Martha held a woven basket, humming an old Cole Porter song as she picked green beans in the garden; Jonathan was out in the fields, spreading manure with the tractor as the cows munched lazily on the grass. She saw movement out of her peripheral vision and glanced over as Pete's patrol car approached. Martha smiled as the car pulled up and beside the blue truck, but her smile slowly disappeared when she spotted Linda in the passenger's seat; she put down the basket and hurried over as Pete got out of the car.

"What happened?" Martha asked worriedly.

"Linda's fine," Pete reassured her, "but, um, her heat vision kicked in."

Martha looked a little surprised, but she glanced over at Linda, who looked both miserable and a little fearful; she looked back at Pete. "Well, since it's still early in the morning, I'm going to assume it happened during Biology?"

"Same film," Pete added.

"Would you mind getting Jonathan, Pete?" Martha asked. "I'll take Linda inside." Pete nodded and headed towards the fields while Martha headed for the passenger's side.

Jonathan hurried as he could up the porch steps and into the house as Pete's car drove off. He stopped in the kitchen and saw Martha and Linda sitting at the table; Linda cradled a mug of tea in her hands, and she kept her eyes closed; Krypto and Streaky sat near the stairs, watching the women, trying to figure out what was going on.

"Pete told me what happened," Jonathan said softly, looking at his daughter. "Are you okay, sweetie?"

"I nearly burn down the school on my first day because I have heat shooting from my eyes," Linda said softly as she put her mug down. "How do you think I feel?"

Jonathan walked over and sat down across his daughter. "Honey, it's going to be okay," he said gently as he reached over and took one of her hands. "The good thing about this is that we know what causes it," he glanced briefly at his wife, "and we can help you get it under control."

"So, what triggers it?" Linda asked.

Jonathan looked a little uncomfortable, but he took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "Linda, do you—"

"Jonathan," Martha interrupted gently, "why don't I take this one, okay?"

Jonathan looked over at his wife, feeling both relieved and a little disappointed; he sighed and nodded. "Alright, I'll let you two have your girl talk time, but," he got up and walked around the table, kneeling beside his daughter, "before I go, I'd feel a lot better if you'd open your eyes, Linda."

"Are you sure?" Linda asked cautiously.

"Very," Jonathan replied. "Now, please open you eyes." He watched as the young girl carefully opened her eyes; Jonathan smiled when he saw their familiar sapphire color. "There; that's my girl." He carefully kissed her forehead before standing up. "Now, while you two are in here talking, I'm going to go rig up a few scarecrows. I have a feeling we'll be needing them."

Martha and Linda watched him leave then Linda glanced at her mother. "So, what triggers it," she saw Martha's slightly uncomfortable expression, "and why does everyone look uncomfortable when I ask that question?"

"Well," Martha said slowly, "it's just that…well, this is a delicate topic of conversation, Linda, that's all," he took a deep breath, "and before we go into this any further, why don't you get into some more comfortable clothes—I'll get the ice cream."

Linda nodded and stood up, heading for the stairs; Krypto and Streaky followed her. The young woman went to her bedroom and changed from her school clothes into a pair of black lounge pants and a purple tanktop. She came back down with the pets at her heels and saw Martha had moved to the living room couch; two bowls of butter pecan ice cream were waiting on coffee table. Krypto and Streaky scampered over to the

"Well," Martha said slowly, as Linda sat down beside her, "let's talk about your heat vision." She handed one of the bowls to her daughter, and Linda observed how nervous she still appeared.

"You said it was a delicate subject," Linda replied as she took the bowl and scooped up some ice cream. "How delicate are we talking?"

Martha pursed her lips and took a deep breath, deciding it was best not to beat around the bush. "Well, uh," she said, "do you remember the video you were watching in biology?"

"You mean the one about the animals mating?" Linda asked, confused, then looked a little freaked out. "My heat vision is connected to animals mating?"

"Well, there is a hormonal connection," Martha replied wryly as she ate a spoonful of ice cream herself.

"But I don't get it," Linda said. "I mean, I wasn't even paying attention to the video."

"You weren't?" Martha asked, furrowing her eyebrows.

Linda shook her head. "No, I was thinking back to the night Jimmy and I were—" she suddenly felt the backs of her eyes burning as her entire body grew hot. She dropped her bowl as she grabbed the sides of her head in pain, shouting; Martha looked on in concern as beads of sweat formed on Linda's forehead. Linda quickly removed her glasses—right before the beams of heat shot out and hit the wall above the television; flames burst from the point of impact.

Martha wasted no time as she jumped from the couch and hurried into the kitchen; she grabbed the fire extinguisher and ran back into the living room. She quickly put the fire out, sighing with relief as she looked over at Linda. She saw the young girl on the verge of tears, looking completely horrified.

"Linda, it's okay," Martha said gently as she took a step toward the girl.

"Stay away from me," Linda replied, backing up. She looked between the damage on the wall to her pets cowering behind the couch, then back at her mother. "I'm sorry." She quickly blurred out of the house, leaving the kitchen door open.

Clark sat as his desk, typing his article on the computer when his phone rang. Still typing with one hand, he picked up his phone with the other. "Clark Kent," he said, a little distracted; he smiled. "Oh, hey, Mom, how's—" he stopped and listened, and his eyebrows furrowed and his expression changed to worry. "What? When?" He listened then he sighed and nodded. "Yeah, I'll get on it right away." He hung up and typed some keys, saving his story.

"What's wrong?" Chloe asked as she came over.

"I gotta go to Smallville," Clark replied, keeping his voice low. "Linda's starting to warm to her new life."

Chloe's eyes widened a little as she cracked the code. "Whoa," she said softly.

"Yeah, and guess when it happened," Clark replied, squirming a little in his chair.

Chloe saw Clark's uncomfortable expression, and she slowly smiled. "You know, maybe it's time to start calling it 'horny vision.'"

"Chloe, please," Clark replied, his cheeks growing pink, "it's bad enough Linda already thinks Jimmy wants to mate with her."

Chloe suddenly looked confused. "I'm sorry, say that again?"

Clark suddenly stiffened, remembering Chloe-and Lois-didn't know what had happened with Jimmy and Linda. "Uh…nevermind," he said quickly. "Forget what I said."

"Why would Linda think Jimmy wants to mate with her?" Chloe asked, trying not to smile a little.

Clark sighed after his computer shut down. "Look, I gotta go," he said, "but please don't ask, and please don't snoop around."

"I won't," Chloe replied. "So, what should I say to Perry about your latest absence?"

"Well, whatever it is," Clark answered, "make it better than the last excuse, please."

Chloe grinned. "Not enjoying your 'Cheese of the Month' subscription?" she asked. Clark gave her a look as he headed for the stairs. She sighed, still grinning, before heading back to her desk.

(End of Chapter 4)