Fixing Up A Car Turned Girl (backdated)

[clockwork_doc]

After meeting up with Clark in the Nexus, Doc's been getting things ready for him to come over and help him and Marty with the repairs on Dee's car form. He's been putting this off for far too long, thanks to some anxieties about what exactly Dee feels, and whether it's even right for him to do anything to her. Dee's assured him about fifty million times that she feels no pain, though, and she really wants to be fixed. And having Marty around now makes things rather easier than before. End result -- he's finally ready to get Dee back to full functioning condition -- or, at least, as close as they can get.

Finally, three days after Clark appeared, everything's set up. Tools and parts are in orderly piles in the parking lot, as are Dee, Marty, and Doc. "We all set, Doc?" Marty asks, looking around.

"I believe we are," Doc says, going over his mental checklist. "Dee? Anything missing that you can see?"

"Nope!" Dee bounces happily on her heels. This is gonna be fun! "Go ahead and call, Dad!"

"Okay!" Doc goes ahead and sends a text message to Clark's PINpoint: Clark -- it's me, Doc. We're all ready to get to work if you are. Let me know if you're in a position to come over.

Comments

[clockwork-doc.livejournal.com]

"Oh, that scene. Yeah, hardly the same thing," Doc says. "I do wonder what would have happened if my younger self in that scene had caught on. He seemed on the verge of it when that version of me pedaled away." He shakes his head. "Maybe I'll do better simply because of seeing myself in the movies."

"Don't think I have, but maybe I've just been coming at the wrong times," Marty says. He tilts his head. "That costume really weirds you out, doesn't it? What would you have designed?" He can't help it, he's honestly curious.

[kalel-ofkrypton.livejournal.com]

"Well, and there's less risk you'll pass out or destroy the universe or something," he jokes.

He's done with this tire, so he slides out from underneath Dee to walk around to the other side. "Well... it doesn't look ridiculous on him. And I don't feel quite so stupid calling him Superman. I don't know, but the whole... tights and bright colors thing is a little awkward, don't you think? I'm not too sure about the cape either. Seems like it'd get caught on stuff."

[clockwork-doc.livejournal.com]

Doc chuckles. "True. At least on the latter." He knows himself too well to bet all that much on the former.

Marty shrugs. "I grew up with that sort of stuff. I'm used to it," he says. "Though you've probably got a point about the cape. I guess that's more for the flash factor or something."

"I knew a fashion designer back in regular Chicago who apparently did some work for superheroes back in her world," Doc reports. "She helped me out with this coat. Adamantly against capes -- according to her, they'd been the doom of a couple of heroes. Pretty much for exactly the reason you mentioned."

[kalel-ofkrypton.livejournal.com]

"It probably looks better when flying, but that's about it," he says. "And I'm not that worried about getting sucked into a jet engine or whatever, since it wouldn't hurt me, but I do think I'd have a hell of a time being taken seriously if I wore something like that."

[clockwork-doc.livejournal.com]

"Yeah, but people take the other you seriously," Marty points out.

"Different world, different reactions," Doc says. "It probably also has something to do with how you wear it. If Clark thinks he looks ridiculous in it, odds are other people might think so too. His body language and such would change the look." Looking at Clark, he says, "Let's face it, you've gotten a pretty negative opinion of that costume. Maybe it would be better for you to go in your own direction."

[kalel-ofkrypton.livejournal.com]

"April's always telling me that I don't have to be Superman just because other Clark Kents are," he nods, getting back to work. "But... even if that's not the name or the look I end up with, I don't think I'll be able to stop the whole saving people thing. Lifelong habit and all. And it'd be a shame if I started wearing glasses for nothing."

[museicalmarty.livejournal.com]

Marty snickers a bit. "Yeah, that would be annoying," he nods. "You give any thought as to what you might want to go by? If you want to go by anything?"

[kalel-ofkrypton.livejournal.com]

He shrugs, even though it's not something easily visible underneath a car. "Not really. I mean, in a way it doesn't matter what I call myself, because if the media picks something else and it sticks, I'll never get them to use anything else but that. I mean, I suppose I could introduce myself as Kal-El, strange visitor from another world, but then I might get deported."

[museicalmarty.livejournal.com]

Marty snorts and rolls his eyes. "Hilarious. How would they even find you to deport you?"

"So you're just going to let the media pick your name?" Doc says. "Here's hoping they don't pick something patently ridiculous."

"Saves-People Man!" Marty says, overly dramatically. "He -- you know."

[kalel-ofkrypton.livejournal.com]

"If I was wearing something like that, it'd be blindingly easy to find me," he jokes back.

"I'm not going to just leave it up to them, exactly. I'll still try to steer it in another direction... I'm thinking about majoring in journalism. Yeah, I know, the Daily Planet is kind of a mythos cliche or cornerstone or whatever, but to be completely honest, it does make sense."

[clockwork-doc.livejournal.com]

"Well, you don't wear that get-up ALL the time. That's the whole point of a secret identity," Marty says, taking on the role of master of the blindingly obvious.

"I see," Doc says. "Nothing wrong with a cliche if it helps you on your journey. Besides, a job is a job, isn't it?"

[kalel-ofkrypton.livejournal.com]

Clark laughs and picks up the corner of his bright red jacket for a moment in demonstration. "Hello, have you seen how I normally dress?"

"A job where you have experience is even better," he agrees. "I used to write articles for the school paper. The editor's one of my best friends. The best friend, not counting Nexus people."

[clockwork-doc.livejournal.com]

"Okay, point," Marty allows. "You might want to work on that for the secret identity. Maybe 'Clark Kent, Totally Ordinary Human Being' should wear yellow and green or something." He's teasing, mostly.

