A/N: This chapter incorporates Fracture and Siren but switches them around so Fracture happened first.
It took almost a year but Abby was right, somewhere between tea parties and Charity balls, Chloe wasn't going to places because they were hot, where ever Chloe went became the hot spot. She was the one deciding what parties to go, who to hang out with, and where the cool spots were. Oliver's plan was right on track, she had been accepted, she had been more than accepted and there was no doubt in her mind that this whole thing was actually working.
Everything was going on track until one morning Chloe, Abby, Lily and Rose were having a late breakfast after having just come in from a party and Chloe noticed something in the paper Abby was reading.
"Can I see that?" Chloe asked leaning forward.
Abby nodded. "Sure." She handed it over.
"Chloe?" Rose asked a little worried by the look on Chloe's face. "Everything ok?"
"Grant Gabriel is dead." Chloe said reading the article. "He was shot in a mugging while leaving a restaurant in Metropolis."
"That's sad." Lily frowned sipping her coffee. "Who's Grant Gabriel?"
Rose slapped her. "The Editor of the Daily Planet." She whispered.
"Your old boss?" Abby asked.
"The one who fired you?" Lily set her coffee cup down as Rose slapped her again. "Why do you keep hitting me? He did fire her."
"Really are you ok?" Abby asked Chloe.
"I've got to call my cousin." Chloe said getting up from the table.
"Oh yeah." Lily said. "I forgot he was dating her cousin." Rose glared at Lily and she crossed her arms over her chest. "Don't hit me again." They looked over as Chloe paced back and forth in the front hall.
"Hello?" A teary voice answered the phone.
"Lois?" Chloe sighed. "Sweetie, I just heard about Grant."
"Oh Chloe." Lois said breaking down over the phone. "I wasn't…we were supposed to have dinner at home and I had to cancel at the last minute for a story. He shouldn't have been there."
"It's not your fault. Don't do this Lois." Chloe pleaded with her. "Who was he eating with?"
"Lionel Luther came to the paper and invited him to dinner. I don't know why." Lois said. "But if I hadn't canceled…"
"Stop that now." Chloe said. "Look I'm taking the plane to Metropolis; I'll be there as soon as I can."
"I don't want to put you out." Lois sniffled.
"You are my cousin and you're in pain and I'm going to be there for you." Chloe said. "So stock up on ice cream and bad movies ok, because I'm on my way."
"I love you Chlo." Lois said. "I really appreciate this."
"That's what families for." Chloe said hanging up the phone.
She looked down at her phone for a minute not believing that Lois was actually blaming herself for this whole thing. When in reality it was all Chloe's fault.
Three weeks before
Lois was in the bedroom, putting the finishing touches on her outfit for the evening when her phone started ringing. "Grant." She called out. "Could you get that? It should be Chloe, she promised to call and give me a sound bite for that article."
"Sure." Grant reached for Lois' phone and answered it. "Lois Lane's phone."
"This isn't Lois." Chloe said confused.
"No, it's Grant…Grant Gabriel. How are you doing Chloe?" There was silence for a minute and then Chloe answered.
"Pretty good." She said. "How about you?"
"I'm…fine." He glanced toward the room and noticed Lois was still searching through her jewelry box for something. "Listen can I ask you something?"
"Uh yeah, I guess so." Chloe said.
"That thing that you found out about me…" He paused.
"Yeah that you're the clone of Lex Luther's dead brother?' Chloe said. "That thing?"
"Yeah." Grant smiled. "That thing. Did you mean what you said? About Lionel?"
Chloe sighed deeply over the phone and thought carefully about what she was going to say. "Lionel Luther has definitely not been the best guy in the past. I was instrumental in putting him behind bars for the murder of his parents but…" She coughed. "He's a different man now, I never would have believed it myself, but it's true. Lionel would give anything to have his son back."
"Even if he's not really his son?"
"But he is." Chloe sighed. "You are. Look I just think that if you want to know what it's like to be a Luther, to know your family, Lionel's your best option."
"The lesser of two evils?"
"I guess you could put it that way." Chloe laughed. "What's all this about?"
"I don't want to be Lex's puppet anymore. I was thinking about telling Lionel who I am."
"I think that would be really good for both of you." Chloe said. "But be careful ok. You know who Lex is now, don't underestimate his ruthlessness."
"Thanks Chloe." Grant smiled. "Hey sorry about you know, firing you."
"Well in case you haven't heard, I was found by my very rich long lost Uncle who wants me to take over his multibillion dollar company so no hard feelings."
"I will say that you are one of a kind Chloe Sullivan."
"Yeah well you should have figured that out when I was on your payroll." Chloe joked.
"Ok." Lois said. "I'm ready, give me the phone." Grant handed the phone over to Lois. "All right, just let me jot this down and we'll go."
"He told him." Chloe said to herself. "And Lex killed him for it."
"What?" Abby asked from behind her.
"Nothing." Chloe turned around. "I've got to go to Metropolis. Lois is really torn up."
"We figured you were going to say that and we want to come too." Rose walked up.
"You want to come to Grant Gabriel's funeral?" Chloe asked.
"No." Lily said. "I mean I'm sure he was a great guy and everything. We just want to be there for you."
Chloe looked at all of them. "This doesn't have anything to do with Lex's birthday party does it?"
"Maybe a little." Abby shrugged. "I've never been and Rose and Lily say that his parties are always interesting."
"Interesting is an understatement." Chloe sighed. "Ok, you can come. But we're leaving like now so you'll have to shop there, no time to pack." She pulled out her phone and called her Uncle's pilot setting up a flight plan as soon as possible.
"Shopping spree in Metropolis." Lily clapped her hands and then stopped abruptly and lowered her head. "Go on, you know you want to." Rose smiled and hit her in the back of her head.
Ten hours later Chloe stepped off her Uncle's plane with Abby, Lily, and Rose behind her and to her immense relief and surprise, standing on the tarmac was none other than Clark Kent. Seeing him made her realize just how long she'd been gone, how much she missed Smallville, and how far she'd really come in the past year. She ignored the argument between Rose and Lily on where they would stay and ran for all she was worth into his waiting arms. He caught her expertly and spun her around laughing with her as they reunited. "Oh God how I've missed you." She said when she pulled back and finally got a good look at him. "How did you know I would be here?"
"Lois told me you were coming." He smiled down at her then pulled her in for another hug. It had been too long since she'd seen Clark Kent. They talked on the phone and e-mailed back and forth but this was her first trip home since she left for England and it took seeing him again to realize that he wasn't an everyday part of her life anymore.
"Hello." She heard Abby say from behind her and Chloe turned to see her friend, sunglasses pulled down, eyeing Clark as if he were a decadent piece of chocolate. Clark blushed under her gaze and Chloe extracted herself from his arms to introduce everyone. "Clark Kent, this is Abigail Phillips and Rose and Lily Martin, this is Clark Kent, my best friend." She turned to Clark beaming at him and he smiled back after uttering "nice to meet you" to the other girls.
"Well." He said, feeling awkward as they all stared at him. "Let me get your bags." He walked to the plane where the Steward was unloading the luggage and took it off his hands.
"My, my, my." Abby said taking her sunglasses off completely now. "If I'd of known they made them this like this, I would have moved to Kansas a long time ago."
"I've always wanted a farm boy." Rose said and Chloe's jaw dropped as she slapped her on the shoulder.
"What?" Rose turned to Chloe amused. "He is fine, you can't deny it."
Chloe blushed a little and the girls looked at her smiling. "Oh you've had that then?"
