that's something else my old eyes have noticed. And more than= that, child, he needs you. He needs your support and understanding and he's wise enough not to throw all that away for a cheap thrill with an empty-headed bimbo who doesn't mean a thing to him, no matter how changed= he is." The old lady's voice had grown quite fierce and Lois could not repres= s a grin at Mia's terminology. Somehow she felt much more sanguine. Of course Clark wasn't the type of straying male who had little respect for his wife or his marriage vows. She was simply overstressed and wallowing= in self pity. = "You're right, Mia; I should have more faith in Clark . . . ." "But you're still anxious. Perhaps you could tell me why. Have his= injuries grown any worse?" "No! In fact they seemed to be quite a lot better this morning," Lo= is felt confident enough in passing on this information; Mia already knew th= e secret. "At first we thought his powers might be returning, but unfortunately not." "That's a pity because we certainly could use Superman right now. = Still there's no use bemoaning what can't be helped." For a few seconds the old woman appeared to procrastinate, then taking the bull by the horn= s, she asked the important question. "Lois, what is it about my island that= has robbed Clark of his powers?" = There it was; the six million dollar question that Lois wasn't sure she was prepared to answer. Would Clark want her to dissemble? After al= l, if this information fell into the hands of an enemy it would be disastrou= s for her family. And yet, would there be much left of the island and the kryptonite after this explosion? She really didn't know enough about volcanos to be sure of her facts. But one thing she would almost bet her life on was her growing gut instinct that this Mia Valliere posed no threat to Superman and his children. The noble lady had been steadily slipping under Lois' natural defence system and she found herself confiding in her new friend. "How much do you know about . . . you know who?" Even with all the background noise Lois lowered her voice. "I know he's a very special person and that we're very lucky to have= him. The world is a much better place since he decided to become Superma= n, but now I've met you, I suspect that's just as much Clark Kent and Lois Lane's doing." "Thank you . . . but I meant what specifically do you know?" "You mean that his powers are solar induced . . . .?" Lois nodded and continued quickly before she lost her nerve. "Mia, have you heard of kryptonite?" "Yes," Mia's whisper was filled with concern, "but only what I've re= ad in the media." Amazement and horror showed clearly on the kindly countenance as she grasped Lois' meaning. "You believe that there's kryptonite on Papillon? But how did it get here?" = "Well, our doctor thinks that it followed Clark's space ship to Eart= h all these years ago and dropped straight into the mouth of the volcano." "Your doctor?!" "Bernard Klein of Star Labs in Metropolis; he's sort of the family physician, but I don't have time to explain that right now . . . ." "And this doctor is here on the island?" "Oh no! Clark's powers didn't desert him straight away and when we first found the pieces of kryptonite Superman flew them back to Metropoli= s for analysis. Anyway, after a quick study, Bernie concluded that they'd spent sometime inside the volcano. He believes that probably just a few small meteorites landed in there, but over the years they've been broken = up and burned and now that Solvan is exploding they're spreading all over th= e island." "Burned, you say . . . , Lois, are they red and green and charred round the edges?" "You've seen them?! And there are definitely two colours?" The wif= e of the only full blooded Kryptonian on Earth fidgeted nervously as she awaited the answer. = "I'm afraid so, my dear," with an equally apprehensive grimace, Mia explained. "I never realised what they were, but you're right, they're a= ll over the place. Oh they're not that easy to find and there's more red th= an green." A sudden thought occurred to the islander. "Do they both have t= he same effect on Clark?" Lois shook her head wrathfully, as she considered the dire consequences that her husband's dying home planet had on her family over the past years. "No, the green harms him physically and robs him of his powers and the red effects him psychologically. The green is far worse, believe me." "Then it's fortunate that it's more rare. And you mustn't worry tha= t just anyone could pick them up because I've found most of them when I've been rooting around the woods gathering herbs for my medicines. You know= your doctor's theory about them being inside the volcano makes sense because the forests round the foot of the mountain are the most prolific for my healing plants and for bits of your rocks. In one particular area= , where an underground stream comes out of the mountain, they've even coloured the soil a little. When Paul was a small boy, he would help me find my plants and it was his favourite spot; he called it the rainbow ground. Kryptonite might be bad for super heros but it certainly is a go= od fertiliser; the growth rate of the plants in that particular spot is amazing." = The idea that had started life in Lois' brain as merely a whim sudden= ly began to have substance. "Mia, the salve you gave us for Clark; did the plants come from that place . . . the rainbow ground?" Mia glowed under the younger woman's interest in her lifetime hobby.= = "Oh yes! The plants that grow there have especially effective healing properties." "Then they could have healed Clark's injuries?" "I expect so, yes," the elderly herbalist puzzled over where this young and extremely intuitive woman was going. "But normal medicines don't work for Clark or for most of our children." = Julian was the obvious exception but in the past year or so it had seemed that Nathan was both susceptible to earth illnesses and their cure= s, leading his parents to believe that the small boy took after his mother i= n the genetics department. = = "But if these plants are growing in a kryptonite laden soil, could they have somehow mutated or something?" Lois was reaching here because biology wasn't one of her best subjects. "Well, I suppose they could have synthesised some of the properties = of the kryptonite from the soil and because of their own healing characteristics somehow nullified the harmful parts. But I'm not a scientist, dear; my craft was handed down from my grandmother and her grandmother before her. We never questioned how mother earth could help us. We just accepted the gifts she provided. Perhaps your doctor Bernie= could provide you with some answers." "That sounds like a very good idea, Mia . . . . Only . . . I don't suppose that you've any of the stuff on you. I finished what we had this= morning." "I'm afraid I left my medicine chest behind with all my other things= ," with these words the reality of the situation struck the lady and slow tears filled her eyes and spilled silently over her cheeks. "I never suspected that Solvan would take us unawares. I thought we'd have time t= o evacuate." Suddenly every one of Mia's years was visible as her posture drooped. "Everything's lost . . . my home . . . my favourite things . . = . my island . . . ." Lois' sympathetic heart reached out to this gentlewoman who she had come to trust and value and taking the now frail body in her arms she dre= w soothing circles on the stooped back. The Kent family was about to lose quite a lot of their possessions, but her home was waiting for her back i= n Metropolis . . . Metropolis, her base . . . her inspiration . . . her hom= e . . . . No! Clark was her home, wherever he was she would be happy. = Everything else was just material trappings and though some things she considered emotionally valuable, she could live without them as long as s= he had her husband and her family. But she didn't have her husband . . . he was out there somewhere and = he was hurt and vulnerable. And she had just uncovered something that, for the first time ever, could perhaps save him from further pain and it was about to disappear forever under streams of molten lava. Lois Lane was n= ot about to let that happen. = Continued in part 16 ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 11 Jul 2000 07:07:20 -0700 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: New Story: Best Laid Plans--Part 9/? MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Best Laid Plans--Part 9/? by Nan Smith Superman found the bomb in the copy room with two minutes to spare. Most likely, he figured, Arianna had planted it before she left, though for what reason he didn't know. He flew it to a position well above the city and ripped the timer loose, half expecting it to detonate anyhow, but it didn't. By the time he returned William Henderson and two of his men had arrived in answer to their first call. The Inspector examined the tear gas container and the disarmed bomb with his usual deadpan expression. "You know," he said, "Mr. Luthor and his friends are starting to get under my skin." He regarded the bomb sourly. "This is the third of these little tokens of affection we've been called about in the last two hours. I have the feeling it's going to be a long night. I should have listened to my mom when she wanted me to take up bee keeping." He beckoned to one of his companions. "I want this dusted for prints. Let's at least see if we can give this 'double' a real name." Employees were beginning to drift back into the building, now that Superman had certified it to be safe. Superman made a spectacular departure and returned a minute later as Clark. He headed for the phone. "I'm going to call Lois," he told Perry. "I don't like this. Something's happening, all of a sudden...I have the feeling it's related." "Yeah, me too," Perry said. "Chief!" Jimmy burst out of Perry's office. "Lois left a message on your machine! She was calling from Lex Tower, of all places. She says she saw the double and Dr. Carlin leaving the Planet and followed them. She needs CK to find Superman as quick as he can!" Clark was already on his way toward the stairs. Jack looked after him. "Maybe we oughtta tag along," he said, quietly to Jimmy. "After CK?" Jimmy asked. "No, I was thinking, if Luthor's been hiding out in Lex Tower all this time and bossing the whole deal, Lois could be in trouble. Besides, we've been in on this since it started. I'd like to see the end of it. We might even be able to help." "We could get some really good pictures," Jimmy rationalized. "And we *do* know where to go." He added, "My motorcycle's parked in the garage." Together, the two young men ducked through the door to the stairs. ********************* Lois hurried, up the flight of stairs to the landing of the floor where the elevator had stopped. Of course, she cautioned herself, she couldn't know for sure that this was where Arianna and the double had gone, but Nigel St. John and a woman who closely fitted the description of the other tail had come here. It seemed like a reasonable guess to make. She waited a few minutes, getting her breath back and gathering her courage. In a way, she had walked into the lion's den. If Lex was really here, as she suspected he might be, and he got his hands on her, it could be very bad. Carefully, she pushed the door open a crack and listened. There was no sound of anyone nearby. From some distance away, she could hear the murmur of a man's voice, but it was too muffled to discern the words. Still that very sound sent a chill over her. She would recognize that voice anywhere, the light baritone, and the rhythm of the words that she couldn't quite make out. Lex. She had done what the police couldn't. Lex had been hiding in his own home all the time. She strained her ears, listening for any other sound, but there was none. Slowly and quietly, she pushed the stairwell door open. The hall beyond was empty. After a moment, she removed her heeled shoes. The polished floor beyond would echo loudly if she were to walk on that in heels. Very softly, she tiptoed down the hall, following the sound of the voice. It became clearer as she progressed. The transom of one of the doors ahead of her was open a crack, emitting light, and it was from this that she could hear the voice speaking. She forcibly quelled the prickle of fear that ran over her scalp at the sound. "...All set?" "Yes, sir." That was Nigel St. John's voice. "Very well. What about the Planet, Ms. Durant? I trust you followed my instructions to the letter?" "Yes, sir." The woman's voice was low and sultry. "I threw the canister and got out right away. Dr. Carlin was waiting and picked me up outside. I'm sure no one had any idea I wasn't...her." "Excellent. Arianna, my dear, your report?" "I left the package in the copy room, Lex." Arianna Carlin's cultured voice couldn't be mistaken. "Carlo reports he phoned in the threat shortly after Superman cleared the gas." "And?" Lex's voice said. "Carlo's report was necessarily sketchy, sir," Nigel St. John's voice reported, "however, Superman appears to have found it and disposed of it. The police are still there. Apparently, everything worked well. Ms. Lane is believed to have been responsible for the gas. Henderson appeared, to take the bomb shortly thereafter. As predicted, the police are now on the alert for more bombs about the city, as well." Lois glanced uneasily around. She was in a horribly exposed position here. If anyone came along, or if they opened the door, they would see her. On the other hand, she didn't want to miss what they were saying. The door next to the one where Lex was holding his meeting presented a temptation. She might be able to hear them from there, too, and she would have cover. Cautiously, she eased it open. The room was empty--in fact, Lois suspected the whole floor was empty except for Lex and his conspirators. She slipped inside and let the outer door close. There was a connecting door to the one where Lex was holding his meeting. She tiptoed over to it and plastered her ear to its surface. Nigel St. John's voice was still speaking. "...Summary, sir, everything is going according to plan." "Very good." Lex's voice was composed. "And Ms. Lane?" Arianna Carlin's voice spoke. "According to Perry White, her partner took her to her apartment for some rest. We should be able to pick her up there when we're finished here." "Excellent, my dear. You've been remarkably efficient. My compliments." "You know I'd do anything for you, Lex." "Now," Lex's voice continued, "we'll proceed according to plan. Ms. Durant, you will take your position. Nigel, is everything ready for our guest?" "Yes, sir." Nigel sounded inhumanly disinterested. "The wine cellar has been prepared." "That's perfect. As soon as we have him, Gretchen will retrieve Ms. Lane's Jeep for the final stage." "Yes, Lex." Another woman's voice--Gretchen's?--spoke. "My man is in position. He's just waiting for my signal." "Very well. Ms. Durant, the next part is yours." Lois waited, frozen, as the footsteps of the five people exited into the hallway without and faded into the distance. Her brain was racing. She had no doubt at all about who the 'guest' was intended to be. If this "Ms. Durant" was her double, Lex must be planning to use her to trap Superman. As for the wine cellar, very few persons knew it existed. Lex had taken her to see it, once, and the incredible collection of fine wines in his possession. It was reached one of two ways--by a door from the first floor, which was concealed behind a false wall, and from the penthouse itself via a private, concealed elevator. Lois checked the hall. No one was visible. Quickly and quietly, she hurried back towards the stairwell. She needed to get to the penthouse. ******************** "Help, Superman!" The woman's voice was muffled, but it came from Lex Tower. Clark, hurtling toward the huge building, x-rayed the penthouse from which the cry seemed to come, searching frantically for Lois. There she was, bound to a chair in Luthor's study. He scanned the area around her; it didn't seem to be an ambush, but he scanned the rooms surrounding the study for human occupants. Nothing stirred. Satisfied that no one waited for him, he entered through the French windows. "Lois, are you all right?" She squirmed against the ropes that held her, trying to spit out the half-dislodged gag, and he moved behind her to undo the bonds that held her wrists. Free, she reached up to pull the gag free. "Thank you, Superman," she said clearly, and in that instant, he realized the truth. It was a trap after all. This wasn't Lois. Casually, she reached up to the locket that hung around her neck and snapped it open. Pain washed over him, and he felt his strength ebbing. He staggered back, trying to put some distance between himself and the Lois imposter. The window was only ten feet away. If he could make it, dive off the balcony, he would recover his strength on the way down. She followed him. "Why, Superman," she said, "I'm hurt! I might even think you don't like me!" Clark felt his knees buckle. Looking blurrily up at the double, he wondered how he could ever have mistaken this woman for his partner. Her face was the same, but the expression on it was completely different. It was at that instant that the wall seemed to open. Lex Luthor's voice said, "So, Superman, we meet again for the last time, I'm afraid. It took a lot for us to finally reach this point, but it was worth it." He turned to the double. "You may go, Ms. Durant. Hold yourself ready for the final stage. Your payment will be waiting for you as soon as you've completed your part." He held out his hand and the double placed the locket in it. She smiled coolly at Superman, turned casually and walked away, hips swaying. "All right, Nigel, let's take care of this." Luthor moved to grasp Clark under the arms. St. John grasped his legs and together they lifted him. Clark struggled weakly, but it was useless. He was hauled into what he realized belatedly was a concealed elevator, the doors closed and he felt it begin to move downward. The trip seemed to go on forever but, at last, the car stopped moving and the doors opened. Clark couldn't restrain a gasp of pain when the two men seized him again. He was dragged like a sack of potatoes across the cold, cement floor toward-- He struggled, trying to resist, but it was like trying to swim in molasses. His movements were weak and sluggish, and the two men had no difficulty in forcing him into the cage that sat in the middle of the dank, dimly lighted room, a cage where the bars glowed with a sickly green light of their own. Clark was pushed carelessly into the cage and rolled, gasping, to lie on his face on the floor. The dreaded Kryptonite radiation was all around him. There was no escape. He heard the clang of the cage door and looked up to see Luthor locking the door, a pleased smile playing across his mouth. "Thank you, Nigel," he said, as if he were thanking his butler for the most common of services. He dropped the key into his pocket with a gesture of finality. "See to it that Ms. Durant's payment is ready for her." "Of course, sir." Nigel St. John turned casually away toward the elevator. "You see, Superman," Luthor said, pleasantly, "Ms. Durant's role will be more crucial than she knows." It was a nightmarish scene for Clark, lying helpless in the cage with his greatest enemy standing at ease before him, speaking as if they were having a perfectly ordinary conversation. "Ms. Durant will be found wearing Lois's clothes and jewelry, with just enough left identifiable that no one will be in doubt." Luthor smiled. "Everyone will believe her dead, Superman, while Lois will be safe with me in my European fortress." "No..." "Oh, yes. I've won, Superman." Luthor's face kept its smile, but the hatred came through in his voice. "I'll continue to run my empire, and with you and Kent gone there'll be no serious threat to my return. Kent will die before I leave Metropolis, make no mistake about that, and eventually I'll be back. We won't see each other again, Superman. I regret that. I wanted to watch you die, but one can't have everything. I do, however, want you to know how thoroughly you've lost." "You'll never make it out of the city," Clark rasped, hoarsely. "Henderson's looking for you. The police are on alert." Luthor chuckled. "Oh no, Superman. The Metropolis police force is going to be far too busy. I've planned this down to the smallest detail. As soon as Lois is in my hands, demonstrations will break out all over the city. Coupled with the occasional bomb threat, which has already begun, they'll be distracted. Tonight, there's a big demonstration scheduled in Centennial Park. When the bomb explodes in the middle of that, the city's emergency services and the police will have their hands full--far too full to waste time watching for me." With a final gesture, he hung the locket on a corner of the cage. "I nearly forgot. You'll want this, I'm sure." He turned toward the elevator. "Au revoir, Superman. Have a nice death." The elevator doors opened and he stopped inside. They closed. Clark was alone. ********************** The stairwell door to the penthouse was locked. On reflection, Lois realized she should have expected that. She debated for a moment the wisdom of trying to pick the lock, but decided against it. Knowing Lex, he'd probably have an alarm on it. Quickly, she retraced her steps. She was going to have to risk the staff's elevator again. With luck, Lex wouldn't have any of his servants up there at this point. He *was* a wanted fugitive, after all. They probably didn't even know he was here. The soft "ding" of the arriving elevator, as the doors slid open, sounded more like a gunshot to her strained nerves. Lois stepped out of the car, praying that no one had noticed the sound. There was no one here in the back rooms of the penthouse; a thin layer of dust on the various surfaces told her that the cleaning staff hadn't been in the areas frequented by the help for some weeks. She tiptoed toward Lex's study, where she recalled the elevator to his private wine cellar was located. Voices ahead. Lois froze, listening. Arianna Carlin's voice spoke, sounding less cultured than Lois had ever heard it. "I don't care if you don't see the reason! If you don't do exactly as Lex orders, you'll regret it, Marie! You're to dress in the clothing and wear the jewelry just as he said. Is that clear?" The voice of Marie replied, a note of sarcasm in it. "All right, all right!" Marie must be Ms. Durant, Lois thought. The voice sounded like that of the woman downstairs. "I'll do it, but I think you're a fool! There's no way on the face of the earth I'd work this hard to give the man I loved to another woman!" There was the sound of a slap. "I don't require your opinion," Arianna Carlin said. "Just your obedience." The footsteps retreated. Lois waited until they had died away, then continued toward the study. Lex's study was an elegant room, to say the very least. A thick, beige carpet covered the floor; pieces of expensive furniture were set about, objets d'art decorated shelves and tables. A huge fireplace with an oak mantle dominated one whole wall, with an ornate set of fireplace tools--which Lois doubted had ever been used--sitting in front of it. A large, antique, rolltop desk and chair filled one corner next to the French windows, and a fully equipped wet bar took up another wall. Lois paused to get her bearings. A chair sat in the middle of the room, with a tangle of ropes and a chewed and lipstick-smeared handkerchief on the floor beside it. Across from it one wall stood bare except for an ornately embroidered wall hanging and a pair of crossed Cavalry sabres. The soft, swish of the arriving elevator alerted her, and she hurried across the room to duck behind the sofa. The doors opened, revealing Nigel St John. Lois crouched down behind the sofa back and tried not to breathe. "Nigel..." Gretchen Kelly entered the room. "Is Lex about done?" "He's...speaking to Superman," Nigel said. "He should be finished shortly, Gretchen. Why?" "I have Lane's Jeep. We're all set." "Excellent, Gretchen. You're efficient." St John's voice sounded faintly bored. They had her Jeep? Lois bit her lip. If they had found her Jeep, they must know she was nearby. Why hadn't this woman reported that to St. John? She held her breath, listening, but neither of the two said anything more. A minute or two later, the sound of the arriving elevator again reached her ears. St. John's voice spoke. "Ah, sir, and how is our guest?" "Not particularly comfortable," Lex's voice said. "You know my favorite quote, Nigel: 'Revenge is a dish best served cold'. Superman will die a lonely death in the cellar, not to be found for a very long time. Almost enough compensation for the humiliation I endured for those two eternal weeks in custody. Almost, but not quite. Tonight, Metropolis will burn, Nigel." "Yes, sir." Lois remained frozen behind the sofa, listening as the three slowly departed, talking, her mind in a panic. Clark was down there! Lex obviously had him trapped with Kryptonite, and it was up to her to get him out. At last, the footsteps died away and Lois peeked around the sofa. No one was visible. She needed to call for help; she should have done so before, but the fact that Clark would be coming had lulled her into a false sense of security. But now, Clark was trapped, and she was one person, on her own in this place. The next step was to call the police. With shaking fingers, she reached for the catch of her purse. More voices were approaching. Lois held her breath, trying to be absolutely silent behind the sofa while Arianna Carlin and Marie Durant held another conversation outside the study door. Marie, it appeared, was still unhappy with Lois's choice of wardrobe. "That doesn't matter!" Arianna Carlin's voice snapped at the recalcitrant young woman, "wear them! This is the last thing you have to do, then you walk away with half a million dollars. Now, go on!" "All right, all right," the other woman muttered in a sulky voice. Lois listened to her retreating footsteps, wondering if Murphy's Law was dictating the presence of so many persons near the study at just this time. The click of Arianna's footsteps in the hall outside approached the study and suddenly became muffled as she entered the room. Arianna crossed the rug toward the sofa where Lois crouched. "You might as well come out, Lois. I know you're there." Lois froze. The woman stepped around the sofa and Lois saw the small handgun aimed directly at her. "Stand up," Arianna said. Lois stood. "Walk over to the elevator and call it." "What elevator? I--" "Don't lie, Lois," Arianna said. "You know where it is. Do it now." Lois glanced at the hand holding the weapon, then at Arianna Carlin's rigid face, and obeyed. The elevator ride to the wine cellar was a long, slow one. Arianna stayed carefully out of reach, mindful of Lois's martial arts training. Lois glanced over at the psychiatrist wondering if she might have a chance against the gun. Arianna smiled mirthlessly. "I wouldn't." "Where are we going?" Lois asked, although she knew. "You wanted to reach Superman, didn't you? I'm taking you to him." Arianna's expression was hard. "You and he can spend your last hours together." She laughed, bitterly. "Did you think I didn't see you following? I knew you'd be here." "I don't understand," Lois whispered. "Why?" "Do you think I'd willingly give the love of my life to another woman?" Arianna said. "He married me, and I'm his until the day I die. No other woman will ever take my place while I live." "But...you two divorced." "He divorced *me*--I didn't divorce *him*! You should have died that day on the street, Lois, but Clark Kent saved you. It won't matter, though. You've been acting irrationally for days. You'll be found the victim of a tragic suicide on the Hobs River Road. No one will ever guess that the real Lois Lane is locked in the wine cellar of Lex Tower, left to die with Superman. Least of all, Lex." The doors of the elevator slid aside, and Arianna waved her pistol. "Step out." Lois moved reluctantly out into the dimness of the wine cellar. There was a bright green blotch ahead of her in the dimness, that resolved itself into a cage with glowing, green bars. And inside it-- "Superman!" she gasped. "Yes," Arianna said. "Superman. My husband's greatest enemy." Behind them, the elevator doors closed quietly. Lois said, desperately, "Arianna, you must know I don't want Lex! I'm in love with Clark Kent. I'm no danger to you." "It doesn't matter," Arianna Carlin said, and her voice was bleak and bitter. "Lex wants *you*. Your wishes don't come into it, any more than the wishes of the other women he would have put in my place." "Ohmigod," Lois breathed, "it was *you*! You killed them." Arianna didn't answer. She reached behind her and pressed the call button. Lois took a step toward her. "Please, Arianna, you can't do this." "Can't I? I already have." Arianna Carlin leveled her pistol and fired. ************************** (to be continued) ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 11 Jul 2000 12:58:28 -0500 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Carolyn Schnall Subject: Re: New Reference Site In-Reply-To: <002301bfe9f8$896f57c0$1dd1ff3f@fred> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" I just took a glance but it looks like it will be really helpful, THANKS:) Carolyn >Hi FoLCs, > >I'd like to tell you about a new reference site that's been developed. It's >a link for fanfic archives, so if you'd like to be added to this list, let >us know. > >There is also a table of fanfic stories available on Zoom's message board. >This table contains the title, author, and status of the stories posted >there, ie: number of parts, if the story is complete, name changes, etc. >Some of the ways this table was designed to help was if you were looking for >a fic that may have only been posted on Zoom's board, or if you wanted to >find a fic in its early stages with comments, or to see if you have all the >parts posted to date for a particular story. > >A special thanks to LabRat for designing and updating this table. > >So, check it out at http://www.geocities.com/Area51/Meteor/7378/lnc.html and >let us know what you think. > >Thanks! >Dawn ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 11 Jul 2000 18:52:50 +0100 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Wendy Richards MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Author: Wendy Richards Title: When Lightning Strikes Twice Rating: PG-13 Part: 25 of ? Comments: very much appreciated, publicly or privately. Thanks again to FoLC on IRC, and also to those who've commented here. This one's for LaurieD and for Yael. :) ***************** After Clark's departure, Lois had a busy morning, which suited her since it didn't allow her time to think about Clark, worry about his chances up against a Super-powered Luthor, or the possibility of more Kryptonite. First, she had to email the story to Perry, and then, in order to ensure that he understood its importance, she called him at the Planet. That was a lengthy conversation: to begin with, Perry wanted to know when Lois had seen Clark, since his name was also on the byline. Lois got around that one by simply saying she had talked to Clark, and leaving Perry to draw the conclusion that it had been by telephone. Still following Clark's advice to her when he had first, as Superman, brought her to Smallville, she didn't say anything about where she was. Much as she trusted Perry, she was well aware that Luthor had Super-hearing. Perry agreed to run the article on the front page of the evening edition once Lois assured him that Superman approved of the idea. "But Superman told me this was Luthor," he objected, puzzled. Lois grimaced; Clark had left her to make the difficult explanations here. A thought struck her suddenly: now that she knew he was Superman, would that be the case in future? Would he want her to cover for him whenever he had to run off to help someone? But... she would do it anyway, wouldn't she? she asked herself quickly. Not just to help Superman, but to help *Clark.