Ashes & Wine

We begin a month after the events in Echo (9x04), except Oliver still works separately from Chloe and Clark. Clark is aware of Oliver's alter ego, but foils Chloe's recruitment attempts in order to protect Chloe from Oliver's public image and the fact he "killed" Lex (which is only in quotes because that's how the show is playing it). Watchtower is running in the Talon, but the space is waiting to be filled in its inevitable location. Chloe is working at the Daily Planet in order to fund Watchtower.

Disclaimer: No copyright infringement intended. I own nothing. The characters/locations belong to the creators of Smallville/Superman. The first two chapters titles are inspired by lyrics written by My Favourite Highway.

Chapter 1: A Delicate Frame...

It's official; I'm in the big leagues now.

I don't fit in here; my preferred entrance is less red-carpet, more illegal. But I guess after those stories become successful, people actually pay you to come to their events. I adjusted my sapphire dress that Lois insisted I wear this evening, although I don't know why I listened to her because the cut of the dress made me more uncomfortable than I already was.

What was worse was that I had no idea how to cut in to ask questions for my story. Mr. Queen arrived at his own function an hour late with his usual arm candy and has been surrounded by board members and desperate women ever since his arrival. I also doubted that he wanted to speak of business tonight. Not that he usually likes talking of business; I doubt he even writes his own responses. Of course, that is the curse of being born rich; charm will get you everywhere.

Then again, I knew that not everything was sunshine and roses in Oliver Queen's life. Everyone knows the story of how he admitted his mistakes and then the event was interrupted by an evacuation alarm. What they don't know is that how the building's camera feeds cut off right after the alarm goes off. That was my doing. Clark called, asking me to evacuate the building while he tried to disarm a bomb activated by a pressure plate under Mr. Queen's feet. Clark stayed out of sight until I re-routed the cameras to my computer in order to deactivate them. Of course, Clark didn't know that I saw the reaction on the billionaire's face as he stepped off the plate. He wanted to die, but there was no bomb.

That was the first time I felt bad for Oliver Queen. He always appeared to have everything, yet he was willing to throw it all away. After watching the footage, I made sure to leave no trace of it behind. He didn't need more pressure as cameras hounded him for days asking him for an explanation regarding his sudden confession, not to mention a reason for the three-month hiatus from the company. Despite being the most-photographed man in Metropolis, no one could find him during that time.

I had walked in Mr. Queen's shoes myself in the last couple of months. I was just trying to protect Clark, but instead, Jimmy died saving my life, Lois disappeared, and Clark walked out of my life. I was alone. I started building Watchtower in the building space Jimmy left for me. There was a film canister lid taped to the floor where he died, so that I couldn't forget him.

Perry gave me a month to recuperate, but once Lois returned she was determined to get me back to normal. Then Clark decided that he couldn't live without Lois and became a part of my life again. I almost felt like a little sister to them as they dragged me everywhere and would set me up on blind dates. It was too soon. However, their pushing eventually got my work life back on track, but I was reminded of my struggle when I saw Oliver Queen step off the plate.

I figured Perry would have wanted a human interest piece on Mr. Queen, but instead, Perry assigned me interview him regarding the pressures on Queen Industries. I usually enjoyed taking apart businesses and media moguls, but after seeing that footage, I didn't know what to do. I had a back-up plan, but I wasn't sure I wanted to use it. So I deliberated my decision while standing by the punch bowl, hoping it wasn't spiked as I sipped my glass.

I know it's short, but Chapter 2 is almost ready. The FanFiction 2-day rule for new users completely changed this story's direction, but I hope you like it.