|
Joined: Apr 2003
Posts: 543
Columnist
|
OP
Columnist
Joined: Apr 2003
Posts: 543 |
Well, ML managed to meet the challenge and have Clark deal with a Lois who has left him. He manages to make a life for himself...and Lois manages with her life. And she keeps them, more or less, in character. But then she adds the epilogue. What a yucky way to end a great story. But she tells it with great ML aplomb
|
|
|
Joined: Apr 2003
Posts: 1,656
Merriwether
|
Merriwether
Joined: Apr 2003
Posts: 1,656 |
Okay, Gerry. Let go of the epilogue obsession already . It's my story and I get to keep the epilogue if I want to . (You can probably all tell by now what part of Gerry's advice on the story I didn't follow ) ML
She was in such a good mood she let all the pedestrians in the crosswalk get to safety before taking off again. - CC Aiken, The Late Great Lois Lane
|
|
|
Joined: Jul 2006
Posts: 910
Features Writer
|
Features Writer
Joined: Jul 2006
Posts: 910 |
I liked the story a great deal. I thought it was excellent and brave...up until the ending part which I thought kind of cheapened everything before it. It was such a shame given how committed the fic was to itself. A really great read nonetheless.
|
|
|
Joined: Jul 2006
Posts: 1,883
Merriwether
|
Merriwether
Joined: Jul 2006
Posts: 1,883 |
Martha had been cleaning as if it would save her soul ever since. Kind of like Lois. I always knew they were similar creatures at heart. Less alive with Kelly." She gave a rueful laugh. "I guess I just thought Lois brought out the fire in him. Kelly... slows him down." Excellent contrast. I've known people of both types myself. Clark tensed, his anger at Lois flooding back into his consciousness. Kelly was right. What she had done had been unconscionable. (singsong voice) some-body's not o-ver Lo-is... "If it had been me," Kelly continued. "I'd have told her to go to H-E double toothpicks." BWAHahahaha! Does a girl this innocent really exist? She just wanted him to open his arms and hold her Yeah, um, don't get your hopes up, honey. And I wonder if Lois showing will finally make Kelly say something rude. It really was no wonder that when Lex had shown up at her door, telling her he still loved her, still wanted to marry her, that she'd been such an easy target. He'd offered her bruised and broken heart a safe place to land. And so, she'd finally agreed to marry him. The wedding had taken place in a small civil ceremony a week later. (Lisa is banging her head on her desk.) This woman deserves what she gets! Seeing Clark's byline in the Metropolis Star when she returned from her honeymoon had almost broken her. Yep. That. She deserved that. Apparently, with Clark one mistake was all it took to change his feelings for a woman. I am still not entirely convinced all the old feelings are gone. Clark is still pretty pissed, and anger like that requires some deep emotion feeding it. "I've just... Well, the name Kelly Labonne... Isn't that the name of Clark Kent's wife?" OMG. OMG!!!! Why didn't I suspect her of anything until this line? I am kicking myself for not thinking that Kelly was too good to be true. I just thought she was annoying. Being agreed with all the time was... great. It really was. Kelly was just being supportive. So why was it that sometimes he wanted to provoke an argument just to have her fight with him? Kelly cared for his children. Made his meals. Stayed out of trouble. Was never in danger. So why did he sometimes ache to tell her to jump out in front of a bus just so that he could swoop down to save her? How boring. The woman made one mistake, Clark. One. And you managed to pay her back for it when you went to see her as Superman. And yet you still used it to push her out of your life. So much for that sympathetic, understanding guy you like to think you are." Too true. After all, give me a few more years and I honestly think I could have bored you to death. This is a really awful woman, but, damn, that's funny! “Not that you would likely admit it. After all, you refuse to allow yourself to even consider whether you’re anything but happy with me. Some stubborn streak ingrained in your personality, perhaps, that refuses to let you acknowledge that what you needed is exactly what you let get away. What you needed in your life was Lois Lane.