"No." Chloe assured them. "Well kind of…it's complicated." Chloe put her own sunglasses on in an attempt to end the discussion.
"So where to ladies?" Clark asked when he'd gathered all their bags. Abby put her sunglasses back on and smiled.
"I booked the penthouse as the Four Seasons." She said.
"Your chariot awaits." Clark said walking in front of them to the car. He was smart and brought the SUV instead of the truck and drove them all to the hotel.
The bellboy showed them around the room and Lily declared herself exhausted and unable to shop without a nap. "I'm pretty beat too." Abby said, their night of partying and day of travel catching up with all of them.
"Well I'm going to go have coffee with Clark, maybe go see my cousin. The funeral's tomorrow morning so I might just stay in Smallville and come back after, then we can go shopping, sound good?" They agreed to the plan and Chloe grabbed her bag and walked to the door.
"Shopping?" Clark asked. "I thought you came for Grant's funeral?"
"I did, they came for Lex's birthday party." Chloe sighed. "Which I would give my right kidney not to have to go to but…"
"Funny, you would have given anything to get into Lex's birthday party a few years ago." Clark reminded her.
"Well things change." Chloe said. "We left in a hurry, didn't get to pack much."
"I thought the luggage felt a little light for four girls." Clark said.
"Light?" Chloe raised an eyebrow. "Would that be because you have the strength of 200 men?"
Clark blushed again and threw his arm around Chloe's shoulder. "I missed you Chloe."
"I missed you too." Chloe said.
They had coffee, caught up on each other's lives for the past year and then Clark took her back to Smallville so she could spend some time with Lois. Chloe came bearing ice cream and John Hughes movies and Lois spent the better part of the night alternating between crying over Grant and yelling about how mad she was at him before she passed out from sheer exhaustion. When she was sure Lois was in bed she pulled out her phone and dialed Oliver's number to let him know she was in Smallville but he didn't answer. Before she could start to worry about that the late night and jet lag caught up with her and she was asleep on the couch.
She got up early with Lois the next day and went to Grant's funeral. After bringing Lois back to her apartment to have some alone time Chloe borrowed her car and went back to Metropolis to get the shopping over with. Four hours later she was dressed in the dress she'd found at the first store waiting on the others to get ready. She walked out on the balcony and called Oliver again, only to get his voicemail. She wondered for a minute if she should be worried but realized if he was out on Justice League business she would know about it and figured he was really busy at work.
"Chloe, did you want to borrow my necklace?" Abby called out to her and she came back to her senses and went back inside.
"Yeah thanks, I didn't grab any jewelry." Chloe took the Sapphire encrusted necklace from Abby, not used to such extravagant jewels but had to admit it went great with her dress. "Are you guys ready to enter the lion's den?"
"Honestly Chloe." Abby sighed grabbing a shawl on her way out the door. "You talk as if he's this evil mastermind."
Chloe was glad they were all in front of her and didn't see the way her eyebrows rose with Abby's comment.
Walking into the Luther Mansion was something that Chloe was sure she'd never do again, nothing good had ever happened in this place as far as she was concerned. "Ok, don't embarrass me." Chloe said to Abby, Lily and Rose who all looked at her with a smirk on her face and she had another realization at how far she'd come since that insecure girl at the garden party. "Just behave." She said when they walked in the house and the butler took their shawls.
"Chloe!" Lana's voice rang over all the noise in the house if that was somehow possible as she pushed her way through the crowd. "Oh God, it's so good to see you, it's been what a year?"
"About that." Chloe said hugging Lana. "This is Lily and Rose Martin, and Abigail Phillips."
"Hello." Lana said, a little surprised at the company Chloe was keeping. The knowledge that Chloe had become and overnight heiress must not have hit her yet, or rather the implications of that. "It's so great that you guys could be here." She kissed all their cheeks and led them into the ball room. "You've got to tell me everything, what's England like, your Uncle, what you've been up to."
"We should get together for coffee while I'm in town." Chloe avoided the conversation smiling.
"That would be great." Lana said. "Oh, you've got to come see Lex; he'll be so surprised to see you here."
"I'm sure he will." Chloe smiled thinking she had a few things she'd like to say to him herself.
"Of course we have to wish him a happy birthday." Abby said, picking up on the sarcasm in Chloe's voice when Lana didn't and glaring at her for it. Chloe shrugged in response and Lana dragged them all around the party looking for the birthday boy.
"Here his is." Lana stopped abruptly and Chloe almost ran into her. "I've been looking all over for you."
"You have?" He smiled and leaned down to give her a kiss, excusing himself from the conversation he was in.
"I have." Lana smiled. "Guess who's here?" She pulled Chloe more front and center and it took Lex a moment to recognize her.
"Chloe Sullivan." Lex said grabbing her hand and pulling her in to kiss her cheek. "It's been such a long time."
"Lex." She smiled while trying not to throw up all over the floor. "Happy Birthday."
"Thank You." He ducked his head, feigning embarrassment over the whole thing. "And Lily and Rose." He kissed their cheeks smiling almost genuinely at them. "It's been longer than a year since I've seen you two."
"Since your second wedding." Lily said and Chloe had to bite her lip from laughing. "We weren't at the new one." She turned to Lana as if just realizing she'd said the wrong thing. "No offense."
"None taken." Lana laughed uneasily.
Chloe coughed to change the subject and smiled. "This is Abigail Philips." She introduced Lex and Abby and the two talked for a minute about mutual acquaintances.
"Is that Leslie?" Rose said after a few minutes. "She didn't tell us she was coming." She grabbed Abby and Lily's arm and dragged them away.
"Excuse me; I'm neglecting my hostess duties." Lana kissed Chloe's and wandered off as Lex handed her a glass of champagne.
"That's a different crowd than you're used to." Lex raised his eyebrows.
"Well I like making new friends." She smiled.
"And new family." He raised his glass to her. "I have to say. I don't think anyone was as surprised as I was to hear about the new heir to the Standish dynasty."
"I think Lois was." Chloe laughed.
"Yes, you managed to keep this, even from her." Lex thought for a second and Chloe sipped her champagne.
"If I want something hidden, it stays hidden." Chloe smiled. "You can relate to that." She looked up at him and knew that she would probably regret what she was about to do. "I wonder who would be the most surprised to learn how well you hid your brother?"
Lex froze with the glass halfway to his mouth. "My brother?" He asked.
"Grant Gabriel?" Chloe frowned. "Or should I say, Julian Luther 2.0?"
Lex chuckled. "Chloe, I'd be careful…"
"What I accuse you of." Chloe rolled her eyes interrupting him. "Yeah I know." She sipped her drink. "I can't prove it, and frankly that's not my job anymore, but I know you killed him."
"Why would I kill my own brother?" Lex asked.
"Maybe because he wasn't yours anymore." Chloe shrugged. "He was branching out, bonding with daddy." Chloe set her glass down on a nearby table. "Do you and Lionel ever go out for steak dinner?" She smiled. "If you'll excuse me." She figured she'd better move along before Lex fully realized what she knew, or what she suspected rather and ran straight into the person she would rather have not.
"Miss Sullivan." Lionel held out a hand to steady her.
"Mr. Luther." She smiled slightly at him and before she could stop herself she'd said it. "I'm sorry…for your loss."
His face betrayed a range of emotion, from surprise to sadness to a small smile. "If anyone would know." He grabbed her arm and slipped it through his before he started walking to the terrace with her. "Losing him twice, I don't even know how to process that."
"I'm afraid." Chloe turned to him when they'd made it outside. "That it's my fault."
