Experiment 001
Chapter 6: Xisha tra Optmaju
Fifteen-year-old Lex sat across from Alli-Oxah; on the floor of the room that Lionel had given the young girl. She was looking at him expectantly; ready to learn the next tidbit that Lex would try to teach her.
He had been surprised at how quickly she could learn anything, and at how incredibly smart she already was. Numbers were the first thing he had taught her. After all, mathematics was the universal language. Once they got beyond binary into our numerical system, he was amazed that this LITTLE girl knew a lot more mathematics than he did.
Language was a completely different matter, though. He had nothing to start out with. Usually when one learned a language they started by translating things they already knew how to say...which wouldn't work, seeing how neither of them could speak the other's language.
He sighed and rested his head on his fist. "Just staring at each other isn't going to get us anywhere, you know."
Alli-Oxah sighed, too. "J-uh-ssst...star-stayr..." she huffed. "Jina watu."
"Jee-nah-wah-too," Lex repeated nodding. "I don't know what your saying."
The two sighed again.
Both turned when the door was suddenly opened and Lionel walked in. He had a tired expression on his face, as if he was annoyed. "Lex, you have been at this for days. I've hired some of the best teachers, let them try. You need to go back to school."
Lex stood quickly, "You can't do that!" He yelled, "She's afraid of everyone who comes in here! You've seen how strong she is, what do you think would happen if she got so scared that she thought she needed to defend herself? She's calmer when I'm around, and besides, half of those instructors already got fed up and left!"
"It doesn't help that you keep telling them that they are not welcome!" Lionel snapped, dangerously quite.
"Cyo tuy rytsu way optmaju," Alli-Oxah said, standing and stepping between the two. "Cyra optmaju." She put her hand on Lex's chest and Lionel's stomach, trying to separate them. "Tsukai?"
Both stared at her blackly. "Lex," Lionel said, closing his eyes and pinching the bridge of his nose, "What is she doing?"
Lex shrugged, "I don't know...maybe she wants us to stop?"
"Have you explained to her that I am your father, and therefore have the right to make you listen to me?!" Lionel said, his voice rising with every word.
"If I could explain that to her, would we be having this conversation?!" Lex yelled back.
Alli-Oxah looked between the two, threw up her hands and sighed exasperatedly. "Qutiamar!" She walked away from the two. She jumped and turned to the door, just as it was opened. She ran and hid behind Lex. "Di sha? Alexander, yum cy?"
Lex recognized that, she asked him that question every time someone she didn't know entered the room. He turned to her, looked into her eyes and said very calmly, "Just the maid, you're fine."
The corners of Alli-Oxah's mouth pulled up slightly, to form a quick smile. "Qu-jshon re ie?" She said questioningly, pointing at the maid.
"Anna," Lex said.
"Un-nuh," Alli-Oxah repeated. She turned back to Lex and pointed to Lionel, "Qu-jshon re wara?"
"Lionel Luthor," Lionel answered harshly before Lex had the chance. "Lex's father."
Alli-Oxah cringed at the menacing tone. "Ly-in-ull, Lu-the-or." She looked back at Lex, "Jo jira?!"
Lex gave her a look that told her he didn't understand.
She put her hand up to her head, thinking, than her head sprang up and she looked around the room. She grabbed the shirt of her long sleeved flannel pajamas and rolled it up. She pointed to Lex, than to the rolled shirt, and proceeded to hold it as if it were a baby, rocking it back and forth. The she took Lionel's arms and put the shirt in them and moved his arms to make the same motion she had. "Jira? Cy?"
Lionel threw the shirt down in disgust. "Lex, I can't have this. If you can teach her something in English, anything, in the next thirty minutes, I will let you teach her. But if you can't, you are going back to school, and she is getting a professional tutor." Then he stormed out of the room.
Alli looked down, "Verso cyo..." she said defeated.
Lex looked around the room, his father had been careless with that remark, "Anything..." he said slyly.
Alli looked back up and around the room. Her eyes instantly went to a vase of fresh flowers that Anna had just set on Alli's dresser. She gasped, "Xisha!"
Lex watched her walk to the vase and pull a flower out. She carefully ran her fingers over the petals, "Xisha..."
Lex instantly got a brilliant idea. He mentally kicked himself for not thinking of it before. "Flower," he said slowly. "Flower."
She looked up at him, "Fuh-lah-ow-wer?"
Lex rushed up to her and touched the plant, "Flower."
Alli smiled and took his hand, "Xi-sha," she annunciated very clearly.
