The Heart of a King -- Part 7, Hourglass
By: PepperjackCandy
Rating: PG-13
Warnings: Het, Genderbending
Pairing: Lex (sort of)/Clark
========
Clark, still shaken by Cassandra's visions, was in the process of delivering Leo's produce when his friend drove up, parking in the parking circle in front of the castle. He slowed down to allow her to catch up.
"Has everything been all right?" He asked. "You haven't had any more problems with your cars or anything?"
"Why? Has something happened?" Leo asked.
"It's only been a few weeks since I fished you out of a river, Leo." Clark's comment was delivered with a smile.
"So why right now?"
Reluctantly, Clark said, "I met this woman at the retirement center, and she can kind of see the future."
"Let me guess. She told you your future," Leo said as Clark deposited the crate by the kitchen door.
"Not exactly. She said someone very close to me would-," he couldn't finish.
"Die?" Leo laughed.
"I know it sounds nuts, but when you talk to her, it's like she really knows."
"She knows, all right. She knows you'll buy it."
"I think she's for real."
"Then the question you have to ask yourself is...do you really want to know the future?"
"Don't you wish you knew how it was all gonna turn out?"
"Life's a journey, Clark. I don't want to go through it following a road map," she sat down on the sofa. "Come. Sit here. We need to talk."
Clark dutifully sat on the sofa, and Leo pulled a photo from a file folder in her credenza and sat next to him.
"I once read about a rich man who survived a hotel fire," she began. "He hung onto the ledge for an hour before the fire department rescued him. Afterwards, he bought the hotel...always stayed in that room. When they asked him why, he said he figured fate couldn't find him twice.
"But every time I look at this picture, I wonder."
She held out the photo for him to see, and he gasped at the image of the raggedly-torn seat belt - a seat belt he'd ripped with his bare hands when he rescued Leo. He quickly forced his face into an expression of innocent curiosity.
"Sheriff Waid cornered me at the Farmer's Market a couple of weeks ago," she told him. "Wanted to know how you got me out of the car."
She could see the panic in his eyes when he asked, "What did you tell him?"
"That you had a pocket knife. One with a legal blade, of course. Don't want you getting in trouble for a pocket knife I never even saw."
"Of," his voice cracked, "of course I had a knife. How else could I have gotten that seatbelt open?"
"How else?" She repeated back to him slyly, clearly not buying it.
"Maybe you lived because fate has something in mind for you."
Leo snorted, "Lionel Luthor has something in mind for me. And Lionel Luthor is stronger than fate," there was a bragging tone in her voice.
Clark wanted to tell her that she was more than her father's heir. She was important to him, too. Only he'd told her the only ways he knew how, and she didn't seem to understand.
He tried one last time, "Leo, you're alive. The question you need to ask yourself now is, where do you go from here?" He walked out then, his head held high, leaving her alone with her photographic evidence.
Leo made two attempts to see Cassandra. She turned tail and ran the first time.
On her second visit, she walked into the elderly woman's room, a bouquet of white roses in her hand.
"Miss Carver?"
"Miss Luthor! You're the last person I expected to walk through my door."
"I wanted to take you up on your offer."
"I thought you controlled your own destiny."
"I do. But certain things have happened in my life. Signs I don't want to ignore."
"What kind of signs?"
"A remarkable young man has entered my life. He saved me from drowning. I need to know if that means anything."
"Ah, yes. Young Mr. Kent," Cassandra pointed to an empty chair. "Please have a seat."
Cassandra held out her hand. Leo looked at it, reached forward, and then at the last second, snatched her hand back. "On second thought, no. I'm not going to give into this superstition."
She stood.
Cassandra spluttered, "But - you can't! You can't just give up like this! What about your friend Clark? What about your fate?!?"
"I don't need oracles to tell me what my future will be," she replied, putting the roses down on the bed as she left the room.
"Don't you understand!?!" Cassandra called out desperately as Leo walked down the hallway.
Soon, Leo ran into Clark. "I'm not sure I'd go in to see Cassandra right now. She seems a little . . . stressed."
"Stressed? Stressed how?"
"I almost gave in to your weird superstition thing, but fortunately reason prevailed. I think it may somehow have unhinged her. She keeps yelling about my fate."
"I'd better go check on her."
"You want me to wait here?"
"No, go on home. I'll be in touch with you."
"All right," Leo didn't need to be told twice. She wanted to get as far from the raving old lady as she could.
Clark walked into Cassandra's room and saw the difference immediately. "Clark!" she exclaimed, her eyes focusing on his face. "You're here!"
"Yes. It's my scheduled time to visit."
"I know. But . . . give me your hand."
Clark reached out and took the woman's hand in his own.
Nothing happened.
She blinked twice and laughed with an edge of madness. "My prediction didn't come true! I'm free!"
And with that, she exhaled one last time and the light in her eyes went out.
The first Clark noticed of the medical staff hovering behind him was when a nurse pushed him out of the way and set to work on Cassandra.
After a few minutes, one of the nurses looked up. "You can go home, son. There's nothing anyone can do for Miss Carver anymore."
Clark nodded and he headed for home, his mind swirling with thoughts of Cassandra, her passing having pushed all other thoughts from his head.
Halfway home, he figured it out. She saw her own death. And it didn't come true. Somehow that . . . broke the spell and she lost her 'gift' and the shock of it, he snorted mirthlessly, the shock of it killed her.
