My Life Through Your Eyes

Author: Beth aka SmallRozfan

Rating: PG-13 (probably won't even go that high, but just in case)

Disclaimer: I don't own anything having to do with Smallville, Superman, Man of Steel, DC Comics, etc. I'm for fun, not for profit!

Pairing: Jor-El/Lara, CLois (naturally lol)

Summary: Ok, so I've never read a fic about Lara and Jor-El and after the whole episode on Smallville about Lana's relative with "Jo", I was steaming that once again Lana Lang seemed to be placed ahead of what was meant to be. How was Jor-El able to get over Louise and move on to Lara? Also, I loved the new Man of Steel movie so I'm borrowing some ideas from that to blend it in, including the lovely Ayelet Zurer as Lara instead of Helen Slater because frankly, I like her better and I wanted Clark's mother to be dark haired.

I was inspired by the quote done by the late, great Marlon Brando, "You will travel far, my little Kal-El, but we will never leave you-even in the face of our deaths. You will make my strength your own. You will see my life through your eyes, as your life will be seen through mine. The son becomes the father. And the father, the son." I also wanted to give a little background to some of our other older characters from the Smallville universe. I hope you will enjoy this. Please let me know if you do for it will keep me inspired to keep writing. If I don't think anyone is reading, I'll drop it. That's not a threat…it's a glimpse into my own head and knowing myself. Thanks ahead of time!

Prologue

Clark looked down at the woman beside him and gave her a nervous smile. Her hazel eyes were full of warmth, love and understanding. She squeezed the hand threaded with his and he felt the ring on her third finger press into his hand. Taking a deep breath, he stepped forward to the console, trepidation making his nerves hum. He swallowed hard, and as he reached towards the object he would need, he noticed his hand trembled slightly.

"It's all right, Clark. Go ahead," Lois encouraged him. Her voice seemed loud considering neither of them had said a word since arriving at their current location.

Her words had the opposite effect on her fiancé, however, and he snatched his hand back and turned to her. "Maybe this isn't a good idea. I mean, we still haven't even been able to get married and there are probably a million things that need doing at the farm or people that need saving…"

With something half-way between a huff and a chuckle, Lois placed her hand on his chest and shook her head. "Oh, no you don't! It's been one excuse after another for putting this off and the truth is that you have been talking about wanting to do this for months now. Come on, Smallville – er, Kal-El, no time like the present!" she commanded, giving him a nudge back to the console.

She sounded so much like the General that Clark couldn't help smiling at her. His smile faded as he pulled a small object out of his pocket. Looking down at it, he frowned. "Maybe I should do this alone. The last time you were here with me, Jor-El blindsided us and gave you my abilities for a day, causing all kinds of chaos. It seemed like he and I came to some kind of understanding, but, Lois, I haven't been here in almost 2 years. What if he decides he needs to punish me or teach me a lesson about abandoning him or the Fortress?"

Lois' heart jumped at that question but she lifted her chin and stood taller. "Whatever…that machine that calls itself Jor-El decides to do to you, he does to us. I'm not going anywhere. Besides, that scene he let us see right before they sent you to Earth, the one with your mother…Clark, you need answers! I know it must be killing you to have only bits and pieces of the past."

Clark seemed fixated on the object in his hand. "Yeah, but what if I don't like the answers?" he asked softly.

Biting her bottom lip, Lois conceded the point. "Well, the truth is that you might not. But there's a reason you and I are journalists, Clark. We want to know the truth, no matter how much it might hurt. This is no different. You will never be able to put it behind you until you know the truth. Now…" she leaned up and placed a quick kiss on his lips, wiped a bit of snow off of his jacket and turned him around to the console. "Go on and ask him what you want to know."

Knowing that Lois was right, Clark stood a little taller and took another deep breath. Nodding once to himself, he let go of Lois' hand to reach out and take the biggest crystal from the console and place it into another slot to activate it. He had removed the crystal from "active" status to "stand-by" the last time he had been here, unsure if he would ever need to activate the fortress again. But he had realized over the last 18 months or so that he still had so many questions that he needed answers to.

