She struggled against the bonds, the skin on her wrists burning with the effort. It was dark, so though he hadn't blindfolded her, she could see precious little of her surroundings. Her teeth worked against the piece of cloth that was taut between her lips, hoping, perhaps fruitlessly, that her constant gnawing would fray it enough to work it loose, and perhaps even off. Her kidnappers were catching on – make sure Lois Lane can't call for Superman.

She was just thankful that only her wrists, ankles, and mouth were restrained. The bastard hadn't tied anything around her pregnant middle.

She was trying her best to stay calm, given her condition. And despite the seriousness of the situation – even knowing that in all likelihood her superhero husband would be arriving as soon as he realized what had happened – she couldn't help the feeling that ran through her. The same one she always got when she knew they knew that Lois Lane was onto them.

Of course, given who it was this time, it was especially sweet. She, along with Clark and the rest of the Justice League, had been tracking the underground operation for months, the similarities to a certain bald billionaire's past experiments, most notably what he'd done to her friend Wes, had them all well convinced that Lex had begun another round of playing God.

Proving that, however, hadn't been easy. Really, they still didn't have solid proof. However, the persistent digging seemed to at least rattle the publically unflappable Lex, given the fact that she was currently tied up in what appeared to be, if the murky shadows were any indication, an abandoned warehouse.

And she just knew he was behind it. Of course, he hadn't been the one to grab her and he certainly wasn't the Neanderthal watching her but, and she'd get Clark to double check with his x-ray vision, she would bet money there were microscopic cameras littering the place.

Lex was nothing if not thorough. And voyeuristic, especially when he wanted to someone squirm.

Not that she'd ever give him the satisfaction.

She heard the turn of a lock, followed by the creak of a door and the thud of footsteps heading towards her. Stilling her movements, she fixed her face into the best glare she could muster, given her current trussed up situation.

As he came closer, a vague outline began to form in the darkness. She swallowed thickly at the shadow moving toward her, the stench of sweat rolling off him. A hand quickly materialized, barely giving her time to flinch back, before the gag was torn off her mouth.

She gasped, before staring defiantly up at the faceless shadow.

"Go ahead, girlie," he growled.

"Go ahead, what?" she snapped back angrily.

"Call your hero," he sneered.

Her eyes narrowed at that, her stomach beginning to swirl anxiously. She flinched again as a light shone in her face, the first light she'd seen since she'd woken up from the conk on the head the thug had delivered.

Refusing to give him the satisfaction, she stared at him, her stubbornness, even in the face of the danger she was in, present as always, even with the bright light shining on her.

"I seriously doubt you want me to do that," she said, somehow managing to keep her voice steady.

Before she could blink, the light was replaced with the barrel of a gun. Her hands wrenched against her binds, her maternal instinct to shield her unborn child kicking in strongly.

"Wanna bet?" he answered, a cocky smirk firmly in place.
Her mind worked furiously, attempting to figure out his angle. No criminal in their right mind would actually want Superman to show up to rescue her. While he certainly wouldn't kill the criminal in question, he'd be headed to prison for a long stretch.

She forced a smug grin to her face. Sure, she was still anxious, but with this guy's apparent desire for Superman to show up, she was fairly certain he didn't plan on hurting her. "I guess that makes you stupider than I thought."

He growled at that, pushing the gun forward a bit, causing Lois to flinch, the skin on her wrists burning from the constant friction against the ties.

Through gritted teeth. "Call him. Now."

She gulped, her hands bracing against the restraints, the need to place a calming hand against her stomach, against their child, overpowering.

"Tell me why," she demanded in a slightly shaky voice.

He shrugged, a tilt to his lips. "I do what I'm told. And what I'm told is to make you call for him."

Of course.

It was a trap, and she was the bait. This wasn't remotely out of the ordinary for Lex. Many times, he had attempted to get his hooks into Superman, desperately wanting to know his identity – and Clark, Lois and their friends hoped against hope that that forgotten memory would never resurface - , but more than that, wanting to control him, to experiment on him.

But what she couldn't figure out was how they planned to do it. It would take Clark all of three seconds to fly in, use his superspeed to untie her, and get her out safely. About 4 seconds after that, Lex's lackey would be neatly tied to the nearest cement pole and a phone call placed to the police would let them know his whereabouts.

