The next morning Bruce woke up early and ate breakfast with Alfred before declaring that he wanted to get to the school early so he would be back sooner. It was only seven and the doors wouldn't be open for another half an hour at least but Bruce needed the time. Alfred conceded as he already believed that Bruce would be with Clark for the remainder of the morning and had no reason to suspect that Bruce didn't notify the man in question that he was going to school with him.

It took him ten minutes to locate and walk to the school meaning he had another twenty minutes before students would deem it satisfactory to begin arriving. He needed to scope out entrances and exits not to mention get a full glance at the scale of the school if he was going to break in successfully. It had been some time since he had been this close to an educational facility, he wasn't lying when he told Clark that he had been expelled. It was shortly after his parents murder, long enough for the older children to deem it safe to approach him again. One of them made it his duty to correct any weird behaviour that was shown by lower students and purposely singled them out for humiliation, in short he was a bully. A bully who before the incident took pleasure in occasionally making Bruce's life harder but usually just left him alone, apparently there was always something unnerving about him. This occasion the bully had decided that Bruce needed to catch up on all the lax names and humiliation that he had been exemplified from and for two days he continually slammed him into lockers, tripped and pushed him around. It was on the second day that something snapped, during his lunch he hid away in the science labs and may have stolen some chemicals. He also may have learnt the bully's locker combination and may or may not have placed said corrosive and slightly harmful chemicals at tipping point in the bully's locker. None of the teachers could actually prove that it was Bruce though so he probably would have been able to stay in school had he not taken advantage of the boys writhing state and intentionally twisted his leg to breaking point. Since then he hadn't been back to another school so seeing a bigger and more advanced place of academics was interesting in a way.

After ten minutes of touring the outskirts Bruce found a trash can that would give him the height to reach the roof of the building. It was a better vantage point and also easier to slip into a school from above, it wasn't often that people thought to look up. The roof was mostly flat and luckily there wasn't many skylights or large windows that would easily give away his position. Taking a cursory walk Bruce found a shaded place to sit and hide. This would be the boring part, he hadn't thought to bring anything of entertaining value, next time he was breaking and entering he would have to be more prepared.

Bruce couldn't make his move until after the students had their break. The way he calculated it was that no significant activity would begin until the students were allowed a break- significant activity being plans between friends or the turning on of a school computer. So when they all went back to their lessons Bruce made his way to his feet. He scoped around the skylights that were there carefully as they probably led into a classroom but he needed to look none the less so he could find a suitable way in. Preferably he would have liked a skylight that would drop into the hallway but that was unlikely seeing as most schools situated their lockers near the side windows so Bruce would have to find an abandoned classroom instead and work his way into the hallway. On his eighth skylight he struck lucky, the classroom was mostly abandoned, the only person present was some junkie kid who from the amount he was injecting himself with wouldn't notice Bruce in a couple of minutes. Unfortunately he didn't have that much time, this was his only window of opportunity and he only had forty minutes left to get in and find the school newspaper room. He would have to risk it.

The junkie was sitting on a table and had his back facing the direction Bruce was descending in but he was facing the door meaning the exit was blocked. He would find a way around it but he first had to get down into the classroom as quietly as he could. Prying open the skylight and thanking himself for bringing the swiss knife that Alfred gave him Bruce dangled his legs in and twisted his body so his arms could take his weight and dropping further down. When he was extended as far as his hands could hold him he wasn't that far in, the problem with being eleven was that you were still short. He needed to gain more length to make his drop quieter so he hoisted himself back onto the roof. Glancing around there was really nothing that he could use. Except his jacket but even that had risks, the fabric was quality but the strength it held was questionable. The only solution he could come up with was to add his shirt into the mix creating a fabric rope with a loop at the top that would be attached to the end of the pole that in summer would open the skylight up. Luckily it extended all the way back or he would have to trapeze the halls of Smallville high in just his trousers. The pole was easily moved and Bruce left it extended over the drop into the classroom so he could easily retrieve his top and jacket as he fell.

