Smallville Fic: All Will be Firm Without Us Part One

[jesterladyfic]

Title: All Will be Firm Without Us
be Jesterlady
Rating: PG-13
Summary: The Queens had never had a real honeymoon. Point in fact; they'd never had a proper vacation. Throughout their long partnership and relatively short marriage, they didn't exactly remember adopting six children with superpowers and short attention spans. But they'd love to take a break, catch up with their old friend Zatanna and find out exactly how they'd gotten married.
Disclaimer: I don't own Smallville. Some lines are from the show. The title is by Pablo Neruda.
A/N: Spoilers for the finale. This fic was partly to have fun with the team being too dependent on Chlollie and partly to explore the episode of Fortune. I'm going pretty canon here, even with the post-finale stuff but the Fortune segments play with the timeline but I figure that's ok considering all the liberties they took and the whole camera only playing things in bits.



Part One: Break Me Off a Piece of that Kit Kat Bar

The Queens had never had a real honeymoon. Point in fact; they'd never had a proper vacation. Whether that was due to the stressful world of running one of the most successful technology businesses in the country and being a Pulitzer prize winning journalist or due to the stressful world of being in charge of a secret league of superheroes, could never fully be confirmed. Each had their own theory and sometimes they intermixed, but the real meat of the matter was that they desperately needed some time off.

Not that they didn't enjoy their lives. Since being drawn together through a myriad of strange circumstances, they'd lived an odd dance of synchronicity and danger that they thrived on and both admitted wouldn't work without their partner. It was a leap from the corporate boardroom into green leather and a ducking into the staff workroom to crack the algorithms of a government military base experimenting on metahumans. Whatever the experience, they did it coolly, expertly and together.

Throughout their long partnership and relatively short marriage, they didn't exactly remember adopting six children with superpowers and short attention spans.

***

“What is it this time, Victor?” Oliver asked, pinching the bridge of his nose between his fingers.

“They're doing it again. They're doing it all the time,” the voice on the other end of
the line said desperately. “Make them stop!”

“Put Bart on,” Oliver answered. There was a whooshing sound and Oliver could almost
picture Bart running for the hills or Mexico or the Antarctic or wherever the wind took him.

“Gone.”

“Well, that solves your problem then, doesn't it? Now, if you don't mind, I have got a
million dollar deal waiting in the boardroom of the company that pays for all your sorry
hides. You mind if I get back to that?”

“Hey, I'm the responsible one,” Victor protested.

“Then take some initiative.”

Oliver hung up the phone with the beginnings of a headache and rejoined his business
meeting.

His work as CEO was just as important as his other work. It was his company and its
funding that provided the resources necessary to work as a team. Queen Industries was only now
recovering from all the stress and turmoil of a hostile takeover by a mirror universe Lionel Luthor. He’d spent most of the first year since his return to Star City working on just that. It had been worth it. He'd been born into this life and, despite his many falls from glory and long struggles to climb back up, he wouldn’t trade the responsibility for the world. Not that he didn’t wish he could sometimes let other people handle meetings like this particular one.

It was an important merger and would likely help the team for when they needed passage on their international travels. It was hard focusing so much on the big picture sometimes, but that was his job. Or at least one of them. If only the adult heroes he employed could stop squabbling like children he’d be able to do it properly.

***

Chloe paid for her coffee and sat down in the booth, fully ready for her fifteen minute break. She’d been out hunting leads on a story all morning, that and taking phone calls from around the world. It was exhausting. She sometimes felt like she lived a quadruple life. She was Chloe Queen, wife to Oliver Queen, CEO of Queen Industries, she was Chloe Queen, intrepid reporter, she was Watchtower, guide of all things JLA, and she was a promoter, traveling all around the world finding and encouraging superheroes.

When she and Oliver had moved to Star City to get away from their past and start their future,
she’d had to come to terms with a lot of different things. For one thing, there was the fact
of her status. She was technically nobody since she’d erased everything about her life but
memories. Fortunately, memories, some carefully concealed documents, and a high school
yearbook went a long way toward reestablishing her identity. But it had taken work and it had
been six months to a year before she and Oliver had dared to reveal her to the world as Chloe
Queen nee Sullivan. They'd taken that long to get her identity in place and to allow Star City
to get used to the idea of their own Oliver Queen being the infamous Green Arrow. While they
both wished that Oliver hadn't outed himself, they also both took equal blame for it and tried
not to mention it.

