Memory Lane Chapter 8. The Talon

Sorry about the long wait.

Buffy pulled her magic bag of tricks Giles and Willow had put together for her before she left on this trip. After the conversation she had just had with Clark's father she was ready to get out for some slayage.

For a while there it felt like a scene from the movie Meet The Parents with Clark's father talking about his circle of trust. It made her feel like a slime for keeping her secrets from them. They were trusting her with their greatest secret. They were putting her up in Clark's own bedroom, feeding her incredible food, treating her like a member of the family and teaching her to make gravy. Meanwhile she was keeping secrets from them.

Would it make them feel better or worse to know that she was a slayer? Would knowing that she could look out for herself make them feel better about her knowing their son's secret? Things were already so tense for them right now as it is. Would knowing about demons and vampires be too much? Would they think that she was after their son for some nefarious purpose?

She hadn't been there for more than a few hours and already she didn't want to loose what she had found; a home, a family. Granted it wasn't her home or her family, but it felt like it could be. She wondered if this was what Faith had felt when she had first come to Sunnydale.

Pushing the thoughts aside Buffy slid a stake into the waist line of her pants and pulled her jacket on over it, and slipped a dagger into her boot. It was time to go to work.

Chloe stepped out of her yellow Volkswagen convertible and took a deep breath. She had heard from Lana that Clark was back and that he had amnesia. There was an impromptu welcome home Clark party going on at the Talon. Lana was going to come get Clark herself but Chloe wanted to be the one to come see him first.

She loved Clark and a part of her always would, but now that she knew about him she knew that he had a destiny greater than her own. She knew that things would never work out between her and Clark but by all that was holy she would be his friend and confidante.

If his parents had told him about his past she knew it wasn't likely that he would be feeling much like going to a party. She planned to be there to let him know that he would always have a friend.

The door to the house opened and a beautiful blonde came walking out dressed in tight fitting leather from head to toe. Instantly she stopped and looked at the blond girl who had been coming up the walk.

"Buffy, wait for me." Clark called out and raced out of the house at super speeds. "You weren't going to go without me were you?" He asked stepping in front of her and stopped looking into her horrified eyes.

"What is wrong?"

"We have company." Buffy whispered and stepped around him to eye the girl standing on the walk way. Turning Clarke winced.

"Uh, hi." He stated hoping that if he acted normal she would doubt what she saw.

"She knows? Some stranger already knows about your secrets?" Chloe asked feeling hurt, Clark had kept his secret from her for years and never really told her about it. She had to see him catch a car like a beach ball to discover the truth about him.

"You know?" Clark asked wondering who the girl was.

"And have you had the circle of trust talk yet?" Buffy asked protectively.

Chloe couldn't help her smile at that statement, she remembered that talk well. "I've had the talk with Mr. Kent. Clark do you remember me at all?" She asked hoping that he would remember her.

"I...I'm sorry. I don't even remember my parents." Clark admitted.

"I'm Chloe. We are friends. Lana is throwing a welcome home Clark party at the Talon, I volunteered to come get you. So, who's your friend?"

"Chloe, this is Buffy Summers. She saved me and helped me find my way home. She is going to be staying with us for a while," Clark wrapped a protective arm around Buffy's slender waist and looked down at her with love shining from his eyes. Clark was oblivious to the way Chloe winced at seeing this but Buffy wasn't.

Oh God, this is his ex-girlfriend. It doesn't look like she has moved on as much as everyone is claiming. Buffy thought to herself.

"You saved Clark?" Chloe asked in dismayed surprise. "It wasn't, perhaps, the other way around?"

"Not yet, but one of these day's I'm sure he will return the favor," Buffy smiled wryly. "You should go, it's a good chance for you to meet your old Scooby Gang," Buffy smiled up at him and Clark could swear that she looked nervous about something.

"I'm not leaving you alone," Clark's reply was emphatic.

"Why don't you come along as well?" Chloe asked. "I'm sure everyone would love to meet you."

"I've got some things to take care of tonight, but sure I'll come with to meet everyone then I can leave and take care of my things and meet back later when the party is over."

"I'll drive." Chloe offered with a smile.

Buffy sat in the front with Chloe while Clark took the back seat between them.

"So how do you know Clark?" Buffy asked.

"We have been friends since my family moved to Smallville."

"Just friends?" Clark asked with a blush.

"Well you did take me to the Prom, but the tornado kind of ruined it and you left me there. It kind of ruined any hope we had of getting together."

"I left you alone at the Prom with a tornado coming?" Clark asked honestly horrified.

"I was safe, and you needed to go save Lana, and check on your parents." Chloe explained.

"Still, I'm sorry I did that to you." Clark sounded really truly sorry and Chloe was touched by his sincerity. Even with his memory gone, he was still Clark.

"You already apologized once, but at the time I didn't understand. Once I found out about your secret I understood a lot better."

It was silent for a long moment after this. Then leaning forward Clark eyed Buffy in concern. "I don't want you to go out on your own. From what my Father has told me this town isn't the safest of places."

Buffy glanced at Chloe and turned to look at Clark with a dangerous glint in her eye. "I'll be fine."

"This town really can be dangerous at times." Chloe added. "What all do you need to do?"