He lowered himself back onto his hands before grasping his jacket and shirt and lowering himself down. The combination of both held his weight which he was grateful of and he was almost three quarters into the room when he extended himself. The part he was dreading was here though. With a tug to the right his jacked dislodged itself from the pole and into Bruce's hands as he dropped into the room and quickly rolled under one of the desks. The drop was loud, but not as loud as it could have been not that it mattered in the nearly empty room. The noise had attracted the attention of the junkie who had abandoned his high to scope out the noise.

"Who's there?"

Bruce stayed hidden and slowly crawled to the edge of the desk to the left of the junkies eyesight. He had an idea but it relied on the junkie not seeing him move up to the junkies table. Bruce moved slowly and reached it his luck holding as the student kept looking in all directions Bruce wasn't. He reached for the needle that had been abandoned on the table and quickly threw it to the right so it was within the junkies line of sight. With all the drugs he had previously taken Bruce calculated that his reflexes would be slow and reaction time slower. Normally when something is thrown in someone's direction they would look at what had been thrown before turning back to see the assailant. Curiosity over the thing that nearly killed you far outweighs the fear of who's throwing it at you so the nerve to turn around takes a few seconds to build. With the junkies reaction rate it left enough time for Bruce to run out of the classroom and behind some lockers before he heard the student peering out of the classroom to see who had ruined his high.

Once the junkie slipped back to wallow in his sorrows Bruce emerged from his hiding place. The hallway was crowded with lockers and posters that declared their school pride and Bruce walked down them until he reached the display case that every school showed off of their achievements. There was obviously football trophies but the award for the school newspaper and mathletes showed that sport wasn't what Smallville high focused on like most other schools. Snapping himself out of tourist mode Bruce set to work.

There were five classrooms to the right of him and four to the left both of them covering each wall. Another ten minutes of sleuthing would be required for Bruce to find his prize. Choosing a destination Bruce started with the left as the hallway this way eventually led to an exit. He stuck close to the ground as he roamed and stuck his ear to the door to check whether it was inhabited (only an idiot would think of exposing themselves by peering through the windows straight away) and encountered only one classroom that sounded empty. His luck turned sour when he saw that there was a study period going on and that was why there was no noise. The left was a dead end. So turning back Bruce almost ran back to start on the right. Again all of the classrooms were inhabited with students so Bruce had to turn the corner and start along the next corridor of classrooms.

He was beginning to think he would never find it when he saw a beacon of hope. It seemed the editor had pride in her newspaper and had labelled the door of 'the torch' birthplace. Smirking to himself Bruce let himself in. Inside the room was three computers, a printing press, camera and also a door that led to a collage of dreams come true. He knew the school was the right place to come. Almost every inch of the wall was covered in the weird and wonderful that made up Smallville from the invisible girl trying to ruin the school play to a bug boy. Bruce took out his pen and paper and wrote down all he needed from the wall. It wasn't the people he was interested in though but their abilities. In order to determine how different Clark could potentially be he needed all the data of meteor infected powers he could. If there was a common link in the strange abilities such as them all developing superior strength or noticeable mutation then it would be fair to assume that these changes would happen to Clark too. The differences were just as interesting to Bruce as well though and with Chloe's notes he could easily concur that it was the introduction of the radioactive rock to the different environments or personalities of the people victimised that helped determine their mutations.

Once he was finished it was almost the end of class, he only had another hour to get the rest of what he came for and get out before he ran the risk of discovery. Looking around he found an ideal hiding place in the vent that overlooked the room. With the pride this girl took in her paper it was likely that she would return in between classes to pick up certain objects, tweak or write ideas down that she would later use for an article. Bruce knew the type after all he was surrounded by reporters as soon as he stepped out from his nest.

It didn't take long to open the vent (damn that knife was handy) and soon he was crawling amongst the dust he made sure he got in backwards which was harder than it sounds so he could look into the room for people. Sure enough as soon as the bell sounded a blonde entered with Clark and another boy in tow.

