Title: The Visitor – Chapter 2
Author: Steptacular
Email: andre@gensteps.co.uk
Notes: This story coincides with the events of the opening to "Rogue"
Rating: G
Disclaimer: Yeah I know y'all hated her on the show but I think she had potential for a good character. So here is my take on Victoria Hardwick, please don't flog me.
Thanks BUNCHES to Wookie and Slod for proofreading this for me. Slod your editing cherry has been popped!
Feedback! Almost as appreciated as a new actress to portray Lana!
Spending the better half of the day in Metropolis had been more than enjoyable. Victoria had spent her entire afternoon shopping around for something that she knew Lex would like. That something was, short, tight and revealing.
She now stood in her suite at the Metropolis Court Royale getting herself ready for her night out. She wondered what Lex would look like now. It had been a long time since she had last seen him but she figured he was probably still the same: bald and strikingly handsome.
"Perfect, Victoria," she said in her smooth British accent, looking herself over in the mirror. She ran both her hands through her hair, puckered her lips and grabbed her purse. Hopefully the limousine was already waiting for her downstairs, or else Hardwick Enterprises would find itself short one more employee.
She took the elevator downstairs. The limo was already waiting for her and the chauffer opened the door as she approached.
"Evening, Miss Hardwick." He said slightly tipping his hat. She didn't answer. No reason to bother talking to him anyway; he was already informed as to where they were going.
She got in the car and made herself comfortable. The trip to the museum wasn't as long as she had hoped it would be. She had wanted to gather her thoughts on exactly how everything was going to play out. Lex Luthor wasn't stupid and she tried her hardest to remember that. When the chauffer opened the door, she was reluctant to get out.
"Here we are, Miss Hardwick. Metropolis Museum." She considered telling him what time to come pick her up but decided on something else.
"I won't be needing you to return tonight. Just take the rest of the evening off."
"Thank you, Miss Hardwick." The man said again, tipping his hat, reminding Victoria of one of the little bellboys from cartoons. She began walking up the stairs and tried her best to avoid eye contact with everyone she didn't have time for courtesy.
"Evening ma'am," said the doorman as she walked through.
"'Allo," she answered, not looking at him, but instead looking around trying to find Lex. She finally spotted him, standing next to a glass case with a breastplate in it. She had seen that breastplate years ago when the Luthor's had first acquired it. Lex had always been fascinated with it. Why, she could never understand. She walked closer, trying to find the perfect moment to approach Lex. But he was talking with a very attractive dark haired young boy…the same boy who had been on front page of the Smallville Ledger, the one who had saved Lex. Victoria began to wonder why Lex had bothered bringing this boy to Metropolis for such an important occasion, when she was distracted by a girl approaching them.
Was Lex seeing someone else? No, this girl didn't seem his type; she looked too bland. The look on Lex's face gave away that he wasn't interested in her, rather annoyed. He gave the young man one last look and excused himself.
What had Lex gotten himself into now that he had been living in Smallville? She let out a sigh of amusement as she saw Lex hover near another exhibit and stare at the dark haired boy and the pretty girl…Things were always interesting when Lex was involved. She wondered now, what kind of game was he playing with these children?
She looked at Lex, who was still staring at the dark-hired boy from afar. Then she saw the dark haired boy walk away, annoyed, and head towards Lex. Lex stopped him and began talking to him, she was tired of waiting she wanted some part of the fun, and began to walk towards them.
"You know you're never gonna get her if you keep running away from your enemy." Lex said to the boy, to Victoria it looked like he was taunting him.
And the boy was supposedly interested in that girl? How boring.
"Whitney's not my enemy." The boy declared and started walking. Victoria began moving slowly to keep up with them and the conversation.
"Yes, he is Clark, and the sooner you realize that, the sooner you'll find a way to win Lana."
This was entertaining. Lex going through all these problems to try to set up two kids, that just didn't seem much like him. There was something else, though. They were speaking to each other but without words. The boy was nervous about something. Ashamed of something maybe? He was balancing himself on the balls of his feet and looking down at the ground. Lex was stirring something inside of him…now she was sure he was taunting him, but with what? Nothing in his words betrayed anything but something was definitely out of place.
