YAY! This is now officially my longest story! Celebrate by reviewing! ;)
ChApTeR TwElVe
"Clark, I know your upset, but tearing through what's left isn't going to help. You need to calm down. . ." Lex tried.
"CALM DOWN! My home has been burnt to the ground and I have no idea if my parents were inside or not! You're telling me to calm down?" Clark began screaming but ended with a starched sob. Lex was unsure of what to do. Should he stand where he was and watch his friend suffer or go over and comfort him?
He decided on the second option, but only managed in tripping over a piece of charcoaled wood. He slowly began to pick himself up when he felt a hand clutching his arm. Lex looked up to see Clark helping. He gratefully accepted and stood amidst the rubble with his friends.
"We know your father. He most likely got him and Mrs. Kent out safely."
"Most likely?" Clark smiled only for a second before frowning again.
"Sorry."
They stood some more before picking their way through the rubble to search for hopeless clues. Lex was suddenly struck with an idea and started walking back to the car, calling Clark after him. Clark reluctantly left the mess to join his friend as the engine started and they roared onto the road.
"Where are we going?" Clark looked as Lex traveled through the main street of Smallville, stopping at a large brick building. "The firehouse?" he paused in thought. "The firehouse!" The idea hit him as he scrambled out of the car.
"Maybe I should handle this. . ." Lex wobbled up next to Clark, apparently forgetting what he looked like at the moment. Clark looked his friend up and down, a playful smirk dancing on his lips.
"Yeah, they'll really believe a woman walking into their firehouse claiming that they're Lex Luthor."
"Oh, yeah. Maybe you should go first." Lex pulled at his shirt and tried to, unsuccessfully, pull his skirt down to what he considered a 'less offending and provocative' height. Clark smiled helpfully at his friends gesture to contain composure despite what he was wearing.
The local Smallville firehouse was small but quick to respond to fires when they were needed on the spot. Clark walked through the front door no problem, with his 'girlfriend' following close behind.
"Excuse me, chief!" Clark called out and the pudgy, soot dusted man turned to face the overpowering teenager and his slightly masculine girlfriend. . . with nice legs.
"Hey pal! Eyes up here, big shot!" Lex found himself shouting to the chief who looked up startled. He turned his attention to the questioning teen.
"What can I do you for, son?" he smiled tartly as if trying to hide a secret under his tongue. Clark didn't seem to notice the fakeness of the smile and continued.
"Did you get a report about a fire at the Kent Farm last night?" Clark asked carefully, dancing around the fact he was a Kent himself. The chief looked up sharply from studying his hands. Did he just ask me what I think he did? Damn, how did he know. Think of something good, Charlie. . . Chief Charlie thought to himself.
"Well. . . no. Was there a fire? Everyone okay? We should've gotten a call, that's strange. . ." Charlie looked for the supportive and agreeing faces of his co-workers, but they had all managed to slip away when the question was first asked.
"The place has been burned to the ground and you got nothing. . .!"
Lex could see the anger and fury flash in his best friends eyes and ended up grabbing his best friends shoulder in comfort.
"Apparently, these idiots know nothing. They can't even learn to keep there eyes IN THE RIGHT PLACES!" The last part was directed at Charlie who was then taking in Lex's fake breasts. Clark let Lex drag him out and back into the car.
"Something's not right. . ." Clark stared at the firehouse as it passed by when Lex deftly made a perfect U-turn.
"Either they really had no idea, which I highly doubt, or they're covering for someone." Lex sighed.
"Where are we going?" Clark changed the subject.
"I need some coffee." Lex parked in front of the Talon, which is technically not allowed. A police woman happened to walked by as Lex was exiting the car.
"Excuse me miss, only the owners are allowed to park in that spot."
It took Lex a moment to realize that the cop was talking to him and he turned to face her frustratingly.
"I am an owner!" Lex didn't realize his mistake. The police woman laughed and stared over her sunglasses, unneeded on the overcast day.
"Sure you are sweetie. Move the car."
"SWEETIE?" Lex yelled, but in his anger was careful to keep the feminine voice on. "Excuse me? I find that very. . . very. . . rude! I want an apology."
"Geez lady. . ." the police woman raised her hands as if surrendering, but she was far from it. ". . . take a breather. And while your at it, move the car."
"Oh, so now I'm dutifully named 'lady', am I? That's nice. What's next? Darling? Or perhaps something more forceful?" Lex wasn't sure why he was overreacting the way he was, but quickly concluded that the stress of being dressed the way he was and all that has happened was finally getting to him. Neither noticed Clark getting in the car until it started moving. "Where're you going!" Lex screeched.
"I'm. Moving. The. Car." Clark said slowly as he moved the car a couple of feet up. The police woman nodded quickly to the teen before shaking her head.
"Thank you son. You might want to teach your girlfriend some manners." She walked off.
"Teach me some manners? ME! HA! I'm not his GIRLFRIEND!" Lex yelled after her and Clark embarrassingly grabbed his friends arm and dragged him into the coffeehouse.
