NS Advent Calendar 2008 - Two Dozen and One Holiday Lies - Reviews/Feedback here!

[Kit Merlot]

How much do I love the phrase "faux European persona?" That describes Lana Lang perfectly and thank God Lex sees that

I do like that Lex thought of Chloe the instant he saw the present on his desk--he should have gone with his gut on that one.

This story is adorable and I can't wait to see what happens next

[somethingeasy]

What an excellent and exciting chapter, Skauble! I loved it! LOL! It was definitely fun seeing Chloe going back to the more ‘traditional’ reasons of sneaking around… to uncover truth, justice… and a good, strong, juicy story! LOL!

I loved the way that one of the main reasons why Chloe was investigating this story was because it was LuthorCorp related… and not because she wanted to ‘bring Lex down’ or anything like that, but because she wanted to protect Lex from whatever was happening behind his back at one of his warehouses.

It’s truly amazing seeing the far lengths that Chloe is willing to go to to make life generally easier, better and happier for Lex… even if he IS an undeserving prat for her one-sided ‘friendship’.

I also liked the note about how Lex has been making a concentrated effort of cleaning up LuthorCorp ever since he gained control of it. It’s good to know that this Lex is genuinely trying to be a clean, decent businessman… AND that Chloe is aware of his efforts.

I do wonder why Lex decided that he was ‘no good’ for Chloe if he’s obviously trying to redeem his business practices. Doesn’t he believe that cleaning up his business dealings is the first step to making him a good man, worthy of Chloe’s friendship and love? Or is he just SO freaked out about this young girl holding so much emotional power over him, that he decided it was ‘safer’ for everyone for him to remain distanced from her?

Anyhow… whatever the case, it was fantastic and exciting seeing Chloe suddenly finding herself in the middle of what seems to be a Lionel signature conspiracy. I loved what Chloe observed about how Lionel’s current lack of power actually makes him MORE vicious and dangerous to others (especially his son)… which is why Lex needs as much of Chloe’s protection as possible

I loved the details Chloe took in with her VERY experienced investigative eye. She managed to spot ALL the little clues that pointed about how these obvious ‘thugs for hire’ were up to No. Good! The firearms the were carrying, the suspiciously wary glances they were throwing all over the place… not to mention the strange activity that they were doing late this night.

If I were to guess, I would say that those boxes that these thugs were randomly placing in one of Lex’s warehouses were filled to the brim with HIGHLY illegal contents (drugs? smuggled good? illegal firearms?)… something that would get Lex into a HEAP of trouble when they were discovered by the police who were soon about to get tipped off by an ‘anonymous source’ to check the warehouse.

That BASTARD, Lionel! Framing his own son?! This is a new low for the man!

Heeee!!! Good thing Chloe is around to catch these guys!

The chapter was great with Chloe alone on this investigative night… so I nearly squealed in delight when LEX also made an appearance! Awesome!!!

ROTFLMAO! I loved the idea that Lex was absolutely friggen furious with Chloe for being here this evening. Obviously he’s about to indulge in a long, huge tirade about Chloe sticking her nose into dangerous affairs that could end up with her being hurt or killed.

LOL! and of COURSE he’s going to completely disregard the fact that HE’S here doing the exact same thing that she is! ROTFLMAO! I can already see Chloe is quite indignant about the ‘interruption’, so she’s really not going to have the patience for a lecture from him, LOL!

Oh, this is going to FUN to watch!! *rubs hands in glee*

Lex’s eyes narrowed as he saw the fear fade and the fire snap to life in Chloe’s eyes.

When he’d first seen a familiar form balanced precariously on a pile of rotted wood, peering in on what he was certain was some less than legal activities, he’d known instantly, with every fiber in his being, that it was Chloe. You could have the woman committed, dress her in a straightjacket and lock her in a padded cell and, within an hour, she would have uncovered an insurance fraud ring, a doctor working without a license, and suffered no less than three attempts on her life. Some

Hmmmm… it seemed to me that this section came to a slightly abrupt end over here, Skauble. If I were to guess… I’d say that you were planning on ending the chapter on Chloe’s indignation while the ‘Lex POV’ would have started in the next chapter…?

