The firemen eventually left the farm, after seeing that it was, in fact,
completely out. Jonathan went about surveiling the damage with Martha. He
hoped that she would recognize something, to no avail.
The barn, silo, and a part of the fields where the cows resided had been burnt completely. The house wasn't too bad. The kitchen was completely gone, as well as the guest room that sat above it on the second story. Part of the living room had been scorched, but it was salvageable. Jonathan wanted to cry. His great-great grandfather built this farm when Smallville was first founded. His son and grandson had taken care of it, building it up, making improvements. Jonathan couldn't seem to hold up to that legacy.
Nothing seemed to be going right, and he blamed Lex Luthor for all of it. Just a few months ago, he lost all his cows and a good twenty percent of land. LuthorCorp had apparently dumped all their bio-hazzardous waste on their land. Lex said he knew nothing about it. Which is exactly why it was his fault. It was his company, he should know every last detail of what goes on there, right down to what each and every employee was eating for lunch.
Now the farm had been burned down. Jonathan knew that Lex knew how the farm had burned down. He had lied to the authorites and to Jon. It didn't surprise Jonathan. All Luthors were no good, money-sucking liars.
Martha sat down on the couch. It had managed to avoid the fire's fury. She looked around and sighed. "So this is where I live?"
Jonathan nodded. "For nearly 22 years," he said.
Martha sighed again. "I wish I could remember. This is so hard for me, not knowing who you are. It's weird. I thought when someone had amnesia, they couldn't remember a thing, but I remember who I am, where I'm from, who my mom and dad and syblings are." She sighed again.
Jonathan sat in the antique rocking chair that was in the far corner of the living room. "Martha? What are the last few things you do remember?"
Martha took a deep breath. Her eyes glazed over as she tried to remember. "I remember attending Metropolis University. I was 19. As far as I'm concerned, I am 19. I was living in a dorm with my best friend, Lillian. We had so much fun together, going to football games, cheerleading, sorority parties.And my boyfriend. In fact.I we were engaged to be married. We had a big wedding all planned out. We were just waiting for the date to come around."
Jonathan was caught a little off guard when his wife told him she had been engaged. He knew it wasn't to him. He didn't meet Martha until she was 21. It didn't surprise him, though. He had been engaged to Nell Potter, Lana Lang's aunt. He ended breaking it off after he met Martha, though. The two women never got along after that. But he had told his wife this. Why hadn't Martha told him that she was engaged before she met him?
Jonathan had taken a few classes with Martha at the University. They even had the same circle of friends. He knew Lillian very well, along with man she eventually married. They all used to hang out together. Jonathan was curious. "Who was your fiancee?" he asked.
Martha smiled. She still thought she was 19, and her fiancee was the last man she ever remembered loving. "Lionel Luthor," she said dreamily.
Jonathan's eyes just about jumped out of their sockets. His heart began to race. Lionel Luthor? He thought. Lionel Luthor?! Jonathan became enraged, but tried not to lose his cool in front of his wife.
Martha turned to Jon. "What ever happened to him? Why did we end up calling off our wedding? Do you know?"
Jonathan clenched his fists and gritted his teeth. He tried so very hard to remain calm. "I-I don't know why you called off your marriage.I never knew you two were involved together."
"Oh," Martha said, becoming very uncomfortable. She paused. "Did you know him at all?"
"Yes." Jonathan said regrettingly. "We used to be best friends. But.uh.that thing happened."
"What thing?" Martha was completely oblivious.
Jonathan sighed. "Oh Martha, I wish you could remember. You and Lillian were there when it happened." He paused. "It's just so.painful.to remember that fight." Jonathan now wished he was the one with amnesia. That was the night he had lost the best friend he had ver had. "It was 23 years ago, shortly after you and I were married. Lillian was pregnant her son .We got into an argument about-"
Jonathan was cut off when Clark, Pete and Chloe entered with the small, frail girl they had found in the woods. "Hey Dad! Mom." He looked at his dad, almost as if to ask if she was any better.
Jonathan shook his head, still a little shaken by his previous conversation.
"Hey Mr. Kent," Chloe said perkily. "We found you another stray." Chloe stepped out of the way to reveal the carrot top. "Her name's Redd."
