SPOILERS for Season 7

As the Sun Rises, Darkness Falls

Part One: Shadow of a Secret

Disclaimer: Kara Zor-El, Kal-El, and Lex Luthor are the property of DC Comics.

Chapter Two: Synthesis

In just a few days, Lex could feel himself changing. This innocent, enigmatic woman was absolutely bewitching. He doubted that she was intentionally having that effect on him, but that was part of what made her so attractive. With two murderous ex-wives, he didn't exactly have a great track record. He was tired of being manipulated. This girl, who didn't even know how to play games, had swept him off his feet, quite literally.

He dreaded the next time he would have to bring her to the lab. It was clear that she hadn't liked anything about the experience, and he'd almost lost her trust in him. That trust was vital. It would keep her here rather than anywhere else, and it would draw her to him. He was prepared for her to wander around Smallville, but hopefully she would stay out of sight until she learned to speak English. In the meantime, the tracking dot covered by synthetic skin behind her ear would transmit her location to his Blackberry. It was a sneaky move, but it was also a necessary one.

If the government got a hold of her, he would have to know where she was in order to get her back. He couldn't be too careful. At least her growing attachment to him would make her think twice about leaving. She was so pure that it felt like a sin to kiss her, but he had never been a saint. She had been clumsy at first, unsure of what to do, but she was a quick study. Judging by what she'd already learned, including gestures like nodding and shaking her head, she was extremely intelligent.

Hearing her speak had been a surprise, but it was meant to throw him off-kilter. Once she learned English, she would have to teach him parts of her language and customs. Something about the kitchen had disturbed her, and he would be sure to question the servants as to what she ate later. She seemed to hit it off with his cook, who was more like a mother to him than anything. There were times when he forgot to eat, and she would send up a tray of food and refuse to take it back until he ate it. She was stubborn, but she was right.

He had also noticed the little sway to Kara's hips when she heard the jazz music playing on the radio and the way her eyelids had become heavy. He could tell that she liked music. He would have to teach her to dance. The thought that he could teach her all of these things and then show her off at a gala in the distant future thrilled him. He had never felt that way about any of his other girlfriends, who were mere nuisances on his arm. If they weren't manipulating him, they were obsessed with him in a pathetic way.

The flying heroine in his mansion was a different story. He intended to know everything about her, even though there were miles of mystery behind her sweet eyes. Even though he had been afraid of heights since he was a child, floating was a new experience that intrigued him. He would have to think it through before he asked her if he could fly with her. He found himself trusting her as well. Why would she harm him if he gave her everything? She was a basically good person.

He didn't want to leave, but Charity had informed him that his father required his presence. Lex didn't want anything to seem suspicious, so he would do as Lionel asked. There was no reason to expose the metahuman living under his roof. He was also curious as to his father's whereabouts after the dam ruptured.

"Keep an eye on her. If she leaves the grounds for too long, call me." After receiving a curt nod from Charity, he kissed Kara on the tip of the nose. He meant to kiss her lips, but at the last second, she changed the angle. He found that he liked the mistake and gave her a small smile. "Make sure she stays our little secret." It wouldn't do to have her discovered.

After taking one last glance at Kara, he left. Despite the winding and seemingly endless hallways in this castle, he knew every inch of it. He learned early to know his territory, which came in handy when he was the favorite target of the local meteor mutants and freaks galore.

He chose a Porsche in ice blue for this particular venture. The leather bucket seats easily supported him when he slipped inside, and the engine purred to life when he turned the key. The seat belt was a nuisance, but he was considerably more accident-prone since he moved from Metropolis to Smallville. The garage was already opened by one of his staff, and he was doing sixty by the time he passed the gates.

An hour and a half drive to Metropolis gave him time to think. It irritated him that the first thing he thought of was Kara instead of what Lionel wanted. He had allowed his guard to drop around her, assuming she was some kind of heavenly being, but the tests run by Dedalus showed a different story. The elements in her blood were completely foreign except for the base chemicals like oxygen and hemoglobin.

Her DNA said the same thing. She wasn't human, but she had a weakness. He had heard theories of meteor rocks originating from one particular spot in the galaxy, but there was no solid proof behind the ideas. Now he was starting to think that her arrival was from the stars instead of the clouds. It would make more sense, and he didn't recognize the language she spoke at all.

Lex was an experienced polyglot and had a knack for accents and picking up languages. His photographic memory helped with that. This didn't sound human at all. Her tongue was harsher than most African languages, and she wasn't Middle Eastern with that blonde hair and blue eyes. Either she was a genetically different human from a country he didn't know of or she was an alien. The second choice seemed far more likely.

If that was indeed the case, they needed to perform more tests on her. It irked him that her discomfort during the laboratory experience bothered him. From then on, he would have Dedalus take care of all that. The man didn't have a conscience and would do almost anything when it came to money. He could still avoid the blame and get his results at the same time.

When he pulled up to Luthorcorp Plaza, his radio was blaring hard rock. Instead of going into the parking garage like he was ordered, he simply parked there. No one would dare steal or damage the car with his vanity plates. He had the potential to ruin lives if the car was so much as scratched. He ignored the protesting valet when he got out of the car. Instead of handing the distraught man the keys, he locked the car and set the alarm.

There was some confusion in the lobby when Lex briskly walked through, but he paid no attention to it and slipped his key card into the private elevator that would take him to the top floor. The ride was short and sweet, and when the doors opened, he was treated to the view of his father sitting behind the glass desk. Behind him, the view of Metropolis at night went unnoticed, a subtle testament to the glory of Luthorcorp's conquests.

