Chapter 17

BOOM!

The shockwave from the blast shatters windows all down the street and some distance beyond but the bulk of the energy is absorbed by one virtually invulnerable alien.

Martha Kent and the Lane family find themselves knocked to the floor. Despite her advancing years, Martha manages to be the first to her feet and rushes over to the window. In the sky is a dissipating cloud and down below is a figure, clad in a red jacket, in the centre of a small crater in the middle of the street.

No matter how indestructible Clark seems a mother's worry for her child fills her. So it is a huge relief when she sees him stir and get to his feet. He then looks up directly at her and even at this distance she can swear she sees relief pass over his own features.

"It's the Blur!" someone shouts.

And that is Clark's cue to leave as he lives up to his name and blurs away. Though very shortly the best image yet of the mysterious hero will be published due to one bystander who is quick on the button. Though fortunately for Clark they don't quite manage to get a clear image of his face but the prevalence of cameras in phones is going to make him have to come up with a solution to this problem soon.

"What was that?" General Lane asks.

Martha turns round to face him, renewed strength and resolve within her. "That, General, was one of the 'vigilantes' you dislike so much saving mine, yours and your daughters' lives. Not to mention dozens if not hundreds of other lives. Maybe you should take that into consideration before you jump on this little anti-vigilante crusade, hmm?"

Unknown Location…

"We have a negative impact. The missile was intercepted before reaching the target," Flagg's colleague advises.

"Dammit!" Flagg curses. He is just about to order that they engage in a 'strategic retreat' when an arrow comes zipping through the window of the truck that is this mobile command centre.

The truck is then thrown into the air before coming crashing back down.

The two men lie there, groaning in pain as the rear door is ripped open to reveal the Blur and Green Arrow who, thanks to Tess, were given this location.

"Rick Flagg," Clark says in his most intimidating voice, standing to his full height and folding his arms across his chest. "We know you are responsible for trying to blow up that apartment block."

"Classy move, attacking your own country," Ollie mocks the two men, still lying on the ground.

"I did it for my country," Flagg argues. "You kill Lane, you kill the movement." He tries to get up but ends up simply groaning in more pain. "The registration act is nothing but a weapon to profile, hunt and destroy us," he claims.

"We don't need a history lesson," Ollie tells him.

"Well apparently you do, Shamrock," the military man snaps back, not hiding his disdain for the archer. "You've become a politician's poster boy for full disclosure. They're gonna be on your doorstep soon, holding you up as a volunteer. Get all the other heroes to stand up and be counted, and be killed," he gives his view on what happens next.

"We're not gonna let that happen," Clark insists. No matter what, even if the act passes, they won't let that happen.

"The bill passes it already has," Flagg believes. "Don't you see?" he asks them, releasing another groan. "America's turning against us. We've got to fight back, show strength, make them choose us as their leaders."

"That'll only be stirring up anti-hero hysteria," Clark expresses his belief. "Violence isn't the answer."

"Violence is the only answer…and I think I won't be the only one who thinks so. You'll see soon enough that the superheroes are coming over to my side," he states confidently at which point his colleague grabs him and the two disappear, revealing the other man to be a metahuman teleporter.

Clark and Oliver share a look, both knowing that with Flagg's escape that this…this ain't over.

Smallville…

Andrea had handed over cooking duties to her grown-up daughter and found herself just watching the time travelling woman. She could see a certain ease of familiarity with the way Mia moved around the kitchen. "Is cooking something you do often?" Andrea asks.

"I find it a good de-stresser."

"Clark mentioned you got some tips from your cousin."

"Um, yeah. I went visiting Mexico after I graduated from High School and decided to go meet the family."

"Were they all ok?"

Mia eyes her mother carefully. "This is like 14, 15 years from now Mamá. I have to be careful what I say. What I can say is that everyone I met was fine."

"I must confess I've lost touch with them."

"Yeah. They mentioned that." Mia stops for a second. "Is it…is it because Abuelo walked out on you and Abuela? That you didn't keep in touch with his side of the family?" she wonders about her grandfather.

This…this is a touchy subject. "Have you met him?" Andrea wonders.

"No," Mia gives the short but truthful answer. "You didn't answer my question," she points out.

"I have nothing against them."

"That's still not an answer."

"I don't know. Maybe. Perhaps I just think it would be awkward."

"All I can tell you is regardless of what transpired between Abuela and Abuelo they never had any problems with welcoming me. I'm sure it would be the same with you."

Andrea's face adopts a contemplative expression. "Can I ask…was I good?"

"Good?" Mia asks puzzled, not understanding the question.

"Mother. Was I a good mother to you?"

Something deep and meaningful flashes across Mia's features. "You were the best, Mamá. The best."

Andrea's brow furrows slightly at just how intense Mia's tone is. She was almost choking on the emotion. "Are you ok?"

"I'm fine," Mia tries to brush it off, not wishing to go down that path. Her mother doesn't need to know the awful truth. Especially when she's going to make sure it doesn't happen. There is so much more she wants to say but can't. At least not until she has accomplished the task she came to this time for. Maybe, once that is done and before she returns to the future she'll say it.

