We drew a circle that took him in.
Clark couldn't remember the last time he'd felt so nervous. Actually that wasn't true – with an eidetic memory he could remember very clearly the last time. Not counting introducing Lois to the AI version of Jor-El, it was the day he'd asked Lois out on a date the first week they'd met.
His heart had been pounding so hard he was certain she had to have heard it, even with human senses. He had shown up with a corsage that matched her dress – she never asked how he'd known what she was wearing. She'd been too bemused by her interview with his flashy alter ego to wonder about much.
The night went downhill from there, although Lois repeatedly told him she didn't mind. The restaurant Bill Meyerson from sports had suggested 'lost' his reservation. He and Lois ended up at Centennial Park dressed for a fancy dinner, sitting by the memorial fountain and eating hotdogs from one of the ubiquitous stands that dotted sidewalks around the park.
He'd been certain he was going to end up the laughing stock of the newsroom even worse than he already was – his clumsiness and shyness were already the stuff of legends. But Lois never told anyone about their date in the park. It was their private joke. But he never quite screwed up the courage to ask her out on a real date again. Until Niagara Falls.
"You clean up good, farm boy," Lois announced as Clark climbed into her car. He knew he was blushing and thanked heaven that she didn't say anything more about it. He had taken her advice and spent a good part of Saturday buying the informal clothes he was wearing: chinos, a sweater, and shoes that didn't tie up. His other clothes were either suits or jeans, neither of which was suitable for this occasion.
"I let Alice know my 'date' was a vegetarian," Lois told him as they drove up to Perry White's house.
"They don't know it's me, do they." He suspected Lois hadn't mentioned to Perry who it was she was bringing to dinner. Perry probably thought she had hooked up with a cop, or a stock-broker, anyone but someone from the newsroom, anyone but him.
Her chuckle confirmed his suspicions. "You know, you're about the only one in the newsroom who's managed to avoid one of Alice's dinners. Perry might give me a gold star for hauling in the invisible man."
"Being invisible has its advantages," Clark commented.
Lois pulled her car into the driveway. "Show time."
She knocked and Perry opened the door. If the older man was surprised to see Clark standing behind Lois, he hid it well.
"Right on time," Perry told them as he ushered them into the living room.
The house was simpler than Clark had imagined it would be. It was a big Craftsman style house in one of the older suburbs of Park Ridge west of New Troy Island. Four bedrooms, two and a half baths thanks to a recent remodeling. Perry and Alice had kept with the 1920's theme in the furnishings, real wood, real leather. Functional, homey, unpretentious really, but real. No fabulous fakes here, no photo-wood or vinyl pretending to be something else.
Richard White, two other newsroom people, Norm Parker and Polly Harper, their spouses, and a young woman Clark didn't recognize, were already waiting in the living room. Perry did the introductions. The young woman was Richard's date. She was a stewardess – very young, very pretty, very bored.
"So, what are you two drinking?" Richard asked. He was obviously the one designated to tend bar.
Lois spoke up for both of them. "Ginger ale if you have it." Clark gave her a curious look. He knew that Lois knew he didn't drink much but he also knew she liked wine with her dinner and occasionally – more than occasionally actually – liked harder drinks as well. There was a bottle of tequila stashed in the bottom drawer of her desk.
She noticed his questioning look. "My stomach's been a little queasy the last couple days," she explained. "Maybe I'm coming down with something."
He nodded, determined to keep a closer eye on her. Lois was normally healthy as a horse. He couldn't remember the last time she was out sick. Her orange juice regime apparently worked, despite her pack a day smoking habit. But then, he hadn't caught her smoking the past few days either.
"Two ginger ales coming up," Richard announced. He handed them their drinks then turned to Clark. "So, my uncle tells me you two have been partners for a couple years and you know Superman pretty well."
"Yes, to both," Clark said.
"So, what does he think about Krypton being found?"
Clark felt the floor move before he caught himself. "Krypton?" To his embarrassment, he actually squeaked. He took a deep breath. Krypton had been found?
"We haven't heard anything from him about that," Clark managed to stammer out. "Have we, Lois?"
She shrugged and gave him a crooked smile. "He's not speaking to me at the moment, remember? I wonder if he even knows. I mean, wasn't he taking care of that grounded oil tanker off New Zealand this morning?"
