Haunt

Title: Haunt
Pairing(s): Actually Clana, but really it's all about the Clex. Obviously :p
Spoilers: up to Season 5 'Tomb'
Category: episode-related, drama, angst
Rating: PG
Summary: A re-write of 'Tomb.' Clark learns more about 33.1, its inhabitants and Lex's involvement with the project, while Chloe inexplicably attempts suicide. Lex agrees to help Clark solve the mystery, while Lionel continues his attempts to get closer to the Kent family.

Clark was frowning - brow wrinkled in concentration, heart pounding slightly. He swallowed, running a finger through the collar of his blue flannel shirt. There was no way he was winning this one, the odds against him were too great. He shook his head.

"I fold." He sighed, putting his poker hand face down in front of him. Across 33.1's circular card table Bobster smiled.

"You really haven't got the hang of this game yet, Clark," he told the dejected Kryptonian over the stack of small change piled up between them. "It's all about deception, intimidating the other players. You can't just keep folding at the first sign of trouble, you've got to be more aggressive, make some bluffs of your own."

Clark shrugged, grinning. "Sorry Bobster, I guess this just isn't my kind of game."

"Well, I'm in," an eager voice said to the right, and the teenager with yellow eyes and long nails Clark had met on his first visit slid a collection of dimes into the main pile. "What have you got?"

"I have, my dear Paul," Bobster began, his blue-green eyes already shining in anticipation of triumph. "What I think you'll agree is a rather spectacular full house." He laid down three aces and two kings with a flourish.

Paul grimaced, revealing his extra sharp incisors - a result, Clark had since discovered, along with his nails and eyes, of a bite from a cat altered by the latest Smallville Meteor shower. Paul, a great animal lover, had been less upset by his dramatic transformation than by the death of said cat; the infection eventually proving too much for the creature's small frame. Paul's parents, however, terrified at the monster their son had become, apparently tried to stab him with a bread knife. Heartbroken, Paul fled into the alleys of Metropolis, where Lex's team had found him, thin as a rake and living off rats, a few months later. Paul hoped that one day, once he'd got his feral desires to kill rodents and occasionally travel on all fours under control, he would be able to go home again.

The kid made a low noise that sounded suspiciously like a growl. "Damn," he muttered. "I only have two pair," he scattered his hand on the table with a scowl.

Clark gave Paul a sympathetic look as Bobster started to collect his winnings, humming brightly as he did so. Then Clark frowned, looking over Bobster's full house again.

"Wait a minute," he said, making Bobster stop - hand hovering over the remaining dimes. "I could have sworn I had the king of diamonds..." Clark picked up his own cards again and looked through them. Sure enough, there was the card in question; Clark laid it face up on the table. "There, see?" he said to Bobster, a little disapproving, while Paul strained his neck to look over.

Bobster looked at the card for a moment, blinked, then smiled. "Nice try Clark, but you're mistaken, that's not the king of diamonds, it's the king of spades. One of the kings that didn't make up my hand."

Clark looked down and saw the card was indeed a spade, not a diamond. He stared at it in confusion. "But I could have sworn..." he muttered.

Suddenly a fingerless-gloved hand whacked Bobster round the side of the head. "You lying maggot, Bobster," Phoenix scolded.

"Ow!" Bobster responded, rubbing his head and looking up ruefully at the dark haired woman. The cards on the table seemed to shimmer for a few seconds, like an out of tune television, before changing their appearance. As Clark had thought, his card was indeed the king of diamonds, and Bobster's winning hand was nothing but a useless collection of low numbers.

Clark blinked a couple of times as his eyes adjusted to the change. "Huh?" he asked, looking up at the others. Paul tapped his long nails on the tabletop in irritation.

"Bobster!" he said. "You promised no more powers when we're playing."

Bobster looked, a little sheepishly, between the younger man and Clark. Then he shrugged.

"Well, you can't blame a guy for trying, right?" Behind him Phoenix rolled her eyes, while Paul, shaking his head in the manner of one long used to such things, reached over and started to drag the money over to his side of the table.

"What did you do?" Clark asked Bobster, still confused.

If he'd wanted to, Clark could have discovered the truth about everyone in 33.1 by looking through the files Lex had given him. It would only take Clark seconds to read through them, after all. But now he was properly involved in the project Clark had decided it would be better to learn about the others first hand, as opposed to reading about them as though they were lab rats. This had given him an excuse to spend the last few weeks hanging out at the facility, getting to know the people involved, and making sure everything was as safe as Lex said it was. It also meant there were several people Clark was still in the dark about as to their powers - Bobster being one.

"No one's told you yet, huh?" Phoenix asked Clark over the blonde's head. "Bobster's part demon, he can alter the fabric of the world," she whispered intently, eyes glinting. Clark looked at her, uncertain.

"Oh, shut up!" Bobster swatted at her arm. "I am not part demon," he told Clark. "And I can't change the world. But," he tilted his head, briefly self-conscious. "I can alter people's perceptions of it a little bit." Bobster reached into the pocket of his hoodie and pulled out a biro. "Here," he handed it to Clark. "Since I'm busted now anyway, I might as well give a proper demonstration."

"What's this for?" Clark asked, holding the pen up in front of him.

"Just keep looking at it," Bobster told him with a smile.

Clark did as he was told. It wasn't a particularly interesting pen, a little chewed at the end and almost running out of ink. Clark was just thinking Bobster would do better to chuck it out and get a new one when suddenly the thought wasn't relevant anymore because Clark wasn't holding a pen, he was holding a rose. A freshly bloomed rose, with dewdrops glistening on the petals. He started, looking up at Bobster in surprise. The other man met Clark's gaze with a playful, and possibly suggestive look.

"A rose, by any other name..." Bobster quoted, boyish voice softening.

Clark, not picking up on the subtext, turned back to the flower in wonder. "Wow," he muttered, reaching tentatively towards the petals with his other hand. I can even touch it, he thought, feeling the velvet texture between his thumb and forefinger. "It's so real." Clark looked up again, this time at Phoenix and Paul. "Can you guys see this too?"

Paul shrugged and shook his head. "Just looks like a pen to me."

"Guess Bobster means it for your eyes only," Phoenix added with a knowing smile. "You really have no shame do you?" she asked the man next to her. "Is there any man you won't flirt with?"

Flirt? thought Clark, tilting his head in confusion. His eyes widened a little as he cottoned on. Oh! He glanced at Bobster again for a moment, then looked down, clearly flustered.

"Ah..." Clark muttered, wondering if he should apologise. Perhaps he'd been inadvertently leading the guy on, or maybe he needed to explain his engagement to Lana, again, or that he wasn't that way inclined. Because he wasn't. Obviously. His love for Lana proved that. Didn't it?

Bobster leant forward with a casual roll of his shoulders and took the rose, which was now a pen again, out of Clark's hand.

"Sorry, Clark," he said easily. "I know how serious you and your fiancée are," he leaned back in his chair raising his hands for a moment. "It's just, I see a pretty face and I can't help myself."

Clark looked up blushing, but he laughed a little, the lightness of the other man's tone putting him at ease. "Um... that's ok then, I guess," he smiled. "So, err, since you're not part demon," his eyes flickered to Phoenix, who put a hand to her mouth to hide a smile of her own. "How can you, you know, change the way people see things like that?" It can't be kryptonite poisoning, Clark supposed, because then it wouldn't be able to affect me as well, right? Considering most other kryptonite-induced powers, other than strength, had indeed been ineffective when it came to Clark this seemed likely.

"I inherited it from my mother," Bobster explained, face stiffening just a little as though preparing for attack. "She was... well, no one believes me when I tell them, but I think she was a witch. A real one, in touch with magik and stuff, not the kind with the pointy hats women dress up as at Halloween."

Bobster looked at Clark as though expecting him to laugh, but Clark simply nodded. "I believe you," he said, remembering Lana's various escapades when possessed by her magical ancestor. Bobster looked surprised, but also pleased. "What happened?" Clark asked gently, noting Bobster's use of the past tense.

The other man kept smiling, but his eyes dimmed a little. "She died," he stated. "When I was about five. Leukaemia. There was nothing the doctors could do." Clark looked at Bobster sadly, but the other man just shrugged - he'd obviously come to terms with the fact a long time ago. "I was with her just before," Bobster continued. "I was just five, but I'll never forget that moment, it's the clearest memory I have of her. She took my hand, kissed my forehead and said 'the power's yours now.' Then she closed her eyes, and she was gone..." Bobster paused, lost in the memory, and everyone else kept a respectful silence.

"Anyway," Bobster focused his gaze back to Clark. "A few months after, while I was moving around foster families, my father being long gone, leaving Mom when she was pregnant and heading off who knows where, I realised if I concentrated I could make people see what I wanted them to. Only little things, like pens and cards, not skyscrapers. At least not yet." Bobster added. "I don't really understand it, but it has to be the power Mom spoke about, doesn't it? I can't think of any other explanation."

Clark nodded in agreement. It certainly made sense; magic was the only other power aside from kryptonite that really affected him. He gave Bobster a sly grin. "I guess that makes you a real magical guy to be with."

Bobster smiled back, accepting the compliment with a nod. As Clark's gaze fell over the other man's shoulder though, his expression clouded with mild concern - the hand Phoenix still held to her mouth had started shaking.

"Hey, Phoenix, are you ok?" he asked.

"Huh?" she queried, then seemed to notice her hand for the first time. An anxious look crossed her face, quickly covered by an overly bright smile. She grabbed the shaking limb with her other hand. "Yeah, yeah I'm fine," she nodded, perhaps a little too vigorously. "Just a little wired is all."

The three men looked at her curiously, but before they could pursue the matter there was an excited squeal from the doorway.

"Clark!"

A few seconds later a bubbly Clara, blonde hair in a long plait today, had bounded over to Clark's chair and was hugging him round the neck from behind. Clark grinned at the girl's obvious delight.

"Hey, Clara," he said, gently unwinding her arms from his throat.

"You're here again," she smiled. "That makes four days in a row this time. Why don't you just come and live here properly?"

Clark laughed. "I can't," he said, vaguely apologetic. "I already have a home, and responsibilities. I need to take care of the farm, go to college, and besides, my parents and friends would miss me."

"So?" Clara joked. "Isn't this place friends and family enough?"

"Family?" asked a dry voice to Clark's left. "I thought I was running a serious establishment, not some soppy, emotional youth hostel."

Clark smiled at Lex, who was trying to frown, but the glow in his eyes gave away how happy he really was about Clara's description. The casual, long-sleeved black sweater he wore also did much to dampen the man's usual, intimidating demeanour. "Hey, Lex," Clark nodded. "I didn't know you were here today."

Once Lex realised exactly how serious Clark was about getting involved, he'd given his friend a personal security pass for the facility, so Clark could get in without needing Lex to escort him. Lex understood what a ridiculous display of trust this was, but he figured their partnership would either fall or fly whatever he did, so he might as well go all the way with it. Well... as far as he could go anyway.

"I thought I'd drop by and oversee some of Clara's tests," Lex explained coolly. "It's been a while since I spot-checked my scientists, I wanted to make sure they were doing their job properly."

Clark nodded. "You should have called me," he said seriously. "I would have checked them out for you." The tests in question were routine ones each member of 33.1 went through once a month to check how well they were coping with their powers and if there were any health issues needing addressing. This took place in a small lab in the inhabited area of the complex, one with papered walls that wasn't such a sterile, glaring white as the military testing labs were. After attending a few, Clark concluded they were basically a superhuman's equivalent of a check-up. Lex had a multi-national company to take care of, he shouldn't waste time with grunt-work like that, not now Clark was around to help out.

Lex shrugged. "Well, you know what they say, if you want something done right, and so on," he said. Clark smiled, but shifted his gaze slightly. It was a bit too soon for Lex to trust him to check on the facility he supposed.

"Whatever, Boss," Bobster said, leaning into his chair, hands behind his head. "Everyone knows the real reason you've been visiting the facility so often the past few weeks."

Lex raised his eyebrows, while Phoenix reached over - with the hand that had just been shaking - and gripped Bobster's shoulder a little too tightly. Acknowledging the pressure, Bobster leaned forward, moving his hands to his lap.

"Ah, I'm talking about my irresistible charm, of course," he added hurriedly.

Lex nodded, flicking his eyes over Phoenix and looking unconvinced. "Well, I'm sorry to disappoint you, Robert," he said calmly. "But you're not my type."

To Clark and Lex's right, Clara chuckled. "So, what is your type Boss?" she asked, youthful grin wide and pixie-like.

Lex turned to her in surprise and barely concealed amusement. He'd never had more than a passing acquaintance with the members of the facility before, but that was clearly changing now Clark had arrived. It was strange, but Lex was finding it a lot easier spending time with his friend in the secret facility than in Smallville or Metropolis, perhaps because 33.1 held none of the separate responsibilities both men faced at the moment - LuthorCorp, college, Lana - within the facility they seemed cut off from all that, leaving just the two of them. And everyone else in the complex, of course, since Clark would insist on hanging-out in the games room so much. This meant Lex had spent a considerable amount of time the past few weeks in the same place, because Bobster's thinly veiled hint was correct - Clark was indeed the reason he'd been spending more time at the facility lately. As a result, everyone had become a lot more relaxed around Lex, enough to ask personal questions it seemed. The older man knew this was a terrible blow to his authority, but seeing Clara's sunny face he couldn't quite bring himself to care.

Before Lex could think of an appropriate answer, Clark leaned over to the young girl and stage whispered in mock conspiracy, "Tall, dark and kinda dangerous, actually."

Lex acknowledged the jibe with a small side grin, sending Clara into a fit of giggles.

