Missing Lois - TOC Author’s Note: The “Lois” in Chapter 5 and 6 refers to alt-Lois. Canon Lois will be called “Lucy” to help lessen the confusion between the two characters.
Story Notes: This story is mostly set in alt-dimension, although visits to the canon dimension do happen from time-to-time.
- Clark = Alt-Clark unless otherwise noted (such as when we are in the canon dimension, then 'Clark' is canon Clark)
- Lucy El = pregnant canon Lois avoiding the curse by hiding out with alt-Clark, aka Lois's secret identity
- Kal = Lucy El's husband's name, or what Lois-Lucy and alt-Clark call canon Clark
- Lois = alt-Lois, wife of Lex Luthor
- Lola Luthor = ‘wife’ of Lex Luthor; alt-Lois, if not referring to Clois (Cloned Lois)
- Mr. Amazing = alt-Lois's nickname for Superman
- Sam Lane = alt-Lois's Dad, Lucy's doctor & Clark's roommate
- Ultra Woman = originally the costume Lucy/Lois wore to Perry's 'Come as Your Favorite Superhero' party; now, alt-Lois
- Mayor White = aka Perry White, former Editor-in-Chief at the DP
- James Olsen = owner of the
Daily Planet, Lois-Lucy's friend
- Lex Luthor = no explanation necessary, same bad guy as always, this time bald
- Junior = Lex Luthor, Jr., Lex's first born son, creator of the Neuroscanner
- Jaxon Xavier = Lex Luthor's son and spy at
The Planet, does website design and research for the paper
- Gareth McTinney = new EIC at the alt-DP.
- Mayson Drake = police detective, partner to Detective (in alt-world) Henderson, alt-Clark's ex-girlfriend
- The only people who know canon Lois's true identity are alt-Clark, Sam, Moonbeam (alt-Star), Dr. Klein and alt-Lois. Alt-Clark told Mayson Drake that Lucy El is his sister-in-law and that he has a twin brother, but not about the other dimension.
***
What happened in Chapter 6: Part 7...Lois accidently told Mayson that Lucy was pregnant with a super baby, not realizing that Clark had not told his ex-girlfriend that portion of the truth.
Clark confronted Lois upon her return from her luncheon with Mayson to tell her that he knew that she had made the switch in identities with Lucy. When Lois told Clark that Mayson thought Superman would disappear if something happened to Lois, Clark told her that Superman still lived, but Mr. Amazing had died.
Lois and Lucy -- while sulking over Clark's nasty words and eating Christmas chocolate -- decided that Lois needed to take her and Clark's relationship out of Clark's hands. They decided to break with tradition and actually formulate a plan. Moonbeam showed up and told them that she was having difficulties processing the divorce papers because she could not serve Luthor with them.
Lois decided that the first part of their plan would be to resurrect Ultra Woman as Luthor would not be able to resist meeting with the superheroine. To do that she broke into the Smallville house using keys she had copied from Clark's keyring while he was showering. Then she had gone to the Smallville house and put on the costume, finally becoming Ultra Woman herself.
***
Part 8That evening, Lois showed Lucy how to make stir fry chicken with vegetables. My, that woman was a mess in the kitchen. Of course, not being able to reach over one’s tummy to get to the counter was a drawback. Lois helped her out by doing all the chopping in twenty seconds.
After dinner, she spun out of her Lucy El clothes – thankful to be rid of those extra layers – and after a good-luck hug from Lucy, took off for Jaxon Xavier’s. She landed on his balcony and easily entered his apartment from his unlocked balcony doors. Jaxon was sitting at his breakfast bar, munching on a microwave dinner, chatting on his cell phone.
“If that’s your father, tell him I would like a word,” she spoke to him.
Jaxon turned towards the voice and dropped his phone on the ground in surprise. He bent down, picked up the phone and said, “I’ll call you back, Junior.”
Lois glared. “I have a bone to pick with him, too. But, alas, one creepy Luthor at a time. Your father. Call him.”
Jaxon swallowed and dialed the phone.
