A/N Okay, I've been thinking about this story for a while now, ever since Chris Colfer's last appearance on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon. I hope you all enjoy it!

Reviews are always welcome!

…

Shooting Star

Rural Indiana, Fall, 1992

He sat in the back of his truck, sipping from his bottle of beer as he considered the crazy roller coaster called life. The nineteen year old had had a bad week. On Monday, he'd been fired from his job at Bristol's Garage because they couldn't afford to keep him on anymore. And then Tuesday, his dad had had a massive heart attack and died.

The funeral had been that morning, after which JoAnne, whom he'd been dating for the last three years, had broken up with him. She said she didn't want to be stuck married to a small town mechanic, and wasn't going to hang around this backwater town anymore. She said she was moving to California to try and become an actress. While he couldn't fault her for wanting to get out of this town and pursue her dreams, he was a little pissed at her insensitive timing, She hadn't had to dump him at his dad's graveside.

A bright flash in the sky caught his attention. A shooting star glowed brightly as it drifted across the sky. The long buried dreamer inside him sent up a quick wish. He wished he knew what his purpose was in life. He didn't mind being a small town mechanic, but was that all he would ever be?

He wanted to leave an impression on the planet, be someone that people remembered for being a good person, for helping those he could, for making a difference in someone's life. He wanted to find the right woman, get married, and raise a bunch of kids, maybe even adopt some.

Sirens in the distance brought him out of his thoughts, and he decided it was time to head home.

…

"Commander, what is happening?" The voice was calm, peaceful. The members of the crew couldn't help but to relax when they heard it. That voice was one reason the woman it belonged to was called The Peace Bringer.

The commander's voice was calm as well, though the urgency was evident. "Our aft shields failed briefly, I'm not sure why. They were only down for a few seconds, but it was long enough for a micro asteroid to slam through our primary engine. I'm flying on the secondary, but it wasn't meant for long distance travel. We are going to have to land soon. Lt. Commander Ustav is searching fo..."

His words were cut off as an alarm began to wail and a light flashed on the control panel, even as the small craft began to shake. "Shields down to fifteen percent!" One crewman called out.

The commander turned to the beautiful pale woman standing at the back of the cabin. "Ma'am, I'm going to have to request you return to your cabin and strap yourself in. I'm going to send a distress call to the High Council at Mirindian and advise them that your diplomatic mission is delayed."

She acknowledged him with a nod and made her way back to the passenger area. Andreth, her personal assistant met her there. She had never been fond of the stocky male, who always seemed to think he was the one in charge. He was arrogant and often condescending. "Madame Ambassador, what is happening?"

"The ship is in distress, the shields are failing. Commander Jempson is handling it."

The shorter man scowled as the ship lurched to one side, almost making the two fall. The ambassador only managed to remain upright by gripping the back of a seat. "We should strap ourselves in." She said calmly, taking a seat.

Andreth pushed himself forward towards the cockpit. "I'm going to make certain they have things under control!"

But before he could reach the door to the bridge, it opened and one of the crew members stumbled out. "Madame Ambassador, the shields are nearly gone. We must abandon ship. Come, I will escort you personally to the escape pods. The others will fallow as soon as they turn the ship into this system's sun."

The stately woman followed the crew member to the rear of the ship. He helped her into the pod. She turned to look at him, frowning as he began to close the door behind her. "Are you not joining me? There is enough room in the pod for three of us. And what about Andreth?"

"My orders are to see you safely off the ship while there is still time. There are three other escape pods. The rest of us will take them once the ship is safely turned away from the sole, primitive inhabited world in this system. Your safety is our primary concern."

Before she could protest, the pod was sealed, and the crew member began the launch sequence. She hurriedly strapped herself in just as the pod hurdled through the launch tube. Through the window, she could see the pod moving further and further away from the craft. She saw the craft begin to turn. But it never made it. She watched the craft turn into a fireball as it exploded.

The shock wave slammed into the pod, knocking it off course. She had no way of knowing where it was heading. The small escape pod was designed to withstand reentry into planetary atmosphere, and would send a continuous distress signal until a rescue ship could find her. But how long would it take them to find her? The journey from Mirindian to the conference in the Kelpernus system had taken weeks. Would they find her before the pod's rations ran out? What if she crashed on an inhospitable planet? Most of the planets in this system seemed to be uninhabitable.

She was thrown back against her seat as the pod began to descend through the stratosphere of this unknown planet. The pressure became too much for her system, and she blacked out.

…

He heard something crashing hard in the nearby corn field, but there didn't seem to be any flames. Should he report it? He had heard the sirens a few minutes ago. Perhaps they were already aware of it. It wasn't unheard of for small aircraft to lose power and crash into a field. They'd probably radioed ahead, and emergency vehicles were en-route. He hoped no one was seriously hurt.

He was driving slow, aware that he'd had a few beers, and although he wasn't drunk, he didn't want to get busted by the cops. As he neared the end of the dirt road that wound between the rows of cornstalks, he saw several vehicles driving by on the main road at high speed. Were those military vehicles? Perhaps it had been a military jet that had crashed in the field.

