Title: Like Father, Like Son…
Author: Jezebel the Temptress
Disclaimers: WB and any other related companies own them. They are certainly not mine.
Rating: PG-13
Categories: AU, First Times, Angst
Summary: Who is the mystery boy at the Planet and why is he asking for Clark Kent's help? ‘

Notes: I've seen a few episodes of Smallville, some of this may be overshadowed however by my years as a fan of Lois and Clark. This has a happier future plan than any WB or the comic book world would feature, Lex and Clark are estranged but not enemies and Superman helps out people, he doesn't vilify them. Basically it takes the Smallville premise and gives it a touch of happy ever after.
Answers challenge: Clark and Lex' first kiss - and only a kiss (Jezebel)

Like Father, Like Son

by Jezebel the Temptress

"Hey CK, there is a kid waiting for you, says he's a friend of yours." Jimmy said as soon as Clark exited the elevator to the newsroom.

As Clark walked into the bullpen his eyes zoomed in on the small boy that sat at his desk, wearing only a pair of jeans and a T-shirt that really didn't suit the cool November day. Lois was keeping a distance, her fear of children obviously making her feel ill at ease with the boy that looked a few years shy of his teenage rebellion phase, which prompted the question of who he was. Clark certainly did not recognise him and the boy was not someone that he would pick out for being in trouble either.

"Hi." Clark said as he passed Zara, his fellow junior reporter who had a carton of juice in one hand and a notebook in the other. "Do you know who the kid is?" He asked, flashing his smile that showed off his whiter than white teeth, an innocent trick he had picked up in college and one that made all the girls swoon. Not that it would do him much good.

"Actually he only wants to speak with you. I knew that those human interest stories would be your downfall, he's probably lost his puppy and wants you to write about it." Zara joked.

Clark smiled but deep down it hurt that she thought that way about his writing, his first piece about the old lady and the theatre that they wanted to tear down had drawn a lot of attention and he didn't only do work for his "Community Column", but that was all they cared about, the cases that he worked with Lois as her Partner were overlooked when they teased him about his solo efforts. Slightly peeved at the veiled criticism he faced the boy in a less than civil mood.

"What do you want?" He requested, feeling a little guilty as soon as the terse words left his mouth.

"Are you Clark Kent?" The boy asked, the outburst apparently not even causing him to flinch, Clark recognised that the boy was well spoken and he had a sudden thought that the kid didn't even really sound American. It added only more layers to the already confusing puzzle.

"I am." Clark allowed. "What can I do for you?"

The small boy looked around, clearly taking a good look at his surroundings as if he was checking that they were safe, it was the type of behaviour that Clark would expect from one of his snitches but not from a very young boy. After all, what did a child this young have to fear, except maybe the monsters under his bed? Any kid that had other things to worry about truly was in need of help.

"I'm John, my father told me that if I ever needed help and he wasn't around I should come to you. He said that you were the only man that I would be able to trust."

"Well, John, that's a nice thing for him to say." Clark said, feeling a little confused but also bathing in the glory of the compliment. There was an awe in the boy's eyes as if he did not respect many people but that he automatically held Clark in high regard on the word of his father. "And do you think that you need help?" He asked, the part of him that was used to playing a Superhero coming through.

"I think that someone is trying to kidnap me." John confided, his voice a touch softer than it had been before but other than that no different. There was no sense of fear in his voice, only one of resignation.

"Why would someone want to kidnap you?" Clark asked, his mind thinking back to Ryan and the people that had chased him. Was that really why John had come in?  Was he scared of his parents or someone else?

"I assume that they want a ransom, although if they think for a moment that my father can be blackmailed they have not done enough research." John said, again pride for his father in his voice but also a little bitterness, perhaps too much for the young boy.

"Why wouldn't he pay?" Clark asked, remembering his own father would have moved heaven and earth to protect him, in the end he had given his life so that his son might live.

"No one blackmails a Luthor." John retorted, his voice harsh and emotionless, and suddenly Clark saw the truth spelled out in six foot neon lights. This was no ordinary boy, this was the heir of one of the biggest and most influential dynasties that had ever walked on the earth. The unknown Luthor baby of nine years ago sat in front of Clark and rather than thinking on the story his first thought was of Lex. He had not seen his former friend in over ten years and now he was faced with his son. Why would Lex send his son to someone that would be a complete stranger to the boy?  Surely Clark wasn't the only man that Lex Luthor trusted, he wasn't even sure if Lex had ever really trusted him after he lied to him time and again about his secret.

"John?" He asked, not questioning the boy so much as his name, after Lionel and Lillian and Lex, Clark had expected a Leopold or a Lindsay, a strong name that the boy could be proud of and more importantly one that began with the letter L.

"It's short for Jonathan. My father wanted me to be named after someone who was strong to the last and someone that he hoped I would be like." John said proudly, not realising that his words had choked Clark more than he would ever know.

"Where is your Dad?" Clark asked, not wanting to dwell on the pain of loss he felt from the mention of his father. Jonathan looked down at his feet, obviously pained now that there was a direct question of his father, and not some practised lie that he was used to telling himself about the great father that he had built up in his mind.  Clark wondered if a younger Lex would have thought this too before he learned the horrific truth of what Lionel Luthor was really like.

"I think he's in Tokyo, maybe it was Kyoto. I don't really remember." John said, his voice shaking slightly. "I know that it was a very important meeting that he tried his best to get out of." The boy added, trying to keep his emotions in check as Clark was sure he had been taught to do.

"I'm sure it will make him a lot of money." Clark replied sagely. He remembered the same from when Lex was his friend. He felt a strong connection with this boy, but for the hand fate had dealt Clark may have played a much more vital role in this boy's life.

"Will you help me?" John enquired, wanting to know if he needed to worry any more or if he was finally safe.

"Of course I will." Clark responded kindly. "Now, why don't you tell me a little more about the people you think are after you?" He said. Jonathan shook his head as he indicated over to Lois who was coming towards them, obviously using her sixth sense that told her the whispering signalled a big story that she did not want to be left out of.

"Hey Smallville, Zara tells me you're finding this boy's puppy but I thought I'd see for myself what it is you two boys are whispering about."

"Lois, this is John, he's the son of a friend of mine. He's in the city on a field trip and promised his parents he'd stop by." Clark said, thinking the excuse up on the spot, with the addition of his killer smile that spoke of his innocence and charm he knew that he could make Lois Lane buy the lie. "We really ought to get you back champ, they'll be wondering where you've gotten to."

"Well, okay…" John said, playing along. If Lois noticed that the boy sounded more like he was from England than Smallville she did not say anything, instead she watched as the two left the floor only a few minutes after Clark had arrived.

As they reached the elevator Clark reached out a hand and put it on John's shoulder, giving the boy a small squeeze of reassurance before letting go. He knew that there was definitely something going on here but rather than a story his mind was on Jonathan's safety, next in line was the things that Lex had said about his father and then him. To be honest, doing a story was the farthest thing from his mind. He wondered what Lois would say to that, she would probably balk at his priorities, probably in the same way she would if she knew that he had known Lex Luthor during his stay in Smallville, a stay that was now well hidden and not talked about.

The same fate that had taken Lex from his life had seen fit to reintroduce his old friend back into it and Clark was one not to look a gift horse in the mouth. There was some unresolved issues from the last ten years but he was finally getting the chance to settle them. He wondered where John would fit into it all.

-----------------

Clark had taken John out to a diner that he knew just around the corner from the Planet and was surprised when the child did not know what to order. He supposed that as any Luthor child would be he had been used to having breakfast served to him by the servants and had not ever really been out and about to restaurants and diners.  Clarke ordered two full breakfasts and vowed to show John just what he had been missing with the traditional family breakfasts that the boy had missed. While they waited for their meals Clark asked John a few more questions about what was going on.

"So, what makes you think that you're going to be kidnapped?" Clark asked. "And who do you think is trying to do it?"

Clark tried to keep his questions open ended enough that he was not leading the boy but enough to elicit the information that he required. Contrary to the belief of his work colleges he was a good investigative reporter as well as writing his feel-good pieces. After all, it was he that had first discovered that Senator Hogan had been taking bribes and that AmeriCorp was poisoning fish off of the coast with it's pollutants, it was just that Lois had shared his by-line because he was not yet a senior reporter. Clark hoped it wouldn't always be that way.

"My father hired a new chief of staff the other week, someone called Lucas, he checked out as far as security went but I don't think that he's any good. I told Dad this but he said that he had checked the man out and that that was the end of it. Then I overheard Lucas on the phone to one of his cronies saying that he was going to take me to the secret location tonight and that he would make that Luthor Bastard pay." John said, there was a tone to his voice that surprised Clark, one of complete detest for the man that worked for his father.

"And where were you when you overheard this?" Clark asked, trying to get a better picture of what was going on.

"I was in my father's study." John said matter of factly, as if it was the most logical place in the world for a young boy to be. "I wanted to check the stock prices before my tutor arrived." Clark wasn't sure what to say to that, it was the sort of thing he would have imagined a young Lex saying but this boy was nothing like the Lex he knew and was a lot more mature than most nine year olds that he had met.

"So you heard this call and came straight to me?" Clark asked, this caused John to look away.

"Actually I tried to call my father first, but he was not available. Then I tried Ford, our head of security, but he was not there either, probably in whatever meeting my father was in. Dad always said to go to you if there was no other option because you were the only other person he would trust."

"I'll try to help as much as I can."

"There is one other thing." John said, not sure whether he ought to or not but knowing that if he was truthful that Clark might be too. Clark tilted his head to the side, an open expression as if indicating for John to continue. "I know, about Superman…" John said, keeping his voice low and checking that no one else was listening.

Clark wanted to reply but the waitress came over with their orders, two large plates and a jug of juice to accompany it. As soon as she was gone Clark looked up, carefully eyeing the boy as if to find out what it was he was saying. Surely the kid could not know his secret, he was so careful not to show to anyone else who he was, even the few times he had saved Lois Lane she had not realised who he was.

"Dad figured it out." John added after she was gone. "I only said because I'm not sure exactly what your powers are and because I know what it is like. Having a secret identity that you have to hide the whole time in case people want to use you or exploit you for it."

Clark felt a new level of understanding of exactly what it was like for John and wondered if this was a lot of what Lex had gone through too. It would certainly explain a lot about why Lex was so closed off by the time he came to Smallville and why he had found it so hard to trust. Was that why even 10 years after he had left Smallville Clark Kent was one of Lex Luthor's only friends? It certainly put things into perspective for Clark. The only remaining question now was what they did to stop the kidnappers.

"I promise I won't tell." John added, slightly uneasy at the long and relatively uncomfortable silence that had taken place. He had sincerely believed that it was the right thing to do, he didn't know if Clark read minds or not but some of his father's stories of Smallville had told of such things. John assumed that it was better to be upfront than alienate Clark because he knew that the boy was lying.

"I know you won't." Clark said.

It was true. He believed the boy whole heartedly as he would once have believed such a statement from John's father. There was a certain look that Lex had when he was telling the truth, almost a pained honesty and John shared that now.

"Now, eat your breakfast before it gets cold." Clark admonished playfully, reaching for a fork and digging in to the full breakfast with the gusto that he always attacked his food.

