Hello! I'm not fishing for comments, but does anyone actually use anymore? Kinda wanting to gauge usage and see if it's worth posting here anymore. I know the site has been on the decline for awhile now.

[][][]

After getting Lex's phone call, Peyton wanted to rush back to Smallville, but she was persuaded to stay in Metropolis another day by him and her parents.

"Just in case," Lex said, "so you have an irrefutable alibi." He paused a moment before he explained. "She looked like you."

"She?"

"I think it's something better explained in person."

Peyton took consolation in the fact that neither Lex or Clark were hurt, but it did little to dull the horror after he told her that the woman who had impersonated her was dead.

"Besides," Lex added to convince her, obviously trying to lighten the mood, "I still need a bit more time to finish my own errands."

"Errands that I can't be around for?" Peyton prodded in suspicion.

"It's so you can be surprised, cupcake."

The smile in his voice was glaringly obvious; Peyton's face puckered in response.

"Do not. Do not even start with that. I'm deleting your texts when I get back."

He laughed easily and Peyton shoved down the warmth it bubbled up in her.

She liked him as a person. She wanted good things for him and for him to be happy. She felt that way for a lot of people. There was nothing different about caring about Lex.

And anyway, she was trying to get home. It felt like that goal had been shoved to the backburner for the immediate future, which was frustrating. Lex had forgotten to give her the names of the doctors he used, and she'd been too distracted to remember to bring it back up. Peyton was usually more organized and focused than that.

There had to be irony in the fact that the reason her research into getting home was being stalled was because she was getting married.

Peyton breathed out a frustrated breath as she found herself back in the familiar warm kitchen of her childhood. It wasn't an actual meal time, so it was empty for the moment, and she made herself at home as she dug through cupboards and the fridge. She found some leftover roasted vegetables and sat down at the island to eat them while she ruminated.

After she got back, she'd bring up the doctors again, and she'd make sure Lex didn't forget this time. Shame crept along the edges of her psyche. Since waking up, she'd been far too lax with getting back. Usually she just waited, but this time was different. She could feel it; she was living it.

And here she was, eating professionally roasted vegetables in a mansion while she planned a wedding to a literal millionaire, while she hardly considered her family.

How long had she been unconscious this time? Was her boss pinning a pink slip to her blouse as the paramedics took her away?

Peyton shoved a piece of broccoli around her plate and rested her chin against her fist. It was easier not to think about her situation. Not on a deeper level at least. Thinking about it too much felt like it would send her spiraling, but she'd shoved it so far back she wasn't considering it at all.

She was acting like this was her home.

Water running broke her from her musings, and Peyton looked up in alarm as another person joined her. A tall man washed his hands, and she recognized his build.

"Mr. Stanton!" She said in surprise. He turned and looked her over in an equal amount of surprise. His eyes dropped down to her plate of stolen leftovers and she ducked slightly; she hoped they weren't meant for something else.

"It's been awhile," she said to fill his delayed response. "It's good to see you. How have you been?"

It was surprising that he still worked as a chef for her parents. It couldn't be that bad of a job, she supposed; cooking for a couple of rich people for a living. It was all the fun of cooking with none of the stress of a large production kitchen.
"Miss Woods," he said cautiously. "I've been well, thank you." He watched her even as he tied on an apron. "How… have you been?"

"Well, I moved to Smallville, got into a car accident, and now I'm getting married," Peyton said. "So things have been busy, I suppose."

Mr. Stanton blinked at her blunt response and Peyton wondered what he was thinking. What did he think about her after she left that Christmas?

"So I heard," he responded. "Congratulations, miss. And I'm glad you're alright."

He still looked perplexed, so Peyton fell back on her go-to cop-out. She smiled sardonically and rapped her knuckles against her temple.

"I bonked my head real good, but we lived. Thankfully. I guess it did give me a new lease on life, though. I suppose you could say it woke me up, in a way."

Mr. Stanton's eyes flickered in something like recognition as he moved to gather ingredients for dinner. Peyton hurried to stand and cleaned her plate in the sink before she followed him over to the prep area and stood behind him.

"Do you need any help?"

