Title: Hidden Things
Author: me_ya_ri
Email: me_ya_ri@yahoo.com
Rating: R
Challenge: CLFF Wave 32: Prompt # 32 – Do what you have to do
Notes: A Clexian rewrite of Beauty and the Beast. Many thanks to Val
for her excellent beta work!
Summary: Sometimes finding freedom takes time, effort and sacrifice,
plus a little trust.

+++++

"Father, no!"

"Now, be strong, Son. You know this is necessary. The world's become a
dangerous place and you're too fragile to survive out there. I have to
keep you safe and this is the best way to do it."

"But…"

"No tears. You're a Luthor, Alexander. A Luthor does not show
weakness. I've made this place just for you, so that you'll be safe. I
love you so much. I have to keep you safe. Be strong. I'll be back
when I can."

"…"

"All right, he's gone. Bring me something to eat and one of the new
books he brought me."

"…"

"No, I don't need a hanky! What do I care that he's abandoned me with
nothing but ghosts for company? I'm fine."

+++++

"Clark!"

Clark blinked up at Mommy as she stared with obvious horror. He frowned
and put down the rock he'd been lifting, coming over to her side with
the snake that he'd found. She carefully took the snake from him. She
let it go and then hugged him so tight he squawked.

"Baby, you must never, ever do that again," Mommy said, kissing his
forehead and petting his hair.

"No snakes?" Clark asked, pouting as he watched it disappear into the
grass.

"No, not the snake, Clark," Mommy said, turning his head so he had to
look into her eyes. She was very serious and not at all happy with him.
"You must never let anyone see you lift things that way. It's okay at
the farm when we're around but never, ever do it any other time, okay?"

"I was bad?" Clark gulped, tears welling up in his eyes. "I'm sowwy,
Mommy! I won't be bad again, I pwomise!"

"Shh, I know you won't, Clark," Mommy said, hugging him and petting his
hair again. "I trust you. You're my very good boy and you'd never be
bad on purpose. It's okay now. Why don't we have some pie? I made
apple pie for our picnic. Would you like apple pie, Clark?"

Clark nodded, letting her dry his tears. He didn't want to be bad. Bad
boys got sent away. Bad boys didn't have Mommies to love them or
Daddies to teach them things. Bad boys got shut away and didn't get to
do things like see flowers or snakes or the wonderful bright sun. He'd
be a very good boy for his new Mommy and Daddy. He'd never ever do
anything to make them angry or scared so that they'd never want to send
him away. He pushed the fading memories of his first Mommy and Daddy
away as his new Mommy gave him pie and cuddled him in her lap while his
new Daddy grinned at them, lying on his side on the blanket with his
slice of pie. Pie was good. Pie was home. Pie meant that everyone was
happy and Clark was being a good boy. Clark liked pie. There hadn't
been pie before he was sent away but now there was and he loved it. He
would do whatever he had to do to be able to stay here where he was
loved and cuddled and happy and safe.

+++++

"There has to be a way out."

"Lex, how many times have I told you to stay in the mansion? You know
it's not safe outside."

"This is insane! You can't make me stay in here!"

"I'm protecting you, Lex. The meteor shower changed everything. There
are monsters outside the walls. You're my only son and I can't lose
you. You have to stay inside the mansion where it's safe."

"Don't touch me! There's no such thing as monsters! You're just
ashamed of me for going bald, for being weak!"

"Alexander! Put that knife away!"

"I'm not weak, Dad! I'm not! You're not keeping me here any longer!"

"Alexander, don't make me hurt you. You know how much I hate having to
hurt you."

"…"

"No! Give it back!"

"Thank you. Now, we're going back inside and we're going to have a long
discussion about your behavior, young man. I'm doing this for your own
good. A little appreciation would be nice."

"Fuck you!"

"That wasn't nice, Lex. It pains me when you're being this difficult.
I'm afraid we're going to have to take this downstairs into the
basement."

"No! I'll be good, Father. I promise. I'll be good. I'll stay inside.
I'll study. I won't cause any trouble!"

"It's too late for that, Alexander. You should have thought of the
consequences before you misbehaved."

+++++

"Clark! Come in here, please!"

Clark looked up from the truck he'd been pushing around in the grass.
That didn't sound like a good voice, one where Dad was happy with him.
He didn't see anyone around who might have spotted him playing. He
hadn't been using his powers. He hadn't broken anything in weeks. He'd
been good at school and done all his homework. He didn't know why Dad
sounded upset but it didn't really matter. He had to be good so he
headed inside, looking up at his parents. They were worried. He could
see it in the creases between their eyebrows and the way Mom bit her
lip. Dad was rubbing the back of his neck, looking upset about
something.

"What's wrong?" Clark asked, staring at the note in their hands. It
must be the note that the teacher had sent home with him. She'd seemed
happy when she gave it to him so he'd been proud to give it to his
parents.

"Sweetie, we need to have a talk," Mom said, the look in her eyes making
Clark's stomach flip. "It's good that you understand the math,
but…you really shouldn't show off in front of the class. It makes
the other students feel bad. You don't want them to feel bad do you?"

"No," Clark said, confused. "But you said to do my best when I went to
school. Did I do something wrong?"

Dad sighed, pulling Clark over to the table to sit down. Mom sat with
them, still fretting with the note from Clark's teacher. He'd only just
been allowed to go to school, years after Lana and Pete had gone. He
hoped they didn't want to take him out of school again. He liked
school. There were new people and new things to learn. There were fun
games to play though he had to be careful not to do too well at them.
He had to be careful not to hurt anyone. He had to be careful a lot but
that was okay because he had his parents and they loved him and that was
enough.

"Clark, kids your age usually can't do calculus," Dad explained slowly.
"I know it's easy for you. You're special that way, but the other kids
can't. The teacher thought you were really amazing and she was very
impressed. She thinks you need to go to a special school in Metropolis
where you can learn math with other special kids."

"I don't want to leave you!" Clark gasped, horrified. "I'm sorry! I'm
sorry! I won't do it again, I promise!"

"Shh, it's okay, Clark," Mom said, petting his hair. "I know you don't
want to leave us. This is your home and you belong here. We'll have a
talk with the teacher and tell her we don't want you to go. She might
push it but we're your parents and we get the final say."

Mom and Dad exchanged worried looks that said that they weren't as sure
as they were trying to seem. Clark gulped, staring at them with his
heart beating hard in his chest. He'd been bad. He'd been bad and even
though they loved him, he might get sent away. He didn't want to be
sent away. He wanted to stay here with Mom and Dad on the farm. This
was where he belonged, where he was safe.

"I can say I lied," Clark offered, hating to do it. He was always
supposed to tell the truth. Mom and Dad had said so. "I could say that
I cheated, that I wanted to impress her so I memorized some stuff from
one of your old school books, Mom. I just started school. She might
believe it."

"That might work," Dad said, considering it.

"Well…" Mom hesitated, looking torn.

"Please, Mom," Clark begged, terrified that they'd have to send him
away. "Please! I'm sure I can convince her. I saw the sorts of
mistakes the other kids made. I know I can pretend to be slower at
math, at all sorts of school. It'll be okay. I promise I'll do better.
I won't let anyone know I'm different, I swear I won't!"

"All right Clark," Mom said, petting his cheek and wrapping her arm
around his shoulders. "Do what you have to do. We'll support you no
matter what, I promise."

+++++

"Well, thank goodness he's alive. I wish I know how he'd gotten that
knife. After the last incident I…oh, he broke a vase. All right.
Have everything fragile removed. Anything that can be made into a sharp
edge is to be removed from the mansion until he's past this suicidal
phase."

"I survived…"

"Yes Lex, you did. I must say that I'm disappointed in you. A Luthor
never gives up. Suicide is giving up."

"No it's not. It's another way to escape from this place, to escape
from you. I'll find a way eventually. I have nothing but time to think
after all."

"You're going to have less time in the future, Lex. I'm going to change
things for you. You're going to learn. You need discipline. There's a
new caretaker for you now, one who will teach you how to be a man.
You'll be stronger and faster and much smarter."

"And how is this teacher supposed to teach me? They're all mute ghosts,
Dad. A ghost can't—ow! Who hit me?"

"That is your new caretaker, Lex. This one is different. This one can
touch you. This one can hurt you. You will learn. I will not accept
anything else from you."

+++++

"You're really different, aren't you?"

Clark started and looked at Lana. She was studying him with a little
smile that wasn't very nice. It wasn't mean, not exactly, but it was
judgmental and a little scary. He glanced around the hallway, grateful
that no one was there to see them talking. Junior high was hard enough
without getting hassled for talking to the most popular girl in school.

"I'm not that different," Clark said, getting his books out of the
locker. He didn't have to reach to get them off of the top shelf,
unlike most of his friends. "Tall and clumsy maybe, but not that
different."

"You're always working on your parent's farm," Lana said, studying him
with that little smile intact. "You never play hooky from your
responsibilities. You never talk about yourself. You're always alone,
other than Pete. You're different."

"It's going to be my farm someday," Clark said, his heart beating fast
that she'd picked up on all the ways that he hid his differences. "I
want to learn how to be a good farmer, just like my dad. Anyway, why
would I play hooky? It's not like it's something I want to do.
Besides, I'm boring. No one wants to hear about me. Everyone else has
interesting things happen to them. I don't."