"Your fault?" Lionel raised his eyebrows. "How on earth could it be your fault?"
"I told him, when I found out what Lex had done, I told him to tell you." Chloe said tears coming to her eyes. "I told him you would want to know."
"I did want to know." Lionel assured her.
"But if he hadn't told you, Lex wouldn't…" Chloe took a deep breath. "He'd still be alive."
"No." Lionel shook his head. "This is not your fault. The blame here lies entirely with Lex."
"I want to believe that." Chloe smiled sadly at him.
"I should probably thank you." Lionel smiled at her. "Knowing he was here, what kind of man he'd have become is a gift. However short a time he was here."
"Thank you." Chloe patted his arm. "For that then."
"I must leave you now." Lionel backed away. "I hope you enjoy the party."
Chloe smiled at him and nodded. She stared at the sky and took a few deep breaths to calm herself down. She knew, deep down that Lionel was right. Grant's death was Lex's fault. His desire to play God, to create and destroy people at will was out of control. "What are you doing out here?" Rose asked walking up to Chloe and snapping her out of her head.
"Sorry, just getting some fresh air."
"Well it's a little cold." Lily said rubbing her shoulders. "And this is so boring."
"Yeah we were thinking of cutting out early." Abby admitted. "I understand what you guys meant about Lex Luther now, it's all about the hype." Chloe laughed and nodded, she would have no problem leaving early and was about to say so when she heard screams from inside.
"What?" She ran to the window and saw a flash of Green.
"Oh God, is that the Green Arrow?" Lily asked.
"Come on, let's get out of here." Rose turned to go into the other door, that led to the study and Chloe was about follow when she was a flash of red come into the room and she grabbed Rose's arm.
"Wait, I just…" She looked back at the ballroom and started in the opposite direction on the terrace.
"Is she following him?" Lily asked incredulously.
"I think so." Abby started to go after Chloe.
"Why are we following her?" Lily whined as she made her way after Abby with Rose right behind her.
"Chloe." Abby caught up with her. "This guy is dangerous, what are you doing?"
"And he'll steal our jewelry." Lily pointed out.
"I'm just curious." Chloe turned to smile at Abby. "It's that reporter in me." She turned her attention back to the ballroom and kept walking further down. "You guys don't have to come."
"Are you kidding?" Rose passed up Lily smiling and watching the action inside the room. "This is the most fun I've had at one of these things in a while."
Chloe smiled and took off her shoes, heading toward the grass. "There's a path down here, leads to the Gardner's quarters, he'll go out that way." They all followed her, taking off their shoes so they could run in the grass easier.
"How do you know that?" Lily asked. "How does she know that?"
"Because that's how I'd leave." Chloe smiled, feeling that familiar heart racing, adrenaline rush she always got when sneaking around somewhere. They turned the corner and Chloe froze in her tracks.
"Holy Crap." Lily said straightening up and staring at the Green Arrow, who was right in front of Chloe.
"Miss Sullivan." Green Arrow said in that deep voice of his. "Long time no see." He looked down and brought his hand up to her necklace, holding it for a minute before dropping it. "You should be careful where you wear your fine jewelry." His gaze fell to her wrist and smiled when he saw the charm bracelet. He looked back up to Chloe and smiled bigger when he saw her glaring at him. He turned to Abby, Rose, and Lily. "Ladies." He nodded at them before shooting an arrow into the top of the castle and then pushed a button, pulling himself up to roof.
"Is it just me?" Lily said slowly. "Or was that really hot?"
Chloe turned and looked at her to see all of them staring back. "He knew your name."
"We've had a few run ins." Chloe said. "When I lived in Metropolis before."
"The Green Arrow knew your name." Rose repeated.
"I'm sure he knew yours." Chloe pointed out.
"But he didn't use it." Rose said.
Chloe just shook her head and walked away. She went back to the Penthouse with the girls and after everyone finally fell asleep. Abby, Lily, and Rose hung out with Chloe the next day for a while before they left, Chloe stayed behind claiming she wanted to spend more time with her cousin. As soon as they were gone she grabbed her bag and made her way to the Clock tower, mumbling to herself and getting herself more and more angry the further she walked. She was working up to the biggest temper she'd had in a while when the elevator stopped and she pulled the grate open to see him standing there, toweling off his hair like he'd just gotten out of the shower. "Hey." He smiled at her, a soft smile, and her anger flew out the window when she realized how happy she was to see him in person, Oliver and not the Green Arrow. She ran up and hugged him tightly, glad that they were face to face and not over the phone or the internet.
"Good to see you too Watchtower." Oliver said smiling as he returned her hug. With the use of her codename, her anger returned and she pulled back and slapped him as hard as she could. "What was that for?" He said rubbing his shoulder.
"Don't be a baby." Chloe crossed her arms over her chest. "That didn't hurt."
"Well." Oliver shrugged.
"I really had to think on my feet there." Chloe said. "You could have warned me. You're lucky I saw a flash of Bart's shirt or Rose and Lily would have run straight into him. You're supposed to keep me in the loop on all this."
"I didn't know you were here." Oliver countered. "It's not like you were doing a lot with the loop keeping."
"You haven't been answering your phone." She sighed then she lifted her hand and slapped him again.
"What was that for?" He said, his voice a little high pitched.
"Because for a second, for one split second you thought about taking my necklace." She glared at him. "I know you Oliver Queen; I know that look you get."
"It was a nice necklace." Oliver smiled sheepishly at her. She smiled at him and chuckled a little. "Anyway, down to business."
"Oh sure business." Chloe walked into the Clock Tower and Oliver followed. "Because we can't just relax, have a nice night, catch up."
"We could do that." Oliver smiled at her. "After we deal with something."
"Fine." Chloe sighed. "Lay it on me."
"Bart caught wind of something when he was in Lex's office today. Lex is getting some information from one of his labs in three days and I need you to intercept it." Oliver said. "Can you extend your trip?"
"Sure." Chloe got up. "Well this was great, lovely to see you." She grabbed her bag and walked to the door. "We should do this again sometime."
"Chloe." Oliver rushed over and grabbed her arm before she made it to the elevator. She turned to him and smiled sadly. "How have you been?"
"I've been good Oliver." She smiled at him. They looked at each other for a minute and Chloe smiled. "How about you?"
"Can't complain." He smiled back. "You want to go get some dinner? Catch up?"
"No one's supposed to know you're in town remember?" Chloe said.
"I'll order in." Oliver grabbed the phone and Chloe set her bag down.
The phone rang before he could dial a number and he looked at it confused. "Victor." He answered the phone and then looked at Chloe before turning on the news. "I'll call you back."
"What's going on?" Chloe said confused.
"Just watch." Oliver turned the volume up.
"Just minutes ago." The reporter said. "A helicopter dropped him off at Metropolis General but the doctor's aren't having high hopes for his recovery."
"Thank you Lisa." The desk anchor said. "For those of you just tuning in, Lex Luther was just rushed to Metropolis General with a gunshot wound to the head, we'll keep you posted as information comes in."
"Holy shit." Chloe said astonished.
The elevator dinged as Oliver and Chloe tried to process this and Clark stormed in the room, relief on his face when he saw them both. "Lois is missing." He said without any preamble. "She said she had a lead on Kara, and she left after the funeral yesterday and she's not answering her phone, she didn't even tell me where she went."
"Ok." Chloe said. "Slow down and start at the beginning."
"Who's Kara?" Oliver asked confused.