"Just remember keep your friends close and the quarter back closer." Lex said, stopping the boy.
She remembered years ago when Lex had talked to her as if everything was a war. Something he had acquired from his father, no doubt. Always comparing business and war, pleasure and war, love and war. Victoria yawned and brought her hand up to her mouth. She wanted to tease Lex, make an entrance. Maybe if she let him know she was on to him. On to the game he was playing with these kids. He probably thought since he moved to Smallville and got away from the old crowd, no one would know his old tricks. But she did and she wouldn't let him forget. Victoria took one last look around, and when she saw the coast was clear, she made her move.
"Always the hopeless romantic, Lex," she said nonchalantly. Lex turned to her with a look of surprise on his face. Exactly what she had hoped for.
"Victoria." He managed to stutter out. Was he afraid that she has been listening in on the conversation? She hoped he was.
"I'm sorry. Am I interrupting anything?" She asked subtly gazing from Lex to the boy. She could tell Lex was nervous as he held her gaze. She didn't know what was wrong…yet. But never the less she wanted him to think she did, and it was working very well.
"Clark Kent, this is Victoria Hardwick… a very old friend." Lex looked at the boy who now had a look of anger on his face. Jealousy? No there was only one reason he would be jealous and Victoria highly doubted that. Maybe he was embarrassed that she, a complete stranger, had heard the conversation about his woeful love life?
"Hi," Clark said softly, trying to avoid eye contact.
When the help came up to offer her a glass of champagne, she accepted it. Clark whispered something to Lex and walked of. She hadn't managed to catch it,
"I'll catch up with you later, Clark," was Lex's reply.
Lex didn't turn to look at the boy but the boy looked at Lex one last time before storming off, like children often did when bothered.
Victoria smiled and handed Lex the glass of champagne. She stared at him for a while before he broke the silence.
"You want a private tour?"
"I thought you'd never ask."
Now that they were alone, she could make her move. They began walking near the exhibits, she didn't bother looking inside any of the cases. Art, as it always had, still bored her.
"So what brings you here?" Lex asked, looking straight ahead.
"I was just in Metropolis handling some business for me father. I read about your little… exhibit in the newspaper and figured I'd swing by to say hello, catch up on old times."
Lex grabbed her by the arm and stopped her. She loved the roughness and dominating feel of his hold. She had always played innocent and weak with him before and obviously he still remembered that. She looked into his eyes, they were trying to probe her. She knew he didn't believe that she was just here to talk, but that was beside the point. Things were already going as she hoped, they both knew they enjoyed each others defiance. The chess game they played whenever they were together, to see who could keep the other in check.
"Victoria, we're both a little too old for games now." He said in a low tone.
"Who said I was here to play games, Lex?" She said, giving a soft innocent smile.
"What do you want then?"
"To talk, that's all. I believe I have an offer you couldn't turn down…unless you want to stay in a town located in the middle of nowhere."
"I like Smallville, Victoria."
She wondered for a second why he kept repeating her name. Maybe he was trying to remind himself who he was dealing with. Her innocent act had fooled him once before and now that he knew her it wasn't going to work. So she figured being straight forward might be the way to go.
"I know Lex, but do you like the fertilizer plant?"
He turned away, releasing his grasp on her before putting his hands into his jacket pocket. She stared at him, confidence pumping through her blood. She knew she had him.
"Come stay in Smallville with me for a while, and you can look around. Might not be glamorous enough for the Daughter of Sir Hardwick, but I'm sure we can try to make it as…accommodating as you'd like."
Checkmate, she thought.
"I wouldn't mind at all. In fact, getting away from the big bad city would be a welcome change at the moment," she lied. In reality she hated small towns and was already dreading the thought of being surrounded by trucks and livestock.
"Good, that's good." He answered, still not showing much emotion on his face. "I have several things to do before returning to Smallville, but I can have someone drive you there if you wouldn't mind. You can wait a day for me can't you?"