"Come on, sweetheart," he said, his voice dripping with sarcasm, "Don't you want your hero to come to your rescue?"

Cocking an eyebrow, she shrugged as best she could with bound hands.

"Seems like you want him here more than I do. Which seems strange given your…occupation," she finished in a more subdued tone, laced with a snarkiness her captor apparently didn't pick up.

She'd seen types like him before. He wasn't in charge, but he liked to think he was. Too stupid to know he wasn't actually as brilliant as he thought he was coming off.

Just keep him talking. That was the key. Push and prod until he was dying to impress her with his, or rather Lex's, grand plan.

"Yeah, well I got plans for the flying freak."

She cringed at that, glaring at him. "I can't imagine any plan you have will actually work. No offense to your criminal sensibilities and all but, he is Superman."

"Even Superman has a weakness, sweetheart."

Lois swallowed hard at that, attempting to keep her composure. "And what's that?"

With a smirk, he backed away from her, heading for the door. She furrowed her brow in confusion, watching as he disappeared through the door momentarily before quickly reappearing. His right hand still held the gun, but his left hand was fisted. He took a few steps toward her, training the gun on her once more. Lifting his other hand, he opened it, an all too familiar green glow emanating from the center of his palm.

"This place is surrounded, babe."

Her pulse began to race as the implications of his words sank in.

"You know what this is, don't you?"

She kept silent, which she knew didn't really matter. Once Clark figured out she was missing, he didn't have to rely on hearing her voice. Her heartbeat had led him to her on many an occasion, and she had no doubt he'd be listening for that this time.

When she failed to answer, he stepped closer, his hand thrust out a bit more.

"This place is lousy with the stuff. So you see, your so-called hero won't make it through the door," he said cockily, a smirk tilting his lips.

"And what makes you think he'll come?" she fired back.

He just shook his head, moving even closer to her. "He always comes for you, sweetheart."

Sweat beaded on her forehead as she frantically tried to devise a way to get rid of her captor for just a few seconds, just enough to be able to whisper this latest development in the hopes that Clark's superhearing would pick it up. Sensing that probably wouldn't happen, she decided to go with a more obvious approach, hoping it reached her husband's ears.

"Did you forget Superman's got x-ray vision? I'm sure he can pick up your little trap of meteor rock from miles away."

"Of course," he continued on proudly as if Lois hadn't said a word, taking one last step toward her, "it's not like he'll be able to see it. I covered it up with a lot of dirt and rocks out there," he finished, a little too proudly. Nothing would please her more in that moment than being able to reach out and smack that self-satisfaction off his face.

She let out a gasp as a flash of pain suddenly ripped through her. Exhaling sharply, her eyes fell to her stomach.

"The perfect trap," he said, finally shoving the green rock in her face. Another stab of pain, this one causing her hands to push against her bindings.

What the hell was going on?

2009

"I had no idea what was going on. All I knew was that I was in a hell of a lot of pain."

They had remained in the barn, Lois sitting on the couch with Martha beside her, a comforting arm around her shoulder. Clark sat on his old trunk across from her, listening intently. His eyes, though, kept drifting to her stomach, clearly still processing all he'd learned in the past little while.

"How did you figure it out?" Clark asked.

"That it was the Kryptonite? After a few minutes, he moved back some, and the pain started to lessen. Unfortunately, he noticed. So he came closer again, shoving that damn rock in my face. I tried to cover, you know? But I guess he wasn't as dumb as he looked."

"And that was the first time you'd come in contact with it since you've been pregnant?" Martha asked, gently squeezing Lois' hand.

"Yeah, thankfully. I mean, it never even occurred to me that…," her voice trailed off, and she shook her head slightly, as if collecting her thoughts. "Though I guess this is a pretty special situation," she finished softly, running a tender hand over her swollen belly.

"Lois?"

Her eyes lifted from her stomach at his quiet voice.

"Did it…the Kryptonite, did it hurt the baby?"

Tears sprung to her eyes at the undercurrent of pain and guilt in his voice. The exact tone, almost the same words, she'd heard from the man who'd held her hand in the hospital after she'd been checked out.