He wasn't a growing 15 year old anymore but he still loved to eat whenever possible and was glad that he didn't have to worry about piling on the pounds, he had finally stopped growing at 18, standing a full 6'6" in height and built with hardly an ounce of fat on him, whatever he seemed to eat it would not notice on his figure, even after a week of just HoHos and Twinkies.

"Clark?" John asked after a few moments, having eaten a sizeable portion of his own breakfast. Clark Kent looked up from his nearly clean plate and saw a question in the boy's eyes, he wondered what it was that had the boy watching him with such wonderment.

"Yeah?" He replied, trying to keep his own expression open, as if inviting questions.  He knew what it was like to be a child so full of questions about the world and wondered if John had someone to answer them.

"What was my Dad like at my age?"

"I don't know." Clark replied honestly. John's face fell slightly as his lips formed an 'oh', Clark decided that he would instead tell his son the possibly worse tales of Lex Luthor aged 21, the reckless young man that he had seen grow into a consummate businessman in less than a year. "I first met your father when I was 15, he was 21 then, only just a man but so full of the joys of life…"

Clark began to recount the tale of their meeting on the bridge, of saving the man, adding all of the details including ripping off the roof and going on to chronicle the unlikely but rewarding friendship that the pair had shared. By the time both of them had finished their breakfast Clark had reached the end of his Freshman year in High School, telling of his crush on Lana and his fumbled relationship with Chloe.

John smiled, a genuine grin that reached his eyes as Clark spoke of girls and love. He supposed that the kid was still at that early stage before sex and sexuality become an issue. He had hoped that John was more innocent in that department than he seemed to be in other areas of his life and thankfully the child did not seem completely jaded yet.

"Did you know my Mom?" John questioned at a relevant break in Clark's tales. The boy's questions had so far been limited to Lex's behaviour and one about Lionel that Clark had fielded diplomatically but he had not expected to hear John ask about his mother. He had assumed that Lex had told his son what had happened, or at least that John would have found out from somewhere.

"Maybe that's something you should speak to your father about." Clark said, watching as John's face clouded over before being replaced with a blank mask. He wondered what he had said that was wrong but John nodded obediently and did not ask again.  "Did you ever know her?" Clark asked, wanting to see what it was that John knew.

"She died when I was a baby." John said flatly. "I don't even know what she looked like." It was clear to Clark that this was obviously not an area of his life that Lex was open about, that caused him to wonder how much time Lex even spent with his son.  John certainly seemed independent, Clark wondered how the boy had even gotten to the planet that day.

"Jonathan, I don't know if I should tell you this, there are some things that you don't know about things back then. Maybe you're too young…"

Clark stopped himself from completing the phrase when he saw the pleading on John's face, the mask was gone and he could see into the soul of a boy that he had mistaken for a Luthor, he remembered his father's words 'You can't trust a Luthor', but more than being his father's son John was just a boy. Just a boy that had never even known the love of a mother or even known what she had looked liked. Clark remembered the agony of not knowing his birth family, even when he had found the orb it had hurt him to think he would never know them. Now he felt that John was going through the same thing.

"Okay, I'll tell you, but I think we need to be somewhere a little more quiet." Clark said. John smiled widely, although this one did not quite reach his eyes and Clark knew that the complete respect that John had held for him was now something he would have to earn back. "We can go to my apartment, it's not a lot, at least not by the scale of the Penthouse but I'm sure we will be uninterrupted at this time of day."  John nodded and stood to follow Clark, who paused only to throw a few bills on the table before they went. When they got outside he led John into an alley and span fast, changing into his red, yellow and blue outfit as he did so.

"So, we're flying." John said, slightly amused.

"It's cheaper than a taxi." Clark countered, he was glad that they could joke but at the back of his mind he could see the conversation ahead and hoped that he would at least remember the humour after he had heard the dark tale of the past. It would certainly take a lot out of Clark to tell it.

---------------------------

Once they arrived back at the modest apartment Clark wasted no time in changing back into his civilian clothes and settling John in the lounge with a soda and then taking a seat himself, he took a few deep breathes to steady himself, and then thought back to the times when he was still too young to know much about the world and too selfish to care. It hurt to think back to those times, times when Clark's life had been thrown into turmoil, but he would do it for the boy in front of him, and maybe in doing so he could stop a third generation from becoming a cast from the same Luthor mould.

"It was the middle of the Summer in my Freshman year, a turbulent time with little to do but rebuild the lives that had shattered that Spring… It was a difficult Summer.  The large storm had thrown Smallville and the area into chaos, trees, phone- lines…everything that had been rooted down was ripped from the earth in a storm of the likes that Smallville had never seen, nor hopes to see again. The destruction had been better than the meteor shower but it left very few people unaffected. I'd just learned to fly, something that had come in handy when I saved Lana Lang from a tunnel, but it turned out that I couldn't save everyone…" Clark began to tell the story, feeling the emotions over take him as he did so and wondering if time itself was pulling him as he felt himself drifting back to the days that followed the storm.

~~~

--2002--

Clark didn't really know what to do with himself, there was not a lot to do around the farm and his mother was certainly in no fit state to give him chores. The hospital was not open for another few hours yet but he could not sleep because of the guilt he felt about what had happened. Jonathan Kent lay in a coma fighting for his life having risked going out in the storm to stop Roger Nixon, the reporter had seen the space ship and had threatened Clark's life. When he should have been saving his father from the high winds Clark had been out on the other side of the town, pulling Lana from her car, by the time he had gotten to his house it was too late. Nixon was dead and he had not been there for the man that had been his father.

A few months before he would have tried Lex, perhaps asked if he could go over or maybe even gone to see Pete and his brothers who were always doing something or other. Now though there was too much else to think of.

Lex had already lost his own father to the storm, a beam in the castle had fallen and hit Lionel Luthor, killing him almost instantaneously. Whatever had happened in that room with Lionel Clark would never know but Lex had started to take on all the roles of LuthorCorp and had begun to run the office as soon as possible, he had taken over using both his father and mother's stock to sway the board. He was now in Metropolis heading the company. His only concession was re-opening the Smallville plant and handing it over to the workers, knowing that they would run it themselves.

Pete's brother had been out driving when the storm started, on his way back for Spring Break from Kansas State where he played football, he'd been in an accident and though it was minor the whole Ross family had pulled together to spend more time as a group, wanting the reminder of their mortality to mean that they could spend more time as a unit.

Chloe had gone to Metropolis as planned, her first assignment complete even before she left as she wrote of the devastation after the storm, but even she had not had time for Clark, she called to inquire on his father and on Pete, but after the Spring Formal she had not wanted anything else to do with Clark, not when he had abandoned her.  For the first time in his so far sheltered life Clark Kent was alone.

Clark decided that he would break all of the rules that his father had laid down about his powers and run into Metropolis, maybe do some shopping or better yet something reckless, he needed to get out more and assert his independence, after all, what was the point of being fifteen if you didn't meddle with a little teenage rebellion.

---

After the first trip to Metropolis Clark began to go out regularly, clubbing late at night or flying as far as he could just to see how far he could go. It was a good time, he was burying himself in alcohol, and upset that it only had a mild affect on him, as did most of the soft drugs that his friends had played around with. He was always sober a few hours after taking a drink and never felt a hangover the next morning.

It was on one of these sojourns into the city that he had met Evelyn Jones. She was a relatively plain girl, short brown hair in a boyish style and no real sense of what was the latest fashion, not really someone that would have stood out from the crowd for most people but she stood out to Clark. She was nursing a coke at the bar when he saw her, he could tell by the fizz and colour of it that it was not watered down by any alcohol which meant that like him, and unlike other members of the audience at the gig she was sober.

"Hi. I'm Clark Kent." He had said, holding out a hand and introducing himself. He rarely talked to anyone while he was out at these parties but she had intrigued him.

"Evelyn." She said with a soft smile. "But my friends call me Evie."

"And where might these friends be?" Clark asked. "There seems to be something wrong with them leaving you all alone at the bar while they party." He said, bringing a wider and he thought sweeter smile to her face. It seemed to make her entire being light up, Clark knew at that moment that she was perhaps the most beautiful woman in the world, if he had been that way inclined he would have fallen in love just from that smile, but after the fumbled relationship with Chloe and the faltering attraction to Lana Clark had decided that women were not for him. There was only one person he would love and Lex was not gay.

"I'm not alone." Evie said playfully. "At least not now you're here."

"I guess not." Clark had answered. And then he had offered to buy her another coke.

It was hardly the beginning of a beautiful friendship, but Evie, like Clark, had been out trying to forget her own life and rebel a little against her parents. Clark never asked who they were and years later would wonder if he should have, but the pair spent a lot of that Summer together, drinking, partying and trying in their own ways to find out what their place really was in the world.

It was nearly September when Clark heard the news of his father, he had come in from a night out to find his mother crying into the shoulder of one of the nurses, her eyes more hollow than he remembered as she sobbed as if she had lost her one true love. After a few moments Clark realised that this was exactly what had gone on.

Clark's immediate reaction was rage, at the nursing staff, at his mother, at his father and most of all at himself, he was the reason that his father had been out in the field in the first place and the reason that he had not been saved. Now he was too selfish to even be there when his father passed away.

"Clark?" His mother had asked, her voice hollow and weak, but he had been too buried in his own grief to go to her, instead running, thankfully not at top speed until he got to the loft that had been his home. Even after it stood in rubble, pulled apart by the strength in his hands into a pile of wood and splinters there was still a rage inside him. It was that same rage that drove him back to Metropolis and onto the streets, desperate for some way to lose himself.

---

That was the night that Clark had discovered hard drugs, they said that it only took one attempt to get hooked, but one attempt was all that Clark needed. Two lines of cocaine and a few shots of absinthe later Clark was feeling a happy buzz, he didn't know that the drugs were actually making him think things that were not really happening and after his third shot of absinthe he began to hallucinate, seeing the green fairy that they all spoke of. He had thought that this was a myth but alcohol that was 70% proof was likely to mess with your head.

Clark remembered very little of that night and what he was aware of was mixed in with the hallucinations and manifestations that were brought on by the alcohol. The next thing that Clark remembered was waking up in a police cell, Evelyn next to him with streaks of her make up down her face from crying and a policeman yelling at him to wake up.

"I said, you've got one phone call."

Clark remembered realising that he couldn't phone his mother, not after what had happened to his father earlier that day, it would devastate her to know that her son was doing drugs and drinking heavily. He knew that Evelyn too would not be able to call her parents, he did not know exactly who they were but he knew that they were powerful people and that they did not take it well that she was even going out at all, let alone that she was drinking.

All of that taken into account Clark had nothing else to do and called the one person that he thought that he could trust other than his parents to get him out of there. He wanted to tell the other man that this was all his fault anyway but he didn't know how and in his not so lucid state Clark barely even remembered calling Lex, or leaving the message that he had answered.

It took half an hour for Lex to arrive, he seemed more worn than Clark had last remembered seeing him, but it was nothing more than Clark had expected, he had called the other man at 3am with little explanation other than that he needed someone to bail him out of jail. Lex, being the only friend that Clark had in the city with the means to do so, came as soon as he could.

"It's good to see you enjoying the recklessness of youth." Lex said as he walked into the holding area, no laughter in his suddenly too hollow voice. His coat billowed behind him as he walked, as if a signal of his power, Clark smiled, the drugs still in his system seemed to give him a greater sense of the melodramatic.

"Hiya Lex." Clark said in a higher pitched voice than he had intended. "Thanks for coming out."

"That's okay Clark. Gabe called to tell me the news, I wasn't expecting this but I thought that you could do with a friend. All I can say is that when you party you certainly do so in style."

"Can you get us out?" Evelyn asked, slightly worried at the air of nonchalance that this man had. She could almost smell his power and that worried a timid girl such as she was.

"Ah yes, Clark's partner in crime. Ms. Evelyn Jones, daughter of the banker Howard Jones. You certainly know how to pick your playmates too Clark. Did you know that Ms. Jones has her coming out ball next month, certainly not the emerging social butterfly her parents were expecting."

"Please…they mustn't know." Evelyn said, her eyes filling with tears. Clark wanted to comfort her but instead saw Lex take out a key and open the cell, taking her under his wing as if she were a baby bird that had fallen from its mother's nest. Clark had never seen this side of Lex before.

"Don't worry, I've talked to the custody sergeant, Clark here will be kept in so that they keep an eye on him. Just until he's sober, but we must get you home."

"I can't…" Evelyn said worrying at her bottom lip with her teeth. "My father will be beyond angry."

"I'll deal with your father." Lex had said before taking her away. Clark remembered watching as Lex put his arm around Evelyn and walked out of the cell. That was the last time he saw either of them.