Victoria, Desiree, Helen, all of them were so far behind him now he could barely recall his feelings for them. He knew they'd never been what he really wanted anyway. Watching Clark flashing his sunbeam smile at the kid next to him, eyes shining with warm, genuine affection, Lex felt his chest swell with a familiar longing. A longing all the sharper now Lex knew exactly what a miracle Clark's warmth was, shining in stark opposition to the cold, unfeeling gaze of the other Kryptonians. God Clark, you have no idea how right you are.

Without warning, Phoenix dashed round the table, pushed Clara aside, and kissed Clark full on the lips.

Clark immediately pushed her away, shocked but gentle, and there was a second of stunned silence from everybody. Then Phoenix, Clark's hands still on her shoulders, gave a short burst of laughter.

"I'm sorry," she said, hazel eyes wild. "I really didn't want to do that." She stood up and backed out of Clark's hold, nearly stepping on Clara in the process and Lex frowned at her, his own blue eyes suddenly icy hard.

"Then why did you, Phoenix?" he asked, with an edge to his voice Clark couldn't quite read.

"You know what?" Phoenix said quickly, her hand shaking again. "It's kinda hot in here, I'm gonna go get some air."

She headed toward the exit but Lex was after her in a flash, grabbing her arm before she reached it. Phoenix gasped as his hand touched the skin just under the sleeve of her yellow Tee.

"Get off me!" she snapped instantly, stopping dead. Lex sighed, putting his free hand briefly to the bridge of his nose.

"How overdue are you?" he asked, voice cold. Over at the card table Bobster looked away, shaking his head, while Clark watched in confusion. What the hell?

"I don't know what the fuck you're talking about!" Phoenix shot back, shaking Lex's hand roughly away from her.

"Really?" Lex asked, unconvinced, and unphased by her sudden violence. "So that anger you're feeling now is completely your own and nothing to do with me?"

The empath's eyes burned with furious fire and there was a pause while she tried to get a hold of herself. "I can handle it..." she hissed through gritted teeth.

Lex shook his head, outwardly calm, but Clark could tell by the tenseness of his shoulders Lex was equally as frustrated as the woman before him.

"There are rules Phoenix. If you persist in not following them I'll have no choice but to send you back to Belle Reve," he stated. Phoenix blanched.

"You wouldn't dare," she muttered breathlessly. "I know too much. About you, about this place." She straightened her back in an attempt at bravado but her eyes betrayed her fear.

"All of which would be written off as the ramblings of a lunatic," Lex responded calmly. "You have nothing on me, Phoenix, now, how long?"

Phoenix tried again to stare him down, but apparently sensed she was fighting a losing battle. "Just over three days now," she admitted.

Lex blinked once in pure astonishment, before masking his face, lips set in a stern line. "I'm taking you to the lab right now," he said, moving to grab her again, but she backed away.

"I said I could handle it!" she shouted.

"Can you?" Lex asked, voice soft as he staring her down. Clark noticed his eyes turn a little sad, and then suddenly Phoenix was crying. Lex was deliberately projecting an emotion on the empath, the younger man realised. He wondered what thought Lex had conjured up to provoke such a shocking, immediate response. And then supposed, after all the hardships the man had faced, he probably had more than enough to choose from.

"You bastard," Phoenix sniffed. "Okay, Okay!" Lex moved towards her again, but she held out a hand. "Don't worry, I've got an emergency supply, I'm not stupid." Reaching into her jeans pocket she pulled out a small hypodermic syringe, filled with a dark green substance. Her hand was shaking again, and she was crying so badly now the small item inevitably slipped from her fingers onto the pale blue carpet.

Already touched by her distress, Clark's protective instinct took over and he rushed out of his seat to help her retrieve the item.

"Clark," Lex called in slight alarm, as the alien bent down to pick it up. As Clark wrapped his fingers round the plastic he realised the cause of his friend's concern, recognising the telltale hardening of his veins that indicated kryptonite poisoning. Oddly though, it didn't hurt as much as usual, and Clark was able to hand it to the tearstained Phoenix with only mild discomfort.

As she took it from him their hands touched for a second and she stilled. Her brow furrowed in the pause and instead of releasing Clark she grabbed his arm with her other hand, looking at him in shock, tears and previous distress suddenly gone completely.

"That's a hell of a thing," she whispered, calm again. She continued to look at him dumbfounded and Clark shifted uneasily under the attention. "Either you're the most emotionless guy in the world... or you're something else entirely."

"Phoenix," Lex called from behind her, drawing attention away from Clark's uniqueness. Something both men were grateful for.

"Alright," she muttered, taking the needle from Clark's grasp and injecting it into her arm with a practiced gesture. She sighed, closing her eyes for a brief moment. "There, crisis averted. Happy now?" she asked Lex, tone and expression laced with bitterness.

"You would know," he responded blandly.

"What... what happened?" Clark asked tentatively, not specifically to Phoenix but the group in general. "What is that stuff?"

"A chemical compound," Lex explained, face overly cool as he turned to Clark, shuttered. "It's made from a mixture of meteor rock, lead and the individual's DNA. It reduces the effects of the meteors on the system of anyone infected."

"You mean it represses them," Phoenix amended.

"You'd prefer insanity? Or perhaps death?" Lex asked.

"You know you need the stuff, Phoenix," Bobster implored from the table. "Why do you keep doing this?"

"Because I don't like being drugged up all the time, that's why," Phoenix answered.

Lex shook his head, exasperated. "Phoenix, your whole body is laced with an alien substance not natural to it. What do you call that if it's not being drugged up?"

"Evolution," Phoenix responded, now with enough of a grip on herself to meet the man's gaze. "This is my gift, I should be able to control it. You'll see. One day I will. One day I'll get enough of a grip on it to start influencing others, like Bobster or Mikhail, and then you'll let me take some proper tests, really help me develop. Because I know once my power turns active, you'll have me strapped down in the military section before I can blink, and then we'll find out what I can really do."

"Or you'll kill yourself in the process," Lex stated. "Is trying to develop an active power really worth the risk?"

"Ha! Like you can even ask that question," Phoenix answered, laughter harsh and scratched. "Everyone knows you'd cut off your right hand for an active power." She moved right up to Lex's face. "And god help the world if you succeed, because in the end Luthor, a dictator is nothing but a dictator, no matter how many good intentions pave his road."

"Are you claiming I'm bound for hell?" Lex asked, unimpressed. God, I hate that expression, he thought - possibly because he feared it was true.

"Guess we'll have to wait and see." Phoenix turned away from him, walking to the exit without looking back.

Her sudden absence left an almost tangible gap in the room, which filled with silence, broken only by a light, unperceivable swallow from Lex, noticed by no one but Clark. The younger man's eyes dimmed with an odd empathy at the sight.

Slowly, Clara made her way to Lex's side. "I don't think you're bound for hell, Boss," she said quietly.

Lex looked at her and sighed, unsmiling. As touching as her claim was, the word of a child did little to alleviate Lex's anxieties on the matter.

A few minutes and a muttered excuse later, Lex was walking down the corridor outside, heading for the exit. After Phoenix's display he figured it was better for everyone if he didn't stick around.

Not everyone shared this opinion it seemed, as a after only a couple of steps Lex heard Clark bounding up behind him.

"Hey, Lex," he said, gently, which was surprising - Lex assumed Clark would view him in a lesser light after Phoenix's accusations. Instead of reprimanding him, however, the younger man fell in step beside him asking, "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine, Clark," Lex said, still walking. Being called a dictator Lex could handle, but having Clark think he was weak, inside his own project, was something the older man couldn't allow. "I'm not the one who was just holding a substance toxic to me, I would think your well-being is of greater concern."

"Actually I'm fine. It barely hurt at all," Clark admitted, then looked thoughtful. "It must have been the lead..."

Lex nodded. "Yes, lead seems to be the substance that contains the meteors' radiation most effectively..." he paused, stopping his purposeful walking to look at Clark. "Wait, you knew that?"

Clark nodded. "Lead's the only thing that can shield me from their effects. But I would never have thought of putting it in a serum. The stuff Phoenix had, is it, can you use it as a cure?"

Lex wanted to inquire about the lead discovery further, but it was clearly old news to Clark and Lex did owe the other man information on the workings of 33.1 now.

"No, it's not a cure," Lex explained. "Nothing's been found so far that can completely remove the, kryptonite, from an infected person's system. Like I said, the compound simply suppresses the effects temporarily."

Clark sighed, looking upset. "But that, that still helps right?" he asked, his voice oddly hopeful.

He blames himself for these people, Lex realised suddenly, touched by Clark's compassion, even though the guilt was unnecessary. Lex nodded in a manner he hoped was reassuring.

"Yeah, it helps," he said. "Not everyone needs it of course, but for people like Phoenix it's practically essential. Without the suppressant her powers are greatly increased, beyond her capability to handle, no matter what she said in there. That's why she was so scared to go back to Belle Reve, emotions there tend to run pretty high, and if you're feeling all of them at once..."

"It'd drive you insane," Clark finished quietly. Remembering the vast number of troubled people he'd encountered when he'd gone to visit Lex there.

Lex nodded, relaxing against the wall as he realised Clark understood him. "I don't want to send her back there," he said, eyes dark blue and serious. "But if she keeps avoiding medication like this I honestly might not have a choice. You saw how erratic she was, emotions are unpredictable. All it would take is for someone to be angry enough to hurt, and she could do some serious damage."

Clark nodded, brow furrowed as he considered the dilemma. "Maybe if you actually gave Phoenix the opportunity to test her power like she wants, she wouldn't be so desperate to try it on her own," he suggested. Lex looked sceptical and Clark continued hurriedly. "I don't mean just letting her loose in the facility, but somewhere controlled, and supervised. And not for too long, just once a month or something. And I'll bet there are plenty of others who'd welcome chance to do the same." He thought of Alicia and how she'd hated her lead bracelet.

Lex pursed his lips, thinking carefully. "I don't know, Clark," he said eventually. "It's not a bad idea, but this is a secret project and there are limitations. I only have so many scientists I trust, most of whom are tied up with other experiments, I just can't spare them for low priority investigations like that."

"Well, maybe you wouldn't have to," Clark persisted, eyes glowing as he warmed to his idea. "Most of the people here seem to get on with each other well enough, and they all know each others powers. Why not let them supervise each other? All they'd need is a free room, and maybe some basic equipment from the lab."

Lex's eyes took on a far away look as he ran the idea through his mind. "They'd need some scientists to sit in the first few times of course, to make sure everything was ok... but it'd be worth it in the long run, and might even allow for autonomy in other areas, so I could cut back on staff..." he blinked and focused back on Clark, impressed. "Good thinking, farmboy," Lex smiled.

"Well, I did come here to help," Clark responded, beaming back. Then his lips lowered, expression at once thoughtful and nervous. "Though, I wonder if maybe I'd be more help to your scientists..." he added.

Lex, still at ease, looked at Clark curiously. "How so?"

"Well," Clark began, hesitant. He'd been thinking of suggesting something like this since he first got involved with the project, but old fears were hard to shake. "It must have taken them a while to develop that suppressant right? But maybe I have the information you need to make something better, and make it faster."

"Information?" Lex narrowed his eyes, not sure if he was following. "You mean, at your Fortress?"

"Yeah... but also, you know," Clark looked down with a nervous shrug. "In me."

Lex took a breath, not quite able to withhold his excitement. Once he'd understood Clark wasn't part of some fearful alien invasion, Lex's natural, insatiable curiosity had quickly bubbled to the surface and questions about Clark's alien origins, biology, powers, everything, had been on the tip of his tongue for weeks. But Lex was also sure Clark was the only person he truly had a chance at being friends with, Lex had known this from the beginning. So he'd bitten his tongue and refrained from asking, not wanting to scare Clark away and lose him again. It was amusing, he supposed, in a slightly depressing sort of way, that the only friend Lex Luthor could have came from another planet.

But now, here was Clark willingly offering himself to Lex as an alien science project. And Lex thought a security pass had been an impressive display of trust. But then, Clark wasn't offering himself to Lex, actually, but to his scientists, to the project. This thought bothered Lex, it was important to him that Clark's offer was personal, between the two of them only. Involving random scientists would only increase the danger to Clark by exposing his secret to more people, Lex told himself, though he knew very well it wasn't the real reason for his possessiveness.

"Actually, the scientists here didn't develop the suppressant," Lex admitted in his attempt to remove the middleman. "In fact, they aren't really involved in the development of the drugs used in the project much at all."

Clark blinked. "Oh? Then, who is?"

Lex gave an amused smile. "Me, actually."

Clark's eyes widened, nervousness replaced by simple surprise. "You...? How?"

"One of my experiments in the lab I have in the basement of the mansion." Lex replied casually, and as Clark's eyes grew wider Lex realised why so many people thought confession was good for the soul - it was fun. Because no one else knew about Lex's personal lab, let alone what he did there, he made sure none of the scientists at 33.1 knew where any of the drugs they used came from. But revealing the secret was entirely worth it for Clark's expression. Lex wondered if he could possibly make his friend's eyes any bigger, or make him look any more adorable. Lex tried to ignore that last thought.

"You have a lab in the basement of the mansion?" Clark asked finally.

"Since I moved in," Lex replied. "For, recreational purposes, initially."

"Recreational purposes?" Clark repeated, simply dumbfounded.

Lex gave a vague shrug, suddenly embarrassed. "I... like science," he explained.

