09/27/10
No Strings Attached Sunday: Whatever the artist wants the artist draws or writes!
Another sequel to "Star Crossed Meeting"
Sleeping Stars
The door creaked open and the bed's occupant pulled the covers over their head, doing their best to pretend they were sleeping.
"Liar, liar, pants on fire," Clark pulled the covers away from Querl's face.
"One being deceitful does not set ones pants ablaze."
"Brainiac."
"Five."
"What?"
"…Never mind."
Clark pulled himself onto Brainy's bed, which was really just the bed in the guest room. His folks were still trying to figure out ways Brainy could go into town without causing people to freak out of get him taken away and they didn't want to raise suspicion by buying another child's bed just yet.
"Why can't you sleep?"
"Isn't the answer obvious?" Brainy sat up to look at him.
"You're home sick?"
The Coluan should have known that was the 'obvious' answer to someone with such a wonderful home. It may have been cliché but Clark had everything he ever dreamed of; the top of that least being parents. People who were, supposedly, meant to love you no matter what. Not leave you the day you were born, never to return again, in the care of emotionless robots.
No, Querl would never miss his "home". He would miss his time, the technology, the knowledge that he was safe. Though the Kents were kind to him he was in the constant threat of being discovered, taken away, and experimented on and, possibly worse, altering time and history.
It didn't take long to realize exactly who he had stumbled onto through time. The one person whom he had the most reason to fear and the most reason to protect their place in history. The boy who would be Superman was sitting on his bed, close enough to strike him down with one blow and close enough to embrace him.
"Yes," Querl lied.
Clark scratched his chin, and then plopped down from the bed.
"I'll be right back."
Querl half wondered if he could be more convincing at faking sleep by the time he came back but didn't even have the chance to lay back down by the time Clark came back dragging his little red wagon filled with toys.
"I don't think your mother would appreciate you playing this late."
"I'm not playing; I'm offering you a sleeping buddy."
"A sleeping buddy?"
"Uh huh," Clark pulled the wagon up to the bed. "Sometimes a toy makes a bed seem less lonely." He put all the toys on the bed near Querl's feet before lifting himself back onto the bed. "Pick one."
Though he wasn't sure what he was supposed to be looking for, Brainy looked the toys over. There was quite an interesting variety; dinosaurs, a dog with a metallic spring for his torso, potatoes that, for some reason, had faces.
Curiously, Brainy picked up one of the two clothe looking dolls; a cowboy. No, not just any cowboy, the star on his chest read sheriff.
"That's Woody, he's my favorite," Clark reached forward, scooting closer in order to reach, his side pressing against Querl's, and straightened his hat.
Brainy attempted to give the sheriff back to his only but Clark only smiled and shook his head.
"It's okay, you sleep with him. But if you're going to sleep with Woody then you need Buzz too," Clark put the space man with the green and purple on his white suit into his arms. "And if you have Buzz, you need Jessie 'cause they get lonely without each other." He then put the red haired cowgirl in his arms.
"This is turning into… What you call a sleep over isn't it?" asked Brainy.
Clark grinned, "That's a great idea. I call Bullseye."
The Coluan was about to ask what he thought he was a good idea but nearly jumped out of the bed when the Kryptonian slipped under the covers with him and pulled the clothe horse to his chest.
"And Slink goes here," Clark put the dog with the metal spring middle on the pillow above their heads. "Rex guards for intruders." He put his dinosaur sitting upright, facing the door.
Brainy watched as Clark arranged the rest of the toys in a similar matter, wondering why the potatoes needed 'private time' at the very end of the bed. For some reason, he wanted to smile.
"Oh, I almost forgot," Clark flashed out of the room and when he flashed back into the bed, he pointed up.
A small gasp escaped Brainy as he saw all the small glowing stars suddenly on the ceiling.
"Much better then a night light, right?" Clark grinned at him.
Brainy couldn't resist smiling back.
When Ma and Pa Kent found them in the morning Clark had one arm around Brainy's shoulders, Bullseye held to his stomach as Brainy used Clark's shoulder as a pillow, loosely holding Woody, Buzz and Jessie in his arms as the rest of the toys stood watch all around them.