Title: Honesty Prequel -- Victoria's Brief Appearance
Author: PepperjackCandy
Series: Comes after "Epiphany"
Archive : Smallville Slash Archive, my writing at fanfiction.net
Rating: PG-13
Pairing: Clark/Lex
Category: Established Relationship
Spoilers for: References to Rogue
Disclaimer: I own nothing Smallville-related, or related in any other way to Clark Kent, Superman or any of the various creations of the wonderful folks at DC Comics. The Snow Queen is copyright 1980 by Joan D. Vinge, who is a goddess.
Feedback: Always welcome, either by e-mail or using the review system at fanfiction.net.
A/N: I know I get the HoNay! interruptions wrong, but I figure the difference in Lex and Clark's relationship in this series might have caused that change.
For Minnie, because I warned her, and for Nymph, because this is about as sexy as it gets when I'm writing.
========
"Ready to go?" Lex asked as he came into the den in a black suit and tie, white button-down shirt neatly pressed.
Clark looked up from the copy of The Snow Queen he was reading. "Yeah. Just a few more pages."
Lex poured himself a shot of Scotch. He sipped at it as he walked closer to Clark. "Must be a good book."
"It is." Clark responded without looking up.
Lex sighed and waited.
Finally Clark looked up. "Done." He sighed.
"You don't sound happy." Lex said as he raised the glass to his mouth for another sip.
"I'm not. BZ just arrested Moon."
"I take it that's a bad thing?"
"Of course it is! BZ loves Moon."
"Did she do whatever she's accused of?"
"Yes. But . . ."
Lex looked at him steadily, waiting for the rest of the sentence.
"But the law she broke was wrong."
"Wrong how?"
"Unfair. Unjust."
"Ah. So it's all right to break an unjust law?"
Clark thought for a moment. "I don't know if it's all right. But I don't think you should be punished for it."
"Especially not by someone who loves you."
Clark smiled a little. "Yeah."
"So, are we ready to go?"
"Should you be driving?" Clark looked at the empty glass in Lex's hand.
Lex grinned. "A shot of scotch isn't going to impair my ability to drive." He glanced at his watch. "In fact, my blood alcohol level should be peaking right about now."
"Oh. That instills all sorts of confidence in me."
Lex pouted and handed the car keys to Clark. "If you want to play designated driver."
Clark goggled. "Are you sure?"
Lex wasn't sure, but he needed to soothe his boyfriend's worries, so he smiled and said, "Yes. I'm sure. But only for the first hour, if we're going to be on time for this thing. I can promise you that the alcohol will be completely out of my system by then."
Clark nodded as they walked to the car together.
Two hours, and one change of drivers, later, Lex left his car with the valet outside of the Metropolis Museum of Art.
They walked into the newly-opened Luthor Hall. All of the other men there were in what Clark took to be designer suits, the women in black cocktail dresses. Clark suddenly keenly felt like he should have dressed up more than just khakis and his blue sportcoat.
Lex picked up on Clark's discomfort. "Feel underdressed?"
"Is it that obvious?"
Lex smiled. "Not to everyone. Just me. You were sort of . . . tugging at the side seams on your pants."
"Oh." Clark blushed.
"Don't be worried. Just carry yourself confidently and no one will even notice."
"You sure?"
Lex ran his hand over his scalp with a smirk. "If there's one thing I know, it's how to get along when you feel like you don't fit in."
Clark gave Lex a genuine smile and together they walked into the milling crowd.
They circulated, eating hors d'oeuvres and drinking -- Clark, ginger ale, Lex, champagne. Lex introduced Clark to a few of the attendees. Then after each other person had moved on, Lex told him what he really thought of him or her.
About halfway through the evening, Clark came back from the men's room to find Lex standing by a case containing a gold-colored breastplate spangled with rubies, sapphires and diamonds.
"You know it belonged to Alexander the Great?" Lex asked with a smile. "They say the design symbolizes strength and courage."
"I can't exactly see myself going into battle with that on my chest." Clark snorted.
"Darker times call for darker methods. His opponents thought he was invincible."
"I didn't know you were such a history buff."
"I'm not. I'm just interested in people who ruled the world before they were 30."
"I'm sorry. Am I interrupting?" A young auburn-haired woman asked as she interrupted them.
