From: "L-Soft list server at Indiana University (1.8d)" To: "ARTF@MemoryAlpha.nil" File: "LOISCLA-GENERAL-L LOG0007C" ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 15 Jul 2000 00:48:54 -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: NEW: The Legend of Norcross and Judd (2/?) MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Rachel, Just read parts 1 & 2 and enjoyed them very much. Can't wait until you post more. merry ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 15 Jul 2000 14:04:02 +0100 Reply-To: LabRat Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: LabRat Organization: LabRat Subject: Re: New Reference Site MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit > 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? > At the moment, Kathy, the Index is organised more or less by date of post. Since all that I did originally was start with story one on the last board at the time and work backwards until I got got to the last story on board one, entering each story as I went, it couldn't help be otherwise. ;) The next update (scheduled to be on site by Monday, with luck) will expand the list to include all links to story parts. After that, I've mooted the idea of working on switching to an alphabetical list - by author or title, hasn't been decided yet. In the meantime, by entering your name into the 'find on this page' facility on my pc, I found WFBL almost instantly. Hope that helps. :) LabRat :) ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 15 Jul 2000 10:57:09 -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 Thanks, Lab. I hadn't thought of using the "find" feature on Netscape. Good idea. Though I believe the gfic version is only 13 parts; it's the nfic version that in 14. (I had messed up on my early labeling, forgetting to change the final part number when I'd post to the gfic boards -- on my computer, I had it broken into 14 parts for the nfic, and I was editing out the 'n' as I posted.) I'm glad to hear the chart will be alphabetized, and I think Wendy's suggestion of adding a column to indicate whether the story is up on the Archive is a great one. I'll look forward to seeing the new version. Didn't know what you had gotten yourself into, eh? Kathy ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 15 Jul 2000 17:07:18 +0100 Reply-To: LabRat Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: LabRat Organization: LabRat Subject: Re: New Reference Site MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Kathy wrote: > Thanks, Lab. I hadn't thought of using the "find" feature on Netscape. Good > idea. Though I believe the gfic version is only 13 parts; it's the nfic > version that in 14. (I had messed up on my early labeling, forgetting to > change the final part number when I'd post to the gfic boards -- on my > computer, I had it broken into 14 parts for the nfic, and I was editing out > the 'n' as I posted.) Don't worry, you weren't alone. ;) It was a little confusing at times trying to figure out parts when I hadn't read the story, but any part numbering errors should have been picked up in the update, because I was often able to get a better overview when I went through doing the links for each part and figure them out more clearly. > > I'm glad to hear the chart will be alphabetized, and I think Wendy's > suggestion of adding a column to indicate whether the story is up on the > Archive is a great one. I'll look forward to seeing the new version. > Links to the Archive are already included in the update. The Lurker - who I thank for doing the research on that one - estimates that fully half of the fic on the mbs is also on the Archive. Which isn't bad going. > Didn't know what you had gotten yourself into, eh? > Actually, it's a been repetitive and boring enough task that it's helped me get back into the groove with writing. I think I've had more ideas suddenly pop into my head for my wip working my way through the links this week than I have in the entire year so far. So, I'm not complaining any!! In fact, any more ideas out there...bring 'em on! ;) LabRat :) ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 15 Jul 2000 13:26:39 -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 (24/2?) (John & Lois & Clark & Joan, Part 24) [Metropolis, Near EPRAD Mission Control] [Thursday, August 26, 1993, 12:25 P.M.] Lois was still a little mad as the transport re-entered through the Earth's atmosphere. The biggest story of the century, and she hadn't been able to get it. The people in charge at the Prometheus Space Station, and those in EPRAD, hadn't been happy about the fact that a reporter had been able to get on board the transport, without authorization, and that she had afflicted damage on some of the circuitry in the main panel. But since this same reporter had helped to prevent another tragedy, of which it could have forced the cancellation and dismantlement of Prometheus, a deal had been made. They would not charge her with any crimes if she returned to Earth with the shuttle crew today, and if she did not report anything on what she had seen on the space station. Reluctantly, she had agreed. After all, she couldn't continue as a reporter if she was in jail. Lois Lane had not been scooped by any other reporter since her fiasco with Claude. She could take solace, however, in knowing that there were no other reporters staying at Prometheus. Before she had left the space station, she had extracted promises from a couple of the colonists for exclusive interviews, so the story hadn't been a total loss. As Liz Cochrane had once said, "You're only good as your next story." Perhaps Lois had broken the three rules that the older reporter had given to her, but Lois had at least taken *these* words to heart. The Prometheus story would wait, for now, but her next big story was waiting for her back on Earth. Apparently, Clark had lifted the entire shuttle into space. All 3 million pounds of it! After she had fainted, she had come to minutes later in a compartment where there had been a group of baffled colonists talking about. "How had they been able to go into space after all?" they had asked among themselves. "How come had there been no sounds of the engines?" "If the crew hadn't been piloting the shuttle, who had it been?" It wasn't until later, after the transport had been docked, when some of the scientists had reported seeing a man in blue and red hanging on to the shuttle, and then flying into shuttle to brief with officials. 'What was it that Clark couldn't do?' Lois had asked herself. She hadn't had time to ponder this question, however, because she had been escorted to the Prometheus officials and then had to explain to them about her presence at the station. Now, as the transport was making its final approach to EPRAD, Lois pondered this question. Clark would definitely be of help to the citizens of Metropolis. The last she had heard, Metropolis had the third worst crime rate in the country, not far behind Central City and Gotham City. Once he began to use his powers publicly, Lois knew that the criminal element would be scrambling to find a way to eliminate him. Her mood darkened, she shivered involuntarily at the thought. Okay, perhaps she was being cynical in thinking that Clark could be hurt in some way. But Lois had just found him, the love of her life, and she would do anything to protect him. Besides, she hadn't become the reporter she was by being glowingly optimistic. She didn't care if she was thinking as if she was a mother hovering over her chicks. On the other hand, the same criminal element of Metropolis had tried to get rid of her, but without success. And she didn't have any powers. She had her wits, she had her charm, and she had her luck. Adding these with Clark's powers... well, maybe they'll be okay. Lois hugged herself as she waited for the final touchdown on one of EPRAD's runways. She found herself missing him, and that to her was unbelievable. She had met him ten days ago, had seen him almost every day until Tuesday, and now it had been a little over 48 hours since she had last seen him and she *missed* him? Yet another indication on her how strong her feelings were towards him. Sighing, she waited impatiently in her seat. * * * * * * * * At the same time the shuttle was landing, Clark was flying quickly to EPRAD, wearing his costume for the first time since Tuesday. Despite the new suit, he had felt a little uncomfortable using his powers publicly; it wasn't something he was used to doing. He had left Prometheus right after he had docked the colonists' transport and had briefed with transport's crew. Clark had said nothing to explain his actions, only to explain what repairs were needed on the shuttle. He had flown away from a see of people wide-eyed with amazement and disbelief. Heck, if he were normal, he wouldn't have believed it himself if he had seen a person do what he had done. Regardless of whether this had been the best time to debut with the disguise, he had a suspicion that there had been a problem with the colonists' transport, and he had to investigate. He tried to reason with himself that he didn't do that because he had known that Lois was there, but he failed. Now there were four people that he had to protect. His parents, Lois, and Joan. Yes, Joan. He might be out of her life now, but he couldn't help but worry about her. He had received a letter from her yesterday, telling him that she had gone to Quebec, Canada as part of some teacher's exchange program. It had appeared that another teacher was to go, but he had a serious illness and Joan was asked instead. Clark had considered that to be highly irregular, since Joan had been on sabbatical the previous year. But what did he know about schools behind the scenes? Clark had wanted to warn her: if there were a chance someone knew Clark's identity, Joan would become an instant target. But Joan was smart; she wrote that she had known the possibility existed ever since she had found out about him, and she assured him that she would be careful. Despite those words, Clark was still worried. Now that Lois knew, and now that he was beginning to use his powers publicly, Clark felt more protective towards her than ever. Yes, Lois was more than able to protect herself (and he knew that she had done so before they had met), but Lois was still vulnerable to bullets, fists, and all sorts of other weapons. So far, Clark had not found anything that could hurt him (physically, of course, since he had already known what a broken heart was like), and he hoped that it would stay that way. What Clark had to make sure was that he not so overbearing that Lois would resent him. Easier said than done, however, as he admitted to himself. 'So what happens now?' he asked himself. He wasn't wondering about the relationship; that he had an idea. Lots of dating, lots of doing things together, and hopefully, sometime in the future, marriage. No, he was wondering about this new identity he was assuming. There had been staggering amounts of press coverage about the mysterious man flying a shuttle into space, supposedly under his own power. It had been partially because of the press that Clark had not done anything in public with the suit since then. He wanted to talk to Lois about it. He hovered high in the sky so as not to be detected, he waited as the shuttle made its landing down at EPRAD. 'Perhaps today would be a good day to make another appearance,' he mused. * * * * * * * * Lois steeled herself as she reached the doorway to the transport. Already she had heard a commotion outside, signaling her that the press was waiting for statements from the crew, as customary for anyone returning from space. She knew that once they saw her, however, they would bombard her with questions, as it was not yet known that a *reporter* had went up into space. Peering outside, she saw that the stairs were a little steep for anyone to step forward properly; as on cue, one of the crew members, after glaring at her for a moment, turned around and stepped out of the transport, with her back to the press. At least that gave her a few extra seconds before she would be recognized. Lois emerged from the entrance with her back to the press as well. Immediately she could her murmurs throughout the crowd; it had been known that the crew had consisted of five men and one woman, and that woman had already stepped out. She took a step down, waiting with dread for someone, anyone, to shout her name. It was a good thing she had put her hair up in a business-like ponytail (it was different than her normal hairstyle), she realized. Suddenly, before she could take a second step downwards, there was a sonic boom, and a gust of wind. Just like that, before the eyes of the reporters gathered around the shuttle, the mysterious woman had disappeared into thin air. To Lois, first there was disorientation. Then there was recognition. Then there was mild panic (mild for Lois, anyway). A minute ago she was on the stairs, not quite ready to meet her firing squad. Now, she was in the air, nestled in Clark's arms. She gripped her arms around his neck like a vise, knowing that it wouldn't hurt him, worried that she might fall. As if he was reading her mind, Clark spoke softly. "Don't worry, Lois. I've got you." Finally she found her voice. "Clark! What are you doing?" "Taking you home," Clark replied casually. "I meant, is there a reason why you scooped me away and scared me to death?" she asked. "I could tell you didn't want to face them," he said quietly. Now Lois was curious. What powers hadn't she seen yet? "You could tell? How? Don't tell me you can read minds..." "No, nothing like that," Clark assured her. "It's just..." Suddenly he began to blush. Lois caressed his face. "What is it, Clark?" she asked gently. "Well, you know I have super-hearing," he explained. "And, I sort of, well, listened to your heartbeat. It was beating pretty fast, so I figured you were anxious about something. Was I wrong?" He looked straight ahead and avoided her gaze. She smiled softly at him, and reached over to kiss his cheek. "That was sweet. And no, you weren't wrong. Just don't make a habit of it, okay? If you had been wrong, well, you know what I'm like when I'm mad..." Clark held Lois closer to him, feeling a wave of tenderness. "Okay, deal." For the first time Lois dared to look around her, seeing the wisps of clouds everywhere. She began to relax in his arms, realizing more and more that she trusted him. No longer was the experience scary. It was... enlightening... uplifting... exciting... "So why did you come in the suit?" Lois asked, breaking the silence. "I was thinking about what happens next," Clark said, not really answering her question. "I, um, didn't do anything in public since Tuesday." "Why not?" "There's been a lot of questions about me. The press coverage was unreal, Lois. I haven't talked to anyone yet, and I wasn't sure what I wanted to do next." Clark sighed as he made his descent towards Lois' apartment building. To her puzzlement, they landed on the fire escape right outside her window. "I used my X-ray vision and found this window unlocked," Clark explained matter-of-factly. Once the two of them were inside Lois' apartment, Clark closed the window. When he turned around, he found Lois undoing her ponytail and straightening her hair out. It was a simple gesture, but it left Clark momentarily speechless. The smallest of sighs escaped his lips. Lois looked up, and noticed that he was looking at her. "What?" Clark blinked, and blushed again. "It's just that... you're so beautiful," he said, almost in a whisper. As if in a trance, he moved towards her. Lois, touched by his words, could not move. She looked away, feeling a bit shy. "You really think so?" she asked. Clark gently took hold her face, forcing her to look his way. Their lips inches apart, Clark answered, "I know so." With that, he closed the distance and kissed her. Lois immediately wrapped her arms around his neck, reveling in feeling the softness of his lips against hers. Perfect, sweet, and gentle, she realized quickly that it wasn't enough. She then took the offensive, attacking his mouth, probing it with her tongue, and communicating that that was what she wanted. Clark dutifully responded with a passion that matched her own. Lois moaned in response. It had only been two days since they had last seen each other, yet they were acting as if they hadn't seen each other in weeks. Finally they both parted, Clark breathing heavily ('Breathing heavily?' Lois asked herself. I thought he could hold his breath for a long time...'), and Lois feeling dazed and breathless. She knew that addictions were usually bad, but she found herself addicted, addicted to Clark, and she knew that she wasn't going to let him go. But, it was still afternoon, and it was time to earn their pay. "You're going back to the Planet right now as Clark, I assume." "Yeah. 'Clark' was on a lunch break," he responded. "Don't go in as Clark yet," Lois said. "I have an idea..." * * * * * * * * -- Felix E. Sung fsung@justice.loyola.edu ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 15 Jul 2000 16:39:59 -0500 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Wendy Richards Subject: When Lightning Strikes Twice Part 28/? MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1 Author: Wendy Richards Story: When Lightning Strikes Twice Rating: PG-13 Part: 28 of ? Comments: very welcome, publicly or privately. -------------------------------------------------------- Lois took a deep breath and pushed the kitchen door open, hoping that her earlier distress was no longer showing on her face. Jonathan was still sitting at the kitchen table, while Martha was putting the finishing touches to a salad. =93Lois, honey, I was just about to call you down for lunch,=94 Clark=92s mo= ther said cheerfully, her expression openly friendly. Whatever they thought of her for chasing after Superman, it was evident that Clark=92s parents didn=92= t intend to hold it against her. They seemed to accept her as Clark=92s friend= , and she was grateful for that. =93Sorry - I got caught up in finishing off what we were doing earlier, and lost track of time,=94 she apologised, crossing her fingers behind her back for the white lie. =93Yeah, Clark said you two put together some story for the Planet to try to= flush Luthor out,=94 Jonathan interjected slowly. =93Do you think it=92ll wo= rk, Lois? I mean, you know the man better than any of us.=94 =93Jonathan!=94 Martha exclaimed warningly. =93I=92m sorry, Lois, just ignor= e him...=94 Lois shook her head ruefully. =93It=92s okay, Martha. Jonathan=92s quite rig= ht, I do - did - know Lex Luthor pretty well. Or at least I thought I did - I found out after I=92d called off the wedding that I really didn=92t know him= at all.=94 =93Yeah, Clark told us you had no idea what he was really like,=94 Jonathan replied sympathetically. =93He and the others had a tough job coming up with= the evidence to prove the guy was a crook. In public he always seemed so squeaky-clean.=94 =93Lex is good at maintaining facades,=94 Lois said dryly. =93But he=92s als= o very proud of his reputation, and he hates not getting what he considers to be his share of the credit for things. So I think he=92d hate the suggestion that he=92s only a clone of himself - and not just a clone, but a mutated on= e at that.=94 =93I just hope Clark knows what he=92s doing,=94 Martha commented grimly. Lois kept her thoughts to herself, however, and smiled - she hoped - reassuringly. =93He seemed pretty confident. And - well, okay, I=92ve only just found out that Clark=92s Superman, but I don=92= t think I=92ve ever seen Superman confident without cause.=94 =93He=92s never been up against someone this powerful, and this evil, before= ,=94 Jonathan pointed out. =93Clark will be fine. He has to be,=94 Martha said firmly as she served lunch. =93There=92s no point sitting around here and borrowing trouble befor= e it happens. He knows his powers and what he can do, and he=92s got the advantage of Luthor there. And since there=92s nothing we can to do help, we= have to do what he wants us to do: stay here and get on with things. He=92ll= come back as soon as he=92s able to and let us know what=92s happening.=94 Martha was right, Lois knew, but she wished that she could convince herself of it. Sitting around and waiting had never been Lois=92s way: she preferred= to be in the thick of the action, or at the very least somewhere on the fringes getting enough information to write her story. Here in Smallville she had no idea what was going on, couldn't even be there to watch Clark - although, she asked herself silently, would that make it any easier? Even if she could see what was going on without Luthor being able to make use of her presence, could she stand to watch Clark fighting for his life? It had been bad enough watching Superman struggling with Luthor, but somehow it seemed an entirely different ballgame now that she knew it was Clark under the costume. Superman had always been a little distant and formal; she'd never really known him. She knew Clark, though; she'd worked with him every day for the last year and a half. And despite his secrets, there was still a lot she knew about him. She understood his vulnerabilities, the things which made him upset or angry. And she loved him. No, she couldn=92t bear the thought of watching him fight Luthor. But yet she felt so helpless, so *frustrated.* Lois was not used to being in this position, and it was made far worse by the fact that it was *Clark* who was in danger. And yet there was nothing she could do. She=92d been through all the options in her mind: using her contacts to get to the President and asking him to call out the National Guard or the military, sending war-planes down to the area over the Bermuda Triangle so that they could shoot at Luthor before he even got near Superman. But Clark had already made it clear to her that Luthor was as invulnerable as he was. Therefore there was nothing which could hurt him - not even Kryptonite. she prayed over and over as she forced herself to eat, unwilling to allow Clark=92s parents to see just how sick with worry she was. He *had* to be okay. The world needed Superman - he couldn't just get killed, surely? The consequences of Luthor winning were unthinkable; and she=92d already faced the thought of a life without Clark once. She couldn't bear the thought of facing it again. Unable to choke another mouthful down, Lois excused herself to go and watch LNN; concentrating on the TV news might, she hoped, stop her mind from dwelling on the possibility of Clark=92s death at the hands of Lex Luthor. A= s she took a seat, pale-faced, in front of the TV in the living-room, she failed to overhear Martha=92s comment to Jonathan as the older couple starte= d to clear away the lunch debris. =93Now try telling me that young woman is only interested in Clark because he=92s Superman, Jonathan!=94 *************** Luthor gave a grunt of satisfaction as the satellite he=92d just kicked shot= several yards away from its intended orbit. Causing destruction of this nature gave a small measure of relief for his frustration, but it still wasn=92t enough. He swooped back down to the roof of the LexTel building where he=92d deposited Nigel St John a few minutes before, landing with a flourish and, this time, managing not to get his domino entangled around his ankles. =93You=92ve finished playing football, sir?=94 Nigel=92s enquiry was superfi= cially polite, but Luthor recognised the sarcasm underneath. Nigel was getting far too tiresome, he considered, and once again debated the merits of simply killing his assistant here and now. It would be a very satisfying thing to do; terminating the existence of his former enemies the other day had given him a taste for the ease with which he could end someone=92s life with the advantages of Super-powers. There were a number of methods he hadn=92t even tried yet, and it would be interesting to experiment on Nigel. Could he, perhaps, freeze the Englishman? Would that kill him instantly, or would he be in some sort of suspended animation until the external cold seeped through and caused arteries to rupture? Would it be a slow, painful death akin to exposure? Would Nigel be alert and capable of sensation through any of the process? And what would happen if he - for example - kicked or dropped his associate=92s frozen form? The ice would shatter, but would the frozen body underneath do likewise? It was almost too tempting to resist the experiment. But Lex stopped himself; he still needed Nigel at the moment. Once Superman was dead, and there was no longer any need to hide himself, to resort to disguises, to send an errand-boy to carry out tasks for him, *then* he could use his imagination in any way he wished. Nigel=92s days were definitely numbered, and the former spy would pay for his insolence. But just because he was sparing Nigel=92s life for the time being did not mean that the former spy could escape his censure altogether. He glared at the older man, a freezing stare which, in the good old days, would have had its recipient quaking in his shoes. =93Why have you not found Lois Lane yet, Nigel? This inefficiency is not lik= e you, and I won=92t accept it.=94 =93You haven=92t exactly given me time to go in search of her, sir,=94 St Jo= hn pointed out acerbically. =93In any case, do we not have more important thing= s to deal with than a mere woman?=94 =93Lois Lane is not a mere woman,=94 Luthor snapped in return. =93She is she= er physical perfection to gaze upon, despite her treacherous heart. She was also mine, and will be again.=94 He paused, reflecting for a moment on the way Lois had looked at him when he=92d found her in her apartment: the apparent lack of fear in her eyes, the way she'd stood up to him, challenged him. Yes, it would be a pleasure to strip her of her too- independent nature, to teach her to obey his commands... until he tired of her, too. =93You will find her, Nigel.=94 =93As you wish, sir. But I fail to see the urgency in any of today=92s activities so far. Why waste time and energy in acquiring a painting, or seeking out a woman who rejected you once before, when the greater exigency lies in destroying Superman?=94 =93The Mona Lisa is a work of art, and one which I desired to possess,=94 Luthor mused aloud. =93She also bears a striking resemblance to my Lois... the hair, the composed expression, her air of complete independence and cool detachment, the eyes which seem to capture one=92s every movement. With= Lois, I long to rip away that cool facade and teach her the ways of passion and submission. Until I can do that, I need other ways of seeking distraction.=94 Rising up into the air suddenly, he reached down and grabbed St John=92s upper arm to tow him behind. =93As for Superman, the alien appears to have gone into hiding - no-one has seen him since last night. I am not optimistic enough to assume that I was successful in killing him, but it is certainly possible that he has gone somewhere to overcome the effects of the Kryptonite.=94 =93Then this would seem like a good opportunity to flush him out and kill him,=94 Nigel shouted above the sound of rushing wind. =93You surely don=92t think he would fall for the same ploy a third time?=94= Luthor retorted scornfully. =93Of course I could abduct someone like that minnow Kent - and it would give me great pleasure to do so. I could never understand Lois=92s fondness for the fool. But even Superman isn=92t so stup= id as to come flying to the rescue again knowing that he would be placing himself in my hands.=94 =93Then create another distraction!=94 Nigel snapped in return. =93Start a f= ire, tear down a building - the Daily Planet, perhaps. We know the alien seems to have some regard for that publication, for some reason. I cannot believe he would stand by and see that building suffer serious damage and the people inside it get hurt. He will appear, and you can make your move while he=92s otherwise occupied.=94 The idea appealed, Lex thought; he=92d been considering extracting revenge o= n Perry White, and this would suit the purpose admirably. Nigel did occasionally have some good ideas, he considered, altering his course to take them in the direction of the Planet building. Landing on the roof, he dropped Nigel onto the flat surface while he considered his next move. Floating above the front of the building, he gazed downwards; the Planet globe caught his eye. That symbol was an affront to his sensibilities, he decided with a furious twist of his lips, and he immediately flew lower. The globe was affixed to the front of the building with a few metal supports; it was the work of a few seconds to sever those supports with his heat vision. Then, before the globe could work itself loose, he pushed it viciously and watched in satisfaction as it landed in the middle of the road, causing immediate traffic chaos. As he straightened, he was conscious of a momentary twinge of pain in his hand, almost as if he=92d been scratched by the metal, but he dismissed the possibility. He was invulnerable, after all. About to rejoin Nigel, something caught his eye; in a flash he shot downwards, grabbed a copy of the Planet=92s evening edition from the newsstand just outside the building, and flew back upwards, reading it as he went. Flinging the newspaper at Nigel, he growled angrily, =93Look at that! The *insolence*... how dare they!=94 =93Mutant Luthor-clone highly dangerous, warns Superman,=94 Nigel read aloud= , his voice carefully neutral. =93Oh, I see it=92s by Clark Kent and Lois Lane= ,=94 he added in seeming surprise, a faint emphasis on the second reporter=92s name. =93They=92ll pay for this!=94 Luthor snapped, now pacing about on the roof. = =93If Perry White is still alive at the end of this day, he will rue the day he ever agreed to run this... this pack of lies in that rag he calls a newspaper!=94 =93So Lane and Kent think you=92re a clone,=94 Nigel drawled. =93Lois knows I=92m no clone,=94 Luthor retorted. =93Either she's been duped= into running this article, or she=92s part of the conspiracy - =94 =93Conspiracy, sir?=94 Nigel enquired, a supercilious note in his voice agai= n. =93Yes, conspiracy, Nigel! By that devious, interfering blue freak! He=92s behind this, that=92s obvious to anyone except an idiot!=94 =93Yes, it is apparent that Superman has had some role in this,=94 Nigel agreed. =93But perhaps you should stop and consider just what it is he is trying to achieve by it. It would be my guess that he has some ulterior motive in mind.=94 =93I don=92t care what he has in mind. He won=92t live to carry it out!=94 L= uthor stormed. =93But do consider, sir. This is most likely a deliberate ploy to provoke you. We should take our time and reflect as to the most effective way of dealing with him - perhaps the most sensible response to this rubbish is to ignore it entirely,=94 Nigel argued, his tone more reasonable than it had been for some time. But Luthor was in no mood to listen to reason. He snatched the newspaper out of Nigel=92s hands and scanned the article again. =93He will pay for thi= s!=94 he pronounced. =93This time, he will die.=94 =93Lex, calm yourself!=94 Nigel snapped furiously. =93This will get you nowh= ere!=94 Luthor spun around to face his colleague, fury in his expression. =93Do not presume to order me around, Nigel!=94 With one lash of the back of his hand,= he sent the older man flying backwards, to land in a crumpled heap and a groan on the flat concrete of the roof. Staring scornfully down at his assistant, Luthor curled his lip cynically. =93Shakespeare understood my frustrations so well, Nigel - =91Wh= en we are born we cry that we are come to this great stage of fools.=92 I have had enough of fools, and I am about to rid myself of one more of them.