AN: A shout out to Cajun Strong Man 2, Shorte-J, DarkLumm, Maigra917, Moonlit Night199, cabrera1234, and mythule for reviewing/following/ and or favoriting this fic plus all the other people that have taken the time to read what I've written. If I missed anyone I apologize. You guys rock!

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3: Stangers

The nurses at Metropolis General Hospital set to work washing all the blood off Thora's arms and legs the second she was brought in. Their worried looks turned to ones of slight confusion when they didn't find any cuts or scratches. After all the blood had been wiped away, they stepped out and a doctor came in.

"Miss Jane?" he asked, eyeing her carefully.

"Yes?" Thora asked tentatively.

"My name is Dr. Hamilton," he said with a smile. His deep brown eyes appeared sincere behind his glasses and his demeanor seemed pleasant. Thora found herself instantly relaxing. "Can you tell me how you got blood all over you?"

"I-I think I fell through a window," Thora replied. "I woke up in a warehouse and I have no idea how I got there."

"Hmmm, did you hit your head?"

Thora nodded. "I think so. It hurts right here," she said, pointing to the sore spot.

"Mind if I take a look?" Dr. Hamilton asked, stepping forward. He gently pressed down on the spot indicated and Thora winced. "What happened after you woke up?" he asked, feeling around the tender area.

"I didn't recognize where I was but when I saw the city, I headed that way figuring I'd find people that might be able to tell me where I am. Outside the warehouses, I saw some of the crates shipping labels were to Metropolis from Los Angeles. The weird thing is, I've never heard of Metropolis before."

"Really? But you've heard of Los Angeles?"

"Yeah."

"Hmmm, where are you from?"

Thora strained her brain but all of a sudden her head throbbed painfully and she actually gasped. "I-I don't know," she cried. Dr. Hamilton then asked her who her parents were, how old she was, and when she was born. Thora only shook her head sadly. "I have no idea."

He nodded. "It would appear that when you hit your head, you lost your memories."

Thora stiffened. "Is there any way for me to get them back?"

"Perhaps," he said. "Usually when this kind of amnesia occurs one can gain their memories if they are surrounded by familiar things."

Thora's brow furrowed. "But what kinds of things would help?"

Dr. Hamilton shrugged. "You know your name and you still have your personality. Try to familiarize yourself with things that you like to do. Also shop around places that you are drawn to. If you have a craving for something, satisfy it. Any thing you like now, you liked before, and those things just might help clear the amnesia."

Thora nodded. "Okay."

"The couple that found you, do you know them?"

Thora shook her head.

Dr. Hamilton nodded. "I'll be back in a moment."

"Okay," she said nervously.

What was going to happen to her? She didn't have a clue where she was or even where she was from. She couldn't remember her parents so it wasn't like she could just call them up and have them come get her. She wasn't even sure if Thora Jane was her full name. It could be just a first name or a nick name. It might even be a name she thought up on her own. Fear ecalated through her veins. They couldn't keep her in the hospital. Were they going to send her to a foster home? She didn't even know how old she was and she didn't have any ID on her. Was she old enough to be on her own? Thora took some deep breaths to keep the panic from consuming her. It was best to just wait for Dr. Hamilton to return.

o0o

"Mr. White?"

Richard looked up to find a doctor coming towards him. "Yes?"

"Dr. Hamilton," he said, shaking his hand. "I was wondering if I could talk to you a little about Thora."

"Is she okay?" Lana asked, standing up.

"She's fine except for the fact that she has temporary amnesia. She doesn't know who her parents are, where she's from, or when her birthday is. I'm not even sure if she could tell us any basic information that would help to identify her."

"So what's going to happen to her?" Richard asked.

"Well, we could take a blood sample and her fingerprints and run them through the system to see if we can find a match but that's going to take some time. Since you found her, would you be willing to take care of her until we got the results?"

"I don't have a problem with it, do you honey?" Richard asked, looking at his wife.

Lana shook her head. "It's the least we can do."

Dr. Hamilton nodded. "Maybe you can take her around the city. Things that she's interested in might help to jog her memory."

"Good idea," Richard said.

"If I could just get your information," Dr. Hamilton said, pulling out a clipboard. "I'll finish up with Thora. When you're done you can just come back to her room."

Richard's cell phone suddenly began to ring. Glancing at the ID, he sighed. "My uncle's calling. Can you handle the paperwork, honey?"

