From: "L-Soft list server at Indiana University (1.8d)" To: "ARTF@MemoryAlpha.nil" File: "LOISCLA-GENERAL-L LOG9811C" ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 14 Nov 1998 22:14:18 -0700 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Erin Klingler Subject: Question: Clark truly angry?? MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Hi all. :) I needed some help brainstorming part of my fic, and who better to turn to than you all? What I'm trying to remember is, in which episodes (and instances) have we seen Clark truly angry? And even more helpful, can anyone think of times when he's been angry at or with Lois? It would really help me to be able to remember how he's reacted in these situations, and to know what provoked him to get angry. I thought about checking Zoom's site for one of her famous concordances, but I doubt she has one of Clark being angry. So if you guys could help me out, I'd be grateful! I couldn't decide if responses to this were post-worthy, so if you feel they're not, feel free to email me privately. :) Thanks everyone! Erin :) _______________ erink@ida.net Visit my updated LNC website! http://www.ida.net/users/davek/ ***** "No one knows how long they've got. Anyway, it's not the years that count, it's the moments...right now, as they happen." _______________ ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 15 Nov 1998 00:25:48 EST Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: The Zoomway Subject: Re: Question: Clark truly angry?? Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII Content-transfer-encoding: 7bit In a message dated 11/14/98 11:15:47 PM Central Standard Time, erink@IDA.NET writes: << What I'm trying to remember is, in which episodes (and instances) have we seen Clark truly angry? And even more helpful, can anyone think of times when he's been angry at or with Lois? It would really help me to be able to remember how he's reacted in these situations, and to know what provoked him to get angry. >> Clark was angry with Tempus and even threatened him in Meet John Doe, "You stay away from her, or I promise you will see my ethics disappear" Even shoves him. Lex has made him angry, and yes, he's been angry with Lois, and downright nasty to her, check out the 1rst season finale. He was angry with her in Neverending Battle too, when she stole his story. But "hate" inspired anger, he's never felt for Lois ("I could never hate you, Lois") even at his most angry. I think Clark tries to keep the anger in check when he can, because it would be a bad deal if he ever acted on it ;) Zoomway@aol.com ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 14 Nov 1998 23:42:27 -0600 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Kathy Brown Subject: Re: Question: Clark truly angry?? In-Reply-To: <112b6718.364e65dc@aol.com> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" At 12:25 AM -0500 11/15/98, The Zoomway wrote: >Clark was angry with Tempus and even threatened him in Meet John Doe, "You >stay away from her, or I promise you will see my ethics disappear" Even >shoves him. Lex has made him angry, He's been most angry with Lex ... in Double Jeopardy, when he shoves Lex against his apt wall and tells him "do you know how easily I could kill you?!?" > and yes, he's been angry with Lois, and >downright nasty to her, check out the 1rst season finale. I may be in the minority here, but I never saw that "lead lined robe" comment as all that awful. I mean, yes, he was out of line, but he was no where near as mad at her as he has been other times. He was hurt yes, but not extremely angry, IMO. > He was angry with >her in Neverending Battle too, when she stole his story. And don't forget Stop The Presses. I think that's the closest to a real fight between L&C, as contrived as it was. (And it could have been done so much better -- that's the hard part for me, not that we got a fight ep, but that they took a plot with so much potential and made it lame. :P) > But "hate" inspired >anger, he's never felt for Lois ("I could never hate you, Lois") even at his >most angry. I think Clark tries to keep the anger in check when he can, >because it would be a bad deal if he ever acted on it ;) I've read a good chunk of Erin's story, the one she's brainstorming for, and believe me, she is not going for a "Clark hates Lois" story ... just the opposite. It's going to be a good romance. But I also think she's on the right track here, if she's asking for the reason I think she's asking. ;) Hope that helps, Erin! Kathy ______________________ Kathy Brown kathyb@fgi.net KathyB on IRC ______________________ ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 15 Nov 1998 00:48:21 -0500 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Sheila Harper Subject: Re: Question: Clark truly angry?? Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" At 11:42 PM 11/14/98 -0600, Kathy Brown wrote: >> and yes, he's been angry with Lois, and >>downright nasty to her, check out the 1rst season finale. > >I may be in the minority here, but I never saw that "lead lined robe" >comment as all that awful. I mean, yes, he was out of line, but he was no >where near as mad at her as he has been other times. He was hurt yes, but >not extremely angry, IMO. I didn't even think of the lead-lined robe comment, Kathy. I was remembering him pointing a finger at her and telling her to go ahead, get in bed with the devil, or the scene on the street when she wanted to give him a lift and was driving a car from Lex so Clark refused, or the scene at Perry's retirement party. He was angry and nasty toward her. Of course, other than the STP fight, that's the last time I can remember Clark being really angry with Lois. Sheila sharper@cncc.cc.co.us ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 14 Nov 1998 23:53:53 -0600 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Kathy Brown Subject: Re: Question: Clark truly angry?? In-Reply-To: <364CA76F000001A6@cncc.cncc.cc.co.us> (added by cncc.cncc.cc.co.us) Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" At 12:48 AM -0500 11/15/98, Sheila Harper wrote: >I didn't even think of the lead-lined robe comment, Kathy. I was >remembering him pointing a finger at her and telling her to go ahead, get in >bed with the devil, or the scene on the street when she wanted to give him a >lift and was driving a car from Lex so Clark refused, or the scene at >Perry's retirement party. He was angry and nasty toward her. Ah! You are right, Sheila, thanks. My mistake. I didn't even think of those scenes, and he was nasty. (Not that I totally blame him ...) I agree, Erin, those would be good ones for what I think you are going for. Kathy ______________________ Kathy Brown kathyb@fgi.net KathyB on IRC ______________________ ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 15 Nov 1998 01:21:09 EST Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: The Zoomway Subject: Re: Question: Clark truly angry?? Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII Content-transfer-encoding: 7bit In a message dated 11/14/98 11:42:33 PM Central Standard Time, kathyb@FGI.NET writes: << He's been most angry with Lex ... in Double Jeopardy, when he shoves Lex against his apt wall and tells him "do you know how easily I could kill you?!?" >> Yeah, I said he was angry at Lex, but since Clark never really seemed to ever have a decisive victory against Lex, his anger seemed to have a "smoke and mirror" quality. All gab and no substance. >>> may be in the minority here, but I never saw that "lead lined robe" comment as all that awful. I mean, yes, he was out of line, but he was no where near as mad at her as he has been other times. He was hurt yes, but not extremely angry, IMO.<<< Nope, wasn't talking about the "lead-lined robe" comment, that was just Clark lashing out like a hurt kid. It's one of his "knee-jerk" moments like "that must have been some *talk* if you needed a shower" or "How far are you willing to go to get that interview" No, I'm talking about the scenes at the retirement party and when Lois drives up and asks Clark to hop in. His tone isn't much better with her than it is with Lex. "What do you want, Lois?" is said like "What do you want, Luthor?" It's as if he can barely tolerate her or look at her. Like I said, nasty ;) >>>And don't forget Stop The Presses. I think that's the closest to a real fight between L&C, as contrived as it was.<<< Really? Seemed like frustration to me. Like when he dials Lois' number in WWW, gets a busy signal and then smashes the phone when he hangs it up. He pulls the door from the hinges in Stop the Presses after getting so flustered arguing. Arguing doesn't always have to equal "anger" Sometime it's just frustrating, "I felt like I was talking to a brick wall." kind of thing. >>>I've read a good chunk of Erin's story, the one she's brainstorming for, and believe me, she is not going for a "Clark hates Lois" story ... just the opposite. It's going to be a good romance. But I also think she's on the right track here, if she's asking for the reason I think she's asking.<<< No, I didn't think she was Just making the point that while hate or even fear inspired anger in Clark towards Tempus or Lex, it was never the inspiration when Lois angered him. Clark also has a tendency to sulk He did that in WHALTA and STP. He shuts himself off, walls himself in and does anything else he can do to avoid an issue that has him upset with Lois. That only makes things come to a boil and then an explosive confrontation later. Clark is upset with Lois in Shadow of a Doubt too, but again, frustration seems more prevalent than true anger. He can't get a straight answer on what happened. They were both clueless in the relationship arena, and so they both made mistakes and both twisted off, but there are degrees. Sometimes Clark would get a little ticked off, or mad, but true anger directed towards Lois was fairly rare. Lois probably cried herself to sleep the night Clark broke up with her (for her own good ;) but at that moment in time, it mattered little that Clark broke her heart out of misguided love rather than anger, because the heart was still broken. Zoomway@aol.com ========================================================================= Date: Sat, 14 Nov 1998 21:15:52 -1000 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Jamee Jones Subject: Re: Question: Clark truly angry?? MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Erin Klingler wrote: > >.>What I'm trying to remember is, in which episodes (and instances) > have we > seen Clark truly angry? And even more helpful, can anyone think of > times > when he's been angry at or with Lois? It would really help me to be > able to > remember how he's reacted in these situations, and to know what > provoked him > to get angry.<< What about the Lex Files when there was that missunderstanding that Mr. Luckabee caused between L&C because of him coming on to Lois at the hotel? That scene back in L&C's living room, he wasn't too happy. I can't remember what all was said, but he was pretty upset at the situation, and for Lois not saying something about it right away. I'm sure he trusts her, but he's just so protective of her and you could see how upset he was! j-me > > > ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 15 Nov 1998 10:18:58 EST Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: "Layney D." Subject: Re: Question: Clark truly angry?? Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII Content-transfer-encoding: 7bit The time that sticks out most in my mind -- Clark being angry with Lois -- is during "The Lex Files" arc. I believe it was in "Shadow of A Doubt" when Clark felt betrayed and lied to by Lois b/c of Linus Luckaby and the hotel scenario. That scene seemed realistic and very husbandly Clark-like. ~Layney ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 15 Nov 1998 11:49:52 -0500 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Gillian B Tanz Subject: Re: Question: Clark truly angry?? <> What a great thread ;-) Well, there's Double Jeopardy of Course, Meet John Doe.... I think the REAL bad guys like Lex and Tempus are what makes him the angriest. He comes as close to hatred as possible when he's battling those guys. And then you have Contact- the billionaire geek who played with action figures- Clark was furious with him because of what had happened to Lois ("This is YOUR fault!"). If fact, when you think about it, Clark's never more angry than when Lois is put in harm's way, or is threatened. Then you have a lesser kind of anger when he and Lois have their spats, which are really too numerous to list, and even larger blow-outs, like when she was going to marry Lex, or their first fight as a married couple, when she became editor of the Planet and "sat on the evidence". ;-) Hope that's useful to ya. -Jill aka AlienDove- AlienDove@juno.com ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ my webpage: http://members.tripod.com/~AlienDove/index.html "The truth is nobody knows how long they've got. Anyway, it's not years that count, it's the moments. Right now, as they happen." - CK in Brutal Youth ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 15 Nov 1998 09:10:32 -0700 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Debby Subject: Re: How the show was like the comics ... and not In-Reply-To: <1f68d97c.3649f4eb@aol.com> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" At 03:34 PM 11/11/1998 -0500, Zoomway wrote: [snip] >If you ever want to see Superman at his Messianic best, plunk down sixteen >bucks and get "Superman: Peace on Earth" Or, if you're in the U.S., it's $9.95 plus tax (unless they made a cheaper version for Albuquerque; I note that in Canada they want 15.75). I just bought it yesterday, mainly for the art. If the art's not good, I'll probably not buy a comic (comics are, after all, a visual media). That's the reason I didn't buy the "Superman for All Seasons" four-part comic: for some reason, no matter the quality of the story, I could not stand the art (others like it, that's fine with me). (Lois in part 4 looked okay, but that's not enough for me to spend that $$$) Note that in S:PoE there's no mention of any other regular cast members. At the comic store where I bought it, the young man behind the counter kept marveling at how old Superman looked. The comic's Clark looks a lot like George Reeves's Clark, too. Further, I noted that the store had a tshirt with the middle picture of the three-picture version of Clark--Clark opens jacket--Superman bursts out >from the special edition of Superman Forever (which I couldn't find, drat), by the same artist as S:PoE. The artist did an earlier special comic series, didn't he? I didn't like it at the time... but since then the art has grown on me. I'll have to watch for it for a reappraisal :) For good story *and* art, try the special "Under A Yellow Sun" and "Time and Time Again". Both real winners! Debby Debby@swcp.com ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 15 Nov 1998 13:07:33 EST Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: The Zoomway Subject: Re: How the show was like the comics ... and not Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII Content-transfer-encoding: 7bit In a message dated 11/15/98 11:44:57 AM Central Standard Time, debby@SWCP.COM writes: << Or, if you're in the U.S., it's $9.95 plus tax (unless they made a cheaper version for Albuquerque; I note that in Canada they want 15.75). >> True, I quoted the Canadian price (boy, do they get ripped off! ;) >>>I just bought it yesterday, mainly for the art. If the art's not good, I'll probably not buy a comic (comics are, after all, a visual media).