"Just some research for my work." Buffy evaded not happy that Clark had opened the conversation and left it open for questions like that.

"Wouldn't it be better during the day?" Chloe asked.

"No. Actually what I am looking for is best found at night. No worries, I do this all the time and I am usually by myself when I do."

"So what do you do?"

"I'm one of the go-to girls for WS International, we are thinking of opening a branch here in Smallville, but it depends on what I find out tonight."

"Really, that is big news. Smallville could really use the jobs that WSI could bring to the town. Could I interview you about that?"

"You are a reporter?" Buffy asked horror sounding clearly in her voice.

"Relax, I've learned my lesson about being careful about what I report. Some things have to be kept a secret," Chloe stated with a glance at Clark.

Buffy took a deep breath and calmed herself then Chloe's voice broke the silence. "So about that interview?"

"I'll tell you what. Keep it a secret that I am in town and looking at opening another branch here and if we do I will give you the exclusive interview." Buffy bargained.

"Deal." Chloe stated with wide eyes all the while praying that WSI would set up a branch in Smallville.

Tingles moved down her spine and Buffy turned to look up a side road. "Where does that lead?" Buffy asked.

"Forest lands and Crater Lake." Chloe stated looking down the road that Buffy was pointing down. Buffy nodded and turned to look down the dark and winding road. She continued looking in that direction long after the actual road was out of sight.

The Talon was filled with people he didn't know, he wanted to grab a hold of Buffy and hold on for dear life. It was so overwhelming to him and he didn't know how to react or respond.

A tall blond stepped forward and grabbed his hand. "Welcome back Clark." She stated loudly, but more quietly she hissed to him. "The least you could do is to at least try to crack a smile, Smallville. Lana and I worked hard to get this place decorated up."

"Uh, thank you uh?" Clark stumbled trying and failing to come up with a name for the blonde in front of him.

"No points for articulation, but you do get bonus stars for sincerity." Lois teased him.

"I think Clark is trying to figure out how to ask for your name," Buffy pointed out. "It's really difficult to loose your memory. You might want to cut him a little slack." The blonde backed off instantly. Clark took a deep breath feeling more calm, Buffy was in his corner. She had just reminded everyone around that he couldn't remember their name. She had made his excuses for him in advance.

"You say that like you know what you are talking about." Lois stated embarrassed that she hadn't considered Clark's memory loss and trying desperately to not let her embarrassment show.

"You might be surprised." Buffy replied. "I'm Buffy." She introduced herself deciding to cut the other girl some slack.

"I'm Lois Lane." Lois introduced herself and saw Clark being pulled away for other introductions.

"So are you the ex?" Buffy asked pointedly. She had noticed a spark between them that Lois and Clark seemed oblivious to.

"ME!" Lois's eyes grew large. "No, no, no. Clark is more of an annoying little brother who likes to get into more trouble than he is worth. There isn't anything between us."

Buffy arched her brow noticing how much protesting Lois was doing. How many girls were after Clark? Buffy couldn't help wondering. Taking a deep breath she decided to let it go. She could understand denying a latent attraction, she had lived it with Spike. She didn't like it, but she wasn't officially with Clark. It was none of her business.

"Buffy it looks like you met Lois," Chloe smiled coming back from introducing Clark around. He had asked that Chloe try to keep Buffy there at the Talon for as long as possible and let him know when she went out to do her work. It felt like old times. "Come on and I'll introduce you around Buffy."

Buffy felt like she had met the entire town and forgotten all their names almost as soon as she met them. "So who is Clark's ex?" Buffy couldn't help asking. What could it hurt to get some inside information she reasoned with herself.

Lois eyed the tiny blonde woman before her. "Well little Clarky did better than I would have thought him capable of."

"Come on and I'll give you the inside scoop." Chloe stated pulling one of Buffy's arms into her own.

Buffy's mind was spinning. She had just been given the inside story between Clark and Lana Lang by Chloe and to a lesser extent Lois. Buffy's perceptions of Chloe had been moving progressively up. Chloe had openly admitted how she had previously been interested in Clark and how those feelings were slowly changing. She had watched with a broken heart as the man that she loved kept going back to Lana. All the while she remained his friend and even more impressively she was friends with Lana. Chloe really was Clark's number one Scooby.

Then there was this girl Lana Lang. Chloe was friends with the girl but had given what seemed to Buffy a very honest telling of what had happened between the lovers. It wasn't a Romeo and Juliet story or even a Buffy and Angel story, but it had it's own fair share of teen angst. Clark had never opened up to her with his secret, and she had ran hot and cold on him for years as a result.

Something about the story had left a rather bad feeling in her stomach and a dislike of one Lana Lang. Lana seemed to be playing with his emotions, stringing him along while she tried to wheedle his secrets from him. This bothered Buffy but not nearly as much as hearing how Clark's heart had been set on Lana. Such devotion was not something that could just be forgotten, even with amnesia. How much time would it be before his heart turned to her again?

Leaving Chloe and Lois to talk, Buffy slipped away, to see Clark and Lana talking to each other in a darkened corner. Lana was obviously trying to come on to him.

"I'm such an idiot." Buffy grumbled to herself and left the building to check out the small town's nightlife. The Slayer really wanted to slay something.

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