* After all, she loved Clark.... Recalling herself to Perry's question, she cobbled together an explanation. "Yes, Superman does think it's Luthor, but he's having trouble tracking him down to bring him in. So he wants to use our article, and the interview with him in it, to provoke a confrontation." "Hmmm. Yeah, I guess calling Luthor a mutant cyborg won't do his ego a lot of good," Perry drawled. "That's what we thought." Changing the subject then, Lois asked about Jimmy; Perry had been in to see him earlier that morning and had found him awake, in some pain, but in general good spirits. It seemed the young photographer had been very pleased with himself for managing to save Superman's life and escaping with his own intact, and as a result was not too distressed at his injuries. Lois was glad to hear it; it might make Clark feel a little less guilty about his friend. Ending the conversation with Perry, Lois then arranged for some fruit and chocolates to be sent to Jimmy from her, and only then allowed herself to think about her conversation with Clark. It had been good to see him, a relief that he was okay - her mood over the past night had prevented her from recognising that she was worried for him, though hearing that Luthor had used Kryptonite on him had punished her mightily for her selfishness. While she'd been abusing him for his concern for her, he'd been fighting death at the hands of the deadly meteorite. Lois knew only too well the effect Kryptonite had on Superman: she trembled again now as the memory of that time he'd asked her to dig a bullet made from the green rock out of his shoulder. That had been *horrible* - but she'd had to do it, otherwise he would have died. He'd been so weak, in so much pain. It tore her heart to think of Clark suffering that kind of pain again last night. He was *alive,* though, thanks to Jimmy. He might not be, though, if Lex Luthor had or got hold of some more Kryptonite, or managed to take advantage of Clark's reluctance to kill. He had to confront Luthor, Lois knew that; Superman's sense of nobility and desire to do what was right was what made the Super-hero what he was. And now she knew that same Super-hero was her partner and best friend in disguise, Lois could see clearly where Superman's ethics came from. She'd teased Clark occasionally, calling him a Boy Scout, saying he was soft-hearted, cared too much. Would she love him so much if he cared less? She shook her head; she knew the answer to that question. She loved Clark for the person he was, the nobility within him which it had taken her too long to see, his kindness, thoughtfulness, his caring nature, his loyalty. And these were the attributes which made Superman so special as well. Lois remembered a conversation she'd had with Superman some weeks ago, in a rare moment when he'd confided to her his feelings of helplessness and self-doubt over a situation where, it seemed, he was unable to intervene. She'd assured him that he was far more than the Suit and the powers - and had his apparent suggestion that the powers were all he was come from Clark' s own insecurities, she wondered now? - and had argued that in the hands of anyone else Superman's powers would not make a Superman. Now, the truth of her words was evident in Luthor's activities. But she remembered her suggestion that Clark was probably too soft-hearted to take on the role... and yet, before she'd come up with that excuse, it had occurred to her that, of everyone she knew, he probably came closest to her image of the good man who was underneath the Suit. And yet it had never occurred to her.... Stupid, Lois! But she pushed recriminations aside. Yes, as Clark had said to her the evening before, she should have figured it out. It was amazing that she hadn 't; except that no-one *expected* to find Superman working as a reporter on a Metropolis newspaper, earning his living like anyone else, turning up to work day after day, obeying orders and letting his quick-tempered partner push him around. No, it wasn't that surprising she hadn't realised, especially when she considered the way she'd treated Clark at times. She'd barely even *looked* at him for the first six months they'd known each other... apart, of course, from that time when she'd called to collect him from his hotel and he'd been dressed in... a towel.... She swallowed. Yes, Clark was good-looking - more than good-looking, he had a great body; that was even more apparent now that she appreciated that she' d been admiring it clad in Spandex for eighteen months. Yet she'd barely noticed how attractive he was, or perhaps had deliberately refused to notice. She was noticing now.... Though despite his undeniable physical attributes, it wasn't Clark's looks or his great body which really attracted her to him. It was those other attributes which she'd always known he possessed but hadn't really appreciated for a long time. Clark was the strongest man on Earth, and yet the gentlest. She'd never known how it felt to have someone really care about her well-being until Clark had become her partner. But now Clark was in probably the greatest danger he'd been in his life. He was up against an opponent who was not only equally powerful as him in every respect, but someone who'd created both a criminal and legitimate business empire on cunning, a high degree of intelligence, the ability to strategise and plan. Luthor was no fool. On the other hand, Lois was convinced he was losing his sanity: but a barely-sane Luthor would be even more dangerous to Superman. Plus he'd got hold of enough Kryptonite in the past to build a cage, so how could they be sure that the small piece he'd had last night was all he had access to? Luthor could kill Superman... could rip Clark limb from limb, utterly destroy the proud, noble, most courageous man she'd ever met. And Clark knew that, yet he'd been determined to face the man anyway, while still unsure about how far he would be prepared to go to ensure he got the upper hand. She could understand why Clark had been so reluctant to consider the possibility of killing. As he said, Superman did not kill. It was one of those immutable facts of life, along with the one which said most politicians are crooked or that lawyers were the scum of the earth. Superman did not kill. And yet, if he didn't kill Lex Luthor.... Then he himself would die, if not today then some time very soon. Luthor would find a way to kill Superman - if he wasn't able to succeed in one-to-one combat, he would use some other weapon. He'd find another friend of Superman's to use as bait, a means of making Clark choose between his love for his friends and his own life - and the knowledge of what Luthor would do if there was no Superman. How could Clark not kill him? And yet Lois knew he wouldn't... couldn't. Not with deliberate intent. If Superman killed, it would destroy him. It would destroy Clark too, she knew that beyond any doubt. Despite what he'd said to her in their conversation just before he'd left, she'd been aware that he was, in his own way, merely humouring her. He wouldn't do it. She'd known it too, but had felt unable to break through his facade of apparent calm to get him to tell her what he was really feeling. Was he scared? If so, he wasn't showing it. All he had allowed her to see was his anger at what Luthor had done; that, though, she supposed, was an advance, since Clark was in many ways a very private person, and Superman was even more so. She hoped he could hold onto that anger: it would help him in his battle against Luthor. Cold fury would lend Clark additional strength and determination, and perhaps give him more of an edge over a hotly angry Luthor on the edge of sanity. But if he couldn't kill Luthor, how was their nemesis to be stopped? The thought of what Luthor could do sent chills through Lois. He had no morals, no scruples whatsoever; he would aim to gain control over every fabric of society, to destroy every freedom except those he chose to permit. He would be a cold, vicious dictator who would gain pleasure from killing and destroying - and with Nigel St John as his henchman, the cruelty would be intense. Even in the days when she'd trusted Lex, Nigel had always made Lois shiver. There was something about him... something creepy, something in the contemptuous way he looked at her, that way he had of looking down his aristocratic nose at others, sneering. What was a man like that doing working for Lex Luthor, anyway? Their backgrounds couldn't be less compatible... though their morals couldn't be more, she supposed. The thought of what Luthor might also do to *her,* personally, also scared Lois. She knew he wanted revenge on her, and he'd made it clear the other night that he still wanted to possess her. He wouldn't be willing to forgo that; and, she thought, he would still be looking for her regardless of Superman's intervention. She was very glad that Luthor had never seemed to show much interest in Clark; it wouldn't occur to him, at least in the first instance, to consider that Lois Lane might be hiding out at the family home of her partner. He would be more likely to assume that Superman had stashed her somewhere overseas, or in some sort of hidden lair somewhere. She was safe here... for now. Thanks to Clark, of course. Clark... He'd looked so care-worn when he'd left, a mere couple of hours ago, though it already felt far longer to her. From the moment she'd seen him in the Kents' living-room, his expression one of worry and a deep weariness, she'd ached to wrap her arms around him and offer him comfort. And yet that was something she had never really done for Clark. In that sense, their friendship had always been very unequal. He was the one who was there for her when she needed comfort or caring for: whether as Clark or as Superman, he'd never let her down when she needed a friend. And yet she rarely, if ever, did the same for him. This time, she'd wanted to, but the knowledge that she'd cold-shouldered him only a few short hours before had stopped her. And it had been clear, when he'd turned to acknowledge her presence, that he also remembered her behaviour and expected more of the same. In the kitchen, when they'd been discussing their plan and the question of whether Clark could kill Luthor, she'd longed to do more than just hold his hands. For the first time, she'd found herself wanting to smooth her hand along his forehead as if she could rub away the worry-lines she saw there; she'd wanted to curl up on his lap and have him assure her that he'd deal with Luthor and dispose of him permanently, and she'd wanted to hug him to her and tell him he was doing the right thing. As he'd turned to say goodbye to her, she'd been very much aware that it could be for the last time, and so finally she had given in to the desire to reach for him, to pull him into her arms. His hug had been like coming home, and she hadn't wanted to let him go. Now, she wished she'd had the courage to pull his head down to hers; she'd wanted so desperately to kiss him - for luck, she'd told herself, but she knew the desire represented far more than that. It was strange: she'd rarely missed an opportunity like that with Superman (not that he'd given her many). But now, now she knew that Superman and Clark were one and the same, it seemed different. She and Clark just didn't have that kind of relationship. Sure, they'd kissed, but for different reasons: to throw villains off the scent; as a distraction from something else; or, once, simply to say goodbye. On all but one occasion he, not she, had initiated it. Lois Lane, who had no difficulty at all being very touchy-feely with Clark at work and even in private, just hadn't been able to take the risk of exposing her more intimate feelings for him by kissing him. And yet, it wasn't that strange: Lois knew very well that her sometimes very physical behaviour with Clark represented more of an unspoken challenge than anything else. It wasn't a come-on, although it was flirting of a kind. By her actions, she was almost daring him to reciprocate, and yet she'd made it clear on more than one occasion that if he did reciprocate he'd be put in his place pretty darned fast. He was *safe* to flirt with, simply because she knew he'd never misread the signals, never treat her in the way she was, undoubtedly, inviting by her behaviour. She wondered whether Clark understood what lay behind her flirting with him, or whether he really didn' t find her attractive enough to follow through. She had, she reminded herself, concluded the previous evening that he didn't have romantic feelings for her at all. But she now dismissed that notion. Clark was attracted to her; she'd known that for a long time. She'd seen it in his face, in his eyes, on many occasions. He cared for her - of course he did. Apart from anything else, that was evident in his worry about her safety over the past few days. She now understood his anger of last night, and she was aware that she'd no doubt provoked him past bearing. As to whether he loved her... if he didn't, then he was certainly close to it, of that she was sure. So... why hadn't he said anything? Because she hadn't either, she told herself. She'd never given him the slightest hint that she might be interested in a closer relationship with him than that of best friends. And yet she'd known for some time that she wanted more. Of course, it hadn't helped that Superman kept getting in the way of Lois gaining a clearer understanding of her feelings; but Superman didn't represent an obstacle any more. She needed to tell Clark how she felt about him, and the sooner the better. Always assuming that he survived the fight with Luthor... but she refused to contemplate the possibility that he might not. That would be too much to bear... she just couldn't allow herself to imagine that Clark might die. He would come back, later tonight, she thought. And once his parents had gone to bed, she would ask him to go for a walk with her, or take her flying, and she would tell him that she loved him, ask him to go out with her. Smiling now that she'd finally made up her mind about Clark, Lois headed downstairs; it was lunchtime and Martha might appreciate some help in the kitchen. As she approached, it became apparent that Jonathan was already there with her. She hurried forward, about to push the door open and apologise for her tardiness in coming downstairs, when the sound of her name made her pause. "I'm still not sure Clark did the right thing in telling Lois he's Superman," Jonathan was saying. Lois froze, wondering if Clark's parents didn't trust her to keep the secret. Then Martha's answer reassured her on that at least. "Jonathan, Lois won't tell anyone. She can be trusted, you know that." "Oh, I'm not worried about that," Clark's father answered. "No, it's the way Lois behaved around Superman - how she was infatuated with him for what he could do. You know how Clark felt about that - and is she going to transfer that to him now that she knows?" Lois didn't wait to see how Martha responded to that. A huge lump rapidly growing in her throat, she turned and ran silently back to the stairs. *************** -------------------------- Wendy Richards w.m.richards@hrm.keele.ac.uk ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 11 Jul 2000 14:16:03 -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: When Lightning Strikes Twice Part 25/? Darn! I completely forgot to fill in the subject! I'm reposting for the benefit of anyone who might be reading this through the archive, and profuse apologies to everyone whose mailbox I'm spamming as a result! Wendy >Author: Wendy Richards >Title: When Lightning Strikes Twice >Rating: PG-13 >Part: 25 of ? >Comments: very much appreciated, publicly or privately. > >Thanks again to FoLC on IRC, and also to those who've commented here. This >one's for LaurieD and for Yael. :) > >***************** > >After Clark's departure, Lois had a busy morning, which suited her since it >didn't allow her time to think about Clark, worry about his chances up >against a Super-powered Luthor, or the possibility of more Kryptonite. >First, she had to email the story to Perry, and then, in order to ensure >that he understood its importance, she called him at the Planet. That was a >lengthy conversation: to begin with, Perry wanted to know when Lois had seen >Clark, since his name was also on the byline. Lois got around that one by >simply saying she had talked to Clark, and leaving Perry to draw the >conclusion that it had been by telephone. Still following Clark's advice to >her when he had first, as Superman, brought her to Smallville, she didn't >say anything about where she was. Much as she trusted Perry, she was well >aware that Luthor had Super-hearing. > >Perry agreed to run the article on the front page of the evening edition >once Lois assured him that Superman approved of the idea. "But Superman told >me this was Luthor," he objected, puzzled. > >Lois grimaced; Clark had left her to make the difficult explanations here. A >thought struck her suddenly: now that she knew he was Superman, would that >be the case in future? Would he want her to cover for him whenever he had to >run off to help someone? But... she would do it anyway, wouldn't she? she >asked herself quickly. Not just to help Superman, but to help *Clark.* After >all, she loved Clark.... > >Recalling herself to Perry's question, she cobbled together an explanation. >"Yes, Superman does think it's Luthor, but he's having trouble tracking him >down to bring him in. So he wants to use our article, and the interview with >him in it, to provoke a confrontation." > >"Hmmm. Yeah, I guess calling Luthor a mutant cyborg won't do his ego a lot >of good," Perry drawled. > >"That's what we thought." Changing the subject then, Lois asked about Jimmy; >Perry had been in to see him earlier that morning and had found him awake, >in some pain, but in general good spirits. It seemed the young photographer >had been very pleased with himself for managing to save Superman's life and >escaping with his own intact, and as a result was not too distressed at his >injuries. Lois was glad to hear it; it might make Clark feel a little less >guilty about his friend. > >Ending the conversation with Perry, Lois then arranged for some fruit and >chocolates to be sent to Jimmy from her, and only then allowed herself to >think about her conversation with Clark. It had been good to see him, a >relief that he was okay - her mood over the past night had prevented her >from recognising that she was worried for him, though hearing that Luthor >had used Kryptonite on him had punished her mightily for her selfishness. >While she'd been abusing him for his concern for her, he'd been fighting >death at the hands of the deadly meteorite. Lois knew only too well the >effect Kryptonite had on Superman: she trembled again now as the memory of >that time he'd asked her to dig a bullet made from the green rock out of his >shoulder. That had been *horrible* - but she'd had to do it, otherwise he >would have died. He'd been so weak, in so much pain. It tore her heart to >think of Clark suffering that kind of pain again last night. > >He was *alive,* though, thanks to Jimmy. He might not be, though, if Lex >Luthor had or got hold of some more Kryptonite, or managed to take advantage >of Clark's reluctance to kill. He had to confront Luthor, Lois knew that; >Superman's sense of nobility and desire to do what was right was what made >the Super-hero what he was. And now she knew that same Super-hero was her >partner and best friend in disguise, Lois could see clearly where Superman's >ethics came from. She'd teased Clark occasionally, calling him a Boy Scout, >saying he was soft-hearted, cared too much. Would she love him so much if he >cared less? > >She shook her head; she knew the answer to that question. She loved Clark >for the person he was, the nobility within him which it had taken her too >long to see, his kindness, thoughtfulness, his caring nature, his loyalty. >And these were the attributes which made Superman so special as well. > >Lois remembered a conversation she'd had with Superman some weeks ago, in a >rare moment when he'd confided to her his feelings of helplessness and >self-doubt over a situation where, it seemed, he was unable to intervene. >She'd assured him that he was far more than the Suit and the powers - and >had his apparent suggestion that the powers were all he was come from Clark' >s own insecurities, she wondered now? - and had argued that in the hands of >anyone else Superman's powers would not make a Superman. Now, the truth of >her words was evident in Luthor's activities. But she remembered her >suggestion that Clark was probably too soft-hearted to take on the role... >and yet, before she'd come up with that excuse, it had occurred to her that, >of everyone she knew, he probably came closest to her image of the good man >who was underneath the Suit. > >And yet it had never occurred to her.... Stupid, Lois! > >But she pushed recriminations aside. Yes, as Clark had said to her the >evening before, she should have figured it out. It was amazing that she hadn >'t; except that no-one *expected* to find Superman working as a reporter on >a Metropolis newspaper, earning his living like anyone else, turning up to >work day after day, obeying orders and letting his quick-tempered partner >push him around. No, it wasn't that surprising she hadn't realised, >especially when she considered the way she'd treated Clark at times. She'd >barely even *looked* at him for the first six months they'd known each >other... apart, of course, from that time when she'd called to collect him >from his hotel and he'd been dressed in... a towel.... > >She swallowed. Yes, Clark was good-looking - more than good-looking, he had >a great body; that was even more apparent now that she appreciated that she' >d been admiring it clad in Spandex for eighteen months. Yet she'd barely >noticed how attractive he was, or perhaps had deliberately refused to >notice. > >She was noticing now.... > >Though despite his undeniable physical attributes, it wasn't Clark's looks >or his great body which really attracted her to him. It was those other >attributes which she'd always known he possessed but hadn't really >appreciated for a long time. Clark was the strongest man on Earth, and yet >the gentlest. She'd never known how it felt to have someone really care >about her well-being until Clark had become her partner. > >But now Clark was in probably the greatest danger he'd been in his life. He >was up against an opponent who was not only equally powerful as him in every >respect, but someone who'd created both a criminal and legitimate business >empire on cunning, a high degree of intelligence, the ability to strategise >and plan. Luthor was no fool. On the other hand, Lois was convinced he was >losing his sanity: but a barely-sane Luthor would be even more dangerous to >Superman. Plus he'd got hold of enough Kryptonite in the past to build a >cage, so how could they be sure that the small piece he'd had last night was >all he had access to? > >Luthor could kill Superman... could rip Clark limb from limb, utterly >destroy the proud, noble, most courageous man she'd ever met. And Clark knew >that, yet he'd been determined to face the man anyway, while still unsure >about how far he would be prepared to go to ensure he got the upper hand. >She could understand why Clark had been so reluctant to consider the >possibility of killing. As he said, Superman did not kill. It was one of >those immutable facts of life, along with the one which said most >politicians are crooked or that lawyers were the scum of the earth. Superman >did not kill. > >And yet, if he didn't kill Lex Luthor.... > >Then he himself would die, if not today then some time very soon. Luthor >would find a way to kill Superman - if he wasn't able to succeed in >one-to-one combat, he would use some other weapon. He'd find another friend >of Superman's to use as bait, a means of making Clark choose between his >love for his friends and his own life - and the knowledge of what Luthor >would do if there was no Superman. > >How could Clark not kill him? > >And yet Lois knew he wouldn't... couldn't. Not with deliberate intent. If >Superman killed, it would destroy him. It would destroy Clark too, she knew >that beyond any doubt. Despite what he'd said to her in their conversation >just before he'd left, she'd been aware that he was, in his own way, merely >humouring her. He wouldn't do it. She'd known it too, but had felt unable to >break through his facade of apparent calm to get him to tell her what he was >really feeling. > >Was he scared? If so, he wasn't showing it. All he had allowed her to see >was his anger at what Luthor had done; that, though, she supposed, was an >advance, since Clark was in many ways a very private person, and Superman >was even more so. She hoped he could hold onto that anger: it would help him >in his battle against Luthor. Cold fury would lend Clark additional strength >and determination, and perhaps give him more of an edge over a hotly angry >Luthor on the edge of sanity. > >But if he couldn't kill Luthor, how was their nemesis to be stopped? The >thought of what Luthor could do sent chills through Lois. He had no morals, >no scruples whatsoever; he would aim to gain control over every fabric of >society, to destroy every freedom except those he chose to permit. He would >be a cold, vicious dictator who would gain pleasure from killing and >destroying - and with Nigel St John as his henchman, the cruelty would be >intense. Even in the days when she'd trusted Lex, Nigel had always made Lois >shiver. There was something about him... something creepy, something in the >contemptuous way he looked at her, that way he had of looking down his >aristocratic nose at others, sneering. What was a man like that doing >working for Lex Luthor, anyway? Their backgrounds couldn't be less >compatible... though their morals couldn't be more, she supposed. > >The thought of what Luthor might also do to *her,* personally, also scared >Lois. She knew he wanted revenge on her, and he'd made it clear the other >night that he still wanted to possess her. He wouldn't be willing to forgo >that; and, she thought, he would still be looking for her regardless of >Superman's intervention. She was very glad that Luthor had never seemed to >show much interest in Clark; it wouldn't occur to him, at least in the first >instance, to consider that Lois Lane might be hiding out at the family home >of her partner. He would be more likely to assume that Superman had stashed >her somewhere overseas, or in some sort of hidden lair somewhere. > >She was safe here... for now. Thanks to Clark, of course. > >Clark... He'd looked so care-worn when he'd left, a mere couple of hours >ago, though it already felt far longer to her. From the moment she'd seen >him in the Kents' living-room, his expression one of worry and a deep >weariness, she'd ached to wrap her arms around him and offer