Heh… in that case, this was an absolutely delicious start to the next chapter, Skauble. Thanks for the preview, LOL! I look forward to reading the rest of it soon

[hfce]

Part 3:

What happened after Some? You can't stop there. I want more. I loved how she is in her own way trying to protect Lex. I can't wait to see what Lex does to her in the next update. She is to noisy for her own good.

[Ultra]

Hmm, I was also confused by the Some... and then no more! haha

Anywho, just got all caught up with this story and I already love it! Poor Lex, he's so suspiscious, for good reason obviously, but still... Hate that he thinks Lana left that gift for him, but I'm sure at some point he'll figure out / find out the truth. I did love his internal ramblings about Lana and Clark and more so Chloe with regards to why they might be his 'Secret Santa'.

Now Chloe is snooping where she shouldn't (again!) and has been caught by an angry Lex. I doubt he's so worried about what she's seen, probably he cares more about the fact she might have got hurt or in trouble. He cares already, though he's trying not to.

Can't wait for tomorrow for the next chapter!

[dagney]

Exciting chapter, That lex has been trying to keep her safe but also recognizes she can ferret out a story and corruption no matter what was telling. That Chloe is worried and a champion for Lex is also special. I'm waiting for the fireworks btw the two. Dagney

[somethingeasy]

Chapter 3:

When he’d first seen a familiar form balanced precariously on a pile of rotted wood, peering in on what he was certain was some less than legal activities, he’d known instantly, with every fiber in his being, that it was Chloe. You could have the woman committed, dress her in a straightjacket and lock her in a padded cell and, within an hour, she would have uncovered an insurance fraud ring, a doctor working without a license, and suffered no less than three attempts on her life. Some days he just wanted to lock her up in the castle for her own safety and throw away the key. But then he remembered that many of the greatest dangers Chloe had faced in her life had been because of her connection with the Luthor family, not in spite of it.

I was howling with laughter at Lex’s irritated and exasperated observation about how Chloe can get herself into trouble in even the most PROTECTED of situations. LOL! Isn’t it lovely seeing this man doting on this woman that he can never get to just sit still where he puts her. And he adores her for that very quality

LOL! I was also ROTFLMAO seeing the way that Chloe was nearly bursting with the urge to tell Lex off for disrupting her investigation. I can tell she secretly enjoys telling him off , doesn’t she? LOL!

Heh… and wasn’t it funny to see how it was Lex’s own decision to drag Chloe off to safety that exposed them both to danger. LOL! I blame the knocked over boxes completely on him! Next time be a little more careful with the damsel that you’re ‘rescuing’, Lex! LOL!

Wow! And it was a very exciting and thrilling chase scene, Skauble. Lionel’s goons really meant business. They had adopted a ‘shoot first and ask questions later’ policy… which suggests that this was something VERY serious that they were mixed up in this evening.

I do wonder how Lionel would have reacted if he had found out his son had been shot dead by his own goons. Just because Lionel wasn’t to bring Lex down to heel in LuthorCorp doesn’t necessarily mean he wants his son DEAD.

As they reached the end of the alley, her move to turn left was thwarted by Lex’s momentum which was taking them in the opposite direction.

“My car-” she called.

“Is staying here.”

There was no room for debate as he pulled out a key with a small remote attached. Before they’d even reached the vehicle, the doors were unlocked and the engine started. Thrusting Chloe into the passenger’s side, Lex was behind the wheel within moments, speeding from the scene as bullets continued fly.

Squeee!!! So very, VERY exciting! And I found Lex’s adrenaline based take charge attitude to be absolutely thrilling!!!

They were both silent as they started the long trek back to Smallville in the contemplative way that often follows cheating death; no matter how many times they may have cheated him before. And yet, for all that their thoughts were the same, they were tellingly opposite.

I loved, LOVED the description on how ‘their thoughts were the same, but tellingly opposite’, What a brilliant turn of phrase to describe exactly how both their minds ran along exactly the same lines, AND how their thoughts revealed how deeply they both feel about each other.

