Stocking Stuffer #3 (and 4): Singing and Celebration
These Clexmas Elf stories are to celebrate Hanukkah (Chanukah) in our lives on this, the final day of Chanukah. Note that there is early comic canon evidence for Lex Luthor for being (non-observant) Jewish, though Smallville changed that. We're changing it back. ^^ And adding a few extras. ;D (Also - Michael Rosenbaum is Jewish, so that fits too!)
Ficlet 1: Singing - G rated, 595
Ficlet 2: Celebration - R rated, 555
[ficlets by sue_dreams]
Singing
It's just the two of them on the side of a country road, the nearest house a quarter of a mile to the East and unlit when they'd passed by it an hour before.
They'd been talking about the lack of school for the next two weeks, Christmas shopping and holiday traditions. When Lex launches into the origin of Chanukah ("It's always about someone trying to oppress us," Lex says in answer to one of Clark's few questions), there's nothing unusual about his tone, not at the start. It's just another history lesson, this time the Maccabees versus Antiochus and the aftermath, the importance of the oil and the miracle of its supply.
Clark doesn't know quite when it changes and whether it's related to the story itself or the emotions it evokes in Lex. But something is different from their earlier friendly chatter and it becomes all the more apparent when Lex tips his face toward Clark only enough that Clark can catch the corner of his gaze. It's personal, when Lex talks about traditions once kept, rituals fallen out of use.
Then he talks about the hymns, sung during and after the lighting of the menorah, before he pauses and asks simply, "May I?"
"Yes," Clark answers quickly, his chest full to bursting. It may not be his celebration, but he feels the honor of it, the gift of knowing this holiday as viewed by Lex and the gift of Lex's trust, that he would share this with Clark.
He'll listen, as Lex turns to the front and starts singing in a low, clear voice. The words make no sense to Clark and he thinks it's Hebrew, but he doesn't know a whole lot about Jewish traditions to know for certain.
It is beautiful, the rise and fall of sound, the raw emotion of Lex's voice as it grows louder and more certain.
Lex doesn't look at Clark until he's stopped singing and the silence in the car has grown to overtake the space his voice had filled. "Thank you. We should probably get you home," he says, voice flatter than before, his expression closing down as he reaches to turn the key in the ignition.
Clark reaches out to put his hand over top of Lex's, stopping him before he can start the car. "What else is there? What else can I- we do?"
Despite some lingering embarrassment Clark wished Lex didn't feel, Lex remains open. Still vulnerable in a way that Lex never lets himself be except around Clark. "I don't have a dreidel anymore," he says, as if the game might be the only part Clark is interested in
"But the potatoes, the latchkeys," Clark says, thinking of the mansion's well-stocked kitchen.
"Latkes," Lex corrects with a smile. He looks at the clock on the dashboard, but getting Clark home was only an excuse; it's not that late. And for this, Clark would be willing to break curfew.
Clark smiles back at him. "And the donuts and cheese."
"A healthy meal," Lex says on a laugh. His mood is lighter as he starts the car.
Clark reaches out to turn off the radio that, for one reason or another, is still playing Christmas music three days later. "What other songs do you remember?"
"Who says I remember any?" Lex says back.
"I do. You don't forget anything." That may not be true, but Lex is able to recall some very obscure stuff, and with the feeling he still has for Chanukah, Clark is willing to bet he remembers a lot.
Celebration
Lex taps a finger against the dreidel. "And what was this?"
There's no penalty for being wrong, but Clark knows being right will make Lex happy, so he concentrates on the lines of the letter adoring the up-facing side. It's an upside down 'y', so not 'nun' or 'hei'. "Gimel," he finally answers, fairly confident.
"Correct," Lex says. He waits for Clark to claim the pot of 'winnings' before adding a sock for ante.
Clark puts in the mate from the pot and watches as Lex picks up the dreidel with his long fingers and spins it. A spark of heat goes through him when it lands on 'shin' and Lex gives up his shirt, leaving him in an undershirt and his slacks.
