The Cold Truth (Part 2)<-Previous Chapter----------
A crowd of on-lookers gathered in the mouth of the cave, but none dared to venture outside. The man in front of Lois didn't even seem to notice them as he looked her over, his face ashen. “Lois! Are you all right? Are you hurt?”
“I'm fine.” Lois studied his face, from the beard now covering a strong jaw that she had once described to a sketch artist, to eyes that she had in one breath called “vibrant” and “insipid”. How had she worked beside him for months—been rescued by him for months—and never managed to see the truth right under her nose? She reached up to remove his glasses, and he made no move to stop her. “All this time...”
He swallowed. “I uh—I understand this might be a bit of a shock—”
“No kidding!” She stepped away from him, as though he were a magic-eye puzzle that needed to be viewed from a distance in order to make any sense. The biting wind chastised her for moving too far from his body heat, and she hugged herself in a feeble attempt to warm up. Paltry as the LexLabs blanket had seemed, she already regretted leaving it behind.
He swept his gaze over her from head to toe, and Lois suddenly felt warmer. She stared at him, her jaw slack.
“Better?” When she failed to answer, he quietly reached for the glasses still in her hand. Her grip loosened immediately, and he slipped them back on. Even though he didn't really need them. Even though she knew the truth.
Hot blood began racing through her veins, and she found her voice again. “So, were you ever going to tell me that my best friend is really Superman, or were you too busy laughing at me?!”
The mist from his sigh obscured him for a moment. “Your best friend is really Clark Kent. Superman is—”
“Don't lie to me!” Heat rushed to her face as her mind began cross-referencing some of the more intimate conversations they'd had. “Oh, God! I said so many things to you...in front of you...about you! You must have been struggling to keep a straight face the whole time!” She covered her eyes, suddenly wishing the ground would swallow her up.
“Lois, no!” His hands rested on her shoulders. “I was never, ever laughing at you.”
She glared up at him again. “Then when were you going to tell me the truth?!”
He released her shoulders and looked away, silence answering for him.
Lois gasped. “You were never going to tell me.”
“I...” He rubbed the back of his neck. “I hoped to, someday. I just wanted...” He trailed off again.
“Wanted what?” She folded her arms, waiting for his reply. It didn't come. The wind rustled the trees, its piercing chill vying against the heat of her anger. “Wanted to see how far I would go with my crush on Superman?”
“No!” His gaze snapped back to her. “No, if anything, that's the exact—you know what? Never mind.” He shook his head, and a deep sigh bloomed white in front of him. “It doesn't even matter anymore.”
“What did you want, *Clark*?” Lois stepped towards him, the mist of her breath spiraling away in the wind as she seethed. “What were you waiting for before you could tell me who you really are?”
His eyes narrowed at her. “I said forget it!”
Silence fell. Lois waited, her shivering growing more intense with each second that passed. She blew on her hands, and her teeth began to chatter. “Fine! Whatever your reasons were, you're here now. Let's just go back to the others.”
He blinked at her, making no movement to scoop her into his arms or any such thing.
“Hello?” She frowned, waving towards the forest and the horizon beyond. “The others? You are going to take me back, right?”
He scratched his neck again, looking everywhere but at her. “I'm not sure,” he finally mumbled.
“WHAT?!” Lois stared. She couldn't possibly have heard him correctly: obviously the wind was playing tricks.
He met her eyes. “Lois, this secret...If the wrong people knew, my parents would be in danger. Our lives could all be over. I can't risk anyone finding out.”
She glared at him. “So, what—you think I'm going to start yapping about it to everyone?”
His gaze fell, and his reply was barely audible. “It's a possibility.”
Lois gaped at him. When he did nothing to retract or qualify that statement, she threw her hands into the air. “Well, Gee! Thanks a lot!”
He shrugged. “Even if you can resist the story, we're struggling with survival right now. Knowing that I'm Superman might become an issue of life or death.” As if to illustrate his point, he swept his gaze over her again and the chill vanished.
