MetaHumans // 5 Drabbles

[sue-dreams.livejournal.com]

Team: Metahumans
Challenge: 34. Sick
Rating: All under PG-13
Characters/Pairings: Clex, Martha, Lucas, Jonathon, Lionel, Chloe, Lois, Oliver
Author's Notes: Some are silly, some are sad (the last one), and the others fall in between.

Title: Build-up
Characters/Pairings: Clark, Lex
Warnings: None. Early seasons.
Summary: Clark doesn't get sick, except when he does.


Lex drops to his knees, hands running quickly from forehead (so cold) to neck (slow pulse). Clark doesn't get sick, which makes his condition all the more worrisome. The green tint to his skin isn't a normal reaction, not even for meteor-affected humans, to the green meteors, but he's never seen them glow like that for anyone else.

It doesn't take a lot of thought to link the two phenomena together. The rocks are lighter and easier to move, so he does. Clark's recovery is quick. Curiously so.

But Lex doesn't ask, doesn't mention it, he won't, because Clark recovers.


*

Title: Gulliver's Travels
Characters/Pairings: Clark, Chloe, Olliver, Lois
Warnings: Sap. Cuteness. AU, given season 9 friendships.
Summary: Chloe is sick. Clark fails as a nurse.


It's extremely silly, but it does make her feel better. Laughter really is the best medicine.

She pauses for breath as Clark rises from the ground, silly string trailing off him like the ropes that bound Gulliver. Playing the Lilliputians Lois and Oliver exclaim (Lois in deadpan) about the giant being free.

There's some grumbling as they move around for the next scene, with Chloe directing. If the other three know they're being played, none of them show it as Gulliver, no played by Oliver and answering to "Gullie" wrestles a dragon.

Maybe tomorrow, she'll even tell them she's better.


*

Title: Pretense
Characters/Pairings: Clark, Pete, Chloe, Lex
Warnings: None.
Summary: Clark and friends watch movies. Sort of.


"That's sick. I don't know how you can watch it," Chloe says, shielding her eyes. On screen, someone else is maimed, possibly killed.

"It's based on a true story," Pete shares excitedly, as if it makes the gore easier to bear.

Clark pretends to watch, but his attention is focused through the screen and into the other room, where Lex is still diligently at work... playing Minesweeper. Clark wishes he could get out of having to watch the movies Pete picked, but he and Chloe lost the bet fair and square and Clark can at least pretend to pay up.


*

Title: Home for the Holidays
Characters/Pairings: Clex, the combined Kent and Luthor family
Warnings: An abundance of sap?
Summary: The mansion is full this Christmas, but there's not a lot of joy in the halls.


Clark took the last two bowls from Lex and disappeared to deliver them and then came back to lean against the counter. "All our parents are asleep."

"Lucas?" Lex asked, covering the soup pot.

"Drowning in mucous. Better. Lonely."

"I'll go up," Lex said. He was wrapped up in Clark before he could make good on his words.

"Wait a few minutes?" Clark asked, the words muffled against Lex's neck.

Lex embraced him in return. Just because he didn't get sick didn't mean Clark didn't get lonely. "What a Christmas."

Clark chuckled and kissed him. "At least we're all together."


*

Title: And this too, shall pass.
Characters/Pairings: Clex, Martha Kent, Lucas Luthor
Warnings: Death.
Summary: Clark isn't invulnerable to grief.


Fact: people die.

Clark grieves for his mother, then his friends. He and Lex go to Lucas's funeral, and neither mentions how Lex looks forty instead of eighty-three, or how Clark looks twenty-six, down to his hair style.

They change identities, cities, clothes, and hair. Lex makes jokes about the age difference between them and Clark laughs. It's not funny, though, when Lex's hair starts growing in. White, not red. He gets pneumonia and is sick for weeks.

Then comes the frailty of age, the decay of the body followed by decay of the mind. Then death for him, too.

Comments

[twinsarein.livejournal.com]

1. Awww! Good for Lex, holding his curiousity at bay and being so grateful that Clark gets better.

2. *snorfle* What good friends, to act so silly to make Choe feel better. I like the image of the silly string being like the ropes that attempts to bing Gulliver.

3. Oh, you're killing me here. Lex playing Minesweeper (I love that game), Clark watching him through the wall (a much better sight than a gory movie), and a nice creative premise.

4. Eeps - all the Luthors and Kents together under one roof? Is anyone going to be left alive come morning?

5. *Wail* You did just kill me. Or Lex anyway, which is almost worse. *sniff* Poor Clark!

