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As promised here's the first part of the next story, I'll try to post the second part the day after tomorrow. FDK is always appreciated.

Chapter 1



“Goodbye, Mad Dog Lane…”

I have to leave her behind, too.

The words linger, haunting me as I return to the silence of my apartment. Not only the Kents but the whole town of Smallville had welcomed me with open arms, warmth spreading from every corner, every gaze, every word.

In contrast, Metropolis seems cold and foreign, almost hostile.

From the entrance of my apartment I let my gaze drift through the dimly lit living room. The familiar furniture, decoration and photos take on an otherworldly quality, alien, as if they belong to someone else, a whole woman, not the fractured wreck I am now.

Is it really me in the pictures?

On the coffee table a notebook catches my gaze, its worn cover bearing your name. My heart clenches as I recognize it.

You left it here, mere days before the Planet's destruction, then it stayed here, forgotten. I had intended to return it, but the countless arguments that distracted us made it difficult. Following our last fight I hurled it across the room in a fit of frustration.

Only now I understand that I wasn’t really angry at you, I was disappointed in myself, for letting my life, my routines be destroyed. For feeling helpless in the face of losing the Daily Planet. For not being able to be the friend you needed.

As I stand amidst the wreckage of my existence, memories flood back - the notebook, a silent witness of our shared story. I wish, within those pages would lie the answers I’ve been yearning for.

How do I survive saying goodbye, when the mere thought of leaving you behind only twists the dagger deeper into my soul?

I wrench my gaze away from this tangible relic of your existence here, the door slamming shut behind me as I abandon my luggage, heavy with Martha's comfort food and mementos of a life past.

Exhausted, I collapse onto the loveseat, scooping up your notebook as I pass and clutching it tightly to my chest, as if it might reveal your final thoughts. But the world swims, obscured by the tears brimming in my eyes.

The warmth of Smallville‘s embrace feels a world away, and the love your parents showed me is unable to fill the void that’s engulfing me.

After weeks in your childhood home‘s warm atmosphere, nothing in my apartment seems to offer any similar sense of comfort or welcome, despite Perry‘s and Jimmy‘s meticulous care during my absence.

I can’t stop the deep sigh from emerging at the thought of Perry, Jimmy… they’re good friends, great friends even.

But they're not you.

Perry picked me up from the airport.

His voice still echoes in my memory as he shared important news, every word carefully chosen, as if he feared I’d break under their weight.

~~~

“Honey,” he began, in a subdued tone, “I know you are probably not ready to hear this… but I have received a message from Franklin Stern.” Despite everything, he couldn’t contain his excitement. “He reconsidered buying the Planet. Yesterday he signed the paperwork and it looks like we could be back in business in a few weeks.”

Silence filled the car as I stared out the window. Then I replied, my voice barely a whisper. “The Planet… coming back?” The words both a comfort and a pain.

Perry nodded, his face lighting up with a rare smile. “Yes, Lois. And there's more. He wants you back on the team.”

My eyes filled with tears, my voice trembling. “Me? But Perry, I don’t know if I can do this… without him.”

Perry reached out, his hand gentle on my shoulder. “I know it’s hard, Lois. But think about it. The Planet needs you… We need you.”

I shook my head, tears streaming down my face. “I can’t walk into that newsroom and not see Clark’s desk. It’s too much, Perry. It’d be like losing him all over again.”

Perry’s expression softened, his own eyes misting. “I understand, Lois. But remember, Clark would want you to keep fighting, to keep that fire in you burning. He always loved your passion for journalism.”

With an aching heart I replied, “I’ll think about it, Perry. I promise.”

And then I couldn’t contain the sobs anymore.

~~~

I can step back into the role of Lois Lane, but the sight of your vacant desk - or worse, your desk filled by another reporter - could shatter what little of me remains and extinguish the last flickers of Mad Dog Lane.

During the past few years, she had become an integral part of me, fighting fiercely and passionately for justice, defending the innocent with adamant resolve. But life has a way of unraveling even the strongest bonds.

It would be another Goodbye. Lane and Kent are forever lost.

Weighed down by my memories, I slowly get up and replace the notebook, focusing instead on the tasks ahead. I need to store all the perishable goods Martha has given to me.

But before I can proceed there’s something I need to do first. As promised, I dial your parents’ number to tell them I arrived back home safely.

Returning from their haven, I hoped the weeks spent amidst our shared memories of you would help me repair myself, to get rid of the feeling of being torn from the inside. They embraced me, allowed me into their memories and welcomed mine.

The world insists on spinning and I, a reluctant participant, find myself grappling with the ghost of your absence, which lingers, an indelible stain on my soul.

While I’m waiting for them to pick up, I begin to open the first zipper.

Atop lies the football, a gift from your parents. I pick it up, feeling the rough surface, and let myself be distracted. Its leather, softened by years of play, carries the faint scent of sweat and grass, as if it holds the echo of games long past. Childhood memories are etched into the seams, stitched by hands that will never grip it again. There’s a musky, familiar smell, leather mixed with dirt and time, that pulls at something deep inside, a longing for the days when this ball was still in motion, when the one who held it was still here.

The phone still rings and I clutch the receiver, my heart pounding when I hear someone pick up.

Your mother's voice, fragile and frail yet familiar, fills the void. "Hello?" she says and I can almost see her standing in the cozy farmhouse kitchen, sunlight streaming through the window, her hands trembling.

"Martha," I whisper, my voice catching. "It's me, Lois." The words tumble out, a flood of emotions I can't contain. I’ve only been gone a few hours, but already I want to tell her so much but I can barely even force the words out.

"I'm home," I continue, my voice breathless. "Perry dropped me off." The football slips from my fingers as I again sink onto the loveseat, burdened by countless remembrances overwhelming me from the memory-laden bags. Martha's silence stretches across the line, heavy with unspoken words. I imagine her clutching the phone, tears in her eyes, missing her son as much as I do. My gaze falls on the Smallville high sweater lying atop my clothes and I pull it from its place, clutching it tightly, stroking over the soft, worn fabric.

“Lois,” she finally says, her voice breaking. “We’ll always be only a phone call away, should you need us.” Her words pierce my heart and I close my eyes. “And you’re always welcome in Smallville,“ she added.

“Thank you,” I blurt out. After a short pause I add, “Perry said the Planet will be back open soon. He wants me back on the team. But it feels wrong without Clark… There are so many memories of him there. How will I survive, watching someone else at his desk?” Tears burn in my eyes, staining the sweater as they fall.

The silence on the other end of the line is profound. I can almost hear Jonathan in the background, his steady presence offering comfort. "Perry will understand, honey," Martha whispers. "I’m sure he’ll give you all the time you need and if you can’t return he’ll understand that too." And suddenly, the weight of it all, our loss, their love, the secrets, crashes over me. I bury my face in the sweater, inhaling the scent of memories and letting the tears flow.

“Thank you,” I say, my voice raw. “For everything.“

Martha's fragile voice responds, “Oh, honey…” and I know we're connected by more than grief.

As our voices crackle through the phone line, the image of an invisible thread connecting us, covering the distance, conjures in my mind. We exchange whispered reassurances, promising to call if the buden of our grief ever becomes too heavy. With that unspoken pact hanging in the air, we reluctantly hang up, severing the thread.

I carefully unpack the bags, each item from Smallville a relic of your past. The room fills with memories, the scent of your cologne, the worn edges of old books, the photograph of us laughing together. These fragments surround me, a bittersweet embrace, as if you’re still here, whispering secrets to me. And yet, I wonder about the weight we carry - the invisible baggage that shapes our choices, our hearts heavy with love, loss and longing. How will the weight of your death shape my decisions in the future?

Half an hour later all bags are emptied and stored away with a few chosen items scattered around, still in need of a place where I can put them.

While scanning the room for a fitting place I spot my Kerths, hidden behind glass. I can’t help but remember the days when my work persona, ‘Mad Dog Lane,’ was forged. She emerged during my early days at the Planet, shaped by Claude and refined by colleagues who prioritized sensationalism over truth.

The pseudonym, whispered by colleagues in both mockery and awe, served as an armor and a curse. Mad Dog Lane battled injustice with a ferocity that allowed no vulnerability. Yet behind the headlines and bylines, I was Lois Lane, a woman who wielded her pen like a blade, slicing through half-truths and deceit to hide her own fragile, scarred heart.

I open the cabinet and take one Kerth out, it has a fine layer of dust on it. Before everything… I used to clean them weekly.

And then there was Claude, the ill-fated affair that left emotional wreckage in its wake. Mad Dog Lane became my guardian, snapping at judgmental co-workers. They labeled me the “ice-queen” and “frigid,” ignorant to the pain hidden behind my aggressive facade. All the lies had tainted their perception, leaving little room for my side of the story.

The memory of him resurfaces, vivid and raw. I'm back in the bustling newsroom, the scent of his perfume, Armani’s eau pour homme, thick in the air, clinging like an invisible fog. The sharp bite of citrus mingled with the heavy, floral notes of spice, unsettling in its familiarity. It had been intoxicating then, much like his charm, luring me closer, wrapping around me until I couldn’t see the truth behind his lies.

Claude, with his French accent and sly smile, had woven a tangled web - a master manipulator. His charm was magnetic, drawing people to him like insects to a venus flytrap, helplessly trapped in the sweetness before they realized it was poison.

~~~

"Claude," I'd confronted him one evening, my voice edged with frustration. "Why do you twist the truth? Why play these games?" The thought of our shared night and his betrayal leaving a bitter taste in my mouth

He'd leaned back in his chair, eyes glinting. "Because truth is malleable, my dear," he'd replied. "It bends to our desires, our fears. And people? They crave stories, not facts. As reporters, we control the narrative."

The thought made my stomach twist. I'd wanted to argue, to shake sense into him. But Claude was a maestro, conducting symphonies of deception. He'd whispered half-truths, spinning melodic illusions, and my colleagues had danced to his tune. The interns, wide-eyed and eager, had become unwitting pawns. The young women - bright, capable - had been silenced, their voices drowned in the discord of office politics.

"Fact-checking?" Claude had scoffed. "That's for amateurs. We're artists, ma cherie. We paint reality with broad strokes, leaving room for interpretation."

And so, they reveled in gossip, embellished, embroidered, stitched together narratives that fit their biases. Each added a note, composing a melody of intrigue. The unrequited love affair, the envy of a young, green reporter, passion and longing hidden beneath polished exteriors, it all became part of the newsroom lore.

"Remember," Claude had whispered smugly, "we're not just reporters. We're storytellers. And stories? They endure."

I'd nodded, torn between admiration and disdain, the bitter taste in my mouth kept me from answering. But I began to wonder every time I watched my colleagues scribble headlines: How many truths had we sacrificed at the altar of storytelling? How many lives had been reshaped by our pens?

~~~

Claude's legacy lives on, his long shadow still looming over me even today. Even now, thinking about him makes my skin crawl. I’m unable to shake it off. In the end, that experience shaped me into a seasoned reporter, a three-time Kerth Award winner by the age of thirty, who wore death threats like battle scars. It made me sharper, tougher, more relentless. But it also left me hollow. In this world of half-truths and sensationalism, his betrayal remains a bitter reminder: verify, question and stand up for what's right... but trust no one.

I've always been chasing the truth - but at what cost?

In a sudden wave of fury, I throw the award to the floor, sweep the others from their place to follow the first. They clatter, one after the other, shattering into pieces. Trophies meant to represent my success now lie broken, useless like me. Symbols of a career built on strength, but also on the ashes of my trust.

Mad Dog Lane. She’s the one who helped me survive. The part of me that chose defiance over surrender, that fought tooth and nail, ready to bite someone’s head off before they could wound me again. But even Mad Dog couldn't silence the whispers, couldn't stitch up the damage left in the wake of his deception. My reputation lay in fragments, as shattered as the awards now scattered at my feet.

So, I built walls - impenetrable fortresses of ice and fire. Outwardly fierce, inwardly fragile. My heart hid behind those defenses, with Mad Dog standing guard, swearing to never let anyone breach the walls again. I believed if I could keep my emotions locked away, I wouldn’t have to fear being hurt.

I thought I was protecting myself. Instead, I became the ice queen in their stories - cold, untouchable, invulnerable. But where did that get me?

Now, my only confidants are a shoal of fish, endlessly circling in their glass sanctuary. They swim in silence, listening as I whisper my frustrations and dreams into the void. They don't judge, don't betray, don’t lie but they also don’t answer, don’t tease, don’t encourage. They are the only witnesses to the woman beneath the armor - cracked, weary, still longing for something more.

I was sure it was right that way - safe behind my walls - until you came along, Clark. With your earnest smile and unwavering belief in truth, you reminded me what it felt like to have a friend. To be a friend. You made me realize that there was still warmth in the world, despite the ice I had built around myself.

It can’t have been easy for you.

Mad Dog Lane barked, flashed her teeth, threatened to tear you apart, but you didn’t flinch. She growled and snapped at you, warning you to stay away. Yet you stayed, quiet, steadfast, never wavering. You saw through my defenses. You didn’t push. You didn’t demand. You just... stayed.

You, Clark, always by my side, a silent force of nature. Unassuming, yet powerful in your presence, you unraveled every mechanism I had carefully constructed. Mad Dog Lane recoiled, sensing the danger you posed to her fragile existence. But I, Lois, the woman behind the armor, felt something stir inside me. A warmth, a vulnerability that defied everything I’d promised myself I’d never feel again.

And then, when tragedy struck, it was all my doing. My own bad decisions, my own insecurities, manipulated by Lex, came crashing down around me. My heart had been a battlefield long before you entered the ring. Paul, Claude, Lex just took advantage of the wounds that were already there. Lex meticulously orchestrated the collapse, and I walked right into the trap.

I had built my life on Mad Dog’s defiance, but it wasn’t enough to save me from my own worst impulses. I let fear guide my hand. I dismissed your affections, so blinded by my need to protect myself that I couldn't see what was right in front of me. Foolishly, I proclaimed my love for the hero you became, but not the man who stood by my side.

When the hero turned away, I ran into the arms of the villain. I let myself fall, accepting his proposal as if it could somehow patch up the gaping hole inside me. But even as I prepared to walk down that aisle, there was a part of me that knew it was wrong. And then, the cruel twist of fate struck, ripping away any hope of reconciliation before I had the chance to make things right.

The fire that fueled Mad Dog Lane flickered and died, extinguished by the weight of grief. The passion, the drive, the fury that had once burned so fiercely inside me, gone. In its place, a hollow, icy void. Grief settled in like a relentless frost, consuming every last vestige of warmth I had left. Anger, once my constant and trusty companion, now gnawed at me from the inside, leaving nothing but emptiness in its wake.

Now, those gossip mongers have even more fuel for their fire. They were right to call me names because after your death, whatever spark had defined me, whatever made me ‘Mad Dog Lane’, was gone. All that’s left is a cold, paralyzing despair. The ice in my heart has taken over, and it feels like nothing can melt it. Not anymore.

T. B. C.

Welcome to the 2025 Kerth Quiz: Challenge Story

SPIFFY DISCLAIMER THINGY!: All the stories featured in this quiz qualify for the Best Waffy Story, but this quiz is not a stamp of recommendation for nomination. There are more fantastic stories which qualify for this category, but this quiz only covers 7 randomly chosen ones.
(Instructions are blatantly copied/linked from previous Kerth Quizzes.)

RECOMMENDATIONS: Don't forget that recommendations for other favorite eligible stories are *very* welcome and encouraged! So don't forget to add these in a section after your guesses!

QUIZ RULES: One point each for getting the story and author from the quote. Plus, shiny gold stars for those who recognize their own stories. Please don't forget to mention which number you're answering. Rule recap: Open hard drive and open boards (+AO3!), *don't* forget to snip out the excerpts in your replies, and don't forget the spoiler tag when you post in the replies thread.
CATEGORY: This award honors the extra creativity required to craft a story around a certain set of parameters. This includes all stories written in response to challenges and ficathons posted on the Lois and Clark Fanfic Message Board (any challenge regardless of the year it was posted; but only story responses that were posted in 2024 are eligible). This also includes Discord dares and specific request fulfillments.

The DEADLINE for entries for this quiz is SATURDAY, JANUARY 25, 2025, by 11:59 p.m (Eastern Time Zone).

Here’s the full list of Eligible Stories.

Here are the full quiz instructions: Countdown to Kerth Quizzes Extended Instructions and Disclaimers.

Please post your answers HERE.

Good luck!
Evie

__________________________


🏆 EXCERPT #1:
“He can’t stay here.” Lois folded her arms across her chest as Krypto bounded into her apartment, running straight to her sofa and standing up on it, tail wagging madly. “My apartment’s not pet friendly either.”

“You used to have a cat,” Clark argued, closing her apartment door behind him.

Lois frowned. “That was…years ago. They’ve changed the policy since then. I’m sure of it.”

“Mrs. Newton down the hall has that parakeet. And your upstairs neighbor has that yappy dog. And you have fish.” He reminded her.

“Fish? Fish aren’t pets. They’re purely… decorative.”

Krypto began digging at her sofa.

“Hey! Cut that out!” Lois yelled.

Krypto barked loudly in response, leaping to the other sofa.

“Off the sofa, Krypto,” Clark commanded him, and Krypto immediately jumped off and ran to Lois, rolling onto the floor in front of her and baring his belly.

“See? He likes you.”

Lois groaned, kneeling to pat the dog. “What am I supposed to do with him while we’re at work?”

Clark shrugged. “We’ll get a dog sitter. Or put him in doggy daycare.”

“Doggy daycare!” Lois scoffed.

“Please, Lois… it’s just until we get our own place. Once we’re married and have a house, he’ll have a big yard to run around in, and we can play fetch and–”

Her eyes grew big. “We’re getting a house and a yard?”

Clark gulped. Not this again, he thought. “Uh, well…maybe? I mean…if you want a house and a yard?”


🏆 EXCERPT #2:
It happened as it had to happen: they agreed to a bet. The winner was allowed to decide the rest of the evening’s planning - and (that had been Clark's condition) had to publicly admit to the loser that they were in the wrong.

Lois was...less enthusiastic about that in particular, but eventually agreed. Anything else would have been far too close to conceding a possible defeat, after all.

Lois looked at the clock nervously. Only 25 minutes left. "Clark, where are you?" she murmured to herself.

As if he had heard her (which, she had to admit, was entirely possible), she heard the familiar "swoosh" sound, and Clark stood - in the Superman suit - in the living room of the house.

And he clearly needed a shower. Damn it! And she couldn't even come join him because that would inevitably mean a massive delay. Life simply wasn't fair.

"I'm almost ready!" she heard Clark call from the direction of the bathroom.

Five minutes later, Clark emerged from the bathroom, clean and dressed for the evening.

“Honey, it’s a little late,” he remarked.

"Oh really? I did not notice at all." She couldn't resist a little sarcasm.

“Well, I'm afraid we won't be able to do it with the car anymore. We'll probably have to resort to the air alternative, if you don't mind..."

Lois didn't. It was the simplest, most practical solution. She agreed - which had nothing at all to do with the fact that she was able to snuggle particularly close to Clark's chest and bury her hands in his hair for the next few minutes. In no way.



🏆 EXCERPT #3:
Streaky: Remember how big his uncle’s lab was? It was crammed with many shiny boxes and gadgets! Anyhow, a moon round* before the big boom, he kept talking about, I was exploring…

Krypto: Happiness! Looking for a squeaky snack?

Streaky: Sometimes one or two might escape their cages. Yum! None were running free. On this particular day, I found a large device my staff member was working on… a shiny metal box.

Krypto: Oh! That was something he called a test rocket or was it sprocket…?

Streaky: Big buddy, please stop interrupting.

Krypto: Sorry.

Streaky: I watched from my favorite perch until he went away. The metal box was glistening, and it was big enough that both of us could have fit into! After walking around and sniffing for a minute or two – I thought squeaky snacks might be hiding in there – I decided to hop in!

Krypto whimpered in alarm but said nothing. Pepper purred loudly in response. Clark noticed the exchange and again thought that maybe, just maybe, there was more to his dog than met the eye. Pepper continued purring loudly, ignoring the curious glances of his substitute staff person.

Streaky: I had no idea my staff person was priming the box to be launched. He did not see me get into the box. The top clanged down and the next thing I knew, a funny air came into the box. I slept for a long time and then woke up in a field in this town. Mrs. Harper was taking a walk in the field … or rather she called it a ‘park’…and found me wandering around. She fussed over me quite a bit. Something about ‘bad staff’ leaving me alone. Anyway, after a stay in a place with smelly cages, my new female staff brought me here.

Krypto: Oh! That must have been the uncle’s test ship. Good thing the ship was sent here. Now we can be friends again. Do you like her?

Streaky: She is nice. Wish she didn’t dress me up all the time and call me fuzzy britches!

Clark watched as the two animals got into another exchange of soft yelps and meows. They were good to have around and pleasant company. Maybe he should consider getting a cat to keep Krypto company?


🏆 EXCERPT #4:
"I'm really grateful you're here, Clark... but why are you here? It's late,” she asked, pulling the blankets over her scantily clad body. She was wearing her pink silk short set. The camisole hung down a bit, the straps always falling off her shoulders.

“I couldn’t sleep. I started walking aimlessly through Metropolis. I realized I was heading toward your apartment, when the aroma of this hidden bakery stopped me in my tracks, I couldn’t help myself,” Clark explained as he stood up.

Lois noticed as Clark retreated out of her bedroom and heart felt broken once again. Luckily, seconds later he returned with a cup and treat in hand.

“I remember a conversation we had a few weeks ago about peppermint and chocolate. You said you loved those little Andes mints, but hadn’t tried a peppermint mocha yet. So I found a bakery that had them along with chocolate croissants,” he explained, standing a few feet from her bed now.

She grinned as he held out the gifts to her, and suddenly the embarrassment of him seeing her in silky pajamas didn’t matter. This man was a gift. Lois tossed the blankets off her and stood up. Within a second, she was inches away from him, and she reached over and kissed him on the cheek. Then she took the treats out of his hand and disappeared out of the bedroom.

“Clark, if you hurry, I might share,” she stated. The memories of the nightmares disappeared as the aroma of heaven overwhelmed her senses. Now she felt lighter and before she took a sip of the peppermint mocha, she remembered the feel of his skin on her lips. Yes, the nightmares were over, and Clark was alive and a reminder of how her fantasies could become reality.


🏆 EXCERPT #5:
When Jimmy returned to the copier room, he officially did not see Cat Grant sitting in the middle of the floor, surrounded by uncrumpled papers, the empty fishbowl in her lap.

“He's not in here!” She looked up at him. “Did you get everyone’s names?”

“Everyone,” Jimmy confirmed. “There were a few opt-outs, but CK definitely wasn't one of them. Maybe somebody picked him already.”

Cat looked startled. “Some names were picked already?”

“Well, yeah.” Jimmy reached down and took the fishbowl from her. “People have been picking names from it since this morning.”

“Unbelievable!” Cat sprang to her feet and raced out the door, grabbing a random piece of crumpled paper almost as an after-thought.

“Hey, wait! What about that phone-number?!” Jimmy called, but the door swung shut behind her.


🏆 EXCERPT #6:
“Mom doesn’t like it when you get on the couch, Krypto,” Jon said but he continued scratching.

Krypto just huffed and tilted his head to give the boy better access.

Suddenly, a flurry of footsteps preceded another small human into the room. Clark’s girl-pup, Laura, stopped and looked around before spying Jon and plopping herself on the boy’s other side.

“Jon! Jon! Read my story!” Laura insisted. She pushed a piece of paper into her brother’s lap.

Jon frowned and pushed the paper back. “Have Mom read it.”

“Mom’s at work.”

“Then, have Dad read it.”

“Dad’s making dinner.”

“Dad can read it in like a second.”

“But I want you to read it. Please!”

Krypto huffed again and looked up at the pups. He wished they would stop bickering.

Jon rolled his eyes but put his device down and took the paper. “Fine. What’s your story called?”

“It’s called, Coco and the Wolves,” Laura answered with a smile.

Jon started to read. “Mom had a dog. The dog was named Coco.” Jon paused. “He should be named Krypto.”

Krypto lifted his head at the sound of his name and woofed softly.


🏆 EXCERPT #7:
Lois swallowed against a huge lump in her throat and blinked to keep the tears at bay. Her breathing turned shallow and she gripped the steering wheel tighter, intent on keeping her attention on the street.

But her heart thumped heavily in her chest and her throat tightened to the point where she thought she couldn’t breathe.

Consciously, she knew Clark was all right. But with the unbidden memories came that twisting in her gut telling her otherwise. The terror of having him almost die on her was still so fresh in her mind, just as painful as watching him collapse from Dillinger's bullet had been.

The voice of doubt kept whispering words of discouragement.

She told herself she was crazy. He was snoring right next to her. Yet, the need to check on her companion turned overwhelming.

Again her gaze darted toward him. Lois only dared to breathe as she saw his chest rise and fall.

He was still there, not just a figment of her imagination.

Lois swallowed, the lump in her throat a little less suffocating, but still noticeable.

Her heart kept racing. No matter how many steadying breaths she took it refused to calm until, finally, she reached out with a trembling hand. His fingers uncurled at her touch, allowing her to slip her hand into his.

Clark gave her hand a gentle squeeze, sending a rush of warmth through her. It settled her frayed nerves. The tension bled away, leaving a sense of comfort she'd only ever felt with him.



Good luck, everyone!
________________________________________________


Have a question? Ask it here! Or you can PM any of the K-Com members or reach out on Discord too! You can also send an email to us here: Kcom@kerthawards.com

In order to help you find all things Kerth for this year, we’ve created a TOC for all the 🏆TOC for Kerth Awards 2025 Posts🏆.

The Kerth Committee
(KSaraSara, Michael, lovetvfan, and Evie)

Complete ficlet
Comments

Happy Ficlet Friday!

Last year (2024) around this time, I began a little series in response to the Kerth challenges. It was always my intention to resurrect that series whenever more challenges were issued. Well, it’s Kerth time again and here I am ready to continue “Try Not to Change Anything.”

It is important to note that this series is being written out of chronological order. The first story (which shares its name with the series) must be read first. After that you can read in either the order they were posted or in chronological order as they are listed in the TOC. Just know that future stories may fall anywhere in the order chronologically. Each story mostly stands alone so long as you know the basic premise of the series. So please go back and read “Try Not to Change Anything” before reading this fic.

Kerth Challenge #1: Random Episode Fic

Ask the person nearest to you to give you a number between 1 and 4

Then ask them to give you a number between 1 and 22

The first number is the season your story will come from and the second is the episode from that season. Using that, write a story that either alters the episode, adds to it, changes it, or continues it.

I got 3x22 – Seconds. Ugh. Ugh, ugh, ugh. I asked my husband to provide the numbers. As soon as he said 3, I began dreading that he’d pick a number within this arc. I did NOT want to write this. And given the nature of this series, it doesn’t really fit. But I think I came up with an idea that works – something of a rewrite of the entire arc. Enjoy.

The More Things Change

Try not to change anything, Clark thought to himself sarcastically as he sped through the skies. He must’ve said those words a thousand times in the years following his and Lois’ strange soul jump into their own eleven and twelve-year-old bodies. And they’d tried their best to follow that rule – right up until it all just began to seem futile.

Three years ago, after several months of trying to pretend that he was only ‘friends’ with the woman who was technically his wife, he finally threw caution to the wind and decided that trying to stick closely to the previous timeline was only making them both unhappy. He’d kissed her in front of the news room and from there it was a whirlwind of reigniting their romance between all too familiar stories and stakeouts. They were officially married (again, technically) within the year.

And the world hadn’t exploded.

It was incredible really. Despite all of the changes they ended up making, nothing went drastically wrong. In fact, somehow, for some inexplicable reason, most things had played out very closely to the way they had before.

Including this.

“Why this?!” he muttered to himself angrily as he scanned the city, yet again, for his missing wife. “Of all the blasted things that had to stay the same, why couldn’t this one thing change?”

Of course, it wasn’t exactly the same. He hadn’t accidently married his wife’s clone, thank goodness. No. They were already married. And, so far as he knew, Lois hadn’t wound up singing in a bar under the name Wanda Detroit.

