Chapter 12
Tempus
Disclaimer: I own neither Danny Phantom nor Smallville
Warning: Includes Character Death
It felt like the universe was spinning around him, he felt himself being pulled backward as everything continued to swirl around him. He felt the crystal dissolve into nothingness as the world slowed around him. Suddenly he found himself sitting up in his barn loft, his hand clutched around a lump of coal. He looked around disoriented for a few moments before he heard the most wonderful voice in the world. Lana Lang, the voice of an angel, beautiful and warm and alive. He could barely contain his joy as he heard her for the first time in what seemed like an eternity.
"I brought gloves and a scarf like you said"
Line Break
Clark was stunned beyond belief. He felt tears leap into his eyes as he saw her. Somehow Lana was alive. His beautiful brown haired angel. And she was still here, entire and whole and perfect. "You're here." He said, bewildered. What on Earth had just happened? It seemed that somehow time had shifted and he was back where he started. It felt like he was back before he told her, and maybe he was.
"Of course I'm here, Clark." Lana commented a brief flash of confusion in her eyes. "I'm just not sure a mystery date's exactly what our relationship needs right now. So, where are you taking me?" She'd said that this morning – yesterday – before. Clark was pretty sure that somehow he'd gone back in time. He could save her, keep her safe. Make sure that this time around she stayed alive. If he hadn't told her his secret then she'd never have been put in that kind of danger. Lex wouldn't have chased after her. It was his fault that she had died and he was not going to let that happen again.
"I just thought we could spend the day together." Clark murmured
"That part I kind of figured." She commented with light sarcasm. "But it was the quote "day that I'll never forget" that I was a little curious about."
Clark was thrown for a moment, before everything, he had planned on telling her his secret, but now... " Right. Well, I thought we could go for a drive." He fumbled, trying to think of something on the spot. If he didn't tell her she'd be safe. "Maybe up to the lake and um... but you know with this cold snap we're having the bridges are probably iced over. So we should just stay here."
Lana's eyes turned cold and she took a step back. "Don't you think I know by now when you're lying?" She met Clark's eyes firmly, barely disguising her disappointment and it killed Clark to see her like this after how wonderfully everything had gone the first time around. "Just... just say something. Anything."
Clark felt lost. He had been so happy, but now he could see it all evaporating. He couldn't tell her he just... "You know, it wasn't a big deal. Really, I mean... trust me it was..." but it felt so insincere to say so, and he knew Lana wasn't fooled.
"Clark. You know that it goes both ways." Lana said bluntly. He had trusted her entirely, and he knew she had accepted him. But he had to protect her.
"Lana I..." Clark began, struggling to find any reasonable excuse. But he was interrupted.
"Don't." Lana held her hand up to him, her face turned away ever so slightly. "Unless it's the truth. Clark, as much as I love you, I can't do this anymore."
"Lana, you don't understand. If anything ever happened to you..."
"Like what? What could be worse than losing the person that you love?" Clark blinked the sting out of his eyes as Lana said the one thing that broke his heart. He could never see her like that again. He couldn't live in a world that she wasn't in. She had been so broken, so cold, so gone. She had been so irrevocably dead that Clark knew he'd die if he ever saw her like that again. Far better for their relationship to die and have her alive and well than to risk losing her ever again.
"Nothing" Clark replied sadly, knowing that this could very well end it. He saw the heartbreak in Lana's eyes, the hurt. It killed him to know that he was the cause, but he knew he could not risk losing her again.
Lana took another step back and coolly looked him in the eyes. "I need a break."
"From me?" Clark asked, hoping that she'd not walk out of his life.
"No, from us." She replied, and with that she was gone, walking out of the barn and away. Clark's heart froze as he heard the gravel crunch as her car pulled away. He didn't know how long he sat there in stunned silence. Lana may be alive, but that didn't save him from the hurt of watching her walk away, knowing that he had pushed her to leave.
"It'll be alright" Clark jolted as he heard Danny's voice echoing through the barn. He opened his eyes to see his cousin sitting opposite him on the trunk. Sympathy washed through his eyes and he had a soft smile on his lips. Clark couldn't help but feel comforted by his presence. "I'm sorry"
Clark blinked in confusion "For what?"
"What you had to do to protect her" Danny replied wearily.
Clark just nodded, looking down to the floor, but then snapped to attention. "What would make you say that?" Clark demanded incredulously. It sounded like Danny had changed his opinion from that morning. Either that or...
"The last thing I remember I was with Aunt Martha at the Talon and hearing that Lana had... was in a really bad car accident. I'd hazard a guess and say you talked to Jor-El?" Clark blinked at Danny's question. Somehow he knew.
"Yes. I couldn't let Lana die, not because of me. I couldn't let it be her life that was traded for mine. But how did you know?"
Danny let out a dry laugh "If I say I have friends who like meddling in my life does that work?" he asked, fiddling with something buried under his dark blue t-shirt. "Point is, I know what happened and I know exactly how much you just gave up. I'm sorry."
Clark and Danny sat in silence for a while before Clark finally started to get his head back together. "I just... it was all so perfect. I had Lana and she said she'd marry me. It seems lately that whatever I do I just end up losing the people I care about. I never asked for Jor-El to bring me back to life when I was shot, and now I almost lost Lana because of it."
"I know" Danny empathised "sometimes it's so hard just dealing with the guilt. Sometimes you'd rather go back and make it so that nothing ever happened at all to save yourself the hurt. But life... it's what you make of it that counts. You've been given a second chance, a choice, and only you can make it. Hecate knows I've had my fair share of them."
Danny trailed off, looking into the distance. Clark didn't really feel like dealing with things just now, he couldn't. He knew he'd have to make sure Lana was safe, but for now he needed to reassert himself of reality. He needed a break, and he was still traumatised by the image of Lana lying dead and blood soaked on the asphalt surrounded by all that metal and Glass.
"How about you come out and practice with me for half an hour?" Danny offered breaking Clark out of his reverie. For now Clark wanted to get his mind off things so he accepted. Danny led him out to one of the back fields, near the snow capped tree-line. Danny walked to the middle of the field and for a second his eyes glowed a brighter blue. The snow within twenty feet of him disappeared, leaving a round circle of grass visible around him.