“
What is it, Jaxon?” his father said in that annoyed tone he saved for pestering employees and unwanted children.
“Ultra Woman is here, Father, and wants to talk to you,” he said hesitantly.
“
Is that another one of your geeky friends pulling a prank on you? You know, nobody’s seen Ultra Woman since Halloween. Why would the first place she reappears be at your apartment? It’s probably someone in a costume.”
“No, Father. It’s her.” He cleared his throat. “She came through my balcony.”
“
Fine. Put her on.”
“I don’t wish to speak on the phone, Jaxon.” She crossed her arms. “Tell your father I want to meet with him. I have a message to deliver from a mutual acquaintance.”
“She wants to meet with you, Father. She says she has a message from a mutual acquaintance.”
“
Oh. Clark sending his girlfriend to deliver messages for him now? I’m not staying away from my wife, if that’s the message.”
“I need the address, Jaxon,” Ultra Woman stated.
“She really wants to see you, Father.”
“
Agreed. I’d like to see this super woman for myself.”
“Ultra Woman,” she corrected loud enough for him to hear.
“
Give her the address, but tell her to come through the window to prove she’s the real deal.” Lex hung up, chuckling.
Ultra Woman flew onto his balcony a minute later. Lex opened the balcony doors.
“My. My. Ultra Woman, pictures did not do you justice,” he said with his derisive smile. “To what do I owe the pleasure of your company?”
Lois pulled out the divorce papers and handed them to him. “Lex Luthor, you have been served. Have a happy divorce.” She turned on her heel and flew out the balcony window. She could still hear him yelling threats and insults a block later.
Instead of heading back to her apartment, Ultra Woman decided to fly around for a bit. Feel the wind in her face, enjoy the view of her city from above.
“
No! No! Get off of me,” she heard a woman yelling.
Ultra Woman followed the voice as it got louder until she found from where it was coming. She landed beside a car and knocked on the window.
“Get lost!” a male voice told her from inside the car.
The superheroine opened the door and pulled the man out of the car by the scruff of his collar. “I believe that the lady said, ‘No’.” Ultra Woman held him above her head as she glanced back at the woman inside. “Are you all right?”
The woman nodded.
“Do you want to press charges?”
The woman shook her head, quickly.
“I understand. Is this your car or his?”
“His.” The woman finally murmured.
“Let me take out this trash and then I’ll assist you home. Excuse me.” She tossed the man into a dumpster half a block down. She wiped her hands off on her pants and, returning to the car, opened the door on the passenger side. “So, to where may I give you a lift?”
The woman slid out of the car and hugged her. “Thank you. Thank you. He seemed so nice online,” the woman said, starting to cry. “I thought I was a goner.”
“You’ll survive,” Lois murmured, lifting her into her arms. “Where’s home?”
“Garfield Street.”
Ultra Woman nodded and took off into the air. It was more difficult flying with a passenger, especially a crying, sobbing one. They landed on Garfield Street a few minutes later. “May I recommend a more public meeting spot the next time you wish to meet someone you don’t know for the first time?”
“Thank you… uh… uh…”
“Ultra Woman.” She nodded and took off again. She could see why Clark didn’t like to stand around and chit chat with the awestruck victims.
On her way back to the apartment, Ultra Woman stopped a purse snatcher and a mugging within a block of one another. She shook her head. What was this city coming to? At the mugging she had taken the gun away from the culpret and bent it in half.
“Hey, that’s personal property!” exclaimed the thief.
“You’re kidding me, right?” She rolled her eyes, picked up the thief and dropped him off in front of the precinct house three blocks away. She tied him up next to the purse snatcher she had set down minutes earlier. Then she took off into the air and headed straight home.
Lois ripped off her mask as she landed. “Oh, this thing is uncomfortable. We’ve got to come up with something better.” She zipped into her bedroom and changed into her robe.
“How did it go?” Lucy asked glancing up from her book,
Parenting: How to Survive the First Year.
“Lex has now been served. I also saved a date rape victim, captured a mugger and a purse snatcher, all on my way home. Poor Clark. Now I see why his work is never done.”
