Emmeline stared at Hannah in shock. "What?" she said softly.

"But that's not the first time you've heard that name. Clark is from there, isn't he?"

Emmeline thought she might be in the midst of a heart attack. As if finding out her true parentage wasn't bad enough, had she somehow given away Clark's secret to Hannah? She was usually so careful! How was he going to react to her mistake?

"You didn't do anything, I figured it out on my own," Hannah told her, seeing her panicked look. "The first time I came here, I heard all the stories about how he always seemed to be in the right place at the right time, and I kind of put it together from there."

The fact that her biological mother knew about Clark's history before she did felt like yet another slap in the face.

"No, no, no, this…this isn't possible," Emmeline said in between frantic breaths. It felt like someone was squeezing all of the air out of her lungs, and she realized how many times she had felt this way in just the last three months alone. "I'm not…I'm not part-alien! I can't be! I'm…I'm human!"

Hannah quickly stood up. "I know, I know this is a lot to take in. I'm so sorry, I should've told you sooner, I just didn't know how."

She moved to put a hand on her arm, but Emmeline quickly took a step back. "You're wrong. I'm human. I have to be."

"Emmeline—"

Emmeline quickly ran out of the hotel room and back to her car where she burst into sobs. Far, far in the back of her mind, she had somewhat suspected that the sudden appearance of Clark's abilities had something to do with her father, but she had desperately wanted Hannah to tell her that she was wrong, that she'd gotten infected with something from being around Clark for so long or that it was a result of being around meteor rocks and Kryptonian technology. She didn't know what she was supposed to do now with this knowledge. Reuniting with her biological mother had been an extremely long and difficult process in itself, but finding out that her father was from a different planet, and the same planet as her best friend at that, was just too much. She didn't even know who she was anymore. It felt like her entire life was crashing down around her.

She pulled out her latest burner phone and dialed the number inside. When she heard a click on the other end, she said softly and tearfully, "Oliver…will you come get me?"

"Emmeline? What's wrong?"

"I need to get out of here now. I feel like I can't breathe. I want to get out of Smallville."

Without missing a beat, he replied, "I'm on my way."

Four hours later, there was a knock on Emmeline's front door. She answered it with a small bag already packed with essentials.

"Where do you want to go?" Oliver asked.

Emmeline looked back at him with glassy red eyes. "I don't care. Just get me away from here."

"Let's go."

She grabbed her phone and sent off a quick text to Chloe: 'I'm leaving to train for a couple days. Left a note for Dad. If anyone asks, cover for me.' Then she closed the door behind her and walked to Oliver's awaiting car.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Oliver asked once they were driving down the road to the airstrip where his private jet sat waiting for him.

"No. I just want to get out of here. I want to go somewhere that I can forget about everything…for just a little while."

Having only seen her in their training sessions, Oliver wasn't used to this side of Emmeline. The reason he'd always gotten her to talk out her problems with him was half to make sure she was focusing on her training, and half to give her a safe place to get everything off her chest. From what little he'd known about her at the time, he'd guessed that she didn't have many places that she could speak completely freely. Clark and Chloe were her closest friends and supporters, but there were things she didn't feel comfortable telling them and things she couldn't talk about to strangers thanks to the abnormal and secret-filled life they all lived. He knew what it felt like to bottle up so many feelings of anger and frustration until they ultimately took their toll on the body, and he never wanted that to happen to her.

But they weren't training now. Whatever was going on was much deeper than anything she had brought to him before. It seemed as if it had completely shattered her and now he was trying to make sure none of the pieces got lost or left behind. And he knew that now wasn't the time to coax her into sharing it. Sometimes avoiding the problem for just a little while and giving it time to sink in was okay too.

"Okay. I know where we can go."

Emmeline stepped out onto the balcony and stretched as she looked out at the beautiful blue ocean before her.

It had been six days so far of incredible rest and relaxation. Oliver had taken her to a private oceanside villa in Belize. She'd never seen the ocean in person before, thanks to living right smack dab in the middle of the country, and it was so much more beautiful than seeing it on a screen. When she wasn't spending time on the beach, she was treated to massages, facials, body scrubs, hot tubs, yoga sessions, and luxurious dinners. The last several years of her life had been so constantly busy that spending all this time destressing almost felt wrong, but it was very, very welcome.

Oliver stepped out onto the balcony with her. "So what's your plan exactly? You can't spend the rest of your life here."

"I mean…I could," Emmeline answered.

"But I know you don't want to."

He was right. She cared about Chloe and Clark and her dad and her job way too much to just never return to Smallville again. But life was so much easier all the way out here. She truly wished that it could always be like this.

"You're going to have to go back and face things eventually."

"I'm surprised you haven't pushed me to tell you what's going on, even after I made you drop everything and take me to Belize."

"You didn't make me do anything. And I know how to read a room. Trying to get you to talk was clearly going to make things worse. Whatever's going on will have to be something you share in your own time."

"Thanks. There is probably something we should talk about though."

"And what's that?"

Emmeline turned to face him, her face reddening. "How my last training session ended."

Oliver continued staring out at the ocean.

