Lois & Clark Forums Forums Fan Fiction Lois & Clark Fanfic FDK: Whisper from the Dying, 2/?

Yay! I get to start the comments!

Loved this, you two.

And I gotta say...hmm...curiouser and curiouser. I'm certainly glad Kae said there'd be a happy ending -- right now those two are both in so much pain, though, that they can't see it. I still have hope, though!

Lois's reaction to their...whatever term you want to use, was interesting. I mean, on the one hand, I'd have expected a ballistic rant. Her almost emotionless tone is, in a way, more frightening. She's grieving, but at the same time, there's a part of the reality that hasn't hit yet. Not intellectual denial, but that bit of emotional subconscious that just shrouds itself because it literally can't handle the full onslaught. I shudder to think what will happen when the shroud is forced away and she finally lets herself cry. Poor Lois.

Not that I blame Clark. After all, in his mind, he's dead. Clark-him, at least. And I can even agree to his logic somewhat (that it would only hurt her more to tell her he's Clark, but oh, btw, he's got to play dead now) -- from an objective bystander pov. It will be fascinating to see Lois's reaction when she finds out, though!

Bravo and I'm ready for more!

Bethy

Um... you forgot the spandex boundary... and it's not just physical!

Eek!!! This *cannot* be good!!!

I want to say something here, but the only thing that comes to mind is

Awwww!!

Oh geez!! Bad to worse! You'd better have the next part up pronto ladies!!!

Sara (who really shouldn't have gone on so long because now I'll be late for class ;P)

Well, so much for hoping Clark would tell Lois the truth, Lois would kiss Clark like crazy upon learning he was alive, and everyone would live happily ever after!

Yeah, I guess I knew all along there was angst ahead. What a mess.

Sara already pointed it out, but I liked this, too: Oh, Lois, if you only knew!

And, I second the nomination for Understatment of the Year. OH, WELL!?!?!?!?

I cannot wait to see what you two do with this!

- Vicki

"Why had she done it?"

She wouldn't have. And neither would he.

I've never been able to buy into the 'Boo hoo, our best friend has just been killed, let's have sex' scenario. Comforting each other in a time of mutual grief (and Clark is grieving here also) is one thing, but this is over the top and out of character for these two.

They each have a strong sense of right and wrong, and no matter how much they may have been hurting, or how much they may have been drawn to each other, neither would have taken advantage of such a situation. It's not in their character.

Tank (who says... that's just his opinion)

Hi,

Great part.

NOW I have a MIGRAINE!

OH MY GOD!!!!! Hurry up with the next part, please

Raquel (who should be in bed right now but she couldn't go to bed before reading the part and then writing some feedback )

Wow. Well, I must say that I'm with Tank here. I can't believe that this would have happened. There are a few scenarios under which I can see Superman making love to Lois without first revealing himself as Clark, but here, no matter how much he's hurting and mourning the loss of the life that he loved and is in despair over what will happen now, I just can't believe that he would do this without telling her. Especially given that he now knows that she loves Clark. This goes beyond lunkheadedness.

And given that I think almost every Wendy fic that's post-TOGOM and has a revelation in it has at least a passing reference to Lois' feelings when she realizes that Clark let her believe he was dead when he could have told her the truth right away...things will be sooooo much worse now when she learns the truth. No matter what mental anguish he's in, I can't see how he'll be able to justify it, and how she'll be able to forgive him.

Obviously if he had told her about his alter ego tonight, you ladies wouldn't have a story. So I'm certainly willing to go along for the ride and see how you can possibly have Clark extricate himself from this mess...