Lucy shook her head. “I thought we were going to stick to the plan, Lois. Only deliver the divorce papers, not be seen by the general public.”
“Right. The plan. Do you think Clark is going to believe that Ultra Woman is really back? Five bucks says he stays in denial.”
“Money from a baby.” Lucy shook her head.
“How can he not deny it? You’re as big as a house and I’m just plain human Lois. Who else could it be? But to be on the safe side I’d better return the suit to the safe tomorrow, in case he gets suspicious and decides to check.”
“Good idea. That’s thinking ahead.” Lucy nodded.
“You still owe me five bucks from when Clark didn’t recognize me at work.” Lois held out her hand. “Although, I wish I had lost that one. I cannot believe he confused me with a nine-month pregnant woman.”
Lucy flicked her hand over her shoulder to the sideboard. “It’s in my purse. It’s the glasses, you know. They fool anyone.”
Lois walked over to the sideboard, where the purse sat, then paused. “Hey, this is my purse.”
Lucy shrugged. “It belongs to both of us now.”
“Ha-ha. I want my five bucks.”
“What are you arguing about? When I leave, you get to keep everything in Lucy El’s bank account. That should cover it. It’s not like I can take that money back to my dimension, anyhow.” Lucy returned to reading her book. “How is your memoir,
Life with a Mad Man, coming along?”
Lois shrugged. “I’ve got the first three chapters finished, but I’m not really motivated. I don’t want to think about my life with Lex Luthor. I want to think about my life with Clark Kent.” She sighed, zipping into her room and returning with another box of chocolate. “I miss him.”
“So, call him.” Lucy still wasn’t looking up from her book. “Better, yet, stop by and join his shower.” She glanced up and raised her eyebrows. “You need to start thinking about your long range goals with Clark. What’s your plan? Where do you want to be a year from now?”
“Hell, I don’t know where I’ll be at the end of the month.”
“Here, I hope.” Lucy smiled, weakly. “I’ll need you when I give birth.”
Lois looked uncomfortable. “I don’t know, Lucy.” She gave her a squeamish expression.
“Come here. I want to test something. Put your hand on my tummy.”
Lois sat down next to her and hesitantly rested her hand on Lucy’s belly, then she jerked her hand away. “What was that?” She swallowed.
Lucy looked at her. “What did she say?”
“Mommy! Mommy! Mommy!”
“She recognized you as me… us.” Lucy sighed. “I’m not Kryptonian, so I can’t hear her.”
“Clark?” Lois swallowed.
Lucy nodded. “She thinks he’s Kal.”
Lois set her hand back down on her belly and closed her eyes. “She misses him.”
“We all do,” Lucy murmured, setting down her book. “If you think about him what does she do?”
“She’s tells me to go to him. Bring Daddy to her. Wow. You’re going to have your hands full with this one.” Lois smiled tenderly.
“Okay. Now, picture flying.”
Lois closed her eyes again. “Oh! She’s kicking. Lucy, she loves to fly.”
“I know. How can she not?”
“How is this possible?” Lois’s brow furrowed.
“Kryptonians are telepathic. When the New Kryptonians were here, when they took Kal El back with them, we discovered this new ability. This is how they communicate when they are far apart. No cell phones on Krypton. But it seems to only work between Kryptonians. I’ve tried to contact Clark several times when I’m in danger, but nothing.” She shrugged.
“My Clark?” Lois asked suspiciously.
“Yes,
your Clark. My Clark is in another dimension. I doubt telepathic powers work trans-dimensionally.”
“Good point.” Lois thought for a moment. “So, I could contact Clark telepathically?”
“In theory.” Lucy raised a brow. “I recommend the telephone until all this secret identity stuff gets resolved.”
“Yeah. Probably for the best.” She set her hand on Lucy’s tummy again. “She wants you to sing about rainbows again.”
Lucy smiled. “She liked that song? Do you know ‘
Somewhere Over the Rainbow’?”