He stared at her.

"No need, Miss Woods, a few others will be coming in soon enough." He paused again. "But thank you."

Peyton moved around to lean her hip against the counter and chewed her lip as she watched him.

"What if I wanted to learn?"

Mr. Stanton paused again and appraised her anew. Peyton smiled. She didn't know why it suddenly meant so much to her for him to like her or why it felt like she owed him some kind of apology for the empty Peyton. It wasn't exactly rational. She was aiming to leave, so the same thing would happen yet again. But it still felt different now. She wasn't going to dissect that.

He must have seen something on her face, because his expression softened and he glanced back at her before turning on the gas stove.

"I was planning to use some leftover bread to make a pudding for tonight's dessert," he said. "Come back in a couple hours and I'll show you."

Peyton smiled and reached out to give his shoulder an appreciative squeeze.

"Thank you Mr. Stanton. I'll try to be just as good of a student as I was before."

He let out a small huff of a laugh.

"It will be like old times."

Peyton gave him a confused smile but didn't ask him to elaborate as she scampered off to let him work.

Not knowing what the empty Peyton had been up to or capable of was frustrating at times like these. She could only hope the people around her would continue to rationalize the changes.

[][][]

Dinner with her parents was not as uncomfortable as it was the first night. Her mother chatted excitedly, even about topics beyond the upcoming wedding, and her father complimented her on her work and consistency in her new position. It shouldn't have pleased her so much to hear the approval in his tone, but it did. Their engagement was unexpected, but Peyton found herself warming up to them. She even laughed when her mother brought up the time she'd 'run off to Metropolis with Lex unaccompanied'.

"It really wasn't a big deal," Peyton insisted. At her parent's disagreeing looks she amended, "besides running off without telling you, of course. He just showed me around the city and we got lunch."

"And why would you need him to show you around in the first place?" Her dad asked. His tone was lighter, but still disbelieving. Peyton faltered a moment as she realized her mistake.

"I mean, well, sometimes I…forget things."

The air in the room went cold and her parents stilled. Peyton chewed her bottom lip and regretted her wording as the discomfort grew. Her father's expression thinned and her mother wrung her hands as they exchanged looks. Oddly enough, neither parent argued against her, didn't call out her statement as an excuse in defense of her teenage self.

"The streets can be very confusing," her mother said, breaking the quiet. "And you have been feeling so much better since moving to Smallville, haven't you. You've really come out of your shell; hasn't she, Samuel? I say it's that fresh, country air."

Her father grunted what sounded like an agreement, and Peyton kept her eyes on her plate as she shifted food around.

"Does… forgetfulness run in the family?" She asked tentatively.

Perhaps it was a bit of a risk to focus on her previous issues, but it may be one of her few opportunities to get any insight outside of Lex's. She trusted him, enough, but she wasn't so naive not to know he could embellish truths for his own purposes. Whether that was to console her or boost her perception of him. Though, there was only so much she could likely pry into with her parents without stirring up suspicion. She was too afraid to bring up questions about Merrill's pregnancy scare; she had a feeling it wasn't something they shared with her.

"No," her father finally answered.

Her mother leaned forward in a rush to soften his response.

"You say that like it's a condition, darling. Young people always have so much on their minds, and you had a driver; I'd be surprised if you remembered the streets!"

Peyton took a bite of her meal and chewed thoughtfully. Her mother seemed nervous.

"I was a weird kid though," she said bluntly. She noted the way they, once again, avoided eye contact.

"Don't be ridiculous," her mother said at the same time her father said,

"You seem to have grown out of it."

Her mother scowled and clicked her tongue at her father's statement. Interesting. Peyton hummed lightly and sipped at her drink.

"Well," she said, "I guess you'll have to hope I really have."

[][]

Peyton drove herself back to Smallville the next day. She had to print out the directions because her phone didn't have GPS and she didn't remember the way, but once she got out of Metropolis it wasn't hard to follow the highway back. The sounds and rush of the city fell behind her and there were stretches of road where there was nothing but grasslands as far as the eye could see. It was still a novel picture she wasn't sure she'd grow used to after years in a busy city.