Clark nodded. "He was pretty busy. But when did this information come in? I mean, I hadn't even heard about it, and I try to keep up on things like that."
"The way I heard it, Jerry Barnaby got a call from one of the astronomers last Friday," Perry said, handing Clark the science section of the Sunday edition of the Daily Planet. Lois read it over his arm.
'Astronomers Discover Krypton Intact. Signs of Life Found' the headline read. The article went on. The Cassini-Huygens probe sent to Saturn had sent back photos of more than just Saturn, its moons, and rings. A photo of what looked like dust had resolved itself into a distant star system when analyzed: a distant star system with a red giant sun and several planets, one of which appeared to be in the star's theoretical habitable zone. Spectrum analysis indicated there might be life. The co-ordinates matched those Jor-El had given for Krypton.
The article went on to explain how Krypton could have survived the blast – occasionally stars went nova, expended their excess energy then settled down again. Krypton could have survived with life intact if – and this was a big 'if' – the planet had managed to be shielded from the initial solar explosions. With budget cuts and the time factor – five to ten years to build and deploy another satellite, it was unlikely any more information would be forthcoming anytime soon.
"I assume Jerry double checked the information?" Clark asked.
"I would assume so," Perry said.
"So why do I think it's too good to be true?" Lois asked no one in particular.
"You think it's a hoax?" Perry asked.
"I think it's an awfully big coincidence. Luthor escapes, is found… Then this falls into Jerry's lap," Lois said.
"Lois, you think Luthor is behind every unexplained crime in North America," Norm complained mildly. Polly chuckled.
"Only the ones involving real estate and Superman," Lois corrected. "Luthor's two obsessions."
-o-o-o-
Lois considered that dinner at the White's had gone surprisingly well, despite the bombshell of Jerry's story about Krypton. Clark had actually gone pale when Richard asked what Superman thought of it. But the rest of the evening had gone swimmingly. It turned out that Richard and Clark had a lot in common. They were both fluent in several languages, had traveled extensively – Clark as a budding journalist and Richard as an USAF transport pilot.
The differences were telling as well. Richard adored horror films and thrillers, the bloodier the better. Clark, on the other hand, couldn't stand them. Lois knew that many people in the newsroom considered his aversion a sign of weakness. But she also knew it was a trait Clark shared with many police and fire fighters. People who dealt with horror in reality frequently couldn't stomach it in blown up on the big screen, or little screen for that matter.
Perry pulled Lois aside while Norm and Polly and the others listened to Richard and Clark exchanging stories about the various countries they'd visited in their travels. Norm and Polly seemed surprised that Clark even had stories to tell.
"You know Richard is out of our London bureau," Perry told Lois quietly. "Since Sid O'Neill's retiring at the end of the month, I was thinking of bringing Richard in to step in and handle International."
"Are you asking me if it's okay?" Lois asked.
"He's more than qualified for the job. But people are going to say it's nepotism," Perry said.
"Since when do you care what people think, Chief?" Lois asked.
"Clark may actually be better qualified. He's a stronger writer," Perry went on as if he hadn't heard her. "But I just don't think it's a good fit. The newsroom hyenas would tear him apart."
"He might surprise you," Lois said. "But why are you asking me about this?"
Perry looked off into the distance. "There was a rumor a while back that you and Richard… Well, not that it's any of my business; you're both adults. But if there's going to be a problem, I need to know now."
"First, the rumors were wrong," Lois told him. "And second, even if they weren't, it's like you said. We're adults here. Besides, I'm City. He'll be International."
"He'll also be assistant editor," Perry told her. "The powers that be think I work too hard, that I'm too hands-on. They think I need an assistant."
"They're crazy," Lois assured him. "But if you want me to promise to be good…"
"I just want you to promise not to hurt him too badly if he ever tries to give you or your buddy there grief," Perry said with a chuckle. "No blood in my newsroom, okay?"
"No promises, old man."
Perry shook his head with a smile and went to rejoin the others. The discussion had moved from travel to Superman and Lois caught Clark rereading the article on Krypton while Norm and Polly filled Richard in on what Superman had done for the city. The look of rapt fascination on Clark's face sent a frisson of worry down Lois's spine.
"Clark?" Lois asked as she drove him back to his apartment on Clinton. He'd been deep in thought ever since they left Perry's house.
