A Note From Lara: It's been SO long since I've updated, and I'm really sorry. I've started a couple new fics (which I REALLY shouldn't have done, I know, with all the ones I'm still working on), and updated some others I haven't worked on in some time. So now, I'm finally getting around to my very first fic again. It's a relatively short chapter again, but I'm going to be working in short chapters for awhile. Lex's plotting is going to get SUPER complicated, and it'll require some delicate handling for me to not screw it up completely. So... bits and pieces it is.

But before I get on with the story, I have a special thank-you to send out into cyberspace. I'd like to extend my eternal gratitude to Caroline Cooney. Her trilogy, the 'Losing Christina' series, gave me the inspiration for the things that Lex is going to do to Dianne in the next chapters. Ms. Cooney, you are an amazing brilliant writer. I know she'll never read this, but for those of you who haven't read about Christina... you should. Never before has a seventh grader been so brave or strong. Ever. And never has a school principal and his English-teacher wife been so vindictively evil. Thank you, Ms. Cooney.

--

It was weird, seeing Clark in glasses. He didn't look like the same guy.

Life Lesson #14: Just because Dean Cain, brilliant portrayer of Clark on 'Lois and Clark', looked really hot in glasses, doesn't mean that the real Clark necessarily will. Actually, he didn't look like too good at all. Guess that just goes to show you.

It didn't matter, though. The only thing that was really important now was getting him and Lois back on speaking terms. I borrowed the battered red Ford and drove across town to the Talon. I stopped first downstairs and handed over the job application I'd filled out for myself, then mounted the stairs and knocked on the apartment door.

After a few moments, Lois answered the door. "Hey, Dianne," she said. She'd come out of hiding a few days earlier, having been unable to find even the slightest shred of incriminating evidence against Lex.

"Hey," I replied. "Look, I know you and Clark aren't on the best terms right now, but... I'd like you to come over to the farm and talk to him. All the infantile 'silent treatment' crap is driving me nuts. Maybe if you two just duke it out, all the awkward tension will just resolve itself."

Lois raised her eyebrow. "You mean you actually want me to go talk to that jerk, so he can say 'I told you so'? Not likely. Thanks for your concern, Dianne, but... no thanks." She slammed the door shut.

I stood staring at the painted wood. What had I done wrong? Things tended to just fall into place when I nudged events a little. What made this time different?

--

Ms. Mannilow waited respectfully until Lex finished his phone call. Then she entered his study.

"My. Luthor. I've completed the investigation you asked me to."

"And what did you turn up?"

"The girl's name is not Dianne Despido. It's Dianne Morton, and she's approximately 16 years old. She's been staying on the Kent farm for approximately five weeks. Someone remembered her running into Clark Kent at the Talon. Apparently he invited her to stay with himself and Miss Lang that very day. Ever since, according to... various sources... there's been quite an upheaval among Mr. Kent's inner circle."

Lex nodded. "And before she came to stay with Clark?"

Ms. Mannilow nodded. This was the bombshell, the thing that would cement her as Luthor's personal assistant for good. A self-congratulatory smile wrapped itself across her face. She set down a slim file on the desk before Lex. "Before that... there's nothing. No medical records. No birth certificate. No parents, no friends, nothing at all. Before five weeks ago, Dianne Morton didn't exist. So I ran her picture through a facial recognition program. I checked her image against every police record, every school record, every photo in Luthorcorp's database, every picture across the internet. Nothing. This girl has either never been photographed- which seems unlikely- or she literally didn't exist."

Lex's eyes widened. This was unexpected. Always before, he had been able to uncover something. Everyone had secrets, everyone had a past. Except this Dianne Morton, apparently.

"So I snuck into the farmhouse. Lifted fingerprints, found a few of her hairs, the usual. I ran her fingerprints and hair against records and a DNA scan. Her fingerprints aren't in any police database on the planet. Her DNA doesn't have even a partial match anywhere in the US. She literally doesn't exist."

"Except for the fact that she does," Lex said, drawing his own conclusions. "She's a threat. She knows things she shouldn't-- couldn't know. She's far too insightful, and has information about private conversations she couldn't have heard."

Ms. Mannilow kept her features carefully schooled. She didn't want to say what she had to say next. It went completely against everything she had ever stood for. It went against who she was. But for her to maintain this position, she had to say it. "Do you want me to authorize someone to... deal with her?" she asked.

Lex shook his head. "I always feel so disappointed in myself when I have to eliminate someone. It's like I've... let myself down. No, I think we can afford to be creative here. Dianne seems to have a tendency to be absolutely infuriating, and she's rather fascinating. No, she can live... for now. And perhaps it will give me the opportunity to get back at Clark Kent for all he's taken from me over the years..."

He gestured to his personal assistant. Mannilow walked around to his side of the desk and leaned in. He whispered something at great length in her ear. "I understand," she said, and walked out of the office.

Ms. Mannilow was full of self-loathing. She would do as Lex asked. But she didn't like it. She understood why she was doing it, but she just couldn't... even her intentions didn't justify what she was about to do. Dianne didn't deserve what was about to come crashing down upon her...

--

ANOTHER Note From Lara: Ooh, yes. Something very bad is going to happen. One of my big issues as a writer is that I'm good at the big sweeping conflicts, titanic battles, etc. But the subtler things, psychological games that are drawn out over months or longer, and the complex interweavings, the betrayals and complicated alliances... I'm not so good at that. I'm using this fic as an opportunity to work on that. So here we go. If I'm able to do this right (please god, please!), it's going to be a helluva ride.

As always, reviews are appreciated!