The Luthor mansion was a welcome sight after a couple hours on the road. The ancient stones rose strong and bold against the flat horizon, bright green ivy creeping up the walls like a fairy tale illustration. Peyton parked and got out. The driveway was a lighter shade of gray than when she'd left, like it'd been recently cleaned. She avoided looking at the fountain as she hurried inside.

Lex wasn't in the office or the kitchen; Peyton huffed in annoyance as she ventured to look in different rooms.

"Lex?" She called as she walked down the hall. "You here?"
"Over here!"

Peyton followed his voice to a room that served as a home gym all the while desperately hoping he was wearing a shirt. Not that it mattered. Not that she'd really care. It was the principle of it.

Lex stepped off the treadmill and wiped his face with a towel as she entered the room; Peyton was relieved to see he was, indeed, wearing a T-shirt after all.

And despite knowing he was fine, despite the phone call and the reassurances, she still couldn't help but scan him for injuries. He smiled at her in greeting as her gaze roved over his face.

"Welcome back," he said. Peyton frowned as she saw the pink line along his cheekbone.

"You told me you didn't get hurt." She almost reached out to touch his face, but stopped herself. Lex touched the mark in her place and shrugged.

"It was a scratch, I hardly think that counts as being injured."

"That person tried to kill you. If this level of near death experiences is the new norm, I'm going to die early from stress."

Once again, Lex appeared to have to process her statement. Like it was an unusual sentiment. Peyton swallowed and wondered if it was too much. She knew he cared about her, perhaps had more feelings for her than certainly she did for him, but perhaps she was still coming across too strongly. More than he was comfortable with. But she was used to her other family expressing care openly.

Lex wrapped the towel around his neck and gave her a gentle smile.

"Let me get cleaned up and we can discuss what happened. But I'll warn you, you might want to get a drink first."

"That doesn't exactly make me feel better about what happened."

"I'm afraid," Lex said genially, "that's unavoidable."

[]

Peyton took a deep drink from her wine glass and continued her staring contest with Lex. He didn't even flinch. The sweet tang of the wine coated her tongue and she licked her lips more to stall than to chase the flavor. Usually she wasn't much of a drinker, but his story tempted her to refill her glass.

"Shapeshifting." She said blandly.

Lex leaned back and nodded, his expression understanding.

"I wouldn't have been as inclined to believe it if I hadn't seen her do it right in front of me."

"And you're sure," Peyton pressed. "You're positive she was shapeshifting."

"You claim to be from another universe, and yet this is too far?"

"It's different," Peyton insisted, but couldn't explain why. "The physics of it are- Clark and you and I are all different heights; different hair, eye color. I just-"

"The best I can gather, she was caught in the meteor shower as a child. After that she no longer suffered from her terminal bone disease. I'm sure there's a note about her on Miss Sullivan's wall."

Peyton took another gulp of wine.

"Meteorites gave her superpowers? Sure. You were there too. Have anything else you'd like to share, then?"

Lex's responding smile was sharp.

"I haven't been sick since that day, if that counts for anything."

"That's not quite as insane as shapeshifting."

"I'm not lying to you," he insisted. Peyton blinked at the seriousness of his tone. "I promised not to break your trust, and I take that seriously."

"I don't disbelieve you." She didn't. Of all the things Lex could lie to her about, she doubted he'd pick something so outrageous.

"It's just. This is hard for me to process." She threw her hand up in a flustered gesture as she huffed. "But why not, right? Nothing has made sense since all this started." She paused and swirled the wine in her glass. "Shapeshifting."

"I'll admit, it's fascinating. And it's a tragedy. She threw away her life because she was so envious of what wasn't hers."

Peyton murmured quietly in agreement.

"Oh, what a tangled web we weave, when we first practice to deceive." She sighed and kneaded her temple again as she finished off the last of her wine. "This all sounds like one of Annalise's fantastical Barbie plotlines. Attempted murder and all."

Lex's gaze on her sharpened for a moment, then he checked his wristwatch.

"She's always been a bit eccentric," he agreed.