=94 With that parting remark he shed the heavy domino and mask and took off, setting his course for the Florida coast and Bermuda. **************** ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 15 Jul 2000 17:56:47 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 28/? MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit This is great, Wendy. Anon, anon, please. LaurieD ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 15 Jul 2000 19:34:08 CDT Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Jessi Mounts Subject: NEW: To My Love (1/1) Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; format=flowed To my love, If I told you, Lois, that I never wrote a love letter until I met you, it would be a lie. I wrote dozens. I traveled the world and saw more beauty and absurdity and despair and joy than I ever imagined could exist. I always knew I was looking for something, and I always swore to myself I was finding it. Everywhere I looked there was wonder; and if I could share that wonder with the people I passed by, what could be better than that? But somehow, in the middle of all that, I found myself writing letters to the one woman I could never find. Oh, not a soul ever saw them on paper, including me. I probably looked pretty ridiculous. This tall, gangly American, completely oblivious to the crowd jostling him, gazing off into nothing. It was never nothing to me. I wanted to share my life with her, whoever she was. Until I could find her to tell her that, this would have to be it. And just when I'd stopped looking, convinced myself she was only a figment of my imagination, the most incredible woman I'd ever seen in my life burst through the door. She was vibrant, and she was fiery, and she was passionate, and she was wonderful, and she was you. You, Lois. Always you. Do you know when I fell in love with you? Well, okay, it was about twenty seconds before Perry said "Lois Lane, Clark Kent." But do you know when I actually admitted to myself that I loved you, would always love you as long as I lived? It was about a week after I met you, and by some great miracle, you'd agreed to have breakfast with me. You were supposed to pick me up at eight, but at 7:43 I gave up staring at the clock, and at 7:44 you were answering the door. You wore one shoe, not a bit of make-up, and these two curlers the size of grapefruits. You looked beautiful. Apparently, you weren't quite so thrilled to see me. One screech and an "I said *eight*, Clark!" later, all I had to admire was wood grain. And at eight o' clock on the dot, you emerged, laughing, ready to take on the world. You laughed. Well, that's when I lost it. The world could've crumbled at my feet, and I probably wouldn't have noticed, as long as I could hear you laugh. People say unrequited love is supposed to be torturous, but I don't believe it. You teased me when I needed it, even if I didn't agree. You showed up at my house, making strange demands at three in the morning. You laughed yourself into tears with me, and you listened when I thought my world was falling apart. And, without even meaning to, you reminded me that my world could never fall apart because you were there. For the first time in my life, someone understood. *You* understood. Sure, it was frustrating that friendship was all there was to it, but torture? Never. I love you. I don't think I could say that enough to tell you how much I mean it. I don't think there *are* any words that say that. I wonder if anyone would believe how downright dull Superman's life could get. Oh, sure, I can fly off to the Amazon at any given moment. As long as that moment doesn't happen to be in the middle of the ambassador of Uzbekistan's speech. You think a city hall press conference is boring? Lois, you have seen nothing. The man is the ultimate cure for insomnia. Forget counting sheep. Just listen to a recording of this guy. But as Superman, of course, I'm supposed to be a role model for the world at large. Looking bored is impermissable; snoring is forbidden. But there's no rule that says I can't let my thoughts drift. And last month, as usual, they drifted to you. When I come home, you'll be there. Do you have any idea how wonderful that is to me? When I wake up, you'll be there. Every day for the rest of our lives, you'll be there, Lois Lane! There is nothing better than that. Inevitably, with thoughts like this, a silly grin creeps on to my face, whether I'm watching you sleep or watching the ambassador of Uzbekistan. The tabloids speculated for weeks about why a coma-inducing speech could possibly inspire a goofy smile on the face of the Man of Steel. It's you, Lois. Always, only, you. My world still falls apart sometimes, Lois. I held a little girl in my arms, a girl that I was just a second too late to save. One second. I'd have given almost anything for that one second. She was six years old, Lois. Such soft, tiny hands. I've had to learn to face almost any disaster head-on and not flinch, but to look that girl's mother in the eye and explain I was just a second, a *second*, too late... If it weren't for you, Lois, I'd fall apart. If you hadn't been there when it was all over, if you hadn't held me... I need you to go on living. There just isn't any other way to say it. I need you. Joy is real, and tragedies are bearable, and I'm not just living, but *alive*, because you are there. I love you. I will never stop loving you. I want to keep anyone from ever hurting you, and I want to make you laugh. I want to make your life as wonderful as you've made mine. Lois, you are my friend, my joy, and my strength. There is *nothing* in the world better than that. I love you. More than I can ever say, I love you. Clark ________________________________________________________________________ Get Your Private, Free E-mail from MSN Hotmail at http://www.hotmail.com ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 15 Jul 2000 17:38:02 -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: To My Love (1/1) MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Lovely, Jessi. Pure WAFFiness. I'm looking forward to reading more from you. Irene ===== www.communities.msn.com/equestrianmusic __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Get Yahoo! Mail – Free email you can access from anywhere! http://mail.yahoo.com/ ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 15 Jul 2000 20:46:39 -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: When Lightning Strikes Twice Part 28/? MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=iso-8859-1 Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable Another section, how lovely... :) s p o i l e r s p a c e > =93Do you think it=92ll work, > Lois? I mean, you know the man better than any of us.=94 > = > =93Jonathan!=94 Martha exclaimed warningly. =93I=92m sorry, Lois, just = ignore > him...=94 > = > Lois shook her head ruefully. =93It=92s okay, Martha. Jonathan=92s quit= e right, I > do - did - know Lex Luthor pretty well. Or at least I thought I did - I= > found out after I=92d called off the wedding that I really didn=92t kno= w him at > all.=94 > = > =93Yeah, Clark told us you had no idea what he was really like,=94 Jona= than > replied sympathetically. = Does Jonathan realizing he's contradicting himself here? Either she knew him, or she didn't... > =93Now try telling me that young woman is only interested in Clark beca= use > he=92s Superman, Jonathan!=94 Yes, quite ;) Shame she didn't hear it, though... (and have you been using omniscient POV throughout? Can't remember) Definitely friction with Nigel... > As he > straightened, he was conscious of a momentary twinge of pain in his han= d, > almost as if he=92d been scratched by the metal, but he dismissed the > possibility. He was invulnerable, after all. Unless, of course, the effects are fading? > =93Oh, I see it=92s by Clark Kent and Lois Lane,=94 > he added in seeming surprise, a faint emphasis on the second reporter=92= s > name. I could *hear* that line so clearly, in my head... good job. So finally Nigel is giving Lex good advice, and Lex is too pissed to take it? Ah, hubris... Well, now all we need is a nice tropical vacation ... I hear Bermuda is nice this time of year... ;) -- = 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, 15 Jul 2000 18:03:30 -0700 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Wendy Subject: Unsubscribe MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Please unsuscribe me from the list. thank You, Wendy __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Get Yahoo! Mail – Free email you can access from anywhere! http://mail.yahoo.com/ ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 16 Jul 2000 00:54:12 -0400 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: lisa a cox Subject: quick question MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit I forget, how long before Clark and Lois met did Clark date Lana Lang? And, where did they meet? (I think it was college, but my memory is hazy) Lisa-Ann Cox ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 16 Jul 2000 07:49:16 -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: When Lightning Strikes Twice Part 28/? MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1 On Sat, 15 Jul 2000 20:46:39 -0400, Pam Jernigan wrote: >Another section, how lovely... :) Thank you! :) So where's Part 8 of Tryst, then? ;) >s >p >o >i >l >e >r >s >p >a >c >e > >> =93Do you think it=92ll work, >> Lois? I mean, you know the man better than any of us.=94 [snip] >> =93Yeah, Clark told us you had no idea what he was really like,=94 Jonath= an >> replied sympathetically. > >Does Jonathan realizing he's contradicting himself here? Either she >knew him, or she didn't... Well, she did and she didn't... and maybe Jonathan doesn't realise the apparent contradiction. ;) Happens to us all! >> =93Now try telling me that young woman is only interested in Clark becaus= e >> he=92s Superman, Jonathan!=94 > >Yes, quite ;) Shame she didn't hear it, though... (and have you been >using omniscient POV throughout? Can't remember) I knew *you'd* pick up on that one! No, I've never used omniscient POV in this story (or any other) but I couldn't think of another way to include that line without a switch to Martha's POV, which I didn't want to do. So I slipped it in and hoped no-one would comment... :) >Definitely friction with Nigel... Oh yes. :) >> As he >> straightened, he was conscious of a momentary twinge of pain in his hand,= >> almost as if he=92d been scratched by the metal, but he dismissed the >> possibility. He was invulnerable, after all. > >Unless, of course, the effects are fading? No comment! >> =93Oh, I see it=92s by Clark Kent and Lois Lane,=94 >> he added in seeming surprise, a faint emphasis on the second reporter=92s= >> name. > >I could *hear* that line so clearly, in my head... good job. Thank you! :) I was hoping that line would work, so I'm very happy that you commented on it. >So finally Nigel is giving Lex good advice, and Lex is too pissed to >take it? Ah, hubris... Indeed! I assume you mean 'pissed' in the American sense, for which we on the other side of the pond would say 'pissed off'? You know what 'pissed' means over here, of course? >Well, now all we need is a nice tropical vacation ... I hear Bermuda is >nice this time of year... ;) Could be, could be... ;) Thanks again, Pam, and you too, Laurie. Still a few parts to go, I'm afraid; next part on Monday, with an illustration which will be posted on the MBs. I'll supply the URL for those who want to look... Wendy ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 16 Jul 2000 09:43:34 -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: Re: When Lightning Strikes Twice Part 28/? MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit > >Another section, how lovely... :) > > Thank you! :) So where's Part 8 of Tryst, then? ;) Still percolating on my hard drive, but coming along... > I knew *you'd* pick up on that one! POV patrol, that's me but I do understand the difficulty. And I have used omniscient POV when I wrote my S5/S6 episodes ... when you're imitating a TV camera, you can peek in on everyone :) Or so I rationalize > Indeed! I assume you mean 'pissed' in the American sense, for which we on > the other side of the pond would say 'pissed off'? You know what 'pissed' > means over here, of course? Err, um, yes or at least I think I do. No, he's not drunk, so he must be angry ... drat this tricky language! > Still a few parts to go, I'm > afraid; next part on Monday, with an illustration which will be posted on > the MBs. I'll supply the URL for those who want to look... Ooh, illustrations! Cool... -- 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, 16 Jul 2000 11:40:51 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: quick question MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit In a message dated 7/16/00 1:06:59 AM Eastern Daylight Time, lisaanncox@JUNO.COM writes: << I forget, how long before Clark and Lois met did Clark date Lana Lang? And, where did they meet? (I think it was college, but my memory is hazy) >> Lana was from Smallville. She and Clark dated while in high school. I don't believe that Rachel Harris exists in the comics. The show had to use her for a high school girlfriend because of who owned the rights to the Lana Lang character. Ann ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 16 Jul 2000 21:15:45 -0400 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: lisa a cox Subject: Re: quick question MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit On Sun, 16 Jul 2000 11:40:51 EDT "Ann E. McBride" writes: > In a message dated 7/16/00 1:06:59 AM Eastern Daylight Time, > lisaanncox@JUNO.COM writes: > > << I forget, how long before Clark and Lois met did Clark date Lana > Lang? > And, where did they meet? (I think it was college, but my memory is > hazy) >> > > Lana was from Smallville. She and Clark dated while in high school. > I don't > believe that Rachel Harris exists in the comics. The show had to > use her for > a high school girlfriend because of who owned the rights to the Lana > Lang > character. > > > Ann so, on the show, Lana and Clark dated in HS......did it mention how long the dated? I need some info for a story, and I don't have the episode Lana was in on tape. Lisa-Ann ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 16 Jul 2000 20:28:31 CDT Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Jessi Mounts Subject: Re: NEW: To My Love (1/1) Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; format=flowed Irene said: >Lovely, Jessi. Pure WAFFiness. I'm looking forward >to reading more from you. Thanks, Irene. :) Jessi ________________________________________________________________________ Get Your Private, Free E-mail from MSN Hotmail at http://www.hotmail.com ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 16 Jul 2000 21:36:19 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: quick question MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit In a message dated 7/16/00 9:15:30 PM Eastern Daylight Time, lisaanncox@JUNO.COM writes: << I need some info for a story, and I don't have the episode Lana was in on tape. >> I don't believe it said on the show how long they dated or how old they were at the time. The episode where Lana is mentioned is Tempus, Anyone. I believe that they had known each other for years, having grown up together. You might want to check out some of the Superman lore on Zoomway's site. She might have that information there. But it will probably be from the comics. Lana only got mentioned once on the show. Ann ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 16 Jul 2000 21:42:58 -0400 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: lisa a cox Subject: Re: quick question MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit > > I don't believe it said on the show how long they dated or how old > they were > at the time. The episode where Lana is mentioned is Tempus, Anyone. > I > believe that they had known each other for years, having grown up > together. > You might want to check out some of the Superman lore on Zoomway's > site. She > might have that information there. But it will probably be from the > comics. > Lana only got mentioned once on the show. > > Ann Okay, kewl, then I have pretty much free reign to do what I want =) I knew the ep was Tempus, Anyone, but I don't have the ep on tape =( But, as long as on the show, she and Clark dated in HS, I can have them even going as far as dating in college too =) Lisa-Ann ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 17 Jul 2000 10:48:49 -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 (8/?) MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Thanks to Wendy, Ann, and Chris for beta-reading this section :) Tryst part 8 by Pam Jernigan Clark returned to his desk, trying to think of some way to prove Carpenter's involvement. He knew full well that what little they had wouldn't stand up in court -- what judge would listen to testimony from someone who'd been talking to ghosts? They needed to get those files legally, and the only way to do that was with a warrant. Maybe Lois knew someone in the Metropolis police force who'd be willing to help out, but he doubted it. There had to be a way. Otherwise, Carpenter would get away with murder, and that was simply unacceptable. Clark took a deep breath, willing himself to calm down. This problem had to be approached rationally. To distract himself, he thought again of last night's roof top conversation, choosing to focus on the positive aspects. It had been a beautiful night, one he thought he would remember for the rest of his life. It had been surprisingly easy to tell her about his childhood; he regretted that the sirens had interrupted and forestalled her own stories. From what few hints he had, he surmised that her family life was not ideal, though she seemed close to her sister. How strong she must have been, to emerge from a tumultuous childhood with a passion for justice, and her sense of humor intact. Maybe later today he could encourage her to open up some more. The more he thought about it, the more he felt that Lois should at least try to make contact with Lucy. Lois might be dead, but she wasn't altogether gone, and surely Lucy would prefer a piece of her sister to nothing at all. Clark certainly did. Not that he wouldn't trade nearly anything to have her alive again.... **** Lois regained consciousness with her own words ringing in her ears. 'Good night, Clark ... I love you.' Had she really said that? Had she even *thought* it? She'd known him for less than a day, really. It must just have been the intimacy of the setting, looking out over the city, together in the sheltering night. Or possibly left-over exhilaration from being able to touch his hand. She hadn't said that last part out loud, had she? Alone in the darkness, the reality of her circumstances weighed heavily on her. She didn't know why she was still in this world at all, or how long she would remain. The ever-present light beckoned, a little bit stronger than before, and she somehow knew that if she crossed that threshold she would not return. No, she wasn't willing to leave Metropolis and the remnants of her life behind just yet. And Clark Kent was the main reason she didn't want to go. Not only because he was able to interact with her, although that was wonderful, but because *he* was wonderful, and something about him spoke to her on a level so deep she might never have heard it amongst the everyday hustle and bustle of her life. Stripped of her usual distractions, she was able to see him clearly. He was a good man, the kind of man she'd always subconsciously hoped for, but had long ago given up on finding. She felt again the wash of loneliness that had assaulted her under that tree in Qtun. It had broached her carefully-constructed defenses, made her vulnerable. And she was very much afraid that she had fallen in love. 'Just what he needs,' she told herself viciously. 'A ghost who's in love with him. That'll make him very comfortable, won't it.' Even though he'd be far too polite to say so. Although.... Pausing, she had to admit that he had seemed to have some feelings for her, as well. Maybe he'd even grow to love her, if she could keep from making him crazy in the meantime, and they had managed to touch. She wondered absently how much energy it would take to sustain a more full-body sort of contact, and whether it would become easier with practice ... A sharp jolt of pain in her chest shocked her. Looking around, she realized that she'd gotten much too close to the light. Or it had gotten too close to her, whichever. The pain eased as she hastily backed away, her fantasies crumbling. Even if Clark was interested in her, it would hardly be fair to encourage him. He needed someone else to love -- someone with a pulse, for starters. She would help him get this story, but then she would have to try to be more independent. Lois Lane had never depended on a man before, and she wasn't about to start now. Maybe she could get through to Perry, or to someone else. With that decision firmly in mind, she began the trip towards the Daily Planet newsroom, feeling the now-familiar sensation of rushing forward as the darkness slipping past picked up color and solidified, and she had arrived. Looking around, she saw that it was morning. Good, not too much time wasted. She spied Clark at his desk, and moved across towards him. 'Business, Lois,' she reminded herself sternly. 'We will be all business.' Still, as she came up behind him she couldn't resist the temptation to experiment, and lightly reached out to touch his shoulder. Clark jumped slightly, and turned around, only to frown as he saw no one. "Good morning, Clark," Lois greeted him briskly. "Ready to talk to Alan?" He relaxed as he realized it was her, and smiled a bit before getting his face under control. He turned back to his desk, pretending to be engrossed in his paperwork. Softly, he replied, "I'm ready whenever you are. So where do we find him, anyway?" "AlphaDynamics has their main facility on Washington and Fifth. He does something with statistical analysis -- he explained it in great detail, you understand, but I was busy plotting my escape so I didn't really pay much attention." "Do you know his phone number?" "Yeah, it's in my -- oh." Worry struck, along with frustration at yet another limitation. "It's in my rolodex. They haven't packed up my desk yet, have they?" "Don't think so," he reassured her. "But I've got the main number," he indicated the Adastra annual report, "so all I really need is his last name." Lois composed herself. "That, I know. Langstrom." It was on the tip of her tongue to recommend that he try to snag her rolodex -- she kept most, though not all, of her contacts listed there, and it would be an invaluable resource to him. On the other hand, if she gave it to him, that might imply they had a future working together, and she wasn't sure that was a wise idea. "Okay, then...." He picked up the phone and dialed. Lois let her attention wander as Clark went through the tedium of setting up an immediate meeting. The newsroom still seemed rather subdued, although it was beginning to get back to normal. She spied Ginny Olsen returning to her desk from the direction of the ladies room, looking pale, and her heart went out to her friend. Ginny had always been nice to her, although Lois was guiltily aware that she hadn't always been kind to Ginny in return. Not that there was much she could do about it now. She turned her attention back to Clark, and found him hanging up the phone. After a second, though, he picked up the handset once more, keeping an unobtrusive finger on the switchhook. "You still here?" "Yep. When do we get to see him?" "In an hour. I don't know if you were listening--" "I wasn't," she confessed. He grinned briefly. "I thought not, you were being way too quiet. Anyway, I told him I wanted to ask him a few questions about your relationship. He seemed a bit flustered, but not guilty, you know?" "Alan never feels guilty, he just likes making *other* people feel guilty," she groused, but at his raised eyebrow she relented. "But no, I don't think he was directly involved. He's an accountant, for pete's sake!" His grin returned, more adorable than before. "That doesn't prove anything," he replied, "even accountants can--" Abruptly, he stopped, looking at something behind her, and composed his features. She turned to see Ginny approaching. Clark muttered a quick, "Talk to you later," then hung up the phone, turning to face Ginny. "Hi, Ginny, how are you?" "I'm managing," Ginny replied. "I just came to let you know the details about the memorial service for Lois. We should be getting her ... remains, and effects, in a few days, so we've planned the service for Saturday. You're invited, but attendance isn't mandatory." Lois shivered at the mention of her remains, and found refuge in black humor. "Ask her if you can bring a date, Clark -- I can't wait to hear the eulogies." A spasm of distaste crossed Clark's face. Ginny frowned slightly. "Well, if you're not going to be there, we could use some help getting a paper printed that day." "No, I'll be there," Clark corrected her, his eyes slightly narrowed as he glanced around the empty air. "I just, um, hate funerals." Ginny sighed. "Who doesn't? And speaking of unpleasant chores, have you gotten those extra boxes yet, for packing up her apartment?" "Ah, um, no. I've been busy, um ... editing stories for Ralph." That distracted her. "He's got you editing for him? He's supposed to be showing you around the city!" Clark shrugged, feigning innocence. "He said he needed some help. And believe me, he did." "Of course he did," she muttered, looking more annoyed all the time. "But he should be working *with* you. I'll soon straighten him out." "Ah, good idea. I'll just keep working on this gun-running story, and check in later, okay?" She waved acquiescence, already half-way across the room towards her prey. Lois chuckled. "Ralph is *so* dead meat." Clark shot an annoyed glance in her general direction. "I thought *I* was dead meat, thanks to you." She sobered, aware that she'd made him look like a jerk. "I'm sorry. I just have a hard time hearing about...." He sighed, looking slightly guilty. "I know. It's just frustrating." He glanced around the newsroom, then at his watch. "Come on, let's get over to see your boyfriend." **** They made the trip in strained silence. Clark tried to analyze the change in Lois today ... she seemed more distant, somehow. After last night, he'd thought they might have reached a new understanding, but perhaps it had all been an illusion. Of course, he hadn't helped matters by venting his frustration at her -- she was just trying to deal with a macabre situation as well as she could. He wasn't comfortable with the picture Ginny was getting of him, but if he couldn't conceal his reactions better than that, it was his own fault, not Lois's. He'd learned to hide a lot of things in his lifetime; this would just be one more to master. "This is it," Lois said quietly, and he looked up to see AlphaDynamics' corporate logo adorning a glass-fronted office building. They entered, and a few moments later boarded a sleek elevator. Once the doors closed, Clark seized the moment. "Lois, I'm sorry ... I know this is a bizarre situation." "Yeah, it is," she admitted, thawing slightly. "Let's just get the story, and get through this week." It wasn't quite the reconciliation he'd been hoping for, but with a soft chime, the elevator stopped, delivering them to Alan's floor. A vigilant secretary came over to greet him, and helped him find his way. "Mr. Langstrom, I'm Clark Kent," he greeted, holding out his hand. Alan rose from his seat to absently shake hands, then abruptly pulled back. "You're the one who was in Lois's apartment yesterday!" Funny, it seemed longer ago than just yesterday... "Ah, yes, I was. I apologize for my conduct on the phone -- I had just received a bit of a shock." Alan reseated himself, motioning Clark to a chair on the other side of the desk. "So why were you in her apartment, anyway? I don't remember her mentioning you." "No, we hadn't met -- I was just there as a favor to a friend." He shrugged dismissively as he sat down. "Mr. Langstrom, I have a few questions for you if you don't mind." Alan eyed him suspiciously. "All right." "Well, I wanted to know ... did Miss Lane tell you that she was going on a trip?" "Yes, of course." "And did she tell you where she was going?" "Well, not at first." Alan relaxed a bit, and warmed to his favorite subject. "She's so bashful about her work at times." Clark ducked his head, faking a cough to cover his instinctive laughter. Lois, bashful? Were they talking about the same woman? Beside him, he heard a slightly embarrassed Lois murmur, "I thought it might discourage him if I never talked about anything. No such luck." He cleared his throat and faced Alan again, face once more under control. "But you say she did open up eventually?" "Indeed. Slow and steady wins the race, you know -- or in this case, the woman." Alan winked in a gesture that was no doubt meant to be manly camaraderie, but which only emphasized his inner geek. "I see. Well, ah ... may I ask exactly how much she told you?" Alan pursed his lips. "Just that she was going to Africa on some big story -- she refused to tell me what it was, exactly. She did mention the Congo, and Qtun City. I do hope the story pans out for her; she was so excited about it, and I know her confidence must have been sorely shaken after that pulp mill fiasco, upstate. She bungled that one rather badly, so she really needed a good story to reassure herself." Lois was quietly reciting, "I will not kill him, I will not kill him," and interrupted herself to add, "Clark, nod your head to show me that you understand that this dimwit hasn't got a clue." His lips twitching, he nodded. "Mr. Langstrom, what do you know about Qtun City?" Alan's brows drew together. "Not much at the time. After she mentioned it, I did a little research, you know, talked to a few friends. It's amazing, but in a city this size it seems easy to find someone who knows something about ... anything, really." Clark's heart sank at the mention of a few friends; following this trail might not be as straightforward as they'd hoped. But he didn't want to fluster Alan, so he made himself ask casually, "And did you find someone?" Alan smiled happily. "Yes, it was my friend John -- I should have known, really. He's a goldmine of information." "John who?" Lois demanded. Clark echoed her, in a more controlled tone. "John who?" Alan looked blank. "John Carpenter, of course." "YES!" Lois crowed triumphantly. Clark winced, and even Alan seemed a bit startled. "I say, did you hear that?" "Hear what?" Clark asked, somewhat curious as to how Lois was perceived by others. "Oh, a faint, short noise...." Alan shook his head. "Probably just those maniacs in marketing, upstairs. Never mind that. You come in here asking all these questions, and I want to know why. What has happened to Lois?" "Ah. Well, you see, two days ago, while Lois was in Qtun, she had ... an accident." He hesitated, reluctant to spell it out when Lois was right there. "It's okay, Clark," she assured him wryly. "It won't come as a shock to me." Alan was staring at Clark in confusion, with a touch of fear. "What? What kind of accident?" There was no way around it. "A fatal one. Her Jeep blew up, and we suspect sabotage." Alan went white, and for a moment Clark feared that he was about to faint. "Alan?" "I'm okay," Alan whispered, closing his eyes and breathing deeply for a moment. "I'll be fine, I just ... I never thought ... I knew her job was dangerous, but I didn't really expect--" "It's been a shock to all of us," Clark said, feeling a spark of genuine empathy for the man. "Me included," Lois interjected. Clark dared a shushing gesture at her while Alan's eyes were closed. "I'm sorry to be the bearer of bad news, Mr. Langstrom, but I'm investigating her death, and the story that may have led to it. So, you discussed this with Mr. Carpenter?" Alan nodded, staring past Clark, not quite focused on the here and now. "Do you think I shouldn't have? It's just that I didn't know quite what to make of her leaving, and John's always given me good advice in the past." "Really?" Clark prompted as neutrally as he could. "I've known John for a while now," Alan rambled. "He's my boss, really, but we're members of the same club, too. And ever since I met Lois, I was so unsure of what to do -- he's been wonderful. He kept encouraging me to call her -- Lois tried to tell me that she wasn't interested, but John said that just meant she was unsure of her feelings, and that I should just be as reassuring and persistent as I could. She was so beautiful..." "I don't believe it," Lois muttered, with a strong suggestion of clenched teeth. "Not only is he a pathetic loser, he's a spy, too." Clark frowned at her. Alan had obviously been a victim here, too, and even if his feelings hadn't been returned, they were still real to him. "So I've heard, Mr. Langstrom." Alan pulled himself together a bit, focusing Clark with a beseeching look. "Shouldn't I have mentioned it to John? I know he's not fond of her work, but that doesn't mean..." Clark grimaced. "Well, you see, I talked to Mr. Carpenter yesterday, and he said he had no knowledge of Miss Lane's trip. Would you be willing to state otherwise, for the record?" Alan blinked in confusion, then straightened. "I would. If I've done anything to harm Lois, I will never forgive myself; the least I can do is help uncover the truth." "I appreciate it, Mr. Langstrom," Clark replied softly. "And don't be too hard on yourself, you had no way of knowing. And we don't even know yet that Carpenter was involved, so this may all be a wild goose chase. All the same though ... please don't mention any of this to your friend John." "Oh, no! Certainly not. You needn't worry." "Thank you." Clark stood, and shook Alan's hand. "I'm sorry for your loss," he added sincerely. "Yes, well, yes," Alan muttered somewhat disjointedly as Clark left. As they entered the elevator again, Lois sighed. "Sometimes I hate it when I'm right." **** -- 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, 17 Jul 2000 18:01:39 +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: When Lightning Strikes Twice: Part 29/? 