No, she’d just been kidnapped and replaced by a clone in a more standard way. Was there a standard way for something like this to happen?

Of course, he’d recognized the clone much faster this time and he’d felt like pulling his hair out when he realized it was happening again.

Naturally, this was all Luthor’s doing – although why he was so obsessed with Lois was a mystery. She’d never dated him in this timeline. They’d began investigating him right from the start. But he and Lois had been openly a couple before they became even peripherally under Luthor’s radar.

Nevertheless, the billionaire crime lord had set his sights on Lois fairly soon after their first official meeting and, after several dinner invitations failed, had begun finding other ways for them to meet so he could covertly work his charms – all of which Lois quite firmly rebuffed.

It didn’t even end after they got married or when they finally exposed Luthor – no, then he just began outright kidnapping her whenever he wasn’t in jail or in hiding. Their only guess as to the source of his obsession was the pheromone perfume that Miranda woman had threatened the city with. If Luthor had been sprayed by the 100% formula, its affects would be permanent and that would explain why he wouldn’t leave Lois alone.

It had been a crazy couple of years.

At least the previous Luthor encounters had been something new – something they weren’t repeating from the past. It kept things… interesting wasn’t really the right word. But no one could say their lives were boring.

Clark thought about heading back home, to the brownstone he and Lois had managed to buy a few years earlier than they had before. But the clone was still there and he didn’t really want to deal with her right now. He just wanted to find his wife.

He’d already checked the underground tunnel where he’d found them the last time they went through this. It was empty – yet another thing that wasn’t the same.

He strained his ears, listening for her call. He scanned the sewers and tunnels for any sign of Lois or Luthor or that Asabi fellow. So far, nothing.

“Come on, Lois. Where are you?” He asked aloud. He didn’t have a lead. He didn’t even know where to start. The only reason he’d been able to find her last time was that the clone followed Luthor and led him there.

The clone… she hadn’t known where Luthor was hiding in the previous timeline, but maybe this time…

With that thought, Clark made a quick U-turn and headed home.

***
MEANWHILE…

Bound and gagged in an underground bunker is pretty standard for Luthor, Lois thought to herself as she pulled against the ropes holding her hands behind the chair. Gotta say though – the two bodies in the eight-foot, glass cylinders has got to be a first.

She wasn’t entirely sure how she’d ended up there but she was fairly certain chloroform was involved, given the nausea she’d felt upon waking up. She’d seen Luthor flit in and out of the room a few times while she was still dazed so at least she knew who her captor was. He’d been gone for about a few hours now though.

She was growing weary of these games with Luthor. He’d escape prison, hide out for a while, kidnap her, and try to convince her to run away with him. Then Superman would rescue her and cart Luthor back off to prison. One would think that Luthor would learn to get out of Dodge the next time he escaped, but nope – he always came back for her. His obsession was getting really old.

She gave the ropes another tug and thought she felt them give just a little bit. Great. A few more hours of this and I’ll be home free, she thought sarcastically. She wondered if she ought to be working harder on the gag instead. If she could just call for Clark, they might be home in time for supper.

Before she could work out the best way to start shifting the gag, she heard footsteps approaching. A moment later, Luthor appeared carrying a large, strange looking gun and followed closely by Asabi.

“Ah, Lois, my dear. I see you’re feeling more awake,” Luthor said. Lois glared in reply. “Tsk, tsk. My sweet. I hate to see you like this – but we can’t have you calling for a certain someone in blue tights now, can we? Perhaps we can do something about that though – I would love to hear your melodious voice.”

Lois rolled her eyes. The only melodious sound her voice would be making if he removed her gag was exactly the sound he did not want to hear. He couldn’t really be that stupid, could he?

Luthor hefted the gun he was carrying, offering her a better look. “You see this? It is a quantum disrupter. I got it from… well it really doesn’t matter where I got it. Would you like to see what it can do?”

Lois turned her head away in feigned indifference but she kept her eyes on the weapon as Luthor pressed a button and then aimed at an old desk on the other side of the room. He fired and a beam of energy shot out. The desk seemed to waver for a moment and then it seemed to come apart at the molecular level, leaving nothing behind.

Lois felt her eyes widen. It was a terrifying weapon to be sure.

“Beautiful, isn’t it?” Luthor asked. Lois gave him her most incredulous look. “Of course that was only a desk. Imagine what this could do against an enemy. Well, it might even be enough to take down Superman. Shall we find out?”

His threat was clear. If she called for Clark now, Luthor would use that thing on him. Lois had no idea if it could actually hurt Clark or not but she really didn’t want to find out.

Luthor seemed to believe she got the message. He put the gun down and moved to her side, reaching for her gag. “Now, do you think you can behave, my love?” He loosened the material and then lowered it from her mouth.

Lois took a moment to stretch her jaw before replying. “I’m not your love, Luthor. I’m married.”

“For now, perhaps. But that will soon change.”

Lois shook her head. “What is your game this time?” She nodded towards the cylinders which Asabi was currently hovering next to. “What’s with Adam and Eve over there?”

“Ah, you shall soon see, my dear.”

Lois rolled her eyes. Let him keep his secrets. “Do you really think you’re going to get away with it this time? Clark is going to figure out where you’ve taken me. He always does. It’s only a matter of time.”

“Yes, yes. The infamous Mr. Kent. He is so very clever about following the clues – a regular Sherlock Holmes. But I’m afraid that Mr. Kent doesn’t even realize you are missing.” Luthor grinned as though he were in on some sort of twisted joke.

“Well, of course he realizes I’m gone,” Lois contradicted. “It’s not like you could’ve planted some sort of copy…” Something niggled at the back of her brain – a very old memory from before they’d jumped back into their youth. It was fuzzy but…

“No… Oh, no,” she groaned. “Clark told me about this, from that time I lost my memory. You had a clone made of me! You planted it to sabotage our wedding and then you were going to transfer our souls into other bodies or some such nonsense.” She didn’t bother to mentioned that she’d done her fair share of soul hopping.

Luthor looked a bit bewildered for a moment but he shook his head. “While I’m not certain how you came by your information – you are mostly correct. I did plant a clone to act in your place, although I don’t know what that has to do with weddings. By the time dear Mr. Kent realizes, you and I will be long gone – off to start new lives in our new bodies thanks to science and a little help from Mr. Asabi.”

“You’re delusional if you think I will willingly go with you anywhere, Luthor.”

“We shall see. Perhaps after a month or so in seclusion, you will see things differently.” Luthor ran a finger down her cheek. “I look forward to breaking that indomitable spirit.”

Lois shivered in disgust. “The jokes on you. Clark’s already seen through your little decoy. He’s probably on his way here right now.”

Lois had excellent timing. Just after the words left her mouth, several things happened in quick succession. Superman burst into the room, possibly breaking a door or wall in the process. Luthor reached for the disrupter. Lois called out, “Superman, look out for the – ” but she didn’t bother finishing because the hero had already focused his heat vision on the weapon, causing Luthor to drop it before he could aim.

For a moment, everything was still. Luthor gaped. Lois smirked. Superman crossed his arms over his chest and raised one eyebrow. Then Luthor tried to make a break for it – which was foolish. Superman swiftly bound him and Asabi together and then crossed the room to free Lois from her bounds.

“You remembered about the disrupter?” Lois asked, massaging her wrists to work the blood back into her hands.

“Of course.”

“Did he really replace me with a clone again?”

Superman winced. “Don’t remind me. This is one part of our past lives I would much rather have not lived over again.”

“At least it’s not exactly the same. I haven’t lost my memory this time.”

“I’ll count my blessings.” Superman nodded toward the hole he’d made in the wall. “There’s a ladder to a manhole down that tunnel. Why don’t you head on up and call Henderson? I’ll wait here with these two and all this… evidence.”

Lois nodded and headed out the way he’d come in. She found the ladder easily enough – the manhole cover had already been moved out of the way, letting in light from the street up above. She began to climb. The rungs were gritty with rust but she paid no mind. As soon as this was over, she was going to take a long, hot bubble bath.

As she neared the top, she reached for the edge of manhole to heft herself up. Suddenly, the rung she was standing on gave way. She lost her grip on the edge of the hole and felt herself begin to fall. Her breath caught in her throat and she didn’t even have time to scream before she struck her head on the concrete below.

Clark, hearing the fall, was at his wife’s side in an instant. He checked her pulse and x-rayed her for neck injuries. Then he cradled her head in his lap and felt the blood from her head wound run between his fingers. As he scooped her up to take her directly to the hospital, he closed his eyes and whispered a quick prayer.

“Please. Please don’t let this happen again.”

Chapter 11
Isolated House

Lois paced back and forth in her prison, her mind racing. She now knew Mindy’s intentions for her husband. She was nothing more than bait, a mere pawn in this sinister plan. But of course, Lois had already decided she wouldn’t make things easy for Intergang’s leader.

She didn’t yet know exactly how she could play her role, but one thing was certain: she would do everything possible to escape before Clark was forced to come and rescue her. The thought of him being exposed to kryptonite gas again terrified her. The last time, he had only survived because Lord Nor’s body had absorbed the gas instead of him. This time, there would be no Kryptonian to save his life.

Her eyes rested on the air vents. She was almost certain that’s how the gas would be dispersed. She needed to find a way to block those vents before Mindy executed her plan.

Without arousing suspicion, Lois began to discreetly examine the room, searching for anything she could use to block the air ducts. She forced herself to show no signs of nervousness, knowing full well she was under surveillance.

She had to act the part, behave normally, all while preparing her escape. The growing pain in her bladder became unbearable, and Lois realized there were no toilets in her room. She had no choice but to ask for help, though every fiber of her being hated the idea of depending on her captors.

She hesitated for a moment, then decided this might be their mistake. If the toilets were outside her prison, it would give her a chance to scout for other escape routes. Perhaps even a clue about where she was being held.

Walking to the visible camera in the corner of the room, she declared firmly but calmly:
"I need to use the bathroom. Unless, of course, you plan to turn this cell into a pigsty?"

She knew they were watching her, and if this was her only opportunity to explore other parts of the building, she had to take it. Her thoughts raced as she considered every possible scenario.

A man entered without a word and gestured for Lois to follow. She immediately noticed that he hadn’t bound her hands, giving her a sliver of hope. As she walked down the hallway, she carefully observed every detail: the doors they passed, the locations of the cameras, potential blind spots, and the overall layout of the space. All of it could be useful for her eventual escape.

When they reached the bathroom, she entered alone, relieved to see there were no cameras inside. Finally, a moment of reprieve, away from the prying eyes of her captors. The room was simple: a toilet, a shower, and the bare essentials of a bathroom. But what caught her attention was the small window high on the wall. It led outside.

Lois approached it, her heart beating slightly faster. Of course, the window had no handle, but it was a step in the right direction. If there was a window, there might be a way out. She clenched her jaw, determined not to let this opportunity slip away.

The man accompanying her banged on the door, and Lois exited, now equipped with a plan for her escape.

Above Metropolis

Clark flew tirelessly over the northern part of Metropolis, scanning every road, every property, every forest, every grove. The sun was just beginning to rise, and exhaustion was starting to set in. Even though he didn’t need much sleep, his worry for Lois was wearing him down. He hadn’t found a single lead.

As he turned back toward the city to rest, something caught his attention: a car matching the description in the photo Jimmy had shown him. Clark dove toward it, using his super-vision to confirm the license plate.

Isolated House

Lois lay on the bed in her makeshift prison. All night, she had been strategizing how to use her next bathroom trip to her advantage. Determined, she decided to ask for a shower to mask the sound of her escape with running water. She had found a nail file among the makeup items left on the vanity.

Her plan was to unscrew the bathroom window and escape through it. Once outside, she would hide and then call for Superman. It was a simple plan, but she was convinced it could work.

Above the House

Clark hovered in the air, observing the isolated house with intense focus. He had verified the license plate of the vehicle parked outside and confirmed it was the one he was searching for. But when he tried to scan the house with his X-ray vision, he hit a barrier: the walls were lined with lead. This detail left no doubt—he had found where Lois was being held.

Logic told him to be cautious: he should wait for police backup and create a plan to avoid falling into a trap. But his heart couldn’t bear the thought of leaving Lois in her captors’ hands a moment longer. The sense of urgency overwhelmed him.

With fierce determination, Clark crashed through the front door. It splintered into shards of wood and metal, powerless against his strength.

Inside the House

The alarm blared instantly, its deafening noise alerting the guards. In a surveillance room, Mindy Church calmly watched Superman’s arrival on multiple monitors. A satisfied smile spread across her face.

“Perfect... Just as I planned,” she murmured triumphantly.

She pressed a button, releasing gas into the room where Lois was being held captive.

Meanwhile, Clark swiftly incapacitated the two armed men who rushed toward him. His movements were quick and precise, the men restrained before they even realized what was happening. But something immediately caught his attention: a muffled sound coming from one of the rooms, the sound of someone struggling to breathe.

In Lois's Room

Lois lay on the bed, gasping as the gas filled the room. The air grew increasingly thin. Her vision blurred, and she felt unconsciousness creeping in.

Mindy, still watching from her monitors, pressed another button, opening the door to Lois’s room.

Clark, now alert to his wife’s distress, rushed into the room without hesitation. He found her lying on the bed, motionless. His heart clenched. He knelt beside her, gently cradling her face in his hands, and desperately began to breathe air into her mouth.

Mindy, observing the scene with sadistic delight, wasn’t finished. She pressed another button, releasing a distinctive green gas into the room: kryptonite in gaseous form.

Clark had no time to react. The moment the gas reached him, an unbearable pain consumed him. He collapsed onto Lois’s body, overwhelmed by the kryptonite that sapped his strength.

Lois, still disoriented, felt the urgency rise within her as she realized the kryptonite gas had ceased, giving Clark a momentary reprieve. The fresh air filtering into the room gave her a slight surge of strength. She immediately bent over her husband, her trembling fingers searching for a pulse. To her immense relief, she found it—weak but steady. Clark was alive but gravely weakened.

Lois knew they didn’t have much time. If she stayed passive, Mindy and her henchmen would surely return to finish the job. Every second counted. With tremendous effort, she managed to move Clark enough to free herself from beneath him. Her body screamed in protest, but adrenaline fueled her determination.

Kneeling by Clark’s side, she whispered softly, hoping for a response:
“Clark… I’m getting us out of here. Please, hold on...”

Her heart raced as she searched the room for any means of escape. She couldn’t give up—not now.

This is my entry for the FDK Scavenger Hunt: January 2025. I didn't find a FDK thread, so I'm starting a new one.

Full story: Anybody's Baby

Lois and Clark on the verge of starting a relationship. My favorite phase.

Awww...

Lucy spells trouble.

"Lois, this is my baby. Take care of him. Bye."

Clark to the rescue.

The adition of a baby in the early stage of their relationship was an unexpected twist, but it was a blessing in disguise for Lois and Clark. It was a sweet and beautiful story.

Andreia

Chapter 4

“Well, here we are.” Clark said as he opened the door to his suite, which he would now be sharing with his wife. Given his status as son of the first lord, he was afforded a larger space than most aboard the mothership, with a separate sitting room, bedroom, and bathroom. The sitting room had a small table and with two chairs, bookshelves, and a padded “window seat” next to a view screen which could be changed to show a variety of scenes rather than the black vastness of space. Currently, it was set to show farmland in the evening.

Lois stepped into the room ahead of him and paused to look around. Clark suddenly found himself feeling self-conscious again. After the fiasco of their initial meeting in the bridal chamber, they had settled into easy conversation – sharing stories and getting to know each other, even teasing each other a bit. Lois was smart and fun and he’d quickly felt a rapport with her.

They had returned to the reception after Ching escorted his parents back to the transport station. Clark could still hardly believe his brother had managed to pull that off. What a gift! And yet his heart ached for more time with his mom and dad. He somehow missed them more now than he had before their too short visit. What he wouldn’t give to have their advice now?

Now that he was alone again… with his wife… in his rooms – a space which had, till now, been only his to decorate and lounge about in as he pleased. Now he had to share it with someone he’d only just met. Even though they’d been getting along well, it was only a matter of time before they managed to irritate each other while living in close quarters. It would take time to work out the rhythm of living together. Right now, he felt… vulnerable.

“You can, uh… you can make yourself comfortable,” he said gesturing around the room absently. “There’s… books and holovids on the shelves. The bathroom is through that door and this door leads to the… bedroom.” He gulped nervously. That was something else they were going to have to figure out. But he wasn’t ready to discuss that just yet.

“It’s nice.” Lois commented casually, but she’d crossed her arms around her waist and seemed to have closed in on herself.

‘She’s nervous too,’ Clark thought to himself. They were back at square one. At the reception, it had been easy to navigate around each other – no pressure, no expectations. It had almost seemed like a first date or not even – more like two new acquaintances just hanging out. There were no silly wedding reception games – no cake to smash in each other’s faces, no garter, no clinking glasses to call for a kiss. Mostly, they had been left alone, wandering through the great hall, commenting on various people they knew or recognized, chatting with whomever felt like speaking to the newly wedded couple.

No one had expected them to behave like husband and wife. Even towards the end, when they were asked to join their respective fathers on the dais for the formal conclusion of the celebration, their part in enacting the treaty had only been marginally acknowledged.

Lois had spent a few last minutes with her father before the dignitaries from Earth were transported back to their homes. Clark’s heart had ached for her as he watched her trying so hard no to cry in front of her father and wiping her tears away as soon as his back was turned. He knew how she felt – abandoned among strangers with no way home. He’d been there once, years ago. And seeing his folks again today had sent him right back to that time and place – the twelve-year-old kid who didn’t understand why he couldn’t go home.

… it was just supposed to be a visit.

Clark cleared his throat and glanced around the room for something to break the ice. He spotted an unfamiliar suitcase and duffel bag by the wall. “Hey, looks like they brought your things here. I cleared out some space in the closet and there’s an empty chest over here you can use. If you need anything else, just ask. We’re, um… well, it takes about a month to get back to New Krypton so this’ll be home for a while.”

“Right… thank you,” Lois replied. She sounded tired all of a sudden. Come to think of it, he was feeling pretty wiped out himself – which was odd given his current proximity to Earth’s sun. That wouldn’t last long. They were leaving orbit in the morning and his abilities and strength would fade within about a week.

He understood why they had to go – too many Kryptonians had used the powers they’d gain to do terrible things. But, having grown up under the comforting warmth of the yellow sun, he was not looking forward to returning to the cool, dull light of New Krypton’s red sun. He’d always felt out of place there. Despite being Kryptonian by birth, he could never let go of the idea that Earth was meant to be his home.

Clark shook his head to return his thoughts to the current situation. He and Lois still had to figure out how to make this marriage thing work and that wasn’t going to happen with them both just standing there. Deciding to give her a few moments to herself, he cleared his throat and stepped towards the bedroom. “I’m just going to change into something more comfortable. Feel free to look around. Make yourself at home.”

At her silent nod, Clark slipped into the other room and shut the door behind him with a heavy sigh. He really hoped they be able to get past this awkwardness soon. He’d really enjoyed her company at the reception. He didn’t want to lose the friendship they’d only just begun to build.

***

Lois breathed a sigh of relief when Kal left her alone in the sitting room. She just needed a few minutes to adjust… again. Realization that this was really happening seemed to come over her in waves. For awhile she’d be fine and then something would remind her of why she was here and what she was doing and it would all become overwhelming again.

She was leaving Earth – something she had never imagined doing. Heck, before the Kryptonians showed up, space travel was still limited to highly trained astronauts and means of going farther than the moon had yet to be conceived. Now she was getting ready to travel lightyears away to a new solar system with a new husband she barely knew.

Although… Kal was proving to be a surprise in many ways. He’d grown up on Earth apparently – raised by farmers if she didn’t miss her guess about the Kents. They seemed to be very nice people and Kal clearly adored them.

“Clark…” she whispered softly the name Martha and Johnathan had called him. “Clark Kent. I wonder what he prefers to be called. Lois walked towards the bookshelves, wondering what she might find there. She was surprised again by his selection. She had expected most of the books to be written in Kryptonian (there were a few of those), but the works on the shelves were primarily written in English – with a few in other Earth languages as well. And she recognized many of the titles.

“Moby Dick, To Kill a Mockingbird, A Tale of Two Cities, The Lord of the Rings…” she muttered the titles as she ran her finger along the spines. “He’s quite the reader.”

She came to a book-end, next to which stood a framed photograph. It was a family portrait. She recognized Martha and Johnathan, although they appeared several years younger in the photo. The little boy seated between them couldn’t have been older than ten or eleven. He was looking at the camera with the brightest smile. Lois could almost feel the happiness radiating off of him.

She stepped back and swept her gaze over the rest of the shelves, taking note of the few knick-knacks spaced out between the books and holovids – an old baseball, a small globe of the Earth, a Luke Skywalker action figure. Lois rolled her eyes at that last one.

She figured she should start unpacking and made her way back towards her suitcase, but froze as Kal came out of the bedroom. He had taken off the heavy, Kryptonian wedding robes and was now dressed in a pair of plaid, flannel sleep pants and a grey t-shirt which read ‘Kansas State University’ in purple letters. The shirt fit him almost too well – accentuating the muscles in his chest and arms. Lois felt her mouth go dry. She’d thought he looked good before.

“What?” Kal spoke up when he caught her staring. “Is my shirt on backwards?”

Lois blinked and shook her head. “No, no. You look… that is,” she cleared her throat. “Well, you really are from Earth, aren’t you?

Kal smile and relaxed a little. “Yeah, I am. At least, I grew up there.”

“You promised me a story.” Lois reminded him.

He nodded. “I did. But… well, it is sort of long. Are you sure you want to get into it now?”

She shrugged. “Nothing better to do.”

“Alright. Would you care to change first?”

Lois looked down at her own, stifling robes and suddenly couldn’t wait to be out of them. She quickly grabbed a pair of lounge pants and a sweatshirt from her suitcase and stepped into the bathroom to change – she wasn’t quite ready to check out the bedroom. After changing and using the facilities, she went back out to find Kal sitting in one of the cushioned chairs by the small table. He’d somehow acquired a tray of cookies and two mugs of hot liquid. Her nose identified the beverage first.

“Is that hot chocolate?” she asked.

Kal nodded. “It is. I figured we should take advantage of Earth’s delicacies while we still can. It’ll be a while before regular trade is established. New Krypton has… something kind of like chocolate, but it’s not the same.”

Lois felt her spirits wilt slightly. “I didn’t realize I was going to have to go without chocolate.”

Kal chuckled softly. “I take it you like chocolate, then?”

“Like is an understatement. You got some of this we can stash away for emergencies?”

“I’ll see what I can do.” Kal gestured to the seat across from him. “Sit. Enjoy. I figured a story like this called for refreshments so I zipped out for some while you were changing.”

Lois blinked as she sat. “That was fast. How did you… oh, right. The superspeed thing.” I’ve gotta be honest, it’s kind of weird seeing those powers used for something so… domestic. Does everyone on board use them so casually?”

Kal shrugged and took a sip of his drink. “Not really. I mean, sometimes they come in handy. But most Kryptonians are used to doing things without powers and so superspeed and strength for basic everyday things just get in the way.”

“But not for you?” Lois nabbed a cookie and nibbled on the corner.

“I’m different.” Kal admitted, shaking his head slightly. “I grew up on Earth. I’ve had these abilities since I was a kid and – not gonna lie – it’s a lot harder to control superspeed when you’re eight than it is when you’re an adult.”

“You had all these powers when you were eight?”

“Not all of them. I couldn’t fly before I left.”

Lois breathed out heavily and shook her head. “He couldn’t fly, he says,” she muttered before taking a sip of hot chocolate. Her husband could fly – that was hard to wrap her head around. She’d seen Kryptonian soldiers flying on television and even a few times in person but it was never anyone she knew. Now she was married to a guy who could fly and stop bullets and shoot heat rays from his eyes.

She was pretty sure his powers would fade after they left Earth’s solar system – that was the whole reason all the Kryptonians had to leave – but it was still pretty wild to think about. This discussion was going a little backwards, though.

She leaned forward and looked Kal in the eye. “I think you need to start at the beginning. How did you end up on Earth to begin with?”

Kal nodded. “Well, back on Krypton – before it imploded – Jor-El, my father, was a scientist.”

“But he’s the First Lord,” Lois interrupted.

“He is now. But, as you know, up until a few months ago, Nor-Zod was First Lord and, back on Krypton, his father was. Despite being of noble birth and expected to become First Lord within his time, my father chose to study science and was dedicated to learning all that he could and helping the Kryptonian people.

“One day, he discovered that Krypton was unstable. After running many tests to verify his findings, he brought them to Lord Zod. But Zod wouldn’t listen. The man refused to believe that anything could go wrong during his reign. He silenced my father – forbidding him to share his findings and placing our family under house arrest. My parents had a few resources in their home lab – just enough to build a small spacecraft. Fearing they would never survive the end of Krypton, they chose to send me to Earth. I was to be ‘the last son of Krypton.”

“But they did survive,” Lois pointed out. Her cookie and coco were forgotten as she listened to his story.

“Yes. My father miscalculated. He predicted the first large tremor which shook Krypton’s core and sent me into space just before it struck. However, he thought that tremor would trigger a series of quakes which would destroy the planet within days. He was wrong. That first tremor was only the beginning. But once it hit, my father’s warning could no longer be denied. Other scientists had already come to the same conclusion.

“A mad scramble began – everyone trying to get off the planet. Transport ships were hastily constructed and people fought for a seat on board. Those who could afford it sought private passage off world. My father tells me it was chaos. Families were torn apart. Earthquakes continued on and off for almost a year. And when the end finally came… less than one percent of the population had managed to evacuate.”

Lois gasped. “That’s awful. I mean… I knew a lot of people had died on Krypton but I had no idea it was so many.”

Kal nodded. “It was awful. And those that did survive had nowhere to go. They drifted for several years in various colonies of strung together space crafts. They finally found a habitable planet and chose to settle there, but New Krypton is… less than ideal.”

“Is that how they came to Earth – they were looking for someplace better?”

“Uh… no.” Kal ran his hand through his hair in a nervous gesture, looking down so as to not meet her eyes. “No, I’m afraid that’s actually my fault.”

Lois sat back, surprised. “Your fault?! How is it your fault?”

Kal took a deep breath before beginning to explain. “You see, my father was probably the only Kryptonian who knew about Earth. He’d discovered it during some studies of space probes. He was fascinated by other worlds. He sent me too Earth with the expectation that he and my mother would die along with everyone else on Krypton. When they didn’t… he decided to go looking for me.

“Shortly after settling on New Krypton, he took a private shuttle to Earth. I was twelve years old when he found me and already developing many abilities, but without really understanding why I had them. My parents – the Kents – had told me how my ship had crash landed in Schuster’s Field, but they didn’t know anymore than that. When Jor-El found me… he answered so many questions. And he invited me to go back with him to New Krypton. I didn’t want to leave Earth. My home was in Smallville – ”

“Smallville?” Lois interrupted. “Is that a real place?”

“Of course it is. Smallville, Kansas.”

“Kansas. Wow. You couldn’t get anymore rural.”

Kal gave her an irritated look. “Are you gonna let me finish? Or are you going to keep picking on my home town.”

Lois held her hands up in surrender. “I’m sorry. I’ll behave.”

He took a sip from his cup before continuing his story. “As I was saying – I didn’t want to leave my parents or my home. But I did want to meet Lara, my mother, and to learn more about where I came from. So, I agreed to take a trip to New Krypton while I was on summer break.”

Kal paused and fidgeted with his cup. He looked sad. “I promised my folks I’d be back soon… but things didn’t work out that way. The trip to New Krypton was long and Jor-El used the time to teach me the language and the customs of our people. I learned so much. When we arrived, Lara and Ching welcomed me and, while I was a little homesick, I was happy.

“Then people started asking questions – where I’d been, how I’d survived. Somehow the news about Earth got back to Nor and he decided it was worth checking out. Once he discovered the powers granted by the yellow sun…” Kal shrugged. “He didn’t want to give them up. And once he’d opened hostilities with Earth, there was no way I could go home.”