~~~

"What happened?" John asked, having heard a cleaner story of the grief of Clark losing his father and getting a little drunk. No drugs and only the police cell included, not the assault and battery charges either that Lex had managed to get dropped. Clark had been cleared of all wrong doing but vowed to sort his life out and never drink again. "Why did you tell me that story? What does all this have to do with my mother?"

"Well, it turns out that Lex's dealing with it included speaking with Evelyn's father.  He told the old man that they were dating, or that they had talked about it and then he began to court her. By the time of her coming out party she was a month into a relationship with one of the most eligible bachelors in high society. Howard Jones was so happy that he overlooked the one late night. Especially when Evelyn and Lex announced their engagement."

"So I was the result of some deal?" John asked, his voice filled with hate. Clark shook his head.

"I don't really know the full details, all I know is that three months later there was a small piece in the Daily Planet announcing that the couple had gotten married in a secret ceremony, only your mother's family was invited and a year later you were born." Clark told the boy.

He had tried to follow Lex's life, his personal life however was safely guarded, unlike his business life which was all over the pages of the world's media as billions became yet more billions and he worked his way up the corporate ladder far exceeding everyone's expectations.

"And my Mom?" John asked, Clark wished that he had not started this now as it was the hardest part of the story to tell.

"She died shortly after you were born. I don't know how, I just know that Lex stepped out of the media spotlight for a while in order to deal with things…" Clark said.

John was silent for a long time, as if trying to process all of the information that he had been given. Clark allowed him the time that he needed, remembering what it had been like to accept that his father was dead, or when he had first found out that he was not of this earth and that his parents were not in fact his parents at all. After a few minutes Clark excused himself to let John have some privacy, he could see that the boy needed to cry and was aware that being a Luthor that was probably a very quiet and personal thing.

When he checked back a few moments later John was asleep and after covering him with a blanket Clark took his time to think over what he had told John and what they were going through. He checked the perimeter of his apartment, making sure that they were safe from any would be kidnappers and then settled down to watch John sleep, he didn't even notice as it took over him too and soon both were dead to the world, as if there was nothing for them to worry about and no one out there looking for them.

-------------------

Lex Luthor was in the middle of an important business meeting with his Japanese cohorts when he heard that Jonathan was missing, he had called Ford, his personal guard and assistant earlier to check on his son and halfway through hearing a presentation on the future of microchip technology received a call that John's tutor had not seen him that day. Lex felt the pain of loss immediately, a pain that he had not felt in eight years and wondered where his son could be. He had never meant to neglect his son but he was the spitting image of his mother and that pained him. Now with Jonathan missing Lex could not help but wonder if he had done the right thing in bringing John up as a Luthor. Evelyn had wanted their son to go to school in England where no one would know him but Lex had overruled her decision when it came to choosing a school, opting instead for a series of old masters to privately tutor his son and heir. Lionel had sent Lex to school and he had hated every minute of it but when Evelyn had died Lex had suddenly been faced with the task of bringing up the boy alone.

It was unclear whether John had run away or if he had been kidnapped, Lex's private security force told him that it was best to wait and see but Lex had other ideas, he had a friend who owed him a favour and he was pretty sure that he could get the man to track his son, all he needed was a little time and patience and to make sure that no one else got involved, especially if there was to be a ransom demand.

Unfortunately his staff in Metropolis, trying to impress their employer, had called in the police already. This meant that Lex would be forced to endure their incompetence while his own men found the boy that meant the world to Lex. John was all that was left of Evelyn but also was his only tie to the humanity that had died in Lex so young, his son made him care about the world again in a way that no one had since his brief friendship with Clark and his love affair with Clark's friend Evie, if he lost John too then there was no hope of him being a better man than his father because if he could not learn from the past he was, as the adage says, destined to repeat it.

"We'll find him." Ford said, placing a conciliatory and unprofessional hand on Lex's shoulder.

From anyone else such a break of decorum would have been a sacking offence but since stumbling across the other man five years before Lex and Ford as he was now known had built a tentative friendship, the type that occurred when two men were completely lost and alone in the world and had suffered wounds from more than one battle with the world. Ford knew what it was like to lose your family and everything that you had in the world, Lex knew because he was the reason that Ford had rebuilt his life. Now as he looked up at the slightly younger man he wondered if seeing Smallville again would hurt him as much as it would hurt Lex. After all to the small town of 45 thousand Whitney Fordman was dead, how would they feel about their honoured hero coming home?

-----------------

The police had started a full scale search for the nine year old as soon as the report came in, not only because it was a child that was missing and they could all feel for the father but because the mayor was breathing heavily down their Captain's neck to get a result and they all knew that Lex Luthor was a large contributor to the widow's trust and many other police affiliated organisations. It would not do to annoy him.

A tip off placed a young boy fitting the description (albeit an anonymous one) that they had put out had been seen at a diner shortly after breakfast time that morning, about the time that the kid was first reported missing. The woman that reported it could not only describe the man that was with him but also name him, she even showed them the column he wrote in the paper. She knew that it was him because his picture was printed right next to the by-line with his name on it.

The police knew that this was their most significant lead and also knew that the recovery time would be a good boost to their egos, after all, they were about to rescue Lex Luthor's darling son and heir and in doing so they would be able to say that they had done so with maximum efficiency. Sure Clark Kent was a man of the people, he had a way with words, but no one was above corruption and it appeared that whoever this man was he had thought that he was above the law. When coming up against Lex Luthor he should have known that he would lose, no one went up against Metropolis' favourite son.

Clark was contemplating going out to do a sweep of the city as Superman when he saw him, a man with a rifle and sight on the opposite building to his apartment, he could hear them too in the corridor, at first he thought it was an elaborate set up to abduct Jonathan from him, until he heard the familiar codes used by the police. As Superman he had heard a lot of this type of talk on missions to talk down jumpers or deal with armed robbers, he knew what enough of it meant to know that he was in trouble. If he had not known that all eyes were already on his apartment he would have changed into Superman, being the man of steel was the perfect alibi after all, but he could not risk them finding out his secret nor could he risk the fact that Jonathan would get caught in the cross fire.

A few minutes later when the door was smashed open using a small battering ram Clark already lay on the floor with his hands over his head. He didn't want to risk one of them trying to shoot him and realising that he did not die but he also didn't want a stray bullet finding it's way into John's body and harming the boy. Clark had nearly ruined his mother's life as well as his father's and he would not do the same to the boy.

"Down on the floor…" The lead investigator shouted as he ran in, reaching for his cuffs as others sealed the perimeter and pointed their automatic weapons at Clark.  The police seemed on edge at the fact that he had complied so freely, he knew that it was because he had nothing to hide, he only hoped that they would see it that way too.

"Where is he?" A cop shouted as he pressed the point of his gun into Clark's cheek, as if the cold steel would intimidate him, Clark supposed that for a mortal who had to fear the bullet it would put the fear of God into them. "Where is the boy?"

"What have you done with him, Kent?" Another voice asked, Clark wondered if they were supposed to be playing Good Cop, Bad Cop, because in his mind both of them seemed to be acting badly.

"He's asleep. On the sofa." Clark said, trying to talk clearly with his nose flattened down into the carpet as the other man pushed his face down. "At least he was."

"We've got him, Captain.," a quieter voice called out, Clark realised that they had probably brought in a female police officer in case the boy was traumatised in any way. Of course they really didn't know John if they thought that would help, even after only a few minutes Clark had noticed that Jonathan was uneasy around women, his reaction to Lois had shown that, he supposed it was because he had grown up in such a male oriented household.

"Clark?" John called out worriedly, still half asleep and trying to sit up in a confused state. Clark could not see what was going on exactly but the reflection in one of the officer's glasses was enhanced easily and he saw the fear on John's face. "Clark, where are you?"

"It's okay." Clark soothed, only to have his face pushed down hard by the policeman that was standing over his back. He assumed that he was not supposed to talk to the boy, despite how scared he was.

"You don't understand…" John tried to reason, only to find himself shushed by the female officer who was there to calm him. Clark felt the cold metal of the tight cuffs as they were forced over his wrists, he was sure that the officer who was doing it was taking great joy in causing him pain, thankfully it would not leave bruises or breakages, at least not on him.

"Clark Jerome Kent, I am arresting you for the abduction and false imprisonment of Jonathan Julian Alexander Kent. You have the right to remain silent, you have the right to an attorney…" He blocked out the officer who was reading him his Miranda rights, he knew them off by heart anyway, had heard an officer dole them out to a criminal Superman had stopped a hundred times, Clark was more worried about Jonathan who they were leading from his apartment wrapped in the blanket that Clark had covered him with. The stupid thought that this was a blanket his Grandma had knitted crossed Clark's mind but then his eyes fell on John's expression, one of complete fear and one that reminded him so much of Evelyn that it shocked him to the core. Clark knew that he had let the boy down and that chances were John would be delivered back into the hands of the very people that had been planning his abduction and all the while Clark Kent and Superman would be powerless to stop it.

"Please. You have to take him to his father…" Clark said, but then he felt the butt of one of the officer's guns smash into the back of his head, while it didn't damage him it still caused a blast of pain, although probably nothing like it would cause a regular human being.

"You stay away from Mr. Luthor! You're not even fit to say his name," the officer ordered, contempt for Clark clear in his voice.

Clark briefly wondered what they thought it was he had done to Lex or what it was that they thought he had done to Jonathan but none of them knew the truth and as he was carted down the stairs, pushed so that he stumbled on more than one step as they kept him moving forward Clark wondered if he would even get out of this alive.  Some days it would have paid to be just a Superhero, no matter what he did Superman could get away with anything, but as just a man Clark Kent was being arrested for trying to help a friend, if he had not put his whole faith in Justice Clark might have seen something ironic in that.

--------------------

Lex stared at the forlorn little boy who stood in front of him, looking less than his nine years as he stood at ease, hands behind his back and head bowed in front of the desk in his father's study.

