This is just a short snippet that I dashed off in reaction to the Disability Challenge; it's not much, but I hope you enjoy, and maybe someday I'll find time to revisit the premise properly as it is an idea that intrigues me. smile
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Lois almost didn't need the cane. She had every square inch of the Planet's newsroom memorized, and if it weren't for the occasional waste-basket being nudged out of place, she probably wouldn't need it here at all. So, it was already folded again and tucked under her arm by the time she reached her editor's door.

There were voices inside: Perry, of course, and a male voice that she didn't recognize. Their conversation stopped when she threw the door open.

“Chief, I think there's a story here and we should check this guy out! The crazy one this morning? His name is Samuel Platt and he was an engineer at EPRAD for ten years. He's—”

He cut her off, gruffly. “Lois, I'm in the middle of something here!”

“Oh.”

Lois waited.

Finally, Perry heaved a deep sigh. “Lois Lane, Clark Kent,” he introduced. She heard the scrape of a chair.

“Nice to meet you,” she rattled off quickly, then returned to the subject at hand. “Anyway, this guy worked on the Messenger...”

***

The alarm was blaring, now. Despite the ear-splitting noise, Lois could still faintly make out the soft ticking of the bomb. At last, she heard the door open, and heavy steps approached. What happened next was...confusing. She heard the crunch of metal and plastic, and then...a burp?

“What on Earth did you do?” Lois demanded.

“I, uh, ate it,” a voice replied. Wait a minute, she knew that voice!

Lois frowned. “Very funny, Kent. Now, what really happened? And how did you get in here?”

“Uh...'Kent'?” Her junior partner gave a nervous chuckle. “Wh-who's Kent?”

She sighed. “Listen, I may be blind, but I'm not stupid!” She smacked him on the chest, frowning again as she registered the strange, tight fabric covering it. “What on earth are you wearing?!”

His voice dropped to a whisper. “A disguise,” he admitted. “Can we, uh, talk about it later?”

Other footsteps approached now, and several voices murmured in curiosity. Lois dropped her hand to her side. “Fine,” she acquiesced. “But there had better be one heck of an explanation!”

As it turned out, there was.



THE END


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