Hey, guys. This is an idea that I've been thinking about, and if it's already been done I would really be thankful if you guys told me where to find it. Anyway, here's an idea of the plotline. It would probably take place sometime after The Green Glow of Home, but before Lois and Clark become too good of friends.

Say Clark, as 'Superman' gets in some sort of trouble and is captured and injured by somebody, probably the 2nd in command after Trask in Bureau 39 who knows of Kryptonite but doesn't necessarily want to kill Superman, but instead wants to find out more about him to determine his threat, etc. (Yes, I am an angst lover, and this gives plenty of opportunity for some major angst).

Maybe Lois is captured with him in order to insure his cooperation, but the Bureau is going to let her go once they find out what they want.

Clark is injured quite badly and treated like an 'alien'--yes, I'm talking TC (torture Clark). Lois gets to comfort him and try to take care of him even when they are locked up without anything real of use. Talk about some serious emotional issues here. She talks to try and distract him from his worst nightmare coming true, and he shares some little things--but he is afraid of people listening in. She finally begs to know his name, because after what they've gone through it's weird for her to call him such a name as 'Superman.' He tells her that his name is Kal-El, and she starts to call him by that, at least when they are alone.

We can have them either escape by some brilliant way (without Clark's superpowers), or we can have some better branch of the government come and save them through one way or another. They want to take Superman to their own little hospital thing, but of course Clark doesn't want any more to do with the govt (if he is even lucid or conscious at this point), and neither does Lois. She can try to fight this new 'saving' group of people and get pushed aside or have to go along with them, or they could just let Clark go to Lois's apartment.

Superman doesn't get his powers back very quickly at all after this, but they get to know each other better as he stays at her place. After a couple days she has to go to work even though she worries to leave him.

She finds that Clark has been missing and can't get a hold of him, until he shows up at work looking pale and worse for wear and claiming that Superman just saved him from where *he* was being held prisoner by Bureau 39 due to his connections to Superman.

Lois is furious that Superman had left (even though she assumes his powers have resumed), and she doesn't see him for some days, or even weeks (depending on the extent of Clark's injuries). She has nightmares and other emotional issues from her imprisonment, as does Clark, but Lois feels like Clark can't understand and Clark feels bad for the problems she's already having 'because of him.'

When Clark's powers do come back and he eventually takes back to the streets (his self-confidence is still shaken from his ordeal), Lois either corners him or he comes to her when he hears her having a bad dream. She is tearfully joyful to see Kal-El, and their relationship begins to grow from there.

Anyway, I practically wrote the whole thing just in this maybe-summary of a story that I would love to have written in its fulness if I had any writing talents myself. I just would think it interesting to see what Lois would do when she does see behind the flashy red and blue suit but finds a man that she learns to love for his bravery, compassion, and strength...but doesn't realize that it's Clark.

So...if you bothered to get all the way through this...what do you think?

Smirky

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I love anything that ties my heart in a knot.

Bring on the Love and the Pain. angel-devil