him comfort. >And yet that was something she had never really done for Clark. In that >sense, their friendship had always been very unequal. He was the one who was >there for her when she needed comfort or caring for: whether as Clark or as >Superman, he'd never let her down when she needed a friend. And yet she >rarely, if ever, did the same for him. This time, she'd wanted to, but the >knowledge that she'd cold-shouldered him only a few short hours before had >stopped her. And it had been clear, when he'd turned to acknowledge her >presence, that he also remembered her behaviour and expected more of the >same. > >In the kitchen, when they'd been discussing their plan and the question of >whether Clark could kill Luthor, she'd longed to do more than just hold his >hands. For the first time, she'd found herself wanting to smooth her hand >along his forehead as if she could rub away the worry-lines she saw there; >she'd wanted to curl up on his lap and have him assure her that he'd deal >with Luthor and dispose of him permanently, and she'd wanted to hug him to >her and tell him he was doing the right thing. As he'd turned to say goodbye >to her, she'd been very much aware that it could be for the last time, and >so finally she had given in to the desire to reach for him, to pull him into >her arms. His hug had been like coming home, and she hadn't wanted to let >him go. > >Now, she wished she'd had the courage to pull his head down to hers; she'd >wanted so desperately to kiss him - for luck, she'd told herself, but she >knew the desire represented far more than that. It was strange: she'd rarely >missed an opportunity like that with Superman (not that he'd given her >many). But now, now she knew that Superman and Clark were one and the same, >it seemed different. She and Clark just didn't have that kind of >relationship. Sure, they'd kissed, but for different reasons: to throw >villains off the scent; as a distraction from something else; or, once, >simply to say goodbye. On all but one occasion he, not she, had initiated >it. Lois Lane, who had no difficulty at all being very touchy-feely with >Clark at work and even in private, just hadn't been able to take the risk of >exposing her more intimate feelings for him by kissing him. > >And yet, it wasn't that strange: Lois knew very well that her sometimes very >physical behaviour with Clark represented more of an unspoken challenge than >anything else. It wasn't a come-on, although it was flirting of a kind. By >her actions, she was almost daring him to reciprocate, and yet she'd made it >clear on more than one occasion that if he did reciprocate he'd be put in >his place pretty darned fast. He was *safe* to flirt with, simply because >she knew he'd never misread the signals, never treat her in the way she was, >undoubtedly, inviting by her behaviour. She wondered whether Clark >understood what lay behind her flirting with him, or whether he really didn' >t find her attractive enough to follow through. She had, she reminded >herself, concluded the previous evening that he didn't have romantic >feelings for her at all. > >But she now dismissed that notion. Clark was attracted to her; she'd known >that for a long time. She'd seen it in his face, in his eyes, on many >occasions. He cared for her - of course he did. Apart from anything else, >that was evident in his worry about her safety over the past few days. She >now understood his anger of last night, and she was aware that she'd no >doubt provoked him past bearing. As to whether he loved her... if he didn't, >then he was certainly close to it, of that she was sure. > >So... why hadn't he said anything? > >Because she hadn't either, she told herself. She'd never given him the >slightest hint that she might be interested in a closer relationship with >him than that of best friends. And yet she'd known for some time that she >wanted more. Of course, it hadn't helped that Superman kept getting in the >way of Lois gaining a clearer understanding of her feelings; but Superman >didn't represent an obstacle any more. > >She needed to tell Clark how she felt about him, and the sooner the better. >Always assuming that he survived the fight with Luthor... but she refused to >contemplate the possibility that he might not. That would be too much to >bear... she just couldn't allow herself to imagine that Clark might die. He >would come back, later tonight, she thought. And once his parents had gone >to bed, she would ask him to go for a walk with her, or take her flying, and >she would tell him that she loved him, ask him to go out with her. > >Smiling now that she'd finally made up her mind about Clark, Lois headed >downstairs; it was lunchtime and Martha might appreciate some help in the >kitchen. As she approached, it became apparent that Jonathan was already >there with her. She hurried forward, about to push the door open and >apologise for her tardiness in coming downstairs, when the sound of her name >made her pause. > >"I'm still not sure Clark did the right thing in telling Lois he's > Superman," Jonathan was saying. > >Lois froze, wondering if Clark's parents didn't trust her to keep the >secret. Then Martha's answer reassured her on that at least. "Jonathan, Lois >won't tell anyone. She can be trusted, you know that." > >"Oh, I'm not worried about that," Clark's father answered. "No, it's the way >Lois behaved around Superman - how she was infatuated with him for what he >could do. You know how Clark felt about that - and is she going to transfer >that to him now that she knows?" > >Lois didn't wait to see how Martha responded to that. A huge lump rapidly >growing in her throat, she turned and ran silently back to the stairs. > > >*************** > >-------------------------- >Wendy Richards >w.m.richards@hrm.keele.ac.uk ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 11 Jul 2000 15:15:53 -0700 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: New Story: Best Laid Plans--Part 10/? MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=iso-8859-1 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit Best Laid Plans--Part 10/? by Nan Smith Clark saw Arianna Carlin fire her pistol at Lois, and his cry of "No!" echoed through the sound of the gunshot and Lois's scream of pain. The woman ignored him. She thrust the pistol into her purse and nudged Lois with the toe of her shoe. "Don't worry, Superman," she said. "I wouldn't dream of letting Ms. Lane miss the sight of your last hours." Lois moaned. The elevator doors opened. Arianna took a step forward, and stopped. Through a haze of pain from the Kryptonite radiation, Clark saw her step slowly backward. Then, from the lighted interior of the elevator, a snub-nosed pistol appeared, followed by a woman's hand and arm. A woman with short, blond hair emerged, pistol pointed directly at Arianna Carlin's chest. "Gretchen!" Arianna's voice was both shaken and outraged. "I can explain!" "I doubt it." The woman--Gretchen Kelly?--surveyed the scene with the faintest of mocking smiles on her lips. "I didn't think you had it in you," she said. She glanced sideways at Lois, who was trying to push herself to her hands and knees. "I guess," she said, "this would explain the deaths of Lex's other fiancées. I always wondered about that." Arianna lunged for her, and Gretchen's weapon spoke once. The echoes bounced deafeningly around the wine cellar. The blond woman looked down at her work with an appraising expression. "But you see, Arianna, it's *my* turn, now." "Wait!" Clark gasped. "You can't leave us here!" Gretchen smiled, gently. "I can," she said. "You know, Superman, if you hadn't interfered, Lois and Kent would both be out of the way, now. Then all I would have had to do would have been to report how Arianna had killed Ms. Lane. This is so much less tidy, but in the end it will all work out. Goodbye, Superman." Amazingly, she smiled and blew him a kiss. Then she stepped into the elevator, and the doors closed. Clark hurled himself uselessly against the cage bars, with no results except a bruised shoulder. "Lois!" he called, desperately. "Lois! Can you hear me?" ************************ "There's her Jeep!" Jack shouted in Jimmy's ear. "Where?" "Over there!" Jack, perched behind Jimmy on the young photographer's motorcycle, pointed toward the Moritomi parking lot. "She's here, somewhere." "Yeah, inside Lex Tower. How're we gonna get in there?" "I dunno. Pull into the lot." Jimmy was already doing so. They parked the motorcycle in an empty space, a dozen places down from the Jeep, and Jimmy cut the motor. The Jeep was locked up tight, as expected. Jimmy peered in the window, then turned to his efficient companion. "Got any ideas?" "Let's go over to Lex Tower. "Maybe we'll...Look, there she is!" Jimmy followed Jack's pointing finger. Coming across the street toward the lot, accompanied by two persons who looked unpleasantly familiar to them, was Mad Dog Lane. Jimmy was about to wave, when something made him pause. "Jack, is there any reason you can think of that Lois would be with those two losers?" "No," Jack said. He took a long look at the approaching trio. "Besides, wasn't Lois wearing a skirt this morning?" "Yeah," Jimmy said. "It was that short red one that shows a lot of leg. I noticed, particularly. Wait a minute! What outfit did CK tell the Chief got stolen from her place?" "A beige pantsuit," Jack said. "Like the one she's wearing. I've never seen her wear that jacket before, though." The two looked at each other, then as one, turned and walked back toward the motorcycle. Jimmy knelt, pretending to examine something on the rear wheel as the three people wended their way through the massed cars in the lot, approaching the Jeep. "It'd be interesting to know if she's wearing a jade ring or mother-of-pearl earrings, wouldn't it?" he said. "Her earrings are white, from what I can see," Jack reported a moment later. "I can't tell about the ring." "I'm thinking that's the double," Jimmy said. He got slowly to his feet. "Want to bet?" "No takers." Jack was careful not to look in their direction again. "What are they doing, now?" Jimmy, half shielded by Jack's body, risked a look. "The old guy looks like he may be picking the lock," he said. "He's got the door open...he's fast, all right. The blond is getting into the passenger side and the double's getting in back..." As he watched, the blond woman--wasn't the name Gretchen?--popped the hood, and the older man--St, John, Lex Luthor's butler, he remembered--bent over the engine. "What's going on?" Jack asked. "I think St. John is hot-wiring the engine." "They're going somewhere in Lois's Jeep, and they don't have the keys," Jack concluded. "I'd sure like to know how he's gonna beat the steering wheel lock, but I guess he must know how. Maybe we should follow them--and Henderson might like to know about them, don't you think?" They clambered back onto the motorcycle, and Jimmy revved the engine. "You handle the call, okay?" "Okay." Jack dug the cell phone out of his pocket and dialed Perry White's number. He figured the Chief could probably get a police operator to listen to him a lot faster than a seventeen-year-old kid could. Jimmy kicked the motorcycle into gear and they rolled forward toward the exit of the lot. "We'll pick 'em up after they pull out on the street. Get settled, quick. I have the feeling this isn't gonna take too long." ******************* "Lois! Can you hear me?" Clark's panic-stricken voice echoed off the walls of the wine cellar. Lois rolled painfully over. Her leg was throbbing sickeningly with every beat of her heart, and nausea made her want to retch, but she had to move. She had to help Clark. "Lois!" he gasped. Through a swimming haze, she could see him on his knees inside the deadly cage. Take your time, Lane, she cautioned herself. It isn't going to do Clark any good if you pass out. Arianna Carlin lay a short distance from her on the floor, breathing in harsh gasps, both hands clasping her middle, and even in the dim light, Lois could see the dark blood seeping between her fingers and pooling on the cement. There wasn't much she could do for the woman at the moment, injured as she was. She had no idea whatsoever how to take care of such an injury. Slowly, Lois pushed herself to a sitting position. Her head swam unpleasantly, but she persisted, taking deep breaths until her surroundings steadied. The bullet had penetrated the big muscle of her thigh, she saw. In spite of the pain, she experienced a moment of annoyance at the ruin of her best, wool skirt, but quickly dismissed the thought. She was bleeding, but not too heavily. Evidently, the bullet hadn't hit anything immediately fatal. It sure hurt like the devil, though. "Lois, are you all right?" Superman's voice was rough and breathless with pain. Lois cleared her throat, trying to keep her voice from trembling. She could feel the shock beginning to set in. She was shaking all over, and she felt chilly with more than just the cold present in the cellar. "Yeah," she said. Darn. Her voice was shaking in spite of her efforts. "She hit me in the leg." "Oh, God..." Clark's voice was shaking, too. "Lois..." "Superman," she said, trying to focus on the problem rather than the throbbing in her leg. "What happened to the key?" "Luthor put it in his pocket." Clark's voice had become a rasping whisper, and as she watched, he collapsed slowly to the floor of the cage. The Kryptonite radiation was killing him, she thought, and the realization of that fact shocked her out of the pain-induced lethargy that was beginning to creep up on her brain. Clark's life depended on her. She couldn't fail him now, of all times. She had to think of some way to open that door. It was Arianna Carlin's faint moan that brought Lois's attention back to her. The psychiatrist's hands were slipping from her abdomen to fall limply to the floor. Clearly, the woman was in a bad way, but Lois couldn't help her. Maybe if Clark were free he would know what, if anything, could be done. Arianna's handbag lay on the floor where it had fallen. Lois's eyes passed over it, then snapped back, suddenly alert. Lex might have the key, but in Arianna's purse was another sort of key in the form of a .32 calibre pistol. Gretchen Kelly must have been more agitated than she let on to have overlooked that. Lois squirmed across the floor, biting her lip at the pain that shot up her leg. Come on, Lane, she chastised herself, it's no worse than the broken ankle you got on the office ski trip! You didn't let that stop you, and this won't, either! The purse strap was suddenly within reach of her fingers, and she dragged it over to her. Arianna didn't even stir as Lois pulled the bag out of her hand. The woman was unconscious. The pistol was there where she had seen Arianna thrust it. She closed the purse, looped the strap over her head and looked over her shoulder at the cage. The thing was at least fifteen feet away, probably the most difficult fifteen feet of her life, but she gritted her teeth and began to crawl. She left blood on the cement, and she had to stop frequently to rest; the distance seemed to diminish with agonizing slowness, but she kept going. Gradually, the cage drew nearer. At times, Clark seemed aware of her, and at others, he appeared to lapse into semi-consciousness. Lois found herself mumbling under her breath, urging herself on. She wasn't fatally hurt; she was pretty sure of that, although without some kind of treatment she might eventually die of infection, or something. Whether they could even get out of the cellar was an open question, but first things first. Freeing Clark was the most important thing right now. The cage was four feet away, then three, then two. At last, she fell against it, gasping with the exertion. "Superman!" His dark head was only a few inches away from her. "Superman, can you hear me?" At first, he didn't move, and for a horrible second she thought he might be dead. Then his eyes opened, staring directly at her. "Lois?" he mumbled. "Yes." She reached through the bars to touch his face. "Superman, listen to me. Move over to the side of the cage. I'm going to get you out." For a second he stared at her, then he pushed himself weakly to a sitting position and scooted slowly to one side. Lois looked up at the lock and grimaced. This was going to hurt. She pulled her good leg under her, then grasped the bars of the cage. Getting to one's feet was such a simple action, and yet this was one of the hardest things she had ever done. Her arms felt like jelly, and her good leg was shaking violently as she pulled herself up inch by agonizing inch. Her head swam, and for a moment she thought she might pass out, but she closed her eyes and took several deep breaths. When her equilibrium steadied, she pulled and pushed again, and suddenly she was standing on one foot, grasping the glowing green bars with her hands for balance, and panting hard. Her injured leg throbbed sickeningly, and she stood, leaning her forehead on the bars while the worst of it subsided. She didn't dare remove the purse strap from around her neck; if she dropped it she didn't think she'd be able to get back down and up again. She opened the purse one handed, retrieved the pistol and drew it out. If this didn't work, they were done for. She placed the muzzle against the lock and pulled the trigger. The explosion was deafening in the enclosed space, and the pistol kicked back against her hand so hard that she almost dropped it, but when she looked, she found that the lock's casing had a hole directly through it, and the metal around the hole was twisted and distorted. Carefully, she put the muzzle against it again and fired once more. Then, her leg gave way and she landed hard on her knees. Pain exploded through the injured leg, and she cried out. Blackness rolled over her like a blanket. ******************** Clark winced at the sound of the shot. Lois fired into the lock a second time; then her leg gave way and she fell to her knees, slumped forward onto the cement floor and didn't move. "Lois!" Clark crawled to the cage door and reached out through the bars to touch her face. She was breathing; he could tell that much. He looked up at the lock on the cage door. Had Lois managed to disable it? There was only one way to find out. He pushed on the door. It rattled, but held. Clark closed his eyes, trying to summon his strength. He could feel the deadly Kryptonite radiation of the cage eating away at every muscle fibre and nerve of his body. But Lois had battled pain and weakness of her own to try and free him. Her sheer raw courage had been awe-inspiring. He inhaled a lung full of air and blew it out. It hurt to breathe, it hurt to move, but Lois hadn't let that stop her. Could Superman do less? He grasped the green-glowing bars and hauled himself to his feet. His hands burned where they came into contact with the poisonous substance, but it was a minor discomfort in comparison to all the rest. This better work, he told himself, grimly, because he didn't think he could manage this a second time. Every instant he spent in the cage robbed him of a little more strength. He drew back and hurled himself at the door with all the force he could muster. The broken lock gave and the door burst outward. Clark staggered out, caught his toe on Lois's ankle and fell forward onto the cement of the cellar floor. ********************** "Lois?" Lois stirred at the familiar voice and the feel of a very familiar hand stroking her cheek. "Lois, open your eyes." She obeyed and looked up, frowning at the sight of his face above her. "Lois?" Clark's voice said, "do you hear me?" "You're upside down," she said. A smile lit his face. "How do you feel?" She was lying with her head in his lap, she realized, somewhat belatedly. "Okay," she said, slowly. "My leg hurts." "Yeah." His face lost its smile. "You have a bullet in it." Memory came rushing back and she tried to sit up. "You got out of the cage!" He caught her shoulders. "Easy there. I don't want you fainting again." "I never faint," she said, with dignity, but she sat up more slowly. "Why are we still in here?" "Because I can't open the door and the elevator doesn't work," he said. "Gretchen Kelly must have deactivated it." "Your powers..." "I don't have any powers right now," he explained, quietly. "And I probably won't get them back as long as we're in the cellar. I can still feel the Kryptonite radiation, just not as strongly." They were at the foot of the steps leading out of the cellar, Lois realized. Across the room, she could see the glowing, green of the Kryptonite cage. Beside them on the cement, Arianna Carlin lay wrapped in Superman's cape. Clark saw her glance at the woman. "I tried to stop the bleeding," he said, "but I think she's bleeding inside, and there's nothing I can do about it." "Oh." Cautiously, Lois lifted the edge of her skirt to check her own wound. "You bandaged it? What *is* this stuff?" "Um...I had to use your slip," he said, apologetically. "It was all I had." "Oh," she said, again. "Thanks. Did you try the gun on the door lock?" He nodded. "The door's solid, heavy metal. It didn't work." "Oh," she repeated, looking around for inspiration. "My purse is over there. The cell phone--" He shook his head, and Lois saw the cellular phone lying on the first step. "The cellar walls are too thick," Clark said. "I tried." "Great." She looked at his face in the greenish gloom of the cellar. He looked pale and tired, although that might be the effect of the sickly green light, generated by the cage, and there were lines of pain there that she hadn't seen before. "You're not giving up, are you?" Clark gave her a tired smile. "Of course not. I'm sure we'll think of something. I'm just out of ideas for the moment." He rubbed his temples. "Do you know anything about this place that might help? Did Luthor ever show it to you?" "Once," she said. "I'm trying to think." She shivered, pulling her coat more tightly around her shoulders. "I'm cold." Suddenly aware of something, she looked harder at Clark in the gloom. He was shivering and trying not to let her see it. "Cl--Superman, you're cold! Of course you are; your powers are gone." She pulled the coat off. "Here, put this on!" "Lois, I can't take your coat!" "You don't have to," she said. "Here, let me sit next to you, put your arms around me and we'll put the coat over both of us." Clark obeyed, and for some minutes they sat in silence. "This is better," Lois said, at last. "Much better," Clark agreed. "Does your leg still hurt?" "Some." To tell the truth, it hurt a lot, but she wasn't about to tell him so. He raised an eyebrow at her. "Right, some. We need to get you to a doctor." "I'm game," Lois said. She looked over at Arianna Carlin's still form. "She needs one even more. She's not going to make it, otherwise." "I know," Clark said. "None of us will if we can't find a way out of here." "I can't think of anything about..." Lois stopped. "Wait a minute." "What?" She grasped for the wisp of memory. "I remember...Lex and I were having dinner in his study, one night. Asabi, that Hindu manservant of his was there, serving dinner. Lex wanted a bottle of his private stock. I remember, Nigel St. John went down to get it...and he sent it up to Asabi in the dumbwaiter! Superman, there's a dumbwaiter here, too!" The expression of despair on Clark's face had changed as she spoke to one of cautious hope. "Where is it?" "I'm not exactly sure. It opens up in the study behind that wall hanging of his, about ten feet to the right of the elevator." Clark looked over at the elevator. "There's a wine rack there." He stood up. "Stay here." "Superman, that's awfully close to the cage!" "Not too close. If it's a way out..." He was on his feet as he spoke and striding over to the wine rack. As he neared the cage, Lois saw him falter and her heart jumped into her throat, but in spite of the radiation he stood close to the rack, leaning on a wooden barrel, examining the structure before him. Suddenly, he reached out and moved something she couldn't see, then pulled. Lois gasped as the whole wine rack swung outwards, revealing behind it the dumbwaiter. Clark reached out and touched something beside it. "It's active!" He did something else, and the doors slid aside. "It's too small," he said, and the hope was suddenly gone from his voice. Lois stared at the small conveyance. He was right. Someone his size couldn't possibly fit in there. But... "I think I could fit," she said. Clark turned to look at her. "Lois, you have a bullet in your leg. *And* it's too dangerous." "No more dangerous than staying in here until we all die," she retorted. "If I take off my coat, I can fit. I'll take the cell phone, and when I get up there I'll call for help. Then all I have to do is stay out of sight until Henderson arrives." "That may be harder than it seems," Clark said. "I know that," Lois said, "but if I don't do it, she's going to die, Superman." They both looked at Arianna Carlin. Clark's shoulders slumped in defeat. "All right, but for Pete's sake, be careful!" ********************** (to be continued) ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 11 Jul 2000 18:31:37 EDT 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: Young Fanfic Writers! MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Hi! :) Some of you may remember... a couple of months ago, I used this list to ask for some under-24 fanfic writers to interview. Well, the interviews are up on the web now, and you can visit them at: http://members.aol.com/lovelc/yfic.html Thanks a million to those of you who participated. :) molly;) ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 11 Jul 2000 15:56:52 -0700 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: New Story: Best Laid Plans--part 11/? MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=iso-8859-1 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit Best Laid Plans--Part 11 by Nan Smith The dumbwaiter, Lois thought, as Clark helped her scrunch her way into the extremely tight quarters, hadn't been designed to carry a hundred and ten pounds. She hoped the cable would hold. The position which she was forced to assume--sitting on her heels, legs folded under her, chin on her knees--made her glad for the stretching exercises she performed in her tai kwan do class twice a week. Even so, it made her wounded leg throb almost unbearably. She gritted her teeth and concentrated on her goal. "Are you all right?" Clark asked, anxiously for the fourth time as he helped her fit as comfortably as humanly possible--which wasn't very--into the tiny space, but she nodded. "Yeah. Let's just get this over with, okay?" "Right." He set the cellular phone on the surface next to her. "Wish me luck," Lois gasped. "Lois, are you sure you want to do this?" he asked again. "Just hurry up, Clark. I can't stay like this long." "Okay," Clark whispered. "I love you." He pressed the button. ******************** Lois closed her eyes as the doors slid shut and the motor of the little dumbwaiter whined, bearing her slowly upward. She tried not to think about what would happen if the thing got stuck or the cable were to snap. The risk was acceptable, she kept telling herself. Clark had somehow managed the herculean job of dragging her away from the cage, far enough that the deadly radiation had affected him less, bandaged her and Arianna up, then attempted to get them out of the cellar. He hadn't fooled her, though. He'd tried to make it look easy, but she'd seen him struggling to seem normal. The radiation was still present, still harmful to him, and he was still in pain. She had no doubt that in time the stuff would kill him. It was up to her to see that it didn't. Once, she opened her eyes, but she might as well have not bothered. It was pitch dark in the cramped little space, and the air was rapidly getting stuffy. Her leg hurt sickeningly, but she found it conversely a welcome distraction from the feeling of claustrophobia, of being squeezed from all sides. She couldn't move in any direction. Her nose began to itch and she couldn't get a hand around to scratch it. Then a spot on her scalp started, and the sensation traveled across the top of her head, down the back of her neck to a spot between her shoulder blades, and spread across her shoulders. Lois gritted her teeth, squeezed her eyes shut and counted the seconds. At last, the dumbwaiter slid gently to a stop with a soft "ding". Lois waited, frozen. If anyone checked the dumbwaiter, she was caught. Suddenly, she was no longer itching. She listened, with every nerve and sense reaching out to try to discover if someone waited beyond the doors and the elegant wall hanging that covered the wall of Lex's study. Not a sound greeted her. Gradually, she moved the hand closest to the sliding doors and pushed. The doors came open with a slight squeal of protesting hinges, but nothing happened. A single table lamp dimly lighted the room, and nothing moved within her range of sight. She began to wiggle, the faint touch of claustrophobia still possessing her, to get out of the dumbwaiter. It took her a good five minutes, but at last she tumbled to the rug. The jar on her injured leg was almost too much, and she bit back a cry of pain, reminding herself that Clark's life depended on her not getting caught. Where was the best place to hide around here? The sofa still seemed like the best candidate, in spite of the fact that Arianna had found her there. Arianna had been watching for her, after all. No one else had any reason to think she might be here. Besides, she wasn't in any shape to do much traveling. The whole area was quiet