"Clark."
Grunting quietly, Clark frowned and opened his eyes. "Oh, Mom, morning," he whispered. She smiled gently and leaned over to kiss his forehead. Looking at Lex, she sighed. "He really was tired, wasn't he?" she asked softly. Clark blinked, a little surprised at the motherly tone of her voice. "Yeah, he was." Clark looked down at his lover and smiled gently as she left the room. "Lex? Time to wake up." Lex pouted and turned his head, burying his face under Clark's arm. "No," he murmured. Clark was hard pushed not to giggle and he nudged at his mate. "Lex, come on, babe, get up." Lifting his head, Lex heard himself make the strangest inquiring whine. He wasn't sure which shocked him more. "Babe?!" He couldn't help it this time, Clark burst out laughing, the expression on Lex's face too much for him. "Hey!" Lex said, pouting again. He was struggling not to smile though. The short time they'd been mated had been full of hard, serious times, and it looked set to continue for a while, so it was good to see a little happiness in his lover's eyes. Grinning, Clark lifted his head for a kiss. "Had to get your attention somehow," he said with a smirk. Lex kissed his lover back, pushing him down into the pillow as he delved deep inside his mouth. Lifting up again, Lex raised an eyebrow. "By calling me babe?" "Yeah," Clark snickered quietly, "I think it suits you." "Oh no." Lex shook his head and clambered onto his lover, straddling him. He pushed Clark's arms back over his head and growled mock-seriously, "No calling me babe, Clark." His lover batted his eyelashes imploringly and Lex groaned. "No, Clark, I'm serious, it's almost as bad as Wolfboy." Clark snorted, trying not to laugh again. "Wolfboy," he giggled. Lex poked him and Clark blinked, "What? I'm proud of that one." "Oh really?" Lex started to tickled his lover, enjoying the giggles, and the writhing, from Clark. Struggling playfully, Clark managed to work his hands free and he grabbed Lex's hips, trying to roll his smaller lover over. Lex laughed and pushed back. Just as they rolled and Clark realised they were about to fall out of bed, the couple heard voices coming up the stairs. "It's okay, Mrs. Kent, we've seen Clark in his pjs before... oh." As they hit the floor, Lex grunting when Clark landed on him, the door opened and Chloe stared in amazement. Pete just grimaced. "Oh, um, hi guys," Clark said giggling nervously. "I'm sorry, Clark," his mother sighed, "I did try to stop them." "It's fine, Mom," Clark sighed. Don't worry, lover, Lex thought, Just get up. "Oh right. Sorry, Lex." Clark got up, pulling an apologetic face. He held out a hand for Lex and his lover took it, getting up to stand next to him. "Did I squash you?" "No, I'm fine," Lex smiled at his lover, then at Martha. "Wh-wha-what's going on?" Chloe squeaked. Be careful what you say to her, Lex cautioned silently. What?! Clark exclaimed loud enough that it made Lex wince. Sorry, why? I'm suspicious of her dealings with my father, I don't trust her, Lex thought quietly. Shocked, Clark frowned at his friend. "Um, could you guys wait downstairs, while we get dressed?" "Sure, whatever." Pete frowned, but led a pale looking Chloe away. "Chloe?! And your father?" Clark exclaimed. "Why didn't you say anything before?" Lex grimaced, "To be honest, I didn't think of it until I saw her, she's not exactly at the forefront of my mind. And before the occurances of the last couple of days, I wasn't that concerned by it." Clark sighed, "I guess you wouldn't be." "Come on, lover, we don't have to tell Chloe anything you don't want to," Lex said quietly, heading for the bathroom. "Oh, because seeing us half naked on the floor after obviously sharing a bed won't have given it all away," Clark snarked only slightly annoyed, more with Chloe than anything else. He followed his lover to the bathroom and then the shower after stripping off. Almost without thinking about it, Clark pulled Lex into his arms and up against his body. "Oh hello," Lex drawled with a sexy smile, running a hand down Clark's arm. Blinking, Clark felt a shiver travel the length of his spine and down through his cock. Lex grinned evilly, he could feel Clark's cock hardening against his groin and he rocked his hips up gently. "Lex," Clark gasped. His groin was tingling, warm and eletric and he gripped Lex tightly. "We can't." "Need to," Lex whispered, leaning closer to lick Clark's neck from his collarbone to his jaw. Clark's hands slipped down to his lover's ass of their own accord, dragging Lex so close, they might have been one. He