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: 29 of ? (possibly 35) Comments: very much welcomed and appreciated, publicly or privately This part has also been posted on Zoomway's Message Boards (as usual) but this time it is illustrated, thanks to Pam and Yvonne. Barring technical difficulties, the picture should be visible within an hour or so at http://www.zoomway.com/boards/ubbhtml/Forum5/HTML/003041.html --------------------------------------------- Waiting for something to happen... it was a state which was almost unbearable, Clark thought. He'd been trying to suppress for some time the impulse to look yet again at the watch he wore hidden under the sleeve of his Suit. He didn't need to look at a watch to know the time; where he lay floating yet fully alert on the edge of the tiny clouds which fluttered Bermuda, he could guess the time pretty accurately from the position of the sun. He had been here for over an hour now, and if his estimate was correct, the Planet's evening edition would be hitting the streets about now. It had seemed much longer than an hour, this waiting; but it was what he had needed, despite his state of nervous tension and anticipation. Not only had his immersion in the sun's rays had its usual effect on him, rendering him alert and feeling at his most powerful, but he had spent the time thinking, without distraction. He had needed time to plan his strategy, to anticipate his opponent's moves and to work out how to gain the upper hand. But he had also needed to confront the demons within himself, those insistent voices which had been telling him, with the help of his closest friends, that he had to kill Lex Luthor. He had come to realise, at last, why he had deliberately not raised that subject with his parents; it was because he had been afraid that they, too, would tell him that he had to kill. He could take that injunction from Henderson, from Perry White, from Jimmy Olsen and not allow it to bother him too much: they, after all, did not have a very close acquaintance with Superman. Lois did, and her pleas that he kill Luthor had hurt him, because she should have known both Superman and Clark well enough to realise that what she asked was impossible; unthinkable. If his parents had urged the same course of action, it would have been a far worse betrayal. They had known him since he was a small baby; they'd watched him grow up and had instilled in him their own values and morals, which he still prized dearly. They helped him to retain a sense of normality in what, for him, had ceased to be a normal life when he'd been ten and had first started being... different. They were the solid foundation on which all of the massive uncertainties in his life found some degree of stability. So he hadn't been able to bear the possibility that his parents might have turned to him and told him that Superman should kill. He still hadn't come up with an answer to the inescapable question: once he managed to subdue Luthor, what would he do with him? But what was absolutely certain in his mind was that he would *not* kill. No matter how murderous he felt towards Luthor, no matter his degree of hatred because of what the man had done and would propose to do, he would not kill him. Clark knew that this left him - and the world - faced with an impossibly dangerous threat. Luthor would not leave the field in honourable defeat when bested in battle. He would make his escape, if permitted, and would return to fight again, when he was sure that the odds would be in his favour. And in the meantime he would do whatever he wanted - more abductions, murders, destruction of land and property. The logical solution would be to ensure that Luthor could not escape alive; but logical solutions took no account of ethics. But nor did ethics take any account of worst-case scenarios, Clark thought bleakly. What if Luthor flew away from here today and then destroyed half of Metropolis? What if he assassinated the President? What if... he found Lois? The nightmare returned, in full technicolour: Lois, at Luthor's mercy, beaten, raped, and barely alive. Or worse, dead. And if he'd let Luthor go when he could have ended the man's campaign of terror before it had even started, it would be *his* fault. With a jolt, Clark realised that none of the people who had tried to convince him to kill Luthor had used that argument. Henderson had possibly come closest, but it was likely that the detective had recognised Superman's anger and decided to desist before he pushed the Super-hero too far. Clark had told himself that he couldn't live with Luthor's murder on his conscience. Perhaps he should have asked himself if he could live with the consequences of Luthor staying alive on his conscience. Before he could explore that thought any more closely, a dark speck on the horizon caught his attention. The time for thinking was over, he realised; the enemy was approaching. *************** Anger; furious, white-hot rage. Such feelings had been simmering within Luthor since two days earlier, when Superman had managed to get the better of him and had forced him to sacrifice his captive, Lois, to escape. His emotions had threatened to boil over the night before, when he'd had Superman in his grasp and under the influence of Kryptonite; then he'd been foiled by the actions of a worthless boy. And now, that libellous article which the alien freak had somehow managed to persuade his friend Kent to put into the Planet had brought Luthor to the point of eruption. Superman was somewhere near Bermuda; he would find him and kill him. SuperLex didn't need Kryptonite to rid himself of the interfering bluebottle. He had strength enough to match the alien's, after all, and he would tear the freak limb from limb. He would rip the clownish Spandex suit from the alien's torso, exposing his body to the world's view, and then hurl the lifeless, shattered body of the former so-called Super-hero through the front window of the Oval Office at the White House. And then, he would start his campaign for world dominance. No-one would resist him; after all, he could kill at a single glance. Against the azure blue of the sky, he thought he could see a flash of a deeper blue; he wasn't sure, and so he concentrated. Yes, it was Superman; there was a flutter of red behind him. The idiot was there: a sitting duck. Increasing his speed, Luthor flew towards his target, his heat vision activated. If he was quick enough, a couple of swift blasts should take his victim off guard and make his task much easier. **************** The figure dressed in black, but without the cloak, was easy to spot against the clear blue sky and deeper blue of the sea beneath. Clark saw the instant Luthor put on a burst of speed, and mentally readied himself for combat. The flash of red, as the black streak came closer, was not unexpected, and he moved himself almost lazily out of the way. As an indication that he didn't intend to be an easy target, he sent a blast of heat vision of his own back towards Luthor, aiming at the man's left shoe. It fizzled, flared briefly and then melted, dripping away from its wearer's foot. He hear a roar of anger and frustration from the older man, and immediately steadied himself for Luthor's attack. His opponent launched himself straight at him; but Superman employed the old matador's trick of sidestepping, and he smiled faintly as Luthor's momentum took him half a mile beyond his intended target. He knew he wouldn't get away with such tactics indefinitely, and it was no real surprise when the edge of his cape flared suddenly; without looking down, he quelled the flames with one hand while focusing his entire attention on Luthor. Luthor was circling him now, looking for an opening to mount an attack. Again, Clark was grateful for the man's taste in apparel, since the black clothing Luthor preferred was highly visible against the tropical sky. Lois had been right, he realised idly; choose his own time and place. Luthor's own attacks had been at night, in dark places, where it would be much easier for him to hide in the shadows. Suddenly a foot launched itself towards him in a vicious kick. But Clark's reactions were too quick, and before Luthor had made contact with his body Clark had reached out and grabbed his attacker by the ankle. Holding tightly, he shot upwards, towing Luthor behind him, and then went into a triple somersault. He felt Luthor struggling, but Clark's response had clearly taken him by surprise and it was obviously difficult to counteract the momentum. As quickly as he'd started spinning, Clark stopped and instantly released Luthor; the man fell several hundred feet before regaining his equilibrium. "I'll tear you limb from limb, you freak!" Luthor yelled, rushing back up to where Superman floated, waiting for him. "You'll have to get a good grip first," Clark drawled in return, favouring Luthor with one of his supercilious Superman-talking-to-criminals looks. He' d recognised that his opponent's anger was making him careless, and decided that the most effective strategy was to fan the flames of Luthor's temper. The longer he could avoid any direct hand-to-hand combat the better, too: let his opponent wear himself out rushing about, charging at Superman and missing each time. Another Super-speed charge from Luthor; another fast-as-lightning sidestep from Superman, and this time he managed to trip up Luthor as the man hurtled past him. The sight of his opponent tumbling head-over-heels in mid-air made Clark laugh aloud despite the tense situation, and he was unable to resist taunting Luthor further. "Haven't quite managed to keep your balance yet? You should have asked me for flying lessons!" Luthor, panting now, edged closer again, his expression murderous. "You won' t be laughing when I've finished with you, you damned alien!" "I'm not ashamed of being an alien, Luthor!" Clark responded fiercely. "I'm proud of who I am - can you say the same?" "Shut UP!" Luthor yelled, and launched forward again. Clark was about to dodge, but this time he felt a burning sensation on his forehead. He'd completely missed Luthor attacking him with heat vision again. The momentary loss of concentration that caused enabled Luthor to make contact, and suddenly the two were wrestling. Luthor was desperately trying to get one hand around Clark's throat, while using his free hand to prevent Clark getting a grip on the hand clutching at his neck. Clark shot into another somersault, but this time Luthor clung on, and as they came upright again Clark found himself being towed upwards at an alarming rate. However, the closer they got to the sun, the stronger he felt; and he also noticed his opponent blinking as the sun's rays hit his eyes. He shook Luthor off him easily, readying himself for the next attack. For close to two hours the two men fought, at times circling each other from a distance, at other times wrestling violently with each other, at other moments catching their breath and readying for the next bout. If he had set out with the intent of killing Luthor, Clark thought after a while, it would have been easy: he got the better of his opponent in most of their struggles, but he was forced to allow Luthor to free himself rather than deliver a killing blow. the small voice of temptation urged him as, out of breath, he watched Luthor gather strength for the next attack. <*I don't work like that!*> he insisted, kicking out ferociously as Luthor tried to grab him around his waist. This time Luthor was aiming for more vulnerable areas on Superman's body, and Clark used every muscle he possessed to shake the man off before he succeeded; if Luthor even managed to wind him, the man would break his neck in seconds. The struggle went on for several minutes; Luthor was considerably more agile than Clark would have given him credit for, and he hung on to the Super-hero's lower body like a limpet. It took far more effort than Clark had reckoned on to push Luthor away, and he had to pause and catch his breath again. Just for an instant, he lost sight of Luthor, and in that instant his opponent saw his chance. Hands locked around Clark's throat and squeezed. Clark grabbed at the hands gripping him, trying to loosen Luthor's grasp. But Luthor had finally managed to get a secure hold and he had no intention of letting go. Trying a different strategy, Clark threw himself backwards and surged upwards, but Luthor still clung on; by now Clark was barely able to draw breath. He wasn't too worried about that: after all, he could hold his breath for twenty minutes. But he could feel the pressure on his trachea, on the bones which supported his neck, on his spine.... He launched a backwards kick, but hit only thin air. He tried again to seize a firm grasp of Luthor's hands, and succeeded in securing one wrist in a vice-like hold. He pulled, and slowly, inexorably, Luthor's left hand came away. Remembering a move Lois had once shown him, Clark pulled hard on Luthor's left arm and managed to throw his opponent forward over his shoulder. He was free; he could breathe again. Luthor was upright and floating in front of him again within seconds, breathing heavily. But something caught Clark's eye... a flash of deep red. The back of Luthor's left hand was bleeding, from several gouges. Clark glanced swiftly down at his own hand, and immediately noticed the traces of blood and skin under his fingernails. But... if Luthor was invulnerable, no matter how strong he himself was, he shouldn't be able to gouge lumps out of Luthor's flesh.... Unless.... Clark caught his breath in wonder. Unless the power transfer wasn't permanent... unless Luthor's powers were fading! Even as he watched, he saw Luthor follow his gaze and see the injury to his hand and wrist, the blood flowing fast and freely from what must have been an artery. The former head of LexCorp stared in disbelief. "What the...? How is this possible...?" "If my guess is right, you're losing your powers," Clark called to him. "I don't think this is the safest place for you to be - " "Then I have to kill you *now!*" Luthor yelled, propelling himself at Clark again. Even as Clark fought his attacker off, his mind was whirling in disbelief. Luthor had to be insane. The man seemed to be losing his powers - his invulnerability was already going, so who knew how long his control over gravity would last? And yet, instead of getting himself to land and safety, he'd decided to make one last-ditch attack on Superman. And an attack it was; the man hadn't even thought of trying to drag his opponent somewhere in the Tropics where there might possibly be thunderstorms. Luthor's strength was fading, and this time it was a relatively easy matter to thrust him back. This time, however, he didn't regain his balance; his arms and legs flailed and he began to fall backwards. Clark hesitated, unsure whether this was a ploy to fool him into thinking that Luthor was helpless. When the man didn't regain control over his descent, however, he decided that it was genuine and he immediately swooped downwards, readying himself to catch Luthor before the man hit the sea beneath. Clark told himself, and some subconscious part of him wondered idly why he didn't just leave the man to his fate. he insisted once again, reaching Luthor's side. He reached out one long arm, wrapping it firmly around his opponent's waist. "Thought I'd let you die, did you?" he asked the wild-eyed and bleeding man he now held about twenty feet above the Atlantic. "Let go of me!" Luthor yelled, kicking out viciously. "What? You've lost your powers, and you can't possibly swim to shore - the nearest land is forty miles away!" Superman shouted back at him. "Let me go - alien!" Luthor spat, aiming a brutal kick at Clark's groin. This time he connected, and it was clear that his Super-strength hadn't entirely diminished. Groaning, Clark's grip loosened, and Luthor fell. Trying to catch his breath and focus, Clark stared downwards just as Luthor hit the water. He hadn't fallen from so great a height.... Clark swooped down and prepared to scoop his enemy from a watery grave, when a streak of grey-white emerged from beneath the surface with a violent splash. Before Clark could get a grip on Luthor's shoulder, the shark sank its teeth into the floundering black-clad man in the water. **************** -------------------------- Wendy Richards w.m.richards@hrm.keele.ac.uk ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 17 Jul 2000 12:55:26 -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: Unsubscribe Comments: To: Wendy Silva On Sat, 15 Jul 2000 18:03:30 -0700, Wendy wrote: >Please unsuscribe me from the list. > >thank You, >Wendy You have to do that yourself ... either send email to LISTSERV@LISTSERV.INDIANA.EDU with the message UNSUBSCRIBE LOISCLA-GENERAL-L or visit the website interface at http://listserv.indiana.edu/archives/loiscla-general-l.html and do it there. All of this was summarized in the email you received when you subscribed. It says "keep this for future reference" for a reason. ;) Kathy ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 17 Jul 2000 13:00:46 -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: quick question On Sun, 16 Jul 2000 21:42:58 -0400, lisa a cox wrote: >But, as long as on the show, she and Clark dated in HS, I can have them >even going as far as dating in college too =) Yes, you can, because it is your fanfic, and fanfic authors are always going off in new directions. :) However, just so you know, the implication from the conversation in T,A was that Lana and Clark *didn't* date in college, or at least not for very long into college. When Clark mentions that he saw Lana and she invited herself to their wedding, Lois makes a snippy comment about "your ex-girlfriend" and he defends, "Lois, that was in *high school*!". The implication being that it was so long ago that it wasn't worthy of jealousy. But again, when has the show ever stopped a fanfic writer from doing what they want with their plot. Kathy ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 17 Jul 2000 16:38:47 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 29/? MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Wendy! Aren't you full of surprises! I'm enjoying the ride and will be sorry when it's over. LaurieD ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 17 Jul 2000 14:24:49 -0700 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: JaT Subject: Re: When Lightning Strikes Twice: Part 29/? MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii --- Laurie Dunn wrote: > Wendy! Aren't you full of surprises! I'm enjoying > the ride and will be > sorry when it's over. LaurieD I don't see where this is over. James ===== The D8As - AIM id is mrd8astl Matthew 23:37-39, Romans 1:19-32, 2 Chronicles 7:13-14 Go to WWW.FREEWWWEB.COM for the best Free Internet access! __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Get Yahoo! Mail – Free email you can access from anywhere! http://mail.yahoo.com/ ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 17 Jul 2000 17:50:20 -0700 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Wendy Subject: Re: Unsubscribe MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Thanks Kathy. Wendy --- Kathy Brown wrote: > On Sat, 15 Jul 2000 18:03:30 -0700, Wendy > wrote: > > >Please unsuscribe me from the list. > > > >thank You, > >Wendy > > > You have to do that yourself ... either send email > to > LISTSERV@LISTSERV.INDIANA.EDU with the message > UNSUBSCRIBE LOISCLA-GENERAL-L > > or > > visit the website interface at > > http://listserv.indiana.edu/archives/loiscla-general-l.html > > and do it there. > > All of this was summarized in the email you received > when you subscribed. It > says "keep this for future reference" for a reason. > ;) > > Kathy __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Get Yahoo! Mail – Free email you can access from anywhere! http://mail.yahoo.com/ ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 18 Jul 2000 11:51:12 +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 29/? MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit James wrote: >>>I don't see where this is over<<< Laurie said she'd be sorry *when* it was over (thanks, Laurie!) - and I can assure you that there's another hlaf-dozen posts to come. Thanks for reading! Wendy -------------------------- Wendy Richards w.m.richards@hrm.keele.ac.uk ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 18 Jul 2000 13:46:04 -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 30/? 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 Rated: PG-13 Part: 30 of ? (possibly 35) Comments: much appreciated, publicly or privately. ------------------------------------------------------------ Clark stared, frozen in appalled suspension, as a second shark joined its mate and attacked the torn body now floating lifelessly on the surface of the calm ocean. In the immediate vicinity, the water was already turning a reddish hue. He=92d been too late to save Lex Luthor the instant the first shark had struck, he knew that; he was fast, but he hadn=92t been aware of the predator=92s presence and he wouldn=92t have been able to pull Luthor ou= t of the water and out of the shark=92s reach quickly enough. All the same, he felt as if he had failed. But on the other hand, a tiny voice from within him was pointing out, this ends the problem he=92d been wrestling with for the last few days. Lex Lutho= r was dead. No more super-villain flying around the country causing mayhem and murder. No more having to worry about Lois=92s safety and that of his friends. Things could go back to normal. Wondering whether he should stick around to rescue whatever remained of Luthor=92s body, or even whether he should frighten the sharks away now, he gave a shuddering sigh. No. There was no point: there were no grieving relatives, to the best of his knowledge, and he couldn't imagine that it would help anyone to see Luthor=92s remains. He turned around and set his course for Metropolis. ***************** Clark was tempted to head for Smallville instead, partly because he wanted to reassure his parents and Lois that he was okay, and also because he felt the need for their reassurance that he=92d done the right thing. But he forced himself to go to the city first; Henderson deserved to know that the threat Luthor posed was over, for one thing - regardless of what he=92d said= to the inspector earlier, Clark did feel somewhat guilty that Henderson had put his career on the line for him. Flying over the Metropolis skyline a few minutes later, passing the Daily Planet, Clark noticed that the famous globe was resting on its side on the pavement in front of the building. He paused, frowning as he wondered how it had come to be there. If he hadn=92t had more important things to do righ= t now, he might have stopped and re-affixed it to the front of the building, but.... Wait a minute... what was that on the Planet roof? Curious now, Clark drifted downwards and realised that the huddle he=92d see= n from the air was actually a man. He landed and walked over to the figure lying awkwardly on the flat surface of the roof, and realised with a shock that it was Nigel St John. And the man appeared to be in some considerable pain. =93St John - what happened?=94 he asked sharply, unable to feel much sympath= y for this cohort of Lex Luthor=92s. The man raised his head, opening eyes which were dazed with pain. =93Super...man... think my leg=92s broken....=94 Clark visually swept St John, then nodded. =93Badly broken, at least one compound fracture and some damage to your hip as well.=94 St John grimaced. =93Did Luthor do this to you? And he left you here?=94 Clark demanded. =93I = see his cloak=92s over there.=94 His only response was a grunt, which could have been pain but could equally have been disgust. =93I=92ll have to get help for you,=94 Clark said. =93I can=92t risk flying = you to the ER myself - your leg needs to be stabilised properly.=94 He was about to take off, but St John=92s thready voice stopped him. =93Luthor... where...?=94 The question made Clark hesitate. He felt no sense of sadness himself over Luthor=92s death, merely regret that he had been too slow to save the man from his awful fate. But St John had been Luthor=92s personal assistant for many years, and had probably been closer to his employer than anyone else. He grimaced, then said carefully, =93He=92s dead, I=92m afraid. I was too la= te to save him.=94 =93Not... sorry,=94 St John muttered. =93Good... ridd... ance.=94 The reaction made Clark blink, until he realised that the relationship between the two men had more than likely been one of convenience and mutual gain rather than liking or even respect. He wondered whether Luthor had been using his powers to coerce St John to help him, but then dismissed any sympathy which might have arisen as a result of that thought as he remembered what he knew about the older man=92s past. Again, Clark was about to leave when something else lying on the roof caught his attention. It was a copy of the Planet=92s afternoon edition, wit= h his and Lois=92s story on the front page. It looked good, he thought: it had= certainly done its job, made Luthor furious enough to head straight for the location where Superman had said he=92d be. The perfect lure.... But wait, what was...? In a split second, Clark was standing with the paper in his hand. Below the fold on the front page was a story about an art theft in Paris: the headline =91Mona Lisa Mysteriously Vanishes=92 had caught his attention. It seemed that the Old Master, which was displayed under conditions of very high security in the Louvre, had simply vanished from under the noses of the gallery=92s guards that morning - or afternoon, Paris time. A skylight had suddenly shattered, there had been a rushing sensation, like wind, and when the chaos had calmed again, the painting had gone. His features tightening, Clark returned to St John=92s side. =93I=92m going = to get help for you now. But first, where is the Mona Lisa?=94 St John looked furious. =93Told him... stupid....=94 He seemed to make a visible effort to summon his strength. =93Where... your globe...=94 Grimacin= g in pain, he slumped back on the hard concrete. Of course - the lead-lined basement of the old LexCorp building, Clark realised. And that was no doubt where Luthor had been hiding when he=92d bee= n unable to locate him. Reminding himself that, no matter what St John might have done, this was an old man, cold and in pain, Clark picked up Luthor=92s cloak and draped it over St John like a blanket before taking off to summon medical aid. *************** Lois began to pace around the Kents=92 living-room for about the twentieth time since Clark had left. =93Where is he?=94 she asked frustratedly, biting= her lip. =93He=92s been gone hours, and Perry said the paper hit the streets= nearly three hours ago!=94 =93Lois, please!=94 Martha exclaimed, hurrying over to her. =93This isn=92t = helping any of us. We none of us know what=92s happening with Clark, but getting all= worked up isn=92t the right way to deal with it.=94 =93I=92m sorry, Martha.=94 Lois ceased her pacing and turned to face the old= er woman. =93It=92s just... I can=92t concentrate on anything, I can=92t even t= hink about anything other than... what he=92s doing and what might be....=94 =93Then don=92t stay in here. Come and help me feed the livestock,=94 Martha= urged. =93It=92ll at least give you something to do.=94 Reluctantly, Lois agreed; it was better than hanging around inside the house feeling useless and getting ever more frantically worried about Clark. It had been far too long, she thought. He couldn't still be fighting Luthor, so if it was over and he was okay, why hadn=92t he come back to let them know? The only reason she could think of - unless they were really still fighting - was that he was... dead. She took a shuddering breath, refusing to allow herself to dwell on that possibility, and followed Martha through the kitchen and out into the yard. she repeated to herself over and over, the words almost like a mantra. *************** Henderson led Superman straight into an interview room as soon as he was alerted to the Super-hero=92s presence. The door had barely closed behind th= e pair when the inspector=92s normal laconic expression disappeared, to be replaced by a tense look. =93Superman... am I glad to see you!=94 Clark raised one eyebrow to demonstrate his surprise at the reaction, but said coolly, =93I got here as soon as I was able.=94 =93I=92m sure you did - look, what happened this afternoon? Did you find Luthor?=94 =93He found me,=94 Clark explained. =93Just as I expected, he couldn=92t ign= ore what he=92d see as an insult.=94 The inspector had seen the Planet article, Clark knew: he=92d noticed at least one copy of the newspaper lying in the main office as he=92d walked through. =93And...?=94 Henderson prompted tautly. =93He=92s dead,=94 Clark answered briefly, adding after a short pause, =93I = didn=92t kill him.=94 Henderson=92s expression relaxed into weary relief, and the detective leaned= back against the wall of the interview room. It was as if, Clark thought, the man had suddenly stopped running on adrenalin. =93Superman... I=92m sorr= y about this morning.=94 Clark gave the man a wry smile. =93That=92s okay. I understand that you=92re= under a lot of pressure, and that my request that you keep the information about Luthor to yourself wasn=92t helping.=94 =93So tell me what happened - and do I need to send a squad to recover the body?=94 Clark winced involuntarily. =93I don=92t think that=92ll be necessary.=94 Succinctly, and in as detached a tone as possible, he filled Henderson in on events, noticing that even the hard-bitten detective couldn't suppress a grimace when he reached the circumstances of Luthor=92s death. =93Oh, there is something else,=94 he added. =93If you send some officers to= the old LexCorp building and get them to search the hidden basement, they should find something the Louvre will be very glad to get back.=94 Henderson was unable to hide his surprise at this. =93The Mona Lisa?=94 =93I was told that=92s where it is. I guessed Luthor took it as soon as I sa= w the newspaper article.=94 =93Figures,=94 the detective replied briefly. =93And one more thing. Nigel St John should be being treated in the ER at Metropolis General Hospital at the moment, for a badly broken leg. You might want to get some officers over there.=94 An impressed lift of one eyebrow was Henderson=92s reaction. =93Thank you - that saves me another task. I don=92t suppose you rounded up Asabi while you= were at it?=94 =93No, I never saw him. Perhaps Luthor didn=92t locate him, or didn=92t want= his help.=94 Henderson straightened. =93Thank you, Superman.=94 Clark held out his hand to the detective, anxious to show that there were no hard feelings; after all, Henderson had only been doing his job, and he had put his career on the line. =93You=92re welcome. I=92m just relieved it turned out this way.=94 Pausing in the act of opening the door to leave, he added, =93Bill - get some rest.=94 A flicker of surprise crossed Henderson=92s face. =93I=92d tell you the same= , Superman, except you=92d probably tell me you don=92t need it.=94 =93You=92d be surprised,=94 Clark murmured, turning to leave. *************** Smallville... his parents=92 house. Home. As he brought himself down to land on the soft earth outside the back door of the farmhouse, Clark realised that it was a very long time since he=92d felt such an overwhelming sense of relief - no, *belonging* - to be here in this place. He was tired, so very weary. And he was also extremely glad that his ordeal was over, but in that sense of a massive burden having been lifted from his shoulders, he was also in great need of comfort and solace from the three people he loved most in the world. His X-ray vision told him that all three were in the barn: apparently Lois was being shown how to hand-milk a cow. Clark=92s lips twitched; he bet his father had omitted to mention that the Kent farm had used electric milking equipment for at least the last twenty years. =93Hey, anyone around?=94 he called, now anxious to be noticed. Suddenly he heard shouts and exclamations of relief, and his parents and Lois emerged running from the barn. There was no doubt about the joy and sheer relief on their faces, and in spite of his tiredness Clark felt warmed inside. Unable to prevent himself, he strode in their direction. Lois was just in front of his parents; he spread his arms wide to her, recognising the delight in her eyes at his return. But just as she seemed about to run into his embrace, she halted. As he stared, confused and hurt, her expression became wary and she avoided his gaze. =93Clark... it=92s good that you=92re back - that you=92re safe. I= =92m... glad,=94 she stammered awkwardly, then stepped aside so that his parents could hug him. He returned his parents=92 embrace, all the while stinging inside from the pain of Lois=92s rejection. *************** ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 18 Jul 2000 16:13:09 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: Re: When Lightning Strikes Twice: Part 29/? MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit In a message dated 07/18/2000 7:05:54 AM Eastern Daylight Time, w.m.richards@HRM.KEELE.AC.UK writes: << Laurie said she'd be sorry *when* it was over (thanks, Laurie!) - and I can assure you that there's another hlaf-dozen posts to come. >> This Laurie will no doubt also be sorry but also glad sort of because then I'll start reading it (then, of course, I'll be sorry). I've been holding out. There are just too many unfinished stories coming to the list to hang onto in my mind so I'm mostly waiting for the one that says "the end" or where the part number matches the number of parts... --Laurie ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 18 Jul 2000 17:36:25 -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 (25/25) (John & Lois & Clark & Joan, Part 25) [Metropolis, Daily Planet Building] [Thirty Minutes Later] Clark's heroics at EPRAD two days ago was still major news, even though he had been in virtual hiding ever since. The newsroom at the Planet was frantic with activity. Normally, the scene before the Planet's Editor-in- Chief would have pleased him in no end. But there was something different about this scene: his star reporter, Lois Lane, wasn't here. Now there were reports of a mystery woman aboard the transport that had just landed, and that she had just vanished in thin air. Perry had had a sneaking suspicion that Lois somehow was able to get on the space shuttle. Once of his own sources had even mentioned something about it yesterday morning. This was why Perry had not been completely worried that Lois was missing. But if the mystery woman aboard the transport was Lois, how did she disappear so fast? Perry White would have dismissed the report completely had it not been for the eyewitness accounts from two of his own reporters, who had attended the press conference for the returning astronauts. A man flying a space shuttle into space. A woman disappearing in thin air. Two different reports, but both were unbelievable. Perry didn't know what to make of them. "I still don't believe it," he growled to no one in particular. "A man who flies!" Jimmy had been the closest to the Chief's outburst and cautiously went up to the older man. "Chief, it was all over the TV..." Jimmy offered. "Aw, Jimmy!" Perry said, exasperated. "Don't believe everything you see on TV." He glanced back at the reports he was holding. They still didn't make sense! "Whoever pulled off a hoax like this... is..." The Editor-in- Chief looked up from his reports and froze at what he saw. Jimmy looked up as well, not understanding the reason Perry stopped speaking so suddenly. Then his eyes widened. Murmurs and gasps were heard all around the newsroom as the back windows opened and in flew the mystery man himself, carrying the missing reporter, Lois Lane, inside. The young photographer got over his shock and began snapping pictures madly with the camera he always carried around his neck. Other photographers followed suit. "Great shades of Elvis!" Perry bellowed. The entire staff was amazed. There seemed to be no wires holding the mystery man up. He was actually flying! And now he was setting Lois Lane down in front of everyone in the newsroom, with no difficulty at all! Clark looked around, giving everyone a small smile. No one, except Lois, smiled back, which was understandable, since everybody was still clearly stunned. Lois also looked around, and then stopped herself from letting out a laugh. If they were at least half as stunned as she was when she had found out about Clark's special abilities... She looked into Clark's brown eyes, and then immediately looked away. She had to be careful and not do things like that; otherwise she might reach in and give Clark a big smooch in front of at least fifty witnesses. Not a good way to debut this super man to the world. She pulled herself together and spoke in a normal volume. Too loud, and others might suspect it was an act. Too soft, and no one would hear her. She tried not to smile and to look astonished like her colleagues. "I think, um, considering the fact that I saw you first, you owe me an exclusive." Then she gave Clark a hint of a knowing glance. Clark, for his part, couldn't believe that he had gone along with Lois' plan to introduce him to the world. He knew that as long as he continued to use his powers in public, he would have to answer to the press. But Lois wanted to be the first in line, which didn't surprise him, and she wanted to squelch any doubts about the reports. In fact, she already had enough for her first piece on him, discussing with him beforehand what was going into her story. She also promised him that he, Clark, could write the second story. 