"Zee-shaa," Lex repeated. Looked like he had outsmarted his father, yet again.
Lex walked into the living room of his Smallville mansion, quickly noticing Alley sitting on the reclining sofa in her pajamas with a small blanket covering her legs, her attention fixated on the television. He glanced at the screen then back to Alley, but instantly his eyes were drawn back to the screen. A half man, half beast in Renaissance clothing stood in a red hued cave with an orange haze blurring the sharpness of the focus. The shot turned into a close-up of the beast's face, his fangs bared and a tormented growl escaped his lips.
"That's a little frightening," Lex said sarcastically. "What are you watching?"
"Beauty and the Beast," Alley answered softly, her eyes remained glued to the screen. "Poor Vincent."
Lex smiled, "Doesn't look very "Disney"," he looked back to the screen, "Who's Vincent?"
"The beast," Alley said simply, "he has to save Kathryn."
Lex smiled and sat down next to her, "You don't have to watch so intently you know, it's a TV show, he'll save her. I thought you hated Earth stories for just that reason."
"I do. It's so fake. Sometimes you need that, though. Stories on Krypton were so different, more realistic. Here, the hero always saves the heroin." She paused for a moment. "The good guys always win in the end. Not real. So fake. Villain always waits to say the plan, gives the hero time."
Alley looked at him, her eyes half-filled with tears. Lex instantly became concerned, "What's wrong? What are you thinking about?"
A weary smile formed on her lips, "He's weird looking, but he's really sexy. So soft spoken."
Lex knew that she was trying avoid the fact that she was actually thinking about what had happened at the Talon yesterday with Frampson. He would indulge her, this time, "That all?" He looked back at the screen, "Something I'd like to watch?"
Alley shook her head, "Sappy '80's love story, live in different worlds. Good guy always wins." She nodded sadly, "Not real."
He took her hand to comfort her, and was startled to find a Band-Aid on her index finger. "What's this?!" He asked worriedly.
"I got a paper cut."
Lex put a hand on her cheek and turned her head to look at him, "YOU got a paper cut?!"
"Calm down, Alex, I told you I was getting my hair cut today, I was reading while he cut it." She smiled and pulled out a small, tarnished silver- colored box. "Can't get it cut without this opened a few clicks."
"Then why the Band-Aid? Close the cube, it heals." Of course Lex knew how the box worked, he'd been the one who had it made for her to seem more normal.
She shrugged, "Hair stylist gave it to me. I mean, I couldn't close it while he was cutting my hair, could I? Remember the first time? A single hair broke the ss—" she sighed, "Those cutting things."
"Scissors," Lex corrected unconsciously, "I remember. I was just making sure you weren't sneaking into dark-rooms."
Alley smiled, "Couldn't drag me into a red-lit room if you had all the glowing green meteor rocks on the planet."
Lex nodded, "Why don't you go to sleep, you have to deal with the rumors about yesterday tomorrow."
Alley sighed, "La tra." She looked back at the screen, the beast was caring a woman away from a fire, "Huh," she pointed to the screen, "he saved her."
Chloe, Clark, and Pete walked down the hall of Smallville High. The bell had not yet rang, and truthfully, they had ulterior motives; they were looking for Alley. Clark had a different reason from Chloe and Pete, but they all still wanted to find her.
Unfortunately, when they found her, she wasn't in one of the best situations. She was holding her folder tightly across her chest, trying to walk away from a boy who was laughing and shouting insults at her.
The three sped up to get to her, but were too late. A jock, the same one who had made fun of her in home room, just two days before, grabbed the boy and flung him onto the lockers. The bang resonated through the hall and the jock roughly held him there. "You leave her alone!" He yelled. The boy nodded fearfully, and when the jock released him he ran very quickly away. "That goes for everyone!" The jock yelled, "You mess with her, you mess with me!"
Clark stared for a moment, confused. He turned when he heard Pete congratulate Chloe. "Good job, Chloe." Pete said, giving the girl a high five.
"Well, you helped," Chloe answered.
Clark looked at each of his friends, then back to Alley. The jock was smiling at her.
"You okay?" He asked, "Sorry about that. We'll make sure that no one messes with you. Chloe told us everything. And when Chloe says it, you can be sure it's true."
Alley looked at him strangely. "Chloe told you what?"
"About the guy. Your uncle." Alley continued to look at him in disbelief, so he continued, "How you got taken away from him, cause he hurt you, and now he wants you back?"