LOL! I loved seeing both of them were absolutely furious at each other for putting themselves in danger… not at ALL noticing the hypocrisy of their thought processes. Oh yeah sure, it’s all right for YOU to go rushing into danger to protect everyone, but when it’s me then it’s unacceptable?! ROTFL! Brilliant!

“You’re not going home. You’re staying at the mansion.”

LOL! I was giggling at the way that Chloe snarked how Lex might have ‘forgotten’ about her presence in the car because she was being so ‘unobtrusive and quiet’… as if he would be anything less than obsessively aware of her every move, even when she’s sitting absolutely still and quiet beside him. And then I was squealing in delight seeing that Lex had planned to essentially ‘kidnap’ Chloe and bring her over to his mansion. And then he drops her in his bedroom? Hot smut follows?! LOL!

Chapter 4:

I loved the beginning of this chapter, with Chloe stomping ahead of Lex into the mansion, making sure that everyone knew about her supreme displeasure in this situation. LOL! I loved how she’s making a huge drama out of her temper, ROTFL! And I was in hysterics seeing Chloe giving a moment of thanks for knowing the mansion so well that she COULD put on the drama without taking a wrong, embarrassing turn somewhere.

It was also fun to see Lex irritated by Chloe’s temper drama. But he’s far too smart to expect Chloe to be grateful to him for plucking her out of her investigation… even if he DOES see it as a ‘rescue’ rather than a kidnapping. LOL! Their banter is just adorable!

He did make an excellent point about how Chloe would be VERY easy to track since the bad guys would have found her car. But I feel compelled to point out that the bad guys would not have found her car if Lex had not knocked over those boxes, and forced them both to run away from the alerted chasing thugs. *rolls eyes* I noticed that the klutzy man did NOT apologize for his blowing Chloe’s cover…? LOL!

I admired Chloe for picking up on the slip that Lex made about her being ‘home alone’ this evening. I also blinked at her question on HOW did Lex know she was alone at her house tonight. Heee! What a revealing clue Lex inadvertently dropped here. So he’s been ‘keeping an eye’ on her for all of these months? There’s no way that he’ll be able to convince Chloe after this that he ‘doesn’t care’ about her or her father’s well-being.

I had to giggle at the sneaky and vague way that Lex told Chloe that he’s been keeping a ‘discreet but non-invasive’ eye on her for all this time. Don’t you love the way that he managed to side-step the question on how extreme were his spying methods on the Sullivan family? LOL! The sneaky bastard! And I appreciated how Chloe just accepted this ‘spying’ as a part of Lex’s nature and didn’t explode at him over it. Of course, that doesn’t mean she condones it, and the moment she finds out more details, I’m sure she’s going to make sure that the spying is immediately stopped.

But for now, they have more interesting issues to discuss, LOL!

Glad to be away from the touchy subject of extending the Sullivans his indefinite protection, Lex had no problem answering her inquiries. He knew her well enough that giving her no information would simply push her into investigating matters herself. Besides, of all the people in his life whose trustworthiness was in question, Chloe’s Sullivan’s was beyond reproach.

Squeee!!! I loved the lovely matter-of-fact way that Lex had NO problem with letting Chloe know about his slightly dubious actions because he considered Chloe to be the MOST trustworthy person in his life. Heh… and yet this man still insist that he can live life easily without her friendship? Silly guy!

And that…actually made quite a bit of sense to Chloe. Of course Lionel’s first move in a power play for LuthorCorp would be to undermine Lex’s powerbase from the inside out. But every person Lionel made a move towards turning exposed him just a bit more. By not knowing who was absolutely loyal to Lex and who was up for sale, he might very well make overtures to the wrong person and reveal his machinations.

This was actually quite a brilliant strategy Lex has adopted. It’s a great counter-move to Lionel’s attempts to subvert Lex’s control from within. I liked seeing the brilliantly sneaky and subtle plan that Lex came up with, and I LOVED seeing Chloe’s admiring reaction to that plan. She’s quite impressed, and I’ll bet Lex felt really warmed (and puffed up?) seeing the appreciatively admiring look in her eyes too. LOL! After all, all any boy REALLY wants, in his deepest, inner core, is to impress the pretty girl he has a crush on. He manages that, his day is made, LOL!