Lois refused to acknowledge the warmth now flooding through her. “*If* I can resist the story,” she mimicked. “Wow, you really know how to flatter a woman!”
His eyes narrowed, arms crossing in front of him. Even with the glasses, he suddenly looked more like Superman than like her mild-mannered partner. “Superman can't even help a little old lady cross the street without it making page six. Are you going to pretend that printing his true identity wouldn't be an easy Pulitzer?”
If her glare could have ignited him, he would have been a cinder. “Do you think I've never buried a story in my life?!”
He blinked at her in genuine surprise. “You still can't tell anyone. None of the others. Not even the people close to you.”
Her snort puffed white in front of her. “I do understand the concept of a secret.” It wasn't as though she were that close to anyone, anyway...
“You can't tell Lex.” His gaze hardened again.
Lois rolled her eyes and rubbed her upper arms as the cold seeped into her skin again. “What, are you afraid that Lex—”
“Yes.”
She blinked, not expecting his abrupt answer. Her mouth snapped shut.
“Yes,” he repeated. “I'm afraid that Lex would try to blackmail me, or worse, and I don't trust the people around him to keep the information from him.” His expression saddened. “Especially someone who's dating him, for that matter.”
Lois sputtered. “You—I—you—!” She stamped for warmth. “What is it with you and Lex, anyway?! You act like he's responsible for half the crime in Metropolis!” Clark opened his mouth, but she cut him off. “No! Don't you dare! Just because you have this weird jealousy—” She broke off, her finger still poking him in the chest. Superman's chest. But, if Clark was Superman, then why would he be...
“I'm not jealous of Lex,” he said quietly, giving voice to her realization.
“No,” she breathed, “you're not.” She looked into his eyes, and it felt as though she were seeing him for the first time. Superman had his own fame, did his own good for the city, and if he wanted wealth, he could easily have that too. None of the petty reasons she'd imagined for Clark's hatred of Lex could possibly apply. Cold dread wrapped its tendrils around her heart. She swallowed. “What exactly do you have against Lex?”
He sighed and shook his head. “A lot of things, but nothing I can prove. I already told you half of it; what's the difference between Clark Kent telling you about Lex's plan to 'seize the high ground' or Superman telling you about Lex's conviction that people would die if Superman didn't leave Metropolis?”
Lois stared at him in growing horror. Her partner had, indeed, tried from his first days at the Planet to call her attention to suspicious coincidences surrounding Metropolis's greatest philanthropist. She had seen everything from a rookie reporter hoping to land the next great scandal, to a blue-collar guy wanting to take the upper class down a peg; but she'd been absolutely blind to the truth. The heat of her anger drained away, leaving only a cold clamminess behind. “I mean, if I had known—”
His eyes narrowed at her. “You know me. And you didn't believe me. And you're dating him.”
A hot tear traced down Lois's cheek, freezing by the time it reached her chin. “Just go,” she whispered.
“Lois—”
“Go!” She turned back towards the cave and its curious gawkers, now aware that nothing waited for her in the other direction. Her career as an investigator was a joke, Lex was a fake, and Superman...she bit back a sob. “I'll just...stay here. They have food and a fire, so maybe I'll just marry a cave-version of Ralph and live here for the rest of my life.”
“Lois...” After a long moment, she heard his deep sigh and the crunch of approaching footsteps on the packed snow. “No. You can't just stay here forever. Your life is back in Metropolis.”
A sniffle escaped, and she shook her head. “I'm staying. You can tell the others that I got eaten by one of the giant bears, or the saber-tooth tigers, or the terror birds.”
“The terror birds are in South America.”
The sob stuck in her throat, and she turned around to see if he was joking. He looked serious. Lois scrubbed at her cheek and stared at him. “I...I made that last one up...”
He adjusted his glasses and shrugged, looking absolutely Clarkish. “Well, they're real. Dr. Carroll was telling me and Jimmy about them yesterday, along with bone-crushing dogs.”