'Which would be interesting,' Clark thought. 'Writing about myself.' He let a big smile escape him and asked, "Is that the rule?" Lois pretended to chuckle nervously. With a secret glance, she saw that all in the newsroom were still spellbound. "Well, no," she answered. "But I'd appreciate it very much." Ugh, that didn't sound very good. She fought the temptation to wince. Maybe staring at him would be a good idea after all... Clark, by now a little nervous with all the attention, decided that he had better go. Without saying a word, he slowly floated up and made his way out the way he came in, not realizing that he was straying from his and Lois' 'script.' His actions brought Lois out of a trance. A little disoriented, she jumped and ran up the stairs towards the windows. "Wait! How do I find you?" 'Better, that sounded more natural, and more believable,' she thought. Clark turned around and said simply, "I'll be around." Smiling, he slowly flew out of the newsroom, picking up speed the further he got. "Real smooth," Jimmy piped up. Lois could only sigh dreamily as she watched Clark fly farther and farther away until there was nothing she could see. Herself being occupied, she didn't hear footsteps approach her side. "Did you find out what the 'S' stands for?" Cat Grant asked. "Huh?" Lois' mind worked furiously. Of course, leave it to Cat Grant to ask something she didn't know. 'Honestly, you'd think that after Clark told you he didn't know what the 'S' stood for that you could have come up with something.' But no, all she could do was to stare, and to think what a super man Clark was... 'Hmm... A super man...' "*Superman*!" Lois yelped. Cat nodded in reply and returned to her desk. 'Ick!' Lois thought. 'That just sounded egotistical.' She had a feeling this wasn't what Nietzsche had in mind, and she had a feeling Clark wasn't going to like his new name, but oh well, too late now. She glanced at the windows one more time and then made her way to her own desk. Lois and Clark were lucky that there were able to pull off their little charade. As soon as he left, she realized something. It was going to be difficult from now on to hide her feelings towards him whenever he was in the suit. They would have to be careful, pretending that they were only acquaintances, maybe friends. Lois and *Superman* were not in love. But what could she do? Here was a guy, who was kind, caring, gorgeous, out of this world (literally, perhaps? Neither Clark nor his parents were sure)... and he can *fly*! She can't help but stare at him like some moony- eyed cheerleader. But, of course, Lois wouldn't have it any other way. Here she was, a career woman, beautiful (according to Clark; it wasn't an adjective she would use to describe *herself*), brilliant ('Oh yes, definitely,' thought Lois with a smile) and in love. A few days ago her thoughts had wondered to children. Now her thoughts were on what to her mind was its prerequisite: marriage. Yes, Lois Lane with children would be an unbelievable notion. But Lois Lane with a husband was just as equally incredible. After all, she had been voted 'Least Likely to Get Married' in her senior year of high school. And while it was early yet, married to Clark would be a dream come true. Now that Clark had just found his freedom in helping others, Lois realized that he would be away for a while. She also realized that he would make it up to her should the calls for help interrupt their time together. And finally, she just realized that Perry would have her and Clark's heads if she didn't produce some copy for the early edition tomorrow. Lois reached over and turned on the computer. A couple of minutes later, the program was ready, waiting to accept input from the keyboard, ready to accept perhaps another award-winning story. All she could do, however, was to stare at the blinking cursor on the monitor as she daydreamed of her future with Clark. From this point forward, Lois knew that her life would never be the same. * * * * * * * * [Epilogue: Metropolis, Daily Planet Building] [Friday, August 27, 1993, 8:04 A.M.] It began like any other day at the Daily Planet newsroom. Many reporters were about, getting a head start in working on the next day's early edition. There were quite a few stories to cover, besides the usual local ones. There were follow ups for the sabotage of the space program by Dr. Baines and Superman's heroics with the transport; Superman's real first public appearance in the newsroom; and reports of a handful of rescues by Superman around the world. In the middle of it all stood two people dressed in white. The woman was a tall, willowy brunette in her mid twenties. She had long curly hair and was wearing a white jacket over a white blouse, and a white skirt. A pair of white pumps completed her ensemble. The man was also tall, perhaps an inch or two more than the woman with her heels. He appeared to be the woman's age. His hair was also dark, but cut short. He was wearing a white suit, which was slightly ill fitting because he was a little on the thin side. On his feet was a pair of white dress shoes. They should look out of place in the Daily Planet newsroom, but the fact of the matter was, no one in the room could see them. They watched with interest as one of the reporters, a young, attractive brunette, turned away from a row of monitors she had been watching and made her way back to her desk. As she passed the ramp, another reporter, equally young and equally attractive, walked towards her. The man and the woman in white listened intently to the conversation that would ensue. "Clark, where've *you* been?" Clark shrugged his shoulders. "Around." The couple dressed in white saw Lois rolling her eyes. Without warning, grabbed Clark and dragged him back up the ramp. "Well, not that it's anywhere near as exciting as the stories you covered on the Smallville Press, but Superman was in the newsroom and *I* just nailed down the exclusive!" "Well, congratulations," Clark told Lois, hiding a frown. It was the first time he had heard his new name, and he was a little uncomfortable with it. The woman in white turned to her companion. "Is Lois always like this?" she asked. The man responded by chuckling. "Yep, she sure is!" The woman simply shook her head. "Oh Clark, you should've seen him!" Lois gushed, deciding to tease him. "Up close, he is the most magnificent figure of a man that I have ever..." Now it was Clark's turn to roll his eyes. "Sounds like he made quite an impression on you," he broke in, with a knowing smile. "He did!" Lois declared, and sighed. "Why, are you jealous?" she threw at Clark as she walked briskly to the elevators. "Of Superman? Should I be?" he asked, following her. The man in white tsked. "Now he's going to start thinking himself in the third person." The woman nodded her head and agreed. Lois turned around and eyed her love critically. "If you are, then there's something wrong with you," she said, grinning. The elevator dinged, and she strode into the empty car. Clark followed her inside. "Where are we going?" "To cover a shoot-out on Sixth," Lois replied. Then, just as the elevator doors began to close, she grabbed the lapels of Clark's jacket and, without any hesitation on her part, kissed him hard on the lips. She pushed him away gently and said softly, "Good morning," beaming at him. The doors closed, but the couple in white could still hear the conversation as the elevator made its descent. <"How did it go last night, Clark?"> <"It was good. Are things usually this bad..."> A polite clearing of the throat forced the man and the woman to drop their eavesdropping and turn around. Standing before them was another man, middle-aged, shorter, and wider, dressed also in a white suit. "You did a good job, John and Joan," the older man remarked. "Thanks, Mike," Joan responded. "It wasn't easy, you know." "It's never easy," Mike reminded the two of them. "Love is never easy." "We know," John replied, squeezing Joan's hand. "Well, despite the obstacles, you got Lois and Clark together. It's no small feat." Mike smiled at his two subordinates. "You're right, Mike, considering that they are pretty much opposites," Joan piped up. "Opposites attract, my love," John noted. "I know," Joan said, giving John a big smile. The looked at each other and said nothing for a moment. Mike reached in his jacket pocket and took out a folded piece of paper. "Well, kids, ready for your next assignment?" The two younger people stared at him. "So soon?" John asked. He took the paper from Mike's hand and took a look. Joan leaned on John's shoulder and waited for him to finish reading. Mike suddenly looked skyward. "Uh oh," he said. "I'm being paged. Good luck you two on your new assignment!" Then, with a flash of light, he disappeared into thin air. John sighed as he handed the paper to Joan. "We've done this sort of thing before," he said, indicating the paper. "Two best friends, working together for four years, afraid to admit their feelings for each other. Both are military." Joan glanced at the paper, raising her eyebrows. "It's not far from here. Falls Church, Virginia. That's right outside of Washington, DC, isn't it?" "I think so. But it's not in the same time frame: it's 1999, six years into this future." Joan sighed, and with a slight movement of her hand, made the paper disappear. "Okay, then. Let's go home and brainstorm a little bit, and then we'll start tomorrow. Sounds like a plan, honey?" "Sounds like a plan, sweetheart," John assented. He reached over and grabbed Joan's right hand with his own. Another flash of light, and they were gone. The End -- Felix E. Sung fsung@justice.loyola.edu ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 18 Jul 2000 17:37:58 -0500 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: "Felix E. Sung" Subject: Re: NEW: John and Lois and Clark and Joan (25/25) An afterword... Some 'Thank You's are in order: Thanks to the transcript of the Pilot by Sarah Wood, which I relied heavily, and borrowed some of her interpretations, because I didn't feel like watching it. Thanks to Alicia, for beta reading it and giving me some ideas. And thanks to all who have posted feedback for this story. A few times I had thought of giving up and trashing it, but your feedback encouraged me to finish it. This is the final installment. The first half should be familiar, but the second half should be interesting; in fact, it's the reason why I wrote this monster in the first place. And so, I'm very anxious for your reaction, because I don't know if it works. Okay, I'll shut up now... Felix -- Felix E. Sung fsung@justice.loyola.edu ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 18 Jul 2000 18:53:18 -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: John and Lois and Clark and Joan (25/25) Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Felix, I've liked this from the beginning, and I'm looking forward to the JAG fic. (I'm right, right?) Falls Church is lovely in the spring, hint, hint. Joy :) ______________________________________________ FREE Personalized Email at Mail.com Sign up at http://www.mail.com/?sr=signup ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 18 Jul 2000 21:32:52 -0400 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: lisa a cox Subject: IRC chat MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit does anyone here evr chat in the IRC room on Undernet anymore? I'd love to chat in real time to people on the list and get some immediate feedback on ideas for stories and such. or, is there another room ya'll use? Lisa-Ann ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 18 Jul 2000 18:48:38 -0700 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: StarKitty Organization: Star Alliance Subject: Re: NEW: John and Lois and Clark and Joan (25/25) MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit That was so cool! And the epilogue was definately a surprise :) I love it! Tara ----- Original Message ----- From: "Felix E. Sung" To: Sent: Tuesday, July 18, 2000 3:36 PM Subject: NEW: John and Lois and Clark and Joan (25/25) > (John & Lois & Clark & Joan, Part 25) > ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 18 Jul 2000 18:56:58 -0700 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: StarKitty Organization: Star Alliance Subject: Re: IRC chat MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit There's only 2 that I know of: #lanekent and #loiscla (I don't think loiscla is used much anymore) Tara ----- Original Message ----- From: "lisa a cox" To: Sent: Tuesday, July 18, 2000 6:32 PM Subject: IRC chat > does anyone here evr chat in the IRC room on Undernet anymore? > > I'd love to chat in real time to people on the list and get some > immediate feedback on ideas for stories and such. > > > or, is there another room ya'll use? > > > > Lisa-Ann > ========================================================================= Date: Tue, 18 Jul 2000 22:44:52 -0400 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: lisa a cox Subject: Re: IRC chat MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit On Tue, 18 Jul 2000 18:56:58 -0700 StarKitty writes: > There's only 2 that I know of: #lanekent and #loiscla (I don't think > loiscla is used much anymore) > > Tara I tried the lanekent room, and it kept telling me I couldn't get in because I needed a key........is there a password to get in? Lisa-Ann ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 19 Jul 2000 04:26:31 +0100 Reply-To: LabRat Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: LabRat Organization: LabRat Subject: Re: IRC chat MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Lisa-Ann wrote: > I tried the lanekent room, and it kept telling me I couldn't get in > because I needed a key........is there a password to get in? > To join #lanekent, Lisa-Ann, you have to sign up through the website, agreeing to abide by the rules of the channel: http://www.zoomway.com/loisandclark/lanekent.shtml You'll then be sent the password to enable you to join us. :) LabRat :) ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 19 Jul 2000 02:35:10 -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 17 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1 Title: Red Sky Part: 17 Author: Jenni Debbage Rating: PG-13 Feedback: I'm sorry to keep you all waiting and I hope that you're still= interested in what happens next on the island of Papillon. As always I look forward to receiveing feedback, so please let me know what you think= . ~~~~~ Chapter Ten Double Jeopardy The ground beneath Clark's feet was soft and slick, a result of the earth-fall mixing with the river that flowed by the small town and the converging tumult from the quake further up the mountain at the river's source. The soil had a treacherous habit of giving way just as he gingerly placed his weight on the other foot in an attempt to claw a way down the newly hued slope. If only he still had some of his powers, he could have used them surreptitiously to help the Chens and himself reach safety. But there was no use dwelling on the loss; he had to make it to the Swallow in order to rescue Lois and the children . . . failure was no= t an option. Of course, that was presuming that Lois and the kids were still in o= ne piece and that they would make it safely to the beach below the bungalow.= = Stop!! Don't think like that!! He had to believe they were safe!! And thankfully, he hadn't felt the breaking of that connection that he shared= solely with Lois. Somehow he knew that she was still alive and that she was striving with all her resources and spirit to be with him again. And= he vowed not to let her down. With or without the super powers he would rescue her . . . and his children. The kids were so young . . . he wasn'= t about to let them die on this godforsaken island. But the task seemed to be getting harder. The fire had finally reached the gas tanks and for some time the resulting explosions had vied= for dominance with Solvan. Not only were rocks and ash being hurled down= on them but bits of flying wood and metal from the disintegrated garage rained on their heads. Clark prayed that his family had left the village= in time. Roy Chen had been hit on the head by part of the debris. Fortunatel= y, it had just been a glancing blow which, however, had cut a nasty gash in his forehead and blood flowed freely down his soot blackened face and int= o his eyes, blinding him with blood and dirt. Clark decided that leading a= blind man down the difficult terrain was an added encumbrance he couldn't= afford. Halting the descent for some moments, he pulled a handkerchief from his pocket from which he made a temporary bandage to cover Roy's wound. It wasn't an ideal solution, and some blood still trickled from under the white linen, but it was better than nothing. = Immediately the makeshift first aid treatment was done, the three moved as quickly and cautiously as they could onwards. They weren't alon= e on the slope. Some of the islanders from the meeting and some children from the doomed school were also picking their way down towards the river= mouth and the harbour. Only, where once sparkling water flowed to meet t= he sea, a thick soup of brown mud now spilled out into the smoke-filled bay.= Clark turned to reconnoitre the land below him, which due to the poo= r visibility was an almost impossible task. He knew that the quay was arou= nd the small headland of the river mouth and he prayed that the boats waitin= g there had been somewhat sheltered from the worst of Solvan's shelling. A startled squawk brought him back to reality and he was only just i= n time to catch Hazel as she slid past the two men, in a helter-skelter of ooze. The woman scrambled back up the slope, using Clark's body as some sort of ladder, pressing closer to him in an attempt to regain her footin= g. It was uncomfortable; it was suffocating; it was almost sexual harassmen= t. And though one tiny primordial part of him stirred in anticipation, the whole man felt a growing degree of distaste. Did Hazel really have to cling to him in just that way? Or did she have an ulterior motive? = Clark's uneasy stare met that of Roy's above the smaller form of Hazel; was that only fear of the situation that lurked in the younger man= 's eyes? A notion that maybe Roy could sense the attraction that Hazel held= for this stranger took root in Clark's mind, rendering him even more ill = at ease. This was Jimmy's friend, and according to Jimmy, he was a straight= up guy. Roy didn't deserve to be put in this position. Clark didn't deserve to be put in this position. They were in the middle of a volcani= c eruption, for goodness sake! This woman shouldn't be playing her silly games at a time like this. Clark experienced an unfamiliar twinge of dislike stir against Hazel Chen. But the vagaries of nature await the introspection of no man, super hero or mortal and with another almighty boom that smote the eardrums of all those below, Solvan tossed the tiny outcrop of land down into the sludge-filled sea beneath. Screams filled the already laden air as bodies were tumbled headlong= down the incline. Clark, already holding his unwanted bundle, neverthele= ss tightened his clasp. He had established the fact that he didn't really like Hazel Chen but that was no reason to abandon her to her fate. = Hopefully her husband would survive the fall and he could hand her over t= o his care. Long heart stopping moments passed, until finally Clark and the woma= n came to an abrupt halt against the remnants of a large tree trunk. Thick= sloppy water lapped around their bodies and Clark used the platform of th= e felled tree to push himself and his passenger up the slope and out of the= unpleasant quagmire. Sticky mud clung to Clark's clothing and skin and filled his nostrils= , his mouth, his eyes. In an automatic gesture, Clark put his hand up to check his glasses; they were still there, if a little squint, and he certainly couldn't see through them anymore. He pulled them from his fac= e and dashed a thumb across the lens to clean them but only succeeded in smearing the glass further. Oh well, it wasn't as if anyone was going to= recognise him caked as he was in this stuff, so he folded them carefully and stashed them in his shirt pocket. With a groan he dashed his hand across his eyelids in a futile attempt to clear his vision and peered groggily round for Roy Chen. When his sight failed to find the object of= his search he shouted hoarsely. = "Roy! Roy! Can you hear me?!" A raspy coughing fit interrupted hi= s desperate cry as his lungs tried to evict the evasive muck. "Roy, talk t= o me!" = = A weak but strangely easily heard call came back. "I'm here! Over here! I'm okay . . . I think . . . just winded. Have you got Hazel?!" = The question was filled with trepidation. "Yes, she's here and she's safe!" Clark reassured him while searchi= ng through the murk toward the direction of the voice. "Roy, keep talking s= o that I can find where you are." In the stillness, the disembodied voice came back to him. "I'm in t= he water! And I can't get out!" The rising crescendo in Roy's voice warned= that hysteria threatened. It was weird but Clark could hear the frightened man quite clearly .= . . could his super powers be coming back? His hearing always seemed to be= the first to regain its strength and out in the mud filled bay he could make out the sounds of other survivors calling for succour, the answering= cries of rescuers and the slap of liquid against the sides of boats. = With a shock of disappointment, Clark realised that his increased hearing was simply due to the halting of the background roar. The continued thundering had numbed his eardrums to such a degree that it had= taken a few moments of silence for his brain to catch up with his senses.= = But surely the fact that the eruption had ceased for the present was a go= od thing. They should make the most of the timely respite and try to find their way to the Swallow and on to rescue Lois and the kids. He trained his eyes in the direction from where Roy's disembodied voice came. Through the swirling gloom, he could just make out a figure splashing helplessly some yards out from the indistinct shoreline. Hooki= ng a bedraggled Hazel up in the branches of the partly immersed tree, Clark commanded the woman to stay put and struck out as strongly as he could toward her husband. He only hoped that neither tree nor woman would floa= t off into the sea. Swimming in this thickly congealed water was a nightmare, a little like trying to stay afloat in Lois' early attempt at oatmeal . . . gooey and sticky and not very pleasant to taste; the latter fact he discovered when accidentally breathing in at the wrong moment. Still, the exercise must be working the stiffness out of his muscles as he found his strength= increasing with each stroke. Not exactly super powered but certainly forging through the water with the competence of a practised swimmer. A few strokes onward and his hand connected with a human shoulder . = . . "Roy?" The person before him was so coated in the dirty liquid that= it was difficult to make out the facial features. "Roy, is that you?" The almost hysterical man clutched at his rescuer in terror and for = a second or two the tightly locked pair sank below the surface. Clark, wit= h a desperate effort kicked his legs and fought his way back to the air above, gasping for breath as his head cleared the water. With all the strength that was left to him he dragged Roy Chen from a watery grave and= shouting at his burden to remain still began the task of returning to the= unstable land. By reason of their struggle in the bay, the two men gained the shore= some way off from Clark's starting point and some precious time was lost = in finding the tree and the clinging Hazel. Finally, however, the Chens wer= e reunited and a watching Clark turned away enviously as Roy hugged his wif= e to him as if she were the centre of his world. Would that it were Lois .= . . . "Hm hm," Clark cut in with just a shadow of impatience. "I hate to interrupt, but we really should get out of here. The volcano seems to ha= ve quietened down and we should take advantage of the break." Reluctantly the pair broke apart, though Roy retained a firm, possessive hold of his wife's hand; a gesture that was noted with some relief by Clark. Perhaps Roy could distract Hazel from paying such unwanted attention to himself and he could concentrate solely on finding their way to the harbour. Searching around for some form of recognisable landmark that would send them in the right direction, Clark was dismayed to find the terrain totally changed. A fact that wasn't particularly surprising since the to= wn had been the centre of an earthquake. = "I'm not sure, but I think that the harbour is that way." Clark pointed off to his right. The other man too scanned the surrounding area. "I'd agree with tha= t. If we're facing the sea then the Swallow has to be moored to the right.= = Mind you, I'm so dizzy with everything that's happened, I'm not sure whic= h way we're facing anymore. This is a nightmare." = "Yeah, that pretty well covers how I feel, but from what I'm hearing= the water is out there and there are boats out there too, picking people out of the sea," Clark tried to sound upbeat but it was hard. "I hope th= at means that your yacht is still in one piece and that they haven't sailed off without you." The latter statement was his greatest dread . . . he needed that boat to save his family. "They wouldn't do that," this time it was Roy that reassured. "The skipper is one of my best friends . . . we grew up together, before he joined the navy. I got lucky and when I made my money I offered him thi= s job. He might have stood off when the mountain blew but he wouldn't abandon me. I'd stake my life on that." With that comforting thought the dishevelled little party picked its= way south along the line of the beach and away from the increasing torren= t of the river, often splashing through murky water that sucked at their heels and threatened to upend them. Frequently they had to climb roun= d various displaced objects that lay in their path, slowing up their progress. At one time, when a large monolith barred the way, the three h= ad to climb back up the incline to make their way past and as Clark groped h= is way around the obstacle, he felt rather than saw indentations in the larg= e slab. "The monument from the square," he announced softly and sadly. "Or = at least a part of it." The angel was missing. "There isn't too much left = of the little town. I just hope that the islanders fared better." It was the one part of his not being Superman that bothered him the most . . . that he couldn't save more lives. Of course, Lois would remin= d him that it wasn't his fault and that he was doing pretty well without th= e powers, but that wouldn't stop him obsessing for a time. = "From the sounds of all that activity out there," Roy gestured with his chin out into the misty, choppy river mouth, "I'd guess quite a few people must have escaped." And indeed there were increased sounds of life beyond them. Either some of the islanders had managed to put their boats to sea or the fishermen who had left earlier that morning had returned to rescue their compatriots. = Clark's spirits began to lift as he came to believe that he could be= reunited with Lois; and, thankfully, that awful woman was no longer clinging to him like a limpet. The slide into the sea and her subsequent= dousing in the cloying mud had subdued Hazel's behaviour. Besides, she h= ad seemed genuinely pleased to see her husband again and she now followed quietly in Roy's footsteps. Continued in Part 18 ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 19 Jul 2000 02:35:33 -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 18 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1 Title: Red Sky Part: 18 Author: Jenni Debbage Rating: PG-13 Feedback: I'm sorry to keep you all waiting and I hope that you're still= interested in what happens next on the island of Papillon. As always I look forward to receiveing feedback, so please let me know what you think= . ~~~~~ They were starting to make speedier passage towards their goal, climbing up and over what had once been a grassy promontory. As they mov= ed carefully across the rubble, a breeze from the sea momentarily lifted the= dense cloud and there below them, by a damaged and twisted quay, was moor= ed the lovely lady . . . the Swallow. A spring now in their step, the trio hurried down the spur that separated them from their deliverance. But fate had another obstacle to throw in Clark's path, his foot caught up in an exposed root system and h= e tumbled head over heels, landing spreadeagled on his back with a solid thump on the uneven ground. The injuries he had received the day before now bore the brunt of this latest trauma but that wasn't Clark's greatest= fear; the familiar vertigo and the excruciating waves of pain warned him = of the cause of his present hurt . . . green kryptonite. "Clark, Clark! Talk to me!" Through a haze of pain and dizziness Clark heard Roy's voice. "Come on, Clark, you can't give up on us now . . . we're almost ther= e. Hazel, help me try to lift him." The blackness threatened to engulf Clark as two pairs of hands slid around his shoulders and attempted to raise him. = "Boy, he sure is heavy," Roy panted as he took most of the strain, b= ut between them they managed to manoeuvre the injured man into a sitting position. "Stay with him, Hazel, I'll get someone to help us from the Swallow . . . ." "Wait, Roy! Look!" Clark's new position had exposed Clark's back t= o view and the young, traumatised woman, now pointed with dread to what she= had espied. "What?" Roy asked in exasperation but he retraced the few steps he'= d already taken on his mission to see just what was scaring his wife. "Oh,= God!" A small but jagged piece of muddy rock was protruding from Clark's flesh and from round the edges of the embedded stone fresh blood was seeping. Quickly, Roy placed his fingers round the invading article in a= n attempt to draw it from its bed but his hand was stopped by a worried Hazel. "No, Roy, I don't think that's a good idea right now. We don't know= how big that is or how far it's travelled inside. It might have struck a= vital organ or something and if we pull it out Clark might bleed to death= ." The Eurasian man's fingers shifted absentmindedly over the offending= rock as he contemplated his wife's words. Indeed, he had heard of cases where stab victims had perished because the knife had been drawn out by well-intentioned helpers who hadn't realised that they would start a haemorrhage by their actions. The motion of his fingers rubbed away the dirt. "Hey, Roy, look at this . . . its green . . . I've never seen anythi= ng like it before. Kinda like an uncut emerald." His wife's exclamation broke into Roy's deliberating and he looked down at what he held in his hand. Sure enough, even through the dirt, it= really was a strange looking rock. "Well, whatever it is, that's not important right now. We have to get Clark on board the Swallow before he= bleeds to death and Freddy can take care of him." "Go!" Hazel commanded. Under the ash and mud that clogged his skin= , the man in her arms was turning a very strange colour of grey. "I'll tak= e care of him, just get someone back here fast." So, with the best of intentions, for the present, Clark was left und= er the influence of the only substance on the planet that could bring about his death. Hazel tried to wipe some of the dirt from his face and moved him gently till he was propped against her shoulder but she was careful not t= o send the dagger like shard further into his flesh. Her heart was torn at= the pitiful state of a man she found extremely attractive and her sadness= for a friend who had saved her life and who would leave behind a family s= he found very likeable. Unfortunately, Hazel was an incorrigible flirt who could never resist a handsome face, especially if it was allied to a charming personality, as it was in this man. She knew that Roy understoo= d her failing and that was one of the things she loved about her husband, b= ut she really must be more careful. One of these days she might just push R= oy too far and she had sensed that in her untimely actions during the descen= t down the cliff, she had annoyed both men. Well, here was her chance to make amends . . . she would make sure that Clark survived . . . and perha= ps later, when he was completely healed, she could renew her playful pursuit= . . . . "Clark! Clark!" Hazel patted his cheek with just enough pressure t= o bring him out of his faint. "Clark, you must wake up . . . fight it Clar= k . . . you have to stay awake!" The words were those familiarly spoken when he had been brought down= by kryptonite, but the voice was new. Had some other woman discovered hi= s secret? Clark prised opened his heavy eyelids and the mud-caked face tha= t leaned so close, regarding him so anxiously was one he knew. << Oh, no, n= ot Hazel Chen . . . she would probably blackmail him into having an affair i= n exchange for keeping his secret.