"Okay this is the seventh time you've blown us off for that kid." She declared sweeping up random papers before putting them down and pinning some of them on the board.

"Yeah Clark between Luthor and this new kid I'm starting to think that I need to earn twenty billion in order for some attention."

"Oh come on it's not like that." Clark defended. "I'm sorry for blowing you off." He got some evil looks at that statement. "I am. But Bruce is only here for two weeks."

"Sooner he leaves the better." The boy mumbled receiving a hurt look from Clark. "What? He creeps me out. That stare of his ... ugh I feel like it can see into my soul."

"Well I don't know how. After all according to Clark the kids all smiles and rainbows. What was it you said? There wasn't a moment where he wasn't smiling at me like I was the best thing in the world." Chloe said dropping her voice in an imitation of Clark before laughing along with the boy.

"If you ask me Clark the kids just using you for cheap entertainment. You're like his dog, he calls you go answer and don't think that he can do a thing wrong." Clark opened his mouth to argue but was cut off by the boy again "Before you say anything can I just point you back to our conversation. You've known this kid for four days and when I ask if you want to come with me and Lana, Lana Lang to get a milkshake you're declining because the kid wants you to come play with him."

"He hasn't asked me to Pete. I'm going because I'm a nice person and he's a lonely kid who needs a friend." Lonely, Bruce wasn't lonely!

"What's the real reason you're hanging out with him?" Chloe called up. She had the look of any reporter with a bone.

"I just told-"

"No. The real reason. Sure you're a nice guy and I get that you want to hang out with kids because you're a kid person but there's no reason you would ditch on a way to talk with Lana for anything. So what's the real story with this Bruce?"

Clark looked like he was going to decline telling them anything before he sighed and confessed. "Okay so you know how I said that he always smiled when he was around me, well I didn't notice at first but he's a really sad kid and sad kids don't smile all the time like that. So I started looking at the other little things and the kids a complete fake. When he stayed at my house I think that was the first time I saw the real him but not when we were awake together... I woke up later and found him crouched over my telescope, but he wasn't looking through it I don't actually know what he was looking at. It was weird."

"Wall of weird weird?" Chloe queried intrigued.

"No, more investigating weird."

"You think the kids a spy?" Pete said disbelievingly

"No but something's going on with him."

"Well what did you do when you saw him looking at your telescope." Chloe interrogated

"I called out and he... went back to sleep. But the moment he turned around I knew that the Bruce that he shows me is a lie. You should have seen him. He looked petrified and sad and -"

"And?"

"You'll think its stupid but that kid isn't an eleven year old. None I've ever met anyway. It was like Pete said, his eyes could stare into my soul. No eleven year old has a stare like that. At least no one normal."

"So you're hanging out with him to see what he wants." Chloe concluded. "Smart. Play the player at his own game. Well, I suppose you can be excused from Lana gazing this does seem more important." She said while walking out the room followed by Clark and Pete and continuing some other insignificant part of their conversation while they walked to class.

So Clark knows that Bruce is investigating him. It makes things easier for Bruce as he can act himself around him now. But how he proceeds without alienating Clark will be difficult. Bruce decided to contemplate this later and waited three minutes after the bell sounded before moving.

The computer was logged out. Expected. It took Bruce five minutes to hack and get all the relevant data he needed. He had come to the conclusion two days ago when Clark was telling him about his friends that Chloe was a person he needed to pay a visit to. He computer at least. He told Bruce that she wanted to be an investigative journalist which got Bruce thinking that if she was any good then she would have started investigating the strange oddity that was Clark at some point. The evidence was all here. She had looked into the adoption but not to the extent that Bruce had, merely the fact that it was only alive on the day that the Kent's needed their papers. There was also stories from his childhood that people had told her. He'd accidently broke a boys arm thrown another across the field and broke a number of items that no seven year old should have been able to. So Clark must have super strength, interesting. There was also stories from personal experience. Clark having a panic attack and claiming he heard something from three streets away. Super hearing. Lana's story about Clark pulling her from the tornado. Super density, his skin must be able to withstand a lot of pressure to successfully stay intact through a tornado.