*goes to reread your comment fic to cheer myself back up*

psst - Nice job, btw!

[sue-dreams.livejournal.com]

1) Build-up, sadly, was titled because I see it as set in that time period before things go so bad. I was... not exactly cheery of mind during the writing of all of these.

2) And this, sadly, is unlikely to ever happen, but it does in my personal fanon.

3) I'm glad you liked it. I love Minesweeper, myself.

4) Well, since the elder Kents and Luthor are sick, and presumable in separate rooms, this is probably the only holiday where nobody fights. ^__^ But Clark and Lex will take what they can get. And Lucas, at least, will be snarky with Lex while Clark pouts the 'adults' into submission and cooperation.

5) I love you. Writing it was hard. *sniffs*

Which commentfic, out of curiosity? There are so many of them.

[nonotthatone.livejournal.com]

I love a Lex who's clue-gathering even as he's loving. Gah, my heart.


Oh Chloe. Yes, you are a brilliant puppetmaster, but seeing you pull the strings makes me so lonely for the way you used to be.


Does Clark know Lex is playing minesweeper because he x-rayed the screen? Poor Lex. He's at such a disadvantage with Clark; he can watch surreptitiously, sure, but Clark can see through his clothes. Unfair. :)


You like the holidays, don't you? Admit it.


Oh, sad. But - yes. It's inevitable, isn't it? If there's a way to stay young forever via science or some other cosmic cheat, I'm sure Lex will find it; but if not, there's no way around this future.

[sue-dreams.livejournal.com]

I think, even if he wanted to, Lex is incapable of turning off his brain.

Ah, Chloe. I was going for a more light-hearted feel, but you're observation is good.

There was going to be commentfic, but it went surprisingly well (given recent problems) and so it will be posted to my journal later as a ficlet. It's possible the screen is just tilted so that Clark can see it, though I won't discount x-ray vision abuse. ^__^ And Clark will be very surprised when Lex starts lead-lining his underwear.

I love the holidays.

I also love the stories where the meteor changes give Lex an extended lifetime, one to match Clark's extended (finite) lifetime... but the odds are against them. (That's why cloning is so important. >D)

[nonotthatone.livejournal.com]

So there's more holiday schmoop in our collective futures? :) Can't wait. (I have to cop to being a Christmas cynic; give me Halloween instead. But I'll take it from you!)

[sue-dreams.livejournal.com]

I like all holidays. I will schmoop of Memorial Day, given a chance. Birthdays, Labor Day, National Speak Like a Pirate Day (which I missed AGAIN this year).

I'm easy.

But if you want more schmoop? Tempt me properly, baby. (Though the things I could do with "But I'll take it from you" are... possibly fun.)

[nonotthatone.livejournal.com]

Haarrrrrrrrrrrr I'm not sure who I like better as a pirate, Clark or Lex. Oooh, except now I have filthy visions of a Dread Pirate Luthor and his mysterious indentured cabin boy ...

I sort of hate Christmas, though.

[sue-dreams.livejournal.com]

I am sorry. I will try to remember in the future to not write X-mas fic for you. New Year's, Halloween, and Thanksgiving are probably all fine, yes?

I have seen a Princess Bride parody for Clex. But, oh, to do it with Lex as Dread Pirate Roberts and Clark as Wesley? (Lana can play Buttercup, and she can be very disappointed when she does get stuck with her Humperdinck...)

God, woman, why do you tempt me so!

Also, I have seen a rather decent pirate!captain!Lex, cabin boy!Clark. I can find the link, if you'd like?

[nonotthatone.livejournal.com]

Oh no, you can Christmas at me if you want. I think this is just me making a general announcement of my intentions to probably not ever do a Christmas fic. (Never saying never, however, based on my recent changey-mc-change-change behavior on other fandom-related stuff I said I'd never do, then promptly turned around and did.) ((God that was a horrific run-on sentence.))

Can I just demand that fic from you now? Srsly. I wants it, my precious.

You could certainly link me :)

[sue-dreams.livejournal.com]

Pirate (http://www.smallville.slashdom.net/archive/25/pirate.html) by Serafina.

It's longish, so it's got a nice bit of plotliness to it. Clex, of course. Religious tones from Clark, given the era, but I actually thought that worked out rather sweet.

Remind me in January about Dread Pirate Luthor and Clarksly, and the fair Lanacup who doesn't get rescued (well, not 'properly') from Humperdink-whoever.

