Another Superman, Another Lois Chapter 34, a superman & lois fanfic

They were back in their own world: Captain Luthor, Jimmy, Natalie, and him.

"Okay, go ahead," Luthor said, awake again. "Bring me down with your heat vision like you did all those fine men and women serving their country. It would be an honor to die like them."

He was and would continue to stay in his own little world. "It would be. They faced their end bravely. You, on the other hand, have always lived like a coward. Jimmy, call the police."

Luthor tried in vain to wrestle out of his steel grip.

"You've been afraid of what having an alien on Earth meant for your planet's fate, you were afraid of losing Lois, and you're afraid to see yourself for what you've become, the wrongdoer you claim I am. I feel sorry for you."

"Do you think I'm the only one who despises you?" Luthor asked. "The only one whose life you put into shambles? There'll be others who want revenge, and if there's a good God in heaven, they'll succeed where I failed."

It was the ravings of a man who knew he was going to jail as the sirens came within human hearing.

"You don't deserve her," he went on. "You don't deserve anything but death."

He refused to argue anymore with a madman. He addressed the arresting officers instead. "This is Alexander Luthor. He's wanted on multiple charges of assault and battery as well as attempted murder."

"Thank you, Superman."

"What about what he's done? It isn't fair!" he heard him raging at the police.

If only they could put Zod on trial, he thought. He'd be the first to testify. The images of what he had done while in control of his body were still vivid in his head and would be a punishment greater than any court in the land could give him.

"Clark!"

He would never grow tired of hearing his true name. He'd used the impersonal name of Superman longer, but it was only a part of the disguise. Clark was the name lovingly bestowed on him by the parents who raised him, who'd taught him right from wrong and how to be a hero. And spoken by the one he loved, it received new life again. He truly felt reborn. "Lois!"

She ran into his arms. Luthor had been right. He didn't deserve Lois, but thank heaven people didn't always get what they deserved. Sometimes they got grace.

There would be a ton of rebuilding to do, and the world would still be scarred long after the gleam of new stone and brick wore off. It would be scarred in internal ways. Mothers who could no longer comfort, fathers who could no longer advise, children who could no longer bring joy and the promise of a future. There would no longer only be fear of nation rising against nation, but there would be the anxiety of what could come from the skies. Earth would feel a little smaller in the grand expanse of space and their lives a little more fragile.

In some ways, that could be a good thing. It made the people of Earth find more commonality in each other as they realized race and culture were small things when compared against their common humanity. They would treasure their existence a little more because it could be taken in a moment, reminding them to take stock of their fleeting days and search a little harder for truth. Maybe a child's messy room no longer meant as much to a parent as letting them know that they loved them. Maybe one needed to look beyond the endless list of things to be done from cutting the grass to a new coat of paint to admire a miraculous sunset that only God could paint in the sky or the glorious masterpiece of a numberless starry night. Maybe only in each other and in the Creator could one find the meaning of life.

But he was also as sure they would forget. Human memory was short and in a couple of generations, most would return to the focus of self and see only what was in front of them, but for a while they would remember. Clark looked at monument that was being constructed where the first skyscraper went down to help them remember as long as possible.

The warm press of Lois' lips to his cheek returned him from his thoughts to what he had right in front of him. "I love you," he said, finally having the courage to speak it.

"I love you too," she returned.

He could never have imagined that one day such happiness would be his.

"Natalie, you're alive!" Lois said, seeing her emerge from the crowd. She pulled away to embrace her daughter into a tight hug as she cried tears of relief.

He wondered what Natalie was thinking of seeing him with his mother in this way. Would she be happy for them or was it too soon for her? He needn't have worried. She was smiling at him when her mother finally let her go.

She was practically grown, not in need of a stepparent surely, but knowing you had someone that loved you and knowing that their home was your home could still mean the world. You never outgrew the need for family.

"I know I can never replace your father," he began, "and I wouldn't want to. I just hope that one day you can see me as a-"

Natalie threw her arms around him. "I already do. You've always been like family to me, and the fact that you are going to be my stepdad couldn't thrill me more. It'll put an official title to what I already feel in my heart."

Tears of joy trickled down his face.

sss

Divorcing someone who was in prison wasn't easy. They'd waited until after his sentencing to start the process. It had been a highly publicized trial and a warning against anyone who tried to play vigilante in the aftermath. Luthor had continued to spew his venom throughout the whole process, refusing to see anyone but Superman as being at fault and seeing himself as completely innocent. It didn't stop his sentencing. And though he'd fought it tooth and nail, so that it took an entire year for it to be final, it didn't stop the divorce either.

