Chapter Two

Smallville Caves, Saturday, 2:45 am

"Sleep well?" A man in a black trench coat asked. Jesse got up on his hands and knees and could feel the hard cold surface beneath him. He opened his eyes to see two men with distorted looking faces, both with glowing green eyes. The man on the left had long black hair and was shorter than him, and the guy on the right was ridiculously tall with extremely long bright red hair. He wore an elongated brown cloak and looked to be not a day over 28.

"What do you want? What are you?" Jesse asked positively terrified; backing up into a hard rock wall. The last thing he remembered was walking home after he had had dinner with the guys and then everything else was a blur.

"Are we so strange? So alien to you? I've seen this culture, the greed, the waste…it's heartwarming." The man said while putting both hands up to his dead heart. With each word he took a step closer to Jesse. "This is the perfect place to spread my empire. What are we? We are man, perfected. We exist to consume." The man said finally right in front of Jesse's face who was pushing himself up against a wall as if he were actually moving farther away.

"Listen, you don't want me. You want bodies, I'll help you. I swear to God." Swiftly the man with the long red hair picked Jesse up off the ground with one hand clutching his throat and said "I do wish you wouldn't mention him…" Chucking Jesse across the cave and straight into a rock column. Jesse tried to get up off the floor but he was weakened by the sudden blast to his head. "Please." Jesse begged as the redheaded man walked towards him. "You will be the first of many. Don't be afraid, be grateful." The redheaded man said as he dug his fangs into Jesse's throat.

Smallville High, Monday

"Geez, what's up with the Buffy infatuation going into overdrive?" Chloe asked Clark while walking down the halls of school with Willow by her side. He started to get a little embarrassed maybe he had talked a little too much about her throughout the day.

"She talked to me." Clark said going to his locker and avoiding Chloe and Willow's shocked faces.

"Aw, did you guys make with the goodly eyes?" Willow asked.

"It wasn't like that. We just had a small conversation but still, now I know she knows that I exist." Clark said putting some books into his locker.

"Wait a second, when and where did this happen?" Chloe asked still in shock that Clark actually got up the nerve to talk to her.

"When me, Xander, Pete, and Jesse were at movies on Friday."

"Hey speaking of Jesse, has anyone heard from him at all?" Xander asked appearing out of nowhere behind Willow along with Pete. Everyone shook their heads.

"Actually, now that you mention it, I haven't heard from him all weekend." Chloe said sounding truly worried.

"Uh…guys. Isn't that Jesse?" Willow asked astonished at his new found confidence. Everyone turned around to see Jesse walking down the hall with a completely new look. He was wearing black jeans with a grey tight t-shirt that outlined his new six-pack and a black jean jacket. He was paler than usual and his hair was gelled up. He strutted down the hallway and stopped when he got to Chloe. Xander, Clark, Willow, and Chloe all looked up at him absolutely stunned.

"You know, I've always had a crush on you." He said looking down at Chloe whose eyes got so big they were about to burst. Before she could say a word Jesse pulled her in for a long lasting kiss which left everyone speechless. "I'll call you later. Gotta get to class."

He said smoothly walking away not even looking back. "Ok who was that and what has he done with Jesse?" Xander asked completely dismayed by the sudden turn of events.

"I don't know, but I'm not complaining. Looks like I have a date for the dance this Friday." Chloe said breathlessly getting nudged in the shoulder by Willow who looked truly happy for her friend.

"Yeah, if the jocks don't get to him first and strap him up as this year's scarecrow." Pete said brining down the mood.

Next to come down the hallway was Smallville High's power couple Buffy Summers and Whitney Fordman. Whitney strapped his arm around her shoulder and they looked to be the happiest couple ever. As they moved past Clark, Buffy smiled and waved which made Whitney hold her tighter and give Clark a glare that could kill. "Ok did

we all manage to stumble into an alternate universe or is it just me?" Xander said puzzled at everything that was happening today. "When did you and Buffy Summers get on wave status?" Xander asked Clark who was staring at Buffy as she walked down the hall with her boyfriend. "Well I think it's cute. Love is in the air." Willow said dreamily.

After the bell rang and the halls were deserted, Jesse was walking around the school. He moved with such authority now that he was barely recognizable to anyone who wasn't already his friend. He walked around until he found a trophy case. He looked through the glass and saw the junior's football trophy, there he saw a picture of the three star players. He looked around one more time before breaking the glass and taking the picture out. He smiled a smile that could make the bravest man in the world get chills up and down his spine. He quickly left the school in broad daylight and strolled down the road laughing to himself.

After School

"So, I'm like, "Dad, you want me to go to the dance in an outfit I've already worn? Why do you hate me?" Buffy said while walking out of school with Cordelia and Harmony. All three of them looking like they own the school.

"Is Clark taking you?" Cordelia asked with a devilish grin.

