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Band of Blue TOC

Chapter 9

“I can’t print this Lois. It sounds ridiculous, and where’s the proof?”

“Perry, I’m the proof.” Lois punctuated I’m by pointing to herself. “I was thrown off the roof and a flying man caught me.”

“But there’s no-one to corroborate your story and the men you say threw you off the roof have already been let go with no charges.” Perry stared at his best up-and-coming reporter willing her to come up with more to this story. If she could then it would be the biggest scoop since Watergate.

“I don’t know what else to say, Chief. Something fishy is going on if those guys were released immediately. And didn’t the police think it weird when they were dropped off by a flying man in a red cape?”

“They deny ever seeing who deposited the men into their custody. If this hero of yours is so great then why didn’t he stay and let the cops in on the story. They had no idea why two men had just been left on the doorstep.”

Lois sighed and dropped her head. The vision of the flying man came back to her mind and her resolve grew. She lifted her head and stared at her Editor-in-Chief. “Perry, I’ll get you the proof if it’s the last thing I do. And then you’ll have your front page.” She turned and strode out of the office, heels clacking on the floor. I need a photo. No-one will believe me unless I can print a photo along-side the article. But how am I going to get a photo of a man who can move super-fast? And fly?

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Clark felt his heart rising from its home in his chest all the way into his mouth as he descended the stairs to the basement. Would Lois say anything, had she recognised him? He paused at the bottom step and took a deep calming breath. Striding forwards with mock confidence, boy he was faking his confidence a lot around Lois, he put on a smile. It faded when he saw that Lois’s desk was empty but that someone was sat at his desk. She had long, bouncy, blonde hair and was wearing a particularly tight, and short, dress. Somehow it didn’t illicit the same reaction in him that Lois’s short skirt had done. He just found it a little tacky. He cleared his throat and spoke.

“Can I help you Miss?” he asked. She swivelled round with a big smile on her face.

“Grant, Catherine Grant,” she said and stood up from his chair holding out her hand. Clark took it and shook it gently.

“Clark Kent.” He introduced himself. “What can I do for you Miss Grant? I presume you are after me as you are sat in my chair.”

“Call me Cat,” she replied. “I’m looking for an escort to the Press Conference this afternoon and thought you might appreciate going with someone more ... experienced.”

Clark raised his eyebrows in shock. He’d not expected this kind of attention, and her use of the word experienced had obviously had multiple meanings.

“Erm, I’m sorry Miss Grant but I’m already assigned a partner for the conference,” he replied carefully.

She gave him a pretend stern look. “I told you to call me ...”

“Cat!” Clark heard a shout from behind him and he turned to see Lois striding over with a furious look on her face. “First you steal my Prime-time TV spot, now you’re after my partner. Well, I’m sorry but Perry already assigned him to me for the conference. Clark’s all mine and you can’t have him.” Lois stopped directly in front of her rival and then continued her tirade. “And whatever are you doing going to the Press Conference. There will be no juicy gossip there, all business news.”

“My dear Lois, there is always gossip: you just have to keep your ears open.” Cat picked up her jacket and strode off.

“So, I’m all yours, am I?” Clark asked with a big grin on his face.

“Don’t take it to heart, Smallville. I was just saving you from a Viper.” Lois sat down in her chair with a bump and stared at her computer screen. Lois, pull yourself together, how could you just barge in and say things like that? Argh! She’d come down from Perry’s office and looked up just in time to see Cat Grant holding out her hand to Clark. The shock had frozen her feet momentarily and she had stood, mouth open, staring at the woman who had stolen her dream job earlier in the year. Lois’s only consolation was that the blonde had been dropped within in week anyway.

Clark sat down opposite and found himself staring at his own computer screen. Clark’s all mine and you can’t have him. That line played over and over in his mind. His internal reaction to it bothered him; the butterflies in his stomach, the joy in his heart, the uncontrollable smile which came to his face. This was some big crush he had. He glanced up to see what Lois was doing. She was still staring at her screen. He knew it was time to say something.

“So, how are you today Lois? Ready for the Press Conference?”

Lois’s heart jumped at the sound of Clark’s voice. “I’m fine thanks.” She looked up at him and gave a wan smile.

