T.O.G.O.M. 2013 -- With a Little Help From Their Friends

By Tank Wilson <tankw1@aol.com>

Rated: PG

Submitted: August, 2013

Summary: Lois and Clark get some help from their future friends.
A Lois & Clark/Castle Crossover fic.

***

1994

Lois Lane pulled the oversized rollers from her hair and ran a
brush through the dark, silky strands. It crossed her mind that
it was getting to be time for another trim. She took a few
minutes to finish up her makeup; not too much, but enough to
cover up the flaws. Flaws which Clark would just tell her she
didn't have. She moved her head from side to side and gave
herself a critical once over. A smile appeared on her face. She
looked good.

She quickly moved to the bedroom and started looking through her
options for a dress for tonight. She frowned as she quickly
chose, and then rejected, everything in her closet. She couldn't
believe that she didn't have anything she wanted to wear.
Suddenly she was struck by the thought that she was acting like
some moony-eyed teen ager getting ready for her first date.

What was wrong with her? This wasn't a date. It was an
undercover operation, and it was just Clark she was going with.
It wasn't a date. He was her partner. They did this kind of
stuff all the time. So why was she so concerned about how she
looked? It's not like she cared about what Clark thought.

As soon as that thought escaped she knew it was a lie. She cared
very much about what he thought of her. She mostly liked that
fact that he thought she was intelligent and dedicated to her
profession, but she would be lying if she didn't admit that she
liked it when he complimented her looks. He thought she was
attractive. He'd even called her beautiful on occasion and
coming from one of the most gorgeous men she'd ever met that was
pretty heady stuff.

Sometimes she pretended that these undercover assignments were
actually dates with Clark. He was fun, and attentive, and
handsome. It was good for her ego the way he treated her when
they acted like a couple. It wasn't like she dated much.
Actually she hadn't dated anyone since the Lex fiasco. Not that
she cared. She hadn't really felt any desire to go out with
someone else. She spent most of her day, and many of her evenings
with Clark and that was enough for now. Clark was her best friend
and she enjoyed his company, even when they weren't on a story.
Why complicate things by dating someone.

But they were on a story. A really confusing one and she had to
get ready because Clark would be here soon to pick her up. She
didn't want him to show up with her only half dressed. A sly
smile tugged at the corners of her lips. Though, maybe that might
not be so bad either.

She turned her attention back to her closet and finally pulled a
simple red dress from its hanger. It wasn't fancy, but it was
nice. With the right accessories it would fit the bill for
tonight perfectly.

She was just slipping on her shoes when the knock came at her
door. She glanced at her watch. Right on time; why was she not
surprised?

She opened the door and her mouth formed a silent 'O'. He
looked great. He was wearing a charcoal colored suit with a crisp
white shirt and a typically loud tie. She still didn't know why
he had such a strange taste in ties, but it worked for him.

"Hey, Clark, right on time I see. I'm ready to go."

Clark seemed to have trouble clearing his throat. It took him a
couple of tries to finally get some words out. "Wow, Lois, you
look terrific."

She smiled at him. "Thanks, but we'd better get going." She
stepped out into the hallway, pulling her door closed behind her.
"It might take us a while to find the right place. Bobby said it
was an illegal gambling club run by someone called Georgie
Hairdo."

Clark nodded as he walked along side her. "Yeah, we have an
address but it might be a bit tricky getting into the place. They
tend to be pretty careful about who they let in."

Lois patted his arm. "Don't worry, Clark, I'll get us in."

Clark smiled. "Of course you will, Lois."

***

2013

"I can't believe you cut my hair!"

Detective Kate Beckett looked at her reflection in the steam
misted bathroom mirror. A look of dejected disgust was on her
face.

The shower door slid open and Richard Castle poked his head out.
"Excuse me?"

Kate glared at him, and then sighed. "Okay, I can't believe I
let you cut my hair."

Castle stepped out of the shower and pulled a towel from the
rack, placing it around his waist. "Who was it that wanted to
'up the stakes' for the final showdown hand last night?"

Beckett frowned as she passed her brush through her, now
considerably shortened locks. "Yeah, well I ran out of gummy
bears."

Castle smirked at his frustrated fiancee. She glared at him
again. Since it was clear that she could never compete monetarily
at the poker table with the wealthy writer, she often came up
with unusual bets to 'make things interesting' on some of the
hands. Normally they'd just play for gummy bears, or some other
handy confection, just to keep score. But occasionally she liked
to add a bit of drama, or even a little danger to make the hand
more exciting.

Last night she had been on a hot streak and decided to really up
the stakes. She wanted Castle to put up a year without his X-Box
so she had to come up with something that he would see would be
equally important to her. In a mad moment of daring she had put
up 12 inches of her hair. One inch for every month he'd have to
forgo his gaming. She'd been growing it out for the last several
years so he'd know that it would be something she felt strongly
about.

She'd been confident. She had been holding a very good hand so
she wasn't worried about suggesting the bet. Initially she had
been surprised when Castle agreed and had called. Still, with
only one card left to show the odds that he'd be able to beat
her full house were slim at best.