The undershirt will be next. Clark knows this because he inadvertently (mostly on purpose) already saw what Lex was (not) wearing under his pants. From the way Lex keeps smirking at him, Lex might know that Clark knows.
So far, Clark's luck has been superb and though Lex looks suspicious, he gives up his slacks five minutes later. He's breathtaking, laid out on his side in front of the fire. Clark's hand shakes as he reaches for the dreidel and gives it a spin. It comes up on 'gimel' for the third time that night, his third win of the pot.
Clark's heart is pounding in his chest, waiting for Lex to point out that when the last piece is won, the game is meant to be over. Seconds pass and Lex simply looks at Clark, comfortable in his nakedness, his gaze patient. Clark can end the game and the moment by returning Lex his clothes.
He hesitates before putting his own plaid shirt back between them, but Lex lays still. He's out of clothes to offer for ante, something neither of them has verbally acknowledged yet. His eyes darken as he tilts his head. "I'm out of clothing," he points out, voice low and edged in invitation. He reaches for the dreidel anyway, which sends Clark's heart into triple time. "I suppose all I have left is myself."
It lands on 'nun' after an eternity of spinning. Clark's lightheaded by the time he realizes play has passed on to him. Before it was just his hand that shook, but he can feel a crackling energy under his skin, making him feel like his entire body is trembling. His spin is awkward, leaving the dreidel to wobble before it settles into its spin. It falls quickly and Clark has to blink a couple times before he believes his eyes. 'Gimel'. The pot, the game... Lex is his.
Lex sits up and starts to put on the shirt Clark had put between them a moment before. He's disappointed, a little, before he remembers that it's his shirt. The flannel looks dark against Lex's pale skin and he leaves it unbuttoned so that it frames his body.
Clark scrambles to his knees and then practically throws himself at Lex, who catches him with open arms and only laughs as Clark bears him backwards to the floor. "Did you cheat?" Clark asks.
"A little. I could only make sure you didn't lose." He tugs Clark lower, until their bodies are flush together and impeded only by Clark's jeans and T-shirt. "That neither of us lost."
Ficlet 1: Singing - G rated, 595
Ficlet 2: Celebration - R rated, 555
[ficlets by sue_dreams]
Singing
It's just the two of them on the side of a country road, the nearest house a quarter of a mile to the East and unlit when they'd passed by it an hour before.
They'd been talking about the lack of school for the next two weeks, Christmas shopping and holiday traditions. When Lex launches into the origin of Chanukah ("It's always about someone trying to oppress us," Lex says in answer to one of Clark's few questions), there's nothing unusual about his tone, not at the start. It's just another history lesson, this time the Maccabees versus Antiochus and the aftermath, the importance of the oil and the miracle of its supply.
Clark doesn't know quite when it changes and whether it's related to the story itself or the emotions it evokes in Lex. But something is different from their earlier friendly chatter and it becomes all the more apparent when Lex tips his face toward Clark only enough that Clark can catch the corner of his gaze. It's personal, when Lex talks about traditions once kept, rituals fallen out of use.
Then he talks about the hymns, sung during and after the lighting of the menorah, before he pauses and asks simply, "May I?"
"Yes," Clark answers quickly, his chest full to bursting. It may not be his celebration, but he feels the honor of it, the gift of knowing this holiday as viewed by Lex and the gift of Lex's trust, that he would share this with Clark.
He'll listen, as Lex turns to the front and starts singing in a low, clear voice. The words make no sense to Clark and he thinks it's Hebrew, but he doesn't know a whole lot about Jewish traditions to know for certain.
It is beautiful, the rise and fall of sound, the raw emotion of Lex's voice as it grows louder and more certain.
Lex doesn't look at Clark until he's stopped singing and the silence in the car has grown to overtake the space his voice had filled. "Thank you. We should probably get you home," he says, voice flatter than before, his expression closing down as he reaches to turn the key in the ignition.