"Yes?" Clark responded after a moment.
"Promise me something, will you?" She had a suspicion about what he was preoccupied with. The possibility of Krypton's survival had to be singing a siren song to him. The chance that his people where still alive, that there was a place in the universe where he wasn't a stranger in a strange land had to be an almost irresistible lure.
"What?" he asked. He gave her a worried look.
"Talk to me before you decide to take off for… wherever," she said.
"What makes you think I'm likely to take off for 'wherever'?" Clark asked.
"Clark, if Superman asked you to go with him to Krypton would you say 'no'?"
"And what makes you think Superman's going to take off to Krypton?"
"Because if I had just found out that the home I thought was dead and gone might still be there, the family I thought I'd lost, my people… I'd be packed with my ticket in my hand. But Clark, before I got on the plane, I'd check and make sure it wasn't a lie or a trap," Lois told him earnestly. "One of the problems with honest people is that they really don't understand how big a lie can be, or why someone would want to do it. And Superman is an honest person. He doesn't understand the lengths Luthor, or someone like him, would go to get him out of the way."
Clark sighed. "Okay Lois. I promise that if I get the urge to take off for parts unknown, I'll talk to you first."
"Good." She pulled her car in front of his apartment building and let him out. "I'll see you in the morning."
"Actually, I may be a little late," Clark said. "I want to check out Jerry's sources on that story, find out what Superman really thinks about it."
"I'll let Perry know when I get in," Lois promised. She tried to hide her relief that he wasn't going to simply run off to Krypton to see for himself. That the light of reason might actually have its way.
Clark gave her another worried look before he shut the door to the car. "Lois, are you sure you're all right?"
"I'm fine," she lied. Her gut had been acting up all through dinner, even though she had opted to share the vegetarian meal Alice had prepared for Clark. At least that hadn't turned her stomach like the smell of the meat had.
Clark gave her another worried look then seemed to decide against saying anything more about it. "I'll see you tomorrow then."
Lois waved and drove off. She had a suspicion what was wrong with her. Her sister Lucy had the same symptoms before discovering that she was pregnant. And Lois knew that she and Clark hadn't taken any precautions. He was immune to any earthly diseases and the likelihood that he could father a child with a human woman was remote to the point of impossibility – at least that's what they had both assumed.
She had a suspicion they had assumed wrong. She stopped a CostMart and bought a home pregnancy test. The directions said it had to be used in the morning. It was going to be long night.
The next morning hardly came soon enough. Lois followed the directions on the package, set her oven timer, and waited. A blue line meant she probably wasn't. A pink circle meant she probably was. The oven timer went off but she found she was afraid to look. She closed her eyes, took a deep breath and steeled herself for the results. She wasn't sure which result she wanted.
She opened her eyes and looked at the little stick in her hand. A dark pink circle. Oh dear God. Now what do I do?
She spent a good ten minutes sitting on the edge of the bathtub, mind spinning as she tried to come to terms with the pink circle. Finally she got dressed and drove to work, determined to make the best of an awkward situation. She had hoped she would be able to… 'seduce' wasn't the right word. It was too predatory, but she couldn't come up with one that fit. She had needed time to convince Clark that she was capable of caring for the man rather than the superman and she had just run out of that commodity.
Clark was as late as he had warned Lois he might be. Perry didn't say anything at the morning staff meeting but Lois could tell he was curious as to what Clark was working on. At least he didn't ask how she was feeling. She wasn't sure how she was going to handle Perry when he found out she was pregnant. She'd probably end up assigned to cover PTA meetings and dog shows in a misguided attempt to keep her out of trouble.
"Well?" Lois asked when Clark finally appeared in the newsroom and settled at his desk.
"I managed to track down the astronomers who are analyzing the Cassini-Huygens data," Clark told her. "Not one of them admits to having contacted Jerry Barnaby, the Daily Planet, or any other media. In fact, they were a little upset about the Krypton announcement. A few of them thought that publishing it was a little premature since the team hadn't had a chance to review that part of the data."
"And Superman's reaction?" Lois insisted.
Clark took a moment before answering. "Needless to say, he's excited about the possibility. However, he'd rather not make any statements until his own analysis of the raw data is completed. That will be in about six days. The probe sent back a lot of data."
