Thanks!

Corrina.

Delightful part. I loved the encounter with Rachel.

Enjoyed the small town love and concern, expressed in very practical ways, it was quite touching.

Loved this whole part. It was very uplifting! It was nice for a change to have the whole thing go well. I suppose the bad farm hand was a warning to Clark but other then that everything was rosie. Thanks for that! Laura

I said in my previous feedback that I'd have to wait and see the details to know how I felt about Lois's cover story. Now, having seen them, I have to say ... OK, I'm sold.

Given what Clark has gone through, this is probably the most logical solution you/Lois could come up with. You can't just have Clark and his mother off on a 7 year vacation or leading any type of a normal life elsewhere because there is no way to hide the trauma that Clark (and likely Martha) have gone through. And this is a pretty clever way to work around that. The old adage about "the best lie is one close to the truth" certainly applies here -- Clark was kidnapped, he was held prisoner, he got separated from his parents, it took seven years to free him, and now he's back but with a lot of baggage. All true. The only thing that is made up is who kidnapped him and why.

And who is going to push if Clark looks distressed and says, "I don't want to talk about those years," in response to any questions? Speculation might run rampant for awhile, but everyone will assume that it was pretty bad and give him the time and space he needs. Like with a soldier coming back from war after being captured, it would be the ultimate social faux pas to push for details.

So congrats to you for, as expected, once again impressing me with your plotting prowess.

Kathy

what Kathy said---great move with that believable cover story.

love the cover story!!!

Fantastic chapter, as always. I enjoyed seeing Clark interact with Rachel and Wayne - and what a great guy Wayne is!!!

Thank goodness it was only Rachel! And as others have said, delightful encounter. You've captured the small town charm rather well -- people would be helpful and react in much the same way, I think. Being an ex-pat American, your small town touches make me just a bit homesick, which says a lot about your writing ability. Great chapter -- glad no immediate danger was in the forefront, but we all know some shadows may rear their ugly heads in the near future...

Looking forward to where you take us next!

Still loving and enjoying reading this story. GREAT GREAT GREAT job!!!!!!!!

Great part again!

I am glad that Rachel accompanied the other officer to the farmhouse and you described the small town hospitality really well.

I liked your cover story, and as Kathy noted, sticking closer to the truth in this case might be best. And I think it was great for Clark do something - like what you refer to in the preview - especially after 7 years of only your thoughts to keep you busy.

Looking forward to more!

To mirror words you have said in the past. "I may not know much about secret agencies..." You are doing a very impressive job! As others have said, the cover story is very believable and you've played it off well. We as the reader buy into it.

My only critique is with the officers when they are banging on the door. When approaching any unknown situation, their stance is to have the gun holster unbuttoned, and their hand near the weapon when a door opens. A friend of mine used to be a police officer from a while ago, so it's pretty safe to say that technique has been around for many years.

This is a wonderfully believable story that keeps us all intrigued, word by word! You really are a fantastic writer!

Oh, I absolutely loved the paragraph where Lois thinks on how different Clark now seems from the prisoner she first saw, and yet she realizes that he is the same, always Clark. It was beautiful...and so true in any L&C story!

You did a fabulous job on portraying Clark's trouble with conversation, interaction, and physical touch. I would imagine after Trask, Moyne, and all the Kryptonite torture, any gesture, move, or touch could be construed as an attack almost by habit, and I loved how you brought that out. It also, by contrast, shows how much he trusts Lois in that he allows her to touch him much more freely.

Wayne is certainly a very good neighbor, and it was nice to see him come through for Clark. He needs some good turns after all the bad that has been happening to him for the last seven years.

I think Lois bringing him here was a great idea. He's been brainwashed into believing Trask's viewpoint of him--he needs to be reminded that he did live for twenty-one years as a Human and did well. Already I've seen progress, and it'll be nice to see him start remembering everything that came before the prison and the Kryptonite.

Can't wait for more. Thanks!

Well, if you have to leave us waiting for a bit, this was certainly a satisfying chapter to give us first. Great stuff!

Now here's hoping the best for your ficathon story getting out!

We'll be waiting patiently, well sort of...

Wayne wins the neighbor of the year award...for the last seven years. When Lois said he'd been keeping up the farm, I imagined basic maintenance, not actually raising crops and livestock. That's a *lot* of work. What a blessing for Clark and Martha.