Lionel pretended to be writing something important when Lex approached, and the upward glance and practiced smile were expected. His father set the pen down and leaned back in the padded leather executive's chair. His mane of dark hair was shorter than usual and made the grey streaks more prominent, but the trimmed beard was still in place.

"Lex," Lionel greeted as his eyes crinkled at the corners, "what a surprise." As always, he was dressed in an impeccable suit. One of his father's life lessons had been to always look his best, even when he wasn't expecting anyone important to show up. Surprises were to always be anticipated and handled smoothly.

"It's hardly a surprise, Dad. You're the one who invited me here." He didn't spare his father from his blunt criticism. His eyes narrowed as he looked around the office. Even though he hadn't been in charge of Luthorcorp for quite a while, the furniture still carried his style. What wasn't black was glass, and it retained the look of a cold and detached place of business.

"Did Charity pass on that nugget? I was under the impression that you were avoiding me. Having assistants take messages is not the way to conduct a proper phone call, son." Lionel was taunting him. That was nothing new, but Lex inwardly bristled at the veiled insult. His father always found ways to make him feel inadequate. He gritted his teeth.

"I wasn't expecting your call. You've been missing for days," he responded in a dry tone. His hands slipped into the pockets of his leather trench coat. "Where were you this time? I hear Aruba's great this time of year. Who's the next lucky piece of arm candy?" His father's "business trips" weren't uncommon and were often spontaneous. Some of the women that went with him were younger than Lex.

Lionel chuckled and interlaced his fingers. "Please, Lex. I wouldn't create all of this mess for a woman. You need to keep a more watchful eye on your relationships." Lex's eyes narrowed at his father's accusation, but he said nothing. Whatever Lionel wanted to reveal, he would do so. "The truth is that I was kidnapped by a psychotic woman working for none other than Lana Lang."

This time, it was Lex who snickered. This was far easier than he suspected. "In case you haven't heard, Lana is dead. They found her remains in an explosion. Her DNA was scattered about the scene. I was their main suspect until they were asked to supply proof that I killed her."

To his credit, Lionel's face was arranged in a perfect imitation of indignity. "You don't believe me. I saw her with my own eyes. She was missing a finger." He got up and rounded the desk to place a hand on Lex's shoulder. "How small was the DNA evidence? Why do you think I told you that I've returned before I told the press?" Lex shrank away from the physical contact, but his father's hand remained there with a firm grip. He had to push his emotions aside and consider the evidence.

It wasn't exactly legal for him to view the police report from the accident, but he had been breaking the law since he was a teenager. The DNA had been a tiny amount, but it was enough to suspect that she was dead. She had been seen entering the vehicle, and the entire debacle had been caught on the camera of a general store across the street. It was…convenient. However, Lionel had been lying to him for years, and there was no reason to start automatically believing him now without reviewing all of the evidence.

"I don't expect you to take my word for it," Lionel continued. "Here are all the necessary documents to consider. My investigative team has also seen a woman matching Lana's description in Shanghai. There are photos inside here." He handed Lex a manila folder that was sealed and unlabeled, which Lex slipped into the inside of his coat.

"I'll review these later. Did she happen to say why she kidnapped you?" Now that he mentioned it, he could see the faint impressions of bruises on Lionel's face. They looked to be covered with make-up, and the dim lighting made it hard to see them. His top lip was also swollen, and there was a line that resembled a cut running through it.

Lionel removed his hand from Lex's shoulder, but he stayed nearby to indicate that this was a private conversation. "Why do all women commit crimes? Revenge, of course. She was somewhat upset by the means of persuasion I used to keep her from escaping your wedding. Her aim was to kill me, but I managed to get away. As soon as you leave, I'll alert the press to my return."

"Why did you tell me first? I could've read about it in tomorrow's newspaper, like everything else you've ever done." Even though Lex was curious as to what means of persuasion his father was referring to, his brain was far too loaded with new information and questions for him to process another answer.

"I wanted to warn you. You are my son, and you're not known for your precautionary measures." His brown eyes deepened with the significance of his own words. "She's not rational. You're her next target. She's scheduled to leave Shanghai again in a week. She's no doubt planning how to make your life miserable since staging her own death didn't put you in prison."

It made sense. His father always did. "You're not known for your fatherly warmth. Why are you warning me?"

Lionel's eyes hardened to pinpoints of black. "Even with this meeting, I can see that your emotional weakness has increased since the last time we've spoken. It was bad with Lana, but now it's worse. You're not concerned about your own security anymore. I think the question is: who is the next Lex-girl?" His father used the taunt that was always splashed across the headlines of newspapers, and it was meant to incite him. The fact that it really did only proved his father's point.

"I may have cared about Lana, but I was never weak." His lips twitched in annoyance at the accusation.

"You don't even believe yourself," Lionel sneered. "Trust me, Lex. A relationship is the last thing you need right now, and this woman is more of a danger to you than Lana." Lex struggled not to snarl. He didn't know how his father was so perceptive. "You've let your guard down."

"I don't need dating advice," Lex snapped. The thing that bothered him the most was that his father was right. He was in denial about Kara. He pressed his lips together in irritation.

"Leave her." It sounded like a command. "You obviously don't want my involvement, so do the girl a favor."

"I don't know where you got your information from, but it's a faulty source. There's no one." It was time to leave. Before Lionel could say otherwise, Lex got into the elevator and pressed the button for the ground floor. Just before the doors closed, he heard his father speak under his breath.

"I never knew you had a weakness for blondes."