Bruce finished with half an hour to spare and restored the computer to its untouched state before turning to the window in the torch's office and climbing out. He made it back to the hotel by eleven and made up some story about how Clark showed him around the halls and field before heading off to class. He was suspicious as to why it took so long to do so but Bruce made up a story about wanting to wonder in the fields for a while before he came back.

"Any way of attaining freedom before meeting the Luthor's is a blessing Alfred." Bruce explained before collapsing back on his bed. It has been a stressful morning. But Bruce could fully accept some of Clarks abilities as truth. He was super strong and probably fast too, the strength in his legs and his sustainability would allow him to cross distances much faster than an ordinary human. He also could jump high and was probably bulletproof with super hearing.

After his exciting morning Bruce had nothing else to do until quarter to four when Alfred forced him to get ready. He had to wear one of his suits which was something he hadn't worn since coming to Smallville. The style of clothing was out of place in a town like this but he was headed to no mans land where the dress code was look like your worth something.

The car ride there was tedious and Bruce knew better than to complain to Alfred. Alfred was just as happy to go as Bruce was, less so since he had dined with them two nights ago. The Luthor estate was huge but being from old money Bruce didn't really see this as something impressive. The interior was full of expensive items and as the maid showed them to the lounge where they would site before dinner Bruce wondered if anything but appearance was important to these people.

Lex was sulking as they entered and had already poured himself a drink which wasn't the first one either judging from the way his glare was slightly glazed. Lionel was preening when he caught sight of Bruce and almost ran to introduce himself. Bruce plastered on his happy face and accepted the welcome. It seemed though that Lionel was more interested in Alfred than Bruce as he quickly asked if he would like a tour of the mansion and 'let the boys acquaint themselves.' Alfred (traitor) accepted and with a final glare from Lex the duo departed leaving Bruce with the lesser lion of the Luthor clan.

"You can sit down, I won't bite." Lex offered waving to the seat in front of his desk

"Thank you." Bruce accepted the chair.

"Touché. So you're the Wayne orphan. What's it like having no one to answer to?" Lex asked and Bruce was slightly unnerved to see that he actually meant half of that question and it wasn't just a jibe.

"Unnerving. How many of those drinks have you had?" Bruce enquired innocently keeping himself in character

"Four. Never start drinking, it solves nothing." He said while reaching for the tumbler to pour himself another. At this rate he wouldn't remember their conversation in the morning. Perhaps that would be beneficial to him Bruce thought.

"Then why do it?"

"It makes me feel better. So how are you enjoying Smallville?" Small talk. Lex was feeling the strain of forced encounters as much as Bruce.

Bruce went into an excited ramble "It's great, I met this boy named Clark and he took me to his farm. There was like chickens and horses he even let me ride one. And I got to stay over and look at the stars with him." Lex looked more intrigued since Bruce had mentioned Clark. The interest was what Bruce needed if tonight was going to achieve anything good.

"Clark huh? Well I must say that taking you under his wing isn't surprising. That boy's a genuinely good guy." He said the last part disdainfully to himself

"Yeah he's great." Bruce repeated just before the maid came in and told them that dinner was ready.

Lex looked like he was going to his execution as he downed the rest of his drink and motioned for Bruce to follow him. The dinner itself although the food was divine turned out to be the most awkward dinner he had ever attended. Lionel told stories here and there mixed in with lectures about war and life lessons which he thought everyone should try to follow. The effect it had on Lex could be shown through every sip of alcohol he downed, it looked like Bruce wasn't the only one bored with Lionel's monologue. While it was true that Bruce wanted to query Lionel on his involvement in Clark's life he knew tonight wasn't the right time to do it. So he focused on the slowly more agreeable target that was Lex.

After dinner Lionel again went off on a tangent before inviting Alfred for a tour of their wine cellar. With a departing look that had Bruce chuckling Alfred left with Lionel once again leaving Bruce with a drunk, vulnerable and most likely forgettable Lex Luthor.