Lex sighed resignedly. "Clark Kent, this is Victoria Hardwick. A very old friend." He unobtrusively touched Clark's hand in reassurance. "I'll catch up with you later, Clark," he promised.
After Clark had left, he turned back to Victoria. "To what do I owe this honor?"
She sidled up to him in a faux-sexy way that made his skin crawl. "Aren't you going to take me on a private tour?"
"What do you want, Victoria?"
"Is it illegal to want to rekindle an old flame?"
"The way you do it, probably."
Victoria pouted, and Lex had to restrain the urge to scream. "But I missed you, Lex." She slowly walked the first two fingers of her right hand up his necktie.
"Victoria . . ." Lex said in a warning tone.
"My father has a business proposition for you."
Lex pursed his lips as if thinking. "Mmmmm. . . No."
This evidently wasn't what Victoria expected at all. "No?"
"No."
"You don't know what you're doing, Lex."
Lex smiled a little, coldly. "I think I do. Give Sir Harry my regards." Then, without another word, Lex turned on his heel and left.
Damn it! Victoria swore silently. Suddenly claustrophobic in the crush of the cream of Metropolis society, she made a beeline for the exit.
Once outside, she gasped in gulps of fresh air. What the hell am I going to tell my father? She worried, descending the stairs. In no hurry to leave, she avoided the valet stand, instead heading to the left, towards Adams Street.
She never even saw the bus coming.
Lex wandered around for a few minutes before finding Clark talking to Lana, Whitney and Nell.
"Enjoying the exhibit?" He asked as he joined them.
Nell pasted on her best phony smile. "It's just fascinating, Lex." She simpered.
Lana chewed her lower lip for a moment, then spoke. "Lex, all of this stuff has been in your family for generations?"
Lex nodded. "Yes."
"Why did your father decide to put it all in the museum like this?"
Lex shook his head. "I have no idea. If you can figure it out . . ." He stopped midsentence when the tone of conversations in the room changed suddenly. "What's going on?" He asked.
Clark tuned in to a conversation behind him. "It sounds like there was an accident outside."
Together, Clark and Lex walked outside to where a crowd had gathered at the corner of Market and Adams. Clark walked ahead of Lex, forging a path for him to follow.
Clark, still squeamish even after all he'd experienced, flinched away from the sight of Victoria's crumpled body.
To the casual observer, it looked like Lex handled it better, but Clark could see the tension in the set of his boyfriend's shoulders, and the way his already-pale face blanched a little more.
Lex walked resolutely to the uniformed officer keeping the gawkers at bay. "What happened here?" he asked.
"Strangest thing, Mr. Luthor. Looks like this lady tried to cross the street without looking and was hit by the bus. When he got out to see what he'd hit, the bus driver had a heart attack." He pointed to where someone, apparently a doctor, was crouched next to an elderly man in a Metropolis Transit Authority uniform.
They heard the sound of ambulance sirens approaching and the police officer started to direct the onlookers back about their business.
Clark watched Lex almost crumble before his eyes. "Come on. Let's get out of here."
"No. I have to handle this. I have to . . ." Lex insisted weakly.
"There's nothing here for you to handle, Lex. You look like you need to sit down."
"But . . ."
Clark gently took Lex's shoulders, leading him back towards the museum, but when they reached the bottom of the stairs, Lex balked. "No. I'm not going back in there."
"So where do you want to go, then?"
"Home." Lex walked to the valet stand, where a dozen or so people waited, and pushed to the front of the line. He handed the attendant a hundred-dollar bill to get his car first, and soon, a still-shaken Clark and Lex were on their way back to Smallville.
An hour and a half later, Lex pulled up in the drive in front of Luthor Manor. He looked over at Clark.
Clark looked back silently, expectantly.
"Could you come in for a while? I need a distraction. Something to keep me from thinking about someone I once . . .cared about . . . under the wheels of that bus." Lex slowly leaned forward as he said this, his gaze reeling Clark in to meet him in the center for a passionate kiss.
Somehow, they got out of the car without pausing in their kissing and Lex pressed into Clark, nearly bending him backwards over the hood of the car.
"Lex - shouldn't we take this inside?" Clark asked.