"I could wait longer than that for you, Lex."
A smile spread at the corner of his mouth and he brought his face close to hers.
"I'm not stupid, Victoria," was all he said before they were interrupted by someone clearing their throat.
Victoria looked over Lex's shoulder to see the girl, the boring one, he had been talking to earlier.
"Sorry to bother you Lex, but have you seen Clark?" came a voice that was soft, low and flat from behind them.
"Am I interrupting anything?" She asked her eyes moving from Victoria back to Lex.
"Lana! No, not at all. This is Victoria. We were just talking…" Lex glanced at Victoria, "catching up on old times."
"Oh well, I was just looking for Clark. We were going to get something to eat but now I can't find him," the bland girl continued.
"I haven't seen him," Lex said. "But I wouldn't worry too much. You know Clark likes to run off."
"Yeah, well thanks," she finished, giving Victoria one last look, before walking away.
"Who is that?" Victoria asked, annoyed that they had been interrupted
"Lana Lang. The Lang's are old family friends."
"I see…"
At least now she knew why Lex was associating with her, aside from the Clark's apparent "crush" on her. There was probably more to it though; with the Luthor's there was always more to it.
"Now where were we?" he asked, looking at her again.
"Well, you were about an inch away from my face, and I was beginning to enjoy it."
"That's right."
Just as he was getting closer, they heard a loud crash come from outside. People began running out the door and Lex looked up, surprised.
"I'm going to go see what's wrong. I'll be right back."
Victoria stood there by herself smiling. She began walking outside curious as to what the fiasco was, when she spotted the courtesy phone on a stand. She picked up and dialed.
"Hello, yes, this is Victoria Hardwick. I need my belongings sent to the Luthor Estate in Smallville." She paused as the concierge argued with her, "Well sir, I'm sure that if you'd like our continued business with your company you will find the address on your own."
She waited for a while until the man on the other end of the phone was done apologizing. Hung up, and dialed another number.
"Daddy…I have excellent news…"
Author: Steptacular
Email: andre@gensteps.co.uk
Notes: This story coincides with the events of the opening to "Rogue"
Rating: G
Disclaimer: Yeah I know y'all hated her on the show but I think she had potential for a good character. So here is my take on Victoria Hardwick, please don't flog me.
Thanks BUNCHES to Wookie and Slod for proofreading this for me. Slod your editing cherry has been popped!
Feedback! Almost as appreciated as a new actress to portray Lana!
Spending the better half of the day in Metropolis had been more than enjoyable. Victoria had spent her entire afternoon shopping around for something that she knew Lex would like. That something was, short, tight and revealing.
She now stood in her suite at the Metropolis Court Royale getting herself ready for her night out. She wondered what Lex would look like now. It had been a long time since she had last seen him but she figured he was probably still the same: bald and strikingly handsome.
"Perfect, Victoria," she said in her smooth British accent, looking herself over in the mirror. She ran both her hands through her hair, puckered her lips and grabbed her purse. Hopefully the limousine was already waiting for her downstairs, or else Hardwick Enterprises would find itself short one more employee.
She took the elevator downstairs. The limo was already waiting for her and the chauffer opened the door as she approached.
"Evening, Miss Hardwick." He said slightly tipping his hat. She didn't answer. No reason to bother talking to him anyway; he was already informed as to where they were going.
She got in the car and made herself comfortable. The trip to the museum wasn't as long as she had hoped it would be. She had wanted to gather her thoughts on exactly how everything was going to play out. Lex Luthor wasn't stupid and she tried her hardest to remember that. When the chauffer opened the door, she was reluctant to get out.
"Here we are, Miss Hardwick. Metropolis Museum." She considered telling him what time to come pick her up but decided on something else.
"I won't be needing you to return tonight. Just take the rest of the evening off."
"Thank you, Miss Hardwick." The man said again, tipping his hat, reminding Victoria of one of the little bellboys from cartoons. She began walking up the stairs and tried her best to avoid eye contact with everyone she didn't have time for courtesy.