Bruce moved over to sit in the chair he was in before and waited for Lex to make the first move, after all in successful interrogations it was important to let the victim feel like they have all the cards, they were more willing to spill that way.

"So ... Do you like comic books?" Lex ventured. Poor avenue but Bruce could work with it.

"It depends."

"Myself I'm a warrior angel fan. I have all the comic books dating back to the first issue ever printed." He sounded proud of himself

"I like the Gray Ghost. I always watch it when it comes on."

"I've heard about it but never watched it. It was about a superhero detective right?" Bruce told Lex the overview and specifics keeping in his role of eleven year old enthusiast. "It sounds interesting, I'll give it a watch."

"You should. Alfred said I could get the DVD when it comes out, I could lend it to you if you're still interested then."

"Yeah why not. So Alfred what's he like?" Lex asked

"What do you mean?"

"Well what's it like being raised by your butler. He's not really you're father, but he is your guardian and still in your service. I'm just wondering how he treats you." He seemed genuine.

"He's Alfred, apart from telling me off a lot more he's still the same as he was when my parents were still around. I guess he has to work more though, he fired the rest of the staff in the house because they tried to steal things from it to sell but..." Bruce shrugged, it was true Alfred hadn't really changed. He hadn't taken over as parent but he had taken on a more strict role in the house.

"It must be nice having someone care for you like that. Even if they aren't blood." Lex turned pensively into his drink

"Is this about Lionel. I saw the way he treated you, he shouldn't single you out like that parents are meant to be supportive and tell others about your achievements. Not give purposeful lectures directed at you." Bruce tried and received an angry look into his drink for his response. He wasn't angry at Bruce though so Bruce used this as his opening. Dropping the façade he continued:

"You know I heard some of the stories Clark told me about your dad. It seems like he's favouring Clark over you."

"Yes. And why shouldn't he?"

"Maybe it's because he see's Clark as unknown potential and he already knows what you're capable of. People like Lionel always favour blank slates." Bruce moved closer to Lex and took the drink out of his hand. Lex was drunk enough to spill and the haziness of their conversation to him would mean he would forget whom it was he was conversing with.

Lex snorted "Hardly. It's something else. It's Clark." He waved his hands as if that should be answer enough.

"Yes I suppose he is quite extraordinary." Bruce ventured.

"Extraordinary. Yes I suppose he is that. Did you know that we first met because he saved my life. Ripped the door right off my car when I careened into the river. I've done the math, there's no way anyone should be able to do that." He was gesturing wildly now and even got up to pace.

"There must be some explanation."

"Yes! But I've been exploring everything and I can't come up with it."

"Well maybe I can take a look at it. You know what they say, two eyes are better than one." Lex looked as if he was going to protest. "It's you're call Lex we don't have to if you don't want to."

"I never said it made me uncomfortable." Angry. At Bruce this time, he needed to deflect.

"That came out wrong. What I meant to say was that there was no need to feel intimidated. I don't think your work will be anything short of genius, I just wanted a glance so I could add my own knowledge to it. Maybe query you on some things about Clark that confused me. " He was distracted. Now go for flattery "After all if there's anyone who would be able to figure it out it's you Lex."

"You're right. Come on, it's this way."

Thus began Bruce's tour of the Luthor mansion. Lex didn't bore him with details and continued his drunken waddle down the hallways until they reached a door with a keypad on the front. Lex entered the number which Bruce stored away in memory hoping that Lex's inebriation prevented him from remembering the trip in here and changing the password. Inside was the car Lex mentioned before, along with boards of equations, computers running simulations and other things Lex had collected that all related back to Clark. Taking in the dents in the car it cemented the notion of super strength. They were Clarks fingers that dented it and the force used the pry Lex from his car could only have been achieved with someone of superior strength.

Bruce had to pretend he knew none of this "So what exactly does this show about Clark?" he waved his hands in a general arc around the room.