The work hadn’t stopped there. Once they’d become the country’s most glamorous power couple
and she’d won her first Pulitzer she’d had to choose how she wanted her other life to be. She
regretted and yet loved the time that she’d spent as a non-person. It had given her freedom
and had allowed her to experience so much of the real life that she'd craved. She’d met people
that inspired her and challenged her. She’d grown and fought and learned and done things she
couldn’t believe. But she’d missed out on other things. The team and their antics and growth
and friction. Clark and Lois, both together and apart, with their growing destinies/careers.
And, Oliver: Oliver with his despair and his struggle and his bad decision making. It had
taken all of her strength to stay away. Now that she was back, she had to reconcile the two
worlds.

She couldn’t fully be Watchtower anymore. That identity had sucked the reality of her life
away and turned her into a virtual person. The power and the knowledge that it had given her
was tempting and useful to more than just herself. She’d saved lives countless of times and
done more good than ever before. But she hadn’t been able to be Chloe, hadn’t been able to be
flesh and blood. She hadn’t been able to give herself to the people who loved her and love
them fully in return. It was always going to be her calling and her purpose, just not
full-time.

She still ran the JLA and was their eye in the sky. She spent a lot more time in the field
though and organized things with the team when Oliver’s work kept him from doing it himself.
But she also spent half of her time traveling, keeping up the contacts she’d made during her
time away. She recruited new members, new locations, found new dangers, spotted new
opportunities. She was the Watchtower of the world now and she was mobile.

Of course, sometimes she had to sit back and remind herself that she was married. She was a
wife. She and Oliver were together forever now, no turning back if magic champagne had
anything to say about it. Despite their nightly secret identities, (or in his case, not so
much secret) they had to find time to spend with each other. One of their compromises was that
Chloe could only travel where Oliver’s business trips took him and he could only travel with
the team when her business took her the same direction. It didn't always work; emergencies
weren't exactly nice about asking permission. And hours spent on a jet might not seem like
quality time, but they were when spent on that jet. Air Force One paled in comparison.

Chloe scanned the headlines and drank her coffee appreciatively. She’d had coffee from Morocco
to Peru and she’d take this brand right here every time. Her phone rang and she picked it up.

“Hello.”

“Chloe, it’s Mia.”

Chloe straightened up. Mia and her were not always on the best of terms. Mia respected
Chloe’s position of authority on the team, but other than that, she seemed determined to have
her own way. Perhaps she resented Chloe’s place in Oliver’s affections, but Chloe didn’t make
it a point to try to find out. She was Oliver’s wife and, relationship-wise, that topped the
totem pole and the disciple could suck it up. Of course, that didn’t mean she didn’t love
Oliver’s (for all intents and purposes) surrogate daughter.

“Hey, what can I do for you?”

“Tell Dinah she’s not the boss of me.”

“Who exactly is the boss of you?” Chloe asked, amused.

“Let’s not get technical,” Mia snapped. “Just get her off my back. I can do my homework all
on my own, thanks. And I don’t need target practice help from a chick who wears fishnets.”

“Mia, we’ve talked about this. If it’s league business I’m all for helping you out, but you
and Dinah are going to have to work out your relationship problems on your own. I’ve got about
zero advice in that area.”

“I’m calling Oliver,” Mia said and hung up. Chloe sighed, put her phone back in her pocket and
finished her coffee. Her break was officially over and she had a full day ahead of her. She
hadn’t seen Oliver in two days and if she was lucky, the time they’d carved out for themselves
would be successfully enjoyed by both of them later that evening.

Her phone buzzed and she flipped it up.

“Victor, what’s going on?”


***

Oliver opened the door to the bedroom and leant against the doorjamb while he undid his tie.

“So, I’m thinking we sell everything, buy an island-like Greenland or something
because, let’s face it, I’ve had enough of the tropics-never answer another cell phone call as
long as we live, and pretty much never leave the bedroom. Whaddaya think?”