Kathy

Ditto, Clark is being a Lunkhead. Also since he is Clark, why doesn't Lois instinctivly feel more for her lover then funeral sex? Can't she tell that he is Clark in her soul if not in her head? Laura

I know I probably already surpassed my space limit as far as this folder goes , but I had to pop back in to say that I disagree with Tank and Kathy. Now, I in no way agree with Lois and Clark's decision, but that's just the point, I don't think it *was* a decision at that moment. From what I always believed, and what I gathered from the context of the story, Lois and Clark are both extremely emotional and *not* thinking. Clark is grieving for (what he thinks is :rolleyes: ) the loss of his life and everything he's known, and, most importantly, including any chance he ever had with Lois. Lois, for her part, has lost her best friend in the worst way imaginable - shot down right in front her, because he was protecting her. So, not only is she feeling guilt, but extreme grief as well. That brings us to Lois's apartment: Lois is clinging to someone whom she considers a friend, someone she knows is feeling the same grief she is, and someone who just happens to remind her (however subconsciously it may be) so much of the man she just realized she loved, the man who she believes is dead. Clark... well, I already yelled at Clark , but I really don't think he was fully aware of what he was doing. That, mixed with the desperate feeling that he'll *never* have Lois now that he's "dead," seriously clouded his judgement and his mind.

OTOH, I do have to agree with Laura:

But, that may just be beacase I'm a hopeless romantic. )

Well I wasn't going to say this, since I'm new on these boards, but I have to agree 100% with Tank on this.

And KathyM too. Although I don't believe Superman would have ever had casual sex with Lois, or anyone for that matter, especially as he was her friend and confidante in real life.

Not to mention Lois' part. I have to go with my earlier comment in part one about that kiss.

I agree that the take here on these two has gone completely out of character.

Usually, anyone who loses someone they love, in particular, becomes less likely to be involved in spurious relationships, becomes despondent out of grief, holds on to the memories of the other person as if they were still alive, and holds on to the memories for a long time.

The love triangle in this case is only valid in Lois' case. There are two individuals, as far as she is concerned, Clark and Superman.

Lois "loves" Superman, although he is merely an escape for her, the image of the perfect man, Superman gives mixed signals about Lois, because he is really Clark, and Clark loves Lois.

After Lois realizes she truly loves Clark, the situation becomes a less confusing. more focused, more filled with angst. The S1 finale is a perfect example of that, and the "love triangle" resolution.

To have Lois Lane, sleep with Superman after the death of Clark, her best friend, whom she loved/loves, while not even being through a grieving process is unexplainable.

This has been a terrific TOGOM angle, before the kiss, which I suspect was an intention from the start, but you can only invent new scenarios in which character can be simulated, not invent character actions that ultimately become uncharacteristic, and hope to explain those by circumstances.

It just can't be done. Phew, sorry for the extra long paragraphs.

seems believable and in character to me.

more!!!

I was believable.

I can believe it too.

What I *can't* believe is them breaking up afterwards. Nooooooo! He has too tell her! Or at the very least, she should decide she loves Superman too! ARGH!

I guess I just don't have the stomach for high-angst.

I'm pretty much with Tank and Kathy, here-- not only is this a HUGE helping of angst, but it seems kind of extreme for both of them. Going only part of the way, only to realize (with horror) what they are doing, and stopping, would be easier for me to believe. Unless somehow, someway, subconsiously, buried way too deep for her to tumble to it at all, Lois does know he's Clark. Since this sort of thing-- losing your soulmate, who is really both A and B but has been killed as A and you don't recognize him as B ( phew! ) is unlikely to happen in real life, I just can't get a handle on this at all. I can't put myself in either Lois or Clark's place so I just don't know how the situation would play out. Maybe the scenario here is exactly what would happen.

I'm not saying I didn't like it, because this is very gripping and emotional, and riveting too. But how on earth can this be fixed??

On the other hand-- I can see that Clark is just totally not functioning at all normally-- his "death" has hit him EXTREMELY hard because he's being forced to give up everything he holds dear in his present life: his home, job, friends, and most importantly, Lois. He can't see ANY way to resolve this, can he? Hence his utter conviction that he can't tell Lois the truth. And maybe his inability to stop what happened?

And Lois? Like Bethy, I think her emotionlessness is scary. She's not functioning normally, either. She's burdened with a double load of guilt, now-- her belief that she led them into danger in the first place, and now her guilt for "betraying" Clark. I just don't see her "snapping back" from this, into even a tiny bit of the Lois she's been since she met Clark. She'll be driven to hunt down the gangsters and whoever is responsible for bringing them back, but after she's done that, avenged his death, then what?? Perry aside, she has no support left. What incentive is there, at all, to keep functioning?