"Clark's cousin from Krypton, it's a long story but it ends with her going missing a few months ago." Chloe said then turned her attention back to Clark. Chloe had heard quite a lot about Kara but had yet to meet the Kryptonian.
Clark sat down on the couch and told them about Kara being missing and Lois helping him look for her. "Ok, but what makes you think that something's wrong? This is Lois we're talking about she could have forgotten to charge her phone."
Clark pulled Lois' phone out of his pocket and showed it to Chloe. She reached out tentatively and grabbed it. "The police found it on Lex." Chloe's head shot up, Lex who had just been brought back to town with a gunshot wound to the head had recently been with her cousin, who was missing.
Chloe immediately walked over to the computer and plugged the phone in. "We know she was in Detroit, that's where Lex was but they don't know where." Clark said.
"Damnit." Chloe groaned. "She didn't make any calls from there. I'm gonna send Victor the picture she took, see if he can find anything that might tell us where this diner is."
Clark relaxed a bit. "I just wish we could get information from Lex's head the way you did from the phone. He knows where she is." Chloe and Oliver exchanged a look and Clark stopped talking. "What?" They didn't say anything. "If you guys know something."
"There were rumors." Chloe said cautiously. "Of some sort of machine Lex created for the army. It was a new form of interrogation device. It allowed the interrogator to go into the mind of terrorists."
"I'll call Lionel." Clark pulled out his phone.
"The project was cancelled." Chloe said. "Because it was too dangerous, all three tests ended in death Clark, for the interrogator and the suspect."
"What other choice do we have?" He practically screamed.
"Me." Chloe said suddenly. "I can do it, I can save him and then he can tell you where Lois is."
"No." Clark backed away from her.
"What do you mean you can save him?" Oliver asked Chloe.
"Clark you know I can do this." Chloe pleaded with him.
"It's too dangerous, I won't let you." He argued.
"You won't let me?" Chloe balked at him. "Since when is it your decision to make?"
"The last time you did that you died." Clark told her.
Oliver looked at Chloe sharply but couldn't seem to form words. "You died?" He asked but she ignored him.
"But it's ok for you to go into some stupid machine that was built by Lex Luther that we know has killed at least six people?" Chloe pointed out.
"I'm not like normal people." Clark pointed out. "I'm calling Lionel." He turned away from Chloe and she was left with a very confused Oliver staring at her.
"What does he mean you died?" Oliver asked. Chloe knew this was coming, knew that at some point she'd have to tell Oliver about her powers. Hell working for the team she figured it was only a matter of time before she'd have to use them. "And what did you mean when you said you could save him?"
"Oliver." Chloe looked over at Clark who was talking animatedly with Lionel. "Remember a few years ago when you helped my mom?" He nodded. "The reason why Lex took her, the reason he gave her the cure, was to get to me. I have Meteor powers."
"What?" Oliver asked concerned.
"Tobias, the guy who could see the infected? Well he saw me, and he told Lex and Lex took me and did some sort of test and it confirmed that I had some sort of Meteor power, but they hadn't manifested yet, he didn't know what I could do so he let me go." Chloe said. "To watch me I guess, see what I could do."
"What can you do?" Oliver said quietly.
"I can heal people." She looked up at him.
He met her gaze and smiled slightly. "That's amazing." He said to her.
"Well it's a double edged sword." She sighed. "I don't really heal them so much as take their injuries from them and then heal myself."
Oliver sat down and put his head in his hands. "Wow." Chloe sat next to him and bit her bottom lip nervously. "What did he mean when he said you died?"
"Lois was hurt." Chloe told him. "She was dead. I didn't even know what I was doing, it was the first time I'd used the powers and I brought her back, but I died in her place. I woke up a few hours later in a morgue drawer. Not the most pleasant moment of my life."
"So if you do this?" Oliver asked her. "You could die again?"
"But I would come back." Chloe said.
"You don't know that for sure." Clark said from behind them. "And I'm not going to take that chance. Lionel's got the machine prepped, he's moving Lex from the hospital."
"I'm going with you." Chloe stood up.
"Me too." Oliver said.
"No, you need to stay here." Chloe pushed him back down in the seat. "That would look too suspicious, and Victor might call with some information that could make this whole thing a moot point." Reluctantly Oliver nodded as they left the Penthouse.
"Hey Watchtower." Oliver called to her. "Be careful, you've got work to do in a few days."
"Yes sir." She mock saluted him and then got in the elevator.
Oliver sat down, then stood up and paced, then sat down again. He turned the television on then got frustrated and turned it off again. He couldn't get comfortable, he couldn't think. He wasn't worried about Clark; Clark could take care of himself. He was trying to process, Chloe, tiny, spunky little Chloe could basically bring people back from the dead, not that it didn't come at a price. He didn't care of course, powers or no powers it didn't matter to him. She was still Chloe, still his friend, one of his best friends, possibly the best friend he'd ever had. But she didn't trust him enough to tell him about this, and that hurt.
The hurt he felt couldn't even compare however to the wrenching in his gut when the elevator opened two hours later and he saw Lionel Luther standing there, holding a completely lifeless Chloe in his arms. "What happened?" Oliver said rushing over and taking her from him.
"I don't know." Lionel walked in as Oliver carried her over to the couch and laid her down. He checked her pulse, there was nothing there. "She did something." Lionel said. "Something to Lex, she saved him and then she…Clark said not to take her to the hospital to take her here. That you would know what to do."
Oliver looked at Chloe's dead body confused. How was he supposed to know what to do? He only found out about this two hours ago. "She's going to be fine." He said, trying to convince himself more than Lionel.
"She saved my son's life." Lionel said. "If there's anything I can do…"
"Leave." Oliver told him. Lionel just nodded and walked to the elevator as Oliver sat in the chair beside Chloe and waited. She'd said when she saved Lois; she was dead for a few hours, she he'd just have to wait, she'd wake up in a few hours. Three hours later Clark came rushing in the room to find Chloe on the couch and Oliver in the chair, just staring at her. "You gotta wake up Chloe." He was whispering. "I can't do this without you."
"She's not…" Clark stepped forward and Oliver turned, surprised to face him.
"No." Oliver stood up. "You said a few hours; it's been a few hours. Why isn't she awake?" Oliver screamed at her.
"I don't know." Clark screamed back. "This isn't an exact science."
They stared at each other before they both turned to Chloe and sat down. "Lois is ok, by the way." Clark mumbled.
"Good." Oliver said absentmindedly.
Coffee was made, calls were ignored, and Clark and Oliver took turns pacing in the small living room before finally, 18 hours later Chloe shot bolt up from the couch gasping for breath. Surprisingly Oliver got to her before Clark and grabbed her. "I'm here, your fine." He said rubbing her back as her breathing slowed down.
"Lois?" She asked still panting slightly.
"Fine, her and Kara are back at the farm." Clark smiled.
"Lex?" She said.
"Perfectly healthy." Clark sat down. "I don't know how we're going to explain that one."
"Lionel saw." Chloe said. "He knows."
"You can trust him." Clark assured her. Oliver wanted to snap at him, Chloe could trust Lionel Luther with her biggest secret but not him. Her breathing returned to normal and she ran a shaky hand through her hair then smiled.
"Food?" She asked hopefully.
Clark and Oliver cracked the smallest of smiles. "I'll be right back." Clark said and super speeded out of the room.
"Are you ok?" Oliver asked.
"I'm fine." She swung her legs around and tried to stand up. "I'd have been better if you'd put me in a bed." She tried to joke.
"I'm sorry I wasn't really clear on dead body etiquette." Oliver snapped at her.