He closed his eyes for a moment and Lois could see the pain etched on his face – so much like what she’d seen when he hugged the Kents for the last time earlier today. She didn’t know what to say. She wanted to comfort him – but how?

Kal cleared his throat and looked at her. “So, you see, it’s my fault. They never would have come to Earth if it wasn’t for me.”

His voice was laced with long-accepted guilt. He blamed himself for all of the death and destruction inflicted upon his home.

That was just intolerable.

Lois set her cup down hard and stood up – pacing practically before she’d even begun to speak. “Don’t be ridiculous!” she exclaimed. “You were a child. You didn’t ask Jor-El to send you here or to come looking for you. You didn’t send Nor to investigate Earth. You were just a boy.”

“But if I hadn’t –”

She spun on her heal to face him as she cut him off. “No! It’s not your fault, Kal!”

Kal offered a smile that didn’t quite reach his eyes and shrugged his shoulders. “Everyone tells me that.”

“Maybe you ought to start listening.”

“Maybe.” He chuckled suddenly. “You know we’ve come a long way from you saying Kryptonians don’t care about peace.”

Lois breathed a short laugh of her own. “Well, you’re not exactly the average Kryptonian.”

“No, I’m not.” His smile was brighter this time and his eyes seemed to peer straight into her soul.

Lois looked at her feet for a moment, feeling shy, and then pushed through her nerves and sat back down. “There’s something I don’t understand,” she said.

“What’s that?” Kal sat back and bit into a cookie, looking more relaxed than he had before.

“Why send just you?”

Kal frowned in confusion. “I told you. They didn’t have the resources to build a bigger ship. I was an infant. The capsule was just big enough for me.”

“But what about Ching? Couldn’t they have found a way to send your brother as well?”

“Oh!” Kal’s eyes flew open in surprise and he shook his head. “No. You see, Ching isn’t my biological brother. He’s adopted. After Krypton was destroyed, a lot of children were left without families. Jor-El adopted Ching as his son and heir.”

“I see.” Lois pondered that a moment and then questioned, “but then, shouldn’t you be the heir? Or does it go to Ching by default since he’s older?”

Kal shook his head again. “No. You’re right. Technically, I should be next in line to be first lord. But, at the time when Ching was adopted, I was officially presumed dead. Although my parents believed I had made it to Earth, no one else knew that and they didn’t have the resources to go looking for me until after they settled on New Krypton. So, Ching was named heir instead.”

“Shouldn’t it have gone back to you when you returned though?”

“Yes. And it was offered to me. But I didn’t accept it for two reasons. The first being that I had not received the training expected of a future first lord. Ching had. He was better prepared than I. The second reason – well, I just don’t want to one day be in charge of an entire planet. I grew up on a farm – not a palace. I feel so out of place during official court functions.”

“Like today?” Lois guessed, remembering how nervous he’d seemed during the wedding ceremony.

Kal nodded. “Like today. And also… I don’t really consider New Krypton my home. I love my family and I am grateful for the legacy of the people I come from but, super powers aside, I don’t feel Kryptonian. I’ve always thought of myself as human.”

Lois finished off her hot chocolate as she considered his words. He was truly caught in between two worlds – born on one but raised on another. He wasn’t a space boy at all – he was a farm boy. She wondered if he’d played baseball or been a boy scout. That seemed likely.

Then she thought about his career plans and suddenly understood why he had chosen that path. “That’s why you want to become the ambassador – you would rather live on Earth, where you can see your adoptive parents regularly and live the way you’d grown up think you would.”

“Exactly.” Kal smiled. “I also have a unique perspective which I think will serve me well in the position. I love the people of Earth and the people of New Krypton. I genuinely want what is best for both planets and I hope I can help build trust between our worlds.”

Lois whistled softly. “That’s a lofty goal. After everything that’s happened – I’m not sure humans will ever trust Kryptonians.”

“Maybe not. It won’t be easy and it’ll take time. But I believe it is a goal worth pursuing.” Kal stood and began to clean up their snack, moving their cups to the tray and then carrying the tray to a little ledge by the door to their rooms. Lois assumed someone would come by to take it away in the morning.

As she watched him, she recalled another question she’d had since they met the Kents. “Do you prefer to be called Kal or Clark?”

He paused in his tidying and sighed with a wistful smile. “Clark. I’ve always thought of myself as Clark. But on New Krypton, I am Kal-El. That’s just the way it is.” He didn’t elaborate anymore and Lois wondered if he’d tried to push the issue at some point in his youth.

“Would you like me to call you Clark?” she asked, smiling softly.

He shook his head. “I would like that very much, but you’d better not.”

“What if I just call you Clark in private?”

“If you slip up… some Kryptonians can be really weird about names.”

“I won’t slip up… Clark.”

He smiled and it finally seemed to reach his eyes. “I like that. Thank you, Lois.”

Lois returned the smile as she stood up and stretched. It had been a long day and she was about ready to turn in. She was about to mention doing just that when she recalled that they had yet to work out sleeping arrangements. She looked toward the bedroom apprehensively.

They had been on good terms since the bridal suite and she felt fairly confident that Kal… Clark wouldn’t try anything. He’d made his position on the matter pretty clear. She actually felt fairly safe with him considering they’d known each other less than a day. But that didn’t exactly translate to comfortable sharing a bed.

Glancing around the sitting room, she noted the lack of sofa or any other suitable sleeping space. The window seat wasn’t even long enough to stretch out on. She supposed she might be able to doze off while sitting up if she were tired enough but that didn’t seem likely right now. She eyed the floor… no way. She’d never get comfortable.

“What’s wrong?” Clark asked. He must’ve noticed her sudden change in demeanor.

Lois sighed and shrugged. “It’s just… it’s late and I was thinking about going to bed except…” she trailed off, unsure how to broach the subject.

“Except we haven’t talked about sleeping arrangements.” Clark finished for her.

Lois nodded silently and waited to hear his thoughts on the matter. Once again, she found herself feeling vulnerable. This had been his room first. It didn’t seem fair that she should come in and kick him out of his bed simply because she was uncomfortable with the idea of platonically sharing a sleeping space with a man she barely knew. But then, he probably wasn’t all that comfortable with it either.

“You take the bed.” Clark finally said. “I’ll sleep on the floor out here.”

Lois raised her eyes to meet his, surprised at the offer. “Oh, no. I couldn’t make you do that. It’s your bed.”

Clark smirked and crossed his arms over his chest. “Would you rather sleep on the floor?”

“Well… no. But… um…” Lois bit her lip, having no idea how to solve this problem and suddenly distracted by the stretch of his sleeve across his bicep.

“It’s a big bed. We could always share.”

Lois felt a blush spread across her cheeks at the thought of actually sharing a bed with Clark – and why did that no longer seem quite as daunting? Ugh! She felt like a foolish schoolgirl. Pull it together, Lane, she scolded herself. She was just about to come up with some scathing remark to put them back on equal footing when he spoke up again.

“I’m kidding,” Clark said gently. “I think that would be too much for both of us right now.”

Lois took a deep breath and smiled her thanks at his courtesy. He had her completely off kilter and she wasn’t sure whether or not she liked it. She needed sleep. She could sort out everything else in the morning.

But she still wasn’t sure about making Clark sleep on the floor. It looked so hard and uncomfortable.

“Seriously, Lois. Take the bed.” Clark said when she continued to hesitate. “I’ll be fine. Look.” And with that he lifted up off the floor and assumed a reclined position about 3 feet in the air.

Lois knew Kryptonians could fly. She’d seen them fly on television and a few times in person, but almost always in an intimidating, warlike manner. This though… this was just so casual. The juxtaposition between what she’d known before and what she was seeing now was so severe that she couldn’t help but laugh.

“Okay fly-boy. I’ll take the bed,” she said between chuckles. “Do you often float in your sleep?”

Clark shrugged and floated back onto his feet. “Sometimes,” he answered, his voice sounding a bit husky. Lois looked up to find him staring at her with a look of wonder.

“What?” she asked.

He just smiled. “You have a really nice laugh.”

Lois blushed again but she didn’t really mind this time.

Welcome to the 2025 Kerth Quiz: Waffy Story

SPIFFY DISCLAIMER THINGY!: All the stories featured in this quiz qualify for the Best Waffy Story, but this quiz is not a stamp of recommendation for nomination. There are more fantastic stories which qualify for this category, but this quiz only covers 7 randomly chosen ones.
(Instructions are blatantly copied/linked from previous Kerth Quizzes.)

RECOMMENDATIONS: Don't forget that recommendations for other favorite eligible stories are *very* welcome and encouraged! So don't forget to add these in a section after your guesses!

QUIZ RULES: One point each for getting the story and author from the quote. Plus, shiny gold stars for those who recognize their own stories. Please don't forget to mention which number you're answering. Rule recap: Open hard drive and open boards (even if you don't know, just guess an author!), *don't* forget to snip out the excerpts in your replies, and don't forget the spoiler tag when you post in the replies thread.
CATEGORY: Ah, those Warm and Fuzzy Feelings. These fun, feel-good stories are full of the cozy, happy moments that make us smile and the romantic moments that make us swoon. Apparently the kids these days call it “fluff”...so this category is ALL about the fluff!

The DEADLINE for entries for this quiz is SATURDAY, JANUARY 18, 2025, by 11:59 p.m (Eastern Time Zone).

Here’s the full list of Eligible Stories.

Here are the full quiz instructions: Countdown to Kerth Quizzes Extended Instructions and Disclaimers.

Please post your answers HERE.

Good luck!
Evie

__________________________


EXCERPT #1:
“We're supposed to go to Smallville, tomorrow.” Claire let go of the end of her cape and lost altitude until she was once again standing on the cave floor. “We made plans to spend Christmas with my parents. The tree is already up, and we were all going to decorate it together. There was going to be eggnog and homemade cookies.”

He was quiet for a moment. “That sounds really nice.”

Claire nodded. “I was looking forward to it.” She swallowed, swiping at her eyes again. “Especially giving him his present. Mom helped me pick it out, and we hid it in her art studio.” She stared out across the chasm that ran through the cave. A family of bats flew together in the dark. They became blurrier and blurrier until they finally disappeared.

Bruce said nothing. He'd never been a man for empty platitudes, nor could anyone justly call him an optimist. It was why he often left the task of comforting people to her. As for the times when she needed comfort herself—well, one didn't need the world's greatest detective to conclude none of that would be happening this time.

Eventually, his voice interrupted her maudlin thoughts. “What did you get him?”

She blinked at him. “What?”

“I was just wondering.” Bruce gave a casual shrug. “If there's one upside to being stuck here, it's that you don't have to worry about spoiling the surprise if you tell me. So, tell me: what's he getting for Christmas?”

The utter seriousness in his tone and the thinly-veiled curiosity in his expression sent her into a peal of laughter despite herself. She wiped the last tears away, and her breathing slowly steadied. “If you really want to know: I got him a coffee mug.”

“A...coffee mug?” His brows knitted together.

Claire nodded.

“...Did you have a fight?”

Claire's jaw fell open as she whirled to face him. “What? No!”

He tilted his head at her. “Then why—?”

“It says 'World's Greatest Dad' on it.” Claire stared down at the floor.

Bruce was silent for a long time. “Oh.”


EXCERPT #2:
The peephole in the door darkened for a moment. There was a sharp intake of breath and then he heard the locks clicking.

His own breath caught in his throat as she opened the door. She wore slacks and a gray tank top that hugged her soft curves. He couldn't help his eyes dropping to her cleavage for a moment, that hint of the enticing valley between the swell of her breasts.

Clark's mouth ran dry and with difficulty he dragged his gaze back up to her chocolate brown eyes. He could get lost in those, too.

Tongue tied, he held out the flowers.

A smile spread across her lips. “What's the occasion?”

He swallowed hard. “Does there have to be an occasion?”

“Nope.” Her smile broadened, making his knees weak.

She stepped aside, letting him in. He brushed his lips against her cheek.

“It's so good to see you,” he mumbled.

He let his lips linger on her skin as he pulled her into an embrace. Today they hadn't seen much of each other. Different assignments had them leave the newsroom in alternating intervals, the rest of the time Superman duty had interfered. Which was why Clark had preferred knocking at the door over tapping on her window.

If he could help it, the hero had the night off.

“It's good to see you, too.” She buried her face in the crook of his neck.


EXCERPT #3:
“What if it doesn’t work?” Lois whispered.

He had slowly crossed half of the distance that had been between them and he longed to rush the last half and embrace her, assure her that they would be perfect together.

“What if it does?” He asked in a hushed tone, trying to match her own.

Her gaze moved from the floor to focus on his face.

“Lois, there will never be another tonight. This is our moment.”

“But what if it isn’t?”

“What do we have to lose?” He asked gently as he stopped just in front of her, realizing that her arms weren’t crossed in defiance, but in fear.

“Everything,” she whispered.

“If you’re going to take that chance, shouldn’t you know what exactly it is you’re saying no to?”

Clark took a gamble and reached up, gently cradling her elbows in his hands. He expected her to tense up or flinch out of his touch, but she didn’t.

“What are you suggesting?”

“This,” he said as he leaned in to kiss her.


EXCERPT #4:
She stepped into his arms and he willingly embraced her. It was like coming home. She was surrounded by his scent, which had long since faded from his jersey. His arms felt sure and strong around her. His heartbeat pounded just a little fast in her ear as he came down from the adrenaline rush which had brought him to her apartment.

“Oh, wow,” she breathed into his chest. “I’ve missed this so much.”

She felt him nod and tighten his hold on her, but he didn’t speak. If he was anywhere near as overwhelmed in the moment as she was, she couldn’t blame him for not being able to find his voice. They stood there for several moments, simply basking in each other’s presence. How had they gone so long without this?

Eventually, Clark leaned back to look at her but didn’t let her go. “Lois, what happened? Why did you call? I thought we agreed to only call if there was an emergency.”

“It is an emergency… sort of.” Lois bit her lip, feeling a bit sheepish for summoning him all the way from… wherever he had been. “I mean, I’m not in danger or anything. But something happened and I didn’t know what to do. And you’re the only one I can talk to about this.”



EXCERPT #5:
How had her life become millionaires and superheroes? Was this what she’d been hoping her life would be?

In reply, her mind offered up an image of Clark in the newsroom, handing her a cup of perfectly warmed coffee, leaning over her shoulder as they wrote together. Now that was the life she’d wanted to build for herself, before the millionaires and superheroes had appeared. All of her favorite things in one mental snapshot: a job where she was in the top of her field and helping people, non-fattening legal addictive stimulants, and a partner she could rely on.

Her partner...

Clark was going to hate her engagement when he found out.

“It’s getting late,” her hero said, interrupting her thoughts. “I should get you home.”

She blinked. Had she just been daydreaming about Clark Kent while standing a on moonlit Parisian bridge with Superman?

It’s been a weird week, she thought.

She turned to him, then, and recognized how deeply the atmosphere had shifted. It felt like there was something between them now that hadn’t been in the way before. She wondered if it was on her end, because of her sudden thoughts of Clark or on his end, because of her sudden announcement about Lex.

“Thank you for the story,” she said. “And for bringing me here.”

She felt the wind catch her hair then, and casting one final look around, she leaned out over the railing into the breeze. It reminded her of flying. The exhilaration of it all pulled one last grin from her. Whatever was going to happen with her love life, right now she was in Paris, and she wanted to memorize this feeling while she was present in it.

I’ll be back for you soon, she thought, saying au revoir to the city. Not goodbye forever, she promised herself, with a quick glance down at the love lock, just for now.

She turned back to her hero. His expression was still but the look in his eyes was haunted and longing. It made her breath catch in her chest, and she was sure he’d heard her heart skip that beat.


EXCERPT #6:
Lois hung up the phone and stared at the ceiling for a moment, feeling frustrated and irritated with herself. What on Earth had that been about? Why had she lingered on the phone like that with him like some sort of infatuated school girl?

She’d been talking to Clark…CLARK! The guy who almost always dipped his tie in his coffee every morning. The guy who always seemed to be disappearing at a moment’s notice with the silliest explanations and excuses. The guy who…

The guy who had thrown her down onto the bed…this very bed and kissed her in a way that she’d never been kissed before. The fact that it had been a ruse did not keep her mind from traitorously replaying that kiss — easily the best kiss she’d ever had — over and over again.

She rolled over, frustrated with herself for allowing her thoughts to go there once more. She’d successfully told herself over and over again that Clark was a colleague and a friend. Nothing more. But she couldn’t ignore the way her body seemed to come alive when he looked at her, or when he gave her that smile that seemed to exist only for her. Something about that smile made her feel warm all over. And that was before the kiss.

God, that kiss.


EXCERPT #7:
Looking down at their entwined hands, Clark couldn't help but smile at how effortlessly she had taken his hand in hers while he couldn't even muster the courage to do the same over the course of a two-hour movie.

"Clark?"

He cleared his throat, forcing a smile.

"It's just been a weird week," he confessed quietly.

"Mayson," she nodded understandingly, her eyes briefly lowering before meeting his again. "You want to talk about it?"

He didn't want to talk about Mayson.

"I'm sorry you thought I was ignoring you," he blurted out, surprising himself as he recalled their interrupted conversation at her apartment.

"Oh," she responded in a small voice. "That's okay. Like you said, it's been a weird week."

"You're not yesterday's news," he emphasized, noting a sense of relief seemed to wash over her. "I still want to... um... date." Was that what they were doing? It felt like so much more to him. "I still want us to... see each other. You know, see where things go. Because..." he paused, feeling his heart race. "Just because... I like you." He winced at his own words, feeling his cheeks flush.

Lois smiled shyly, her hand squeezing his. "You're the only person I wanted to be with tonight."


Good luck, everyone!
________________________________________________


Have a question? Ask it here! Or you can PM any of the K-Com members or reach out on Discord too! You can also send an email to us here: Kcom@kerthawards.com

In order to help you find all things Kerth for this year, we’ve created a TOC for all the 🏆TOC for Kerth Awards 2025 Posts🏆.

The Kerth Committee
(KSaraSara, Michael, lovetvfan, and Evie)

All my stories are Au based on LC & TASS, so there are some small differences from the og episode and it's a bit more angsty.

Cold metal dug into Lois’ spine. She tried to move but chains fastened her down. They were green and had the acidic stench of kryptonite. She craned her neck, inwardly recoiling when she saw Clark suspended in a glass chamber. His dead eyes stared at her through the green liquid entombing him.

“Clark!” She sobbed.

A sharp pain pricked her stomach. Her cries morphed into screams as blood was drawn out of her womb. “No, please don’t take my baby!” she weakly tried to hug herself but her arms wouldn’t budge. She was powerless to do anything but watch as a scientist plunged a syringe into her.

The harsh, sterile light above her blinded her. It was all she could focus on to blot out the pain. The pain of losing him. Time and time again. The pain of losing their child.

“Subject 11 is stable. Prepare for extraction,” the scientist said, sounding eerily like Lex Luthor. A surgical mask hid the lower half of his face, but there was no mistaking that calculating gaze. “You should be honored,” his oily gloved hand massaged her swollen stomach. “The alien hybrid you carry is humans’ salvation. Your sacrifice will be remembered.”
Lois’ breath hitched as white-hot pain consumed her.

Lois woke with a splitting headache, her mouth tasting like blood. She brushed a hand over her smooth belly, her racing heart gradually slowing. It was just a nightmare. She had been having lots of those lately. She groggily sat upright and wished she hadn’t. The nightmare was bleeding into reality. She stood on a platform a little bigger than a twin bed. That wasn’t what worried her. She was on display in an underground museum.

A sleek black car –she hadn’t seen in years–was parked in the center of the room. It was the original Batmobile. For a brief moment, she hoped the Caped Crusader was here. But the batmobile was just one item in a room full of oddities. To her left was a shelf, with various knickknacks and jars.

The jar closest to her housed a red-violet organism –it would have resembled a poinsettia if it weren’t for the tentacles springing from the center with odd suction cups. She spotted a crown that looked suspiciously like Princess Diana’s diadem. Inside a glass case was ancient, gold goblet. Three batarangs hung on the wall proudly next to a disturbing Van Gogh painting that showed the Gotham skyline from the 1800s.

Her gaze drifted back to the batmobile and she wandered if it were low tech enough for her to hot wire the car. An eclectic shock shoved her back.

“I wouldn’t do that if I were you,” Tim Lake glided out of the shadows, his blonde trophy wife dangling on his arm. “Sustained contact for longer than three seconds will detonate the 200 pounds of TNT directly beneath your feet.”

“Good,” Lois stalked as close to the edge of the platform as she dared. She looked each of the lovebirds in the eye. “I can take you with me when I go,” she glared at Amber, showing her she meant business. “Talk about an explosive romance,” she smiled icily. “Your love life is about to go up in smoke.”

Tim Lake leisurely sauntered to the edge of the platform and met her glare with a calm smile. “No,” he sighed. “Let’s not pretend you’re willing to take it that far, love,” he combed a finger through his mustache. “You’re reckless, not suicidal.”

She ripped Superman’s heart out and crushed it. Clark couldn’t be near Lois without that self-loathing expression darkening his features. He thought she hated him because of what Darkseid made him do. The rest of the world might hate Kal-El, but Lois Lane never could. The lies she let him swallow were kinder than the truth.

She slammed her hand against the invisible barrier. Searing electricity sizzled up her arm. Still she remained firm, even after flesh burned off her palm. If she died it would allow Clark to move on –settle down with a being like him, who could carry on the legacy of Krypton. He could be the father he was always meant to be. Without her.

Amber Lake rushed to the edge of the platform. “Get back!” she screamed. Lois met Golilocks anger with a challenging smile.

“Mrs. Lane, Step away from the barrier,” Tim Lake said, still eerily composed and calm.

“Or Superman dies,” husband and wife said together, sharing conspicuous smiles.

That lone phrase tore through the haze of pain and choked her. Lois drew her burnt hand back. She didn’t need to see the kryptonite to know it was there. Her hunch had been right. The Lakes were the board members who stole kryptonite from S.T.A.R. Labs. It was somewhere here in the building.

“Why are you doing this?” Lois struggled to hide the fear in her voice. She hated sounding weak.
Amber smiled as if she had won the lottery. “We’re collectors.”

Lois did a quick once over of the room. Besides the strangely shaped flower, she was the only live specimen in the museum. “I’m not worth collecting.”

“No argument there,” Tim Lake said. “We have no need for humans.”

A sinking dread plunged into her stomach. “You’re the honey, honey,” Amanda smirked. “Superman is the bee.”

“You’ve made a mistake,” Lois willed her voice to stay strong. “Superman doesn’t care about me–I’m just a reporter to him.”

Amanda laughed as if Lois were a comedian. “I know true love when I see it,” she smiled adoringly at her husband. “And you two have it in spades.”

“You’re wrong. He won’t come for me.”

“I saw the way he kissed you before Nightfall,” Amber said. “You can’t fake love like that.”

Tim checked his watch. “Wouldn’t be long now, before loverboy puts the pieces together.”

It was then Lois noticed the empty platform across from her. “No,” she shook her head fervently. Clark was claustrophobic, being in such close quarters wouldn’t be healthy.

“Yes,” Amber beamed. “Such a fine specimen – the last of its kind.”

“He’s a human being,” Lois argued. “You can’t keep him locked up like some animal in a zoo!”

“That’s exactly what he is,” Tim said. “An alien specimen that belongs in a museum,” he waved his arm at their impressive collection. “And shall he refuse cooperate we have a plan B,” his gaze rested on the strange flower near Lois.

Lois studied the flower in the glass jar. She tried to remember any time Clark might have mentioned an alien flower. There was Starro and then the black mercy. “It can’t be.”

“Was quite difficult to come by,” Tim tilted his head regarding her. “But Mongul was quite happy to be rid of it.”

“But that will kill Superman!” Lois protested. The black mercy fed on its host’s body. “Your prize would be worthless if he’s dead.”

“Fear not, love,” Tim said. “It shouldn’t come to that.”

“He will make the right choice,” Amber said, closing the door behind her.

Lois wasn’t going to let Superman end like this. She had ten minutes to form an escape plan. Maybe less. She paced the platform, making lists in her head. The Lakes were kind enough to provide her with a meager cot, but she did her best thinking while walking. There were plenty of weapons to use against the Lakes, but no way to get to them. If she had Batman’s remote she could have turned the Batmobile on. Oh. What’s the point? All of Batman’s toys were voice activated –or so Clark says. Unleashing the black mercy on Amber Lake would be sweet justice indeed.
But still no way to get out of this cage.

The door slid open, a patch of sunlight leaking through. She heard Clark’s muffled voice on the other side of the wall. No. The idiot. “But are you in the mood for this?” Amber glided into the room. She waved at Lois. Superman shoved Tim into the room and released him when his eyes landed on Lois. The gut wrenching-kicked puppy look on his face undid Lois. The tears she had held at bay for months poured out at full force. “Smallville,” she whispered.

“Lois!” Clark sped to the platform, desperation etched in each crevice. He tried to reach for her and pushed back with a jolt of electricity.

“So near, and yet so far,” Tim taunted.

“It’s trap!” Lois shrieked. “They have kryptonite,” and so much more. She glanced sidelong at the black mercy. She racked her brain trying to remember the kryptonese word for flower. “Bahshki!”

“I don’t care,” Clark hovered over the floor. His eyes bore into her and she forgot their situation for a second.
A beep interrupted her thoughts. “You have thirty seconds,” Tim said. “You mess with the timer she dies. You break the light field she dies,” he explained. “You try to disarm the bomb and clean our clocks, she also dies,” he said. “The only way to save her is to become part of our collection,” Time smiled as if he knew he had already won. The color drained from Clark’s face as he saw the small platform.

“Don’t do it!” Lois sobbed. “You can’t live like this!”

“A life without Lois Lane is not worth living,” Clark said.

“Damn you, Kal,” Lois bit on her lower lip. “The world needs Superman!”

“And I need you.”

No he didn’t! The idiot. He was thriving before he met her. He still had friends, counting on him . . . Wonder Woman, Batman, Flash. They all needed him to be strong and make the ultimate sacrifice so the world could be safe.

“Ten seconds and counting,” Tim said.

“You’ll be trapped . . . caged unable to move or breathe, the bars sealing you in a coffin with no air,” she painted an ugly picture for Clark hoping his claustrophobia was stronger than his love for her.
“At least we’ll be together,” Clark said.

“Two seconds,” Amber smirked.

“This isn’t . . .” Her argument died on her lips as she watched Superman dutifully fly into the cage. “You idiot!” Lois cried. At the same time Amber turned on the light barrier on his cell.

“Lift off,” Tim clapped a hand on his knee.

“We did it!” Amber embraced her husband gleefully. “The Kryptonian is ours!”

Superman had belonged to Lois Lane once. It killed her to be so close and unable to touch him. Amber and Tim’s embrace turned into a passionate kiss– not unlike the way Clark once kissed her on the roof of the Daily Planet. Her knees gave out and she collapsed onto the cot. Her lips were cold and chapped. She didn’t want to go on living.

Tim’s next words barely registered. “Now, the floor is a minefield anyone tries to rescue–well, you get the idea.” Tim said something about a feeding schedule, but she couldn’t possibly hold any food down. She couldn’t see Clark through the haze of tears. “Oh, and one last thing,” Tim paused at the exit. He ripped Superman’s calf in half, and Lois covered her mouth to stifle the scream.

“With the two of you dead, no one will come looking for you,” Amber jeered.

“And since Bad Brain Johnson did it, nobody will be looking for us,” her husband added.

“Oh, isn’t he fantastic,” Amber purred. “Welcome to Forever,” she blew a kiss to Clark as they left, leaving Lois alone with her nightmare.

Lois hadn’t been truly alone with Clark since he proposed. And she ripped his heart out. Clark gave up everything in his life, friends, family . . . the world. And for what? An earth woman who was a failure in every sense of the word. She avoided meeting his eyes.

“You’re hurt,” Clark said. She had completely forgot about her burned hand.

“It doesn’t hurt.”

The burn is nothing compared to the pain of losing their child. Lois dug her hand in her pocket, hiding the rash. She curled on the cot and tried not to think about the baby. Even before the Lakes there had been a wall separating them. A wall she put there to protect Clark. She was damaged, an embarrassment to the Lane name. A failure of the human race –not worth Kal-El’s time.

