AN: Thanks to my great betas: Mak5258 and BrinLondo for making me look so good, or at least making my story look good.
Usual disclaimer….I don't own Superman, Clark Kent, Lois Lane… or any other human or alien either real or imagined. If I did wouldn't I be guilty of slavery?
Kat looked at the occupants of the darkened room, people she respected, people she cared about, the only family she had.
Perry White, one of the most respected journalists alive today sat on an overstuffed chair wringing an old handkerchief. The vacant look on his usually animated face told her that her former boss had been broken by his nephew's death, and the burden of his family's secrets. Secrets about spies, and heroes: secrets that when verified would destroy his, and The Daily Planet's credibility in the fickle world of journalism.
Observing Lois and Clark she now had an idea of the burden those two carried, and garnered a new appreciation for both of them, for all of them. Clark's mother the most, the pressure that woman must have felt over the years, being the only other person to hold Clark's secret. Imagine, a simple farmer finding and raising a most amazing child, a child from another world – a child that would become Superman. It was a secret that could never be revealed, a burden never to be shared with anyone outside this room, though kat realized that even in this room not all were privy to the fact that Superman sat among them. Even amongst their closest friends and companions the secret remained.
Martha handed Kat a cup of tea, "You handled yourself very well out there. Thank you."
Kat watched as Martha poured herself some tea then settled back in an overstuffed chair, tears falling softly from ancient and tired eyes.
Jason crawled off his mother's lap and moved over to his grandmother, reaching his small hand to wipe a tear from her cheek. He carefully crawled up into her lap, wrapping his arms around her neck.
Kat watched in awe the depths of this family's love and devotion. This child, who only met his grandmother a few days before now comforted her as only a child could. That he would reach out to those he barely knew spoke volumes of the man he would become. One could only hope that he would be as kind and gentle as his father. By this child's actions she knew that the world should not worry that the Son of Superman could ever be anything to fear.
The TV flickered in the background, images of the day's news rolling past in a discouraging montage of violence and mayhem. How many times in the past did they all watch the reports brought to them instantaneously through the miracle of computers, video, and satellites? The constant bombardment of the worst in mankind would be enough to dishearten the purest of hearts. Instead he – Kal El, Superman, Clark – sat watching, loving, and comforting those who sat with him, the images only reinforcing his resolve to be a light in this dark world.
The images again changed: General Zod now graced the screen, his outward appearance leading one to believe that he was trustworthy, that he was as human as the audience he addressed. His smooth words working their way into the minds of those naive enough to listen to trust in the man who had already destroyed one world, and now desired to control another.
Clark went into the kitchen to get a drink. Even with the sound turned off he could hear the voice of his father's sworn enemy, the disdain for mankind oozing from his lips. Zod said one thing, while his whole demeanor screamed liar. He was good. From the sound bites presented Zod was made out to be the victim, and Superman was guilty by default.
"What are you going to do?" Martha asked quietly, her voice startling Clark. He had been alone for so long, it had become habit for him to draw into himself, even when he was home.
"What can I do? He has a point. Superman must keep aloof, separate, if only to protect you all. That mystique is the only disguise I have. If someone found out who I am, that you raised me, that Lois and Jason are my family…."
"But doesn't Luthor already know? What if he tells someone else?" Martha started to busy herself opening cupboards and pulling out the ingredients needed to start dinner. Clark helped her has he noticed that she was reaching for an item on the top shelf.
"He does. But I don't think that is information that he would hand out freely. Knowledge is power, and men like Luthor and Zod don't share power. No, we don't have to worry about Luthor. Zod is the one pulling the strings, Luthor's just a puppet. He had his time. Zod has moved on and put new players on the stage. The next act is about to begin."
"Do you have any clue as to what that might be?" Lois asked from the doorway, Kat was standing next to her.
"I have a theory only. Nothing concrete yet." Clark looked over to the two reporters.
