The Heart of a King -- Part 2, Pilot (B)
By: PepperjackCandy
Rating: PG-13
Warnings: Het, Genderbending
Pairing: Lex (sort of )/Clark
A/N: The zebra thing will be explained later.
2001
" . . . and that's the entire tour, Miss Luthor," Gabe Sullivan finished.
"Please. Call me Leo. And could you step into my office for a second?"
"Certainly, Mi . . . Leo."
Leo closed the door and buzzed her secretary. "Silvia, Mr. Sullivan and I will be in a private meeting for the next half hour or so."
"Very well, Miss Luthor."
She turned back to Gabe. "All right. I'm going to be frank with you. My father has sent me here to fix Mr. Rayner's mistakes. He wants this plant making money, and he doesn't care how I go about doing it. If I choose to cut your workforce in half, he'll approve it."
She forestalled his protest, "I'm not going to do that. I know that would save money now, but we'd lose money in the long run, and we'd irreparably damage the economy of Smallville. So, making this place profitable is going to be a painstaking process. But it'll be well worth the effort.
"My father is a big believer that those who forget history are doomed to repeat it. It's an obsession with him, in fact. The role model of my childhood and youth was Queen Elizabeth I. Her most trusted advisor was Sir William Cecil. You're a good man, Gabe. I've asked around about you. I'm offering you the chance to be my Sir William Cecil, if you're interested."
Gabe's eyes fairly bugged out. "I'd be honored."
Leo smiled. "Good. So, let's get started then, shall we?"
***
Clark leaned over the railing of the bridge, looking out into the water. Keep your head down. Safety in numbers. How the hell am I supposed to find safety in numbers when the other zebras are going to be at the homecoming game?
It was bad enough when I knew that Chloe would be covering it for the paper, but now Pete's on the team, and where does that leave me? Hoping that Chester or Eugene get tagged instead of me, because if I'm chosen, I'll really draw attention to myself . . .
He was distracted by the sound of an oncoming car, only, there was something wrong with it. He turned in the direction of the sound to find the car barreling towards him.
***
Leo felt good about her first day at the plant. There was a spring in her step as she thought about how happy her father would be when she made the plant profitable. Today, Fertilizer Plant No. 3, tomorrow the world.
She got into her car, started it up, rolled down the windows, and headed toward the mansion.
About halfway home her car, which she had always had maintained perfectly, started to rattle. She made a mental note to have the mechanic look at it as soon as she got home.
As she drove onto the bridge which marked the halfway point of her drive, a roll of wire fell off a passing truck directly into her path. She pulled her steering wheel sharply to the right to avoid the wire, as she slammed on the brakes. The brakes squealed, but it was too late to stop before she hit the guardrail. She made a vain attempt to pull back to the left. Her car continued to swing to the right.
The last thing she saw before she went through the guardrail were the startled green eyes of a teenaged boy.
Oh, shit.
***
Don'tdieonme. Pleasedon'tdieonme.
Leo belched water out of her lungs in a most unladylike fashion. "I'm not going to die." She finally croaked.
"What?"
"You were begging me not to die. I'm not going to. So you can stop now."
With that, she flopped back down onto the rocks that lined the bank of the river.
A moment later, she leaned back up. "I could've sworn I hit you."
"If you did, I'd be . . . I'd be dead."
Clark looked up at the bridge. Great. My fellow zebras are going to be somewhere else at Homecoming, not that it matters, because apparently I'm not a zebra, I'm a fucking giraffe.
***
"Who's the maniac that was driving that car?" Clark's father demanded as he got out of his truck.
He heard a female voice ask, "Mr. Kent?"
He looked over and there was one heart-stopping moment before he realized who he was looking at, all grown up, "Leo Luthor?"
She smiled and nodded, then looked at Clark, "Oh, my God. When you said, 'Kent,' I didn't realize . . .," her eyes widened. "The last time I saw you, you were . . . ." She held out a hand about hip-height.
"The last time you saw me?"
"Yes. The day of the meteor shower."
"Her father," Jonathan snarled those words, "was injured, and your mother and I took him to the hospital," he finished bitterly.
"Well, thank you, Clark Kent," Leo said, smiling just a little too warmly for Jonathan's comfort. "If there's anything I can do to repay you. . . ."
"Drive slower."
With that, Jonathan took Clark by the shoulder. Clark cast one look back at Leo as his father led him towards the truck.
***
Leo wasn't performing anything like a specific kata, she was just blowing off steam. She'd gotten the report back from her mechanic, and, aside from the shredded seatbelt, which they had no explanation for, nothing was wrong with the car.
Which meant one of two things -- either she had been driving recklessly, which was highly unlikely, or someone had tampered with her car, and was paying off her mechanic.
With an unconventional karate yell of, "Shit!" she gave the final board a resounding kick, shattering it, and sending the largest piece soaring through the air towards the door of the room.
Where Clark Kent stood, dumbfounded.
He managed to duck the piece of wood just in time.