“Of course.” And Lois began to sing, “
Somewhere over the rainbow, way up high, there’s a land that I heard of…”
***
As he flew over Metropolis, Clark heard Lois singing and smiled. He flew over to the windows of their apartment and saw the two Loises sitting on the sofa, singing to the baby. He knew they were singing to the baby, because his Lois had her head resting on the other Lois’s belly. He stood at the window, watching and listening to them sing. He wanted to be inside, next to them, part of the family. He flew away, knowing that it might be a little weird. The three of them, huddled around Lucy’s belly talking, laughing, sharing thoughts. When he touched Lucy’s belly he was drawn to her, even though he knew she was Kal’s and that he loved Lois.
“Daddy! Daddy! Daddy! Don’t go!” He gasped, stopping mid-air. He could hear the baby calling to him. She had known he was near-by, thinking of her. The singing stopped suddenly too. He could no longer hear it. He sighed and continued to fly home.
***
“
Daddy! Daddy! Daddy! Don’t go!”
Lois’s head popped off of Lucy’s belly, and she was at the window a moment later.
“What’s wrong?” Lucy asked, sitting up.
“Superman was here. The baby felt his presence. She called out to him to stay.” Lois put her hand up to the window. “Amazing.”
Lucy covered up her tummy. “I’m going to bed. Why don’t you call your father and say goodnight? Maybe someone else will answer the phone.”
Lois stood at the window gazing out for a few more minutes. She headed for the bathroom and took a shower. Afterwards, she sat down on her bed and picked up the phone.
“
Hello?”
“Clark?”
“
Lois? Is everything okay?” He sounded worried.
“Yes. I just missed you,” Lois murmured.
“
You missed me?” He sounded stunned.
“I’m sorry I snapped at you earlier.”
“
I deserved it,” Clark admitted softly.
“True. But I’m still sorry. I shouldn’t blame you for his mistakes.”
“
We all make mistakes, Lois.”
“Some more than others.” She wet her lips. “I didn’t call to argue with you.”
“
Glad to hear it.” He chuckled.
“Thank you for telling me you loved me the other day. I needed to hear it,” she confessed.
“
Lois, that was…”
“You better not say it was a mistake, Clark Kent,” she snapped.
He cleared his throat. “
Unintentional. It kind of slipped out.”
“It was still nice to hear. Especially after Mayson told me I should stay far away from you because I’ll only bring you misery.”
“
Too late,” he chuckled again.
“No truer words, Clark.” Lois snuggled under her blankets. “Hey, we make each other miserable; it must be true love.”
“
Must be.” This time he sounded sad, melancholy.
“I just wanted to hear your voice before I went to sleep. I feel safer knowing you’re around.”
“
Me?” He swallowed.
“You.”
“
You’d feel safer, if you hadn’t dismissed the guards.”
“I’d feel safer if you were here with me,” she whispered naughtily.
“
That’s not a good idea, Lois.”
“You’re probably right.” She grinned, biting her bottom lip. “It’s a terrific idea.”
He laughed softly in agreement. “
Fantastic idea.”
“Tremendous idea.”
“
But not a good idea.”
“Oh, no, not good. Not good at all. Sometimes, don’t you want to be something other than good?” she teased him.
“
Such as?”
Amazing, she almost said. Instead she said, “You know. The opposite of good.”
“
Bad?” he asked, skeptically.
“No, naughty.”
Clark cleared his throat again. “
Lois, I can’t have this conversation with you.”
“You are, though, Clark.”
“
I mean, your father is listening to every word I say.”
“Ooops.” Lois laughed. “Goodnight, Clark. If you change your mind…”
“
You’ll be the first person I call. Goodnight, Lois.”
Lois hung up the phone and giggled with a sigh. “Clark, I love you.” She shut off the light, closed her eyes and whispered it again. “I love you, Clark Kent.” He had better be listening, because she was planning on whispering it until he heard her.