“And while we’re on the topic of Lois Lane... Oh, excuse me. Lois Luthor - thanks to you. That day when you poured your heart out to her as Clark, telling her you loved her.” Kelly placed her hand dramatically over her heart. “Did you really expect her to throw herself into your arms and say she loved you, too? After all, you knew she was in love with Superman. She never made any bones about that fact. If she’d told you she loved Clark, wouldn’t you have considered her a bit fickle? How was she supposed to win? You set her up to fail.
“But here’s what’s really ironic. You were so convinced that her love for Superman didn’t matter, didn’t count. Well, newsflash, Clark, you are Superman!” Ok, again, awful, terrible woman, blah blah, but she sure is sharp. And it's funny to hear her tell him all the things he did wrong with another woman. But she would find a way - even if that meant jumping off the same building over and over so that he had to stay around long enough for her to convince him. After all, Clark might hate her. But Superman wouldn't let her die. And if she was wrong about that, if he did... then he did. That's our Lois! On the other hand, in spite of her gut feeling that something was terribly wrong, what were the chances that Clark's wife would chose today of all days to finish murdering her husband? Slim to none, but, hey, you always were the lucky type, Lois. Lois knew in that moment that Clark was no longer there - would never be there again. Movement in another corner of the room caught her eye and she looked over to see a little boy standing in a playpen, looking at her silently through big, soulful eyes. They almost reminded her of Clark's eyes - or would have if she hadn't known the truth. Hmph. I bet that is Clark's kid. Awww, MLT! I love L&C but I wish you hadn't negated the whole thing at the end, because it is a *great* story.
lisa in the sky with diamonds
|
|
|
Joined: Sep 2004
Posts: 177
Hack from Nowheresville
|
Hack from Nowheresville
Joined: Sep 2004
Posts: 177 |
A reverse Tank ending. I like it!!
|
|
|
Joined: Nov 2003
Posts: 1,441 Likes: 1
Top Banana
|
Top Banana
Joined: Nov 2003
Posts: 1,441 Likes: 1 |
Wow!! Absolutely wonderful, and I for one LOVED the epilogue (who thinks he's one of those who has a terrible time stomaching a non-LnC ending.. sorry )
If she had to move heaven and Earth, perhaps come back to haunt Perry and explain the story after they'd killed her, she would do it.
Waking a Miracle by Aria
|
|
|
Joined: May 2005
Posts: 1,662
Merriwether
|
Merriwether
Joined: May 2005
Posts: 1,662 |
Great story. Somehow, I doubted Kelly, if only because Martha did.
I think, therefore, I get bananas.
When in doubt, think about time travel conundrums. You'll confuse yourself so you can forget what you were in doubt about.
What's the difference between ignorance, apathy, and ambivalence? I don't know and I don't care one way or the other.
|
|
|
Joined: Jun 2006
Posts: 3,166
Pulitzer
|
Pulitzer
Joined: Jun 2006
Posts: 3,166 |
Well, when I opened this fic and read what all the disclaimers, I knew I had to stay up and read it. And I have several comments. But really... I'd better sleep on them, or I might put my foot in my mouth again - especially since I was initially given credit for the quote that started that other thread.
~~Even heroes have the right to dream.~~
|
|
|
Joined: Aug 2005
Posts: 5,797
Nobel Peace Prize Winner
|
Nobel Peace Prize Winner
Joined: Aug 2005
Posts: 5,797 |
Hopefully, I'll have time to comment on the actual story, the details of, later. For now, I'll just say something about the fact that this is a Clark deathfic (but not really) and a Lois-moving-on fic (but not really).
Everybody knows that I hate Lois deathfics, and well, I totally, totally hate Clark-moving-on fics, too. For much of my life, I have been worrying about the fact that Superman treated Lois badly, and I have been afraid that he would dump her. I have felt, so intensely, that Lois has been treated unfairly.