Danny had never invited Clark to practice with him before, so Clark was at a loss as to what to expect. "Okay" Danny said, looking over at Clark "Usually I'd work on something else, but how about we try some target practice?" Clark looked curiously at his cousin, trying to imagine what he would dream up.
"Sure" he answered. Danny nodded with a small smile.
"Okay, so I'm gonna set up a few targets, and then we can work on accuracy. Sound fair?" Danny waved his hand and a three foot ice target appeared with concentric circles of frosty ice and clear ice leading to a bright blue bullseye. Clark raised an eyebrow, but Danny just shrugged and two more appeared.
"Do you want to go first?" Danny asked.
"With what?"
Danny shook his head, laughing "Well if you want you can throw snowballs at it, but I had envisioned that you'd try your heat vision on it."
"Won't it melt?" Clark asked, raising an eyebrow sceptically.
"Only one way to find out" Danny said, smiling as he gestured towards the target. Clark nodded and focused his eyes on the centre of the target. He let the warmth swell up behind his eyes and released the solar heat that dwelled within him onto the target. There was a slight hiss and a bit of steam cleared away leaving a foot wide indentation on the target. Danny nodded and walked up to it.
"You're going to need to go hotter, and focus more. You should be able to fire pin-point accurately. Try again." Danny encouraged, acknowledging the minimal damage to his target. Clark was surprised at how well it had held up against his heat vision. Danny walked back behind Clark before taking a seat in mid air and gesturing that Clark try again. This time there was only a five inch circle, but it was slightly off centre. Danny sighed.
"How often do you actually practice stuff like this?" Danny demanded.
Clark was slightly abashed and admitted that he never really practiced, mostly relying on brawn to get him through what he needed to. It was hardly as if he needed to be out fighting all the time.
"Oh, how I wish that life were that simple." Danny sighed "You should practice to refine your skill so that if it's needed you are confident enough to use them. Look." Without even looking at that target Danny flung out his hand, a thin green beam emitted from it, landing in the centre of the target leaving a half-inch indent going three quarters of the way through. It was pretty impressive.
"How did you do that?" Clark demanded incredulous.
"Skill born of necessity, unlike you I've had to fight pretty much every day for the past two and a half years, so I forced myself to learn precision. It also helps to be situationally aware, know every element of your environment and all that." Danny explained, leaving Clark blinking in confusion. That was a practice that Clark had never gotten into.
Danny rolled his eyes, apparently having expected this. "Okay, let's try a different demonstration." Danny dispelled the target and made a dozen small round discs, handing them to Clark. "Can you throw these, please?" he requested, pulling out a short black cloth ant tied it over his own eyes. Clark baulked at the notion, but eventually acquiesced.
Clark tossed one of the disks in the air to the right of Danny, and he instantly moved to shoot it with another green blast. The disk shattered in a light powder of snow. Danny's lips twitched slightly into a frown, but Clark had already thrown the next disk. It met a similar fate, not getting past Danny at all. He threw two at once and Danny got both simultaneously.
Within a minute all the disks were gone and Clark was impressed. He'd never really seen Danny use his powers like this and was slightly awed at the skill. Danny pulled off his blindfold "Someday you should be able to do something like that with your heat vision. But for now" Danny summoned a tiny icy crystal that floated in the air two feet in front of Clark. "Melt that."
Clark nodded, determined to succeed now that he'd seen that powerful display. Aiming carefully he focused on the crystal. It evaporated in a swirl of steam and Danny smiled. Another crystal appeared a little further away and Clark hit that too. Pretty soon he was able to accurately hit a quarter inch crystal from ten feet away. Danny smiled at his progress.
At twelve feet Clark started losing control of his precision. The crystal was destroyed, but a beam of heat flew out behind and struck an invisible barrier that Clark hadn't realised Danny had put up. Danny just nodded and motioned Clark to try again. After the sixth attempt Danny's mouth twitched as if he were holding back a laugh.
"It's not easy focusing heat through your eyes you know." Clark spat, frustrated.
"You're right, I can't do that. But you just need to focus. I know you can do it." Danny encouraged. Clark did feel a little annoyed at the thought of being taught to control his powers by a sixteen year old, but in a way was also glad for the guidance. He tried again, but this time missed by a wider margin.
"What does your heat vision feel like? How do you do it?" Danny asked.
Clark thought for a moment. The sensation was hard to describe "It's like there's a burning behind my eyes, like if I don't let it out my eyes will just shrivel up. So whatever I look at gets the flame instead of my eyes."
Danny just nodded and another large target appeared. "Okay then, I think I know how to help. It was like that when I started using my ecto-blasts. You feel the power and send it out in that direction, but when you do that..." he thrust his hand out toward the target and a blast of green surged from Danny's hand, incinerating the target and sending shards of ice careening across the clearing. "Well, it can be explosive." Clark blinked at the destruction, considering that his heat vision had barely marked the ice when he'd tried earlier.
"Instead" Danny continued "Try to focus, let the heat energy gather, but instead of simply releasing it allow yourself to see the target do what you want. Once you learn focus you can pretty much get it right every time. Care to try again?" Clark nodded and once more found himself facing another large target. He focused, envisioning what he wanted to see before he released the energy. A quarter inch hole melted straight through the middle of the target. Clark smiled and Danny beamed, clapping him on the back for a job well done.
"How'd you learn?" Clark asked "I mean, I've had heat vision since my sophomore year at high school and I've never needed such precision."
Danny sighed and summoned an icy bench, indicating for Clark to sit. Danny simply elected to hang sit in mid-air. "The difference is necessity. Two years meant I had to learn pretty much surgical precision with my ecto-energy. The difference between hitting a ghost and a hostage can be as slight as a pin, so I forced myself to learn. I don't recommend it."
Clark nodded, but that simple statement brought him back to reality. Danny had provided a great distraction – and part of him realised that was probably why Danny had suggested this – but now it was time to face the music. He was now ready to go and fix this properly. He still needed to make sure that Lana was safe from Lex at least for tonight, and for that he needed Chloe.
