NS Fanfic Challenge - #5 October 2009 - "Abandon"

Here we are again, coming to the end of the month and flush with wonderful challenge fics!

This month we had a very unique challenge in that the theme had many interpretations. As such, we have a wide range of stories from which to choose. There's something here for everyone, folks. :)

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by October's challenge

Abandon

Abandon means a lot of things –

tr.v. 1. To yield (oneself) without restraint or moderation; give (oneself) over to natural impulses, usually without self-control; to yield (oneself) completely, as to emotion.

n. 1. Unbounded enthusiasm; exuberance.
2. A complete surrender of inhibitions.


tr.v. 1. To withdraw protection, support, or help from – he abandoned his family
2. Mean to leave without intending to return. Can imply that the thing or person left may be helpless without protection – abandoned children


adj. Abandoned - Having been left without any intention of returning to or reclaiming – an abandoned house


Now, I have posted a few definitions to get people started, but any interpretation of the word is more than welcome.

---

A huge thanks to the writers for participating. You guys are consistently awesome and we love you all for helping to make this community so great.

Also, a big thanks to the voters - your contribution to this process make it worthwhile for the authors.

On a side note, if you're voting and want to leave a small note, please feel free to do so. The voting is anonymous and no one has to tell who they chose; a simple, "Great stories guys" won't reveal anything but can make a world of difference to the authors. And if you don't want it known that you voted at all, you can send me your reply in a PM and I will be more than happy to post it to preserve anonymity.

Voting will end on November 3rd at 11:59 pm (Pacific time). :)


Story One
Story Two
Story Three
Story Four
Story Five
Story Six

Story One


Title: Happenstance

“Clark, as much as I love people watching and wondering what kind of trouble might be brewing in their minds, I would appreciate your appearance sometime in the near feature.” Chloe huffed as stared at some odd object made of paper cups. “What people think of this crap?”

“Huh?” Chloe heard from the other end of the phone.

“Oh, nothing. Talking to the startling waste of a tree. Anyway, I’m going to snap a couple of pics and then leave if you don’t super your way here in less than five.” Chloe snapped the phone closed. Sighing, she quietly snapped a few pictures and sat in one of the overly cushioned seats. Watching the others mingle in their tuxes and formals, Chloe felt out of place. Looking at the press pass dangling from her neck, she tucked into her jacket and headed for the door. The predictable evening would end with Starbucks and ice cream.

Crossing the street, she watched another limo pull up in front of the museum. She knew the license plate and snapped one more picture as Lex ascended the stairs and disappeared in the front doors with paparazzi in tow.

Walking quietly down the street, Chloe listened to the sirens on the other side of Metropolis and could guess where Clark was heading at the moment. ‘Maybe he wasn’t really making lame excuses,’ she thought. Turning the corner, she looked at the one light one in a building front. Staring at the older woman sitting at the counter, Chloe’s mind started thinking of a puff piece. It wasn’t her norm but could be interesting.

“What will you have darling?” the woman smiled as Chloe sat down in the booth and automatically smiled at the coffee the woman was already pouring. At the smile, the woman’s crooked grin showed again. “You look like you need to stay on your toes.”

“Yes, ma’am. Can I ask you a question?”

Hearing the jingle of the front door, Chloe glanced at her watch and was shocked at the time she took from the woman. “Bertie, I hope you are in here because I could use my special tonight.” Chloe’s mouth dropped and quickly shut when the old woman got up from the booth and patted her hand.

“There’s a nice young woman here hun. Might balance the barbies from tonight,” Bertie laughed as she disappeared.

Chloe sat up and put her pad back into her bag just as Lex’s eyes met hers. Stopping in his tracks, he shook his head, gracefully pulled off his overcoat, threw it over the booth, and sat across from her. “Chloe Sullivan, if you write about this, I will hunt you down.”

“You eating? Yeah, that’s newsworthy,” Chloe chided as she sipped her coffee. “I guess the art gallery was about as yawning for you too. The lifestyle guy has the flu and I got the story. Gag.”

Lex leaned back and drew the coffee to his lips. “It’s hard to appreciate what people think is art when you understand it. To an untrained eye, it’s just crap glued together.”

Chloe covered her mouth to keep from spewing coffee across the table. Lex reached across and handed her a napkin. Recovering, she still giggled. “I never thought of that word coming from your lips.”

Lex leaned back against the seat again, strangely relaxed. Chloe Sullivan had always brought a softer feeling to his heart and body. He hated thinking of warm and fuzzy, but it was close and incredibly frightening. Trying not to break into a full smile, he nodded and quietly chuckled. “There are probably things that you assume just from knowing the man from my dad’s trial or the business man. What were you doing in the alley down here anyway?”

“Short cut to my car. I was planning on driving home tonight. It’ll be late, but that’s ok. Not like I’m filing the story with my absent partner in crime.” Chloe’s face drew, and Lex rolled his eyes.

“I think you should reexamine your need for any partner, especially Clark. You were the brains and brawn for the high school paper. You don’t need him at this level. Not many of apprentices are telling me what to do if you get my meaning.”

