#but that's a fucking bummer i don't want to write a major character death fic

[shoot-i-messed-up]

OK SO @galaxy---ghost and @wajjs you guys asked for it! Here are my current (albeit prettied up) notes on my premise for a time loop Superlantern fic:

We open with Clark having just come back from Hal's funeral to his empty apartment. And he's just kinda sitting at his table, and it really really hits him then that Hal is just gone.

Then a mysterious cloaked figure appears and tells him to fly around the planet in the opposite rotation to rewind time before Hal Jordan's death so he can save him, which Clark obviously objects to because that makes no scientific sense, but he knows about magic, and there's something about the cloaked figure that makes him instinctively want to trust them. The cloaked figure tells him that they can give him a little push to help him access the Speed Force so this is possible (and yes, this is how I'm going to justify that little superpower from the Christopher Reeve movies). The cloaked figure, however, warns Clark that they're trying not to get caught interfering with mortal affairs, especially to this extent, so 1) they can only help Clark go back up to a relatively short time before Hal's death (like, say, the day of or like 3 days before, haven't decided yet), 2) Clark can't tell anyone about the time loop or he might alert the higher forces that something is fishy, and 3) the higher forces might even start to suspect that something is up even if Clark follows those first two rules, so the quicker Clark can prevent Hal's death, the better, but the cloaked figure is aware this might take more than one try.

So, the first chapter is Clark going through the first several loops. He is, of course, a very smart man, so he tries many different strategies, but they all somehow fail in one way or another. As for why Hal keeps dying, I'm imagining that there's some big supervillain teamup that doesn't seem to be targeted at Hal, but every single loop, Hal either gets killed by one of the supervillains or sacrifices himself to save someone else and/or the greater good. However, as Clark is going through the loops, Clark starts to spend more and more time with Hal and gets to know him way better than ever before. Like, they've known each other for like 10+ years at this point, this is post-Spectre Hal, but they've never really sought each other out like Clark is doing now. Yeah you guessed it: Clark is slowly developing a crush on Hal.

now, I'm not 100% about the structure of this part, but here's what I'm thinking. We kinda jump forward a bit here and there as Clark continues to try to save Hal's life, but sometimes this comes at the cost of other people dying or the whole world dying if Hal doesn't sacrifice himself, etc. Barry, actually, being connected to the Speed Force and all is also starting to suspect something is fishy because he starts to get a feeling of deja vu, like Batman did in The Batman 2004 TV series (thank you Overly Sarcastic Productions for reminding me of that surprisingly good Clock King episode). And now, Clark has been going through the time loop dozens of times by now, if not hundreds, and we clearly see he's really been Going Through It. Worse, the loop right at the end of this chapter had Clark so desperate to save Hal, he actually tells Hal about the time loop. Hal, of course, believes him because superheroes have had wayyyy wackier shit happen to them than that and Hal even believes Clark about Hal's certain doom thing, but Hal still consciously makes that choice to sacrifice himself for the greater good. That loop, Clark is terrified that him telling Hal about the time loop means that he can't use the time loop anymore, but he flies up to fly around the planet backwards again anyway. The cloaked figure doesn't immediately appear to give him that little push through the Speed Force like they did in previous loops, but Clark keeps on flying because he needs this to work. and then, gasp, a cliffhanger until the next chapter!

The second chapter is Hal's POV. It's the beginning of the loop, but to Hal, he's just up at the Watchtower, having just come back from space duty and put back on Earth duty again, so he can stick around with the Justice League for a while. He's just chatting with Barry and/or Oliver, catching up before a regular Justice League meeting, when Superman superseded busts through the doors, looking extremely bedraggled. Everyone there, especially Batman, is concerned, and they're especially baffled when Clark zeroes in on Hal, tackles him into a hug (Barry probably almost stops him because he is 100000% faster than Clark and Clark definitely is concerning everyone), and bursts into tears. Everyone is like "uhhh..." especially Hal, who looks toward Bruce and Diana with panicked eyes like, "uh?? this is your best friend? what is going on?? help me???"

Now, from there, I'm not really sure what I want to have happen. Possibly Clark believes/worries that this is the last loop before the cloaked figure gives up on him or gets caught by their mysterious higher forces. I'm thinking this can either go one of two ways: either

1) Clark comes clean to everyone about the time loop, and the entire Justice League rallies to save Hal from certain doom, which thematically completes the lesson that Clark does not need to carry the weight of the world on his shoulders, and neither does Hal, or

2) Clark aims to have as much time as possible with Hal before he dies for real this loop, which carries way more angst + fun potential, but perhaps less thematic potential. I'm thinking Clark bursts into tears on Hal's shoulder, and then Clark spends the next 24 hours or however long the time loop is, like a guard dog around Hal.

If I go with the second option (which I would rather, since it seems more fun and, honestly, less corny than the first option), I would still have to figure out a way for Clark to figure out how to time loop his way out of Hal's certain doom.

Anyway, at some point, Clark does figure it out, and the cloaked figure appears again and thanks him. Clark talks to the cloaked figure and calls him Hal, because he thinks they're the Spectre version of Hal somehow. However, it turns out it's actually Helen Jordan II (her The Spectre 2001 version), who is now the teenage ward of Materna Minx, and is being kept away from mortal affairs by the higher forces as she grows up. She's been keeping an eye out for her beloved uncle, even though she knows he--and most people in the universe--can't really remember her, and she's really glad Clark was able to save him because she wasn't able to herself. Clark doesn't really remember her either until she brings out a little wooden figurine of Green Lantern out from under her cloak, and then he suddenly remembers a flash of whittling a whole set of figurines for her birthday.

I'm not 100% about whether or not I want Hal to reunite with Helen here after his prevented death because I had a plot bunny idea with Helen Jordan II that I borrowed from for this fic idea.

So anyway yeah! That's my Superlantern time loop fic idea muscle arm emoji x 100

had an idea for a time loop superlantern fic. i’m lowkey going crazy. not even about the fic just in general. why do i keep having fic ideas and not finishing my wips.