"I think I need to go to the Planet. Do you want to come?" Clark offered.
"To be honest, it's too busy today, but I know that the Box Ghost will be there. So if you don't mind me being there I'll tag along." Danny replied with a shrug.
"Thanks for the distraction." Clark said
"It's nothing. Little bit of harmless fun. What else are cousins for, hey?"
Clark laughed and ruffled the younger boy's hair. Clark laughed at his unamused glare and accompanying pout. "Come on, we should be heading off now." Clark said and Danny sighed, rolling his eyes. Clark watched his eyes glow a bright blue for a moment and all traces of their practicing vanished in a thick blanket of snow.
"It's still weird seeing you do that you know." Clark commented as they walked over towards the house.
"What? Make snow? Clark, I have an ice core. This weather is good for me, if I didn't think it'd worry your mum I'd literally sleep outside. Manipulating the element is easy. Now, do you want to run, try the truck, or teleport?" Danny replied jovially.
"We ran yesterday... before... you know what I mean." Clark started and Danny just rolled his eyes.
"Alright, well I'm gonna teleport. If you want, I'll meet you there. Otherwise, grab on." Danny said holding his hand out. Clark sighed at his cousin's antics. At the moment it was hard to fathom what he was actually thinking. He seemed so light and casual, radiating comfort. But Clark had other things pressing on his mind. He had pushed Lana away, and this time he wasn't sure he could get her back. He just had to make sure she was safe. Clark grabbed onto Danny's shoulder and the two of them disappeared in a swirl of green mist.
Line Break
Chloe frowned at the bustle of the Planet. The basement room wasn't usually this busy. Her eyes flicked over to the time on her computer screen. She sighed and stood up. While it was busy, there was very little for her to actually report. Most of the excitement was down to election hype, although those stories all went to the more senior reporters. So Chloe stood up, she was going to need a coffee if she planned to make it through to tonight.
She trudged up the stairs and over to the coffee shop just across the street, picking up her 11am Latte. The hot beverage in her hands immediately banished the lingering cobwebs and also pushed back the cold as she walked back to the Planet. She had barely gotten through the rotating front door when she met up with Clark and Danny, a rather unexpected surprise. However both of them seemed in a more sombre mood that she would have expected.
"Hey Clark, Danny" She said with a small wave Danny perked up slightly, but Clark looked off into the distance. "What's up?" Chloe asked of her Kryptonian friend.
"Lana... not Lana. She's really done this time." Clark said
Chloe blinked, this wasn't the first time Clark had come to her with news like this, but there was a sort of defeated finality today that seemed far different than before. "Really, what happened?" She asked. Clark sighed, by now they had got to the bottom of the stairs and Clark guided her into the slightly emptier space of the elevator well. He looked her in the eyes
"Ready to put on your Wall of Weird hat? I've lived this day before." Chloe scoffed but Clark continued awkwardly "I kind of went back in time."
Chloe found that highly unlikely, sceptically retorting "Right. What'd you do, spin the Earth backwards on its axis? Come on, you didn't pick up the winning lottery numbers while you were at it, did you?"
"He's not kidding." Danny interjected "Look, see those flowers" Danny indicated to the delivery man who was walking into the office space.
"They're going to the secretary" Clark finished, looking over to his cousin
"Margaret? She's a workaholic; she hasn't had a date in like a year." Chloe denied, but couldn't hide her shock when indeed the flowers went to the secretary. Both boys visibly flinched at the noise of her excited squeal. Clark led them in and over towards her desk. Danny gestured over to the office and Clark nodded.
"Your boss, he's firing someone right now." There was a loud slam from the Boss' door and Peter, one of the office slackers stormed out. He yelled "You can't fire me, I quit" as he threw his press pass to the floor. Clark's claim was looking slightly less unlikely.
"Watch him though, he doesn't leave or move to pick up his stuff" Danny commented and sure enough Peter went out the office space, turning right towards the filing room under the stairs. Chloe raised an eyebrow. Then the phone rang.
"Don't bother, it's a wrong number." Clark commented "Chinese takeout"
Curious, Chloe picked up the receiver "Hello" she said, and the man on the other side of the phone briskly said "Hello, Mr Fu's Noodle House? I'd like two orders of egg rolls and..." Chloe cut him off saying "No, I'm sorry, we're all out of egg rolls." She carefully put the receiver down before grabbing Clark and Danny's shirts, physically dragging them into the deserted printer room.
"All right McFly, do you wanna start with the how or the why?" She demanded as soon as the door shut behind them. Clark took a step back and explained.
"Jor-El." Okay, for now she'd accept that, but that didn't explain Danny's knowledge.
"And you?" Chloe demanded
"Temporary immunity to the movement of time?" He replied, with the slightest questioning inflection as he rubbed the back of his neck.
"Teleporting at the wrong time?" Chloe questioned, that was the best explanation she could come up with. Danny shrugged unhelpfully so Chloe was left to presume it was somehow connected to Danny's meteor power. She snapped her attention back to Clark, realising the ramifications of what he'd said.
"You went to Jor-El? Your birth father Jor-El?" Chloe demanded exasperated. Not that she'd ever had a conversation with Jor-El, but every time Clark asked something of his birth father there were terrible consequences. Not the least of which was the Faustian deal which had brought Clark back from the dead. Chloe knew how horrible Clark felt about the terms of that deal, but had no real choice when Jor-El had brought him back to life without his asking.
"I went to him to try and change things back." Clark said, looking down to the ground. Danny gently laid a hand on Clark's shoulder and Clark sent him a small half-hearted smile. Chloe just observed in confusion.
"Back to what?" Chloe asked
Clark sighed and looked Chloe in the eye. "The first time around, I told Lana the truth about me. And I asked her to marry me."
Chloe was stunned. Clark had asked Lana to marry him. While she had always supported their relationship, a small part of her had always held onto her schoolgirl crush. Chloe had been pining for Clark since she first met him, before she knew about his powers. Back when he was just the simple farmer's son with a cute smile and the biggest heart. Sure she'd been able to let him go, she wanted him to be happy. Clark deserved that in his life. Still, it hurt to think that she really stood no chance.