"Clark! I'm surprised to see you here. How'd you get in?"
"I slipped through the bars."
"Domo arigato," Leo bowed to her partner before she left the mat.
They began to walk down the hallway together. "You're very good at that," he said.
"Karate? Well, that wasn't really anything, you know. I was just blowing off steam."
"Why?"
"Just . . . stuff," she evaded. "So, how's the new ride?"
"That's why I'm here."
"You don't like it? Is it the wrong color?"
"No. It's . . . it's beautiful."
"Ah. You wanted something sportier, then."
"No!" He yelped. "Actually, my dad won't let me keep it."
"Clark, you saved my life. I think It's the least I can do."
"He says I don't . . . I shouldn't . . . . He said some really nasty things about your dad."
Leo, who'd been in the middle of opening a bottle of water, stopped, "Like what?
"Like that your dad cheated some of his friends out of their land."
"Oh, that's just business. Would you like a drink?"
"Um, sure. You have any pop?"
She opened the mini-refrigerator under the bar. "Pepsi OK?"
"Sure."
She held out a can of Pepsi. When Clark walked over to take it from her, their fingers brushed.
"What do you think of flying, Clark?" She asked, looking directly into his green eyes.
"Scares me to death. The thought, that is. I've never actually flown anywhere. I've never really been anywhere outside Lowell County, really."
She smiled. "I'll have to take you to Metropolis sometime."
Clark looked at her questioningly.
"You and I are connected now. So, let's drink to our alliance."
"Alliance?"
"Partnership? Synergy?"
"Friendship?" He hazarded.
"Friendship."
She clinked her bottle of water against his can of Pepsi and they drank.
***
Gabe had left hours ago, but Leo stayed to work on trimming the budgets. It was after dark and time to go back to the mansion and get some sleep.
Help me.
Leo refused to let herself be slammed back to childhood. This time, at least, she knew where the sound was coming from. Damn highschoolers.
help me.
The voice was getting softer. She had to hurry.
She ran through the cornfield, making a beeline right for the place she knew the poor kid would be.
She stopped suddenly as she realized she recognized the poor freshman on the cross. Clark?
This made it even more imperative that she get him down. The crosspiece was a little high, but she pulled a knife out of her purse and stretched up as far as she could as she sawed through the ropes binding him.
She did her best to cushion his fall. He looked terrible and was cold to the touch.
He gestured towards the necklace around his neck. He seemed to want her to take it off, so she did.
As soon as she had the necklace in her hand, Clark stood and sprinted off through the corn.
He hadn't even said 'thank you.'
By: PepperjackCandy
Rating: PG-13
Warnings: Het, Genderbending
Pairing: Lex (sort of )/Clark
A/N: The zebra thing will be explained later.
2001
" . . . and that's the entire tour, Miss Luthor," Gabe Sullivan finished.
"Please. Call me Leo. And could you step into my office for a second?"
"Certainly, Mi . . . Leo."
Leo closed the door and buzzed her secretary. "Silvia, Mr. Sullivan and I will be in a private meeting for the next half hour or so."
"Very well, Miss Luthor."
She turned back to Gabe. "All right. I'm going to be frank with you. My father has sent me here to fix Mr. Rayner's mistakes. He wants this plant making money, and he doesn't care how I go about doing it. If I choose to cut your workforce in half, he'll approve it."
She forestalled his protest, "I'm not going to do that. I know that would save money now, but we'd lose money in the long run, and we'd irreparably damage the economy of Smallville. So, making this place profitable is going to be a painstaking process. But it'll be well worth the effort.
"My father is a big believer that those who forget history are doomed to repeat it. It's an obsession with him, in fact. The role model of my childhood and youth was Queen Elizabeth I. Her most trusted advisor was Sir William Cecil. You're a good man, Gabe. I've asked around about you. I'm offering you the chance to be my Sir William Cecil, if you're interested."
Gabe's eyes fairly bugged out. "I'd be honored."
Leo smiled. "Good. So, let's get started then, shall we?"
***
Clark leaned over the railing of the bridge, looking out into the water. Keep your head down. Safety in numbers. How the hell am I supposed to find safety in numbers when the other zebras are going to be at the homecoming game?
It was bad enough when I knew that Chloe would be covering it for the paper, but now Pete's on the team, and where does that leave me? Hoping that Chester or Eugene get tagged instead of me, because if I'm chosen, I'll really draw attention to myself . . .
He was distracted by the sound of an oncoming car, only, there was something wrong with it. He turned in the direction of the sound to find the car barreling towards him.
***
Leo felt good about her first day at the plant. There was a spring in her step as she thought about how happy her father would be when she made the plant profitable. Today, Fertilizer Plant No. 3, tomorrow the world.
She got into her car, started it up, rolled down the windows, and headed toward the mansion.
About halfway home her car, which she had always had maintained perfectly, started to rattle. She made a mental note to have the mechanic look at it as soon as she got home.
