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Clark shuddered even though it was a warm day. Suddenly, he decided it may be better not to seek help from his parents until he knew the full facts. Maybe I can just grab some food and head back. He waited quietly while Martha packed all the muffins and then departed the family home.

In his heart, Clark wanted to call out to his mother as she slipped out the screen door. It was a son's normal reaction in this kind of situation, but Clark bit his tongue. Some inner warning bell was ringing, and somehow the teen knew he had to remain out of sight.

When the door latch finally clicked into the closed position, Clark warily moved from his hiding place and checked out the kitchen. His first food target was an easy one. While Martha had been filling her basket with the blueberry muffins, she'd inadvertently broken a chunk from one and it had dropped unseen onto a chair beneath the lace table cloth.

Clark smiled at the mammoth hunk of cake that was now staring at him. "Hmn, Mom you cooked my favourites!" Now all he had to do was find a way up on to the chair to acquire his new find.

The teen looked around, abruptly wishing he had Spiderman's abilities to adhere to what he was climbing. After a moment, he realized his mom's sewing basket should be in its usual spot in the corner. Grinning, Clark super sped to where he expected to find the basket, and wasn't disappointed. Easily using the lattice framework as a ladder, Clark was inside in seconds.

"Whoa!" Clark fell onto a ball of wool as he jumped down, and narrowly missed a knitting needle's point as he slid into the contents of the container. "Lucky I'm spear proof!" He joked to himself.

At the bottom of the basket he found his goal. Martha always kept a few safety pins handy, and right now he needed one in a hurry.

Clark grabbed the huge metal fastener and then scurried back to the ball of wool. "And now for the rope…" He hastily unravelled some of the bright blue twine and seared off enough to serve his purpose using a short blast of heat vision. Once the yarn was severed, he wound it up and tugged it over his shoulder like a cowboy would a lasso. Then, it was a quick climb back out, and a short superspeed over to the chair.

Clark looked up at his new mountain and wished he could fly like he once had as Kal- it would have been so much quicker. Instead, he attached the wool to the open safety pin and whirled it in an arc above his head until it had gathered enough speed and momentum. Then, he let it loose with a small prayer and the pin flew upwards, snagging on the chair like a make-shift grappling hook.

Clark tugged on the wool to ensure the pin would take his weight, and then hurriedly ascended its length up to the chair seat. At the top, the sweet smell of the muffin almost made the effort worth while. "Chloe is so going to love this…the world's biggest muffin chunk!"

Clark took off his jacket and laid it down, breaking of large sections of the succulent cake and placing them in the center. When he was sure he had plenty, he folded his jacket in from each edge and tied it in the middle, effectively making a muffin filled pouch. To any of the others it might have been an awkward load to juggle while climbing, but Clark simply threw it over his shoulder and abseiled back down his woollen rope to the kitchen floor.

"I guess it's time I was getting back before Lex and Chloe get worried," Clark checked his watch and then kicked back into superspeed to the nearest open window, taking his new hook and rope with him to elicit an escape.

Outside, he paused and glanced around one last time. It was still hard to believe he may never call this place home again- at least not in the same sense he used to. He looked at the barn and wished he could go peek from his telescope one more time, or sit atop his couch pondering how to avoid Lois, but those days were apparently gone.

Clark sighed and readjusted his 'muffin backpack' before heading back the way he had come. I guess I better avoid the mud this time! He smiled to himself wondering what Chloe would have thought of his mud-caked face. She'd have found it hilarious, he suspected.

Clark reached the border of the Kent property in record time, using his speed to full advantage. At the last field, he paused at the sound of the old tractor somewhere nearby, and climbed on top of a boulder-sized rock to check it out.

Jonathan had let the herd into the meadow where Clark had landed in the mud, and was now unloading feed for them from the tractor's trailer. "Great! How do I superspeed across there without spooking the cows?" Shelby was sitting with Jonathan too, and Clark was concerned he might alert the farmer to his tiny son's presence, or worse, try and lick me again!

