As the haze lifted on the morning after, Lois found herself alone in the large bed. She pulled the red cape and white sheet up over her chest as she began to sit up. She hadn't expected waking up by herself and immediately felt the loss both physically and emotionally. She missed Kal-El. She was married not even twenty-four hours, but when she accepted her feelings for him the bond they had intensified. Their performance, well multiple performances, during the night had reinforced the bond. She had felt fulfilled and complete. Waking up alone deflated the aura that had existed.

She suddenly wanted to exit the newlywed suite. Lois started to scooch over in the bed and hunted for the dress she had entered in. She put the covers over her head as she searched beneath them since she couldn't quite remember how Kal-El had disposed of the garment.

"What are you doing?" A familiar male voice asked.

She stiffened in place, however it wasn't in fear. Her body was responding to the voice and she took a breath and calmed herself before she popped her head out to reveal her face.

She blew her bangs out of her eyes and said, "I was looking for my clothes."

She noticed that Kal-El had entered with a tray of food and something steaming and smelling delicious from a mug. He was wearing loose black pant bottoms, but was without a shirt. She could see his abs and muscles and could feel her jaw starting to drop. The muscles flexed, almost showing off knowing she was analyzing them. She bit her bottom lip as she lost herself on the journey her eyes were taking her on.

Balancing the tray in one hand he crouched down toward the ground and picked up the ball of white on the floor that was her dress. Her eyes glanced over to his backside as he bent over and she felt herself go into overdrive. She needed to maintain control.

"I think this is it."

"Yes," she breathed. She cleared her throat and repeated firmly, "Yes, that's it."

He took another step closer and then sat on the edge of the bed. He placed the tray down in front of her and then folded her dress and neatly placed it next to it. She was about to grab the clothing when she noticed the aroma coming from the tray once again. She instead grabbed the mug and brought it right under her nose. She inhaled the steam and memories unlocked of being at her desk at the Daily Planet working on a story. She took a sip and the taste was exquisite, nothing like what she had been offered while being on Krypton.

"Do you like it?" Kal-El asked, hopeful.

"This is amazing. It tastes just like…"

"Earth's coffee."

Her eyes snapped to his face and he wore a bright smile at her shocked expression.

"Is this from Earth?" She asked, stunned.

He nodded. "It's a wedding present." Then quickly tacked on, "from Kara."

Her eyes widened at the information. She almost spilled the coffee when she dropped it back on the tray haphazardly. "And you let me drink this?"

His hand went over hers. He replied, reassuringly, "It's fine."

"But, how do you-"

"Because I know." He said adamantly.

"Hey, you admitted you once thought about poisoning me! Did you test it?"

He chuckled, but nodded again, "I did."

"Ah, so you do care about me."

He squeezed her hand. "Very much." She softened at his touch and he added, "I was also curious as to what it was like. It's good."

"I drink- well, drank, I guess- it every morning before work, during work, sometimes after work…" she rambled.

"I know, you told me."

"Right, she sighed. "And you remembered."

He stared right into her eyes as he stated, "I remember everything."

The tone of his voice, the husky 'matter of fact' way he said he remembered everything she said to him made her want to jump him then and there, but she somehow still held some self control. Instead she focused on the second thing she wanted to devour-the coffee.

"This was very nice of her. How did she get it?"

"There's an underground trade for rare items. Kara has been undercover out in different Kryptonian cities, at different markets, and she happened upon it. With our circumstances she decided to give it to us."

Lois raised an eyebrow. "It was going to go in your collection first, wasn't it?'

He smirked, knowingly. "It was meant for that, yes, but now it's for you."

"Us," she corrected him.

"Us."

Lois lifted the mug back up to her lips and took another sip. The warmth of the coffee went down her throat and it was like she could feel it permeate through her veins. She was sure she might have even moaned a little as she enjoyed the drink. She looked at Kal-El whose eyelids were hooded as he watched her. She bent the cup in his direction, offering him a taste. His hands came up to grab the drink, but instead of taking a sip he placed it back on the tray and moved it out of the way. He leaned in closer to her and his lips were on hers. He lingered in his position, his tongue sweeping over her mouth until she invited him in. She realized that this was his creative way of tasting the liquid refreshment, and refreshing it was. She didn't need caffeine to jolt her system when she had her new husband around.