Chloe poked her head out the bathroom door.

“Does it have cable?”

“The bedroom or the island?”

“Both.”

“Only on the weekends.”

“So the weekdays?”

“Are happy, fun days.”

Chloe came fully into the room, taking the pins out of her hair.

“You’re really happy with yourself, aren’t ya?”

He reached out and kissed her forehead, bringing his hands down to cup her waist.

“Not as happy with me as you are.”

“You wish,” she scoffed, reaching up for his neck.

“How long has it been?” he whispered, leaning his forehead against hers.

“Forty two hours and six minutes,” she answered.

“The world isn’t worth it.”

“Liar,” she said affectionately. She pulled herself from him and led him over the bed,
patting it. “Now, sit down and tell me about the deal before I forget and ask you at an
inconvenient moment.”

He arched an eyebrow at her.

“What moment would that be?”

“You know the one,” she said, quirking her mouth at him.

His eyes took on a hazy look.

“That’s gotta be my favorite moment in the world.”

“Rates my top ten as well,” she said, sitting down on his lap. “Now, the deal. Be
snappy.”

“It went through,” he said, nuzzling her neck. “We’re clear to use those shipping
lanes. It’s really going to open up doors for us when we’re over there. The guys can get to
work on the Salisbury problem.”

“I’m sure they’ll be thrilled,” Chloe said, lifting her head to give him better
access. “AC’s been itching to hit that tanker for weeks now. Mera practically had to cuff him
to the ocean floor to keep him restrained.”

“Now that that image has been burned indelibly into my brain,” Oliver said, “can we
have that moment?”

“Oh, Ollie,” she said, practically purring, “you’ve no idea what moments I’ve got in
store for you.”

The landline rang.

“Ignoring,” Oliver stated. Chloe wasn’t even paying attention, having moved hers to
unbuttoning his shirt.

Oliver’s cell phone started to vibrate in his pocket.

“Ignoring,” Chloe said, pulling it out and pushing end.

He reached up and cupped her face in his hands, capturing her lips with his. She leant
into the kiss and he relaxed inside. This was the time that he lived for. This was his reason
for everything. If he didn’t have her he’d still be fighting, but he already knew what that
was like and he didn’t want to ever experience it again. She made him stronger in ways he’d
never thought possible. Her wit and joy and perseverance were his stepping stones to greatness
and when they were together alone like this, it was all he could do to keep from flying up that
ladder as she hauled him after her.

Chloe’s phone buzzed and Oliver rolled her over onto the bed away from it. The buzzing
faded into the background and pretty soon he was lost in the beauty of being with her. That is
until the laptop started to give off pinging sounds. The cell phones were vibrating in
tandem. But all of that could be ignored until a pounding on the door sounded.

“One night off,” Oliver said, pulling away with reluctance. “Is that too much to ask
for people who have ten thousand ways to get in touch with them?”

Chloe just sighed and started to get dressed again.

“By the way, I’m a little worried about Mia,” Oliver said, as he started to join her.
“She’s getting…uppity.”

“She’s growing up,” Chloe said, matter-of-factly. “She’s had an enormous amount of
adult experience in her young life and doesn’t always have to follow the rules. As the
authority figure in her life as well as her patron you’re the bad guy. Good luck with that.”

“I love you so much,” Oliver said, kissing her soundly. “Nobody else can cram as much
wisdom, insight, condescension and lack of help into so short a speech.”

“You bet your boots,” she said and ruffled his hair on her way to answer the door.

“I love my boots,” he said in a wounded tone, following after her.

“Hey, Chloe, Oliver,” Victor said, entering the room. “Look, we know we promised you
the night off. But Dinah’s gone off grid.”

“Let’s go,” Oliver said, grabbing his keys.

Chloe’s hand reached out for his on the way down the elevator.


***

Chloe watched Oliver peel off the leather and winced at the sight of the red marks scraped down his back.

“Honey,” she said, without trying to sugar coat it, “this is going to hurt.”

“I hate to break it to you, but it already does.”

“I could call Emil,” she offered.

“No, I don't want to bother him. He's got enough on his plate without getting his
stomach upset with one of Bart's cross-country rides of fun.”