"The more things change," she mumbled softly, all too familiar with Clark's self-inflicted guilt trips. Clearing her throat, she leaned forward, reaching out to and grasping the fingers that rested on his knee. "The baby's fine, Clark. Emil gave us both a clean bill of health."

He stared at her for a moment, as if searching her eyes for even more reassurance than her words provided. Then he nodded.

"Good."

"But if the place was surrounded, how did you get out? I'm assuming Clark couldn't get in."

"Yeah, and how did anyone even know about Kryptonite?"

"Look," Lois said, holding up a hand. "I can't tell you everything, alright? I was rescued by…by some friends of ours. That's all you need to know about that. As for the Kryptonite, not many people do know."

"But Lex does."

"Yeah, he found out…well let's just say enemies of enemies are friends and leave it at that, okay?" she responded, averting her gaze as her mind wandered to a certain Kryptonite-hearted psycho who she'd had hope of redemption for once upon a time.

"If you tell me though, maybe I can…"

"Stop it? Believe me, I'd love nothing more than for Lex never to find out. But Clark, I'm already risking enough of the future as it is by telling you all of this. Even if that one thing would be a change for the better? I can't risk the domino effect it could have on other events in the future."

He sighed, an air of frustration emanating from him. "Okay."

"But that still doesn't explain why, well why all of this," Martha interjected. "This is a pretty desperate move."

"Oh there's more. What I told you was just the tip of the iceberg."

2016

Shoving his glasses to the bridge of his nose, somewhat of a nervous habit he'd developed since he'd started wearing them, he paced around the Metropolis General's emergency room waiting area.

He'd reluctantly left her side upon Emil's insistence that he just wanted to run a few more tests. It was a tricky situation, given whose baby she was pregnant with. While he wasn't nervous about her being examined by any doctor on call, the baby was another matter. His friend and colleague had assured him Lois was fine, as well as the baby, but given her and their child's exposure to meteor rock for the first time, he just wanted to be sure.

He owed Bart and Ollie big time for managing to get to her when he couldn't.

It hadn't occurred to him, or Lois either apparently, that she would be susceptible to Kryptonite in her condition. This was the first abnormal, for lack of a better word, turn in her pregnancy.

They'd been so happy to find out Lois was expecting, but also anxious. They didn't know what to expect. Jor-El hadn't been much help, so they basically were taking it one day at a time.

He watched over her like a hawk. Even moreso than usual. And though he knew she definitely bristled a bit under his constant watch, she'd tried to be more amenable to it given the situation, knowing that her life, which was precious to him to begin with, was twice that now that she was carrying their child.

But, he thought to himself ruefully, it hadn't really slowed her down all that much. He knew her personal investment in uncovering Lex's project given what had happened to her old friend Wes. And, well, she had no love for Lex outside of that, given what she knew of the history he shared with his former best friend.

So he hadn't been all that surprised when he'd heard she was kidnapped. Again. But what had blindsided him was when he'd found her via his superhearing and heard that trap that had been laid for him.

Sure, Lex had had his plans before, but he'd never been as bold as to capture Lois and lace the place he was keeping her in with Kryptonite. And, without a doubt, this was Lex's work.

Thankfully, he'd been able to get in touch with Bart, and while Oliver dealt with the scumbag who was holding her, Bart whisked her safely to Metropolis General. He'd been hovering above the warehouse, far enough so the meteor rock wouldn't affect him, watching anxiously as the rescue unfolded, only breathing a sigh of relief when she was safe at the hospital and he was able to meet her there.

Emil began examining her almost immediately, giving him no time to talk to her about what had happened. He'd hugged her for a brief moment, needing to see her, to see that she was alright, before Emil began checking her over. Still shaking, she'd whispered to him that the meteor rock had hurt her.

And that she was scared Lex might have seen it. Somehow.

The panic in her eyes, fear for their baby, was as clear as a summer day in Smallville. Fear that had driven him to focus his hearing, fear that had abated a bit when he picked up not only her heartbeat, but that of their child.

He couldn't remember ever seeing her so shaken up. Lois was kidnapped or threatened on pretty much a weekly basis, she wasn't that easily rattled.

But this, whatever had gone down in that warehouse, had scared her.

"How is she?"

Clark stiffened immediately at the all too familiar voice behind him. It took every ounce of self-control he possessed not to slam the owner of that voice against the nearest wall.