Lana made a little humph noise, the smile getting just a little wider.
She turned on her heels and walked away. As she neared the corner, a
bunch of other girls came out, giggling and smiling to see her. Clark's
heart did a weird little lurch. He'd always liked Lana, even when she
made him nervous, and always wanted to be around her. She was his
next-door neighbor. For the first time, he realized that maybe she
liked him as more than a friend. Everyone liked Lana of course, but she
had sought him out and talked to him on her own. He wasn't sure what to
make of it so he closed his locker and headed for the door. He was on
his way through the door when he overheard one of them talking to Lana.

"You're so nice being friends with Clark," one of the girls said. "He's
sweet but so dumb. I would have dumped him ages ago."

"Clark's all right," Lana said breezily. "You just have to remember
that he's 'special'. I think the Kents were really kind to take in a
boy who's that slow, don't you? There's one thing you can say about
Clark: you always know where you stand with him. He isn't bright enough
to lie."

They all laughed at that, the tone of their laughter harsh and cutting.
Clark hurried out the door, his cheeks burning. What he wouldn't give
to be normal! He would give almost anything for his powers to go away
so that he could show Lana that he wasn't slow, so that he could show
her that he wasn't 'different'. More than anything, he wished that he
could show her that he wasn't what she thought he was. He was a good
guy. He was. No matter how hard it was to hide, he was good. The fear
of being taken away from the only home he'd ever known didn't quite
cover the anger at having to hide and endure people thinking of him that
way.

+++++

"I'm pleased to see that you're doing better, Lex."

"The monster that got through the walls last week was fairly
enlightening, Father. I must say that it was quite impressive."

"I'm sure that it was. It was quite difficult to subdue. I see you're
working on your lessons."

"Of course. There's so much to learn. I'm not quite sure on this
problem though. Do you have the time to explain it to me, Father?"

"Certainly. Hmm, I'm surprised that you don't—!"

"This time I'll get free, Father. They won't stop me when your life is
on the line. What? Cat got your tongue or is it too hard to talk when
I'm strangling you?"

"…"

"Don't even try it! Do you think I haven't learned to tell when you're
around? Back off or I'll kill him! That's better."

"…"

"…"

"Thank you. Lex, Lex, Lex. You should know by now that you'll never
succeed in leaving. I keep telling you that this is for your own good.
The monsters keep getting stronger outside the walls. You couldn't
survive as a child and you can't survive out there now. It takes
someone like me, with all of my resources, to survive out there. Now,
down to the basement with you. I see we need another lesson."

"Fuck you. I'll win eventually."

"There's nothing for you to win, Lex. The only thing you'll find if you
go outside the walls is devastation and loneliness. I wish I could make
you understand."

+++++

Clark sighed, watching Lana walk by on Whitney's arm. She was wearing
her meteor rock necklace today so he couldn't get too close to her.
She'd been wearing it more and more since she started dating Whitney.
Despite what it did to him, he thought it was beautiful around her neck.
She was perfect, so tiny and beautiful. She was everything that Clark
had ever wanted, or ever allowed himself to want anyway. He was a freak
so he didn't get to have most things. The one thing he really
wanted—normalcy—was the one thing he'd never get. Just like
Lana. She had only gotten prettier over the years. She was so much
nicer than she used to be, though she was just as popular. He sighed
again, staying with Pete and Chloe.

"Dude, will you please give it up?" Pete groaned; yanking Clark back
from his silent fascination with Lana. "She's a bitch, pardon my
French. I don't know what you see in her."

"No kidding," Chloe said, elbowing Clark. "There are so many girls that
are better than her. Now come on, we're going to be late for class if
you keep moping like this."

"Sorry," Clark apologized, throwing a look over his shoulder.

Lana happened to be looking in their direction and she dimpled to find
him looking at her. Whitney was looking too, and his face went black as
he noticed Lana's reaction. He grabbed her arm and hustled her into the
school. Chloe sighed and hauled Clark into school through a different
door, rolling her eyes at him.

"Let it go, Clark," Chloe said as they reached their first class and
Pete headed off to his first class. "She's not for you. Whatever
fantasy you've built around her, I'm telling you, Lana isn't what you
think she is. You deserve someone a lot better than her."

"There is no one better than her, Chloe," Clark muttered, blushing at
the sarcastic look she gave him. It wasn't quite true and he knew it,
but she represented so much for him. Maybe someday he'd find a way to
let her know how much she meant to him.

+++++

"I wonder if you'd bleed visibly if ever managed to cut you."

The floating foil twirled in the air, laughing without sound at the very
idea.

"Just a thought. It's not as though I have anything else to occupy my
mind. The books that have been supplied lately are absolutely
worthless. I've read all of that before. I want something new,
something in the sciences, chemistry or biology. Even math would be
welcome."

The foil snapped and lunged, nearly cutting him.

"Damn! Almost got me on that one. Keep trying, ghost. Keep my mind
occupied, or at least my body. Pity you don't have more substance to
offer. I'd love some real physical companionship."

+++++

The problem with being a freak, Clark decided after spending a very
strange evening talking to Lana in the graveyard, was that no one other
than a freak was going to accept you. Lana was beautiful, perfect, and
sweet in a rather demanding way, but she was so ordinary that she looked
at him funny every time he said or did anything even slightly odd. He
knew that Chloe and Pete were right about her, but it didn't change his
obsession with her. She was an ordinary girl. He wanted her because
she was ordinary. She was normal. She was the perfect average girl.
Her personality almost didn't matter, because it wasn't really her that
he wanted. It was what she represented.

Clark winced and glared at his notebook as he realized what he'd just
figured out about Lana. That couldn't be right. It was wrong to want
someone just because everyone else wanted her. He sighed, doodling in
his notebook instead of listening to the teacher drone on about math
he'd understood when he was nine years old. He got called on, made the
necessary mistakes to make it look like he didn't understand and the
teacher moved on to another student who got it right.

Just another day pretending to be something he wasn't. Just another day
wishing for something that he could never have. Just another day of
being the freak hidden in the crowd. Class ended. They all filed out
into the hallway. This was his life. This was the life he'd always
have. It wasn't a bad life, but for once Clark wondered if he wasn't
setting his sights too low. He wanted Lana because everyone else wanted
her. He wanted the farm because it was safe and known. He never showed
his powers or intelligence because he didn't want to be taken away from
his parents.

For the first time, Clark wondered if being taken away would really be
so bad. At least he wouldn't feel like he was smothering under all the
restrictions all the time. Having just one person who knew him for what
he was and accepted him would be…he couldn't imagine how good it
would be. Clark shook his head, getting his books from his locker so he
could go home, back to his ordinary life, his ordinary chores and his
ordinary lies. He headed out the front door of the school, not
surprised that during his moping most of the other students had left. A
hand grabbed his shoulder from behind and Clark turned, assuming it was
Chloe. She'd been after him about Lana and his reporting duties
earlier. The sick clench of his stomach at the thought of another
'discussion' with her made him snap, "Chloe, just leave me alone!" Clark
ended up surprised when he saw Whitney smiling a not-nice smile at him
instead of Chloe.

"Congratulations, Clark," Whitney said, his voice full of false humor
that hinted of bad things for Clark in the very near future. "You're
this year's scarecrow."

"Don't mess with me right now," Clark growled, knocking Whitney's grip
off of his shoulder. It was bad enough that Whitney had Lana, now he
was going to rub Clark's nose in it.

Whitney huffed, throwing out his chin and pulling off his jacket. As he
did, Clark realized that his sick stomach was the familiar effect of
meteor rock. It got worse as Whitney grabbed Clark, hauling him close
to glare into his face.

"What's going on with you and Lana?" Whitney demanded. "I saw you at
the graveyard last night, Clark. You're trying to steal her from me,
aren't you?"

"That's…" Clark tried to say he was crazy, but the pain of the
meteor rock stopped him. He stared at the necklace around Whitney's
neck in horror, struggling to get free and failing. It hurt too much.

"Huh?" Whitney asked, realizing where Clark was looking. "Like her
necklace? Good, 'cause this is as close as you're ever going to get to
my Lana!"

He shoved Clark into his buddy's hands and then ripped the necklace off
of his neck. He wrapped it around Clark's neck, sending waves of agony
through his body when the meteor rock contacted his skin. Clark barely
felt Whitney and his buddies start beating on him. The pain of the
meteor rock was greater than anything they could do. He was barely
conscious when they threw him in the back of a pickup truck. He had no
clue where they drove him. It felt like they drove forever. They'd
tied his hands behind his back and Clark wasn't strong enough to get
free with the meteor rock hurting him.

"Come on, this is a good spot. The thorns should tear him up good when
we toss him in."

"Yeah, I like this. Suits him right for trying to steal your girl,
Whit. Who does he think he is? The class retard shouldn't go talking
to a girl like Lana."

They tied his arms to a beam of some sort, stretching him out. A knife
cut his clothes away, leaving him nothing but the necklace and his
boxers. Whitney's face appeared in front of him, wearing a strange
expression that was half satisfaction and half fear.

"Hope you like the ghosts, Clark," Whitney said as his friends grabbed
Clark. "It took a lot of work to find just the right place to put this
year's scarecrow. No corn fields for you. No, you get the old haunted
mansion and the rose bushes around it instead."