right now, which was both a good and bad thing. If anyone was within earshot, she could be overheard. Lois bit her lip, resolving to be as quiet as possible, and began to crawl. The journey to the couch took her several, determined minutes, but at last she reached the area of concealment behind it. Removing her cell phone from the front of her blouse, she started to dial 911 and paused. It was quite possible that, with the assault Lex had planned to launch on the city, that she might end up on hold. It had happened before, more than once. But if she could get hold of her boss, she knew he'd see that help arrived as fast as humanly possible. With shaking fingers, she punched the speed dial on her cellular phone for Perry White's office. She only hoped he was still there. A glance at her watch informed her that far more time had passed than she realized. It was past eight in the evening. The phone in Perry's office rang twice. Lois held her breath, praying that Perry would answer. On the third ring, someone picked it up. "Perry White's office. Terrence Wiederhold speaking." The new intern, Lois thought. Terry was brand new at the office, and hadn't really sorted out precedence of unofficial rank among the staff yet. "Terry, this is Lois Lane. Get me Perry, fast!" "Ms. Lane?" The intern's voice sounded doubtful. "Weren't you arrested this morning?" "It was all a big mistake," Lois said, impatiently. "Let me talk to Perry. I'm in trouble." "Well, I don't know, Ms. Lane. He's talking to a couple of police officers right now. I don't think he wants to be disturbed." "Terry!" Lois hissed at him, consciously aware that she must not raise her voice, "Get me Perry, *now*! It's life or death!" "Well..." Terry dithered. "I'm not sure...What?" The intern broke off and apparently covered the receiver with his palm. She could hear the murmur of voices, then, so suddenly that she started, Perry's voice was booming at her from the receiver. "Lois! Thank Elvis, honey! Where are you?" "Perry!" Lois whispered, "I may not have much time! Just listen! I need help! I'm in Lex Luthor's penthouse. He's been hiding out here all along. You've got to tell Henderson!" "Judas Priest!" Perry sounded stunned. "Are *you* all right?" "I've got a bullet in my leg, but I'll live," Lois said. "Tell Henderson to bring the paramedics, and tell them to hurry. Arianna Carlin is in Lex's wine cellar; she's been shot. I don't know how long she's got left." "I'll take care of it," Perry said. "Stay put, honey. We'll be there as fast as we can." He hung up. Lois shut off the phone and closed her eyes momentarily. She had no doubt that her boss would do just as he said. The police were on their way. All she had to do now was stay out of sight. She looked around the room, trying to see if there was a better place of concealment. There really wasn't, she concluded, but then the fireplace tools caught her eye. The shiny, certainly never-used poker could be a crutch to lean on and--a small part of her mind whispered--a weapon if she was cornered. If Lex got hold of her, he wouldn't wait any longer. The poker felt solid and reassuring in her hands when she picked it up a few minutes later. Lois braced the implement on the floor, got her good leg under her and heaved. A few seconds later she was standing, leaning on the poker like a cane. She glanced at her watch. Come on, Henderson! If you take too long, this could all fall apart! It had been at least ten minutes since she had spoken to Perry. Surely, Henderson wouldn't delay once he knew where Lex was hiding out! Slowly, Lois made her way back to the couch, and then she saw what she had missed before. A trail of blood marred the thick beige carpet where she had crawled. Not much, just a few streaks, but the marks showed up clearly on the pale surface. If Lex--or anyone--came in here, they would certainly notice, and the trail would lead them directly to the couch. Where else could she hide? Lois glanced frantically around the room. There was only one place that she could see that might offer concealment. The heavy curtains, now drawn open on either side of the French windows near the rolltop desk, hung to the floor, and the view through the glass showed blackness beyond. She limped toward the windows, leaning heavily on the poker. Cold radiated from the glass. The little balcony outside was unlighted, but the pale illumination from the room shone across it, and Lois could see that it was covered thickly with snow, so thickly that its surface could not be seen. Even the three-foot high iron balustrade that rimmed the balcony was coated with frost, and flakes drifted lazily by in the dimness. It was the sound of angry voices approaching from the hall beyond that spurred her into motion a minute later. She ducked as quickly as she could behind the curtains and flattened herself against the wall, leaning heavily on the poker. Her leg was throbbing, but the pain paled into insignificance next to the danger of being caught. "...Brainless fools! Where's Nigel?" "Lex, I swear I don't know what happened!" Gretchen Kelly sounded very shaken. "Nigel had it all set up in advance. We'd just turned onto the Hobs River Road, and suddenly the police were all over us. I just barely got away, and I don't know what happened to Nigel and Marie! It took me hours to get back here. They were everywhere!" "Henderson's brighter than I gave him credit for." Lex's voice sounded calm on the surface now, but Lois could hear the fury simmering beneath. "I want Lois picked up now, Gretchen. There's still time to salvage something from this mess." "Lex, she's not at her apartment. Carlo reported to me a few minutes ago. We need to get out of here. The police could be here any minute." "No." There was the sound of Lex's footsteps just beyond the door. "Nigel knows not to talk, and Marie knows the penalty if she does. If they had, the police would have been here by now. We have time. I want Lois found!" Lois held perfectly still, trying not to breathe heavily. The knowledge of the extent of Lex's obsession with her was frightening. The lives of others, to him, were unimportant, whether they were employees, or the woman he claimed to love. All that mattered to him was what *he* wanted, what *he* desired. And if not for that night at the Daily Planet back in October, none of what had happened later would have taken place, and she would very likely be his fiancée, and still blind to his character flaws--assuming that Arianna hadn't killed her by now. Silently, she thanked whatever chance had led to her discovery of Clark's alter ego that night, and from that to the knowledge of what Lex truly was. It had been humiliating to realize what a colossal fool she had been, but in the end, she was glad it had happened. Please, Henderson, she implored silently, please hurry up! "I'm not leaving without her, do you understand, Gretchen?" Lex's voice still quivered with anger under a forced calmness that only served to underline the fragile hold he had on his temper. "She's the reason I orchestrated all this. I'm not going to throw it all away." "Lex..." Gretchen Kelly's voice became pleading. "We need to leave. We can come back for her later when the search for you has died down." "I said 'no' and I meant it, Gretchen." There was a note in Lex's voice that made a chill run down Lois's spine. The apparent calm on the surface of his words hid--not too effectively--a thin control over sheer, frustrated rage. Suddenly the overhead light blazed on and Lex's footsteps became muffled as he, followed by Gretchen Kelly's lighter steps, entered the study. He crossed the room, she thought, and a moment later glassware clinked. Lex was pouring something into a glass. "Lex," Gretchen said persuasively, "I understand, believe me. But if you wind up in jail again, you'll never have the chance. Your first priority is to stay free." "Quiet." "Lex..." "I said 'quiet'! What *is* that on the rug?" "I don't--" "It's blood." Lex's voice shifted position as he moved. "And it wasn't here before." Silence. Lois tried to hold her breath. "I see you," Lex's voice said softly. "Behind the curtain. Come out, now, or I'll kill you." The game was up. Lois pushed the curtain aside. "Hello, Lex." "Lois!" Lex shoved the small handgun he was holding back into his pocket. "How did *you* get here?" Lois looked at Gretchen Kelly, who was staring at her, her face stark white. All she had to do, she told herself firmly, was to stall a little longer. She had to keep Lex's attention for however long it took. "Surprised to see me, Gretchen?" The woman didn't answer. Lex was staring at Lois, too. "You came here? What happened to you, my love?" "Arianna shot me," Lois said. "*What*?" "Arianna shot me," she repeated. "Lex, she killed your two fiancées before, and she tried to kill me to keep me from taking her place." She looked at Gretchen. "Only, this time it backfired, because Gretchen wanted you, too." "Lex," Gretchen began. "Quiet," Lex said. "Go on, Lois." "Gretchen shot Arianna. She tried to get rid of both of us without you finding out." "Lex!" Gretchen cried. "She's lying, don't you see?" "She loves you, Lex," Lois said. "But I love *you*," Lex said, starting toward her. "We'll get out of Metropolis and find you a doctor." The look he turned on Gretchen boded no good for the woman. "Your services are no longer required." "Lex, no!" Gretchen grasped his arm. "Don't you see? She doesn't want you! She doesn't *love* you! *I* love you!" Lex pushed her aside. "Come, my love. We must go, now." "Lex," Lois began, "I can't--" There was movement in the doorway behind and to Lex's left. Lois looked up to see Inspector Henderson, followed by several uniformed officers enter the room, weapons drawn. She gave a quiet sigh of relief. Lex turned. "How dare you come in here!" Henderson held up a piece of paper. "Standing warrant, Luthor. Put your hands up and keep them in sight." "No!" Lois jumped at the yell of sheer fury, lost her balance and fell with a cry of pain. "Don't move!" She thought the voice was Henderson's. Lex lunged toward Lois. She covered her head, sure the officers would shoot, but they didn't. He didn't stop for the glass of the French windows, but crashed through them. "Luthor, no!" Henderson shouted. Lois rolled over, her leg on fire. Shards of glass fell from her clothing. "Lex, don't" she gasped. He turned, breathing hard. "Lex Luthor will not live in a cage!" "Lex!" Gretchen screamed. "Luthor, don't do it!" Henderson said, beginning to move forward. Lex put one leg over the railing, then the other. He teetered precariously on the brink. "Do you know this is the tallest building in Metropolis?" he said, almost conversationally. He met Lois's eyes, his own burning with something she couldn't interpret. "It's the top of the world," he said, and pushed away from the railing. Henderson's hand grabbed at the air, half a second too late. *********************** (to be continued) ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 11 Jul 2000 16:01:17 -0700 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: New Story: Best Laid Plans--Part 12/12 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Best Laid Plans--Part 12/12 by Nan Smith "Lois..." Lois, lying on the sofa where one of the police officers had guided her minutes ago, opened her eyes to see Superman slowly crossing the room toward her, helped solicitously by a young officer. They had left her alone while they dealt with the arrest of Gretchen Kelly and the unpleasant details following Luthor's suicide. Lois could only be grateful. She had been afraid of Lex, but watching him jump from the balcony right in front of her had left her shaken. Perry White entered the room behind Superman, his face unusually haggard. "Perry...Superman," she whispered. Clark crossed the room and seated himself on the edge of the sofa. He said nothing, only reached out to grasp her hand. Perry followed him. Her editor cleared his throat. "The paramedics are on their way," he said. "How are you, honey?" "I'll be okay," she said. She looked at her partner, at the lines of fatigue on his face, and his torn and dirty costume. "How's Arianna?" "They took her out a few minutes ago," Superman said. "They don't know if she'll make it or not." For the first time since this ordeal had started, Lois felt tears begin to leak from her eyes. Superman reached out and put his arms around her. "I'm sorry, Lois. I wish I could have stopped it." She nodded, holding tightly to him. "Don't let me go," she whispered. "I won't." His voice was muffled. Lois was barely aware of the study doors closing as Perry and the young officer quietly left the room. ********************* Perry closed the door behind him. The young officer glanced at him, and Perry read anger in his expression. "Who would have thought someone could do that to Superman," he said. "It makes me want to..." He bit off the words. "I'm sorry, Mr. White. It's just that he's done so much for all of us, especially the police. He saved my partner's life a couple of months ago." Perry nodded. "I know," he said. "I feel the same way. But Luthor's dead, and it all worked out in the end." "Yeah." The man nodded soberly. "One thing's for sure. If anybody asks me about this, I didn't see anything. It's the only thing I can do to thank him, y'know?" "I know," Perry said. "I think Superman would appreciate that." "If he asks, tell him I said so." "I will." Perry inclined his head in the direction of the elevators. "Here comes your boss." Henderson was coming down the hallway toward them. "Perry, can I have a word with you?" "Sure." "Jim--" Henderson took the young officer aside and spoke quietly to him for a minute. The young man nodded. "Yes, sir. No problem." "Good. Head on down and report to the sergeant, now." "Yes, sir." Jim took off at a half trot. Henderson turned to Perry. "Lois really came through for us," he said as a preliminary. "You can even tell her I said that--this time." "I will," Perry said, wondering where the conversation was headed. "Those two kids of yours did a good job, too. You might pass that along, when you get the chance." "I intend to." Perry regarded Henderson thoughtfully. "Do you want to tell me what's on your mind, Bill?" Henderson thrust his hands into his pockets and regarded the toes of his shoes. "What's the Planet going to report about Superman?" "Why?" Perry asked, bluntly. "I need to know. Only two other cops, you and I saw that situation in the basement. My men have already told me they didn't see anything, and we were careful to get Superman up here without witnesses, but if the Planet reports it..." "I haven't got the foggiest notion what you're talking about, Bill," Perry said. "I didn't see a thing." The corners of Henderson's mouth twitched. "Right," he said. "Thanks, Perry." "You're welcome." Perry glanced down the hallway. "Here come the paramedics. I better let Lois and Superman know." He knocked lightly on the study door. "Superman, the paramedics are here for Lois." A short pause, then Superman opened the door. "Thank you, Mr. White." He and Perry moved aside as the two medics maneuvered their stretcher through the door. Perry and Superman stood back while the paramedics checked Lois over and then lifted her carefully onto the stretcher for transportation. As they wheeled her out, Perry leaned over her. "You gonna be okay, honey?" "Yeah, I think so. Thanks for coming through, Perry." "You're welcome," Perry said, for the second time in ten minutes. "I'm going to have a talk with Terry first thing in the morning, and set him straight on a few points." Lois smiled faintly. "Just as well. You probably won't be as rough on him as I would." "Probably not," Perry said. "You get well, now." As he moved back, Superman bent over her for a moment. "Thank you, Lois. Take care of yourself." "I will, Superman," she said. The two paramedics wheeled her out. Perry watched as they proceeded down the hall, then happened to glance at Superman. The Kryptonian was watching Lois's progress as well, and something in his expression caught Perry's attention. He'd thought at first that Superman's treatment of Lois had been prompted by concern for her, and by the friendship he'd never tried to hide for the Planet's star reporter, but now he wasn't so sure. Perry was not unacquainted with the ways of men and women, and he'd have been willing to bet his last dollar at that moment that Superman's concern for Lois was prompted by something far deeper than simple friendship. In fact, he'd seen exactly that same expression very recently on someone else, in connection with Lois. He looked away quickly, before Superman noticed the fact that he was staring, then back. It couldn't be, could it? "Can I give you a lift anywhere, Superman?" he asked conversationally. Superman hesitated, and Perry continued, "Henderson and I have already talked about what we saw downstairs. We both agreed it didn't happen." Superman smiled. "Thank you, Mr. White. I appreciate that." He was listening more closely, now. Superman's voice was familiar--very familiar--and not just because Perry had heard him speak on numerous occasions. It was the voice of someone he knew well. "I can drop you off at Kent's place if you like," he continued. "I know he's a friend of yours." "That would be nice of you, Mr. White," Superman said. "Thank you." Polite to a fault, Perry thought. As always. As they headed for the elevator together, Perry was thinking hard about what he might have discovered. If it was true, Superman obviously didn't want the rest of the world informed about what he did when he wasn't in costume--which made a lot of sense from Perry's point of view--but he would willingly wager a considerable sum of money on the probability that Lois knew. Well in that case, as far as Perry White was concerned, he hadn't learned a thing tonight. This could go in the same "never happened" file as that mysterious, green-glowing cage in the basement of Lex Tower. The paramedics who had carried Arianna Carlin out might wonder about it, but he had no intention of enlightening them or anyone else about its purpose. Metropolis and Perry, himself, owed the Man of Steel far too much for him ever to wish the super-hero any harm. Superman's secret was safe with him. Clark would never need to know. ********************** Christmas Eve at the Kent farmhouse was something new for Lois. The living room was decorated with garlands and holly; a manger scene on a side table sported old-fashioned china figures some of which, Lois saw, had been broken at one time and carefully glued back together. She was sitting in the big armchair in front of the brick fireplace, her bandaged leg propped up on a footstool, and Clark had just brought in a tray of eggnog. The four of them had gone out earlier to secure the "perfect" Christmas tree. Clark had assured her it was a Kent family tradition and even she had to participate, and therefore Clark would undertake the "chore" of transporting her in his arms, even though she assured him that she was perfectly capable of walking on her own. Somehow, she thought he didn't really regard it as a chore at all, judging by the wide smile on his face the entire time. When they'd gotten the tree home, the three Kents had proceeded to decorate it, with Lois sitting back in the armchair offering advice, and she was given the honor of placing the star at the top, courtesy of a lift from Clark. Dinner was sandwiches and salad, given that the big meal was for the next day, and then Clark and Martha brought in crackers, cheeses and eggnog. Lois accepted the bright red mug with the pattern of green holly leaves around it, and Clark passed the others around to his parents. He took the last one himself and settled down in the chair next to Lois's. She saw him glance at the fireplace, where the fire was beginning to die down, and caught a flicker of red in his eyes. The flames blazed up suddenly with a blast of warmth. He took a swallow from his mug. "The dishes are done," he informed his mother. "Thanks, Clark." Martha winked at Lois. "He's better than an automatic dishwasher." "I can see that." She reached out and felt Clark clasp her hand. "Is your leg comfortable, Lois?" Jonathan asked. "It's fine," Lois said. "It's been five days now, and it's really feeling much better." "They repaired the muscle damage with surgery," Clark said. "She was in the hospital for three days." "Which," Lois said, "was the most boring three days of my life. At least they tell me the scar will hardly show when it's all healed up." "So," Martha said, "what's going to happen to those crazy women, anyway?" "Well, " Clark said, "the double, Marie Durant turned out to be wanted for embezzlement, so she's going to be tried for that and for conspiracy in Luthor's plan. Gretchen Kelly is charged with conspiracy and attempted murder. Arianna..." He looked sober. "Arianna is still on life support. She's not expected to recover. If she does, she'll be tried for murder and attempted murder." "And this St. John person?" Martha asked. "I don't think there'll be any trouble there, either," Lois said. "It turns out he was more than Lex's Mr. Belvedere. He was a member of Her Majesty's Secret Service, gone bad. The British are very interested in getting hold of him." "I'll bet," Jonathan said. "I'm just glad it's over." "What happened to the Kryptonite cage?" Martha asked. "I don't really like the idea of it sitting around for anyone to take." "It isn't," Clark said. "I understand Inspector Henderson got rid of it. He didn't say exactly how, but I trust him. He's a good guy." "It sounds like you have a friend there," Jonathan said. "Superman has saved the lives of a lot of his men," Lois said. "He was returning the favor." "Then I guess that settles that," Martha said, with an air of finality. "I guess it does," Clark said. He smiled at Lois who returned the smile. In the days following Lex Luthor's suicide and the arrest of his conspirators, Lois had found herself contemplating Clark whenever she thought he wasn't looking. It had been he who saved her that horrible evening. To save his life, it had been necessary to push herself to lengths to which she might not have gone if the only life at stake had been her own. She'd known he was willing to die for her; now she knew the reverse was also true. But most of all, she knew beyond a doubt that living without him wasn't something she would ever want to do. Where had her apprehensions about marriage and commitment gone, she wondered, and answered the question with the same thought. It had vanished when she had discovered that the commitment had already been made irrevocably without her even realizing it. She would have to let him know--soon--that he could ask her the question she knew very well he wanted to ask, but had refrained from asking for her sake. "Lois?" Clark asked. "Are you all right?" "Huh?" "You kind of zoned out on me." "Oh. I was thinking about something." "If it was about some other guy, I think I'll be jealous," Clark said. "You don't need to be," she said, and squeezed his hand firmly. "I was just thinking that those things I told you, about commitment? I think I've made up my mind." "Really?" She nodded. "Yeah." Martha glanced quickly at her husband. "Jonathan, it's almost nine-thirty and we have a big day tomorrow. I think it's time we turned in. Goodnight, kids." Jonathan was already getting to his feet. "I didn't realize it was that late. Goodnight, Lois. Goodnight, son." The elder Kents retreated up the steps; Martha, Lois noted, winked at Clark as she went past, and had to smother a grin. "Wow, that was fast," she said, when she heard the bedroom door close. Clark smiled. "They know when something's important." He hesitated, then seemed to gather his courage. "I know it hasn't been long, Lois--but do you think you've gotten to know the real me well enough, now?" She nodded. "I think I did all along. I just didn't *know* that I knew." In a movement so fast she would have missed it if she had blinked at the wrong time, he was out of the chair and on one knee before her. With another blurringly fast motion, he produced a ring box and opened it, revealing a gold ring with a glittering diamond. "In that case, do you think you're ready to wear this, yet?" "Clark! How long have you had that?" He grinned. "I bought it back in October and I've been carrying it around ever since--I figured if the chance occurred I wanted to be ready." She hesitated, searching his face. "Are you *sure* you want me, Clark? I'm not the easiest person to get along with, you know. I'm prickly, and pushy and obsessive, and..." "And the only woman on the face of the earth I'd ever want to spend my life with," he said. "I've been happier the last nine weeks than I've ever been, and I want that to go on--if you think you can put up with me and my weird double life. Do you think you can?" For an instant the old doubts resurfaced, only to vanish in the light of her new knowledge. She, too, had been happier over the past weeks than she had ever been--not because Superman was in love with her, but because Clark Kent was. Her country boy from Krypton was the man she never had believed she would meet. If she told him she needed more time, she knew he would give it to her. But she didn't. "If you're sure, Clark, then I am, too," she said. "Your 'weird double life' doesn't scare me because it's part of you, and you're who I love. What scares me is the thought of being without you. I'd like to wear your ring." He slipped it onto her finger. Together they regarded it for a long moment. At last Clark spoke. "Merry Christmas, Lois." "Merry Christmas, Clark," she replied. The End. ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 11 Jul 2000 21:29:31 EDT Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Kass Johnson Subject: Re: New Story: Best Laid Plans--Part 12/12 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Very well done, Nan :) I enjoyed this twist on the series- it explored possibilites that I hadn't thought of. Thanks for a great read. Kasspur ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 11 Jul 2000 21:45:09 -0400 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: Young Fanfic Writers! MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Hey Molly, nice website and good interviews! I spent just a little time there this evening, and enjoyed learning more about some of our young authors :) It's a nice companion to the Writer's Showcase. -- Pam Jernigan / ChiefPam / jernigan@bellsouth.net http://www.geocities.com/~chiefpam http://personal.rdu.bellsouth.net/rdu/j/e/jernigan/ God made you special, and He loves you very much. -- Veggie Tales theology The eye sees only what the mind is prepared to comprehend. -- Henri Bergson ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 11 Jul 2000 22:20:43 EDT 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: OT - JTF Thank you MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit A big THANKS to everyone who donated to the Joe Torry Foundation in Dean's name! We received over $675 so far and I'm expecting two more this week that will put the total over $700. I'll be mailing him the list of donors later this week. We knew for 4 weeks that Dean wasn't planning to come and, although one last attempt was made to convince him otherwise, he held true to his word and stayed home to spend time with his son. The event was a huge success and I personally had a great time! I know we all hope that Dean will be there next year. On behalf of the Joe Torry Foundation, thanks again to those who made a donation. Sue Kaimann LoisLnKent@aol.com I would also like to extend my thanks and appreciation to everyone who donated to the JTF, a most worthy cause, IMHO. I met with 6 other fans in St. Louis this past weekend and we enjoyed the basketball game as well as had our own little FoLC/Dean fest in the lap of luxury at Ritz. Melody melraymond@aol.com This is the day that the Lord has made, we will rejoice and be glad in it. Psm. 118-24 ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 11 Jul 2000 22:56:59 -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: NEW: John and Lois and Clark and Joan (23/2?) MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1 (John & Lois & Clark & Joan, Part 23) [Metropolis, Lois Lane's Apartment] [Later in the Evening] Lois put the phone down with a triumphant look on her face. She had done it again. She had found a way (perhaps not so legal, but a way nonetheless) to get on board the colonists' transport tomorrow morning. It had taken a lot of cajoling and promises of favors, but come tomorrow, she would be the first reporter in space. To say that she was excited was an understatement. One of her childhood dreams was to fly in an airplane, and as a reporter, she had done it so many times that it wasn't exciting anymore. Flying into space was another dream she had had (Lois might have been too young to remember Neil Armstrong's walk, but she did follow the subsequent Apollo missions with fervor), and flying into space was a million times better than flying in an airplane. And tomorrow, it would become a reality. To her surprise, she had found herself talking about it with Clark earlier, when they were finally able to affirm their love for each other. He hadn't been too keen on the idea, especially after Lois had mentioned that she didn't get any permission from EPRAD. But even Clark knew that it would be the story of the century if she were to pull it off, a first of its kind. In another surprising move on her part, Lois had asked Clark to join him, but he immediately declined: there would be a greater risk that they would be discovered if both were to go. Other colleagues might have tried to steal the opportunity from Lois (especially that Claude, a sorry excuse of a man), but not Clark. By letting him stay behind, he could at least provide some cover story for Lois in case anyone asked. It would mean that Clark would have to lie, but he had said that he would do it for her. Anyway, why would Clark want to join her if he could fly into space himself? Lois was still a little shaken at the near accident, as they had washed dishes after dinner. To any person, being stabbed in the hand would be a serious injury (heck, any sort of knife wound would be serious, and Lois had firsthand experience on it), and she couldn't believe that she hadn't been paying attention. Clark's subsequent explanation was also still quite a shock for her. A man, with special powers? A man, who was... faster than a speeding bullet? More powerful than a locomotive? Able to leap tall buildings with a single bound? Under different circumstances, Lois perhaps would have ended up being afraid of Clark. After all, a man with those powers could kill anything and anyone with his bare hands. But what she had seen, this past week, was first and foremost a *man*. A man who had thoughts, feelings, and desires like everyone else. A man who had trouble fitting in despite the fact that he had hid these gifts most of his life. A man who had no meanness in him whatsoever. A man who was a fantastic kisser... 