"The doctor's still checking her out," he answered brusquely, refusing to turn and look at the man who had once been his best friend. "What are you doing here, Lex?"

"I heard about Lois."

He wanted to turn and rail at him, blame him for her abduction, for the pain she was in. But he knew he couldn't. He had to let this play out if the league had any hope of taking down Luthor for good.

"How?" he asked, finally turning to face Lex.

"Lois is a pretty famous reporter, Clark. Her being kidnapped makes the news. Especially when a few superheroes come to her rescue. Even moreso if one of those heroes isn't Superman."

Clark shrugged nonchalantly. "What does it matter who saved her? The point is, she was rescued."

Lex simply chuckled. "Come on, Clark. We all know Lois is Superman's favorite damsel in distress, even if you're in denial about it."

Clark shook his head, turning back toward the door behind which Lois was still being examined. "I don't have time for this, Lex. I'm far more concerned about my wife and child than I am about your paranoid ramblings about Superman."

"Maybe you should be."

"Lex…"

"Don't you ever wonder about their relationship, Clark?" Lex interrupted. "You're a smart guy. It can't have escaped your attention that Superman is in love with your wife."

Clark stiffened slightly at that, keeping his back to Lex.

"Don't you ever wonder if she feels the same way?"

A nagging sense of foreboding fluttered inside him. Still, years of practice had allowed him to perfect his poker face, at least in these types of situations and with pretty much anyone but Lois. So he turned toward Lex, a tight smile on his face, and responded with forced politeness.

"Thanks for your concern, but my marriage is really none of your business."

"It's not like the stories haven't been around for years," Lex continued, as if Clark hadn't uttered a single word. "Superman and Lois Lane. You had to have wondered if there was any truth to them." Lex stepped closer. "It's not like it would be all that difficult for him to whisk her away for a little private time."

His jaw clenched, Clark turned toward Lex. "I guess you didn't hear me the first time. My marriage to Lois is not open for discussion."

Holding his hands up in mock surrender, Lex took a step back. "I'm just trying to look out for you."

"Since when?"

"We were friends once."

"A lifetime ago."

"Even so."

"Don't pretend this is about me, Lex. This is about your vendetta against Superman. You just want me on your side. Well, it's not gonna happen."

With a wry smile, Lex shook his head. "I guess love really is blind."

2016

"I still can't believe Lex forgot your secret. I mean, I guess that's lucky, right?"

The three of them still surrounded the kitchen island at the Kent farm, though Lois was the only one sitting. With all of the surprises of which she was currently being informed, she wasn't sure her legs would hold her if she stood.

"Not that he hasn't made it his life's work to take down our hero regardless," Oliver chimed in.

"So, he thinks your alter ego and I are what, having a little something on the side?"

Clark sighed. "He does, and look, he's not the only one. Gossip columns have hinted at it for years. We just ignore it though."

"Okay, and I get that that's annoying and all, but honestly? If, like you say, that thought's been around for years, then why the drastic steps to get your Lois to safety? I mean, you sent her to another time. Seems like an overreaction if it's because of some rumor that's been floating around for a while."

Oliver and Clark exchanged a look, and Lois couldn't help but roll her eyes. They'd been doing that all night and it was annoying the hell out of her.

"Are you sure you two aren't the ones who are married? Because honestly, the nonverbals are driving me crazy."

A bit of levity brought to the seriousness, Clark actually cracked a smile. "I can always count on you to be consistent, Lo."

"Ah, so I guess some things don't change?" she responded with a grin.

He shook his head. "No. Thankfully," his expression had morphed back into all-business mode. "And you're right. Sending my Lois back in time, it wasn't just because of the kidnapping, or even my run in with Lex."

"There's more," Oliver said quietly.

Clark nodded. "Yeah, there is. I wasn't the only one Lex visited that day."

Her eyes fluttered open, adjusting to the dim light of the hospital room. Though Emil had checked her out – twice, and if her overprotective husband had his way there would have been a third time – and found everything to be fine with both her and the baby, he had insisted she stay overnight, just so he could keep a watchful eye on her to make sure there were no delayed effects from the Kryptonite exposure.