<<< And art, after all, is in the eye of the beholder, but I felt in the Superman for All Seasons that Superman did look a bit like a Thanksgiving parade balloon, and while the story started promising from purely a storytelling point of view, it too became disappointing at the end. As for how the comics and the show are alike, I have a couple of pages up that illustrate that very thing ;) I have to give a big "thank you" to Georgia Walden for the scans, especially of the older "pre-crisis" comics, and to Andrea for doing so many screen captures from the episodes that match the comic pictures (which have attributions, thanks, Jen ;) Anyway, I have one page at: http://www.actwd.com/zoomway/comics/similar.htm And it links to the second. This is an ongoing project, and so isn't finished, but these two pages might be interesting to those who have never read the comics and wondered if there were any similarities ;) Zoomway@aol.com ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 16 Nov 1998 07:30:19 +1100 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Jenny Stosser Subject: Re: How the show was like the comics ... and not Comments: To: debby@swcp.com In-Reply-To: <4.0.2.19981115090241.0090cd30@swcp.com> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" At 09:10 AM 15/11/98 -0700, you wrote: >At 03:34 PM 11/11/1998 -0500, Zoomway wrote: > >[snip] > > >Further, I noted that the store had a tshirt with the middle picture of the >three-picture version of Clark--Clark opens jacket--Superman bursts out >>from the special edition of Superman Forever (which I couldn't find, drat), I'm fairly certain that my comic shop still has one or two of the lenticular cover "Superman Forever"s available. Do you want me to get one for you? >by the same artist as S:PoE. The artist did an earlier special comic >series, didn't he? I didn't like it at the time... but since then the art >has grown on me. I'll have to watch for it for a reappraisal :) That would have been Kingdom Come. It's now available as a trade paperback (which includes the "extra pages" which were not in the original serialised version) >For good story *and* art, try the special "Under A Yellow Sun" and "Time >and Time Again". Both real winners! I agree! >Debby >Debby@swcp.com -- Jenny Stosser -*- jenerate@ozramp.net.au -*-This message is umop ap!sdn (Jenerator or Some1Else on IRC) -*- JenerEight on AIM & AOL -*- My ICQ# is 11477318 Photos of David (6) and Megan (3) on the Stosser Family HomePage: http://geocities.com/Heartland/Estates/4583 Please sign our guestbook! ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 15 Nov 1998 17:20:08 PST Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: julie slisz Subject: Lois's Floor MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain excerpt from "Reconstruction" episode 3 of S5 by Leanne Shawler: >>After all, in spite of the smooth sailing she and Clark had in buying their new home, Lois was still sore at her previous real estate agent for making her sign an idiotic lease agreement that forced her to change floors far too many times!<< Hey, wow! This is a great explanation,hehe, I was wondering why she never stayed on the same floor. As soon as I read this, I started laughing, remembering that time I was reading through the concordances in Zoomway's site. Exactly how many different floors did Lois live on? Julie ______________________________________________________ Get Your Private, Free Email at http://www.hotmail.com ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 15 Nov 1998 20:27:38 -0800 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Pat Subject: Last call for Christmas at Ralph's Pagoda! Comments: To: "Lois and Clark:The New Adventures of Superman" MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Hi FoLCs, My apologies in advance to those of you who are on both lists and get this message twice. I'm putting together the final order (for 1998) for Ralph's Pagoda shirts *and* tote bags. (The tote bags are new for the holidays) For those of you unfamiliar with the Ralph's merchandise, I'm reprinting my original announcement here. If you're not interested in the Ralph's shirts or tote bags, please hit the delete key now! Three years ago, during the summer hiatus between L&C's second and third seasons, I attempted to assuage my LCWS by shopping for Lois & Clark merchandise. I was specifically looking for clothing (hats, shirts, etc.) with images or quotes >from the show. What I found was...nothing. Determined to have *something* wearable that advertised L&C (I was getting darn tired of seeing all those "Friends" T-shirts everywhere I looked ) my husband and I decided to design our own. Inspired by the shirts that advertise local restaurants, we chose one of our favorite scenes from one of our favorite episodes, (The Phoenix) and came up with (at least in our opinion ;) the shirt Ralph's Pagoda would have distributed to the citizens of Metropolis. It was a red golf shirt, with Ralph's logo on the front, and the slogan "Ralph's Pagoda, a memorable dining experience" and Chinese restaurant-themed artwork splashed across the back. We silk screened the design on to a few shirts and tote bags for ourselves and a few friends, (and my husband mailed one of the shirts off to Teri ;) Since one of our silk screens got badly damaged in that initial run, we didn't plan on printing more items. We weren't online at the time, so we didn't realize that there were a lot of other FoLCs looking (mostly in vain) for L&C merchandise, too. We wore our shirts to the Midwest FoLC Fest last summer, and to LAFF97. At both fests, people asked where they could get the shirts. In fact, a year after the fests, I was getting inquiries from people about the shirts. Well, I finally have good news for those FoLCs who've been asking after the Ralph's Pagoda shirts and tote bags! I've found a commercial vendor who is willing to reproduce the shirts and totes in a small quantity at a reasonable price. Like the originals, these will be red golf shirts (knitted shirt with a collar and three button placket) The logo will be *embroidered* (Ralph's is a high-class place ;) in black on the shirt front. The slogan and artwork will be silk screened in black on the back. Shirts will be available in sizes Small-10/XL. The cost per shirt is $19.00 each, which includes priority mailing anywhere in the U.S. (second shirt to the same address is $16.00). The tote bags are 12 oz. red cotton canvas, 15" high x 22" wide, with a 5" bottom gusset, a shoulder strap/handle, inside zippered compartment, and end-to-end zipper on outside. The Ralph's Pagoda logo is silk-screened in black on the outside. The price is $17.00 ea.. (includes postage to anywhere in the U.S.) If you're ordering more than one item, deduct $3.00 from the cost of the second item. Please e-mail me *privately* if you're interested in ordering. All orders need to be pre-paid, and our supplier can't guarantee Christmas delivery on any orders received after November 25 (day *before* Thanksgiving) For those of you who haven't seem the design before, there's a .jpeg of it on Zoom's website at: http://members.aol.com/zoomway/lcnews.htm Pat peabody@mcs.com pattijean@aol.com ========================================================================= Date: Sun, 15 Nov 1998 23:06:21 EST Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Lansbury 1 Subject: Writer's Showcase Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII Content-transfer-encoding: 7bit Hi, There is a new Featured Writer in the Writer's Showcase. The url is ....... http://www. simplyorganized.simplenet.com/showcase.html Annie Lansbury ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 16 Nov 1998 04:40:21 -0700 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Debby Subject: Re: Question: Clark truly angry?? In-Reply-To: <721ea541.364ef0e2@aol.com> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Superman's reaction to Bill Fences near the end of Contact was way overblown, IMO. While it's true that Fences wanted to rule the world, it was Lois who followed Superman into the dangerous situation, not an uncommon occurrence, but unless she flew after him, he had to have taken her with him. Then Superman fried the machine, which caused it to overload and blow up. But at who did he growl "This is all your fault!" Fences! While Supes's reaction might have been understandable, he failed to take any responsibility for Lois being with him (and she failed to stay back out of the way) or his precipitous destruction of a machine he did not understand. Perhaps that led to the overreaction in the other direction when he (disguised as Superman, not brave enough to face her as Clark...) dumped Lois for her own good--to keep her from being hurt by his own inability to think ahead, I guess... In other words, it was an exceptionally stupid episode, but it did demonstrate Superman being angry and then being a dunderhead. Debby Debby@swcp.com ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 16 Nov 1998 10:43:57 -0600 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Kathy Brown Subject: Comic/L&C Similarities page In-Reply-To: <3d098f4.364f1865@aol.com> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" At 1:07 PM -0500 11/15/98, The Zoomway wrote: >As for how the comics and the show are alike, I have a couple of pages up that >illustrate that very thing ;) I have to give a big "thank you" to Georgia >Walden for the scans, especially of the older "pre-crisis" comics, and to >Andrea for doing so many screen captures from the episodes that match the >comic pictures (which have attributions, thanks, Jen ;) >http://www.actwd.com/zoomway/comics/similar.htm Zoom, I really enjoyed looking at this. Please keep us updated as you add new pages to the site. Nice. :) Thanks! Kathy ______________________ Kathy Brown kathyb@fgi.net KathyB on IRC ______________________ ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 16 Nov 1998 11:23:20 -0600 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Elizabeth Eve Davis Organization: Mississippi State University Subject: Re: Question: Clark truly angry?? MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Debby, I agree with you about that episode ("Contact"). In the very next episode, Lois sums it up perfectly: " I love him so much, and he is so dumb!" ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 16 Nov 1998 13:34:45 -0500 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Carolyn Schnall Subject: Re: Combo post 11/12/98 In-Reply-To: Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Marie: I share that love of Williams' soundtracks with you. I also became aware of other soundtrack composers as well. A few years ago when I was commuting to Manhattan by express bus, I had a walk to the bus that took fifteen minutes. So, needing some inspiration, I mentally played Williams' theme music for Superman and other films in my head. It sounds corny but the march themes really got me to work on time!! Thanks, Carolyn cschnall@mail.med.cornell.edu >Carolyn wrote: > >Superman fly and at the time were quoted as saying that the flying >effects had to work or the movie wouldn't work either. > > >I was in Wiesbaden, Germany at the time that Superman: The Movie premiered in >the US. About 6 months later, it was shipped overseas for all of us military >brats (and PROUD of it!) to see. I was 16. There were 3 military theaters in >the area that it was shown at in succession. I saw it at all three. I still >have the paper they were giving out at the time. Pictured on the front is a >cloud scene with the words "You Will Believe a Man Can Fly" across the bottom >of the photo. (Echoing Carolyn's remark of what the producers wanted.) >Inside is a brief biography of each actor. As Carolyn wrote, Gene Hackman and >Marlon Brando were given the most billing, but Chris Reeve got an entire >column's worth in the write-up. Young, romantic and starry-eyed, I had a Chris >Reeve poster on my wall for a few years afterwards. >Also in my possession are two paperback books: Last Son of Krypton and The >Making of Superman: The Movie. In addition, I have the original vinyl double >album of John Williams' excellent score. Just before Superman, (or maybe just >after?) Williams had completed the score for Star Wars, another huge success >with American fans stationed in Germany. That soundtrack and the one he did >for Close Encounters of the Third Kind are other vinyl albums I have the >pleasure of owning. Superman: The Movie springboarded me into my love of >orchestral soundtracks, and especially of John Williams' music. In retrospect, >I still adore that film, regardless of my 20/20 hindsight, and infatuation >with Dean Cain. > >Thanks for bringing up some very warm memories, >Marie >ChoirGirl2@aol.com ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 16 Nov 1998 14:19:47 -0500 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Carolyn Schnall Subject: Re: l&c vs Reeve movies (was: Combo post 11/12/98) In-Reply-To: <3.0.1.32.19981114071015.00c19f50@mail.ozramp.net.au> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Jenny: I'd love to see those scanned pages. Never did see the comic book. Anwyay, it just so happens that Superman III was on yesterday and even though I missed the first 18 minutes of it, I believe there were many elements that L&C borrowed from time to time, like the presentation of the keys to the city (Smallville) and the effect on CK/Superman that the manufactured Kryptonite has. The idea that it made him a "regular person" and that he was "out of the nice guy business" seemed very L&C to me. I just happened to see an interview someone taped for me when Dean was on Tom Snyder and Dean says that Chris Reeve did such a good job that he couldn't help but be influenced by him. Also, I wondered how much of the flying technology carried over from the films (Zoom?) since they worked so hard on it. For some of the other effects, I could not suspend my disbelief and the films themselves were not on high qaulity film. When Superman un-leans the Tower of Pisa and then re-leans it, I thought it smacked of a silly L&C ep, even thought it was a dramatic way to show his state of mind. I just can't seem to stop my ep thoughts analyzer bunny! Thanks, Carolyn cschnall@mail.med.cornell.edu >I have a couple of small comments to make about what Carolyn Schnall wrote >At 10:37 AM 13/11/98 -0500 : > >First of all, about the comics, in the most recent issue of Action (#750) >there are some very l&c-ish pages - and it helps that the art is nice. >It's basically a scene with l&c getting ready for bed at the end of the >day. Lois comments that Clark seems preoccupied because he still has his >glasses on. The scene goes for a couple of pages. If anyone is interested >in seeing it without paying $2.95 for the whole book, I could scan those >couple of pages for you. Email me privately. The only thing that bugs me >about those particular pages is that it's obvious they're leading up to the >upcoming storyline which has been advertised where apparently Clark decides >to give up being Clark so he can spend more time being Superman. I'm NOT >looking forward to this, despite having stuck with the book for the past >umpteen years. > >In reference to the Reeve movies: >>4. Speaking of the Reeve movies, the first one was on this past weekend. >>I came across it while channel surfing. I did not intend to watch it again >>as it was on a few weeks ago and I had watched it then. However, after >>watching L&C so much, the movie appeared to me to be overly theatrical. I >>understand why it had that quality. It had everything to do with the fact >>that the producers were trying to bring a comic book character to life in a >>way that had not been done before and they were creating a new way to >>present the material. So Hackman as Lex was over the top, even in makeup >>and wardrobe. All the characters have a slightly artificial look to them, >>especially Clark with the wig of too much hair and the nerdier than nerdy >>glasses. He is not cool. At the time that the film came out, I was >>completely captivated by it. I even liked it a few months ago when I >>watched it again from the beginning. But the other day, all I could see >>was that it seemed silly and overwrought. > >Don't forget that at the time, the movie depicted the relationship between >the characters and the types of characters they were pretty closely to what >was shown in the comics. It was only after John Byrne rewrote Superman >that we were shown in the comics someone who was Clark Kent, but Superman >was something he could do. Prior to that, Clark was the disguise, and he >was intentionally nerdy. The only time I really recall Lois showing any >interest in Clark was in a short story arc in the comics where Superman >lost his powers, and thought it was permanent, and so Clark developed a >personality. (These stories, btw, were written by Elliot Maggin, who most >recently wrote the novelisation of Kingdom Come, and included the famous >Boeuf Bourguinon scenes. Ask me for more info on that if you want ) > > > >>Anyway, back to Superman. The producers were very concerned that Superman >>fly and at the time were quoted as saying that the flying effects had to >>work or the movie wouldn't work either. In addition, the biographical >>background footage was really the first attempt at filming that part of the >>story that I know of. I enjoyed that part of it when I saw it a few weeks >>ago. The scenes in Metropolis were absolutely meant to look like New York >>and most of the casting was pretty good. Of course, Brando and Hackman >>dominated as the stars but I didn't care much about that. The scenes >>towards the end, as I recall, when Lois dies and Superman chooses to ignore >>what he's been taught to save her were extremely compelling and well done. >>I've always felt that there should have been greater consequences to that >>action, considering the import with which it was set up. Perhaps the >>consequences don't shown up until the second movie at the end of which >>Superman gives Lois up (removes her knowledge of his secret from her >>memory) in order to protect her. Another moving scene, as I watched it >>with L&C on the brain. > >Just a funny aside about this one: some years ago, when I was still living >at home, the first Superman movie was on TV and I was sitting watching it >on my own, and getting really involved in the story (again); at the point >where Lois dies in the car and earthquake, and when Superman discovers that >he's too late, he rips the door of the car and stands there and yells over >his grief. My dad walked into the room at that point, and looked at me and >said "who stepped on HIS toe?" As a result, I can now never take that >scene as seriously as it was intended! > > >-- >Jenny Stosser -*- jenerate@ozramp.net.au -*-This message is umop ap!sdn > (Jenerator or Some1Else on IRC) -*- JenerEight on AIM & AOL -*- My ICQ# is >11477318 >Photos of David (6) and Megan (3) on the Stosser Family HomePage: >http://geocities.com/Heartland/Estates/4583 Please sign our guestbook! ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 16 Nov 1998 14:50:32 EST Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: The Zoomway Subject: Re: l&c vs Reeve movies (was: Combo post 11/12/98) Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII Content-transfer-encoding: 7bit In a message dated 11/16/98 1:08:26 PM Central Standard Time, cschnall@MAIL.MED.CORNELL.EDU writes: << Also, I wondered how much of the flying technology carried over from the films (Zoom?) since they worked so hard on it. >> The flying effects were actually the selling point in the original movie "You will believe a man can fly!" was a big part of the ad campaign back then, and yes, I'm old enough that I actually saw that film in the theater ;) I'm sure for the Lois and Clark pilot, some of those flying techniques were used. Keep in mind the pilot episode cost about 8 times as much to produce as a single episode. It's why little in the way of effects from 1rst season could live up to the pilot. One mistake they made first season was putting Dean in a "hip harness" rig. While that would have allowed SuperGIRL an easy way to fly, it' was a pain in the stomach for Dean The center of gravity is at the widest point on an object, and on women, that's across the hips, well, a woman's center of gravity is at the "center" ;) For men, though, their center of gravity is across their shoulders, one reason it's easier for women to float on their backs than it is for men. It's why early scenes of Dean flying, you see one leg bent and brought forward, that was necessary for him to compensate the hip harness, because without doing that, he was top-heavy and fell forward. When Zarate was brought in 2nd season with an increased FX budget, Dean was spared a lot of the green screen flying sequences. Also, a lot of computer generated work was done for that "blur" flight of speed effect further sparing the need for Dean in harness. They also seemed to get smart and realize the center of gravity problem. The cape ended up with a hole in the back (covered with an extra flap of material when Dean wasn't in harness) that would attach to the inside cape harness thus giving him shoulder support and a smoother, more comfortable way to fly ;) If you ever want to do a fun experiment regarding how men and women's centers of gravity differ, do the old party trick of placing a dining room chair sideways against a wall. Then, have a person (male or female) approach the chair and tell them to bend forward (no fair kicking them ;) and have them press the top of their head against the wall above the chair. Tell them to reach down and lift the chair. Both male and female participants will be able to do this part, but then tell them to straighten up (still holding up the chair) Much more often than not, the women will be able to do this, but men will look like their heads are glued to the wall The added weight of the chair makes men far too top-heavy to straighten up while holding the chair. Even well-endowed women can do it ;) Zoomway@aol.com (yeah, I've been to some dull parties ;) ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 16 Nov 1998 15:35:40 -0500 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Carolyn Schnall Subject: Re: l&c vs Reeve movies (was: Combo post 11/12/98) In-Reply-To: <359f8789.36508208@aol.com> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Thanks, Zoom, I knew you would know!! I also saw the first two movies in the theater. Yeah, I'm old enough too.:) Dean, in the Snyder interview, mentioned that the arm movements being different from Reeves in the earlier series was for balance, or he would fall forward. Thanks, Carolyn cschnall@mail.med.cornell.edu >In a message dated 11/16/98 1:08:26 PM Central Standard Time, >cschnall@MAIL.MED.CORNELL.EDU writes: > ><< Also, I wondered how much of the flying technology carried over from the > films (Zoom?) since they worked so hard on it. >> > >The flying effects were actually the selling point in the original movie "You >will believe a man can fly!" was a big part of the ad campaign back then, and >yes, I'm old enough that I actually saw that film in the theater ;) I'm sure >for the Lois and Clark pilot, some of those flying techniques were used. Keep >in mind the pilot episode cost about 8 times as much to produce as a single >episode. It's why little in the way of effects from 1rst season could live up >to the pilot. One mistake they made first season was putting Dean in a "hip >harness" rig. While that would have allowed SuperGIRL an easy way to fly, it' >was a pain in the stomach for Dean > >The center of gravity is at the widest point on an object, and on women, >that's across the hips, well, a woman's center of gravity is at the "center" >;) For men, though, their center of gravity is across their shoulders, one >reason it's easier for women to float on their backs than it is for men. It's >why early scenes of Dean flying, you see one leg bent and brought forward, >that was necessary for him to compensate the hip harness, because without >doing that, he was top-heavy and fell forward. When Zarate was brought in 2nd >season with an increased FX budget, Dean was spared a lot of the green screen >flying sequences. Also, a lot of computer generated work was done for that >"blur" flight of speed effect further sparing the need for Dean in harness. >They also seemed to get smart and realize the center of gravity problem. The >cape ended up with a hole in the back (covered with an extra flap of material >when Dean wasn't in harness) that would attach to the inside cape harness thus >giving him shoulder support and a smoother, more comfortable way to fly ;) > >If you ever want to do a fun experiment regarding how men and women's centers >of gravity differ, do the old party trick of placing a dining room chair >sideways against a wall. Then, have a person (male or female) approach the >chair and tell them to bend forward (no fair kicking them ;) and have them >press the top of their head against the wall above the chair. Tell them to >reach down and lift the chair. Both male and female participants will be able >to do this part, but then tell them to straighten up (still holding up the >chair) Much more often than not, the women will be able to do this, but men >will look like their heads are glued to the wall The added weight of the >chair makes men far too top-heavy to straighten up while holding the chair. >Even well-endowed women can do it ;) > >Zoomway@aol.com (yeah, I've been to some dull parties ;) ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 16 Nov 1998 12:42:14 PST Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Christina Batouli Subject: Looking for fanfic MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain I am looking for a couple of fanfics: -1) A fanfic where Clark lets it slip or tells Lois that he is Superman during Lois's "I would love you if you were an ordinary man leading an ordinary life." speech. -2) A very serious WHAM that involves some trauma that puts a serious strain on Lois and Clark's marriage and sex life. A good example of one of these is "A Shot in the Dark." ______________________________________________________ Get Your Private, Free Email at http://www.hotmail.com ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 16 Nov 1998 15:31:26 -0600 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Kathy Brown Subject: 'Giving Thanks' exerpt (Re: Pictures in our minds) In-Reply-To: Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" At 10:34 AM -0500 11/14/98, Layney D. wrote: >So, I was wondering what other well-known faces have been casted to characters >of fic by the audience? Who do you see when you read different stories? This is an interesting question, Layney, and I was hoping more people might resond to it. For S5, Alyssa (our wonderful webmistress) "cast" Karen Allen (I think that's the actress's name) as Beth Luthor. You can see a picture of her on the S5 website ... try the link to episode 17, A Matter of Trust. That was a Beth heavy episode and I think where the picture showed up. We're still making final preparations to "cast" the role of baby Laura for S6. You'll all just have to wait for S6 to air to see who it is. ;) As for my own writing, I confess to mentally casting Jon Tenney in the role of "Jon" in my nfic, Giving Thanks. Since the story is nfic and not everyone here can/wants to read that gendre -- and in honor of the Turkey season (take that anyway you want ;)) -- I thought I'd copy the scene where Jon shows up. Just to give the set up, this story is set over Thanksgiving weekend of the 4th season, six weeks or so after Lois and Clark's October 6 wedding. They are attending their friends' annual "Saturday after Thanksgiving party" and it's quite a bash. Lois had to go on ahead because Clark was off being Superman, and he's joining her later in the evening. I'm posting the party scene, the middle of the story. It's not nfic, but alone it makes for a fun little vingette. :) Happy Thanksgiving. Oh, and this exerpt is probably rated somewhere between PG and PG-13, to give fair warning. ________________ GIVING THANKS By KathyB (c) 1996 Clothed in his tan pants, black shirt and black leather coat, Clark widened his search slightly, trying to find a darkened area where he could land and reappear without being noticed. He rarely flew in his street clothes, but after this afternoon, he just wasn't in the mood to be Superman anymore tonight. The dark sky and his higher-than-usual-altitude assured him that no one would be able to "Superman" flying around in casual clothing. As an added precaution, his glasses were tucked safely in the inside pocket of his coat. Circling the area once more, he finally found a good spot, three blocks away. With a quick glance up and down the street to make sure no one was around to notice him, Clark landed, donned his glasses, emerged from the empty corner park and headed up the street to his friends' house. The upper east side of Metropolis was a trendy, upscale area. The newlyweds themselves had considered this area when they were doing some preliminary house-hunting, but quickly ruled it out as too expensive. Fortunately for them, Charlie and Sharon didn't have the same concerns. With Charlie's column going into syndication a few years ago, and Sharon's promotion to managing editor at the magazine, they were able to afford quite a bit more house than many of their colleagues. The house the Hammonds purchased was exquisite. The brownstone styling wasn't unique to the area but they had completely renovated the interior of the four bedroom home. Large open rooms downstairs, including a huge kitchen and dining area, and four bathrooms spread throughout the house, made it the perfect place for entertaining large groups. The traditional Saturday-after-Thanksgiving party was no exception. Clark knew that he and Lois would probably never be able to afford such a place; their new home was considerably smaller than this one. But it was still nice to have friends who lived in this part of town. Especially friends who threw spectacular parties. ___________________ Clark opened the door to the sound of laughter in the house. As expected, the place was quite crowded. Several people greeted him enthusiastically as he took off his coat in the foyer. As Clark made his way through the house, looking for Lois, he caught the attention of his hostess. "Clark!" Sharon cried. She gave him a big hug in the middle of the living room. "Hey! Long time no see! I'm glad you finally made it. Lois said you got delayed running some errands. Let me take your coat." "Hi Sharon, it's great to see you, too," he said with a genuine smile, returning the hug warmly. Errands, huh? OK, he could work with that. "Well, let me see it!" Sharon reached for his left hand and lifted it up so she could look at his wedding ring. "Oh, *very* nice. You wear it well," she stated matter-of-factly. "Thanks. Great, isn't it?" Clark found himself grinning broadly. Come to think of it, he caught himself doing that a lot lately. "It sure is. I haven't seen you since the wedding. Charlie told me that you two finally just went ahead and did it. I'm so happy for you both. I cornered Lois when she got here and made her tell me all about it." Clark smiled graciously. "Ah, speaking of Lois, have you seen my wife around here anywhere?" Sharon laughed and jerked her thumb towards the next room, where loud music was reverberating through the doorway. "Yeah, believe it or not, last I saw her, she and Jimmy Olsen were teaching Perry how to do the Macarena!" Clark burst out laughing. "Oh, this I gotta see!" Sharon stepped aside and pointed him in the right direction. "Well, have fun. I'm going to put your coat upstairs in our bedroom. Help yourself to anything you want to drink -- it's all in the kitchen. There's regular beer in the keg and light beer in the fridge. There's also an assortment of pop and wine and stuff for mixed drinks on the counter. You better get started, though; I think everyone is a few beers ahead of you already." "Thanks! I'm heading that way now. See you later!" ___________________ Clark made his way into the darkened dining room. Or at least, that's what the room was usually used for. Tonight, however, the table and all of the chairs had been pushed to one side, leaving the hardwood floor available for dancing. Sure enough, in the midst of several others, Lois, Jimmy and Perry were dancing to the blaring music. Clark leaned against the wall and smiled. Lois and Jimmy must have been good teachers, because the Chief seemed to be holding his own. Jimmy was having fun, looking like he went dancing frequently, which he probably did. Lois looked spectacular, as always. Clark thought about jumping in and joining them, but since the song was almost over, he decided to just wait it out. Besides, he figured, it gave him a chance to admire the way Lois' hips rotated seductively as she came to that part in the song. She moved freely to the music, obviously enjoying herself immensely. He loved to watch her move like this; she seemed so free of inhibitions. It brought to mind the many other times that they would move their bodies together, albeit with a lot less clothing in the way. Clark noticed with some surprise that she was wearing an outfit he'd never seen on her before. A long-sleeved cream sweater that fit closely against her body was tucked into a short, pleated gray skirt. Her legs (and there was a lot of leg showing, to be sure) were covered with gray tights, matched to the color of the skirt. He didn't know when she had bought the ensemble, but she had obviously chosen well. It showed off her body nicely, without being too revealing for a night out with co-workers. Sophisticated, yet sexy. It was a look she carried well. The crowd on the dance floor all cheered and laughed when the song was over. Clark applauded as well when Lois, Jimmy and Perry spotted him against the wall and walked over, all smiles. "Wow, that was great, you guys! Chief, I didn't know you had it in you," Clark exclaimed with a broad smile. "Hey, you made it! I was hoping you'd be here soon!" Lois wrapped her arms around his neck and gave him a big welcoming kiss. Her greeting was a tad more enthusiastic than was probably appropriate for the company, but he wasn't about to complain. He could taste the beer on her open mouth and wondered just how many drinks ahead of him she was. Not that he minded. Giving her a warm smile, he slung his arm around her shoulder and leaned back against the wall to talk to his friends. "Hey, CK! I'm glad you're here. What sort of errands did you have to run that took this long?" Jimmy smiled brightly at Clark. "Oh, you know how it is, Jim." Clark waved his free hand vaguely in the air. He'd learned long ago that being ambiguous was the best response to questions like that. "But, I'm here now, and I'm ready to have some fun. What's been going on?" He tightened his arm around Lois' shoulder affectionately and pulled her closer to him as her arm went around his waist. Perry jumped in. "Well, son, your wife decided that I needed to learn some new dances if I was going to keep up with all the kids in these singles clubs Jimmy has been trying to drag me to. Not that I'm ever going to use it, but I thought I might as well be able to say I knew how!" Lois piped up. "Well, Perry, I think you did great. Tell me, how does this compare to the Tush Push?" she asked with a laugh. Clark laughed too, but raised his eyebrows slightly in surprise when he felt Lois' hand drop down and pat his behind as she spoke the last couple of words. When he looked down at her, she just smiled knowingly at him. The conversation continued in this vein for awhile, until Jimmy noticed that someone had put on a dance song from the 80's. "Hey! This is great," he exclaimed, looking at all of the people on the dance floor. "It's just like Retro Night at the clubs!" "What's Retro Night?" Clark asked, uncertain. Lois laughed out loud. "We are, Clark. The stuff that's playing now is what they're calling Retro." "But this is what I listened to in college. It's too new to have a 'Night'." Jimmy looked at him, amused. "Hate to break it to you, CK, but this song came out when I was in Junior High. It's way old." "Oh, *thanks*, Jimmy. That makes me feel *so* much better," Clark replied with a roll of his eyes. He looked to Lois for help, but she just shrugged at him. "Lo-is!" he wailed in mock anguish. "I can't have a 'Night'! I'm too young to have a 'Night'!" Through her laughter, Lois patted his hip. "Sorry, hon, for us, this is the stuff frat parties were made of, but for Jimmy's generation, this is old. Face it, Clark, you're 30 now; you're not a kid anymore," she teased. Clark couldn't help but laugh at her prodding. "Live it up, honey, you'll only be able to get away with that for 11 more months! Then you'll be joining me in the next decade. Anyway, I'm not ready to hang it up just yet. *This* song," he motioned to the speaker that was now playing the next song, "isn't old; it just came out a few months ago." He paused, then continued with a wicked grin on his face. "In fact, let's show this kid a thing or two about dancing!" With that, he untangled himself from her and pushed off the wall. Grabbing her hand, he pulled her out on the dance floor. Perry and Jimmy stood against the wall, watching their friends dance together to the strong, quick beat and suggestive lyrics of the dance tune. Technically, there wasn't much actual physical contact as the two danced close together, hips moving in a seductive rhythm, eyes boldly making contact, but anyone in the vicinity could see the sparks flying between them. Jimmy watched them intensely, suddenly *really* wishing he had brought a date tonight. Finally, he cleared his throat. "So, Chief, you think there's any truth to that saying that dancing is just like sex, only with more clothing?" Perry slung his arm over Jimmy's shoulder in a paternal gesture and led him into the living room. "Son, let me tell you a little story about why they call the King, the King . . ." ________________ After eventually making their way off the dance floor and into the kitchen for more beer, Lois and Clark decided to mingle a bit with their friends. They moved smoothly from conversation to conversation, the atmosphere in the house jovial and relaxed. Lois was thrilled to run into some old college friends who she didn't know worked in Metropolis, let alone in the publishing business. After they 'oooed' and 'ahhed' over Lois' short hair, Lois proudly introduced Clark as her new husband, gaining even more impressed looks. Some time later, as the conversation turned to the campus bars where the three of them used to go to meet men, Clark drained the last of his beer. He looked at Lois and whispered, "I'm going for another; you want one?" She looked at her bottle, still a quarter full. "No, thanks. Have fun." She gave him a little smile, letting him know he had permission to find a more interesting conversation if he wanted. With a wink and a smile, Clark politely excused himself from the group and headed for the kitchen for a refill. The alcohol in the drink didn't affect him, but he still enjoyed the taste of the cold beer. Approaching the keg, he noticed a dark-haired man around his own age filling his own cup. The man noticed Clark waiting and motioned with the tap. "You want a fill-up?" he inquired. "Yeah, thanks." Clark held his cup as the man filled it. Upon replacing the tap, the man extended a hand to Clark. "Name's Jon; I work with Sharon at the magazine." Clark shook his hand with a smile. "I'm Clark. I work with Charlie." "Well, nice to meet you, Clark. So, are these parties always so crowded? Seems like a good turnout." Jon nodded in the direction of the living room. "Yeah, well, Sharon and Charlie have a lot of friends, I guess. Their parties are very popular. You just get here?" Jon took a long drink of his beer, emptying his cup by about a third. Clark raised an eyebrow, but didn't say a word, taking a smaller sip from his own plastic cup. By the way the man spoke, Clark guessed that this wasn't his first drink this evening. "Yeah, I literally just walked in the door. A bunch of us were out barhopping, but we wanted to put in an appearance here, too." The man spoke animatedly, and Clark decided that he seemed fairly harmless, even if he was a little drunk. "I'm pretty new in town and I figured this would be a good way to meet some more people in the business." The man paused and shrugged. "The action at the bar was getting a little slow, anyway. Lot of good looking women *here*, though." Clark just laughed and took another drink. "Won't argue with you there. So, where'd you work before you came to Metropolis?" The two men engaged in some more idle chitchat as they walked slowly out of the kitchen. They paused in the doorway to the living room, Jon unabashedly looking at the women as they passed, and Clark watching Jon's behavior with an amused smile. Clark was about to make his way back to his wife when Jon caught his attention with a change in subject. "So, did you catch that football game this afternoon on TV? Man, was that an incredible ending or what?!?" Clark's ears perked up. "No, really? I missed the fourth quarter. Tell me what happened!" Lois watched from across the room as the two new acquaintances engaged in a spirited discussion of the game. Looking over at them from time to time, she exchanged a few flirtatious glances with her husband. By the time several minutes had passed, Lois had finished her own beer and was ready to reclaim some of Clark's attention. Excusing herself from her friends, she wound her way casually through the crowd towards where Clark had stopped. As she approached him, she smiled politely, first at Jon, immediately catching his attention, then at Clark. Though there was plenty of room to squeeze between the two men in the doorway as she entered the kitchen, Lois still managed to "accidentally" brush against Clark as she passed. She smiled sweetly up at him as she did so. "Oh, *excuse* me," she said, apologetically. Clark gave her a little smile. "Oh, no, excuse *me*," he drawled as she passed. As she opened the refrigerator door, searching for another light beer, Clark followed her with his eyes, looking her up and down appreciatively. He couldn't help but crane his head slightly to get a better look at the way her short skirt lifted enticingly up in back as she bent down to reach further back in the refrigerator. It seemed to him that she was taking a particularly long time finding what she was looking for, though whether it was because she was getting tipsy, or if she was aware of the view she was giving him, he couldn't be sure. Finally, she stood back up with a bottle in her hand and walked back over to him. Including both men in her smile as she approached, she stood next to Clark once more and ultimately directed her attention to him. "I'm sorry to interrupt your conversation, but could you open this for me, please?" "Of course," he answered congenially, exchanging his cup for her bottle. After Clark twisted off the cap, they traded back. Lois touched his arm lightly in thanks as she walked back into the living room. "See you later," she purred. Jon had been taking in the whole scene with