Continued from:
Part 1
Part 2

From Part 2:

The judge paused, then asked the City Attorney to approach the bench. For a few minutes, they discussed an alternate solution to the situation. Satisfied, the attorney went back to her chair and the judge proceeded to explain what they'd agreed upon.

"Superman," she started, "we're going to limit this to your not making use of the powers that you can manage to control. And... you'll also need to stay completely out of the sunlight, until further notice. Obviously, you need to leave the courthouse, so I will give you an hour to find a place to hide from the sun. But no more. Do you agree to these terms?"

"Yes, your honor." he said solemnly.


[...]

"Listen to me, and I suggest you listen really good," he commanded, "I don't care if you have to kneel down before him and beg, I don't care *what* you have to do. Hell, I don't give a damn if you have to do this yourself. This is going to happen and that's the end of it. There's going to be a train accident tonight and I couldn't care less how it comes to be, it will just be."

[...]

Livewire let out a frustrated sigh and cut the communication. She hated this man! She was starting to hate him even more than she hated Superman. As soon as the superhero was gone, she'd get rid of the Weather Wizard, she vowed. All she had to do was crush his stupid wand... And then she could rule over Metropolis. Yes! She would control the city herself!


~.~.~.~.~

Part 3:

Clark managed to return home unnoticed after the court hearing. He called Jimmy at the Planet and had him leave a message for Lois to call him at home. He wasn't going to the office, he explained, as his head was still throbbing with pain and it was all he could do to think right now.

Lying to Jimmy wasn't something Clark especially liked to do, but he had no other choice. He had agreed to stay indoors until further notice and the fact that no one knew *he* was Superman didn't mean that Clark Kent could go running around town in his street clothes and pretend that he wasn't violating an injunction. If Superman had to be confined someplace, then Clark would have to convince people that he needed to stay home for now. He hoped this wouldn't get so complicated that he'd let anything slip. Talking about himself in the third person was starting to be second nature by now - and so was pretending that he had conversations with... well, himself - but Clark wasn't very good at lying to everyone he knew. He hated doing it so much, no wonder he hadn't mastered the skill... This time, though, he really needed to pull it off, or he'd likely get himself in a heap of trouble!

He thought about his options for a while. Staying in his apartment with the blinds shut probably wasn't sufficient, if he were being honest. Sunlight did still come through no matter what and since he'd promised to stay completely out of it, that wasn't really acceptable, was it? So Clark picked up the phone and called S.T.A.R. Labs. He had Superman speak with Dr. Klein and ask whether there was any way they could set up some place for him to stay where he would be absolutely certain there was no natural light.

"Yes, yes, of course. We'd be more than happy to accommodate you," the scientist told him. "Several of our labs are below ground level. They can even be sealed off, if you need to be completely isolated."

"I don't think that will be necessary," Superman replied, "I appreciate your help, Dr. Klein. I couldn't think of anywhere else that might permit me to respect the terms of this injunction. I hope I can count on you to keep this a secret?"

"Oh, yes, definitely. No one other than myself needs to know and I give you my word, Superman, I will not betray your confidence."

"Thank you," Superman said, grateful for the doctor's discretion. "I need to stay where I am for now; I have to be indoors at least until the sun sets. When do you think it would be safe for me to meet you without risking being seen by anyone there?"

"Well... huh... I should think midnight would be appropriate for that," the scientist suggested. "The security guards would be doing their rounds then, so I can get you in through the back door, there won't be anyone at the front desk to see it happen on the surveillance screens. They never go back and rewind the tapes to see what's gone on while they were away unless an alarm sounds, so it won't be that hard to get you in unnoticed. Then, I can rig the camera in my private lab so that they won't see what's actually going on down there. You'll need to hide while they do rounds, but I expect you should be able to hear them coming way ahead of time. Besides, they usually just look through the window on the door; they don't come in the lab. Nobody but the guards and myself have clearance to enter that lab, so you'll be perfectly safe and no one will know you're there."