And so, after the final card was dealt, with a big smile of
triumph, she laid down her cards. Castle's brow had risen and he
commented on how not many hands could beat her full house...
except for the four of a kind that he laid down.

She fixed her lover with a hard stare. "Why didn't you throw
your hand, like you've done in the past with me? It would have
been a nice gesture."

Castle chuckled as he shook his head. "I learned my lesson a
long time ago. Never patronize Kate Beckett. And really, it was
only you and me; there were no friends around, so no one needed
to save face for the other. No, you made it perfectly clear that
you wanted to beat me straight up, so no more Mr. Nice Guy." He
grinned. "Besides, you don't really think that I'd willingly
give up my X-Box for a whole year just so you could have more
hair to fuss with everyday."

She turned her back to him. "I thought you liked my hair long.
You've played with it enough in bed."

Castle grinned and shrugged. "I readily admit that it has been
fun, but you, my dear detective, have been blessed with a hotness
that doesn't depend on a single hairstyle." He walked over and
planted a kiss on her hair. "Witness the myriad of styles
you've worn since I've known you, and the fact that you looked
great in all of them. It's still longer than when we first
met." He circled around her so he could plant a kiss on her
lips.

"Don't worry, Kate, after all you've already caught your
man."

Beckett punched Castle in the arm. "Yeah? But what if I decide
to dump you for someone richer and more ruggedly handsome?"

Castle stopped and looked thoughtful for a moment, then he shook
his head. "You might find someone richer... but more ruggedly
handsome? Don't think so."

Kate just rolled her eyes. "Get dressed or we'll be late."

"Ooh, I love it when you're bossy."

***

1994

Clark had his hand on Lois' lower back as they slowed in their
approach to the clandestine club. It appeared to be a typical
warehouse down near the harbor. There were dozens just like this
one within a few block area. There was nothing remarkable about
this one. Not unusual; unless you counted the fact that
well-dressed, important looking people kept coming up to the
single door and after conversing with a face in a window in the
door, were let in.

The two of them recognized several prominent businessmen, local
politicians, and even a few local celebrities. It was a veritable
Who's Who of Metropolis streaming through the door of the secret
club. This had to be Georgie Hairdo's club.

"This definitely is the place." Lois turned to Clark and gave
him a smile.

"I'm not sure this is a good idea, Lois." He stopped and
turned to his beautiful partner.

"You're kidding, right? Come on, Clark, Bobby said it was a
pretty sure thing that Capone, Dillinger, and Clyde would show up
here tonight. He said there was definitely going to be something
going down here tonight. We both know that there's no way that
Capone and his goons would let an illegal gambling club exist
without them getting in on the action."

Clark nodded. "That's why we should just watch... from a
distance. It could be too dangerous to actually go inside."

Lois shook her head and grabbed Clark's arm. "Don't wuss out
on me now, Kent. Besides, if things get rough, I'll protect
you."

Clark just shook his head and followed dutifully.

Lois was an amazing woman and every day he counted himself lucky
to be able to call her his partner and friend. She was not only
one of the most beautiful women he'd ever known, but she was
intelligent, and dedicated to her job, and was fiercely loyal to
her friends. If she'd just use a little more common sense when
it came to her safety he'd feel better.

Of course some of that was his fault. If Superman hadn't made
one of his primary missions to always be there to save her from
serious danger she might not think herself quite so immortal. But
who was he kidding. He would always be there for Lois. He
couldn't help it... he loved her, even if she only thought of
him as her friend. He would always be there for her.

They casually approached the door and the window panel slid open
revealing the face of a serious fellow. He asked for the
password. Lois threw out several 'classic' passwords from
literature and movies. Clark realized that the fellow behind the
door was getting fed up with Lois so he stepped in.

"She's just joking. The fat lady sings." The fellow nodded and
opened the door for them.

As they moved past the doorman's hearing Lois grabbed Clark's
arm. "How did you know that password?"

He shrugged. "I saw it on an old Untouchables episode."

Actually he'd heard it from several of the patrons who had
preceded them. Super hearing came in handy every now and then.
Lois just shook her head and moved quickly into the club.

Once inside they split up in order to better check out the
patrons of the club. Clark could only smile when he saw Lois
attack a nickel slot machine as if it were a Pulitzer story
waiting to happen.

He was standing near the bar when he was hit upon by an
attractive blonde. It was Bonnie Parker and she was definitely
flirting with him. Clark tried to make small talk but Bonnie
seemed to have something else on her mind. He wasn't sure what
he was going to do until Clyde came along and broke it up. He
sounded angry and glared at Clark as she pulled her away.

Clyde was certainly going to remember him.

He hurried back to where he had last seen Lois. They quickly
found each other but before he could say anything she grabbed him
by the arm.

"Clark, I just found out that Georgie Hairdo is dead."

Clark wasn't surprised. "Yeah, well, Bonnie and Clyde are here.
We've got to call the police. Let's go." He reached out and
grabbed her arm to steer her toward the door.