The bile started to rise in her throat as her gut began to object to the smells around her – perfume, stale coffee, cigarettes, sweat. If this was what being pregnant was going to be like, she wasn't sure she wanted anything to do with it.
"Lois, are you sure you're okay?" Clark asked. He was almost comical in his concern.
"I'm fine Clark, just a little upset stomach," she assured him.
"But it could be a sign of something more serious," Clark protested. "You should see a doctor."
"Clark, this is neither the time nor place to discuss this," she told him. "But if you insist, you can buy me lunch after we talk to the M.E. about that triple homicide over in Pelham this morning."
The visit to the M.E. was short – the police already had enough evidence to make an arrest in what turned out to be a vicious family squabble that had turned horribly, tragically, violent. Lois was afraid Clark was going to get sick until the M.E. assured them the victims had all been asleep when killed. No one had called for an absent Superman.
"So, are you going to tell me what's going on?" Clark demanded after buying them both lunch at a deli not far from the Planet. She chose a salad, grilled cheese, and iced tea rather than her usual pastrami on rye with extra onion and a diet cola.
"Well, I figure it's one of three things," Lois said. She held up three fingers and began to count off. "One, my body has finally brought it to my attention that a steady diet of pizza, hot dogs, and cigarettes is a bad idea. Two, I'm coming down with the flu. Or three, I'm pregnant."
At her last suggestion, Clark's eyes widened to near saucer proportion and it was all she could do to keep from laughing as he stuttered out, "Pregnant?"
Lois watched as his eyes skimmed her body, finally concentrating on her belly. His concerned expression became one of wonder.
"How?" he managed to say.
"Well, babies are a hazard of sex you know," she told him with a nervous chuckle, keeping her voice low.
"No, I mean… do you know who the father is?" Clark asked. He seemed embarrassed by the question.
"Clark, I should be insulted by what that question implies," she protested mildly. "But yes, I know who the father is and it isn't Superman."
"Oh," Clark said very softly. "Have you told him yet?"
"Told who? Superman?"
"No, I mean…"
She gave him a blank look until she realized he was probably referring to Richard White. Under any other circumstances she knew she would have been furious at what he was implying – that she had gone to bed with a man she didn't even know, and that he'd been keeping an eye on her, even if he had missed that one crucial point.
"Clark, I've only slept with one man since… well since Superman came on the scene," Lois admitted. "And he's being so incredibly dense I'm having a hard time believing it."
"I think you've lost m…" Clark began. Then: "Me?"
"Duh. And if you ever try to mess with my memories again, I swear to God I will tear your spleen out," she told him. She watched him straighten up in his seat as part of his Clark persona slipped away. It was like watching an actor leaving the stage and leaving the character behind with the make-up and costume. Only there was no make-up or costume.
"You remember," he said flatly. Even his voice had changed – not Superman's authoritative baritone nor the tentative tenor he used in the newsroom, but somewhere in between. She had heard it before at Niagara Falls and at the fortress. His real voice.
"Yeah," she admitted. She reached over and took his hand. At least he didn't flinch away. "I told you before that I wanted the man I fell in love with. His name happens to be Clark Kent. That he had another job was kind of an added bonus." He opened his mouth to say something and she put up one hand to stop him. "But I wouldn't have been looking to prove that he had that other job if I hadn't already fallen for him. If I hadn't already known there was a lot more to him than met the eye."
"Why didn't you tell me you remembered," he asked softly.
"Because I wanted to prove to you and to me that we could make it work. Not with the fellow in the costume. Mortals who take up with gods tend to get the bad end of the deal. But with you, the guy who grew up on a farm in Kansas and works for the Daily Planet. The one who brings me coffee in the morning and corrects my spelling and brings me marvelous croissants."
"And now?"
She sighed. "And now… This is so messed up. Kids were never on my radar screen. My sister was in the family way when she got married and I swore I'd never go through that. I mean, God help any kid that had Lois Lane for its mother."
"So, what do you want to do?"
"It kind of depends on what you want to do," Lois told him. "Are you up to becoming a daddy on top of everything else? I mean, this morning you were a happy bachelor and now… I would understand if you…" To her horror she began to cry. She had promised herself that she wouldn't let her hormones take command of her.