"Of course not. Clark and I are just starting to become friends and that's all we're ever going to be. Plus, where were you when Whitney asked me to the dance? He practically had to crawl on his hands and knees begging me to go with him after our little fight at the diner." Buffy said totally lying. Whitney still hadn't asked her and that worried her more than she'd like to admit.

"Please. Who'd pick Clark over Whitney? Not this without-a-date-for-the-dance girl." Harmony said obviously looking desperate.

"Ok well I'll see you guys later I gotta wait for my mom to pick me up." Buffy said sitting down on the front steps of the school.

"Bye Buffy." Harmony said walking away with Cordelia.

"See you. Don't forget our study date tonight." Cordelia shouted as she walked farther away, her and Harmony turning a corner.

Buffy reached into her bag and pulled out a cherry flavored lollipop. As soon as she put it in her mouth she was approached by a tall skinny man who looked to be in his mid fifty's. He was sporting a brown fedora hat and a long brown trench coat. He had a beard and his eyes were an icy blue color. "Buffy Summers. I need to speak to you." He said very firmly in a British accent.

"Hi, what? You're not from Macy's are you? Cause I swear I meant to pay for that lipstick." Buffy said a little intimidated.

"There isn't much time. You must come with me. Your destiny awaits." He said sounding perfectly calm and yet authoritative.

"I don't have a destiny. I'm destiny-free, really." Buffy said picking up her stuff and getting ready to walk away.

"Yes, you have. You are the chosen one. You alone can stop them." He said walking with her.

"Who?"

"The vampires." He said as if it were obvious. She stared at him for a while wondering if he was really being serious.

"Huh?" Buffy asked, looking at him as if he were crazy.

"My name is Merrick, I was sent to find you some time ago, but there were some complications, you should have been taught. Prepared. Now you must come with me to the cemetery while there's still time." He said urgently.

"Let me get this straight. So, you want me to go to the cemetery, with you, at night, because I'm the chosen one and there are vampires?"

"Yes."

"Does Elvis talk to you? Does he tell you to do things? Do you see spots?" She asked smirking at him as she back away. "Just stay away from me, okay?" She said while looking around wondering where her mother was.

"Please you have to listen before it's too late." He pleaded.

Buffy started to get the wiggins as the man approached her again. She looked to the side of him and saw Clark leaving the building. "Hey Clark wait up!" She shouted. She turned back over to the British man and said. "Just leave me alone." She quickly walked to Clark who stood there giving the British man a weird look. "Hey. walk me home?" She asked playfully, trying to escape the crazy British man. "Sure!" He said sounding probably too excited. She smiled at his response and nudged his shoulder. "Awesome, let's go." She said walking down the road. When she looked over her shoulder to see if the British man was still there he had completely disappeared.

The Walk Home

Buffy and Clark had walked at least two miles by now and had only said small minor things to each other. Like "So, the weather is nice." Or "We have a game coming up don't we?" This was the first time either of them had spent with each other alone, and it was pretty awkward. Buffy was still looking over her shoulder every five seconds making sure the old British man wasn't following them and Clark was in his own awkward personal heaven. As they walked a little farther Buffy decided to end the silence.

"So," Buffy and Clark said at the same time. Making each other giggle. They both smiled at each other and then Buffy continued. "So, why is it that we hardly ever see each other? I mean we're neighbors, we should at least make with the accidental bumping into each other." She said getting a smile out of Clark, which wasn't very hard to do.

"I don't know. I guess we weren't actually looking for each other." He replied trying to act cool and like he wasn't looking for her every time he passed her house. "Also, my parents are pretty protective. I usually just stay on the farm." Clark confessed as they came up to a bridge.

Clark rested his arms on the railing and looked out to the horizon. Buffy followed and did the same. "Protective parents. That's actually something I wouldn't mind. My parents are constantly going on business trips and having the time of their lives." Buffy responded.

Clark turned his head to look at her and saw the troubled girl beneath all the cheerleading and the quarterback boyfriend. She turned her head and looked into his eyes which were a super light blue right now. She was completely lost in them. She leaned in closer and so did he and then they both heard a screeching sound coming from behind them. They quickly turned their heads only to see a silver porche coming straight for them. Clark thought on his feet and pushed Buffy out of the way letting the car hit him off the bridge and into the river. Buffy looked up from the ground and without thinking, her "Hero" personality came shining through. She took off her shoes and her jacket and dived into the water. She swam towards the car and found Clark lifting up the medal hood with ease. Clark quickly got the man out of the car and onto land. Buffy came up and walked behind him overwhelmed with shock. "What just happened?" She shouted trying to come up with a logical reason for how he lifted the hood up so easily. Clark ignored her and started to perform CPR on the bald man in front of him. With one last set the man woke up and started coughing up water. "I could have sworn I hit you." The bald man said groggily, looking directly at Clark.