>> His eyes closed again and he tried to= shift away from her nearness, but the pain that smote him forced a groan from his lips. "No, Clark! Don't leave me! It's important that you stay conscious= ." His pain filled gaze returned to her face and she strove to keep him wit= h her. "You tripped coming down the slope and you fell heavily . . . ." Yes, now he did remember . . . . Desperately he nodded his head and= a fresh wave of giddiness overtook him. "Try not to move," the kind female voice instructed. "When you fell= you landed on a sharp piece of rock and it's embedded in your back. We can't tell how much damage it's done but Roy's gone to fetch help and we should have you on the Swallow very soon and Freddy can treat you. He's our resident paramedic; we wooed him from your military so he's seen all sorts of wounds . . . ." "You have to . . . pull it out . . . ." It cost Clark a precious amount of his failing strength to gasp out these instructions but, sadly Hazel wasn't about to comply. "No, Clark, that's the worst thing I could do. You could bleed to death before they got you back to the ship," Hazel explained gently. "You . . . don't . . . understand . . ." Clark was drifting once mo= re toward the darkness. Of course she didn't understand and he couldn't tel= l her. "I'll . . .die if you . . . leave . . . ." His voice faded as he swooned away. "I won't leave you," she whispered, "and I will save you." Hazel brushed the matted hair tenderly from his brow and as she did so her bracelet brushed the side of his face, unwittingly harming her patient further. "I won't let you die." She could hear the noise of succour before the rescue party appeared= through the shifting shadows. A stretcher was laid by the side of the fallen man and quickly and efficiently they placed Clark face down on the= stretcher, Roy and his crew being instructed by a very tall, thin man who= sported small wire-rimmed spectacles . . . the estimable Freddy. With the extra help the group was soon aboard the Swallow, though th= e going had been slowed down by the rough terrain and the strict orders fro= m the paramedic to jostle the patient as little as possible. Still within = a very short time, in very unheroic style, the man also known to the world = as Superman was lifted with great care onto an examination table in the yacht's sickbay. Clark didn't sense the powerful engines gearing up or experience the relief felt by the others onboard as, leaving the stricken town behind them, the slim bow turned toward the ocean and their humane expedition to= rescue those others trapped by Solvan. ***** After a consultation with his captain, explaining the need to reach the rendezvous point with as much speed as possible, Roy made his way to the sickbay. He should have followed Hazel's example and taken a shower = to rid himself of the muck that clung to his body and clothes, but first he had to check up on Clark Kent. The man had made quite an impression on Roy. He was a very successf= ul journalist (who hadn't heard of Lane & Kent?) and, Roy noted, he was also= a very well balanced and intelligent individual, who thought the world of h= is family. That much had been obvious, even though the man had succumbed to= Hazel's flirtation on his first visit to the Swallow. Well, Roy was used= to that and, creditably, Clark hadn't followed up his interest . . . in fact, he had seemed somewhat embarrassed by Hazel's subsequent attentions= . = The important thing in Roy's mind was that Clark Kent, at great risk= to his own safety, had saved Hazel's life . . . twice; not to mention fishing Roy himself out of the water where he would most likely have drowned. In Roy's opinion, Kent was a hero and he wasn't about to let hi= m down. The Swallow would pick up Kent's family and friends and anyone els= e who needed rescuing and then they would sail out of here, away from the danger of Solvan. He pushed open the door to the infirmary and tread softly inside, no= t wishing to disturb Freddy who was concentrating on his patient. Obviousl= y, Clark's first treatment had been a quick strip and wash as Roy could now make out, between the medics surrounding the table, the injured man's unhealthy pallor. Standing quietly in the background Roy watched as the competent paramedic drew the shard from Clark's unresisting flesh and tossed the unlikely weapon into an enamel dish on a side table. Then wit= h quick and capable hands Freddy cleaned and stitched the gaping wound, completely unwitting of the fact that his patient must be injured indeed = if the wound did not repair itself. The fact was that Superman had been exposed for too long and too closely to his nemesis . . . kryptonite in a= ny form. But thankfully, the normal human beneath the super powers was a healthy individual and before long, Freddy was satisfied with the injured= man's condition and he instructed his assistants to lift Clark from the table and place him, on his stomach, in the waiting bed. "How is he?" Roy asked as he came to stand by the bed. Freddy took a few moments to answer. "Stable, and as far as I can detect, there are no internal injuries. But that rock was filthy, so it could quite easily start an infection, which might explain the fact that the guy's temperature is pretty high . . . though that might just be due= to trauma. From the state of his back, I'd say that he's been through a lot in the past few days. Anyway, to err on the safe side, I've given hi= m an injection of antibiotics and I'll set up a saline drip." The medic spoke in a matter of fact tone, little realising how unusual the fact of puncturing Clark's skin really was. "I'll keep a close eye on him but I expect he'll regain consciousness fairly soon. He's going to be pretty stiff and sore for a time, but I'm fairly confident he'll be okay." "Good, Freddy, be sure you take good care of him. Clark saved both Hazel and myself from certain death, so I intend to repay the favour." R= oy offered his medic a grateful smile. "Now I'm off to clean up . . . . I'= m beginning to feel like a refugee from a rubbish tip . . . I smell like on= e too," he grimaced as he caught a whiff of his own odour. "When Clark wak= es up it's my guess he'll be pretty anxious, so tell him that we're on our w= ay to rescue his wife and kids and then let me know he's awake. I'd like to= thank him for what he's done." An appreciative Chen exited the room, leaving his new friend in the= capable hands of Freddy. With renewed energy Roy strode to his state roo= m. First he'd get rid of this abominable dirt and then he'd oversee the rescue of the Kent family. = The Swallow sailed on slowly through the murky gloom, the captain unwilling to make much speed in case of collisions. A number of times th= ey stopped to pull frightened survivors from the water or from other boats that were so laden with bodies that they were threatening to sink. Once,= when they were hailed from the shore, the yacht put in as close to the la= nd as was possible then launched the dingy to pick up a terrified family fro= m where they were stranded. = But cautiously, amidst the derelict strewn sea and the heated cloak o= f ashy air , the sleek ship and its anxious company sailed ever closer to t= he meeting point . . . . ***** Continued in Part 19 ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 19 Jul 2000 05:27:21 EDT Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: "Lorie Y. Crisp" Subject: Re: New Red Sky Part 18 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit I've been waiting for the next installments with great anticipation, and I wasn't disappointed, Jenni. Great work! Lorie :) ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 19 Jul 2000 04:30:50 -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 Red Sky Part 18 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Two excellent installments, Jenni. S P O I L E R S P A C E But you're being horribly mean to Clark! Green Kryptonite followed by Gold Kryptonite! And then having to suffer the ministrations of a flirtatious woman. You're a cruel woman, Jenni. :) Irene ===== www.communities.msn.com/equestrianmusic __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Get Yahoo! Mail – Free email you can access from anywhere! http://mail.yahoo.com/ ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 19 Jul 2000 08:19:33 EDT Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Kate Crane Subject: Re: New Red Sky Part 18 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Jeni, Incredible story, s p o i l e r s p a c e but how much more are you going to put Clark through? So, is there really no evil seductress or villain here? Just an unfortunate coincidence that put Superman on the one volcanic island that had kryptonite? Can't wait to see what's next. Kate ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 19 Jul 2000 13:24:41 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: New Red Sky Part 18 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit S P O I L E R S P A C E Now, you've really done it, Jenni! Left us with a L&C cliffhanger. Even I, having had the advantage of reading ahead, am still waiting restlessly for Lois and Clark to be back together, where they belong. We hope you get lots of writing time in the near future. LaurieD ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 19 Jul 2000 13:21:38 -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 31/? 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 Rated: PG-13 Part: 31 of ? (35?) Comments: very welcome, publicly or privately. -------------------------------------------------------------- Clark was back! Afraid for one brief moment that she=92d imagined the sound of his voice, Lois knew it was real when she saw the sheer joy on the faces of Martha and Jonathan. Then all three of them were racing out of the barn to meet him; she=92d been closest to the door when he=92d called, and so she= was in front. And there he was, standing there in his Superman suit looking at them, looking strong and tall and powerful and *alive*... and yet also so very weary. Her heart turned over and she longed to draw him into her embrace and hold him, offering him whatever comfort she could. As he began to stride towards her, his arms opening to enfold her, Jonathan=92s words came back to her with the force of a slap in the face. <... the way Lois behaved around Superman... infatuated with him... what he could do... transfer that to Clark?> No... she *couldn=92t* allow Clark to think she was only interested in his powers! If she threw herself into his arms now, showed him how much she cared, he would be perfectly justified, afterwards, in assuming that her changed behaviour towards him was all because she knew he was Superman. Okay, she=92= d hugged him earlier, to wish him luck, but.... But then she hadn=92t realised= how her behaviour could be interpreted. And she had no wish to allow Clark or his parents to misinterpret her now. Forcing herself to slow her pace, to stop herself running into Clark=92s arms, she told him stiffly that she was glad he was safe, and then moved aside to let his parents welcome him. That was as it should be, in any case, she told herself. They were his parents; they were the ones who had the right to be with him. She was just a friend, after all; no-one special. *************** As Clark embraced his parents and responded in brief half-sentences to their barely-coherent demands to know whether he was okay, his mind was whirling, his heart aching painfully at what had just happened. He couldn't understand it. Why had Lois acted like that? Was she still angry with him? Did she hate him for deceiving her and for the way he=92d told her his secret? Was she punishing him...? But he didn=92t think that was the case. That morning, after all, she=92d be= en friendly and supportive - she=92d even been worried about him! She=92d made = it clear that she cared about him; she'd even told him she didn=92t want to los= e him. Okay, she=92d said she was leaving everything else aside until the Luthor threat was dealt with, but she didn=92t even know at the moment that Luthor was well and truly out of the way. So why had she just rejected him so pointedly? He couldn't make sense of it. It was so completely at odds with her earlier behaviour, and with the way they=92d been behaving as friends and partners for the last year or more. It was certainly so out of line with the way she=92d been behaving with Superman ever since she'd first encountered him i= n that guise. And he could have sworn that when she=92d first emerged from the barn her intention had been to fling herself into his arms. Her expression had seemed to say as much: she=92d been overjoyed to see him. She had to have known that he needed her embrace too; she knew what he'd had to face, after all. But somewhere between coming out of the barn and getting up close to him she=92d changed her mind. It was almost as if she=92d had a sudden, dramatic change of heart. Or suddenly remembered something...? A germ of a theory began to build in his mind. He was here dressed as Superman, while for most of their discussion that morning he=92d been dresse= d as Clark. Perhaps it was the blunt reminder, therefore, that Clark and Superman were one and the same which had jolted her into rejecting him like that? But on the other hand, he=92d been dressed as Superman when she=92d fi= rst seen him that morning, and she=92d treated him normally. In fact, she=92d called him Clark. And even when he=92d been dressed as Clark, later, her behaviour had made it clear that she accepted him as both Clark and Superman. So it didn=92t seem to be that either. Then it hit him. He was Superman. She=92d had a very direct, and extremely unpleasant, encounter with Super-powers only a couple of days earlier. For the first time, she'd seen the harm his powers could do. Could it be that she was... afraid of him? The possibility was almost too painful to contemplate. *Lois,* the woman he loved more than anything else in the world, afraid of him? But it was the only thing which seemed to make any kind of sense at all. It would explain why she=92d shied away from him just now, and it would also explain why she=92= d initially seemed to welcome his presence. She still cared for him, as her friend and partner, but after her experiences with Lex Luthor she was scared to get too close to him, in case he hurt her in a similar way. How on earth was he going to convince her that he could no more hurt her than he could kill Lex Luthor? **************** Finally, the small group adjourned to the kitchen and sat down to hear Clark=92s story. Before he joined them at the table he disappeared upstairs to wash and change, though even with the memory of his speed earlier that day Lois was stunned when he rejoined them in under a minute, dressed in jeans and a T-shirt. It was so good to see him - and to see him apparently unharmed - that at first it was difficult for her to concentrate on the initial exchange of questions and answers between him and his parents. Instead, she was tempted simply to sit and gaze at him, taking in the sight of him safe and well. But then something he said dragged her out of her introspection with a rapid jolt. =93Luthor=92s dead,=94 he announced flatly. =93What?=94 =93How?=94 Martha and Jonathan spoke at once, their expressions a picture of shock, their gazes focused completely on Clark. Lois had bitten back her own instinctive question, which had been to ask Clark whether he had killed Luthor; a split second=92s thought assured her that he would not have done so. He breathed deeply, then explained. =93His powers were draining away, and he... fell. Into the ocean.=94 He=92d drowned? Lois asked herself silently. But... from everything she knew= of Clark, and of Superman, she was sure that he wouldn=92t have left Luthor to die like that. There had to be more to this than Clark was saying. =93Was the fight tough?=94 she asked quickly, wanting to know exactly what Luthor had done to Clark. He gave her a sharp glance, then leaned forward, his elbows on the table. =93Okay. It was like this. We fought for... oh, I don=92t know, maybe= nearly two hours. It was almost like cat and mouse, in a way - he was the aggressor, but I wasn=92t letting him get the upper hand. He=92d try grabbin= g me, or hurting me, and I=92d either get out of his way before the blow connected, or I=92d shake him off after a while. I figured maybe I=92d manag= e to tire him out and he=92d - oh, I don=92t know, maybe give up for today.=94= He sighed suddenly, looking downwards and clenching his fists. =93I still hadn=92= t really figured out just what I was going to do about him, other than that I wasn=92t going to kill him.=94 =93Well, of course you weren=92t, son!=94 Jonathan exclaimed. =93We know you= better than that.=94 =93Yeah, Dad, I know,=94 Clark acknowledged, and as he raised his head to ga= ze at his father Lois saw a tortured expression in his eyes. It occurred to her that while she had known he wouldn=92t be able to kill Luthor, she had argued fiercely that he should; perhaps she didn=92t know Clark/Superman as well as she=92d believed? Would he resent her for urging him to kill? Clark had resumed speaking, so she concentrated on what he was saying. =93Bu= t what I couldn=92t find an answer to was the issue of how to deal with him. H= e had my powers - no-one else could stop him. He couldn=92t just be arrested and thrown in prison. So what other options were there?=94 Martha smiled sympathetically. =93I did wonder what you were planning. But o= n the other hand, killing people never solves anything. It just creates another set of problems.=94 =93Yeah, Mom,=94 Clark agreed. =93Anyway, like I said, it didn=92t come to t= hat.=94 Lois and the elder Kents listened in silent horror as Clark described the way Luthor met his end, and as he reached the end of his story both Martha and Jonathan reached across to grip one of his hands. =93That must have been an awful experience for you,=94 Martha murmured. =93A= re you okay, honey?=94 Clark shrugged. =93I=92m fine. It=92s just... a man=92s dead, and although I= =92ve seen people die before, I=92ve never had to watch anything like this.=94 =93You couldn=92t have saved him, though,=94 Jonathan pointed out. =93You sa= id Luthor managed to wind you, which cost you several seconds=92 reaction time.= =94 Clark nodded. =93Yeah. And by the time I=92d recovered enough to fly down an= d grab him, the first shark was already there and it was too late.=94 =93I know it sounds horrible, but I=92m not one bit sorry!=94 Lois cut in, u= nable to remain silent any longer. =93Clark, I know it must have been a pretty horrible experience, but Luthor was a cold-blooded villain. He=92d have killed you without a second=92s hesitation if he=92d got a chance. And you k= now he tried to.=94 The news of Luthor=92s second death had in fact come as an immense relief to Lois, and not just because it meant that her former fiance would not be making any more attempts to kidnap and subdue her. It was also a huge weight off her mind to realise that Clark was safe. She wouldn=92t have to worry any more that Luthor might already have killed him,= or that he might succeed in his next attempt. Clark was safe, and the source of the danger was dead. That was all that mattered. =93He came pretty close, too,=94 Clark acknowledged quietly. =93I thought I=92= d had it last night - I think it was only that he wanted to take his time about it. If he=92d taken the opportunity he had the minute I started to be affected by the Kryptonite, he=92d have succeeded. But he wanted to savour the victory.=94 =93That sounds like Luthor,=94 Lois concurred, watching her partner=92s grim= expression. It was Luthor=92s hubris through and through: he would have wanted to enjoy his enemy=92s death, and a quick end would not have satisfie= d him. He would have wanted to watch Superman suffer. But, in the end, his pride and vanity had been his undoing. =93Clark, why would he have wanted you to drop him?=94 Jonathan asked, puzzled. =93If he realised his powers were going, surely he=92d have wanted = to hold onto you for dear life?=94 But Clark shook his head slowly. =93I really have no idea, Dad, except that by then I think he really was on the edge of sanity. All he could see was that I had him prisoner, and he wanted to get away from me.=94 =93Makes sense to me,=94 Lois said quietly. =93I thought he wasn=92t complet= ely sane the night he abducted me.=94 =93Well, I=92d guess stealing the Mona Lisa is a pretty insane thing to do,=94= Clark replied with a humourless laugh. =93Even Nigel St John couldn't understand why he did it.=94 =93The desire to possess beautiful or unattainable objects,=94 Lois said thoughtfully. =93That=92s what it always was with him, wasn=92t it?=94 She=92= d seen an LNN item on the art theft earlier that day, and from the circumstances of the painting=92s disappearance had figured out that Luthor was responsible. That reminded her of something else.... =93I guess we have a story to write, partner,=94 she said, wondering as she spoke just how they were going to be able to write this one up. *************** Two hours later they had a couple of stories ready to email to Perry, to be published in the following morning=92s Planet. It had been a difficult task deciding what could be revealed and what had to be kept secret; in particular, Clark was anxious not to give any hint that the Luthor-clone - since they=92d agreed to stick to that story - had powers which in any way resembled his own. So they=92d maintained the fiction that the being was a genetically modified cyborg manufactured with some of Lex Luthor=92s DNA, an= d invented the tale of its destruction by Superman. Clark was very reluctant to write about the discovery of the Mona Lisa, and after discussion Lois agreed with him. It would have been very difficult to explain how the painting had ended up in Metropolis, and ever more difficult to justify their knowledge of the situation. The police could explain it, if they chose; Lane and Kent had sufficient material for a front-page story as it was. His parents had left them to it, understanding the reporters' instincts which drove the two partners to get the story and send it to Perry White as soon as possible. Clark had deliberately pushed aside his feelings of confusion and hurt at Lois's reaction, concentrating on the immediate task. Her manner seemed almost completely normal for their working relationship, but he did notice that she seemed to avoid touching him on her own account, although she didn=92t actually flinch away from him if he came close while passing her. When they'd finished, he looked at Lois enquiringly. "What now? Do you want to be taken back to Metropolis straight away, or will you stay for dinner with me and my folks?" He held his breath, hoping that she wouldn=92t demand= to be taken home immediately. She glanced up at him. "You're not going home yet, then? I mean, if I wanted to go you'd take me and come straight back?" He nodded. "Mom and Dad haven't seen much of me with all this going on, and I know they worry, even though they try not to show it. I'll stick around for a couple of hours at least, talk to them... you know." "Well, if you think they'd rather be alone...?" Quickly, Clark shook his head. "No, of course not! You know that's not true - my mom even told you you were family, that weekend I was blinded, remember?" Lois nodded. "Yeah...." She frowned suddenly. "Clark, you didn't tell us the whole story about the fight with Luthor, did you?" He shuffled a little awkwardly, trying to avoid her gaze, and she pounced. "I knew it! You're holding something back... come on, Clark, tell me. You need to talk about it, I can tell." She wanted to talk - or, at least, she was offering to listen to him... maybe this was an opportunity to try to clear up a few things, Clark thought. Smiling wryly at her, he offered a suggestion. "Why don't we go for a walk? You said earlier that you had a lot you wanted to ask me about... well, me, and Superman. My parents are busy outside so we've got some time now, and you know how hard it is to get any proper free time when we're in Metropolis...?" He was almost holding his breath waiting for her answer, hoping that she would give him the opportunity to talk, to break down this new and unwelcome barrier between them. He felt as if he=92d been holding his breath= when she nodded agreement. Calling to his parents that they were going for a walk and would be back in time for dinner, Clark escorted Lois along a path which led to the furthest reaches of the Kent property, bordering on a small wood. It was a pleasant area for strolling, and - even better from his point of view - they were unlikely to meet anyone else. Lately, whenever they=92d had opportunity to walk somewhere, Lois had developed a habit of hanging on his arm in a way he secretly loved; she would loop her hand through his upper arm or rest it in the crook of his elbow in a completely unconscious manner. He therefore manoeuvred himself close to her, deliberately giving her the opportunity to do the same this time. But she moved aside, putting several inches between them. Even though he=92d more or less expected it, her action caused him to experience something like stabbing pain. He sighed inwardly, hoping that his depression wasn=92t obvious to his companion, and resigned himself to having= to spend a lot more time rebuilding Lois=92s trust in him. He resolved to respect her feelings for the moment and refrain from making any attempt at physical contact between them; he would leave it up to her to initiate any contact, if she wanted it. =93So... you wanted to know about Luthor, huh?=94 She glanced at him briefly before replying. =93Yeah... I mean, only if you want to talk about it, I mean it=92s not as if there=92s any reason why you should have to...?=94 =93Other than the fact that we=92re partners and... you=92re my best friend?= =94 Clark suggested softly, hoping that she at least wouldn=92t deny that. But she gave him a quick smile. =93Yeah, best friends, right. I... uh, if yo= u still want to be...?=94 Clark stopped in his tracks and turned to face her. =93Lois, you know - now = - that I have to do a heck of a lot of things I hate doing. Some of it=92s bee= n pretty rough. But what makes it bearable - has always made it bearable - is knowing that I have people who care about me. If you didn=92t want to be my friend any more...=94 He shrugged, trying to convey just what that loss woul= d mean to him. =93Well, I=92d... miss you. A lot.=94 =93Clark.=94 She touched his arm lightly, before withdrawing it almost as if= stung... remembering who he was and that he could hurt her? =93Clark, findin= g out you were Superman was a shock. But I didn=92t mean the way I behaved towards you last night. Yeah, I was upset, and I felt... hurt. But I don=92t= want to lose your friendship.=94 =93You won=92t do that, I promise,=94 he told her, unable to prevent a husky= note from creeping into his voice. He stood and gazed down at her for a few moments, fighting the impulse to sweep her into the kind of hug they had frequently shared before today. But the way she=92d pulled her hand away tol= d him that such a gesture would be unwelcome. He saw her swallow, before she turned and resumed walking along the narrow path; he had no choice but to follow, taking a couple of running steps to catch up with her. Telling himself to make an effort to behave normally, he began to speak. =93Okay, you asked about Luthor. Yeah, there were a couple o= f things I didn=92t mention - the first being that he came pretty close to killing me again.=94 He saw, as well as heard, Lois=92s shock at that. =93I=92m okay, I promise,=94= he assured her quickly, pleased to see that, whatever else was going on, she still cared about what happened to him. =93But for a couple of minutes he ha= d his hands locked around my throat and I couldn=92t get him off me.=94 Seeing= her appalled expression, he explained quickly, =93It=92s okay - I can hold m= y breath for up to twenty minutes, so that wasn=92t a problem. I knew that if = I gave him a chance, he'd try to break my neck.=94 =93Were you scared?=94 Lois asked him softly. =93I never asked you that this= morning - well, we were sort of talking about other things.=94 Clark paused for a moment, wanting to answer her honestly. =93When he got me= by the throat, yeah. Up until then, it had been sort of cat and mouse, like I said, and I knew I wasn=92t really in any danger.=94 =93But you made him let you go.=94 =93Yeah, then we both realised he was losing his powers.=94 Clark stopped abruptly and inhaled deeply. =93Lois, I know you=92re glad he=92s dead and I= understand that. I can=92t pretend to be sorry myself. But... I can=92t help= wondering if some part of me wanted him to drown when he lost his control over gravity, if maybe I was slower to go after him than I should have been.=94 =93Clark, no!=94 Lois exclaimed, shaking her head in rejection of his suggestion. =93Come on, Clark, you caught him! You stopped him hitting the water! The only reason you let him go again was because he made you.=94 =93Yeah, he didn=92t give me a lot of choice,=94 Clark concurred. =93And... = yes, I would have pulled him out of the water, except the shark got to him before I=92d caught my breath.=94 =93Clark, Luthor died entirely as a result of his own pride, his own insane belief that he was immortal,=94 Lois said insistently. =93You saw what he wa= s like - I think he=92d really started to believe that he wasn=92t just invulnerable, but invincible and immortal too. And yeah, I=92m not sorry he=92= s dead, but not just because he won=92t be bothering me again. I=92m glad beca= use he won=92t be going on any more killing sprees, or trying to extract revenge= for imagined slights, or... or trying to kill my best friend!=94 She stopped and turned to face him, standing rigidly although her eyes held something akin to... Clark wasn=92t sure. Could it be concern, or something stronger? =93Clark, you said Luthor had tried to kill you before. It was jus= t before I was supposed to marry him, wasn=92t it?=94 =93Yes,=94 he confirmed. =93I mentioned the cage made from Kryptonite: he lu= red me - as Superman - to the wine-cellar in his basement on the pretext of talking about you, and trapped me in the cage. It took away my powers, and if I=92d been there long enough it would have killed me.=94 Lois was silent for several moments, and to break the awkwardness Clark resumed walking; she followed. After a while, she said slowly, =93And that=92= s why you weren=92t able to save him when he threw himself off his penthouse balcony.=94 As he was about to respond, she made a dismissive gesture. =93I know, you would have if you could. And I=92m still glad you didn=92t.=94 In = a different tone, she added, =93What did he say about me? Anything?=94 =93You won=92t like it,=94 he warned her. =93Would you want me to?=94 she threw back at him. =93Clark, I know you didn= =92t want me to marry him - and okay, I found out pretty soon that it was a crazy thing to do. I told you I changed my mind at the altar, didn=92t I?=94= He nodded, not even daring to comment as he hoped she would enlighten him further as to the reason behind her decision. =93Yeah, well, I realised I just didn=92t want to be Mrs Lex Luthor - and that=92s what I would have been, even if he had been the benevolent businessman and philanthropist he pretended he was. I wanted...=94 she hesitated, and Clark waited, not even breathing, =93I wanted to be me. I wanted my old life back, and my friends back.=94 =93We were always there for you,=94 he assured her sincerely, wishing he=92d= had the courage to replace the =91we=92 with a firm =91I=92. =93Yeah, I know. It was only me who=92d changed, who=92d walked away...=94 s= he muttered, so quietly Clark wasn=92t sure he=92d have heard it without Super-= hearing. A thought occurred to him then, and he thought for a moment as to how to ask the question without reminding her of his declaration of love; given how she now seemed to feel about him, he wasn=92t sure he wanted to remind her of that. Hesitantly, he ventured, =93Lois... I=92ve often wondered if I = was partly to blame for your decision - accepting Luthor=92s proposal, I mean.=94= Her head whirled around, her hair swinging in an arc. =93You mean what Superman said to me? The way you...=94 she faltered briefly, =93the way you rejected me?=94 =93I could have been more tactful,=94 he replied softly, not wanting to just= ify his behaviour that night in case it led Lois to wonder whether he really had meant his declaration of love, as Clark, that same day. =93And I wasn=92= t *rejecting* you; it=92s just that as Superman I couldn=92t....=94 He trailed= off, hoping she would understand. =93Superman can=92t have a relationship with anyone. Yeah, I guess I underst= ood that, later. At the time, it... hurt.