Welcome to the 2026 Kerth Quiz: Best Challenge Response 
SPIFFY DISCLAIMER THINGY!: All the stories featured in this quiz qualify for the Best Challenge Response story, but this quiz is not a stamp of recommendation for nomination. There are more fantastic stories which qualify for this category, but this quiz only covers 7 randomly chosen ones.
(Instructions are blatantly copied/linked from previous Kerth Quizzes.)CATEGORY: These are stories that are up to approximately 900 words (1-5kb). Keep in mind that this quiz highlights a specific category to help remind us of which stories had kisses, revelations, new characters, etc. They help when voting since sometimes categories (like kiss and waffy and even dramatic) can start to feel like they overlap, but they do all have specific distinctions! And you’ll want to nomination and vote based on what best matches each category!
- This quiz is Best Challenge Response: This award honors the extra creativity required to craft a quality story around a certain set of parameters. Here, the challenge of the challenge is how it acts as the integral lynchpin of the story, not just a footnote, within the responding fic. A creative twist can turn a little challenge into a fic with mega impact! This includes all stories written in response to challenges and ficathons posted on the Lois and Clark Fanfic Message Board (any challenge regardless of the year it was posted; but only story responses that were posted in 2025 are eligible). This also includes Discord dares and specific request fulfillments, and this year, our beloved Summer Ficathon.
RECOMMENDATIONS: Don't forget that recommendations for other favorite eligible stories are *very* welcome and encouraged! So don't forget to add these in a section after your guesses!
QUIZ RULES: One point each for getting the story and author from the quote. Plus, shiny gold stars for those who recognize their own stories. Please don't forget to mention which number you're answering. Rule recap: Open hard drive and open boards (+AO3!), *don't* forget to snip out the excerpts in your replies, and don't forget the spoiler tag when you post in the replies thread.
The DEADLINE for entries for this quiz is SATURDAY, JANUARY 31, 2026, by 11:59 p.m (Eastern Time Zone), which is when the next quiz will be posted.
Here’s the full list of
Eligible Stories.
Here are the full quiz instructions:
Countdown to Kerth Quizzes Extended Instructions and Disclaimers.
Please post your answers
HERE.
Good luck!
Evie
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EXCERPT #1:A voice behind her said, “Penny for your cravings?”
She turned—then gasped.
“Clark?!”
There he was. Hands in the pockets of a windbreaker, glasses reflecting soft golden hues of the midnight sun. His hair was tousled from travel and he was smiling like he’d been planning this ambush for days.
“What? You’re supposed to be in Wichita!” she blurted.
“I was,” he said. “And then Star called me.”
Lois narrowed her eyes. “She what?”
“She said you were radiating snack-related desperation and hidden insecurity. I figured I should check.”
Lois blinked, then snorted. “Hidden insecurity?”
“Her words, not mine,” Clark said, grinning. “Although...”
She stepped forward and hugged him. Hard. Her belly pressed into his abdomen and he adjusted quickly, hand coming around her waist, the other stroking her back.
“You shouldn’t have come,” she whispered.
“I wanted to.”
“How in the world can we explain your sudden appearance to Star?”
Clark shrugged. “I bet I can disappear before she ever sees me,” He said, wrapping Lois in a tighter embrace. They stayed there for a moment, until Baby Kent delivered a swift thump to Lois’s ribs and Clark pulled back with a laugh. “That’s new.”
“Yeah, your kid’s a night owl. Already takes after you—zero concept of boundaries.”
Clark winced playfully. “Ouch.”
Then his face softened. “I missed you.”
She exhaled shakily. “I missed you too.”
EXCERPT #2:“Clark! There you are!” Mayson suddenly reappeared next to them. “I was just going to start making phone calls to help us find you, but there were five clowns, seven jugglers, and a mime waiting ahead of me at the payphone. Where were you last night?”
Clark tilted his head in confusion. “What do you mean?”
“Lois said you didn’t stay in your room and you certainly weren’t with me. So where were you?” Mayson pressed.
Clark floundered for a moment and it was clear that he hadn’t expected to have to explain his absence to Mayson as well. Lois mentally kicked herself for having said anything to her that morning. She needed to rectify the situation.
“Oh! Mayson,” Lois said. “I’m sorry. I was so groggy this morning, I completely forgot that I asked Clark to go back to the airport to look for my missing handbag last night. He was just explaining how the lost and found made him wait for hours and he ended up falling asleep waiting for my bag. Right, Clark?