“You should have left when you had the chance,” Lois bit out.

“Without you, it wouldn’t have been a life worth living.”

“That’s not true,” Lois hugged her knees. “You have friends . . . family who cares about you. Teammates who depend on you,” Lois looked meaningfully at the batmobile.

“You’re my family,” Clark said predictably.

“No, I’m not,” Lois said, fighting to keep her voice steady. “You deserve so much more than me.”
“Is that what all this is about?” he gestured between the two of them–in a sweeping gesture summarizing their broken relationship. “You don’t think Lois Lane is worthy of my love.”

“Yes!” Finally the lunkhead was understanding her. “You belong with Wonder Woman.”

“You keep saying that, but I don’t love her,” Clark’s jaw worked in frustration. “I love you.”

“And a lot of good that did you!” Lois snapped. “You’re trapped because of me!” If she had stayed in Smallville like Superman told her to, none of this would have happened. She was the bait and she fell right into the Lakes trap. “Wonder Woman would have never let herself get captured!”

Clark’s cheeks colored with frustration. He tried to hide it, but she knew he agreed with her. “Nobody puts baby in a corner,” Clark said, shifting his voice so he sounded like Patrick Swayze. “Or Lois Lane.”

“Seriously, Smallville!” Lois would smack him if she could. “That’s not funny.”

“Made you smile,” Clark arched an eyebrow at her. She hadn’t even realized what she was doing. She dropped her smile. “I missed that,” Clark said seriously. “I haven’t seen you smile in a while.”

There was not much to smile about. If she weren’t human . . . there could be a needy three month old at home. Clark would’ve bought a house and painted a nursery. Mama K. would have sewn a Superman onesie for her grandson. She turned her back on him so he wouldn’t see her cry. What was wrong with her? She never wanted children before. She was happy to be childless before Clark.

“Talk to me, Lois,” Clark implored. “We’re going to be here for a long time. You might as well tell me what I did wrong.”
Lois sighed heavily. “You’ve done nothing wrong. You’re perfect,” Lois said. “It’s not you . . .”

“It’s me,” Clark finished, having heard this countless times. “I can help . . .”

“You can’t fix us, Clark,” Lois rolled over on the cot to face him. Clark curled in the corner, face white as a sheet. “Smallville?”

Lois jumped off the cot and ran to the edge of the platform. Clark sat with his legs pulled to his chest, hugging his knees.His breathing was labored, eyes glued on her face. There was no kryptonite, but he was sweating buckets. “It’s okay, honey,” Lois soothed. “There’s no kryptonite,” Lois’voice hitched at the end, as she recalled the kryptonite cage Superman was sealed in all those years back. He was no doubt reliving the last time he was caged. “I wish I could touch you,” Lois lamented. Even for just a second.

“You can touch me with your words,” Clark said tightly.

Her heart ached for him, leaving her in physical pain. Without thinking her hand rested on her belly, to remind herself why pulling Clark into her lap was a bad idea. As much as she wanted to embrace him she couldn’t. But it was killing her seeing him so uncomfortable. All she could do was wrap him in a blanket weaved with empty words. But it was better than leaving him to suffer in silence.

“Ever since I met you,” Lois started tentatively. “No, ever since I took time to listen –really see you,” Lois wiped at her damp eyes. “Something about you always made sense to me,” she said. “Even when a huge part of you didn’t make sense,” Lois smiled wistfully, recalling the time she jumped into Niagra Falls to prove Clark was Superman. “There was a part deep down that made sense,” Lois croaked. “That’s the part I’d always hold onto.”

She didn’t know it then, but she loved Clark Kent from the moment he spilled champagne on his baggy suit. Possibly even longer. She was too scared to admit her feelings then. Not much had changed and everything had. She was scared still, but it was a different kind of fear, afraid of disappointing Clark – afraid of coming face to face with the agony she saw in Superman after his battle with the Black Mercy. Only this time it was so much worse. Van had been as real as her love for him. He was buried alongside her mother.

Hadn’t she already hurt Clark enough?

“Lois,” Clark breathed barely over a whisper. She saw the war raging within him. He longed to question her, ridicule her for her decision to break up the hottest reporting team in town. She didn’t have the strength to argue anymore.

“You gave me a reason to keep on living after Nightfall,” Clark said. Lois winced, that word sending shards of ice down her spine. She had come so close to losing him. Still could. The kryptonite was likely in the next room.

“You believed in me even when I stopped believing in myself,” Clark said. “I still believe in us. We’re stronger together,” he said. “I’m here for you.”

When you’re ready to talk, I’m here for you . . . was left unspoken between them. She would never be ready to face that music. Lois pretended to sleep, and ignored Clark.
TBC

I got All Shook Up. A bit cracky?
Sorry in advance.

**


Cat stood at the coffee counter and poured herself a cup of the steaming dark liquid. She added a generous dollop of cream and a spoonful of sugar and stirred vigorously. Her gaze drifted across the newsroom to Clark and Lois, sitting closely behind Lois’ desk, their heads almost touching as they shared a donut. Clark was clearly hanging onto every word she said.

What was it with those two, anyway?

No matter how hard she tried, Cat knew she would never have that type of connection with another person.

She took a long sip of her coffee and made a face when the bitterness hit her tongue. Coffee usually wasn’t her thing. Typically she stuck to water or protein shakes to keep her figure trim.

She slid a hand down her side, brushing the curve of her hip. Well, she shrugged to herself, no use worrying about her figure now. She cast a glance up at the tv screen that hung above the bullpen. It seemed the world was doomed. An asteroid the size of the city was hurtling toward Earth, and their only hope for survival was currently missing in action.

Cat stole another glance across the room at Lois and Clark.

Funny, Lois didn’t look nearly as devastated as Cat thought she would look, considering Superman was missing. Cat couldn’t help and cackle as she recalled yesterday’s news footage. Lois throwing herself at Superman and kissing him passionately right before he left for space.

That was Lois—always an attention seeker. Admittedly, it did seem to work for her. Lois had publicly kissed Superman a couple of times now, and he seemed just as receptive to her affections as she was to his.

Well, fine. Lois could have the alien. Why did that little vixen have to go after Clark, too? And what was it with men nowadays, anyway? Did they all now suddenly prefer women in boxy suits with no personalities?

Cat sighed and shook her head. She crossed the room and sat down at her desk, her eyes still magnetically drawn to Lois and Clark.

Clark was still watching Lois with those puppy-dog eyes as she tapped away on her keyboard, eyes on her screen, completely oblivious to his adoring gaze.

A wave of uncontrollable jealousy swept through Cat.

She’d kill for him to look at her like that. Just once.

Cat grabbed the folded fan on her desk, flicked it open, and waved it in front of her face, her thoughts drifting to the nights Clark Kent had spent in her bed.

He was a skilled and considerate lover, albeit a little shy. Always disappearing into the bathroom for a few moments, tugging at his tie before they were intimate. And those darn glasses—he refused to remove them even when they were in bed. Oddly, that had grown on Cat and she now found it endearing. Especially when they ended up askew by the time they were finished and he would rush to straighten them.

A part of her always had a soft spot for geeky looking men.

He wasn’t ready to make their relationship public, he would tell her. He would sneak out of her bed in the middle of the night, always with some lame excuse in the morning.

We need to keep things professional at work.

Cat knew all too well what that meant.

She took another long contemplative sip from her mug. Lois was standing now, slipping her bag over her shoulder and reaching for Clark. She hooked arms with him and led him through the bullpen rambling something about the press conference Perry had requested they attend.

Clark caught Cat’s eye as he and Lois rushed past. He slowed a little, offering her a confused half smile, a flicker of recognition in his eyes.

“See you soon, honey.” Cat gave him a tiny hopeful wave, her voice barely above a whisper.

Her face fell as Lois turned and took Clark’s arm again, rushing him toward the elevator and shooting Cat a look of disdain.

“Forget her, Clark,” Lois said sharply. “She’s still trying to mess with your brain. Pathetic!”

“But I think…?” Clark started.

“I’ll tell you everything you need to know, okay? Trust me. I’m your partner.”

The elevator doors closed behind them.

Feeling thoroughly defeated; Cat sank lower into her chair.

The end was near and by the looks of things, her secret lover would be spending his last hours with Lois Lane.

At that moment, Cat felt lonelier than ever.

*
Yeah, that took a weird turn. I thought it’d be funny if instead of Cat being a predator, she and Clark actually did have a thing going on he forgot about.
FDK can go below if you wish ❤️

Here's a little video I made in appreciation of Lois and Clark's elevator shenanigans in seasons 3 and 4.
The music is "Stricken" by No Doubt.

Lois & Clark - Elevator Shenanigans

Hey FoLCs,

since the Discord group gained us a few new FoLCs, most of which are more used to AO3 or Fanfiction.net, I thought it would be helpful to give a few hints.

Unfortunately, the boards don't offer the comfort of tags which you can filter for and find the story you like. But on the bright side, it offeres the comfort of willing FoLCs who can certainly give you recommendations for any type of fic you search. So don't be shy to ask! And don't be afraid of posting anything into the wrong folder. The worst that could happen might be one of the moderators moving your post to the right spot.

FoLCs here are a friendly, welcoming bunch, so don't worry.

So, where do you find what?

Lois and Clark Fanfic contains story threads and their FDK (Feedback/Commens) threads. You will find complete one-shots here or parts of longer stories as authors post them and here you can give your comments if you want to do so. Authors would very much appreciate it if you did, though. Stories posted here must have a rating of PG-13 or below, which would translate to General Audiences, Teen and Up Audiences and probably Mature as well since non-explicit descriptions of sexuality are okay as well. At the top of the page you'll find a link to the Fanfiction Index, which contains the complete lists of stories that were ever posted here, complete with links.

nFanfic Here's where you find the explicit stuff. You need to send a message stating that you're above 18 years old to one of the moderators to get access. At the top of the page you'll find the nfanfic Index, which contains a complete list of nfanfiction to explore.

Fanfic Challenge Got an idea for a story that you don't want to write yourself? Here's where you can drop it! Or do you need an idea for a story? Here's where you can look for plot bunnies.

Orginal Fiction - Here's the place to post, read or comment on Original Work.

Fanfic Related - Here's the place for anything Fanfic Related. Do you have a question regarding the fic you're currently writing? Have you read a fic before that you can't seem to find again? Do you need recommendations? Here's the place to ask. Like I said, we don't have AO3s fancy tagging, but we do have the Hive Mind of FoLCs. Some of us have been around almost since the boards were founded, most of us have memoriezed the Fanfic Archive Everyone here will be happy to give a recommendation and most likely there's someone around who remembers the name of a fic.

Next are the TOCs, each containing the links to One-shots and their respective Feedback Thread or all links of long stories with their multiple parts. Usually, they will be either marked as WIP (Work in Progress) or as complete.

For more detailed information, please check the FAQ

It was a thoroughly emotionally exhausted Lady Lo who entered her chambers in the Palace Royal after flying her ship back from the Qar Province. Somehow, no matter how many hours she put into the machines, nothing was quite as soothing as flying a zitidar. Sadly, it would take another ten moon cycles before the creatures, used mostly by nobility, population grew enough to risk flying them again.

A recorded message from her assistant, Lirya informed her that the critically injured Dar-Ur was aboard a medivac craft and would soon be installed in a Regeneration chamber in Kandor. She rubbed red-rimmed eyes, took a deep breath, and thought reflectively about Zor-El. He had been the decisive leader their people needed during an epoch of great chaos and anxiety. Rather than wasting time in endless debates and additional geological research, with his brother’s Jor-El’s assistance, they had pushed through decisions to create the great ships that would securely bring them to New Krypton.

Normally, as a whole, Kryptonians were an even-tempered people. They held their emotions in check, but were not heartless. Sadly, the thought of disrupting their comfortable existence perhaps caused more consternation among some than the end of their world. Because of Zor-El’s resolve, Polara and millions of others were alive and safe.
She thought bitterly, if only he had not fallen victim to this crippling disease. All of this – Nor’s rebellion, his numerous attacks on the provinces and the ideological battle between out-moded traditions and living and thriving on this new planet – might not have taken place.

The only thing she did not regret was reuniting with her grandson.

Unfortunately, Zor-El’s death had brought other, more disturbing memories and images cascading down upon Lady Polara Lo. For the first time, the weight of age began to feel evident in every muscle and sinew. As she removed her flight suit and prepared for sleep, those images, at first shadowy, rose sharply into focus with each passing moment…

Old Krypton

It was during the last weeks of Krypton’s existence that ominous signs throughout the planet appeared, heralding its massive destruction. The atmosphere felt hot and dry, and the pungent smell of sulfur hung thickly in the air. Many observed dark, threatening clouds approaching from the west. It was thought the clouds were part of one of the normal thunderstorms, which usually appeared late in the harvest season.

As the clouds drifted overhead, heaped up in picturesque disorder, a steady rain of frightening, fine light-colored ash, and not familiar, life-giving water, began to fall, plunging much of the city of Kandor into darkness that lasted all day. The ash clung to buildings, swept over roads, covered farm collectives, and crept into machinery, blanketing the world in a silencing, all-encompassing dust.

Lord Zor-El and most of the members of the Convoca were certain this was the first indications of the planet’s death. But for many of both the nobility and common class, the very concept of their home coming to a fiery end was a difficult concept to grasp. Nevertheless, in that moment of endless ash and smoke, Zor-El knew that the truth must be faced. With a heavy heart, the First Lord called a final meeting of the Convoca on Krypton.

Zor-El said, “My lords, the ash rain continues to pour over the ground. It is time for those chosen to evacuate to our new planetary home to do so.”

A rumble of discussion filled the immense hall. Words like ‘Truly’ and ‘We need more time’ punctured through the air. Lady Polara Lo stood by Zor-El’s side, frustrated by the lack of decorum in the hall. She wanted to clash the sword of Lo on the great ebony table but decided against such an aggressive move. The Lords and Elders had to leave the ancient council chamber, gather those of their families who were chosen to survive, and depart on the great ships. Delay would only get them killed.

Surreptitiously, she had sent several messages to Lara and Jor-El to go immediately to the Throneship, the Aeryn-Ka. But they had never responded. She knew they were involved with helping their servants evacuate, but to imagine that both of them would ignore her repeated calls, each growing more urgent than the last was unreasonable. Something was desperately wrong.

Abruptly Zor-El’s voice cut through the din. “Discussion is at an end! Men! Brothers! We must evacuate now. This council will reconvene via omni-beam from the Throneship.”
Nor’s voice rose up through the din. “This could be another set of tremors. They have been taking place for several moon rounds. It’s no reason for us to abandon everything we hold dear!”

Zor-El made a slashing motion with his hands. “If you and the rest of House Il wish to remain, do so at your own peril. Still, it is doubtful that your sire feels that way. Where is Zay-Il? All members of the Convoca were supposed to be here.”

“Making certain our family’s place is secure.” With those words, Nor-Il squared his shoulders with an insolent bow, turned his back on Zor-El and departed the chamber.

Something about his tone and words chilled Polara. She touched the First Lord’s sleeve and said, “I have contacted all the members of my household who are slated to evacuate. Neither Jor-El nor Lara have responded to my calls. I am taking my zitidar and going to Abondar.” She did not say that she had a terrible feeling as to exactly where the paternal head of the House of Il had gone. If that were truth, Jor-El, Lara and her grandson were in danger.

“Be quick, my lady.” Zor-El said grimly.

With a nod, Polara joined the other council members departing the building.

***

Lady Polara-Lo, alighted from her winged steed, the zitidar, Nimitz. The creature’s body was well over ten meters in length with extensive, powerful wings made of skin, muscle, and leathery membrane. A triangular head and large intelligent eyes that sparkled like gems. Despite its fearsome appearance, zitidars were peaceful, gentle reptiles used by the nobility for transport around the planet. Polara knew that taking Nimitz was wrong, the loyal beast should have been aboard the Aeryn-Ka with the rest of its family. In this time of aerial transports filling the skies, it was kinder to lend her personal shuttle craft to the evacuation effort.

As her feet hit the ground, Nimitz snorted, expelling the ash that filled it’s nostrils. Polara moved up beside her head and stroked her neck speaking comforting words. Nimitz, although gentle hesitate in carrying Lady Polara into combat. The rudimentary bond that Polara had with Nimitz allowed the zitidar to know that Polara was headed into danger and her loyalty to Lady Polara was driving her to distraction at being left behind. She snorted again, and Polara gave the hand signal command, the equivalent of ‘stay’, and watched as Nimitz settled on her haunches. Polara could sense the frustration of Nimitz, but she was satisfied in the knowledge that Nimitz would obey her command. With a final pat, she turned and struck off on the trail of Zay-Il.

A short distance away, Polara could see Zay-Il’s steed and swore under her breath, hating that her suspicions were correct. It was similarly settled on its haunches. She called out one final command to Nimitz that she wasn’t to bother the other creature, before taking up the trail.

As she started following the trail through the cleft that led to the ancient caverns. That way lead to Abondar, she thought to herself. He is here before me so that he will have the advantage of position and time to seek concealment for an ambush. I must be very cautious.

As Polara moved through the cleft, she checked her equipment. Her breastplate and back plates were firmly buckled in place. Likewise were the greaves and shin pieces. Upper arm guards attached to the shoulder pieces, while her forearm guards attached below. The gloves she wore were mailed with overlapping plates on the outer surface. The inner surface was made of supple leather with a light coating of tacky resin to assure a firm grip on her weapons. On her head, she wore a leather skull cap, and over that was a light chain mail hood under the helm of a lightweight, but strong alloy. While some helms had additional face guards, Lady Polara favored a helm without that extra piece, feeling that it could shift and obstruct her vision at an inopportune time. The alloy from which her armor was constructed was a dark, almost black color. From a distance, one dressed in this armor looked like nothing so much as a black four-legged insectoid.

She fingered her weapons hilts. Her sword was in its scabbard slung across her back. Her long dagger, almost a short sword in its own right was in her belt on the right side, at the ready for a left-handed draw. Her short dagger, fashioned more a stiletto, sat on her left hip.

Feeling confident that her weapons were ready, she proceeded with cautious confidence up the path.

As Lady Polara entered the caverns, she noted how it’s environment and formation had drastically altered. Normally, the air would have a hint of humidity, yet now whatever moisture was there had been sucked away by the ashfall currently covering the planet. She knew this place, as did many of the nobility, it was the back passage to the House of El’s Abondar estate. Some of the features were stalactites, stalagmites, towering passageways, and heaps of fallen rock. One passageway had been cleared and used to enter into the estate. Once the passage had been cleared the atmosphere was no longer moody and dark, but still conveyed normal sounds, such as wind, echoes, mineral water dripping, and tiny animals scurrying over the stone floor.

Recent jaggered fissures had crisscrossed through that stone, a byproduct of Krypton’s planetary crust heaving against itself, heralding the death of a world.
Her throat felt tight and drawn as she moved forward and every sense was on alert, It was time to put aside any thoughts of family or the disaster currently tearing through their planet. On instinct, she swiftly, drew her sword with her right hand.

This sword had been in the family Lo for centuries. Its blade had been forged from a single piece of meteorite that had fallen from the sky, landing fatefully on the traditional grounds of the holdings of the family Lo.

The Lo Matriarch at that time, Lady Kahlyn, had commissioned the master swordsmith, Trejorn-Un to produce the blade. The process of creating this blade had taken months to complete. The meteorite’s metal had been heated and pounded out and then folded and pounded out again, time after time. When this process had been done twenty times, the forging of the blade had finally begun, and the elegant blade was shaped.

It had a gentle curve from the tang to tip. The curve was not as drastic as that of a saber used by mounted troops, but it was not straight like a rapier. It was long, over an arm span, but perfectly balanced.

The sword had a single edge, contrary to most of the swords of similar size forged at that time and that edge was as sharp as a razor. The back side was thick, thicker than the center of the blade of a broadsword commonly in use. The tip was unusual also, it didn’t simply taper to a point like a rapier. Over the metal of the tang which became the haft were two carved lengths of ironwood held in place by a mass of leather thongs plaited in a complex weave. The slightly scaly texture aided in maintaining her grip on the hilt. The hilt was long enough to use two hands, however, unlike a broadsword, which needed two hands to swing, because of its weight, this sword was much lighter and could be used one-handed or two-handed as the situation demanded. The guard was in the shape of the symbol of House Lo.

Lady Polara continued moving into the caverns cautiously, her highly trained senses aware that combat with Zay-Il could commence at any moment. Since were many outcrops in the rock affording places of concealment, she charted a course which would not take her too close to any place that could be an ambush. She was nearing the center of the caverns. As she moved deeper, the gloom of being underground was slowly relieved by a natural phosphorescence in the rocks, which imbued all surfaces with an eerie green tint to except for her armor, which seemed to simply absorb and not reflect any of the light. Her sword, however, glowed with that same green radiance, reflecting the color from every surface. The sword looked like a thing alive as it wove a pattern before Lady Lo.

As she was cautiously advancing she heard the noise of a dislodged stone, off to her left. She spun in that direction, and brought her sword up, overhead with the back of her blade resting in the palm of her left hand. Her blade was held at an angle, her right arm stiffly extended, and her left arm bent. Her blade was twisted slightly so that the blow wasn’t taken directly on the cutting edge, but behind it almost on its stalwart side. There was no fear of her blade snapping under the impact because of the quality of its metal and design. Within only a second of completing her move, a blade struck hers and skittered down the length harmlessly. As Polara had suspected at the last second, the a stone had been thrown as a decoy to distract her from the true attack.

The force of Zay-Il’s blow caused her to stumble slightly because she had expected resistance from her blade sinking into the body of her adversary. When it didn’t, she almost fell forward. She recovered quickly and brought her blade up in a guard position protecting her own neck. With no time to spare, Lady Polara quickly shifted from defense, and with a two-handed grip, swung at Zay-Il. The force of her blow almost knocked the blade from Zay-Il’s hand. But his blade was in turn angled in a defensive hold, causing Polara’s blade to skitter down Zay-Il’s, only impacting the basket hilt.

Polara jumped back, out of Zay-Il’s range, in case he swung again, but instead he assumed a defensive posture, allowing his adversary to recover.

Zay-Il barked, “You had the advantage. Why didn’t you finish me? I would have finished you.”

Polara responded, “That is not the way of House Lo. We win by fair fight, not by ambush and trickery. Our planet is dying. Our respective households need us in the uncertain days ahead. So rather than trying to kill each other let us call a momentary truce. Why are you here?” So saying, Lady Polara brought her sword up using a single right hand grip before her face in a salute and then swept her blade around and out to the side, her arm at a down angle with the blade extending straight out from her hand continuing the straight line.
“I could say the same to you! Go back. Board the Throneship, and depart. My way is clear.”

“The clearness of a madman!” Polara snarled.

Zay-Il brought his sword up before her face in a similar salute, honoring the truce, instead of going out and down he brought his sword up as in a high parry with the mid-point of his blade directly above his head.

With these opening stances, the two opponents warily circled. Lady Polara swept her blade across her body and then spun the blade around, spinning it in her hand until her grip was reversed and the blade hung down from her hand.

As Polara was making this move, Zay-Il, thinking that he would have an opening, swept his weapon around in a right side sweeping horizontal cut in an attempt to gut his opponent.
Seeing Zay-Il’s movement, Polara blocked her blade crossing her body to cover her left side. Zay-Il’s blade impacted Polara’s blade near the mid-point and stopped. Polara shifted her stance, taking a half step back on her left foot squaring her off directly against Zay-Il’s blade, which was bearing down against Polara’s with all of Zay-Il’s considerable brute strength as he tried to force her to her knees.

Polara’s grip on the hilt of her blade did not falter in the slightest. Her blade’s strength was as solid as the rocks around them and just as unmoving.
In a lightning fast move, he pulled back his blade and whirled around for a backhand cut with the reverse of his blade. He was attempting to hit Polara’s right side, hoping she’d be taken off guard after he’d just attacked her left.

Sensing what Zay-Il was doing as soon as the pressure lightened from her blade, Polara swept her blade across her body to the right in a mirror of her previous defensive position, taking the blow easily.

Zay-Il took a step back to disengage, then brought his blade up into the en garde position.

Lady Polara obliged him by spinning her sword around so that she was using a forward grip rather than the reverse, and brought her blade up to touch Zay-Il’s.

Then began a barrage of furious blows, all initiated by Zay-Il – high right, low right, high right again, high left, high right, low right – all searching for an opening in Polara’s defense.
Each blow was met by Polara’s blade as she parried, intentionally giving ground as she put space between herself and her attacker. She used a single-handed grip to match Zay-Il’s, which gave her the speed to counter her opponent’s attempts.

After the fourth pass, Polara saw the pattern that Zay-Il was falling into and knew that there would be a brief opening shortly. She waited patiently for the opening to appear. After a low right sweeping cut, as Zay-Il was shifting his weight for an overhead cut, Polara struck with the speed of a viper. She found a spot on Zay-Il’s forearm that was unprotected by armor, in fact it was the underside, and her slashing cut not only drew blood, but it also cut the strap that held that part of his armor in place. Zay-Il’s forearm guard began to flapping around with each movement, becoming something of a hindrance.

It was the turning point of the duel. With that blow, Lady Polara, who had been acting on the defense to this point, now took the offensive. She started to rain down blows on her opponent with the rapidity of raindrops falling in a thunderstorm and it was Zay-Il’s turn to give ground. Polara’s blade being the heaver had more effect on Zay-Il’s blade. Where Polara’s would remain rock steady, Zay-Il’s gave way.

Zay-Il was hard pressed to ward off all of her blows and he failed on a few of his attempts, however his armor proved his salvation in those instances. Before the two stepped back, separating for only a moment to catch a breath, there were several scrapes on Zay-Il’s body armor attesting to the number of times Polara had scored hits. Polara’s armor gleamed blackly in the green phosphorescence, unblemished.

On the next pass, Polara allowed Zay-Il to take the offensive again. Unfortunately, this time when she gave ground, her right foot came down on an uneven spot on the packed dirt of the cavern floor. For a second, she lost her balance! Even though she brought her sword up to guard, she wasn’t fast enough to completely prevent Zay-Il’s overhand strike. She felt a burning sensation on her forehead and suddenly she lost sight in one eye. Her blade hadn’t been high enough to prevent the tip of Zay-Il’s blade from scratching its way down her forehead, laying it open to the bone and slicing her left eye. The hot blood poured from the wounds and Polara knew within seconds she would begin to feel light-headed and pass out. It was time to end this battle.

Continuing the upward movement of her blade, she swept Zay-Il’s blade up and away as she spun around. As she completed the movement which would bring her back to Zay-Il, her blade spun in her hand again until she had a reverse grip. Grabbing the hilt in a two-handed grip, she thrust straight back under her right arm close to her side.
Polara’s blade, made as it was of the superhard meteorite metal, forged by the premiere swordsmith of Krypton, and propelled by the power of both of Polara’s arms, amazingly, it struck and slid off Zay-Il’s armor.

Polara turned swiftly, switched the sword to her right hand and was ready to face her opponent again. She swore to herself that the House of Il would not win this battle! As they both raised their lethal swords to strike again, a massive vibration tremored under their feet. The sickly phosphorescent glow of the surrounding rocks wove about them with a dizzying effect. Polara, already feeling the effects of her wounds, had trouble maintaining her equilibrium.

“The final eruption of Krypton has begun!” Zay-Il shouted.

“Quickly, let us forget this fight and leave here! Our steeds can get us to the spaceport. By now, our families must be on their assigned ships.” Polara said this while wiping the left eye which was covered in blood.

The big man looked down on her and said with a strange calmness. “My path is …set. I will not go to New Krypton. I leave the task of building a new world to my son and his offspring. But first, you and Jor-El’s family will die.”

Another frightening rumble of sound and vibration filled the air around them. Polara keenly felt the wildly erratic shifting of Krypton’s Teutonic plates as the soil and rock shuddered with greater violence with each passing second. Zay-Il lost his footing and fell. Just as quickly as the tremors began they ended. All was quiet.

“Zay-Il …”

Before Polara could finish speaking she heard the sound of powerful leathery wings stirring through the air and shower of rocks and pebbles moving as a scraping of sharp claws ran over the hard packed surface of the ground.