Clark blinked. He must have been to the mansion hundreds of times by now and he'd never come across a lab in the basement. Then again, of course, he'd never properly been to the basement. In fact, Lex's place was so big Clark wasn't sure he'd even be able to find the basement. But anyway, Lex liked classical history and business and stuff didn't he? Ok, he'd backed science projects before, like the one that had inadvertently split him in two, and Clark supposed that indicated somewhat of an interest in the subject, but "Enough to build a full laboratory in your house?"

"Oh, come on," Lex protested. "You have a whole damn palace out in the Arctic."

"Which I inherited," Clark objected. "I didn't set it up myself."

"Yeah, because you so wouldn't have built it yourself given the opportunity," Lex challenged.

Clark paused, open-mouthed, unable to think of an adequate response. Waving a hand in defeat he leaned back against the wall opposite Lex and laughed, wondering how they'd moved from serious discussion to teasing so easily.

Lex, realising himself the turn the discussion had taken, shook his head, grinning.

"Look, it's just true, alright?" Lex smiled. "Science was my best subject at school. It was the only time I actually enjoyed being there." He looked a little wistful. "I wanted to take it further, but my father, of course, had other plans, and threw me into the family business as soon as possible instead. I set up the lab in Smallville to occupy myself through what I expected to be a pointless and rather boring time. A miscalculation on my part it turned out."

"But now you're using the place to create drugs for the kryptonite-infected, essential drugs, no less - and all without any training or further education?" Clark asked, still surprised, but also impressed. "Wow Lex, that's, that's pretty..."

"Genius?" Lex suggested, expression serious, eyes smiling. "I've often thought so."

"I was gonna say 'crazy' but, okay," Clark responded in kind.

Now over the surprise, Clark became serious again, realising what Lex's latest revelation was hinting at. He developed the drugs used in the project himself, which meant any investigations into Clark's biology and the ways it could be utilised would be just between him and Lex. It seemed kind of fitting, Clark supposed.

"And, I guess it would be easier getting to a lab in Smallville..." Clark added, trying to stay light-hearted. The tone of his voice betrayed his apprehension though, as images of himself framed and mounted in Lex's secret room, nothing but another exhibit, flashed unbidden into his mind.

Lex noted Clark's unease and wondered if he should just veto the idea altogether, or if he could get away with assurance about the safety of his experiments. His desire to keep Clark's friendship, and his scientific curiosity reaching a perfect equilibrium.

"Clark, you don't..." Lex began, but before either man could discover what he was about to say Clark's phone rang.

Clark took it out of his pocket with a wince of apology and looked at the screen, happily fixed now since its destruction the night of Lana's accident.

"Lois?" he said a little incredulously into the speaker. There was a pause during which Lex looked curious and Clark looked concerned. "Ok, ok, I'll be right there." He hung up and looked back to Lex, both guilty and slightly relieved.

"Um, I've got to go," he said. "Something's happened to Chloe, she's in hospital."

Lex's curiosity turned to a frown. "What happened?"

Clark shrugged, uncertain. "I don't know. Lois was a little, upset. I really need to go straight away." His gaze was anxious as he looked at Lex, aware of the issue still hanging over their heads. "I'm sorry, I..."

Lex waved him off. "Clark, don't worry about it. Go be with your friend."

Clark gave a short, grateful nod, and was gone a quick displacement of air later. Lex stared at the place Clark had been and sighed.

"Damn..." he muttered.

Over at the Kent farm, Martha was perched on a stool in front of the kitchen table, staring unhappily at multiple piles of official looking papers. She picked one up and began to look through it carefully, her face a mask of concentration. The torrential rain outside acted as the perfect pathetic fallacy for her mood. A sharp tap on the glass of the kitchen door made her look up, only to see Lionel, in full formal attire, complete with executive black umbrella, standing in the porch. Martha watched with silent disapproval as he opened the door without invitation.

"Martha, hello," he said, standing casually in the partly open doorway. "I was just on my way back to Metropolis. I didn't mean to interrupt anything, but there are a few matters concerning LuthorCorp I wondered if I could discuss with the new Senator before I left."

"We do have a front door," Martha responded coolly. Lionel actually managed to look sheepish, but stepped fully into the kitchen anyway.

"Next time, I'll come to the front," he assured her, closing the door behind him.

"Maybe you should call first as well. Jonathan isn't actually here right now, he's in a meeting with the Mayor." Martha sighed in frustration, she was busy and didn't welcome the interruption, but also hated to be discourteous to house-guests. Plus, Lionel had been a great help during Jonathan's campaign, it was rude of her being so short with him like this. "But, now you're here you might as well stay for coffee. After all, it's pouring outside, you must be freezing. Here, let me take your coat." She moved towards him a little too quickly and knocked several sheets of paper to the floor in the process, making her sigh once more.

"Oh, here," said Lionel, putting his umbrella aside. "Let me help you with those." He bent down smoothly to retrieve the fallen papers, prompting Martha to automatically kneel in front of him, too proud to let him collect them all himself.

"Hmmm..." Lionel looked over the papers curiously. "Budget, fiscal projections, public works..." he identified. "Surely Jonathan should be looking over these, not you?" he stood up the same time as Martha and held the remaining papers out to her, looking concerned.

Martha stacked the papers onto the table again in a single, neatened pile and gave a small shrug, her previous frustration - more at the complexities of her husband's new job more than Lionel's presence - now gone. "I'm just trying to help out."
Lionel nodded, his expression sympathetic. "Yes. It must be hard having Jonathan away so often these days. Senate work is not like farm work, you can't always be there for him when things go wrong."

Martha glanced at him shortly, both affronted at Lionel's delve into her private life, and grateful for his insight.

"I don't mean to pry, of course," Lionel continued, apparently to reassure her. "I just remember how helpless Lillian used to feel while I was away on business. She often tried to become more involved in my work. Too much I fear..." The tone of his voice softened a bit, although his expression remained collected. "She began to lose sight of her own interests, her independence. Something I never thought to correct." He seemed truly remorseful, and Martha, looking at him sympathetically, couldn't help feeling sorry for him. "We both came to regret it, in the end," Lionel continued. "I sincerely hope Jonathan doesn't make the same mistake with you, Martha."

The intensity and seriousness of Lionel's gaze stopped any anger that might have formed at his insinuation, and Martha just stared at him, speechless.

"Ah..." she began, shaking her head, to break eye-contact more than show denial. "I'm sure we'll be able to work things out between us," she stated. "And I have my job at the Talon, I'm hardly lacking in independence." Martha wondered briefly why she felt the need to defend her marriage to Lionel Luthor.

"Of course," Lionel responded, with a single nod and flat smile - the formality of which, in contrast his previous casualness, succeeded in conveying the exact opposite of what they implied. "Thank you for the offer of coffee, but if Jonathan isn't here I really should be getting back to Metropolis," the other man continued, expression warm again. He picked up the umbrella and made for the door, pausing artfully with his hand on the handle to turn back with a grin.

"If you really are interested in learning more about the ins and outs of the Senate though, I would of course be happy to educate you. To help Jonathan, of course," he added evenly. "He may be insisting on paying me back my contribution to his campaign, but that doesn't mean I'm no longer available for help, should he need it. I still support his position, and if you need me, you know where to find me."

Martha nodded back, affected by the words - though no longer sure if Lionel referred to personal or professional matters, or even her or Jonathan. He gave her one last smile and stepped back out into the rain.

As she watched him leave, it occurred to Martha for the first time to wonder what Lionel had been doing in Smallville anyway, and how someone in his position, who probably knew the timetables of officials before even they did, could possibly not have known Jonathan had a meeting with the Mayor that morning.

Later that day, Lex, now back in Smallville himself, was leaning back in the chair of his office, playing idly with a biro from his desk while scolding someone on his cell.

After leaving 33.1, Lex had been busy working out new schedules for his scientists and arranging special training rooms in the inhabited section of the facility, hoping to implement Clark's idea as soon as possible. Everything was in order now and all he needed was volunteers. Lex had tried to call Clark to get him to select some suitable candidates, insisting it was to get Clark more involved in the project, and not because he was nervous about entering the place again after Phoenix's accusations. But unfortunately, Clark's cell had been switched off, and continued to be switched off for the rest of the morning and well into lunchtime.

Lex could only assume this meant Clark was still in the hospital with Chloe, which was telling as to her condition - if Clark felt the need to stay with her this long it had to be pretty serious. Lex was worried, but unable to do anything about this - he might be closer to Clark again now, but Chloe was another matter. Lex had, therefore, decided to pursue another project he had on hand. Sadly, this too seemed to have reached a dead end. Apparently, incompletion was the matter of course for Lex today.

"How hard can it be to find one college professor from a dirt state?" Lex muttered into the phone, twisting the pen round his fingers with sharp, angry flicks. "I want Fine located, or somebody's going be wondering where you disappeared to," he continued, frustration leading easily to threats. He looked up thoughtfully, contemplating something really intimidating involving lonely families and empty paycheques as a follow up, when he noticed Lana, decked in a classy cream jacket, with her hands in her jeans' pockets, hovering nervously in the doorway. Her left arm was now completely free of its cast, though Lex noticed she still held it a little stiffly.

He hung up immediately. "Lana," he stated, masking his surprise. It wasn't that he'd been on bad terms with her lately; it was just that, since the accident, she hadn't exactly gone out of her way to see him. That made sense, of course, he had almost got her killed, even if she did claim it wasn't his fault, and since she knew the truth about Clark now, there was no need for her to be involved in the investigation of the black ship anymore. All of which made her appearance now, notably without Clark, unexpected.

Lana didn't reply, looking troubled and uncertain. In one easy motion Lex put his phone on the desk and stood up, moving towards her.

"What's wrong?" he asked in concern.

Lana moved further into the room, hands still in her pockets, and stopped a few feet away from Lex in obvious discomfort. "It's Chloe," she explained. "She's in hospital, she... she tried to kill herself."

Lex took a moment to adjust to this revelation. Suicide? Chloe? The concept seemed ludicrous. Yet Lana was obviously distraught right now, enough to turn up in Lex's office, alone, which seemed to validate her claim.

"God," he breathed. "Clark mentioned she was in hospital, but I'd never have considered Chloe suicidal. Is she alright? What happened?"

"I... I don't really know," Lana shrugged helpless. "She was staying with Lois at the Talon, some lightening from the storm caused a powercut, then Lois found her in the bathroom with her wrists slashed. I went to the hospital to try and talk to her, but she wasn't making any sense. She just kept rambling about blood, and a girl needing help." Lana looked down, she sounded scared. Whatever she'd seen at the hospital had shaken her badly. "They had to sedate her..."

Lex pursed his lips in a show of thought to cover his uncertainty. He wasn't sure what to do with a nearly crying Lana. If she needed comfort she should have gone to Clark. But she hadn't, obviously. Perhaps it wasn't comfort she was seeking then, but something Clark couldn't give her.

"Who's her doctor?" Lex asked.

"Just some psychiatrist at the hospital," Lana shrugged, but she was looking at him hopefully now, and Lex realised he'd touched on the reason for her visit. "That's actually why I came to see you," she began, tentative. "You've, spent time, at Belle Reve, and I know your experience there wasn't exactly pleasant," she glanced at Lex, eyes soft with sympathy. Since Clark's testimony a couple of years ago, everyone knew about the illegal electroshock therapy Lex had undergone at the establishment. "But, certain treatments aside," Lana continued. "The doctors there, they helped you, right?" She creased her eyebrows together in a mild display of anguish, uncomfortable with having to broach such an awkward subject.

Lex gave her a small smile, so she knew he wasn't upset by it, glad to have determined the reason for her visit. "I'll make the call," he assured her. Lana looked instantly relieved. "She'll have the best doctors this side of Vienna treating her."

"Thanks Lex," she said, giving a tight smile back. "I didn't know who else to turn to."

Lex nodded, wondering if this was what his shaky friendship with Lana was going to be reduced to now, one where he was only consulted for favours - much like it had been with Clark for a time.

"I'm glad to help," Lex said, truthfully, moving back to his desk to retrieve his cell phone. Lana followed him, apparently a little more at ease.

"You said you saw Clark earlier?" she asked.

Lex looked up, hand on his phone. "Yes, we ran into each other this morning," he replied easily. Lies were never difficult for Lex and he hardly begrudged Clark for pushing him into this one, but he was still more than a little confused about the motivation behind the younger man's persistent secrecy on the issue of their altered relationship.

"It's good that you two are getting along better," she nodded sincerely. Lex gave a small nod and smile in agreement. "I, ah... I told him about our project, with the black ship," she admitted, soft lips flattening with guilt.

Lex waved his free hand, as though attempting to physically dispel her worry. "He's your fiancé now Lana," he said. "I understand you wouldn't want to keep secrets from him."

Lana seemed surprised. He was being a bit blasé about the secret project he supposed. "Are you continuing the investigation? I haven't heard anything about it from you recently."

Lex blinked at her, a hint of curiosity creasing his brow. "The investigation is ongoing," he told her evenly. "I simply assumed you were no longer interested."

Lana frowned. "Why would you think that?" she asked, suddenly on edge.

"Because I've been engaged myself," Lex replied calmly. "I know what a full time job it can be, especially with the wedding only months away. I didn't think you'd have the time for a potentially crack-pot project that, as yet, has yielded no real results."

"We both know it's not a crack-pot project, Lex," Lana responded, a new and distinctly odd sharpness to her tone. "And I'm still as interested in it as ever, my relationship with Clark doesn't change that."

Lex paused a moment, calculating. Lana had been scared of Lex finding out about Clark the night of the accident. True, his drunken anger had done much to contribute to that, but the thought of him discovering the truth might still worry her. Plus, despite what people might think, Lana wasn't stupid. She'd successfully maintained a business at the Talon while still in high school after all. So Lex wouldn't put it past her to try and stay close to him, just so she could make sure he didn't learn the truth about Clark. A truth he already knew. A laughable triangle of deception, really. Still, Lex supposed he better play along.