"Lois, please… I would never abandon you like that. It's just…" He paused a moment. "Lois, I never, ever, even considered the possibility that I could become a father. It's a little scary. Actually, it's a lot scary. So, what do you want to do? I mean, it's your body. I'm just…"
"I think a baby needs two parents," Lois said. "And given his parentage…"
"You know I won't always be able to there for you," Clark told her.
"Clark, I'm an army brat," she reminded him. "My dad was gone for months at a time and he never did come to terms with the fact that I wasn't a boy. Granted, he's not the greatest example, but I know it's doable. People do it all the time. And it's not like I'd be doing this alone. There's Lucy and Ron and my parents…"
"You didn't answer my question," he told her gently. "What do you want to do?"
"Well, I figure we can move in together. My place is bigger than yours but we'll probably want to get a house after the baby comes, assuming we can afford it. I mean, prices in the city are simply unbelievable. I know we both have decent incomes and all, but still…"
"Lois, I doubt that will be a problem," Clark told her.
"And my parents," Lois continued without paying much attention to Clark's attempt to interrupt her. "My dad's hated every boy I ever dated and I can guarantee he'll have a fit when he finds out I'm pregnant and I don't even have an official steady boyfriend…"
"Lois, hold that thought, okay?" Clark said. She stopped and stared at him. He disappeared and returned a few minutes later. Only now he had a small ring box in his hand.
He dropped to one knee in front of her and opened the ring box. Inside was an old fashioned wedding set. "Lois, I know it's sudden and you haven't had a lot of time to think about it considering everything… But would you do me the honor of becoming my wife?"
She found herself staring at him. As a girl she'd had the usual fantasies about being proposed to. The knight in shining armor would ride up on his trusty steed and sweep her off her feet to a life of 'happily ever after'. The billionaire industrialist would woo her with caviar and champagne. But this was reality. Her knight wore a tweed suit and glasses and had a part time job as a superhero.
And now he was on one knee in the middle of a busy deli in the center of Metropolis.
"Lois?"
Her hormones kicked in again and she started to sob, throwing herself into his arms and burying her face in his shoulder.
"Does this mean 'yes'?" he asked.
She managed a nod as she wiped her nose with one hand and he smoothed away the tears from her face.
"I think a short engagement would be a good idea," he added.
"I have a better idea. Forget the engagement. I think we should just elope," she told him. "How does tomorrow look?"
-o-o-o-
Lois remembers and she's pregnant. It was almost a litany ringing through his brain.
Lois remembers and she's pregnant.
Had the past week of Lois being nice to him, telling off his alter ego and warming up to Clark, had it all been a sham? A lie to get to make him think she was capable of caring for, even loving, the man rather than the super-man? He didn't know and he was afraid to ask. Afraid of what her answer might be. And then there was the child – not a child yet, just a piece of protoplasm with the potential of becoming a child, his child, his and hers.
He hadn't thought it was possible. Nothing in the data Jor-El had sent along with him had indicated even the remotest possibility that he could be fertile with a human. It was still possible he wasn't. Just because the egg started dividing didn't mean a child would come of it. A million things could go wrong.
Clark looked up from his coffee to see his mother peering back at him as they sat at the old table in her kitchen. He had explained the entire situation to her, the assignment at Niagara Falls, Lois discovering his secret, even giving up his powers at Jor-El's demand. He told her how painful it had been, both physically and emotionally, but nothing had been more painful than recognizing Lois's disappointment in losing Superman. Martha had said nothing when he told her about regaining his powers and his attempt to erase Lois's memories of their time together but he knew she was disappointed in him. And now this…
"So, what do you plan to do?" Martha asked.
"Lois wants to just elope," Clark said.
"That wasn't what I asked," Martha said gently.
"Eloping feels so… self-centered," Clark said after a moment's thought. "Like we can't wait to jump into bed."
Martha chuckled. "Well, from the sound of it, that's not too far from the truth." He gave her a horrified look and she sighed. "Clark, I'm sure it wasn't like that. Neither of you are teenagers with your brains turned off by your hormones. And Lord knows how many babies around here show up a lot less than nine months after the wedding. It's not anything new."
"Mom, I do love her, but I don't know if she loves me or just what I can do. You didn't see her face when we were watching the coverage on that avalanche. All those people dead because Superman was 'unavailable'."