=94 She avoided looking at him as she spoke, and he longed to sweep her into his arms and tell her he=92d never meant to hurt her, would never hurt her again. =93I=92m... sorry,=94 Clark told her softly. =93Lois, I never wanted to hurt= you....=94 He gazed at her, wondering whether she could read his feelings fo= r her in his eyes, wondering whether she could come to trust him again. But she changed the subject, leaving his question about Lex Luthor unanswered. =93You didn=92t tell me what Luthor said about me.=94 =93Oh - well, he told me that you were a little too independent for his taste, and that he=92d have to take care of that once you two were married.=94= Lois snorted in disgust. =93Figures.=94 =93Yeah.=94 They walked in silence for several paces, Clark unsure as to how= to progress the discussion. Apart from wanting Lois to accept that he was still the same person she=92d known before discovering that he was Superman,= and that he wouldn=92t - couldn't - hurt her, he didn=92t know what she want= ed him to say to her. The previous evening, and even that morning, it had been clear that they had a lot to talk about. Lois had even told him that she had a number of questions to ask him - and, he suspected, a number of charges to level at him. And yet she wasn=92t now taking advantage of the opportunity. Maybe he should take the initiative, he decided; the silence was becoming uncomfortable. =93So... you still mad at me for not telling you I=92m Superman?=94 He waited anxiously for her answer; although he was pretty sure that he had identified correctly the reason why she was creating a new distance between them, she still hadn=92t actually told him she'd accepted his reasons for no= t telling her about himself sooner. But she shrugged lightly. =93I was. But I thought about it, and I talked to Martha, and I realised that you were telling the truth when you said you wanted to tell me anyway. And once I accepted that you hadn=92t just told me= because you were angry....=94 She trailed off, giving another expressive shrug. =93I really did want to tell you,=94 he insisted softly. =93And I=92m really= sorry that I did it like that. I just...=94 He shook his head briefly. =93I was exhausted, and angry and frustrated after dealing with the disasters Luthor caused, and then when I went to the hospital to see you and found you gone.... Lois, my first thought was that Luthor had got you again - that that was why he=92d made sure I was out of town all day.=94 She stilled. =93I didn=92t think of that.=94 A momentary pause, and again Cl= ark had the feeling that she would have reached out to touch him but restrained herself. =93I=92m sorry. I wouldn=92t have wanted to put you through that.=94= =93You were safe, and that=92s all that mattered.=94 =93Anyway,=94 she continued, =93no, I=92m not mad. I=92m... well, I guess I=92= m a little hurt, and I=92m angry with myself for not figuring it out, but I=92ll= get over that. And I=92m trying to reconcile all sorts of memories here, and= that=92ll be the hardest part of all, I think.=94 =93Yeah, I can understand that,=94 he told her. =93And.... Lois, I know I=92= ve done things I shouldn=92t have, like let you confide in Clark about Superman and vice versa. It just... wasn=92t always easy to prevent that.=94 But to his surprise, Lois didn=92t seem to think that was particularly important. Grimacing, she said wryly, =93Oh, I=92m sure I=92ll have a few embarrassing moments when I remember some conversations we=92ve had - but I=92ll live.=94 =93I=92m glad,=94 he said softly. =93I never wanted Superman to cause proble= ms in my friendship with you, but at times it just seemed unavoidable. And there=92ve been so many times when I wanted to tell you the truth, but....=94= =93But?=94 she queried. =93You weren=92t sure I wouldn=92t want to use the information to win myself a Pulitzer?=94 =93Well...=94 He shrugged uncomfortably. =93I guess this would be pretty newsworthy. But I haven=92t thought you=92d do that for a long time now. It = was just that... well, I=92m just so used to the need to keep what I can do secret. My dad always used to say to me, when I was growing up and discovering new things I could do, that I=92d have to be very careful, never= tell anyone, or I=92d be taken to a laboratory and dissected like a frog.=94= =93Or killed because someone thinks you=92re part of an alien invasion,=94 L= ois added dryly. Clark nodded; here in Smallville with Lois, the memory of Jason Trask seemed very fresh suddenly. Feeling the need to change the subject a little, he asked in a lighter tone, =93So... you had some questions you wanted to ask me?=94 ************** ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 19 Jul 2000 16:26:18 -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: To My Love (1/1) Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Jessi, Just as my air-conditioner was fixed, you come and melt me back to the floor. I wish I had a digital camera so I could send you my picture with this *huge* smile on my face... Yael. ----------------------- - Oh, god... - Zod. (Superman II) ----------------------- ______________________________________________ FREE Personalized Email at Mail.com Sign up at http://www.mail.com/?sr=signup ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 19 Jul 2000 15:43:14 CDT Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Jessi Mounts Subject: Re: NEW: To My Love (1/1) Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; format=flowed Yael said: > >Just as my air-conditioner was fixed, you come and melt me back to the >floor. >I wish I had a digital camera so I could send you my picture with this >*huge* smile on my face... Thank you. :) And congratulations on getting your air conditioner fixed. I hope you're weather isn't anything like ours here, or you really would have melted by now. Jessi ________________________________________________________________________ Get Your Private, Free E-mail from MSN Hotmail at http://www.hotmail.com ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 19 Jul 2000 17:00:52 -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: To My Love (1/1) Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Jessi wrote: >> Thank you. :) And congratulations on getting your air conditioner fixed. I hope you're weather isn't anything like ours here, or you really would have melted by now. << This list is not for discussions about weather, so I'll make it quick: It was *so* hot a week ago, that in one of the dead sea hotels the chef cooked eggs with sun beams. And I'm not kidding here. Yael. ----------------------- - Oh, god... - Zod. (Superman II) ----------------------- ______________________________________________ FREE Personalized Email at Mail.com Sign up at http://www.mail.com/?sr=signup ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 19 Jul 2000 17:03:11 -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: Fanfic Question Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Always wanted to post one of those! :c) So, my question is - and I'm not sure it wasn't asked before - when did Clark left to New Krypton? (Month& Year) Yael. (Wow, this is fun...) ______________________________________________ FREE Personalized Email at Mail.com Sign up at http://www.mail.com/?sr=signup ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 19 Jul 2000 18:14:21 -0400 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: lisa a cox Subject: Silly Story Challenge MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit This was something we did in an English comp class I took. Hope ya'll have fun with it. The original challege given by my prof said we had to include a comic book superhero, but since this is a Superman list, that one is already taken care of. Okay, now all stories that are posted in response to this must include the following list of items (must be USED and not just mentioned): feather duster a bucket of ice a can of motor oil animal crackers pickles a mousetrap now for the really challenging part: THE STORY MUST BE 750 WORDS OR LESS. HAVE FUN!!! Lisa-Ann ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 19 Jul 2000 17:56:05 -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: Fanfic Question On Wed, 19 Jul 2000 17:03:11 -0400, Yael Kfir wrote: >So, my question is - and I'm not sure it wasn't asked before - >when did Clark left to New Krypton? (Month& Year) The episodes TAGD and BGDF aired in May 1996, with the follow ups LOTF and BE airing in September 1996. The wedding took place on October 6, 1996, and we know that it wasn't long after BE ... L&C were not going to wait long, they were just going to do it. I think you'd be safe to use August-September 1996 for the timeframe for the NK arc. It's always a trick to justify the time gap over the summer hiatus in fanfic. Good luck with your story! Kathy ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 19 Jul 2000 19:30:13 -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: Silly Story Challenge Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit feather duster a bucket of ice a can of motor oil animal crackers pickles a mousetrap now for the really challenging part: THE STORY MUST BE 750 WORDS OR LESS. -------------------------- Is this supposed to be nfic or gfic? Joy :) ______________________________________________ FREE Personalized Email at Mail.com Sign up at http://www.mail.com/?sr=signup ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 19 Jul 2000 19:23:19 -0400 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: lisa a cox Subject: Re: Silly Story Challenge MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit > Is this supposed to be nfic or gfic? > > Joy :) > > g or pg rated. Lisa-Ann ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 19 Jul 2000 19:55:33 -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: Silly Story Challenge Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit g or pg rated. --------------- Well, there goes *that* idea. Any particular season? pre or post revelation? ______________________________________________ FREE Personalized Email at Mail.com Sign up at http://www.mail.com/?sr=signup ========================================================================= Date: Wed, 19 Jul 2000 21:40:46 -0400 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: lisa a cox Subject: Re: Silly Story Challenge MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit > Well, there goes *that* idea. Any particular season? pre or post > revelation? > after the g/pg rating restriction, all bets are off.......doesn't matter it can be a silly WAFF, or a revalation story (clark getting his hand caught in the mousetrap and Lois sees), it can even be a PWP story (pwp=plot? what plot?) And, it doesn't have to be a scene with Lois and Clark, it can be any characters you choose. Lisa-Ann ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 20 Jul 2000 05:32:43 EDT Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: "Lorie Y. Crisp" Subject: Re: Silly Story Challenge Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit how about just plain ol' REVELATION? Lorie :) ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 20 Jul 2000 10:54:01 +0100 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Phillip Atcliffe Subject: Re: Silly Story Challenge In-Reply-To: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; CHARSET=US-ASCII On Thu, 20 Jul 2000 05:32:43 EDT "Lorie Y. Crisp" wrote: > how about just plain ol' REVELATION? > Lorie :) If you want those, Lorie, come over to Zoom's MB. We've been writing silly revelations for several days. Phil ------------------------------------------------------------------ "We gotta get out into Space / If it's the last thing we ever do!" -- Return to the Forbidden Planet A sentiment echoed by Phil Atcliffe (Phillip.Atcliffe@uwe.ac.uk) ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 20 Jul 2000 10:57:24 +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: Silly Story Challenge MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Phil wrote: > If you want those, Lorie, come over to Zoom's MB. We've been writing > silly revelations for several days. Yes, and where's your next one, O Great Fanfic Engineer? Wendy ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 20 Jul 2000 08:58:01 -0400 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: kubitc Subject: OT: Up, Up, and Away! Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="ISO-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Last night I saw the end of a movie on the Disney channel I thought might be of interest, fanfic-wise... It featured a pre-teen boy whose entire family- all except him- had superhuman powers, the same powers as Superman, from what I could see. His father (Bronze Eagle), mother (Warrior Woman, whose costume included a skirt), and older brother were all superheroes, and his grandfather (Steel Condor, played by Mr. Schott of SG) appeared to be a retired superhero. The boy was struggling to feel a part of his family, since he didn't have the powers they do, and the A plot involved a computer program which took control of people's minds. (Sorry, can't be more specific since I didn't see the whole thing.) The whole premise reminded me of several fics where Lois and Clark have children (the characters even refered to Superman at least once ;) Christy kubitc@kenyon.edu "I saw the angel in the marble and carved until I set him free." -Michaelangelo ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 20 Jul 2000 10:09:10 -0400 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: lisa a cox Subject: Re: Silly Story Challenge MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit On Thu, 20 Jul 2000 05:32:43 EDT "Lorie Y. Crisp" writes: > how about just plain ol' REVELATION? > > Lorie :) That's a diferent matter. The purpose of the silly story challenge was an exercise for the brain to see if you could comply with all the limits in the challenge (the list of items and the word count and pg rating limit) I'm working on my story and should be able to post it later today. Lisa-Ann ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 20 Jul 2000 10:13:45 -0500 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: alauters Subject: Time Elapsed 14 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit Sorry it's taken so long between posts ... I've had some RL issues lately. However, I hope to finish this up within the next few weeks. Thanks for all the private encouragement! *** In short order, Lois and Clark found Sam at the hospital, where he was pacing in the waiting room, mumbling to himself. Clark couldn’t help grinning at what he heard – snatches of "doctors" and "all the same" and "wouldn’t know a good invention if it bit them in the –" "Hi, Sam," Clark interjected quickly. "Could you take a look at something for us?" Sam stopped pacing. "I’ve got nothing better to do," he said grumpily. "Hi, Princess." Stifling a grin of her own, Lois kissed his cheek. "Hi, Daddy," she said. "Trouble?" "Just the usual," Sam grouched. "I can’t get Ellen’s doctor to see reason and try out my gadget on your mother." "Well, technically, it is experimental," Lois reasoned, then, catching her father’s disgruntled look, added, "They just don’t know the level of your genius." Sam snorted. "What can I do for you two?" Lois held out the picture. "Can you identify this man? Is this Siefert?" Sam glanced at it absently, then bent down for a closer look. "That’s Siefert, all right," he said grimly, taking the picture from Lois. "Where did you get this?" Lois and Clark exchanged looks. "Well," Clark said. "Lois took it while we were investigating the company you’re working for, Sam." Stunned, Sam looked up. "What does MorphCorp have to do with all this?" "We’re not sure the company has anything to do with this," Lois said. "But we got this by following Franz. We’ve got proof that Siefert commissioned your brain wave thingy." Sam sat down heavily. "Why?" "That’s the question, isn’t it?" Clark sat next to Sam. "Sam, can you think of anything – anything at all – that might tie Siefert to your family, other than the affair you suspect Ellen of having with him?" "We’d been friends for years, Clark. Years! He always told me how lucky I was to have Ellen, and two beautiful daughters." Sam grew hoarse. "When the girls were very little, and I had to work at the hospital, he’d escort them, and Ellen, to the park, to the zoo." Clark didn’t like the sound of that. "Why, Sam?" "I sent him," Sam said. "When I was deep in the middle of a project, I’d call him up, and he’d go over to take my place in family plans." "Why don’t I remember any of this?" Lois asked, bewildered. "You were awfully small, honey. And I think that your mother started getting a sitter for you two and just stepped out with him by herself after awhile," Sam said bitterly. "And who do you blame for that, Daddy?" Lois said quietly. "If you’d come yourself – if you’d stopped letting work interfere with family – this whole mess might have been avoided." "Don’t you think I know that now, Lois?" Sam tensed. "Hindsight is always twenty-twenty, and if I had to do it over again, knowing what I do now, I would act differently. But how was I to know then? How?" "There’s no way you could have known," Clark soothed. Lois looked sharply at Clark. "You're not _defending_ him?" she asked skeptically. "Lois, it wouldn't be the choice I'd make, but there really wasn't any way your father could know without a doubt the ramifications of his decision at that point," Clark said logically. "Princess, believe me, if I'd known, I would have done things differently," Sam buried his face in his hands. Lois looked at her father, who seemed to have aged 10 years during the course of the conversation. _What do I do?_ she asked herself. Then she knew. Dropping to her knees, she wrapped her arms around Sam. "It's all right, Daddy," Lois whispered. "You couldn't have known. But you do now. And now, you can do something about it." Sam lifted his head. "What?" "You can help us find out why Siefert's been trying to break up our family -- for years -- and who this Morpheus character is. You can call him up, ask him to dinner or something. Help us, Daddy," Lois implored determinedly. Clark suddenly tilted his head. "Lois, why don't you work out some of the details with Sam?" he asked. "I'll run back to the Planet and see what else I can dig up on Siefert." After I deal with the hostage situation at the First Bank of Metropolis, he added mentally. Lois eyed her husband's stance, then quickly replied, "Of course, honey." Lower, she added, "Be careful -- remember Mrs. Cox . . ." With a nod, Clark ducked out of the room. "That was nice of Clark," Sam muttered, returning his daughter's hug and straightening up. Distracted, her thoughts on Mrs. Cox, Lois replied, "Hmmm?" "Giving us time to talk," Sam spelled it out for his daughter. "It was pretty obvious." "Was it?" she asked, smiling. "OK, Daddy, let's make a plan." *** After dealing with the hostage situation -- no casualties, suspects in custody -- Clark flew over Metropolis on a quick patrol en route to the Daily Planet. Since Ellen had been injured, Superman had been noticeably absent in the city, a situation Clark wanted to change, especially after Lois' reminder about Mrs. Cox. It wouldn't be good if she put two and two together, and found some Kryptonite to kill him off, Clark thought. As far as Clark knew, only two methods existed that might kill him off: Someone could expose him to Kryptonite, or deprive him of sunlight and take him out. Mrs. Cox, who presumably didn't know Clark was Superman, might try just about anything to fulfill her task of killing Clark. The problem, Clark thought, will be to catch what she's planning, and make it appear that whatever she tried simply didn't work. Otherwise, she might figure out the secret, and as Luthor's former confederate, might also know where to get Kryptonite. Clark landed on the roof of the Planet, spun-changed, and headed downstairs. *** "Frankly," Lois told her father, "I don't know why we didn't think of this sooner." She handed Sam a microphone and mini-cassette recorder. "Probably because we only got proof today," Sam said as he taped the microphone securely in place, then looped the recorder into the inside pocket of his suit jacket. "And now, we'll get more when I take Ken to dinner." "Remember to lead him into the discussion about our family slowly, Daddy," Lois cautioned. "He might be suspicious as to why you want to talk to him now. It's been a while since you two had any serious contact." "Yeah," Sam straightened his sleeves. "I'm surprised he still lived in the same spot." "Not Boston, though," Lois said thoughtfully. "The letters Mom was getting were all postmarked Boston." "One of the many mysteries we need to clear up," Sam said almost cheerfully. "When I talked to him on the phone, he did seem a little surprised to hear from me, but when I told him I'd figured out he was the one who commissioned my current project, he seemed downright eager to see me." "I bet," Lois laced her tone with sarcasm. "But it got him to see you, didn't it?" "Yes, it did, princess," Sam said. "I told him I was so grateful, I wanted to take him to dinner. I don't know if he bought it, but I guess we'll see." "I guess so," Lois stepped back and looked him over. "I can't see a trace of your mic or your recorder; you look good. Now, remember, I'll be listening in, too. I don't think you'll run into serious trouble, but if you do, I'll know it." "Do you suppose we should wait for Clark to get back before I leave?" Sam asked. "No, Clark's got his own job to do right now," Lois said. "We can handle this. I'll call him if we need him." "All right; you're the professional," Sam said. "Let's go." *** ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 20 Jul 2000 10:19:18 -0500 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: alauters Subject: Oops -- Time Elapsed 14 again MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit OK, you walked in on the middle of the scene. Sorry about that! I miscopied and mispasted. Let's try that again! *** In short order, Lois and Clark found Sam at the hospital, where he was pacing in the waiting room, mumbling to himself. Clark couldn’t help grinning at what he heard – snatches of "doctors" and "all the same" and "wouldn’t know a good invention if it bit them in the –" "Hi, Sam," Clark interjected quickly. "Could you take a look at something for us?" Sam stopped pacing. "I’ve got nothing better to do," he said grumpily. "Hi, Princess." Stifling a grin of her own, Lois kissed his cheek. "Hi, Daddy," she said. "Trouble?" "Just the usual," Sam grouched. "I can’t get Ellen’s doctor to see reason and try out my gadget on your mother." "Well, technically, it is experimental," Lois reasoned, then, catching her father’s disgruntled look, added, "They just don’t know the level of your genius." Sam snorted. "What can I do for you two?" Lois held out the picture. "Can you identify this man? Is this Siefert?" Sam glanced at it absently, then bent down for a closer look. "That’s Siefert, all right," he said grimly, taking the picture from Lois. "Where did you get this?" Lois and Clark exchanged looks. "Well," Clark said. "Lois took it while we were investigating the company you’re working for, Sam." Stunned, Sam looked up. "What does MorphCorp have to do with all this?" "We’re not sure the company has anything to do with this," Lois said. "But we got this by following Franz. We’ve got proof that Siefert commissioned your brain wave thingy." Sam sat down heavily. "Why?" "That’s the question, isn’t it?" Clark sat next to Sam. "Sam, can you think of anything – anything at all – that might tie Siefert to your family, other than the affair you suspect Ellen of having with him?" "We’d been friends for years, Clark. Years! He always told me how lucky I was to have Ellen, and two beautiful daughters." Sam grew hoarse. "When the girls were very little, and I had to work at the hospital, he’d escort them, and Ellen, to the park, to the zoo." Clark didn’t like the sound of that. "Why, Sam?" "I sent him," Sam said. "When I was deep in the middle of a project, I’d call him up, and he’d go over to take my place in family plans." "Why don’t I remember any of this?" Lois asked, bewildered. "You were awfully small, honey. And I think that your mother started getting a sitter for you two and just stepped out with him by herself after awhile," Sam said bitterly. "And who do you blame for that, Daddy?" Lois said quietly. "If you’d come yourself – if you’d stopped letting work interfere with family – this whole mess might have been avoided." "Don’t you think I know that now, Lois?" Sam tensed. "Hindsight is always twenty-twenty, and if I had to do it over again, knowing what I do now, I would act differently. But how was I to know then? How?" "There’s no way you could have known," Clark soothed. Lois looked sharply at Clark. "You're not _defending_ him?" she asked skeptically. "Lois, it wouldn't be the choice I'd make, but there really wasn't any way your father could know without a doubt the ramifications of his decision at that point," Clark said logically. "Princess, believe me, if I'd known, I would have done things differently," Sam buried his face in his hands. Lois looked at her father, who seemed to have aged 10 years during the course of the conversation. _What do I do?_ she asked herself. Then she knew. Dropping to her knees, she wrapped her arms around Sam. "It's all right, Daddy," Lois whispered. "You couldn't have known. But you do now. And now, you can do something about it." Sam lifted his head. "What?" "You can help us find out why Siefert's been trying to break up our family -- for years -- and who this Morpheus character is. You can call him up, ask him to dinner or something. Help us, Daddy," Lois implored determinedly. Clark suddenly tilted his head. "Lois, why don't you work out some of the details with Sam?" he asked. "I'll run back to the Planet and see what else I can dig up on Siefert." After I deal with the hostage situation at the First Bank of Metropolis, he added mentally. Lois eyed her husband's stance, then quickly replied, "Of course, honey." Lower, she added, "Be careful -- remember Mrs. Cox . . ." With a nod, Clark ducked out of the room. "That was nice of Clark," Sam muttered, returning his daughter's hug and straightening up. Distracted, her thoughts on Mrs. Cox, Lois replied, "Hmmm?" "Giving us time to talk," Sam spelled it out for his daughter. "It was pretty obvious." "Was it?" she asked, smiling. "OK, Daddy, let's make a plan." *** After dealing with the hostage situation -- no casualties, suspects in custody -- Clark flew over Metropolis on a quick patrol en route to the Daily Planet. Since Ellen had been injured, Superman had been noticeably absent in the city, a situation Clark wanted to change, especially after Lois' reminder about Mrs. Cox. It wouldn't be good if she put two and two together, and found some Kryptonite to kill him off, Clark thought. As far as Clark knew, only two methods existed that might kill him off: Someone could expose him to Kryptonite, or deprive him of sunlight and take him out. Mrs. Cox, who presumably didn't know Clark was Superman, might try just about anything to fulfill her task of killing Clark. The problem, Clark thought, will be to catch what she's planning, and make it appear that whatever she tried simply didn't work. Otherwise, she might figure out the secret, and as Luthor's former confederate, might also know where to get Kryptonite. Clark landed on the roof of the Planet, spun-changed, and headed downstairs. *** "Frankly," Lois told her father, "I don't know why we didn't think of this sooner." She handed Sam a microphone and mini-cassette recorder. "Probably because we only got proof today," Sam said as he taped the microphone securely in place, then looped the recorder into the inside pocket of his suit jacket. "And now, we'll get more when I take Ken to dinner." "Remember to lead him into the discussion about our family slowly, Daddy," Lois cautioned. "He might be suspicious as to why you want to talk to him now. It's been a while since you two had any serious contact." "Yeah," Sam straightened his sleeves. "I'm surprised he still lived in the same spot." "Not Boston, though," Lois said thoughtfully. "The letters Mom was getting were all postmarked Boston." "One of the many mysteries we need to clear up," Sam said almost cheerfully. "When I talked to him on the phone, he did seem a little surprised to hear from me, but when I told him I'd figured out he was the one who commissioned my current project, he seemed downright eager to see me." "I bet," Lois laced her tone with sarcasm. "But it got him to see you, didn't it?" "Yes, it did, princess," Sam said. "I told him I was so grateful, I wanted to take him to dinner. I don't know if he bought it, but I guess we'll see." "I guess so," Lois stepped back and looked him over. "I can't see a trace of your mic or your recorder; you look good. Now, remember, I'll be listening in, too. I don't think you'll run into serious trouble, but if you do, I'll know it." "Do you suppose we should wait for Clark to get back before I leave?" Sam asked. "No, Clark's got his own job to do right now," Lois said. "We can handle this. I'll call him if we need him." "All right; you're the professional," Sam said. "Let's go." *** ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 20 Jul 2000 10:20:59 -0500 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: alauters Subject: Re: Oops -- Time Elapsed 14 again MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit OK, now let's admit to some stupidity . . .I was glancing at the wrong copy in my box. There's absolutely nothing wrong with the first post. Ouch. Amy ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 20 Jul 2000 11:10:01 -0700 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Judith Williams Subject: Re: OT: Up, Up, and Away! MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit This sounds like The Musters turned inside out! Jude ----- Original Message ----- From: kubitc To: Sent: Thursday, July 20, 2000 5:58 AM Subject: OT: Up, Up, and Away! > Last night I saw the end of a movie on the Disney channel I thought might be > of interest, fanfic-wise... It featured a pre-teen boy whose entire family- > all except him- had superhuman powers, the same powers as Superman, from what > I could see. His father (Bronze Eagle), mother (Warrior Woman, whose costume > included a skirt), and older brother were all superheroes, and his grandfather > (Steel Condor, played by Mr. Schott of SG) appeared to be a retired superhero. > The boy was struggling to feel a part of his family, since he didn't have the > powers they do, and the A plot involved a computer program which took control > of people's minds. (Sorry, can't be more specific since I didn't see the whole > thing.) The whole premise reminded me of several fics where Lois and Clark > have children (the characters even refered to Superman at least once ;) > > Christy > kubitc@kenyon.edu > > "I saw the angel in the marble and carved until I set him free." -Michaelangelo ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 20 Jul 2000 13:31:35 -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: When Lightning Strikes Twice: Part 32/34 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 Rated: PG-13 Part: 32 of 34 Comments: much appreciated, publicly or privately. Another long section, mainly because I may not be able to post again until Sunday. :) ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Yes, she did, lots: just how Superman from Krypton came to be Clark Kent from Smallville, Kansas; how long he=92d had his powers; what he=92d done before he became Superman; why he preferred to work as a reporter instead of doing something much more glamorous or exciting, which with his abilities he could easily do. That last question earned her almost the first smile she=92d had from him since his parents had left them alone to write up their story. His lips twitched and he raised an eyebrow at her. =93I never imagined I=92d hear Loi= s Lane admit there=92s a more exciting way of earning a living than as a reporter! Isn=92t that the best job there is, according to you?=94 She gave him a rueful smile in return. =93Sure - but that=92s for me. You=92= re *Superman*! You could do anything you want - go anywhere you want.=94 To her surprise, he shrugged lightly. =93Ever since I worked on my high school newspaper, I=92ve wanted to be a reporter. That=92s why I studied journalism at university. As for travelling, you know I did that. And for some of the time while I was travelling, I worked as a reporter - always in print journalism, I=92ve never been interested in any other genre. I=92ve do= ne all the travelling I want to. My home is in Metropolis now - that=92s where = I want to be.