She pulled out of his grasp. "You go. I've got to find a
gray-haired lady with a bucket of my nickels."

Before Clark could respond they were startled by the sound of
gunfire. They looked up and at the top of the stairs stood Al
Capone. Bonnie and Clyde stepped out of the crowd and Dillinger
stood to the big man's right. A few other faceless thugs
surrounded the reanimated gangsters. Clark just shook his head.
This was trouble.

"My apologies ladies and gentlemen, for this little
interruption. I just came by to announce that Georgie Hairdo has
wisely decided to retire from the hospitality business." Capone
took a deep drag off his expensive looking cigar. "So from now
on this club belongs to Al Capone."

Lois had been moving closer to the front while Capone was
speaking. Out of necessity, Clark followed. Dillinger spotted
Lois and approached her.

"Hey, Al, how's 'bout we make this little cutie our new head
hostess." He leered at Lois. "You know I always was partial to
a lady in red."

He reached out and touched Lois on the cheek. She flinched back.
Clark surged forward and pushed Dillinger's hand away.

"Leave her alone!"

"Who are you?" Dillinger glared and Clark. "Her big
brother?"

Before the two men could come to blows Clyde Barrow pulled out
his revolver and three loud shots rang out.

Clark could feel the slugs hitting his chest and he saw the look
of horror on Lois' face. What was he supposed to do? He
couldn't expose himself as Superman. Not in front of all these
people.

Clark slowly allowed himself to slide to the floor. Lois was
hanging onto his arm all the way. He could hear her tearful
denial of what she saw happening in front of her. She just keep
saying his name and crying out 'no'.

He lay flat on the floor with his eyes closed. He wasn't sure
what he should do now. It wouldn't be long before someone
noticed that he wasn't bleeding.

"You moron." Capone was angry. "What did you go and do that
for? Now we have to get out of here, and take the stiff." He
signaled to a couple of his henchmen. "I can't afford to be
linked to no murder."

Clark felt himself being roughly dragged out of the club. As they
left he could hear Lois' plaintive cry of 'Clark'; then sobs.

***

2013

It was a pleasant night so Castle and Beckett chose to exit their
taxi a few blocks shy of Castle's loft. They often took walks in
the calm of the late evening; especially after a difficult case.

Beckett liked the fact that the darkness helped their anonymity.
She was comfortable with people knowing that she and Castle were
engaged, but she hated having her personal life splashed all over
page 6 by the overzealous paparazzi.

"What the heck was that?"

Kate turned to see what had caught Castle's attention. "What
was what?"

He gestured toward the back of an alley. "Didn't you see that
glow just a moment ago?"

"I didn't see anything. Come on, let's get home. I'm tired."
She rolled her eyes as he sprinted off into the dark alley.
"Castle!" She had no choice but to follow him.

She went deep into the alley. It was quite dark. "Castle where
are you?"

"Back here."

She glanced to her right and saw him several feet away looking
into a garage of some sort. There was no door on the building and
it looked like it was ready to collapse with the slightest push.
There was a very dusty security light offering minimal
illumination. She could see Castle staring at some kind of, for
lack of a better description, vehicle.

She came up next to him. He was staring at what appeared to be
some sort of sled. A single bench style seat sat in front of a
large disc-like structure. There were levers and gages on a
simple dashboard in front of the seat.

"Do you know what this is?" The excitement in his voice was
obvious.

She raised her brow and grabbed his arm. "Seriously? You
actually recognize this... this... Santa's nightmare."

He turned toward her; the enthusiasm of a child animated his
face. "Haven't you ever read H.G. Wells' 'Time Machine'?"

She frowned at him. "Of course I have, but I was just a kid.
What does that have to do with this thing?"

"This is the time machine!"

"What?"

Castle let his hand caress the polished side of the sled. "I
have a first edition copy of the book. This is exactly like the
drawings from the original book." He literally gushed. "Someone
built an exact copy of Wells' machine."

"So what, maybe they built it for a fair or carnival. Who cares?
Let's go home."

Castle stepped up and sat on the upholstered seat. "Look at the
attention to detail."

Beckett was getting annoyed. "Come on Castle; let's get out of
here before we get into trouble."

"No, just look at this, Kate." He grabbed her hand and pulled
her onto the seat next to him. "Just feel the workmanship on
this control panel. See, that there is probably the destination
gauge." He frowned. "I wonder why it says Metropolis." He
turned to Kate. "I guess they forgot that they were in New
York." He pointed at another glass covered read out. "Look at
the date; November 13, 1994. Do you think that's where the
machine came from?"

Kate rolled her eyes again. "Yeah, Castle, I'm sure this thing
travelled from nearly twenty years in the past just to
materialize in a rundown garage in SoHo." She punched him in the
arm. "Now quit touching things, you'll break something."

"I bet this lever activates the machine." He pulled the largest
lever toward him.

Suddenly they felt the disc behind them start to spin. Beckett
looked back and saw that as the thing spun faster it gave off
lightning like flashes of light. As the light grew brighter she
began to hear a humming sound which increased in intensity as the
disc spun faster and the flashes brighter and more frequent.