groaned quietly, thrusting gently against Lex as he let his head drop back. Lex pressed his tongue to the strong pulse in Clark's neck, licking hard as if he could taste the blood through the skin. Then he shifted, gasping quietly when the silk-skinned hardness of their erections slid together. "Clark," he growled. Lifting Lex up easily, Clark pushed him back against the wall, humping hard against his groin. "Bite me," Clark panted urgently, needing the feeling of suction and edge of pain. With a snarl of need, Lex ripped open Clark's neck with his teeth, sucking voraciously. He wrapped his legs round his lover's waist, rubbing himself desperately against the thick length of Clark's cock and the springy hair that surrounded it. Hot pleasure pulsed through him with each swallow and each thrust from his lover. "Oh God," Clark moaned. His cock ached for release, his neck ached from Lex's over-enthusiastic bite, but it just made the trembles of ecstasy coursing through him more potent. Lex groaned and jerked against him, the hot splash of his seed on Clark's belly making him hump Lex harder. Lifting his head with a sigh of satisfaction, Lex bit down hard on his lip and kissed his lover. Just the taste of Lex's blood on his tongue had Clark bucking out his climax. He sucked as he shuddered, gripping Lex's hips tight enough to hear the bones creak. "Oh God," he repeated. Gently pulling away, Lex stiffly put his legs down, holding tightly to Clark's shoulders. He licked a smear of blood from his lips and grinned at Clark. "I really needed that," he said quietly. "Yeah," Clark agreed, "Yeah, me too." He washed them off quickly and checked Lex's hips, grimacing regretfully at the slight bruising, even though it was already healing. "Don't say sorry," Lex whispered, "I'm not." Clark sighed. "Okay, okay." He chucked a towel at his lover. "Let's go... babe." Lex growled, but smiled when Clark chuckled at him. "You ass," he laughed, "Call me that again and you'll have serious cause to regret it." "Oooh, tough guy," Clark said with a grin, "I'm sooo scared." "You should be." Lex smiled dangerously, then headed back to Clark's bedroom. His lover followed him looking a little suspicious. "Come on, Clark," Lex sighed, "We should get going as soon as we've spoken to your friends." "Yeah, I know." Clark pulled a face. He didn't want to speak to them, especially with a the trouble he'd had with Chloe recently. After getting dressed, they walked downstairs. So, we tell Chloe we're together and that's it? Clark asked mentally just to be sure. Lex nodded, taking Clark's hand. Chloe stared at them as they entered the room, eyes dropping to their entwined hands. "Are you... you're together?" she exclaimed. "Yeah, we are," Clark said quietly. "But you decided not to tell me," she pressed her lips together, "It's Lana all over again." "No, it's not," Clark snapped, "We went straight to Metropolis to visit Lex's family after we..." he paused, realising 'mated' was not a normal relationship type word, "Uh, got together. We only got back this morning." Her eyes were shining, but Chloe sniffed and nodded. "Well, okay, but I still don't get it." Clark shrugged, "I clung even harder to my feelings for Lana when I realised how I felt about Lex. I didn't think Lex could ever... ever love me too, you see." He sighed, glancing at Lex to see a soft smile gracing his lover's face. "I'm sorry if I ever lied to you, but I was lying to myself first." "Oh," Chloe sighed, almost smiling. Lex wrapped an arm round his lover and squeezed him gently, determinedly ignoring the expression of disgust on Pete's face. "But I don't get what you're both doing here. Come on, Clark, if your Dad knew about you two, he'd have a fit, not let you share a bed under his roof!" Pete exclaimed. "There were extenuating circumstances," Lex snorted, remembering his near collapse. Clark stiffened, he still remembered the feeling of horror at seeing his strong lover so vulnerable. Hush, Clark, I'm okay now, Lex thought quietly. Clark nodded. "I doubt it," Pete muttered. "What happened to the castle last night? There's talk all over town about an explosion." Lex was about to respond, and not politely, when his cell phone went off. "Dad, I'm surprised you're phoning so late," he drawled. "Well, that would be because I'm not in Metropolis anymore, I decided it would be safer to absent myself after the attacks on the castle and LuthorCorp." He paused and listened for a moment. "Well, of course, Dad, if you need me... oh I'm sorry, you don't need me, what was I thinking? Yes, Dad, I'll