Disclaimer: I do not own Smallville or any of these characters

AN: You may recognize some dialogue from certain episodes, the whole plot about Ollie's friend being killed isn't going anywhere. I'm not trying to rewrite season six but you'll see certain plot points from some episodes. I felt I had to use the plots from the first few episodes of season six to introduce Oliver into Chloe's social group. (Sorry for the stunning lack of originality but this is fanfiction and I never claimed to be original LOL!)

Chapter 3: A Flame grows slowly

A week ago was the last time Chloe saw Oliver, she agreed with his statement about being 'friendly'. He seemed to want nothing from her but friendship, which was something that didn't happen to her all that often. Yes she had her friends and her family, but they all either seemed to want something from her or she had to clean up after them.

Chloe didn't mind helping. In fact she loved it, but sometimes it was just too much to deal with. When she was at the planet Clark would ask her for help. When she was at the talon Lois would tell her about a mistake she made and Chloe would have to fix whatever it was she did the next day.

Life was becoming more complicated by the day, to say the least. Oliver seemed to give her a haven in the chaos that was her life. He'd even given her a key to his penthouse sighting the fact she could get in anyway anytime she wanted. He stated that her having a key would just save him from having to reboot his security system.

Chloe of course turned down the gesture at first stating that she wasn't going to be seeing him anytime soon, so what was the point. However when the offending object showed up in her mail box a few days later Chloe shrugged it off. Oliver was becoming more forward with her, but she knew better than anyone how determined he could be.

Everything just seemed so strange about the billionaire playboy to Chloe. They had only met a few times but apparently their first meeting had done a real number on the man. The cosmic joke that she thought her life was, was just getting more mind boggling. Along with her duties at the planet and the whole pro-bono work she did as Clark's sidekick there was also her secret alliance with the man she dubbed as the 'Martian ManHunter'.

John Jones was a kind man, well martian, the trust that he had put in her made Chloe feel better about the whole lying to Clark bit. It helped that a part of the deal was trying to find her mother, which was a recent development.

Chloe had always wondered what had become of her mother. Last year she'd tracked her down to a mental institute, but last week after going through the Intel that John retrieved from their last mission Chloe had learned a tragic fact. Her mother was being used by Lex Luthor what for exactly she was unsure.

The file read Ability: Suspected of being able to control other meteor infected subjects,

It was all more believable for her, than Chloe would like to admit. The file was incomplete but she was sure it was her mother, there was no photo and the file also gave the date of birth, eye color, hair color, height and general description of medical history. This coupled with the fact that Chloe hacked the files on her mother from the institute and it was all the proof she needed to convince herself that it was really her mother.

She would have cried if it weren't for the fact that John promised her that they would free her mother, and the fact that Clark needed her help yet again. The Zoner problem, Chloe wished she could tell Clark that it was being taken care of and maybe lay his mind at ease. But loose lips sank ships and there was a time and place to reveal certain secrets. So when Lana Lang walked through the doors of the Daily Planet that night with one of her own Chloe just added it to her growing collection of secrets that were already locked up.

"Hey! How are you feeling? Your doctor find anything?" Chloe said pulling out her chair for Lana to sit in, she had seen Lana earlier in the week and her friend fainted while standing up. "Here sit down."

"Hanging in there." Her friend replied taking a seat and folding her hands in her lap.

"I did my due diligence on the Second Chances Halfway House, and I found…" She was about to give her friend the paperwork she had asked for a few days ago but noticing the look on Lana's face she paused mid-sentence.

"Chloe, um... I'm not here to talk about the halfway house." Lana looked up at the young reported with pleading eyes, as if silently asking for help.

"Oh…okay. But there's some stuff I think you should know about, Lana…about Lex." She desperately wanted to spill all the secrets she knew about the monster to her friend. Lana had to be warned about everything, about 33.1 about how manipulative Lex could be. How he used people with abilities, people like her mother.

"I don't want to hear anything more about Lex. I can't." She couldn't what had that bald viper done to her friend?

"What is it?"Chloe knelt down to her level and looked Lana straight in the eye."Lana, what did he do to you? Hey, you know you can tell me anything." She said trying to comfort her friend well coaxing whatever it was Lana was trying to say, out of her.