=94 She should have felt happy, reassured, at that statement, but it didn=92t help to lift the bleakness which she=92d felt ever since she=92d stopped herself running into Clark=92s arms and he had failed to make any move to hu= g her on his own account. It was looking very much as if her earlier reasoning was correct. She had no idea exactly what Clark=92s feelings for her were, but clearly he was anxious to ensure that she didn=92t have a chance to throw herself at him the way she had with Superman. The signs were all there: the way he=92d hugged his parents and not her, his matter-of= - fact behaviour when they=92d been writing up their story, and the complete absence of his usual affectionate manner towards her now, while they were walking. It was in the nature of their relationship that they were frequently tactile with each other. But they=92d been walking together for over half an= hour and he hadn=92t touched her once. And, as if to emphasise the barrier which now existed between them, he was maintaining a physical distance between them which actually hurt. Even when he'd told her how much her friendship meant to him, his body language had remained remote; the Clark she=92d known before would have reached out to touch her arm, or tentatively= stroked her hair, or even swept her into a one-armed hug. This Clark was, in some ways, almost a stranger. How much things had changed between them in the space of two days! She remembered Clark as he had been when he=92d visited her at the hospital: he=92= d been very concerned about her, apologetic about having worried her, and otherwise his usual affectionate, teasing self. He *had* hugged her. He=92d even kissed her... on the forehead, though, not on the lips as she'd thought - hoped? - he=92d intended. But even that hadn=92t concerned her too= much: she'd felt confident, then, that he loved her. But now.... Well, ever since Clark=92s normal mild-mannered demeanour had slipped and he=92d made her see the truth about himself, she=92d had no idea= how he felt about her. Her first reaction, of course, had been to decide that he didn=92t, couldn=92t, love her. Later reflections had led to think t= hat perhaps he=92d just been angry, and that once he=92d calmed down things woul= d return to normal - well, as normal as they could be now that she=92d discovered that the two men who meant most to her were actually one man. Even this morning she hadn=92t been concerned, knowing that he was preoccupied with worry over Jimmy and blazing anger against Lex Luthor. Clark had had far more important things on his mind than his relationship with Lois Lane; but while they=92d been working together on their story, and= later when they=92d been talking, she had felt cocooned by the knowledge tha= t she was important to him. Very important. But she now knew just where her importance to him lay. She was his friend - his best friend, he=92d told her. And she supposed that now her friendship could be even more important to him, since she=92d joined the ranks of the very few people with whom he didn=92t need to maintain a masquerade. With her, he could be himself, Clark Kent the Super-hero. And, while she wanted him as her best friend, that was no longer enough. She wanted him to love her, as she loved him. She wanted him as her life partner. She sighed inwardly, trying to focus on their conversation; she didn=92t wan= t to give Clark any suspicion that she wasn=92t happy about something. After all, this situation was entirely her own fault. She was the one who had behaved like an infatuated teenager around Superman, while treating Clark in a casually dismissive way. It was up to her to earn his trust, to prove to him that she liked him - *loved* him - for the man that he was, and not because of his special abilities. Quite how she was going to do that, she didn=92t know. But she was determine= d to try; no matter how long it took, Clark Kent was going to believe that Lois Lane loved him, and he was going to love her back. **************** Three weeks later, Clark was getting more and more despondent about ever getting Lois to accept that she didn=92t need to be afraid of getting close to him. Oh, she was still his friend, and in some ways she was a far better friend than before, because not only did she know about him, which meant that he could talk to her about things he=92d never been able to discuss wit= h her before, but she also seemed to have become much more empathic, more concerned for him than ever before. Since their return to Metropolis, he had come to visit her late at night on several occasions, as Superman, and they=92d sat and talked for hours: about rescues he=92d been involved in, ab= out what Superman meant to the world, about the difficulties of balancing his life as Clark with the demands made on his time by Superman. It was wonderful being able to have those conversations with Lois: in many ways, she was helping him to come to terms with issues which had caused him to obsess far too frequently since becoming Superman. She pointed out to him several times that Superman couldn't be expected to be everywhere, that he shouldn=92t blame himself for lives he couldn=92t save, and that since th= e very idea of Superman gave the world something to believe in, he should be content with what he was able to do. As she told him, many thousands of people were alive today because of him. Oh, Lois=92s reassurances were nothing his parents hadn=92t said to him over and over, but somehow Lois=92s= pragmatic nature got through to him in ways his parents couldn't quite manage sometimes. Maybe he just needed to have someone else tell him this: after all, he expected to hear it from his parents, and so perhaps it didn=92t have quite the same impact coming from them. She was the best friend he=92d ever had... but yet the physical distance between them was greater than it had ever been. He could sense her physical withdrawal from him every time they were together, whether at work or alone in one or other=92s apartment. No more sitting close together on his couch i= f they were watching a video; no chance of her allowing her head to rest on his shoulder, or of her snuggling up to him. Even when they were working together at his desk or hers, she was careful to maintain her personal space; gone were the times when she=92d lay her hands on his chest as she teased him, or when she would touch his arm to get his attention, or hug him exuberantly when a story came together. He missed that closeness, the day-today gestures of affection, so much, and even the greater comfort and support he gained from her knowledge of his true nature didn=92t compensate for its absence. He was distancing himself too, in a physical way; an almost instinctive, reflexive response to her avoidance of any contact between them, but it was also a deliberate act. Let her get used to her new knowledge of him, he=92d subconsciously decided. Show her that she had nothing to fear. Don=92t make any attempt to be physically demonstrative towards her - leave any moves in that direction entirely up to her. She had to realise, sooner or later, that he would never use his powers to hurt her; she had to see, from his everyday behaviour, that he was perfectly capable of controlling what he could do. And yet she had been very supportive; the distancing seemed to be purely on a physical level and not at all on an emotional one. She was a sympathetic and understanding listener when he needed to talk about the demons which haunted him, and she made him welcome whenever he needed comfort and companionship; she actively encouraged him to fly over to her apartment after his late-night patrol and share conversation and hot chocolate - made by him. Ironically, she appeared entertained, rather than alarmed, by his casual use of his powers in such circumstances. She=92d certainly helped him come to terms with the aftermath of Luthor=92s death. That had been difficult... for several nights after the fight, he=92d= woken sweating from a nightmare in which he saw, vividly, the shark attack and heard Lex Luthor=92s agonised cries before death finally, mercifully, silenced him. It didn=92t help to remind himself that Luthor had almost certainly died instantly following the first shark=92s attack; there had in reality been no cries. It didn=92t stop his dreaming sub-conscious from telling him that there had been. He couldn=92t tell his parents about the nightmares; he wasn=92t sure why, since he=92d talked to them about almost every other trauma he=92d had to fa= ce as Superman. This seemed different, somehow. Actually, after a couple of weeks=92 reflection, Clark had concluded that the reason it seemed easier to= discuss Luthor with Lois was the fact that she had understood the conflicting desires which had threatened to tear him apart. He *had* been tempted, for the first time in his life, to kill. She had realised that when she=92d initiated the conversation in his parents=92 kitchen. True, he hadn=92t raised the issue with his parents; but when it had come up, after the event, their reaction had been unhesitating. They had never imagined that the thought of killing would cross his mind. It hadn=92t occurred to *them* that killing Lex Luthor could be a legitimate way out of what had become an impossible, dangerous situation. It wasn=92t that his parents saw things in black and white, precisely, but he suspected that they might have had difficulty understanding his internal conflict. He *hadn=92t* killed Luthor, nor had he been intending to in that final fight; and Lois was right to remind him that he hadn=92t even been tempted t= o yield to the urge to leave Luthor to his free-fall when the other man=92s powers had deserted him. He had, without a second=92s hesitation, flown down= to save Luthor. It was Luthor=92s own manic rage which had caused Clark to drop him, and had led to Luthor=92s death. So he had no remaining concerns about the manner of Luthor=92s death; his conscience was clear. What did bother him were the endless =91what if=92 questions. What if Luthor=92s powers hadn=92t failed? What if the transfer h= ad actually been permanent? What if, in the future, some other villain managed to figure out a means of achieving a permanent transfer? The moral high ground might be a lofty place for Superman to retreat to, but what of his responsibilities to the people around him? If Luthor hadn=92t died, how coul= d Clark have lived with the consequences of his next acts? It was hard enough bearing the weight on his conscience of the knowledge that people were dead merely because Luthor wanted Superman to be otherwise occupied. What if mass murder and destruction was made possible by Superman=92s failure to sto= p Luthor permanently? What if Luthor had achieved his goal of killing Superman - which could only have occurred if Clark hadn=92t taken steps to prevent it - had made it possible for Luthor to become a violent dictator, achieving the kind of power he could only have dreamed about in his previous life? Lois had forced him to talk about these thoughts and what-ifs, sitting calmly on the couch while he=92d paced back and forth around her apartment explaining semi-coherently how he felt. She=92d made no attempt at all to judge, never telling him what he should have done - which he appreciated more than he could say - but her logical, analytical comments on the situation did help him to accept what had happened, even if neither of them could ultimately come up with any convincing solution to the what-ifs. As far as the moral dilemma went, he simply hoped he would never again be faced with such a choice. And at least Lois understood how he felt, and that meant a lot to him. They had even discussed the fact that she had pleaded with him to kill Luthor; he had explained his resolution not to kill, and he=92d even admitted that her strong advocacy of killing had been = a little hurtful. How could she be so understanding, so supportive emotionally, and yet cringe from him physically? On the other hand, he reminded himself, why shouldn=92t she? She owed him no commitment in that respect. They were best friends. And, in so many ways, she was the best friend he could ask for. And it wasn't as if things were all bad, or even frustrating. As friends, they were closer than ever. Their old banter and teasing was back, stronger than ever in some ways though without the casual gestures of affection they used to make towards each other. In his apartment one evening, when he'd invited her over for a meal while they worked late on some research, she had even called him 'Flyboy' in the middle of a discussion about their work; he'd blinked and given her a surprised look, in response to which she had laughed and told him that 'Farmboy' just didn't seem right any more. She seemed to enjoy his teasing, though she grimaced at his bad jokes, and she generally made it apparent that she really enjoyed being with him. As he did with her. Maybe he should be thankful for what he had, and learn to settle for it? It had a lot of advantages. At work, he no longer had to flounder around for semi-plausible excuses when he had to go and be Superman. Frequently now, when he returned from such an absence, it would be to find that Lois had covered for him, either with a story as to where he=92d been, or by insisting that he=92d been worki= ng on one of their joint stories. A couple of times, when he=92d had to be absent for a few hours at a time, she=92d even added his by-line to a story she=92d written solo; he had been extremely touched, as well as feeling guilty at taking credit for something to which he hadn=92t contributed. Though she=92d laughed that off by pointin= g out that she expected the occasional Superman exclusive in compensation. She=92d claimed that, too, on one occasion summoning him into the conference= room to get some quotes and exclusive details from him, and on another, cornering him during one of their late-night talks to demand that he owed her a story. He=92d been happy enough to comply, figuring that it was fair exchange; it was also probably just as well that Clark Kent wasn=92t seen to= be the only reporter who consistently had exclusive Superman stories. Clark was, however, also very much aware that he had less need to explain himself at work than he=92d previously thought. He=92d come to the conclusio= n that Perry=92s slip, on the day he=92d had his final encounter, did indeed indicate that the editor knew about his senior reporter=92s part-time job. Perry had said nothing since, and Clark had simply decided not to confront him; it was simpler to continue on the unspoken understanding that Perry knew, and that Perry knew Clark was aware of his knowledge. It didn=92t bother Clark that the Chief knew; he'd no idea how long Perry had known, but he had no doubts about his boss=92s discretion. Perry had shown that he could be trusted over the Lex Luthor affair, and Clark was sure that he could rely on Perry to continue his silence. Accepting the fact of Perry=92s awareness was different, though. Lois, in many ways, seemed to delight in her knowledge of Superman=92s true identity,= although she was proving herself to be utterly dependable in terms of keeping the secret. He had come face-to-face with her when he was in his guise as Superman and she was a reporter covering the story and she=92d behaved just as she always had, ever eager to ask the first question and refusing to be fobbed off with excuses or no-comments. And yet her behaviour had altered subtly; in the past there had always been an undercurrent of =91notice me, please!=92 to the way she=92d conducted hersel= f around Superman. Now, without much obvious change, her behaviour was more professional. She did seem to have little difficulty getting accustomed to his casual use, as Clark, of Super-powers. He=92d been a little worried that her fear o= f him might mean that he=92d have to ensure that she never saw Clark do anything Super, but that didn=92t seem to be a problem. In fact, on the firs= t occasion on which they=92d been away from the paper doing some undercover research, she=92d actually demanded that he use his X-ray vision to get some= vital information, and later she=92d insisted that he listen to someone=92s phone conversation with his Super-hearing. Now, he was getting used to being hauled into the conference room whenever she was tired of the lengthy job of sorting through piles of documents; she simply handed them to him, told him what she was looking for, and expected him to work at Super-speed for her. He didn=92t mind that in the least; in fact, he found it highly amusing and he enjoyed teasing her about getting lazy. He just wished that she would relax with him, and at least allow them the kind of easy affection they used to demonstrate with each other. Sometimes he had been so tempted to explode, to remind her that he=92d never= once hurt her in the eighteen months they=92d known each other and to demand= to know why she imagined he might do so now. But then he=92d remember the wa= y she=92d looked after Luthor had hit her with his heat vision, remember thinking that she was dead, and he'd think better of it. Lois=92s own words,= when he=92d gone to see her in the hospital, also came back to haunt him on such occasions... And her lack of emotional distance, the way she had been so supportive and encouraging to him over the past weeks, the way she welcomed him and listened to him for long periods when he needed to talk, the many ways she had reminded him what Superman stood for, couldn't help but give him some hope. She wouldn=92t be so open with him if she didn=92t care about him, he told himself. And if she cared, then... perhaps...? No, he had to be patient. He just wondered how long he was supposed to be patient for, and whether he could take much more of this friendship without closeness to which he seemed to be condemned for the foreseeable future. **************** Lois leaned back in her chair, stretching the muscles in her back and shoulders; she had been bending forward over the papers on her desk for too long, and she was beginning to ache. Rubbing her tired eyes with the back of her hand, she wondered where her partner was: Clark=92s presence would be= really helpful right about now. They could take these printouts into the conference room and he=92d have found what she was looking for in under five= minutes. But he was out somewhere dealing with an emergency, and so she would just have to do it the slow way, on her own. Most of the time, though, having a Super-powered partner had a lot of advantages, and these were benefits she hadn=92t failed to make use of since= their return to Metropolis after Lex Luthor=92s defeat and death. Now that she knew Clark could hear or see danger coming, she trusted his instincts in that regard when they were undercover; if he said they needed to hide or get out, she took his word for it, and otherwise concentrated on finding out what she needed to know. He came in pretty handy there too: his Super- hearing, X-ray vision and speed were very useful accessories. And at least she now knew where he went to when he disappeared abruptly, or couldn=92t be found in the first place; she=92d now got into the habit of checking the TV news before leaving her apartment in the morning, just to check whether her partner was likely to make it to work first thing. If he was busy somewhere as Superman, she would come up with an explanation for his absence - she knew that Clark was very grateful for that; though he didn=92t say much other than a brief =91thanks=92 on most occasions when she= told him where he was supposed to have been, his appreciation was evident from the quick smiles he gave her at the same time. She found his lack any other reaction a little disappointing, Lois reflected; after all, this was all part of her strategy to get Clark to realise that she cared about *him,* Clark Kent, the whole person. Not that it was an effort to do such things: she wanted to, because she loved him. And she received satisfaction from the knowledge that, in some small way, she was helping Superman in his daily duties. On a personal level, though, things hadn=92t been so good between them. The physical distance which had become apparent that final evening in Smallville had grown as time passed. Lois had been determined that she was not going to give Clark cause to suspect that she was changing her intentions towards him as a result of knowing he was Superman, so she had taken care to avoid seeming to demand anything from him but friendship. No touching, no flirting with him - in either guise - in the manner she's previously been accustomed to, no casual bumping her hip against his in a teasing manner as they walked; nothing which might imply that *she* hoped for more. But she had hoped that he might take the initiative. He hadn=92t. In all the time they=92d spent alone together over the past three weeks - an= d there had been many late nights of long, intense discussion - Clark had never made the slightest move to touch her, much less anything more. He hadn=92t even offered to take her flying since that night he=92d brought her= back to Metropolis. He had retreated physically, although he now confided in her far more than ever before. She was gratified, as well as happy, that Clark was willing to talk to her about so many things which, previously, had been a closed book to her. Superman had rarely discussed anything personal to him with her, and she=92d= always been aware that Clark was keeping things back. On the memorable occasion when she=92d demanded that he share with her his deepest secret, she'd known very well - and been hurt - that he hadn=92t honoured her confidence with his own. Now, she understood only too well why he hadn=92t given her the truth on that or other occasions. Their intimate conversations were very precious to her. She had told him, that night he=92d flown them back to Metropolis and left her at her apartment, that he was welcome at any time, as Superman or as Clark, if he wanted to talk or just wanted company after a difficult rescue. He=92d made no secret of how difficult he frequently found his =91solitary Super-hero=92= role; that had formed a major part of the dinner-table conversation between the four of them before Clark and Lois had left Smallville. Lois had hoped that, by encouraging Clark to talk to her and by being sympathetic and understanding, Clark might come to realise how much she cared about him. Still, it was a major advance in their relationship that he trusted her enough to confide in her. She had seen him in a range of different moods since the demise of Lex Luthor: cheerful, despondent, humorous, anguished and tormented; and he no longer tried to hide his feelings from her. At least, his feelings about what he had to do as Superman; she had no idea about his feelings for *her* other than the fact that he considered her his best friend. But as his best friend, she felt in some ways excluded - in a different way than any previous sense of exclusion. Previously she=92d been aware that there were things he wasn=92t telling her; now, she knew that, while he was telling her everything, he was holding himself back physically. Even if she wasn=92t in love with him she would have missed the everyday casual contact:= the hand on her shoulder as he stood behind her reading what was on her screen, the light touch to her arm to attract her attention, the hand at the back of her waist to guide her out of a room, the very occasional goodnight kiss to her cheek or forehead. There had been many times, during those late-night conversations, when she=92d wanted to go him and take his hand between both of hers, or to wrap her arms about his waist and hold him close to her, or just to stroke his hair and tell him that she would always be there for him, in whatever way he wanted. It was so hard, now she knew what she wanted from him and from their relationship, not to tell him how she felt. But she was scared: frightened that he would reject her in the way she=92d been rejected so many= times before, scared that he would tell her again that he just couldn't believe her claim to love him in the circumstances, scared that she would lose him altogether as a friend. So she kept quiet and kept her hands to herself, not even walking to the window with him when he left to fly home. She=92d always accompanied Superma= n to the window, hoping for some gesture of affection from him: a touch, perhaps, or if she was really lucky, a kiss on the cheek. By not seeing Clark off in that way, she was trying to convey to him that she didn=92t expect anything like that, that she was leaving any moves towards a closer relationship up to him. Which should have been okay, only he wasn't taking the hint. And it was very frustrating, as well as making her miserable. Only it wasn't all miserable, she had to admit that, and it was only her need for more from him which was making her unhappy with the situation - for all she knew, the _status quo_ was exactly what he wanted. And she couldn't deny that they'd had a lot of fun over the past three weeks, once they'd both recovered a little from the emotional stress of both the danger presented by Lex Luthor and Clark's revelation. He was still a very humorous guy, a lot of fun to be with; he still kidded around a lot with her, both at work and when they socialised together, which was frequently. Now she knew about him, he also enjoyed relaxing with her and using his powers in a casual manner, which had initially made her gasp in amazement, but now she only laughed when he sat, cross-legged, in the air opposite her while they played Scrabble across the coffee-table in his apartment. And at least he didn't seem to be seeing Mayson Drake any more, which had to be good news.... But she was trying not to let her yearning for Clark=92s love get in the way= of being the best friend she could be to him. She needed him as much as he needed her: she was well aware of that. It had been difficult for her to return to her apartment and to the Planet in the aftermath of the Luthor episode. Sure, she=92d been aware that Luthor was dead and would therefore b= e unable to harm her ever again. But a necessary part of defeating him had, after all, been resurrecting him as a news story. Their story in the Planet had caused other news organisations to write follow-ups, and one of their major areas of discussion had been the wedding which had been interrupted by the police, on the day of Luthor=92s suicide. This had meant that for a couple of days Lois had again become the subject of news stories, which she hated anyway; but when the stories were about her relationship with Luthor she loathed it even more. They brought back uncomfortable memories for her, in exactly the same way as seeing Luthor again had done; she now found it impossible to credit that she had been so naive, so avaricious, as to accept Luthor=92s proposal. Clark=92s revelation that Luthor had wanted to control her had been no surprise, but had served to remind her yet again what a very lucky escape she had had. Clark had been a wonderful support during those first couple of days, fielding calls at her desk and throwing out a couple of tabloid reporters who had staked out her apartment building. She knew that he'd also kept an eye on her apartment from the air, and he'd assured her that if she needed help at any time she only had to call and he would be with her within seconds. And she knew she could rely on him to keep his promise, if it was Super-humanly possible. They=92d had a lot to do themselves, both officially and covertly, to deal with the remainder of the problems caused by Luthor. Nigel St John, his leg and hip in plaster, was in a prison hospital and had been visited by Superman, who wanted to know whether St John was going to deny the =91official=92 story that the resurrected Luthor had been a clone. Apparently, Nigel St John wasn=92t particularly interested in going public with his side of recent events; in perhaps the first honest thing he had said to anyone in years, he'd told Superman that he despised Lex Luthor and wanted to forget that he=92d ever seen the man again. Henderson had offered St John a choice between deportation to the UK - where he would have faced charges for duplicity related to his having gone rogue as a spy - or trial in Metropolis. But two days later the ex-spy had been found dead in his cell; poison, Henderson had told Superman. =93Probably kept it in a secret compartment in his glasses,=94 the cynical detective had commented. For some reason, Clark had taken St John=92s death more personally than Luthor=92s, and Lois had at first found that hard to understand: it hadn=92t= remotely been his doing. But she thought she=92d figured out the reason behind his feelings: St John had in some ways been another victim of Luthor=92s villainy. Luthor had in effect left his former personal assistant= to die on the Planet roof. Clark had ensured that he got medical help, only for the man to commit suicide a few days later. And Lois knew Clark, in both his guises, well enough by now to understand what a criminal waste of life he considered suicide to be. More important, though, had been the aftermath of the disasters Luthor had caused. Although those were old news by the time Lane and Kent returned to the Planet, Clark was anxious that the true cause of the mudslide and the bridge collapse should not be known. It was one thing to have the public know that a cyborg Luthor had existed, but quite another to realise that someone, or something, had possessed Super-powers equivalent to Superman=92s. The fuss over Resplendent Man had been bad enough without mor= e clamour to find out how powers could be transferred. But Clark, as Superman, had also made secret visits to both locations in order to help repair some of the damage, and as himself had lobbied a number of big business interests to contribute to the emergency funds. Jimmy was recovering well; he was now walking on crutches and looking forward to the flight Superman had promised him once he was fit and well again. He=92d also agreed to keep quiet about what he knew of the Luthor incident. Perry, too, was maintaining close-lipped silence about the affair.= Perry was a dark horse in more ways than one, Lois reflected silently as her gaze briefly fell on the editor=92s office. Clark had told her of his suspicions that Perry knew he and Superman were one and the same; Lois had initially been highly chagrined that Perry had figured out something she hadn=92t even guessed at. But Clark had reminded her that Perry had many mor= e years of experience at sniffing out news stories, and he was also in more of a position, perhaps, to notice the comings and goings of his reporters. She=92d wondered why he seemed unwilling to confront Perry about it, but he=92= d insisted that he preferred it this way. Which meant she couldn=92t say anything about it either, and she had to continue to maintain the fiction that Clark was somewhere else when he was absent on Superman business. =93Lois? What are you still doing here?=94 Perry=92s voice interrupted her thoughts and reminded her that she should really be on her way home. =93Chief... just some research - =94 she began. =93Now, Lois, you know I=92m expecting to see you - and that partner of your= s - at the Metropolis Carlton in just over an hour. So you need to git on out of here and go home and get all dressed up.=94 =93Chief... do I *have* to go?=94 she protested. Tonight was the Metropolis Press Association=92s annual dinner, a formal and very boring event which every reporter Lois knew dreaded. But the Planet, like other papers in the city, took a table every year, and so every year a dozen reporters had to accompany Perry to the function. =93It=92s not as if you couldn=92t manage without me....=94 =93Now, Lois, you know you pulled this one on me last year. It=92s your turn= this year, and you better be there, with your brightest smile on your face, okay?