Andrea isn't sure her grown-up daughter is telling the truth. In fact, she's pretty certain she ain't but before she can query further she is distracted by her present-day daughter yelling on her which is a relief to the grown-up Mia who most certainly did not desire to continue this conversation.

Metropolis…

Martha sits on the bench across from Lois' apartment. The street was already looking much better thanks to a red/blue blur that cleaned up all the shattered glass in minutes.

"Ready to go home?"

Martha looks up to see her son standing there, looking as innocuous as could be. "More than ready."

Clark helps her to her feet. "You ok?" he asks with real worry.

"I'm fine. Just a little shaken up. That happens when someone tries to kill you."

Clark practically glowers. "I'll find him, mom. It's only a matter of time."

"I know," she pats him on the arm before she spots his gaze has shifted up to a certain apartment. "You want to go see her?"

"And say what?" he asks because honestly, he's not sure what to say to Lois nor if he is ready to hear what she has to say. He shakes his head. "Twice is quite enough. I don't need her walking away on me for the third time," he says, the hurt plain in his voice.

Martha hates to see her son like this.

"Besides, if we don't get going dinner will be long gone. My daughter, both versions of her, eat more than I do."

"I find that hard to believe," Martha teases him.

"Would I lie?"

"Little white ones, yes."

"Ok. That one I'll give you," he concedes defeat as mother and son share a small laugh.

The Watchtower…

"I thought you said no happy hour?" Tess asks of Oliver as she finds him in the tower, drinking.

"Yeah well I'm still on the clock so…" he chuckles taking a sip, "so I was curious you, uh, you hear anything about that tattoo removal research?" he wonders since both he and Clark are still transmitting their location loud and clear to wherever Flagg vanished off to.

"I have Emil looking into it," she answers.

"Good."

"No need to worry, my friend."

"I think it's a little early for 'friend.' Friendly, I can do that. I can do friendly," he tells her of where he is emotionally.

"I'll take it. I was beginning to think the best I could do was frenemy."

"I don't even know what that means," Ollie claims, his expression making the redhead chuckle. "We've uh, we've survived tax audits, and typhoons together, Tess I think we're practically like family at this point," he gets to why he is here right now. To clear the air with his ex.

"We've come a long way. From the middle of the ocean to the top of the city," Tess summarises it.

"I can work with that. You know this place is sort of like an island, isn't it? It's just too bad I've gotta vote myself off."

"I don't understand."

"Recall how this started. I got hurt trying to dodge the press. It's a funny thing about Green Arrow showing his face to everyone, now everyone wants to stick theirs in my business, and peak in my window. What if someone sees me come in here? Watchtower I mean? I can't do anything about Flagg knowing where I go but I can do something about everyone else. There are people who count on this place remaining secret, who count on that for their safety. They didn't step out into the limelight like I did. That wouldn't really be fair for them, would it?" he airs his thoughts after today's events.

"After everything you've told me about Chloe, and what this place means to you; that must be a really hard decision to make," she says, her tone bordering on admiration for her ex.

"But it's the right one. Watchtower's in good hands, Tess."

"Thank you."

"But just to be clear, Clark and I talked and we would really like it if you would, in the future, consult us, as in you know, the team, before you make changes around here. Especially if they alter the way any of us interact with this place."

"I'll keep that in mind," Tess concedes that that is a good point.

"And one final favour?" he requests.

"Sure."

"You pointed out awhile back there wasn't much of a team in our teamwork. Want to try and fix that?"

"I'll see what I can do."

Smallville…

Despite everything that had transpired today Thanksgiving dinner had actually gone off without a hitch. Yes, adult Mia pouted a lot that she never got to join in on the 'fun'.

Fun, was not the word Clark would have used for today.

And yes, Mia's mini-me had clearly had way too much sugar to the point she was nearly following in her father's footsteps and blurring around the house.

But his mother had been polite to Andi and hadn't, as Clark feared she would, take Andi to task on keeping Mia a secret. In fact, his mother had seemed lost in thought a lot of the time. He feels like he should talk to her.

So, later that night he seeks her out and finds her on the porch swing. "Nice night," he comments as he sits down next to the older woman.

"I can remember a few nice Thanksgiving nights where you, your father and I would sit out here."

Clark smiles nostalgically. "Yeah. I remember those."

"Thank you for today."

"For what? Saving you? You don't need to thank me, mom."

"I do because not enough people do but not just that. For giving me a Thanksgiving with a new family."

"You may recall this is a first for me as well. I had no idea parenthood was this tough."

"Talk to me about tough, honey when it's every day and the child in question could bend steel bars," she teases lightly.

"I never went around bending steel bars," he protests.

"That's only because your father and I hid them all," she jokes.

"So, what's troubling you, mom?"

"What makes you think anything's troubling me?"

"Because I'm not as oblivious as a lot of people seem to think."

"Flagg."

"I told you mom, I'll find him."

"Not that. It's just…" she stops as if unable to find the words.

"Just?" Clark presses.

"We never talked about Checkmate did we."

Clark's whole demeanour seems to grow slightly grave. "No."

"I was actually surprised you were so nice to me when I showed up. We didn't part on the best of terms."

