Pantheon Chapter Four
poster by hottietom, Dolly and The Satyr Icon
Title: Pantheon
Author: The Satyr Icon
Rating: PG-13
Spoilers: Set in Icon AU; Freshman Year
Classification: Smallville; Chloe/Clark
Disclaimer: All characters, references, and other things pertaining to 'Smallville' are property of the WB, DC Comics, Tollin-Robins, Al Gough & Miles Millar, and J. Siegal & J. Shuster; I am just writing for fun, and if I owned them, all would be good and clean in the World.
Summary: KWIZ's Billy Batson follows a story to Smallville and teams up with Chloe....Captain Marvel and Clark team up as well...
Word Count: WIP; so far:
Written: Start: 1/30/05 Finished: ???
Chapter Three Link:
http://the-satyr-icon.livejournal.com/16033.html#cutid2
~Pantheon~
~Chapter Four~
It was a dreary Friday evening, with the cold and wind earlier that week turning worse, with raindrops pelting the county-side, and that did not please Lana Lang. She co-owned (with Lex Luthor, who felt it was a wise move for a twenty-something millionaire to partner up with a 15 year old to run a business; Lana herself wondered about that, but she was dating an 18 year old and thought that it was just the way of her world) the Talon the local old fashioned theater-slash-modern coffeehouse, and the bad weather made for a sparse crowd. Adding to the that, Smallville High School's football team, the Crows, were playing against River Plate High Silversmiths, and the Crows were the visiting team. Many on the squad were always at the Talon, including Lana's boyfriend, star senior quarterback Whitney Fordman, and her friend, running back Pete Ross.
Lana tuned the Talon's sound-system to the radio broadcast of the game for the students and young adults that didn't brave the weather and the long drive out of town to see the game. She grabbed a tall mocha latte and sat with her friend, Chloe Sullivan in the booth at the far back of the Talon. There was a small table in front of a half-circular plush couch; it was Chloe and her boyfriend, Clark, usual table.
“I'm thinking of getting a karaoke machine...maybe that will bring in more people on game night.,” Lana said while she slid the caffeine-laden drink on the table in front her clearly perturbed friend. The thin brunette plopped down on the cushion and sipped her own hot chocolate. She looked at Chloe, who looked equal parts water logged and confused.
“Ugh...we'll be subjected to crazies sing 'I Love Rock and Roll' off-key,” the blond, flippy-haired reporter. She was busy listening to the broadcast, scribbling notes.
“We sang that at my sleep-over...,” Lana whispered and settled into the warm booth. The girls seemed to be bonding more and more lately; That was a crazy Satyrday night spent with the girls calling over to Clark's house. They both chatted with him and Pete, who stayed at his best friend's house that evening. After the call, they watched dvds, ate too much popcorn, and stayed up until 5 AM. “I had fun.”
“Oh...sorry. Me too,” Chloe said. “I think that's a good idea...maybe get a big screen TV to show the games,” Chloe said quickly, hoping her idea could soothe over her trampling over Lana's feelings. “Even games like Met U Bulldog and Metropolis Knights football games.”
“I'd like to promote local sports,” Lana said, then sipped. “Shenanigan's and Logan's has the monopoly on college and pro games. When did you become the sports buff?”
“Ew. I'm not. But I do listen to Clark and My dad watch the games,” Chloe smiled. “But not enough, I think. I'm lost listening to the game on the radio.” Chloe sat back, frowned dramatically, and was just about to say something when the announcer say that Pete ran in for another touchdown.
“Wooooooooooooo!” Lana yelled, shaking Chloe out of the doldrums.
“What? What happened?”
“Pete just scored!” Lana said with a big smile; she and Pete have been classmates since pre-school, and she was happy for her friend. She liked and talked to Pete even though they seemed to go separate ways in the last couple of grades in middle school. Pete was best buds with Clark Kent and they were, to be blunt, not in Lana's cool clique.
“He did? Awesome!” Chloe grinned. She looked at the speaker on the wall. “But I missed the call! Did you hear how?”
“All I heard was “Touchdown Ross”...sorry.”
“I'll try and get Pete and Whitney on the phone later for a interview and high lites of the game,” Chloe said dejectedly.
“Sports isn't your beat...where's Clark? Not at the game?”
“Clark had stupid chores!” Chloe said with such ferocity that Lana shot back in the seat. “He couldn't go and cover the football game, that with all the rain, there was so much work to be done around the farm,” Chloe saw said and saw the disapproving look on Lana's face. “What?”
"That actually is a good reason,” Lana said. “Farm life is hard, and you know they don't hire help.”
Chloe looked at Lana and was surprised how levelheaded Lana was at that moment. “I sorta snapped at him because of it. But I was...I mean, the Torch was left in the lurch.”
Chloe thought of that afternoon...
“Fine,” Chloe said and stomped around the desks in the Torch, the office's for the school newspaper. “Do your chores...I'll write the story and get the interviews and get the paper ready ALL by myself.”
“Sorry, Chloe,” Clark said weakly. He stepped forward to hug her, but Chloe sat in her chair.
“If it were Pete passing on a story, I'd kick him in the shins,” Chloe said. “So no hugs for you.”
Clark walked out and Chloe threw her bitten-upon pen to the floor. She was angry, arms crossed, more mad at the situation than at Clark.
“He totally skips out on a story,” Chloe says talking faster and starting to get out of her seat. “And he skips out on me! I walked from school here in this rainstorm! I'm all wet!”
“I'm sure he'll help with the story,”Lana said. “He's Mister Reliable.”
“He's super-reliable... I know he will.” she sighs. “Sometimes I wish he'd take being a reporter more seriously.”
”Is that really the problem?” Lana asked.
“The problem in paradise is the science fair,” Chloe admitted. She told Lana, that all of Clark's ideas were woefully bland and boring, while Clark shot down her attempts to do a project with a connection to the meteor rocks. Neither of them could settle on a project, and they were both getting snippy with each other.
“Clark snippy?” Lana wondered. “That is so unlike him.”
“Well...he's bad at being snippy,” Chloe smiled. “His strongest comeback is being silent. ” She laughed and so did Lana. “But he better me call soon.”
“Yeah...Chores are one thing, not calling is another,” Lana said and drank from her cup. “Be firm and make sure he knows he did wrong if he doesn't call.” Chloe nodded and tried to follow the game. But the evening, and the game dragged on and Chloe was getting a little more irate with Clark; he had called her yet.
“Right now I'm half-worried and half-ticked off at him.” Chloe said and bit into the Martha Muffin that Lana gave her; Clark's mom muffins were the best in town.
“Still no call?” Lana slid back next to her. Just her and two other waitresses were needed tonight thanks to the weather.
“He always calls,” Chloe said and bit her pen. ”Maybe something happened...maybe he saved somebody.”
“That's the only reason you should talk to him over the weekend,” Lana said and they both giggled.
“He makes it hard to be mad at him,” Chloe admitted; she was mad because she and Clark were pretty much inseparable lately.
Into the Talon walked a figure, wet and drenched, red sweater and blue jeans dripping from the rain.
“Look what the cat dragged...” Lana started to say and stopped.
“Clark!” Chloe smiled and looked.
But it wasn't Clark.
It was Billy Batson.
CHAPTER FIVE LINK:
http://the-satyr-icon.livejournal.com/64616.html#cutid2