CURSE YOU SARAH
Jul. 15th, 2004 11:11 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
buggerySo Sarah T (yes, the Sarah T who maintains ![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-community.gif)
marvelfic_index and Level Three) was musing earlier today about the sameness of recent Smallville fic. I wouldn't know; I still watch Smallville when there's a new ep, but I lost interest in participating in the fandom or even reading the fiction some months ago.
"Couldn't [Clark and Lex] at least smooch in Atlantis, or in a nano-submersible in somebody's bloodstream, or something?" Sarah asked. She HAD to ask.
Clearly I doomed myself when I said, just this afternoon, that I'd probably never write SV again.
On Flood-Laden Fields
The first thing Lex saw when he opened his eyes was Clark. It didn't even come as a surprise by this point.
"I suppose I should have known you wouldn't let me drown," he said, watching Clark's expression go from concerned to relieved, when he came to with his usual alertness, and back to concerned again at the hoarseness of his voice. "I'm fine, Clark," he chided.
"Uh huh," Clark answered, in that tone that meant he didn't believe a word of it but wasn't going to give Lex the satisfaction of arguing. "Um... much as I'd like to take credit for it, this time it wasn't me."
Clark backed out of his field of vision, and Lex realised why the light seemed so odd. They were... underwater. Inside some sort of dome, beyond which Lex could clearly see schools of fish swimming, their scales glimmering faintly, more from the light thrown by the dome than from the dim sunlight that filtered down from above.
Dim enough that they had to be rather deep indeed. Lex started thinking about pressure and the bends and oxygen intoxication.
"Lex?"
Clark was kneeling by his side, offering him a hand up. He took it, then got to his feet under his own power. He felt a little light-headed, but he wasn't about to let that show.
He looked again up through the dome. The mechanics of it were inspirational. The research applications -- the business applications --
"Lex, this is, er, my friend Arthur. Arthur, Lex Luthor."
Lex turned and took in the bearded, blond man, suppressing any outward reaction to his passing resemblance to Lionel. Clark squeezed his hand, doubtless well aware of what Lex was thinking.
"Welcome to Atlantis," the man said, gruffly, and turned away abruptly. Well, so much for the resemblance to Lionel. And... Atlantis?
"Atlantis?" he mouthed at Clark, as they followed Arthur towards a building.
"It's a long story," Clark hedged.
Lex stumbled, one of his knees suddenly refusing to hold him up. Clark caught him, and looked ready pick him up and carry him until Lex's glare registered. He let Clark keep one arm around him while they caught up to Arthur, who had stopped beside an arched doorway.
"You can stay here," he said, with a stabbing gesture of one arm towards the open archway, then turned and continued on.
"Diplomatic fellow," Lex remarked.
Clark guided him into the building. After a moment, his eyes adjusted -- there were no light sources inside the room -- and he saw that it was sparsely furnished with low couches of an unfamiliar design. Two more doorways led to the outside and deeper into the building, to judge by the light coming through each. Here in a semi-enclosed space, the air smelled noticeably of sea-salt.
"So... Atlantis?"
Clark pushed him against the wall beside the door they'd come through, took Lex's face between his hands, and kissed him. Lex thought about resisting for all of about half a second before kissing back, the hand still on Clark's shoulder tightening and his other clenching on a fistful of Clark's uniform. There was a faint brackish flavour on Clark's tongue, and Lex chased it around his mouth until his own mouth was salted with it. Clark whimpered softly, once, before kissing his way out of Lex's mouth again.
"I was so scared that I couldn't get to you in time," he said, blue eyes huge, muddy as the wash after a wave in the dim light. Lex licked his lips and drew breath to reassure him, but Clark ploughed on. "And... and I *didn't.*"
"Clark."
"You could have *died* and I -- I couldn't *find* you and--"
"*Clark.*"
Clark took a breath. "Yeah?"
"I'm here. I'm alive. And you would've found me, if that meddling Arthur guy hadn't dragged me off to where you couldn't hear me drowning."
"But what if--"
"Clark."
Clark took a short, exasperated breath, then let it out and asked, his voice only just barely sharp, "Yes, Lex?"
"Kiss me again."
And Clark did.
Title taken from Edwin Arlington Robinson's "Pasa Thalassa Thalassa" -- "The sea is everywhere the sea."
Story originally posted in a comment on Sarah's LJ here.
other Smallville stories
other stories set in the DCU
all fanfiction by the Jack.
marvelfic_index and Level Three) was musing earlier today about the sameness of recent Smallville fic. I wouldn't know; I still watch Smallville when there's a new ep, but I lost interest in participating in the fandom or even reading the fiction some months ago."Couldn't [Clark and Lex] at least smooch in Atlantis, or in a nano-submersible in somebody's bloodstream, or something?" Sarah asked. She HAD to ask.