"What? What... what...? What did she say?" Chloe asked, struggling to conceal the tumultuous emotions in her mind.
With a small smile Clark replied "Yes" and Chloe felt her heart tear on another level.
"Oh my god." Chloe stated. Surely by now Clark had caught on, she wasn't that good of an actor. Sure she'd never shown openly how deeply she cared for him but... "Well, what was my reaction?"
"A lot like that." Clark replied quickly, but then he frowned, pain roaring through his usually bright eyes. "But listen it was a big mistake. Lex was chasing her on Route 40 and... there was an accident, I didn't get there in time."
"Why was he chasing Lana?"
Clark answered quickly defeat evident in his posture. "He figured out she knew my secret. It's why I've always been afraid to tell her." With that confession Chloe pushed all her own emotions aside, knowing that Clark came first.
"This time you can warn her about Lex. This doesn't mean you have to lie to her forever." She babbled. Hopefully Clark could pull through this. Clark needed Lana in his life, and Lana deserved better than to have the truth hidden from her all the time. Now they had advance knowledge they could save her. It would all be alright. Chloe sent her Kryptonian friend an encouraging smile.
"Chloe," Clark pointed out bluntly, hurt dominating his blue eyes "she knew my secret for less than a day. There's always gonna be someone trying to find out about me. As long as we're together, they'll be watching her every move." Chloe sighed. That just wasn't true, she was safe knowing the secret, Danny was safe knowing. Mr and Mrs Kent had raised him and there had never been any much more suspicion than Lex doing a bit of digging. There were ways to keep it safe.
But now wasn't the time to argue over that. Now they needed to get a plan in action. "Don't worry Clark." Chloe said, easily slipping into a confidant and commanding facade. "We won't let her near that road. Do you know exactly what time this is supposed to happen?"
"11.02" Danny interrupted. Chloe jumped, she'd honestly forgotten that he was even in the room. Clark however wasn't perturbed by the interruption.
"There's only one problem," Clark expanded "she's not talking to me right now. I was hoping you could stay with her and make sure that..."
Chloe understood why he was asking her, Danny couldn't do it seeing as how he was so close to Clark. Lana would probably not want to talk to him either just at the moment. "That fate doesn't get a second chance? I won't leave her side." Chloe said with a smile. Clark thanked her and said he had to leave. He was on the way out when he turned around to Danny
"Okay, there's something I know I'm forgetting." He said, a confused look on his face
"Between "you're Fired" and Noodles." Danny nodded with a smile. "Already taken care of" Clark nodded and ran out, leaving a slightly bewildered Chloe behind.
"What was between Peter losing his Job and the Noodle Shop?" Chloe asked, suspicious. Danny shook his head and replied that the first time round he'd had a cold shiver and accidentally messed up a couple of files. Something told Chloe that that wasn't entirely true, but since she hadn't been there let it slide.
Chloe packed up her belongings for the day; she needed to head off if she wanted to get to Smallville soon. "You know" Danny said, helping her neaten up the loose paper sheets on her desk "I know it doesn't seem it, but Clark wants you in his life as much as he wants Lana." Chloe blinked, she was surprised that Danny had picked up on her emotional rollercoaster in the printer room.
"Sometimes I wonder" Chloe said, a slight frown gracing her lips.
Danny picked up her jacket and lightly put over her shoulders. She shrugged it on properly as the two of them walked towards the elevator. She needed to pick up her car if she wanted to hang around with Lana today. "The fact that you're the first person he came to says so. He's got a big heart, and you have a huge place in it."
Chloe scoffed as she unlocked her car. Part of her knew that, it's just... part of her wanted to be the one that Clark looked at the way he looked at Lana. She wasn't jealous, just that she wished she'd had a chance. "I know" She replied. She didn't know why she felt comfortable talking to Danny about this, there was just something about him that said he earnestly wanted to help. "It's just... Lana's lucky with him."
"She is, but you know what, I know somewhere out there there's the right guy for you. Clark loves having you in his life, but for now... okay I'm really not good at this" Chloe couldn't help but laugh at his struggle to find the right words. Although she had to admit that being around him was comforting. It was as if somehow he was radiating positivity with that goofy smile of his. She offered him a lift back to Smallville, which he easily accepted.
Chloe smiled at the younger boy. She had no romantic inclinations towards him, that would be a bit weird, but times like now he was almost like a little brother. He was a good sounding board, happy to listen to her and always had a smile to help pick her up. The two of them held happy conversation as she drove back to Smallville, Chloe arranged to meet Lana at a different Cafe since the Talon was being set up for tonight. Lana had been supposed to help out, but she had flaked on that. Chloe thought that was understandable given the circumstances.
Danny bade Chloe farewell as soon as she had parked the car, disappearing in a green swirl of mist. It was still unusual to her to think of him as meteor infected. He just didn't have the usual mental instability associated with it. She was glad for the few times where he had given her a lift though, and it had felt nice to be involved in that game of catch between the two cousins – brothers? Sometimes that seemed closer to the truth – a few weeks ago. Danny was perpetually light-hearted. She had noticed that since she found out about his meteor power he wasn't quite so clumsy around her, but he was still the mild-mannered goofball she'd first met when he came to Smallville.
She waved to Lana as she came into the Beanery, and Lana gave her a distracted smile back. Chloe inwardly sighed. It was not going to be easy keeping her safe and unsuspicious today. But it was for Clark, her friend. Chloe gritted her teeth and gave Lana a cheerful smile.
Line Break
Phantom frowned as he soared over the Kent Farm. Why was he doing this? Why did Clockwork give him the Time Medallion in the first place? He soared up another thousand feet, the barn turning into a tiny red dot. As soon as he'd got back to the Kent Farm he'd transformed to go for a fly. He really needed to reign in his emotions. He'd put on a brave face for Clark and Chloe, but it was really difficult hiding his true emotion.