Lois nodded. “Right. Of course. Terror and Bone-Crushing and Fatalis and Horibilis and Clark I *hate* Luthortopia!”
His hands came up to her shoulders, and before she knew it, she was crying into his broad chest while his arms encircled her. Clark's arms. Superman's arms.
“I want to go home.” Her words fought past the sobs only to be muffled against his shirt.
A strong hand rubbed her back. “I know.”
Her own arms wrapped tightly around his waist, clinging desperately to him. “I don't want to marry Ralph.”
“Nobody wants that, Lois.”
“Do you really think I'm going to go running to Lex with your secret?” She pulled back, daring to look up into his eyes. Superman's eyes. Clark's eyes.
He met her gaze. “...No. No, I don't believe you will.” He pulled her close again, though she felt his shoulders sag. “You're still my best friend, Lois, and I still have your back.”
“And I've got yours.” She sniffled. “So, any ideas how we can explain where we've been all this time?”
**********
Kal-El was having the weirdest day of his entire life. Considering that his life so far had included strange powers and Jor-El's talking egg and learning the complicated ways of his wife's people, that was saying a lot. The woman wasn't his Mad Wolf; that much was abundantly clear, and his wife had finally forgiven him for the error after seeing the other Kryptonian. While the couple had argued in their strange tongue, Mad Wolf had looked frequently between the other Kryptonian and himself, then finally squeezed his hand and told him he was excused. Afterwards, the couple had approached him and made it clear with their gestures that they wanted him to accompany them back to their land.
For some reason, Clark-Kent wanted him to carry the woman, and he also wanted to hold onto Kal-El's arm as they flew. As they reached the tiny tribe in the land across the water, Kal-El realized why: Clark-Kent didn't want the others to know about his powers. Considering the fear and rejection Kal-El had faced among his own people when he came of age, it was a very understandable position, and his heart broke for the man.
The tribe must have fallen upon disastrous times; a small wonder, given the harsh place in which they'd settled. Kal-El saw no children or elderly among the group that ran out to meet them when he landed: only five of the tribe's hunters, one still a smooth-faced youth around Gopher's age, and a single woman other than the one he carried. All were clad in the strange furs of creatures he had never encountered, and yet they all stared at *him* in shock and astonishment.
He set his two passengers down and looked around for their chief. It didn't take long: one man clearly stood out from the others, still bearing the marks of great wealth and power despite the tribe's currently harrowed condition. Kal-El placed a hand over his chest and approached their leader, dipping his head in respect. “Kal-El.”
More chatter rippled through the small crowd. The wealthy man's eyes widened, and he copied Kal-El's motion. “Eustace Diggory.”
**********
Lois smiled a little at the flummoxed expression on the plump scientist's face as the strange visitor introduced himself. The prehistoric Superman's gaze soon landed on the discarded lion skin still lying in front of the nearby ash-heap, and his eyes lit up in recognition. He snatched it up and slung it around his shoulders once more, the “cape” completing the iconic look of Superman in any universe, and Dr. Diggory's eyes bulged further.
Dr. Diggory shook his head and grinned. “So, it *was* a Eurasian lion! This explains everything.”
The remaining scientists goggled, inching closer to stare at Kal-El. Lois glanced at Lex and noticed that his lip had curled in disgust. Her own stomach roiled at the visible reminder of everything she'd failed to see.
Jimmy practically vibrated with excitement. “Kal-El? Isn't that Superman's real name? You guys were actually rescued by Superman?!”
Clark looked over to Lois, clearly waiting to hear her response.
Lois managed not to show the hurt at his obvious doubts. She smiled at Jimmy. “Yes, we really were! Apparently this universe has a Superman too, and he's just as nice as the one back home.”
Dr. Lewis stared at the fur-clad figure. “This raises so many questions...”
Dr. Carroll pulled up the hood of his parka and crossed his arms. “Well, I hope he fed you, because the breakfast rations were already handed out while you were gone.”