"I'm sorry," he said, matching her serious expression with one of his own. "I didn't mean to presume. I'll get a file with the latest developments to you before tomorrow."

"Great." Lana tried for one of her usual, sunny smiles, but it didn't quite reach her eyes. Lex wondered if Clark knew the effort his fiancée was apparently willing to go to for his protection.

Clark looked glumly through the window of the heavy set door in the secure ward of Smallville Medical Centre. Inside Chloe was laying sedated on a dull grey bed, a coarse, white-ish medical gown covering her body, her arms and legs attached to metal bars at the side with thick leather straps - making sure she couldn't do any greater damage to herself than the still raw cuts she'd already inflicted on her wrists. Yet another person he cared about in hospital.

A painful twist tightened Clark's chest as he recalled the chilling prophecy Jor-El had made after resurrecting him from death during the young kryptonian's time as a human. :: the life of someone close to you will be exchanged for yours :: he'd said, all the more fearful for being in Lionel's body at the time. Standing at the scene of Lana's crash, Clark had been sure it was her who'd paid the price for him, but with her survival had come relief and complacency. Perhaps Jor-El was wrong, Clark had thought, foolishly. Then had come the second near miss with his father, and now here was Chloe, recovering from a suicide attempt of all things. Clark wondered if this was how life was going to be from now on, always holding his breath, watching and waiting for the expected fatality. There's still time, Clark thought, I must be able to stop it somehow.

Clark looked carefully round the corridor; making sure no one was near by. Then, taking a determined breath, he twisted the handle of the door enough to break the lock and slipped quietly inside the room.

Chloe would never want to kill herself, Clark was sure of that; she was too strong for it. And she wasn't crazy either; she'd been perfectly lucid while Clark had been with her that morning. Whatever had happened to her last night, and the later incident with Lana the orderlies had told him about, must have been due to forces beyond her control. Forces Clark suspected were a result of Jor-El's tampering with the fabric of time. Clark wouldn't accept another explanation, and he wasn't just going to sit back and watch Chloe be transferred from the hospital like he'd overheard the nurses saying she was to be. I'll be damned if another friend of mine is sent to Belle Reve when they don't belong there! He brushed a loose hair tenderly from Chloe's face, glad to see she was at least breathing okay, and reached for the strap holding her right arm.

"If you're planning a break-out, you need to learn how to watch your back better, Clark," a smooth voice said behind him. Clark whipped round, standing up straight, to see the broken door held open a fraction - the space between it and the doorframe filled with a curious Lex, watching him with quiet intent.

"Lex," Clark breathed with relief. "Shut the door."

Lex complied, not taking his eyes of Clark. "Clark, what are you doing?" he asked, serious but gentle.

Clark moved passed him to look out of the window - Lex was right, he did need to watch his back more. Satisfied the corridor was again empty, he moved the side of the doorway were no one from outside could see him, Lex followed.

"Lex, I can't just leave her here, they're planning to transfer her to Belle Reve," he whispered, urgently.

"I know, Clark," Lex responded, lowering his voice to match. "I was the one who arranged it."

Clark looked stunned. "You? Why?" he asked, slightly accusatory.

"Lana came to see me," Lex explained calmly. "She was concerned Chloe wasn't getting the treatment she needed here. From what I've heard of the situation, I'm inclined to agree." Once Lana had left the mansion he'd got in touch with Chloe's doctor and asked for a full briefing on her condition. From what he'd been told, it seemed to Lex that Chloe's recent behaviour indicated she did indeed need urgent psychiatric attention.

Clark frowned. "Lana told you Chloe should be in Belle Reve?" he asked.

Lex nodded. "Not in so many words, but she seemed to think it was the best course of action, yes. When Lana visited, Chloe was apparently very, erratic. Lana was upset by it."

Clark looked over Lex's shoulder to the woman on the bed, sleeping peacefully. Lex followed his gaze, looking at Chloe in concern. He could understand Clark's fear; it must be distressing to see his friend strapped down like a criminal in that way. After a moment Clark shook his head.

"No," he said firmly. "I don't know what Lana saw, but she's wrong about Chloe."

Lex gave him a pitying look but before he could say anything Clark cut him off.

"She's not crazy, Lex," he insisted, vehement now. "I won't let her be taken to that place."

Lex sighed in frustration, recognising unyielding Kent stubbornness when he saw it. Really, nothing he undertook was looking to end well today. "So what's your plan Clark?" he asked, a little scathing. "Just break her out of here and lay low, hoping no-one will come looking for you? Not exactly very well thought out."

Clark bristled in response to Lex's agitation. "I don't recall you having such a problem when it was you I was breaking out," he hissed.

"Funny thing, Clark," Lex responded swiftly. "I don't recall that either."

The two men faced each other down for a moment, and then Clark turned away with a sigh, looking guilty.

Lex looked at Clark's hurt expression and sighed too, his frustration dissolving. Clark was frightened and upset; Lex hadn't meant to be angry with him.

"Lex, I... I'm sorry," Clark said softly, not entirely sure what he was apologising for - his harsh words, his failure to save Lex from Belle Reve, or his behaviour towards the other man in general. "I just, I know something's not right about this. I'm sure of it."

Lex considered Clark seriously, noting the absolute certainty in the other man's expression. Lex was far from convinced himself, knowing too well how easily the mind could play tricks on you, but how was he supposed to stop a confused, super-powerful alien once he'd fixed his mind on something?

"Where are you planning to take her?" Lex asked.

"Lois' room at the Talon," Clark replied. "That's where everything started, I'm hoping if Chloe goes back there we might find some answers to what's happening to her."

Lex nodded. There was some sense in that, he supposed. "Alright. I'll meet you there in five minutes," he stated. Clark blinked in surprise. "If you're determined to do this, I can't exactly stop you," he explained. "But I can at least be there to help out in case anything goes wrong."

Clark gave a small smile. "Thanks, Lex," he nodded.

"Just, hurry up before I change my mind," Lex muttered. "I'll go distract the medical staff for you."

Clark watched gratefully as Lex slipped out into the corridor. Thirty seconds later, both him and Chloe were gone.

Less than a minute after that, Clark was laying Chloe, still in her coarse, off-white hospital garments, with gentle care down on Lois' bed at the Talon. Thunder crashed ominously outside as the storm from last night continued to rage. Clark was glad his speed allowed him to avoid any of the rain falling on his friend - she had troubles enough without being soaked in rainwater as well. A noise from behind him made Clark turn and he saw Lois enter the room, eyes wide in shock as she saw Chloe on the bed. Damn, I didn't know she was here, Clark thought. Lex was right, I guess I didn't plan this so well.

"Clark, what are you doing? She should be in the hospital!" Lois berated immediately. Fortunately for Clark she seemed unconcerned how he'd got her out of there in the first place. He supposed breaking the rules was such an active part of Lois' life she wouldn't think to question how the breaking was done.

Standing up, Clark grabbed her arm and moved her to the end of the bed, away from the still sleeping Chloe, not wanting to disturb her yet. "They were going to transfer her to Belle Reve," he said in explanation, voice hushed, hoping Lois would twig from his tone to keep her own down as well.

Lois folded her arms tightly round herself, registering what the information implied about her cousin's mental health.

"Well, Clark," she said, unhappily. "Maybe that's what she needs right now."

"Lois," Clark responded, exasperated at the way no one seemed to share his opinion. "You don't know what it's like at Belle Reve. Maybe, if you really are crazy, the place might just be good for you, but if you're not, I'd say it's more likely to drive you insane than anything else. Do you really want to risk Chloe spending time there if she doesn't have to?"

"Clark, quite honestly, if it makes her feel better, I don't care if Daffy Duck whacks her with a mallet!" Lois shot back, voice rising, rich with condemnation at Clark's small town upbringing and his stupid, backward opinions.

On the bed Chloe moaned. "You guys," she muttered, flickering her eyes open and pulling herself into a sitting position. "I'm drugged, I'm not deaf." She looked round the room, blinking a little, but seemed unsurprised at no longer being in hospital.

Lois shot Clark a venomous look, as if Chloe's waking up had been all his fault. Then she turned to her cousin with a kind smile.

"Hey, how you feeling?" she asked gently.

"Thirsty," Chloe responded, pulling her knees up to her chest in a manner that made her look every bit the mental patient everyone was taking her for.

"I'll get you some water," Clark said quickly, refusing to let Chloe's vulnerable appearance change his mind about her condition.

"Actually," Chloe said, stopping Clark in his tracks. "Can I get a cappuccino? It might help clear the cobwebs." She looked up at the two if them hopefully.

Lois and Clark both smiled a little - caffeine addiction was at least a sign of a normal Chloe.

"I'll go downstairs and whip you up a double," Lois nodded. Just as she was turning to leave, though, there was a sharp knock on the door. Lois looked at Clark with a frown, while Chloe looked in the direction of the sound, tired eyes clouding in panic. "Way to go jail-breaker," Lois muttered to Clark. "Looks like you didn't cover your tracks too well."

"Don't let them take me back to the hospital," Chloe pleaded, scrambling off the bed. "Please." Lois moved over to her in concern, gently holding her cousin's arm as the drugs in her system threw her off balance, while Clark stepped back to X-ray the door.

On the other side Clark saw Lex, his sweater now covered with a flowing black coat, waiting patiently.

"It's okay," he said, turning back to the girls. "It's just Lex."

"What?!" Chloe yelped. "How is that okay?"

Lois looked at her cousin as though all suspicions of her mental health had just been confirmed. "And, more to the point, how do know, Smallville?" she asked. "You have a super sense of smell or something?"

Clark stepped over to both of them. Ignoring Lois for the moment, he put a hand on Chloe's shoulder, green eyes warm with comfort as he lifted them to her. "It's okay, because he was there when I broke you out," he explained. "He said he wanted to help." Chloe seemed to calm down, but looked far from reassured. "And I know," he said, turning to Lois. "Because we arranged to meet up here," he finished with confidence, hoping it was enough to satisfy her. "Honestly, don't worry," he insisted, looking at Chloe again as he moved towards the door. "It'll be okay."

Outside, Lex watched calmly as the door opened, bringing him face to face with a nervous Clark.

"Hey," Clark greeted quietly.

Lex nodded. "Clark," his gaze flickered over Clark's shoulder and he saw the two girls standing together in the far room, looking uneasily in his direction. "Can I come in?" he asked the younger man, though it was really for Lois and Chloe's benefit, making them aware he wasn't trying to impose.

Clark nodded, flashing Lex a small smile - he seemed relieved at the other man's presence. Lex stepped inside, moving to the bedroom, while Clark shut the door behind him. Lex stopped in the doorway, as if the tension in the room was a physical force keeping him out, and nodded at the two women.

"Chloe, how are you?" he asked, voice deliberately soft. "A lot of people are worried about you."

"You expect me to believe you're one of them?" Chloe responded tersely. "I don't know what you've told Clark, but I know you were the one who arranged to send me to Belle Reve. What game are you playing now?"

Moving beside him in the doorway, Clark shot Lex a pained expression, but Lex simply nodded, too used to distrust to be affected by it.

"No game Chloe, I promise," he said, holding her gaze. "I just want to help. Clark thinks the best way to do that is by bringing you here. I agreed to try his way first."

"But the instant I do anything that might possibly be construed as loony, you've got the men in white coats on stand by to cart me away, right?" Chloe said. "Well you know what? Whatever you think, I know what I saw. I didn't imagine anything. And I didn't hurt myself, I wouldn't do that."

"We know, Chloe," Clark said quickly, stepping into the room again. "We want to figure out what's going on as much as you do."

A quiet descended over the room as everyone eyed each other. Then Lois stepped up to try and break the ice. "You know what?" she said, a little too brightly. "I'm gonna go get that cappuccino, and maybe an espresso for myself, and then we're gonna sit down and work this out between us, okay?" There was no response, but Lois nodded as if there had been anyway. "Okay. Come on Mr I'm-just-here-to-help, you can help me with the coffee machine," she nodded at Lex, who looked between Chloe and Clark for a moment before deciding Lois' not so subtle plan to give them both some space was probably a good one. Giving Clark one final glance, Lex followed Lois outside.

Once they were gone Chloe sat down on the bed with a sigh. "Why you thought it'd be a good idea to get Lex Luthor, resident shady businessman, involved, I just can't fathom, Clark," she muttered, shaking her head.

Clark sat down beside her. "Chloe, honestly, he's just here to help," he said. "Besides, it wasn't me who got him involved in the first place, it was Lana. She asked him to help get you better treatment."

Chloe looked up at him, face crumpled. "That's great, Clark," she said, voice breaking a little. "Apparently, everyone thinks I'm nuts. You shouldn't have bothered breaking me out - clearly Belle Reve is the best place for me," she finished bitterly.

"Hey," Clark said gently, placing a hand over hers. "I don't think you're crazy, no one does, not really. Everyone's just really worried about you, and they want to help."

Chloe sighed. "I, I know. I just wish people would believe me. There was a girl at the hospital, there really was, even if Lana couldn't see her. She needs our help," Clark nodded as if he understood, although this was the first time he'd really heard about what had happened with Chloe and Lana at the hospital. Around here, invisible girls were hardly unlikely, but ones only Chloe could see did seem a little strange, even for Smallville. Apparently sensing her friend's uncertainty Chloe added firmly, "I'm not my mother, Clark."

Clark gave her a small smile and squeezed her hand.

Chloe accepted the support with a watered smile back, but frowned soon after, eyes scanning the room with intense, nervous flicks.