She noticed that the building surrounding them seem to lose
focus. It was like trying to see through a heavy smoke screen.
She was rapidly getting more disoriented when, suddenly, a loud
boom shook her whole body.

It took several moments for her to regain command of her senses.
The machine had stopped its light and sound show. She looked
around but didn't recognize their surroundings. She would swear
that the sled like contraption hadn't moved... but they weren't
where they were supposed to be.

She turned to her companion. "Rick, where are we?"

It seemed to take him a few more moments to register where they
were. He shook his head. "I have no idea... but we're not in
Kansas anymore."

Kate grabbed his arm and jumped out of the machine. "Let's get
out of here and see if we can find out where the heck we are."

Castle just nodded and followed his love out of the alley.

Kate was cautious. She had no idea where they were and didn't
want to end up walking into a dangerous situation. She didn't
know what had happened to them but it was always best to err on
the side of caution.

She could smell the ocean so she figured that somehow they'd
been transported near the docks. As they stepped out from behind
a building, Kate reached back a put her hand on Castle's chest.
"Shhh, I hear voices."

"Look." Castle pointed off to their left. They stood in the
deep shadows and watched as people approached a side door in what
appeared to be an old warehouse. Individuals and couples, all
well dressed approached the door and waited until someone from
the inside slid back a peep window. Words were exchanged, which
they couldn't hear, then the people were let through.

"I know what this is." Castle spoke in a hushed whisper. "This
has to be some sort of secret club, like the speakeasies of the
twenties. Those people are giving the door guard some sort of
password to get in."

Beckett nodded. "That tells me that something illegal is going
on inside."

Kate scanned several folks as they arrived and made their way to
the door. "Hey." She nudged Castle. "Isn't that Clark Kent?
Who is he with?"

Castle looked to where she was pointing. "Yeah, that's Clark
but I don't...Omigod, that's Lois."

"What?" Kate stared at him.

"No, look; her hair is longer and she looks a lot younger, but
it's definitely Lois." Castle smirked at her. "Her hair looks
a lot like yours does now."

"Shut up." Kate studied the woman as the pair approached the
door. It definitely was Clark and the young woman with him looked
a lot like Lois, but that was impossible. Lois was a bit older
than Castle and still a stunning woman, but no amount of make-up
or good genes would allow a woman to hide twenty years.

"Didn't she say she had a younger sister?"

Castle nodded. "Yeah, but Lucy's not that much younger than
Lois, and I've met her. The resemblance is not that strong."
Castle's furrowed brow suddenly smoothed and a huge grin spread
across his face. "Oh man, this is awesome." He grabbed Kate by
the shoulders and turned her to him. "Do you know what this
means?" She stared blankly at her crazy partner. "It worked! It
was a real time machine!"

"Castle, get a grip. There is no such thing as time travel."

The smug look on his face was too familiar. "Let's examine the
facts shall we, Detective?" He began to count off on his
fingers. "One, we are most assuredly not in New York anymore;
two we see a man we both know lives in Metropolis. Add to that,
number three; he is with a woman who looks remarkably like a much
younger version of his wife." His excitement level increases.
"Do you remember the date on the display on the machine? It said
1994. It all fits, Kate. We've travelled to 1994 Metropolis."
He clenched his fists. "This is so cool!"

"This is not cool, Castle. We haven't travelled back in time;
that's impossible, but there is definitely something fishy going
on here and we need to find out what." She studied the old
warehouse for several moments. "If this is some sort of illegal
social club then they probably have food, or at least a bar. We
just have to find the delivery entrance. Once inside, we can
search out Kent and find out what is going on."

Castle nodded. "Sounds good. My guess would be around back.
There is a wider alley back that way which would easily
facilitate trucks. If this actually was a warehouse, there should
be a dock of some sort back there."

Beckett agreed and so they made their way around to the back of
the building, being careful not to be seen by anyone approaching
the place. It only took a few minutes for them to find the
buildings receiving dock. Fortunately there were no working
lights back there. Obviously they didn't take deliveries at
night.

The two overhead doors were closed and padlocked. There was no
getting in that way, which was just as well. The noise that the
doors of a building this old would make would alert everyone
inside that they had company. Next to those two overheads was a
small single entry door; no padlock but it was locked.

"Castle," Beckett whispered. "Do you have your lock picks on
you? I left mine in my police cruiser."

Castle reached inside his jacket pocket and produced a small
leather wallet that held his personal set of lock picks. He
pulled them back as Kate reached for them.

"Uh, uh... my picks, my lock."

Kate rolled her eyes. This was so like Castle. A little boy
playing the part of some sort of cat burglar, or better yet, a
spy; and she loved him for it.

To his credit Castle was able to get the door open in only a few
minutes. The two of them cautiously entered the building. They
could hear general noise and voices up ahead of them but the area
they had entered was dark. The ambient light from up front
allowed them to check out their surroundings.

To their right were the dock doors and a large receiving area.
There were several crates and boxes on the dock; obviously
supplies for the club. They couldn't smell any cooking odors so
apparently food was not served here.