"Hey." She said offended. "I'm sorry, I know this was all kind of thrust upon you, really quickly, I get that, but what was I supposed to do, if Lex died, so did Clark."
Oliver deflated. "I know, I'm sorry for snapping at you." He walked over and helped her stand up. She stretched her muscles and seemed to regain more control over her hands and legs. "I just, when he walked in here and you were dead."
"It was a shock for me the first time too." She laughed.
"Dinner is served." Clark said suddenly from the other side of them. "I've got Chinese, hamburgers, pizza, and salad."
"God, I'm so hungry I could eat it all." Chloe grabbed for the first bag she saw and pulled a French fry out of it. "How could this possibly be the best thing I've ever tasted?" She asked astonished.
"Because you've been dead for half a day." Clark pointed out.
"Could be." Chloe said grabbing a plate from the kitchen and a drink from the fridge.
After Chloe ate, and she did eat most of what Clark brought back, he gave her his own lecture on being careful with her powers and then he left her and Oliver alone. "Are you going to tell the guys?"
"At some point I'm going to have to." Chloe said. "I'm just not sure how to work it into conversation. "Hey guys look what I can do" just doesn't seem appropriate."
"You're not worried are you?" Oliver asked, picking at some of the Chinese that she hadn't managed to stuff into her stomach. "How they'll react?"
"A little." She said honestly.
"Chloe." Oliver put his fork down. "These are three guys, all with their own special powers; you think they're going to think differently of you?"
"I guess not." Chloe sighed. "But they don't get their powers from the Meteor rocks." She pointed out. "I don't know where they come from but it's different. You don't understand. Every person I've ever run into with meteor powers have ended up going insane, killing people, stealing things."
"Is that why you didn't tell me?" Oliver asked. "Because you're scared of them?" She nodded. "You're not going to go insane, you aren't going to start killing people or stealing things, or plotting world domination because I won't let you." Chloe chuckled. "I mean come on, you heal people, what kind of criminal mastermind would you even be with that power?"
"You have a point there." Chloe nodded.
"Of course I do." Oliver said. "Right, it's getting late."
"Oh." Chloe said jumping up. "That thing." She grabbed her bag. "For Lex. I have to intercept it."
"Slow down there Sidekick." Oliver grabbed her arm as she headed for the elevator. "You need to rest."
Chloe glared and pulled her hand away, and then smacked him as hard as she could. "Don't call me Sidekick." He rubbed his shoulder. "And I just rested for eighteen hours. I'm here, the information is coming in tonight, you need it, I can get it, no brainer. I'll use a computer at the Planet, Grant never took away my access cards, Lex won't be able to trace it."
Oliver looked over at her and realized he would never win in this fight. "Fine." He walked over to the desk and pulled something out. "But I want you on coms the whole time."
"Fine." She caught the earpiece he threw to her and stuck it in her ear. "Happy?" Chloe asked.
"Ecstatic." He said as she closed the elevator.
The Planet was quiet at two in the morning and Chloe sat down at Shawn Freeman's desk, a guy who'd she always disliked, incase she's lied to Oliver and Lex could trace it, and got to work. Intercepting the file was easy enough, a little bit harder with Oliver in her ear the whole time. What she was definitely not expecting was the knife throwing maniac who chased her to the roof. For all her annoyance at Oliver he managed to get there quickly and stop the chick from killing her but now without her getting away with the disk.
Oliver brought her back down to the Daily Planet and insisted on fixing Chloe's cut. "I'm fine Oliver." Chloe winced as he put antiseptic on her cheek.
"This is not fine." He dropped the tissue in the trash and reached in the first aid kit for a band aid.
"It's a small cut." Chloe said. "I've had paper cuts that hurt worse than this."
"I don't like putting you in danger." Oliver secured the bandage and looked at her sighing.
"You aren't putting me into anything." Chloe said. "I knew what I was getting into when I took this job."
"I don't think anyone knew what they were getting into when they took this job." He laughed.
"I'm sorry I lost the disk." Chloe said.
"I'm not." Oliver assured her. "Not if it means saving your life."
Chloe smiled and patted his cheek. "Oh then you don't want this." She pulled something up on the computer and turned the monitor to him. Information scrolled down the screen faster than he could take it in.
"How did you…" Oliver looked from the screen to Chloe and back again.
"Please." She scoffed. "This ain't my first rodeo. You don't think I make backups?"
Oliver grabbed her face and planted a kiss square on her lips. "You are the best."
"I know." Chloe smiled at him and he looked at her hopefully. "I'll get on this as soon as I can."
Dinah looked through the window and sighed. This was going to have to be dealt with.
She spent the better part of the morning with Clark trying to figure out who the crazy lady was and finally realizing it was Dinah Lance. Clark immediately set out to find her and Chloe stayed in the Penthouse decrypting the information she'd stolen from Lex and fielding calls from Lois. "He's back." Was the first thing Lois had said to her and Chloe almost jumped off the couch.
"Whose back?" She asked fearfully, assuming Lois was talking about Grant. Back as in risen from the dead, which would not be such a strange thing in her life.
"Oliver freaking Queen." Lois said angrily. "It was in this morning's paper."
"Oliver's here?" Chloe feigned ignorance. "You think he showed up for Lex's birthday?"
Lois scoffed. "Not likely." She sighed. "What should I do?"
"I don't know Lois, what do you want to do?" Chloe asked.
"Part of me wants to go over there and kick his ass." Lois growled. "And part of me wants to go over there and throw him down…"
"TMI." Chloe laughed. "Just, talk to him; figure out why he's in town before you jump down his throat."
"I guess you're right." Lois sighed. "Thanks."
"No problem." Chloe hung up the phone and started to dial Oliver's number then stopped. She contemplated not giving him any advanced warning but that would be petty and selfish, no matter how much he'd pissed her off the night before. She finished the number and smiled thinking about the yelling Oliver was about to receive. "Hey, just wanted to give you a heads up. Lois knows you're in town, not happy about it, and on her way to let you know that."
"Crap." Oliver sighed. "I was going to call her."
"Not soon enough." Chloe smiled. "Good luck." She said before hanging up the phone and getting back to her work, not realizing that she was being watched until something hard came down on her head and she slipped into unconsciousness.
Thanks to Chloe's advance warning, the fight with Lois could have gone worse, that was until the crazy knife throwing ninja lady showed up and shattered every piece of glass in his apartment, not only knocking him out but exposing his secret to Lois who had more than her share of things to say to about the whole thing. He couldn't help thinking about what Chloe had said to him many times, if he had just told Lois a long time ago, she wouldn't be screaming in his ear nonstop right now, which was not helping his attempt to get out of the ropes.
"I should have listened to Chloe." Oliver sighed.
"Chloe." Lois screeched. "What does Chloe have to do with…." She was silent and for some reason that scared Oliver even more. "Chloe knew about you didn't she?"
"Lois." Oliver tried to back pedal but he had a feeling it was too late.
"Of course Chloe knew about this. She's a real reporter, she probably knew right from the start." Lois sighed.
"Not right from the start, it took her a while." Oliver said.
"I'm so stupid." Lois sighed. "We are all sitting down and having a serious talk after…" Black Canary walked up and smacked Lois in the mouth.
"You know the blonde didn't talk near this much." Canary smiled at Oliver as he turned around. "In fact she refuses to say anything; she's an ideal hostage you know."
"What did you do with Chloe?" Oliver said.
"You have Chloe?" Lois screamed. "Why does she have Chloe Oliver?" Lois asked and Oliver winced.
