Excellent chapter, Rachel! You've brought Clark back from the brink and allowed him to help again. Yeah, maybe he should have been a little more careful with that first mugger, but hey, it's not like he ripped his heart out of his chest, is it?
(Quick note to Ann about Superman II. What we saw on the screen wasn't the director's original vision. The initial cut is now available on DVD (I don't have it yet), and from what little I've seen and read it's way better than the one released in the theater. It treats both Lois and Clark better, especially. I didn't like the amnesia kiss at the end, either.)
(Oh, Ann, it's too bad you didn't have time to leave a whole lot of feedback.)
As others have so eloquently pointed out, the track of Lois's exhausted logic to discover that Luthor is indeed the serpent that Clark accused him of being is brilliant. You hit the high points perfectly. Your descriptions of Lois's actions and reactions were so outstanding. And Luthor's question about Lois moving her couch was a dead giveaway, but it was so subtle that it made Lois look like a genius when she figured it out.
Lex has cancer, huh? Maybe the 'treatment' involves Kryptonite? Maybe that was the whole reason for Superman's abduction, to experiment on him for medical research. If that's the case, then it makes a twisted, meglomaniacal kind of sense. Luthor would, indeed, consider himself to be more important than anyone, even a selfless hero like Superman, and wouldn't shirk at anything to give himself a cure. This Luthor, like others, thinks that money equals not just powere, but the right to do whatever he pleases whenever he pleases. And that's what makes him scary.
Speaking of scary, does Lois actually think she can take on Luthor by herself? Doesn't she remember that Superman would be dead if not for her? And shouldn't that teach her that no one is strong enough to face life's evils alone? Whether she wants to acknowledge it or not, she needs Clark as much as (if not more) than she needs Superman. I only hope Clark is strong enough to help her realize it before she gets into any more serious trouble.
Keep feeding and encouraging the muse, Smirky. Keep tantalizing us with this excellent story. I can't wait to see what you do with the next part.