Quietly Beckett led them through the dark back dock toward the
light. A quick surveillance revealed that all the activity,
including the bartenders and wait staff were all occupied with
their respective jobs. Kate and Castle were able to slip into the
club and inconspicuously mingle with the crowd.

Castle bought them a couple of drinks so they'd look more
natural as they wandered about looking for Lois and Clark.

Kate looked at Castle in horror. "How did you pay for those?"

Rick looked confused. "What do you mean? I paid with cash. I do
have a lot of it you know."

She grabbed his sleeve. "Rick, you have 2013 cash. Remember,
most of the denominations have a different look now. It would be
pretty stupid to get caught passing 'funny money'."

Castle quickly pulled out his wallet and looked through his cash.
A sigh of relief escaped from his lips as he fanned through the
bills. "We were lucky. I paid with a five and some ones. The
five must have been an older bill and ones haven't been
redone." He shrugged. "The drinks were cheap." They walked a
couple of steps when Castle stopped. "Hey, if you were worried
about the bills that means..." Castle clenched his fists in
victory. "You believe!"

Kate just shook her head... only Castle.

Rick punched her arm. "Look, there they are."

Kate looked where Castle was pointing. Lois and Clark were
standing next to each other having an animated conversation.
Before they could move over toward their future friends the sound
of gunfire froze them where they stood.

Kate, being a cop, had studied a lot of criminals over the years,
both past and present, but nothing could prepare her for the
vision of appearance of...

"Is that?" Castle whispered.

Kate nodded. "Yep, that's Al Capone, and next to him is
Dillinger, and over by the railing are Bonnie Parker and Clyde
Barrow." She looked at her partner. "Castle, what the hell is
going on here?"

The couple could only listen and watch as Capone expounded on his
acquisition of Georgie Hairdo's club. As with everyone else in
the place they were spellbound by the scene as it unfolded. That
is, until the fateful conclusion.

The three rapid gunshots fired by Clyde at Clark caused them to
gasp. Beckett and Castle watched in horror as Clark slid to the
floor with a sobbing Lois beside him.

"Omigod, Rick, Clark has been killed!

Castle had to swallow several times before he could speak. How
could this have happened? They both had entertained Lois and her
husband Clark Kent back in 2013; how could he be shot dead in
1994?

"What do we do?" His voice was barely above a whisper.

Kate shook her head. "This isn't right, Rick. Something is very
wrong here. We just saw Clark shot three times at fairly close
range, but that can't be right. You've been to enough crime
scenes Castle; what's missing here?"

Castle frowned for a moment, then his eyes got wider as if he'd
just had a revelation, which he had. "There's no blood. There
should have been splatter, and Clark's shirt should have been
soaked through." Castle returned Beckett's concerned stare.
"Oh, jeez, we have to get her out of here."

Kate looked around at the chaotic scene. With the shock wearing
off, people were running every which way. "Castle, you go to
Lois and help her." Beckett pulled her gun from her back
holster. "I'm going to try and follow those gangsters and see
where they dump Clark."

Castle nodded. "Okay, but how will I get in touch with you
later?"

She gave him a quick kiss. "I'll find you."

After another quick kiss, the two headed toward their assigned
tasks.

***

Tears running down her cheeks, Lois stared at the empty club
entrance. Just moments ago, her best friend and partner was
killed right in front of her. He had stepped between her and
Dillinger to protect her from his unwanted advances and had been
shot down like a dog and dragged out like yesterday's garbage.
Clark wasn't a person to them. He was an inconvenience; a
nuisance to be dealt with.

But he wasn't a nuisance, or an inconvenience. He was Clark. He
was the most gentle and caring man she'd ever known; and she
would never know his like again.

Her shoulders shook with the severity of her sobs. She couldn't
control the devastation she felt, nor did she want to.

Suddenly, through the fogged haze that was her mind, she could
feel someone putting their arms around her and helping her to her
feet. She wanted to shake those arms off of her, but she didn't
have the strength.

"Come on, Lois, we have to get you out of here."

She looked over her shoulder to see an attractive man holding her
and trying to guide her toward the door. There was a genuine look
of concern in his bright blue eyes. She could see that he had
been fighting back some tears of his own. He made a general
gesture at her.

"Were you hurt? I don't see any blood on you? Can you walk?"

Could she walk! Of course she could walk, but why should she?
Lois stopped short, causing the man to stumble against her.
"What are you doing?" She said between sobs. "I'm not going
anywhere. I need to be here when the police come. I need to make
my statement, then I need to see that those bastards pay for..."
She couldn't say it.

The attractive man shook his head. "I don't think that would be
a good idea, Lois. We need to be out of here before the police
arrive. They will only complicate things."

Didn't this guy understand? She was Lois Lane. She didn't run
from trouble, she met it head on and defeated it. Only, this time
the cost was way too high. "What are you talking about?'

"Lois, think about it." For some reason the look on his face
made her realize that he seemed to care about her. It was almost
like the looks that Clark gave her. That thought caused her eyes
to mist up again.