The truth of the matter is that Lana had died. This struck so many chords for Danny. Not only was it another death which he'd failed to prevent, like his family, but the situation was similar in a way to his own experience with his alternate future self. Phantom's frown deepened. Clark had been given a second chance, an opportunity to save Lana. And Danny knew Clark would go to the ends of the Earth to do just that. But there was something more that he was missing, and he didn't like it. There was some reason why Clockwork had made sure that he had gone back in time with Clark, and it frustrated him that he couldn't figure out why.
More than that the Ghost of Time had removed his Lair from the time-stream; meaning that Danny couldn't get there to talk to him himself. Frustrated, Phantom dove back towards the ground, enjoying the exhilarating feeling of freefall as he let gravity claim him. He turned intangible as he neared the ground before floating through the earth to return to the surface. He stood for a minute in the snowy field, his white cloak billowing in the wind as he reflected on what he knew about the day.
Determining that he needed to finish the day before he figured anything out he returned to the house to get changed. Uncle Kent and Aunt Martha were already at the Talon, but Clark was out by the woodpile. He had resorted to chopping wood in his frustration. After transforming back to his human form, Danny called him in, and Clark grudgingly complied. Danny sighed and shifted himself into a more positive outlook for his cousin's sake, gently pushing a bit of comfort out towards him with his aura. Today it seemed like he'd been doing it more than usual and he found it quite ironic how different one decision made the atmosphere of the whole day.
The first time around Danny had been practically drowning in positive emotions. His ghost half had been empowered, thrilling to get out and he had barely managed to prevent himself from turning into his ghost half. This time however was so very different. Clark's not telling Lana had changed everything. Lana was in a bad mood, Clark was miserable and Chloe was feeling rejected. What sort of game was Clockwork playing? Sure, Danny was friends with the Ghostly Time Master, but his methods were always so confusing. He knew there was a lesson in this that Clockwork wanted him to learn, but it was still a long way from that happening.
Clark was still in the shower, so it was going to be a while before he was ready. Danny however was ready to go already. He sat in his bedroom musing over everything. This morning he'd decided to take Clark out to practice with his powers. Danny had meant it as a distraction, knowing that it always helped him when things got tough to train. But there was something more to it than that.
Danny had always expected that Clark took his own opportunities to practice, but his confession and subsequent demonstration had proved how little Clark actually knew of his powers. Of course their powers had developed in two completely different environments, but surely Clark would have seen the benefit in looking to refine them before Danny had come along. Danny determined that this would not be the last time he and Clark trained together. Somehow Danny got the feeling that he would need the skills in the not too distant future.
Clark came down the stairs in his evening suit. Aunt Martha had taken her car earlier so Clark and Danny hopped into the Truck. The half hour drive was silent, Clark entirely focused on the road. Although with Danny's continuous efforts to lighten him up he was gradually losing the tension coiled in his muscles. They pulled up, but Danny immediately felt something different, wrong.
He didn't even acknowledge the disgruntled looks people gave him as he moved through the crowd, up the stairs to Lois' apartment. He just knew something was wrong. He knocked on the door, but there was no reply; only the steady trickle of running water that was gradually making its way out from under the door. Danny phased his hand through the door, unlocking it from the inside and he stepped in.
Lois was lying unconscious on the floor right aside the stone kitchen bench-top. The lights were off, indicating that she'd been there since before it got dark. The tap was running, the sink overflowing and spilling over the bench-top and onto the floor. There was a stool toppled over in front of the fridge. Danny picked her up just as a radio, dislodged by the water fell onto the floor. The thin sheet of water was electrocuted, and Danny felt a strange sensation thrilling through his core. But he couldn't think about that now.
Danny carried Lois' unconscious form over to her bed, quickly checking her vitals. There was a large bruise forming on the back of her head, and she likely had a concussion. Otherwise she was fine, Danny yelled out to Clark, knowing that he'd hear him. An instant later Clark was by his side.
"What's wrong?" Clark demanded
"She fell off the stool by the fridge; knocked herself unconscious. I think she has a mild concussion, but otherwise she's fine." Danny quickly explained
"How do you know?" Clark asked and Danny sent him a dry look. Two years of ghost fights had taught him quite a bit about human injuries. He suggested Clark call an ambulance if he was worried. Lois blinked herself into awareness before the paramedics came, and was irritated at Clark for bothering at all. Still, she allowed herself to be taken with them as she stood up; Danny barely managing to steady her as she swayed violently.
Clark and Danny headed downstairs together and Clark immediately went over to Chloe who was looking worried. When the radio had fallen it had shorted out the power for the whole Talon, so many of people had left. In the thinning crowd Danny heard Uncle Jon answer his phone. The halfa shook his head in dismissal. It was probably just someone calling to congratulate his Uncle for winning the Senate seat.
Danny walked through the crowd to see Chloe. She was talking in a whisper with Clark, but allowed him to hear when he came over. "I've looked for Lana everywhere" she stammered. "I can't find her." Clark looked down at his watch and frowned. Glancing at his own watch, Danny realised the danger. It read 11.01.
Line Break
"You okay? You sounded pretty upset in your message." Lex turned around as he heard Lana come into the room. He poured scotch into the two crystal glasses he had out. This would be his fifth – or was it sixth? – of the evening. He had called Lana unthinkingly. The crushing defeat of finding out that he had lost had gotten to him.
Blearily he replied "Probably shouldn't have called. Shouldn't do a lot of things, but I uh, seem to do them anyway. I'm sure you want to get back to the party so..." Lex blinked in his intoxicated haze. Part of his mind realised that he didn't want Lana seeing him like this, but the other part couldn't help but thrill at the fact that she'd come.
"I was kind of looking for a reason to get some air." Lana said, and Lex saw a hint of pain in her eyes. Somehow he was unsurprised when she announced "Clark and I had our last fight." But that didn't dismiss his scepticism. There had been so many false finishes in their relationship that it had almost turned into a soap opera.