a knowing grin. Both men watched as Lois crossed the room and joined her friends once more. With a little toss of her hair, she looked back over at the doorway. Raising her bottle slightly to them in acknowledgment, she took a swig from her beer. As she swallowed and fixed him with a hot gaze, Clark felt his eyes widen and his heartbeat speed up. Did she do what he thought she just did? He could have sworn that she just mouthed the top of the bottle suggestively. Unfortunately, Jon saw the same thing. He let out a low wolf-whistle. "Oh, where were the women like that at the bar?? She is *hot*! She's been checking you out the whole time we've been talking, too. You should go for it, man!" Clark just chuckled and took another sip from his cup. "Hmm, you think so?" he answered noncommittally. "Oh, *yeah*. The way she keeps glancing over here? You kidding me? I've been with a lot of women, Clark old boy. I mean, a *lot* of women. Trust me, she's looking to get laid tonight." Clark choked on his beer. Jon looked over at him. "You OK? What's wrong?" He quickly spied the ring on Clark's left hand and began to nod sympathetically. "*Oh* . . . you're *married*. Ouch. Too bad! Your wife is probably here somewhere, too. No wonder you can't do anything." Clark began to speak up, but Jon interrupted him. "No, no, I understand. Boy, I feel sorry for you. Staying at home with the same woman every night, instead of going out with a babe like that? Yeah, I much prefer playing the field myself," he bragged. "Hmm, maybe *I'll* go talk to her." Clark shrugged. "Well, you could try, but I don't think it will do any good. She's married, too." Jon's face fell. "Oh, you know her then?" "Yeah . . . *she's* my wife." Clark smiled broadly and patted him on the back. "See ya, Jon." When Clark reached Lois and gave her a big kiss hello, he could still hear Jon muttering something about some guys having all the luck. ___________________ Hope you enjoyed it. Did you picture Jon Tenney as the hapless Jon? Kathy ______________________ Kathy Brown kathyb@fgi.net KathyB on IRC ______________________ ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 16 Nov 1998 22:37:59 -0000 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: LabRat Subject: Nfic SoS MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Hey guys! Looking for help to post my new nfic - HOOK, LINE & SINKER - to Zoom's nfic board. It should be ready to post within the next few days, hopefully even tomorrow. But the current problem is that I've been having trouble accessing the MB for the past week. I can only access the contents page, the date of the last message posted is recorded as the 12th and the last message I get to view is the 10th. So, I can't tell whether the board is down completely or if some people are getting through okay. I know that Beth is working on the problem, but in the meantime, if this isn't a general problem and there are some nice, kind FoLCs out there who can still get access to the MB.....could I prevail on you to email me if you wouldn't mind volunteering to post HOOK for me, meantime? I'd be grateful, thanks! If the access problem is widespread and the MB is in fact completely down for repair, anyone interested in reading HOOK will either get it at some point from Joyce Fitch, as I'll be sending it to the mailing list as usual, or will be able to access it eventually from my archive site at Anne's Little Corner of Teh World - once I get it off to Anne and she has a chance to upload it for me. The archive site is password protected and the URL is: www.simplyorganized.simplenet.com/annesplace.htm Thanks again! LabRat :-) **************************************************************************** ************ Do not meddle in the affairs of dragons, for you are crunchy and taste good with ketchup..... ....Dawson Rambo.. **************************************************************************** ************ ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 16 Nov 1998 18:30:21 EST Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: "Conditions are dark. The forecast is deadly. Tea, anyone?" Subject: Re: 'Giving Thanks' exerpt (Re: Pictures in our minds) <<<< So, I was wondering what other well-known faces have been casted to characters of fic by the audience? Who do you see when you read different stories? >>>> << This is an interesting question, Layney, and I was hoping more people might resond to it. As for my own writing, I confess to mentally casting Jon Tenney in the role of "Jon" in my nfic, Giving Thanks. Since the story is nfic and not everyone here can/wants to read that gendre -- and in honor of the Turkey season (take that anyway you want ;)) -- I thought I'd copy the scene where Jon shows up. >> I usually picture Jon Tenney in fanfics where Lois has a love interest who wasn't on the show. Especially in Piper's "Three Grandmothers." Maybe it's just what I've read, but I think there are more stories where Lois has another love interest than ones where Clark does. I don't really have any usual person I picture with Clark, but at times I've pictured Gabrielle Reece. Never Mindy, though, for some reason. In the case of the same character being played by two different actors-- I picture Jimmy as Justin Whalen, probably because I didn't discover fanfic until after he took over the part. In the case of Alice White and even though they didn't show her face, I picture the redhead from JSN as opposed to the blond >from Season 4. I didn't think she really "fit" Perry and since the readhead's face wasn't show, I can imagine it however I want and be right :) << I'm posting the party scene, the middle of the story. It's not nfic, but alone it makes for a fun little vingette. :) Happy Thanksgiving. >> Great excerpt, Kathy. :) I'm looking forward to reading the rest sometime when my over-inflated pre-Thanksgiving break workload diminshes a little. -Christy kubitc@kenyon.edu Attalanta on IRC ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 16 Nov 1998 19:20:37 -0600 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Elizabeth Eve Davis Organization: Mississippi State University Subject: Re: 'Giving Thanks' exerpt (Re: Pictures in our minds) MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit LOL!! Where, owhere, can I find this wonderful story in its entirety? ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 16 Nov 1998 20:59:42 -0500 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Margaret Brignell Subject: New Fanfic Announcement Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" "Only You: Recall" (Part 3 of the 'Only You' series) is now available at my web site: http://www.capitalnet.com/~brignell/ As soon as I get a minute I'll cut it up into byte size pieces and post it to this list. [Yes, Kathy, I submitted it to be added to the archive, just seconds ago] Although not directly involved in Part 3, I'd like to thank Julie Gibson for her input into the absolute final version of Part 2 (Only You: Promise) (and for putting up with my warped sense of humour about Ohio) since she also had an influence on this Part as well:) Hope you enjoy reading it. Margaret who now might actually catch up on her outstanding e-mails! ****************************** Margaret Brignell brignell@capitalnet.com Ottawa, Canada %%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%% My fanfic now available at: http://www.capitalnet.com/~brignell/ ****************************** ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 16 Nov 1998 20:11:46 -0600 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Kathy Brown Subject: Re: 'Giving Thanks' exerpt (Re: Pictures in our minds) In-Reply-To: <3650CF65.D7321552@ra.msstate.edu> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" At 7:20 PM -0600 11/16/98, Elizabeth Eve Davis wrote: >LOL!! Where, owhere, can I find this wonderful story in its entirety? All my nfic is available by writing to me directly, with the usual age and non-distribution assurances. You must be 18 or older to read it, and promise never to redistribute the story to anyone. I will be posting the complete story next week, however, on Zoom's nfic MB, in honor of the season. The original story was released over Thanksgiving 1996. Kathy ______________________ Kathy Brown kathyb@fgi.net KathyB on IRC ______________________ ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 16 Nov 1998 20:39:35 -0600 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Kathy Brown Subject: S6 Premiering November 22, 1998! (PROMO) Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Hello FoLCs! Season 6 (S6) is ready to premiere! Join us on Sunday, November 22, 1998 as we air our first episode of this new season. The episode will be posted to the fanfic listserv, as well as to our S6 website: S6, a fanfic sixth season of "Lois & Clark", is a continuation of last year's S5 () S5, which won last year's Fanfic Kerth Award as "Best Series Continuation", picked up where Lois & Clark's last aired episode, "Family Hour", left off. During the 22 fanfic episodes of S5, Lois and Clark battled a host of new villains, as well as their old nemeses Tempus and Mindy Church. And if that weren't enough, they were dismayed by the reappearance of Lex Luthor, who claimed to have been the victim of an evil clone. Lois and Clark's personal life stayed on the front burner as well, as they struggled with their quest to conceive their own child, and ultimately rejoiced as Lois learned she was pregnant. S5's season finale, "It's Time", written by Pam Jernigan, gave us what we'd been waiting for all season -- the birth of Lois and Clark's daughter. Now the writers of S6 are ready to continue the adventure in a series of 11 directed fanfics. Join us over the next nine months and see what happens next! And just to whet your appetite ... >>>>>>>> PROMO <<<<<<< You've waited all summer... and now Season 6 is finally here! Join us for the premiere episode, co-written by Barb (bml44@aol.com) and Pam Jernigan (jernigan@compuserve.com). (VOICEOVER) It's been slightly more than two months since we last saw Lois & Clark. Lois is getting ready to come back to work, but first she has to sort through child-care options ... **** Lois, on phone: "A waiting list, I see. So filling out the pre-admission forms was, what, a cruel joke on your part? Oh, it puts us at the *top* of the waiting list, that's so much better ..." Clark took a deep breath. "Well, Lois, what about your Mom? She's been after us to spend more time with Laura. Maybe she can help us until we can work out something else." **** (VO) ...and negotiate a flextime work schedule with Perry. **** Lois, a crafty look in her eyes: "You know, I checked this morning, and the Metropolis Star has onsite daycare. I'd hate to leave the Planet, but...." "Lois, bite your tongue!" Perry scolded. ***** (VO) Meanwhile, Jimmy has stumbled into a story all on his own, a strike at Amalgamated Transport. **** Impulsively, Jimmy scrambled up on top of his chair, and yelled out, "Jimmy Olsen, Daily Planet -- I'll listen to you!" He fumbled around his belt and pulled out his press pass, displaying it to the crowd. **** (VO) And he and Clark try their hand at bringing the two sides together. **** Jimmy to Clark: "You know, I got different stories from management and labor -- they hardly agreed on anything. But for all of that, I don't think they're really that far apart on the key stuff." Clark nodded thoughtfully. "From what I've heard, I think you're right. And they've always been able to work these things out in the past, it's just that things have gone wrong this year." "It's a shame we can't just get a couple of people together, without all the lawyers, and just let them work it out ..." Clark looked at him, pondering the notion. "That's not a bad idea, Jimmy. **** (VO) But someone doesn't want the differences resolved. **** "Look, if they start comparing notes they're going to find out all the stuff I've done to keep these negotiations off-track! This could ruin everything we've worked for!" **** (VO) So, with her usual flair, Lois picks the wrong moment to come back to work: **** "Hello, Mother? It's Lois. I just had to check to make sure everything was going okay." Ellen's voice was amused, but sympathetic. "Everything's fine, Lois. It's only been 20 minutes, you know." "Oops... Sorry, Mother, the phone slipped..." The rest of her apology faded away as she saw an unwieldy device duct-taped to the underside of the table. "Sorry, Mother, I've got to go." **** (VO) Coming November 22, to a website near you -- "Strained Relations", by Pam Jernigan and Barb >>>>>>> END PROMO <<<<<< Enjoy the show! Kathy ______________________ Kathy Brown kathyb@fgi.net KathyB on IRC ______________________ ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 16 Nov 1998 21:44:01 -0500 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Margaret Brignell Subject: New Fanfic -- Only You: Recall -- Part 1 of 12 Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" This is the third in a series of fanfics that came out of an idea by Laurie F. She liked my Pre-Metropolis Clark stories (The Rules, The Long Road, and The One) and thought this set would also make a good story. In order to fully understand this story, you need to read "Only You: If Only" and "Only You: Promise" if you have not already done so:) It might also help to have read "The Rules" and seen the episode "Tempus, Anyone?" I acknowledge that I am just borrowing the characters created for the television show "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman." However, the story and additional characters came from the brain of myself and the people who are kind enough to proof my work:) It should be noted that in this story too, the British spelling prevails:) I would also like to thank my proofers, Laurie F., Peace, Debby S., Lynda L., Lauren W. and APP, for their input and support (also to my critics for at least prompting me *think* about what I was doing.) A huge vote of thanks is also due to the original writers of the scripts for making them so interesting I couldn't resist this story. Special thanks to Debby S. for providing me with a copy of the relevant scripts:) Words surrounded by * are emphasized. ***************************************************************** Previously in "Only You" Clark lost his parents at age ten and bounced around a variety of foster homes. Lana Lang knows the secret of his origins. When we last saw Clark he had just got a job at the Daily Planet as a replacement for one of their top reporters, Lois Lane, who is missing--presumed dead. The saga continues: ***************************************************************** Only You: Recall by Margaret Brignell March 1998 brignell@capitalnet.com ***************************************************************** Metropolis, New Troy -- June 1993 ************************************ Clark sprinted across the newsroom floor to catch the ringing phone on his desk. It was Jack Lawson Jr., his lawyer in Kansas City. "Well, Clark, my boy, how's things out there in the big city?" "Well, J...." "Life treating you good?" "Sure, Jack, what did you want to talk...." "Lana up to her usual tricks?" What the heck was Jack talking about? "Usual tricks?" Jack's booming laughter came through the phone. "Just kidding, Clark. How's your job going?" "Great. I'm really getting into the swing of it now. How are things in Kansas?" "Fine. Fine. Did you know that Donny Wheeler had moved to Phoenix to work in the aerospace industry?" It took a moment for Clark to make the connection. "Mavis and Elmer's son? No, I didn't know that." "I didn't think you had. That's why I'm calling." Clark breathed a sigh of relief that Jack Lawson had, finally, came to the point. "What has Donny going to Phoenix got to do with me?" "Mavis and Elmer don't want to be that far from Donny and the grandchildren. They've decided to retire. They figure if they move to Arizona that they'll be close to family, and Phoenix will be great for Mavis' arthritis." Mavis and Elmer Wheeler had been a great couple to have in charge of the farm for the past five years. He didn't want to lose them. "But, aren't they too young to want to retire?" There was another boom of laughter from Jack. "No-one's ever too young to retire! Besides, Elmer is 63. They've worked hard all their lives. They deserve to enjoy their senior years." Clark struggled against the inevitable. "When will they be leaving?" "End of August at the latest. If you can get a replacement sooner, so much the better. If you had said your job wasn't going all that great I'd have suggested you moving back yourself." Clark opened his mouth to respond, but Jack continued. "Or, you could sell. It would take a while, and you'd still need someone to look after the farm in the meantime. Or, you could just find another family to look after the farm." "I want to stay in Metropolis and my job is going just fine. I don't want to move back to Smallville just now." "The thing is, Clark, with the Wheelers leaving to join their kids in Arizona, you're going to have to let me know what you want to do with the farm." "I don't know, Jack. I kind of want to keep it. It's the last place I was with my parents." A sudden kaleidoscope of memories of Mom singing, as she kneaded bread in the kitchen, and of Dad and his young self building a treehouse together ran through his head. Then, other images of Mr. Stinger--hitting his wife, swinging his fist at Clark's head, beating his children--overlaid the more pleasant images of life with Mom and Dad. "But, on the other hand, I was miserable the last time I was there. So I'm also considering selling. I'd like to talk it over with Lana. Can I get back to you later?" "Okay, Clark, but I need to know by the end of July, if you want to have a smooth transition." "Okay, I'll get back to you on that." Jack went on in some detail about the implications if Clark didn't get back to him in time. Clark made reassuring noises and finally hung up the phone. While he was mentally trying to sort out his dilemma about the farm, an assistant ran up to him and handed him the photos he had requested--bringing him back to the here and now. Like he'd told Jack, Clark was getting into the swing of his new job at the Daily Planet. He had been given the desk that used to belong to the reporter who disappeared a couple of months back--Lois Lane. The only thing that had been left from her occupation was a dead plant, which Clark had taken pity on, ending its miserable existence by dropping it in the trash can. Clark didn't think about his lawyer's call again until he got home that evening. It had been a busy day and he breathed a sigh of relief as he unlocked the front door of his apartment. He bent down to pick up his mail scattered on the floor just below his mail slot and threw it on the end table while he went into the kitchen to get a can of soda. He flopped down on the sofa with the opened can of soda and gazed about him. When Clark had first moved to Metropolis, Lana made overtures for him to move in with her. Clark had felt that they should have a commitment to some kind of definite relationship before taking that step. Besides, he'd become too used to living on his own since he'd received his parents' inheritance. He didn't want to give that up until Lana decided whether or not she really wanted to marry him. He was glad he'd decided to get his own place. He loved this loft apartment in a not-so-great part of town. The apartment suited his budget and the rough brick walls and open spaces made a great backdrop for the variety of souvenirs he had gathered on his various trips. Lana was still upset about the downscale "ambience" of his neighbourhood and the conversation they'd had when he first signed the lease ran through his head as he took his first sip from the can of soda. "But, Clark, that part of town is *full* of muggers and thieves. You've *got* to choose a nicer part of town." "Well, to be honest Lana, I don't really have to worry about being mugged. And, I can't honestly see thieves being all that interested in my Borneo fertility statue or my Tao meditation tapes. I really don't think there's anything to worry about." "But thieves don't know that's all you've got, they'll break in anyway!" "Look Lana, it's not like I have a TV, stereo or computer yet, so I'll take my chances." "But what about me, when I come to visit. Don't you care about me being in danger from muggers?" "Lana, if you're in this neighbourhood, it will be with me. So *stop* worrying!" She'd given up *that* time, but still brought up the issue occasionally. Nevertheless, despite his desire to please Lana and do what she asked of him, on this one issue he'd stuck to his decision. He really liked this place. It just felt *right*. He leaned over and picked up the pile of mail on the end table and sorted through it. In among the bills and flyers was an invitation to Tim and Lori's wedding September 4th. He picked up the phone to call Lana and got her answering machine. These days, he found he spent a lot of time listening to her taped message. She was extremely busy with her job and somehow their schedules didn't seem to click as often as they used to. He had thought when he moved to Metropolis that they would see each other more often, but their jobs and lives in general seemed to be conspiring against them. He left a message that he had called, and hung up. He stood up, walked into the kitchen to prepare dinner, and started thinking about what he wanted to do with the farm. If he kept the farm, what would he do? Hire someone to take care of it? Rent it to another family? Quit his job and move back to Smallville? The latter definitely didn't appeal. On the whole, he liked being in Metropolis. He liked his new apartment and was settling in to life in one of the biggest, most exciting cities in the world. He had a good job. Mr. White had told him on several occasions that he was quite satisfied with his work, and Clark was slowly progressing to more and more complex stories. Lana was close by when he needed to talk through things about his special nature, which wasn't all that often lately, but that was life. The only thing he didn't like about living in Metropolis was the general level of paranoia in the big city. Having people constantly on the lookout for the strange, unusual or just plain different was uncomfortable for someone who had a secret to hide. Then again, if he sold the farm, would he always regret it? He flipped the omelet over on itself and slid it onto a plate. He poured a glass of juice and took the plate and glass to the table. His only happy childhood memories were centred on the farm, but then again some of the worst moments of his life had been set there too. Since all he had left of his parents were memories, would keeping the farm really make that much of a difference? He sat and slowly consumed his dinner. He'd told Jack he would talk it over with Lana, maybe he should. He was too involved in this decision emotionally and didn't know what he really wanted. It would be good to get a second opinion. Later that evening he was finally able to speak to Lana on the phone. When she heard about the upcoming wedding, she was delighted for an excuse to buy a new outfit and quickly agreed to go. Once Lana had stopped anticipating the thrill of her proposed clothes purchase, Clark changed the subject to his problem about whether or not to keep the farm. "Clark, it's really up to you. I know you feel alienated from the place, but you *do* realize the tax implications if you sell. Don't you?" Clark sighed. "Yes, Lana, I know." That wasn't really the issue for him, but he didn't know what *was* the real issue, either. He really should stop bothering Lana with his problems, but over the years he'd learned that if he didn't tell her *everything*, and she found out later, she'd be really upset. He didn't want to upset her, she meant too much to him for that. "So, how was your day?" He spent the next half hour listening to Lana's complaints about her boss and how the boss was overlooking her for on-camera work in favour of a second cousin of the owner of the station. Clark made the appropriate responses at irregular intervals and pondered his own problem in between. When Lana finally wound down and said goodnight, he hung up the phone with a guilty feeling of relief. On his way to bed he acknowledged that he really needed more time to decide what to do with the land and farmhouse long-term. The next morning he called Jack Lawson and told him to find another family to take care of the farm. ***** ****************************** Margaret Brignell brignell@capitalnet.com Ottawa, Canada %%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%% My fanfic now available at: http://www.capitalnet.com/~brignell/ ****************************** ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 16 Nov 1998 21:43:50 -0500 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Margaret Brignell Subject: New Fanfic -- Only You: Recall -- Part 2 of 12 Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Over the summer, Clark filled in for people as they went off on vacation. He was partnered with a variety of co-workers on different assignments all over the Daily Planet. While he was helping out in Business, a billionaire entrepreneur committed suicide which sent the Business editor into a tizzy of activity writing articles about buy-outs and takeovers of the former LexCorp companies. Clark couldn't kindle any interest in the death of Lex Luthor, although the new talk show host, Larry Kidsign, made as much mystery out of the story as he could to garner higher ratings. Everything Clark himself had researched, indicated Luthor was your typical big business operator, only interested in his own personal advancement. When LexCorp took a heavy hit in the stock exchange, his death was inevitable. The man had obviously measured his self worth by his company holdings. His death was only significant to his stockholders and business partners. Once LexCorp was redistributed, he was pretty much forgotten, although some of the buildings in town did still carry his name. When he went to work with Karl in Travel, the man was ecstatic to learn that Clark had travelled all over the world. Karl put him straight to work on stories about Bali and the Seychelles--he wanted to be sure to give Mr. White a choice of stories for the next quarterly edition of the Planet's glossy travel magazine. Clark was happy to comply. He had spent almost a month on Bali early last year and was able to quickly piece together a story on 'the Jewel of the East.' It was almost no effort at all to rhapsodize over the beautiful, mountainous island with a tropical climate and fertile soil. The photographs the Planet travel photographer had submitted, although good, didn't do it justice at all. Clark felt it had to be seen first-hand to truly comprehend its beauty, and hoped he had conveyed that in his story. On the other hand he had never been to the Seychelles. He needed to do actual research to write the story and paid a visit to the Planet's morgue to get background material. There he found file pictures and a brief overview of the history and politics of the republic consisting of about 100 islands in the western Indian Ocean north of Madagascar. The pictures looked fabulous. For a fraction of a second he thought about paying a quick visit, but on second thought, decided the risk was too high. He wrote his story from the material at hand. Karl was pleased with Clark's work and regretted his return to the newsroom. Clark, on the other hand, was relieved at his return to familiar territory. Although Clark had liked the work in Travel, he wanted to return to the action of the newsroom. He preferred being in a job where he wasn't tempted to fly to his stories. ***** Early in August, Jack Lawson called and confirmed the new tenancy. He asked that Clark come and inspect the property prior to the arrival of the new family. "Oh, and Clark, there's some boxes in the attic that belong to you. Now you've got a place of your own, do you want to take them?" "Boxes? I don't remember any boxes." "Sure you do, a couple of old trunks and three cardboard boxes that belonged to your parents. The new people have several small kids. They want to use the attic as indoor play space. I'd recommend you get the boxes out of there, before the family arrives early in September." "Okay, Jack, I'll come and look at them. Lana and I will be in Kansas City for a wedding on the long weekend. I'll drop by for the key." "Sure thing, Clark, any time." ***** Over the Labour Day weekend, he and Lana flew a commercial jet to Kansas City to attend Tim and Lori's wedding. The bride and groom were obviously ecstatic about getting married and the weather cooperated for them to have their small, garden wedding just the way they had planned. Lana thought the wedding was a little too small and intimate for her taste, but Clark was just happy for Tim and Lori. The next day, Lana went shopping while Clark visited the farm and packed up the boxes and trunks to be shipped back to Metropolis. He stood in the lane leading up to the farmhouse and stared at the house. How did he feel about this house? He wasn't really sure. Memories of running up this same laneway calling out joyfully to Mommy as she waited for him on the porch were jumbled together with the memories of slowly walking up this laneway towards the trembling Mrs. Stinger and the figure of Mr. Stinger looming in