=94 He glowered at her before turning back to his office, and Lois groaned inwardly. She really did not feel like going to a formal dinner tonight, but Perry was clearly not going to allow her to cry off. Sighing heavily, she got to her feet and headed for the elevator. Clark Kent just better show up, she thought resentfully as she waited for the car; it would be grossly unfair if he managed to escape his responsibility to keep her entertained because Superman had somewhere better to be. ***************** ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 20 Jul 2000 14:32:41 -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: Oops -- Time Elapsed 14 again MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Amy another good segment keep this coming - more quickly please merry ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 20 Jul 2000 18:42:23 -0400 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: lisa a cox Subject: Silly Story - To Catch a Mouse MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit all items were used, and the word count is 393. Lois looked around her apartment. Everything was perfect. Well, almost perfect. She threw away the empty can of motor oil that was sitting on her kitchen counter. Then she grabbed her feather duster and did some quick dusting. There. Now everything was perfect.....Except for making dinner. How could she have forgotten dinner! Lois rummaged through her cabinets and refrigerator only to come up with a half-eaten bag of iced animal crackers and a jar of pickles. They wouldn’t do for dinner. Lois grabbed an animal cracker then she rushed to her wine cabinet. At least she could serve wine with whatever pizza she ordered. She grabbed a bottle of her favorite white wine and put it in a bucket of ice to chill. Now it was time to get dressed. Lois rushed to the bedroom and quickly stripped out of her work clothes. She pulled a blue dress out of her closet. It was one of her favorites. She quickly put it on and went to the bathroom to reapply her makeup. When that was done, she went back to the living room and waited for her date to arrive. When the doorbell rang Lois sprang up off the couch and rushed to the door. “Clark, hi. Come on in.” “Hi, Lois,” Clark replied. “I hope you didn’t have anything planned for dinner, because I brought us Chinese.” He held up to bamboo containers. “That’s fine. I didn’t make anything. In fact, I was going to order pizza. You know, one day you’ll have to take me to this Chinese place you go to.” “Maybe one day I will,” Clark grinned. “Let’s go eat this before it gets cold.” Lois turned and walked toward the dining room table. Clark followed behind her but tripped on a loose piece of carpet. Clark fell to the floor his glasses went flying off, and he hit his hand on a mousetrap that was lying in the corner. “Clark!” Lois dropped the containers on the table and rushed to Clark’s side. She quickly pulled the mousetrap off his hand. She stared at it for a moment looking for damage to his hand. When she found none, her gaze flew upward toward Clark’s face. She jerked back at the sight of seeing him without glasses. “Clark?” Clark remained silent. Lois’ eyes widened then quickly narrowed. “Clark!” she fumed. Lisa-Ann ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 20 Jul 2000 17:55:51 -0500 Reply-To: truitt22@flash.net Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: timothy truitt Organization: tnt technical services Subject: telephone charges for internet MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: multipart/mixed; boundary="------------4D53E4376A51ED660DF2CF9A" This is a multi-part message in MIME format. --------------4D53E4376A51ED660DF2CF9A Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit This should be of interest toall US citizens merry --------------4D53E4376A51ED660DF2CF9A Content-Type: text/plain; charset=iso-8859-1; name="wes1.txt" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit Content-Disposition: inline; filename="wes1.txt" Subject: Fw: ALERT I M P O R T A N T Taxing the internet Date: Thu, 20 Jul 2000 17:03:10 -0500 THIS WILL HURT EVERYONE IF PASSED. I WON'T BE ABLE TO AFFORD THE INTERNET ANY MORE LETS DO WHAT WE CAN > Important info! Congress to Allow Email Charges > > Vote on Capitol Hill in 2 weeks. Please pass this on to everyone you know. > Because ALL of us use email for business and to keep up with friends and > family, I thought you'd like to know the following. CNN has > reported that within the next 2 weeks, Congress is going to vote on allowing > telephone companies to CHARGE A TOLL FEE for Internet access. > > Translation: Every time we send long distance email we will receive a Long > distance charge. This will get costly. Please visit the following web site > and file a complaint. Complain to your Congressperson. We can't allow this > to pass. The following address will allow you to send Email on this subject > DIRECTLY to your Congressperson: ****************** > http://www.house.gov/writerep ****************** > > Also, say "No" to Bill 602P which is an attempt by the postal service to > charge an "alternate postal charge" for email use. This would about 5¢ per > email. The last few months have revealed an alarming trend in the Government > of the United States attempting to quietly push through legislation that > will affect your use of the Internet. Under proposed legislation, the US > Postal Service will be attempting to bill email users an "alternate postage > fee." Bill 602P will permit the Federal Government to charge a 5¢ surcharge > on every email delivered, by billing Internet Service Providers at source. > The consumer would then be billed in turn by the ISP. > > Washington DC lawyer Richard Stepp is working without pay to prevent this > legislation from becoming law. The US Postal Service is claiming that lost > revenue due to the proliferation of email is costing nearly $230,000,000 in > revenue per year. You may have noticed their recent ad campaign "There is > nothing like a letter." Because the average citizen receives at least 10 > pieces of email daily, the cost to the typical individual would be an > additional 50¢ per day, or over $180 dollars per year, above and beyond > their regular Internet costs. Small businesses would be severely damaged. > Note that this would be money paid directly to the US Postal Service for a > service they do not even provide. If the US Postal Service is allowed to > tinker with email it will mark the end of the "free" Internet in the United > States. > > One congressman, Tony Schnell, has even suggested a "20 to 40 dollar per > month surcharge on all Internet service" above and beyond the government's > proposed email charges! Note that most of the major > newspapers have ignored the story, the only exception being the > Washingtonian, which called the idea of email surcharge "a useful concept > whose time has come" (March 6, 1999) (Editorial.) Don't sit by and watch > your freedom erode away! Send this email to EVERYONE on your list, and tell! > ! all your friends and relatives to write to their congressman and say "No!" > to Bill 602P. This will take only a few moments of your time, and could very > well be instrumental in killing a bill we don't want. > > PASS THIS ON TO EVERYONE YOU KNOW WHO USES EMAIL. REMEMBER THESE ARE 2 > SEPARATE ISSUES THAT AFFECT ALL OF US ONLINE. LET YOUR VOICE BE HEARD NOW, > NOT AFTER IT'S TOO LATE. > > The following address will allow you to send Email on this subject DIRECTLY > to your Congressperson:http://www.house.gov/writerep > > > > Best Regards, > > Clay Nelson > Ph: 805-682-8712 > Fx: 805-569-5786 > e mail clay@cjenterprises.com > http://www.cjenterprises.com > > > > > --------------4D53E4376A51ED660DF2CF9A-- ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 20 Jul 2000 19:27:02 -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: Re: When Lightning Strikes Twice: Part 32/34 In-Reply-To: Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" ; format="flowed" > >Another long section, mainly because I may not be able to post again until >Sunday. :) AGH! I can't wait that long!!!! Hurry up! :-) It's such a good read.... Jackie Jacalyn S. Newman jacalynsue@earthlink.net ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 20 Jul 2000 16:43:24 -0700 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Melisma Subject: Re: Silly Story - To Catch a Mouse In-Reply-To: <20000720.184226.-89389357.0.lisaanncox@juno.com> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Lisa-Ann, Teeheehee! This was so VERY cute :) Have you got any other stories stashed away in your brain, notebook and/or computer hard drive? ::hopes fervently yes:: Melisma (still giggling under her rock) Visit my rock at http://www.intergate.ca/personal/melisma/index.html ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 20 Jul 2000 19:54:13 -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: telephone charges for internet MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Merry, this is a hoax that's gone around several times in the last decade... so everyone can relax :) This particular one changes details from time to time, but it keeps mentioning "Bill 602P" which is not how the US Congress numbers their bills... it's either HRxxx for a House of Representatives bill or Sxxx for a Senate bill. Those of you who have some serious time to kill should check out this Urban Legends page... http://urbanlegends.about.com/science/urbanlegends/ It's a great resource to check when you're not quite sure what to believe, and it's kinda fun just to surf around and see what's out there. -- 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: Fri, 21 Jul 2000 20:24:32 -0700 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Dennis Arendt Subject: Re: Silly Story - To Catch a Mouse MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit LOL, I thought for a minute that she was going to turn Clark over and see a mouse trap snapped to his nose. Brie -----Original Message----- From: lisa a cox To: LOISCLA-GENERAL-L@LISTSERV.INDIANA.EDU Date: Thursday, July 20, 2000 3:43 PM Subject: Silly Story - To Catch a Mouse > >all items were used, and the word count is 393. > > > > > Lois looked around her apartment. Everything was perfect. Well, >almost perfect. She threw away the empty can of motor oil that was >sitting on her kitchen counter. Then she grabbed her feather duster and >did some quick dusting. There. Now everything was perfect.....Except for >making dinner. > How could she have forgotten dinner! Lois rummaged through her >cabinets and refrigerator only to come up with a half-eaten bag of iced >animal crackers and a jar of pickles. They wouldn’t do for dinner. Lois >grabbed an animal cracker then she rushed to her wine cabinet. At least >she could serve wine with whatever pizza she ordered. > She grabbed a bottle of her favorite white wine and put it in a >bucket of ice to chill. Now it was time to get dressed. Lois rushed to >the bedroom and quickly stripped out of her work clothes. She pulled a >blue dress out of her closet. It was one of her favorites. She quickly >put it on and went to the bathroom to reapply her makeup. When that was >done, she went back to the living room and waited for her date to arrive. >When the doorbell rang Lois sprang up off the couch and rushed to the >door. > “Clark, hi. Come on in.” > “Hi, Lois,” Clark replied. “I hope you didn’t have anything planned >for dinner, because I brought us Chinese.” He held up to bamboo >containers. > “That’s fine. I didn’t make anything. In fact, I was going to order >pizza. You know, one day you’ll have to take me to this Chinese place you >go to.” > “Maybe one day I will,” Clark grinned. > “Let’s go eat this before it gets cold.” > Lois turned and walked toward the dining room table. Clark followed >behind her but tripped on a loose piece of carpet. Clark fell to the >floor his glasses went flying off, and he hit his hand on a mousetrap >that was lying in the corner. > “Clark!” Lois dropped the containers on the table and rushed to >Clark’s side. She quickly pulled the mousetrap off his hand. She stared >at it for a moment looking for damage to his hand. When she found none, >her gaze flew upward toward Clark’s face. She jerked back at the sight of >seeing him without glasses. > “Clark?” > Clark remained silent. > Lois’ eyes widened then quickly narrowed. “Clark!” she fumed. > > > > >Lisa-Ann ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 20 Jul 2000 21:12:57 -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: telephone charges for internet MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Thanks Pam, was worried for a while. merry. Pam Jernigan wrote: > Merry, this is a hoax that's gone around several times in the last > decade... so everyone can relax :) This particular one changes details > from time to time, but it keeps mentioning "Bill 602P" which is not how > the US Congress numbers their bills... it's either HRxxx for a House of > Representatives bill or Sxxx for a Senate bill. > > Those of you who have some serious time to kill should check out this > Urban Legends page... > > http://urbanlegends.about.com/science/urbanlegends/ > > It's a great resource to check when you're not quite sure what to > believe, and it's kinda fun just to surf around and see what's out > there. > -- > > 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, 20 Jul 2000 22:06:58 -0400 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: lisa a cox Subject: Re: Silly Story - To Catch a Mouse MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit how bout several stashed in a notebook somewhere in my desk......I wrote some outlines for stories some time ago (like back when the show was actually stil airing new eps) and many of them are dull But, I'm working on one where I got the idea from an episode of the George Reeves Superman TV show this was my first posted LnC fic. I write for other fandoms (star trek, x-files, battlestar galactica and The A-team) Lisa-Ann On Thu, 20 Jul 2000 16:43:24 -0700 Melisma writes: > Lisa-Ann, > > Teeheehee! This was so VERY cute :) Have you got any other stories > stashed > away in your brain, notebook and/or computer hard drive? ::hopes > fervently > yes:: > > > Melisma (still giggling under her rock) > > > > Visit my rock at http://www.intergate.ca/personal/melisma/index.html ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 20 Jul 2000 21:17:34 -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: telephone charges for internet MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit I want to apologize for sending this to the list. I agree, it is inappropriate for this list. I just got worried. merry ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 20 Jul 2000 21:24:49 -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: Silly Story - To Catch a Mouse MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Lisa cute story merry ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 20 Jul 2000 22:31:16 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: Re: Silly Story - To Catch a Mouse MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit LOL! That was both cute and funny! I never get tired of revelation fics, as long as they're done well and they're different from revelation fics that have gone before them. This was definitely original. Great job! Mols ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 20 Jul 2000 20:39:26 -0700 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Melisma Subject: Re: Silly Story - To Catch a Mouse In-Reply-To: <20000720.220809.-89207193.0.lisaanncox@juno.com> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" At 10:06 PM 20/07/2000 -0400, you wrote: >how bout several stashed in a notebook somewhere in my desk......I wrote >some outlines for stories some time ago (like back when the show was >actually stil airing new eps) and many of them are dull > >But, I'm working on one where I got the idea from an episode of the >George Reeves Superman TV show > > >this was my first posted LnC fic. I write for other fandoms (star trek, >x-files, battlestar galactica and The A-team) > >Lisa-Ann Where do you post your Star Trek and XFiles fic? Those are the two other shows we have in common, it would seem. (My LnCc and Star Trek fic is on my site, and as soon as my first XFiles fic is done, I'll post it there too...) Melisma (always on the prowl for good fic, here under her rock) Visit my rock at http://www.intergate.ca/personal/melisma/index.html ========================================================================= Date: Thu, 20 Jul 2000 23:12:01 -0500 Reply-To: truitt22@flash.net Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: timothy truitt Organization: tnt technical services Subject: Fanzine stories MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit To all of the Fanzine Writers - I wanted to thank you for writing such wonderful stories. I replied last year to the individual authors, and I doubt I'll be reading them as quickly as I do the boards right now, since I have already read them. They are very good stories. I noticed that Anne's place is hosting the stories from last year's Fanzine. I wanted to tell everyone to go read these stories if you have not done so already. merry ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 21 Jul 2000 07:30:35 -0400 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: lisa a cox Subject: Re: Silly Story - To Catch a Mouse MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit > Where do you post your Star Trek and XFiles fic? Those are the two > other > shows we have in common, it would seem. (My LnCc and Star Trek fic > is on my > site, and as soon as my first XFiles fic is done, I'll post it there > too...) > > Melisma (always on the prowl for good fic, here under her rock) I've only got 3 pieces of X-files fic online (2 filks and 1 xover) and I've forgotten where they're archived it's been so long since they were posted. As for my Star Trek stuff, I don't post it. Lisa-Ann ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 21 Jul 2000 13:04:46 -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 33/34 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 Rated: PG-13 Part: 33 of 34 Comments: very much appreciated, publicly or privately This is almost it... Part 34 on Sunday. Thanks for reading! Wendy --------------------------------------------------------- Clark slid into the vacant seat next to Lois just in time for the first course, earning himself a raised eyebrow from Perry and a glower from Lois, who was dressed in a stylish linen dress in a flattering shade of pale blue. He bent his head towards her under the pretext of arranging his napkin, and murmured an explanation. =93Train derailment upstate - lots of people hurt. I=92ll give you the story later if you want.=94 Her expression softened, and she poured him a glass of wine. "Was it rough?" she asked him, keeping her voice low. Under cover of thanking her for the wine, he gave a half-smile. "No worse than most, and better than some. Only one fatality, and I couldn't have done anything to help him anyway." "I'm glad you're here anyway," Lois added, still in an undertone since she knew he could hear her. "Look at the company - did Perry *have* to let Ralph come? And half the stocks and shares section... ugh!" Clark did his best to compose his expression; it wouldn't do for Brad, who wrote the Hot Tips column and who was sitting on his left, to ask what he was laughing at. But he sympathised with Lois's sentiments. This was the first MPA dinner he'd been to - he'd been fortunate enough to have escaped last year - but he'd heard stories from some of his Planet colleagues about how tedious an event it was. The food was rarely up to much either, he'd been told; he glanced down at the seafood salad, surrounded by limp lettuce and swimming in an over-bright pink dressing, which had been placed in front of him and decided that this year was no exception. Conversation became general around the Planet's table then, largely gossip about the likely fate of the editor of another Metropolis paper whose sales had taken a recent tumble. There were formal speeches between courses, however, and as the waiting staff collected the crockery from the starter, the first speaker began a lengthy, dry ramble on the subject of newspapers and the Internet. "I'll bet he's never looked up a web-site in his life." Clark had to prevent himself from laughing aloud as Lois's _sotto voce_ remark came through to him via his Super-hearing. He stole a swift glance in her direction: she was sitting demurely in her seat, a napkin pressed to her lips. As he turned back to face the speaker, she spoke again. "He probably thinks WWW stands for Wonderful World of Work!" He stifled a choke, turning it into a cough, and then 'accidentally' dropped his napkin on the floor between his and Lois's chair. As he bent to retrieve it, he muttered, "Lois! Please... I can't keep a straight face if you keep that up!" "Got to relieve my boredom somehow, partner," she retorted, still in an undertone. He poured her another glass of wine and turned his back on her, hoping that she would take the hint; but then he heard a muttered, "Coward!" coming from her direction. Finally the speaker sat down, and the main course was served, during which time Brad dominated conversation at the Planet=92s table with lengthy boasts= of the occasions on which he=92d spotted an undervalued stock, bought substantial numbers of shares, and made a killing as a result. Ralph seemed particularly impressed by this, but again Clark was distracted by Lois saying under her breath, =93If he=92s really made a fortune as many times as= he claims, then why=92s he still a wage-slave?=94 Clark couldn=92t help but be pleased that Lois seemed so comfortable with taking advantage of his special abilities, but he resolved to have words with her later about picking her moments. The main course was, if that was possible, even worse than the first; Clark found himself wondering how the Carlton actually managed to attract large events to its function-rooms. The salmon _en croute_ was cold and congealing, and while the only slightly warmer carrots and baby sweetcorn were overcooked, the new potatoes were still solid. Lois speared a piece of corn on her fork, caught his eye, and held her fork with the tines upwards; the sweetcorn hung limply either side of the fork. Clark stifled an involuntary laugh, then, pretending to scratch the bridge of his nose and knocking his glasses slightly awry in the process, gazed down quickly at Lois=92s plate and his own. Steam rose from both. =93Thanks,=94 she murmured with an amused grin. =93Shame you can=92t do anyt= hing about the vegetables!=94 =93I=92m afraid they=92re beyond even Super help,=94 he murmured in response= , turning back to reach for his wineglass. A few minutes later, Lois got up from her seat abruptly and walked out of the dining room; he would have thought nothing of it except that she seemed irritated and, as he glanced towards her neighbour, he realised that Ralph was looking flushed. The man had obviously had too much to drink already, and Clark could guess what he had been up to with regard to Lois. Deftly he swapped Lois=92s place-settings with his and by the time she=92d returned he= was sitting in her chair. =93Thanks - his wandering hands were getting a bit too persistent,=94 Lois s= aid quietly as she resumed her seat. =93I finally dug my heel into his instep, but knowing him he still wouldn=92t have given up.=94 =93You should have told me,=94 Clark protested immediately, before turning t= o answer a question from Perry; the conversation became general again until it was halted for the second speaker. Two further speakers followed in between dessert and coffee, and as coffee was being served Clark glanced in Lois=92s direction again. He had thought she looked tired earlier; now she seemed positively weary and lacking in any of her usual spirit. Leaning towards her, he said in a voice loud enough to be overheard by most of their table, =93It=92s been a long day - think I=92ll get off home now. Lois, if you=92re ready to go maybe I could catch a ride?=94 Lois didn=92t waste any time; she got to her feet with a bright smile. =93Su= re, Clark. Well, goodnight everyone!=94 On the way to the door, she muttered, =93= If Perry ever makes me go through a night like that again I=92ll quit!=94 Clark laughed softly. =93Have to admit, lots of people warned me but I didn=92= t believe it could be as bad as they said.=94 =93And what do you think now?=94 she threw at him. His mouth turned down at the corners. =93Worse. Far, far worse.=94 In the reception area, she paused and grimaced at him. =93I didn=92t drive tonight because I knew I=92d be drinking, so I can=92t give you a ride.=94 Clark shrugged. =93Come on, you know I only said that to get you out of there. It was pretty obvious you were looking for an excuse to leave.=94 =93Not that obvious, I hope. Perry=92s very keen on putting on a good show f= or the MPA dinner - who knows why!=94 =93Only to me,=94 he reassured her. =93But then, I do have some advantages m= ost people don=92t have!=94 =93I guess you do,=94 she agreed with a fleeting smile. =93Damn - there=92s = no taxis. We=92ll have to wait.=94 Clark caught his breath, unsure whether to suggest what was in his mind. Since bringing her back to Metropolis he hadn=92t once taken her flying in the last three weeks; he=92d been afraid to offer in case she rejected that as well. She=92d held herself so stiffly in his arms on the return flight...= . But he looked at her again, taking a closer look this time, and for the first time he noticed the lines of tension around her forehead and the weariness in her eyes. Touching her arm as gently as he could, he voiced his suggestion. =93Lois - you don=92t have to wait for a cab. I can fly you home if you=92d like.=94 She turned to face him fully, her expression surprised and... was that a spark of pleasure in her eyes? =93You wouldn=92t mind?=94 she asked him hesitantly. =93Why would I mind?=94 Shaking his head as if the answer wasn't important, = he began to lead the way out of the hotel. =93Come on - we need to find somewhere quiet.=94 There was an alley half a block away and, checking that there was no-one in sight, he swiftly guided Lois into it. Gesturing to her to stay back, he spun quickly into the Suit, then beckoned her over. =93Sorry - have to be quick in case anyone sees us,=94 he explained, before swiftly scooping her into his arms and taking off. To Clark=92s surprise, Lois relaxed against him this time; but then he remembered the weariness in her expression and posture, and told himself that it was just her exhaustion. Deliberately he altered the pace and motion of his flight to make it as smooth as possible; if she was tired, he would just lay her on her bed at her apartment, remove her shoes, and leave her to sleep. Her head fell to his shoulder, her hair brushing his jaw and trailing across his lower face; it smelt of apples and of Lois, and all his damped-down yearnings came to the fore again. He wondered whether she was sufficiently drowsy for him to risk dropping a kiss on the top of her head. But she began to stir again and he decided not to take the chance. Approaching her building, he bent to ask whether her window was open. =93Yeah... it=92s closed, but not locked. You should be able to push it,=94 = she told him, her voice sounding faint and drained. She was right; it opened easily, and he landed softly in her living- room. =93You look worn out,=94 he told her gently as he set her on her feet. =93I=92ll go and let you get to bed.=94 Turning, he strode towards the= window, telling himself to leave now and not to read anything at all into her willingness to fly with him tonight. =93No...=94 He turned at her soft protest. She was standing where he=92d lef= t her, her hair wind-blown but still beautiful, her eyes silently asking him not to leave. =93Clark... I wanted to ask you...=94She faltered then, and he= wondered whether he=92d perhaps seemed too eager to go. In an altered tone then, she said, =93You=92ll stay for coffee, at least? Mine=92s got to be be= tter than....=94 She trailed off awkwardly. =93Yeah, I=92ll stay,=94 he agreed and, because he felt a little self-consci= ous about being himself when in the Suit, he spun into his Clark clothes, the suit he=92d been wearing at the dinner. Lois had gone into the kitchen to start making the coffee, but instead of joining her he went to the window, gazing out into the dark night. How much more of this could he take? he wondered. Being so close to her, and yet unable to tell her how he felt, not even able to take her into his arms for an embrace? =93Oh, Lois... I really wish I could show you that you don=92t need to be scared of me,=94 he sighed, barely realising he=92d said the words aloud. =93Clark, can you open this...?=94 Lois spoke from behind him at almost the same instant, and he turned to see that she was holding out a fresh container of coffee. He accepted it automatically, then noticed the shock in her expression. She seemed completely dumbfounded, utterly confused. =93Clark... what do you mean, scared of you?=94 He halted in his task of opening the container and simply gazed at her. She was standing in front of him, shaking her head slowly in confusion, her expression as stunned as her voice. =93Lois... I...=94 He faltered, not knowing how to answer her without reveal= ing too much. It was strange; over the past three weeks he had bared his soul to Lois in so many ways, talked to her about things he had never told another living soul, not even his parents... and yet he was unable to verbalise his feelings for her. In case she didn=92t return them, told him she could never return them - after all, he was no longer =91just Clark=92 to her, but a Super-powered ali= en who was capable of hurting her badly with one careless touch. Suddenly her expression altered, and she winced and seemed to crumple slightly. Without thinking, he reached out and supported her with one hand behind her shoulders. =93Lois...? Are you okay?=94 She gave him a wry smile. =93Sort of - this is kind of why I wanted you to stay.=94 She gestured awkwardly towards her bedroom. =93I was wondering... well, do you remember about a month ago, just before all this happened, you gave me an, um, unusual cure for...?=94 She trailed off, looking and soundin= g embarrassed. At first Clark was confused, trying to work out what she meant and why she seemed discomfited; then suddenly he remembered his visit to her apartment on the very day the power transfer had happened. *That* explained why she'd looked so strained for much of the evening, he realised. But she couldn't possibly want him to do... *that,* could she? Surely not...? But she was looking at him, her expression silently asking him to agree. Hesitantly, he said, =93Lois, are you... sure about this? I mean, aren=92t y= ou afraid that I=92ll... hurt you?=94 Again, there was that look of confusion before her expression cleared and she shook her head firmly. =93Clark, why on earth would I think that? I have= *never* felt so safe with anyone as I do with you!=94 He felt as stunned as if someone had dealt him a blow to the solar plexus. Of *course* she was afraid of him - that was the only explanation which had made any sense at all of her recent behaviour. But how could he explain this...? =93Lois, I... but I thought... my powers, I could really hurt you!=94 Still shaking her head in denial of his words, she said, =93You never hurt m= e before. I=92ve always trusted you, Clark - as Clark and as Superman. Why should things be any different now?=94 Almost mechanically, he reached out to touch, very lightly, the faint silvery scar on her upper arm. Her gaze followed his action, and then shot up to meet his. Her eyes wide, her words were a complete rejection of his implication. =93Clark - that was *Luthor*! That had nothing to do with you!=94 =93You said =91that=92ll teach me never to get in the way of a Super-powered= man...=92 - I thought...?=94 =93Oh, Clark!=94 All impatient, frustrated denial now, and he finally realis= ed that his assumptions had been completely wrong. =93Not you - *never* you! Do= you think I don=92t know you=92d cut off your right arm rather than hurt me?= =94 Still trying to absorb this altered reality, Clark began to speak, to search for an explanation, but he broke off as he saw a flash of pain cross her face again. Stuffing his hands into his pockets, he jerked his head in the direction of her bedroom. =93Go on, get into something more comfortable.= I=92ll make you some tea and be with you in five minutes, okay?=94 He was grateful for the respite. His head still whirling from this unbelievable discovery, he put Lois's kettle on to boil and tried to make sense of what was happening. She *wasn't* afraid of him? Then... why...? These past three weeks, she'd been so careful to keep her distance from him. She hadn't once touched him voluntarily, and she hadn't seemed to invite him to do so either. That day back in Smallville, when she'd been rushing to him... and had then stopped dead. If she wasn't scared of him, how else was he to make sense of that? Because she was repulsed by him, because he was the alien Lex Luthor had insisted on calling him? But he didn't believe that for one second. She'd always known Superman was an alien. That had never bothered her - and she'd kissed Superman of her own volition on a number of occasions. She had also told Superman she loved him. No, it wasn't that. So... what? How else could he explain her behaviour? Maybe she wasn't telling him the truth; maybe she'd denied his accusation just to make him feel better. His body slumped as he considered that possibility. But then he made himself remember the way she'd looked at him as she'd said it. Completely amazed that he could think such a thing. Almost annoyed with him for believing it of her. Impatiently insisting that she trusted him absolutely not to hurt her. She had been totally sincere. He knew that; Lois would not lie to him about this, even if it was to spare his feelings. And anyway, she'd just asked him to use his heat vision on her, for heaven's sake! This time, he would not jump to any further conclusions. It was time to come straight out and ask her what had been going on between them for the past few weeks. Determined now, he finished making Lois's tea and walked resolutely towards her bedroom. ***************** ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 21 Jul 2000 14:29:31 -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: Fanzine stories The Fanfic Archive will be putting the fanzine stories up as well. Some of the authors want to do some editing before having their stories placed on the web. Once all the stories are compiled, we will be giving the fanzine its own dedicated theme page. Look for them later this summer. Kathy ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 21 Jul 2000 14:33:21 -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: telephone charges for internet Merry has already acknowledge that this post was inappropriate for the list, which I appreciate. Just to reiterate for everyone, however, it is against the list rules to post such things here without permission of the list mom - ME. Same goes for chain letters, "help this sick kid" letters, virus warnings, etc. Most of them -- if not almost all of them -- are hoaxes, and this is not the forum to spread them. Thank you, Kathy ========================================================================= Date: Fri, 21 Jul 2000 23:10:17 -0400 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Krazman Subject: Re: telephone charges for internet In-Reply-To: <39779125.1C2F752C@bellsouth.net> MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit What can also clue you in is the fact that more and more Americans are finding better and faster ways to connect to the internet without a phone line (such as cable modems and DSL), because these features are faster, and have a standard connect fee, ma bell isn't going to create a surcharge for using the phone to connect. -----Original Message----- From: Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic [mailto:LOISCLA-GENERAL-L@LISTSERV.INDIANA.EDU]On Behalf Of Pam Jernigan Sent: Thursday, July 20, 2000 7:54 PM To: LOISCLA-GENERAL-L@LISTSERV.INDIANA.EDU Subject: Re: telephone charges for internet Merry, this is a hoax that's gone around several times in the last decade... so everyone can relax :) This particular one changes details from time to time, but it keeps mentioning "Bill 602P" which is not how the US Congress numbers their bills... it's either HRxxx for a House of Representatives bill or Sxxx for a Senate bill. Those of you who have some serious time to kill should check out this Urban Legends page... http://urbanlegends.about.com/science/urbanlegends/ It's a great resource to check when you're not quite sure what to believe, and it's kinda fun just to surf around and see what's out there. -- 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