Clark blinked in surprise but figured it was best to go along with it. “Um, right.”
Mayson frowned. “But I thought you said… What about all of that stuff about him running off all the time?
“What stuff?” Lois asked, blithely.
“What… you were saying before…”
“I’m not sure what you’re talking about Mayson.” Lois shrugged and turned back to her partner. “Clark, are you hungry? The scones are pretty good, for hotel continental breakfast anyway. And you should get some coffee before the clowns drink it all.”
She tucked her hand under Clark’s elbow and was starting to escort him back to the coffee bar when Mayson spoke again.
“Don’t you think we should talk about the elephant in the room?”
Lois and Clark stopped and looked over at the baby elephant, which was carefully plucking travel brochures from the stand in the lobby while her handler loudly insisted that she couldn’t be outside because she was terrified of rain.
Lois looked back at Clark and smiled. He returned her grin and, without sparing Mayson another glance, they both said, “No.”
EXCERPT #3:“This weekend is snow and cocoa and marshmallows and pretending our dads won’t argue over who builds the better fire.”
Clark smiled. “And pretending we know how to play Scrabble without cheating.”
“Speak for yourself. I am a paragon of virtue and vocabulary.”
Clark looked at her with a mock stern expression. “You mean you’re going to invent words in scrabble until everyone else gives up.”
She grinned. “It’s called creativity. And confidence.”
“You literally played ‘chumpy.’”
“I told you it should be a word,” she said, poking him in the chest. “And admit it, you like watching me win.”
Clark chuckled, pulling her even closer. “I like watching you - I don’t need a reason.”
Lois leaned in, eyes dancing. “I noticed - that time we played strip poker.”
His brows lifted, playful. “I might’ve peeked.”
“I know you peeked.”
“I had to! You’re much better at bluffing than I am… It felt like my only chance.”
She smirked. “And what did I tell you?”
He kissed her cheek. “That next time I should give you advance notice so you could wear the good lingerie.”
Lois wrapped her arms around his neck as she pulled his face close to hers. “Exactly. I put effort into my victories.”
He chuckled, the fondness in his eyes softening the tease as he stepped closer. “You’re also completely impossible,” he murmured, pressing a kiss to her forehead. “And everything I ever wanted.”
She looked up at him, warmed by more than the fire. “Same here, honey.”
Lois leaned back, watching the snow dance in the streetlight glow. “Actually I’m glad we’re doing this.”
She smiled faintly. “It’s been a week since we had dinner together without a pager or a phone call and Ralph’s going to start spreading rumors if we keep arriving separately.”
They stayed for a moment in that quiet, warm space. Outside, the snow thickened against the windows, but inside, everything felt still - safe.
EXCERPT #4:Lois slipped inside the dimly lit hospital room, setting her purse down on the uncomfortable chair she’d grown far too accustomed to over the past five years.
She stepped closer to the bed. The usual machines hummed softly, their wires snaking across nearly every visible part of her husband's body. The steady beep from the monitors filled the silence in the room—a reminder that he was still here.
Lois reached for his hand—warm, familiar, but still. Too still. She traced lazy circles against his palm, just like she always did, hoping for movement.
Even if it was just a reflex.
“Hey, Farmboy,” she murmured. “I’m here.”
No response. There never was. But that never stopped her from talking.
“Missed you this week,” she said. “Laura had the baby. We’re… grandparents! Can you believe it? Where does the time go?”
She sighed.
Five long years since she had lost him.
No, she told herself firmly, looking down at his still form. He was still here.
Wasn’t he?
She clung to the fact that his specialists all agreed his brain was still alive and his body remained as strong as ever.
He just couldn’t wake up.
“I’m being as patient as I can with you, Clark.” Lois swallowed the sudden lump in her throat.
She turned and dragged the hideous chair closer to the bed, sitting down as she took his hand again.
“None of us are getting any younger here, you know. Jimmy is almost fifty! Fifty! Which means that you and I…” She trailed off with a sigh, eyes fixed on his closed ones. “I just need a little more time with you, sweetheart.”
Her thumb brushed over his wedding ring, and she pressed a kiss to his temple.
“All you have to do is wake up...”
EXCERPT #5:“Can you get hold of Superman?” Surely Superman would know what to do? Although, come to think of it, why hadn’t Superman shown up already? Why hadn’t he shown up before the plane crashed in the first place?