Nimitz entered the cavern and not far behind was Zay-Il’s own steed. Polara felt a profound sense of relief seeing the animal. The beasts halted and with frantic movements of their heads indicated to their owners, time was of the essence. In answer to the steed’s summons, Polara turned her back on Zay-Il, which proved to be a near fatal mistake. Rather than go to his own zitidar, with sword at the ready he ran toward Polara and stabbed her viciously in the back. The severe burning pain of the attack sent a fire throughout her nervous system and then all went black.

New Krypton

Now, safely in her bed chamber in the Grand Palace, moments from sleep, her mind rolled back from the events of that searing day; the memory of Zay-Il’s sword strike still had the power to make her back burn as phantom agonies from long ago haunted her very being.

She had awoken in the sickbay aboard the Aeryn-Ka, with one side of her head covered in bandages. The sword wound in her back had been treated and now she lay in a zero gravity bed to accelerate the healing process. Nimitz had somehow managed to stop Zay-Il from killing her and with no doubt had some difficultly to take her to the Throneship. A grim faced Zor-El had informed her of the terrible news; Lara, Jor-El and their infant son were not aboard. It was expected that they had perished in the cataclysm.

Tears were shed and her heart shattered amidst such a profound loss, Polara had wanted to coil away like some ocean shell creature, but as always, the needs of her people, the weight of duty, forced her to emerge from the sick bed to be seen by not only inhabitants of the Throneship but also those on the other great ships.

She was Lady Polara first. The maternal head of the House of Lo and must lead her family and those who depended on them through this celestial voyage to their new home. Her role as grieving mother and grandmother had to play second. She was not the only one to lose loved ones.

Days later the transport which was to bring Lara and her family to the Aeryn-Ka caught up with the travelers, at first there was much joy, only to discover it had arrived empty. Seated in pilot’s chair was a data crystal which informed them Lara and Jor-El were prevented from leaving their residence. Nonetheless, their infant son had been placed in a tiny vessel and sent to a planet called Terra. Jor-El had imbedded the star coordinates of the planet within the data crystal. He hoped that someday, either Zor-El or Polara would be able to find Kal-El and bring him to their new home.

Polara had long wanted to travel to this planet and find her grandson. Yes, she had other relatives, but Kal-El was her only direct descendant. Sadly, so many other concerns had pushed that determination aside. Settling the colonists in their new home was a big enough project in itself. All resources were to be used to shelter, clothe and feed more than ten million people, not track down the nephew of the First Lord.

Five moon rounds had passed before the business of building a new world allowed Lady Polara to send a ship to Terra. The vessel was about to be launched when one of the crew developed a suspicious cough and severe headache. Little did the inhabitants realize these were the first signs of the deadly atmospheric sickness.

It was not until many moon rounds later that attention could be turned to her quest to bring Kal-El home. 

I'm slowly trying to combine L&C and The animated DC universe to create a new universe. This is an addition to the episode For the Man Who Has Everything with More Clois.

“What the hell is this Olsen?”

Bimbos wearing slutty Superman onesies dance across the makeshift stage. This is what I get for allowing a fifteen-year-old to help me plan a party. Superman will be humiliated! He’d never speak to me again. “I hired Blink-182 not whores!”

“They canceled,” Jimmy says. “The Steel Sirens was the next best thing!”

“Why did no one tell me?” I had Andrina (AKA Lana Lang) as a backup, but I would rather not invite Clark’s ex-girlfriend. It could get awkward if Clark came to Superman’s birthday party and his ex was there. Where the hell is that lunkhead anyway? Clark was supposed to bring the cake hours ago!

“I don’t see the problem,” Jimmy remarks. “The crowd seems to like them.”

The crowd consists of Lombard, Rolph, and a few of their sleazy friends. Their catcalls echo over the roar of the music. Otherwise, the seats are relatively empty. The women fan themselves under shaded trees, trying to escape the brutal July heat.

“You’re just as bad as them!” I scream. “This isn’t a stripper club! Superman would be scarred for life if he saw the mockery we’re making of his heritage!”

This is supposed to be a family-friendly event! The steel sluts scared off most of the families. All that remains is the Daily Planet crew, bored Gothamites, and a few Super-fans hoping to get Superman’s autograph.

This birthday party was supposed to be perfect. Superman has never celebrated his birthday before. Nothing is going according to plan. Everything that could go wrong has gone wrong.

First, incompetent Bruce Wayne double-booked the Daily Planet roof for a live interview with Jezebel Jet. I had to move the party to Centennial Park. Truly, Bruce Wayne is the most incompetent owner of the Daily Planet we ever had.

Clark promised to make a honey chamomile cake and SURPRISE! Never showed up. I had to drive all the way to Hamilton County to find a bakery that made that cake. It had to be a tea cake! Superman’s favorite cake couldn’t be something normal like chocolate or red velvet! It was as if he were deliberately making this birthday party impossible!

“He better show up soon,” Jimmy says. “I’m running out of ice.”

Jimmy had the brilliant idea to make a Superman sculpture out of ice cream. You know what they say, it’s the thought that counts. To be fair, we didn’t plan on being outside.

“He’ll be here,” I say. “He won’t miss his own birthday party,” I confirmed the time with him yesterday. He has a photographic memory, he won’t forget. Though, I told Clark to tell Superman about the party. It’s possible Clark forgot to tell Superman and I haven’t updated Clark on the location change.

Originally there was to be a video with civilians sharing their appreciation for Superman on the rooftop of the Daily Planet. After the video, some orphans were to present a handmade poster to Superman. Then we would move the party indoors for refreshments while Blink-182 provided entertainment. It was one of Clark’s favorite bands in high school, so I figured it was a safe bet Superman liked them too.

It would help if the man of the hour showed up. It’s not like Superman to miss events. I scroll through the newsfeed, hoping to see him. There’s a nasty flood in China and a landslide in the Congo, but no sign of him. Now I’m worried. I dial Clark’s number. He’s his best friend, if anyone knows where Kal is, it’ll be him. It goes straight to voice mail.
Next, I try the Superman Foundation, but the line is busy.

That leaves me no choice but to call his other incompetent friend. Bruce answers after the fourth ring. “Well, where is Kal?” In the background, I hear a humming noise that sounds suspiciously like the blades of a helicopter.

“I’m not his keeper,” Bruce says. “Ask Clark.”

“Clark is not answering his phone.”

“Hazos! Poso kairo tha kratisei tin alitheia?” A woman says.

My Greek is rusty, but I know one word. Hazos. I’ve heard Wonder Woman call Superman an idiot to his face enough times to recognize Diana’s voice. “Are you with Wonder Woman?”

“Hi, Lois!” The Amazonian responds gaily. “You’re on speaker.”

“What are you doing with Bruce Wayne?”

“We’re on a date.”

“We are?” Diana asks. “I mean we are!”

I shake my head. Typical. Is there no woman safe from that playboy? He was supposed to be interviewing Jezebel Jet! “Have you seen Superman lately?” I keep the annoyance out of my voice. I expected better from Wonder Woman. Bruce Wayne is beneath her.

“He left the Fortress not too long ago,” Diana supplies. “He probably went to Japan to get some of that spicy noodles he likes,” she guessed. “Fighting Mongul always works up an appetite.”

“Mongul?” I screech, fear ensnaring my senses. Mongul has been a thorn in Superman’s side ever since he kidnapped me and tried to blackmail Superman into stealing an artifact. “Is he okay?”

“Physically, yes,” Diana says. “Mentally to be determined.”

“You see the Man of Steel, and you tell him he’s missing a super birthday party!” I hang up. This is the last time I throw him a birthday party!

He couldn’t bother to pick up a phone and tell me he couldn’t make it! How hard is it to say, ‘Lois, I’m sorry, Mogul ruined my birthday.’ I have to hear secondhand about Mongul from his fucking, gorgeous girlfriend who is two-timing him with the Prince of Gotham.

I’m so livid I could throw him into a volcano. A month of preparation down the drain! I spent half my savings on this party! All so Superman won’t feel alone on his birthday. I wanted to show him how important he was to me. Clearly, we’re not as close as I originally thought.

“Superman is not coming,” I tell Jimmy.

“But he promised to play paintball with me!” Jimmy whined. “I got us matching vests.” The paintball obstacle course in the park was Jimmy’s idea. I hear the other kids laughing gaily in the distance. Their colorful capes and tights flash through the thick trees.

“You can play with Clark when he returns,” I suggest.

“Mr. Kent is boring,” Jimmy makes a face. “And what about Superman’s birthday gifts?”

“I’ll just take them. Hopefully I’ll run into him.”

I load the heartfelt poster, a bunch of framed fan art, and books in the back of the jeep. It’s funny one fan got him a signed copy of ‘Tales of the Weird and Unexplained.’ Clark has that book. Inside the cover is a sweet note:

‘Thank you for keeping me safe and being a beacon of hope. I hope you read this book and think of me on long winter nights. I want you to know you’re not alone. I’m here for you, always and forever.
’ Happy Birthday!
Love,
Penny Barnes.

“Get a life,” I shove the book in the very bottom of the box.

The post office at the Daily Planet is overflowing with love letters from Penny. She doesn’t know when to quit. I know him better than any girl! I feel stupid for not thinking of buying that book. It’s so much more personal than interviews from fans. I wrestled with what to get him for months. And this super-fan who never met Superman got him the perfect gift!

On the drive home, I replay the conversation with Bruce and Diana in my head. Those are two I never imagined hooking up. Bruce is an entitled, dimwitted, playboy with too much money and time on his hands. Diana is an immortal warrior princess who fights for truth and justice and empowers humans to be better versions of themselves. On the surface, she has nothing in common with a spoiled rich kid. She’s old enough to be his great, great, great, great, triple great-grandmother. She belongs with someone with a high intellect and passion for justice. Someone like Batman . . . or dare I say it, Kal-El.

Kal-El. What am I going to do with him? I can’t stay mad at him when I know he has a perfectly reasonable excuse for missing his birthday party. Today it was Mongul, last week it was Toy Man. There’s always something.

But what excuse does he have for not telling me about Mongul? I would understand. There are a thousand phone booths in the Metropolis. He could have picked any of them to phone me at! The only explanation is that I’m an afterthought. A blip in his busy day. No more important than a cat stuck in the tree.

I lug the box of presents upstairs, shifting it in my arms to unlock the apartment door. A whiff of fresh chocolate cake hits me and for a second think I accidentally stumbled into Clark’s apartment.

But no. There’s my Whitesnake pillowcase on the sofa. I set the box of presents on the coffee table and notice the TV is on. A masked man sword fights with a Sirius Black look-alike.

‘You’re using Bonneti’s defense against me.’

The man in black casually deflects his blows. ‘I thought it fitting considering the rocky terrain.’

I know this movie! It’s on the tip of my tongue. Clark forced me to watch it in college. Some medieval chick flick with a dumb blonde.

“Clark?” I head into the kitchen and gasp. Superman stands at the counter smoothing whipped cream on a huge chocolate cake. A pot of chocolate ganache sits on the stove, smelling heavenly. I’m immediately self-conscious about my ice cream-stained dress.

“Superman?” I frown at his bare feet. The iconic red boots are discarded under the kitchen table. His crimson cape lays in a wad on one of the counter stools. Without the cape, he looks like a lost diver. He must be drunk, but then I recall alcohol doesn’t affect him. His pupils are blown wide and red as if he hasn’t slept in days. Tear stains glisten on his sharp cheekbones like trails of stardust. Has he been crying? Do I ask what’s wrong, mention the tears? Pretend I don’t notice. What is the protocol for this?

If he were Clark I would know exactly what to do. I’d punch him and tease him till his smile returned. We’ll go to Ace o’ Clubs and share our problems over burgers and fries. Then finish off the evening with a comfort movie and ice cream. I can’t imagine taking Superman to a restaurant. Does he even eat?

Of course, he does! He’s baking! Superman is baking in my kitchen! I’ve seen Clark bake the same cake enough times to know it’s a tuxedo cake. Funnily enough, that’s one of Clark’s coping mechanisms. When he’s stressed or depressed he bakes enough sweets to feed an army. I check the oven, smiling when I see two rows of chocolate chip cookies. A tray of half-eaten brownies is on the counter. I lick my lips. If Superman’s cooking is anything like Clark’s, I’m in for a real treat.

“Is this destress cooking or are you baking for The Salvation Army?”

“Bit of both,” he responds distractedly, focusing intently on frosting the cake. “Anything I don’t eat I give to the homeless.”

“You never cease to surprise me,” I climb onto the high stool and munch on a brownie. Juicy and a little crunchy on the outside, just like Clark’s brownies. “It’s your birthday and you’d rather be baking for strangers than celebrating.” I lick melted chocolate off my fingers.

“It’s not really my birthday,” he sighs, not meeting my eyes.

“Do my ears deceive me or did the Man of Steel lie to me?” I tease. Superman flinches, sufficiently chagrined. “You did say your birthday was July 18th, did you not?”

“According to the AI of my father, yes, that’s correct,” he admits, drizzling chocolate ganache on top of the cake and then setting it on the stove I never use.

“So it is your birthday today,” I’m confused, either it is his birthday or isn’t.

“I suppose it is.”

“You suppose? Don’t you know?”

“Yes!” he snaps, breaking the Pyrex bowl.

Gooey chocolate splutters over his suit. His eyes comically bulge out, his expression contorting into one of embarrassment I know well. I stifle a laugh. He’s as clumsy as Clark.
A blur of white nearly knocks me off the stool. Suddenly a massive white wolf pounces on top of Superman, and she licks the chocolate off the ‘S.’

“Z’ah Eira!” Superman grabs her by the scruff of the neck. Eira wriggles her butt excitedly. Superman’s arms flail about, trying to brace against the counter. He whacks the tray of brownies and they skid to the floor. “No not the brownies!” He soars to catch them but Eira beats him, chugging down the gooey brownies in the blink of an eye. “Dol fun! Kehb! NOW!”

He screams some more commands in Kryptonese and Eira finally settles beneath the sink, unhappily. “Ru’ten!” he holds up a firm hand. “No more chocolate for you!” Eira growls and turns her back on him, plopping on the rug in a huff.

It’s super hot hearing him speak Kryptonese. I’m envious of the dog. I want to lick the chocolate off his super kissable mouth.

“I’m sorry, Ms. Lane,” he speeds around my kitchen, righting everything. I’m struck dumb. Superman is cooking in my kitchen and breaking items. Take away the superspeed and skin-tight suit and it could be Clark.

I shake my head. No. Dr. Friskin and I talked about this in our last session. I’m trying to make Superman and Clark one person in a lame attempt to create my dream guy. It’s unfair to Clark to compare him to a Kryptonian and it’s unfair to Superman for me to put him on a pedestal. So he had a clumsy moment? Big deal.

“Sorry,” Superman gathers the broken glass and tosses it in the trash bin under the sink. He moves with practiced ease around my kitchen like he’s been here a million times. Clark has been here a million times. He’s cooked a fair amount of meals in this dingy kitchen.

But Superman also has X-ray vision. His apparent familiarity is because of his super senses.

“Eira is not usually this crazy,” he shoots the dog a look of reproach. “Except when chocolate is involved,” he salvages the brownies from the floor. “I’ve trained her to lick food off my apron... . so she was just waiting for me to screw up. I promise you, otherwise, she’s well-behaved. You know how it is? Chocolate can be addictive. And we never had that on Krypton. Krypton didn’t even have coffee or hamburgers.”

His rambling is beyond adorable. I want to hug and kiss him till his invulnerable lips are chapped. Chocolate flecks tangle in his black curls, making him even more irresistible. The El Crest is stained brown, but he’s never looked sexier. If I squint I can imagine he’s Clark wearing his dorky ‘Kiss the Cook’ apron. Snap out of it Lane!

“I’m sorry for the intrusion,” he says. “I can leave now.” Eira sits up, pointy ears twitching eagerly.

“No!” I jump off the stool and grab his biceps. “I mean of course you can leave if you want to,” I loosen my grip. “I’m not going to hold you against your will. If there’s an emergency that needs you . . .”

“There always is an emergency,” he says grimly. “I should patrol the city and let you recuperate from the party.”

So he hadn’t forgotten. He chose not to attend his birthday party. I would have been downright murderous a few minutes ago. But, I sense he’s slowly drowning, grasping for a reason to stay afloat.

Something brought the Man of Steel to tears and the first place he thought to come was my apartment. I should be giddy with glee. Superman could have gone to any of the Leaguers for support. Instead, he chose me; I’m too worried about him to be excited about that win.

“Or you could stay?” I offer. “It is your birthday after all . . .”

“So they keep telling me.”

“Alright, spit it out, El,” I fold my arms on the counter. “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing is wrong,” he continues to clean. “I wanted to do something nice for you after missing the party. ” Is he trying to make me fat? There’s enough dessert here for three bridal showers.

“You’ve been here for the last two hours baking,” I observe. “Don’t bother denying it. I’ve seen Clark bake a tuxedo cake enough times to know the drill.”

He sighs heavily and sits on the stool beside me. “I bake when I’m upset.”

Add that to the long list of things Superman and Clark have in common. Now is not the time to analyze the Clark/Superman shitshow.

“Talk to me,” I stroke his arm. “You’ve got to trust someone.” Eira crawls to his side and rests her head on his knee.

My touch is Kal’s undoing. His shoulders slump and he trembles with grief. Tears pool in the corner of his eyes. “I didn’t want you to see me like this.”

If that were true he won’t be here. I close my hand over his. His pulse is racing. If he were Clark I would already be hugging him. Screw this.
I scooch closer and coax his head to my shoulder. I stroke his head as he quietly sobs. I hold Kal El just like I once held Clark when Lori dumped him and he thought he was destined to die alone.

“We . . . I uh had a son,” he sniffs. I stiffen, sure I misheard him. “A version of us,” he says in a hoarse whisper. He’s not making any sense. I was expecting news of Mongul killing a teammate.

“Felt so real, Lois. I could taste the pancakes,” he swallows audibly. “I tripped on Krypto’s pee and was livid . . . Van was supposed to walk him. My father was alive. Krypton never exploded.”

“It was just a dream,” I reassure him, massaging him between his shoulder blades.

“A dream I never wanted to wake up from,” he straightens. “I had a son, Van,” he squeezes my hand. “I remember his birth, his first step. Even the silly persuasive essay you made him write to convince us to get a dog,” he scratches Eira’s head, smiling sadly. "We named him Krypto."

“You don’t have a son,” I frown. Or does he? And all this time he’s hidden him from the world. But he said “you” suggesting that was our son. Kids are so far from my mind they’re in another galaxy.

“I know,” he shoves a brownie in his mouth. “Bl-awk mussy . . . Made it full real.”

“I can’t understand a word you say when you talk with food in your mouth,” I smile. “Heck, I’m having a hard time understanding you anyway.”

“Sorry,” Kal swallows a lump of brownie. “There was a gift left for me at the Fortress this morning. It turned out to be from Mongul.”

“Have you never heard of the Trojan Horse?”

“The card was from Hawkgirl. I thought it was legit.”

“You are way too trusting,” Another thing he has in common with Clark. But who’s keeping score?

“How was I supposed to know it was from Mongul? The card was from Hawkgril!” he repeats.

“You could have checked her handwriting and corroborated Hawkgirl’s story by oh . . . I don’t know ASKING her if she sent you a gift,” I say. “Two reporter friends and you haven’t learned squat. Always check the source!”

“Yeah, Clark would never be fooled like that.” Do I detect a note of sarcasm in his voice?

“So what was the gift?”

“A flower. It’s called a Black Mercy - it feeds on the life force of its host while trapping you in a dream world.”

His earlier words sink in. “In the dream world, were we married?” He gives a curt nod.

I can’t begin to fathom that. Sure. We’ve shared a few romantic moments through the years, but it was just innocent flirting. I gave up my schoolgirl crush on Superman once Clark and I got serious. Did I lead Superman on in some way?

“How is that even possible?” I ask. “ Krypton exploded. I’m a human, you’re an alien,” he flinches, hurt clouding his features. “I didn’t mean it like that.”

“No. It’s okay. I’m an alien,” he grits his teeth. “Call it like it is. A strange, monstrous alien that has no business dating outside his species,” he quotes. He’s been reading too much of Linda Lake’s column.

“Don’t put words in my mouth El!” I snap. “I don’t care that you’re an alien. I’m just pointing out a plot hole in your dream world. If Krypton never exploded you and I would have never met.”

“Maybe that would have been a good thing,” he shrugs off the stool. “You would have been safer if I never came to Earth.”

“And thousands, millions of people would be dead. Me included,” I point out. “You don’t want me to be dead.”

He doesn’t answer and struts to the sofa. It’s uncanny how natural he looks on the couch. Give Superman sweatpants and a Star Trek shirt, and he’ll pass for my dorky boyfriend. Nope. I’m tricking myself into seeing things that are not there.

I burrow against Kal’s side, surprised when he doesn’t retreat. His arm easily loops around me, dragging me into his lap. The heat rolling off him is like an old friend. I can’t shake the feeling we’ve snuggled here before.

“It was a nice dream,” he muses. He closes his eyes as if in pain. “I had to kill my son to break free. How can I miss someone who wasn’t real?”

“It doesn’t have to be a dream,” I brazenly kiss his cheek, secretly hoping my hunch is right. “You never know, there might be a baby El in your future.”

“Doubtful,” he says. “There are no other Kryptonians.”

Kal-El falls asleep in my arms beneath the glow of an 80s movie. A clang of swords and ominous music plays in the background. Superman’s snores deepen and it sounds like a pig broke in. I watch as the dumb princess knocks the pirate down a hill.

‘Death cannot stop true love. All it can do is delay it for a while.’

And it hits me. This is Princess Bride, one of Clark’s favorite chick flicks, though he would argue it’s an adventure movie, not a chick flick. Pure coincidence Superman’s comfort movie is the same as Clark’s.