"Did you hear that?" she asked. Clark cocked his head, employing his superhearing to its full capability. He heard nothing unusual.

"Hear what?" he asked in an anxious whisper, torn between wanting to believe his friend and the awareness that whatever she was experiencing seemed to have little basis in reality.

Instead of responding Chloe started away from Clark, looking at the empty space beside him in obvious fear. "Do you see her?" she whispered, breathing heavily. Clark just shook his head, helpless. He was about to reach over and comfort her, when Chloe jumped up, moving from the bed to the doorway of the bathroom, her eyes following something Clark couldn't see. After a moment she ran inside and fixed her eyes on the large, central mirror attached to the wall above the sink. Clark stepped in after her.

"Chloe?" he asked, concerned. "What's going on?"

Chloe spun round, body tense, eyes bright and agitated.

"She's in the wall," she said, urgently. "The girl I keep seeing. She must be trapped or something, we have to help her!"

Clark looked uncertain. A hysterical Chloe was certainly very far from normal, even when the supernatural was involved. It could be the drugs still in her system, effecting her reactions, but Clark had to admit that mental instability wasn't a bad description for his friend right now. Seeing Clark's hesitation Chloe moved over to him, grabbing his arms.

"Clark, I'm not crazy," she said, worryingly desperate. "Just check in the wall. Please."

Clark nodded. After everything they'd been through together, he'd owed it to Chloe not to doubt her now. Pushing her gently away from him, he stepped forward to x-ray behind the sink. As his eyes adjusted, the image of a skeleton slowly materialised behind the bathroom mirror. Clark blinked, bringing the world back into its usual focus.

"Oh my god," he muttered. She's right. Behind him, Chloe let out a small sigh of relief. Clark knew no one would believe either of them without evidence though, and Chloe had suffered enough distrust already. Without thinking, he walked up to the mirror and punched right through it, pulling a whole section of the wall down in a shower of broken glass, plaster and porcelain. The skeleton behind it was completely revealed, along with something else Clark's quick x-ray had missed, an elaborate bracelet on the figure's left wrist, embedded with a variety of stones, the centre one being large and vividly green. Clark immediately doubled over as the kryptonite radiation washed over him.

"Clark?" Chloe called in concern, moving next to him. Noting the bracelet and what it must be, she started to pull him out of the room. Clark accepted the help without protest, standing upright and taking a grateful, pain-free, breath once he was out.

As he sat on the bed recovering he didn't notice Chloe's tentative return to the bathroom, or the few, almost unbidden steps she took towards the macabre figure within the wall.

Catching a small flash of green light in the corner of his eye, Clark stood up, about to investigate, when Lois and Lex returned to the room in a flurry of excitement.

"God!" Lois was saying, attempting to drink something black and frothy while speaking. "You've got to be kidding me. There is no way a spoiled rich kid like you came up with something this good on your own. I mean, aren't you supposed to have servants who make these things for you? I'm still shocked you even knew how to use the coffee machine..."

"Spoiled rich kid. Pithy," Lex muttered behind her, holding two, neatly lidded paper cups and shutting the door sharply with a flick of his heel. "And slightly hypocritical, coming from an army brat like you."

Lois made a face at him over her cup, but didn't respond, while Lex caught Clark's eye over her shoulder. Noting the intentness of the other man's expression, Lex quickly flicked his eyes around the rest of the room, checking for trouble.

"Clark, where's Chloe?" he asked.

"She's just in the bathroom, we-" Clark began.

"Right," Lois said, cutting him off, and heading to the bathroom door. "I've got to get her to try this. It's like this, super-caffeine cocktail our friend over there, claims to have created himself. I say 'impossible,' but Chloe's the caffeine expect here, she'll know if this is true genius or not, for sure."

"Lois..." Clark warned as she got closer to the door, the concerned part of him wanting to lessen the shock she was about to experience, while another part of him, the part that had actually been listening to her banter, wondered if she intended proof of the drink's genius to be taken in favour of Lex or not. In any case, Clark was too late to stop her, and Lois stepped boldly through the bathroom doorway.

"Holy crap!" she shrieked a few seconds later. Clark and Lex shared a brief glance before following her.

They stopped in the doorway, and Lex blinked at the sight before him. Dead bodies and weirdness he was well used to by now, of course, but he owned this place, skeletons in the walls were something he really should have been aware of. He knew it'd been a mistake rushing into buying the Talon, possibly buying it at all, but Clark had asked him to, back when the two of them were younger and closer, with less hardships weighing them down, so of course Lex had obliged.

Chloe, who had set up a small, standing mirror on the chest of drawers to the right, apparently as a replacement for the broken one, was eyeing them all nervously. Sensing her cousin's discomfort, Lois recovered instantly from the shock of the skeleton and walked over to her.

"Are you alright?" she asked.

"Yeah," Chloe replied, mouth flickering in a small smile. "I... feel much better now," she added in a far away voice, glancing at the mirror beside her. Lex narrowed his eyes at her curiously, while Lois, apparently satisfied, moved to get a better look at the broken wall.

"Geeze, this was completely plastered over. It must have been here for years," she muttered in wonder, pulling at a loose piece of plaster. "How in god's name did you manage to uncover it, Smallville?" she asked over her shoulder.

Behind her, a couple of steps inside only because of the kryptonite, Clark panicked. Once again, he'd been so desperate to help Chloe he hadn't considered the subsequent explanations that would have to follow.

"The plaster in this building has always been weak," Lex replied smoothly, stepping fully into the room himself, while Clark watched in surprise. "Shoddy workmanship. It would have been better to tear the whole place down and re-build it from scratch, but Lana wanted it preserved as it was, so..." Lex shrugged, then held out one of the cups to Chloe. "Here."

"What's this?" Chloe asked, taking it.

"Your cappuccino," Lex replied, looking at her oddly.

"Oh, of course," Chloe replied. "Thanks." She flashed Lex a bright smile that did little to alleviate the man's confusion. "Erm, I'm actually finding it a little freaky being in here right now," she continued. "So, I'm just gonna step outside, ok?" She'd walked passed Clark and outside before anyone could respond.

"I'd better stay with her," Lois said, following her. "She might say she's fine, but she's obviously not. She shouldn't be alone right now. You two." She narrowed her eyes at the two men, gaze piercing. "Try and figure out what to do about that." She waved her arm over the back wall.

Lex watched her leave with a small smirk. "Demanding, isn't she?" he said, taking a sip of his own coffee.

Clark shrugged. "That's Lois. She thinks the whole world's at her command," he responded dryly. "Thanks for the save," he added, rather more serious.

"Any time," Lex said, looking at Clark over his cup.

"I just didn't think about explanations," Clark admitted. "Chloe told me there was a girl behind the wall, and when I saw she was right, I just wanted to get proof, you know? So people would realise she wasn't crazy."

Lex lowered his coffee, eyes shining with curiosity. "When you 'saw she was right'...?" he asked.

Clark looked confused for a moment and then his face cleared. He'd accepted Lex so completely as a comrade-in-arms over this business with Chloe, he'd forgotten there were things the other man still didn't know. Clark grinned, noting Lex's expression. So he has wanted to ask about me. Considering the amount of questions Lex had always been asking at the start of their relationship, Clark wondered why he'd held back now. He was also glad about it, because after all this time of knowing the truth but not the details, Lex's reaction would be a joy to watch.

"X-ray vision," Clark revealed. Lex didn't disappoint.

The other man started, jaw slightly open - an expression of mild surprise on any other man, but with Lex Luthor, the equivalent of total astonishment. Speed he'd expected, strength too, and probably something involving fire as well. But organic, x-ray capability was something entirely left field. Watching him then, Clark wondered why he hadn't done this years ago - confessing stuff to Lex was fun.

Apparently speechless, Lex's eyes locked onto Clark's in an obvious 'a kid in a candyshop' kind of way that reminded Clark, oddly, of how Bobster had looked that morning. Then Clark realised it was literally his eyes, and not him, Lex was looking at. Clark's hearing told him Lex's heartbeat had also increased, which furthered Clark's amusement, though he wondered why his own heart seemed to quicken in response.

After a second, that felt more like an hour, Lex blinked, breaking the connection. He gave a small smile, shaking his head. "Wow. Didn't see that one coming," he admitted, taking another sip of coffee to get a hold of himself. He swallowed thoughtfully and looked back up at Clark. "Although... knowing about the figure in the wall is impressive, but it's not exactly proof of the stability of Chloe's mental health."

"Maybe not," Clark agreed. "But I'd say the bracelet pretty much is."

Lex turned round and noticed the bracelet, with its large, green gem, for the first time. He glanced back at Clark, registering his distance from the wall.

"Is that...?" Lex queried, just to be certain. Clark nodded.

"Hmmm..." Lex tapped his cup against his lips. "Lana mentioned there was a powercut here last night, caused by lightening," he muttered. "I suppose that could have activated the kryptonite somehow. Stranger things have happened."

Clark nodded. "Exactly," he said. "Chloe said she kept seeing a girl, maybe the kryptonite realised her spirit somehow, and she's been trying to contact Chloe ever since."

Lex wanted to laugh at the earnest expression Clark wore as he spoke, but realised with a sigh that more likely than not the explanation was correct. There really was nothing he'd put beyond this town anymore. Still, at least it meant Chloe wasn't crazy.

"I guess I'll tell the hospital to cancel that transfer to Belle Reve," Lex said with a small smile. "Good call. Next time I'll think twice before doubting your intuition."

Clark frowned. "I'm kinda hoping there won't be a next time," he said, thinking again of Jor-El and the threat of death still haunting the future. The kryptonite bracelet seemed to suggest Chloe's experience hadn't been connected to his alien father's prophecy after all, although Clark wouldn't put control of lightening past him. In any case, whether Clark had succeeded in stopping the threatened fatality or not remained ambiguous. He sighed. "I just hope now we've revealed the body, Chloe will be able to get back to normal. I mean, if it was a spirit communicating with her, that must have been what it wanted right?"

They both eyed the skeleton uncertainly.

Later that night, Clark all but tip-toed down the stairs of the Kent Farm, trying not to disturb what he hoped would be a soon sleeping Chloe in his room, or the already sleeping forms of his parents. Lex had gone to give a report of the night's findings to the sheriff's office in person, no doubt hoping to bully the officers into releasing all information they had on the dead girl to him as soon as they had it, Clark supposed. Not wanting to leave Lois and Chloe to spend the night with a corpse, Clark had invited them back home. Considering the circumstances, he knew his parents wouldn't mind.

Chloe had been unusually restless, accepting the high-class wall-of-weird explanation about kryptonite releasing the dead girl's spirit seemingly without interest, more anxious to find the man who had killed the girl in the first place. After the recent incident with Andrea, Clark thought it odd Chloe should be so concerned with vengeance like that, but put it down to the stress and drugs - Chloe would no doubt be more composed after a good night's sleep.

"Her name was Gretchen Winters," Lois stated as Clark descended. "Lex just called. But he says the police don't have any leads on who put her in the wall."

Clark paused at the bottom of the staircase, resting a hand on the banister and nodding in resignation. With the body hidden all this time, it was unlikely the killer would be found easily.

"There is something else though," Lois added, her face serious but with a hint of morbid curiosity. "The new sheriff's a little green, so he hasn't caught up with all of the town's past cases yet, but it seems like Gretchen's not the only girl they've found the other side of some dry wall."

Clark frowned. There was a guy in town who made a habit of walling up young women? Clark wondered if the girls were still alive when he did it. The thought made him shiver, and he remembered how Chloe had been through a similar ordeal a few years ago when she was buried alive. No wonder she's so freaked out, he thought, she could have died the same way.

"Chloe should hear this," he nodded. He'd left her to sleep, but if she was anything like as wired as she had been a few minutes ago there was really little chance of that, and Clark knew she'd hate to be kept out of the loop, even if only till morning.

Lois nodded, following Clark as he made his way back up stairs. She knew her cousin well enough to not object to Clark's statement, and Chloe's discovery of the skeleton had done a lot to dispel Lois' fears of mental problems.

"Chloe," Clark started, opening his bedroom door. But any further speech was halted when he found the room now empty of his friend, the window partly open, causing the still falling rain to be blown inside. Clark and Lois looked at each other in confusion.

"Where'd she go?" asked Lois, as if she expected Clark to answer.

Lex strode confidently down the softly lit corridor of Metropolis University, a slim, grey paper folder held to his chest. He was nearly at Lana's dorm. Clark's fiancée had called him not long after he'd related his discoveries about Gretchen Winters to Lois, who Lex had to admit obviously knew how to handle unexpected situations. She'd taken Chloe's break-out, Lex's involvement, and the skeleton in the wall all in her stride - and if she hadn't been concerned with looking out for her cousin, Lex suspected she'd have been the one investigating the dead girl herself, instead of giving Lex her mobile number so he could give her the information instead.

Lana had been frantic over the phone - she'd heard about Chloe's disappearance from the hospital and, believing her friend to be mentally unstable, had feared Chloe might have tried to hurt herself again. Lana had tried, and failed, to get through to Clark, and so turned to Lex to see if he had any information. Lex wondered why Clark had been unavailable, and was surprised his friend hadn't contacted Lana himself to explain the situation. Perhaps he was too busy looking after Chloe, Lex thought, recalling how the discovery of the body did seem to have had an odd effect on her. In any case, a fretful Lana was doing no one any good, so he'd reassured her that Chloe was fine, promising to run over and explain everything to her right away. He'd even stopped over at the mansion to collect the latest file about the black ship, since he had promised it to her that morning.

