Quick note: Darth Michael had pointed out to me that Alt-Clark was aware of Kyrptonite... so I adjusted this part to reflect that.
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Tears were streaming down her face. All she could see, over and over, were images of Kawa dying, the blood gushing from Tempus' hand, and Clark struck down. She could barely see the dirt road for her tears and wasn't entirely certain she was even heading in the right direction to get to camp. But at least it was light now. She knew to follow the river... <<But am I on the left or right side of the river?>> Kawa had explained something about upstream and downstream, but she hadn't paid much attention, thinking she'd have him there to sort her out.
"Poor Kawa," she whispered sadly.
Clark stirred next to her.
"Clark?" she asked, turning to him. "Are you any better?"
"I---I--no, not really," he said, barely able to open his eyes.
She took a better look at him and was alarmed to see him perspiring heavily. She reached up a hand.
"Clark, you have a fever!"
Thank God she spotted the camp site just up ahead. Maybe the water from the stream would help him.
When she stopped she went to her tent and grabbed a pot to get some water from the river.
It was still cool enough to drink this early in the day. She took a sip for herself and then went back to Clark.
She touched his forehead, moving a lock of hair off his face. "Can you try to drink this?" she asked. She had no idea if it would help, but she figured it couldn't hurt. And at least she was doing something.
Clark managed to swallow. "Thanks, Lois."
She felt the tears well up again. "You'll be all right, Clark." <<You have to be.>>
Visibly worried about the prospects, she asked, "Do you think you can move? If we can get you out of here, I can set you up in the tent so you can rest."
He shook his head. "No, I need to stay outside. In the sun."
She gave him a puzzled look.
"It--it makes me feel better."
"Well, okay," she said, unconvinced, "but we should at least get you out of this jeep. Do you think you can make it to that tree over there?"
He nodded.
Lois supported him as best she could. He was very heavy, and she had a hard time getting him to move. Suddenly, he tripped over a rock and landed on her, stopping himself from crushing her by landing on his hands, just in time.
They were nose to nose.
"Hi," he said, loving the position, but wishing he didn't feel like hell.
"Hi yourself," she smiled. "Um, should we try this again?"
"Yeah, but first---" he nuzzled into her neck, giving her little kisses. Kryptonite induced, barely conscious kisses, but they still gave her a shiver of pleasure.
"Clark!" she laughed. "As nice as this is, we need to get you over there to rest. You're a mess!"
"I know," and he collapsed on her again, this time, definitely not awake.
She managed to pull herself out from under him and tried to wake him again. "Clark?" she said, trying not to feel too worried. If he had been able to play with her like that, he might be all right after all.
Eventually, she woke him up again and got him propped against the tree.
"Just... rest."
~~~~~
Lois cried until there were no more tears. She cried until she was shaking, until her head hurt. But it didn't seem to be enough. Kawa was dead. She had shot Tempus. And Clark... he upset her more than all of it. This man who was supposed to be invulnerable had been rendered helpless by a single, horrible rock! She had no idea if he would return to normal.
She checked on him every half hour or so. She was relieved he was breathing pretty normally, but was still anxious that he wouldn't pull through. He still had a fever, and there was no medical assistance for miles. But the fact that he was Kryptonian, and that, even if they could find a hospital, she knew there probably wasn't much they could do for him.
At one point, he started tossing and turning in his sleep. She sat by him, trying to soothe him with her presence.
"It's all right, Clark, I'm here," she whispered, choking on fearful tears.
He blindly reached out for her and she grasped his hand. He seemed to calm a bit with her touch, though his breathing was still a bit ragged.
She felt helpless, and she hated that feeling. She had to *do* something. After Clark went back to sleep and the tears dried up, she started pacing, started getting angry. Angry at the unfairness of life. Angry at that bastard for shooting Kawa. Angry that Tempus tried to kill Clark. That Tempus had wanted her to *watch* him kill Clark!
The camera still sat in the jeep. She eventually pulled it out and stared at it a long time, thinking. She thought about Kawa, her kind guide that she'd sit up talking late at night to. He seemed to have a wisdom about him, could assess her character in a glance. But he was also generous and maybe a little foolish. Kawa had given his life to bring her something that he thought was so important to her. It was a rash, terrible thing to do. And the guilt of it would haunt Lois for the rest of her days, whether or not it was really her fault. But she had the camera. She had her evidence, her proof, and a name. She could write that story.
She suddenly felt renewed purpose and energy. She went to the tent to grab her notepad, but stopped a moment when she noticed Clark was awake by the tree.
"Are you feeling any better?" she asked, stroking his brow, noticing it was slightly cooler to the touch.
"Yeah," he nodded. "The sun is... helping."
"Good," she smiled warmly, hoping to hide her worry.