His hand was suddenly under the red cape that was draped over her, gliding up her thigh. She could feel the cool metal of the ring he was wearing. His wedding ring. Her body reacted to the thought. It was obsessed with the notion that she was married. Before it was the nerve wracking idea of being wed. Now it couldn't stop emphasizing that this glorious creature that seemed to know her inside and out vowed to be with her for all eternity.

Her eyes screwed shut as the pleasure of his kisses and hands continued. She could get used to this for all eternity.

Newlywed bliss continued as the days passed. After moving from the suite to their joined room together, they settled with their belongings-not that Lois had much. What she had been missing was given back to her. With her beloved coffee was the journal she had been keeping and the clothes she had arrived in. Besides her press pass, she discovered a paperclip deep in the back pocket of her jeans. She always kept a paperclip in her pocket. It was such a random item, but to her it was another Earth treasure that would continue to remain with her. It was a normalcy from Earth she wanted to carry with her.

There was even a routine that started that added to the normalcy she craved. In the morning she would momentarily wake up when Kal-El would kiss her before going to the lab to work with his father. She would awaken again when she smelled the freshly brewed coffee left for her on the desk. Then she would tuck her journal away in her pocket and try to act as if it were a typical day. She would wander the fortress and talk with Lara or someone part of the resistance, like she was conducting an interview. And then she would write. In her head this was a series. Lois and Kal-El and the New Adventures on Krypton. It gave her purpose.

At the start of another day she followed her routine. As she drank her coffee she noticed the napkin, however, came with a message.

"Meet me at our spot."

Her lips curved upward as her fingertips grazed over Kal-El's handwriting. Their spot? If there were one place she could deem as "theirs", besides their bedroom, a certain inconspicuous domain came to mind. She just hoped she was right.

He hadn't given her a time to meet, but she would wake up at generally the same time each morning when the aroma of the coffee would shake her senses back to reality. She figured she should dress and set out to find him right then. She quickly did just that. The new clothes she had received were embroidered with the symbol of the House of El. She had felt funny at first wearing it, but was getting used to the idea that this was her family now. Each day she was comforted with the notion that she was part of something, no longer a complete outsider.

Maneuvering out of the bedroom and down the hallways she went through a familiar set of doors and then another into the room with all the artifacts from Earth. The room where she and Kal-El had spent hours talking and learning about each other. She had long ago thought of this as their spot. Her heart skipped a beat that he thought the same. It was another intimate part of their relationship, proving that their marriage wasn't for optics to keep her safe, it was deeper.

She saw disarray on a table near the sidewall and curiosity struck her. Kal-El was so organized that any little mess perked her interest. She thumbed through some of the papers and found an open book underneath, the page dogeared. Her eyes widened when she focused on the visuals explicitly illustrated and realized what the book was.

"He really is a bookworm," she commented, now studying the image with a smirk. She raised an eyebrow, "Ambitious."

The sound of the doors opening caused her to throw the book back on the table and turn to use her body to hide what she had uncovered.

He stood staring at her, as if he hadn't seen her in days. There was a longing on his face, a burning in his eyes, that took her breath away. With just a look she felt special, more special than she had ever felt in her life. She felt needed. And since their wedding night she had accepted that she needed him, too.

"Hi," was the only word to escape his mouth before she felt her legs running toward him. She catapulted herself into him, causing Kal-El to lose his balance. His back hit the bookshelf on the opposite wall, artifacts and books rocking in their spaces. Her mouth was on his and he responded with fervor.

He pulled back and whispered on her lips, "I'm supposed to be working, but I...couldn't stop thinking about you."

She wanted to melt right into him, understanding the lyrics to a song with a similar topic and name.

His lips trailed down to her neck then up below her ear, where he asked desperately, "Does it ever stop?"