the doorway, one hand convulsively hitting the palm of the other. Clark shuddered as he stepped up onto the porch. He turned the key in the lock and slowly opened the door, almost afraid of the memories this house would bring back. What he saw was a sparkling clean kitchen and living room. The furniture and window dressings were now completely different from when he was a child here. There was nothing to remind him of his early childhood or the horrible time he'd spent here with the Stingers. Even the shape of the rooms seemed different somehow. Grateful that there was nothing to remind him of the awful times, but regretful that the happy times seemed to be lost as well, he turned towards the staircase and headed for the attic. The trunks and cardboard boxes were just where Jack Lawson had said they would be. Clark hunkered down to sort through the contents before putting on the shipping labels. He found a small picture of his parents that fit perfectly into his wallet, so he could always have them with him. In the last box he found an envelope containing the triangle with the S logo his Mom had given to him, explaining it had been with the blue blanket they found him in. He was glad no one else had looked through these boxes. The special logo would have created some awkward questions that couldn't be answered by a generic 'my mother made it' statement. The triangle with an S on it didn't even remotely look homemade. When Clark got back to Metropolis, he put the envelope in the trunk he was using as a coffee table. He'd figure out what to do with it later. ***** Metropolis, New Troy -- June 1994 ********************************* Lana had reserved dinner at the hot new restaurant at the top of the Lexor Hotel, to celebrate his first anniversary on the job, and his recent success with his story on the opening of Space Station Prometheus. She also booked them into the honeymoon suite for the night. Clark thought this was a little presumptuous. She hadn't asked him what he wanted to do for dinner, and certainly hadn't inquired what he wanted to do for the night. "Lana, we haven't even decided if we want to be married. Why did you book us into the honeymoon suite?" "It'll be romantic, Clark. They have one of those heart-shaped tubs and a nice big bed." Lana snuggled up to him and whispered, "It'll be great, you'll see." Clark briefly considered saying 'no.' It just didn't seem right to be using a honeymoon suite when you weren't actually on your honeymoon. But he couldn't hurt her feelings he just wasn't built that way. So, instead of protesting, he said, "Yes, sweetheart, of course." He had learned over the years that once Lana had made up her mind there was no changing it. She loved him enough to want to be with him that was sufficient. Wasn't it? ***** After he had written his story covering the launch of the first transport vehicle to dock with the Space Station, work in the newsroom wasn't all that exciting. Mr. White had been pleased and had praised Clark's initiative in getting an exclusive interview with Commander Jack Laderman, pilot of the transport vehicle Messenger. The commander had said he had given him the interview because he had been impressed with Clark's knowledge of flight trajectories and the depth of his research into space flight and the development of the space station. Clark had hoped that Mr. White might have given him more praise on the story. However, the editor-in-chief was obviously distracted by the Daily Planet's current financial woes. There were rumours flying around at the coffee machine that the Planet was ripe for a hostile takeover. A lot of people were starting to brush up their resumes in preparation for the cuts by the new owner, or owners. Clark thought he'd wait and see what happened before doing anything drastic. Mr. White had now assigned Clark to work on a series of exposes that would feature examples of government waste and mismanagement. It wasn't the most exciting assignment he had been given, but Clark felt it was doing a public good by keeping the government on its toes. Clark had pretty much resigned himself to simply working through the list of government projects Mr. White had given him, when one of his more reliable sources called to tell him that he should check out a building down near Hobb's Bay. There was supposed to be some kind of top secret, hush-hush, government holding-tank down there. This could mean another exclusive! After telling Mr. White he was going to follow up on a lead, Clark caught a cab to the Hobb's Bay district. After paying off the cab, and ensuring no-one was following him, Clark walked along the waterfront for a couple of blocks and then turned right and headed for the Bessolo Boulevard address he had been given. He stood nervously outside the chain-link fence and gate of a nondescript building and wondered what on earth had led his source to believe *this* was of any importance. He turned to walk back towards the busier part of Hobb's Bay feeling deflated and disappointed with his independent lead. He should forget this crazy idea and just follow up on the next project on Mr. White's list. Then he felt it...a strange tug at his mind. He didn't know what it was, but it was *compelling* him to come to it! Clark had no idea why, but he felt he *had* to investigate. His heart raced as he pulled two of the chain's links apart slipped the chain holding the two sides of the gate together from between the links, and entered the yard in front of the building. He made sure he closed the gate behind him, putting the chain back through the links of the fence and pressing the links of the chain back in place. He glanced over his shoulder to make sure he wasn't being watched, crossed the dirt square in front of the building and came to a halt. The door into the building was fastened by a combination lock! How was he going to get around this? Maybe he should just go away. He felt the force of the tug in his mind again. It, whatever *it* was, wanted him inside! He peered over his glasses but couldn't see through the wall. The paint on this old warehouse must be chock full of lead! He lowered his gaze to the door and was able to see the lock's interior. He turned the dial, and used his special hearing to listen for the confirmation of the tumblers connecting. It took a couple of tries before he got it right, but finally he pulled at the hasp and the lock drew apart. Afraid to open the door, yet compelled by whatever was tugging at his mind, he glanced over his shoulder again and entered the building. The tug on his mind had lessened now that he was inside the building. It was almost as if *it* knew he was there. Clark stared around him. He was in a *huge* hangar space whose floor was filled with tarp covered bulges and filing cabinets. The warehouse hadn't appeared to be anywhere near this big from the outside. He put a clamp on the excitement he was now feeling. He had to keep on track. His crazy idea might just turn out to be an award-winning story after all! He randomly opened the drawers of several filing cabinets. All the file folders had "Bureau 39" logos on their labels. He wondered what Bureau 39 was and what jurisdiction it came under because he couldn't remember coming across that name in his directory of government agencies. Then his heart almost stopped beating when he saw a file labelled "Smallville Incident, 1966." He rapidly scanned the contents of the file. It contained several government reports on a possible UFO sighting in the town of Smallville, Kansas. A small spaceship had been recovered, although it had been buried six feet down in a field, presumably by one of the locals. Two agents had revisited the town in 1972 and were of the opinion that a child by the name of Clark Kent was possibly of alien origin. Clark sank to the floor, his back against the file cabinet, the file folder in his trembling hands. His heart clenched and a moan escaped from his lips. All those years of worrying that the government would find him out...and they already *knew*! If it hadn't been for general inefficiency and mismanagement, they could have come for him years ago! He remembered those agents mentioned in the file. They had been rude to his parents, and after their visit, his Mom and Dad had explained about his other, Special, parents and emphasized how important it was that no-one find out his Special nature. He slowly stood up. He really had to get out of here before someone came and found him in this warehouse. He couldn't leave the file here for anyone to find, either! Clark tucked the file inside the breast of his coat. He did *not* want to expose this warehouse, no matter how many awards he might win. Someone might remember that Clark Kent, reporter, had been a child in Smallville, Kansas at the relevant time. If he never told anyone about his visit here and just followed up on the next project on Mr. White's list, it was unlikely anyone else would think to look inside this warehouse. Anxious to put as much distance as he could between this building and himself, Clark turned to leave when he felt that strange compelling tug at his mind again. It was almost as if whatever it was sensed his intent to leave. Swallowing to moisten his dry mouth, he turned around full circle. The pull was from further inside the warehouse. After taking a look around for possible monitoring equipment, Clark tiptoed forward. About thirty feet further down the aisle he came across a mound that seemed to be begging him to lift the tarpaulin sheet. He did. Underneath was a small spacecraft, almost like a child's version of a racing car without wheels, certainly not large enough to hold a man, with strange symbols around the outside edge. Clark stroked his hand across the cuneiform-style lettering...until he came across the now familiar S symbol on the nose of the craft. He swallowed. Was this the ship he had arrived in? Then his trembling hand stretched out instinctively and picked up a small leather pouch resting on the makeshift table holding the little craft. It seemed to want him to. The pouch held something round inside it and was labelled "Smallville, Exhibit A." Opening the pouch, he found a softball-sized globe of the Earth. As he touched the globe, he felt at one with the object as the surface swirled to a different formation tinged in red, and a voice in his mind said "Krypton." Clark almost dropped the sphere, but got a tighter grip and then carefully replaced it in the bag. He wondered if Krypton was the name of the planet he was from. He did *not* want this spaceship to stay here, either. There was still a remote chance someone else might investigate this building. Putting the bag in the spaceship, together with the "Smallville Incident, 1966" file, he wrapped the tiny craft, globe and file folder in the tarpaulin and lifted the bundle over his head. Manoeuvring his way between the other covered bulges, he carried it out to the dirt square between the building and the gate, locking the door behind him. He heard a sound. Maybe someone had followed him? Maybe they were watching him now?! He placed the ship bundle on the ground and turned around slowly, using his Special sight to see if anyone was watching him. He saw only a stray dog scuffling in an overturned trash can further down the street. Now sure that there was no one in the vicinity to see him leave he picked up the bundle and then jumped, with it on his shoulder, up into the air. Once his feet had lifted off the ground, he pressed his mental button that said "fly." ****************************** Margaret Brignell brignell@capitalnet.com Ottawa, Canada %%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%% My fanfic now available at: http://www.capitalnet.com/~brignell/ ****************************** ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 16 Nov 1998 21:43:44 -0500 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: Margaret Brignell Subject: New Fanfic -- Only You: Recall -- Part 3 of 12 Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Within minutes he was at the farm near Smallville. He wasn't sure what instinct had brought him here. After all, anyone in the know would look to Smallville for more clues. However, it felt right that the artifacts related to his origin should be here, where he had spent the first years of his life here on Earth. He decided to bury the spacecraft and the file near the tree were he and Dad had built the tree house together when he was small. Dad had chosen that location because the tree was out of sight of the farmhouse and the road--it would be perfect for his needs. But first, he took the globe up into his old childhood tree house so he could find a hiding place for it there. Once inside the treehouse, he realized that hiding it here wasn't such a good idea. The new people on the farm had small children who would want to use this tree house within the next couple of years. He stood, irresolute, with the globe in one hand. Then he gasped and stared at it in awe as it slowly began to glow again. He wished the globe could talk to him and tell him everything he wanted to know. He stroked it gently with his other hand, almost dropping it again when it suddenly flashed a bright light and a three-dimensional picture of a man appeared. Clark gasped and had to consciously close his mouth as he stared at the strangely familiar-looking man wearing a tunic with the same 'S' symbol that had been on Clark's baby blanket and on the small space craft outside. As Clark stared in amazement at the image, the vision began to speak, "My name is Jor-El. And you are Kal-El--my son." Clark drew a sobbing breath. His *father*! No *wonder* the man looked familiar. He saw a younger version of that same face in his own mirror every morning. His mind wrestled with this new information and he almost missed the next part of the message. He combed his hair with the fingers of his free hand. He really needed to concentrate. The image continued to speak. "The object you now possess has been attuned to you. That you now hear these words is proof that you survived the journey in space and have reached your full maturity. Now it is time for you to learn your heritage." Clark gasped as the image shifted to show a red planet hanging in space. Then the scene shifted again and Clark saw Jor-El standing in what appeared to be a kind of scientific laboratory. "Time grows short and we continue to search. The immensity of space is both a blessing and a curse. In that near infinite variety there must be some place suitable." Jor-El appeared to suddenly feel anguished at the limited time available. "Hope and desperation drive us in equal measure." Then a tall, elegant woman joined the man. Clark felt suddenly overwhelmed and sank to the floor of the tree