Chapter One
Destiny's Children Chapter One/?
Author: Juliet
Email: Sweetvalley99@aol.com
Summary: Seven Years after Superman/Clark's death; can a miracle heal Lois
Lane's heart. *Keep in mind this story begins in fall of '99*
Disclaimer: ABC owns Lois and Clark. DC Comics owns Superman. I don't.
Chapter One
Dawn of an anniversary
Antonia "Toni" Beaulac walked into the offices of the Daily Planet
with a smile on her face. She was in a good mood, feeling like nothing could
bring her down to Earth on this unusually warm Fall day.
"Morning," she said to the snack vendor on her way to the elevator
that would take her to the Planet's newsroom. She'd been working at the Planet
for about five years, starting with a prestigious internship during college, earning
her reporter's strips when she'd stumbled onto a drug smuggling network
funneling money through the Mayor's office. She felt proud to be apart of the
Planet's team.
"Morning Toni," Jody, a research assistant pounced as Toni stepped
off the elevator into the newsroom. "Here's the research on Xanatos you
wanted."
"Thanks Jody," Toni said. Toni had recently decided to investigate
multi - billionaire tech mogul David Xanatos. She felt there was more to the
man than just an eccentric who bought a castle and placed it as the highest
point in Manhattan.
Just as Toni was putting the files and coffee she'd gotten on the way in down
on her desk, a pair of strong arms snaked around her waist and pulled her to
them.
"Hello, beautiful," a husky male voice replied.
Toni smiled. "Hey yourself," she said, "But you do know that if
I'd hadn't put my coffee down, you'd be responsible big, hot, brown stain on
me," she teased turning around and facing her fiancé Scott Reynolds.
Toni and Scott had been high school sweethearts, being practically inseparable
through college and thrilled when they'd both gotten jobs at the Daily Planet:
Him as a photographer, her as an ace reporter. They got engaged last year and
planned a millennium wedding to start their new lives together.
"Your always hot to me, Scott growled, making Toni blush.
"Toni!" Perry White's unmistakable growl came bellowing across the
newsroom, forcing the two lovers to separate from each other. "Where's
your partner?"
Perry White paired up Toni with Lois Lane, who returned to work a year ago
after spending two years in a sanitarium following a third suicide attempt on
the fourth anniversary of Superman's death and Clark Kent's disappearance. It
was Perry's hope that Lois, the veteran journalist could impart some of her
experience on the younger woman and that Toni's drive and optimism would help
to keep Lois from going over the edge again.
"I don't know Perry, I just got in," the younger reporter responded
crisply.
"Jimmy!" Perry roared as senior photographer James Olsen passed by
the Daily Planet Editor in Chief.
"Yeah Chief?" Jimmy halted in front of the Planet Editor.
"Have you heard from Lois today?" Perry asked concerned.
"Um, Chief," Jimmy spoke nervously to his editor, "do you
remember what today is?"
Aw hell. He had forgotten. "Never mind then, Jimmy. Hopefully Lois will be
ready to work tomorrow," Perry told Jimmy gently. ' Damn'
'Seven years, Great Elvis has it been that long?' Perry thought sadly.
Seven years since the man who'd been both one half of his greatest reporting
team and one of the world's greatest superheroes died in his lover's arms.
"Hey Chief," Jimmy called out to Perry again. "Ralph just heard
over the police scanner that a body's been found near Superman's tomb.
"Great Shades of Elvis," Perry White muttered knowing full well that,
given the date, the dead body was going to predominate the headlines all day
long. "Toni, you and Jimmy go and check it out. And if it's nothing more
then some vagrant dying of exposure or some other senseless random act, then
hand it off to Ralph and the city desk when you get back. The Planet is not
going to be part of some media frenzy just because some poor SOB's body is
found in a particular area on a particular day! Got that?"
"Got it Chief, we're on it," Toni said as she went to grab her purse
and Jimmy snatched up his photography equipment.
"I'll be back later," Toni said kissing her fiancé and heading out to
join Jimmy in the elevator.
As Perry White watched the duo go, he sighed. Like every other anniversary over
the last seven years, this was going to prove to be a very long day.
TBC.
