Lois & Clark Forums Forums Fan Fiction Lois & Clark Fanfic FDK: Cold and Blood (KB version)

This ficlet is based on a longer, unfinished story I found in my WIP folder. It probably won't surprise you to learn that I started it during the summer hiatus between S3 & S4.

It's been a very long time since I've posted any L&C fic, so I thank HappyGirl for her First Line challenge that got me thinking.

/whine/

You're not supposed to give me chills and make me tear up all at the same time.

I love the difference between NK and it's red sun v. the Kansan plains.

And I love how Zara reminds him of what's important to him - that Lois is still out there waiting somewhere for him.

So... when are you going to dust off the rest of that fic in the WIP folder?



Carol

Kathy, you scared me here for a bit until you mentioned in the FDK-folder that this was a piece of a longer fic. Now I know that Clark won't die

So, what does it take for you to dust off the old words and put them out there for FoLCs to comment on?

Michael

Very nice! And I'm very glad that you decided to post this.

Now you have to finish this and let us see how Clark goes back to Lois.

Please? With cherry on top?

Hi Kathy!

All of those chats and email discussions about WIPs and nary a word about this mysterious NK fic. Now, I'm so very curious about the rest!

I love the opening paragraph, where Clark lists all of the things he never wanted to be - all the things that the people around him expect him to be - and how that has affected him. Such a very human trait, to fulfill the expectations of those around us, even if those expectations are negative.

I love Clark's beautifully melancholic description of the landscape and his wish for a camera. His enjoyment and sense of peace of the scenery is in stark juxtaposition to Zara's frantic screams for medical help.

Your words were beautiful and sad, with just a pinch of hope. I think we all expect that happy ending, where Kal-El remembers that he's really Clark Kent and Lois Lane's fiance. We're conditioned to think that he'll draw on those inner reserves to stay alive, that he'll keep his promise to Lois, but your short vignette doesn't assure us that it happens. We hope, but we don't know.

Very lovely. Thanks for sharing.

Yay, Kathy! I'm so glad you posted!

I'm so glad you included that line from Zara at the end. It gives the impression that, even though Clark has been far from home and from the one he loves, he has not been utterly alone because his ally (we're not sure here exactly the relationship between Zara and Kal-El) acknowledges and supports his loyalty to his true home. And she implies that, if he survives, she will help him get back to Lois eventually.

I'm tickled pink to see the variety of responses to Queenie's evocative opening lines.

Thanks, everyone, for your comments. I'm glad you enjoyed it.

Rest assured, Clark most certainly survives. I would never write anything where he didn't. And HG hits it right on the head in her analysis -- while Zara isn't his lover, she most definitely is his friend and ally, and she knows exactly what he has to live for.

I can't promise that I'll ever finish the larger story, but I recently pulled the file back out and have been writing lots of notes on how I might rework it. I'd gotten about halfway through it several years ago, only to write myself into a corner that I had no idea how to get out of. Maybe looking at it with fresh eyes will give me some new ideas for how to proceed.

Hi Kathy,

This was an excellent teaser. I just hope we get to read the whole story someday.

Yours Jenni

I also think this was brilliant as a stand-alone. The repitition encloses it a beautifully.

Wow...speechless.

Here's hoping this is the beginning of your comeback tour!

Amber

Wow ...

I'm amazed, and humbled, by the fact that I've been complemented on my own writing by someone who can write like THIS.

How is it that you manage to evoke such strong emotion with so few words? CarolM had it right: you give me chills and make me tear up at the same time.

While I would certainly love to read the rest of this story if it were ever published here, I actually think this scene works very well in its own right. There's a world of possibilities there, but imagining what they might be is part of the fun - at least for me.

Thank you for sharing!