Thank you for those who read and loved the Royal Masked Ball Arc :)

A new chapter begins- The Painful Truth

Planet Krypton-East Central Palace

Diana woke up to a swelling pain in her eyes… she had been crying for most of the night. She slowly got up but stayed in her bed. She didn't want to leave her room for the rest of the day; she only wanted to stay and do nothing. She stretched her arms upwards and as she did, someone entered her room. It was Mala.

"Good Morning princess," Mala greeted with a tray of food in her hands

"Good Morning Mala" Diana smiled forcefully

"How are you-"

Mala suddenly noticed Diana's eyes… they were of a red colour…

"What happened? Have you been crying?" Mala immediately put down Diana's tray of food and sat next to her friend

"I'm fine" Diana forced another smile

"Diana I grew up with you long enough to know that something is wrong with you" Mala eyed her

Diana was hesitant but Mala was right; she couldn't hide anything from her… no matter how Diana tried.

"I'm a princess Mala" Diana didn't avert her gaze away from Mala, "and princesses have to marry princes…"

"What do you mean?" Mala put up her hand on Diana's shoulder

"I have to avoid seeing Clark Mala and concentrate on finding a royal husband… it's my destiny"

"Destiny?!" Mala stood up, "Diana you look miserable! Does destiny really allow you to be like that?"

"Let's call it whatever we want Mala but it's what I have to do"

"What do you feel about him?"

"What?"

"Tell me… how do you feel about Clark?" Mala glared at Diana

Diana wasn't sure what Mala was getting into but she was sure that Mala was serious.

"I don't know…" Diana slowly shook her head, "but he has been in my mind since the day I first met him; I can't sleep properly because I'm thinking of him; I always imagine what would happen whenever we're together; his smiles are genuine, his stories are interesting… and whenever I'm with him… I'm… different…"

"You mean happier?" Mala raised an eyebrow to her

"Happier?"

"Don't tell me you haven't noticed Diana," she put her hands on her hips, "considering how your face turns into a massive grin whenever you just come back from seeing him… and whenever someone mentions his name"

It was true. Diana has noticed it as well. She didn't know what it was but her heart always felt lighter whenever she was with Clark.

"It's before Mala… it's nothing"

"It's not nothing Diana…" she sat down next to her again, "don't ignore your feelings"

"I don't even know what this is!" she argued

"Then are you okay not knowing what this is? Will you be satisfied with this mystery for the rest of your life? You won't know unless you try to find out"

"I may never know why I need him in my life Mala," her face looked distraught, "all I need to know is this feeling- the constant feeling of being happy whenever I'm with him…"

"Diana I do think you need to go see him"

Diana sighed, "Mala I already told you I can't… and I wont I-"

"I think you do"

"And why is that?!"

"Because… I think," her looks were that of sympathetic, "I think you're in love"

"Love?"

There was that word again. The word she never really understood. True, she had heard and used the word when greeting her mother but she knew that what Mala was telling her was a completely different meaning. Mala was talking about the "love" that she had rarely heard and explained to her by her mothers and sisters. The type of love that a man and woman or those apart from their family shares with each other; the type of love that was very common in most planets, especially Earth- the planet Clark came from; and the type of "love" that King Jor-El and Queen Lara shared. She had heard the word but never understood or felt it before.

"I don't know anything about it either Diana but the things you just described matched what I was told a person feels whenever they're in love"

"But what is it really? How do I know that it really is love? And if it is, what am I supposed to do? What does it mean?"

"Diana Diana" Mala tried to stop her friend as she rushed into her questions, "I told you, I don't know… all I know is that it's an important feeling a person can never ignore… and that you have to find out yourself"

"But Mala-"

"Diana," Mala stopped her friend, "can't you see him again?"

Suddenly, Diana remembered what Clark asked her the night before.

"At the meadow! Tomorrow, please meet me at the meadow tomorrow noon!"

"The meadow…" Diana said in a low voice

"The meadow?"

Diana's head shot up. She didn't want Mala to hear her but she was unknowingly loud.

"The meadow" Diana repeated, hoping she could stall Mala as she looked for a better explanation of why she said it

"The meadow?"

"The meadow"

"Why did you say the meadow Diana?"

Her friend had managed to capture her, Diana sighed," Clark asked me to meet at the meadow at noon"

"Today?"

Diana nodded

"Then go!" Mala stood up and ran straight to her wardrobe, "You still have time! Three hours in fact"

"Mala should I really?"

Mala stopped rummaging through Diana's clothes and turned to her, "Diana you are my friend. My childhood and best friend," Mala walked down, kneeled and took Diana's hand, as she remained seated on her bed, "I grew up with you and have watched you become a fantastic woman and princess. And I know you will be a fantastic queen but Diana, you are also a human being! You have the right to be happy!"

"…."

"You are my friend and I want nothing more than for you to be happy"

Clark told her the same thing before. They were right but she felt she still couldn't escape from what she had to do… still…

"Then we should prepare" Diana smiled to her

Mala broke into a grin after which she hugged her friend. She immediately ran to Diana's wardrobe and began rummaging clothes for her to wear. Diana watched her friend's excitement and she was glad to see her like that but inside… she was dreading her and Clark's meeting because… it might be their last…

Suddenly, there was a knock on the door. A palace servant peeked through the door. She was a Kryptonian servant.