Chloe ran up, and Alley looked at her accusingly. "Sorry, Alley," Chloe said quickly, "I know that you didn't want anyone to know, but I thought if Hank here knew, he could stop everyone from spreading rumors..."
Alley nodded her understanding, "Yes, just do not tell anyone, please. It is hard to think about. I do not want to answer questions."
Hank nodded, "I understand. Don't worry." He placed a beefy hand on her shoulder, in a comforting gesture, and held out his other hand, "You want me to carry your books to class?"
Alley shook her head, "No, thank you, I can manage."
Hank nodded and started walking.
As soon as he was out of earshot, both Alley and Clark turned to Chloe, "What the heck was that about?" Clark asked accusingly.
"Jeez, Clark, we asked you to help, but you were kind of out of it yesterday," Chloe said. "I knew that there would be some bad rumors about Alley going around, so I kind of used my reputation to get a few people to stop them."
Alley smiled brightly, "You are a true friend, Chloe!" She hugged Chloe tightly.
"Well, Pete helped, too."
Alley looked at Pete, blushing slightly, her eyes met his, and she instantly looked back down. "Thank you," she said quietly.
Pete smiled, "So, are you gonna tell us what really happened?"
"Yeah," Chloe piped in, "Maybe we can help?"
Alley looked up to Clark, then back to Chloe and Pete, "I-I...y-you wouldn't..." She sighed, "No, Alex and I can handle it."
"Great," Chloe sighed, "another one with secrets."
Alley looked back at Clark and kept her eyes on him for a long while. Clark started to shift uncomfortably under the piercing gaze. "I think we should get to class," Clark finally broke the silence.
Alley nodded, "Yes, I don't want to be late."
The rest of the day ran relatively smoothly, with the exception of one other comment about what had happened in the coffee shop; but that was easily solved by another jock who threatened a few unpleasant things if the comments continued.
The final bell released the students and Chloe and Alley walked out together. "I can't thank you enough, Chloe," Alley said for the millionth time. "No one, with the exception of Alex has ever stood up for me before."
"Well, you looked really scared. Whoever it was must have done something to make you so afraid; I didn't want everyone harassing you because of it."
Alley smiled, "I am happy you did. I do not wish to think about him ever again."
Chloe smiled and dropped the entire subject. Instead, she remembered the way Alley had acted earlier around Pete. "So...you were blushing when you said 'thank you' to Pete..."
Alley lowered her head and blushed again, "Perhaps..."
Chloe laughed, "You have a crush on PETE?!"
Alley's head sprang up, "SHHHHH!!!" She cried, looking franticly to make sure that Pete wasn't around to hear. "Not so loud!"
Chloe laughed, "That's a change, most girls instantly fall for Clark."
Alley looked at her in disbelief. "Clark KENT? What would attract girls to him?!"
Chloe became very defensive, but kept her tone joking, "And what's wrong with Clark Kent?!"
Alley scoffed, as if it was as obvious as the sky was blue. Then she smiled, "You have a crush on Clark!"
Chloe shook her head, "Do not!"
Alley laughed, "Of course." She shook her head, "So, why do all the girls fall for Clark? Is he the best kisser on the planet or something?"
Chloe shrugged, "I think it's that whole, straight as an arrow, goodie- goodie, farm-boy charm."
Alley made a face, "Eh."
"Not your thing?"
Alley looked down at her outfit, "How can you tell?"
"Well, Pete is Clark's best friend. Pete isn't too far off."
Alley shook her head, "No, Pete is very different, trust me. Clark must have been born here, he sure fits in."
"Actually, he was adopted. He found out his parents abandoned him, last year."
Anger flashed on Alley's face, "Abandoned?!" She said incredulously.
Chloe nodded, "Yeah, but he wouldn't tell me anymore."
"Jor-El frai-shwane quwe," she muttered angrily.
"What?"
"Sorry," Alley shook her head, "That's terrible. It hurts knowing that your parents don't want you."
"You were abandoned, too?"
Alley shook her head, "Yes and no, my parents told me that I was no longer theirs. It was long before Alex took me in."
"Why?! What happened?"
"Things were different where I was from...I angered my parents, disgraced them, so they—"
"Whoa, hold up, you said Lionel adopted you when you were seven, how old were you when your parents disowned you?!"
Alley shook her head, "Old enough."
"Wow, things must have been very different where you're from."
Alley looked up at the clear blue of the afternoon sky, "Like you couldn't imagine," she sighed.
Clark walked carelessly into his house. After talking to Lex yesterday he felt an odd mix of feelings. He was relieved to find that Lex knew nothing of his secret, but terrified at the positive, clenching proof that another Kryptonian was alive and knew about him.