"Sure," Lana said, taking the clipboard.

"Hey Uncle Perry," Richard said while Lana wandered over to a chair and began scribbling their information down.

"Richard, son, where are you?" Perry demanded. "You were supposed to get here an hour ago."

"I know, I'm sorry. I'm at the hospital."

"What? Are you alright?"

"Yeah, I'm fine."

"Then what in blazes are you doing at the hospital? Are you chasing down a lead?"

Richard grinned. "No. It's kind of a long story. Look, I'll be at the office in about half an hour. I'll explain everything then."

"Alright, fine. But hurry up. I'm not going to give you any slack for being late your first day back after vacation."

Richard laughed. "I love you too, Uncle Perry. See you in a bit," he said before hanging up.

"I'm not so sure I want to meet your uncle," Lana murmured as she handed the now completed form to the receptionist behind the counter.

"Nonsense, Perry will love you!" Richard said, kissing her forehead. "Come on, let's go get Thora."

o0o

Thora was sitting on the edge of a bed still wearing her torn up dress. She was now blood free even though she still appeared to be shaken up. Lana put her arm comforting around the girl's shoulders and explained the situation. "Are you okay with spending time with us while the hospital tries to figure out where you're from?"

Thora nodded. "That's not going to be a problem for you, is it?" she asked, suddenly fearful.

"Not at all," Richard replied with a warm smile. "We've got plenty of room at home. Besides, I'm sure Lana will love spoiling you."

Lana smiled in agreement. "And I think the first thing we should do is take you shopping. We can't have you wandering around Metropolis in that dress."

"But I don't have any money," Thora said.

"Don't worry about it," Richard said. "We've got permission from the doctor to spend as much as we want on you. Besides, it's no trouble at all seeing as Lana is fithy rich."

Lana rolled her eyes. "You're as well off as I am Richard White. Richard is the Assistant Editor for the Daily Planet," she said to Thora.

"It's the best news paper in the city," Richard explained from Thora's confusion. "And Lana just retired from being a famous fashion model."

"Really?" Thora asked, eyeing Lana curiously.

Lana shrugged. "It's not that big of a deal, honestly. I mainly modeled for clothing companies in Europe. That's how Richard and I met. Since he's incharge of the International department for the Daily Planet he get's to travel around the world."

"I was covering the fashion show when I saw her," he said, his eyes suddenly shining in memory. "She walked down the runway in a stunning blue bare-back dress and cast her spell before I knew what happened. Her siren's call shadowed my eyes and by the time I woke up it was too late. I had signed my life away."

"Oh whatever," Lana retorted in good humor. "You chased after me for two months, following me to every show I did. As I recall, it was you who asked me to sign my life away when you proposed behind the stage while we were in France."

Richard grinned. "And you had no problems with saying yes."

"I think he must have cast the spell," Lana said to Thora. "He's too ugly to have anyone really marry him of their own free will."

Thora giggled as Richard wiggled his eyebrows before delicately kissing his wife's nose. Already she found them to be absolutely charming. Repeatedly she thanked them as they made their way out of the hospital to their car.

"Don't mention it," Richard smiled. "Although I'm going to have to let you two do the shopping. I have to get to work before Perry decides to replace me. Why don't you drop me off at the Planet and then you can take my car around town?"

"Are you sure?" Lana asked.

"I think it would be the best. Besides, I think you'd have an easier time picking out clothes Thora might like than I would."

Lana laughed. "You're right. I can't imagine how you've managed to dress yourself all these years."

"I think I survived just fine," Richard chuckled.

Lana rolled her eyes and turned to Thora in the back seat. "Don't let him fool you. He had no sense of fashion at all until he married me. Now I pick out everything he wears."

Thora snorted with laughter.

"And I have no problem with that either. I don't have to stand in front of my closet for ten minutes trying to come up with an outfit anymore," Richard said with satisfaction.

Ten minutes later they pulled up to the Daily Planet. Thora looked up at the skyscraper with wide eyes. A giant globe rotated at a slight axis on the top, it's golden letters glittering in the sunlight.

Richard gave his wife a quick kiss before getting out of the car. "I'll see both of you ladies around lunchtime."

"Alright," Lana said, sliding over into the driver's seat. Pulling back into the busy street she eyed Thora in the rearview mirror. "Let's go shopping!" she said with a grin.