***
Clark stopped by Lois’s apartment the next morning to walk her to work as he used to do with Lucy. Old habits die hard. Mostly it was because he couldn’t get Lois off his mind. He dreamt of her all night. Every time dream Lois opened her mouth she said, “I love you, Clark Kent,” even when saying it had nothing to do with what was going on in the dream. It was odd, weird, and not at all relaxing… in a very good way.
Lucy opened the door. “Good morning, Clark. We weren’t expecting you this morning.”
“I thought I might walk with Lois to work,” he said, coming inside.
“She already left.”
He stopped. “She did?”
“Yeah, she had an errand to run.” Lucy glanced at him from over her shoulder. “Did you stop by last night?”
He froze. How did she know about that? “Who, me?”
“No. Superman.”
“Oh. Him. Yeah, he might have flown by.” Clark feigned a cough. “He… I heard you singing.”
“I got Lois to help me sing to the baby.” She smiled sweetly.
“Lucky kid.” Clark couldn’t resist anymore, the draw was too strong. He walked over to Lucy. “Can I say hi?”
She rolled her eyes and lifted her arms. He slipped his hand under her shirt and once again felt the pull towards Lucy. He swallowed and stepped away. “She’s a powerful force, that one.”
Lucy nodded. “So, what made you stop by? Lois or the little one?”
“She called me last night.”
“Lois?”
Clark nodded.
Lucy continued, “I told her if she missed you so much, she should just call you.”
“I can’t stop thinking about her. Lucy, what am I going to do? I couldn’t sleep last night.”
“Go to work, Clark. I’m out of the advice business. Neither of you listen to me and I’m tired of sounding like a broken record. Talk. Talk. Talk. You say there’s nothing left to say. She says she won’t talk unless you do first.” Lucy rolled her eyes. “Then you both come to me and whine and moan to me how much you miss each other. Personally, I’m tired. You keep this up, I’m going to lock the two of you in a lead-lined room for a week to work it out.”
Clark took a deep breath, thinking about being locked in a room alone with Lois for a week. Slowly, he released his breath. Lucy was right. They were driving each other and her crazy. “How is Kal doing with the Red Kryptonite? Has he hurt you anymore?” He looked at her concerned.
“No.” She sighed. “But he had damaged our house when he got the hiccups.” She shook her head. “Perry’s son, Jerry, was behind it. Poor Perry. He’s heartbroken.”
Clark nodded. “At least when you don’t have a secret identity, your friends don’t go after you without knowing they’re going after you.”
“But that was last week. This week, my substitute Lois refused to go to Sweden with him when he won the ‘International Peace Prize’, because she was so mad after he told her that he kissed your Lois. But she now feels bad and got them a room at Chateau Roberge for the weekend to mend fences.”
He patted her arm. “I’m sorry, Lucy.”
“Me too. I miss him. At least I have a valid excuse.”
Clark placed his hand on her tummy again and then kissed his sister-in-law goodbye.
“You better stop doing that. Lois won’t like it,” Lucy said as he reached the door.
He stopped and looked at her. “What can she complain about? I’m her boyfriend’s best friend, technically.”
Lucy shook her head. “That’s right. You killed her boyfriend.”
Clark winced. “She told you about that?”
“I’m a great sounding board. What were you thinking? Telling you love her one moment and that her Superman is dead in the next? She hasn’t seen him since her accident; she’s liable to believe you next time.”
“I have no idea why I said that. Sometimes things just come out of my mouth that sound good until they touch the air, then they explode.” He laughed softly to himself. “She’s like my own version of Red Kryptonite.” He opened the door.
Lucy waved. “Apt. Don’t be a stranger, Clark.”
Clark sighed, closing the door. He wanted to go back in and take Lucy in his arms and kiss her. It was wrong. It was the baby pulling him towards her, thinking he was Kal. He missed Lois. He would see her at work.
Lois beat him to the office despite her errand. He slipped into the chair next to her desk. “I couldn’t stop thinking about you last night. You invaded my dreams,” he whispered.
She smiled. “I try my best. Mayson’s been calling every ten minutes.”
Clark frowned. What did she want? He went to his desk and called Mayson. “What’s up? Lucy said you’ve been trying to reach me?”
