Lana's Reward
DJ Dubois
April 2003
Notes: Smallville and its characters are owned by DC and the WB.
Chapter 1 [Talon-Early morning]
Lana took a deep breath and shook nervously. The frat boy, Andy, had tried to attack her again. However, she struck back, taking her life back. She had to admit that she felt torn. On the one hand, she wasn't a violent person. On the other hand, she had proven that she could hold her own.
On the ground, her attacker groaned. "What the?"
Walking over behind the counter, she pressed the red panic button, alerting the police. Then she walked back over to him and leaned over him. "Weren't expecting that from the 'friendliest service in town', were you? Now, listen to me. You're going to drop that lawsuit against Clark Kent."
"Wha...? I'll get ya too for assault," he presumed.
"Not when the security camera caught you on film," she disagreed. "I also have proof you were faking your injuries. Get this straight, drop it."
"Come 'n, it's Kent, not you," he muttered.
"Want to know something? If it involves Clark, it involves me too," she pointed out. "If you so much as step foot in that courthouse, I'll counter sue you for assault."
At that moment, the new sheriff burst through the door with her gun drawn. "Everyone freeze!"
The co-owner frowned and shook her head. Late as usual. "Sheriff, over here."
The official looked around, her eyes squinting to take in every detail of the crime scene.
"Uh, hello, Sheriff?" Lana called, waving to the newcomer.
"Oh. I'm sorry, Miss Lang. Are you all right?" the sheriff asked.
"I am now," Lana sighed. "Our friend tried to assault me again."
Now fully conscious again, the bully looked around and winced. "Hey, you set me up, Sweets! You were pushing me to give up my lawsuit!"
The sheriff glared at Lana. "Is that right, Miss Lang?"
"I care about my friend, all right? But that's not an invitation for him to take advantage of me, is it?" Lana retorted. There she goes again. "Watch the security tape if you don't believe me."
The elder woman considered the younger woman in front of her. "You're almost as bad as your friend. I'd rather you didn't take the law into your own hands."
"I do have the right to defend myself. That's what I was doing. With all due respect, why should you believe him when he lied about his injuries too?" Lana pointed out. "Unless, of course, you want Clark to get involved..."
The sheriff frowned, the memory of the night before still fresh in her mind. "I told that boy to stay out of police business. Bad enough that Lex Luthor doesn't respect me. Don't you start too!"
As they were arguing, the frat boy started to rise, thinking about slipping away.
"And where do you think you're going?" the sheriff asked. "Stay right there. We'll be leaving in just a minute. Meantime, Miss Lang, I'll need that tape."
Good thing Lex has a back up feed at the mansion. Shutting off the camera, Lana removed the tape from the VCR and handed it to the sheriff. "Here you are. You can take it from here."
The sheriff nodded, cuffing the frat boy and taking the tape. "Let's go. Thank you, Miss Lang. Do be careful."
Lana watched the other woman leading her attacker away and took a deep breath.
A few minutes later, Miranda Arighatto, her best waitress, entered the restaurant and stared at the scene in front of her. Not again. "Lana, are you all right?"
Lana came out of the back room and nodded. "Yeah. I am now. Come on, help me get the flowers rearranged."
Miri hustled over and began to pick up the debris from the pots. "What happened?"
"I tried to talk to that guy who's suing Clark. He attacked me again," Lana recounted.
"And?" Miri asked. "Did you put the moves on him?" In concert with Lex, she had spent several hours working with Lana on defensive martial arts.
Lana blushed. "Well...let's say, he didn't like your patented spin kick, Miri."
Father would cringe at that comment. Still, he can stick it. "I can tell. You did put him flat on his back, right?" Miranda inquired.
"Knocked him out. The sheriff just took him away," Lana explained.
Miranda chuckled. "Remind me never to mess with Clark. So, when does the heroine claim her reward?"
"Miri, come on," Lana complained.
"No, Lana. Promise me you'll go over to the Kents' house tonight." Miri pressed the point. "You have to let Clark know."
"What will he think? I mean, he wasn't in favor of this whole karate thing," Lana wondered, putting the last pot in place.
Her friend shook her head. "No, Lana, he just doesn't want to see you get hurt. Face it, you're the light of his life."
Lana stared at her incredulously as she ground a filter's worth of beans and started the coffee maker. "Miri, you're imagining things."
Miranda shook her head. She really needs a clue, doesn't she? "Look, Lana, you want his trust, right?"
"Right."
"No more secrets, right?" Miri asked, reminding Lana of an earlier point.
"I guess," Lana agreed.
"Well then, be proud that you stuck up for him and for yourself too. You did the deed. Now, you're going there even if I have to drive you myself," Miri insisted. "Now, Ms. Avenger, we have some customers coming in a few minutes. Don't we?"
Lana grinned and did a saucy bow. "As you wish, Honorable Sensei."
"Let's go, 'Boss', we have pastries to prep," Miri laughed, rolling her eyes as they kept setting up the baked goods for that day's business.
Chapter 2 [That night, Kent Farm]
Lana drove up the road from town, wondering what Clark would say to her. Will he think I went too far? No, Miri's right. If our friendship is to mean anything, then he has to respect me too. Part of that is trusting that I can take care of myself. Parking her truck, she took a deep breath. Here goes.
Getting out of the truck, she saw the light shining in the loft. Good, he's up there. She climbed the stairs to find the man of her thoughts looking through his telescope at the stars. "Hey, Clark," she greeted.
He turned toward her and smiled. "Hey. You know, we got a call a little while ago saying that the case against me had been dropped."
"You don't say?" she queried, approaching him.
Geez, how do I say this to her? He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. "Lana, I..."