Without taking his eyes off of Kal-El, Dr. Lewis elbowed his colleague in the ribs.
“Ugh! Fine!” Dr. Carroll sighed and fished a can of peaches from the depths of his pocket and pulled the tab. “This was supposed to be divided between three people, not two, so make sure you leave some for dinner.”
Kal-El suddenly straightened, his nostrils flaring as he sniffed the air. He whirled to face Dr. Carroll, his eyes widening as his gaze landed on the peaches. In two quick strides, he stood in front of the scientist and pointed to the can with an inquiring look.
Dr. Carroll pulled it closer to his body, one hand covering the lid. “No, you can't have this. It's ours.”
The caveman's head tilted. He removed the lion pelt from his shoulders and held it out to Dr. Carroll.
Dr. Carroll shook his head. “Sorry, Buddy, it's not for sale.”
An unreadable expression crossed Kal-El's face, and then with a crack of thunder, he vanished.
Dr. Diggory stared at the place where he had been. “Have we insulted him?”
Clark looked up into the sky. “I don't think so...”
Within seconds, a dot appeared in the horizon, growing at a rapid pace.
Jimmy stood close behind Clark, his head craning upward. “Is that a bird?”
Lois snorted. “It better not be a terror bird.”
Dr. Lewis shook his head. “No, they're mostly flightless.”
Dr. Carroll squinted up, still clinging to the can of peaches. “Well, it's definitely not a plane.”
Dr. Plummer's eyes widened as the unidentified object flew close enough to have a distinct silhouette. “It's...a mammoth?!”
A massive, furry carcass landed a short distance away, causing the nearest trees to shake. Kal-El dropped lightly to the ground after it, walked up to Dr. Carroll, and pointed to the can of peaches again.
The scientist's jaw hung open, and a few seconds passed before he pushed the can into Kal-El's hands. “Uh, sure! Peaches for giant, dead mammoth. Here you go. Would you like it gift-wrapped?”
“Wait!” Dr. Plummer stepped towards them, waving her hands. “We don't have a lot of fruit; what about the risk of scurvy?”
Dr. Lewis blinked at her. “Jill, do you really care if your emaciated corpse has all of its teeth? Just let him have the peaches!”
Kal-El smiled, cradling the can in his hands as if it were more valuable than gold, and took off once more into the sky.
Jimmy grinned up at Lex. “So, Luthortopia has its own Superman! Is that cool or what?”
Lex stared wordlessly at the massive beast. His gaze drifted to the long trunk trailing along the ground, and he gave it a swift kick.
“I'm going to get my camera!” Jimmy tightened his blanket around his shoulders and ran back to the tent he shared with Clark and Dr. Carroll.
“A mammoth...” Dr. Lewis grinned and shook his head. “The rescue team will need to help us carry the leftovers!”
Lois watched the others rejoice, half-listening as they discussed butchery and skinning and the possible uses of tusks and bones. Dr. Diggory slipped an arm around Dr. Plummer. Jimmy's camera clicked several times, while Lex continued to look completely stupefied. She found Clark staring at her intently, though she couldn't read his expression at all. Maybe he was just trying to warm her up again; after all, what were friends for?
She turned towards the horizon Cave-Superman had disappeared into. Cave-Clark. Kal-El. Whoever he was, he was long gone, now. No doubt, he was already back with his wife, feeding her the peaches and telling her all about the weirdos living over the sea. A part of Lois felt jealous of the other woman: no doubt her life was much less complicated, with her mate and her baby and her small tribe of hunter-gatherers.
But then again, Lois Lane thrived on complicated. She would find her own happiness, even if it ended up looking nothing like her dreams. Lois squared her shoulders, ready to face cold reality.
THE END
actually, the case seems awfully cozy.![[Linked Image]](https://cosgan.de/images/midi/konfus/a050.gif)
Also, poor dear!![[Linked Image]](https://cosgan.de/images/midi/frech/a030.gif)
I really thought he’d approach Lex. You’re sneaky!
Michael