"Evening ma'am," said the doorman as she walked through.
"'Allo," she answered, not looking at him, but instead looking around trying to find Lex. She finally spotted him, standing next to a glass case with a breastplate in it. She had seen that breastplate years ago when the Luthor's had first acquired it. Lex had always been fascinated with it. Why, she could never understand. She walked closer, trying to find the perfect moment to approach Lex. But he was talking with a very attractive dark haired young boy…the same boy who had been on front page of the Smallville Ledger, the one who had saved Lex. Victoria began to wonder why Lex had bothered bringing this boy to Metropolis for such an important occasion, when she was distracted by a girl approaching them.
Was Lex seeing someone else? No, this girl didn't seem his type; she looked too bland. The look on Lex's face gave away that he wasn't interested in her, rather annoyed. He gave the young man one last look and excused himself.
What had Lex gotten himself into now that he had been living in Smallville? She let out a sigh of amusement as she saw Lex hover near another exhibit and stare at the dark haired boy and the pretty girl…Things were always interesting when Lex was involved. She wondered now, what kind of game was he playing with these children?
She looked at Lex, who was still staring at the dark-hired boy from afar. Then she saw the dark haired boy walk away, annoyed, and head towards Lex. Lex stopped him and began talking to him, she was tired of waiting she wanted some part of the fun, and began to walk towards them.
"You know you're never gonna get her if you keep running away from your enemy." Lex said to the boy, to Victoria it looked like he was taunting him.
And the boy was supposedly interested in that girl? How boring.
"Whitney's not my enemy." The boy declared and started walking. Victoria began moving slowly to keep up with them and the conversation.
"Yes, he is Clark, and the sooner you realize that, the sooner you'll find a way to win Lana."
This was entertaining. Lex going through all these problems to try to set up two kids, that just didn't seem much like him. There was something else, though. They were speaking to each other but without words. The boy was nervous about something. Ashamed of something maybe? He was balancing himself on the balls of his feet and looking down at the ground. Lex was stirring something inside of him…now she was sure he was taunting him, but with what? Nothing in his words betrayed anything but something was definitely out of place.
"Just remember keep your friends close and the quarter back closer." Lex said, stopping the boy.
She remembered years ago when Lex had talked to her as if everything was a war. Something he had acquired from his father, no doubt. Always comparing business and war, pleasure and war, love and war. Victoria yawned and brought her hand up to her mouth. She wanted to tease Lex, make an entrance. Maybe if she let him know she was on to him. On to the game he was playing with these kids. He probably thought since he moved to Smallville and got away from the old crowd, no one would know his old tricks. But she did and she wouldn't let him forget. Victoria took one last look around, and when she saw the coast was clear, she made her move.
"Always the hopeless romantic, Lex," she said nonchalantly. Lex turned to her with a look of surprise on his face. Exactly what she had hoped for.
"Victoria." He managed to stutter out. Was he afraid that she has been listening in on the conversation? She hoped he was.
"I'm sorry. Am I interrupting anything?" She asked subtly gazing from Lex to the boy. She could tell Lex was nervous as he held her gaze. She didn't know what was wrong…yet. But never the less she wanted him to think she did, and it was working very well.
"Clark Kent, this is Victoria Hardwick… a very old friend." Lex looked at the boy who now had a look of anger on his face. Jealousy? No there was only one reason he would be jealous and Victoria highly doubted that. Maybe he was embarrassed that she, a complete stranger, had heard the conversation about his woeful love life?
"Hi," Clark said softly, trying to avoid eye contact.
When the help came up to offer her a glass of champagne, she accepted it. Clark whispered something to Lex and walked of. She hadn't managed to catch it,
"I'll catch up with you later, Clark," was Lex's reply.
Lex didn't turn to look at the boy but the boy looked at Lex one last time before storming off, like children often did when bothered.
Victoria smiled and handed Lex the glass of champagne. She stared at him for a while before he broke the silence.
"You want a private tour?"
"I thought you'd never ask."
Now that they were alone, she could make her move. They began walking near the exhibits, she didn't bother looking inside any of the cases. Art, as it always had, still bored her.
"So what brings you here?" Lex asked, looking straight ahead.
"I was just in Metropolis handling some business for me father. I read about your little… exhibit in the newspaper and figured I'd swing by to say hello, catch up on old times."
Lex grabbed her by the arm and stopped her. She loved the roughness and dominating feel of his hold. She had always played innocent and weak with him before and obviously he still remembered that. She looked into his eyes, they were trying to probe her. She knew he didn't believe that she was just here to talk, but that was beside the point. Things were already going as she hoped, they both knew they enjoyed each others defiance. The chess game they played whenever they were together, to see who could keep the other in check.
"Victoria, we're both a little too old for games now." He said in a low tone.
"Who said I was here to play games, Lex?" She said, giving a soft innocent smile.
"What do you want then?"
"To talk, that's all. I believe I have an offer you couldn't turn down…unless you want to stay in a town located in the middle of nowhere."
"I like Smallville, Victoria."
She wondered for a second why he kept repeating her name. Maybe he was trying to remind himself who he was dealing with. Her innocent act had fooled him once before and now that he knew her it wasn't going to work. So she figured being straight forward might be the way to go.
"I know Lex, but do you like the fertilizer plant?"
He turned away, releasing his grasp on her before putting his hands into his jacket pocket. She stared at him, confidence pumping through her blood. She knew she had him.
"Come stay in Smallville with me for a while, and you can look around. Might not be glamorous enough for the Daughter of Sir Hardwick, but I'm sure we can try to make it as…accommodating as you'd like."
Checkmate, she thought.
"I wouldn't mind at all. In fact, getting away from the big bad city would be a welcome change at the moment," she lied. In reality she hated small towns and was already dreading the thought of being surrounded by trucks and livestock.
"Good, that's good." He answered, still not showing much emotion on his face. "I have several things to do before returning to Smallville, but I can have someone drive you there if you wouldn't mind. You can wait a day for me can't you?"
"I could wait longer than that for you, Lex."
A smile spread at the corner of his mouth and he brought his face close to hers.
"I'm not stupid, Victoria," was all he said before they were interrupted by someone clearing their throat.
Victoria looked over Lex's shoulder to see the girl, the boring one, he had been talking to earlier.
"Sorry to bother you Lex, but have you seen Clark?" came a voice that was soft, low and flat from behind them.
"Am I interrupting anything?" She asked her eyes moving from Victoria back to Lex.
"Lana! No, not at all. This is Victoria. We were just talking…" Lex glanced at Victoria, "catching up on old times."
"Oh well, I was just looking for Clark. We were going to get something to eat but now I can't find him," the bland girl continued.
"I haven't seen him," Lex said. "But I wouldn't worry too much. You know Clark likes to run off."
"Yeah, well thanks," she finished, giving Victoria one last look, before walking away.
"Who is that?" Victoria asked, annoyed that they had been interrupted
"Lana Lang. The Lang's are old family friends."
"I see…"
At least now she knew why Lex was associating with her, aside from the Clark's apparent "crush" on her. There was probably more to it though; with the Luthor's there was always more to it.
"Now where were we?" he asked, looking at her again.
"Well, you were about an inch away from my face, and I was beginning to enjoy it."
"That's right."
Just as he was getting closer, they heard a loud crash come from outside. People began running out the door and Lex looked up, surprised.
"I'm going to go see what's wrong. I'll be right back."
Victoria stood there by herself smiling. She began walking outside curious as to what the fiasco was, when she spotted the courtesy phone on a stand. She picked up and dialed.
"Hello, yes, this is Victoria Hardwick. I need my belongings sent to the Luthor Estate in Smallville." She paused as the concierge argued with her, "Well sir, I'm sure that if you'd like our continued business with your company you will find the address on your own."
She waited for a while until the man on the other end of the phone was done apologizing. Hung up, and dialed another number.
"Daddy…I have excellent news…"