meet you there." Lex hung up and grimaced. "Dad wants me to meet him in Metropolis to discuss the attacks." "No!" Clark exclaimed worriedly, "No, you can't go, you know he thinks you're responsible." "Clark, I have to," Lex said seriously, cupping his lover's face, "We knew this was coming." "I know," Clark whispered, "But I..." What if he tries something? Clark continued mentally. I'll be careful, Lex replied, But I'm going to need you to take care of the girls for me. Clark sighed, "Okay, what are we going to do with them?" "Hang on." Lex quickly dialled a number. "Bruce, hi. Yes... yes of course it was me. Listen, I need an alibi for yesterday... great. One last thing, I'm sending a very close friend to see you. He'll have something for you, I can't say anything over the phone but he'll explain... okay, I'll see you." "What the hell is going on?" Pete exclaimed, "Was that Bruce Wayne? What have you got Clark into?" "Nothing he can't handle," Lex said raising a pointed eyebrow at Clark's young friend. Pete's eyes narrowed and he frowned at them both. "What?!" Chloe snapped, "What the hell is going on?" "I'm sorry, Chloe, explaining this to you guys would only get you into trouble," Clark said regretfully, "We have to go now." "But..." Chloe started. "Leave it," Lex snapped. She glared at him, but subsided. "Mom?" Clark popped his head into the kitchen. "Lex and I have to go now." She sighed, "Okay, honey. Please, be careful." "Always," Clark whispered, "Remember, we were never here, and tell Dad I love him." Lips pressed together tightly, she nodded. "I love you, Clark, come home safe." "I will, Mom," Clark said, hugging her close, "I love you too." Lex patted his back. "Martha, I promise I'll bring him home in one piece." "You'd better, young man," she said with a shaky laugh. "Bye, guys," Clark called out, then bundled Lex hurriedly out of the door. He didn't want to go through any more questioning from his friends. "Let's go quickly." Lex nodded, letting Clark lift him into his arms. Clark ran full speed back to the pack mansion in Metropolis. "Wow," Lex breathed when Clark put him down again. "That is so amazing!" Clark smiled, brushing his mouth over Lex's scalp. They walked into the mansion together, following the noise and laughter to the sitting room. The two Emilys were playing with Tristan and Louis, while Lucius and Helena watched, laughing at their game. "Hi girls," Clark said with a smile. "Hello Clark," one Emily responded, "Hi Mr. Lex." The other grinned shyly. "Why am I Mr. Lex?" Lex asked quietly, stifling laughter. "Children can sense authority," Lucius said with a snort. "Funny guy." Lex pouted at his cousin. "Is it time to go now?" one Emily asked. "Yes," Lex replied, "Clark is going to take you to see a nice man who's going to take care of you until we find your father." "Can we bring bunny?" she asked. "Of course kiddo," Clark said with a smile. "And can Emily have a rabbit too?" Emily asked, blinking anxiously. Lex nodded, "I'm sure Bruce will get you another one." "Okay," the first Emily said, the second nodded. "Come on then." Clark crouched down and held his arms open. They bounded over and he picked them up. "So, babe, where am I taking them?" "Babe?" Lucius said with a snicker. Narrowing his eyes, Lex pursed his lips. You're dead meat, Kent, he thought. "WayneTech Enterprises in Gotham City. Just say I sent you, okay?" Clark grinned. Can't wait, he replied silently to the threat. "Okay. Come here." He stood, hefting the girls in his arms. Lex walked up to his lover and waited. Clark stared into his lover's eyes. Please be careful, he thought quietly, I love you. Lex sighed. Just come back to me as quick as you can, love, I'll be fine, he replied. Lex leaned forward and gently kissed his mate. "I love you too," he whispered. Emily giggled, "You kissed!" "That's right, we did," Lex said lightly, "Go, Clark, I'll see you soon." "Promise," Clark replied. He started running as soon as he left the mansion, praying the whole way to Gotham that Lex would be okay. @>*~ It took Clark over an hour to get there, and find the WayneTech building. He carried the two girls into the foyer. "Can I help you?" Clark looked up at the receptionist, "I'm here to see Bruce Wayne." "I don't think so..." "Lex Luthor sent me," Clark interrupted her. She blinked. "Oh, in that case, take the elevator to the top floor." She pointed down a small corridor off the main foyer. "Come on, girls, let's take a ride." Clark smiled at the two Emilys. They nodded eagerly. The top floor was sixty floors up. Clark