Part 2 begins with the next chapter. That one will contain spoilers from the Smallville episode Rogue (1x09) so it's recommended for anyone who is new to Smallville to watch that episode first, before reading any further.

Chapter 7

The Elephants in the Room

Later that night, Clark was in the kitchen wearing a blue, button-down dress shirt and gray dress pants. Chloe and Martha helped him pick out his outfit earlier in the day, and this was what the three of them decided on.

Martha smiled at her son as she gave him a final inspection, to make sure no tags or pockets were showing. "When Lana sees you, she won't even recognize you."

Clark grinned and looked back and forth between his parents. "She's going to ask who I am and what I did with the real Clark."

Jonathan laughed and put a hand on his son's shoulder. "You're probably right, son."

Then Clark remembered Whitney and his smile faded away. "It doesn't seem like I'm trying too hard, does it? First, I went to that concert with Lana and now this. It kind of feels like I'm pushing Whitney out of the way every time he lets her down."

Jonathan shook his head. "I don't think so. Just remember son, you're only bringing her over to watch a movie and that's it."

Clark's smile returned. "Don't worry, Dad. I know the rules. Anyway, we better go. I don't want Lana to be late to her own party."

Jonathan went over to the back door and opened it. "While you're gone, I'll make sure the old projector is working and I'll see you again when you come back."

Clark followed his father to the truck and then they went next door to Nell's house, where they found another limo waiting in the driveway to take the two friends to the Luthor mansion. Lana stepped out onto the front porch in a purple dress, just as he got out of the truck and started walking up the driveway.

When Lana spotted Clark, she smiled at him. "It looks like Lex hooked us up with a limo again!"

Clark went up the steps of the porch and flashed her a grin. "He's a pretty cool guy, once you get to know him."

Lana gave him a strange look and said, "Sometimes it seems like he's trying to play matchmaker."

Clark's grin disappeared and he froze like a deer in the headlights again. "He knows that you're still with Whitney though. If you're happy with him, then I don't want to get in the way. I think Lex understands that."

"Can we not talk about Whitney?" Lana asked. "The party's about to start and Aunt Nell will kill me if I show up late."

Clark dropped the subject and offered his arm with a smile. "We should get going then. Having your aunt kill you on your own birthday, would cement your hatred of birthdays forever."

Lana laughed and put her arm around his, allowing him to lead her to the limo. At the end of the driveway, Jonathan honked his horn at Clark and then the two friends waved at him, before he backed out and returned to the farm. Eager to get going, they both got in the back and then the driver took them to the mansion.

A couple of days after finishing up their hunt in Smallville, Daniel and John met up at a diner, just to the north of Nebraska's southern border, to discuss everything that happened and get something to eat before looking for new cases.

After ordering their drinks and their meals, John had something to say. "Now we know who the local hunter is."

Daniel nodded. "It's strange… I never would've thought that some high school kid could do all that."

John smiled at his partner when the waitress brought them their beers and continued the conversation once she was gone. "The things he can do are unique, definitely. But like you told Jonathan, he's not the only one out there that can do crazy things. Do you remember the time we went hunting with Constantine?"

Daniel shook his head and chuckled. "Yes, I remember. John Constantine was gifted, to say the least, but I haven't crossed paths with him in years."

John took a sip of his beer and brought up Clark again. "The Kent boy reminds me of my boy, Sam. We could use someone like him out there."

Daniel frowned and took a sip of his beer as well, before mentioning the elephant in the room. "You know, we made a pretty good team back there, just like old times. It's a shame that we had to go our separate ways for a while."

Realizing where he was going with this, John looked him in the eyes and brought up what happened to them during their last hunt together. "You know, what I said to Jonathan about making mistakes… It reminds me of why I should've listened to you last time."

Daniel shook his head and closed his eyes. "No, John, don't talk about that, alright? What happened was a mistake and I understand that."

"It was worse than that, Dan. I killed an innocent man, thinking he was a shapeshifter. You tried to warn me beforehand, but I didn't listen, and now I have to live with that for the rest of my life."

Daniel set his beer down and smiled at his partner. "I know, but that shapeshifter tricked you. I didn't get a chance to say it before you left, but if I'd been alone, I might've made the same mistake as you."

John smiled at his partner. "I wish we would've talked it out back then, but I'm a hothead and I always have been. I bark orders and expect people to listen, but when they try to correct me, I shut them down. You tried to set me straight, but I blamed you for my mistake after everything went down."