I'm still dubious about the wisdom of Clark resuming his real identity. If Menzies cares enough to check, he'll quickly realize that Scardino lied to him. OTOH, we can hope that all the bad guys will figure that allowing Lois's cover story to stand is the easiest way to deal with the whole fiasco. Still, Lois is taking a big risk.

But, then, what's a story without potential conflict?

Really enjoyed this update.

Haha, I bet I can picture the kind of look Rachel received. Like Kathy said, I think the cover story worked really well.

Hee.

<waves to Clark as he passes through>

I haven't a clue as to how they're going to begin to look for Martha, but I can't wait to see it unfold. Maybe Scardino has some info? On that note I wonder if Menzies has thought at all about Clark's parents being loose ends as well and will take action or just leave it at 'alien and compound were destroyed'.

Wayne definitely wins 'best neighbor award'. I wonder when/if Clark will process the comment about the stranger at the Irig farm.

Anxiously awaiting the next part!

Aha!!! And you're mean, you know?

Yeah, flashing federal ID can work wonders on small town sheriffs. Or get them really really ticked off.

Uhm... yeah. Oops?

We did our best to cover things up. Unfortunately, the agent in charge wouldn't shoot to kill, so...

Oh boy... Catfight? And what happens when Lana gets there, too?

Just bumping this to the top since it's been a while that we've seen a new installment!! That's not a nag or anything.....ok it is.

Don't worry, Female Hawk will post the next part soon I think. She only put this on hold because of her Ficaton-Story.

I'm sure she said so somewhere but I can't find it.

Kathryn

Peeking in...

A very quick update.

I hadn't intended to write my ficathon fic just yet, but my muse got excited and dumped TMTY.

When I got back to TMTY, I realised why he had dropped it so easily - it had gone horribly astray and needed a rewrite.

Anyway, I've fixed 17 and have 18 and half of 19 written.

Thanks so much for all the FDK - I'll try to keep the wait as short as possible, (1-2 days) but I'd prefer not to continue posting until I'm back on track again.

Corrina.

Rewrite? Oh boy. Don't tell me. Moyne got to kill Clark, make it look like Clark went all alien on Lois before the angry Smallville mob cut Moyne to pieces? And meanwhile, Scardino was out, chasing the Russian mob and getting himself killed.

Michael, sitting back and waiting sort of patiently for 2-3 additional days.

Darn Darn Darn!

Laura - Just getting it ready now.

Half an hour?

Yay thanks!! I needed my fix! :-)

Framework My experience of small towns is Australian, so I'm glad it still worked for an American small town.

Laura

You know what they say about the calm before the storm!

Kathy

Phew!



Joy I'm glad the story seemed plausible. I felt that sticking close to the truth was the only viable option.

Bellarase Yeah, Wayne is a great neighbour.

MozartMaid

Shadows? I'm not sure what you could possible mean.

Seme Lovely to hear that you're still on board!

DW

And not only do something, but something he is good at and very familiar with.

LadyMoira

Again, I only have Australian experience to rely on, but in the country, the police are fairly laid back. All they had was a report that perhaps a light had been on in a house they knew was empty. I think they would have thought it most likely that the guy who called in was mistaken. Failing that, perhaps it was kids or a non-local who got lost.

I think it would be unusual for the sheriff to attend such a minor incident, but Rachel came because it was the Kent's home and she had been a friend of Clark's.

AntiK

Exactly.

Evelyn When the ficathon came up, I needed a good place to pause - this seemed like the right place.

HappyGirl

Our of interest, check with whom? Perhaps the person running the crematorium. Are they required by law to check the contents of a coffin? Perhaps. Although I sort of covered that (loosely, I know!) by saying the agency use this crematorium when they are faking a death in order to establish a new identity. The only two people who know for sure are Scardino and Shadbolt and both have agreed to stick to a false version of events.

Emily

I can, too. I was in Clark's POV, and he was behind her, so we have to imagine it!

Michael

No. Clark may lack some streetsmarts, but he knows enough to know he doesn't want to be in the middle of a catfight.

I could answer that ... but just in case anyone is reading this FDK thread before moving on with the story, I won't.

LolaDane Hi. Thanks for the nudge!

Kathryn As you said, it was just a short break for the ficathon.

Michael



No. I realised that people were acting in ways I hadn't properly built towards. The result being

Thanks for the wonderful FDK and for waiting through the ficathon break.

Corrina.