"Last, huh?" Lex scoffed as he took another sip of scotch. He watched the emotions play across Lana's face. She was so beautiful when she was upset; she got a cute little crinkle in her eyes. She was even more beautiful when she was happy though. Lex's tired mind thought of dozens of ways to encourage a small smile from her. But now was not the time for him to woo her. Now she needed a friend. Maybe.
"I kept waiting for that armour to crack, but..." Lana trailed off; Lex had tried the same thing. But he had eventually realised that it was a fruitless endeavour. "I thought that if I was patient enough he would finally let me in. But I guess people have armour for a reason." Lana concluded. And Lex couldn't help the strange feeling of relief in him. He wasn't sure why, but the fact that Lana had seen this made Lex feel satisfied.
"Lana." Lex said. At the moment it seemed like a good idea to drive the idea home. Make Lana realise that Clark didn't let people into his life "I hate to say this, but it's possible that Clark's never going to trust you."
Lana looked up into his eyes. Her beautiful brown eyes searched his for comfort as she whispered "I don't understand. Why would you lie to someone you love?"
"I wouldn't" Lex whispered. And he couldn't resist; all these months of waiting, gradually getting closer to Lana. He'd seen her in a dream of the future as his wife. He wasn't sure if it was the alcohol that gave him the confidence or if it was just him trying to make something out of what had been a terrible day. He leant forward and kissed her.
She resisted, but Lex was more forceful. Eventually though she physically pushed him away. He blinked as he realised what he'd done. He'd ruined it. Come on too quickly and was now going to pay the price. "I wouldn't. Wow, I'm sorry. I'm sorry, I didn't..." He stammered, trying to find some way to redeem himself and still hold some of his dignity.
Lana backed up, and he saw how offended she was. "It's okay. It's okay. I'm just gonna... I'm gonna go" Lana said before she fled out the door.
Frustrated Lex looked at his scotch glass. He'd drunk far too much. In a bout of anger he threw the glass into the fire, savouring the heated flare as the alcohol blended with the flames. He could fix this. It was a matter of pride. He had to fix this. Lex grabbed the keys to his Porsche and headed out the door. He'd stop Lana and they'd talk. It was all going to be okay.
Line Break
Clark felt the adrenaline rush through his veins as he raced to where the accident had happened. This time Lana hadn't called him, so he had to hope that he could get there in time. He felt the cold air still around him as he ran faster than he ever had before, pushing himself to get to the intersection in time. There was probably only a matter of seconds left.
Clark huffed and grabbed the tail end of the school bus, the weight of the vehicle strained against him as he struggled to find purchase on the icy road. There was a loud scream and a sigh of relief as the buss came to a complete stop. The teenagers poured out to check that everything was okay. But Clark's attention wasn't on them. Instead he watched as Lex's car skidded to a stop, the front of Lana's car actually going through the side Lex's car as hers too came to a sudden halt. But there was no damage done. If Clark didn't know any better he would have said it was a trick of the light.
Clark watched as Lex and Lana got out of their cars and gave each other a tight hug. Stinging tears jumped to his eyes. He may have saved her, but he'd also lost her. There was a level of tenderness in Lex and Lana's embrace that he doubted he would ever feel with her again. He felt a cold hand on his shoulder and turned around.
Phantom gave him a half hearted smile. His green eyes glittered with sympathy and understanding as the wind passed through his snowy hair. His ghostly aura was dim enough to be hidden in the moonlight. Clark sighed "You turned her car intangible, didn't you." He commented.
Phantom just nodded. "You've been given a second chance. She's alive, and that's what counts." Clark looked back over to the two, by now Lex had shepherded Lana off the road. A blue truck drove by, and Clark thought he saw his Dad for a moment but passed it off. In a way Danny was right. Lana was alive; they'd managed to save her. If keeping her alive meant that he couldn't be with her then he'd sacrifice their relationship a thousand times over. That decided he headed back to the Talon to pick up his Mom.
As he arrived there was a bright flash in the Alley behind the Talon and Danny came out, back in his human form. Clark sighed as the two of them headed back into the building. By now the lights were back on and most of the people had left. Apparently Clark's Dad had slipped out unnoticed, and his Mom was just waiting for Clark and Danny to show up before she went home. The three of them got into her car. Clark sighed as he looked at Danny in the rear-view mirror.
The younger boy was looking out the window, a look of deep concentration lighting his blue eyes. Clark couldn't imagine what he was thinking about, but something told him that the halfa was too lost in his own thoughts to pay much attention to him. Clark mused over the day; it was disappointing to see how one choice sent everything spiralling out of control. Lois was in hospital, Lana had all but broken up with him, and the look in Lex's eyes had said that he was just waiting for the chance to move in.
Although, Clark was glad Danny had taken the opportunity to go out and help him train. In a way it felt strange to be taught by a sixteen year old, but when you looked in his eyes... sometimes Clark saw the eyes of an older man, weighed down by heavy responsibilities and harrowing experience. It felt like an accomplishment to have so improved his accuracy with his cousin's guidance. It made him wonder why he had never tried to do it before. The light from a passing car brightened Danny's eyes, sending a strange shiver down Clark's spine.
Clark's mom struck up a conversation about the election in good cheer. So much so that by the time they pulled into the driveway they were all laughing. Then the headlights flashed over something different. Clark looked out the window and saw his dad walking out in front of the car. He looked dishevelled, his suit jacket abandoned and his white shirt tugged loose. He staggered. "What's your Dad doing out here?" Clark heard his mom ask. Clark's eyes widened as he saw his Dad collapse.
The car pulled to a stop and Clark raced over to his Dad. He looked so weak. "Dad!" He called, hoping for any response. He vaguely heard the fearful cries of his Mom and Danny as they gathered around the unconscious man. Clark pulled him over to the hay-bales near the fence, carefully laying his father down on them as he struggled to find a heartbeat. He felt tears leap to his eyes, he couldn't do this. His Dad was fading in his arms and there was nothing he could do.
"Dad!" he cried, a sob wracking through his body as the guilt threatened to overcome him. He had saved Lana, why couldn't he save his Dad? "Dad!" his cries grew ever more desperate as he felt the warmth leaving his Dad, the once bright eyes draining of emotion as they fluttered closed for the last time.