It was nice seeing them both connecting while chuckling over Lex’s clever plans to thwart and frustrate Lionel… heh, just like old time, huh? LOL!

And speaking of thwarting Lionel, I was glad to see them discussing the sheer weirdness of what Chloe had witnessed down by the warehouse. It turns out that it’s a good thing Chloe was there, otherwise Lex might have missed out on the specifics on what those men were doing. He would have assumed that they were taking something out of the place rather than putting something in. Now both Chloe and Lex can devote their attentions to figuring out what the heck could Lionel have placed in random crated around Lex’s warehouse to gain an upper-hand in the Luthor power-struggle.

“I know that you’re curious; that you want to help. And I know that you’re worried that this might be the work of my father. But honestly, that’s all the more reason for you to stay out of this. Haven’t you been in enough danger because of this family?”

And suddenly the reason for all those months of pain and rejection became blindingly clear. Lex wasn’t tired of her friendship. He hadn’t simply moved on to greener, Lana-filled pastures. He was scared…for her.

And not just because of what his father had done. Lex was afraid that somehow, because he was a Luthor, he was cursed to bring her the same kind of pain that Lionel had.

Looking downward, Chloe quickly blinked back the tears that threatened at the realization that Lex did still care.

Awww, it was so nice to get this note of sweet, paranoid concern from Lex on Chloe’s behalf… and it was AWESOME to see Chloe figure out the whole picture of the situation because of what Lex revealed about his true feelings for her. LOL! Nice job, Lex! Now Chloe is never, EVER going to believe that you really want her shut out of your life. Now you won’t be able to get her to leave even if you threatened her with guns and nuclear weapons, LOL!

But seriously, I LOVED seeing Chloe figuring out the truth of the distance that Lex has imposed between them. I know she’s been feeling hurt and rejected for several months because of this moronic behavior, and it’s much better for her to know that Lex separated himself from her because he cared too much rather than cared too little.

But I’m still hoping for a huge, screaming, scolding rant from Chloe towards Lex for his cold distanced attitude for all of these months. I’m looking forward to the smack-down, LOL!

So, with a smile that was innocence personified, Chloe left the study and headed upstairs to the room that she’d sometimes used during their brain storming sessions before she’d been forced into hiding, hoping that maybe the time and distance between them had dulled Lex’s knowledge of her enough so that he bought that.

ROTFLMAO! Actually, unless Lex is half asleep right now, I can’t imagine that the quick acquiesce and the ‘innocent look’ fooled him for even an instant! No way he’s going to believe that Chloe just meekly went up to her room without putting up a fight or a tantrum fit in his face.

Heh… let’s face it, Lex. The ONLY way to make sure Chloe doesn’t make a quick getaway thourgh one of your windows tonight is to keep her in YOUR ROOM the whole night… just for her own safety… to keep an eye on her of course. … WHAT?! I certainly wasn’t entertaining pervy, smutty thoughts! *puts on an innocent look that puts Chloe’s to shame*

[hfce]

Part 4:

I loved the rescue and the talk they had. They are so alike it is scary. LOL! Chloe darling Lex isn't stupid he knows darn well you will keep investigating. LOL!

[Ultra]

Lex is such a fool if he really believes that Chloe will stay out of this! haha She's right, they do work better as a team and will do again in figuring out what is going on and whether or not is has anything to do with Lionel. I love reading Chloe and Lex fighting almost as much as I love them when their loving They bicker like no other couple, and I adore the way you wrote it in this chapter, skauble. Looking forward to the next chapter already!

[lexie]

I´ve already left my feedback on the Advent Calendar´s page.

Julie, the links to the chapters and all posts on the Advent Calendar page appear overlapped in the index. Is there a way to fix it? Or could it be a problem connected with my browser?

[Julie]

Julie, the links to the chapters and all posts on the Advent Calendar page appear overlapped in the index. Is there a way to fix it? Or could it be a problem connected with my browser?

Nope, it's a problem I'm trying to fix it without it looking too awkward It's because one of the titles are really long and I styled it to handle two lines... I'll see what I can do though