Okay, here it is. It's just a bit of fun to tie up Sarah's story, because I just couldn't leave it alone. 
It hasn't been edited or seen by anyone yet, so you may blame me for any mistake I made in this. However, you may blame Wendy for part of the plot (if you call that a plot 
) as she and I brainstormed over lunch before I settled down to write. From Part 1Seconds went by. Lois could feel tears spring to her eyes. She was too far away from the edge of the balcony to see anything below, but the sudden screams of the people below told her what had happened.
Superman was dead.
Part 2*********
***Three hours earlier***
"Are you certain you want to try this, Superman? We haven't heard back from the lab yet, and without all our test results I can't guarantee that you'll be safe enough." Dr Klein paced up and down his office, looking more nervous than Clark had ever seen him. "The miniature suits obviously worked on our rats, and none of them seemed affected by radiations. But they're not Kryptonians, and graphite is a bit different from Kryptonite."
"Its effect on humans is similar, isn't it?"
"I suppose so," Klein said, obviously reluctant.
"You know I have to do this."
The scientist dismissed Clark's expression with a wave of his hand. "Yeah, yeah, you always work for the greater good, I know."
Clark looked down at his suit. The red and yellow crest still proudly showed the emblem of the House of El, but the spandex wasn't as comfortable as what he was used to. The lining made it heavier and warmer, which would be fine in the winter, but wasn't as practical in hot summer days.
Still, it was worth it.
"Why don't you give me another day to make sure everything works okay? In fact, we should test it on you with the piece of Kryptonite down in the vault."
"We've done that yesterday."
"And you felt some discomfort. I think - "
"Dr Klein, if all Kryptonite gives me now is *discomfort*, I think I can deal with that."
"Depends on how often you encounter it. I'm not sure yet that the shield is thick enough to protect you in the case of multiple encounters."
"And with our villain of the week lately, I understand that that's a concern. But I think it's time we tested it for real. I'll be in touch anyway." Clark turned to leave, then swivelled back to Dr Klein as he caught sight of something peculiar in the mirror. He grabbed at the end of his cape and examined it more closely.
Dr Klein looked down at his feet.
"Bernard? What's this?"
"Hmm? This what?"
Clark pointed to the small tag at the end of his cape. "What's *this*?"
Dr Klein grabbed the tag and read it quickly. "It's... well... see, it's so you know that you're not supposed to spin-dry it. Otherwise it will shrink. Trust me, I know. There was one time I washed a pair of socks and it turned out - anyway, never mind. Wash at low temperature, do not bleach, and - "
"And how do I get smoke stains off my cape, then?"
"I guess... well... I don't know. They probably didn't think of that."
Clark took another look at the tag. "WMR Creations? Made in Canada?" He raised his eyebrows. "Was that *really* necessary?"
"They just wanted a bit of credit for your suit. It's their idea, after all, and - "
"I didn't let Murray turn me into a gigantic neon sign, and you think I'm going to let you make my suit a commercial for a fashion company?"
"But they got the idea..."
Clark sighed. He supposed, if this suit was going to make his job more comfortable and possibly save his life, he could make a few compromises. A small tag was not the end of the world.
"All right then, I'm off."
"Good luck, Superman!"
*********
***Present time***
Lois felt tears streaming down her cheeks as she walked back to the Daily Planet. She still wasn't sure how she'd managed to escape, nor why she'd let Perry convince her that she needed to spend four hours at Metropolis General Hospital getting her wrists X-rayed - even less why she'd let the doctor put a cast on her left hand that covered her arm up to her elbow and made moving even more impossible than when she'd been tied up. She just hadn't cared. All she'd been able to think about was that Superman was dead. Perry had got out of his usual reserve to write the story himself, and it would appear in tonight's edition of the Daily Planet. She hadn't even argued with him that she should be the one with the byline on this one. She just hadn't cared. Still couldn't bring herself to care.
All she could think about was the clamour of the crowd down on the street at the foot of Lex's former penthouse, then the sudden stunned silence that had announced the death of her hero. She remembered the smug smile on St John and Newcomb's face as they'd turned towards her and confirmed that Superman was no more. Then they'd left her alone, out there on the balcony.
They'd won, and they knew it. They'd killed the one person in Metropolis who could have stopped them, and they'd neutralised her. For a while, she'd wondered what they would do to her, and she'd been tempted to just give up and let them kill her. With Superman dead, what else was there to live for?
Then she'd remembered Clark. Clark, who was out buying donuts while she fought the bad guys. Clark, who'd once again bowed out on her when she needed him most. Still, she needed to get out of this alive if she wanted to have words with him about his tendency to get low sugar levels at the worst possible moments.
Even the thought of yelling at Clark hadn't lifted her spirits, but it had made her try one more time to free her wrists, twisting them in the rope and ignoring the searing pain that shot through her left arm every time she did so. In the end, she'd finally managed to loosen some of her bonds, and she'd made a quick and discreet escape. St John and Newcomb had been too busy celebrating their victory to pay her any attention.
She was passing the last block before the Daily Planet building when screams came up from the avenue behind her. She turned around and almost lost her balance when a streak of red and blue zinged across the sky, disappeared in a centennial oak and landed half a second later, a furry bundle in his arms.
A cat.
Stuck in a tree.
And saved by Superman.
She ran up to him and the cheering crowd that was gathering around him. She pushed her way to the front and took in Superman's appearance. He looked... perfectly fine. There was no hole in his chest, not even a scratch in his suit. There was nothing to indicate that a few seconds earlier, he'd been hit by a Kryptonite bullet and writhing in agony.
She gasped, effectively catching his attention. His smile made her knees feel weak.
"Superman..." Her voice was hoarse and his name came out in a whisper. Heedless of their audience, she ran to him and hugged him as if her life depended on it. He held her close, and she felt her heart lift as he nuzzled her hair. "How... why? How?" She mumbled dozens of questions against his neck, but she knew the answers could wait. She had no clue how he'd survived the encounter with Kryptonite, but she couldn't care less.
He was here. And he was alive. He hadn't truly died, he'd only pretended to -
Her thoughts stopped short, and she pulled away from him. Her fist connected with his chest as she spoke words that would remain forever famous in Lois and Clark fanficdom.
"HOW COULD YOU LET ME THINK YOU WERE DEAD?!?"
~ The End ~ (or to be continued in another TOGOM adaptation <g>)