Chloe sat silent as she could feel her phone vibrate against her leg. Thinking of answering, she second-guessed. Her stranding had not been such a bad thing after all. “Yeah, I guess it’s hard to picture things without Clark in the picture, or any of the old faces for that matter. It’s weird. I thought about your dad’s trial a few days ago. It was the anniversary of…”

Lex lowered his head and glanced in Chloe’s direction. That was the time they decided apart was safer and planned Lex’s abandoning her at the factory Clark and Lois found her. He said it was for her safety; she convinced herself it was for sanity. Pining for Clark had been hard enough; hiding a teenage crush from Lex was much harder.

“Bertie, we’re turning into skeletons,” Lex called into the kitchen. He glanced at Chloe laughing.

“How do you know her?”

“She was my parent’s old cook before my father framed her for theft and fired her. Best cook in the continental US.”

Chloe nodded as the old woman came around the counter and put two platters down on the table and patted Lex on the shoulder. “That’ll be five miles of treadmill tomorrow.”

Lex nodded at Chloe as he dug in. “Fried pork chops? You wouldn’t be caught dead…”

Lex pointed the fork at her. “And that’s why you won’t be alive if I read about it. Now, dig in bones. You need some meat before I drive you back to your car and you follow me to the penthouse. There’s a spare apartment you can use.”

Not to argue with the man, she shoved a fork full in her mouth and finally understood the word soul food.

Story Two


A Memorable Haunting

When Chloe mentioned she didn’t want to do the normal Halloween college party scene, he readily agreed. After all, he had no desire to get into a fight with a drunken frat boy who would inevitably hit on his girlfriend and the hassle of legal issues and bad publicity that would ensue. Instead, Chloe and he could spend a quiet night at home and the only one she would wear a costume for would be him.

Yet he knew a night watching horror movies would never satisfy her, even if he could legitimately say the mansion was haunted. After all, his father loved to pop up at a moment’s notice to issue threats, question one’s sanity, and basically just annoying the hell out of them. A poltergeist if there ever was one.

So when Chloe mentioned a recently abandoned house in Granville reputed to be haunted, Lex eagerly agreed to join her on the investigation in order to prevent any chance of harm coming to her. When she mentioned that Lois, Clark, and Lana would be joining them, he almost protested the intrusion on their quality time but figured reluctantly agreed when she said how much she missed group investigations now that they were all separated due to college and work. When she invited Lucas along saying the brothers needed to hang out more, he flat out refused to attend if his brother went. The ultimatum backfired because Chloe said Lucas was probably the more likely of the two to be interested in hunting ghosts, and she might have a better time with him as her partner. She knew Lex would be damned if he let his brother have the chance to be alone with her.

Thus the six of them were standing in front of a large Victorian style home. While the paint was not warn and none of the windows were broken or boarded up; the gothic architecture, iron fence, and chill of the late October night provided enough creepy atmosphere. Chloe had given them all a brief run through of the history, including the murder-suicide that had occurred in 1893, to several instances of haunting, and concluded with the last family that moved in two months prior to only stay a few weeks before moving out and leaving most of the furniture behind.

As they entered the house, Lucas whispered to Lex “If a vampire turns me, you’re going to be my first meal.” Then he purposely turned to look at where Chloe was testing for electromagnetic fluctuations, “well maybe something sweeter…”

“Don’t even think of finishing that thought,” Lex growled as he shoved Lucas against a wall before walking over to Chloe. Undisturbed, Lucas laughed off his brother’s response, enjoying how Lex could be such as easy target when using the appropriate bait.

“Let’s split up into teams of two and each take different portions of the house. Lex and I will take the upstairs, Clark and Lana can stay down here, and Lois, are you cool with Lucas and the basement?” Chloe stated as she checked to make sure her video camera was working and checked her extra batteries.

Lucas put his arm around Lois and declared, “Don’t worry if anything scary happens, I’ll protect you.”

Lois shrugged him off as she headed toward the kitchen where the door to the basement was located, “Basement is fine. Luthor junior here is a completely different story.”

“Yell if you find anything.” Chloe moved started up the steps to the second floor when behind her Lex called out to Lois. “And Lois, if Lucas falls down the steps; don’t feel like you have to hurry to call for help.” At Chloe’s sharp look, he added “She knows I’m kidding…maybe.”

Chloe headed straight to the master bedroom where the original crime was committed and continued to investigate. However, Lex wasn’t interested in finding ghosts. He had seen enough strange occurrences on a daily basis in Smallville, and had no need to look for ones that couldn’t work for the advancement of mankind. He chose to sit on the bed and watch Chloe as she worked. When she moved close enough, he reached around waist and pulled her down on the bed with him.

“Lex, I’m busy.”

“I know, I just thought maybe we could create our own paranormal experience.” He moved to place kisses along her neck.

“There…” She had to pull herself away to complete her thought. “There is nothing paranormal about you wanting sex.”

Lex grinned, “But there could be. I could pretend to be a lonely ghost who has haunted this house for a century when one day you moved in, and it just so happens that you bear a striking resemblance to my lost love. The only time I can make contact or touch,” he punctuated his words with a caress of her cheek, “is when I’m in your presence.”