Two hours later, Thora and Lana emerged from the Metropolis Mall with their arms full of several shopping bags. Lana had insisted on buying twelve different outfits for Thora, complete with shoes and accessories. Not to mention seven different pairs of pajamas and undergarments from Victoria Secret. She also dragged Thora into Bath and Body Works, arguing that every girl had a right to have a shampoo, conditioner, body lotion, and perfume that made them feel beautiful.

Even though Thora had really enjoyed the shopping spree, she felt really bad for having Lana spend so much money on her. She'd tried not to freak out over the totals at all the registers but when the amount was consistantly over a hundred dollars, it was hard to keep a straight face. Lana repeatedly assured her that it wasn't a big deal.

"Thanks so much for all of this," Thora said for the hundredth time as they loaded all the bags into the trunk of the car.

"Like I said, it's my pleasure," Lana replied with her ever patient smile. "It feels good being able to help someone in need."

"You and Richard didn't have to do all of this for me."

"You're right, Thora, but we want to," Lana said. "Now, are you hungry?"

Thora's stomach groaned instantly at the thought of food. "Yes," she said, embarrassed.

Lana laughed. "Alright then. What sounds good to you?"

"Cheese pizza," Thora replied almost without thinking.

"Okay, cheese pizza it is. Let me text Richard and see what he wants. He said it was fine if we have lunch at his office. What do you think? Sound good?"

Thora nodded. After sending a text to Richard, Lana pulled the car around, heading down a main road towards a local pizza place. They got halfway when the road suddenly became packed with unmoving cars. Looking ahead, Lana spotted the source of the problem. "Look's like there's a fire."

Thora glanced up ahead just as something shot across the sky. "What was that?" she cried in surprise.

"Look's like Superman's off to the rescue," Lana said excitedly.

Thora's eyebrows knit together. "Superman?"

"He's a superhero," Lana explained. "He saves people all around the world but everyone knows that Metropolis is his city. It's where he made his debut after all."

"I've never heard of him," Thora muttered, staring at the small blue speck in the distance that appeared to be fighting off the flames and rescuing people from the inside. "He can fly?"

"Oh yes," Lana answered, her eyes following the superhero as he repeatedly disappeared, bringing people to safety. "That's only one of his powers."

"Really? What else can he do?" Thora asked curiously.

Lana then went into a basic description of all of Superman's powers from all the things she'd read about him in the newspapers. "Lois Lane, the star reporter of the Daily Planet, is his personal chronicler. She's the only reporter who has ever had one on one interviews with him."

"Really? Why?"

Lana shrugged. "When he first debuted, he saved Lois Lane from a helicopter accident. Ever since then, he's gone to her whenever he wants a personal interview done. People thought the two had a romantic connection but Lois Lane married one of her coworkers about ten years ago and that ended any rumors that they were seeing each other."

"Oh. That's too bad," Thora muttered. They'd gotten much closer to the accident now. Superman had extinguished the flames and had flown away shortly thereafter but traffic was still trickling along. "I wonder if that hurt his feelings."

"I'm not sure," Lana admitted. "But even though she's married, he still goes to her for all his interviews."

"I guess that means they're still friends."

"I guess so."

Thora looked out the window at the burned out building. It was several stories high. She was sure that if the flames hadn't been taken care of the building would have collapsed. They made it to the pizza place and picked up the pizza before she spoke again. Getting in the car, she said, "I didn't think it was possible for a human to fly."

Lana laughed as she drove back to the Daily Planet. "I guess I forgot to mention that one detail. Superman isn't human."

"What?!" Thora exclaimed in astonishment. "What do you mean? Is he an alien?"

Lana laughed again at her reaction. "That's exactly right. Superman is from a planet called Krypton."

"Why is he here?"

"According to the article covering his first interview, his planet was destroyed. He came to Earth and saw that people needed his help so he stayed and now he's a hero. He was the first superhero Earth has ever had."

"Wait, you mean there's more?"

"Yes," Lana chuckled. "A whole slew of them actually. They're known as the Justice League."

"The Justice League," Thora repeated. For some reason, the name didn't sound right. Thora scrunched her eyebrows but her head started to hurt so she stopped musing over the name.

"There's a whole bunch of stories about them," Lana was saying as she hunted for a parking spot near the Daily Planet. "I'm sure Richard can show you where all the articles are on the Daily Planet's website if you want to know more about them."