Her fingers weaved through his hair as she echoed, "Does what stop?"

"How much I need you?" He replied as a hand roamed her body.

She moaned, "I hope not."

Their mouths fused back together, hands caressing in every direction. They couldn't get enough of each other. Yes, they were hot for each other, but their connection went beyond the surface. Their bodies responded to each other, as if they were made for one another. To halves of a whole.

As Kal-El moved their positions she couldn't help but flashback to the book she found on the table when she entered the room.

"Someone has new moves. Read any good books lately?"

He looked down, embarrassed at her comment. She brought his face back up to look at hers.

"I didn't mean it in a bad way. You're just...a boy scout.," she laughed playfully.

He cocked his head to the side. "Boy scout?"

"Always prepared." She filled in.

"It's important to be prepared." He agreed.

She bit the inside of her cheek as she contemplated throwing him a curveball in his preparedness. Deciding to keep him on his toes, she started to slither down out of his grasp and knelt down.

"Lois?"

The way he said her name would have been enough to make her weak in the knees.

"Relax, Boy Scout. I'm just going to add another badge to your sash."

The confused look on Kal-El's face was soon replaced as he grasped the shelf behind him and gasped in surprise. Lois did her best to make him feel all the things he made her feel, his pleasure a priority. She treated this strategically, a field operation that aimed for a decisive victory. While clearly content under her command, ever the soldier, Kal-El was ready for his next assignment after her mission was accomplished. He surprised her with his counterattack as he used a flanking maneuver and then infiltrated. Using his newly acquired intelligence, she was conquered in his siege, leaving them both in euphoria at its culmination.

"I thought my heart was going to explode." Kal-El breathed, holding her as they lay on the ground, a crocheted blanket that had been hanging on a rack now covered them. Their backs leaned against the bookshelf, Earthly knickknacks scattered around them. "And you are surprisingly flexible."

"Can't be that surprised with the page you had marked." She quipped.

"I was just looking, I didn't-" she cut him off by putting her index fingers to his lips.

"A+ yet again, and I didn't even have to grade on a curve." She then moved her hand to her lower back. "Though, I was the one curved."

"Are you okay?" He asked, his hand making its way down her back and rubbing it comfortingly.

She smiled. "Oh, I'll be fine."

His free hand stroked her face, tracing her lips with his thumb. His eyes bore into hers, moving through the windows straight to her soul, to her heart. She toyed with the dog tags hanging from his neck. She found herself doing that a lot since discovering them. Physically he was a soldier, but looking into his eyes there was a softness that she hadn't witnessed in any other military man she knew. Though, that was probably because he wasn't a soldier at heart. He had confessed to her that his dreams involved fighting with the power of the pen, being a warrior in a different cause. 'What if' scenarios started dancing around in her head, wondering how strong their connection was beyond the stars and what they could write for themselves in a different framework.

"Do you think if I had gone to Earth, we would have found each other?" He asked, almost as if he had read her mind.

"Didn't we have this destiny conversation before?"

"Yeah, we did." He continued to memorize her features with his hand. "I'm just thinking out loud."

"I think," she started as she mimicked him, her hand touching his face, "Lois and Clark would have met somehow. I'm sure of it."

He smiled at the use of his Earth codename they had come up with. He then suggested, "Maybe as reporters."

"A little healthy competition at first. Then chasing stories together." She added.

He leaned in, the tip of his nose touching hers. "Keeping you out of trouble."

She laughed, "If we want our byline on the front page we have to charge on the battlefield of journalism."

"Clark and Lois sharing the byline, I like that."

"Lois and Clark," she corrected him.

"Right," he nodded.

She sighed, "But in this lifetime you have to get back to a different job."

"I know."

Kal-El leaned in closer and kissed her quickly. He helped her up, hanging the blanket they had been using back over the rack. She noticed a "K" in the corner of the throw and suddenly wondered about its origin. It would have to be for another time.

They both then started to dress and made sure the other looked presentable. Hand in hand, they headed for the exit. Time had gotten away from them and as they walked out of the artifacts room Kara was stalking down the hallway.

