The Loyal Opposition, Part 12
Title: The Loyal Opposition
Author: latetothpartyhp
Rating: PG-13
Genre: drama
Spoilers: through Pandora
Pairings: ETA: I envisioned this as mainly a Chlark confrontation, but what emerged in addition to that were some hints of Chlex friendship, mutual Chless manipulation, and some (mostly) off-screen Clana. There's also a Lexana fight for anyone who's interested. And Cless! We have added Cless!
Warnings: some violence & language - ETA: Character deaths in store.
Summary / Author's Note: Chloe's on a mission for the resistance. Could be a Supernatural crossover if you squint real hard. Also, please check out the amazing new banner by go_clo!
Part 1 / Part 2 / Part 3 / Part 4 / Part 5 / Part 6 / Part 7 / Part 8 / Part 9 / Part 10 / Part 11 / Part 12 / Part 13 / Part 14 / Part 15 / Part 16
"An heir? As in a ... Kal-El Jr.? Are you..." Serious? Oh God. Christ. He was. Well he would be, wouldn't he? Now that he could. But a baby? The man couldn't even handle a planet, much less an infant. The bubbles inside her welled up into the laugh she'd been fearing. She couldn't help it anymore.
He gave her a quizzical look, but shrugged. "She thinks we need to assure people things are in order, that I'm not just going to take off the way Zod did."
Curious. The bubbles burst. She didn't remember the population feeling abandoned because Zod no longer walked among them. Something about that tickled her memory. "I thought you said earlier you defeated him. Which is funny, because I don't remember hearing about that before."
"I said that?" His eyes widening, nostrils flaring just a bit -- she remembered that look. The oh-shit-she-knows-my-secret look. Followed quickly by the bright stare of denial. How he had ever managed to fool even some people some of the time was a mystery to her. She was not in the mood to be fooled anymore though. She'd put up with quite enough of his bullshit for one lifetime.
"You did. You said that after you'd defeated Zod, I was gone completely."
"I misspoke? I meant 'disappeared.'"
What a lying sack of shit he was. What a lying, stinking, maggot-infested bag of future fertilizer. Per what she could expect, he was avoiding eye contact, staring guiltily into the middle distance. She should -- She should what? There were still at least a dozen Kryptonians in the building. She was losing her focus again. She unclenched her fists, slipped her hands back into his.
"If it's not too much, can I ask why not just appoint someone as, say, Vice President? Wouldn't, you know, an adult be more effective in that role?" She gave him an encouraging smile. Come home. All is forgiven.
"With something like that there are other issues," he said tentatively. "Things are kind of a mess right now, administratively, so we don't want to add that to the mix. And there's the transfer of power, and stuff. When I come back."
Transfer of power. Gotcha. "So, I take it you uh, have you been ... trying?"
He looked so relieved to be off the previous topic, so grateful and earnest she felt sorry for him. "We have, but it's been hard," he said, utterly without irony. "I don't have my powers anymore, but genetically I'm still Kryptonian. We may not be compatible."
"We? Is there a specific special someone...?"
"Tess; she's the one we think has the best odds of cooperative DNA."
Sweet Buddha. She squeezed her eyes shut to keep them bulging out of her head. Of course Tess did. Or so she had told him. Transfer of power problem, my ass. Not to mention that as mother of the heir of El, Tess would probably be able to waltz into the Fortress any damn time she pleased. In her mind Lex was bashing his head into the nearest wall. Much as Chloe wanted to mimic him, she could only sit there marveling. Marveling, and not giggling hysterically. However much into the sharing she might have made him be, however hilarious it was, she would keep it together. She would.
"Then the plan is to have a child who's half-human?"
He nodded. "A child who will bring both races together, once and for all. Bridge the divide. Like you said earlier." He really was adorable when he got all idealistic and hopeful.
"That's my goal," she smiled.
He said nothing for a minute, but gazed at her instead. She remembered that look, too, the I-can-always-count-on-you-Chloe look. "I'm glad we're on the same team again," he answered finally. "Now that you're here I feel like it's all coming together." He looked so trusting, as if he believed in her now as much as he believed in himself. So sweet, so innocent, like a baby himself, and it really wouldn't hurt to encourage that...
She leaned forward, lifted her face, pressed her lips to his. After a second he pressed back eagerly. She smiled and, pulling his lower lip between her own, bit. He gasped. A cluster bomb of lust and triumph and power went off inside her. She could do anything to him right now, anything, and he wouldn't fight her. Not unless she wanted him to. Pry all of his toenails off with pliers and he would take it. He would look into her eyes and, screaming, ask for more. She had given him what he wanted, and he would now give her what she wanted. The anticipation of it made her shiver, her breath coming in hard little pants, her fingers curling to attack. She would do it, she would take it, take what was hers, what was owed her, after all these years, hundreds of them mouldering in the dirt --
It was happening again.
She pulled away with a gasp she wasn't sure she was controlling. For a second, ten, twenty, a minute she didn't know how long, she fought for air, scrabbling against the other will in her body. She had two choices now: she could submit and breathe and be lost forever; or she could resist. Endure the panic and the burn in her lungs, fight until she blacked out. Who she would be when she woke up, if she woke up, she didn't know, but it was her only chance right now, the only way to make sure the missio--
"Chloe?" She was grabbed and yanked; the shock forced air down her trachea. With all her might she opened her lungs to it and felt the coolness of it fill her like re-birth.
"Chloe!?" he asked again. He looked as panicked as she felt.
She threw a hand to her mouth as nausea cramped and pushed at the fake eggs and bread in her stomach. The last time she had known that much fear she had woken inside a pitch-black metal box, certain in the knowledge that if she wasn't already dead she soon would be.
"Chloe?" he whispered.
She threw herself on him, wrapped her arms around his neck, clung to him like the savior he was and had been. He engulfed her in turn and all she could think of was how safe she finally felt. After so long...