"Your majesty Princess Diana?" she called out

"Yes?"

"You have a guest"

"A guest?" Diana was confused

"Yes" the maid nodded and bowed to her, "he specifically asked for you"

"He? Who is it?" she asked

"The Prince of Arcadia… Prince Livius"

Planet Krypton- Central Palace

Clark woke up in a dimly lit room. The red sun outside of his window glow a bright red colour instead of the yellow one he was used to. He got up and found himself in an unfamiliar room. That was right. He was in the central palace… home of the rulers of Krypton… home of his real parents… The King and Queen of Krypton.

Clark still couldn't wrap his head around the thought, the revelation… the truth- that his real parents are the King and Queen of an entire planet! He never expected it… in fact, he didn't expect much. His night started off with a nervous feeling- unsure whether he was going to meet his parents at all- but when he saw Diana, he became calm… happy… he didn't care about anything else but the moment he spent with Diana… wait! Diana!

He finally remembered that he was supposed to meet with Diana at the meadow. He looked at the time and saw that he had at least three hours to prepare himself to meet her. The problem was… he didn't have any of his normal clothes with him so he didn't know what to wear. He looked at the wardrobe in the room and saw only Kryptonian clothes. Clark didn't mind the Kryptonian clothes… he just wasn't used to them yet. He preferred to wear his normal Earth clothes… and because of that, he needed to get back to their hotel.

Suddenly, there was a knock on the door. He turned around and saw the Que- no; his mother. He still couldn't believe it… the beautiful queen of Krypton- the woman he had seen as someone unbelievably dominating- as a Queen- was his mother… and she had been looking for him for the whole 22 years. She gently closed the door behind her and walked towards him.

"Good morning Kal- I mean Clark" she greeted him, "how was your sleep?"

"I slept well" he smiled to her

Lara stopped in front of him. It was clear she wanted to hug him but just didn't know whether it would surprise Clark. Their situation was too uncomfortable. The last time Lara saw her son, he was only one year old, a toddler and then he disappeared… suddenly he stood in front of her as a full grown man. It was as if time jumped on them and Lara could never take the lost years back. Clark understood this and decided to hug her when suddenly, she beat him to it.

"I'm glad," she continued to tightly hug him, "I'm glad that you're okay… I'm glad that you're back my son"

She let go of him and put her hands on his face and stared at his eyes. He looked so much like her husband.

"Forgive us. It took us 22 years for us to find you; no" she shook her head, "in fact, it was you who found us"

"There's no need for you to apologize" he smiled to her, "knowing that you looked for me and cared about me was enough for me. Besides, we're together again right?"

"Of course we looked for you" she told him defensively, "we looked everywhere for you but the tracking device on the spaceship you left with was destroyed by the firearms and there were asteroids flying around the galaxy at the time… It was my fault," her face looked sad, "if only I protected you better, you wouldn't have been lost to us… I'm sorry"

Clark hugged her, "The past is in the past. I don't blame you. In fact, I had a good life with parents who cared and looked after me. It's now time for us to look into the future"

She smiled and put her hand on his cheek again, "You're smart Clark… just like your father"

Clark smiled. His heart became lighter as he continued to talk to her. In a way, he was like his mother Martha but different as well. They were both wise and caring and Clark couldn't ask for more. He had a family and that's all that mattered to him at the moment.

She continued to stare at him, "You look so much like your father," she commented, "I can't believe how much you've grown! You were just a baby and suddenly, you're taller than me!"

Clark couldn't help but laugh a bit. Fate really did play a trick on them but in the end, they found each other… and that was important.

Suddenly he remembered what he was going to do before he was visited by his mother.

"Forgive me but I have to leave" he told her

"Where are you going? You haven't even had your breakfast" she looked confused

"There's someone I want to meet. And I want to leave early to gather some clothes to wear"

"Who is it?"

"It's… um-"Clark blushed

Lara immediately picked up the situation when she saw his son blushed. She nodded, "It's okay. There's no need for you to explain" she smiled, "but won't you at least have some breakfast?"

"I'm really sorry but I have to go"

"Then I'll send one of the palace drivers to drive you to the place you are staying in"

"Thank you" he smiled to her and headed to the door

Before he opened the door, he turned to his mother, "You can call me Kal-El if you want," he smiled to her, "… mother"

Mother

Lara's heart skipped a beat as she quietly gasped. How long she had yearned for that word to come from her long lost son. Every day since she had lost him, she had wished he was still in her arms or that he was always with him; and that every day… she would hear him call out to her with that word…

Tears began to flood in her eyes as she waved at him, "Be careful and make sure to come back soon, Kal-El"

Clark smiled and left the room. The tears that have built up in her eyes began flowing down her cheeks. She wiped her face with her hands as she sniffed, "My son"

Hey guys! It's time for another arc! And there will be a lot for this so stay tuned :D

I just want to say thank you to those who have supported this fanfiction :) Your reviews and favourites as well as follows are what motivates me to continue writing :)

Hoped you liked this chapter and please leave a review

*To be continued in part 2

:D