"Chloe... I'm pregnant." Those two words were the last that Chloe Sullivan ever wanted to hear, it made things more complicated than they already were.

"Okay." Was the only thing that Chloe could whisper, her plan would have to be rethought out. She wouldn't let Lana get caught in the crossfire. This gave Chloe all the more reason to finish her mission and to take down 33.1 and Lex Luthor.

Oliver was having a rough week, at the 10 year reunion of his school one of his old friends was killed, everyone said it was an accident. But there was something that just wasn't right about the whole situation. That friend had called him a month ago wanting to go out for a drink, but Oliver had asked for a rain check. The incident had brought Oliver face to face with his own made what he was about to do just that much easier.

RL65 was a highly experimental drug, he had read the lab reports and was fully prepared for the side effects. The liquid was green in color that had to be a good sign green was a good color right? He looked at the syringe one more time before plunging the needle into his vein. Chloe, he was doing this for her too. She needed protection from whatever it was that she was getting herself into. She was playing a dangerous game with being a sidekick to that ignorant…

"I need your help, Oliver." Clark Kent came super speeding into his apartment, uninvited as usual.

"No, hey how are you doing today?" He answered his guess closing his desk drawer to hide his new drug. Clark had become an interesting subject to him; he had something that Oliver just couldn't grasp, the respect and some kind of love from Chloe Sullivan. "That was a joke Clark."

"I'm laughing on the inside." The farm-boy smirked.

"Maybe we'll get lucky one day, and it'll bubble to the surface. To what do I owe the pleasure?" Oliver could care less, but in truth he knew that Clark would only come to him for a good reason.

"I need to talk to you about Queen Industries, their satellite grid." Clark said without stuttering, why on earth would he need that? What exactly was he up too and did it involve Chloe? "My friend Chloe, she's doing a story on the global effects of Dark Thursday. She needs satellite images from that day, but none of them were working."

"Except mine." So Chloe was involved, an article really?

Was that the best he could come up with? There was obviously something more going on. He'd have to ask Chloe about it later; unless she didn't know that her best friend was using her name.

"Good afternoon Mrs. Sullivan, do you know who I am?" Lex put his hands in his pockets and watched as a nurse took the patients vitals.

"No, do I know you? Do you know where my daughter is?" Moira replied keeping up the ruse, in truth she knew perfectly well who this man was.

"Yes you do, you asked me to bring you here. Too help you with your meteor infection. Your daughter Chloe is working at the Daily Planet." He said thinking that it was working; he would have control over this woman in no time.

"How, are you going to cure me?" Her plan was working; playing dumb with a smart man was easy.

"No, there is no cure. You were brought here too prefect your ability." Lex said lying through his teeth.

"How am I awake then? The last thing I remember is admitting myself to the institute." The nurse was done taking her vitals and walked out of the room leaving them alone.

"You're being given a drug to help you stay coherent; your daughter approved the treatment." He said giving her a reassuring smile.

"Chloe? Can I see her now?" Moira knew she was asking a lot of questions and decided this was the last, she had to play dumb yes but also not too curious.

"Not today, she is a very busy reporter. But she sends this." Lex handed her a photo he took out of one of Lana's photo albums. It was a simple gesture to make her trust him and as far as Lex could see it was working.

Moira took the photo and just stared at it. Chloe, she looked so happy in the photograph and carefree. Where did this man get this photo? The older woman suddenly found herself questioning whether if her daughter really did put her in this place.

The doubt in her mind left as soon as it appeared. Moira knew with great certainty that Chloe would never do anything to put her in danger. This man was playing a game and he was better at it than she thought. Lex Luthor was playing hardball and she was to play the part of his pawn.

Getting the codes to the satellite grid was easier than he thought, Oliver Queen had practically just handed them over. Something about building trust amongst heroes. Now Clark just had to get them to Chloe. Where was she anyway? He had called her over and over and all he got was her voice mail. He was worried and was about to go searching when his phone rang.

"Chloe where are you? I have the codes that you needed." Clark said over the phone, he sounded worried.