"Clark?" His mother called from the kitchen, "That you?"
"Yeah, mom," he answered blandly.
"Clark," his father walked toward him. "You never told us what happened yesterday with Lex. You need to tell us son."
"She's from Krypton..." He said simply.
"But what about Lex?" Martha asked.
"No, he doesn't know. But what if she wants me to help her conquer the planet? I'm scared."
A knock on the door halted their conversation. Martha walked up to the door and opened it. A young woman stood smiling.
"Hello, ma'am. My name is Alli-Oxah. I was looking for Clark Kent, I sit behind him in homeroom and was wondering if he would tell me what I missed yesterday."
Martha smiled at the girl's polite cheerfulness, "Of course, come in. I haven't seen you around before, did you just move here?"
"Alley?" Clark asked, he and his father walked into the foyer, "Mom, dad, this is Lex's sister, Alli-Oxah."
Martha's smile drooped a moment, but returned just as quickly, "So, how do you like Smallville?"
"A tad small, but otherwise—" she looked at the three people in front of her and sighed. "Let's quit this act, I can tell that these people have been told. And seeing how only you, Alex, and I know, I'm guessing that you told them."
Clark looked at his parents then back to Alley, "How—"
She scoffed, "Come now, as soon as you mentioned I was Alex's sister her breathing jumped and her heart started beating faster. If you couldn't hear it, you could at least look through her and see it beating faster!"
Jonathan swallowed hard, "So, Clark was right; how did you know."
"He has his mother's eyes." She said, smiling softly, "And his father's nose."
"You knew Jor-El?" Clark asked in breathless fear.
"Of course, I was his Xia," she announced as if it explained everything. Then her face turned cold. "And while we are on that subject, what exactly are you telling people?!" He voice rose so she was practically yelling at him, "Fryt-Jor-El was the best father on all of Krypton! He would never have abandoned you! The only reason he sent you away was because the brain computer tricked everyone into believing—"
"Hold on, what?!" Clark was confused.
"Chloe said that you told her your parents abandoned you! First off, Fryt- Lara-El would have never let him, second, Fryt-Jor-El wouldn't! You were his pride and joy! He wanted to teach you everything from yoshmyr to—"
"War strategies?" Clark asked bitterly.
"War?!" Alley gasped, "What kind of people do you think Kryptonians were?! We were scientists! Jor-El was the best one! I was his...student. The only one who stayed after the council refused to believe that the brain computer was destroying us!"
"What are you talking about?" Clark asked.
"Your parents loved you, why do you think they would send you away?"
"To conquer?"
Alley laughed, "They wanted someone to survive. No one would listen to your father when he said the brain was killing our planet. I knew he was right, I did some of the experiments myself, but no one else believed him. He was striped of all rank because of it. All his Xio were taken away. But I stayed. I had to. I knew he was right. I was banished from my house, but I stayed and helped build the ships. Only I knew what it was like to have lived on Krypton. And you would survive as well. I would teach you, so that Krypton would not die."
"What's a Brain Computer?"
"It had come to our planet a hundred years before I was born. It said it wanted to learn about our way of life. Brain Computer is the closest translation I can come up with. But is destroyed our planet. NO one would believe Jor-El. They said it wasn't true. It knew how to cover it's tracks..."
"But," Martha interrupted, "Your Clark's age."
Alley laughed, "Hardly. I was seven and a half when I was forced off Krypton." Tears started to gather in her eyes. "Though I wish I had died with the rest of them!" Her voice was harsh and bitter. "You can't possibly understand what it's like to wake up to a sky that is BLUE! It makes me gag and wretch every time I see it! 'Intelligent' people only see the universe in four dimensions. You people know NOTHING! I had learned more by the time I was four, then the most advanced people on your planet learn in a lifetime! I was poked and prodded by "scientists" who have no concept of anatomy! They can't even figure out how the brain actually works. I hate it here! But my home is gone. And I can do nothing but try to survive."
A/N: Whoo! I think I'll stop there. Alley will continue her rant next week. I hope you like. Sorry about the hiatus. Prom and other senior things making my life really stressful crept up. But my writer's block is over. Please review! I hope that you enjoyed this little extra. I made you wait, so it was only fair.
And I finally got to introduce one of the most important pieces in the story. Alley's little sliver box. Watch for it.
Oh, and for anyone who knows about the 80's "Beauty and the Beast" will get the whole foreshadowing in this chapter.