There had been one subject in particular that kept resurfacing, especially at any time that his adopted parents' relationship had come up. Because that lead to thoughts of his biological parents and their relationship. There were so many gaps in his knowledge about his personal past. Sure, Jor-El's training had included much of Krypton's heritage and the knowledge of the known universe and other areas of science. But the people…the families…his family, were still largely unknown to him. And since Kara seemed to have disappeared sometime during the whole Darkseid encounter, he really had no one else to ask.

The console started to glow and the Fortress seemed to brighten. "Kal-El, my son! Welcome home! Welcome too, Lois Lane."

The voice of Jor-El's A.I. seemed to be pleased they were there. Clark met Lois' eyes and they smiled at each other, encouraged. "Jor-El…Father, I have come to ask about something that is important to me."

"I know you were angry with me about the way things went the last time you asked about starting a life-bond with Lois Lane, my son, but you have my blessing. And the process has never stopped. The bond continues to grow and change," the disembodied voice answered.

Clark stopped short, somewhat surprised at this news. He hadn't really thought about the life-bond itself since he had brought it up the first time. He wondered if it weren't a defense mechanism that he had forgotten. He opened his mouth to ask about this but felt Lois tug on his arm. He looked back at her again and saw her shake her head.

"We can ask later, Smallville. Right now, we're on a mission," she said softly.

His eyes shone with love and amusement. She knew him so well, and he was thankful that she could see through all the distractions to the heart of a matter, especially something as important as this was to him. He nodded and turned back to the A.I.

"Father, I am grateful we have your blessing and I would like to hear more about the life-bond, but that's not why I am here today," he called.

"Then ask what you will, Kal-El. I will answer your questions if I can," Jor-El responded.

Clark cleared his throat and then held up the object in his hand to look at it in the light. "A few years ago, I found something. It was hidden in the caves in Smallville that held the portal to the Fortress. When I touched it…"

But the voice interrupted him. "You have the object with you, Kal-El?"

"Yes."

A small pillar of rose from the floor and lit up. "Place the object on the scanner, and I will analyze it."

Clark started to do as he had been told automatically, but just before he set it down, he hesitated and drew back slightly. "Father, I think you left it here when you visited Earth many years ago. I saw…I saw things, moments of your past." His voice trailed off at the end and he waited to see what the automated voice would tell him.

The silence stretched for several moments and Clark wondered if the computer was waiting for him to put the small metallic recording device on the scanner after all. Then, just as he stretched out his hand again, the voice sounded again, causing him to jump slightly. "I know what it is that you hold, my son. What is your question?"

When Clark glanced back at Lois, her baffled expression matched his own. His eyes stayed on her as he answered Jor-El. "I want to know about my family, Jor-El. I want to know about you and your father, about my mother, about Kara and your brother, Zor-El. You have given me the scientific history of Krypton. Now I want to know about my personal history." There was no response for another moment and he added, "Please, Father. You have given me glimpses and I am grateful to have seen that last message from you and my mother that you loved me enough to save me, but…"

"You wish to see it all." Jor-El sounded…resigned, as if he had anticipated and yet dreaded this request. "Are you sure, Kal-El? There is much in my past that I am not proud of and some of it will be painful to you as well. I did not originally intend on showing the entire history to you. However, your mother thought that it might be good at some point in the future for you to see it." There was a significant pause and then he added, "She even said you would ask when you had found your own life-mate."

Never had Clark heard so much emotion come from the computer that powered the Fortress. He was humbled and his own emotions were in a jumble. Lois stepped forward, once again gripping his hand tightly. "Jor-El, he needs to see it!" she called. And then, taking a deep breath, she added, "And I would like to as well, if you would allow it."

"Kal-El, there is another crystal that you need to add to the activating area of the console in order to access the complete file on your family heritage. I have caused it to glow. Please insert it into the correct slot," the voice commanded.

Clark found the crystal easily and did as Jor-El had requested. There was a brief but bright flash from the panel and suddenly two images appeared before him. They were his mother and father. Lara's blue, blue eyes glowed with love and her image smiled at him, at Lois, and finally at the image of his father, who seemed to give a hesitant smile back. Then she held out her arm and Clark gave a small gasp of surprised recognition.