It infuriated her that he didn't blush or look nervous or anything. Not because she was offended that their kiss meant nothing, but because literally any reaction would prove that even he got flustered.

"I don't regret it, if that's what you're asking."

"You practically sprinted out of the room."

"Fair point. That was mainly because I was worried you'd think I was taking advantage of you or that that was the only reason I agreed to train you. It's not, by the way."

"I didn't think it was."

"So the question is, do you regret it?"

Blushing even harder, Emmeline shook her head. "No."

Oliver moved closer to her, put one of his hands to her neck, and gently kissed her. When he pulled back, he said quietly, "I don't regret that either."

Emmeline smiled at him.

"So…go back tomorrow then?"

"Yeah. Tomorrow."

Oliver put his car in park at the airstrip where the private jet sat waiting to take Emmeline back to Smallville.

"I was thinking…" he started.

"Those sentences rarely end well," Emmeline said.

"I know you live with your dad, and there's nothing wrong with that, but if you wanted a place to yourself, my old loft is empty."

Emmeline had to take a moment to fully understand what he was offering. "Uh…you mean the penthouse?"

"Yeah. It has its own washer and dryer, a couple bedrooms, and a gym on the first floor of the building. I'm not really married to any of the furniture, so if you want to sell it and get your own, I'm fine with that. A lot of my equipment is still there too, so you can use it to practice."

"That place has to be insanely expensive. I appreciate the offer, but I could never afford it."

"It'd be rent-free. If I'm still paying for it, someone ought to get a use out of it."

"I couldn't do that, I'd pay you at least half of what it's worth."

"And I'm telling you that I don't want you to focus on that. But if you really want to give me something, then I expect your training to start progressing twice as fast now that you're able to keep working on your own."

"Oliver…"

"The lease will still be in my name, but for all intents and purposes, it will be yours. I'll make sure you have the only key, and I promise not to barge in there whenever I please just because I own it. What do you say?"

Emmeline really didn't mind living with her dad, but the idea of having a place of her very own that she could retreat to at the end of a long day and not have to talk to anyone sounded so perfect. "Are you absolutely sure about this? What if you come back to Smallville and need a place to stay?"

"It won't be hard to find a hotel room or something. Emmeline, trust me, I've put a lot of thought into this over the last few days. The place is yours if you want it. All I ask in return is more effort into your training. Deal?"

Emmeline sighed and then smiled at him. "Deal."

"Hey."

Chloe looked up from her desk and immediately bolted out of her seat. "Em, I was really getting worried! I thought you were leaving for two or three days, but it's been a week. I can only cover for you for so long."

"I know, I'm sorry. I didn't know how long I was going to be gone, but thanks for having my back."

"Why would Oliver make you guys leave so suddenly?"

"I needed some space for a little while."

"Is everything okay?"

"I think so. Or at least, it's better than it was a few days ago."

"Well, give a girl a little warning next time, will you?"

"Hopefully, this won't happen again. But…are you okay? Something seems off with you."

"Let's just say I'm dealing with cousin drama."

Emmeline was already keeping everything about her recent vacation from Chloe, so she decided not to push what exactly fell under the umbrella of 'cousin drama'.

When Emmeline walked inside the penthouse apartment, she abruptly stopped when she saw Lana sitting on the couch. "Hey, I didn't realize anyone was going to be here." She took in the beautiful blonde woman sitting next to Lana. The only people who ever came here after Oliver moved out were usually people in trouble. "What's going on?"

Lana stood up from the couch. "Em, this is Lara. She's…Clark's mother."

"…Um…wait, how is that possible?"

Lara gave her a beautiful but sad smile. "Technically, I am only a replicant of Clark's mother, created from DNA stored in Kara's Kryptonian crystal. I have all the memories of Lara, but I'm not really her."

Emmeline smiled back. "Well, regardless, it's very nice to meet you. I'm Emmeline Brooks, I'm one of Clark's closest friends."

A small spark of recognition lit up in Lara's eyes. "Lana, do you mind refilling my cup? I think Emmeline could use some tea as well."

"Uh, yeah, sure," Lana said, taking Lara's mug and heading towards the stove.

Lara took one of Emmeline's hands. "You know, don't you? About your father?"

Emmeline quickly looked towards the kitchen area to make sure Lana couldn't hear them. "Yeah."

"I knew him well."

Emmeline's heart panged. It was one thing to hear about him from her own mother, but to hear this from someone from who had lived and grown up in the same place as her father…

"When he returned from your planet, you and your mother were all he could talk about. He would be so proud of the beautiful woman you've become."

Emmeline tried to fight back tears because she didn't want to have to explain them to Lana. For so many years, she had wondered why her father would abandon her and force her mother to give her up. She still didn't completely understand why he'd left, but hearing from Lara that he'd loved her and that he would be proud of her helped ease the lingering pain and shock from Hannah's revelation the week before.

"Does Clark know?"

"No," Emmeline answered quickly. "No one does. I just found out about a week ago. Please don't tell him. I'm still trying to process it all myself."

"Of course. I understand that is something that must be shared when you are ready."

"Thank you."

There was a loud whoosh out on the balcony followed by a man's voice calling, "Lara!"