The two men became silent for a moment, but then Daniel brought Clark back into the conversation again. "It's a shame I couldn't keep my promise to that kid. We had to put those vamps down, just like we always do. Clark won't be happy about it if he finds out."

John nodded. "We'll have to do the same thing to Jodi when we find her. Her father was lucky to have survived, but seeing his own daughter attack him like that, is going to haunt him for the rest of his days. I understand that Clark doesn't like killing, but sometimes we have no choice."

Daniel agreed. "Now we just have to pick up Jodi's trail. We have to find her before she kills again."

Then Daniel took another sip of his beer and sighed. "You know John, I'm getting tired of this life. I'm old as hell and I can't do it for much longer."

"You've been hunting since the sixties," John said. "I can't blame you for that. Maybe you could be a research expert that hunters turn to for info. We could use a few more of those for sure."

"I'm not even sure I want to do that either," Daniel said. "As soon as we tie up this loose end, I'm done. I'm just done."

Then the waitress brought them their burgers and the two became silent for a moment, but John stopped to look at his partner when he picked up his sandwich. "Ya know, we still haven't figured out what happened to Greg Arkin."

Daniel picked up his burger as well and shrugged. "Maybe he turned into a monster and Clark took care of him. I guess it'll always be a mystery."

Then the two guys dug into their meals and discussed where they were headed next. When they were finished, John got into his truck and Daniel got into a big van before they parted ways, looking for something new to hunt.

Jodi came out of hiding from her dumpster by the docks in Metropolis and she looked out at the Missouri River, where the reflection of the half-moon shimmered on the surface of the water. As a human, she would have thought it was beautiful, but as a vampire, even the reflection of the sun's light coming off the moon made her uncomfortable. To make matters worse, she had been on the run for two days and was parched.

She collapsed to her knees near the water's edge and stopped herself from falling in with her hands. "I'm going to die out here…"

She looked up at the river again, but then she heard the sound of rats scurrying around behind her, so she glanced back and spotted a couple of them hanging around a nearby stack of shipping containers. The sound of their little hearts beating caused Jodi's fangs to emerge from her gums, and she attempted to crawl towards them.

Unfortunately, she wasn't able to move fast enough, and they escaped with ease. "Damn it!"

She angrily slapped the pavement beneath her and then flipped over onto her back. Looking up at the twinkling stars above, she found herself wishing that none of this had ever happened. She wished she had never listened to Lisa and that she had never accepted her offer of immortality and perfect health.

"If I would've said no," Jodi whispered to herself. "My dad would still be alive, and I could've gone to the party with Pete…"

Then she closed her eyes and waited for death to take her, but suddenly she heard footsteps, so she opened them again and looked up. Standing about fifty feet away or so, was a woman with long, dark hair wearing a black leather jacket and jeans that were torn up at the knees.

"You look like you could use a hand," she said as she stood there looking at Jodi. "I'm a vampire, just like you."

Jodi sat up and squinted at her. "I don't know what you mean."

The strange woman scoffed. "Don't play dumb. I could smell you."

To prove her point, she showed Jodi her fangs and then offered her a hand. Jodi hesitated at first, but then she accepted the offer, allowing this stranger to pull her to her feet.

"Where are you from?" the stranger asked with a grin.

Jodi hesitated to answer at first but realizing that she wasn't alone made her feel a little better. "I'm from Smallville. Hunters are after me and I don't know where to go."

The woman suddenly became angry when hunters entered the conversation. "Hunters… What are their names?"

Jodi shook her head. "I don't know. They found my nest and killed the others, but I got away and came here."

Then the woman smiled at her again. "If you're looking for a new nest, Luther will protect you. Hunters tried to kill him too, but they failed. My name's Kate, by the way."

Confused, Jodi raised an eyebrow. "Luther? Like the Luthors?"

Kate laughed. "Hell no! Those rich bastards are no relation to him! Don't worry though, I promise you'll be safe."

Jodi nodded and smiled. "Okay."

Then Kate held her hand out to Jodi one more time. "So, you're from the town with all the meteor rocks, huh? Sounds interesting."

Kate took her by the hand and led her away from the docks, into Suicide Slums, where Luther and his surviving family members had a temporary hideout. Jodi wasn't sure if she would be safe there or not, but it seemed like she had no other choice. It was preferable to getting killed by those older men Clark was with, but she still felt the same feeling of dread that she experienced a few days earlier, when the idea of turning Pete into a vampire first popped into her head.