"Clark, has it occurred to you that maybe what you saw was simply a reflection of your own pain at not being able to do anything?" Martha asked. "Maybe she was empathizing with you. You gave up a lot to be with her. Maybe she thought you gave up too much."
"Do you think I was giving up too much?" he asked.
Martha took a long moment before answering. "Clark, life never gives us either/or choices. Life never gives us only the lady or the tiger. Having those abilities, that's part of you, part of Clark Kent, like being a good writer, or having blue eyes, or being six-four. Take any of that away and you've lost part of what makes you 'you'. Even if you never put on that suit again, it's still part of you. And I think Jor-El was just being mean when he forced you to choose between the woman you love and your specialness. It's like asking an Olympic runner give up his legs so he can have a life."
"It's not quite the same thing, Mom."
"Isn't it? You said Jor-El gave you a choice… part of yourself for the girl."
"But people lose arms and legs, even end up paralyzed, and it doesn't change who they are," Clark pointed out.
"But those are accidents or illness," Martha said. "Jor-El made you choose. And then you and Lois both realized that neither option was a good one. Not for you, not for her, not for the world."
Clark sighed, staring at his now empty coffee cup. It was a lot to process. And he still didn't know if the information the Daily Planet had printed concerning Krypton's survival was a hoax or not.
Lois remembers and she's pregnant. So, what do I do if Krypton survived? Dumb question – there is no choice. I'm going to be a father. And I love her. God help me, she's stubborn, difficult, self-centered, brilliant, complicated, capable, and I love her.
--
"I, Lois, take you, Clark, to be my husband. To have and to hold from this day forward, for better or for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish; from this day forward until death do us part," Lois repeated the words Clark thought he'd never hear from the woman he loved. After a great deal of cajoling, Lois had agreed to a more traditional wedding so their friends could share in the event. Jimmy was best man while Lois's sister Lucy was matron of honor. Even Lois's father was there, finally. He had threatened to boycott the wedding because he didn't feel Clark was 'good' enough for his 'little girl' and Lois had refused to let him give her away.
"Would you give away a son?" she had asked her father. He hadn't answered her. Instead she had walked down the aisle alone, a queen bedecked in white lace, a freewoman giving herself in marriage.
"I, Clark, take you, Lois, to be my wife. To have and to hold from this day forward, for better or for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish; from this day forward until death do us part," Clark repeated after Chaplin Fine in the Metropolis Chapel of United Faiths. He was an old family friend of the Lanes and had cheerfully agreed to officiate at Lois's wedding – after all, he had christened Lois and her sister.
"By the power vested in me by the State of New Troy, I now pronounce you husband and wife," Fine announced. Clark leaned in and kissed her. It was sweet and tender with the promise of more.
"I present to you the newly married couple, Lois and Clark."
The guests broke into applause.
When making out the invitations, Clark had been surprised to see how many people they knew – not just at the Planet and the other Metropolis media, but in the MPD and MFD, the mayor's office – Mayor Berkowitz himself showed up – the D.A.'s office, the governor's office, business people. Between Lois's rolodex and his, the chapel was nearly full. The Planet's publisher, Franklin Stern, had shown up and was sitting with Perry and Alice. Even some of his old friends from Smallville managed to show – Pete Ross, Lana Lang, Rachel Barnes, the Hubbards, and the Irigs. And this was despite the short notice.
Lois hadn't wanted to waste any time. She also hadn't wanted anyone to know that she was pregnant, especially Perry and her father.
"Clark, you weren't here when Simone Fulton got pregnant," Lois had told him. Her eyes had been wide in remembered horror. "She tried to keep it quiet and then Perry found out and she ended up covering the school board and dog shows… He wouldn't even let her cover the cat shows cause cats carry something that could have hurt her baby… He'll chain me to my desk… And my father… you think he's upset that I'm marrying a guy that never bothered to join the military? Wait till he finds out I'm knocked up. He will kill you."
"Maybe taking off for Krypton isn't such a bad idea?" Clark had joked. Lois just glared at him.
The wedding reception was held in the downstairs meeting hall. Jimmy had managed to find a DJ with purple hair who was playing a selection of light jazz and big band music on the sound system.