'God, could Clark kiss!' she sighed. 'His kisses are out of this world!' She nearly laughed at the pun. 'It's only been an hour, and I'm already missing him: his arms, his neck, his lips...' Lois was amazed that Clark, as drop-dead gorgeous as he was, and as powerful as he was, would be in love with *her*. Not that she thought that she wasn=92t beautiful; she wasn't too concerned about her appearance, unles= s it helped her get a story. She could be difficult, and had admitted to Clark as such. She could be a witch at the Planet (and she knew that some would use a more offensive word that rhymed with 'witch'). And she could a lot of times not be forthcoming with her feelings. Yet he was in love with *her*. He wanted *her*, and that sent a shiver up her spine, not with fear, but with desire. Besides, it wasn't as if Clark was perfect, for he clearly wasn't. At times he could be so naive and so trusting. Cynicism wasn't in his vocabulary, something that went hand in hand with 'the real world.' He wasn't exactly forthcoming with his feelings either, but that of course came from his natural tendency to hide. Yet she was falling in love with him, before she knew about his powers. Lois knew of Clark's plan to assume a secret identity, which would allow him to use his powers to help others without the fear of discovery. In fact, he should be in Smallville now, trying on various costumes that his mother would make. Too bad Lois couldn't sew, or she would have helped. Oh God, what if she had met the other identity before really knowing Clark Kent? Or, horror of horrors, what if she had fallen in *love* with Clark's secret identity instead? What a predicament Clark would have been in! If Lois were really cynical, she would have wondered when Clark would have told her about his powers. She believed him when he had said that he had planned on telling her his secret today anyway. He had been nervous about doing so (which Lois had chalked it up on his inexperience with relationships, as he had put it), and he was worried about Lois' reaction (which was understandable, Lois surmised). The knife accident had forced Clark to bring it out in the open. She was also surprised to hear that Joan had found out the same way. At least the secret was out now; who knew how she would have reacted if she were to be told *after* they were married, for example? Or after they had children? Come to think of it, the secret would have been out by then anyway: wouldn't their kids be able to fly once they were born? At the thought of children Lois turned a deep shade of red. It was astonishing enough that she would be thinking of having children at all, but having children with *Clark*? Lois shook her head as she prepared for bed. The old Lois Lane would have never considered marriage or children. Even while she had been seeing John, she was uncomfortable with the idea. She remembered saying to herself that being alone was what she had wanted. So what had happened to Lois Lane? She had met Clark; it was simple as that. Never before in her life was Lois any happier. She was on the heels of a big story. She was so excited that she knew she wasn't going to get any sleep tonight, and it was an early day tomorrow. She was also at the start of a beautiful relationship with Clark, a man who was beyond anything she had hoped for in a man. A *super* man. Could things get any better than this? * * * * * * * * [Metropolis, EPRAD Mission Control] [Tuesday, August 23, 1993, 6:07 A.M.] Could things get any worse than this? Lois took deep breaths and tried to calm down. Things had been going well this morning on her quest to the biggest story she had ever done. She was able to get into the colonist transport without any trouble at all. Not of the colonists had known who she was, except for Mrs. Platt and Amy, but Lois had been able to keep out of their sight. Once she had entered the colonist transport, Lois had quickly ducked into a nearby compartment so as not to be seen by anyone. She had closed the door and had strapped down in the single jump seat. "The umbilical cord attached to the liquid fuel booster has been disengaged. One minute and counting," came the voice of the flight controller. Lois had closed her eyes, allowing herself to dream about all sorts of Planet headlines and front-page stories about her stay at Prometheus. She had heard the outer doors close, and she had heard the voice of the flight controller again. "Forty five seconds and counting." Then she had seen it. *It* was a small back box, attached by cement to the opposite wall in the compartment, about three inches across, three inches wide, and an inch tall. It had started beeping a second ago. On the cover was an LED displaying numbers in red. Lois had a bad feeling it wasn't displaying another countdown for the shuttle launch. She had jumped out of the seat, after unstrapping herself first, to take a closer look. Finding some wires attached to the black box had given her all the confirmation she had needed.= "Oh my God, it's a bomb! Baines!" she had cried out, in full-blown panic mode. She had tried to exit the vehicle, but the doors had been sealed. Then the engines had ignited, and there had been no way for her to be heard over the noise. Not only was Lois panicked, but she was also annoyed. Why was it that she had a knack for finding trouble? Hadn't she been through enough Saturday night and Sunday morning? But no, Baines had to haunt her by planting this infernal device within the colonist transport, as a last ditch attempt to dismantle Space Station Prometheus. Or, if Lex Luthor was involved, maybe he had someone else put the bomb here for him? Well, there was no time to be annoyed. If she didn't do something, she would never see Clark again, and that wasn't an option. Not when she had just found him! Speaking of Clark, surely his mother had made a suitable disguise for him by now. If there was a time for him to debut with the new persona, now would be it. Lois remembered him telling her about his super-hearing abilities. Could he have heard her cries a second ago from Smallville? No, impossible: Smallville was over a thousand miles away. Especially since the engines were now roaring within the transport. No, she would have to somehow alert EPRAD that there was a problem here. If she could do that, and if Clark was watching the news now, he might come here to see what the problem was. Seeing no other option at the moment, Lois looked quickly around the compartment. Underneath the bomb was a panel of some sort. She tore it open. Yes! There was a lot of electrical wiring, and to the side was a pair of large pliers. Lois grabbed the pliers and started cutting. It was nearly impossible, for the wires were quite thick, and placement of the wires forced her to place the pliers at an awkward angle. Finally, after a few tense moments, sparks flew from the control panel, and then, she heard the voice of the flight controller: "Due to a mechanical failure we are suspending the countdown at twenty-nine seconds. We will advise, we will advise." But the engines did not shut off, and there were less than thirty seconds until the bomb was to go off. The only thing Lois could hope for now was a miracle. And it came. Lois heard the sound of the outer doors opening. A man then stepped into the compartment, wearing a blue suit, a red cape, and red boots. On his chest was an insignia that displayed the letter 'S'. ('Why 'S'?' she asked herself.) He was not wearing any glasses. All Lois could do was stare again at Clark with his new disguise. What had his mother been thinking? The suit left *nothing* to the imagination. The huge forearms, the broad shoulders, and the muscular legs. A sight to behold! Clark looked just *super* in that outfit! But unfortunately, if Lois was noticing, so would other people. Particularly women. Lois, feeling a twinge of jealousy, bit back a retort. Clark, for his part, blushed as he felt her eyes on every part of his body but his face. Just like what his mother predicted, he realized. The persistent beeping of the bomb forced him back to attention. He strode towards the bomb, having no idea how to disarm it. As the countdown reached ten seconds, he pried the box open and took out a small black disc. Lois looked at Clark with puzzlement. Why was he still *here*? Shouldn't he take that thing and hurl it to the sky or something? Hey eyes widened as she watched him put the bomb in his mouth. 'He *wouldn't*, would he?' she wondered, closing her eyes. (Boom!) The explosion was very muffled, probably not noticeable to anyone else in the shuttle. As Lois opened her eyes, Clark belched and patted his chest. "Excuse me," he said. Lois could not believe her eyes. Yes, she had known of Clark's powers, and she had seen him demonstrating them last night. There was the knifing accident, of course. She had seen him with the heat-vision. She had seen him float. She had seen him life some heavy things. And she had seen him fly (albeit very slowly, as he had done this inside his hotel room). But nothing, *nothing*, had prepared her for this display of his powers. Lois' reaction was also astounding, for it was something that she had never done before in her life. She fainted. * * * * * * * * -- Felix E. Sung fsung@justice.loyola.edu ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 12 Jul 2000 07:07:20 EDT 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: Young Fanfic Writers! MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Molly, this is a great idea. I enjoyed reading the interviews; it was interestng to find out more about these writers and get caught up in their enthusiasm for what they're doing. Sounds like some good stories in the works, too. :) Carol ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 12 Jul 2000 12:40:50 +0100 Reply-To: LabRat Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: LabRat Organization: LabRat Subject: Re: Young Fanfic Writers! MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Pam wrote: > Hey Molly, nice website and good interviews! I spent just a little time > there this evening, and enjoyed learning more about some of our young > authors :) It's a nice companion to the Writer's Showcase. > -- I can only agree. I spent a fascinating hour going through the interviews, kudos to everyone involved. I learned some interesting things. Even about authors I know. ;) Thanks for all your hard work, Molly, in putting this together and to our young authors for being brave enough to bare their souls. :) It did make me pine even more for the loss of WS though. Last I heard from Annie she was thinking about maybe resurrecting the site, but nothing since. Anyone got any news? I miss my Sunday evening fix of racing to check who was up on site. It was always an interesting insight into some of my favourite authors. And there has been such an explosion of new talent in the past year that there are certainly a whole host of new authors who could be featured. LabRat :) ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 12 Jul 2000 16:32:56 +0200 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: Young Fanfic Writers! MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Amen to what everyone said.. I liked the interviews very much. Thank you, Molly for putting them on your webpage. Nicole -- AKA CKgroupie on IRC NKWolke@t-online.de Are you always searching for news about Dean Cain? And don't you have the time to go and find them? Here's your solution: Go to "The Dean Cain News Page" http://members.tripod.de/CKgroupie/ ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 12 Jul 2000 10:36:52 -0400 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Mark Weber Subject: Sixth Season MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Could anyone tell me where I can get the full text versions of the Sixth season. I have the fifth season. Thank you. Mark ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 12 Jul 2000 15:49:42 +0100 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: Sixth Season MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Go to http://www.geocities.com/~chiefpam/Season6/season6.html Follow the links; there is a HTML and a text version of each episode on the site. Alternately, go to the Fanfic Archive at www.lcfanfic.com, and follow the Season 6 link there. Happy reading! There are some really terrific stories there. Wendy -------------------------- Wendy Richards w.m.richards@hrm.keele.ac.uk ----- Original Message ----- From: Mark Weber To: Sent: Wednesday, July 12, 2000 3:36 PM Subject: Sixth Season > Could anyone tell me where I can get the full text versions of the Sixth season. I > have the fifth season. > > Thank you. > > Mark > ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 12 Jul 2000 16:33:26 +0100 Reply-To: LabRat Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: LabRat Organization: LabRat Subject: Tech Glitch (Was Re: Young Authors) MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Hey guys! Since I posted to the list this morning on the Young Authors thread, I've had two subsequent posts on the thread from other list members come directly to me instead of the list as they intended. Not that I'm complaining any - such occasional glitches happen. I just thought I'd let you all know to save anyone posting on the Young Authors thread having to do it twice. :) Please check the To before hitting send as it seems that my eddress is temporarily being auto filled in there instead of the list eddress. Thanks. LabRat :) ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 12 Jul 2000 16:39:02 +0100 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: Fw: Re: Young Fanfic Writers! MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit I can only add my praise to that of others. This was fascinating, and yes, it did remind me of the Writers' Showcase. Shame that never got resurrected. Congratulations to all the young writers who participated. I was amazed to discover just how young some of our very talented new writers are: Jessie and Rose, for instance, and equally Karen, who was a Best New Writer nominee in the same year as I was. And, of course Susan has been writing even longer and has also received Kerth nominations. It would be great if there could be links to these interviews from some of the larger websites, in the same way as there are links to the Writers' Showcase. And more would be good, too... :) Wendy (still blushing... thanks, Rose! :)) -------------------------- Wendy Richards w.m.richards@hrm.keele.ac.uk ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 13 Jul 2000 02:00:24 EST Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: -= LuC =- Subject: Bitter Sweet Actuality, Pt 5/? Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; format=flowed ------------------------ Bitter Sweet Actuality, Pt 5 By Luc Di Gregorio ------------------------ -=Metropolis, 1996=- McHill closed the diary in front of him and rested his legs on the desk. He sucked vehemently on a cigar he held between his thumb and index finger and let out a cloud of thick smoke. He reached for a remote control a few inches away and pressing a few buttons, of which the result was the jovial tune of Bach’s Brandenburg Concerto, he smiled and sank back into his chair. Let it all be done, he thought. Right about now, with years of planning and wise investing, the heads of three of the major crime organizations in Metropolis would be pleading for their lives as a couple of his men held high-tech guns to them at point-blank range. It had been easy of course, he pondered. The advanced technology he had brought back with him from the twenty-second century would make the men he needed to run this city cringe and bow to all his needs. He returned his feet to the floor and opened a draw at the side of the desk, pulling out a small cassette-tape like instrument and resting it on the desk before him. It was all, he acknowledged, because of this. Staring at the tape and wondering not for the first time whose voice was recorded on it and why they would want to help him, he frowned. The man, whoever he was, had seemed genuine enough, had said that he was on his deathbed, and wanted someone with his courage and strength to carry on the work he had started. Well, he thought. I have. -=Alternate Metropolis=- The woman tended carefully to the sickly, pale figure in the bed before her, sponging her forehead in the hope that her fever would decrease. She had found this strangely clothed woman crumpled to a heap, in the cold bitter storm, at the far corner of one of their property fields and had begged her husband to allow her to bring the woman in and care for her until she regained consciousness. She still had no idea who the woman was but she had felt a strange connection to her upon seeing her. It was like nothing she could explain, but she knew that somehow the well-being of this lady was important. Her husband had raved and called his wife a mad-woman. “She was probably dumped by one of the townsfolk after a few drinks at the inn- God knows she probably deserved it.” But Grace had ignored her husbands all-too-consuming attitude and nonsense, and had continued to care for the creature. When her husband had carried her into their house little over three hours ago, the woman had mumbled a man’s name. A name, Grace pondered as she noticed the wedding ring the woman was wearing, that was probably her husband’s. Clark had been his name, and Grace hoped that he would come for her soon. -=Metropolis, 1996=- After finally giving in and deciding that she would help them, Lois had declared fatigue and had begged to get some rest. She had left Clark and Wells to talk, and had fallen asleep in the guest room, being a little hesitant to even contemplate walking into the bedroom her- the other Lois- and Clark shared as a married couple. Falling asleep her mind went over what was happening and Lois conceded that while it was far too much for her to get her head around, she would help. Wells had assured her that everything would be alright, and, whilst still sceptical, had decided to take the man’s word for it- a feat altogether astonishing since she had found it hard to trust any man- even her father— No, wait, she thought. *Especially* my father. Clark sat on the couch and stared out in front of him as Martha brought in another round of tea. Wells had gone and said he would be in touch, and that in the meantime Lois should continue her investigation into McHill. It may be, after all, their only hope in exposing him and getting Lois back. “Honey,” Martha’s gentle voice reached Clark and he turned to look at his mother, “why don’t you go and rest a little while?” “She’s right son.” Jonathan cut in. “You’re going to need to be totally alert if we’re going to get Lois back.” Clark cut in quickly, and raised his voice a little. “*When* we get Lois back, dad.” Jonathan looked sadly at his son. The pain he must be going through, not knowing exactly what had happened to Lois; where she was, if she was alright, and even, Jonathan thought bleakly, if she was alive. But he believed that his son would know if Lois wasn’t alive. The two were connected beyond what simple words could explain, and if something ever happened to Lois he would feel it. He would feel it in his mind and in his heart. He would feel the pain in every inch of his body, and the man of steel would crumble instantly into a heap. But that wasn’t the case. Jonathan knew his boy was strong. Not just physically strong, but strong where it counted the most. All those years of keeping to himself things that slowly tore him apart, watching people die and beating himself about if he wasn’t there fast enough, blaming himself when there was something he could have but didn’t prevent. No. Just like everything else they had been through, they would get through this. Or at least, he hoped: it wasn’t everyday a grown woman disappeared into thin air. Turning, Jonathan saw Clark’s head jerk up and stare distantly into space, and he knew that this was a job for superman. The next day, Lois had had a hard time coming to grips with the man-in-tights that had gripped Metropolis, as she flicked through old editions of the daily planet at the main Planet archives. These editions were indeed, old. Old for here, she thought, as she pondered the dates on the editions she was looking at. She sighed, “They’re all in my future.” She searched back to the edition that would tell her when Superman had first appeared, and wondered how the people had taken it. Wait a minute! She flicked back a few weeks and— Yes, there it was! By Lois Lane . . . space station Prometheus *was* sabotaged! Huh! I knew it . . . why Perry hasn’t learnt to just listen to me I’ll never understand— “Should you be looking at those?” She turned and was met by a welcoming beautiful smile. The man before her astounded her, to say the least. She had been briefed about superman and who he really was, and had been made to understand that if Clark’s secret ever got out there would be unwelcome ramifications. But this, along with the knowledge that when she went home she could delve into an amazing expose` as soon as superman appeared in her Metropolis, was tearing her apart, and, in the end, she had decided to take notes on superman and leave them in her purse. She would use her discretion when she got back to her Metropolis as to whether or not she would expose the so called man of steel and win herself the Pulitzer she had been chasing for what seemed like ages. “Been . . . buzzing around?” She said, not sure that she had not said it in contempt and with a tinge of sarcasm. But if this was so, he hadn’t noticed. He laughed. “That’s exactly what my Lois says,” and suddenly she saw the hurt and longing in his eyes. She had noticed the love that this man had for his wife, and had been quite surprised by it. She didn’t think that any man had it in him to love a woman so much, and, what’s more, she had never thought that in the future she could herself love and trust a man in the same way he did to her. But there had been many things in this . . . trip . . . that she hadn’t bargained for. She had been rudely shocked a number of times. “We’ll find her,” she said, warmly, not sure whether she could even convince herself. This is me, she thought. We have to find me- her- or— And suddenly she realised that if anything happened to the Lois of this Metropolis she would then know that the same thing would happen in her future, and, even worse, she might even find out the manner of her own death. She shivered and put the thought aside. It was almost a nightmare. “Getting acquainted with. . . this Metropolis?” He said to her casually. “Yeah, it’s pretty damn mind-blowing if you ask me.” She pointed to the screen. “Right before Wells took me, I was trying to convince Perry that there was a story behind allegations that Space station Prometheus was being sabotaged—“ “Wait a minute.” Clark cutting in, suddenly realising that he hadn't asked at exactly which point Wells had taken Lois. Anticipating his question, Lois spoke. “We’d just met less than ten minutes before.” Clark looked miffed and realised for the first time how hard this might be on Lois. To have a man that she had met not even two days ago thrown at her as an alien from outerspace who could leap tall buildings in a single bound, but furthermore told that this man would infact be her husband, would have been more than enough to give her a migraine. As if reading his mind, Lois looked at him. “It’s been pretty. . . odd. . . to say the least,” she said as she smiled casually. “So anyway,” she continued, “looks like I bagged the story.” Clark smiled. “*We* bagged the story, Lois.” And Lois turned and looked at him sarcastically. “Oh, really.” She said. “I hardly think that starting out in your first job as a *real* reporter, you would have had anything to do with it. I’m sure I did- or… will do- all the work. No offence, Clark, but you’re just—“ “A hack from nowheresville?” Clark cut in, a huge smile on his face. Lois looked miffed. “How did you. . .” And suddenly it dawned on her and she stared at him with contempt as he laughed for the first time since she’d met him. ________________________________________________________________________ Get Your Private, Free E-mail from MSN Hotmail at http://www.hotmail.com ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 12 Jul 2000 12:06:28 EDT Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Rachel Madden Subject: NEW: The Legend of Norcross and Judd (1/?) MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Hi everyone :) This story is still kind of wobbly, so please, bear with me.... :) _____________________________________________ "The Legend of Norcross and Judd" by Rachel Madden (LnCSwing@aol.com) Rated: still unrated Feedback: Private or public comments are welcome. Summary: Kind of set apart from the regular "Lois and Clark" plot lines, this story focuses more on Perry White and his relationships with Billy Norcross and Serena Judd. Billy and Serena will appear to be a lot like Lois and Clark, so don't worry...there's still a little romance left in me. ;) ____________________________________________ Mud churned as a man struggled his way up a slippery hill, gun in hand. He quickly glanced over his shoulder, readying his weapon as he ran. A dog's howl reached his ears, and he panicked, kicking up more mud as he tried to go faster. He slipped and fell, accidentally firing his weapon into the woods, which were damp and dripping from the morning's heavy rain. Ten more yards. That was it. But, no, he could hear the men shouting now. Too late. * * * "Thank God for that rain we had this morning." "Speak for yourself. I just bought these shoes." "Well, you're gonna be losing more than just a new pair of shoes if the police find out we're tailing this guy by ourselves." "Well, they can just kiss my foot, because this is the biggest story of the year. I'm not going to let some men who think they're hotshots just because they carry badges ruin our big chance of finally proving ourselves to Tom. And besides, we're not tailing this guy by ourselves. The police are here...just a mile or so back." The man in the twosome sighed. The woman, his partner, grinned mischievously. "All right, but just remember that it's not only our paychecks, it's our necks, too." "Completely understood." The woman slipped on some mud and sat down hard in a large puddle. "Damn...there goes the dress, too...." She rubbed her foot and looked around distractedly. "If we get out of this alive, I'm telling Tom to get me a new dre - " The man looked back at his partner worriedly. "Are you okay? Why are you staring at me like that?" "Look out!" CRACK! The woman jumped up and ran to the man, pushing him down and then dropping to the ground alongside him. There was another loud burst of gunfire, and a patch of land just ahead of the pair was left bare by the impact of the bullet. "Up! Move! Behind that rock!" The man and woman pushed themselves up and sprinted behind a small group of rocks. "Well, this is great. Whose idea was this, anyway?" the woman demanded. "Yours." "Hey, at least we found him!" Another shot rang out, and the two ducked. "You'd better hope that the police get here soon." "They'll never get here in time," the woman said. "Well, then, O Bright One, what do you suggest we do now?" The man, wet, filthy, and sweaty, turned to his partner, who looked like a savage Indian. "Oh, no. You've got that glint in your eye. You're not serious...." The woman just grinned. "He has a gun!" "So what? Together, we have two brains. He only has one." The man folded his arms resolutely. "He has a gun." The woman rolled her eyes. "C'mon." The two backed slowly away from the rocks, straining to see the shooter through the trees. "You know, just because we can't see him doesn't mean he can't see us," the man said. "Oh, shut up. He would've shot us by now if he could see us," the woman replied, then promptly backed into a tree and screamed. "Oh, great. Now he knows where we are even if he *can't* see us!" "Keep your shirt on. We can keep him occupied until the police get here." The woman screamed again, this time on purpose, and shook some bushes to give the shooter an estimate as to where they were. The gun popped, and some bark on the tree right next to the woman flew off. "Okay, now let's go over there." The woman pointed to their left. "How about you give it a try this time." She smiled despite the danger. "In 'Avoiding Armed Criminals 101' you get hands-on training." The man smiled grimly in reply and took a few small tree branches and cracked them with his feet, then backed off. Just as he stepped away, the bullet sent some dead leaves flying right where the man had been standing. * * * Patrick Frederickson sighed. Escaping from jail had been hard enough...and now he had to put up with *this*? Two *tourists*, no doubt, off for a scenic hike, escaping from the nearby trails themselves. That reminded him. He had to stay away from those public trails. The less people, the better. In the meantime, he didn't have time to shoot at potential witnesses. The police were hard on his tail. He sighed again and reloaded his gun for future use. Then he heard the voice, deep and commanding. "Police! Drop your weapon! *Now*!" * * * "We can't thank you enough for your help. Even though I *told* you not to go running off without us, I can't say I'm sorry you did it anyway." "No problem, Captain. We appreciate the stories more when we almost die for them," the woman said. Captain Robert Dale laughed along with the two reporters. "Well, you had better tell Tom that you deserve a raise and a vacation. And if he won't allow that, well, you just call me. I know where his soft spots are." Dale winked. "Excuse me, Captain Dale?" "Yes?" The three turned to look at a young officer, obviously new and in need of something to do. "I'm sorry, but I need to get your names." The officer gestured toward the man and woman. Dale made as if to answer for his two friends, but the man waved him off. He turned and looked the officer in the eye with a steady, sincere gaze. "Norcross. William Norcross. And this is my partner, Serena Judd." ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 12 Jul 2000 14:10:35 EDT 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: Young Fanfic Writers! MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit This is a really neat idea. Like Wendy, I was amazed to discover how young some of these writers are. Others, like Jessi, I knew were young in years, although not in talent. In one interview, ( I forget whose) the young writer expressed her concern about comments along the lines of "I can't believe you are so young." I would like to reassure all of these authors that when someone says that, it is a compliment. Good writing normally demands a certain amount of life experience and maturity. These qualities usually come with age. The fact that many of these young authors have been able to transcend that is fantastic. I look forward to many more hours of enjoyment from these writers. Ann (thanks, Jessi. You know I'm waiting for the next one. ) ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 12 Jul 2000 14:04:16 -0600 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: The Legend of Norcross and Judd (1/?) In-Reply-To: <90.6f575b6.269df184@aol.com> MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Rachel wrote: >Hi everyone :) > > This story is still kind of wobbly, so please, bear with me.... :) >_____________________________________________ > >"The Legend of Norcross and Judd" What a *fabulous* idea for a fanfic, Rachel! I can hardly wait to read it!! Assuming from the subject line indicating (1/?), and the fact that when I paged down and didn't see a 'The End' tag at the bottom, I eagerly assume that means there will be more of this, RIGHT?? Looking forward to reading it! (As soon as the kids go to bed and give me some time to myself ) 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: Wed, 12 Jul 2000 16:32:57 EDT Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Rachel Madden Subject: NEW: The Legend of Norcross and Judd (2/?) MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit * * * "No, no, *no*! I will not tolerate this type of insubordination in my newsroom! What would the King say?" Perry White tried four different faces until he found the one he wanted, then started all over again. "What in *tarnation* is going on here? Judas Priest! Are we here to work or stare at the ceiling? We've got a deadline to meet! Let's go!" There. That would work. He'd have to write that one down for future use along with the six others he already had. That face had been kind of hard, though. It had used muscles in his face that Perry hadn't even known he had. Taking a wary look at the door, he geared up his confidence and was about to launch into his famous Elvis speech he had been practicing for the past two weeks when the door whipped open and slammed into the wall, punching a doorknob-sized hole in it. "White! Get your tailgate back in here, boy! You've been in this bathroom for 20 minutes! People have been rioting for the past hour because there are no donuts out on that table! So get moving! Now!" Perry nodded his head vigorously. "Yessir!" After the door closed, Perry stepped back from the mirror and ran stubby fingers through his dark brown hair. Time to get moving. * * * After getting donuts and brewing more coffee, Perry wandered around for a while, keeping one eye out for his boss and the other out for BJ and Ser. They had been gone for over 4 hours now, and he didn't think interviewing Captain Dale about organized crime could take 4 hours...unless something had happened. You never knew what could take place in the lives of investigative journalists. Especially in the lives of world-famous investigative journalists like Billy Norcross and Serena Judd. Even though they were both only in their late 20s, they had seen many things that people their age could never even dream of. War, famine, robberies, drugs, government scandals, gangs, crime rings, etc., etc., were all part of the reporting team's daily lives. Pretty much everything that was too slippery for normal human beings to grasp they had grasped with no problem whatsoever. It had taken Perry a while to find out that Billy and Ser were the best in the business. He had actually never heard of the Daily Planet until Tom Walsh had called him up one day asking if he wanted a job. Perry's father had known Tom for 15 years, so Perry suspected that his father had been the man behind the scenes in that play. He had been all for it, of course. He had worked for his local paper for several years and was ready for something new. So his parents, mainly his father, shipped him off to Metropolis, about 250 miles from his hometown, when he was 21. He had never been to college. After settling in a modest apartment thanks to the substantial wad of money in his pocket (courtesy of his father), he had dived right into the chaos at the Daily Planet offices. Mr. Walsh (the "Chief") had chucked him in with the other blue collars, asking him to just be there when anyone needed immediate service. At first it had seemed like an easy enough job. Brewing coffee, grabbing donuts, some take-out for lunch every now and then. He ran errands and made copies for people. He lugged research through the whole building and was Mr. Fix-it to some less handy colleagues. However, Perry's job soon turned into a very large cold sore that wouldn't go away. He soon found himself the newsroom slave and the village idiot. He catered to anyone and everyone's whims. While he had done menial tasks before, he was now fixing people's cars. And he was sick of it. However, telling Mr. Walsh was out of the question because then he'd be out of a *job*. So Perry sat and watched from the safety of the conference room. A staff meeting was scheduled for two o'clock, so he didn't really have enough time to find a good hiding spot. Just 15 minutes. Enough time for a breather, but that was it. After about five minutes of sitting and watching, he saw BJ and Serena enter the newsroom. Mr. Walsh immediately pounced on them. Questions flew through the air: "Where were you for four hours?", "What happened?", and most important of all: "Did you get the story?" BJ and Ser looked calm enough. They gently told their boss about whatever had happened while they were gone. Mr. Walsh about had a stroke right there in front of everyone. The pair had to practically carry him to the conference room, where Perry was quietly sitting in a chair. Perry's investigative instincts kicked in, and he crawled under the table where he could hear without being noticed. Mr. Walsh would surely lop Perry's head off if he was discovered, but, even though he had only a year or two of experience, he had learned that eavesdropping was one of the top ten reporters' information-gathering techniques. He had just gotten situated underneath the table when the three entered. Trying to breathe quietly, Perry listened to their conversation. BJ: "Are you all right, sir? Can you stand up now?" Mr. Walsh: "Yes, Norcross, I'm fine. And you can let go of my arm!" BJ: "Sorry." Mr. Walsh: "Now I want a straight answer from you two. You managed to almost get yourselves killed, which would have put the Daily Planet under for the next decade, and you come back saying you want more. I don't understand. You caught the guy, talked to the police...what more do you need?" So the opportunity was presenting itself. Perry had heard about big breaks -- he figured this the Mother of them all. Ser: "Chief, we think we have a shot at a front-page story here. This was Frederickson's third escape attempt. They keep loading more restrictions on him, but he keeps on finding his way out. Captain Dale said that they're thinking about moving him to that maximum security prison in eastern New Troy." Mr. Walsh: "Holton? That's quite a place. I almost feel sorry for the guy." BJ: "Well, don't be, sir. He's serving a double life sentence for thirteen counts of murder, thirteen counts of rape, and thirteen counts of armed robbery. A very sick and twisted man." Mr. Walsh: "What's with all the thirteens?" Ser: "His father, who was addicted to alcohol and died of an OD when Frederickson was a teenager, had a fear of the number thirteen. Triskaidekaphobia is the word for it, I believe. Anyway, Frederickson hated him. Police records show that he beat Frederickson's mother several times, judging by the number of times the police were called over to their house by the neighbors, and probably more times we'll never know about." BJ: "This is Frederickson's way of getting back at his father. You know, making him roll over in his grave until he gets dizzy. At least, that's what we *think*." Mr. Walsh: "Good reasoning, you two. But how is this material for an article? Does Frederickson have a few skeletons in the closet the police don't know about or are you just hoping he'll break out again?" BJ: "We haven't gotten to the best part yet, Mr. Walsh." Mr. Walsh: "Well, hurry it up! I've got nine copies to edit in the next half-hour!" There was a long pause. Ser: "You tell him." BJ: "No, why don't *you* tell him. You're much better at this than I am." Perry had to back out of the way as a nylon-clad leg with a very painful-looking high heel attached flew through the air and whacked BJ on the shin. Ser: "No, no, I insist. *You* tell him." Perry couldn't see the pair, but he was certain that Ser was giving BJ one of her Looks. Not to mention that bone-snapping kick. Perry winced just thinking about it. He heard a submissive sigh, then a deep drawn breath. He knew what was coming. BJ and Ser's "best part" was always the most difficult to explain, for some odd reason. Perry grinned. This was why the two of them were so legendary. Their sad excuses for leads always, in some way or another, developed into another Kerth Award for the reporting team of Norcross and Judd. Mr. Walsh: "Listen, you two. Don't think I don't know what you're about to say...." Obviously Mr. Walsh also knew what was coming. Mr. Walsh: "You're going to tell me about some wild scheme of yours and then beg me to reassign your other stories until you get done with this one. Am I right?" Perry could sense BJ's dejected nod and Ser's defiant glare aimed at Mr. Walsh. Mr. Walsh: "Well, let's just skip it this time. Go and investigate or do whatever you do after defeating the old man who sits in the office with "Editor-in-Chief" on the door and apparently has no authority over you whatsoever." Ser: "Don't worry, Chief. You're still the Almighty Spell-Checker in our eyes." Perry couldn't help but grin. And unfortunately, his mouth chose this moment to give him away. A small chortle escaped as he tried to stifle his laughter, and he clapped his hands over his mouth, wide-eyed, wondering if they had heard him. BJ: "What was that?" Ser: "What?" "BJ: "I heard something." "Ser: "You're hearing things." BJ: "No, I distinctly heard a noise. And it was coming from underneath the - " Perry tried to scramble away as BJ's chair scraped away from the table and his face appeared. " - table." Ser's face soon appeared also, followed by Mr. Walsh's head and a loud creak emanating from his back. "Perry? Is that you?" Tom asked incredulously. Perry lowered his head and murmured, "Yessir." "Get your tailgate out from under there and tell me *exactly* what in the *hell* you think you were doing!" Perry stood up and stared at a fixed point on the wall while Tom, Ser, and BJ bored holes in his head with their gazes. "I was just listening, sir." "No, I get it, son...you were making daisy chains, right? Damn right you were listening! *Why* were you under the table in the first place?" "Well, sir...." Perry gulped painfully. "You're always telling me to take my chance while I still have a chance, so I took it." Tom's fiery glare softened. "Can't argue with that." Ser and BJ turned their eyes to their boss. Ser asked, "Now what are we going to do? Perry heard everything. There's no way we can just tell him to forget he'd ever been here and send him on his way...is there?" The three looked to Perry. A mischievous grin spread across Perry's face. "Well, we can just forget about *that*," BJ said, flinging his arms up in the air exasperatingly. "Tell you what, guys. You let me help out, and I'll keep my mouth shut." Tom, who had been staring at the wall trying to think of a way to keep Perry quiet other than killing him, turned around with a grim look on his face. "You sure do know how to bargain, son." He looked at Ser and BJ. "This okay with you two?" BJ and Ser started to shake their heads no, but then looked at Perry and solemnly nodded. "All right. You're in, Perry. But one little peep about this story, even if it's accidental, and you're off the team. Gone. Capeesh?" Perry grinned, nodded enthusiastically, and raised his fist in celebration of victory. On their way out of the conference room, Tom leaned over and said, "Good thing you didn't demand a dozen donuts along with this perfect example of blackmail." Smiling, Perry asked, "Would I have gotten them?" Tom called back over his shoulder as he walked away, "No. But you would have gotten a pink slip instead." ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 12 Jul 2000 16:43:24 EDT Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Rachel Madden Subject: Re: NEW: The Legend of Norcross and Judd (2/?) MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Hi everyone - I need to make a change in the second part of the story that should have been corrected earlier.... At one point it is said that Patrick Frederickson's escape attempt is his third. That is a mistake and it really should say that his attempt wasn't the first time he'd tried to escape. In other words, three is *not* the right number. I know this may seem like a stupid thing to make such a big deal about, but it will be *very* important later on in the story. ;) Thanks! -Rachel :) ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 12 Jul 2000 13:49:31 -0700 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Vicki Krell Subject: Re: The Legend of Norcross and Judd (1/?) MIME-version: 1.0 Content-type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Rachel, I really liked this too! And now I'm going to read part 2, which just showed up in my mailbox. :) V Vicki Krell Sponsored Projects Officer Office of Research and Creative Activities Arizona State University (480) 965-2171 (480) 965-1703 - fax Vicki.Krell@asu.edu ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 12 Jul 2000 18:29:49 -0500 Reply-To: truitt22@flash.net Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: timothy truitt Organization: tnt technical services Subject: Re: Young Fanfic Writers! MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit I agree with Ann keep writing writers merry "Ann E. McBride" wrote: > This is a really neat idea. Like Wendy, I was amazed to discover how young > some of these writers are. Others, like Jessi, I knew were young in years, > although not in talent. In one interview, ( I forget whose) the young writer > expressed her concern about comments along the lines of "I can't believe you > are so young." I would like to reassure all of these authors that when > someone says that, it is a compliment. Good writing normally demands a > certain amount of life experience and maturity. These qualities usually come > with age. The fact that many of these young authors have been able to > transcend that is fantastic. I look forward to many more hours of enjoyment > from these writers. > > Ann (thanks, Jessi. You know I'm waiting for the next one. ) ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 13 Jul 2000 00:46:12 -0500 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: I'm back :) Hi everyone! Yes, your trusty list mom has returned from vacation ... now I have nothing to stop me from getting even more excited about LAFF. (Less than 3 weeks away! Woo hoo!) I enjoyed catching up on the threads that I missed; you had some discussions I know I would have participated in if I had been around. :) Gotta love the website archive system; it makes it so easy to catch up. (And for the record, I really enjoyed the Young Writer's website, too.) As you were! :D Kathy (who amazingly didn't fall of the side of the mountain ... though there were a few times I wasn't 100% certain I was going to make it back down from 12,000 feet in one piece. Say it with me now ... scree is your friend ... scree is your friend ... ;)) ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 13 Jul 2000 08:11:15 -0700 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Vicki Krell Subject: Re: I'm back :) MIME-version: 1.0 Content-type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Welcome back! You're much braver than I am when it comes to being 12,000 feet, I'll tell you that.....:) Vicki (who really wishes she could go to LAFF) Vicki Krell Sponsored Projects Officer Office of Research and Creative Activities Arizona State University (480) 965-2171 (480) 965-1703 - fax Vicki.Krell@asu.edu -----Original Message----- From: Kathy Brown [mailto:kathybrown91@HOME.COM] Sent: Wednesday, July 12, 2000 10:46 PM To: LOISCLA-GENERAL-L@LISTSERV.INDIANA.EDU Subject: I'm back :) Hi everyone! Yes, your trusty list mom has returned from vacation ... now I have nothing to stop me from getting even more excited about LAFF. (Less than 3 weeks away! Woo hoo!) I enjoyed catching up on the threads that I missed; you had some discussions I know I would have participated in if I had been around. :) Gotta love the website archive system; it makes it so easy to catch up. (And for the record, I really enjoyed the Young Writer's website, too.) As you were! :D Kathy (who amazingly didn't fall of the side of the mountain ... though there were a few times I wasn't 100% certain I was going to make it back down from 12,000 feet in one piece. Say it with me now ... scree is your friend ... scree is your friend ... ;)) ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 13 Jul 2000 11:53:17 -0400 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Pam Jernigan Organization: http://www.geocities.com/~chiefpam/ Subject: NEW: Tryst (7/?) MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Remember, I'm taking all comments, even the ones that tell me where I messed up :) Tryst Part 7/? by Pam Jernigan **** "I feel like a teenager trying to find a place to neck." Clark grinned at Lois's grumbling. "It wasn't that bad." Well, maybe not, she silently conceded. It had been fun to watch Clark try to find a spot where they could talk in private after dinner. They had first retreated to his bedroom, but he had been so clearly uncomfortable that it hadn't been long before he'd started looking for an alternative. She wasn't sure whether it was entirely paranoia about being overheard, either ... possibly he was embarrassed to have her in his room. Well, she could understand that. Being there had been oddly intimate, and given their circumstances, quite frustrating. "Anyway, look at the view." "It's beautiful, Clark." She hadn't even realized that these old townhouses had access to the roof, let alone that there were tiny porches built into them. Night had fully fallen, and the other roofs in the row were deserted, so no one was likely to see them ... and the lights of Metropolis were twinkling in all directions. "I love this city." "Yep, I know what you mean," he said softly, leaning against the porch rail. "There's always something happening, that's for sure. I always loved visiting here when I was a kid. My dad could never handle city life for too long, and my mom was always busy stocking up on the sorts of things you can't buy in Smallville, so they turned me over to Aunt Opal, and Aunt Laura. She's my mom's cousin. They always took me to the coolest places." She smiled at the nostalgic pleasure in his expression. "So you visited here a lot?" "Well, not a lot. Once or twice a year." "I wonder if we ever did meet," she mused, gazing out over the city. "I grew up here, you know." He thought about it for a moment, then shook his head. "Nope, we can't have. I wouldn't have forgotten such a beautiful girl." Lois wasn't quite sure how to take that, but then she grinned, realizing the joke. "Easy for you to say; you've never seen me." He turned towards her, sheepishly admitting, "I've seen your file picture. Bertie showed it to me." "Oh." He really meant that? She'd been called beautiful before, but that had mostly been by men who hadn't really known her; who hadn't factored her acerbic, work-driven personality into the mix. Once they'd realized that her face came with a quick brain and a sharp tongue, their interest tended to fade. And come to think of it, that file picture wasn't very flattering. With that realization, she found a way to cover her confusion, and regain her balance. "Well, thanks ... but it's a rotten picture, so it's obvious you need new glasses." "Hmm." He was studying the city again, wearing a faint smile. "Anyway, I don't think we ever met. I wish we had." "Yeah, me too," she admitted softly. Thinking back, she could clearly remember all the times she could have used a friend. Would he have joined the chess club in 10th grade? Looking him over now, she suspected that he would have been more of a jock, glasses or not. Well, she had spent her senior year trying desperately to escape her earlier geekdom and achieve "normalcy" -- she'd even dated the quarterback, briefly. Not that there'd been anything wrong with Joe, apart from slight octopus tendencies, but she decided that Clark would have paid more attention ... he would have seen beneath her carefully-primed surface, to the lonely girl inside. And if she'd gone parking with Clark, instead of Joe, it would have been a much different experience. Clark wouldn't have been so blindly eager to get physical, for one thing ... but she would have encouraged him. Just the thought of Clark's arms around her made her feel shivery ... and made her want to cry. Damn this half-existence anyway, for showing her all she would be missing. Lois resolved to pull herself together, and resolutely brought up the topic that both of them had been avoiding. "Do you think your Aunt Opal really heard me?" Clark sighed, turning away from the railing to sit in one of the lawnchairs on the tiny porch. "I don't know. It sure sounded like she was responding to what you said, but on the other hand, I know she didn't realize you were there. It could have just been a coincidence." "Yeah, probably," she replied briskly, moving to arrange herself on the other chair. She really couldn't decide if she were disappointed, or relieved. "I was too shocked to try testing it again ... I didn't want to startle her, you know?" "You should try to get through to Perry, maybe," he suggested carefully. She frowned at him. Was he trying to get rid of her? "I guess I can try. I mean, I can move things if I concentrate hard enough, so maybe I just need to shout." A memory presented itself. "He did seem aware of me when I first showed up, you know. I went into his office and he started worrying about me. He just didn't know I was right in front of him." "But that's a start," he pointed out. "Maybe you just have to try harder." "Maybe. But what am I going to say, anyway? 