"Think about what?" It was weird, but somehow she knew she
could trust him.

"Lois, there was no blood." He began to push her toward the
door again. "We have to get you out of here before anyone
recognizes you, and by extension, Clark."

Lois was too confused to argue, and too emotionally crippled to
resist, so she allowed the man to usher her out of the club.

***

Beckett quickly followed after the gangsters as they exited the
club. She watched as they stuffed Clark's body into one of two
vehicles. A couple of the thugs got into that car while the rest
got into a classic 30's touring car. She looked around for some
mode of transportation. She didn't want to risk losing their
trail.

Providence provided for her as an elegantly dressed couple drove
up and stepped out of their luxury sedan. They obviously were
unaware of the chaos that was reigning inside. She ran up to
them, mumbled something about complimentary valet service, and
snatched the keys out of the surprised gentleman's hands.

Once behind the wheel, Beckett slammed her foot on the gas pedal
and spun a rooster tail of dirt and gravel from the rear tires as
she took off after her prey. The two cars holding Capone's gang
had taken off in different directions but Kate chose to the
follow the vehicle that Clark's body had been shoved into. She
was sure that she and Castle had deduced the same thing about
their future friend, but she still thought it best to follow them
just to make sure.

It would be a terrible thing if all she could really do is bring
back the dead body of her future husband back to Lois.

***

Clark had kept himself as still as possible while being
manhandled by Capone's thugs. Suddenly the back door of the car
he'd been thrown in was flung open and he was unceremoniously
pushed out. He hit the street hard and rolled several times
finally ending up in a small puddle. Grimacing, he stood up and
readied himself to fly off. His mind was in turmoil over all that
had just happened and he knew he should get home and get some
advice from his folks.

Before he lifted into the air he was distracted by the squeal of
tires and the opening of a car door. He turned to look and saw a
beautiful young woman step out from behind the wheel.

"Clark, stop!" She hurried toward him. "Please, stop."

She tucked an errand strand of her shoulder length hair behind
her ear. It was a gesture so familiar to him. She pulled a badge
from her belt as she holstered her gun.

"Who are you? Do I know you?"

"I'm Detective Kate Beckett, NYPD. I know who you and Lois Lane
are. I followed you out of the club when Capone, or whoever he
really is, had you dragged out of there."

Clark ran his hand through his hair. "Oh, it's really Capone
alright, along with Dillinger, and Bonnie and Clyde."

The woman's face furrowed in disbelief. "Seriously, how?"

Clark shrugged. "It's a long story, It's a good thing that old
revolver isn't as accurate as today's weapons. I was really
lucky that all three shots missed." Clark licked his lips. "I
felt I had to play dead so that no one else would get hurt."

"Uh, huh. That's your story? That's what you are going to tell
Lois when you see her? That the shots missed? She was standing
next to you, and the shooter was only a few feet away."

"Uh, yeah, that's what happened." Clark was sure the woman,
Beckett, didn't believe for a moment that the shots missed. If
she believed that; did that mean that she knew... He had to steer
the conversation elsewhere.

"What was a New York Detective doing investigating an illegal
gambling club in Metropolis?"

The Detective shook her head. "That's also a long story. Let's
just say that my being there was a lucky coincidence." Clark
frowned. She raised her brow. "Are you going to deny that you
were about to fly off and just leave Lois thinking that you'd
been shot dead."

Clark was momentarily flustered by her use of the word fly. "Um,
no, I was going to find a phone so I could contact the police to
let them know I was alive, then I could get in touch with
Lois."

"I thought you loved Lois."

"What? Of course I love... I mean, what are you talking about?
How would you know how I feel about my partner?"

"I know a lot of things about you, and I know how you feel for
your partner because it's the same way I feel about my
partner." Clark stared at the woman as a tear snuck out of the
corner of her eye. "A while back I was shot in the chest by a
sniper at the funeral of my Captain. My partner, Rick, tried to
knock me out of the way but he was too late. He thought I'd died
in his arms. It devastated him, just like the devastation the
Lois is feeling right now."

Clark let his head hang. The Detective reached out and gave his
hand a squeeze. "You can't let her suffer any longer than she
has to. You have to tell her the truth."

Clark jerked his head up and looked the woman in the eyes. She
knew! He clenched his fists.

"You're right." He grimaced. "But what about all the people
who saw me get shot?"

"I don't think that will be a problem. I doubt if anyone
recognized you and I pretty sure no one is going to admit being
there even if the police are called in." She nodded toward the
car. "Come on, let me give you ride back to Lois' place. Rick
and Lois should be back there soon."

Clark nodded and followed the mystery woman who seemed to know
more about him than was possible.

***

Lois sat on her sofa, fat tears of grief rolled down her cheeks.
She was so confused. She was sitting in her own apartment instead
of talking to the police. She had witnessed the callous murder of
her friend and partner, yet the man sitting across from her
insisted that Clark was going to be alright. That she just had to
be patient and everything would turn out okay.

She needed more than platitudes and empty promises of comfort.
She needed answers and she needed them now.