He moved forward to kiss her but at the last second, she rolled out from under him and he ended up kissing mattress. He rolled over displeased, but that Chloe was adamant. “Nice try, but we’re not having sex here.”

He was a grown, strong-minded man. He was a Luthor. He did not and would not pout. He gathered Chloe into his arms, “All I wanted was to make this night memorable for us.”

Chloe wasn’t able to answer because at that moment a loud, shrieking wail came from downstairs. When they found Clark and Lana at the top of the steps leading to the basement, Chloe asked Lana why she had screamed.

Confused, Lana said, “That wasn’t me. It came from the basement.”

“Lois, is everything okay down there?” Chloe asked as she started down the steps. They found Lois standing in the middle pointing her flashlight toward and looking annoyed. Lucas was sitting on a table.

“Yeah, Lucas saw a mouse and freaked out,” she answered.

Lex laughed and pointed the video camera at Lucas, “Now this is very memorable.”

Story Three

Here With Me

The church had emptied out long ago and left him sat on the step by the alter, alone.

Lex Luthor ought to be used to this, being abandoned, forgotten, and unwanted. As a child, his mother left him, though not by choice, his father never really wanted him around, and friend after friend turned their back on boy and man. Opinions fashioned by the reputation of his family, and the way he behaved in order to change that were often to blame.

Lex had even less luck with women, as today proved. They were fast enough to chase his fortune, share his bed, but to actually commit to him and share a life, it seemed more unlikely now than ever.

“Hey” her voice was soft but easily audible in the silence, “How you holding up?” she asked, and though there were a hundred other people he would accuse of false sympathy, he couldn’t do that with Chloe.

“Honestly?” he said, as she sat down beside him, put a comforting hand to his shoulder, “Surprisingly well” he smirked a little as he glanced her way, still twirling two wedding bands between his fingers.

“I’m so sorry, Lex” she told him, perhaps the fifth time today, he’d lost count after the first, the moment when she’d told him his bride was gone, with Clark Kent, as he ought to have known she would.

“Actually, I don’t think I am” he sighed, looking back at the rings in his hand, staring at them with such intensity Chloe wondered how they didn’t melt, “I suspect it would’ve hurt more if... things had been different” he said, looking her way.

Chloe’s hand which had been rubbing his back til then stilled immediately his eyes met hers.

“Lex...” she shook her head so slightly he probably wouldn’t have noticed had he not been staring so intently.

“I know” he said, taking her hand in his, “A lot has happened, things are different now...”

“It’s not that” she assured him, putting her other hand on top of his, “Lex, you know I will always be here for you. You’ve been my friend so long, we’ve got each other out of too many jams to quit now”

“It always ends this way” he said with a wry smile, reaching out to tuck strands of hair behind her ear that had long since come loose of the awful style Lana had her wearing, “You and me, against the world”

“I can think of worse people to always come back to” she smiled warmly, old feelings resurfacing that she thought she’d quashed long ago, and yet somehow lingered on.

Things had gone awfully wrong in their relationship more than once, but all friends had their fights and disagreements. At the end of the day, Lex could blame Chloe for nothing more than trying to be loyal to each of her friends. By the same token, the worst Chloe could really accuse Lex of was trusting the wrong people.

“You saw this coming, didn’t you?” he asked her then.

“I wondered” she admitted with a sigh, knowing lying was pointless, “If it helps at all, I could kill Clark right now” she said with anger evident in her voice, “For all his abilities, he can be such an idiot” she practically growled, not watching her words quite as well as she should.

Whether it was a deliberate slip or not, Lex honestly wasn’t sure. To be fair, even Chloe wasn’t certain.

“I’m actually more surprised that he would abandon you so casually, than I am that Lana walked out on me” he admitted, letting her odd comment slide.

She knew he wasn’t stupid, he had picked up on what she’s said. Chloe appreciated his not making a big deal out of it, but it was pointless pretending the moment hadn’t occurred. Somewhere in the back of his mind, Lex had filed her words for future reference. He would always want to know Clark’s secret, the one that Chloe knew purely by accident. No, the boy in blue didn’t trust her any more than he did Lex, and that had been eating away at Chloe a little bit at a time up until now, the final betrayal, when he had bolted with the bride.

“I’m sure you’ve noticed, when it comes to friendships, Clark Kent isn’t quite the boy scout he might first appear” Chloe told the man beside her, who ought to know the words she spoke were true, “You were right to be curious about what he was hiding, but Lex, even with what he’s done today...”

“I know, you won’t tell me” he interrupted smoothly, not a hint of anger or even aggravation showing on his features, “Your integrity is one of the things I admire most about you, Chloe” he told her seriously, hardly allowing her to process those words before startling her with the next, “You ever been to Hawaii?”

“Um, no” she answered at length.

“Want to go with me?” he asked easily.

“Lex that’s your honeymoon” she gasped, “And I’m not going to pass for the new Mrs Luthor” she added fast, a hand to her chest just a moment until Lex removed it and slid a wedding band onto her third finger.

Chloe didn’t know what to say as she stared down at the ring for a long moment, wondering just exactly what it meant. She could think of a multitude of reasons why she should get this ring off her hand and run right now, but a thousand more stuck her to the spot, kept her eyes on the wedding band, kept that same circle of gold on her finger.