It wasn't difficult for Kara to find something to do in the large mansion. It had so many rooms that she couldn't possibly explore them all in one day. When something caught her attention, she would stop to play with it, though she was being closely monitored by one of the servants so that she didn't break anything.

She hadn't met this one yet, but he was hovering over the doorway to the office. Maybe he was there to make sure she didn't access any sensitive information. It wouldn't do her any good. She didn't know how to read English.

The screen in front of her had miniature holograms that consisted of people that were mostly pleasing to the eye. Those who weren't were laughed at. She found this offensive, but humans didn't seem to have as much grace as Kryptonians did. After an hour, the unidentified servant came in, pressed a few buttons on the viewing device, and made words appear that went along with the speech.

The man didn't say anything before he left, but she could hear him by the door again. The man's actions made her curious. She crawled from her seat on the carpeted floor to press the other buttons, not just the one that controlled whether the device was on or off. She found that she could manipulate the loudness of the speech as well as which holograms appeared. There were hundreds of different ones, but there was one in specific that caught her eye.

All of the humans' emotions were dramatic and easy to read. She could tell the vague notion of what was happening because of the overt tone of voice and body language that left little question. It was far more interesting than anything else she had seen. At least she could understand this, even though it was still in English. The characters on the screen must have been their alphabet and words.

She watched for hours before she drifted to sleep on the couch. She could hear everything that happened in the mansion, including voices and footsteps, but she quickly learned to tune them out.

The sun had just risen when she opened her eyes again. There was a blanket over her and a tray of food on the table in front of her. The hologram device was switched off. She stretched well before examining the food. She ignored the meat stuck between two processed slabs of grain. Instead, she turned her attention to the green stalk that didn't have any trace of animal in it. Cautiously, she bit into it. She was pleased with the earthy flavor and crunch, and it didn't take her long to wolf down what was left of it.

The clear liquid in the glass seemed harmless enough, and when she took a drink of it, she found no particular taste. It quenched her thirst and satisfied her dry throat, so she swallowed the rest in one gulp. Her stomach rumbled after a few days of no nutrition. It seemed like her powers made her extremely hungry. She found the kitchen with no trouble, though she had a hard time finding things to eat that were readily prepared.

She ate all the fresh vegetables that she could find. When those failed to fill her stomach, she went through the cabinets and found all the sweets. She was sitting on the counter eating what seemed like her hundredth cookie when Kelly entered. With her presence, Kara looked around to see just how much of a mess she made and flushed lightly in embarrassment. She was a guest in this home, and this was completely rude. Her stomach had triumphed over her brain, and the lack of food had built up until it simply boiled over.

The redhead seemed to sense Kara's sudden discomfort and spoke in a soothing tone. She turned on the music device and started to clean up. This time, the music was a mixture of fast beats and fast singing. At first, she simply swung her legs from the counter to match the beat. When she saw Kelly dancing and encouraging Kara to do so as well, she hopped off the counter and started to move her hips. She mimicked the older woman and used her own moves that were Kryptonian in heritage, but she saw several similarities between the two.

After a while, Kelly was shifting between cooking and watching Kara dance, seemingly entranced by the smooth undulations of the Kryptonian's body. Kara didn't get tired and enjoyed entertaining. Soon, appetizing aromas were permeating the air around them, and Charity had joined the crowd. Among them were rest of the servants, all six of them spread about the large kitchen. All of them watched her in a daze, but Kara was in her own world.

The music halted abruptly, and she turned to look at Lex. He seemed tense and upset. He raised his voice at the servants and yelled something in English that made them all leave. When his eyes turned on her, she could feel the icy coldness in them and backed away from him.

The look on his face was angry, to say the least, and he pushed her against the counter with his body. Each of his arms was on either side of her, and he caged her with his fury. Confusion flooded her when he kissed her. This one wasn't nearly as soft and loving as the last. It was harsh and punishing, and she felt a small sting that almost registered as pain when he bit her lips.

Her vision was spinning. She barely felt the prick in her arm before she succumbed to darkness.

When she woke up, everything was blurry. She heard a faint voice and the repetitive clicks of a primitive recording device. A few minutes passed before things became clearer. The man wearing a paper mask over his mouth was the one Lex called Dedalus. The voice was Charity's. She made calm observations while her eyes coldly scanned over Kara's body.

Something was wrong with her body. She felt like she had been ripped open. The plastic mask over her mouth muffled her whimpers, but Charity's dark blue eyes fell on her face. The bodyguard knew that Kara was awake, but she didn't care. She continued with whatever she was saying.

She heard sickening sounds. Her heartbeat seemed to be so much more audible. She could hear the sloshing of hands touching her internal organs, feeling them. She wanted to vomit. The gas she was forced to breathe in made sure that she couldn't move, so she was stuck in a hopeless situation. She squeezed her eyes shut and tried to concentrate on something else. Her ability of total recall, an extremely accurate memory, allowed her to play Kelly's music in her mind with unerring precision.

It was the most disturbing sensation when her ribs were pulled closed, and then the skin was drawn together over them. The nausea began to pass. She felt her skin and bones knitting themselves together again only to find out that they weren't finished. The tray with the glowing green rocks was brought closer again, and he started to cut open her legs.

It took hours for the pair to be completely satisfied with examining her anatomy. They had turned her over and cut into her back as well. By the end of it, she passed out again from the exhaustion of trying to heal and deal with the meteor rock being so near at the same time.

It was surreal when she awoke in a comfortable bed. It was the one that was in her room. There was no cold steel table in her room and no needles either. There was no scalpel. Judging by the darkness, it was the middle of the night.