The wedding cake was one of Carlisle's Bakery's masterpieces. Clark didn't know how Ella Lane had managed it. Supposedly Carlisle's had a three month waiting period for custom cakes. But then Ella was a general's wife. Clark was sure that over the years she had developed many talents, including that of convincing recalcitrant vendors to put her order at the head of the queue.
"We did it," Lois murmured. "I'm married to Superman."
"Lois?"
She smiled at him. "Never mind. By the way, you never did tell me where we're going for our honeymoon."
"We have the world to choose from, but I thought we'd start at the fortress and then I know of a private island with the most perfect beaches you can imagine. Clothes are optional."
"Why the fortress?"
"I haven't had a chance to check out the analysis of the Cassini-Huygens data."
She placed a hand on his chest. "Clark?"
He suspected he knew the cause of her worry. "Even if the report is true, I'm not leaving you or the baby. I love you."
"I love you, Clark." She reached up and pulled him into a soul-searing kiss. They ignored the cat-calls from Jimmy and some of the other younger people. "Let's blow this pop stand," she suggested with a grin.
-o-o-o-
It was happening so fast. Too fast. She was now Mrs. Clark Kent. That's what Jimmy kept calling her despite that fact that she had repeatedly told him she was keeping her maiden name. There was no rule that said she had to take her husband's name.
"Lois, are you okay?" Superman asked as they sped to the Arctic, to the crystal palace where Jor-El had ordered his son to give up a part of himself.
She nodded her head. "Everything's been happening so fast. I just need to catch my breath."
"We're almost there," he told her, nodding to a fog bank in the distance. "I beefed up the defenses. Nobody else can get in, unless they can fly on their own."
Superman came to a stop over the peak of the Kryptonian construct. He murmured something in a language Lois didn't know and she felt the slightest tingle when they dropped straight down into the center of the fortress. There had been no tingle the last time.
"This may take a few minutes," he told her. It was so odd, seeing him in the blue and red and knowing who it really was standing there. Who it was wearing the Suit.
"If you want to lie down…" he went on. She shook her head and entwined her arm with his.
"We're in this together," she assured him.
He took a deep breath and flew them both to the control console platform. He waved a hand over the controls and the console came to life. "Father…"
The holographic head of Jor-El appeared. If it noticed Lois standing there, it gave no sign.
"Is the data analysis complete?" Superman asked.
"Yes. The data from the Cassini-Huygens probe is insufficient to determine the existence of planets in the Rao star system. However, it is extremely unlikely that any of the inner planets survived the star's collapse."
"And the speculation that Rao did not collapse but was simply being subjected to violent flare activity?"
"The current evidence from the Cassini-Huygens probe, the Hubble telescope, and my long range sensors, indicate that such was not the case," the hologram stated. "All three sources indicate the presence of a white dwarf star and a stellar debris cloud where Rao used to be. Additionally, spectral analysis indicates the presence of large amounts of Element 126, an extraordinarily rare substance created when the crystalline components of a Krypton-like planet is exposed to high levels of radiation."
Clark seemed shaken by the report. Lois moved close to him, putting her arms around him. "You were hoping it was still there," she said softly.
"I was hoping…" he began, pulling her even closer. She wasn't surprised to realize he was trembling ever so slightly. "I was hoping I wasn't the last one. That there was a chance the planet had survived."
"Maybe other people escaped the way you did," Lois suggested.
Superman shook his head. "Assuming the information my father sent is correct, the High Council would have stopped anyone who tried. Except for some terrorists trapped in a bubble dimension called the Phantom Zone, I'm the only one."
She took his hand and pressed it to her belly. "But you're not alone."
He gave her a tremulous smile. "You probably saved my life, you know, by not letting me leave on a fool's errand. And I would have gone. You know that."
"I know. And I'm glad you didn't," she told him.
He nodded and took a deep breath. "Fortress, can you determine the origin of the information given to the Daily Planet, specifically, the photographic evidence of Krypton's survival?"
"It is impossible to trace the origins of the photograph," the AI said. Lois felt his shoulders slump. "However," the AI continued, "based on the position of the background stars and the other planets depicted, the image is of Krypton two days before you were launched to Earth."
"How is that possible?" Superman asked.
"The image exactly matches the data in my storage matrix," the AI said. "This view is not possible from Earth's area of space."
"Luthor," Lois said simply.
"I really do need to learn to be more suspicious," Superman told her.
"Hey handsome," Lois said. "I figure that's what I'm here for."