I know, I know, she wasn't treated unfairly in LnC, and this site is dedicated to LnC, so I shouldn't let those other incarnations of Superman and Lois cloud my perception of LnC's Clark and Lois. For all of that, they do. I don't know if LnC's Lois deserves to be punished, to be killed, to have Clark leave her etcetera, but I do know that the Lois I grew up with didn't deserve to be treated like that. It hurts like hell every time I come across a Lois deathfic or a Clark-moves-on-fic. So I'm very grateful to the authors who write these fics for warning me to stay away from their stories.
I don't want to see Clark killed. I don't want to see Lois move on. But in view of the number of Lois deathfics, and the much talked-about recent Clark-moving-on fic, well, I can't help it... I needed a story like this one. A story that says that Clark can be killed, too (there's Kryptonite, remember?) and Lois can move on, too. And there are other nice guys who may like her, not just a scumbag like Lex who just wants to conquer her.
So I think of this story as a reminder that Clark, too, is mortal, and Lois, too, could move on. I don't want her to move on, and I don't want Clark to die, but in view of recent Lois deathfics and Clark-moves-on fics... Yes, I was glad to see this story here.
And somehow, I was a little depressed at the epilogue. It seems to me that we always offer Clark an "out". If we kill him, we usually revive him again. But if we kill Lois, she sure as heck stays dead. And if Lois moves on, she is usually made to go back to Clark again. (The only exceptions are the stories where Clark is absolutely unavailable, as in Becky Bain's "Per Aspera Ad Astra".) In the Clark-moves-on fics, he stays with his new woman, whether Lois wants him back or not.
I want to read Lois and Clark fics, where Lois and Clark both survive and get to be happy together. For all of that... yes, I liked this story, ML.
Ann
|
|
|
Joined: Dec 2005
Posts: 2,020
Kerth
|
Kerth
Joined: Dec 2005
Posts: 2,020 |
Well done. Well done. Clark awoke with a start. I do agree that having it all be a bad dream lessens the story. So in my mind the Clark that wakes is the one in the Show's universe, the story of course took place in one of the many Alt'verses. One of the things I liked best was having Clark be completely fooled by Kelly. Again well done, very well done. Patrick
Framework4
|
|
|
Joined: May 2005
Posts: 1,662
Merriwether
|
Merriwether
Joined: May 2005
Posts: 1,662 |
Yes, Patrick, it was his connection to other worlds that gave him that dream.
I think, therefore, I get bananas.
When in doubt, think about time travel conundrums. You'll confuse yourself so you can forget what you were in doubt about.
What's the difference between ignorance, apathy, and ambivalence? I don't know and I don't care one way or the other.
|
|
|
Joined: Sep 2004
Posts: 1,302
Top Banana
|
Top Banana
Joined: Sep 2004
Posts: 1,302 |
So you posted, ML See Gerry is sticking to her guns about that epilogue. (Lisa is banging her head on her desk.) This woman deserves what she gets! Ah, but remember Lois had just spent two weeks searching frantically for Clark who had left town before her aborted first wedding. While she was going through all that heart-breaking angst he was catching some sun in the South Pacific. I can see him now - bare chest gleaming in the tropic sun, swim trunks sculpted against his loins by the pounding surf.... c.