Lex looked up, meeting Clark's eyes, a predatory grin on his face. He somehow kicked the car door shut as he stood and together they walked into the house.
They barely made it into the foyer before Lex had Clark pressed up against the wall, kissing him fiercely. He pulled his head away from Clark's mouth just long enough to unbutton the second button of Clark's red button-down shirt, then he gradually kissed and unbuttoned his way down Clark's chest.
Reaching the waistband of Clark's khakis, Lex untucked Clark's shirt and stood, pushing the shirt and sportcoat together off of Clark's shoulders.
The progress of Lex stripping Clark was hindered, however, when the buttons of Clark's cuffs kept the shirt/jacket combination from sliding off of Clark's arms.
"Damn!" Lex whispered as he pushed frantically, futilely, at the now inside-out shirt.
Clark pulled Lex back up, kissing him. "I'll get it." He said with a soft smile on his lips and in his eyes. He wiggled his arms back through the sleeves enough to unbutton the cuffs, then let the shirt fall to the floor behind him.
Lex whimpered at the sight of Clark shirtless. He ran his hands up Clark's chest as he captured Clark's mouth again for a kiss.
When they separated next, Clark whispered to Lex, "Do you want to take this . . . upstairs?"
Lex couldn't believe what he was hearing. "Yes. I've never wanted anything so much in my life." He nodded, gazing deeply into Clark's eyes for what seemed like forever.
Clark smiled, blushing, and kissed Lex again.
Clark scooped up his shirt and jacket and held them in his right hand as Lex grabbed his left hand, pulling him towards the stairs. "Do you have any . . . doubts about this?" Lex asked.
Clark shook his head slowly. "No. I wouldn't have suggested it, otherwise."
Lex smiled. "Good. Just checking."
They climbed the stairs then and walked together to Lex's bedroom.
========
A/N II: This originally was to lead right into the first chapter of Honesty, with Clark and Lex waking up in bed together, and it still does, in a way. That first chapter does immediately follow this one. However, some stuff from Shimmer, Hug and Leech (Leech in particular) have inspired me, so there'll be a few chapters of this that will fall in that two-month period between Clark and Lex waking up in bed together and the kidnapping. If that makes any sense.
Author: PepperjackCandy
Series: Comes after "Epiphany"
Archive : Smallville Slash Archive, my writing at fanfiction.net
Rating: PG-13
Pairing: Clark/Lex
Category: Established Relationship
Spoilers for: References to Rogue
Disclaimer: I own nothing Smallville-related, or related in any other way to Clark Kent, Superman or any of the various creations of the wonderful folks at DC Comics. The Snow Queen is copyright 1980 by Joan D. Vinge, who is a goddess.
Feedback: Always welcome, either by e-mail or using the review system at fanfiction.net.
A/N: I know I get the HoNay! interruptions wrong, but I figure the difference in Lex and Clark's relationship in this series might have caused that change.
For Minnie, because I warned her, and for Nymph, because this is about as sexy as it gets when I'm writing.
========
"Ready to go?" Lex asked as he came into the den in a black suit and tie, white button-down shirt neatly pressed.
Clark looked up from the copy of The Snow Queen he was reading. "Yeah. Just a few more pages."
Lex poured himself a shot of Scotch. He sipped at it as he walked closer to Clark. "Must be a good book."
"It is." Clark responded without looking up.
Lex sighed and waited.
Finally Clark looked up. "Done." He sighed.
"You don't sound happy." Lex said as he raised the glass to his mouth for another sip.
"I'm not. BZ just arrested Moon."
"I take it that's a bad thing?"
"Of course it is! BZ loves Moon."
"Did she do whatever she's accused of?"
"Yes. But . . ."
Lex looked at him steadily, waiting for the rest of the sentence.
"But the law she broke was wrong."
"Wrong how?"
"Unfair. Unjust."
"Ah. So it's all right to break an unjust law?"
Clark thought for a moment. "I don't know if it's all right. But I don't think you should be punished for it."
"Especially not by someone who loves you."
Clark smiled a little. "Yeah."
"So, are we ready to go?"
"Should you be driving?" Clark looked at the empty glass in Lex's hand.
Lex grinned. "A shot of scotch isn't going to impair my ability to drive." He glanced at his watch. "In fact, my blood alcohol level should be peaking right about now."