She took her time standing in the shower, an ancient model of the cleaning machines they had on Krypton. She let the scalding hot water run over her sensitized skin, which turned red under the heat. She was still not fully healed from her ordeal. The scented formulas cleaned her hair and washed her skin. She dried herself with a towel and ran the tool with the spiked bristles through her hair until it shone.

She dressed herself carelessly and only half-buttoned a white blouse over her undergarments. Her thoughts were in a haze as she numbly located Lex's heartbeat and followed it. She found him in a room with a large hologram device that was on. He sat on a couch, wide-awake, and looked at her. A warm feeling spread through her upon contact with him, and it seemed natural to slide her body onto the couch and put her head in his lap.

Her hair had dried for the most part from super speed, and the warmth expanded in her chest when he ran his fingers through it. She felt drunk, like she had imbibed one too many mood-affecting substances. She felt just as helpless now as she had on the steel table with Dedalus slicing her open while Charity narrated, but she felt safer with Lex. Despite logical reasoning, he made her feel secure, even though he was probably the one who put her in the lab in the first place.

It was too late to reverse the process and let it die off on its own. He was her mate. That was the only way she could be affected like this, all of her free will stripped away by his demand. The bond was not only physical, but mental as well. He wanted her to be submissive to him, and so she was. Bonds were lifelong. It would only die when he did.

On Krypton, finding a mate was a miraculous experience that was widely celebrated and glorified. This union only made Kara feel like there was something wrong with her. This human had done harm to her, and she remained loyal to him.

The desire to mate was overwhelming. She sat up and slid into his lap. Her instincts were guiding her as she deliberately provoked his arousal. She wetted her lips with her tongue and ran them over his while her fingers undid the buttons of his shirt. With the same fluid grace that she'd been dancing with earlier, her hips began to move against his.

It wasn't long before Lex took control of the situation. He sucked her bottom lip into his mouth and nibbled on it to make it swell. His tongue then pushed into her mouth and explored every inch of it. It tangled with hers in the most pleasant way and elicited a quiet moan from her throat and a sharp jerk of her hips. His nimble fingers unbuttoned her blouse and slipped it from her body. It fell to the floor.

Shivering sensations ran through her body as he trailed his knuckles down her muscled stomach. The kiss grew more intense as she felt something hard against the most private, sensitive part of her body. Her eyes felt heavy lidded with the newfound pleasure drawn from grinding into his hardness. She barely felt his fingers undoing her bra in a split second. His fingers trailed down her arms when he removed it, and it was discarded and forgotten.

Her lips broke away from his to gasp at the prickling feeling of her coral nipples hardening to the exposed air. His hands slipped around to her back as he bowed his head. She threw hers back when she felt his tongue licking and sucking each nipple. He paid equal attention to each one, but their time seemed to be cut short when he pulled back.

The words he spoke in English sounded reassuring, and his seemingly omnipresent hands dropped to her hips and skillfully removed her thong. The next few seconds were a blur as his fingers touched her most intimate folds. This time, she nipped at him. Her teeth scraped against his neck at the powerful, almost painful pleasure spiking through her lower body. She moved her hips against his agile fingers and faintly heard a ripping sound before he stopped touching her and unzipped his pants.

He wore nothing underneath them, so his hardness was exposed to her. A smirk quirked the corner of his mouth as he slid a thin covering over it and then guided her hips over it. He slid into her slowly, and she had to take a deep breath to accommodate his girth. It felt strange, but it also sent a wave of relief over her. He pulled halfway out and thrust back into her experimentally, and she found herself straining not to cry out.

His thrusts were smooth in rhythm at first, but over time, she felt the rhythm growing more erratic. His hips drove into hers more forcefully. He pulled her hair as if to punish her, and her still-sensitive skin made it painful. The pain quickly transformed into something pleasant, however. The same stood true when he bit her nipples, and soon she couldn't muffle the sounds any longer.

She cried out with no restraint, and the moans seemed to arouse him more. His hips were pounding into hers, and she found herself on the edge of something she'd never felt before. His grip on her hips slid down to her butt, where he squeezed harder and found more leverage.

Her vision went white with an indescribable feeling of unbridled pleasure, and she went completely still against him. She felt him drive into her with a few more strokes to prolong the feeling before she felt him swell inside her. He stopped moving as well, and she kept her place in his lap as she buried her face in his neck. She was panting for the first time under the yellow sun, and she was more exhausted than ever.

Lex thought of what a bad idea this was as he was coming down from his orgasm. He had no idea what made her come to him for this, of all things, when she was intelligent enough to know what he had ordered Charity and Dedalus to do to her. He hadn't been there personally, but he had listened to Charity's findings on the digital voice recorder. Her calm, detached voice allowed him to dodge the reality of the situation. He might as well have cut her open himself.

He had her returned safe to her bed, where he assumed she would dodge him for at least a few days if not a week, so seeing her enter the entertainment room had been a surprise. With tanned legs that stretched for miles and her full breasts nearly bursting out of the shirt, it wasn't hard to succumb to his arousal and fuck her.

He didn't allow himself to be loving and gentle with her, and he could already see evidence of his rough nature in the form of bruises on her neck. It seemed that her invulnerable skin was still vulnerable from the long-term exposure to the meteor rocks. With her warm puffs of breath on his neck, he realized that she had fallen asleep against him.

