I knew this was going to be a hard chapter to get away with, so your comments kind of blew me away - thanks for not trying to kill me for the end of it!
I'm very bad at nice, easy, casual scenes, groobie, which may be why they almost only ever end up being set-up for bad things.
I didn't even notice that this also that that social lie there -- you're finding them all over the place! But then, this is that kind of story...too painful to really go into the truth of the matter.
A slim hope is better than none, Lynn! In fact, that's kind of my mental image for this story: an almost-eclipsed moon, darkness but with that sliver of light still showing through around the edges. The disguise fear was a red herring I slipped in, though obviously a very dangerous one, because that is always a distinct possibility. And at the risk of sounding heartless, I'm glad to hear I was able to lull you into the false sense of security. With life the way it is now, every moment could potentially turn into a bad one.
Thank you, AndyG! I did worry that the earthquake coming out of nowhere would seem a bit too coincidental, but it was planned from nearly the beginning (there are multiple reasons they are now in California), and in the end, everything that happens in a story is SOMEWHAT coincidental.
Clark does rely a lot on his family unit, doesn't he? One of the reasons I love him.
Hey, DC, Lois EARNING a Clark smile is a new thing in this story (as opposed to being given them undeservedly), so I take that as a good sign that the tables are being slowly turned.
You anticipated the sucker punch! Oh well, maybe one of these days I'll get you. I'll get back to you on the box of tissues!
I did originally have plans of explaining that one of the reasons they chose to base themselves in Coast City (Green Lantern's city, for those who don't know) is because no one would ever suspect Superman of living in the city protected by another hero, and because Clark wouldn't have to worry about rescuing people here where he lives -- maybe in his Clark clothes -- when there's another superhero there to save them for him. But I never found a good place for the explanation, and in the end, I decided it would just be too distracting trying to explain the dynamics of the world having another interstellar-traveling hero, so GL remains just in the background, maybe a legend, maybe a hero, and not a distraction to the larger L&C story. Oh, well...
Thanks, cuidadora! This was a hard chapter to write, though I admit that was mostly because of the first part. The second part was easier, but mostly because emotion is easier for me to write than narrative, and the second half was all emotion, messy and overpowering and catalyzing. I do hope to post more quickly in a bit, but sadly, this last chapter or two is REALLY hard to get exactly right, and I want to make sure that I haven't posted too far ahead if I need to go back and make a few key changes.
I include James in the family, too, Christina! In fact, I keep typing 'the Kents' every time Lois refers to Jonathan and Martha AND James, and then having to go back and add his name because of that 'technically, he's not,' thing.
It will be hard for Clark to decide what he wants to do from here on out!
I'll see what I can do about those band-aids, LMA. You're very right about Lois's delicate emotional state right now. Everyone in this story is kind of depending on other people to hold them up and keep them stitched together -- which is okay for a while if the people you're leaning on are fine themselves, but as we've seen, no one in this story really is. That idea of Lois's hasn't seen its end quite yet...
Oh, I'm so sorry, Virginia! I do hope you're feeling better now, and I certainly didn't mean to give you nightmares...BUT, on the other hand, I definitely feel flattered that the story left such a mark.
I can't quite fully explain why poor Clark always gets such bad treatment in my stories, except to say he's my favorite character, and my favorites are the ones I really like to put through the wringer -- just so I can see them shine even through the worst. Bad for them, good for me (and hopefully the readers). I...hope?...you'll be able to sleep again eventually.
Thanks, scifiJoan! I'm so glad that you enjoyed the banter, because that's always one of the most difficult things for me to write! I'll try to work on that posting schedule for you guys!
