A/N: So, I know it's been awhile since I've updated but I was having some issues about where the story was going and I also let summer cast me into a lethargic state. I wrote a whole chapter that I ended up deciding wasn't right for what I wanted, so I scrapped that and now…here we are. Hope you enjoy! Review if you want.

Highway from Metropolis to Smallville

"Lois, what are we doing?"

"Well, Smallville, I'm driving and you're in the passenger seat. I know you're not from around here but surely you have cars wherever you're from. Wait, you're not Amish are you?"

"No. At least, I don't think. Lois, I mean why exactly are we heading toward a disaster?"

"Why? You really are dense aren't you?" Lois asked, taking her eyes off the road for a second to glance at him. Upon seeing his confused expression she continued, "We're going back to Smallville because my cousin is there, so are your aunt and uncle."

"But surely there other people who can make sure their safe?"

"Not knocking local law enforcement or anything, but why put the lives of our loved ones in the hands of someone else. Now, man up Clark. We have to be brave, not just for ourselves but for them, okay?"

Clark glanced over at Lois and saw the doubt start to creep onto her face, she hid it quickly once it bubbled to the surface, but not quickly enough for him to miss it. He knew in his heart, even more than he had before, that Lois was the one. She was clearly terrified but still she drove towards danger in order to satisfy her need to know that Chloe was okay. It was also just enough to let him know that he couldn't let her go straight into the thick of it. The danger was unimaginable and how could he be certain she'd survived. The way Kal-El saw it, there were two choices in this situation. One, he could tell Lois about Krypton and all the powers he gained from the yellow sun, or he could take note from a Earth pop culture and do what a human would probably do in this situation: lie. He hoped that the lie he could come up with, would be enough to make her mad and make it easier for him to sneak away.

As they neared the Smallville city limits, a sudden idea came into his head.

"Lois, I've been thinking about what happened…earlier, you know? And I think that maybe we jumped the gun."

"Jumped the gun? So, what are you saying you don't actually like me?" Lois asked a hint of amusement in her voice. "You may not be from around here, but you certainly behave the same as all the guys I know. I thought, maybe for a second that you were different but hey, I've been wrong before. Why not this time?"

"Lois, wait…that's not what I meant. I—"

"You what?" she challenged.

"I—well, I just think that we should, explore other parts—"

"Parts? What are you talking about? You know what? Don't answer that. I don't have time for this," she said as she swerved the car off the highway and on to the side of the road. "Get out."

"Out?"

"Yes, out. I don't know whether or not you're scared, or if you're a jerk or just a pervert but right now, I have to go make sure my family is okay. I don't feel like arguing with you the whole way, so I repeat: get out."

Clark looked at her face and watched the tears that were threatening to fall, recede and a look of determination replace them. If he weren't so invulnerable on this planet, he would probably be scared. He was still a bit scared. So, he complied with her request and got out of the car. As soon as he shut his door, Lois sped off toward the small town, leaving him to stare after her, his mind full of confusion and his heart full of regret.

He couldn't figure out what had made him begin that conversation. No rational part of his mind could come up with an explanation. Part of him wondered if he had misinterpreted some of the lessons he had of Earth culture and jargon. Another part wanted to just run after Lois, catch up with her and tell her the truth. Just as he began to run, a large object fell from the sky stopping him, literally in his tracks. A pain began to course through his veins. It was like nothing he had ever before experienced. His blood began to boil…it felt like his heart had began to pump a thousand times faster, each pump creating more friction as the blood raced through arteries and veins. He was dying and the only person who could probably help him now was miles away by now. Unable to stay standing, Kal collapsed, writhing in pain as the meteorite continued to slowly drain his life from him.