[twinsarein.livejournal.com]

I don't know if you're interested or not, but I have a couple of recs for really good immortality stories for you. Neither is short, although the second isn't too bad. They are "Wisdom to Know the Difference" by bipolypesca at http://bipolypesca.org/WTKD.html

The other is, "Until the Twelfth of Never" by iibnf at http://iibnf.livejournal.com/1379779.html

[sue-dreams.livejournal.com]

Yay, thanks! I hate this whole LJ not giving replies thing. It makes me sad. (I'm not even sure you're responding to me, but whatever. I can't follow the edges up with my eyes so tired, so I'll just be grateful anway. ^_^

[jlvsclrk.livejournal.com]

The first four were so fun and fluffy and I was preparing my comments when the last drabble knocked all thoughts out of my head. Aagghhh! Immortality isn't what it's cracked up to be. I wonder if a person would go mad if everyone they knew kept dying, faster and faster it would no doubt seem from their POV. Would you stop trying to make new relationships to spare yourself the grief? Aagghhh!

[sue-dreams.livejournal.com]

I think going it completely alone would not be the answer. Perhaps you'd strive to form shallower relationships. Friendships that themselves are more fleeting than the lives fading around you.

I do think some form of insanity is highly likely, no matter what.

Originally, in the order I wrote them, it would have been the first drabble. Perhaps I should have left it that way, so people could skip around it, or would have the funnier/lighter ones to cheer them up.

[ctbn60.livejournal.com]

You have a lovely way of capturing moments in time that are both meaningful and expressive.

1) Lex is smart. Out of everyone in smallville he should be able to put the pieces of the puzzle together quite easily. I like the fact that he doesn't ask because clark is better though. That says a lot!

2) I love it when friends get all dorky!!!

3) I like how you work Clark watching Lex into this story while he is with the others. It's kind of how I imagined the entire show. While he was with Chloe pete or lana he still would rather have been at the castle with Lex. Nice one!

4) Aw everyone is sick!!! It's nice Clark can be there for all of them Lex too! Sweet! I liked this.

5) *sniffle* nooooo Lex is alive and well and living forever. Yup yup yup!!!

Nicely done!

[sue-dreams.livejournal.com]

Thank you. That's a very lovely compliment.

1) I agree. Lex is canonically supposed to be so smart (bad plans that go awry not withstanding) and yet he remains ignorant for so long. That would only happen willfully, I'd think, but that doesn't match up with his outward, shown desire to know.

2) My friends would totally do this, if only for the silly string. >D Which is to say that I also <3 it when friends are dorky.

3) Your personal fanon and mine match up on this, me thinks. ^__^

4) I just envision them arriving one by one (Lionel, Lucas) or in pairs (Martha and Jonathon) and being led to rooms and tucked in, and... schmoop. :D It's awesome.

5) I will not argue. ^__^ I very much like the fics where they're still together, hundreds of years old, and occasionally Lex tries to take over the world just to put the spark back in their relationship.

[seagull2eagle.livejournal.com]

But Lex doesn't ask, doesn't mention it, he won't, because Clark recovers.
Awwww.... Yes. :)

Maybe tomorrow, she'll even tell them she's better.
LOL! Yeah, I would too for silly scenes like that. Chloe is a woman after my own heart. ^^

lark pretends to watch, but his attention is focused through the screen and into the other room, where Lex is still diligently at work... playing Minesweeper.
Can I say I just absolutely love the whole gang being *at* the Mansion for their movie-watching? I think if Clark was friends with Lex, all of them would be. LOL on Lex for getting out of it with 'work'. ;D And of course Clark likes Lex-watching better. ^^

Just because he didn't get sick didn't mean Clark didn't get lonely.
A house of sick people and Lex and Clark left to take care of them! Awww... ^^

neither mentions how Lex looks forty instead of eighty-three, or how Clark looks twenty-six
Right there I started to get an "ouch" feeling about this, because if Lex was already looking forty... And then, yeah. :( Poor Clark. They had such a wonderful long life together... I love them to have happily ever afters, but just like the rifts, it's equally (if not more likely) likely for heartbreak. Ouch. :( {but a well-done ouch!)

[sue-dreams.livejournal.com]

I <3 Chloe. :D

I like to think the same thing. I really like fics where Lex interacts (positively) with Chloe and Pete (and even Lana). My personal fanon demands it.

Well, Clark and Lex are pretty much impervious to most things (fanon?) and so it makes sense for them to be caretakers. Also, it's just a damn cute image.

This was actually the first drabble I wrote, but I moved it to the bottom and tried (with some success) to write happier pieces for the other four. I don't see either one as being immortal (not without scientific intervention, which is possible with Lex), though I think it makes sense for their lifespans to be different from that of most people.