Clark reaches out to put his hand over top of Lex's, stopping him before he can start the car. "What else is there? What else can I- we do?"
Despite some lingering embarrassment Clark wished Lex didn't feel, Lex remains open. Still vulnerable in a way that Lex never lets himself be except around Clark. "I don't have a dreidel anymore," he says, as if the game might be the only part Clark is interested in
"But the potatoes, the latchkeys," Clark says, thinking of the mansion's well-stocked kitchen.
"Latkes," Lex corrects with a smile. He looks at the clock on the dashboard, but getting Clark home was only an excuse; it's not that late. And for this, Clark would be willing to break curfew.
Clark smiles back at him. "And the donuts and cheese."
"A healthy meal," Lex says on a laugh. His mood is lighter as he starts the car.
Clark reaches out to turn off the radio that, for one reason or another, is still playing Christmas music three days later. "What other songs do you remember?"
"Who says I remember any?" Lex says back.
"I do. You don't forget anything." That may not be true, but Lex is able to recall some very obscure stuff, and with the feeling he still has for Chanukah, Clark is willing to bet he remembers a lot.
Celebration
Lex taps a finger against the dreidel. "And what was this?"
There's no penalty for being wrong, but Clark knows being right will make Lex happy, so he concentrates on the lines of the letter adoring the up-facing side. It's an upside down 'y', so not 'nun' or 'hei'. "Gimel," he finally answers, fairly confident.
"Correct," Lex says. He waits for Clark to claim the pot of 'winnings' before adding a sock for ante.
Clark puts in the mate from the pot and watches as Lex picks up the dreidel with his long fingers and spins it. A spark of heat goes through him when it lands on 'shin' and Lex gives up his shirt, leaving him in an undershirt and his slacks.
The undershirt will be next. Clark knows this because he inadvertently (mostly on purpose) already saw what Lex was (not) wearing under his pants. From the way Lex keeps smirking at him, Lex might know that Clark knows.
So far, Clark's luck has been superb and though Lex looks suspicious, he gives up his slacks five minutes later. He's breathtaking, laid out on his side in front of the fire. Clark's hand shakes as he reaches for the dreidel and gives it a spin. It comes up on 'gimel' for the third time that night, his third win of the pot.
Clark's heart is pounding in his chest, waiting for Lex to point out that when the last piece is won, the game is meant to be over. Seconds pass and Lex simply looks at Clark, comfortable in his nakedness, his gaze patient. Clark can end the game and the moment by returning Lex his clothes.
He hesitates before putting his own plaid shirt back between them, but Lex lays still. He's out of clothes to offer for ante, something neither of them has verbally acknowledged yet. His eyes darken as he tilts his head. "I'm out of clothing," he points out, voice low and edged in invitation. He reaches for the dreidel anyway, which sends Clark's heart into triple time. "I suppose all I have left is myself."
It lands on 'nun' after an eternity of spinning. Clark's lightheaded by the time he realizes play has passed on to him. Before it was just his hand that shook, but he can feel a crackling energy under his skin, making him feel like his entire body is trembling. His spin is awkward, leaving the dreidel to wobble before it settles into its spin. It falls quickly and Clark has to blink a couple times before he believes his eyes. 'Gimel'. The pot, the game... Lex is his.
Lex sits up and starts to put on the shirt Clark had put between them a moment before. He's disappointed, a little, before he remembers that it's his shirt. The flannel looks dark against Lex's pale skin and he leaves it unbuttoned so that it frames his body.
Clark scrambles to his knees and then practically throws himself at Lex, who catches him with open arms and only laughs as Clark bears him backwards to the floor. "Did you cheat?" Clark asks.
"A little. I could only make sure you didn't lose." He tugs Clark lower, until their bodies are flush together and impeded only by Clark's jeans and T-shirt. "That neither of us lost."