He was just wondering if he should tell Clark about Lana's continued interest in the investigation when a figure turned an approaching corner much too fast and slammed against him.

"Whoa," he exclaimed in surprise.

"Sorry, sorry..." the figured muttered. Lex blinked when he realised it was Chloe.

"Chloe, what are you doing here? I thought you were staying with Clark," he said, not unkindly.

Chloe looked at him blankly for a moment and Lex could have sworn she didn't even recognise him. Then her faced cleared and she gave a tight smile.

"Yes. Right," she said, voice clipped and tense. "I just, decided to come here instead. You know, somewhere familiar."

Lex nodded, but his narrowed eyes proved him unconvinced. Something's wrong. He noted Chloe's thick green overcoat and the bag over her shoulder - not the attire of someone just stepping outside for a moment.

"So, where are you planning on going now?" he asked slowly.

"People keep asking me that," Chloe muttered, sounding irritated. "Why do you care?"

Lex frowned, and at that moment Lana, fully clothed herself, also came round the corner, looking anxious.

"We care because you're a friend, Chloe," she said gently. "We're worried about you." Lex caught her eye, and if he'd suspected something was wrong before, the fear in Lana's gaze was enough to confirm it.

"Don't be, I'm fine," Chloe murmured to Lana over her shoulder.

"I'm not so sure you are," Lex said, matching Lana's tone. Perhaps Clark had been wrong, and Chloe really was mentally ill, despite her discovery of the girl in the wall. Or perhaps the kryptonite had affected her mind somehow. Holding the folder in his right hand, he placed his left softly on Chloe's shoulder in what he hoped was a friendly gesture - it was something that came easily with Clark, but when touching someone else he could never be sure. "Maybe you should come back inside with me and Lana."

"Or maybe you should get out of my way," Chloe responded, usually cool eyes suddenly menacing.

"Chloe," Lex started reasonably. "You're not acting like yourself. I can't let you go until we're sure nothing's wrong."

Instead of replying, Chloe calmly pulled something from her bag. There was short spark of electricity and Lex doubled over, dropping the folder and crying out. A blast from a stun gun was hardly the worst pain he'd ever experienced, but it had caught him off guard.

Lana knelt down beside him on the floor, her face a mask of concern and confusion. Lex put a hand on her shoulder, both to reassure her and steady himself, and looked down the corridor, breathing heavily. Chloe was gone. As Lana helped Lex up there was a soft breeze behind them.

"Lex? Wha-" began a confused Clark. The others turned towards him, Lana looking both relieved and a little irritated. "What happened?" Clark finished, eyeing them both in concern.

"Chloe attacked me," Lex responded, still recovering his breath.

"What?" Clark frowned, but seemed rather less disbelieving than Lex was expecting. "Then, she was here? Where did she go?"

"I don't know," Lana replied, while Lex gave Clark a curious look. "But she was acting like a completely different person."

Surprisingly, Clark nodded. "I'm starting to think maybe she is," he muttered. "Are you two both okay?" He moved towards them, giving Lex a careful once over before turning to Lana. He stroked gently down her arm and squeezed her hand.

She smiled at him and turned to Lex. "I think we're both fine," she said.

Lex nodded impatiently. "What do mean, you think maybe she is?" he asked Clark.

"She wasn't herself at the farm either," he explained. "And then she suddenly bailed on me and Lois without warning. I don't think she's actually Chloe at the moment."

"Possession?" Lex queried, turning thoughtful. Clark shrugged, while Lana, still holding his hand, looked between the two of them with rather hostile confusion.

"Honestly, I kind of hope so," Clark admitted. "Because otherwise, I guess she really does need psychiatric help." Lex nodded, mouth flattening in sympathy.

"What are you talking about?" Lana demanded. "Why was Chloe at the farm? And what do you mean, possession?"

Clark blinked at her for a second, then looked down, ashamed.

"Ah... there's some stuff that happened today you should know about," he said, meeting Lana's disapproving gaze with an abashed one of his own.

"Let's head to the mansion," Lex suggested. "I'll have my security team start trying to track Chloe down, it'll be easier to monitor their progress from there. You can explain on the way."

Clark looked from Lex to Lana. She nodded her approval. "Okay," Clark said. "Let's go."

Turning to leave, Clark stepped on the folder Lex had dropped when Chloe, or whoever she was right now, had stunned him. He bent down and picked it up.

"What's this?" he asked, automatically flipping it open. He frowned when he registered the contents and tilted his head in confusion.

Behind him Lex glanced briefly at Lana, who looked away from him, biting her lip as she realised what the folder must be.

"Just something I was bringing over for Lana," Lex explained coolly. "It's about a project we were both looking into, I believe she told you about it."

Clark looked over at Lana, who gave him a slight smile, her eyes apologetic. "Right. Yeah, she did," he muttered, closing the folder and handing it to her. He shot Lex a curious look, but the other man's expression gave nothing away. Why is Lana still involved in that project? Clark wondered, and...why is Lex continuing it? As far as Clark was concerned, the black ship was no longer important - its owners were gone and its AI destroyed. If it had disappeared, as Lex said it had, then what did it matter? It was probably just some kind of Kryptonian self-destruct mechanism anyway.

"We, really should go," Lana said, filling the pause that had risen between them. Stepping between the two men she headed down the corridor, holding the folder awkwardly against her chest.

Lex gave Clark a small shrug that read 'she's your girl, don't ask me' and started walking after her. After a moment, Clark followed.

"...you're doing what?" Clark asked, expression once again incredulous as he looked at his cell phone, eyes peering intently at the speaker, as though Lois might be physically inside it somehow. What she was telling him certainly made about as much sense.

Behind him, Lex was sitting at his desk typing something on his laptop while Lana watched over his shoulder, the folder that had caused so much confusion just recently now lying idly on the wooden surface beside her.

"Okay, whatever, Lois," Clark continued, shaking his head. "Just call me if you hear from Chloe, alright?" He snapped the phone shut and moved behind the desk next to Lana.

"What is the insatiable Miss Lane up to now that's prompted your incredulity?" Lex asked mildly, his eyes still on the computer screen.

Clark sighed, rolling his eyes. "She said something about buying incense for aura cleansing," he muttered. "I don't know... have you found anything?"

Once they'd arrived at the mansion, Lana now fully updated on the situation, Lex had immediately sent his security team out looking for Chloe, while the three of them convened in his office to find as much information on Gretchen Winters as possible. They were working on the theory that, if Chloe really was possessed by her, a knowledge of what the girl had been like in life might give them a clue as to where she was heading now.

Clark had tried his hand at the research first, only to find out just how much he'd always relied on Chloe for that kind of thing. After a few minutes of struggling through web browsers and passwords, Lex had decided to take over, sending Clark away to update Lois on the situation. This had led to a smaller revelation in itself, as Clark discovered he'd neglected to switch his phone back on after his time in the hospital, explaining why both Lex and Lana had been unable to reach him when they'd wanted to earlier. Lana had been decidedly unimpressed by the news.

"I've found almost everything," Lex murmured now in response. "Where she went to school, her medical records, her old address, now demolished. None of it helpful to us." He shook his head.

Clark sighed. "What about her parents?"

"Her mother died three years ago," Lana replied, while Lex kept searching. "Her father left when Gretchen was six. There's just no where left for her to go to."

"Well, she doesn't know that," Clark said. "Maybe she thinks her mother's still alive, she might be heading to her old address right now."

Lex broke his gaze from the screen and turned to Clark. "I thought about that," he said with a nod. "I contacted my security team while you were on the phone. They're on their way over. But somehow I don't think that's where she's headed. You didn't see her at the university. She didn't look like someone out to find family."

"The fact she was willing to resort to violence also suggests she has something more serious in mind," Lana added darkly.

Clark nodded unhappily, remembering 'Chloe's' fascination with Gretchen's killer earlier at the farm. "She's gone to find the man who killed her," he concluded.

"Exactly," Lex responded. "Which means Gretchen must have known who he was. There must be some clue in her background somewhere..." he turned back to the computer, minimising Gretchen's medical history and clicking open a window that had been loading in the background. A newspaper article appeared, with the heading 'Smallville Mourns Missing Teen'

"You know, I had no idea you were this good at hacking into computer files, Lex," Clark said, clearly impressed. He knew from working with Chloe that medical files were notoriously difficult to break into.

Lex shrugged, smirking a little. "I was a bored teenager, Clark," he offered by way of explanation. "Learning to hack into the school's mainframe was how I passed my time. That and indulging in various recreational substances."

Clark's lips quirked into a smile. "By that I'll assume you mean coffee," he said.

Lex's smirk turned into a real grin. "Experiments into maximising the sobering properties of caffeine certainly played an important role," he responded, glancing briefly at Clark. "Don't tell Lois, but that was actually one of the more challenging of my extracurricular activities. The concoction I made for her was the result of twelve previously failed attempts."

Clark gave a short laugh, while Lana turned her head between the two men, apparently rather put out. "What concoction?" she asked.

Clark shook his head. "Just something Lex made for Lois, while Chloe was at the Talon," he replied with a shrug.

"I still can't believe you told Lois Lane what was going on before me," she muttered.

Clark flinched, face creased in apology as he looked up to her.

"It's not like I wanted to tell her," he said, vaguely defensive. "She just, happened to be there."

Lana sighed, meeting Clark's gaze with a 'we need to talk about this later' expression, before turning back to the newspaper article Lex was still looking over. Suddenly her brow furrowed and she leaned closer to the screen.

"Wait. That man," she said, pointing to one of the figures holding a candle in the image of Gretchen's memorial service. "He looks familiar... bring up the medical files again."

Lex obliged, flicking through various hospital reports, details of prescriptions and lists of medical staff Gretchen had been seen by. What there was didn't paint a pretty picture. Gretchen hadn't had an easy life. Suffering from severe depression, she'd been subscribed varying amounts of Prozac over the course of three years, recovered from two failed suicide attempts and attended regular therapy sessions.

"There, see?" Lana pointed to one of the thumbnail images next to the list of medical staff. "It's the same guy."

Lex clicked the image, bringing up the man's employee profile. The file gave his name as Michael Westmore, orderly, followed by a home address. Clark blinked in surprise at the larger image of the man's face.

"Hey, I know that guy," he said in sudden recognition. "He was Chloe's orderly at the hospital this morning."

"He was also Gretchen's orderly during both of her stays in hospital..." Lex muttered, bringing up the guy's family history on a smaller window to the side. "And more than that," he added, eyes flicking across the screen. "His father did some of the early building work at the Talon." He turned to Clark and Lana, looking serious.

"It's him, isn't it?" Lana nodded. "He's the man who murdered Gretchen."

"Seems likely," Lex agreed.

"Which means Chloe's probably at that address right now," Clark said, nodding at Michael Westmore's file. He stepped back from the computer, body tensed to run, and then hesitated.

Lana turned to look at him, while Lex looked away. Both of them registering Clark's intent and both of them acutely aware of the need to conceal it. Clark looked between them both nervously, then opened his mouth to speak. Before he could, Lex rolled his eyes briefly behind Lana's back and stood up, reaching for the cell phone next to his laptop.

"I'll call security and get them to head over there right away," he said, moving around the desk. "Reception's better in the corridor," he added, making his way to the door, the complete confidence he was exuding concealing the feebleness of the excuse. "You two close up those files, I'll be back in a minute."

Clark and Lana both nodded, looking relieved, as Lex stepped quickly out of the room. Once it was certain he was gone, Lana turned to Clark and grabbed him by the shoulders.

"You can get there quicker, I know, and you should go," she said. "But what should I tell Lex?" Her face crumpled in obvious distress.

Clark grabbed her arms, holding her gaze in a way he hoped was calming. "You don't need to lie for me, okay? Just tell him I was impatient and I've gone to check the place out for myself."

"But what if he asks questions about it? You don't have a car here," Lana objected.

"Ah..." Clark frowned, thinking. Lex wouldn't question Lana's claim, of course, but she wasn't to know that. Clark hadn't expected his secrecy about Lex to become so complicated. Now is definitely not the time to come clean though, he reasoned, not while Chloe could be in real danger. Glancing over at Lex's desk, Clark noticed the keys to the Porsche and had an idea. Letting Lana go, he reached over and grabbed them. "Tell him I took the Porsche," he told Lana confidently, slipping the keys into his pocket. "And that I figured he wouldn't mind. You can make it out as a act of dumb heroism if you like, I don't care," he finished with a small smile.

Lana gave him a smile in return, although her eyes were still troubled. "Okay," she said, nodding. Clark stepped over and gave her a quick hug.

"Don't worry," he said into her shoulder. "It'll be alright..." Suddenly thinking of something, Clark pulled back, holding Lana by the shoulders and looking deep in her eyes. "Wait, tell Lex something else as well. Tell him I hoped he'd stay here with you and keep you safe until I got back."

"But Clark," Lana began. Clark shook his head.

"Lana, this man's dangerous, we don't even know how many women he's already killed. I don't want to risk you getting hurt," he said. You, or Lex, he thought. He hoped Lex would get the message and not try to follow him either.

Lana took a breath and nodded, her eyes still a little fearful, but also proud. "Be careful," she pleaded. Clark smiled, reassuring.

"I'll be fine," he said, stroking her left shoulder gently with his thumb. A second later, he was gone, leaving Lana to sigh unhappily in the empty room

Michael Westmore's house was an impressive semi-detached, its garden populated with an imposing number of yew trees. No doubt in the daylight they made an attractive display, but in the dark, with the rain and lightening of the storm ranging around him, Clark couldn't help finding the situation rather sinister. The elaborate, iron door-knocker, in the shape of a lion's head, didn't exactly detract from the sense of macabre either. Blinking the rain from his eyes, Clark quickly x-rayed the house, revealing three skeletons, these ones thankfully accompanied by beating hearts, in the basement. Two of them were in chairs, possibly tied down, although one of them was lying on the floor. The other figure was approaching the fallen one threateningly and Clark made out what looked like a knife in their hand.

