935/Quiet Time

Quiet Time
Date of Scene:	02 April 2020
Location:	Lois Lane's Apartment
Synopsis:	Lois and Clark discuss the strange shadow creatures, and some relationship adjustments.
Cast of Characters:	Clark Kent, Lois Lane

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Clark Kent has posed:
There's that rushing of air sound, sudden but apparent. A sound that, for /years/, probably created a rather specific emotion for Lois. It may still do that: after all, old habits, really. And it isn't as if someone different has arrived. It's still Superman.

Clark, though, lands in a blur of swift arrival, though he doesn't come in right away: he doesn't have a key to Lois's place, and just barging in through the front door isn't something he'd do any more than he would a balcony door. Politeness, ever still....

Lois Lane has posed:
It's hard for Lois /not/ to feel something at the sound. The familiar noise of arrival already has her moving to the door. No need for a knock, she certainly knows he's there. As she pulls the door open, she leans against it with a sly grin. "Fancy meeting you here, stranger." She laughs, then pauses. "Unless you're here for serious reasons and then in which case I am so sorry."

She does step out of the doorway to allow him inside either way.

Clark Kent has posed:
"No; I /was/ doing something more serious, but not now," Clark answers, stepping inside, and looking down over himself. It was drizzly, up as high as he went, so there's a wet moisture clinging to his sweatshirt, cheeks, pants. He doesn't have his glasses on, he appears to have been doing something or other as in-cognito superman: And his following words confirm it.

"I was doing several patrols looking for more of the shadows we found. I heard a bit of one, but it didn't linger. Still baffled by the whole thing," Clark sighs, but then gives her a better smile. "I should ask -- balcony, or rather I not do that?" As if the balcony might be bad, or odd, in his view.

Lois Lane has posed:
Lois reaches up to brush some of the moisture from his cheeks and shake some of it from his hair. She leans in close to steal an affectionate kiss of greeting before she begins to move for the kitchen. "The balcony's fine. Why wouldn't it be? Makes even more sense now if you're zipping around to sneak in that way, especially so you're not seen." She flashes him a smile. "Either way I still get to see you so... win-win. Do you want some tea?"

She hasn't forgotten what he said about the shadow creatures, and she goes ahead to make the tea while she talks. "I hope you were being careful about it. You should have taken me as backup. I know you can hear at a distance so you'll know where it's at, but what are you going to do if you zone out like you did in the car? Who's going to watch your back? Never thought I'd be the one cautioning against danger..."

Clark Kent has posed:
"Well, I was trying to do a test," Clark explains in his matter-of-fact way. It's so screamingly a Clark behavior it might be funny to have it come from such a Superman-stance and appearance, as he unzips the hoodie, using part of it to dry off his neck and face as if it were a bulky towel. His shirt under it is just a tee, fitted. He wipes down some as he talks.

"I have some earplugs, and the last time, I'd had a bit of time before it caught me. I'd hoped to use them, and find the shadow more by sight. But... I didn't hear one enough to get that far." He gives her a brief smile as she cautions him. "Well, I might just end up hovering at high altitude. I'd be all right, I think." He brushes a hand to her arm, after following her to the kitchen. It's a soft comforting brush.

Lois Lane has posed:
"Of /course/ you were doing a test," Lois says. It's not in a chiding tone or an annoyed tone, more of matter-of-fact. Because that would be what Clark would do. It certainly is a familiar behavior. She would have muttered under her breath that he was adorable, but she manages to stop herself last-second. He'd have heard it. How many times had she uttered things under her breath thinking he wouldn't hear? Her cheeks flush just thinking about it. Oops.

"You might end up hovering, or you might stop flying and end up with someone seeing you." She puts the kettle on, turning to look at him. "All I'm saying is... if I can help, I want to. Not just for the story. The story's just a perk."

Clark Kent has posed:
"I'd like to learn if this is more of an... accident, or intentional. It doesn't seem deliberate: why make a group of people zone out, but don't do any actions? Perhaps it's a symptom of something else that's going on. I'd like more information," Clark sighs, but he shakes his head. He looks at her quietly for a moment, and then approaches, offering an arm around her middle. He'd look to her for a sounding board or a number of things in the past, but the new zone of seeking support as her boyfriend is a little different, and he's unsure about how to behave.

"But I'm still where we left it. I /will/ bring you along next time. You can apply my earplugs if I zone out," he smiles at her.

Lois Lane has posed:
"Maybe it's learning. Maybe it only knows how to zone people out now, but next time it might be able to move them," Lois suggests. Perhaps it's a new dynamic, but she's doing her best to seamlessly meld the two. She moves to meet him, wrapping her arms around him as well. "You're right though, information is really limited unless we can get close again... hopefully without it making that noise."

She squeezes him gently, then looks up at him. "Nice to know you aren't forgetting your partner in all of this. I might be the third wheel in the combination of Clark and Superman, but I'm not about to be left out."

Clark Kent has posed:
"You're going to look at this differently than I will. I need that insight," Clark answers her honestly, without pause. He always respects her view, uses it, values it. He drops his head to kiss her cheek, then orients a little towards the heating water, as if sensing that it was about to be done. It is: him and his super cheater senses.

Lois Lane has posed:
Lois accepts the kiss, opening her mouth to speak when his head moves slightly in anticipation of the kettle whistling. As it goes off, she heaves an amused sigh and peels away from him to get the kettle. "Such a cheater," she teases. She moves towards the box she keeps all the tea in. More like a tea chest anyway. Different pre-packaged bags are in there as well as some bags of loose leaf and the proper implements to steep them. She's not just a coffee girl, she's just a fan of hot beverages.