She turned away, moving to head towards the tent to start her story.
"Lois?" he asked, stopping her with a touch.
"Yeah?"
"Come here a minute," he said, holding out his arms to her.
She went into them instantly, feeling those tears starting up again.
"I thought I might lose you," she whispered.
"You saved me, Lois. I'll never forget that."
She pulled back a little to look in his eyes. "I think I'd do anything for you."
He gently wiped her tears with his thumbs, and kissed her on each of her cheek reverently.
"We'll be okay, Lois. Everything will be okay."
~~~~
Lois spent the rest of the afternoon writing. She wrote like she had never written before. She included the story about Kawa in her article, wanting him to be remembered as a hero. She wrote everything she knew to take down that bastard Papa Ludu. She wished she could destroy Tempus with her pen as well, but decided the details of that would have to be obscured a bit. The world didn't need to know about a time-traveling maniac and that substance he had had that could hurt Superman. She instead wrote him in the article as one of Papa Ludu's thugs; she had a hunch anyway, that Papa Ludu was probably in cahoots with Tempus if not actually employed by him. And she knew this piece would just be the first in a series, because she was going to do everything she could to put Gainsley away in Metropolis as soon as she got back.
It was evening when she had finally stopped writing.
"Can I interrupt the world's greatest journalist for some dinner?" asked Clark, offering some dug up fruit and nuts he had found nearby.
She turned to him with a smile. "Feeling better, I take it?"
He nodded, but she saw a line of worry cross his face.
"What is it?" she asked, coming to him immediately. "You are getting better, aren't you?"
He sighed. "Yeah, I am. It's just that---well, I don't have any of my powers."
"What? How do you know?"
He looked at her pointedly, "I know. I've been exposed to Kryptonite once before, but not for that long... so I have no idea if the effects will be---permanent or not."
"Kryptonite? What is it exactly?" Lois asked.
"A meteorite from my home planet, Krypton. It became radioactive when it landed here... and, I think it could've killed me."
She stepped over to him, embracing him. "But it didn't. You're alive. That's all that matters..." <<with or without your powers>>, she thought.
She looked in his eyes, and she saw fear there that worried her.
"I haven't felt so helpless---since, since my parents died," he said. "I hate that Tempus has that power over me! That he has managed to rob me of everything to try and ruin my life!" Clark said bitterly.
"Not--not everything, I hope," Lois said, reaching for his hand.
Clark smiled apologetically, clasping his two hands around her small one, "No, not everything. I managed to find you... "
"And he only has that power over you if you let him, Clark. Surely you see that?" she asked in surprise.
He sighed, feeling more vulnerable by the second, "But what good am I without my powers?"
"Clark, stop it! I may not have known you for a long time, but I can tell you that the powers do not make the man. It's how you use them that defines you, which means how you use them comes from your character. I thought you were made of sterner stuff than this, Clark," she said with disappointment.
He hung his head, "I'm sorry, Lois. You're right. I--I'm letting all this get to me."
He was ashamed. In her voice, he had heard the other Lois, comparing him to her Clark. That guy wouldn't wallow in self-pity. He wouldn't let a power-crazed maniac get the better of him. He'd make the most of the situation, no matter what faced him. And now he had his Lois. She wouldn't abandon him. He could face anything with her by his side. It was time to learn what being a hero was all about.
Clark gave himself a mental shake and spoke with determination, "We'll stay here another day. I am already feeling better. Maybe my powers will come back. Or at least I should know by tomorrow if they are likely to come back... and then we'll form a plan. Either I'll be able to fly us back to Metropolis, or we'll take the jeep to the closest large city and fly back the old-fashioned way."
Lois smiled, and leaned in to kiss his cheek. "That sounds more like it, Superman," she whispered.
~~~~~
Clark had offered to sleep in Kawa's old tent. But it had been such an awful day that Lois just couldn't bear to sleep alone.
"I trust you, Clark. It's okay. Sleep here with me," she looked up at him, her eyes open and honest.
He couldn't resist her. "You drive a hard bargain."
She got in under the covers, and was surprised to see Clark just lay above them.
"Won't you be cold?" she asked.
He smiled charmingly. "Not with you sleeping by my side."
She whacked a pillow playfully at him. "Behave," she said with a laugh.
They settled down into the tent. Lois turned down the lamp and snuggled close to Clark. He wrapped an arm protectively around her.
The only sounds were their breathing, as they found a comfortable rhythm together, and distant sounds of the nearby forest.
"I don't know what I would have done if I hadn't found you, Lois," Clark spoke softly.
She reached for his hand. "You're a pretty special guy yourself."