“Okay, then you get me and a bottle of antiseptic.”

“You, kinky woman, you.”

“You know me,” she said, “all about the bedroom.”

They were back in their penthouse, having secured all of their secret lifestyle
paraphernalia in the proper places and dismissed the rest of their weary band.

It had been a long night. Dinah had been doing surveillance on one of their marks and
he'd gotten the drop on her. She'd been taken to a warehouse on the other side of town and
held there by heavy security forces. It had taken all of them to take them down and rescue
her, a fact which Mia had been trumpeting about since they'd gotten home. A cat fight would
surely have broken out had Chloe not sent Bart out to get them all food, made AC and Mera take
a seething Dinah home and given Victor strict instructions to take care of Mia while she helped
Oliver who'd been side swiped down a wall of concrete while taking a hit meant for his
apprentice.

Chloe had Oliver roll onto his stomach while she straddled his waist and tried to
gently minister to his wounds.

“Not how I pictured you doing that tonight,” Oliver grunted.

“Try not to move,” she said. “You're squirming so much I'm going to fall off.”

He hissed as she got to a particularly deep scrape.

“Oh, I'm sorry, does my pain upset you?”

“No, but your whining does.”

Oliver fell silent and Chloe inwardly sighed. She hadn't meant to get so snippy and
she knew he had to be in a lot of pain. She also hadn't slept for thirty hours and she was a
woman who was in vast need of caffeine if she was going to keep awake much longer.

“I'm sorry,” she said, after a moment or two.

“Don't sweat it,” he answered with what she assumed he thought was a carefree tone. It
sounded more like the death cry of a parakeet. She decided against telling him that and
focused all of her attention on being the best nurse she could be. When she was finally
finished, it was forty five minutes later and her arm was about to fall off.

Oliver sat up and took a deep breath.

“That's a lot better. Your turn.”

“I'm fine, Ollie.”

He chucked her gently under the chin.

“You can't lie to me, Chloe. I never let you out of my sight during these kinds of
things.”

She sighed. Blast him and his over-protective streak that had saved her life a million
times.

“My wrist hurts.”

He wrapped it for her carefully, taking extra time to caress and kiss as well as
bandage and she appreciated it more than she could say.

“We'll get it checked out tomorrow,” he said in a tone that brooked no disapproval.
Not that that had ever stopped her before.

“Oliver, I'm not going to freak out the denizens of Star City by getting something as
simple as this checked out. You know perfectly well that ever since they found out you were
Green Arrow, the paparazzi have all the hospitals staked out. If it's still bad in a couple of
days I will personally bribe Bart into taking me to Emil and then coming back for you because
your back will most likely have contracted gangrene and fallen off.”

“Do backs just fall off?” he asked, obviously trying to keep a straight face.

“They do when they belong to guys like you,” she said, pulling him closer and kissing
his lips lightly.

“Fair enough,” he said, laying down and bringing her with him. “Now, can I have that
cow you know I'm going to have?”

“Drat, I thought I was going to kiss my way out of that.”

“No chance, Chloe.”

“Proceed.” She spread her arm out magnanimously

He turned them so that they were facing each other and he was not on his back.

“I know things have been hard and I know we've done a lot of good, but it can't keep
going like this. Obviously, I would never just leave one of my own out in the cold, but
tonight would have gone a lot easier if we hadn't been running on pure adrenaline. I miss
you. I miss it being just the two of us. I miss the world not knowing who I am. At this rate
we'll never have time for kids. I know we're not a usual couple and I wouldn't want us to be,
but next week is...” He stopped, obviously waiting for her to finish the sentence, a
vulnerable look in his eyes. She rolled her own.

“It's our anniversary, Ollie; I'm not a complete moron.”

“Not a complete one,” he said genially. “But, for some reason, the orphaned,
womanizing playboy is better at relationships than you.”

“That's on the harsh side, don't you think?” she asked.

“Come on, all I'm saying is that I want a real anniversary. I want a real vacation. I
want real time with you. I love you.”

“And I love you, but I don't appreciate being told that I'm not as vested in this as
you are. I did marry you, after all.” She knew that was a mistake the minute she'd said it.