Lex barely knew what to do with the boy, he had never really known what to do with him. Children were meant to have two parents, sure there were some really amazing people that coped alone but Lex was not one of them. He had never dealt well with having other people relying on him, at least not for emotional support. He had been aware that he would have to discipline the boy, talk to him about business and sports but he had always assumed that Evelyn would be there to deal with the other parts, it wasn't until after her death that Lex found himself unable to deal with them himself.

"I'm sorry." Jonathan mumbled, knowing that he was supposed to stand straight and speak clearly but not having the strength. "I thought…"

Lex felt a flood of empathy for the boy, he remembered standing in a similar position in front of his father's desk, then being leant over the desk as he took his punishment from the thick leather strap and making sure that he took it like a man. He did not want John to have the same fear that he had. In a move so unlike him that it shocked the other two people in the room Lex went to John and hugged him, holding him tighter than he had ever thought possible.

"It's not your fault." Lex murmured softly. "We'll get to the bottom of this."

As he pulled back Lucas Avery his new chief of staff and head butler came in, carrying a tray laden with juice, biscuits and even a plate of scones covered in jam and cream, just as Jonathan had liked. However it did not escape Lex's attention that this man's presence made the boy flinch as he had never seen him do before, not even the one time he had tried to discipline the boy.

"Thank you Lucas. That will be all for tonight." Lex said, making sure that the other man heard him. Lucas looked up, and nodded, leaving the room without saying a word as all good servants did.

"Ford." Lex called, never having called the other man Whitney and knowing that he did not need to. "I want that man out of my employ by morning and I want you to persuade him to confess whatever crime he has committed to the police."

"Sir." Ford replied, a slight pause as he reached down to ruffle Jonathan's hair. Ford was the only member of staff other than those hired specifically to care for him that had contact with the boy, and he was the only one who was allowed this level of informality. He was the closest thing to a friend that Lex had allowed in his life and even he was an employee when all was said and done. Lex could not allow himself to build bonds because they only led to betrayal.

"Jonathan." Lex said as he moved to sit on the sofa, reaching for the juice that Lucas had brought in. "I want you to tell me exactly what happened today, from the beginning and don't leave anything out."

John nodded, faltering before moving over to the sofa and sitting next to his father, as he told of his travel to the Planet and then his meeting with Clark Kent the boy's eyes lit up slightly. Lex wondered if Clark had had the same effect on his son as he'd had on a younger Lex Luthor, acting as a brightness in an otherwise dark world. Being the only one that didn't want him for who he was. It appeared from the way he spoke as if that was exactly what Jonathan had thought about Clark Kent, Lex only hoped that his son would not be disappointed when he found out that his new idol had feet of clay.

"I swear, I tried to tell them that he was helping me." Jonathan said as he retold in full detail how the police had arrested and detained Clark Kent, using the fullest legal force despite his going quietly. "They didn't listen to me, they just didn't listen."

Jonathan went silent after that, he had told his story and didn't know what else was expected of him, he could feel the tears welling in his eyes, the lump in his throat and the only thought on his mind was that it was his fault that Clark was in prison but no matter what he could not cry, because that was something that Luthors didn't do.

"It's okay." Lex found himself saying, knowing that he needed to give the boy some level of comfort but not exactly sure what he could give. He pulled the boy closer to him and patted his shoulder, Lex was surprised when the boy hugged him tightly and he knew that his son had been through a trauma that he would never forget. If he was to make sure that it did not scar the boy as much as Lillian's death had scarred him he would need help in teaching the boy emotional stability.

Lex comforted the boy as best he could and waited until the exhausted and emotionally wrought nine year old fell asleep. Then, careful not to wake him Lex shifted slightly, covering Jonathan with an easily accessible (and probably highly expensive) throw he let the boy sleep, he had other places to be and other things to sort out.

--------------------

Clark had been dragged out of his apartment a while after they had escorted Jonathan out. Any attempt Clark made at either protesting his innocence or trying to work out where they were taking Jonathan was met with a sharp disapproval which one or other of the three officers holding with him expressed with a poke of a boot or a pressure on vital areas of his anatomy with the butt of a gun. Clark was pretty sure that had he been human and bruisable then he would be a large mess of blue and purple, thankfully for him he was neither but it had still been an ordeal that he would rather not repeat.

By the time they had reached the precinct another ten officers had told him exactly what they thought of the type of scum that would kidnap the only son and heir of their cities most rich and influential business man. Clark felt like the soldier that had harmed the rich landowner's daughter, except rather than locking him in the dungeon he had to deal with the holding cells.

For his own safety Clark was given his own cell, a small room with no real light which might have well been a dungeon.  The news of his arrest and the story of a kidnap (although not whose child it was that he had taken) was all over the news and there was a rumour already spreading that he was going to get beaten up as soon as he went into the general prison populace, people hated those that hurt children, even convicted felons.

The cell smelled of dirt, sweat and grime; of course not all criminals were dirty, a lot of the ones that he had dealt with as Superman wore suits and ran corporations, but the police did not know that the man they had locked away was Superman, nor could he let them find out. Not when Superman's first value was truth and he had lied for so long about who he was, and his credibility, not only as a journalist but also as a role model would be gone forever.

Clark's mind flew back to the last time he had seen the inside of a police cell, the time that he had told Jonathan about earlier that day, the last time that he had seen Lex Luthor. Unfortunately Clark had no phone call except to his lawyer, a friend he had helped out once before, and there was no way that these charges were going to go away. Abduction was a serious offence, much more serious than drunk and disorderly would have been and he knew that there was no way out this time.

"Kent?" A gruff voice called out as Clark tried to relax on the bunk, even though it was not screwed down tightly and he was afraid that it would break under his super strength. "Turns out that this is your lucky day, you've got a visitor."

Clark stood up, not sure what to expect and saw a smiling Lois coming through the door.

"You've got two minutes." The gruff custody officer told Lois Lane, intrepid reporter, as she handed him a twenty dollar bill and flashed him her million dollar smile.

"Clark, my God, we never expected this. I mean, you're not doing some kind of expose or something are you? I told Perry that is what it must be because there is no way that you did what they said you did." Lois babbled, obviously nervous. That was never a good sign because in the few years he had known her Clark Kent had never seen her nervous.

"I did it." Clark said flatly. "Or at least in their eyes I did."

"But you said he was a friend's kid, someone that you knew. If nothing else we can tell them that he came to you and you didn't steal him away like some weirdo." Lois protested and Clark began to see the signs that she was a friend, that she really cared.  "I swear, we'll get to the bottom of this, and when we do I'll make sure that you're front page of the Planet with an apology from the DA."

Ah, there it was, the real reason that she was here. Clark should have known that it was about more than friendship, with Lois there was always an ulterior motive.

"Don't worry Lois. Martin is coming in. I'll be okay." Clark said. Lois looked at him pointedly, a little upset that he was not thanking her more for her help, and Clark knew that she was here more for the story than she was for his sake. It hurt a little but he knew that she was just a good reporter, she would always get her story because it always came first, even above her own safety.

"Two minutes are up." The same officer from before said.  Clark was pretty sure that they had had barely a minute but he didn't want another beating, it might not bruise but it was still a waste of time and it was hard not to fight back but he knew that doing so would give away his super-strength. He watched Lois leave and felt a part of his heart leaving too, his job wasn't safe even if he got off, the Planet did not need this type of scandal, especially not only for a junior reporter. For someone of Lois' calibre they might go out on a limb, but not for some small time writer of feel good stories like Clark Kent, they could get any hick from Nowheresville to write those type of puff pieces. He wondered if that was what hurt the most, that Clark Kent, the man that he had always wanted to be, was expendable and yet his alter ego, a man that he had never really wanted to be but was born to be, was not.

A little more subdued than he had been before Lois' disastrous visit and a little more drained Clark settled onto the uncomfortable bench and tried his best to rest. He didn't really need sleep as such but he needed to rest up mentally for the fight that he would have on his hands. He only hoped that when his lawyer got there he had better news.

-------------------------

Lex took Ford's transit to the police station, with the head of security insisting on driving him. While this was something that he would rather do alone when he saw the gathered press outside Lex was glad that he had the other man there for support and back up. If nothing else Ford was built bigger than he had been in High School, a lot bigger and he was an experienced football player and crowd controller. He could push the entire press out of the way and get Lex through if it came to it, although Lex hoped that it would not be that bad.

Thankfully when the police officer who was holding them back saw the approaching truck he must have recognised the occupant as he waved them around the back and pointed them to the staff parking, at least this way it would not appear in tomorrow's papers that Lex Luthor had been at the jail where Clark Kent, budding newspaper journalist and rising star of print was being held. It would not take much for some plucky reporter with a good nose for a story to dig up the past that he had tried so hard to bury.

"Mr. Luthor. We were going to send someone to you to take a statement in the morning. We understand that at times like this it is best to be with your family." The officer at the front desk told him.

Lex had to give it to the man, he had balls for approaching a Luthor that was on the war path, of course the other man did not know that Lex was angry.

"I want to see the detective in charge of my son's case." Lex said. He did not even offer a request but merely issuing the statement as if it were an order. Even Ford, who had spent years as a Marine, would not have argued with the man when he was in this state.

"Of course." The front desk sergeant agreed, picking up a phone and calling the man down immediately, telling him that Mr. Luthor was here and that he wished to speak with him urgently. Lex gave the man credit, when he arrived in the Foyer a few moments later he did not even look flushed, even though he must have run a long way to get there.

"Mr. Luthor. What can I do for you?" The detective asked politely. "I assure you that we are doing everything in our power to deal with this quickly and sensitively."

"I want to see the man that you have in custody." Lex stated. The detective blanched, he had just spoken to the Mayor, who had in turn been contacted by the Senator, they were to deal with this swiftly and cooperage with the Luthors any way they were required to, the last thing he needed was a call from the president which could have been Luthor's next stop. Despite the illegal and unorthodox request the detective knew that it was more than his job was worth to refuse it. Lex Luthor was not a man that you said "No" to, no matter what the question.

----------------------

"Kent, you've got another visitor. You sure are popular tonight." The guard said as he yelled into the darkness, and threw on the lights in the cell, waking Clark from the uneasy sleep that he had been trying to maintain. The cell was too quiet and he could hear the bustle outside, no matter how much he tried to block it out he could not get the rest that he was sure he would need.

"This is like a bad case of de ja vu." Lex laughed as he saw Clark sitting in the cell, at least this time the other man was sober he concluded.

"Thank god." Clark breathed as he stood and moved towards the bars.

He was relieved, not because he thought that Lex was here to get him out, he knew that he did not deserve this man's understanding or help, he was merely pleased because now he could get some news.

"Is Jonathan alright? They wouldn't tell me anything and I was worried about where they took him."

"What do you know about my son?" Lex asked accusingly, his eyes narrowing as one would expect from a mother cat who's hackles were risen as she tried to protect her kittens.

Lex had come here to get Clark's help, to help him in the same way that he had helped Jonathan but there was something about the way Clark asked after his son that made Lex jealous. Clark had the boy's respect, perhaps given time he would even get his love, all Lex seemed to have was his fear and if anything that was the one emotion that he did not want. Lex wanted to be a better father than Lionel and yet here he was making the same mistakes over again and it felt as if Clark Kent had walked into his life and showed him exactly what it was that he lacked in the paternal department.

"I know that he came to me for help when his father was not around." Clark retorted.