"No! Not yet! Jonathan!" The desperate cry of Clark's mom pierced the night as she frantically clutched her husband's chest. Clark grabbed his Mom and drew her into a tight hug. The two of them struggled to understand, to accept what they had just seen. Clark looked over to his cousin who was strangely silent during the exchange. Clark felt a surge of hatred surge through him. How dare Danny not care? His father was dying and he sat there doing nothing with his eyes closed off to the word.
Clark was about to say something when Danny opened his eyes. They glowed bright silver, glittering far brighter than any star. Danny held out a hand to someone that wasn't there and he gave an almost imperceptible nod. "It'll be all right" Danny whispered, so softly that Clark almost missed it and his hand fell down to his side. A strange wind moved around his cousin, Clark watched as his hair flittered in an ethereal breeze. Clark suddenly got the feeling that something bigger was happening. He watched as Danny moved away, his shoulders slouched over as he made his way into the house.
It was not long after that the paramedics showed up, Danny apparently having called them while Clark and his Mom were lost in their stupor. They quickly ran a diagnosis and figured out what had happened to Clark's Dad. He'd had a heart attack, his already fragile heart finally giving up. Clark tried to ignore the pang of guilt. It was his fault that his Dad had the heart condition in the first place. It was his fault that his Dad had a heart attack. It was his fault for dying and having Jor-El demand a life in exchange for his. His fault for going back and letting his Dad die. It was all his fault.
And there was nothing he could do to fix it this time.
Line Break
The days quickly blurred together for Clark. His Mom arranged the funeral, Clark found himself unable to help anyone in his guilt. He talked to no-one, despite the careful prompting of his friends and his Mom. The only one who respected his silence was Danny. Although Clark noticed that much of the light had left his usually bright blue eyes.
The morning of the funeral arrived, there was heavy cloud cover and the weather seemed to reflect Clark's mood. He came down the stairs in his suit, the same one he'd worn just days earlier as he heard the news that his Dad had been elected Senator. The same suit he'd been wearing when Lana agreed to marry him. Yet now it was to be worn for this, the saddest of occasions. Clark looked over to his Mom and his cousin, his own sadness reflected in their eyes.
"I guess it's time then." His Mom said sadly and Clark felt his heart break.
"I'm sorry." He murmured softly, looking to the ground. He couldn't face his Mom's gaze not now.
"Sit down." His mom commanded softly. Clark reluctantly complied, still finding it difficult to meet her eyes. He felt a hand on his shoulder, and instantly knew that Danny was encouraging. "Clark." His Mom said, and Clark finally had the courage to look up into her eyes "I know you're blaming yourself, but this was not your fault."
"How can you say that?" He demanded "I went back to save Lana and now Dad's gone."
"Do you think you could have chosen between them if you'd had the chance?" His mom softly asked. "Clark, A heart beats only so many times in a life. Your father used his more than anyone I know." Her voice was filled with quiet comfort, there was truth ringing in her words, but Clark still felt... lost.
"I just don't know how I'm supposed to be the man he wanted me to be without him here."
"You're his son." His Mom said "You know what's right and wrong. Whether your father is here with us or not, you're a man he's proud of. A man he could look up to. And something tells me he won't be the only one." At her words Clark felt something he hadn't felt in days, hope.
"Your Mom's right. Your Dad loved you with his whole heart, but the thing you do best, what made him the most proud, was you being you. The strong man that he knew he could rely on to be there for anyone." Clark couldn't help but feel encouraged at his cousin's words. Maybe he could make it through this after all. He looked down to his Mom's hands and noticed the pearl necklace tucked tightly between her fingers.
"Can I help you with this?" he softly offered and gently fastened the necklace behind her neck. "I love you Mom." Clark said, pulling her into a tight hug. "I love you too." His mom replied. Clark stepped back and ruffled Danny's hair. "Thanks" he said to the younger boy. He took a deep calming breath and made his way out to the car.
The service was simple. There were so many people that came to pay their respects to the brave and kind man that was Jonathan Kent. Idly Clark remembered something that Lex had once said to him. "When my father dies, kings will come to the funeral, but when your father dies his friends will come." There were no truer words than that. There were so many people that his Dad had helped; so many people who he'd been there at just the right time for. He watched sadly as the coffin slowly lowered into the grave.
Lana had come, taking Clark's hand as he watched the coffin sink below the earth, but she soon left. The snow softly fell around them, gently fluttering in the winter breeze. Clark's father had been a strong man, a great man. He was an idol, someone who always knew the right thing to say; to do. He was someone who Clark was proud to call a father. Clark only hoped that he could be half the person his Dad had been. Clark grabbed a handful of dirt and gently poured it onto the coffin, sending a silent farewell to the great man that had been his Dad.
Line Break
Danny silently watched the funeral. His Uncle was one in a million, so few people held his courage and strength. He was a pure soul and Danny would greatly miss him. He didn't know how, but he had watched his uncle as he moved on to the next life. He had never seen that before, but the man's last words played on his mind. "Take care of Clark and Martha. Someday Clark will be a symbol of hope. Please, help my son to find the right path."
Danny saw Lana leave Clark alone at the graveside. He watched as Lionel Luthor comforted Aunt Martha. He saw Lex in the background, sympathy in his eyes. Lois and Chloe looked over to Clark before leaving along with the gradually thinning crowd. Eventually it was Martha and Clark alone by the graveside as the snow drifted around them. Danny felt tears prickle in his eyes. This was the first time he had attended a funeral. He had been unconscious when his family and friends had been buried. Something about it made him feel empty.
He dug his hands into his pockets and felt the Time Medallion's cool gear-shaped pendant brush against his fingers. Surely by now he had seen whatever he needed to see. He let himself fade into the background before opening a portal to the Zone near Clockwork's tower. He felt relieved when he finally found it, shifting into his ghost form as he floated through the portal.
Four minutes later he was in his ghostly guardian's tower, the echoing mechanism unusually distant and silent. He watched his guardian's back for a minute as Clockwork observed his viewing portal. Phantom came up to the Ghost of Time, taking a place by his side. Clockwork was currently in his elderly man form, slightly bent over himself as he watched the scene play out. Phantom flicked his eyes towards the scene himself.