The teen climbed back down from the stone and realized he might have to take the long way around on the trip back. It would probably make him late, and Chloe would freak, but there was little else to do. He would have to take the main road and go past the Hawthorne's farm. I better move my butt!

Clark snuck a tiny piece of muffin out and ate it for his trouble, and then jogged by the nearest of the Kent heifers so as not to spook them with his speed. It was funny, but he knew from experience that cows could be pretty sensitive animals.

Once he reached the end of the thicker grass, he checked his bearings and was about to hit full throttle when something huge and furry stopped him.

Apollo's paw swiped out like lightning from where the cat had been hiding, and its swiping motion sent the teen flying through the air like some field mouse caught unawares.

Clark landed with a thud on the edge of the gravel roadway, and was so disorientated he didn't even have time to speed away.

Apollo pounced, claws outstretched, and he had no intention of being the loser this time. The defeat he had suffered at the tiny being's hands the previous night had left a mark in the cat's mind. If a feline could understand such a concept, Apollo wanted revenge.

Clark rolled onto his back, squashing his muffin haul slightly in the process, and instinctively covered his face with his arms, even though his skin couldn't be pierced.

The cat pawed him more, trying desperately to inflict harm, and the teen's shirt was torn in several places. When his long, sharp talons refused to sink into flesh, Apollo meowed angrily, and then hissed on his prey. Clark thought about blasting the cat with his heat vision, but it seemed so unfair to the animal. After all, the cat was only following its instincts.

Then, a friendly and welcome sound saved the day. From the field where Clark had just exited, Shelby came barrelling through the grass and out onto the track. He barked repeatedly, and then his hind legs skidded in the gravel as he stared out the cat.

Apollo's back arched, and for the moment Clark was forgotten while the classic cat and dog showdown played out. In the end, Apollo decided Shelby was too big to risk sinking his claws into, and he made a dash for home.

Shelby paused just for a second to look at his tiny master, and his tail swished lovingly, but then he couldn't resist the thrill of the chase and he raced after the fleeing cat.

Clark hastily stood up and surveyed the damage. His plaid shirt had a few small rips, and the muffin backpack was a little squashed, but otherwise he was in one piece. I guess I better high tail it! Without thinking where he was directly going, Clark let his muscles do the work and headed back in a westerly direction. Being late now was inevitable.

He'd travelled what he imagined to be about half the distance to the plane when he began to tire. That in itself was weird. Why do I feel like..?

Clark took two more steps and felt his knees begin to buckle. Normally, he'd know about Kryptonite's presence way before it got too dangerous to back off- even if it made him feel sick. Right now, he'd sensed nothing until he was hitting the dirt face first. Great, more squashed muffin!

The sheer concentration of the radiation being emitted was immense, and as Clark scanned his surroundings from his almost fetal position he saw why. Off to his left, partially concealed by a tree root, was a chunk of meteor rock. It was like being next to an emerald mountain of pain and torture.

The thing looked like it could have laid there since the shower, so thick was the undergrowth around it, but of course that didn't matter to Clark. The only thing on his mind right now was how to escape its mounting effects before he succumbed to them and died.

With every movement Clark felt his body deteriorate, and his veins bulged with the evil green fire that coursed through them like the devil's tentacles. He reached out, desperately trying to pull his blighted body away from the mammoth fragment, but all his fingers could do was scratch in the dirt he was so drained. He'd never been exposed to such a large quantity of Kryptonite before, and its intense power was literally sucking his life away.

Thoughts of home came back to him then, and of Chloe- even Lois too…

Chloe trudged through the corn feeling both elated and dejected at the same time. She was happy that she didn't have to hide her knowledge of Clark's gifts anymore, but sad that it had come out the way it had. She'd wanted Clark to tell her in his own time, but their current predicament had changed all that. At some point they would need to get away from Lex and discuss things.

Chloe stopped and looked around. There was nothing except crops and an old dirt track for as far as the eye could see. She wouldn't be finding much to eat this way despite going further than she'd planned. Sighing, the reporter checked the time and noted she was going to be late back. Great, Superboy will be freaking! She turned; about to retrace her steps to the plane when something made her pause.