Please review!
Chapter 6: Xisha tra Optmaju
Fifteen-year-old Lex sat across from Alli-Oxah; on the floor of the room that Lionel had given the young girl. She was looking at him expectantly; ready to learn the next tidbit that Lex would try to teach her.
He had been surprised at how quickly she could learn anything, and at how incredibly smart she already was. Numbers were the first thing he had taught her. After all, mathematics was the universal language. Once they got beyond binary into our numerical system, he was amazed that this LITTLE girl knew a lot more mathematics than he did.
Language was a completely different matter, though. He had nothing to start out with. Usually when one learned a language they started by translating things they already knew how to say...which wouldn't work, seeing how neither of them could speak the other's language.
He sighed and rested his head on his fist. "Just staring at each other isn't going to get us anywhere, you know."
Alli-Oxah sighed, too. "J-uh-ssst...star-stayr..." she huffed. "Jina watu."
"Jee-nah-wah-too," Lex repeated nodding. "I don't know what your saying."
The two sighed again.
Both turned when the door was suddenly opened and Lionel walked in. He had a tired expression on his face, as if he was annoyed. "Lex, you have been at this for days. I've hired some of the best teachers, let them try. You need to go back to school."
Lex stood quickly, "You can't do that!" He yelled, "She's afraid of everyone who comes in here! You've seen how strong she is, what do you think would happen if she got so scared that she thought she needed to defend herself? She's calmer when I'm around, and besides, half of those instructors already got fed up and left!"
"It doesn't help that you keep telling them that they are not welcome!" Lionel snapped, dangerously quite.
"Cyo tuy rytsu way optmaju," Alli-Oxah said, standing and stepping between the two. "Cyra optmaju." She put her hand on Lex's chest and Lionel's stomach, trying to separate them. "Tsukai?"
Both stared at her blackly. "Lex," Lionel said, closing his eyes and pinching the bridge of his nose, "What is she doing?"
Lex shrugged, "I don't know...maybe she wants us to stop?"
"Have you explained to her that I am your father, and therefore have the right to make you listen to me?!" Lionel said, his voice rising with every word.
"If I could explain that to her, would we be having this conversation?!" Lex yelled back.
Alli-Oxah looked between the two, threw up her hands and sighed exasperatedly. "Qutiamar!" She walked away from the two. She jumped and turned to the door, just as it was opened. She ran and hid behind Lex. "Di sha? Alexander, yum cy?"
Lex recognized that, she asked him that question every time someone she didn't know entered the room. He turned to her, looked into her eyes and said very calmly, "Just the maid, you're fine."
The corners of Alli-Oxah's mouth pulled up slightly, to form a quick smile. "Qu-jshon re ie?" She said questioningly, pointing at the maid.
"Anna," Lex said.
"Un-nuh," Alli-Oxah repeated. She turned back to Lex and pointed to Lionel, "Qu-jshon re wara?"
"Lionel Luthor," Lionel answered harshly before Lex had the chance. "Lex's father."
Alli-Oxah cringed at the menacing tone. "Ly-in-ull, Lu-the-or." She looked back at Lex, "Jo jira?!"
Lex gave her a look that told her he didn't understand.
She put her hand up to her head, thinking, than her head sprang up and she looked around the room. She grabbed the shirt of her long sleeved flannel pajamas and rolled it up. She pointed to Lex, than to the rolled shirt, and proceeded to hold it as if it were a baby, rocking it back and forth. The she took Lionel's arms and put the shirt in them and moved his arms to make the same motion she had. "Jira? Cy?"
Lionel threw the shirt down in disgust. "Lex, I can't have this. If you can teach her something in English, anything, in the next thirty minutes, I will let you teach her. But if you can't, you are going back to school, and she is getting a professional tutor." Then he stormed out of the room.
Alli looked down, "Verso cyo..." she said defeated.
Lex looked around the room, his father had been careless with that remark, "Anything..." he said slyly.
Alli looked back up and around the room. Her eyes instantly went to a vase of fresh flowers that Anna had just set on Alli's dresser. She gasped, "Xisha!"
Lex watched her walk to the vase and pull a flower out. She carefully ran her fingers over the petals, "Xisha..."
Lex instantly got a brilliant idea. He mentally kicked himself for not thinking of it before. "Flower," he said slowly. "Flower."
She looked up at him, "Fuh-lah-ow-wer?"
Lex rushed up to her and touched the plant, "Flower."
Alli smiled and took his hand, "Xi-sha," she annunciated very clearly.