“Have an exciting weekend?” he asked. Lois frowned and cocked her head to one side. Now why would he ask that, and why would there be a nervous tone to his voice?

“Perfectly normal, thanks.” She paused. “Apart from my encounter with a superhero.” She looked back to her screen and refused to say any more.

Clark coughed. “Er, superhero?” he asked.

“You can read all about it when I get my visual proof for our ‘I can’t print this’ Editor.” She smiled triumphantly at him.

Clark’s eyes widened. Visual proof!

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Tess stared at the crystal in her hand. Why have I even brought this with me? she thought. The crystal baffled her. She had found it one month ago when she had visited the site of Lex Luthor’s disappearance. Unfortunately Lex was not to be found and she could avoid that fact no longer. That was the reason for this Press Conference. She needed to present herself officially as CEO so that she would have credibility when dealing with investors, customers, banks and other officials.

But why had she brought the crystal. It had been kept safely in her table drawer since arriving back at the mansion but, for some reason, she had felt compelled to keep in on her person ever since Saturday. Tess’s mind replayed the events of Saturday and she finally figured out the moment it happened: the interview with the reporter from the Daily Planet. Ever since Lois Lane had visited Tess had been unable to let the crystal out of her sight. This Lois Lane needs keeping an eye on.

Tess put the crystal back in her pocket and walked off to find her aide. It must be nearly time for the Press Conference to start.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Clark ran his fingers through his hair, keeping it slicked back. He adjusted his glasses while glancing around the room. Lois was stood next to him chattering away, reeling off to the rookie as much helpful information as she could.

“Let me ask all the questions, don’t shout out. Keep your calm. Oh, and never let ...” she finally stopped her ramblings and took in a large shocked breath. “Oh my god. He’s here. Why is he here?”

“Who?” Clark turned to look down at Lois.

“Oliver Queen. Playboy billionaire. CEO of Queen Industries.” Clark could see the intense stare on Lois’s face. He followed the line of that stare and looked up to see the object of her scrutiny. Tall, thin, blonde and incredibly well dressed in an all black, obviously tailored suit he was the epitome of a playboy billionaire. Clark looked back to Lois. He watched as she nervously bit her bottom lip then set off straight for the man in question.

“Lois, where are you going?” Clark asked striding after her.

She stopped and swivelled round. Pointing a finger at Clark’s chest she punctuated her words. “I’m going to get the first ever private interview with Mr Queen Industries. Just watch and learn, Smallville.” She turned away and set off again. Clark stumbled to catch up with her, it was a busy crowd.

“Lois!” he called in despair. He was beginning to see why she was called Mad Dog Lane. He was also beginning to identify her most overwhelming personality trait – impulsiveness ... or was that stubbornness?

“Mr Queen. Lois Lane, Daily Planet.” She held out her hand and smiled. He returned the smile with a lazy one of his own and took her hand.

“Well, what can I do for you?” he asked. Clark saw the man’s eyes roam up and down Lois’s body and he felt a fire in the pit of his stomach.

“I’m looking for an interview. Care to speak to me one on one?” she raised her eyebrow in conjunction with the question. Oliver Queen’s smile widened and his eyes softened.

“Anytime you want.” Clark coughed to try and break the mood. Oliver’s smile disappeared and his face became all professional and emotionless. “So, who is this tall bodyguard then Miss Lane?” he asked.

“Oh, this is my ... he works at the Planet with me.” Lois had obviously avoided using the word partner. Clark held out his hand for an introduction.

“Clark Kent.”

Oliver reached for the outstretched hand and Clark felt the strength in the handshake. In fact it felt like the man was trying to prove his worth with the ‘manliness’ of the shake. Clark held his own and then added a light squeeze at the end. Oliver extracted his hand suddenly at that point.

“Whoa, there GQ. Watch your grip,” he said and gave a light chuckle.

Clark felt a little put out at the GQ comment and still felt the fire in his stomach from Oliver’s perusal of Lois earlier. “GQ?” he said surprised. “You’re one to talk. Black on black. Kinda hard to pull off,” he nodded to Oliver’s clothes.

Oliver immediately retorted. “It’s easier than you think.”

Clark’s heart stopped and he raised his eyes to look directly into Oliver Queen’s face. His mouth dropped open a little when he saw a perfect reflection of his emotions in the other man’s face. It looked as if he was about to say something for a moment but they were interrupted by a large whining sound from the podium.