As she drove onto the bridge which marked the halfway point of her drive, a roll of wire fell off a passing truck directly into her path. She pulled her steering wheel sharply to the right to avoid the wire, as she slammed on the brakes. The brakes squealed, but it was too late to stop before she hit the guardrail. She made a vain attempt to pull back to the left. Her car continued to swing to the right.
The last thing she saw before she went through the guardrail were the startled green eyes of a teenaged boy.
Oh, shit.
***
Don'tdieonme. Pleasedon'tdieonme.
Leo belched water out of her lungs in a most unladylike fashion. "I'm not going to die." She finally croaked.
"What?"
"You were begging me not to die. I'm not going to. So you can stop now."
With that, she flopped back down onto the rocks that lined the bank of the river.
A moment later, she leaned back up. "I could've sworn I hit you."
"If you did, I'd be . . . I'd be dead."
Clark looked up at the bridge. Great. My fellow zebras are going to be somewhere else at Homecoming, not that it matters, because apparently I'm not a zebra, I'm a fucking giraffe.
***
"Who's the maniac that was driving that car?" Clark's father demanded as he got out of his truck.
He heard a female voice ask, "Mr. Kent?"
He looked over and there was one heart-stopping moment before he realized who he was looking at, all grown up, "Leo Luthor?"
She smiled and nodded, then looked at Clark, "Oh, my God. When you said, 'Kent,' I didn't realize . . .," her eyes widened. "The last time I saw you, you were . . . ." She held out a hand about hip-height.
"The last time you saw me?"
"Yes. The day of the meteor shower."
"Her father," Jonathan snarled those words, "was injured, and your mother and I took him to the hospital," he finished bitterly.
"Well, thank you, Clark Kent," Leo said, smiling just a little too warmly for Jonathan's comfort. "If there's anything I can do to repay you. . . ."
"Drive slower."
With that, Jonathan took Clark by the shoulder. Clark cast one look back at Leo as his father led him towards the truck.
***
Leo wasn't performing anything like a specific kata, she was just blowing off steam. She'd gotten the report back from her mechanic, and, aside from the shredded seatbelt, which they had no explanation for, nothing was wrong with the car.
Which meant one of two things -- either she had been driving recklessly, which was highly unlikely, or someone had tampered with her car, and was paying off her mechanic.
With an unconventional karate yell of, "Shit!" she gave the final board a resounding kick, shattering it, and sending the largest piece soaring through the air towards the door of the room.
Where Clark Kent stood, dumbfounded.
He managed to duck the piece of wood just in time.
"Clark! I'm surprised to see you here. How'd you get in?"
"I slipped through the bars."
"Domo arigato," Leo bowed to her partner before she left the mat.
They began to walk down the hallway together. "You're very good at that," he said.
"Karate? Well, that wasn't really anything, you know. I was just blowing off steam."
"Why?"
"Just . . . stuff," she evaded. "So, how's the new ride?"
"That's why I'm here."
"You don't like it? Is it the wrong color?"
"No. It's . . . it's beautiful."
"Ah. You wanted something sportier, then."
"No!" He yelped. "Actually, my dad won't let me keep it."
"Clark, you saved my life. I think It's the least I can do."
"He says I don't . . . I shouldn't . . . . He said some really nasty things about your dad."
Leo, who'd been in the middle of opening a bottle of water, stopped, "Like what?
"Like that your dad cheated some of his friends out of their land."
"Oh, that's just business. Would you like a drink?"
"Um, sure. You have any pop?"
She opened the mini-refrigerator under the bar. "Pepsi OK?"
"Sure."
She held out a can of Pepsi. When Clark walked over to take it from her, their fingers brushed.
"What do you think of flying, Clark?" She asked, looking directly into his green eyes.
"Scares me to death. The thought, that is. I've never actually flown anywhere. I've never really been anywhere outside Lowell County, really."
She smiled. "I'll have to take you to Metropolis sometime."
Clark looked at her questioningly.
"You and I are connected now. So, let's drink to our alliance."
"Alliance?"
"Partnership? Synergy?"
"Friendship?" He hazarded.
"Friendship."
She clinked her bottle of water against his can of Pepsi and they drank.
***
Gabe had left hours ago, but Leo stayed to work on trimming the budgets. It was after dark and time to go back to the mansion and get some sleep.
Help me.
Leo refused to let herself be slammed back to childhood. This time, at least, she knew where the sound was coming from. Damn highschoolers.
help me.
The voice was getting softer. She had to hurry.
She ran through the cornfield, making a beeline right for the place she knew the poor kid would be.
She stopped suddenly as she realized she recognized the poor freshman on the cross. Clark?
This made it even more imperative that she get him down. The crosspiece was a little high, but she pulled a knife out of her purse and stretched up as far as she could as she sawed through the ropes binding him.
She did her best to cushion his fall. He looked terrible and was cold to the touch.
He gestured towards the necklace around his neck. He seemed to want her to take it off, so she did.
As soon as she had the necklace in her hand, Clark stood and sprinted off through the corn.
He hadn't even said 'thank you.'