Clearly I doomed myself when I said, just this afternoon, that I'd probably never write SV again.
On Flood-Laden Fields
The first thing Lex saw when he opened his eyes was Clark. It didn't even come as a surprise by this point.
"I suppose I should have known you wouldn't let me drown," he said, watching Clark's expression go from concerned to relieved, when he came to with his usual alertness, and back to concerned again at the hoarseness of his voice. "I'm fine, Clark," he chided.
"Uh huh," Clark answered, in that tone that meant he didn't believe a word of it but wasn't going to give Lex the satisfaction of arguing. "Um... much as I'd like to take credit for it, this time it wasn't me."
Clark backed out of his field of vision, and Lex realised why the light seemed so odd. They were... underwater. Inside some sort of dome, beyond which Lex could clearly see schools of fish swimming, their scales glimmering faintly, more from the light thrown by the dome than from the dim sunlight that filtered down from above.
Dim enough that they had to be rather deep indeed. Lex started thinking about pressure and the bends and oxygen intoxication.
"Lex?"
Clark was kneeling by his side, offering him a hand up. He took it, then got to his feet under his own power. He felt a little light-headed, but he wasn't about to let that show.
He looked again up through the dome. The mechanics of it were inspirational. The research applications -- the business applications --
"Lex, this is, er, my friend Arthur. Arthur, Lex Luthor."
Lex turned and took in the bearded, blond man, suppressing any outward reaction to his passing resemblance to Lionel. Clark squeezed his hand, doubtless well aware of what Lex was thinking.
"Welcome to Atlantis," the man said, gruffly, and turned away abruptly. Well, so much for the resemblance to Lionel. And... Atlantis?
"Atlantis?" he mouthed at Clark, as they followed Arthur towards a building.
"It's a long story," Clark hedged.
Lex stumbled, one of his knees suddenly refusing to hold him up. Clark caught him, and looked ready pick him up and carry him until Lex's glare registered. He let Clark keep one arm around him while they caught up to Arthur, who had stopped beside an arched doorway.
"You can stay here," he said, with a stabbing gesture of one arm towards the open archway, then turned and continued on.
"Diplomatic fellow," Lex remarked.
Clark guided him into the building. After a moment, his eyes adjusted -- there were no light sources inside the room -- and he saw that it was sparsely furnished with low couches of an unfamiliar design. Two more doorways led to the outside and deeper into the building, to judge by the light coming through each. Here in a semi-enclosed space, the air smelled noticeably of sea-salt.
"So... Atlantis?"
Clark pushed him against the wall beside the door they'd come through, took Lex's face between his hands, and kissed him. Lex thought about resisting for all of about half a second before kissing back, the hand still on Clark's shoulder tightening and his other clenching on a fistful of Clark's uniform. There was a faint brackish flavour on Clark's tongue, and Lex chased it around his mouth until his own mouth was salted with it. Clark whimpered softly, once, before kissing his way out of Lex's mouth again.
"I was so scared that I couldn't get to you in time," he said, blue eyes huge, muddy as the wash after a wave in the dim light. Lex licked his lips and drew breath to reassure him, but Clark ploughed on. "And... and I *didn't.*"
"Clark."
"You could have *died* and I -- I couldn't *find* you and--"
"*Clark.*"
Clark took a breath. "Yeah?"
"I'm here. I'm alive. And you would've found me, if that meddling Arthur guy hadn't dragged me off to where you couldn't hear me drowning."
"But what if--"
"Clark."
Clark took a short, exasperated breath, then let it out and asked, his voice only just barely sharp, "Yes, Lex?"
"Kiss me again."
And Clark did.
Title taken from Edwin Arlington Robinson's "Pasa Thalassa Thalassa" -- "The sea is everywhere the sea."
Story originally posted in a comment on Sarah's LJ here.
other Smallville stories
other stories set in the DCU
all fanfiction by the Jack.
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 2004-07-16 09:19 pm (UTC)Loved this, and I hope that you don't give up writing Smallville fic. Hey, at the very least, there's still the kiss in the nano-submersible in someone's bloodstream... :-)
no subject
Date: 2004-07-17 07:11 am (UTC)He was in a GOOD mood here. He said "Welcome to Atlantis"! That's overt friendliness!
I really don't expect to write much, if any, more SV fic. It just doesn't move me the way it used to, and I have too much fun with the toon and comics versions of the DCU now. If I do go back, it'll most likely be for the Luthorcest.
(Somebody should write the nano-submersible story -- the Atom is piloting the thing, so it's not like Clark and Lex need to be doing anything else until they get where they're going -- not gonna be me, though.)