sighed, he could have run up the stairs faster. Finally the doors opened, straight out into an enormous office. A dark haired, serious looking man walked towards them. "Well? Come in." "Mr. Wayne?" Clark asked, stepping into the office. "Yes, and you must be Lex's very good friend." Bruce frowned, staring at Clark in a way that made the young man feel very uncomfortable and somehow not quite worthy. "Interesting. In my experience, Lex doesn't have very good friends." Clark crouched down and let the two Emilys stand up. "Things change," he said quietly. The older man raised an eyebrow, "No, they really don't." "Look, I don't have time for this," Clark snapped, "Lex is meeting his father for lunch, I don't want him alone with that son of a..." Clark stopped and glanced at the girls, "That man any longer than necessary." "Well, well," Bruce looked pleasantly surprised, "Could it be that you actually care for him?" "Yes, it could," Clark sighed in annoyance, "Can we get on with this?" "Of course. Won't you sit?" Bruce gestured at a chair. "Emily, Emily, come and say hello to Mr. Bruce," Clark said quietly. "Hello, Mr. Bruce," one Emily said. The other just smiled shyly. "Hello girls," Bruce smiled kindly, "My what pretty girls you both are." "Long story short," Clark said impatiently, "They're both clones, but they're also mutants. One is superfast, the other, we don't know yet. We just want you to take care of them, keep them safe from Lionel Luthor." He stood up, "If I find out you've experimented on them, I'll kill you." Clark was completely serious. He knew the girls weren't mentally stable, but that was no reason not to try and give them a normal life. Bruce started to laugh. "I can see why Lex likes you, that's quite the sense of humour you have there." "Don't patronise me," Clark growled, "Now if you don't mind, I have to be going. Goodbye girls, try and be good, okay?" "Okay, Clark, goodbye," Emily said. The other Emily waved. Clark walked to the door leading to the balcony. "You're going the wrong way," Bruce pointed out. "Is that right?" Clark smiled nastily and jumped over the side. Air rushed past him, but it seemed controlled in an odd way. He hit the sidewalk with no more than a light thud, but he was still proud he'd landed on his feet. Clark took off, running flat out. He had to get back to Lex. @>*~ Lex left the mansion soon after Clark. He wanted to make sure he left his apartment looking ransacked before he met with his father. And he needed to change out of the baggy clothes he'd borrowed from Clark, no matter how much he secretly liked wearing his lover's clothes. Sneaking in carefully, Lex was shocked when he realised his apartment had already been torn apart. "What the..." He felt a sharp prick in his neck, then everything faded to black. @>*~ When Lex woke up, he was bound and gagged in the back of a car. He could hear his father talking, so he kept his eyes closed and his breathing steady as he tested the chains round his wrists. They were too strong, even for him. "Yes, we're on our way. Make sure everything's ready, Dominic... He'll be out for at least an hour more, even with his Wolfbreed heritage. That gives us plenty of time." Lex frowned internally. What the hell was going on? His father... his own father had drugged and abducted him! His mind raced. Lex realised he didn't even know how long he'd been unconscious. He hadn't received any mental calls from Clark though, so he assumed it was still before noon-ish. As long as they hadn't flown while he was out, they were still likely to be in the outer suburbs of Metropolis, so where could they be headed? He thought carefully. West Coolidge! He was sure he'd seen the name mentioned in one of his father's files. Clark! he called mentally, hoping there wasn't a limit over distance. Clark! Lex? What is it? Clark replied. Dad's got me, I think we're headed for West Coolidge, Lex said. I'm on my way, hold tight lover... please, Clark whispered inside his head. I will. Hurry. Lex sighed. The car had finally stopped and somebody dragged him from the car, none too gently. He was carried into a building and down a long flight of stairs. Risking a glance round, Lex was horrified to see it was a huge lab, with white coated scientists scurrying around. How could they have missed this? At one side was a huge cylindrical glass container filled with a greenish liquid and what appeared to be a body floating around inside. Tubes pumped and sucked liquid in and out. Not far from that was what looked like a CT scanner with attachments leading to a computer