"So your girlfriend doesn't know." Canary said. "About your little sidekick."
"Please tell me you called Chloe a sidekick." Oliver smiled. "Because then I'll know she at least got one good punch in."
"You know that's right." Lois smiled.
"Oh." Canary stopped pacing and looked at Oliver. "Not a sidekick. Not another girlfriend, you apparently don't trust those with your secret, besides your taste in women isn't that good." Canary leaned back. "She must be your partner."
"Where is Chloe?" Oliver said.
"Lex thinks you're the sole leader of this little band of merry men." Canary smiled. "But you guys are partners aren't you? She's your second in command. This is going better than I thought."
"She's your partner?" Lois said quietly.
"Lois, I'm trying not to be an ass hole but we really need to talk about this later." Oliver said through clenched teeth.
"Right." Lois whispered.
"Lex is going to be ecstatic about this." Canary pulled out her phone.
"Look, I understand Lex has you convinced that he's the good guy and we're the bad guys but I'm telling you right now, if you make that call, if you hand Chloe over, she won't live to see tomorrow." Canary paused with the phone to her ear.
"Don't be so dramatic." Canary said. "He'll turn her over to the police."
"No he won't. He'll kill her, he will experiment on her, possibly torture her for information about me and then he'll kill her, if only so he can perform an autopsy. Take me, give me to Lex."
"Oliver no." Lois said.
"Let Chloe go." Oliver said.
"Why would he experiment on her?" Canary asked. Oliver looked at Canary nodded to Lois and then shook his head no. "We're going." She grabbed Oliver and pulled him out of the chair.
"No." Lois started to squirm in her seat. "No let him go. Let them both go, let us all go you freak." Lois screamed.
Canary paused when she walked by Lois and hit her again, knocking her out. "Does she ever shut up?" Canary asked then turned to Oliver. "Why would he experiment on her?"
"Because she's got meteor powers." Oliver said. "And Lex knows, and he's obsessed. I have proof." Oliver turned around and held his arms out to her. She pulled out a knife and cut his ropes.
"I'm keeping an eye on you." Canary said. "Show me this proof." Oliver nodded and walked toward his now not so secret room.
Chloe stared around the penthouse, the best luxury money could buy and not a sharp edge on a single piece of furniture. Chloe moved her chair from the dining room table, aiming for the balcony doors; maybe she could use the latch to cut through the ropes. She was almost there when there was a thump and the doors opened reveling the Green Arrow smiling at her.
"Hey." Oliver leaned down and pulled his hood back smiling at Chloe. "How you doing?"
"The service in this place sucks." Chloe said as he pulled her gag down. "The last time I was kidnapped, they tied me up with silk; a girl gets accustomed to a certain lifestyle you know." Oliver laughed. "You?" She nodded to the side of his head where he was still bleeding a little.
"I'm good." He smiled at her and reached to untie her ropes.
"Oliver, don't move." Chloe whispered as the Black Canary landed behind him on the balcony, he froze. "Behind you." He turned quickly but didn't move when he saw the Black Canary standing there.
"She's on our side now." Oliver told Chloe.
"Oh, it would be nice to know these things in a timely fashion." Chloe pulled her arms free of the ropes and looked up staring at the Canary.
"I'm on my side." She said matter of factly. "I just choose to help you out here."
"We don't need your help." Chloe said crossing her arms over her chest and staring at Canary intently.
"She's going to help me get into Lex's." Oliver said to Chloe.
"Is there going to be a problem here sidekick?" Black Canary sneered.
"No." Chloe said. "I'm professional enough to deal with this." She said walking closer to Canary. Without warning Chloe reared back and smacked her fist into Canary's face. Canary fell back into the wall behind her and grabbed her mouth looking at Chloe in astonishment. "Don't ever call me a sidekick." Chloe said shaking her hand out.
Oliver tried to stifle his laughter from his position at the counter as Chloe walked over to him. "Feel better?"
"Yeah." Chloe said still shaking her hand as she grabbed a rag and started to clean his forehead.
"You're hands on fire isn't it?" Oliver asked.
"Oh yeah." Chloe nodded clenching her hand in a fist and hissing in pain. Oliver didn't try to hide his laugh then.
"So Oliver said you were a…Meta he called it. Had some sort of super hero power?" Canary asked wiping the blood off her lip.
"Not much of a superhero power." Chloe shrugged nodding to the side of Oliver head as she finished washing the blood off. She laid her hand over the cut and there was a slight glow under her palm and when she moved her hand away the cut was gone.
"Damnit Chloe." Oliver said. "What have I told you about that?"
"What? Wanted your battle scars?" Canary laughed looking at Oliver's now pristine forehead.
"I'd rather have them than her." Oliver glared as the cut that was on his forehead previously started to appear on Chloe's.
"Like you're supposed to walk into your board meeting tomorrow with an unexplainable gash on your head?" Chloe said ignoring the pain in her temple as she put the first aid kit away. "My hair will hide it."
"Kind of a crappy two headed power huh?" Canary asked.
"Just a little bit." Chloe smiled at her. "Let's head out." She stood up and walked to the elevator.
Oliver looked at her and shook his head. "Where do you think you're going?"
"I thought we had a plan?" Chloe said confused. "Lex's remember."
"You're not going to Lex's." Oliver shook his head grabbing her arm and taking her out of the elevator.
"Of course I'm going to Lex's." Chloe said confused.
"No." Oliver said. "You're staying here."
"Oliver." Chloe said sternly. "Could we not have this fight in front of the children?" She nodded her head to Canary who was smiling at the exchange. "I found something, on that information I intercepted. References to Project Cassandra, but it's on Lex's private computer."
"Bart was just on Lex's computer yesterday." Oliver reminded her.
"No, Bart was on the computer in his study. He doesn't know about the other one." Chloe pointed out. "It's a simple in and out." She explained. "You guys distract Lex, I get the info, and then we go for breakfast." She smiled. "I was thinking Waffle House or possible IHOP." Oliver opened his mouth to argue then closed it.
"You can't go in there like that." Oliver said sighing and walking over to Chloe's bag. "What have you got in here?" He asked as he flipped through her clothes.
"I don't do costumes." Chloe said sternly.
"You want to waltz into Luther's looking like Chloe Sullivan on all his security monitors?" Oliver asked her and she sighed.
Ten minutes later Chloe walked out of the bathroom. "I look like a homeless prostitute." She said looking herself over. The sunglasses hid her eyes but it also made it hard to see. She didn't bring a lot with her, but she had a few things that Rose had bought on their shopping trip that she'd left accidently. Chloe stood there in a pair of leather pants and knee high boots sighing.
"You can design your own outfit later." Oliver said. "But for right now, homeless prostitute is better than Chloe Sullivan." Oliver pointed out.
Chloe zipped up the skin tight hoodie, something Oliver had picked out for her even thought it didn't really match, claiming it was sort of a JLA signature, and walked over to the elevator.
When they got to Lex's Chloe made her way into Lex's real study. Not the one that Arrow and Canary were in right now, the one he hid from everyone, the one where his real computer was. She snuck in, glad to see that he was so arrogant it wasn't even guarded and set to work. She could hear the argument between Canary and Lex as she typed faster and faster, willing his machine to work harder as she downloaded every scrap of information she could find on Cassandra. "Hey." A voice said from the doorway and Chloe looked up confused. "What are you doing in here?"
She turned around to exit from a window or something but remembered that this was secret room, there were no windows, and no other doors except for the one behind the armed man. Chloe figured she could make a run for it, or she could go peacefully and serve as a distraction. When she heard the fight escalate between Canary and Lex she decided to go for distraction.