"Pick your poison, Smallville," she states, fishing around for a pre-packaged bag of some kind of mint blend before dropping the teabag into a cup and pouring some hot water in. "Anyway, I'm glad you value my insight. We've always had different ways of observing situations in the first place. I think that's what made us strong partners in the first place. Different perspectives coming together and creating something really good from that."

Clark Kent has posed:
"I feel like you liked me better when I pretended," Clark teases her in return, though there's some light anxiety under it that he's cloaking. He's not always proud of his abilities or who he is: quite often he feels odd or inhuman, and it bothers him. It bothers him to be /so/ different.

Clark selects a cinnamon tea for his own, extending the cup he usually uses after he rescues it from the cupboard, to allow her to fill his too. "When you listen to me, that is," Clark teases again, more naturally, as she remarks that their perspectives come together. "To correct me to your view." His smile is warm.

Lois Lane has posed:
"No, when we pretended, you let me win. Now that I know you're cheating, it's a /challenge/," Lois replies casually. Perhaps he might have anxiety over the change and she certainly does too... but not in this. It's a different dynamic, but not one she's going to let him shrink away from.

She pours hot water into his mug before returning the kettle to the back of the stove, safely out of the way. "I listen to your ideas, but I do have to remind you sometimes it's Lois and Clark, not Clark and Lois." Her free hand comes up to boop him on the nose before she grabs her mug and begins to move for the living room.

Clark Kent has posed:
"Hmmmmm, important reminder," Clark agrees, smiling. He sets out his hoodie on the back of a chair to dry over time before moving to follow her into the living room as well, leaving his nose fully booped. He brings his steeping tea with him, to come join her there.

"I'll do my best to resist cheating," Clark smiles at her, coming along and letting her select the place to sit -- or even to direct him, he's always easy to guide. Lois and Clark, after all: she leads, much of the time!

Lois Lane has posed:
Lois makes her way towards the couch, guiding him with her to come sit with a gentle hand on his arm. Once she's seated, she offers him a small smile. "It's only cheating to me because I can't keep up. But you're just being you. I kind of like seeing you being you, though. Still going to make a face that you can do things I can't, but don't feel like you have to hold back on my account."

She sets her mug down on the coffee table. "So you be you, and don't hold back because you think I'd like things better that way."

Clark Kent has posed:
Clark adjusts forwards to sit his down as well, and slides over to lean in, brushing nose against her cheek, and attempting to draw an arm around her shoulders. "Being 'me' doesn't mean I'm lifting a locomotive every other minute. Mostly I'm just like anyone else," Clark assures. But, assuring himself, or her? Maybe he tries to be just live everyone: but maybe it's also not a huge thing much of the time. Seems important to him that it isn't.

"But I have you, to not be afraid of slipping, or being seen. And that's priceless to me, Lois."

Lois Lane has posed:
Lois smiles warmly at him, leaning in closer. The touches, the affection comes easy, so much more natural than anything she could have anticipated. So the closeness is welcomed, and she presses her lips to his cheek while she has the opportunity. "I don't expect you to go around showing off, I just expect you to do what's comfortable."

She lets out a slow breath, then a warm smile. "I just want you to know I love you. That's not going to change."

Clark Kent has posed:
"Doing what's comfortable isn't often the same thing as doing what's right," Clark says, slowly, thoughtfully, bringing up his hand to stroke her jawline, and smile as she kisses his cheek. A flattered, quiet smile; he doesn't usually expect her kisses, and is often surprised by them. It isn't something he will probably grow out of very quickly.

"So I know how... fortunate I am that we're both comfortable and right," Clark adds. His tone is serious, but carries his gentle certainty. One of those pieces 'Clark' doesn't show: because while subtle, it's a self-confidence that Clark usually shies from. But he's showing her he means it.

Lois Lane has posed:
Lois shuts her eyes, leaning in to the touch along her jaw. "I guess this just kind of comes from what I felt when I was trying to reach out to Superman. I just want you to be able to be you. The you that you are when you're alone." She opens her eyes again. "Maybe I'm trying too hard with this. I just want to do this right."

There's a sheepish smile. "You can tell me to shut up any time now. That's a boyfriend priveledge now."

Clark Kent has posed:
"It's a best-friend priviledge too," Clark answers, moving his fingers from her cheek to instead tap her nose with one finger. Best friend Clark wouldn't have bapped her nose, though. It would have been too... flirtatious. Too touchy. He'd kept his physical distance.

"But I don't need to. You'll find your way while you talk to me," Clark says, calmly. "but... I'd rather be the me that I am with you, than the one when I'm alone," he says, shifting to relax against her side, arm still around her, gently setting his head against hers.

Lois Lane has posed:
"Yeah, you barely got away with it as a best friend. There were times you made me /so mad/," Lois laughs a little, looking back at him. "Now... you get begrudging acceptance. Much more tolerable, I'd say." She seems very amused at this comparison.

She rests against him a little, smiling affectionately at his words. "You /are/ a pretty good you right now, I'd say. Hard to really ask for much more. Especially if this is the you that you like."

Clark Kent has posed:
"Well, one moment," Clark says, leaning away from her... but only to pick up her tea, and give it to her, then pick up his own. He then re-settles, with an offer to clink their cups.

"There now. The version of me that will always look out for you," Clark teases her with a soft smile. Looking out for her tea-needs, Clark can handle that. No need for super-cheating.