She put her hand up. I don't want to get his disapproval again. "Clark, don't say it."
"Lana, I just wanted to say...thank you," he expressed sincerely, gazing into her eyes.
Did he just say what I thought he said? She stared at him. "Did you just thank me?"
He nodded. "Yeah, I did."
She smiled; feeling satisfied that she had turned the tables. "Well, it's not everyday that Lana Lang gets to save Clark Kent."
"Just don't make it a habit. I might get a complex," he teased, his eyes sparkling into hers.
She walked closer to him. "Well, you might have to deal with it, Clark. Trust that I can take care of myself once in a while, okay?"
"Okay," he relented. "I just don't want anything to happen to you is all."
She put her arms around his neck and assured him. "Nothing's going to happen, Clark. I can handle myself. If it gets out of control, I can call you, right?"
"Absolutely," he agreed, staring into her dark pools so close to his own. Her soft hands against his neck generated sparks within him.
"Now, Clark, can I get my reward now?" she wondered. "Close your eyes."
"What is that?" he asked, doing so.
"This," she asserted, locking her lips with his.
He returned the kiss longingly. Here in his "Fortress of Solitude," he had dreamed of this moment for so long. He felt himself floating through space with nothing else in mind but the kiss and the woman in his arms.
Likewise, she indulged herself in the kiss. She could hear soft music in the background, serenading them. This is heavenly.
Then she opened her eyes for a minute and received a surprise.
They were floating about six feet off of the ground. In addition, his parents stood there, watching the scene. What the? How? "Mmm, Clark," she muttered, breaking contact.
"What?" he asked dreamily.
"What are we doing?" she asked.
"We're kissing," he replied with his eyes still closed.
"I think she means the floating, Son," Jonathan cut in, wondering how they were going to explain this one.
Hearing his father's voice snapped Clark out of his reverie. "Dad? I..."
With his train of thought broken, they fell, landing on a bale of hay.
For a minute, she lay on top of him, trying to figure out what was going on. "How?" She got up and took a step back.
Great. Clark sighed and shook his head. "Lana, it's okay. Really."
"But we were floating," Lana pointed out in disbelief.
"Yeah, I know. It's a gift," he revealed.
"How can you do that?" she inquired.
"It's a long story, Lana," Martha commented, squirming with discomfort.
"And are there any other 'gifts'?" she asked.
"A few. I'm really strong and my skin's really hard. I also run really fast," he admitted.
"So that's how you took those frat boys on, wasn't it?" she asked, probing still deeper.
"Yeah, it was. And how I saved you and Chloe from Ian," he noted, looking at her hopefully.
She took a deep breath. An initial burst of fear ran through her. Looking at him, she saw something unexpected.
The indestructible teenager trembled at her fear. His eyes watered. "Lana, please, don't be afraid of me. This is what you wanted, wasn't it?"
"What is that?" she asked him.
"You wanted to know my secret. This is it. I would never hurt you, Lana. Believe me. I care too much about you," he continued.
She sighed again. Another glance into his eyes confirmed what he said. He's coming clean. She stood up. "And this is your secret?"
"It is," he concurred.
She smiled at him and offered her hand. "Come on, Clark, take my hand and get up." After she pulled him to his feet, she assured him, "Your secret's safe with me, Clark. I would like to talk with you and your parents if that's all right."
"Absolutely, Hero," he agreed, giving her another smile.
"I have a great teacher in that regard," she chuckled, looking into his eyes and smiling warmly. "Let's go and talk with your parents."
He took her hand and followed the others down the stairs; glad at last that everything was known between them at last.
Conclusion [Next Day-Talon]
Lana made up yet another latte and hustled it out to the corner table. After her discussion with Clark and his parents, she definitely felt better. During that hour, they answered all of her questions and assured her concerns about his abilities. In return, she assured them that her lips were sealed and thanked them for trusting her.
As she returned to the counter, she found Lex standing there, looking at her expectantly. "Hi, Lex. What's up?"
"Oh, not much really. I heard that a certain someone with a mean spin kick took back her space yesterday. We wouldn't happen to know her, would we?" he inquired, the Smirk on his face.
"Maybe," she replied cryptically. "Why? Been talking to the sheriff?"
"As little as possible," he retorted. "That woman's definitely got a chip on her shoulder."
"Yeah, I agree. Hey, she needs to understand that crime fighting's a neighborhood activity. We all work together, right?"
That remark got his attention. "Well, well, Lana Lang, civic activist. Usurping the Farm Boy's throne, are we?"
"Not at all. I think it's big enough to share between us," she declared, grinning as Clark entered the café.
"Glad to hear it," Clark agreed, giving her a kiss. "Better take her seriously, Lex."
"Always," the billionaire agreed, a warm smile spreading across his face. "You've been giving her hero lessons, huh?"
"I think she learned on her own, Lex," the farm boy declared, looking at her fondly. "Anyone can be a hero. All you need is a good heart, a little bit of an attitude, and the best of friends to fall back on."
She let her eyes sparkle into his. "I learned from the best. Still, are you saying that I'm as good a hero as you, Mr. Kent?"
"You're my heroine, Miss Lang," he assured her.
Lex smirked and took another sip of coffee. "Did you ever get that reward you were looking for?"
"Oh yeah," she agreed, giving her new boyfriend a deep kiss.
Way to go, Clark and Lana. It's about time. Lex stood there silently, admiring the scene as his friends seized the opportunity.
After the scenes earlier in the week, their passion was needed to restore the Talon magic. After all, don't friendship, trust, and love form a convincing triumvirate? With those special things combined, everything is possible, especially in a town such as Smallville.
THE END