"Perfect. I'll meet you at the back entrance at midnight, then. Thank you again, Dr. Klein."

Now, all Clark needed to do was think of a good enough excuse for himself to disappear from Metropolis for a while...

~.~.~.~.~

Lois went back to the Planet with a heavy heart. She had hoped to be able to speak to Superman for a minute or two after the hearing. She just wanted to reassure him that there was at least one person out there who didn't think he was guilty and tell him that she and Clark were working on finding the *real* cause of the heat wave. He usually stopped a few seconds to chat when she was there, so she had hoped that he would this time as well. But he had completely ignored her. Ok, so he also ignored every other reporter and left without answering a single question from anyone. Maybe he hadn't seen her there? He had left so quickly!

And now... Lois had no clue where Superman was or how to contact him - not that she normally did, but this time no amount of screaming out his name would make him show up, would it? He'd agreed to stay locked up somewhere and she didn't have the faintest idea where he could be. Poor man, he was probably all alone, worried and hurt and... well, just the thought of him being miserable made Lois miserable too.

She wondered if Clark had had any luck with the scientists at S.T.A.R. Labs. Not that it really mattered that much anymore... Even if they could perform tests on Superman, the injunction prevented him from using any of his powers - how would they be able to find out if there was a direct connection between the temperature and his super powers if he was restricted from using them? Besides, they wouldn't know how to contact him any more than she did, would they? Then again... maybe Clark would know? He seemed to have a privileged relationship with the Man of Steel, after all. She'd just have to make Clark tell her what he knew next time she spoke to him.

Jimmy caught up with Lois as she entered the newsroom.

"Hey, Lois, I have a..." he started, but she quickly interrupted him.

"Not now, Jimmy, I have to get this article in right away."

"But..." he protested.

"Not now!" she snapped, walking towards her desk as fast as her legs could take her.

"But, I have a mes..." Jimmy tried again in vain.

"I said *not now*," Lois hissed, giving him an angry look. She dropped her briefcase on her desk and sat down at the computer to type her account of the court hearing.

Jimmy sighed, frustrated. He made a beeline for his desk, where he grabbed a pen and scribbled a note in huge letters on a piece of paper. Once he was done writing, he walked over to Lois and slammed the note on her desk. He took off as quickly as he'd come.

"Hey!" Lois shouted at him. She looked at the sheet of paper, it said "Call C.K. at home."

"Jimmy!" she hollered, "why didn't you tell me right away?"

Jimmy turned to face her and gave her an 'are you kidding me' kind of glare. "Women!" he thought to himself before he disappeared into the copy room.

Lois picked up the phone and stuck the handset between her shoulder and her ear. She dialed Clark's number, then went on about typing her article.

"Hey, it's me," she announced, barely giving Clark enough time to say 'Hello' after he'd picked up. "I take it you're not feeling any better?" Lois asked, although it sounded more like an accusation than it did a question.

"Seriously, no. It's like my head is going to explode," he told her. He wasn't making it up, either. He'd been trying to make sense of things, weighing his options, hoping to find some way of saving himself and Superman... and failing miserably!

"You need to see a doctor, Clark," she said very matter-of-factly. "Did you get a chance to talk to anyone at S.T.A.R. Labs?"

"Actually, yes, I spoke with..." he started.

"There aren't going to be any tests," Lois cut in. "Right?"

"I don't see how they could possibly..."

"Yeah, I didn't think so," she interrupted again. "Anything else?"

"Huh... well... no." Clark answered.

"Clark?" Lois asked, suddenly switching from her 'all business' attitude to a gentler sounding tone. "You heard about the hearing, didn't you?"

"Yeah, I heard," he said, regretfully.

"You wouldn't happen to know..." she hesitated for a second before spitting it out, "Do you have any idea where he's hiding out? Superman, I mean."

"Lois, he doesn't want anyone to know... Not for the moment anyway. I mean, for one thing it could be dangerous. And not just for him. Besides, the last thing he wants is nosy reporters hanging around, wanting to ask questions. Even worse, people stopping by to catch a glimpse of the fallen hero."