house. Could this be...his *mother*?! "Lara works by my side. She is tireless and endlessly patient. Considering what is soon to come, this is my greatest consolation: that we are together." A tremor shook the lab, indicators on the console flared and Jor-El took Lara in his arms. The tremor subsided. Clark suddenly realized the man was speaking English. How could that be? Shouldn't he be speaking Kryptonese, or something? As if the globe sensed his puzzlement it responded to his unspoken question. "You may wonder that I speak your language, and not my native Kryptonian: I don't. That is another property of the object." Then Jor-El continued his story. "Unmanned Kryptonian probes have explored every corner of the known galaxy and beyond. For thousands of centuries we have received data back from those probes. I have every confidence that, given enough time, we can achieve the conversion to a manned vessel. But, will we have the time?" Another tremor, more violent than the last, almost knocked Clark's parents off their feet. They clung to the console for support. "The pattern of core disintegration continues to accelerate. Even I cannot predict when it will end." Lara and Jor-El walked over to a small space craft exactly like the one Clark had left on the ground below the tree house. "There is an ancient Kryptonian saying: 'On a long road, take small steps.' Precision and care are the watchwords. Yet, we still have far to go." There seemed to be a shift in time, as if filming had stopped and then restarted. Both of his parents looked sad as Jor-El continued, "There is no longer any doubt. The chain reaction has begun. As panic spreads, the population awakens, too late, to its fate. Our future is inevitable." Another tremor shook the lab and an alarm chime sounded from the console that Jor-El was standing beside. "At last the computers have located a suitable destination: a planet physically and biologically compatible with Krypton whose inhabitants resemble ours, and whose society is based on ethical standards which we, too, embrace in concept, if not always in deed." The image shifted again to show an image of Earth floating in space. "The inhabitants call it, simply, Earth." "We have installed the hyperlight drive and tested it as best we can. So much is unknown." Jor-El and Lara unhooked something attached to the console: the globe with its red Krypton appearance. "Contained within the sphere is the navigational computer that will guide the ship through the maze of hyperspace, as well as this account of our final days." Jor-El carried the globe to the ship, fitted it into the mounting designed for it. Once in place, it changed to display the Earth's blue marble appearance. "All is in readiness. We have selected the ship's exact destination on Earth and programmed it into the computer." Then Clark covered his mouth and gasped as Lara brought in an infant swaddled in blankets. This was himself as a *baby*! "Kal-El, our child. Under Earth's sun his Kryptonian cells will give him powers and abilities no Kryptonian has ever had." Lara gently laid him in the space craft. In a choked voice, Jor-El said, "He is the last son of Krypton." Another tremor shook the laboratory. Jor-El and Lara stood over the ship. "I try to picture where you are now as you hear this last chapter. What do you look like? Are you alone? What have you become? Lara and I will never know. But that you should live to experience this... that is enough. We are content." Jor-El began to seal the hatch of the space craft. Lara lightly touched the baby in the craft and the infant reached for her. The ship's hatch closed. Yet another tremor began. "We give you to Earth, to a realm called America, and a place called Kansas. Remember us, but do not regret our passing. All is fate." It almost seemed unreal. Clark had to remind himself that this was his mother and father and himself as a baby that he was seeing. The image shifted yet again. Clark realized he was seeing Krypton >from the point-of-view of the globe on the surface of the tiny space craft. The planet surface receded away from him until he could see Krypton hanging in space, beautiful, alien, at peace. Then, in a flash of greenish light, it exploded, reduced to dust and space debris. Another moment... and it was as if it had never been. The image vanished. ***** Clark sat on the floor of the tree house, his face wet with tears. This was how his Special parents had died--in a fiery ball almost uncannily the same fiery death as Mom and Dad! Why his Special parents hadn't been able to save themselves, he didn't know. Perhaps one day the globe would tell him that too? The globe looked like the Earth again, and had ceased to glow. But one thing kept spinning through his mind...he hadn't been abandoned by his parents! He had been safeguarded by them! He whispered the name they had given him, "Kal-El!" Memories flooded his mind--of Mom and Dad being hit by the truck-- of Krypton exploding. He found himself sobbing for what might have been. He hadn't known them but they were his *parents* and he was devastated that they had died and yet had done everything in their power for *him*. Clark hugged the globe to his chest, rocking back and forth in an effort to stop the pain he was feeling. When he finally regained his composure, Clark looked at his watch only to find he had been in the tree house for almost three hours! He didn't know what he was feeling any more. Inside he was a turmoil of grief for the death of his Special mother and father, joy at the knowledge of their love, and sorrow at what might have been. The globe had told him *so* much! He wasn't a mistake in some kind of scientific experiment. He really *had* been loved, and wanted. Wiping the tears from his cheeks with the back of his sleeve he carefully placed the globe back into its bag and stood up. Clark floated down from the tree house, lay the globe inside space craft, and buried the craft and its contents in the ground. After they were lowered into the ground, he made sure that the ground above the burial site did not appear to have been recently dug up by covering the disturbed earth with some artfully arranged rocks. He didn't want anyone finding this burial site of his personal history. He stared through the earth at the tiny space ship. Waves of sorrow swept over him. Why couldn't just one set of his parents have survived? Why? He gulped back sobs. Once he had some control over his emotions again, he whispered "Thank you...Jor-El and Lara.... Thank you!" After this final memorial message to his parents, he flew back to Metropolis with the memories of everything that had happened this afternoon spinning round-and-round inside his head. It wasn't until he was almost at the New Troy state line that he wondered if he should tell Lana about this latest development. In Metropolis, he landed outside the gate to the warehouse on Bessolo and double-checked that the lock on the gate was fastened they way he had originally found it. He walked towards the docks and hailed a passing cab. If anyone checked, it would seem as if he'd spent the entire afternoon doing research in the Hobb's Bay area. The cab got him home within minutes. By this time the numbness he had felt after burying the space craft had worn off. The pain and sorrow of this new loss combined with the memory of his earlier loss was back in full force. He was really looking forward to a quiet evening at home to think through his feelings about his birth parents and the way they had died. As he got out of the cab, he saw an extremely irate Lana pacing back-and-forth at his front door "And, just *where* have you been! We're late! Or, did you forget that we had tickets to 'Beauty and the Beast' on Broadway and we still have to eat dinner, and....?" Clark had known they were going to see the Broadway show, but he'd completely forgotten this detail in the emotional upheavals he'd gone through today. "Lana, I'm s-s-sorry. I f-f-forgot. It's been k-k-kind of a traumatic day. I...." "Clark! How could you *possibly* forget these tickets? They cost a fortune! I had to beg and plead with the ticket office to get them on one of your evenings off and *now* you tell me you *forgot* because you've had a hard day!" Clark felt disconcerted. He knew how much these Broadway tickets meant to Lana, but.... "I'm sorry, Lana. It's just that I found out something that upset me...I just forgot, that's all." "Okay, you forgot. I understand. But you know how much I hate being late." She patted his arm. "Right now, you have to change. We have to be there by eight." "I can't. I need for us to talk." Clark hoped she would listen to what he had to say. "Can't! Don't be ridiculous. We can't miss this! It's too late to back out!" Clark swallowed, close to tears again, "I can't! I just *can't*!" Through the tears he managed to get the key in the lock and open the front door. "You have to understand, I just c-c-can't!" "Clark, you promised! We can't back out now. We *have* to go!" "But...." Clark turned around to face Lana. He searched for the words to tell her what he was feeling. Lana moved close to him and put her arms around his neck. "You'll really like it! I just know it. It's a love story, just like ours." She kissed the corner of his mouth. "Please, sweetheart. It'll help you relax. We'll talk about your rotten day later. Okay?" Clark opened his mouth to tell her that he had lost yet more people who loved him to a fiery death, but Lana continued, "Clark, I can see you're upset, but we have this commitment. We can't just not go. Please, Clark, you promised." She blinked up at him. Clark swallowed, he couldn't back out of this and hurt her, could he? Clark whispered, "Okay." She gently released her hold on him and pushed him in the direction of the bathroom. Dazed, Clark walked slowly towards the bathroom trying to sort out his feelings. He had to tell her he wasn't up to this. He *had* to! He turned to reiterate his need to just talk. However, Lana waved him back in the direction of the bathroom. "Sweetheart, this is for the best, really. You need to hurry." He was about to protest but couldn't. She loved him. She was only thinking of what was best for him. Then he realized the truth--that Lana was now the only person left who loved him. He needed her love, so he turned back towards the bathroom to got ready for the theatre. In the shower Clark leaned against the tile letting the water wash over him and wash away his tears. He mustn't spoil Lana's evening. It wouldn't be fair to her. He thought again about insisting that Lana hear about today's events, but realized it would be futile. When she was this focussed on the Broadway tickets, he knew she wouldn't listen. It really didn't make that much difference, anyway. She had always thought he was from space, and knowing that it was true would not help ease her fears of his being caught and put in a lab. He should just keep this knowledge to himself. Later that evening, as Beauty found her true love amidst clamouring town mobs and bewitched castles, Clark had a nightmare thought. What if people found out his true nature--would they see him as a monster and mob *him*? He shuddered and, trying to forget this appalling possibility, returned his attention to the happy ending unfolding before his eyes. ***** London, England -- October 1994 ******************************* Joan Dough was in her weekly session with Dr. Mamba, her psychotherapist. She still could not remember much of anything prior to her arrival at the Sutcliffe Hospital for Post-Traumatic Stress a year ago. She did not know her real name and was still in physiotherapy to recover from the injuries she had sustained just prior to her arrival at the hospital. Joan had spent the last twelve months in the hospital trying to recover from her injuries and do the best she could to remember her previous life. Dr. Mamba was hopeful that she would eventually regain her memory. However, without a framework of known places and people they both knew this would be virtually impossible. The one memory she had was of the name 'Joan Dough' and a place-- Venus, Nebraska. She was pretty sure that the name was not hers, and that she was *not* actually from Nebraska. However, she had no other memories to prove otherwise. The hospital had contacted the authorities in Nebraska. However, as Joan had suspected, there was no record of any Doughs, particularly a Joan Dough, from there. Dr. Mamba looked up from reading her file. "So, Joan, you don't remember anything more than when we met last week?" Joan shook her head. "No. Every time I think I'm close to remembering *something* I get one of those blinding headaches and I can't think of anything but getting away from the pain." Flipping through her file, Dr. Mamba, scanned some of her medical records. "Your physicians can't find any fracture or injury that might be causing those headaches. However, they haven't given up hope of finding the solution just yet. Your injuries *were* pretty severe. It could be just that your body needs more time to heal." Joan nodded glumly. Dr. Mamba was nice and reassuring, but the truth was that none of them knew how to get her memory back, or even how to stop those headaches. "Did they say what I can do to prevent the headaches? They only seem to happen when I try to remember." Dr. Mamba shook his head. "We can only assume that whatever caused you to forget was so traumatic that your body is fighting that memory. And to stop you from remembering *it*, whatever *it* was, your mind refuses to let you remember *anything* prior to your arrival here, even causing you pain in order to prevent that >from happening." "So there's nothing I can do?" Dr. Mamba smiled reassuringly. "I suggest you relax. Don't *try* to remember and eventually you *will* remember." Joan wanted to be well. She *wanted* to remember. But, they had gone through all this so many times already. She was starting to learn some new skills to help her get a job and be more independent, but not being able to remember was all just so *frustrating*! Sighing, resignedly, Joan said, "Yes, doctor. I'll try to do that." Dr. Mamba's suggestion *was* a good one. She should try to just live for the moment and stop yearning for a traumatic past she couldn't remember. ***** ****************************** Margaret Brignell brignell@capitalnet.com Ottawa, Canada %%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%% My fanfic now available at: http://www.capitalnet.com/~brignell/ ****************************** ========================================================================= Date: Mon, 16 Nov 1998 21:43:37 -0500 Reply-To: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" Sender: "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman Fanfic" From: