TITLE: Elseworlds-Power
AUTHOR: William Rayne
EMAIL: knytmare@yahoo.com
RATING: PG-13
SUMMARY: Clark: a name associated with power not meant for mortal man. Luthor: a name associated with a thirst for power and control. Clark Luthor: God help us all... Things the way they were never meant to be.
SPOILERS: revised Premier and "Metamorphosis"
PAIRING: none
DISTRIBUTION: FanFiction.net, email me
DISCLAIMER someone else owns 'em, I'm just taking them out to play. Don't sue me, I have no money
FEEDBACK: Desired like none other.
NOTES AND NEWS: Thanks to Deia for helping me with story development and being an "über beta queen and grammar Nazi." Props to Dumont for helping beta. As always: bold italics for stressed, italics for thoughts or voice-over, and underlines for sarcasm or disgust. This is a *huge* work in progress, so expect possible revisions to previous chapters. Been busy with school, so haven't had a chance to get a lot of chapters beta'd, proofed and edited. Thank you for your patience, I promise to get them out to you as soon as they are ready to be published. I am looking for beta readers and editors to help with this, if you'd like to volunteer, IM me…I like to screen those I'm trusting with 'my works'.
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Chapter 3
Given the circumstances, Clark had begun to believe Lex's claim that he was the golden child, since his Father had chastised Clark for his indiscretion, but compared to what he'd seen Lex get in the past, he knew he had gotten off easy. That, however, didn't mean he wasn't still peeved when he got off the phone. The irritation had more to do with the fact that Clark wasn't sure who to be more aggravated with: his Father, or the reporter who managed to break the story containing his identity. The last thing he expected was for a high school reporter to expose him, and as he ran to Smallville High, he couldn't help but grudgingly admire the tenacity of the reporter that managed to break the story that linked him to the accident.
As he pushed back thoughts of the conversation with his Father about the incident, Clark ran and hoped to find out how much more this Chloe Sullivan had stumbled onto in her investigation. Clark was impressed that a high school reporter managed to find out his involvement in the matter. Impressed and equally annoyed, but impressed none-the-less, Clark was curious to evaluate the potential threat she represented…or rather the threat his Father claimed she could become to Clark's secret.
When Clark walked into the school newspaper room, the last thing he expected was the petite blond that was absorbed in the work she was doing at the computer monitor. He had expected the person who posed a threat to his very way of life to be more…well, imposing. The girl before him was just that. A girl, not the object of potential menace that Father had implanted in his mind. Clark berated himself for letting his Father play on his emotions with such ease. He cleared his throat and startled the girl from her reverie at the monitor.
As Clark chuckled to himself, Chloe glared at him, and a split second later, recomposed herself.
"Do you make a habit of appearing out of nowhere, or is today just a special occasion?" she asked quizzically.
Her choice of words alarmed him and as he searched for an appropriate answer, she took the offensive by adding, "You are Clark Luthor, adopted son of billionaire, Lionel Luthor, are you not? 'Cause if you aren't, you could make a fortune as an entertainer specializing in impersonations."
"Are all the women in this quaint town this charming? Or are you the exception?"
"I prefer to be upfront and honest, Mr. Luthor. Traits I'm sure you're undoubtedly familiar with."
"Please, Miss Sullivan, call me Clark. Mr. Luthor is my father, and I am very much not my father."
"Very well, as long as we're engaging in pleasantries, I'll let you call me Chloe. Now on to the reason for your visit…I'm sure my unique charm isn't what I owe the pleasure of your visit to. If it is, I'm very much flattered."
"You really don't know why I'm here?" Clark responded, dumbfounded. A moment later he realized her tactic to have him confirm her suspicions.
As he recovered from the faux paus, he decided on a different tactic as he approached her desk and stated, "I just wanted to congratulate you on your investigative skills, Chloe."
"I'm sure that Luthor charm works on debutants in Metropolis, Clark, but flattery won't get you the name of my source."
As he sat on her desk, Clark chuckled, "Your source? I'm fairly certain of whom they are."
Acknowledging Chloe's apprehension at his statement, Clark elaborated, "But that is neither here nor there. The reason I came here was in the hopes that you could provide answers to some questions I had regarding the incident."
Intrigued and relieved, Chloe relaxed, sat back in her chair and replied, "That all depends on the questions."
"Even without my involvement, I'm sure you would agree that the incident, in and of itself, is strange. I was curious to see what your investigation into the matter has turned up."
"And I'm equally curious as to why a man of your influence would bother asking a high school reporter when you would have a much more efficient time with the local police."
"Well, as your headline stated, I am the 'Reclusive Luthor'. Very rarely does my name make print, let alone headlines. It seems to me, that an investigative reporter who manages to bring me into the spotlight, might just have better information than the local police or at the very least, more open theories."
Chloe smiled coyly and reaffirmed, "Flattery, Clark, flattery. I'm failing to see what I would get from sharing what I know with someone who would prefer to lurk in the shadows…"
As he saw that a bout of wits would take much more time than he cared to invest, Clark conceded this battle and offered, "How about an interview of my account of what happened? Barring any questions on matters that may compromise LuthorCorp, such as the Kevlar…would that be enough motivation?"
***********************************************************
"YOU WHAT?!?!!"
"Calm down, Lex, I think I came up on the better end of the deal in the exchange so no harm, no foul?"
Taking a few deep breaths to recompose himself, Lex reattempted to make his brother see his point of view. "You're absolutely sure of this, Clark?"
Affronted by his brother's continued insinuation of incompetence since Clark got back to the mansion and told Lex what happened with his visit with Chloe, Clark snapped back, "Of course, what do you take me for? I'M NOT A FUCKING CHILD, LEX! I understand what's at stake here. I collaborated the cover story and learned more than you did with the Kents. Information, I might add, that we wouldn't have gotten in any other way. I'd think knowing that an assailant could've witnessed my abilities is more goddamn important than how I got that information."
Involuntarily and nonchalantly stepping back from his brother's rising anger, Lex kept his voice as neutral as possible to keep the fight verbal, "I'm not saying that isn't important, Clark, but I'm your brother and I'm frightened of what could happen to you."
Clark calmed down visibly a bit, Lex smiled faintly and pressed on gently, "So humor me for a moment please?"
*Grunt*
"Just tell me, verbatim, what was said after your offer was accepted?"
Irked by the request, Clark began to respond, "She asked me…" As he struggled to remember the exact conversation, he finally, frustratingly finished by hissing, "Damn you, Lex. Always having to find fault with the things I do, you're no better than Father."
"I wasn't trying to…." Lex's words fell on deaf ears as the sudden change in the air current signaled Clark's angry run from the conversation. Fine, run away as usual, brother. I'll clean up this mess if something comes up from it, but no matter how much or how far you run...you'll eventually have to face the fact that your actions will have considerably greater significance or consequence than any other human being's. When you do, you'll see that your impulses will harm more than just you.
*************************************************************
He ran, not knowing where he was going but just wanting to get as far from Lex and the mansion as possible. He ran angrily, eventually realizing that he was angrier with himself than at Lex and no matter how much he ran, he wouldn't be able to run from himself. Slowing down, he tried to figure out how to solve his latest slip up as he kicked a stone and silently cursed God for his abilities. Why can't I just be normal?
"Who's there?"
"It's me," Clark said as he stepped out to the open, and stood in front of a winged angel statue, "Clark."
"Clark Luthor?" she said, coming closer. "What are you doing creeping around the woods?"
"You'd never believe me if I told you," Clark recognized Lana from earlier and feeling awkward, turned to leave adding, "Sorry. Didn't mean to scare you"
"Clark, wait," she stopped and walked toward him, "I just wasn't expecting to see anyone out here. Are you okay?"
Stopping, he looked over his shoulder and said wryly, "I'm hanging out in a graveyard. Does this strike you as okay behavior?"
"Hey... I'm here too."
"Good point. What's your story?"
She moved to stand in front of him and said, "Can you keep a secret?"
Clark hesitated before answering, "I'm the Fort Knox of secrets."
"I... came out here to talk with my parents," she laughed and turned away slightly, "You must think I'm pretty weird, you know, conversing with dead people."
Puzzled for a split second before he remembered the meteor shower that happened twelve years ago and the magazine Father kept framed in his office, he recalled where he's seen her before and said, "No, I don't think you're weird, Lana."
She smiled at him.
"Do you remember them?"
"They died when I was three."
"I'm sorry."
"It's not your fault, Clark." Amused, she smiled warmly, "C'mon, I'll introduce you." She takes him by the hand and leads him to a gravestone set in the ground.
"Mom, Dad, this is Clark Luthor," and turning to him said, "Say hi."
Not quite sure how to react, he waved awkwardly to the gravestone, "Hi."
Lana chuckled, crouched down and set the flowers down on the stone. It read, "Lang, Lewis (1957-1989) and Laura (1959-1989), forever loved"
"Yeah, he is kinda shy," she said to the grave and knelt down, "How should I know?" Turning towards Clark as he also knelt down, she asked, "Mom wants to know if you're upset about a girl?"
Clark shook his head 'no'.
"Dad wants to know if you're upset about a guy?"
Strongly and quickly, he said, "No. No."
Laughing, she added, "He has a twisted sense of humor."
For the first time since this conversation began, he smiled.
"Seriously, Clark, why are you out here?"
"Lana, do you ever feel like your life was supposed to be something different?" he said more intensely than he cared to, and worried if she thought he was crazy.
She just nodded as if she understood exactly what he meant and replied, "Sometimes I dream I'm at school, waiting for Nell to pick me up. But she doesn't come, so my parents drive up. They're not dead, they're just... really late."
Smiling, she continued, "And I get in the car and we drive back to my real life in Metropolis. That's usually when I wake up. But for a minute, I'm totally happy."
Suddenly turning somber, she finished, "Until I realize I'm still alone."
As she stopped talking, there was a silence, and then Clark leaned toward the gravestone slightly.
"What's that, Mrs. Lang?" he paused and added, "Yeah, I'll-- I'll tell her."
Turning back towards Lana, he stated, "Your mom wants you to know you're never alone, that she's always looking over you. No matter what."
She smiled, "She really say that?"
"Oh yeah. She's really quite chatty once you get her started."
Lana continued to smile at him and for the first time that day, Clark felt like something is finally going his way.
********************************************************
"So, I saw the 'Smallville Torch' after you left the mansion…" Lana said as they walked down the dirt road.
"Oh, that, it's…um, uh…no big deal."
"No it is," Lana stopped and looked at him directly, "Thank you."
Clark stared at her, puzzled. She elaborated, "The boy you saved, Whitney, is my boyfriend."
"Oh," Clark said weakly, as he tried to hide how crestfallen he was.
"I'm sorry, for a second I forgot you're not from around here…I just felt, for a moment, like I've known you for more than a day. You know?" she finished lamely.
Clark nodded and they continued for a few minutes in silence before they neared her home.
"Thanks for walking me home."
"Beats creeping around the woods," Clark replied cheerfully at the break from the silence.
Laughing and smiling fondly at him, Lana said, "This was nice. We should do it again."
As they stopped near the house, Clark smiled, "Yeah, we should."
"Are you in town permanently or just here for a visit?"
"Just for the weekend but I'm probably going to visit quite a bit."
"Oh," Lana walked over and gave him a small kiss on the cheek.
"Good night, Clark."
As she walked away, she turned to smile fondly at him again. Once she turns back away, Clark smiled too, and walked back to the mansion. As they both disappear, a boy watched Clark walk down the dirt path and seethed silently. Neither you nor the quarterback deserves her attentions, rich boy. Guess I'll have to squash you too.