that was in turn attached to... well, it looked like an electric chair. What did this have to do with replacing him? "Attach him to the scanner table." Lex braced himself, ready to fight as soon as he was unchained. His feet were unlocked, then his hands and Lex opened his eyes, lashing out. His father tutted quietly, then laughed and Lex backed up with a defeated sigh. His father gestured at him with the gun he was holding. "You're going to have to do better than that, Lex. Did you really think I'd assume you were still unconscious?" "I guess not," Lex replied quietly. That his own father could treat him like this still tore at his heart. But he forced those feelings aside, remembering the lives Lionel Luthor had destroyed, the terrible things he'd done. Lex was grateful that he'd turned away from that path, found Clark, that he'd take after his mother and not his father after all. "What's going on?" "You've become... obselete." His father smirked at him. "I'm your son," Lex pointed out. "You're still replacable," Lionel replied, "And after the damage you've done to this company, if we have to replace you a little earlier than planned, then so be it. Strap him down." Glaring at his father, Lex pulled out of the grasp of the two thugs passing as his father's men and got onto the table himself. He was damned if he was going to let his father force him. After stripping him of his jacket and sweater, they strapped him to the table. Lex shivered, it was freezing cold in the lab. He was hooked to various machines, sucker pads stuck to his skin and some device attached to his skull. A large I.V. was inserted into his arm. Lex didn't even want to know what was in the drip, but he started to feel sick and woozy almost immediately. Slowly, his vision constricted and blurred and his hearing dulled until everything was black. @>*~ Clark was still running back from Gotham when he got Lex's call for help. Clark stopped running, nearly feeling his legs give out as the icy fear clutched at his heart. "Lex," he breathed. Clark changed direction, immediately heading for West Coolidge. On the way, he stopped at the first payphone he came to, racking his brain for where Lex might be as he dialled. "Marina? It's Clark," Clark gasped, trying not to panic. "He's taken Lex... To West Coolidge... Yeah, can you remember... Yes! Yes, the warehouse on Fourth. That must be it... Oh thank you, I'll meet you there." Clark took a deep breath, forcing himself under control. He had to hold it together long enough to find and help Lex. Clark ran so fast, he felt maybe he could fly, he certainly didn't seem to be touching the ground. Lex was the most important person, the most important everything, in his life! How could he have let Lex go alone? This was all his fault, yet again! A little less than an hour later, Clark was standing across the road from the warehouse. As he stared into the building, Clark bit his lip hard. Once again, the ground level looked normal and he couldn't scan below. He wanted to rush in there, find Lex and kill his father. But, that wasn't a great idea, he had no clue how many people were down there, and if there was any kryptonite. Then there was the increasingly disturbing fact that he couldn't seem to reach Lex mentally. Suddenly the air was filled with howls, sending a shiver down his spine. "Clark, over here." Clark span round, starting in surprise. "Marina?!" The normally petite, porcelain doll-featured woman was now a hulking, hairy wolf-woman. She grinned, baring needle sharp teeth. "We're all here and raring to go," she chuckled maliciously, "This has been the best weekend ever." Clark made a noise a cross between a chuckle and a sob. "Marina, I don't know what to do." "Hush now, dear, we're going to go in and create some devastation, you just concentrate on finding Lex," she growled, "Don't worry about anything else." "Okay," Clark said with a nod. He took a deep breath. "Let's go." Her reply was to howl, long and clear into the sky. The city seemed filled with answering cries, then dark shapes moved towards the warehouse. Clark ignored the sudden screams as the Wolfbreed attacked, and ran into the warehouse. Anyone involved in Lex's abduction deserved their fate as far as he was concerned, Clark couldn't dredge up an ounce of pity for the LuthorCorp employees. He found the door leading to the lower level steps and flew down, slamming the door open at the base. Clark thought his heart might stop and he froze. Even when some of the pack pushed past him, Clark couldn't move. Two Lexs. There were two Lexs!