The girl was almost frightened by Jonathan's large stature, just as she was with Clark's. But, unlike Clark, she was able to hear Jonathan's thoughts and feel his emotions. He was obviously disturbed.
Jonathan just stared at the girl, not saying anything.
"Uh, we figured that since the house wasn't completely destroyed, we could clean her up and give her something to eat," Clark said.
Jonathan looked at Clark. "Kitchen's detroyed. As well as out emergency food supplies."
"That's okay," Pete said. "I've got my car. Me and Chloe can go get McDonald's or something for everybody."
Chloe looked at her African-American friend. "Pete. We just had three tornadoes rip thru town yesterday. What makes you think a McDonald's is going to be open?"
"Chloe, I've lived here all my life," Pete said. "Trust me.McDonald's is open."
Chloe and Pete took orders from everyone present. "Hey! Mrs. Kent remembers what a BigMac is," Chloe teased. The two left to get the food.
Clark pulled out some clothes that belonged to his mother and gave them to Redd before showing her to the bathroom. Redd closed the door after Clark left and turned the shower on. Muddy water poured from the showerhead. Obviously a pipe had broken somewhere. It didn't matter to Redd. She closed her eyes and concentrated. A fiery glow encompassed the muddy water. Redd was telekinetically filtering out the mud from the water, sanitizing it as good as any Brita filter.
After Clark had gotten Redd somewhat settled in, he proceeded downstairs. He noticed how the part of the living room closest to the kitchen was a mess. "Hey Dad, maybe now that Chloe and Pete are gone and Redd's up taking a shower, we could clean this place up. I could have it done in no time." He smiled.
Jonathan walked over to Clark, making sure Martha was out of earshot. "I don't know if that's sucha good idea son."
Clark's smile faded. "Why not?"
Jonathan sighed. "Right now, your mother doesn't know one thing about you and she has the mentality of a 19 year old college student. Seeing you might-"
"-Might shock her," Clark finished.
Jon nodded.
"But what if seeing me use my powers were to jog her memory?"
Jon shook his head. "And what if it doesn't, son? I mean.she's psychologically 19. She doesn't have the motherly instincts to protect you, Clark. She could tell someone."
"So what, now?" Clark's face grew stern. "You don't trust Mom?"
"No, Clark.It's just that." Jon gave a heavy sigh a tear began to form. "This is so hard.I don't know what to do anymore."
"This whole amnesia thing sucks." Clark said.
"What's this about amnesia?" Redd said. She stood at the top of the stairs, wet with Martha's clothes bagging around her small features. She needed a belt to keep the pants up.
Clark looked at the redhead. "During the storm, my mom got hit on head pretty hard." He was lying. He knew the ship had something to do with her condition. "She's partially amnesiatic."
Redd looked down at her feet. "Oh." She looked back up. "Maybe I can be of some help."
The two men exchanged glances and asked in unison, "How?"
The teenage girl glanced at the floor and shrugged. "Magic?"
"Redd, I think you've been hit in the head," Clark said.
Redd shrugged and came downstairs. She sat on the couch next to Martha. The two exchanged glances and hello's. Redd gently put her fingertips up to Martha's temples, putting her into a trance. Redd closed her eyes and concentrated.
The next thing Redd knew, she was inside Martha's mind. It was a dark room, filled with doors. Only a few doors were open. Many after a certain point were closed and locked.
"Where are we?" Martha asked.
"We're on what's called the Astral Plane of you mind," Redd explained. "What you're seeing is what your mind has created to compensate for a place you can interact in."
"What?" Martha was confused.
"Nevermind," Redd said.
She approached the first closed door and put her hand on the doorknob. She closed her eyes. Redd was a gifted woman. She had extraordinary abilities. One was telekinesis; the other telepathy. She used the latter to unlock the door in Martha's mind. When it opened, memories came flooding thru. One by one, Redd went to each door and used her telepathy to open all the doors, restoring Martha's memory completely.
Redd closed her eyes again, and when she opened them she was off the Astral Plane and back in the real world. She broke Martha's trance and brought her back to consciousness.
Martha's eyes fluttered open. She looked around and saw her husband and son-and she could remember them! She jumped off the couch and rushed into an embrace, crying. She started telling them various things, proving her memory was restored.