You two must have this story plotted out fairly concretely, so you must have a way to resolve this. To keep Lois sane, keep her from killing Clark for real once she finds out, and find a way for them to work this out so that there is no lingering hurt or resentment.

The logical question, then, is when are WE going to find out how they resolve this? Really soon, right??

~Toc

Just a quick observation... Actually, Kae and I agree with those of you who say that both Lois and Superman acted out of character in this instalment. Of course they did. Lois is grieving for the loss of her best friend and the man she loved, whom she saw gunned down in front of her in horrific, terrifying circumstances - the stuff of nightmares. Clark has just had almost the worst thing possible happen to him. No, he's not dead, but the life he's known all his life is over just the same. So neither of them is in their right minds.

And when we're in a state of extreme shock, when we've been through trauma, when we're desperately trying to pretend that the worst hasn't happened while at the same time wondering how on earth we're going to go on, we do crazy things. Irrational things. Things we would never dream of doing when in our right minds. Things which are completely out of character for us... because at times like this the last thing we do is act in character, as if nothing out of the ordinary had happened.

The bereaved mother who suddenly shoplifts. The woman whose baby died who kidnaps someone else's baby. The grieving widow who sleeps with a friend simply because he's there and she needs someone to hold her and chase away the loneliness - all things the person would never dream of doing under normal circumstances.

Both Lois and Superman are grieving right now, for the loss of a relationship that can never be the way they want it to be. Both are feeling painfully alone and need the comfort that the other can offer.

No, neither Lois nor Superman has made a conscious decision to make love. Neither was, at that moment, really aware of what they're doing. And, yes, one thing everyone's right about is that the aftermath won't be nice.


Wendy

Wendy, I agree with your post. They weren't acting in character here. I can even understand Clark not telling her afterwards as he doesn't want a relationship as Superman.

Now....how are you going to get them to talk to each other again. They left it as....big mistake...over...never again...

Okay, I can think of ONE scenerio that will cause the lines of communication to open again.

Can't wait to see if I'm right....

Can't wait for more

Ohh!

I think this is going to be *long*

Jose (who agrees with Wendy and Kae)

Well, I just wanted to add, in respect to situations involving trauma and such, such cases as described are rare, and most importantly after the grieving process has not adequately given the person enough closure - usually persons who engage in such acts also have other instability in their lives, which isn't a case for either Lois or Clark.

Which means they would each be entitled to a normal grieving process.

They both have outlets in doing so, as well. So it means that they can and would follow a normal grieving process, no matter how difficult. (Lois has Perry White, the rest of the Planet, Clark has his parents.)

As well, there are other hormones involved in such *extreme* cases, like the mother stealing a child - (I feel like a psych major).
There is also an emotional level above that as well. There is also basis to predict whether or not a person will act out in such manners.

Such as, not having the ability to have babies over a long term which might lead to mental instability, and emotional undevelopment due to natural conditions, neither which Lois and Clark exhibit.

A person's actions always flow out of their established traits, which is why we can't always compare the actions of people.

What I'm saying is, what might seem out of character vs out-of character as character is usually rooted in periods of extreme change or instability, and unmet emotional needs that the person may, or may not act upon - I think that is also the question in dealing with Lois and Clark/Superman, in a long term basis.

It's also very predictable and usually has smaller patterns, which we do not find in either Lois or Clark. (Sexual healing?, being one.)

We do however, find a lot of anti-thesis.

It's much too extreme for them to act out in such an "out of character" manner in such a short period of time. It leads to many other questions about the characters, which is difficult to pass as out of character character.

It can, however, be action exhibited by different people, but that would be dealing with a case X vs a case we do know and are able to analyse.

Remember, Lois' immediate reaction in the show was to internalize her pain in response to Perry White. That shows a lot of mental and emotional stability to begin with and she wasn't despondent over the lack of intervention from Superman. That is also derived from popular TOGOM fic, but also not very accurate.

Anyhow,
Assuming such a position is very difficult, as Tank much more simply put it.