He had not meant it to be so harsh but if anything good were to come out of this Clark hoped that it would at least bring the father and son closer together. He knew that Lex had a good heart he was just a little misguided.

Lex looked away, at first Clark thought that he was ashamed or felt chastised by what Clark had said, but then as he saw a third man come out of the shadows he realised that he was merely indicating to the duty sergeant to let him out.

"Just stay away from us Clark." Lex said wanting to give Clark his freedom but rethinking asking the other man to be a part of Jonathan's life. He didn't know if Clark was such a good influence after all, not to mention that he hated that after just one day Clark was closer to his son than Lex had managed to get in the nine years of Jonathan's life.

Lex had already spoken to the detective outside and said that he would post bail but that Jonathan, whose story they had taped, had identified another man as the assailant and that the man was ready to confess. Lex missed out the detail that the man had a set of bruised ribs and some unexplained cuts. He wondered if the police would even notice, or if they did if they would care. He was doing their job for them and they would get the credit for saving Lex Luthor's son, it worked well all around and at the end of the day all that mattered was that Jonathan was safe and back home where he belonged.

Clark stared at him and saw a look of resignation in Lex's eyes, as if he knew that Clark would not comply. He had of course already planned to visit John once he was out. Just to check on him.

"I can't promise that Lex. He's one of my family now too and I protect my family."

"Tell that to Evelyn." Lex rejoined as he turned on his heel, leaving Clark reeling from the verbal slap in the face.

"Lex wait!" Clark cried, as he pushed past the duty sergeant and went to the other man. "What do you mean? What does any of this have to do with Evelyn anyway? I know that she was Jonathan's mother but…"

Lex interrupted with an upheld hand that silenced Clark's questions, he hated that they were having to have this conversation in public, after a brief moment of thought he pulled Clark into a apparently empty office and sat him down. Then he began the explanation that he was sure the other man was not expecting.

"Did you ever ask her why it was she was out partying? I mean I know that you were off dealing with some heavy guilt over not being able to save your father's life but did you ever once wonder what it was that had her out late at night, dealing with some of the most pathetic people in the city?" Lex pushed.

Lex remembering Evelyn's beauty. He also remembered his incredulity that a woman like her had needed to even hit any clubs when she could have had any man she wanted just by batting her eyes or smiling that smile. He had loved her from the first moment he had seen her and yet Clark had seemed immune to those charms. Clark had never seen her in the same way that he had completely missed the enchanting Chloe Sullivan.

Clark looked away guiltily, this caused Lex to smile sardonically.

"No I didn't think you would have asked. You were too wrapped up in your own problems. You know when we first met, here at the station, Evelyn didn't even know who I was. She told me on the trip to her parent's house after I bailed you out that she knew how I felt. That chemotherapy was a pain but that bald was fashionable and anyway it made me look distinguished."

This was clearly a memory that pulled Lex's heartstrings because he had trouble with some words despite smiling as he told it. It was a good memory but thinking about her at all brought pain. Whoever said that it was better to have loved and lost was clearly being sarcastic.

"She had cancer?" Clark asked mortified, no wonder she had not been drinking, he did not know exactly what but he was sure that it would have affected any drugs she was taking or treatment she was on.

"She was in remission, had been for two years but the reminder of her mortality gave her some new zest for life. It was that which drew me to her, she brought the kind of sunshine into my life that I had always dreamed of." Lex added privately that it was the type of sunshine that Clark had once brought to his life, before he had treated Lex in the same way that all of the other people that had betrayed him had and used him, either for his money or his name.

"What happened?" Clark asked, sensing that there was more to this story that met the eye or at least more to it than Lex was telling him.

"I wanted to show her the world, to give her everything that she could ever want. I loved her I suppose but never in the way she would have liked, and even though I couldn't love her like that she gave me the only thing that I ever wanted. A son of my own. She even gave her life for him."

Lex got a far away look in his eyes and Clark knew that he had to try and pull the other man back or risk losing him to some bad memory. There had been enough of those in the last few days for both of them he was sure and he did not want Lex to get caught up in them now, not when his own future with Lex and Jonathan was hanging in the balance.

"What do you mean?" Clark asked, not sure what it was that Lex meant by saying Evelyn had given her life for Jonathan, Clark had supposed that she had died after his birth of unrelated causes. It was too long after for her to have died in childbirth.

"While she was pregnant Evelyn knew that the cancer was back, she refused to lose the baby knowing how much it meant to me, to both of us, so she waited until after Jonathan was born to have treatment. By then it was too late. The cancer had spread too far."

A single tear formed in Lex's eye but he refused to allow it to fall, it was only when he found himself in Clark's arms that he realised there was more than one reason to cry. He wanted to cry for so much and yet he could not, he had not cried over her death in ten years and he was not going to do so now. No matter how much being with Clark allowed his emotions to return to him.

"I'm sorry I wasn't there then." Clark said, wishing he had been.

"You were on your way to college, just like all eighteen years olds should be.  Besides, you wouldn't have liked the man I was then." Lex said as he pulled out of the embrace.

He did not want Clark to see how it had affected him. It was a natural reaction he told himself, it was a long time since anyone had held him. That and you were in love with Clark for a long time, his conscience told him, but Lex had long ago stopped listening to the voices of reason in his head. Especially when they spoke of a long denied love that would never be fulfilled.

"What do you mean?" Clark asked, again seeking the answers that Lex was not giving him, wanting to know completely what he had missed from his friend's life.

"I was lost and alone Clark, I did what a lot of men do and went out and got drunk, very drunk. It was only after the entire staff walked out and I was literally left holding the baby that I realised what a pig I was being." Lex said. "If it hadn't been for Jonathan I think I'd be dead by now."

"How is he?" Clark asked, getting the conversation back to the present. "I was worried about him but they wouldn't tell me anything." Clark said.

"He was tired, worried how I would react and a little emotional but I think he settled.  I left him with his tutor, he was sleeping."

"I'm glad. He's too young to go through this." Clark said with full meaning in his words, he did not think that anyone deserved to see violence or to go through pain but especially not a child and with Jonathan being a Luthor the odds were already stacked against him, he didn't need anymore pain.

"I'd better get back before he wakes up." Lex said suddenly, they had been talking for a while and Clark wondered what had made Lex abruptly change the tack of the conversation. It was only when Clark turned that he saw the man stood at the door, a blonde that looked alarmingly familiar.

"Whitney?" Clark asked, the man in the doorway froze but did not react, Lex was amazed considering Whitney had not been Whitney in over ten years. He had been Ford all of that time, Whitney Fordman had died on a battle field somewhere in a covert ops mission that would never be spoken of again and Ford had been born. Lex knew that it was not something that his employee would want to relive.

"Clark, this is Ford, my head of security. Ford, this is Clark Kent." Lex introduced them as if they were not old acquaintances and Clark knew that there was a story there but he did not want to know what it was tonight, he was pretty sure that even if he asked he would not get the answers.

"What about a story?" Clark asked as Lex turned to leave, he watched as his friend stiffened and realised how his question may have been misconstrued. "I mean what do I say if the police or anyone else asks." He repaired quickly a little hurt that Lex would think he would use him to get an article for the Planet.

"The truth. There was a plot to abduct a child but Superman stopped it, he had the child staying with you while he contacted the police but in the meantime they tracked the boy to you and arrested you thinking that you were the abductor rather than the saviour." Lex said. "If you're lucky you might even get on the front page of your beloved Daily Planet." This was added sardonically as if Lex really did not trust him as anymore than a journalist. Clark supposed that they were strangers.

"Do they know who Jonathan is?" Clark asked, the usually quiet Ford turned to Clark and pinned him with a gaze which was worthy of a killer staring down the barrel of a gun and about to kill his prey.

"They don't now and they never will." Ford said harshly.

Ford took his position as head of security very seriously, after all the boy was as much his son as he was Lex's. Ford knew that he was probably the only other constant in Jonathan's life after all and he didn't really want that to change. When he had come to work for Lex all those years ago Ford had sworn to give his life for the boy and that would never change. He loved the boy as his own and he was fiercely protective of him.

Lex put a hand on Ford's forearm to get his attention. It was a forearm that bulged more than Clark remembered from back in high school. As Clark was lost in thought about Whitney, now Ford, the pair turned to leave.

"What about John? Will I see him again?" Clark asked, feeling some level of responsibility or love for the boy but not sure what it was.

Lex turned but there was no real emotion in his expression now as he looked blankly at Clark as if he were a stranger and not an old friend.

"I meant what I said Clark, stay away from us."

But even as he spoke the words Lex knew that Clark Kent was again a part of his life and that whether he liked it or not Clark would be there to give Jonathan the emotional support he needed, what Lex could not decide was whether or not Clark being back in their lives was a good thing or a bad one.

--------------------------

The next week was difficult for Clark, he had to rebuild his life after the press intrusion and it took that long for the stories to die down. Even after the stories had become old news he suddenly found that people were associating him with Superman and he got a lot of calls about possible deals or appearances that they all wanted Superman to do. Clark had tried as hard as he could to keep his alter ego from taking over his life, he did not do any career day talks or accept awards, but now people wanted the other man to deal with a lot of things that were outside of Crime fighting and Clark wondered if Superman should be more of a PR guru than he was and do more public appearances. The only problem with that was that it would take over his life and he had liked his life how it had been.

Work too was hard, Perry spoke to him at length about using his links with Superman to get an exclusive interview, one thing that no one had managed to get yet and when Clark refused he was told that it would harm his job prospects if he did not use such links. Clark felt increasingly as if the man that he had created in order to help people was rapidly becoming a hindrance to his own relatively peaceful way of life. The last thing he wanted was for Superman to be the only thing in his life.

Lois though was the toughest nut to crack. After she heard the story that Lex had leaked to the presses and they knew that he had an in with Superman who had delivered Jonathan (or the unnamed child as the press referred to him) and that he had taken him to Clark Lois decided that she really needed to spend more time with Clark, just in case his friend should pop by. At first he thought it was just for the story and then he realised that Lois was wearing her best clothes and obviously wanted Superman as more than a story. It seemed there was only one thing that Lois valued more than her career and that was her love life.

Clark did not know what he would do about it but was pretty sure that granting her an interview would not be enough. He supposed he could tell her the truth, that women on Krypton were really only used as concubines unless they were wives, but that would not be wholly true, like most planets in the solar system there was a mixture of people in their races, some gay, some straight and some celibate. He just happened to be one of the gay ones.

Granting Lois an interview would be the easiest way out and eventually was the one that he went for but he felt a little uneasy as soon as he gave it because he now knew that people would know more about him than he had felt comfortable with them knowing. He hoped that the adage, the truth will set you free, would work in his case because he was certainly tired of being treated as if he were a social leper or a man to be liked just because of his links to Superman.

--------------------

The next time that Lex saw Clark it was as he appeared on the front page of the Daily Planet, his Superman uniform tight on his muscles, standing with fists on hips in a show of power and strength and his cape slightly billowed out behind him in the stance that you expect from a hero. Usually Lex only read the business pages but this was enough to make him take notice, there was only a short title on the front page "MAN OF STEEL REVEALS ALL" and a by-line for Lois Lane, but inside he found a full interview featuring lots of questions that he would want to know and some that he wouldn't. Some of them were things that Lex knew already, things that most people knew but some of it was news even to him, the man that had grown up alongside Clark and knew of his secret identity as Superman.   Lex ordered all copies of the paper removed immediately from the house, he did not want Jonathan to see this but somehow his son had found out about the story, no doubt from the extensive coverage of the story in the other media. To say that Jonathan was pleased to see Clark finally getting some good press would be an understatement, in fact to most people but Lex it was a barefaced lie. Jonathan was worried that this would all backfire and that Clark's secret identity would be blown.  Lex did not realise until that conversation just how attached his son had become in those two days to the man that had saved him from kidnap or perhaps something that was so much worse.