“So...” said Lex, as he got to his feet and offered his hand, “are you with me?”

There was just a brief pause when neither spoke or even breathed, then, with a smile, she reached out and let him pull her easily to her feet.

“Always”

- The End -

Story Four


TITLE: Home Movies


Lex wondered if she would let him die. There were other times when he had tried to kill himself, but he would always be saved. Most of the time it was her gentle touch awakening him. He could feel the glow of the gifts bestowed upon her by green kryptonite.

He slid from his seat to the floor and paused the movie. Touching the screen, gently traced the outline of her face. Lex now understood how he was wrong. Lex had expected to see burning hatred the day she broke free of him, but that wasn’t what he had seen. Chloe had built a pyre for her hatred. She’d let it burn brightly and then smolder; but she would never let it fade completely. The ashes would be there forever because she would always fan it and feed it.

********

His first plan to free himself had been to play on Chloe’s mercy and sense of right and wrong. Lex knew that Brainiac was pulling the strings. Chloe always tried vengeance first before she came to her senses, but not this time. This time she had Brainiac to stoke the flames of her hatred.

Smashing the mirror on his wall, he had mustered the courage to take a shard and rip into his wrists and throat. She would save him and she hadn’t disappointed. Lex woke in the hospital to her beautiful face. Her smile was a welcome change to the smirk that twisted her face and made her ugly.

His voice was halting due to the drugs still in his system, “I knew…that you would come. You don’t have to obey Brainiac.”

Chloe had stared at him for what seemed like an eternity before she said a word. Her voice was gentle and motherly, “Oh, Lex. Brainiac only has the thoughts I put in him. I learned so much from Jor-El and the repository of knowledge held at Superman’s Fortress of Solitude.”

Lex was confused. This cruel person couldn’t be Chloe. “But…why?”

Her eyes glazed over in memory. She was unforgiving. “Why, Lex? You made my mother into a weapon against me and I was your slave for months. I irrevocably damaged the people I loved the most in this world because of you. My father died thinking that I had…abandoned him. You took his love from me. You took my love from him. You’ll understand, Lex, eventually you’ll understand. One day you will look into my eyes and see the truth.”

********

He hadn’t understood. That day and subsequent days Lex thought he saw the glimpse of insanity in her eyes. It was only in this moment, watching her play with their children, that he realized what he saw. Lex saw the beautiful boy with red hair that could only be his. His first born would never know him. He saw the sturdy dark haired child and knew it to be the child of Clark Kent. Running with both of them was the most beautiful blond child he had ever seen. She looked just like Chloe. He knew now that he had seen vindication, triumph, and now happiness in her eyes. No longer was there a burden that weighed her down. Chloe Ann Sullivan was at peace with her life and she loved it. She was in love with it.

Chloe had tried again. She recreated them. All of them friends and loving each other. All of them representing hopes and dreams. Fighting with each other, but always knowing that they would have someone to love them.

The disc he now watched had been a gift from Brainiac. He had come without Chloe, which was unusual, but he had come bearing a gift.

“She would never give this to you, Lex, but I will.”

A few days later, Brainiac had come again. Lex had needed to know why he would let Chloe be his puppet master.

“Such limited ideals you humans possess. I desire to restore Krypton to glory. To have a worthy ruler. I have succeeded in her children. A piece of Krypton, of you and Clark and Doomsday will exist within her line. What do I need of autonomy? She is my worthy ruler and I will follow her.”

“Clark will stop her, Brainiac. You’ll be destroyed and so will she!”

For a long time that thought was the only thing that sustained him; but Brainiac merely chuckled.

“Poor fool. A few years ago Doomsday killed Superman and Superman was restored to life. He was restored to life, not by some silly notion that this yellow sun will resurrect him, but by Chloe. Her knowledge of Krypton forced a reforging, creating a Superman with the spark of Doomsday within him. Clark Kent knows that the moment he moves against Chloe, she will lift her protection, and Doomsday will be re-born. The combined powers of Doomsday and Superman would destroy this world. Chloe has been good for this world. Peace. Prosperity. Destroying her would destroy the people’s faith in Superman. Man’s greatest salvation beautifully entwined with its destruction. Poetry.”

And here he was. Alone and miserable. Lex understood now. He understood that he could never make it better with begging for forgiveness or acknowledging his wrongs. Some thing could never be fixed by even a master artisan. Chloe had put herself together and had broken him beyond repair in the process. No, she would never let him die. Lex knew that he would get to live and remember for both of them. There was no happiness for him. He would die knowing that he could have had many things, but he was incapable of reaching for them because she would forever take them from him and make them her own.

Lex got to die knowing that everyone left him, no one loved him, and that nothing would fix this unbearable pain. He was the vessel of all her torments and she poured them freely. He got to suffer for them both. Just the way she wanted it.

Story Five


TITLE: “Surrender”


I surrender the fight, the fight against myself
I surrender the fight to be someone
The fight to be important

It seems it was only yesterday when she dreamt of carving her own niche in the world of journalism. Now it feels as if her urge to be someone important in the eyes of the one person for whom she´s sacrificed it all has deserted her somehow. She can´t pinpoint the moment everything changed; and now she´s standing on the fringes observing from the lonely anonymity of her Watchtower- invisible and yet all-powerful. She gives in to the cankering worm that´s been lurking inside her and, with a few clicks of her mouse, she moves the pawns on her chessboard.