Clark tried to say something, to beg them to stop, to take the necklace
off but his words came out as an unintelligible croak. They laughed,
the laughter as nasty as any laughter Clark had heard directed at him
over the years. If only he could get the necklace off he'd tell them
that he only wanted the image of Lana, not her body. He tried, but he
couldn't get free and he couldn't speak and then they were grunting as
they picked him up and flung him over a wall and down into a mass of
thorns that tore at his skin, piercing him and making him cry out in
pain.

He heard the sound of a truck speeding away, spraying gravel as it fled.
There were birds singing somewhere close to him. The wind rustled the
branches of the rose bush digging into his skin, making Clark moan. He
turned his head and opened his eyes, surprised at the scent of the rose
his nose impacted. It smelled good, like home and dreams and sent green
shards of pain shooting through his head. He shuddered and pulled away
from it, seeing that it was a pale sherbert green. Clark had never seen
a green rose before. It was his last thought before sliding into
unconsciousness.

+++++

"…"

"I don't give a damn what your orders might be about outsiders! We're
not leaving him up there to die! Hell, you know perfectly well that the
insects will eat him if we don't get him down promptly. Get your
invisible ass back to the house and get help. I want the others out
here to save him in the next two minutes or I'm taking things into my
own hands and I will tell my father that you refused to assist, which
resulted in my getting up on the wall. You know what he'll say to
that!"

"…"

"Good. And hurry!"

+++++

Clark woke up in a bed with smooth sheets and thick fluffy blankets.
His body ached, which was odd. He never hurt anymore, not since his
invulnerability developed. The sheets and blankets were odd, too. He
had flannel sheets at home and his blankets were heavy, old quilts that
Mom had made for him. They weren't fluffy at all. Clark frowned, tried
to move and groaned. It hurt much worse when he moved. His eyes
fluttered open and he froze, staring at the canopy over his bed.

"What?" Clark breathed, staring around the strange room. "Where am I?"

He'd never seen a room this grand before. The bed was a huge
four-poster with a deep red canopy and curtains on it. It was bigger
than his parent's bed. It made Clark's bed look tiny. There were oil
paintings on the walls showing either beautiful garden scenes or dark
stormy scenes over the ocean. The furniture was ornate, made of heavy
dark stained wood. There was a huge Oriental carpet in the middle of
the room, and big comfy looking armchairs and heavy drapes over the
windows that blocked out all of the sunshine.

"Hello?" Clark called, wondering if anyone was around.

There had to be someone around. He was inside, dressed in someone
else's pajamas that were just a hair too tight, and he wasn't wearing
Lana's necklace. He sat up, wincing at the pain from his scratches and
bruises. He needed to get the curtains open so that he could get some
sunshine. The sun would make the pain go away. It always made him feel
better. Clark struggled to his feet, his breath making his ribs hurt so
much that he clutched his ribcage. It felt like he'd gotten broken ribs
from Whitney's beating. Every scratch and bruise was on fire, not to
mention his throbbing head. He could still smell the green roses. It
was hard to think through their scent. Clark stumbled to the window,
grabbed the curtains with his free hand, and pulled them back.

"What?" Clark gasped, gaping at the window.

Bricks. The window was completely filled with bricks. There wasn't a
window left. The curtains were there only for show. Clark stumbled
over to the other window, flinging the drapes open to discover another
brick-filled window. He stepped backwards, unable to understand what
was going on. He turned and went to the door, intending to head out
into the hallway to find whoever had brought him here. The doorknob
wouldn't turn.

"No," Clark breathed, his heart starting to pound in his chest. "No!
You can't keep me here! Somebody, anybody! Let me out!"

He pounded on the door, too weak from his injuries and the effects of
the green roses to do any damage to it. Clark shuddered and tugged at
the door. It wouldn't move. He wrenched at it, putting his full weight
into it. The jerk made his ribs scream at him. Clark moaned, clutching
his ribs as he slid to the floor by the door. He'd been taken away. It
didn't matter how nice this room was. It wasn't home. He needed to get
home. He needed the sun. The room spun and disappeared under a wave of
blackness.

+++++

"He woke up a lot sooner than I would have expected given the dose of
pollen he got. All right, get him back in bed and we'll do something
about those injuries of his. I'm quite impressed that he managed to get
up at all, much less make it to the windows and the door."

"…"

"I don't even need to hear you to know you disapprove of this. Deal
with it. I won't allow him to die, not after he survived and made it
all the way inside the walls. Given all the monsters that Father says
live outside, he probably has a lot to tell me."

"…"

"Of course I don't believe Father. A few random creatures and some
dangerous roses do not equal the entire world having been destroyed.
He's lying and I know it. There's just not much that I can do about it
with all of you lurking about here. I still haven't figured out how
many of you there are."

"…"

+++++

When Clark woke up, he felt better. He was back in the too-big bed.
His ribs had been bandaged and his scratches had been treated with
something that made them hurt less. The curtains were closed when he
opened his eyes. There was a tray with food right next to the bed.
Clark blinked, looking around. He could have sworn he heard someone in
the room with him, but there was no one there.

"Well, at least there's food this time," Clark muttered, blushing at the
thought that someone had obviously seen him naked. He'd been so worried
and pained before that it hadn't occurred to him that someone had
stripped him and then dressed him. "I wonder what they left me."

The cover floated off of one of the plates, moving off to the side
table. Clark shouted, he wasn't sure what, and bolted out of the bed.
More covers lifted while he stumbled backwards towards the door. He
tripped on the carpet and tumbled backwards onto the floor. His heart
was pounding so hard that Clark thought it might jump right out of his
chest. He peered around the room frantically, using his X-ray vision,
and started when he spotted a skeleton standing next to the tray of
food. With normal vision, there was no one there.

"Who are you?" Clark demanded, scrambling to his feet and clutching his
aching ribs. "Why are you keeping me here?"

"They won't answer you," a man's voice replied from behind Clark. "They
never do."

Clark whirled, wincing as the move wrenched his sore ribs. A bald man
with a scarred lip stood at the door, smirking sardonically. Confused,
Clark turned back to the bed where the invisible person still stood.
The bald man entered the room, gesturing towards the food.

"You might as well eat," he said. "I asked them to prepare something
hearty but easily digested given how much you were hurt. It would be a
shame for it to go to waste."

"Who are you?" Clark asked, his legs shaking. He didn't move from his
spot.

"Call me Lex," said the man, a sad look in his eyes. The smirk didn't
budge. "Who are you?"

"Um, Clark Kent," Clark answered, rubbing his face as the room blurred
for a second.

Suddenly, hands grabbed him as the world tilted. He heard Lex talking
to the invisible person, but couldn't understand the words as he was
tucked back in bed and covered with blankets. The world became more and
more distant until it faded away entirely. It felt like just a minute
or so had passed when the world came back. It might have been longer,
since the food wasn't steaming anymore. Lex was sitting on the end of
the bed, studying him.

"I passed out?" Clark asked, very carefully sitting up against his
pillows.

"Yes," Lex said, his face grave. "You truly should eat. The food is
quite good here."

"When do I get to go home?" Clark asked, a little worried about eating
in this place.

"Do you have one?" Lex asked. He sounded honestly surprised and
curious.

+++++

"What do you mean there's someone else there?"

"…"

"A local boy?"

"…"

"Clark Kent…interesting. All right. He is to remain there with my
son."

"…"

"No, you're not to allow either of them out of the building. Keep the
Kent boy from seeing any sunshine."

"…"

"Yes, sunshine!"

"…"

"No, no, it's not necessary to restrain him. Just keep them together
and keep Clark out of the light. I'll deal with his family. Lex has
been complaining about being lonely. Well, the universe just provided
him a companion."

"…"

+++++

"You've really been here alone your whole life?" Clark looked adorably
curious as he shoveled food into his mouth.

"More or less," Lex said, restraining a grin. Clark had to be a trick
of his father's. At least he was an entertaining trick for once. "I've
been here ever since the meteor shower. It's just the ghosts and me.
My father visits from time to time, though less since I've
gotten…older."

Clark stopped eating entirely at the mention of the meteor shower. He
had been admirably restrained about staring at Lex's freakish appearance
so far, which Lex found rather surprising. The mention of the Ghosts,
as Lex called them, made Clark peer around the room. He almost seemed
to think that he could see them if he looked closely enough. If that
were possible, Lex would have figured out how years ago. He didn't even
blink at Lex's near mention of his interactions with his father, which
was a relief. It wasn't something that Lex wanted to discuss. He
didn't want to think about, much less talk about it.

"Why do you stay here?" Clark asked, going back to eating. He ate at a
much slower rate now, apparently thinking as he chewed.

"I have nowhere else to go," Lex sighed. "I want to leave but I know
that there's no place for me in the wider world. Father's been trying
to convince me that there are monsters out there, that the meteor shower
caused mutations in people and animals."

"He knows that?" Clark asked, starting and staring at Lex.

Lex stared back at him, shocked out of his habitual mask. That couldn't
be true. There couldn't truly be monsters outside of the walls.
Clark's expression was one of mixed surprise and fear. It wasn't fear
of the monsters. Lex's heart started beating faster as he stared at
Clark who stared back at him. It was a fear of discovery.

"You're one of them," Lex breathed, getting up and backing off a step.

"No!" Clark protested, obviously alarmed. "I'm not a monster!"