Lois drove away without a glance back. She was furious. Not so much with him, but with herself for getting drawn in yet again by the mysterious boy. She thought she'd learned her lesson by now but no, she kept heading down the same path. It left her wondering if she'd ever find her way to a nice guy, unlike the others who genuinely cared for her and not to tick her name off a list of 'impossible babes'. She resigned herself to thinking that it was just what she deserved for feeling so much, so quickly and then dropped the subject from her mind: she more important things to worry about.

A sign off to the side of the road let her know that Smallville was just 5 miles away. Lois hoped that was enough time to get to Chloe before anything happened to her. Part of her knew that it was risky charging head first into a meteor shower but Chloe was her closest family member. She barely talked to the General or Lucy and Chloe was the only person she'd drop everything for, with no argument and no questions, hence her current predicament.

Her thinking was interrupted as she saw a meteor miles ahead of her crash. It had begun. Now she was wishing she hadn't left Clark back there. What if he got hurt? It's not as he joined their little investigation group because of her. Plus, he was Chloe's friend. She couldn't just abandon him, no matter how much a jerk he was. Also, he said the reason he was here was to stop a bad man…and that had to be Lex. His help had been sincere, she just had to ruin it by falling in lo—in deep like with him. Having made up her mind to go back and get him, Lois made to swing the car around when something much larger than a meteor flew right over the roof of her car and crashed into the field beside her. A quick maneuver led her in the opposite direction toward the crash site.

When she'd heard the news earlier, she'd discounted the reporter's talk of spaceships as nonsense. Now she wasn't so sure. Especially as there was one right in front of her. Parking the car, Lois climbed out of the car and warily made her way toward the spacecraft.

Pfft

The sudden noise made Lois jump. It took a second for her to realize that it was the ship opening. She crept closer, her entire body on guard, her senses heightened due to the adrenaline pumping through her veins. As the dust in the air cleared and Lois was able to make out a definite outline, she saw someone emerge before collapsing suddenly.

Lois rushed forward hoping that there weren't more aliens waiting to attack her. She was surprised to see that what had collapsed didn't look like an alien, in fact…it looked like a normal human girl with blonde hair. She made her way over to the girl and checked to see if she was breathing. It looked as if the girl was conscious but only barely.

That's when she saw the rocks.

There was an odd green glow about them. They unsettled her and it seemed as if they had an effect on the collapsed girl. Taking a chance that the blonde was trustworthy, Lois grabbed her arms and began to pull her toward her car. Lois looked up once she'd made it 15 feet away and noticed that the glow of the rocks had disappeared. She looked down to see the blonde staring up at her. Lois let her go and quickly backed away.

The girl, who was actually much older than Lois, stood up and brushed the dirt from the robes she was wearing. On the front there was a diamond with an 'S' in the middle and the material had a flow to it that Lois had never encountered before. The blonde smiled at Lois and said,

"Thank you for saving my life."

"You're welcome, I think. I'm Lois. Lois Lane. And you, you're not from here are you?"

"No, I come from a planet called Krypton. Until recently it was a wonderful place to live. A society full of science where we worshiped the god Rao."

"What happened?"

"It was destroyed. A military general named Zod, decided that Kryptonians deserved to live in a place where they had true power. So, he took those he counted most loyal, my father among them and sent us to Earth, where the yellow sun gives us powers beyond those of mortal man. And he caused the planet to implode as we left, killing millions of Kryptonians in the process. My aunt and uncle among them."

"So, you're with this Zod character."

"No, I do not agree with his ideals. I believe him to be an evil despot, however I was sent her because he needed my father and my father would only come if he saved me as well."

"I'm sorry about your home. And your aunt and uncle."

"Thank you, Lois. You are very kind."

"What will you do now? Is there any way to stop this Zod guy?"

"Not that I know of, there is no substance on Earth that can harm our race when we are in the light of the yellow sun. I may be able to formulate a plan to help save the human race. However, I need Kal-El in order to do that. Has he become the savior of your world yet?

"Kal-El? You mean, Kal – I mean Clark? How do you know him?"

"He's my cousin."