I surrender the fight to control my life
The fight to control other people

He´s back in the saddle after more than a year away from the helm of his empire. Nobody knows he´s in town, not even the woman who´s been in charge during his absence and dared betray him like everyone else in his twenty-eight years. He was forced to surrender the control of his life and it all went to hell. He´s now determined to get it back- if only to enjoy the transitory illusion that he´s the master of his own destiny.

Standing in front of the panoramic window of his office, he surveys the Metropolis skyline wondering how long he´ll be able to rein in his old urge to behave like the puppet master he once swore he´d never be. He knows he should learn from past mistakes. The slight limp and the inhaler in the pocket of his jacket remind him what cost he´s had to pay in his attempt to control Kal-El´s life and the future of the entire human race.

To my dreams
To my nightmares
To the fears I feel

The Luthor blood in him rebels because surrender has never been part of his lexicon and yet, he´s been offered another chance and the young boy he thought he´d smothered in the fire of his study is struggling to make himself heard again. Lex wonders if it´d be worth it, if he hasn´t already descended too deep to dare imagine redemption could be possible.

To tears in private
To tears in public
What others think of me

She turns off the computer and her eyes fall once again on the invitation she´s been considering throwing in the bin for a week. She fights against the hurt she sworn she left behind and feels the treacherous tears well up in her eyes- tears she was convinced she wouldn´t shed again. She wipes them away, hating herself for momentarily giving in to her old insecurities. Maybe it´s time she faced the world again and showed she doesn´t care someone else´s living her dreams.

I surrender to trying to understand
And just accept
I surrender the need
To be understood and accepted

He´s always been aware of the silences and the stares that follow him wherever he goes. The surprised gasps and then the deadly quiet that accompany his entrance to the reception room doesn´t faze him. There was a time when he cared what people thought of him, when he yearned to be loved and accepted. Now he knows there are some things that might never be. He is who he is and nothing he´ll do or say will change that.

I surrender to my instinct
I surrender to my mind
To my madness
To my insight

He grabs a flute from a passing tray and scans the crowd gathered to honour the two star reporters of The Planet- his very own newspaper. He smiles smugly when he sees the look of utter disbelief and- is it disgust?- on their faces. He knows what it must feel like to be suddenly stolen the spotlight; he´s been left alone in the shadows too many times in favour of the farm boy by his own flesh and blood not to know it. He lets go and savours it.

I surrender my anger
My resentment
I surrender to pretending I don’t have it

She looks at them basking in their new-found love and their triumph and realises she´s been a hypocrite to believe she doesn´t care it isn´t her standing there. She knows what she´s feeling isn´t healthy and she hates it, but she just has to make herself face it to accept that this is who she is now- maybe this is who she´s meant to be all the time.

And then she sees Lex, and their looks lock across the room. There´s a glint in his eye and she knows he knows who she is now because he´s helped shape her; and she no longer cares.

I succumb to the flow

The ride to the top floor of LuthorCorp Plaza is made in complete silence. A silence which stretches into the penthouse and that´s only broken by her moans and his uncharacteristic breathlessness when their lips fuse in a battle of kisses as they abandon themselves to that unresolved sexual tension that´s always sizzled between them.

I surrender to the dark
and the emptiness it brings
To scabs, to healing

He tastes the copper of blood on their lips and then his breath hitches on feeling the warmth of her tongue laving the small cut in his upper lip before she leans forward to start another heady kiss. He knows she might not be here if it weren´t the night it is and yet, he doesn´t want to overanalyse it. She´s in his arms at last and that´s all that matters to him now.

The moment she opens to him, she experiences a sudden urge to look away. The world of feelings reflected in his intense blue-grey eyes is suddenly too much. He fills her and she succumbs. Green clashes with blue. She surrenders, and he lets himself believe.

I surrender to find peace.
I surrender to find freedom
I surrender to this moment

THE END

A/N: I´d like to thank Jill Rey and her poem “I Surrender” for the inspiration.

Story Six


“Picture yourself,” the sentimental stylist cooed over Chloe. “Picture yourself as the bride.”

Chloe's freshly pinned curls trembled. The other woman patted her veil down over her shoulders and nodded into the mirror. Bride duly panicked and coiffed, the stylist left. Lois fussed and talked, her voice background noise.

She did not wear shoes to her wedding. They sat in the dressing room at the church, $500 dyed to match in white. Her bare feet curled into the carpet before Lois left her to lead their small but reporter-centric procession. Her father took her arm and smiled, but she knew he was not sure it was okay. Chloe was certain.

She was a woman, and her role after becoming an adult was to find a man. It wasn't about needing a husband - the husband part was just a definition. She didn't feel shallowly. She'd never liked many people well enough to trust their hands. There were men who promised to do to her whatever she could bear to ask for in whispers or posture. Her mind raced ahead of them, beyond them to the things she knew they could not do.