“And how did that magical marriage come to be? Hmmm? We both know we still would have
gone through with it, but a night we can't even remember is not the best foundation to base our
relationship off of!”

“Don't you dare get mad at me for agreeing to marry you while under the influence!”

“Maybe you're the one who proposed.”

“Maybe I was. You're the ninnyhammer who said yes.”

“Ninnyhammer?” Oliver asked, his face breaking out into a smile. She couldn't help but
start to chuckle and lean over and kiss him.

“Yes, you, ninnyhammer.”

“We really shouldn't fight when we get this tired. It's sad.”

“We generally are sad when we try to fight,” she reminded him.

“I've got a compromise in mind if you're interested.”

“I'm always interested in listening,” she said.

“For our anniversary we leave. Just take the jet and go. No JLA work, no articles, no
board meetings. The team can figure out their own issues. We'll send Mia to stay with Lois
and Clark. She and Connor can flirt and be awkward and J'onn can show her some Martian tricks
or something. On our way to paradise we track down Zatanna and make her give us our memories
back and then this whole marriage thing can finally get settled. Opinions?”

Chloe swallowed and looked pensive.

“I don't know. Zatanna might whammy us or something.”

“We're experts at being whammied by her,” Oliver said.

“All by ourselves?” she asked hopefully.

“Very all by ourselves.”

“You've got a deal, Mr. Queen.”

“Oh good, Mrs. Queen,” he said, pulling her closer to him and kissing her neck.

***

Six collective fits were thrown when it was learned that Chloe and Oliver would be taking off for an entire two weeks and not allowed to be called unless it was life or death and that did not include when AC and Bart got into a fight.

Chloe had called Clark first thing the morning after she and Oliver had made the
decision and asked him to cover for them. He had agreed and it was only after learning that,
that the team calmed down a bit. Having Superman on your side was always a plus.

Lois had agreed to take charge of Mia and while she complained to high heaven about
being sent away, Oliver knew Mia was secretly thrilled to be able to spend time with Connor
again. The two had hit it off the year before when Connor had come to live with Lois and Clark
fulltime since Tess' death. Lois had demanded the right to call in many favors should she ever
need them for doing it and Oliver simply rolled his eyes when Chloe told him that. Lois was
forever chalking up favors.

Oliver had just as difficult a time convincing his board members that he deserved the
time off. But he'd been preparing for this for weeks and had things in such good shape that
his secretary could run the company for a couple of weeks-not that she would, she had told him
loftily. Oliver just smiled and left his office cell phone and pager on her desk before he
went to meet Chloe at home. She'd been writing like crazy, getting all of her articles in a
week before their deadlines

And they both had been cleaning up the streets, working overtime to scare the criminals
of Star City into taking it easy for awhile. They'd brought Victor up to speed on all of
Chloe's programs and security measures. Chloe's network of people had been informed of her
absence and they were to refer to Victor if they needed help as well as her second in command
based in Turkey. They hadn't overlooked anything. He hoped.

Either way, they were actually sitting on the jet about to take off. Mia had arrived
safely in Metropolis and called twice already to complain, but with such an unmistakable strain
of excitement in her voice that Oliver didn't take it seriously. He simply told her he
wouldn't answer any more calls or texts no matter how many explanation points she put in them.
Courtney had agreed to hang out in Metropolis while they were gone since she was on a break
from school and help out J'onn who was covering for Clark's absence. Chloe had hoped she would
be a great help in keeping Mia preoccupied and, Oliver hoped, would keep Mia from being too
preoccupied with Connor. He shook his head and tried to turn off his Mia-dad mode. Not an
easy task on the best of days, but a lot easier when he was faced with the prospect of being
completely alone with Chloe for two weeks.

Of course Bart had shown up at the jet three times before takeoff with bribes to keep
Chloe from leaving. He had threatened to follow them and so Chloe had simply kissed his cheek
and told him that if he didn't leave them alone, she wouldn't talk to him ever again and she
would pull his burrito stipend. Oliver suspected it was the former threat and not the latter
that had gotten him to leave.

“Are you ready for this?” he asked his wife, clinking his glass of champagne against
hers.