Right?
`````````````````````````````````````

Chapter 10
Metropolis Sky

Clark had been flying over Metropolis for hours, scanning every corner of the city. He had searched every warehouse in Suicide Slum, visited every suspicious location where he thought Lois might be held. His super-hearing was desperately trying to pick up the familiar sound of her heartbeat or a cry for help. But the more time passed, the more his hope of finding her faded. A sense of failure grew within him, weighing heavily on his mind.

He felt powerless. Lois's absence was a void he couldn’t bear. It was as if a stone sat in the pit of his stomach, and the weight of the world pressed down on his shoulders. For the first time in a long while, Clark doubted himself. His powers felt useless in this situation.

Finally, physically and emotionally exhausted, he decided to take a break. He gently landed on the roof of the Daily Planet, his last refuge. Perhaps the police had made some progress. Maybe Perry had new information.


---

Daily Planet

Clark entered Perry White’s office, dejected, his shoulders slumped with fatigue and despair. Perry looked up from his desk, his expression grave, and asked with a concerned voice:
“Clark, my boy, I take it you don’t have good news?”

Clark collapsed into a chair, his gaze vacant.
“Unfortunately, no, Perry. I’ve scoured the entire city, searched every nook and cranny… and nothing. No leads, no clues. Do you have anything new on your end?”

Perry shook his head, visibly frustrated.
“Not much more. The surveillance cameras at the parking lot exit caught the plate of the vehicle that took her, but of course, it was a fake plate. Jimmy’s reviewing all the security footage to try to track the vehicle, but there are gaps. There are still areas in this city without cameras...”

Clark let out a heavy sigh, filled with regret.
“Why did she go alone, Perry? She should’ve waited for me. Sometimes, I think my powers are more of a curse than a blessing… If I hadn’t heard that accident on the highway, I would’ve been with her.”

Perry slowly stood, approached Clark, and placed a comforting hand on his shoulder.
“Clark, you know as well as I do that without your powers, you wouldn’t have been able to save her dozens of times before.”
“And it’s because of my powers, because of her connection to Superman, that she’s constantly in danger,” Clark replied bitterly.

Perry gently shook his head.
“No, I can’t let you think that way. Lois is a strong, independent woman who puts herself in danger all the time, all on her own. It’s not Superman who pushes her into it. You know as well as I do that what you two have, that love, it’s because of who you are, not because of your powers. Destiny brought you together, Clark. It likes to test you, sure… but it makes you stronger.”
“I just wish destiny would give us a break once in a while,” Clark said, bitterly, his gaze lost in the void.
“You should try to get some rest. You’re exhausted. You can’t work miracles without sleep, and she needs you at full strength to find her.”

At that moment, Jimmy entered the office.
“Clark, Chief, I think I found something.”

Clark’s face lit up, hope slowly creeping back into him.
“I think I saw the SUV that took Lois on a road near a gas station on the northern outskirts of the city.”

Clark leapt to his feet, grabbing the photo Jimmy had pulled from the video feed.

Jimmy continued:
“I can’t make out the plate, but I sent the video to the lab for enhancement.”

Clark adjusted his glasses and asked:
“What plate number are we looking for?”
“MET-8723.”

Clark zoomed in on the plate with his super vision, and the number that appeared was indeed the one Jimmy was searching for. A deep sense of relief washed over him. Clark continued:
“I’m sure this is the right vehicle. Jimmy, send this image to Henderson. Which station was it? What time?”

Jimmy checked his notes.
“It was the NorthSide station, and it was at 2:42 PM.”

Clark glanced at his watch.
“It’s 8:15 PM, so they have over five hours on us… She could be anywhere.”
“Clark, I don’t think so. She must’ve been taken for a specific reason, and it’s likely her captors need to stay close to Metropolis. I’d bet she’s no more than 120 miles from here.”
“All right, I’ll start searching from there,” Clark said before realizing Jimmy was still present. “I mean, I’ll ask Superman to focus his search in that area.”

Hello, FoLCs!

It's time for the Kerth tradition of honoring all of the authors who take their time and invest their effort into producing quality stories for all of us to read by creating QUIZZES for select Kerth categories!

Please read the instructions and disclaimer below, which I have brazenly stolen from Groobie’s thread previously, and which she stole from this thread prior to that.

Here's the schedule for the posting of each quiz, which will lead up to Kerth Nominations on March 9!:

• Monday January 12 — Best Waffy
• Sunday January 19 — Best Challenge
• Sunday January 26 — Best Revelation
• Sunday February 2 — Best Kiss
• Wednesday February 9 — Best Original / Supporting Character
• Sunday February 16 — Best Dramatic
• Wednesday February 23 — Best Comedy
• Sunday March 2 — Best Micro Story
• Wednesday March 5 — Double Fudge Crunch Round

* * * * * * * * * *

Welcome to the 2025 Kerth Quizzes! This post is an introduction to how the quizzes work. For newcomers, you'll find instructions, disclaimers and so on so that you'll know what's going on. For old-timers, you can refresh your memory so that you're ready to dive right in! The 2010 Kerth Quiz committee (Tricia, Jenn, Erin, and Carol) put together these instructions and the disclaimer. I've edited appropriately for dates/details! The Kerth Quizzes serve as a helpful reminder of this past year's varied fics to refresh our memories of our favorites before nominations and voting begin. It might even help you find a new favorite story just in time for nominations!

Remember, Kerth nominations open March 9!


THE KERTHS

The Kerths are FoLCdom's way of celebrating and recognising the best LnC fic to hit the boards, the archive or elsewhere on the web (if the author personally submits it for Kerth eligibility) in the past calendar year. Check out the following link for the Kerths' main website, which includes a link to the Kerth FAQ and the listings for last year's Kerth awards:

Kerth Awards


THE HISTORY OF THE KERTH QUIZ

The Kerth quizzes themselves started more or less by accident. In the beginning, Wendy posted some quizzes which turned out to be sort of related to Kerth categories. The following year, Hazel joined her and they did it properly, and then a couple of years later Meredith volunteered to help. They rapidly became a marvellous way to lead up to the Kerth nominations by giving us all a friendly reminder of favourite stories, or even introducing new ones. In 2006 the quizzes were organised by Wendy, Chris, Sorcha, Julie and Rachel. In 2007, the team was Julie, Anna, Dave and Tricia. Julie and Tricia organised them in 2008. The team for 2009 was Jenn, Lara, Lisa and Tricia. The 2010 team was Jenn, Erin, Carol and Tricia. In 2011, the team was Amber and Nancy. Ditto for 2012. Groobie and her fantastic team worked on quizzes through 2016. In 2018, Folc4evernaday gave us the Guess the Quote thread to carry on the pre-Kerth quizzing tradition. And then the quizzes went on hiatus until they were resurrected last year!


HOW THE QUIZZES WORK

Each quiz celebrates a separate Kerth category. You'll see a post containing quotes from stories that are eligible for this year's Kerths. You are challenged to name the authors and titles of the quoted stories; this can be accomplished off the top of your head or by jogging your memory with a little searching — both through the boards and AO3 (catch the AO3 authors and stories on the Eligible Stories List!). Even if you can only name a single author/story, please do post your replies! Consider your participation to be FDK for the quiz-setters who put in hours of hard work to do these. Answers should be posted in the answers thread for each quiz.

This year the Kerth awards include an impressive SEVENTEEN categories (wooooo!), including Best Commenter/Feedback Giver and Best Original Fanart. We'll be posting quizzes for EIGHT of the categories, plus a special Double Fudge Crunch bonus round, in the eight weeks leading up to the nominations! These will include:

• Best Waffy
• Best Challenge
• Best Revelation
• Best Kiss
• Best Original/Supporting Character
• Best Comedy
• Best Dramatic
• Best Micro Story

We’ll cap off the quizzes with a final Double Fudge Crunch Round, which will pull from every eligible story.

In previous years, FoLCs also posted quizzes of their own, which were not specifically tailored to fit the Kerth categories. These are certainly welcome; the more quizzes, the merrier! We would like to suggest, though, that extra quizzes be posted "in between" the category ones (that is, please don't post a new quiz the same day a Kerth quiz is posted), and that quiz writers try to stick to the "one author per quiz" rule to allow greater scope. (If you have a quiz prepared, and you're not sure when it would be best to post, feel free to DM me, I’ll be happy to give you a day or so for your quiz before the next Kerth quiz goes up.) Also, feel free to take on a category that isn’t in the schedule!

The stories included in the Kerth Quizzes were chosen because they FIT THE CATEGORY. That does not mean that the quiz-setter necessarily thinks the stories deserve to be nominated; nor does it necessarily mean that we omitted a story because we think it does not deserve nomination. So let's all remember the "spiffy disclaimer thingies" (basically, these long-winded instructions summed up more succinctly) and recognise that the Kerth Quizzes aren't the same as nominations. They’re here to get you excited for those upcoming noms!

Another point to remember is that stories may be nominated in more than one category. So make your nominations wherever you'd like. (Well, as long as the stories fit. )

Nominations begin March 9!


QUIZ RULES

When you send in your replies to the quiz, please use the following guidelines:

First, SNIP OUT THE EXCERPTS and just list your answer. It's difficult for the quiz-setter to try to scroll through all the quoted material to find the single line of your answer. There have been occasions when we've entirely missed people's replies!

Second, please use SPOILER tags for your reply! You can do so by using the following code: ([spoilerZ]your guess here[/spoilerZ]. Just delete those Z’s in the brackets (which I had to leave in so that it didn’t turn into a spoiler tag in the example)! With FoLCs all over the world, it's quite likely that some people will be opening replies before they get a chance to take the quiz themselves (and it’s particularly easy to see if you’re just clicking on the ‘Active Threads’ page).

The quiz includes excerpt quotes from a broad range of our eligible fics. Name the story and its author from the quote for one point.

In only the final Double Fudge Crunch Round, the quizzes will include a single quote. Name the story and its author from the quote for two points.

In general, name what you can! Don't worry about naming only a title, or just the author – half points, and even quarter points have been used before, and we don't mind having our math skills challenged!

You’ll have one week to answer on each of the category rounds.
You’ll have half a week to answer during the final Double Fudge Crunch Round,

The quiz is open hard drive and archive. You are more than welcome to look up fics to find the answers. This is supposed to be fun! Some people do like to try and guess the answers without looking it up, and that's fine, too. But feel free to do some double-checking if you're not sure of your reply. Or not, if you prefer. Some people enjoy high or perfect scores, while some people enjoy challenging their memories. Use whichever method suits you best.


RECOMMENDATIONS
As we have done in previous years, we encourage people to include their own personal recommendations in each category when they send in their replies to the quizzes. These will be listed when we post the answers. Please don't hesitate! Your personal favourite might prove equally popular with others, especially those still looking for titles to nominate.

Recommendations are more than welcome for several reasons, including these: we try to observe a one-author-per-quiz rule, but sometimes an author has written more than one story which fits a particular category (so we’d love for those to be mentioned!). Second, we can't include every eligible story, even without the one-author rule, so of course we're omitting stories eligible in that category. And third, we also try not to over-use particular stories overall; if LOIS MEETS CLARK, by A.N. Author, has been used in one quiz, chances are that it won't appear again, even if it fits the current category very well.

Don’t forget, you can view all Eligible Stories in Michael’s post here: Eligible stories list

Quiz-setters do not try and judge whether the recommendations fit the category; we'll just post whatever was sent in, so help us out on that end where you can! 😃 And, of course, those who don't actually take the quiz are welcome to send in recommendations too.

So that's your lengthy introductory/instructions/disclaimer post for this year. With each individual quiz, you'll get a MUCH shorter version of the instructions and disclaimer, so you won't have to wade through all of this every time.

Lastly, special thanks to Michael for naming the Double Fudge Crunch Round.

Bring on the 2025 Kerth season! Looking forward to the fun!

Evie
________________________________________________

Have a question about the Kerths? Ask it here! Or you can PM any of the K-Com members or reach out on Discord too! You can also send an email to us here: Kcom@kerthawards.com

In order to help you find all things Kerth for this year, we’ve created a TOC for all the 🏆TOC for Kerth Awards 2025 Posts🏆.

The Kerth Committee
(KSaraSara, Darth Michael, lovetvfan, and JadedEvie)

Hi FoLCs!

Here is the update of new fic (gathered typically through the end of the month). Links at http://www.lcficdirectory.com/pgindex

New Stories:
Advent Calendar for FoLCs by Kathryn84
Advent Calendar Bag 25 or A Very Special Gift by Kathryn84
Good Night, Lois – Happy Thoughts by bakasi
Good Night, Lois – Peter Pan by bakasi
Good Night, Lois – Tinkerbell by bakasi
I'll Be Home for Christmas: Her Story by Queen of the Capes
I'll Be Home for Christmas: His Story by Queen of the Capes
Krypto's First Sleepover by 90stvfangirl
Open Arms by CalliopeWayne
A Personal Favor by Queen of the Capes
Snapshot by 90stvfangirl
Winter by Morgana

New Parts:
The Courier by Morgana
Manipulation and Destruction by Aurore
Marriage of State by AmandaK

Completed Stories:
Advent Calendar for FoLCs by Kathryn84
Advent Calendar Bag 25 or A Very Special Gift by Kathryn84
Good Night, Lois – Happy Thoughts by bakasi
Good Night, Lois – Peter Pan by bakasi
Good Night, Lois – Tinkerbell by bakasi
I'll Be Home for Christmas: Her Story by Queen of the Capes
I'll Be Home for Christmas: His Story by Queen of the Capes
Krypto's First Sleepover by 90stvfangirl
A Personal Favor by Queen of the Capes
Snapshot by 90stvfangirl
Winter by Morgana

New TOCs:
Advent Calendar for FoLCs by Kathryn84
Advent Calendar Bag 25 or A Very Special Gift by Kathryn84
Good Night, Lois – Happy Thoughts by bakasi
Good Night, Lois – Peter Pan by bakasi
Good Night, Lois – Tinkerbell by bakasi
I'll Be Home for Christmas: Her Story by Queen of the Capes
I'll Be Home for Christmas: His Story by Queen of the Capes
Krypto's First Sleepover by 90stvfangirl
Open Arms by CalliopeWayne
A Personal Favor by Queen of the Capes
Snapshot by 90stvfangirl
Winter by Morgana

Added to the Archive:
Undercover Reporter: Revelation by JadedEvie
Undercover Reporter: Resurrection by JadedEvie


Enjoy!
Dawn & the Index Crew

IBM: Signs

The In-Between Moments is a series that rewrites, elongates or adds scenes. Most of them take place in between major plot moments. Some of them slip easily into the ongoing canon, while others roll right into an alternative universe. They’re all one-shots, usually plot bunnies that strike when I’m supposed to be working on something else. They're short, not connected, and in no particular order -- and they usually have happy little endings.

Summary: Set in the space between Seasons 1 and 2, Lois is floundering after her near-miss of a wedding. Clark’s been doing his best to keep her upright, but she’s not moving on. Superman swoops in to try and give her a little boost.

*****

She was having the dream again.

It happened so regularly now that she was always aware it was a dream. ...Even if she could never make it stop.

Tightly corseted into her beaded, lace, pure white wedding dress, she stood before a full-length mirror, sobbing. At least she knew why this time. It wasn’t because the veil was gaudy or her lipstick was all wrong – though the veil was gaudy and she hated this shade of lipstick.

It was because she was marrying the wrong man. Lois Lane had never felt any sanctity about money, especially amounts in the embarrassing excess that Lex had. Yet, that was the very life she’d contracted herself to. She’d let go of the likelihood of finding true love during college, a decision that was reinforced only a year into her job at the Planet. Since then, the only thing she’d invested in was her career. She’d thrown herself into it, mostly content for that to be the focus of her life. But everything she’d spent years working for was all gone now, never to be rebuilt.

How had her life been so spectacularly turned upside down?

Stringed instruments had started to play somewhere outside her suite.

She looked down to see that a white bouquet that had materialized in her hands. The roses were fresh and pristine, but felt somehow lifeless to her. She flinched as one of them pricked her, her finger going to her mouth to try and soothe the pain.

The music was suddenly louder and she easily made out the opening strains of Here Comes the Bride. When she looked up again, she’d found that she’d been transported to the hallway outside the ceremony, and a pair of thick wooden doors was creaking open before her to reveal a hall filled with people.

Her panic increased the further they opened.

Lois knew what came next and wished the dream would just end here for once. But she couldn’t stop it now any more than she'd been able to in real life. She felt a deep pang from that thought even within the dreamscape.

Even so... maybe she could change it enough to avoid reliving this.

She picked up her heavy, appliquéd skirts, ready to run in the opposite direction, when something made her glance down the aisle.

This time, inexplicably, Clark was standing there.

The dream panic immediately waned.

Clark was waiting for her at the end of the aisle, hair uncharacteristically slicked back, boutonniere in his lapel, and a look in his eyes that rolled over her and warmed her to her toes.

Acting on instinct, she smoothed her skirts and gripped the thorn-less, ribboned roses in her hand, starting her measured processional toward him.

Dream logic kicked in.

Marrying Clark was much better than marrying Lex. It made all the sense in the world to have the wedding this way. She’d marry Clark, escape the trap that Lex had set, and after the ceremony she and her new husband would sort out whatever was happening. Because they were a team. And she could always count on Clark.

Looking up at him now, still patiently waiting, she felt an earnest smile steal across her face. His smile answered hers as their eyes locked, and she felt, for the first time, as if things might turn out alright after all. Her steps toward him became more confident.

She saw her friends in their seats as she passed their rows. Jimmy gave her a wide grin and a big thumbs up. Perry smiled mistily, and patted his chest over his heart before taking Alice’s hand. Clark’s parents were in the front row and looked the proudest and happiest she’d ever seen them.

In her heels and wide skirt, she carefully navigated the three steps up to the raised dais where Clark was waiting, and turned to her soon-to-be-husband with a smile.

He wasn’t there.

The organ music had faded away.

“Clark?” she called out, looking past where he’d just stood.

He wasn’t anywhere.

He’d left her.

A heavy panic invaded the dream.

Even the air felt frantic.

In the enclosing silence, there was a sudden sonic boom overhead. If Superman had been nearby, he’d left now, too.

She looked out into the crowd, but her friends were gone, the chairs all now empty.

Her bouquet wasn’t even in her hands anymore, and her veil had incomprehensibly disappeared from her hair, leaving her unexpectedly vulnerable.

Everyone had abandoned her.

“Clark!” she called again, louder this time. He always responded when she called. She couldn’t understand why he wasn’t coming to help her. She needed him!

A loud knock reverberated through the enormous hall, which felt even larger with no one else in it. She spun to look back down the aisle but the cathedral-esque wooden doors she’d come through were still open. No one could be knocking on them.

The knocking sound came again, louder, echoing through the cavernous space.

She whipped around, looking behind her, and then into every corner of the empty room.

Her panic escalated.

There was no one there.

But the knocking continued on.

She clutched her skirts, ready to run again, but no longer sure from what.

“Clark!” she yelled, desperate.

She woke up sweating, gripping the sheets, mumbling his name.

She blinked herself more awake.

…And discovered that she was alone, again — still, she corrected — in her apartment, in bed. She wasn’t at her wedding at all. That had been weeks — no, months — ago now.

She closed her eyes again and rolled over, feeling her breathing return to normal, even if an irrepressible tightness still gripped her chest. Usually, Lois was the type of person that would spring into the new day as soon as her alarm went off. But it had been a while since she’d set an alarm. With nowhere to go, no job to motivate her, and no obligations left, she found herself sleeping later every day. It seemed like more and more of a Sisyphean task to get out of bed each morning, and she’d begun to spend the better part of the day laying there until her growling stomach finally drove her from the bed.

Well, she wasn’t hungry now, she decided willfully, yawning. She buried her face more deeply into her sympathetic pillow, blocking out the rest of the world.

A sharp knocking interrupted her purposeful descent back into blissful unconsciousness.

Her eyes opened wide. The knocking from her dream?

No, that was silly, of course. This knocking had probably just infiltrated her dream as it woke her.

Well, whoever it was would come back if they really wanted something.

Although…

It didn’t sound like the knocking was coming from her front door. That had a thicker, more reverberant echo to it. This sound had a different pitch to it.

Blearily, she sat up, halfway between annoyed and curious at the sound invading her plan to marathon nap her way through the day, and reached for the robe hanging from her bed post. Throwing it over her shoulders, she made her way past her bedroom door and out into the main room, trying to isolate the new noise.

The sound wasn’t coming from her door at all, she realized quickly.

It was coming from her window.

The realization froze her.

What was he doing here? It had been weeks. No — months, she reminded herself. She didn’t want to see him. She’d had enough embarrassment for one lifetime, and her last interaction with him had been the start of a downhill slide for her entire life.

Still… he’d know she was in here, right? She couldn’t exactly hide from a man who was probably listening to her breathe right now, or, worse, watching her stand in frozen hesitation.

She intentionally tied her robe belt spitefully tight. Whether he could see through the robe or not, she’d be better armored this time. She trudged begrudgingly over to the window, and moved the curtain aside.

His head came up and their eyes met.

She absolutely forced her heart not to skip the beat it usually did.

“Hi,” he said.

“Hi,” she parroted.

Her voice must have betrayed the civility she’d been aiming for because his expression fell a bit.

“May I come in?” he asked, tilting his head at the window that separated them.

She paused, but, unable to quickly come up with a reason not to allow the superhero entrance, she shrugged and undid the window latch, lightly cracking it open and stepping back. If he wanted to come in, he could open the windows himself.

Looking down, she subtly checked that her robe was still securely tied, and subconsciously tucked her hair behind her ear.

She heard the window creak all the way open and stuffed her hands into her pockets so that she wouldn’t give into the urge to keep fidgeting.

“What’s up?” she asked the floor, hoping to cut to the chase and get this meeting over with.

“I have something I want to show you.”

She cocked her head. “At 7am?”

“I didn’t get to pick the time it’s happening,” he replied, apology tinging his words.

She bit her lower lip, considering. This couldn’t be for a story, since there was no newspaper. That meant this visit was personal. She had to stop herself from sighing out loud. Nothing personal had worked out in her life, as was evidenced by the total seclusion she’d found herself in since she’d lost the Planet, and then, just as swiftly, her friends, fiancé and the LNN gig. She felt the pique of curiosity behind the dull haze that accompanied her recent mornings, but tampened it down. She wasn’t really inclined to go with him after their last humiliating encounter. Besides, he was probably just setting her up to make another crack about her sleeping attire.

“I’m not sure that I have time today,” she lied, looking down at a wrist that didn’t have a watch on it.

His eyes traveled from her naked wrist back to meet her eyes.

“It won’t take long,” he assured her.

She didn’t reply.

“I promise,” he urged gently.

His voice lulled her into a sense of safety, the way it always did.

But he wasn’t her safe place anymore.

All the more reason to get this over with.

“Fine,” she acquiesced, folding her arms. “Show me.”

He held out his hand.

She looked at it expectantly and then back at him.

He cleared his throat. “It’s across town. I can fly us there."

Her muscles clenched involuntarily. Flying with Superman wasn’t what she’d signed up for today.

She glanced down at her robe pointedly, holding out her arms to the side to highlight her sleep apparel. “I’m not exactly dressed for a field trip,” she scoffed petulantly, “Even if the other people out there can’t see through my robe, lead-lined or not.”

When she looked back up at him, a flash of some fleeting emotion was fleeing the depths of his eyes, and… was that the merest hint of a blush?

Good, she thought with spite.

“I promise to keep us out of sight,” he said in a voice that didn’t have the usual confidence.

“I don’t have even a minute to change?” she asked, not willing to let this go, and needing to score a win over him for reasons she couldn’t quite harness.

“Well—“ he looked away from her, high and toward the north side of the city, and she got the feeling that he was looking for something specific. “It’s about to start, so maybe just a minute?”

“I’ll be a minute, then,” she muttered, doing a swift about face. She headed to her hall closet and grabbed a trench coat, then moved back to her bedroom, swiping her favorite running shoes out of the closet on the way to her bathroom, where she dropped her armload on the floor and stepped over it to the sink. Taking a mouthful of mouthwash straight from the bottle, she sat on the closed toilet lid and shoved her feet into her sneakers. She stood, untying her robe belt while spitting into the sink. Pushing the robe back off her shoulders, she let it fall to the ground and grabbed her trench, knotting the belt as she made her way back out toward her waiting escort.

She grabbed a scrunchie off the dresser as she passed it, catching a look at herself in the dresser. Her skin looked sallow and sullen, and something about her eyes looked hollow. No make-up and near depression was a better look than some of the disguises she’d worn – not to mention that frothy white puff of a wedding dress Lex had insisted she pick. Not that it could have mattered at all to the blue spandex-clad man she was approaching what she looked like, anyway. He’d made that perfectly clear. She tied her hair back messily with malice.

“Ready?” He asked as she reappeared.

She nodded and there was a brief awkward moment as she hesitated, realizing she’d have to spend the next few minutes cradled in his arms.

He seemed to come to the same realization at the exact same time, running a nervous hand over his hair in a gesture that didn’t fit but still somehow seemed familiar.

She felt her head tilt as her mind chased a memory of that gesture. Had he done that when he’d dropped her off after saving the space shuttle? Or at their interview afterward? Why was she picturing him in the newsroom?


She felt a guilty jolt at the thought of the newsroom. Another piece of her life that was decimated, and her own fault, too.

“We should…” his gesture was confused, one hand pointing to the window and the other vaguely suggesting the space between them.

She realized she’d stopped a few feet from him, just staring.

“Oh. Right.” Letting her train of thought go, she moved toward him.

She reached out to put her arm around his left shoulder just as he dipped to pick her up, and they fumbled. He drew away, looking sheepish, and she felt something unnamed in her chest sink further.

“I guess it’s been a while.”

“I guess so,” she agreed, surprised at the flatness in her own tone.

He held out a hand to guide her, and for once she let him take the lead. He scooped her up, successfully this time, and a heartbeat later they were airborne.

Flying with him wasn’t the thrill it used to be.

It was the latest incident in a trending string of disappointments since the almost-wedding.

She wasn’t love lorn over Lex. That part she’d eventually figured out. But she was heartbroken over every single other piece in her life. Her friends had been investigating her fiancé and hadn’t told her. They may have saved her life, but now it seemed that they’d mostly abandoned her to live out the rest of it on her own. Even her instincts as a reporter had fled her. The betrayal of her own good sense had broken her heart.

Not to mention all the tension between her and and the man currently flying her silently toward the city center. She hadn’t seen Superman once after he’d rejected her. Until now. And they hadn’t had the most auspicious start today.

Their current awkwardness made her think of Clark. She’d seen him over the last few weeks, but things had been different since she’d rejected him. In the days after the wedding, he’d seemed so listless that she’d wondered if he was sick. After the first couple of weeks, it had gotten better, but it wasn’t the same. They weren’t the same.

What a mess she’d made of her life in under 8 hours – rejecting Clark, blindsiding Superman and accepting Lex.

Until that awful day, she’d considered Superman and Clark two of her closest friends. But it felt like they’d both been through with her once she decided that she didn’t want to fit into the molds that each had envisioned for her.

She’d lost them both in the same day.

And she still hadn’t recovered from it.

In fact, the strain of both of them abandoning her had sent her into an emotional tailspin that all but guaranteed she wouldn’t right herself. She nearly hadn’t until it was too late.

She was glad she’d said ‘no’ to Lex when it mattered.

But it niggled at her that she’d given Clark that same answer, with far less thought. She couldn’t name why. Maybe she should have given her best friend more consideration.

Maybe she still should.

He’d been around this summer. He’d stopped by with pizza and rented movies. On Sundays, he brought over the New York Times crossword puzzle. He’d cajoled her out of the house, pushed her to keep up with the national news, and even coerced her into a dinner with his folks once when they were in town. He’d single-handedly kept her moving during the worst time of her life.

But there was something between them that hadn’t been there ever before.

A cold wall.

But it was impossible to breach and just as hard to pinpoint.

He was still friendly, but his words were more carefully considered.

He was still affectionate, but he barely touched her anymore.

He was still himself, but he was subtly, quietly guarded.

And that might have broken her heart most of all. She’d wounded him. And seeing the effect she’d had on him — on sweet, open, optimistic, heart-on-his-sleeve Clark — broke her, in turn, every time she saw the evidence of it.

Despite what she suspected was his best attempt, there was plenty of evidence.

Maybe that wall was why he hadn’t been able to bring her out of this heavy, stinging, exhausting depression.

She felt tired.

Maybe she’d take a nap after whatever super scavenger hunt her pilot had planned.

Meanwhile, they were landing on a roof not too far from the old skeleton of the Planet. She managed to step out of his embrace with more success than she’d had stepping into it. …which just figured. She was better at parting with people than drawing them close. The dark comedy of it pulled at her innards in a sinking way and she refocused to look around.

In front of them was the tallest building in the city.

The morning air wasn’t cold, but she put her arms around herself anyway, drawing her long jacket closer and dropping her eyes to her sneakered feet. The tightness in her chest gripped her harder.

“Why did you bring me here?” she asked, knowing she was physically shrinking away from the building before them.

The building she had nearly lived in. The building that she was nearly married in. The building that was nearly her gilded and everlasting cage.

“I wanted you to see this.”

“I’ve seen it.” She took another involuntary step backwards, eyes skittering up to his.

The expression she found there was a sad one, but he insisted, “I don’t think you’ve seen this.”

He gestured back to the building.

Whatever he’d brought her out here for had obviously warranted his attention. That alone captured her curiosity. But she couldn’t fight the raging disquiet swirling through her.

“I don’t want to be here.”

She took another sidestep back, placing him between herself and the building.

He kept his eyes on her, but didn’t move. “Please, Lois, just one look?”

Obviously, he wasn’t going to let this go, if he wasn’t already scooping her up for the flight home, in spite of her visible and increasing level of discomfort.

Steeling herself, she glanced quickly back at the building again, intent to look away as fast as possible, hopefully fulfilling his request enough to convince him to take her home.

But something caught her eye.

There was a large crane standing beside the building. A bevy of workers in bright yellow hardhats were on the roof, milling around as the tower crane came to life and the jib turned toward them.

There was something soothing about the slow, steady path of the crane.

A hook block hung from its end, and when the hoist was over the front section of the roof, the hook started to lower slowly.

Once it was down, the construction crew swarmed over it, attaching cables.

Her mind pieced it together.

The Luthor Corp sign was being taken down.

The building might still be standing, but the House of Luthor had truly fallen.

Lex didn’t live there anymore.

He didn’t live anywhere.

As if reading her thoughts, Superman chose that moment to speak.

“He didn’t win, Lois.”

Her head turned sharply toward him.

“He’s gone,” the hero continued. “Whatever he did, whatever he said, whatever he put out into the world — none of it matters anymore.”

Her temper erupted, hotter than she anticipated.

“How can you say that?” she demanded angrily. “Everything he did! All the lives he ruined! They all counted. And they’re all still ruined now.”

He looked sad again.

“He did a lot of bad things to a lot of good people,” he agreed. “But he didn’t ruin your life.”

She felt the hot tears gather, obscuring her vision.

“You’re right!” she all but shouted at him. “I did that myself!”

“You didn’t,” he said softly.

“I did! I picked this! I picked him! I could have picked C—“ she swallowed that thought before she could say it out loud, before she could breathe it into the world and make it real. “I did,” she said emphatically again.

“He fooled you, Lois,” Superman said slowly. Then he shrugged. “He fooled everyone.”

“He didn’t fool everyone!” she bit out, thinking of Clark again, angry at him for seeing what she couldn’t, and angry at herself for not listening to him. “He didn’t fool –” She stopped herself from saying her partner's name, and met Superman’s eyes. “He didn’t fool you.”

“I can see through walls,” he said apologetically. “It’s harder to fool me.”

She rolled her eyes in rejection of his glib simplicity.

And she wondered what Clark’s excuse would be, to offset her shortcoming?

But she didn't say that out loud, either.

“I made a life off of not being fooled, of never being taken in. And when it mattered most, I missed it! I gambled my career and my friends and my best friend on not being fooled. I put all of it, all of them in danger. And I can’t ever go back to any of it now.”

His eyebrows knit together. “Lois, is that what you’re doing?”

“What?”

“Are you… punishing yourself for not seeing through Luthor?”

She felt her cheeks flame as her heart rate rose erratically.

She hadn’t thought of it like that.

…But it wasn’t far off.

Lex had eradicated the Planet. He’d destroyed her friends’ livelihoods. Jimmy had been living on the street because of her. Perry had retired early into a life that he didn’t want. Clark was… Clark was broken — and she knew that with more certainty than anyone, since she'd made it her penance to witness it every time he offered to stop by. And she could have stopped it all. She was the best reporter at the best paper in the best city in the world. And she’d been so focused on arguing with Clark — who’d been right all along, she thought furiously — that she’d—

“Oh, Lois…” his voice was so soft that she almost missed it.

It was so empathetic.

It was so gentle.

And it stung like hell.

“I don’t need your pity,” she hissed.

“You’re wrong.”

Her eyebrows hit her hairline. “You seriously think I need your pity?”

He sighed and took a step closer, his posture relaxing out of his usual stoic pose. “Look at that building.”

“I get the metaphor,” she said stubbornly, looking away.

But he gestured insistently toward the building again. “No, really, Lois. Look at it.”

Crossing her arms, she turned toward it with a huff. The hook block had been lifted directly above the sign now, and she could see the workers adjusting the clamped cables.

“That is the tallest building in Metropolis. State of the art. Luxurious. Luthor had it built from the ground up. Well, from the creepy underground bunker up.” She flicked him a surprised look for knowing about the bunker before remembering that, as he’d just pointed out, he could see through walls. He gently gestured back to the building and she trained her eyes on it again.

“That building is the biggest in the city, and only one of his many, many properties. He had a nearly infinite bankroll. He bribed people to tell the story he needed and silenced the ones who wouldn’t spread his lies. His influence was in every major public department in Metropolis. He was reshaping the city, physically, politically and socially. He made you see what he wanted you to see. He had smokescreens in every sphere. With that kind of endless resource, how could you have seen through him?”

She felt her tense shoulders drop an inch.

“Unless you can see through walls now, too?”

Knowing she was supposed to laugh at that, she gave him a dry look.

But he caught her glance and held it meaningfully.

“Luthor did ruin lives. But not yours. Don’t let him haunt you. You’re stronger than that, Lois. Don’t let him win now.”

The air went out of her chest.

His words reverberated through her.

Looking out over the vista before her, she saw the crane was moving again. The sign had been lifted clear of the building, leaving it free and ready for whatever it would become next. The jib was slowly turning again, obscuring the sign as it crossed her line of sight and into the rays of the newly risen sun.

She took a new breath in.

And something in her felt light again.

Clark had been keeping her afloat all summer, but even with his support she hadn’t been able to shake off the trauma of Luthor’s trap. She’d needed this closure to recover — both the confirmation that Lex was well and truly gone, and the resuscitation of this fractured friendship that she’d broken on the day of so many miserable mistakes. She felt better. Released. Open to that glimmer of hope on the horizon line.

Maybe she wouldn’t spend the day aiming for unconsciousness. Maybe today she’d be the one to pick up pizza and movies. And maybe one day soon she would be able to help close Clark’s wound, as Superman had healed hers.

She turned toward her hero. “Thank you,” she said, her voice cracking. She tried again, gesturing to the building. “For this. This was—“ She swallowed thickly. “Thank you.”

He nodded, a small smile blooming across his mouth.

“Thank you for making the time today,” he said, calling back to their earlier conversation. He offered a hand. “Would you like me to take you home now?”

She started to nod, but her impulses got the best of her. “Just one more thing?”

“What’s that?”

Taking two steps closer to him, she pulled him into a hug, tucking her face into his neck. She felt his surprise, but his arms came around her instantly. He relaxed against her a fraction, and she felt his cheek come to rest on her temple.

They stayed that way for a long moment.

Then she pulled back, but not wholly out of his embrace, her hands gripping his arms. “And I’m sorry," she launched in. "I never should have asked you to come over that night. Lex had proposed and the Planet was gone and I’d let Clark down and I just felt so lost that day. I shouldn’t have pushed you to—“ She felt the babbling take hold and stopped herself before she sunk both of them beneath the waters of a tempest two months old. She took a breath, and said, “I just shouldn’t have.”

He shook his head against her words, his hands tightening their gentle grip on her own arms into something closer to an embrace. “No, I was the one who was out of line that night," His was voice just as pleading as hers had been. "You don’t have to—“


“I do,” she interrupted firmly. “You’re a good friend, and you didn’t deserve that.”

There was a tentative light in his eyes.

“Still friends, then?”

She nodded, feeling the awkwardness drop away from them, feeling a wall come down. “Still friends, always,” she said, reassuring them both.

She realized that he wasn't in one of his usual stoic and polite poses. He was relaxed and engaged. They were standing so close that she could feel him breathe. The warmth from his hands was making her skin tingle. His embrace suddenly didn't seem so awkward. In fact, it felt as if she were right where she was meant to be.

Her heart skipped in a familiar pattern.

A familiar grin was tugging at his mouth again.

“How would you like to take the scenic route back?”

“I’d love to,” she said, not having to fabricate enthusiasm for the first time in months.

He looked into her eyes in a lingering way, and the tightness in her chest evaporated.

She'd missed him.

"Ready?"

She really was.

This time when she jumped into his arms, he caught her with a seamless motion, twisting in tandem with her movement to secure her against his chest and gain altitude, never letting gravity catch hold of her as they rocketed upward together, chasing the sunbeams that glinted and peeked out from behind the clouds.

The wind carried her peels of laughter all the way back to the now unnamed tower.

Its future was unknown again, open to possibility.

And so was hers.

Hello, FoLCs!

With the official kick-off of Kerth season, that means the games and activities portion of the year has arrived!

The goal of these is to offer us the opportunity to refresh our memories on the eligible stories, dig into our favorite details, and even sneak in reading a couple more that maybe we haven’t been able to catch up on – and, of course, to have fun! These will start this week (in fact, they've already begun -- head over to the writing prompts thread!) and will end on March 30th (just before the voting begins).

This year, we’ll have 3 major activities:

Writing challenges: lovetvfan will be sharing the fan favorite activity – bi-weekly writing prompts, posted yesterday for you! As we prepare to honor last year’s most beloved stories with the awards, we’ll also challenge ourselves to create new stories for next year!

Scavenger hunt: Queen of the Capes will be hosting a scavenger hunt through our eligible stories, during the month of February. Choose a fic from the list of eligible Kerth fics, and list as many unique items about it as you can that make it different from all the others. You’ll get points for each!

Quizzes: JadedEvie will be posting 8 quizzes over 8 weeks, and then a final 9th Double Fudge Crunch Round quiz during the last half of the last week. Quizzes will be available for points for a week each, starting January 12 and ending March 9 (just in time for nominations!), so get your answers in, even if you only know a couple!

We're so excited to help celebrate this Kerth Award season together!

________________________________________________

Have a question? Ask it here! Or you can PM any of the K-Com members or reach out on Discord too! You can also send an email to us here: Kcom@kerthawards.com

In order to help you find all things Kerth for this year, we’ve created a TOC for all the 🏆TOC for Kerth Awards 2025 Posts🏆.

The Kerth Committee
(KSaraSara, Michael, lovetvfan, and Evie)

Happy Kerth Season! This is the thread for all the writing prompt activities for this year's Kerth Awards!

New writing prompts will be posted bi-weekly during the Kerth season!

And so to get us started, here's the first Kerth Writing Challenge:

Kerth Challenge #1: Random Episode Fic

Ask the person nearest to you to give you a number between 1 and 4

Then ask them to give you a number between 1 and 22

The first number is the season your story will come from and the second is the episode from that season. Using that, write a story that either alters the episode, adds to it, changes it, or continues it.

Have fun!

Hey FoLCs!

Here's the eligible story list. It is built from the gfic and nfic TOC and also includes the stories completed in the past year on Archive of Our Own!

List of eligible stories
Count: 115

...Or is it? by Queen of the Capes
3 kB (460 words)
Story

110 Kisses: You Made Your Choice (1/1—a standalone in collection of ficlets) by KSaraSara
11 kB (2,130 words)
Story
Summary: In the aftermath of her almost-wedding to Lex Luthor, Lois is questioning all of her choices. This is kind of a fix-it and tag for the episode “House of Luthor” and also part of a self-imposed challenge to write 110 ficlets with kisses based on a list of 110 prompts on tumblr.

2023 Ficathon: Christmas Lights for KSaraSara by JadedEvie
102 kB (18,128 words)
Story

2023 Ficathon: Culinary Mayhem for bakasi by Blueowl
14 kB (2,443 words)
Story

2023 Ficathon: Dancing With Superman for BlindPassenger by Toomi8
22 kB (4,030 words)
Story

2023 Ficathon: Don’t Let Me See You Hurt for lovetvfan by bakasi
44 kB (8,235 words)
Story

2023 Ficathon: Midnight Mochas for Toomi8 by CarrieRene
8 kB (1,319 words)
Story

2023 Ficathon: New Years Football Season for CarrieRene by BlindPassenger
10 kB (1,597 words)
Story

2023 Ficathon: No Small Thing for Blueowl by KSaraSara
20 kB (3,469 words)
Story

2023 Ficathon: Planes, Trains and Deep Fried Mars Bars for Queen of the Capes by lovetvfan
97 kB (18,241 words)
Story

2023 Ficathon: Wishing You A... for JadedEvie by Queen of the Capes
33 kB (5,639 words)
Story

Advent Calendar for folcs by Kathryn84
83 kB (14,483 words)
Story

And the Answer is . . . by CalliopeWayne
5 kB (885 words)
Story (AO3)
Summary: Lois has doubts about her and Clark when he proposes he complicates things even more .

Big Changes Come in Small Packages by AmandaK
12 kB (2,144 words)
Story

Brave New Metropolis by CalliopeWayne
45 kB (7,989 words)
Story (AO3)
Summary: An argument leads to Lois snooping on her best friend's phone. She knows Clark is hiding something, something to do with Superman. She was not expecting to take an extended vacation in a warzone.

Breaking Point by Kathryn84
100 kB (17,070 words)
Story

Challenger Deep by drdeathdefying
74 kB (13,414 words)
Story

A Chance Meeting in A Parking Lot by Queen of the Capes
5 kB (805 words)
Story

Chip off the Old Kal by CalliopeWayne
18 kB (3,093 words)
Story (AO3)
Summary: Loosely based on 'teasing' prompt for Awwgust. All my stories are AU based on Lois and Clark and Superman animated series.

Clothing Swap by CalliopeWayne
10 kB (1,699 words)
Story (AO3)
Summary: Lois' clothes no longer fit. Lucy has a theory of why. Lois fears she might be right.

The Cold Treehouse by SuperBek
3 kB (490 words)
Story
Summary: The treehouse may be cold and drafty, but it’s always been a place of warmth and solace for Clark. And maybe this time, it’ll give him a bit of inspiration too.

The Cold Truth by Queen of the Capes
36 kB (6,233 words)
Story

A Conversation Long Overdue by bakasi
15 kB (2,752 words)
Story

Cooking Together by CalliopeWayne
12 kB (2,086 words)
Story (AO3)
Summary: Lois twisted Clark's arm into cooking for her date with Superman. He's not happy about her dating another guy.

The curse of super-hearing (Drabble) by Kathryn84
1 kB (112 words)
Story

Dessert by 90stvfangirl
3 kB (512 words)
Story | Story (AO3)
Summary: Clark drops by while Lois is working out. Added scene for 'Metallo' after the frozen yogurt incident.

Dinner Date by CalliopeWayne
15 kB (2,583 words)
Story (AO3)
Summary: Lois has a date with Superman but things get complicated when his clone arrives instead.

Disaster by Queen of the Capes
8 kB (1,285 words)
Story

District K: Injustice by AmandaK
19 kB (3,409 words)
Story

Don't Wanna Say Goodbye by bakasi
53 kB (9,717 words)
Story

The End by Queen of The Capes
6 kB (917 words)
Story

Fade to Black: Honeymoon In My Mind by lovetvfan
59 kB (11,004 words)
Story (nFanfic)
Summary: After that incredible kiss at the Lexord hotel in Honeymoon in Metropolis, Lois and Clark attempt to get a good night's sleep with little success. They are both more than a little frustrated and need to take matters into their own hands...

Fade to Black: Never on Sunday But Maybe Just For Tonight by lovetvfan
57 kB (10,600 words)
Story (nFanfic)
Summary: Another installment in the Fade To Black Series, this one takes place at the end of the episode "Never On Sunday". Baron Sunday has been defeated but he's not gone. Clark wrestles with the knowledge that fear can have some truly terrifying consequences. Can Lois prove to him that love is stronger than fear?

Falling Asleep Together (Awwgust #1) by CalliopeWayne
7 kB (1,141 words)
Story (AO3)
Summary: Clark is reeling from his fight with Parasite and considering giving up being Superman.

Falling For a Farm Boy by Female Hawk
354 kB (64,184 words)
Story

Fireworks by AmandaK
17 kB (2,990 words)
Story

First Kiss by AmandaK
7 kB (1,133 words)
Story

First Kiss by CalliopeWayne
4 kB (695 words)
Story (AO3)
Summary: Kal-El failed to save Lois and lost her before their relationship had a chance to grow. He is given a second chance when a Lois from another earth travels to his doomed world.

Flight to Remember by AmandaK
11 kB (2,015 words)
Story

For the Man Who Has Everything (Lois) by CalliopeWayne
22 kB (3,784 words)
Story (AO3)
Summary: Lois is determined to give Superman the best birthday party ever! Hard to do that when the birthday boy doesn't show up. She's surprised to find the Man of Steel stress baking in her apartment.Can she mend the wounds the black mercy left?

A Friend In Need by bakasi
19 kB (3,593 words)
Story

A Fuzzy Reminder by Queen of the Capes
1 kB (161 words)
Story

Here I Am by Toomi8
18 kB (3,300 words)
Story

I Will Always Love You by AmandaK
17 kB (3,260 words)
Story

IBM: All Fallen Down by JadedEvie
9 kB (1,431 words)
Story

IBM: Pont Neuf by JadedEvie
34 kB (6,093 words)
Story
Summary: Lois isn’t having a good day, but Superman had a great one. Whose mood will come out on top by the end of the night? A scene somewhere amidst Barbarians at the Planet.

An Icy Reception by Queen of the Capes
9 kB (1,484 words)
Story

I'll Be Home For Christmas - Her Story by Queen of the Capes
43 kB (7,465 words)
Story

I'll Be Home For Christmas - His Story by Queen of the Capes
48 kB (8,527 words)
Story

I'm Sorry, Lois by Queen of the Capes
5 kB (815 words)
Story

In The Depths Of My Eyes by bakasi
33 kB (6,148 words)
Story

In The Depths of My Eyes by bakasi
52 kB (9,530 words)
Story (nFanfic)

Inside An Irresponsible Mind by bakasi
9 kB (1,462 words)
Story

Interview with a Spaceman by CalliopeWayne
21 kB (3,670 words)
Story (AO3)
Summary: Lois is preparing for a date with her best friend and second guessing her choice to go out with the bumbling idiot when Superman drops by for an interview.

Into the Woods by Queen of the Capes
21 kB (3,590 words)
Story

I've Got You by CalliopeWayne
12 kB (2,121 words)
Story (AO3)
Summary: Clark asks Lois out on a date, but she doesn't want to risk losing her best friend. Things get complicated when she meets Superman for the first time.

Krypto Meets A New Friend by Morgana
5 kB (896 words)
Story

Krypto's First Sleepover (Walking the Dog) by 90stvfangirl
2 kB (348 words)
Story | Story (AO3)
Summary: After Clark's landlord kicks Krypto out of his apartment, a reluctant Lois takes him.

Last Moments Together by CalliopeWayne
16 kB (2,711 words)
Story (AO3)
Summary: Lois learns Clark is Superman and has to say goodbye.

Lois and The Spaceship by 90stvfangirl
6 kB (995 words)
Story | Story (AO3)
Summary: Lois and Lex find a spaceship. Like a real one. Set Pre-Pilot in the Alt-World.

Lost Bet by CalliopeWayne
8 kB (1,343 words)
Story (AO3)
Summary: Cat Grant bets Lois and Clark finally hooked up. Angela and Jimmy disagree. There's only one way to find out who is right. Go to the source.

Love, Houdini by bakasi
9 kB (1,572 words)
Story

The Mammoth in the Room by Queen of the Capes
38 kB (6,699 words)
Story

Man of Steal by 90stvfangirl
4 kB (588 words)
Story (AO3)
Summary: Lois is about to find out something......interesting about the ring her fiancé gave her.

Morning After by CalliopeWayne
9 kB (1,560 words)
Story (AO3)
Summary: The morning after Lois and Clark's first time. Lois is too emotional to realize what is happening to her.

Movie Night by Queen of the Capes
6 kB (1,030 words)
Story

Moving In Together by CalliopeWayne
20 kB (3,467 words)
Story (AO3)
Summary: Lois struggles to tell Clark the good news after a crazy scientist siphons off Superman's life force. Clark surprises her when he buys them a new house.

Music (Awwgust #3) by CalliopeWayne
5 kB (773 words)
Story (AO3)
Summary: Clark Kent did the impossible and got Lois tickets to Whitesnake and she can’t enjoy it because the idiot is miserable.

Mutually Oblivious by CalliopeWayne
18 kB (3,067 words)
Story (AO3)
Summary: Clark thinks Lois is just stressed and eating her feelings. He can never imagine the truth.

Not for Lack of Trying by bakasi
9 kB (1,650 words)
Story

Now You're Gone by CalliopeWayne
874 kB (156,850 words)
Story (AO3)
Summary: Aliens and humans were not meant to procreate. Lois and Clark had tried before. Yet, here she was pregnant again. She hoped this time will be different.Before she can come to terms with being pregnant Clark is taken from her in the most brutal way.

Out Of The Fire by Toomi8
9 kB (1,640 words)
Story

The People Vs Lois Lane by CalliopeWayne
4 kB (687 words)
Story (AO3)
Summary: Lois was framed for murder but she's starting to doubt her innocence.

A Personal Favor by Queen of the Capes
3 kB (447 words)
Story

Pheromones My Lovely by CalliopeWayne
48 kB (8,518 words)
Story (AO3)
Summary: Lois is sprayed with a perfume that enhances her attraction to Clark Kent.

Proud of My Son by Shallowford
4 kB (623 words)
Story

Raising Kids by CalliopeWayne
6 kB (1,074 words)
Story (AO3)
Summary: Lois and Clark take their kids to Walt Disney world.

The Ring by Toomi8
5 kB (814 words)
Story

Rules are rules by 90stvfangirl
3 kB (465 words)
Story (AO3)
Summary: Clark has a new pet, unfortunately his apartment has a strict no pet policy.

Seeds of the Season by AmandaK
6 kB (997 words)
Story

Shared Friend Group by CalliopeWayne
11 kB (1,935 words)
Story (AO3)
Summary: Lucy sets up a doctor's appointment for Lois. It is a small world, the doctor turns out to be Chen's father.

Sign of the Times: Behind the Mask by Queen of the Capes
14 kB (2,432 words)
Story

Six Seconds by AmandaK
6 kB (1,070 words)
Story
Summary: Clark makes a desperate decision which will change the course of his life forever.

Smart Kids Revisited by AmandaK
41 kB (7,390 words)
Story

SnapShot by 90stvfangirl
7 kB (1,058 words)
Story | Story (AO3)
Summary: It’s Christmas in Metropolis…but which Metropolis?

SotT: Only the Beginning by Queen of the Capes
9 kB (1,556 words)
Story

Space (Shuttle) Pilot by BlindPassenger
32 kB (5,540 words)
Story

The Story I've Never Seen by Shallowford
2 kB (244 words)
Story

A Strange Visit by Queen of the Capes
8 kB (1,339 words)
Story

Suits by 90stvfangirl
7 kB (1,142 words)
Story | Story (AO3)
Summary: Lois gets thrown out of the plane in Strange Visitor and is rescued by someone unexpected. A What if...?

Then and Now by Queen of the Capes
4 kB (597 words)
Story

There Will Never Be Another Tonight by Toomi8
6 kB (1,030 words)
Story

Too Late by 90stvfangirl
3 kB (542 words)
Story | Story (AO3)
Summary: Lois is thinking about leaving The Planet and Perry's looking to hire someone new.

Travelers by BlindPassenger
6 kB (1,013 words)
Story

A True Friend by Kathryn84
6 kB (1,009 words)
Story

True Hates Kiss by 90stvfangirl
4 kB (721 words)
Story | Story (AO3)
Summary: To break a curse, Clark must get close to Lex.

Try Not to Change Anything by AmandaK
7 kB (1,116 words)
Story

Twice the Love to Share by Aurore
160 kB (27,631 words)
Story

Under the Yellow Sun by CalliopeWayne
24 kB (4,190 words)
Story (AO3)
Summary: George Hanson didn't think he would ever see Superman again, not after the trauma he lived through in Alaska. He was simply happy the boy survived to do more good work. He didn't regret saving him for a second, even after his wife was killed.

Undercover Reporter: Resurrection by JadedEvie
213 kB (38,275 words)
Story
Summary: Following a stray clue thrown to her in the aftermath of the Luthor Corp collapse, Lois finds herself partnered with Superman in a dangerous investigation. In the meantime, the pair attempt to make their fledgling relationship work around their new normal, never knowing that this story may be Lois' last. A sequel to Undercover Reporter (Revelation), this story is set in Season 2, post-TOGOM, in a world where Clark never make it back to his old life.

Walk the Dog Challenge 1: The Gift by Queen of the Capes
6 kB (999 words)
Story

Walk the Dog Challenge 2: Doggoneit by Hatman
4 kB (551 words)
Story

Walk the Dog Challenge 3: Rules are Rules by 90stvfangirl
5 kB (808 words)
Story

Walk The Dog Challenge 4: A Walk In The Park by bakasi
3 kB (486 words)
Story

Walk the Dog Challenge: Pepper (Streaky's) Story by Morgana
4 kB (696 words)
Story

Walk the Dog: Storytime by AmandaK
3 kB (542 words)
Story

Walking in a Winter Wonderland by Queen of the Capes
19 kB (3,313 words)
Story

Wedding by CalliopeWayne
3 kB (528 words)
Story (AO3)
Summary: Perry walks Lois down the aisle and is an emotional wreck.

Wedding Planning by CalliopeWayne
10 kB (1,714 words)
Story (AO3)
Summary: Alice and Lucy take over wedding planning for Lois and Clark.

Welcome To The Tundra by Queen of the Capes
13 kB (2,190 words)
Story

Wildcard by CalliopeWayne
35 kB (6,130 words)
Story (AO3)
Summary: Clark is sick of Lois lying to him. He accidentally wound up in Gotham after an argument with Lois and decides to have some fun with Harley & Ivy.

Winter by Morgana
23 kB (4,150 words)
Story

You're not a wizard, Clark by 90stvfangirl
6 kB (860 words)
Story | Story (AO3)
Summary: After an unusual event, Martha and Jonathon decide it's time for Clark to know the truth about himself.

You're the Devil in Disguise by CalliopeWayne
9 kB (1,580 words)
Story (AO3)
Summary: Perry White stumbles on Clark Kent in the storage room and assumes the worst.

You're the only person I wanted to be with tonight by 90stvfangirl
5 kB (690 words)
Story | Story (AO3)
Summary: Lois & Clark go on their movie date post episode Resurrection


List of eligible new authors
AmandaK
Aurore
CalliopeWayne
drdeathdefying

---

Have a question? Ask it here! Or you can PM any of the K-Com members or reach out on Discord too! You can also send an email to us here: Kcom@kerthawards.com

In order to help you find all things Kerth for this year, we’ve created a TOC for all the 🏆TOC for Kerth Awards 2025 Posts🏆.

The Kerth Committee
(KSaraSara, Michael, lovetvfan, and Evie)

PS: For those of you interested in the technical details, the list is aggregated using a little tool I'm creating. You can check it out here on our Github site: https://github.com/LCFanfic.

Hello, FoLCs!

Welcome to the 2025 Kerth Award Season!

We’ve been working diligently behind the scenes to make sure the eligible stories list is accurate – and we’re looking forward to sharing that with you all soon! After that, we’ll be on the hunt for some volunteers for both presenting during the awards ceremony and helping out with activities and such in the lead up to the ceremony. But in the meantime, we’re excited to announce the categories, activities and the schedule for this year’s Kerth Awards.