'Hi, it's me, I'm dead'?" She glanced sideways at him. He was watching the stars. Not that he could ever make eye contact with her, but this felt like more than the usual 'don't know where to look' problem. "Unless you'd rather I worked with him..." He turned towards her, an anxious look on his face. "No, Lois, I'm not trying to get rid of you. I just thought ... you might prefer someone familiar." She smiled in relief. "Nah, you're okay. I think we're making a pretty good team, actually. So why don't I just get familiar with you?" He laughed softly. "I wish you could. So what do you want to know?" Lois paused for a moment, studying the man in front of her. He looked so open, so vulnerable ... and she felt just as vulnerable to him. She wished desperately that she could kiss him, that she could curl up in his arms and fly off with him, undisturbed by the world, forever. She wished for the impossible. Which did no one any good, so she pulled herself together by sheer force of will, and indulged her curiosity. "Um ... when did you realize you were, uh, different?" Clark seemed unsurprised by the question. "I think I was six when I realized that I was never sick. All the other kids would get colds and stuff, but I never did. I was pretty annoyed by that later, too," he added with a grin. "All my friends could pretend to be sick to skip school, but I never could." She grinned. "I bet you loved school. So what else?" "By the time I hit twelve or thirteen, I was starting to get very strong, and very fast. It was really cool, and my parents were great about it, but it was scary, too. I didn't know what was happening to me. I just kept hiding it from everybody, except Mom and Dad. And I started seeing through things. That was ... weird." "I can imagine," she mused. "It was probably almost as weird as me being able to put my hand through things." Clark paused and slanted a glance her way. "Are you trying to one-up my weirdness?" She winced. "No, I'm sorry, did it sound that way? I was just trying to empathize, really. I'll be quiet, go on." "It's okay, I guess maybe you really can understand. I mean, obviously it's different..." "But still similar." She had known that she felt a bond with him; this only reinforced it. They had more in common than she'd first thought, but his differences still intrigued her, and attracted her all the more. "So when did you start with the flying thing?" "Ah, the flying thing," he grinned, his teeth a flash of white in the dimness. "That was unexpected. Even after all the other stuff. I was eighteen, in the spring of my senior year. It was one of those perfect spring days, you know? The kind of day where you just want to be outside and enjoy the wind, the sun, the smell of the earth, the colors..." Lois, who viewed the outdoors mainly as a means to an end, found herself nodding. "So you were just walking around?" "Walking, running, jumping ... the great thing about growing up on a farm is that there's plenty of land where no one can see you. I was pretending I was doing track, with sprints, and hurdles, and high jumps ... until the time I jumped, and just kind of forgot to come down again. Until I realized I was fifteen feet in the air, and crashed down in a panic." He laughed at the memory. Lois chuckled along with him. "Falling from floating?" "It *is* possible," he affirmed with a lilt of humor. "But I've rarely done it since then. Anyway, I practiced for a little bit -- I had to wait until dark to really go anywhere. I was so excited I didn't want to sleep. Mom and Dad told me to be careful with it, of course, but after they were in bed, I went out again. In fact," he looked around conspiratorially. "I got a little overconfident. I was so anxious to try out this new perk, and eager to share, that I flew here to Metropolis. Landed on this very roof -- see that crack in the railing over in that corner?" Eagerly, she turned, and saw that the heavy wood was indeed cracked, with part of it slightly askew. "You did that?" "I wasn't too good at landings, yet. And then I just walked downstairs to see Aunt Opal." "Clark," Lois scolded, unable to restrain a hint of laughter. "You must have scared the life out of her!" Abashed, he ducked his head a bit. "Well, she obviously survived, but she claims that I was responsible for quite a few gray hairs! Aunt Laura wasn't here at the time, and I asked Aunt Opal not to tell my folks, so you're the only other one who knows. I was really wiped out by the trip, so she let me sleep a few hours here, and I snuck back home in the morning." Lois smiled. "That reminds me of a time that I snuck out of the house, to go to a journalism seminar -- my dad was dead-set on me going into medicine, just like him, but I--" She noticed that he was tensing up, staring off into the distance. "Okay, it wasn't as cute a story as yours, but--" "I hear sirens," he explained, and now she could see that he did appear to be listening intently to something beyond her hearing. "Where? What kind?" she asked softly, her journalistic instincts rising to the fore. He listened for a moment longer, then sat back, relaxing fractionally. "There's a fire in the Troy Hills district -- not too big, I don't think. They can handle it." "Sure they can," she responded in pride, covering a quick internal calculation. Troy Hills was at least two miles away -- impressive hearing, indeed. "Our emergency services are great. Mind you, I had to run an expose on the sorry state of their funding, two years ago, but even then the people were terrific. Now they've got the equipment to back them up." "That's good." He smiled briefly. "I should have known you had a hand in it." Lois shrugged. "I try to help out where I can." She paused, watching him. He was too keyed up over those sirens not to care. "I think you do, too." "I try, but..." he grimaced. "I could do so much more." "So why don't you?" "Because I want to have a *life*." Clark rose and paced over to the railing. "If I flew down there, and blew out that fire, I could save lives, maybe ... but can you imagine what the press coverage would be?" "The Daily Planet would treat you right!" she said indignantly, then paused. "Some of the others, though ... I don't know about the Star, and the Whisper would make your life hell." He waved that off impatiently. "I could deal with that, and maybe I should -- there has to be a reason I have all these ... gifts. I should be using them. I feel so selfish when I don't. But I just can't expose my family to all that." Lois let her imagination run wild for a moment, and shuddered at the thought of what a ravening pack of tabloid reporters would do to Aunt Opal. And that was assuming that no one acquired a grudge against Clark; if she as a mere reporter had gained enemies, she could only assume that he would, too. And enemies often preferred to strike indirectly -- she'd gotten one such threat against Lucy that had scared her worse than all the others, combined. "No, you can't." He turned to face her. "I sometimes still help ... sneaking in too fast to be seen, or when it's dark." "Good for you. But you have to be careful, Clark." There had to be a way around this problem, but she couldn't quite see it, yet. "I am," he assured her. "They've got the fire under control, by the way." "Good." She added lightly, "I'd hate to see Metropolis burn down the second my back was turned." His face lightened at her attempt at humor, and he sat down beside her once more. "Nope, can't have that." A comfortable silence grew as they silently watched the stars twinkle overhead. Lois felt awash with contentment, and not a bit tired. Tonight had been like a first date in some ways ... a bit more melancholy than most, but thankfully lacking in tension. Clark was so easy to talk to, and easy to listen to. She was tempted to fall back into self-pity over what she'd missed, but decided instead to focus on what she had. If she hadn't been a ghost, she'd probably have treated him as one, brushing right past him, seeing him only as her competition. At least this way, she could be friends with him. She hadn't enjoyed an evening so much in years ... she hoped he felt the same way. "It's getting kind of late. You tired?" "Nah, I'm fine. You?" "Oh, I'm doing great. I'll probably be up for hours. But you know, you wouldn't have to -- I mean, you have to work in the morning--" Clark shook his head firmly. "I'm fine, Lois. Quit trying to get rid of me. I don't need a lot of sleep, and even if I did, I'm not leaving. Not while you're still here." "Oh." Her heart warmed, and her resolve to avoid self-pity wavered. "Thanks," she whispered. "My pleasure. So, um..." he paused, apparently searching for a new topic of conversation. "You said earlier that your hand went right through things. So how did you move that file in Carpenter's office?" "Hard work," she replied lazily. "If I concentrate really hard, I can touch things. It tires me out, though." "Ah. Guess you'd better save it for the important things, then." "Probably." She glanced at him, and saw his hand lying invitingly close, on the chair's armrest. Maybe she could ... Staring intently, she studied the back of his hand for a moment before moving hers towards it. Entirely forgetting to breathe, hardly daring to hope, she let her hand hover over his for a moment, feeling his warmth even before she gathered her courage and gently lowered her hand over his. He felt warm and alive in her palm, and a tingle shot through her at the contact. Holding his hand felt almost as natural as talking to him -- not nearly the strain she had braced for. The very ease of it sent worry shooting through her -- was she just imagining this touch? She ached to ask him if he felt it, too, but the possibility of a negative reply kept her silent. Even the illusion of feeling was better than nothing. Still, she couldn't keep herself from shyly raising her eyes to his face -- to find him staring at his hand in something akin to awe. Hoarsely, hesitantly, he asked, "Lois ... is that...? I mean, are you...?" Heart overflowing with emotion, she squeezed his hand gently. "Yep. I am." He glanced up at her, managing a good approximation of eye contact. A soft smile settled over his face, an uncanny match to the one on hers. "Thank you." "My pleasure." Carefully keeping in contact, they settled back into their chairs, watching the stars in companionable silence. Eventually, Lois felt her eyes drift shut as a pleasant sleepiness enfolded her. Beyond the drowsiness, however, she felt the gentle pull of the darkness. "Clark?" she whispered. "I think it's time for me to go." He was silent, and she wondered if he had fallen asleep. Then he replied, "Okay. See you in the morning then?" "I hope so, yeah." "Good night, Lois." "Good night, Clark." Silently, as the darkness closed in, she added, 'I love you.' **** The newsroom was a somber place again the next day, the usual cheerful clatter subdued by the specter of sudden death. Clark filled his morning with some left-over paperwork for Bertie, but his mind wasn't on it. He kept replaying the memory of the previous night. He'd never had an evening that had been more enjoyable, or more heart-breaking. From the moment he'd seen her picture, he'd felt a connection to Lois Lane, and getting to know her as a disembodied spirit had only deepened that bond. She might even return his feelings ... he was pretty sure that she did, in fact, but he had no idea what might come of it all. All he'd wanted to do was to have a normal life ... a job, friends, a girl ... yet everything was complicated and tangled almost beyond recognition. He couldn't ever take her home to his parents -- he wasn't even sure he could *mention* her to his parents, and he'd never kept secrets from them before. He'd thought, when he saw Lois's picture, that he'd found his destiny. Destiny apparently had a mean sense of humor. "Clark, in my office, now!" Perry's gruff command cut across his dismal reflections, and he abandoned them gladly. "Sir?" He crossed the newsroom in quick steps, noting absently as he entered Perry's office that Ginny was away from her desk. "Have a seat, Clark." Perry directed, sitting himself behind the desk. "Now, Ginny tells me that you went to see Carpenter of Adastra yesterday. I admire initiative in my reporters, but I prefer that they have good reasons before they hare off and disturb the city's movers and shakers." Clark sat on the edge of his chair. "Chief, Research revealed that Adastra was the parent company of Rarer There. I just asked him a few questions -- has he called to complain about me?" "Well, no, luckily. But Carpenter has no love for this paper, Kent. We've only got so much access to him, and I'd prefer not to waste it on wild goose chases." "I was very polite," Clark assured his boss. "But I think he was lying to me -- he's involved in this." Perry leaned forward, his attention fully engaged. "How do you figure?" "Well, sir, while I was there..." Clark stumbled, verbally, as he tried to rewrite history on the fly. "I, ah, got a quick look at some of his files." Perry raised a sardonic eyebrow. "Do I want to know exactly *how* you got this look?" At Clark's flush, he snorted. "I didn't think so. Never mind. Just remember we only print stories that we can prove, and stolen glances aren't proof." "Yes, sir, I understand. But from what I saw, Carpenter is definitely involved in Qtun, somehow. He shipped those guns there, though -- I don't know why, yet, but I will find out." Perry considered that for a moment, then nodded. "You do that. And remember, we're a team here at the Planet -- feel free to ask for help if something comes up that you're unfamiliar with." He reached for one of the many forms on his desk, lecturing absently, "You're good, but you're still new to the city. A native guide, so to speak, can be invaluable." "Yes, sir." Clark fought the urge to grin. "I'll keep that in mind. Was that all?" "Hmm? Oh, yes, that was it. Oh, one last thing ... the memorial service will be held at the end of this week ... Dr. and Mrs. Lane are flying in. I'd sure like to have an explanation for them when they get here." "I'll do my best, sir." **** -- Pam Jernigan / ChiefPam / jernigan@bellsouth.net http://www.geocities.com/~chiefpam http://personal.rdu.bellsouth.net/rdu/j/e/jernigan/ God made you special, and He loves you very much. -- Veggie Tales theology The eye sees only what the mind is prepared to comprehend. -- Henri Bergson ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 13 Jul 2000 17:05:39 +0100 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: Tryst (7/?) MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Pam, this is wonderful, terrific, WAFFy, poignant... almost any superlative I can think of! For more detailed comments see my post on the MBs. Wendy -------------------------- Wendy Richards w.m.richards@hrm.keele.ac.uk ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 13 Jul 2000 09:32:39 -0700 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: Tryst (7/?) MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii --- Pam Jernigan wrote: > Remember, I'm taking all comments, even the ones > that tell me where I > messed up :) > Messed up? MESSED UP? Pam, you're kidding, right? I read this installment on the message boards, saw that this had arrived in my mailbox and rushed to reread it here. This is beautiful, WAFFy and totally lyrical. My biggest complaint is that I can hardly wait for more! So, when will there be more, BTW? Irene eagerly anticipating MORE! ===== www.communities.msn.com/equestrianmusic __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Get Yahoo! Mail – Free email you can access from anywhere! http://mail.yahoo.com/ ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 13 Jul 2000 17:49:18 +0100 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: When Lightning Strikes Twice: Part 26/? MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Author: Wendy Richards Title: When Lightning Strikes Twice Rated: PG-13 Part: 26 of ? Comments: much appreciated, publicly or privately. This instalment's for Helene, for reasons which may become apparent... ------------------------------------------------------------ Superman strode confidently into the police station, stopping at the front desk to ask for Inspector Henderson. Moments later, he was being ushered into a soundproofed interview room again, the dour-faced inspector with him. "You got anything for me, Superman?" Henderson asked, his melancholy visage appearing to slip momentarily. Watching him, Clark could see the lines of weariness on his face, and he realised that Henderson too had slept little in the last couple of days. But Clark shook his head. "Not since last night, sorry. I haven't tried to track Luthor down since." "Dammit, Superman," Henderson muttered. "Look, I'm sure you're doing your best, but apart from all the charges we already want to pin on this guy, I don't want him going on another killing spree. I think we were lucky he didn 't do it yesterday." "Too busy starting landslides and causing bridge collapses," Superman remarked dryly, before taking a seat at one side of the table. Henderson sat opposite him, now frowning. Deciding to level with the Inspector a little more, since he was sure the officer could be trusted, Clark explained. "This is something I try to keep quiet, but there is a substance which can kill me if I'm exposed to it for more than a couple of minutes. Even a couple of seconds' exposure diminishes my powers and causes me a lot of pain." He saw Henderson's eyebrows almost disappear into his hairline. "Luthor knows about this substance," he continued. "And he had a piece of it, last night. The only reason I'm still here is because of Jimmy Olsen's bravery. He grabbed the - thing - and jumped out of a window with it." "Olsen's safe," Henderson replied after a moment, not commenting on the rest of Superman's revelations. "I had an undercover guard posted at the hospital, like you requested - a few of my officers working as orderlies and admin staff." Clark inclined his head in acknowledgement. "That's why I haven't gone after Luthor since. I had to be sure that I was fully recovered first, otherwise I 'd have no chance against him." "And now?" Henderson asked. "I'm on the point of calling in the military here, Superman - the only reason I haven't so far is that I have no idea whether anything they have is capable of stopping them." "My guess is probably not," Clark told him. "I do have something in mind, however. Lois Lane and Clark Kent - and Perry White - have agreed to help." Concisely, he spelt out the details of the plan. "So the article will appear this afternoon, in the evening edition - the first edition normally hits the streets around three o'clock. If Luthor sees it immediately, then the confrontation should be not long after that." "Is White taking out any extra advertising to cover this?" Henderson asked. "If not, then our PR people could hype it a bit, make sure the TV and radio news picks it up. Just to make sure Luthor sees it." That sounded good, just as long as no-one had the story before the Planet hit the streets, Clark thought; Perry was already doing him a favour by printing the story - or, at least, Clark hoped it would be printed. But then, he had complete faith in Lois's ability to persuade their editor that this was important. But he noticed that Henderson was focusing a hard, questioning look at him, and he raised an eyebrow at the detective. "Okay, supposing this works, Superman, and you provoke the confrontation. What then?" Clark hesitated: here was the ultimate question again. Just what was he prepared to do in order to rid the world of Lex Luthor? "I fight him," he replied firmly, with a note of steel in his voice which, he hoped, would deter any further questions. But Henderson was too experienced a detective to be put off so easily. "With what aim?" "With the aim of overpowering him and bringing him to justice," Clark answered briefly. "Superman, you know that as long as Luthor has Super-powers no human authority has the power to restrain him. Unless you have a way of stripping him of the powers...?" Briefly Clark again considered using the Tesla coils to take the powers away again, but although it wasn't impossible he knew the chances of success were minimal. "It's... possible, but I'm not sure I could do it," he admitted. "But you can overpower him? You could kill him?" Henderson demanded. Surprised at the direct question, Clark leaned forward in his chair, his expression resolute. "I *could,* but that's not something I do." "Okay, I understand that, Superman, but in this case what choice do we have?" Clark sighed silently. The last time he'd spoken to Henderson, some time in the small hours of the morning, he'd suspected the detective was implying that he'd like to see Superman kill Luthor. He hadn't expected Henderson to spell it out this bluntly. "You're asking me to do something I would simply never contemplate - and which is illegal. You're asking me to commit murder." Henderson sighed, the intense weariness in his expression becoming more apparent. "This isn't murder - it's... it's...." "It's execution. That's what you're talking about, isn't it?" Clark interrupted as the detective sought for words to explain what he meant. Henderson blinked but didn't comment. "Look, one thing which no-one in authority has ever discussed with me is my exact status in relation to the things that I do," Clark began wryly. "I arrest criminals and bring them into custody or stop them from making their escape. That might count as a citizen's arrest, but I go further than any normal citizen. I also, it has been said, deprive people - criminals - of their civil rights by using my X-ray vision and enhanced hearing to spy on them. Now, that's illegal, but no judge has ever told me to stop. I don't have a problem with doing that, because I am not doing anyone any physical harm. But I am neither a law enforcement officer nor a representative of the judiciary, Inspector. It's not my role to decide what someone deserves. I am not a vigilante, and don't want to become one. I do not have the right to kill anyone, even Lex Luthor." Leaning across the table towards Clark, Henderson spoke rapidly. "I've had the mayor on the phone to me twice already this morning about these murders. You asked me not to tell anyone about Luthor and his powers, but let me tell you that I can't keep that promise for much longer. No-one's yet linked the murders to the mudslide and the bridge collapse and the fire yesterday, but once news gets out about Luthor and the Super-powers all hell is going to break loose. And I'm trying not to even think about what'll happen to me once my superiors find out that I knew about Luthor and what he could do and kept it quiet. They won't just have my badge, you know." "I'm sorry I had to put you in this position, Inspector," Clark cut in, his tone sympathetic but firm. "I'd regret it very much if it led to problems for you - but that can't influence me one iota." Henderson shook his head in frustration. "Superman, if you want legitimation, some form of legal authorisation, I can get onto the governor, the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, even the goddamn President if you want someone to sign a piece of paper for you. Luthor has to be stopped permanently, and you're telling me there is no other way to do it. So... what else do you propose?" Clark got to his feet. "I could just walk away from this, Henderson," he announced in a low voice. "I could tell you that I no longer consider the matter to be any of my business. After all, this isn't my *job.* I'm not employed by the City of Metropolis, or by the state, or by federal government. I'm not even a US citizen." Walking to the door of the interview room, he added, "You don't need to remind me that Luthor got his powers from me. But he isn't a free man because of me - that wasn't my doing. That was the fault of the authorities who believed for years that he was what he appeared to be, and who ignored all the shady dealings going on beneath the surface. He lined too many people's pockets for anyone to start investigating him." His hand on the door-handle, Clark fired his final shot. "But I'm not going to walk away, because I don't do that either. I *help.* And I do that because I think it's the right thing to do, and I'll keep on doing that until someone in authority tells me to stop. But I won't kill anyone. I'm sorry, but that's my final word." He meant it, Clark realised as he strode from the police station. Despite his discussion with Lois, and his promise to her that he would at least consider her arguments, he knew that one of the things Superman stood for was non-aggression. He would not, could not, kill with deliberate intent. So why hadn't he told Lois that? Because, he supposed, his conversation with her had been different. He'd been talking to her as Clark, even though they were both aware of his alter-ego - and it was such a liberating experience being able to talk to her knowing that she was in full knowledge of his powers - while his conversation with Henderson had been as Superman. It was strange, he thought as he launched himself into the air. As much as he protested that he was *Clark,* there was no doubt that he seemed to adopt a different personality when he put on the Spandex suit. It had taken him a long time to realise that, but there were many differences between Clark and Superman. And, as Clark, he might well be able to kill Luthor, given what the man had done recently. As Superman... he knew he couldn't. Which of course meant that the confrontation later that day, assuming all went to plan as he and Lois had intended, would be probably the most difficult and dangerous thing he had done. Lois had realised that, of course; while he'd assumed that her anxiety had been because she was afraid of what Luthor would do if Superman was no longer around to stop him, he'd later realised that she didn't want him to die. She *needed* him alive, couldn't bear the thought that she might lose him. Did that mean she loved him, after all? That she loved Clark, or Superman... or perhaps both of them. He *was* both of them, after all. He could hope, and he could hold that hope in his heart as he fought Luthor; it would give him additional strength and determination for the battle which lay ahead. ************** "We must come to Paris for breakfast more often, Nigel," Lex Luthor observed with a self-satisfied air as the two sauntered along a faubourg just south of the Seine. "The French are so much more civilised." And, at the moment, Luthor mused, his face was not well known in the French capital, so he could stroll around unencumbered by any disguise. "It's hardly breakfast-time here, sir," Nigel replied dryly. "Afternoon tea perhaps might be more appropriate." Lex shrugged. "The pastries taste equally good regardless of whether they're served for breakfast or tea. Don't be so pedantic, Nigel!" Nigel ignored the correction. "And do we have a purpose in coming to France, apart from sampling almond croissants and _pain au chocolate_?" "We do indeed," Luthor explained, his expression deeply amused. "It's some time since I have admired the Mona Lisa, since I lost my own copy thanks to that irritating blue-fly." "Indeed, sir. So... the Louvre, then? If I recall correctly, the museum closes early today," Nigel pointed out. "Of course it does, Nigel," Luthor replied impatiently. "Did you somehow imagine that SuperLex would queue up among... *peasants* for the privilege of gazing upon such a fine work of art from a distance of several feet? Don' t be ridiculous." "As you wish, sir," was Nigel's non-committal reply. "You may wait over there." Luthor gestured to one of the many coffee-houses which dotted the picturesque street. "And while I am gone, you may apply your mind to discovering where the interfering cartoon cut-out has taken Lois Lane. I am not prepared to wait much longer to have her. While you're at it, you can also work out how I may get my hands on some more Kryptonite. There has to be more - if it's really part of his home planet, then the likelihood is that it came to Earth with him. I want another piece by the end of the day." Nigel inclined his head. "Your wish is my command, sir." His tone, however, was tinged with sarcasm. Luthor chose to ignore it, for now; he would deal with Nigel later, once he no longer needed the older man. Nigel was far too sure of his own indispensability, which was never a good thing. The only occasions when Nigel had shown himself to be at all intimidated by Luthor's powers were when flying, and Luthor had deliberately taken full advantage of his ability to frighten the older man. Apart from that, Nigel appeared to give no indication whatsoever that he recognised his own vulnerability; the fact that Luthor could kill him with one blast of his heat vision or a single hand movement. But Nigel could wait. Right now, however, Luthor had a Da Vinci to acquire. ***************** -------------------------- Wendy Richards w.m.richards@hrm.keele.ac.uk ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 13 Jul 2000 14:27:04 -0400 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: NEW: Tryst (7/?) MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Irene wrote: > Messed up? MESSED UP? Pam, you're kidding, right? :) Hey, it could happen ... Wendy pointed out a small oops, in her more detailed message board comment :) I'm really posting this hot off the fingers, so to speak, which doesn't give me much time to re-read and revise, so some details might well slip past me... > I > read this installment on the message boards, saw that > this had arrived in my mailbox and rushed to reread it > here. This is beautiful, WAFFy and totally lyrical. Thank you. Some of that flowed directly from my unconscious onto the page, so I don't know if I should take credit or not, but I'm glad you enjoyed it... I was a little worried about that long roof-top conversation, because they covered a lot of topics, but I tried to have them flow smoothly from one to the next. Apparently I succeeded :) > My biggest complaint is that I can hardly wait for > more! So, when will there be more, BTW? As soon as I get it written! :) There's some more A-plot heavy stuff, then we wrap up the B-plot, and send our ghost and reporter off into the sunset... (or not ;) -- Pam Jernigan / ChiefPam / jernigan@bellsouth.net http://www.geocities.com/~chiefpam http://personal.rdu.bellsouth.net/rdu/j/e/jernigan/ God made you special, and He loves you very much. -- Veggie Tales theology The eye sees only what the mind is prepared to comprehend. -- Henri Bergson ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 13 Jul 2000 16:05:41 -0400 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: NEW: Tryst (7/?) Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Pam, This is justso wonderful. I admire you. Yael (who wrote her first page of fanfic today and felt very good about herself, and then reread it and felt not so good about herself). ----------------------- - Oh, god... - Zod. (Superman II) ----------------------- ______________________________________________ FREE Personalized Email at Mail.com Sign up at http://www.mail.com/?sr=signup ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 13 Jul 2000 20:47:40 +0200 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: When Lightning Strikes Twice: Part 26/? 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 Thanks Wendy, and LOL! I still resent Lex's comment ;) Although I kind of share his taste for 'croissants' and 'pains au chocolat' ;) I can't help but mention again the very funny conversation between Luthor and Nigel; Nigel's sarcasm is priceless... he's playing with Lex's nerves, here ;) As for the conversation between Superman and Henderson, I still think it's very powerful and shows that Superman has to make his decision for himself, and that he's very touchy about the subject. All of that is very in character :) And I like what you added about Henderson's superiors, it's logical that the Inspector would argue that he's putting his job on the line, here. Thanks again :) Helene :) ------------------------------------------------------ Kaethel on irc / Kaethel79 on AIM kaethel@club-internet.fr ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 11 Jul 2000 22:53:25 -0400 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Jacalyn Sue Newman Subject: Best Laid Plans Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" ; format="flowed" It's late and I'm tired... but I've got to say publicly how VERY much I enjoyed Nancy Smith's story. Take a bow! Loved the ending, too. It was perfect! Jackie Jacalyn S. Newman jacalynsue@earthlink.net ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 13 Jul 2000 18:30:30 -0700 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: New Story: Best Laid Plans--Part 12/12 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Glad you liked it, Kara. The edited version will be on the Archive in a few weeks. Nan Kass Johnson wrote: > Very well done, Nan :) > I enjoyed this twist on the series- it explored possibilites that I hadn't > thought of. Thanks for a great read. > > Kasspur ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 13 Jul 2000 18:32:12 -0700 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 Laid Plans MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit I'm glad you liked it, Jacalyn. for a while I wondered if anyone was reading it, but it appears I was wrong. The edited version will be on the Archive in a few weeks. Nan Jacalyn Sue Newman wrote: > It's late and I'm tired... but I've got to say publicly how VERY much > I enjoyed Nancy Smith's story. Take a bow! Loved the ending, too. > It was perfect! > > Jackie > Jacalyn S. Newman > jacalynsue@earthlink.net ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 14 Jul 2000 09:43:17 +0200 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: Tryst (7/?) MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Pam, this story is so ROMANTIC!!! The scene on the roof... ... never knew that a simple touch could be so wonderful! And there will be a happy ending, right? Please!!!!!!!! Nicole -- AKA CKgroupie on IRC NKWolke@t-online.de Are you always searching for news about Dean Cain? And don't you have the time to go and find them? Here's your solution: Go to "The Dean Cain News Page" http://members.tripod.de/CKgroupie/ ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 14 Jul 2000 04:12:08 -0400 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: John Debbage <106532.433@COMPUSERVE.COM> Subject: Re: NEW: Tryst (7/?) MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1 Hi Pam, I'd like to add my praises to all the others. This is a wonderful story.