"Zee-shaa," Lex repeated. Looked like he had outsmarted his father, yet again.
Lex walked into the living room of his Smallville mansion, quickly noticing Alley sitting on the reclining sofa in her pajamas with a small blanket covering her legs, her attention fixated on the television. He glanced at the screen then back to Alley, but instantly his eyes were drawn back to the screen. A half man, half beast in Renaissance clothing stood in a red hued cave with an orange haze blurring the sharpness of the focus. The shot turned into a close-up of the beast's face, his fangs bared and a tormented growl escaped his lips.
"That's a little frightening," Lex said sarcastically. "What are you watching?"
"Beauty and the Beast," Alley answered softly, her eyes remained glued to the screen. "Poor Vincent."
Lex smiled, "Doesn't look very "Disney"," he looked back to the screen, "Who's Vincent?"
"The beast," Alley said simply, "he has to save Kathryn."
Lex smiled and sat down next to her, "You don't have to watch so intently you know, it's a TV show, he'll save her. I thought you hated Earth stories for just that reason."
"I do. It's so fake. Sometimes you need that, though. Stories on Krypton were so different, more realistic. Here, the hero always saves the heroin." She paused for a moment. "The good guys always win in the end. Not real. So fake. Villain always waits to say the plan, gives the hero time."
Alley looked at him, her eyes half-filled with tears. Lex instantly became concerned, "What's wrong? What are you thinking about?"
A weary smile formed on her lips, "He's weird looking, but he's really sexy. So soft spoken."
Lex knew that she was trying avoid the fact that she was actually thinking about what had happened at the Talon yesterday with Frampson. He would indulge her, this time, "That all?" He looked back at the screen, "Something I'd like to watch?"
Alley shook her head, "Sappy '80's love story, live in different worlds. Good guy always wins." She nodded sadly, "Not real."
He took her hand to comfort her, and was startled to find a Band-Aid on her index finger. "What's this?!" He asked worriedly.
"I got a paper cut."
Lex put a hand on her cheek and turned her head to look at him, "YOU got a paper cut?!"
"Calm down, Alex, I told you I was getting my hair cut today, I was reading while he cut it." She smiled and pulled out a small, tarnished silver- colored box. "Can't get it cut without this opened a few clicks."
"Then why the Band-Aid? Close the cube, it heals." Of course Lex knew how the box worked, he'd been the one who had it made for her to seem more normal.
She shrugged, "Hair stylist gave it to me. I mean, I couldn't close it while he was cutting my hair, could I? Remember the first time? A single hair broke the ss—" she sighed, "Those cutting things."
"Scissors," Lex corrected unconsciously, "I remember. I was just making sure you weren't sneaking into dark-rooms."
Alley smiled, "Couldn't drag me into a red-lit room if you had all the glowing green meteor rocks on the planet."
Lex nodded, "Why don't you go to sleep, you have to deal with the rumors about yesterday tomorrow."
Alley sighed, "La tra." She looked back at the screen, the beast was caring a woman away from a fire, "Huh," she pointed to the screen, "he saved her."
Chloe, Clark, and Pete walked down the hall of Smallville High. The bell had not yet rang, and truthfully, they had ulterior motives; they were looking for Alley. Clark had a different reason from Chloe and Pete, but they all still wanted to find her.
Unfortunately, when they found her, she wasn't in one of the best situations. She was holding her folder tightly across her chest, trying to walk away from a boy who was laughing and shouting insults at her.
The three sped up to get to her, but were too late. A jock, the same one who had made fun of her in home room, just two days before, grabbed the boy and flung him onto the lockers. The bang resonated through the hall and the jock roughly held him there. "You leave her alone!" He yelled. The boy nodded fearfully, and when the jock released him he ran very quickly away. "That goes for everyone!" The jock yelled, "You mess with her, you mess with me!"
Clark stared for a moment, confused. He turned when he heard Pete congratulate Chloe. "Good job, Chloe." Pete said, giving the girl a high five.
"Well, you helped," Chloe answered.
Clark looked at each of his friends, then back to Alley. The jock was smiling at her.
"You okay?" He asked, "Sorry about that. We'll make sure that no one messes with you. Chloe told us everything. And when Chloe says it, you can be sure it's true."
Alley looked at him strangely. "Chloe told you what?"
"About the guy. Your uncle." Alley continued to look at him in disbelief, so he continued, "How you got taken away from him, cause he hurt you, and now he wants you back?"