Love me, forever, she thought. Adore me when you can't even stand another second of my voice. Touch me with your eyes. Shelter me with where you stand in the room. Let me be absent so that I can return. Welcome me back. Fill up my soul and body with yourself. Read parts of your book to me in bed. Laugh with me. Kiss my neck on your way out the door. Give me a child.

The decorations on the bodice made her breasts and belly feel tight and heavy, the way she imagined it would be to discover she is pregnant. The idea of a baby seemed very bloody, barefoot in virginal white, on her fathers arm; a kind of human sacrifice. She thought about how to tell a man she is willing to suffer for him, to be nearly magical and make his love into a living creature groaned out like a medieval monster.

Quickly, she decided. Fast enough that you didn't get nervous and make him think it's a horrible thing you didn't want. Before one of you faints on the other one, because that would be embarrassing. And make sure he knows that you'll scream as loud as you want during labour.

Picture yourself, she thought wryly, ending your day knowing you'll never be alone again. Picture yourself giving the rest of your life to a man. Picture walking toward him.

She didn't feel the length of the aisle or the stares. She needed to get to the front of the church, and then – absolutely then if any time – her life would be forever different.

It seemed like an optical illusion at first. She glanced over at Lois and a man's face appeared behind one of the pillars on the far side of the church. As Chloe moved forward and in front, she lost sight of him. Her father let go, she used the moment he shook his son-in-law's hand to adjust her dress to the right. The man was still there, cleverly poised just out of sight of everyone except her. She sighed with relief.

Picture yourself, she thought. Picture how happy you'll be with him.

Lex was looking at her fiercely, his typical suit a match for any of the tuxedoes in the church, though she knew he would not dress to honour her wedding. He was glaring her down, raking his gaze over her dress and her family members. She could feel him try to rip the white gown off and put himself on and in her. She ducked her head and heard a distinct footfall as Lex shifted his weight forward from his empty corner; a plea. Her eyes rose and the minister started speaking, but Lex was so loud, screaming with stiff shoulders and knotted hands in his pockets, lips pressed brutally shut. His tension filled her with a chill and she exhaled on a jerky nod.

His hands came from his pockets and he snapped the fire alarm down. The shrieks of guests worried for their good clothing blended with the minister's calls for calm. Chloe went toward Lois, pushed past her and started to run. Her bare feet were sure as she was, surer even than her groom's shined shoes. She led the way to the side door, faster than she could imagine going in a dress so heavy. She cut across the green lawn and away from everyone else. Turning the corner, Lex's hand caught hers.

They fled like they'd robbed the sanctuary, and even Lex had to laugh out loud. He drove them in a tiny, fast car to his city – their city. He stopped at a gas station and she believed for a moment he'd tear her to pieces and rage at the scraps. Lex reached for her face, cupped it gently as they kissed with softly wrestling tongues.

“I thought you were just bluffing,” he gasped. “I didn't think you'd settle for him just because I'm not willing to get married again.”

But she had pictured herself as the bride and he came to her; hateful, welcoming, full of promises. He wouldn't leave her alone again. They drove around the city Walt Whitman would have written about as chaos, and inanimate objects that seemed to breathe. They had to go somewhere. Her dress was uncomfortable and she wanted a bath.

Lex brought her to the penthouse and ran water, left her to struggle herself naked. She stretched in the minute waves. Chloe sniffed scotch in the air and knew Lex was having a rare drink signifying happiness. Head rush, and a litle fall back, uneasy without knowing it until the blood flow was less urgent. Her face fell to her shoulder, both rolling damply in substitution. There was nothing bad here. There was nothing at all she didn't want.

Wow! Great turnout and great stories all around. It was particularly difficult to decided which to pick.

Story One was great. Lex and Chloe meeting in some diner, it was great! Loved thet Lex seemed to take an interest in the people that Lionel had wronged.

Story Two our lone Halloween fic. It was just great. Loved that everyone was in it somehow. And the established Chloe and Lex, made of awesome. Loved that Lucas screamed, like a girl! Over a mouse!

Story Three so should have what happened on the show. Much as I would have hated Clark even more if he and lana actually drove away to the sunset. And Chloe and Lex, such an honest moment between them. Glad that Chloe said Always.

Story Four so incredibly angsty! Love it. Chloe managing to overpower every other obstacle in her way, just exactly how she is! And Lex, half or me is so sorry for him, the other half...brilliant!

Story Five, truth time! I would love it if this is the exact way that Lex would return to the show. And Chloe, she clearly misses her true calling, being the top reporter. Being the watchtower is good and all but she is truly a journalist at heart.

Story Six, battle of the wills! Love it. Lex pulling the fire alarm is just too good a picture to let go, it is so beneath him and yet he did it. And Chloe, going so far to prove her point, love it!!!

It has never been so difficult to chose between the stories. So many of them were exceptionally well written and each held some twist or surprise. I wasn't sure what such an abstract criterion for the challenge would yield; the results blew me away.

One: Sweet inevitability.
Two:Why is always so much fun to mess with Lucas?
Three: Damn, why couldn't it have happened that way?
Four: Bone deep creepy but damn well written and thought out.
Five:Think you should send this one to SV writers, give them a clue.
Six: Delicious and so very them. The challenge and the resolution, exceptional.