Lionel Luthor walked down the stairs of the Kent barn loft "Senator Jonathan Kent." He said, his polished aristocratic tone carrying a hint of superiority. "I didn't expect you to duck out of your victory party tonight. But I'm here. And I'm alone, as you requested."
Jon stood aggressively on the bottom step, looking up towards Lionel as he continued his way down the stairs. "Good." Jon said, danger flashing in his eyes. "So why don't you come down and face me, you son of a bitch."He tossed his suit jacket off and onto the workbench.
"Perhaps a few lessons in tact; senator. Now that you're going to be in the public eye." Lionel replied with a level of condescension that would rile even a toddler.
Jon loosened the tie around his neck and flexed it almost threateningly. "Why don't you just cut the crap, Luthor? Sure I know my campaign accepted funds from you, but I also know I'm gonna pay them all back. So I won't owe you a thing."
Lionel seemed unfazed by Jon's obvious aggression "I wonder how far that virtuous stance will get you one you're in office."
"I just wanna make sure you understand; you don't have a puppet here." Jon replied, poking his finger deep into Lionel's lapel.
Lionel scoffed "I should hope not. I didn't put my financial and political clout behind a candidate who would be anyone's puppet. I envision this rather as a partnership." There was a hint in his voice that suggested that he would be the dominant partner.
Jon saw the loosely veiled threat and retorted "The day you and I become partners will be the day..." But he was cut off by Lionel
"Careful. Careful. Careful, senator. Don't forget you and I have a... a common interest. One that both of us would protect with our lives. I have nothing but respect for a man who would deliberately hurl himself in the spotlight with such a dangerous secret that must stay hidden." Lionel pulled a photograph out of his pocket, handing it over to Jon who snatched it out of his hand. Jon growled at the photo before crumpling it and throwing it to the ground.
"I won't let you destroy my family." Jon exclaimed "We can withstand anything you bring down on us." Jon physically picked Lionel up and threw him across the workbench. Lionel collapsed in a weak heap on the far side and Jon came around to look down on him. "Because we have each other. That's what will always separate the Kents from the Luthors." Jon looked tempted to kick Lionel's prone form, his fingers twitching as if to grab a farm implement. Fortunately Jon thought better of it, his hand going to his heaving chest "Now why don't you get..." Jon paused for a moment, a pained look crossed his face, his fists tightened in repressed pain. "Now why don't you get the hell off my property."
The scene faded and Clockwork turned to face Phantom. Phantom was shocked. He had never seen this side of his Uncle, downright scary and dangerous. He had no idea what to say. Having just witnessed the man's funeral it was saddening to think that this was what led up to his last moments on Earth. And that is exactly what this scene displayed, that was obvious with how he was dressed and how he reached to his heart.
"Why?" Phantom puzzled sadly.
Clockwork looked down at him, his solid red eyes piercing Phantom's green. "Time is not completely flexible. While your choices change your destiny there are always some constants. The day you witnessed showed Jonathan Kent at his worst, but his death was not in vain. You know as well I that I am bound not to interfere in the time stream unless the consequences of not doing so would be dire."
Phantom nodded. He already knew this of his guardian. "Why did you send me the Medallion?" Clockwork smiled, shifting to his infant form. The pendulum in his chest swung heavily as the Time Ghost sent Phantom a cheeky smile.
"If I were to say that this confrontation happened in most timelines..." Clockwork began, smiling broadly as Phantom caught on. Unfortunately it wasn't the most pleasant of revelations.
"Then no matter what Uncle Jon would have had that Heart attack. He would have died even if we hadn't gone back in time." Phantom paused, there was still something he was missing "But why let me go back too?"
"Can you see no reason?" Clockwork retorted. Phantom gazed up at the blank screen as the grey mist swirled across it.
"Clark needed to save Lana; otherwise he would have blamed himself for her death. But... Clark would have lost two people he cared about instead of just one. Uncle Jon's death wasn't Clark's fault, but his life wasn't exchanged for Lana's. But Clark won't see that, he'll only see the exchange that Jor-El made." Phantom looked over to his ghostly guardian "So I'm meant to tell him that it wasn't his fault?"
Clockwork smiled and shifted to an adult "Not yet. However he will need guidance. Things that you set in motion the second time you lived that day will greatly help Kal-El to not only survive, but thrive. This is why I allowed you to see this day twice. Had you not lived through the young Miss Lang's demise yourself you would not have followed the same path."
"I thought you weren't supposed to meddle." Phantom said.
"Jor-El manipulated the time-stream. I simply allowed my ward to see a different perspective on the day." Clockwork replied. Phantom just rolled his eyes at the ghost of time. However it was clear that it was time for him to leave. Usually if they got into this type of argument it lasted for hours, and gave Phantom a headache. He returned the medallion to its rack, knowing better than to keep one of those artefacts from its owner. Phantom slipped through a portal back to the Kent farm, feeling slightly mollified about Clark's choice, yet weighed down with his discoveries.
Line Break
Vlad Masters smiled as he hopped into his Limousine. Things could hardly have played out better for him. With Jonathan Kent winning the election, but losing his life, the political environment would be in turmoil until a solution was found. This meant that he could implement his own plans with little governmental interference. The turbulence would allow him much more freedom to move and until a new political stance was taken. He was all but assured to go undetected. It was time to bring up the heat on Smallville.
The chessboard was set. His pawns were in position. A little subtle prodding and young Daniel would have no choice but to retreat to him. A dark grin crossed his lips as he took a sip of port. "Soon, Little Badger" He uttered sinisterly "Soon you will be in the loving arms of your dear Uncle Vlad."
AN: I hope I played the balance out right. I'm so sorry, but Jonathan had to die; it's part of Clark growing up. Clark can't be who he needs to be without it. But I hope it felt right, or as right as a funeral can be.
Hope you're still enjoying it. Next time you get to see how the family is dealing without Jonathan.
Farewell until then
Bluerose