"I'm still at the Daily planet, I have a deadline Clark."Chloe lied as she drove her car through the city towards suicide slums. "I will see you tomorrow okay? I'm going to get fired if I don't finish this article."

"Fine I'll see you tomorrow." With that Chloe hung up and focused on the task in front of her she had to see Oliver and she knew he was already out on patrol. But she knew exactly where he was, suicide slums.

Oliver was angry and beating up a few thugs was just what the doctor ordered. He could feel the drug taking its effect as he landed one hit after another. His stamina was up, and all his senses were heightened. The drug was working just as it was meant to.

"Busy night?" Chloe asked,She was easier to hear then she should have been, what was she doing out here?

"What can I say, a hero's got to make a living," Oliver grunted but didn't stop hitting the thug as he answered her. Of course he knew it wouldn't faze her.

"I thought you were self-employed," She put her hands in the pockets of her trench coat and smirked at him. "Something about an occupational safety hazard?"

"Enough with the jokes sidekick, it's not safe out here." One last sock to the jaw and the guy was down, making sure he was unconscious Oliver dropped the thief to the ground.

"You're here so I'm sure I'll be just fine. I heard about your friend I wanted to make sure you were okay." He couldn't fault her reasoning; he was more than capable of keeping her safe.

"I'm glad you care, but I'm fine." He said as he turned off the voice distorted and threw back his hood sure that no one would see him.

"We've both lost a lot in our young lives Oliver; I'm here if you need to talk." Chloe said putting a comforting hand on his arm.

"Here," He motioned to where they were, "is not somewhere we should be talking, a phone call would have been safer."

"I was in the neighborhood," This caused him to raise an eyebrow.

"Let me guess an important article or is it your sidekick side job, Clark has you constantly on?" Oliver bit back the rest of what he was going to say, why did he suddenly want to put that Boy Scout in his place?

"The first one, the life of an investigative reporter doesn't exactly take one to exotic locals." Chloe's smirk faded as she heard the sirens in the distances. "Sounds like they're calling your name you better get going."

"Are you serious?" Oliver asked, putting his sunglasses back on and raising his hood.

"Those sirens are scaring every alley cat in a five mile radius I think…" He cut her off mid sentence.

"No, about the talking part?" She hadn't surprised him when she said it, he just wanted to confirm it. "If you are I'll see you tomorrow around 4 p.m, I'm sure you know your way in."

Chloe wasn't surprised at his presumption. He had an ego and she knew that. It was one of the things that she found attractive about him. It was harder and harder to be around him and not touch him. Every time she had seen him she had to stifle the memories of that night. He had been a gentle lover to her and somewhere in the back of her mind the memory of his touch was still there. Chloe would never admit it to anyone though.

John Jones watched as the Green Arrow zip lined away from the alley to safety. He could see Chloe sigh and was concerned for a moment. He could sense the apprehension in her heart, from what, he knew all too well. He had recruited her to help him in his mission to protect Kal-El and she was doing better than he could have hoped for.

Chloe had embraced her new position as one of Clark's 'protectors' whole heartily. She was there when he needed her and didn't ask too many questions of him or his motives. Chloe Sullivan was perfect for the task John had set before her and unlike others he knew just how useful and determined she was to protect those she cared about.

"Do you think the archer can be trusted?" John Jones asked as Chloe stepped out onto the roof he was perched on.

"I think he can be counted on. He knows the cost of keeping those he cares about safe better than anyone." Chloe said as she came to stand next to the man she had come to know so well in the last six weeks.

"Yes but he is blinded by the past. There are things he needs to overcome." He replied, still not looking at her. She just wondered what was up with all the pensive stares into the horizon but lately she found herself doing the same thing.

"I agree, but… " Chloe didn't know what she was going to say so she was somewhat relieved when John cut her off.

"You are weary of him; you're attracted to him, as well. I don't need my telepathy to tell me I'm right. I see the way you look at him."

She hated the fact that he was telepathic, though that's not how he figured her out. He was old, how old she hadn't asked yet. But she knew he was old enough to notice such things.

"This is not about me John or the emerald archer," Chloe felt weird referring to Oliver that way but for the sake of the conversation it worked. "It's about Clark. I told him that I needed access codes to the Queen Industries database, but I already have the images you needed."