“
Did you tie up two low level thugs outside a precinct house last night?”
“No.” He lowered his voice and turned his back on Lois. “Superman doesn’t do that. He always hands them over to authorities. You know that.”
Mayson chuckled. “
Always talk about yourself in the third person?”
“Sorry. It wasn’t me.” He glanced over at Lois. She was pretending she wasn’t listening, but she was pretending too hard.
“
Got it, just checking. If you hear anything, let me know.”
“Will do, Mayson.”
“
Hey. I enjoyed having lunch with Lucy the other day,” Mayson told him.
He dropped into his chair. “Really?” Was Lois getting thick with all his ex-girlfriends? First Lucy and now Mayson. This couldn’t be good.
“
Yes. She’s really mellowed out. And, Clark, just so you know, I believe you.”
Clark felt like a ton of bricks fell on him. “What did she say to convince you?”
Mayson laughed. “
Oh, I don’t know. Something about floating.”
He flinched with a glance at Lois. She had her back to him, but he could have sworn he heard laughter.
“Oh.” He cleared his throat. “Just need Ultra Woman and your little club is complete,” he murmured, more to himself than to Mayson.
“
Oh, did she mention what I said about Ultra Woman?”
Clark was sitting up at full attention. “What did you say, Mayson?”
“
That I think that Ultra Woman would be the perfect woman for you.”
Great, just what Lois needed to hear. “Me? Or Superman?” Oh, God. Had Mayson, of all people, told Lois that he was Superman? He glanced over at Lois, but she was on the phone. She hadn’t heard.
“
Suddenly there’s a difference?”
“Ultra Woman is not coming back, Mayson. She made that perfectly clear. So, you and everyone else out there looking for her can just stop. That boat has sailed.”
Mayson sighed. “
That’s too bad, Clark. I think it would be good for you to lose control every once in awhile.”
Shivering, Clark knew exactly what Mayson meant when she said he needed to lose control. “Mayson, I don’t want to have this conversation with you.”
She laughed. “
Agreed. Bye, Clark.”
He hung up and turned to look at Lois again. If there was a woman who could make him lose control, she was it.
Lois waved at him. “Leo Nunk, line three.”
Leo Nunk? From the
Daily Whisperer? What did that tabloid fiend want? He lifted up the receiver. “Clark Kent.”
“
Hi, Clark. Just wanted your response to the news that Ultra Woman was back.”
Clark laughed, shaking his head. What was with people today? “She’s not back, Leo. She said she’s not coming back and I believe her.”
“
So, you didn’t hear?”
“Didn’t hear what?” He shrugged out of his coat.
“
That she rescued a woman from a bad date last night.”
“Ultra Woman? Sorry to rain on your exclusive, Leo, but I don’t think it was her. Probably some vigilante in a costume. I see they’re selling them all over town now.”
“
Thanks for the quote, Kent. See you in the funny papers.” Leo hung up.
Clark shook his head. Why was everyone obsessed with Ultra Woman again all of a sudden? Slow news cycle?
“Morning meeting!” Gareth called walking out of his office. Clark grabbed his notebook.
This just in, a runaway subway train has passengers terrified in New York City… Clark glanced up at the TV screen. He then looked at Lucy, who was staring at him, curiously. He looked over at Barry. “Tell Gareth I’ve gone to cover the subway in New York.”
Barry laughed and waved. “I’ll cover for you, partner.”
Clark took one last look at Lois and then darted toward the supply closet.
“Good luck,” he heard her whisper. He sighed. It would be great if Lois just knew. If he just stopped hiding the fact from her, she would learn about it easily on her own without him telling her. Then she would know. He sighed. Then he couldn’t flirt with her anymore. He wouldn’t be able to be around her, because he knew the instant she knew – after her anger died down, that is – she would be all over him. There would be no way he would be able to avoid Hurricane Lane, when she made landfall. And Superman’s image of a clean-cut all-Kryptonian-American boy would be right out the window in a heartbeat.
*** End of Part 8 *** CommentsChapter 6: Part 9