"Oh. That instills all sorts of confidence in me."
Lex pouted and handed the car keys to Clark. "If you want to play designated driver."
Clark goggled. "Are you sure?"
Lex wasn't sure, but he needed to soothe his boyfriend's worries, so he smiled and said, "Yes. I'm sure. But only for the first hour, if we're going to be on time for this thing. I can promise you that the alcohol will be completely out of my system by then."
Clark nodded as they walked to the car together.
Two hours, and one change of drivers, later, Lex left his car with the valet outside of the Metropolis Museum of Art.
They walked into the newly-opened Luthor Hall. All of the other men there were in what Clark took to be designer suits, the women in black cocktail dresses. Clark suddenly keenly felt like he should have dressed up more than just khakis and his blue sportcoat.
Lex picked up on Clark's discomfort. "Feel underdressed?"
"Is it that obvious?"
Lex smiled. "Not to everyone. Just me. You were sort of . . . tugging at the side seams on your pants."
"Oh." Clark blushed.
"Don't be worried. Just carry yourself confidently and no one will even notice."
"You sure?"
Lex ran his hand over his scalp with a smirk. "If there's one thing I know, it's how to get along when you feel like you don't fit in."
Clark gave Lex a genuine smile and together they walked into the milling crowd.
They circulated, eating hors d'oeuvres and drinking -- Clark, ginger ale, Lex, champagne. Lex introduced Clark to a few of the attendees. Then after each other person had moved on, Lex told him what he really thought of him or her.
About halfway through the evening, Clark came back from the men's room to find Lex standing by a case containing a gold-colored breastplate spangled with rubies, sapphires and diamonds.
"You know it belonged to Alexander the Great?" Lex asked with a smile. "They say the design symbolizes strength and courage."
"I can't exactly see myself going into battle with that on my chest." Clark snorted.
"Darker times call for darker methods. His opponents thought he was invincible."
"I didn't know you were such a history buff."
"I'm not. I'm just interested in people who ruled the world before they were 30."
"I'm sorry. Am I interrupting?" A young auburn-haired woman asked as she interrupted them.
Lex sighed resignedly. "Clark Kent, this is Victoria Hardwick. A very old friend." He unobtrusively touched Clark's hand in reassurance. "I'll catch up with you later, Clark," he promised.
After Clark had left, he turned back to Victoria. "To what do I owe this honor?"
She sidled up to him in a faux-sexy way that made his skin crawl. "Aren't you going to take me on a private tour?"
"What do you want, Victoria?"
"Is it illegal to want to rekindle an old flame?"
"The way you do it, probably."
Victoria pouted, and Lex had to restrain the urge to scream. "But I missed you, Lex." She slowly walked the first two fingers of her right hand up his necktie.
"Victoria . . ." Lex said in a warning tone.
"My father has a business proposition for you."
Lex pursed his lips as if thinking. "Mmmmm. . . No."
This evidently wasn't what Victoria expected at all. "No?"
"No."
"You don't know what you're doing, Lex."
Lex smiled a little, coldly. "I think I do. Give Sir Harry my regards." Then, without another word, Lex turned on his heel and left.
Damn it! Victoria swore silently. Suddenly claustrophobic in the crush of the cream of Metropolis society, she made a beeline for the exit.
Once outside, she gasped in gulps of fresh air. What the hell am I going to tell my father? She worried, descending the stairs. In no hurry to leave, she avoided the valet stand, instead heading to the left, towards Adams Street.
She never even saw the bus coming.
Lex wandered around for a few minutes before finding Clark talking to Lana, Whitney and Nell.
"Enjoying the exhibit?" He asked as he joined them.
Nell pasted on her best phony smile. "It's just fascinating, Lex." She simpered.
Lana chewed her lower lip for a moment, then spoke. "Lex, all of this stuff has been in your family for generations?"
Lex nodded. "Yes."
"Why did your father decide to put it all in the museum like this?"
Lex shook his head. "I have no idea. If you can figure it out . . ." He stopped midsentence when the tone of conversations in the room changed suddenly. "What's going on?" He asked.
Clark tuned in to a conversation behind him. "It sounds like there was an accident outside."
Together, Clark and Lex walked outside to where a crowd had gathered at the corner of Market and Adams. Clark walked ahead of Lex, forging a path for him to follow.
Clark, still squeamish even after all he'd experienced, flinched away from the sight of Victoria's crumpled body.
To the casual observer, it looked like Lex handled it better, but Clark could see the tension in the set of his boyfriend's shoulders, and the way his already-pale face blanched a little more.
Lex walked resolutely to the uniformed officer keeping the gawkers at bay. "What happened here?" he asked.
"Strangest thing, Mr. Luthor. Looks like this lady tried to cross the street without looking and was hit by the bus. When he got out to see what he'd hit, the bus driver had a heart attack." He pointed to where someone, apparently a doctor, was crouched next to an elderly man in a Metropolis Transit Authority uniform.
They heard the sound of ambulance sirens approaching and the police officer started to direct the onlookers back about their business.
Clark watched Lex almost crumble before his eyes. "Come on. Let's get out of here."
"No. I have to handle this. I have to . . ." Lex insisted weakly.
"There's nothing here for you to handle, Lex. You look like you need to sit down."
"But . . ."
Clark gently took Lex's shoulders, leading him back towards the museum, but when they reached the bottom of the stairs, Lex balked. "No. I'm not going back in there."
"So where do you want to go, then?"
"Home." Lex walked to the valet stand, where a dozen or so people waited, and pushed to the front of the line. He handed the attendant a hundred-dollar bill to get his car first, and soon, a still-shaken Clark and Lex were on their way back to Smallville.
An hour and a half later, Lex pulled up in the drive in front of Luthor Manor. He looked over at Clark.
Clark looked back silently, expectantly.
"Could you come in for a while? I need a distraction. Something to keep me from thinking about someone I once . . .cared about . . . under the wheels of that bus." Lex slowly leaned forward as he said this, his gaze reeling Clark in to meet him in the center for a passionate kiss.
Somehow, they got out of the car without pausing in their kissing and Lex pressed into Clark, nearly bending him backwards over the hood of the car.
"Lex - shouldn't we take this inside?" Clark asked.
Lex looked up, meeting Clark's eyes, a predatory grin on his face. He somehow kicked the car door shut as he stood and together they walked into the house.
They barely made it into the foyer before Lex had Clark pressed up against the wall, kissing him fiercely. He pulled his head away from Clark's mouth just long enough to unbutton the second button of Clark's red button-down shirt, then he gradually kissed and unbuttoned his way down Clark's chest.
Reaching the waistband of Clark's khakis, Lex untucked Clark's shirt and stood, pushing the shirt and sportcoat together off of Clark's shoulders.
The progress of Lex stripping Clark was hindered, however, when the buttons of Clark's cuffs kept the shirt/jacket combination from sliding off of Clark's arms.
"Damn!" Lex whispered as he pushed frantically, futilely, at the now inside-out shirt.
Clark pulled Lex back up, kissing him. "I'll get it." He said with a soft smile on his lips and in his eyes. He wiggled his arms back through the sleeves enough to unbutton the cuffs, then let the shirt fall to the floor behind him.
Lex whimpered at the sight of Clark shirtless. He ran his hands up Clark's chest as he captured Clark's mouth again for a kiss.
When they separated next, Clark whispered to Lex, "Do you want to take this . . . upstairs?"
Lex couldn't believe what he was hearing. "Yes. I've never wanted anything so much in my life." He nodded, gazing deeply into Clark's eyes for what seemed like forever.
Clark smiled, blushing, and kissed Lex again.
Clark scooped up his shirt and jacket and held them in his right hand as Lex grabbed his left hand, pulling him towards the stairs. "Do you have any . . . doubts about this?" Lex asked.
Clark shook his head slowly. "No. I wouldn't have suggested it, otherwise."
Lex smiled. "Good. Just checking."
They climbed the stairs then and walked together to Lex's bedroom.
========
A/N II: This originally was to lead right into the first chapter of Honesty, with Clark and Lex waking up in bed together, and it still does, in a way. That first chapter does immediately follow this one. However, some stuff from Shimmer, Hug and Leech (Leech in particular) have inspired me, so there'll be a few chapters of this that will fall in that two-month period between Clark and Lex waking up in bed together and the kidnapping. If that makes any sense.