"I'm pretty sure that's normal little girl play," Peyton argued. "I was just a boring kid who-"

The rest died in her throat as her words registered. Lex sat silently as she worked through it on her own.

"She told me that," she said defensively. She fiddled with her heart locket in a nervous habit and looked away. "While we were looking through my parent's attic, she said she made up weird stories."

Lex nodded slowly and pursed his lips; Peyton tried to remember if Annalise mentioned any story specifics, but couldn't. But the mention of the attic reminded her of the medical records she found and that was a welcome distraction.

And they weren't her medical records. It was probably bad enough that she'd not only read them, but taken them. It wasn't her place to show them to an even further removed party. And yet.

"Did your dad ever mention anything about my mom's… health history?"

Lex shook his head and blinked at her subject change.

"Your mother's health history," Lex repeated. "No," he drawled, "I don't believe he did. Why?"

"I… I found some medical records stuffed in the attic. It's likely nothing, but- well, hold on, let me just get them."

She dug the lock box out of her suitcase and drummed her fingers along the top before she worked up the nerve to open it. Peyton handed over the medical notes with a touch of chagrin.

"I know I probably should have put it back, but it seemed like weird stuff to put in the attic. Right? Maybe it had something to do with the… other Peyton."

Lex shuffled through the papers, reading through them quickly with a shrewd eye. While he did, she sifted through the other paper scraps; she picked up the burnt paper with the strange "V" symbol on it.

"The rest of it doesn't make much sense. I don't even know if it's all related."

"What's that?" Lex asked as he put down the medical records. Peyton flipped the paper around to face him and his studious expression crystalized into something resentful and wary. Peyton's brow furrowed.

"You recognize this."

His jaw ticked and Peyton knew him too well for him to try and deny it.

"Veritas," he said. "I don't know much. It was a secret little club my father founded with some of his fellow wealthy associates. They were very discreet about their purpose, and my father didn't tolerate anyone poking around his business. We were only children when they met regularly."

Peyton's heartbeat spiked.

"Do you think my parents were part of it?"

Lex took the little scrap of paper and studied it, he brushed his thumb over the ink.

"I suppose it's possible; though if they were I don't remember seeing them. They certainly didn't bring you along with them." Peyton gave him a puzzled look and he explained. "The other families brought their children with them. We were shooed off to go play while the adults had their meeting."

"Was one of the members named John?"

Lex looked up expectantly and Peyton passed him the other scrap of paper. He shook his head even as he looked it over.

"I don't think so."

Peyton slumped over, elbows on her knees, and groaned quietly. In light of learning someone could shapeshift, her stolen papers felt unexciting and irrelevant. The most she learned was that her parents were possibly involved in some strange, rich person 'club'. Rich people clubs, she thought, could probably easily overlap with 'illegal activities'. Or possibly cults. She at least didn't get the impression that Lionel founded a group that secretly did altruistic fundraising.

"You're thinking a lot over there," Lex said.

Peyton gave him a thin smile. For one fleeting second, she had the desire for him to be closer to her. For him to sit next to her, warm and solid, while she let go of everything and stopped thinking. It burned bright and hot; the desire was so startling that it nearly choked her. And then she snuffed it out.

She cared about Lex as a person. She just missed her family.

She managed to loose her tongue and fidgeted with her necklace again.

"Just thinking that this all probably means nothing."

"Not at all. You never know when the most seemingly innocuous bit of information can be the missing piece to solve the puzzle."

Peyton picked up her empty wine glass and considered having another.

"I don't think I like puzzles very much. Especially when I haven't even seen the picture."

[][]

There was a memorial at the church for Rose Greer and her daughter a few days later. Mostly for Rose. Smallville seemed a little uncertain on how to handle Tina's death. It didn't remain a secret that she'd likely had a hand in her own mother's death and tried to kill Lex and Clark on top of that. But she was still seen as young and she was still dead. They added her photograph, smaller than Rose's and clearly an old yearbook photo, like an afterthought to the ceremony.

The sheriff told them privately that they'd never know if Rose was pushed down the stairs or if she fell by accident; but the fact that Tina never tried to call emergency services was a condemnation in itself.