He grinned at her. "There's quite a number things you're here for, Mrs. Kent." He pulled her into a sensuous kiss.
"Why Superman… Whatever will my husband say?" she managed to get out when she came up for air.
"That he loves you very, very much."
"And I love him very, very much."
He grinned even wider, brushing her hair away from her face. "I'll keep that in mind when you threaten to kill me in about eight and a half months."
--
"You are so dead," Lois screamed as Clark hurried into the delivery room. She knew where he'd been – Luthor's appeal hearing was this morning and, unlike Clark Kent, Superman didn't have an excuse for not showing up at the hearing. Lois knew this. She didn't care. She had wanted him with her and he hadn't been there. "Luthor had better be dead, too."
"Well, he'll be in prison for a nice long time," Clark assured her. "Westover wanted to invoke the death penalty."
"Pity he couldn't…Aaugh!" Another contraction rolled over her.
"Remember your breathing, Lois," Clark reminded her as the obstetrician checked her progress. "Pant… pant…"
"Just a couple more pushes," the doctor told them. "The baby's crowning. You're almost there."
"Push, Lois. Push," Clark urged. Sweat rolled off her face. He took a cloth and wiped her forehead. She gritted her teeth and grabbed his hand harder. Lucky for him he was invulnerable. She wondered vaguely at how many new dads ended up hurt during their wife's labor.
"We're almost there," the doctor assured them. "Just a little more."
Lois laid back to rest for a moment until the next contraction hit. She'd climbed mountains, fought thugs, went through Special Forces training as a teenager but nothing had prepared her for the level of work she was doing now. Then she steeled herself for the next bout.
"Push, you can do it!" Clark urged her. Then there was a new sound in the room, a wail of outrage from between her legs. The doctor held up a wriggling, bloody, slimy body with four flailing limbs and placed it on Lois's belly.
"Congratulations. You have a son," the doctor said.
Lois propped herself up on her elbows, ignoring the pain from the I.V., and looked down at the cause of all her recent pain and sweat. She counted the fingers and toes – everything was in its place.
"Would you like to cut the cord?" the doctor asked Clark, handing him a pair of surgical scissors. Clark snipped the purple-red cord at the point the doctor indicated.
One of the assistants bundled the baby into the towel and whisked him over to a nearby table to be checked out and cleaned up. "Weight seven pounds, ten ounces, Apgar score 9," the assistant announced. "He's a strong little fellow. What's his name?"
"Jason… Jason Lane Kent," Lois told her. She watched Clark looking down in awe at the newborn in the nurse's arms. He fairly glowed with pride and joy as he took the baby from the nurse and brought him back to Lois.
The last eight months hadn't been easy for either her or Clark. The fairy tale romances never mentioned how much work 'happily ever after' was. Neither of them had really been ready for marriage or family. After the first flush of excitement, Lois had discovered she was afraid of losing her independence and individuality. Clark's over-protectiveness had kicked into high gear when her pregnancy began to show, making things even worse for her. She'd had to tell Superman off more than once, reminding him she was married to Clark Kent. He also had an annoying tendency to obsess over things he had no control over – Superman wasn't omnipotent or omniscient. And then there were the times she had gone to bed alone, or woke up to find he was gone because the world needed him more than she did.
It was her mother who finally set her straight on that: Lois had managed to find a man much like her father. Although her father was brash, gruff, and opinionated and Clark seemed to be his polar opposite, deep down they were very much alike – family was important, but duty was more so. It was Lois who was Clark's anchor, his rock, the place he returned to. Like her mother was to her father. And even though Clark still occasionally worried over whether she was in love with him or his flashy alter-ego, they managed and they would keep on managing.
Clark's eyes were bright as he looked at her. Jason had latched onto a nipple and even though her milk wouldn't come in for a bit, he seemed to be happy suckling. Lois grabbed Clark with her free arm and pulled him into a hug.
"He's beautiful," Clark murmured, kissing her hair. He caressed the dark fuzzy down on their son's head. "You will feel different," he murmured, eyes only on the baby at her breast. "You will sometimes feel like an outcast. But you will not be alone. You will never be alone. You will make my strength your own, see my life through your eyes, just as your life will be seen through mine. The son becomes the father, and the father… the son."
The circle of life went on.