"But you were changed," Lex said, watching Clark's reactions. No matter
what words came out of his mouth, his reactions would show what was
true.

"It's not…safe," Clark said, looking around them desperately. "You
can't…ask things like that, Lex. It's not safe. People who are
different get taken away. They don't come back. Please, I'm just a
farm boy. I'm nothing special."

Lex's heart stopped. He made himself take a deep breath and then let it
out slowly. Everything about Clark's behavior said that he was telling
the truth. His hands, his eyes, the wavering of his voice, the way his
lips twitched. Lex had learned what lies look like at his father's
knee. This wasn't a lie. This was the truth. It made him shudder.
The truth felt strange, dangerous, and new. It felt like something he
could use.

+++++

"…"

"No, let them talk. Let them talk all they want. It's quite
fascinating to see Lex opening up this way."

"…"

"Heh! If things move in that direction, yes, provide them with the
necessary supplies. Then collect any…samples left by their
endeavors. I'm quite curious about Clark's genetic makeup."

"…"

"Your opinion is neither wanted nor welcome. Do your job and keep your
mouth shut or you'll find yourself in my experimental program."

"…"

"That's better."

+++++

"So you never go outside?" Clark asked, following Lex as he led the way
down to the dining room.

He was still wearing a borrowed set of Lex's pajamas. Heavier, tighter
clothing hurt too much. Lex had offered to loan him a sweat suit if he
was tired of the pajamas, but Clark was too sore for that yet. As
always, Lex was dressed in a perfect suit, though he'd taken off the
jacket this morning. It was almost odd to see him in his shirtsleeves.

"Rarely," Lex said with a little shrug. "On occasion I manage to sneak
outside, but the ghosts always follow me so I've yet to get any farther
than the wall. I do wonder what the world is like outside, but I
haven't succeeded in getting there yet."

Clark had to stop on the landing. He didn't have the strength to go
down all the stairs at once. He desperately needed the sun, but every
single window in the mansion had been bricked over and covered by heavy
drapes. There weren't any unblocked windows. There weren't any
unlocked doors. There was only Lex, the ghosts, and the darkness that
kept Clark weak. Lex put a hand on Clark's elbow as Clark slumped in
exhaustion, Lex's blue eyes full of concern. Clark tried to smile at
him, but he was pretty sure that it wasn't convincing from Lex's
reaction.

"I'll be all right," panted Clark. "Just out of breath. Sorry."

"We can eat in your room if you'd like," Lex offered. "There's no
reason to go downstairs."

"No, I don't want to stay there," Clark said, straightening up
carefully. "I just needed to catch my breath. I'll be all right."

They continued down the stairs and then along the hallway, ending up in
a small dining room that had places already set for two. The food
smelled good but the covers floating off of the plates made Clark want
to shudder. They were there. They were real people, not ghosts, who
had somehow become invisible and they were helping to keep Lex (and now
Clark) prisoner in the mansion.

"Do you ever worry that they'll do something to your food?" Clark asked,
hesitating before going to the table and sitting.

"No," Lex said, apparently completely accustomed to the invisible people
and floating objects. "They're here to take care of me, to make sure
that I have what I need. They'll get in trouble with my father if I get
hurt. It's happened before, when I was younger."

Lex immediately changed the subject to talk about the books his father
brought in for him from time to time. Clark listened with interest,
asking his usual stupid questions until Lex speared him with a ferocious
look. Clark gulped and fidgeted on his chair, heart beating faster.

"I'd appreciate it if you didn't act like a moron, Clark," Lex snapped,
glaring at him. "I can see that you're far more intelligent than that
and I don't care to spend my time with someone who won't use his brain.
It's lying and I abhor lying!"

Lex threw his glass against the wall and stormed out of the room,
leaving Clark shivering in his seat. A door slammed somewhere in the
huge empty mansion. As soon as it did, the covers for Lex's food
floated over, settling over his plate. Clark sighed and picked at his
food for a minute. He eventually gave up, using X-ray vision to locate
the skeleton of the servant.

"I'm sorry," Clark said, nodding at his food. "I'm not hungry. Can you
cover mine too and take it to my room? I'm going back to bed for a
while."

The skeleton nodded and the cover for Clark's plate was put into place.
Clark slowly headed back to his room, stopping four times to catch his
breath before he made it there. The invisible servant left the plate on
his beside table and then left, locking the door behind him. Clark
sighed and crawled into bed, hugging a pillow. He wanted Mom and Dad.
He wanted the sunshine and Pete and Chloe and Lana and even Whitney.

"I want to go home," Clark whispered to his empty, opulent room.

+++++

"…"

"Why would he do that? He doesn't have any right to do that! He's the
first person I've seen since Father locked me up in here. He can't lie
to me!"

A shoe impacted with the wall, rebounding into the room. Lex glared at
it and grabbed a chair, flinging it at the wall. It smashed into
splinters and torn bits of fabric. A leg from the chair was used to
attack the chest of drawers, battering it to pieces. Then the painting
on the wall of Lex and his father was shredded using the remaining stump
of the chair leg.

"He's just like Father. The world is full of liars! I should have
known better than to think he was any different. They're all alike,
every single one of them."

Lex stood panting in the middle of his room, his face red and his hands
shaking. He looked around at the destruction, his eyes slightly glazed,
and then his legs gave way, dropping him to the floor where he curled
into a ball. He suppressed tears for a few minutes and then relaxed
into troubled sleep. He was lifted and placed in his battered bed, the
torn sheets wrapped around his body.

"…"

+++++

There was food when Clark woke up the next day, but Lex didn't appear to
eat with him. He was served breakfast and lunch by the ghosts, and by
dinnertime was about to go crazy from boredom. He sighed and tried the
door one more time and, to his surprise, it wasn't locked.

"Hello?" Clark asked, peering around the room for an invisible skeleton.
There wasn't anyone there.

He cracked open the door and peered outside. There wasn't anyone in the
hallway either. Clark leaned against the wall, considering what to do.
He wanted to get out of the place, but he was pretty sure that he was
still too weak to make it home. His injuries were healing at a slower
than human speed because of the lack of sunshine in the mansion. After
a long moment of hesitation, Clark shrugged and headed down the hallway
towards the stairs, hoping he could find a book or something.

Clark wandered slowly down the hallway, scanning for invisible skeletons
every time he stopped to catch his breath. It didn't take long before
he heard the quiet shuffle of feet and the faint sound of breathing. He
scanned and straightened up. It was one of the invisible people.

"Um, I'm really bored since Lex hasn't shown up today," Clark said
looking straight at the skeleton with X-ray vision. It started,
probably because Clark was looking right at it. There was a strange
sort of contraption wrapped around its mouth and throat, though that was
as invisible as the rest of it. "Are there any books that I could
read?"

"…"

Clark heard the faintest whisper of sound as the skeleton's jaw worked.
Whatever it was wearing kept it from speaking. It nodded and turned,
heading down the stairs. Clark followed, not surprised that the
invisible person stopped when he did. It seemed nervous about his
ability to track where it was, but didn't say anything further. They
headed down a hallway to a set of double doors. The invisible person
opened the doors for Clark, gesturing with an invisible hand for Clark
to go in.

"Thank you," Clark said, nodding to the person and enjoying their start
of surprise that he'd seen the gesture.

Clark stepped inside and gasped. The room looked like it had been an
office or study at one time. The only things that remained to mark it
as such were a desk covered with papers and a comfortable leather sofa
and chair. Clark saw without registering it that there was a fireplace
with a fire. What he did notice was the huge stained glass windows that
had been bricked over from the outside flanked by bookshelves that
extended from the floor to the ceiling. He stumbled into the room,
staring around. He'd never seen so many books in a private person's
home before.

"Wow," Clark breathed, going to the closest bookshelf. A huge grin
bloomed on his face. "Maybe I won't be so bored now."

+++++

"…"

"You're quite certain that he can see you?"

"…!"

"No need to yell at me, I heard you perfectly well. Interesting. I
wasn't aware that he could do that."

"…"

"Of course I knew he had powers. Why else would I allow the boy to stay
there with my son? Clark Kent is a very special boy and I have every
intention of learning a lot from him."

"…?"

"No, there's no need to keep them apart or to force them together. Let
them do as they will as long as they stay inside. Have all the other
windows and doors been bricked over?"

"…"

"Excellent. This is going quite well indeed. Let me know if he
displays any more unusual abilities. I expect that he has quite a few
that he's kept hidden from the world."

"…"

+++++

After four days of hiding from Clark in the upper library, Lex sighed
and headed downstairs to the library in his office. He needed one of
his reference books and he was more than ready for a bit of a walk. He
heard one of the ghosts pacing alongside him, but ignored it. It was
probably his trainer; annoyed that Lex hadn't done any fencing in days.
He'd have to do something about that. He didn't want his father to come
to visit and find him in less than ideal condition. Lex didn't want
another visit to the basement. Ever.

"Now, let's see where that book is," Lex said, pushing open the doors to
his office.

He froze at the sound of snoring echoing through the room. Clark Kent
was lying on his sofa with a book open on his chest. Someone had
covered him up with the thick lavender blanket that Lex kept over the
back of the sofa. It was apparent that the boy was finally healing. His
bruises had faded from vivid purple to yellow and green. He had stacks
of books around him, as though he'd been camped in the office as long as
Lex had been sequestered in the upper library.