Everyone turned to look and they saw a man fiddling with the microphone at the main stand. He flicked a switch back and forth and the ringing sound finally stopped. Then he spoke.

“If you’ll all take your seats please then I’ll start the Press Conference.”

Murmurs continued round the room as people made their way to the seats and sat down. Paper shuffled as reporters got out their pads and pens. Eventually the quiet murmur faded to absolutely nothing and the man continued.

“Ladies and Gentlemen of the press you have been called here today to hear the most up to date news from LuthorCorp. To relate this information to you I now present the new CEO; Miss Tess Mercer.” He stepped back from the stand and held his arm out to one side indicating the direction she was walking in from.

Clark watched as a confident woman walked across the podium. She had striking red hair and wore a simple black suit. She had a small smile on her face the whole way, as if she knew something that no-one else did and it made her feel important. Clark frowned. Something concerned him about her.

“Ladies and Gentlemen,” she started. Clark recognised confidence in her voice. “I’m here to announce that, as of last week, I have been officially named as CEO of LuthorCorp. Lex Luthor has now been missing for two months and although search and rescue efforts have not been abandoned the likelihood of finding him has reduced drastically.” She took a meaningful pause and looked around the room, as if trying to catch the eye of every person. “As you all know Lex Luthor disappeared 57 days ago while on a scouting trip for new oil supplies in the Arctic. He was convinced that he could ...”

BOOM.

There was a mighty explosion at that point and the whole room rocked. Clark felt the floor shake. He stood up from his seat and looked through the wall to the outside. He saw absolute devastation just at the edge of the steps to the building. A bus was on fire and cars were piling up all around it as they swerved and braked. Clark hesitated for less than a second before accepting that he had to do something even though it was broad daylight and there were hundreds of people. Not just normal civilians either; reporters. He sped off as fast as he could and was outside in his new outfit within seconds.

“Clark?” Lois stood up from her seat on unsteady feet. She frowned. Where has he gone so quickly? She looked around and saw reporters all heading for the exit, frantically trying to be the first out. She picked up her pad and pushed chairs out of the way as she scrambled over as many rows as possible heading for the exit. Pushing her way through the crowds she made it out onto the street.

There was a massive crowd outside and they were all staring at something. “What is going on,” she mumbled to herself as she pushed her way further forwards. As she got to the front she stumbled when she found herself free from obstacles. She steadied herself and then looked up. Her mouth dropped open and her eyes widened. A city bus was in a mangled mess at the bottom of the steps. All the windows were broken, there were blackened soot marks everywhere and wisps of smoke trailed from many points.

As she watched, the bus rocked a little, and someone strode out of a large opening in the side. It was him: her Superman ... and he was carrying a young girl in his arms. He laid her down on the ground a safe distance from the bus and went back inside. Lois watched in stunned silence as he repeatedly went back into the bus and brought out more passengers. Some were seriously injured, other had minor bruises. Eventually he placed the last passenger on the ground and smiled at them. “There, all safe now,” he said. Lois finally managed to shake herself out of her shock and she ran forwards.

“Hey, Superman. It’s me. Lois. Lois Lane. Remember?” but as she got closer he turned away and leapt into the air. As she watched him fly higher his cape billowed out and Lois caught a glimpse of something. A sharp intake of breath followed and she put her hand over her mouth to cover her shock. I recognise that behind. That’s the one. Oh my god, how could I be so stupid. Of course I would never fantasize over Clark’s butt? It was Superman’s.

At that point she was mobbed. “Who was that?” “What did you call him?” “Have you seen him before?” “So, does the S stand for Superman?” She turned round to see all the journalists from the Press Conference staring at her, obviously waiting for some comment.

“You’ll read about it in the Daily Planet tomorrow,” was her reply.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Oliver Queen stood on the side, in the shadows. So there was a new hero in town, and he most definitely had the goods, as he had said the other night. The colour change in outfit was quite a drastic one; from black, to red and blue, but it was definitely the same man. Oliver had no doubts. The caped man had turned to look directly at him just before leaping into the air and the look on his face had let Oliver know that his secret was also out. All he needed to do now was decide whether or not Clark Kent was Justice League material.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

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