~~~

2025 Schedule:

Activities: These will start this week and will end on March 30th (just before the voting begins). This year will include writing challenges, quizzes and a scavenger hunt of eligible stories!

Nomination period: From March 9th to March 23rd, we’ll have a nominations form up for everyone to submit their favorites for each category!

Post Nominee Shortlist: April 1st (no kidding!)

Voting period: From April 6th to April 20th, the official ballot for final votes will be open.

Ceremony: Saturday, April 26th, at a time yet to be determined (but we’ll set up a poll and do our best to accommodate the majority of FoLCs across the world).

~~~

2025 Category List:

Best Micro-Short Story (1-5kb)
Best Super-Short Story (5-10kb)
Best Short Story (11-50kb)
Best Mid-Length or Long Story (51-200kb or 201+kb)
Best Comedy Story
Best Dramatic Story
Best Waffy Story
Best Revelation
Best Episode Adaptation (rewrite/fix-it/in-betweenie)
Best Elseworlds/AU Story
Best Kiss
Best Original Character/Supporting Character
Best Challenge Response
Best New Author
Best Overall Story
Best Commenter/Feedback Giver
Best Original Fanart


2025 Category Descriptions:

Best Micro-Short Story (1-5kb)
These are stories that are up to approximately 900 words.

Best Super-Short Story (6-10kb)
These are stories that are up to approximately 900 to 1,800 words.

Best Short Story (11-50kb)
These are stories that are approximately 1,800 to 9,000 words.

Best Mid-Length or Long Story (51-200kb or 201+kb)
These are stories that are longer than approximately 9,000 words.

Note: These length categories will be officially counted by kb. But since we know that a lot of people have a better understanding of word count these days, we’ve provided the approximate range for each category. Please note that these are approximate based on the average of 5.5 bytes per word (and rounded), and because they are averages, they won’t always correspond directly with the actual word count of the stories.

Best Comedy Story
These are the stories that made you laugh out loud this year. Whether they’re full of puns or totally absurd or just a series of hilariously unfortunate events, the purpose of these stories is to amuse the reader and make them laugh.

Best Dramatic Story
Dramatic stories keep us on the edge of our seats. They’re filled with exciting and suspenseful events and can be similar in tone to the show's episodes or tackle a more serious subject matter. They will generally, though not always, contain a significant A-plot.

Best Waffy Story
Ah, those Warm and Fuzzy Feelings. These fun, feel-good stories are full of the cozy, happy moments that make us smile and the romantic moments that make us swoon.

Best Revelation
Clark Kent is….Superman?! No matter how many revelations we read, the readers always want more. This category honors the best of them – whether that means shocking, hilarious, or tear-jerking. Although Lois is most often the one to discover Clark’s secret, any fic that reveals Clark’s secret to any character is eligible in this category.

Best Episode Adaptation (rewrite/fix-it/in-betweenie)
Episode Adaptations alter the events of, or start from a specific point in, a particular episode. This includes full episode rewrites, alternate endings, and in-betweenies that fill in the little moments we didn’t see on screen.

Best Elseworlds/AU Story
Alternate Universe and Elseworlds stories tell the tale of Lois and/or Clark in a world other than the one we saw on television. This includes stories about the Alt-Clark and his Lois that we met on the show and new versions of our favorite characters wholly created and imagined by the author. This category includes stories set pre-Pilot, stories set outside of Metropolis, stories set outside of the years the show ran on television, and stories where major changes have been made to the backstory/nature of the characters. This category also includes Crossover stories.

Best Kiss
“Since the invention of the kiss there have been five kisses that were rated the most passionate, the most pure. This one left them all behind.” Which kiss left them all behind this year?

Best Original Character/Supporting Character
The show may be called Lois and Clark, but sometimes another character really steals the show. This award honors characters other than Lois or Clark whom an author has taken extra care to make shine. This includes any of the original supporting cast – good or evil – as well as new original characters. Characters are eligible whether they are the star of their own story or a supporting character in Lois and Clark’s story who captures the audience’s heart.

Best Challenge Response
This award honors the extra creativity required to craft a story around a certain set of parameters. This includes all stories written in response to challenges and ficathons posted on the Lois and Clark Fanfic Message Board (any challenge regardless of the year it was posted; but only story responses that were posted in 2024 are eligible). This also includes Discord dares and specific request fulfillments.

Best New Author
They may have written just one or might have managed more than a dozen! No matter how much fic they give us, we’re always grateful for new authors, especially after 30 years!

Best Overall Story
The best of the best. Your very favorite. The one story you would recommend first to a new reader. The story you come back to again and again. All stories posted this year are eligible for this award.

Best Commenter/Feedback Giver
Public feedback is the lifeblood of this community. Whether it’s the brief but unfailing encouragement of our most faithful readers or the gushing comments with detailed feedback or the hilariously absurd predictions and suggestions about where the story is headed…feedback threads are every bit as entertaining to read as the stories. This award honors the FOLCs who take time out of their busy days to leave feedback for authors. Without them, there would be no stories – they keep the writers writing and the readers reading.

Best Original Fanart
This new category honors the artists among us who make creative content derived from the show. Any original piece of fanart – banners, posters, trailers, music videos, videos, podcasts, etc. – shared publicly in 2024 is eligible.

~~~

A few notes as we wrap up...

As you all know, the K-Com reviews the categories list every year to ensure it best fits the body of work that our authors have submitted in a given year. Sometimes, like last year, there are so many short stories that we need to add the Micro-Short category! You’ll notice that the Micro-Short category remains, but Best NFic isn't on the 2025 list. This year, our pool of authors wrote fewer of our beloved spicy stories (and some are still in progress)! We want all categories to remain competitive, and so this year’s NFic stories will be added to next year’s eligible list. In order to honor this category at the awards, we’ll be featuring this year’s Nfic stories during the ceremony with their own introduction segments! These segments will be scattered throughout the ceremony and will showcase the current eligible stories.

Stay tuned for our list of eligible stories and fanart, a call to volunteer and join in on the ceremony, and activities to get us all pumped (and read up!) for the award season!