What kind of woman trusted him after what he had done to her? She was devoted to him. Could it be an oddity of her alien physiology? Maybe she was in heat, like a feline would be. After seeing her dancing this morning, he'd been absolutely spellbound by her. It had taken him a while to shake it off and shut off the radio. It was risky to entrust her with anything. Lionel was right. This woman was going to be a problem.

Unless she really was faithful to him. It would take a lot for him to actually trust her, but he would monitor her activities until he decided if he could or not. For now, the warm, supple body against his wasn't doing him any harm. He carefully moved her so that he could remove the condom and clean up the mess discreetly with tissues, and then he went against his better judgment and allowed himself to fall asleep breathing in the scent of her hair.

Morning brought with it an ache in his back and a crick in his neck. He was getting too old for this. The world's opinion was that twenty-five was still young, but he doubted that the rule applied to heirs of big companies. He looked down to see that the blonde bombshell in his lap was already awake. Her sleepy blue eyes were directed toward the window, and the rays of sunshine coming through the stained glass painted patterns on her golden skin.

"Hi." The greeting startled him. Two days ago, she didn't know any English. She must have picked this up from her hours of channel surfing. He had Damien keeping an eye on her while he was gone or working. Damien was his butler and newest employee, but Lex felt that he could trust him. After all, Damien had lost his job working security for Luthorcorp and had a vendetta against Lionel.

Hearing Kara speak English made him smile. "Hi," he responded and stroked her hair. She probably didn't know much yet, but her intelligence was higher than normal. Even though she had come here knowing nothing about this planet, she had an amazing ability to adapt and learn other languages easily. It was a skill that was valuable in business. "How are you?"

She hesitated for a moment. Her eyes went to the ceiling, and he realized that she was trying to review her options. "Good." His hand trailed down the smooth skin of her back. There were no tiny hairs there, much like his own skin.

"What's your name?" He sought to test her learning abilities, but her grasp on the English language improving meant that they could better communicate. He could learn more about her culture, where she came from, and he could teach her what she couldn't learn from watching soap operas.

"Kara Zor-El. What's your name?" she echoed fairly easily. She didn't have the inflection that most native speakers would have and was missing the emphasis on 'your.' He was still impressed and rewarded her with a kiss on the forehead.

"Lex Luthor." He idly wondered about the origin of her last name. Did she have a middle name, or was that impractical in other cultures? His hesitation allowed her to ask him another question.

"Where am I?" Damn, she really was fast.

"Smallville. In Kansas." He could tell by the wide-eyed look in her eyes that she didn't understand the distinction between the two, but she would learn that later. He looked down at his watch with the Napoleon coin embedded inside and realized that he needed to get going. "I have to go to work."

She seemed to understand the concept of leaving. He watched her fluidly move from his lap and find her discarded clothes. She didn't hide her nakedness and wasn't ashamed of her body. That was new. He zipped himself up and spared himself the subtle torture of watching her put on clothes instead of removing them. Instead, he stood up and leaned down to kiss her nose in their newfound tradition. He usually wouldn't allow himself to be so sentimental, but he had decided to give her a chance.

After all, he was the only one on this planet that knew of her existence. Except for his father. Either the comment about blondes had been a phenomenally lucky guess or he was spying on Lex. He put it out of his mind for the moment and took in the small curve of Kara's lips that formed a shy smile. "Bye."

"Bye," she mimicked with a glint in her eye, and he gave her an amused glance before leaving to go to work. Suddenly, the crap factory, Luthorcorp Plant #3, didn't seem so interesting anymore. This was the risk his father was talking about. He had to be careful not to let her interfere with his business.

Kara had never felt more satisfied in her life. Sleeping with Lex, both literally and figuratively, gave her a fresh attitude on staying in the mansion. Of course, she wasn't going to stay inside all the time, but it would make her time here a little more bearable, knowing that Lex wasn't heartless. Either he wasn't involved in the experiment that cut her open or he felt that it was necessary.

At that thought, she jutted her chin into the air. She was a Kryptonian of the House of El. No one should decide what to do with her body. She was the only one with that right. Her emotions and affection for Lex were clouding her judgment. She needed to get back on task and find Kal-El. That was her current focus, and it would stay that way, she told herself. If Lex allowed Dedalus to harm her again like that, she would leave permanently.

It would be painful to tear herself away from her mate. The bonding process was nowhere near complete, but she still felt a strong attachment to him. The bond would grow stronger with time, and it would get harder and harder to leave him. She would have to make sure that he had his priorities straight, with her safety in mind, or leave early.

The short conversation encouraged her. Obviously, he was pleased with what had happened last night. She couldn't see him as a monster. Her father's words echoed in her mind, which reminded her not to trust so easily. It was one of her flaws on Krypton as well. It was hard not to trust when she was on a foreign planet with no knowledge of the language and customs. Lex was the only one who hadn't met her with hostility, but admiration. He felt something for her, no matter how hard he wanted to hide it.

After Lex left, Kara cleaned herself again. She enjoyed standing under the scalding water until she felt better inside. Right after she dressed herself in a red tank top with lace accents and black pants, she found the unknown servant standing outside her door. She was unsure of his purpose there until he inclined his head, indicating that she should follow him.

The man wasn't particularly tall, but he was intimidating. His blonde hair was slicked back against his head, which made the color of his green eyes pop against the landscape of his face. His cheekbones were high and gave him somewhat of a haughty look, but he carried the stature of a clever man who knew what he was doing. They went through the back door. There was a greenhouse to the right, and she could already smell the aromatic flowers inside.