Clark looked stricken by the question, though she couldn’t imagine why. “I— he can’t— there was some kryptonite—”
“Oh, my God, Clark,” she said again, uselessly. “Okay. Okay. Come in, sit down.” She glanced around the room, casting about for something to do next that would give him some comfort. Clark always knew the right thing to say, always knew how to make her feel better in these situations. He would have gathered her up in a hug, reminding her that she wasn’t alone. He would have said something mildly funny to make her laugh, made her some tea and tucked her up against him on the couch and let the simple warmth of his body soothe her.
Well, she’d already hugged him. She led him further into the apartment and toward her uncomfortable sofa, but he continued to walk through the living room, pacing aimlessly. Why didn’t she have anywhere comfortable to sit? “Here,” she said, taking him by the shoulders and steering him back to the couch. What else would Clark do? Tea. “I don’t think I have any tea but I can make some coffee, or hot chocolate?”
Absently he sat where she had directed him, but he was distracted, his gaze turned inward, muttering to himself about kryptonite. For a moment she felt a stab of fear — was Superman okay? — but surely he would have mentioned it if Superman was hurt. But Clark clearly wasn’t okay, and that was what she needed to focus on now.
He didn’t respond to her question. Hot chocolate then, she decided, figuring neither of them would need the caffeine on their frazzled nerves tonight. She dug through the cabinets until she found some powdered cocoa, filled two mugs with water, and put them in the microwave. It would be a poor facsimile of Clark’s tea, but in the state he was in, he probably wouldn’t notice her meager drink offerings.
“Do you want me to turn on the television?” she asked as she waited for the water to heat up. Probably she should have done that from the beginning. Again he didn’t respond so she reached for the remote control and turned it on, flipping through the channels until she found one showing the news bulletin and muting the volume so as not to upset him more. There was a telephone number at the bottom of the screen and she jotted it down and reached for her kitchen phone. She was met with only a busy signal, as Clark had said. She wondered how many terrified Metropolis citizens were calling in right now, trying to learn the fate of their loved ones.
EXCERPT #6:Charles stood at the door to Loisette’s bedchamber with a knot in his stomach. He was about to see her again, but still, it was not her. This woman belonged to the Clark Kent that had carried her in last evening. Clark, as they agreed to name him, stood behind his right shoulder, likely filled with as much apprehension as he himself. And then there was the Clark Kent who had arrived days ago and had been posing as The Fox. Kent, as they’d decided to address him, was just as anxious to see Lois.
Lois. A strange name. Too short, he thought. How would she react to the three of them?
“It’s ok,” Clark whispered, placing his hand firmly on his shoulder. “She can handle it.”
Charles nodded and knocked lightly.
Marta opened the door, and he inclined his head to her as the other two stepped inside. “Sir! I am glad yer…” Her words trailed off as her eyes followed the two men identical to him, her brow knit.
“Marta, you have met the one known as The Fox.” Charles gestured to him. “From now on, we shall call him Kent.” The man nodded as he moved to the opposite side of the bed where Lois lay sleeping, the burgundy coverlet drawn to her chest, her arms laid straight at her sides. “Allow me to present Clark, a relative from afar.” The man lifted a hand in greeting as he sat beside Lois on the bed.
Marta’s brow relaxed and she nodded. “’Tis good to meet ye,” she said loudly to the man. “He’s right familiar with yer lady,” she whispered, leaning in closer.
“Take no notice, Mother,” he whispered back, smiling at her. “He is only anxious for her. He was the one who brought her to safety, after all. Now, will you leave us awhile.”
“Aye, Charles. I’ll be outside if ye need anythin’.” She patted his arm reassuringly.
“Thank you.” He bent down so that she could place a kiss on his cheek, like she always did, and then closed the door behind her.
When he stepped to the bed, Lois was still asleep, Clark’s hand upon her shoulder. No longer covered in the unfamiliar garment she had worn the night before, she was now clothed in the pale purple linen shift he knew well. He averted his eyes, remembering this was not his Loisette, but Clark’s Lois.
Her absence stung all the more, yet somehow, he knew she was safe, wherever she was.
“She looks just like my Lois.” Kent’s words caught him off guard. Charles looked over to see Kent staring down at her, his eyes fixed upon Lois’s face.
Good luck, everyone!
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Have a question? Ask it here! Or you can PM any of the K-Com members or reach out on Discord too! You can also send an email to us here: Kcom@kerthawards.com
In order to help you find all things Kerth for this year, we’ve created a TOC for all the
🏆TOC for Kerth Awards 2026 Posts🏆.
The Kerth Committee
(KSaraSara, Michael, lovetvfan, and Evie)