"Kal-El, where have you been?! Everyone has been looking for you!" She exclaimed, agitated.

"Is something wrong?" He asked, startled.

"There is no pressing emergency, but you aren't authorized to be taking such a long break."

Kara still hadn't looked in Lois' direction, but the tone of her voice was clear that she had critical thoughts about him taking R&R with his wife.

"I'm heading back now."

Kal-El squeezed Lois' hand before reluctantly letting go. He gave her a brief smile, but as their hands unclasped she could see the serious demeanor return to his face. That was when she grasped that there really was a duality to his personality. When facing topics of Krypton and battle, he was Kal-El. When at ease with her, curious and dreaming, he was Clark. She got to see and experience both. He trusted her that much.

When Kal-El was officially gone, Lois registered that Kara was still in her presence. It was awkward and Lois didn't think a conversation was in the cards for them. She was all for bygones being bygones for the sake of Kal-El and his family, but she wasn't sure Kara felt the same.

" Ok-ay , I'll just be going in the opposite direction of wherever you're going, " Lois said, her index fingers dancing in the air in all directions, " so …"

Kara stood stoic and Lois decided that she would just go anywhere. As she chose to go left, Kara stopped her.

"Wait."

Lois turned and looked at the overprotective woman.

"We shouldn't be like this."

"You're right, but that isn't going to work when you look at me like the enemy." Lois pointed out.

Kara sighed, "You're right."

"Okay, so if you want to have a cup of that delicious coffee you smuggled in and talk, I'd be down for that."

"I'm not exactly the type to sit and talk."

Lois rolled her eyes. "I wasn't suggesting exchanging friendship bracelets as we share our deep dark secrets, just spending time together."

Kara scowled in thought and then proposed, "Or, I could show you where I got it."

Lois' interest was piqued. "Wouldn't that be located outside of here?"

"It is. Since you are inquisitive by nature, I thought this would be worth spending time together." Kara asked.

Kara was giving her the opportunity to leave the fortress. While there was excitement brewing inside of her, Lois was also concerned. The last time she had left the premises she realized the mistake that she had made. Almost being kidnapped and saved by Kal-El had been an experience she wanted to leave behind, as it was a hard lesson learned. However, this wasn't her escaping with a flimsy plan. This would be leaving with Kara, a woman who navigated the outside world of Krypton as part of her posting. Lois was intrigued enough to accept the offer.

"It would certainly be worth it. I'm just surprised you're suggesting it."

"Can you follow directions?" Kara asked in a curt manner.

"Yes."

"Then this shouldn't be a problem. We won't stay out long. But you can't stand out."

Lois smirked thinking about her past assignments marking her as the best reporter at the Daily Planet. "Undercover is my middle name."

Kara gave her the same confused look Kal-El would give her when he didn't understand her references.

"It's not my literal middle name. I'm good at it for my job." She glanced over Kara's outfit and started to grin. "Speaking of which, I'll need a new outfit. Got an extra jumpsuit?" She grabbed at Kara's arm, which alarmed the blonde. "Let's take a look in your closet."

The two spent a brief amount of time in Kara's quarters as Lois was able to change out of her clothes with the unique front label and into something more comfortable and inconspicuous for an undercover mission.

After finally being able to feel pants on her legs again, Lois then accompanied Kara to another secret room that looked like it came out of the set of Star Trek . The room was dark and gray, a contrast to the bright white she usually encountered in the design of the ice castle. There was a lone circular platform and a console beside it in the center of it. Lois bent down as she started to inspect the technology.

"What is it?"

"Transporter." Kara flatly replied.

Lois' eyes widened in shock. "Seriously? Like, ' Beam me up, Scotty '?"

"I don't understand."

Lois was still in awe as she asked, "Will it teleport our bodies from one location to another?"

"Yes."

"Does it work across galaxies?" She wondered aloud.

"If it did, do you think you'd still be here?" Kara snapped, then added, "Sorry."

Lois shrugged. "Baby steps."

"This technology isn't widely used. Jor-El and some other scientists have placed these devices strategically across Krypton in order to move and escape from Zod. It's cloaked and undetectable." She explained.