By: PepperjackCandy
Rating: PG-13
Warnings: Het, Genderbending
Pairing: Lex (sort of)/Clark
========
Clark, still shaken by Cassandra's visions, was in the process of delivering Leo's produce when his friend drove up, parking in the parking circle in front of the castle. He slowed down to allow her to catch up.
"Has everything been all right?" He asked. "You haven't had any more problems with your cars or anything?"
"Why? Has something happened?" Leo asked.
"It's only been a few weeks since I fished you out of a river, Leo." Clark's comment was delivered with a smile.
"So why right now?"
Reluctantly, Clark said, "I met this woman at the retirement center, and she can kind of see the future."
"Let me guess. She told you your future," Leo said as Clark deposited the crate by the kitchen door.
"Not exactly. She said someone very close to me would-," he couldn't finish.
"Die?" Leo laughed.
"I know it sounds nuts, but when you talk to her, it's like she really knows."
"She knows, all right. She knows you'll buy it."
"I think she's for real."
"Then the question you have to ask yourself is...do you really want to know the future?"
"Don't you wish you knew how it was all gonna turn out?"
"Life's a journey, Clark. I don't want to go through it following a road map," she sat down on the sofa. "Come. Sit here. We need to talk."
Clark dutifully sat on the sofa, and Leo pulled a photo from a file folder in her credenza and sat next to him.
"I once read about a rich man who survived a hotel fire," she began. "He hung onto the ledge for an hour before the fire department rescued him. Afterwards, he bought the hotel...always stayed in that room. When they asked him why, he said he figured fate couldn't find him twice.
"But every time I look at this picture, I wonder."
She held out the photo for him to see, and he gasped at the image of the raggedly-torn seat belt - a seat belt he'd ripped with his bare hands when he rescued Leo. He quickly forced his face into an expression of innocent curiosity.
"Sheriff Waid cornered me at the Farmer's Market a couple of weeks ago," she told him. "Wanted to know how you got me out of the car."
She could see the panic in his eyes when he asked, "What did you tell him?"
"That you had a pocket knife. One with a legal blade, of course. Don't want you getting in trouble for a pocket knife I never even saw."
"Of," his voice cracked, "of course I had a knife. How else could I have gotten that seatbelt open?"
"How else?" She repeated back to him slyly, clearly not buying it.
"Maybe you lived because fate has something in mind for you."
Leo snorted, "Lionel Luthor has something in mind for me. And Lionel Luthor is stronger than fate," there was a bragging tone in her voice.
Clark wanted to tell her that she was more than her father's heir. She was important to him, too. Only he'd told her the only ways he knew how, and she didn't seem to understand.
He tried one last time, "Leo, you're alive. The question you need to ask yourself now is, where do you go from here?" He walked out then, his head held high, leaving her alone with her photographic evidence.
Leo made two attempts to see Cassandra. She turned tail and ran the first time.
On her second visit, she walked into the elderly woman's room, a bouquet of white roses in her hand.
"Miss Carver?"
"Miss Luthor! You're the last person I expected to walk through my door."
"I wanted to take you up on your offer."
"I thought you controlled your own destiny."
"I do. But certain things have happened in my life. Signs I don't want to ignore."
"What kind of signs?"
"A remarkable young man has entered my life. He saved me from drowning. I need to know if that means anything."
"Ah, yes. Young Mr. Kent," Cassandra pointed to an empty chair. "Please have a seat."
Cassandra held out her hand. Leo looked at it, reached forward, and then at the last second, snatched her hand back. "On second thought, no. I'm not going to give into this superstition."
She stood.
Cassandra spluttered, "But - you can't! You can't just give up like this! What about your friend Clark? What about your fate?!?"
"I don't need oracles to tell me what my future will be," she replied, putting the roses down on the bed as she left the room.
"Don't you understand!?!" Cassandra called out desperately as Leo walked down the hallway.
Soon, Leo ran into Clark. "I'm not sure I'd go in to see Cassandra right now. She seems a little . . . stressed."
"Stressed? Stressed how?"
"I almost gave in to your weird superstition thing, but fortunately reason prevailed. I think it may somehow have unhinged her. She keeps yelling about my fate."
"I'd better go check on her."
"You want me to wait here?"
"No, go on home. I'll be in touch with you."
"All right," Leo didn't need to be told twice. She wanted to get as far from the raving old lady as she could.
Clark walked into Cassandra's room and saw the difference immediately. "Clark!" she exclaimed, her eyes focusing on his face. "You're here!"
"Yes. It's my scheduled time to visit."
"I know. But . . . give me your hand."
Clark reached out and took the woman's hand in his own.
Nothing happened.
She blinked twice and laughed with an edge of madness. "My prediction didn't come true! I'm free!"
And with that, she exhaled one last time and the light in her eyes went out.
The first Clark noticed of the medical staff hovering behind him was when a nurse pushed him out of the way and set to work on Cassandra.
After a few minutes, one of the nurses looked up. "You can go home, son. There's nothing anyone can do for Miss Carver anymore."
Clark nodded and he headed for home, his mind swirling with thoughts of Cassandra, her passing having pushed all other thoughts from his head.
Halfway home, he figured it out. She saw her own death. And it didn't come true. Somehow that . . . broke the spell and she lost her 'gift' and the shock of it, he snorted mirthlessly, the shock of it killed her.