If the timeline of Rose's death was accurate, neither she nor Lex ever actually met Rose. The concept made Peyton feel queasy.

They debated attending, given how the community perceived them both, and the fact that Tina had specifically targeted Lex. But on the off chance it could be seen as aloofness or resentment to not go, they attended just long enough to be polite.

"I think it'd be fair to be a little resentful," Lex argued after the memorial. "She tried to frame me, kill me, then frame you for murder."

"And she's the one dead in the end. I think she received her just dues. Being resentful now would only hurt us."

"I can only hope to one day be as virtuous as you."

His tone was teasing, but Peyton didn't like the implication anyway.

"I'm no paragon," she said. "I never said I wasn't furious about it. And having been physically removed from the situation helped, I'm sure; but I'm trying to decide not to simmer in it. I never meant to imply it was easy."

"You make it look easy," Lex said.

Peyton rolled her eyes and gestured with her hand.

"I had plenty of practice, having had two teenage brothers. They would always gang up on me, and sometimes their pranks accidentally leaned more mean than funny."

"Oldest daughter virtue," Lex observed. "That would explain a lot."

One day he wouldn't have a comeback. Dear lord, she was marrying him. She was going to have to deal with failing to get the last word for the rest of her life.

No.

Until she figured out a way back.

[]

Anticipation around the wedding distracted her again. That was the reason for her mental slip up. In consolation, all the minor wedding details were wrapped up and with only a couple weeks until the big day all was well in hand. So at least she wouldn't have to worry about that aspect of her foolish choice anymore.

Peyton could still leave him at the altar. She could run home.

No she couldn't.

She found herself back in the kitchen, hair up and apron on, and her arms covered with patches of flour. A thick dough fell from the bowl onto the counter with a sticky sort of stretching sound, and Peyton scraped it onto itself to form a circle.

Scones were a simple recipe. Maybe too simple for what she needed. But she'd found cheese and herbs appealing and readily available in the fridge, and decided she was too impatient to wait on bread to proof.

Following the rules of baking was a sort of comfort, they were universal, and beyond paying attention to her measurements, she didn't have to think.

Peyton leaned with her elbows against the counter and head in her hands as the scones baked.

Her other mother, her mom, would complain about the lack of sugar in the scones. She thought baked goods ought to be sweet. Orion and Jacen would eat anything, descending on all available food like locust. Her dad would pair any sort of baked good with black coffee, whether the flavor profile made sense or not.

It felt like she was remembering people she used to know, and Peyton berated herself for avoiding thinking of them. Having her emotions all descend upon her at once wasn't helping her situation. It probably wasn't healthy. And she still knew she would likely do it again.

Just until after the wedding.

Just until she started working with the doctors and scientists, and whoever else.

The timer dinged and Peyton pulled on oven mitts and dragged herself over the oven. The scones smelled divine, cheesy and savory; she focused on them. She placed a few on a plate and took them with her back to the main room where her laptop sat on the coffee table, waiting for her.

Lex wasn't in the room, but his laptop was still open and he usually didn't leave it like that unless he planned to only step away for a moment.

Peyton settled on her couch and nibbled at a scone as she looked through her emails. They were still giving her what amounted to busywork; not that she blamed them. But she'd need to start asking for more if she wanted to earn enough for experimental investigations.

She worked for a few minutes, typing away at her laptop and fixing margin errors, before she heard Lex enter the room. His footsteps slowed and he stopped almost behind her; Peyton shifted around to look. Lex looked at her plate of scones and then her.

"Back to baking," he said.

Peyton nodded and gestured to the plate.

"And they're free."

Lex came around the couch and sat about a foot away from her. Close enough that she could feel the heat of his body.

"How're you feeling," he asked.

Peyton tilted her head marginally in confusion but smiled genuinely enough.

"I'm fine," she told him. "I've been editing correspondence, but nothing has quite enraged me yet."

Lex continued to study her face, but nodded, his hand going to his pants pocket and fidgeting with something there. Finally he broke eye contact and cleared his throat.

"Well, I know this isn't exactly the correct order of things, and our situation isn't exactly the norm, but I thought it would be poor of me to not try to do something right before the actual wedding."

