Thanks so much for all the feedback, everyone!
First, it's incredibly flattering to be mistook for KSaraSara, lovetvfan, and BlueOwl, all of whose writing I very much enjoy and respect!
Queen of the Capes, thaaaaaank you. I was shook you almost broke your template here.
I was definitely going for the emotional jugular on this one. The Prankster is just flat out mean (but clever, too). It always seems a little extra personal, as if it really is about you, and not him, so I gave him a little more room to run. 'Steamroller' is one of the better compliments I've received as a writer, so thank you for that gold nugget.
BlueOwl, yep, totally a red herring review - you got me. And so much more awkward to write than I anticipated! Thank you so much for commenting on the suspense, because it's so hard to write, especially in a smaller one-off, and I'm always worried about whether that will hit.
Bakasi, I appreciate you for commenting on the kiss in the snow, in particular! The prompt was a "really, really amazing kiss" both "sweeping" and "emotional" - so no short order! Clark's Christmas save was my favorite, too. Thanks so much for sharing your favorite moments with me.
LauraHex, well, since you asked for the sequel... there's a little epilogue posted. I thought that was a cute enough little Christmas ending, but your comment took them to Smallville, too. ...I always think of Clark as the guy that's there for you at the end of the day, when everyone else has left, you know? I'm happy you enjoyed Lois seeing that here, too. And thank you so much for the compliment on writing the Prankster's voice! He was a new one for me!
lovetvfan, thank you SO much! This was such an array of compliments that I'm blushing.
The Prankster is good at learning new tricks, so I'm glad that you thought this was a reasonable addition to his repertoire. The mental games weren't exactly a prank, so I was sort of on the fence about whether this would be wholly in character for him.
Toomi, I really appreciate the comment! A little revelation just for Lois.
Andreia, I can't tell you how much time of my 2023 turned into writing sequels that you've asked for in FDK.
Luckily, this one was the short one! Thank you for such a kind comment! I'm so glad that you felt like you wanted to spend more time with them.
Blind Passenger, thanks so much for your thoughts. I was really happy when the antithetical Christmas lights scene with Clark popped into my brain, so I'm so glad you enjoyed the symmetry there. I'm honestly not sure what might help Lois to be less reckless (in spite of my writing about that theme quite a bit); in the end, I think it has to be something that she chooses for herself, and intentional realignment of her priorities. Like, you, I also wish that the show had departed from the early comics more often, in terms of Lois saving herself, but it was the 90's and, especially after season 1, I think they clung to that formula a bit more. Since Lois saved herself from physical injury/imminent death in one Prankster episode, I wanted to see if it was stronger for her to make emotional narrative choices that would save herself in another way, though still buoyed up by Superman and Clark - we can't do it all alone. I'd love to see some of her stories before meeting Clark, though - she undoubtedly got herself out of a lot of scrapes!
Darth Michael, what gave it away? Good guessing, though! I do love an em-dash. But I threw in those emoji snowflake section separators just for you, to give you one less clue that would align.
AmandaK, thank you so much for the comments! Its always lovely to see a new member on the boards, and I'm excited to read Between Two Worlds soon! I'm glad you liked the Prankster here - he was tons of fun to write, and I feel like I don't see him often enough for the big, bad impression he makes! Thank you, especially for your kind words about the ending.
KSaraSara, awwww, thank you. When I saw your name on the prompts I was like, no way will this live up to whatever she asks for. And then I actually read the prompts and was like... I can't write a good enough kiss for Sara, Queen of 110 Kisses! Talk about a Sisyphean effort!
So I dragged Lois down to get an emotional kiss high, and then gave us something I could reasonably justify as a first kiss, and even then went back again and popped in some mistletoe because I figured, if not quality, Quantity!!!
But I'm so glad you liked it. Thank you, as always, for your completely lovely comments. Also, there's one more little smooch coming up in that epilogue for you.
SuperBek, it means a lot that you took the time to pop in - I saw in the Discord that you were racing the clock on guesses! Thank you so much for the kind words. I really do appreciate it.
Verity, thanks again for all your help in coordinating this!