"I'm sure that Zod has a hand in much of what is happening," Kat agreed. "But, the only way we are ever going to get any evidence is if one of us gets back to work. Start digging. And since you are on suspension and Lois is a grieving widow, I'm sure that neither of you are going to be getting back out there anytime soon."
"Right, grieving widow." Lois looked at Clark guiltily.
"We're going to figure out what Zod is up to, if he is behind all the commotion about Jason, and why he wants the fortress bad enough to ally himself with humans," Clark said wincing at the way it sounded.
Lois bristled at that comment; "You make us sound so disgusting, Kal El"
"In Zod's mind you are. I'm of a different mind-set," Clark looked at his wife and smiled, lifting an eyebrow slightly.
Kat and Martha both laughed. "We know what of what mind-set you are, Farm-Boy." Lois swatted at him. "Your son speaks volumes of your mind-set."
"I take back what I said about you being a grieving widow, Lois. Have you no shame?" Kat fired back, mock indignation in her voice.
The sound of laughter brought the other inmates of the house into the kitchen. By the time dinner was ready, the inhabitants' mood had been lifted. After the dinner mess had been cleared up – and all were feeling well fed, the adults again began discussing the upcoming events of the next few days.
"Jason, why don't we get you ready for bed, then we'll read some stories. We'll let the grownups talk."
"What was my father's favorite story?"
"The Velveteen Rabbit. Would you like to hear it?"
"Uh huh." Jason quickly gave his parents a hug, then his Uncle Perry.
"G'night!"
As Martha and Jason ascended the stairs he turned to his grandmother "After you read me about the rabbit, could you tell me about Krypton?"
"Oh, honey, I don't know about that. I've never been there."
"Oh. The crystal lady tells me about Krypton."
"I have to get back to the station. I really want to get your interview turned in for the morning segment. Then I'll start digging into Madam Lopinsky's role in Luthor's and Zod's releases. I'm sure she's dirty."
"I know she is. I just was never able to get any corroboration." Frustration was evident in Lois' voice.
"With someone as important as Anne Lopinsky, you'd better have proof before you turn in a story."
"Maybe you can get one of your sources to find out who got CSD involved as well. I don't think it was anyone at the Planet, though I have been wrong about co-workers in the past." Lois looked over at Clark.
He shrugged. "What?"
"Good-night all," Ben Hubbard yelled from his truck, hand waving out the window. Perry sat uncomfortably next to him, his computer bag on the seat between them.
"I'm sure glad Clark and Lois are spending time with Martha. She has been acting a little strange lately. Maybe having the kids around will help, she was alone for so long while Clark was out doing his thing. Even with him in Metropolis she's a lot happier than while he was out traveling the globe. Do you even know what he was looking for? Did he find it?"
"You would have made one hell of a journalist, Mr. Hubbard. You fire off those questions like a pro," Perry smiled.
"You would have made a great politician. You haven't answered one of my questions," both men guffawed at his reply.
"Seriously, Martha really missed having Clark around. While he was gone it was like he fell off the face of the Earth. Then she got it in her mind to travel herself, and drag me along. We'd fly off for a few days to South America, or Africa. Exotic places. I think she'd go online and find the cheapest flights, and just go. She always made sure to find postcards of the places we went." Ben smiled thinking of some of the places they visited and the interesting people they met.
"I bet she wracked up the frequent flier points."
"No doubt about that. She used them to fly us to Metropolis when she found out that Clark was hurt. Funny thing about that, she never did go see him in the hospital."
"They wouldn't have let her in. The whole place was on lockdown because of Superman."
"They let Ms. Lane in."
"She's Lois Lane. They had to let her in." Perry squirmed as he wondered how much his host really knew about Clark Kent.
"It is a pleasure to meet you, Mr. President, General Lane," General Zod smoothly greeted the leader of the free world and his staff. "I have looked forward to this meeting to discuss my plans to help you make your world better, a safer place to raise families, to continue your great race for many generations."