"Mom, I love you. That'll never change."

"I regret losing your trust. I was just trying to protect you."

"I get that, mom but what I don't think you, and frankly others, get is that I am getting tired of people making decisions that involve me but don't talk to me about them. As if I can't be trusted to make the right choice…or maybe more accurately the difficult choice."

"That wasn't what it was about."

"No, mom. That is exactly what it was about," he says bluntly contradicting her. "You could have come to me. We could have sat down and talked it out and worked together but you didn't. It annoys me enough when my friends do it but the fact my own mother chose to do this behind my back," he complains, shaking his head, showing his true hurt over it.

Now Martha feels rotten. "I could sit here and tell you I now think it was a mistake but that doesn't undo any of it."

"No…but it's a start." The tall man gets to his feet and walks over to the railing. "Recently I realised that I've been dwelling far too much on the past. I can't afford to do that any longer. Not if I want to be the hero I'm seeking to be and definitely not if I want to be the father I need to be for Mia. That's why I chose to let it go over Andi keeping Mia a secret from me. She's all that is important."

"Which is why I did it, Clark," Martha insists as she too stands up and moves beside her son. "You are all that is important."

"Slight difference, mom. Mia's 4. I'm 24. I'm not a child any longer."

"You'll learn this eventually, Clark but a parent always sees their offspring as a child…but you are correct. You are an adult and I should have respected you enough to let you in on what I was doing. Saying 'I'm sorry' might not be enough but I am," she says regretfully, emotion deep in her voice and on her face.

"Mom, I can't stay angry at you when I know your heart was in the right place. It's people's hearts whom I'm less certain about where they were that need to worry."

"Thank you," she says at a whisper.

Clark reaches out and places an arm over his mom's shoulder. "I will always love you, mom. Always."

"I will always love you too."

The sting of what transpired last year may not be completely gone but it is not enough to drive a permanent wedge between mother and son.

"It may be me being nosy but what other people were you talking about?" Martha wonders.

"Tess…perhaps. I still have no idea what side she is really on."

"And like me she was involved with Checkmate."

"Yeah but I am giving her a chance. I may regret that. We'll see."

"Anyone else?"

"Chloe."

"Chloe?" Martha queries in surprise.

"Oh, when I find her we're going to be having a long, long, long talk," he vows.

"About her disappearance?"

"Not just that. Mia."

"I don't understand."

"Chloe helped Andi leave Metropolis 5 years ago. She helped set Andi up in Coast City. I know Chloe. There is no way in Hell she didn't know Andi had a daughter. The only question I don't have an answer to is if she knew Mia was mine."

"You can't believe…"

Clark cuts his mother off. "Once, no. I wouldn't have believed she would have kept it secret from me but Chloe's changed these last few years. She's made choices I would never have thought she could when we were at school together and far too many times she has justified her choices as protecting me or doing the dirty tasks I couldn't sully my conscious over."

Martha can hear in Clark's tone how genuinely annoyed he is. It's bordering on angry.

"Either way when I find her, I'm going to get answers," he promises.

You know from his tone Martha doesn't envy Chloe when that day comes.

"ARGHH!" a loud cry interrupts them as a hyperactive 4-year-old bolts out the door.

"MIA!" Andrea shouts as emerges chasing after her.

"Parenthood, huh?" he asks his mother with a sigh.

"Welcome to the club," she jokes.

Clark rolls his eyes as he blurs after his daughter.

Martha watches with a smile as she is joined by adult Mia. "Still don't think you were ever that bad?" she asks, teasingly.

"Must be Papá's influence," she claims.

"That I can believe," Martha chuckles as she puts an arm around her grown-up granddaughter and they watch Clark and Andrea try to reign in their hyperactive daughter.

Adult Mia leans in to the warmth and just enjoys the sight. Today had been just about as perfect a day as she had ever experienced in her life because for the first time in her life she had shared one of those pivotal family moments; Thanksgiving.

She had probably been smiling all day just at the sights and sounds of her father, mother, grandmother all interacting. Yeah, it was kinda weird interacting with her own younger self but before today her father had said that if she just met her mother she would feel better afterwards and you know, her father was right. She does feel better. And she will feel even better when she prevents her mother's death.

And what today really represented was more proof of the change her presence here had started to bring about. She never had a day like this in the timeline she comes from but her younger self now has had a day like this and will continue to have them going forward. It makes Mia believe she can make the future better.

Though a few days later Mia also realises that that belief is about to be put to the test. That the crucial moment she came here to prevent is approaching and approaching fast. What triggers this realisation?

The passing of the Vigilante Registration Act.

That was the start of it in the timeline she comes from. That was the day the clock started ticking. The countdown to her mother's demise.

It's won't happen again. She won't let it. No matter what. She'll stop it. Even if she has to kill that little psycho bitch to do it.

Author's Note: Just my opinion but people who claim to love Clark sure seem to do a lot of things that affect him but don't consult him about it as if they don't trust him enough to make the difficult choices. I know it would aggravate me so it has to annoy him. And I know it seems like adult Mia is just sorta there, not doing much but we are getting to the crunch with her story next. Thanks to everyone who wrote reviews.