She had argued, of course, insisting she was fine. But up against Clark and Emil, and worse, Clark's puppy dog eyes, it was a battle she lost.

And while she was slightly annoyed – she wasn't the biggest fan of hospitals – she understood. Truthfully, she and Clark didn't know what to expect with this pregnancy, and as cautious as he usually was when it came to her, he was doubly so now. She had to admit, some of that had even rubbed off on her. Luckily, everything so far had progressed as any other, for lack of a better term, normal pregnancy would have and for that, she and Clark were both thankful.

That is, until today. And her reaction to the meteor rock.

Groaning, still a little sore from the binds that had held her earlier, she pushed herself into more of a sitting position. Spotting a piece of paper on the attached table, she picked it up, lips tilted slightly into a smile at her husband's familiar handwriting.

The note, of course, held one of his patented, and often still somewhat lame, excuses. Not for her benefit, of course, but should any doctor or nurse other than Emil happen to come in and see it in his absence.

Before she had the chance to wonder about the crisis he was dealing with, her door creaked open.

"May I come in?"

Gritting her teeth, trying to stop herself from ripping him a new one, she managed what she hoped was a calm tone of voice.

"What do you want Lex?"

"I just wanted to see how you were. I heard what happened," he answered, phony sympathy dripping from every syllable.

"I'm sure you did," Lois said, her voice laced with sarcasm.

"Retract the claws, Mrs. Kent," he said, a strange emphasis on the use of her married name immediately catching Lois' attention. "I come bearing gifts."

With that, he raised a bouquet of wildflowers and walked over to the bed, handing him to her.

"So not necessary," she said. "But of course, you knew that. I'm sure you made a big show of waving this all over the hallway, making sure everyone knew you were coming to my room. Always the politician, huh, Lex?"

"So jaded, Lois," Lex sighed.

"More like so onto you."

"I guess you could say that's mutual," he responded cryptically, earning a quirked eyebrow from Lois. His eyes found the hastily written note first, followed by his hand. Scanning it quickly, he smirked. "I'm surprised he left your side."

"Well he needs money, Lex. Spending hours in the hospital at my bedside, like you know he will, requires him to actually eat. And the food at Metropolis General isn't exactly free."

"I see your ordeal hasn't affected your utterly charming sarcasm," Lex snarked back. "I suppose it's convenient for you, though, that Clark has that flakiness about him."

She tilted her head, eyes narrowing. "Ah, so we're finally getting to the real reason you're here? You're gonna have to help me though, I've had a really long day. Not really up to cracking the cryptic Luthor code at the moment."

"Cryptic, me?" Lex grinned. "Never. Just an observation."

"Hmmm. Well, you've made your very public visit to my hospital room Lex, and now you can go."

Stepping closer to her, he reached into the pocket of his sport coat, retrieving a small, black box.

"Not quite yet, Lois. I have one more gift for you."

2009

"What was it?" Martha asked, and even Lois could pick up on the hint of anxiousness in her voice.

Lois opened her mouth to answer, but Clark jumped in before she had the chance.

"Kryptonite," he said. He tilted his head slightly at Lois' raised eyebrow. "I'm right, aren't I?"

"Good work, Smallville. I see those reporter instincts kicking in already."

"And that's why I…he..well your Clark sent you here, right? Lex figured out my secret? Again?"

"No, actually he didn't. He leaped to the completely wrong conclusion. That I was having an affair with…," she paused, seeming to catch herself. "With your alter ego. Which, in and of itself isn't a problem, until you remember that everyone in my time knows of your otherworldly origins."

"He realized the baby is half alien," Martha breathed.

"Right. And you know Lex and his experiments. The opportunity to get his hands on a half-human and half-alien baby was too juicy a prospect to pass up. And let's not forget the woman carrying this child."

Clark's jaw clenched, and Lois could see him shaking slightly with barely restrained anger.

"Clark," she said softly, trying to draw his attention back to her and away from his anger at a man that, at least this Clark, wouldn't confront again for years. "Don't worry. He didn't get the chance. Thankfully his little stunt in my hospital room was short-lived."

"But how?" he asked, his voice laced with anxiety. "If Lex had Kryptonite, I couldn't have gotten you away from him."

"You didn't."

"Then, who did?"

Lois grinned. "A friend."