The Kryptonian zipped in immediately, smashing the basement door in his haste, and took a second to register it was Lois lying, apparently unconscious, on the floor, Michael advancing upon her, while Chloe screamed in the background. Diving straight into action, Clark zapped the knife with his heat vision so Michael dropped it and ran over to pull the man away from the girls, wondering vaguely in the back of his mind what the hell Lois was doing there as well.

But before he could consider his next move Clark was suddenly flooded by a wave of nausea. Glancing towards Chloe, he noticed her right wrist was encased with a bracelet identical to the one on Gretchen's body at the Talon, complete with large kryptonite gem. His knees grew weak. Not good.

Seeing his hesitation, Michael recovered from the shock of the younger man's appearance enough to throw a punch squarely to his jaw. Propelled backwards by the force, Clark smashed into a beam next to Chloe, hitting his head painfully against the wood. The force of the hit and the pressure from the kryptonite made white spots explode before his eyes. As unconsciousness started to take hold of him, Clark pictured Lex in the corridor at 33.1, smiling. Not just as a friend, also a partner. Perhaps having him and Lana wait at the mansion hadn't been such a good idea...

When Clark opened his eyes again with a groan it was to see Lois carefully untying Chloe from her chair. Thank God, he thought immediately, Jor-El's price wasn't Chloe. As his head cleared, Clark soon realised the continuing ambiguity overshadowing that thought, and it was quickly followed up by a panicky, where's Michael? Clark sat up with a hurried jerk, which turned out to be not such a great idea, the kryptonite from Chloe's bracelet still close enough to make his head swim. Scrambling to his feet, Clark stepped slightly away from the girls and looked round the room. Michael's body was lying a few feet away, the knife he'd held earlier embedded deeply in his chest, his own hand around the handle.

Clark blinked, turning to the others in confusion. "What happened?" he asked.

Chloe, now untied, stepped out of the chair. Removing the bracelet, she placed it on the seat behind her and moved tentatively towards the body. Lois stood from her kneeling position and watched in silence. Clark noticed Chloe's cheeks were stained with tears.

"I guess Gretchen got what she came back for," Chloe whispered. Moving next to her cousin, Lois caught Clark's eye, concerned. Clark had explained the theory of ghostly possession to her over the phone, and Clark knew what she was thinking. Is this really Chloe again now?

Clark moved closer, curving his fingers softly round Chloe's hand. "What happened to Gretchen?" he asked, eyes searching his friend's face. "Is she gone?"

Chloe nodded, closing her eyes briefly. "Yep. I'm one hundred percent Chloe Sullivan again." She gave Clark a weak smile, but then her face crumpled, suddenly overcome by relief that the stress and fear of the day was finally over. Clark wrapped his arms around her, holding her tightly, as she cried into his shoulder.

Half and hour and a few phone calls later, Chloe was perched on a rather dull coloured sofa in Michael's living room, a cup of something hot and steaming in her hands. She was still a little tense, but looked a lot calmer. Lois and Lana were sitting on either side of her - Lois with a comforting hand on her cousin's shoulder - while Clark crouched on a small pouffe in front of them. Over to the right Lex was talking quietly with some men in uniform, the star shaped badge on one of them proclaiming him to be the town's new sheriff. Clark caught a few key words like 'insane' and 'suicidal' being muttered, but he wasn't really listening, being nothing less than completely confident in Lex's ability to convince the authorities of the cover story the five of them had agreed on.

What had actually happened, it turned out, was that Michael had stopped by the Talon looking for Chloe, interrupting Lois' amateur attempt at aura cleansing in the process. He'd cited medical concern, but the older woman had been predictably sceptical. An undisguised look of pride at the newly revealed skeleton in the bathroom had then been enough to cement the guy's guilt for Lois and convince her his actual intentions towards her cousin were less than honourable. The fact he'd been carrying a cloth and bottle of anaesthetic seemed to confirm this theory but as he'd used them to knock Lois out before she could call the authorities the knowledge proved little help in the end.

The older woman had woken in Michael's basement and faced a variety of less than sane taunts before Chloe/Gretchen had arrived a few minutes later, as the others had suspected she would. After a small tussle, Michael had trapped both women in the basement where Clark had found them and tried to force Lois to slit her own wrists. Instead, Lois had gamely thrown the knife at her captor in a bid for escape. Clark was glad to know his arrival had done some good after all, as without his intervention Lois would surely have been killed by Michael's ensuing flare of anger. In the end though, it was Gretchen who'd put an end to things, managing to somehow transfer herself from Chloe to Michael after Clark's black-out and performing the self-inflicted stab wounds Clark had seen on the man upon waking.

Needless to say, none of that was really police report material and the guys had decided to stick to the less implausible story of kidnapping and suicide.

"Chloe, I'm so sorry I doubted you," Lana said, her eyes shining contritely. "It must have been awful for you today."

"It's ok, Lana," Chloe assured her. "I don't blame you for having your doubts. I must have seemed pretty crazy." She smiled at her friend and, after a moment, Lana haltingly returned the gesture.

"You certainly weren't yourself, that's for sure," Lois stated, squeezing Chloe's shoulder. "Though honestly? That probably should have tipped us off. A supernatural mind swap isn't exactly something we haven't faced before."

The four of them gave each other a wry nod, remembering last year's senior prom, where all of them had had a turn being possessed by Dawn Styles.

"Well, hopefully we won't have to face it again," Clark said, leaning forward and resting his arms on his knees.

"God, I hope so," Chloe agreed with feeling. "I mean, one possession, that's kind of interesting. But having my body hijacked twice? That just makes me sound easy," she ended with a shrug.

"Twice? You're saying this has happened before?" The others turned to see Lex stepping over to them, the officials he'd been talking to now making their way to the front door. "It doesn't exactly come as a surprise, I suppose," he finished.

Chloe looked down uneasily, apparently uncomfortable with the older man's presence and the others fell silent. Lex nodded slightly, accepting the rebuttal with an air of resignation.

"Well, I spoke to the sheriff," he continued. "He's ruling this a case of kidnapping and suicide, plain and simple. They're arranging a coroner to remove the body later tonight. Considering he's new to the job, I doubt he's planning on delving into any further details. Things were strange enough without paranormal involvement, he seems eager to close the case as soon as possible."

Clark and Lana smiled gratefully at Lex, while Lois gave a sigh of relief. "Phew," she breathed. "That's certainly good to know. I'm thinking the full story wouldn't exactly go down so well." Chloe stared intently at the cup in her hands, as if the meaning of life might be inside it.

Lana glanced at her briefly, and then turned back to Lex. "Does the sheriff still need us here?" she asked.

Lex shook his head. "No, he's got everyone's statement now. We can go," he answered. Reaching into his coat pocket he pulled out some car keys. "Here, take my car. I'm planning on staying for a while; just to make sure everything's properly taken care of. I'll have one of my staff send a car for me later."

Lana took the offered keys with a small nod. "Ok, thanks," she said, while Chloe gave Lex a small sideways glance. "Let's go," Lana stated to the others. The three girls stood up and Lana led them towards the door.

"Smallville, you coming?" Lois asked over her shoulder, noticing Clark was still sitting down.

"I thought I'd wait here with Lex, make sure everything's alright," Clark called after them. Chloe and Lana both shot him concerned looks. "I'll see you tomorrow, don't worry," he assured with a smile. "From the looks of things, I figure a girl's night is on the cards tonight anyway, right? And I'm not so fond of ice cream."

Lois raised her eyebrows in what seemed like disbelief, while the others relaxed a bit, smiling.

"I do have some Ben and Jerry's back at my dorm," Lana admitted.

"Chocolate?" Lois queried.

"Is there any other flavour?" Lana asked in mock shock.

"Then, lead on MacLang," Chloe said with a grin, waving her cup towards the door. The three girls giggled a little and headed into the hall, Chloe taking a deep sip of her drink as they did so. "Wow!" she exclaimed immediately. "I've no idea what this is, but it's amazing,"

"Oh that?" Lana responded. "I don't know either. Lex made a flask of it before we left the mansion..." her voice faded as the three of them moved out of earshot.

Back in the living room, Lex was smirking and Clark glanced up at him with a grin. He was glad the girls were ok, of course, and he knew he needed to speak to Lana sooner or later, but after the stress of the evening, he'd realised it was Lex he wanted to end the night with the most. He was the only person involved in the whole process of discovering the truth about Chloe after all, which gave him the extra benefit of not being mad at Clark for being left out of the loop. If he wanted to talk about the night's events, Clark knew Lex was really the only one he could do it with.

There was a moment of comfortable silence, broken only by the rain pattering against the window. Then Lex sat down on the sofa in front of the other man.

"Going to give the keys to my Porsche back now?" he enquired, casually. Clark, looking a little sheepish, pulled them out of his pocket.

"Sorry," he said, handing them over. "Lana was a little freaked, she wanted an excuse for my disappearance."

Lex slipped the keys into his jacket pocket and leaned back against the sofa, eyes thoughtful as they looked over Clark. There were plenty of ways he could respond to that statement, but after a moment of consideration, Lex realised the triangle shaping up between him, Clark and Lana wasn't really something he wanted to think about now. It was late and, despite his cool appearance, he was tired.

"You're involved in these situations a lot, aren't you?" he asked instead, figuring since Clark had decided to stick around he must be open to the possibility of other conversation. Clark sighed, his grin fading.

"What situations?" he asked, his voice dull. "Ones involving the abnormal, or ones where my friends are in danger?"

"Either. Both," Lex responded, noting the slight bitterness Clark attached to the word 'abnormal' with interest. "Do you always dive in without any backup?" he continued, curious.

Clark shrugged. "I figure it's safer that way," he replied seriously. Lex raised his eyebrows, lips curving into another small smirk.

"I heard you were knocked unconscious less than a minute after you arrived," he said. "Doesn't exactly sound very safe."

Clark looked down, somewhat ashamed. "I meant safer for other people, not for me," he said quietly. "Things didn't exactly go as planned tonight."

Lex leaned forward, placing his arms on his knees to match Clark. "You had a plan?" he asked, rhetorical.

Clark raised his eyes to meet Lex's, brow furrowing. "Hey look, if the kryptonite hadn't been there I'd have been fine," he said, turning defensive. He might have had some problems today, but Lex didn't need to mock him. "Besides, it's not like I'm the only one here with a tendency to work alone. At least I usually keep my rescues to individuals, you're the one trying to save the whole world on a daily basis."

"I'm not exactly taking on the entire globe all at once, Clark," Lex responded. "Plus, I work with a team. You're just one man. No one should bear the burden of another's life on their own, no matter how powerful they are."

Clark looked at Lex intently for a moment, seeming oddly torn, then he blinked and looked away. "You work with a team, right," he muttered, a hint of sarcasm in his tone. "Because it's not like you couldn't just click your fingers and everyone at 33.1 would fall in line with you at all."

Lex sat up straighter, face turning blank. "And in the end, a dictator's nothing but a dictator, right, Clark?" he asked, expressionless, recalling Phoenix's words from earlier.

Clark turned to him quickly, full of immediate apology.

"Lex, no, I didn't mean that," he said hurriedly, making the other man's expression soften a little. "I just..." he buried his face in his hands for second, sighing. "You're right," he admitted, dejectedly, lowering his hands again. "I didn't have a plan. And it feels like everything I've tried to do today has gone wrong somehow."

Lex relaxed again, expression turning sympathetic. "That's not exactly a result of poor planning, Clark," he said, rather more kindly. "You can think everything through to the last detail, and things can still go wrong."

"Yeah," Clark sighed, raising his eyes. "But when I get things wrong, people could get hurt. Or worse. Anything could have happened to Lois and Chloe down there, and I was powerless to stop it."

Seeing the pain in Clark's eyes, Lex realised this wasn't just emotional overflow from a bad day, this was a fear the other man lived with every day. A fear Lex understood only too well - the persistent fear of failure. Clark lived with the world on his shoulders, and he felt the weight of it with every step. There was something else in Clark's expression too, though, something Lex almost missed because it seemed so implausible in Clark. Loneliness. It made Lex wonder; perhaps Clark didn't just work alone because he chose to. He was the last of his kind, Clark had said, and even if that wasn't true, he was certainly the only Kryptonian on Earth. Who could ever truly know him really?

"So, next time," Lex said quietly. "Don't leave me behind." Clark looked touched, but opened his mouth to protest. "I might not be indestructible," Lex continued before Clark could say anything. "But I think I can move a rock a few feet without too much trouble. Besides, you underestimate your friends. From what I gather, Lois and Chloe handled themselves just fine on their own. They're stronger than you give them credit for, so is Lana. Though, they might lose that if you make a habit of turning up at the last minute all the time."

Clark frowned. "What are you saying? That I should leave them in danger so they learn to be stronger?" he asked, disapproving.

Lex shook his head. "No, of course not," he said seriously. "Although, it's something my father would certainly approve of," he acknowledged with a tilt of his head. "What I mean is," he leant forward. "You can't keep acting like you'll always be there when the others need you, they'll start to rely on it. Which means, next time something like today happens, and you're not there-"

"It might be too late for them to find another way to save themselves," Clark finished, sounding a little surprised. He glanced away. "I never thought of that."

