I caught up on both 25 and 26 today, and as delighted as I am that I
finally got to read them (it was agonizing knowing there were two parts waiting for me but not being able to read them), I am now anxiously awaiting part 27 to see what happens next.
I agree that things were going too smoothly for Lois and Kal, so I thought the fight felt natural. Along with pre-wedding jitters, Lois has been going through the emotional wringer this week, from the extreme joy of being in love with Kal, to the intense anger over finding proof that Nor is a murderer, to the heartbreaking grief of not having her family at her wedding. It's no wonder she's off balance, and I can see how being hit with yet one more thing could set her off. It's just too bad that poor Kal had to face the full wrath of Mad Dog Lane without the barest bit of emotional armor to help protect himself. Yes, he made a mistake in not telling her about Za, but he didn't do it out of malice or with any intent to deceive. He simply considered it as "work issue" and those aren't something he's ever discussed with anyone before. Right or wrong, he clearly never meant to hurt Lois. The same can't be said for her, however.
I'm fairly confident that once Lois calms down and actually lets Kal get a word in edgewise to explain why he made his arrangement with Za, she'll understand and agree that not only is it charitable to Za, but also imperative to the future of New Krypton. She'd been proud of Kal for saving Ard, Mo, and Jib from Nor ... she should be equally understanding that he now needs to save Za from the same fate. That doesn't mean she'll ever like it, or would choose that path for any of them, given any other decent option, but I do think she will come to understand that it was a very good solution.
That said, I hope that just as Kal clearly needs to learn from his mistake, Lois is able to learn from hers. While Kal was certainly clueless, Lois was downright cruel in some of the things she said -- accusing him of starting to sleep with Za, for example. I think it's completely in character for Lois to jump to that conclusion ... but also completely awful for her to throw it at him so viciously. Kal simply has no emotional tools to deal with this stuff, and it's not in any way a fair fight. In a normal Earth relationship, the parties have enough perspective to be able to accept that couples fight and move on, but I wouldn't be surprised if Kal is emotionally scarred from all this. It's like kicking a puppy or something. Poor guy is probably going to make himself sick over this tonight.
(Just as my stomach is in knots wondering what Nor is going to do next!
)
Come on, part 27! I am dying to read more of this story!!!
ETA: OMG, I posted my feedback and 27 appeared! I wish that would happen every time I comment, LOL!
Kathy
Okay, apparently, Iolanthe is not the only one with a gutter-bound mind 
It is hard to keep one's mind completely out of the gutter when Lois' mind is by now so far into it, x-raying his black suit and the like! I'm only empathising with the character, that's my excuse and I'm sticking to it!! 