"Who are you and how do you know me?"

The handsome man gave her a weak smile. "My name is Richard
Castle. I'm a writer."

"A writer; you mean you're a reporter too? Your name seems
almost familiar."

He shook his head. "No, I'm a mystery writer." He paused, as
if he was trying to remember something. "I've recently come out
with my first book; In a Hail of Bullets."

Lois nodded, more to herself. "I think I remember hearing
something about that from our book reviewer. It won some awards,
didn't it?" The man nodded. A puzzled look came over Lois'
face. "I thought that book was written by a college kid?"

The man, Castle, smirked. "I look older than I am."

Lois brow rose. "Really."

Before she could begin to question Castle further there was a
knock on the door.

"Lois... it's me."

"Clark!"

Lois leapt from the couch and ran to the door. Flinging it open,
she didn't let Clark even move before she threw herself into his
arms.

"Omigod, I thought you were dead. I didn't know what I would do
without you. I was already missing you so much, Clark. Don't
ever do that to me again, please. I don't think I could stand
it. I just want..."

"Shhh." Clark placed his fingertip over her lips as he carried
her into the apartment. She never noticed the other woman who
came in behind him and quietly closed the door.

Lois felt tears coming to her eyes again as Clark set her down
next to the couch she had recently occupied. She stared up into
his deep brown eyes. She saw the love he had for her shining back
at her. He had admitted his feelings for her before, but he'd
retracted his confession. She knew the retraction was a lie, but
never allowed herself to truly feel more than a friendship for
him.

How could she have been so stupid? Why did it always take the
thought of actually losing something to realize just how much she
wanted and needed it? It took the shock of Clark's apparent
death to make her realize that she loved this man more than she
loved any other...ever.

"Lois... I ..."

She shook her head. "Not now." She stretched up onto her tips
toes as he lowered his head toward her. She captured his mouth in
a hard, desperate kiss of relief and longing. Neither noticed
their two mystery guests silently leaving.

***

Kate dragged Castle from Lois' apartment and they quickly made
it to the street. She indicated the car she'd driven over.

"Nice ride... rental?" Castle smirked at her.

"Loaner, get in. We have to get back and find the machine if we
have any chance of getting back where we belong."

"So, you do admit that we have come to Metropolis in the past
and will need the time machine to get us back."

Kate glared at her partner and lover. "I'll only admit that
whatever has and is happening, revolves around that contraption
and logic tells me that it could be our only way back."

Beckett got in and within moments was on the road back toward the
warehouse near the pier that their whole evening had centered
on.

"I can't believe you remember where to go. We've only been to
Metropolis a couple of times and we weren't driving."

She rolled her eyes. "I'm a cop. I have a head for
directions."

True to her word Beckett brought them back to the site of their
earlier travails. The place was eerily quiet. Obviously, after
the apparent shooting nobody called the police. They had been
more interested in getting away before any authorities came.
After all, they were in an illegal gambling club. Not the place
any upstanding citizen of this fair city would want to be found;
especially after a murder.

Kate left the keys in the car as the two of them exited and
headed back toward the cluster of run-down warehouses that
dominated the area.

"I think we came from that direction." Kate pointed off to her
right and moved down a narrow drive leading past an adjacent
building. Castle followed.

It took them nearly a half an hour of blind alleys and doubling
back till they finally came across the gaudy sled-like machine
sitting in the alley where they had appeared.

Castle quickly jumped into the large bench seat and began to
fiddle with the controls. Beckett noticed him moving the dials
affecting the time and place.

"Are you sure you know what you're doing, Rick?"

He patted her hand. "We'll find out soon enough." He reached
over and pulled down the largest lever.

The giant disc in back began to once again spin at an exceedingly
rapid rate. The light show that had originally surrounded them
came back. As their surroundings began to blur, Kate closed her
eyes and crossed her fingers. She really hoped this would work.

***

Clark sat next to Lois on her couch. He was looking at her, his
mind full of worry and doubt. She wasn't looking at him. She was
staring at her hands folded in front of her. She had stopped
crying hours ago, but he could tell she was still in a great deal
of pain; pain that he had caused with his betrayal of her trust.

He had confessed his dual identity to her and she had reacted as
he'd expected. In some ways it was not as bad as he expected
because she had been so happy to see him alive. She was more
forgiving of his deceit. But in other ways, it was worse. It was
worse because he now realized that his feelings for Lois weren't
a one way street. This experience had shown her and him that she
cared for him much more deeply than he'd ever imagined.

If he was being hopeful, he might even say that he thought that
Lois loved him; loved him more than just a partner, more than
just a friend. He dared to believe that she loved 'him'.

But where they went from here was up to her. His feelings
wouldn't change, but he knew how big an issue trust was with
Lois, and his keeping such a secret from her for so long was a
big obstacle for her. He just hoped that she would give him the
time to make it up to her.

She raised her head and looked over at him. Her eyes were still a
bit misty. "So, where does this leave us, Clark? What are we?"

