An Origin Story: 17/23
Author: BlueSuede
Title: An Origin Story
Rating: R/M
Genre: Friendship/Romance
Pairings: Chloe/Oliver
Summary: AU in which Oliver's parents never died
Warnings: minor spoilers for most early seasons
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Prologue
Previous (Chapter 16)
Next (Chapter 18)
Chapter 17:
King Richard Leaves for the Crusades
Over the next two days, Oliver spent a great deal of time running his father's company in his absence, an even greater deal of time surprising Chloe with coffee at random times and places all over the city, but the greatest amount of time searching through every file and every project and every aspect of Queen Industries to find what business they could possibly be doing with Luthorcorp. He left no stone unturned, but the results were fruitless.
"I hate to actually vocalize this possibility," said Chloe one day, taking a sip of the fresh, hazelnut flavored brew Oliver had just handed off to her outside of the post office, "but is there a possibility you're parents are doing something illegal? And that's why there isn't any record of anything?" They were sitting down on a bench against the wall, watching people and cars pass them by.
Oliver shook his head. "Not in a million years. My dad would die rather than tarnish QI. It's too important to him. And even if for a moment he slipped, Mom wouldn't go along with it."
Chloe just sipped her coffee thoughtfully in response. "This is really good, by the way. Where did you get it from?"
"If I told you that, what would you need me for?" he smirked. Chloe could see his thoughts were still miles away in Metropolis. Finally, she knew she had to voice what they'd both been thinking for a while.
"Does this have something to do with Clark, then?"
Oliver tried not to grimace. He had been thinking the same thing. It was the only logical explanation for his parents' continued visits to Lionel Luthor. He nodded. "I think that's exactly what it is."
Chloe took another sip in silence. A short while after discovering Oliver's secret identity as the Green Arrow and getting past their big blow-out, Chloe had talked to Clark about the 'Traveler' business, and Clark had eventually allowed her to tell Oliver the truth at her own discretion, trusting her not to do anything she thought unwise.
"Have you spoken to Clark lately?" Oliver asked.
Chloe blushed. "Not-not lately."
Oliver quirked an eyebrow at her strange embarrassment over the matter. Then understanding dawned on him. "You haven't told anyone about us, yet, have you?"
"No!" Chloe bristled defensively. "I told your father's secretary about it," she joked feebly, laughing a little.
Oliver laughed with her, shaking his head. "Come on," he teased. "It's really easy. Just go on facebook and click 'in a relationship.' Then everybody knows." He poked her in the ribs, nearly causing her to drop her coffee in surprise.
Chloe rolled her eyes. "I know; I know. I'm planning to tell Lois as soon as I talk to her next. And then, like a complete coward, I'm going to let her tell Clark." She smiled deviously at her plan. "And just so you know," her smile turned sweeter, "I did call my dad and tell him."
The corner of Oliver's lip twitched. "And?"
"And he's pretty angry about it."
Oliver looked at her in surprise. "What? Why? I thought your dad liked me." He had met Chloe's dad when he came in town for a brief weekend visit the previous fall.
"Well, yeah," Chloe said matter-of-factly, "but he says now whatever he gets me for Christmas or my birthday is automatically going to be outshone." The dancing in her eyes was the only thing that betrayed her serious voice.
Oliver chuckled. "And what did you say to him?"
"I said he knows I hate flashy gifts and that I was going to strictly forbid you to buy me anything you can't find at Target."
Oliver laughed outright. "Aw, come on! That's not fair!"
After a while they both sobered again, and Oliver brought up something else that had been hanging on his mind for a bit. "So, my dad called this morning."
"Oh?"
"Mmhmm. He asked after you. Told me to say hi for him."
Chloe nodded patiently, knowing Oliver was working up to something.
"And he and my mom are leaving for South Korea tomorrow night."
"Uh huh."
"And apparently there's this thing he forgot about that's two days from now."
"Mmhmm."
"In Metropolis."
Chloe raised an eyebrow.
"And I need to go."
The corner of Chloe's lip twitched as she realized where Oliver was heading.
Oliver waited for a moment, as though he knew she'd cottoned on, but finally recognized that she was going to make him work for it. He heaved a heavy sigh. "And I want you to take off from work and go with me," he said in one breath.
Chloe sighed as well, shaking her head at the coffee, as though it was the only one who understood the things she put up with. "Ollie, I can't take off work, and you know it. I'd love to go, but I just can't."
"Pleeeaaase?" he pleaded, nudging her head with his. "I'll make it worth your while," he added, kissing her ear.
"Hmm," she said, trying to focus coherent thought as he nibbled the cuff of her ear. "Just how do you propose to do that?"
"Well," he said, working his way down her neck, which tickled and made her laugh as he slid a hand around her waist, "this, thing I have to do wouldn't last long, so we could take the rest of the two days to just...mmph." His words were cut off as Chloe shoved his face away, thumb covering his mouth.
"Try again," she told him, smirking at his indignant expression.
He sighed. "Why can't you be like other women and therefore easily swayed by my good looks?" he asked.