"So, that's how you get in and out."

Kara nodded and walked over to Lois. She took the beige scarf that she had dressed her in and brought it up to cover her head and face.

"Keep this up at all times. Stay close to me."

"Aye, aye."

Kara glared at the phrase and started pressing buttons on the console. She then adjusted her own beige scarf, wearing it the same as Lois. They both fit themselves on the circular platform. Before Lois could utter another question, lights swirled around them and she felt like the molecules in her body were separating. It wasn't painful, more like a tickling sensation, and a rush like a roller coaster followed. In a matter of seconds it was over and they were in another secret location almost, if not, identical from where they left. Actually, she wasn't sure they had.

"Isn't this-?"

Kara cut her off, "Follow me and keep quiet."

Lois obeyed and followed Kara out of the cave they had apparently been in and into a new climate. She was met with desert-like conditions as a gust of wind blew sand in her face. She turned behind her and couldn't find where they had exited from. All she saw was more sand and the red sun in the sky.

' Cloaking device, activated .' she mused in her thoughts.

The women walked for several minutes until Lois could hear the clamoring of a crowd. She could see people and tents, reminiscent of a bazaar. It seemed familiar, like she wasn't on a different planet but just in foreign land, experiencing the customs and culture during her visit. It reminded of her time at the foreign desk in Egypt.

Kara tugged at her, breaking her out of her thoughts. She didn't need the scarf to fall to know she was frowning at her from behind it.

"Follow you. Got it."

They walked closer and Lois did as she was told, following Kara down an alleyway and through the throngs of people. It was such a contrast from where she was staying and the information she knew about the state of Krypton. It didn't seem as if there was anything wrong in their world, but Lois understood enough to know that life could be moving in an area but controlled in the background. It was a façade. If only things could truly be safe again. The hiding could end and the House of El could freely walk in these streets. She could experience this with Kal-El instead of covertly with his cousin.

As they passed a table, trinkets from Earth caught her eye. There was a baseball with a label claiming it was signed by a famous player Babe Ruth. There were books with authors she recognized. There was even jewelry on display. On the rack hung a pair of black thick framed glasses and she couldn't help but think back to her conversation with Kal-El about his Earth alter-ego. She imagined Clark wearing glasses just like that, nerd and all.

"Do you like?" a voice asked.

Lois shook away her thoughts and found the owner of the voice, a dark haired woman in a flowing maroon dress and chunky gold jewelry who was in charge of the table.

"I don't have money." Lois said and went to leave.

"Are you from around here?" The woman asked, following her from behind the table.

Lois knew she shouldn't answer, but it was a reflex. "Visiting. I should get back to my companion."

Lois turned and looked ahead, but couldn't find Kara. Panic started to set in as she moved in a small circle, whipping her head in every direction. She couldn't spot Kara in the crowd anywhere.

"I might be able to help you find your companion."

Lois scoffed internally. She felt like a small child. What would they do? Page Kara to come and pick her up at the lost and found tent? Lois moved further away from the table and into the crowd. She tried to get a better visual, but there were too many people. Could she trace back her steps and get back to the transporter cavern? Would she even be able to see it? Though the last fact could be a problem, it still seemed to be the best plan, especially to not draw anymore attention to herself.

She passed the tents she remembered and could see the alleyway she had travelled down with Kara. She kept her scarf up and head low as she headed for her destination. As she was about to exit around the last tent she felt a firm hand on her shoulder.

Kara must be pissed, but she could deal with that later.

Relieved, she breathed, "Thank god, I thought I lost you."

Lois turned around and froze in place. The hand on her shoulder fell and she stared at whom it belonged to. Then her eyes darted to either side of the figure in front of her. In total, there were three men in gray identical uniforms, the same that she had seen worn by General Zod. They wore his symbol on their shoulders, their allegiance for all to see.

With eyes wide she swallowed back in fear as the larger soldier in the middle leered and then forcefully ripped the scarf away, exposing her face.

"And we thought we lost you."