"What did you do to her?" Clark asked.
"Magic," Redd replied simply.
The barn, silo, and a part of the fields where the cows resided had been burnt completely. The house wasn't too bad. The kitchen was completely gone, as well as the guest room that sat above it on the second story. Part of the living room had been scorched, but it was salvageable. Jonathan wanted to cry. His great-great grandfather built this farm when Smallville was first founded. His son and grandson had taken care of it, building it up, making improvements. Jonathan couldn't seem to hold up to that legacy.
Nothing seemed to be going right, and he blamed Lex Luthor for all of it. Just a few months ago, he lost all his cows and a good twenty percent of land. LuthorCorp had apparently dumped all their bio-hazzardous waste on their land. Lex said he knew nothing about it. Which is exactly why it was his fault. It was his company, he should know every last detail of what goes on there, right down to what each and every employee was eating for lunch.
Now the farm had been burned down. Jonathan knew that Lex knew how the farm had burned down. He had lied to the authorites and to Jon. It didn't surprise Jonathan. All Luthors were no good, money-sucking liars.
Martha sat down on the couch. It had managed to avoid the fire's fury. She looked around and sighed. "So this is where I live?"
Jonathan nodded. "For nearly 22 years," he said.
Martha sighed again. "I wish I could remember. This is so hard for me, not knowing who you are. It's weird. I thought when someone had amnesia, they couldn't remember a thing, but I remember who I am, where I'm from, who my mom and dad and syblings are." She sighed again.
Jonathan sat in the antique rocking chair that was in the far corner of the living room. "Martha? What are the last few things you do remember?"
Martha took a deep breath. Her eyes glazed over as she tried to remember. "I remember attending Metropolis University. I was 19. As far as I'm concerned, I am 19. I was living in a dorm with my best friend, Lillian. We had so much fun together, going to football games, cheerleading, sorority parties.And my boyfriend. In fact.I we were engaged to be married. We had a big wedding all planned out. We were just waiting for the date to come around."
Jonathan was caught a little off guard when his wife told him she had been engaged. He knew it wasn't to him. He didn't meet Martha until she was 21. It didn't surprise him, though. He had been engaged to Nell Potter, Lana Lang's aunt. He ended breaking it off after he met Martha, though. The two women never got along after that. But he had told his wife this. Why hadn't Martha told him that she was engaged before she met him?
Jonathan had taken a few classes with Martha at the University. They even had the same circle of friends. He knew Lillian very well, along with man she eventually married. They all used to hang out together. Jonathan was curious. "Who was your fiancee?" he asked.
Martha smiled. She still thought she was 19, and her fiancee was the last man she ever remembered loving. "Lionel Luthor," she said dreamily.
Jonathan's eyes just about jumped out of their sockets. His heart began to race. Lionel Luthor? He thought. Lionel Luthor?! Jonathan became enraged, but tried not to lose his cool in front of his wife.
Martha turned to Jon. "What ever happened to him? Why did we end up calling off our wedding? Do you know?"
Jonathan clenched his fists and gritted his teeth. He tried so very hard to remain calm. "I-I don't know why you called off your marriage.I never knew you two were involved together."
"Oh," Martha said, becoming very uncomfortable. She paused. "Did you know him at all?"
"Yes." Jonathan said regrettingly. "We used to be best friends. But.uh.that thing happened."
"What thing?" Martha was completely oblivious.
Jonathan sighed. "Oh Martha, I wish you could remember. You and Lillian were there when it happened." He paused. "It's just so.painful.to remember that fight." Jonathan now wished he was the one with amnesia. That was the night he had lost the best friend he had ver had. "It was 23 years ago, shortly after you and I were married. Lillian was pregnant her son .We got into an argument about-"
Jonathan was cut off when Clark, Pete and Chloe entered with the small, frail girl they had found in the woods. "Hey Dad! Mom." He looked at his dad, almost as if to ask if she was any better.
Jonathan shook his head, still a little shaken by his previous conversation.
"Hey Mr. Kent," Chloe said perkily. "We found you another stray." Chloe stepped out of the way to reveal the carrot top. "Her name's Redd."
The girl was almost frightened by Jonathan's large stature, just as she was with Clark's. But, unlike Clark, she was able to hear Jonathan's thoughts and feel his emotions. He was obviously disturbed.
