Lois has been dreamy eyed since the incident, and I've gone back to being Smallville. All she talks about is the Blue Streak and wanting to know where he came from. I guess if she loses interest in me, I won't have to explain disappearing whenever the police radios chatter. All her talk about where the Blue Streak came from makes me wonder the same thing. Maybe I should go home on weekends and learn more about my origin. The crystal in my ship comes to mind. I bet that could tell me what I want to know. The police radios crackle again and a high-speed car chase is in pursuit. I tuck my glasses into my desk drawer and speed outside when no one is looking.

The smell of the farm fills my nose. I walk into the house and take my bag to my room. "Mom?" No answer. She must be outside. Walking out to the barn I call again.

"In here!"

I walk in to see Mom resting, work gloves on her hands.

"Can I help you with anything?"

"Sure Clark. If you wouldn't mind moving that pile over there. I'm trying to stack things that are to keep, and trash what we don't need. This barn is a mess."

I start moving the stuff in the pile she motioned to. Digging past the small items, I hit a large piece of lead. "Why do we have this?"

"Your father must have thought it was useful for something. It can go in the junk pile. Be careful, I don't want you to break anything under it."

I decide to x-ray it to prevent any damage before moving. I feel my muscles trying to x-ray, but I don't see anything. "Hmmm."

"What?" Mom looks up at me.

"I can't see through the lead."

Mom chuckles. "That makes sense." I give her a quizzical look. "X-rays can't pierce lead."

"I guess I found something I can't do." I lift the lead piece and toss it aside. Immediately I start feeling sick and weakened. Mom rushes to my aid and puts her hand on my clammy skin. "Clark? What's wrong?"

"Something in the junk pile."

Mom and I look over and see a green glow in the mess. Meteor shard. Mom picks it out of the pile and throws it away from the barn. I start feeling better and stand back up.

"I forgot what that stuff does to you."

"That's alright, I didn't expect it to be in here. I didn't feel it until I moved the lead. It must have shielded me from its effects."

"I guess we should put the lead in the keep pile then." Mom grabs her gloves and heads to the house. "I have fresh lemonade inside."

Rested and energized from the lemonade, I bring up the one topic Mom doesn't want to hear. "I need to take the crystal out of the ship and find out what it can tell me."

Mom acts like she doesn't hear me, but I know from the droop in her shoulders that she did. "How is the divorce going?"

I sigh and lean back in my chair staring at the table. "It's almost finalized. It just needs to be approved in court. Lana is taking care of it." It's a hint that I don't want to talk about it. Mom drops the topic but doesn't resume the other one.

Trying to pick it up again, I mention the ship in the storm cellar. "I wonder if the ship can activate and tell me anything about my origin."

Mom shifts in her seat. "I would prefer if you didn't go near it. We don't know what it could do to you."

"Mom, I arrived in the ship. I doubt it will hurt me."

"The meteor rock does, and it arrived at the same time."

This conversation isn't going well and I have my suspicions as to why. "Are you worried about what I'll learn?"

"No dear. Just worried that you won't think about this place as home anymore."

I grab her hand and hold it. "Just because I wasn't born in Kansas, or on Earth for that matter, doesn't mean it isn't my home."

She gives me a sad smile and places her hand on top of mine. "I know, but I can't help but worry."

Mom sits closer to the table and leans forward. "Now, tell me about these rescues the blue streak has been making in Metropolis."

I give her my half smile. "You've read Lois's articles. You know what's happening."

"Yeah, but I want to hear it from the Blue Streak himself."

"Well those stories require more lemonade." I grab the pitcher and refill our glasses.

I wait until nightfall, when Mom is asleep and go into the storm cellar. I walk over to my ship and place my hand on it. I feel a prick on my finger and the ship opens revealing the crystal. I reach down and grasp it in my hand as the ringing begins filling my ears. Now that I have it, what do I do? I know this can give me answers, but I have to activate it first. I look over the ship and spot a symbol next to the crystal chamber. A wavy line with the crystal above it. What does that mean? I start thinking about other symbols I've heard about. In most cases, a wavy line means water. If I put the crystal in water will it activate? This is the only logical explanation I can think of, so I put the crystal back and go to bed. I'll consult Mom in the morning.