“More ready than you will ever know,” she returned, tipping the glass back. He watched
in appreciation as she downed the whole thing. “One more for the road, bartender.”

“You got it, Mrs. Queen.”

As soon as they were high enough to take off their seatbelts, he stood up and
stretched, marveling that, for once, he wasn't on the phone or looking over papers or
schematics. Chloe got up too and wrapped her arm around his waist.

“Care for a stroll?”

“Just where will we be strolling?”

“This way,” she said, taking his hand and leading him back towards the bedroom area of
the plane.

“I'm liking this direction,” he admitted, following willingly.

“So, Zatanna is where?”

“She's in Scotland of all places. I asked her what possible good her magic act would
be out there and she just laughed. So, I shut up and asked if we could visit, pretty please.”

Chloe laughed and put her back against the wall, taking him with her. He dipped his
head to get to her neck when her phone rang.

“I don't think so,” he said seriously as her hand started to reach for it.

“I told Lois she got one emergency phone call,” Chloe said, an apology in her voice.

“It better be an emergency,” Oliver said, sliding his hand up her shirt, having no
intention of stopping no matter what Lois had to say.

“Hi, Lo,” Chloe said, her breath hitching. “This is your one phone a friend, you
know. Next time you're just gonna have to poll the audience.”

Oliver half-listened as he turned her around, kissing the nape of her neck and undoing
the laces on the back of her shirt.

“Mia's not allergic to shellfish,” Chloe said, her voice slightly high pitched as his
fingers ghosted over her flesh. “She's just trying to get attention or impress Connor or
something to that effect. She's almost a grown woman, Lois. If she gets sick it's her own
fault and you take her to the hospital. Don't let her go on lead-hunts with you, don't let her
and Connor go anywhere by themselves and move back to the farm or something for the week. Gotta go. Bye.”

Chloe hung up the phone, obviously cutting Lois off, and flung it across the room. She
grabbed Oliver and tugged him toward the bed.

“More. Now.”

Oliver just grinned and followed his wife's lead.

***

“Who knew nightclubs in Edinburgh would be so classy?” Chloe remarked as they entered the room.

“That sounded awfully snooty there, Chloe,” Oliver chided, a grin on his face.

“Sorry, but considering I spent most of my previous time in Scotland hiding in a
basement with the rats for company, I think it's obvious why.”

“One of these days I'm going to lock you in a room and have you write your memoirs.”

“I could give away an awful lot of secrets,” she warned.

“We'll change the names. It's all good.”

She just laughed and led him to the table reserved for them. She felt relaxed. That
was the best flight she'd ever had and they'd had some good ones. She was dressed to the nines
in a surprisingly comfortable dress and her husband was hers for a whole fortnight.

Oliver checked the bottle of champagne for any Zatanna seals before letting the waiter
open the bottle and Chloe smirked.

“You know she doesn't actually need champagne, right?”

“No harm in checking your bases,” he protested. “You know how it is, fool me twice,
shame on me and all that.”

“You can't go around checking every bottle of champagne your whole life. Take a moment
and think about how much champagne you're practically required to drink by billionaire law.”

“Billionaire law?”

She just smiled at him. He sighed and continued his original point.

“No, I won't check every bottle, but when I'm sitting down to actually watch her act,
I'm gonna and you'll just have to put up with it.”

She swatted his arm and lifted her glass for the waiter.

They'd been sitting there, chatting and enjoying themselves for about a half an hour
when the lights dimmed and Zatanna's act was announced. She came out on stage, looked down at
them and deliberately winked before commencing with the show. It was really good. She was the
perfect blend of stage magician and real life magic using her natural wit and sass to charm her
audience while dazzling them with effects. They stood and clapped at the end with the rest of
the crowd. Zatanna bowed and waved before leaving.

They reseated themselves and had enjoyed their dessert before their waiter came back to
their table.

“Excuse me, sir, madam; Mistress Zatanna has requested your presence backstage.”

“Who are we to refuse Mistress Zatanna?” Chloe asked, wide-eyed. Oliver emulated her
look and slipped a hand under her arm as they walked backstage. Zatanna's dressing room was
quite large and comfortable and, surprisingly, very pink. She stood up to greet them and
dismissed the waiter with a wave.