"What is he doing here?" Lex demanded, glaring at Clark.

"…"

"Huh?" Clark started and woke, blinking blurrily at Lex. "Oh! Lex!
I'm sorry, I was reading and I must have fallen asleep. Sorry, sorry, I
never got the books put away. I've never seen so many books, not that
I'm allowed to read books like this."

He started scrambling at the books, gathering up great armfuls of them.
He tripped over the blanket, nearly sending the books flying. He landed
on his knees by the coffee table, still babbling and clutching the books
as if they were more precious than gold.

"I have to pretend to be slow outside so I never get to read stuff like
this," Clark said, standing up and carefully kicking the blanket off.
He blushed, ducking his head as Lex continued to stare. "It's the only
way I'll stay safe. It's, well, people who are too smart or different
disappear, and I didn't want to disappear, so it was easier…um,
Lex?"

"You…pretended to be stupid," Lex said.

"Yeah," Clark said with a sheepish little shrug. "It's not so hard,
really. You just have to figure out how to make the right mistakes to
make people think you don't understand. And not talk a lot. Being
clumsy helps and I'm kind of clumsy anyway."

Clark started putting his books back, wincing every time he reached over
his head. His ribs were obviously not fully healed. He shelved every
book exactly where it belonged, apparently without looking. Lex
watched, trying to decide how smart Clark had to carry off the pretense
so successfully. It made his chest hurt to think of it, someone that
brilliant being written off as a moron.

"Have you read all of those?" Lex asked, crossing his arms on his chest
as Clark went back for a second armful of books.

"Yeah," Clark said, shrugging again. "I read really fast."

"How fast?" Lex asked, studying Clark's reactions for lies.

"Um, I'm not supposed to say," said Clark, getting that terrified
expression.

"It's only you, me and the Ghosts," Lex said, waving at the apparently
empty room.

"I…" Clark peered around the room, his eyes locking on a point right
behind Lex's shoulder. "Only one of them. That one is bigger than the
one that showed me in here. And that one has weapons."

Lex blinked, turning to stare at the empty spot that apparently held his
trainer. There was a faint sigh and the sound of shuffling feet. The
door opened and closed again a few seconds later. Lex turned back to
Clark who nodded, looking grimly satisfied.

"Gone now," Clark said, straightening up a little. He went back to
shelving books. "Um, I never really calculated it out but I think I
read somewhere over 10,000 words a minute. I was doing calculus before
I started school. My parents home-schooled me until I was almost nine
years old so no one realized how smart I was."

"Why didn't your parents let you go to an advanced school?" Lex asked
confused as to why Clark thought it would be better to hide.

"They'd have taken me away from them!" Clark said, horrified. "I would
have to had to leave my parents and I couldn't do that. They took me
in. My real parents were killed in the meteor shower and Mom and Dad
took me in. I wanted to stay with them. I wanted to stay on the farm.
It's…I wanted to stay where I was safe and loved. It didn't matter
what everyone else thought of me. I needed to stay with them."

He'd gone so pale that his skin looked like paper. Lex could see
Clark's hand shaking as he clutched the last few books in his arms.
Abandonment issues, Lex thought, wondering how young Clark had been when
he'd lost his original family.

"You must have read almost all the books in here over the last few
days," Lex said, changing the subject.

"Yeah," Clark said, nodding with another of his casual shrugs. "I loved
the math and the history books. There's so much that they're not
teaching us in school."

"Would you like to see my other library?" Lex asked, hiding a grin
behind a raised hand as Clark whirled to stare at him with wide eyes.

"You have another library?"

+++++

"They're spending all their time in the library?"

"…"

"Humph, well I suppose after the intellectual drought that Clark's been
through it would be refreshing."

"…"

"Yes, yes, supply them with whatever books they want. No supplies that
could be used for weapons or explosives. I won't have them escaping the
house, but whatever books they want, give them to them. I'll have to
visit Smallville in a few weeks. Young Clark Kent's parents are
becoming quite…noisy about his having gone missing."

"…"

"Yes, I think it would be appropriate to supply Clark with new clothes.
We can use his old clothing to stage a find for the searchers. It will
take several days to generate a corpse with the proper resemblance but
it's not an insurmountable problem."

"…"

"Whatever sort of clothes Lex thinks is appropriate. Clark certainly
has no taste in apparel."

+++++

"I'm not coming out!"

"Clark, really," Lex said, grinning at the closed bathroom door. "The
Ghosts went to a lot of trouble to get new clothes for you. You only
had boxers when you arrived. You couldn't keep wearing my old sweat
suit forever."

"I don't care, I'm not coming out!"

"You'll look fine." Lex laughed, waiting patiently for the inevitable.
"You know, they brought lunch while you were changing. There's apple
crumble for desert."

There was a long silence from the bathroom. Lex fought back his smirk
as the bathroom door opened a crack and Clark peered out. His green
eyes were very bright but he was frowning at Lex. He clutched the door
as if afraid that Lex would shove his way inside. Lex crossed his arms
on his chest and waited, the smirk emerging as Clark sighed.

"Really?" Clark asked, opening the door wide enough that Lex could see
Clark lick his lips. "The caramel apple crumble? With powdered sugar
on top?"

"It's still warm," Lex said, grinning at Clark.

"You cheat," Clark complained, looking past Lex to the lunch tray set
out for them. He whined at the sight of the still-steaming apple
crumble.

"Of course," Lex said with a laugh. "Now come out so I can see how you
look."

Clark made a wordless grumble, his cheeks flaring to bright red. He
gave the apple crumble one last look and the opened the bathroom door as
if he was going to his execution. Lex's breath caught. He'd known that
the clothes would look stunning on Clark but he hadn't expected this.
Navy blue slacks hugged Clark's legs (and groin), revealing the body
that had been hiding under Lex's baggy sweats. The sleeves of a
burgundy short-sleeve shirt were short enough to reveal Clark's powerful
arms and the body was tight enough to show off his physique. Lex was
grateful for his much looser trousers as he stared at Clark. He'd never
seen anything so gorgeous before in his life.

"I knew I looked funny," Clark complained, brushing his hands over his
pants.

"No," Lex said, his voice coming out strange, "no, you
look…stunning, Clark."

"Really?" Clark asked, studying Lex's expression and then blushing
harder. He smiled a shy little smile that was somehow a thousand times
more devastating than any weapon. "Thanks. Um, lunch?"

"Yes, lunch," Lex said, nodding and turning to the table and chairs, his
heart beating so fast that he thought it would leap out of his chest.
"Lunch would be good. Why don't we start with dessert? It would be a
pity for the apple crumble to cool down before we could eat it."

+++++

"…"

The fake Clark Kent corpse settled into a patch of mutated grass that
immediately curled around it, strangling the body and then digging into
it. It took only about five minutes before it was half consumed by the
grass, at which point the grass hit the small package of herbicide
buried inside of the body's stomach. The grass shuddered, slowly
releasing the body and pulling back. After ten minutes, the body looked
like it had been dead for about two weeks, appropriately decomposed for
having been exposed to the environment for that time.

"…"

"Yeah, I found something over this way yesterday while I was looking for
my fool dog. No, 'course I didn't touch it. Dead body? Why the hell
would I touch it? Yeah, it looked like a tall kid with a flannel jacket
ta me but I don't know that Kent boy that well. Let's see. Where is
it?"

"…"

"Yeah, off this way! Come on, I got my bearings now."

The sheriff and a ragtag farmer appeared through the bushes, pushing the
branches aside carefully. The roses weren't blooming right now so all
they had to do was be careful of the thorns. As soon as the sheriff
spotted the body he stopped, a terribly sad expression creeping over his
face. He turned on his radio.

"Bring in forensics and a stretcher, boys. We've got a dead body here."

+++++

"Okay, no one is around," Clark said, smiling at Lex's triumphant
expression.

"That is the coolest thing ever," Lex said, pulling out their carefully
scribbled plan of the mansion. "All right, I checked all the doors that
I used to be able to sneak out from time to time. They've all been
bricked up. Every remaining window has been bricked up too."

"He knows," Clark said, his stomach doing flips at the thought of it.

"Knows what?" Lex asked, glancing around as if worried about being
overheard. Given that he had no idea of where the Ghosts were, he
probably was.

"My powers are fueled by sunshine," Clark said quietly. "That's part of
why it's taking so long for me to heal. I need sunshine to be able to
heal properly."

Lex nodded slowly, his eyes narrowed as he thought. Ever since Lex had
shown Clark to his second, much larger, library they'd become something
very close to friends. It was the first time that Clark had been able
to tell anyone about his abilities or his intelligence, as well as the
first time that Lex had had anyone that he could talk to besides his
father. Clark was very aware of Lex's sexual interest in him. It was
revealed every time Lex looked at him. For some reason, Lex wasn't
willing to take it any further than looking and the occasional smirk.

"Any new abilities?" Lex asked, his cheeks reddening as he caught Clark
staring at him.

"No, but my hearing seems to be getting stronger," Clark said, scanning
for any of the Ghosts. "I can almost hear what they're saying when they
make those little breathy sighs."

"That could be useful," said Lex, frowning as Clark stared for too long
outside the door. "Company?"

"Yeah, one of them is bringing us lunch," Clark said. "They don't leave
you alone for long, do they?"