"Father, you have to do something." Jonathan had said as he stormed into Lex's office.  Lex was worried for a moment until he saw the article that his son clutched in his hand. "Clark helped me, looked after me and now he is having to court the media in a way that no one wants to."

"Jonathan. You know that there is nothing that I can do." Lex said. "Clark is his own man and he makes his own decisions."

This was true of course, it had been true when he had chosen to use Lex as everyone else had and betray their friendship, it was true when Clark decided to take Jonathan home instead of to the police and it was true now. Lex could not make Clark's decisions for him, despite a few attempts when they had been back in Smallville and Clark had been younger and more easily manipulated. It was one of the things that he had admired most about the young man, that he stuck closely to his own beliefs and would not let other sway him.

"But don't you see. It's my fault that he had to make this one." Jonathan said. "He shouldn't have to parade Superman around like some commodity in order to take the pressure off his alter ego. Clark Kent didn't want to get involved in Superman's world."

"Clark Kent is in Superman's world." Lex said. "They are the same person." Yet even as he spoke the words he knew that they were not fully true.

"Father, please…" Jonathan pleaded, of course it was not begging, a Luthor did not stoop so low as to beg but he had picked up a knack of looking just like his mother whenever he wanted something and Lex Luthor found it hard to say no to that look.  Just as it had worked for Evelyn it also worked for their son.

"I'll see what I can do."

Jonathan smiled triumphantly and then excused himself to return to his studies. Lex knew that he had been had but to see the smile on his son's face it was almost worth it.  He was beginning to see just how much he had missed out on and he did not want to miss anymore.

"Ford?" Lex said as he pressed a button on his intercom, he knew that the other man was in his own study and would answer immediately.

"Sir?"

"I want you to run an errand for me." He said and then he began to list his orders for the following day. By the time he had hung up Lex too was smiling. Maybe this would work out after all.

---------------------

Clark sat in his desk chair typing up the story that he had been given about a dog show, it was the type of thing that they expected of him and despite his contacts Clark was pretty sure that he would never rise out of these stories because he was a liability and was not willing to use his friends or his contacts to get a story. Perry could never and would never understand that Superman was more to him than a media star, he was part of Clark's life.

"Mr. Kent?" A voice called from behind him. There was a slight muttering from the other side of the office and as Clark turned he could see why.

Ford, Lex Luthor's head of security, may not be someone that courted the media but he was well known amongst the presses. Ford was the person that made sure that Lex was not photographed and unlike Jonathan who was unknown he was easily recognisable. His mere stance and build was enough to scare off an attacker and he was certainly distinctive in his appearance all dressed in black.

"Ford." Clark said with a half smile, he could still see the blonde roots beneath the buzz cut and it was hard to not see the expressive eyes that had been part of this man that Lana had fallen for and half the girls in High School had mooned over. Even after he had left for the marines they talked of the man with the deep, soulful eyes.  Back then they had held less pain but they were the same eyes. No matter what his name Clark could see Whitney in this man. "What can I do for you today?"

"Actually it's more what I can do for you." Ford said not smiling and his voice not showing any emotion. Clark wondered what it was that had killed the spirit that he had once seen, the spirit of the man that had asked him to look after Lana for him, come to think of it he wondered why Whit had never come back for Lana.

"Yes, I'm listening." Clark said, taking a similar tone. He was about to ask more when Lois Lane came over and smiled flirtatiously with Ford.

"Hi, I'm Lois Lane. You're Mr. Ford aren't you? Lex Luthor's bodyguard. Are you here for a story because I'm sure Clark is busy but I am free." She said. Ford raised an eyebrow at her and then looked back at Clark. Clark was amused at the clear attempt to ignore Lois especially when she looked so perturbed by it. This was a little like the Whitney Fordman that he remembered but it was only a faint glimmer in the otherwise unrecognisable façade.

"Ford, this is Lois Lane, my colleague. You had something to say to me?" Clark said, he was not backing down. He wanted to know what the man was doing here and why he was suddenly interested in seeing him when he had been so quick to ignore Clark the last time they had met.

"It's about the boy you saved…" Ford said. Lois' ears pricked up but thankfully so did Clark's.

"Is he okay?" Clark asked. "I know that Mr. Luthor was looking into setting up a charitable trust fund for the boy, is that what this is about?" He was thinking on his feet but the small smile from Whit seemed to show his delight that Clark was coming up with excuses, if he was going to have to deal with Clark it was at least a good thing that they were on the same wavelength. No matter what Jonathan's safety came first.

"Perhaps we should talk about this on the way to the Penthouse. Mr. Luthor is expecting you for the meeting." Ford said. Clark stood, clearly shocked and covered it well by grabbing a tape recorder. "I'm sorry, no recording equipment is permitted in the Penthouse complex. I'm sure you understand."

Clark nodded as he grabbed his jacket and followed Ford out to the elevator, watched by everyone in the newsroom. As soon as the doors shut Clark was on Whitney.

"What was that about?" Clark asked angrily. "Are you trying to put a link between Lex and I? He made it clear that he wanted nothing to do with me. If anyone makes the connection then they'll soon work out that the young boy I rescued was a Luthor and then it's only a short distance to work out that Jon is that boy."

"Well, the problem is that Jonathan doesn't seem to share the same sentiment as his father. Not that he is any different from any other Luthor that has rebelled against his father but I thought maybe you'd want to see the younger Master Luthor. Perhaps I was wrong?"

"No." Clark said, a little too hastily. "I mean…"

Ford smiled, perhaps the first real smile Clark had seen on his face since they had met again. Clark did not know but maybe it was the first smile that had graced Whitney's face in a while. It was hard to think of him as Ford and not Whitney because the two were one and the same. He supposed that it was something he could learn to live with, maybe now he would get that chance. Especially if he was to play a role in Jonathan's life.

"Yeah, he has that affect on everyone."

The rest of their journey was made in silence. They were not friends, they never would be, but at least they agreed that Jonathan was important and with this added input in his life Ford wondered if Clark would be able to help Jonathan become a better man than he or his father could teach him to be. The problem was that neither Lex or Ford felt emotion and that was clearly what Jonathan needed, they both cared a lot but neither could teach him about love or friendship when it was so long since they had experienced either. Clark began to wonder if maybe that was something that he could change too but as one person he was fully aware that even with his powers and strength he could not change the world.

------------------

Jonathan Luthor was bored. He was watching as his tutor marked his algebra homework and wondered when he could get out of there to actually do something that interested him.

Since the abduction attempt his father had been more wary than ever about letting his son out of the Penthouse, Jonathan's every move was now scrutinised and it made the already overprotected child feel stifled. He was surprised therefore when the door to the main apartment opened and he heard the comings and goings of people that were obviously not just house staff. The workforce of cleaners and maids moved silently around the building and did not bother the Luthors; that was the way it had been for centuries and that was how it still was. The only real contact with the family was a tutor or a butler and that was limited and respectful. That meant that whoever had come in was a visitor.

Standing and ignoring the pleas of his tutor to resume his work Jonathan headed to the door and out into the main Foyer of the Penthouse where he was just in time to see the door of his Father's study close and to hear the key turn.

That meant one of two things, they were trying to keep him out and that meant that it was about him or they were just locking the world out and it was nothing at all to do with him. Prior to his brush with fate Jonathan would have favoured the latter, he was not really worth much more consideration than making sure that he studied hard and got the grades that would befit a Luthor heir, now though he was worth more thought.  That made him suspicious that it was a meeting about him to which he was not invited and nothing annoyed him more than being left out of decisions about his own life.  They treated him like a child and not like the Luthor that he was.

Entering the passages that had been built into Luthor tower and that were known only to the Luthor family Jonathan went through the wall and into his father's study on the other side. He was surprised to see Ford seated at the table instead of his usual position standing behind his father and even more surprised to see Clark at the same table. He was now certain that this was about him. Slipping open the door he stepped out and into the room, drawing all of the focus onto him.

"What are you doing in here?" Lex asked angrily. "You ought to be studying."

"I wanted to see who was here and it looks like it's about me so I should be here." Jonathan reasoned, facing the wrath of his father because he felt so strongly about this. He was also not about to leave if he had the chance to see Clark again. This man had told him more about his mother than his father ever had and he had shared with him the type of information that Jonathan had thought would only be given to him as an adult. Clark treated him as if he was an adult. "Besides I wanted to see Clark."

"Hello Jon." Clark said softly. "It's good to see you again but your father is right, you ought to be studying."

Lex smiled triumphantly and then turned to Jonathan, his face softening a little as he did so.

"If you go back to your tutor and apologise for leaving I'll come get you when we are done." Lex said. "I promise not to let Clark leave before he has seen you and had a chance to say Goodbye."

Jonathan looked a little apprehensive as if similar promises in the past had not panned out but then he nodded. It was as if he knew that he could not win, not when he was faced with his father and Clark.

"Come on Scout, I'll take you back through." Ford said amiably as if he was talking to a child of his own instead of the son of a wealthy employer. "And just to make sure that you get some work done I'll stay with you."

Lex smiled as the pair left the room, he heard Ford lock the door behind him and the pair were alone. Lex didn't quite know what to say to Clark, they had gone through the niceties of the weather and how they were before Jon had interrupted, now he had to get down to business and he didn't know how to broach the subject. If he were on the outside looking in it would seem absurd that he was worried about some small time reporter when he had faced down business moguls but being in the room and knowing Clark as he did made him nervous.

"So, you summoned me here. I am guessing that there was a reason for that." Clark said, as if prompting Lex when there had been too much silence between them.

"Actually it was Jonathan's doing, he is worried that you are having to feed Superman to the presses in order to help out Clark." Lex said hoping that Clark would understand the twisted logic of the statement. "He wanted me to offer you any help I could, even though I explained that you don't need my help and seem to be handling it well on your own. I also think he missed you."

"I missed him too." Clark said softly, not really wanting to admit such a weakness but knowing that it was the only way to go. Lex put a high value on the truth and if he was going to get anywhere within this family unit he needed Lex to trust him again.

"I called you here because I think that maybe I was a little too hasty at the station.  Maybe you could do some good in Jonathan's life." Lex said. Clark knew that it must have taken a lot for Lex Luthor to admit that he was wrong and did not push it despite wanting to tell Lex that he could have told him that was the case. "So I think that we should organise a time when he can see you, either you can come here or I will send him to meet you at your apartment and the two of you can…well, whatever it is that you want to do."

"It sounds like you want me to have visitation rights." Clark said with a smile. "Am I the weekend dad in this scenario?"

Lex did not laugh, Clark was not even sure that he understood the comment.

"Clark, Jonathan needs other people in his life, dare I say it, normal people. If this is what it takes to get him settled then this is what I will do. I would do anything for my son."