It sounded like a cat's high pitched scream, followed by a dog barking. "Oh boy, sounds like Apollo might be out and about again!" Chloe shivered and decided to deviate slightly from her course in an effort to avoid the feisty feline and its doggy follower. "If I see one more ear of corn I'll scream!" She muttered as she hurried away from the noise, "I wonder if Clark or Lex had better luck? Say, a huge pot of coffee or miniature lattes to go might be nice…"

"Chloe!"

The reporter stopped dead as she heard her name called meekly from behind a gnarled tree stump. What the…She gulped, wondering if she'd imagined it, but then the plea came again, only much weaker this time.

"Chloe…"

The small blonde didn't hesitate a second time. The feeble voice had been heart- wrenchingly recognizable. "Clark!" Chloe called out in answer and raced behind the wooden stump.

Clark lay on the floor unmoving and silent as she rounded the rotting obstacle. He was curled up in a ball and only his eyes showed any cognisance as she dashed towards him. "What happened? What's wrong?" Chloe bombarded Clark with questions while kneeling at his side and placing a hand on his arm reassuringly.

Clark looked over her shoulder. "M…meteor rock." He tried to nod, indicating the green death's direction, "I'm allergic to them…"

Chloe whirled around and saw the emerald boulder glowing slightly under the thick vegetation. "I'll go get Lex, he can carry you…" She jumped up, thinking back to all the times that Clark had collapsed in the past when he came into close contact with Lana. It was the necklace!

Clark somehow reached out a hand and weakly tried to pull her back. "No time, Chloe…killing me…" His finger slid down her arm and he slumped back into his position on the floor, half conscious.

Chloe bit her lip and looked around. She was out of time, and out of options. Clark was dead weight in his current condition, and she wasn't exactly the ideal size to lift him. Don't you dare think 'dead' weight again, Sullivan! She chided herself for her choice of words, and then hooked her tiny arms under Clark's shoulders.

With a sharp intake of breath, Chloe tugged backwards as hard as she could, effectively dragging her friend away from the poisonous rock. Hauling Clark wasn't easy, and Chloe soon found she was out of breath. The further away from the rock they got though, the less it seemed to glow. "That has to be a good sign huh, Clark?" He didn't respond, but talking to him at least made Chloe feel better.

Once they were at what Chloe thought was a safe distance, she slumped breathlessly to the floor and let Clark's head gently fall in her lap. He looked a sickly pallor, but worst of all she realized she wasn't even sure if he was still breathing. "Clark!" She shook his shoulder and then put a hand to her mouth in fear. He always recovered once Lana backed off with the necklace, why isn't he now? Don't tell me I've waited so long to be honest with him and now…

"Clark!" Chloe's scream sounded so harrowing it seemed to echo through the corn despite her size. She prodded him again and began to sob, because that was all she had energy left for.

After awhile, Chloe gulped and looked down at where her tears had splashed on Clark's face. He can't be dead! She rubbed the moisture away from her own bleary eyes, and then rubbed a fingertip gently across his wet cheek. At her touch, he moaned softly but still didn't stir.

Chloe smiled wanly with relief, and sniffled as more tears came. Clark was alive, and nothing else mattered. She examined him intently, and once she was satisfied he wasn't getting any worse, she took off her small jacket and placed it under his head. "I know if you were awake you'd probably argue with me, but I have to get Lex. I can't carry you, Clark."

Chloe brushed his hair back affectionately and looked dismayed at having to leave him alone, but she had to get help. If the tiny fragment of rock in Lana's necklace could make him sick, then what could a chunk the size of a small car do? She took one glance back at him, praying Apollo didn't make another visit while she was gone, and then Chloe sprinted off in the hope that Lex was already searching for them both. We're late back. Maybe he'll head this way first, Another worrying thought came to mind; how the heck do I explain what's wrong with Clark to Lex?

TBC...