"You know where he is, though, don't you?" Lois enquired.

"I do," he sighed. He didn't feel like arguing with her about this. Not now. It was best to tell her the truth anyway. Of course, he wasn't about to tell her *where* Superman was, but Clark still always favored the truth over lies, even little white ones, if he could manage it.

"I don't suppose I could convince you to tell me, could I?" she asked, sounding downright sugary sweet by then.

" 'fraid not."

"It's just... I'm worried about him," Lois confessed.

"About Superman? Why?" Clark was surprised by her statement. Lois worried about Superman? That was a strange role reversal... it was usually he who worried about her. People weren't usually concerned with the well-being of an invulnerable alien, anyway. This felt slightly odd. Pleasant, but odd.

"Oh, I don't know..." she admitted. "It's just, I don't suppose he has a lot of people he can sit down with and talk to about things. He must feel lonely and isolated right now. Especially isolated. He's been ordered to go into hiding, for crying out loud! I just thought... well... I just thought maybe he needed someone to tell him they cared and that things will get better. That sort of thing. You know? A friend."

Clark wished he could tell Lois how much he really did need a friend, right now. But that just wasn't possible. He had to keep up the charade, let her think that *he* was there for Superman no matter how ridiculous sounding that was, considering it meant he was there for himself...

"I'm sure he'd appreciate it, Lois."

"But you won't tell me," she added, sourly.

"I'm sorry..."

"Right... Well, I have to finish this story. Go see a doctor about your migraine, Clark. Ok? I don't know how long I can cover for you with half the newsroom already out of commission."

Lois hung up without waiting for Clark to say anything more.

Clark sighed, somewhat frustrated, and dropped the handset back into the cradle. On the bright side, he thought, he'd managed to buy himself a little more time to come up with an excuse for having to go out of town while Superman stayed sequestered at S.T.A.R. Labs.

~.~.~.~.~

By mid-afternoon, Clark was going stir crazy. He'd been pacing for hours, trying not to get himself all worked up over the news reports about Superman that had been running continuously since the hearing. Some of what these so called journalists were reporting was so far off from the truth, he was ashamed to think he shared their profession.

The phone rang, but Clark was so lost in thought it took several rings before he even noticed anything.

"Yeah?" he answered, with an exasperated sigh.

"Clark? Honey, what's going on over there? Are you OK?" came Martha Kent's frantic voice.

"You should have called us, son," Jonathan Kent added, reprovingly.

"Oh... Hi Mom, Dad. I'm sorry... I'm really not thinking straight right now," Clark told his parents.

"What's all this nonsense about the temperature and you having to stay out of the sun?" his mother asked.

"Well, the temperature has definitely been rising over here, that's not a collective hallucination or anything," he explained. "It's like a furnace out there! As for the rest, I have to admit I'm just as clueless as you guys. I don't really see how but for the time being, it appears likely that I am responsible for this heat wave."

"Hogwash!" his Dad interjected. "You've used your powers for years in Smallville and there's never been any changes in temperature. And there's been no such thing in any other part of the world you've been to either, has there?"

"No... but ever since I've been in Metropolis, ever since I put on that Suit, I've been using my powers a lot more than I ever had before and not just for everyday stuff. We're talking major rescue operations on a daily basis, here."

"Still. We don't see how this makes any sense at all!"

"Yeah, I know. I'm not sure I understand it very well either," Clark admitted. "But what can I do? We all agree this needs to be looked into, there needs to be some real investigation into the cause of it and obviously, while I'm out there using my powers it's hindering on the results. Besides, I couldn't possibly stand there and tell a judge that there is no way I would submit to the judicial system. Do you have any idea what that would look like?"

"Of course you couldn't do that, sweetie, of course," Martha conceded. "But what does it mean for you, though?"

"What are you going to do?" her husband added.

"I've arranged to stay at S.T.A.R. Labs for a while. I'll be able to monitor things from there a lot more easily and I'll definitely be out of the sunlight completely."