She laughed. "Because neither of us would like me half as much if I were."
"Good point. Well, since you are not like other women," he said, stealing her coffee for a sip, "I will have to lure you by other means: The 'thing' that I have to do involves meeting a scientist that I think you would like to meet."
"Oh?" Chloe looked at him with renewed interest.
He nodded. "Yeah. He's apparently been making some major technological breakthroughs the past couple of years, and he's a renowned genius. I figured you'd get along with him pretty well," he said, eyes dancing.
"And who is this mad scientist?" Chloe asked, feeling herself getting reeled in.
"Doctor Emil Hamilton," Oliver said, handing her coffee back.
Chloe's eyebrows nearly disappeared behind her hairline. "You're kidding."
Oliver grinned. "You've heard of him?"
"Yeah, I've read all his work. He's incredible. His understanding of advanced technology is unparalleled, not to mention his knowledge of biology and astronomical anomalies. I mean-"
"Woah, slow down there, Sidekick. I know who he is, remember?" he laughed. "Can I take that to mean you'll go?"
Chloe chewed on her lip nervously. "Would he give me an interview?"
Oliver's grin broadened. "I think I could persuade him."
"Which means, technically, I wouldn't be taking time off. I'd be traveling for business," she said slowly, testing out how it sounded.
Oliver looked triumphant and Chloe rolled her eyes.
"Don't get too excited. I have to run it past George first."
"Hey, Lois," Chloe said, clutching the phone between her ear and her shoulder as she rummaged in her fridge. She was calling to let Lois know that she was coming to Metropolis, and to go ahead and make the Oliver announcement. She'd decided it was better than telling Lois in person, knowing she would only have to deal with the 'I told you so' note in Lois's voice for a few minutes, rather than an entire day.
"Chloe," said a male voice, causing Chloe to almost drop the phone in surprise.
"Clark! Hi!" she said, cheeks turning red. "Did I accidentally dial the wrong number?" she asked before pulling the phone away to check the screen.
"No, but Lois is freaking out over a deadline and she ordered me to answer her phone," he said in an irritable voice. "Not that I mind. I've been trying to get a hold of you for a couple of days now, Chloe," he said, a note of accusation in his voice.
Chloe grimaced. She'd been avoiding talking to Clark ever since she and Oliver had become...well, her and Oliver. "I've been crazy busy at the paper, Clark. We don't all have supersonic speed," she said, pulling out a spoon and peeling back the foil lid on a cup of yogurt.
"Listen, Chloe, it doesn't matter. The thing is," his voice lowered, and she could tell he was trying to make sure Lois didn't overhear, "what exactly do your boyfriend's parents know about me?"
Chloe choked. Coughing and sputtering, she wasn't sure which part of the question to address first. "Oliver is-"
"Not your boyfriend. Yeah, yeah, so you keep telling me," Clark cut her off, and Chloe could practically hear his eye roll. "Not the point. I want to know why his parents are trying to meet with me."
Chloe blinked rapidly several times before she managed to respond. "What?"
"They've left me two messages now, and I have no idea how they even got my phone number, let alone my e-mail address, and they're saying they want to meet with me."
"Right," Chloe said slowly, her mind working quickly. Finally she made up her mind. "Do it."
"What?"
"Meet with them. Remember when I told you that Oliver figured you out?"
"Yeah," Clark said sourly.
"Well he figured you out because his parents have been trying to figure you out. Maybe they weren't as far away as we thought."
"What?" he deadpanned.
"Just for the record, while I can take some of the blame for Oliver discovering your secret, this one definitely isn't my fault."
"But you want me to meet them," he repeated, a note of disbelief in his voice.
"Yeah, I do. We lost Virgil Swann last year, and I think that these people might be able to pick up where he left off. They knew him."
"They did?"
"Yeah." She conveniently neglected to mention that they also knew Lionel Luthor, wondering whether or not it was wise to do so. She comforted herself with the knowledge that the Queens and the Luthors weren't exactly on friendly terms. "I think you can trust them. But it's up to you. Can you put Lois on the phone, please?"
Clark started. "Right, sure."
She heard some shuffling and muffled bickering as the phone was passed over.
"'sup?" her cousin's voice said absently.
"Hey, cuz," Chloe greeted, amused.
"Chloe? What's up?"
"I'm coming to visit."
"Really? Awesome. I'll pull out the sheets for the couch."
"I'm staying in a hotel."
"Why?"
"Because I'm staying with Oliver."
There was a long, drawn out pause.
"Well thank God. It's about time you told me, by the way."
Chloe gave a short laugh. "What?"
"Well I've known for a couple of days."
"How?" Chloe asked, shaking her head.
"Well you told your dad, who told the General-"
"-who told you," Chloe finished with a laugh. "I don't believe it. Who'd have thought our dad's were gossips?"
"Umm, not gossips. Try overprotective lunkheads. Your dad told the General so he would do a background check, and the General told me so that I would keep an eye on you."
Chloe shook her head. "Wow."