Clark believed that. He supposed that he should be glad for the small favours, just to have Jonathan in his life was a blessing, the young boy had so much of his parents in him that it reminded Clark of them both and he hoped that he could do some good for Jon. Maybe in the long term he could atone for the damage he had caused Evelyn.

"So, do I get to tell him?" Clark asked, after another awkward silence between them.

"Let's go and see him now." Lex said. "Although I doubt his tutor will thank me, he'll be too excited to work for the rest of the day."

Clark hoped that the boy was excited because he certainly was.

-----------------------

Over the next few weeks they built up a pattern of visits, usually two a week on a Wednesday evening and a Sunday afternoon. Jonathan opened up little in the first week, preferring to talk about what he was studying and what he thought were appropriate subjects but as he began to relax around Clark he opened up other avenues of conversation too. Some of it was stuff that Clark was sure the boy had never shared with anyone before, feelings of insecurity and a loss from his mother's death.  Clark too began to enjoy their time together, he even found himself looking forward to it when things at work got tough. Jonathan was bright, articulate and interesting, he had an air of innocence that seemed to have survived his hard childhood and he reminded Clark in so many ways of a young Lex Luthor. He hoped that they would be friends like he had Lex had once been.

Lex too enjoyed the visits, not that he went with them but because he saw the change in his son. There was a light in his eyes again and Lex knew that it was Clark who was putting it there. Lex remembered what it felt like to have Clark's attention, at one time it had been all he wanted in the world and he even began to feel jealous of his own son because he was only nine and he got to spend time with Clark. More time than Lex ever had.

Lex had always needed an excuse to see Clark, especially when the younger man had only been 15 and living under the rules of his strict and distrusting father. Now it was even harder to see Clark and the worst thing was that Lex was dreaming about him.  Not good dreams although not bad ones either but the type that he thought he had left behind in adolescence. Lex had burned his bridges when it came to Clark but he could think of nothing more than taking the other man to bed and making love to him.  The only problem other than Clark's predilection for women was that Jonathan would never forgive him if he seduced his new friend, nor could he do that to his son. If Clark said yes to a come on it would be because he feared that it was a condition on him seeing Jonathan, Clark was the type of fool that would go through something like that for someone and Lex would not be responsible for that. He did not accept pity fucks. So Lex found himself living with a frustration he had not felt in nearly a decade and watching as his son got to spend time with the man he loved.

When the chance for a joint outing came Lex was thankful, at least he would get to see Clark again.

Clark was surprised when he found Jonathan at his door on the day of their usual visit, he had been on his way out when the bell had sounded and he found the boy there. If he was surprised to see Jonathan then he was exceedingly shocked to see that Lex was with him.

"Hello Clark." Lex said plainly as he waited for the other man to pick up his jaw and invite them in. "I know that you were due to take Jonathan out to the new exhibition at Metropolis Museum of Modern Art and seeing as I didn't get a chance to see it either I thought I would tag along."

"Oh….Okay." Clark agreed still a little shocked that Lex was there. Jonathan was his usual smiling self, the boy had come on leaps and bounds from the timid child he had first met weeks before and hugged Clark as he was invited in. Lex watched as his son made his way straight into the apartment, settling on the couch and flicking the TV on with the remote.

"If it's any trouble…" Lex began, not sure why he felt as if he was intruding between the two when he had every right to be with his son.

"No." Clark stated blankly, noticing only after that it seemed a little too abrupt. "It's fine. Although I am a little worried about being seen with you. Not that I mean I wouldn't want to be seen with you but if we are all out together someone might put the clues together and work out that Jonathan is… well Jonathan."

Lex remembered with a smile what it was like to work through the babble of a nervous Clark, the man was the same as he had been at 15 and that was something that made Lex smile.

"I've handled it." Lex told him simply. "I called ahead and told the museum that I would be interested in viewing the collection, they have offered to shut a little early so that we can go in for a private viewing."

"Okay."

A slight frown crossed Clark's face as he thought that part of the reason he was spending time with Jonathan was to teach him a little about the real world and so that he could spend time with normal people.

"I thought maybe we could go out for something to eat first. You haven't eaten already have you?" Lex asked Clark.

The younger of the two shook his head, usually he and Jonathan fixed something together before they went out, the boy especially liked Mac and Cheese and his Mom's apple pie.

"Can we have McDonald's?" Jonathan pleaded with a wide grin as he heard the two adults talking.

"Yes." Lex answered at the same time that Clark said "No."

"Dad said yes." Jonathan said with a smirk, as if he was rubbing Clark's face in it that he had won.

"Your father is a pushover and you're spoiled." Clark responded, but the smile on his face took the edge off of his words.

"Maybe Clark is right." Lex said, really he did not know that much about parenting, other than that he wanted his son to have the things he wanted and that he could not give them to him alone. "What would you suggest?" Lex asked as he turned to the other man. "After all, this is your day."

Clark felt the warmth inside him as Lex described it as his day, despite the fact that his son was with them Clark truly felt as if it was a chance for he and Lex to spend some time together.

"I think it's time I introduced you two to the wonders of wieners and beans." Clark decided with a smile, it grew wider when Lex blanched at the thought. Clark loved every minute of watching the other man squirm as Jonathan too smiled, he wanted to be normal and he knew all about stuff like this from TV. Clark had to give Lex credit, he didn't even turn his nose up at the simple lunch and ate the whole plate of the childhood delicacy that was put in front of him. Jonathan too devoured it as if he was a starved man being given a three course meal.

They chatted affably over the meal and Lex was surprised when his son cleared the table without being asked, at the Penthouse meals were served to them and dishes cleared away by the maid who loaded the dishwasher. To see his son not only clear the table but clean the dishes too was something he had thought he would not see. In some ways it made him feel as if he was missing something out in his child's education. Of course as he had never grown up doing chores Lex did not know what a mother would teach her child, he certainly could not see Lionel allowing his son to do such menial work.

"Come on Dad, you have to dry. It's the deal. Clark cooked so we do the dishes." Jonathan said, using a admonishing tone that one would use with the village idiot.  Lex smiled at the words and rolled up the sleeves to his silk shirt and took the proffered dish cloth.

Clark wondered what his readership would do if they could see Metropolis' most ruthless business man in such a domestic scene. Of course he would never sell the story but it was an image that he would not forget in a while.

And as they interacted the three were drawn closer together. The museum trip was only an extension of that time they spent and Lex found himself inviting Clark back to the Penthouse on the pretence of finding the perfect spot to place the small statue that they had found. Lex had liked the blue glass sculpture immediately, it was the colour of Clark's eyes and the way the light reflected off of it was dazzling. Jonathan was worn out as they drove up and Lex smiled as he saw Clark lift the boy in his arms as if he were a day old infant and not a nearly ten year old boy. Jonathan snuggled close and did not let go, even when they entered the elevator from the parking garage up to the top floor.

"You want me to take him through to his room?" Clark asked as the doors opened.  Lex was about to answer when Ford came into view, appearing as if from nowhere.  He reached out and took the sleeping boy.

"I'll take Jon to his room and get him settled. You two go and catch up or something." He said, Clark was about to interrupt when Lex shook his head slightly. Maybe it was time to tell Clark a little more about the past.

"Ford is right, come through to the study and we'll have a night cap." Lex told the other man. Clark was not about to disagree if it meant he got time alone with Lex, he wanted to rebuild their friendship and this was as good a place as any to start.

"Okay." Clark agreed as he followed the billionaire into the library/study that he had been in on that first day.

Lex entered and went to the shelves where a decanter was stored, pouring himself a snifter of Brandy he turned to Clark who surprisingly nodded his head in agreement that he would have one as well.

"What was that about with Ford?" Clark asked, wondering why it was that Whitney had changed so much and that he insisted on putting Jonathan to sleep even when Clark had the boy securely in his own grasp. "He acted as if Jonathan was his son rather than yours."

"Ford takes his duty seriously, he always did." Lex said as his eyes clouded to a stormy gaze as he remembered the time he had first met Ford.

"He picked up the nickname at basic training, he was tired of people joking about his sissy boy name so he just told them he was called Ford, after proving himself that first week no one joked over his name again." Lex recounted as he began the story. "He had always known that he was going to see some action, that was the way of the world then, even if he was only a peace keeper he would see the frontlines of someone else's battles. What he had not accounted for was the bomb that killed half of his men on his first tour of duty."

"How many survived?" Clark found himself asking.

"Sixteen dead, five injured and Ford. He was the only one that survived without any impairment."

"What else?" Clark asked, not that he was belittling what Ford had been through but it hardly spoke of the trauma that showed in the other man's eyes or his protectiveness for Jon.

"Instead of bringing him home they sent him undercover. The war in the Balkans may have been over but when there was a small uprising he went in as someone willing to train them in warfare to find out where they were getting weapons from.  No one had accounted for the women and children that he would meet, especially not Anne."

"What happened?" Clark asked, sensing more to this story.

"Love." Lex stated, a malicious smile on his face. "The one thing that has the power to tear apart any man and render him unrepairable. Anne was killed along with her son who Whitney had come to love as his own, by the time they got him out of his mission he was too far gone. They eventually released him on medical grounds but everything he had ever dreamed of was forgotten."

"How did you two meet?"

"I'm not proud of who I was back then Clark." Lex said, as if warning Clark of something bad that he had done in his past. "Ford was hired muscle for a man I wanted killed, for a price I was told that Ford would sell out his own mother, I offered him that price. When it came down to payment I wanted to deal with it myself, to get the proof that my rival was dead. When he turned up I laughed, then I offered him a job. Ford started out as a security guard. He worked the late shift in the lobby but unlike the rest of his former boss' colleagues at least he was alive."

"And?" Clark asked after Lex had paused, he had his back to Clark so he would not see Lex's tears.

"I was a bastard. My son was less than six and I was beating him, shouting at him, doing exactly what Lionel had done to me. One night I was in my office, it was late and Jonathan was with me, I laid into him, shouting and the rest. Ford came to investigate the noise and when he caught me he knocked me down and told me that he would kill me if I did it again. You have to know what it's like Clark, to have everyone treat you like your royalty, as if you can do no wrong. Ford made me take stock of my life and I realised that I was in the wrong, that I was turning into the man I fought so hard not to be. I hired him to my personal staff the next day. He's been close ever since and is still one of the only people I trust to give me an honest opinion.  I think because he knew me in Smallville he saw through the Luthor mask."

"I wouldn't hurt Jonathan." Clark admitted softly, realising that Ford's reaction had been because he did not trust Clark around the boy he loved as his own.

"I know, I guess he does too but he doesn't trust so easily. It's one of the things that makes him so damn good at his job. Some days I don't think he even trusts me with Jon's safety."

"Do you trust me?" Clark asked, again keeping his voice soft and sensitive.

Lex paused, thinking it over for a moment before answering as Clark had expected him to do and then a small smile crossed Lex's face.

"Yes." He said. "I do."

And Clark found a matching smile on his face, because if Lex trusted him and Jonathan trusted him then he was well on the way to rebuilding his friendship and cementing a place in the Luthor household for himself. All he needed to do was get Ford on side and keep up his visits with Jon. He hoped it was as easy as it sounded.

"I guess I had better get going." Clark offered reluctantly after the pair had sat silently for a long while. Lex looked up at him, apology in his eyes but knowing that it was too early to tell Clark how he felt.