Chloe ran up, and Alley looked at her accusingly. "Sorry, Alley," Chloe said quickly, "I know that you didn't want anyone to know, but I thought if Hank here knew, he could stop everyone from spreading rumors..."
Alley nodded her understanding, "Yes, just do not tell anyone, please. It is hard to think about. I do not want to answer questions."
Hank nodded, "I understand. Don't worry." He placed a beefy hand on her shoulder, in a comforting gesture, and held out his other hand, "You want me to carry your books to class?"
Alley shook her head, "No, thank you, I can manage."
Hank nodded and started walking.
As soon as he was out of earshot, both Alley and Clark turned to Chloe, "What the heck was that about?" Clark asked accusingly.
"Jeez, Clark, we asked you to help, but you were kind of out of it yesterday," Chloe said. "I knew that there would be some bad rumors about Alley going around, so I kind of used my reputation to get a few people to stop them."
Alley smiled brightly, "You are a true friend, Chloe!" She hugged Chloe tightly.
"Well, Pete helped, too."
Alley looked at Pete, blushing slightly, her eyes met his, and she instantly looked back down. "Thank you," she said quietly.
Pete smiled, "So, are you gonna tell us what really happened?"
"Yeah," Chloe piped in, "Maybe we can help?"
Alley looked up to Clark, then back to Chloe and Pete, "I-I...y-you wouldn't..." She sighed, "No, Alex and I can handle it."
"Great," Chloe sighed, "another one with secrets."
Alley looked back at Clark and kept her eyes on him for a long while. Clark started to shift uncomfortably under the piercing gaze. "I think we should get to class," Clark finally broke the silence.
Alley nodded, "Yes, I don't want to be late."
The rest of the day ran relatively smoothly, with the exception of one other comment about what had happened in the coffee shop; but that was easily solved by another jock who threatened a few unpleasant things if the comments continued.
The final bell released the students and Chloe and Alley walked out together. "I can't thank you enough, Chloe," Alley said for the millionth time. "No one, with the exception of Alex has ever stood up for me before."
"Well, you looked really scared. Whoever it was must have done something to make you so afraid; I didn't want everyone harassing you because of it."
Alley smiled, "I am happy you did. I do not wish to think about him ever again."
Chloe smiled and dropped the entire subject. Instead, she remembered the way Alley had acted earlier around Pete. "So...you were blushing when you said 'thank you' to Pete..."
Alley lowered her head and blushed again, "Perhaps..."
Chloe laughed, "You have a crush on PETE?!"
Alley's head sprang up, "SHHHHH!!!" She cried, looking franticly to make sure that Pete wasn't around to hear. "Not so loud!"
Chloe laughed, "That's a change, most girls instantly fall for Clark."
Alley looked at her in disbelief. "Clark KENT? What would attract girls to him?!"
Chloe became very defensive, but kept her tone joking, "And what's wrong with Clark Kent?!"
Alley scoffed, as if it was as obvious as the sky was blue. Then she smiled, "You have a crush on Clark!"
Chloe shook her head, "Do not!"
Alley laughed, "Of course." She shook her head, "So, why do all the girls fall for Clark? Is he the best kisser on the planet or something?"
Chloe shrugged, "I think it's that whole, straight as an arrow, goodie- goodie, farm-boy charm."
Alley made a face, "Eh."
"Not your thing?"
Alley looked down at her outfit, "How can you tell?"
"Well, Pete is Clark's best friend. Pete isn't too far off."
Alley shook her head, "No, Pete is very different, trust me. Clark must have been born here, he sure fits in."
"Actually, he was adopted. He found out his parents abandoned him, last year."
Anger flashed on Alley's face, "Abandoned?!" She said incredulously.
Chloe nodded, "Yeah, but he wouldn't tell me anymore."
"Jor-El frai-shwane quwe," she muttered angrily.
"What?"
"Sorry," Alley shook her head, "That's terrible. It hurts knowing that your parents don't want you."
"You were abandoned, too?"
Alley shook her head, "Yes and no, my parents told me that I was no longer theirs. It was long before Alex took me in."
"Why?! What happened?"
"Things were different where I was from...I angered my parents, disgraced them, so they—"
"Whoa, hold up, you said Lionel adopted you when you were seven, how old were you when your parents disowned you?!"
Alley shook her head, "Old enough."
"Wow, things must have been very different where you're from."
Alley looked up at the clear blue of the afternoon sky, "Like you couldn't imagine," she sighed.
Clark walked carelessly into his house. After talking to Lex yesterday he felt an odd mix of feelings. He was relieved to find that Lex knew nothing of his secret, but terrified at the positive, clenching proof that another Kryptonian was alive and knew about him.