"I take it you have seen a bracelet like this one before, my son," Lara said warmly.

Lois looked at it and shook her head, turning back to Clark for an explanation. "I don't understand. Clark, isn't that the bracelet you gave me for Christmas two years ago? The one you got from the Kawatche Indians before we met, right?"

Clark swallowed. "It does look like it."

"Do you have the bracelet nearby?" Lara's image asked. "You will need it and the personal record that you hold in your hand to access everything that you want to know."

Clark turned to Lois with a questioning look. "I'm not wearing it today!" she said apologetically. "It's in my jewelry box at home and…"

Before she could finish her sentence, there was that all too familiar 'whoosh' accompanied by a slight breeze, and suddenly Clark was holding the bracelet out towards her. Lois rolled her eyes and gave him half a smile. "Show off." Taking the bracelet from him, Lois held it up towards the image. "I have it."

Lara's face beamed. "Place the record with the El family crest and the bracelet on the raised platform, and you will receive the answers you are looking for."

Clark took the two objects and held them, looking from his mother to the objects and then he turned to Jor-El's image. He looked a little nervous. It was obvious that he was reluctant to continue this experience. "Consider, Kal-El…we have already told you that we did not come with you so that we would not burden you with our frailties and failures. If you go down this path, you will see exactly what we meant. Krypton was a great place with great accomplishments. However, it had its own problems and those problems eventually led to its destruction. You carry enough on your shoulders trying to protect and guide the people of Earth. I do not wish to add to your burden," Jor-El's image told him.

Lara turned to her husband. "Jor-El, he has the right to know. And he will see our own struggles to choose the right paths amidst opposition and through difficult decisions."

Jor-El nodded sadly, looking off into the distance at something or some memory that only he could see. "You will travel far, Kal-El, but we will never leave you-even in the face of our deaths. You will make my strength your own. You will see my life through your eyes, as your life will be seen through mine. The son becomes the father. And the father, the son." There was a pregnant pause and then his father seemed to come back to them. "If you are certain, do as your mother has said."

With one final nod from Lois, Clark did as he was told and placed the two objects on the raised pillar. Light began to flash from the pillar as well as the control panel, faster and faster and the whole Fortress started to shake. Just as Lois started to ask what was happening, they were both encased in some sort of force-field, together but unable to move or speak. The light surrounded them, flowing around them and through them. They were lifted off the ground and suddenly, the light became too brilliant and they could see nothing but the brightness.

Suddenly able to move again, they both clamped their eyes shut at the brilliance they could not tolerate. The silence became palpable and the light was so bright that it seemed to explode. Lois let go of Clark, and automatically, her hands came up to cover her face.

The tension was gone and the light was no longer visible with her eyes closed. Lois took a deep breath and chanced easing her eyes open. When she did, she gasped. 'I don't think I'm in Kansas anymore, Toto,' she thought.

Looking around, she noticed two things. First, there was no other way to say it, where she suddenly found herself was…well, alien. She didn't recognize anything around her, but she looked down at her hands and realized she was wearing the bracelet now, and…a gown? What kind of material was this? She ran her hands over the sleeves. But they weren't her hands!

As her eyes darted around the…room?...she also noticed something else. Clark was nowhere in sight. Lois started to panic and tried to cry out to Clark, but then she realized that she wasn't in control of this body! What the…? Just as she was about to hyperventilate, Lois felt a warmth flow through her, as if she were being given a hug. Somewhere in the back of her mind, she heard a woman's voice.

"Do not be afraid, Lois Lane. You are getting your wish. You are going to see the history of the house of El…or at least part of it. No doubt the experience of these visions of the past will be unnerving to you. The technology of Earth is not yet so far advanced. Do you still wish to continue?"

Lois finally placed the voice as belonging to Lara. The woman, or computer, or whatever, was right. This was unnerving. It was as if she were actually there, living the past. She wondered if Clark were seeing the same things she was. Then she felt a nudge to her consciousness, reminding her that Lara was waiting for an answer.

"Yes, I want to continue. I want to see this," she thought determinedly.

"Very well. As you wish."