"I guess so." Lex replied although he was disinclined to let Clark go lest they break the easy friendship that they had started to rebuild.

"Are you free next week?" Clark asked unexpectedly. "We could do something together again, I think Jonathan really enjoyed being with you."

"I'll see if I can arrange something." Lex rejoined evenly but in his head he was already reorganising the appointments that he had booked. If it meant he would get to spend time with Clark and Jonathan he would rebook an appointment with the Pope.

-----------------

Over the next few weeks Clark found himself drawing closer to the Luthor family. It started with his outings with Lex and Jonathan, that had become a weekly occurrence, then he had been invited to dinner and one evening to the opera where Jonathan had translated large chunks of the Italian script for Clark's untrained ear. Clark was amazed at the warmth and love that the child had to give, for a boy that had been so quiet and afraid as he sat in Clark's chair all those weeks ago Jonathan had certainly grown.

It was really only a matter of time before Clark became part of the family, at least that was what Jonathan assumed. Even Ford was relenting a little and let Clark carry the boy to his room when they came in from the opera.

Clark was a little reluctant to make any overt admission of how attached he was becoming, not only to Jonathan but to Lex, in case it ruined what they had. It was coming up for Christmas though and Clark was not sure what he was supposed to do.  Martha was spending the holidays with her family and though Clark had been invited he felt a little left out without his father there. The Clark's were a group of city people who had certain values, they had made it clear that Jonathan never fitted in with them and treated Clark as an apple that had not fallen too far from the tree. Clark wondered what the Luthors did at Christmas time.

Jonathan was not like most nine year olds, he was used to his father working late on Christmas eve, visiting with some business associates on Christmas day and by Boxing day he was back at the office. Lex Luthor made Ebeneezer Scrooge look like a man that had enjoyed Christmas.

The staff tried to make it a good time of year for the young boy, especially their cook who made cookies and eggnog but it was hardly Christmas without presents. Each year Jon would find an envelope with money or stocks in it from his father. Lex did not want to spoil his son but he had no idea what to buy a child either, usually Jonathan chose his own gift with a little help from Ford.

It was a surprise to them all therefore when on December 12th Lex Luthor stopped work, sent Jonathan's tutor off for an extended visit with his family and told Jon that they were going out to buy a tree.

"Can Clark come?" Jonathan asked once he had gotten over the shock that for the first time in his nine years it appeared as if they were going to have a proper Christmas.  "He was telling me about Christmas in Smallville and how…

"I'm sure that Clark has work to do." Lex countered, cutting off any further requests from his son. After thinking long and hard about celebrating this holiday Lex did not want to get pulled out of the season's spirit before he had even learned how to adopt it. Christmas was another day to Lionel Luthor and thus far Lex had treated it in the same way.

"Please…" Jonathan singsonged. "Please, please, please, please."

"Jonathan Julian Alexander Luthor. Calm down now or you won't be coming either!" Lex shouted. Jon went abruptly silent.

"Sorry." The boy mumbled.

"That's better." Lex said sternly. "Now, I am going to call Clark, but if he is busy then we will go alone. I'm sure that Ford knows all about picking out a good tree."

Jonathan looked up at the security man apologetically as he realised that he had ignored Ford but the stoic man seemed to understand. Clark was new and interesting, whereas Ford was solid and reliable, the Kent shine would wear off soon and then he knew that Jon would be back to his side. There was something to be said for loyalty.

Meanwhile in his office Lex Luthor was waiting for the phone to connect in the Daily Planet building.

"Hello, Clark's phone," a young male voice answered.

"Is Mr. Kent away from his desk?" Lex enquired, it was an obvious question if someone else was answering the phone he supposed but it made it sound as if he were distinguished.

"Can I ask whose calling?"

"Can I ask whose answering his phone?" Lex retorted, there was a small laugh, a muffled noise and then nothing. "Hello?" Lex tried.

"Clark Kent speaking." A familiar voice said.

"Hi, Clark, it's Lex."

"Oh, hi." He replied, not wanting the name to slip out so that the busybody journalists around him would know who it was.

"Jonathan wanted me to call you, we're going out to look at Christmas trees and he seems to think you would be a valuable consultant for such a project."

"I have some experience in that area." Clark replied, hoping that it was a cryptic enough response to keep his colleagues guessing.

"So, can you come out to play?" Lex flirted gently. Clark laughed softly and then replied.

"I can make the time for you."

Lex felt a mix of emotions at Clark's flirtatious response, they had toyed and teased for weeks but none of it had gone past this stage, he had received nothing from the other man that symbolised a want for a deeper friendship. Lex wondered if they would ever be more than friends, but he supposed that best friends was the most he could expect. It had been enough in Smallville and it would have to be enough again.  He should be grateful that Clark was back in his life at all.

"We'll pick you up from the Planet." Lex said, continuing before Clark could protest.  "I'll send Ford up to get you."

Then Lex hung up, not giving Clark a chance to respond. He always had to have the last word.

------------------

A few minutes later Clark had packed up his desk and was getting ready to leave, there was a slight kerfuffle near the elevator and Clark looked up to see Lois standing looking flustered. Out of the elevator stepped a cool looking Lex Luthor, hands in his pockets and sunglasses covering his eyes. Despite the fact that it was the middle of winter Lex seemed to fit in wearing them.

Lex sauntered over to Clark's desk with the attention of the room on him. It did not seem to phase Lex that a hundred people were solely focused on him, Clark supposed that he must be used to it.

"You ready to go?" Lex asked steadily as he looked at Clark, taking off his sunglasses and allowing Clark a view of his eyes and the laughter that was there. Clark did not share his moment of humour.

"I thought that you said you'd send Ford up to get me." Clark said, his voice low and warning.

"Jonathan seemed to think that I needed to come get you and that was a compromise, he wanted us all to come." Lex replied. Clark could almost see the resolution in Lex's voice and wondered when the small boy had twisted his father around his little finger.  He had never seen Lex as the type to give in to anyone.

"Mr. Luthor? I'm Lois Lane, I was wondering if you had a moment…"

"I'm sorry, Ms. Lane, but I have a prior engagement to attend to. And you ought to know that I do not speak to the press." Lex replied cooly, waiting for Clark only a moment before heading back to the bank of elevators.

Clark followed, giving Lois a look of disdain as he passed as if she should have known that Lex did not do interviews. Clark was smug when she glared at him and smiled over the fact that he got to spend time with Lex and that she was obviously jealous. It gave him a warm feeling, he would never use Lex for an interview and that meant something. Lois would sell her own mother for a story.

---------------

Jonathan was in his element on the drive out if the city, they were in Lex's Jaguar, following Ford's truck out of the city and into the area that surrounded it where they might pick out a tree. Usually Lex would have sent someone else to do this, but today was about family and he was rebuilding his own one step at a time. On the trip out there Clark told Jonathan about decorating the tree, about the Christmases of his own childhood and about the traditions he knew of. Lex listened as he drove and could not help but smile about the typical Kent Christmas that he was picturing. Of course it had been different since Jonathan Kent had died but the picture of a young exuberant Clark opening his presents made Lex smile. It was a picture he hoped for that year.

"Are we there yet?" Jon asked after a brief pause, Lex watched Ford indicate and smiled.

"I think we're here." Lex replied. "Are you ready to pick a tree?"

"Yeah!" Jonathan squealed with glee in an action that was quite inappropriate for a Luthor. Lex could not help but feel a little excitement as his mind supplied that, after all, the last thing he wanted was for his son to be a carbon copy of him or his father.  He was breaking the cycle so excessive merriment and happiness was allowed, maybe it would rub off a little on him.

It took them an hour to find the perfect tree, Jonathan's eyes bugged when he was handed a hacksaw and told that he could cut it down himself, in the end Clark and Ford had to help the small boy but he was excited the whole time and then watched with amazement at the logistics of securing the large tree into the back of Ford's truck.

No one batted an eyelid at Lex Luthor buying a tree, maybe no one could recognise him through the wide smile he wore. A pair of glasses worked for Clark and Lex wondered if they were so used to his stoic self that they missed his prominent bald head through his gaiety; that was certainly not an expression that was used very often about Lex Luthor.

The ride back to Metropolis was the end of their trip, Jonathan slept through most of it and had to be carried to bed by his father while the two other men managed to manhandle the large tree into it's new home in Lex's lounge. Clark and Ford had just gotten it positioned and set up when Lex joined them in the room as if he was a landowner come back to survey his lands.

"Well, what do you think?" Clark asked. "Bear in mind that there are no decorations on it or anything…"

But Lex could not reply, he was too choked up to say anything and Clark was glad that his friend was doing this, not only for Jonathan but for Lex as well.

It was high time that the Luthor's had a family Christmas.

-------------------

"I think that we need to put more baubles on the top branches." Jonathan moaned the next day as they gathered to decorate the tree.

Lex had let his son have free reign in the arranging of the expensive ornaments that he had rescued from the loft of their Penthouse apartment. They were left over from the Christmases before Lillian had died and many held special memories for Lex.

"I think that you have enough on there." Clark replied, waylaying any protestations by lifting the young boy up so that he could get a look from a greater height. "See?"

"You're right." Jonathan agreed earnestly. "It's perfect."

Lex looked it over and was inclined to agree, but it was not the slightly lopsided tree or the old ornaments that made it so, it was the warm feeling inside that something was finally right. He had not felt that since Evelyn.

"Lex?" Clark asked as he saw the look that crossed his friend's face. Clark put Jonathan down and gently nudged the boy towards the door, hoping that he would take the hint. Luckily Ford did and took Jonathan outside. "Are you okay?"

Lex ran a hand over his bald head and looked down at the floor, this was not a conversation that he wanted to be having and yet he found himself having it.

"It just brings back memories." Lex said. "Do you know that Evie and I had only one Christmas as husband and wife?"

"Did you have a good time?" Clark asked.

"No." Lex replied curtly. "I was on a business trip out of the country. She spent Christmas with her parents."

"What about after?" Clark asked softly. "Did you and Jonathan celebrate?"

"I didn't celebrate Christmas after my mother died. I didn't feel like I had a reason to." Lex told him truthfully. "This is the first year that…"

Lex trailed off, he didn't really know what he was supposed to tell Clark. At least not without telling him the truth.

"I feel like I have a reason to celebrate too." Clark said, letting Lex have a way out. "I mean, I have a good friend back in my life and a little boy to spoil."

"Would I be selfish if I asked for more?" Lex asked, the words slipping out unconsciously.

Clark reached over and lifted Lex's chin with his hands, wanting to see into Lex's eyes to see if the words were reflected in the windows to Lex's soul.

"What more do you want, Lex?" Clark asked softly, licking his lips as he thought it over.

"A family." Lex replied just as softly. "You." He added almost inaudibly.

Clark leaned forward and kissed him on the lips, softly at first and then more deeply as he built up the courage.

"Does this mean I get to call you Daddy now?" A voice asked from the door, and the pair pulled away to see a grinning Jonathan.

Lex laughed softly and Clark blushed.

"I think it's early days but we'll see." Lex said as he looked at his son. He knew that the boy had a great capacity to love that he had gotten from his mother and he supposed that it extended to acceptance as well.

"Now you can't tell me that Santa doesn't exist." The boy said looking at Ford with a glare. "He brought me and Father what we wanted."

"What was that?" Clark asked intently.

"A family."

***

The End.