Lex shrugged, smiling a little sadly, a little affectionately. "Why would you? You see someone in trouble and you help them. It's the way you are," he said. "If you were anyone else, it wouldn't matter. Nobody expects someone to be perfect all the time," Lex paused, lips curving into a half smirk. "We're only human..." Clark looked back quickly. "But you, Clark," Lex continued. "You're different. You're just close enough to make people think, "maybe." And god knows everyone wants to believe in a hero at least once in their life."

"I never asked to be anyone's hero," Clark responded, looking desolate and suddenly very young - like the kid Lex had found in the cornfield all those years ago. He wished he could find the cross Clark was tied to now and free him from it as easily as he had back then. "I never wanted to be different, to have this responsibility. I'd give anything to be normal."

Lex gave Clark a sad smile, recognising the same mantra he'd lived through most of his childhood with. "You'd be ripped off, Clark," he said, leaning back. "Because there's no such thing as normal. Trust me. I spent a long time trying to find it."

Clark gazed at Lex as though seeing him for the first time, registering something in the other man's tone and expression that Clark couldn't recall truly finding since Alicia. Understanding. Lex might not have any special powers, as such, but in many ways he was just as much an alien in this world as Clark. He knew what it was like to be different, to be looked up to, to be alone.

"I should have told you the truth earlier. From the beginning," Clark said softly, almost as if he wasn't aware of speaking out loud.

Lex rested his head against the back of the sofa, eyes focusing intensely on Clark's. "It would have been helpful," he agreed, voice just as quiet, not really registering what he was saying as he tried to get to grips with this latest confession.

"I'm sorry," Clark continued in the same tone, holding Lex's gaze.

It was an apology Lex had imagined so often that for a moment he thought he must be dreaming. Gretchen/Chloe had obviously zapped him harder than he'd realised and he was lying unconscious at Metropolis University. Any second now Clark would explain that he trusted Lex completely and didn't really love Lana at all. Then Lex's natural biology kicked in and he let out the breath he didn't realise he'd been holding. Clark was still looking at him rather sadly, though he didn't seem to particularly expect a response. Lex gave a small smile and nodded, it was the most he could manage for the moment.

"Can we make a deal?" Clark asked suddenly.

"In what sense?" Lex asked, perplexed.

Clark took a breath. "In the sense that, I won't give up on you, if you don't give up on me," he said.

The request seemed to come from nowhere, before Lex recalled a night at the barn - god, how long was it since he'd been there now? - after one of his many one-night stands had taken offence and tried to kill him. He'd been saved by a miracle that night. Clark, of course, he realised now. Knowledge of Lex's Metropolis nightlife had unnerved the farmboy - the result of a small town upbringing. Before, Lex would have argued his case, but by then Clark was already slipping away from him - Lionel's revelation about Lex's secret room had seen to that.

It was a time Lex still hoped to win the other man back any way he could, so he'd been penitent that night. :: don't give up on me yet :: he'd begged, casting Clark as divine absolver in an act not entirely untrue - because Lex had been as guilty of idolising Clark as anyone, perhaps more, because that was without knowing his secret. And now, here was Clark repeating his words, the fact that he remembered them giving Lex satisfaction in itself, but not just repeating them, including himself in need of absolution. And maybe that's what they'd got wrong all this time. Lex had seen Clark as his confessor and Clark, ever obliging, had tried his best to play the part, only to disappoint both of them by being just as flawed. If, instead, they could stand together on a level field, who knew how far they might get? It was certainly appealing - Lex didn't think he'd ever known someone on the same level as him before.

Lex smiled, warmly. "Deal."

Clark let out a breath of relief, smiling back.

Clark was working on the tractor again the next morning when Lana came to see him. He couldn't help thinking it really was time to get a new one now - the old thing was completely falling apart. He noticed Lana had her hands behind her back, nervous. She was wearing a particularly smart chocolate jacket, her hair tied back neatly in a bun - meaning she had classes to get to soon so this would only be a brief visit.

"Hey," she said.

"Hey," Clark replied with a nod, discarding the rag he'd been using to wipe the tractor's bonnet. The two of them lapsed into silence, standing a few feet apart, each of them waiting for the other to begin. Clark, oddly bold that morning, took the initiative.

"How's Chloe doing?" he asked. It seemed safe ground.

"Ok," Lana nodded. "Well, as much as you can be after being possessed and almost chopped up by a psychotic orderly. She's still a little freaked, but she's Chloe. She's coping."

Clark smiled slightly. Lex was right about Chloe, of course, she was one of the strongest people Clark knew. She'd be fine.

There was another pause, where Lana seemed oddly reluctant to bring up the issue of their lack of communication yesterday. Clark suspected Lana's knowing his secret and the way he'd headed into danger to try and save Chloe was granting him some kind of immunity from criticism. It was ironic if so - telling Lana the truth was supposed to make communication between them easier.

"Why didn't you tell me you asked Lex to move Chloe to Belle Reve?" Clark asked, to fill the silence mostly and also because he figured it would be best to get to the main issues quickly. He winced at the unintended accusatory tone of the question.

"I tried, remember?" Lana replied, a little defensive. "Your phone was switched off."

"You could have tried my parents, or the college," Clark responded. "I'm sure you could have tracked me down if you tried hard enough, considering it was such an important issue."

Lana looked away, her eyes clouded as she conceded the point. "Why didn't you tell me you broke Chloe out of the Psyche ward?" she asked, instead of offering a defence of her own.

Clark was silent. There was no excuse really, considering 'I didn't think about it' didn't exactly cut it. He met her eyes in what he hoped was an apologetic look. Lana sighed, taking a couple of steps closer.

"We should have come together, Clark," she said, sounding disappointed. "That's what couples do when these things happen, they turn to each other."

Clark nodded unhappily - he'd been thinking the same thing all morning. "Then why didn't we?" he asked, a rhetorical question.

The silence was noticeably awkward now and Clark was reminded of all the times before their engagement, when Lana had stood in the barn, much as she was now, sad and frustrated at Clark's continual failure to trust her with his secret. He'd thought once she knew the truth those times would be gone forever, apparently it wasn't so easy.

"I love you," Lana said finally, with a soft smile that didn't quite clear her eyes. "I love you with all of my heart. And now I know how much you have to worry about, everyday, just being who you are. I... I just didn't want to put another burden on you before it was necessary."

"Lana," Clark shook his head. "It wasn't a burden. Chloe's a friend, I should know if something's happening to her." Lana looked down, clasping her hands in front of her, reminding Clark of the way she'd been holding the folder last night. In the commotion, he'd forgotten to ask Lex about that. He looked at Lana curiously now. "What about the investigation of the black ship?" he asked softly. "Is that another burden you were planning to keep from me?"

Lana gazed up at him, still looking sad but now also a little more confident. "Clark, that ship's connected to you," she said. "And Lex is still looking for it. It might be gone now, but you don't know Lex's dedication to the project. There's a good chance he will find something, and that it'll lead back to you. I'm just trying to stay close so I can warn you if that happens."

Clark looked at Lana's determined expression in surprise. He'd spent years protecting her in secret, longing to be with her properly, and now he finally was, and they finally had everything out in the open, they'd somehow managed to get right back to how they'd started, albeit roles reversed.

"Lana, you... you don't have to try and protect me like that," he said, moving closer. They were in touching distance now, but neither of them attempted to do so. "That's not a burden you should bear."

"I know," Lana acknowledged, looking at him intently. "But I want to, Clark. You're part of my life, I need to make sure you're ok. And if that means spying on Lex, I'm prepared to do it."

The intensity of Lana's claim shocked Clark. It was touching, really, he supposed, her dedication to him, and her determination certainly proved her strength beyond a doubt. Clark had an idea he should be proud, but instead he felt a little dismayed, and not just because he knew her fears about Lex to be unfounded.

He didn't want Lana taking responsibility for him like this; they should be coming together for each other, like she'd said. And to do that, he should tell her about Lex. Now really was the perfect time. But when Clark opened his mouth to do just that, nothing came out. I don't want to tell her, he realised suddenly, I don't want to tell anyone. He was officially out of excuses now, which meant what he was feeling was nothing but irrational emotion. A selfish and inexplicable desire to keep his growing relationship with Lex to himself. Clark couldn't explain it anymore than he could resist it.

"Well, from now on just tell me what you're up to, ok?" he ended up saying, reaching out to grasp Lana's shoulders gently, because it seemed the thing to do. Lana smiled at him, nodding.

"You too?" she questioned. He nodded, matching her smile as best he could. Apparently satisfied, she stepped into his arms happily, resting her head against his chest. Wrapping his arms about her shoulders, his chin against her head, Clark stared into the distance, unseeing.

At the Daily Planet, Chloe was reading the latest edition of the paper while walking to her desk. In the bottom right corner was a picture of Michael Westmore, headed with the words "Smallville serial killer commits suicide. By Ted Bittleman." Huh, she thought, I can't even get a by-line when I'm a part of the story. With a small shrug she deposited the paper on her desk and looked up to see Lex leaning against it, his back to her computer. There was no black coat today, the storm having finally dispersed leaving pleasant sunshine in its wake, so instead Lex wore a thin lilac shirt, open at the collar. Chloe frowned.

"What are you doing here?" she asked uneasily, sitting down.

"Just dropped by to see how you were," Lex said, shrugging casually. "It was quite an ordeal you went through yesterday,"

Chloe gave him a disbelieving look. Luthors don't just drop in on people to check on their health. "Yeah, well I'm fine now, thanks," she muttered, turning on her computer in an effort to look busy and end the discussion. Lex wasn't deterred.

"Are you sure?" he asked, expression serious, eyes soft. Chloe sighed.

"Look, if you're here to offer me counselling sessions, or something, I really don't need it, okay?" she said with a twinge of irritation. "I thought we proved yesterday that my mind is working just fine?"

Lex nodded, shifting his position so he was facing Chloe across the desk.

"It's not your mental health I'm questioning," he said evenly. "I noticed when the doctors asked if there was any history of mental illness in your family, you told them no."

Chloe eyed him wearily. "And?"

"Why didn't you tell them about your mother?" he asked, meeting her gaze.

"What do you know about my mother?" Chloe responded quickly, her tone low.

"I know she was committed when you were twelve," Lex replied. "And that she's been moved between various mental institutions ever since, prescribed a range of different treatments, none of them completely successful. I also know you haven't been to see her once."

Chloe looked at him dumbfounded for a second, eyes burning.

"How dare you look up my family's medical files!" she hissed. "What business is it of yours?"

"Actually," Lex responded, without so much as a flicker of shame. "Yesterday, it was completely my business. Lana asked me to help you, I needed to know all the details if I was to do that."

"No," Chloe insisted. "My doctors needed to know all the details, so they could maintain a legal patient-doctor confidentiality. You didn't need to know anything,"

Lex inclined his head, a small gesture of contriteness.

"True," he admitted. "I might have been a little overenthusiastic in my enquiries. But you can't deny you were withholding important information."

"With good reason," Chloe responded, face flushing with anger. "If the doctors had known about it they'd have had me in a straitjacket in Belle Reve as soon as possible, just like you tried to do."

"That's not true," Lex said gently, remarkably collected in the face of Chloe's blatant hostility. "Your mother's condition had nothing to do with the decision to move you to Belle Reve. That was simply because it's an institution better equipped for psychiatric care, something your own actions were enough to suggest you were in need of."

"You expect me to believe that?" Chloe muttered, a little quieter.

"It's the truth," Lex stated with a shrug. "And I don't think it was fear of Belle Reve that stopped you mentioning your mother anyway. Do you even know what's wrong with her?" he asked, eyes softening.

Chloe looked away.

"Not exactly," she said uncomfortably. "She left me and my father apparently without a second thought, her life since then hasn't really concerned me all that much."

Lex raised his eyebrows lightly, recognising the lying edge to her tone.

"Her condition's unusual," he explained. "None of her doctors have been able to pin it down. What they have determined, though, is that it's in no way hereditary. If you ever do experience any mental problems, Chloe, it has nothing to do with your mom."

Chloe was silent, frowning to herself as she absorbed this new information. Lex waited patiently for her to respond.

"Why are you telling me this?" Chloe asked eventually, a hint of curiosity crossing her face as she looked up at Lex, still tense but no longer angry.

"Because I know what it's like having a parent who's sick," he answered, a painful honesty tightening his voice. "My mother spent some time in a Psychiatric ward as well. A result of her cancer perhaps, it's hard to say," he gave a light shrug. "It was hard, seeing her like that. Seeing someone so close to you so completely lost. It's frightening, and it's easier not to think about it. But in the end, just being with her, even like that, was better than never seeing her at all."

Chloe looked down as a way to escape Lex's gaze. Pity from the younger Luthor she could write off as patronising, but this wasn't pity, it wasn't even sympathy, it was empathy. And Chloe didn't know how she felt about that.

"I'm sorry about your mom," she said softly. "I understand what you're saying and thanks for trying to help, but things are different for me."

Lex looked at her carefully for a second, then stepped away from the desk.

"Of course," he said. Chloe turned back to her computer, blinking a little and hoping the conversation was over. "But Chloe," Lex started with an air of finality. "If you keep putting off seeing her, one day you'll find you've lost the chance forever. You shouldn't live the rest of your life regretting that. This is where she's staying right now, if you're interested." He took a slip of paper with an address pencilled on it from his shirt pocket and placed it next to Chloe's keyboard. She glanced at it, but didn't say anything.

Lex nodded once then turned away, heading towards the exit. As he reached it he paused to look over his shoulder. Behind him, Chloe had her hand on the piece of paper. After a moment she picked it up, stretched her arm briefly towards the bin to her left and then changed her mind, slipping the paper in the pocket of her jacket instead. Lex smiled and stepped through the door.

——end credits——