"Oh, yes, please," Thora said. She didn't know why but she felt like she should find out all she could about these superheroes. Dr. Hamilton said that if anything caught her interest, she should pursue after it. Maybe reading up on superheroes would help unlock a piece of her memories. She kept these thoughts to herself as she helped Lana carry the pizzas inside. They took the elevator almost to the top floor.

"I confess this is my first time coming to the paper," Lana said. "I'm a little nervous."

"We'll be nervous together," Thora said with an uneasy smile.

"I just hope Richard meets us at the top. I'd hate to try and find him in the bullpen. I hear newsrooms can be a mess."

Just then the elevator doors dinged open and an eruption of noise filled the two women's ears. The clicking of keys being nailed down by hundreds of fingers mixed in with shouts as reporters bustled back and forth sharing news. Several were yelling into their phones, others were shoving coffee mugs repeatedly to their mouths while staring at flat screen TVs displaying the news.

"Hello beautiful," came a familiar voice just to the left of the elevator. Lana and Thora relaxed at the sight of Richard. He smiled at them and spread open his arms. "Welcome to the jungle. Shall we brave the wild beasts and head over to my office?"

The two followed Richard through the bullpen, glad to have a guide. Thora was sure they never would have found him on their own. This place was complete chaos. Reporters used colorful language as they shouted into their phones trying to extract information from their sources on the various stories they had been assigned. They were just passing a door labeled Editor in Chief when it flung open.

"I don't care what you want, old man!" a woman snarled as she stormed out of the office, her dark brown hair flying behind her. "I'm not going to cover the press conference! There are far more interesting stories out there, like who's been sneaking illegal drugs into the city down by the warehouses."

An older gentleman with a head of gray hair came to the doorway and shouted after the woman. "I already told you, Lane! Kent's got the warehouse story. You're going to cover the press conference whether you like it or not!"

The woman whirled around on her heel and electricity seemed to crackled through her hair. "And what if I refuse?"

"Then you're fired," the old man said with finality.

Shaking with rage, the woman whose name was Lane closed her eyes and breathed deeply out of her nose. "Fine! I'll do the press conference. But I expect a raise, Perry! You hear me?!" Snarling, she turned around and stormed away. Everyone seemed to leap ten feet away from her as she went. She slammed her fists down on a desk where a gentleman with rounded, black framed glasses sat. "I hope you're happy, Kent," she snapped.

The man leaned away from his computer and looked up at the angry woman with a smile. "If you'd like I could try to talk the Chief into letting us do the warehouse story together, Lois."

"No way! I won't accept any sympathy from anyone, especially from you!"

He continued to smile as he replied, "Have it your way then." He turned back to his computer and resumed typing up the article she'd interrupted.

Lois Lane continued to fume down at him for several seconds before folding her arms. "Fine," she muttered, angrily. "Go see if he'll let me go with you."

Mr. Kent stood up and then, to Thora's surprise, kissed Lois full on the mouth. "I'll see what I can do."

Lois's anger seemed to melt as she rolled her eyes, smiled, and then walked over to her desk.

"What on earth just happened?" Thora asked aloud, completely confused.

Richard laughed. "Just a typical moment in the bullpen. Lois always fights with the Editor in Chief over her assignments. My uncle usually likes to give her the boring stories while Clark get's the more dangerous and exciting. It's all a ploy to get Lois to share a byline with him, seeing as Clark is her husband."

"If she'd yelled at me like that, I don't think I would have been smiling like ," Thora muttered. "He must have a lot of guts to marry her."

Richard laughed. "Yeah, only someone on the boarderline of insanity would think about living with that woman."

Lois overheard them. She smiled as she went over and gave Richard a hug. "In case you forgot, you lived with me for three years."

"Don't remind me," Richard laughed. "Lois and I were engaged for three years," he said to Thora's questioning look. "But then Clark swooped back into her life and stole her away from me."

"Who's this?" Lois asked, looking at Thora curiously.

"This is the girl I told you about earlier," Richard said.

"Oh, so you must be Thora," Lois said, shaking her hand. "Nice to meet you."

"You too," Thora said.

"And this is Lana," Richard said,geturing to the redhead. "My wife."

There was a sudden round of gasping as everyone in the vicinity turn to look their way. Lois raised her eyebrows but smiled warmly at Lana. "It's nice to meet you," she said sincerely, taking Lana's hand. "But I think you might want to get a divorce. This man is severely unstable."

Lana laughed warmly. "Believe me, I know. I only married him to make sure he doesn't kill himself someday."