“Well, hello there. And how are the newlyweds?”

“We've been married for quite some time now,” Chloe said, accepting the woman's hug.

“Not officially,” she returned, hugging Oliver a little longer than Chloe would have
liked. But she knew Zatanna did everything she did for a reason and most of the time that
reason was to annoy someone. So Chloe simply arched an eyebrow and took a seat on the couch
while Zatanna returned to her dressing table. Oliver sat down next to Chloe and slipped an arm
around the back of her shoulders.

“Well, it would have looked a little odd if we'd just shown up in Star City married,”
Oliver said. “Not like we could tell people we'd done it under the influence of bespelled
liquor.”

“It would have made quite an impression on the tabloids,” Zatanna said, grinning. “But
I'm glad to see it stuck.”

“We're very happy,” Chloe said. “I'd still like to know exactly what happened,
however.”

“There's a reason your memories are gone, Chloe. So much fun, so many un-inhibited
activities; it could blow your minds.”

“It was also extremely dangerous! Lois bet her engagement ring, Clark committed crimes
and Emil got kidnapped and beaten!” Zatanna had the decency to look somewhat contrite.

“I am sorry about that. Listen, that wasn't the intent. You guys were a little more
pent-up than even I'd given you credit for.”

Oliver narrowed his eyes.

“What do you mean?”

“I just wanted to give you guys a good time, but the spell works at loosening the
restraints you hold on yourselves. You guys were wound up so tight that the spell was way more
lethal than I'd intended.”

“You could have warned us.”

“I'm not a fool, honey,” Zatanna said. “You wouldn't have touched it. That's not the
point. I was keeping an eye on things. Luckily, all of the consequences happened when you
were back to yourselves. I'm just glad I missed cleanup duty.”

Chloe rolled her eyes.

“I'm so glad you didn't have to wake up with a killer headache and the worst wedding
dress from the 80's ever stitched, but that's not why we're here. We need to know what
happened that night.”

“Didn't you lovely things record the whole show?”

“Yes, we did. Unfortunately, most of the footage is ruined beyond even my or Vic's
capability to fix. So, we need the actual memories back.”

“What makes you think I can do that?” Zatanna asked, leaning back and stretching
nonchalantly.

“Because you just asked me that question,” Chloe said triumphantly. She felt Oliver
squeeze her shoulder and relaxed against him.

Zatanna laughed a little.

“You are a sharp one, Chloe, I'll give you that. Tell me why you want to know.”

“That's personal,” Oliver said. “They're our memories and we'd like them back.”

“Aren't you worried about the consequences?”

“Frankly, yeah,” he said, “but that night formed the rest of our future. If it turns
out to be a sham wedding we'll just do it again. We just need to know what thought processes
led to such a decision. Think of it as our own spiritual walkabout.”

“In Scotland, nice.”

“When in Rome,” Chloe said and Oliver poked her, but she ignored it. They were there
for a purpose, if only to appease any lingering doubt Oliver had about their marriage. She,
she was just fine. She'd screwed up so much with him, and if this would help him realize she
was never leaving him again, she was going to do it.

“Okay,” Zatanna said, “I admit I did leave a backdoor of sorts in the spell.”

“Back door?” Oliver queried.

“I'm not totally reckless and irresponsible,” she said with a smirk. “I do know how to
cover my ass. If something absolutely catastrophic happened that night and that knowledge was
absolutely life or death I figured you'd need to know about it. This might not be life or
death, but I'll give it to you.”

“Well?” Oliver raised his eyebrows.

“Not so fast,” she said. “When you lie down in your pretty little dreams tonight it
will come back to you. Tomorrow comes the fallout.”

Oliver and Chloe looked at each other and stood up. They bid Zatanna goodnight and
thank you and retired to their hotel room.

“Why do I feel like I just signed my life away?” Oliver asked.

“Probably because this is Zatanna we're talking about,” Chloe responded, beginning to
brush her teeth.

“Wanna tire me out before we face the music?” he offered, grinning. She looked him up
and down, grinning, and put down her toothbrush. How could she refuse an offer like that?

Part Two