Lara's eyes widened in alarm. "Lana, Emmeline, leave."

Emmeline quickly took Lana's arm and ushered them both into one of the bedrooms.

A tall man wearing a long black coat walked through the balcony doors. "You don't have to fear, my love. There's a new life waiting for us up in the frozen north."

He roughly took Lara's arm and started to push her towards the doors.

Lana burst out of the bedroom and demanded, "Let her go."

Clark arrived on the elevator to the apartment just in time to watch the man toss Lana up against the elevator's grating. He quickly pushed the grating away and took Lana's head in his hands. "Lana?"

Lana weakly groaned, a trickle of blood slipping down the side of her mouth.

When Clark looked up, his mother and the man were gone.

Emmeline knelt down in front of Clark and touched his bloodied forehead. "Clark, what happened to you? Who was that?"

"That was Zor-El, Kara's father and my uncle."

"He called Lara 'my love'."

"He's in love with her. He stole her DNA and recreated her using the crystal then also recreated himself. And now I have to deal with this." He held up his hand where she saw a blue ring on his ring finger. "Emmeline, this ring took away my powers…and I can't get it off."

With Clark out of commission, Emmeline drove him and Lana to the hospital, then while Lana was being treated, she and Clark went over to the Daily Planet.

Chloe ran up to Clark in a panic when she saw the wounds on his face. "You said it was bad, but I didn't expect Raging Bull bad."

"The good news is the ER doctor said that Lana has no internal injuries," Clark told her. "She'll be fine."

"Yeah, but you're not. Blood and sweat on Clark Kent are never a good combination. Hey, listen, a little advice, until your wedding day, refrain from wearing rings of any kind."

"I was tricked, Chloe. It's all part of Zor-El's plan. She was crying out for me. I couldn't just ignore her."

"Trust me. Em and I both get wanting to see your long-lost mother, but, Clark, the sad reality is your mom died. You can't bring people back from the dead."

"She's not a zombie. She's my mother. I have to do everything in my power to save her."

"Powers which at this point are sorely lacking."

Emmeline couldn't help wondering if Clark's blue ring could be the answer to all her problems.

"This is where having a super-charged cousin comes in handy."

"Kara betrayed me. She's on her father's side."

"Wow. I guess no matter how twisted and evil Zor-El is, he's still her dad."

"This is why I need you to give me a ride. I need to get this ring off my finger and go to the Fortress."

"Look, Clark, my Yaris gets awesome mileage, but I seriously doubt it'll get us all the way to the North Pole."

"How about to my barn?"

A few moments later, Chloe and Emmeline came down from the loft to find Clark attempting to get the blue ring off with a grinder.

"Hey, hey, hey!" Chloe said urgently. "I know the Blue K is seriously cramping your style, but you don't have to grind your finger off!"

Clark angrily shut off the grinder. "I don't know what else to do. It's unbreakable."

"Considering what all the other flavors of kryptonite do, being normal might not be such a bad thing."

"Not when the people I care about are in danger. I have to get to the Fortress with or without my abilities."

"Well, don't forget your book."

Clark opened the book she handed him and found the Kryptonian key hidden inside.

Suddenly, the sky began to darken.

"What's happening?" Clark said as he went outside.

Chloe whipped open her phone to the news.

"We're looking at sunny skies in Smallville, Granville, and the surrounding areas," the weather announcer said. "Now let's take a look at our seven-day forecast."

Chloe and Emmeline joined Clark outside and looked up at the sky. A dark circle was in the process of overtaking the sun.

"There's no storm on the horizon," Chloe said.

"It's too dark for a storm," Clark answered. "It's an eclipse."

"That's astronomically impossible. The next one isn't for years."

"Zor-El."

Clark stopped the eclipse by shattering the crystal and destroying the remnant Zor-El, but in the process, he also destroyed the remnant of his mother.

Emmeline slowly stepped into the barn. "Hey," she said softly. "I wanted to see how you're holding up."

"Kara's gone and I'm not sure if she's ever coming back, and I lost my mother all over again. So I'm doing about as well as you'd expect."

"I'm so sorry."

"I'm at least glad that you got to meet her before…"

"She was so beautiful. You're so much like her." After a brief pause, she asked hesitantly, "So…um, what happened to that ring?"

"It was destroyed at the same time as the crystal."

"Do you know if there's any more on Earth?"

"No. It could come in handy sometimes if only I knew that it could be controlled. But even if there was any on Earth, I wouldn't know how to begin looking for it. I doubt it's something that would come up in x-ray vision." Clark noticed that Emmeline's eyes were beginning to fill with tears. "What's wrong?"

"Clark, I am so happy that both of us got the chance to meet your mother. I really am. And I'm so sorry that you only got to spend a couple days with her. I just…I found out some things about my biological dad that I'm still trying to process."

"Is that why I haven't heard from you much the last few days?"

"Yeah."

"What kind of things?"

Emmeline shook her head. "I can't say right now. I…just need you wait until I'm ready."

"Considering you waited until I told you my secret, I can wait until you're ready to tell me yours."

"Thanks. And I'm sure that we'll hear from Kara soon."