He stopped his truck and just sat there for several minutes. He'd let the authorities pass, and then take off once the road was clear. He sat there watching vehicle after vehicle go by on the main road. He was beginning to think something very serious was going on. Why were so many military vehicles all heading towards where what couldn't have been more than a single small aircraft had crashed. Must be some top secret prototype or something.

Movement to his side caught his attention. His eyes opened wide in shock when he saw a beautiful woman emerging from the corn stalks. She was oddly dressed in a shimmery silver robe of some kind that was torn in a few places from her walk through the field. Her auburn hair was swept up in a fancy chignon, but a few tendrils had been torn free as well. She stopped in confusion when she saw him looking at her. Her unusually colored eyes examined him with curiosity.

He regained his composure, and smiled reassuringly at her. "Hello. I won't hurt you. Are you okay? Do you need help?"

At first she didn't respond, but fiddled with what looked like a necklace that hung around her neck. The necklace made an odd beeping noise, and then the woman looked back at him. "I'm sorry, could you repeat what you said? I didn't understand you."

He glanced at the necklace thingy. Was it some kind of hearing aid? "I asked if you were okay? Do you need help?"

"Oh, yes. My craft crash landed. I need to find shelter until my people come for me."

He smiled again. "Well, if by people, you mean the military, they are crawling all over the place. But you don't look like a military test pilot."

She looked afraid. "I would like to avoid your military, if possible. Please, can you just help me find shelter?"

He studied her for a moment, seeming to notice that this was no ordinary woman. "Get in. I'll take you to my place for now. I'm Burt, by the way."

She smiled gratefully at him. "I am El Zabeth, The Peace Bringer."

…

Personal Journal entry, Earth Date April fifth, 1993

It has become apparent that the High Council has ceased searching for me. Perhaps they believe me to have perished in the initial explosion. My rescuer, Burt, was able to learn that my escape pod was taken by the military of the ruling body on this portion of this world. In the nine Earth months I have been here, I have learned much about this primitive world. The natives call it Earth, and it is divided into different countries.

This part of the world is known as The United States of America, which has been divided further into territories. My pod apparently landed in a territory known as Indiana. Burt was worried that the military might try to detain me if we remained there, so we have since moved to a place called Lima, Ohio, where Burt has opened what the Earth people call a repair shop with funds he obtained from his father's passing. Can you imagine? These people actually still use money to pay for goods and services.

Burt has taken such good care of me. He is a kind and caring man, and his eyes are full of laughter. If I am not careful, I could fall in love with him.

Elizabeth (as Burt insisted on calling her) looked down in shock at the words she had written. Could she fall in love with a primitive Earth male? She had stopped dreaming of her home on Mirindian, of the pink sand on the banks of Lake Hisamon, the two suns setting over it's purple waters. Of the three moons that shone in the vast night sky. She missed seeing the stars here on this planet. Too much pollution and man-made light blocked the night sky here.

Could she live out the rest of her days here on this planet? She would always be set apart from the rest of the people here. She'd never be able to fully be herself. She glanced at the cup of tea sitting on the counter across the room, concentrating on it, as it lifted into the air and floated towards her. Earth people hadn't yet developed telekinetic abilities. And what of the other difference between her and the occupants of this world? Burt had discovered most of them, and while he had been kind and hadn't freaked out (Earth slang was so strange. She had learned to speak the Earth language known as English from watching the television. She especially liked the channel known as BBC America,) he explained that some people would be afraid of some of their differences.

She had no way to contact her people, to let them know she was still alive. She really had no choice. She would have to speak with Burt when he returned later, explain to him the one difference between her people and his that he hadn't yet discovered.

While El Zabeth's gifts had made her the perfect choice to be the Mirindian's Ambassador in off world encounters, she was not yet a fully mature member of her people. But soon she would go through the Ba'rith, her people's version of puberty. On her world, it was a very intense time in a person's life, when they find their life partner, and are driven to mate. Her people could only ever conceive once in their lifetime. Her time was coming soon, just a matter of Earth weeks.

Could she conceive with a Earth male? And if she could, what would become of their offspring? Physically, Earthlings and Mirindians were very similar anatomically. The act of mating was virtually identical on both worlds. Would their DNA be compatible? What would the gestation be like? Her people carried the fetus for nearly a year before giving birth, though she understood it to be shorter here on Earth. So many questions.

But the biggest question was, if she wasn't returned to her people before then, would Burt even consider being her mate?

…

Lima, Ohio, May, 27th 1994

Burt watched in awe as Elizabeth sang softly to the tiny being in her arms. He was filled with pride for his wife (yes, they had married, after Burt had gotten her false identification, including a birth certificate.) They couldn't risk going to the hospital for the birth of their son, nor could they have gone to regular OB/GYN appointments during the pregnancy. Elizabeth had delivered the baby all by herself, with no complications.

The tiny boy was perfect, with a dusting of auburn hair on his head, and pale porcelain skin.

"What are we going to name him?" He asked softly.

She smiled softly up at him. "I've always wanted to name a male child Kur'Tas, which in my language means 'changer of worlds.'"

Burt smiled. "I like it. Maybe one day he will grow up and change this world for the better. We can call him Kurt for short."