= = You've made me laugh and cry. And I can't wait to see how you put our favourite couple back together . . . you will put them back together? :) Please keep posting as I am trying to patiently wait for more. Yours Jenni Debbage ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 14 Jul 2000 11:54:26 +0100 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: When Lightning Strikes Twice: Part 26/? MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Helene wrote: > s > p > o > i > l > e > r > > s > p > a > c > e > > Thanks Wendy, and LOL! I still resent Lex's comment ;) Although I kind > of share his taste for 'croissants' and 'pains au chocolat' ;) Yes, me too... someone stopped me on IRC and told me off for allowing Lex to enjoy such sensual delights as _pain au chocolat_! So what is it you resent: Lex telling Nigel that the French are civilised, or his remark about not wanting to view the Mona Lisa among peasants? > I can't help but mention again the very funny conversation between Luthor > and Nigel; Nigel's sarcasm is priceless... he's playing with Lex's nerves, > here ;) True... and he might pay for it, too. ;) Thank *you*, Helene! Wendy -------------------------- Wendy Richards w.m.richards@hrm.keele.ac.uk ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 14 Jul 2000 12:11:44 +0100 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: Tryst (7/?) MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit > Yael (who wrote her first page of fanfic today and felt very good about herself, and then > reread it and felt not so good about herself). Yael, everyone has to start somewhere! And actually, it's been my experience that those who doubt their ability frequently do have talent. :) So keep writing, and show it to us some day! Wendy -------------------------- Wendy Richards w.m.richards@hrm.keele.ac.uk ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 14 Jul 2000 09:15:09 EDT 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: Message to Yael: was: NEW: Tryst (7/?) MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit In a message dated 7/14/00 7:12:58 AM Eastern Daylight Time, w.m.richards@HRM.KEELE.AC.UK writes: << Yael, everyone has to start somewhere! And actually, it's been my experience that those who doubt their ability frequently do have talent. :) So keep writing, and show it to us some day! >> I second that. In my experience as well, those who most doubt their ability usually have no need to, while frequently those who are supremely confident ("I *know* I'm a wonderful writer" should doubt theirs. ) Why don't you ask one of us to read it for you? I'm sure that many people on this list would be happy to beta-read and give you an honest opinion. Ann ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 14 Jul 2000 10:56:08 -0400 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: Message to Yael: was: NEW: Tryst (7/?) Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Thanks, Ann and Wendy, for the encouragement. My problem is I find it hard to express myself in *English*, and even harder to write things down. It seems to me I write too short, simple sentences - which make the reading boring. But then when I try to use complicated forms, like Perfect tenses or conditional sentences I feel like I'm writing an essay in my English class. Not to mention I have to use the dictionary very often. Too often. And what about all the things that aren't in the dictionary? I never know whether I can use this adjective with that noun, or this phrasal verb in that context. I know that's what editors are for, but then again I want my editor to *edit* my (hopefully-maybe-one-day-will-be) story, not to write it for me. But I still have hope!... Ann wrote: << Why don't you ask one of us to read it for you? I'm sure that many people on this list would be happy to beta-read and give you an honest opinion. >> I think I'll write more than three paragraphs and then decide. But thanks anyway. Yael. ______________________________________________ FREE Personalized Email at Mail.com Sign up at http://www.mail.com/?sr=signup ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 14 Jul 2000 18:17:06 +0100 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: When Lightning Strikes Twice: Part 27/? MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Author: Wendy Richards Title: When Lightning Strikes Twice Rating: PG-13 Part: 27 of ? Comments: very much appreciated, publicly or privately. --------------------------- <...she was infatuated with him for what he could do...> <...she going to transfer that to Clark now that she knows?> Lois lay on the narrow bed in Clark's old bedroom, eyelids squeezed tightly shut to force back the hot tears threatening to fall, as Jonathan's words echoed over and over in her head. Overhearing that conversation had been very painful; each word she'd heard had stabbed her heart as if with a knife. Not that she blamed Jonathan one iota; no, she recognised herself only too clearly in what he'd said. She *had* been infatuated with Superman, and although she'd told herself - told *him* - that it wasn't because of his powers, how was he supposed to believe that? How could he, when she worked alongside Superman every day of the week and had alternately ignored him and treated him like dirt for most of the first year of their acquaintance? And he *hadn't* believed it either, she realised with another wave of deep shame and embarrassment. After the Planet had been destroyed, she had rejected Clark's declaration of love. She had told him she needed to see Superman... and then she had told Superman that she would love him even if he was an ordinary man, with no powers at all. No wonder he'd told her he couldn't believe her. No wonder he'd looked... almost angry at her words. No wonder he'd been cold and sarcastic when he'd arrived: she'd already rejected him in his 'normal' guise and he had no doubt expected her to throw herself at his flashy, Super-powered guise. It was hardly surprising that Clark's parents were questioning the nature of her interest in their son. If she was Clark's mother, she wouldn't even let herself in the house. There was no way that Martha and Jonathan, much less Clark, would believe her now if she told Clark she loved him. And yet it was true, and she had realised how she felt about him several days ago. She'd loved him for a long time, and yet just hadn't admitted it to herself. she thought savagely, rubbing at her eyes with the back of her hands to wipe away all traces of tears. But it wasn't the powers. Admittedly, his abilities were what had first made her notice Superman, but they certainly weren't what had attracted her to him, or made her respect him so much. He used his powers for good; he hated injustice; he was a symbol of something good and pure in a world where too much was based on greed, misuse of power, corruption and sleaze. Superman stood for something which too many people had forgotten ever existed: ethics, fairness, a sense of what was right. And so did Clark... but it had taken her too long to realise that the qualities which she had admired so much in Superman were also possessed by Clark, in abundance. And that was hardly surprising, now that she knew they were one and the same. But she'd left it too late to tell Clark how she felt. There was no way he'd believe her now... oh, *why* hadn't she told him when he'd visited her in the hospital? It had been on the tip of her tongue; all she'd had to do was say the scary words: 'Clark, I love you.' Or maybe not even that, but something like, 'Clark, I realised when I was so worried about you that I care about you more than I realised....' - that would at least have opened the discussion, allowed him to respond positively if he did feel similarly about her. Or she could simply have asked him out on a date, to be arranged once all the business with Luthor was out of the way. Instead, she'd allowed him to speak first, and when he'd indicated he was leaving, she'd just let him go without telling him. There was one consolation in all this, Lois realised suddenly, inconsequentially: Clark was unlikely to be dating Mayson Drake in any serious way. Not with the way she felt about Superman. There was no way Clark would be serious about a woman who couldn't accept his _alter ego_. Either they'd have permanent arguments about Superman, or he would simply never be able to tell her - what kind of a relationship would that be? But at least Mayson had had the good sense to let Clark know she found him attractive. *She* hadn't ignored him, unlike Lois who had practically knocked him over in her haste to get to Superman. No; Mayson Drake had known what she wanted right from the start, and had been assertive enough to ensure that Clark knew it. She'd even been upfront enough to invite him to her weekend cottage in the mountains, although Clark had subsequently stood her up, which seemed to suggest that he wasn't as interested in Mayson as she was in him.... Wait a minute - he *hadn't* actually stood her up, at least not deliberately. That was the same weekend Superman had been blinded by that stupid laser pen. So Clark hadn't gone away with Mayson because he'd been stuck at her apartment while they'd been trying to find a cure for his blindness. Did that mean he would have gone with Mayson had he not been blinded? But it was pointless speculating on what Clark might or might not have done, or the exact nature of his feelings for Mayson. Lois had had her chance, and had failed to take it. The best she could hope for, for the immediate future at any rate, was to be Clark's best friend. Maybe, if she proved herself in that role, he might come to accept that she cared for him - *loved* him - for himself and not for his powers. Always assuming that he survived his planned encounter with Lex Luthor, of course. Always assuming that there was no more Kryptonite, or that Luthor didn't find some other way of getting past Clark's guard and... and killing him.... The reminder of what was indeed very possible made her shudder, and tears threatened to spill over yet again. But she forced herself to block out her fears; she wasn't doing anyone any good by brooding on what might happen. She had to trust Clark. After all, he'd been Superman for more than a year and a half now, and he'd - she assumed - had his powers for a lot longer than that. Those years of experience had to give him an advantage over Luthor. He *had* to survive; it just wasn't conceivable that there could be any other outcome. And when he came back... she would be the best 'best friend' he could wish for. And she would never give him any reason to suspect her motives, to wonder whether it was Superman she was interested in, not Clark. And then, perhaps, if *he* made the first move towards something more, there could be a chance of a closer relationship. Grimacing, Lois dragged herself into the shower-room attached to Clark's bedroom to splash cold water on her face before returning downstairs. *************** Clark Kent emerged from the elevator on the newsroom floor at the Daily Planet around noon, and immediately went in search of Perry White. He noticed that several of his colleagues were giving him curious looks; that was probably only to be expected given his almost complete absence from the newsroom over the past three days. He just hoped Perry wouldn't ask too many questions about his whereabouts this time. "Kent! My office!" The editor's gruff roar took Clark by surprise; he hadn't observed Perry coming out of the conference room, accompanied by a couple of the paper's marketing staff. "Chief - sorry I wasn't around earlier..." Clark began as he closed the door of the editor's office behind him a few moments later. But Perry waved away his apologies. "Forget it, Clark. From what I can see, you and Lois have been busy." He picked up a front page mock-up from his desk so that Clark could see it. The headline read 'Mutant Luthor-clone highly dangerous, warns Superman'; Clark smiled inwardly at his editor's choice of words. The use of 'mutant,' in particular, was sure to infuriate Luthor. "So you think Superman will be happy with this?" Perry asked. "Lois said he wanted us to run the story." Unable to contain his reaction entirely, Clark smiled. "I think Superman will be very happy, Perry. My guess is this is exactly what's needed." "Hmmm," the editor grunted. "I hope you and Lois told him the Planet's expecting the exclusive on this?" "I can't think of any other newspaper more likely to get it," Clark replied, a dry tone to his voice. Lois would never let him give the story to another paper, even if he wasn't conscious of the need to ensure his own continuity of employment through helping the Planet keep sales up. Besides, he thought in wry amusement, who else would Superman talk to? The Star? Perry lowered himself into his chair then, waving a hand at Clark to take a seat; Clark did so, wondering what was coming next and how quickly he could make his escape. There were other things he wanted to do before meeting Luthor. But the Chief's question took him by surprise. "So, Superman's going to confront Luthor this afternoon, huh? Somewhere off Bermuda?" Cautiously, Clark replied, "I think that's the plan." Perry nodded, and Clark realised in that instant that he'd said too much. "Look, Clark, I know there's more going on here than either you or Superman have told me. That's been obvious all along, and even more so once I saw that article you and Lois wrote. If the story was just Luthor coming back from the dead... well, okay, that's a pretty big story on its own, but it wouldn't have Superman in an all-fired hurry to catch him. And how would Luthor or anyone else get out to the middle of the Atlantic Ocean to find Superman?" Yes, he'd said too much, Clark acknowledged. He remained silent, however; this was a tactic which had worked reasonably well for him over the past couple of years as a means of avoiding giving away too much about himself. It had earned him the reputation of being occasionally gormless, but that, he'd reckoned, was better than letting people guess at his secret. "Come on, Kent - it's Resplendent Man all over again, isn't it? Superman never said how that guy got Super-powers. But Luthor's somehow managed to get Super-powers, hasn't he? And Superman's trying to stop him before he does any more damage?" Clark leaned forward in his seat, his voice earnest. "Chief, we can't print any of that!" At Perry's quizzical raising of one eyebrow, Clark continued, "Look, if word gets out that Superman's powers can be transferred under certain circumstances, he'll have people following him around everywhere he goes, begging for powers like his!" To Clark's surprise, Perry nodded. "I agree with you, Clark - and don't worry, I don't have any intention of putting this in the Planet. But what I do want to know is what Superman's planning to do with Luthor once he gets him where he wants him." Clark shook his head. "I have no idea, Chief." It wasn't a lie; he still had to figure that one out. "Well, he better have some ideas, I can tell you, Kent! It was Luthor who put both Lois and Olsen in the hospital, wasn't it?" Perry's expression was thunderous. "Yeah," Clark confirmed. "And I know Superman's furious about that. Luthor used both of them as bait to get Superman to come to him so he could try to kill Superman." Perry shook his head slowly. "Thank God he didn't succeed!" "Yes, but he almost managed to kill Jimmy. And I don't think he cared whether his actions killed Lois or not," Clark answered. "So - what's he going to do?" Perry asked again. "He sure better be planning to put an end to Luthor's miserable existence, is all I can say." Not again, Clark thought with an inward sigh. Another close friend, someone he respected, telling him he had to kill Luthor. He could understand Henderson's perspective, of course: the detective knew that there was simply no way the police or even the military could capture Luthor, and even if Superman himself managed to bring the man in, where was the facility which could hold him? He got to his feet abruptly. "Is there anything else, Chief? I need to be somewhere else in a few minutes." "No, no, that's okay, Kent. You go," Perry replied wearily. As Clark was walking to the door, the sound of Perry's voice halted him. "Be careful, son." He turned, frowning in puzzlement. "Chief?" "Uh... what did I say?" Perry's expression was a picture of bewilderment. "I meant, if you see Superman, tell him to be careful." Trying to control his expression, Clark thanked Perry briefly and left the office, wondering in some alarm whether his boss's slip meant what he suspected it meant, or whether it was really just a slip. If it wasn't, then apart from anything else his boss had just been trying to incite him to commit murder, not a thought he particularly welcomed right at this moment. Pushing the thought to the back of his mind - he could deal with it *later,* once he no longer had to worry about Luthor - he hurried into the stairwell. Seconds later he was on the roof of the Planet, and was airborne as Superman in under a second after that. Landing behind a storage building near the hospital where Jimmy was a patient, he changed back into his Clark clothes under cover of the shadows, and walked swiftly towards the hospital entrance. Moments later, bearing a couple of paperback thrillers and a graphic novel from the shop just inside the entrance, he made his way to Jimmy's room. Jimmy was sitting propped up in bed, much of his face purple with bruises and his pyjama jacket open to reveal thick strapping over his ribs. A cage protected his broken ankle. Thus confronted with yet more visible evidence of Luthor's evil intent, Clark swallowed, forcing back the blind rage which had resurfaced the instant he'd pushed open Jimmy's door. He'd spent a lot of time fighting that rage over the past few days, he knew. And if Luthor had been unlucky enough to run into him at particular points - for instance, just after he'd left Lois in the ER department, or when he'd pulled the body of that teenage boy out of the car yesterday, or when he'd thought Luthor had kidnapped Lois from her hospital room - it was entirely possible that he could have snapped and done something he'd regret. Something, he was realising, which many people seemed to think he *should* do. "Hey, CK! I didn't expect to see you - Perry said you hadn't been into the newsroom today!" Clark approached the bedside, controlling his expression so that Jimmy saw only a light smile. "Yeah, I haven't been around the Planet a lot over the last couple of days. But Superman told me what happened to you. He said you were incredibly brave. You saved his life, and he's very grateful." Jimmy shrugged, then winced. "Come on, CK, I couldn't let Luthor kill Superman! I had to do something!" "It was still a very brave thing to do, and Superman asked me to tell you that he owes you a pretty huge favour. He'd have told you himself, but he said you were kind of out of it when he saw you last night." "Oh well... he doesn't need to do that," Jimmy muttered, his voice sounding embarrassed; but Clark could see the delight his young friend was unable to hide completely. Handing over the books he'd brought, Clark pulled up a chair and engaged Jimmy in conversation; he was mostly being sociable, but as he encouraged Jimmy to relate the events leading up to his arrival in the ER the night before, he was hoping that Jimmy might be able to give him some clues as to Luthor's weak spots. Assuming the man had any.... But, other than Jimmy's opinion that this resurrected Luthor wasn't entirely sane - which was also his own opinion and, he gathered, Lois's - Clark learned nothing of any real help. After about twenty minutes, during which he'd had to parry Jimmy's questions about how Luthor had managed to acquire his powers, he sighed and got to his feet, making his apologies to Jimmy; he really had to get going. "Thanks for coming in, CK." Jimmy sounded pathetically grateful, and Clark wished he'd remembered to ask Perry what success he'd had in contacting Jimmy's parents. "Hey, I was glad to," he quickly answered. "I'll try to get back later if I can - and if Lois is back in town by then I'm sure she'll come in as well." "Oh yeah - where is Lois?" Jimmy asked, delaying Clark's departure. Clark sighed heavily. "Jimmy, you saw Luthor last night, you know he's got Super-powers. Superman took Lois somewhere safe so Luthor couldn't get to her again - you realise he was responsible for her getting hurt the other night?" "I hadn't realised, no," Jimmy replied slowly. "That guy's sure got a lot to answer for! I hope Superman's on his trail?" "He will be," Clark insisted grimly. "CK... if you see him, wish him luck from me, huh? You know, I really hope he's going to kill the bastard." Clark groaned inwardly; but he acknowledged that he could hardly blame the young photographer. Luthor, or Nigel St John acting on his behalf, would have killed Jimmy last night had he not managed to make his escape. Giving Jimmy a wry smile, all he said in reply was, "I don't know what's going to happen, Jim, but I know Superman's very angry. He's going to stop Luthor once and for all." Jimmy nodded. "Good." It was only as Clark was closing the door behind him on his way out that he realised how Jimmy had interpreted his comment. Did everyone think Superman' s ethics were negotiable? he wondered as he made his way to the exist. Did people think that just because other people seemed able to compromise on points of principle that Superman would do the same? Even if he took Henderson's line - and the one he'd argued to himself earlier that day - that killing Lex Luthor would represent the lesser of two evils, who was he to make that decision? Who gave him the right to decide that one person deserved to die? Superman could have the physical power over life or death for many, many people, but surely the fact that he was the only person - with the current exception of Lex Luthor - to possess that power meant that he had no right to use it? Nothing, surely, gave him the right to decide to end one person's life, even if the benefits which would flow from that death far surpassed the evil inherent in the killing? But yet, if he didn't kill Luthor and Luthor succeeded in killing him, what then? Oh, *he* wouldn't be around to see it, but the world would be left with a very, very dangerous Super-villain which it would have no means to destroy. The National Guard, bombs, nuclear weapons... all were useless against the Super-powered Lex Luthor. Nor was Kryptonite of any use whatsoever. And Luthor would take full advantage of the absence of Superman to do whatever he wanted: he would probably seize back control of his business empire, murdering anyone who stood in his way. He would destroy - or take over - the Daily Planet, most likely killing anyone who dared to criticise him. And Lois... would he just kill her, or make her his mistress first? Clark swallowed as the horror of that scenario washed over him. How could he even contemplate allowing that to happen? But, he reminded himself, Superman wasn't dead yet, and he had no intention of allowing Luthor to kill him if he could prevent it. Okay, if the man had more Kryptonite then he was in trouble, but he was pretty sure that was unlikely. The piece Luthor had had the previous night had been rather small; Clark felt sure that if Luthor did have more he wouldn't have used such a miniscule piece for his first attempt at using Kryptonite to kill the Super-hero. So there probably wasn't any more, which meant that at least it would be a fight between two men of equal strength. Okay, Luthor wouldn't fight fairly, but the whole point of luring him to the skies over the middle of the Atlantic was to ensure that there would be no-one else around for Luthor to use as a human shield. Clark told himself quickly. And he still felt sure that he could emerge the victor in a fight where he wasn't handicapped. But what did that mean? He still came around to the inescapable question of what to do with Luthor if he did manage to defeat and capture the man. He couldn't personally hold him prisoner for ever. So just what were his options? As his closest friends had been telling him all morning, there really was only one option. And if Superman did kill Luthor, what would that make him? A murderer? How would Superman be regarded from here on? Would he be treated with the same degree of trust and respect as before, or would he from then on be regarded with suspicion? Would people wonder whether, having killed before, he could kill again? He couldn't do it. No matter how many people pleaded with him to consider it, no matter how many advantages would flow from it - even if the President of the United States personally asked him to do it, he would not kill Lex Luthor. What he was going to do, right now, was to fly out over the Atlantic, down to a deserted island in the Bahamas, and soak up some sun to boost his strength for the hour or so before, he imagined, Luthor would come in search of him. *************** -------------------------- Wendy Richards w.m.richards@hrm.keele.ac.uk ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 14 Jul 2000 22:17:40 +0100 Reply-To: LabRat Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: LabRat Organization: LabRat Subject: Re: Message to Yael: was: NEW: Tryst (7/?) MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Yael wrote: > Thanks, Ann and Wendy, for the encouragement. > My problem is I find it hard to express myself in *English*, and even harder to write things down. It seems to me I write too short, simple sentences - which make the reading boring. But then when I try to use complicated forms, like Perfect tenses or conditional sentences I feel like I'm writing an essay in my English class. Not to mention I have to use the dictionary very often. Too often. And what about all the things that aren't in the dictionary? I never know whether I can use this adjective with that noun, or this phrasal verb in that context. > > I know that's what editors are for, but then again I want my editor to *edit* my (hopefully-maybe-one-day-will-be) story, not to write it for me. > Don't let the fact that you're writing in a second language phaze you either, Yael! There are already some fantastic fanfic writers out there - Nicole Wolke and her German RR Team, Helene Varlet and Chiara Prato to name just a few - who have produced excellent fanfic. Those of us who are privileged to beta-read their fic for them do suggest changes of phrasing now and then and advise them on translation here and there when they're stuck on a particular word or phrase, but by no means do we rewrite their fic for them and the stories remain uniquely their own. To be honest I'm frequently awed by their command of a language not their own. I threaten them often that one day I'll write something in French or Italian and then they can laugh themselves silly. ;) Stories by all of these authors have been and will be firmly in my nominations folder for Kerth awards. So, don't see language as a barrier to writing - just as a learning process. Even the best writers continue to learn. And I know that I learn too from beta-reading the fic that Helene and Chiara awe and enthrall me with. It's a two way process. Enjoyable too. :) Just find yourself an editor you trust and go for it! LabRat :) ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 14 Jul 2000 23:25:28 +0100 Reply-To: "yconnell@ukf.net" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: yconnell Subject: Re: NEW: Tryst (7/?) MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Pam, Just a me too :) It's a wonderful idea, and I'm enjoying it tremendously. And Jenni said: > Please keep posting as I am trying to patiently wait for more. > I know you haven't been well lately, Jenni, but I, too am *trying* to wait patiently for more Red Sky! You've left me hanging by a thread, and I can't stand it! I keep having to make up my own continuations to the story just to stay sane ;) Yvonne (yconnell@ukf.net) ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 14 Jul 2000 21:55:42 -0500 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: Re: New Reference Site Wow, Dawn and Lab, I just had a chance to look at this. Nice site! I can see how this could become a great place to send newcomers to, to show them the various fanfic sites out there. Of course, in my opinion, the Archives list should come first ... No, seriously, I know this started out as a summary of Zoom's boards, so I say great job! One question ... how are the stories organized on the list of the Gfic MB? They aren't alphabetized by author or title ... they aren't organized by completed/incomplete ... and they don't seem to be by date. The note says for authors to check out their listing, but I can't even find mine. Any help? Kathy