|
|
|
Joined: Apr 2003
Posts: 1,656
Merriwether
|
Merriwether
Joined: Apr 2003
Posts: 1,656 |
Glad to see you guys seem to be enjoying (or not ) the story. I see the epilogue is causing a bit of a stir. But I could never write a true death fic. Sorry, guys, but I just don't have it in me. The problem is... he's one of those who has a terrible time stomaching a non-LnC ending.. sorry I agree with Ankit on this . I don't like death fics. I don't read death fics. And I really didn't want to write one. And hence, the epilogue. Call it my security blanket if you will. And I like suez's comment: But I also like this idea by Patrick: So in my mind the Clark that wakes is the one in the Show's universe, the story of course took place in one of the many Alt'verses. I guess I can live with this taking place in some universe that I don't have to ever visit . Lois and David live happily ever in that far away, never to be thought of again universe after while our Lois and Clark are safely tucked in bed together still very much in love. I don't want to see Clark killed. I don't want to see Lois move on. But in view of the number of Lois deathfics, and the much talked-about recent Clark-moving-on fic, well, I can't help it... I needed a story like this one. That's why I wrote the story, Ann. But I can only do what I can do and I can't actually let either Lois or Clark die in the end. I am too much of a Lois and Clark (together) fan for that. Besides, in my mind the epilogue is the whole point of the story . One more point: quote: -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- (Lisa is banging her head on her desk.) This woman deserves what she gets! --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Ah, but remember Lois had just spent two weeks searching frantically for Clark who had left town before her aborted first wedding. While she was going through all that heart-breaking angst he was catching some sun in the South Pacific. Actually, Carol, it was three months (not two weeks) that she spent searching for him, crying herself to sleep every night. So please give poor Lois a break, guys . Anyway, glad you seem to be enjoying my... what did Suez call it now... Reverse Tank ending . ML
She was in such a good mood she let all the pedestrians in the crosswalk get to safety before taking off again. - CC Aiken, The Late Great Lois Lane
|
|
|
Joined: Apr 2003
Posts: 3,644
Pulitzer
|
Pulitzer
Joined: Apr 2003
Posts: 3,644 |
(I hadn't read the above comments before posting; didn't want them to color my own) This was very well-done, ML. Depressing but well-written -- the way Clark sulked and then fell for Kelly, the way Lois was lost without him and ended up settling for Lex anyway. I don't like seeing either of them with anyone besides each other, but this was handled really well, and it was definitely believable. It's just like Lex, too, to have some sort of scheme to keep Clark occupied & away from Lois. The slow poison was a little less expected, but explained a lot... and although I wasn't real happy that Clark died, at that point it was probably the best resolution. If he'd survived the poison, the news that he'd been raising Lex's kids would have killed him anyway. At least David's a genuinely nice guy; Lois deserved that after all the slow torture. And the last scene that says it was all a nightmare (which it certainly was)... well, all the preceeding scenes were so well-done that the last one felt kinda tacked-on and disconnected. I know why you added it, but in a way, you didn't need to. Lois had fought her way through everything, made a good life for herself, and that was a happy ending. To have Clark wake up was like negating all that struggle and triumph. You know I love my happy endings, but the final scene at the DP *was* a happy ending, for me. Now, don't get me wrong -- I'm not planning on printing this out and re-reading it a lot of times <g> But I'm not sorry I read it. Good work! PJ
"You told me you weren't like other men," she said, shaking her head at him when the storm of laughter had passed. He grinned at her - a goofy, Clark Kent kind of a grin. "I have a gift for understatement." "You can say that again," she told him. "I have a...." "Oh, shut up."
--Stardust, Caroline K
|
|
|
Joined: Apr 2003
Posts: 1,656
Merriwether
|
Merriwether
Joined: Apr 2003
Posts: 1,656 |
Given all the epilogue comments (not to mention Patrick's brilliant idea ), I tried a rewrite. Do you guys think this works better? I need to hear from people who can't stomach Lois and Clark apart as well as people who felt that the epilogue negated the story. In another, very familiar universe, Clark awoke with a start. It took him a moment to orient himself and another to realize he was floating. He fell back to his bed, bouncing on the hard surface.
"You dreaming again?" asked the woman lying in bed beside him.
Was he dreaming? He glanced around his familiar room in the familiar brownstone that he had shared with his wife since shortly after their marriage on October 6, 1996. Then he looked over at the dark haired woman looking at him through sleep filled eyes.
"A nightmare is more like it," Clark said, reaching over to pull her into his arms before rolling over to kiss her, slowly, deeply.
"Mmm..." she purred when he finally broke the kiss. "What brought that on?"
"I'm just glad I waited for you to come to your senses and decide to marry me."
Her face lit up in a slow smile. "I'm just glad you decided I was worth the wait."
"Me, too, Lois. Believe me. Me too."