They kept walking straight, and after a good five minutes of walking, they reached a small building. Kara was thrilled with what she saw inside. They were rather large animals, and they reminded her of what royal Kryptonians rode. She petted the nose of a sandy-colored one with a white streak on its nose. It made a strange sound that seemed to mean that it was pleased. Inside, she could feel a burst of joy as well. She was so caught up in stroking its pale blonde mane that she didn't notice another man behind her.

The bearded brunette said something to her in a somewhat haughty tone that she didn't acknowledge. She simply kept petting the animal. Maybe if she ignored enough people, they would figure out that she didn't speak English. The next thing that came from his mouth made her jump.

"(It's not polite to ignore your elders, Kara Zor-El.)" The man spoke fluent Kryptonian! Overjoyed, Kara turned around with widened eyes. The man gave a small nod, as if he were giving her permission to speak.

"(Who are you? How do you know my name?)" She had to stop more questions from pouring out of her. How many Kryptonians were there on Earth? She was under the impression that she and Kal-El were the last ones. Obviously, she was wrong. This man and the dark-haired man who had attacked her days ago were living proof.

"(I am Lionel Luthor, Lex's father. Your uncle, Jor-El, once used my body as a vessel. As a result, I am quite fluent in Kryptonian.)" At the mention of Jor-El's name, Kara flinched. Her uncle was always warm to her until the last few days before Krypton fell. He and her father, Zor-El, had gotten into a fight. Her father never liked her hanging around Jor-El and Lara. "(Don't fret, child. Your uncle carries fond memories of you.)"

"(I need to find my cousin. He is Jor-El's son. His name is Kal-El.)" The name made Lionel's eyebrows shoot into the air. "(He is just a child. Please.)" She would beg if the situation called for it. Even speaking her cousin's name made her heart ache for the lost child, and she cursed having forgotten him during her stay at the castle.

"(You cannot find him because you are looking for a child, Kara. Kal-El has grown into a man. He has been here for quite a while and is living with a woman named Martha Kent. He calls himself Clark.)" Lionel seemed omniscient. Maybe it was the combination of his earthly heritage and the gained Kryptonian knowledge. And Kal-El was no longer in danger. He had grown up already.

A pang of disappointment registered in her chest, and the thought that Kal-El had no one while he was growing up made tears glisten in her eyes. She was supposed to be his guardian, but she must have arrived on Earth later than planned. Her father must have been lying to her when he said that the black crystals would travel at the same rate as the living ones. She could not blame him for wanting her to live, no matter what the conditions.

Lionel examined her carefully. "(You were meant to raise him, weren't you?)" She nodded in response and tried in vain to hide her tears. "(Kal-El has grown into a good man. He will take you in when I explain the situation.)" This felt wrong. He wasn't supposed to take her in. She was supposed to be taking care of him! Now the roles were reversed. She knew that suspended animation made her sixteen years old, even though it had been many years since her planet died.

"(Why must I leave this place?)" This man said that he was Lex's father. Why wasn't he meeting her inside the house? It seemed like the mansion was empty most of the time. It was Dedalus, Charity, and a few servants. Lex never had any friends stopping by. It had only been a couple of days, but she hadn't seen anyone visit. Where were his friends and the rest of his family?

"(My son is not the best guardian for you.)" She looked at him in disbelief. On Krypton, they may have had family disputes, but they did not degrade the status of their family. They were almost always loving parents and children at the core of their relationships. "(It may seem…unusual to you, but I am telling the truth. He doesn't have the ability to love someone. He will only use you as a means to get what he wants.)"

"(I have already started to bond with him.)" There was an edge to her voice, something that came from being tense and confused. "(Kryptonians mate for life. If I leave now, it will always feel like something is missing.)" She had once heard the story of a Kryptonian man falling in love with a human woman who didn't return his love. It was said that he lived out his days in so much pain that he constantly asked to be killed. The woman hadn't fared well either. She died of mysterious causes. The storytellers always embellished it and said that her heart had grown so shrunken and black that it refused to beat anymore. It was considered a crime to leave one's mate on Krypton because of the psychological effects it had on both parties.

"(If you don't leave now, it will hurt twenty times as much later.)" Was this Lionel Luthor wise or disillusioned? He spoke every sentence as if it were the absolute truth. His posture held much conviction. He believed what he said, but was it really true? "(He will charm you. Maybe he will even marry you. But you cannot entrust him with your secrets or your life. You are destined for something greater than being my son's consort, and he will drag you into darkness with him.)"

Kara's lip trembled. "(One Kryptonian has already attacked me and left me to die from the green crystals. Why should I trust a human who speaks the Kryptonian tongue?)" It was all about trust. She hated it so far. Trusting Lex was so easy when she probably shouldn't, and trusting someone else to help her was so hard. Lex had not lied to her, but he had ordered Dedalus to cut her open. Was the command as terrible as the act? "(How do I know who to trust?)"

Lionel's dark eyes focused on her and had a way of making her feel like the center of attention in the middle of a crowd. "(The only Kryptonian on Earth other than you is Kal-El. He has somewhat of a savior complex. Recently, Kryptonians had been escaping from the Phantom Zone and coming here. Perhaps he thought that you were one of those.)" His aged hand rested on her shoulder gently. "(I know how confusing this is. I have been a horrible man in the past, but I am trying to put things right. However, it seems that my son has finally decided to step up and become what I'd always wanted him to be.)"