Oliver stayed in the shadows, even when Lex pulled out the gun, letting Canary do her thing, this was her fight for the moment but he almost couldn't restrain himself when the door opened and Chloe was shoved in the room by a large security guard. "Found her playing on your personal computer." He said and Chloe gripped the chair as she was flung forcefully forward.
"A friend of yours?" Lex looked between the two women and smiled aiming the gun at Chloe instead of Canary now.
"No." Oliver said jumping down from the balcony. "A friend of mine." He leveled his arrow at Lex who got off a shot at the same time the arrow left the bow. Oliver jumped sideways quickly and shoved Chloe to the side. "Stay down." He said before jumping back up and going for Lex. Canary flew past Chloe and took out the guards in the room as Oliver and Lex fought. Chloe backed herself into a corner as Lex fired off shots left and right, hitting his own security and whatever else he could aim at. Chloe got up, realizing she could make a break for the back patio, the same one the Green Arrow left by the day before but she didn't make it two feet before she fell again, her leg in searing pain. She looked down and saw the blood coming out and realized, astonished, that Lex had just shot her.
She reached to her waist and pulled off her belt, paying closer attention to the fight now as she wrapped the belt around her thigh above the gunshot wound and latched it as tight as she could. She managed to pull herself up to a standing position when she saw Lex's gun aimed straight at her head and he pulled the trigger. Oliver screamed and shot another arrow as Canary let fly one of her knives. Then she was out in the hallway and Clark was in front of her. "Oliver." Chloe said trying to get back in the room.
"He's fine." Clark said. "But you're not." He looked down at her leg in astonishment and Chloe smiled sheepishly.
"I think it hurts a lot worse than it actually is." She said and Clark shook his head as he picked her up and super speeded out of the mansion.
He beat Oliver back to the farm and laid Chloe on the couch. "We should take you to a hospital." Clark said.
"No." Chloe sighed. "What am I going to tell people? Things are different now, I go to the hospital and it's in the papers tomorrow."
"I hate this." Clark said. "The old Chloe would be able to go to the hospital with no problem."
"Well I'm not the old Chloe anymore." Chloe sat up wincing and realized something. "Are you ok with that?"
Clark turned to her confused. "What?"
"Are you ok with the fact that I'm not the old Chloe?" She asked.
"I didn't think you'd change so much." Clark admitted. "I just…I guess I wasn't prepared for…"
"I know I've changed a lot." Chloe said. "I mean some of the things I catch myself doing sometimes and I have to stop and realize that this is my life…but I like who I'm becoming and I hope that you do to."
"Of course I do." Clark smiled at her. "You're not different in a bad way." He assured her. "Just in a way I'm not used to yet." He grabbed her hand. "You will always be my best friend, you know that right?"
"Of course I do." Chloe said. "And you'll always be mine."
Oliver burst through the back door. "Chloe!" He screamed out.
"Living room." Chloe called to the kitchen smiling and Oliver rushed in and froze at the sight of her blood soaked leg.
"Oh god." He knelt down and looked at the wound.
"She was shot Oliver." Clark said.
"We can't go to the hospital." Chloe said. "But I think it's just a flesh wound, a through and through at any rate."
"She was shot Oliver." Clark said more forcefully this time and Oliver's head flew up.
"You don't think I know that?" He snapped at Clark.
"What was she doing there?" He asked and Oliver stood up letting his Green Arrow hood fall off. "Why would you bring her there?"
"Hey." Chloe said. "He didn't "bring" me." She countered.
"What's your problem Clark?" Oliver asked confused.
"You're putting her in danger Oliver. You promised me, when you asked if you could offer her the job, you promised me." Clark said. "That she wouldn't be in danger."
"What?" Chloe looked between the two of them confused.
"Oh like she was perfectly safe here with you, constantly being attacked by some meteor infected left and right?" Oliver pointed out.
"When you asked him?" Chloe said pulling herself up off the couch.
"That was different I can protect her." Clark said.
"Oh really?" Oliver screamed. "This coming from the guy who had someone bring me her dead body not 24 hours ago. You call that protecting her?"
"You asked him for what?" Chloe said. "Permission?"
"You didn't have to let her come." Clark said.
"Chloe is a big girl Clark. I'm not going to presume to tell her what she can and can't do." Oliver said. "I trust her to make the right decisions, hell she's smarter than the both of us combined and you know that."
"Smart doesn't do any good when there are guns and bullets Oliver." Clark pointed out.
"Hey!" Chloe shouted. They both turned and looked at her. "Both of you stop it. Clark, Oliver is right." Oliver smiled. "I'm a big girl. I make my own choices, and sometimes I make mistakes but you've got to let me make them." She told him. "I'm responsible for me, not you, not Oliver."
"Thanks Chloe." Oliver said.
"And you." Chloe turned on him. "You asked for his permission before offering me the job?" She looked so hurt that Oliver couldn't find anything to say. "Like it was his choice? Like he had a claim on me or something?" Clark smirked this time, glad that he wasn't the only one feeling the wrath of Chloe. "Don't smirk Clark, you're not out of the woods yet. You told him it was ok, which tells me that you thought it was your place to give him permission. I am not Sidekick Barbie. I don't belong to either of you, we will no longer be playing hot potato with my life. My life is mine and mine alone to make good choices or bad choices. Neither of you have any say in it what so ever is that clear?" They both looked at her sheepishly and nodded. "Good, now someone please go get a first aid kit before I bleed all over the couch."
Clark smiled sheepishly and walked to the kitchen to grab the kit. He heard Oliver move forward. "You should sit." He said and Clark could feel Chloe glaring at the Green clad archer. "Which is not me telling you what to do or how to live your life, it's just an observation on what position I feel you would be more comfortable in." Clark smiled and grabbed the kit walking back into the living room only to pause at the doorway.
"Oliver stop fussing." Chloe shoved him away as he tried to put a pillow behind her back.
He paused and set the pillow on the ground, lowering himself onto the coffee table to look at her. "Tower." He said softly and Chloe looked up at him smiling. "You're really ok?"
She reached out and grabbed his hand and Clark frowned a little when he clasped her hand tightly and brought it up to his lips. "I'm fine Oliver, seriously. This is just a little gunshot wound, no problem."
"I just…" He sighed and dropped her hand to his lap but didn't let go of it. "Black Canary made me realize something today. I mean I guess I kind of knew I figured it out when you were dead I was wondering what I would do without you, how I could possibly…and then she put it into words you know and…"
"Oliver." Chloe waggled her eyebrows at him. "Are you about to profess your undying love for me?"
He rolled his eyes at her released her hand. "No."
"Then spit it out." Chloe laughed at him and Clark smiled.
"I've got the team right." Oliver said. "I've got Bart and AC and Victor." Oliver sighed. "And then I've got you. You aren't part of the team Chloe. I mean that was the plan, to have you be part of the team, but you're not."
"Oh." Chloe said and then pulled her hand away slowly from him. "I get it." She smiled. "I mean the one time you let me go somewhere I get shot. I can see how that would…I get it Oliver its fine…"
"No." Oliver grabbed her hand back and smiled at her fondly. "You're not just a part of the team." He amended his statement. "You're more than that." She looked at him confused. "You're my second in command; you're my partner."
"I don't think so." Chloe shook her head sure Oliver had gone crazy.
