answering machine post!

[victormakesart]

Hey, so, if you're hearing this, I'm elbow deep in paint or trouble. Leave your name (or alias) and number, and day that you called, and message, and I'll get back to you forthwith -- hey, hey, what is it? I'm in the middle of doing one of those phone messages. Oh, that? Just reverse the proton stream, and re-angle the dish -- ahem. Sorry about that.

Press one if it's a serious emergency.

Press two if you just want to leave a message.

Press three if the Nexus has done something odd and I've disappeared.

Pressing four doesn't do anything.

Comments

Re: Two

[kalel_ofkrypton]

He hates breaking bad news, especially to her, since she takes it so much harder. "No."

"It's a long story, but Lex is back. Tess gave her life to get close enough to him to infect him with a neurotoxin that wiped his memory, so he wouldn't know how to kill me. Or who I am. We're safe from him because of her bravery."

Re: Two

[victormakesart]

A soft, wounded, "Oh." She sits down heavily in her desk chair, rests her forehead on her palm and swallows hard. "Where's, where's she buried, I'd like to pay my respects."

Re: Two

[kalel_ofkrypton]

"She wanted to be cremated and have her ashes scattered so no one else could do anything to her afterwards." Tess was very practical, and after the sorts of things the Luthors would do to the dead, especially family, she didn't want to risk a thing. "We're making a memorial for her and our other fallen friends."

Re: Two

[victormakesart]

"That's a smart idea," she says, weakly, nose stinging and eyes aching and she rubs at her forehead. Her heart is lodged somewhere in her throat. "No cloning. No anything. She's a smart lady."

Re: Two

[kalel_ofkrypton]

"She was. And I owe a lot to her personally. If Lex remembered about kryptonite, and found out that April and I are having a child... I don't want to think about what could have happened."

He can't give her a hug over the phone, but he can sure try. "Everyone else made it out okay. No other casualties."

Re: Two

[victormakesart]

"It's crazy to think that she's gone. I mean, she's, she's Tess." She takes a deep breath, holds it until she feels less shaky. "No other casualties. That's, that's really good. How's April doing?"

Re: Two

[kalel_ofkrypton]

"She's okay. Had some false contractions that scared me for a bit, but apparently Acorn's just practicing."

Re: Two

[victormakesart]

"I'm so excited to meet Acorn." She wipes at her eyes with her wrist as they well up. She sniffs hard but, she hopes, discreetly.

Re: Two

[kalel_ofkrypton]

Nothing gets past the superhearing. But Clark is hoping that talking about better things will help her cope. "Me too. Though not in the middle of a crisis... there aren't many folks around who can push an entire planet back out into space."

Re: Two

[victormakesart]

"Has anyone told you lately how amazing you are?" Victor asks, wiping at her eyes again once, twice, thrice.

Re: Two

[kalel_ofkrypton]

"I don't need to be told." It's not said in an arrogant way, like he's so full of himself that people are falling all over him. He just doesn't need the credit, he's just doing his job. "It was my final trial."

Re: Two

[victormakesart]

"Well, you are amazing, and I'm so proud of you, and also I love you." It's said matter-of-factly but earnestly; he's probably the grown person, besides her husbands, that she's closest to.

Re: Two

[kalel_ofkrypton]

"Thank you," he says modestly, with a smile in his voice. "I've done my best to become the hero I needed to be, and I passed all my father's trials. No more training."

Re: Two

[victormakesart]

"Wow, so. So what's next for you, if there aren't any tests left?"

Re: Two

[kalel_ofkrypton]

"I protect the Earth from any threats that come our way, and keep it safe for my family." It's what he was meant to do from the very start, no matter how hard he'd fought against it in the beginning.

Re: Two

[victormakesart]

"You'll do well," she says. "Big heroman," she says, with a strained little laugh that she nevertheless means.

Re: Two

[kalel_ofkrypton]

"You can say Superman... it is my name now. I have the cape and everything."

Re: Two

[victormakesart]

"You do? Oh, Clark! Superman Superman Superman! I guess it doesn't work like Betelgeuse but my gosh it's fun to say."

Re: Two

[kalel_ofkrypton]

He chuckles a little at her excitement. "Well... I did have the costume already, but I wasn't ready to wear it. Not until I passed the last test."

Re: Two

[victormakesart]

She sighs heavily, spins in her swivel chair, chin tilting back. A heavy-hearted contentment. "Glad things are falling into place."

Re: Two

[kalel_ofkrypton]

"Me too... now the only thing left is a successful delivery."

Re: Two

[victormakesart]

"A successful delivery, yes! Nothing more important than a-- Oh! For the baby, I thought you meant delivery in a comedy sense. Same holds true."

Re: Two

[kalel_ofkrypton]

He chuckles a little. "I suppose so. Though I doubt either of us will be cracking jokes at the time."

Re: Two

[victormakesart]

"Oh, certainly not," she says, quite seriously indeed, although a little grin is creeping onto her face.

Re: Two

[kalel_ofkrypton]

"I've spent so long planning for this... I just hope I've covered everything." Or that he remembers it through the anxiety of his wife going into labor.