"(It was Kal-El who attacked me?)" Now that she thought of the incident, she recognized a lot of Jor-El in the angry Kryptonian. "(You're asking me to trust him now? I would have died were it not for the intervention of your son. He has not hurt me. He is only trying to teach me, and in return, he wants me to teach him. What damage can learning about another's culture do?)" She was fed up with her circumstances. Part of her wanted to go back into the mansion and hide, to lie down on a couch and watch television, but ignorance was never a good idea. Even if this man was her enemy, knowledge was a good thing.

Lionel inhaled sharply. "(Kal-El tries to protect those around him. His friends and family couldn't be safer. It is when someone endangers them that he hurts people. I am sorry that your entry into this world was not as easy as Kal-El's, but you cannot trust Lex. He will take your knowledge and use it against you. He will do the same with your love.)" The older man sighed. "(I cannot convince you of his nature, but I can try and prove my worth. I will bring Kal-El to visit you tomorrow at one o'clock. Damien will bring you.)" He nodded at the servant, who bowed in response. "(Unfortunately, I am a busy man. I cannot afford to be here to translate. Once you see Kal-El, you will know that he is a good man.)"

"(I am his family. I am his cousin. He should not have hurt me!)" She was angry. She had a right to be angry after getting attacked and being left for dead. If Lex hadn't picked her up, she would have died on the road. "(I will visit with Kal-El, but I cannot promise anything. Your son has saved my life, and I have saved his. There is little that will stand in the way of our bond, vessel of Jor-El, but you can be assured that I will be careful of his curiosity.)" She turned back to the sandy colored creature and ran her hand down its silky pelt. "(What is the name for this creature?)"

"Horse," Lionel said simply, and Kara repeated the word under her breath. "(You must not tell Lex of our visit. He will not be pleased with my presence, but he will be outraged if he finds Kal-El on the property. They are enemies.)" Just when she was beginning to comprehend the fact that a father and son could hate each other, she found out that her cousin and her mate were enemies. She swallowed hard and tried valiantly not to let the tears in her eyes fall. Lionel touched her cheek this time, and the look in his eyes was soothing. "(It will be so hard for you. I am truly sorry, child.)"

It only took a few moments for Lionel to leave. In the distance, she heard blades chopping at the air. Kara breathed a heavy sigh, and the horse nuzzled her, as if it knew what she was feeling. One last stroke and Damien was leading her back into the mansion. Now that she had gotten a chance to look at the property, she saw that it was beautiful. It seemed to stretch for miles. There was a pond in the back and a forest beyond that. That wasn't including the empty plains on either side. The air was fresh, and the environment seemed to create a pleasant buzz inside her.

She halted when they reached the greenhouse, and she motioned to Damien that she was going inside. He nodded and retreated into the house while she found what seemed like another world. There were beautiful flowers and plants everywhere, and the aroma hit her all at once.

The flowers were so different from one another, but they came together to form a cacophony of beauty all the same. There were thick, fat ones that she could smell from across the room and thin, delicate ones that she had to sniff up close. The petals came in so many different colors. Some were just one, while others had several splashed on them like paint. There were various shapes and sizes, some coming to a point and some seeming to circle in on themselves like an endless puzzle. There were those that widened themselves by stretching as far as they possibly could and others that bunched in with several layers of soft, silky skin.

She gently touched all of them, and she found herself mesmerized for what seemed like hours. She had to sniff each and every one and learn how they were different from the others, whether it was by size, color, or smell. The other plants looked exotic. There were types ranging from thick leaves to thin needles and beakers with liquid in them by almost every single one. She didn't touch the small, glass containers for fear that she would break them and ruin whatever research was being done in here.

The air was hot and muggy, but it didn't bother her. Her skin was resilient to temperature, and the shining sun was the source of her strength. The entire greenhouse intrigued her. It was like a big chunk of all the earth had to offer, and it was vastly unlike the cold crystals of her home planet. She once thought that the lifeless rocks held warmth, but upon seeing all that the greenhouse had to offer, she had changed her mind. This was the epitome of comforting scenery.

Kara smiled brightly and pushed the bad thoughts from Lionel's meeting from her mind. She left the greenhouse and flew into the air.

Lex spent a fairly uneventful day doing paperwork and acquiring stocks. His victory was slowly coming to fruition. Within the next month, the Smallville plant would be putting out two-hundred percent of profit. He had a feeling that Lionel wouldn't be stepping down from Luthorcorp's throne anytime soon, but Lex didn't need it anymore. He had been managing Lexcorp, and that was one of the most successful businesses in the country.

The main building was in Metropolis, but Lex was seldom there unless there was an emergency. While micro-managing the plant, his main focus was on his own company stomping all over Luthorcorp. Not only did they sell fertilizer, but they had expanded to produce a whole host of other products. For the first time in his life, Lex didn't need the inheritance he'd received from his mother when he turned eighteen. His father's business-related threats didn't hold any weight anymore.

He had been very careful not to check the Blackberry in his pocket all day, but now that he was driving home, he felt that it was acceptable to check up on his investment. Dedalus was itching to do more tests, and Lex had agreed that tonight was a good time, barring some kind of extenuating circumstances. Like Kara being in South America. He made sure that the road was completely clear before looking down at the screen again in bewilderment.

The streets were all in Portuguese, and when he zoomed out, the red blip was indeed in the southern hemisphere. They would have to measure how fast she could fly. Certainly quicker than any private jet in current existence. The thought thrilled the scientist in him. If he could isolate the genes that made her special, he could figure out how to give everyone else the same abilities. If not, he was still in possession of the single deadliest weapon on this planet.

When he pulled into the garage, the location suddenly jumped across the globe on the screen. She was in India. He hadn't even seen the dot move until it was in an entirely different location. So apparently, she was extremely fast. After locking up his car, he went into the castle and found Charity looking somewhat dazed.