"There you are then," Doc says. "That should certainly help you get an 'in,' at any rate. After that -- well, I'm sure you know what to do." Looking at the work on the car, he adds jokingly, "And there's always 'mechanic' as a back-up plan."

[kalel-ofkrypton.livejournal.com]

"Sure, if I want people to start calling me Plant Man."

He pats Dee's undercarriage with one hand, very gently. "You should've seen how fast I was before, right Dee?"

[dee-lorean81.livejournal.com]

"Didn't you say that you metabolized yellow sunlight in a way rather similar to photosynthesis?" Doc points out, grinning at Marty.

"Really? Then you are Plant Man," Marty jokes. "You should dress the part."

Dee beeps happily, her version of nodding right now. She'll tell them more about it once she's back in a form that can speak properly.

[kalel-ofkrypton.livejournal.com]

"If by similar you mean nearly identical. And thanks, but my girlfriend and I are already a tree," he says completely deadpan.

He grins at the beeping. "I told her I'd be fast, and she didn't quite believe me. Not how I meant it anyway."

[clockwork-doc.livejournal.com]

Staring time. "A tree," Marty repeats slowly. "That's gonna need some context, Clark."

"Well, her experience with people who have superspeed is very low," Doc says. "You surprised me too, this morning. We'll need to take what you say about 'being there in a sec' much more literally."

[kalel-ofkrypton.livejournal.com]

"It's a long story," he admits. "Kind of a spontaneous metaphor that grew out of its original purpose, and now... it's just us. We're an oak tree, if you were wondering." He pauses for a moment. "I actually kind of got it tattooed on me when I was human last summer."

He slides down to work on the last tire, the one he's been waiting to get to last since it's the worst of the bunch. "You should've seen Chloe's face the first time she saw me superspeed anywhere. I gave her a five minute head start in her car, then blew by so fast I think I rocked the car."

[clockwork-doc.livejournal.com]

"Huh," Marty says, wondering what sort of situation they were in that needed tree metaphors. "Well, if it makes you guys happy. . . ." Then he smirks. "That guy who gave you crap about the tractor would probably have a shit fit about you getting a tattoo."

Doc and Marty both chuckle. "Poor girl," Doc says. "Of course, I think we know a bit about that. Remember showing yourself off for the first time to Marty, Victor, and Alice, Dee?" Dee beeps an affirmative. "I seriously thought Marty's eyes were going to fall out of his head."

"She's a car who turns into a little girl," Marty argues. "Besides, didn't you faint?"

"I'm not saying there's anything wrong with the shock. . . ."

[kalel-ofkrypton.livejournal.com]

"Oh, probably," he agrees. "I haven't really told a lot of people. The really interesting part is that it stayed, when I was myself again."

Clark smiles a little. "Reactions like that are definitely better than some of the alternatives."

[clockwork-doc.livejournal.com]

Marty frowns. "Why wouldn't it?" He's not thinking in terms of superhealing affecting tattoos.

"True enough," Doc admits. "We should be thankful she didn't run into anyone who decided her shape-changing made her evil or wrong or whatever they want to call it." Steam hisses out his back. "I should probably be thankful I haven't run into anyone like that."

"Anybody gives you shit about that, I'll smack 'em for ya," Marty promises, scowling. He saw the results of one of Doc's operations, so he knows a bit of what his friend had to go through. Nobody gets away with calling his pal a freak or whatever.

[kalel-ofkrypton.livejournal.com]

"Well, the ink is technically a foreign object, and before when I've managed to get injured, my body pushes the bullet or knife or whatever out when I heal," he explains. "April's had to feed on me twice now, and I had to stay under kryptonite until she was done because otherwise my skin would push her fangs out."

"People are almost always afraid of what they don't understand," he adds, a little quietly. "Pete kind of went crazy on me when I had to tell him everything. We eventually made up and he stopped looking at me like a freak, but I don't think he ever really got over it."

[clockwork-doc.livejournal.com]

"Oh, I gotcha," Marty says. Then he winces. "Oh, man, that must have been nice. Ouch. Guessing there wasn't much of a choice either time." Because, as much as he knows Clark loves April, he can't imagine him going under kryptonite unless it was an emergency.

"I know all about that," Doc nods. "For a while in Chicago, a hate group sprung up dedicated to getting the 'freaks' out of Chicago. That was a rather frightening time, to be honest. And even before then, when I was still full human, I was looked on as rather weird in Hill Valley."

"They were treating the -- you back home about the same," Marty says, rubbing the back of his head awkwardly. "But he seemed to take it in stride."

"I tried to do the same," Doc says, shifting his weight a bit. "Though I won't deny it hurt sometimes."

[kalel-ofkrypton.livejournal.com]

"Not really," he agrees. "The first time she was pretty badly hurt, and would've died without blood and there was nothing else around. The second time was a bit more of a show, I guess. Vampire sorority at Metropolis University. Long story."

He pushes out from underneath Dee at that, even though he isn't done, an intense look in his eye. "No one should ever be treated like a freak just for being different."

[clockwork-doc.livejournal.com]

"Vampire sorority," Marty repeats. "Little bit of everything in your world, huh?"

"No one should, but there's no getting around some people are," Doc says with a sigh. Then he smiles a bit. "Though, really, that sort of behavior's all but disappeared these days. The people in the Nexus are more often than not friendly, and it's not like I have anything to worry about here. Even before I wasn't treated like I was -- wrong, I suppose."

"Except for the hate group, of course," Marty say sarcastically.

"They -- I don't even want to get into them," Doc says, a spike of anger going through him as he remembers Aubrey. "They were being manipulated anyway."