Lois frowned at the teenager in front of her.
"Something wrong, Mrs. Kent?" the boy asked, innocently.
"I just thought you'd be taller," Lois said, dryly.
"Lois, could you excuse us a minute?" Clark asked abruptly, glaring daggers at the young superhero. Just who had put starch in his shorts, all of a sudden?
He ushered Superman to a spot several feet away and began whispering in a voice too low for her to hear, which simply would not do. Lois strode up to them just in time to hear Superman whisper "Oh, come on, just let me have this!"
"Look," Clark whispered back, "just because I can't--" He broke off suddenly and turned his glare onto Lois. "Do you mind?" he asked her.
Lois scowled at him. "Of course I mind!" she huffed. "I mean, it's one thing for you to have some weird connection with Superman back in our universe, but do you have to hog this world's Superman, too?"
"He's not Superman!" Clark snapped with such conviction that Lois was taken aback.
"How do you know that?" she asked.
Clark's eyes widened, and he seemed to flounder for a moment. "He's too young to be Superman," he said at last.
"No kidding," Lois agreed with a snort.
"Maybe he's a clone?" someone asked.
Lois and Clark turned to see a reporter for the Star standing right behind them. The crowd was pressing close despite the police's efforts to put up barricades, and a few enterprising individuals had broken through to inspect the young superhero up close.
"Maybe time travel is involved," someone else offered.
"You know what, Superman," Clark suddenly said, "I think you'd better head home. We'll meet you back at the h--ah...at the...giant...crystal...fortress." Something in his face twitched.
"Oh, of course!" Superman replied. "See you later Mr. Kent...Mrs. Kent." With a nod to each of them, he lifted off into the air and unsteadily flew away.
Lois' forehead crinkled. "Giant crystal fortress?" she echoed. "Clark, what on earth is going--" she broke off when she took in his wretched expression. "Clark, what's the matter?"
"Nothing's the matter," Clark insisted, while the growing crowd behind him began to mull over giant crystal fortresses. "Let's just get out of here."
He strode ahead of her, not even looking to see if she was following, and found where she'd parked the jeep. Lois sighed and climbed into the driver's side, but once they were buckled in, she didn't turn the key. Instead, she locked the doors. "Talk," she ordered.