He pulled a small black box out of his pocket and Peyton felt her heartbeat in her throat. Lex stayed next to on the couch, didn't kneel, as he opened the box and light winked in her vision.

A ring.

A gasp left her involuntarily as she took in the sight of it. At the top of a gold band there were three settings with round diamonds in each. The middle diamond was the largest with the two on either side being slightly smaller, but other than that there were no embellishments. Peyton gaped at it while she warred inside.

The diamond was too big.

But the ring wasn't ostentatious enough to reject.

"Lex," she said almost breathlessly.

"I assumed that you wouldn't want anything overdone, given the marriage is a show."

She reached out to delicately pull the ring from the box and Lex watched her.

"I told you," she murmured. "Whatever it means, we're either married or we're not."

Something was etched on the inside of the band and Peyton raised the ring up, trying to catch the light in a way that she could read what it said.

"Dum spiro spero?"

Lex swallowed.

"It's Latin," he explained. "While I breathe, I hope." He gave her a closed lipped smile and some unidentifiable emotion shone behind his eyes, even as he kept his face even. "The phrase seemed appropriate for you."

"It's beautiful," she admitted. She twisted the ring and watched as the diamonds sparkled and shimmered; her arms felt weak.

She could still leave him at the altar.

No. She couldn't.

Peyton passed the ring back to Lex and saw the flash of alarmed confusion in his eyes, he opened his mouth to protest, likely. But she smiled, her expression weak with emotion that she rapidly stomped down on.

"I already kind of stole the proposal, I think," she attempted to tease.

She held out her left hand and Lex's face lit back up. He gently took her hand in his and slid the ring on her finger; it fit perfectly. She supposed she shouldn't have expected anything less.

This was the part where a couple would kiss.

Despite Peyton's face rapidly growing hot, she kept herself from yanking her hand back. Instead she waited for him to let go and then spread her fingers out to inspect how it looked, like she'd seen other engaged women do. It really was a pretty ring, even in its simplicity. Even if she'd have never dreamed of getting a diamond this size.

"It really is beautiful, Lex. I… I love it. Thank you."

He smiled up at her and the scone she ate churned in her stomach.

"I'm glad you like it," he said. "It suits you."

That hot flare of emotion pierced her once more. A foolish, stupid, impulsive want to close the few inches between them and lean against him. Hug him, maybe. Her eyes flickered over his face and then away.

No.

Stupid, impulsive, not because of him.

She was in a strange situation, in a new world nearly all alone, getting married, and she missed reassurance from people she knew. She wasn't a psychologist, but it wasn't that hard to understand.

She needed to get herself together.

Instead of listening to any of her intrusive thoughts, she settled with giving Lex's hand a squeeze and smiling as genuinely as she could. He didn't press her boundaries.

They parted to go back to work, but Peyton's thoughts wouldn't calm. She couldn't stop looking at the ring. She ought to tell Annalise. Her friend would be ecstatic to see it. Or, she'd at least say something about the gem's size. Peyton tried to take a picture without broadcasting it to Lex and sent it. It wasn't the best picture in the world, but you could tell what the image was.

Annalise was quick to respond; her text message was garnished with an old school emoji character.

[THE PRECIOUS!]

Peyton stared at the message, perplexed.

[What?]

[You know,] Annalise replied. [The Hobbit?]

[I know The Hobbit. I didn't know you'd read it.]

Peyton received some angry emoticons.

[It's only been my favorite book for the last six years? I read it all the time in our dorm; you're so oblivious.]

Oh great; another slip up. Peyton hurried to try and salvage her flub.

[I thought that was for assignments.]

[I am a complex human being,] Annalise responded. [I can like fashion magazines AND actual literature.]

Peyton blinked and eased up. Maybe that was all it took. A half baked explanation and everything was smoothed over. She attempted one more trick to appeal to Annalise's interests.

[Well, this Arkenstone just might give me Dragon-sickness.]

There. She got a line of positive, laughing, emoticons.

Maybe she was finally improving at easing perception from this other Peyton to herself.