________________________________________________

Have a question? Ask it here! Or you can PM any of the K-Com members or reach out on Discord too! You can also send an email to us here: Kcom@kerthawards.com

In order to help you find all things Kerth for this year, we’ve created a TOC for all the 🏆TOC for Kerth Awards 2025 Posts🏆.

The Kerth Committee
(KSaraSara, Michael, lovetvfan, and Evie)

Here's the list of every single Kerth post for the 🏆 Kerth Awards 2025 🏆! We'll do our best to keep this updated with every post we make.

Have a question? Ask on any of the boards posts or PM any of the K-Com members or reach out on Discord too! You can also send an email to us here: Kcom@kerthawards.com

The Kerth Committee
(KSaraSara, Darth Michael, lovetvfan, and JadedEvie)

27th Annual 🏆 Kerth Awards 2025 🏆: Announcement Post
🏆 Kerth Awards 2025🏆: Official Kick-Off Post
🏆 Kerth Awards 2025🏆: Eligible Story List

Chapter 3

Lois and Kal entered the banquet hall with minimal fanfare. Although their marriage had been required for the signing of the treaty, now that the treaty was signed it seemed that their nuptials had faded into the background. There was a general feeling of celebration about the room, but it was dampened by the still-present tension between the humans and Kryptonians. While some mingling occurred between the two groups, they mostly remained segregated – likely due to the language barrier and predisposed prejudice. It would be some time before either group felt comfortable with the other.

Lois looked up, questioningly, at Kal as they stood just inside the room. He shrugged and shook his head, indicating that he didn’t know what they were supposed to do now either. They had talked in the bridal chamber for a while longer, sharing simple facts about each other. Lois had told him about her mother and sister and a bit about growing up in Metropolis. Kal had mentioned his brother and sister-in-law and, at her prompting, told her a bit about New Krypton.

They finally decided that they had lingered long enough and that they would have plenty of time to talk later. But now that they were at the reception, Lois wondered if they should have just stayed away – it wasn’t like they were missed.

“I thought we’d be getting a proper wedding reception,” Lois commented. “Seems to me like they’ve forgotten that part.” Once again, she was struck by the fact that her mother and sister weren’t there, that she had no bridesmaids or other friends waiting to congratulate her. She recognized a few of the human dignitaries meandering through the hall, but the only person present who actually knew her was her father and she couldn’t see him anywhere at the moment.

Kal offered her an apologetic smile. “I guess they’re all caught up in celebrating the treaty. The war is finally over – thanks to you.”

Lois started at his words and her gaze met his kind eyes. “And you. We both did our parts for this.”

Kal gently cupped her cheek with his hand. “But you’re giving up more. I don’t think any of them realize what you’ve done for both our worlds. But I do. Thank you.”

Lois felt her cheeks heating up and she stepped away, looking for something to distract her from whatever it was she was feeling after his words and his touch. She spied a passing waiter with a tray of drinks and took the opportunity to grab a drink for herself. She took a sip without looking at it and almost spit it back into her glass.

Forcing herself to swallow, she stared at the glass in her hand. Inside was a dark blue, syrupy liquid but it wasn’t sweet. Rather, it was extremely dry and tasted almost bitter. “What is this?”

Kal looked torn between laughing and wincing but he managed to keep his voice even as he replied, “Squid ink.”

“What!?” Lois felt her eyes grow wide in surprise.

Kal chuckled. “It’s not really. That’s just what I call it. It’s a Kryptonian beverage, called sk’ild, often served at celebrations but it’s something of an acquired taste. I don’t like it either.” He smiled apologetically and then nodded at something across the room. “I think I see some punch over there. Would you like a glass?”

Lois shrugged. “Sure.”

“Be right back.”

Kal walked away, leaving Lois alone for the first time since the wedding ceremony. She took a deep breath and tried to let that sink in as she meandered slowly through the crowded room.

She was a married woman – married to a man she’d only just met. But, so far, everything was okay. Kal was nice and he seemed to genuinely care about her feelings. He seemed to have a solid head on his shoulders. He was dedicated to the cause of peace. He had a sense of humor. And it didn’t hurt that he was really good looking. Her chances of having a semi-decent marriage were looking pretty good. At the very least, she could see them becoming friends. That was something.

“Lois,” a voice called. She turned to see her father approaching and felt something in her chest loosen.

“Daddy.” She met her father in a hug and suddenly all of the tension she’d felt over the last few hours came undone. She shut her eyes against the sting of tears, determined not to cry in front of all these people, but she was unable to suppress the shudder that went through her.

“Are you alright, Princess?” her father whispered. “Did he hurt you?” Even at a whisper, the threat in his tone was evident.

Lois pulled back swiftly and looked him in the eye to reassure him. “No, Daddy. I’m fine. Really. Kal is – He’s been a complete gentleman. I guess I’m just feeling a little overwhelmed.”

“Well, you’ve had a big day,” he replied, leaning back to look at her. “Your entire life is changing and you’ve had no time to prepare.” He tried to give her a smile but it looked more like a grimace. “I am so sorry, Sweetheart. I know you didn’t really want this. You are so brave and I am so proud of you. So is your mother. You know she and Lucy wish they could be here.”

Lois had to blink quickly to keep herself from tearing up again at her father’s words. “I know. We said our goodbyes at home.” She stepped back a bit and smiled as she remembered something she had to tell him. “Oh but, could you let them know that I should be back in about three years – if everything goes well, that is? Kal told me that he is studying to become the next ambassador to Earth. We’ll be able to live here.”

“Oh, yes,” her father nodded. “Jor-El mentioned something about that when I was speaking with him earlier. He said his son is quite the Earth enthusiast.”

“And his English is perfect. I was worried that we were going to have to make up some weird sign language to communicate. But I didn’t have anything to worry about after all. Of course, I’m going to have to learn Kryptonian at some point but foreign languages have never really come easily to me so I am glad that I’ll have at least one person to talk to.

President Lane chuckled at his daughters babbling. “Well, you’ll have more than one. Jor-El speaks English as well and he said that most of his family speaks at least some. I’m sure you’ll get by until you can pick up the language.” His expression sobered. “I only wish you didn’t have to leave.”

“There you are.”

Lois turned to see Kal approaching with two glasses of punch. “Oh, sorry. I wandered a bit.” She took the glass he handed her and thanked him before turning back towards her father to make introductions. “Kal, this is my father. Daddy, this is Kal-El… my husband.”

Kal immediately reached out to shake her father’s hand. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, President Lane. I’m only sorry we weren’t able to meet sooner. I feel like I ought to have… asked for permission to marry your daughter.”

Lois scoffed and crossed her arms over her chest. “Seriously?” she asked before her father could reply. “Where would you get an idea like that?”

Kal blinked a few times in surprise. “I just thought… well that’s how things are done on Earth.”

“Maybe fifty years ago or… well I suppose that kind of thing is still done in some hick towns out west,” Lois paused a moment and Kal opened his mouth to say something but she cut him off. “Let’s get one thing straight – nobody tells me what I can or cannot do. I make my rules and I live by them. I call the shots. I don’t need my father’s or anyone else’s permission to get married. I made this choice. You got that?”

Kal gulped and almost seemed to have to pry his jaw up from the floor. “Got it,” he finally replied.

Her father chuckled and patted Kal on the shoulder. “Good choice, son. You’re right though. It’s unfortunate that we were unable to meet before today. You two should have had the chance to get to know each other a bit. Pushing this treaty through has been a bit of a whirlwind.”

“It certainly has.” Kal agreed. “And security has been so tight – I’m not sure we would have been able to arrange a meeting even if we’d had the time.”

“Indeed,” President Lane agreed. He looked up and nodded to someone off to the side and then turned back to Lois. “Speaking of time – I’m afraid I don’t have much even now. I’m sorry, Princess, but I’m needed in another meeting in just a few minutes. No rest for the president.”

“I know, Daddy,” Lois said. Her father’s work – first as a general and then as the president had always left him precious little time for his family. She hugged him again quickly.

“I’ll try to see you again before I leave,” he promised. “And just think – by the time you get back, I’ll be retired. No more politics for this old general. Now, I leave you with this young man and I trust that you’ll keep him in line.”

“Don’t worry, Daddy. I think I can handle this one.”

With another wave, her father departed, weaving through the crowds with his secret service men, and Lois turned back to her new husband.

Kal crossed his arms over his chest and tilted his head slightly to the side with a smirk. “You think you can handle me, huh?”

Lois returned the smirk with one of her own and patted his chest playfully. “Oh yeah, spaceboy . I’ve got you figured out.”

“Kal!” Another voice called from across the room before he could reply. They were soon joined by another couple wearing Kryptonian robes emblazoned with the blue S-like symbol for the House of El. Lois didn’t think the man was Jor-El – he was too young and she’d seen a few pictures and holo-vids of the First Lord – so, she thought, he must be Kal’s brother, Ching. And she thought the woman was, perhaps, his wife.

The man started speaking in Kryptonian, saying something which caused Kal to chuckle and shake his head. “English please, Ching. For Lois’ sake.”

“Ah, yes. Many apologies, my lady,” Ching turned to her and spoke in slow, formal English, with a strong Kryptonian accent. “You will have to forgive me though. I am afraid my English is quite poor compared to my brother’s.”

Lois smiled kindly. Accent or not, he spoke better than many of the boys she’d gone to school with. “Not at all. I think you speak it well.”

“Well, I have a good teacher,” Ching nodded to his brother. “Although I fear his manners are quite lacking as he has failed to introduce us.” Kal sputtered a moment in indignation but Ching did not give him the opportunity to cut in. “Allow me to do the honors – I am Ching-El, brother to this clod you have so unfortunately married.”

Lois grinned at the obvious teasing while Kal glared at his brother beside her.

Ching gestured to the woman by his side as he continued. “And this is my dear wife, Zara.”

“It’s a pleasure to meet you both,” Lois replied. “I’m Lois Lane… or I guess it would be El now?” She frowned, unsure how name changes worked for married women on New Krypton. If it were up to her, she would keep her maiden name, but she got the feeling that wouldn’t slide here. She looked to Kal for guidance.

“Well, on New Krypton, a woman’s name is usually followed by the name of her father or her husband.” Kal explained, putting aside his annoyance at his brother. “Formally, you will be known as Lois Kal-El. Informally, you can just go by Lois.”

Lois sighed but nodded. She hadn’t really considered the part about changing her name when she agreed to this. A part of her felt like she was being stripped of her identity. She quickly buried those thoughts away. It didn’t matter. She’d always be Lois Lane in her heart – even if she had to go by a different name on the outside.

“Kal.” Ching spoke up again. “Zara and I have a gift for you.”

Kal’s face showed his surprise and Lois wondered if wedding gifts were unusual of New Krypton or if it was just unexpected given the unusual nature of their wedding. “What?” he asked. “You didn’t have to get me anything.”

“We know. But we think you’ll really appreciate this. Come with us.” Ching and Zara swiftly stepped away, leaving Kal and Lois little choice but to follow. Kal glanced at Lois in question but she didn’t know any more than he did. She shrugged and then they both followed the other couple.

On the other side of the Great Hall, Ching led them through a door, not unlike the one Lois had used when she first entered the room earlier that day, then through another series of hallways which all looked very much the same. They finally stopped in front of a door, which Ching opened and gestured for his brother to enter first.

Lois followed Kal into the room and nearly collided with his broad back. He had stopped short just through the doorway and didn’t seem to even be breathing anymore. “Kal, what-?”

But he didn’t seem to hear her. All at once, he came alive again, shaking his head and slowly stepping forward with a look of disbelief on his face.

Finally managing to peer around her husband, Lois noticed an older, human couple standing in the room. They both wore glasses and what would probably be called their “Sunday best” in some small town down south or out west. They had a kindly look about them and they both smiled brightly. The woman looked like she might cry from happiness.

All of this was strange but what was even stranger was what Kal said next.

“Mom? Dad?”

“Oh, Clark!” the woman exclaimed as she launched herself forward into Kal’s arms. The man soon joined her and Kal embraced them both as the woman rained kisses on his cheeks and forehead.

Lois was very confused.

“Look at how much you’ve grown!” the woman said, stepping back to look at Kal. Kal stood up straight to give her a better look.

“That’s our boy,” the man added proudly.

“I can’t believe you’re here.” Kal said, his hands still on each of their shoulders as though they might vanish if he stopped touching them. “They said civilians wouldn’t be allowed to come.” He eyes darted to Ching. “How did you…?”

Ching smiled warmly. “The guard at the transport center owed me a favor. He ‘took a break’ while I stepped in to bring Mr. and Mrs. Kent here. Unfortunately, this can only be a short visit. My friend will be taking another break in approximately twenty minutes and I will need to see that the Kents are safely home.”

“Thank you, Ching. Thank you so much.” Kal turned back to the couple in front of him. “Twenty minutes… it isn’t much, but after all these years… I’ve missed you both so much.”

Lois had no idea what was going on, but this human man and woman clearly meant a great deal to Kal. His voice was thick with emotion and he kept blinking as though he were holding back tears. It seemed as though he were greeting his parents after a long absence except… these weren’t his parents.

Before she could ponder the matter further, the woman stepped away from Kal and stood in front of her. “And you must be Lois.” She took Lois’ hand in both of hers. “You sure are pretty. It’s okay if I tell her that, isn’t it, Clark?” she added, looking back at Kal.

Kal shrugged. “I don’t know, Mom. Ask Lois.”

“Thanks.” Lois replied slowly, still trying to get a gauge on who these people were.

“Lois,” Kal moved to her side. “This is Johnathan and Martha Kent. They’re my parents.”

Lois shook her head. “I don’t understand. I thought… I mean, you’re Kryptonian. Your father is…”

“Jor-El. Yes.” Kal nodded. “It’s kind of a long story but… I came to Earth as a baby and the Kents adopted me. I promise I’ll tell you the rest later. Right now…” he looked back at the Kents. “We don’t have a lot of time.”

Lois was still confused but she nodded and stepped back, allowing Kal to reconnect with his long, lost adoptive parents. As she watched them together, she found herself wondering about her new husband. Just who was this man she had married?

Continuation of Open Arms Part 3

“Martha!” Jonathan screamed, limping into the kitchen, baby nestled in one arm. “I think Clark is broken!”

The poor kid cried so hard his face turned purple. His thick curls were plastered to his sweaty brow. The diaper was loaded and smelled worse than Grandpa Hirum’s socks. In the last twenty minutes, he had changed Clark seventeen times. Jonathan was tired, smelled like baby dung, and his leg was throbbing. Clark bawled as if he felt Daddy’s pain.

“Martha!” Jonathan called into the empty kitchen. He frowned. Martha was always in the kitchen. “Marty. Where are you? I need you!” He rocked an inconsolable Clark back and forth. His damn leg started to cramp. He limped to the fridge where a note was posted.

Out making deliveries. Don’t wait up.

Ps. Stop feeding Clark ice cream.

Oops. So maybe that was why Clark was pooping so much. The little guy was super strong. Jonathan didn’t think a little bit of ice cream would hurt. The sweets made Clark happy. When the baby was happy so was Daddy. He wasn’t supposed to be like other babies.

The baby burped and farted at the same time. Clark squirmed and whimpered weakly. Jonathan braced Clark on his shoulder and patted down his sweaty back. His tiny fists clenched Daddy’s collar. He scrunched up his face in misery.

“You’re not supposed to get sick, dude,” Jonathan talked over the crying. He was an alien. Alien babies were supposed to be stronger than regular babies. “This is one big ploy to force your Ma to come home early!” he screamed senselessly at the baby. “I’m not falling for this. Stop throwing shitty tantrums!”

Clark cried harder and his diaper got heavier. He hiccupped and his diaper exploded. Everywhere. Poop down Daddy’s throat, splatters on the ceiling and fan. The fan spun wildly and dropped gooey, brown muck onto Jonathan’s face which already resembled the inside of a diaper. Reflexively Jonathan dropped the baby. Clark slammed to the floor, kicking and screaming. His itty-bitty foot kicked a table leg. The table collapsed like toy building blocks. The noise scared Clark and he bawled even harder.

“Holy cow, I’m so sorry baby!” Jonathan dropped his crutch and slowly bent to pick Clark up. He winced and straightened his posture.

“Ba-bar!” Clark reached for Jonathan, eyes puffy and swollen. “BA-BAR!”

He didn’t want to leave Clark on the floor, but it was too painful to bend down. The stupid bullet tore through his knee calf. He was a smidge miffed that Martha left him alone with an infant. He sighed and ran his fingers through his blonde hair. He had no room to be pissed. With Jonathan unable to run the farm, they needed the extra income to pay the medical bills.

Jonathan bottled the pain and crouched down to retrieve Clark from a puddle of piss and poop. He wheezed weakly as Jonathan held him. His crutch laid a stone throw away but it felt like miles. He won’t be able to reach it. It was taking all his willpower to stay upright. “I don’t know what to do,” Jonathan rocked Clark back and forth, who continued to cry. “I’m so sorry,” Jonathan winced. He never meant to hurt him.

He took stock of the kitchen. It looked like a bomb had erupted, a diaper bomb. He will need to clean that before Martha gets home. Clean. That’s it! He could bathe Clark. That should be easy enough. He limped to the downstairs bathroom by the entrance. He purposively built in a shower to easily rinse off after a grueling day in the field.

He discarded his dirty clothes in the sink, sat on the toilet with a groan, and grabbed the shower head. Hot water spurted out. Clark stilled and gaped at the shower head in wonder.

“Huh, you like that?” Jonathan asked, gently rinsing Clark’s hair under the water. He blinked up at the spewing water curiously. He lathered soap over Clark, kneading it into his flesh and wiping off the excess poop with a face cloth. The tiled floor turned brown from the waste. Jonathan aimed the shower head at the floor, forcing the ick down the drain.

Clark hated having the water off him and started to bawl. “It’s okay, son,” Jonathan hurriedly skirted Clark with more water. Clark’s mouth trembled and he leaned against Daddy’s bare chest. He felt a fierce protectiveness for the little guy. He wished he could freeze this moment and keep Clark safe in his arms forever. Before he knew it Clark would be grown. He will have questions Jonathan won’t have the answers to.

Jonathan massaged Clark’s damp back. He hiccupped and coughed up flem. Jonathan wiped his mouth clean. Clark scrunched his face in utter misery. “Oh, no,” Jonathan said, just as another wave of diarrhea hit Clark and he pooped on Jonathan’s lap. “So much for cleaning you,” Jonathan wrinkled his nose in disgust. “Well, you wanted a baby,” he said to himself as he wiped him and Clark clean. “You should come with a warning label kiddo.” Clark teared up in answer, screaming in pain. “I’m sorry, I don’t know what else to do. Your Ma should be home soon.” He hoped. At this rate, they’d have to take Clark to a doctor.

The lights flickered off and on. Jonathan swore. “I just changed these lightbulbs!” he lamented. He turned the water off and set Clark in the sink. He rummaged around the cramped bathroom. He found the spare diapers Martha kept inside the cabinet above the toilet. He limped back to Clark, his leg itching. He dressed his bottom, doubling up on the diapers. Hopefully, three diapers will be enough to hold in his explosive poop. He’d deal with the bottom rash that was sure to follow later.

Jonathan ignored the pain and forced himself to stay upright. He turned his back for a second to search for clothes. All of Clark’s clothes were soiled. He swore under his breath. This won’t do. It was in the middle of winter, and Clark couldn’t crawl around naked. He’d get even more sick. He was going to have to do laundry.

“Stay,” he commanded Clark. He gathered the dirty clothes and headed next door to load the washing machine. He was gone for maybe three minutes, but when he returned Clark was fully clothed and sucking on a toy. Jonathan took a double take when he realized Clark was wearing the off-white onesie they found him in. There was a red diamond symbol on his chest. It strangely looked right on him. He didn’t want to question his luck. He was just glad Clark was in clean clothes again.

“That’s supposed to be at Harry’s house,” he pried the orange crystal out of his mouth. “Where did you get that?” Clark wailed so Jonathan returned the crystal. He busied himself cleaning the bathroom, happy to have a moment of peace. Satisfied his handiwork would meet with Martha’s approval, he gathered Clark and returned to the den. He’d clean the kitchen later.

“Daddy needs a nap,” he collapsed onto the couch, nestling Clark over his chest. Clark whimpered and kicked, but he wasn’t as fussy as earlier. Part of Jonathan wanted to set Clark in the crib, but he knew if he did WWIII would happen. He fell asleep to the sound of Clark sobbing quietly.

Jonathan dreamed he was inside a crystalline building. The air smelled like snow and ash which was an interesting combination. He typed furiously on a keyboard, but it didn’t look anything like the bulky keyboard he was used to. It was sleek and almost transparent like a hologram.

“Good afternoon Jor-El.”

The screen behind him flashed on automatically. An icon of three circles flashed on the screen, almost resembling a biohazard sign. “Brainiac, what an unpleasant surprise,” Jonathan said, surprised at the authoritative voice that escaped his mouth.

“I’m awaiting your data,” the computer flashed green.

“Have you been spying on me with your satellites again?” Jonathan challenged. This was nuts. Computers couldn’t hold a conversation with humans. What kind of dream was this?

“The planetary council demands that I analyze your data as soon as you obtain it.”

“You know Brainiac, somewhere in those trillions of file clusters, there’s got to be one that says people don’t like to be spied on.”

“Then why did they create me?”

“A question I often ask myself,” Jonathan said, stunned at the animosity he felt toward an inanimate computer. “Transmission set. It’s feeding time.”

“Data received. Ending transmission.” the screen flashed off.

“You’re welcome, you glutton.”

“DADA!” there was an excited squeal and Clark crawled to his side. He rolled a canister to Daddy, giggling excitedly.

“Hey there, Kal, what do you got there?” Jonathan picked up his son. Clark showed him the canister proudly and unscrewed the lid. A round, feathery critter that looked like the cross between a chick and a fat mouse jumped out. “Oh. Great.” Jonathan watched the critter scamper across the metallic floor. Clark clapped his hands.

“Kal-El was helping me check the solar panels and discovered a new playmate.” a woman stepped into the light. She had the same blue-green eyes as Clark. She wore a long crimson dress accented by armor. Her black hair fell in waves down her back, almost as long as Rapunzel’s.

“I heard you had fun too,” she patted Clark on the back, who was gnawing at Daddy’s necklace.

“Oh, yes,” his voice dripped with sarcasm. “I encountered a very friendly shoggoth,” he grumbled. “All in all, I prefer your arms,” he leaned in and kissed the strange woman with Clark still secure in his arms.

There was a shudder and the earth shifted. Clark started to cry. Mother’s head shot toward the window. There was an icy, gorgeous landscape outside. “We’re moving.”

A large white wolf scampered to Jonathan at the sound of Clark crying. She whimpered and pawed at his legs. Jonathan set Clark next to the wolf. She licked the tears off his face. Clark smiled and hugged her big snout. Jonathan’s heart melted. He had never seen Clark stop crying so fast.

“What forsaken spot are we going to now?” the woman drew his attention away from the tender sight.

“Home, Lara.”

“Home?” Lara gasped.

“That’s right. What’s the matter, five months in this deep freeze not enough for you?”

“No,” she sighed and turned away from her husband to study the rolling white landscape. “It’s just, once we’re back, you’ll start going over the data,” she hugged herself and shuddered. “What if you’re right?”

“We can deal with it. Trust me,” Jonathan kissed the nape of her neck, feeling like such a cheater. There was only one woman he loved. What did this dream mean? “The truth can only help.”

“Oh, Jor-El,” she sighed. “Such a beautiful world, even up here. It’s hard to believe it can all come to an end.”

“You know what we must do if it does.”

“Don’t,” she closed her eyes, tears streaking down her pale face. “You know how long I waited to hold him,” she blinked the tears away. “Everything we had to go through to have a child, free from the constraints of the Council. It will all be for nothing.”

“It won’t be for nothing,” Jonathan cupped Lara’s face. “We made a miracle you and I,” he kissed her temple. “Through Kal-El, our people will survive.”

“And what about Kal?” Lara asked. “He will be alone.”

“He will never be alone,” Jonathan reassured her. “We will always be with him.”

There was another tremor and Clark started to cry. Lara picked him up and soothed him. “Kal, Kal,” she sang to the baby. “You fill my life with light —small and bright my heart soars with each breath,” she sang a lullaby to him.

The sound of crying woke Jonathan up. He lay there confused, mulling over the strange dream. Had that been real? He wasn’t one to have fitful dreams. But that dream stuck with him. He remembered the heat from the futuristic computer, and Lara’s soft, melodic voice. Surely it was just his imagination going crazy after the stressful day.

Clark kicked and wailed. His diaper was heavy again. The stench of poop was more effective than an alarm clock. “Last time I feed ice cream to you,” Jonathan limped back to the bathroom, Clark in tow. At least this time his clothes weren’t soiled. He unzipped the onesie and wiped his tender bottom. He fixed three diapers onto Clark. As he was zipping him up Jonathan caught his reflection in the mirror. Only his reflection didn’t stare back at him.

An exotic woman with thick wavy black hair looked out from the mirror. She was the same woman from his dream. “I’m losing it,” Jonathan pinched the bridge of his nose. Sure enough when he looked at the mirror again only his reflection stared back. There was no strange lady in the house with him.

Clark started to cough so Jonathan pat his back. There was no improvement. Clark got paler as the seconds ticked by. He needed help. ASAP. Calling Martha was out of the question. She would be busy delivering baked goods. Plus Jonathan didn’t want her to think he was incompetent. He called his brother. There was no answer. Figures, he’s probably on a stakeout. He called his sister-in-law next. She answered after the third ring.

“Jill Eileen Kent!” she screamed. “That’s not a toy. Drop it.”

“Is this a bad time?” Jonathan asked.

“It’s always a bad time,” Abigail said. “What do you need?” she snapped.

“Clark has diarrhea,” he said. “Martha won’t be back for another four hours. What do I do?”

“Put him in the sink and keep him hydrated,” she said candidly.

“Mama look a scorpion!!”

Abigail screamed and they got disconnected. As advice goes it was pretty sound. He made room for Clark in the kitchen sink and undressed him so he was only in his diaper. Clark hated the sink and announced his displeasure loudly.

“Come on, son,” Jonathan wiped at his sweaty brow. “Help me out a little bit here. Soon you’ll be too heavy for me to carry.” It was then he realized something odd. The kitchen was spotless. There was no evidence of the earlier eruption. Even the ceiling, where poop clung to the fan, was squeaky clean. “Okay, that’s freaky.”

He ignored Clark's crying and wandered to look outside the window. The truck was still missing, so Martha hadn’t returned. Then who cleaned the kitchen? He faced Clark. His face was red from crying and he squeezed tightly on the faucet. It bent like play dough in his grip.

“No!” Jonathan grabbed Clark’s hand. “That costs money!”

He gave Clark a fork to rearrange. It amused him for five minutes and then he threw the metallic ball onto the floor. The deformed fork rolled under the kitchen table. He blinked at Jonathan expectantly, his lower lip wobbling. Jonathan sighed and gave Clark a spoon. They do say babies are expensive. Besides, who needs utensils when you can eat like cavemen?

Clark made a face Jonathan had learned to fear. It was about to get ugly. “Don’t cry,” Jonathan held his hand. “When you’re weary, feeling small,” Jonathan started to sing. He was no opera singer, but music seemed to Keep Clark calm.

“When tears are in your eyes, I will dry them all . . . ALL,” Clark smiled and reached up for him. Jonathan dutifully lifted Clark out of the sink. “I’m on your side kiddo – and when times get rough and friends just can’t be found,” he spun Clark midair and caught him. “Like a bridge over troubled water!”

Clark gradually fell into a fitful sleep. Jonathan kissed his brow and laid him to rest in the crib. “Sweet dreams, son.” He combed his fingers through Clark’s thick hair. “Get well soon.”

Jonathan gazed into the mirror on the wall, his heart jumping in his throat. The exotic woman was back. She smiled sadly, watching Clark as he slept. She met Jonathan’s eyes with glassy eyes. “Nah Kluv,” she said. “Thank you.” She vanished within the next blink, leaving Jonathan wondering if he had imagined the whole exchange.