"Won't that harm you, son?" Jonathan asked, concerned. "Not being able to see the sun at all?"

"I honestly don't know," Clark told them, defeated. "But it might serve as proof that I don't actually need *that much* sun..."

"Why don't you come back to Smallville instead?"

"Because, Mom... what if they are right? If I am a solar conductor, then what does it matter where I am? I would still end up being a menace to people and the last thing I want to do is put you guys in danger!"

"But if you're going to stay holed up in a lab for days... Clark, that doesn't make much sense either, you know. You wanted to live in the city, sure, not be imprisoned there!"

"I know, Dad, I know. I'll... I'll think of something. Don't worry too much about me."

"Clark, of course we worry. That's what parents do," Martha explained. "We love you, honey. Just you remember that and we're always here for you."

" 'Love you guys too. I promise I'll let you know what's going on every chance I get."

Clark hung up after exchanging goodbyes with his parents.

He knew he needed to get in touch with Perry sometime soon... He'd been putting it off as he wasn't able to think of a good enough excuse for him to be out of commission for an undetermined period of time. Surely he couldn't play the migraine card much longer or the editor might start thinking Clark had a brain tumor. That would definitely not be a good idea!

He took a deep breath, trying to gather the strength needed for the task, then he picked up the phone again and dialed Perry White's number at the Daily Planet. Clark gave the editor some half-baked excuse about a vague family emergency, which he hoped Perry wouldn't be suspicious of or ask too many questions about.

"Family emergency, huh?" the chief replied. "I'm ...ah... sorry to hear that, Clark."

"I managed to get a ticket on the red eye tonight, I'll be back as soon as I possibly can. I just don't know for sure how long this is going to take..."

"Well, can you ballpark it at all?"

"A few days for sure. Maybe a week. I sincerely hope it doesn't take any longer than that. I'll keep you informed, you can count on that," Clark promised before he said goodbye and hung up the phone.

"I don't envy the guy," Perry thought as he hung up the phone himself. "I'm amazed he's even able to keep it together these days..." He shook his head, hoping things would sort themselves out somehow. Perry would hate to lose half of his best news reporting team, not to mention everything else they currently stood to lose if this heat wave didn't end sometime soon.

~.~.~.~.~

At the same time, near the train station...

Livewire had been unable to convince Metallo to give her a hand with this train accident they needed to cause. The cyborg just wouldn't listen anymore. To be honest, she could hardly blame him for resenting the way he'd been treated by that blasted Weather Wizard!

She'd known all along that this was going to happen... The Wizard had serious delusions of grandeur. She'd told her companions that letting some weather-controlling maniac into their ranks was a bad idea, but did they listen? For crying out loud, the man didn't even have a bone to pick with Superman, let alone a need to exact revenge on him. He was from Central City, damn it! Let him go fight The Flash!

How was getting rid of Superman a proper revenge anyway? They needed to make him suffer for all that they'd endured at his hands. Forcing him to leave Metropolis... come on, what was painful about that? That was the stupidest plan she'd ever heard! What did an alien from another planet really care what city he was staying in?

Livewire couldn't believe she'd actually agreed to participate in this! Of course, unless she could get a hold of the wand and destroy it, she was the most vulnerable one of them all to fight off the Weather Wizard. Anyone who could make it rain on command had a serious advantage over a being made of pure electric energy. So for the time being she'd gone along with the plan... Once this was done, however, she'd make sure the Wizard was put out of commission and she'd go back to working on her own. Being on a team made up mostly of *men* really aggravated her!

So there she was, near the train station, trying to keep out of view while she looked for anything that she might use to cause a train to derail.

Suddenly, she had a better idea. Why force the train to derail when all she really needed to do was cut its brakes? A train without brakes would run full speed ahead until it crashed right in the barricade at the end of the line, wouldn't it?

She let out an evil laugh before turning into a bolt of lightning again and disappearing into a nearby electric power line.

~.~.~.~.~

To be continued...

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