Lex shook his head with a tired sigh and shrugged as he hid the map
inside the book they were studying together. They went back to talking
about physics and calculus, ignoring the door as it opened and a tray of
food floated in. Clark leaned closer to Lex as he explained something
from the book, a thought occurring to him.

"Hey, Lex?" Clark asked, cocking his head just right.

"Yes?" Lex asked, turning to Clark.

Lex's head was at the right angle relative to his, so Clark leaned that
little bit further forward, brushing his lips across Lex's. Lex
started, his body going so still it was as if he'd turned to stone.
Clark trembled in response, pulling back to look at Lex with a hesitant
smile.

"Um, thanks," Clark said, his stomach doing flips. "For um, saving my
life. And the books."

"You're…welcome," Lex whispered, going from pale as a ghost to
flaming red.

He smiled at Clark, the smile unlike any that Clark had seen before. It
wasn't a smirk or formal or even that tiny little quirk of his lips that
was there and gone in a flash. It was a genuine smile, a shy, delighted
grin that said volumes about the boy Lex had been before his father had
locked him up in this place. Clark's heart thudded even harder. He
took Lex's hand…and Lex let him.

"…"

The Ghost left the library, leaving them alone.

+++++

"…"

"I'm so sorry, Mr. Kent. I just heard of your loss."

"Get away from me, Luthor! My boy was found on your property! If you'd
have let us search your land, we might've found him before he died!
It's your fault he's dead!"

"Now, there's no reason for making accusations like that. Until young
Mr. Fordman came forward with his revelation about the events of that
night, how was anyone to know that he might be on my land? It's been
fenced off for over a decade and no one is allowed in. As soon as it
became apparent where Clark was taken, I allowed the search. I had my
staff help. You have my deepest sympathies, whether you accept them or
not. I lost my son in the meteor shower so I do understand your loss."

"I said when he disappeared that they should have searched on your land,
Luthor. If you'd have allowed it, I know that my boy would still be
alive."

"This is a regrettable tragedy, Mr. Kent. I'm sorry that I intruded on
your grief. If a donation towards the funeral costs…"

"I won't take your blood money, Luthor! Get the hell off of my farm!"

"As you wish."

"…"

"That went well. All right, take me to the Mansion. I think it's time
I checked up on my son and his new companion in person."

+++++

Lex smiled at Clark. He was as beautiful as an angel when he slept.
His eyelashes looked a mile long curled on his cheeks. His hair was
rumpled from the couch cushion under his head and their lovemaking
earlier. Lex very gently tucked one lock behind Clark's ear. So very
beautiful.

And so very smart. They'd discovered that the Ghosts reliably left them
alone when they kissed or made love. Lex hadn't been surprised when
lube and condoms appeared in practically every drawer in the rooms they
frequented. The Ghosts were nothing if not efficient about seeing to
Lex's needs. He eased from his bed, pulling on his pants and shirt
before heading to the bathroom down the hall. Clark kept asking to be
with Lex in his room, but Lex had no intention of allowing that. Any
damage that he did to other parts of the house was immediately repaired.
Lex's room was the one exception. He'd managed to get the Ghosts to
leave the destruction after one too many suicide attempts.

"Why Lex, I'm surprised to see you so…disheveled."

"Father," Lex said, turning as casually as he could when his heart had
just turned to ice in his chest. "I'm surprised to see you visiting.
You're not due for another month or so."

"The ghosts informed me of your little guest, Lex," Lionel said,
smirking at him. "What have I told you about going outside? Moreover,
to pick up a stray while you were out there. Tsk. I'm disappointed in
you, Lex."

Although more grey had appeared in his beard and the streaks at his
temples had become more pronounced, Lionel was, as always, perfectly
groomed in one of his best suits. It made Lex feel even worse about his
own clothes, especially as Lionel's eyes wandered to the open front of
Lex's shirt, tracing the narrow strip of skin that was revealed. Lex
clutched at the shirt, holding it closed.

"He would have died," Lex declared, praying that Clark wouldn't wake up.
His ribs hadn't healed properly yet, so he was still too weak to take on
Lionel or the ghosts that had to be swarming around him. "I couldn't
let that happen."

"Lex, Lex, Lex," Lionel said, shaking his head as invisible hands
grabbed Lex, restraining his arms so that he couldn't fight. "How many
times have I told you that sentiment will be your downfall? I'd thought
that you'd finally outgrown your childish tendencies. It appears that I
was wrong and you're in need of another lesson, Lex."

"No," Lex breathed, bucking against the hands clamped around his arms.
"No! Dad, don't! Please!"

+++++

The sounds of flesh on flesh echoed through the little basement
enclosure. Lionel's grunts were a dark counterpoint to Lex's muffled
screams and curses. The scent of blood filled the air.

"…"

"…"

Once the door was shut, it was much quieter. The hallway only
occasionally echoed with the sound of Lex's screams.

+++++

"Where is Lex?" Clark demanded, grabbing the arm of the Ghost who had
brought him dinner.

"…"

"Don't try," Clark growled, glaring at the Ghost.

"…!"

"You just said 'let go', didn't you?" Clark said, narrowing his eyes at
the Ghost.

It felt like a woman's arm in his hand. The woman hauled against his
grip, managing to break free despite Clark's best efforts to keep her
there. She glared at him. He kept his vision in X-ray mode, listening
as hard as he could to her.

"We have a situation," she said, her voice barely audible. "He's
demanding Lex and he grabbed me. He shouldn't be able to grab me. One
of you, maybe, but not me. I think he's recovering his powers."

"Deal with it," a second voice said. "The others are busy. No one can
be spared."

It sounded like an older man on the other end of the communicator.
Clark stared at her, his ears tuned so high that he felt like he was
hearing every sound the insects made outside of the house. The woman
backed off a step. Clark followed her, trapping her between a bookshelf
and the wall.

"Those are communication devices, aren't they?" Clark demanded. "They
muffle your voices and allow you to communicate with each other
throughout the house."

He reached out to grab her, trying to catch her upper arm. She twisted
her upper body and his hand came down on her breast. The woman smacked
his hand away, using what looked and felt like a martial arts move.
Clark jumped so hard at the feeling of her breast that he stumbled
backwards and fell on his ass. He stared up at her, heart pounding in
his throat.

"You're naked!" Clark said, his voice squeaking from shock. "Sorry!
Sorry! I didn't mean to do that! Oh, man! I'm so sorry!"

The woman laughed into her gag-communicator. She ran out of the room,
leaving Clark alone. Clark let her go, the memory of her breast under
his hand making him blush so hard that he felt lightheaded. They were
all wandering around the mansion naked. Clark looked at his hand and
started again. He could see through his hand. Whatever made the Ghosts
invisible was a coating of some sort on their skin.

"I have got to find Lex," Clark gasped, holding his hand up and staring
through it at the bookshelves without using his X-ray vision. "Maybe
he'll be able to figure out where this stuff comes from."

He carefully scraped some of the coating onto a piece of paper. It
didn't go invisible. Instead, it went green, stained by the goo coating
Clark's hand. Clark frowned, rubbing his hand against his pants. They
developed a green stain too.

"So that's why they're naked," Clark said, standing up. "It only works
on skin. Their gags must be covered in leather or something."

He scanned the room and then listened hard. There were people moving
around at the far end of the mansion near Lex's room. Clark nodded.
That made sense. He and Lex were being kept apart. He folded up the
piece of paper and tucked it into his pocket. His ribs still ached but
he was determined to get Lex back.

+++++

"Lex?"

"…"

"Lex? Are you in there?"

Clark slowly opened the door, staring in at the destruction. The light
from the hallway revealed shattered furniture, torn drapes, and Lex's
pale body on his broken bed. Lex was curled up in a fetal position,
mostly covered by the torn blankets he refused to allow to be replaced.
Bruises mottled his face, arms and back. Clark walked in, glaring at
the Ghost who watched silently. He bypassed the Ghost and headed
straight for Lex's bed.

"Oh, Lex. What happened?"

Lex whimpered at Clark's gentle touch, curling into a tighter ball.
Clark watched as the bruises that had been cuts a few hours ago faded
slowly, guarding Lex until he stirred and woke. Lex's breath caught at
having someone sitting on his bed. He looked up at Clark, fear mixed
with anger in his eyes.

"What happened?"

"Doesn't matter."

"It matters to me. Please, Lex. Let me help."

"You can't! Damn it, there's nothing anyone can do. We're trapped in
here and we're never going to get out. It'll
just…keep…happening. Forever. Over and over and over and
over…"

"Oh Lex…"

"…"

+++++

"Interesting," Lex breathed, studying the green stain on the piece of
paper Clark had given him.

They hadn't discussed his healing or his condition when Clark had found
him. Every time Clark looked as if he was going to bring it up, Lex
changed the subject. It didn't matter. The things his father did to
him in the basement room weren't anything that Clark could fix. They
were both trapped inside the mansion, Lex by his freakishness and Clark
by the lack of sunlight. He was getting stronger every day, though his
strength was still a human strength, not the strength that Clark said
was normal for him.

"I know," Clark said, blushing fiercely. "I mean, I can see them when I
look the right way, but I hadn't thought about the fact that I didn't
see clothing on them. It didn't occur to me that they were actually
naked all the time. They must be freezing. It's cold in here!"