"What has she been doing all day?" His curiosity was gnawing at him. What was she doing traveling to other countries? He thought that she understood that she was staying here. He doubted that a creature of her intelligence couldn't find her way back home, but he had to know what she was doing.

"After you left, she was in the study for quite some time watching TV. She visited the greenhouse and flew off after that. Damien said that she came back a few times, but only for a moment. He could barely see her." Charity turned her vicious eyes on him. The depth in her eyes was like the roiling of an ocean. "What the hell is going on, sir? Shouldn't there be some kind of containment for her?" She was the only one of his servants who was allowed to get away with speaking like that to him.

If she wasn't a hell of a good shot, she would've been fired on the spot. Instead, Lex returned her questions with an icy glare. "Kara is not here as a prisoner, but as a guest. She can come and go as she pleases, but I would rather not have the outside world knowing about her just yet."

"Then tell her to stop flying in broad daylight," she snapped. When something wasn't in her control, she got pissed off about it. "With all due respect, sir, you should keep your meteor freak on a leash." Anger flared up in him, and before he knew what he was doing, Charity had a mouth full of blood and nowhere to spit. The punch was especially well-placed, and it made his knuckles ache, but they would heal.

"If you want to keep your job, you'll stay the fuck out of my way for the week. You're on vacation as of five minutes ago." His voice had a sharp edge to it, and if she knew what was good for her, she would follow orders. With one hand over her mouth, she staggered out to the servant's quarters. Despite his outburst of anger, it was still simmering inside of him. He wanted to throw something. His left hand was trembling with the need for more violence.

He should've noticed her standing at the top of the stairs sooner. Always beautiful golden hair was cascading over one shoulder without any hint that she'd been flying faster than a speeding bullet. Her eyes were not confused in the least. They were struck with understanding. He watched Kara descend by floating down the stairs. Her bare feet met carpet again directly in front of him, and she did something that he wasn't expecting.

Before he knew it, he found himself in a hug. It wasn't the awkward kind that he was used to for Lionel's PR rating, but one that was actually comforting. He relaxed into her short frame and buried his nose in her hair. She smelled like fresh, exotic flowers. He half-wondered if he was hallucinating, but then his mind pieced together the facts. She had flown off right after visiting the greenhouse. Maybe she was collecting flowers.

The ruthless businessman in him told him that this was everything he shouldn't have with her, that this mushy, sentimental shit was a waste of his precious time. But something else beneath the surface stirred. He wanted to believe that this was because having her closer to him would allow her to better trust him, which would help him in the end, but the logical side ruled. He simply enjoyed her presence. She was strange, foreign, everything that he wasn't, and yet she fit into his life so perfectly. Could he afford to have an emotional stake in this?

The anger slowly died down. This was irrational. Still, he couldn't help rubbing the back of his fingers against the small of her back. He leaned back and looked down into her eyes, and he could see some tension in her eyes from what had transpired with Charity. Lately, it had been more difficult to control his temper. His outbursts were more frequent, more things were getting broken, and he was drinking more than ever to calm himself down. If he wanted to tell himself the truth, it was brooding that he was doing while drinking all that scotch, not relaxing.

"Why are you mad?" Her voice was soft and careful, as if she knew she was treading uneasy waters. There was no real fear coming from her, which was definitely something that he wasn't used to during one of his infamous temper tantrums. Yet another way she was completely and totally unique.

"It was something Charity said." He left it at that. He didn't need to give the seemingly innocent girl any more information about him and his weak points. She was already one of them. "What were you doing today?" He noticed that her eyes lit with the change of subject and that his misdirection had worked.

"Exploring." Her eyes were so interesting. They were so unlike the dull, bored eyes of his girl of the week. There was intelligence behind the mischief. When he prompted her for more information with a slight nod of his head, however, those incredibly expressive eyes filled with confusion and thought. She hadn't learned much English, but it was amazing to see what she had already learned in her days on this planet. "Horse," she blurted out with a slight blush. He gave her a small smile. She was obviously flustered by her struggle.

"Ah. You went to see the stables. I haven't seen them myself in a while." She seemed to get the gist of what he was saying. "What else?" She hesitated and wrung her hands. "Show me." He released her from their long embrace and motioned his arm toward the stairs. He got a brilliant smile in return, a flash of her perfect teeth, before she grabbed his hand and nearly pulled him up the stairs.

It was any female's dream. Kara's room had every flower species in existence arranged on the dresser and every other flat surface in the room. Even the bed was covered in petals. They weren't the clichéd rose petals; rather, they were an assortment of different flowers. The flowers were a splash of color in an otherwise drab room, and he couldn't blame her for wanting to improve it. What got his curiosity running was her drive to make the room individual compared to the others, whether subconscious or not. Was it some kind of cultural instinct to, in a sense, mark her territory?

While his mind was still reeling from the shock of the amount of flowers she had collected, she had done some thinking of her own. He saw a frown mar that beautiful smile. "You don't like it." She had taken his usual mask of indifference for displeasure, and he had to rectify the situation. He had the sudden urge to make it better before he caused her any kind of discomfort.

"I like it," he said quickly. More sincerely, he tilted her chin up gently with one finger and placed a soft kiss on her full lips. She was completely bewitching with her soft voice, creamy skin, and golden hair. He was absolutely enticed with her, whether he wanted to admit it to himself or not.

For the first time in his life, Lex Luthor made love with the woman of his dreams. The flowers began to wither and die the next morning.