"Uh huh. So you're coming to my neck of the woods, huh? Sounds great. E-mail me the details. I'm in the midst of outing a dirty politician, so I gotta go."
"Um, okay?" Chloe said, surprised as she heard the line cut off quickly. She looked at her phone, and after a quick beat, she dialed Oliver's number. Turns out maybe they knew what his parents were doing in Metropolis after all.
With the news that his parents were planning to approach Clark, Oliver became all the more anxious to get to Metropolis. He realized as he thought his parents must, that Lionel, too, knew Clark's secret. He didn't dare tell Chloe, knowing her loathing for all things Luthor. He didn't want to upset her until he could be absolutely sure what Lionel knew.
As the two of them landed in Metropolis, he knew his parents were simultaneously preparing a jet to leave for Chicago, where they would refuel and fly to Europe, before leaving for Seoul. Even as Chloe was speaking rapidly over the phone with Lois, badgering her about Clark, he remained silent, his own thoughts far from his companion. He had to find a way to find out how much Lionel knew. His parents would never tell him, so he had to find out straight from the horse's mouth, one way or another.
"Oliver?"
He blinked and realized that Chloe was shooting him a concerned look. "Sorry," he said sheepishly. "What did you say?"
"I said I want you to drop me off with Lois for today. I'll meet you for dinner, all right?"
He nodded. "That works perfectly, actually. There's a few things I want to take care of before we see Hamilton tomorrow morning."
"Excellent. I want that taken care of by tomorrow morning," Lionel Luthor was saying into his bluetooth as he entered his office. He stopped short at the sight of a young man seated in his desk chair, clicking a desk toy back and forth and looking far too at home. He hung up on his phone call and couldn't help the small smile of amusement as he spoke to the impertinent person before him. "Dare I ask how you got in here?" he asked.
Oliver, having carefully appeared absorbed in the desk toy until this point, took the moment to look up at Lionel Luthor. He smirked and leaned back comfortably in the desk chair. "Probably not. I'd hate for anyone to get fired on my account."
Lionel watched him with a raised brow, waiting for some explanation. He received none. Oliver became instead absorbed in staring out the window of the office. "Nice view. You don't see much smog from this perspective," he noted.
"Mr. Queen, kindly explain your purpose in being here, or remove yourself from my office. Unlike yourself, apparently, I have a lot of things to do with my afternoon."
Oliver nodded his head a few times, seeming to think something over, and Lionel grew impatient. Just as he was about to speak again, Oliver prevented him. "I was curious, Mr. Luthor. I've been exploring a few of Queen Industries' more obscure projects, and I found one that involved you." He maintained a somewhat bored, disinterested facade as he spoke, choosing his words slowly and carefully. "But the file was incomplete. With my parents leaving today, and being in Metropolis anyway, I thought I'd just come straight to you, ask you what you could tell me about it."
Lionel gave him a look that urged him to continue, however impatient the expression may have been. "And?" he pressed. "What project is this? I'm not aware of-"
"It's called Veritas."
Oliver watched Lionel's reaction carefully. He noticed Lionel's hand making a discreet movement, one only the Green Arrow's trained eyes could have caught, which was undoubtedly signaling security. He hid his triumphant smirk deliberately.
Lionel's eyes narrowed, but he still smiled - however much Lionel Luthor ever truly smiled - and responded without answering. "You know something, Mr. Queen, you remind me of Oedipus."
Oliver scoffed and raised his eyebrows in amusement. "You think I'm going to gouge my eyes out? Because I think we both know I'm not going to unknowingly kill my father and marry my mother."
"Perhaps not, but Oedipus, too, was greatly loved, and greatly ignorant of his own flaws. No one wanted to see his downfall, but it came nonetheless." As Lionel spoke, two rather large security guards entered the room. "He, too, could not escape his fate, no matter how hard everyone else tried to protect him from it, no matter how hard he tried to run from it. Please escort Mr. Queen out," he finished, speaking to the guards.
Oliver rose from his seat, knowing there was no need to make a scene. He brushed the guards off at the door, though. "I can find the exit myself, thanks."
As he sped from Lionel's office, his mind reeled. Lionel's reaction to the word 'Veritas' had confirmed for him, if not that Lionel knew for certain that it was Clark, that Lionel had far from forgotten the elitist club he and a select few others had once entertained themselves with.
More importantly, he was trying to ascertain what Lionel had meant by escaping his fait. What fate?
Fate. Fate. He thought hurriedly, bursting into the sunlight outside the LuthorCorp building. Something that is meant to happen. That didn't happen before...would have happened? Something that almost happened but didn't...something that's going to happen...
As though the magical link had clicked into place, Oliver stopped stock still, suddenly understanding what Lionel had meant.
Oh god.
He pulled out his phone and misdialed Chloe's number twice in his frenzy. The phone didn't even complete the first ring before Chloe's frenzied voice answered.
"Oliver, Lois hasn't seen Clark since he left to talk to your parents last night. He's not answering his phone."
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Next (Chapter 18)