"Kal El has betrayed a great trust: he left the Knowledge crystals of Krypton unsecured on what is, I am sorry to say, a very primitive and corrupt world allowing one of your worst criminals to steal them from his fortress and use them in a manner unworthy of their value.
"The crystals that Kal El holds should not be held by just one man, a man who on our world would not yet be considered a man, but an adolescent, a child. That he controls them is not right. They were meant for the use of your people, to give you all the knowledge to overcome your corrupt nature and become a part of the larger universe.
"Within those crystals is the combined knowledge of all the known galaxies in the universe. Those crystals would give you the knowledge to end famine and disease on your world. They would allow you to break from the bonds of your three-dimensional thinking, and open you to a whole new realm of understanding. One that will allow intergalactic space travel, setting before you new worlds to explore, civilizations far older than your own to learn from. Your people would finally take their place, and become what Krypton once was: a light in a very dark universe.
"Kal El should not be hording that knowledge or the powers for which he is known. His great powers have already given him an advantage over you: powers that have come from generations of genetic manipulations, and are not natural even to my people. They are powers that can be removed by simple genetic manipulation, and restored just as easily."
"So you could have your powers restored?" The President asked.
"I can, but would that not also give me an unfair advantage over your people? Kal El is an elitist. He flies and is invulnerable. He has great knowledge he keeps from you, and takes justice in his own hands. He flaunts his powers while keeping isolated from you, telling you that he does not lie, when in fact his whole life is a lie."
"Kal El has been on this planet for far longer than anyone has assumed, growing from childhood, learning your customs, your history. Kal El has a secret life. One that has as much power as his more public persona: one that doles out information and controls opinions."
"Oh, really? Next thing you'll try to tell us is that he works for The Daily Planet." General Lane quipped. The other occupants of the room laughed nervously.
"You would know, now wouldn't you, " General Zod replied smoothly, his toothy grin aimed directly at General Lane, "Isn't his spokesperson, Lois Lane, your daughter? Wasn't her son born shortly after he left? Weren't you the one who sent Kal El off on his little voyage? Isn't it your fault Superman hasn't been here for, what, five years?" All eyes turned to look at General Lane.
"Sam, is this true? You sent Superman away?"
"I presented him with data that we had received from a deep space probe that showed that Krypton had not been completely destroyed. Kal El made the decision to investigate it on his own. I had no idea that the images we received were faked, that somehow someone had hacked into the imaging system and uploaded old data."
"You refer to Superman as Kal El?" Zod tried to turn the conversation away from his manipulations, unhinged that this human would refer to a Kryptonian by his given name.
"That is his name, is it not? Superman is a title my daughter gave him when they first met, she didn't know what else to call him; and from what I understand it is a very good name, from a very respected family. I am honored that he considers my family his friends."
"You do know that I'll keep your secret, Clark, Lois. That little boy upstairs is just too important, too special to let just anyone get their hands on. I'll do whatever needs to be done to help you protect him."
"We appreciate that, Kat." Lois picked up her mug of tea. "I'm sorry I was so rough on you when you worked at The Planet."
"You were just trying to protect what was your own. I just don't get why you were so insecure back then. Everyone has always known: Superman might serve the world, but he belongs to Lois Lane."
"Hey, I'm right here, girls," Clark blushed.
"No – Clark's here. I don't see Superman anywhere in this house," Kat teased back.
"She's right, Smallville. There is nary a sign of red or blue. Just glasses and khaki, and the man I love."
"Oh, Pahleese, can't you two wait until I'm outta here?"
"Nothing's keeping you." Lois replied as she looked up at Clark.
"I guess you won't be wearing black for long."
"I think Lois looks good in black, though I prefer pink." Clark teased back, this time Lois blushed.
"You do realize that there is a child in the house," Kat sniped.
"How do you think he got here? He didn't crash his spaceship like his father did."
"Oh – I think it's time to go. Just don't let me know if you join the mile-high club, okay?" Kat walked out the door, "See you around, Smallville. Mrs. Smallville."
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