Thank you all.

Another great turnout and I love that each story took the challenge in a different way. I could side with those who were abandoned and those who did the abandoning.

So many wonderful ideas, and very different directions taken on the theme. Not easy to pick just one to vote for, but it must be done! Well done to all the authors :)

Story One, Title: Happenstance
I really enjoyed this story. It felt more like a new beginning in the sense that I could see a story just poised to get started with this ficlet as the opening prologue. I loved the idea that there’s a story just waiting to unfold after the final scene. LOL! And it was really amusing seeing the happy coincidence of Lex just ‘happening’ to stop by at the same diner that Chloe chose to take refuge in. Soulmates!!!


Story Two A Memorable Haunting
This was a REALLY fun, delightful, amusing and romantic ficlet. I loved how so many characters had been placed into a ficlet of such a short length, and yet they were all given a special amount of attention. I especially loved all the interactions that involved Lucas… Lucas and Lex, Lucas and Chloe and Lucas and Lois. LOL! Damn, that is one fun character!

I was also swept away by seeing Lex as a complete doormat to Chloe’s every whim. She demanded that they go out to visit a haunted house… he demurred without a word of protest, and even when she invited her irritating friends in on the outing, even THEN Lex didn’t complain. He only whined when Chloe told him that Lucas was coming along too, but even then he quickly caved to Chloe’s demands.

LOL! The tough negotiator that was Lex Luthor has met his match with his beloved, eh? ROTFL!

Squeee, and there was even a tiny helping of smut in this chapter, which I adored. I really hope I get to see a full length fic written out by this author sometime.


Story Three, Here With Me
Oh dear, poor Lex! Abandoned at the altar. But the truly sad thing is that this is the best thing that could have happened to him, considering that the alternative was actually going through with a marriage to Lana Lang *shudder*

Oh dear, and it wasn’t only Lex, but even Chloe who had been abandoned. Granted, she had been left behind by a friend rather than a lover/partner, but I can’t imagine that she wasn’t hurt by Clark’s abrupt departure.

I’m not sure how I feel about an ending that seems to close on Chloe and Lex essentially rebounding off each other… but I suppose every Chlex relationship has to start somewhere… and quite honestly, the rocky, unsteady, unstable kind of start is the one that makes for the best story, LOL!


Story Four, TITLE: Home Movies
oh wow! WOW! I loved this story! I have fallen in love with the idea of an Evil-Chloe who uses Lex to satisfy a deep-seated desire for vengeance. I would like to say that I feel sorry for Lex, but the truth is that I know he brought all of this on himself. I might not know the details, but I know he deserves this kind of horrific punishment.

Although it DID make me wince seeing his hopes snuffed out a bit at a time throughout this ficlet. First he hopes that Chloe is going to overcome Brainiac’s influence to save him… only to find out that Chloe was the one in charge all along, and that keeping Lex trapped away was HER idea from the start.

And then he hoped that Clark was going to save him, only to find out that that was not likely to happen, even if Clark wanted to save him.

The story twist that really got to me was the visual of Chloe playing with her three children who were essentially replicated versions of her adolescent memories. A throwback to a more innocent, light-hearted and open time when it seemed possible for Lex, Clark and Chloe to get along. Quite honestly, I LIKE the idea of Chloe living out her dream… even if it IS slightly creepy imagining her tinkering with genetic petri dishes getting the mixture just right to create these ‘perfection personified representations’ as her children. Let’s hope that the kids never find out how and why they were created, eh? It would be too disturbing!


Story Five, TITLE: “Surrender”

wow! This was a really intense ficlet. I really enjoyed the poetry that the words invoked. Somehow, I feel that the poem intertwined between the words was superfluous, because the text of the story itself would have been enough.

I loved how you captured the paradoxical difficulty and ease with which both Chloe and Lex ‘surrendered’ to each other, to destiny, to their own desires… It happened as much because they were tired of fighting as well as because they felt there was great happiness waiting for them upon surrendering. Beautiful work!


Story Six

This was my favourite story, and I voted for it accordingly! I LOVED the plot twists inside this ficlet. At first, I kept hoping that the ‘husband to be’ that Chloe was talking about in such a devoted manner was Lex… only to find out that Lex was merely a guest at this wedding rather than one of the main participants. Now that was a cruel twist!

LOL! Until I find out that there’s yet another twist, because the ‘husband to be’ that Chloe was talking about was actually Lex all along… only he was being too stubborn to agree to her wishes.

The lines that Chloe used to describe a husband were just too beautiful for words! It was overwhelming seeing Chloe willing her husband to be her ‘everything’… her soul as well as her mate, to become the other half of her life in every way possible. The words ‘life partner’ is not just a convenient terminology for Chloe when it comes to describing her husband… she really means for a wedded partner to be the other half of her life, soul, destiny and future.

Heh… it’s a pity that she couldn’t find a way to bring that concept across to Lex, and had to descend to such desperate, outrageous actions to force him to her viewpoint.

LOL! I loved that Lex was forced to take a humiliating, clichéd approach such as objecting at a wedding and then even pulling the friggen fire alarm to make sure his point was put through. ROTFLMAO! Oh dear me, Lex is NEVER going to live that one down.