"Well somehow Clark was able to put these dents in my car door as he wrenched it off. I've ran everything but no amount of adrenaline could give him that kind of strength underwater." Lex said walking over to the car and smoothing his fingers down the dent, as if that would give him some answer as to what happened.

"What about the meteor rocks. Surely you've heard about the mutations people are experiencing." Bruce knew that Lex had but wanted to hear his reasons for disregarding them.

"No. Clark isn't meteor infected he doesn't go near any of them, some kind of fear he holds. Not to mention if he were infected I'm sure the rocks would have given him the power of invisibility rather than super strength."

"Why's that?"

"Have you seen him, he tries so hard to be invisible that he's almost overlooked by everyone in Smallville. Sure strength would be handy on a farm but the mutations seem to adapt more to hobbies and personalities than environment. Besides as far as anyone else is concerned there is no such thing as super powers. Father has made sure I know that." So Lex doesn't think that environment has anything to do with the mutations, it was certainly more plausible. The bug boy probably kept them as a hobby and the invisible girl was probably in the limelight but wanted a way to sneak around to spy on competition.

"I agree." Bruce conceded. "So what does that make Clark then?" He wondered.

"I don't know. But I will find out." Lex said with certainty. Bruce had seen his fill and gently coerced Lex back to his little office making sure that he reset the security protocols.

Once they were back in the room he headed straight for the drink cabinet whilst Bruce went to his computer. Hacking it was easy enough and looping the empty hallways to replace the ones they had just been in was easier. He made sure that the time stamp covered the periods they were gone before erasing Bruce's image from his exit and entry into this room. When Lex looked back it would look like they had stayed in the room and talked. Bruce made his way over to Lex and removed the tumbler which he seemed to be having trouble with from his grasp before leading him to the sofa.

"I'm going to go get Alfred, don't move." Bruce said back in his persona.

He removed himself from the room and went in search of Lionel and Alfred. Luckily they weren't that far, Lionel was telling Alfred about the different types of swords that were used in the old days and commenting about how good partners were hard to find these days much like in business.

"Alfred." Bruce declared announcing himself to the adults. Alfred looked relieved for a distraction and was already reaching for Bruce to tear him out of the house. Lionel on the other hand looked like his boat had just sank. "It's almost ten."

"Good grief we'd best be going. I'm sorry Lionel but you must excuse us I've been keeping Master Bruce on a strict schedule which includes a bedtime." Alfred explained taking Bruce's hand and starting to lead him out.

"Of course. Let me get Lex and we'll show you to your car. I take it he's still in his office." Bruce nodded and made his way with the adults to collect a Lex who was almost asleep when they came in. Lionel looked livid when he saw the state of his son. No doubt Lex would be getting a lecture on decorum later.

They led Alfred and Bruce out like they said they would but before they could get into their car Lionel made one last attempt to schedule another meeting with them. Bruce took this opportunity to approach Lex who was on the steps. Looking for cameras and finding none he crouched down to Lex's level, gained his attention and spoke quietly.

"You know I didn't think I would much like you but I do, you're definitely amusing for one. Listen though you shouldn't let the pressure that your father puts on you shape you into something that's not yourself. He isn't an ideal to strive towards in fact you should look at him as a warning of what you could become. I hope you make the right decisions. Oh and one other thing I don't know if you've noticed but the things your father thinks are nonsense he sure takes an awful interest in. Especially Clark. Lex look at me. I need you watch out for Clark, your father wants something with him and he's lying to you about it. You need to start opening your eyes to the truth."

"Master Bruce, time to go." Alfred called. Bruce waved Lex goodbye before following Alfred into the car.

The Luthor mansion was far in the distance when Bruce let out his first yawn. "Time for bed Master Bruce?"

"Definitely."

"And what about tomorrow. Any plans or are you joining Lionel and I for some squash." Alfred joked knowing there was no way Bruce was going near Lionel for another two days.

"I'm going to the farm tomorrow. Clark said I could come over after he was finished with school." We have many things to talk about was left unsaid.