* * * * * * * * * The End * * * * * * * * * I think I could live with this as a compromise. What do you guys think? ML
She was in such a good mood she let all the pedestrians in the crosswalk get to safety before taking off again. - CC Aiken, The Late Great Lois Lane
|
|
|
Joined: Apr 2003
Posts: 3,644
Pulitzer
|
Pulitzer
Joined: Apr 2003
Posts: 3,644 |
I think that would work for me. It doesn't wipe out all the emotional energy I put into the story, but it's a nice reminder that this was, after all, only one story and that there are thousands others, with thousands of variations on the basic theme. PJ
"You told me you weren't like other men," she said, shaking her head at him when the storm of laughter had passed. He grinned at her - a goofy, Clark Kent kind of a grin. "I have a gift for understatement." "You can say that again," she told him. "I have a...." "Oh, shut up."
--Stardust, Caroline K
|
|
|
Joined: Aug 2005
Posts: 5,797
Nobel Peace Prize Winner
|
Nobel Peace Prize Winner
Joined: Aug 2005
Posts: 5,797 |
It would work for me as a compromise, too.
Ann
|
|
|
Joined: Sep 2004
Posts: 1,302
Top Banana
|
Top Banana
Joined: Sep 2004
Posts: 1,302 |
Interesting that no one's commented on all the satirical bits that are in the story. Does the epilogue negate the satire, I wonder? Still Lois wound up with Mr. Right in both universes which is never a bad thing.
|
|
|
Joined: Apr 2003
Posts: 543
Columnist
|
OP
Columnist
Joined: Apr 2003
Posts: 543 |
Well, ML, it is a better epilogue, but only because you need to see Lois and Clark together. I felt that the story was strong enough on it's own without you needing to massage our sensibilities. The thing is that you wrote an excellent story that turned the expected upside down and gave us an opportunity to see how Lois and Clark would react when life was handing them lemons. That's okay because you made their motivation clear and their actions had consequences. I thought Ms Lebonne (French for the Good) was a little too swallow since she was too Stepford, but I could accept her for who she was, and I only got suspicious when Clark was getting too tired. Bad Ms Lebonne
|
|
|
Joined: Jul 2006
Posts: 910
Features Writer
|
Features Writer
Joined: Jul 2006
Posts: 910 |
Well, ML, it is a better epilogue, but only because you need to see Lois and Clark together. I felt that the story was strong enough on it's own without you needing to massage our sensibilities. Gerry put things perfectly. I feel like a traditionally "happy" ending (even ending #2) is a bit contrived and excessive for a fic like this where things unfold pretty much like they should. It's not the satisfaction I get when they end up all happy, but it's a satisfaction of things ending up "in their place." And it's the best kind IMHO for a fic like this when a pasted happy ending seems out of place (even a nod to the happiness outside this particular 'verse when no alt-verse thing ever came up in the fic). And maybe it's my own liberal take here, but I didn't find any of the plot points ridiculous in the story's context. That's why I have a problem seeing this as a satire. If in the scene where David tells her he hopes Lois will love him, she had looked at him and jumped into his arms and started saying she loved him, then I wouldn't hesitate. After all isn't satire the presentation of ridiculous things in a serious tone? (What is key to me is that they _remain_ ridiculous--so certainly if you think it is simply insane for Lois and Clark to even consider loving other people, then sure.) But things I would normally think odd were given a perfectly logical basis. And even moments when I arched the proverbial eyebrow had little flashes of awareness-- take when Kelly says she wants to be a mother, etc--she then shrugs and says she supposes it doesn't make her very ambitious. Just that awareness jarrs this out of satire for me, which as a genre is based on taking everything as what it is. This is probably due to my own milage since genre is in the eyes of the reader. Still, I kinda felt like I wish I had known that the WHAM would be reversed before I started reading. All those warnings seem so empty now. I feel like I should still reiterate that the fic was still pretty good regardless. Certainly, I like that it brings up these sorts of issues for me.
|
|
|
|