Richard rolled his eyes. "What she means to say is that I was too irresistable for her to pass up."

"In your dreams," Lois laughed lightly.

Just then Clark reappeared on the scene. "Chief gave the all clear," he said, "on the condition that you share the byline."

Lois groaned but stifled a complaint. "If I must."

Just then Clark noticed who she was talking to and froze. "Lana?"

"Clark?" the redhead asked with similar disbelief.

"You two know each other?" Richard asked looking between them.

"Are you kidding? Clark and I grew up together," Lana revealed.

"What are you doing here?" Clark asked.

"She's my wife," Richard said.

Clark's jaw dropped. "Your wife? Since when did you get married?"

Lana laughed over his expression. "We met when he was overseas covering one of my fashion shows. We got married last week."

"It was a spur of the moment kind of thing," Richard admitted. "We kind of eloped."

Lois' eyebrows rose at that. "I'm sure your parents were thrilled over that news."

Richard shrugged it off. "They're not interested in my life anyway since I failed to take over the family firm. Lana's parents were just happy she finally found someone to settle down with."

"Well, congratulations," Clark said, grinning. "Although you might want to file for a divorce, Lana. Richard's not the best company to keep."

There was a round of laughter between the four adults.

"Your wife said the same thing," Lana said. "But I think I'll keep him. He's been fairly entertaining so far."

"You've got that right," Richard grinned. "I bet nobody you've ever dated has satisfied your desires as much as I have."

"I don't know, Clark did a pretty good job when we dated."

That caused some stares. Clark shuffled back and forth uncomfortably as Richard processed this bit of information.

"Wait a second," he muttered. "You and Clark went out?"

"Back in Senior year," Lana answered with a smile. "That was the best year of high school, wasn't it Clark?"

"Yeah, it was," Clark agreed.

"What made you two split?" Richard asked, curiously.

"We realized after a while that we liked being friends more than being a couple," Lana said which was the honest truth.

"Well, I'm glad," Richard said with a grin. "Lana was meant for me anyway. Hands off, Clark. You already stole one of my girls."

Clark laughed and put an arm around Lois. "Don't worry, Richard. There's never going to be another woman in my life. Lois is the only one meant for me."

"And you better not forget it either, Smallville," Lois said, kissing his cheek.

"Oh, Clark, this is Thora, she's the girl I told you about earlier," Richard said, introducing the blond who had remained silent throughout the whole exchange.

Clark smiled. "Nice to meet you, Thora. I'm glad you're alright. Richard told us that some thugs tried to hurt you in an alley."

Thora nodded. "Yeah but I don't know what happened. One second they had their hands all over me and then there was this gust of wind and all of them were knocked out cold."

Clark seemed to stiffen for the briefest of moments but then it passed. "Well, I'm glad you're okay."

"Hey, the pizza's getting cold," Richard said. "Come on, let's eat. Lois, Clark, feel free to join us."

Richard led them into his office where they spent the next half hour devouring the pizzas and listening to stories about Lana and Clark's high school days. Thora kept looking over at Lois. She had to stifle her gasp when she first heard her name. This had to be the reporter Lana had talked about, the one who had personally interviewed Superman. Thora really wanted to ask her about the superhero but she didn't know how to bring up the subject. Since Richard seemed to have a past with her, maybe Thora could ask him to help her find a time where she could talk to Lois about Superman.

After about half an hour, Lois and Clark excused themselves to go chase down after the story on the illegal drugs. Lana was filling in Richard on her and Thora's shopping spree when the door opened and Richard's uncle came into the room. After making introductions, Perry shouted for about ten whole minutes in rage that his nephew had went behind his back and gotten married while on the job. But under the anger Thora could tell that Perry White was actually really pleased by the news. After his tyraid, he smiled. "I'm glad my nephew finally found a good woman to settle down with. Welcome to the family Lana."

"Thank you. It's a pleasure to meet you, Mr. White."

"Call me Perry. And it's good to meet you Thora. Feel free to come over to dinner anytime you want. Richard, make sure you bring her and your wife with you this weekend. Louelle is making a mean casserole."

"Wouldn't miss it for the world, Perry," Richard smiled.

"Yes well, I need to get back to my office. Don't forget, I want your article on the ax murderer from London on my desk before five or else I'll find a new assistant." And without waiting for a reply, he left, slamming the door behind him.

Lana looked at Richard who smiled widely at her. "Told you he'd love you."

Lana laughed.