I have no idea who Chloe was mock-marrying, but I’d like to think it was someone who Lex would see as a genuine threat. Definitely NOT Jimmy, who would be a joke… but perhaps Bruce Wayne? Oliver Queen? Perhaps even Clark Kent could have been an effective way of getting Lex to panic ;)

I enjoyed all of the stories, but it was Story#4 that really grabbed me. I loved the idea of Chloe's controlling all of these powerful men-great work:D

First of all, thanks so much to Jules for covering for me while I was briefly occupied with real life and closing the poll!

I also want to thank everyone who participated in this month's challenge.

Writers - You really outdid yourself this month. The challenge was rather abstract and open to so many interpretations and you guys really stepped up and produced a myriad of amazing stories. Fantastic work!

Readers - Thank you for taking the time to vote. This challenge wouldn't work without your participation, so please keep up the good work!

And now for this month's winner:

Kitten!

Congratulation, Kitten, and great work!!!

Thanks again to everyone who participated. You all rock.

Also, I'm off to post the new challenge, so keep an eye out. :)

~Sarah~

Congrats, Nonky aka Kitten!

I´d like to thank those who voted for my fic- Surrender (Story #5).:blinkkiss

Congratulations Kitten! Awesome work:D

Good work, kitten :D And to lexie, I really enjoyed your story too!

Mine was #3, puts me in a respectable second place this round which pleases me - thanx to the 4 peops who voted for me, and also to those who left feeback ;)

I actually voted for #1, and am surprised I was the only person, though it is always tough when there are so many awesome stories to choose from :)

Congrats Kitten! :)

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Ultra

I actually voted for #1, and am surprised I was the only person, though it is always tough when there are so many awesome stories to choose from :)

---

Thanks Ultra. All the stories were great! Congrats kitten!

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Ultra

And to lexie, I really enjoyed your story too!

---

Thanks, Ultra. Glad you liked it.:blinkkiss

Quote:

---

Mine was #3, puts me in a respectable second place this round which pleases me - thanx to the 4 peops who voted for me, and also to those who left feeback ;)

---

Yours was actually one of my favourites.:D

I´ve just been checking out feedback and realised I forgot to answer the only review on my work in this thread.:P

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by somethingeasy

Story Five, TITLE: “Surrender”

wow! This was a really intense ficlet. I really enjoyed the poetry that the words invoked. Somehow, I feel that the poem intertwined between the words was superfluous, because the text of the story itself would have been enough.

---

Yes, maybe you´re right- maybe the one I used for A Modern Persephone was more organic; however, I wanted to pay a kind of homage to the poet whose worked inspired me on this occasion.

Quote:

---

I loved how you captured the paradoxical difficulty and ease with which both Chloe and Lex ‘surrendered’ to each other, to destiny, to their own desires… It happened as much because they were tired of fighting as well as because they felt there was great happiness waiting for them upon surrendering. Beautiful work!

---

I´m glad you were able to "feel" that while reading it because it was exactly what I intended to achieve.

I hope you´ll find the rest of my work thus satisfying.

Thanks for reading and reviewing my little ficlet.:blinkkiss

I just got to the October Challenge reading today. Things have just been busier than I'd anticipated. Heck I had hoped to do the Nov. and Oct. challenges, and I realized that I missed everything. I'm sorry about that.

The authors put in their time and effort for the challenge, and I figured that a late response is better than none. Even though a vote won't count, I wanted to let the writers know their stories were appreciated.

Everyone took the Abandon theme in a different direction, and I really like seeing what can happen. Everyone has their own interpretation on the themes, and it shows how talented the participating writers are.

#1 was lovely to me. I liked the flow and where the story took us. Clark was always "abandoning" everyone else around him (except Lana usually). So this was spot on with the challenge while giving us a nice Chlex moment.

#2 was hilarious to me at the end especially. I also like a story that shows how they all could be civil to each other instead of at each other's throats. So this was a nice way that the challenge was answered for me.

#3 was awesome. I would so love to see more of this story or a sequel. I was so mad at Lionel when he basically talked Lana in to still marrying Lex. I would have been so happy if Lex turned to Chloe when Lana didn't show up and asked her instead. This was perfect for me as a better way that things could have gone. I would have voted for this one, if I'd been able to read these when the voting happened.

#4 was a darker story, but it was well written as well.

#5 was angsty, but wll done too. Lois really did move in on everything that Chloe wanted in life for so long on the show. Don't even get me started on the whole mind-wiping thing either.

#6 was funny how she'd run out of her own wedding because she really wanted to be marrying Lex. {Grins} Cute one.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by ~*~Tasha~*~

#3 was awesome. I would so love to see more of this story or a sequel. I was so mad at Lionel when he basically talked Lana in to still marrying Lex. I would have been so happy if Lex turned to Chloe when Lana didn't show up and asked her instead. This was perfect for me as a better way that things could have gone. I would have voted for this one, if I'd been able to read these when the voting happened.

---

Aaw, thanx, Tasha - #3 was mine, and I'm really glad you liked it so much :) It occurred to me I could write more, as it does with pretty much all these challenges, but I'm not sure if I actually could/would...