She felt him shift up, so he could look at her. "You don't know what it was like, before... and then, when I met the other Lois and Clark, and saw how much they loved each other... and I thought that I had been meant to meet my own Lois, but that she---that I had been robbed of you---"
She saw him swallow, to calm his emotions. "And then I found you... it's a miracle, Lois. One I'll always be grateful for."
She smiled sweetly, "Oh, Clark." She reached up, and they kissed tenderly. She ran her fingers through his hair and their lips played together in a sweet kiss.
"Told you this was a bad idea," Clark muttered, but not meaning it.
Lois giggled. "I think it was a most excellent idea."
They kissed again, but didn't let things get carried away further. Eventually, Clark settled back down beside her, pulling her to his chest.
They were asleep in moments.
~~~~~
Lois was dreaming, like she was flying. But there was an arm around her. Superman was holding her. They were flying over the tops of trees...
Her eyes suddenly opened. She turned and *fell* out of Clark's arms. How did---?
She stared up at him, floating just inches above her. She stifled a giggle. <<This is new,>> she thought.
She rolled out from under him carefully, as she didn't want to startle him and have him fall on top of her. The Man of Steel falling from mid-float could be a dangerous operation, as his earlier fall had nearly proven.
When she was safely out of range, she got up on her knees and tapped him on the shoulder.
"Clark?" she asked. <<Is it dangerous to wake a man while floating? Is it like sleepwalking?>> she wondered, another giggle rising in her throat.
She tried again. "Clark?"
Still didn't budge.
"Superman?" she tried tentatively.
Nothing.
"Superman!" she tried louder.
"Huh?" he awoke, and like a ton of bricks, landed heavily on the ground as predicted.
Lois was thankful for her quick thinking to get out of the way.
"You were floating, Clark," she said happily.
"What? Oh, yeah, I do that---"
"You got your powers back--" "I got my powers back!" They said at the same time.
She reached over and hugged him.
"I knew everything would be okay," she said.
"Hey, that's *my* line," he said, as leaned down for a kiss.
*******
The flight back to Metropolis was amazing. Lois had always loved flying anyways, and doing it like this, in this man's arms--it was indescribable! He would hold her close, parallel to him, so she felt as if she were the one doing the flying. They headed west, away from the sun as it rose; sometimes it was a strong ball of fire that lit their way, and other times a warm glow that washed them both in a golden hue. They played over the ocean with dolphins, freaked out a few flocks of birds when near the shore. Sometimes they flew as fast as Lois could handle, cool air breezing through their hair and ears, making conversation impossible. And sometimes they flew with Lois cradled in his arms, drifting slowly, just talking and getting to know each other.
If Superman was alone, he would have made it back to Metropolis in less than an hour. But with Lois, his precious cargo, it took almost four hours. Four hours of pure bliss. They had perfect weather, no rain, no storms, a little wind. He told her everything. About growing up in Smallville. About growing up with his powers, how they were his curse and blessing. How the other Lois had told him about Superman, and how it felt to finally feel like himself in the Suit. How it was all a secret, but that he had to do the most good he could in this dark world, which came with sacrifices.
"I know about that feeling, about wanting to do good," she had responded quietly. "It's what I try to do with every story I write. Try to fix this broken world, taking down one criminal at a time."
He then talked about the loneliness of being Superman. About how for most of his life he's felt like he didn't belong, that he would never find love, never have a family. How he had wandered the world in his late teens and early twenties. All the things he learned, all the places he saw. Everywhere was a new discovery, a new language, a new culture. But he never felt like he belonged. He was always an outsider, wanting desperately to find his place, yet always feeling completely alone, even in a crowd of people.
Lois empathized with this as well. She thought of the many lonely nights in her apartment. The feeling of standing on a subway platform, with a crowd of people, and yet feeling invisible, utterly isolated from a real life. A reporter's life was a lonely one. Always chasing the next great story, trying to save the world, and never belonging to anyone.
She confided in him about her few attempts at love. How Claude had wooed her, made her think he loved her, but had had other ambitions in mind.
"I thought he'd steal my Congo story. He had taken credit for a few other minor stories that were mine, and I wasn't about to let it happen again, and not for a story this big. So I decided to go to the Congo myself. To get away from him, partly. But also to claim the story for my own. He couldn't exactly take the credit for it when *I* would have the proof I had been here. But it's been a disaster from day one. If it hadn't been for Kawa helping me along---and then you, I don't know what would've happened."
"I'm sorry about Claude," Clark said softly, holding her close.
"I never thought I would ever be able to trust anyone again," she said, tears in her eyes.
Clark held her tighter. "I hope, you can learn to trust me."
The harbor of Metropolis shimmered before them, coming up on the horizon. It was early dawn, the stars disappearing into the morning light as the city awoke from its slumber.
"I think--" she swallowed the lump in her throat, trying again. "I think I already do."