"Good, you did well. Did you steal them? I know it's tough keeping this all a secret from him." John knew anything he said wouldn't make her feel any better, but he could at least try. She was one of the few humans he'd come to depend on.

"Anything to keep Clark safe, but there's a new development." Chloe told him about Lana and everything that her condition entailed. Thankfully John agreed that there plan to take Lex down and free her mother had to be changed, there was a child at stake now and it may have been the child of a monster but both heroes still considered it innocent as its mother.

There was music playing softly through the penthouse when Chloe entered. She watched in awe as Oliver pulled the arrow back and released it letting it fly hitting the target dead center with his eyes closed. He had that air of calm about him that gave him a serene look.

"Your late." he said not opening his eyes at first Oliver knew she was there by her scent. His sense of smell was still heightened from the RL65. She smelled just as he remembered, so sweet and inviting.

"Traffic, I had to travel half way across the city." Chloe said,She entered the room fully and sat her purse on the table.

"New weaponry?" Chloe asked picking up the newest addition to Oliver's arsenal.

"I was thinking about developing a boxing-glove arrow, and then I thought, "Come up with something a little fancier." With that he took the arrow from her and gave Chloe a smirk.

Setting the arrow on the string he pulled back and released it. He didn't aim for the target like she thought he was going to but instead made the arrow hit the book stand where the stereo was located. The second the titanium missile hit its target the music faded.

"Contained Electromagnetic Pulse - knocks out everything electrical within an 8-foot radius - cameras, laser systems, pacemakers…that last one was a joke" Oliver walked pasted her and retrieved the arrow.

"That's not funny Ollie." She used his nickname, "You could really hurt someone."

"That's not the point and you know it." He replied turning to her and realizing that she wasn't wearing her coat anymore. Her blouse looked so flimsy he was sure he could get it off her without much effort.

"Oliver?" Chloe question suddenly noticing the predatory gaze he was giving her. "Are you okay?"

"No, that's why you're here, remember? How about a meal Chinese or Italian?" He asked holding a few takeout menus. Chloe picked Italian and was weary of the whole meal idea from the moment she walked in the door.

000

"I never thought I'd almost ever feel bad for Lex Luthor." Chloe said as they sat and ate there meal it had arrived only moments ago. Oliver filled her in on how his teenage years weren't exactly his most gracious.

"The way I treated him…I'm not proud of it." He said ashamed, she could see the same emotion on his face that had been plastered on Clark's for the past month and a half.

"You know, making the wrong choices is sadly easier than one thinks, but living with the consequences – that's hard." Chloe replied in the hope that it would make him feel a little better.

"You sound like you have experience in this area." His frown lessened into an understanding smile as he lifted his gaze to meet hers.

"More than I would like, especially when it comes to the Luthor's." She wished she hadn't said that, he'd want to know more.

"What do you mean?" There it was, thankfully she'd been used so much by the Luthor's she had a multitude of things to choose from.

"It happened a long time ago, I was young and Lionel Luther took advantage of me. He asked me to spy on Clark." Chloe always regretted ever saying yes to that man and she didn't know how Jor-El could have chosen him for his vessel, but as with all things Kryptonian she didn't question it.

"And you did?" Oliver Quirked an eyebrow at her confession of betrayal, it seemed out of Character for her. She'd been so loyal to him.

"I let jealousy cloud my judgment."What was that suppose to mean? As he watched her for a moment he understood, it was written all over her face.

"You know, we all make bad choices, Chloe. All we can do is hope to make the right ones in the future, right?" Oliver had a point which affirmed her earlier worry about coming to see him. He knew her and he knew the right things to say.

Oliver was everything,Chloe could want in a man and he knew about her sidekick side job and most importantly he understood it. He wasn't like Clark. Oliver knew that she could take care of herself and he didn't judge her need to keep those around her safe.

AN:Yeah I put some of Clark's words into Chloe's mouth, I felt that it helped the story for these to along and brought them closer. And don't worry there will be some Chlollie Loving in a few chapters,its just takes time for them to get together. As Always Thanks for the reviews and thank you for reading, Constructive criticism is appreciated,