Jonathan just stared at the girl, not saying anything.
"Uh, we figured that since the house wasn't completely destroyed, we could clean her up and give her something to eat," Clark said.
Jonathan looked at Clark. "Kitchen's detroyed. As well as out emergency food supplies."
"That's okay," Pete said. "I've got my car. Me and Chloe can go get McDonald's or something for everybody."
Chloe looked at her African-American friend. "Pete. We just had three tornadoes rip thru town yesterday. What makes you think a McDonald's is going to be open?"
"Chloe, I've lived here all my life," Pete said. "Trust me.McDonald's is open."
Chloe and Pete took orders from everyone present. "Hey! Mrs. Kent remembers what a BigMac is," Chloe teased. The two left to get the food.
Clark pulled out some clothes that belonged to his mother and gave them to Redd before showing her to the bathroom. Redd closed the door after Clark left and turned the shower on. Muddy water poured from the showerhead. Obviously a pipe had broken somewhere. It didn't matter to Redd. She closed her eyes and concentrated. A fiery glow encompassed the muddy water. Redd was telekinetically filtering out the mud from the water, sanitizing it as good as any Brita filter.
After Clark had gotten Redd somewhat settled in, he proceeded downstairs. He noticed how the part of the living room closest to the kitchen was a mess. "Hey Dad, maybe now that Chloe and Pete are gone and Redd's up taking a shower, we could clean this place up. I could have it done in no time." He smiled.
Jonathan walked over to Clark, making sure Martha was out of earshot. "I don't know if that's sucha good idea son."
Clark's smile faded. "Why not?"
Jonathan sighed. "Right now, your mother doesn't know one thing about you and she has the mentality of a 19 year old college student. Seeing you might-"
"-Might shock her," Clark finished.
Jon nodded.
"But what if seeing me use my powers were to jog her memory?"
Jon shook his head. "And what if it doesn't, son? I mean.she's psychologically 19. She doesn't have the motherly instincts to protect you, Clark. She could tell someone."
"So what, now?" Clark's face grew stern. "You don't trust Mom?"
"No, Clark.It's just that." Jon gave a heavy sigh a tear began to form. "This is so hard.I don't know what to do anymore."
"This whole amnesia thing sucks." Clark said.
"What's this about amnesia?" Redd said. She stood at the top of the stairs, wet with Martha's clothes bagging around her small features. She needed a belt to keep the pants up.
Clark looked at the redhead. "During the storm, my mom got hit on head pretty hard." He was lying. He knew the ship had something to do with her condition. "She's partially amnesiatic."
Redd looked down at her feet. "Oh." She looked back up. "Maybe I can be of some help."
The two men exchanged glances and asked in unison, "How?"
The teenage girl glanced at the floor and shrugged. "Magic?"
"Redd, I think you've been hit in the head," Clark said.
Redd shrugged and came downstairs. She sat on the couch next to Martha. The two exchanged glances and hello's. Redd gently put her fingertips up to Martha's temples, putting her into a trance. Redd closed her eyes and concentrated.
The next thing Redd knew, she was inside Martha's mind. It was a dark room, filled with doors. Only a few doors were open. Many after a certain point were closed and locked.
"Where are we?" Martha asked.
"We're on what's called the Astral Plane of you mind," Redd explained. "What you're seeing is what your mind has created to compensate for a place you can interact in."
"What?" Martha was confused.
"Nevermind," Redd said.
She approached the first closed door and put her hand on the doorknob. She closed her eyes. Redd was a gifted woman. She had extraordinary abilities. One was telekinesis; the other telepathy. She used the latter to unlock the door in Martha's mind. When it opened, memories came flooding thru. One by one, Redd went to each door and used her telepathy to open all the doors, restoring Martha's memory completely.
Redd closed her eyes again, and when she opened them she was off the Astral Plane and back in the real world. She broke Martha's trance and brought her back to consciousness.
Martha's eyes fluttered open. She looked around and saw her husband and son-and she could remember them! She jumped off the couch and rushed into an embrace, crying. She started telling them various things, proving her memory was restored.
"What did you do to her?" Clark asked.
"Magic," Redd replied simply.