"I count on your far more than I thought I was going to. I look to you for answers and suggestions and so do the other guys. If Bart told AC to do something I guarantee you it would end with one of them in a head lock, but you give an order they don't question they just act."
"But I'm not…" Chloe said laughing. "I mean I'm just Chloe."
"You could never be just Chloe." Clark said walking in the room finally. "I'm just glad someone other than me has finally realized that."
"I know now." Oliver glared at Clark and Chloe laughed as they patched up her leg.
"Hello!" Lois screamed from the back door. "Clark! Something terrible has happened."
"Oh this is going to be a fight." Chloe said getting off the couch and Oliver grabbed her arm pulling her down.
"I think it's time we both faced the music." Oliver said raising an eyebrow.
"In here Lois." Clark called and she walked in the room freezing at the sight of the bloody rags and Chloe who was waving sheepishly from the couch.
"I want to know everything." Lois said pacing back and forth while Clark stood off to the side. "And don't think you're getting out of this scot free." She turned on Clark. "I know you knew about this."
Clark looked at her in surprise and then at Oliver and Chloe who were trying not to laugh. "This is not funny." Lois said. "Go; start, from the freaking beginning." Lois said.
Oliver and Chloe opened their mouths but neither of them knew where to start the story. Lois looked at Clark expectantly and he shrugged. "Someone tell me something." Lois screamed.
"What do you want to know?" Oliver asked.
"Are you guys working together?" Lois asked.
"Yes." Chloe said.
"For how long?" Lois stopped pacing and was just looking at them now.
"Officially, about a year and a half." Chloe said. "Unofficially…since Oliver was here last time."
"Ok." Lois said. "So you knew and you didn't tell me."
"It's not my secret to tell." Chloe said.
"Ok, I can't really fault you there." Lois said. "You and I however are not ok about the secrecy." She said to Oliver. "But I'm dealing with Chloe now." Oliver nodded. "So the job offer." Lois started to put a few things together.
"Oliver." She said. "He wanted me to join him full time."
"What about Uncle Edward?" Lois said.
Chloe looked at Oliver and he nodded. "None of that is real."
"I knew it." Lois said. "I just…I mean not telling me Oliver is the Green Arrow is one thing but not telling me about an uber rich long lost uncle, never would have happened."
Chloe explained Oliver's plan, Edward agreeing to help them out and what they were ultimately going for. "So there are more than just you two?"
"A couple of guys." Oliver said.
"And you're not going to tell me who they are?" She asked.
"Not our secret." Chloe said again.
"Yeah yeah." Lois sighed.
"Hey Oliver." Chloe turned to him. "Why don't you and Clark head back to the Clock Tower? Start picking up all that glass." Oliver nodded and he and Clark walked out of the house to give them some alone time.
"Are we ok?" Chloe asked Lois.
"I really don't like all the lying to me." Lois said. "And I'm not sure how I feel about you working with Oliver. But I get why you do it. And I appreciate the honesty."
Chloe smiled sheepishly. "While we're being completely honest with each other." Chloe sighed. "There's something else I have to tell you."
"Oh god." Lois said. "I don't know how much more I can take of this." Lois sat down in one of the chairs and Chloe smiled nervously.
"Lois I…" Chloe closed her mouth. She was never sure how she was going to tell anyone this. "Maybe I should just show you."
"Did you get a tattoo?" Lois asked. "Cause the General is going to kill you."
"If I got a tattoo and I showed you." Chloe glared at her. "You would not tell your dad." Lois smiled at her and Chloe held out her hand. "Give me your hand."
Lois held out her hand and Chloe removed the bandage that she's put on it from where she got cut by the glass. Chloe held her palm over the cut and Lois watched it start to glow. "Whoa." She said looking down at her hand as Chloe removed hers and her eyes got even wider. "Whoa." She pulled her hand up to her face and stared as if she could find the cut if she looked close enough. "What happened?" She whispered.
Chloe held up her hand and Lois saw a cut that wasn't there before. "I guess you can't be around the meteors as long as I have without picking a few things up."
Lois stared at the cut for a minute and then looked up at Chloe. "Wait a minute." She jumped up out of her chair. "Wait a minute…" She stared at Chloe then looked down at her stomach and Chloe nodded. "I was stabbed." She said her voice breaking. "I was…dead, I know I was."
"You were." Chloe nodded, tears forming in her eyes.
"And you…" She looked at Chloe's stomach and Chloe nodded.
"Why would you…" Lois asked astonished.
"I didn't know." Chloe said. "That was the first time; I didn't do it on purpose." Lois looked at her. "I mean not that I wouldn't have, if I did know because I would have, but I was just as surprised as you." Chloe smiled, feeling so much better now that Lois knew, and even better that she didn't run from the house screaming that Chloe was a freak. They talked about everything they couldn't talk about before, Oliver's secret, Chloe's secret, Chloe and Oliver's mission.
"Hey." Chloe said as Lois was getting ready to leave, her and Oliver had just as much to talk about as her and Chloe had. "Don't be too hard on the guy right?" Lois nodded sadly as she left the farm and Chloe took the fact that she was alone as an opportunity to go through the info she'd gotten from Lex. A few hours later, she got a teary call from Lois telling her that she'd talked with Oliver and they were truly and honestly over and Chloe's heart broke a little, first Grant and now this. Chloe offered to come over with ice cream but Lois said she'd rather be alone.
When Chloe noticed the time she closed her computer and headed back to the city. She took a last minute detour to the Clock Tower to check up on Oliver and found him staring out at the city, the place still littered with glass. "Hey." She stepped out of the elevator, her shoes cracking as she stepped on the glass.
He turned around and smiled sadly. "Hey." He said before turning back to the view.
Chloe joined him on the balcony. "Lois called, she said you two talked?"
"Yeah." He chuckled. "I knew it wasn't going to work out, I just…" He sighed and leaned against the balcony. "I guess I thought if there was any girl out there who could handle me, my other life, it would be Lois, because she's strong you know?"
"Yeah." Chloe sighed.
"And she can handle it, she's ok with it, she's just not ok with sharing me."
"She grew up competing with Lucy and the United States government for the Generals love." Chloe reminded him. "I guess she didn't want to do that again."
"I understand." Oliver said.
"Doesn't make it hurt any less." Chloe offered.
"No it doesn't." He admitted.
They stood there for a while just staring out at the city until Chloe went back inside and started sweeping up the glass, Oliver followed her a few minutes later and by the time they had it all picked up he seemed to be in higher spirits. "I've got some good news." Chloe said pulling two beers from his fridge and handing one to him as they sat on the couch.
"What's that?" He asked leaning his head back and closing his eyes.
"You'll never believe all the stuff I got from Lex about Cassandra."
Oliver tilted his head to look at her and opened one eye smiling. "What would I do without you Watchtower?"
"I don't know." Chloe sighed. "Probably amble around in the dark and cut yourself on glass you couldn't be bothered to clean up."
He smiled again and sipped his beer. "Probably." He said. "And then I wouldn't even have you to heal the cuts."
"You'd be dead in two days." Chloe joked with him.
"You're probably right." Oliver smiled at her. "I'm so glad I don't have to worry about that."
"I'm not going anywhere." She assured him, knowing that it was a given but also that after what happened with Lois, he really needed to hear it.
"Well I'm going to bed. My plane leaves tomorrow morning at eight." He stood up and headed for the stairs.
"I'm tired too." Chloe set her beer on the table. "I'll call you later ok." She looked at him and reached forward, giving him a hug and a kiss on the cheek.
"Ok." He nodded at her before going up to the bedroom as Chloe let herself out of the elevator.