Lana looked from talking to Chloe when she saw her friends enter. Chloe looked up from her steaming mug and waved for them to come over, which was a pointless intimation, since they were doing so anyway. Lana was the first to notice the ash on Clark's hands. Chloe was first to notice the dramatic difference in the length of her skirt.
"It wasn't that short when I let you borrow it, was it?" She raised an eyebrow at Lex. Lex looked down at the skirt and then confused and startled up at Chloe.
"Borrowed! You said I could keep it! You said it looked better on me!"
"I was kidding! I lend you a skirt and you rip it to shreds. That's the last time I lend you my clothes."
Lana snorted into her coffee and let the two battle it out while she turned to Clark.
"What'd you get on your hands?" Lana offered a napkin to Clark, who studied his soot covered hands carefully before wiping most of it off.
"Lex and I drove back to my farm. . ." Clark swallowed as he tried not to cry. ". . .it's gone Lana. Everything has been burnt to the ground."
Lana dropped her coffee and Chloe put a hand to her mouth, her and Lex's conversation finished minutes ago.
"Are your parents alright?" Chloe asked.
Meanwhile, in a secluded corner of the Talon and slender hand reached down and laid a tip on the table. The coins clattered with more noise than was necessary. Instead of leaving, the body sat a moment, staring at the cellphone so confidently placed on the table.
As soon as the cellphone rang, the hand picked it up and, brushing some blonde hair away from their ear, answered.
"Hello, Margaret Frasier speaking. Oh yes, Lionel. They know. Don't worry, they're secure and safe. . . for the moment." She smiled wickedly and, the phone still clutched to her ear, she slid out the front door.
(------------------------------------------------------)
Chloe was overjoyed to be allowed to drive Lex's car, even though it was such a short distance to the high school. When they parked in the lot, Chloe slipped to the front door and pulled out a key.
"Where'd you get a key to the front door of the school?" Clark asked jealously.
"It was a gift." Was all Chloe said as she led the pair down the dark and echoing hallways. She pulled another key out of her bag and opened the door to the Torch office. She zoomed into her chair and turned on the computer.
"What are we looking for exactly?" Lex leaned over Chloe's shoulder to stare at the screen as she logged onto the internet.
"Well, you keep bringing up this blonde woman. Maybe she's a Metropolis Mental Institute escapee."
"I doubt she's an escapee. Those places are a pain to try and break out of. . ." Lex stared at the puzzled expressions on his friends faces and quickly covered up. "Not that I'd know or anything. Just a guess."
"Anyway. Do either of you remember anything important she said during the scuffle last night?" Chloe asked carefully. Lex closed his eyes and thought hard. . .
"You're absolutely crazy! Where'd you come from, the Metropolis Mental Institution?" Lex yelled at the blonde as he tried to shake her off his leg.
"Something like that." She smiled crazily. . .
"Maybe she did get out of the institution. . ." Lex mused before explaining his reasoning and the short words exchanged between the two. Chloe did some quick clicks and typed a few words. She found the information in no time.
"Here, look." Chloe pointed at the screen to the face of a familiar face. The hair was a deep brunette though, instead of blonde. "It says here, a month ago a woman by the name of Margaret Frasier was let out of the Metropolis Mental Institution. 'She's highly dangerous and whoever paid to let her out is making a big mistake. She is capable of killing and has no remorse about it. She'll do whatever needs to be done to reach her goal.' Says Dr. Abraham, head psychologist at MMI. Lionel Luthor himself is rumored to have sent the request to let her go, as to why, the secret is kept comfortably covered up.""
The trio looked back and forth to each other before anybody actually said anything worth saying.
"I should've KNOWN my father had something to do with this!" Lex sent a lamp flying in his frustration. Normally, Chloe would protest, but she felt like throwing something as well. How could things get so out of hand as usual?
There thoughts were interrupted when a tinkling of glass was heard out in the hallway. The trio looked to each other again and, against Clark's dissent, followed him outside. Chloe clutched a heavy book in her hand and Lex had removed his shoes, ready to fling them.
Chloe was trailing behind and there was a loud thunk from behind Clark and Lex. They turned to see Margaret standing over the unconscious body of Chloe, the handle of the knife raised, not trying to hide what she had done.
Clark immediately reacted to the green meteor rocks that taunted him from the knife handle and he collapsed. Margaret assumed he was just upset about Chloe and she took a chance and slammed the butt of the knife handle into the back of Clark's head. In his already weakened state, the blow knocked him right out.
Only Lex was left face to face with the crazy lady.
"What the hell do want from me and my friends!" Lex yelled and threw his shoe at the woman's head when she moved closer. She reacted quickly with the direct hit and let her head get thrown back. She shook her head to clear it and acted like nothing happened. Lex threw the other shoe in desperation, but this time it missed.
"What do I want? The truth." She laughed and Lex could do nothing as the butt of the knife handle collided with the back of his head.