Lex burst out laughing. Clark ducked his head and then grinned at Lex.
Lex let himself reach out to cup Clark's cheek. He wasn't sure when his
feelings had grown from gratitude for another person to talk with to
something so much more. Sometimes, when he closed his eyes, Lex could
still see the image of Clark crucified on the wall of green roses,
thorns tearing his flesh. He refused to believe in something as maudlin
as love at first sight, but sometimes it felt like every moment since
they'd met had drawn his heart ever closer to making a declaration that
would only suit his father's purposes. Lex refused to endanger Clark
that way.

"My only question is where they're getting it from," Lex said, rubbing
his thumb over Clark's cheekbone. "They must have a large supply of
this stuff."

"Have to," Clark said, his eyes shutting as he leaned into Lex's hand.
"We know that there are at least half a dozen of them. Need a lot of
whatever it is to cover six naked bodies."

Lex tugged at Clark and he slid into Lex's arms. Clark's lips tasted of
hope, of redemption, of acceptance. His little whimpers sounded like a
word Lex refused to think. They stood as one and stumbled back towards
the library couch that was their most frequent site for lovemaking. Lex
was gentle with Clark, still worried about his ribs. Clark was equally
gentle with Lex, worshiping his pale, slim body. Afterwards they lay
together, covered in a blanket that one of the Ghosts had placed there a
few days earlier.

"Lex, I lo—"

"No," Lex said, putting his finger over Clark's lips. "Those aren't
words I want to hear."

"Why not?" Clark asked, looking hurt.

Lex sighed and smiled, knowing that the smile was a sad, regretful one.
He draped himself over Clark's chest, nuzzling his neck. Lex nibbled
his way up to Clark's ear, amused by Clark's moans. He sucked on
Clark's earlobe and then gently blew into his ear.

"Those are the words my father says every time he hurts me and forces me
to stay here," Lex whispered, the words almost inaudible.

"Oh."

Clark's arms tightened around Lex, saying with gestures all the things
neither of them dared give voice.

+++++

"No, no, the funeral is tomorrow. I can't discuss this with you right
now."

"…"

"I don't care how many of you are having second thoughts! Lex will
remain in the mansion and Clark will stay with him."

"…"

"Ha! Do you really think you'd get away with exposing me? Those of you
at the mansion are only a small portion of my invisible staff. I
control far too much of Metropolis and Smallville for you to get away
with it."

"…"

"I think it's time for you to visit my labs again."

"…!"

"Hmm, I wonder just how sincere that apology was. After the funeral, I
think I will stop by the Mansion again. I suggest that you have all of
the staff gathered and bathed for a proper inspection. It's been too
long since I made sure of your loyalties."

"…"

+++++

"What do you hear?" Lex asked, studying Clark's face as he concentrated.

"There…isn't anyone else in the house," Clark said, frowning so hard
that his face contorted. "We're all alone, Lex. I…can hear them
outside, in what sounds like another building. There's someone lecturing
at them, threatening them. I think that it might be your father."

"We're alone," breathed Lex, his heart leaping.

He grabbed Clark's hand and pulled him to his feet. Clark blinked at
him, confused. Lex looked around the library, studying all the books
that his father had bought him, all the knowledge that he'd learned for
no reason whatsoever other than boredom. Clark cocked his head,
studying Lex.

"Clark, we're alone in the mansion," Lex said, enunciating every word
precisely. "There's no one else here to stop us from going anywhere we
want to go."

"Oh," Clark breathed, starting to grin. "Out."

"Yes."

They ran for the door as on, hurrying down the stairs. Clark clutched
his ribs as he ran, whispering 'please' over and over like a mantra.
Lex didn't say anything. He just ran. Every door and window in the
mansion had been bricked up other than one door, the front door. They
arrived there a couple of minutes later, both panting. Lex's hands
trembled as he grasped the doorknob. For once, he might have a chance
of escaping. If there was sunshine outside, he knew that Clark would be
able to get them out before his father could react.

"Oh please," Clark breathed, putting a hand on Lex's shoulder.

"Let's go," Lex said.

He shoved the doors open and then cursed. It was dark outside. Stars
marked the night sky overhead. Clark sighed, his shoulders sagging just
a little bit. He straightened up, giving Lex a fierce look. Clark
offered his hand to Lex, who smiled and took it. They hurried out into
the darkness, Lex leading Clark towards the walls around the mansion
with their covering of green roses.

+++++

"…"

"What do you mean Lex and Clark are gone? When did they escape?"

"…"

"Damn it, get your naked asses out there and bring them back! I will
not have everything I've worked for destroyed by those two getting
loose!"

"…"

"I heard that! Keep your opinion to yourself and do your job!"

+++++

"Have…to…stop," Clark panted, stumbling to a stop despite Lex
tugging at his hand.

He fell to his knees in the grass, head spinning and ribs aching. He
hadn't thought that the walls were so far from the mansion. There was
at least a mile between the door and the closest wall. If it had been
daytime it wouldn't have mattered. Clark would have been able to pick
Lex up and run with him, escaping before anyone could catch them, but it
was night and his ribs were screaming at him. He wouldn't heal and his
powers were so weak without the sunshine.

"Clark, they'll be after us any time now," Lex whispered, tugging
urgently at Clark.

"I know," gasped Clark, gulping air. "Can't breathe. Sorry."

"No apologies. Just get up and come on!"

Clark nodded and let Lex pull him up again. They kept running, Clark
stumbling often. Lex kept him from falling, leading the way. He knew
how to get to the wall from his previous escape attempts. It was
getting over the wall and then to the outside world that Lex wasn't
certain about. They reached the wall as Clark was still trying to
determine if they were heading north or south.

"It's huge," panted Clark, clinging to Lex's hand.

"Now you know why I've been stuck in here so long," Lex said, breathing
hard. "The rose thorns are bad enough that I don't want to get close to
them and the pollen from the roses themselves will put you to sleep for
days. The wall has shards of glass embedded in the top, making it
almost impossible to climb."

Clark nodded slowly, studying the wall with his X-ray vision. There was
a door under the trailing rose vines. It looked like it was fairly
solid and new, not something that might have rusted shut years ago.
Clark perked up. There was a way through! He whirled as he heard
people coming. Lex turned with him, both of them knowing exactly what
the other meant without words. Clark pointed urgently at the hidden
door, leading Lex to it. It took some careful, prickly work to get the
draped rose vines out of the way. Clark turned the knob and carefully
pushed the door open, whispering a prayer that it wouldn't squeal
loudly. It didn't squeal but he immediately regretted opening the door
as the gap filled with the glow of meteor rock. Clark gasped and
collapsed to his knees, staring at the large chunk of meteor rock
carefully placed just beyond the opening of the door.

"What's wrong?" Lex whispered, kneeling next to Clark.

"M-meteor…rock…" Clark whispered, biting back whimpers at the
pain racking his body.

"I'll get it," Lex whispered, grabbing the rock. "Get through the gap,
Clark. Hurry! I'll be right behind you."

Clark wanted to protest but, as Lex grabbed the meteor rock and turned
to throw it back into the yard, it hurt too much. He blacked out for a
few seconds. When he came to, he could hear Lex shouting, urging Clark
to hurry through the door. Clark struggled to his hands and knees,
crawling forward through the doorway into the world beyond. He
whimpered as smaller chunks of meteor rock started to glow, then he was
able to see a path between the tiny chunks. Even as small as they were
they hurt badly, but he could hear Lex calling so Clark struggled
onwards. He needed to get to Lex. Lex was calling him. Lex's voice
stopped after a while, but Clark still struggled onwards. Lex, he
needed to save Lex. He made it through the path, and then out the other
side into grass that tried to snag his hands and knees. Clark pulled
free and struggled to his feet. Beyond that were trees that tried to
grab him, but Clark ducked under them. Although he was free, he knew
that Lex was behind him, that he must have been recaptured.

'I have to get to Mom and Dad,' Clark thought as he struggled through
the obstacles and listened for invisible people following him. 'I have
to get home. I need to get help to get Lex out of there. I have to get
Lex out!'

+++++

"Damn it, what do you mean he's escaped? Do you have any idea how much
work I put into keeping the boy here?"

"…"

"Get out there and catch him! I want the rest of you to work on getting
this place locked down. I want it to look like no one has lived here
for the last thirty years. Get it done in the next thirty minutes or
all of your lives are over!"

"…?"

"I'll deal with Lex. He's my son and he's my responsibility. It's
better that you don't know anything."

"…"

+++++

Clark stumbled out of the forest just as the sun rose above the horizon.
The first rays of the sun hit him like a sledgehammer made of flame. He
swayed, the constant ache in his chest dissipating almost instantly. He
sighed and spread his arms wide, shutting his eyes to soak in the
sunshine he'd been deprived of for so long. Clark took his first really
deep breath since Whitney and his friends had attacked him, smiling. He
could feel the warmth tingling right down to his fingertips and toes.
He heard so much more than he used to as he stood there soaking up the
sunshine.

The invisible searchers weren't that far behind him, speaking into their
gag-communicators as they carefully walked through the forest, following
Clark's trail. He could hear people scrambling back in the mansion,
doing something with fabric and the furniture. He could hear Lex's
heartbeat, slow and steady as if he had been knocked out. Clark focused
and found the town, then his parents' farm. His father was up, moving
slowly through the house, shuffling his feet as if they were too heavy
to lift. Mom was awake too, filling the kettle with water to make
coffee as she sniffled back tears.