"Clark?" His mother called from the kitchen, "That you?"
"Yeah, mom," he answered blandly.
"Clark," his father walked toward him. "You never told us what happened yesterday with Lex. You need to tell us son."
"She's from Krypton..." He said simply.
"But what about Lex?" Martha asked.
"No, he doesn't know. But what if she wants me to help her conquer the planet? I'm scared."
A knock on the door halted their conversation. Martha walked up to the door and opened it. A young woman stood smiling.
"Hello, ma'am. My name is Alli-Oxah. I was looking for Clark Kent, I sit behind him in homeroom and was wondering if he would tell me what I missed yesterday."
Martha smiled at the girl's polite cheerfulness, "Of course, come in. I haven't seen you around before, did you just move here?"
"Alley?" Clark asked, he and his father walked into the foyer, "Mom, dad, this is Lex's sister, Alli-Oxah."
Martha's smile drooped a moment, but returned just as quickly, "So, how do you like Smallville?"
"A tad small, but otherwise—" she looked at the three people in front of her and sighed. "Let's quit this act, I can tell that these people have been told. And seeing how only you, Alex, and I know, I'm guessing that you told them."
Clark looked at his parents then back to Alley, "How—"
She scoffed, "Come now, as soon as you mentioned I was Alex's sister her breathing jumped and her heart started beating faster. If you couldn't hear it, you could at least look through her and see it beating faster!"
Jonathan swallowed hard, "So, Clark was right; how did you know."
"He has his mother's eyes." She said, smiling softly, "And his father's nose."
"You knew Jor-El?" Clark asked in breathless fear.
"Of course, I was his Xia," she announced as if it explained everything. Then her face turned cold. "And while we are on that subject, what exactly are you telling people?!" He voice rose so she was practically yelling at him, "Fryt-Jor-El was the best father on all of Krypton! He would never have abandoned you! The only reason he sent you away was because the brain computer tricked everyone into believing—"
"Hold on, what?!" Clark was confused.
"Chloe said that you told her your parents abandoned you! First off, Fryt- Lara-El would have never let him, second, Fryt-Jor-El wouldn't! You were his pride and joy! He wanted to teach you everything from yoshmyr to—"
"War strategies?" Clark asked bitterly.
"War?!" Alley gasped, "What kind of people do you think Kryptonians were?! We were scientists! Jor-El was the best one! I was his...student. The only one who stayed after the council refused to believe that the brain computer was destroying us!"
"What are you talking about?" Clark asked.
"Your parents loved you, why do you think they would send you away?"
"To conquer?"
Alley laughed, "They wanted someone to survive. No one would listen to your father when he said the brain was killing our planet. I knew he was right, I did some of the experiments myself, but no one else believed him. He was striped of all rank because of it. All his Xio were taken away. But I stayed. I had to. I knew he was right. I was banished from my house, but I stayed and helped build the ships. Only I knew what it was like to have lived on Krypton. And you would survive as well. I would teach you, so that Krypton would not die."
"What's a Brain Computer?"
"It had come to our planet a hundred years before I was born. It said it wanted to learn about our way of life. Brain Computer is the closest translation I can come up with. But is destroyed our planet. NO one would believe Jor-El. They said it wasn't true. It knew how to cover it's tracks..."
"But," Martha interrupted, "Your Clark's age."
Alley laughed, "Hardly. I was seven and a half when I was forced off Krypton." Tears started to gather in her eyes. "Though I wish I had died with the rest of them!" Her voice was harsh and bitter. "You can't possibly understand what it's like to wake up to a sky that is BLUE! It makes me gag and wretch every time I see it! 'Intelligent' people only see the universe in four dimensions. You people know NOTHING! I had learned more by the time I was four, then the most advanced people on your planet learn in a lifetime! I was poked and prodded by "scientists" who have no concept of anatomy! They can't even figure out how the brain actually works. I hate it here! But my home is gone. And I can do nothing but try to survive."
A/N: Whoo! I think I'll stop there. Alley will continue her rant next week. I hope you like. Sorry about the hiatus. Prom and other senior things making my life really stressful crept up. But my writer's block is over. Please review! I hope that you enjoyed this little extra. I made you wait, so it was only fair.
And I finally got to introduce one of the most important pieces in the story. Alley's little sliver box. Watch for it.
Oh, and for anyone who knows about the 80's "Beauty and the Beast" will get the whole foreshadowing in this chapter.
Please review!