Clark reached out and grabbed her hands. He held them tightly in
his own. "My feelings for you have never changed, Lois. I am
your partner, and I am your friend. I always will be. But if you
ever want more I'm willing to be more for you; whatever you
want, just ask and I'll give it to you." He took a deep breath.
"I have had my reasons for holding back, Lois, but I never meant
to hurt you. You are the last person I would ever want to
hurt."

She nodded her head slowly. "I know, but it still hurts, Clark.
Seeing you slumping to the floor ripped my heart to shreds. Do
you have any idea how badly I felt? It was all so avoidable if
you'd just trusted me enough to tell me the truth; I wouldn't
have had to suffer that desolation."

"I know, Lois, and I am sorry. It's not like I planned to keep
my being Superman from you forever. I knew I wanted you to know;
that you deserved to know. I just never could find the right
time." He ran his hand through his hair and he sighed again. "I
know that sounds like an excuse, and it is; but I was scared. I
was scared that I'd screw it up and that I'd lose you."

He placed his hand on her cheek in that oh so familiar gesture.
"I could continue with just being your friend and partner if
that was all you could give me, but I don't think I could
survive if I drove you away. If you never wanted to see me again
I would be lost."

She finally gave him a slight, sad smile. "That's never going
to happen. This episode has made me confront some of my own
repressed feelings and the truth of the matter is simple. I
can't imagine myself without you either."

His smile lit up the room as he reached for Lois. She stopped him
with her upraised hand. "This is going to take us a little time.
I'm going to need some time to get over the hurt and to be able
to trust you again. But I know that we can survive this. Our
relationship, our future, our..." She hesitated for a heartbeat.
"Our love is too important to let this stop us."

He opened his arms, letting her make the move to embrace him; and
she did.

It was only a few moments before their lips sought out each
other's again.

***

2013

Rick Castle took a sip of his wine and turned toward his lovely
fiancee. "Do you think it was alright for us to just leave that
time machine where we found it?"

Kate shrugged. "It's where we found it, and it's not like we
want to have anything to do with it ever again... right."

Castle expression drooped a bit. "I guess not, but just think of
the fun we could have with a machine that could..."

"Castle!" She reached over and swatted him on the arm. "I
consider us lucky to have gotten back with no complications this
time. I'm not about to tempt fate again just for the fun of
it."

"I guess." Rick took another sip of his wine. "Wow, do you
believe it; Clark Kent was really Superman?"

Kate chuckled. "I imagine he still is Superman."

Castle gave her a dirty look. "You know what I mean. I can't
wait to call Lois and tell her I know her husband flies around in
spandex."

Kate grabbed Rick by the arm. "I don't think that would be a
good idea. There's obviously a reason why the world doesn't
know that Clark is Superman. Can you imagine what a complicated
mess their lives would be? Take the impositions your celebrity
adds to your life and multiple it by a thousand. And can you
imagine the extra danger that Lois would be in?"

"Yeah, but it's not like we would tell anyone, or let it out to
the media."

Beckett nodded. "True, and I know you'd love to show her how
clever you were to figure it out, but really, Rick, do you think
she needs that added worry on her mind? Even though she knows
that you'd never consciously, or willingly, give up the secret,
the more people that know the greater the risk to them even if it
is unintended." She took a sip of her own wine. "No, I think
it's best that we keep this little secret to ourselves; at least
until such time that they wish to share it with us."

"I guess you're right." Rick set his wine glass down on the
coffee table. "I don't know about you but all that time
traveling has worn me out. I think it's time for bed." He rose.
"You coming, Kate?"

Beckett set her own glass down and let Castle pull her up from
the sofa. "It's too bad you're so worn out, Rick. I had some
ideas on what we might do to really tire us out before we drift
off to an exhausted slumber." She gave him a sly grin.

Castle's breath caught in his throat. "Suddenly I feel
energized. Lead on Detective, lead on."

***

1994

"I can't believe this; this can't be right."

"Lois, what's wrong now?" Clark had come over and was sitting
on the corner of Lois' desk.

"This internet search is getting me nowhere." She pointed at
her screen. "The only writer named Richard Castle that I can
come up with is some college kid who wrote his novel while in
college."

Clark leaned over and read the article she had displayed. "It
says he wrote "In a Hail of Bullets" while still in college.
Isn't that the name of the book he mentioned to you?"

"Yeah, but look at this picture. They do look somewhat alike,
but this kid is barely in his twenties. The guy who took me home
was much older; still nice looking, but older. Why take the name
of some kid writer?"

Clark shook his head. "I don't know Lois. What about the
detective? She said her name was Beckett, Kate Beckett."

Lois shook her head. "There's nothing about any one named
Beckett, Kate or otherwise who is a member of the New York Police
Department."

Lois hit the shut down on her keyboard in frustration; her
furrowed brow indicating her annoyance. "Who were those two?"

Clark shrugged, then smiled down at Lois. "I don't know if
we'll ever know who they were, but I'm really glad they were
there for us."

Neither Lois nor Clark saw the strangely dressed gentleman with a
bowler hat smiling at them from the back of newsroom.

fin