Their wedding wasn't a grand event. Rather, it was quiet and simple with only a few of the people closest to them serving as witnesses like Natalie, Jimmy, and Perry, which was a miracle in and of itself. He had taken up his identity again with help from the new general, who brought back his legal existence to make these proceeding possible without a hoard of protesters or fans filling the streets.

The judge began. "Dearly beloved, we have come together in the presence of friends and family to witness and bless the joining together of this man and this woman in holy matrimony. The union of husband and wife in heart, body and mind is intended for their mutual joy; for the help and comfort given one another in prosperity and adversity; therefore, marriage is not to be entered into unadvisedly or lightly, but solemnly, deliberately and joyfully. Into this union now come to be Clark Kent and Lois Lane joined."

He had gone through so much to get to this point that it almost felt like a dream. If it was, he hoped that he never woke from it.

"Clark will you have this woman to be your wife; to live together in the bonds of marriage? Will you love her, comfort her, honor her, and keep her in sickness and in health, forsaking all others, be faithful to her as long as you shall live?"

"I will," he answered, never speaking those two words with more sincerity and love.

"Lois, will you have this man to be your husband; to live together in the covenant of marriage? Will you love him, comfort him, honor and keep him in sickness and in health, forsaking all others, be faithful to him as long as you shall live?"

It wasn't the first time she had answered such a question, but he was certain it would be the last because he would work hard at making sure she never had reason to need to break her vow. "I will."

"Repeat after me: I, Clark, take you, Lois, to be my wedded wife."

"I, Clark, take you, Lois, to be my wedded wife."

"To have and to hold from this day forward, for better or for worse, for richer or poorer, in sickness and in health to love and to cherish."

"For as long as we both shall live, this is my solemn vow."

"For as long as we both shall live, this is my solemn vow." He looked at his beautiful bride in her white linen dress. He'd loved her from the first moment he saw her, a teenager trying to get the keys from her dad. Who, when receiving them too easily, had become suspicious and found the reason for it, showing the curiosity and drive for truth that would one day make her the world's greatest investigative reporter. She'd stolen his heart so completely, and she still held it today.

"Repeat after me: I, Lois, take you, Clark, to be my wedded husband."

"I, Lois, take you, Clark, to be my wedded husband."

"To have and to hold from this day forward, for better or for worse, for richer or poorer, in sickness and in health to love and to cherish."

"For as long as we both shall live, this is my solemn vow."

"For as long as we both shall live, this is my solemn vow." She was looking at him with such tender love in her eyes. She hadn't fallen in love with him quite so instantly. It had to grow over many years and mistakes, but it was no less real or deep than his.

"May I have the rings please?" the judge asked.

Jimmy pulled them from the pocket and handed them to him.

"From the earliest of times, the circle has been a symbol of completeness, a symbol of love that is never ending. As often as either of you look at this symbol, be reminded of the commitment to love each other."

Clark slipped it on to her finger first. "I give you this ring as a symbol of my love."

Lois went next. "I give you this ring as a symbol of my love."

"Clark and Lois, you have now affirmed before your family and friends your love and care for each other. May the challenges of your life together be met with courage and optimism. May you learn from your failures and grow in your achievements. May your life together bless you with family and friends who love and support you. May you face troublesome times with a stout, but light heart. May you share with others the radiance of your seasons of joy and pleasure. May you always remember that a sense of humor and saying "I'm sorry" are both magical and healing. May the spirit of love be ever a part of your lives. So that the union we here celebrate this day be worthy of continued celebration tomorrow."

That speech summed it up nicely. He was no youth. There would be more challenges and failures to come their way. This wasn't happily ever after; he was too wise and old to believe in those. The difference that would mark their lives from here on out would be they would face their challenges and failures together.

"Before this gathering Clark and Lois have promised each other their love and have given each other rings to wear as a sign of their deep commitment. Therefore, by the power vested in me by the state of New York, I now declare that you are husband and wife."

And he kissed her for the first time as husband and wife, their breaths and lips mingling as one. It was both sweet and passionate. It was the culmination of their freedom of choice and destiny. In short, it was the perfect start to a new beginning.