When Chloe had hung up, Lex decided to give himself a few moments to
indulge in gleeful recollection. Meggie, having finished her lunch of fresh
tuna steak, settled on his lap, rumbling happily as he stroked her.
He was sure that she remembered just as well as he did.
The first time he realized that something was up was when Enrique hesitantly approached him. "Mr. Luthor?"
"Is something wrong?"
"It's one of the cats. She brought me this." Lex looked at the hundred dollar bill that Enrique held out, then cocked his head and looked at it again. It didn't make much more sense that way, either. Enrique continued, "It was shortly after your father left. She came up to me with this in her teeth."
"Which one was it?"
"Ally." Now it was starting to make sense. Ally, with her inveterate habit of pawing into anything that caught her attention and her dislike of Lionel, a trait common to the Furies...it all made sense.
Lex smirked. "Keep it. Consider her a generous tipper."
He'd thought that that was the entirety of the story. Ally had snagged the bill out of Lionel's wallet and decided that Enrique might as well get an early bonus. But in Smallville, stories never ended quite where one might think they did.
The next clue came when he passed by the security break room after meeting Clark in the kitchen after the produce delivery. Through the closed door, he could hear the sound of howling, roars, and solid slaps of flesh against flesh. After a moment of consternation, he could tell that it was from wild amusement rather than some kind of brawl, and could even make out a few words, "Whoooo! Go, Meggie!" "Tissy! You da cat!" "Goal!" Since he'd left the kittens happily demanding treats from the cook, a cat lover who doted on them, this didn't make much sense at all.
Until he remembered that there was a VCR in there.
Later that evening, he buzzed the head of security. He could, of course, have just gone into the break room, but that just wasn't as much fun. "I believe that there's something on last night's security tapes that I should view."
"Yes, Mr. Luthor, I'll bring it to you right away." The barely suppressed amusement in the man's voice showed that he was on the right track. When he arrived, the comment that, "It's cued to the time that I think you're interested in," confirmed this.
Lionel was just leaving one of the rooms on the upper floor with the usual action hero wanna-be flourish. The effect was somehow diluted by the two tabby kittens following him stealthily. As he reached the top of the stairs, they went into their hunting crouch, and just as he took his second step down, Tisiphone charged between his legs, while Ally leapt at his back. He whirled around and then Meggie ran towards him from the bottom of the stairs, clawing his trousers en route. Lex had to admire her command of applying the laws of physics--at the top of the stairs, she used her well- rounded bottom to spin and charge again. Ally, in the meantime, jumped to the banister that Lionel was grabbing as Tissy rammed the backs of his legs, and she landed, claws extended, on his hand.
Probably muttering to himself that Luthors do not allow their progress down a flight of stairs to be disrupted by kittens, Lionel drew himself up and continued. Lex noted that the kittens were learning more about the enemy with each attack, and had discovered that the back of the knee is a weak spot for an opponent who is walking down the stairs.
He thoroughly approved of their use of tactics. Ally, in another leap, was able to dishevel his hair to the point that it got in his eyes. They were excellent at covering one another, making sure that if one of them was within his range, another was launching a further attack. When they saw that he was flustered and off balance, they put their endgame plan into action. Meggie charged up the stairs, but at an angle, clawing his raised leg as she went by. Ally, in the same instant, attacked the back of his knee, and Tiss went right for--Lex's eyes widened--his groin.
The outcome was inevitable. Lionel stumbled and slid down the remaining stairs, feet first. His jacket flew open and his wallet went flying. Ally seized upon it and clawed it until it disgorged its contents, and started to play kitty hockey with the credit cards. But not after dragging out half the cash, which she hid under the oriental rug for further reference.
By the time Lionel had gotten to his feet, all three kittens had disappeared from sight. With what was left of his dignity, he retrieved his wallet and whatever contents he could find, and warily left the mansion.
Lex wondered if he thought that the war was over. If he had, he was about to learn very differently.
He was sure that she remembered just as well as he did.
The first time he realized that something was up was when Enrique hesitantly approached him. "Mr. Luthor?"
"Is something wrong?"
"It's one of the cats. She brought me this." Lex looked at the hundred dollar bill that Enrique held out, then cocked his head and looked at it again. It didn't make much more sense that way, either. Enrique continued, "It was shortly after your father left. She came up to me with this in her teeth."
"Which one was it?"
"Ally." Now it was starting to make sense. Ally, with her inveterate habit of pawing into anything that caught her attention and her dislike of Lionel, a trait common to the Furies...it all made sense.
Lex smirked. "Keep it. Consider her a generous tipper."
He'd thought that that was the entirety of the story. Ally had snagged the bill out of Lionel's wallet and decided that Enrique might as well get an early bonus. But in Smallville, stories never ended quite where one might think they did.
The next clue came when he passed by the security break room after meeting Clark in the kitchen after the produce delivery. Through the closed door, he could hear the sound of howling, roars, and solid slaps of flesh against flesh. After a moment of consternation, he could tell that it was from wild amusement rather than some kind of brawl, and could even make out a few words, "Whoooo! Go, Meggie!" "Tissy! You da cat!" "Goal!" Since he'd left the kittens happily demanding treats from the cook, a cat lover who doted on them, this didn't make much sense at all.
Until he remembered that there was a VCR in there.
Later that evening, he buzzed the head of security. He could, of course, have just gone into the break room, but that just wasn't as much fun. "I believe that there's something on last night's security tapes that I should view."
"Yes, Mr. Luthor, I'll bring it to you right away." The barely suppressed amusement in the man's voice showed that he was on the right track. When he arrived, the comment that, "It's cued to the time that I think you're interested in," confirmed this.
Lionel was just leaving one of the rooms on the upper floor with the usual action hero wanna-be flourish. The effect was somehow diluted by the two tabby kittens following him stealthily. As he reached the top of the stairs, they went into their hunting crouch, and just as he took his second step down, Tisiphone charged between his legs, while Ally leapt at his back. He whirled around and then Meggie ran towards him from the bottom of the stairs, clawing his trousers en route. Lex had to admire her command of applying the laws of physics--at the top of the stairs, she used her well- rounded bottom to spin and charge again. Ally, in the meantime, jumped to the banister that Lionel was grabbing as Tissy rammed the backs of his legs, and she landed, claws extended, on his hand.
Probably muttering to himself that Luthors do not allow their progress down a flight of stairs to be disrupted by kittens, Lionel drew himself up and continued. Lex noted that the kittens were learning more about the enemy with each attack, and had discovered that the back of the knee is a weak spot for an opponent who is walking down the stairs.
He thoroughly approved of their use of tactics. Ally, in another leap, was able to dishevel his hair to the point that it got in his eyes. They were excellent at covering one another, making sure that if one of them was within his range, another was launching a further attack. When they saw that he was flustered and off balance, they put their endgame plan into action. Meggie charged up the stairs, but at an angle, clawing his raised leg as she went by. Ally, in the same instant, attacked the back of his knee, and Tiss went right for--Lex's eyes widened--his groin.
The outcome was inevitable. Lionel stumbled and slid down the remaining stairs, feet first. His jacket flew open and his wallet went flying. Ally seized upon it and clawed it until it disgorged its contents, and started to play kitty hockey with the credit cards. But not after dragging out half the cash, which she hid under the oriental rug for further reference.
By the time Lionel had gotten to his feet, all three kittens had disappeared from sight. With what was left of his dignity, he retrieved his wallet and whatever contents he could find, and warily left the mansion.
Lex wondered if he thought that the war was over. If he had, he was about to learn very differently.