"I'm coming home, Mom and Dad," Clark whispered, smiling as he heard the
watchers call out and start to run.

He turned and looked at them with X-ray vision. They held meteor rocks
in their hands. Clark smirked and ran away from them, going from human
speed to super speed within a few steps. He zoomed through the fields,
grinning at the birds hanging in the air between flaps. He ran up the
road to his parent's farm, down the lane and then into the house. Clark
shut the door behind him and settled down to human speed, beaming at how
good it felt to be back to normal. Clark Kent normal, not the normal of
the rest of the world. It was a good feeling to know that his normal
was all right. It was another gift that Lex had presented him.

"What?" Dad gasped, turning towards the door and staring.

"Clark?" Mom breathed.

Dad staggered, grabbing the counter. Mom dropped the kettle, her hands
flying to her mouth. Clark grinned and sped over to catch the kettle
before it hit the ground. He set it on the stove and then laughed as
Mom hugged him tight. Dad grabbed them both, hugging him so hard that
Clark knew it would hurt if he were human.

"You were dead," Mom whispered, her voice choked as she cried. "They
found your body. It was wearing your shirt and jacket, sweetie. It
looked like you."

"Whitney and the other jocks stripped my clothes off, Mom," Clark said,
surprised. "They decided I should be the scarecrow this year so they
jumped me. Whitney was wearing Lana's necklace. He put it around my
neck and they beat me up and then dumped me into the old Luthor
property. I've been there ever since."

"Why didn't you leave?" Dad asked, frowning.

"It's kind of a long story," Clark said, straightening his shoulders.
"Let me explain later, Dad. I have to go back. There's someone still
inside the mansion who needs my help, and I think he's in serious
danger. Lionel Luthor's kept him locked up there ever since the meteor
shower. Lionel faked my corpse and he must have put Whitney and the
others up to giving him my clothes."

Mom clutched at his arm, eyes wide with fear.

"Sweetie, you can't go back there!" Mom said. "He'll find out what you
are."

"He already knows, Mom," Clark said. "I think he's known for years. I
think Lionel is the one who makes the different kids disappear.
Seriously, I've got a lot to tell you, but it has to wait. Lex is in
danger and I have to save him. He the one who saved my life after
Whitney dumped me. He kept me safe in the mansion. Even though he knew
he'd be recaptured, he managed to give me the time to escape. I have to
go back and get him out of there before Lionel kills him."

"Lex?" Dad asked, bristling. "You mean Lionel's son? And you're going
to help him?"

"Yes, I am," said Clark, firmly enough that his parents rocked back on
his heels. "His father's abused him for years, hidden him away from the
world, beaten him, probably even raped him though Lex won't admit to
that, and Lex saved my life, Dad. I have to do this. Please. I need
your help to get back in there. There's meteor rock all over. Will you
help me?"

Dad sighed, rubbing the back of his neck. He exchanged a look with Mom
who had the 'don't you dare try and back out of this, Mister!' look.
Apparently, she'd already decided that Lex needed to be saved by them.
After a wry smile, Dad chuckled and nodded, straightening up to clasp
Clark's shoulder.

"All right," Dad said, "but once we've gotten him out we're calling the
sheriff and you're going to explain everything that happened,
understood?"

"Yes sir!"

+++++

"Everything is bricked over."

"Yeah, that's part of why I couldn't get out, Mom. No sunshine to
recharge my powers."

"So where do we look?"

"I'd guess…Lex's room and then…maybe the basement?"

"…"

"No, let's start in the basement. I bet that's where he is."

"Lead on, Son. We're with you."

"…"

"There's…a room…hidden behind this wall."

"You're sure?"

"Yeah, Dad. Not sure how it opens but that doesn't really matter. Stand
back over there. I'll get it open."

"…!"

"Whew, what a mess! Honey, what's that smell?"

"Blood. Old, dried blood mixed with fresh blood, Martha. What the hell
happened down here?"

"Lex!"

"Be careful, it looks like he's been hurt badly. Oh sweetie, I can't
feel a pulse!"

"No, he's alive, Mom. I can hear his heartbeat. It's very faint and
weak but I can hear it. Ghost, can you get a blanket or something? We
need to get Lex wrapped up to get him out of here."

"Ghost? Who's—holy shit!"

"Language, dear. Ah, sweetie, what is that?"

"That's a person covered with some sort of invisibility cream, Mom.
Thanks, Ghost. I'm glad someone stayed behind. We would have had a
harder time finding Lex without your help."

"…?"

"Sure, kneel down here and I'll take it off for you."

"Finally. Just a warning. If you grab my breast again, I'll smack you
through the floor. I'm Mercy, by the way."

"What happened to Lionel?"

"He took everything and ran. I stayed behind. As far as I'm concerned,
my duty is to Lex. He's a fairly decent human being. I'm not sure
about Lionel's humanity."

"Great, then you can tell the sheriff about what Lionel's been doing!"

"Oh yes, I have a great many things to tell the police. After I get
this goo off and into some clothes, I'll meet you at the gate through
the wall."

+++++

Lex sighed as he regained consciousness. He hadn't expected to wake up
again. He'd gotten Clark out, so of course his father had to make sure
that Lex couldn't tell anyone about what had happened to him in the
mansion. Father had been quite serious about his attempt to kill Lex.
Lex had woken up partway through his preparation of knives, poison and
what was obviously a drug overdose given the size of the syringe. He'd
tried to struggle, but his father had already secured him to the wall.

Lex shifted position, murmuring at the weight of the blankets over him.
They'd changed his bedding. He frowned without opening his eyes.
They'd changed his bed, too. It wasn't broken anymore. His comforting
hollow was gone. It was too bright in the room too. Someone must have
brought in a functioning lamp because light was pouring down on his
face. It was so warm that it almost burned.

"Idiots," Lex grumbled, stretching and slowly opening his eyes.

Lex froze, staring around the humble room. The blankets looked to be
hand-quilted and well worn. The furnishings showed their age through
their many scuffmarks. A red jacket was thrown casually over the foot
of the bed. The closet hung open, showing an array of plaid flannel and
jeans. Almost every shirt was in shades of red or blue. Lex turned his
head, staring out the window next to the bed.

His breath caught in his throat. Sunshine. It wasn't a lamp. The
light that had woken him was sunshine. Lex hadn't seen sunshine since
he was twelve, when he'd stopped trying to escape during the daytime.
He'd forgotten what it looked like, what it felt like. Lex sat up,
wincing as the bruises left behind by his father's murder attempt
screamed at him. He held his ribs, but otherwise ignored his injuries.
They'd be gone in a few days to a week at most. The bedroom door opened
slowly and Lex started, staring at his savior.

"Lex! You're awake!" Clark said, beaming at Lex.

He hurried in, setting a small tray of food on the bedside table so that
he could sit by Lex on the bed. He propped Lex up on the thin pillow,
calmly wiping away Lex's tears. He hadn't realized that he'd been
crying until Clark brushed the tears away. Lex stared at Clark. He'd
gotten used to seeing the younger man in the lamplight of the mansion.
In sunlight, his skin almost seemed to glow. Every bruise was gone. He
sat taller than he had before and moved much more gracefully.

"You got me out?" Lex asked, clutching Clark's hand. "What about Father?
Is he going to come after your family? Where are we? What happened to
the Ghosts? Are you all right now? How long was I out?"

"You were out for three days, Lex," Clark said, grinning at Lex's flood
of questions. "The first full day you didn't seem to have a pulse, but
I could hear it. By the second day, you were breathing and had a
heartbeat again. By the third, your wounds had mostly healed. Your
father's been arrested for attempted murder, child abuse, and a lot of
charges related to experiments he's been doing on the meteor mutants
that disappeared in town. Most of them are dead but we managed to save
a few of them. The Ghosts have gone state's witness for the most part.
The one you called your Trainer is named Mercy. She's downstairs having
coffee with Mom. I think she's declared herself your bodyguard and
assistant. The police have a lot of questions for you and there's a
huge media storm about you being imprisoned all those years, but
everyone's being pretty polite so that you can get accustomed to normal
life."

"Wow," Lex breathed, his stomach rumbling loudly.

Clark started feeding Lex, explaining how he'd gotten out, his parents'
reaction, how they'd found Lex with Mercy's help. He showed Lex one of
the facemasks that the Ghosts had worn, which had been washed of the
green rose sap that had rendered it invisible. Lex listened, asked
questions and eventually waved for Clark to stop.

"Where do I go now?" Lex asked, at a loss.

"Anywhere you want," Clark said, biting his lip. "Um, you've got a
penthouse in Metropolis that used to belong to your dad, and his company
is still there. You own that now. There's a lot of work that will need
to be done to clean it up of course, but it's still yours to sell or
keep as you wish."

"So I can…leave," Lex said, looking outside at the sunshine and
bright red barn.

"If you want to," Clark said, resting his hand on Lex's knee.

"And if I want to stay for a while?" Lex asked, looking back at Clark.

"You can do that too," Clark said, blushing brightly.

His eyes almost glowed with happiness and a huge grin spread across
Clark's face. Lex laughed, reaching out to cup Clark's cheek. He
rubbed his thumb across Clark's cheekbone, smiling at the way Clark
leaned into the touch.

"Somehow I can't think of another place I'd like to be at this moment,"
Lex said.

The End